Question

Why does Reldresal believe that his people face "the danger of an invasion" from outside? Cite specific evidence from the text to support your answer.

Answer 1

Answer and Explanation:

This question concerns the novel "Gulliver's Travels" by Jonathan Swift.

Reldresal is the principal secretary of Lilliput, one of the strange lands where the main character Gulliver ends up at. Lilliput is inhabited by people who are less than 6 inches tall. Lilliputians spend most of their time discussing trivial matters, and their sense of justice is quite odd.

According to Reldresal, Lilliput faces the possibility of an invasion by Blefuscu, which is also inhabited by tiny people. Lilliput and Blefuscu have engaged in quite a dangerous argument as to whether an egg should be broken on its small side or the large side to be eaten. Both peoples are clearly worried with petty issues. The evidence taken from the book is the following:

Lilliput is "threatened with an invasion from the island of Blefuscu, which is the other great empire of the universe." Blefuscu has "equipped a numerous fleet, [who] are just preparing to make a descent upon us."