Not So Modest Proposal In 1729, with “A Modest Proposal”, Jonathan Swift raised the argument that, “For preventing the children of poor people in Ireland from being a burden to their parents or country, and for making them beneficial to the public” (44), we should rid ourselves of them by our own consumption. We should bake them, fry them, or serve them in a fricassee or ragout. Swift proposes his “humble” thoughts, for which he expects no objection, on the idea that it would be beneficial to the parents, the country, and even the children if they were to be eaten. He also stat