“Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody’s face but their own” (Swift). Beholders are intended, through guidance of satiric narrative, to recognize a sense of social injustice or political plights and that there are wrongs occurring that need to be fixed. In some satires, as in Swift’s own A Modest Proposal, the use of absurd, blatant exaggeration is intended to capture an idle audience’s attention regarding the social state of the poor. Yet even in such a direct satire, there exists another layer of meaning. In regards to A Modest Proposal, the interchange between the voice of the proposer and Swift’s voice introduces another medium of criticism, as well as the opportunity for readers to reflect on how
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The Irony in “A Modest Proposal” sets the foundation of the situation of the Irish people through verbal and situational irony. Swift uses verbal irony to convey dissimulation and feigned ignorance to the fact that his proposition is not necessarily as presented. The title of his pamphlet, “A Modest Proposal” is verbal irony itself, in which he suggests that the only way to save Ireland from overpopulation and poverty is to kill the children of the poor families and serve their meat as a delicacy to the nobility of Ireland, hence the suggestion not being modest. The title is made more absurd, and satirical, by the fact that the name completely extends to the appellation: “A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland From Being a Burden to Their Parents or Country, and For Making Them Beneficial to the Public.” The title served the purpose of drawing in Irish and British readers who were interested in doing something about Ireland's overpopulation and famine. The title doesn't hint …show more content…
Swift also uses verbal irony to provide a false illusion that the proposal will truly be beneficial for the people of Ireland, but in contrast is inhumanely regarding their place in society. The proposer states that his solution of poverty in Ireland will “provide more for them in such a manner as instead of being charged upon their parents or the parish… they shall on the contrary contribute to the feeding, and partly the clothing, of many thousands” (Swift par 4). The irony is that the speaker seems to care, but in actuality his suggestion shows that he does not see the poor as humans and really does not care about their plight, or he would not suggest selling their children to be eaten by the rich. The beginning of the pamphlet gave a deceptive impression of a possible solution towards the impoverished, but the satirical nature shows how no one is truly providing for these people, especially the people in control, primarily the British and Irish government, have little care towards the suffering. Swift’s uses situational
The Irony in “A Modest Proposal” sets the foundation of the situation of the Irish people through verbal and situational irony. Swift uses verbal irony to convey dissimulation and feigned ignorance to the fact that his proposition is not necessarily as presented. The title of his pamphlet, “A Modest Proposal” is verbal irony itself, in which he suggests that the only way to save Ireland from overpopulation and poverty is to kill the children of the poor families and serve their meat as a delicacy to the nobility of Ireland, hence the suggestion not being modest. The title is made more absurd, and satirical, by the fact that the name completely extends to the appellation: “A Modest Proposal for Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland From Being a Burden to Their Parents or Country, and For Making Them Beneficial to the Public.” The title served the purpose of drawing in Irish and British readers who were interested in doing something about Ireland's overpopulation and famine. The title doesn't hint …show more content…
Swift also uses verbal irony to provide a false illusion that the proposal will truly be beneficial for the people of Ireland, but in contrast is inhumanely regarding their place in society. The proposer states that his solution of poverty in Ireland will “provide more for them in such a manner as instead of being charged upon their parents or the parish… they shall on the contrary contribute to the feeding, and partly the clothing, of many thousands” (Swift par 4). The irony is that the speaker seems to care, but in actuality his suggestion shows that he does not see the poor as humans and really does not care about their plight, or he would not suggest selling their children to be eaten by the rich. The beginning of the pamphlet gave a deceptive impression of a possible solution towards the impoverished, but the satirical nature shows how no one is truly providing for these people, especially the people in control, primarily the British and Irish government, have little care towards the suffering. Swift’s uses situational