GULLIVER´S TRAVELS

AUTOR: SWIFT, JONATHAN ---EDITORIAL: SIGNAL ---MATERIA: LITERATURA

A parody of travelers tales and a satire of human nature, Gullivers Travels is Jonathan Swifts most famous work initially published in 1726. An immensely popular tale that describes the story of Lemuel Gulliver, a man who loves to travel. A series of four journeys are detailed in which Gulliver finds himself in a number of amusing and risky situations. In the first voyage, Gulliver is imprisoned by a race of tiny people, the Lilliputians, when following a shipwreck he is washed upon the shores of their island country. In his second voyage, Gulliver finds himself abandoned in Brobdingnag, a land of giants, where he is exhibited for their amusement. In his third voyage, Gulliver once again finds himself stranded; fortunately, he is rescued by the floating island of Laputa, a kingdom devoted to the arts of music and mathematics. He then travels to the surrounding lands of Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubdrib, and Japan. Finally, in his last voyage, when he is set adrift by a rebellious crew, he finds himself in the curious Country of the Houyhnhnms. Through the various experiences of Gulliver, Swift brilliantly satirizes the political and cultural environment of his time in addition to creating a lasting and enchanting tale of fantasy. Gullivers Travels has been the recipient of several headings: from Menippean satire to a childrens story, from proto-Science Fiction to a forerunner of the modern novel. Broadly, the book has three themes. First, a satirical view of the state of European government, and of petty differences between religions. Second, a restatement of the older ancients versus moderns controversy. Third, an inquiry into whether men are inherently corrupt or whether they become corrupted. Gullivers Travels is Swifts best-known full-length work and an English literature classic.