6 . What novels by Daniel Defoe do you know?
7. What suggested the idea for the novel “Robinson Cn.:?oo” to Defoe?
8 . What is the main theme of the novel?
Speak about the characteristic features of Robinro^
What helped Robinson to withs . ail the calamities Г his unusual destiny?
Do you think it is possible for a man to spend so many years on a desert island?
Why do we say that the way Defoe portrays Friday's character does him credit?
What is your opinion of “The Education of Women”?
Jonathan Swil't
(1667 - 1745)
JonathanSwiftwasthegreatestofEnglishsatirists.Heisgenerallythoughttobethegreatestprosewriteroftheeighteenth century. He was a man whom many considered a misanthrope (on-:; who hates humankind) because his writings were deeply critical of humanity. It was, however, his deep love for humanity that caused him to criticize it, and his great dream was to cure the niiments of his age through humor.
S w ift w as born in Dublin, but lie came from an English family. T h ? v r ite r ’s father, supervisor at the court building of Dublin, died a t the age o f 25 , leaving his wife and daughter penniless. His son w a s b o rn sever, months after his death, on November 30, 1667. H e w as nam ed Jonathan after his late father.
hiboy knew iittie of his mother’s care: she had to go back to h e r n a tiv e town of Leicester and Jonathan hardly ever saw her d u r in g iiisTiiii idhood. He w as supported by his uncle Godwin.
^ ihe a g e o f s ix he was sent to school and at the age of ionr;een „ie entered Trinity College in Dublin. He got his Bachelor’s degi ^.; in 1686. A fter m any years he once again saw his mother in Leicester. S he helped Jonathan to become a private secretary and accoim .-keeper to Sir William Temple. Sir William Temple’s estate w as at Moor Park, not far from London. Sir William was a re tire d d ip lo m a t and writer. At Moor Park Swift made friends
::.r. E.stncr Jo h n so n , the daughter of the housekeeper. Their
П iu id sh ip lasted all his life.
I ’ a v i iig improved his education at Moor Park by taking ad v a n ta g e of S ir Temple’s library, Swift went to Oxford and took Hb *vlas>te>: of Arts degree in 1692. A year and a half he worked as a , icar a t a church in Ireland and then returned to Moor Park. He continued to live and work there until sir William Temple’s
d eath in 1699.
3 y 1697 Swift had written his first satires “The Battle of B o o k s” and "ATale of a Tub”. But both of them were published ’atf-.:, iis 1704. In “A Tale of a Tub” the author ridiculed the c-\ ..'-avagances o f religion, literature, and academia. “The Battle o f books*’ is a mock debate between ancient and modern authors. Aftei Sir William Temple’s death, Swift became a vicar again HivJ viri: to !ive in Ireland. He invited Esther Johnson to come to Y:'/'p! • 'i L-Jicver.1 that Swift made a secret marriage with
; tv. bu? much of his private life is unknown.
In Ireland Swift kept an eye on the political events of London. He wrote political pamphlets in defense o f th e Whigs. His contributions to “The Tattler”, “The Spectator” and other magazines show how well he understood the spirit of the time. Swift’s conversations with the leaders of the English political parties are described in his letters to Stella (Esther). These letters became his famous work “Journal lo Stella”.
In 1713 Swift was made Dean of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin. In Ireland Swift came into contact with common people and saw miserable conditions under which the population lived. Swift wrote pamphlets criticizing the colonial policy of England. In 1726 Swift’s masterpiece “Gulliver’s Travels” appeared and it made a great sensation.
In 1728 Stella died after a long illness. This loss affected Swift deeply.
Conditions in Ireland between 1700 and 1750 were disastrous. Famine depopulated whole regions. Some areas were covered with unburied corpses. Swift wrote the pamphlets: “The Present Miserable State of Ireland ’, “A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor People from Being a Burden to Their Parents or the Country” and others.
Hard work and continuous disappointments in life undermined Swift’s health. By the end of 1731 his mind was failing rapidly. In 1740 his memory' and reason were gone and he became completely deaf. He died on the 19hof October 1745, in Dublin.
During all his hard later years of a mental decline his friends stayed loyal to him. The Irish people continue to this day to celebrate him as a hero. The generosity of spirit, deep learning, genuine humor were characteristic features of his writing, and they were a great gift to the literary tradition.
“Gulliver’s Trave:.s”
In “Gulliver’s Travel,»” (originally the novel was called “Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World by Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon and then a Captain of Several Ships”) Swift criticized and satirized the evils of the existing society in the form
of f'ctitio js travels. Apart from being a good story, it is the indictment of the human race for refusing reason and benevolence as the ways of life. The scenes and nations described in the book are so extraordinary and amusing, that the novel still arouses interest with both children and adults. It covers the adventures of a ship surgeon who is washed up on a number of imaginary shores. The novel is divided into four parts that are actually four voyages:
