Summary
Gulliver has found his ideal life among the Houyhnhnms - he's built a comfortable home, learned their ways, and discovered what true civilization looks like. Their conversations focus on friendship, virtue, and reason rather than the petty conflicts and corruption he knew in human society. He's so transformed by their example that he begins to see his own species as the savage Yahoos the horses believe them to be. But paradise has an expiration date. The Houyhnhnm assembly decides Gulliver poses a threat - his partial reasoning ability combined with Yahoo nature could corrupt other Yahoos and lead to rebellion. Despite his master's personal fondness for him, the community's decision stands. Gulliver is devastated, literally fainting from grief, but accepts he must leave. With help from his master's servant, he builds a canoe from local materials, preparing for an uncertain journey to a distant island. The chapter captures that painful moment when we're forced to leave a place where we finally felt we belonged, not because we failed, but because we no longer fit the community's vision of itself. It's about the loneliness of transformation - when growing and changing means losing your place in the world you've come to love.
Coming Up in Chapter 38
Gulliver sets sail into unknown waters, leaving behind the only society where he felt truly at peace. But what awaits him on that distant island, and how will he readjust to a world he now sees through completely different eyes?
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An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
The author’s economy, and happy life among the Houyhnhnms. His great improvement in virtue by conversing with them. Their conversations. The author has notice given him by his master, that he must depart from the country. He falls into a swoon for grief; but submits. He contrives and finishes a canoe by the help of a fellow-servant, and puts to sea at a venture. I had settled my little economy to my own heart’s content. My master had ordered a room to be made for me, after their manner, about six yards from the house: the sides and floors of which I plastered with clay, and covered with rush-mats of my own contriving. I had beaten hemp, which there grows wild, and made of it a sort of ticking; this I filled with the feathers of several birds I had taken with springes made of _Yahoos’_ hairs, and were excellent food. I had worked two chairs with my knife, the sorrel nag helping me in the grosser and more laborious part. When my clothes were worn to rags, I made myself others with the skins of rabbits, and of a certain beautiful animal, about the same size, called _nnuhnoh_, the skin of which is covered with a fine down. Of these I also made very tolerable stockings. I soled my shoes with wood, which I cut from a tree, and fitted to the upper-leather; and when this was worn out, I supplied it with the skins of _Yahoos_ dried in the sun. I often got honey out of hollow trees, which I mingled with water, or ate with my bread. No man could more verify the truth of these two maxims, “That nature is very easily satisfied;” and, “That necessity is the mother of invention.” I enjoyed perfect health of body, and tranquillity of mind; I did not feel the treachery or inconstancy of a friend, nor the injuries of a secret or open enemy. I had no occasion of bribing, flattering, or pimping, to procure the favour of any great man, or of his minion; I wanted no fence against fraud or oppression: here was neither physician to destroy my body, nor lawyer to ruin my fortune; no informer to watch my words and actions, or forge accusations against me for hire: here were no gibers, censurers, backbiters, pickpockets, highwaymen, housebreakers, attorneys, bawds, buffoons, gamesters, politicians, wits, splenetics, tedious talkers, controvertists, ravishers, murderers, robbers, virtuosos; no leaders, or followers, of party and faction; no encouragers to vice, by seducement or examples; no dungeon, axes, gibbets, whipping-posts, or pillories; no cheating shopkeepers or mechanics; no pride, vanity, or affectation; no fops, bullies, drunkards, strolling whores, or poxes; no ranting, lewd, expensive wives; no stupid, proud pedants; no importunate, overbearing, quarrelsome, noisy, roaring, empty, conceited, swearing companions; no scoundrels raised from the dust upon the merit of their vices, or nobility thrown into it on account of their virtues; no lords, fiddlers, judges, or dancing-masters. I had the favour of being...
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Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Outgrowing Your Place
When personal transformation makes someone incompatible with their original community, forcing a choice between growth and belonging.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to identify when personal development triggers defensive responses from communities invested in maintaining the status quo.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when your questions or changes make others uncomfortable—it often signals you're outgrowing a situation and need to start building new connections.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Economy
In Swift's time, this meant household management and personal organization, not just money matters. It referred to how someone arranged their daily life, resources, and living space efficiently.
Modern Usage:
We still talk about being 'economical' with our time or resources, or having a good system for managing our household.
Houyhnhnms
The rational horses who rule this land, representing Swift's ideal of pure reason and virtue. They live without corruption, war, or the petty conflicts that plague human society.
Modern Usage:
They're like that one workplace or community where everyone actually follows the rules and treats each other with respect - rare but powerful when you find it.
Yahoos
The savage human-like creatures the horses keep as beasts. Swift uses them to represent humanity's worst impulses - greed, violence, and irrationality stripped of civilization's veneer.
Modern Usage:
We still use 'yahoo' to describe someone acting crude or uncivilized, though now it's often just playful teasing.
Assembly
The democratic council of horses that makes community decisions through reason and discussion. They represent ideal governance - logical, fair, but sometimes coldly practical.
Modern Usage:
Like a town hall meeting or HOA board that actually functions properly, making tough decisions for the community's good even when individuals disagree.
Virtue
To the Houyhnhnms, virtue means living according to reason and nature, without deception, greed, or unnecessary conflict. It's practical goodness, not abstract morality.
Modern Usage:
We talk about 'virtue signaling' or someone being 'virtuous,' though we're often more cynical about whether people really mean it.
Corruption
The horses fear Gulliver might teach other Yahoos to use reason for evil purposes, combining human cunning with animal instincts to create something dangerous.
Modern Usage:
Like worrying that giving someone just enough knowledge or power will make them more dangerous than if they had none at all.
Characters in This Chapter
Gulliver
Transformed protagonist facing exile
He's become so attached to this rational society that leaving feels like death. His grief shows how completely he's rejected his own species in favor of the horses' way of life.
Modern Equivalent:
The person who found their dream job or community but gets forced out through no fault of their own
Gulliver's Master
Sympathetic authority figure
A horse who genuinely cares for Gulliver but must enforce the assembly's decision. He represents the painful conflict between personal affection and community responsibility.
Modern Equivalent:
The good manager who has to lay you off due to corporate decisions they personally disagree with
The Houyhnhnm Assembly
Collective decision-maker
They make the rational but harsh choice to exile Gulliver, seeing him as a potential threat despite his good behavior. They prioritize community safety over individual feelings.
Modern Equivalent:
The school board or city council that makes unpopular but logical decisions for the greater good
The Sorrel Nag
Helpful servant/friend
Assists Gulliver in building his canoe, showing that even in exile, some kindness remains. Represents the decent people who help you through transitions.
Modern Equivalent:
The coworker who helps you clean out your office and stays in touch after you're let go
Key Quotes & Analysis
"I had settled my little economy to my own heart's content."
Context: Gulliver describes how perfectly he's organized his life among the horses
This shows Gulliver has found genuine happiness and belonging for the first time. The word 'content' suggests deep satisfaction, not just surface pleasure.
In Today's Words:
I had my life set up exactly how I wanted it.
"He falls into a swoon for grief; but submits."
Context: Gulliver's reaction to being told he must leave the Houyhnhnms
The physical collapse shows this isn't just disappointment - it's devastating loss. Yet he accepts it, showing he's internalized their values of reason over emotion.
In Today's Words:
He literally fainted from heartbreak, but he didn't fight the decision.
"My master had ordered a room to be made for me, after their manner."
Context: Describing how the horses accommodated Gulliver in their society
This shows genuine acceptance and care - they didn't just tolerate him but actively made space for him in their world. The loss becomes more poignant knowing how welcomed he was.
In Today's Words:
My boss set me up with proper workspace that fit their company culture.
Thematic Threads
Identity
In This Chapter
Gulliver's complete transformation creates an identity crisis—he's neither Yahoo nor Houyhnhnm, caught between worlds
Development
Evolved from earlier confusion about his place to now having a clear sense of who he's become, but nowhere to belong
In Your Life:
You might feel this when education, therapy, or life experience changes you so much that you no longer fit with old friends or family.
Social Expectations
In This Chapter
The Houyhnhnm assembly expects Gulliver to remain a harmless curiosity, not become a reasoning being who challenges their worldview
Development
Built from earlier chapters showing how each society expected Gulliver to play a specific role without deviation
In Your Life:
You might recognize this when your workplace, family, or social group expects you to stay in your assigned role despite your growth.
Class
In This Chapter
Gulliver has transcended his Yahoo class through learning but can't be accepted into Houyhnhnm class—he's trapped between levels
Development
Culmination of the class mobility theme, showing that crossing class lines often leaves you homeless in both worlds
In Your Life:
You might experience this when advancing professionally or educationally leaves you feeling disconnected from both your origins and your new environment.
Human Relationships
In This Chapter
Despite genuine affection between Gulliver and his master, community needs override personal bonds
Development
Shows how institutional pressures can destroy even the most meaningful individual connections established earlier
In Your Life:
You might face this when organizational politics force you to choose between personal loyalty and community acceptance.
Personal Growth
In This Chapter
Gulliver's moral and intellectual development has become a liability rather than an asset—growth as punishment
Development
The dark side of the growth journey that began with his first voyage, showing that becoming better can cost everything
In Your Life:
You might feel this when getting healthier, more educated, or more conscious makes you an outsider in your own life.
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
Why do the Houyhnhnms decide Gulliver must leave, even though his master likes him personally?
analysis • surface - 2
What makes Gulliver's transformation from ignorant Yahoo to reasoning being actually threatening to their society?
analysis • medium - 3
Where have you seen someone get pushed out of a group not because they failed, but because they grew beyond what the group could handle?
application • medium - 4
If you were in Gulliver's position - transformed by a community that now rejects you - how would you handle the grief and move forward?
application • deep - 5
What does this chapter reveal about the price of personal growth and the loneliness that sometimes comes with becoming your better self?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Map Your Growth Threats
Think of a time when your personal growth created tension in a relationship, family, or workplace. Write down what you changed about yourself, how others reacted, and what choice you faced between belonging and becoming. Then identify one area where you're growing now that might threaten your current communities.
Consider:
- •Growth often feels like betrayal to those who knew the old you
- •Communities resist change because it threatens their stability and identity
- •Sometimes you have to choose between staying comfortable and staying true to your growth
Journaling Prompt
Write about a relationship or community you've outgrown. What did you learn about yourself in that transition, and how did it prepare you for future growth?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 38: The Unwilling Return to Humanity
What lies ahead teaches us isolation can fundamentally change your perspective on society, and shows us returning to old life after transformation feels impossible. These patterns appear in literature and life alike.