EngLit

arianamateoc · Dunker Data inscrierii: 17/Iun/2018 Mesaje: 17

1. As we may all know, in this novel, author tries to show us a specific set of political conflicts saying this in a pleasant manner. What do you think are the most important moments and how they are illustrated by the author?

2. Do you think that Gulliver change himself through the story? When? How?

3. The narration style is different from other novels, for example - Pamela. How is the narration style shown in Gulliver's Travels and in which way is different from Pamela?

4. Why do you think that Swift wanted people to believe the book was written by Gulliver?
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Ariana Mateoc, LRE III

ciurdas.emima17 · Rookie Data inscrierii: 14/Iun/2018 Mesaje: 4

1. Besides the disguise of Jonathan's Switf narrative, he is satirrizing the pettiness of human nature in general and attacking the the Whigs in particular.
By emphasizing the six-inch height of the Lilliputians, he graphically diminishes the stature of politicians and indeed the stature of all human nature. And in using the fire in the Queen's chambers, the rope dancers, the bill of particulars drawn against Gulliver, and the inventory of Gulliver's pockets, he presents a series of allusions that were identifiable to his contemporaries as critical of Whig politics.
Gulliver seems to be an average man in eighteenth-century England. He is concerned with family and with his job, yet he is confronted by the pigmies that politics and political theorizing make of people.
In the second book, in Brobdingnag, Gulliver is a midget. Swift uses this difference to express a difference in morality. Brobdingnagians are superhumans, bound to us by flesh and blood, just bigger morally than we are.
In Book III, Laputan systematizing is exaggerated, but Swift's point is clear and concrete: Such systematizing is a manifestation of proud rationalism. The Laputans think so abstractly that they have lost their hold on common sense. They are so absorbed in their abstractions that they serve food in geometric and musical shapes. Everything is relegated to abstract thought, and the result is mass delusion and chaos. The Laputans do not realizează anything useful; their clothes do not fit, and their houses are not constructed correctly. These people think — but only for abstract thinking's sake; they do not consider ends.
In a similar fashion, Swift shows that philology and scholarship betray the best interests of the Luggnaggians; pragmatic scientism fails in Balnibarbi; and accumulated experience does not make the Struldbruggs either happy or wise. In his topical political references, Swift demonstrates the viciousness and cruelty, as well as the folly, that arise from abstract political theory imposed by selfish politicians. The common people, Swift says, suffer. He also cites the folly of Laputan theorists and the Laputan king by referring to the immediate political blunders of the Georges.

Alexandra Noje 17 · Trimis: 21/06/2018 06:29 Titlul subiectului:

1. In my opinion, the most illustrative moments of Swift's satire in "Gulliver's Travels" are:
a) In Lilliput, Gulliver is a "gigant" besides the lilliputans, but in Brobdingnag he seems to be like a liliputan comparing to those gigants twelve inches bigger than him => human condition (the point being that in some places you can be something, but still you, in another place could be something totally different or worse) => meannes and triviality of mankind.
b) In his travel to Lilliput he finds intrigues and political rivalry in the king's court (that's actually a parallel to the contemporary political situation in England). Also, in Brobdingnag, the king criticises the political system of Gulliver’s native country => low/high heels, big/small enders (the point being the differences that have been made through the social-political classes, in order to establish an hierarchy).
c) In Laputa and Balnibarbi => the speculative science without practical applications (all those failed experiments, too much thinking of the Laputans).
d) In Glubbdubdrib => magicians bringing back historycal personalities (corruption of the contemporary ages vs. the glory of the ancients).
e) In Luggnag and The Country of Huyhnhms => the human condition (wisdom of old age, "critique of his own critique" - illustrated by excesive trust in reason, no passion, no historycal memory nor arts).

2. Yes, Gulliver definitely changed himself through the story, but this thing doesn't happen at a certain point, but more like in a succesion of events that "waked him up at reality". Through his voyages, he discovers step-by-step that some things are definitely not the way he thinks they are. In the very beginning he is a truly defender of his people and country, only just ending by not supporting the smell of his own kind. He was not aware, but constantly he understands that the things are going wrong, and ends up no more being a patriot.

3. Both of them ("Gulliver's Travels" and "Pamela") are ways of telling a life narrative, but "Gulliver's Travels" is written in the memoir style novel, and "Pamela" in the epistolary & diary style. In "Gulliver's Travels" the narration is posterior to the events (the story is retrospective), the story presents only meaningful things because of the forgetfulness of details and higher degree of selection, and the narrator may not be a character. In "Pamela" the narration is immediately after the events (story is nearly-simultaneous), the story presents more detalis, more suspanse, unknown about the past, authenticity (all moments included), and the narrator could be the character.

4. I think that's because Jonathan Swift was an obsessive on the idea of veracity, verisimilitude and authenticity. And also, the travelling novels could be so boring if they were actually real. By introducing some elements (maps, drawings, detalis of quantity, exact addresses, etc.) the authors of such novels wanted their story be taken as a real adventure, not a fictional one.
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Alexandra Noje, LRE III, CUNBM

Emanuela Negru · Dunker Data inscrierii: 26/Mar/2018 Mesaje: 18

1.In the first book, when Gulliver arrived in Lilliput, there are small people and he is a giant. An important clipă that shows us a politic conflict is the war to Blefuscu. He ties the ships and carries them away. That ocazie means his conception about the war with France (peace, anti-war, pacifism.) Also their way to crack the eggs:big enders, or small enders represent a religious issues : big enders =catholics, and small enders =protestants. Also, another example is the difference between high heels,and the low heels. Basically, this is a representation of two parties in early eighteen century, Tories and Wings. The Tories were political conservatives who supported a consolidation of royal authority and the restriction of the power of English Parliament . The Whigs were relatively liberal and wanted more power to go to the Parliament. Also, in Brobdingnag, Gulliver's conversation with the king reveals more about political conflicts. The king's interrogation reveals the problems that are in England at that time :army, service, church,judiciary, nobility."He was amazed, how so impotent and grovelling an insect
as I’ (these were his expressions) ‘could entertain such inhuman
ideas".The king was totally surprised of their inventions,gun powder... Also there are more problems, but not a political conflicts, flying island in Laputa,absurd inventions in Balnibarbi,the island of the magicians in Lugganagg and the immortals in Glubbdubdrib. Here, there are more to say about human condition, and about the era of inventions. I think that the flying island represents the distance between the government and the people it govern.
2.Yes, he changed himself. If in the first book he is not aware of evils in England along the way he become conscious. In book two when he talk to king about his country he defends his country "...and I was forced to rest with patience, while my noble and beloved country was so injuriously treated". But in Balnibarbi he is conscious , and he present a speculative science without practical application with references to his contemporary people.
3.Gulliver is written in the memoir style and Pamela represent the letter and diary novel. In the Gulliver's travel the narration is posterior to the events, and the narrator is different from the character. In Pamela, the narration is immediately after the events, the story is near simultaneous,and also the narrator is identical with the character. In Gulliver's travel there are not so many details, only the meaningful, but in Pamela are more details. Pamela seems to be more authentic than Gulliver's travel. She wrote in her diary everything and the reader is close to her, but also is more unknown about the past and more suspense.
4. I think that Swift wanted to made the book more authentic, to made the people think that the book was written by Gulliver. It' more realistic than the books that were written before(fantasy story) and people wanted to read a story with people like them.
Emanuela Negru, LRE I, CUNBM

ani.mihaela2017 · Dunker Data inscrierii: 26/Mar/2018 Mesaje: 16

1.In that period there were constant fights between Catholic church and Protestants, conflicts between social classes, and political conflicts.Swift believed that so many conflicts were absurd, so he tried to tell people, to make them aware about the gravity of this situations, aparentlly funny but very serious,
In Lilliput there was a conflict between high heels and low heels, a satire to church represented by the two parts who fight because they didn’t know where a egg should be crack, so we have a conflict between small end and large end.There is also a satire regarded to the way they burry their deads, with the head down because in this way they will come out easilly from the tumbs. In book 2, he meets the giants. He is oripilated by what he sees because being smaller than the giant bodies he could see every detail, concluding that beauty is relative. Also he satirized the human condition, the difference between the giants and the smaller ones, the difference between the high and lower classes.If in the first two books he still has a patriotic feeling, since he travells to the places from book 3,Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubribb, his patriotic feeling is uncertain.In this book he satirizes the science progress.There were a lot of absurd inventions, of attemps to progress.They believed superiors, they felt immortals just because they was more cultivated.
In book 4, he changes to 180 degrees. In the country of Houyhnhnms there is a direct satire regarded to human condition and an indirect satire regarded to the excessive trust in Reason. What he saw in this country made his change his attitute about his family specially. In this book there were no preocupations for feelings, for passions, for arts, for memories, they were preocupied for instinct, for procreation.
2.There is progressive change of attitude towards his society and towards his own family.He was influenced by the places he visited.He drawed a paralell between his society and that societies. If in book one and two he has a patriotic feeling, believing there are absurd reasons for war, strange rules for society to work, in the next books he starts to loose his patriotic feeling, he starts to hate his society, to be oripilated, he starts to feel like an intruse in his life, to feel like all his life was wrong, also he starts to hate his own family.
3.The narration style is different from Pamela because of the moment of writing.Gulliver is written after all the events happened, while in Pamela the events are simultaneous to the action. In Gulliver, the narrator isn’t anymore one of the characters, while in Pamela there wouldn’t be a story if the narrator wouldn’t be there.This two types of narration differ also from the pattern of life meaning.In Gulliver, the story is written after a time so there is a forgetfulness of details, there are said only the meaningfull or relevant details because of the higher degree of selection. In Pamela there is no pattern of life meaning, there is more suspans, more unknow about the future and no selection, all the moments being included.
4.Because his society was so strict and a direct satire to his society wouldn’t have been allowed, he liked to hide after different masks.He wanted to change peoples minds but he also was affraid of the consequences his actions would have on his own life so , somehow he tried to find a culprit,a man who travelled and returned to tell his story.In this way no one would look for him and he can continue his plans to hit his goals.
Ani Mihaela, LRE I

luca.lorena17 · Dunker Data inscrierii: 03/Apr/2018 Mesaje: 20

1. I support what my colleagues: Emima, Alexandra, Emanuela and Mihaela have said about this novel. Being a satire, the novel points out the irregularities of a society, which is English society; the author presents these anomalies codified. From what has not been said, I can remember this episode: in the first book, when the Liliputans start a war against the enemy, Blefuscu, Gulliver ties up their ships and takes them away, thanks to this action Gulliver ends the war. Through this part, the author tried to satirize England's aggressive policy towards France.
2. Yes, he is definitely changed in the end of the novel, he turns from the naive young man who sees no irregularity in the English society to the man who has discovered step by step in his travels that he is actually disgusted by the society in which he lives. So he decides to renounce patriotism and the biggest change is that he gives up his own family because he considers their odor unbearable.
3. The narration style is different because the novels belong to different categories.
“Gulliver’s Travels” is a memoir-style novel characterized by:
- the narration is made after the events;
- based on long term memory, events are not very fresh;
- the narrator is different from the character, but he still uses the first person point of view;
- rich details do not exist in the story;
- the reader learns something about life after reading this kind of novel.
Richardson’s “Pamela” is a letter and diary novel characterized by:
- the events are written in a chronological order;
- the story is near simultaneous;
- the first person is used ("I" and "me") because the narrator is the character;
- it focus on the main events that happen to the main character;
- can be too descriptive.
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Luca Andreea Lorena, CUNBM, LRE III

Cristina.Ilcas17 · Dunker Data inscrierii: 16/Mar/2018 Mesaje: 18

1. I believe the most important moments are: the episode in which there is a war to Blefuscu when liliputans tell Guliver to destroy the ships along with their enemies but instead of doing this, Gulliver ties the ships together forcing them to make peace. This target of satire can be easly translated as the England's politics about war ( reason of state). Another important episode is when Gulliver is shown as a circus freek, here Swift satirizes the society which is based on capitalism, that people will do anything to obtain money even if that means to humiliate other people ( or even to put their life in danger). Another exemple would be when Gulliver returns home and he can stand the smell of his own family as he was used with the perfection of the wise Horses; here Swift refers to the human condition, that in a real world perfection does not exist.

3. Gulliver is written in the memoire style meaning the naration is retrospective, the author may forget details, we have a higher degree of selection because not all details are relevant for the situations caused, here is easier to insert a portret. Pamela is based on diary style where we have access to the intimacy of characters, se have plenty of details, sometimes even irelevant ones, the story is told immediately after the events and here it's hard to insert a portret.

4. Swift wanted to make us believe this story was written by Gulliver because this atrracted people more. Furthermore by doing this, people are more likely to believe that this story is true, to make it look more like an autobiography. Peesonally when I watch a movie or read a book that says at the beggining "based on a real event" I pay more attention to details so that I could remember everything. That's why Swift didn't sign the book with his name because he knew that the audience needed something new and fresh, something people read and believe it actually happend. Swift created a world in which everyone found something from the real world, that's when you know a book it's worth reading: when it feels like it is real but in fact it isn't
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Ilcaș Cristina, LRE III

ceuca.dorinela17 · Dunker Data inscrierii: 28/Mar/2018 Mesaje: 16

2..Yes, I think Guliver is completely change because throughout his adventures he has discovered different worlds that have changed his mentality and the way of thinking. An important element is the moment when he returns home and he is completely disgusted with anything he sees around him, he is disgusted by his family, by his wife and also he is disgusted by the society. Guliver does not bear the smell of his wife because he was accustomed to the horses`s smell where he spent much time.

3..The narration in ‘Guliver’ and ‘Pamela’ is different because in the fisrt time at Pamela the narration appears immediately after the events and in Guliver the narration is posterior to the events. Another important aspect is that at Guliver the story is retrospective and at Pamela the story is simultaneous, also here at Pamela there is no pattern and at Guliver there is pattern of life meaning and also forgetfulness of details only the meaningful remain and higher degree of selection. At Pamela we have more details but more unknown about the past and also more suspense.
Ceuca Dorinela LRE I

Teacher · Administrator Data inscrierii: 26/Mar/2008 Mesaje: 471

@Ciurdaș.Emima:
I was just curious to check if you are using consistently this "method". And [url=https://www.google.ro/search?biw=1070&bih=842&ei=MUIxW_ywDcL-swGR8YyoDw&q=Besides+the+disguise+of+Jonathan%27s+Switf+narrative%2C+he+is+satirrizing+the+pettiness+of+human+nature+in+general+and+attacking+the+the+Whigs+in+particular.+&oq=Besides+the+disguise+of+Jonathan%27s+Switf+narrative%2C+he+is+satirrizing+the+pettiness+of+human+nature+in+general+and+attacking+the+the+Whigs+in+particular.+&gs_l=psy-ab.3...462760.462760.0.463934.1.1.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..1.0.0....0.8gHBpf6jhnw]HERE [/url]is the result. Again!