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Teaching A Modest Proposal

A less-than-modest teaching guide.

  • Activities: 16
  • Quiz Questions: 44

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There are some pretty strange foods that are considered delicacies: Balut (duck embryo), fried tarantula, and Casu Marzu (rotten cheese), to name a few. But when Jonathan Swift tried to add human children to the list, people weren't quite convinced. If your students don't see the irony in his "proposal" right away, this guide might help.

In this guide you will find

  • an activity that uses political cartoons to teach students about some of the problems facing Ireland and England in the 17th and 18th centuries.
  • reading quizzes to check that students read the full recipe for peasant children stew.
  • discussion questions to help students understand the irony and social criticism Swift uses.

By the time you finish teaching A Modest Proposal, your students will understand why Swift made it as a writer, not a chef.

What's Inside Shmoop's Literature Teaching Guides

Shmoop is a labor of love from folks who love to teach. Our teaching guides will help you supplement in-classroom learning with fun, engaging, and relatable learning materials that bring literature to life.

Inside each guide you'll find quizzes, activity ideas, discussion questions, and more—all written by experts and designed to save you time. Here are the deets on what you get with your teaching guide:

  • 13-18 Common Core-aligned activities to complete in class with your students, including detailed instructions for you and your students.
  • Discussion and essay questions for all levels of students.
  • Reading quizzes for every chapter, act, or part of the text.
  • Resources to help make the book feel more relevant to your 21st-century students.
  • A note from Shmoop’s teachers to you, telling you what to expect from teaching the text and how you can overcome the hurdles.

Want more help teaching Teaching A Modest Proposal?

Check out all the different parts of our corresponding learning guide.



Instructions for You

Objective: Chances are decent you're staring down a classroom filled with students who have never read anything written in the early 18th century. It just doesn't come up all that often because the language and context can be really prohibitive to younger readers. This activity is here to help you guide your students through one of their first trips down 18th century lane. Go team.

One word of advice: the first activity in this section sets kids up with some historical context to base their reading off of. It's a quick one, and this activity will only go more smoothly if you take the time to do it.

Materials Needed: Copies of A Modest Proposal; pen and paper

Step 1: Brace yourself for some heavy sighs as you break the news that today you'll be reading through a super old essay together. Let students know that on the upside, the piece you'll be reading—A Modest Proposal—is scathing satire. Not confident they all know what satire is? Share this link with them.

If you haven't done the previous activity in this section, take a moment to give your class some historical context. The super short version is: England was running the show in Ireland, and the Irish were really suffering terribly for it. To do better by your students than this, though, do a little background reading.

If you have done the previous activity, do a quick brushup on what students know by asking them to describe the following key figures:

  • Catholic Irish peasants/farmers
  • Protestant British landlords
  • King George
  • Jonathan Swift

Step 2: Clear your throat because it's reading time. Just kidding—you should totally make your students take turns reading to help keep them engaged. Pause at the end of each paragraph to go over what's just been said, rehashing the text in layman's terms to make sure kids are grasping everything. Let them know it's probably a good idea to take some notes in the margins—unless, of course, they speak 18th century English in their sleep.

Step 3: Once you've finished reading (phew), have students write responses to the following two questions and hand them into you (so you can make sure everyone's on the same page—pun totally intended):

  • What are the main problem and solution as stated by Swift?
  • What do you think is Swift's actual argument?

Instructions for Your Students

Objective: Chances are decent you've never read anything written in the early 18th century. It just doesn't come up all that often because the language and context can be really freaking hard to get into. You're going to be reading an 18th century text today, though, but have no fear: your teacher is going to hold your hand start to finish. Aw…

Step 1: Your teacher is going to take a few minutes to set the stage before you start reading, so take notes. Know what satire is? Raise your hand proudly. And if you're a history buff, be prepared to share what you know about 18th century English-Irish relations.

Step 2: It's reading time, and you're going to be taking a turn. At the end of each paragraph, do your darndest to summarize what the heck just happened in your own (totally 21st century) words. You'll be glad you did later.

Step 3: You made it! Congratulations. The piece is pretty nuts once you get into it, right? Now's your chance to show your teacher you're on the same page as them by responding to the following two questions and handing them in:

  • What are the main problem and solution as stated by Swift?
  • What do you think is Swift's actual argument?