A Modest Proposal

“A young healthy child well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricassee, or a ragout.”Join us for a classic satirical essay, written by the author of “Gulliver’s Travels.” In this, Swift (who originally published it anonymously) suggests that Ireland could eliminate economic problems and starvation, by selling poor children to rich people for food. In short, he was mocking the heartless attitude that the wealthy elite seemed to have toward those who were less fortunate with an early example of straight-faced satire.