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Satiric and Romantic Critiques of the Enlightenment
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The Enlightenment was an 18th century movement that focused on the use of rationalism in all parts of humanity, society, nature, God, and life. ... Enlightenment thinkers believed in five major tenets: the power of reason, spirit of inquiry, natural law, orderly universe, and liberal humanism. As popular as the Enlightenment was among many people, the movement had its critics as well. Mary Shelly and Jonathan Swift were writers against the Enlightenment; however, their approaches differed. Jonathan Swift uses satire, whereas Mary Shelly uses Romantic themes to convey their attack against the Enlightenment. ... Shelly and Swift use a romantic and satiric approach to attack the foundation of the Enlightenment, science.
Mary Shelly criticized the Enlightenment by showing the consequences of the overuse of science and the lack of respect for nature. ... Swift is commenting on how these men are so focused on their mathematics and philosophy that they fail to see what is occurring right before their eyes, and he feels that the followers of the Enlightenment are this way as well. ... One possible interpretation is that Swift wants people to see that there are other aspects to life outside the Enlightenment, such as God and religion, and that ill events can occur if a person focuses only on one aspect. ... She felt a recklessness in the changes occurring, since the Enlightenment redefines the concepts of life, such as the shift from God to man. ... Swift thought that God should have a high place in regulating society, which the Enlightenment thinkers did not concur. ... Swift was commenting on the English monarchy, its corruption, and the happenings in the Church of England, in order to attack the Enlightenment.
The Enlightenment had many followers, yet it also had critics. Despite the fact that Mary Shelly and Jonathan Swift use two different methods of writing, they both convey their uneasiness about the Enlightenment poignantly.
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Paper Information
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Title: Satiric and Romantic Critiques of the Enlightenment
Words: 1654
Rating: None
Pages: 6.6
submitted by: akopacz
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