 One might possibly, for example, regard them as a veiled criticism by Swift of the British Empire's treatment of non-whites as lesser humans, or one could regard Gulliver's preference (and his immediate division of Houyhnhnms into color-based hierarchies) as absurd and the sign of his self-deception.In a modern context the story might be seen as presenting an early example of animal rights concerns, especially in Gulliver's account of how horses are cruelly treated in his society and the reversal of roles.The story is a possible inspiration for Pierre Boulle's novel "Planet of the Apes".