"my principal Design was to Inform,
and not to amuse thee" The Travels (IV:12)
--A WebQuest on Satire
was written by Jonathan Swift in 1726. Whereas
much of the book is fictitious, it still very much
reflects life and times in the 18th century. You’ll see it
in the language, the expectations and restrictions of
society, and in the way of life (lack of technology.)
Even so, it is to this day considered perhaps the best
example of satire ever written. As you read the book,
be aware of and observe how different the times were
and how this might have shaped the themes of this
novel.
And speaking of shaping the novel, let’s take a look at
Jonathan’s personal life. Click on the link below and
see if you can pick up on the overwhelming pattern of
his life. Just read the green part about Jonathan
Swift. You might say his life was full of
_____________. What cause(s) do you see for this?
http://www.jaffebros.com/lee/gulliver/dict/s.html#swiftj
Paragraph 1: Write one paragraph explaining his personal life. Be sure to
include the answers to the questions just asked in Italics above.
Since Gulliver’s Travels is a satire, let’s look at what that means. Read the
following passage:
Satire is the use of humor to expose folly, failings, and absurdities; or, inversely, a type of
criticism which uses humor to make its point; thus satire is necessarily directed against
failings, especially those presented as reasonable propositions; satire is often directed
against those in power or positions of authority;
satire usually uses indirect forms of humor, such as irony, exaggeration, and parody, to
make its points; problems are addressed obliquely; for example, praising that which
deserves condemnation (Gulliver's praise of gunpowder in Brobdingnag II:7;3) or taking a
bad or weak idea to its absurd conclusion (A Modest Proposal);
one of the limitations of satire is that its targets may not recognize themselves;
"SATIRE is a sort of glass wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but
their own; which is the chief reason for that kind reception it meets with in the world, and
that so very few are offended with it." Author's Preface, The Battle Of The Books
more often readers may not get the joke and mistake the point;
"A Bishop here said, that Book was full of improbable lies, and for his part he hardly
believed a word of it; and so much for Gulliver." letter to Alexander Pope, Nov. [27] 1726
Swift often wrote in the satiric mode, just as often writing in the first-person of a
character created to carry the burden of the satire; thus when he wanted to deflate
astrologer John Partridge, he published his own predictions under the name Isaac
Bickerstaff; similarly when he needed a narrator for his Travels, he created Lemuel
Gulliver, a sea-going physician, who could report his observations of the "Remote Nations of
the World."
In the Travels, the targets of Swift's satire include virtually every aspect of human
experience, from contemporary controversies to ancient history, to the practice of
government, religion, law, medicine, and scientific research, and to the fundamentals of life,
birth, family, education, love, friendship, marriage, sex, and death, even human nature.
Because of the breadth of the satire, there is something there to delight, anger, and
bewilder everyone, contributing to its continued popularity for almost 300 years. Swift's
satire is pointed, sometimes harsh, always funny, and rarely simple or direct. That is in part
the nature of satire, that it exposes absurdities, but it does not necessarily provide
remedies.
Paragraph 2: Explain what’s funny and ironic about satire.
Paragraphs 3-6: Now let’s read the book. Click on the following link for the
book online. http://www.jaffebros.com/lee/gulliver/contents.html The book
is divided into 4 parts. Write a brief summary of each part. For each place
to which he travels, 1) describe the society in which he found himself, 2)
explain what was funny/ridiculous about it, 3) support your view of the point
that Swift was making—what was he saying society/people should or should
not be like?
Paragraph 7: Write a paragraph explaining the cause and effect relationship
between Swift’s personal life and his writing of this satire. (EX. – George
Orwell wrote the satire, Animal Farm, after years of living in India and being a member of
the ruling class. As a policeman in a police state [England was occupying India at the time],
he grew to detest “man’s dominion over others.” Animal Farm is all about the corruption of
those who rule.)
Are you ready for some fun?
You are now going to write your own satire. It must be related to something in your own
real life, just like Orwell’s and Swift’s novels were related to theirs. So here’s the outline:
1) Name some observation something you see as wrong in the way people do
things or treat others. What would you change about the way things are
done if you could?
2) What irony, exaggeration, and/or parody do you plan to use? Think of it this
way. Although the Simpson’s on TV is in many ways reprehensible, it is a
modern use of satire. The negative effects of the Simpson’s is because
people don’t realize the show makes fun of those poor values. It’s not
saying it’s okay to be like Homer. It’s saying, look what an idiot this guy
is—how wrong, insensitive, and worthless he is. It’s just like the
explanation of satire at the beginning of this webquest says; the people
being made fun of, don’t see themselves in the mirror. Instead, the
opposite is happening; people say, “That’s really funny. It must be okay to
be like that.” People take it at face value and think it’s saying many of
the behaviors of its characters are okay when it’s actually a satire—
meaning that the writers are using these exaggerated characters to
criticize their actions.
So… that’s a long way of saying that if you realize the Simpson’s is a satire,
you have another example of how to make fun of something by holding up
these ridiculous characters and hoping that people will see that you’re
making fun of them. Exaggerate. Make them absurdly funny, obviously
wrong but in a somewhat believable way. That’s a satire.
3) Decide on a setting or situation that will lend itself to these characters
and their idiocy.
4) Write your story. Hand in a draft that’s at least 3-5 pages long—12pt.
Times New Roman.
5) After the review by a teacher, you may change the font and add
illustrations.
COPE/GIS/WATTS