The main satirical point in part 4 of Gullivers Travels is
essentially the same as that in the first three books, though it is perhaps even more bluntly
expressed. That point is to ridicule and deprecate humans by pointing out our foolish and
despicable behavior. In part 4, this is achieved by making Swifts ideal beings (the wise and
virtuous Houyhnhnms) resemble horses, while the Yahoos (the filthy, degenerate creatures they
regard as fit only for slavery) look almost exactly like people.
Gulliver
reports that the Houyhnhnms initially mistake him for a Yahoo. He differs from one in a few
small matters: his smooth white skin, the hairlessness of most of his body, and his habit of
walking upright. Otherwise, he resembles the creature perfectly. The method ofis very similar to
that of part 1, in which it was the diminutive size of the Lilliputians which exposed them to
the satirists ridicule. In part 4, the brutish nature of the Yahoos is used to ridicule the
pride of human...
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