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Pathos In A Modest Proposal

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Humans have impacted the global environment significantly. Human populations have rapidly increased for the past few centuries. Imagine a world where sustenance is rare but people are plenty. Imagine the world where everyone's shoulders are touching one another and there is no room to move. “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift is an extremely sarcastic solution to a problem plaguing Ireland in the 1720s overpopulation. Swift utilizes ethos, pathos, and logos to argue that eating infants is the only solution that would take care the situation in Ireland; this solution, he argues, is more humane to use the solution according to the tone of Swift.
Swift uses pathos to make people feel bad for the children. He describes women and children begging on the streets of Ireland. The children either works, grow up to be criminals, fight for the Pretender or seek their fortunes in the far west. Swift states that "...to beg sustenance for their helpless infants, who, as they grow up, either turn into thieves for want of work, or leave their dear native country, to fight for the Pretender in Spain, or sell themselves to the Barbadoes" (ln.7). He makes children seem like they are useless to society and will just end up living a life of crime or being weak and leaving their country. This makes the audience feel emotionally for the children. Swift uses pathos to generate strong emotions towards the children-emotions that attack his argument.
Swift uses ethos by quoting his barbaric friend from London is saying he has been having the same the idea of killing the kids to make the audience …show more content…

Just imagine you see a lot of mothers are begging on the streets for food for their babies, don’t you want to help them by eating their babies. Then the family will have hope to live on and live happily ever

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