The first book of Gulliver's Travels, “A Voyage to Lilliput” constitutes an exploration on human nature. Pharaphrasing the Teacher's Guide to the Core Classic Edition of Jonathan Swift's Gullivers Travels we can say that through the creation of a new society “the Lilliputians” (very similar to that of Gulliver’s home) Swift presents a profound analysis of the human behavior. Lilliputians are described as tiny even insignificant people in comparison to Gulliver; nevertheless they are evil and astute minds capable of keeping him under their control since the very beginning.
The violent reaction Lilliputians show soon after they discover Gulliver, gives us an idea of the Machiavellian nature of this culture, who think they are the only “great empire" in the universe, and "even the presence of the gigantic Gulliver can't convince them of their relative insignificance" (Teacher's Guide)
The fact of checking all his personal belongings with a high level of ignorance shows their lack of knowledge of the outside’s world mainly because of the excessive pride in its own culture that does not let them consider someone else better. According to Teacher's Guide to the Core Classic Edition of Jonathan Swift's Gullivers Travels "there are just two items that ironically escape the view of the Lilliputians: Gulliver’s spectacles and telescope. These devices are used by Swift with symbolic significance; they will enable Gulliver to see more clearly up close and underscore Swift's message that judgment depends on perspective" (page 29)
It is evident that Gulliver, amused by their sizes and customs, underestimates these people at the beginning. In the Teacher's Guide we have a reflection about the fact of Gulliver asking for his liberty. It says "Gulliver could have crushed most of the army as they paraded between his legs. Why does he have to ask for freedom?Why does Gulliver allow himself to be the prisoner of these tiny creatures?" (page 32-33) And here comes the interesting answer they offer to it "Gulliver has stopped seeing objectively" so we can conclude that the mental power Lilliputians craftily exercise towards him became stronger.
Through this satire, Swift also explores interpersonal relationships as well as the behavior of the English society. Lilliputians, as a symbolic representation of the English society, exemplify misplaced human pride, while Gulliver’s innocence represents the inability of some people to diagnose it correctly.
Gullivers Travels", Core Knowledge Foundation, 2003
