Read the excerpt from "A Modest Proposal." As to our City of Dublin, shambles may be appointed for this purpose, in the most convenient parts of it, and butchers we may be assured will not be wanting; although I rather recommend buying the children alive, and dressing them hot from the knife, as we do roasting pigs. Which statement best describes Swift’s use of understatement in this excerpt?
Answer
A
He states that “roasting pigs” is more difficult than roasting children.
B
He states that sending children to the butcher would be as simple as “roasting pigs.”
C
He states that butchers are always “wanting” for “roasting pigs.”
D
He states that butchers would have a problem roasting a child “as we do roasting pigs.”
Explanation
Swift describes buying children alive and preparing them “as we do roasting pigs,” treating the horrifying proposal as if it were an ordinary cooking task. This understatement makes the idea seem disturbingly simple and practical. Choice B captures that comparison; the excerpt does not say roasting children is harder or that butchers would have difficulty.
AI-written and checked against the verified answer.