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onthebrookeshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
wanderingwonderbread's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
zbmorgan's review against another edition
4.0
This is a mildly enjoyable book even if you don't know what's going on, but if you know your history and can de-code what Swift is satirizing in each island, it's a treasure. Find Asimov's commentary and you'll really enjoy it. If not, still worth a read as one of the earliest known works of science fiction.
liljakatr's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
northcoraline's review against another edition
4.0
I can't believe I'm giving this novel 4 solid stars! I mean it's boring and full of unnecessary descriptive language that actually turned me off BUT when it comes to analyzing Gulliver's Travels analytically and putting Swift's historical and political background into consideration we can clearly see this novel as a masterpiece; It's highly satirical, humorous and extraordinarily rich in every aspect. This novel won't do you anything and won't serve you any amusement if it's read without contemplating what was meant to be proved or attacked in each scene.
indium's review against another edition
3.0
A decent satire, but a bit blunt at times. The ideas it brings up are nothing new in a modern context
ragnatela's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
If you had met me on a street while listening to this audiobook, you would probably have seen me giggling: I loved the author's wit, moreover the reader pronounces Houyhnhnm with the perfect horsy accent, making it impossible not to smile.
He put this engine to our ears, which made an incessant noise like that of a watermill. And we conjecture it is either some unknown animal, or the god that he worships; but we are more inclined to the latter opinion, because he assured us (if we understood him right, for he expressed himself very imperfectly), that he seldom did any thing without consulting it.
I was mesmerized by the author's ability to put himself in the shoes of tiny and giant creatures, imagining distorted realities while still portraying the actual word with such sharpness.
thaurisil's review against another edition
4.0
Gulliver is a surgeon who goes on various voyages. This book recounts four trips, during all of which he was shipwrecked or stranded or otherwise left alone on an island to fend for himself. His first adventure is to Lilliput, where people are 6 inches tall. His second trip is to Brobdingnag, where they are giants. His third is to Laputa and various other islands, where the king governs from an island floating aboveground. The fourth is to the land of the Houyhnhnms, where horses rule and the humans, or Yahoos, are brutish animals.
I was surprised to find that this book was not the children's tale I remembered it to be. It seems most of our abridged versions only recount Parts 1 and 2, and then only the adventure/fantasy elements of it. In reality, this book is a satirical social and political commentary, using various techniques including comparisons of English and European cultures to other cultures, comparisons of humans to other beings, dialogues, and the narrator's observations.
The number of things that Swift mocks is vast. He has passages against politicians, doctors, lawyers, against the system of law, the court of justice, and systems of governments of his time. He ridicules flummery, the self-importance of unimportant people, and wars fought for ambiguous motives. He parodies jargon by including passages packed with nautical and mathematical jargon, which the average layman is not expected to understand. And in a memorable chapter about Laputa, he mocks scientific experiments with no practical use by describing an Academy of people doing things like extracting sunbeams out of cucumbers. Many of these experiments were apparently inspired by real experiments.
The last trip describes a utopian land. The Houyhnhnms are horses who are perfectly virtuous. They practise truth and righteousness, and evil is so far from them that they do not have words to describe falsehood or evil. The only evil in their land is the Yahoos, an uncivilised tribe of human-like creatures. In this land, Gulliver practically worships the Houyhnhnms, and in talking to his Master Houyhnhnm he goes on at length about the vices of humans. He grows to be so ashamed of humans that he cannot bear to look at himself in the mirror, and when he eventually returns to England he cannot stand the odour of his own family for five years. Gulliver barely says a word against the Houyhnhnms, yet I found this section the most troubling of the book. The Houyhnhnms are devoid of real love or happiness or grief or anger. In becoming like that, Gulliver loses his humanity and becomes little more than a self-righteous horse, who still has all the foolish pride of a man. Swift seems to be saying, why try to imitate who you are not, instead of being content with who God has created you to be?
The end of my copy of the book has an essay by George Orwell, inw hich he disagrees with many of Swift's ideas, saying that Swift was depressed, disillusioned and disgusted with the human body. I however don't think Swift actually believed many of the things he wrote. His tone is more ironical, sarcastic and satirical. The straight-talking narration invites reflection by the reader, while still clearly showing Swift's moralistic ideals.
I was surprised to find that this book was not the children's tale I remembered it to be. It seems most of our abridged versions only recount Parts 1 and 2, and then only the adventure/fantasy elements of it. In reality, this book is a satirical social and political commentary, using various techniques including comparisons of English and European cultures to other cultures, comparisons of humans to other beings, dialogues, and the narrator's observations.
The number of things that Swift mocks is vast. He has passages against politicians, doctors, lawyers, against the system of law, the court of justice, and systems of governments of his time. He ridicules flummery, the self-importance of unimportant people, and wars fought for ambiguous motives. He parodies jargon by including passages packed with nautical and mathematical jargon, which the average layman is not expected to understand. And in a memorable chapter about Laputa, he mocks scientific experiments with no practical use by describing an Academy of people doing things like extracting sunbeams out of cucumbers. Many of these experiments were apparently inspired by real experiments.
The last trip describes a utopian land. The Houyhnhnms are horses who are perfectly virtuous. They practise truth and righteousness, and evil is so far from them that they do not have words to describe falsehood or evil. The only evil in their land is the Yahoos, an uncivilised tribe of human-like creatures. In this land, Gulliver practically worships the Houyhnhnms, and in talking to his Master Houyhnhnm he goes on at length about the vices of humans. He grows to be so ashamed of humans that he cannot bear to look at himself in the mirror, and when he eventually returns to England he cannot stand the odour of his own family for five years. Gulliver barely says a word against the Houyhnhnms, yet I found this section the most troubling of the book. The Houyhnhnms are devoid of real love or happiness or grief or anger. In becoming like that, Gulliver loses his humanity and becomes little more than a self-righteous horse, who still has all the foolish pride of a man. Swift seems to be saying, why try to imitate who you are not, instead of being content with who God has created you to be?
The end of my copy of the book has an essay by George Orwell, inw hich he disagrees with many of Swift's ideas, saying that Swift was depressed, disillusioned and disgusted with the human body. I however don't think Swift actually believed many of the things he wrote. His tone is more ironical, sarcastic and satirical. The straight-talking narration invites reflection by the reader, while still clearly showing Swift's moralistic ideals.
fi_reading's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
vonfletchington's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0