Anglais - Cndp

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Dossier pédagogique

Anglais Discipline associée : lettres Lycée / B1 - B2

La satire dans Les Voyages de Gulliver Satire in Gulliver’s Travels

Introduction L’engagement littéraire L’engagement d’un écrivain commence-t-il à la première ligne écrite ? Ou dès la réception de son texte par un lecteur ? Ou consiste-t-il exclusivement à mettre son art au service d’une cause ? Voir aussi sur ce thème la revue Textes et Documents pour la Classe n° 1015 « L’engagement littéraire ». Dans ce dossier pédagogique, on découvre la biographie de Jonathan Swift, qui a fait de la satire son arme littéraire favorite, en particulier dans Les Voyages de Gulliver, dont on étudie quelques passages clés, avant de prendre la plume pour rédiger un écrit satirique.

SOMMAIRE

Objectifs – Supports........................................................................................ 2 Scénario pédagogique .................................................................................... 3 Fiche Élève 1 .................................................................................................. 6 Fiche Corrigé 1 ............................................................................................... 9 Fiche Élève 2 ................................................................................................ 12 Fiche Corrigé 2 ............................................................................................. 15 Fiche Élève 3 ................................................................................................ 16 Fiche Corrigé 3 ............................................................................................. 24 À propos........................................................................................................ 28

ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER

© 2011 – SCÉRÉN-CNDP

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Objectifs – Supports Objectifs Culturels •

Découvrir la vie de Jonathan Swift.

•

Savoir reconnaître des passages satiriques.

Communicatifs •

Expression orale : poser des questions à quelqu’un, faire un résumé.

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Compréhension orale : comprendre une vidéo.

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Expression écrite : rédiger un paragraphe satirique.

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Compréhension écrite : comprendre le résumé d’une œuvre.

Langagiers •

Lexique : le voyage, le corps, la satire.

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Grammaire : le prétérit, les énoncés interrogatifs, la voix passive.

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Phonologie : l’intonation des questions ouvertes, la prononciation de la marque -ed du prétérit.

Documents supports Document 1 : vidéo disponible sur le site www.teachertube.com, cliquer sur « VIDEOS » puis chercher « Jonathan Swift ». Document 2 : un résumé des Voyages de Gulliver, provenant du site www.gradesaver.com, renseigner « Gulliver’s Travels Summary » dans le moteur de recherche. Document 3 : quatre extraits de Gulliver’s Travels extraits du site www.literaturepage.com, rechercher Gullivers’s travels dans « search ». Corriger : rechercher « Gulliver’s Travels » dans le moteur de recherche.



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Scénario pédagogique Les Objectifs énoncés sont ancrés sur les recommandations du Cadre européen commun de référence pour les langues (CECRL, Conseil de l’Europe, 2001) : •

Culturels/Interculturels : savoir, aptitudes et savoir-faire, savoir être et savoir apprendre (cf. chapitre 5, 1. Compétences générales)

•

Communicatifs : activités de communication langagière et stratégies, capacités traitées (cf. chapitre 4)

•

Langagiers : compétences linguistiques, sociolinguistiques et pragmatiques (cf. chapitre 5, 2. Compétences spécifiques)

Les Documents supports constituent autant de types de « textes » authentiques permettant de travailler les objectifs (cf. chapitre IV).

La séquence pédagogique comprend 3 étapes pouvant correspondre à 3 séances de cours.

Étape 1 Objectifs et dispositif préconisé Le but de cette étape est de présenter la vie de Jonathan Swift et l’utilisation qu’il a faite de la satire. Une salle de classe avec vidéoprojecteur ou salle multimédia avec accès à Internet est nécessaire. Activité 1 : travail sur vidéo Document 1 : vidéo sur le site www.teachertube.com, cliquer sur « VIDEOS » puis chercher « Jonathan Swift ». Description de l’activité : les élèves reçoivent la Fiche Élève 1 qu’ils complètent en visionnant la vidéo. La correction est collective (cf. Fiche Corrigé 1). Une fois la correction terminée, on demande aux élèves de se mettre par deux et de se poser des questions sur la vie de Swift. On écrit quelques phrases au tableau, choisies parmi les réponses proposées, par exemple : When he was young, he ... In 1731, he … Then, he … ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER


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Activité 2 : PRL On propose ensuite une PRL (conceptualisation grammaticale) sur le prétérit : de quels types d’événements parlez-vous ? Quel temps utilisez-vous ? Comment se forme-t-il ? Dans les phrases inscrites au tableau, quels mots ou groupes de mots justifient l’emploi de ce temps ? Si on dispose de plus de temps, on peut proposer une réflexion sur la prononciation de la marque -ed du prétérit.

Étape 2 Objectifs Le but de cette étape est de faire lire aux élèves un résumé de Gulliver’s Travels, pour mieux aborder l’étude des textes dans l’étape 3. Activité 3 : pair work Document 2 : un résumé des Voyages de Gulliver, provenant du site www.gradesaver.com, renseigner « Gulliver’s Travels Summary » dans le moteur de recherche. Description de l’activité : les élèves reçoivent la Fiche Élève 2, un résumé de l’œuvre avec deux informations manquantes. Ils préparent les questions et les posent à leur partenaire. S’en suit une réflexion sur la formation des énoncés interrogatifs et l’intonation descendante des questions en -WH. Cette réflexion peut tout à fait se faire avant que les élèves échangent. Ainsi, ils poseront des questions sans erreur grammaticale et avec la bonne intonation. Cf. Fiche Corrigé 2. Activité 4 : récapitulatif Description de l’activité : on laisse aux élèves quelques minutes pour lire le résumé. Pendant ce temps, on inscrit des noms propres sur des bandes de papier : LILLIPUT – BROBDINGNAG – LAPUTA – HOUYHNHNMS. On demande successivement à des élèves de tirer un papier et de faire une phrase. Par exemple : Laputa is the third place Gulliver visited, etc. Au plan grammatical, cette activité permet de manier le prétérit.

Étape 3 Objectifs Le but de cette étape est de plonger au cœur de l’œuvre pour voir comment Swift a utilisé la satire. Activité 5 : travail de groupes Document 3 : quatre extraits de Gulliver’s Travels extraits du site www.literaturepage.com, rechercher Gullivers’s travels dans « search ». Corriger : rechercher « Gulliver’s Travels » dans le moteur de recherche. La Fiche Élève 3 est distribuée. La classe est divisée en quatre groupes. Chaque groupe ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER


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travaille sur un passage satirique de l’ouvrage (pendant une quinzaine de minutes). Les quatre extraits sont volontairement tirés des quatre livres. Après avoir réfléchi, chaque groupe propose au reste de la classe un résumé oral pour répondre à la question : what does Swift satirize in this passage? Cf. Fiche Corrigé 3. Quand les quatre groupes se sont exprimés, on demande aux élèves : what can you conclude of Swift’s satire in the whole book? Le but est de leur faire comprendre que la satire s’amplifie au fil des livres. Swift commence par critiquer certains aspects (politique, scientifique) pour finir par une satire du genre humain. On peut également faire le point sur les « outils » utilisés par le satiriste, par exemple l’exagération (grâce à « l’effet listes » par exemple), l’ironie, le sarcasme, le ridicule, le burlesque, etc. Ce travail peut idéalement être mené avec le professeur de français. On peut enfin renvoyer les élèves au site de Luis Quintanilla, qui a illustré le livre. On y trouve en particulier une illustration des Yahoos du livre IV sur lesquels un groupe travaille : http://www.lqart.org/, puis cliquer sur « Illustrations for Books and Plays », puis sur « Gulliver’s Travels », ou dans un moteur de recherche, taper « Luis Quintanilla ». Activité 6 : rédaction Cette étape peut ou non se faire en classe. On propose le sujet suivant : choose a target (a person, an event, an aspect of the country you live in…) and write a satirical paragraph. Prolongements éventuels •

Étude du film Gulliver’s Travels, sorti en 2010.

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Réalisation d’un livret rassemblant les productions satiriques des élèves.



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Anglais


Discipline associée : lettres Lycée / B1 - B2

Fiche Élève 1 GET READY 1. Read the following definition Whigs and Tories are members of two political parties in England, particularly during the 18th century. The Whigs became the Liberal Party in the 19th century and the Tories became the Conservative Party. 2. Match each degree/diploma with its French equivalent. Use a dictionary if need be. Bachelor’s degree ●

●Doctorat

Doctor’s degree

●

●Licence

Master’s degree

●

●Maîtrise

3. Visit the following website: www.cartoonstock.com and in “Search Images”, write “obituary”. Watch the cartoons and answer the following question: what is an “obituary”? •

a published notice of a death, sometimes with a short biography of the person who died;

•

a published report on a writer’s works;

•

a book of extracts from a writer’s literary works.



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DETAILED COMPREHENSION Watch the video and answer the following questions. 1. Fill in Swift’s identity card: First name:

Surname:

Date of birth: Date of death: Nationality: information about his father: Information about his mother: The place where he was educated (former and current names): 2. Circle the correct answer for each question: How old was Swift when he got his Bachelor’s degree? 17

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How old was Swift when he returned to England? 19

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3. Circle the correct proposals: •

Swift worked for the diplomat Sir William Temple adviser/secretary/ personal assistant/consultant.

•

In 1694, Swift started his political/poetical/religious life.

as

his

personal

4. True or False? Justify. •

In his new life, Swift was surrounded by many people and became rich.

•

His new life lasted for long years.

5. Answer the questions: When did he return to Church? Where? 6. Complete: In ____, he received his Doctor’s of Divinity degree from __________ College.



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7. Circle the correct proposal: In those years, he became increasingly socially/politically/poetically active. 8. Put the sentences into the right order: 1. anonymously 2. he travelled from Dublin 3. Over the next ten years, 4. to London 5. and began publishing 6. frequently 7. political pamphlets. The right order is: __ / __ / __ / __ / __ / __ / __. 9. Complete with the names of two countries: When Queen Ann died and George I became King, Swift left __________ for _________. 10. Concerning Swift’s literary works: •

He used satire: how is it defined?

•

What do the three dates correspond to: 1727, 1729 and1731?

11. What was Swift’s favourite literary weapon?

12. Use the following words to make a sentence to explain how Swift’s fortune was used after he died: hospital – 1757 – the mentally ill – psychiatric hospital – still exists. 13. Pick out the expression used to describe Swift: “the _________ of __________ __________”. 14. How can Swift’s influence be noticed nowadays?



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Fiche Corrigé 1 GET READY 2. Match each degree/diploma with its French equivalent. Use a dictionary if need be. •

Bachelor’s degree = Licence ;

•

Doctor’s degree = Doctorat ;

•

Master’s degree = Maîtrise.

3. Visit the following website: www.cartoonstock.com and in “Search Images”, write “obituary”. Watch the cartoons and answer the following question: what is an “obituary”? An obituary is a published notice of a death, sometimes with a short biography of the person who died.

DETAILED COMPREHENSION 1. Fill in Swift’s identity card: First name: Jonathan

Surname: Swift

Date of birth: 1667 Date of death: 1745 Nationality: Irish Information about his father: he was Irish and died 7 months before Swift was born. Information about his mother: she was English and returned to England after her husband’s death. The place where he was educated (former and current names): Kilkenny College in Dublin, currently known as Trinity College.



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2. Circle the correct answer for each question: Swift was 19 when he got his Bachelor’s degree. Swift was 21 when he returned to England. 3. Circle the correct proposals: •

Swift worked for the diplomat Sir William Temple as his secretary and personal assistant.

•

In 1694, Swift started his religious life.

4. True or False? Justify. •

In his new life, Swift was surrounded by many people and became rich. FALSE: he was isolated in a small community far form the centres of power of the city and soon became miserable in his new life.

•

His new life lasted for long years. FALSE: he left his religious life and returned to Temple until 1699.

5. Answer the questions: Swift returned to Church after Temple’s death in St Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin. 6. Complete: In 1702, he received his Doctor’s of Divinity degree from Trinity College. 7. Circle the correct proposal: In those years, he became increasingly politically active. 8. Put the sentences into the right order: The right order is: 3 / 2 / 4 / 6 / 5 / 1 / 7. 9. Complete with the names of two countries: When Queen Ann died and George I became King, Swift left England for Ireland. 10. Concerning Swift’s literary works: •

Satire is a literary device that utilizes irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, in exposing, denouncing, or deriding vice, folly, etc.;

•

1727: he published his masterpiece Gulliver’s Travels; 1729: he published the Modest Proposal; 1731: he published his obituary.

11. What was Swift’s favourite literary weapon? His fortune was used to found a hospital for the mentally ill which opened in 1757 and ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER


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still exists as a psychiatric hospital. 12. Use the following words to make a sentence to explain how Swift’s fortune was used after he died: hospital – 1757 – the mentally ill – psychiatric hospital – still exists. Swift’s favourite literary weapon was irony. Swift is “the father of political satire.” 13. Pick out the expression used to describe Swift: Swift’s influence can be noticed nowadays with comedians and in TV shows like The Simpsons.



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Fiche Élève 2 STUDENT A Read the text and prepare questions for your partner to get the missing pieces of information. Gulliver’s Travels Summary Gulliver goes on four separate voyages in Gulliver’s Travels. Each journey is preceded by a storm. All four voyages bring new perspectives to Gulliver’s life and new opportunities for satirizing the ways of England. The first voyage is to __ ? __, where Gulliver is huge and the Lilliputians are small. At first the Lilliputians seem amiable, but the reader soon sees them for the ridiculous and petty creatures they are. Gulliver is convicted of treason for “making water” in the capital (even though he was putting out a fire and saving countless lives)-among other “crimes”. The second voyage is to Brobdingnag, a land of Giants where Gulliver seems as small as the Lilliputians were to him. Gulliver is afraid, but his keepers are surprisingly gentle. He is humiliated by the King when he is made to see the difference between how England is and how it ought to be. Gulliver realizes how revolting he must have seemed to the Lilliputians. Gulliver’s third voyage is to Laputa (and neighboring Luggnagg and Glubdugdribb). In a visit to the island of Glubdugdribb, Gulliver is able to call up the dead and discovers the deceptions of history. In Laputa, the people are over-thinkers and are ridiculous in other ways. Also, he meets the Stuldbrugs, a race endowed with immortality. Gulliver discovers that they are __ ? __. His fourth voyage is to the land of the Houyhnhnms, who are horses endowed with reason. Their rational, clean, and simple society is contrasted with the filthiness and brutality of the Yahoos, beasts in human shape. Gulliver reluctantly comes to recognize their human vices. Gulliver stays with the Houyhnhnms for several years, becoming completely enamored with them to the point that he never wants to leave. When he is told that the time has come for him to leave the island, Gulliver faints from grief. Upon returning to England, Gulliver feels disgusted about other humans, including his own family. Source: www.gradesaver.com



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Question 1: Answer:

Question 2: Answer:



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STUDENT B Read the text and prepare questions for your partner to get the missing pieces of information. Gulliver’s Travels Summary Gulliver goes on four separate voyages in Gulliver’s Travels. Each journey is preceded by a storm. All four voyages bring new perspectives to Gulliver’s life and new opportunities for satirizing the ways of England. The first voyage is to Lillliput, where Gulliver is huge and the Lilliputians are small. At first the Lilliputians seem amiable, but the reader soon sees them for the ridiculous and petty creatures they are. Gulliver is convicted of treason for “making water” in the capital (even though he was putting out a fire and saving countless lives)-among other “crimes”. The second voyage is to __ ? __, a land of Giants where Gulliver seems as small as the Lilliputians were to him. Gulliver is afraid, but his keepers are surprisingly gentle. He is humiliated by the King when he is made to see the difference between how England is and how it ought to be. Gulliver realizes how revolting he must have seemed to the Lilliputians. Gulliver’s third voyage is to Laputa (and neighboring Luggnagg and Glubdugdribb). In a visit to the island of Glubdugdribb, Gulliver is able to call up the dead and discovers the deceptions of history. In Laputa, the people are over-thinkers and are ridiculous in other ways. Also, he meets the Stuldbrugs, a race endowed with immortality. Gulliver discovers that they are miserable. His fourth voyage is to the land of the Houyhnhnms, who are horses endowed with reason. Their rational, clean, and simple society is contrasted with the filthiness and brutality of the Yahoos, beasts in human shape. Gulliver reluctantly comes to recognize their human vices. Gulliver stays with the Houyhnhnms for __ ? __ years, becoming completely enamored with them to the point that he never wants to leave. When he is told that the time has come for him to leave the island, Gulliver faints from grief. Upon returning to England, Gulliver feels disgusted about other humans, including his own family. Source: www.gradesaver.com Question 1: Answer:

Question 2: Answer:



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Fiche Corrigé 2 STUDENT A Question 1: Where does Gulliver go first? Answer: First, Gulliver goes to Lilliput.

Question 2: What does Gulliver discover about the Stuldbrugs? Answer: He discovers that they are immortal.

STUDENT B Question 1: Where does Gulliver go second? Answer: Second, Gulliver goes to Brobdingnag.

Question 2: How long does he stay with the Houyhnhnms? Answer: He stays with them for several years.



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DATE


Fiche Élève 3 Document 3 : quatre extraits de Gulliver’s Travels extraits du site www.literaturepage.com, rechercher Gullivers’s travels dans « search ».

GROUP 1 Read the text and answer the questions. PART I CHAPTER IV Gulliver meets Reldresal, the Principal secretary of Foreign Affairs, who tells him the political story of Lilliput. He explains to him the reason why the two empires of Lilliput and Blefuscu have been at war for along time because of an edict by the King’s father on how to break an egg... “It began upon the following occasion. It is allowed on all hands, that the primitive way of breaking eggs, before we eat them, was upon the larger end; but his present majesty’s grandfather, while he was a boy, going to eat an egg, and breaking it according to the ancient practice, happened to cut one of his fingers. Whereupon the emperor his father published an edict, commanding all his subjects, upon great penalties, to break the smaller end of their eggs. The people so highly resented this law, that our histories tell us, there have been six rebellions raised on that account; wherein one emperor lost his life, and another his crown. These civil commotions were constantly fomented by the monarchs of Blefuscu; and when they were quelled, the exiles always fled for refuge to that empire. It is computed that eleven thousand persons have at several times suffered death, rather than submit to break their eggs at the smaller end. Many hundred large volumes have been published upon this controversy: but the books of the Big-endians have been long forbidden, and the whole party rendered incapable by law of holding employments. During the course of these troubles, the emperors of Blefuscu did frequently expostulate by their ambassadors, accusing us of making a schism in religion, by offending against a fundamental doctrine of our great prophet Lustrog, in the fifty-fourth chapter of the Blundecral (which is their Alcoran). This, however, is thought to be a mere strain upon the text; for the words are these: ‘that all true believers break their eggs at the convenient end.’ And which is the convenient end, seems, in my humble opinion to be left to every man’s conscience, or at least in the power of the chief magistrate to determine. Now, the Bigendian exiles have found so much credit in the emperor of Blefuscu’s court, and so much private assistance and encouragement from their party here at home, that a bloody war has been carried on between the two empires for six-and-thirty moons, with various success; during which time we have lost forty capital ships, and a much a greater number ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER


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of smaller vessels, together with thirty thousand of our best seamen and soldiers; and the damage received by the enemy is reckoned to be somewhat greater than ours. However, they have now equipped a numerous fleet, and are just preparing to make a descent upon us; and his imperial majesty, placing great confidence in your valour and strength, has commanded me to lay this account of his affairs before you.” I desired the secretary to present my humble duty to the emperor; and to let him know, “that I thought it would not become me, who was a foreigner, to interfere with parties; but I was ready, with the hazard of my life, to defend his person and state against all invaders”. Source : www.literaturepage.com 1. Vocabulary. Find the words corresponding to the following definitions: •

to show indignation at something:

•

civil disturbance or insurrection:

•

to determine a number:

2. Complete this summary of the passage with words from the text: In Lilliput, the primitive way of breaking an __________ was upon the __________ end. But one day, while he was eating an _________, the King’s grandfather __________ one of his fingers. As a consequence, his father passed a law obliging people to break the __________ end of their eggs. But Lilliputians __________ the decision imposed on them and, supported by the Kings of __________, organized several __________. Many citizens preferred to die rather than comply by the law and many “______ - __________”, as they were nicknamed, had to find __________ in Blefuscu, where they were warmly welcomed by the __________. Now, a __________ has been taking place for a long time, causing great __________ to both empires. 3. What countries do Lilliput and Blefuscu symbolize? Choose the correct proposal: •

Ireland and France

•

England and Ireland

•

England and France

4. What does Swift satirize in this episode? What does he denounce? Now, prepare a short oral summary for the class to explain why this passage is satirical. Use the following prompts: this passage is from Part … chapter … It deals with … In this passage, Swift satirizes...



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GROUP 2 Read the text and answer the questions. PART II CHAPTER VI Gulliver spends much time with the King and tells him the history of the United Kingdom from its geography to its politics, religious belief to royalty, customs to judiciary system. Here are the King’s reactions... When I had put an end to these long discources, his majesty, in a sixth audience, consulting his notes, proposed many doubts, queries, and objections, upon every article [...] He was perfectly astonished with the historical account gave him of our affairs during the last century; protesting “it was only a heap of conspiracies, rebellions, murders, massacres, revolutions, banishments, the very worst effects that avarice, faction, hypocrisy, perfidiousness, cruelty, rage, madness, hatred, envy, lust, malice, and ambition, could produce”. His majesty, in another audience, was at the pains to recapitulate the sum of all I had spoken; compared the questions he made with the answers I had given; then taking me into his hands, and stroking me gently, delivered himself in these words, which I shall never forget, nor the manner he spoke them in: “My little friend Grildrig (Gulliver’s nickname), you have made a most admirable panegyric upon your country; you have clearly proved, that ignorance, idleness, and vice, are the proper ingredients for qualifying a legislator; that laws are best explained, interpreted, and applied, by those whose interest and abilities lie in perverting, confounding, and eluding them. I observe among you some lines of an institution, which, in its original, might have been tolerable, but these half erased, and the rest wholly blurred and blotted by corruptions. It does not appear, from all you have said, how any one perfection is required toward the procurement of any one station among you; much less, that men are ennobled on account of their virtue; that priests are advanced for their piety or learning; soldiers, for their conduct or valour; judges, for their integrity; senators, for the love of their country; or counsellors for their wisdom. As for yourself,” continued the king, “who have spent the greatest part of your life in travelling, I am well disposed to hope you may hitherto have escaped many vices of your country. But by what I have gathered from your own relation, and the answers I have with much pains wrung and extorted from you, I cannot but conclude the bulk of your natives to be the most pernicious race of little odious vermin that nature ever suffered to crawl upon the surface of the earth.” Source : www.literaturepage.com 1. Vocabulary. Find synonyms for: questions, surprised, avoid, destructive. Find the words: dissension, entaché, masse, ramper. Find the word corresponding to the following definition: a formal speech honouring someone or something. 2. In the text, find an adjective showing the King’s reaction after Gulliver’s account of England. ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER


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3. Sum up the King’s vision of England.

4. What linguistic means does the narrator repeatedly use?

5. What is the target of Swift’s satire in this passage? Now, prepare a short oral summary for the class to explain why this passage is satirical. Use the following prompts: this passage is from Part ... chapter ... It deals with ... In this passage, Swift satirizes...



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GROUP 3 Read the text and answer the questions. PART III CHAPTER V Gulliver visits the Academy and is shown several scientific experiments in action... This academy is not an entire single building, but a continuation of several houses on both sides of a street, which growing waste, was purchased and applied to that use. I was received very kindly by the warden, and went for many days to the academy. Every room has in it one or more projectors; and I believe I could not be in fewer than five hundred rooms. The first man I saw was of a meagre aspect, with sooty hands and face, his hair and beard long, ragged, and singed in several places. His clothes, shirt, and skin, were all of the same colour. He has been eight years upon a project for extracting sunbeams out of cucumbers, which were to be put in phials hermetically sealed, and let out to warm the air in raw inclement summers. He told me, he did not doubt, that, in eight years more, he should be able to supply the governor’s gardens with sunshine, at a reasonable rate: but he complained that his stock was low, and entreated me “to give him something as an encouragement to ingenuity, especially since this had been a very dear season for cucumbers.” I made him a small present, for my lord had furnished me with money on purpose, because he knew their practice of begging from all who go to see them [...] I saw another at work to calcine ice into gunpowder; who likewise showed me a treatise he had written concerning the malleability of fire, which he intended to publish. There was a most ingenious architect, who had contrived a new method for building houses, by beginning at the roof, and working downward to the foundation; which he justified to me, by the like practice of those two prudent insects, the bee and the spider. There was a man born blind, who had several apprentices in his own condition: their employment was to mix colours for painters, which their master taught them to distinguish by feeling and smelling. It was indeed my misfortune to find them at that time not very perfect in their lessons, and the professor himself happened to be generally mistaken. This artist is much encouraged and esteemed by the whole fraternity [...] I was at the mathematical school, where the master taught his pupils after a method scarce imaginable to us in Europe. The proposition, and demonstration, were fairly written on a thin wafer, with ink composed of a cephalic tincture. This, the student was to swallow upon a fasting stomach, and for three days following, eat nothing but bread and water. As the wafer digested, the tincture mounted to his brain, bearing the proposition along with it. But the success has not hitherto been answerable, partly by some error in the quantum or composition, and partly by the perverseness of lads, to whom this bolus is so nauseous, that they generally steal aside, and discharge it upwards, before it can operate; neither have they been yet persuaded to use so long an abstinence, as the prescription requires. Source : www.literaturepage.com ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER


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1. Vocabulary. Find the words (in the right order): gardien, couvert de suie, en loques, roussi, rayons solaires, fioles, gauffrette, encre, avaler. 2. Who welcomes Gulliver at the Academy? 3. Complete with words from the passage: Six experiments are shown to Gulliver: •

the first one consists in extracting __________ out of __________ so as to create __________ for the Governor’s garden;

•

the second consists in __________ houses, starting from the __________ and finishing with the __________;

•

the third one consists in teaching apprentices how to recognize colours by only __________ them;

•

the fourth one consists in making a student __________ a wafer with a mathematical formula on it. After being digested, the formula was supposed to go to his __________.

4. How can you qualify the experiments? Circle the adjectives you find relevant: useful – indispensable – useless – intelligent – strange – trivial. 5. What is the common point of a majority of those experiments as far as their results are concerned? 6. What category of people does Swift satirize in this passage? What does he want to denounce? Now, prepare a short oral summary for the class to explain why this passage is satirical. Use the following prompts: this passage is from Part … chapter … It deals with … In this passage, Swift satirizes...



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GROUP 4 Read the text and answer the questions. PART IV CHAPTER I After a mutiny, Gulliver is left by his sailors on an unknown land, where he meets strange hideous creatures, on which he says in chapter II: “My horror and astonishment are not to be described, when I observed in this abominable animal, a perfect human figure”. In this desolate condition I advanced forward, and soon got upon firm ground, where I sat down on a bank to rest myself, and consider what I had best do [...] I fell into a beaten road, where I saw many tracts of human feet, and some of cows, but most of horses. At last I beheld several animals in a field, and one or two of the same kind sitting in trees. Their shape was very singular and deformed, which a little discomposed me, so that I lay down behind a thicket to observe them better. Some of them coming forward near the place where I lay, gave me an opportunity of distinctly marking their form. Their heads and breasts were covered with a thick hair, some frizzled, and others lank; they had beards like goats, and a long ridge of hair down their backs, and the fore parts of their legs and feet; but the rest of their bodies was bare, so that I might see their skins, which were of a brown buff colour. They had no tails, nor any hair at all on their buttocks, except about the anus, which, I presume, nature had placed there to defend them as they sat on the ground, for this posture they used, as well as lying down, and often stood on their hind feet. They climbed high trees as nimbly as a squirrel, for they had strong extended claws before and behind, terminating in sharp points, and hooked. They would often spring, and bound, and leap, with prodigious agility. The females were not so large as the males; they had long lank hair on their heads, but none on their faces, nor any thing more than a sort of down on the rest of their bodies, except about the anus and pudenda. The dugs hung between their fore feet, and often reached almost to the ground as they walked. The hair of both sexes was of several colours, brown, red, black, and yellow. Upon the whole, I never beheld, in all my travels, so disagreeable an animal, or one against which I naturally conceived so strong an antipathy. So that, thinking I had seen enough, full of contempt and aversion, I got up, and pursued the beaten road, hoping it might direct me to the cabin of some Indian. I had not got far, when I met one of these creatures full in my way, and coming up directly to me. The ugly monster, when he saw me, distorted several ways, every feature of his visage, and stared, as at an object he had never seen before; then approaching nearer, lifted up his fore-paw, whether out of curiosity or mischief I could not tell; but I drew my hanger, and gave him a good blow with the flat side of it, for I durst not strike with the edge, fearing the inhabitants might be provoked against me, if they should come to know that I had killed or maimed any of their cattle. When the beast felt the smart, he drew back, and roared so loud, that a herd of at least forty came flocking about me from the next field, howling and making odious faces; but I ran to the body of a tree, and leaning my back against it, kept them off by waving my hanger. Several of this cursed brood, getting hold of the branches behind, leaped up into the tree, whence they began to discharge their excrements on my head; however, I escaped pretty well by sticking close to the stem of the tree, but was almost stifled with the filth, which fell about me on every side. Source : www.literaturepage.com 1. Vocabulary: Find the words (in the right order): buisson, épais, lisse, crête, chamois ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER


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(couleur), habilement, griffes, malice, estropier, rugir, hurler, maudit. Then find three synonyms for “jump”. 2. Fill in the “identity card” of the “animals” Gulliver meets: •

physical description (shape, colour, etc.):

•

posture:

•

skills (capacities):

•

cry:

3. What two animals does Gulliver compare the creatures he meets to and why? 4. Find all the words and expressions showing how Gulliver feels in this passage. 5. Twice in the text, Gulliver uses the word “feet”, in particular, he says that the creatures “often stood on their hind feet.” Normally, when you talk about animals, you should say “hind legs”. Why? Who is satirized in the passage? Who do those “ugly monsters” symbolize? Now, prepare a short oral summary for the class to explain why this passage is satirical. Use the following prompts: this passage is from Part … chapter … It deals with … In this passage, Swift satirizes...



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Fiche Corrigé 3 PART I, CHAPTER IV 1. Vocabulary. Find the words corresponding to the following definitions: •

to show indignation at something: to resent.

•

civil disturbance or insurrection: commotion.

•

to determine a number: to compute.

2. Complete this summary of the passage with words from the text: In Lilliput, the primitive way of breaking an egg was upon the larger end. But one day, while he was eating an egg, the King’s grandfather cut one of his fingers. As a consequence, his father passed a law obliging people to break the smaller end of their eggs. But Lilliputians resented the decision imposed on them and, supported by the Kings of Blefuscu, organized several rebellions. Many citizens preferred to die rather than comply by the law and many “Big – endians”, as they were nicknamed, had to find refuge in Blefuscu, where they were warmly welcomed by the emperors. Now, a war has been taking place for a long time, causing great damage to both empires. 3. What countries do Lilliput and Blefuscu symbolize? Choose the correct proposal: Lilliput and Blefuscu symbolize England and France. 4. What does Swift satirize in this episode? What does he denounce? In this episode, Swift satirizes England and France and denounces the needless bickering and fighting between the two nations. The origin of the war between Lilliput and Blefuscu is trivial, as well as the reasons why England and France disagree.

PART II, CHAPTER VI 1. Vocabulary. Find synonyms for: questions, surprised, avoid, destructive. Find the words: dissension, entaché, masse, ramper. Find the word corresponding to the following definition: a formal speech honouring someone or something. •

queries, astonished, elude, pernicious.

•

faction, blotted, bulk, crawl.



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•

a panegyric.

2. In the text, find an adjective showing the King’s reaction after Gulliver’s account of England. He was perfectly astonished (=amazed, taken aback). 3. Sum up the King’s vision of England. The King’s vision of England is highly negative. He criticizes the political and judicial systems (even religion,) blotted by CORRUPTION. According to him, lawyers, priests, soldiers, judges, senators and counsellors are all corrupted. He ends up concluding that English people are “the most pernicious race of odious little vermin that nature ever suffered to crawl upon the surface of the earth”. 4. What linguistic means does the narrator repeatedly use? Gulliver uses long lists. Exaggeration is a tool of satire. 5. What is the target of Swift’s satire in this passage? England is the target, in particular its political and judicial system. The country is depicted as being full of vice and immorality.

PART III, CHAPTER V 1. Vocabulary. Find the words (in the right order): gardien, couvert de suie, en loques, roussi, rayons solaires, fioles, gauffrette, encre, avaler. warden, sooty, ragged, singed, sunbeams, phials, wafer, ink, swallow. 2. Who welcomes Gulliver at the Academy? The warden welcomes Gulliver at the Academy. 3. Complete with words from the passage: Six experiments are shown to Gulliver: •

the first one consists in extracting sunbeams out of cucumbers so as to create sunshine for the Governor’s garden;

•

the second consists in building houses, starting from the top and finishing with the foundation;

•

the third one consists in teaching apprentices how to recognize colours by only smelling them;

•

the fourth one consists in making a student swallow a wafer with a mathematical formula on it. After being digested, the formula was supposed to go to his brain.



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4. How can you qualify the experiments? Circle the adjectives you find relevant: The experiments are useless, strange and trivial. 5. What is the common point of a majority of those experiments as far as their results are concerned? Many experiments are failures or in progress. 6. What category of people does Swift satirize in this passage? What does he want to denounce? In this passage, Swift satirizes scientists in general (mathematicians, astronomers etc). He attacks the scientific community’s need to analyse everything. In Swift’s times, there was a shift to a more scientific worldview. Swift thought that this could lead to disaster if experiments were left unchecked.

PART IV, CHAPTER I 1. Vocabulary: Find the words (in the right order): buisson, épais, lisse, crête, chamois (couleur), habilement, griffes, malice, estropier, rugir, hurler, maudit. Then find three synonyms for “jump”. •

thicket, thick, lank, ridge, buff, nimbly, claws, mischief, maim, roar, howl, cursed.

•

spring, bound and leap.

2. Fill in the “identity card” of the “animals” Gulliver meets: •

physical description (shape, colour, etc.): their shape is “singular and deformed”. When they meet Gulliver, they distort “every feature of [their] visages and make “odious faces”. They have thick hair (frizzled or lank) on their heads and breasts, as well as on their backs, legs and feet. Their skin is brown. The hair of both sexes is of several colours, brown, red, black and yellow. They have claws. Gender differences exist.

•

posture: they are sitting, lying down or standing on their hind feet.

•

skills (capacities): they can climb the trees and spring, bound and leap with “prodigious agility”.

•

Cry: they roar and howl.

3. What two animals does Gulliver compare the creatures he meets to and why? As they have beards, Gulliver compares them to goats and as they nimbly climb trees, he compares them to squirrels. 4. Find all the words and expressions showing how Gulliver feels in this passage. Gulliver is confused when he discovers these animals (“discomposed me”). After seeing them in details, he feels disgusted, “full of contempt and aversion”: “I never beheld, in all ANGLAIS – LYCEE / B1-B2 – LA SATIRE DANS LES VOYAGES DE GULLIVER


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my travels, so disagreeable an animal, or one against which I naturally conceived so strong an antipathy.” He feels angry when one of the animals fights him but he is so afraid that he doesn’t dare to defend himself. 5. Twice in the text, Gulliver uses the word “feet”, in particular, he says that the creatures “often stood on their hind feet.” Normally, when you talk about animals, you should say “hind legs”. Why? Who is satirized in the passage? Who do those “ugly monsters” symbolize? On the one hand, Gulliver uses the words “animals” and “beast”, but on the other hand, there are human references, with the word “feet” in particular. It is clear that human nature itself is satirized here. This “ugly monster” looks like a human being. Humanity is completely degraded and Swift ironically criticizes its flaws.



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À propos Conception : Marie-Line Périllat-Mercerot et Claude Renucci (CNDP). Réalisation : Pôle Langues étrangères – FLES, direction de l’édition. Intégration technique : François Thibaud. Intégration éditoriale : Danièle Merrien. Auteure : Florence Palardelle, professeure d’anglais, académie de Reims.

