A Modest Proposal and Other Writings

In 'A Modest Proposal,' first published in 1729, Jonathan Swift heaps scorn on then-current political theory and reveals the appalling suffering taking place in Ireland - not through direct reporting, but through mock suggestions on what to do with the poor; they should sell their children for food. 'The chief end I propose to myself in all my labors is to vex the world rather than divert it,' wrote Jonathan Swift in a letter to his friend Alexander Pope. Other vexing works collected here are 'Directions to Servants,' 'The Art of Political Lying,' 'A Digression Concerning the Critics,' and 'Sweetness and Light.'