Download A Modest Proposal Study Guide
Introduction
So you’re going to teach “A Modest Proposal.” Whether it’s your first or hundredth time, this classic text has been a mainstay of English classrooms for generations for its social impact and cutting satire. While it has its problematic spots, teaching this text to your class will be rewarding for you and your students. It will give them unique insight into expository and persuasive writing as well as the power of political satire on social issues. This guide highlights the text's most salient aspects to keep in mind before you begin teaching.
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Facts at a Glance
- Publication Date: 1729
- Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level: 13
- Approximate Word Count: 3,400
- Author: Jonathan Swift
- Country of Origin: United Kingdom
- Genre: Satire
- Literary Period: Augustan Literature, Enlightenment
- Conflict: Person vs. Society
- Structure: Persuasive Essay
- Tone: Academic, Deadpan
Texts That Go Well With “A Modest Proposal”
Babbitt is a 1922 novel by Sinclair Lewis. Rather than paralleling Swift’s mockery of upper-class landowners, Babbitt lampoons the growing middle class, whom he sees as striving after conformity and material success rather than the genuine happiness found in individuality. As a full-length novel, Babbitt is significantly longer than “A Modest Proposal,” but it is able to form an extended, nuanced critique of many aspects of American consumerism and materialism.
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is a novel...
(The entire section is 476 words.)