Poetry in the English Class-room

The following essay deals with the misanthropy of the protagonist Lemuel Gulliver from Jonathan Swifts Gullivers Travels. The question, whether the protagonists hate towards mankind can be equated with a possible misanthropy of the author shall not be discussed here. Likewise, the topic of the authors conception of man will not be examined. The authors intentions are deliberately excluded to keep the focus on the narratives interpretation and relevant secondary literature. Therefore, Swifts satirical intentions regarding the portrayal of the main character Gulliver will not be taken into account either. Since Gullivers self-knowledge, which makes him become a misanthropist was one of the most discussed issues regarding the reception of Gullivers Travels, I want to investigate the reasons, motivations and stages of Gullivers conversion, find possibly crucial experiences that lead to his cognition and scrutinize, whether his development is portrayed as credible or not. In the first part I will scrutinize Gullivers attitude to the Houyhnhnms and the influence of his expulsion on his morale. In the second part of my essay I will concentrate on Gulliver becoming a misanthrope and the way his new conception of man is shaped. Seminar paper aus dem Jahr 2006 im Fachbereich Anglistik - Literatur, Note: 2,7, Universität Hamburg.