The Waste Land

The Waste Land by T.S.Eliot as Modernist text

• Introduction:-

• The poetry of modern age expresses the chaos and the changing scenario of life and society.
• T.S.Eliot's The Waste Land is both a demonstration and a manifesto of what the new poetry wanted to do and could do.

• T.S.Eliot (1888-1965) describes the boredom, emptiness and pessimism of modern age in bitter, ironical and satirical verse.

• His famous poem The Waste Land is considered the most important poetic documents of the age. It expresses poignantly a desperate sense of the poet, and the age's lack of positive spiritual thinking. Eliot's overwhelming need for redemption transformed him into a religious poet. His intense zeal for religious truth, which lead finally to a new hope in the Christian ideas for rebirth & renewal.

• In his pursuit of giving a realistic representation of life around him, he many times becomes critical of the spiritual degeneration of men and expresses his deep despair over utter emptiness of the contemporary civilization.

• He introduced a new poetic style. His diction is original and unique. It comprehends paradox, irony and contrast.

• Frank Kermode rightly observes that English Poetry would have had no future without the invaluable work done by T.S.ELIOT.

Dr. Faustus

Dr. Faustus

Christopher Marlowe's heroes are always hungry for more. The same case is with Dr. Faustus also. Marlowe has brilliantly captured the spirit of Renaissance. It was a time when science was becoming dominant than religion.

Dr. Faustus was a scholar from University of Wittenberg. He has acquired all the knowledge available at that time-History, philosophy, medicine, economy, medicine and many more..... but Still HE WAS HUNGRY FOR MORE KNOWLEDGE.

so, he makes contract with Mephistophilis that he will give his soul to Devil after four and twenty years if Devil gives him power. After getting the power he misuses it, plays silly tricks with it.

At last he suffers, regrets and dies a tragic death.

"HAMLET"

It is said that "HAMLET" is the second most ever read book in the world, the first is Bible. This shows how great the text is. It is also said that there are three texts most debated and discussed by scholars & critics again and again is Oedipus, HAMLET and Waiting For Godot. Because there is SOMETHING for which we have to go there again and again.

"TO BE OR NOT TO BE THAT IS THE QUESTION." No one can forget this line who have study the masterpiece of Shakespeare.even after hundreds of year of "HAMLET" publication, the book is still alive because of Psychological depth given to the play.

"HAMLET" - a play is a tragedy of a thinking man. Thinking  and  thinking and never putting into action. Hamlet constantly remain in dilemma that whether to take revenge or not.

  Hamlet is the prince of Denmark, the title character, and the protagonist, about thirty years of age at the start of the play. Hamlet is the son of the queen Gertrude and the late king Hamlet, and the nephew of the present king Claudius. We can say that Hamlet is a play concerned with son’s revenge for the murder of his father. It is a story concerned with murder, sudden violence and the slower but more deadly reaction to that violence

Hamlet – a Renaissance character in a medieval world.

                     In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Fortinbras and Leartes are medieval characters. As character of this era they are driven by chivalry and hence the duty of revenge through murder. However, in the medieval world that comprises the setting of the play. Hamlet represents a character of an altogether different age. Shakespeare shapes Hamlet as a thinker who questions and examines the world around him in his own pursuits of revenge. Thus, because of his fundamentally different approach to the world than the medieval character of Fortinbras and Leartes, Hamlet can be considered as a Renaissance character. More specifically Hamlet’s renaissance view on his worlds develops him both as an Elizabethan ere Humanist and Nihilist. Thus, through Hamlet, Shakespeare illustrates humanity’s struggle with the purpose and meaning of man.

Tom Jones by Henry Fielding

Tom Jones by Henry Fielding

The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, often known simply as Tom Jones , is a comic novel by the English playwright and novelist Henry Fielding . The novel is both a Bildungsroman and a picaresque novel . First published on 28 February 1749 in London, Tom Jones is among the earliest English prose works describable as a novel.

In the begining of the novel description of Squire Allworthy is given. They are rich. while returning he founds a baby there. After search they conclude that it must be child of  Jenny Jones - a servant of a schoolmaster and his wife. child is named Tom Jones

.

Tom - protagonist and title character is a unheroic hero. The kind of background in which he brought up,,we cant expect good behaviour from him. He had affairs with so many girls, lives a wondering life. But the turns and twists in the novel are interesting

Tom grows into a vigorous and lusty, yet honest and kind-hearted, youth. His first love is Molly, gamekeeper Black George's second daughter and a local beauty. She throws herself at Tom; he gets her pregnant and then feels obliged to offer her his protection. After some time, however, Tom finds out that Molly is somewhat promiscuous. He then falls in love with a neighbouring squire's lovely daughter, Sophia Western. Tom's status as a bastard causes Sophia's father and Allworthy to oppose their love; this criticism of class friction in society acted as a biting social commentary. The inclusion of prostitution and sexual promiscuity in the plot was also original for its time. Sophia's father, Squire Western, is intent on making Sophia marry the hypocritical Master Blifil, but she refuses, and tries to escape from her father's influence. Tom, on the other hand, is expelled from Allworthy's estate for his many misdemeanours, and starts his adventures across Britain, eventually ending up in London. Amongst other things, he joins the army for a brief duration, finds a servant in a barber- surgeon named Partridge (who habitually spouts Latin non sequiturs), beds two older women (Mrs Waters and Lady Bellaston), and very nearly kills a man in a duel, for which he is arrested. Eventually the secret of Tom's birth is revealed, after a short scare that Mrs Waters (who is really Jenny Jones) is his birth mother, and that he has committed incest . Tom's real mother is Bridget, who conceived him after an affair with a schoolmaster — hence he is the true nephew of Squire Allworthy himself. After finding out about Tom's half-brother Master Blifil's intrigues, Allworthy decides to bestow the majority of his inheritance to Tom. Tom and Sophia Western marry, after this revelation of his true parentage, as Squire Western no longer harbours any misgivings over Tom marrying his daughter. Sophia bears Tom a son and a daughter, and the couple live on happily with the blessings of Squire Western and Squire Allworthy.

Tom was in love with Sophia Western. But her father dont like it because he is a bastard, and plans marriage with cunning Blifil. In between many incidents takes place. But both are united at hand.

Oliver Twist

Oliver Twist

Oliver Twist is a brilliant critical study of a Victorian England by Charles Dickens. Dickens has presented the harsh reality of contemporary society that how there were schools of teaching how to theft?!!

This was the time when "Sun never sets on British Empire". They had established their colonies all over the world. They were considering themselves as superior race and highly civilized, developed society. But actually was it so???  Dickens raises this question. Britishers were thinking that it is "White men's Burden" to civilize the world.

But Dickens, being an Englishman breaks and challenges  the aura of this so called greatness.

See what is happening in London!!  it was a place full of criminals like Fagin. London is the capital of England. Metaphorically / symbolically capital represents entire Nation. It can be read as whatever was hapening in London that was also happening in entire country, or picture may be worse than this in other part of England.

"Please sir ! I want some more !!-Oliver's this line is ringing like bell in my mind. How pathetic it was that children were not given enough food to eat.it shows the failure of workhouses. I still visulise the scene when Oliver asks for more gruel, other's reaction were as if something rebelious thing he has done !!!

another scene is also interesting that all the Officers of workhouse had very large quantity of delicious food to eat. All were fat men with big bellies and chubby chicks and other orpahn children, complete opposite to them!!!!

Important characteristics of Dicken's writing is that even though he satirizes various institutions of society, SMILE NEVER LEAVES OUR LIPS WHILE READING.

But as a reader we have to keep in mind that writer's intention behind writing books like this is NOT to defame their country.Aravind Adiga- 2008 Man Booker Prize winner author for his debut novel The White Tiger, defensed himself by saying that writing of Balzac, Dickens and many other has Help THE NATTION TO GROW AS A BETTER SOCIETY. Dickens wants to remove evils from English society.

Oliver Twist is a brilliant critical study of a Victorian England by Charles Dickens. Dickens has presented the harsh reality of contemporary society that how there were schools of teaching how to theft?!!

This was the time when "Sun never sets on British Empire". They had established their colonies all over the world. They were considering themselves as superior race and highly civilized, developed society. But actually was it so???  Dickens raises this question. Britishers were thinking that it is "White men's Burden" to civilize the world.

But Dickens, being an Englishman breaks and challenges  the aura of this so called greatness.

See what is happening in London!!  it was a place full of criminals like Fagin. London is the capital of England. Metaphorically / symbolically capital represents entire Nation. It can be read as whatever was hapening in London that was also happening in entire country, or picture may be worse than this in other part of England.

"Please sir ! I want some more !!-Oliver's this line is ringing like bell in my mind. How pathetic it was that children were not given enough food to eat.it shows the failure of workhouses. I still visulise the scene when Oliver asks for more gruel, other's reaction were as if something rebelious thing he has done !!!

another scene is also interesting that all the Officers of workhouse had very large quantity of delicious food to eat. All were fat men with big bellies and chubby chicks and other orpahn children, complete opposite to them!!!!

Important characteristics of Dicken's writing is that even though he satirizes various institutions of society, SMILE NEVER LEAVES OUR LIPS WHILE READING.

But as a reader we have to keep in mind that writer's intention behind writing books like this is NOT to defame their country.Aravind Adiga- 2008 Man Booker Prize winner author for his debut novel The White Tiger, defensed himself by saying that writing of Balzac, Dickens and many other has Help THE NATTION TO GROW AS A BETTER SOCIETY. Dickens wants to remove evils from English society.

Robinson Crusoe

Robinson Crusoe

Books like this gives vision to understand past in a better way.This can be said an attempt to read history through literature.

It is a novel by Daniel Defoe. Title character goes for sea voyages, even though his parents denied. Then there was a shipwreck & he reaches on an island. There he starts living all alone, with a bird & animals but without any human companion.

The novel can be read from angle of colonialism as Whiteman's discovery of new land and establishing colony there. Crusoe makes his own hut and starts plantation there.

After few time he saves a Negro boy from other canibals. And because he arrived on friday, Crusoe gives him name "Friday". Crusoe makes him his slave.

Crusoe teaches him English language, and tries to civilize him. We can apply here concept of "Whiteman's burden". All the whiteman were thinking that it is their duty to civilize the world. They are the choosen people by god. They are the only civilized & superior race, the rest are the barbarians.

Slave trading is also a major issue brought into light by the writer. Before shipwreck Crusoe had faithful servant, but he sold him. For few amount of money he sold Friday also. It can be also read as criticism on slave mentality. Friday willingly accepts Crusoe's superiority. It is unbelievable that Friday puts Crusoe's foot on his head, to accept him as slave.

While living there Crusoe falls ill, and remembers his father & his last word that if you go for sea voyages, then you would be the most miserable person.

This dream sequence is very interesting.

From Post Colonial angle concept of Western superiority can be Deconstructed. Crusoe doesnt even tried to know about native boy's original identity. He threatens the Other with the power of gun.

After living there for many years, with the help of a arrived ship he returns home.

To read my power point presentation on this novel click on the below link:

The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter is a novel set in Puritan Boston. Narrator of the novel is custom house surveyors who found this story. And then he narrates the story of a Adulteress Hester Prynne.

In the begining of the novel Hester was standing on scaffold because  of commiting Adultery. Dimmesdale and other priests ask her to reveal name of father of Pearl but Hester refuses to give name of her fellow sinner. So she has to wear Scarlet A on her bosom- symbol of Adulteress Hester. During this Roger chillingworth comes, who, we later come to know is the husband of Hester. But somehow not able to come to Boston. After punishment She lives with her daughter Pearl on the outskirt of the town. The novel is full of suffering of Hester.When she passes through market people follows her, beats drum that Hester has came and abuses her.And Dimmesdale who is the real father of Pearl watches all these from window.

Roger chillingworth - a newly arrived physician in Boston lives with Dimmesdale. Any how he came to know that actual reason behind illness is unconfessed sin, so Dimmesdale is the father of Pearl.

Later on, Dimmesdale meets Hester in forest and both plan to settle somewhere else. Dimmesdale confeses his sin publically and dies. Chillingworth also dies because now there is no object to take revenge. Pearl marries and went to Europe. Hester also dies and she was buried near grave of Dimmesdale.

And we can see the transformation of Hester from Adulteress to Able to Angle Hester.

Literature always stands for humans.

The Scarlet Letter: A Romance is an 1850 work of fiction in a historical setting, written by

Nathaniel Hawthorne, and is considered to be his magnum opus.Set in 17th-century

Puritan Boston , Massachusetts, during the years 1642 to 1649, it tells the story of Hester

Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an affair and struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity . Throughout the book, Hawthorne explores themes of legalism , sin , and guilt .