Reference no: EM133287014

Assignment:

Swift is best known for his satirical writing. Strictly speaking, in satire, the point is not just to make fun of something to get a laugh. True satire engages in mockery for a higher moral purpose. The idea is to expose evil and stupidity to provoke people to change. While few would find Swift's "Modest Proposal" truly funny, it is intended as satire. In this essay, Swift wishes to condemn the wealthy classes of England for keeping the Irish poor and oppressed. He does so by turning a metaphorical idea into a literal one. Metaphorically, the rich are devouring the poor--so why not, says Swift, let the rich literally eat the poor?

However, he also asserts that the Irish have to take responsibility themselves--they need to come together as one, they need to learn frugality and self-sufficiency. Swift also addresses, as a secondary theme, how easy it is to use human reason to justify evil.

These two writers present somewhat different views of the world. For Pope, "whatever is, is right." By contrast, Swift sees the cruelty of the world and uses satire and sarcasm to urge social change.

So--who's closer to the truth? Is there really a hidden meaning to what Pope calls "the discord" and "chaos" of the world? Or do we, as Swift seems to be telling us, need to acknowledge that there are things in the world that are evil and that we should work to change it?