Gulliver, through intention or misfortune, constantly
finds himself in strange places, surrounded by strange people. Because of this, he
always has to figure out his environment and the culture to avoid giving offense.
Examples of Gulliver's innate curiosity appear all over the book, and he compiles and
lists (to a somewhat obsessive level) the customs, measurements, and other interesting
facets of each culture. For example, while he is acclimating in Lilliput, Gulliver
compiles a list of culture and custom even larger than what is set forth in the novel
itself:
Although I intend to leave the description of
this empire to a particular treatise, yet, in the mean time, I am content to gratify the
curious reader with some general ideas. As the common size of the natives is somewhat
under six inches high, so there is an exact proportion in all other animals, as well as
plants and trees...
(Swift, Gulliver's Travels,
gutenberg.org)
He makes claim
several times to even more information, which he intends to publish as a scholarly text.
This indicates his drive to learn and study, and his need to discover and collect
information and data about his surroundings. Each time Gulliver lands on a new shore, he
despairs of ever returning to England, but each time he carefully assembles a mass of
information, indicating that even if Gulliver were to remain in one of those countries
until his death, he would spend his remaining days asking questions and collecting
facts, figures, and information.
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