Monday, May 27, 2013

In what manner do the 'lists' in Gulliver's Travels help to strengthen his arguments?Pg. 174-175 in Oxford Edition; list of politicians' illnesses.

The use of lists is a statistical device to create a sense
of truth and believability in any written work. One of Swift's primary strengths as a
writer is his propensity for using "factual" techniques to support or even exaggerate
the fictitious aspects of his works. His lists seem clinical, precise, and well reasoned
while at the same time exposing the ridiculous nature of the situation. Using
statistical devices increases our trust in the author's information; one of a satirists
greatest tactics.

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