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This biography emphasises the extraordinary versatility and
resourcefulness of a lifetime spent serving the public interest
with the pen. At the same time, it shows Swift's distinctive love
of writing for personal entertainment and diversion, with little or
no interest in publication. While remaining a fiercely committed
writer, he always tried to preserve, especially in his poetry and
letters, a literature dedicated to friendship. Swift's literary
career comprises much more than the well-known satires.
This is the first comprehensive account of Swift's engagement with
the arts in Ireland and England. It both documents and reflects
upon his attitudes toward music, gardening, theatre, architecture,
and painting, and suggests that, despite his often sceptical
attitude towards the non-literary arts, he saw them as a rich
source of inspiration and entertainment for both his poetry and
prose. This study also opens up a previously neglected part of
Swift's biography, showing how his growing awareness of the
'sister-arts' was deeply influenced by his social and political
circles in both Ireland and England, especially by the rise of the
virtuoso, the connoisseur and the art collector, most notably in
the person of his close friend, Alexander Pope. In the wider
context of the European Enlightenment, this study tries to account
for Swift's attitude toward the changing and expanding world of
artistic and aesthetic appreciation.
This biography emphasises the extraordinary versatility and resourcefulness of a lifetime spent serving the public interest with the pen. At the same time, it shows Swift's distinctive love of writing for personal entertainment and diversion, with little or no interest in publication. While remaining a fiercely committed writer, he always tried to preserve, especially in his poetry and letters, a literature dedicated to friendship. Swift's literary career comprises much more than the well-known satires.
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