The Enlightenment
By the 17th and the 18th c. time England had become a great colonial power. Thanks to the new inventions and flourishing trade, England became a more prosperous (edukas) and civilized country. The role of churches and religious thinking in earthly affairs was reduced, the scientific revolution took place, the Glorious Revolution in 1688 in England introduced party system of government.
The new class – the bourgeoisie – began to play the leading role in society. It had its own party called the Whigs, which was constantly at war with the Tories, the party of the landlords. The Tories supported the Church and the King and they were intolerant towards dissenters, the Thories were more popular in the country. The Whigs did not believe in the absolute power of the King and the Church, members were nonconformists or tolerant towards them, they were more popular in the towns.
The bourgeoisie gained both political and economic power because it was practical and knew how to make use of the new inventions and discoveries. So people came to think that it was possible to achieve much by means of education. They thought man to be good by nature, and that it was society, corrupted by the feudal system that made man evil. The writers thought it was their duty to improve the world by means of teaching people, enlightening them. So the 18th c.is sometimes called the century of the Enlightenment in literature. The two groups of Enlighteners were:
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Hoped to better the world by teaching people: Daniel Defoe, Alexander Pope, Samuel Richardson, Laurence Sterne.
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Protested openly agains the vicious social order: Jonathan Swift, Henry Fielding, Oliver Goldsmith, Richard Sheridon, Robert Burns.
Daniel Defoe (1660-1731)
Daniel Defoe was born in the family of a butcher in London. His father was a religious man and brought up his children in a puritanical way. He sent Daniel to an excellent school. Daniel read much poetry, was fond of music and developed a weakness for horseracing. His father wanted him to become a minister of the church but the boy tried his luck in trades of several kinds. He failed everywhere because he was impractical.
At the age of 33 he chose the field of politics and journalism. Defoe was a sharp-minded politician. He advocated a better network of roads, advised extension of the banking system, etc. In his pamphlet “The Shortest way with the Dissenters” Defoe attacked the Tories. It was written with irony, said dessenters should captured, tortured and burnt. For that he was made to stand in the pillory. On the day of the punishment his “Hymn to Pillory” was sold in the streets and the writer was greeted by the crowds.
Defoe’s famous novel is ‘The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe”. It was followed byother novels,such as ”Colonel Jacques”. “Moll Flanders” and “Lady Roxana”.
D.Defoe died in 1731.
“‘Robinson Crusoe”
The suggestion for the novel came from the adventures of the sailor Alexander Selkirk, who had spent 4 years on a desert island. Besides this fact Defoe used other books on voyages, his own knowledge of ship-building, and a lot of geographical information gathered during his travels,
The novel consists of 3 parts, yet only the first part is familiar to the reader today. The events are told as follows:
Old Mr.Crusoe wants his son Robinson to be a lawyer but the young man disobeys him and leaves for Africa. After a number of adventures his ship gets wrecked in a storm and of all the sailors Crusoe alone reaches the shore of a desert island. He spends the night in a tree. In the morning Crusoe sees the wreck of his ship not far from the shore. He builds a raft and spends many days carrying the things that he can take from the wreck. Then Robinson begins to settle on the island, he learns to build, tame wild goats, grow rice and barley, make bread and do many other things. In the course of many years of hard work his life becomes comfortable.
But Robinson is not happy because he misses society. One day he saves a captive of cannibals that have come to his island for their terrible feast. He calls the man Friday. Friday turnsout to be a clever man. He quickly learns to do all the things that Robinson teaches him. and to speak English as well. Friday becomes Defoe’s devoted servant and they live happily together.
At last an English ship comes close to the island. Crusoe and Friday save the captain from trouble, and they leave for England. This is the end of the first part ofthe novel.
Robinson’s chrachter:
He was optimistic. He never lost hope, believed that he would be saved. He was enthusiastic, hi did everything wholeheartedly. He was practical, he brought tools from ship, he had many skills, he built house, he made everything to make his life easier. He was bourgeoisie, he took the money from the ship, even though he couldn’t use it on that island. He had confidence in himself and he believed that he could overcome all difficulties and hardships. He was racist and supported negro slavery, first thing he taught Friday was to say “Master”, he made Friday his servant. He was religious, he believed in the God and prayed often. He ignored beauty. He is also very diligent (usin), and presistent (visa, püsiv). On the other hand he is a faithful member of the class who cares first of all for material things and his own comfort.
What We Must Remember about ”Robinson Crusoe”
The novel became popular because it stresses the dignity of labour. The reader shares Robinson’s delight in making things. Reading the book is equal to tracing the history of human civilisation.
Defoe’s importance:
Defoe tries to teach the reader both by means of the conduct of his central character and by saying directly what man should do and what is bad to do . He made an ordinary man the central character of his novel. He made him act simply and naturally. Defoe had a talent for creating an atmosphere of reality in his novels. That is why he is considered to be the founder and master of the English realistic novel.
Jonathan Swift (1667 – 1745)
The greatest of all prose satirists in the English language, Jonathan Swift was born in a poor English family in Dublin. With the help of his uncle he could study theology at the university. But his main interests were literature, languages and history. At 21 Swift went to England and became secretary to Sir William Temple, a well-known Diplomat of that time. Swift read and studied much, especially Greek and Latin authors.
In 1726 his greatest work “Gulliver’s Travels” appeared.Swift was 59 and seriously ill. He suffered from deafness and and terrible headaches. He died in Dublin in 1745.
Swift has written many pamphlets:
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“A Tale of a Tub” – 1699 – a comic piece that ridiculed the extravagances of religion, literature and academy. The main idea is that religion diverts people from the need to fight for their rights.
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“The Battle of the Books” – 1704 – a mock(pilkav) debate between ancient and modern authors.
The classical and the modern books in a library descend from their shelves and fight a battle for who will get the best places on the shelves.
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“A Modest Proposal…” – It is a satire aimed at Ireland’s serious poverty problem, the propsal is that the children of the poor should be offered in the sale to the persons of quality and fortune through the kingdom, so they could eat them.
“Gulliver’s Travels”
The book is about the surprising adventures of Lemuel Gulliver, a surgeon on a merchant ship, and the fantastic lands he visited. Gulliver makes four voyages which are described in the four parts of the book.
On the first voyage Gulliver is shipwrecked. He swims to theshore cf a strange land. It is called Lilliput. The tallest of Lilliputians is six inches high. They tie the sleeping Gulliver hand and foot, and do not free him until they are sure that he is harmless. Little by little Gulliver gets used to their life and even takes part in the war with the neighbouring state of Blefuscu. He ties all the enemy’s ships to a string and draws them into the port of Lilliput. The King of Blefuscu is made to beg for peace. The Emperor of Lilliput gives Gulliver the highest title of the country. Some Lilliputian ministers do not like this and they secretly decide to put Gulliver in prison. Gulliver escapes in a boat which he has found on the shore. An English merchant ship takes him back to England. The political conflicts are made ridiculous: the difference between the two parties of the state is in high or low heels; the cause of war is the breaking of eggs — whether it should be done at the big or small end; one’s career is dependent on high-jump: those who can jump the highest get the highest office.
On the second voyage the ship meets with a terrible storm and stops near the land of Brobdingriag to renew its supply of fresh water. Going along the shore, Gulliver is caught by giants, each of whom is the size of a lighthouse. On the whole, the Brobdingnagians are kind-hearted people, though they laugh at Gulliver’s small size and look upon him as a toy. On one occasion the travelling box in which Gulliver is taken to the seashore is seized by a large bird that drops it into the sea. Luckily, Gulliver is saved by a passing English ship. Here the king is clever, honest, and kind to his people. He makes Gulliver tell him about his country and concludes: “the bulk of your natives is the most pernicious (hukatuslik) race of little vermin that Nature ever suffered to crawl upon the surface of the earth”.
Gulliver sets out on his third voyage as the captain of a ship. It is caught by pirates and Gulliver is left on a desolate island. Suddenly he sees a strange body in the sky moving towards the island. It is the flying island of Laputa. The islanders catch sight of Gulliver and take him with them. Gulliver visits the Academy where he sees very strange scientists.They try to get sunrays out of cucumbers, turn ice into gunpowder and make cloth from cobwebs. Gulliver is made to take part in the ceremony of licking the dust before the emperor’s throne. He rerurns home after an absence of over four years.
After four months the tireless traveller starts out on another voyage. The sailors seize the ship and set Gulliver ashore in a strange land. This is the land of horses who are much cleverer and kinder than men. They do not lie or steal.The rest of the population of the country consists of Yahoos, beasts in the shape of men. The Yahoos have all the bad qualities of men: they are dirty, envious,and greedy. Gulliver likes the life of the horses as much as he dislikes the Yahoos, who remind him of the people living in his native country. The story ends in Gulliver’s return home to his wife and children.
The importance of the “Gulliver’s travels”
The book is a satire in which Swift attacks all kinds of oppression – political, economic and religious. He also mocks at man’s foolishness and inhumanity.
The first part of the book is a biting satire on the English court and aristocracy. Swift laughs at their “great” wars. He describes the foolish quarrel between Lilliput and Blefuscu on the question whether eggs should be broken at the big or small end. It is a parody on the war between England and France. Swift hates war. He also mocks at the stupidity of England’s state system. He shows how men are chosen for high posts at the emperor’s court. The candidates must dance on the tight rope and whoever jumps the highest, gets the post.
Swift looks for a better state system. Like other writers and philosophers of the Enlightenment, he believed that an enlightened king could give happiness to his people. In the second book Swift finds his ideal in Brobdingnag, the country of the giants. This country is ruled by a clever, honest and kind king. Such a king may be useful for thp people but he cannot do much for them.
In the third book Swift becomes a republican. In the Academy of Laputa there is a school of political projectors whose members are even madder than those Laputans who try to turn ice into gunpowder, the satire is directed against philosophers, men of science, historians and speculators. Swift critisices the parody on science, because it didn’t serve any practical purpose. Swift also attacks monarchs whose policy brings nothing but suffering to their subjects.
Disappointed with reality, Swift turns to fantasy. The fourth book of “Gulliver’s Travels-’ is a Utopia and at’the same time a parody on Utopia. Swift describes an ideal land ruled by a noble race of horses. Reason and justice govern in their country. However,the servants of the horses, Yahoos, are ugly, greedy and dishonest creatures. They have all the evil traits of men, including the thirst for gold. This country is very far from Swift’s idea of an ideal society. It is a grim warning to mankind. Swift calls on people to return to reason.
Swift’s greatness lies in the satirical depiction(kujutamine) of the vices of his age.
Kaur :: Oct.17.2006 :: Inglise kirjandus, Kool :: No Comments »
