Swift, the book, and the Irish financial revolution : satire and sovereignty in Colonial Ireland / Sean D. Moore.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Moore, Sean D.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Swift, Jonathan, 1667-1745--Criticism and interpretation.

Swift, Jonathan.

Swift, Jonathan, 1667-1745.

Satire, English--History and criticism.

Satire, English.

English literature--Irish authors--History and criticism.

English literature.

English literature--Irish authors.

National characteristics, Irish.

Book industries and trade.

History.

Criticism and interpretation.

Ireland--History--Autonomy and independence movements.

Ireland.

Autonomy and independence movements.

Ireland--Economic conditions.

Economic conditions.

Book industries and trade--Ireland--History.

Physical Description:

xi, 268 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, 2010.

Summary:

In the 1700s, not all revolutions involved combat. Jonathan Swift, proving the pen is mightier than the sword, wrote scathing satires of England and, by so doing, fostered a growing sense of Irishness among the people who lived on the large island to the left of London. This sense of Irish nationalism, Moore argues, led to a greater sense of being independent from the mainland and, in what might be a surprise, more autonomy for Ireland than one might imagine. And so, when the good times rolled, Ireland got to keep much of its newly generated wealth. This was in sharp contrast to another British territory, consisting of thirteen colonies, where taxes tended to be increased with somewhat unpleasant consequences. What begins with a look at Swift's satiric writings ends up being a fascinating study of Colonialism and post-Colonialism--ever a subject of interest--allowing thoughtful and provocative insights into Irish and American history.

Contents:

God knows how we wretches came by that fashionable thing a national debt: the Dublin book trade and the Irish financial revolution

Banking on print: the Bank of Ireland, the South Sea bubble, and the bailout

Arachne's bowels: scatology, enlightenment, and Swift's relations with the London book trade

Money, the great divider of the world, has, by a strange revolution, been the great uniter of a most divided people: from minting to printing in the Drapier's letters

Devouring posterity: a modest proposal, empire, and Ireland's debt of the nation

A mart of literature: the 1730s and the rise of a literary public sphere in Ireland

Epilogue: a brand identity crisis in a national literature?

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780801895074

0801895073

OCLC:

494281653