Pope, Swift and Johnson as Major Satirists of Eighteenth-century England

Abstract

This research paper aims at casting a new light on the role of some of the satirical works of the major satirists of the Eighteenth-century England, notably Alexander Pope, Jonathan Swift, and Dr. Samuel Johnson. The social impacts together with the environmental factors that affected peoples life are duly brought out. As satire prevailed in Eighteenth-century England, the paper tackles reasons stand behind this. The efforts done by the men of letters, especially the statists in enhancing judiciary establishments and diffusing justice and equality among people lead to a social progress. The Eighteenth-century satirists, including novelists, essayists, journalists and poets exerted considerable efforts to carry out their messages towards their society. Satire is an effective tool for achieving this goal. The social changes and reform that occurred came as a result of the efforts of those men of letters. The paper sheds light on the role of the major satirists of the age in progress of enlightenment and guidance of the people through their literary works. They stressed the importance of education, explaining that ignorance was the cause of all evils and problems. They called for good conduct and manners and attacked sham social practices.