Jonathan Swift, the great satirist of the eighteenth century was a genius of complex and enigmatic personality. His character was of a "supersensitive" nature. He possessed a strong sense of justice, a keenness of vision, a generous disposition, a sincere adhesion to moral and social beliefs, an affinity for practical jokes and a scorn for science but also displayed excessive pride, arrogance, misanthropy, fits of violent temper and a strain of insanity. Thus his personality can be summed up in his own words, "At best, I have an ill-head and an aching heart."

The Supersensitive

Swift's mother left him in the care of his uncle when he was just a child, which may have caused a distortion in his character. Though his uncle gave him good education, he never ceased to grumble against his relatives. Meanwhile serving as a secretary to Sir William Temple, he regarded every passing...