Compare And Contrast The Dead By James Joyce And A Modest Proposal

In their short stories “The Dead” by James Joyce and “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift, the author sought to express the disgruntled emotions felt by young men and women of their era. Both authors use commentary and powerful language to justify the emotions felt during this time. They express their displeasure with society, in the case of Swift’s “A Modest Proposal” and the strife of expectations of a man in Joyce’s “The Dead”. The author’s use of tone in both stories reflects the feelings each felt and themes each attack display the emotional state of society of their time.

In Jonathan Swift’s “A Modest Proposal”, he suggests breeding children and eating them in an effort to clean up the streets of the impoverished. This theme reflects

This comes off as almost believable due to his use of calculations to fix the problem and is almost serious in its practical application. In the middle, the tone takes a nosedive becoming angry and bitter at society for complaining about the problem of impoverished. This shift is the sentiment felt by the people of the time, quick to anger and seeking a solution or action rather than talking about a

Joyce almost shouts at the reader of how difficult it was or is rather for men to return home from war and reintegrate back into normal life. In this case Gabriel wants to be alone and not waste his time with unimportant chatter. He has wants he is unable to express due to his awkwardness. When his wife admits there was another man she loved before him his world comes spinning to a stop and he looks at her as if they never knew each other. He distances himself completely due to the lack of understanding of the people around him. This comments on the social changes brought after World War I, new lines were drawn on the map and an empire was brought down.