Free shipping on orders over $99
A Modest Proposal and Other Writings

A Modest Proposal and Other Writings

by Jonathan Swift
Paperback
Publication Date: 04/03/2019

Share This Book:

RRP  $26.25

RRP means 'Recommended Retail Price' and is the price our supplier recommends to retailers that the product be offered for sale. It does not necessarily mean the product has been offered or sold at the RRP by us or anyone else.

$25.95

In response to the dire economic conditions in eighteenth-century Ireland, A Modest Proposal ironically exhorts the poor to provide their offspring as food to the rich.

Skilfully applying a wealth of classical rhetorical techniques, Swift's satirical tour de force takes a savage swipe at the selfishness of the ruling classes and the heartlessness of the various utilitarian solutions put forward by contemporary thinkers.

In addition to this seminal piece, this volume includes a number of other humorous and polemical writings – including 'A Short View of the State of Ireland' and 'A Meditation upon a Broomstick' – which, taken together, provide an invaluable introduction to Swift as a master satirist and pamphleteer.

ISBN:
9781847497475
9781847497475
Category:
Classic fiction
Format:
Paperback
Publication Date:
04-03-2019
Publisher:
Alma Books Ltd
Country of origin:
United Kingdom
Pages:
128
Dimensions (mm):
150x150mm
Weight:
0.08kg
Jonathan Swift

Jonathan Swift (1667 – 1745) was a poet, satirist and clergyman; his parents were English but he was born in Dublin. His father died before he was born and his mother soon returned to England. Jonathan was brought up by his nurse in Cumbria and later by his Uncle Godwin back in Dublin. He was very unhappy as he was treated like the poor relative who had kindly been given a home. Jonathan went to Trinity College, Dublin where he was an unruly student and only just scraped through the examinations.

Through family connections he went to work in the home of Sir William Temple in Surrey, as secretary and later became both friend and editor. A young girl called Esther was also living in Sir William's house; she became Swift's closest friend and perhaps his wife. There is a mystery surrounding the relationship – Swift clearly loved her but we don't know whether or not they ever married.

Jonathan Swift's cousin, the poet John Dryden, told him he would never be a poet, but he soon became known as a poet and writer. He wrote many political pamphlets and was sometimes known as 'the mad parson'. He became dean of St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin in 1713 and became popular in Ireland as a patriotic writer.

Swift was always afraid of madness and often suffered from depression; he suffered serious ill health in his last years. He wrote many volumes of prose and poetry but his best-known work is Gulliver's Travels in which he turned 'traveller's tales' into a biting satire on contemporary life. It has appealed to a wide range of readers over the years, including in its abridged form many children. As well as being a satire it is an exciting story, funny and very inventive.

This title is in stock with our overseas supplier and should be sent from our Sydney warehouse within 3 - 4 weeks of you placing an order.  

Once received into our warehouse we will despatch it to you with a Shipping Notification which includes online tracking.

Please check the estimated delivery times below for your region, for after your order is despatched from our warehouse:

ACT Metro 2 working days

NSW Metro 2 working days 

NSW Rural 2-3 working days

NSW Remote 2-5 working days

NT Metro 3-6 working days

NT Remote 4-10 working days

QLD Metro 2-4 working days

QLD Rural 2-5 working days

QLD Remote 2-7 working days

SA Metro 2-5 working days

SA Rural 3-6 working days

SA Remote 3-7 working days

TAS Metro 3-6 working days

TAS Rural 3-6 working days

VIC Metro 2-3 working days

VIC Rural 2-4 working days

VIC Remote 2-5 working days

WA Metro 3-6 working days

WA Rural 4-8 working days

WA Remote 4-12 working days

You can find this item in:

Show more Show less

Reviews

Be the first to review A Modest Proposal and Other Writings.