Skip to main content

"THE SUPERANNUATED MAN" by CHARLES LAMB---The Feeling of Charles Lamb Before and After His Retirement

"It is now six and thirty years since I took my seat at the desk in Mincing-lane. For the first day or two I felt stunned, overwhelmed. I could only apprehend my felicity; I was too confused to taste it sincerely. I wandered about, thinking I was happy, and knowing that I was not."--- The Superannuated Man

Charles Lamb in “The Superannuated Man” has given the profound emotional and psychological changes that accompany retirement-- an account of his feeling before and after his retirement. Lamb served as a clerk at the East India House for long thirty-six years and then retired. Lamb’s life as a clerk was tedious and boring. Despite its mundanity, provided a sense of purpose and routine. He describes his pre-retirement life as a "comfortable prison," where the familiar tasks and social interactions offered a comforting sense of stability. He, however, had a respite from work on a Sunday every week.

Charles Lamb
But according to him Sundays were quite unsuitable for true relaxation and enjoyment. Sundays being the days of worship and religious meditation, offered little scope for enjoyment. Read More Romantic Period The atmosphere was shrouded in gloom and somberness. Hence it was not congenial to proper recreation. Besides, Sunday being a day of complete abstention from all works there was no noise and bustle in any street. Besides Sundays, there were also holidays. Read More Essay But these also proved useless. Planning and preparation for enjoyment of these holidays took up so much time that only a very short period was left out for actual pleasure. 

The drudgery of the office was soul killing and it told on his health. Read More Essay In the latter part of his professional life constant anxiety and painful nights troubled him greatly. He was oppressed with a fear that his mental powers were declining and he was afraid that he made some serious mistakes in handling the figures in the account books kept by him. Read More Romantic Period His perpetual worries would be read by everyday on his countenance and indeed his health was fast breaking down. When lying on bed at night he was mentally working out the very figures dealt with by him during the day. He was always apprehensive of some incorrect entry in the accounts. Thus he was depressed by the lifeless work at the clerk’s desk.
Read More Essay Then Lamb retired from service. The sudden change from slavery to complete freedom threw his mind completely out of balance. He felt very uneasy. He did not know how to adjust himself to this new situation. Read More Romantic Period He compares his condition to that of a prisoner of Bastille, who has suddenly obtained his freedom after forty years of prison life. He felt that he had suddenly passed from kingdom of time to the Kingdom of Eternity. The fact that all time was left to him and he could enjoy it at his own sweet will produce the impression that he was dwelling in the world of Eternity. He had so much time at his disposal now that he did not understand what to do with it. Read More Essay But when the first shock of bewilderment subsided, he took a sober view of his new blessings and advantage. He regulated his life, so as to make a rational use of his time. He set apart specific portions of his time for specific enjoyment.

He could work aimlessly at his sweet will. He could go to a church; he could visit a sick friend. He had, as though, infinite time at his disposal. He led the life of a Retired Leisure.

ARDHENDU DE

Labels

Labels:

Comments

  1. Blogger AnoopFebruary 11, 2012 at 12:51 PM

    Hi,
    Its anup here....
    I just want to thank you sir....

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ardhendu DeFebruary 18, 2012 at 10:41 PM

    Thanks Anup for your worthy words.

    ReplyDelete
  3. akash dasOctober 5, 2015 at 12:00 AM

    hello sir,, your notes usually help me a lot in my study. thank you

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ardhendu DeNovember 2, 2015 at 9:40 PM

    Thanks everybody for commenting here.... keep updated by following @ FB or G+

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Drop any query, suggestion or comment here.

Other Fat Writing

Popular posts from this blog

Dr. West’s New Method of Teaching English :Its Merits and Demerits

                 D r. Michael Philip West (1888–1973) conducted an extensive research and experiments on the problems of teaching English as a foreign language in India at the time of British rule . Read More Teaching English The new method is the outcome of his research. It stood as a reaction against the Direct Method. Going into more details, when Dr. West came to visit rural Bengal students (1913- 19) en route teaching job at Teachers’ Training College  at Dhaka, West's conclusions about English learning issues in Bengal, India were as follows: 👉Students spent about 10 hours a week on English study with extremely poor results. 👉Only a minority reached the Matriculation class due to health or financial reasons. Read More  Teaching English 👉Even in the Matriculation class, students lacked real reading ability, speaking fluency, and writing proficiency in English. 👉A 1919 Calcutta University...
6 comments
Read more

Kinds of Poetry: Narrative, Lyric, and Dramatic

Introduction: Poetry is a form of literary expression that has captivated readers and listeners for centuries. It allows poets to convey their thoughts, emotions, and experiences in a condensed and artistic manner. While there are countless poetic forms and styles, poetry can be broadly categorized into three main kinds: Narrative, Lyric, and Dramatic. Each of these kinds has distinct characteristics, purposes, and examples that showcase the rich diversity within the world of poetry. Kinds of poetry :  There are three great kinds of poetic writing: Narrative, Lyric, and Dramatic. Narrative poetry: Narrative poetry tells a story with a plot, characters, and a setting. It  is one of the oldest and most straightforward forms of poetry. It tells a story, often in a chronological sequence, using poetic devices to create a vivid and engaging narrative. Some key points about narrative poetry include: Storytelling: Narrative poetry focuses on storytelling, using poetic language to c...
1 comment
Read more

Dr. Samuel Johnson's "Preface to Shakespeare": Points to Remember

E ighteenth-century writer Samuel Johnson ((1709-1784) is one of the most significant figures in English literature. His fame is due in part to a widely read biography of him, written by his friend James Boswell and published in 1791. Although probably best known for compiling his celebrated dictionary, Johnson was an extremely prolific writer who worked in a variety of fields and forms. Chief Critical Approaches of Dr. Johnson are: Johnson tried teaching and later organized a school in Lichfield. His educational ventures were not successful, however, although one of his students, David Garrick, later famous as an actor, became a lifelong friend.
40 comments
Read more