Swift and History - Politics and the English Past (Paperback)

Swift has been said to have little interest in history; his attempts to write it have been disparaged and his desire to become Historiographer Royal ridiculed. Ashley Marshall argues that history mattered enormously to Swift. He read a vast amount of history and uses historical examples copiously in his own works. This study traces Swift's classical and modern historiographical inheritance; analyses his unsuccessful attempt to write a history of England; and offers radical re-reading of his History of the Four Last Years of the Queen. A systematic analysis of Swift's view of 'authority' is highly revealing. His attitudes toward power and authority, sovereigns' and subjects' rights, parliamentary representation, and succession are reflected in his lifelong engagement with and pervasive use of the past. Studying Swift and history enables a deeper understanding of his authoritarian and historiographically Tory outlook - and how it changed when Swift's party fell from power in 1714.

General

Imprint:	Cambridge UniversityPress
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Release date:	August 2017
Authors:	Ashley Marshall
Dimensions:	230 x 152 x 15mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback - Trade
Pages:	292
ISBN-13:	978-1-107-49927-0
Categories:	Books > Language & Literature > Literature: history & criticism > Literary studies > 16th to 18th centuries Books > Humanities > History > Theory & methods > Historiography Books > Humanities > History > British & Irish history > General Books > History > British & Irish history > General Books > History > Theory & methods > Historiography
LSN:	1-107-49927-5
Barcode:	9781107499270

Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate? Let us know about it.

Does this product have an incorrect or missing image? Send us a new image.

Is this product missing categories? Add more categories.

Review This Product

No reviews yet - be the first to create one!