EnglishClub

Pre-listening vocabulary

• satirical: using humour to criticize something
• parody: a story that imitates another story or genre in a humorous way
• surgeon: someone who performs medical operations
• civilization: a group of people living together in a complex society
• comedic: funny, humorous
• contrast: to be very different from someone or something else
• absurd: silly, strange

Listening activity

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:35 — 2.2MB)

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Gapfill exercise

Gulliver’s Travels is a 1726 satirical novel by Irish author Jonathan Swift. The book is a parody of the travel narrative, which was a very genre at the time. The protagonist, Lemuel Gulliver, is a surgeon on a . He travels to fictional countries and encounters strange civilizations, including the six-inch-tall Lilliputians and the research-obsessed Laputans. Each is a comedic representation of a human trait. In the last section of the book, Gulliver meets a group of intelligent who contrast with the absurd and foolish humans. Although Gulliver’s Travels is often read as a children’s book, it was written for adults. The fantasy civilizations represent social and political structures in Britain during Swift’s life. Gulliver’s Travels is one of the earliest of the English novel.

Comprehension questions

See answers below

1. The book Gulliver’s Travels would be best described as
   a. a memoir
   b. a satirical novel
   c. a travelogue
   
2. The character Lemuel Gulliver is
   a. a politician
   b. a news reporter
   c. a surgeon
   
3. In the last section of the book, Gulliver meets a civilization of
   a. giants
   b. flying scientists
   c. intelligent horses

Discussion/essay questions

1. What is the purpose of satire? Can you think of a good modern work of satire?
2. What do you think makes a story appealing to all ages?

Transcript

Gulliver’s Travels is a 1726 satirical novel by Irish author Jonathan Swift. The book is a parody of the travel narrative, which was a very popular genre at the time. The protagonist, Lemuel Gulliver, is a surgeon on a ship. He travels to fictional countries and encounters strange civilizations, including the six-inch-tall Lilliputians and the research-obsessed Laputans. Each culture is a comedic representation of a human trait. In the last section of the book, Gulliver meets a group of intelligent horses who contrast with the absurd and foolish humans. Although Gulliver’s Travels is often read as a children’s book, it was written for adults. The fantasy civilizations represent social and political structures in Britain during Swift’s life. Gulliver’s Travels is one of the earliest examples of the English novel.

Answers to comprehension questions

1b 2c 3c

Pre-listening vocabulary

• middle class: the group of people who have enough money to live comfortably, but are not rich
• edition: a version of a book
• satire: a type of storytelling that uses humour to criticize parts of society
• reveal: to give new information to the public
• credit: to say that someone is responsible for something
• modern: new, recent

Listening activity

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:34 — 1.4MB)

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Gapfill exercise

Jane Austen was an English . She was born in 1775 in Steventon, Hampshire, to a middle-class family. She began writing when she was only eleven years old. In 1797, she started her first , Sense and Sensibility. When she published it in 1811, she didn’t use her own name. The first edition of the book simply claimed to be written “by a “. Austen wrote six novels, all of which used satire to criticize social expectations. She earned very little money for her work. Although many of her stories are about love and , Austen never married, which was very unusual for a woman in her time. Her brother, Henry, revealed that Austen was the author of her novels after her death in 1817. Many people credit her with helping to shape the way modern novels are written.

Comprehension questions

See answers below

1. Jane Austen was born in
   a. 1775
   b. 1797
   c. 1811
   
2. Her first novel was
   a. Sense and Sensibility
   b. Pride and Prejudice
   c. Persuasion
   
3. The name Austen originally published under was simply
   a. “a writer”
   b. “a gentleman”
   c. “a lady”

Discussion/essay questions

1. Why do you think Jane Austen published her novels anonymously? Why might a writer not want to be known?

Transcript

Jane Austen was an English writer. She was born in 1775 in Steventon, Hampshire, to a middle-class family. She began writing when she was only eleven years old. In 1797, she started her first novel, Sense and Sensibility. When she published it in 1811, she didn’t use her own name. The first edition of the book simply claimed to be written “by a lady“. Austen wrote six novels, all of which used satire to criticize social expectations. She earned very little money for her work. Although many of her stories are about love and marriage, Austen never married, which was very unusual for a woman in her time. Her brother, Henry, revealed that Austen was the author of her novels after her death in 1817. Many people credit her with helping to shape the way modern novels are written.

Answers to comprehension questions

1a 2a 3c