A satire is a literary work in which human foolishness and vice are criticised. Satire employs humour and wit to ridicule human institutions or humanity itself, in order that they might be remodelled or improved.
             Jonathan Swift's 'A Modest Proposal' qualifies as a perfect example of satire according to these components. He uses satire as a potent weapon to attack governmental injustices and political abuse. In 'A Modest Proposal', Swift vents his mounting aggravation at the incompetence of Ireland's politicians, the hypocrisy of the wealthy, the domination of the English, and the squalor and degradation in which he sees so many Irish people living. While 'A Modest Proposal' complains about the bleak situation of an Ireland almost totally subject to England's exploitation, it also expresses Swift's utter disgust at the Irish people's seeming inability to mobilise on their own behalf.
             Swift's opposition to the problems in Ireland are indirectly presented through the clever technique of using irony and wit. By using this method he was able to expose the remarkable corruption and degradation of the Irish people and at the same time present them with practical solutions to their unscrupulous lives. Swift uses Satire to accomplish his objective not only because he is able to conceal his true identity but also because it is the most effective way to awake the people of Ireland into seeing their own depravity. Swift creates a fictional persona because by hiding his true identity he is able to convince the readers of the significance of Ireland's problem and allow them to see truth and reality.
             The persona is a concerned Irishman who appears to be a brute for proposing something evil and immoral very calmly as if it is normal to consume the flesh of another human being. What makes the proposal even more depraved is that he proposes to eat the babies. " ...a young healthy child well nursed i...