Isaac Bickerstaff" is a satirical work written via Richard Steele, an Irish author and co-founding father of the famed 18th-century periodical, "The Spectator." The work is a fictional character, a persona Steele adopted to satirize and comment on contemporary social and political problems. In "Isaac Bickerstaff," Steele uses wit and humor to lampoon numerous elements of London society, together with its manners, literature, and politics. The character of Bickerstaff serves as a satirical vehicle thru which Steele supplies astute observations and critiques, regularly taking over the persona of an astrologer predicting the future with humorous and exaggerated predictions. Notably, Steele's use of the Bickerstaff personality become a part of a literary feud with some other cutting-edge author, Jonathan Swift. Both Steele and Swift hired fictional characters and funny narratives of their writings to mock and ridicule every other and the cultural and political happenings of the time. "Isaac Bickerstaff" exemplifies Steele's skill in using satire to address societal issues while wonderful readers. It stays a vast piece in the records of 18th-century English literature, showcasing the power of satire as a tool for social commentary and grievance.
Sir Richard Steele was an Anglo-Irish writer, actor, and politician who was born in 1671 and died on September 1, 1729. He is best known for starting the magazine The Spectator with his friend Joseph Addison. Steele was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1671. His parents were Richard Steele, a rich lawyer, and Elinor Symes (née Sheyles). The year before, his sister Katherine was born. His grandparents were Sir William Steele, Lord Chancellor of Ireland, and Elizabeth Godfrey, who was his first wife. Mountain House in Monkstown, County Dublin, was where his dad dwelt. A woman of "great beauty and noble spirit" was said to be his mother, but not much is known about her family. His mother died a year after his father when he was four years old. The people who raised Steele were mostly his uncle Henry Gascoigne (who was the clerk to James Butler, 1st Duke of Ormonde) and his aunt Lady Katherine Mildmay. He was raised as a Protestant family member and went to Charterhouse School, where he met Addison for the first time. He began his education at Christ Church, Oxford, and then moved on to Merton College, Oxford. He then joined the Life Guards of the Household Cavalry to fight in King William's wars against France.
