To understand a word’s meaning, one can use its based on the other words in the passage.

rhetoric - language designed to have a persuasive or impressive effect on its audience, but often regarded as lacking in sincerity or meaningful content.

the correct answer is: b. too many irish living in poverty.

in his recognized essay, a modest proposal, swift tackles the terrible social problem that ireland was suffering: poverty and, with it, the heavy prejudice against poor people that social inequality had generated. using a rather unusual approach to shock the audience (suggesting that poor parents should sell their kids in the meat market or even eat them), he engages the subject head-on.