Question

Swift also uses the travel book as a medium for satire. He expects his readers to find similarities between what happens in Lilliput and what goes on at home. What qualifications are the oficaials of Lilliput expected to have in order to hold high office? How does Swift use irony in his description of the Lilliputian officials?

Answer 1

Jonathan Swift's 'Gulliver's Travels' employs satire and irony in describing the qualifications of Lilliputian officials, which are based on absurd physical contests rather than actual governance skills. This mirrors and ridicules the superficial and arbitrary methods of attaining power in Swift's own society.

Step-by-step explanation:

In Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels, the qualifications that Lilliputian officials are expected to have in order to hold high office are satirical and humorous. In Lilliput, positions are awarded based on candidates' proficiency in rope-dancing or how well they can jump over or crawl under a stick, rather than on their merit or qualifications for governance. Swift's use of irony is evident as he equates the absurd and trivial contests of skill in Lilliput with the often arbitrary and superficial means by which individuals in his contemporary British society gained office or favor.

The satire in Swift's depiction of Lilliputian officials highlights the follies and corruptions inherent in the political systems of his time. By exaggerating these practices to comedic effect, he encourages the reader to reflect on the similar absurdities present in their own governments. The irony is thus a critique of the disconnect between what qualities truly make a good leader and the ridiculous practices that actually determined leadership in both Lilliput and Swift's society.