Gulliver’s Travels : Literary devices
Gulliver’s Travels is a notable literary work by Jonathan Swift. A complete discussion of this literary work is given, which will help you enhance your literary skills and prepare for the exam. Read the Main texts, Key info, Summary, Themes, Characters, Literary devices, Quotations, Notes, and various study materials of Gulliver’s Travels.
Literary devices
Figures of Speech
Metaphor: When something is described as something else, without using “like” or “as.” Gulliver starts to see his own people as Yahoos, showing human nature as wild or animal-like.
Irony: When the opposite of what is expected happens, or what is said means something else. Gulliver considers himself civilized but ends up admiring horses (Houyhnhnms) and despising humans.
Allusion: A reference to a famous person, story, or event. References to real English kings, wars, or religious disputes (like Big-Endians and Little-Endians). Swift uses these allusions to satirize real politics and religion.
Symbols: A symbol is a thing (like an object, color, or place) that stands for or represents something else, especially an idea, feeling, or quality.
The Lilliputians: Human pride, smallness of mind, and political pettiness. Their tiny size and silly arguments over eggs and shoes represent how small and foolish human quarrels can be.
Gulliver’s Size: Change in perspective. Gulliver is a giant in Lilliput but tiny in Brobdingnag. This symbolizes that what seems powerful or important depends on the point of view.
The Floating Island (Laputa): The detachment of intellectuals and government from ordinary people. Laputa floats above the ground and ignores the suffering below—like leaders who ignore real problems.
The Houyhnhnms: Rationality, ideal society, and the hope for perfect reason and honesty. The horses represent a world ruled by logic and morality, in contrast to the Yahoos.
The Yahoos: The animalistic, greedy, and dirty side of human nature. They stand for what is worst in mankind—selfishness, violence, and lack of reason.
The Egg (Big-Endians vs. Little-Endians): Religious and political conflict over trivial things. The fight about which end to break an egg symbolizes all foolish, stubborn arguments in society.
The Rope-Dancing: Unstable political favoritism and corruption. Court officials must dance and risk falling to keep power, representing the dangers and instability of court politics.
Moral Lesson:
- Pride and greed can destroy people and society.
- Wisdom, honesty, and reason are more valuable than power or appearance.
- Real goodness is shown by action, not by words or status.
- Prejudice and narrow-mindedness cause suffering.
- It is important to be self-critical and question our own society.