Rhetorical Analysis Of Jonathan Smith's A Modest Proposal

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In 1729 Ireland was going through economical problems, things had gotten so bad that people were desperate for a solution. Jonathan Smith created a solution, but it was a bizarre one. Jonathan Smith wrote “A modest proposal” as a joke to prove a point, but this proposition was so convincing and well thought out that people began to consider it. The proposal was that babies should be eaten and used a profit rather than protecting them. The use of pathos, logos, and ethos all were used so well together that no one during that time could distinguish the satire that was being used. Jonathan Smith’s most prominent persuasive skill used was pathos. Smith started the proposition by establishing his tone and using loaded words such as “helpless” and

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