Mohammed Ismail AP Language Composition Lyons, William December 9, 2014 Rhetorical Devices Used in Jonathan Swifts Modest Proposal The essay Modest Proposal, written by Jonathan Swift perhaps known better for his novel Gulliver’s travels wrote this piece, because during his time he addressed solutions to many contemporary social issues by writing them on pamphlets. Swift’s main purpose in writing this essay is to avert children from being less of a problem to their parents and the public. The author tries not addressing his subject directly, children, instead Swift introduces the concept of a market, livestock, breeders, etc., to address the overcrowding and poverty stricken children in Dublin, Ireland.
In fact, he refers to “A very worthy Person, a true Lover of his Country, and whose Virtues I highly esteem, was lately pleased, in discoursing on this matter, to offer a refinement upon my Scheme”(17). As a result, Swift shows that even the most patriotic person to both Ireland and Britain (since Ireland was under British control at the time) realizes that within this current situation of poverty, this proposal is a solution and can be acted out in many different
1729, a Papist infected Ireland was being devoured by the taxes that the British placed on them. The taxes were turning into what once was a glorious place into ruins. Jonathan Swift, an Englishman and Irish sympathizer, realized that someone had to do something to wake up the British. This lead to the creation of A Modest Proposal, a pamphlet heavy with irony and juvenalian satire, which was how Jonathan Swift planned on compelling the British to do something about the poor situation in Ireland. His use of rhetorical devices gets his point across in an effective and powerful way.
During the time that “A modest proposal” was written, it was extremely hard to get the peoples attention and the only way Swift saw fit to get the peoples attention was to write a satirical parody. Even though Swifts idea to improve the lives of the poor were quite unorthodox he got the people talking about actual ways to fix the problem at
Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” is a very interesting take on how the Irish government should cure the famine that the country was then facing. However, the entire proposal was completely bizarre, and the whole point of the essay was to bring attention to the idea that they needed a solution to the all the problems they were experiencing but the proposal was definitely not it. He even had a strongly developed plan as to how his proposal would work which makes the reader feel as if he is serious about selling children, eating them, and using their skins as a fashion accessory; however, ultimately this proposal was not his true goal. Jonathan Swift skillfully used different styles of writing, such as imagery and irony, to show why the
Starting out with the title, Swift claims his proposal to be “modest”, when it fact it is quite the opposite. From first glimpse at the essay, the reader might see the tone
Jonathan Swift uses “A Modest Proposal” to seek validation as well as justice for his cause. “A Modest Proposal” is a satirical piece which discusses how to keep Irish children from being a burden on their families and their country by eating them. Swift published “A Modest Proposal” in 1729, after several of his other essays proposing different ways in which to boost the Irish economy were more or less ignored. Since he had already produced so much content on the subject that had been ignored, he could be considered an underdog with this additional essay. The effects of the irony
In doing so, Swift subtly criticizes England and its society. It is not by accident that after his meeting with the Houyhnhnms and their Yahoos, Gulliver turns away from human society. He goes back to England but this time as a social misfit. Thus the book is not a stereotype narrative about the emptiness of Mankind’s ambitions but it is also a deeply satirical piece depicting the evils caused by mercantilism. It almost anticipates colonial imperialism.
Johnathan Swift, a clergyman and a political writer for the Whig Party, wrote the problem/ solution essay, “A Modest Proposal.” Swift has been called the greatest satirist in the English language. “A Modest Proposal” is a prime example of satire because satire is using cutting humor or irony to ridicule or make fun of the vices or mistakes of a person or country. Swift decided to use satire because if he made his proposal legitimate, people would not take it seriously. At the time this essay was written, people were indifferent, so Swift took their indifference and wrote “A Modest Proposal.”
Rhetorical Analysis Essay: A Modest Proposal Dr. Jonathan Swift places himself as a villain who is willing to do evil deeds to answer hard questions. What pushes Swift to write the essay “A Modest Proposal” is Ireland's economic and social problems. In this satirical essay Swift highlights the problems in Ireland and gives a sarcastic solution to make people feel guilt. Swift’s use of dehumanizing language is used to make the reader oppose Swift’s modest proposal.
Jonathan Swift, was a famous satirist and author of “Gulliver's Travels” who devoted most of his writing discussing the struggle between Ireland and England. Swift became famous in Ireland in the 1700’s for his depiction of the English government in a time where Ireland and England were not particularly friendly. In the essay “A Modest Proposal”, one of Swift’s more extreme, the idea of the Irish eating their children to survive is presented with a plainly satirical tone. Since the content of the essay is so absurd, it allows for Swift to hold an overly serious tone which adds to the hilarity of this piece. The essay builds a unique type of argument by using satire and allegory to establish tone and pathos, diction paired with tone to establish a relationship with his intended audience and comedy to discredit the people he is mocking and elevate his own
In literature, the element of satire is employed to illustrate or exploit the corruption of a society by means of exaggeration, black humor, highbrow wit, or mockery. The writer's intent is to make permanent change for a problem or fight a cause in a society that otherwise looks away in ignorance. In "A Modest Proposal," Jonathan Swift spins a web of masterful satire to propose a grisly solution to the problem of poverty, which mocks the folly of the 18th century socially elite and puts the blame on the greed of the wealthy for the sickly state of the nation. The Restoration and the 18th century for the British was a time of great commercial and economic prosperity, and the Anglican Church remained closely tied with the governmental power
Swifts text was effective in using ethos, logos, and satire to convince the English to do more to address the issues of Ireland. Swift used ethos by showing he was a well-educated, and thoughtful man. He shows us when reading the text, we see the way he uses his words. With the phrase “having turned my thoughts for many years upon this important subject, and maturely weighed the several schemes of other projectors…” (Jonathan Swift, 356) it shows that he thought a lot about this topic. Swift explained that selling Ireland's children would help with many problems Irelands families are having.
Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” is a very interesting take on how the Irish government should cure the famine that the country was then facing. However, the entire proposal was completely bizarre, and the whole point of the essay was to bring attention to the idea that they needed a solution to the all the problems they were experiencing but the proposal was definitely not it. He even had a strongly developed plan as to how his proposal would work which makes the reader feel as if he is serious about selling children, eating them, and/or using their skins as a fashion accessory; however, ultimately this proposal is not his true goal. Jonathon Swift skillfully used different styles of writing, such as imagery and irony, to show why the Irish should sell their children to the rich to eat.
Critical Analysis of Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” In the work entitled “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift, the theme of social injustice is enhanced by the use of verbal irony to convey a charged message. The ambiguous title and introduction to Jonathan Swift’s masterpiece does little to prepare the reader for shocking content revealed later in the text. Swift’s work is powerful, poignant and persuasive because it strikes at the heart of the modern readers ethics, as it likely would have done for the author’s contemporary audiences. Jonathan Swift’s 1729 masterpiece is a satirical metaphor centered around the pervasive assertion, “the English are devouring the Irish.” Jonathan Swift gives a more comprehensive exordium concerning his work stating that is it “a modest proposal for preventing the children of poor people in Ireland, from being a burden on their parents and country, and for making them beneficial to the public (Swift 1199).
