ENGL 111 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Absenteeism, First Colony, Satire
Document Summary
I grant this food will be somewhat dear, and therefore very proper for landlords, who, as they have already devoured most of the parents, seem to have the best title to the children. (swift, 20) English domination of irish economy, culture, and pseudo-subjugation of irish peasant workers from english landlords. The children will be literally devoured, while the parents have already been dominated socioeconomically. His picture of embattled anglicans forced to leave the country is an ironic one, however. Swift is denouncing the practice of absenteeism among irish landlords, who often governed their estates from abroad, thus funneling all the fruits of irish peasant labor out of the irish economy and into the english coffers. Swift also elaborates on his critique of domestic mores among the irish poor. From sparknotes: the proposer himself is not the main target of swift"s angry satire, though he becomes the vehicle for some biting parodies on methods of social thought.
