This essay will examine the use of satire within a great work of English literature, Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal.” To do so one must first understand what is meant by satire. It is a trenchant use of wit, irony or sarcasm used to expose and discredit vice or folly. “A Modest Proposal” is just that, mocking the absentee British landlords who take great advantage of the Irish peoples. The title itself holds a …showed first 75 words of 1420 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1420 total…end takes the piece from believable to outlandish and pointed. The intent comes out completely and ironically with each small attack on the rich English landlords. The use of phony experts such as the American and the French physician lend to the plausibility if they are not understood. For the most part they may not have been. “A Modest Proposal” is indeed a piece of literary work holding up human vices to ridicule and scorn.