Swift's satirical essay "A Modest Proposal" ridicules the inaction of those in power to remedy the poverty and suffering of Ireland's poor. It suggests selling poor children as food to the rich as a solution, though the proposal is absurd and meant to criticize the exploitation and inhumanity faced by the Irish. The essay attacks the social and economic conditions that created poverty, as well as greed, indifference, and lack of mercy among the wealthy and ruling classes towards the poor. While outrageous on the surface, the satire aims to provoke thought and reform through highlighting uncomfortable truths about Irish suffering and its causes.