http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/keyword/a-modest-proposal Inquiries Journal provides undergraduate and graduate students around the world a platform for the wide dissemination of academic work over a range of core disciplines. en-us Wed, 08 Apr 2026 07:18:29 -0400 Wed, 08 Apr 2026 07:18:29 -0400 http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1688/satire-in-18th-century-british-society-alexander-popes-the-rape-of-the-lock-and-jonathan-swifts-a-modest-proposal By Jonathan J. Szwec - The 18th century was one in which exaltation of wit and reason came to the forefront of literature in the form of both Horatian and Juvenalian satires, which, through keen observation and sharp nimbleness of thought, exposed the superficial follies and moral corruption of society during the neoclassical period in Britain. Underneath the enlightenment ideals of rationality, order and knowledge, society embraced a pervasive obsession with “decorum,” a façade of established traditions and vanities, as well as an innate sense of moral and political supremacy. Satires during this... Fri, 17 Jun 2011 09:46 EDT http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/1688/satire-in-18th-century-british-society-alexander-popes-the-rape-of-the-lock-and-jonathan-swifts-a-modest-proposal