A Modest Proposal

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An Irish man, educated, and being a father, Jonathan Swift wrote a modest proposal. Swift’s purpose is to use satire to show that the Irish people are becoming overpopulated and in desperate need of help; there all hunger and poverty-stricken. He adopts an over-the-top tone in order to really emphasize the fact that the Irish are so desperate for help.
In a Modest Proposal, the main issue is the proposal and why it was proposed; why not eat and sell babies since you're all so hungry and poor? In a poor, cold, dirty, desperate Ireland in 1729, any hope the Irish can get will be of assistance. Jonathan Swift is presenting the idea to the highest class and the king of Ireland that if they don't step into assist, it's almost like the poor are going to get so needy, and they’ll have to sell their own children to stay alive. Swift takes it step-by-step, how the poor will cook the babies, sell them, how old they should be, how many should be sold, and other exotic details. The author absolutely assumes that there is a huge problem in Ireland: the Irish need help. The problem is overpopulati...

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