The Power Of Satire In The Works Of Alexander Pope And Jonathon Swift

The 18th century was a period of reform, enlightenment, and restoration. As the flourisment of literature grew so did the observation of moral corruption within Britain's society and the usage of satirical literature. Jonathon Swift and Alexander Pope were both british satirist who focused on expressing their feelings towards their societies deficiency, and to mock the lack of thought not put forward within the government and or social classes. Although both Pope and Swift are satiarist and use satirical criticism they differed in technique, intent, and mood because their writing styles and purpose of their works require different approaches.

Gulliver's Travel author Jonathon Swift, uses satirical criticism and irony to criticize the british government and society because it adds humour and ridicule to the seriousness of situations and events without being too straightforward and potentially causing problems. The novel exclaims “When a great office is vacant either by death or disgrace five or six of those candidates petition the emperor to entertain his majesty...and whoever jumps the highest without falling, succeeds in the office”. The character Gulliver describes the emperor of the kingdom of Liliput having potential candidates walk a tightrope in order to acquire a position. Swift uses this as a metaphor to connect it to the way british political officials had to ultimately walk a thin line of doing what they thought was right and doing what the king wanted. Swift also adds “ I found my arms and legs were strongly fastned on each side to the ground...I perceived it to be a human creature not six inches high, with a bow and arrow in his hands”. In the text Swift puts the main character in an ironic position as he is portrayed as a giant being held captive by people much shorter than him. Swift uses irony to dial down his satirical position and comically hide away his position towards everyone else. Lastly, Swift uses satire inorder to express his dissatisfaction with society and the monarchy held within Britain during the 18th century.

Alexander Pope establishes a humours mood through the usage of critism within the Rape of a Lock as he exposes the foolishness of the actuality because not only did he want to make fun of the ridicoulous situtation; But he also wanted to shine a light upon the fact that fighting over someones cut hair is absurd. The epic mock-heroic states “Coffee, (which makes the politician wise, and see through' all things with his half- shut eyes) sent up in vapours to the Baron's brain...Fear the Gods, and think of Scylla’s fate!”. As the Baron is on the high from his caffeine Pope adds in exaggeration to set the mood for the upcoming intense moment. The text also mentions “ But since, alas! Frail beauty must decay, Curled or uncurled, since locks will turn grey...And keep Good Humor still whate’er we lose?”. The character Clarissa is trying to calm Belinda down about her lost lock by pointing out that she will someday become old and her beauty will fade away and so will her hair. Pope uses this moral talk to criticize how Belinda treats her cut off lock like it's the most important thing in the world when in actuality there is so much more to the world then her cut off lock. Lastly, the talk becomes more deeper in meaning as it displays how Pope feels about the upper class treating silly things above the important.

The people of England embraced its period of reform, power struggles and restoration, However writers Swift and Pope felt differently. Both Pope and Swift wanted to express their views and feelings without being to blunt and problematic, so they both adopted the form of satire in order to accurately share their opinions on situations and people without being offensive . For example in The Rape of a Lock Pope says “ The advenurous Baron the bright locks admired, He saw he wished,and to the prize aspired...Few ask if fraud or force attained his ends”. Pope mocks the Baron character as he dedicates his time to being fully committed to stealing a piece of hair, through the creepiness of the barons actions he aspired to draw attention within it by having an unsettling mood to this statement. In addition Gulliever’s Travels also adds “In relating these and the following laws, I would only be understood to...and grew to the present height by the gradual increase of party and faction”. Swift emphasizes that the as the years continue on so does the ability for man to become worse within making decisions. In the end, both Swift and Pope heavily criticize their intended person(s) but do it in such a manner where it’s not too controversial.

Although Pope and Swift similarly share the ability to use satirical criticism through humour, irony, and mood, there is a distinct difference within their techniques and approach. For starters when Pope named his mock-heroic poem The Rape of A Lock it was a creative and intentional purpose behind it. Which was to make the title seem more dramatic than need be because in his satire when he criticizes the upper class for foolishly making a big deal out of cut hair, the irony is that he is then able to illustrate the absurdity within his title by being a bit misleading as well. On the other hand Swift’s technique is not within his title of his story but within the eyes of his character. Through the eyes of his main character, he is able to control and decide what readers see and think. In addition Swift sets a bolder tone compared to Pope because he tackles things more shockingly and not as gently compared to Pope’s humorous satire.

Overall both satirist Swift and Pope prove to have different methods of writing satirical literature, but their ability to address issues effectively without being to perplexing is indeed similar. Swift however is able to highlight his thoughts and feelings in a greater fashion compared to Pope because he uses less humour and relies on irony to dial down the intensity. In addition, Pope seems to be having more fun discussing his issue towards the upper class as he mocks their useless disagreements. In conclusion, it's clear that Swift did a better job at criticizing his society through satire because his views on political officials is stated clearly and isn’t looked at as humorous but enlightening.