Argumentative essay by Johnathan Swift
To analyze satire and its historical context.
How do we identify satire in our own lives and what do we learn from satire pieces?
Background In the 1720s, the Catholics in Ireland suffered from the repressive rule of England, which stripped them of their rights and forced them into poverty. Their misery increased with a series of crop failures; many had to beg or face starvation. Swift wrote "A Modest Proposal" to protest England's policies in Ireland. Jonathan Swift (1667–1745) was born of English parents in Dublin, Ireland. He became an Anglican priest and a writer, whose satires took aim at injustice and vice. He is probably best known for Gulliver’s Travels. This satire is now enjoyed as a story, although Swift wrote it as a criticism of political corruption.
Irish society in the eighteenth century was divided into three major classes: the “Protestant Ascendancy,” who were the British landowners; the Anglo-Irish, born of English parents in Ireland, who had some status in society; and the Catholics, who had no position, no land, and no rights. Swift was Anglo-Irish; from this vantage point he could see the harm being done to Ireland by the English as well as the need for the Irish to unify in order to fight this repression.
Swift established his reputation with his early satires, including "A Tale of a Tub," which satirized both religion and the learning of the day. Many of these works were published under the pseudonym of Isaac Bickerstaff. After years of moving back and forth from England to Ireland, Swift finally settled in Ireland in 1713, becoming the dean of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin. He chafed at being back in Ireland at first, feeling exiled from London, but then became the champion of the Irish through his satires.
What is a satire?
How does Swift try to make his proposal convincing?
What does protesting have to do with becoming an adult? (Consider military service, voting, taxes, etc.)
Read and annotate the text (the first R in SQRRRL) in order to answer the guiding questions (preview the questions before you start your reading). You can underline, highlight, write out reactions, as well as circle or note on things you don't understand. There is no particularly right or wrong way to annotate a text. It's a way for YOU to track YOUR thinking and reactions as you read.
You will turn in your annotations (when all questions and steps are completed). Your annotations are part of your grade for this reading.
In small groups, discuss and take notes on the collaborative discussion question at the end.
We will share as a whole class to expand your notes for the quiz.
Answer the Analyzing the Text Questions(at end of reading)
Turn in handwritten answers
AKA - let's test your knowledge and progress!
... And that completes SQRRRL for this reading!