Gulliver's Travels n/e (Oxford World's Classics)

Swift, Jonathan

ISBN 10: 0199536848 ISBN 13: 9780199536849

Publisher: OUP Oxford, 2008

Synopsis

'Thus, gentle Reader, I have given thee a faithful History of my Travels for Sixteen Years, and above Seven Months; wherein I have not been so studious of Ornament as of Truth.'

In these words Gulliver represents himself as a reliable reporter of the fantastic adventures he has just set down; but how far can we rely on a narrator whose identity is elusive and whoses inventiveness is self-evident? Gulliver's Travels purports to be a travel book, and describes Gulliver's encounters with the inhabitants of four extraordinary places: Lilliput, Brobdingnag, Laputa, and the country of the Houyhnhnms. A consummately skilful blend of fantasy and realism makes Gulliver's Travels by turns hilarious, frightening, and profound. Swift plays tricks on us, and delivers one of the world's most disturbing satires of the human condition.

This new edition includes the changing frontispiece portraits of Gulliver that appeared in successive early editions.

ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

About this title

Review:

"Gulliver's Travels is a timeless work, but Allan Ingram's edition reminds us that it's a timely one, too. His introduction, notes, and appendices put the eighteenth century's greatest satire in a wide variety of contexts--biographical, historical, political, scientific, and literary--giving us an ideal edition for classroom use. No edition does a better job of explaining Swift's masterpiece as a product of its age."--Jack Lynch, Rutgers University

"This new edition of Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels provides both first-time and return readers with a well-constructed framework within which to place a familiar work. Allan Ingram's engaging introduction deftly combines a summary of contemporary controversies over politics, religion, learning, science, and Ireland, with a summary of Swift's life and a history of the composition, publication, and critical reception of the Travels. The footnotes to the text anticipate the kinds of knowledge a twenty-first-century reader might lack: the outmoded usage of a single word or the identity of an individual, as well as references to broader issues and ideas. Ingram observes that Swift 'asks the kinds of questions of his readers to which we have few answers.' His edition will enable readers to carry on the debate about those questions."--Melinda Alliker Rabb, Brown University

From the Publisher:

Lemuel Gulliver, ship's surgeon and castaway, has awaken in Lilliput, where the size of the tiny inhabitants makes their concerns and quarrels seem ridiculous. A second journey takes him to the kingdom of giants, where again his size gives him new adrift by pirates, Gulliver's final voyage brings him to the land of the Houyhnhms, horses with reason, who share their domain with the brutish Yahoos. He returns to England a changed man.

Swift's corrosive satire embraces all aspects of humanity. It is witty when dealing with foibles and frailty, bitterly when facing pride and stupidity, but compassionate and unsentimental when focused upon suffering.

About this edition

• Publisher: OUP Oxford
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0199536848
• ISBN 13: 9780199536849
• Binding: Pocket Book
• Number of pages: 432
• Editor: Rawson Claude, Higgins Ian