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=__   Gulliver's Travels    __  =

During the 18th century, there were many changes that took place throughout Europe. Society was becoming more modernized in many ways, including the way they punished criminals and what was determined a crime; the way they appeared through many different styles of clothing; their sports and recreation; different kinds of food and drink; and their definition of religion. These changes were significantly displayed in the novel, __Gulliver’s Travels__, written by Irish Jonathan Swift in 1726.

The goal of this wiki site is to provide an insight into how society functioned through Swift’s point of view and his comical satires. We hope that our readers find this site useful in understanding life during this developing century.

__**Author's Identity**__
Throughout the centuries, literature has both motivated and inspired readers of all ages. Many authors based their own life experiences to capture the images found in their fictional worlds. By understanding an author's identity, readers can appreciate their favorite author's literary works. Jonathan Swift used his own ideas and opinions about society in the 18th century to create his popular book, //Gulliver’s Travels//. In order to truly appreciate //Gulliver’s Travel//s, readers must learn the different factors that inspired Swift to compose his literary masterpiece. These factors include Swift’s background, education, occupation, and accomplishments.

In the early stages of his life, Jonathan Swift became a critic of books. He developed this habit of listing only books that he found interesting. This habit further developed throughout the Irish writer’s educational career. He graduated from Trinity College of Dublin in 1686 and from Hart Hall Oxford in 1692. His first employer was Sir William Temple, a man whom Swift claimed to have influenced his political views. Sir Temple appointed Swift as a tutor for a Miss Esther Johnson. After working a few years as a tutor, Swift released his first publication, //Ode to the Athenian Society//, in 1692. Swift became a popular satire writer but not too many scholars have mentioned him as a crafty poet. He wrote clever poems such as //When I come to old// in 1699, where he used the satire of old age to describe some of his goals in life. Swift also wrote //The Lady's Dressing Room// in 1732, where he made fun of women and all the materialistic goods found in their rooms. Due to the satire nature of his writing, Swift made a few literature rivals such as Lady Mary Wortley Montagu. She responded to his //The Lady's Dressing Room// poem with her own satiric poem entitled //The Reasons That Induced Dr. Swift's to Write a Poem Called the Lady's Dressing Room//.

Swift published many different works of literature throughout his distinguished career as a writer. However, his most notable work came in 1726 with //Gulliver’s Travels//. Swift was a member of the Wig party and have often clashed with Tories in writing. He portrayed these literary battle within his //Gulliver's Travels// text. While composing //Gulliver's Travel//, Swift drew many similarities between his own world and the fictional world he created. There were plenty of writers whom continuously challenged his beliefs and views.

He died on October 19, 1745 at his beloved city of Dublin.


 * Cawin Tran**

__**Law, Crime and Punishment**__
In any type of civilization laws, crimes and punishments surround their citizens. Whether they like their ruler or not, they must abide by the laws set for them, avoid doing things that have been declared a crime, and deal with the punishments they are given. Throughout the Eighteenth century, England's government was biased towards the members of the aristocracy. These members were less likely of receiving capital punishments compared to the members of the lower class. This displays an unbalance of power and representation within the government creating angry citizens. Throughout Gulliver’s Travels, Jonathan Smith purposely relates the English political life with that of Lilliput within his novel, __Gulliver's Travels__ to reflect the abuses of power in the English Monarchy and Parliament.

During the nineteenth century many people were jailed or even executed for absurd reasons. The laws were not set in stone and available to any one who wanted to read them; giving the King the power to decided whom is breaking the law and whom is not. Also, there was not a set punishment for any certain crime making it possible for a member of the aristocracy to get off easy compared to a peasant who committed the same crime. This is represented in __Gulliver’s Travels__ by the King's authority over everyone and gets to determine who is breaking a law and what the punishment will be for that particular case. Throughout the book, Jonathan Smith makes many references to the way the Parliament was ran in England during the eighteenth century because laws, crimes, and punishments revolved around the grey zone; not knowing when you were in the right or wrong. Swift did not like the way that it was ran and part of his ideas for __Gulliver’s Travels__ was to create a satire of the English Monarchy in the eighteenth century. The laws were so outrageous that robbery was punishable with the death sentence while people who committed murder had the chance of walking away with little to no punishment. But, also many men who committed murder, were hanged, then hung in chains on the spot where they killed the man as a reminder to the family and the town of what the punishment is for murdering another man. One last example of the unbalanced crimes and punishments would be a man who sliced off a member of parliaments' nose caused the Coventry Act, 1617 to be passed meaning that mayhem became a capital offense. Mayhem in the streets was punished by death from this point on; it is outrageous that the Parliament would think of killing another human being for something not so horrible as murdering a fellow man.


 * Melissa Brown**

__**Clothing and Appearance**__
Clothing and appearance are very influential aspects of life that have played an important role in history. Analyzing a person's appearance can tell an outsider a few things about that person; for example, what his or her personal style is, and with which social class they belong. By studying clothing and appearance in the eighteenth century, we can further analyze the influence that clothing provided for members of European society and the major differences between upper, middle, and lower class citizens in regards to appearance.

Clothing and style of dress can represent social standing and personal style and during the eighteenth century, clothing styles changed dramatically. Women's fashion started to become increasingly over dramatized while remaining slightly conservative and confining, but later adapted a simpler style. Within the upper class, women were known to wear gowns. These gowns started out as low waist-defining pieces of clothing with panniers, hoops placed at the hips, to emphasize wide hips. However, later in the eighteenth century, panniers lost their popularity and a more natural and draped silhouette was created. Also, the waist line was created farther up, which essentially led to what we now call the empire waist. Women also wore riding coasts and high heels. Women's headgear consisted of indoor hats that were tied under the chin with a ribbon. The fashion of wigs had disappeared by this point, and women were no longer powdering their hair, but rather, wearing their natural color with curls. Men within the upper class were often seen wearing coats, which changed from a long, tailored look to waist-length. Also, shirts with ruffled wrists were very popular, and put together with a pair of breeches, silk or wool stockings, and short-heeled leather buckled shoes. As far as men's headgear went, wigs were worn only for formal occasions. Otherwise, powered hair pulled back to the nape of the neck with a black ribbon was the day-to-day look. Children's fashion within the eighteenth century was very similar to that of adults. Middle and upper class children wore clothing that was a miniature replica of what adults were wearing. However, due to the confining nature of that style, by the late eighteenth century, children's fashion became more comfortable and casual.

Members of the lower class did not dress very differently from the wealthier citizens. Gowns, petticoats, jackets, shirts, breeches, and coats were commonly worn but the major difference was the fabric. Lower class clothing was made of sturdier and cheaper fabric than that of the upper and middle class. Also, people within the lower class owned fewer items of clothing. Another major difference between the classes' clothing was the way in which hats were worn. Upper and middle class men wore hats with wide brims either turned up on two or three sides; lower class men wore the same hats, however they were worn flat brimmed. Tita Chico's //The Languages of Appearance - Eighteenth Century Studies//, provides a deeper look into the importance and influence of appearance in the eighteenth century. With a particular focus on women, the article discusses how, unlike today, clothing did not allow room for personal style and expression. Moreover, when a woman would wear a certain garment, that clothing was designed so represent a specific level of society; therefore, her appearance would depict that she was of a particular social class. The problem with this simple idea is that the appearance exuded did not necessarily reflect the woman's personality or morals. By looking at these fundamental differences in dress, we can see how influential clothing and appearance were in the eighteenth century and how appearances might play an important role in Johnathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels.


 * Lauren Paul**

__**Sports/Games/Recreation**__
Throughout world history, every single culture and society has shared a few select characteristics: food, shelter, religion, and interestingly enough: games. Even dating back to the days of neanderthals, men would compete in spear-throwing competitions and the like. In Swift's time, this was no different; there were many games that all citizens would participate in as the birth of organized leagues begin to take place. Throughout this section of our project, I will explore some of the recreational activities of the time as well as explore some connections between the games of 18th century England in comparison to the sports of modern times.

Many games, events and pastimes that we enjoy today became popular back in Johnathan Swift's eighteenth century England. These events included sports like boxing and bullfighting. Other events, such as cock fighting, have fallen out of popular culture, and even been outlawed in most countries. Regardless, the influence of recreation in Swift's time has made a lasting impact on our modern entertainment.

Perhaps the most prominent sport of the time was boxing, or "pugilism", which is also the activity that is most similar to its modern day equivalent. It was one of the first sports to have a written code of rules. In 1743, Jack Broughton created a list of rules after one of his opponents died as a result of a fight.The original regulations included rules against hitting a man when he's down, the right to a thirty second rest after going down, and a ban on hitting below the belt; however, punching, scratching, kicking, throwing, stomping, and strangling were all acceptable practices during a match. The loose regulations resulted in occasional deaths in the ring. In 1787, two deaths occurred in one day in Birmingham. This actually increased interest in the sport as crowds of over 10,000 often gathered and would travel from miles around to see a fight. Prize fights involved an incredible amount of sponsorship (or patronage) as well as substantial amounts of gambling. Fights were always between two lower class people as gentlemen and the middle class were purely spectators.


 * David Pope**

__**Food & Drink**__
Food and drink have always been a major part of life; in fact, I think I will be so bold as to say it was an essential part of life. Not to say that some foods were superfluous, like say avocado, which has never been a corner stone of nutrition, but has been around for ages as a great enhancer of flavor. Food was a much larger part of life as well during the 1700’s since there was no quick stop to the supermarket or anything, so people had to spend hours out in the field, or hunting. Also it was more safe to drink alcohol back then since they had to distill it, and the water came out of the infested wells, so that would also put a different spin on life compared to how we view it today.

Scholarly Journal Summery - Eighteenth-Century Life by Beatrice Fink

The key word in these articles is multiculturalism, as well as woman’s rights. It was around this time when cooking and eating had been integrated into sections of high culture. Also on the other end, there were some great advances in food-related medicine, such as research and prevention of scurvy. Chefs went from being workers in kitchens to artists. We learn that the “New World” (America) had brought some new non animal food stuffs into everyday life such as corn and potatoes, which might have some of its own influence in our story, __Gulliver’s Travels__. The article then goes on to talk about how it was possible to tie “nationality, politics, and class-consciousness on the one hand, and eating tastes and prejudices on the other, which had to do which how different peoples invited different culture’s dishes and practices; for example how the Portuguese accept Japanese dining culture, while the Dutch do not. The following link also provides some insight into what the daily dining routines of the Elizabethan citizen would eat.  [|Mike Sapp's Secrete Super Sweet Food Page]


 * Mike Sapp**

__**Religion**__
Religion and its practices played a huge role in England, especially in the 18th Century when Gulliver’s Travels came out. First of all there was the spread of religion to the New Americas as Europeans traveled there to escape from religious persecution. Also in Europe as people travel around and experience new cultures and religions, those may seem to them barbaric and strange because they are different. The role of religion in England and rest of Europe had such a strong influence that people were executed for not conforming and sometimes civil wars would break out.

When the Europeans traveled to other countries such as North America, they viewed their traditions as barbaric and strange. One of these unusual practices are that they consider fraud worse than theft in Gulliver's travel rather than other way around. "They look upon fraud as a greater crime than theft, and therefore seldom fail to punish it with death; for they allege, that care and vigilance, with a very common understanding, may preserve a man's goods from thieves, but honesty has no fence against superior cunning; and, since it is necessary that there should be a perpetual intercourse of buying and selling, and dealing upon credit, where fraud is permitted and connived at, or hath no law to punish it, the honest dealer is always undone, and the knave gets the advantage." Swift also seems to be making fun of how religion is taken so seriously in England and other places where there is war with each other. For example when the noble arrives at Gullivers house he tells him, " the Emperors of Blefuscu did frequently expostulate, by their ambassadors, accusing us of making a schism in religion, by offending against a fundamental doctrine of our great prophet Lustrog, in the fifty-fourth chapter of the Blundecral (which is their Alcoran)." There is a tradition there of breaking their eggs in a certain way that the whole country does. When the Emporer's son injures himself in breaking the egg, he wants to change the law. There is then uproar and threating of civil war for changinging religious ideas. The other country is even willing to go to war against them. This is similar in Europe during the time when Kings would change religion from Protestant to Roman Catholic to other religions. There would be civil wars over it because of the different practices in religion. In her essay, “Swift's Moral Satire in Gulliver's Travels”, written by Shirley Galloway, she discusses about Jonathon Swift and his novel Gulliver's Travels. She gives us details on how Swift uses great moral satire in his stories to '"shame men out of their vices'" (Ibid., 14)". Also, according to the article, in the travels that Gulliver undertakes it is shown what men's perceived normal behavior is and how he thinks or justifies it. The author's (Swift’s) purpose is to attack on politics, religion, and other aspects of society. Galloway writes how the author also criticizes on human nature and its flaws. "Swift's purpose was to stir his readers to view themselves as he viewed humankind, as creatures who were not fulfilling their potential to be truly great but were simply flaunting the trappings of greatness" (Galloway). This is a great article to read and will definitely give me insight on the religions and morals in the first part of Gulliver’s Travels.

In __The Other End of the Egg__, by Martin Kallich, it describes the religious references that Jonathon Swift had used in his novel, Gulliver's Travels. Kallich writes that some of the references are casual where the reader wouldn't have realized the religious input of it until they were told by it. For example, Gulliver decribes an ancient temple that was looked upon as profane and used for common things. "Indeed, whatever the reality, the religious nature of the building as a temple, and his brief historical explanation has clearly defined religious overtones." (pg. 13) Another example that Kallich shows us of Swift's religious connections are that Gulliver mentions that the Lilliputians have priests. He says that the little people have a visible institution of their religious faith and do not take their "Zeal" lightly. "..thereby indicating that except for certain obvious differences in size and language the Lilliputians are not significantly different from Europeans, and especially that they resemble Europeans in their religious attitudes, institutions, beliefs and customs." (pg. 14). Throughout most of his writing the author gives us many more examples of religious similarities and satire that are in Swift's novel. He also shows which sides that Swift's characters represented. The Lilliputians represented the Protestants and their opposing side represents the Catholics. **Jacquelyne Yawn**

__Missing Passage__
The scholars of Lilliput were helpful in teaching me the Lilliputian language. I spent a great deal of time with these scholars ever since the Emperor welcomed me into his beautiful kingdom. I wanted to learn the language so I may further understand their society and its monarchic structure. These Lilliputians had a huge collection of their history, myths, and legend in their national library. Although I was unable to physically read their books due to my enormous size, the scholars were generous in orally reading them to me. I found their literature fascinating. My fascination went further when the Emperor insisted that I join him for dinner one evening. I saw this as the perfect opportunity to try to draw some comparisons between what I had back home, and the Lilliputian culture of which I have only started to become accustomed with. My mind wandered endlessly, trying to image what type of food the Emperor had chosen for dinner. If he was anything like my king back at home, I knew I was in store for a wonderful feast. Beside the food, I have wondered how to act in front of the Emperor who has opened his dear heart to a strange giant such as me. I’m grateful of his hospitality because I would have not survived on my own. Any questions he might have I would kindly answer him in the utter most respectful manner. **(Cawin Tran)**

“Good evening, my Emperor," I said that evening at dinner, "I first wanted to show my deepest and most humble gratitude towards you and all of your people who have made this possible, and I don’t want to sound ungrateful at all, but I haven’t been able to eat to my fill yet.” “Oh not to worry there, gentle man-mountain, I have told one thousand of our greatest cooks to prepare their greatest meals, and to not stop making them until we have parted ways.” Replied the Emperor “That is great news!! This food…is…amazing! It’s nothing compared to what we have back home! This animal! What do you call it? It is just like a sheep we have back home, but more tender, and its fleece taste like candy, and its bones add such a nice crunching texture! Our sheep back home are much chewier and its fleece taste like wool, and I couldn’t even try to eat their bones if I wanted to!” “Oh do tell me about the food you’re more accustomed to” said the Emperor a little more intrigued by both Gulliver's careful flattery, and pure excitement over their food. “Well, a normal diet of a lower class citizen from where I come would normally consist of about a half of a pound of bread, an entire pint of porridge and beer each, and this isn’t the sweet honey flavored mead which you serve in Lilliput, but a barley brewed beverage which in contrast has a pretty potent bitter quality, and about a quarter pound of meat if they were lucky. They would occasionally throw in some soup with vegetables for nutritional value, but for the most part they were lucky with whatever they could come by.” “That beer of which you speak sounds interesting! I do grow every so tired of our mead, for its sweetness stings my teeth from time to time.” “Your majesty, if you ever visit, you would be showered with more beer than you could ever hope to drink in a life time! If I remember correctly, the daily diet of a middle class solder was two pounds of meat with a pound of cheese, half a pound of butter, one and a half pounds of bread, and two thirds of a gallon of beer, which would be enough to fill your royal swimming pool, and all the bathing tubs in your glorious castle!” “Amazing! Simply amazing, how much one of your people can eat!” Exclaimed the Emperor, “Ho ho! And look at how much you can put away! I think you’ve cleared enough food for about forty of the biggest Lilliputians already!” “But your royal holiness, there is something that confuses me. Back where I come from, we normally prepare our food with elegant and extravagant decorations, especially when present in front of royal company! We often take the tail of beautiful peacocks and fashion them around our meals, and at times we have been known to bake pies with birds still alive in them, and bake them just enough so that when cut at the table the birds fly out and fill the room with wonderful song and joy!” “Oh my dear man-mountain, that does sound like it would be a lovely sight to behold! I will have to ask my servants to bake my youngest child in a pie and jump out to surprise his mother, for her birthday is coming up soon!” “Um, yeah” I replied with an air of pessimism in my voice, “I’m sure she’ll be thoroughly suppressed, but your majesty, lord and master over all great and small, I do bore with our conversation about food for I have already eaten more than twice the normal consumption in which I usually indulge because of how great your food is compared to the slop I eat back in my home land.” I quickly rattled off wanting to change the subject as fast as possible, “Let our conversation instead wander into something more athletic and entertaining! Have you anything that resembles pugilism? Oh it is a mighty sport and pure fun!” **(Mike Sapp)**

“Oh my dear man-mountain, that does sound like it would be a lovely sight to behold! I will have to ask my servants to bake my youngest child in a pie and jump out to surprise his mother, for her birthday is coming up soon!” “Um, yeah” I replied with an air of pessimism in my voice, “I’m sure she’ll be thoroughly suppressed, but your majesty, lord and master over all great and small, I do bore with our conversation about food for I have already eaten more than twice the normal consumption in which I usually indulge because of how great your food is compared to the slop I eat back in my home land.” I quickly rattled off wanting to change the subject as fast as possible, “Let our conversation instead wander into something more entertaining! What do you and your subjects do for pleasure? What are your games and sports of athleticism and strength?” “Oh Good Sir! We have many a splendid game here in beautiful Liliput. Why, just yesterday we held are monthly Beetle Races!” “Beetle Races? Why do I have the impression that is exactly what it sounds like…” “Indeed! The whole population comes out to cheer on their favorite racers, donning the colors and emblems of their competitor.” “Hmm, yes I understand, but how does the actual race proceed?” “Well, it is a glorious undertaking! The racers and their prized, purebred insects all line up in order, anywhere from 10 to 100 of them.” “One hundred? My, that’s quite a field of competitors.” “Ah yes, but we don’t discourage anyone who wishes to participate. Also, it is helpful in controlling our escalating population.” “Oh, well that is quite noble to let all your citizens compete—wait, population control? Whatever do you mean?” “Well, my boy, as you have been able to tell from your short time here, we Lilliputians are a jubilant bunch, but there are simply too many of us. Beetle racing is very dangerous, in fact, it carries a 56% mortality rate.” “How on Earth could it be so dangerous” “Well, we previously did not allow explosives and firearms, but it was not nearly as fun.” “Your highness, I must be honest, I am horrified, and this is despicable! How can you allow such violence and brute brutality as a form of entertainment?” “My boy, you just wouldn’t understand. It is just how our people seek entertainment. What do you do for fun in your land?” “Well we are a far more sophisticated culture you see. Our games are much more elegant and proper.” “Tell me off them.” “The most popular sport is known as pugilism- a truly refined and graceful activity in which two men enter a ring, and proceed to strike each other until one is no longer fit to fight.” “That sounds terrible!” “Oh no, not at all, it is quite fun! Though you must be wary, if you come to watch as a spectator, get there in a prompt matter to ensure a good position to observe the sparring. If you are too late, you will be set so far back that you may not get hit by the competitors’ blood, which is the best part!” “By the beard of Zeus! My boy, I wish not to hear anymore of your savagery! Instead, tell me about what your people wear as clothing. **(David Pope)**

"Yes, yes, let us move on to discussion of your fashion. I am rather confused by the clothing you and your people wear," I said, staring strangely at the tiny Emperor sitting at the table. "You see, this device you wear about your head, in my land we call that a thimble and it is used as an aid in sewing." "No, no, no mountain man!" the emperor exploded, "You do not mean to offend me, I hope, as this headgear is in fact a symbol of my rank among my people." "My greatest apologies, Emperor" I said. The Emperor started,"explain to me why you wear that shield on your head" pointing to my black hat. "This is simply known as a hat and is worn out in public. The brim of my hat is folded up on three sides because, like your fine headgear, the folding of the brim distinguishes between classes within my society," I explained to the Emperor as he listened intently across the table. "Ah, well of course! Tell me about these large fabrics you drape across your body" asked the Emperor. "Well it is really quite simple to understand, Emperor, these fabrics around the legs are known as breeches. In my land, men also wear stockings that cover the foot and reach to the knee. We also wear shirts and long jackets to keep warm" I slowly explained, pointing to each article of clothing to further the Emperor's understanding of typical day-to-day fashion. The Emperor then looked at my feet with a strange expression and pointed, "What do you wear about your feet, mountain man?" "These are called boots, Emperor. They are made of a fine fabric known as leather and have a short heel about the bottom. And this shiny part is the buckle. It helps keep the boot on the foot." "I see. So your people cover their feet? Here, we do not bother with such silly matters. I have never seen such a device that wraps around the foot until your presence upon this land. We Lilliputians keep our feet bare as it is easier to run about that way" explained the Emperor. He continued, "Good sir, you have only told me what your men wear. Do women in your society dress in the same fashion?" A tiny laugh escaped me, "No, no, your majesty! Women in my land wear much different clothes than men." "Do explain" the Emperor said eagerly. "Well, women in my land wear clothing called gowns. They are long pieces of fabric that cover the arms, chest, back, and torso, and fall all the way to the ground. Over these gowns, riding coats are worn. Women also wear shoes but with a higher heel than that of mens boots. Women also wear headgear. However, they wear them both indoors and outdoors and their hats have a ribbon that ties below the chin." The Emperor started to speak, "The women in your great land wear headgear? My, my good sir I have never heard such a thing! Most Lilliputian women do not wear headgear at all, as it is only seen as part of a mans dress. Oh how our cultures vary greatly! Let us move on to another topic of discussion." **(Lauren Paul)**

I then said, “Emperor now that we have discussed sports, food and our different forms of fashion, perhaps we can discuss our differences in our cultures’ religions? I am curious to learn and understand more about the ways of your faith.” “Absolutely,” replied the Emperor. He shifted in his little tiny chair to get more comfortable. “I am interested in learning the differences of our religions. We believe in the possibility of having immortality after we die because in death we are resurrected in eleven thousand moons. Our flat land, which you call Earth, will flip upside down and our bodies then stand up and live again. We have two different religious parties as I am sure you were aware about. There are the Tramecksan and the Slamecksan; we are distinguished by the high and low Heels of our shoes. I, myself, am a low Heel and despicably distrust the high Heels and will not let them take any offices of my government and crown. Our last religious tradition that we have is the breaking of our Eggs before we eat them. We used to break them open only by the larger end but unfortunately my grandfather had accidently cut one of his fingers and since then the law has been changed to break the smaller end which resulted in a civil war and many deaths. Now, Gulliver, describe to me what your religious traditions in your world are.” I replied, “Certainly, you’re Majesty. I see that we have some similarities with the low Heels and high Heels of your belief. Our parties are Whigs (Catholic) and Tories (Protestant). Your past emporer reminds me of my past monarch Henry III. Your rituals of the egg are very similar to our tradition of the Eucharist in which we partake of our Lord’s Body and Blood. No, I do not mean we actually drink blood. It is actually wine that represent our Lord Jesus Christ’s blood and the bread represents his body. We have many religious civil wars within England just like among your citizens. Sometimes we have rulers who are Protestant and other times Catholics. Catholic rulers are very rare though now because the people despised their differences of faith and do not trust them. They would rather be ruled by someone based on religion than nobility. There have been many deaths and bloody battles over the differences of beliefs. We have many priests and temples for places of worship just like in your kingdom.” The Emperor remained silent during my whole discussion on religion and was probably still digesting everything I’ve told him. “That is all very interesting to hear,” he said. “But what happens when the people do not obey the King’s law of religion? What is the punishment of such a crime? What are the punishments of other varieties of crime?” **(Jacquelyne Yawn)**

After a long pause from Gulliver, he firmly states, “I do not wish to discuss the topic of crime and punishments while we are still eating, although the moment we are finished we may resume this discussion of the violent matters in England.” The Emperor agreed because he wanted to still have his appetite for the preserved fruits with various pastries placed delicately on shinning silver platters for the last course of the feast. The only noise in the great hall to be heard was Gulliver and the Emperor’s teeth crunching and munching on the delicious desert the Cooks made for their enjoyment. Gulliver leans back in his chair an scratches his belly in satisfaction, looks over at the Emperor and notices that his plate has already been cleared from the table and gets the message that it is now is a great time to start discussing what unlawfully happens to many men and women in his homeland. “Let me start by saying that not one single child may go through his or her lifetime without witnessing an execution of a proclaimed felon. The court has taken execution to extreme measures and enjoys carrying it out in public to display their power over the empire. Many do not realize that several of these men and women being executed before their very eyes have not done much more than taking a peace of bread from over feed, plump people to feed their starving children. Life is not all about killing people, and as it seems in my homeland, that this is all people think about. They want to know when the next execution is, where it is going to be, how it will be done, and whom it will be this time. Executions have become the main entertainment for the people.” Gulliver pauses long enough to reach for his glass of deep red wine to take a sip to wet his whistle while the whole time he was speaking he Emperor only is capable of a slight nod or a shake his head because of the way that Gulliver is racing on and on; the Emperor was able to stop and reflect because of the silence, “This is actually horrible that they could do this too poor citizens who just want to feed their children…” Making sure to place his wine goblet in the exact place from which where he had picked to up from, Gulliver gathers his thoughts and continues on his tirade of the government. “They even go as far as to tell their subjects what religion they must believe in, at this moment it is **illegal ** to be a Catholic Priest, also Catholics who refuse to reform are prosecuted and the ones caught attending a Mass is in the hands of the court. Their punishment is never the same, it is as if the members of the court get giggles and laughs out of making the Catholics squirm in the skin while awaiting the declaration of their fate. This all due to the fact that out Queen is a heretic; in 1570 the Pope even declared that whomever shall murder her would be pre-absolved from the sin of murder. I do not understand why they must do this to people only following what they happen to believe in, life is not about conformity, it is about living it to the fullest to be most happy at any certain moment…” Gulliver again grabs his wine goblet, but this time he does not put it down, instead he is planning on using it as a tool to help him convey his message while almost forgetting that he was actually speaking to the Emperor. “The most intriguing thing about the parliament of England is the process of law. is that depending on whether you are a member of the upper or lower class the degree of your punishment is different. Let’s say that one happens to be a servant and you have been put on trial for thievery, one would most certainly be given a sentence of death. This death, is a public one because the court knows nothing else, and could be most terrible and gruesome. The greatest punishment a man shall receive, most never a member of the upper class, is to be hanged until partially dead, then removed from the noose and sat down. This is when they proceed to take one’s parts and bowels from within the body and thrown into the fire for one to watch as one slowly dies. I still can not understand why someone would want to put someone through so much pain and suffering as a punishment for a crime that is never fit for the punishment. The Upper class would almost never be seen hanging from a noose, if they were to receive a fatal sentence they would be sent to the guillotine to be beheaded. Also if the criminal happens to be male and know how to read they are seen as a member of the clergy and are given their benefits. Meaning that they would be able to receive a reduced sentence but meantime if you were a woman and was capable of reading you would receive nothing of the sort.” At this remark, Gulliver sloshed his wine about so much that it splashed down the front of his robes causing him to wake up from the rant and realizes that the Emperor is beginning to nod off, the candles had burned for so long that the wicks barley had enough wax to remain lit. At this, he realized he should bid goodnight. “Goodnight great Emperor, I must bid you my sincerest apologies for forgetting to let you speak on behalf of the punishments.” The candles burnt out and the two walk out of the room to head to their bed chambers. **(Melissa Brown)**

__Contemporary Passage__
The professors of local Lilliputian University were helpful in teaching me the Lilliputian language. I spent a great deal of time with these professors since the King welcomed me into his beautiful country. I wanted to learn the foreign language so I may further understand their Lilliputian culture. These people’s history, myths, and legends were well kept at the university library. Although I was taller and unlike other students, the professors treated me with the same respect I had for them. I was honored when the King asked me dine with him one evening. He wanted to know of my experience in his country so far. I thought of what’s on the menu during my dinner with this king. I’m sure that by the end of dinner, I’ll be too full to even walk. I felt like the king’s honored guest and therefore I must be on my best behavior and answer all his questions respectfully. The last thing I wanted would be to insult the King at his own dinner table. I must be kind towards his hospitality for me. **(Cawin Tran)** After the Emperor and his crew finally realized that the giant was too legit to quit, he told me he wanted to holler at me over all things that were on the other side of the tracks. Likewise, I thought this was the perfect opportunity to compare and contrast the crazy __Alice in Wonderland__ like setting here to the ghettos back home. “Mr. Emperor, sir, I first wanted to big it up for you, and show you my love! This feast you and your crew prepared for us is beyond amazing! It’s for rizzle, off the hizzle, the bomb.com! But you’re food is so tiny, even though I eat as much as you guys give me, I haven’t been full since before I left on my trip.” I said to the king. “Don’t fret your little mind sonny. I’ve told a grip load of my best cooks to keep the fires burning till you got your fill.” replied the emperor. “Sweet! OMFG dude, this food is totally rockin’! It’s like nothing we’ve got back home! This, what do you call this? It looks like a pop-tart, but holy guacamole, it tastes like heaven, with whipped cream on top! Our pop-tarts are stuffed with funky goo and taste like cardboard!” “Really? You like that? I’d love to hear more about the other kinds of foods you eat.” “Well normally I wake up and eat the pop-tarts I just talked about before I walk out the door, and then I usually drink a few beers on the freeway on the way to work, grab a Big Mac or two for lunch, supersized of course, and then if I’m lucky chow on some pizza for dinner, and possibly breakfast the next morning if I’m running low on tarts.” “Oh man, I love beer! Liquor may be quicker, but every time I take a swig now, I can feel a little part of my soul escape into the bottle, my old lady swears I’m addicted.” “Well if you ever cruise over to my pad, we’ve got about 4 different kegs in the house, and house policy is that we try to at least finish and replace 2 a week. And my roommate works at a catering company and he always brings home these amazing leftovers, like prime grade stake, caviar, chicken wings, bread sticks, crab legs, lobster tail, and a bunch of other hoity toity things I could never afford on a regular basis.” “Like woah! It just blows my mind how you people eat so much food!” “What do you mean you people…? Well never mind about that, there has been one culinary concern I’ve had on my mind for a while. Normally where I come from, presentation counts a lot for both the personal satisfaction of the meal, as well as the price, and here I’m eating with the king of the land, and no offence, but it just looks like things just popped out of the microwave, and have all been thrown together on one big platter.” “Hold on G, we’ve got amazing food, don’t get me wrong, but we just think that it’s a little more important to savor the flavor, than take in any esthetics. What good would something like that do in a society that doesn’t have any form of monetary trade?” “Um, yeah…Well anyway your magical royal-ness, I am stuffed to the max, I can’t even think about more food, do you mind if we talk about more physically demanding activities? I like to get a little exercise in after I stuff my gut! So what do you guys do around here for fun?” **(Mike Sapp)** “Dude we know how to party here in Liliput! This morning we had our monthly Beetle Races, it was way sick.” “Beetle races? I have a feeling that’s exactly what it sounds like.” “Fo’ sho yo! Everyone comes out to go nuts for their favorite racer, all balled-out in their gear." “Damn, so how’s it work”“Oh it’s dope dude! The racers line up on their pimped-out insect rides. We normally have somewhere from 10-100 of them.” “Dude, 100? That’s a grip of racers!” “Ya but we whoever compete, plus we have too many people in this country, its not that bad if we lose a couple.” “Whoa bro, that’s effed up!” “Nah man, you’re just trippin’. What do you guys do for kicks?” “Well we like to get our grown man on. We play way more mature games.” “Oh really?” “Yeah we’re into cage fighting. Two men enter, one man leaves, you know, that kind of thing.” “Dude, that’s brutal! How is that legal?“ "Hell ya! You gotta come. If you sit up close you get splattered with blood though, so be careful." “OMG, that’s redic! Dude I don’t wanna here about that." **(David Pope)**

"Well then let's move on and talk about your fashion. I am a little confused by the clothes you wear." I said, staring strangely while the Emperor sat at the table. "That hat you wear looks like a thimble. You know, the thing used for sewing?" "How rude and offensive! This is not used for sewing. It symbolizes rank in society." I replied, "I'm terribly sorry for offending you." He continued, "Well, since you mock my hat, tell me about the one you wear on your head," pointing to my black hat. "It's just called a hat and you wear it out in public. Some people flip the bill up, and some curve it down. But, hats are not really used as a distinguisher of class in my society. They are more casual. People just wear them around for a day-to-day look or to a sporting event" I explained. "What an interesting concept! Now, tell me about the rest of your clothes. What are you wearing around your legs?" "These are called jeans and they are made of twilled cotton. Also, we wear t-shirts or button-up shirts." He asked, "twilled cotton? What is that?" "Twilled cotton is a fabric. We use so many different fabrics to create clothing. Some pieces of clothing contain five different fabrics." "That sounds complicated and uninteresting. Tell me about shoes." I replied, "Well, what about them?" "What kind of shoes do you wear?" "There are so many different styles of shoes. There are dress shoes, sneakers, sandals, high heels, slippers, boots, and the list goes on and on" I explained. "Those are also made of very many different fabrics but you made it very clear that you are not interested in hearing about that anymore. "You're right. But you have only told me about the kind of clothing you wear. What do women wear in your society?" "Women wear jeans and t-shirts, too, but they also wear dresses, skirts, leggings, and jackets. And those are just the basics." "Well, sir, I think I have enough background about clothing styles. Let's talk about religion!" **(Lauren Paul)**

I then said, “Your Majesty, now that we have discussed sports, food and our different forms of fashion, perhaps we can discuss our differences in our cultures’ religions? I am curious to learn and understand more about the ways of your faith.” “Absolutely,” replied the King. He shifted in his little tiny chair to get more comfortable. “I would like to learn more about your religion and how it is different from mine. We the Lilliputians believe in the possibility of having immortality after we die because in death we are resurrected in eleven thousand moons. Our flat land, which you call Earth, will flip upside down and our bodies then stand up and live again. We have two different religious parties as I am sure you were aware about. There are the Tramecksan and the Slamecksan; we are distinguished by the high and low Heels of our shoes. I, myself, am a low Heel and despicably distrust the high Heels and will not let them take any offices of my government and crown. Our last religious tradition that we have is the breaking of our Eggs before we eat them. We used to break them open only by the larger end but unfortunately my grandfather had accidentely cut one of his fingers and since then the law has been changed to break the smaller end which resulted in a civil war and many deaths. Now, Gulliver, describe to me what your religious traditions in your world are.” I replied, “Certainly, you’re Majesty. There are many differences it seems between our religions but yet a little similar. While you have just the Tramecksans and the Slamecksans, we have many religions such as Catholicism, Judaism, Christianity, Protestant, Muslim, and more. Instead of being ruled based on what religion the ruler has, we vote for him based on what the people want in a leader and their political backgrounds. We have many priests and temples for places of worship just like in your kingdom. Your unusual and uniqueness of egg breaking is very similar to the traditions that some of my Brittish citizens have that have belief in religions such as Catholics and Christians. It is similar to their Eucharist giving where they partake of their Lord’s Body and Blood. No, I do not mean they actually drink blood. It is actually wine that represent our Lord Jesus Christ’s blood and the bread represents his body. . Another thing that we have that you will find shocking is that some people do not believe in religion at all. They are called Aethiests. And no one in my country gets punished based on their religions.” The King became silent during all of this, absorbing everything. “That is fantastic to hear,” he said. “But if those silly people are not punished for their religions then what are they punished for? What are the other crazy types of villaneous crimes that people commit?” **(Jacquelyne Yawn)**

After a long pause from Gulliver, he firmly states, “I do not wish to discuss the topic of crime and punishments while we are still chowing down, but as soon as we are stuffed to the point we must unbutton the top bottom on our trousers we may chat about England’s wish to murder all the villains.” The King agreed because he wanted to still have his appetite for the seven layer chocolate cake and the strawberry rhubarb pie placed delicately on shinning silver plates for dessert of the unusual feast. The only noise in the great hall to be heard was Gulliver and the King smacking their food between their decayed yellowed teeth. Gulliver leans back in his chair and scratches his belly and looses his belt in satisfaction, looks over at the King and witnesses him licking his plate clean of the strawberry chocolate goo that was left behind. He receives the memo that it is now is a great time to start discussing what the damned parliament does to many men and women in England. “Not one single kid lives a life without seeing some dumb fool bleeding out all over the street or turn pale from the tightening noose. The parliament has taken execution to extreme measures and enjoys carrying it out in front of all to display their power and control over the country. People don’t realize that several of these men and women being killed haven’t done anything more than trying to feed their underfed kids by taking a meager Costco size box of Mac and Cheese from the fat and powerful. Life is not all about killing people this is what everyone obsesses about on a daily basis. They want to know when the next execution is, where it is going to be, how it will be done, and whom it will be this time. Executions is where you will find the jeering drunken crowds waiting for the moment that the head drops to the ground.” Gulliver pauses long enough to reach for his beer mug to gulp half of it away; the whole time he was going on and on the King is only capable of a letting a slight noise escape from his vocal cords or a shake his head because of the way that Gulliver is racing on and on; the King was able to stop and reflect because of the silence, “This is actually horrible that they could do this too the poor who just want to feed their empty bellies…while mine so fat and full of sweets” Drunkenly placing the beer mug back on the table, he spilled some of its contents onto the plate with the seven layer chocolate cake, “shit” he murmurs. “They even go as far as to tell us what religion we must believe in, at this moment it is //illegal// to be a Catholic Priest, also Catholics who refuse to be reformed are prosecuted right along with the ones caught attending Mass. Their punishment is never the same, it is as if the members of the court get giggles and laughs out of making the Catholics squirm in the skin while awaiting the declaration of their fate. It is bullshit, I tell you, bullshit. Just because the Queen is a heretic, anything goes; the Pope has announced that he will pardon anyone of the sin of murder if they kill this crazy lady. It is so messed up that just because someone believes something different than her they could be killed, life is not about conformity, it is about living it to the fullest to be most happy and fat at any certain moment…” Gulliver again grabs his beer mug, but this time he holds it unsteadily in his sweaty hands, instead he starts waving it around uncontrollably. So consumed by what he is doing with the sloshing beer he forgets what he is talking about…a moment later the light bulb turns on above his head and he continues ranting and raving. “The most intriguing thing about the parliament of England is the process of law. It changes on whether you are a member of the upper or lower class. The degree of your punishment is always different. Let’s say that I happen to be a servant and I have been put up on trial for stealing that nice HD TV that you have in your living room, I would most certainly be given a sentence of death. But if I were a noble, I could have just lost an arm or a hand. This death is public because of the obsession with dying souls. The greatest punishment a man would receive is most never given to a member of the upper class, is to be shot in both feet and arms then placed upon a stool. They then take a rusty knife and rip open your stomach to take every organ out they can get their grimy hands on, then they throw them into the trash compacter. Leaving you to sit there in agony watching your organs be chewed up and spit out by the metal teeth and eventually die. Why would the fools do this to someone, we need a system of set punishment for certain crimes, none of this on a whim shit any more. The Upper class would almost never be seen shot or electrocuted or blazed with a flamethrower, if they were to receive a fatal sentence they would be sent to the chair to be injected with a fatal solution of chemicals for an almost painless death. If God has blessed you to be a male and to be able to read, you are given a reduced sentence because they see you as a member of the damn clergy; but if you are a female with the same education you receive nothing less than the maximum sentence.” At this remark, Gulliver sloshed his beer around enough to splash it all over the table, him and the King causing him to wake up from the drunken rant and realize that the King is beginning to nod off, the timer on the lights is clicking warning them that they are about to turn off. At this, he realizes he should tell the King ‘night. “ ’Night Mr. King.” The lights click off as the two meander their way out of the dinning room and Gulliver uses the wall to hold himself steady on his way to his room.
 * (Melissa Brown)**

__Did You Know...__
Jonathan Swift's creation of his "little people" was the inspiration for the movie //A Night at the Museum//, starring Ben Stiller. Below is a clip from the movie.

media type="youtube" key="4tupieUr3uw" height="344" width="425"

The Island of Lilliput was inspired by an actual place in the center of the Republic of Ireland! media type="googlemap" key="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=lilliput&sll=53.455349,-7.443237&sspn=2.03778,5.822754&ie=UTF8&ll=55.028022,-6.37207&spn=8.154173,23.291016&z=6&iwloc=addr&output=embed&s=AARTsJq5GjLbjPx44fDNrSNINwVtsyyNiQ" width="425" height="350"

Randy Newman's song, "Short People" was similar to Swift's satire writing style in which short people are being made fun of. media type="custom" key="2786163"

__Works Cited__

 * Alchin, Linda. Elizabethan Era. . 2006.
 * Chico, Tita. __Languages of Appearance__ 266-69. University of Maryland. 2008.
 * "Crime and Punishment in Elizabethan England." __Eye Witness to History__ . . 2001.
 * Cullen, Oriole. "Eighteenth-Century European Dress". //Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History//. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art . October 2003.
 * Fink, Beatrice. __Eighteenth-Century Life__ 23.2 1-5. The Johns Hopkins University Press. 1999.
 * Galloway, Shirley.__Swift's Moral Satire in Gulliver's Travels.__ http://www.cyberpat.com/shirlsite/essays/gulliv.html. 1994
 * "Gulliver's Travels Top Ten Quotes." __NovelGuide__ . <[|http://www.novelguide.com/Gulliver'sTravels/toptenquotes.html]>. 2008.
 * Kallich, Martin. __The Other End of the Egg__. Northern Illinois University. The University of Bridgeport Press. 1970
 * Ros, Maggi. "Religion." __Life in Elizabethan England__ . . 29 March 2008.
 * Vickers, Brian. __The World of Jonathan Swift: Essays of Tercentenary__. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1968.