A Modest Proposal Enlightenment

Johnathan Swift, a writer born in Dublin, Ireland, created many pieces of literature that went into deep disagreement with the English rule over Ireland during the time of the Enlightenment. Swift believes that England is to blame for the poor economic standing of Ireland and that the high social class is abusing the power they have over the lower classes and especially the poor. In “A Modest Proposal” Swift creates a solution to the hatred and finds a way to pay back the poor, although, a little extreme.
The Enlightenment was a time that was much like a breath of fresh air after the dark time of the middle ages. The period was drove by the thought of scientific reason and finding a proof or reason for everything’s purpose or existence. The thinkers of the Enlightenment went …show more content…
Swift proposed that babies should become the meal for the wealthy. The text says that the children of beggars and the poor would be taken from them at the age of one. This way, they would still be able to be breastfed with their mother’s milk and they would be healthy and the perfect size to create a hearty meal for the wealthy people. This solution would allow the families that had been begging on street corners and unable to feed and clothe their children a new chance to get a profit and get them off the streets. This would also help Ireland create an income and for the men to be more financially invested in their women and be more careful when making the decision as to whether to have children or not. Although this is a very outrageous proposal, there are still ways it relates back to the Enlightenment and the government during this time period. To begin, there are many instances in the text where Swift breaks his character and starts to specifically write out that the wealthy are to blame for the poor and the struggling that Ireland is going