Satire in the Eighteenth Century Essay - 790 Words

Satire in the Eighteenth Century New ideas, original thoughts, and fresh interpretations characterized the spirit of the eighteenth century. Science was flourishing, and therefore it brought new discoveries that challenged the traditional dominating force of religion. Influential figures of the age, such as Voltaire, Jonathan Swift, and William Hogarth, strove to assure human betterment and advance human thinking through truth and humorous criticism. They employed the use of satire in order to accomplish their common goal. According to A Handbook of Literary Terms, satire is defined as a work or manner that blends a censorious attitude with humor or wit for improving human institutions or humanity (Harmon and†¦show more content†¦Jonathan Swifts novel Gullivers Travels mocks the English system of government with the dwarfed civilization of Lilliput (Swift Biography). He parallels the Lilliputian emperor to the English monarch and stresses the segregation of English courts. The narrator, Gulliver, states his natural disposition: I had been hitherto all my life a stranger to the courts, for which I was unqualified by the meanness of my condition (Swift 78). Moreover, the biased charges of treason that befell Gulliver were Swifts weapon of caviling against English monarchy. Satire was not limited to literature. Prominent artists such as William Hogarth used satire to depict all that he saw was wrong in his country (Art of William Hogarth). The Harlots Progress (1732), The Rakes Progress (1735), and Gin Lane (1745) were all works that removed the sugarcoated image of English life and revealed it as it was. Hogarth was also influenced by the theater and the novel in the formation of his paintings, especially with The Harlots Progress. What is more, it had never occurred to anyone that the theater and the novel had much to offer the visual artist. But it did occur to Hogarth; the Harlot not only followed the classic stage pattern of an unmasking, but was designed to be read. In the ideal world, the theater-goer and theShow MoreRelatedA Modest Rape : The Eighteenth Century And The Power Of Satire1715 Words   |  7 PagesLinda Rector May 14, 2015 ENG 215 Final Research Paper A Modest Rape: The Eighteenth Century and the Power of Satire During the restoration in the eighteenth century, wit and reason came to the forefront of literary works. Keen intellect and sharp observation exposed moral corruption of the neoclassic British society through the use of satiric literature. Although they placed importance on the ideals of order, knowledge, and rational, there was an underlying obsession with maintaining a faà §ade ofRead MoreThe Earl Of Rochester And Jonathan Swift1307 Words   |  6 PagesWhen reading Eighteenth- Century literature it is clear that the concept of one’s privacy was non-existent, particularly in poetry. 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