A Modest Proposal: In the 18th century, Ireland was under the monitoring and exploitation of Britain. People were impoverished. Mothers took their children out, begging on the street. Jonathan Swift published the satirical essay A Modest Proposal. In a rhetorical style, he proposed: mothers should nurture their children well. A young healthy child well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricassee, or a ragout. Thus, the children were free of future hardship, and the parents got more money. A Modest Proposal satirizes British suppression on Ireland in a calm and mild language which is Swift's hallmark.