This blog post is focused on the summary of Gulliver’s Travels of voyage 1 chapter by chapter.
Gulliver’s Travels summary
- In voyage1 chapter 1: Gulliver joins the merchant ship Antelope as a surgeon. Gulliver, the only survivor, swims to a nearby island, Lilliput, after the ship is destroyed by a strong windstorm. He falls asleep, nearly exhausted by the ordeal. When he awakens, he discovers that the island’s inhabitants, who are no taller than six inches, have kidnapped him. The emperor of this country orders his subjects to move Gulliver to a little-used temple, the only place large enough to house him after the inhabitants examine him and provide him with food.
- In voyage 1 chapter 2, Gulliver asks to be set free. The emperor refuses Gulliver’s freedom but prefers to make accommodations for him. Gulliver obeys the emperor’s order to search him for weapons. The emperor does not recognize Gulliver’s pistol, so Gulliver fires into the air to demonstrate its function. Two officers conduct a thorough search of Gulliver’s pockets. They let Gulliver keep most of his belongings, but he gives up a knife, a razor, and a pistol.
- In voyage 1 chapter 3, Gulliver and the emperor reached an agreement as a result of Gulliver’s cooperation. Under certain conditions, Gulliver was given limited freedom. Instead of meeting the requirements, he will receive enough food. Gulliver swears in the articles in the proper form, and the emperor releases him.
Gulliver’s Travels summary
- In voyage 1 chapter 4, Reldresal tells Gulliver about the religious and political division that has plagued Lilliput for years, which stems from a disagreement over the correct way to break an egg. This outraged Blefuscudians in Lilliput. Some rebelled and were executed. Gulliver learns that rebel Blefuscudians remain in Lilliput and another war is brewing.
- In voyage 1 chapter 5, Gulliver rescues Lilliput from a Blefuscudian invasion by dragging the Blefuscudian ships to Lilliput, he protects Lilliput. Gulliver is given the title Nardac by the Lilliputian emperor as a token of his thanks. He opposes a plan to utterly destroy Blefuscu and advocates for a fair peace settlement. Later, a fire breaks out in the palace, and Gulliver extinguishes it by urinating on it.
- In voyage 1 chapter 6, Gulliver learns about Lilliputian culture and the treatment he receives from the Lilliputians on a personal level. Gulliver claims that the rope-dancing corruptions were imposed by the current Emperor’s grandfather, which explains the apparent conflict between these beneficial laws and the rope-dancing corruptions. They’ve come to eat with Gulliver and have brought Flimnap along. The supper is a flop because the royal treasurer, Flimnap, is shocked when he calculates the cost of feeding and lodging Gulliver.
- In voyage 1 chapter 7, Gulliver discovers that articles of treason against him have been accepted by Flimnap, Skyresh Balgolam, and others. His sins included setting fire to the palace, refusing to destroy Blefuscu, contacting the peace envoy from Blefuscu, and preparing to receive permission from the emperor to visit Blefuscu. The emperor admits the allegations but refuses to execute Gullivers at the request of one of his Lilliputian friends. Instead, he mercifully was sentenced to death for blind him and starvation to death. Gulliver escapes to Blefuscu after discovering it.
- In voyage 1 chapter 8, Gulliver discovers a massive upturned ship floating in the bay a few days after arriving in Blefuscu and hauls it to port. A Lilliputian messenger confronts Gulliver with a note requesting that he be returned as a traitor while he is restoring the ship for his journey home. The Blefuscudian emperor refuses, expecting to keep Gulliver as a power holder to war between the two countries. Gulliver, on the other hand, refuses and sets sail for home. He is eventually picked up by a British merchant ship and returned to England, where he is reunited with his wife and family.
also read: Oedipus the King summary
