19
QuizMultiple Choice

The Enlightenment — Test

Question 19 • Senior English

Which is one way that Swift criticizes society in "A Modest Proposal"?

Answer
A
by highlighting all the practical ways in which people have tried to remedy poverty
B
by suggesting that people would be appalled by the idea of selling and eating children
C
by suggesting that people care so little about children they would be willing to sell and eat them
D
by highlighting the ways in which the plan could help people support people’s families

Explanation

Swift’s shocking proposal is a satire: he pretends that poor families should sell their children as food. The horror of the idea exposes the cruelty and indifference of people who treat the poor as a problem to manage rather than as human beings. Choice D captures this criticism; choice B describes a reaction to the proposal, not the social attitude Swift is chiefly condemning.

AI-written and checked against the verified answer.

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