Question

Match each piece of text from "A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift to the subject of the satire.

Answer 1

I have found the complete question for this from another resource. I will paste them here for reference:

1. They can very seldom pick up a livelihood by stealing till they arrive at six years old; except where they are of towardly parts, although I confess they learn the rudiments much earlier. 

2. These children are seldom the fruits of marriage, a circumstance not much regarded by our savages. 

3. Men would become as fond of their wives, during the time of their pregnancy, as they are now of their mares in foal, their cows in calf, or sow when they are ready to farrow.

A. the general perception of all poor as thieves and robbers 
B. the government's lack of attention to the poor 
C. the perception that Irish families lack a regard for the institution of marriage 
D. the lack of institutions to conduct marriages for the Irish poor 
E. the increasing number of husbands abandoning their wives and children 
F. the belief that thieves and robbers are abundant in Ireland 
G. poor husbands' low opinion of their wives

NUMBER 1:
This satire is talking about how poor people only earn through stealing at an early age. From the choices, we can see two options (A and F) which are talking about robbers but only one of them is the true subject of the text. Since the text is talking about a stereotype of the poor as robbers, option A is more appropriate for this item.

ANSWER: A. the general perception of all poor as thieves and robbers 

NUMBER 2:
This piece of text is hinting that most children have parents who are not married (clue word: seldom). The text also hints that the "savages" do not care about that fact. Among the options, two are talking about marriage (C and D). However, among these, only choice C accurately encapsulates the subject of the text.

ANSWER: C. the perception that Irish families lack a regard for the institution of marriage

NUMBER 3:
The excerpt in this item is talking about how husbands are ONLY fond of their wives when they are pregnant. This means that the text is hinting that the husbands are not as fond of their wives when they are not pregnant. Choices E and G talk about husbands and wives but choice G captures the subject of the satire more.

ANSWER: G. poor husbands' low opinion of their wives