Gulliver’s Travels Discussion Questions

1. What is the reason behind Gulliver’s penchant for travel even after he encounters near-fatal experiences in the previous ones?

Gulliver is a restless character who is never comfortable in domestic and familial spaces. He is eager in his pursuit of adventure, and he is sure that voyages would give him the chance to meet different and explore different lands and cultures. He thinks dangerous encounters are inevitable, and he is ingenious enough to escape tricky situations. In fact, he realizes that taking an interest in foreign cultures and learning their language increase his prospects for survival.

2. How does Gulliver’s attitude toward humans change as the novel unfolds?

In the initial parts of the novel, Gulliver defends European culture and governance in his conversations with his hosts. As he learns more about different modes of governance and codes of ethics from different cultures, he becomes aware of humans’ destructive tendencies. Gulliver’s encounter with the Houyhnhnms convinces him that humans are like Yahoos, debased and inherently inferior.

3. Why do the symbols of clothing and excrement reappear throughout the text?

The symbols of clothing and excrement perform two functions. Firstly, by discussing these matters, which are not considered “proper” subjects, Gulliver gains an air of transparency and irreverence. This in turn strengthens the claim that his writing is objective and uncensored. Secondly, these symbols reflect his status in certain societies. For instance, the Brobdingnagians see him as a ridiculous creature, and they don’t give him any privacy when he wants to relieve himself.

4. What does Gulliver learn from his meeting with the great rulers and thinkers of the past?

Gulliver is assured that the people who documented the history of these men played foul. Rulers and thinkers commonly heralded as great appear unremarkable to him. Conversely, he concludes that historians have presented the actually great rulers as negative figures.

5. How does Swift explore “truth” and “falsehood” through Gulliver’s Travels?

Swift’s ironic and satirical attack on the very genre of travel writing is a commentary on the manner in which explorer-writers manipulated truth. He is also interested in satirizing human grandeur, especially European vainness. This novel could be seen as Swift’s attempt to show that explorers of his era often provided unfounded, unsubstantial claims.