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Jonathan Swift
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Jonathan Swift Illustration of Lemuel Gulliver lying on the ground, tied down by tiny Lilliputians, with crowds and small buildings in the background, from Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels. St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Ireland, features Gothic architecture with pointed arches, tall spires, and a large central tower, surrounded by green lawns and trees.
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Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift summary
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Row of colorful books on a bookshelf. Stack of books, pile of books, literature, reading. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society
The Literary World
Illustration of "The Lamb" from "Songs of Innocence" by William Blake, 1879. poem; poetry
A Study of Poetry
4:043 Dickinson, Emily: A Life of Letters, This is my letter to the world/That never wrote to me; I'll tell you how the Sun Rose/A Ribbon at a time; Hope is the thing with feathers/That perches in the soul
Famous Poets and Poetic Form
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) only confirmed photograph of Emily Dickinson. 1978 scan of a Daguerreotype. ca. 1847; in the Amherst College Archives. American poet. See Notes:
Poetry: First Lines
British novelist. Charles Dickens; undated portrait.
Who Wrote That? (Part 2) Quiz
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Jonathan Swift: References & Edit History

Additional Reading

Irvin Ehrenpreis, Swift: The Man, His Works, and the Age, 3 vol. (1962–83), became the standard biography of Jonathan Swift upon its publication. Leo Damrosch, Jonathan Swift: His Life and His World (2013), is, in many ways, a repudiation. Other biographies include John Stubbs, Jonathan Swift: The Reluctant Rebel (2017); Eugene Hammond, Jonathan Swift, 2 vol. (2016); David Nokes, Jonathan Swift: A Hypocrite Reversed: A Critical Biography (1985); and Alan Downie, Jonathan Swift: Political Writer (1984, reissued 2014). Christopher Fox (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Jonathan Swift (2003), is a useful introduction to Swift and his writings. Claude Rawson, Swift’s Angers (2014) and Swift and Others (2015), are wide-ranging scholarly examinations of Swift’s works and influence.

J.E. Luebering

Article Contributors

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  • J.E. Luebering
    J.E. Luebering is Senior Vice President and Acting Editor in Chief at Encyclopaedia Britannica.
  • Ricardo Quintana
  • The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
    Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.

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Article History

Type Description Contributor Date
Added top questions, quick facts, and more information about the Whigs and Tories and about “A Modest Proposal.” Oct 27, 2026
Anniversary information added. Oct 15, 2026
Modified link of Web site: Humanities LibreTexts - Jonathan Swift (1667-1745). Aug 19, 2026
Add new Web site: The Online Library of Liberty - What “Irish Enlightenment”? The case of Jonathan Swift. May 16, 2026
Add new Web site: CORE - Politics in Jonathan Swift’s Literature (PDF). Jan 29, 2026
Anniversary information added. Nov 26, 2025
Add new Web site: Humanities LibreTexts - Jonathan Swift (1667-1745). Aug 23, 2025
Add new Web site: The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction - Jonathan Swift. Jul 11, 2025
Add new Web site: Literary Devices - Jonathan Swift. Apr 17, 2025
Questions and answers added. Feb 21, 2025
Add new Web site: BBC Sounds - Meridian - Jonathan Swift. Jan 30, 2025
Add new Web site: Brigham Young University - ScholarsArchive - Jonathan Swift and the Afterlife: Heaven, Hell, or Maybe Not. Jul 04, 2024
Add new Web site: CORE - Politics in Jonathan Swift’s Literature (PDF). May 22, 2024
Add new Web site: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign - Department of English - The Eighteenth Century: Theory and Interpretation - Jonathan Swiftïżœs Political Biography. Apr 11, 2024
First paragraph modernization. Apr 10, 2024
Add new Web site: University of Valencia - Biography of Jonathan Swift. Feb 28, 2024
Add new Web site: History Ireland - Jonathan Swift as the ïżœPatriot Dean. Jan 17, 2024
Add new Web site: University of Oxford - Great Writers Inspire - Jonathan Swift. Sep 07, 2023
Add new Web site: Trinity College Dublin - Trinity Writers - Jonathan Swift. Aug 22, 2023
Add new Web site: History-Computer - Who Was Jonathan Swift? Jul 11, 2023
Article revised. Nov 01, 2022
Add new Web site: Dictionary of Irish Biography - Jonathan Swift. Sep 14, 2022
Add new Web site: University of Oxford - Great Writers Inspire - Jonathan Swift and 'A Tale of a Tub'. Feb 07, 2022
Add new Web site: Famous Authors - Jonathan Swift. Jan 29, 2021
Add new Web site: British Library - Biography of Jonathan Swift. Feb 05, 2019
Add new Web site: Poetry Foundation - Jonathan Swift. Oct 05, 2018
Changed title of the "Assessment" section to "Legacy." Nov 15, 2017
Add new Web site: Pegasos - Biography of Jonathan Swift. Jul 30, 2014
Add new Web site: The Literature Network - Biography of Jonathan Swift. Sep 14, 2012
Add new Web site: Luminarium Encyclopedia - Jonathan Swift (1667-1745). Sep 14, 2012
Add new Web site: The Victorian Web - Jonathan Swift. Mar 13, 2012
Add new Web site: Fact Monster - People - Biography of Jonathan Swift. Mar 13, 2012
Added new Web site: Spectrum Biographies - Biography of Jonathan Swift. Feb 20, 2008
Article revised and updated. Feb 15, 2007
Bibliography revised. Feb 15, 2007
Added new Web site: The Victorian Web - Biography of Jonathan Swift. Jul 26, 2006
Article revised. May 11, 2006
Article revised. May 29, 2002
Article added to new online database. May 04, 1999
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