Introduction

A common form of academic writing that also exists in various other fields such as literature and journalism, an essay is a form of writing that presents a focused argument or explores a topic through the eyes of the essayist, and its style and content differ from an article in that an article has to stay objective and factual while an essay can easily contain the author’s own interpretations of the topic. Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal is representative of this tendency to put forward the understandings of the author while still providing information to the reader, even when criticizing the existing political or social structures.

But why? Simple. Curiosity.

Among many other justifications, the essay is chosen as a form to satiate our necessities concerning the need to define and archive that which we experience. It also cannot be set apart from the concept of experimenting, -the primordial curiosity that has been a companion of humanity being the culprit- the essay also does act as a domain where similar to other forms, new ideas are entertained. As a literary form, the essay is not used to create fiction but to dissert and assert over either existing or bound-to-exist thoughts and theories

Language, and Decorum

There exist two chief components and enablers of this form, one being the language itself, and the other being the essayist’s style with which he asserts himself and conveys meaning in a selectively weighted manner. It follows this then that an essay must first be given life and allowed to exist by language, and then customized to fit the needs of the subject by means of style. This constitutes the most direct, practical approach to understanding the relation between style and language, however, as what an essay really means to the reader is explored, it is easily found that this approach is at best partially effective for a full grasp.

The reader, in its essence, reads the essay not only to be informed, but also mainly to widen their intellectual horizons with the essayist’s train of thought, and this train of thought can best be brought into light with the omission of it. This action is representative of an altered form of reductionism, where the smallest constituents of a whole are identified and reassembled in arrangements different from the original to find each component’s role. Having asserted this, it can be argued that if the style is ripped away from it, an essay can only be a bad substitute for a half-hearted article since in this form it will neither be as informative as a full-fledged article nor will it feel like an actual essay. As such, a more comprehensive analysis reveals that style is an integral part of the essay that separates it from other forms and genres, proving that writing an essay is like tailoring a dress that must well-suit the would-be readers.

For instance, an essay that has been received as highly repulsive and disgusting early on by the literal reader, Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal was a satirical essay that criticized and mocked the attitude of the English towards the Irish people and how they were slowly ripped of their belongings and liberties. Suggesting that impoverished Irish families should sell their infants as food to the wealthy, he aimed to present the absolute end of this tyrannical approach with his sharp and stark arguments that spared no mercy, and the work as a whole conforms to the established structure of an essay; with an introduction that lays down the problem and body paragraphs that widen and support his claims, and a sound conclusion.

To near this text to an end, it can be said that, combining language and style to convey meaning in an effective and captivating manner, the essay is a versatile form of writing that allows authors to present their thoughts and arguments through their own interpretations in an orderly fashion that engages the reader intellectually. Style is an inseparable part of the essay as the reader not only seeks information from it but the author’s train of thought. Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal, despite its initial reception, provides an example of the accomplishing power of satire and irony and embody the conventions of an essay while still offering engaging arguments and perspectives to the reader in meaningful discourse.