English & Literature

Gulliver's Travels

briefly explain the significance (for the main ideas of the work, not the plot) of what the speaker is saying in the quote below.

Several of this cursed brood getting hold of the branches behind, leaped up into the tree, from whence they began to discharge their excrements on my head; however, I escaped pretty well, by sticking close to the stem of the tree, but was almost stifled with the filth, which fell about me on every side.
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I believe Gulliver is describing his encounter with the savage yahoos, The encounter is meant to juxtapose these indecent humanoid creatures with the far more civilized Houyhnhnms (horses).