As we continue reading Part 1 of Gulliver’s Travels, you will continue to see the representations of religion and politics that we discussed in class on Friday. Since we’ve discussed the background of the text rather extensively, I’ll just pose some questions for you to consider for our discussion on Monday.
Questions for Thinking and Discussion
- In the section on the nurseries for young boys and girls, Gulliver describes distinctions related to gender and class. How are women portrayed by Gulliver? And how are they treated within the Lilliputian society? In particular, how does the section about “the meaner families” relate to the issues raised in “A Modest Proposal”?
- As we discussed some in class on Friday, much of Gulliver’s story is humorous in addition to making important points about politics and religion in the 18th century. What parts of chapters 5-8 did you find funniest? Why did you think these parts were funny? Do you see any deeper meanings to these parts?
- In addition to the specific political and religious targets of Swift’s satire, many scholars see this text as a satire about human nature and human behavior more generally. What aspects of human nature are represented in chapters 5-8? How are these satirized?
- Returning to our focus on the body in this course, think about the ways the body appears in Part 1. How do the different types of bodies play a part in the text: the physical/human body? the national body? the foreign body?
- In his 1995 Jonathan Swift and the Burden of the Future, Alan D. Chalmers describes “anxiety of the body,” particularly in the first two parts of Gulliver’s Travels. About Gulliver’s body in Lilliput, Chalmers explains,
his body and its processes are painfully visible to everyone, everyone is looking at him and he can always be seen, even when asleep (indeed, when at rest he is most vulnerable—this is when they first came and crawled all over his body)….Gulliver’s alternating pride and shame in his body reflect a shifting identification with his world. And the worlds of Lilliput and Brobdingnag mock him most when his successful social adjustments lend him a feeling of physical identification with others. (91)
How do Gulliver’s lack of privacy in Lilliput and the visibility of his body impact his experience there? Do you agree with Chalmers that Gulliver has a need to adjust his body or his position to feel a sense of identification with those around him?
- More generally, what are your reactions to Part 1 of Gulliver’s Travels? Was it an enjoyable text to read? Why or why not?
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