Compare And Contrast Johnathan Swift And Michel De Montaigne

Cannibalism is a very strange device for arguing a point via social commentary, but Johnathan Swift and Michel de Montaigne use it very well to present their ideas. They do so, however, in very different ways. Montaigne’s piece titled “On the Cannibals” was written in 1572, when expansion to foreign, uncharted lands and the decline of stability in France were both occuring very rapidly. It was within the same year that he wrote this essay that the Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre occurred, which is very likely what spurred him to write the criticism he did. Simlarly, it was inequality and discontent that led Swift to write his satirical piece, “A Modest Proposal,” on the oppression of the Catholic Irish peasants by Protestant upper class citizens.

Foremost, Montaigne’s style of writing in his essay is in direct contrast to the way that Swift writes his own. Swift is known for his satire, so his piece is a very sarcastic joke directed at the behaviors of upper class Ireland. Montaigne, on the other hand, is very direct and to-the-point in his criticisms. He lays out his points one by one and argues them with examples from his observations. The style for argument is different for each piece, but they both use cannibalism as a basis for their writing and are very

The biggest difference is not only origin, but religion. Despite the parallels in the behavior of the French and the cannibalistic acts of the foreign party, the French believe themselves to be free of criticism as a result of their civility. Their violence is justified, according to their religious zealotry. This is exactly what the cannibals believe of their own practices. Similarly, the upper class society in Ireland when Swift wrote his piece viewed the peasants as undignified and lesser, most likely as a result of their religious