English Society Exposed in Gulliver's Travels In Gulliver's Travels, Swift takes us to many places that serve as a mirror for the weaknesses of English society, but none of the places are such severe censorship of men as Houyhnhnmland. Here Swift made a clear division between pure reason, embodied in the Houyhnhnms (perhaps he was referring to the "horse sense"), and raw passion, embodied in the Yahoos (who are "coincidentally" very masculine). Here Gulliver must choose between Houyhnhnms and Yahoos, reason and passion. He initially rejects the Yahoos due to their distaste for him, but at the same time does not embrace the Houyhnhnms either. He still wants to hold on in many ways to his English heritage, but his discussions with his teacher prove to himself, despite his stated differences, that he and his English society are truly Yahoo! When I thought of my family, my friends, my countrymen, or the human race in general, I considered them as they really were, Yahoos in appearance and character, perhaps a little more civilized and gifted with the gift of speech; but making no other use of reason than to ameliorate and multiply those vices, of which their brethren in this country had only such a share as nature had allotted them. So Gulliver is again faced with this decision between Houyhnhnm and Yahoo, but now he sees Yahoo as being himself and the country. He decides to reject Yahoo and himself and embrace Houyhnhnms and reason. I believe chapter ten is the crucial chapter of the book, because Gulliver decides to abandon all things "Yahoo", and in the same chapter Houyhnhnms and reason decide to reject Gulliver. At the beginning of chapter ten, Gulliver recounts his happy lodgings. ..... half of the sheet ...... f the Satyr. Berne: Peter Lang Publishers, Inc., 1992. This book focuses on the way Swift employs fictional devices in his satires and argues that it is this ability that allows his literature the great subtlety it possesses.* Gravil, Richard ed. Gulliver's Travels: A Case Book. London: The Macmillan Press LTD, 1974. As the title indicates, this book is a casebook or collection of relevant essays concerning studies of Gulliver's Travels.* Rowse, AL Jonathan Swift: Major Prophet. London: Thames and Hudson, 1975. This book is a biography of Swift's life and relationships.* Ward, David. Jonathan Swift: An Introductory Essay. London: Methuen & Co Ltd, 1973. This book contains Ward's critical thinking on many of Jonathan Swift's works, including Gulliver's Travels.* Gulliver's Travels - Home Page