While the proposal is absurd in its nature, the narrator discusses the option with a serious and realistic approach. How does the definition of irony apply to the text? How else does Swift use irony through the narrator in this essay?

Teaching Suggestion: This prompt supports the introduction of the term paralipsis as a literary device. In this vein, students should consider the hyperbolic nature of the narrator’s absurd suggestion and compare it to the realistic suggestions that Swift makes, which the narrator dismisses as alternatives.