English Literature

Kolkata tops the list of Indian cities known for their festive ambience on 31 st December; the last day of the year. The celebration of the day to ring out the old and ring in the new is full of thrills and spills in the city of Kolkata . Kolkata a cosmopolitan city metropolis cheers in the evening and chills out the night on 31 st December with so much gusto as if there is no tomorrow.  The entirety of Kolkata soaks in the joyous spirit of 31 st December. The jovial celebration of the day as ceremonious festivity has become one with the identity of Kolkatans, irrespective of their caste, religion and language. Nicco Park, Millennium Park, City Center, South City, Nandan, Nalban, Park Street, and Esplanade are the places across the cityscape where the joyous mode runs high on 31 st December. Very few people stay indoors resisting the attraction of joy and pleasure outside. I too go out. On 31 st December evening this year, I went out to visit the New Market area and Park Stre...

The scenario of commercial industries such as media, IT, hospitality and likes is highly competitive. The adage �Strike the iron when it is hot� is one of the key secrets to survival in the current dog-eat-dog world. Media is no exception. Sensationalism is the new-age success recipe in the field of print and digital journalism . Both digital media and print media are neck-and-neck in competition for a lion�s share of the market. Print newspapers are engaged in a rat race for increasing their own circulation. Advertisement is the chief source of revenue for a print media house. A newspaper needs to extend its circulation in order to get more advertisements. Evidently, print media sensationalize news and serve it as a spicy dish for the readers to feed on.  Digital media is steps ahead of print media when it comes to practicing sensationalism. Television news channels or digital media companies are racing against each other at a break-neck speed for higher TRP. Sensationalism is th...

�Pen is mightier than sword�. It is an age-old maxim. The significance of the maxim is immense and undeniable. Pen is a symbol of creation, while sword symbolizes destruction. Pen is a source of creative activities whereas sword is a means of destructivity. Sword proves to be as mighty as pen when it is used for a good cause. Sword can be used in a rebellion against autocracy and a movement against iniquity. The purpose of using sword may be humanitarian, but it causes violence and bloodshed.        Mahatma Gandhi who is regarded as the father of nation in India had taken up pen to write in protest against the exploitation of Black Africans during the Apartheid era. He started writing articles for newspapers and journals to mobilize public opinion in support of his crusade against social injustices as well as political iniquities. Thus, pen is a powerful tool of journalism.    One�s literary activity finds a concrete expression in words thro...

Both the characters the Bishop and the convict are integral and relevant to the plot of the play � The Bishop�s Candlesticks �. Appearance of the convict moves the play towards its climax. The Bishop�s humane values and virtues are revealed through his treatment of the convict. The Bishop�s kindness, generosity, hospitality and nobility are mostly reflected in his attitude towards the convict. The moral issue of this play is expressed through the transformation of the convict by the Bishop. Hence, the characters � the Bishop and the convict do not weigh more or less than each other in the play � The Bishop�s Candlesticks �.       

� The Hero � is a bold attempt by Siegfried Sassoon , one of the most famous war poets, to tear off the mask from the face of war. The poem expresses the hypocrisy hidden behind the glory of war. War is a game of bloodshed. Many innocent lives are lost in the bloody game. There is nothing glorious about it. Many youths are forced to join the warfare and thus, they are driven to untimely death against their wish. The painful death of a soldier is glorified as the death of a martyr. The people sitting back at ease in their homes think and speak highly of soldiers and their death in the battlefield.  The poem � The Hero � gives us the real picture of how some cold-footed soldiers die being blown into countless pieces. In the poem, Jack lacks the bravery of a true soldier. Afraid of the cruelty of warfare, Jack makes a lame excuse to go back home from the trench. When he passes through the trench, a mine explodes and blows him into bits. Jack meets an unpleasant death which is glorif...

The poem The Hero reflects Siegfried Sassoon �s satirical attitude to war. The poet is not critical of warfare but the hypocrisy that surrounds war. Some soldiers like Jack are not brave enough to fight and face death in war. They meet an untimely and unpleasant death. Their death is, then, glorified as a heroic one, and they are honored as martyrs. In the poem � The Hero � itself, Brother Officer speaks highly of Jack on the one hand and thinks of him as a �cold-footed, useless swine� on the other hand. Besides, mothers whose sons die painfully not courageously feel proud of their sons. The poet rightly bears a critical attitude to the practice of attributing martyrdom to coward soldiers.                    Click here for more English literature study notes

Solitary Reaper is one of the finest Lyrical Ballads composed by Wordsworth. As Wordsworth   always longed for human beauty that is surrounded by some natural objects, here in the poem he paints a girl singing spontaneously in  Gaelic, a  Celtic   language, spoken in the Highlands of Scotland.  The Poem has a message that poetry should not rely on artificial diction for it's effort. Rather It should be written with plain language and simple form so that each class can appreciate it's objective. The poem is a beauty in this regard. He wrote this poem in a rustic setting as real music can be sought in a pure natural setting. A maiden singing song while reaping with full- throat-ed -ease attracts poet's attention. Her song is melodious enough to make the Nature sing with her. As the poet writes.........      " O listen! for the vale profound        Is overflowing with the sound." The poet goes on saying that nothing can be c...