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Gulliver suffers because he is unable to see the true character of the men he hires. Although Gulliver, as captain, possesses moral power over the ship, his authority is no match for the sailors’ physical power. Swift’s prose stays true to Gulliver’s perspective—not knowing the creatures’ identity or names, he refers to them only as “animals.” He likewise uses other vocabulary associated with animals—such as “paw” and “herd”—to describe them. Swift’s prose continues to stay true to Gulliver’s perspective. He describes the scene based on his current knowledge (though his subsequent discoveries will soon reveal how mistaken these initial impressions are). Even from a position of ignorance, Gulliver’s perspective registers that these are no ordinary horses—their humanoid qualities leads him to assume they must be humans in an elaborate disguise.