After reading the passage “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift, I have found that the author is trying to satirize the policy in Ireland as well as the heartless and greedy of upper class people and the society. At that time, the population grew fast especially among the poor people. However, the poors couldn’t raise their children by themselves and the government did not care about this condition as well as the rich people. They only cared about the economic and money. Thus, it was very common to see lots of beggars including little children on the street begging. In order to help the development of the economic, the government and the riches suppressed the poors and exploited from them. Lots of poor children died every year. The author pointed at this situation and made a suggestion. In order to solve this problem and get a perfect result, the poor people could sell their children to the rich people for their meal. In doing this, population problem could be solved, poor people could solve their economic problem and the rich people could be satisfied and happy. The society’s heartless and greedy led to this tragedy.
As reading this passage, I felt like that the author’s mind was a little abnormal. It sounded strange and very cruel. At the same time, I could feel the helpless of the poor people and the heartless of the rich people from author’s writing. I think the world would be better if the government changed the policy and people could help each other. If the society and the rich people could be more concerned about the poor people and give hands to poor people and help them out, if people could help each other, all problems would not be problems. Selling children and made them be a meal was very cruel and could not be a way of solving problems. As to those little poor children, they did not know how they born and did not know how they died and became a meal on the table.
I agree that in this shocking proposal, Swift is able to show his readers the struggles the poor people had endured. He gives a clever solution to the widespread economic problems that were occurring during this time. His proposal is bizarre, hilarious, and very interesting. You can really see through this essay that Swift was angry and fed up with the poverty they were facing in Ireland. While he was mocking the government, it really makes you wonder if people thought he was actually serious back in the day.
This shocking proposal, mentions by Swift amazes me deeply. This solution may solve the economic problem in some way. However, it is not a good solution for poor people. Swift satirizes the terrible policy in Ireland and the greedy of the upper class people. In this kind of situation, overwhelms of population will be solve. However, is it good for these children? This solution only pleases upper class. For these poor people, they do not want to “sell” their children to satisfy people in upper class. They do not want their children work as slaves if they have choice. Poor people are hopeless and very sad in the society.
In general, I agree with this blog. As the population growing fast, there were not enough resources for them. In addition, poor parents are the big part of population. From the beginning of the author’s proposal, the author wrote that “when they see the streets, the road, and cabin-doors crowed with beggars of the female sex, followed by three, four, or six children.” As we could know poor people became beggars in order to making living. Those mothers did not have ordinary work, they are forced to beg. Many children were sold by their parents. Although it would be a good solution for those poor families, it will be not a good solution for the society. How the people could look children as commodity? They could not choose their family; they did not even have any choice for their life. It should make people to re-examined society.
I too agree that this proposal made by Swift was very shocking. However, I do not think that he meant what he was saying in a literal way. Swift tries to convince the reader or the people of Ireland that selling these poor children as a meal will solve many problems economically as well as in other ways. I agree with the writer of this blog. I believe that Swift is trying to convince his audience that the people are already having these poor people as the way he proposes because the government as well as anyone is not doing anything to help the poor.
I understand that Lihua thinks the world would be a lot better if people help each other out, meaning the rich help the poor, the have help the not-have. The solution to the heartless and helpless society seems simple then. Yet, being selfish is a big part of our nature. People tend to look after themselves, making sure their world is secured first and foremost. It is not an unchangeable situation though. We need a courageous voice to call for genuine care and love, for giving up part of our world for others and so for an ultimately better world for all.
I totally agree with your argument about the author pointing out how greedy and selfish their government and rich people were toward the population. But your conclusion “Selling children and made them be a meal was very cruel and could not be a way out of solving the problems” in my understanding was not the author’s proposal of solution. In my opinion, the author was just giving the population choices to poor people of either sell their children to the rich people for their meals, which means that the rich peoples’ ancestors have controlled the poor peoples’ ancestors, now they controlling them and in the future their children will control the poor children, by always following them and by doing things as they want them to be done and the rich people will forever be happy or to be brave enough to claim their rights as citizens of their country by fighting together for a change, a solution that will bring an end to all the cruelty, unfairness, and inhumanity they have been suffering from. So everyone will have a fair chair in the society.