Project Gutenberg 1997-11-01 Public domain in the USA. 173 Swift, Jonathan 1667 1745 Swift, J. (Jonathan) The Bickerstaff-Partridge Papers Produced by An Anonymous Volunteer, and David Widger "The Bickerstaff-Partridge Papers" by Jonathan Swift is a satirical work that primarily critiques the practice of astrology, written in the early 18th century, specifically during the early 1700s. This book combines elements of political satire and humor to address the absurdities associated with almanacs and their creators, particularly in relation to the prevalent superstition surrounding predictions of future events. Swift adopts the persona of Isaac Bickerstaff, an astrologer, to expose the foolhardiness of blindly believing in such predictions. The narrative unfolds through a series of humorous predictions made by Bickerstaff, which are intentionally exaggerated and absurd to illustrate the ridiculous nature of astrology. The central character, John Partridge, an actual almanac-maker, becomes the target of Bickerstaff's satire, as his supposed death is forecasted in a comedic twist of fate. The writings include a mock elegy for Partridge, along with his desperate attempts to defend himself against Bickerstaff's claims, revealing a lively back-and-forth filled with wit and irony. The work not only entertains but also serves as a critical commentary on the gullibility of the public and the charlatanism of those who exploit such beliefs for profit. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 55.5 (10th to 12th grade). Somewhat difficult to read. en Satire, English PR Text Banned Books from Anne Haight's list Category: Humour Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches Category: British Literature 111946 2025-07-01T08:17:55.861931 text/html 107156 2015-03-05T16:31:06 text/html; charset=us-ascii 114208 2025-07-01T08:18:00.871335 application/epub+zip 114370 2025-07-01T08:17:58.476865 application/epub+zip 105369 2025-07-01T08:17:57.444822 application/epub+zip 206628 2025-07-01T08:18:02.709293 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 196819 2025-07-01T08:18:00.257345 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 167711 2022-09-01T09:34:04.545001 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 96095 2023-10-01T07:48:47.026651 text/plain 15582 2025-07-01T08:18:02.823416 application/rdf+xml 11218 2025-07-01T08:17:57.927838 image/jpeg 2775 2025-07-01T08:17:57.683838 image/jpeg 111056 2025-07-01T08:17:55.871975 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia