Topic : Critical
analysis of guliver travels by swift
(1726)
Name : Nasim r. Gaha
Roll no: 30
Enrollment no : 2069108420190014
M. A: sem-1
Year : 2018-2020
Email-id :
gahanasim786@gmail.com
Paper no : 2 (The Neo- classical literature)
Submitted to :smt. S. B. Gardi Department of English mharaja
krishankumar sihji bhavnagar university.
Ø Introduction
Jonathan swift was born in Dublin in 1667.
Though his parents were of English origin, swift loved the land of his birth and
fought for the Irish cause with great loyalty. England had invaded Ireland and
conquered it. Land had been taken away from the Irish and Irish economy was at
the mercy of the English aristocracy who engorged themselves and left their Irish
tenants in a state of miserable poverty and starvation. It was this state of
affairs that prompted swift to write a fierce satire on the English landlord
in A modest proposal. In this pamphlet,
he Swift is remembered for works such as A Tale of a Tub (1704), An Argument
Against Abolishing Christianity (1712), Gulliver's Travels (1726), and A Modest
Proposal (1729). He is regarded by the Encyclopædia Britannica as the foremost
prose satirist in the English language,[1] and is less well known for his
poetry. He originally published all of his works under pseudonyms – such as
Lemuel Gulliver, Isaac Bickerstaff, M. B. Drapier – or anonymously. He was a
master of two styles of satire, the Horatian and Juvenalian styles.
His deadpan,
ironic writing style, particularly in A Modest Proposal, has led to such satire
being subsequently termed "Swiftian".he would never have written
Gulliver's Travels. Like all great satires, the principle aim of Gulliver's Traver
is to instruct and correct through ridicule, irony and sarcasm. The book exposes with great intensity the
ugliness of human nature, the vices of conceit, pride and cruelty, but the underlying
tone is consistently one of compassion -a desire to instruct humanity and put
them on the right path of Christianity.
Jonathan
Swift's story, Gulliver's Travels, is a very clever story. It recounts the
fictitious journey of a fictitious man named Lemuel Gulliver, and his travels
to the fantasy lands of Lilliput, Brobdinag, Laputa, and Houyhnhmn land. When
one first reads his accounts in each of these lands, one may believe that they
are reading humorous accounts of fairy-tale-like lands that are intended to
amuse children. When one reads this story in the light of it being a satire,
the stories are still humorous, but one realizes that Swift was making a public
statement about the affairs of England and of the human race as a whole.
In the
beginning of the story, Gulliver explains to the reader a bit about his
background, why he was on these journeysGulliver's Travels, or Travels into Several
Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a
Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships (which is the full title), is a
prose satire[1][2] by Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan Swift, that is both a
satire on human nature and the "travellers' tales" literary subgenre.
It is Swift's best known full-length work, and a classic of English literature.
He himself claimed that he wrote Gulliver's Travels "to vex the world
rather than divert it".
to begin with, and where he finds himself at
the beginning of his tale. The story begins with Gulliver recounting how he was
shipwrecked the land of Lilliput. He awakens to find himself tied down and held
captive by a tiny race of people. To the inhabitants of Lilliput, Gulliver is something
of a giant. He could not move, because he was tied down, but he notices a a
race of tiny people moving about him. These people take all of his possessions
for inspection, for they are in awe and fear of his great size. They feed him,
and soon untie him but still keep him in confinement. While in his confinement,
he is visited by the emperor who likes Gulliver. Gulliver learns there language
and the customs of the people of Lilliput. In this book Swift, by describing
the ludicrous system that Lilliput's government fashions in, is satirizing the
English system of governing. He uses parallels that seem absurd at first glance
but make more senses when looked
The term ‘utopia’ has come to be
synonymous with an ideal world or an ideal society. ‘Dystopia’ was conceived of
as the opposite of utopia and obviously describing an unpleasant, nightmarish
world.By the end of the story, my impression of the Lilliputians changes for
the worse. When the articles of treason were written and presented against
Gulliver, my opinion changed. Gulliver’s main crime was the means by which he
extinguished the fire in the palace. While it was a disgusting way to do it,
Gulliver didn’t have many options and had to think fast. He was only trying to
help the Lilliputians and still, they looked for reasons to turn his assistance
against him. The Lilliputians also write Gulliver up on other crimes for his
interactions with the Blefuscudians, when the main reason Gulliver interacted
with them in the first place was to help the Lilliputians get an upper hand on
their rivalry . When Gulliver holds up the rational as perfect and when he
cannot find a rational man to meet his ideal, he concludes in disillusionment
that humanity is totally animalistic, like the ugly Yahoos. In addition to being
a satire and a parody of travel books, Gulliver’s Travels is an initiation
novel. As Gulliver develops, he changes, but he fails to learn an important
lesson of life, or he learns it wrong. His naïve optimism about progress and
rationality leads him to bitter When Gulliver holds up the rational as perfect
and when he cannot find a rational man to meet his ideal, he concludes in
disillusionment that humanity is totally animalistic, like the ugly Yahoos. In
addition to being a satire and a parody of travel books, Gulliver’s Travels is
an initiation novel. As Gulliver develops, he changes, but he fails to learn an
important lesson of life, or he learns it wrong. His naïve optimism about
progress and rationality leads him to bitter disillusionment.
2) The Voyage to Brobdingnag in part
two
In this part of the novel, Swift
shows us the people of immense stature. These people are gifted with a sound
and cool judgment, look at the principles and politics of Europe. Here, satire
has general nature. Some particular references to political events: and no
circumstances are mentioned. Which are not applicable to all places, while
Lilliput was a land inhabited by Pigmies or dwarfs, Brobdingnag is the land of
giants or persons of an immense stature.
3)The Voyage to Laputa in Part-III:
In this part, the abuses of science
are the aim of satire. Swift’s target here are the projects – who leaving their
common sense behind them, wander into the vast regions of speculative
philosophy. It is noticeable here that the satire is not aimed at true science
but its hazards.
4)The
Voyage to the land of the Houyhnhnms and the yahoos in Part-IV:
In this part the satire is intense.
This voyage represents mankind in a satire is too exaggerated. The author
succeeded in portraying the disgusting yahoos. The Houyhnhnms are devoid of all
those tender passions and affections without which life become a burden. The
Houyhnhnms do not appeal to us as models of perfection.● Swift – a master of satire:
A satire many roughly and briefly be defined
as a humorous or witty exposure. A satire can be defined as a means by which
the author can expose the reality of individuals communities, or all mankind by
employing irony, mockery, ridicule, sarcasm, and even invective as the weapon’s
of attack. Swift uses all the above means to succeed in satirizing. He uses
irony in double way. He is a master or corrosive as well as comic satire. His
comic satire makes us laugh. Corrosive satire is serious and creates hatred.
This corrosive type of satire is fully developed in book-IV of Gulliver’s
Travels. The first part is rich in comic fictional illusion.Swift – a master of
satire:
A satire many roughly and briefly be
defined as a humorous or witty exposure. A satire can be defined as a means by
which the author can expose the reality of individuals communities, or all
mankind by employing irony, mockery, ridicule, sarcasm, and even invective as
the weapon’s of attack. Swift uses all the above means to succeed in
satirizing. He uses irony in double way. He is a master or corrosive as well as
comic satire. His comic satire makes us laugh. Corrosive satire is serious and
creates hatred. This corrosive type of satire is fully developed in book-IV of
Gulliver’s Travels. The first part is rich in comic fictional illusion.
Conclusion:
Gulliver’s Travels has been an
outstanding book by the author. This novel interweaves many aspects. It is
political Allegory as it deals with many political allegories. It is the novel
Adventurous novel. The novel deals with travel. From beginning to end it is
travelogue. The novel depicts funny or comic elements and thus can be called
comic novel. The novel satirizes on human vices so it can be called satirical
work of art. It short, the novel is quiet successful in presenting what the
author wanted. A reader can enjoy the novel reading even from any one
