Gulliver's Travels

Gulliver's Travels

Choose two quotes from the novel, write down, and the page number, and explain how these quotes are especially meaningful or significant to the novel’s themes or the development of character.

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This diversion is only practiced by those persons who are candidates for great employments, and high favour at court. They are trained in this art from their youth, and are not always of noble birth, or liberal education. When a great office is vacant, either by death or disgrace (which often happens,) five or six of those candidates petition the emperor to entertain his majesty and the court with a dance on the rope; and whoever jumps the highest, without falling, succeeds in the office. Part 1 ch 3

Basically the Emperor of Liliput employs and favors people for things unrelated to how they would actually do their job. This sounds familiar to governments, like Britain, who Swift thinks do similar things.

For if," said he, "you throw among five Yahoos as much food as would be sufficient for fifty, they will, instead of eating peaceably, fall together by the ears, each single one impatient to have all to itself. Part 4 ch 7

Is this human nature? are people that greedy and selfish? According to Master Horse Houyhnhnms, we are.