The themes and elements used in Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal shook the country by breaking a silence that was held for decades in a way that is still so prevalent in modern journalism and entertainment today. By looking at the satirical side of the story through changing the main subjects to something so obscene while using reason and humor, we can see the motives this piece has on us which most readers don’t see; this is important because without Jonathan Swift’s writing style and unique voice, he would come off as a lunatic, rather than a sane man. Satire in this situation is ironic because of the vicious circle the era was stuck in regarding politics. A similar cycle occurs in the same country 70 years later that was fueled by familiar tinder. This satirical style can be found alongside the irony that we see in modern times and the way these situations continue to be present in society.  

What was occurring in Ireland around 1720s and then later on in the 18th century can be looked at in terms of satire, the form in which A Modest Proposal has been written in. Satire is the use of irony, humor, or ridicule to criticize or expose something such as societal issues or political topics. It pokes fun at a situation that may seem a bit ridiculous and poke fun about how silly we may be during certain conflicts, especially with politics. In 1720, King George III of England declared Ireland was dependent on Britain and that Britain parliament had to make laws over them. While the ‘big brother’ England watched over, Irish Parliament was controlled by an elite group of Irish Protestants who made themselves extremely wealthy off of their people through corruption and patronage. Along with this Protestant rule, the elitists made it illegal for Catholics to run for office. This was a very tumultuous time on all levels of society. However, all of these issues can be explained under the satire written by Jonathan Swift and the irony that comes with it. With there a clearly upset Irish nation after being claimed by Britain after ruled dependent, change was strongly desired and for the reigns to be loosed and Ireland could have more power. The largest issue was that Britain had to reason to listen to the Irish complaints. Irish Parliament was made up of a corrupt bunch of the most powerful Protestants that would use their power to scam and steal from their people while solidifying their power in office through various laws such as restricting the Catholics. If the leaders of the oppressed Irish continue to steal from their own people, yet want a revolution on Britain who keeps their corrupt nation afloat, it becomes a very ironic situation. It relates to Jonathan Swift’s satire for the fact that Swift decides to solve the problem for their famine by feeding themselves their own people. Turning against each other to use them as food, rather than develop their kids, find a way to make it work, and hope you can raise them as a new generation that could make a change in the system. This is similar in the way that Ireland was under near total control from England, and instead of Ireland working together to come together and become a nation that no longer needs the support of another, they have turned against each other by having their local government be corrupt and treat all of their citizens so poorly while the politicians bask in their stolen money. The irony presented in Swift’s work about eating your babies is very similar to the situation with Ireland’s Parliment turning on their own people as a potential solution for being under British control rather than attacking the country itself. 

The use of a satirical style text that was released during that time period was not just a one-time affair. Satire today is used every single night of the week on modern television. It can involve sports, politics, trends, and many more while they take different approach that often humiliates the subject in an effort to address a much more important situation. Jonathan Swift addressed a situation in Ireland that was current in the 1720s, yet it can be related to again in Ireland during the 1790s during the 1978 rebellion after tensions snapped between the United Irishmen. The United Irishmen’s goal was to campaign to end religious discrimination and widening the right to vote across more groups of people. While this group seemed to be fighting to head toward a better Ireland, of course there was fighting back from other small resistant groups. These amounts of violence began to add up. It added up enough that the English government (who still had rule of Ireland) to take note of this commotion. England began to take out the United Irishmen themselves and United Irishmen, who were supposed to be making Ireland a more diverse and far less discriminated nation, declared a revolution against England and began to invade the main land. They were stopped with ease and United Irishmen were executed, tortured, had their houses burned, and also been taken to penal colonies. This is a historical situation that can relate back to A Modest Proposal in the way Swift said a good solution would be to turn on their own people. The UI were fighting for a good cause, yet were turned into the bad guy as they became a source of violence, then they were all just burned to the ground. It was a completely unproductive solution and that therefore relates it to Swift’s satire that was published 70 years prior to the rebellion. 

In Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal, there is a proposal being made that is absolutely insane, yet stated so simply. It is something that pulls the reader into what Swift is proposing. It makes you wonder, how can this man say the things he is saying without a slight wince. Swift states, “I shall now therefore humbly propose my own thoughts, which I hope will not be liable to the least objection” (Swift) then proceeds to explain his intricate plan about how babies should be fed to the rich people and how to cook them and efficiently keep up supply with the demand. The use of this simplicity is mind boggling and just makes you really question the true underlying message of this proposal. This article was published anonymously in 1729 as a hit at the way the government is handling their situation of being very impoverished while being constantly knocked down by England and the upper class politicians where the money and power resides. “In 1720 Swift broke nearly 20 years of silence to develop rapidly into the strongest voice of protest against this trend (English rule and oppression)” (Baker 1999). I think that the importance of him breaking this silence is that everyone is just so fed up with the government at this point and the people who are being taken advantage of have reached the point where Swift can just say, well, nothing else has worked so why not this.  It has gone on for too long that they are resorting to this method. During this time period, it must have been more astounding to see this writer publish a piece attacking the system, rather than how he is attacking them with satire and sarcasm. 

 In conclusion, Jonathan Swift’s writing had summarized a century of stagnation between two countries who both were seeking for the best outcomes for their respective country. England wanted to rule over Ireland and Ireland wanted to be independent from England. Both sides of the fight were looking at the big picture without fixing their foundation before becoming greedy. Irish Parliament and the people underneath that wanted freedom from Britain, yet they were already oppressed by their own local government (Irish Parliament) who were supposed to be supporting their best interests. Instead of developing your own kids to make a change in the system, let’s just eat them instead to help the famine. It became a vicious cycle that the two countries became stuck in. Turn on any television after your dinner and you will see a nights worth of TV of strictly satire. It has become a part of human culture to satirize real issues with something that seems so silly, but just places the situation on a more even scale removing any biases to help each side see the light in the distance. 
