"A Satyr Against Reason and Mankind" is a

satirical Satire is a genre of the visual arts, visual, literature, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently Nonfiction, non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ...

poem Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

by the English Restoration poet

John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester (1 April 1647 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) – 26 July 1680 (Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.)) was an English poet and courtier of King Charles II of England, Charles II's Restoration (England), ...

Interpretation

"A Satyr Against Reason and Mankind" addresses the question of the proper use of

reason Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing valid conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, religion, scien ...

, and is generally assumed to be a Hobbesian critique of

rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the Epistemology, epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "the position that reason has precedence over other ways of acquiring knowledge", often in contrast to ot ...

. The narrator subordinates reason to sense. It is based to some extent on Boileau's version of

Juvenal Decimus Junius Juvenalis (), known in English as Juvenal ( ; 55–128), was a Roman poet. He is the author of the '' Satires'', a collection of satirical poems. The details of Juvenal's life are unclear, but references in his works to people f ...

's eighth or fifteenth satire, and is also indebted to Hobbes,

Montaigne Michel Eyquem, Seigneur de Montaigne ( ; ; ; 28 February 1533 – 13 September 1592), commonly known as Michel de Montaigne, was one of the most significant philosophers of the French Renaissance. He is known for popularising the essay as ...

Lucretius Titus Lucretius Carus ( ; ; – October 15, 55 BC) was a Roman poet and philosopher. His only known work is the philosophical poem '' De rerum natura'', a didactic work about the tenets and philosophy of Epicureanism, which usually is t ...

and

Epicurus Epicurus (, ; ; 341–270 BC) was an Greek philosophy, ancient Greek philosopher who founded Epicureanism, a highly influential school of philosophy that asserted that philosophy's purpose is to attain as well as to help others attain tranqui ...

, as well as the general

libertine A libertine is a person questioning and challenging most moral principles, such as responsibility or Human sexual activity, sexual restraints, and will often declare these traits as unnecessary, undesirable or evil. A libertine is especially som ...

tradition. Confusion has arisen in its interpretation as it is ambiguous as to whether the speaker is Rochester himself or a satirised persona. It criticises the vanities and corruptions of the statesmen and politicians of the court of Charles II.

Reception

The poem is generally supposed to have been written before June 1674, which is the dating of the earliest surviving manuscript. Along with ''A Ramble in St. James's Park'', it is one of Rochester's best known works, and his most influential during his lifetime. It exists in some 52 manuscripts, more than any other work by the author. It resulted in four direct poetic responses; Edward Pococke's ''An Answer to the Satyr against Mankind'', Thomas Lessey's ''A Satyr In Answer to the Satyr against Man'', and the two anonymous responses ''An answer to a Satyr gainstReason & Mankind'' and ''An Answer to the Satyr, Against Man''. It is alluded to in John Crowne's 1676 play '' The Country Wit''. It has been argued that

John Dryden John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration (En ...

addressed the poem in '' Religio Laici''.

References

External links

* Full text at Project Gutenburg * Edited and annotated by Jack Lynch {{DEFAULTSORT:Satyr Against Reason and Mankind, A 1674 poems 17th-century manuscripts Early Modern English poems British satirical poems