Studies in English Language and Literature

Question: Examine Shelley’s imagery in relation to his theme in Ode to the West Wind . The term ‘imagery’ refers to a collection of images to signify the objects and qualities of sense perception, whether by literal description, by allusion or in the analogies used in its similes and metaphors.  Perhaps the most beautifully imaginative of the English Romantic poets was Shelley. He was particularly excellent in his ability to convey sensations in terms of imagery, predominantly visual. he was a poet of profound idealism and prophetic passion. Shelley invariably aspired to the infinite and the eternal. The method in many of Shelley’s poetry was to find in natural objects symbols for his emotional and imaginative patterns. In Ode to the West Wind , Shelley found, in the central and pervading image of the all-powerful West Wind, a dualistic role of destruction and preservation. At the very outset of  the poem, the West Wind is presented as an enormously powerful agency....

Some explanations from Eliot’s The Waste Land with reference to context   I sat upon the shore Fishing, with the arid plain behind me Shall I at least set my lands in order? Answer : This excerpt has been taken from the last section of T.S. Eliot’s poem The Waste Land . The excerpt reminds is of the speaker persona’s fishing experience in a nasty canal in lines 189 – 192 of the same poem. We are reminded of the Fisher King in the Grail Legends and the Arthurian Romances. The speaker is surrounded by an ‘arid plain’ or a ‘waste land’ where there is no symptom of rebirth and regeneration. The European civilisation, in the wake of World War I, became as ‘arid’ and shattered as a wasteland where there is no question of life and hope. Everything is shallow and numb. The utmost crisis led to nothingness, disillusionment etc. the speaker wonders and questions himself whether he will ever be able to “set” his “lands in order”. Here the poet has ...

Question: Comment on the symbolism of the skylark in Shelley’s ode "To A Skylark". One of the legacies of the Romantic period is the heightened concern in literature. It is full of the types of psychological experiences outside the usual limit of consciousness. What seems to take place is a sudden jump or transference of consciousness to another realm, or alternatively, an invasion from the transcendent into human life, and his poetry attempts to describe such an experience. So does Shelly speak of in To a Skylark . As the poem begins, the poet addresses the song-bird. The skylark seems to be no bird at all, but rather a disembodied Spirit of joy. The skylark is an emblem of the celestial permanence to which men aspire, and are invariably associated with images of light, fire, stars, the sun and the moon in keeping with the Platonic implications. The ode is a striking example of what was common poetic procedure with Shelley and Keats. Thus, the skylark symbolises a cele...

A brief note on Negative Capability propounded by John Keats Answer : Negative capability is a paradoxical term. It was propounded by John Keats. Poetic capability is achieved through a process of negation. One morning, John Keats noticed many sparrows chirping, and abruptly, he felt himself identical to that species of sparrows. Poetic self is the negation of one’s personal self. Keats used this phrase ‘negative capability’ in one of his letters to his friend, Reynold. Poetical process is a process of negation. According to the Modernists, a poet should ne gate his personal self in order to join another self. The Romantics may be called to have formed a bridge between the post-Romantics and the Modernists. According to Keats, sensuousness is an instrument that will help him attain ‘negative capability’. The keywords to the writing " A brief note on Negative Capability propounded by John Keats" Negative capability, paradoxical term, poetic ca...

Question: Symbols in Blake’s poem The Tyger . Answer: William Blake, the precursor of Romanticism as well as a mystic, was the son of an engraver.  The Lamb  is the theme poem of his Songs of Experience while  The Tyger  is the theme poem of his Songs of Innocence . ‘Innocence’ and ‘Experience’ represent ‘the two contrary states of human soul’ altogether.  The tiger in Blake’s poem is a ferocious beast and an apocalyptic animal. It is made of fire. It symbolises Experience. It is rather opposed to the meek and mild lamb symbolising Innocence.  The tiger ‘burning bright’ is not evil. However, it fosters the force to conquer evil. He is rather symbolic of Christ as He fought against evil to achieve the higher state of Innocence. In utmost amazement and awe, the speaker utters, "Tyger, Tyger, burning bright/ In the forests of the night/In what immortal hand or eye/ Was framed thy fearful symmetry?"  The Tyger is constructed in the form of a series o...

Question: Doctor Faustus as a tragic hero / the subject matter of this tragedy is aspiration and frustration / the various stages of Faustus’s damnation / character of Doctor Faustus Answer : Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe is a tragic drama of five Acts written in blank verse and prose. The legend first appeared in the ‘Faustbuch’ published in 1587. It was translated into English as The History of the Damnable Life and Deserved Death of Doctor John Faustus . Marlowe in his play followed such an outline of the story.  Many critics have interpreted that Doctor Faustus is a genuine tragedy in English literature. In the other plays like Tamburlaine , The Jew of Malta etc, Christopher Marlowe had concentrated on the theme of ambition or aspiration. Naturally, Doctor Faustus as a tragic play is no exception. It is outstanding in its maturity and brilliance in the grand tragic conception as well as its execution.  In Act I or in the opening section of the play, we se...

Question: Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe is a ‘spiritual autobiography’. – Discuss. Answer : Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe is a complete novel in every sense. While this work of art is basically about the actions and the adventures of the narrator-protagonist named Robinson Crusoe, it has multi-layered meanings from multidimensional angles. Some critics say that this novel is a ‘spiritual autobiography’. The others say that it is an allegory or a fable. Apart from delineating Crusoe’s thirst for survival, this novel depicts the spiritual upliftment of the protagonist. We notice, at the outset, that Crusoe was a bohemian, a vagabond, a daredevil and an adventurous boy. He was born at the city of York in England. From the very beginning, he used to dream of seafaring and so, his father used to advise him again and again that middle station invites fewest disasters and troubles. Perceiving that his father was against his dreams of seafaring, he began to...

Question: Webster draws our attention to the existence of corruption in all walks of life in the Jacobean society. Do you agree?/ The play is a mirror to Jacobean England. Answer: John Webster, in his Jacobean revenge and decadent tragedy named The Duchess of Malfi , draws our attention to the existence of corruption in all walks of life in the Jacobean society. In this context, we must have a clear idea of decadence. It refers to the devaluation of moral values, In the Jacobean English society, the people had no good sense, morality, ethics etc. They were only interested in their self-profit and taking revenge. Then sensationalism became the favourite of the English people. Fundamentally, depending on such mentality and temperament of the Jacobean English people, the dramas presented the 'decadent philosophy'. In The Duchess of Malfi , we come to notice a decadent social picture that is full of corruption, immorality, bloodshed, dance of death,...

Question: "Dryden's Absalom and Achitophel  has epical grandeur." -- Discuss / Do you agree with the view that John Dryden's Absalom and Achitophel  is a political satire raised to epic grandeur? / Absalom and Achitophel  is an epic in miniature. -- Discuss. / Absalom and Achitophel  is a blend of wit with a heroic base. -- Discuss / Absalom and Achitophel  is a representative heroic poem. -- Discuss. Answer: At the very outset of our discussion, we must have a clear idea of what an epic is. An epic is generally a long, narrative poem in elevated style. It is marked by seriousness, solemnity and grandeur, the characters of which are larger than life. An epic deals with lofty characters portrayed in an excelled way. Further, compactness is a notable feature of this genre. An epic poem is episodic in structure. That is to say, one episode after another frequently takes place in this kind of poem with digressions. Moreover, w...

We come across the characters of the  dacoit sardar  or the chief robber and his companion, Bhiku in the sixth chapter of the novel named  Rajmohan’s Wife written by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. While Rajmohan was engaged in hatching a conspiracy with the the two robbers in his residential house, all of them conspired how to commit a daring robbery in Madhav Ghose's house. But why? They did so in order to wrench the uncle’s will from his hand. They wanted to harry away his property too. The robbers were not only very heartless but also were they too much ruthless. Before invading the house of Madhav Ghose, they kept themselves concealed in the mango grove. Making a terrific shout from the wilderness, the dacoits went away.  Thereafter, the gang barged into Rajmohan's house. Their deeds frankly speak of  their wickedness and ill mentality. Then the robbers were given the assignment to abduct Madhav Ghose. Anyway, after the act of abd...

Rajmohan's Wife  by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay the first ever English novel in India. Apart from that, this novel is the novelist's first novel ever. Published in 1864, t he theme of the novel is love and romance as well as depiction of strong women with twenty-one chapters in totaling. The first chapter of the novel is “The Drawers of Water”, while  the last chapter of the novel is “The Last Chapter in Life’s Book – and In This”. Now let's have an overview of the chapters -- Chapter 1 A tiny hamlet situated on the banks of the Madhumati River was very much important because of the rich zamindars living there. After a siesta, Kanak, a lady of about thirty years of age, went to a neighbour's house with four huts. There she came across a young housewife who was busy in her needlework. Chapter 2 When the sun was about to go down, Kanak and her companion, that is, the young lady of eighteen years of age, were returning home with pitchers in their h...