“A Modest Proposal”

Background and Discussion

Background

Jonathan Swift grew up in Ireland and saw how badly the Irish were treated by the English.

The English were prejudiced against the Irish and saw them as inferior.

English were mostly Protestant and looked down on the Catholic Irish.

During this time, the Irish were heavily taxed by the English as well, to the point of starvation.

Most of the land in Ireland was owned by English lords, who allowed the Irish to work their lands and pay in crops. The Irish farmers were often left with inadequate amounts of food after paying the lord

Anti-Irish Political Cartoon