AD's English Literature

In the third period of  Shakespearean world  (1600-1608), tragedy predominates. Starting with  Julius Cacsar  (1601) he raises to greater heights in the celebrated ‘The four Great Tragedies – Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth and King Lear . The structure of  Julius Caesar  is unusual. It looks like two tragedies in one, first Ceasar’s and then Brutus’s. It is also a revenge tragedy when  Antony  becomes the avenger. For the playwright the shift from English history in the recently completed  Henry V  to roman history released a new confidence.     Hamlet ,   Probably  written in 1601,  is a tragedy of revenge. Hamlet is generally considered the foremost tragedy in English drama. Numerous commentaries have been written analyzing every aspect of the play, and interpretation of Hamlet’s character and motivation continue to be subjects of considerable interest.  It is so because the figure of Hamlet has ...

“We are free to infer that, on the last day of the fast, Raju, "Swami” dies opportunely, a martyr.” – Discuss. Some are born saints, some achieve sanctity, and some have sanctity thrust upon them. Perhaps, Raju is one of these last! –Discuss. Sketch of the  Character of – Raju in R. K. Narayan's The Guide. Introduction In his last three novels,  Mr. Sampath (1948) The Financial Expert (1952) Waiting for the Mahatma (1955) , R. K. Narayan has been trying – like a stonemason laboring to make a goddess come out of a stone – to make a good man, a godly man, grow out of a man of the earth. Raju in  The Guide  (1958)  is doubtless half knave half fool, and he remains such when he allows himself to be mistaken for a Swami, a spiritual Guide, by the simple people of Mangala. But some days after he is trapped into commencing his fast, change gradually comes over him: “For the first time in his life he was making an earnest effort, for the first time he was learning t...

Introduction:  "Age of Prose Reason" The 18 th century viewed as a whole has a distinctive character. It is definitely the Age of understanding, the age of enlightenment, where a literature which had become pellucid (clear) began to diffuse knowledge among the growing public. The supremacy of reason was unchallenged – there reigned a general belief in the advancement of human mind. This flourishing of enlightened idea and the escalation of reason and logical thought found its best articulation through the triumph of English prose in the 18 th century . As such, the 18 th century has often been designated as "Age of Prose Reason." This era, also known as the Enlightenment, was characterized by a remarkable shift in intellectual thought and a renewed emphasis on reason, logic, and empirical evidence. During this period, prominent philosophers, writers, and thinkers championed the power of rationality and sought to advance human knowledge through scientific inquiry ...

The Victorian Age: A Rapid Transition Hugh Walker commended the Victorian age as ‘the age of property, balance and order’ in "The Literature of the Victorian Era", and few would question the validity of this statement. The Victorian reign had given England political peace and this was conducive to social progress. After a penetrating study of the state of men’s mind would reveal the painful feeling of doubt, conflict and dissatisfaction that seethed beneath the veneer of ‘democracy’ and ‘prosperity’. Indeed the spate of social reform may have been only a consequence of such dissatisfaction. Today British Historian  Arnold Joseph Toynbee ’s phrase for the Victorian Age 'an age of conflict and doubt’- has attained the status of a final statement. In fact, the Victorian Age, spanning from 1837 to 1901, was a period of profound transformation and transition in various aspects of British society. It was also a period of resilience in the face of these challenges. Throughout t...

Busy old fool, unruly sun, Why dost thou thus Through windows and through curtains call on us? Must to thy notions lover’s season run? Ans:- The lines bear the personification of ‘sun’.                In a personification …………..         Here ‘sun’ which is inanimate thing is given the attribution of living being. It is evident in the use of the adjectives – ‘old’, ‘busy’ and ‘unruly’, and also in the us of the verb ‘call’. Thus it is clear case of personification.           The first line has a metaphor .              In a metaphor……………  Here ‘sun’ and ‘fool’ are compared to each other. As a court jesture is ‘busy’ purposelessly, ‘old’ of age and ‘unruly’ in behavior, the sun also by shining on the ‘lovers, behaves like a fool. The comparison is implicitly drawn here.  ...

“ No woman should ever be quite accurate about her age. It looks so calculating. ” The Farce of The Importance of Being Earnest: A Source of Controversy and Criticism “The play, though extremely funny, was essentially hateful", observed George Bernard Shaw ( My Memories of Oscar Wilde ) , and a possible reason for his aversion is its farcical nature. The Importance of Being Earnest  ,  A Trivial Comedy for Serious People (1895)  is ostensibly a farce, that poor cousin of true comedy which may have had its provenance in Aristophanes and the subsequent Roman comedy, but which never found a secure play in the respectable comic genre. The Evolution of Farce: Oscar Wilde's Unique Blend of Comedy and Farce The farce is notorious for its lack of plausible plot, its mechanical actions, and its puppet - like characterization and finally its general lack of intensity. It is only Oscar Wilde and Pinero who, among the English play wrights made a serious attempt at farce, being a...