Essay Database

In Jonathon Swift’s “A Modest Proposal,” one of the voices that is present throughout the story is that of irony. The story itself is ironic since no one can take Swift’s proposal seriously. The piece of writing, which was published anonymously, was originally titled “A Modest Proposal For Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland from Being a Burden to Their Parents or Country, and Making Them Beneficial to the Public.” Elements …

…of the story; the assistance that the lower class needs. The writer does not really mean that the children of the Irish poor should be eaten, but in a manner of speaking, are actually being eaten by the English. This story should be viewed as a fictional work and is one of the best demonstrations of dual sarcasm and irony combined. Anything beyond that is purely hypothetical and is subject to the reader’s interpretation.