Kaline Santos

Summary Gulliver’s Travels

Lemuel Gullier speaks to the captain and says he will be the ship's
doctor. And then the captain tells the story of the ship that was called
Antelope. They left Bristol on the 4th of May. In the middle of a storm, the
ship hit a rock and broke in two. He says they managed to get on a boat,
but the wave knocked them overboard. He ends up falling asleep, and
when he wakes up after his shipwreck and finds himself tied by countless
tiny threads and led by little captors who admire him, but who fiercely
protect his kingdom. They are not afraid to use violence against Gulliver,
though their arrows are little more than needled. But overall they are
hospitable, risking starvation on their land by feeding Gulliver, who
consumes more food than a thousand Lilliputians together could. Gulliver
is taken to the capital by a vast cart that the Lilliputians have built
specially. He is introduced to the emperor, who is entertained by Gulliver,
just as Gulliver is flattered by the royal attention. Eventually, Gulliver
becomes a national resource, used by the army in its war against the
people of Blefuscu, whom the Lilliputians hate for their doctrinal
differences about the correct way to break eggs. But things change when
Gulliver is convicted of treason for putting out a fire in the royal palace
with his urine and is sentenced to be shot in the eyes and starved to
death. Gulliver flees to Blefuscu, where he manages to repair a boat he
finds and leave for England. After spending 2 months in England with his
family, Gulliver decides to travel again, which takes him to a land of
giants called Brobdingnag. A giant field captures him and takes him to a
farmer. The farmer initially treats him as little more than an animal,
keeping him for fun. The farmer sells Gulliver to the queen, who makes
him courteous diversion and revels in his musical talents. Social life is
easy for Gulliver after his discovery by the court, but not particularly
pleasant. Gulliver is often disgusted by giants whose common flaws are
often magnified by their enormous size. So when two ladies of the court
let him play in their naked bodies, he is not attracted to them, but
disgusted by their huge pores of skin. He is often surprised by the giants'
ignorance. Discoveries in Brobdingnag come in the form of various
animals in the kingdom that endanger your life. On a trip to the border,
accompanying the royal couple, Gulliver leaves Brobdingnag when his
cage is ripped off by an eagle and thrown overboard. Then Gulliver sets
sail again and, after an attack by pirates, ends up in Laputa, where a
floating island inhabited by theorists and academics crushes the lands
below called Balnibarbi. The scientific research carried out at Laputa and
Balnibarbi seems utterly futile and impractical, and their residents also
seem utterly out of touch with reality. Taking a short parallel trip to
Glubbdubdrib, Gulliver is able to witness the evocation of figures from
history, which he finds far less impressive than in the books. After visiting
the Luggnaggians and Struldbrugs, these last senile immortals who
prove that age doesn't bring wisdom, he can sail to Japan and then back
to England. Finally, on his fourth voyage, Gulliver sets out as captain of a
ship, but after a long confinement in his cabin, he arrives in an unknown
land. This land is populated by Houyhnhnms, rational thinking horses
who govern, and by Yahoos, brute human creatures who serve the
Houyhnhnms. Gulliver begins to learn their language and, when he can
speak, recounts his travels to them and explains the constitution of
England. He is treated very well by the horses. He wants to be with the
Houyhnhnms, but his naked body reveals to the horses that he is too
much like a Yahoo, and he has been banned. Gulliver is distressed but
agrees to leave. He manufactures a canoe and heads to a nearby island,
where he is picked up by a ship captain who treats him well, although
Gulliver cannot help seeing the captain now - and all humans - as
shamefully as Yahool. Gulliver then concludes his narrative with an
assertion that the lands he visited belong to England's right, like its
colonies.