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Gulliver's travels fantasy analysis
Short note on gulliver's travels
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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. The theme of their being a possible utopia in Gulliver’s Travels can be seen throughout the novel by Jonathan Swift and is present in all of the societies that Gulliver meets. The Houyhnhnm people were honestly the closest society to being a utopia that Gulliver encountered, but their way of thinking was too unrealistic to work. The Houyhnhnms did their best to try and refrain from doing anything that distracted them from seeking reason so they eliminated entertainment, any forms of vanity, and sexual desires. The problem with this way of thinking is that the citizens have no freedom to do what they want which will not make everybody happy, for a utopia to exist everything has to be perfect, and if everyone is not happy then a utopia does not exist. Instead it was the Lilliputians that showed the most realistic possibility of being a utopia. To point out the ways in which Lilliput is the definition of an true utopia for England, Jonathan Swift uses several pages in “Gulliver’s Travels” to detail the laws by which the citizens in Lilliput are governed. There is a comment about revolutions... ... middle of paper ... ...it expresses the thought that only non-humans can achieve a perfect utopia. For human beings, the work toward the goal of a perfect society will be long and may never produce the results of the Houyhnhnms, but by using new viewpoints, a utopia might be closer than it seems. In conclusion the Houyhnhnms were almost too perfect for their own good. They stayed away from all of the things that would result in them losing focus of seeking reason, but there is no way everyone in their society would always be happy with their way of thinking. The lack of freedom is too evident in the Houyhnhnm society. Instead it was the Lilliputian people that had the closest chance at a utopia. Although some of their laws could be pretty extreme at times, the majority of their laws were for the greater good of all people, and is a government system I believe people could be happy in.
The definition of Utopia is, “an imagined place or state of things in which everything is perfect.” The rules and controls listed above and the many more that are in the book “Anthem” describe a society trying to become collective but in a utopian way. The purpose of these rules and controls is to keep the society collectivist. Fear is what runs this society. “.
Thus proving, the Hutterites are a utopian society because they have equality among all of their citizens. Finally, the Hutterites are a utopia because they are well provided for in food and other necessities.
Likewise, enhancing culture by producing art, music, or writing would not be practical in a state of nature, because the lack of security and compensation would make perusing such a field unsafe. Without law, there would be no viable way to publish a person’s work. Instead of sharing with others, humans would merely live to fear death. Therefore, Hobbes concludes the passage by saying that the state of nature would lead to “continual fear, and danger of violent death; and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short”1. Without the contracts that bond a society, humans would fear other humans. They would always be at risk to the “danger of violent death”1 as humans would act violently towards other humans to achieve their desires. So, in a state of nature, a human would likely maintain a solitary lifestyle to avoid conflict with other humans. A human would also live a “poor, nasty, [and] brutish”1 lifestyle without seeking the help of other people who have their own strengths. Also, without the influence of culture, a human may struggle to assign themselves an identity or a goal to pursue. Life
This serene society greatly contradicts the one we live in. Our society is furnished with hatred and warfare, yet in return, we are given freedom and the privilege of having distinctive characters. Given the nature of human beings, our society is more idealistic to live in. Utopia is an imaginary state, which consists of people who believe they are more capable of living in a group than alone. In such a community, the welfare of the group is the primary interest compared to the comfort of individuals.
By setting up this contrast (it is interesting to point out that this is the only time that Swift makes any reference to Gulliver's "needs") the reader begins to expect the Lilliput to have a higher form of society. When, later in the book (that is the first book of four), the Lilliputians show their true selfish nature it is more of a surprise to the reader because of the great buildup.
Utopias are created so people can dream of a better life. A Utopia is a perfect society. Moore creates his idea city on a secluded island in order for reformation. Moore sees many issues in society and dreams of a place where these problems are cured.
Houston, Chloe. "Utopia, dystopia or anti-utopia? Gulliver's Travels and the Utopian mode of discourse." Utopian Studies 18.3 (2007): 425+. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 13 Jan. 2014
The Utopia Reader defines the word utopia as “a nonexistent society described in detail and normally located in time and space.” (p.1) I would best define utopia as a fictional dream- paradise land where everything is peaceful, perfect and all runs smoothly. There is no crime disease, or pain. People are happy, kind and fair and have each other’s best
In the fourth voyage, Swift presents a case study for opposing states of nature, with the Yahoos representing the argument that man is governed by his passions, seeking his own advantage, pursuing pleasures and avoiding pain, and the Houyhnhnms representing the argument that man is governed by reason. If this is the case, then Swift’s misanthropy was such that he saw men as the foul and disgusting Yahoos, and made it plain that reform of the species was out of the question. A major fault with this theory is that it leaves no place for Gulliver. When attention is drawn to the figure of Gulliver himself, as distinct from his creator, Swift, he is taken to be the moral of the story. If you can't be a Houyhnhnm you don't need to be a Yahoo; just try to be like Gulliver. The trouble with this idea is that when taking a closer look at Gulliver, he isn't worth emulating. The final picture of him talking with the horses in the stable for four hours a day, unable to stand the company of his own family, makes him look foolish. Another theory is that Gulliver made a mistake in regarding the Houyhnhnms as models to be emulated: so far from being admirable creatures they are as repulsive as the Yahoos. The Yahoos might be ruled by their passions, but these have no human passions at all. On this view, Swift was not advocating, but attacking reason.
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.
In Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels, Gulliver learns that experiencing different lifestyles he thought were better than his own actually makes him appreciate his own life with a more meaningful disposition through his journeys to Lilliput, Brobdingnag, and the Country of the Houyhnhnms. Gulliver’s journey to Lilliput effectuated forlorn feelings of his home. Likewise, Gulliver’s trek to Brobdingnag assists in his realization that changing perspectives also alter his attitude towards his homeland. Finally, Gulliver’s expedition to the Country of Houyhnhnms, where horses act civilized on and people act like wild animals. Gulliver soon learns that through his mystical journeys that changing the perspective in which he views the world reverses feelings of gratefulness towards his home. Gulliver’s first journey set sail to the Lilliputians on May 4th, 1699.
Lilliput, Brombdinag, and the land of Houyhnhnms are the most relevant satire in Gulliver’s travels. Jonathan Swift uses these places to “roast” the European society. Swift desires for Europeans to realize their flaws and develop them. Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels is a marvelous adaption of English society flawed.
In Gulliver’s Travel, a novel written by Jonathan Swift, there are many political themes and satirical descriptions of the English government. During Swift’s time, the early 1700s, the Tory government and the Whig government opposed each other. Hoping that they would appoint him to the Church of England, Swift joined the Tories, but he was not appointed to the position by the Queen. When Tory government was in trouble for treason with the French, the Whig government took over, and Swift left politics to publish Gulliver’s Travel to show the disagreements between the two parties and between the Protestant English and the Catholic French, who did not agree on religious values. Swift wrote Gulliver’s Travel also to show his idealized vision for the English society. In the novel, Swift criticizes the government as he narrates the adventures which Gulliver experiences at different islands with foreign and unique groups of people. In a way, Swift creates utopian societies at the Lillitupian Island and the Brobdingnag Island to exhibit the imperfection of government that existed in England. As Gulliver, Swift’s main character, interacts with these societies, he criticizes some of their customs and laws. He notices that these societies are not utopian from his perspective. Although there are many themes throughout Gulliver’s Travels, this paper will focus on part one and two examining the utopian societies Swift creates for Gulliver to experience through his interactions with the Lilliputians and Brobdingnagian people system of government.
Many people contemplate telling the truth due to the consequences, but Johnathan Swift has found an original idea and expressed it by writing Gulliver 's Travels. It was a story based on satire and was meant to ridicule the way his country operated. Each part was an original installment meant to criticize the way his country operated in the form of education, politics, science, etc. Swift shamed his government and the politicians involved in the process of running the country, which they did in the most beneficial way for themselves rather than their own people. He uses the conflicts in the countries he visited to discuss the number of problems with England. This book was meant to educate the people of all of the dishonesty their leaders have shown and will continue to show unless there is an intervention. Swift 's comments on the British society are accurate and most definitely helped lift the ignorance of the world to this day.
In Gulliver's Travels, through the character of Lemuel Gulliver, Jonathan Swift apparently wishes to modify the traditions of the Lilliputians. The traditions were of breaking eggs from the small end first and "That all true believers shall break their eggs at the convenient end"; other such satirist traditions were to be followed, found in the chapter entitled "A Voyage to Lilliput."