“A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift: Life on the Island Essay

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

Introduction

In this passage, Robinson Crusoe compares life on the island with being in prison. These similarities can be traced when he says that he wants to wring his hands and cry like a child: “I was a prisoner, locked in the eternal bolts of the ocean, in an uninhabited desert, without redemption”(Defoe 89). At first glance, one may not understand why an island in the Pacific Ocean is compared to four walls. On the island a person is free, nothing holds him and no one watches over him, as in prison.

However, when a person gets to the island due to circumstances and cannot get out of there for more than one year, it is comparable to a prison in which fate is the warden. Moreover, the author uses comparisons and enumerations in this passage. For example, “the greatest composures of my mind, this would break out upon me like a storm”, and ” my very heart would die within me, to think of the woods, the mountains, the deserts ” (Defoe 91). The tone of the passage demonstrates despair and longing for freedom.

Discussion

The Anglo-Irish writer Jonathan Swift’s The Humble Offer is a powerful political satire about the economic and social conditions of the poor in Ireland under British rule. The author describes the plight of the Irish people at the beginning, practically “lulling” the vigilance of an unprepared reader (Swift 99). He talks for a long time about how brilliant and rationally verified his idea is so that it seems that now he will open the eyes of the reader. The whole text is permeated with malicious irony over the image of a man who is confident that his proposal can change the life of the country and improve it. In this passage, Swift perceives “irony” as the best weapon for attacking all kinds of vices and injustices that prevail in society: “They die and decompose every day from cold and hunger, dirt and parasites as quickly as can reasonably be expected” (Swift 100).

Swift’s satirical way of presenting ideas is noticeable, since initially, he shows sympathy for poor people, stating that they are poor and do not have enough money to raise their children. Thus, there is an urgent need to make a decision for the well-being of the “Commonwealth”. His suggestion is that parents brutally kill their children by selling them and receiving money in return. The essay was written by Swift in agony and is addressed primarily to the English administration.

Conclusion

Swift’s masterful use of irony to make his main argument- that the Irish deserve better treatment from the British – powerful and terribly funny. In “A Modest Proposal” Jonathan Swift uses literary techniques of satire, imagery, hyperbole, wordplay, irony, and paralysis. The word “modest” is ironic, because the narrator’s sentence in this essay is not modest at all. Most would find this outrageous: the narrator suggests “poor women raise their children like livestock, fattening them up so they can sell them to rich people when they turn a year old” (Swift, 2018) He wrote a “Modest Proposal” as an attempt to persuade the Irish Parliament to improve the living conditions of the poor. Swift used the idea of eating children as a metaphor for what he saw as the exploitation of the poor, such as the high rents charged by landlords.

Works Cited

Defoe, Daniel. “The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe.” The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe. Bucknell University Press, 2022, pp. 78-90.

Swift, Jonathan. A modest proposal and other stories. GENERAL PRESS, 2018, pp. 98-101.

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2023, December 10). "A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift: Life on the Island. https://ivypanda.com/essays/a-modest-proposal-by-jonathan-swift-life-on-the-island/

Work Cited

""A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift: Life on the Island." IvyPanda, 10 Dec. 2023, ivypanda.com/essays/a-modest-proposal-by-jonathan-swift-life-on-the-island/.

References

IvyPanda. (2023) '"A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift: Life on the Island'. 10 December.

References

IvyPanda. 2023. ""A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift: Life on the Island." December 10, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/a-modest-proposal-by-jonathan-swift-life-on-the-island/.

1. IvyPanda. ""A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift: Life on the Island." December 10, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/a-modest-proposal-by-jonathan-swift-life-on-the-island/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. ""A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift: Life on the Island." December 10, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/a-modest-proposal-by-jonathan-swift-life-on-the-island/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1