Reason, Boats, and Lawyers... Oh My!!

As I begin to write this post, I have yet to finish reading Swift, but a head full of jumbled thoughts and ideas does not make it easy to finish. So, I will write down what thoughts I have now and possibly write more as I read more. First thing, Swift is much easier to understand then DesCartes. That being said, there are a few things I have found very interesting.

On page 432 are Swift’s intentions behind why he wrote Gulliver’s Travels, and more specifically, the part about the Houyhnhnms; his intentions, “to vex the world rather than divert it.” When I first read this sentence, I liked it because it reminded me of my sister and me. We never like to take anything at face value; we always like to cause conflict, especially when it comes to the rivalry between Auburn and Alabama. But it goes much deeper than that, growing up homeschooled, we were taught to seek out the answers to any questions we might have. We were taught to challenge what we didn’t agree with and provide evidence of why we thought it was wrong.

I realized much later, that this is the whole point of college. And I’m guessing it’s the whole point behind the Honors program as well. College is not here to provide us with a way to party and waste four years, or more, of our lives. No, it is designed to make us think. It is designed to make us challenge everything we’ve ever learned and prove or disprove what we believe.

So far as I’ve read, I’ve seen Swift do exactly what he said he was going to do. He has pointed out, in a very uncomfortable way, that humans aren’t as smart or reasonable as we think we are. In Matthew, Peter and the disciples are in the boat and Jesus appears to them walking on water. Peter immediately wishes to join Jesus. The song “Voice of Truth” by Casting Crowns alludes to this same instance. Many years ago, my youth leader taught a series on this same passage. He said that we should be like Peter and leave our comfort zones, or get out of the boat; that we shouldn’t refrain from doing something, just because we are uncomfortable. I think that Swift was trying to get us out of the boat, by force if necessary, in the way we think. He was trying to make us realize that we needed to think deeper, no matter how uncomfortable it was to think that way.

Okay, onto another thing I find very interesting, and kind of entertaining: Gulliver’s description of lawyers. I find it funny that, no matter what century, lawyers are considered to be the lowest of the low. I also found his description of lawsuits very interesting, specifically the part where he says, “And therefore I have but two methods to preserve my cow. The first is to gain over my adversary’s lawyer with a double fee; who will then betray his client, by insinuating that he hath justice on his side. The second way is for my lawyer to make my cause appear as unjust as he can; by allowing the cow to belong to my adversary; and if it be skillfully done, will certainly bespeak the favor of the bench.” It makes me wonder if I will one day feel the same about lawyers, especially defense lawyers, as I go to work in the Criminal Justice system.

I don’t believe I will add anything else to this post, as I’ve already feel more profound than I’ve ever felt in my life! Perhaps I’m not as profound as I think I am, which is probably the case since I’m not really that profound. Please let me know if my logic, or thought process, is flawed in any way.

In Christ

~Meghan

I posted on Jamie’s