Swift is recognized as a defender of Ireland. In A Modest Proposal (1729), a reaction to English commercial practices that negatively impacted Ireland, Swift wrote one of the greatest works of sustained irony in English or any other language. Swift responds to the continued subjugation of all aspects of the lives of those living in Ireland by England. See more information HERE on Swift, "A Modest Proposal," and his other works (Cliffsnotes.com)