Pop Madalina

Faculty of Letters
2nd year

Vices travelling through Epochs

-Gullivers TravelsJonathan Swift

My aim in this paper is to show how Jonathan Swift emphasizes in his book Gullivers
Travels on the vices around all the globe, how he criticizes the bad behaviour of people, and
also a way to achieve many virtues. However this essay does not stop at Swifts time, but it goes
further than that, through past, present and future.
Jonathan Swift was an English writer, essayist, a dean, pamphleteer and satirist born in
Dublin on 30 November 1667 and died on 19 October 1745. Jonathan Swift is one of those who
represent the Age of Enlightenment being known for misanthropy. This misanthropy is observed
in his work Gullivers Travels written in 1726. In his early life he was a secretary to the
essayist Sir William Temple, something that hurt his self-respect since he thought he was better
than his employer. Afterwards he became a dean at the Church of England. Considering these
experiences, I believe that these are just the tip of the iceberg which has led to his misanthropy
expressed especially in his book.
Firstly, through the character Gulliver, Swift condemns the political system and the way
this system corrupted the human in his time, 17 th century England. But, in order to feed the
luxury and intemperance of the males, and the vanity of the femaleHence it follows of
necessity, that vast numbers of our people are compelled to seek their livelihood by begging,
robbing, stealing, cheating, pimping, flattering, suborning, forswearing, forging, gaming, lying,
fawning, hectoring, voting, scribbling, star-gazing, poisoning, whoring, canting, libeling,
freethinking, and the like occupations".
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Swift does not only refer to his time, but to the time from the origins to the present time.
In the 4th voyage, Swift makes a reference to the Adam and Eva and their sin, resembling them to
the yahoos. The two YAHOOS said to be seen first among them had been driven thither over
the sea; that coming to land, and being forsaken by their companions, they retired to the
mountains, and degenerating by degrees, became in process of time much more savage than
those of their own species in the country whence these two originals came. Through this, the
author emphasizes on the original sin. It is in the human nature to sin, the man is attracted to the
immorality, but also through the Houyhnhnms, which are creatures that do not have in their
horizons wickedness, but just goodness, Swift may point out that the man has a chance to
become a good person, has a chance to redemption, because Houyhnhnms do not know the
concept to sin.
In the 3rd voyage, in Glubbdubdrib, Gulliver talks with ghosts from different centuries
before Swifts time. Even then vices never ceased to exist. Gulliver talked with different kinds of
people, in the end being disappointed to find out that the also their system was no more different
than his. I found how the world had been misled by prostitute writers, to ascribe the greatest
exploits in war, to cowards; the wisest counsel, to fools; sincerity, to flatterers; Roman virtue, to
betrayers of their country . However, Swift also gives a good example of a fair man that won
Gullivers admiration: Brutus the most consummate virtue, the greatest intrepidity and firmness
of mind, the truest love of his country
Travelling to another period we arrive in 20 th century. Gulliver describes the effects and
causes of the war Sometimes the ambition of princes, who never think they have land or people
enough to govern; sometimes the corruption of ministers, who engage their master in a war
Difference in opinions has cost many millions of lives. He also gives an accurate description of
weapons used in wars. The wars consequences and all he said it can be seen in the two World
Wars from 20th century. This shows how hard is for the world to become a better place. Even
though the book was written in 17th century, Swifts description matches an world with hundreds
years apart of him.
Secondly, the corrupted system is also seen in the hierarchy. Through the comparison of
the lands Lilliput and Brobdingnag we can see that the size it may refer to the social position and
the size does not equal the intelligence or skills of somebody. In Lilliput, Gulliver is bigger and
stronger than everybody, he being the only giant in a land where people have the size of a thumb,
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but even though he helped and protected the inhabitants of this land, they marginalized and
condemn him to death. He chose to run away from that land, even though he had the strength to
defeat all of them. The contrast between their sizes shows that in a country it does not matter
how strong or just you are, as long you are different from them they will be afraid. Also, in this
land it can be seen how the desire of power can blur ones vision. When Gulliver was willing to
do anything for the inhabitants, the king held him near him, but when Gulliver did not want to do
it anymore because it violated his principles, the king was no longer willing to take him under his
wing, so he wanted to eliminate him.
In Brobdingnag, Gulliver has the size of a thumb, while the others are giants. Because he
is different from the others, he is not taken seriously even though he may have good ideas that
will bring benefits to the country, because of his size he is not consider at a level of a human, but
a pet. Even though now when he is the smaller one, he is again rejected by people.
Also, through the different sizes of the Gulliver from a country to another country, it may
show how strong you can be in a place, but in another place you can be the weakest.
Undoubtedly philosophers are in the right, when they tell us that nothing is great or little
otherwise than by comparison to have let the Lilliputians find some nation, where the people
were as diminutive with respect to them, as they were to me. And who knows but that even this
prodigious race of mortals might be equally overmatched in som distant part of the world,
whereof we have yet no discovery.
These behaviours display how wrong the system is built; in a society is more important
the appearance of somebody, more than his abilities. All those things apply to the present time in
21st century. In Contemporary Era, you may have all the qualities required and be better than the
others, but it does not matter since in our world the desire for money and powers surpass the
talent and the intelligence.
Finally, Jonathan Swift creates a perfect world, a Utopia one, the land of Houyhnhnms, in
which people, or horses in this case, do not have vices, but kindness, honesty and fairness.
Through this rational animals it can be observed that Swift does not believe in the pure evil, but
he thinks that the mankind can be saved, it can redeem himself, like Gulliver who stays so much
time in the presence of the Houyhnhnms that it affects him in a way that he is losing some of his
vices. Here was neither physician to destroy my body, nor lawyer to ruin my fortune; no
informer to watch my words and actions, or forge accusations against me for hire: here were no
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gibers, censurers, backbiters, pickpockets, highwaymen, housebreakers, attorneys, bawds,

buffoons, gamesters, politicians. It is a world without pride, vanity, murders etc.
However, George Orwell in his work contradicts that the land of Houyhnhnms is a
perfect one, because the system from there has its own flaws too. The system resembles very
much that of totalitarianism, because they do not think about their decisions, they were
implemented to just do the right things and not to ask for any other reasons, implying that they
might not be the kindest on the world. Even here exist social differences, for example exist an
hierarchy. The servants and masters have different colours, and also they cannot interbreeding
between them.