Главная ⇒ 📕English topics ⇒ Gulliver’s Travels


Gulliver’s Travels

In 1726 Swift’s masterpiece «Gulliver’s Travels» appeared. This work made a great sensation in Ireland as well as in England, it equally strirred the interests of those in politics as well as the readers of novels.

In this work Swift intended to satirise the evils of the existing society in the form of fictional travels. It tells about the adventures of a ship surgeon, as related by himself and divided into four parts of four voyages:1. A voyage to Liliput.2. A voyage to Brobdignag.3. A voyage to Laputa.4. A voyage to the country of Houyhnhnms.

1. The first voyage was to a strange country Lilliput. As the result of a shipwreck Gulliver finds himself in a country, inhabited by a race of people about six inches high. Everything else in this country is on a correspondent scale. Swift meant this small country with it’s shallow interest, corrupted laws and evil customs to symbolize the England of the 18’th centure, the court with it’s

atmosphere of hostility, hypocrizy and flattery where the author felt as lonely as his hero when among the liliputians.

2. Before long Gulliver undertakes another voyage. The ship anchors near the land of the giants to take in a supply of water. While on shore Gulliver is captured by the giants. They are good-natured creatures and treat Gulliver kindly, though they are amused by his small size and look upon him as a plaything.

Brobdingnag is an expression of Swift’s desire to find the ideal and escape from the disgusting world of the Liliputians. The author idealizes an agricultural country ruled by ideal monarch. Swift creates such a monarch in the king of Brobdingnag. He is clever, honest and kind to his people. He hates wars and wants to make his people happy.

3. The third voyage is to Laputa, a flying island Laputa. Swift’s imagination the bitterness of his satire reach their climax in the third part where he shows the academy of sciences in Laputa (the author touches upon all the existing sciences). It is easy enough to understand that in ridiculing the academy of Laputa. Swift ridicults the

scientists of the 18’th century. The scientists are shut in their chambers isolated from all the world.

3. In the 4’th part Swift describes Gulliver’s adventures at the Heuyhnhnms — a ideal land where were is neither sickness, dishonesty, non any of the frivo-lities of human scociety. The human race ocupies a position of servility there and a noble race of horces rules the country by reason and justice.

«Gulliver’s travels was one of the greatest works of the period of the Enlightment in world literature. Swift’s democratic ideas expressed in the book had a great influence on the English writers who came after Swift.

1 звезда2 звезды3 звезды4 звезды5 звезд (1 votes, average: 5,00 out of 5)


Related posts:

  1. After the Chernobyl Accident — После Чернобыльской катастрофы The Chernobyl accident occurred on April 26, 1986, at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Ukraine which used to be the part of the Soviet Union that time. The...
  2. Travel Arrangements Traveling is an essential part of any business. Even with new communication technology business people have to travel much as it’s particularly important to establish good face-to-face relations with partners,...
  3. The Climate of Great Britain — Климат Великобритании (1) Great Britain is situated on islands. It is washed by seas from all sides. That’s why the climate and the nature of Great Britain is very specific. The popular belief...
  4. The USA (5) The USA is composed of 50 states. It occupies the central part of North American continent. It borders on Canada in the north and on Mexico in the south. The...
  5. Entertainment I am fond of good books and good music, and when I have some timeto spare, I like to go to the theatre or a concert. There aremore than a...
  6. Leisure time Everybody sometimes has a free time. Somebody prefers only to sleep intheir leisure time, but most of us prefer to do a great number of interesting things. It may bereading,...
  7. Family(topic by Shapkina Lyuba) Your family are probably the most important people in your life. Families consist of parents and children. But we can also say that family is a group of people consisting...
  8. South Africa — Южная Африка I am going to tell you about South Africa, one of the English speaking countries. Southerly Africa, officially Republic of South Africa, is situated at the southern tip of the...
  9. Music in the USA — Музыка в США Almost all American composers of note belong to the 20th century, and include such names as Charles Ives, Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, Roger Sessions and Virgil Thomson. Edgard Varese and...
  10. My Winter Holidays — Мои зимние каникулы Winter holidays are shorter than summer ones. They begin at the end of December and last about two weeks. It is so nice to have a rest from school. During...
  11. Travelling by Car — Путешествие на машине There is nothing better than travelling by a fast car. Travel by car is a more personal experience, for there you can drive yourself. You just sit down at the...
  12. The English Language — Английский язык (2) The English Language (2) English is spoken practically all over the world. It is spoken as the mother tongue in Great Britain, the United States of America, Canada, Australia and...
  13. About myself (5) Let me introduce myself. My full name is Andrei Andreevich Ivanov. I was named after my father and I am very happy about it. I was born on April, 7,...
  14. My Week-day — Мой рабочий день (3) I am very busy on my week-days. My week-days do not differ much one from another. On week-days my working day begins early in the morning. My school starts at...
  15. Unwritten Rules of Great Britain Good and bad manners make up the social rules of a country. They are not always easy to learn because they are often not written down in books. For example,...
  16. A Little Information about Turkmenistan What is the first thought that comes to your mind when you hear the word Turkmenistan? Is it «Gee, I don’t even know where it is»? Or if you know...
  17. My School (4) I’m Ann. I would like to tell you a few words about my school life. I go to school five days a week except Saturday and Sunday when I have...
  18. Internet Addiction — Привыкание к Интернету Last week, in a private rehabilitation clinic outside Edinburgh, Leo Edwards, a sixteen-year-old schoolboy, was going through severe withdrawal symptoms. His body often shook violently and uncontrollably, and at mealtimes...
  19. My Family — Моя семья (2) We are a family of four: my father, my mother, my younger brother and I. My name is Olga. I am seventeen. I am a school leaver. My younger brother...
  20. A Family of Scientists George Boole was born in 1815. He is famous for his works in the field of mathematical analysis. His wife Mary Everest was a niece of George Everest. He is...
  21. I Want to be a Programmer — Я хочу быть программистом I want to become a computer programmer. I am interested in computers. It is a whole new world. Many people continue careers of their parents or grand parents but it...
  22. The Best Film I Have Ever Seen — Самый лучший фильм, который я когда-либо видел Lots of people find watching films one of the best ways of spending their leisure time. Due to numerous video facilities, which have emerged in this country over the past...
  23. The Hermitage — Эрмитаж One of the world-wide known museums is the Hermitage. The word «Hermitage» means «a place of solitude». This name was given in the XVIII century by Catherine II to her...
  24. My household chores Doing household chores is a necessary part of our life. People all over the world try to work hard. They usually have a lot of duties. I have a lot...
  25. Birthday — День рождения «What will you do on your birthday?» Most Americans celebrate their birthdays on the day on which they were born. Like in Russia, friends and relatives share in the celebration....
  26. Ukrainian Places of Interest Ukraine is a country with the glorious past. It is rich in historical monuments and different places of interest. Kyiv is the capital of Ukraine and one of the oldest...
  27. Azerbaijan — Азербайджан Azerbaijan is a country in the South Caucasus. It borders Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Iran. It is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east. Azerbaijan is the largest country...
  28. William Shakespeare (1) William Shakespeare is the greatest of all playwrights and poets of all times. Not much is known of his life. William Shakespeare was born 1564, in the town of Stratford-upon-Avon....
  29. Mars The fourth planet from the sun has always captivated our imagination, and while scientists haven’t proven there’s any life, not even the microscopic variety, the dusty red planet still commands...
  30. London Traffic — Движение в Лондоне London is so large that visitors must learn to use buses and the underground to get about. London taxis are too expensive for any but the rich. You can get...
  31. Education in the USA (2) Education in the United States of America is compulsory for children from the age of 6 till 16 (or 18). It involves 12 years of schooling. A school year starts...
  32. The Urals The Russian character and identity have long been influenced by the fact that Russia spreads across the two continents: Europe and Asia. The boundary between the two continents lies along...
  33. Education in Russia Citizens of Russia have the right for education which is guaranteed by the Constitution. The public educational system in our country incorporates pre-school, general school, specialized secondary and higher education....
  34. Easter Island One of the world’s most famous yet least visited archaeological sites, Easter Island is a small, hilly, now treeless island of volcanic origin. Located in the Pacific Ocean at 27...
  35. London (6) If I had a chance to go to London I’d like to see not only the places of interest but many other interesting things there. Certainly everyone knows that the...
  36. Television in Great Britain — Телевидение в Великобритании Critics claim that the golden age of television occurred in the 1950’s. Various fads have swept the television scene — e. g. westerns, doctor and lawyer shows, cops-and-robbers series, rural...
  37. The Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower (la Tour Eiffel) is an iron tower built on the Champ de Mars beside the River Seine in Paris, France. It is the tallest structure in Paris,...
  38. Wales Wales is a country situated in the West of Britain. St. David is the patron saint of Wales. On 1 st March, St. David’s Day, patriotic Welsh people wear a...
  39. The Cinema — Кино (2) 1). Cinematography has rather a long story. 2). Owing to the work of the great American engineer Thomas Alva Edison, thousands of people got an opportunity of enjoying this kind...
  40. Thomas Gainsborough Thomas Gainsborough was a master of English school of painting. He was a portraitist and a landscape painter. He was born in Sudbury in 1727 and was the son of...
Сейчас вы читаете: Gulliver’s Travels

« 
 »