Gulliver's Adventure is a short read. Travels to some distant countries of the world by Lemuel Gulliver, first a surgeon, and then a captain of several ships

Gulliver in the Land of Lilliputians

The hero of the novel is Lemuel Gulliver, a surgeon and traveler, first a ship’s doctor, and then “the captain of several ships.” First amazing country where he ends up is Lilliput.

After a shipwreck, a traveler finds himself ashore. He was tied up by tiny people, no bigger than a little finger.

After making sure that Man-Mountain (or Quinbus Flestrin, as Gulliver’s little ones are called) is peaceful, they find him housing, pass special safety laws, and provide him with food. Try to feed the giant! A guest eats as much as 1728 Lilliputians per day!

The emperor himself talks cordially with the guest. It turns out that the lilies are waging a war with the neighboring state of Blefuscu, which is also inhabited by tiny people. Seeing a threat to the hospitable hosts, Gulliver goes out into the bay and pulls the entire Blefuscu fleet on a rope. For this feat he was awarded the title of nardak (the highest title in the state).

Gulliver is cordially introduced to the customs of the country. He is shown the exercises of rope dancers. The most dexterous dancer can get a vacant position at court. The Lilliputians stage a ceremonial march between Gulliver's widely spaced legs. Man-Mountain takes the oath of allegiance to the state of Lilliput. Her words sound mocking when she lists the titles of the little emperor, who is called “the joy and terror of the Universe.”

Gulliver is initiated into the country's political system. There are two warring parties in Lilliput. What is the cause of this bitter enmity? Supporters of one are adherents of low heels, and adherents of the other - only high heels.

In their war, Lilliput and Blefuscu decide on an equally “important” question: which side to break the eggs on - from the blunt side or from the sharp side.

Having unexpectedly become a victim of the imperial wrath, Gulliver runs away to Blefuscu, but everyone there is happy to get rid of him as quickly as possible.

Gulliver builds a boat and sets sail. Having accidentally met an English merchant ship, he safely returns to his homeland.

Gulliver in the land of giants

The restless ship's doctor sets sail again and ends up in Brobdingnag, the state of giants. Now he himself feels like a midget. In this country, Gulliver also ends up at the royal court. The King of Brobdingnag, a wise, magnanimous monarch, "despises all mystery, subtlety and intrigue in both sovereigns and ministers." He issues simple and clear laws, cares not about the pomp of his court, but about the well-being of his subjects. This giant does not elevate himself above others, like the king of Lilliput. There is no need for a giant to rise artificially! The inhabitants of Giantia seem to Gulliver to be worthy and respectable people, although not too smart. “The knowledge of this people is very insufficient: it is limited to morals, history, poetry and mathematics.”

Gulliver, by will sea ​​waves turned into a midget, he becomes the favorite toy of Glumdalklich, the royal daughter. This giantess has a gentle soul, she cares about her little man, orders a special house for him.

Faces of giants for a long time They seem repulsive to the hero: the holes are like pits, the hairs are like logs. But then he gets used to it. The ability to get used to and adapt, to be tolerant is one of the psychological qualities hero.

The royal dwarf is offended: he has a rival! Out of jealousy, the vile dwarf plays a lot of nasty tricks on Gulliver, for example, he puts him in the cage of a giant monkey, which almost killed the traveler by nursing and stuffing food into him. Mistook her for her cub!

Gulliver innocently tells the king about the English customs of that time. The king no less innocently declares that this whole story is an accumulation of “conspiracies, unrest, murders, beatings, revolutions and expulsions, which are the worst result of greed, hypocrisy, treachery, cruelty, rage, madness, hatred, envy, malice and ambition.”

The hero is eager to go home to his family.

Chance helps him: a giant eagle picks up his toy house and carries it to the sea, where Lemuel is picked up by a ship again.

Souvenirs from the land of giants: a nail clipping, a thick hair...

It will be a long time before the doctor gets used to life among normal people. They seem too small to him...

Gulliver in the land of scientists

In the third part, Gulliver ends up on the flying island of Laputa. (of the island floating in the sky, the hero descends to earth and ends up in the capital - the city of Lagado. The island belongs to the same fantastic state. Incredible ruin and poverty are simply striking.

There are also a few oases of order and well-being. This is all that remains from the past. normal life. Reformers got carried away with the changes and forgot about pressing needs.

The academics of Lagado are so far from reality that some of them have to be periodically slapped on the nose so that they wake up from their thoughts and do not fall into the ditch. They “invent new methods of agriculture and architecture and new tools and tools for all kinds of crafts and industries, with the help of which, as they assure, one person will do the work of ten; within a week it will be possible to erect a palace from such durable material that it will last forever without requiring any repairs; all the fruits of the earth will ripen at any time of the year according to the desire of consumers..."

Projects remain just projects, and the country “is desolate, houses are in ruins, and the population is starving and walking in rags.”

“Life improver” inventions are simply ridiculous. One has been developing a project for extracting solar energy from... cucumbers for seven years. Then you can use it to warm the air in case of cold and rainy summer. Another came up with a new way to build houses, from the roof to the foundation. A “serious” project has also been developed to turn human excrement back into nutrients.

An experimenter in the field of politics proposes to reconcile warring parties by cutting the heads of opposing leaders, swapping the backs of their heads. This should lead to good agreement.

Houyhnhnms and Yahoos

In the fourth and final part of the novel, as a result of a conspiracy on the ship, Gulliver ends up on a new island - the country of the Houyhnhnms. Houyhnhnms are intelligent horses. Their name is the author's neologism, conveying the neighing of a horse.

Gradually, the traveler discovers the moral superiority of talking animals over his fellow tribesmen: “the behavior of these animals was distinguished by such consistency and purposefulness, such deliberation and prudence.” The Houyhnhnms are endowed with human intelligence, but do not know human vices.

Gulliver calls the leader of the Houyhnhnms “master.” And, as in previous travels, the “guest involuntarily” tells the owner about the vices that exist in England. The interlocutor does not understand him, because there is nothing of this in the “horse” country.

In the service of the Houyhnhnms live evil and vile creatures - Yahoos. They look completely similar to humans, only... Naked, Dirty, greedy, unprincipled, devoid of humane principles! Most herds of Yahoos have some sort of ruler. They are always the ugliest and most vicious in the whole herd. Each such leader usually has a favorite (favorite), whose duty is to lick the feet of his master and serve him in every possible way. In gratitude for this, he is sometimes rewarded with a piece of donkey meat.

This favorite is hated by the entire herd. Therefore, for safety, he always remains near his master. Usually he stays in power until someone even worse comes along. As soon as he receives his resignation, immediately all the Yahoos surround him and douse him from head to toe with their excrement. The word "Yahoo" has become among civilized people to mean a savage who cannot be educated.

Gulliver admires the Houyhnhnms. They are wary of him: he is too similar to a Yahoo. And since he is a Yahoo, then he should live next to them.

In vain did the hero think of spending the rest of his days among the Houyhnhnms - these fair and highly moral creatures. Swift's main idea, the idea of ​​tolerance, turned out to be alien even to them. The meeting of the Houyhnhnms makes a decision: to expel Gulliver as belonging to the Yahoo breed. And the hero once again - and the last! — once he returns home to his garden in Redrif — “to enjoy his thoughts.”

The author informs the reader that the book was written by his friend and relative - Mr. Lemuel Gulliver. He decided to publish it for young nobles. The novel was cut in half at the expense of pages devoted to the intricacies of maritime affairs.

Letter from Captain Gulliver to his relative Richard Simpson

Mr. Lemuel Gulliver expresses dissatisfaction with the fact that his friend allowed himself to remove a number of passages from the book and insert new pieces of text, citing his reluctance to enter into conflict with those in power. The main character believes that the publication of “Travels” did not bring practical benefit, since it did not in any way affect social vices. On the contrary, accusations of disrespect were made against him and books were attributed to him that he never created.

Part one

Travel to Lilliput

1

Lamuel Gulliver was the third (of five) son of the owner of a small estate in Nottinghamshire. From fourteen to seventeen he studied at Emanuel College in Cambridge, from seventeen to twenty-one with the eminent London surgeon Mr. James Betts. Gulliver studied medicine in Leiden for two years and seven months, after which he took the place of surgeon on the ship "Swallow", where he served for the next three and a half years. Then the hero married the second daughter of a hosiery merchant, Mary Burton, and settled in London. Two years later, after the death of his teacher Betts, his affairs began to deteriorate and he again went to serve as a ship surgeon. Gulliver spent six years in the navy, after which he tried to settle on land for three years, but again was forced to give up and return to the ship. On May 4, 1699, the hero set off for the South Sea on the ship Antelope.

Caught in a terrible storm, the ship was carried northwest of Australia, where it encountered thick fog and crashed on rocks. The team died. Gulliver managed to swim to the shore, where he collapsed from fatigue and slept for nine hours.

Waking up, the hero discovers that he is tied to the ground. Forty tiny people climb onto his immobilized body. Gulliver manages to shake them off and free him left hand, on which a hail of arrows begins to fall. The hero decides to lie still, wait for darkness to fall, and then engage in battle with the enemy. A platform is erected next to it, onto which the important dignitary Gurgo climbs, speaking for a long time in some unknown language. Gulliver shows by signs that he needs food. The natives feed him. The royal retinue explains to the hero for ten minutes that he will be transported to the capital. Gulliver asks to be released. Gurgo refuses. The men loosen the ropes so that the hero can urinate. Gulliver's wounded skin is smeared with medicinal ointment. The hero, into whose wine the little men mix sleeping pills, falls asleep for another eight hours. On a huge cart, with the help of horses, Gulliver is taken to the capital.

The next morning, the emperor and his retinue meet him at the city gates. Gulliver is settled in an ancient temple, which is used as a public building after a brutal murder. For safety reasons, the hero is chained with numerous chains behind left leg.

2

Gulliver surveys the surrounding area: to the left of the temple he sees the city, to the right - cultivated fields and forest. He makes his first major trip to the toilet in his new place of residence, then in the open air, away from the temple. The emperor, whose height does not exceed the hero’s fingernail, together with his family and retinue, visits Gulliver and makes sure that he does not need anything.

The first two weeks the hero sleeps on the bare floor. Then they sew him a mattress, sheets and a blanket. Residents of the country come to see Gulliver. The emperor consults every day with his ministers about what to do with a giant who might escape or cause famine in the country. Gulliver is saved from death by the merciful treatment of six mischief-makers handed over to his hands by the guards. The emperor orders his subjects to provide the giant with food, assigns him six hundred servants, three hundred tailors and six scientists to teach the local language.

After three weeks, Gulliver begins to speak a little Lilliputian. He asks the emperor to grant him freedom. Two officials search Gulliver and draw up a detailed inventory of his property. The Emperor confiscates the hero's saber, two pocket pistols, bullets and gunpowder. Gulliver hides some of the things (glasses and a pocket telescope) during the search.

3

Gulliver comes into favor with the emperor. The population of Lilliput begins to trust him more and more. The hero is entertained with rope dances, which are performed by people who want to occupy a high government position. There is Gulliver's hat on the shore. The Lilliputians return it to its owner. Gulliver has a mortal enemy - Admiral of the Royal Navy Skyresh Bolgolam. The latter draws up a document with the conditions for the hero’s release.

4

Gulliver examines the capital of Lilliput - Mildendo and the imperial palace located in the middle of it. Chief Secretary for Secret Affairs Reldresel tells Gulliver about the political situation within the country (enmity between the Tremexen and Slemeksen parties) and the threat of an attack by another great empire Blefuscu, located on the neighboring island.

5

Gulliver cuts off the anchors of fifty warships of Blefuscu, ties them up and delivers them to the port of Lilliput. The emperor dreams of completely enslaving the enemy, but the hero refuses to help him. Called to put out a fire in the imperial palace, Gulliver falls out of favor for urinating on the fire.

6

Gulliver describes the growth of the inhabitants, animals and vegetation of Lilliput; talks about the customs of the local population - writing from one corner of the page to another, burying the dead upside down, cruelly punishing judges who falsely accused informers. Ingratitude is considered a criminal offense in Lilliput. Children do not owe their parents anything. They are raised outside families, separated by gender.

During the ten months and thirteen days that Gulliver spends in Lilliput, he makes a table and a chair, receives new clothes. At a joint dinner with the emperor, Lord Chancellor Flimnap, who was jealous of his wife for the hero, says that maintaining the Man of the Mountain costs the treasury one and a half million sprugs.

7

A friend from the palace introduces Gulliver to the indictment drawn up against him by Bolgolam and Flimnap. Quinbus Flestrin is accused of releasing urine on the imperial palace, refusing to conquer Blefuscu and wanting to travel to a neighboring island. Without waiting to see whether they will kill him or gouge out his eyes, Gulliver flees Lilliput.

8

Three days later, Gulliver finds a boat at sea and asks the Emperor of Blefuscu for permission to return home. The Emperor of Lilliput declares the hero a traitor and demands his return to the country. The Emperor of Blefuscu refuses to hand over Gulliver. On September 24, 1701, the hero leaves the island. On the 26th he is picked up by an English merchant ship. April 15, 1702 Gulliver stays in the Downs. He spends two months with his family, after which he sets off on a new journey.

Part two

Journey to Brobdingnag

1

On June 20, 1702, Gulliver leaves England on the ship Adventure. In April 1703 the latter was caught in a storm. In June 1705, the heroes begin to experience a lack of fresh water. Gulliver and his sailors land on an unknown continent. He sees his comrades being pursued by a giant, and he ends up in a huge field with tall barley, where one of the peasants finds him and hands him over to his master. Gulliver shows himself to the farmer with the best side. He finds himself in the giant's house, where he sits at the same table with the farm family.

The hostess puts Gulliver on her bed. When he wakes up, he fights two mongrel-sized rats; relieves himself in the garden, where the farmer's wife takes him out.

2

The farmer's nine-year-old daughter makes a bed for Gulliver in her doll's cradle, sews shirts for him, teaches him the language and gives him a new name - Grildrig. A neighbor farmer offers to take the hero to the fair to show for money. At the Green Eagle Hotel, Gulliver gives twelve performances a day. In two months, the farmer goes with him on a tour of the country. Over ten weeks, the heroes visit eighteen large cities and many small villages. Glumdalklich (“nanny”) – the farmer’s daughter accompanies her father on this trip. On October 25, Gulliver is brought to the capital.

3

From constant performances, Gulliver begins to lose weight. The farmer decides that he will soon die and sells him to the queen. Glumdalklich remains with Gulliver. The hero tells the queen about how the farmer treated him. The Queen introduces Gulliver to the King. The latter at the beginning thinks that he sees a splecknock (a small animal) in front of him, then decides that the hero is a mechanism. After talking with Gulliver, the king sends him for research to three scientists who cannot understand how he was born contrary to the laws of nature.

They make a small house for Gulliver and sew new clothes. He always dines with the queen, and on Wednesdays (Sundays) with the king himself. The queen's dwarf is jealous of Gulliver's fame and dips him in a cup of cream. Giant flies and wasps also pose a danger to the hero.

4

The Queen takes Gulliver with her on trips around the country. The Kingdom of Brobdingnag has the appearance of a peninsula, surrounded on three sides by the ocean, and on the fourth by high mountains. The capital of the state, the city of Lorbrulgrud, is located on both banks of the river.

5

In Brobdingnag, Gulliver faces constant dangers: the queen's dwarf shakes apples onto his head, hail hits the hero hard on the back, the gardener's white spaniel mistakes him for a toy that needs to be delivered to the owner, and the monkey mistakes him for his own cub. The maids of honor undress Gulliver naked and place him on their chests. The queen orders the carpenter to make a boat and a long basin for the hero so that he can row.

6

Gulliver makes a comb from the king's hair, and chairs and a purse from the queen's hair, and entertains the royal couple by playing the spinet. The hero tells the king about England and receives justified criticism of the judicial, financial and military systems.

7

Gulliver invites the king to reveal the secret of gunpowder. The king is horrified and asks never to mention such a formidable weapon in front of him.

Gulliver tells the reader about the features of science, legislation and art of Brobdingnag.

8

In the third year of his stay in Brobdingnag, Gulliver, together with the royal couple, goes to the southern coast. The page takes him out to the beach to breathe fresh air. While the boy is looking for bird's nests, Gulliver's travel box is stolen by an eagle, which is attacked by other birds. The hero finds himself at sea, where he is picked up by an English ship. The ship's captain mistakes the hero for a madman. He is convinced of Gulliver's normality by seeing things from the kingdom of Brobdingnag. On June 5, 1706, the hero remains in the Downs.

Part three

Travel to Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnegg, Glubbdobbrib and Japan

1

On August 5, 1706, Gulliver leaves England on the ship Good Hope. In the China Sea, a ship is attacked by pirates. Gulliver tries in vain to find mercy from the Dutch villain, but the Japanese shows him a certain mercy. The team is captured. Gulliver is put into a shuttle and released into Pacific Ocean, where he finds temporary shelter on one of the islands.

On the fifth day, the hero sees a flying island in the sky. The inhabitants of the island respond to his request for help.

2

The Laputans have a strange appearance: their heads are sloping either to the right or to the left, one eye looks inward and the other upward. Top class accompanied by servants with bubbles of air and small stones, with which they bring their masters out of deep thoughts.

Gulliver is fed lunch, taught the language, and sewed a new dress. A few days later, the Flying Island arrives in the capital of the kingdom - Lagado. Gulliver notices that the Laputans are interested in only two things - mathematics (geometry) and music, and most of all they are afraid of cosmic cataclysms. The wives of Laputans often cheat on them with less thoughtful strangers.

3

The floating island is kept afloat by a huge magnet located in the Astronomical Cave in the center of Laputa. The king prevents uprisings of his subjects on the continent by blocking the sun or lowering the island onto the city. The king and his sons are forbidden to leave Laputa.

4

Gulliver descends to the Laputan continent - Balnibarbi. In Lagado, he finds shelter in the house of the dignitary Munodi. Gulliver draws attention to the poor clothes of the townspeople and the empty fields, which for some reason are still being cultivated by the peasants. Munodi explains that this is the result of a new soil cultivation technique developed at the Academy of Projectors, founded forty years ago by several people who visited Laputa. The dignitary himself runs his household in the old fashioned way: he has beautiful houses and abundant fields.

5

Gulliver visits the Searchlight Academy, where he meets professors trying to extract sun rays from cucumbers, nutrients from excrement, gunpowder from ice, build a house starting from the roof, plow a field with the help of pigs, breed new look yarn from a spider's web, improve the functioning of the intestines through bellows for pumping and pumping air. Projectors in the field of speculative sciences try to mechanize the process of cognition and simplify the language, either by eliminating verbs and participles from it, or completely all words.

6

Political spotlights seem crazy to Gulliver, since they invite the government to act in the interests of the people. Doctors offer political opponents to exchange the back parts of their brains, to collect taxes from citizens either on their vices or virtues.

7

Gulliver goes to Maldonada to cross from there to Luggnagg. While waiting for the ship, he travels to the island of Glabbdobbrib, inhabited by wizards. The ruler summons for him the spirits of Alexander the Great, Hannibal, Caesar, Pompey, Brutus.

8

Gulliver communicates with Aristotle and Homer, Descartes and Gassendi, European kings and ordinary people.

9

Gulliver returns to Maldonada and two weeks later sails to Luggnagg, where he is arrested pending orders from the court. In Traldregdub, the hero receives an audience with the king, approaching whom he must lick the floor of the throne room.

10

Gulliver spends three months in Luggnagg. IN local people he notes courtesy and good nature and learns about the birth of immortal people - Struldbrugs - among the Laggnaz. Gulliver enthusiastically describes how he would live if he were immortal, but they explain to him that in eternal life there is nothing good, since after eighty years the Struldburgs plunge into gloomy melancholy and dream of either youth or death. They begin to get sick, forget their language and eke out a miserable existence.

11

From Luggnagg Gulliver ends up in Japan. The Emperor, as a sign of respect for the king of Luggnagg, frees the hero from trampling under foot the crucifix. On April 10, 1710, Gulliver arrived in Amsterdam, and on April 16, in the Downs.

Part four

Travel to the country of the Houyhnhnms

1

On September 7, 1710, Gulliver took the position of captain on the ship Adventurer. Due to his inexperience, he recruits a team of sea robbers who arrest him in the South Sea. On May 9, 1711, Gulliver was landed on an unknown shore, covered with forest and fields of oats. The hero is attacked by wild monkeys. A strange-looking horse saves Gulliver. Soon another horse joins him. The animals are talking about something, feeling Gulliver, being surprised by his clothes, teaching the hero two words - “yahoo” and “Houyhnhnm”.

2

The gray horse leads Gulliver to his home, where the hero again encounters Yahoos - humanoid apes that horses keep on a leash as pets. The hero is offered Yahoo food (roots and rotten meat), but he refuses it in favor of cow's milk. The horses themselves eat oatmeal with milk for lunch. Gulliver learns to make bread from oats.

3

Gulliver learns the Houyhnhnm language, whose pronunciation resembles the High Dutch dialect. Three months later he tells the gray horse his story. Noble horses and mares come to see Gulliver.

One day, the gray horse’s servant, a bay horse, finds the hero undressed. Gulliver shows his body to the horse. The latter is convinced that the hero is almost no different from the Yahoo, but agrees to keep the secret of his clothing.

4

Gulliver tells the gray horse about European civilization and its attitude towards horses.

5

Gulliver introduces his host to the state of affairs of contemporary England, talks about European wars and the country's legal system.

6

Gulliver enlightens the gray horse about the essence of money, tells him about alcohol, medicine, the first minister of state, and the degenerating English nobility.

7

Gulliver explains to the reader why he cast the English in such an unattractive light: he fell in love with the sincerity and simplicity of the Houyhnhn. The gray horse comes to the conclusion that English Yahoos use their minds only to root existing and acquire new vices. He tells Gulliver about the vile nature of the local Yahoos.

8

Gulliver observes the habits of the Yahoos. In the Houyhnhnms, he notes a clear adherence to reason, friendship and goodwill. Married horse couples are far from passions. They marry to reproduce and have one foal of both sexes.

9

Three months before leaving, Gulliver finds himself at a meeting of representatives of the entire nation, held every four years, at which the question of whether it is worth wiping all the Yahoos from the face of the earth is discussed? His owner suggests using a more humane method by sterilizing the existing animals.

10

Gulliver lives with the Houyhnhnms for three years and dreams of remaining forever among these wonderful animals. The Grand Council decides that the hero must either be kept with the rest of the Yahoos or sent home. Gulliver builds the pirogue for two months, after which he sets sail for a distant island.

11

Gulliver reaches the shores of New Holland - Australia. The savages wound him with an arrow in his left knee. Picks up the hero Portuguese ship, from which he is trying to escape, because he does not want to be among the Yahoos. The captain of the ship, Don Pedro, lands him in Lisbon, helps him adapt to life in human society and sends him home to England. December 5, 1715 Gulliver meets with his wife and children.

12

Gulliver's travels lasted sixteen years and seven months. Upon returning to England, he says that the main task of a writer telling about his adventures is truthfulness in the presentation of events.

Travels to some distant countries of the world by Lemuel Gulliver, first a surgeon, and then the captain of several ships.

“Gulliver's Travels” is a work written at the intersection of genres: it is a fascinating, purely novel narrative, a travel novel (by no means, however, a “sentimental” one, which Lawrence Stern would describe in 1768); this is a novel-pamphlet and at the same time a novel that bears distinct features of dystopia - a genre that we are accustomed to believe belongs exclusively to the literature of the 20th century; This is a novel with equally clearly expressed elements of fantasy, and the riot of Swift's imagination truly knows no bounds.

Being a dystopian novel, this is also a utopian novel in the full sense, especially its last part. And finally, undoubtedly, you should pay attention to the most important thing - this is a prophetic novel, because, reading and re-reading it today, being perfectly aware of the undoubted specificity of the addressees of Swift's merciless, caustic, murderous satire, this specificity is the last thing you think about. Because everything that his hero, his unique Odysseus, encounters in the course of his wanderings, all the manifestations of human, let’s say, oddities - those that grow into “strangeness”, which are both national and supranational in nature, global in nature - all this not only did not die along with those against whom Swift addressed his pamphlet, did not go into oblivion, but, alas, is striking in its relevance. And therefore - the author’s amazing prophetic gift, his ability to capture and recreate what belongs to human nature, and therefore has a, so to speak, enduring character.

Swift's book has four parts: his hero makes four journeys, the total duration of which in time is sixteen years and seven months. Leaving, or rather, sailing, each time from a very specific port city that really exists on any map, he suddenly finds himself in some strange countries, getting acquainted with the morals, way of life, way of life, laws and traditions that are in use there, and talking about his country, about England. And the first such “stop” for Swift’s hero is the country of Lilliput. But first, a few words about the hero himself. In Gulliver, some features of his creator, his thoughts, his ideas, a certain “self-portrait” merged together, but the wisdom of Swift’s hero (or, more precisely, his sanity in that fantastically absurd world that he describes every time with an inimitably serious and imperturbable face) combined with the “simplicity” of Voltaire’s Huron. It is this innocence, this strange naivety that allows Gulliver to so keenly (that is, so inquisitively, so precisely) to grasp the most important thing every time he finds himself in a wild and foreign country. At the same time, a certain detachment is always felt in the very intonation of his narration, a calm, unhurried, unfussy irony. It’s as if he is not talking about his own “walks through torment,” but looks at everything that is happening as if from a temporary distance, and quite a considerable one at that. In a word, sometimes you get the feeling that this is our contemporary, some genius writer unknown to us, telling his story. Laughing at us, at himself, at human nature and human morals, which he sees as unchangeable. Swift is also a modern writer because the novel he wrote seems to belong to literature, which in the 20th century, and in its second half, was called “literature of the absurd,” but in fact its true roots, its beginning are here, at Swift, and sometimes in this sense a writer who lived two and a half centuries ago can give a hundred points ahead to modern classics - precisely as a writer who has a sophisticated command of all the techniques of absurdist writing.

So, the first “stop” for Swift’s hero turns out to be the country of Lilliput, where very small people live. Already in this first part of the novel, as well as in all subsequent ones, the author’s ability to convey, with psychological point vision is absolutely accurate and reliable, the feeling of a person being among people (or creatures) who are not like him, to convey his feeling of loneliness, abandonment and internal lack of freedom, constrained precisely by what is around him - everyone else and everything else.

The detailed, unhurried tone with which Gulliver talks about all the absurdities and absurdities that he encounters when he gets to the country of Lilliput reveals an amazing, exquisitely hidden humor.

At first, these strange, incredibly small people (correspondingly, everything that surrounds them is equally miniature) greet the Man Mountain (as they call Gulliver) quite friendly: he is provided with housing, special laws are passed that somehow streamline his communication with the locals residents, so that it proceeds equally harmoniously and safely for both parties, provide it with food, which is not easy, because the diet of the uninvited guest in comparison with their own is enormous (it is equal to the diet of 1728 Lilliputians!). The emperor himself talks friendly to him, after the help Gulliver provided to him and his entire state (he goes out on foot into the strait separating Lilliput from the neighboring and hostile state of Blefuscu, and drags the entire Blefuscan fleet on a rope), he is awarded the title of nardak, the highest title in state. Gulliver is introduced to the customs of the country: what, for example, are the exercises of rope dancers, which serve as a way to get a vacant position at court (is this where the inventive Tom Stoppard borrowed the idea for his play “Jumpers”, or, otherwise, “Acrobats”?). Description of the “ceremonial march”... between Gulliver’s legs (another “entertainment”), the ceremony of the oath that he takes to allegiance to the state of Lilliput; its text, in which special attention The first part is noteworthy, where the titles of “the most powerful emperor, the joy and horror of the universe” are listed - all this is inimitable! Especially when you consider the disproportion of this midget - and all those epithets that accompany his name.

Next, Gulliver is initiated into the political system of the country: it turns out that in Lilliput there are two “warring parties, known as Tremeksenov and Slemeksenov,” differing from each other only in that the supporters of one are adherents of ... low heels, and the other - high heels, and “the most severe discord” occurs between them on this, undoubtedly very significant, basis: “they claim that high heels are most consistent with ... the ancient state structure” of Lilliput, but the emperor “decreed that in government institutions ... only low heels should be used heels..." Well, why not the reforms of Peter the Great, disputes regarding the impact of which on the further “Russian path” do not subside to this day! Even more significant circumstances gave rise to a “fierce war” waged between “two great empires” - Lilliput and Blefuscu: from which side to break the eggs - from the blunt end or quite the opposite, from the sharp end. Well, of course, Swift is talking about contemporary England, divided into Tory and Whig supporters - but their confrontation has sunk into oblivion, becoming part of history, but the wonderful allegory-allegory invented by Swift is alive. For the point is not about Whigs and Tories: no matter what specific parties are called in a specific country in a specific historical era, Swift’s allegory turns out to be “for all times.” And it’s not a matter of allusions - the writer guessed the principle on which from time to time everything has been built, is being built and will be built.

Although, however, Swift’s allegories, of course, related to the country and the era in which he lived and the political underbelly of which he had the opportunity to learn from his own experience “first hand.” And therefore, behind Lilliput and Blefuscu, which the emperor of Lilliput, after Gulliver’s withdrawal of the ships of the Blefuscans, “planned... to turn into his own province and govern it through his governor,” the relations between England and Ireland can be easily read, which are also by no means relegated to the realm of legends, to this day, painful and destructive for both countries.

It must be said that not only the situations described by Swift, human weaknesses and state foundations are striking in their modern sound, but even many purely textual passages. You can quote them endlessly. Well, for example: “The language of the Blefuscans is as different from the language of the Lilliputians as the languages ​​of the two European peoples. Moreover, each nation is proud of the antiquity, beauty and expressiveness of its language. And our emperor, taking advantage of his position created by the capture of the enemy fleet, obliged the [Blefuscan] embassy to present credentials and negotiate in the Lilliputian language.” Associations - obviously unplanned by Swift (however, who knows?) - arise by themselves...

Although where Gulliver proceeds to expound the foundations of the legislation of Lilliput, we already hear the voice of Swift - a utopian and idealist; these Lilliputian laws that put morality above mental merit; laws that consider informing and fraud to be crimes much more serious than theft, and many others are clearly pleasing to the author of the novel. As well as the law making ingratitude a criminal offense; in this latter, the utopian dreams of Swift, who knew well the price of ingratitude - both on a personal and on a national scale, were especially reflected.

However, not all of the emperor’s advisers share his enthusiasm for the Man of the Mountain; many do not like the exaltation (both figuratively and literally). The indictment that these people organize turns all the good deeds provided by Gulliver into crimes. “Enemies” demand death, and the methods offered are one more terrible than the other. And only the chief secretary for secret affairs, Reldresel, known as Gulliver’s “true friend,” turns out to be truly humane: his proposal boils down to the fact that it is enough for Gulliver to gouge out both eyes; “such a measure, while satisfying justice to some extent, will at the same time lead to the admiration of the whole world, which will applaud as much the meekness of the monarch as the nobility and magnanimity of the persons who have the honor of being his advisers.” In reality (state interests are, after all, above all!) “the loss of his eyes will not cause any damage to [Gulliver’s] physical strength, thanks to which [he] can still be useful to His Majesty.” Swift's sarcasm is inimitable - but hyperbole, exaggeration, and allegory are absolutely consistent with reality. Such “fantastic realism” of the early 18th century...

Or here’s another example of Swift’s providences: “The Lilliputians have a custom, established by the current emperor and his ministers (very unlike... what was practiced in former times): if, for the sake of the vindictiveness of the monarch or the malice of the favorite, the court sentences someone to cruelty punishment, then the emperor makes a speech at a meeting of the State Council depicting his great mercy and kindness as qualities known and recognized by everyone. The speech is immediately announced throughout the empire; and nothing frightens the people more than these panegyrics of imperial mercy; for it has been established that the more extensive and eloquent they are, the more inhumane the punishment and more innocent victim" That's right, but what does Lilliput have to do with it? - any reader will ask. And really - what does it have to do with it?..

After fleeing to Blefuscu (where history repeats itself with depressing sameness, that is, everyone is happy about the Man of Woe, but no less happy to get rid of him as soon as possible), Gulliver sails on the boat he built and... accidentally meeting an English merchant ship, he safely returns to his native land . He brings with him miniature sheep, which after a few years have multiplied so much that, as Gulliver says, “I hope that they will bring considerable benefit to the cloth industry” (Swift’s undoubted “reference” to his own “Letters of a Clothmaker” - his pamphlet, published in light in 1724).

The second strange state where the restless Gulliver ends up turns out to be Brobdingnag - the state of giants, where Gulliver turns out to be a kind of Lilliputian. Every time Swift's hero seems to find himself in another reality, as if in some kind of “through the looking glass”, and this transition occurs in a matter of days and hours: reality and unreality are located very close, you just have to want it...

Gulliver and the local population, in comparison with the previous plot, seem to change roles, and the treatment of the local residents with Gulliver this time exactly corresponds to how Gulliver himself behaved with the Lilliputians, in all the details and details that are so masterfully, one might say, lovingly describes, even writes out Swift. Using the example of his hero, he demonstrates an amazing property of human nature: the ability to adapt (in the best, “Robinsonian” sense of the word) to any circumstances, to any life situation, the most fantastic, the most incredible - a property that all those mythological, fictional creatures lack which turns out to be Gulliver.

And Gulliver comprehends one more thing, recognizing his fantasy world: the relativity of all our ideas about him. Swift's hero is characterized by the ability to accept “proposed circumstances”, the same “tolerance” that another great educator, Voltaire, advocated several decades earlier.

In this country, where Gulliver turns out to be even more (or, more precisely, less) than just a dwarf, he undergoes many adventures, eventually ending up again at the royal court, becoming the favorite interlocutor of the king himself. In one of the conversations with His Majesty, Gulliver tells him about his country - these stories will be repeated more than once on the pages of the novel, and each time Gulliver’s interlocutors will be amazed again and again by what he will tell them about, presenting laws and morals own country as something quite familiar and normal. And for his inexperienced interlocutors (Swift brilliantly portrays this “simple-minded naivety of misunderstanding”!) all of Gulliver’s stories will seem like boundless absurdity, nonsense, and sometimes just fiction, lies. At the end of the conversation, Gulliver (or Swift) drew a line: “My brief historical sketch of our country over the last century plunged the king into extreme amazement. He announced that, in his opinion, this history is nothing more than a heap of conspiracies, unrest, murders, beatings, revolutions and expulsions, which are the worst result of greed, partisanship, hypocrisy, treachery, cruelty, rage, madness, hatred, envy , lust, malice and ambition." Shine!

Even greater sarcasm is heard in the words of Gulliver himself: “... I had to calmly and patiently listen to this insulting abuse of my noble and beloved fatherland... But one cannot be too demanding of a king who is completely cut off from the rest of the world and, as a result, is in complete ignorance of the morals and customs of other peoples. Such ignorance always gives rise to a certain narrowness of thought and many prejudices, which we, like other enlightened Europeans, are completely alien to.” And in fact - alien, completely alien! Swift's mockery is so obvious, the allegory is so transparent, and our naturally occurring thoughts on this matter today are so clear that it is not even worth the trouble to comment on them.

Equally remarkable is the king’s “naive” judgment regarding politics: the poor king, it turns out, did not know its basic and fundamental principle: “everything is permitted” - due to his “excessive unnecessary scrupulosity.” Bad politician!

And yet, Gulliver, being in the company of such an enlightened monarch, could not help but feel the humiliation of his position - a Lilliputian among giants - and his, ultimately, lack of freedom. And he again rushes home, to his relatives, to his own country, which is so unfair and imperfectly structured. And once home, he cannot adapt for a long time: his own seems... too small. I'm used to it!

In part of the third book, Gulliver first finds himself on the flying island of Laputa. And again, everything that he observes and describes is the height of absurdity, while the author’s intonation of Gulliver and Swift is still calmly meaningful, full of undisguised irony and sarcasm. And again, everything is recognizable: both the little things of a purely everyday nature, such as the inherent “addiction to news and politics” of the Laputans, and the fear that eternally lives in their minds, as a result of which “the Laputans are constantly in such anxiety that they cannot sleep peacefully in their beds.” , nor to enjoy the ordinary pleasures and joys of life." The visible embodiment of absurdity as the basis of life on the island are the flappers, whose purpose is to force listeners (interlocutors) to focus their attention on what they are talking about. at the moment narrate. But allegories of a larger scale are present in this part of Swift’s book: concerning rulers and power, and how to influence “rebellious subjects,” and much more. And when Gulliver descends from the island onto the “continent” and ends up in its capital, the city of Lagado, he will be shocked by the combination of boundless ruin and poverty that will be evident everywhere, and peculiar oases of order and prosperity: it turns out that these oases are all that remains of past, normal life. And then some “projectors” appeared who, having been on the island (that is, in our opinion, abroad) and “returning to earth... were imbued with contempt for all... institutions and began to draw up projects for the re-creation of science, art, laws , language and technology on new way" First, the Academy of Projectors arose in the capital, and then in all any significant cities of the country. The description of Gulliver's visit to the Academy, his conversations with learned men has no equal in the degree of sarcasm combined with contempt - contempt primarily for those who allow themselves to be fooled and led by the nose... And linguistic improvements! And the school of political projectors!

Tired of all these miracles, Gulliver decided to sail to England, but for some reason on his way home he found himself first on the island of Glubbdobbrib, and then on the kingdom of Luggnagg. It must be said that as Gulliver moves from one strange country to another, Swift's fantasy becomes more and more violent, and his contemptuous venom becomes more and more merciless. This is exactly how he describes the morals at the court of King Luggnagg.

And in the fourth and final part of the novel, Gulliver finds himself in the country of the Houyhnhnms. Houyhnhnms are horses, but it is in them that Gulliver finally finds completely human traits - that is, those traits that Swift would probably like to observe in people. And in the service of the Houyhnhnms live evil and vile creatures - Yahoos, like two peas in a pod, similar to a person, only devoid of the veil of civilization (both figuratively and literally), and therefore appearing to be disgusting creatures, real savages next to well-mannered, highly moral, respectable Houyhnhnm horses, where honor, nobility, dignity, modesty, and the habit of abstinence are alive...

IN once again Gulliver talks about his country, its customs, morals, political structure, traditions - and once again, more precisely, more than ever before, his story is met on the part of his listener-interlocutor, first with distrust, then with bewilderment, then with indignation: how can one live so inconsistently with the laws of nature? So unnatural to human nature - this is the pathos of misunderstanding on the part of the Houyhnhnm horse. The structure of their community is the version of utopia that Swift allowed himself at the end of his pamphlet novel: the old writer, who had lost faith in human nature, with unexpected naivety, almost sings of primitive joys, a return to nature - something very reminiscent of Voltaire’s “The Innocent” . But Swift was not “simple-minded,” and that is why his utopia looks utopian even for himself. And this is manifested primarily in the fact that it is these nice and respectable Houyhnhnms who expel from their “herd” the “stranger” who has crept into it - Gulliver. For he is too similar to a Yahoo, and they do not care that Gulliver’s similarity with these creatures is only in the structure of the body and nothing more. No, they decide, since he is a Yahoo, then he should live next to the Yahoos, and not among “decent people,” that is, horses. Utopia did not work out, and Gulliver dreamed in vain of spending the rest of his days among these kind animals that he liked. The idea of ​​tolerance turns out to be alien even to them. And therefore, the general meeting of the Houyhnhnms, in Swift’s description reminiscent of Plato’s Academy in its learning, accepts the “exhortation” to expel Gulliver as belonging to the Yahoo breed. And our hero completes his wanderings, once again returning home, “retiring to his garden in Redrif to enjoy reflection, to put into practice the excellent lessons of virtue...”.

Full version 2.5 hours (≈50 A4 pages), summary 15 minutes.

Main characters

Lemuel Gulliver, Lilliputian Emperor, Lord Munodi, Struldbrugs, Flimnap, Reldresel, King of Brobdingnag, Glumdalclitch, Yahoo, Houyhnhnms, Pedro de Mendes.

At the very beginning, the author said that the book was written by his friend and relative, Lemuel Gulliver. He wanted to create it for young nobles. The novel was reduced by fifty percent with pages devoted to maritime details.

The following is a letter from Gulliver addressed to his relative Simpson. In it, Lemuel expressed his dissatisfaction with the removal of certain passages from the book and the insertion of other text. The reason for this was the reluctance to conflict with the authorities. Gulliver believed that the printing of his book had no practical benefit because it had no effect on the vices of society. On the contrary, he was accused of being disrespectful and creating books that he had nothing to do with.

The first part “Journey to Lilliput”

First chapter

Gulliver was the fifth son of the owner of a small estate. In his youth he studied at Cambridge. Then for about three years he studied medicine in Leiden. Then Gulliver became a surgeon on the Swallow. There he served for three and a half years. After this, he married the daughter of a stocking merchant and began to live in London. Two years later, when his teacher Betts died, Gulliver's affairs went badly. Therefore, he again went to serve as a surgeon on a ship. He spent six years in the navy. Then for three years he tried to settle down on land. However, he gave up again and returned to the ship. In May 1699, Gulliver set sail across the South Sea.

The ship was caught in a strong storm. It was carried north-west of Australia. There was thick fog and the ship crashed. All team members died. The hero was able to swim to the shore. There he fell and spent nine hours sleeping.

Upon awakening, Gulliver found that he was tied to the ground. There were forty little people on his body. The hero was able to shake them off and free his left hand. Many arrows rained down on this hand. Gulliver decided not to move and fight the enemy only after it got dark. A platform was built near it. Gurgo, who is an important dignitary, ascended to this platform. He spoke for a long time in an incomprehensible language. The hero began to show with gestures that he was hungry. The little people fed him. The king's retinue explained to Gulliver for ten minutes that he would be taken to the capital. The hero asked to be released. Gurgo refused. The natives loosened the ropes so that Gulliver could relieve himself. The hero's damaged skin was smeared with a special ointment. The wine that Gulliver drank was mixed with sleeping pills. And he fell asleep for eight hours. He was taken to the capital on a very large cart with horses.

In the morning, the emperor and his retinue met him at the city gates. The hero was settled in ancient temple, which after the terrible murder was used as a public building. His left leg was shackled for safety. a large number chains.

Chapter two

The hero examined the surroundings. For the first time he relieved himself in his place of residence, and again he went to the toilet far from the place of his own imprisonment. The growth of the local ruler was not longer Gulliver's nail. The emperor with his family and retinue visited the hero and took care of everything necessary for him.

For the first two weeks, Gulliver slept on the floor. Later, a mattress and bedding were made for him. The inhabitants of the country came to see the hero. The ruler of the country met every day with a council of ministers, at which he decided what to do with the giant. He could run away or cause famine in the country. Gulliver treated well the mischievous children whom the guards handed over to him. And this saved him from death. The emperor gave the order to provide the giant with food, allocated him six hundred servants, three hundred tailors and six teachers who taught the hero the local language.

Three weeks later, the hero began to talk a little with the Lilliputians in their language. He asked the ruler to release him. two officials searched him and made an inventory of Gulliver's property. A saber, two pistols, bullets for them and gunpowder were confiscated from Gulliver. The hero kept his glasses and a pocket telescope, as he managed to hide them during the search.

Chapter Three

The hero began to receive the emperor's favor. The country's population began to increasingly trust him. Gulliver was entertained with a dance on a rope. It was performed by those who wanted to obtain a high position in the state. The hero's hat lay on the shore. The inhabitants of the country returned it to Gulliver. The hero has found a mortal enemy. He was Admiral Bolgolam. He drew up a document in which he indicated the conditions for Gulliver's release.

Chapter Four

The hero examined Mildendo, the capital of Lilliput, and the emperor’s palace located in its center. Chief Secretary Reldresel explained to him the political situation within the state and told him about the threat of attack from the Blefuscu empire, which was located on the neighboring island.

Chapter Five

The hero delivered fifty ships of Blefuscu to the port of Lilliput, cutting off their anchors and tying them together. The ruler of the country dreamed of the absolute enslavement of the enemy. However, Gulliver refused to help him. The hero was called to put out a fire in the imperial palace. Gulliver fell out of favor because he urinated on the fire.

Chapter Six

The hero told about the growth of Lilliputians, animals and plants available in the country. He described the customs of the local population. They wrote on the page from one corner to another, buried the dead with their heads down, and cruelly punished judges who falsely accused informers. Ingratitude in this country was considered a criminal offense. The children were not obliged to do anything own parents. And they were raised separately from the family and divided depending on their belonging to a particular gender.

During the entire time the hero was present in this country, he made a table and a chair, and received other clothes. During dinner with the emperor, Flimnap, who is the Lord Chancellor, became jealous of Gulliver own wife. Therefore, he stated that the maintenance was very expensive for the state.

Chapter seven

The palace friend acquainted the hero with the act of accusation, which was drawn up by Bolgolam and Flimnap. He was accused of urinating on the emperor's palace, refusing to conquer Blefuscu and wanting to go to the island next door. He did not wait for punishment and fled the country.

Chapter Eight

Three days later, the hero found a boat and asked the ruler of Blefuscu for permission to return home. In Lilliput he was declared a traitor and they demanded that he return to the country. The ruler of Blefuscu did not hand over the hero. He left the island. two days later, Gulliver was picked up by a ship. In mid-April the following year he arrived on the Downs. For two months he lived with his family. Then he went on a journey again.

Part two "Journey to Brobdingnag"

First chapter

In the second half of June 1702, the hero left England. The following year in April, the ship he was traveling on was caught in a storm. Two years later, the ship began to lack fresh water. The hero and the sailors landed on an unfamiliar continent. He witnessed that the sailors were being chased by a giant. He himself found himself in a very large field where tall barley grew. There he was discovered by a peasant and given to his own owner. The hero showed him his good side. He ended up in the giant's house. There he sat at a common table with his household.

The hostess put the hero on her own bed. When he woke up, he had to fight rats that were the size of mongrels. He went to relieve himself in the garden, into which the giant’s wife carried him out.

Chapter two

The giant's daughter made a bed for the hero in the cradle of her own doll, sewed shirts for him, taught him the language and named him Grildrig. The giant's neighbor offered to show Gulliver at the fair for money. In Green Eagle the hero performed twelve times. Two months later, the giant took him around the country. Over the course of ten weeks they visited eighteen large cities and large quantities small villages. The giant's daughter was also on this trip. In October, the hero was brought to the capital.

Chapter Three

Due to regular performances, the hero began to lose weight. The giant thought that Gulliver would soon die. He sold it to the queen. The giant's daughter remained next to the hero. He told the queen about his treatment. The queen introduced the hero to the king. At first Tom thought he saw a small animal. Then he decided that there was a mechanism in front of him. The king talked with the hero. Then three scientists examined Gulliver, but could not find out the secret of his appearance in the world.

They made a small house for the hero and sewed new clothes. He regularly attended dinner with the Queen. And on certain days with the king. The royal dwarf was jealous of his fame. So he dipped Gulliver in cream. Huge flies and wasps were dangerous for the hero.

Chapter Four

The queen took the hero to travel around the country. The kingdom was a peninsula surrounded by ocean on three sides. On the fourth side there were high mountains. The capital was located on two banks of the river.

Chapter Five

In the kingdom the hero was subjected to constant dangers. The royal dwarf shook apples onto his head, the hail hit his back hard, the spaniel white mistook him for a toy that needed to be brought to the owner, the monkey decided that he was her cub. The maids of honor took off all his clothes and placed them on their chests. The Queen gave orders to make a boat and a long basin for him to row.

Chapter Six

The hero made a comb, chairs and a purse from the royal hair, and played the spinet for the royal spouses. He told the king about England and received criticism of the court, finances and army with justification.

Chapter seven

The hero suggested telling the king about gunpowder. He was horrified and asked not to remember this weapon in his presence in the future.

The hero told the reader the scientific, legislative features and characteristic features art of Brobdingnag.

Chapter Eight

Two years later, the hero with the king and queen headed to the south coast. The page carried Gulliver to the beach so that he could get some air. While the page was looking for birds' nests, the hero's travel box was stolen by an eagle. This eagle was attacked by other birds. Gulliver found himself in the sea. There he was picked up by a ship. The captain thought that the hero was crazy. He realized that Gulliver was not sick when he saw things from the kingdom. Early in June 176 he arrived in the Downs.

The third part "Journey to Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnegg, Glubbdobbrib and Japan"

First chapter

At the beginning of August 1706, the hero left England. At sea, the ship was attacked by pirates. Gulliver tried in vain to obtain mercy from the villain from Holland. But the Japanese showed some mercy towards him. The team was captured. The hero was put into a shuttle and released into the ocean. There he ended up on one of the islands.

Four days later, Gulliver noticed a flying island in the sky. The islanders responded to his plea for help.

Chapter two

The islanders had unusual look. Their heads were sloping to the right or left. The first eye looked inward, and the second eye looked upward. The nobles were accompanied by servants who carried air bubbles and small stones. With them they brought their owners out of deep thoughts.

The hero was fed, taught to speak their language, and clothes were sewn. After some time, the island flew to the capital. Gulliver noted for himself that the islanders studied only music and geometry, and most of all they were frightened by cataclysms in space. The islanders' wives constantly cheated on their husbands with less thoughtful foreigners.

Chapter Three

The island was held by a large magnet that was located in a cave in the middle of Laputa. The king managed to prevent popular uprisings on the mainland by blocking the sun or lowering the island above the city. The king and his sons could not leave the island.

Chapter Four

The hero descended to the islanders' mainland. In the capital he lived with Munodi. The hero saw the poor clothes of the inhabitants and the fields without vegetation. But the peasants, despite this, were engaged in their cultivation. Munodi said it was a new way of cultivating the soil, developed at the Projector Academy, which was created four decades ago by people who came to the island. he himself ran his own farm as before. Therefore, everything was fine with him.

Chapter Five

The hero visited this Academy. There he met professors who were trying to obtain rays of the sun and cucumbers, food from excrement, and gunpowder from ice. Create a house starting from the roof, adapt pigs for plowing, get yarn from spider webs, normalize the functioning of the intestines with the help of furs. Mechanize the process of cognition and make the language simpler by eliminating some parts of speech or all words completely.

Chapter Six

Spotlights associated with politics advised the government to act in the interests of the people. The hero thought this was crazy. For those who are against such proposals, doctors advised to exchange the back parts of the brain. It was proposed to take taxes from shortcomings or advantages.

Chapter seven

The hero headed to Maldonada, intending to go from there to Luggnegg. While waiting for the ship, he visited the island of Glabbdobbrib, where wizards lived. The ruler called upon him the spirits of great people.

Chapter Eight

The hero communicated with Homer, Aristotle, Gassendi, Descartes, the kings of Europe and ordinary people.

Chapter Nine

The hero returned to Maldonada. Fourteen days later he sailed for Luggnagg. There Gulliver was arrested before orders from the ruler. He then got the opportunity to meet the king. When approaching this ruler, it was necessary to lick the floor.

Chapter ten

The hero remained in Luggnagg for three months. The residents were courteous and good-natured. Here he learned that the inhabitants were giving birth to immortal people. He enthusiastically described his immortal life. However, he was told that immortality was not so wonderful, because in their ninth decade such people became gloomy and melancholic, dreaming of youth or death. They began to get sick, forgot their language and led a miserable life.

Chapter Eleven

From Luggnagg the hero came to Japan. The emperor, respecting the Laggnagg king, freed Gulliver from punishment. At the end of the first ten days of April 1710, the hero found himself in Amsterdam. And six days later - to the Downs.

The fourth part “Journey to the Country of the Houyhnhnms”

First chapter

In September 1710, the hero became captain of the Adventurer. Due to his inexperience, he recruited sea robbers into his team. They arrested him. In May 1711, the hero was landed on an unfamiliar shore, which was covered with forests and fields. Gulliver was attacked by monkeys. A strange horse saved him. Soon another horse appeared. The animals spoke, felt the hero, were amazed at his clothes, and taught him new words.

Chapter two

The horse brought the hero to his house. There Gulliver again met human-like monkeys. Horses kept them as pets. Gulliver was offered food from these monkeys. However, he preferred cow's milk. The horses dined on porridge with milk. The hero tried to make oat bread.

Chapter Three

The hero learned the language of horses. Three months later, he told the horse his own story. The nobility came to see the hero.

One day a bay horse found Gulliver naked. He showed him his own body. The horse was convinced that Gulliver was practically no different from monkeys. However, he agreed to keep everything secret.

Chapter Four

The hero told the horse about the civilization of Europe and how they treat horses.

Chapter Five

The hero told the horse about how things were going in England, about the wars in Europe and state legislation.

Chapter Six

The hero explained to the horse what money, alcohol, medicine, the first minister of state, and the degenerating nobility of England represented.

Chapter seven

The hero explained to the reader why he presented the British in a bad light. He liked the simplicity and sincerity of the horses. The horse concluded that the British used their own minds only to consolidate existing vices and acquire new ones. He told the hero about the abomination of the nature of the local monkeys.

Chapter Eight

The hero observed the habits of the monkeys. In horses, he noted a strict adherence to rationality, friendship and goodwill. There was no passion in horse families. Families were created here to produce offspring. Each family had a foal of each sex.

Chapter Nine

The hero found himself at a meeting of the entire nation, held once every four years. The question of the destruction of all monkeys was raised. The horse made a proposal to use a different method - to sterilize the existing monkeys.

Chapter ten

The hero lived with the horses for three years and dreamed of staying with them forever. The Great Council decided that Gulliver should be kept with other monkeys or sent home. For two months the hero built the pirogue. Then he went to a distant island.

Chapter Eleven

The hero managed to get to Australia. The savages hit him in the knee on his left leg with an arrow. Gulliver was picked up by a ship. He made an attempt to escape from it because he did not want to be among the Yahoos. The captain dropped him off in Lisbon, helped him adapt to life among people, and sent him home. At the beginning of December 1715, the hero met with his own family.

Chapter Twelve

Gulliver traveled for sixteen years and seven months. After returning to England, he stated that the main task of a writer who tells about his own adventures is the truthfulness of events.