Jonathan Swift (1667-1745)

Satire and Irony in Dublin

LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT

Jonathan Swift is widely regarded as the greatest writer of satire in English literature. Yet it is crucial for understanding Swift's satire to know that he was not really English. Swift was born in Dublin in 1667, to a family that originally had emigrated from England -- for this reason, he is generally described as "Anglo-Irish." Swift did his university studies in Dublin at Trinity College, graduating in 1686. From here he became the personal secretary to a politician and writer, Sir William Temple, and moved to England. Political machinations, however, hampered Swift's advancement in a political career -- instead he would end up taking a position in the Protestant Church of Ireland, ultimately rising to the position of Dean at Saint Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin.

Swift's career encompassed both literature and politics. As a wit and satirist,...
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