cousin outstretches his helping hands towards him. Mali’s decision of leaving the school tremors Jagan.
But he was G.C.E. O/L Examination
not dare enough to ask it from his son and cousin finds the information that Mali’s intention of going abroad. Jagan
couldn’t accept it as he loves his son a lot, but Mali leaves to America to learn literature. Mali spends three years in
America and sends regular letters to his father. Jagan was really proud of his son and became outspoken about Mali
and the grandeur of America every time. Mali came back after three years with his spouse Grace. Jagan was really
shocked as Mali introduces Grace as his wife to him. Jagan began to lead an isolated life from his family members
as well as from the society. He reduces the price of his sweets and tries to find a mental reassurance with the help
of unknown bearded man. The story ends up informing the incarceration of Mali as he got an alcoholic drink in his
car.
Jagan is the centralized character in the novel. He is a prosperous widower, he has made only superficial
preparations for old age and a different mode of life. He has renounced salt, sugar, and rice—staples in an Indian
diet—but he has not yet conquered the self. His austerity is contradicted by his monetary greed. After he piously
reads Hindu scripture, he carefully counts out his daily profits (won by some dishonest practices) and then secures
the money in a drawer with a strong-lock. A former political activist, he is now given to eccentric ideas about diets
and nature cures. Therefore a careful reader can see a duel-facedness in his character. But his love towards his son
is found everywhere in the novel. As he is quite a traditional character, the intention of him and his son are collides.
He believes in a calm and a slow but a steady journey.
On the contrary of Jagan, Mali is a fast forward character. He needs to earn a big money quickly. He refuses to
adhere with traditional occupations such as vending sweets etc. He seems to be addicted to the technology and he
tries to convince his father about the importance of technology as well. He is detached from his father while Jagan
clings in to his son. He just sent a quick note when he goes to America. He seems to be a rigid character as well. He
merely leaves Grace after he got the maximum usage of her money. Hence, we can consider him as an opportunist
as well. He never understands that his fast moving journey will ended up in a tragedy. But, the reader finds a silver
line in the black cloud as well. That is his love towards his mother. He dedicated his playful time to look after his
sick mother. He got an intention that Jagan ignored the necessities of his mother. This would be the reason for his
hate against his father.
Hence, when we analyze the characters of Jagan and Mali, it is clear that the reason for the conflict between them
is the inability of understanding each other. Jagan was unable to understand the feelings of the youth and the
younger one refuses the traditions as well. Therefore, the generational gap is the reason for their incomprehension.
046 – Appreciation of English Literary Texts
Prototype Structured Essays
Drama –
01. Twilight of a Crane –
Money has become the arbitrator of the life now. Therefore people chase money madly and the human values have
been degraded. This phenomenon is broadly discussed in great Japanese dramatist Yu Zuwa Junji Kinoshita’s works.
Kinoshita was a leading playwright in the post war Japan. He translated and introduced the Shakespearean drama to
the Japanese stage. Most of his works has been censored by the Japanese government because of the political aspects
delivered in them. He is widely regarded among the Japanese spectators as a folk playwright too.
The drama Twilight of a Crane is derived from a Japanese folklore. One day, Yohyo, a poor but kind farmer, helps a
crane struggling for the life who had been shot with an arrow by a villager. Later, a woman names Tsu comes to visit
Yohyo and tells him that she wants to marry him, and so they becomes a husband and a wife. Tsu weaves beautiful
textiles. Yohyo makes some money by selling it and they lead calm and a beautiful life. But Tsu never allows him to
look into the room when she is weaving. Sodo and Unzu, money-hungry people, tempt Yohyo to ask for Tsu to make
more textiles. Tsu refuses it as Yohyo promised earlier not to request ‘Senba Ori’ further more. As Yohyo threatens to
leave her if she doesn’t weave any clothes, she decided to weave her final clothes sadly. When Tsu complies, they and
Yohyo finally break Yohyo’s promise and look into the secret room. It turns out that Tsu is a crane and she has been
weaving the textiles by using her own feathers. When Tsu realizes Yohyo broke his promise, she changes herself back
into a crane and flies away.
Yohyo is presented as an innocent and uncorrupted farmer at the very beginning of the drama. When the spectator
first meets Yohyo, he was idling by the fireside. It shows that Yohyo spends a satisfied and a leisurely life. The couple
has a good relationship with the neighbouring children. Yohyo is awakened by the children and agrees to play on the
snow covered field. Yohyo’s kindheartedness and uncorrupted childishness is revealed as he agrees to do so. But as
he steps out to the field, he remembers the soup of Tsu and returns to boil it back.
“Cold soup is no good for my sweetheart” Yohyo’s caring and the affection towards Tsu is shown very clearly here. He
bothers the wellness of his wife every time. Yohyo’s little world is a self-sufficient one. He has everything he needs
around him. Everything went wrong with the entrance of two evil characters named as Sodo and Unzu. These money
hungry people tempted Yohyo to urge his wife to weave more clothes to earn more money. They were able to entice
Yohyo by exaggerating the beauty of Kyoto. The desire of Yohyo to go to Kyoto further shows his childishness. Yohyo’s
transformation is presented as a common human infirmity. When Tsu agrees to weave another piece of Senba Ori,
Yohyo is gleeful like a child. Hence, the spectator can find that Yohyo’s eyes are now blind with the film of the money
mindedness. When Sodo shouts that there is a crane inside the weaving room, Yohyo peeps into the room forgetting
the pledge. He is maddened as he didn’t find Tsu inside the room and runs out to the chilling field searching Tsu in
vain. When Tsu reveals that she leaves him as the pledge between the couple is broken, Yohyo collapses inwardly and
implored to wait. But Tsu leaves him and flies away proving the spectator that the happiness doesn’t depend on
money.
Tsu is a hen crane who lives with Yohyo in the shape of a woman. The whole character of Tsu is presented as an
uncorrupted and a spiritual one. Her world is built upon and revolves around her husband and the neighbouring little
ones. She is a down to earth character. She leads a happy and a satisfied life with Yohyo. Her necessities are limited.
Therefore her life is simple and happy. Her kindheartedness, love, care and affection towards her husband is noted
throughout her character. Children love her companionship because of her genuineness. Her instinct of identifying
the danger is revealed when she tries to prevent Yohyo from speaking with the strangers. She is ready to make any
dedication for the pleasure of her husband. When Yohyo was tempted by the evils and urged her to weave another
piece of cloth, She felt as if a splinter transfixed through her heart. She couldn’t bear up the transformation of
Yohyo. She soliloquizes her agony and weeps… “Oh! What could I do…? What should I do…?” Yohyo’s request made
her crazy. Though it is painful both physically and mentally, she decided to weave another piece of Senba Ori. It
shows out her enormous love and the intimacy towards Yohyo. But as her secret is discovered by her husband he
decided to leave him. Here the peremptory pledge between them has been broken. Therefore, Tsu had no other
options and she left him.
Sodo and Unzu represent the evil and the corrupted general folk. They brought the destruction to the calm and
harmonious life of Tsu and Yohyo. Unzu cheated Yohyo earlier and earned a big profit. Sodo seemed to be the worst
among the worse. His diction is rude and crude. “You crazy hoot-owl” “Quiet stupid fool” “You stupid nit-wit” He
peeped into the weaving room of Tsu by force and ruined the whole life of Yohyo.
Junji Kinoshita, being a Marxist in his political view, shows out effectively the adverse effects of capitalism. If it is
said in more simple words, he highlights how the money ruins the happiness of the life. A careful spectator will be
able to understand the astonishing and the bare truth depicts through this folk-play.
2. The Bear –
Human mind is quite a variable and an unpredictable one. The great Russian short story writer and the playwright
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov brings out this phenomenon in most of his writings. He uses irony as the major device in
his short stories and plays. “The Cherry Orchard, The Marriage Proposal, The Seagull, Uncle Vanya and The Bear”
are few of his noteworthy stage plays. Chekhov takes pre-revolutionary Russian society as the setting of his works.
The hypocrisy and the foolishness of the landowners are subjected to the irony of Chekhov every time. Chekhovian
writings have been translated into many languages and prescribed in school, high school and university syllabuses
all over the world.
The drama ‘The Bear’ is produced in the Russian language and first staged in 1888. Here, Anton Chekhov takes a
landowning young widow as the female protagonist of the story. She was mourning looking at a photograph of
Nicolai Mihailovitch who was the late husband of her. She vowed to herself to remain faithful until her death and
not to go out of her concealed room. Meanwhile Luka, the aged footman of Popova advices her to enjoy herself as
she is still young. His words evokes humour and reveals the uncorrupted bosom of him. Meanwhile Sminorv,
another landowner and a former lieutenant of the army comes to see Popova. Though she refuses to see him, he
breaks in to the drawing room of her demanding his money borrowed by her husband. Popova politely asks him for
two days to pay it back as her financial manager is gone out and she was in a “state of mind” prevents her from
money matters as it is the exact day on which her husband died seven months ago. It loses his temper as he is in an
urgency of money. Both Popova and Sminorv have a warm argument but are unable to come into a conclusion.
Sminorv sits on a chair and promises that he will wait there for any hours till he receives money. He shouts time to
time to Luka and orders to bring water, alcohol etc. Popova comes back and requests Sminorv to not to shout as
this is not a stable. The argument between them became into a quarrel when Sminorv begins to humiliate the whole
womankind. Popova too blames Sminorv and it tempted him to challenge her for a duel. Popova accepts the
challenge at once and shows her happiness to shoot him. While she is gone out to bring the firearms, Sminorv’s
feelings undergone for a change. Luka implores from Sminorv to leave the premises without harming his mistress.
But Sminorv simply ignores it and Luka runs out seeking help from the rest of the servants. Sminorv’s feelings
changed abruptly, and he begins to praise the bravery of Popova. When she comes back with the firearms, Sminorv
is completely fallen in love with her. As she comes with pistols he kneels before her and reveals his love. Popova is
astonished and angry for a moment. She orders Sminorv to get out of her eyesight. But simultaneously she asks
him not to go out. Sminorv realizes her ambivalence and embraces her. When Luka comes with the helpers, he finds
the couple kissing each other.
Popova, the young widow is first presented to the spectator as a virtuous character. She wails for her lost husband
and promises that she would keep the rest of her life true to the name of him. She seems to be somewhat extremist
as she clings in to her intention thoroughly. Whenever Luka asks her to go out and enjoy her life, she refuses it
merely. She denies to meet Sminorv first, but he came into the drawing room of her by force. Popova is a brave
character. She even doesn’t care Sminorv though he is a noble character. She blames him using rude words. “You
are a rude, ill-bred man” When Sminorv accuses that the womankind is so fickle and not constant, she is able to
scatter his logic by taking her own husband as an example. She reveals that she was in solitary even before the
death of her husband. He was a malicious character who deceived Popova in every step. “He wasted my money and
made fun of my feelings” She found a drawerful of love letters sent by his concubines. She accepts the challenge of
Sminorv to make a duel without any hesitate. Though Sminorv is a former soldier and she has never used a firearm
before, she challenges Sminorv to “make a hole in his forehead.” When Sminorv reveals his love, Popova is shocked.
But inwardly she was yearning for a warmth of a love, the tenderness of an affection. Therefore, though she shows
off an anger, her bosom cries for Sminorv’s love. When Sminorv goes at the door, she shouts “No, no don’t go” But
when he comes nearer, her congenital femininity refuses him. Truly, she is in an ambivalence. When Sminorv
embraces her, her feelings spilled off and she tends to him. It has happened due to her loneliness. Therefore the
spectator feels a great sympathy towards her.
Sminorv is a retired lieutenant of the army and a landowner. He comes in seeking his money borrowed by Popova’s
husband. Naturally as a landowner and a soldier, Sminorv is a rough and a rigid character. He shouts each and every
one in an aggressive tone. “I’ll chop you into pieces” once he shouts at Luka. He is presented as a misogynist at the
beginning of the drama. He humiliates the whole womankind using rough words such as “common crocodile, softer
sex…” The language used by Sminorv throughout the drama is witty and ironic. “…there lives a mysterious Tamara
who dedicated her life for her husband” Finally he was fascinated with the bravery of Popova and begins to love
her. It comes up to the climax when he makes a marriage proposal to Popova and she too tends to him.
Luka is the aged footman of Popova. He is a matured and an experienced old man. He loves and advices Popova as
a father. His behavior evokes humour. He once kneel down in front of a hypocritical man requesting the life of his
mistress. Therefore Luka could be taken as a loyal servant.
Hence, Anton Chekhov discusses the aspect of contemporary Russia. The rich, landowning community is subjected
to his irony. He describes Popova and Sminorv as common weak human characters. The changing qualities of their
minds are highlighted effectively.
3. The Vendor of Sweets
R.K. Narayan was a leading writer who brought the Indian literature to the world. His ironic writing style marks the
unique position of him among the great world writers. Narayan uses fictitious city called Malgudi as the setting of
all of his novels. This imaginative city represents the whole Indian society just after the liberation from the British
crown. “Swami and the Friends, The Painter of Signs, The Talkative Man, The Bachelor of Arts, The Guide” are some
of his award winning novels.
The novel The Vendor of Sweets revolves around a conventional character named as Jagan. He is a sweetmeat
vendor in profession. His wife Ambika died gifting him a son ‘Mali’. Jagan and Mali lives in their old ancestral home
until Mali decides to leave the school and become a writer. Jagan has a good companion who is called as cousin by
everyone. He is the regular listener of Jagan and his lifelong companion as well. Whenever Jagan faces a problem,