The World According to Jonathan Swift(a)|斯威夫特的世界

The World According to Jonathan Swift

by Olivia Wycech

Jonathan Swift left behind a legacy in 18th-century political and religious literature.

　　The name might not ring a bell to everyone, but history remembers Jonathan Swift as a man who was many things. Among them, he was a cleric, political pamphleteer, satirist, writer, poet, and an activist. Swift was born in Ireland in 1667, the son of a father who died before he was even born and a mother who gave him up as an infant. Left poor and alone, Swift was taken care of by his relatives. They assumed responsibility for him and managed to send him to the best grammar school in Ireland at the time. Swift was not an exemplary student, but he nevertheless continued on to university and completed his bachelor's degree. It was at this time that political turmoil and social unrest broke out in Ireland, prompting Swift to flee to England where he later earned a master's degree.

　　In the very late 1600s, Swift became the dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral in Ireland and started down the clerical path that guided him in the years to come. However, he was continually unsatisfied because he longed to advance to the Church of England, a desire that had gone mostly unfulfilled. He remained with the Irish church but continued to travel between Ireland and England for much of his life. Regarding his personal life, it is believed that Swift was married twice, and it was rumored that he may have had a clandestine relationship for most of his life with a much younger woman who became the subject of some of his work. He wrote and published work until his death, all while carrying on as an activist calling for social and political change. Swift suffered from Meniere's disease, an illness of the inner ear that causes nausea and vertigo, and it plagued him until his death in 1745.

斯威夫特的世界

乔纳森‧斯威夫特留给后人十八世纪的政治和宗教文学。

　　乔纳森‧斯威夫特这个名字可能不是每个人都耳熟能详，但根据历史记载，他有多重的身份。这些身份包括神职人员、政治小册作者、讽刺作家、作家、诗人和激进份子。斯威夫特于 1667 年出生于爱尔兰，他的父亲在他出生前就过世了，而他母亲在他还是婴儿时就抛下了他。穷困而孤苦无依的斯威夫特由亲戚照顾。他们认为对他有责任，便想尽办法送他到当时爱尔兰最好的语文学校就读。斯威夫特并不是个模范学生，但他仍然继续读到了大学，并完成了学士学位。当时爱尔兰的政治情况相当混乱，社会也动荡不安，这使得斯威夫特逃到了英国，之后便在当地获得了硕士学位。

　　十七世纪末，斯威夫特成了爱尔兰圣派翠克大教堂的主教，并开启了在之后数年引领着他的神职人员之路。然而，他一直不太满意，因为他渴望能晋升到英国国教会，而这项渴望一直没有实现。斯威夫特留在爱尔兰教会，但他一生中有许多时间都在爱尔兰和英国间来来去去。关于斯威夫特个人的生平，据信他结过两次婚，而且谣传他一生中大多数时间都和一位比他年轻很多的女子有秘密的关系，而这名女子也成了他某些作品中的主题。斯威夫特写作和出版作品一直到他过世为止，而他所有的作品都一直以激进份子的身份呼吁社会和政治的改革。斯威夫特罹患了梅尼尔氏症，这是一种内耳的疾病，会导致恶心及晕眩，而且这种疾病一直困扰着斯威夫特，直到他 1745 年过世为止。