Ashadodiya's assignment: March 2016

“Ode on a Grecian urn” is a poem written by the English romantic poet John Keats in May 1819 and published anonymously in January 1820, number 15 Issus of the magazine Annals of the fine arts. The poem is one of several “Great odes of 1819” which include “ode to a Indolence”, “ode to a Melancholy”,“ Ode to Psyche”, “Ode to a Nightingale” Keats found earlier forms of poetry unsatisfactory for his purpose, and the collection represented a new development of the ode form.

Ode to a Nightingale

Ode to a Psyche

Ode to a Autumn

Ode to a Nightingale is a poem by John Keats written in May 1819 in their the garden of the Spaniards Inn, hump stead, London, or according to kea’s friend Charles Arbitrage Brown, under a plum tree in the garden of kea’s house, also in Hampstead. “Ode to a Nightingale” is a personal poem that describes kea’s journey in to the state of negative capability.

Ode to a Nightingale:

“Ode to a Nightingale” is the longest of the 1819 odes with 8 stanza containing 10 lines each. The poem begins by describing the state of the poet, using negative statements to intensify the description of the poet’s physical state such as “numb less pains” and not through envy of thy happy lot.

While the ode is written “to a Nightingale” the emphasis of the first line is placed upon the narrator rather than the bird, and Helen vender suggests that the negation of the reader as a party in the discourse happens just as the song of the nightingale becomes the “Voice of Pure self expression”.

In the third stanza, the poet asks the nightingale to “Fade Far away”, casting it off just as the narrator in “Ode to Indolence” rejects the love, ambition, and poesy and the poet in “Ode on a Grecian Urn” banishes the figures on the urn to silence.

In the fourth stanza, the poet sates that he will fly to the nightingale rather than it to him, moving upon the “wings of poesy”, which leaves Walter Jackson bate to believe that while the poet intends to identify with the bird by describing the real identification in the narrative exists between the poet and his perceptions of the nightingale’s song. In its closing, the poem questions whether the bird’s song has been real or part of a dream.

“Was it a vision, or a waking dream?

Fled that music:-do I wake or sleep?”

And the theme of imagination once again arises as the poet appears, according to timothy Hilton, unable to distinguish between his own artistic imagination and the song which he believes to have it in to action.

The nightingale described within the poem experiences a type of death but does not actually die. Instead the songbird is capable of living through its song which is a fate that humans cannot expect. The contrast between the immortal nightingale and mortal man, sitting in his garden, is made all the more acute by an effort, of the imagination.

The presence of weather is noticeable in the poem, as spring came early in 1819, bringing nightingales all over the heath.

Many critics favor “ode to a Nightingale” for its themes but some believe that it is structurally flawed because the poem sometimes strays from its main idea. the exact date of “Ode to a Nightingale” as well as “Ode on Melancholy” and “Ode on a Grecian Urn”, is unknown, as kea’s dated all as May 1819. However, he worked on the four poems together and there is a unity in both their stanza forms and their themes.

The extorter the poems were written in also unknown, but they from a sequence within their structures. While keat’s was writing “Ode on a Grecian Urn” and other poems, Brown transcribed copies of the poems and submitted then to Richard Woodhouse. During this time, Benjamin Haydon, keat’s friend, was given a copy of “Ode to a Nightingale”, and he shared the poem with the editor of the annals of the fine arts, James Elmes. Elmes paid keat’s a small sum of money, and the poem published in the July issue.

Ode to Psyche:-

Amor and psyche, sculpted in marble during the late 18th century. “Ode to psyche” is a poem by John Keats written in spring 1819. The poem is the first of his 1819 odes, which include “Ode on a Grecian urn” and“Ode to a Nightingale”.

“Ode to psyche” is an experiment in the genre, and keat’s attempt at an expanded version of the sonnet format that describes a dramatic scene. The poem serves as an important departure from keat’s early poems, which frequently describe an escape into the pleasant realms of one’s imagination. Keat’s uses the imagination to show the narrator’s inter to resurrect psyche and reincarnate himself into Eros.

Keat’s attempts this by dedicating “Untraded region” of his mind to the worship of the neglected goddess. “Ode to Psyche”, keat’s 67 line ode, was the first of his major odes of 1819.although keat’s spent time considering the language of the poem, the choice of wording and phrasing is below that found within his late works, including Hyperion or the odes followed. “ode to psyche” is important because it is keat’s first attempt at an altered sonnet from that would include longer more lines and would end with a message or truth.

Also, he did not want the poem to be based simply around that message, so he incorporated narrative elements, such as plot and characters, along with a preface to the poem of these additions, the use of a preface was discontinued in his next odes along with the removal of details that describe setting within the poems; they would only be implied within the poems; they would only be implied within thawing with burden core on theme of life.

Autumn has been personofiedand compared to women farmer sitting carefree or the granary floor; and corn on its head.

Ode to Autumn:-

"To Autumn" describes, in its three stanzas, three different aspects of the season: its fruitfulness, its labour and its ultimate decline. Through the stanzas there is a progression from early autumn to mid autumn and then to the heralding of winter. Parallel to this, the poem depicts the day turning from morning to afternoon and into dusk.

The first stanza of the poem represents Autumn as involved with the promotion of natural processes, growth and ultimate maturation, two forces in opposition in nature, but together creating the impression that the season will not end. In this stanza the fruits are still ripening and the buds still opening in the warm weather. Stuart Sperry says that Keats emphasizes the tactile sense here, suggested by the imagery of growth and gentle motion: swelling, bending and plumping

The image of a goddess portrays creativity and shows Keats awe at the power of nature. "Half reaped..." this emphasizes the languid atmosphere of the stanza. Keats refers to flowers in line 18; this is odd as one wouldn't normally associate with autumn. This is something that is maintained throughout the poem; Keats breaks the stereotypical or clichéd picture of spring and brings in a new suggestion that in fact autumn is far more romantic and important.

Keats portrays autumn as the beautiful goddess suggesting a close link with nature. The image of a goddess portrays creativity and shows Keats awe at the power of nature. "Half reaped..." this emphasizes the languid atmosphere of the stanza. Keats refers to flowers in line 18; this is odd as one wouldn't normally associate with autumn.

Conclusion

In conclusion, John Keats, as a member of the Romantic Movement, viewed nature in a positive light. This is demonstrated throughout the poem by a number of positive metaphors and similes for nature. The most obvious metaphor being that of the goddess in stanza two who enjoys the changing season to such an extent it is compared to being under the influence of opium.

However this positivity is not carried into the last stanza as Keats also views autumn as a time of decay as well as fruition. Keats writes that "small gnats mourn", while gnats only represent an almost insignificant aspect of nature, they could be said to represent much of nature which dies in autumn.

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Wednesday, 30 March 2016

Themes in Oliver Twist

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S. B. Gardi DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

M.K.BHAVNAGAR University

Written by:- Dodiya Asha B

Course No:-06

Email Id :- ashadodiya15@gmail.com

Enrollment no :- PG15101012

Topic:- Themes in Oliver Twist

Introduction:

Charles Dickens Oliver Twist is a novel written by Charles Dickens. This is his second novel. He was born on 7 February 1812 at England (Ham and died at just the age of 58 on 9 June 1870 at England . He was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the best characters for his fiction and that is why he is known as the greatest novelist of the Victorian period. He is best known for his humor, satire, and keen observation of character and society. His main focus was on society’s evil things like criminality, orphan houses, work houses, money, class discrimination, poverty etc.

Here are his some notable works:

1. The Pickwick Papers

2. Oliver Twist

3. A Christmas Carol

4. David Copperfield

5. Bleak House

6. Hard Times

7. Little Dorati

8 . A Tale of Two Cities

9 . Great Expectation

Plot ‘O Overview of Oliver Twist:

“Oliver Twist” In best example of the Victorian age because this novel reflects this era very well. As above mentioned, that during this time the number of prostitutes was increasing and that is why with this orphan houses were also increasing. The story starts with the birth of the hero of the novel Oliver Twist. Soon after giving birth to Oliver, his mother dies. She gave birth to Oliver in a workhouse named ‘Parish Workhouse’. Then the doctor comes and noticed that she has not worn any wedding ring. So, here the identity of Oliver is sealed.

When he reaches to London he meets a boy of his age named Jack Dawkins. He promises him to give shelter and will provide enough food and then he takes him to Fagin and the gang. It turns out that Fagin is a career criminal who trains orphan boys to pick pockets for him. After a few days of training, Oliver is sent on a pickpocket.

Then Mr. Brownlow and Mayfly they both reunited for Oliver and then it is revealed by Mayfly that Monks is half-brother of Oliver and Rose is the younger sister of Oliver’s mother Agnes Fleming means Rose was the aunt of Oliver. Oliver’s father, Mr. Ledford, was unhappily married to a wealthy woman and had an affair with Oliver’s mother, Agnes Fleming. Monks has been pursuing Oliver all along in the hopes of ensuring that his half-brother is deprived of his share of the family inheritance.

Society & Class:

The major theme of this novel is society and class. This theme is the central theme in all most all Dickens’ novels. In this novel Dickens shows how the Society is careless about the orphan children. He also shows that how the upper class is superior and the carelessness for the lower class.

Through this passage it is clear that this is situation of Oliver’s birth time. At this point many questions comes in our mind that who is he, he could be anybody, belonging from any class but Charles portrait his character as a parish boy and just after his mother died, means he is now an orphan child. It shows how superficial class distinction is.

Identity:

The second major theme which I found one of the main themes is ‘The theme of Identity’. Here we can also connect the second incidence of Oliver’s life that how Oliver’s name is thrust on him almost arbitrarily by Mr. Bumble. And if we think all the other minor characters of this novel that all the orphan children. They don’t know where their parents are, or even who their parents are. This novel is all about mistaken identities, changed names etc.

"What’s your name, you hardened scoundrel?" thundered Mr. Fang. "Officer, what’s his name?"

"He says his name’s Tom White, your worship," said this kind-hearted thief-taker.

This situation comes when Oliver was presented in the court, because people think that he was picking the pocket of Mr. Brownlow, but we know the truth as a reader. More with the names here’s yet another random person making up names for Oliver. He was the lawyer of the court in which Oliver was presented.

Criminality:

During 1830s, when Dickens’ was writing crime was one of the major problem in society. He depicts criminality of London very well in this novel. He shows that it was the needs of poor people to live their life they have to steal something for their livelihood. It was the need of those poor people to survive. He also wanted to show how external influences created criminal behavior as much or more than natural criminal urges.

"What a fine thing capital punishment is! Dead men never repent; dead men never bring awkward stories to light. The prospect of the gallows, too, makes them hardy and bold. Ah, it’s a fine thing for the trade! Five of them strung up in a row, and none left to play booty or turn white-livered."

These are the lines spoken by Fagin, who is depicted as a villain or we can say the master who taught pick pocketing to the orphan children. We can say that here he is the criminal.

Poverty:

Poverty was another one of the major problem of society during those days. Of Course this theme is related with the theme of ‘Society & Class’. With ‘Oliver Twist’ he doesn’t shy away from depicting the conditions of the poor people in all their misery with gritty realism. Dickens is also very concerned in showing just how miserable the lower classes really were.

In this passage it is clearly written that the poor people were paid less though they work hard. And that is why the poor people become or remain poor and the rich people become or remain poor always.

Religion:

Organized, institutionalized religion – especially the Church of England – is shown by Dickens in this novel. Dickens himself was Anglican but he felt like the Church was too impersonal and institutionalized and didn’t do enough to take care of the poor and miserable folks who turned to the Church for help.

"I hope you say your prayers every night," said another gentleman in a gruff voice, "and pray for the people who feed you, and take care of you, like a Christian."

In the direct way but indirectly many times religion is mentioned. For example, in the movie of this novel it was shown that in the workhouse on the wall everywhere it was written that `God is Good’ and ‘God is everywhere’. So that people don’t even think of rebel or of committing suicide.

Literature & Writing:

We can say that this theme is represented by Dickens in an indirect way. Literature and writing is theme in which the writer takes a pause to comment on any situation in the novel or on any character. Dickens uses this theme or technique very well in this novel. Though he is able to tell his story and his name he never allowed for speaking. Or we can also say that reference of books is also one of the meanings of this theme.

"There are a good many books, are there not, my boy?" said Mr. Brownlow.

"A great number, sir,"

“ replied Oliver; "

“I never saw so many."

"You shall read them if you behave well," said the old gentleman kindly; "and you will like that, better than looking at the outsides,– that is, in some cases, because there are books of which the backs and covers are by far the best parts.

Oliver considered a little while, and at last said he should think it would be much better thing to be a bookseller.
So, it is clear from this dialogue between Oliver and Mr. Brownlow that Mr. Brownlow is asking about books to Oliver. We can expect what the answer must be from an orphan child who never gets such type of good behavior from anyone in the society. It also shows the importance of the literature in our life.

Contrasting Regions:

The words itself shows that combination of two opposite things at a time. This theme of contrasting region is very well explored by Dickens in his this novel. The city London is the best example of this. Once Oliver was at a village and then again at London. His life is shown as a pendulum swing between the urban life and city life. When we think of urban life innocence come in our mind and when we think of city cruelty comes in our mind. These all things are shown by Dickens very well.

In this whole passage the word ‘labyrinth’ is most important. Dickens has used this word intensely here. The meaning of this is ‘low’, ‘dark’, and ‘narrow’. Means a place where you once entered then there is no way for return or for escape. By using this word Dickens creates a tension in readers mind that there are possibilities that may be now Oliver will choose the wrong path means Fagin and the gang.

Fate & Free Will:

Here again we can see the combination of two opposite things. For some characters dickens has created that space so that they can follow their free will and for some characters he has not even gave space so that they can follow their free will. Here fate plays vital role, destination as well as the city in which they live, their social class, and the system of justice and religion. Some characters gave up against fate.

In this passage Dickens gave some space to Oliver to choose between good and evil. It is the time for Oliver of realization to choose which path. To be bad or good is now in the hands of Oliver himself. Means here the free will of Oliver may work. But the characters like Nancy they never allowed by the author to follow their free will.

Conclusion:

‘Oliver Twist’ is one of the best novels of Victorian time. We will find many Victorian characteristics of this time depicted by Charles Dickens. These are the based themes of this novel. There are many other themes also which is shown by Dickens very well. The themes like Good vs. Evil also can be one of the major themes of this novel because here in this novel Dickens has given the touch of morality. The failure of Society is also one of the main themes of this novel

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Tradition and Individual Talent

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S. B. Gardi DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

M.K.BHAVNAGAR University

Written by:- Dodiya Asha B

Course No:-07

Email Id :- ashadodiya15@gmail.com

Enrolment no :- PG15101012

Topic:- Tradition and Individual Talent

Introduction

T.S.Eliot’s “Tradition and Individual Talent” was published in 1919 in The Egoist - the Times Literary supplement. . Later, the essay was published in The Sacred Wood: Essays on Poetry and Criticism in 1920/2. This essay is described by David Lodge as the most celebrated critical essay in the English of the 20th century. The essay is divided into three main sections:

1 the first gives us Eliot’s concept of tradition;

2 the second exemplifies his theory of depersonalization and poetry. And in

3 the third part he concludes the debate by saying that the poet’s sense of tradition and the impersonality of poetry are complementary things.

At the outset of the essay, Eliot asserts that the word ‘tradition’ is not a very favourable term with the English who generally utilize the same as a term of censure. The English do not possess an orientation towards criticism as the

“Tradition and Individual Talent:-

Thomas Stearns Eliot was an American-born English poet, playwright, and literary critic, arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Eliot was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1948. His most famous work is “The Waste Land.” On one level this highly complex poem describes cultural and spiritual crisis.

"The point of view which I am struggling to attack is perhaps related to the metaphysical theory of the substantial unity of the soul: for my meaning is, that the poet has, not a 'personality' to express, but a particular medium, which is only a medium and not a personality, in which impressions and experiences combine in peculiar and unexpected ways."

Poetry

Plays

Nonfiction:-

“Tradition and Individual Talent (1920)”

The sacred wood: Essays on poetry and criticism

A choice of Kipling’s verse ( 1941)

The Frontiers of criticism (1956)

Eliot is most often known for his poetry, he also contributed to the field of literary theory. In this dual role, he acted as poet- critic, comparable to Sir Philip Sidney and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. “Tradition and Individual Talent” is one of the more well known works that Elion produced in his critic capacity. It formulates Eliot’s influential conception of the relationship between the poet and the literary tradition which precedes him.

T.S. Eliot’s “Tradition and Individual Talent” was published in 1919 in The Egoist- the Times Literary supplement. Later, the essay was published in “The Sacred Wood: Essays on poetry and criticism in 1920. This essay is described by David Lodge as the English of the twentieth century. The essay is divided into three main sections:-

his theory of depersonalization and poetry.

The third part he concludes the debate by saying that the poet’s sense of poetry are The first gives us Eliot’s concept of tradition

The Second exemplifies complementary things.

Eliot asserts that the word “tradition’’ is not a very favorable term with the English, who generally utilize the same as a term of censure. The English do not possess an orientation towards Criticism as the French do; they praise a poet for those aspects of the work that are individualistic.

1 :- tradition can not be inherited, and involves a great deal of labor and erudition

2 :- it involves the historical sense which involves apperception not only of the pastiness of the past, but also of its present.

3 :- the Historical sense enables a writer to write not only with his own generation in mind, but with a feeling that the whole of the literature from Homer down to the literature of his own country farms a continuous literary tradition.

As claimed by Chris Baldick that Eliot had created an inverted literary history in which history being second to the permanent quality of literature, is read jousted to accommodate it to literature. Therefore, Eliot’s conception of history is a dynami9c and not static; and is forever in a state of flux.

Eliot’s concept of tradition:-

Ø In English criticism ‘Tradition’ is used as a phrase of censure.

Ø Criticism is indispensable creative activity.

Ø The importance of Tradition to Individual Talent.

Eliot presents his Eliot presents his conception of tradition and the definition of the poet and poetry in relation to it. He wishes to correct for the fact that, as he perceives it, "in English writing we seldom speak of tradition, though we occasionally apply its name in deploring its absence Eliot says that the Englishmen have a tendency to insist, when they praise a poet, upon those aspects of his work in which he least resembles any one else. In these aspects of his work they try to find out what is individual, what is the peculiar essence of that man. They try to find out the difference of the poet with his contemporaries and predecessors. They try to find out something that can be separated in order to be enjoyed.

Historical Sense/ “the historical sense involves a perception not only of the pastness of the past, but of its presence”

According to Eliot, knowledge of tradition plays vital role in the development of personal talent, He writes: ‘Tradition is a matter of much wider significance. It can not be inherited and if you want it you must obtain it by great labour. It involves the historical sense.’

This means sense involves a perception, not only of the pastness of past, but of its presence. This historical sense, which is a sense of the timeless as well as of the temporal and of the timeless and of the temporal together, is what makes a write traditional and it is at the same time what makes a writer most acutely conscious of his place in time, of his contemporaneity. For Eliot, the term "tradition" is imbued with a special and complex character. It represents a "simultaneous order.

The relation of the present to the past and its respective roles in poetic creation as suggested by T.S. Eliot.

Eliot gives importance to the interdependence of past and the present. He finds not contradictory but supplementary elements in the co- relationship of the past and the present.

He expresses his views as follows:-

“No poet, no artist of any art, has his complete meaning alone. His significance, his appreciation is the appreciation of his relation to the dead poets and artist. You can not value him alone; you must set him, for contrast and comparison, among the dead. Mean this as a principle of aesthetic, that he merely historical criticism. The necessity that he shall conform, that he shall cohere, is not one-sided; what happens when a new work of art is created is something that happens simultaneously to all the works of art which preceded it. The existing monuments form an ideal order among themselves, which is modified by the introduction of the new work of art among them.

The relation of a poet ‘s work to the great works of the past :-

Eliot is of the view that the present work of art should not be judged by the standards of the past. The present work may or may not conform to the standards of the past, but it should not decide whether the work of art is good or bad. Eliot explains it as “In a peculiar sense he will be aware also that he must inevitable be judged by the standards of the past, I say judged, not amputated, by them; not judged to bee as good as, or worse Eliot explains it as “In a peculiar sense he will be aware also that he must inevitable be judged by the standards of the past, I say judged, not amputated, by them; not judged to bee as good as, or worse or better than, the dead and; certainly not judged by the canons of dead critics.

Part 2 :-

Eliot’s theory of poetic process and the process of depersonalization:-

Eliot starts the second part of his essay with:

“Honest criticism and sensitive appreciation is directed not upon the poet but upon the poetry.”

The artist or the poet adopts the process of depersonalization, which is “a continual surrender of himself as he is at the moment to something which is more valuable. The progress of an artist is a continual self – sacrifice, a continual extinction of personality”There still remains this process of depersonalization and its relation to sense of tradition. The mature poet is viewed as a medium, through which tradition is channeled and elaborated. He compares the poet to a catalyst in a chemical reaction, in which the reactants are feelings, and emotions that are synthesized to create an artistic image that captures and relays these same feelings and emotions. While the mind of the poet is necessary for the production, it emerges unaffected by the process.

Eliot explains his theory of depersonalization more elaborately. He elaborates his idea by saying that the emotion and experiences in the art are different than the emotion and experiences of the artist He writes:-

“If you compare several representative passages of the greatest poetry, you see how completely any semi ehical eriterion of “sublimity” misses the mark. For it is not the “greatness” the intensity, of the emotions, the components, but the intensity of the artist process, the pressure, so to speak, under which the fusion takes place that counts”

He further writes:-

“The poet has, not a ‘personality’ to express, but a particular medium which is only a medium and not a personality in which impressions and experiences combine in peculiar and unexpected ways. In impressions and experiences which are important for the man may take no place in the poetry and those which become important in the poetry may play quite a neglible part in the man, the personality.”

“Emotion recollected in tranquility” is an inexact formula for it is neither emotion, nor recollection, nor with without distortion of meaning, tranquility.”

Part 3 :-

The third part he concludes the debate by saying that the poet’s sense of tradition and the impersonality of poetry are complementary things.

In the last section of this essay; Eliot says that poet’s sense of tradition and the impersonality of poetry are complementary things. He writes “To divert interest from the poet to the poetry is a laudable aim: for it would conclude to a juster estimation of actual poetry, good and bad.” Finally he ends his essay with: “very few know when ether is expression of significant emotion, emotion which has its life in the poem and not in the history of the poet.

Conclusion:-

To conclude, Harold Bloom presents a conception of tradition that differs from that Eliot. Where as Eliot believes that the great poet is faithful to his predecessors and evolves in a concordant manner, Bloom according to his theory of ‘anxiety of influence envisions the strong poet to engage in a much more aggressive and tumultuous rebellion against tradition’

In 1964, his last year, Eliot published in a reprint of the use of poetry and the use of criticism, a series of lectures he gave at Harvard university in 1932 and 1933, a new preface in which he called “Tradition and the Individual talent” the most juvenile of his essays.

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