Honors Satire
2013-2014
50 points
“A Modest Proposal” In-class Essay
**Please select one of the following topics to compose a four-paragraph essay (intro, two
paragraphs, and conclusion). The essay needs to be in double-spaced, Times New
Roman, 12-point font with a proper MLA style heading.
Be sure you use specific examples from the essay to support your ideas. When using
direct quotes, include just the page number to indicate where you found the quote,
“Quote” (29).
Options:
1. What dehumanizing language does Swift’s narrator use in “A Modest Proposal”? How
does this help serve Swift’s overall purpose?
2. Consider all of the number crunching in “A Modest Proposal.” What purpose does this
serve, and how does it help serve Swift’s overall purpose?
3. Place “A Modest Proposal” in conversation with our definition of satire. What human
behavior(s) is Swift exposing, ridiculing, and/or denouncing? Whom does he hold
culpable?
4. Analyze the tone of “A Modest Proposal.” Include in this analysis whether this piece is
an example of Horatian or Juvenalian satire.
5. What is the main argument in “A Modest Proposal,” and how does the narrator use
irony to underscore this argument?