![]() ![]() This essay is widely held to be one of the greatest examples of sustained irony in the history of the English language. These lampoons include appealing to the authority of "a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London" and "the famous Psalmanazar, a native of the island Formosa" (who had already confessed to not being from Formosa in 1706). He uses methods of argument throughout his essay which lampoon the then-influential William Petty and the social engineering popular among followers of Francis Bacon. Swift goes to great lengths to support his argument, including a list of possible preparation styles for the children, and calculations showing the financial benefits of his suggestion. In English writing, the phrase "a modest proposal" is now conventionally an allusion to this style of straight-faced satire. This satirical hyperbole mocked heartless attitudes towards the poor, as well as British policy toward the Irish in general. ![]() Swift suggests that the impoverished Irish might ease their economic troubles by selling their children as food for rich gentlemen and ladies. A Modest Proposal is a Juvenalian satirical essay written and published anonymously by Jonathan Swift. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |