The Jonathan Swift Classic: Gulliver’s Travels characters

Appears from the start

An English surgeon with a strong desire to travel, practical skill at sea, and a habit of observing unfamiliar societies in detail. After a shipwreck he reaches an island whose inhabitants are only a few inches tall. He initially depends on their goodwill for food and freedom while trying to understand their language and customs.

First appears in chapter 2

The ruler of Lilliput, physically a little taller than his subjects and accustomed to elaborate ceremony. He has Gulliver fed and guarded after the shipwreck, then considers whether the enormous stranger can be trusted and put to use by the state.

First appears in chapter 3

Lilliput's lord high treasurer and an exceptionally agile performer in the court's contests for office. He is one of the ministers whose ability to keep royal favor matters more than sound government.

First appears in chapter 4

The principal secretary for private affairs in Lilliput. He visits Gulliver as a friendly official and explains the country's bitter party divisions and its war with the neighboring island of Blefuscu.

First appears in chapter 4

Lilliput's high admiral and an influential opponent of Gulliver at court. He resents the foreigner's importance and distrusts the power Gulliver has acquired through his size and military usefulness.

First appears in chapter 9

A farmer in Brobdingnag who discovers the tiny Gulliver in a field. He brings the stranger home as a curiosity and soon realizes that public exhibitions of him can earn money.

Also known as Glumdalclitch

First appears in chapter 10

The farmer's nine-year-old daughter in Brobdingnag. Although gigantic beside Gulliver, she handles him gently, makes clothes and a small bed for him, teaches him the local language, and becomes his devoted caretaker. Gulliver's name for her means his little nurse.

First appears in chapter 11

The queen of Brobdingnag, who is amused by Gulliver's intelligence and buys him from the farmer. She keeps him at court, supplies him with a specially made home and furnishings, and allows his young caretaker to remain with him.

First appears in chapter 11

The thoughtful ruler of Brobdingnag. He questions Gulliver closely about England's government, laws, wars, and social order, testing Gulliver's proud account against the violence and corruption it reveals.

First appears in chapter 20

A leading nobleman of Balnibarbi who receives Gulliver hospitably. Unlike most people influenced by the academy at Lagado, he manages his estate by established, effective methods and can explain why the surrounding country has become impoverished.

Also known as Gulliver's Master

First appears in chapter 28

A gray Houyhnhnm who finds Gulliver after he has been abandoned by mutineers. He belongs to a society of intelligent, orderly horses and is intrigued that Gulliver has reason and speech despite resembling the degraded humanlike creatures called Yahoos.

Also known as Don Pedro

First appears in chapter 38

The Portuguese captain who finds Gulliver at sea. He treats the suspicious and distressed traveler with steady kindness, gives him clothes and passage, and tries to restore his trust in other human beings.