“The Colbert Report” is known among most Americans as a political satire, and the show can be entertaining to the audience. Although it sparked controversy for ten years, it also brought knowledge of politics and simplicity to the American people. Similarly, 300 years prior, Irishman Jonathan Swift wrote “A Modest Proposal” because he was unhappy with the way Ireland submitted to England. He decided to let his writing speak for himself, and try to spark a change during this time. Colbert and Swift both use satire in order to expose the inadequacies of their respective governments.

In the two works “A Modest Proposal” and “The Colbert Report” the reader first doesn’t see many similarities, but differences. Swift wrote about the poor country of Ireland, and he wrote up a plan to resolve the number of homeless people. His proposal suggested to use the babies for food, clothing, and money, which deemed Swift silly. On the other hand, Stephen Colbert shows his audience great enthusiasm, which grabs the attention of those watching. He does so by poking fun at America’s political system and its representatives. He often brings celebrities or known famous people to guest star in the set to attract more viewers across the nation so that he can inform a wider demographic. By viewing the two works, the reader can’t see many similarities, but mostly differences especially when dissecting the direct text. Swift seems to be more focused about making a change, while Colbert just wants to entertain the audience.

By taking a deeper look at these two subjects, the audience can see a more complex meaning that the author tries to expose in each. Jonathan Swift was a politician that traveled back and forth from Ireland and England. He attended Trinity College, which was very prestigious at the time. Swift being a very educated diplomat noticed that the relationship between England and Ireland was unethical. England was purposefully restricting Ireland of business and resources, ultimately inflating the country with homeless citizens. Noticing the corruption of the English’s actions, Swift wrote “A Modest Proposal” in response hoping to inform the Irish people of the corruption of the Brits. He approached the book in a smart way because he was aware that the majority of the population was homeless or unable to afford an education, so he wrote the book in a way that anyone could understand the issues. It was very effective because the uneducated could understand that the British were abusing their reign over the country, which led to a rise of peopl trying to fight for their freedom. Swift played a major part on the journey to Ireland’s freedom by writing literature, and in his writing, Swift exposed England which was his goal that led to his profound meaning of the pursuit of freedom. Similarly, “The Colbert Report” attempts to expose the American government, and this is necessary because it is a civil duty that the citizens vote for the representatives in the government. When selecting the representative, it is essential for the people to know what they are voting for, and just about all the reps have something to hide from the people so they don’t look bad. Also, the different federal agencies all have something to hide as well, so it is crucial to know the candidates and what agencies they promote and demote. The people take pride in their country, and the president that they elect makes the final decisions on the issues the country is faced with. For this reason, “The Colbert Report” holds power. The newscasting is easily accessible, and is seen by many viewers some of which receive their news from it. Stephen Colbert is a vital individual because of the spotlight he has, and he does a swell job by uncovering political officers and agencies in a humorous way that the citizens enjoy. Again, by looking at the two publications, the audience can see an opaque meaning that the author/host is trying to reveal.

Stephen Colbert and Jonathan Swift are two key men for their respective nations because of the way they both adopt a persona in hope of exposing their countries governments lies. The present day American people are technologically advanced, and Colbert is aware of this. To grab his audience’s attention, he adopts a persona that is an extreme version of a nationalist so that he can ridicule them. Today, people enjoy this kind of entertainment, and Colbert is able to capture a wide diverse group of people to watch his show. It is important for Colbert to give off this lively outgoing persona because if he wasn’t acting then he wouldn’t have the viewers. Without the viewers, he holds less power because power is in the people and they are not watching his show. This directly impacts the amount of information he can spread. As for Jonathan Swift, he tries to make a change during a time that was 300 years prior to these major advancements. One could argue that Ireland at the time was not advanced at all because of the inopportunity of education. Swift knowing this, takes on the persona of the eating class by using an analogy about consuming babies. His whole book is referring to the chaotic voices that are behind British Legislation. The eating class is able to pick up on this, and they understand where Swift is coming from. Just about everyone could relate to babies because they either had them or saw the homeless ones running through the streets. His analogy is imperative because it instantly pertains to every citizen living in Ireland at the time, and it gave all of them something to relate to. Understanding this ultimately led to an Irish uprising, and without Swift it would have taken much longer for the country to escape the reign of England. If Swift didn’t use this comparison only those who could afford an education would know what he is trying to prove. Thus, the amount of nationalism would significantly decrease, which pose less threat to England and leads to a longer rule. As one compares the techniques used by Colbert and Swift, they can understand how genius the two are and how they are a necessity for their countries.

By looking at the two titles, one can see the secrets that political leaders and large countries hide from the public, which is significant for the people to understand. By researching the text of the two, there are no similarities and they seem acutely different. One talking about eating babies, and the other talking about extremists on social media. Still looking at the two topics, but diverting attention to the underground message the reader can see the two as one. They both try to inform the public about the secrets held by the government because it has the potential to weaken the populous as seen with 18th century Ireland. Lastly, Colbert and Swift use different techniques to persuade their audiences based on the technological advancement during the time periods. The two pieces are important because of the information they grasp. Without Colbert and Swift’s efforts to make the information public, the government would take power from the individual. George Orwell once said “If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear”, and that is exactly what Colbert and Swift did for the people.
