Curated set · answers marked
What is the main rhetorical device Swift uses throughout A Modest Proposal to criticize British policy regarding the Irish poor?
Rationale
Swift takes on the composed, logical persona of an economist to "suggest" that the Irish poor should sell their babies as food for the wealthy. The shocking nature of this literal suggestion, presented in a cool and rational tone, serves as a consistent use of irony and satire to reveal and denounce British exploitation of Ireland.
Question: In A Modest Proposal (1729), Jonathan Swift suggests that the children of poor Irish families should be used as food for the wealthy. What literary device best captures this technique, where the author states the opposite of his true intent to critique British policy and the poverty in Ireland?
Rationale
Swift uses dramatic irony and satire throughout the essay. By taking on the calm, rational tone of an economist while suggesting something morally appalling, Swift exposes and mocks the dehumanizing views of the British ruling class towards the Irish poor. The proposal is not meant to be taken literally — it serves as a sharp satirical critique.
What is the main satirical suggestion that Jonathan Swift puts forward in A Modest Proposal (1729)?
Rationale
In a shocking twist, Swift's narrator suggests that one-year-old children from impoverished Irish families be raised and sold as food for wealthy English landlords. This proposal is purely satirical — Swift employs shocking irony to criticize the exploitation of Ireland by the English and the cold, utilitarian mindset of those who ignored the suffering of the Irish.