Question

Read this excerpt from 'A Modest Proposal' by Jonathan Swift:

I profess, in the sincerity of my heart, that I have not the
least personal interest in endeavoring to promote this
necessary work.... I have no children, by which I can
propose to get a single penny; the youngest being nine years old, and my wife past child-bearing.
How does including this excerpt at the end of the essay contribute to the
satire's impact?

A. It shows that Swift regrets that he is unable to profit from this
proposal because he has no children.

B. It indicates that Swift has nothing to gain from this idea because
he has no children to sell.

C. It pokes fun at the professed selflessness of people who propose
solutions to society's problems.

D. It shows that Swift is being sincere and reminds the reader that
his proposal is necessary.

Answer 1

C. It pokes fun at the professed selflessness of people who propose

solutions to society's problems.

Step-by-step explanation:

One of the proposal described just before this concluding excerpt is selling the poor Irish one year old children to abroad as a source of food. According to the proposer (a narrator and not Jonathan Swift himself), this selling will make Irish people rich. After this proposal the narrator wants to convince readers of his selflessness. This is very satiric and satirizes the professed selflessness of such proposers. The proposer is wanting himself to be believed very sincere after saying that he can not sell his own children, because they are old.

Option A, B and D are not correct. Firstly because the proposal is a satire and the proposer is not Jonathan Swift himself, but just a narrator - a satirized self professed selfless proposer. Secondly as this proposal is a satire, there is no mention of satirizing or poking fun in any of these options.