In A Modest Proposal Swift adopts the persona of a concerned economist who suggests that, in order to better combat the poverty and overpopulation of Ireland, the children of the poor be sold as food to the wealthy. As a result, he argues, not only will the population be reduced, but the income of the poor will increase significantly as they sell their children. In developing this outrageous thesis, Swift provides abundant detail, projecting the costs of child rearing (which will be saved if the child is eaten), estimating the portion of the population affected, and even providing specific ideas regarding the number of servings a child might provide.