A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift (Book Analysis)

This practical and insightful reading guide offers a complete summary and analysis of A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift. It provides a thorough exploration of the essay’s content and main themes, as well as a useful discussion of the context in which it was written. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time.

This clear and detailed 40-page reading guide is structured as follows:

• Biography of Jonathan Swift
• Presentation of A Modest Proposal
• Summary of A Modest Proposal
• Context
• Analysis of A Modest Proposal
  • Satire
  • Humans as commodities
  • Poverty and motherhood

About A Modest Proposal

The essay A Modest Proposal was published anonymously in 1729. In it, Swift begins by lamenting the poverty that is rampant in Ireland and particularly afflicts mothers, as they must provide for their children but are unable to work. He then proposes an audacious solution to this problem: apart from a small proportion who are to be kept aside for breeding purposes, the poor infants in Ireland should be sold as food to wealthy landowners, thus enabling their mothers to earn more money and get back to work. In this scathing work of satire, Swift targets the upper classes and the British elites in Ireland, whose greed is responsible for much of the poverty in the country but who remain utterly callous towards the poor.

About Jonathan Swift

Jonathan Swift was an Anglo-Irish author and clergyman. He was born in 1667 to English-born parents, but his father died before he was born, forcing his mother to rely on her family members for help. He went on to study at Trinity College, Dublin and work for a British diplomat; it was at this time that he began writing poetry. Nowadays he is remembered for his brilliant satirical writing, particularly his novel Gulliver’s Travels and his essay A Modest Proposal.