Gulliver's Travels: Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World.

Gulliver requests to study the Yahoos on his own, which is granted. He is accompanied by a guard and observes the Yahoos. At first, Yahoos who see Gulliver mock him with monkey gestures. Gulliver chronicles his observations, beginning with a description of how young Yahoos are nimble, and as they grow, Yahoos are physically strong. They are also prone to the same kinds of vices as humans, such as cowardice and cruelty. He notes that Yahoos are excellent swimmers, which leads him to narrate an adventure he has when he is approached by a single female Yahoo while he himself is swimming. Evidently, the female Yahoo rushes into the water to seduce Gulliver, which scares him so that he yells out for the guard.

Gulliver then mentions that he has been with the Houyhnhnms for three years now. He marvels at their lifestyle and how they live in harmony with nature and their own natural instincts. He discusses their approach to child-rearing, marriage, and education. He also mentions that love and courtship are non-existent, as love is a passion not aligned with reason, which of course, guides all that the Houyhnhnms do. They cooperate when it comes to governance and ensure that all citizens have access to the basic necessities of life. They have assemblies of representatives from other districts every four years. There are almost never any debates, disagreements, or infighting at these assemblies. 

Gulliver attends one of the assemblies during which a rare disagreement breaks out. This stems from the problem posed by the Yahoos’ mere existence. Some Houyhnhnms see them as a threat, arguing that they should be exterminated. Others, led primarily by Gulliver’s master, argue against the taking of life, even Yahoos. He asserts that he has learned from Gulliver’s example that perhaps there is the possibility of gradually civilizing the Yahoos to embrace reason so that they are not a threat. Gulliver mentions that the Yahoos are not native to the land. Gulliver’s master discusses the ways humans use horses, specifically how they tame and castrate the young male horses. He uses these suggestions as alternatives to killing the Yahoos off entirely.

Gulliver feels at home with the Houyhnhnms and is relatively at peace. He has lost all desire to return to England, where he would inevitably run into the worst that humanity has to offer. However, the master Houyhnhnm one day informs Gulliver that he must leave. The others have become suspicious of Gulliver and are concerned that he will persuade the Yahoos to attack the Houyhnhnms. Gulliver is so distraught at the request that he faints at the feet of the master, which the master finds embarrassing.

As Gulliver prepares to leave and constructs his boat, he notes that during this time, he comes to fully equate the Yahoos and humanity. Gulliver finishes building his boat with the assistance of the guard Houyhnhnm who accompanied him during his observations of the Yahoos. Before setting off, he kisses the master Houyhnhnm’s hoof. 

Gulliver departs in his canoe, trying to retrace the original route that his mutinous crew had taken. As he tries to navigate his way toward New Holland, he sees a very small island, where he finds fresh water. After three days, he discovers native inhabitants of the island, who notice him as well. Gulliver hurriedly escapes in his canoe but is hit with an arrow. He floats out of sight of the natives, debating whether to return to the island or not.

Fortunately for Gulliver, he notices a Portuguese vessel heading toward the island. Gulliver returns to the island and hides until a party from the ship arrives and discovers him. He speaks to them in Portuguese, saying, “I was a poor Yahoo banished from the Houyhnhnms” (169). Naturally, the Portuguese sailors do not know what to make of this. They press Gulliver until he reveals to them that he is from England. The sailors take him aboard the ship where he meets with the captain, who Gulliver declares is a “generous person” (169). However, Gulliver is so distraught at returning to the Yahoos that he attempts to throw himself overboard into the sea. Eventually, the captain is able to talk some sense back into Gulliver.

They make the voyage to Portugal, where the captain implores Gulliver to return to his family. Gulliver begrudgingly accepts, though he maintains that he will simply become a recluse in his own house. Gulliver is reunited with his wife and daughter, but he is disgusted by them. It takes him over a year to become used to their smell and their touch. Finally, Gulliver purchases horses, with whom he has regular discussions.

Gulliver insists that his travel memoirs are nothing but the truth, denigrating other travel adventure stories that embellish their narratives. He asserts that his admiration for the Houyhnhnms will not allow him to tell falsehoods. Gulliver insists that he has not written his travel memoir for publicity or financial gain; instead, his mission is to share the virtue of the Houyhnhnms with the rest of the world.

Gulliver realizes that if he indeed was the first to discover any of the lands that he has visited, he would be obligated to report it to the crown. His rebuttal to this is that there would be no profit in colonizing any of the four regions he has discovered. He also suggests that it is immoral to conquer and colonize any peoples, as usually the tactics used for colonization are barbaric. As Gulliver nears the end of his narrative, he again repeats the disdain he has for his fellow humans, who he now unabashedly refers to as Yahoos. In particular, he views their pride as contemptuous. Finally, he advises any Yahoo who reads his book to leave him alone and stay away from him.