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Gulliver's Travels / Savage Satire

Author: Jonathan Swift (Gutenberg)  | Source: Project Gutenberg  | Published: 2026-01-12 06:51

Themes: power dynamics, brutality, societal critique, human nature, civilization

This favourite is hated by the whole herd, and therefore, to protect himself, keeps always near the person of his leader. He usually continues in office till a worse can be found; but the very moment he is discarded, his successor, at the head of all the _Yahoos_ in that district, young and old, male and female, come in a body, and discharge their excrements upon him from head to foot. But how far this might be applicable to our courts, and favourites, and ministers of state, my master said I could best determine.” I durst make no return to this malicious insinuation, which debased human understanding below the sagacity of a common hound, who has judgment enough to distinguish and follow the cry of the ablest dog in the pack, without being ever mistaken. My master told me, “there were some qualities remarkable in the _Yahoos_, which he had not observed me to mention, or at least very slightly, in the accounts I had given of humankind.” He said, “those animals, like other brutes, had their females in common; but in this they differed, that the she _Yahoo_ would admit the males while she was pregnant; and that the hes would quarrel and fight with the females, as fiercely as with each other; both which practices were such degrees of infamous brutality, as no other sensitive creature ever arrived at.
Interpretation

The depiction of the _Yahoos_ serves as a biting satire of human social and political dynamics, reflecting Jonathan Swift's critique of the elite and their sycophants. The imagery of excrement, as a form of public condemnation, underscores the degradation of individuals seeking favor and the ruthlessness inherent in power struggles. Swift’s commentary on the brutality of the _Yahoos_ highlights the darker aspects of human nature, suggesting that civilization does not always elevate moral standards. This passage resonates with broader Enlightenment themes of reason versus instinct, questioning the very essence of what it means to be 'civilized' versus 'savage'. (AI-generated commentary)

Microstory

In the shadow of a gnarled tree, a once-favored _Yahoo_ trembled, surrounded by the jeers of his former comrades. They circled like vultures, their laughter mingling with the stench of the earth, as they prepared to unleash their disdain in a ritual of humiliation. With each slash of their crude taunts, he felt the weight of betrayal, recognizing in their eyes the truth he had long denied: that loyalty is a fleeting specter in a world ruled by the basest instincts. (AI-generated story)

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