ipl-logo

Use Of Satire In A Modest Proposal By Jonathan Swift

1255 Words6 Pages

In A Modest Proposal, we see an extreme use of literary devices and satire to help persuade the reader into supporting the author, Jonathan Swift, solution to poverty around him. Swift specifically uses hyperbole throughout the writing to create satire. One example of a hyperbole that stood out to me was “a young healthy child well nursed is at a year old a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food, whether stewed , roasted, baked, or boiled;¨ (Swift 62-63). Swift uses this hyperbole to create satire by making an exaggerated comment about eating a child as if it’s any regular meal. He even lists multiple ways in which a child can be cooked, using such a detailed description with intriguing words allows the reader to be convinced this is …show more content…

He does this by making people think critically about the problems that surround poverty and that his solution can be justified. Swift brings up topics such as abortion, mistreatment of people from their landlords, desperation of the poor, physical abuse from spouses and so much more. Using satire draws attention to the issue, it’s pointing out society flaws and making you deal with it. The literary devices used have many things in common, for example being extremely ironic, exaggerated and humorous. With all these things combined Swift had the perfect satirical reasoning to convince others his solution was the best for …show more content…

The poet is mixing a bit of reality and imagination within the poem and painting. He is creating the horse in the beginning of the poem then literally rides off on said horse in the end. Another thing, the whole symbolism behind the violin and how you can infer he handed the violin to the nude lady in the picture. You can also create your meaning and reason as to why the strings were simply unattached at the end. Lastly you have the bizarre aspect that Felinghetti literally says the painting is going to become famous. This poem leaves you with a lot of questions and self interruption. Every aspect of the poem is symbolic to that exact

Open Document