Abstract: Gulliver’s Travels is a brilliant satirical novel. By describing Gulliver’s adventures in Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Laputa and the Houyhnhnms, the novel reflects the British social contradictions in the first half of the eighteenth century, and criticizes the British ruling class to reveal the corruption and evil, and the British bourgeoisie in the capitalist primitive accumulation period of crazy plundering and cruel exploitation. Gulliver’s Travels not only has the profound ideological content, but also perfect art forms. Swift’s artistic skills are still worth our further study and reference. This paper intends to set out from Swift’s satirical art, discussing the uses of satire and its characteristics in Gulliver’s Travels, and aiming at a deeper understanding of the values of the literary work through a thorough appreciation of the satirical techniques employed by Swift and its artistic effects.

Key words: Gulliver’s Travels; Lemuel Gulliver; satire; Jonathan Swift; British society

Contents

Abstract

中文摘要

1. Introduction-1

2. The Satiric Representation in Gulliver’s Travels-3

2.1 Narration-3

2.2 Setting-4

2.3 Character-5

2.4 Plot-6

3. Features of Satire in Gulliver’s Travels-8

3.1 Critique-8

3.2 Irony-10

3.3 Implicitness-11

3.4 Humor-11

3.5 Exaggeration-12

4. Satire in Gulliver’s Travels-13

4.1 A Satire of Social Systems-13

4.2 A Satire of Religious Disputes-14

4.3 A Satire of Science-15

4.4 A Satire of Human Nature-15

5. Conclusion-16

References-18