Jonathan Swift draws reader into this issue by using sarcastic words and arguments which make this problem to look even worst. He invites the audience to share his views by showing that he is aware of the problem and he is aware that this problem is a concern to all people and that everyone will be affected if they will not find the solution.
Jonathan Swift in his proposal uses data and statistics to get reader on his side. By doing this reader will feels like Jonathan Swift knows what he is talking about and it is not only his ideas, but also it is proven by statistics and data. He convinces the reader that he knows what he is talking about once more.
‘I calculate that 120,000 children are born to poor parents every year’
This data shocks people and makes us understand how wrong situation is.
‘We can’t find them jobs or houses and they can’t be good thieves
until they are about six years old’
Swift is being sarcastic here too, to even more interested people and understand that this problem is really big.
However, there are clues as to the real purpose of writing this proposal. Words like “Dropped from its dam… breeders,” suggest that people are like and animals, and if we are able to eat animal meat, why we should not be able to eat humans meat?
After presenting data, and the problem, Swift presents the solution, which is even more shocking for people. Once again he is convincing people that he knows what he is talking about. Swift says, that very well cooked baby is healthy – and will cause no problems for parents, using data like :
“No one wants to buy children as slaves under
twelve years of age and twelve years old sell
for about £3.50 and they cost more than that
for twelve years.”
Swift is saying that children are expensive to keep, and they sell very cheap – and poor families cannot afford to keep children, and that makes them even poorer. As Jonathan Swift really good is in managing data (we do not know whether that data is true) lost of people actually believed Swift theory and were ready to accept his solution in order to solve the problem.
Swift present other problems, that rich landlords take lots of money from people, and do not even care, whether they can pay or not. Also he is talking about how women and children is being beaten up by their husbands, and his idea to eat babies will make landlords care and husbands will not beat up their wife’s and children, as they will be able to make money, through selling children for food, also pay to landlord with good fat baby.
Jonathan Swift suggests that his solution is the real and only one solution in this problem, and that we should have done this a long time ago as it would make poor people richer, and would stop children being a problem for parents. Then Swift challenges other people to come up with an better idea, if they think that this is an acceptable, and he will support their ideas instead of his, this shows that Swift is really concerned about this problem and are ready to accept any other ideas. This also gives reader a confidence that Swift is not persuading people to accept his idea, but he is just suggesting the solution. He is also mentioning that he does not have any babies, and he does not make any profit from this proposal, he is just trying to help poor people who can’t afford clothes for winter or food.
In this proposal there is a really good use of words like “you, we, us, our” by that Jonathan Swift is trying to include people to his proposal, and make it everyone’s concern. These words make us feel, as we are included.
“As our city of Dublin”
“I think that is agreed by all parties”