Who are Houyhnhnms? Elaborate.
The Houyhnhnms are a fictional race of intelligent, rational horses in Jonathan Swift's novel "Gulliver's Travels." In the novel, the protagonist Lemuel Gulliver travels to various fictional lands, including the land of the Houyhnhnms.
The Houyhnhnms are described as being highly intelligent and rational, living in a utopian society where reason and logic reign supreme. They have no concept of lying, deceit, or any other form of irrational behavior. They communicate with each other through a language based on reason and logic, with no room for ambiguity or emotion.
In contrast to the Houyhnhnms, there is another group of beings in the land, the Yahoos, who are savage and irrational human-like creatures. Gulliver is initially repulsed by the Yahoos but gradually begins to see their similarity to humans.
As Gulliver spends more time with the Houyhnhnms, he begins to admire their way of life and sees his own human society in a negative light. However, he ultimately becomes disillusioned with the Houyhnhnms as he discovers that their society is not without flaws, particularly in their treatment of the Yahoos.
The Houyhnhnms are a symbolic representation of reason and logic, while the Yahoos represent irrationality and brutishness. The contrast between the two groups serves to highlight the flaws and shortcomings of human society, and the novel ultimately offers a critique of human nature and society.
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