Adding to the patterns which Cody was referencing, whoever is the largest (Gulliver in Lilliput, or the Brobdingnagians in Brobdingnag) seems to think the political system of the smaller is intriguing in it's backward and seemingly primitive nature. To this point the King of Brobdingnag took notes on the English Parliament and politics surrounding it.
On the oddities of the Brobdingnag government, "No law in that country must exceed in words the number of letters in their alphabet, which consists only of two and twenty" (99). Twenty-two letters would make a very concise law, which by American, and even British standards, is likely an impossible achievement. Also the fact that speaking out against, or even for, Brobdingnagian law defeats the purpose of democratic functions such as that in the United States.
I find this pattern a bit ironic because the "larger" nations seem to, therefore, turn out to have a simpler and more basic government themselves.
ReplyDeleteI guess that just ties into Swift's use of satire/humor. Hard to find yet very entertaining to unravel.
ReplyDeleteBeing able to have laws this short and maintaining the country is quite an accomplishment. In the next hundred years, I doubt America will be able to write a law less than a hundred words.
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