An Analysis of Satire in Jean-Baptiste Poquelin Moliere’s Tartuffe and Jonathan Swift’s “a Modest Proposal”

Promoting Cannibalism and Religious Hypocrisy:

An Analysis of Satire in Jean-Baptiste Poquelin Moliere’s Tartuffe

and Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal”

I. Introduction

In literature, satire is a genre that primarily attacks a particular human or societal ill or shortcoming, and is meant to propose progressive steps toward improvement or change. Satirists use a variety of techniques to convey their messages, including irony, parody, comparison, and exaggeration, among others; but the defining characteristic of satires is the use of wit and humor, employed to make the piece superficially appear as an approval of the actual ideas being attacked. Some of the most common objects of satires are issues regarding religion and politics, wherein the humorous appeal of satires would apply without taking on a fanatic tone. However, humor is merely a style, and not the prime goal of satires; most importantly, it is the underlying social issue that is highlighted and prompted to be seen in a new light.

The play Tartuffe, a comedy penned in 1664 by Jean-Baptiste Poquelin Moliere, centers on the subject of religious hypocrisy—represented by Tartuffe himself. On the other hand, Jonathan Swift’s satirical essay “A Modest Proposal”, written in 1729, is a fair combination of horror and sarcasm, owing to Swift’s proposition of having children of poor Irish citizens sold off as food to the rich, in order to solve problems ranging from starvation to overpopulation. Both works are renowned and acknowledged to be satires, albeit executed via decidedly different approaches. Ultimately, in the study of literature, identifying the more effective piece may be done in terms of success in using the form, communicating the evils of the issue being tackled, and pointing out room for change.

II. Religious Hypocrisy in Tartuffe

The play establishes outright the supposed pious nature of Tartuffe, as claimed by the wealthy Orgon, son of Madame Pernelle, husband to Elmire and...