The Battle of the Books
Jonathan Swift worked for William Temple during the time of the controversy, and Swift's "A Tale of a Tub" (1703/1705) takes part in the debate. From its first publication, Swift added a short satire entitled "The Battle of the Books" to the "Tale of a Tub." In this piece, there is an epic battle fought in a library when various books come alive and attempt to settle the arguments between moderns and ancients. In Swift's satire, he skilfully manages to avoid saying which way victory fell. He portrays the manuscript as having been damaged in places, thus leaving the end of the battle up to the reader.
Moor Park, Farnham
It was while at Moor Park that Temple employed Jonathan Swift as his secretary, and it was here that Swift wrote "A Tale of a Tub" and "The Battle of the Books" and met Esther Johnson, daughter of an impoverished widow who acted as companion to Temple's sister. Swift acted as her tutor and mentor, giving her the nickname "Stella", and the two maintained a close relationship for the rest of Esther's life: some believed that they secretly married in 1716. Swift met many of Temple's distinguished guests during his time here: King William III, John Dryden, Joseph Addison, Richard Steele and others.