Gulliver's Travels CBSE Class 9 Important Question and Answers

These are important question and answers for SA 1

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1.How did Gulliver land in Lilliput? (10)



Ans.When Gulliver’s practice did not flourish much, he took up a surgeon’s job in a ship
Antelope’ bound for sea. On its way from Bristol to East Indies the ship was caught in
a violent storm which drifted it away. Immoderate labour and lack of food adversely
affected the crew’s health, claiming twelve lives and leaving the others incapacitated
and absolutely drained out. To make things worse, due to poor visibility, the crew
detected a rock bit too late and violent winds struck the ship against this rock causing
a shipwreck. A boat to which Gulliver shifted along with five other companions, too
could not stand the fury of the storm. Unaware of the fate of others, Gulliver swam as
long as his stamina could carry him. After some time, the storm subsided and Gulliver
found his feet touching the bottom. He now walked for about a mile and reached the
shore. After covering another half a mile, Gulliver laid down on the soft grass and
went off to sleep. His good luck and perseverance thus brought him to Lilliput.


2.How were the children educated in Lilliput

Ans.In Lilliput, parents were not entrusted with the education of their children. The state
had set up male and female nurseries in all towns for their education. The male
nurseries had scholarly professors, who taught the boys values of honour, jusdce,
courage, modesty, clemency, religion, patriotism and the like. The children were made
to work very hard except when they were sleeping, eating and exercising. They were
dressed simply and plainly by male servants till the age of four but they were not
allowed to talk to the servants, lest they should pick up some bad habits. Parents, who
were allowed to visit the children only twice a year, were strictly prohibited from
bringing any gifts or toys for them.
In the female nurseries, girls were dressed by female servants for five years. The
Lilliputians wished their girls to grow into sensible, courageous and decent ladies.
Hence, the nurses were forbidden from telling them any frightful or foolish stories.
Violation of these rules resulted in severe punishment for them. The girls’ syllabus and physical exercises were slightly lighter than that of the boys. Otherwise, there was
not much difference in the education of the two sexes.
The cottagers and labourers kept their children at home, their business being only to
till and cultivate the earth, and therefore their education was of little consequence to
the public.

3. What were the conditions imposed on Gulliver for setting him free in Lilliput? (10)
Ans.A) A lot of restrictions were imposed on Gulliver in Lilliput. Gulliver was neither allowed
to leave Lilliput nor visit the capital without the king’s formal order. He was supposed
to keep to the principal roads of Lilliput only, avoiding the fields and meadows. While
walking he was neither to tread upon either any Lilliputian, nor their horses and
carriages. He was also not allowed to take any Lilliputian in his hands without his
consent. In the event of some urgent message that the king wishes to be delivered,
Gulliver was expected to carry the messenger in his pocket and take him safely back
to the king after the message was delivered.
The most important clause in the list required him to support the Lilliputians against
Blefuscu’s invasion and destroy its entire army. Gulliver would also have to lift huge
stones and help the workmen to mend the parks and royal buildings. He was also
asked to walk around the kingdom and calculate its circumference. Gulliver was
required to take an oath that he would abide by these conditions. In lieu of it, he was
to have an adequate daily allowance of meat and drink, sufficient to support 1,724
Lilliputians.

4.Give a brief character sketch of the Emperor of Blefuscu.

Ans. The emperor of Blefuscu was a very sensible and a far-sighted person. Though he
supported the Lilliputian rebels against their state, he decided to have a very low
profile when his intended invasion on Lilliput was thwarted with Gulliver’s aid.
Estimating his meagre strength as compared to that of Lilliput and Gulliver put
together, he thought it wise to sign a peace treaty on Lilliputian terms. When Gulliver
visited his country and the Lilliputian king wanted him bound hand and foot,
immediately this wise emperor exercised restraint and without being rash, tackled
the situation very diplomatically. Being grateful to Gulliver for showing his hospitality
and having a sympathetic attitude towards the Blefuscudian delegates when they
visited Lilliput, he treated him very hospitably. He rendered all possible help to him
while he was repairing and preparing his boat to leave for his native land. The
emperor very generously did offer Gulliver an option to stay in his country but he
didn’t pressurise him. To sum up, the emperor of Blefuscu was a capable emperor and
a generous gentleman.

5. Describe Gulliver’s experience in the metropolis. (10)
Ans.After attaining his liberty, Gulliver sought the emperor’s permission to visit the
metropolis, Milendo. The permission was granted with the condition that he would
take special care not to hurt any Lilliputian or damage their houses. Gulliver found it
to be a huge but a very organised city. The whole city was surrounded by a two-and-ahalf-
foot-high wall which was about eleven inches broad so that a coach and horses
could be driven on it. The whole city was divided into four equal squares. The city
could accommodate five hundred thousand people who resided in multi-storeyed
houses. The emperor’s palace in the centre of the city was surrounded by a two-feethigh
wall. To have a close look at the magnificence of the palace, he built two stools
with whose help he could reach the innermost court, and applying his face to the
windows of the middle storey found the apartments to be splendid. He was impressed
with its magnificence. He spent nine months there.

6.How did Gulliver land in the farmer’s house in Brobdingnag? What kind of reception was he
given there?
Ans. On landing in Brobdingnag, Gulliver’s attempts to hide himself in the barley field
proved to be futile. He was spotted by one of the servants of the farmer. The man put
him into his coat pocket and carried him to his master. After asking his men several
questions about the small creature and examining him well, the farmer asked him
several questions but the language barrier didn’t let them communicate with each
other.
The farmer then took him home. His wife’s initial fright and disgust soon gave way to
tenderness and she fed Gulliver on her own dinning table with the rest of the family.
The entire family was delighted to see him eating. However, one of her mischievous
boys took him by his leg and suspended him high up in the air which frightened him.
The father immediately snatched away Gulliver from the child’s hand and boxed his
ears. Gulliver became an object of interest to the entire family and he came to be
looked after by all of them with great care and tenderness.

7.How did Gulliver end the Blefuscudians’ intended invasions against the Lilliputians? (10)
Ans.Gathering all possible details of the channel dividing Blefuscu and Lilliput, Gulliver
planned to capture the entire fleet of the enemy. He planned a clever strategy to
capture their fleet. He procured a huge quantity of cable and a large number of iron
bars. Twisting three bars together, he bent their ends into hook like shapes and
securely tied cables to fifty such hooked bars and took them himself across the
channel that divided the two countries. When this ‘man-mountain’ reached Blefuscu,
their sea-men panicked and ran for their lives. Gulliver, then fixed the hooks into the
prows of the ships and tied all the cables together. Later, facing a swam of enemy’s
arrows, he cut the cables of all the anchored ships and drew after him all fifty of them.
Wading and swimming through the channel to the great joy of the emperor and all
Lilliputians, Gulliver soon reached back after successfully thwarting the enemy and
accomplishing the mission.

8.Do you agree that chance played a great role in helping Gulliver attain his liberty from
Brobdingnag? Support your answer.
Ans. Despite there being no ray of hope, Gulliver always optimistically looked forward to
his liberty. Fortunately for him, deliverance came to him from a very unexpected
quarter. Gulliver was once accompanying the royal couple on their journey to the
south coast. One day while his nurse was away and he was sleeping in his box by the
sea coast, an eagle lifted his box high up in the air and flew forward with the intention
of dropping the box on a rock and picking out Gulliver’s body and feasting on it. Soon,
two eagles wishing to share the feast tried to snatch it, when accidentally it fell into
the sea. The box had very well grooved joints—hence no water seeped into it. Just
then, this box was spotted by a captain of a ship as he was looking through his glass.
He sent a long boat to find out the facts. The men informed him that it was a floating
house. In the meantime, Gulliver thrust out of a hole his handkerchief tied to a stick.
The captain got the box fastened to a cable and with the help of pulleys had a strange
distrust for graves, coffins and skulls. The author is adamant that Harris goes mad at
the end, with the poor soul going on to perform tricks.

9. What idea do you get about the Lilliputians from Gulliver’s account? (10)
Ans.Inspite of being small in size, Lilliputians were bold, courageous, fearless and
resourceful. They were very kind in their dealings with Gulliver. They handled the
‘man-mountain’ without panicking. The Lilliputians had a very keen eyesight. They
were excellent mathematicians and having a peculiar style of writing, they wrote from
one corner of the page to the other. They buried their dead upside down as they
believed that in due course of time the earth would turn upside town, thereby making
all the bodies stand on their feet. In Lilliput, crime was punished severely. But if the
accused proved his innocence he was adequately compensated and the accuser was
sentenced to death. Strict adherence to the laws of the country earned the citizens
generous rewards. For public posts more weightage was given to good morals rather
than one’s abilities. Ingratitude was also a capital crime in Lilliput.

10.Describe Gulliver’s experience in the metropolis.
Ans. On landing in Brobdingnag, Gulliver’s attempts to hide himself in the barley field
proved to be futile. He was spotted by one of the servants of the farmer. The man put
him into his coat pocket and carried him to his master. After asking his men several
questions about the small creature and examining him well, the farmer asked him
several questions but the language barrier didn’t let them communicate with each
other.
The farmer then took him home. His wife’s initial fright and disgust soon gave way to
tenderness and she fed Gulliver on her own dinning table with the rest of the family.
The entire family was delighted to see him eating. However, one of her mischievous
boys took him by his leg and suspended him high up in the air which frightened him.
The father immediately snatched away Gulliver from the child’s hand and boxed his
ears. Gulliver became an object of interest to the entire family and he came to be
looked after by all of them with great care and tenderness.