Jovany Avendano

Mrs. Greenwald
AP English, Period 4
9/15/2010

A Modest Proposal

1. One is able to realize that the narrator is not voicing Swift’s ideas because in the line, “ I have been
assured by a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy child well
nursed is at year old a most delicious, and wholesome food…; and I make no doubt that I will equally
serve in a fricassee or a ragout” the narrator based is idea on that of another’s from London. Also, if this
were really Swift’s ideas, Swift who is a true Nationalist, would not have any friends from England to begin
with, because of their dominion over Ireland.

2. Swift’s intended audience would be the poor people of Ireland because this rather radical approach to
solve the destitute overpopulation would lessen the burden of having to raise children, and would also
allow the beggar families to gain some wages. His true targets would be the wealthy aristocracy of
England because this is all a metaphor for how England, a grown and experienced “person”, is eating or
devouring Ireland, a “baby” compared the England. Swift’s ideas would then offer the aristocracy a way to
gain money from this “selling” of babies in a market to come, if his ideas are not put down.

3. Two examples of a hyperbole would include: that there are more children born in Roman Catholic
countries about nine months after Lent than at any other season; therefore, reckoning a year after Lent,
the markets will be more glutted than usual, and that for those who are skilled, they could make gloves
and boots out of the babies’ skin . Three examples of irony would include: that Irish people eating their
young would not realistically solve the overpopulation problem, that the “modest” proposal is anything
but modest, its more of a savage, cannibalistic even insane proposal, and lastly that he takes an impartial
approach because his daughter is 9 and his wife is past child bearing, so he has nothing to gain.

4. Swift’s underlying proposals would be that he wants the Irish people to stand up for themselves and take
responsibility. It seems like he blames both England, for her complete exploitation of the subjugated
country, and Ireland, for her complete incompetence in dealing with their deplorable economic state, for
the situation at hand. Swift caring deeply about his people, wants to help them overcome this problem, so
by offering a completely ridiculous proposal, he hopes to awaken the masses and take initiative for their
problems.

5. Two comparisons to Gulliver’s Travels would include: that in both cases, Swift criticizes both the society
and politics of the country he is referring to. He criticizes the society by making the Irish look lazy and
nothing more than hopeless beggars, and in GT, in Balnibarbi he criticizes the people for stupid and
useless inventions. As for the politics of the country, in the MP, he offers a way to increase wealth by
eating babies, and in GT he bashes the government of Lilliput by urinating on the castle to extinguish the
fire.