Glory II: A Reference Book of English Literature For Class XII

GLORY II
A REFERENCE BOOK OF ENGLISH

LITERATURE FOR CLASS XII
YAWER AHMAD MIR

SADAF MUSHTAQ NASTI
Glory II: A Reference Book of English Literature for Class XII
Author: YAWER AHMAD MIR & SADAF MUSHTAQ NASTI
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Foreword
It gives me immense pleasure to write the foreword to this
present reference book entitled Glory II: A Reference Book of
English Literature for Class XII. The book covers the content
course of class XII prescribed by Jkbose for the students of
English Literature. After going through the book I am sure that it
would prove useful for the students. This book will gain a lot of
credibility among the readers because the material provided in the
book is up-to-date, lucid and simple. The authors have spent
considerable time and energy and have used diverse resources in
compiling this work. I am sure that the book will not only
facilitate the easy understanding of students but also teachers as
no other complete secondary source or reference book of the
same content is available so far. This book is a kind of quick
primer for students and lay readers as the authors have adopted a
reader-friendly approach. However, it is good if the students start
with a reading of the primary text before using the reference
book.
This book has three sections; Poetry, Essay and Drama.
The content provided in the Poetry section includes a brief
biographical note on poet, summary of the poem followed by
question/answers. The second section of Essays includes a short
note on authors and all the brain storming question/answer
divisions like ‘Stop and Think', ‘Understanding the Text', and
‘Appreciation of the Text'. The final section, Drama includes a
short bio-note of dramatist, simplified plot of the drama and the
question/answer sections like ‘Thinking about the Play', ‘Talking
about the Play’ and ‘Appreciation'.
Dr. Javaid Iqbal Bhat

Sr. Assistant Professor
Dept. of English, South Campus,
University of Kashmir.
Preface
It gives us immense pleasure to write this book according
to the new syllabus introduced by the JKBOSE to meet the
requirements of students. The present booklet Glory II Reference
Book of English Literature for Class XII will prepare students for
examination. The rapidly increasing importance and popularity of
English Literature as a subject of study as well as the demand of
the students has encouraged us to undertake the writing of this
book. While writing this book, we have relied upon a number of
standard books written by eminent authors and websites to meet
our requirements. The language used is student friendly, simple
and lucid.
We owe it all to Almighty Allah who gave us knowledge,
wisdom, health and strength to write this book. After Allah we
are highly thankful to parents, teachers and students who really
encouraged us to peruse this work.
Suggestions and criticism for the improvement of this
book would be acknowledged and our apologies to the readers for
the typographical errors in the book here and there.
Yawer Ahmad Mir

Sadaf Mushtaq Nasti
Index
1 A Lecture upon the Shadow…………………………9
John Donne
2 Poems by Blake……………………………………...15
William Blake
3 Time and Time Again ……………………………….21
A.K. Ramanajun
4 Vaakhs………………………………………………25
Lal Ded
5 Shrukhs………………………………………………31
Sheikh Nooruddin Wali
6 A Will in the Name of a New Man……………….…38
Kehari Singh Madhukar
7 The Wail……………………………………………..44
Naseem Shafaie
8 A Lost Memory of Delhi…………………………….49
Agha Shahid Ali
9 Of Delays…………………………..……….………..55
Francis Bacon
10 Freedom……………………………………...………60
G.B Shaw
11 Film-making……………………………….…………68
Ingmar Bergman
12 Why the Novel Matters………………..….…………76
D.H. Lawerence
13 The Argumentative Indian………….….……………81
Amartya Sen
14 On Science Fiction……………………….………….90
Isaac Asimov
15 Broken Images……………………….…….………..93
Girish Karnad
1 A Lecture upon the Shadow

John Donne
About the Poet

John Donne (22 Jan. 1572 - 31 March 1631) born
in a Catholic family is one of the prominent loved poets in
entire English Literature. Due to Catholocism, he didn’t
receive solemn system of education and didn’t have
enough degrees to his credit. He is appraised as the pre-
eminent representative poet of the Metaphysical school of
poetry. The term Metaphysical is the combination of two
words – Meta meaning ‘beyond’ and Physics meaning
‘physical sciences’. This school of poets was highly
innovative in terms of their startling use of metaphors,
images, conceits, paradoxes, highly intellectualized wit
and philosophy making their poems a constant challenge
to the readers.
Donne almost wrote on every subject of his time
as his works include Love poems, Religious poems,
Sonnets, Epigrams, Elegies, Sermons, Latin Translations,
Songs and Satires. His poetry is famous for its
inventiveness of conceits, metaphors and vibrancy of
language in comparison to that of his contemporaries.
His poems are argumentative in nature and his style of
writing is distinguished by imperative and abrupt
openings, conceits, ironies, paradoxes and dislocations
which was a reaction against the conventional
Elizabethan poetry.
9
Summary of the Poem

John Donne’s poem A Lecture upon the Shadow is a
highly philosophical poem in nature as the poem itself suggests
that it is about the philosophy of love. Donne’s poems start in a
very peculiar and unconventional manner, so does this poem. It
has an abrupt and imperative beginning and the poem starts in
media res (in the middle). The speaker and his beloved have been
walking since three hours from the morning and are now in the
time of noon. Here the speaker of the poem beseeches his
beloved to stand still and not to move as he will narrate to her a
lecture, Love, in love’s philosophy. He uses the extended
metaphor of ‘Shadow’ to bring forth his point. The speaker tells
her that the time they have spent together have made them
acquainted with each other. In the beginning (morning) of their
love, they had so many misunderstandings (shadows) regarding
each other, produced by their own love (sun). But as they move
along, share more time and get to know each other, these
misunderstandings or morning shadows grew shorter and shorter.
By the time of noon, the sun (their love) reaches its zenith, the
shadows and the disguises completely wither away reducing
everything to brave clearance and they reach the perfection of
their love.
In the second part of the poem, the speaker in a way
warns his beloved to remain steadfast as they are at the zenith or
perfection of their love. The speaker then compares the ‘morning
shadows’ and the ‘afternoon shadows’. He says that the morning
shadows were hopeful because they were getting shorter and
were unveiling them to each other, thus blinding not them but
others from their love. In other words their love was at infant
stage and these disguises and misunderstandings (shadows)
helped them to achieve the perfection in love. While as the
shadows of afternoon will be despairing and gloomy because
they will keep growing longer and longer. Thus the lovers will
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start disguising themselves again and will be receding back into

the stage which they have just left. These shadows will blind
them and their love (sun) will decline in the west and will
completely fade away into the night, making them again ignorant
of each other. That is why the speaker at the beginning of the
poem beseeches his beloved to stand still and not to move
because if they don’t move then their love will be perfect forever.
The love like the morning sun is growing and constant light and
once it reaches its zenith (the noon), the lovers have to remain
steadfast and if they don’t the very first minute afternoon will be
night (ignorance). Furthermore the sun which symbolizes love in
the poem keeps growing only till noon which is its pinnacle, and
after noon it starts declining into the night. So poet, the speaker
or the lover wants his beloved to be at the very noon only which
symbolizes the perfection of their love and doesn’t want his
beloved to move even for a minute as it will be a sign of the
decline of their love like that of the sun which starts declining
after noon.
The poem itself is like a shadow. The second half of the
poem is a mirror image of the first half, like the shadows which
mirror each other throughout the day. Hence the very structure of
the poem enhances the extended metaphor of shadow.
Understanding the Poem

Q1. How do the shadows before noon differ from the shadows
after noon? What do the two kinds of shadow represent?
Donne has used shadows less literally and more
metaphorically. The shadows here symbolize delusions,
misunderstandings, misjudgments and disguises which lovers
have to tread over during their relationship. The shadows before
noon differ from the shadows after noon in the manner that the
former are short and with the course of time grew shorter and
shorter, thus last for less time. While as the latter are long and
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with the course of time grew longer and longer and eventually
descend into the night, thus last forever.
The shadows before noon represent those disguises,
problems, misunderstandings and obstacles which lovers face at
the initial stage of their love or relationship. These are short and
the lovers in due course tread over and conquer them, unveiling
themselves to each other and eventually reaching the zenith of
their love. Thus at noon their love is at peak like the sun as
everything before them is reduced to brave clearance. The
shadows afternoon represent those disguises, grudges and
misunderstandings which last with lovers even after revealing
themselves to each other, eventually leading to decline of their
love.
Q2. Love is described as light. What makes the poet talk

about shadows?
Donne being an unconventional poet doesn’t talk only
about love but also about the problems of love (shadows). In this
poem he describes it as “Love is a growing, or full constant
light”. The primary characteristic of light is that it conquers
darkness and makes everything visible. Similarly love conquers
the shadows i.e., obstacles, hardships, disguises and delusions
which lovers face in the due course of their relationship. Donne
talks about the shadows in order to bring forth his point that the
course of love never runs smooth and only that love reaches its
perfection which like light conquers every shadow. Same is the
case with the two lovers in the poem. They have reached the
pinnacle of their relationship or love only after treading over the
shadows that came in their way.
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Q3. Comment on the use of the image of the shadows for the
idea that the poet wants to convey?
In this poem, the poet has used the extended metaphor of
shadows to convey his message that the relationship of love
doesn’t always run smoothly. The poet has used two kinds of
shadows – morning shadows and after noon shadows. The
morning shadows symbolize the delusions and disguises that the
lovers have to face and conquer at the initial or infant stage of
their relationship as the two lovers in the poem go through the
same and reach the stage of perfection in their love. The poet
wants to convey that after reaching the stage of maturity, the
lovers should remain steadfast so that their relationship would be
perfect forever as the speaker in the poem tells her beloved to
stand still. The lovers should no more have grudges and
misunderstanding of each other which are symbolized by the
after noon shadows as these will lead to the decline of their love.
The poet uses the apt imagery of shadows to convey his idea that
the problems are part of love like that of shadows which are the
part of light.
Q4. The poet seems to be addressing his beloved in the poem.

What is the message he wishes to convey her?
The message that the poet wishes to convey to his
beloved is that they should remain steadfast, loyal, honest and
truthful to each other because they have overcome the problems
that came in their way and have reached the highest point of their
love. He further beseeches her not to move as they have attained
the maturity and perfection in love which will last forever only if
they remain so. And if they didn’t remain steadfast, they will
again pave way to the shadows and will be disillusioned by them,
eventually leading them to utter desolation and separation.
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Q5. Instead of ‘A Lecture upon Love’ the poet calls the poem
‘A Lecture upon the Shadow’. What is the effect that this has
on our reading of the poem?
Donne being an unorthodox poet startles us with the very
titles of his poems and so is the case with the poem in the
context. The initial effect about the title on the reader is
bewildering. As we read the very first line of the poem we
become more perplexed and puzzled as we see that the poem is
about the philosophy of love contrary to its title which reads ‘A
Lecture upon the Shadow’. However the in-depth reading of the
poem makes it clear that the poem bespeaks of the shadows at
large. The poet uses an extended and cyclic metaphor of shadows
which exist only in presence of the light of love. At last the
reader comes to conclusion that Donne is truly a challenging poet
who compels us to read his poems deeply and profoundly without
rushing to the conclusion by merely looking at or reading the
title.
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2 Poems by Blake
William Blake
About the Poet

William Blake (1757-1827) was born in the dawn
of the Romantic Period of English Literature. He was a
painter, a visionary poet, an engraver and the first multi-
media artist. Blake is considered as a seminal figure in
the history of visual arts and poetry. He was a visionary
as at the age of nine he claimed to have seen a tree full of
angels. He believed that arch angels were the fans of his
work. His education was unorthodox as he left school at
the age of ten and was self-taught with guidance from his
mother. He read mainly from the bible and other
theological treatises that greatly influenced his writing
throughout his life.
William Blake’s first collection of poetry Political
Sketches was published in 1783. His most significant
work Songs of Innocence was published in 1789 and its
expanded collection Songs of Innocence and Experience
showing the two contrary states of human soul was
published five years later in 1794. These poems explore
the innocence of childhood and the delicate balance
between knowledge and corruption. The subject matter of
his poems often is the social evils and inequalities as he
was disgusted by the Industrial Revolution, rationalism
and materialism of his time. He was as John William
Cousins says, “A truly pious and loving soul, neglected
15
and misunderstood by the world but appreciated by an

elect few…”
Summary of the Poem – The Divine Image

The poem The Divine Image is written by William Blake
and has been taken from his collection of poetry called Songs of
Innocence. The poem illustrates an idea that God is the essence
of all virtues. Blake opines that human beings who possess the
essential qualities and divine virtues like Mercy, Pity, Peace and
Love are no less than God. The title of the poem alludes to a
verse in the Book of Genesis (Bible), which states, “…And God
created man in His image, in the image of God He created him,
male and female”.
The poem starts with the personification of Godly
attributes of Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love which are listed as the
four ‘virtues of delight’. The poet says that the people pray to
these virtues in times of their distress and express gratitude to
them because they represent ‘God, our father dear’. But these
virtues however are the characteristics of a man too who is thus
‘The Divine Image’ of God as the virtue of Mercy dwells in
human heart, Pity in human face, Peace is a human garment and
Love exists in the very form or body of humans. As such all the
prayers which are directed to these virtues are not just directed to
God but human form or the divine image also. The poet
concludes the poem with the thought that all people must love
this divine image or in other words love each other irrespective of
their culture and religion because they are actually the
manifestation and representation of God.
Summary of the poem The Human Abstract

The poem The Human Abstract is also written by William
Blake and this poem has been taken from his collection of poetry
called Songs of Experience. The poem stands contrary to the
16
earlier poem The Divine Image, which depicts the innocent man.
This poem portrays the experienced man who now uses even his
divinely attributes like Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love for his own
selfish ends.
The poem portrays a deep explanation and analysis of the
four virtues: Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love which are the
characteristics of both God as well as man in the earlier poem.
The speaker of the poem says that if there was no poverty, there
would be no pity. Likewise, Mercy would not be needed if
everyone was happy. He says that Peace exists because there is
fear. In other words, it is “mutual fear” among people which
results in peace and prevents the open disputes. But the moment
selfishness (selfish love) overcomes this mutual fear, it leads to
cruelty – the desire to control, hurt and trap others. Cruelty is
personified as a knowledgeable person who carefully and
skillfully plants a tree in the human brain. He does so by
colluding with ‘holy fears’ and shedding the tears (in fear of
God), which water the ground. As a result it gives rise to
Humility which becomes the root of this tree. This tree soon
flourishes and spreads its shade of mystery (mystery of religion).
It continues to grow tall and strong till the “Caterpillar and the
Fly” feed on it. These two represent the clergy who use religion
for their own selfish benefits and harm of others. Once infested,
this tree bears the fruit “of Deceit” which is sweet to eat and it
becomes the dwelling place of “Raven” – a harbinger of death.
The Gods of the earth and sea sought to find this tree but their
efforts were in vain because this tree grows in “the Human
Brain”.
17

Q1. How are these poems related to each other in content?
How is the human being depicted in the Song of Innocence
and how is he/she depicted in the Song of Experience? Do we
find both aspects working in an average human being?
“Without the contraries is no progression” said William
Blake. These poems The Divine Image and The Human Abstract
are related as they are contrary to each other. The personified
figures of Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love are listed as the four
virtues of delight in the poem The Divine Image. These virtues
according to Blake represent both God as well as human beings.
So, a human being in this poem has been depicted as the ‘divine
image’ of God. While as in the poem The Human Abstract Blake
describes the same virtues Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love with a
different perspective as these traits are misused by the
churchmen. In broader terms these virtues are no longer the
source of delight but tools for exploitation. Human beings are
reduced to caterpillars and flies as the virtues that used to make
them divine have become abstract.
Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience depict two
contrary states of human soul. In the former, human beings are
portrayed as divine images of god, as flowers, as angels, as
children, as lamb – all of which depict them as innocent. While
as in the latter, human beings are shown as the corrupted beings
and the exploiters through the images or symbols of caterpillar,
tiger, urizen, raven etc.
We find both these aspects working in an average human
being because good and evil reside together within every human
soul and mind. Furthermore Blake himself doesn’t believe in the
detachment of two contrary states (binary oppositions) of human
soul viz good and evil from one another but in fact creates a new
unity out of these two.
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Q2: How would you explain the lines; For Mercy has a
human heart, Pity a human face, and Love the human form
divine, and Peace, the human dress?
Blake in his poem The Divine Image has tried to convey
an idea that human beings are actually the divine images of God
because they share the common virtues of delight. As God is the
embodiment of divine virtues like Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love,
the human beings also possess the same and as such are no less
than God. He illustrates his idea by saying that:
Mercy has a human heart,
Pity a human face
And Love, the human form divine,
And Peace, the human dress.
Mercy has a human heart means that apart from God,

only human beings can show mercy on others as it is the human
heart only which understands the pains and pangs of others and
shows mercy on them. God has pity on those who fall in any kind
of adversity, so does a human who after understanding the
miseries of his fellow beings expresses the pain of his heart by
showing pity on his face before helping them out. Love is the
essence of God and the basic trait of humanity, and as such
human beings who love each other for no selfish reasons are in
reality the divine forms of God. The clothes reveal the beliefs,
intentions, culture and identity of a person. The human dress is
‘Peace’ – a garment which not only envelops and saves them
from harming one another but also gives them the identity of
being the divine forms of God.
Q3. How do Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love get distorted in the
human brain?
Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love get distorted in human brain
when a human being becomes selfish. All these virtues,
19
according to Blake, then become the breeding ground for cruelty

as he uses them for his own selfish ends with a desire to control
and suppress others. These values no longer remain the godly
attributes of man but instead become mere abstract concepts as is
suggested by the title of the poem itself, The Human Abstract.
Q4. Blake’s poetry expresses one aspect of his multi-

dimensional view of human experience-of mankind once
whole and happy, now fallen into discord and tyranny, from
which it must be rescued. Explain with reference to these two
poems.
The two poems in context represent the two different
aspects of mankind- Innocence and Experience. In the world of
innocence as in the poem, The Divine Image, human beings or
mankind is seen as The Divine Image of God with Godly virtues
of Mercy, Pity, Peace and Love; so whole and happy. In the
world of experience, the human beings gain experience at the
cost of their innocence and become selfish, using these Godly
virtues for their own selfish ends. They suppress and control the
common masses and as in the poem The Human Abstract, suck
their blood like that of caterpillars. With the result of this
selfishness the whole mankind descends into discord and tyranny.
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3 Time and Time Again

A.K. Ramanajun
About the Poet

Attipate Krishnaswami Ramanujan (1929-1993)
also known as A.K Ramanujan was an Indian poet and
scholar of Indian Literature. He wrote in both English as
well as Kannada. He was a poet, scholar, a philologist,
folklorist, translator and playwright. He is best known for
his pioneering translations of ancient Tamil poetry into
modern English. At the time of his death he was professor
of linguistics at the University of Chicago and was
recognized as the world’s most profound scholar of South
Indian languages and culture. His academic research
ranged across five languages: English, Kannada, Tamil,
Telugu, and Sanskrit. His poems are remembered as
enigmatic works of startling originality, sophistication
and moving artistry. In 1976, the Government of India
awarded him the Padma Shri. He was awarded the
Sahitya Akademi Award posthumously in 1999 for his
collection of poems, The Selected Poems.
About the Poem

The poem Time and Time Again represents the complex
distillation of a life time of unusual thoughts and feelings. In this
poem, Ramanjunan celebrates diversity, while remarking on the
essential unity of all things: people, their faith and actions. The
poet focuses on the clock towers of cities, and comments on the
21
slight differences in the time and the sounds produced by the

bells that ring to mark the hours. He attributes this variety of
sounds to a number of different religions viz Hindu, Christian
and the Muslim. The poet wants to bring home the point that by
Nature humanity is unified and harmonious but with our rituals,
customs and beliefs, there has been creative violence. The poem
draws a parallel between two types of violence i.e., Human
violence and violence of Nature. The poet seems to say that when
our ideology attacks some harmonious existence, it brings the
human violence. The different clock towers that show different
time symbolize division in religion in particular and society in
general. Our time doesn’t relate with the time of other
communities as there is a difference of life from community to
community and this is actually the human violence created by
human beings but the time of Nature is same for everybody. The
lightnings in the poem symbolize ‘resistance of nature’ against
the violence and this act of nature is described as precise for its
accuracy and justice it does to things. The nature precisely
releases anger or fury against the corruption, hatred, polarization
and violence created by human beings. The poem thus reflects
the critical condemnation attitude of poet towards the communal
disharmony.

Q1. What did you think the poem was about when you read
the first few lines?
After reading the first few lines of the poem we feel that
this poem is about physical description of some well developed
city.
Q2. From which line does the import of the title strike the
reader?
22
The import of the title strikes the reader from the

following lines:
…beating out a different sequence each half- hour, out of
the accidents of alloy.
Q3. What makes for the differences between the timekeeping

of the various clocks? What is the implicit comparison?
The difference between the timekeeping of the various
clocks is produced by differences in life of the communities
belonging to them.
The difference between clocks implicitly refers to
communities of Hindu, Christian and Muslim world which have
different socio-political, theological and cultural differences. The
difference of time suggests different attitudes, definitions and
understandings of life.
Q4. Why is the act of nature described as ‘precise’?

The act of nature is described as precise for its accuracy
and justice it does to things. The nature precisely releases anger
or fury against the corruption, hatred, polarization and violence
created by human beings.
Q5. Which of the following reflects poet’s attitude towards

community disharmony
(i) Critical condemnation
(ii) Helpless acceptance
(iii) Wistful lament
Critical condemnation
Q6. Is the poet’s attitude a representation of how the average

Indian feels born towards human violence and nature’s fury?
Yes, the poet has represented how an average Indian feels
towards violence and nature’s fury. The poem presents a liberal
23
voice which objectively analyses the situation and presents the

picture accordingly. He seems to be a man who remains at the
distance from the communities like Christian, Hindus and
Muslims which confront each other ideologically and practically.
24
4 Vaakhs
Lal Ded
Translated from Kashmiri by
Prof. Neerja Mattoo
About the Poet

Lal Ded also lovingly called Lalla, Lal Diddi or
Lalleshwari which means ‘Seeker’ is one of the famous
and greatest mystic poets of Kashmir. Her poetry is
known as Vaakhs which is about the power of soul and
spirit. Vaakh is a short stanza of generally four or six
lines and she was the greatest practitioner of this poetic
form. She was the child bride, married at the tender age
of 12 as was the custom. At her in-laws she was abused by
her mother-in-law and ignored by her husband. For
several years she endured this mistreatment and
eventually escaped to the world of renunciation to take
Sanyasa and became a Shaivite sadvi- a wandering
ascetic , singing for her bliss and love for Divine.
About the poem

Vaakhs present a relationship between man and god and
the deepest urge of human soul to be one with the Ultimate
Reality. The Vaakhs of Lal Ded describe her mystical vision of
universe and man’s relationship with God. The poet satirizes
typical religious rituals which she believes are mere actions
25
without spirituality .According to the poet God is omnipresent

and sustains every single human being on earth. He does not
belong to any particular sect and is common to all. She writes
“Shiva is everywhere- know him as the sun/ Know not the Hindu
different to the Muslims” suggesting that all human beings across
globe are reflections of God and one should not create divisions
on the basis of religion. She further says that one should see
human beings as God personified beings who need to be tended
with care rather than engaged with soul less rituals. She also
satirizes Hindu religion which has made gods out of stones and
constructed rituals associated with them. She writes; “Who taught
you this lesson, O Batta/ To feed a lifeless stone with living
food”. The real essence of religion according to Lel Ded is to do
good to others. She further says that universe is the shadow of
God that one should directly connect with. She seems to say that
all religion narratives are human constructed and have nothing to
do with God. She calls upon people to attain Divine Unity that
she believes is the ultimate reality and aspiration of human soul.
Furthermore, she believes that man’s journey in this world is
ephemeral and transitory as man leaves this world with empty
hands. So, she reminds man to be in constant touch with his real
self i.e., essence not in substance but in soul. She feels that the
things one would carry to the eternal world are one’s deeds rather
than money and status of this illusionary world. She describes the
state of Divine Unity by saying, “It was but now I saw a river in
spate/ And now there is no bridge nor ferry” and conveys that the
world of unity is totally different from the earthly existence.
Once we attain that Unity we are liberated from means or
prerequisites that we need to follow in this world. She says that
one can flow in spiritual sea without any bridge or ferry. Having
said that she calls upon the human beings and asks them, “Not a
shadow of possessions will stay at the end/ How could you forget
your real self” thus advising people to shun off the worldly
26
desires and connect with the ultimate and spiritual reality i.e.,
God.
Lal Ded’s poetry is full of domestic imagery and
metaphors like Fast, Batta (kashmiri term for Hindu person),
Guru, Cakes of chaff, Potter etc. She has also used
pluralsignation i.e., the use of plural images in her poetry which
is evident from comparisons like oil and cakes, serpent eggs,
lifeless stones, river in spate, bush in bloom etc. As a poet she
has individual taste and own craftsmanship in depicting the inner
world of being.

Q1. How does the poet describe the relationship between man
and God in vaakh 1?
In Vaakh 1, the poet says that God and man are not aloof
from one another rather they are one as God is within the heart of
every human being. In other words she describes her mystical
vision of universe and man’s relationship with God as according
to her God is omnipresent and sustains every single human being
on earth. He does not belong to any particular sect and is
common to all. She writes “Shiva is everywhere- know him as
the sun/ Know not the Hindu different to the Muslims”
suggesting that all human beings across globe are reflections of
God and one should not create divisions on the basis of religion.
The poet has stressed here upon the self realization of human
being because that is the only way to know his Creator.
Q2.Who are Vaakh 2 and 4 addressed to? What message is

the poet trying to convey.
In Vaakh 2 and 4, poet addresses the typical religious
rituals of Muslims and Hindus which she believes are mere
actions without spirituality. She is rejecting their rituals like
fasting, chanting songs, feeding lifeless stone, idol worship and
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even taking a dip in sacred water. She also satirizes Hindu

religion which has made gods out of stones and constructed
rituals associated with them. She writes, “Who taught you this
lesson, O Batta/ To feed a lifeless stone with living food”. The
poet is trying to convey that real essence of religion is to do good
to others. She writes;
“Shame on your religious fasts and religious rites Do
good to others, that’s right action”
Meaning that one will never connect with God by

torturing himself or feeding lifeless things rather it is only good
deeds which will bring him closer to his God.
Q3. How do you respond to

Hides your shame, saves your body from the cold
Eats but grass and drinks just water,
Who taught you this lesson ,O Batta
To feed a lifeless stone with living food
The poet here satirized typical Hindu religious rituals who

sought to search God at the cost of torturing themselves. They
even remove clothes that hide one’s shame and save one from
cold. She pinpoints religious rites which have made gods out of
stones and constructed rituals associated with them. She writes,
“Who taught you this lesson, O Batta/ To feed a lifeless stone
with living food”. The real essence of religion according to Lel
Ded is to do good to others.
Q4. What is the poet lamenting over in Vaakh 5?

In Vaakh 5, the poet is very disappointed about how
people have got indulged in the worldly desires and the
materialistic pursuits. She laments it by saying, “Not a shadow of
possession will stay at end/ how could you forget your real
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self?”, suggesting that the worldly possessions are not everlasting

and only real self and good deeds will last forever. The poet in
this vaakh is advising people to shun off materialistic desires and
know their real self.
Q5. Anaphora is the deliberate repetition of a word or phrase

at the beginning of each of a sequence of sentences,
paragraphs, or lines of verse. How far has the use of
anaphora in vaakhs 6 and 7 contributed in communicating
the intensity of the message?
In vaakh 6 and 7, the poet has used the technique of
Anaphora to communicate the intensity of the message that
nothing is permanent in this world as the things change
continuously. She has used the anaphora of “It was but now I
saw” and “And now there is” to highlight the transitoriness of
worldly things – ‘It was but now I saw a bush in bloom/ And now
there is no flower nor thorn’ and titles – ‘It was but now I saw her
as Pandava’s mother/ And now she is merely a potter’s aunt’.
Q6. Self-realization is an article of faith in Lal Ded. Discuss in

the light of the prescribed vaakhs?
The vaakhs of Lal Ded prescribed in our syllabus
describes her mystical vision of universe and man’s relationship
with God. The deepest urge of human soul is to be one with the
ultimate reality i.e., God and according to the poet this divine
unity can be achieved only through self-introspection and self-
realization as she believes that God is omnipresent and sustains
every soul. Therefore, to know God one must know his own self
as she says, “If you are wise, know yourself/ That alone is the
way to know the Sahib (God)”.
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Q7. The use of multiple images of nature and everyday life

has enabled poet to communicate effectively. Comment.
Lal Ded is unique in her style of writing poetry. She uses
multiple images from nature and everyday life like grass, lifeless
stone, water, cakes of chaff, potter etc. These images enable the
poet to communicate effectively because the readers easily and
directly relate themselves with such kind of domestic imagery.
As a poet she has an individual taste and own craftsmanship in
depicting the inner world of her being and unique relationship
between man and God.
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5 Shrukhs
Sheikh Nooruddin Wali
G. R. Malik
About the Poet

Sheikh Noor-ud-din Wali also known as Nund
Ryash was born in 1377 AD at Kaimoh, Kulgam. He is
also known as Sheikh-ul-Alam meaning spiritual guide of
the world or a saint of world stature. His father’s name
was Sheikh Sala-ud-din and mother was known as Sadra
Moji or Sadra Deddi. Sheikh exhibited an ascetic
tendency from his early childhood. At the prime of his
youth he adopted a monastic way of life, he entered a
cave near Kaimoh and, according to legends, spent
twelve years there doing penance and purifying his self. It
appears from what he did later that this was a period of
spiritual training and preparation. He used his poetry as
a tool to spread the knowledge of absolute. His poetry is
known as “koshur Koran”.
When he finally left the cave he had turned into a
dedicated missionary. He moved from place to place in
Kashmir preaching his simple gospel for the fear of God,
accountability before Him after death, commitment to the
principles of truth, justice, and love and service of
mankind. By his saintly life, he set an example of
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simplicity, truthfulness and devoted service to people. As

a missionary he teaches us that the true is not who
escapes from life but one who does the duties of life with
honesty and humility.
Sheikh won popularity in every nook and corner
of Kashmir. After setting a shinning example of truthful
saintly life, Sheikh-ul-alam died in Rupwan in 1438 AD
and was laid to rest at Chrar-i-Shareef. As a mark of
tribute to the great poet, Sheikh-ul-Alam chair and
Sheikh-ul-Alam museum has been set up at the University
of Kashmir and University of Jammu respectively. Sheikh-
ul-alam’s poetry exclusively written in quatrains is known
as Shruks. Sheik-ul-Alam is known for his Shruks, most of
which consist of four to six lines.
About the Poem

The Shruks of Sheikh-ul-alam are altogether mystical in
nature and talk about communion of man with God and the poet’s
belief that true worship lies in the service of mankind. The poet
believes that he only identified true soul or God in himself when
he suppressed his materialistic desires, greed, instincts and
worldly impulses. The poet also satirizes those people who bow
before God either out of selfishness for the attainment of heaven
or fear of going to hell. The poet believes that true worship is
selfless practice and spontaneous before mighty God. The poet
also lampoons those people who choose isolation and remain in
caves for the nourishment of spirituality. They are lampooned
because they ignore their family and social responsibilities which
according to poet is also a part of worship. The poet severely
attacks them by relating them to jackals and monkeys.
The poet suggests that attainment of spirituality is not an
easy practice but needs difficult trails and tribulations that one
has to go through during the entire course of life. Only the
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dedicated and hardworking person attains spirituality and

recognizes its merit and worth. He writes that “The nature of the
pearl is known to the diver alone”. The poet calls upon those
people who have involved themselves fully into the construction
of materialistic world and tells them that they are merrily dancing
on the surface of the pit (grave) which will gulp them down
sooner or later. The poet advises people to grow seeds of
spirituality and deweed the soil of their hearts from corruption,
dishonesty and greed.

Q1. Life is compared to a voyage. What is the goal of the
voyage and how it can be achieved?
In Shrukh 1, life is compared to voyage. According to the
poet, the utmost goal of this voyage is to find one’s true self and
to understand what it should really yearn for. The poet believes
that this can be achieved only when one would be able to
suppress his impulse, greed and selfish desires. He can only reach
the Divinity and know the purpose of life when he would replace
his greed and worldly possessions for the love of God.
Q2. What do the monkeys, jackals and rats in Shrukh 3

symbolize.
The monkeys, jackals and rats in Shrukh 3 symbolize
escapists as the poet satirizes the life of hermits who cage
themselves in caves and jungles in the name of worshipping
Lord. The poet believes that they should live a social and
responsible life rather than escaping from it as such people are no
different than the animals which belong to those habitats.
Furthermore, he believes that escapists are among those believers
who presume that true worship means individual worship but
poet is of the opinion that true worship lies in the service of
mankind and sharing responsibilities at large.
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Q3. Who is the plain man in Shrukh 4? Why will he survive

the apocalypse?
The plain man is Shrukh 4 is ‘Mard-i-Moomin’ (the true
believer of creator). The poet here uses the technique of
foreshadowing to portray the scene of apocalypse (Doomsday) –
the complete final destruction of the world when everything,
good or bad, right or wrong, beautiful or ugly will reach to its
ultimate end. Before the day hint will be given to everybody and
only the true believers will catch the hint while non believers
would remain unaffected. The poet says;
“A plain man will catch a hint
While drumbeats fall flat on
perverse ears”
The poet says that only the true believers will survive the
apocalypse because they only have the understanding of real
meaning and ultimate goal of life in this world. Thus, they would
stay safe and survive the apocalypse.
Q4. How do you respond to The value of the pearl is known

to the diver alone; How can a beast tread a slender causeway!
Can a burning piece of wood know the worth of candle And
the fly appreciate the circumambulations of a moth
The poet here says that it is the diver only who knows the
value of the pearl, the poor beast or animal is not even able to
walk over the coast of the sea. Likewise, the moth only knows
the value of the burning candle, the poor fly can never be
acquainted with the pleasure that a moth relishes from its
circumambulations. In other words, the poet says that it is the
true seeker only who knows the true meaning and reality of life.
The ignorant people can never understand and appreciate the
trials and tribulations that a true seeker goes through and can
never relish the same.
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Q5. What does the swan king in Shrukh 7 symbolize. How

can it be captured.
Swan king in Shrukh 7 symbolizes Mystery man or the
Creator. It can be captured by doing the “zikr” (remembrance of
creator) from within, without show off because the real value in
the eyes of God is of the state of soul. He does not see to the
moving lips but recognizes the working of soul. In other words, it
means to remember creator inwardly without any flamboyancy so
that He may be convinced (fall in trap) to bless us with His
blessings.
Q6. How would you explain Shrukh 8.

Sheikh-ul-alam is known for his mastery of using
metaphors in his poetry. In Shrukh 8, the poet beautifully
compares the human heart to a fish that needs the waters of
remembrance for its survival. Water here is compared to
remembrance of God. Just like the fish can’t survive without the
water, likewise the heart can’t be alive without the remembrance
of Creator. He also adds that bowing before the Lord is like
sowing the seeds of good deeds on the soil. The poet advises
people to grow seeds of spirituality and deweed the soil of their
hearts from corruption, dishonesty and greed.
Q7. A rhetorical question is asked only for effect, to

emphasize a point, without expecting an answer. Notice its
use in Shrukh 6. Pick out more examples of rhetorical
questions from the Shrukhs.
Rhetoric is a technique of using language effectively and
persuasively in spoken or written form. It is an art of discourse,
which studies and employs various methods to convince,
influence or please an audience. For instance, a person gets on
one’s nerves, one start to feel irritated and says “Why don’t you
leave me alone”? By posing such a question one doesn’t ask for a
35
reason. Instead one simply wants him to stop irritating him. Thus,
one directs language in a particular way for effective
communication or makes use of rhetoric. A situation where one
uses rhetoric is known as rhetoric situation.
A rhetorical question is asked only for effect, to
emphasize a point without expecting an answer. The examples of
rhetoric question from Shrukhs are:
i. Who shall have the breadth of heart?
ii. How can a beast tread a slender causeway!
iii. The fly appreciate the circumambulations of moth?
iv. How can then you relish your food and drink?
Q8. Comment on the use of imagery in the Shrukhs.

Imagery means to use figurative language to represent
objects, actions and ideas in such a way that it appears to our
physical senses. Usually it is thought that imagery makes use of
particular words that create visual representation of ideas in our
mind. The word imagery is associated with the mental picture.
However, imagery in realism turns out to be more complex than
just a picture for example:
I. It was dark and dim in the forest……
The words dark and dim are visual images.
II. The children are screaming and shouting in the field.
Screaming and shouting affect to our auditory sense and
thus is auditory imagery.
The examples of imagery in the shrukhs are:
1 I rowed my boat without an oar … It is both visual and tactile.
Here the poet appeals to sense of sight and touch in order to
appeal to our bodily senses.
2 With a single breath mountains will resound/ And domes will
echo taking up the sound.
It is an example of auditory imagery and poet here appeals to
sense of hearing or auditory imagery.
36
3 The value of the pearl is known to the diver alone….

… And remember with moveless tongue and lips shut.
These two are the examples of kinesthetic imagery and poet here
appeals to the movement of an object or a character.
4 How can you relish your food and drink..
It is an example of gustatory imagery and it has effect on our
taste.
The function of imagery in literature is to generate a
vibrant and graphic presentation of a scene.
Q9. Notice the use of paradox in Shrukh 6. What is the poet

trying to suggest in the Shrukh?
In literature, paradox is not just a clever or comical
statement or use of words. Paradox has a serious implication
because it makes statement often summarize the major themes of
the work they are used in. Paradox is thus a seemingly absurd or
contradictory statement which when investigated may prove to be
well founded or true as
You merrily dance on the surface of the pit
Oh dear! How does your heart brook this
You hoard and collect to leave it back.
How then you relish your food and drink
The poet in shrukh 6 tries to suggest that we have

forgotten the real goal of our life. Furthermore, he suggests that
we are driven by worldly desires without doing anything for
‘Hereafter’ .The poet calls upon those people who have involved
themselves fully into the construction of materialistic world and
tells them that they are merrily dancing on the surface of the pit
(grave) which will gulp them down sooner or later.
▄
37
6 A Will in the Name of a New Man

Kehari Singh Madhukar
Translated from Dogri by
Shiv Nath
About the Poet

Kehri Singh Madhukar (1930-2000) was the
modern revolutionary and visionary Dogri poet. He
hailed from a reputed family of Dogra Rajputs. His father
Thakur Kripal Singh was a major in the State Force. He
studied in Sri Pratap Rajput Memorial School, Jammu,
S.P. Srinagar and G.G.M Science College Jammu. He has
written numerous songs, Gazals and beautiful poems. His
works are lyrical and provking. He can be called as
Naddim of Dogri Rennaisance because what Dinna Nath
Naddim did for Kashmir, Madhukar brought the same
modernism to Dogri. In 1961, Madhukar joined J&K
Academy of Art, Culture and Languages, and edited its
quarterly journal “Sheeraza” from 1962 to 1964 with
great flair and distinction. Within less time of 13 years, he
did an incredible job for the collection of Folk literature
and development of Modern Dogri Literature. He also
joined Radio Kashmir Jammu in 1950 and served till
1955. As distinguished poet, Madhukar has engaged
himself in creative literary activities for the last forty
years. He has been writing poems, Radio Plays, Operas
38
and one act Plays. He won the Sahitya Akademi Award

for the collection of poetry ‘Main Mela Ra Janu’ in 1977.
About the Poem

The poem A Will in the Name of a New Man is a satire
on the modern society. In this poem the poet describes the
predicament of modern life as Greed and Covetousness have
invaded our lives. The modern man seems to have become
rootless and spiritually barren.
He is morally fragile. Money has become his God.
The poem is typical but sad commentary on the nature of
the modern life. The poem explores all those dark spots which
have wrought the bleak scenario of life. It refers to hypocrisy,
pretentiousness, corruption and evil that characterizes nature of
modern man. In the very first stanza the poet takes dig at all those
people who have made religion a vehicle of murder and
contemporary violence. The poet believes that the faith of
modern man is just for outward show and by the beautiful mask
hiding evil face behind. The poet says that the modern man is
plundering the rights of others to satisfy his own selfish desires.
He further says that the modern man for his greedy aspirations
idealizes and invokes multitudes of Gods. He only witnesses the
unfortunate spectacle, destruction, damage and elimination of life
which was once cherished. He writes ‘My device has been the
instrument of the fall of my being’ suggesting that the reason of
the man’s fall from order to disorder and happiness to gloom is
his own corrupted self. In the third stanza the poet says that all
political structures and rulers have nurtured politics of
exploitation, theft, colonization and enslavement of the weaker
sections. He considers the crowns of kings as merely failures
created by exploitative social system. The poem also refers to
dark aspect of science which has contributed in creating the
nuclear weapons which are dangerous for the survival of human
39
beings. The poet says that ‘The world is resting on the heap of
powerful atoms’ suggesting that the world is put in risk by this
ironical claim of scientific progress. At the end the poet also hits
racial and communal people who according to him have
‘bitterness of races’ flourishing in their blood. The poem ends by
referring to the fact that the world has come to a point where
humanity is lost and a huge catastrophe is surrounding all of us.
The poem is a sort of a social document of our times, a poem
which throws light on the problems and perplexities of modern
civilization.

Q1. Why is the poem called a will? Who is the recipient of the
will?
The poem is titled a will because it is a sort of
justification on part of a modern man over his mundane beliefs.
The poem is addressed to the readers of the coming
generations so that they will not hold the man responsible for the
modern problems. However the poem is wholly ironical in
treatment.
Q2. Why does the poet compare politics and black magic?
The poet compares politics and black magic because he
believes that both politics as well as magic is nothing but trickery
while as political leaders and magicians are nothing but
tricksters. Usually, an analogy is used as a tool for making
something difficult understand through a comparison with
something more commonplace. The poet here uses this analogy
of black magic and the politics as both magicians and politicians
share a common trait of deceiving people. In black magic, the
priests throw spells, recite formulas and make magic items to
divert the attention of spectators from the topics where reasoning
could show its absurdity. Likewise in politics, the politicians
40
through their deceitful speeches conceal their hypocrisy by

diverting the attention of common people from real issues while
engaging them in different kinds of communal and religious
conflicts. The mapping of magic onto democracy through the
analogical metaphor “politics is magic” or “politicians are
magicians” has several important entailments. It implies that
democratic politics produces a professional class of expert
deceivers who manipulate the truth and hide secrets. This
analogy frames members of the voting public as spectators at a
magic show who enjoy being deceived.
Q3. How would you respond to:

i. The hunger of ages has been growing, there is only
destruction and more destruction?
The poet has satirized and attacked the moral weakness
of a modern man at various places in the poem. He is so corrupt
that greed has become his passion and his very nature has
become so exploitative that he grabs the rights of others every
day. His compromises are even selfish. Although all these ways
and methods lead to his own self destruction, yet the irony is that
this hunger keeps growing, resulting in more and more
destruction. There are hardly any moral concerns left in modern
man.
ii. The acme of my intelligence is my crazy cleverness.
It means that the man though being highly intellectual and
reasonable is extremely crazy in his pursuits. This intelligence
which he possesses should have been used for constructive
purposes but he is so crazy after his materialistic pursuits that
even his inventions and discoveries turn out to be a source of
shame for him as he created destructive powerful atoms, making
the world a war zone which now by no means is a better place to
live in.
41
iii. My world is resting on heaps of powerful atoms

The poet here is referring to the advent of sciences which
brought atomic bombs for destructive use rather than constructive
use. The tremendous progress in armaments has made this world
a dangerous place to live in. all the progress made by human
civilization over thousands of years can be brought to naught at
the mere touch of a button. No part of the world is safe today
because of the hovering satellites that map all our activities even
in the remotest parts of the Earth and can bring about of their
terror and untold destruction in a matter of seconds. Some of the
best scientific talent in the world is engaged in devising and
inventing means to destroy this at the behest of their political
masters. In this Sense, Science has proved to be Frankenstein
monster as it controls our existence at every step.
Q4: The refrain “Do not lay claim” reinforces a sense of

lamentation and despair in the poem. Comment.
The refrain “Do not lay claim” reinforces a sense of
lamentation and despair as every sphere of life has been heavily
satirized upon in the poem. In the beginning of the poem the poet
says that pity is said to be full of pitfalls. The religion that used to
be a source of blessing has turned to be murderous. Greed and
covetousness have invaded our lives. Law is also described as
looting. The compromises and sacrifices are described as selfish.
The modern man seems to have become rootless and spiritually
barren. He is morally fragile and ethically barren as money has
become his God.
Q5. How has modern man been treated in the poem?

As the theme of the poem is the spiritual and emotional
sterility of the modern man, he is depicted as corrupt and
materialistic. He has lost his faith in God and religion. Modern
man has lost his sense of good and evil as he has become greedy.
42
He has become exploitative in nature wherein he grabs the rights

of his fellow beings. The modern man is altogether desolated,
barren and living a death-in-life, a life of complete inactivity
listlessness and apathy. The poem is a sort of a social document
of our times, a poem which throws light on the problems and
perplexities of modern civilization.
Q6. Notice the use of paradox in the poem, for instance, my

magic is my wealth. Identify more instances of paradox.
What effect is the poet trying to create by the use of paradox?
Paradox is an anomalous juxtaposition of incongruous
ideas for the sake of striking exposition or unexpected insight. In
other words, paradox is a statement or situation that may be true
but seems difficult and impossible to understand as it contains
two opposite facts or characteristics. The paradoxes in the poem
are:
i. My religion is murderous
ii. My covetousness is my sin
iii. My greed is my passion
iv. My magic is my wealth
v. My black magic is my politics
vi. My law is looting
vii. The acme of my intelligence is my cleverness
viii. My seas are homes of poisons of my intentions.
ix. My skies are residences of catastrophe worse than cataclysm.
The poet is trying to bring home the main idea of the
poem that is the rootlessness and spiritual bareness of the modern
man.
▄
43
7 The Wail
Naseem Shafaie
Prof. Neerja Mattoo
About the Poet

Naseem Shafaie born in 1952 is the prominent
contemporary poet from Srinagar. She has taught
Kashmiri Language and literature in the State
Department of Higher education. She is retired professor
from the University of Kashmir. She got the Sahitya
Akademi Award for Na Thsay Na Aks ( Neither shadow
nor reflection) collection of 44 poems and 36 Ghazals
.She has become the first Kashmiri woman to win the
country’s highest literary honour in recognition of her
contribution to the revival of Kashmir’s long tradition of
poetesses. The message in her poems is feminist and
universal. Many of her poems like Baakh (The Wail), deal
with the themes of sorrow, loss and terror which
Kashmiri women have lived through in recent times. She
writes about a variety of topics including the turbulent
atmosphere of Kashmir from woman’s perspective.
About the Poem

The poem The Wail is about women and their insecurity
regarding their children in Kashmir. It was written in 1990’s and
44
is the mirror of the socio-political conditions of that very era. It

addresses a wide range of Kashmir issues from a woman’s
perspective and is about the Kashmiri woman looking out of her
doors open, a metaphor for political turmoil in Kashmir and
mothers hope of her children to return back to home. The poem
narrates the recounting of loss, pain and gloom while unfolding
the heart-rending and heart-wrenching tale of Kashmir. Its last
stanza ‘‘mate martaw yen chew wansi kam’’ (Don’t die, you are
too young to die) is about women mourning young sons who
have died in last 20 years.
The poet narrates the tale of a mother (Queen) who at the
end of every day throws her doors open, waiting for her children
to come home. But knowing the havoc circumstances of Kashmir
she inwardly feels afraid and asks the other woman in her
neighborhood about their children. She asks them whether their
children are also still out. She has been waiting since long for her
children and it seems to her that they have forgotten their home
and only God knows where they are as it is too late that even
their food on the plate has turned cold. In the second part of the
poem she is told something by someone seemingly the woeful
tragedy of her children, she suddenly shuts her doors and
windows and gives up the hope of her children coming home.
She finally bursts out and breaks her ocean of grief by the
unending wail which her neighbors listen, wherein she addresses
her children not to die so young as their hands her are yet to be
tipped with henna or in other words they are still unmarried.

Q1. Comment on the fairy-tale opening of the poem.
The fairy tale opening of the poem The Wail invokes the
idea among the readers that the sorrowful and grief-stricken
mothers of Kashmir were not always like the way they are now.
They too once used to live the life of happiness and joy like that
45
of Queens. But now they no more are the Queens which is

suggested by the use of past tense ‘There was a Queen’ in the
very first line of the poem. It is so because they are now wailing
on the loss and death of their beloved young children.
Q2. Who does the ‘‘Queen’’ represent?

The Queen here represents a mother who once used to
live the life of happiness and joy like that of a Queen but now is
sorrowful and grief- stricken on the loss of his beloved children.
Q3. What does the ocean symbolize in the poem?

The ocean in the poem symbolizes the amount of grief
and pain of a mother on the death and loss of his children which
ultimately results in the unending wail.
Q4. How do you respond to: The grains of rice grow cold in
the plate?
The poet has used the captivating domestic imagery and
metaphor of ‘The grains of rice growing cold in the plate’ to
reinforce the image of long wait of Kashmiri mothers for their
children to return home at the end of every day. Their wait seems
to be endless as even the rice which was served hot on the plate
has turned cold but they do not return.
Q5: How has the image of henna been employed in the poem?
The poem narrates the recounting of loss, pain and gloom
while unfolding the heart-rending and heart-wrenching tale of
Kashmiri women and their insecurity regarding their children in
Kashmir. Its last stanza don’t die, you are too young to die is
about a woman mourning the death of a young children. She
wails their death by saying that you are too young to die and your
hands are yet to be tipped with henna or in other words you are
still unmarried. The image of the henna has been employed in the
46
poem to present the socio-political turmoil of Kashmir which

devours its people at the very blossoming and tender age.
Q6. The poem reveals the state of a grief-stricken mother
through a set of compelling metaphors. Discuss.
The poem aptly reveals the state of a grief-stricken
mother through a set of compelling metaphors like ‘with the
doors open’ ‘The grains of rice that grow cold in the plate’ and
‘henna tipped nails’ to unfold the heart-rending and heart-
wrenching tale of Kashmiri women about their insecurity
regarding their children in Kashmir as it was written in 1990’s
and is the mirror of the socio-political conditions of that very era.
The metaphors aptly suggest a wide range of Kashmir
issues from a woman’s perspective. With the doors open is a
metaphor for political turmoil in Kashmir and mothers hope of
her children to return back to home
The poet has used the captivating domestic imagery and
metaphor of ‘The grains of rice growing cold in the plate’ to
reinforce the image of long wait of Kashmiri mothers for their
children to return home at the end of every day. Their wait seems
to be endless as even the rice which is served hot on the plate
turns cold but they do not return.
The image of the henna has been employed in the poem to
present the socio-political turmoil of Kashmir which devours its
people at the very blossoming and tender age.
Q7. What effect is achieved by the use of anaphora in the

closing lines of the poem?
Anaphora is the rhetorical device or a technique that the
author uses to emphasize certain words or phrases. It is the
deliberate repetition of the first part of the sentence in order to
achieve an artistic effect. In the closing of the poem, the poet has
used the repetition of “Do not die, Do not die’ to emphasize the
47
fact that she does not want her children to die and that too at the
very young age.
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8 A Lost Memory of Delhi

Agha Shahid Ali
About the Poet

Agha Shahid Ali (1949-2001) was a famous
Kashmiri-American poet. He was raised in Kashmir and
went to U.S.A in 1976. He is also known as the first
Kashmiri English poet. He was educated at the University
of Kashmir, Srinagar, and the University of Delhi. He
earned Ph.D. in English from Pennsylvania State
University in 1984, and M.F.A from the University of
Arizona in 1985. Diasporic characteristics inform his
poems as well as the subtle and powerful images he
invokes from his multi-cultural background. He was
undoubtedly the most accomplished English-language
poet of the modern era. He was also a great translator as
well as he translated Mirza Ghalib and Faiz Ahmad Faiz.
Collections like The Half-Inch Himalayas (1987), The
Country without a Post Office (1997), and Rooms are
Never Finished (2001) have established him as an
accomplished poet of the modern era.
About the Poem

The poem A Last Memory of Delhi is a literary
commentary on the alienation the poet feels on being detached
from his parents. The poet recreates the past memories and
imagines himself in Delhi near his parents. The longing for his
parents gets reflected throughout the poem but the poet fails to
49
connect with his parents the way he wants to. The poet
throughout the poem wants to bring to light that he is
unfortunately alienated from them. The alienation is so strong
and effective that the poet feels ignored by his parents. He writes;
‘My mother is a recent bride/ her sari ablaze of brocade/
silverdust parts of her hair/ She doesn’t see me/ The bells of her
anklets are distant/ like the sound of china’ suggesting how a
distance and geographical barrier has made his parents seem
strangers. The poem reflects a contrast between his longing for
his parents and their consistent ‘going away’ from him. The
indifferent attitude of his parents that the poet feels in his
imagination and recreation of his past dismays him. He writes, ‘I
want to tell them ‘I am their son... I knock keep knocking/ but for
them the night is quiet’ suggesting how a permanent disorder has
taken place between the poet and his parents. The poem ends on a
pessimistic note as the poet feels that the distance between him
and his parents cannot be breezed rather it is breeding more and
more alienation.

Q1. What period of his life is the poet talking about? How do
you know?
This poem is completely highly imaginative in nature.
The poet has used the technique of back shadowing to bring forth
his point as the speaker is talking about the time when his parents
got married. The speaker doesn’t exist physically as he is
imagining about the time when his parents thought of conception
and he was in the womb of her mother not belonging to this
world.
The poet himself says that he was not born and it was the
year 1948 because the poet is born in the year 1949 and his
parents got married a year before. The poem is most confusing
one because of the voice and words chosen by narrator. He
50
describes the journey of his mother’s conception with the bus

turning onto the road and he was in the womb of her mother only,
so he was nameless.
Q2. How does the poet describe his mother?

The poet describes his mother as a beautiful recent bride
wearing a sari of brocade with silver dust particles on her hair.
She is also wearing bells of anklets producing the beautiful sound
but the poet is not able to see her. The poet actually uses his
imagination to create the past memories. The poet has used
imagery in this poem in order to portray his frustrations at the
impossibility of bridging the gap between the past and the
present. The Poem reflects the poet’s longings to be one with his
parents as the mood of the poet is nostalgic while describing her
mother because he says that she can’t see him as the sound of her
anklets are distant like the sound of the China from tea shops lit
up with lanterns.
Q3. How would you explain they go into the house always
faded in the photographs in the family album but lit up now
with the oil lamp I saw broken in the attic.
The poet in these lines describes his childhood home,
creating a narrative in which he attempts to place himself in the
memory captured in the photograph but he is not able to fit-in the
picture as his voice is unheard and too distant from his parents.
The poet makes use of beautiful imagery to be a part of that time.
The imagery brings forth his childhood home and longing to be
one with his parents as he tries to create a link between the past
and the future. The house then was lit up with lantern are now
broken and somewhere kept in the attic. He uses the imagination
of the spirit to create his past. A balanced and unusual view of
life before birth has been projected before the readers.
51
Q4. The extensive use of imagery, especially visual and

auditory sustains this poem. Comment.
Imagery stands for the mental picture that occurs in the
readers mind while reading the poem. The poem is wholly and
solely based on imagery both visual as well as auditory and this
is what sustains this poem because the poet uses imagination and
flash back technique to bring home his point. Through the use of
visual imagery he imagines how he was born after his parents got
married. Also through the visual imagery he is imagining how his
mother looked like when she was a bride as she was wearing
brocade with silver dust particles on her head and through the
auditory imagery he makes his readers feel how the anklets of her
mother’s feet were sounding and shows the urgency how he
knocks and keeps knocking to meet his parents but they are not
able to hear his knocks highlighting poet’s nostalgic mood to
meet his parents. Thus the use of the visual and mental imagery is
apt.
Q5: What does the poet want to tell his parents? Does he
succeed in doing so? Why ?
The poet wants to convey his parents that he is missing
them and craving to meet them as from the very outset of the
poem the poet is trying to get closer to them through his
memories but is unable to connect himself with them.
No, the poet does not succeed in doing so because his
voice is too distant, far and unheard to his parents. The poet
makes use of alliteration “knock keep knocking” to portray the
urgency and need to meet his parents but he further says they
don’t and they won’t answer the knock as his knocks are
drowning out.
52
Q6. Comment on the uses of alliteration in the poem?

Alliteration is a rhetorical device that repeats the same
sound usually a consonant at the start of a series of words or
sentences. For Example:
i. A wicked witch of the west went her own way
ii. She sells the sea shells at the sea shore.
Similarly, the poet has made use of various alliterations in
the poem A Lost Memory of Delhi to catch readers’ attention on a
particular section of text. Alliterative sounds create rhythm,
mood and can have particular connotations, for example, the poet
makes use of alliteration “knock keep knocking” to show the
urgency and need to meet his parents. Other examples of the
alliteration from the poem are:
My mother is a recent bride, her sari a blaze of brocade.
Teashops being lit up with lanterns.
They don’t hear me they won’t hear me.
The mood of the poem by the use of alliteration can be
dramatically highlighted. The way a poem sounds after reading
aloud influences its overall tone.
Q7. Anamnesis is the recollection of ideas, people or events

(in a previous existence). This is common in memoirs or
autobiography. Is the poem a recollection, a figment of the
poet’s imagination or his wishful thinking to see his parents
young again? Give reasons for your answer?
Agha Shahid Ali being an émigré living in America feels
about his lost home Kashmir. A Lost Memory of Delhi is one of
the exemplary diasporic poems as the poet recollects his past
memories and longs to be one with them. In this poem the poet
tries to view his past, present and future with home via memory.
He is nostalgic about his lost home – Kashmir as in his poetry the
reader sees a lament for the catastrophic events taking place over
there. He through his poetry tries to narrate the tragedy to the
53
world. He wants the end of violence and return of the peace in

Kashmir, hence he resists the oppression.
54
9 Of Delays
Francis Bacon
About the Author

Francis Bacon (1561-1629) was an English
philosopher, scientist, jurist, orator, essayist, and author.
He served both as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor
of England. He inaugurated the term essay in English and
is known as Father of English essays. The lasting appeal
of his essays, widely accepted as treasure-houses of
worldly wisdom, hinges on their thematic appeal and
rhetorical persuasiveness. His aphoristic style is a
hallmark of his essays.
Understanding the Text

Q1. How does bacon view dangers?
Bacon’s concept of dangers is the inability of a person to
take a right decision at the right moment. A person must be able
to understand the ripeness and unripeness of a situation. Doing
any impromptu action would be dangerous. It would be like
forcing a bud to open into a flower. Flowers don’t bloom that
way. On the contrary, one must watch the bud turning into a
flower and smell it before it withers away.
Q2.what does Bacon mean by “commit the beginnings to

Argus and ending to Briareus”.
Bacon has used two mythical figures Argus and Briareus
to insist upon the sharp sightedness and speediness that a person
55
needs to seize the moment. Argus had one hundred eyes and
Briareus has one hundred hands. What Bacon focuses is that one
needs to watch things like the hundred eyes of Argus and then
seize them like the hundred hands of Briareus.
Q3. What according to bacon are the advantages and

disadvantages of Delays?
Bacon highlights the advantages and disadvantages of
delays by various examples viz Market, Sibylla, Offer and the
Occasion.
In the market where prices keep rising and falling, it often
turns fruitful for those who delay. But delay is not always fruitful
at all. Bacon alludes to the Sibyl of Cumae in order to show the
disadvantages of delaying. According to the story, Sibyl appeared
before Tarquin and offered him nine books for sale. He declined
to buy them, whereupon she burned three and offered the
remaining six at the price she had asked for nine. On being again
refused, she destroyed three more and offered the remaining three
with the original price. Lucius Tarquinus unable to understand
her importunity and her bargaining bought the three books while
paying for all the nine. Bacon wants to bring forth and make his
readers understand that before delaying one must weigh things.
Delaying should not be based on the whims of heart without
contemplating first. Had Tarquinus gone through them before
rejecting, he would have got all the nine books.
Bacon describes occasion as an old woman whose hair
hangs down her face so that nobody knows her till she is past. At
the back of her head she is bald so that when once she is passed
by, no one may grasp her from behind. She personifies the truth
as an opportunity once missed never returns. Occasion can be
anything which time offers but it always comes in disguises. It all
depends upon the ability of a person to tear the veil off and make
it visible.
56
Q4: what should be done if delay becomes necessary?

If delay becomes necessary, one must wait for the
ripeness of the occasion rather than doing any unwise action.
Furthermore, during delay one must watch things with hawk’s
eye and once he gets into the mystery of things, he should not
miss the opportunity of seizing them.
Talking about the Text

Q1. Do you agree that we lose many things in life because we
delay?
Yes, I agree that we lose many things in life because we
delay. As everyone knows and experience that time doesn’t wait
for anyone. It keeps moving in progression. The present time in
which we live is not just a dream world where one can just
imagine things. Our life is shaped by the steps we take. We are
like a puzzle and our pieces are moving with time. We have to
keep vigil so that we don’t miss any piece. They (pieces) are
what we call necessities of life like health, family, relation, job,
education etc. if we delay in any of these, we miss a piece, the
puzzle remains a puzzle and we become unfit for survival.
Q2. What care and caution should be taken to ensure that we

are not causing any delay?
There are many obstacles that come in our way and
prevent us from doing anything. Obstacles like fear, insecurity,
laziness etc cause delay. Furthermore when we fail to overcome
these obstacles, we become inactive and unable to seize the
opportunities at the right moment, ultimately making us the
habitual procrastinators.
Delay may be having reasons behind it but we should not
delay for the sake of delay. We must weigh and watch things
rationally and keenly. It is only when we are able to understand
the turns and twists of time that we do not delay. We must be
57
cautious about the right moment to act as the right things happen
for those who act when time demands them to act.
Q3. Do you agree that in a certain context real wisdom lies in

delaying and waiting for things to happen instead of making
haste?
It is better to wait for things to ripen rather than to make
haste and spoil them. One must be patient to let things grow
because the fruit of patience is always sweet. Waiting is not like
letting things happen without making any effort. It is an
intentional delay to suspend things for some time because they
are required in future when the time is proper. Ripeness and
Readiness are the two things that one must keep in mind. First let
the things ripen, then be active to grab them.
Appreciation
Identify the other illusions in the essay and write about how
allusion contributes to the effectiveness of the essay.
Allusion is a reference in a literary work to a person,
place, or thing in the history or other works of literature.
Allusions are often indirect or brief references to well known
characters or events.
In the essay Of Delay, there is an allusion to Sibyl of
Cumae, an occasion described by Spenser of an old woman lame
by one leg. Her hair hangs down before her face, so that no one
may know her till she is past; at the back of her head she is bald,
no one may grasp her from behind.
Argos, surnamed Panoples (the all-seer), had one hundred
eyes among which one was always awake. Briareus or Aegaeon
was a giant with fifty heads and one hundred hands, whom
Homer mentions in Illiad.
The helmet of Pluto, made by the Cyclops had the
peculiar property of rendering the wearer invisible.
58
These allusions show Bacons love for the learning. The

essay bears witness to Bacons learned mind in the extensive use
of allusions drawn from various sources, classical fables, History,
the ancient Greek and Roman writers. Bacon employs allusions
and quotations in order to explain his own point of view. Bacon
alone shows mastery of the principles of the prose by using
allusions which contribute to the effectiveness of his essays.
These allusions lend his ideas greater weight and serve to make
his point of view more strong and vivid. He uses allusions to
make them fit the occasion. At times the allusions not only
support the argument, but are themselves elucidated by the
argument. They serve to make an impact more scholarly and
enrich it while lending weight to his ideas.
59
10 Freedom
G.B Shaw
About the Author

George Bernard Shaw (1859-1950) was a famous
dramatist, critic and an iconoclastic writer. His work as a
London newspaper critic of music and drama resulted in
creation of extended essays The Quintessence of
Ibsenism in 1981. His famous plays include Arms and the
Man, Candida and Man and Superman. His influence on
western theatre, culture and politics extended from the
1880’s to his death and beyond. .He won the noble prize
in literature in 1925. Among British dramatists he is
considered to be the best and most significant playwright
since William Shakespeare.
Stop and Think (Page no.35 of the Text)

Q1. What are the links between natural jobs, labour and
slavery?
Shaw at the very outset of the essay Freedom states ‘ A
perfectly free person is the one who can do what he likes, when
he likes and where he likes, or do nothing at all if he prefers it’.
This should be the concept of freedom which very much
resembles with the Rousseau’s thought that, ‘Man is born free but
everywhere he is in chains’ as Shaw simultaneously accepts that
there can never be such a person who would be altogether free
because we are all slaves to some basic necessities which we
cannot shun off. He states that in order to survive we must eat to
60
satisfy our hunger, we must drink to satisfy our thirst, we must

sleep to satisfy our tiredness. Shaw calls these necessities as
natural jobs which are nothing but moral obligations upon all of
us till we are alive on this earth. According to Shaw these natural
jobs like eating, sleeping, drinking and merrying can only be
produced by human labour as man is consumer and as such must
strive to produce food to eat, to make beds to sleep, and to have
clothes to cover his nakedness.
G.B Shaw states that natural jobs, labour and slavery are
interlinked to each other as natural jobs can’t be fulfilled without
human labour whether he would be a monarch or a common man.
According to him, this human labour gets changed into slavery
only when a person allows another person to dominate him. With
the result that person shifts all his part of obligation or Natural
slavery on the shoulders of the labourer, who ultimately gets
enslaved.
Q2. What ought to be the object of all the governments, and

what do we actually find it to be?
According to G.B Shaw the object of all government
should be freedom of its people from man to man slavery. The
government should prevent its common masses from being
exploited but in turn the government itself exploits them which,
to Shaw, is a blatant paradox as it is totally opposite of what it
should be. The government regulates the slavery of common
people instead of redeeming them from the same. Shaw states
that the prime objective of government should be to make people
aware of their slavery/exploitation at the hands of ruling class.
Instead of this the government through its super structures- viz
parliaments, schools and newspapers makes the most desperate
efforts to prevent the common masses from realizing their
slavery. In other words the government propagates slavery
instead of abolishing it.
61

Q1. What causes the master class to be more deluded than
the enslaved class?
G.B Shaw being an iconoclast is attacking the pseudo
policies of master class, which knits a trap and falls itself into it.
Shaw proclaims that master class is more deluded than the
enslaved class as he believes that master class is falsified by the
history and the economic policies, created by them only, right
from their schooling to the university level.
Shaw believes that in order to make the common masses
believe in their policies, they first have to believe themselves and
with the result their mindset gets framed as per their false policies
and falsified system. The working class is not deluded much
because they are more concerned in earning their livelihood.
Furthermore they didn’t get more deluded by the policies of
master class as they do not find them profitable. Shaw also gives
the example of the gentleman produced by the master class
whose mind is framed by the fake and phony policies of master
class and as such he honestly believes that there is no other better
system than the one he is part of and even is ready to shed his
blood in its defense.
On the other hand, the great mass of rack-rented and
underpaid cost off workers can’t feel so sure about the system as
that of a gentleman because factually the system is against them
and moreover they are much concerned about earning their
livelihood.
Q2. According to Aristotle, what are the conditions to be

fulfilled for the common people to accept law and order, and
government, and that they imply?
According to Aristotle an ideal state is impossible unless
people won’t follow or accept law and order. He opines that in
order to make people follow the laws and orders of government,
62
the rulers must fulfill certain conditions. They must be

beautifully dressed and decorated, robed and uniformed, travel in
the most expensive cars or first class carriages, speak with a
special accent and have slaves. In other words, he opines that
they must be rich and must be living luxurious life which will
create godlike impression on common masses, who in turn will
have no choice but to accept them.
Q3. How can reasonable laws, impartially administered,

contribute to one’s freedom?
According to Shaw, a civilized society has a government
which frames a constitution enumerating the rights and duties of
the citizens. The absolute freedom of the citizens is not possible
as one’s freedom can curtail the freedom of others. In a civilized
society, absolute freedom of citizens is restricted by the police
who will oblige the people to do something and not to do some.
They even make the people pay taxes and rates, which in turn are
used for the welfare of society. Shaw believes that if these laws
are reasonable and impartially administered, the citizens will
have no complain as the laws will increase their freedom by
protecting them against assault, disorder and robbery.
Furthermore these will lead them to progress, which is only
possible in peace and harmony.
Q4. What are the ways in which individual freedom gets

restricted?
According to Shaw there are many ways in which the
individual freedom gets curtailed. First of all an individual or a
human being is a slave to his own bodily desires and needs.
Secondly, his freedom gets restricted as he becomes a slave to the
fancies of his employers to whom he has to remain obedient in
order to feed himself and his family. Thirdly, he is a slave to his
landlord, to whom he is forced to oblige. Fourthly, his freedom
63
gets curbed through the government of his country which extracts

number of taxes from him. Fifthly, by the obtuse education given
to him by the government institutions and finally as Shaw states
his independence is mocked through the flawed and rotten
institutions of voting and democracy.
Understanding Freedom and Discipline Stop and Think (page

no.44 of the Text)
Q1. Why do most people find it easier to confirm, imitate,
and follow a self- appointed guru?
J.Krishnamurti believes that most people find it easier to
confirm, imitate, and follow a self-appointed guru as they have
closed minds. They do not want to think deeply, find out and
discover the truth on their own because they find it very difficult
and it requires alert perception and constant inquiry. Most people
have neither the inclination nor the energy for doing the same.
So, they find it easier to imitate their self appointed guru.
Q2. What is the inward struggle that the author refers to?
By inward struggle the author means the inward dilemma;
‘To be or not to be’ i.e., the struggle of a person whether to break
away from the tradition or to abide by it. Those who are unable to
resolve this struggle are caught in conflict, in pain, in sorrow,
everlasting wanting to do something and being prevented from
doing it.

Q1. Point out the difference between the slavery of man to
Nature and the unnatural slavery of man to man.
In the seminal essay Freedom, Shaw points out an
important difference between the slavery of man to Nature and
the unnatural slavery of man to man. According to him the first,
though unavoidable provides pleasure after its fulfillment. For
64
instance, if Nature forces us to drink, she makes drinking

pleasant. The same is true of eating, sleeping, merrying and other
natural activities. While as unnatural slavery of man to man
dupes an individual’s rights as he becomes slave to another
man’s fancies not only bodily but also psychologically.
He refers to thinkers like Karl Marx and Sir Thomas
More who strongly renounced this unnatural slavery of man to
man and tried to abolish it.
Q2. What are the ways in which people are subjected to

greater control in the personal sphere than in the wider
political sphere?
There are many ways in which people are subjected to
greater control in personal sphere than in the wider political
sphere. Some of the ways can be highlighted as under:
i: Firstly, people are greatly controlled by their own bodily
desires and needs.
ii: Secondly, they become slaves to the fancies of their
employers to whom they have to remain obedient in order
to feed themselves and their families.
iii: Thirdly, they become slaves to their landlords. According
to Shaw, the power of landlord over his people is far of
greater than that of any political dictator as the landlord
keeps a check even on the religious activities of his
people.
In all the above mentioned conditions, the people are left
with no other option but to subject themselves in order to fulfill
their personal and basic needs, while as in the wider political
sphere they are provided with some options though limited.
Q3. List the common misconceptions about ‘freedom’ that

Shaw tries to debunk.
65
G.B Shaw is quite dismissive about the way the humans

perceive freedom. He debunks the lofty perception about freedom
held by those who think they enjoy it. He argues that there is
nothing like ‘absolute freedom’ because a man, be he a monarch
or a humble labourer nearly spends half of his day in performing
his natural or inescapable functions like eating, drinking, sleeping
and other bodily functions. So, according to Shaw Nature or
Creator rob the humans of half of their freedom. In addition to
this a man has also to do jobs for provision, food, shelter, clothes
etc. He further states that if a man is living in a civilized society,
his freedom gets further restricted by the laws of that place. Thus
Shaw debunks the conventional wisdom about freedom and says
that a man can’t quite shake off the shackles of enslavement as
slavery seems unavoidable and such a social order in which
slavery is a necessary component seems to be ordained by
Heaven.
Q4. Why, according to Krishnamurti, are the concepts of

freedom and discipline contradictory to one another?
According to Krishnamurti, the concepts of freedom and
discipline are contradictory to one another because discipline
resists us to understand things comprehensively, while as
freedom encourages us to understand, think and discover
anything we want to. He states that discipline imposes a wall of
do’s and dont’s on us, thereby confines and impedes our
intelligence and makes us thoughtless entities. Freedom contrary
to discipline breaks this wall of do’s and dont’s and helps us to
inquire and find out what we really want to do in our life by
making extensive use of our intelligence. He concludes by saying
there is no freedom if we are enclosed by various walls of
discipline.
66
Q5. How does the process of inquiry lead to true freedom?

Krishnamurti believes that freedom doesn’t exist in a
frame and most of us live in a frame, in a world enclosed by ideas
and impositions. So, in order to be free, one has to break this
frame which is only possible through the process of inquiry. He
argues that it requires constant inquiry and alert perception to go
into the things deeply and discover for oneself what is true,
which ultimately results in breaking the various kinds of walls
imposed on us by tradition and discipline and leads to true
freedom. To quote Krishnamurti,“to find out for oneself [process
of inquiry] what is true, all influences must cease. There is no
‘good’ conditioning or ‘bad’ conditioning; there is only
freedom...”
67
11 Film-making
Ingmar Bergman
About the Author

Ernst Ingmar Bergman (1918-2007) was a Swedish
director and producer who worked in films, television,
theatre and radio. He is considered to be among the most
accomplished and influential film makers of all time. His
best known works include The Seventh Seal (1957), Wild
Strawberries (1958), The Virgin Spring (1960), The
Silence (1963), Persona (1967), The Passion of Anna
(1970) and Cries and Whispers (1973). Philip French
referred to Bergman as “one of the greatest artists of the
20th century...”.

Q1. What childhood memories does the author recollect that
had a bearing on his later involvement with film-making?
The author recollects many childhood memories which
made him a film maker. He recollects that his grandfather had a
very large old apartment in Uppasala Cathedral having medieval
paintings and carved figures on its ceilings and walls, which
enhanced his imagination. He was brought up in a vicarage which
made him familiar with life and death behind scenes as his father
used to perform funerals, baptism etc. He had a toy called ‘magic
lantern’ at the age of nine which altered the course of his life. He
also recollects that at the age of ten, he received his first rattling
film projector which he found fascinating and mystifying. All
68
these childhood memories had a deep impact and bearing on his

career as a film-maker.
Q2. What connection does the author draw between film-

making and conjuring?
The author draws a parallel between film-making and
conjuring. He says that film making like conjuring is based on
the deception of the human eye. While conjuring involves use of
various tricks and illusions, film-making involves use of an
apparatus to take advantage of a certain human weakness and to
sway audience in a highly emotional manner. So, a film making
in order to move and entertain the audience makes use of
different kinds of devices (apparatus) like that of a conjurer who
uses tricks and illusions to do the same.

Q1. What is the nature of the first impressions that form
basis for a film?
The nature of the first impressions that form basis for a
film is vague and temporary. They disappear as quickly as they
come but leave behind a pleasant mood.
Q2. Which art form is film-making closest to? What is the

reason for the similarity?
The art form closet to film-making is music. The reason
for this similarity is that both these art forms have a direct
emotional appeal.

Q1. Quite often a film made out of a book is not very
successful. Discuss?
Bergman argues that a film made out of a book often is
not very successful because the script is very imperfect technical
69
basis for a film. He says that a film has nothing to do with

literature as the character and substance of the two art forms are
usually in conflict. While as the reading of literature gradually
affects our emotions, seeing or watching a film plays directly on
our feelings. He further says that a literary work is often
untranslatable into visual terms and it in turn destroys the special,
irrational dimension of the film. He states that to translate
something literary into film requires number of complicated
adjustments and yet it bears no fruit at the end and proves to be a
failure.
Q2. What, according to Bergman, is the relationship between

a film maker and his audience?
According to Bergman, the relationship between a film
maker and his audience is that of an artist and his critics. He says
that audiences are like reviewers and critics who have every right
to interpret his films as they wish and like. He further states that a
film is made to create reaction and if the audience doesn’t react
one way or another, it is worthless.

Q1. What is the story of the Cathedral of Charters and how
does the author relate it to his profession?
The story of the cathedral of charters is that it was struck
by lightning and burned to the ground. Then thousands of people
came from all points of the compass, like a giant procession of
ants, and together they began to rebuild the cathedral on its old
site. They worked until the building was completed – master
builders, artists, labourers, clowns, noblemen, priests, burghers.
But they remained anonymous and no one knows to this day who
built the Cathedral of Charters.
The author relates it to his profession by saying that he
too wants to be an anonymous artist in building the cathedral of
70
art. He says that “I would play my part in the collective building

of the cathedral (art)”
Q2. What are some of the flaws of the world of film making
today?
In today’s world of film-making, the individual has
become the highest form and bane of artistic creation as he
considers his ego of eternal importance. The artist or the film-
maker regards his isolation, subjectivity and individualism as
holy. They bleat about their loneliness without listening to each
other and without realizing that they are smothering each other to
death. The artists or the film-makers have become so narrow
minded that they are unable to distinguish between true and false,
between the gangsters whim and the purest ideals.

Q1. Pick out examples from the text that show Bergman’s
sensitivity to sensory impressions which have made him a
great film-maker.
Bergman’s sensitivity to sensory impression which has
made him a great film maker goes back to the world of his
childhood, when he saw a picture of Venice hung on the wall and
where he sensed how sunlight moved across the picture and
water began to flow in the canal, the pigeons flew up from the
square, people talked and gesticulated, bells sounded from the
picture itself and the piano music from the remarkable picture of
Venice. These are all such examples that show his sensitivity to
sensory impressions which have made him a great film-maker.
(See also Q1 on page 62)
Q2. What do you understand of the complexity of the little

invisible steps that go into the making of a good film?
The little invisible footsteps that go into the making of a
good film includes the number of complexities like the
71
transformation of rhythms, moods, atmosphere, tensions,

sequences, tones and scents into words, and sentences into an
understandable screenplay. As this is difficult task, the only thing
that can be satisfactorily transferred from original complex of
rhythms and moods is the dialogue and even dialogue is a
sensitive substance which may offer resistance. Its interpretation
demands a technical knack and a certain kind of imagination and
feelings. With such complexities, the success of the film depends
on writing ability and perceptiveness of the reader which are not
always predictable.
Q3. What are some of the risks that film-making involves?

Film-making or films are nothing but illusions that
illuminate our consciousness and imagination. It is not always
necessary that film maker gets success first after making the film
but a lot of risks come in his way as he has to face a lot of
criticism or negative comments either from reviewers or from
critics, who have the right to interpret the film as they like. Each
person has the right to understand a film as he sees it. A film is
always made to create creation. If the audience doesn’t react to it
in one way or another, it can be considered as an indifferent work
or worthless. Film-makers hard work, efficiency and good
craftsmanship also goes in vain after getting negative remarks.
So, the success of film depends on both writing ability and
perceptiveness of the audience which are not always predictable.
Q4. What misgivings does Bergman have about the

contemporary film industry?
Bergman was of the view that contemporary film industry
included such film makers who are ambitious and are obliged to
walk on a tightrope without a net. He believed that the amount of
talent, initiative and creative ability has been destroyed by the
72
film industry in its ruthlessly efficient sausage machine and thus

the brutality of the industry is undisguised.
Q5. Compare Bergman’s views about making films out of

books with that of Umberto Eco’s.
Both Bergman and Umberto eco are not in favor of
making films out of books but for different reasons. Bergman
argues that literature has nothing to do with films as the script is a
very imperfect technical basis for a film. He further says that they
both are different as the dimensions of a literary work is often
non translatable into visual terms and if one wishes to translate it
into film, one must make number of adjustments, which
ultimately destroy the special irrational dimension of the film.
Eco is of the view that people like to read the difficult
experiences and do not want easy ones or in other words, the
films. He also rejects the notion of making films out of books
because he believes that 80 percent of readers read the book after
watching the film, which is very painful for a novelist.
Talking about the text

Q1. According to the author, split-second impressions from a
‘mental state’, not an actual story, but one abounding in
fertile associations and images’. Discuss.
Virginia Woolf in her short story ‘The Mark on the Wall’
used stream of consciousness technique i.e., a technique that
attempts multiple thoughts and feelings which pass through one’s
mind or we can say that it is a device used to render a character’s
mental process into text. Woolf in this short story has described a
series of recollected events but quickly turns through the motif of
a mark seen by the narrator over a mantle piece on the wall to a
near random stream of loosely connected memories and
impressions. The narrator’s stream of consciousness ranges
widely over time and space and then suddenly the narrator
73
reveals the mark on the wall is made by snail. And to the end, the
thoughts that have been coming freely into her mind stop
suddenly. Here, in the essay, Bergman named this technique as
split-second impression. By this he actually meant that
sometimes in his work at the theatre he himself envisioned actors
playing different roles that leave behind impressions on his mind
like pleasant dreams where from a complete film can emerge.
Q2. Bergman talks about the various influences in life

including his parents and his religious upbringing. To what
extent are an individual’s achievements dependent on the
kind of influences he or she has had in life? Discuss.
Family, friends, schooling and an environment in which
an individual lives no doubt have direct effect on individual’s
achievement. Probably the strongest influence in one’s life is of
the family he or she grew up in. The birth order, the personalities
of parents, the way an individual was treated by siblings, the
socio-economic status of the family, their education and their
behavior shape an individual at the time when he/she was most
vulnerable to be shaped. It is the family that plays a major role in
the way individual behaves in society.
Bergman himself in this essay has discussed the role of
his parents and family, how they taught him a number of values –
efficiency, punctuality, sense of financial responsibility etc that
has sharpen his life. In short, we can say that to large extent an
individual’s achievement does depend on the kind of influences
he or she has had in life.
Appreciation
Q1. Autobiographical accounts make interesting reading
when the author selects episodes that are connected to the
pursuit of excellence. How does this apply to Ingmar
Bergman’s narration of the details of film-making?
74
There are number of autobiographical accounts that

Bergman has described in his film making. Right from the
beginning of the essay he has discussed number of episodes of
his life which have made him a great film maker. Such episodes
include the episode of his childhood when he saw a huge picture
of Venice hung on the wall. It was this very episode that shows
his sensitivity to sensory impression. The second episode, when
he received his first film projector that he found very mystifying
and fascinating gave him an idea of making a film later on. The
third autobiographical account that he discussed is the role played
by his family i.e., how they taught him a number of values that
sharpen his life and his artistic career. In short, we can say that
Bergman has discussed number of autobiographical episodes in
this essay that has made this essay very interesting and readable.
75
12 Why the Novel Matters

D.H. Lawerence
About the Author

D.H Lawrence (1885-1930) was born in a coal-mining
town. He was the son of an uneducated miner and an ambitious
mother who was a teacher. His wife was German, and the couple
lived, at various times, in Italy, Germany, Australia, Tahiti and
Mexico.
Lawrence’s writing reflects a revolt against Puritanism,
mediocrity and dehumanization of an industrial society.
Stop and Think

Q1. What are the things that mark animate things from the
inanimate?
Animate (alive or having life) means moving or living
things that occupies space, matter or anything, for example, God
bringing Adam and Eve to life.
Inanimate means non-living or not moving. So literally
objects like car, pencil, book etc are examples of inanimate
objects.
So, simply animate and inanimate things mean living and
non-living things respectively.
Q2. What is the simple truth that eludes the philosopher or

the scientist?
The essayist D.H. Lawrence conveys that the simple truth
is that man alive is the ultimate reality of existence and whatever
is dead doesn’t carry any meaning. He writes, “ better a live dog
76
than a dead lion but better a live long than a live dog” suggesting
what matters in the world is active existence which is visible, felt
and experienced. Contrary to this, the philosopher and scientist
split a human being and narrow down its identity. For
philosophers only metaphysical and abstract thoughts are real and
rest is subordinated. In the same way the science focuses upon
pieces and bits which falls apart true identity of human being.
Stop and think

How does Lawerence reconcile inconsistency of behaviour
with integrity?
Lawerence reconciles inconsistency of behaviour with
integrity by maintaining that nothing is absolute, not even the
change. He believes that a man in reality is assembly of
incongruous parts and as such he must not cut himself out to
patterns, rather he should live his life as a whole like the
characters of the novel that do not mould their characters
according to some patterns but instead live their life as a whole.

Q1. How does the novel reflect the wholeness of a human
being?
In the essay Why the Novel Matters, the novel is described
by D.H. Lawrence as a literary genre which studies human being
comprehensively, where all aspects of his existence are touched
at. Lawrence has given much importance to the wholeness of a
being and begins the essay by commenting upon the saying ‘a
sound mind in a sound body’. He claims that it is utter stupidity
to make something subordinate to the other thing. Every
individual thing is a part of the living man and carries equal
importance. The hand is as much important as is the mind
because the hand has a life of its own and it can act for itself.
Lawrence says that whatever in man is alive constitutes the
77
wholeness of a human being. The hand, skin, freckles, blood, and

bones are very much alive and part of the man alive. Lawrence
refuses to believe that he is a body or a soul or a brain or a
nervous system and instead considers himself to be a complete
whole made up of all these parts, a whole that is greater and more
significant than the individual parts. For Lawrence the most
important thing is to be a whole man alive, which is the ultimate
result of any novel.
Q2. Why does the author consider the novel superior to

philosophy, science or even poetry?
The writer considers novel superior to the philosophy,
science and poetry because he believes that the novel examines
human being in the way that his existence is not split into pieces.
For him the philosophy adventures human being into the world
which is quite metaphysical, abstract and remote from the
practical concerns of life. The essay wants to convey that all
philosophical thoughts are “tremulations on ether” which remain
invisible and inherit until they are delivered by some physical
being. For D.H Lawrence philosophy is vacuum and emptiness
unless it is expressed in some physical terms. The subject of
science also splits human being into pieces and doesn’t define
human being in its complete and whole form. The writer
considers it unnecessary to talk about man as a lung, heart,
stomach or any other part. He writes, “I absolutely flatly deny
that I am a soul, or a mind, or an intelligence, or a bunch of
glands...the whole is greater than part” suggesting that identity of
a human being is understood in its whole form. In the same way,
he lambasts poetry which also deals with some specific aspect of
human being and denies its complete and whole description.
The whole essay concentrates on an idea that there is no
scope for split and binary when it comes to the true description of
human being. The human being encompass multitude of aspects
78
like body self, soul self, emotional self and psychological self
which are interdependent upon each other. All aspects of human
character work in unity to give identity to the human being and
put him into action in the existence.
Q3. What does the author mean by ‘tremulations on ether’

and ‘the novel as tremulation’?
By ‘tremulations on ether’, the writer says that every idea
or notion doesn’t carry any significance or meaning unless and
until it is put into concrete terms and expressed through body.
Unless an idea is not expressed through body, it all remains
invisible and empty in space like radio waves.
By “ the novel as tremulations”, he means to say that
novel doesn’t teach metaphysical and abstract idea only but it
activates physical aspect of human being. The tremulation of
novel encompasses all aspects of human being like soul, body,
emotions and doesn’t split him into pieces.
Q4. What are the arguments presented in the essay against

the denial of body by spiritual thinkers?
The essay hits out at spiritual thinkers who according to
the writer transport human beings into metaphysical and abstract
world. He says that they intoxicate human beings with thoughts
of other worldly pleasures neglecting the physical paradise that
lies within us and around us. He writes, “Paradise is afterlife, and
I for one am not keen on anything that is afterlife”. The writer
seems to suggest that these spiritual sayings subordinate this
earthly existence in favor of something which is not visible in
concrete form. For the writer denial of bodily existence negates
spiritual existence as well because the latter is dependent upon
the former and can be understood only through physical terms.
He cites the example of Italian saint Francis of Assissi who
tortured his body in the belief that soul was of utmost
79
importance. However, when he was dying he apologized to his

body for perpetrating such violence on it because he understood
the oneness of body and soul only then.
80
13 The Argumentative Indian

Amartya Sen
About the Author

Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) was a Russian born
American author and biochemist. He was a highly
successful and exceptionally prolific writer best known
for his works on science fiction and for his popular
science books.
Most of Asimov’s popularized science books
explain science concepts in a historical way, going back
as far as possible to a time when the science in question
was at its simplest stage. He also lent his name to the
magazine, Asimov’s Science Fiction.
Stop and Think (page no. 73 of the Text)

Q1. Sen quotes Eliot’s lines: ‘Not fare well/But fare forward
voyagers’. Distinguish between ‘faring forward’ [Krishna’s
position in the Gita] and ‘faring well’ [the position that Sen
advocates]
In Bhagavad Gita, according to Sen, Krishna’s position is
that of an archetypal deontologist as he (Krishna) believes in
‘faring forward’ or in other words doing one’s duty and fulfilling
one’s obligation irrespective of evaluating or thinking of its
consequences.
Sen, however, argues that although the case for doing
what one sees as one’s duty must be strong, yet one must not be
indifferent to the consequences that may result from his doings or
81
duty. To put it differently, Sen advocates that there is a need to

reinterpret Arjuna’s position in Gita, who believes in ‘faring
well’ – avoiding bad consequences and generating good ones.
Q2. Sen draws a parallel between the moral dilemma in the

Krishna-Arjuna dialogue and J. R. Oppenheimer’s response
to the nuclear explosion in 1945. What is the basis for this?
The basis for drawing the parallel between the moral
dilemma in the Krishna-Arjuna dialogue and J. R.
Oppenheimer’s response to the nuclear explosion in 1945 is that
Sen wants to convey to his readers that there is a need to
reconsider or supplement the univocal message of the Gita in
general and Krishna’s argument in particular i.e., fulfilling one’s
duties irrespective of evaluating consequences. To validate his
statement, Sen gives the example of J. R.Oppenheimer – the
creator of mass destructive weapons, who after nuclear explosion
of 1945 opined that one must not argue about the result of his
action after it is done rather the consequences or the outcome
must be taken into consideration beforehand.
Stop and Think (page no. 80 of the Text)

Q1. Maitreyi’s remark – ‘what should I do with that by
which I do not become immortal’ – is a rhetorical question
cited to illustrate both the nature of human predicament and
the limitations of the material world. What is the connection
that Sen draws between this and his concept of economic
development?
Sen draws a connection between Maitreyi’s remark “what
should I do with that by which I do not become immortal” and
his concept of economic development. He like Maitreyi believes
that economic growth can’t measure or expand one’s life because
all human beings are equally entitled to enjoy a life that they
value. Sen finds her remark useful to motivate and explain his
82
understanding of concept of development which is not parasitic

or dependent on the growth of GNP or GDP. He further states
that if we wish to live long and live well, then we should focus on
life and death and not merely on wealth and economic opulence,
resembling Maitreyi’s argument that wealth can’t make her
immortal.
Q2. It is important to see that the Indian argumentative

tradition has frequently crossed the barriers of gender, caste,
class and community. List the examples cited by Sen to
highlight this.
Sen cites many examples to highlight the fact that Indian
argumentative tradition has frequently crossed the barriers of
gender, caste, class and community. Some of the examples are as
follows:
(a) Sarojini Naidu in 1925 was elected as the first woman
President of the Indian National Congress.
(b) The second woman head of the Indian National Congress,
Nellie Sengupta, was elected in 1933.
(c) In Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, it is a woman scholar,
Gargi, who asks the toughest questions to the outstanding
male teacher and scholar, Yajnavalkya.
(d) Rani of Jhansi, another feminine hero, who in nineteenth
century fought against the British rule in India.
(e) Maitreyi’s argument with her husband, Yajnavalkya when
they discuss about the wealth.
(f) In the epic story of Mahabharata it is a woman, Draupadi
who encourages her husband, King Yudhisthira to fight
the usurpers of his throne.
(g) The Muslim Sufi and Hindu Bhakti movements included
leading women figures such as Mira Bai, Andal, Daya-
bai, Sahajo- bai, Ksema etc.
83

Q1. What is Sen’s interpretation of the positions taken by
Krishna and Arjuna in the debate between them?
[Note Sen’s comment: ‘Arjuna’s contrary arguments are not
really vanquished…There remains a powerful case for
‘faring well’ and not just ‘faring forward’.]
In his essay The Argumentative Indian, Sen discusses the
debate between Krishna and Arjuna from the religio-
philosophical Hindu text, The Bhagvad Gita. According to him
Arjuna represents sensitivity to consequences and Krishna is an
archetypal deontologist. While as Arjuna is much concerned with
the consequences, Krishna lays much emphasis on fulfilling
one’s moral obligations and duties irrespective of evaluating
consequences. Sen by discussing this debate wants to bring home
his theme that though there are two contrary reasonable
arguments, yet there is mutual respect and impartiality in it which
is evident from the fact that in spite of Krishna’s winning the
debate, the contrary arguments of Arjuna are not really
vanquished. Furthermore, Sen advocates that even in
contemporary era there is a need of not only being concerned
with fulfilling one’s duties (faring forward) but also with its
consequences (faring well).
Q2. What are the three major issues Sen discusses here in
relation to India’s dialogic tradition?
Sen in his essay The Argumentative Indian discusses
three major issues of Gender, Caste and Voice in relation to
India’s dialogic tradition. Sen states that India has had deep
inequalities along the lines of gender, class, caste and
community. He believes that the social relevance of the
argumentative Indian tradition would be limited if disadvantaged
groups are barred from participation.
84
As far as Gender is concerned he states that though men

have always ruled argumentative moves in India, yet
participation of women has not been at all negligible. To
substantiate his point, he gives many illustrations from
Mahabharata and politics of India where women have been at the
forefront of the things.
Regarding Class and Voice he says that it has always
been the under privileged groups and the persons belonging to
them who have raised voice against the religious orthodoxy and
many other evil activities within the society. In support of his
statement, he gives examples of Bhakti and Sufi movements and
the personalities belonging to minor classes such as Kabir – the
greatest poet was a weaver, Dadu – a cotton-carder, Ravi Das – a
shoemaker etc.
By discussing these three major issues, Sen wants to
convey that the participation of all the members and classes of a
society must be made possible in order to resist and undermine
those inequalities which characterize so much of contemporary
Indian society.
Q3. Sen has sought here to dispel some misconceptions about

democracy in India. What are these misconceptions?
Some of the misconceptions regarding democracy which Sen
has sought or tried to dispel in his essay are:
(a) Taking democracy to be just as a gift of western world
that India simply abided by when she became
independent.
(b) The assumptions that democracy suits India because there
is something unique in its history.
Sen corrects these misconceptions by stating that
democracy is rather intimately connected with public discussion
and reasoning which exists all across the globe and not only in
85
the West. Furthermore with argumentative tradition, democracy

becomes easier to institute and preserve.
Q4. How, according to Sen, has the tradition of public

discussion and interactive reasoning helped the success of
democracy in India?
Sen states that democracy is neither gift of West to India
nor there is something unique in Indian history which makes it
democratic. Instead he believes that it is connected with public
discussion and interactive or argumentative reasoning. India
being argumentative in nature since antiquity has found it easier
to establish or to institute it. Moreover, it has helped to make
heterodoxy the natural state of affairs in India as persistent
arguments are an essential part of public life in India. It has
deeply influenced Indian politics and contributed to the
development of democracy and the emergence of its secular
priorities.
Talking about the Text

Q1. Does Amartya Sen see argumentation as a positive or a
negative value?
Amartya Sen sees argumentation as a positive value
because he believes that it is the argumentative heritage of India
that has shaped its culture and tradition. It has helped in the
development of the democracy, intellectual and social history of
India. Moreover, he states that it is the argumentative tradition
which makes democracy easier to institute and preserve in India.
Argumentation according to him has helped to make heterodoxy
the natural state of affairs in India as persistent arguments are an
essential part of public life in India. The essay ends on a positive
note wherein Sen asserts that argumentation has not lost its
significance even in the contemporary times.
86
Q2. How is the message of the Gita generally understood and

portrayed? What change in interpretation does Sen suggest?
In his essay, The Argumentative Indian, Sen traces out the
argumentative tradition of India by discussing the argument of
Krishna and Arjuna that is quoted in Bhagavad Gita. Sen states
that, generally the moral position of Krishna is endorsed and
praised because he wins the argument and removes Arjuna’s
doubts. As such the message of Gita is also generally understood
or portrayed from the perspective of Krishna who insists on the
fulfillment of one’s duties without bothering about the
consequences.
However, Sen suggests a change in this interpretation by
stating that though Krishna wins the argument, yet Arjuna’s
contrary arguments are not really vanquished, so the
consequences must also be taken into consideration while
performing one’s duties. In other words not only the argument
that won but also the other side of argument is given the equal
significance as the epic Mahabharata itself presents each of the
two contrary arguments with much care and sympathy.
Appreciation
This essay is an example of argumentative writing.
Supporting statements with evidence is a feature of this kind
of writing. For each of the statements given below state the
supportive evidence provided in the essay
(i) Prolixity is not alien to Indian.
At the very outset of his essay, Sen writes that “Prolixity
is not alien to us in India” by which he means that Indians like to
talk. To validate his statement he gives the example of Krishna
Menon – India’s Defence Minister from 1957-1962, who holds
the record of the longest speech ever delivered at the United
Nations (nine hours non-stop). In addition, he also gives the
examples of the ancient Sanskrit epics of India – the Ramayana
87
and Mahabharta which are colossally longer than the Greek epics
– Illiad and Oddssey.
(ii) The arguments are also, often enough, quite
substantive.
Amartya sen states that “The arguments are also, often
enough, quite substantive” meaning arguments are often
meaningful and firmly based in reality. He substantiates this
statement by giving the example of famous Bhagavad Gita, one
of the small sections of epic Mahabharta, which presents a tussle
between two contrary moral positions – Krishna’s emphasis on
doing one’s duty, on one side, and Arjuna’s focus on avoiding
bad consequences on the other.
(iii) This admiration for the Gita and Krishna’s
arguments in particular has been a lasting
phenomenon in parts of European culture.
In support of the above statement, Sen gives many
examples such as:
(a) Gita was spectacularly praised in the early seventeenth
century by Wilhelm von Humboldt as ‘the most beautiful
perhaps the only true philosophical song existing in any
known tongue’.
(b) In his poem Four Quartets, T. S. Eliot summarizes
Krishna’s view in the form of an admonishment: ‘And do
not think of the fruit of action! Fare forward’. Eliot
explains it as: ‘Not fare well/ But fare forward, voyagers’.
(iv) There remains a powerful case for ‘faring well’,
and not just ‘faring forward’.
Sen argues that in Bhagavad Gita it is not only Krishna’s
argument ‘faring forward’ (fulfilling one’s moral obligations and
duties) which gets due credit but also there remains a powerful
case for Arjuna’s argument ‘faring well’ (evaluation of
consequences). Sen substantiates this statement by arguing that
though Krishna wins the debate, yet Arjuna’s contrary arguments
88
are not also really vanquished. He further validates this statement

by writing that the epic Mahabharata itself presents each of the
two contrary arguments with much care and sympathy.
89
14 On Science Fiction
Isaac Asimov
About the Author

Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) was a Russian born
American author and biochemist. He was professor of
biochemistry at Boston University. He was a highly
successful and exceptional prolific writer best known for
his works on Science Fiction and popular science. He
wrote and edited more than five hundred books and
estimated ninety thousand letters and postcards.
Most of Asimov’s popularized science books
explain science concepts in a historical way going back
as far as possible to a time when the science in question
was at its simplest stage. He also lent his name to the
magazine Asimov’s Science Fiction.
Stop and Think

Q1. What is the parallel drawn between myths and legends of
the past and science fiction?
Isaac Asimov draws a parallel between myths and legends
of the past and science fiction. He says that both of them have
common goal i.e., the depiction of life with which one is not
familiar. Also they both fulfill the same emotional need – the
satisfaction of the longing for wonder.
Q2. What gives science fiction its validity?

The universe that is controlled by impersonal and
unanswerable laws of nature and which is not at the mercy of
90
gods and demons gives the science fiction its validity in the
present-day world.
Q3. Which literary works does the author have in mind when
he refers to ‘Open Sesame’ or the concept of winged horses or
flying carpets?
Arabian Nights

Q1. What makes for the distinction between the various
genres of fiction- ‘a sports story’, ‘a Western story’, ‘a jungle
story’ and science fiction?
In his essay, On Science Fiction, Issac Asimov
distinguishes between various genres of fiction. He argues that all
these genres of fiction are different from one another because of
the difference in their content. For Instance, a sports story must
be of athletic nature and must have some competitive activity at
its centre, a Western story must depict the nomadic life of a
cowboy of American west while as ‘ a jungle story’ must have as
its content the dangers implicit in a forest or in any sort of
wilderness.
He states that the point of difference between these stories
is the content. But as far as the science fiction is concerned, it is
the background which differentiates it from the rest of the stories
because Science Fiction, as per him, is what it is not through its
content but through its background. He further argues that if we
take the content of any of the above mentioned stories and place
it against a background that involves a society significantly
different from our own, it will become a science fiction and
simultaneously will relate to the same genre from which the
content is taken.
91
Q2. How does Asimov establish that John Campbell was

wrong in his opinion that it is not possible for a science fiction
mystery to be fair to a reader in the same way as a classical
mystery is?
Asimov established that Campbell was wrong in his
opinion by stating that even in classical mystery story (which was
not science fiction), the detective was given the extraordinary
abilities in order to advance the plot and yet it was fair to the
reader. He gives the instance of Sherlock Holmes to substantiate
his statement.
He further argues that if such things were not unfair in the
classical mystery stories, then there is nothing which can prevent
even the strictest of strict mystery writers from using actual
science or latest findings of science which the reader may have
not heard of. In other words he means that the actual science and
its findings can be used to write science fiction without adhering
to any kind of rules of classical mystery story and yet it will be
fair to the readers.
Q3. What are the pitfalls that the writer of science fiction
mystery must guard against?
According to Isaac Asimov, writer of science fiction
mystery must guard certain important things. While writing, the
writer must carefully explain all the boundaries of imaginary
society to the reader. He must make the reader perfectly clear
about the possible and impossible things. By doing so, Asimov
assumes that reader will be able to see and hear everything which
the investigator sees and hears and at the same time he will be
aware of every clue that the investigator comes across.
92
15 Broken Images
Girish Karnad
About the Author

Girish Karnad (born 1938) is a contemporary writer,
playwright, actor and movie director. He is a recipient of
the Padma Shri (1974), Padma Bhushan (1992) and the
Jnanpith Award (1998). He writes in both Kannada and
English. His plays generally use history and mythology to
focus on contemporary issues. He is also active in the
world of Indian cinema.
Plot of the Drama

 Manjula Naik, a professor of English Literature finds
international acclaim when she writes a novel in English.
 She is not a very successful Hindi short-story writer but
she all of a sudden becomes wealthy and internationally
famous by writing a best seller in English.
 The play starts with Manjula introducing her novel to the
audience in a T.V studio, prior to telecasting a film on it.
 Manjula defends her choice of language. It thus highlights
the conflict between writing in one’s own language and
foreign language.
 She refused to be “accused” of betraying her mother
tongue and claims that the choice of language doesn’t
bereft her novel of that so called “Indianess”.
 She declared that she is unashamed about
commercializing her literary work, drawing an analogy
between “meaning” and “money”.
93
 The central plot of her novel involves a young physically

challenged woman based on her deceased younger sister
Malini.
 Later the whole truth of her hatred for Malini is revealed
because she is suspicious and jealous of her sister’s
beauty, intelligence and smartness.
 Towards the end, it is the disabled Malini who turns out
to be the real healthy and whole person as it is actually
she who has written the novel.
 The metaphor of Manjula talking about her heroic
exploits with the book on a live television Show ends
with her findings that her image does not leave the
monitor.
 It is not her, of course. It looks like her but it is Malini
and the conflict between the self and the image, between
the delusion and reality, between the outer mask and the
inner truth that emerges in the tussle between the sisters.
 Finally she is forced into anger or emotional collapse. The
55 minute play progresses towards a tight and stirring
finish as Manjula seems to morph into Malini.
 The image interrogates Manjula in a scene. The truth is
unraveled as Manjula is entrapped in a whirlpool of
questions from which she has no escape. The only option
for her is to wear her heart inside out.
 At the heart of Drama is the theme of ‘quest for
completion’. The struggle between the voice of Malini
and the body of Manjula struggle for completion.
Thinking about the Play

Q1. How genuine is the love that Manjula expresses for her
sister?
Manjula’s love for her sister Malini proves fake as within
no time the readers as well as audience come to know the reality
94
that Manjula claims Malini’s novel to be her own. While

expressing her love for her sister, Manjula starts to shed tears in
order to convince the audience that she loves her sister truly and
genuinely. She says to audience that she was the most close
person to her sister in this world and she loved her more than
anything but the reality was that Manjula has suffered from a
sense of defeat and alienation as if she has lost her house .
Although Manjula was defensive of her sister, she
nurtured a deep rooted grievance against her parents as she grows
up with a bitter sense of being discriminated by them, though this
discrimination was the result of her parents’ legitimate concern
for their physically challenged daughter. She grew up in the
world of her own which was opposed to Malini. Manjula’s world
in Jayanagar provided her a refuge from the haunted presence of
her sister. But the image slowly removes all the pretension of
Manjula exposing the truth about Paramod and her life. Manjula
could not continue with the facade and reveals the fact the
Malini’s moving to the Manjula’s house was no less than an
invasion. Malini had first caught her parents’ attention and later
became the centre of attention to Pramod also because of her
creativity, charm and vitality.
Q2. The sister does not appear in the play but is central to it.
What picture of her is built in your mind from references in
the play?
Malini is the pivot around which the whole play revolves.
The true artist (character) as per T.S Eliot is one who is present
nowhere but felt everywhere. Similarly, Malini in the play is
present nowhere but is felt everywhere. It is only she who draws
out the complex side of her jealous sister Manjula. It is her
absence that draws out the fact that Manjula could not accept that
Malini excelled even as a writer all long. Manjula desired to
outdo Malini but in reality, she was outdone by Malini. It is the
95
disabled Malini who turns out to be the real healthy and whole
person as it is actually she who has written the novel.
From the references in the play we came to know that
Malini being physically disabled is intelligent, beautiful and is
having friendly nature too. She too has a quest for completion as
she too longed to be physically fit, independent and live a life in
her own way. Although she was reason of Manjula’s jealousy and
hatred which made her to create fake image of Malini, yet it was
only because of her disability that she got extra attention and care
by almost everyone.
Q3. When the image says — “Her illness was unfortunate.

But because of it, she got the best of everything”
(i)What is the nature of Manjula’s reply?
The nature of Manjula’s reply was in a way defensive
when she says that Manjula had never to ask for anything, she got
everything. By the reply that Malini was an apple of her parent’s
eyes show how much jealous Manjula was for Malini. Further
Manjula says that Malini was hungry- hungry for life, she
gobbled it all up. This shows that Malini has quest of completion
and hunger for a normal life. This inferiority complex generated a
sense of jealousy in Manjula.
(ii) How can it be related in what follows in the play?
This image is trying to make Manjula apologize about
what she is doing. Image wanted Manjula to reveal the truth i.e.,
what actually she felt for sister Malini. The image wanted
Manjula to accept that the identity she was showing to the
audience is fake.
Q4. What are the issues that the playwright satirizes through
this TV monologue of a Celebrity?
Girish Karnad is deeply rooted in Indian culture and
philosophical soil. He has successfully infused in his monologue
96
the ingredients of his well known confrontation of ‘Authenticity

vs. Duplicity’. Broken Images breaks the ethics of pseudo-images
regarding the question related to languages and the originality in
literary world. Karnad through this TV monologue of a celebrity
satirizes the electronic images which everywhere fling
themselves at us, thus entertaining, educating, enticing and
offering us a virtual world to immerse ourselves in. The very
notion of a private self is threatened as the story of the
monologue spills out the split between the real and the fake. The
monologue is the prime example of how technology and the
media constantly assault the effect of the private zone of people.
In this pseudo -modern world we have shrunken to broken
electronic channels that have invented a unique kind of reality
termed as virtual reality- a reality that the media daringly projects
and the audience willingly believe, no matter the reality remains
quiet far from truth. Here we find the image fighting itself back,
unveiling the truth on the other side. The image referred to in the
title as “broken images” is the electronic image which examines
what would happen when instead of our interaction with other
images we are forced to confront our own. The image not only
penetrates the theme or the plot of the story bit it becomes very
essence of the monologue as well.
Talking about the Play

Broken Images takes up a debate that has grown steadily
since 1947-the politics of language in Indian literary culture,
specifically in relation to modern Indian languages and
English. Discuss.
Since Independence writers of India have been facing a
constant challenge i.e, the politics of language. They have been
deeply engrossed and deeply absorbed by the question whether to
write in their national, regional or colonial language i.e English.
As such, the Indian writers writing in English since then had to
97
defend their stance of why they have chosen only this language
for their writing. Likewise, in this play, Girish Karnad takes up
this debate to defend his cause of writing in English. Karnad
through his mouth piece Manjula states that when it comes to
writing, language is never a speed breaker. The chief aim of
composing any piece of literature is to share it with wider
audience globally and as such a writer always tries to write in a
language that is globally accepted.
Q2. The play deals with a Kannada woman writer who

unexpectedly produces an international best seller in English.
(i) Can a writer be a truly bilingual practitioner?
Of course a writer can have a strong grip over many
languages. Although it is not everyone’s cup of tea but many
writers, master this skill tactfully. This gives them a greater
power to influence people with their writings. Also they are able
to have a better audience and in turn a better fortune. Also in the
beginning of the play, the announcer too speaks out some
phenomenal writers who have mastered this skill. For Instance,
B.M Shree, Gokar, Adiga, Lankesh, Anantha Murthy, Shantinath
and A.K Ramanujan who were equally at home in both
languages.
(ii) Does writing in an ‘other tongue’ amount to betrayal of
the mother tongue?
Indeed mother tongue has a special place in everyone’s
heart as we start communicating in this language in our
childhood and one is able to connect properly with the people of
same soil through one’s mother tongue.
But when it comes to writing, language is never a speed
breaker. Writing in any other tongue doesn’t amount to betrayal
of the mother tongue as the chief aim of composing any piece of
literature is to share it with wider audience globally and as such
one always tries to write in a language that is widely accepted.
98
Appreciation
Q1. Why do you think the playwright has used the technique
of the image in the play?
The playwright has used the technique of the image in the
play because it is the electronic media only that has given birth to
a new kind of reality termed as ‘virtual reality’- a reality that
media daringly projects and the audience willingly believe. In the
play we find the image fighting itself back, unveiling the truth on
the other side. At the end of the play the term virtual reality
exchanges itself as the human being seems virtual or fraudulent
and the image growing to be more real.
Q2. The play is called a monologue. Why is it made to turn

dialogic?
Monologue is a long speech by one character in a play or
film or as a part of theatrical or broad cast programme. It is
presented by a single character most of times to express the
mental thoughts allowed, through sometimes to directly
addresses the audience.
Dialogue is the conversation between two or more people
sharing their ideas, views or thoughts on any issue. The
playwright Girish Karnad has presented the drama as a dramatic
monologue to deliver a prepared speech of 10 minutes and
finishes it but after she is done with her speech, Karnad turns out
this dramatic monologue into a dialogue where Manjula is being
confronted by her own image. Karnad may have a few reasons to
turn this dramatic monologue into dialogue which can be listed as
under:
(a) Karnad using the image as the second character of the
dialogue wants to show that how modern technology has
invaded a person’s privacy with his knowledge and
invented a unique kind of reality termed as virtual reality
where we have shrunken to the broken electronic images.
99
(b) It is only through the dialogic part of the play that the
opposite roles of two sisters and their contrasting nature
get revealed.
(c) Moreover, the dialogic part makes the play interesting
and detailed for audience.
Q3. What is the posture the celebrity adopts when the camera
is on and when it is off?
The technique of the monologue in Karnad’s broken
images can be divided into two halves: Firstly, the address of the
Manjula in the studio and secondly her electronically induced
image. In the first part of the monologue, Manjula the heroine of
the play comes up with the totally fake image where she praises
herself and her work. Manjula comes up with a 10 minute
prepared speech and gets done with it with launching of her novel
The river has no memories. But suddenly the image starts
questioning Manjula about the reality and with the result she
reveals the truth about publishing her sister’s novel but claiming
it as her for the dream of becoming celebrity. After confronting
with the image, Manjula’s real self comes in front of the
audience. Everything becomes crystal clear and Manjula is left
with no artificiality then. Thus the posture of Fake and Real is
adopted by the celebrity when the camera is on and when it is off
respectively.
100

Glory II: A Reference Book of English Literature For Class XII

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Droits d'auteur :

Glory II: A Reference Book of English Literature For Class XII

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Droits d'auteur :

GLORY II

A REFERENCE BOOK OF ENGLISH

YAWER AHMAD MIR

Dr. Javaid Iqbal Bhat

Yawer Ahmad Mir

1 A Lecture upon the Shadow

About the Poet

Summary of the Poem

start disguising themselves again and will be receding back into

Understanding the Poem

Q2. Love is described as light. What makes the poet talk

Q4. The poet seems to be addressing his beloved in the poem.

About the Poet

and misunderstood by the world but appreciated by an

Summary of the Poem – The Divine Image

Summary of the poem The Human Abstract

Understanding the Poem

Mercy has a human heart means that apart from God,

according to Blake, then become the breeding ground for cruelty

Q4. Blake’s poetry expresses one aspect of his multi-

3 Time and Time Again

About the Poet

About the Poem

slight differences in the time and the sounds produced by the

Understanding the Poem

The import of the title strikes the reader from the

Q3. What makes for the differences between the timekeeping

Q4. Why is the act of nature described as ‘precise’?

Q5. Which of the following reflects poet’s attitude towards

Q6. Is the poet’s attitude a representation of how the average

voice which objectively analyses the situation and presents the

About the Poet

About the poem

without spirituality .According to the poet God is omnipresent

Understanding the Poem

Q2.Who are Vaakh 2 and 4 addressed to? What message is

even taking a dip in sacred water. She also satirizes Hindu

Meaning that one will never connect with God by

Q3. How do you respond to

The poet here satirized typical Hindu religious rituals who

Q4. What is the poet lamenting over in Vaakh 5?

self?”, suggesting that the worldly possessions are not everlasting

Q5. Anaphora is the deliberate repetition of a word or phrase

Q6. Self-realization is an article of faith in Lal Ded. Discuss in

Q7. The use of multiple images of nature and everyday life

About the Poet

simplicity, truthfulness and devoted service to people. As

About the Poem

dedicated and hardworking person attains spirituality and

Understanding the Poem

Q2. What do the monkeys, jackals and rats in Shrukh 3

Q3. Who is the plain man in Shrukh 4? Why will he survive

Q4. How do you respond to The value of the pearl is known

Q5. What does the swan king in Shrukh 7 symbolize. How

Q6. How would you explain Shrukh 8.

Q7. A rhetorical question is asked only for effect, to

Q8. Comment on the use of imagery in the Shrukhs.

3 The value of the pearl is known to the diver alone….

Q9. Notice the use of paradox in Shrukh 6. What is the poet

The poet in shrukh 6 tries to suggest that we have

6 A Will in the Name of a New Man

About the Poet

and one act Plays. He won the Sahitya Akademi Award

About the Poem

Understanding the Poem

through their deceitful speeches conceal their hypocrisy by