Gulliver's Travels

Author: Compiled by the Writing Group of "Very English Student Extracurricular Reading Series"
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2005-01-01
Features: Jonathan Swift, born in 1667 and died in 1745, was a famous 18th-century British political essayist and satirical novelist. "Gulliver's Travels" is his greatest satirical allegorical novel. Through Gulliver's experiences of several voyages, shipwrecks, and being stranded overseas, it satirizes the state of society and human nature. In the Lilliputian land, he helps the king in battle, offends the king, and is accused of treachery by the ministers. In the land of giants, he is treated as a plaything and a tool for making money. He praises British politics, military, and history to the king, exposing its ugliness. In the flying island, he sees that the entire nation is impractical and engrossed in fantasy. In the land of the Houyhnhnms, he encounters rational and noble horses, while the slaves are cunning, humanoid "Yahoos," revealing the evil nature of humans.