A Description of a City Shower

Swift’s “A Description of a City Shower” is a mock pastoral. This means that the poem borrows a sensibility and style of imagery from the traditional Roman form of the pastoral—popularized by Classical poets like Virgil and Horace—and combines them with a contemporary ironic sensibility. Traditionally, pastorals depict calm scenes from rural life and were enjoyed by upper-class Roman citizens who wished for an escape from the city. The main ironic force of Swift’s “City Shower” lies in how it uses the pastoral's idealistic language to depict the city’s filth and corruption rather than the country’s purity and tranquility. The primary way that Swift accomplishes this is through his choice of diction—in particular, his combination of high and low diction (from “sable cloud[s]” [Line 14] to “[d]ead cats” [Line 63]).

“City Shower” relies on stock pastoral imagery of weather events and local scenery to propel the poem, but the way that the poem’s speaker arrives at these images is unusual for a traditional pastoral. The first two lines immediately reveal the poem as a product of a different kind of high diction than that of Roman pastorals. Instead of the elevated language that poets like Virgil and Horace use to idealize their scenes, Swift incorporates the elevated language of scientific

Unlock all 21 pages of this Study Guide

Plus, gain access to 8,650+ more expert-written Study Guides.

Including features:

+ Mobile App

+ Printable PDF

+ Literary AI Tools

Unlock Full Library