Satire is a technique employed by writers to expose and criticize foolishness and corruption of an individual or a society by using humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule. In “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift, he utilizes satire to draw people’s attention to the many societal issues of his day. Throughout this piece if literature, Swift presents a solution for the over population of the poor of Ireland to the audience. His proposition is for the poor to sell their children once they reach 1 years old to the wealthy for them to eat. Swift says this will help the poor make money, and help control the overpopulation of the poor. He is definitely using irony here, having the presenter speak about cannibalism like it is perfectly normal, even though it is very wrong in every aspect. He also uses exaggeration and humor by saying the poor are so hungry that they might sell their children to the rich for them to eat. Another example of irony exists in the title. The proposition of selling children to be eaten is anything but modest. It is savage and ludicrous. “A Modest Proposal” is very similar to a normal satire. A normal satire “involves critique, but usually not in a direct way” (Fife 3). Swift is criticizing the government and their refusal to assist the poor and their hunger, but in an indirect way. He does it by mocking them and utilizing irony. In a normal satire, the author will “Frequently, use irony, having an implicit meaning that is different (often opposite) from the literal one” (Fife 3).

Swift does this when he uses numbers discussing how many children should be killed for food. The opposite meaning that he’s trying to get people to realize is that if the government treats the people like numbers, it is that much easier to murder them. “A Modest Proposal” definitely fits the genre of satire because he exposes the corruption of the Irish government and the English government. One of the only differences in “A Modest Proposal” from a normal satire is that Swift starts the piece of literature off in a very serious tone, also about a serious issue, Irish poverty and hunger. A normal satire “can elicit thought about a divisive topic that avoids the resentment that can accompany tragic framing” (Fife 4). This was swift’s main goal: to get people to realize this social problem that was plaguing Ireland and the Government’s ineffectiveness in trying to solve the problem. 

Wendy Molyneux’s “I am Sorry That I Didn’t Write a Comedy Piece” is another example of satire. It is very similar to a “Modest Proposal” in that it uses irony to get a point across. A man by the name of Christopher Hitchens wrote an essay titled “Why Women Aren’t Funny”, and this satire was in response to the essay. Molyneux uses stereotypes against woman to create irony. Her goal is to erase sexism against women by proving that a person shouldn’t be judged by their gender to measure how funny they are. Wendy Molyneux is a prime example of this because she is a comedian, who is a lot funnier than most men in this world. In the first paragraph of her satire, she mentions how she was eating a chocolate bar and crying.  Right away, the audience can see that Molyneux is going to be using irony by exposing stereotypes of women. After several uses of stereotypes such as knitting, wearing a “Mrs. Stamos” t-shirt, trying on clothes, watching Grey’s Anatomy, and cooking it becomes apparent that Molyneux is using exaggeration too. She is conveying to the audience that woman have conventional uses, not being funny. Wendy Molyneux emphasizes that women are supposed to attract husbands, cook, knit, not try to be funny. Towards the end of the satire Molyneux insults Hitchens in a very hilarious way. At this point in the satire, people realize that woman are funny and not just useful for household needs. The audience can now see that the whole satire was funny by all the stereotypes she used leading up to the insult at the end. “I am Sorry That I Didn’t Write a Comedy Piece” aligns with the definition of satire. Molyneux uses humor and ridicule to expose the foolish idea that women aren’t funny. “Humor in satire is an effective way for readers to remember details.” (Fife 9) This trait of normal satire is likely a goal Molyneux had, to try to get her readers to laugh at these stereotypes, so that next time they see them happening they find humor in previously thinking all woman do these things. Both the “Modest Proposal” and “I am Sorry That I Didn’t Write a Comedy Piece” use several examples and irony to get their point across about issues in their societies. Although they have many similarities, these two satires do have some differences. For example, “The Modest Proposal” discusses a more serious social issue than “I am Sorry That I Didn’t Write a Comedy Piece”. This piece discusses poor people and their hunger, Wendy Molyneux’s piece argues about if women are funny. Another example of the differences between the two is that Wendy Molyneux narrates her satire as herself, while Jonathan Swift uses an anonymous person to present the idea of selling children for food. This is another difference between the two satires, Wendy Molyneux never presents a ludicrous idea like Swift did. Another Difference between “A Modest Proposal” and “I am Sorry That I Didn’t Write a Comedy Piece” is that Swift’s satire lacks a climax point that Molyneux used. Her climax was insulting Hitchens using a joke, proving that woman are just as funny as men. Even though there are some differences between the two satires, both stay true to their genre, and use many characteristics of a normal satire, effectively using irony to send a strong message.
