Question

read the passage from gullivers travels by jonathan swift, then answer the questions.
when a great office is vacant, either by death or disgrace (which often happens) five or six of those candidates petition the emperor to entertain as ministers themselves are commanded to show their skill, and to convince the emperor that they have not lost their faculty. thereafter, the treasurer, is a several times together, upon a trencher fixed on a rope which is no thicker than a common packthread in england. my friend reldresal, principal secre
these diversions are often attended with fatal accidents, whereof great numbers are on record. i myself have seen two or three candidates break a li themselves and their fellows, they strain so far that there is hardly one of them who has not received a fall, and some of them two or three. i was assu the ground, had not weakened the force of his fall.

1. what does the rope - dancing competition in lilliput represent?

a. the fairness of their political system

b. the absurdity of political appointments

c. the cultural heritage of lilliput

d. the strength and agility of the lilliputians

Explanation:

In "Gulliver's Travels", the rope - dancing competition for political office in Lilliput is a satire. Political appointments are based on a ridiculous and dangerous performance (rope - dancing) rather than on merit or reasonable criteria. This shows the absurdity of how political positions are filled. Option a is wrong because the system is not fair. Option c is incorrect as it's not about cultural heritage. Option d is wrong as it's not about the Lilliputians' strength/agility but about the absurd political process. So the correct option is b.

Answer:

b. The absurdity of political appointments