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3.29 AVERAGE
3.29 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Itโs a satire disguised as a whimsical travel log. ABSOLUTE CHEFโS KISS!!! Swift served a whole roast ๐โโ๏ธ๐ฅ
The story is about Lemuel Gulliver, a surgeon who later becomes a ship captain and travels to several strange and distant lands. Each of his voyages begins as a normal sea journey for work, but always ends in shipwrecks, or storms that (accidentally) bring him to strange lands (Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Laputa, Balnibarbi, Glubbdubdrib, Luggnagg, Japan, and Houyhnhnms).
๐๐ฎ ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐๐ค๐ฃ & ๐ง๐๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐๐๐ฃ๐๐: This book is slow-paced because of long descriptions of manners, laws, and institutions (Gulliver always studies the manners, customs, and languages of the people in every land he visits because itโs his principal study). Swift is constantly using irony to criticize everything, so, itโs not always clear when heโs being serious or sarcasticโฆ he often says the opposite of what he means. Also, the sentence structures can feel dense and unfamiliar which makes me easy to get lost.
Every strange land Gulliver visits is just a mirror of exaggerated, but revealing something grotesquely true about humanity, society, politics, and science (especially in England). I LOVE THIS BECAUSE ITโS DARK as society was corrupt at its roots. AND I SWEAR THIS BOOK IS NOT MEANT TO EXCITE. From the beginning it makes me feel uneasy and laugh bitterly at how ridiculous the world is. The growing disgust with humans might be fair and real too, especially in Part IV (the Houyhnhnms), the tone turns bleak. In the end it becomes a tragic philosophical novel because Gulliver himself despises humans even his family, calling them โYahoosโ (creatures driven by lust, greed, and violence). Gulliver's rejection of human imperfection makes him lose his own humanity and losing faith in humanity entirely. A BRUTAL IRONY!!!
Every strange land Gulliver visits is just a mirror of exaggerated, but revealing something grotesquely true about humanity, society, politics, and science (especially in England). I LOVE THIS BECAUSE ITโS DARK as society was corrupt at its roots. AND I SWEAR THIS BOOK IS NOT MEANT TO EXCITE. From the beginning it makes me feel uneasy and laugh bitterly at how ridiculous the world is. The growing disgust with humans might be fair and real too, especially in Part IV (the Houyhnhnms), the tone turns bleak. In the end it becomes a tragic philosophical novel because Gulliver himself despises humans even his family, calling them โYahoosโ (creatures driven by lust, greed, and violence). Gulliver's rejection of human imperfection makes him lose his own humanity and losing faith in humanity entirely. A BRUTAL IRONY!!!
๐๐ฎ ๐๐๐ซ๐ค๐ช๐ง๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐ฉ: When Gulliver talks with the ghosts of historical figures in Glubbdubdrib. REALLY CYNICAL AND BRILLIANT!!! In Glubbdubdrib, the people (especially the governor) have the power of necromancy, meaning they can summon and speak to the dead. Itโs one of the most fascinating part to me. Gulliver gets to talk with ghosts like Alexander the Great, Caesar, Brutus, and more. Itโs somehow devastating in its irony and truth on historical propaganda.
๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐๐ฎ๐จ: After all, I still like the ending tho. No sugarcoating and yesโฆ the darkness was always there. And the point is: a fearless confrontation with human nature. Really recommended and a must-read. A forever-relevant classic.
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The book is a slight trifle; although the prose and the way this is written appears to flow steadfastly like a reservoir of primordial mulch โ Gulliver happens to have little of note, I actually think the film or mini-series adaptation involved way more development cause Jonathan Swift is so crass and choleric itโs hard to find a nice quote to garnish this post with/ the thoughts reviewers put into the blurb matter gosh darn more than quotations do though โฆ SO when I see a review written entirely in the authorโs quotations, thatโs not entirely proliferating; instead itโs not persuasive, and I donโt feel convinced that the prejudices of the author are even in accord in the argument theyโre trying to make; pulled out of context, and w/o any circumspection on the reviewers behalf. Eh, no, this criticism is not substantial. Quotations are for talking points; if you flood your review with them and not adding to it your own sense of flair ... I love reading the blurbs that you take the time to craft.
I said that Jules Verne was not the first to do science fiction. & thereโs a lot of debate around that, sff has gone through the grist mill since cave paintings. Now I contend Gulliverโs Travels is a science fiction novel far ahead of its time. It has been said about Jonathan Swift that they succumbed to madness & detested the society he lived in. The different islands Gulliver travels are products of fiction and fantasy, and of course, hard examples of science fiction, too; The author probably felt the bleakness of traveling. Everywhere they travel to, the people are just people; they are not horses or lilliputians or brobdingnagians, nor giants; so itโs imperative that they appreciate the diversity among us for what itโs worth. Besides that, people are really just not that interesting. & I donโt enjoy looking at people every day, my eyes tend to look away even from beauty; thereโs not much I havenโt seen in looks, itโs the intellect matters most. & it makes me feel inauthentic, to put on phoney airs, & even the act of sex is phoniness in itself. Swift was never satisfied, cynical, & Iโm not satisfied unless Iโm being myself.
โthe thirst I had of seeing the world, notwithstanding my past misfortunes, continuing as violent as ever.โ
Truth be told, Gulliverโs Travels is like a mock harangue on the futility of folks like Christopher Columbus they sailed into foreign lands but left violence in their shadow; forcibly encroaching their scholarship on the savages inhabiting the land, imbibing the elixir of morality and character, impeding the regress. So anyway, I like Becker. Ted Danson portrayed a passionate Gulliver, excitable and romantic. I havenโt seen the Jack Black film.
[Second Read, March 2011]
[First Read, November 2003]
Minus a star for the chapter in between the giants and the talking horses, because it was obviously so boring that I can't even remember it, but I like the part where Gulliver pees on the town, so three stars for that. The other star is for Gulliver sitting in between the lady giant's giant boobies.
Swift was totally doing drugs.
[First Read, November 2003]
Minus a star for the chapter in between the giants and the talking horses, because it was obviously so boring that I can't even remember it, but I like the part where Gulliver pees on the town, so three stars for that. The other star is for Gulliver sitting in between the lady giant's giant boobies.
Swift was totally doing drugs.
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
funny
Holy moly am I glad this book is finally finished! This is one of the most boring books that I have ever read in my life, which makes sense why my school had to force me to read it to pass. The character was so pretentious and ridiculously dense that I couldn't believe Mr. Swift was proud of writing a main character like this much less think that he was a character that fully reflected how he felt. This man was held captive not once or twice but 4 times!!! That is just ridiculous to me since he was a surgeon before becoming a ship's captain... Maybe when I am not forced to read this book I'll enjoy it, but I won't be reading it any time soon.
I thought there was no way I would reread Gulliver's Travel's but then I saw that David Hyde Pierce, one of my favorite living actors, narrated this book on Audible and it was free. Yes I bought it to listen to his voice but also remembered I made a promise to reread this book outside of a mandatory class setting. What better reason to get a free audiobook than to have a fantastic and soothing voice read it to you? Now that my love of David Hyde Pierce is out of the way onward to review on the book. I really struggled to finish this book as I did not like the story as much as I hoped I would. It amazes me that a man who was a surgeon (smart person around that era) would continue to go on adventures where he was repeatedly held captive by people very different than the one he knows in England. I'm sorry to say but I'll be returning this audiobook even though I loved Mr. Pierce's voice. Hopefully he'll narrate other audiobooks that I will actually like and keep in my collection.
adventurous
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No