Analisis De La Satira En Los Viajes De Gulliver (Ingles)

Analysis of the satirical point of view of the XVIII century society in Gulliver’s travels

Jonathan Swift was a writer characterised by the pessimism in his way of thinking. In Gulliver’s travels, it is possible to notice those misanthropic feeling and the desire of anarchy that he had. He sentences the hypocrisy, the social subjugation, the lack of virtues of the government and the defence ofthe war. I will try to identify the satire and the irony that Swift uses in his narration to criticise the society of the XVIII century

The society of Lilliput

Lilliput and Brobdingnag are the fewer developed societies, they have feudal economy, and they are administered by omnipotent kings, they lack of scientific developments which Laputa has. However, in contrast with the Europe of theXVIII century, which favours some rational searches of science, those counties have some achievements that Occident has not reach in those dates related with social organization and politics.

For example: in Lilliput, justice does not work only under the perspective of punishment; it values the respect of the law through rewards. If somebody shows that he has complied with the regulations of thecountry, he gains a specific title and some amount of public money. This idea is a critic of the occidental legal system where the punishment always has been the only way to act in such cases.

At the same time, Lilliputians does not understand how is possible that the capacities required for a politic charge and the moral virtues were not the same. Gulliver will try to explain to the king thatin many cases, people in pubic charges are named by different methods than the ethic and moral convenience.

The same can be said about education of Lilliput, they do not understand how it is done in our countries, relating the responsibility with the family. Parents are seen by Lilliputians as the less appropriates for the instruction, this is work of the public centres. Children must go therefor an education based on the development of the jobs which, according to their social status, are designated.

On the other hand, Swift shows some defects in the social structure of Lilliput: He criticise the way in which the court, looking for their entertaining, allow to gain the best job. Applicants have to perform tricks like walk in a tightrope in front of the king. This is an explicitreference of the traits that somebody receives for gain a charge and normal people do not see. Expressed in other words, these are the actions that take place “under the table”.

In second place, there is an analysis about two social conflicts: Civil war and the expansionism. When Gulliver arrived, Lilliput was divided. The cause was the breaking point of the eggs. The traditional way broke theeggs by the wise side until the emperor’s grandfather cut his finger. After the accident, eggs had to be cut by the narrow side. People though that it was a whim of the king and they refuse to obey him.

So, during the stay of Gulliver, Lilliput is divided on one hand, people who breaks the egg by the wise side and follows the decisions of the king, and on the other hand, the others consideredrebels. This situation is a critic about how ridiculous can be the reasons to begin a civil war and the ignorance of the origin shown by the population.

Another conflict reflected in Lilliput Is related with the constants fights with the neighbour country Blefuscu. Swift pretends to show the way used by kings to satisfier their personal whims and increase their arrogance. It can be interpreted bythe fact that Gulliver refuses to follow the Lilliputian king to invade the country using his size as advantage over their enemies.

The society of Brobdingnag

If Gulliver in Lilliput is some kind of super hero due his strength and size, in Brobdingnag, is the opposite. He is a dwarf in a land of giants where not only people are dangerous but also animals are too. In this country Gulliver...