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GULLIVER'S TRAVELS THEMES - Coggle Diagram
GULLIVER'S TRAVELS THEMES
a misanthropist and a satirist
Swift expressed a hatred of mankind but a real love of individuals; these aspects of his personality are clearly visible in his works, which reflect Swift’s attitude as a satirist and a misanthropist.
Gulliver’s Travels were four tales in which Swift made fun of mankind, criticising England and English politics
relativism
This is a work that points to the relativism of opinions and points of view. England’s ideas of honesty,truth and decent behaviour are explicitly compared to those Gulliver finds in the fantastic lands he visits
Swift offers an extensive catalogue of human folly and weaknesses, pointing out the impossibility of achieving a ‘utopian’ society.
Gulliver's Travels can be read as
a philosophical tale
a satire of western-centrism and of its religious, cultural and social "truths"
a book of children
a universal warning against the dangers of religious fundamentalism, of political extremism and of uncontrolled scientific speculations
a non-sustainable scientific community
what the scientists at the Academy of Logado promote is quite the opposite of sustainable development
their experiments only apparently meet the needs of the present and support a form of scientific inquiry that neglects human needs
does not promote long-term actions
focuses on individual curiosity rather than on a common goal
the scientists at the Academy of Lagado depict themselves as the exact opposite of a virtuous ‘scientific community
the first person
Gulliver’s travels are told in the first person, therefore, by Lemuel Gulliver.
Gulliver is the prototype of an English middle-class man, and is reliable and objective, which is why the reader is inclined to take the story as 'true'