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A Modest Proposal Essay

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The articles Shut the Door, the Chinese Exclusion Act, and A Modest Proposal all pertain to population control and solutions to overpopulation within a nation’s borders, whether it applies to those within their boundaries or those seen as a difficulty outside of them. Shut the Door and the Chinese Exclusion Act were created to limit immigration into the United States from outside countries, while A Modest Proposal outlined a solution to overpopulation and poverty within its own citizens. All three of these articles contained what would be controversy in today’s society, although they may have been seen as viable solutions during the time period they were proposed in. Shut the Door was a speech given by a senator in 1924 on the congress floor which proposed to, simply, “shut the door” to outside immigrants and “Americanize” the ones already within the borders. Much like the Chinese Exclusion Act, this proposal was designed to keep out …show more content…

The author, Jonathan Swift, goes on to list many supporting reasons for his solution by using both logic and emotional means of persuasion. While it is understood to be more of a mocking hyperbole, the blatant coldness in the writer’s tone is both more convincing, yet more frightening than either of the other articles. All three articles focus on the age-old, yet ever-present human conflict of overpopulation, existing in what seems like almost every time and place. Recently, both Shut the Door and Chinese Exclusion Act show some resemblance to immigration acts which have been trying to get passed in our government. In conclusion, while those two articles show us what is possibly currently happening within our government, A Modest Proposal show us what we hope the world and society will never have to come to, no matter how dire the situation may

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