Jonathan Swift Biography

Occup.Writer
FromIreland
BornNovember 30, 1667
Dublin, Ireland
DiedOctober 19, 1745
Dublin, Ireland
CauseNatural causes
Aged77 years
Jonathan Swift was born on November 30, 1667, in Dublin, Ireland, to a Protestant Anglo-Irish household. He was the 2nd child and only kid of Jonathan Swift Sr., a struggling legal representative, and also Abigail Erick Swift. His dad passed away prior to he was birthed, and also at the age of three, young Swift was sent to live with his uncle, Godwin Swift, who contributed in his upbringing.

Growing up in the politically billed Ireland of the late 17th century, Swift was subjected to the power battles in between the English and also Irish nobility, which would certainly later on act as a major impact for his biting satires. He received his early education and learning at Kilkenny College and later on, in 1682, started researching at Trinity College, Dublin, where he made a Bachelor of Arts degree.

While pursuing his researches, Swift found his passion for writing and started to create his unique ridiculing style. Following the Glorious Revolution in 1688, political agitation forced him to leave Ireland for England. In England, Swift satisfied Sir William Temple, a distinguished statesman and also diplomat, that ultimately became his coach. Under Temple's tutelage, he further established his composing abilities, and later, he came to be Temple's secretary.

In 1694, Swift returned to Ireland to end up being an ordained Anglican clergyman. He held different church placements over the years, at some point becoming the Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin in 1713.

During this period, Swift remained to write, producing both poetry as well as prose. In 1704, he released a satire called "A Tale of a Tub," which struck religious extremism. This was followed by another famous work, "The Battle of the Books," that tackled the contentious discussion on whether ancient or contemporary learning transcended.

Arguably, his most famous work, "Gulliver's Travels," was published in 1726, which portrayed Swift's fantastic creativity and his astute observation of the culture. Through the story of Lemuel Gulliver, as he comes across numerous weird and also sensational cultures in his journeys, Swift satirically subjected the follies of human nature as well as the absurdities of national politics, faith, and also scientific research.

Along with his literary success, Jonathan Swift was additionally a committed social critic and also activist. From 1724 to 1725, he created a collection of essays called the "Drapier's Letters," which opposed the imposition of English money on Ireland, ultimately bring about the withdrawal of the proposed cash.

In 1729, Swift penciled the ridiculing essay "A Modest Proposal," which revealed the suffering of the Irish people under English regulation as well as recommended the eating of children as a solution to poverty and overpopulation. While the essay surprised viewers with its dreadful proposal, it efficiently promoted the plight of the poor in Ireland.

Jonathan Swift passed away on October 19, 1745, after a long deal with Meniere's illness, a condition that impacted his balance as well as hearing. He was hidden in St. Patrick's Cathedral, where he had worked as dean for more than three years.

Throughout his life, Swift's amazing wit, intelligence, as well as passion for justice made him among one of the most crucial literary figures of the 18th century. His jobs remain to read and valued by millions worldwide, leaving an enduring impact on culture and the literary globe.

Our collection contains 62 quotes who is written / told by Jonathan, under the main topics: Art - Money - Food - Government.

Related authors: Alexander Pope (Poet), Mary Wortley Montagu (Writer), Samuel Butler (Poet), Lawrence Taylor (Athlete), William Temple

Jonathan Swift Famous Works:
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62 Famous quotes by Jonathan Swift

Small: Invention is the talent of youth, as judgment is of age
"Invention is the talent of youth, as judgment is of age"
Small: Every dog must have his day
"Every dog must have his day"
Small: It is the folly of too many to mistake the echo of a London coffee-house for the voice of the kingdom
"It is the folly of too many to mistake the echo of a London coffee-house for the voice of the kingdom"
Small: Words are but wind and learning is nothing but words ergo, learning is nothing but wind
"Words are but wind; and learning is nothing but words; ergo, learning is nothing but wind"
Small: One enemy can do more hurt than ten friends can do good
"One enemy can do more hurt than ten friends can do good"
Small: It is in men as in soils where sometimes there is a vein of gold which the owner knows not
"It is in men as in soils where sometimes there is a vein of gold which the owner knows not"
Small: Interest is the spur of the people, but glory that of great souls. Invention is the talent of youth, an
"Interest is the spur of the people, but glory that of great souls. Invention is the talent of youth, and judgment of age"
Small: Every man desires to live long, but no man wishes to be old
"Every man desires to live long, but no man wishes to be old"
Small: Censure is the tax a man pays to the public for being eminent
"Censure is the tax a man pays to the public for being eminent"
Small: A tavern is a place where madness is sold by the bottle
"A tavern is a place where madness is sold by the bottle"
Small: A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart
"A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart"
Small: For in reason, all government without the consent of the governed is the very definition of slavery
"For in reason, all government without the consent of the governed is the very definition of slavery"
Small: He was a bold man that first eat an oyster
"He was a bold man that first eat an oyster"
Small: Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others
"Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others"
Small: The want of belief is a defect that ought to be concealed when it cannot be overcome
"The want of belief is a defect that ought to be concealed when it cannot be overcome"
Small: Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybodys face but their own
"Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own"
Small: Power is no blessing in itself, except when it is used to protect the innocent
"Power is no blessing in itself, except when it is used to protect the innocent"
Small: Good manners is the art of making those people easy with whom we converse. Whoever makes the fewest peo
"Good manners is the art of making those people easy with whom we converse. Whoever makes the fewest people uneasy is the best bred in the room"
Small: Where there are large powers with little ambition... nature may be said to have fallen short of her pur
"Where there are large powers with little ambition... nature may be said to have fallen short of her purposes"
Small: We are so fond on one another because our ailments are the same
"We are so fond on one another because our ailments are the same"
Small: The power of fortune is confessed only by the miserable, for the happy impute all their success to prud
"The power of fortune is confessed only by the miserable, for the happy impute all their success to prudence or merit"
Small: Promises and pie-crust are made to be broken
"Promises and pie-crust are made to be broken"
Small: Men are happy to be laughed at for their humor, but not for their folly
"Men are happy to be laughed at for their humor, but not for their folly"
Small: It is impossible that anything so natural, so necessary, and so universal as death, should ever have be
"It is impossible that anything so natural, so necessary, and so universal as death, should ever have been designed by providence as an evil to mankind"
Small: Although men are accused of not knowing their own weakness, yet perhaps few know their own strength.
"Although men are accused of not knowing their own weakness, yet perhaps few know their own strength. It is in men as in soils, where sometimes there is a vein of gold which the owner knows not of"
Small: A lie does not consist in the indirect position of words, but in the desire and intention, by false spe
"A lie does not consist in the indirect position of words, but in the desire and intention, by false speaking, to deceive and injure your neighbour"
Small: Where I am not understood, it shall be concluded that something very useful and profound is couched und
"Where I am not understood, it shall be concluded that something very useful and profound is couched underneath"
Small: Vanity is a mark of humility rather than of pride
"Vanity is a mark of humility rather than of pride"
Small: Politics, as the word is commonly understood, are nothing but corruptions
"Politics, as the word is commonly understood, are nothing but corruptions"
Small: I never wonder to see men wicked, but I often wonder to see them not ashamed
"I never wonder to see men wicked, but I often wonder to see them not ashamed"
Small: Better belly burst than good liquor be lost
"Better belly burst than good liquor be lost"
Small: As blushing will sometimes make a whore pass for a virtuous woman, so modesty may make a fool seem a ma
"As blushing will sometimes make a whore pass for a virtuous woman, so modesty may make a fool seem a man of sense"
Small: The proper words in the proper places are the true definition of style
"The proper words in the proper places are the true definition of style"
Small: Most sorts of diversion in men, children and other animals, are in imitation of fighting
"Most sorts of diversion in men, children and other animals, are in imitation of fighting"
Small: A man should never be ashamed to own that he has been in the wrong, which is but saying... that he is w
"A man should never be ashamed to own that he has been in the wrong, which is but saying... that he is wiser today than yesterday"
Small: Under this window in stormy weather I marry this man and woman together Let none but Him who rules the
"Under this window in stormy weather I marry this man and woman together; Let none but Him who rules the thunder Put this man and woman asunder"
Small: There are few, very few, that will own themselves in a mistake
"There are few, very few, that will own themselves in a mistake"
Small: Principally I hate and detest that animal called man although I heartily love John, Peter, Thomas, and
"Principally I hate and detest that animal called man; although I heartily love John, Peter, Thomas, and so forth"
Small: Poor nations are hungry, and rich nations are proud and pride and hunger will ever be at variance
"Poor nations are hungry, and rich nations are proud; and pride and hunger will ever be at variance"
Small: Once kick the world, and the world and you will live together at a reasonably good understanding
"Once kick the world, and the world and you will live together at a reasonably good understanding"
Small: Nothing is so hard for those who abound in riches as to conceive how others can be in want
"Nothing is so hard for those who abound in riches as to conceive how others can be in want"
Small: If Heaven had looked upon riches to be a valuable thing, it would not have given them to such a scoundr
"If Heaven had looked upon riches to be a valuable thing, it would not have given them to such a scoundrel"
Small: I never saw, heard, nor read, that the clergy were beloved in any nation where Christianity was the rel
"I never saw, heard, nor read, that the clergy were beloved in any nation where Christianity was the religion of the country. Nothing can render them popular, but some degree of persecution"
Small: He was a fiddler, and consequently a rogue
"He was a fiddler, and consequently a rogue"
Small: Dont set your wit against a child
"Don't set your wit against a child"
Small: As love without esteem is capricious and volatile esteem without love is languid and cold
"As love without esteem is capricious and volatile; esteem without love is languid and cold"
Small: When a true genius appears, you can know him by this sign: that all the dunces are in a confederacy aga
"When a true genius appears, you can know him by this sign: that all the dunces are in a confederacy against him"
Small: What they do in heaven we are ignorant of what they do not do we are told expressly
"What they do in heaven we are ignorant of; what they do not do we are told expressly"
Small: Laws are like cobwebs, which may catch small flies, but let wasps and hornets break through
"Laws are like cobwebs, which may catch small flies, but let wasps and hornets break through"
Small: A wise person should have money in their head, but not in their heart
"A wise person should have money in their head, but not in their heart"
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