A Swift Plan of Action

Cyril C. House
English
19/01/2015

A Swift Plan of Action

Jonathan Swift was an Anglo-Irish writer in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. He was well known for sticking it to the man (the oppressing English, whom controlled Ireland at the time) generally via a series of political publications such as pamphlets and essays. His fame did not end with the times: he is still a revered essayist today, nearly three centuries after his death. Swift wrote A Modest Proposal in response to the problems of overpopulation and lack of food within Ireland at the time. In the essay Swift assumes the air of an English oppressor in order to satirically critique the corrupt practices of the English bourgeoisie in Ireland.

To properly criticize the oppressive English regime Swift tells the story, if you will, from their point of view. The English have control of Ireland and are exploiting the country and its inhabitants of their resources in an effort to come out ahead economically for themselves. Swift, or the narrator rather, reveals a clue to the identity of the narrator when it is said "the money will circulate among ourselves, the goods being entirely of our own growth and manufacture" (1397). We just have established the monetary hierarchy of the relationship between the English and the Irish. Thus we can easily conclude from the first half of this statement that the narrator in fact is an English oppressor. This claim is strongly reinforced by the second half of the statement which refers to the growth and manufacture of goods. In this instance it is implied that 'the goods' are the Irish people. In the eyes of the English they (the English) generously allow the Irish to continue living on this land of theirs. In exchange the Irish manufacture goods for the English which are taken and exported for monetary gain. As the narrator is praising his (or her) own luck and mindfulness in coming across the idea of selling and eating the children of the Irish proletariat he again reveals and confirms his (or her) lineage by recognizing one of the chief qualities of his plan as being  that it "incurs[s] no danger in disobliging England" (1398). If by this point in the essay one has not picked up on the fact that the English do things solely for their own benefit then let this remark serve as verification. The narrator which Swift utilizes to toss out blows at the English is especially effective because in one swift move he intends to end over-population and the dire lack of food by selling and eating the children of the Irish proletariat. To solve the problems of the Irish is a very charitable endeavor indeed. On an entirely other hand however, the way in which it is proposed to deal with the problems is at once barbarous and unthinkable to anyone who truly does care about these people (indeed care enough to desire to end their woes). This witty technique, in all its double-edged glory, parallels the style which the English were actually employing to address the situation: on a front they would seem to care, but the reality of their decisions showed a much different attitude.

Now that it has been discussed exactly how Swift did what he did with A Modest Proposal perhaps it ought to now be touched upon precisely what it is which he did in such a way. Swift’s marvellous exercise of the English narrator in this essay shows the apparent point of view, towards the Irish people, of the English in the real world at the time when it was written. The point of view defines the Irish subjects as something grossly less than human. Immediately as the essay begins we see the narrator proposing that  a wonderful way to deal with the problems of the Irish proletariat would be any way at all which is “a fair, cheap, and easy method” (1392). The reader has yet to come across the “fair, cheap, and easy method” (1392) which the narrator is getting at, and even so this statement jumps out at one as rather malicious and vile. It is a problem or problems of the Irish people is it not? People being the keyword here. People such as you and I are deserving of some semblance of respect and a person or people’s trouble are befitting of a little more than care and attention to solve. In six seemingly harmless words the narrator has already suggested that the Irish and their problems are suited to any solution which solves the problem without committing any real effort or expense. Contradicting the model of people we just have supposed, this statement infers that the Irish are not people at all. A few paragraphs later the narrator seems to have a change of heart whilst discussing how the proletariat can be bred to avoid unnecessary population growth. His (or her) action plan affords that a single male shall be sufficient to impregnate four females. At first glance one may take in this information with a roiling belly, thinking of how savage a concept this seems, when in fact a one to four ratio is “more than we allow to sheep, black cattle, or swine” (1394). One to four is a very generous offer indeed. Whatever brownie points the narrator may have been appointed for such a generous offer regarding the breeding of the proletariat: they are hotly contested when he (or she) goes on to suggest “buying the children alive and dressing them hot from the knife, as [they] do roasting pigs” (1395). In case the context of the sentence leaves any question as to what is being suggested here, the narrator has proposed that every person of able age and skill ought to be able to pull a baby out of storage to kill, skin, and cook it right then and there. This is the best way to get quality skin for baby leather and will also yield a more tender and succulent meat.

Modest:  “having or showing regard for the decencies of behavior” (Dictionary.com, adj. #3). The narrator has clearly expressed a desire to assist the unfortunate Irish proletariat in ending their misery. This is a decent goal to aspire to, a modest goal. The style in which he (or she) has suggested dealing with the issues at hand is a gross indecency to any sort of living creature, although especially to another human being. This is an indecent solution; an immodest suggestion. So if one proposes an immodest solution in order to attain a modest end then where does the ball lie when deciding whether attaining the end via the suggestion is a modest or immodest act? To the English in this particular case, the ball lay with the former; to the Irish, the latter. Do you think the English would be justified in such beliefs? When you solve a problem for another how often do you spend time considering how the other might view your solution? On the contrary how often do you come up with a solution and think ‘well there is that one solved, on to the next one’. How is it that you judge decency?

Works Cited

Swift, Jonathan. "A Modest Proposal.” The Broadview Introduction to Literature. Lisa Chalykoff et          al. Toronto: Broadview Press, 2013. 1391-1399. Print.
     
"Modest." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 19 Jan. 2015. Web.