A Modest Proposal

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A Modest Proposal

• Jonathan Swift

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Background / Context

• PERSONAL
• ARTISTIC
• POLITICAL

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Jonathan Swift

• Born 1667, Dublin English ancestry but Irish
  birth
• Forced to leave Ireland in 1688 went to England
  to work as assistant to William Temple, diplomat.
• Became a priest in the Church of Ireland in 1694
  returned to Ireland.
• Became increasingly political in the early 18th
  Century, as well as gaining notice as a writer.
  Lived in England.
• Became influential in the Tory party and in
  literary circles.
• Eventually returned to Ireland (like a rat in a
  hole) to live in Dublin. Started to take note of
  specifically Irish issues.
• Published the satire Gullivers Travels in 1726.
• Wrote the more obviously political A Modest
  Proposal in 1729, earning a reputation as an
  Irish patriot.
• Died in 1745.

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So

• Linked to both Ireland and England
• Love-hate relationship with both Ireland and
  England
• Profound sense of religious, moral and political
  justice
• Exposed to extreme poverty among the poor
• How might his personal life have informed A
  Modest Proposal?

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The Augustans
Swift was part of a group of writers called The
Augustans who were particularly active in the
early eighteenth century. Named for their
admiration of the satirical, witty, mannered
poetry of the original Augustan era, they were
politically engaged public figures. They saw it
as a writers place to comment on society, rather
than to express himself. Names associated with
this movement are Alexander Pope, John Dryden,
Jonathan Swift, Samuel Johnson.
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The Augustans
In terms of attitudes, ideologies and values, the
Augustans are best defined by their faith in the
powers of REASON. Just as the eighteenth century
is the age of scientific empiricism, so the
Augustans sought to apply a rational, reasonable
approach. As such, they wrote about society and
how it could be improved they were not afraid to
satirise important and influential people and
they saw their writing as an inherent part of a
public discourse and a necessarily moral
voice. How does A Modest Proposal fit in with
these general points?
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Political Contexts
There are a number of political contexts which
inform A Modest Proposal Swift was very
politically engaged and active throughout most of
his life.
Probably the most important political context for
this particular text, however, deals with the
relationship between Ireland and England the
so-called Irish Question.
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The Irish Question

• In the 12th century Anglo-Norman (British) groups
  began to invade Ireland
• Needed land for a growing kingdom
• Various nobility looked to claim land
• The English established their own laws and
  created a parliament
• Countries like Scotland attempted to help remove
  the English, but the Anglo-Norman numbers
  continued to grow

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The Irish Question

• King Henry VII (ruled 1485-1509) established
  strict laws for Ireland under British rule
• No traditional Irish laws
• Must follow English laws
• No assembly of the Irish military
• All laws of the Irish Parliament had to be
  approved by the King

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The Irish Question

• Henry VIII (ruled 1509 1547) attempted to
  transform Ireland from a Catholic country to an
  Anglican country
• Queen Mary I
• Elizabeth I
• James I

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Penal Laws
Several drafts of penal laws (laws explicitly
designed to reduce Catholicisms standing as the
dominant religion in Ireland) were introduced by
the English over the years. When Swift published
A Modest Proposal (1729), the most recent were
the laws from 1695.
Remember, Swift points out that the number of
popish infants is at least three to one in this
kingdom. The penal laws, and oppression of
Catholics in general, affected the majority of
the population.
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Penal Laws, 1695 A Sample

• Catholics banned from Public Office or Parliament
• Catholics banned from intermarriage with
  Protestants
• Catholics disenfranchised (no vote)
• Catholics banned from University entrance
• Catholic inheritances could be claimed by
  Protestants
• Catholics banned from owning a horse worth more
  than 5 pounds
• Catholic churches to be built from wood, not
  stone, and not on main roads
• And so on

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A Modest Proposal
SO a long, long history of subjugation, even by
the time A Modest Proposal appeared.. At the time
of writing, therefore, the Catholic majority
population were living in extreme poverty. Note
who the extremely poor people Swift is talking
about actually are I have already computed the
charge of nursing a beggar's child (in which list
I reckon all cottagers, laborers, and four-fifths
of the farmers) to be about two shillings per
annum, rags included These arent beggars in
the normal sense. Practically ALL of the Catholic
population were living in utter poverty.