ENGLISH 45B Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Travel Literature, Fictional Country, Oroonoko
Document Summary
Became popular like robinson crusoe and treated as a children"s book. Fourth part of the story was often cut out altogether because it"s the most scandalous and shocking. Presents itself as satirical of hugely popular genre of travel narratives insofar as robinson crusoe also makes claims upon the genre. This is the period in which europe is extending itself. Some of the best-selling works of the 18th century are travel narratives. Charles dampier -- gulliver calls him my cousin dampier (?) Books 1 and 2 make fun of narratives because they strain the credulity of readers, readers believe anything they"re told about what"s on the other side of the planet, and parodies the style. Swifte also affects the plain style of the travel narrative, where the prose gets out of the way of reader and presents itself as a transparent innocent lens in which we"re seeing the world.
