A Modest Proposal was written in the 18th century by Jonathan Swift and the proposal he makes in this essay is not real, but satirical. Swift was mocking the way the British dealt with Irish people. His proposal about using babies for food is very original and it deals with the nature of people who are cruel and who cannot find a good way to take care of the well-being of the citizens. This essay contains a lot of irony and this pamphlet is political because it criticizes British rule. The British government proved to be uncivilized and there was also the issue of Irish incompetence, so the satirical political pamphlet which suggests that they should resort to cannibalism if they are unable to think of a better way to solve the social problems is adequate.
Swift wanted to criticize the society and did it in a way that made them look like savages. He mocked them about the way to deal with overpopulation which was a problem in Ireland. It sounds as if babies were pigs ready to be slaughtered and eaten as a delight. He believes “that a young healthy child well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricasie, or a ragoust” (Swift, 2014, p. 632-633). He is deliberately making fun of the rulers who are selfish and do not care about the problems of common people. Upper classes and aristocracy are not the problem and only poor people are. This is a social critique and people did not understand it well at the time because they believed that nobody had the right to criticize them. However, critique is always welcome because it reveals all the flaws of the system and the fact that there is social inequality and social injustice.
This pamphlet is witty and it holds attention because it has bitter humor as well. There is a mixture of politics and entertainment as well as the social critique and Swift was right in publishing such a paper because he was ahead of his time. He was inspired to write about the political situation in Ireland in a satirical way and it is witty that he resorted to cannibalism to point out to the absurdity of the situation in Britain. He is writing about year- old children in terms of nutrition and it is referred to the greed that was present in England. There was a need to write the essay in satire because it would leave a stronger impact on the ruling class. The absurdity of Britain is equal to Swift’s suggestion about cannibalism which is why that idea is witty. It suggests that Britain is not civilized enough to deal with the problems in a better way. Therefore, cannibalism represents selfishness, greed and incompetence in this essay.
Swift depicts the Irish politicians as hypocritical, as well as the people who are wealthy, and there is also England depicted in terms of tyranny and moral decay and degradation of the Irish. A Modest Proposal is about Ireland which is exploited by England and Swift criticizes the Irish for not being capable of solving any social issues on their own. He was disgusted by their lack of assertiveness and he harshly judges them for being incompetent to solve any problems. Also, the upper classes were protected which is another significant moment that bothers Swift.
The reason for Swift’s writing a political and satirical pamphlet was his personal taste in self-expression. This was the way in which he dealt with proposing solutions for the social problems, as well as for the economic issues. He thought that the decision makers were completely incompetent that they deserved to be mocked. This kind of irony is bleak and he is desperate because there is no actual progress in tackling any of the problems. Irish leaders are completely inefficient and this pamphlet is a way for his to raise his voice and present A Modest Proposal. The Irish were inefficient because they were governed by England for centuries. Ireland was mistreated by England and that enraged Swift because the country was like a colony as it depended on England in terms of economy and politics.
The title is satirical as well because he is calling his proposal modest, and it involves cannibalism. It is outrageous for the ruling class, but he is just making fun of them because he feels that he has the right to express his opinion. He showed contempt for ideas brought by management to solve issues which were dealing with human beings and their benefit.
The essay is highly ironic and it keeps attention of the readers who are affected by this problem. His proposal is morally inadequate, but it is written in an ironic way, and it is not supposed to be taken seriously. The purpose of it is to raise public awareness and to put the blame on ruling class who should have been ashamed for their incompetence and for being selfish by not thinking about the benefit of common people.
This pamphlet is both shocking and revealing because it makes the readers think about what led Swift to write such a proposal that is highly unethical and uncivilized. Swift begins by writing realistically and by showing compassion as well by writing about beggars. He states the problem in the first sentence: “It is a melancholy object to those, who walk through this great town, or travel in the country, when they see the streets, the roads and cabbin-doors crowded with beggars of the female sex, followed by three, four, or six children, all in rags” (Swift, 2014, p. 631). It is impossible not to feel sympathy for these misfortunate people who should be taking care of their families instead of begging. However, the state forced them into finding a solution in poverty which meant that they were on their own. This is enraging and the ruling class has to be confronted about not being able to deal with social issues. They deserve to be laughed at and to be treated as potential cannibals. There is no possibility of work and therefore, there is a class of beggars as well as the problem of overpopulation. The Irish people do not have loyalty for their own country which is also what Swift criticizes. It sounds disgraceful when Swift writes: “I grant this food will be somewhat dear, and therefore very proper for landlords, who, as they have already devoured most of the parents, seem to have the best title to the children” (Swift, 2014, p. 633). Swift is suggesting that the landlords are the people who have the power to improve the economic situation, but they do not want that because it does not affect the, and that is why they should therefore resort to cannibalism if they are not competent enough to deal with the problem in a better way. They deserve such treatment because of being selfish and not caring about anything other than themselves.
The children will not be able to find jobs which is why they could serve as food, and it would be beneficial for all the sides involved in this issue which is a social problem. Women are called “breeders” by Swift which means that their purpose is to provide their children as food for the wealthy. He even proposes ways in which babies should be nurtured in order to be tasteful when cooked. Ireland is regarded as a country whose people are insensitive and where people are reduced to statistics. It is all about materialism and people are looked at as goods and not as human beings.
The purpose in writing this essay is to show the hypocrisy of the ruling class and the fact that it is present in all societies, even the modern ones. Capitalism is devouring its children and everything is a matter of competition and survival. The order of the world is such that there is survival of the fittest, while people who need help and who are underprivileged do not deserve to live in such a system. People like to show their human side and to pretend to be compassionate, but the truth is that there are few people who genuinely care about the benefit of people who are not useful to them. A Modest Proposal is a timeless essay about the bad organization of any society and about the flaws of politics which cannot solve any real problems. Satire and cannibalism were used to point out to the incompetence and lack of interest to serve for the benefit of the whole society. The message of the essay is that the ruling class should be more conscientious and deliver better performance when dealing with social problems.
References
Swift, J. (2014). A Modest Proposal. In X. J. Kennedy, D. M. Kennedy, J. E. Aaron, & E. Kuhl Repetto (Eds.), The Bedford Reader (12th ed., pp. 630-638). Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin's.
