Many consider Jonathan Swift's A Modest Proposal (1729) to be the finest satirical essay ever composed. In this essay, Swift ironically suggests that the poverty issue among the Irish—an issue he attributed to British policies—could be resolved if Irish infants were used as food for the wealthy. The irony was lost on many of Swift's contemporaries, who were appalled by the suggestion. Swift's true intent was to critique the upper class's heartless attitude towards the impoverished.

Swift's A Tale of a Tub (1704) is a religious allegory that follows three brothers, each representing different branches of Christianity: Anglican, Roman Catholic, and dissenting Christians who advocate for a personal, non-institutional form of faith. Through his satire and storytelling, Swift argues that Anglicanism strikes a balance between the individualism of other Protestant denominations and the institutional rigidity of the Catholic Church.

Published alongside A Tale of a Tub, Swift's The Battle of the Books (1704) is a satirical work on the purpose of history. Swift believed history should foster moral philosophy rather than merely accumulate facts and events. In this satire, ancient books and modern ones engage in a war within a library.

Thomas More's Utopia (1516) is a seminal piece of Western philosophy. Saint Thomas More presents an ideal human society through a dialogue between himself and a fictional traveler, Raphael Hythlodaeus. Raphael describes a foreign land where the residents' customs bring out the best in their people.

Like Gulliver's Travels, Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass (1872) are satirical works masked as children's adventure stories. Both books follow a young girl named Alice as she explores bizarre worlds, either by falling down a rabbit hole or stepping through a mirror.

Francois Voltaire's Candide (1759) is a humorous, satirical novel about a naive man named Candide. Through his travels and the teachings of his mentor, Pangloss, Candide learns to be less idealistic and more practical. He discovers that hard work is rewarding and concludes that not everything is for the best.

Mark Twain's A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) tells the satirical tale of Hank Morgan, a young man who finds himself in King Arthur's England after a head injury. Hank's attempts to introduce democracy to the feudal society yield disappointing results.