Response Letters: Analysis of Swift and Giovanni's Works

This report provides a comparative analysis of response letters, focusing on the works of Jonathan Swift and Nikki Giovanni. The analysis begins by examining the satirical tone of Swift's "A Modest Proposal" and how it contrasts with the themes in Giovanni's poem "Nikki Rosa." The report highlights the differing perspectives on poverty, childhood, and societal issues. The first response letter discusses the satirical nature of Swift's work, particularly the directness of his tone and its impact on the reader's understanding. The second response letter adopts the perspective of a parent responding to Swift's proposal, acknowledging the impact of his writing on the marginalized population. The analysis also explores how Giovanni's poem reflects the experiences of children in the ghettos, contrasting the portrayal of Black families in literature. The report concludes by referencing the works cited, providing a comprehensive overview of the themes, perspectives, and literary techniques employed by both authors.

Running Head: RESPONSE LETTERS
Response Letters
Name of the student
Name of the University
Author’s Name

1RESPONSE LETTERSFirst ResponseFirst Response
First Response
Though there has been a debate about the presence and absence of similarities between
your essay “A Modest Proposal” and my poem “Nikki Rosa”, the point that intrigues me in the
satire is the usage of tone where you are so direct that it is hard for the readers to understand the
sarcastic setting of the essay. The essay subtly sets apart the concept of happiness and wealth for
the Black and White which was due to the pamphlets doing the round during the time asking the
black parents to start selling their children in the European market to help them with their
poverty (Giovanni).
The character reliving her childhood in the poem might have reacted in the same way as
the Swift did to the pamphlets and the essay resonates Nikki’s thought process where she cannot
comprehend and accepts the fact that the White people could ever understand what their unity
means to them and that though they had a broken bath and a drinking dad, they were always
together and standing with each other. The politician criticizing the begging condition on the
road could not be made to understand the happiness of the child hanging at the back of her
mother or around the neck when their mother looks at them lovingly (Swift).
Second Response
As a reader trying to fit into the shoes of one of the begging parent and responding to
swift writing, I would have thanked him for telling his people the things they wanted to hear in
the right tone they deserved. Swift’s proposal to selling the kid and then later adding that the
tender meat of the children will taste very delicious if left in the hands of a capable cook
(Giovanni). As a progeny of the begging parents, I would have liked to thank swift for being the
voice of the population who were not added to the literature at that time.

2RESPONSE LETTERSFirst ResponseFirst Response
“Nikki Rosa” is very relatable to the children growing in the ghettos where though the
white writers have always taken even the slightest opportunity to write about the black household
in the negative light forgetting the school of thoughts which forms the basis of their character
(Swift). The concept of the childhood spent with family playing, laughing and loving every bit to
the very core is resonated in the poem which is relatable to every black child. The criticism of
the white biographers to understand the pain of the parents giving up their dreams for their
children is fathomable to the children who had grown to see the change in their life.

3RESPONSE LETTERSFirst ResponseFirst Response
Works-Cited
Giovanni, Nikki. "Nikki-Rosa By Nikki Giovanni." Poetry Foundation. N.p., 2019. Web. 11
Dec. 2019.
Swift, Jonathan. "A Modest Proposal, By Jonathan Swift." Gutenberg.org. N.p., 2019. Web. 11
Dec. 2019.