Books that Changed Humanity is an initiative of the Humanities Research Centre, based at the Australian National University. The HRC invites experts to introduce and lead discussion of major texts from a variety of cultural traditions, all of which have informed the way we understand ourselves both individually and collectively as human beings.

Join us as Professor Ian Higgins (School of Literature, Languages and Linguistics) introduces and discusses Jonathan Swift's classic novel, Gulliver's Travels.

Gulliver's Travels (first published in 1726) is a landmark in world literature, a masterpiece of irony, and one of the supreme expressions of the satirical mode in the English language. The book is not reader friendly. Lemuel Gulliver set a deadline of seven months for his Travels to reform the world. He is most upset that the deadline was not met. Jonathan Swift's politically disaffected and misanthropic work explains why humanity has not been changed. This lecture will consider the book as a work of its time that has proved to be timeless.

All members of the public are welcome to come, listen, and share their thoughts about this great work of English literature.