Gulliver's Travels: Junior High Part (Revised Edition)

Author: (English) Swift
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1979-12-01
Features: The satire in Gulliver's Travels is a multi-edged sword. The first to be criticized and mocked is contemporary England, or the world's then-emerging "modern society." Gulliver's adventures take place in Lilliput. There, he can drag an entire fleet with one hand and consume a large number of chickens, ducks, cattle, and sheep, along with many barrels of wine in a single meal. To transport this giant creature to the capital, the Lilliputians mobilize five hundred craftsmen, countless ropes, nine hundred "giants" tasked with lifting and carrying, fifteen thousand "tall" imperial horses, and so on. In such a miniature nation, all ambitions, sycophancy, political struggles, and wars inevitably appear petty and insignificant. Party disputes are divided by the height of shoe heels, with the "High-Heel Party" and the "Low-Heel Party" clashing fiercely. Neighboring countries not only seek to defeat and enslave each other but also debate trivial "principles," such as which end of an egg to crack first. The king selects officials through rope-walking competitions, so all court officials, eager for promotion, risk breaking their necks practicing this circus skill. To earn a few colored silk threads awarded by the king, officials resort to various ridiculous performances. This court reminds readers of England in every way. Even the financial minister who betrays Gulliver, Flimnap, is considered to be based on the then-Chancellor of the Exchequer of England, Walpole.