18th-Century Satire in British Literature of Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift - Essay Example

?No Writing is Good that Does not Tend to Better Mankind in Some Way or Other: 18th century Satire in British Literature Particularly in Alexander Pope’s The Rape of the Lock and Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels by (student’s name) (Course) (Subject) (Professor) (University) (Date) 1.0 INTRODUCTION The writings of British literary figures Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift are an answer to the times that these two men lived. The corruption in the government, the folly of the nobles and the lack of practicality of science and religion have all encouraged these two men not only to expose these things but also to teach their readers about what is good and what is not good during these times. As their works reflected their sarcastic and ironic satires, they also included the desire to make mankind aware that evil was existent and should be recognized and not allowed to dwell in society. It is therefore true that “No writing is good that does not tend to better mankind in some way or other.” 2.0 ALEXANDER POPE AND HIS SATIRE 2.1 The Man Himself It is believed that “Pope may be the greatest poet of his age, but he is also a notable cripple, and that fact along renders nugatory all other pretensions to respect or acceptance” (Lund 2005). Pope was believed to be notorious for he always made himself visible despite the general social expectation that deformed people should hide themselves. The criticism of the nobles against anything or anyone who is ugly and deformed must have provoked Pope to be satirical against them in his works. As an assiduous scholar, Pope educated himself in the languages and he found confidence and encouragement from his father and like-minded friends in literature. His tuberculosis of the spine, which left him a hunchback, did not interfere with his desire to join various literary circles in London and to publish his works, especially The Rape of the Lock, which is a satire directed against the nobles of high society England (Lund 2005). Moreover, Pope was against slavery, and this must have been one of the reasons why he was against the nobles (Pritchard 2005). 2.2 Style of Satire in The Rape of the Lock The Rape of the Lock is a satire against the vanity of the British high society of the 18th century. In Canto II, although Pope somehow praises the beauty and elegance of Belinda, he does not fail to indicate that she possesses objects of luxury which all equate to beauty: “on her white Breast a sparkling Cross she wore” and just like in Canto I, where she is mentioned to possess “Puffs, Powders, Patches, Bibles, Billet-doux” (Pope, The Rape of the Lock 2004). In Canto II, the Baron is also mentioned to own altar, three garters and half a pair of gloves as well as “trophies of his former loves” (Pope, The Rape of the Lock 2004). This pomp and grandeur that both Belinda and the Baron possess somehow implies that Pope was once opposed to the flamboyance of the high society and somehow exaggerated this flamboyance satirically in order for it to be noticed by the reader. This therefore teaches the reader that one should opt for simplicity for simplicity is beauty and void of tedious details. The mention of the Bible as one of the things in the toilette of Belinda is somehow a criticism of religion and of how the high society actually regards it. Moreover, “the placement of the Bible among the other consumables on Belinda’s table in fact…suggests for us a specific confusion of religion and consumer culture in Pope’s England” (Hernandez 2008). Religion, as implied in the poem, is actually nothing but a mere consumable or a mere product that is void of any meaning or significance. Moreover, since the Bible is with the other essentials of Belinda, it therefore seems that religion is merely used by the high society nobles to further their selfish ends. Moreover, Pope is believed to use a language that “trades on the disparity between two or more senses of the same word, the moral or spiritual in contrast to the economic, in order to point out the corrupting influence of wealth” (Jones 2004). This means that Pope criticizes the lack of contrast that the high society affords religion and economic wealth. He therefore teaches the reader that religion must be separated from the idea of getting rich and vice versa, for religion must remain pure. The fact that Pope used the character of the sylphs as the guardians of Belinda’s earrings, watch and favorite lock of hair somehow attests to the idea that there is something demonic or diabolical about the nature of people from the high society like Belinda herself (Latimer 2006). The Swiss-German doctor named Paracelsus initiated the belief in sylphs and nymphs, which he and theologians regarded as diabolical. For Paracelsus, these creatures are “an odd mixture of man and beast” and which he conveniently calls “spirits” and who actually look and behave in the same way that humans do (Latimer 2006). This therefore implies that the high society, despite their flamboyant outward appearances, could actually be vile and evil on the inside. This part of the poem therefore teaches humans not to assume things from outside appearances. Moreover, these sylphs are useless guardians as the sylph Crispissa was not even able to prevent the Baron from cutting off Belinda’s lock: “Fate urged the Sheers, and cut the Sylph in twain” (Pope, The Rape of the Lock 2004). This is somehow a message to the reader that not even the powers of the supernatural can destroy a man’s resolve. The poem also demonstrates a criticism of the insidiousness of the high society and their treachery towards each other. Based on the lines, “So Ladies in Romance assist their Knight/ Present the Spear, and arm him for the Fight” (Pope, The Rape of the Lock 2004). The fact that Clarissa lent a two-edged blade to the Baron in order to cut Belinda’s lock of hair somehow implies that the nobles themselves are treacherous towards each other, despite their showdown of grandeur and good manners when they are in front of each other. Such hypocrisy is therefore criticized by Pope, and that this part of the poem somehow shows the reader that appearances could always be deceiving. The Rape of the Lock is also a satire against the ridiculousness of a society that actually does not realize what is important to them. When Belinda finds out about her stolen lock and sees her “ravish’d Hair,” the whole Canto IV is then filled with imagery of gloom. This contrast is instrumental in helping Pope carry out his satire effectively. Dark imagery such as “the dismal Dome,” “Day’s detested Glare,” “a new Disease,” “strange Phantoms,” and “haunted Shades” suddenly fill the lines of the poem (Pope, The Rape of the Lock 2004). This suddenly outrageous reaction was indeed unbelievable and way too much for a simple lock of hair that was stolen. Pope therefore implies, through this part of the poem, that the nobles are merely exaggerating their own concerns. They are therefore actually trivial although they appear dead serious. There is actually nothing that special about losing a lock of hair for it will grow again and there is also at the same time no big deal about stealing hair. The poor peasants would simply sell their hair but the nobles would seemingly die to protect theirs. Such overreaction of Belinda is demonstrated by the extreme contrast in the imagery of Canto IV with the previous Cantos. 3.0 JONATHAN SWIFT 3.1 Personal Details A friend of Pope, Jonathan Swift was born in Dublin, Ireland and his work as a member of religious orders in Ireland and Berkeley somehow gave him the idea of how corrupt religion was during his time. He was also highly political during his time, writing a number of political pamphlets that praise the Whig party. His membership in the Martinus Scriblerus Club somehow made him more aware of the political, religious and economic problems of his country during his time. During the time that he wrote Gulliver’s Travels, one of his masterpieces, he was on the side of Ireland and was against England, English society and its excesses. England made attempts to weaken the economy and political power of Ireland to finance their arts and sciences, while Ireland herself was suffering from overpopulation and famine. Gulliver’s Travels was Swift’s answer to such policies. 3.2 Style of Satire in Gulliver’s Travels Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels is more than just a story of an English surgeon and businessman Lemuel Gulliver who had several adventures in the sea where he would arrive in unknown lands of fantastic creatures. Nevertheless, the work is a satire directed against various groups of people that comprised the English society during Swift’s time. In fact, Gulliver’s Travels is considered as “one of the most powerful attacks ever made against man’s wickedness and stupidity” (Tamura 2003). The first part of Gulliver’s Travels brings the protagonist to Lilliput, which is a land of very tiny people who were not more than six inches tall, and which has striking similarities to England (Tamura 2003). In Lilliput, the tiny people known as Lilliputians seem to be overly confident despite their size. The emperor, for example, declared himself the “delight and terror of the universe” (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels 2011). Such courage and arrogance clearly does not match the tiny size of the emperor, and this particular scene is somehow reflective of what Swift considers to be an absurd display of arrogance of the English King and of the whole English society of his time who did not realize that they were only mere humans. The Lilliputian emperor was declaring his authority and calling himself “terror” when in fact he does not realize that Gulliver can squeeze or crush him to death with his body that is many times as big as that of a Lilliputian. Through this particular display of arrogance, it can be concluded that the English during Swift’s time were proud yet they did not realize the fact that there were other kingdoms greater than they were like France or Spain. This scene therefore not only satirizes English society but also teaches the reader that true strength does not come from one’s dominion and force, for after all, everyone is a Lilliputian in size when compared with the rest of humanity. Gulliver’s Travels in Lilliput also exposes the corruption and unjust use of favors in some government official’s desire to obtain a high position. According to Swift, in order to be chosen as the next government official, a candidate should “petition the emperor to entertain his Majesty and the Court with a dance on the rope, and whoever jumps the highest without falling succeeds in the office” (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels 2011). This scene clearly exposes one fact – it would be preposterous to choose a successor for a public officer by determining them from their skill in dancing on the rope. Dancing on the rope is clearly not related to public administration. Nevertheless, through this particular scene, Swift implies to the reader that the method for choosing public officials in England is basically the same ridiculous process. Thus, Swift is implying that almost all government officials in England during his time were actually unqualified for their positions. This particular part of the novel is rather a wake-up call for the people to realize that some things really have to be changed in the courts and in the government. In Gulliver’s Travels, Reldresal’s mention of the Lilliputian factions Tramecksans and the Slamecksans satirically represents the conflict between the Whig and Tory political parties of England during Swift’s time (Tamura 2003). While the Whig and the Tory parties actually have tensions towards each other in an unjust way, and in a way which is useless and impractical. Nevertheless, their conflict is extreme: “The animosity of these two factions runs so high that they will neither eat, nor drink, nor speak to each other” (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels). In the novel, the Tramecksans were the majority but the emperor does not favor them; while the Slamecksans were the minority but they wield great power in the government because the emperor does favor them. This inequality is unresolved, just like the Whigs and the Tories in real life, but one thing is sure – Swift’s representation of the two political parties as mere heels of shoes somehow ascribes to them and their conflict a trivial nature. Besides, these two parties seem to share the same selfish interests (Tamura 2003). Moreover, this emperor is easily influenced by his Flimnap and Skyresh Bolgolam, whom he considers his ministers, thus Swift is also implying that the king of England during his time, George I, was indeed vulnerable to suggestions that further the conflict between warring political parties. This part is a reminder to all human leaders that they should be able to make their own decisions as much as possible and that they should remain impartial in order to avoid unnecessary conflicts. Another use of satire in Gulliver’s Travels is when Swift uses the war between Lilliput and Blefuscu in order to demonstrate the obstinate religious and political conflict between England and France (Tamura 2003). The war was provoked because of a “different way of breaking eggs, at the large or at the small end” (Tamura 2003). This is to show the reader that the religious and political conflict between England and France is as trivial as breaking eggs at breakfast. However, although this seems like a very impractical and stupid reason for waging war, both Lilliput and Blefuscu believe that the main cause of the war is a matter of doctrinal difference, which translates as a biblical or religious controversy in real life (Tamura 2003). Nevertheless, Swift has shown through this particular scene that no matter how stupid some conflicts could be, they could always escalate to a serious war. In his voyage to Brobdingnag, or the land of the giants, the satirical tirade somehow mellows. However, Swift, through his statement to the king of Brobdingnag, uses “caustic irony” in his description of the ideal social and political institutions of England (Tamura 2003). Their king does not know much about the government and simply criticized every word of praise that Gulliver has for England. Gulliver tells him about “gunpowder and steel” and other things about war, but the king is rather more humanitarian and is making Gulliver sound like a brute when the monarch mentions that he is more interested in inventions that could feed the people (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels 2011). This part of the satire is somehow a reversal of role, where the Brobdingnagian king and his sentiments may actually represent Swift and his own. Thus, this particular scene makes the reader feel guilty about England’s choice of developing weapons of war instead of using the money for food and other more humanitarian tasks. There is also ignorance in the other Brobdingnagians. Moreover, although Gulliver’s first master is a kindly giant and a good farmer, he does not seem to know much about the government. This means that somehow the Brobdingnagians are somehow either extremely stupid or utterly ignorant of what is happening around them. They are much like peasants in England during Swift’s time who simply went about their daily work and were indifferent to the affairs of the nation, about which they were supposed to be actually concerned about which they were supposed to be actually concerned. Moreover, in Brobdingag, Swift somehow criticizes the invention and practical value of the microscope. While Gulliver is playing on the breasts of the giant women, he notices that the Brobdingnagian female’s breast is “so verified with spots, pimples, and freckles, that nothing could appear more nauseous” and that the giant insects leave “loathsome excrement” (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels 2011). Somehow, these criticisms are all about “the actual microscope’s historical ‘decline’” from a scientific tool once used by male scientists to a portable commodity popular among women (Armintor 2007). Moreover, Swift’s contempt for pure science is also seen in the fact that he shows that the images produced by the microscope are actually horrible and that there is no absolute use for magnifying horrendous-looking areas of the human body. Science is therefore useless as long as it does not do anything but magnify one’s ugly anatomical structures. This contempt for science as well as philosophy and the medical profession also shows in Swift’s voyage to Laputa, or the floating city. The Academy of Lagado, which is found below the city, is somehow a literary and satirical representation of the Royal Society (Tamura 2003). In Laputa, everyone seems ridiculous and have a penchant for the utterly impractical like “extracting sunbeams out of cucumbers” in order “to supply the Governor’s gardens with sunshine at a reasonable rate” (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels 2011). At the academy, the Laputians also learned paint mixing by smell, investigated political conspiracies through examination of the excrement of people, and even softened marble in order to use them as pillows (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels 2011). These experiments are all extremely impractical and therefore show the critical stance of Swift against the preoccupation of mankind with scientific principles and science itself. It therefore seems to Swift that science has not done anything for the betterment of society and has either only produced the weapons to be used for waging wars or has just brought out the stupidity in everyone. Science is good but this part of Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels is meant to tell the reader that the science that is truly good is one that directly benefits humanity and human life. Gulliver’s last voyage is in the Houyhnhnms, where the scene is a “corrective satire on human nature itself” (Tamura 2003). The rulers of Houyhnhnms were horses known as Houyhnhnms. However, their peaceful and truthful nature is mistaken by Gulliver as ignorance. Gulliver says, “I gave [the Houyhnhnm host] a description of cannon, culverins, muskets, carbines, pistols, bullets, powder, swords, bayonets…” and other weapons and military tactics but the Houyhnhnms are ignorant of these (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels 2011). However, Gulliver’s proud mention of the weapons of war as well as “ships sunk with a thousand men, twenty thousand killed on each side, dying groans…” somehow sarcastically presents the horror of being a human being and the cruelty of one’s fellow humans (Swift, Gulliver’s Travels 2011). Gulliver somehow gullibly thinks that the Houyhnhnms who do not know such violence are ignorant but in fact, Gulliver’s stupid pride in weaponry and military tactics is supposed to make the reader feel ashamed of this pride of governments and society in their military achievements. In fact, this style of satire seems to have arisen from Swift’s natural “haughtiness” which is void of “good nature” but that which makes him “entertaining” (Boyle 2001). This part of the novel is therefore a satire against English society in particular and the human society in general, and is meant to wake society up from its ignorance of what is truly good in this world. Moreover, the mere fact that the Yahoos, who are mere subordinates and slaves to the Houyhnhnms, actually look humans. This is therefore an insult to the human race, where animals like horses are actually more logical and rational, or more like what the French philosopher Rene Descartes once said: “The soul of brutes is of the same nature with our own” (Kelly 2007). Moreover, Gulliver acknowledges the fact that “the power and rationality of these creatures [Houyhnhnms] gives them dominion over him” (Kelly 2007). Thus, this particular part of the novel is somehow meant to teach humans that unless they act rationally, then they are no better than animals and thus deserve to be called brutes, or in a more subtle way, Yahoos. 4.0 CONCLUSION The satires of Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift sought to expose the corruption and immorality of the people of their times, but at the same time their satires were meant to teach good things to people and to inspire their readers to do the opposite. Truly, “No writing is good that does not tend to better mankind in some way or other.” The style of Alexander Pope’s satire, particularly in The Rape of the Lock, used mainly contrast of imagery. In Canto IV, after Belinda discovers that her lock of hair was cut off and stolen by the Baron, everything about the poem becomes suddenly eerie, gloomy and bleak. This contrast is meant to show how much the high society exaggerates their follies and trivial matters. Pope’s satire also exposes the ridiculousness, flamboyance, and treacherous nature of the nobles. He therefore, through The Rape of the Lock, teaches that man must live with simplicity, sincerity and most of all moderation. In a similar way, Pope’s friend Jonathan Swift, through his Gulliver’s Travels, employs the use of fantasy in order to hide the true identities of the objects of his criticisms and to conceal the implications of such criticisms. Swift also employs a variety of characters as well as strange words like Houyhnhnms and Brobdingnag, just in order to engage the reader and conceal the truth that these things would refer to the English society. He also employs irony, where he rather advocates the evils of the English society and even defends it through Gulliver’s character in order to supposedly instill guilt in the reader and to make one realize how stupid the ways of human society are. Moreover, just like Pope, his satire focuses on the problems concerning people’s character, which includes the folly of science, and the excesses of the government and the irrationality of man. Also, in the same way as Pope, Swift’s satire does not only expose the corruption and uselessness of the people of his time but also makes the readers aware of it and hopefully learn something from it. REFERENCES Armintor, D. N. (2007). The Sexual Politics of Microscopy in Brobdingnag. SEL Studies in English Literature 1500-1900 47:3, 619-640. Boyle, J. (2001). Remarks on the Life and Writings of Dr. Jonathan Swift. The Review of English Studies, New Series 52:207, 455-457. Hernandez, A. E. (2008). Commodity and Religion in Pope’s The Rape of the Lock. SEL Studies in English Literature 48:3, 569-584. Jones, T. (2004). Pope’s Epistle to Bathurst and the Meaning of Finance. SEL Studies in English Literature 44:3, 487-504. Kelly, A. C. (2007). Gulliver as Pet and Pet Owner: Conversations with Animals in Book 4. ELH 74:2, 323-349. Latimer, B. (2006). Alchemies of Satire: A History of the Sylphs in The Rape of the Lock. The Review of English Studies, New Series 57:232, 684-700. Lund, R. D. (2005). Laughing at Cripples: Ridicule, Deformity and the Argument from Design. Eighteenth-Century Studies 39:1, 91-114. Pope, A. (2004). The Rape of the Lock. Sovereign Sanctuary Press, Yahoo.ca. Pritchard, J. (2005). Pope, John Rackett, and the Slave Trade. SEL Studies in English Literature 1500-1900 45:3, 579-601. Swift, J. (2011). Gulliver’s Travels. Plain Label Books, Google Books. Tamura, E. T. (2003). Jonathan Swift’s Satire and Irony. The Economic Journal of Takasaki City University of Economics 46:3, 129-135. Read More