English Literature

The title seems irrelevant, if judged on the surface. It is because the owl is neither a character in the poem nor related to the basic theme of the poem, which is the necessity of �food, fire and rest�. However, the title is symbolically significant. In the poem, the owl stands for the poet�s conscience and the owl�s cry symbolizes the poet�s inner voice. The owl�s cry brings a dramatic twist in the poem. It throws focus on the heart-rending suffering of soldiers and the poor through the poet�s feelings for them. The owl�s cry reveals the humanitarian trait of the poet�s character. It also helps establish the fact that the human conscience is a great teacher. So undeniably the title of the poem �The Owl� is apt and relevant to the core.     Click here for more English literature study notes 

Jerome K. Jerome the author of � Packing � claims to be an expert and efficient packer. He boasts, �Packing is one of those many things that I feel I know more about than any other person living.� A close reading of the story proves him to be a worse packer. The author finds the boots outside after he has packed and strapped the bag. He opens the bag and packs the boots in. A �horrible idea� invades him the moment he is about to close the bag. He turns everything out of the bag to check if he has packed his toothbrush. After searching the bag with a fine-toothed comb, he finds the toothbrush inside a book. The he repacks the bag only to find that he has packed his tobacco pouch in it. Then he has to re-open the bag and repacks it once again. Such a careless manner of packing the bag bears evidence to the fact that the author is an inefficient packer.   Click here for more English literature study notes      

Que. How many metres were mainly used by Chaucer in his works? Ans. 1. He used the 8 syllabic line rhyming in couplets-called Ottava Rhyma- as in The Book Of The Duchess.           2. He Used 10 syllabic line rhyming in Couplets called the Heroic Couplet , which reached such perfection in the hands of Pope, can be seen in The Prologue and The Canterbury Tales.           3. The ten-syllabic line arranged in stanzas of seven lines each-called Rhyma Royal -as uused in Troilus and Cressyde.

Next to the author Jerome K. Jerome , George and Harris is Montmorency, a funny character in the story � Packing � taken from �Three Men in a Boat� . Adding to the intensity of fun in the story are the amusing activities of Montmorency. Montmorency is a very ambitious dog. Meddling with the affairs of others and being sworn at is his chief ambition in life. He aims to be a perfect nuisance by driving people mad. When things are thrown at him head, he feels that he has made the most of his day. He wants others to stumble over him and rebuke him steadily for an hour. Even when George and Harris are packing the hampers, Montmorency makes a mess of things by putting his leg into the jam, worrying teaspoons, and spoiling the lemons. He is the dog born with the original sin in him, according to the author Jerome K. Jerome.     Click here for more English literature study notes    

By the early 20th century , progressive modernism came to dominate the art scene in Europe to the extent that conservative modernism fell into disrepute and was derided as an art form. It is well to remember that for most of the 20th century, we have fostered a narrow view of the modernist period, one in which progressive modernism has received almost exclusive attention while conservative modernism has been largely ignored. Conservative modernists, though, the so-called academic painters of the 19th and early 20th centuries, believed they were doing their part to improve the world. In contrast to the progressive modernists, conservative modernists presented images that contained or reflected good conservative moral values, or served as examples of virtuous behaviour, or offered inspiring Christian sentiment. Generally, conservative modernists selected subject matter that showed examples of righteous conduct and noble sacrifice that was intended to serve as a model which all good citiz