Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
Jonathan Swift wrote Gulliver's Travels in the 1720's, he wrote it in a different style to modern authors because it was more normal in those days to do so; for example, he used more pompous and archaic words, longer sentences and longer paragraphs; Swift also used a lot of Satire and imaginary words in his book these made it more interesting and more believable. Nowadays his writing might sound strange to some people. I have been looking closely at the satire and style in chapter five of Gulliver's Travels and will comment on how he used them and what his intended effect was.
In chapter five Swift uses archaic language such as, 'Viceroy,' when he wrote this I think he was just writing what came naturally to him, he didn't desire an effect to be created on the reader other than what the word meant; nowadays the archaic words he uses could create the effect of boredom or confusion, because the reader might not know what the words mean.
Some of the words Swift uses are formal and pompous an example of one of these words is, 'Leathern Jerkin,' This is a posh word for a leather coat, it's effect on the reader is it shows them that Gulliver is a well educated man who has a wide vocabulary. I believe that this was swift's intention. This is the affect as it had on me as a reader.
In the whole book there are a lot of long paragraphs longer than you would normally find in a book today. These can make the book hard for some people to read and it can also make the reader forget what beginning of the paragraph was before they finish it; however some modern books have long paragraphs as well, (I read a book recently and it had lots of long paragraphs which made the story very hard to keep track of and understand). I don't think Swift intended to confuse his readers but he might have confused some of them.
Swift also used very long sentences throughout this novel an example of one from chapter five is, 'I had not yet seen it, and upon this notice of an intended invasion, I avoided appearing on that side of the coast, for fear of being discovered by some of the enemy's ships, who had received no intelligence of me, all intercourse between the two empires having been strictly forbidden during the war, upon pain of death, and an embargo laid by our Emperor upon all vessels whatsoever.' As you can see that is a very long sentence that probably
The story itself is ironic since no one can take Swift’s. seriously consider the proposal. This irony is clearly demonstrated at the end of the story; Swift makes it clear that this proposal would not affect. him since his children were grown and his wife unable to have any more children. They are all children.
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer written by Mark Twain, is a story about a portion of a Tom Sawyer’s boyhood. Tom is a mischievous little boy, who lives with his Aunt Polly. He has a knack for getting into trouble, and has a very vivid imagination. He doesn’t seem to have respect for anyone, and tends to make bad choices. However, as he goes through tests and trials, both physically and emotionally, he begins to mature. Throughout the book, Tom’s behavior maturity level changes drastically.
Political issues or matters concerning the well-being of mankind is not something new to us. Social and political hierarchies have existed for millennia, yet the ways in which people have voiced their concerns or opinions on sensitive topics related to these hierarchies have evolved over time. One way in which people have addressed important society matters has been through satire. Typically satirical writings are fueled by anger brought about by a political event or societal issue. Instead of voicing their anger directly to the people, Jonathan Swift and other satirical authors, have used satire as “the engine of anger, rather than the direct expression of anger” (Egendorf 40). In doing so,
The definition of a utopia is an imagined place or state in which everything is perfect. In book four of Gulliver’s travels Gulliver discovers a group of people called the Houyhnhnms and the group displays qualities of a possible utopia. The Houyhnhnms are very rational in their thinking, and try their best to stay away from entertainment and vanity. However the Houyhnhnms could not be considered creators of a utopia because they emphasized unrealistic rules and because of their treatment of the Yahoo people within their society. Instead it is the Lilliputians people who display the most signs of a potential utopia in Gulliver’s Travels.
In the writing's of the Jonathan Swift we can clearly see issues and concepts with regard to morality, ethics and relations come into play in our society and in Gulliver's Travels, Swift brings those issues to the for front for everyone to see and analyze. The very concepts and beliefs that man holds dear Swift attacks and strongly justifies his literary aggression thought the construct of the society of the Houyhnahnms who truly leads a just and humane society that we as humans (Yahoos) have the faintest concept of. As I will later point out, Swift also deals with human ignorance and the overall belief that nothing in this earth can be more civilized and exert more reason then us. He uses the characters of the Houyhnahnms to demonstrate our inadequacies and overall failures to exert and practice true reason. Issues such as war, corruption, rape, homosexuality, lying (false representation), slavery, bribery, greed, and murder does not exist in a society that understands the true meaning of reason. We can clearly see the metamorphosis of Gulliver from is departure from his wife and children to being mutinied to his initial encounter with the Yahoos as well as the Houyhnahnms, to his experiences over a 5 year period in his interactions with the Houyhnhnms to his departure and return home to his wife and kids we can clearly see the change from a man (yahoo) to a Houyhnhnm (in spirit). So as we take a closer look at Gulliver's travels, we will see that the Voyage of the Houyhnhnm is about change, understanding, and clarity of oneself, his beliefs, morals and values.
...tential. With the power of satire, Swift shatters our ego to the point that the text makes us question, if in fact mankind is even worth saving.
In Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Jane uses the novel to show the common day romance of the time period. In the novel, Elizabeth Bennet, a sophisticated, lively girl manages to change Mr. Darcy, a cocky, stubborn man into a person who is head over heels in love. Although it takes her some time, Elizabeth is able to change the way Mr. Darcy feels about love in general and causes him to act differently then he has ever done before. Mr. Darcy’s self- discovery in response to Elizabeth Bennet’s blunt honestly allows him to re-evaluate his approach to love.
One of the other voices that is present throughout the entire story is that of sarcasm. In order to understand this further, a reader has to comprehend that Swift, becoming infamous after Gullivers Travels, was a member of the upper-class. Right from the first paragraph Swift attempts to fool his readers by the sarcasm of the dreary scene that Swift presents. For example, he mentions that it is a melancholy sight to see beggars and their children on the street. The sarcastic paradox in this statement is whether it is a melancholy object for him, having to see homeless people every day, or for the beggars lifestyle? Upon first reading this one may be led to believe that Swift is a compassionate writer attempting to feel the pain of the beggars. But as the story continues, a reader can look back and note that he is using a sarcastic tone and the only sad sight that he sees is the fact that people of his status have to deal with commoners.
Jonathan Swift and Katha Pollitt, separated by 200 years, share a common interest in the welfare of people. Specifically, the two authors write of different experiences regarding the underprivileged women and children in their particular countries. While my experience might be limited in the environment of poverty personally, I have had some exposure to underprivileged youth and their families. My perception of poverty is based on attending both primary and secondary school in a depressed socioeconomic community filled with single mothers living in government funded housing on the north side of Houston. From my experiences, I have found that, while divorce can be damaging for children, the deterioration of family values in society doesn’t
Past the political satire and laughable motifs in the book Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift, the purpose of this story is to show everything ignoble and tactless of the human species in general and that humans are truly disgusting. Also exploring the idea of a utopia. Swift uses the literary device of political satire to show how childish and ignorant human acts were. This is because during Swift's time in the eighteenth century, Britain was modernizing at this time. The reader follows the four narrative travels of the main character, Lemuel Gulliver. Each of the four voyages Gulliver has traveled to, is a different society that portrays one of the main ideals of the eighteenth century in Britain. The four places Gulliver has traveled to were Lilliput; being Gulliver's first voyage, Brobdingnag; his second voyage, Laputa; the third voyage, and lastly to the land of the Houyhnhms; being his last voyage and afterwards traveling back home to England. The experience from being exposed to these four societies has had a huge impact on how Gulliver now sees humans.
Jane Austen, author of Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, and many other well-known books, was born on December 16th, 1775, in England. Her parents, George and Cassandra Austen, came from lower middle-class English families. When Austen was a child, her home had an open and intellectual atmosphere, and her family frequently discussed politics and social issues. This influenced her writing as an adult, which explored themes of social class and the treatment of women. As a teenager, Austen was sent to Oxford to be educated, but she contracted typhus and nearly died. She was then educated at home, learning what girls were normally taught during that time, such as French, needlework, and music. Austen was also a enthusiastic reader,
Jonathan Swift uses Gulliver travels to somewhat criticize the English society. Gulliver visits four society’s that each have likeness back to England. He sees the Houyhnhnms, Laputa, Brobdingnag, and Lilliputian who all share similar problems. Swift successfully creates the satiric mode by pointing out the same flaws of England through a different society to make the social ills apparent to the reader.
a good mother and a good wife. The goal of women was to grow up to
Jonathan Swift was born on November 30, 1667 in Ireland to English parents, Jonathan and Abigail. His father, Jonathan, died shortly after his birth, leaving his mother to raise him and his sister alone. In Ireland, Swift was dependent on a nanny for three years because his mother moved to England. The young man was educated because of the patronage of his Uncle, Godwin Swift. Godwin sent him to Kilkenny Grammar School at age six, which was one of the best primary schools in Ireland at the time. Although the transition from extreme poverty to a private school education was hard, he made it easier by becoming friends with William Congreve; a future poet. At age fourteen Godwin put him through Trinity College at Dublin where he completed his Bachelors Degree. Swift later completed his M. A. at Oxford in 1692. Swifts mother wanted him to be successful so, she sent him to go work as a secretary under Sir William Temple, an established essayist and graduate from Cambridge. Because Temple was a prominent parliamentary figure Swift was exposed too much literature during this time period (1689-1699), which shaped his books later on. While working under Sir William Temple, Swift lived in Moor Park, Farnham. During his time living at Moor Park he met Stella, also known as Ester Johnson, which influenced and inspired his work, Journal to Stella.
Gulliver's Travels is one of the most beloved satires of all time (Forster 11). Yet, careful analysis shows it to be very complex with not one definite interpretation. A very surface reading may leave one feeling that the point of the book is "don't be Yahoo." This is the message that David Ward feels Gulliver the character is giving and says that it is no more complex than Orwell's, "four legs good, two legs bad." But this grows out of the fact of Gulliver's nature. A synthesis of the opinions of the writers I read paints Gulliver as an average man of average courage, honesty, compassion, and intellect, a typical Englishman. But there is nothing typical about Gulliver's Travels.