The Restoration Period 1660-1800

The Restoration Period 1660-1800

1. The Great, who live the best.

2. The Rich, who live very plentiful lives.

3. The Middle Class, who live well.

4. The Working Traders, who labor hard, but have enough.

5. The Country People, Farmers, etc., who feel indifferent.

6. The Poor, that don't have enough.

7. The Miserable, that really pinch pennies and suffer from desires.

Reasons for Swift's proposal...

1. Reduce the # of "papists"

2. Babies can be rent payment

3. Nation saves $ that would have gone towards the child

4. Parents can sell babies for $

5. Taverns would earn more $ due to the new dish.

6. a new incentive to be married.

- Why doesn't Swift pass judgement on what the English have done to the Irish?

- Why does Swift make this argument seem plausible?

- What outcome does Swift hope this proposal produces?

Use of Satire

Swift and Pope used a clever literary device called satire to get their point across.

Satire is witty form of poking fun or asking for reform in society

The calling to action can be humorous, rude, ironic, and/or sarcastic.

Satire can be tough to catch, so the text must be closely read.

Daniel Dafoe

Poor Lifestyle During the Restoration

Charles II

- writings directed towards the middle class

- had more of an industrialized, working class vibe to his writing.

- practiced journalism and was one of the first to do so.

- did not describe social matters through observation, rather spoke of reform.

- With the religious split regressing, the social class of the Restoration Period began to establish itself...

The court of King Charles II championed the right of England's social elite to pursue pleasure.

In 1660, in what is known as the start of the English Restoration, Parliament met with Charles II and arranged to restore him in exchange for a promise of amnesty and religious toleration in England, Ireland, and Scotland.

On May 25, 1660, Charles II entered London in triumph. It was his 30th birthday, and London rejoiced at his arrival.

Wealthy Lifestyle During the Restoration

English Theater

- Before Charles II, England saw very little theatrical activity in England as the Puritans worked to drive out "sinful" theater.

"A Modest Proposal"

Transition of English Hierarchy

- Charles II "patronized" two, new theater companies in Europe. These two companies monopolized British theater.

- Actors got paid on how popular they were, and they usually played the same type of roles; for instance, tragic actors always played tragic roles.

James II (1685-1688)

Charles II (1660-1685)

Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift

English Parliament (1688)

William & Mary (1689-1694/1702)

- writings directed at the upper class, but with a satirical approach.

- did not appreciate the low morals and ethics of the upper class.

- believed there was an filthy, fraudulent "underlay" to the wealthy social classes of England.

- neither felt content with the world. They felt it was corrupt and drenched in commercialism.

Examples of Satire

Human Nature in Gulliver's Travels

Examples of Satire

Gulliver's Travels

Many scholar's agree that Gulliver's Travels is "a satire of four aspects of man."

- the physical

- the political

- the intellectual

- the moral

- Swift’s most popular fictional work

- Published in 1726

- The book contains four parts, each dealing with one particular voyage during which Gulliver meets with extraordinary adventures on some remote island after he has been shipwrecked.

Lemuel Gulliver

Voyage to Lilliput

- Narrator of novel

- Middle-aged, middle class, British

- Intelligent, well-educated

- Naïve

- Unaffectionate to wife

- A doctor on a Royal Navy ship who washes up on the shores of several fictional countries.

- Upon returning to England, he is painfully aware of his country’s flaws.

Lilliputians

- Inhabit Lilliput

- Only 6 inches tall

- Prone to conspiracies and jealousies

Emperor

- Ruler of the Lilliputians

- Despite small size, loves being in control, exercising his power, and his large palace