Why are the poor people represented as pigs?

Shelley is cleverly repurposing an existing insult. The ruling class often referred to the lower orders as 'swine' to strip them of their humanity. Shelley embraces that label but flips the narrative — rather than portraying the pigs as pitiable, he positions them as the moral heart of the play. They are the ones who perceive the truth, who voice the reality of Famine, and who embody the revolutionary spirit that the rulers ought to dread.

What are the GREEN BAGS mentioned in the Chorus?

In 1820, the government brought its case against Queen Caroline with sealed green bags that allegedly held evidence of her adultery. These bags turned into a representation of government secrecy and manipulation—no one outside Parliament was allowed to see their contents. Shelley refers to them as a symbol of official dishonesty, grouping them with 'cant' and corruption.

Is the Chorus of Swine actually celebrating famine?

Not exactly. The pigs aren’t thrilled about being starved—they’re arguing that Famine is the only force capable of toppling the system that’s keeping them hungry. It’s a bleak, doomsday perspective: if nothing else can create fairness, then let Famine do its work. Shelley is capturing the anger of those who feel they have no alternatives, not promoting starvation as a positive outcome.

Why does Swellfoot say he can only hear 'lean and mutinous Swine grunting'?

This is Shelley's joke about how thoroughly the ruling class has separated itself from reality. Mammon notices apocalyptic signs, while Swellfoot hears nothing but an annoying sound. The king is so absorbed in his own comfort — his gout, his Maraschino punch, his dinner — that he fails to see the signs of his own downfall, even when they're happening right in front of him.

What is the connection to the Peterloo Massacre?

In August 1819, cavalry charged into a crowd of about 60,000 people in Manchester who were demanding parliamentary reform, resulting in at least 15 deaths and hundreds of injuries. Shelley was deeply angered and responded by writing several political poems, including *The Mask of Anarchy*. *Swellfoot* was created during this same time of turmoil. Laoctonos's claim of spilling more blood than anyone in Thebes directly references the state violence exemplified by the Peterloo Massacre.

Why did Shelley model this on Greek comedy?

Aristophanes, the ancient Greek playwright, employed animals, crude humor, and outrageous allegory to directly target politicians and generals. Shelley, well-versed in Greek literature, viewed Aristophanes as a model for using art as a political weapon. By adopting the Greek form, the satire gained cultural respectability, making it more challenging to dismiss the attacks.

Was Shelley ever punished for writing this?

The play was published anonymously in 1820 but was quickly suppressed by the Society for the Suppression of Vice, which issued threats to the publisher. At that time, Shelley was living in Italy, so he couldn't be directly targeted by legal action. However, this suppression resulted in the play having almost no readership while he was alive. He passed away in 1822 without ever seeing it gain a true audience.

The Annotated Edition

THE UPPER END OF THE TEMPLE. by Percy Bysshe Shelley

Summary, meaning, line-by-line analysis & FAQ.

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Poet: Percy Bysshe Shelley
Themes: anger, freedom, justice

The PoemFull text

THE UPPER END OF THE TEMPLE.

Percy Bysshe Shelley

ATTENDANTS PASS OVER THE STAGE WITH HOG-WASH IN PAILS. A NUMBER OF PIGS, EXCEEDINGLY LEAN, FOLLOW THEM LICKING UP THE WASH.] MAMMON: I fear your sacred Majesty has lost _20 The appetite which you were used to have. Allow me now to recommend this dish— A simple kickshaw by your Persian cook, Such as is served at the great King’s second table. The price and pains which its ingredients cost _25 Might have maintained some dozen families A winter or two—not more—so plain a dish Could scarcely disagree.— SWELLFOOT: After the trial, And these fastidious Pigs are gone, perhaps I may recover my lost appetite,— _30 I feel the gout flying about my stomach— Give me a glass of Maraschino punch. PURGANAX (FILLING HIS GLASS, AND STANDING UP): The glorious Constitution of the Pigs! ALL: A toast! a toast! stand up, and three times three! DAKRY: No heel-taps—darken daylights! — LAOCTONOS: Claret, somehow, _35 Puts me in mind of blood, and blood of claret! SWELLFOOT: Laoctonos is fishing for a compliment, But ’tis his due. Yes, you have drunk more wine, And shed more blood, than any man in Thebes. [TO PURGANAX.] For God’s sake stop the grunting of those Pigs! _40 PURGANAX: We dare not, Sire, ’tis Famine’s privilege. CHORUS OF SWINE: Hail to thee, hail to thee, Famine! Thy throne is on blood, and thy robe is of rags; Thou devil which livest on damning; Saint of new churches, and cant, and GREEN BAGS, _45 Till in pity and terror thou risest, Confounding the schemes of the wisest; When thou liftest thy skeleton form, When the loaves and the skulls roll about, We will greet thee-the voice of a storm _50 Would be lost in our terrible shout! Then hail to thee, hail to thee, Famine! Hail to thee, Empress of Earth! When thou risest, dividing possessions; When thou risest, uprooting oppressions, _55 In the pride of thy ghastly mirth; Over palaces, temples, and graves, We will rush as thy minister-slaves, Trampling behind in thy train, Till all be made level again! _60 MAMMON: I hear a crackling of the giant bones Of the dread image, and in the black pits Which once were eyes, I see two livid flames. These prodigies are oracular, and show The presence of the unseen Deity. _65 Mighty events are hastening to their doom! SWELLFOOT: I only hear the lean and mutinous Swine Grunting about the temple. DAKRY: In a crisis Of such exceeding delicacy, I think We ought to put her Majesty, the QUEEN, _70 Upon her trial without delay. MAMMON:

§01Quick summary

What this poem is about

This scene is from Shelley's satirical play *Swellfoot the Tyrant*, depicting corrupt rulers and their supporters enjoying a lavish feast while starving pigs — representing the impoverished English — sing a chilling hymn to Famine. The pigs don't revere Famine out of a desire for suffering; rather, they recognize her as the only force capable of dismantling the unfair world their rulers have created. Shelley employs ancient Greek dramatic form as a tool against the British monarchy and its officials.

§02Themes

Recurring themes

§03Line by line

Stanza by stanza, with notes

MAMMON: I fear your sacred Majesty has lost / The appetite which you were used to have.
Editor's note
Mammon — named after the biblical god of greed — flatters King Swellfoot (a stand-in for George IV) about his lost appetite. The dark humor is striking: the king has lost his desire for food while his subjects are literally starving. The 'Persian cook' and the dish that 'could have fed a dozen families for a winter or two' highlight the shocking divide between royal indulgence and public suffering.
SWELLFOOT: After the trial, / And these fastidious Pigs are gone, perhaps
Editor's note
Swellfoot dismisses the starving pigs as 'fastidious'—fussy and difficult—creating a darkly comic twist on reality. He bemoans his gout (a condition of the overfed) and asks for a luxury liqueur. The 'trial' alludes to the actual 1820 trial of Queen Caroline, which George IV orchestrated to divorce and publicly shame her. Shelley portrays the entire political spectacle as merely a nuisance to the king's digestion.
PURGANAX (FILLING HIS GLASS, AND STANDING UP): / The glorious Constitution of the Pigs!
Editor's note
Purganax — a name that hints at purging and political maneuvering — raises a glass to 'the Constitution of the Pigs.' This is Shelley's sharpest irony: the constitution is meant to safeguard the people (the pigs), yet it is celebrated by the very men who take advantage of them, as if the document belongs to them instead of being a right for the people.
DAKRY: No heel-taps—darken daylights!— / LAOCTONOS: Claret, somehow,
Editor's note
Dakry and Laoctonos serve as exaggerated representations of actual Tory ministers. Laoctonos, whose name translates to 'people-slayer' in Greek, casually links the red hue of claret to blood and claims to have spilled more blood than anyone in Thebes. The humor in this is intentional: for these men, state violence is merely a topic for light-hearted conversation at the dinner table.
CHORUS OF SWINE: Hail to thee, hail to thee, Famine! / Thy throne is on blood, and thy robe is of rags;
Editor's note
The Chorus of Swine serves as the emotional and political core of the scene. The pigs sing a hymn to Famine, not as victims but as a force for revolution. Here, Famine is depicted as a skeletal empress, her very being a reflection of the rulers' greed. The reference to 'GREEN BAGS' directly targets the government's use of sealed green bags of 'evidence' during the Queen Caroline trial, symbolizing official secrecy and manipulation.
Then hail to thee, hail to thee, Famine! / Hail to thee, Empress of Earth!
Editor's note
The second stanza of the chorus shifts from description to prophecy. The pigs declare that when Famine rises, she will redistribute wealth and dismantle oppression — flattening everything in her path. This is powerful language: the starving masses, when pushed to their limits, become an unstoppable force. Shelley is not glorifying famine but rather warning that a society founded on inequality will ultimately collapse under the weight of its own suffering.
MAMMON: I hear a crackling of the giant bones / Of the dread image, and in the black pits
Editor's note
Mammon suddenly perceives supernatural signs — a cracking idol, flames flickering in empty eye-sockets — interpreting them as divine omens. This serves as a parody of how those in power manipulate religion and mysticism to legitimize their authority. The 'unseen Deity' and 'mighty events hastening to their doom' imply that even the corrupt can sense the impending collapse, though they choose to cloak it in oracular language instead of confronting it directly.
SWELLFOOT: I only hear the lean and mutinous Swine / Grunting about the temple.
Editor's note
Swellfoot's reaction to Mammon's dark vision is a masterclass in comic deflation: all he hears are hungry pigs. This serves as Shelley's last joke in the passage—so wrapped up in his privilege, the king can't recognize the signs of his own downfall. The scene wraps up with Dakry advocating for a trial against the Queen, highlighting that even amidst societal collapse, the ruling class remains focused on settling internal political scores.

§04Tone & mood

How this poem feels

The tone is both furious and absurd — imagine a political cartoon coming to life on stage. Shelley employs a mock-heroic style (with elements like the Greek chorus, the temple backdrop, and the prophetic speeches) to portray the rulers as foolish, while the Chorus of Swine expresses a real, simmering anger beneath its dramatic facade. The comedy keeps the anger sharp; each joke hits its mark.

§05Symbols & metaphors

Symbols & metaphors

The Pigs: The impoverished English working class has been dehumanized by their rulers. Shelley seizes the aristocratic insult of calling the poor 'swine' and transforms it into a symbol of revolutionary unity.
Famine: Not only hunger, but also the unavoidable result of inequality. Shelley gives Famine a personality as an empress and a leveling force—she represents what occurs when a society neglects the needs of the many for too long.
The Temple: The seat of corrupt power—where political, religious, and economic authority all merge into one decaying institution. The image of pigs being fed hogwash within it reveals everything about Shelley’s perspective on the British establishment.
The Feast and the Gout: Gout was referred to as the 'disease of kings,' stemming from indulgent diets and excess. The image of Swellfoot suffering from gout while the pigs go hungry encapsulates the entire political argument of the play.
GREEN BAGS: A direct reference to the sealed bags of secret 'evidence' from the 1820 trial of Queen Caroline. They symbolize the official deception — the government's tendency to conceal its unsavory actions behind bureaucratic facades.
The Cracking Idol: The massive image with flames in its eye-sockets points to the impending downfall of the old order. Mammon interprets it as a divine sign, while Shelley sees it as a political alert that no corrupt system can endure indefinitely.

§06Historical context

Historical context

Shelley wrote *Swellfoot the Tyrant* in 1820, drawing inspiration from the public scandal over King George IV's attempt to divorce Queen Caroline by putting her on trial in Parliament. This trial ignited public outrage, with many ordinary people rallying around Caroline, viewing the king as a hypocritical bully. At the time, Shelley was in exile in Italy and was already enraged by the British government's brutal crackdown on working-class reform movements — notably the Peterloo Massacre of 1819, where cavalry charged into a peaceful crowd of protesters. The play takes cues from Aristophanes' Greek comedies, employing animals, grotesque humor, and political allegory to critique those in power. Shelley published it anonymously, and it was swiftly suppressed by the Society for the Suppression of Vice. During his lifetime, it sold very few copies, but it remains one of the sharpest examples of political satire in English Romantic poetry today.

§07FAQ

Questions readers ask

They are obvious caricatures of actual individuals. Swellfoot stands in for King George IV. Mammon symbolizes the financial and aristocratic elite. Purganax is commonly interpreted as a representation of Viscount Castlereagh, the Foreign Secretary. Dakry and Laoctonos depict other Tory ministers notorious for their repressive policies. Shelley employs Greek-sounding names to lend a classical touch to the satire, while still making the targets clear to any knowledgeable reader.

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THE UPPER END OF THE TEMPLE. by Percy Bysshe Shelley

THE UPPER END OF THE TEMPLE.

What this poem is about

Recurring themes

Stanza by stanza, with notes

How this poem feels

Symbols & metaphors

Historical context

Questions readers ask

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