A Complete Collection of Genteel and Ingenious Conversation
Encyclopedia
A Complete Collection of genteel and ingenious Conversation, according to the most polite mode and method now used at Court, and in the best Companies of England, commonly known as A Complete Collection of Genteel and Ingenious Conversation is a book by Jonathan Swift
offering an ironic
and satirical
commentary on the perceived banality of conversation among the upper classes in early-eighteenth century Great Britain written in the form of a reference guide for those lacking in conversational skill. It was completed in 1731, but may have been conceived of as early as 1704. One of Swift's last works, it was written in between bouts of vertigo and was not presented for publication until 1738.
Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift was an Irish satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer , poet and cleric who became Dean of St...
offering an ironic
Irony
Irony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
and satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
commentary on the perceived banality of conversation among the upper classes in early-eighteenth century Great Britain written in the form of a reference guide for those lacking in conversational skill. It was completed in 1731, but may have been conceived of as early as 1704. One of Swift's last works, it was written in between bouts of vertigo and was not presented for publication until 1738.