Gulliver’s Travels

Worksheet Description

This worksheet focuses on Jonathan Swift’s “Gulliver’s Travels,” a satirical novel that uses parody to critique contemporary society, politics, and certain practices of the time. Students are first asked to identify the specific elements that the novel parodies, such as the travel narratives popular in Swift’s day, as well as human nature and governmental structures.

The second question seeks to engage students with the storyline and the pivotal incidents of “Gulliver’s Travels.” This could include Gulliver’s voyages to various fantastical lands such as Lilliput, where people are six inches tall, or Brobdingnag, where they are giants. Each of these adventures parodies different aspects of English society.

The third question delves deeper, prompting students to think about how parody in “Gulliver’s Travels” works alongside another literary technique-satire-to make its point. The worksheet guides students to consider how Swift not only imitates the form of something but also uses wit to expose and criticize folly and vice. Students may explore how Swift’s work reflects on human follies through the absurdities Gulliver encounters, ultimately calling into question the reliability of perception and the nature of human society. Through this exploration, students can gain a comprehensive understanding of parody and its power as a critical tool in literature.