Jonathan Swift 's A Modest Proposal

When he presents his proposal in a ludicrous manner, he states that from a known friend in London, that a young child whether “stewed, roasted, baked or boiled” is the most delicious. In “The Modest Proposal” he also uses ethos in order to persuade his reader that his sources are credible. A child as an infant is said to cost more than a “boy or girl before twelve years old” because by being “assured by our merchants”, Swift proposes that being no “saleable commodity…they will not yield about three pounds.” He describes one of his acquaintances as a “true lover of his country” whose qualities he supports, was happily pleased with Swift’s proposal. Swift also makes the reader feel as if he is a man who will do anything to help and save his country.

During the early 1700s in Ireland, there were countless people that lived in poverty. Families that had many children at that time were usually the families that lived in poverty. If they chose to sell those children instead of keeping them, at the end of every year they would make 8 shillings for every kid they did not keep. In time, it would have been more beneficial for the poor families to sell their children because they would be making money on them (Baker). In 1729, a man named Jonathan Swift believed that he found a way to eliminate some of that poverty and feed the rich with the same solution. To propose his theory, he wrote “A Modest Proposal.” He wanted the poor people to give up their children as necessary evil. In the essay, Jonathan Swift challenges the status quo of the time and place in which it was written by saying people should sell and eat children and believing that women should be breeders (Swift).

Like the other numerous number of circulating pamphlets, Swift’s ‘A Modest Proposal’ begins with a sympathetic description of poor Irish people who can’t afford raising their kids to give one a sense of sympathy towards them. Unlike the other pamphlets of his contemporaries which proposed remedies or just complained about the problem like how the British government did, he emphasizes that his proposal “…is of a much greater extent, and shall take in the whole number of infants at a certain age who are

The so far unmentioned "Proposal" will already have the appreciation of the reader, as his idea will stop the unlawful killings of unborn and new-born children. Another "great advantage" is that the children, who will now because of this still be alive, of "one year old" will "contribute to the feeding and partly clothing, of many thousands. " Interest into what this "Proposal" is will be increasing and this is the desired effect as Swift is establishing his ludicrous suggestion but making the audience accept it by creating and increasing this interest.

Swift’s plan begins with a solution to end poverty. The proposal explains that the families with the least amount of money but have the most mouths to feed, should fatten their youngest children and sell them to land owners or meat markets. In this scenario, Swift treats the youngest children (starting at age one) as pieces of meat. This theory is expressed through a set of statistics, in which Swift’s argument becomes stronger. Thus, his solution would help decrease unemployment in the country and allow those big families to inherit better income.

Throughout Swift’s content, he uses rhetorical devices such as pathos, logos, and ethos. Jonathan Swift intelligently uses pathos to play a huge roll on people’s emotion in an effort to convince them of the legitimacy of his argument, “… and butchers we may be assured will not be wanting, although I rather recommend buying the children alive, and dressing them hot from the knife, as we do roasting pigs,” (689). Logos appeals to the logical thinking of the audience is introduced in support of his case. Swift gives the logical portion by using numbers to show how many unfortunate babies would meet their demise yearly, “… the hundred and twenty thousand children, already computed, twenty thousand may be reserved for breed, whereof only one fourth part to be males… one male will be sufficient to serve four Females. That the remaining hundred thousand may at a year old be offered in sale,” (689). Ethos was shown when he talked to high authority people about the situation, “Infant's flesh will be in season throughout the year, but more plentiful in March... For we are told by a grave author, an eminent French physician… there are more children born in Roman Catholic countries about nine months after Lent,”

Swift estimates that there are 120,000 children of poor parents born annually. These children are a burden on society because " . . .we can neither employ them in handicraft or agriculture "(2183), they have no practical skills or uses. To deal with this problem, Swift makes his "modest proposal," using a device that is timeless in its effectiveness-shock value:

He uses satire to chastise Catholics because Catholic families typically have several children and Swift notes that his proposal to sell children for food will ensure that the Catholics don’t overpopulate. The selected quote, even with its absurd proposal of cannibalism, is spattered with statistical data. Swifts uses statistics in the quote to gain credibility and relevance. Since the primary reason for Swift’s proposal is grounded in economics, he provides statistics in the selected quote to outline how the government will benefit by saving on the upkeep and maintenance of the children sold for food and that the venture will be completely sustainable. By noting in the quote that the profit will be of their own making and will circulate among themselves, this portion of the quote literally eliminates the poor just as Swift

Beginning with an examination of the subtitle, the stance of the narrator and his views of the poor are evident immediately. “…For Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland, from being a Burden to their Parents or Country; and for making them beneficial to the Public." (Swift Para.1). This example is a distinct instance of irony; in which Swift uses such long, elaborate sentence to summarize his main proposition. By referring to

Swift shows his despair from the rejection he has experienced from every caregiver or leader in his own life, just as the poor have been rejected by society, forcing them to resort to begging. He feels that something drastic will have to happen in order for things to change, otherwise the misery of being devoured by society will be upon the poor “breed for ever,” as well as himself (Swift). Perhaps this drastic change that would have to occur is already too late for Swift. Perhaps his unresolved childhood complexes are too far past that they can never be resolved, but he is still trying to resolve them through his proposal that is trying to resolve society’s large problem of poverty.

Jonathan Swift's "A Modest Proposal" can be said to have a satirical surprise ending, even though the reader is well prepared for it based on the tone and style of Swift's writing and any prior knowledge of the author's intentions. Swift's final solution to the problem of overpopulation is for the poor to sell their children as food for the rich. He introduces this proposition quite early into the document "A Modest Proposal," which is why the ending is not so much as a surprise as it is an intriguing rhetorical argument. The reason why the ending might seem surprising is that it seems as if Swift may indeed be presenting a realistic argument of what can be done about overpopulation, in spite of all evidence to the contrary. A reader not used to inferring messages based on tone or style might be forgiven to misread the beginning of Swift's document. For example, a person who has never heard a sarcastic tone could very well believe that Swift was being serious; in which case the reader would continue to view Swift's proposal as reasonable and either consider him a monster or a genius. Generally, Swift uses the surprise ending to alert the readers to the absurdity of the original problem that reveals social injustices and inequities. One of the biggest surprises in Swift's document is when he states, "I can think of no one objection, that will possibly be raised against this proposal, unless it should be urged, that the number of people will be thereby much lessened in the

1. How does Swift want the reader to view his speaker? That is, how would Swift want his reader to describe the persona he adopts? Swift would like his readers to regard his speaker, or the persona he adopts, as a reasonable, compassionate, thorough, egalitarian man with a clear interest in solving the problems of the day. Evidence for each of these characterizations will be found throughout the first eight paragraphs.

A Modest Proposal was written in the year 1729 by the famous satirist Jonathan Swift. In his work he outlines the pros of eating unwanted children of Ireland for economical benefits in a time of great poverty. While the reader can obviously discard the idea of eating children, in his proposal, in a roundabout way, Swift speaks to hard pressing issues of the time.

In this political pamphlet Swift’s title’s “A Modest Proposal” With a total 120,000 poor children Swift proclaimed are born to poor parents. The solution will come at a horrible and non-moral price. Implementing a six step plan of human sacrifice and cannibalism. The first 20,000 children to be set aside for breeding purposes. Permitting the mother or families to sell the remaining 100,000 children for up to ten shillings a piece. Offering them to their landlord to sell, eat or breed as a debt payment for shelter. Allowing the entire family to move up in their financial situation.

A modest proposal is a satire that attempts to provide a “fair, cheap, and easy method” (Swift 315) to make the poor, starving children of Ireland into useful members of society. During this time, Ireland was going through a period where poverty and famine were very high. A Modest Proposal starts off by showing how extreme this food shortage was by describing a woman and her starving children begging for food. Swift comes