Background Information Ireland and Swift Background Information

The People of Ireland in the 1700's

Original Irish (The Celtic people of Ireland who received Christianity during the 600's A.D. and absorbed the Viking invasions of the 800's and 900's.) remained Catholic after the Reformation agricultural peasants in the 1700's most speak Gaelic

Old English (The Normans from England, who invaded Ireland during the late 1100's and governed for some centuries, became 'more Irish than the Irish'.) many of these people speak Gaelic, hold positions across the classes (defined by their religion)

English and Scottish Settlers (Protestants from England and Scotland were settled on lands taken from the Irish.) -known as 'the English in Ireland' -controlled most of the land, church and government until the early 1900's. -mostly speak English -considered ascendant or privileged.

Catholics in Ireland Catholics are not permitted to vote, marry a Protestant, join the armed forces, bear arms- even for protection, or be educated as Catholics abroad. They make up 70% of the population of around 2 million, yet own only 5% of the land. Catholics are forced to divide properties among all male heirs and over time their lands shrink into tiny plots. Protestants were allowed to will to the eldest son.

Catholics in Ireland Cont Protestant land owners often live in England Lease their farms to 'squireens' who further divide the expensive yet unimproved land to Catholic tenants. There is little incentive for Catholics to make land improvements as this increases the value and therefore the rent (Extreme Home Makeover). The result is frequent food production shortfalls. Bread Riots in Dublin The poor are eating grass to survive

How does it tie to Swift? In 1729, Jonathan Swift publishes "A Modest Proposal" -- a sharp satire of the Irish predicament. His works lead economic criticism from 1713-1745. literary technique of writing which ridicules its subject (aka sarcasm) often as an intended means of provoking or preventing change-political, social, or moral NOT comic (comic=parody, a type of satire)

After The Onion Exit Slip In the last video- What was being satirized? Need help? Think about what The Onion’s purpose was for the audience. What is the surface satire? What is the deeper message being satirized? Obesity (surface message) Obesity is a major problem in the USA. Obesity (deeper message) People want the gov’t to solve their problems, they don’t want to take responsibility for their own lives. It is easy to skew data to make it fit what we want it to really say.

Day 1: Entrance Slip What are some examples of how the Irish Catholics were being oppressed during the 1700’s? What is a satire?

Day 2: Entrance Slip What is a satire? What social issue is Swift attempting to solve? What is his “modest” proposal? What is ONE logistic of the proposal? how to handle and manage the details of the proposal

A Modest Proposal Format INTRODUCE the SOCIAL ISSUE Begin the metaphor (A paper) Propose the PROPOSAL for change Discuss the LOGISTICS Discuss ISSUE with a solution Discuss ADVANTAGES Discuss VALID OBJECTION Discuss EXPEDIENTS CONCLUDE by REQUEST for HELP

Entrance Work What is satire? Get An Educated Proposal essay Share it with a partner from your group. Read it together Get out a pen/pencil Find a highlighter Wait for further instruction

Partner Analyzing Format What is the SOCIAL ISSUE? Circle the paragraph/s that deal/s with it. What is the proposal? Write the summary of it next to the paragraph. This is called annotating the text. Highlight the logistics. What is an issue with one logistic and its solution? Write an annotated summary next to the paragraph Highlight the ADVANTAGES. What is a VALID OBJECTION? Circle the paragraph that deals with it. Highlight the EXPEDIENTS. Does the author end the essay by requesting help? What is the metaphor the author uses in the essay?