Analysis of A Modest Proposal

The implied thesis of Swift’s “A Modest Proposal" is that 18th century Ireland would be in a better situation if the Irish society and monarchy actually treated problems such as overpopulation and poverty, While the overt thesis is that Irish people should consider eating their children and selling them to rich Englishmen to solve the issue of poverty and overpopulation in the country. They differ form one another as one focuses on eating children, while the other focuses on giving commentary through the essay itself.

At the time A Modest Proposal was written, Ireland was in a state of extreme poverty. The country was significantly overpopulated: people were struggling to make ends meet and provide for the growing population. The author of the text, Dr. Jonathan Swift, was repulsed by the Irish government’s reluctance to institute any major changes to help resolve the levels of poverty and overpopulation present at the time. In response, he wrote this text to criticize the upper class for this level of inaction, as well as their failed attempts at resolving the issue. Through Swift’s use of satirical devices -- such as irony, hyperbole, and understatement -- he was able to convey his message to the public which was criticism about the inadequate actions being taken by the government to solve Ireland’s troubles. He believed they weren’t doing enough to help the situation at the time and wanted them to see their defeat in hopes that they would decide to finally act.

Satire is a form of literature in which an author tries to demonstrate his or her point of view by ridiculing. The author uses heavy irony and sarcasm in order to criticize a social issue. A perfect example of a work of satire is Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal. In this satirical essay, Jonathan Swift attacks on the issue of the Irish poverty in the 1700s. The essay sarcastically suggests that Ireland’s social and economic problems would be quickly solved by putting the children of impoverished Irish families on the food market. Through heavy exaggeration, Jonathan

In 1729, Ireland was at its worst, economically and politically, under the complete control of England. England had control over Ireland in every aspect: politically, militarily, and economically. Because England was tremendously profiting from Ireland’s dependency on them, they cared very little about the conditions that the Ireland people were having to live under. Jonathan Swift, an Ireland satirist, felt obligated to change the conditions that the people of Ireland and himself were living in. In a proposal, Swift uses extreme irony and exaggeration to bring attention to what he is truly trying to reciprocate to his audience. Through “A Modest Proposal”, Swift turns to the political leaders and the mistreated people of Ireland

Jonathan Swift’s "A Modest Proposal," is a piece of work that deeply expresses satire. Johnathan’s description of destitution is characterized through the life of Ireland's poor individuals in the 18th century. Shocking the sensibilities of readers, he considers their inhuman way of living throughout the entire text. Being born Ireland himself, Swift thought of himself as an Englishman, but the English is his intended audience. Sadly, Englishmen were predisposed of hatred to the Irish, they may take lightly Swift’s point of the essay and endorse Swift's proposal! "A Modest Proposal" starts with the description of 18th century Irish life. Ireland during those times were a place where children became beggars/thieves in order to live and help

On the one hand Jonathan Swift uses the satire as a way of presenting material so as to criticize comically, by making fun of the object of critique. In A Modest Proposal, Swift tells his aggravation set up at the ineptitude of Ireland's politicians, the hypocrisy of the wealthy, the tyranny of the English, and the squalor and degradation in which he sees so many Irish people living. While A Modest Proposal complains about the poor situation of an Ireland from England's exploitation, it also expresses Swift's disgust at the Irish because they can’t speak up for themselves. Swift's piece protests the utter inefficacy of Irish political leadership, and it also attacks the orientation of so many contemporary reformers toward economic utilitarianism.

Overall, Swift is also using irony by relating this unheard of cruelty to babies to cruelty animals. He suggests that buying children alive and “dressing them hot from the knife as we do roasting pigs” (411) is the best way to serve them. This was intended to tell the audience that the Protestants are basically treating the Catholics like animals with no regard to life. This carefully crafted technique lets the reader see how malicious the Protestants are actually being, and that they are killing Catholic babies alive by ruining any chance at a good life. Swift did not actually mean for people to go out and cook babies like pigs to get the most satisfactory, he simply meant that if you are going to treat them like pigs, you might as well eat them like pigs. If the people of Britain can’t see that through adults, maybe

In ‘A Modest Proposal’ the author, Jonathan Swift utilizes techniques such as satire, sarcasm, and irony to create a bigger picture to the reader. Within the poem, Swift not only presents a humorous approach to social and economic issues but does so in a well-constructed and carefully composed manner. A closer reading of the text reveals a deeper critical analysis of the social perceptions of the poor at the time. Through Swifts’ use of irony, he creates a proposal that is so extremely absurd that some may believe the piece to be genuine. By taking an issue and providing a corrupt and merciless solution, the writer uses a unique approach to catch the attention of the people of Ireland and presents them a proposal they cannot ignore. Through the use of irony, Swift creates a poem that not only criticizes social perceptions of the poor but also remarks upon the issue without directly addressing the reader.

Effectively ushering change in society or pointing out faults that have existed and gone unnoticed can be a daunting task for any social commentator. Often, blandly protesting grievances or concerns can fall upon deaf ears and change can be slow or non-existent. However, Jonathan Swift in his pamphlet A Modest Proposal, uses clever, targeted, and ironic criticism to bring the social state of Ireland to the attention of indolent aristocrats. He accomplishes such criticism through satire, specifically Juvenalian satire. Swift’s A Modest Proposal stands as an example of the type of satire that plays upon the audience’s emotion by creating anger concerning the indifference of the voice created. He complements such criticism with sophisticated,

A Modest Proposal was a satire written by Jonathan Swift, a Dublin-born Anglican priest. Throughout the satire, Swift explains the reality that many Irish peasants were too poor to feed or support their own families. He had the idea that children were the source of income for a family, that if they were “bred and butchered for the dining table”, the family would earn some money to live on, relieving themselves of miseries. Swift describes the nature of society as being corrupt through his remarks on the lifestyle of Ireland’s lower classes.

In his biting political satire called ?A Modest Proposal,? Jonathan Swift seeks to create empathy for the poor through his ironic portrayal of the children of Irish beggars as commodities that can be regulated and even eaten. He is able to poke fun at the dehumanization of the multitudes of poor people in Ireland by ironically commenting on what he sees as an extension of the current situation. Swift?s essay seeks to comment on the terrible condition of starvation that a huge portion of Ireland has been forced into, and the inane rationalizations that the rich are quick to submit in order to justify the economic inequality. He is able to highlight the absurdity of these attempted

In Jonathan Swift’s satire, “A Modest Proposal”, Swift writes about the starving people of Ireland in the early 1700’s. He makes a wild and absurd proposal to help remedy the problems of overpopulation and poverty. Swift wants to make a political statement by using the “children” as satire to grasp the attention of the audience - the English people, the Irish politicians and the rich – and make them aware of the political, moral, and social problems. In “A Modest Proposal”, Swift’s arguments are presented effectively by using pathos (emotional appeal), ethos (ethics and values), and logos (logic reasoning and facts).

Jonathan Swift was a very famous satirical writer of the 16th and 17th century. Living in Ireland, he describes the many problems of the country including: poverty and overpopulation. Swift used his writing to inform people that nothing was going to be done about said problems until they were to rise together and make a stand. In “A Modest Proposal,” Swift comes up with the not so marvelous idea to eat the children of the poor which are causing the problem of overpopulation. Swift’s satire shows that the government would rather ignore or blame the problem on someone else rather than fix the problem. The audience of this piece would be the people of 16th and 17th century Ireland. Swift uses pathos, or emotional appeals the most to get his point across. This piece of writing is a valuable part of writing and is still very important today because it shows that people had to hide their true feelings in their writing and satire was one way to do it.

Irony is a beautiful technique exercised to convey a message or call a certain group of people to action. This rhetorical skill is artfully used by Jonathan Swift in his pamphlet “A Modest Proposal.” The main argument for this bitingly ironic essay is to capture the attention of a disconnected and indifferent audience. Swift makes his point by stringing together a dreadfully twisted set of morally untenable positions in order to cast blame and aspersions on his intended audience. Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” employs despicably vivid satire to call for change in a world of abuse and misfortune.

The sarcastic views of Swift’s understanding of the poverty of Ireland leads him to make a proposal for a solution to poverty, where he ignores the concern of human morale by displaying the lacking efforts of England to help. Swift uses methods that work to get or help better understand a situation, for example being sarcastic in a situation where a person wants something out of the situation by satire. The undeniable effect of satire catches the attention of England to further display the poverty of Ireland which is displayed throughout Swift’s Modest Proposal with exaggeration, incongruity and reversal.