Gulliver's Travels (A Stepping Stone Book(TM)) Paperback – May 25, 2010

Gulliver's Travels is such a great classic that it is difficult to write any sort of regular review. So instead I have compiled a list of observations.Isaac Asimov, the distinguished writer, scientist, and Sci-fi buff, speculates that the made-up languages in Gulliver's Travels are basically nonsense; then he turns around and speculates that Lilliput is a corruption of "little bit". Good guess! - but maybe it's "little part" or "little pint"? Asimov also gives a other cases where highly plausible decipherments can be made.Interestingly, Swift's made-up languages often have a definite Italian ring. Swift himself says so much when commenting on the language of Laputa. Did Swift have a particularly admiration for Italian? Did he study it?It is usually assumed that most events and characters in Gulliver are veiled satires on England, and its misrule of Ireland. Perhaps. But maybe Swift was also poking fun at the Italian states. The "good old days" for which Swift pined may then be those of the Roman empire.It is often claimed that the fourth book is the best, and the third book the weakest. I disagree! Possibly from a purely stylistic standpoint the fourth book, on the horse-people, IS the best. But this is not enough to make it the most interesting. The Houyhnhnms represent Swift's idea of purely rational, benign beings. They don't lie, and have virtually no crime. But frankly, they are boring! They appear to have neither dreams nor aspirations, and little imagination. They spend much of their time in busy-work - apparently so as to stay out of trouble, in the manner of certain monastic orders. Perhaps the real trouble is that humans have a limited capacity for imagining perfect goodness. Look at the divine comedy triptych painted by Bosch. Which is the most interesting panel? The one on heaven? I don't think so!The third book (the one about the flying island of Laputa) contains a wealth of ideas - even if hastily written. Asimov points out that, unlike the other books, in the third book Swift takes considerable pains to explain "the marvelous" in scientific terms -- at least to the extent such explanations are possible. This is a hallmark of science fiction, as opposed to fantasy. A strong case can be made for Swift as the first true sci-fi writer. Consider, for example, his amazingly prophetic description of the two moons of Mars.Here is another example of Swifts amazing prescience. It is from Laputa, and illustrates the major concerns of Laputa's scientists:"These people are under continual Disquietudes, never enjoying a minutes Peace of Mind; and their disturbances proceed from causes which very little effect the rest of Mortals. ... That, the Earth very narrowly escaped a Brush from the last Comet, which would have infallibly reduced it to Ashes; and that the next, which they have calculated for One and Thirty years hence, will probably destroy us."Don't we incessantly hear about the grave dangers comets and asteroids pose to us?

Great satirical story. Now I know where to term YAHOO comes from and I think the forth voyage was the most interesting although the Liliputians is the one most known.Somewhat difficult following the old English but well worth it.

Gulliver's Travels: my first book ever on the Kindle(tm). Well, first about the mechanics of it all. I know, based on some reviews I have read, some versions of stories are poorly formatted or the font is bad or unadjustable or what have you--thankfully none of those issues was present here. It was a joy to be able to glide through the pages, looking words up at the speed of thought, never losing my place, and not having to stare at a backlit display for a change.None of this concerning Mr. Swift, though, who wrote this novel without even knowing of a typewriter or electricity. The book begins with Gulliver, an English gentleman of the early eighteenth century, talking of his love for travel at sea; I was beginning to feel as though I were reading Robinson Crusoe again. Things change quickly though as Gulliver lands on the land of Lilliput where the inhabitants are a mere half of a foot in height.Here begins Swift's parody of human culture that continues throughout Mr. Gulliver's three other tours of duty in the novel. Swift takes a characteristic or two of human nature and satirizes it with each civilization Gulliver encounters. The Lilliputians allow him to poke fun at politics and underhandedness, with every cutting each other's throat to win the king's favor. The Brobdingnagians give note to mankind's frailty, with poor Gulliver fearing for his life at every turn while the giants around him tiptoe to assure his safety.The third voyage lands Gulliver on an island in the middle of nowhere. He is rescued by the flying island of the Laputians, who are stuck with their heads in the clouds. I should say that Swift has a disdain for those who live lives in the stratosphere of philosophy and mathematics; the Laputians seem to be unable to function at all since their thoughts are always elsewhere.The forth, final, and most important voyage made by the narrator is to the land of the Houyhnhnms. The Houyhnhnms are hyperevolved horses who live their lives and run their society by rational means only. In that land there, there is a race of humans called Yahoos who live like wild animals. Swift's uses these two species to dichotomize our conflicting natures: the Houyhnhnms are our cognitive, rational faculties--our divinity--, while the Yahoos are the basal, animal-like natural side of us. Neither of these two polar opposites can be reproved for being what it is. However, it is our rational and refined halves that we wish to see have the upper hand. Unable to reconcile these two, the narrator goes a bit mad, and when he returns to England, becomes reclusive.I was thrilled with this book. Though I found some parts to be a bit slow-moving, the narrator dwelling in picayune details at times, the book truly is a work of art. This definitely opens the doors for Swift as an author to me.