ENGL 216 The Restoration Discussion Thread
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English
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Nov 24, 2024
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Title:
“A Modest Proposal” By Jonathan Swift
Passage:
“There is likewise another great advantage in my scheme, that it will prevent those
voluntary abortions, and that horrid practice of women murdering their bastard children” (Swift,
1729, p.368-369).
“I have reckoned upon a medium, that a child just born will weigh 12 pounds, and in a solar year
if tolerably nursed increaseth to 28 pounds” (Swift, 1729, p.371).
Analysis:
“A Modest Proposal” is a story about children in Ireland who are underfed and
malnourished. Their parents are not able to keep them fed due to being poor. The author makes a
proposal to “fatten them up,” and feed them to Ireland’s wealthy landowners in order to gain
selfishly. He states that children are able to be sold into meat markets and by doing that, it will
provide income for the family without the burden of having to bear a child (Swift, 1729). He
goes into depth saying when the children would best be sold and where. He speaks about how
much they need to weigh for them to be tasting their best. The overall story and meaning behind
this entire passage are that the people of Ireland are too poor and must sell their children for
everyone to survive.
“A Modest Proposal” shows the literary devices of allusion and irony. Swift makes several
allusions to historical events and texts. He references the oppressive English rule in Ireland,
mentioning how the English have already “devoured most of the parents.” This alludes to the
economic and political exploitation of the Irish by the English. The entire story is a masterclass
in irony. Swift’s proposal, on the surface, seems absurd and horrifying, but he uses this irony to
highlight the real injustices faced by the Irish people and the indifference of the English ruling
class.
Themes:
While “A Modest Proposal” doesn’t focus on specific characters, it does develop
themes. The central theme of the story is poverty and the extreme economic inequality in Ireland.
Swift highlights the abject poverty of the Irish population and their desperation. The proposal
itself, which suggests selling children as a source of income, is a grotesque commentary on how
poverty forces people to entertain unthinkable solutions. It underscores the vast wealth disparity
between the English ruling class and the Irish poor. Another major theme of the story is shown in
Swift’s proposal to use infants for food is an extreme example of the dehumanization of the Irish
population. It reveals how the English see the Irish as subhuman and expendable. The
dehumanization is both a result of and a contributing factor to the social and economic problems
faced by the Irish.
References
Swift, J. (1729).
A Modest Proposal
. Retrieved October 26, 2023, from
https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=GCCO&u=vic_liberty&id=GALE|
DLXPFZ007414540&v=2.1&it=r&sid=mindtap-
embedView&sPage=28561343&asid=15497933
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