Using Satire in A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift

â€Å"A Modest Proposal† by Jonathan Swift, is an essay that uses satire. Merriam-Webster defines satire as: a way of using humor to show that someone or something is foolish, weak, bad, etc.: humor that shows the weaknesses or bad qualities of a person, government, society, etc. â€Å"Satire may make the reader laugh at, or feel disgust for, the person or thing satirized. Impishly or sardonically, it criticizes someone or something, using wit and clever wording—and sometimes makes outrageous assertions or claims† (Cummings, 2012). Swift, best know for â€Å"Gulliver’s Travels†, originally wrote this piece as a pamphlet in 1729 under the full title †A Modest Proposal: For preventing the children of poor people in Ireland, from being a burden on their†¦show more content†¦You are, after all, what you eat. He then goes on to explain the peak season for infant, obviously nine months after Lent. The many ways it can be prepared, â€Å"st ewed, roasted, baked, or boiled† (Swift, 2013), and the useful things that can be done with the leftover skin. Knowing how soft a babies skin is this should make for a fine pare of gloves. Swift does not stop there; he offers up six key areas this will be helpful. First, reducing the number of Catholics, a benefit for sure to any proper Protestant. Second, giving the meager some significance. They are a burden to the whole of Ireland. Third, increasing the nations income, with fewer mouths to feed, and a cash crop so abundantly sourced. Fourth, mothers would no longer have to raise their children beyond one year. (A mothers dream) Fifth, introducing a new dish to the markets for the culinary world to refine and charge as much as they see fit. Finally, it would gain women the same level of respect as the farm animals when they are pregnant. Offering up reasons of objection, Swift suggests that it may impact the population, and then retorts with, that was kind of the idea. Cull the Irish heard and allow the English to continue thriving with little or no effort on their part. He then explains how the infant flesh would not stand up to preservation to allow for the greedSh ow MoreRelatedAnalysis of A Modest Proposal873 Words   |  4 Pages Jonathan Swift, the writer of the satirical essay A Modest Proposal, grew up and lived in Ireland during times of famine and economic struggles (Conditions). Growing up with a single mother and no father, Swift knew what hard times and struggles were like (Jonathan Swift: Biography). His essay proposes an easy solution to the economic problems going on in Ireland for both the wealthy ruling classes and the poorer classes, although his intentions and the meaning behind his words are not what wouldRead MoreA Modest Proposal For Preventing The Children Of Poor People1458 Words   |  6 PagesSatire is a method used by multitudes of authors and other artists for a plethora of different reasons. The ways that this method of literature is used is varied, and it is always interesting and somewhat difficult to find out exactly why these texts are written. A specific author who is known for utilizing satire in his works o f literature is Jonathan Swift, whose hard-hitting essay â€Å"A Modest Proposal For Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland, from Being a Burden on Their Parents orRead MoreLiterary Analysis : Jonathan Swift1425 Words   |  6 PagesComp. II Oct. 27, 2015 Literary analysis The author I decided to write about is Jonathan Swift for he had a keen sense for effective sarcasm. As Jonathan Swift said â€Å"The proper words in the proper places are the true definition of style.† Though he was known in different ways, he was mostly popularized through his gift in writing, particularly his satire, or his use of humor and irony, essays. Through out swift life, there has been plenty of events where I believe shape the way he was, hence hisRead More Self Representation and the Self-Defeating Speaker in Jonathan Swift1735 Words   |  7 PagesBecause Swift constructs a speaker who is meant to be seen as himself in â€Å"Verses on the Death of Dr. Swift, D.S.P.D.†, his approach to the satire changes, taking on a more playful approach. The poem is more personal than political, and is more comedic in the sense that he satirizing himself as well as other people groups. The self-defeating rhetorical approach is embodied in this poem in the way that he pu ts himself down and exposes his own follies throughout the poem. While this is no doubt somewhatRead MoreA Modest Proposal1096 Words   |  5 PagesAssignment 1: Swift’s â€Å"A Modest Proposal† Dr. Anthony McCormack Strayer University World Culture II Gladys A. Reyes July 25, 2015 In the satire â€Å"A Modest Proposal’, Jonathan Swift expresses his feelings of frustration with regard to the aggravation and political issues in Ireland. He describes being frustrated with the indifference of Ireland politicians, the wealthy, the English tyranny, and the degradation and poor conditions in which many poor, Irish women and children have been forcedRead MoreAnalysis Of Jonathan Swift s A Modest Proposal And Li Ruzhen s Flowers994 Words   |  4 PagesThere are many uses of satire in Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal and in Li Ruzhen’s Flowers in the Mirror. Both of these readings address social issues during the 17th and 18th century and address them with various uses of satire to help emphasize their thoughts of dislike and carry that to their readers. Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal proposes using poor bastard children as food to help the poverty level along with other social issues that come with poor women carrying children and h avingRead MoreA Modest Proposal By Jonathan Swift1647 Words   |  7 PagesSatire in â€Å"A Modest Proposal† and Different Articles Jonathan Swift, author of â€Å"A Modest Proposal,† tries to present different ideas in order to change the situation of Ireland. Through his proposal, he is able to get people’s attention, and the way he uses satire throughout the article made his argument more successful. He wrote this essay to show how ignored and bad the state of Ireland and its social classes are. In â€Å"A Modest Proposal†, Swift effectively uses rhetorical exaggeration to expressRead MoreAnalysis Of Swift s The Sun Of The Eighteenth Century 825 Words   |  4 Pagesrestoration work, patterned after early Greek and Roman Cynics, author Jonathan Swift Calls the British Isles to action with an unprecedented solution to the problem of poverty; and exemplifies neoclassical literature in satirical style, sordid subject, and solid structure. Satire is one of the distinguishing marks that makes â€Å"A Modest Proposal† a classic example of Neoclassical Literature. In his use of Satire Jonathan Swift was undoubtedly influenced by Greek and Roman cynics who criticized theRead MoreModest Proposal by Jonathan Swift Essay1490 Words   |  6 PagesIn one of Jonathan Swift’s most well-known works, A Modest Proposal, he is proposing a change in Ireland. By using symbols and outrageous language, Swift displays what he is trying to get across to people since no one will listen to basic facts about Ireland’s poverty; he throws in the eating of children. The proposal starts off by discussing the extreme poverty that has taken over Ireland and explains that no one will make changes and England is of no help. Swift’s tone could best be describedRead MoreEssay about A Swift Change Is Imminent1714 Words   |  7 PagesAt a first glance, a misogynist’s paradise is apparent when perceiving Jonathan Swift’s The Lady’s Dressing Room and a cannibalistic one in A Modest Proposal. However, Swift’s intricate feelings do not depict Ireland’s crude social convention, but rather for Swift’s revolutionary vitriolic satire, which permeates humanity’s blindness through political stand points. By using grotesque metaphors, to open the figurative eyes of the public, Swift’s poetry forced society to analyze the ways of living