Analysis essay
I have chosen two texts that use comparatively different techniques to argue their positions; Laura Robinson’s “Girl Unprotected” (May 2008) and “A Modest Proposal” by
Jonathan Swift (1729). In Robinson’s essay she discusses the culture of dehumanization of hockey and the abuse of power by hockey coaches. In “A Modest Proposal”, Swift creates an empathetic character that puts forward a policy that might help ease Ireland’s economic hardships by selling their young toddlers as food to the English upper-class. I must ask: how much does imagery and tone affect a reader’s thoughts and ideas?
The first principle technique is the use of sympathy and apathy as the main drivers in mood. In “Girl Unprotected”, Robinson uses a
…show more content…
However, Swift takes a contrasting approach to Robinson. Swift's narrator's calm attitude towards the destitute Irish and his solution alienate the reader, from the narrator, who views this subject with wistful detachment. Therefore, Swift's strategy is dualistic, devising a "trap" to create compassion for the Irish and, additionally, a dislike of the English narrator from Swift’s intended eighteenth-century, English audience. These elements of the reading gnaw at us, as if, what we are reading is truly a legitimate proposal and a real person is suggesting to us to take this policy into consideration.
` The second main literary technique is the use of place and time to create a connection with the reader. In girl unprotected Laura Robinson uses our own backyard in Canada and another familiar thing which is hockey to connect us to the story. Robinson takes a good approach to her argument by using something as meaningful as hockey to our nation. The fact that this is happening in a country like Canada is that much more effective. It would shock many people that it could happen to anyone, like your neighbour or your son’s hockey coach. A modest proposal is set in the 1700s, but, its ideas still ring true in our society. In the modern era, would we go to these lengths to separate the poor from the wealthy, convincing them that the only useful thing about them
In “Gone to America: Anti-Irish Sentiment” The History Place tells of the difficulties and racism that the Irish faced as they immigrated to the United States in search of a living for themselves and their families. To begin, the author illustrates how many Irish were actually coming over from Ireland fleeing persecution and famine; they make up the majority of immigrants in the United States during the mid-1800’s, and, additionally, alludes to the swells of Irish arriving in the cities. Furthermore, the author continues to illustrate how the Irish tended to stay in close knit communities much like they had at home; this was partly due to the poverty of the Irish as well, the author states. The author states the differences between the Irish at home and the Irish
The "Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift is a very persuasive essay to get attention to the famine in Ireland at the time. * The structure of the essay is well done. Organization gets you hooked before it proposes the topic of eating the children of Ireland.
A Modest Proposal by Johnathan Swift, is a satirical, literary non-fiction essay. Johnathan wrote A Modest Proposal in 1729, during which Ireland was facing many economic, as well as other problems. The essay suggests a solution to the economic and famine problems; the solution suggest eating human infants. The solution includes an entire system, beginning with the babies would be well fed until they are of age of the “best meat”, then they will be sold to the wealthy for new cuisine and the poor will be paid for their baby. In Johnathan`s satire solution, he makes appeals to all categories of logos, ethos and pathos, which contributes extremely well to the strength of his argument because he is coming and appealing to all positions.
Most of history is seen through the eyes of those of privilege, education, and wealth: royalty, nobility, and merchants. There were those of less fortune or lower class that were educated enough to be able to record their experiences and points-of-view, but they were far and few between. Especially in early America, from immigrants, slaves, free blacks, natives, and indentured servants. “In Defense of the Indians” by Bartolome de La Casa, “An Indentured Servant’s Letter Home” by Richard Frethorne, “Ads for Runaway Servants and Slaves”, “The Irish in America” by John Francis Maguire, and “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass” by Frederick Douglass are by or about the natives, slaves, indentured servants, and immigrants in the early
In fact, he refers to “A very worthy Person, a true Lover of his Country, and whose Virtues I highly esteem, was lately pleased, in discoursing on this matter, to offer a refinement upon my Scheme”(17). As a result, Swift shows that even the most patriotic person to both Ireland and Britain (since Ireland was under British control at the time) realizes that within this current situation of poverty, this proposal is a solution and can be acted out in many different
In the book Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen, Austen uses many rhetorical techniques to satirize humanity and it’s foolish effects on society. Through two of the main characters proposals, Mr.Darcy and Mr.collin’s, she uses them as satirical figures, in which they both mock young male stereotypes, of wealth and power for marriage. In Mr.Collins's proposal to Elizabeth Bennet, his purpose is to persuade her that marrying him would be the best for both of them. He initiates his proposal by trying to persuade her that marrying him would be doing herself a favour.
The Truth Exposed Abandonment of ignorance is insight to the truths one was once unable to recognize. Rhetorical strategies are modes of discourse capable of unveiling these truths when constructed properly. They are meant to be analyzed with an open mind and the intent to discover the author’s purpose. The following pieces are two completely different stories that were written by two completely different people, yet carry the same purpose. Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, and Jonathan Swift's A Modest Proposal use variant rhetorical devices in order to achieve a common purpose of being able to depict truth to their reader.
From 1800 to 1916, Ireland and England’s relationship consisted of many controversies due to their different cultural and religious practices, and their different views on the rightful governmental authority and economic equality. Culturally, the Irish were more mythical, folky, and spoke different languages; the English looked at these under developed cultural characteristics and believed that the English culture was superior and that it was their duty to enforce their ideas, language, technologies, and hierarchy over the native Irish cultures. Many Irishmen and women completely revolted against the English-superiority mentality and continued to fight for their native customs. Additionally, Roman Catholicism was still the Irish’s national
Caitlin Chase Mrs. Woodworth AP English Period 5 30 April 2017 A Not So Modest Proposal In an intriguing satirical piece, “A Modest Proposal” tackles the issues of child welfare, indifference of the wealthy to poverty, and economic class divisions.
Rhetorical Analysis Essay: A Modest Proposal Dr. Jonathan Swift places himself as a villain who is willing to do evil deeds to answer hard questions. What pushes Swift to write the essay “A Modest Proposal” is Ireland's economic and social problems. In this satirical essay Swift highlights the problems in Ireland and gives a sarcastic solution to make people feel guilt. Swift’s use of dehumanizing language is used to make the reader oppose Swift’s modest proposal.
Yong June Jung Ms. Foster British Literature 24 January 2016 Who is the intended audience of “A Modest Proposal” and why? A Modest Proposal, is a satire literature essay written by Jonathan Swift, mourns the sad destiny of Irish individuals who are confronting issues of desperation and neediness by confusing the readers. The author uses confusing words and descriptions to make the reader think that the intended audience is Irish people.
1729, a Papist infected Ireland was being devoured by the taxes that the British placed on them. The taxes were turning into what once was a glorious place into ruins. Jonathan Swift, an Englishman and Irish sympathizer, realized that someone had to do something to wake up the British. This lead to the creation of A Modest Proposal, a pamphlet heavy with irony and juvenalian satire, which was how Jonathan Swift planned on compelling the British to do something about the poor situation in Ireland. His use of rhetorical devices gets his point across in an effective and powerful way.
The lack of food and the insurgence of World War II brought a state of melancholy for those begging out on the streets in rags from from every passenger in Ireland. In Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal”, he makes a humble suggestion considering the benefits of his country’s indigence. On the other hand, Frank McCourt’s Angela’s Ashes, imposes a theoretical view of the poverty in McCourt’s eyes. All in all, both “A Modest Proposal” and Angela’s Ashes, portray similarities and differences in how they envisage pauperism in Ireland. Swift and McCourt accommodates a negative feeling towards Ireland’s poverty through first person point of view.
Staying Strong or Giving In? Language is an integral part of every distinctive culture. It represents a way of life and a way of communication among those that share similar traditions, values, and heritage. The Irish people have consistently been faced with foreign cultures encroaching on their land and threatening not only their culture but also the Gaelic language itself.
“Cathleen Ni Houlihan”, a play that William Butler Yeats co-wrote with Lady Gregory, in 1902, is about Ireland’s fight for their independence. According to Nicholas Grene: “What is at issue [in Kathleen Ni Houlihan] is the political meaning which the play generated and the potential for such meaning which the text offered.” (Grene, 1999) The play is set in a cottage kitchen and centres in the 1798 Rebellion. The play: “stages two conflicting narratives of Irish peasant womanhood. Mrs. Gillane and, potentially, Delia, her son’s pretty, well-dowered bride-to-be, represent a realist, maternal order, the values of hearth and home; the Poor Old Woman, Cathleen, also dressed as a peasant, represents a contrary order of being – symbolic, nomadic, virginal, sacrificial rather than procreative (…)