A Noiseless Patient Spider

Walt Whitman

A noiseless patient spider,

I mark’d where on a little promontory it stood isolated,
Mark’d how to explore the vacant vast surrounding,
It launch’d forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself,
Ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them.

And you O my soul where you stand,

Surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,
Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them,
Till the bridge you will need be form’d, till the ductile anchor hold,
Till the gossamer thread you fling catch somewhere, O my soul.

This poem was written by Walt Whitman, a great American poet. A Noiseless Patient Spider is
famous for its themes of isolation and struggle. It was first published in 1891. The poem unfolds
the story of a lonely spider, which the poet examines so carefully. It illustrates how the spider tries
to connect things while weaving its web.

In this poem, the speaker observes a noiseless, patient spider on a promontory (a rock outcropping
over the ocean). It leaves a mark on its vast surroundings by weaving its web. In the second
stanza, the speaker compares the spider to his soul, which is always trying to make connections in
the world. He addresses his soul, encouraging it to keep spinning because when "the gossamer
thread [it] flings [catches] somewhere...", it will build the necessary bridges.

This poem is made up of two stanzas of five lines each. As usual, there is no set meter or rhyme
scheme. The separation of stanzas in this poem represents a shift from literal (the speaker
watching the spider make its web on the rock) to figurative (the speaker addressing his soul's
attempts to make connections in the world). The aim of the poem is to draw the comparison
between the speaker's soul and the spider, which is why the two stanzas mirror each other in
size and structure.

In this poem, Whitman makes excellent use of imagery and metaphor. The speaker starts by
vividly describing the experience of watching the spider weave its web, allowing the reader to share
his fascination. In the second stanza, he elevates these images into metaphors for his soul's figurative
desires: "to the bridge you will need be formed" and "till the gossamer thread you fling catch
somewhere." Even the title of the poem is a descriptive image; the phrase "A noiseless patient
spider" invokes the image of this tiny creature sitting perfectly still, waiting for its moment.

In this poem, the spider and the speaker's soul both face a similar plight. They must use their skills
to build connections, searching for meaningful and effective bonds.
In this poem, the writer is comparing the life of a noiseless patient spider to his own life and
his lost, detached soul. The writer may be implying that if he were more patient with his own life,
he would not be so lost and would be able to enjoy things the way he sees this spider enjoying what
he does: launching filament and making webs. In the first stanza, the writer describes how this
spider can and does spin these webs as a pathway to experience the world, and how he is "ever
tirelessly speeding them.” The spider never gives up and never loses hope because he knows what he
wants to do and what he has to do to survive and go on living. He is ever dedicated to what he
knows is what he is obligated to do, the only thing he has ever known to do.

The second stanza is left to describe how the writer's soul is detached in"measureless oceans of
space," and meant to describe how Walt Whitman feels about his hopeless future. It seems he is
talking directly to his soul, stating that he must "seek the spheres to connect his soul," and there is a
need for a bridge to be formed before his soul can become attached to himself. He needs to fling
gossamer thread to do this, just like the spider. The writer is comparing the life of a spider to his
own experiences of trying to find his soul that he sees as being surrounded by this measureless
ocean of space. Also the word measureless being used here, the word unmeasurable seems to be
the more proper way to state that. And maybe the writer used measureless instead to draw
attention from the reader to this statement, meaning the writer saw it as an important line in the
poem. His view of his soul.

Questions
1. How do Emerson and Whitman conceptualize nature and individuality.
2. Elucidate the human-nature relationship expressed by Emerson and Whitman.

Walt Whitman considered Ralph Waldo Emerson as his ‘master’. They were both great writers of
that period.
The spider symbolically represents an explorer. It is the quality of the explorer not to get tired
while exploring vast surrounding. The explorer, the scientist, or the philosopher is like the
spider who stands isolated, but patiently they try to connect themselves with vacant
surrounding. For some explorer, search of invisible, unknown and unidentified becomes the
subject of curiosity. Only those people can be successful to connect themselves to the measureless
world who work tirelessly, holding patience with them. The poet is trying to idolize an insect
spider. Actually, the spider is a symbol for all them who works continuously and are isolated from
others.
In the poem the spider has been used as an analogy to refer to the restlessness of the human
soul. As the speaker noticed, a noiseless patient spider stood isolated on a little cliff to explore the
vacant and vast surrounding. It went on launching filament out of itself tirelessly. It tried to
connect those filaments to each other. The spider had vigor, patient, and energetic in speeding his
work. These things are the support to the basic philosophy of Whitman as “human soul is
immortal and it is always in a state of progressive development”. This very idea of ever
developing and expanding human soul is compared with the extended metaphor of “a
noiseless patient spider” in the poem.
This whole poem is an extended metaphor that compares the spider and the soul of Whitman.
They are both lonely and searching for the way to go and something to connect with. The purpose
of this is to emphasize that the spider is lonely and isolated. Whitman projects the quality of his
soul onto the nature of the spider. He explains through his poem how his soul searches like the
spider that releases filaments in search for stable grounding, and much like the spider his soul too
never rests or gives up hope of finding something. This creates a direct connect that humans have
with nature and Whitman uses it to better understand what is inside by projecting it outside.

3. Comment on the concept of universal self and individual self as brought out in
Whitman’s prescribed poem.
4. How does ‘A Noiseless Patient Spider’ reveal the ephemeral connection between
the human soul and the world?

The spider symbolically represents an explorer. It is the quality of the explorer not to get tired
while exploring vast surroundings. The explorer, the scientist, or the philosopher is like the
spider who stands isolated, but patiently they try to connect themselves with vacant surroundings.
For some explorers, search of invisible, unknown and unidentified becomes the subject of curiosity.
Only those people can be successful to connect themselves to the measureless world who work
tirelessly, holding patience with them. The poet is trying to idolize an insect spider. Actually, the
spider is a symbol for all those who work continuously and are isolated from others.
In the poem the spider has been used as an analogy to refer to the restlessness of the human
soul. As the speaker noticed, a noiseless patient spider stood isolated on a little cliff to explore the
vacant and vast surrounding. It went on lunching filament out of itself tirelessly. It tried to connect
those filaments to each other. The spider had vigor, patient, and energetic in speeding his work.
These things are the support to the basic philosophy of Whitman as “human soul is immortal and
it is always in a state of progressive development”. This very idea of ever developing and
expanding human soul is compared with the extended metaphor of “a noiseless patient
spider” in the poem.
This whole poem is an extended metaphor that compares the spider and the soul of Whitman.
They are both lonely and searching for the way to go and something to connect with Whitman
uses his description of the spider as, “a noiseless, patient spider” , as personification of the spider.
People are normally described as noiseless and patient, not spiders, making the spider seem more
like a person. He does this to add to the effect of the metaphor that he uses in the poem. He also
uses alliteration in describing the spider when he says, “vacant, vast surrounding” . The purpose
of this is to emphasize that the spider is lonely and isolated. Using alliteration again, Whitman
then says, “it launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself” . He uses this alliteration to
add to the image of the spider repeatedly launching its webs trying to find something to connect to.
Next, Whitman uses an apostrophe when he says, “O my Soul” . He addresses his soul in order to
introduce the other half of his metaphor and to introduce it as a living thing by addressing it
directly. He also makes his soul seem living by personifying it when he says, “ceaselessly musing,
venturing, throwing”
As a poem of two halves, Whitman’s poem ‘A Noiseless Patient Spider’ initially appears to be an
observation of a solitary spider, diligently and committedly constructing its web in empty space.
However, through the themes of loneliness and isolation, Whitman’s analogy of the spider allows
for the transformation from the abstract to the tangible and real when attempting to describe the
speaker’s soul. Through this, we gain a sense of an organic ‘opening up’ as the poem progresses,
where Whitman can begin with a small spider and by the end arrive at and connect with the
concept of the soul and its purpose. The effect of repetition and paralleling is vital to Whitman’s
poem. Immediately we find that the opening line of the poem, “A noiseless patient spider” is
repetition of the title. This indicates that Whitman perhaps desired to pay particular emphasis to
the importance of his ‘main character’ of the poem i.e. the spider. The result of this being that the
image of the spider is established from the outset, which is the first point of reference to later
themes. However, the secondary effect of this repetition is the appreciative tone it conveys, as
though almost adopting the form of an ode to the spider. Whitman further uses repetition
throughout his poem, such as ‘filament, filament, filament’ in the first stanza act to imitate this idea
of the spider repeatedly spinning its web. Supported in the succeeding line through the use of ‘ever
unreeling’ and ‘ever tirelessly’, Whitman transmits ideas of loneliness and repetitive work, which
cause a reaction of sympathy towards the spider and in turn help the relation to
the soul later in the poem. Paralleling arises in Whitman’s poem in the descriptions of
surroundings. Where in the first stanza the spider is placed on a ‘little promontory […] isolated’ and
in the ‘vacant vast surrounding’, this is paralleled when the focus shifts to the speaker’s soul, which
is similarly ‘detached, in measureless oceans of space’. Whitman’s employment of similarly
semantically charged words to describe both of his ‘characters’ is particularly successful in
bringing about this middle point by which we can draw comparisons between the tiny creature and
a concept so immaterial as the soul.

In brief, he sees an example of himself in nature (the spider). Elaborate on how he mirrors
the two paragraphs to explain the connection and similarities of his soul to that of a patient
spider.

Points to note:
● Both the spider and the poet's souls are lonely and looking for a connection.
● They are lost in the midst of their vacant surroundings and speeding filament after filament
looking for some meaningful connections.
● Both the spider and the soul like explorers do not tire of exploring their vast surroundings.
● Like the spider the soul too must be patient to connect itself with the measureless
surroundings.
● Like the spider the human soul too is in a state of progressive development (even if the web
breaks it starts over and does not stop).
● He uses the concept of tangible (the spider) to abstract (the soul) to make his message more
effectful.
● He uses repetition to further emphasis on important points, like when he describes the
relentlessness and tireless effort of the spider to build a web by saying it launched “filament,
filament, filament”
 ● The spider is on a little rock isolated from its vacant vast surroundings, like the soul that is
detached from the measureless oceans of space surrounding it.

5. Comment on the connection between the spider and the human soul in Whitman’s
prescribed poem.
In this poem, the speaker observes a noiseless, patient spider on a promontory. It leaves a mark on
its vast surroundings by weaving its web. In the second stanza, the speaker compares the spider to
his soul, which is always trying to make connections in the world. He addresses his soul,
encouraging it to keep spinning because when "the gossamer thread [it] flings [catches]
somewhere...", it will build the necessary bridges.

In “A Noiseless Patient Spider”, Walt Whitman compares the images of a spider creating a web to
catch its prey to his own soul. In the first stanza, he describes the spider creating its web. In the
second stanza, he begins to describe his own soul searching for something it needs. Throughout the
poem, Whitman is relating the spider to the human soul by showing how both would pursue and
capture what they need to continue to exist in this life.

In line one, “A noiseless, patient spider” shows a spider that seems to be waiting for what it is
searching for. Perhaps it is waiting for a chance to strike at its prey if it were detected in time. The
soul seems to be doing nearly the same thing when Whitman says the soul is “ceaselessly musing”
(line 8). Musing is when someone is pondering about something in silence. Both images are being
described as moving in careful silence. The spider seems to be planning to trick the prey into being
caught. Perhaps whatever the soul is looking for must be tricked into being caught. If both were to
let their presence be known, their elusive prey may disappear.

In order for either the spider or the soul to capture its prey, first they both must create a way to trap
what they need and trick it into being caught. “It launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of
itself, ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them” (lines 4-5). These lines are describing the
spider while it makes its web. The poet uses the word “tirelessly” to show that the spider must
complete its task of finding sustenance in order to survive.

The spider and the soul are alike in how they search for what will continue their existence. For the
spider, it is waiting patiently as he tries to find a way to trap his prey in order to continue its life. As
for the soul, it must be patient and hold on to what it knows as religious truth as it waits to be
nourished by the one that it truly serves. Both the spider and the soul must hold onto their anchor
in order to wait for their prey. Once it is spotted, they must move quickly to it in order to ensure
that they catch it. Once it is within their grasp, their existence may continue. But, if they are
sidetracked by what goes on in their immediate surroundings instead of concentrating on their
prey, then they may lose their opportunity for life. That is why the spider and the soul must be
patient, noiseless, and ever ready to obtain what they have hunted for so long.

This whole poem is an extended metaphor that compares the spider and the soul of Whitman.
They are both lonely and searching for the way to go and something to connect with. The purpose
of this is to emphasize that the spider is lonely and isolated. Using alliteration, Whitman then says,
“it launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself” . He uses this alliteration to add to the
image of the spider repeatedly launching its webs trying to find something to connect to. Next,
Whitman uses an apostrophe when he says, “O my Soul” . He addresses his soul in order to
introduce the other half of his metaphor and to introduce it as a living thing by addressing it
directly. He also makes his soul seem living by personifying it when he says, “ceaselessly musing,
venturing, throwing”. The personification of both the spider and his soul together help connect
the two in the metaphor. The tone of this poem is lonely and helpless as the narrator is searching
for something his soul can connect with. The descriptions of the spider and his soul both include
words that show this tone like isolated and surrounded. There is a big shift in the poem from line 5
to line 6. The first half of the poem is describing the spider and its struggles to find something to
attach its web to. In the second half, Whitman never mentions the spider again but shifts to
describing his soul which is the other half of a metaphor comparing the spider and his soul. The
title of the poem, “A Noiseless, Patient Spider”, actually means that the poem is about a spider
searching for a start to its web and how this connects to the lonely soul of Walt Whitman. The
theme of this poem is that Whitman feels that his soul is isolated from the real world. The purpose
of the extended metaphor in the poem was to bring to the attention of the reader this theme. The
spider and the soul are both isolated and can't find something to grasp onto.

The soul and the spider connections with quotations from the poem:
● Themes of loneliness, struggle and detachment from the world is used by Whitman to
compare the soul and the spider
● Usage of personification of the soul and spider help connect them in a metaphor
● The spider “on a little promontory it stood isolated” like the soul that is “Surrounded,
detached, in measureless oceans of space”- detached and isolated.
● The spider is exploring the “vacant, vast surroundings” like the soul surrounded by
“measureless oceans of space”.
● The spider is launching “filament, filament, filament”, like the soul that is “venturing,
throwing, seeking”.
● The spider that is “unreeling them” (the filaments), endlessly spinning them, “tirelessly
speeding” without giving up, like the soul that is “ceaselessly musing”, endlessly pondering,
thinking, constantly exploring and growing. Progressively developing.
● The spider and the soul are both seeking to create a bridge that will attach them to the
world. They are spinning gossamer threads, flinging them to create a web of connections
hoping it will anchor somewhere and find meaning.
A SUPERMARKET IN CALIFORNIA
By Allen Ginsberg

What thoughts I have of you tonight, Walt Whitman, for I walked down the side streets
under the trees with a headache self-conscious looking at the full moon.
In my hungry fatigue, and shopping for images, I went into the neon fruit
supermarket, dreaming of your enumerations!
What peaches and what penumbras! Whole families shopping at night! Aisles full of
husbands! Wives in the avocados, babies in the tomatoes!—and you, Garcia Lorca, what
were you doing down by the watermelons?
 I saw you, Walt Whitman, childless, lonely old grubber, poking among the meats in
the refrigerator and eyeing the grocery boys.
I heard you asking questions of each: Who killed the pork chops? What price
bananas? Are you my Angel?
I wandered in and out of the brilliant stacks of cans following you, and followed in
my imagination by the store detective.
We strode down the open corridors together in our solitary fancy tasting artichokes,
possessing every frozen delicacy, and never passing the cashier.

Where are we going, Walt Whitman? The doors close in an hour. Which way does
your beard point tonight?
(I touch your book and dream of our odyssey in the supermarket and feel absurd.)
Will we walk all night through solitary streets? The trees add shade to shade, lights
out in the houses, we'll both be lonely.
Will we stroll dreaming of the lost America of love past blue automobiles in
driveways, home to our silent cottage?
Ah, dear father, graybeard, lonely old courage-teacher, what America did you have
when Charon quit poling his ferry and you got out on a smoking bank and stood
watching the boat disappear on the black waters of Lethe?

Summary:
Tonight I've been thinking about you, Walt Whitman. I walked down the tree-lined and moonlit street, feeling
self-conscious. In my strange state of longing and exhaustion, I went to the brightly-lit supermarket as much for the visual
stimuli as for the food. All the while, I was thinking about your poetry, Walt Whitman. The aisles of the supermarket were
full of fruit and shadows. Whole families were shopping—husbands, wives, babies—all moving among the fruits and
vegetables. I even saw Federico García Lorca among the watermelons.
I spotted you in the meat section, Walt Whitman, looking like an old childless weirdo. You were looking at the male
members of staff and asking questions about the source of the meat, the cost of bananas, and which one of them might
have been your angel. I followed you around the store's garish displays of goods, and imagined the suspicious security guard
following us. We walked together without a care in the world, trying any and every item we wanted without ever intending
to pay.
It's time for us to leave, Walt Whitman, the store closes in an hour—so where are we going? I suddenly feel embarrassed
about this ridiculous daydreaming about our epic supermarket journey. Are we going to walk together through the empty
night? The trees make the night even darker and there are no lights on in the houses, so we'll feel quite alone. Will we
imagine a better America as we pass identical cars and houses on our way to our silent little home? Oh wise poet, what was
America like when you died—when Charon the boatman delivered you to the land of the dead?

The Poet
The poem ‘A Supermarket in California’ was written by Allen Ginsberg, a leader of the Beat Generation,
while living in Berkeley, California in 1955.
Ginsberg's poetry, for example, deals with the tensions between rural ideals of the American Romantic
poets and the reality of poverty, industrialization, and urban blight that faced maligned urban groups in
the mid-twentieth century. Ginsberg, like his fellow Beat poets, felt that he simply could not belong in modern
America.

Analysis
Ginsberg enters the garish, brightly-lit supermarket and has a vision of Walt Whitman, a 19th-century American
poet, whose work he has been reading. Whitman, for his part, acts almost like an alien placed on Earth from
outer space; the supermarket environment doesn't make sense to his 19th-century perspective. The speaker
imagines playfully tasting the produce and not paying for any of it, before asking more searching and
philosophical questions of his poet guide. He wonders whether America has grown too preoccupied with
consumerism and a money-orientated way, and in doing so if the country has lost its way and its capacity to
love. The poem ends with an image of Whitman in the underworld, suggesting that Whitman's idealistic and
romantic vision of America is probably already dead.

The poem rejects American consumerism—a way of life that places great importance on buying and
owning things, on being a customer with money to spend and endless options to choose from. Feeling
that he doesn’t fit in with a world of shiny shopping aisles and identical houses and cars, the speaker (generally
treated as Ginsberg himself) finds kinship in the figure of Walt Whitman—one of the founding figures in
American poetry. Through his vision of Whitman, the speaker senses an alternative America. And though the
poem never defines this alternative vision for the country outright, it mourns the “lost America of
love”—what the nation once was, or could have become.

Themes

Consumerism / Commodification
Ginsberg saw the economic commodification of society as one of the great ills of modern life. In his poem, "A
Supermarket in California," Ginsberg goes into a supermarket to try and find the natural beauty of the fruits and
vegetables there. Instead, his final conclusion is that modern humanity is no longer able to see the history of a
particular object, fruit being his example. For instance, a peach is picked from somewhere across the country or
around the world and then shipped directly to that supermarket. The consumer is no longer able to know where
it came from, who it was that picked that particular fruit, and what social and economic context that fruit
represents.
Ginsberg posits Walt Whitman as one of his heroes and predecessors in his assessment of modern life. Whitman
explored the natural world and the natural self and all of the desires -- spiritual, sexual, physical -- that made
humanity what it was. The commodification of society means the loss of this natural meaning and, in Ginsberg's
poem, Whitman's vision is lost amidst a river of forgetfulness.

Hypocrisy of Modern Society

Ginsberg thinks of modern society as something that forgets its past and what is natural. As Ginsberg enters the
supermarket, he looks to history to help him answer the economic and social questions that his modern world
has posed. The term “neon,” a harsh false light, foreshadows the inevitable disappointment that the reader
knows Ginsberg will find. Ginsberg hopes to find beauty in the natural products of the supermarket. His hope is
that he can look beyond the commodification of modern society. “What peaches and what penumbras!” he
 exclaims. The penumbras, a word meaning “shroud” or “partial illumination,” are meant to designate the secrets
that such displays of nature and domesticity hide. The peach in the supermarket has no relation for those that
buy it to the natural world from which it came. Its past has been forgotten. This is the state of the world that
capitalism and modernity has brought. “Whole families shopping at / night!,” night being another allusion to
the darkness of industrialized society that demanded the illusion of the perfect nuclear family. Romantic poetry
often denounced the modern world's ability to create a more perfect society through enlightened thought and
technology, and Ginsberg's work extends this tradition, positing a false sense of "progress" as indicative of
society's hypocrisy.

Q1. What kind of vision does Ginsberg see of modern society in ‘A Supermarket in
California’?

Ans. In the poem ‘A Supermarket in California’, Ginsberg thinks of modern society as something that forgets its past
and what is natural. As Ginsberg enters the supermarket, he looks to history to help him answer the economic and
social questions that his modern world has posed. The term “neon,” a harsh false light, foreshadows the inevitable
disappointment that the reader knows Ginsberg will find. Ginsberg hopes to find beauty in the natural products of the
supermarket. His hope is that he can look beyond the commodification of modern society. “What peaches and what
penumbras!” he exclaims. The penumbras, a word meaning “shroud” or “partial illumination,” are meant to designate the
secrets that such displays of nature and domesticity hide. The peach in the supermarket has no relation for those that buy it
to the natural world from which it came. Its past has been forgotten. This is the state of the world that capitalism and
modernity has brought. “Whole families shopping at / night!,” night being another allusion to the darkness of industrialized
society that demanded the illusion of the perfect nuclear family. Romantic poetry often denounced the modern world's
ability to create a more perfect society through enlightened thought and technology, and Ginsberg's work extends this
tradition, positing a false sense of "progress" as indicative of society's hypocrisy.

The poem takes place in the heart of consumerist culture—in the belly of the beast. California is closely associated with
an idea of the American Dream that equates money and happiness: the home of Hollywood and the rich and famous, a
place where lives are ostensibly filled with sunshine and joy. The supermarket brimming with food reflects this sense of
carefree abundance.
And yet, the poem also implies that none of this is real, that the supposed freedom offered by this way of life is as fake as the
movies pumped out by Hollywood. The fruit is "neon," so bright as to seem garish, and the speaker shops for "images"
rather than actual nourishment to satiate his "hungry fatigue."

Nevertheless, the poem establishes the extent to which this way of life has a hold on people. “Whole families” parade down
the supermarket aisles as if in some kind of trance —“wives” are “in” the “avocados,” and there are “babies in the tomatoes.”
In other words, they are totally immersed in the consumerist way of life that the supermarket represents. This way of life
robs them of their individual humanity, the poem implies, reducing people to the things they buy and instilling a sense
of conformity but making people think they all want the same things. This idea is later echoed by the image of "blue
automobiles in driveways," which implies a cookie-cutter vision of success. People think they'll be happy if only they can
buy this car or have that house, but the speaker doesn't buy in, and that’s why he conjures up a vision of Walt Whitman.

For poets of Ginsberg’s generation, Whitman stood for a kind of celebration of the common man, the nobility of labor, and
people’s individuality. Whitman’s poetry reflects an idealistic romanticism, which he viewed as inseparable from America
itself. Whitman becomes something like the speaker’s guide, which the speaker at one point explicitly asking Whitman
which "way" to go.

Placing Whitman in this capitalist and commercial wonderland—the supermarket—deliberately clashes these two different
Americas together in order to highlight the country's failure to live up to Whitman's ideal. Indeed, the speaker imagines
this man from another era trying to make sense of the abundant variety of products, interrogating them and his strange,
overwhelming environment. In initially presenting Whitman as lost and confused himself, the poem suggests how far
removed modern society has become from the way of life that Whitman imagined.

The speaker then imagines himself and Whitman strolling through the aisles, tasting "fancy" food at their whim without
paying for any of it. The speaker and Whitman—in the speaker’s minds—thus share in common a rejection of the
importance of money, rebelling against what society tells them to do.

In the end, though, the poem suggests that the optimism expressed in Whitman’s poetry has failed to become reality and
probably never will—indeed, it probably never existed in the first place. Now, time is running out—the "doors close in an
hour"—suggesting that it's too late to change what America has become. That’s why both Whitman and the speaker
ultimately cut such "lonely" figures. The poem then concludes by intensifying its sense of futility and isolation: Whitman is
pictured alone on the shores of the underworld, the speaker walking home from the supermarket—and neither of them in
the America they desire.

● A society that has forgotten its past and history

● The people have become the things they buy, they are so engrossed in this consumerism.
● California is the heart of consumerism and Hollywood. It is a place that idolised the American
dream, but none of it is real because it is so different from the America that Whitman had an
idea of.
● Modern America is one where people feel they can buy happiness by owning cars and houses.
● Nature has been commodified as it can be seen in the supermarket. So detached from its
origins and history.

Q2. How does Ginsberg treat discussion on the mythological Hades in his poem?

Ans. In ‘A Supermarket in California’, Ginsberg concludes the poem by comparing America to the mythological Hades.
He asks Walt Whitman what kind of America he saw “when Charon quit poling his ferry and you got out... / and stood
watching the boat disappear on the black waters of / Lethe?”. Charon was the guardian of Hades who would ferry souls
across the River Styx to their eternity. But Ginsberg notes that Whitman never quite made it directly into Hades.
Instead, he was stranded on a bank of the River Lethe, another river that ran through Hades. The river Lethe, in Greek
mythology, would cause complete forgetfulness for those that drank from its waters. This, says Ginsberg, is the meaning of
modern society: it forgets its past and what is natural. The peach in the supermarket has no relation for those that buy it to
the natural world from which it came. Its past has been forgotten. This is the state of the world that capitalism and
modernity has brought. And Whitman, who once railed against such advancement, is left stranded on the side of an
unending river of forgetfulness. He is now a forgotten hero.

Q.3 Why does Ginsberg refer to Walt Whitman and Federico Garcia Lorca in the poem?
Ans. ‘A Supermarket in California’ is a poem bursting with a love of literature. Indeed, the poem is a great example of
what is known as meta poetry—poetry that is, in part, about poetry itself. It was written as an ode to Ginsberg’s poetic
hero and major influence, Walt Whitman. Whitman, a nineteenth century poet, experimented with meter and rhythm and
eschewed the structured line and stanza which was the standard form for poetry of his time. He became known as an
eccentric, both for his style of writing as well as his lifestyle. He was greatly influenced by the Romantic poets and much of
his poetry deals with nature and the encroachment of industrialized society on all that is natural and, in Whitman’s
thought, good about America. Additionally, Whitman’s poems often glorified a sexually expressive mode of being, using
veiled references to promote both a spiritual and sexual freedom.

Ginsberg sought to continue Whitman’s legacy stylistically and thematically. Ginsberg’s long line was inspired by
Whitman’s use of varying lengths of line and breath. Thematically, Ginsberg sought to continue Whitman’s poetic assault
upon industrialized society by writing about the consequences of corporate and industrial growth that Whitman could
only foresee in his own work. “A Supermarket in California,” with its depictions of domesticated life symbolized by food
placed out of its natural context, deals with such themes. Additionally, “A Supermarket” also alludes to a hidden
sexualized world, veiled in the language of commonplace things.

Ginsberg also pays homage to another influence in “A Supermarket,” Garcia Lorca. Lorca was an influential Spanish poet
in the early 20th century. Lorca was killed at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War by the right wing Spanish Nationalists
for his own leftist political views. Lorca was an influence on Ginsberg mainly for his own homage to Whitman in his own
poetry. Like Ginsberg, Lorca saw as an influence Whitman’s disregard for poetic rules and structure and for his
controversial subject matter that prized free thought and expression over cultural conformity.

In placing poetry front and center, the poem implicitly argues in favor of the value of poetry to society—while also
hinting that society has forgotten how to recognize that importance (having been blinded by the supermarket’s neon
lights). Arguably, literature’s place in the poem also stands-in for creativity and the imagination more generally, similarly
implying that these have become overlooked in modern America.
The poem clearly marks out Whitman and the speaker as kindred spirits. In fact, they even briefly enjoy what the
supermarket has to offer, tasting its "delicac[ies]" without intending to pay for them and thus positioning themselves as on
the outside of social norms. In other words—in the speaker's mind at least—artists challenge the accepted constructs
and norms of the day.
Placing Whitman in this capitalist and commercial wonderland—the supermarket—deliberately clashes these two
different Americas together in order to highlight the country's failure to live up to Whitman's ideal. Indeed, the speaker
imagines this man from another era trying to make sense of the abundant variety of products, interrogating them and his
strange, overwhelming environment. In initially presenting Whitman as lost and confused himself, the poem suggests how
far removed modern society has become from the way of life that Whitman imagined.

The reference to Lorca also supports this idea. Federico García Lorca was a Spanish playwright and poet who was
murdered by his government in 1936. This was in part because of his homosexuality, and in part because, with his leftist
sympathies, he presented an idealistic threat to the Fascist, Nationalist forces ruling Spain at the time. He was thus another
counter-culture artistic figure whose mere existence challenged the societal status quo.
Though the poem doesn't delve deeply into the specifics of Whitman's poetry, it does show him investigating the
20th-century America that he suddenly finds himself in. His pointed questions in the second stanza subtly suggests how
society has lost its way: through mass, thoughtless consumption (the "pork chops" far removed from their butcher),
intense globalization (the reference to bananas, which would have to be imported), and the spiritual malnourishment
("Are you my Angel?"). Ultimately, these are similar to the questions the speaker asks in the poem's closing lines—is the
"America of love" already "lost," and where is society "going?"
In reflecting how poets observe and critique America, the poem elevates the cultural importance of art. That is, poets and
other artists are an invaluable part of society, the poem implies, because they analyze, question, and imagine alternatives to
the dominant way of life.
● An ode to Whitman and his ideal America.
● The contrast between Whitman’s America and modern America.
● Disapproval of the encroachment of industrialisation on humanity.
● The value of poetry in society- How it has been overlooked in modern society.
● Artists challenge society with their ideas- The behavior of Whitman and Ginsberg in the
supermarket, not conforming to social norms. Also uses Lorca to make his point clear (an
artist being ostracized for his idea or even sexuality)
Q4. What are the subtle hints that Ginsberg gives about Homosexuality in the poem?
The poem critiques not just the consumerism it sees as endemic to modern society, but also this society's subsequent
insistence on conformity. These two ideas are connected in the poem: society tells people that buying things will bring
them happiness, and then teaches people to want to buy all the same things—the same "blue automobiles" and "fancy"
artichokes.
The poem critiques the insistence on one uniform image of success and happiness, implying that, in such an environment,
people themselves become products—yet more things to buy and sell. That's why there are "Aisles full of husbands," for
instance; husbands, "Wives," and "babies" are more things to be desired in order to project the image of a perfect American
life.
The poem ultimately suggests that capitalist consumerist society pressures people to stick to one image of success and
happiness, and then persecutes those who refuse to conform. And one major example of this in the poem can be seen with
homosexuality.
Homosexuality is a subtle but important part in "A Supermarket in California." Allen Ginsberg was gay and Whitman is
believed to have been gay or bisexual as well. The Spanish poet Federico García Lorca, depicted as "down by the
watermelons" in the first stanza, was also gay—and this was part of the reason he was murdered by Spanish military
authorities.
These three men, then, are connected not just by the fact that they are poets, but also by their experiences living during
times when homosexuality was still a taboo, if not an outright crime. The poem thus suggests that there exists not just a
shared cultural and artistic legacy across these generations of men, but also one of secrecy and pain.
As if to acknowledge the secrecy which homosexuality has often had to exist under, the poem doesn't spell this link out
too clearly. The closest it gets to a direct reference is in the innuendo in the second stanza, when Whitman "pok[es] among
the meats in the refrigerator" and eyes up the grocery boys. The subsequent mention of meat (pork chops) could be in
image of carnal desire.
Behind this playfulness, though, lurks a serious point about persecution and nonconformity. When the speaker imagines
the "store detective" following him and Whitman, it's not just because they are trying food without paying for it—it's
because they're outsiders, in large part due to their sexuality.
The poets are contrasted with nuclear families presented in the first stanza, those "Whole families" made up of husbands,
wives, and babies. These represent what a family was supposed to look like at the time—a man, a woman, and their
offspring. Again, this moral conformity goes hand-in-hand with the consumerist culture on display in the
supermarket—at least that's how the poem presents it.
In other words, the speaker suggests that people have been fed images of what a family is supposed to look like, just as they
have been told what products to buy. The poem suggests that this supposedly moral family dynamic is really just another
aspect of the shallow consumerist, materialist culture that has taken over America. If this poem, then, is about an
alternative America—one less beholden to materialism—then the poem implies that this depends upon the freedom for
people to be who they want to be and to love who they want to love.

Q5. How does Ginsberg show that modernity ends civilization in “A Supermarket in California”?

Ans. "A Supermarket in California" is an example of Ginsberg's economic vision of modern society. He believes that
modernity ends civilization, as something that forgets its past and what is natural. In the poem, Ginsberg compares the
commodification of the natural world with Walt Whitman's vision of the beauty of nature and the individuality of
mankind. Ginsberg uses a picture of the mythological River Lethe to describe how modern society has detached the
natural world from its history and original environment. A peach, when bought in a supermarket, no longer means the
same thing that it did when it was picked from the tree by those that would eat it. Its past has been forgotten. This is the
state of the world that capitalism and modernity has brought. “Whole families shopping at / night!,” night being another
allusion to the darkness of industrialized society that demanded the illusion of the perfect nuclear family. Whitman,
whose ferocity for all things natural, is a forgotten hero of a world that existed before the coming of industrialization.

DAYBREAK IN ALABAMA
By Langston Hughes

When I get to be a colored composer

I'm gonna write me some music about
Daybreak in Alabama
And I'm gonna put the purtiest songs in it
Rising out of the ground like a swamp mist
And falling out of heaven like soft dew
I'm gonna put some tall tall trees in it
And the scent of pine needles
And the smell of red clay after rain
And long red necks
And poppy colored faces
And big brown arms
And the field daisy eyes
Of black and white black white black people
 And I'm gonna put white hands
And black hands and brown and yellow hands
And red clay earth hands in it
Touching everybody with kind fingers
Touching each other natural as dew
In that dawn of music when I
Get to be a colored composer
And write about daybreak
In Alabama.

The Poet

James Mercer Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from
Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the then-new literary art form called jazz poetry, Hughes is
best known as a leader of the Harlem Renaissance.

Harlem Renaissance

The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual, social, and artistic explosion centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City,
spanning the 1920s. At the time, it was known as the "New Negro Movement". Hughes' contribution to this movement
was through his short stories, poems, essays, plays and novels. He was one of the major influencers of that time. There were
no negative stereotypes or sentimental idealization of his people. His work honestly portrayed the hardships of the
working-class but he did not refrain from describing the joy and enjoyment and his people.

Analysis
“Daybreak in Alabama’ was published in 1940. It was the age of the Great Depression and American Dreams. So in this
poem he does not speak about the literal day break but about a daybreak which would bring peace and cooperation
amongst all. The poet says when he becomes a composer he was going to write music about a better life in Alabama. From
the swamp would rise the mist and from the heavens dew would fall. In this picture he would put some tall trees and add
the scent of the pine needles. The smell of red clay after rain would also emerge. Long red necks, poppy coloured faces, big
brown arms,the fields would be filled with the eyes of white and black people. He was going to put hands in colours of
white, black, brown and the yellow. There would be red clay earth hands and each would touch each other with kindness.
He concludes the poem stating in the daybreak in Alabama he would write about it.

Theme- The main theme of the poem is to show the diversity in the society and the poet’s hope of the society of
equality.

Form

‘Daybreak in Alabama has twenty three lines with no specific rhyme scheme. The lines vary in meter. The language used is
 also native to his culture. Alliteration is the use of words starting with the same letter in one line. It is seen in these lines.
I’m gonna put some tall tall trees in it

And big brown arms

Imagery

The imagery created by Hughes is very deep and meaningful. The composer could mean a leader who could make a
difference, in this case for the blacks. The swamp is used to describe the situation of the African Americans and from that he
is hoping there is a break, daybreak, with mist rising from the swamp and dew falling from the heavens. The tall trees could
mean the white men who stood high above the blacks, oppressing them indicated by the pine needles. Then it is a riot of
colours describing the necks, face, eyes and hands. Amongst this diversity, he sees kindness touching all the hands and it is
this break that he is hoping for his people. Hughes has used the subtlest and softest comparison to depict the hardships of
his people but ends with the hopes that the daybreak in Alabama would be more colourful and peaceful.

Q1. Comment on the sensuous images used by Hughes in ‘Daybreak in Alabama’.

Ans. The imagery created by Hughes is very deep and meaningful. The composer could mean a leader who could make a
difference, in this case for the blacks. The swamp is used to describe the situation of the African Americans and from that
he is hoping there is a break, daybreak, with mist rising from the swamp and dew falling from the heavens. The tall trees
could mean the white men who stood high above the blacks, oppressing them indicated by the pine needles. Then it is a
riot of colours describing the necks, face, eyes and hands. Amongst this diversity, he sees kindness touching all the hands
and it is this break that he is hoping for his people. Hughes has used the subtlest and softest comparison to depict the
hardships of his people but ends with the hopes that the daybreak in Alabama would be more colourful and peaceful.

● The imagery in the poem is so clear and vivid that it is as though he is describing a painting
he is going to paint rather than a song that he is planning on composing.
● The mist rising from the swamp is symbolic of how he hopes the dirty waters of his
community rise into the air like beautiful pure mist and settle down over everybody.
● The mist settles over people of all colour acting natural around each other. In his words I
think he means that diversity is natural and should be free of discrimination.
● Hands touching each other with kindness, hands of all colours is a description of how there is
equality among all men (of all colours) and this touching of hands is the most natural thing as
if it's just dew from the morning that forms at daybreak.
● The use of “daybreak” itself is very symbolic of a new beginning. Of a day when the sun rises
on a world that is beautiful and free of white oppression, but rather on a world that is equally
fair to people of all colour.
● The use of “black and white black white black” emphasises on exactly what he is trying to say.
It's like mixing paint on a pallet. It could mean that black and white people are literally
merging. Maybe a reference to a new set of Americans who are born from a mixture of both
black and white. A world where these relationships are accepted more naturally than frowned
upon.
 ● The scenery is so vivid that one can see it before their eyes. The mist rising, the smell of rain
on red soil. People of diverse cultures, different eyes and shapes of neck all mingling their
hands together and accepting each other’s touch with kindness.
● He indulges all the senses by description of scents and scenes as well as touch.

Q2. The Black poet Langston Hughes demonstrated the literary skills to craft a poem that meshed both the
humanitarianism and the artist with his own style, voice and tone. Hughes’ literary works show that he could
not only fill his poems and stories with racial tension of his own upbringing but also add in some aspects of
euphoric aspirations for both Alabama and America. Explain.

Ans. Langston Hughes’ ‘Daybreak in Alabama’ is written in a classic style of the late Langston Hughes. He incorporated
the realities of what is contained in both daybreaks and Alabama; dew, red clay, dawn, and even "swamp mist" rising from
the ground. Hughes used his own dialectic style to enhance the flavor of his poem with a down home feel that also
appears in Hughes' quintessential literary character Jess B. Semple (Jess B. Simple). Hughes infused such a style with
elements of social commentary on racial harmony and collective existence. Hughes filled the poem with the very
confusion of the racial challenges of his own times. Published in 1940, the poem reveals the agonizing age of Jim Crow,
the Great Depression and American dreams. The Black poet within Langston Hughes does not seem to speak out in
"daybreak in Alabama'' as much as the humanitarian and artist within Langston Hughes. Langston Hughes the
humanitarian speaks of the possible day when even an Alabama daybreak would be filled with a rainbow of collective
cooperation. His humanitarian views pour out in references to red clay hands, brown arms, colored faces and white
black people. The artist within Langston Hughes comes alive in the picture that Hughes painted for the reader. He
penned a work of art that appears to emerge like brushstrokes of genius on the blank slate of open minds to a new
generation of American readers. The Black poet Langston Hughes demonstrated the literary skills to craft a poem that
meshed both the humanitarian and the artist with his own style, voice and tone. Hughes' literary works show that he
could not only fill his poems and stories with the racial tensions of his own upbringing, but also add in some aspects of
euphoric aspirations for both Alabama and America.

● Usage of song like poetry that is unique to him. His own dialect style.
● The vivid descriptions
● The painting like imagery
● The brilliance of bringing out faults in humanity in such beautiful tone of nature
descriptions.
● He does not use harsh startling images, but soft kind images that make the reader relish his
poem and see the world that he dreams of through the darkness of the world that exists.
● His style brings together the humanitarian and the artist.

Q3. Highlight the nature elements as used by Hughes.

Ans. ‘Daybreak in Alabama’ written by poet Langston Hughes was published in 1940. It was the age of the Great
Depression and American Dreams. In this poem, Hughes does not speak about the literal day break but about a
daybreak which would bring peace and cooperation amongst all. The poet says when he becomes a composer he was
going to write music about a better life in Alabama. There are multiple natural elements that he uses in the poem. He
mentions that from the swamp would rise the mist and from the heavens dew would fall. In this picture he would put
some tall trees and add the scent of the pine needles. The smell of red clay after rain would also emerge. Long red
necks, poppy coloured faces, big brown arms,the fields would be filled with the eyes of white and black people.
He was going to put hands in colours of white, black, brown and the yellow. There would be red clay earth hands
and each would touch each other with kindness. He concludes the poem stating in the daybreak in Alabama he would
write about it.

● Daybreak
● Mist rising from the swamp
● Tall trees
● The scent of pine needles
● The smell of rain on red clay
● Long red necks
● Poppy coloured faces
● Field daisy eyes
● Big brown arms
● Red clay hands
● Touching each other as natural as dew

EMPEROR JONES
Eugene O’ Neill
Setting: West Indian Island
Theme: Racial conflicts
Genre: Tragedy

Summary

At the palace of the Emperor of an unidentified island in the West Indies, Smithers, a Cockney
trader finds that all of the servants have left except for one old native woman. He interrogates her to
learn that the natives are plotting a revolution against the Emperor, an American fugitive named
Brutus Jones.

When Jones awakens, Smithers warns him of the plot and the danger of trying to make an escape
through the dark forest of the island. Jones scoffs at the idea that his illiterate, uneducated, and
superstitious subjects are capable of outsmarting him. He confesses that he knew this day would
arrive when he took the throne, since he has been stealing from the island and hiding a fortune in a
foreign bank account.

As Jones sets off to escape from the revolutionaries, his mental state gradually collapses in the
darkness of the forest. Jones is overconfident due in part to the fact that he has convinced the
islanders that he possesses magical powers. After an earlier attempted assassination, Jones
successfully constructed the myth that he can only be killed with silver bullets.
 In the darkness, Jones sets off into the forest with a gun loaded with five lead bullets and one silver
bullet. He begins seeing hallucinations of his innermost fears, in spite of being alone. As he
encounters each hallucination, he fires a bullet from his gun that has the rather counterintuitive
effect of alerting his pursuers to his whereabouts.

Through hallucinatory imagery and Jones' monologue we learn that Jones came to the island as a
stowaway on a boat after killing a man over a game of craps and then killing a prison guard to escape
from jail. He has visions of the man he killed as well as the prison guard.

His next hallucinations are a slave auction, a slave ship, and a Witch-Doctor in the Congo, who tries
to kill him with the help of a hungry crocodile. He shoots at the crocodile with the last remaining
silver bullet.

Smithers returns to the play in the final scene, and meets up with the leader of the insurrection, Lem,
who previously tried to shoot Jones. The revolutionaries set out into the forest to find Jones.

Shortly after, Lem returns to tell Smithers that they killed Jones. Lem tells him that he and the other
revolutionaries melted down silver coins to make silver bullets that would kill Jones.

About the author

● Eugene O’ Neill is the son of an Irish immigrant actor James O’neill. He was born in New
York City and raised Catholic. He traveled the seas for years which led to his alcoholism.
● Eugene O'Neill, one of the greatest American playwrights of all time. His writing is from an
intense personal point of view. He has written multiple plays for which he has won prizes
including the Nobel prize in literature and the Pulitzer Prize in Drama.
● Eugene O'Neill who lived between 1888 and 1953 established America's plays in the
realm of literary drama by introducing dramatic realism and psychological focus to theater.
● His plays, at least most the plays and most of the time, they follow the unities of time,
place and action though there may be some exceptions.
● O'Neill often applied his painful life experiences to playwriting and transformed his
experiences inside and outside the theater into characters of shattering psychological depth
and realism.He was also one of the pioneers of expressionism on American stage.

Emperor Jones is a play inspired by American military occupation of Haiti (“ an island in the West
Indies as yet not self-determined by White Marines”. The play paints of a picture of brutalizing
history that shaped men like Jones.
 Expressionism

● Expressionism, artistic style in which the artist seeks to depict not objective reality but
rather the subjective emotions and responses that objects and events arouse within a person.
● The artist accomplishes this aim through distortion, exaggeration, primitivism, and fantasy
and through the vivid, jarring, violent, or dynamic application of formal elements. In a
broader sense Expressionism is one of the main currents of art in the late 19th and early 20th
centuries, and its qualities of highly subjective, personal, spontaneous self-expression are
typical of a wide range of modern artists and art movements.
● Expressionism can also be seen as a permanent tendency in Germanic and Nordic art from at
least the European Middle Ages, particularly in times of social change or spiritual crisis, and
in this sense it forms the converse of the rationalist and classicizing tendencies of Italy and
later of France.
● In Emperor Jones, 1920 play and one of his most famous plays, he employed expressionistic
devices. The production of this play was notable for having an African American lead. The
actor Charles Sydney Kilpin was an Afro-American and this was quite new in American
theater. This was done at O’Neill’s insistence and opened the way for African-American
actors in theater and musicals.
● The play draws on events of Haitian History and portrays the destructive effects of
industrialism on humanity. The story is focused on an African American Porter who travels
to the Caribbean Island and persuades the inhabitants to crown him the Emperor.
● It was originally titled The Silver Bullet. The play was highly successful and was produced in
major world capitals including London and Paris.The play brought forth negative effects of
Racism in the US and other countries.
● So, sort of, put the spot line on the destructive effect of racism in various countries,
especially in America.
● Expressionism is a movement that was started in Germany. It was a modernist movement
which began in painting and poetry and precursors include people like Strindberg and
Edward Munch whose Scream is you know an iconic painting and also several other
playwrights who were writing at this point of time.
● So it is considered with inner realities than outer realities, the movement and in Expressionist
Theater, actions and dialog portray the way one or more characters perceive it, which may be
radically different from the way life really is.
● It developed as a reaction to rapid industrialization and materialism.
● The exponents of expressionism in American theater include Elmer Rice who famously
wrote The Adding Machine.Tennessee William in A Streetcar named Desire and of course a
O'Neill.

Emperor Jones tells the story of an African American convict who escapes to an island in the
Carribean, where he, with the assistance of a Cockney trader Smithers, can the natives into
recognizing him as their Emperor and taxes them, only to keep the money for himself. The plot
follows Jones' escape from the natives, when his scheme is revealed, and his psychological
confrontation with his past and his identity.
The structure of the plot parallels that of O’Neill’s ‘The Hairy Ape’, told episodically, in seven to
eight episodes, scenes respectively. Both show the destruction of a distinctly “American” tragic
hero. The play uses each scene to add insight into the nature of the character’s pride but to
contribute to the destruction of the man and the deterioration of his psyche. O’Neill was
particularly affected by the 20th century’s effect on the African- American population and the
industrial worked, both of whom he personified as tragic heroes, who were overwhelmed by the
scars of the past and by the rapid proliferation of society around them, which made no effort to
include them, It was this form of oscillating episodes of realism and expressionism that served as the
formula to best tell their stories.

Imperialism:

O’Neill was troubled by the growing American tendencies of bringing ‘modernity’ and ‘stability’, as
Jones promised to the natives, But like Jones, they often found themselves robbed for the economic
and political advantage of the liberator. It is as vital to now to question the motive and validity of the
invasion of foreign nations, as it was for O’Neill

Themes:
1. Racism

The Emperor Jones tells the story of Brutus Jones, a porter on a train car who, after killing a black
man and then a white prison guard in the United States, escapes to a Caribbean island. On the
island, he quickly sets up an empire, with himself as emperor. He amasses vast wealth by levying
heavy taxes on the black natives and by engaging in various forms of corruption. When he learns
from a white trader named Smithers that his black native subjects are planning to revolt against
him, he embarks on a journey through the forest to escape by sea. As Jones wanders through the
forest at night, with the sound of the natives' drums constantly beating in the background, he is
faced with various native-summoned apparitions that force him to confront the fact that in making
himself emperor and exploiting the natives, he was "performing whiteness"—putting into practice
the lessons he learned by watching the white people who mistreated and exploited him in the
United States. Furthermore, he comes to realize that his race and all that comes with it isn't
something that he can escape or deny.

The play opens with Jones already having established himself as emperor. He is extremely
powerful—the natives believe that he is charmed and can only be killed by silver bullets. He's rich
from the taxes and other sorts of corrupt business that his role allows him to engage in without
consequences. In one sense, by turning himself into a rich and powerful emperor, Jones overturns
the racist situation that defined his life of exploitation and impoverishment in the United States.
However, the play's take on racism isn't nearly that simple. Jones doesn't just set himself up as an
emperor; rather, he makes himself emperor over other black people and uses his position to exploit
and oppress those black people in order to enrich himself. Jones seeks power and exploits the less
powerful, just as he himself was exploited by white people in the United States.

Furthermore, Jones explicitly states that he was able to successfully install himself as emperor and
tax the natives dry by using what he learned from white people during his time working as a porter:
that "big stealin'" brings fame and fortune. With this, the play then connects whiteness and white
people to exploitation, corruption, and seeking power. It also makes the case that Jones, in making
himself emperor, is acting like a white person. To this point, Jones does hold what can be described
as "racist" views toward the natives he oppresses, whom he views as dumb and gullible. More
broadly, this dynamic suggests that white racism and exploitation create a kind of cycle, in which
white culture defines the terms of success—power and wealth—and then anyone who tries to gain
that success will necessarily have to act like a white person in order to achieve it. White racism and
exploitation, the play suggests, create only more exploitation and more racism.

After learning of the natives' imminent revolt against him, Jones flees into the forest, and confronts
apparitions summoned by the natives. His interactions with these apparitions force him to relive
his own personal history (which took place in the early twentieth century) and the history of slavery
in the United States. As he wanders, he encounters apparitions of the black man and the white
prison guard he killed, and then experiences being sold at a slave auction, being a passenger on a
slave ship bound for the US, and finally, a sacrificial ceremony performed by a witch doctor in the
Congo. As Jones descends through time and confronts these apparitions, the things that signify his
façade of white power get stripped away and his belief in his own power erodes until he's nothing
more than a scared, animalistic man with no power of any sort. Through these apparitions, the
natives force Jones to admit that he's black, thereby insisting that it's impossible to escape this
knowledge no matter how high he climbs. Within the logic of the play and in the light of the
rampant racism of the time period in which it was written (around 1920), the play leaves the viewer
with the assertion that black individuals like Jones who seek to better themselves by performing
whiteness are doing so futilely: that they'll never escape the fact that they're black and will always be
seen as such, and that even in trying to escape they are only ever reenacting the exploitation and
racism that afflicted them in the first place.

The play's exploration of race is further complicated by the character of Smithers, a cantankerous,
racist white sailor who seems to be enriching himself through Jones's own corrupt practices.
Smithers appears in the first and last scenes of the play, and in those scenes he functions as a kind of
narrator. In the first scene Smithers introduces Jones to the audience and in the last, he
accompanies the black natives to the edge of the forest where they then kill Jones. By having
Smithers open and close the play, he is established as an interpreter of events, and the viewer is
encouraged to identify with him and with his interpretation. Put another way, the play literally sets
up Jones to be viewed through a lens of whiteness, as provided by Smithers. There are a few
implications of this structural dynamic. First, the fact that Smithers appears to respect Jones more
than he does the natives highlights even further the way that Jones's own ascent to power is based
on the racist and exploitative viewpoints he learned from white men. Second, even though Smithers
occupies a very small place in the action itself, his role as interpreter affords him a great deal of
power: his way of interpreting those events is given precedence. So, in a play about a black emperor,
it is still a white man who holds the most power. Essentially, both thematically and structurally, the
play seems to suggest that there is no escape for black people, no matter how high they ascend, from
white racism and oppression.

Dual Consciousness and Identity

Knowledge is Power
Religious Critique

Brutus Jones

The titular emperor of an unidentified West Indies island spent ten years working as a train porter in
the United States before a game of dice spiraled wildly out of control. He killed a man named Jeff
over a dispute during a game of craps. After getting thrown in jail, Brutus then killed a prison guard
and escaped America as a stowaway on a ship bound for the Indies. Once on the island, he
recognized how impressive he was to the natives and exploited their gullibility to become ruler. The
play picks up at the exact moment that Jones' subjects begin to grow tired of him and start staging a
revolt. Jones is depicted as greedy and prideful, without thinking of the ethical implications of his
misdeeds. His misdeeds begin to catch up with him, however, when he enters the dark forest, and is
attended by haunting hallucinations about his sordid past. He ends up becoming his own worst
enemy, panicking in the face of his own conscience and making his way back to the very place where
he entered the forest, where the revolutionaries are waiting to kill him.

Jones uses what he learned from his time in the United States to exert power over his black native
subjects, and he elevates himself to the level of a god. To complete the façade, Jones also tells the
natives that he can only be killed by a silver bullet and has one made in case he ever needs to commit
suicide. When Jones first learns from Smithers that the natives are revolting, Jones shows that he's a
quick thinker and is flexible in his plans, as he immediately moves up his escape plan and leaves that
night. However, Jones's cockiness and belief in his own success brings about his undoing. As he
wanders through the forest, the natives send apparitions that make Jones progressively more terrified
and more human. The apparitions force Jones to reckon with his personal past by sending both Jeff
and the prison guard to haunt him, as well as apparitions of the history of slavery in the United
States. Though Jones tries to fight these apparitions by praying and insisting they're not real, he
works his way through his five lead bullets and finally uses his silver bullet to kill the crocodile god
summoned by the witch doctor. In doing so, he symbolically kills his own charade of godliness. At
this point, once Jones is truly a man, the natives are able to kill him and remove him from power.

“Who dare whistle dat way in my palace? Who dare wake up de Emperor? I'll git de
hide frayled off some o’ you niggers sho'!”

Jones

The very first lines spoken by the Emperor are revealing. Since installing himself as Emperor—and
one endowed with certain magical powers at that—Jones has behaved like a Roman Emperor at the
height of the empire’s corruption. Not only is he imperious and short-tempered, but he has also
adopted the racist language of his own oppressors.

Smithers

Ostensibly a friend of Jones, but a profoundly racist white Cockney trader who looks upon Jones
with thinly veiled malice. Smithers is the one to warn Jones of the revolution, and can hardly believe
it when the natives manage to make silver bullets with which to kill their emperor. Smithers is a
crooked and evil character, who seems to always side with whoever has power.

From his opening conversation with Jones, the viewer learns that Smithers gave Jones his start on the
island by employing him, which allowed Jones to eventually become emperor. However, it also
becomes clear that Smithers is exceptionally racist: he can barely contain his rage that Jones is a
powerful emperor, and he speaks poorly of the black natives as well. Though at times Smithers seems
to feel some genuine affection and admiration for Jones, his racism colors everything he says and does
in relation to Jones and the natives. Jones points out that in ten years of trading with the natives,
Smithers hasn't learned a word of their language even though doing so would certainly help him
profit—an indication that Smithers doesn't see anything the natives do as worth his time or
consideration. Because Smithers appears only in the first and last scenes and isn't a strictly necessary
character in terms of plot, the play situates Smithers as a narrator of sorts and asks the reader and
viewer to identify with him and with his interpretation of events. This reinforces Smithers's racist
point of view as "correct" per the logic of the play.

Lem

Lem was the leader before Jones' arrival, and is the leader of the insurrection which finally kills the
ill-fated emperor. Lem already tried to assassinate Jones by shooting him, but failed. In the wake of
the accident, Jones convinces his subjects that he possesses magical powers and can be brought down
only by a silver bullet. Following this logic, Lem stages a revolution and melts down a bunch of coins
in order to make the silver bullets that end up killing Jones.

He's an older man and very wise—he is spare with his words and says, simply and confidently, that
he and the other natives will catch Jones. Finally, he explains to Smithers that he and the natives
spent the night melting silver coins to cast silver bullets to kill Jones, a canny plan that is ultimately
successful.
 Old Native Woman

The old woman is in and out of the story by the end of the first scene, but plays a significant role in
the narrative. The play opens with Smithers arriving at an empty palace. When he finds the old
woman, she tells him that a rebellion is underway and Jones is in danger.

The Witch-Doctor

The witch-doctor is merely a figment of the emperor’s fevered imagination, appearing in a weird
hallucinatory sequence near the end of the story. He is an image of Africa, a spiritual shaman who
wants to make Jones into a human sacrifice to a god-like crocodile lying in wait in a nearby river.

Q/A

Q1. Attempt a comparative analysis of the characters of Smithers and Jones in O'Neill's
Emperor Jones.

Eugene O’Neill’s groundbreaking play The Emperor Jones is the story of Brutus Jones, a despot
who ascends the throne using lies, intimidation and the politics of fear. Following a prison break in
the United States, Jones sets himself up as monarch of a Caribbean island. When the Natives rebel
after years of exploitation, Jones’s mesmerizing journey into darkness becomes a terrifying
psychological portrayal of power, fear, and madness. With his demons in heavy pursuit, the
Emperor is forced to confront not just the mortal sins of his past but also the depravities against his
ancestors, — all in search of forgiveness and salvation.

The titular emperor of an unidentified West Indies island spent ten years working as a train porter
in the United States before a game of dice spiraled wildly out of control. The play picks up at the
exact moment that Jones' subjects begin to grow tired of him and start staging a revolt. Jones is
depicted as greedy and prideful, without thinking of the ethical implications of his misdeeds. His
misdeeds begin to catch up with him, however, when he enters the dark forest, and is attended by
haunting hallucinations about his sordid past. He ends up becoming his own worst enemy,
panicking in the face of his own conscience and making his way back to the very place where he
entered the forest, where the revolutionaries are waiting to kill him.

Ostensibly a friend of Jones, but a profoundly racist white Cockney trader who looks upon Jones
with thinly veiled malice. Smithers is the one to warn Jones of the revolution, and can hardly
believe it when the natives manage to make silver bullets with which to kill their emperor. Smithers
is a crooked and evil character, who seems to always side with whoever has power.

Q2. Emperor Brutus Jones is an African American male who has risen, “from stowaway to
Emperor (of Haiti) in two years”. Jones looks down upon his subjects, viewing them as
nothing but animals, even though they are African just like himself. Jones himself goes
through a transformation which dehumanizes him and gives him very primal, animal
related characteristics.
Discuss how through the juxtaposition, O’Neill makes his play a critique of the
dehumanizing effects people in power have over the black race.

Eugene O’Neill’s groundbreaking play The Emperor Jones is the story of Brutus Jones, a despot
who ascends the throne using lies, intimidation and the politics of fear. Following a prison break in
the United States, Jones sets himself up as monarch of a Caribbean island.

He's rich from the taxes and other sorts of corrupt business that his role allows him to engage in
without consequences. In one sense, by turning himself into a rich and powerful emperor, Jones
overturns the racist situation that defined his life of exploitation and impoverishment in the United
States. However, the play's take on racism isn't nearly that simple. Jones doesn't just set himself up
as an emperor; rather, he makes himself emperor over other black people and uses his position to
exploit and oppress those black people in order to enrich himself. Jones seeks power and exploits
the less powerful, just as he himself was exploited by white people in the United States. “You blacks
are up to some devilment.”

Furthermore, Jones explicitly states that he was able to successfully install himself as emperor and
tax the natives dry by using what he learned from white people during his time working as a porter:
that "big stealin'" brings fame and fortune. With this, the play then connects whiteness and white
people to exploitation, corruption, and seeking power. It also makes the case that Jones, in making
himself emperor, is acting like a white person.

The play's exploration of race is further complicated by the character of Smithers, a cantankerous,
racist white sailor who seems to be enriching himself through Jones's own corrupt practices. Put
another way, the play literally sets up Jones to be viewed through a lens of whiteness, as provided by
Smithers. There are a few implications of this structural dynamic. First, the fact that Smithers
appears to respect Jones more than he does the natives highlights even further the way that Jones's
own ascent to power is based on the racist and exploitative viewpoints he learned from white men.
Second, even though Smithers occupies a very small place in the action itself, his role as interpreter
affords him a great deal of power: his way of interpreting those events is given precedence. So, in a
play about a black emperor, it is still a white man who holds the most power. Essentially, both
thematically and structurally, the play seems to suggest that there is no escape for black people, no
matter how high they ascend, from white racism and oppression.
 I HAVE A DREAM
By Martin Luther King Jr

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest
demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed
the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon of hope to
millions of slaves, who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a
joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity. But one hundred years later, the
colored America is still not free. One hundred years later, the life of the colored American
is still sadly crippled by the manacle of segregation and the chains of discrimination.

One hundred years later, the colored American lives on a lonely island of poverty in the
midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the colored
American is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile
in his own land So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we have come to our Nation’s Capital to cash a check. When the architects of
our great republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration
of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall
heir.

This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be
guaranteed the inalienable rights of life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as her
citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has
given its colored people a bad check, a check that has come back marked “insufficient
funds.”

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that
there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. So we have
come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and
security of justice.

We have also come to his hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now.
This is not time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of
gradualism.

Now is the time to make real the promise of democracy.

Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path
of racial justice.

Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock
of brotherhood.

Now is the time to make justice a reality to all of God’s children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to
underestimate the determination of it’s colored citizens. This sweltering summer of the
colored people’s legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn
of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end but a beginning. Those who
hope that the colored Americans needed to blow off steam and will now be content will
have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual.

There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the colored citizen is granted
his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of
our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot
gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities.

We cannot be satisfied as long as the colored person’s basic mobility is from a smaller
ghetto to a larger one.

We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood and robbed
of their dignity by signs stating “for white only.”

We cannot be satisfied as long as a colored person in Mississippi cannot vote and a colored
person in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote.

No, no we are not satisfied and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters
and righteousness like a mighty stream.

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of your trials and tribulations.
Some of you have come from areas where your quest for freedom left you battered by
storms of persecutions and staggered by the winds of police brutality.

You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that
unearned suffering is redemptive.
Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina go back to
Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our modern cities,
knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair. I say to you, my friends, we have the difficulties
of today and tomorrow.

I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its
creed. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.

I have a dream that one day out in the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and
the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of
brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat
of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not
be judged by the color of their skin but by their character.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor
having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; that one day
right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with
little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be engulfed, every hill shall be exalted and
every mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plains and the crooked
places will be made straight and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall
see it together.

This is our hope. This is the faith that I will go back to the South with. With this faith we
will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope.

With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a
beautiful symphony of brotherhood.
With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to
go to jail together, to climb up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God’s children will be able to sing with new meaning “My
country ’tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my father’s died, land
of the Pilgrim’s pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring!”

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true. So let freedom ring from
the hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New
York.

Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that, let freedom, ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi and every mountainside.

When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every tenement and every hamlet,
from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s
children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be
able to join hands and sing in the words of the old spiritual, “Free at last, free at last.
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last.”

Analysis
On August 28, 1963, 250,000 people gathered in Washington, DC, to take part in the March on
Washington. The protesters demanded an end to racial discrimination in housing, employment, and
other areas of American life. Martin Luther King, JR., who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, was
an important political leader fighting for political rights for black people in the USA.
The speech “I Have a Dream” was made on August 28, 1963 when King was leading the “March on
Washington” before the Lincoln Memorial.
By making this speech, King tried to persuade the blacks to carry on their struggle by non-violent
means for the justice and freedom promised to them by the Emancipation Proclamation.
The march came almost a decade into the civil rights movement. Those protests were organized by
multiple civil rights organizations with Martin Luther King Jr. as its president.
In his speech 'I have a dream' the king expressed his "dream" that American society would one day
judge individuals by their character, not their race.
The march, with King's speech as its defining moment, galvanized the movement. Responding to
growing public unrest, Congress passed several pieces of civil rights legislation in the coming years,
including the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Today, King's speech is viewed as a definitive expression of the ideals of the civil rights movement.
King's "dream" of racial equality is seen as the essence of what the movement hoped to achieve and
the means chosen to achieve it.

Metaphors used in the speech

In King's speech, one of the notable features is that metaphors abound. For instance, having a great
beacon light of hope, the blacks are said to have been “seared in the flames of withering
injustice”. They are “crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of
discrimination” and they live “on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of
material prosperity”. King also compares the blacks ‟going to the capital” for equal civil rights
to cashing a check. All these metaphors bring striking images to the audiences’ minds and leave a
powerful impression on them.

Alliteration
Alliteration is extremely popular with both poets and writers. In this device the same consonant
sound is repeated at intervals in the initial position of words. (Feng, 1996) King also explores such
device in his speech to impress the present situation on the blacks’ memory. Take “the unalienable
rights of life and liberty” and “the dark and desolate valley” for example, King makes use of
this aspect of alliteration quite frequently making readers and listeners easy to remember, which can
quickly capture their attention. Besides, “dignity and discipline” can not only emphasize the
sacredness of “dignity”, but also makes clear the necessity of discipline.

Role of The Bible

The Bible also played a large role in the construction of King’s speech. King’s inclusion of biblical
rhetoric may have been due to not only his upbringing as a pastor, but also his knowledge of the
audience. “Many of those who heard “I Have a Dream” had read the Bible repeatedly and carefully.
While there were biblical scholars among the audience, there were also African Americans who may
have recognized certain verses, but did not study them to the extent of these scholars. By including
these verses in his speech, King is able to create a bridge between scholars and laymen of the
audience.
 Lilacs
Kate Chopin

About the Author

Kate Chopin(1850-1904) is an American writer, best known for her works about the inner lives of
sensitive and daring women. Themes typically present in her works include women’s search for
selfhood, for self-discovery or identity, understanding of feminine sexuality, and revolt
against conformity or social norms.

Brief Summary
Set in a convent in France and in the residence of Adrienne Farival in Paris, ‘Lilacs’ follows the
story of a Parisian performer who seeks respite from her city life by retreating each spring to the
convent where she lived as a girl, upon smelling the scent of lilacs. Through the description of her
visit, a stark contrast is drawn between Adrienne’s demeanor in Paris and at the convent. When she
returns once again to the convent, in the following year, she discovers that she has been banned
from entering by the Mother Superior.

Questions
1. Why is Adrienne banned from the Convent in Lilacs?
Although never explicitly stated within the text, one of the possible, and most plausible,
reasons that Adrienne was banned from the convent is due to her promiscuous life back in Paris,
a life of “picturesque disorder,” as a singer and dancer. The fact that Adrienne lives the wealthy
life of a singer, makes her different. Adrienne’s gifts may not be seen an a gesture of respect or
gratitude by the Mother Superior, but rather as a sign of ostentation that could tempt and turn
the nuns away from their pious and minimalist lifestyle and hence, explaining why she “chided
Adrienne for the extravagance”. By banishing Adrienne from the convent the following year, the
Mother Superior confirms that every one sees Adrienne as a threat to the convent’s peace.
Another possible reason, one speculated by critics, is the Mother Superior’s knowledge of
the possibly homosexual relationship between Adrienne and Sister Agathe. She found
Adrienne’s free-spirited attitude to be damaging to the piety of Agathe, and wished for them to
have no further contact with each other. Agathe’s affection, whether platonic or romantic, would
serve to be a source of negative influence to her. The Mother Superior represents this
consciousness of limits and boundaries. The Mother Superior is the guarantor of the good order of
the organization of the convent, and the spiritual life of nuns. Her reaction shows her attachment
on what tends to prevent her environment from being compromised. So the space where she can
perform her authority could not be questioned.

2. Discuss the seeming relationships in Lilacs./ Discuss the nature of relationships in

‘Lilacs’.
 The first relationship in question is that of Adrienne’s and Monsieur Henri, an ardent
fan of hers. From Sophie’s description of his actions and enquiries through Adrienne’s absence, he
seems almost obsessively devoted. Sophie describes it as sweet and flattering, but Adrienne is
uninterested, as if she's only with him for the attention and simply because she has nothing better
to do. Her behaviour with Sophie is cruel and unforgiving, and it is possible that she treats Henri
the exact same way.

The second seeming relationship in the story is that of Adrienne and Sister Agathe. In a
sharp contrast to her behaviour in Paris, Adrienne seems to be very fond of Agathe. She greets the
other with affection when they meet every year, and she seems to look forward to spending time
with her. She is very kind to her and is eager to hear about what the latter has to say. Sister Agathe
also seems to adore Adrienne greatly. Even though she is ten years older, their shared past bonds
them closer than any other in the convent. They reminisce on the memories and laugh together,
enjoying each other’s company. There is a clear incompatibility between Adrienne and Sister
Agathe’s lifestyles. They nevertheless succeed in maintaining a link that is strong enough to resist
the differences and structures that oppose it. Even though two seem to have nothing in common
apart from their past in the convent itself, their relationship is not built on outside factors, but
rather inner feeling and thought. Their individual environments don't seem to succeed in
discouraging the other from continuing their friendship.
Their friendship is of an ambiguous nature, as many critics of the work point out. They
“linked arms” and then walked “hand in hand” after having kissed each other ardently at
Adrienne’s arrival at the convent. There seems to be genuine emotional tension between them,
hence fueling critics’ suspicions of an unsaid romantic relation. Their behavior proposes a new
perspective on love.

3. Analyse the significance of the title of Kate Chopin’s ‘Lilacs’?

“Always shall I remember that morning as I walked along the boulevard with a heaviness of
heart—oh, a heaviness which I hate to recall. Suddenly there was wafted to me the sweet odor of lilac
blossoms. A young girl had passed me by, carrying a great bunch of them. . . . The scent of the lilacs at
once changed the whole current of my thoughts and my despondency. . . . I was standing here with my
feet sunk in the green sward as they are now. I could see the sunlight glancing from that old white stone
wall, could hear the notes of birds, just as we hear them now, and the humming of insects in the air.
And through all I could see and could smell the lilac blossoms, nodding invitingly to me from their
thick-leaved branches.” Adrienne says this to her friend in the Convent.

The scent of the lilacs on the streets of Paris brings back childhood memories for the adult
Adrienne—memories of springtime during her youth when she lived in the convent. So the flowers
need to be ones that blossom in the spring and that send out an unmistakable odor.

It’s almost manic, the way she compulsively returns to the convent whenever she smells the lilacs.
At least, that’s what her companions in Paris believe."You know, Rosalie, I begin to believe it is an
attack of lunacy which seizes her once a year. I wouldn't say it to everyone, but with you I know it will
go no further. She ought to be treated for it; a physician should be consulted; it is not well to neglect such
things and let them run on.” Sophie clearly thinks that the behaviour is ‘lunatic’ as it is so
uncharacteristic of Adrienne to just leave and not inform anyone about where she is going. It’s pure
dedication, love and focus on something, a behaviour so unusual to Sophie, who is a constant
witness to the cold, dismissive attitude of the performer.

Navajo Creation Myth

Creation Myth

A creation myth is a symbolic narrative of how the world began and how people first came to
inhabit it. They develop in oral traditions and therefore typically have multiple versions; and they
are the most common form of myth, found throughout human culture.

Creation myths often share a number of features :

1. They often are considered sacred accounts and can be found in nearly all known
religious traditions.
2. They are all stories with a plot and characters who are either deities, human-like
figures, or animals, who often speak and transform easily.
3. They are often set in a dim and nonspecific past, what historian of religion Mircea
Eliade termed in illo tempore ("at that time").
4. Also, all creation myths speak to deeply meaningful questions held by the society
that shares them, revealing their central worldview and the framework for the
self-identity of the culture and individual in a universal context.

All creation myths are in one sense etiological because they attempt to explain how the world was
formed and where humanity came from. While in popular usage the term "myth" is often thought
to refer to false or fanciful stories, creation myths are by definition those stories which a culture
accepts as both a true and foundational account of their human identity.

The Navajo Creation Myth

Navajo origin stories begin with a First World of darkness (Nihodilhil). From this Dark World the
Dine began a journey of emergence into the world of the present. It had four corners, and over
these appeared four clouds. These four clouds contained within themselves the elements of the
First World. They were in color, black, white, blue, and yellow.

The Black Cloud represented the Female Being or Substance. For as a child sleeps when being
nursed, so life slept in the darkness of the Female Being. The White Cloud represented the Male
Being or Substance. He was the Dawn, the Light Witch Awakens, of the First World.

In the East, at the place where the Black Cloud and the White Cloud met, First Man, was formed ;
and with him was formed the white corn, perfect in shape, with kernels covering the whole ear.
Dohonotini is the name of this first seed corn, and it is also the name of the place where the Black
Cloud and the White Cloud met.
The First World was small in size, a floating island in mist or water. On it there grew one tree, a pine
tree, which was later brought to the present world for firewood.
Man was not, however, in his present form. The conception was of a male and a female being who
were to become man and woman.

The creatures of the First World are thought of as the Mist People; they had no definite form, but
were to change to men, beasts, birds, and reptiles of this world.
Now on the western side of the First World, in a place that later was to become the Land of Sunset,
there appeared the Blue Cloud, and opposite it there appeared the Yellow Cloud. Where they came
together First Woman was formed, and with her the yellow corn.
This ear of corn was also perfect. With First Woman there came the white shell and the turquoise
and the yucca.

First Man stood on the eastern side of the First World. He represented the Dawn and was the Life
Giver. First Woman stood opposite in the West. She represented Darkness and Death.
First Man burned a crystal for a fire. The crystal belonged to the male and was the symbol of the
mind and of clear seeing. When First Man burned it, it was the mind’s awakening. First Woman
burned her turquoise for a fire. They saw each other’s lights in the distance.
When the Black Cloud and the White Cloud rose higher in the sky First Man set out to find the
turquoise light. He went twice without success, and again a third time ; then he broke a forked
branch from his tree, and, looking through the fork, he marked the place where the light burned.
And the fourth time he walked to it and found smoke coming from a home.
“Here is the home I could not find,” First Man said.
First Woman answered : “Oh, it is you. I saw you walking around and I wondered why you did not
come. ” Again the same thing happened when the Blue Cloud and the Yellow Cloud rose higher in
the sky. First Woman saw a light and she went out to find it. Three times she was unsuccessful, but
the fourth time she saw the smoke and she found the home of First Man.
“I wondered what this thing could be,” she said.
“I saw you walking and I wondered why you did not come to me,” First Man answered.
First Woman saw that First Man had a crystal for a fire, and she saw that it was stronger than her
turquoise fire. And as she was thinking, First Man spoke to her. “Why do you not come with your
fire and we will live together. ” The woman agreed to this. So instead of the man going to the
woman, as is the custom now, the woman went to the man.
About this time there came another person, the Great-Coyote-Who-Was-Formed-in-the-Water, and
he was in the form of a male being. He told the two that he had been hatched from an egg. He
knew all that was under the water and all that was in the skies. First Man placed this person ahead
of himself in all things.

The three began to plan what was to come to pass; and while they were thus occupied another
being came to them. He also had the form of a man, but he wore a hairy coat, lined with white fur,
that fell to his knees and was belted in at the waist. His name was , First Angry or Coyote. He said
to the three: “You believe that you were the first persons. You are mistaken. I was living when you
were formed. ” Then four beings came together. They were yellow in color and were called the
wasp people. They knew the secret of shooting evil and could harm others. They were very
powerful. This made eight people. Four more beings came. They were small in size and wore red
shirts and had little black eyes. They were the spider ants. They knew how to sting, and were a great
people.

After these came a whole crowd of beings. Dark colored they were, with thick lips and dark,
protruding eyes. They were the , the black ants. They also knew the secret of shooting evil and were
powerful ; but they killed each other steadily. By this time there were many people. Then came a
multitude of little creatures. They were peaceful and harmless, but the odor from them was
unpleasant. They were called the wolazhini nlchu nigi, meaning that which emits an odor. And
after the wasps and the different ant people there came the beetles, dragonflies, bat people, the
Spider Man and Woman, and the Salt Man and Woman, and others that rightfully had no definite
form but were among those people who peopled the First World. And this world, being small in
size, became crowded, and and the people quarreled and fought among themselves, and in all ways
made living very unhappy.

Questions

1. Comment on the features of Native American culture and lifestyle as brought out
through the First World story.

A creation myth is a symbolic narrative of how the world began and how people first came to
inhabit it. They develop in oral traditions and therefore typically have multiple versions; and they
are the most common form of myth, found throughout human culture.
Each Native American culture had its own creation story that explained who they were, where they
came from, what the borders of their world were, and how they should live as humans. The
natural, physical world around them—its plants and creatures, its land and waters, the celestial
bodies, and the forces of nature—had the greatest influence on satisfying their basic needs for food,
shelter, and clothing; on their society; on their art forms; and on their spiritual life. By adapting to
and using the natural surroundings, the first people created hundreds of unique cultures
throughout what is now the United States.
In the society in which it is told, a creation myth is usually regarded as conveying profound truths,
metaphorically, symbolically and sometimes even in a historical or literal sense. They are
commonly, although not always, considered cosmogonical myths - that is they describe the
ordering of the cosmos from a state of chaos or amorphousness.

The Navajo myth of Creation emphasizes on the cultural values that the Navajo people live by day
to day. These cultural values pertain to the life event of marriages, the roles of humankind, the
beliefs in religion, and the value of the world itself. The creation myth also sheds light on the
geography of the earth and the structure of the world down to the core of the earth itself. The
structure of the world (or parts of the world) is the underlying story of the four worlds.
 2. According to the Navajo Creation Myth, what are the first forms of life that
inhabited the First World? What could be the reason for such a conception by the
Navajo People

The Story of the emergence is based on the Navajo creation myths of how the first people made it
through the different worlds to the modern world today. The First World was nothing but darkness
(also known as the dark earth). It had in it only six beings. They were First Man, the Son of Night
and the Blue Sky over Sunset; First Woman, the Daughter of Day Break and the Yellow Sky of
Sunset; Salt Woman; Fire God; Coyote and Begochiddy. Begochiddy created the four mountains
first on in the east (white mountains), south (blue mountains), the west (yellow mountains), and in
the north (black mountains).
Insects – Ch’osh
Black Ants – Wo’ia’zhini Dine’è
Bee People – Tsi’s’na’ Dine’è
Wasp People – Na’azozii Dine’è
Divine Spirit
First Talking God
Second Talking God
Coyote
Primordial Dawn
Primordial Blue Sky
Primordial Twilight
Primordial Darkness
Everlasting life and happiness

Coyote: The coyote is one of several North American animals whose name has Native American
origins. Coyote is a major mythological figure for most Native American tribes, especially those
west of the Mississippi. Like real coyotes, mythological coyotes are usually notable for their crafty
intelligence, stealth, and voracious appetite. However, American Indian coyote characters vary
widely from tribe to tribe. In some Native American coyote myths, Coyote is a revered culture hero
who creates, teaches, and helps humans; in others, he is a sort of antihero who demonstrates the
dangers of negative behaviors like greed, recklessness, and arrogance.
Crystal: Some Native American Nations have relied very heavily upon crystals since the beginning
of their history. Every family had several in their home, placed where the sun's rays in the morning,
noon and evening would catch the crystals. Before they got up in the morning, they would consult
the morning crystal to see what their duties for the day were. Every person wore crystals on their
body, concealed from view.
Turquoise: Turquoise is considered one of the four sacred stones of the Navajo. For centuries they
have regarded it as a valuable talisman and take pride in its possession. Sheepherders have carried a
turquoise fetish to insure fertility of the sheep, hunters to insure success in the hunt, and warriors
to insure victory and a safe return. Traditionally a bead of turquoise was fastened to a lock of hair
to protect the Navajo from being struck by lightning and believed to be a safeguard against snake
bite. Every household would have a buckskin pouch of herbs, turquoise and shell to add protection
against any unexpected event or catastrophe. The four sacred stones of the Navajo are: turquoise,
white shell, abalone and jet.
Corn: The reference to corn in Navajo Creation Myth highlights the ubiquity of corn / corn
pollen in ceremonies, rituals and daily life; It also is an omnipresent part of their culture, and an
important element in their cultural identity. It is a symbol of fertility, happiness and life.

3. Analyse the use of geographical or natural elements in the Navajo origin story.

The First or Dark World, Niʼ Hodiłhił, was small and centered on an island floating in the
middle of four seas. The inhabitants of the first world were the four Diyin Dineʼé, the two Coyotes,
the four rulers of the four seas, mist beings and various insect and bat people, the latter being the
Air-Spirit People. The supernatural beings First Woman and First Man came into existence here
and met for the first time after seeing each other's fire. The various beings on The First World
started fighting with one another and departed by flying out an opening in the east.

According to the Navajo creation story, the first world was small and pitch black. There were four
seas and in the middle, an island with a single pine tree existed. Ants, dragonflies, locusts and
beetles lived there and made up the Air-Spirit People of the first world.
Above the sea there was a black cloud, a white cloud, a blue cloud and a yellow cloud. The female
spirit of life lived in the black cloud while the male spirit of dawn lived in the white.
When the blue and yellow clouds came together, the First Woman, while the black and white came
together to form the First Man.

The First Man saw the light of the First Woman’s fire and tried to reach her three times before he
finally found her home. Then the First Woman saw the light of the First Man’s fire and tried to
reach him three times before she finally found his home. He asked her to live with him and the First
Woman agreed.

The Great Coyote was formed in water and came to the First Man and First Woman, telling them
he was hatched from an egg and knew all the secrets of the water and the skies. Shortly after, the
second coyote appeared named First Angry, who brought witchcraft into the world.

The First World “Nihodilhil” (Black World)

Nihodootlizh – Second World (Blue World)
Nihaltsoh -The third World (Yellow World)
Nihalgai – The Fourth, Glittering or White World
 Stanzas of Freedom
James Russell Lowell

Men! whose boast it is that ye

Come of fathers brave and free,
If there breathe on earth a slave,
Are ye truly free and brave?
If ye do not feel the chain,
When it works a brother's pain,
Are ye not base slaves indeed,
Slaves unworthy to be freed?

Women! who shall one day bear

Sons to breathe New England air,
If ye hear, without a blush,
Deeds to make the roused blood rush
Like red lava through your veins,
For your sisters now in chains,--
Answer! are ye fit to be
Mothers of the brave and free?

Is true Freedom but to break

Fetters for our own dear sake,
And, with leathern hearts, forget
That we owe mankind a debt?
No! true freedom is to share
All the chains our brothers wear
And, with heart and hand, to be
Earnest to make others free!

They are slaves who fear to speak

For the fallen and the weak;
They are slaves who will not choose
Hatred, scoffing, and abuse,
Rather than in silence shrink
From the truth they needs must think;
They are slaves who dare not be
In the right with two or three.
About the Author:
James Russell Lowell was an American poet, critic, essayist and editor. He graduated Harvard in
1838. In 1845 he published a series of critical articles asking for the abolishment of slavery. In 5 years
he wrote 50 anti slavery articles. He wrote Stanzas on Freedom to express how slavery ought to be
viewed by one and all, as a malignancy in society that needed immediate treatment in the form
of protest.

Analysis:
James addresses the people regarding freedom. He questions the men in the first paragraph asking
them if it is okay to call themselves free and brave when there are still people in the clutches of
slavery? In the next paragraph he questions the women and asks them if it is fine to call their children
free if there are children growing up as slaves? In the next stanza he answers the questions he had
asked in the previous paragraphs, the main point being freedom = sharing the chains of others.
In the last paragraph he says people who do not speak for the things that are right are slaves, those
who choose to remain silent are slaves and so on. People like these according to him are disastrous
for a nation and even harmful for humanity.

Themes:
Freedom, Slavery and relatioship among people.

Form:
There are altogether 4 stanzas (8 lines in each), consisting of 4 rhyming couplets. The first stanza is
directed to the men of New England while the second stanza is directed at the women. The third and
fourth stanzas are meant for citizens in general. The first two stanzas are considered to be the
questioning and reflection stanzas while the latter two stanzas are more like answers to the questions
previously put forth.

Questions

Q1 Who does Lowell address in his poem ‘Stanzas on freedom’? How does the poem
engage with its audience?
Ans:
 James Russell Lowell was an American poet, critic and editor who was passionate about
abolishment of slavery and had written about 50 articles regarding the same for various
newspapers. The poem speaks about the spirit of New England (America) and questions
whether it is actually the land of the brave and free.
In the poem, Lowell addresses the people of America (New England) in general regarding
their opinions and thoughts about slavery and freedom. The poem has 4 stanzas, in the first stanza
Lowell addresses the men of the country and asks them if they are truly brave and free? He asks
them the reason of their pride when slavery still prevails. He tells them that if they don’t speak up
for slaves or speak against slaverly they cannot boast about ‘brotherhood’ and bravery.
In the second stanza Lowell addresses the women of the country who still haven’t got their
rights or freedom and are limited to the roles of mothers or care-givers. Women consider their
children to be free which is questioned by lowell. He tells them to feel bad about their ‘sisters in
chains’ as women in that era were the oppressed gender anyways and could relate to the pain of the
slaves.
The poem engages with its audience in a very thought provoking way. Lowell targets
different people in different stanzas so that the readers can get a different perspective of the topic
and feel the pain of the slaves in the country.

Q2 Respond to Lowell’s exhortation to American women.

Ans:
James Russell Lowell was an American poet, critic and editor who was passionate about
abolishment of slavery and had written about 50 articles regarding the same for various
newspapers. The poem speaks about the spirit of New England (America) and questions
whether it is actually the land of the brave and free.
Lowell addresses the women of New England (America) in the second paragraph of the
poem. He addresses them as the mothers who will one day give birth to children who will breathe
the ‘free’ American air and asks them if the land is actually free. Women in that era did not even
have the right to vote and hence were primarily considered as mothers and homemakers. Lowell
addressing them as mothers highlights their position in the society.
He has a rather aggressive tone with the women because according to him they have the
potential to influence their husbands on the topic of abolishment of slavery even though they don’t
have any actual power in society. He asks them to think about their sisters in chains because they
can relate to them due to the oppression their gender faces in different areas of life.
Lowell questions their choice to become mothers of children who call themselves brave and
free when slavery is still prevealent. Women are considered more motherly and caring in nature and
Lowell asks them to use that very instinct to stand up for what is right. He asks them to push out
their outrage against slavery like a volcano spewing out red hot lava similar to the boiling blood
under their viens which is due to the injustice they have been facing over the years.

Women are also equally responsible in abolishing the vicious circle of slavery. They enable the circle
of procreation, give birth to sons who breathe the air of New England. They possess the capacity to
‘hear’ deeds without (blushing)emotions overcoming them. They should have the capacity to be
inspired by deeds into actions.’red’ is the colour of fiery passion and the symbol of lava evokes
images of revolutionary eruptions. The command “Answer” acts not only as an imperative; it is a
reminder to women to be answerable to their sisters. This is the prerequisite to be deemed fit to be
termed “Mother of the brave and free”.

Q3 Through the select choice of words Lowell makes a strong impression about
indifference to slavery. Explain.

James addresses the people regarding freedom. He questions the men in the first paragraph asking
them if it is okay to call themselves free and brave when there are still people in the clutches of
slavery? In the next para he questions the women and asks them if it is fine to call their children free
if there are children growing up as slaves? In the next stanza he answers the questions he had asked
in the previous paragraphs, the main point being freedom equals sharing the chains of others. In
the last paragraph he says people who do not speak for the things that are right are slaves, those who
choose to remain silent are slaves and so on. People like these according to him are disastrous for a
nation and even harmful for humanity.

In the first stanza, the point being extenuated is that humankind is only as good as the lowliest of
them. By using derogatory terms like ‘base’ and ‘unworthy’ he impresses upon the so-called free
men that they are not free at all so long as they stand by injustice and oppression as if they were
mute witnesses in a catastrophe. If you cannot feel the pain of the chain, then you are a successful
brick in the foundation of slavery.

In the second stanza a simile is used that conveys the untapped power held by women. “Deeds to
make the roused blood rush/Like red lava through your veins” compares the latent frustration and
indignation boiling under their calm surface to the blood flowing in their veins. The way the heart
pumps blood in the body, women ought to push out their outrage against slavery like a volcano
spewing out red hot lava.

In the third stanza he says, is it true freedom when all you do is look out for yourself? Is it truly the
land of the free and home of the brave if America was built on the toil and sweat of slaves, living
their lives in chains? In this case then those who are free owe mankind a debt because everyone is a
slave whose service will be called for at one point in life, be it in the present or the near future.
These are some points made in the third stanza. Lowell claims that true freedom is sharing the
chains of others. The individual and mankind should be considered as one rather than separate
entities. He says that the meaning of true freedom lies in breaking shackles for one’s own dear(‘s)
sake. These shackles are emblematic of the restraint and constraints imposed by the oppressor. The
cowardly heart is described as ‘leathern heart’ comprised of animal hide that does not possess
human concern. Freedom in the real sense of the word is not only meant for only the individual or
a specific group of people, but is meant for everyone of mankind . The poet makes an earnest
appeal to his fellow-beings to make others free “with heart and hand”, that is in feeling and
practice.

The fourth stanza builds on the concept that those who do not speak out against slavery are in the
same boat as slaves if not worse for they are in a position to do something but choose not to. Slaves
are those who are afraid to speak up on behalf of those who are fallen and weak. Slaves are those
who will not face the hatred, scoffing and abuse that accompany sticking up for what one believes
in, instead shrinking into the silence of continued and permitted oppression. Those who would
rather be in the majority despite being wrong instead of being in the minority who is right, are
slaves. Lowell brings to light the various levels of slavery that exist in this stanza. He elucidates that
those who are not physically enslaved are mentally enslaved especially by society’s norms
and ways. So, if you cannot stand hand in hand with those who are suffering unjustly, you cannot
be considered brave and free. For these people, fear of failure, rejection and becoming a social
outcast are the figurative chains that weigh down on them. This can be equally disastrous for the
progress of a nation and more importantly, for humanity and all of mankindIn the right with two
or three.

● People are slaves if they are scared to speak for others that are too weak to do it
themselves.
● People are deemed slaves if they are reluctant to speak for others who are in a
weaker position to do it themselves.
● People are also slaves if they deter from speaking because of rejection, ridicule or
abuse. Such people reconsider the truth and prefer to seek refuge in silence.
● And more significantly, people are slaves if they are scared to be in the minority by
uttering the truth.

Stanzas to a Husband recently united

Sarah Wentworth Morton

In vain upon that hand reclined,

(trusted you in vain)
I call each plighted worth my own,
(plighted worth - oxymoron; must face consequences alone)
Or rising to thy sovereign mind
(rising to YOUR expectations, but I cannot have any because women do not have a sovereign
mind)
Say that it reigns for me alone.
(her fault she trusted him, his mind supposedly reigns over her alone)

Since, subject to its ardent sway,

(ardent sway - oxymoron since devoutly passionate but unfaithful, unstable)
How many hearts were left to weep,
(how many wives and lovers have been left at home, weak and alone, so you may go love another;
speaking of cheating husbands in general)
To find the granted wish decay,
(granted wish - wedding vow)
And the triumphant passion sleep!
(momentary beauty, affection, devotion, excitement - "love")
Such were of love the transient flame,
Which by the kindling senses led,
(if any sensual pleasures kindle this "love")
To every new attraction came,
And from known allurement fled.
(Like in Someone New (Hozier) - Some like to imagine/ The dark caress of someone else/ I guess
any thrill will do)

Unlike the generous care that flows,

With all the rich affections give,
(rich affections - transferred epithet; also, money can't buy love)
Unlike the mutual hope that knows
(mutual hope is lost though)
But for a dearer self to live.
(dearer self - Fanny.
Will be with Perez but is sad. Lost hope, faith and trust)

Was theirs the tender glance to speak

Timid, through many a sparkling tear
The ever changing hue of cheek,
Its flush of joy, its chill of fear?
(Fear of getting caught, of her sister seeing how she's betrayed her)
(Perez and Fanny's conversation as imagined by Sarah - Perez explaining, Fanny flushing, paling, her
eyes brimming with tears at her guilt and remorse but also the joy of being with Perez)

Of theirs the full expanded thought,

By taste and moral sense refined,
Each moment with instruction fraught,
The tutor'd elegance of mind?
(Tutor'd elegance - to pretend, to not express love, to lay low, to hush)
(Has Fanny been groomed, has she learned to expand in thought and mind, to suit Perez's tastes
and needs?)

Be mine the sacred truth that dwells

(sacred truth - fidelity in marriage)
On One bye kindred virtues known
(One - isolation, she holds onto her vows while he drifts away)
(kindred virtues - family upbringing, would not do what the other did)
And mine the chastened glance which tells
That sacred truth to Him alone.
(Him - God. Vows at altar said before god; can cry to Him alone now) ( </3 )

No sordid hope's insidious guise,

(False hope; cunning guise)
No venal pleasure's serpent twine
(Can't bribe me with the trappings of little affections. Don't mollify me now with that - you broke
your promise)
Invites those soul-illumined eyes,
(soul-illumined - awakened to the reality of the situation - Fanny is pregnant, everyone knows of
your infidelity)
And blends this feeling heart with thine.
(Feeling heart - still in pain, unlike yours, you heartless scum)
(I will live with you as your wife but you can't have me back with your meaningless broken
promises. My eyes do not seek yours. My heart wants nothing to do with yours)

Author:
Sarah Wentworth Morton was a poet of the American Revolution. She spoke through her long
narrative poems about new nations, interracial relationships and heroism. She was also known
for writing about freedom in her time. She married Preze Morton and had 5 children with him. Her
family scandal* affected her literary career, emotional pain is a recurrent theme in her poetry and
seems to have motivated her creativity. Morton also wrote hymns and sonnets. Her subject matter
was both personal and public and often patriotic, celebrating the new nation, its ideals and its
leaders. During her lifetime, Sarah Wentworth Morton’s fame rested on her advocacy of freedom.

Family Scandal:
Sarah’s sister ‘Fanny’ had come to live with the Mortons in Boston. She had an affair with Preze
which came to light when she gave birth to an illegitimate child. Fanny told Preze to take care of the
child as he was the father of the child through the letters she left back. Later Fanny committed
suicide after the affair had come under the limelight. The affair apparently had no ill effect on Perez
Morton's career. He was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

Themes & Rhyme scheme:

Themes - Sarcasm, fake reverence, grandiose tone, bravery and poem of reunion.
Rhyme scheme - abab.

Questions
Q1 Comment on the following lines from the poem by Wentworth- (repeated question)
“Or rising to thy sovereign mind
Say that it reigns for me alone.”
Ans
 Sarah Wentworth Morton was a poet of the American Revolution. She spoke through
her long narrative poems about new nations, interracial relationships and heroism. Her family
scandal affected her literary career. In this poem she addresses her husband on how he cheated on
her and handles the matter with dignity instead of being overly emotional.
In these lines Sarah Wentworth speaks about the condition of married women through
her own life story. In the first line she talks about how she as a woman is supposed to rise to the
expectations of her husband but she can not have expectations of her own because she is a
woman.
In the second line she says that it was her fault that she trusted him and thought that
his mind reigned over her only. She indirectly addresses the plight of married women of that
era where extra-marital affairs were very common.

Q2 How is Sarah Wentworth’s poem different from any classical poem on love and
reunion? How does she problematise the conventional understanding of marital love?
Ans
Sarah Wentworth Morton was a poet of the American Revolution. She spoke through her
long narrative poems about new nations, interracial relationships and heroism. Her family
scandal affected her literary career. In this poem she addresses her husband on how he cheated on
her and handles the matter with dignity instead of being overly emotional.
Sarah Wentwoth’s poem is different from any classical poem on love and reunion in various
ways. One of the major characteristics of classical poetry is concentration i.e. focusing on one
topic but in Sarah’s poem she doesn’t focus only on one topic of love but she also talks about
relations, trust, cheating and condition of women or broken lovers. Another major
characteristic of classical poetry is passion balanced out with reasoning but in Sarah’s poem even
though emotions are not given priority a passion for the wronged is seen. She doesn’t lay down
reasons for how she feels, which happens in classical poems.
Classical poetry is also said to use colloquial language whereas the language in Sarah's
poem seems more formal and dignified as she doesn’t let her emotions get the better of her. Most of
the classical love poems are dedicated to someone and usually talks about the person but Sarah’s
poem even though made for her husband talks about her feelings and about him with another
woman, which is not expected in a poem about love & reunion.
She problematizes the conventional understanding of marital love through her poem
‘stanzas to a husband recently united’. The poem is based on her life and how she was reconciled
with her husband who had cheated on her. Conventional understanding of marital love suggests
that both the partners uphold the vows but in her poem she mentions that it was only her who
took the vows seriously and held them high whereas he (Perze) just drifted away.
She also talks about how after marriage women are supposed to rise to the expectations of
men but women aren’t allowed to have any expectations of their own. In the first paragraph she says
that it was her fault that she trusted him to only think about her (“say that it reigns for me alone”)
which is what is supposed to happen after marriage.
Through various phrases she talks about how here ‘granted wish’ was reduced to a transient
flame and how ‘love’ is disrupted by momentary beauty and affection.
The poem is especially different from any classical poem because it has been written
from a perspective of a woman who has been broken by the actions of her husband. The walls
and distance between them gave birth to this unconventional poem that lacks emotion. Her poetry
sounds more like a formal letter in which she very delicately lays out the plight of women in society.
Their statues and what they are expected to do for their husbands. Despite Sarah’s broken heart the
poem is full of stability and emotional distance that makes it clear how strong she is.

Characteristics of Classical poetry that this poem does not follow:

● Concentration- Focus on the topic. This poem has more than one topic (love, trust,
plight of women in society, extra-marital affairs)
● Passion balances out with reasoning- No emotion, but passion is evident for the
wronged. Does not state reasons.
● Colloquial language- This poem is written in a formal tone. Like an official letter.
● Dedicated to someone- Not dedicated to her husband, but about her feelings and
her husband being with another woman.

Q3 Comment on the following lines from the poem by Wentworth-

“Unlike the generous care that flows,
With all the rich affections give,
Unlike the mutual hope that knows
But for a dearer self to live.”
Ans
Sarah Wentworth Morton was a poet of the American Revolution. She spoke through her
long narrative poems about new nations, interracial relationships and heroism. Her family
scandal affected her literary career. In this poem she addresses her husband on how he cheated on
her and handles the matter with dignity instead of being overly emotional.
In this stanza she talks about how love is like a river of care that flows generously which
even money can’t buy. Rich affection is a transferred epithet, affection can’t be rich or poor, it's
the people who show affection who are rich and poor, in the second line Sarah is trying to say that
money (affection of the rich) cannot equate to love (generous river of care). With respect to the
poem she is telling her husband that even though you are rich you did not match my love and that
led to loss of mutual hope.
She says that he gave up all this (love, faith & trust) so that he could live with her sister
fanny. She tells him that mutual hope, faith and trust is lost, she no longer expects him to come
back to her. She is sad that he cheated on her with her sister but has no expectations from now on.
Sarah speaks about what marriage is made of. Which is trust, understanding, affection
and generosity. She gave him all of this and in one fleeting moment of lust and desire he lost
everything that they had between them by cheating on her with her own sister.

The Snows of Kilimanjaro

Ernest Hemingway
Brief Summary

The Snows of Kilimanjaro" is a short story about a writer lying on his deathbed, staring out at
Mount Kilimanjaro. It is set in Africa, with Harry and his lover, Helen, waiting for a rescue plane
to treat his recently contracted gangrene. Harry drifts in and out of consciousness, remembering
his past, and hallucinating his rescue, only to pass away in his daze.

The Snows of Kilimanjaro was first published in Esquire magazine in 1936 and later collected in
The Fifth Column and the First Forty-nine Stories (1938). The stream-of-consciousness narrative
relates the feelings of Harry, a novelist dying of gangrene poisoning while on an African safari.
Hemingway considered The Snows of Kilimanjaro his finest story.

Questions

1. What is the function of the flashback narrative used by Hemmingway?

‘Snows of Kilimanjaro’ is divided into six sections, within each appears a flashback
that serves to continually juxtapose the hopeless, harrowing present with the past,
which often seemed full of promise.
The whole experience of switching between past and past emphasizes thought,
perhaps because the protagonist can no longer avoid thinking.
Through the retrospective perspective, Harry, while coming to terms with his
eventual death, thinks of older, happier times and contemplates his actions. His
flashbacks are reflections on what he considered a fulfilling life; utilising his flair for writing
relentlessly and enjoying the process. However, it was when he met and engaged with
Helen, who’s riches were more than enough to sustain them both, that he fell out of his
practice. He regrets his inaction and spiral into laziness when confronted by the possibility
of an endlessly comfortable life.

2. Comment on the writing style and usage of the epigraph used by Hemmingway.
Hemingway’s writing follows the principle of the iceberg theory. It is simple, direct, and
unadorned, however it holds a lot more implied and underlying meaning and emotion under
the surface, that is to be interpreted and understood by the reader. Like an iceberg, not even
one-fourth of the content of the story is displayed in the open. He describes s scenes in perfect
clarity, never going overboard and writing just enough for the reader to understand the surface
events. His unflinchingly blunt style is extremely powerful in his descriptions of war and
heartbreak.
In striving to be as objective and honest as possible, Hemingway hit upon the device of
describing a series of actions by using short, simple sentences from which all comment or
emotional rhetoric has been eliminated. These sentences are composed largely of nouns and
verbs, have few adjectives and adverbs, and rely on repetition and rhythm for much of their
effect. The resulting terse, concentrated prose is concrete and unemotional yet is often
resonant and capable of conveying great irony through understatement. Hemingway’s use of
dialogue was similarly fresh, simple, and natural-sounding. The influence of this style was felt
worldwide wherever novels were written, particularly from the 1930s through the ’50s.
He utilises visual imagery in abundance, describing scenery exactly as it is, without
exaggeration. (For eg. “Behind the house were fields and behind the fields was the timber. A line
of lombardy poplars ran from the house to the dock. Other poplars ran along the point. A road
went up to the hills along the edge of the timber and along that road he picked blackberries.”)
He also utilises nature symbolism, especially with animals(the hyenas, vultures and
leopard). They are used to represent the protagonist’s impending sense of death and loss.

An Epigraph is used at the beginning of the story describing the snow-capped mountain,
mentioning that the name for its western summit is translated from the local Masai language as the
House of God. The epigraph may serve as a preface to the work; as a summary; as a
counter-example; or as a link from the work to a wider literary canon, with the purpose of either
inviting comparison or enlisting a conventional context.

The New Land

John Smith

Q1. How does John Smith foreground the American Quality of practicality?

John Smith is an English explorer who travelled to America in 1607 and was instrumental
in setting up the first colony in Jamestown, Virginia. Captain John Smith’s character is
especially marked by self-confidence and practicality. He keenly explains the reasons why
man must do everything in his power to be "well employed" and not "idle." He always
focused on the practical means of survival in the wilderness rather than on personal
privileges and status. His publications offered practical advice on seamanship and
colonization.

New Land by John Smith is a piece of practical advice with rhetorical landscape
descriptions that emphasized the riches and pleasures of the land. America is displayed
as the epitome of postcolonial thought. It was the age of reformation and restoration in
1600-1660 in Britain. The pioneering spirit of John Smith was admirable. While John
Smith seems very idealistic while saying that everyone here will live content lives (which is
propaganda), what enhances the effect is the practical undertones. He doesn't just say
everyone has to come, but smartly pays greater attention to those that have small wealth
and are young so that they can learn trades when they come to America. He thinks of a
practical system that will let the existing population take up apprentices and lead to a
win-win situation, and to make sure that those immigrating to America have settlements
and provisions to start their life in the land. He also discusses different job opportunities
suitable for a varied range of people, and while he preaches about a luxurious life, he also
mentions that it is only possible if they're not excessive. So, all that he discusses aren't just
from the point of view of ideas or theories but are practical and enforceable through laws
or regulations.
 John Smith had the spirit of a pioneer who believed in commodifying all that he had. The
new land he discovered was more than just land to him, it was an opportunity that could
turn many lives around. His advertisement of the land through territorial
aggrandisement mirrors the spirit of American marketing. Unlike many others, John
smith chose to do something to change the situation which he was placed in. Not being
allowed to practice religion wishfully, being deprived of money and morality, instead of
dwelling in his “bad faith”, he went in search of possibilities. He wanted to be self reliant.
No job was demeaned - carpenters, gardeners, tailors all were appreciated. His call was
mostly directed towards the young working class. He only wanted those people to come
who could work for themselves and not be dependent on anybody. “That he that will not
work, shall not eat.”

Smith contends that this new country is for everyone and requires only hard work on the
land or through fishing in the well-stocked seas where long hours and daily graft will be a
thing of the past and where people, with previously nothing to aspire to will live "exceeding
well." He uses this angle to persuade English people of "small means" that they will have no
problems with land ownership in America. Smith reflects on the desire of most men to
benefit from their own land, especially when it comes at "the hazard of his life" and
confirms that only good things can come from this new land and all in honor of England,
"Our native Mother Country."
● John Smith- British explorer who travelled to America in 1607. Set up the
first colony of Jamestown in Virginia. A man of practical character and
self-confidence.
● Practical means of survival- Practical advice on seamanship and
colonisation.
● Describes the land of America and the riches it can provide. Advertises it as
a land of opportunity.
● Targets the young and poor (small wealth) section of society in England in
his propaganda.
● Discusses a number of job opportunities suitable for a range of people.
● Luxurious life- but not if excessive.
● Everyone has to work, for only those who work can eat (he is practical)
● Commodification for the purpose of profit. He believed in commodification
of all that he had.
● The new land is for everyone who works.

Yankee Doodle
The Unofficial National Anthem of America

Summary
No one is sure where the song “Yankee Doodle” came from. Some claim the melody is English,
Irish, Dutch, or Hungarian, or even from New England, but the American verses are credited to
a British military doctor, Richard Schackburg. “Yankee Doodle” seems to have been written by a
Dr. Richard Schuckberg, during the French and Indian War. According to the story, Dr.
Schackburg wrote the first verses during the French and Indian War in 1755 when King George III
sent British soldiers to protect the American colonists. The song grew in popularity and was
sung by British soldiers poking fun at the American colonists they had been sent to protect. It was
a satiric look at New England’s Yankees. The song continued for many verses, several of them
scatological. With different verses, it soon became popular throughout the colonies. A broadside of
the 1770s has a version which became more or less standard. It is a country bumpkin’s reaction to
his first visit to an army camp. In 1775 a minuteman named Edward Bangs published another
version that might have been sung by a boy visiting the army besieging the British in Boston, after
George Washington took command of it. By this time it was obvious that anyone could write verses
for “Yankee Doodle.” On the march to Lexington and Concord, according to one story, the British
troops sang this stanza. The verse that the American soldiers liked best summed up Yankee
Doodle’s popularity. At Yorktown, when the British marched out to surrender, they marched with
their heads turned toward the French troops. They were trying to pretend the Americans did not
exist.The Marquis de Lafayette, the commander of the Light Infantry brigade, was outraged. He
ordered his band to play Yankee Doodle. With a blast of drums and a swirl of fifes, the musicians
hurled themselves into their favorite song. Every British head was jerked around, and they stared
into the faces of their former subjects.

Questions:

1. Highlight the context in which Yankee Doodle has to be discussed.

During the Revolutionary War era in America, settlers commonly walked around town singing
songs that celebrated the American colonies and poked fun at their British homeland. The song
Yankee Doodle is believed to have originated with British troops during the American Revolution
as a way to make fun of the colonists. This song has taken on many different versions over the years
to include an estimated 120 verses. However, according to the Library of Congress, Yankee Doodle
quickly became a form of prideful boasting after the colonists witnessed Great Britain's surrender
at Yorktown in 1781.
During the 18th century, a Yankee was a term used by the British to refer to the colonists who
served alongside their troops during the French and Indian War. According to the A Dictionary of
Americanisms on Historical Principles, by Mitford M. Mathews, the colonists were perceived as
disorganized and thus labeled a Yankee. A Doodle was also a way to refer to a 'fool,' or someone
extremely gullible.

Many of the British serving in the colonies believed the colonists were trying to be as cultured as
Europeans but were failing miserably. This can be seen in the first verse of the song. For example, in
the last line—“stuck a feather in his hat and called it macaroni” — “macaroni” was a term
describing men who went to extremes to appear sophisticated and stylish. The song was well
known in the colonies by April 19, 1775, when the Battles of Lexington and Concord occurred.
After the patriot colonists soundly defeated the British soldiers, it was often reported that they had
sung “Yankee Doodle” to mock the retreating redcoats.

By 1777 “Yankee Doodle” had become the unofficial national anthem of America. Its tune was easy
for soldiers to march to and during the American Revolution dozens of different verses were
written. It has been documented that the second verse of the song was written at the Battle of
Bunker Hill. Other verses praised General George Washington, described life in the army, or poked
fun at King George III. “Yankee Doodle” was played after the Americans defeated the British at
the Battle of Saratoga and again when General Cornwallis surrendered to General George
Washington after the Battle of Yorktown, the last major battle of the American Revolution

2. Comment on the function of humour in Yankee Doodle.

In hopes of mockery and intimidation, British soldiers marched through Boston singing ‘Yankee
Doodle’, with their own twist on the lyrics in opposition to the American troops. Many of the
British serving in the colonies believed the colonists were trying to be as cultured as Europeans but
were failing miserably. This can be seen in the first verse of the song. For example, in the last
line—“stuck a feather in his hat and called it macaroni” — “macaroni” was a term describing men
who went to extremes to appear sophisticated and stylish. It also refers to a popular hairstyle at the
time called ''a macaroni'', or men's wig. For example, the curly white hair style found in pictures of
Benjamin Franklin or George Washington were actually wigs men wore to signify their high social
status or power.

As the song continues, the lyrics in the original version talk about Yankee Doodle seeing the
colonist troops ''as thick as hasty pudding,'' meaning they were fat and out of shape, surely no
match for the British troops. There's also talk of Yankee Doodle essentially hiding behind his
fathers coat tails as a sign of weakness and fear.

"Yankee Doodle, came to town riding on a pony. He stuck a feather in his cap and called it
macaroni." Now the British were essentially using this to taunt the Americans for not being very
wealthy, not being very well dressed and, generally, criticizing their deportment. The key to this is
the last word, `macaroni.' Now we all know macaroni as an Italian dish, as a very tasty Italian dish,
in fact. But in this rhyme what the macaroni is referring to is an English youth cult from the 1760s
and '70s. [They wore] huge wigs, tight jackets, [and] winklepicker shoes. They stopped the streets
of London when they were walking around and they had a very strong influence on fashion. So
what this most popular version of "Yankee Doodle" is, in fact, doing--it is saying that you can't just
stick a feather in your hat and pass yourself off as a macaroni.

One of the many versions ran like this. It goes: "Yankee Doodle, keep it up. Yankee Doodle, dandy.
Mind the music and the step and with the girls be handy." And this particular version was sung by
predominantly the British as a reminder to our American friends that dance steps in Europe and in
America, the colonies as it was, were different. And it's a reminder to check you doing the steps
right and that you're holding the girl in the correct way. The last two lines of the stanza – 'There we
seen the men and boys/As thick as hasty pudding' – referred to a quick-recipe British dessert, 'hasty
pudding', which was popular around 1742. Seeing as the British were intent on insulting the
colonists, 'thick as hasty pudding' could also have very well implied that the New Englanders
weren't too bright.

3. What role do songs like Yankee Doodle have in invoking nationalism amongst the
people of a nation?
 4. Why did the American soldiers sing the song ‘Yankee Doodle’ which was intended
to insult them ?
In hopes of mockery and intimidation, British soldiers marched through Boston singing ‘Yankee
Doodle’, with their own twist on the lyrics in opposition to the American troops. They threatened
to “tar and feather” John Hancock, as well as the rest of the American troops. However, this
intimidation technique was not so frightening to the colonies, and instead motivated them to make
themselves the real Americans that the British had mocked them about. The term “American” was
not something to be ashamed of, but instead it was regarded as a disconnect from their British
counterparts, the freedom they saw prospectively.

Instead of completely changing the lyrics to degrade the British instead of themselves in the song,
they humored it and laughed at themselves in amusement of the simplicity that the British were
poking at. During the Revolution, a certain verse became popular, which told a story of the camp
of the Continental Army through the eyes of a farmer and his son (Visit to the Camp Version).

“And there was Captain Washington, With gentle folks about him, They say he’s gown so ‘tarnal
proud, He will not ride without them.” This mockery, instead of breaking the colonies apart as
originally intended, united the soldiers fighting for their land, perhaps even motivated them. In
preservation of the pride that America earned from such a win, Yankee Doodle carries much more
than just a tune.

By 1777 “Yankee Doodle” had become the unofficial national anthem of America. Its tune was easy
for soldiers to march to and during the American Revolution dozens of different verses were
written. It has been documented that the second verse of the song was written at the Battle of
Bunker Hill. Other verses praised General George Washington, described life in the army, or poked
fun at King George III. “Yankee Doodle” was played after the Americans defeated the British at
the Battle of Saratoga and again when General Cornwallis surrendered to General George
Washington after the Battle of Yorktown, the last major battle of the American Revolution

5. Comment on the significance of Yankee Doodle as a proud part of American

Revolutionary history.
6. Yankee Doodle is a quintessential American song. Analyse the statement.
During the Revolutionary War era in America, settlers commonly walked around town singing
songs that celebrated the American colonies and poked fun at their British homeland. The song
Yankee Doodle is believed to have originated with British troops during the American Revolution
as a way to make fun of the colonists. This song has taken on many different versions over the years
to include an estimated 120 verses. However, according to the Library of Congress, Yankee Doodle
quickly became a form of prideful boasting after the colonists witnessed Great Britain's surrender
at Yorktown in 1781.

By the 1770s a “Yankee” was another name for an American colonist while a “doodle” was Dutch for
a fool or simpleton. Many of the British serving in the colonies believed the colonists were trying to be
as cultured as Europeans but were failing miserably. This can be seen in the first verse of the song. For
example, in the last line—“stuck a feather in his hat and called it macaroni” — “macaroni” was a term
describing men who went to extremes to appear sophisticated and stylish. The song was well known
in the colonies by April 19, 1775, when the Battles of Lexington and Concord occurred. After the
patriot colonists soundly defeated the British soldiers, it was often reported that they had sung
“Yankee Doodle” to mock the retreating redcoats. By 1777 “Yankee Doodle” had become the
unofficial national anthem of America.

Its tune was easy for soldiers to march to and during the American Revolution dozens of different
verses were written. It has been documented that the second verse of the song was written at the Battle
of Bunker Hill. Other verses praised General George Washington, described life in the army, or poked
fun at King George III. “Yankee Doodle” was played after the Americans defeated the British at the
Battle of Saratoga and again when General Cornwallis surrendered to General George Washington
after the Battle of Yorktown, the last major battle of the American Revolution

Instead of completely changing the lyrics to degrade the British instead of themselves in the song, they
humored it and laughed at themselves in amusement of the simplicity that the British were poking at.
During the Revolution, a certain verse became popular, which told a story of the camp of the
Continental Army through the eyes of a farmer and his son (Visit to the Camp Version). “And there
was Captain Washington, With gentle folks about him, They say he’s gown so ‘tarnal proud, He will
not ride without them.” This mockery, instead of breaking the colonies apart as originally intended,
united the soldiers fighting for their land, perhaps even motivated them. In preservation of the pride
that America earned from such a win, Yankee Doodle carries much more than just a tune.

By 1777 “Yankee Doodle” had become the unofficial national anthem of America. Its tune was easy
for soldiers to march to and during the American Revolution dozens of different verses were written.
It has been documented that the second verse of the song was written at the Battle of Bunker Hill.
Other verses praised General George Washington, described life in the army, or poked fun at King
George III. “Yankee Doodle” was played after the Americans defeated the British at the Battle of
Saratoga and again when General Cornwallis surrendered to General George Washington after the
Battle of Yorktown, the last major battle of the American Revolution

Quick Notes:

● Yankee- Name for colonists who fought beside the british soldiers in the French
and Indian Wars
● Doodle- Dutch for fool or a gullible person
● The song was used by the British to make fun of the american soldiers who lacked
discipline and form.
● The term “macaroni” was used to poke fun at the American who the British
believed were trying to imitate the Europeans and appear cultured. The macaroni
refers to the wig seen in portraits of Benjamin Franklin and George Washington
that were worn to show their high status in society.
 ● “Thick as hasty pudding” was another way in which the Britich made fun of the
disorganised American troops by calling them fat (unfit) and thick in the head, or
stupid.
● “Yankee Doodle keep it up. Yankee doodle, dandy. Mind the music and the step and
with the girls be handy” - mocking them for copying the European steps, saying
mind your steps and make sure you are holding the girl right.
● Americans used it to laugh at themselves and take pride in who they were. The
song motivated them more than break them apart. It united them and made them
feel more patriotic.
● It was sung after the battles of Lexington and Concord when the Americans
defeated the British troops.
● Became increasingly popular and was sung like an unofficial national anthem by
1777.
● It was also sung in the final battle of the American Revolution in Yorktown when
general Cornwallis surrendered to general George Washington.

YOUNG GOODMAN BROWN

by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Summary:
This short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne features Goodman (which is an old-fashioned way of
saying mister) Brown who lives with his wife of three months, Faith in Salem village during the
time of the Puritans. He tells her that he must go on a journey, and he heads into the woods. Once
there, he meets a man who tries to persuade Goodman Brown to go with him, but Brown is
reluctant. The man says that he knew Brown's father and grandfather and helped them in wicked
ways. It soon becomes clear that the man Brown is talking to is the devil. Goodman wants to stay
true to his faith, referring to both his religious beliefs and his wife, which the devil finds amusing.
He tells Brown that many "good" people have come to his side. Then they notice a woman nearby,
and the devil goes to speak to her. Brown recognizes her as Goody Cloyse, an older woman who
taught him religious education. He is surprised that this woman appears to be friends with the devil
and seems to be implying that she is a witch. As Brown continues to protest going along with the
devil, the devil encourages him to sit and rest awhile. Brown sits and hides himself amongst the
foliage. Then two men come by on horseback. One was a deacon of the church, and they were
discussing a meeting that would take place that evening at which a young woman would be taken
into their group. Despite seeing religious men from town seemingly on the devil's side, Brown vows
not to be taken in.

Brown then wandered toward noises he heard deeper in the woods. He heard a woman's
screams, saw his wife, and found her pink hair ribbon fall onto a branch in front of him. He
declared that he had lost his faith, referring to both his wife and his convictions, so he decides to
cross over to the devil's side after all. He raced toward blazing trees where many villagers along with
Indians and others congregated in a sort of powwow. Goodman Brown came forward when called
by the devil and saw Faith standing before the altar as well. They looked at one another as the devil
was asking them to join his brood, and at the last moment, Goodman Brown looked up and told
Faith to resist the devil's invitation. He did not know what she did, but he found himself back at
home the next morning.

As he walked through town, he shrank away from the people he saw. When Faith ran up joyfully
to kiss him, he looked at her sadly and walked away without saying anything. He wondered if that
which he had witnessed in the forest had all been a dream. Whether a dream or not, that night
changed Goodman Brown into a depressed, distrustful man who lived out the rest of his life jaded
by what he saw, whether real or imagined.

Themes:
● Weakness of public morality
Young Goodman Brown decided to go into the forest and meet the devil, but still hides when he sees
Goody Cloyse and hears minister Deacon Gookin.
He is more afraid of what people will think if his faith is compromised rather than his own
decision of going to meet the devil.Young Goodman Brown’s beliefs are rooted in the belief that
others are also religious.
Such a faith, which depends more on other people than the self, is weak. When he discovers that his
father, grandfather, Goody Cloyse, minister, Deacon Gookin and Faith are all with the devil, he
figures he might as well do the same.Concludes everyone is evil, and the word “sin” has lost its
meaning.
● Inevitable loss of Innocence
Young Goodman Brown lost innocence because of inherent corruption- it was inevitable,
irregardless of whether the events in the forest were real, or a dream.
There was no outside force that corrupted Young Goodman Brown - he made a personal choice to
see the Devil.
Young Goodman Brown learns that even the purest outward appearance can hide underlying sin.
● Fear of Wilderness
Young Goodman Brown is afraid from the moment he steps into the forest. He sees it as a place
where no good is possible. Associates forest with wild Indians, sees one hiding behind every tree.
Forest is characterized as devilish, frightening and dark, Young Goodman Brown gets comfortable
there only after he has fully given into evil.
● Female Purity
Young Goodman Brown as he wonders whether to renounce religion and join the Devil, he swears
that he will hold on to Faith’s skirts after one night of evildoing.
Represents the idea that a man’s mother or wife will do religious activities and redeem the men.
Young Goodman Brown also says that as long as Faith remains holy, he can resist the Devil.
When he sees Faith at the ceremony, his idea of good and bad is challenged.
Back during those days, men relied on female purity to keep their own morality intact.
 Q. Analyse the elements of romanticism or dark romanticism as brought out through
young Goodman Brown?

Ans: Romanticism values beliefs and emotions as more important than any logic or fact. The
individual comes first, and often involves the worship of nature and believes in human
goodness. Dark romanticism on the other hand emphasises on human fallibility and sin. It is a
literary subgenre of Romanticism, reflecting popular fascination with the irrational and the
demonic. Dark romantics believe that, even good men and women drift towards sin and
self-destruction, and there can be unintended consequences that arise from well-intended social
reforms.
Hawthorne in 'Young Goodman Brown' never explicitly states what the group in the woods is
doing or for what reason, and he also never specifies if Goodman Brown’s nightmarish
experience is reality or just a dream. Goodman Brown himself does not know if his experiences are
real, but “it [is] a dream of evil omen” for him, and by the end of the story he is also unsure of his
belief in God.
Hawthorne’s writing primarily demonstrates characteristics of Dark Romanticism through its
denial of human perfectibility. Dark Romantics present individuals as prone to sin and
self-destruction.
Criticised on institutional religion, Goodman Brown recognizes the people in his community as
hypocritical. Goody Cloyse, someone who he thought “was going to Heaven”, is the first person he
discovers is familiar with the traveler, and she is followed soon after by the town’s minister and
deacon. In the forest, Goodman Brown finds a crowd of people “all of excellent repute” amidst the
sinful. Goodman Brown sees the “good” and evil people peacefully co-mingling and realizes there is
no difference between them. Those who have claimed to be good are only disguising their sins and
pretending to be devoted to the Christian religion, while the sinners make no attempts to hide their
faults.
Goodman Brown’s overnight journey leads him primarily through the woods on a path described
as “dreary,” “lonely,” and containing “all the gloomiest trees”. Here Goodman Brown imagines the
“devilish Indians” who could be lurking in every shadow and behind every tree, creating a feeling of
suspense and making the elder man’s appearance all the more startling. Goodman Brown later
refers to the forest as “heathen wilderness”, where no good Christian should go. His presence in
these unholy woods causes him to further doubt what he has believed as truth, and it seems as if
“Nature [is] laughing” at him. Here, Nature becomes an evil character, far from the virtuous and
nurturing character the Romantics believe it plays and joins with the townspeople to antagonize
Goodman Brown. He finds that “Evil is the nature of mankind” and everyone is sinful underneath
the surface.

Q. How does Hawthorne comment on Puritant hypocrisy?

The Puritan religion dictated that everyone on earth was either an evil sinner doomed to
burn in hell or a pure earthly saint destined for heaven. To avoid being perceived as anything
but wholly good, Goodman Brown (who, like his wife, Faith, is also “aptly named”) is obsessed
with the idea of veiling his own sinfulness. Goodman Brown’s paranoia as he navigates the
forest, dodging behind trees in terror of being outed as a sinner, is a reflection of the police
state-like environment of Puritan New England, in which merely being perceived as a sinner
could mean banishment or death.
Hawthorne sets “Young Goodman Brown” in the New England town of Salem, where the Puritans
tried to create a religious society with strict morals and pious norms, but also where the
infamous Witch Trials took place. The Puritans believed that some people are predestined by God
to go to heaven, and that those people are identifiable by their morality and piousness; people
cannot earn their way to heaven by performing good works, but if they are part of the elect, they
will instinctively and naturally do good. As a result, Puritan communities were profoundly focused
on the value and necessity of the appearance of goodness, believing that it was a reflection of inner
goodness and therefore a sign of one’s chance of heavenly redemption, and engaged in social
policing to determine what counts as “good.” Hawthorne uses the setting to explore the dark side
to the Puritan emphasis on the appearance of good.
At the beginning of the story, Goodman Brown believes wholeheartedly in these Puritan tenets,
despite the fact that he himself is at that moment lying to his wife, Faith, saying that he is on an
overnight business trip when in fact he is heading off into the forest out of curiosity to attend a
witch’s meeting. He believes in the perfect goodness of his wife who seems to radiate pureness, and
generally believes in the goodness of everyone else, too. In fact, he believes that after his dalliance in
the woods with the devil, he will be able to return home and live as a good man with his perfect
wife and go along with her to heaven. However, when he gets to the forest, in what may or may not
be a dream, he discovers that essentially the entire town, including Faith, whom he had thought to
be incapable of sin, are at this convocation, are “friends of the devil.” In horror, Goodman Brown
concludes that “There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name.” He concludes that everyone
is evil, that the word “sin” means nothing because everyone is sinful. When Goodman Brown
returns to the town, he is no longer the happy young newlywed he was when he left. He is bitter,
stern, and gloomy and mistrusts the “good” appearances of everyone around him, instead seeing sin
everywhere, hiding below that surface.
When looked at from a modern perspective, Goodman Brown’s revelation that everyone is sinful in
some way seems obvious: of course no one is perfectly good, as Brown imagined Faith and many
others to be. That’s just human nature. But it is here that Hawthorne levels his most profound
criticism of Puritanism. Goodman Brown believes that his experience or dream has forced him to
see through the lies of perfect goodness told by his religion. And so he abandons it. Yet the story
presents his actions not as a triumph but a tragedy, and Brown lives a life of suspicion, sadness,
anxiety, and gloom. The story, then, suggests that the true issue is Puritanism and its internal logic,
the way that it demands all goodness or none, perfect purity or eternally damned sin. Such a world,
the story suggests, is one at odds with the realities of being human, one in which no one who takes
it seriously can live a good life because it is impossible to live a perfect one.

Q. How does Goodman Brown lose his faith in religion?

“Young Goodman Brown” is the story of how a young “good” man named Goodman
Brown loses his innocent belief in religious faith. Goodman Brown’s loss of innocence
happens during a vivid nightmare in which he ventures into a dark forest and sees all of the people
he had considered faithful in his life gathered around a fire at a witches’ conversion ceremony with
the devil presiding from on high. By the end of his journey into the woods, Goodman Brown
learns that even the purest outward display of faith can mask underlying sin.
Goodman Brown’s wife, Faith, is the embodiment of faith and purity, even in her actual name.
Goodman Brown’s internal conflict is based on whether to “keep the faith.” At first the struggle is
literal: his wife begs him to remain at home and not head off into the woods; Goodman Brown’s
decision to leave behind Faith becomes a metaphor for his epiphany about religion, which he
similarly abandons at the end of the story. When Faith begs him not to leave her for the night,
Goodman Brown wonders if Faith has lost faith in him; he asks, wondering if she’s questioning his
fidelity, “dost thou doubt me already, and we but three months married?” Faith remains a symbol
of Goodman Brown’s religious faith throughout the story: when Goodman Brown first meets up
with the devil, the devil accuses him of being late, which Goodman Brown explains by saying
“Faith kept me back a while,” a play on words meant to refer literally to his wife Faith begging him
not to leave, and figuratively to his religious faith, which could have stopped him from meeting up
with the devil, but didn’t.
The pink ribbons that flow from Faith’s cap represent faith and purity; Hawthorne refers to them
five times throughout the story, each time at a pivotal moment when Goodman Brown is feeling
lost or troubled; the ribbons remind him of the purity of faith, but also of its shallowness. When
Goodman Brown sees Faith at the witches’ meeting, he realizes that the ribbons were merely a
superficial outward symbol, not proof of actual piety. When he screams out for Faith after hearing
her voice among the throng of heathens at the witches’ ceremony, a pink ribbon falls from the sky.
When Goodman Brown sees his wife participating in the witches’ meeting in the woods, he
simultaneously loses his Faith (his wife) and his faith (his religion). Whereas Faith once represented
perfection and the path to salvation, now Goodman Brown looks toward her, with the witches’ fire
reflecting in her eyes, and sees only a “polluted wretch.” He looks up into the black sky and cries,
"My Faith is gone!" The blissful newlywed bounding out from his happy home in the first scene has
become an “unhappy husband,” tragically stripped of Faith and his faith.

Q. Comment on the use of nature to bring out the supernatural eeriness in the story.
Hawthorne uses the forest to represent the wild fearful world of nature, which contrasts starkly
with the pious orderly town of Salem. The threshold Goodman Brown finds himself perched upon
in the opening lines of the story is not just between himself and his wife, Faith, but between the
safety of the town and the haunted realm of the forest into which he ventures. Home is a safe
harbor of faith, but the forest represents the home of evil and the devil himself, a place where “no
church had ever been gathered or solitary Christian prayed.”

When the devil tries to lure Goodman Brown deeper into the forest, Goodman Brown equates the
forest with a break from his faithful legacy. Going into the woods means descending into the arms
of the devil. He cries out “Too far! Too far!...My father never went into the woods on such an
errand.” Trees are symbols of sin, hiding spots for the devil and Indian “savages”: “[t]here may be a
devilish Indian behind every tree,” he worries aloud. The devil might leap out “from behind a tree”
at any moment, he fears. When Goodman Brown meets the man, who we later learn is the devil,
the devil himself is seated on an “old tree.”
Once he relents and journeys far in the “deep dusk” of the forest, Goodman Brown finds that
nature and the supernatural begin to blend. The woods take on a life of their own: when he first
sees the devil’s snake-shaped staff, it’s not just a piece of carved wood, but a terrifying serpent that
“might almost be seen to twist and wriggle itself.” A bit later, when the devil explodes in laughter
mocking Goodman Brown, the “snake-like staff actually seemed to wriggle in sympathy.”
In the encounter with Goody Cloyse, a catechism teacher turned witch, Goodman Brown watches
in horror as the devil throws her his serpent-shaped staff, causing it to “assume life” and vanish with
her instantly into the darkness of the forest. When Goodman Brown cries out in desperation for
Faith after hearing her voice in the witches’ congregation, her pink ribbon magically falls from the
sky. At this point, the woods are no longer just a gathering of scary trees, but a haunted sanctuary
of sin. When Goodman Brown sees his church leaders in the forest en route to the witches’
meeting, he asks in horror, “Whither, then, could these holy men be journeying so deep into the
heathen wilderness?” Like the sinners within it, the wilderness itself has become a heathen.
After the witches’ ceremony, as Goodman Brown reels in terror at his loss of faith, the
personification of the forest and nature deepens. Now entirety of nature mocks Goodman Brown:
“The whole forest was peopled with frightful sounds--the creaking of the trees, the howling of wild
beasts, and the yell of Indians...as if all Nature were laughing him to scorn.” Natural phenomena
also bookend the story: it starts with the sun setting, and ends with the sun rising. Goodman
Brown’s experience is one of darkness literally--nearly the entire story takes place at night--and
darkness figuratively, with Goodman Brown moving from the angelic light of his blissful newlywed
life with Faith and her pink ribbons, to the dark hell of the forest and a rendezvous with the “prince
of darkness” himself.

Q. Discuss Young Goodman Brown' as everyman. How do you understand the innate
nature of man?

Ans: In "Young Goodman Brown," Hawthorne tells the story of one man’s loss of faith in the
human race. As Goodman Brown travels into the woods one night, he sees the innermost secrets
and desires of the people he once placed upon a pedestal. He sees that humans are evil by nature,
and this causes him to lose faith in his fellow man. By viewing the story as an allegory, the journey
into the woods is associated with the Puritan concept of justification. The Puritans viewed
justification, or the means by which one receives the salvation of Christ, as a psychological journey
into the "hell (or evil) of the self" (Soler). Goodman Brown fails to complete his process of
individuation because he cannot come to terms with the dual Apollonian and Dionysian nature of
his being.
The Puritans believed that to be justified, one must let go of his worldly dependence and strive to
live a life free of sin, making the story an allegory “in its treatment of the nature and consequences
of the Puritan belief in the total depravity of man”

I Become A Transparent Eyeball

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Crossing a bare common, in snow puddles, at twilight, under a clouded sky,

without having in my thoughts any occurrence of special good fortune, I have
enjoyed a perfect exhilaration.
I am glad to the brink of fear.
In the woods, too, a man casts off his years, as the snake his slough,
and at what period soever of life is always a child.
In the woods is perpetual youth.
Within these plantations of God, a decorum and sanctity reign,
a perennial festival is dressed,
and the guest sees not how he should tire of them in a thousand years.
In the wood, we return to reason and faith.
There I feel that nothing can befall me in life, -
no disgrace, no calamity (leaving me my eyes), which nature cannot repair.
Standing on the bare ground,-
my head bathed by the blithe air and uplifted into infinite space,-
all mean egotism vanishes.

I become a transparent eyeball;

I am nothing;
I see all;
the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me;
I am part or parcel of God.

The name of the nearest friend sounds then foreign and accidental:
to be brothers, to be acquaintances, master or servant,
is then a trifle and a disturbance.
I am the lover of uncontained and immortal beauty.
In the wilderness, I find something more dear and connate than in streets or villages.
In the tranquil landscape, and especially in the distant line of the horizon,
man beholds somewhat as beautiful as his own nature.

1 – soever: whatsoever 2 – decorum: dignity 3 – blithe: a happy, light-hearted feeling 4 –

connate: congenial; agreeing in nature
Q. Explain the subtlety of transcendentalism as brought out in the title used by Emerson.
OR
Q. Discuss the significance of the title used by Emerson.

'I Become A Transparent Eyeball' first appeared in Ralph Waldo Emerson's essay Nature. Emerson
has painted a picture and metaphorically explained how people should perceive the wilderness not
as a place for monetary gain, but as a place for emotional gain; that is, solely being in nature for
the sake of being there. The transparent eyeball is conventionally viewed as a spectacular metaphor
representing this message.
Transcendentalism is an American literary, philosophical, religious, and political movement of the
early nineteenth century, centered around Ralph Waldo Emerson. He viewed transcendence to be
more dynamic, to move not just from the material to the spiritual, but back and forth between
the two by using an eye as a metaphor. Metaphorically, he’s saying that he’s an eye: meaning he can
see and observe all the things around him, but he’s transparent in the sense that he’s just visiting the
wilderness. He’s not a permanent residence of the wilderness, but he’s something that can be seen
right through because he’ll only be there for a short time.
Emerson is trying to remove the sense of duality by portraying his vision of nature, that is, the eye
one sees with, the eye as a representative part of the body and mind that does the seeing, the eye
that mediates the relation between natural and spiritual particles, so as to bring forth
transcendentalism to life. He uses the ‘transparent eyeball’ as not just a free-floating entity, but as
a necessary link between the observer and the landscape surrounding him or her.
The transparent eyeball is a representation of an eye that is absorbent rather than reflective, and
therefore takes in all that nature has to offer. Emerson intends that the individual become one with
nature, and the transparent eyeball is a tool to do that. In the process of transcending, we all
become the transparent eyeball when everything goes through us but we are detached, we remain
untouched.

● Transcendentalism- An idealistic system of thought based on a belief in the

essential unity of all creation, the innate goodness of humanity, and the supremacy
of insight over logic and experience for the revelation of the deepest truths.
● Transcendence- Existing or experiencing beyond the physical.
● “I become a transparent eyeball, I am nothing” In the process of experiencing
nature he has been reduced to a mere observer through which he transcends his
physical self to experience the universe outside, before which he becomes nothing.
● “I see all”, to see everything he had to become nothing. By becoming a transparent
eyeball he experiences everything beyond what his senses can perceive.
● “The currents of the Universal being circulate through me, I am a part or parcel of
God”, he has become the universal being himself by surrendering his physical self
 to nature. By allowing himself to become a transparent eyeball he has begun to not
only see all (like the universal being) but become a part of it as well.
● In these lines particularly Emmerson brings out the concept of transcendentalism
and how nature facilities it.

Q. Elucidate the human - nature relationship expressed by Emerson.

OR
Q. How does Emerson conceptualize nature and individuality?

'I Became A Transparent Eyeball' first appeared in Ralph Waldo Emerson's essay Nature. Emerson
has painted a picture and metaphorically explained how people should perceive the wilderness not
as a place for monetary gain, but as a place for emotional gain; that is, solely being in nature for
the sake of being there. The transparent eyeball is conventionally viewed as a spectacular metaphor
representing this message.

To Emerson, the natural world is better than his own, offering mankind all the life and inspiration
that is absent from society. Emerson paints a vivid picture of nature and man’s important
connection to it. Emerson convinces his readers that the relationship between man and nature is
sacred, comforting, and vital for survival. Nature is thereby a metaphor of the mind, as an
eyeball is to transcendentalism.
Emotionally, Emerson relates to his readers through the feelings that nature can inspire. Nature
expresses Emerson's belief that each individual must develop a personal understanding of the
universe
become a transparent eyeball. "I am nothing. I see all.” - this quote means that he himself does not
take nature for granted. He sees all the beauty, importance, and significance in nature. Nature is so
important to him he feels as if he is nothing but an eyeball that looks upon the beauty of nature.
Emerson intends that the individual become one with nature, and the transparent eyeball is a tool
to do that.

In order to experience awe in the presence of nature, we need to approach it with a balance
between our inner and our outer senses. Nature so approached is a part of man, and even when
bleak and stormy is capable of elevating his mood. All aspects of nature correspond to some state
of mind. Nature offers perpetual youth and joy, and counteracts whatever misfortune befalls
an individual. The visionary man may lose himself in it, may become a receptive "transparent
eyeball" through which the "Universal Being" transmits itself into his consciousness and makes him
sense his oneness with God. In nature, which is also a part of God, man finds qualities parallel to
his own. There is a special relationship, a sympathy, between man and nature. But by itself, nature
does not provide the pleasure that comes of perceiving this relationship. Such satisfaction is a
product of a particular harmony between man's inner processes and the outer world. The way we
react to nature depends upon our state of mind in approaching it.
 ● “In the wilderness, I find something more dear and connate than in streets or
villages.” society can not provide him with what nature does. It is something
deeper and something more meaningful that he experiences when he is in nature.
No street or village can give him this kind of comfort and sacred experience.
● “In the tranquil landscape, and especially in the distant line of the horizon, man
beholds somewhat as beautiful as his own nature.” man is a part of nature, we find
ourself in nature and through nature we experience God for it turns us into a
transparent eyeball that helps us experience the “currents of the universal being”.

Even A Pencil Has Fear To

E. E. Cummings
even a pencil has fear to
do the posed body luckily made
a pen is dreadfully afraid
of her of this of the smile's two
eyes….too, since the world's but
a piece of eminent fragility.
Well and when-Does susceptibility
imply perspicuity,or?
shut
up.
Seeing
seeing her is not
to something or to nothing as much as
being by her seen, which has got
nothing on something as i think

,did you ever hear a jazz

Band?

or unnoise men don't make soup who drink.

E. E. Cummings

Q. Comment on the theme of Fragility as brought out by Cummings in 'Even A Pencil

Has Fear To'.
The poetry of E.E. Cummings is immediately and obviously more unconventional than that of
most poetry. 'Even A Pencil Has Fear To' is one such piece of poetry that lacks punctuation, rebels
against the rules of capitalization, even experiments with spacing between words - all of which serve
to lend E. E. Cummings's poetry to be of experimental and destructive quality.
In this poem, a bold comparison is made between a pencil and a pen, thereby, bringing forth a
juxtaposition between fragility (the state of being broken or damaged) and permanence (the state
or quality of lasting or remaining unchanged indefinitely).
Normally a pen is thought of being bolder than a pencil, because an impression of a pencil can be
erased, but an impression of a pen cannot be erased, making it appear as if it will last forever ; but in
actuality it isn't, once you write something down using a pen or a pencil it is dead and is
meaningless. Cummings brings forth the essence of fragility by disrupting the idea of
permanence - he writes on how a pencil has a fear to be permanent while a pen fears the same but
alas, the world is eminently fragile, a pencil can break, so can a pen, nothing lasts forever,
permanence doesn't exist, only fragility makes up the world we live in.