Discuss Swift as a Misanthrope.

Jonathan Swift as a Misanthrope:

Whether Swift was a misanthrope basically identifies with the subject of his demeanor toward humankind in his ironical works. The title of misanthrope is saved normally for somebody who loathes or questions humankind. Quite a bit of Swift's humorous work display neither contempt nor doubt. Quick, nonetheless, plainly discovers mankind imperfect. Those blemishes, especially the pride of mankind, fill in as the meat of his work.

Jonathan Swift has often been called a misanthrope or man-hater, as he has declares that he has "ever hated all nations, profession and communities but principally I hate and detest that animal called man." But he is not a complete misanthrope.

 

Swift's dislike of political and religious strife is expressed in Part I of this book. Here Swift exposes through Gulliver the stupidity of religious conflict existed between the Roman Catholics and the Protestants. The conflict between the High-Heels and Low-Heels represents the conflict between the two political parties, and Swift's disapproval of it. Then there is satire of general kind. For instance, the Lilliputians bury their dead with their heads directly downwards because they hold an opinion that, in eleven thousand moons, the dead will rise again.

 

In Part II, Swift satirizes the ugliness, the coarseness, and the foulness of the human body. Depending on the description of Gulliver, the King of Brobdingnag says that the history of Gulliver's country is only a heap of conspiracies, rebellions, murders, and banishments resulting from avarice, hypocrisy, cruelty, hatred, and ambition. The King also declares that to him Gulliver's countrymen seem to be the most pernicious race of little odious vermin that nature ever suffered to crawl upon the surface of the earth.

 

In Part III, the description of the people of Laputa also reveals the irrationality of these people. The heads of these people are all inclined either to the right or to the left; one of their eyes is turned inward and the other directly up to the zenith. Their interests are limited only to the sciences of music and geometry. They have no peace of mind because all the time they are worried about the disaster that will one day overtake this planet. At the Academy of Projectors in Lagado, scientists are found busy with silly schemes such as obtaining sunbeams from cucumbers, reducing human excrement to its original food, building houses from the roof downwards to the foundation, and getting silk from Cobwebs.

 

In Part IV, Swift's exposure of human unreason becomes extremely cruel. Human beings are here degraded by being represented as Yahoos who are dirty and deformed in body, and vicious and treacherous in spirit. Placed in contrast with them are the horses or Houyhnhnms, the horses, are the masters and the Yahoos are the beasts of burden. This is a great libel on humanity Besides, when Gulliver launches an attack upon lawyers, judges, physicians, and ministers of state, this pierce attack fully proves Swift's assertion that he hated nations, communities, and professions. Gulliver also here informs his equine master that the rich in his country live upon the labour of the poor. This economic exploitation is another proof of the irrationality of man. Gulliver's analysis of the causes of war between nations and his description of the destruction caused by war also show human irrationality. Hearing the description of Gulliver, his equine master does rightly say that instead of reason, human beings are possessed of some quality fitted to increase their natural vices.

 

Each of the tales in Gulliver's Travels portrays the lowest parts of human instinct, from how we think, to what we look like. It is a moment smack notwithstanding pride, and despite the fact that the story professes to not be precisely reflecting human instinct, the truth of the matter is that Sift is a satirist and the whole novel was a parody of humankind, thus, the cynicism comes in.

 

Thus, in the light of the above discussion, it would seem that Swift is a cynic or misanthrope. There is no doubt that Swift's opinion of mankind is very low. But that does not necessarily mean that he hates the human race. When Gulliver refuses to return to his own country or even to join his family, he is not to be identified with Swift. Indeed, in the concluding two or three chapters Swift completely parts company with Gulliver. So it is Gulliver who becomes a hater of the human race, and even of the members of his own family. Swift does not share this extreme misanthropy. However, he loved particular individuals like Arbuthnot, Addison, Stella and numerous others who passed their lives in accordance with the laws of nature and reason and were noble and virtuous. 

 

You Can also Read:

• Swift’s Satirical Technique in the First Two Books of "Gulliver’s Travels".