He does this successfully and at most times Shelter is a more powerful character than Link. Shelter’s aim is to ridicule the homeless from the streets of London whereas Link happens to be on the streets of London because of small problems at home. Shelter is a more credible character and that is why the book looks more like a ‘thriller’ where a serial killer on the loose. A Modest Proposal was written in 1729 by Jonathan Swift. Swift was born in Dublin 1667. At the age of 27 he became a clergyman. A modest Proposal was written as a pamphlet.
In the pamphlet Swift tries to argue the points made in A Modest Proposal through logic and reasoning to raise the issue of homelessness. The arguments made in A Modest Proposal are: He argues that children would provide excellent food for the people of Britain as he writes, “A young healthy child well nursed is at a year old a most delicious, nourishing and wholesome food whether stewed, roasted or boiled. ” This quote explains that children could be made a delicious and luxury food for all, which is the main argument in the play. Swift argues that the children’s flesh flayed would make good boots and gloves as Swift writes,
“Those who are more thrifty (as I must confess the times require) may flay the carcass; the skin of which artificially dressed will make some admirable gloves for ladies, and summer boots for fine gentleman. ” Another argument Swift states is that the flaying of the homeless would improve the conditions of the rich and the poor as he writes, “Some persons of a desponding spirit are in great concern abut a vast number of poor people, who are aged, diseased, or maimed, and I have been desired to employ my thoughts what course may be taken to ease the nation of so grievous an encumbrance. ”
Swift carries on with his argument that ridding the country of the homeless will reduce the number of ‘papists’ (Catholics), as he writes, “It would greatly lessen the number of papists, with whom we are yearly overrun, being the principal breeders of the nation as well our most dangerous enemies. ” He wrote this as he was a protestant and at the time, Catholics and Protestants feared each other. One group feared the other more depending on the monarch at the time. Another argument Swift puts forward is that the food produced by the homeless would help the nation’s wealth through import and export as he writes,
“The nation’s stock will be thereby increased fifty thousand per anum, beside the profit of a new dish introduced to the tables of all gentle of fortune in the kingdom who have refinement in taste. ” “The addition of some thousand carcasses in our exportation of barrelled beef. ” Swift argues each point through logic and reasoning, as the piece was written in the ‘age of reason’. Each point tries to raise the issue of homelessness through satire. As the pamphlet was written in 1729 the style of language is old fashioned, but can easily be read.
Swift uses no characters in the pamphlet but writes in the first person style, which has put a number of arguments forward on why Swift wrote A Modest Proposal. I think Swift wrote A Modest Proposal because he was mad. It was proven that he was mad and during later life his insanity grew ever more consuming. He died in 1745, 8 years after writing A Modest Proposal. He just didn’t write A Modest Proposal because he was mad. He wrote it for a number of other reasons too. Firstly he wanted to cause outrage and offence and make people understand the issue of homelessness.
He wanted to draw attention to child poverty and homelessness through the pamphlet. Secondly he wanted to show how logic and reasoning, (as the style of the pamphlet is structured that way), can be dangerous and how the homeless needed help from these dangers. Lastly he wanted to attack the landlords and the rich at the time by the use of satire. In conclusion to this essay my own opinions to both pieces are that ‘Stone Cold’ gets side tracked when trying to raise the issue of homelessness. The book looks more like a thriller than what Swindells intended for it to be (a book raising the issue of homelessness).
This is due to the character of the serial-killer being a more credible character thus undermining the issue of homelessness. But Stone Cold does provide a very good insight into the lives of homeless people and has an effective ending where Link is still homeless, but Shelter the killer gets life in prison, which means Shelter gets a roof over his head, a bed and three meals a day whereas Link is still on the streets. A modest proposal is very successful at trying to raise the issue of homelessness. Swift uses the style of ‘logic and reasoning’ to provoke people and draw attention to child poverty and homelessness.
The use of satire in the first person style adds to causing outrage and offence to make people aware of the issues and also to attack the landlords and the rich by satire. I think overall A Modest Proposal is more successful than Stone Cold in trying to raise the issue of homelessness due to the fact that Stone Cold, after reading, looks more like a ‘serial-killer’ type thriller whereas A Modest Proposal raises the issue of homelessness more effectively by Swift’s use of satire in trying to cause outrage and offence to make people aware of the issues of homelessness. Adam Laher Batley High School For Boys.
