Theme Of Individualism In A Modest Proposal By Jonathan Swift

Individualism is an act of becoming reliant on one’s self and not having to depend on other sources for help. In Jonathan Swift’s essay “A Modest Proposal”, he shows how the poor women of Ireland are not self reliant. He says “These mothers, instead of being able to work for their honest livelihood, are forced to employ all their time in strolling to beg sustenance for their helpless infants” (315). Swift is approaching the poverty of these women sarcastically by strongly saying that they are forced to spend all their time begging others. Although the time period that these women lived in was a period of Enlightenment, Swift is saying they could have still shown some motivation for their own livelihood by getting employed. Furthermore, Swift …show more content…
“Then shall Mans Pride and dullness comprehend His actions, passions, beings use and end Why doing, suffering, checked, impelled and why this hour a slave, the next a deity”(346). Often times when people are non-reliant on some sort of spiritual being they lose their way within the world. This result possibly allows people to become dull as Pope stated and even more a slave to the ways of society and a goddess of your own pride and self worth. The point that Pope is making is that people should be more humble in their ways and allow God into their lives instead of trying to be independent and accept …show more content…
He says “No fiends torment, no Christians thirst for gold” (347). As Society would view things Christians should to have a close relationship with God. Most Christians are seen as pure and other are not but when they are exposed for sins they are all often looked down upon. He also states “Yet cry, If man’s unhappy, God’s unjust.”Pope is telling us that when people are unhappy with their situation whether Christian or non Christian their beliefs change. The Enlightenment period during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries is an important piece of history .This time period allowed philosophical writers to bring forth important issues that people often neglected through satirical writing. Jonathan Swift and Alexander Pope encouraged readers to not accept the established normal ways of society, but to embrace change. It is very relevant that mankind takes consideration of the not falling into the normal ways of society. These writers wanted people to allow themselves to be self reliant in their own thinking as many individuals are