Jonathan
Swift's Gulliver's Travels is a work of social and political satire, which was
published in 1726. It was a controversial work when it was first published. It
was not until almost ten years after its first printing that the book appeared
with the entire text that Swift had originally intended it to have. The
protagonist of the novel, Captain Lemuel Gulliver, narrates and speaks directly
to the reader from his own experience. Swift uses Gulliver's journey to various
lands as the backdrop for his satire. Gulliver embarks on four distinct
journeys- Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubdrib and
Japan, to the country of Hounynyms. The Lilliputians are small but full of
self-importance. They represent the English. The Brobdingnag are physically a
lot larger than Gulliver; however, they are less threatening than the small
Lilliputians. They do not have gunpowder, as they do not see the point of it
and the king is upset t Gulliver's description of Europe, considering Europeans
to be violent. The Laputans are obsessed with knowledge and spent a great deal
of time studying, but failed to produce anything productive. The Hounynyms
represent a successful society, which benefits all of the Hounynyms and
considers them all equal. On the other hand, the Yahoos represent all i.e. bad
with human beings as they are uncivilised, greedy and violent.
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