Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift

Although I have seen Gulliver's Travels in the form of film, theatre and children's book, I have neveer before read the full classical version. Having read the first part I am surprised at how satirical it is; in fact I am coming to the conclusion that Jonathan Swift was using it mainly as a platform to explore what must have been then quite radical ideas on sociology and politics. There are ideas on child-rearing, legal systems, morals, republics, and monetary policy - among many other things. He was obviously encouraged by the ideas of the Enlightenment to think about alternative worlds. He says a lot about the stupidity of war - pointing out that all it needs is someone in power to advocate a certain way of breaking open an egg, and for another to disagree, for people to go to battle, and lives to be lost.

It is also funny in its crudity. Gulliver is expelled from Lilliput because of his unorthodox manner of quenching a fire in the queen's rooms of the palace. Thereafter she is thoroughly disgusted, and refuses to return - and I can't say I blame her. However, I am not sure I would regard his action a capital offence.

I am reading the book on my Kindle. This is useful because it helps me find definitions for the unfamiliar words, and also, more interestingly, the words which then meant something entirely different from what they mean today. I am learning yet more about the eighteenth century.