Interview of myself

Interview with Jonathan Swift

Interviewer: R. Philip Bliss S.

RPBS: Hello, Mr. Swift. It is a pleasure to meet you, sir. I admire your works.

JONATHAN SWIFT: Why, thank you, my boy. I’ll be honest wit ya, though, I don’t really know what you want wit me.

RS: Well, I’m here to ask you a few questions on your life. You are a well accomplished writer, after all.

JS: Me? A writer? Boyo, I think you’re asking the wrong man t’ese questions. I’m not one to write, I-

RS: No one in your time will see this, sir, there’s no need for this charade. You’re standing in the church will be fine. Now, how about you tell me about your early life and any inspiration that came from there??

JS: Cryptic lad, aren’t ya?... Very well. My early life… Never knew my parents, though I guess technically, I’m a Jonathan Swift II. Father died when I was still in my ma’s womb. After I was born, ma had the nurse take me to England fer a while. Don’t remember how many years it was, yet I know that when I was taken back to Ireland, ma went to England and left me with my uncle. Heavily religious folks, they were. Guess that kinda sparked my interests. Not because I thought it myth, mind ya, but rather because I thought that to be able to word all of the stories in that way was rather intreguin’. Especially when you consider the Gospels. Each decides a different part of the story to tell or focuses on a different aspect of the story for different effect or exaggeration of certain factors.

RS: And that drove you to writing your satires eventually.

JS: How’d ya know about tha’-

RS: That is not the important factor here. Would that any of your mentors played a role in your eventual achievements?

JS: Well, that’s a tricky question to answer. My dear uncle did require that I go to Kilkenny Grammar School and eventually Trinity College. It resulted in meeting my fellow artistic writer William Congreve. He went on t’ be a poet and playwright, you know.

RS: Yes, I know, but he’s not who I’m interested in at the moment. So, your uncle somewhat inspired you. Anyone else?

JS: Sir William Temple assisted me, but I wouldn’t count ‘im as an influential figure. Helped me get into Oxford.

RS: But weren’t you going to Trinity College?

JS: I had been, but durin’ the time of tryin’ to go for as much of an education as possible, I stopped bare minimum ‘cause o’ the Glorious Revolution, as they call it. Sir Temple had me as an assistant and a little while later, he put me back into school so I could do better things and eventually help him. Ot’er than that, I can’t think of too many people. A lot o’ my patrons never really helped me.

RS: Other than disappointment from them, what obstacles did you face while trying to get your points across in your writing?

JS: Hold on, now. My writing was never to get a point across, rather to show reason and say some of what I had learned. Never did I specifically want to change anyone’s mind, I did want t’e flaws to be shown on certain aspects of life. And as for obstacles, a fair amount of them were based off the control of the government at that time, mind you. The Glorious Revolution bein; the largest out o’ all o’ them. For me… Well, there is one large thing. All my life, I’ve been battlin’ Menierie’s disease. Gives you an awful vertigo and nausea. To be quite blunt, it can halt my mental thoughts as well as my physical body. But I work through it, nevertheless.

RS: Are there any personal stories involving those subjects that come to mind?

JS: None that I can think of, no. Are we done here? I really must be getting’ back to the church, boy.

RS: Not quite, this assignment still requires a few more questions to be answered. What was the world of writing like when you entered it? It was around the time of the Enlightenment era, after all.

JS: Not a lot of creativity or colorful phrases, much like the world at that time. Filled with the Enlightenment ideas, some of which insane and going against God. But even so, I did t’e ebest I could to add a bit of spark an’ show some common sense in that time through what I’d like to think are unique ways. Because of some of what I was writing, however, I often went under a different name while writing, originally. Only a few really knew who I was. In the oft times, I was writing against some of what was happening in t’e other denominations. Can’t say I’m for or against them, but I do feel that some are too quick to prosecute *cough cough* Catholics *cough* and-

RS: Excuse me, sir, I’d rather not have too much slander thrown into this assignment, this is going to be graded after all. Even if it is your own personal thoughts on the subject.

JS: Grade???

RS: I will ask the questions. Now, you were saying you wrote under aliases?

JS: Yes, t’ protect my identity.

RS: Right. Because your writing was so revolutionary, much like the time period you’re accredited to. Now, what key opportunities led to turning points in your life?

JS: I’m fairly certain we’ve covered all this before. But I suppose I have left out one important detail- Being a dean in the St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Both a blessin’ and a curse for myself though. I always dreamed of possessin’ a bishopric with all the benefits and good I could do there. But alas, t’was not to be. Not that bein’ a dean was too dreadfully horrid. Just… Not quite as connected or able to make an actually difference in person. Lord knows my writing has sparked several new thoughts and been able to show the pathetic underbellies of overgrown and corrupted beasts. And all because I would use my own thoughts t’ exaggerate what already existed, twist the world to t’e point where ya couldn’t recognize it as fact until after reading it. Quite amazing, really, if I do say so myself.

RS: I agree with you that it is amazing. And your impact on the artistic world is what some believe to be the earliest form of the romantic period and larger than life characters in fiction.

JS: Yes, I suppose. Now, may I return to my duties?

RS: Certainly, sir. And trust me, you don't have to worry about who will see this. Myself, on the other hand… I just hope she accepts it as a good piece of work.

JS: Well, boy, I’d say you did fine. Good day.

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/review/jonathan-swift-his-life-and-his-world

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/19508

http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person.php?LinkID=mp04388

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00h3650

http://www.online-literature.com/swift/

http://www.victorianweb.org/previctorian/swift/bio.html

http://www.britannica.com/biography/Jonathan-Swift