Who Is Jonathan Swift A Sexist?

After reading Jonathan Swift’s poetry, it is easy to mistake him for a sexist author. Many of his poems show a grotesque or petty form of women. Often, this is achieved by displaying women’s imperfections and their production of bodily functions. When women attempt to hide or obscure these “flaws” they are depicted as liars, but Swift’s poems are not meant to demean women or punish them. Instead, Swift is overturning notions of benevolent sexism that pervade 18th century literature. By reducing the status of women in literature to a mortal, imperfect state, Swift allows women to be seen as human, liberating them from the need to meet the unreasonable demands for perfection presented by other, traditional male authors. Further, Swift shows that reduction of female divinity liberates men as well as women, because he showcases male characters that no longer feel inferior in the face of beautiful, perfect women. Ultimately, Swift shows that satire and the reduction of the ego is freeing. This paper will discuss Swift’s progression in showing how women’s human nature can be uncovered, and the effects of this process on women, men and society.
In order to reduce
In many of his poems, a female character is initially presented such a state of perfection. Her appearance, disposition, and — as is often the case — purity create a god-like view of women. Swift’s uses satiric narration to promote this image of women in “The Lady’s Dressing Room.” Caelia’s divinity is directly stated in her description as a “Goddess… Array’d in Lace, Brocade and Tissue.” (“The Lady’s Dressing Room” 3-4) Caelia is given an immortal status and provided exterior wealth and riches to further prove her position. Similarly, in “Strephon and Chloe,” Swift uses the entire first stanza of the poem to state Chloe’s Elysian