Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, Dept. of English Language and Literature, December 2003. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

The thesis examines the cultural and political significance of the formal and stylistic strategies in the work of Jonathan Swift; particularly the early prose satire A Tale of a Tub. Given his Irish origins and the largely colonial basis of England's relationship with Ireland, Swift's aesthetic strategies are shown to offer a mode of aesthetic resistance to, and interrogation of, English colonialism. In a rapidly modernising, secularising England national identity and social cohesion were being increasingly galvanised through an aesthetic ideology that emphasised the function of the aesthetic as that which can present a model of integration and shared values. Swift, drawing upon his experience of an Ireland socially fragmented by colonialism, emphasises the simultaneous, if contradictory, function of the aesthetic as the domain of the subjective imagination. An extreme wit, feared by Locke as that which will cause the individual subject to forget his or her social responsibilities, itself fragments society by encouraging the individual to inhabit an interiorised world of irrational associations. Swift, ostensibly satirising such behaviour in the Tale in the name of an English nationalism, actually allows the logic of such an extreme wit to dominate. Thus, he utilises what Vivian Mercier has shown to be the modes of traditional Irish literature, while simultaneously engaging with the (colonising, commercialising) ramifications of England's emergence into modernity. In the first, introductory chapter I explain, with reference to Swift's early life and work and to the critical work that already exists on Swift, why this thesis is a necessary addition to such a body of criticism. Chapter Two constitutes a closer examination of the Tale, the strategies of which are illuminated by a comparison with other works from the Anglo-Irish tradition: Burke, Swift's eighteenth-century Dublin biographers, the political economy of Sir Francis Brewster. Chapter Three turns to Swift's attempts to conform to English social and cultural modes in the first half of his career, particularly in The Examiner of 1710-11. The thesis returns to the idea of Swift as an Irish literary subverter in Chapter Four, this time by looking at the way the Tale and its companionpiece The Battle of the Books employ a form of 'extreme' allegory described by Walter Benjamin as essentially baroque in origin, and so able to adopt a critical position towards the early enlightenment principles of Swift's mentor and patron, Sir William Temple. Given that the category of the modem aesthetic emerges conceptually as a product of the enlightenment, Chapter Five examines Swift's work in the context of subsequent European enlightenment thinkers Kant and Herder, showing how Swift can be said to mediate their respective positions. The thesis concludes by arguing for Swift as, ultimately, a champion of reason; and goes on to point towards how Swift's aesthetic critique has resonances for our own contemporary situation: namely, how his early satirising of modem astrology is an early recognition of the unreason inherent in mass culture.

The purpose of this study is to analyze the philosophy and public career of Hoosier lawyer Lucius Burrie Swift (1844-1929). Born in western New York, Swift served in the Union forces and ultimately established himself as a lawyer in Indianapolis. His Puritan heritage and university -raining bred an intense awareness of civic responsibility and the necessity of establishing efficiency and economy in the operation of government.Six chapters comprise the total of this dissertation. Chapter One traces the early life of Swift and his career an educator--a time during which there emerged a desire fulfill his civic responsibility. Chapter Two analyzes Swift' s Mugwump political stance along with his role as a promoter of civil service in the federal government. As editor of the Civil Service Chronicle and through his association with national and local reform organizations, Swift emerges as one of the staunchest supporters of merit reform in the Midwest.Chapter Three examines Swift as a Progressive in the Roosevelt tradition. Friends since the young President’s days on the United States Civil Service Commission, Swift associated himself with the implementation of social and industrial justice. As a temporary supporter of the ever versatile Albert J. Beveridge, he worked not only to promote progressive ideas on the national level but also to purge the Indiana Republican Party of its social and economic conservatism exemplified by Charles Fairbanks.Chapter Four investigates Swift's contribution toward the establishment of municipal reform in Indianapolis. While never assuming an elected office, he worked for the advancement of Indianapolis as an autonomous entity free from the controls of the General Assembly and strove to inform citizens of backsliding politicians. Only after World War I did Swift assume a public office as president of the Board of Sanitary Commissioners. During his term the sanitation department became a hallmark of municipal efficiency and economy.Chapter Five examines Swift as a proponent of preparedness and internationalism. His activities as a member of the American Rights Committee portray him as a superpatriot with all of the accompanying vices. Yet following the War, Swift supported all calls for internationalism including Wilson's League of Nations and the Washington Conference.Chapter Six offers concluding remarks which suggest that Swift, while no prime mover of any reform throughout his career, does rank high above the general populace which exhibit apathy to national and international turmoil.Two minor themes pervade this dissertation. First, beginning in the late 1880's, local reformers and businessmen in Indianapolis were attempting to implement, with significant success, many of the progressive concepts of municipal government and operations which were responsive to the changing complexion of a growing urban society. Second, a reform-oriented tradition from the Mugwump era through the Progressive period definitely operated in Indiana although it achieved neither the public support nor concrete results of its Eastern counterparts.

As a popular culture subject, Taylor Swift is an example of a widely circulated image that adheres to the guidelines for “appropriate” girlhood, innocence, and feminine performance. The proliferation of Swift’s identity as a virginal, delicate girl makes Swift the successful pop music figure that can “save” the troubled young girl of today. This thesis grapples with Swift’s image as an artist and addresses the ways that she often stands in as the example for imagined “appropriate” femininity. Swift’s image relies on ideas about innocence and normativity that are directly linked to markers of whiteness without ever having to explicitly name it. Swift’s specific performance of normativity and the success she has achieved because of it is one example of how we can begin to complicate understandings of agency and where it can be located.

Thesis (M.A.)--Liberty University, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D. in English)--University of California, Berkeley, Sept. 1969. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 244-247).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1964. / Typescript. Vita. Glossary: leaves 207-209. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 197-206).

By drawing on the two waves of critique of the Enlightenment and its version of reasonone after the French Revolution and the other after WWIIthis research pushes the timeline to an even earlier point and tries to study the critique of the Enlightenment and its version of reason within the Enlightenment itself. In doing so it chooses the English/Irish writer Jonathan Swift for case study, because in his works he repeatedly levels scathing criticisms of his age and the reason upheld by many of his contemporaries.;In his critique of the Enlightenment and its version of reason Swift appeals to a long tradition in Western intellectual history which regards human reason as twofold: a discursive part which proceeds in a step-by-step manner, through analysis, calculation, and demonstration; and an intuitive part which reaches the conclusion directly, immediately, and with much certainty. The Enlightenment, however, breaks the balance between the two by promoting discursive reason and eliminating intuitive reason. As a result, discursive reason is easily instrumentalized without the check of intuitive reason, which is thrown into oblivion.;Swift's critique is essentially a protest against this trend that was going on at his time. In contrast to it, he denounces discursive reason while champions intuitive reason. In his critique, the main target is discursive reason, and it necessarily also involves the most representative embodiment of discursive reason that was prospering at the time, namely, natural science. The critique of discursive reason and of science is made partly by relying on intuitive reason, which makes it, in a sense, also reason's critique of itself.;Of course, Swift does not regard human reason, either intuitive or discursive, as the panacea for human beings. As a priest of the Anglican Church, he thinks reason should always be subordinate to faithin other words, reason is limited. But perhaps ironically, in his emphasis on the limit of reason and the consequent need for faith as embodied and ensured in an authoritative institution, Swift reveals his own bigotry, intolerance and authoritarianism, which shows how he was historically and ideologically limited.

One of the major problems for readers and students of A Tale of a Tub is its apparent lack of internal unity and coherence. Faced with a welter of seemingly contradictory and inconsistent arguments and attitudes, reader and student alike have frequently been forced to concede defeat and turn to Swift's "more profitable" works for consolation. The purpose of the present study has been to indicate the existence, in the Tale, of numerous unifying devices, a recognition of which may enable the reader to perceive and appreciate the essential unity and coherence of an admittedly complex literary entity. Emphasis has been primarily upon the "dramatic impact" of the Tale, and the contribution of images and themes to this impact. Classification of images and themes has been made in terms of the definitions offered in the text. Persuasive oratory is the instrument to achievement in the Tubbian world, and it is with the motives and methods of Tubbian orators that the study is primarily concerned. The pervasive themes of the mechanical operation of the spirit and madness are among the unifying devices in the Tale. The first seven chapters are devoted to an exploration of images, devices, and thematic developments as unifying devices. Four subsequent chapters discuss the relationships between elements in the Tale and certain of the cultural dissentions of which these elements provide reflections. There has been no attempt at inclusiveness in the selection of representative cultural elements. Rather, in the selection of materials from Hobbes, Dryden, Wycherley, Sprat, the Cambridge Platonists, Glanvill, and Shaftesbury, the attempt has been only to indicate the major preoccupations of the age. Where obvious similarities exist between attitudes, as they do between the attitudes of Hobbes and those of the scientific virtuosi, the emphasis is upon Swift's capacity to make fine distinctions between similar attitudes and to indicate these distinctions in his methods of attack. Conversely, the inclusion of apparently disparate "philosophies," such as those of Hobbes and Shaftesbury, is intended to demonstrate Swift's ability to comprehend in one attack a great variety of disparate attitudes. It has been found necessary, in the interests of clarity, to include a certain amount of explanation and elaboration of materials relative to the cultural background. The conclusion of the study is primarily concerned with the reader's reaction to the "dramatic impact" of the Tale. Certain of Swift's "satiric criteria" or norms are tentatively offered for consideration. These are such as may be readily available to the reader from a careful examination of the text and an exploration of his own reaction to the text. / Arts, Faculty of / English, Department of / Graduate

The effect of ion irradiation and annealing on the microstructure and migration behaviour of implanted Sr and Ag in SiC have been investigated. SiC is used as the main barrier for fission products in modern high temperature gas cooled reactors. An understanding of the transport behaviour of the implanted ions under irradiation by swift heavy ions (SHI) will shed some light into SiC’s effectiveness in the retention of fission products. The diffusion behaviour of silver (Ag) and strontium (Sr) implanted separately into SiC was investigated after irradiation by xenon ions and isochronal annealing methods from 1100 ˚C up to temperatures of 1500 ˚C in step of 100 ˚C for 5 hours. Ion implantation and ion irradiation were performed at room temperature. The implantation fluences in all cases were in the order of 2×10 16 ions per cm 2 . Some of the implanted samples were then irradiated by SHI at different fluences (i.e. 3.4×10 14 and 8.4×10 14 ions per cm 2 ). The implantation depth profiles before and after irradiation and annealing were determined by Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS). The microstructure of SiC individually implanted with Ag and Sr were investigated using Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Implantation of Ag and Sr amorphized the SiC, while SHIs irradiation of the as-implanted SiC resulted in limited recrystallization of the initially amorphized SiC. Annealing at 1100 °C caused more recrystallization on the un-irradiated but implanted samples compared to SHI irradiated samples. This poor recrystallization of the irradiated SiC samples was due to the amount of impurities (i.e. concentration of Ag or Sr atoms) retained after annealing at 1100 o C. Raman and SEM results showed that annealing of the un-irradiated but implanted samples at 1100 °C resulted in large average crystal size compared to the irradiated samples annealed in the same conditions. RBS results showed that SHI irradiation alone induced no change in the implanted Ag and Sr. However, annealing the SHI irradiated samples iscohonally up to 1500 ˚C showed a strong diffusion and release of Ag and Sr as compared to the un-irradiated but implanted samples. The differences in the migration behavior of Ag and Sr is due to the difference in SiC structure and recrystallization in the irradiated and un-irradiated but implanted samples. / Thesis (PhD (Physics))--University of Pretoria, 2019. / National Research Foundation (NRF) and The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS). / Physics / PhD (Physics) / Unrestricted