Satire in Tartuffe and Modest Proposal - Essay Example

? Satire in Tartuffe and Modest Proposal The word satire is Latin in origin and mostly used in literature to express wit, humor, folly or ridicule in the human nature. Two very renowned figures from the literary world have written satires in their works, Tartuffe by Moliere and a Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift respectively. Jonathan Swift with his literary piece has brought the problems of the European society under the spotlight. In a Modest Proposal written in the Neo-classical period focuses on social challenges faced by the society. The story takes the audience back to a time when the problems of the society were beyond the control of people. The narrative is based on poverty in Ireland faced by commoners during the 18th Century. The writer addressed the cause of the problem and its effect on the society as a whole. He uses the power of satire that attracts the reader towards the plot. The story beautifully portrays the characters in such a way that the audience is pulled towards the plot. In his narrative, Swift had pointed out that the main cause of poverty was the miserable state people were living in. Back in the neo-classical period, Ireland was facing class dilemma. There was the rich upper class that could afford almost anything and on the other extreme the poor lower class deprived of the basic necessities of life. There is a shift in the flow of the story when the writer suggested a solution to the problem of poverty, which was, feeding the children to wealthy people. He wrote that the poor children shall be sold by their parents to slaughters houses where they would become food for the rich. Hence, a way to reduce population and eventually poverty was sorted for the rich. This reflects how biased and partial Europe was, where the poor was suppressed and the rich was flattered. “There may be about two hundred thousand couple whose wives are breeders.” (Nordquist, About.com)He had also used the word “breeders” for mothers. He tried to imply that it’s the mothers who give birth to children that increase the poverty level of the society. The mothers would roam around on streets begging for money and food. Along with uncontrolled birth rate, Ireland was facing disturbed law and order situation, fragile economy and tyrannical and incapable rulers. He suggested that giving away poor children to the rich would reduce the burden and responsibility of their parents as the children would grow up into either thieves or drug addicts and waste their lives so he firmly believed that his suggestion would bring a positive change. Hence, his satire reflects more of irony and ridicule. No wonder his play, A Modest Proposal is referred to as “a masterpiece of ironic logic” and considered “the most satirical essay” in English language. (Nordquist, About.com) The reason for the satire in his thoughts is that the writer himself is English while the children of the story are Irish. But the positivity in the story is that the writer has criticized the Neo-classics of that period where society was given priority over an individual; in this case the poor children. The rights and freedom of an individual were compromised and they were used to maintain harmony in the society. Nevertheless, the solutions suggested by Swift were met with criticism. He failed to adopt a realistic approach. Although some thinkers believe that there was a message for both the upper and lower classes in the narrative that was hidden under the cloth of satire. Tartuffe also known as The Imposter, is a play written by Moliere in the seventeenth century Parisian high society when King Louis XIV was in power. The play is about a man who gets cover in a family where he projects himself as someone very pious, almost a saint. An introduction of Moliere would be enlightening here. Jean-Baptiste Poquelin was the original name of Moliere. He was a French comedian having the luxury to mingle and perform before the King. His satire always brought criticism along with amusement. Tartuffe, his renowned play is unique in a way that the main character exhibits various kinds of emotions and has different perspectives from every other relating character. This gives the audience a transparent picture of both sides, that is, negative and positive angles of human nature. The writer has addressed social and moral issues in the play. His work known as a comedy of the manners consists of traits found commonly in human behavior like obedience, command, respect, trust, deception and many more. The amusing thing about Moliere’s plays is that they all end well. The man who took in the stranger named Tartuffe is was rich man, Orgon. He, over a short period of time gained Orgon’s confidence. He started taking care of Tartuffe by providing him with the best place to live and food to eat. Madame Pernell who is Orgon’s mother also became fond of the stranger so much that she could not even tolerate a bad word against him. Eventually, Orgon told his daughter Marianne to marry Tartuffe so that he could transfer all his property and make him his heir. Everyone warned Orgon about Tartuffe that he was a cheat and would deceive him out of greed for grabbing all his property. Orgon was finally betrayed when he witnessed Tartuffe seducing his wife. He asked the culprit to leave his house but by that time it was too late as Orgon had transferred his property to Tartuffe. However with the help of the King, Tartuffe got arrested and everything got back to the way they were in Orgon’s family. The play, Tartuffe gives out a few good messages. Firstly, the commanding character of Orgon shows that men have the power to dominate in a household that is why a stranger was brought in, despite of his wife and children objecting over the decision. Secondly, obedience is another trait found in the daughter Marianne, who to please her father agreed on marrying Tartuffe. Thirdly, Orgon trusted his wife and on her demand hid under the table to see Tartuffe seducing her. At this point, the deceptive side of Tartuffe is revealed to Orgon and with the intervention of the King the culprit is caught. A famous saying “never trust a stranger” comes into play here. No outsider can ever be your well wisher. Orgon learnt that from his experience and the writer gives out these important and noteworthy messages in the play which are useful for the society. However, in this play Tartuffe used the power of religion to make everyone else believe his foul intentions. That is why the name Tartuffe (Imposter) suits the character perfectly. In my view, the satire in Moliere’s play, Tartuffe is more effective rather than in Swift’s a Modest Proposal. That is because Swift has given very radical solution to tackle the problem of poverty in Ireland. The solution portrays his identity of being English. Anyone reading his narrative underscoring the idea of “For Preventing the Children of Poor People in Ireland from Being a Burden to Their Parents or Country, and for Making Them Beneficial to the Public” would not agree with the idea of sacrificing poor kids to the rich for the sake of the betterment of society. It should be realized here that innocent children cannot be used as tools to eradicate poverty or enhance trade. Although, the concept of master-slave relationship was common in the time the writer is referring to but for today’s generation and challenges, a Modest Proposal is an ineffective narrative to look for. It is completely atrocious to treat children like Swift had recommended. Also, the play is meant to be written for the upper class of the society at that time. So obviously, eating children was something they found amusing. Jonathan Swift felt safe while performing the play before the rich because he didn’t want trouble from there. On the hand, the lower class could not afford watching his plays but he did worry about a reaction from them at some point that is why in the last paragraphs of his play he had given justifications of the proposal he put forward. On the other hand, the satire in Tartuffe is effective and gives out social and moral messages as it focuses on individual rather than society. For the betterment of the society, the betterment of the individual is equally important. Both the plays have been beautifully crafted so as to put forward the hidden message pertaining to the society. Satire has been used as a mean of portraying the situation of the society by both the authors. The stories grab the attention of the audience and one can clearly feel the irony that the authors have used within the stories. References Molie?re, , and Donald M. Frame. Tartuffe: And Other Plays. New York: New Am Lib, 1967. Print. Bottom of Form Top of Form Swift, Jonathan. A Modest Proposal. Champaign, Ill: Project Gutenberg, 1990. Internet resource. Read More