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Just a bonkers essay that is a quintessential satire piece.
Read it twice makes ya think and chuckle
Read it twice makes ya think and chuckle
I've started reading this book, and I thought that hey maybe this book could give me some ideas on what to do to help poor people in my country, well it doesn't.
But I respect the author's genuine concern, the approach he made was very clever and I respect him for it.
But I respect the author's genuine concern, the approach he made was very clever and I respect him for it.
A short and brilliant satirical essay, where Swift cuts into Ireland's financial situation and the treatment of poor by suggesting that babies should be the main source of food. As a side product you could get gloves for the ladies and boots for the gentlemen. So, by shocking the readers Swift had good chances to be heard. There's no such thing as bad publicity, right?
Swift argues that by doing this the population of Ireland would be reduced (especially Papists), the poor could get more assets when the babies are sold to the rich, and mothers would take better care of their babies when they'd be a source of income. The richer population is the best target for this delicacy, because those bastards have already sucked the parents dry so they would probably appreciate meat even more tender. Although, because babies are so tender, they are not suitable for exporting, because they wouldn't be preserved in salt for a very long time. Then again, there is a country (England) that would probably enjoy Irish meat even without salt.
Now, recipes anyone?
Swift argues that by doing this the population of Ireland would be reduced (especially Papists), the poor could get more assets when the babies are sold to the rich, and mothers would take better care of their babies when they'd be a source of income. The richer population is the best target for this delicacy, because those bastards have already sucked the parents dry so they would probably appreciate meat even more tender. Although, because babies are so tender, they are not suitable for exporting, because they wouldn't be preserved in salt for a very long time. Then again, there is a country (England) that would probably enjoy Irish meat even without salt.
Now, recipes anyone?
While it was a bit long-winded (as you can expect when you get paid by the line) but it was short enough overall to get away with it.
It was written in such a light and unassuming way but was one of the best pieces of dark-humour I have read.
It was written in such a light and unassuming way but was one of the best pieces of dark-humour I have read.
This was mad weird, but I liked it once I realized it was satire and not literal. Always Sparknotes the historical background before you try to read things written in the 1700's.
A really short, quick read at only 20ish pages long. I thought it was very clever and funny. Most of the sentences were SO long which made it kind of hard to follow, but I think that's just how the writing was at that time in history.
i actually thoroughly enjoyed this and the commentary that it gave on poverty in ireland in the 1700s
There’s nothing more ephemeral than political satire and aging it 300 years doesn’t do much to improve it. Swift retains what little acknowledgement he does for writing Gulliver’s Travels. In his own lifetime, he was well known for his biting wit and sarcastic, politically-indulgent essays and pamphlets. An educated Irishman in the time of the potato famine, his efforts were distinctly targeting the oppression of the British that would last and intensify for a couple hundred after he was dead and gone. Those few collected here deal in large part with the question of Irish oppression, in varying degrees of seriousness and satire.
The “Modest Proposal” Swift suggests and parses out in detail is a infant cannibal market for Ireland, to address starvation poverty and add a source of additional income that the Landlords and British government cannot strip away. The families of beggars and starving farmers who are taxed into the gutter should raise their children for one year on the teat before offering them as a delicacy on the meat market. Swift goes into excruciating detail about how humane and revolutionary this could be, giving the Gentleman of Fortune a new delicacy at the holidays while providing a reason for the poor to take better care of their wives as they would a farrowing sow. In the end, he summarizes by assuring the reader that the meat can’t travel, so the countries that would readily eat up the entire island will be deterred. He is certain this is the only humane way to move forward since no changes can be made to keep Irish incomes in Ireland or to offer a decent wage to blue collar workers.
While his satire is excellent, it is overwrought and somewhat vulgar. I’m a fan of black humor, but infant cannibalism is a hard subject to squeeze comedy from; Swift makes sure he wrings out every last drop. In other works, he seems also to squeeze a bit too hard on the vulgar observations.
The “Modest Proposal” Swift suggests and parses out in detail is a infant cannibal market for Ireland, to address starvation poverty and add a source of additional income that the Landlords and British government cannot strip away. The families of beggars and starving farmers who are taxed into the gutter should raise their children for one year on the teat before offering them as a delicacy on the meat market. Swift goes into excruciating detail about how humane and revolutionary this could be, giving the Gentleman of Fortune a new delicacy at the holidays while providing a reason for the poor to take better care of their wives as they would a farrowing sow. In the end, he summarizes by assuring the reader that the meat can’t travel, so the countries that would readily eat up the entire island will be deterred. He is certain this is the only humane way to move forward since no changes can be made to keep Irish incomes in Ireland or to offer a decent wage to blue collar workers.
While his satire is excellent, it is overwrought and somewhat vulgar. I’m a fan of black humor, but infant cannibalism is a hard subject to squeeze comedy from; Swift makes sure he wrings out every last drop. In other works, he seems also to squeeze a bit too hard on the vulgar observations.
