Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Samuel Johnson was an English author, poet, playwright, biographer, critic, and lexicographer whose work A Dictionary of the English Language was published on 15 April 1755. Samuel Johnson was born on 18th September 1709. He was a weak child as an infant and suffered scrofula that disfigured his face. At the age of seven, he attended Lichfield Grammar School where he learned English grammar and excelled in Latin language. At the same time, he got ill with Tourette Syndrome and started exhibiting tics. Despite his illnesses, he continued to excel in his studies and got admission to higher school. At the age of 19, Johnson entered Pembroke College, Oxford. During his college days, he translated Alexander Pope’s poem Messiah in Latin and it became his first published work in December 1728. Johnson couldn’t complete his college degree because of a lack of funds and was forced to leave Pembroke College without a degree. His father died in December 1731 when Johnson was 22 years old. Since he didn’t have a degree he found it hard to get a job. Eventually, he started working as an undermaster in a school. In 1732, Samuel Johnson started contributing to The Birmingham Journal whose publisher Thomas Warren helped him in publishing the translation of Jerónimo Lobo's account of the Abyssinians. During the same time, Johnson married Elizabeth Tette, a widow 20 years older. His wife helped him in opening his own school in 1735 but the venture was unsuccessful and cost Tetty a substantial portion of her fortune. In 1737, Johnson finished his first playwright titled Irene but couldn’t find a patron and hence the play was not performed until 1749. Samuel Johnson loved his wife but he felt guilty about living almost entirely on Tette's money,
The Gentleman’s Magazine:
He came to London in 1737 and started working for The Gentleman’s Magazine which became his first regular work. The Gentleman’s Magazine was a weekly periodical that was founded by Edward Cave in 1731. The full title of the periodical was The Gentleman's Magazine: or, Trader's monthly intelligencer. It was a weekly periodical but Cave used the term Magazine for the first time for his journal. Magazine means storehouse and Cave used it to denote his journal as the compact store of all the news and commentary on any topic the educated public might be interested in. Johnson joined The Gentleman’s Magazine in 1737 and soon became the major contributor. It was a period when Parliamentary reporting was banned. Yet, Johnson regularly contributed parliamentary reports as "Debates of the Senate of Magna Lilliputia". Though they reflected the positions of the participants, the words of the debates were mostly Johnson's own. He coined the term Columbia for America which first appeared in a 1738 weekly publication of the debates of the British Parliament in The Gentleman’s Magazine.
Despite finding regular work as a reporter for The Gentleman’s Magazine, Samuel Johnson could not earn enough. Thus he decided to leave Tetty as he didn’t wish to continue being a financial burden for her. During this time, he became a close friend of Richard Savage and together, they started working at the Grub Street of London as writers who anonymously supplied publishers with on-demand material. In 1739, Samuel Johnson anonymously published his poem titled London which was his first major work. The poem contains 263 lines in which Johnson imitated Juvenal's Third Satire, expressed by the character of Thales as he decides to leave London for Wales. Johnson was an admirer of Alexander Pope and he was following the trend of imitating Augustan poets headed by Alexander Pope. However, even Alexander Pope didn’t know about the author of the poem. In this poem, Johnson portrayed London as a place of crime, corruption, and poverty.
Richard Savage was a close friend of Alexander Pope too. Savage died in the debtor’s prison due to the failure of the liver. After his death, Samuel Johnson published a biography titled Life of Savage in 1744 whose full title was An Account of the Life of Mr Richard Savage, Son of the Earl Rivers. It was the first major full biography written and published by Samuel Johnson. The biography was later included in Johnson’s major work Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets which was first published in 1779. In this work, Johnson published short biographies of 5 English poets including Abraham Cowley, John Milton, John Dryden, John Gay, Thomas Tickell, Joseph Addison, Alexander Pope, Jonathan Swift, and others.
Samuel Johnson still hadn’t received a degree from Oxford and when he asked Swift to favor him in getting a degree from the University of Dublin, Swift declined to help him. While Samuel Johnson succeeded in attaining an honorary degree from Pembroke College, Oxford, he harbored certain prejudices against Jonathan Swift which is evident from his account of Jonathan Swift in The Lives of The Poets.
By 1744, Jonathan Swift had made a place for himself as a distinguished Grub Street author. In 1746, Jonathan Swift got a proposal for writing an authoritative dictionary of the English language. Jonathan Swift claimed that he will complete the dictionary within three years. However, it took eight years for him to complete the dictionary. Yet, it was a great achievement because, during the same time, the Académie Française had 40 scholars spending 40 years completing their French dictionary. William Strahan and Associates were the printers of the dictionary that was completed and published in April 1755. Johnson alone wrote and produced this dictionary only with the clerical assistance of a few people he employed. However, as he continued to work for the dictionary at his own home, it deteriorated his relationship with his wife Tetty who got terminally ill during the same time. The original print of the dictionary contained42,773 entries. Johnson illustrated the meanings of the words in the dictionary by literary quotation, of which there were approximately 114,000. The authors most frequently cited include William Shakespeare, John Milton, and John Dryden. Many of the quotations from Johnson’s dictionary are still used by various editions of the Webster's Dictionary and the New English Dictionary. Johnson’s dictionary was the most commonly used and imitated for the 150 years between its first publication and the completion of the Oxford English Dictionary in 1928.
American literary critic Walter Jackson Bate claimed that Johnson’s Dictionary was not just a simple dictionary but it is more than a reference book; it is a work of literature. According to him, the Dictionary "easily ranks as one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship, and probably the greatest ever performed by one individual who labored under anything like the disadvantages in a comparable length of time".
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Hello and welcome to the Discourse. The Scarlet Letter is a work of historical fiction written by Nathaniel Hawthorne that was published in 150. Like his other works this novel is also of the genre of Dark Romance and the full title of the novel is The Scarlett Letter: A Romance. Before beginning the main story of the novel, Hawthorne wrote an essay titled The Custom House in which he outlines autobiographical information about the author, describes the conflict between the artistic impulse and the commercial environment, and defines the romance novel that he is writing. Hawthorne says that when he was working at the Salem Custom House as a clerk in the tax collection department, he discovered in the attic a manuscript accompanied by a beautiful scarlet letter "A." After the narrator lost his job, he decided to develop the story told in the manuscript into a novel. The Scarlet Letter is that novel. The plot of this novel contains a lot of Puritan Christian allegory and the story is based on Sin, Guilt, Humiliation, and Legalism.
Characters of The Scarlet Letter:
The narrator of the novel remains nameless, it is alleged that Hawthorne himself is the author. He works at Salem Custom House in Massachusetts. Jonathan Pue is a surveyor of ancient manuscripts at the Custom-house. The narrator claims that he found a package, containing the story of the novel, with Jonathan Pue’s name on it. Arthur Dimmesdale is a respected minister in Boston. He is the father of Pearl. Hester Prynne is the protagonist of the novel. She was married to Roger Chillingworth, a man from the Netherlands. Chillngworth and Prynne were scheduled to arrive in Boston and settle there. But while Hester arrived at Boston, Chillingworth had to stay in Amsterdam for some business. Hester waited for her husband for two years but there was no news from him as he was lost at the sea. She believed Chillingworth is dead. At Boston, she met Dimmesdale and engaged in an adulterous affair, which led to Pearl's birth while she was considered a widow. As a result, she was blamed for adultery but she never felt any guilt because she was in true love with Dimmesdale. To protect Dimmesdale against ignominy, she never revealed the name of Pearl’s father and suffered the whole punishment herself.
Roger Chillingworth didn’t die and he reached Boston the very day when Hester was being punished for adultery. He vowed to find out the father of Pearl to take revenge. Governor Bellingham is the former governor of Boston who punishes Hester Prynne and believes that she must not be allowed to raise Pearl as it will cause the child’s spiritual demise. However, Dimmesdale pleads in support of Hester and she is allowed to raise Pearl as her daughter. John Wilson is the eldest clergyman of Boston who supports Dimmesdale for letting Hester raise Pearl.
Summary of The Scarlet Letter:
The novel begins with a prelude in which the narrator informs that he used to work at Salem Custom House where he found an old manuscript covered in a cloth with the letter A in scarlet color beautifully embroidered over it. The manuscript was addressed to Jonathan Pue who used to be a surveyor of ancient goods at the Customs Office. The narrator was not interested in his job at the Customs Office as he always dreamed of becoming an author. Because of his disinterest in his job and laziness, he is fired from the Customs House. After losing his job, he notices the manuscript covered in the cloth with Scarlet letter A embroidered over it and starts reading the manuscript. He finds the manuscript is about a real incident that happened some 200 years ago. He finds the story very impressive and decides to write a novel on it. Thus begins the story of the Scarlet Letter.
The story is set in Puritan Boston, Massachusetts during the 17th century. A woman prisoner is led out of the prison towards the scaffold. She is carrying an infant child with her. She is living alone in Boston for the last two years as her husband was lost when he was scheduled to come to Boston. Now she is accused of adultery because though her husband is missing, she got pregnant and gave birth to a child. Adultery is a major crime in Puritan Massachusetts. Hester is forced to wear the letter Aon her gown at all times. She has stitched a large scarlet A onto her dress with gold thread, giving the letter an air of elegance. It also shows that she doesn’t consider herself a sinner and in fact, she is feeling a sense of pride as the mother of her daughter.
Hester Prynne is a beautiful woman and as she moves towards the scaffold, many of the women in the crowd feel jealous of her beauty and abuse her. They demand the harshest punishment for this adulterous woman. However, Hester maintains her dignity. As she reaches the scaffold, The Reverend John Wilson and the minister of Hester's church, Arthur Dimmesdale, question her about the father of the child, but she refuses to name her lover. The crowd jeers at her and as she sees towards the crowd, she notices a small misshapen man and realizes that he is Roger Chillingworth, her husband who was presumed to be lost at the sea. Roger reached Boston on the same day. He asks a man from the crowd about the woman with the scarlet letter A. The man informs him that she has been accused of adultery. This fills Roger with anger. He has no sympathy towards Hester but he believes that the man who is the father of Hester’s child is equally culpable and he must also be punished.
Governor Bellingham suggests that Hester’s child should be raised at the foster house because Hester will ruin her future. However, Arthur Dimmesdale passionately takes the side of Hester and pleads that she must be allowed to raise her daughter. Dimmesdale is a respected minister and John Wilson too supports him thus, Hester is allowed to keep her child but is sentenced to remain away from the main colony. Chillingworth notices the passionate support of Dimmesdale for Hester and doubts that he must be Hester’s lover.
After the announcement of the sentence, she is returned back to the prison where Roger Chillingworth visits her. Hester and Chillingworth discuss their situations at length. Their married life was not very peaceful in the past yet, she claims that she loyally waited for him for two years but when she became hopeless of her return, she assumed that he died at the sea. Both agree that they were wrong at their own ends. Chillingworth asks about the father of her daughter to which Hester refuses to answer. Chillingworth accepts her refusal but says that he will find out who the man was, and he will read the truth in the man's heart. Chillingworth then forces her to promise never to reveal his true identity as her cuckolded husband.
After he releases from prison, she settles at a cottage on the outskirts of the colony bordering the woods. She names her daughter Pearl and earns a living by stitching clothes for local dignitaries and rich people. However, she continues to help poor and sick people and would often stitch their cloth free of cost. Despite her punishment and the fact that she has been ostracized, she continues to get praise from the common poor, sick, and needy people while most of the rich women of Boston are jealous of her beauty and dignity. She continues to wear the scarlet letter A on her gown at all times.
Meanwhile, Roger Chillingworth earns a good reputation as a physician and soon he gets a job at the Church where Dimmesdale is a minister. Dimmesdale is continuously losing his health and he remains pensive at all times. Chillingworth is appointed as his physician and he decides to live with Dimmesdale in the same quarter. As Chillingworth queries more about the psychological trauma of Dimmesdale, he confirmed that Dimmesdale is the father of Pearl. Since then he starts psychologically tormenting Dimmesdale.
One dark night, Dimmesdale decides to go to the scaffold where he imagines himself being punished and publically humiliated for the crime of adultery along with Hester. At the same time, Hester and Pearl visit the scaffold and Dimmesdale asks them to stand with him and he holds the hands of Hester and Pearl. Pearl comes to know that Dimmesdale is her father. She then asks him to stand with her the next day at noon. A meteor passes through the sky at the same time while illuminating the area. Hester sees Chillingworth watching them from the trees. She realizes that Chillingworth is tormenting Dimmesdale. She tries to warn Dimmesdale but doesn’t break her promise.
After some days, Hester meets Chillingworth while he was picking some herbs in the woods. She confronts him and asks him to leave Dimmesdale alone otherwise she will reveal his true identity to him. Chillngworth says that Providence is now in charge of their fates, and she may do as she sees fit. Meanwhile, Hester decides that he cannot take it anymore. She plans to run away with Pearl and Dimmesdale to England where they will start their life again. Hester takes Pearl with her to the woods where they wait for Dimmesdale to come. When Dimmesdale arrives, Hester tells her that she has arranged for a ship that will take them to Europe. Dimmesdale is ready to go with them but he says that he has a friend who knows his secret. Hester understands that the person whom Dimmesdale is calling his friend is Chillingworth who is actually trying everything to punish Dimmesdale. She informs him that Roger Chillingworth is her husband who forced her to hide his identity so that he may find out who is the father of Pearl. This angers Dimmesdale too much. He realizes how Chillingworth continued to push him and make him feel much more guilty than he actually is. Anyhow he agrees to go to Europe but says that they must wait till his final election sermon to which Hester agrees as the ship is scheduled to sail the day after Dimmesdale gives his Election Sermon. However, Chillingworth comes to know about Hester’s plan and he persuades the ship captain to take him onboard too.
On election day, Dimmesdale offers his sermon with much more energy than he ever showed. Everybody praises his sermon and while all are cheering for him, he decides to go to the scaffold and stands there as a culprit. He openly calls Hester and Pearl to come and stand with him while the whole crowd is watching him. Chillingworth tries to stop Dimmesdale but Dimmesdale rebuffs him and shouts that he can never win against his innocence.
Hester and Pearl go to the scaffold and Dimmesdale picks their hands in his. He then announces that he is a sinner just like Hester and that he should have assumed his rightful place by her side over seven years earlier. He then rips open his shirt to reveal a scarlet letter on his flesh. Dimmesdale falls to his knees and dies on the scaffold as Pearl kisses him for the first time.
Hester and Pearl leave Boston. Chillingworth dies a year after Dimmesdale, leaving Pearl a small fortune as an inheritance. Many years later, Hester returns to her cabin on the outskirts of town. She still wears her letter "A."No one hears from Pearl again, but it is assumed that she has gotten married and has had children in Europe. After some years, Hester passes away she is buried in the site of King's Chapel and there is a letter A carved on her gravestone.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of American English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Rabbit Redux was the second novel of the Harry ‘Rabbit’ Armstrong series that was written by John Updike and was published in 1971. The first novel of the series was Rabbit, Run which was published in 1960. The word redux means ‘restored’ or ‘brought back.’ John Updike brings his character Rabbit back to the fore through this novel and continues the story ten years after its prequel, Rabbit Run. Harry Armstrong is 36 years old now and his son Nelson is a 13-year-old teen.
The main theme of Rabbit Redux is the contradictory notions of freedom and responsibility. Harry Armstrong deserts his wife twice in the first novel Rabbit, Run but ultimately, he returns to his wife Janice, considering it his responsibility towards her and his son Nelson. However, Janice is not ready to stay with Harry anymore in Rabbit Redux as she explores freedom and engages in an extramarital affair with an eccentric Greek man named Charlie Stavros. Harry comes to know about the affair and he feels emotionally bankrupt. After twelve years of her marriage, Janice decides to leave her husband and son to live with Charlie, a car dealer whom she met at her father's car dealership. Harry used to be an enthusiastic man nicknamed Rabbit, but now he is a passive man trying to save his family. It is the time when America blasted off Apollo 11 to the moon. While America is exploring new worlds in space, Rabbit’s life appears to be an empty space.
Characters of Rabbit Redux:
Harry Rabbit Armstrong is a 36 years old passive man working as a Linotype operator in the local printing plant. He used to be a salesman and a car dealer but his hometown Brewer, Pennsylvania is suffering economic turmoil. He used to be an enthusiastic man full of hopes but now he fears he is quickly approaching middle age and irrelevance. Janice is Harry’s wife for the last twelve years. She is a lover of Harry since childhood but she is bored of her mundane life and when she meets a Greek car dealer Charlie Stravos, who is aged, yet excited, she develops an extramarital affair with her. Nelson is the 13 years old son of Harry and Janice who is heartbroken after her mother leaves the family to live with her lover. Jill is a runaway teenage Hippi girl belonging to a rich family from Connecticut. She is addicted to drugs and is used to prostitute herself for drugs. When Harry offers her a stay with him and his son Nelson, she readily accepts. Skeeter is a black Vietnamese veteran who is a drug dealer and is on the run from law enforcement. He has some radical views and is often called as Black Jesus by his followers.
Summary of Rabbit Redux:
The novel is set in the late 1960s during the period when America faced the wave of Summer of Love during which as many as 100,000 young people gathered to promote their Hippi lifestyle, hallucinogenic drugs, anti-war, and free-love ideals throughout the West Coast of America. It is the same period when America blasted off Apollo 11 to the moon. These are the years when America was going through the Vietnamese war. Harry is a nationalist who favors the war. He learns about the Summer of Love, the Vietnamese War, the Apollo mission, and other events through the television but personally, he is unenthusiastic and oblivious to the cultural changes.
The novel begins as Harry contemplates the steadily declining economic condition of his hometown Brewer, Pennsylvania, and compares it with his own life. At 36, he is devoid of any hopes and progress as he is stuck with a dead-end job as a Linotype operator at his father's company, an occupation that threatens to be rendered irrelevant with the advancement of technology. His wife Janice feels bored with her mundane life and starts visiting the car dealer shop of her father. She is unhappy with her marriage as she feels unappreciated while Harry still wonders about Catherine Ruth who gave birth to his child.
At the car dealer shop, Janice meets Charlie Stravos, who is an aged, eccentric Greek man. Charlie impresses Janice who is bored of her mundane life and entices her towards an alternative sex life. Janice develops an extramarital affair with Charlie. Rabbit learns about her affair at a bar where the television repeatedly shows Apollo 11 blasting off to the moon. While America is exploring new worlds, Harry feels an emptiness in his life. At home, Harry’s mother is too old now and is about to die while his son is still a teenager. Harry used to be a very athletic and a star basketball player in his college because of which he was nicknamed Rabbit. However, Nelson is unathletic and seeks freedom from his father’s expectations.
Rabbit’s co-worker Buchanan understands his condition and to help him out, he introduces Harry to Jill, a young teenage girl belonging to a wealthy family from Connecticut. Jill is impressed by the freedom movement of Summer of Love. She is a drug-addicted hippie who believes that she is free from the rules of any conventional society. Harry learns that Jill has been selling herself behind the bar for drugs. He Jill a place to stay with him and his son, Nelson. Nelson is a 13 years old teenage boy who is suffering an emotional breakdown because his mother left the family for another man. When he meets Jill, he is smitten by her and experiences his first love. Meanwhile, Harry develops a sexual relationship with Jill as he pays for her drugs.
Now that Janice has left her home, Harry decides to convert his house into a commune where people from different backgrounds may meet together. Soon a black Vietnamese war veteran reaches Harry's home and starts living there. He is a drug dealer on the run from law enforcement. He served his years in Vietnam and his experience has made him oppose the war. He too is a proponent of the Summer of Love and vociferously opposes America’s military operations in Vietnam. Harry, being a nationalist opposes Skeeter while favoring America. They also have arguments over the racial issues engulfing the nation. However, the two manage to control their emotions and decide to stay together. Skeeter is a nihilist with some radical views. He has a list of followers who sometimes call him Black Jesus.
Both Skeeter and Harry develop sexual relationships with Jill and all of them engage in substance abuse. Meanwhile, Nelson continues to praise Jill and feels love for her.
Harry's neighbors are too disturbed by the illicit and immoral activities of Skeeter, Jill, and Harry and they try to convince Harry to drop his idea of commune and make Skeeter and Jill go away. However, Harry is also drug-addicted and enjoys the Hippie life with Jill and Skeeter. One of the neighbors sets fire to Rabbit's house while Jill is in a heroin-induced stupor, and Jill burns to death. No one else is harmed during the fire. When Rabbit speaks to a policeman at the fire scene, he's told that whoever was in the house is "cooked," and Nelson vomits.
Harry is too disturbed and sad about Jill’s demise but Skeeter convinces him to get past it. However, Harry is worried about Nelson and wonders how the death of Jill will affect Nelson.
Law enforcement finally catches Skeeter and he too leaves Harry. Meanwhile, Janice's lover, Charlie, suffers a heart attack. Janice manages to save him, but the incident causes the pair to reconsider what they want. Janice returns to Rabbit and Nelson, and the three try to repair their broken family, though Rabbit sometimes imagines that Jill comes to him in his sleep.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of American English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Khushwant Singh was an Indian author who was born on 2nd February 1915 and died on 20th March 2014. Khushwant Singh is known for his historical fiction novel Train to Pakistan which was published in 1956. When the partition was announced, the area of the Indian subcontinent was swept by a terrible fit of wicked violence i.e. attacks, killing, and torture, rape, abductions, and forced conversions afflicted the villages and cities. People were forced to run and cross borders in the hope of finding their own nation. Traveling was not much safe as the trains were consistently hindered and attacked mercilessly before letting the travelers reach the other side. There was an equally great number of massacres on boats and road transportation. Millions of people were slaughtered cold-bloodedly. People lost their families, friends, relatives, neighbors, and everyone whosoever was their kith and kin. According to conservative estimates, between half a million and one million men, women, and children lost their lives as a result of the partition of British India in 1947, over 70,000 women were raped and about ten million people fled their homes. Khushwant Singh described all these atrocities from the perspective of the fictional village Mano Majra situated at the border of newly carved India and Pakistan.
Characters of Train to Pakistan:
Jugga or Jugat Singh is the main protagonist of the novel. He is a young Sikh man, a dacoit with a good heart. Jugga is the son of the late Alam Singh who was an infamous dacoit and was hanged to death for the murder and dacoity two years ago. He is in love with Nooran, the daughter of the Imam Baksh, the weaver, and mullah of the local mosque of Mano Majra. Jugga’s mother is an aged sincere woman who doesn’t approve of her son’s reckless behavior. She knows about Nooran’s affair with Jugga and that Nooran is pregnant with Jugga’s child. Lala Ram Lal is the moneylender of Mano Majra. His family is the only Hindu family of the village while all others are either Sikhs or Muslims. Lala Ram Lal is robbed and killed at the beginning of the novel as the dacoits take advantage of ensuing misgovernance as an aftereffect of Partition. Malli is a young dacoit from another village who hates Jugga as he is the competitor. He robs and kills Lala Ram Lal and then frames Jugga for the crime. Iqbal Singh or Iqbal Muhammad is an educated man from Delhi who goes to Mano Majra to inform the local people about various government reform schemes and petitions. However, he gets hauled into jail alongside Jugga for Lala Ram Lal’s murder and is accused of being a member of the Muslim League. Bhai Meet Singh is the priest of the local Gurudwara of Mano Majra. He is the only man in the village who opposes the atrocities against Muslims. Banta Singh is the Lambardar or tax collector of Mano Majra who informs the police about the plan to murder the Muslims on the train to Pakistan. Hukum Chand is the magistrate and Deputy Commissioner of Mano Majra and the surrounding district area. He is not morally upright but tries to avoid a Muslim massacre at the end of the novel by releasing Jugga and Iqbal from jail and taking their help in avoiding the massacre. The sub-inspector and head constable of Mano Majra is corrupt police officers who help Hukum Singh in his illicit activities.Sundari was the daughter of Hukum Singh who was married to Mansa Ram. After her marriage, when Sundari was going to Gujranwala with her husband a Muslim mob attacked their bus. The mob raped Sundari and cuts Mansa Ram’s penis off. Both were killed afterward along with other Hindu and Sikh passengers. Hukum Singh is still in shock at this event and fails to sleep at night. He takes the help of Haseena Begum, a young Muslim prostitute.
Summary of Train to Pakistan:
While North India is facing turmoil in the aftermath of Partition in the summer of 1947 with millions of Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs fleeing from their homes on each side of the new border between Pakistan and India, the isolated village of Mano Majra is still at peace. It is a small and poor village with only three brick buildings, one is the gurudwara where Bhai Meet Singh is the Sikh priest, and the other one is the local mosque where Imam Bakshi, the local weaver is the Imam. The other brick building is the home of Lala Ram Lal who is the head of the only Hindu family of the village. Lala Ram Lal is a rich man who lends money to other people. Hukum Singh, the magistrate and Deputy Commissioner of the district arrives at Mano Majra and visits the police station. He asks the subinspector if there are any troubles between the religious groups. The sub-inspector informs that the village is totally at peace and hardly anybody knows about independence or partition. He says that though some people know about Mahatma Gandhi, nobody knows about Muslim League. Hukum Chand asks about the hooligans of Mano Majra. The subinspector says that Jugga is the most dangerous man though he is in love with Nooran who keeps him in check.
Mano Majra faces a notorious dacoity in which Lala Ram Lal is brutally murdered After robbing Ram Lal’s house, the dacoits pass by the home of Jugga. One of the dacoits throws away some of the stolen money and the broken bangles in Jugga’s courtyard. Jugga was with Nooran at that time. Nooran is the daughter of Imam Baksh. While Jugga and Nooran were making love, they hear shots of bullets. Then Jugga sees five dacoits running away through the river. Jugga recognizes one of them as Malli, a dacoit gang leader from another village.
The next day, a train from Delhi arrives at the station of Mano Majra and a young man steps out of the train. The subinspector scrutinizes him and feels that he doesn’t belong to Mano Majra. The man goes to the gurudwara and meets Bhai Meet Singh and asks for a stay for a few days. Meet Singh asks his name and he answers Iqbal. Meet Singh assumes that the young man is a Sikh and his name is Iqbal Singh and allows him to stay at the Gurudwara. Later on, Iqbal meets Banta Singh (Lambardar) and Imam Baksh at the Gurudwara. Imam and Lambardar discuss why the British left India while they were good rulers. This angers Iqbal who says that India is now free to which Lambardar answers, “Freedom is for the educated people who fought for it. We were slaves of the English, now we will be slaves of the educated Indians—or the Pakistanis.”
Bhai Meet Singh learns that Jugga has been arrested for robbing and murdering Lala Ram Lal. Meet Singh is perturbed not because of the murder of Ram Lal but because Jugga has now started robbing his own village. Iqbal is also arrested on the same day as he is a suspicious character.
The police keep Jugga and Iqbal in different prison cells. The sub-inspector informs Hukum Chand about the robbery and murder of Ram Lal and the arrest of Jugga and Iqbal. However, he also says that he doesn’t believe that Jugga had anything to do with the robbery. Hukum Chand asks about Iqbal and the head constable says that he is a Sikh whose name is Iqbal Singh. But then the subinspector inspects Iqbal. He gets him stripped and sees that Iqbal is circumcised and concludes that he is a Muslim and belongs to Muslim League. Hukum Chand directs the sub-inspector to issue an arrest warrant for Iqbal his name as Mohammad Iqbal. When the subinspector questions Jugga about the robbery, Jugga informs that he saw Malli and his men running out of the village right after the robbery took place. The subinspector takes Malli and his associates in custody and shifts Jugga to the cell of Iqbal. Iqbal asks if Jugga really murdered Ram Lal to which Jugga says that he couldn’t harm Lala Ram Lal because Ram Lal helped him in his time of need by lending money to pay the lawyers when his father was in jail.
In September, the train schedule gets disturbed. One day, a train arrives at the station of Mano Majra but no one gets out of the train. It is a ghost train that arrived from Pakistan. All the passengers were murdered as they were either Hindus or Sikhs and the train was full of dead bodies,. The police ask for help from villagers to arrange for kerosene and wood to burn the bodies and the villagers arrange for the matter. Hukum Chand observes all the processes and ensures that all the bodies were properly disposed of. By the night he is too tired. The dead bodies reminded him of his own daughter Sundari and her husband Mansa Ram who were murdered by a Muslim mob in the same manner during their journey to Gujranwala. He is too disturbed and asks the subinspector to call Haseena Begum, a Muslim prostitute from Chundnugger. He keeps Haseena overnight for comfort, but they do not have sex.
The next morning, The sub-inspector informs Hukum Singh about Malli and his gang. Hukum Singh asks if Malli is a Muslim or Sikh to which the sub-inspector informs that he is a Sikh. Hukum Singh tells him to free Malli and his men while keeping Jugga and Iqbal in custody. The head constable informs that some 50-60 Sikhs have arrived from Pakistan. Hukum Chand instructs the sub-inspector to ask the commander of the Muslim refugee camp to arrange for trucks to take Muslims of Mano Majra away. Hukum Chand thinks that had Malli has been a Muslim, along with Iqbal being a Muslim Leaguer, he could have easily persuaded the Sikhs of the village to send away their Muslim neighbors.
The sub-inspector goes to the police stations and instructs the head constable to leave Malli and his men in front of the villagers and ask Bhai Meet Singh about what Mohammad Iqbal, the Muslim Leaguer was doing in the village. The head constable follows the order and leaves Malli and his men in Mano Majra. When he asks the villagers about Mohammad Iqbal, they get confused because Bhai Meet Singh, Lambardar, and other villagers believed that Iqbal is a Sikh. However, this confusion creates doubt and suspicion in the minds of villagers. They just witnessed the atrocities done by Muslims on Hindu and Sikh passengers whose dead bodies they received in the ghost train. As the suspicion grows, things change in Mano Majra. Muslims no longer trust Sikhs, and Sikhs trust Muslims. That night, a group of Sikhs gathers at Banta Singh’s house. The Lambardar suggests that the Muslims go to the refugee camp until things settle down. The village will protect the Muslims’ belongings while they are gone.
Imam Bakh goes to his house and tells Nooran to pack her belonging as they will have to leave Mano Majra and go to Pakistan. Nooran doesn’t want to go because she loves Jugga. But Imam says that if they will not go willingly, they will be thrown out by the Sikhs. Nooran runs out and goes to Jugga’s home where she meets his mother. She asks for her help and informs her that she is pregnant with Jugga’s child. Jugga’s mother calms her down and tells her to go with her father. She assures her that when Jugga gets out of jail, she will ensure that he reunites with Nooran. Nooran is grateful and returns home.
The next day, a convoy of Refuggee trucks arrives at Mano Majra. A Muslim officer orders the Muslims of Mano Majra to pack their bag and board the trucks. A Sikh officer from the Sikh Refugee camp orders the Sikh refugees to occupy the Muslim properties while he appoints Malli as the custodian of all Muslim property of Mano Majra. At night, Mano Majra gets heavy rainfall and by the morning, the river Sutlej starts rising dangerously. Banta Singh and other villagers see the corpses of men, women, and children float by, marked by stab wounds. They realize that these are the victims of a massacre. The villagers decide to go to Gurudwara and pray for the dead people. A Sikh officer visits the Gurudwara and incites the Sikh people to take revenge and kill all the Muslims of Mano Majra who are still waiting at the Muslim Refugee camp for the train to Pakistan. The Sikhs then plot to kill all the Muslims. Bhai Meet Singh and Banta Singh try to calm down people and tell them that the Muslims are their neighbors and they have lived together like brothers but nobody is ready to listen to them. Banta Singh goes to meet Hukum Chand and informs him about the plan for Sikhs to kill all the Muslims at the refugee camp.
Hukum Chand learns that the Muslims of Chundnugger have also been shifted to Chundnugger. This reminds him of Haseena who is also in the Muslim refugee camp. He gets worried and thinks of ways to save Haseena. Hukum Chand asks the subinspector why he did not inform the train commander about the plan of Sikhs to kill the Muslim passengers. The subinspector says that if the train won’t leave on time, then the Sikhs will kill the Muslims in the refugee camp. Hukum Chand then decides to take the help of Jugga and Iqbal. Chand arranges for Jugga and Iqbal’s release and, in the official papers, writes Iqbal’s name as “Iqbal Singh,” explaining that no political party would send an educated Muslim to a Sikh village to preach peace.
Jugga and Iqbal go to the gurudwara and learn that all the Muslims have left Mano Majra for the refugee camp and Malli is the custodian of their property who is now much stronger than Jugga. Bhai Meet Singh informs about the plan of Sikhs to kill all the Muslims and requests Jugga and Iqbal to help and save Muslims. Iqbal is indifferent. He thinks of going back to Delhi but then thinks that Indians are unworthy of his risk to his life. He decides to drink alcohol and then goes to sleep. Meanwhile, Jugga is worried about Nooran and decides to save her anyhow. He learns the plan of Sikhs to derail the train to Pakistan by using a strong rope.
As the train arrives, the Sikh men spread themselves out on both sides of the train tracks. They hear the train coming. They planned that as the train will move forward, they will use the rope to derail it. However, as the train moves, they see a big strong man climbing on the steel span of the bridge through which they have tied the rope. The leader of the Sikh gang realizes what this big man is trying to do. He recognizes him as Jugga and if Jugga cuts the rope, their plan to derail the train will fail. He shouts for Jugga to come down but Jugga continues to cut the rope with his Kirpan. The Sikh leader then shoots bullets at Jugga but he doesn’t stop. The Sikh man then targets Jugga and shoots a volley of bullets at him. Jugga is shot and his kirpan also falls down but he cuts the remaining strand using his teeth. The Sikh man fires at him again and he falls down on the railway track along with the rope. The train passes by at the same time and goes over his body. While Jugga dies, he ensures the safety of the train to Pakistan and thus saves the life of Nooran and his child in her womb.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of Indian English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Joseph Addison and Richard Steele began the trend of periodical magazines and journals in the 18th century. In 1709, Steele began publishing The Tatler which was published thrice a week. On March 1, 1711, Richard Steele and Joseph Addison co-founded The Spectator which was a daily publication. In 1713, Steele and Addison co-founded another daily journal The Guardian.
Each "paper", or "number" of the Spectator, was approximately 2,500 words long, and the original run consisted of 555 numbers, beginning on 1 March 1711. The title of Paper number 124 was Periodical Essays and it was published on Monday July 23, 1711. In this essay, Addison highlights the importance of periodical essays in which a great deal of thought can be put together in a much better way than in a lengthy book. Addison developed the essay as a satire upon those writers and their lengthy books who are proud of producing voluminous works. Addison begins his essay with a proverb “A Great Book is a Great Evil” is a translation from Greek “Mega Biblion, Mega Kakon”.
Periodical Essays as a Satire Upon the Writers of Voluminous Books:
Addisonsatirically says that publishing a man’s works in a volume has a lot of advantage over writing in loose leaflets and single pieces. In a bulky volume a statement with several words at the beginning explain what the book is about. It prepares the reader for what follows. When the reader feels dull or drowsiness at sometimes, he can take rest while reading a voluminous book. So that Addison has chosen the Greek proverb “a great book is a great evil” as his motto.
Those who publish their thoughts in distinct sheets of periodical essays, and by piecemeal, have none of these advantages. In this the readers immediately fall into the subject and treat every part of it in a lively manner or dull. The matter lies very close together. So it is felt wholly new or meets the comments. But in the case of bulky volume, it is very difficult to get the comments from the reader for every page. It goes off with flat expressions, trivial observations, beaten topics, and common thoughts. In distinct sheets, there may be broken hints and irregular sketches. It is often expected that every sheet should be a kind of treatise and make out its thought. A subject can be touched without repetitions and the same thing can not be told twice by using different words. There are no enlargements which require large labours.
The Importance of ‘Periodical Essays’:
In the next section of his essay, Addison says that the ordinary writers of morality give their readers large volume. But an essay-writer gives the virtue of a full draught in a few drops. Thus all books are reduced to their quintessence. Many a bulk author would make his appearance in a penny paper. A folio is scared. The works of an age would be contained on a few shelves. The millions of volumes are completely annihilated.
The difficulty of furnishing out separate papers has not hindered authors from communicating their thoughts to the world. Press should be only made use of by news writers, and by persons having strong religious or political beliefs as if it were not more advantageous to mankind, to be instructed in wisdom and virtue and to be made good fathers, husbands and sons than in politics and to be made counselors and statesmen. The ancient philosophers and great men took so many pains in order to instruct mankind, and leave the world wiser and better than they found it. They had been possessed of the art of painting. They had made lectures.
Our common prints would be of great use to diffuse good sense through the bulk of a people, to clear up their understandings, animate their minds with virtue, dissipate the sorrows of a heavy heart, or unbend the mind from its more severe employments, with innocent amusements. Knowledge should not be bound up in books, and kept in libraries. Addison mentions the proverb saying, “Wisdom cries without, she utters her Voice in the streets. She cries in the chief place of Concourse, in the Openings of the Gates. In the City she utters her words, saying, How long, you simple ones, will you love Simplicity? And the Scorners delight in their Scorning? And Fools hate Knowledge?”
Incidently, Richard Steele made the same point in Number 10 in which Mr. Spectator states that The Spectator will aim "to enliven morality with wit, and to temper wit with morality".
Conclusion:
In the concluding section, Addison mentions the need of renovation in innovation. The author narrates the story of a mole, a small dark furry animal which is almost blind. After having consulted many oculists for the bettering of his sight, the mole was at-last provided with a pair of spectacles. When he was about to use of them, his mother told him that spectacles might help the eye of a man and it could be of no use to a mole. Therefore it is not for the benefit of moles that the author publishes his daily essays. There are others who are moles through envy. The Latin proverb says, “That one man is a wolf to another”. One author is a mole to another author. It is impossible for them to discover beauties in another’s works. They have eyes only for spots and blemishes. They can see the light, but shut their eyes immediately, and withdraw themselves into a willful obscurity. Thus Addison deals with all the advantages and disadvantages of writing periodical essays as well as his objectives on the need of renovation in innovation are well established in the essay.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Joseph Addison was an English essayist, poet, playwright, and politician who along with Richard Steele began the trend of periodic journals with The Tatler and The Spectator. William Thackeray portrayed Addison and Steele as characters in his novel The History of Henry Esmond which was published in the year 1852. Joseph Addison took birth in 1672. He was educated at Charterhouse School London and later on, he joined The Queen’s College, Oxford for higher studies. He became a close friend of Richard Steele during the schooldays.
Joseph Addison was a supporter of the Whigs. He met Jonathan Swift in Ireland and together they established the Kitkat Club in 1709. Richard Steele began publishing The Tatler in the same year and Addison began publishing his satirical social and political critical essays for The Tatler. Along with Steele, Joseph Addison began publishing the daily periodical The Spectator on March 1, 1711. Addison was a major contributor to The Spectator. The Spectator continued till December 1714. Steele began taking a lesser part in the publishing of periodicals. In 1713, Steele founded another daily periodical titled The Guardian that featured contributions from Joseph Addison, Thomas Tickell, Alexander Pope, and Ambrose Philips. During the same time, Alexander Pope began translating Illiad by Homer while Thomas Tickell was also working on the same project. Joseph Addison supported the translation of Tickell and this angered Alexander Pope. Pope was a friend of Addison and yet he lampooned him in his Epistle to Doctor Arbuthnot as Atticus in which Pope presented Addison as having great talent that is diminished by fear and jealousy.
One of the most celebrated works of Addison was his drama titled Cato, a Tragedy that he wrote in 1712 and which was first performed on 14th April 1713.
The play is based on the last days of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticenses, or Cato the Younger who resisted the tyranny of Julius Caesar and stood in favor of republicanism against monarchism. Alexander Pope wrote the prologue of this play while Samuel Garth wrote the epilogue.
Characters of Cato, A Tragedy:
Cato the Younger, whose full name is Marcus Porcius Cato Uticensis, is a Stoic Roman senator who values virtue, honor, and individual liberty above all else. He is the leader of the remaining senators who opposed Julius Caesar’s tyrannical campaign to establish a monarchy in Rome. While most of the senators and supporters of Republicanism were suppressed and eradicated by Caesar, Cato still stood his ground and fled from Caesar's legions to Utica, Tunisia. His deeds, rhetoric, and resistance to the tyranny of Julius Caesar made him an icon of republicanism, virtue, and liberty. Gaius Julius Caesar isn’t an active character in the play but the plot revolves around him. After defeating Pompey in the civil war, Caesar became the dictator of Rome and abolished the senate and thus ensured the demise of the Roman Republic while giving birth to the Roman Empire. Marcus and Proteus are Cato’s twin sons while Marcia is his daughter. Sempronius is another senator who sided with Cato against Caesar. Sempronius wished to marry Martia but Cato rejected his offer and thus, Sempronius resents Cato and plans to betray him to Caesar in exchange for Marcia's hand. Syphax is a Numidian counsel of Juba. Juba is the Numidian prince whose father Scipio was killed by Julius Caesar during the battle of Thapsus. Juba idolizes Cato and leads his army in support of Cato against Caesar. Lucius is another senator who loyally supports Cato but realizes that Julius Caesar cannot be defeated in war and thus, calls for peace. Lucia is the daughter of Lucius and a friend of Marcia.
Summary of Cato, A Tragedy:
The play begins as Marcus and Protius discuss the war against Caesar. They praise their father Cato the Younger’s bravery and assure each other of their father’s victory. Marcus reveals that he is in love with Lucia, the daughter of Senator Lucius. Proteus too likes Lucia who is a friend of their sister Marcia. Sempronius arrives and praises Proteus and Marcus for their bravery and says that he too believes that Cato will defeat the tyranny of Caesar. Proteus and Marcus move out for their military duties and as soon as they go, Sempronius reveals his two intentions and says how much he hates Cato and his entire family because Cato refused his marriage to Marcia whom he lusts for. Sempronius reveals his treachery and plans to betray Cato and make an alignment with Caesar who he believes will raise him to first honor and forcibly claim Marcia.
Sempronius meets Syphax, his Numidian ally, and suggests to him persuade Juba to support Caesar and marshal his Numidian armies against Cato. Syphax agrees with Sempronius and goes to Juba to discuss the matter. When Juba hears of the treachery, he rebuffs Syphax and claims that he will never betray Cato. Syphax returns to Sempronius and complains that Juba idolizes Cao and his daughter Marcia too much. This further fills Sempronius with jealousy.
Meanwhile, Juba sees Lucia and Marcia and proclaims his love for Marcia. Marica gets annoyed and says that her father would not approve of wasting such precious moments in talks of love during such a dire situation. Juba apologizes and goes away to mend his Numidian army. Lucia chides Marcia for being too harsh against Juba. Marcia says that she cannot be overcome by love at a time like this. Lucia reveals that she is in love with Porteus but is worried about Marcus’s temper and the “sad effect” that their love will have on him. Marcia requests Lucia to control her feelings for Protius until the war is won, lest she creates more chaos in Cato's house.
At the court, Cato calls for a meeting of the remaining senate to discuss how to stop Caesar from further advancing. Lucius pleads for peace and states that enough blood has been needlessly shed and that it is time for Rome to yield to Caesar. However, no one supports Lucius. Sempronius, who already plans to betray Cato, calls for war, arguing that it is time for Rome to avenge the deaths of Scipio and others with fire and fury. Cato listens to all the senators and says that both Lucius and Sempronius are only half correct. He says that it is not a time to show unnecessary bravery nor it is a time to embrace cowardice. He says that he will continue to fight Caesar until he reaches Uticia and then only he will bargain for peace. He further says that he will immediately stop the war and be merciful towards Caesar if he surrenders now and stands trial in the Senate. Cato sends an envoy with the message of the decision of his court to Caesar.
Juba enters the court and praises Cato’s brave decision and promises to stand by him till his last breath. Cato expresses his gratitude to Juba and promises to offer Juba whatever he wants once the war ends. Juba dares and reveals his love for Marcia and asks for her hand in marriage. This angers Cato as he cannot think of marrying his daughter to a Numidian and he storms out of the court.
Meanwhile, Marcus goes to Protius and reveals how love-sick he is feeling. He says that he cannot live without Lucia and he wishes to marry her at any cost. Proteus listens to Marcus patiently and doesn’t reveal to him that he and Lucia are already having a love relationship. He goes to Marcia and tells her that Marcus is deeply in love with her and is suffering because of his unrequited love. He says that if they continue their relationship, and if Marcus came to know about it, he will be heartbroken. Lucia remembers Marcia’s pleading and suggestion that she should control her feelings for Protius otherwise it will further weaken their family. Lucia declares that she will end her relationship with Protius but she will remain a maiden throughout her life.
Proteus goes to Marcus and tells him that Lucia is too hurt by the ongoing war and she has declared that she will never marry. Marcus gets sad and says that if he cannot marry Lucia, he will prefer to fight for his father against his enemies till his last breath and die as a martyr.
Sempronius and Syphax continue to incite Juba to rebel against Cato but Juba is too loyal towards Cato and says that after his father’s death, Cato is the only person he respects like his father and he will never betray him. Sempronius realizes that this plan will not work and hence he decides to plot his own rebellion. He incites a group of soldiers against Cato and sends them to arrest him. When the soldiers confront Cato, he addresses them with a passionate speech and all the soldiers turn their hurt and vow to remain loyal to Cato.
Sempronius realizes that Cato cannot be defeated until the troops remain so loyal to him. He decides to abduct Marcia and abscond with her to join Caesar’s forces. He disguises himself as Juba to gain entry to Marcia's apartments. However, Juba himself finds him first and, realizing his treachery, kills him. Marcia sees Sempronius’s body dressed as Juba and mistakes it to be the dead body of Juba. She cries for Juba claiming that she always loved him and he died before she could admit her love for her. Juba listens to her while remaining hidden behind the curtains. He reveals himself and tells Marcia all about Sempronius’s treacherous plan against Cato. Marcia embraces Juba while admitting her love for him.
Meanwhile, Syphax succeeds in gathering Numidian soldiers against Juba and Cato. He leads the soldiers to attack Cato. When Marcus learns this, he angrily goes alone to confront Syphax. He kills many rebellious soldiers and slains Syphax but the soldiers outnumber him and he too dies during the fight. When Cato learns that Marcus got killed while defending him, he praises Marcus while condemning Sempronius and Syphax. He declares that instead of mourning his son, everyone should mourn the fallen Roman Republic, which Marcus died to protect. He then announces that he intends to surrender Utica to Caesar.
However, before surrendering, he decides to kill himself as a free man. He laments that "the world was made for Caesar," and not for virtuous men. He then uses his sword against his abdomen. As he is dying, Marcia and Protius reach his apartment. They try to save him but it is too late. He Cato gives Marcia his blessing to marry Juba, who he declares is a Numidian with "a Roman soul." He also gives Portius his blessing to marry Lucia. Portius curses that they live in the kind of "guilty world" that takes the lives of honest people like Cato and leaves villains like Caesar victorious. He declares that the tragic story of Caesar's conquest will stand forever in history as a warning to all nations of the dire cost of civil war. After Cato’s death, Portius praises him as “the greatest soul that ever warmed a Roman breast” and says “fierce contending nations” should know of what “dire effects from civil discord flow.”
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
Hello and welcome to the Discourse. John Updike was an American poet, short story writer, novelist, and literary critic. He won two Pulitzer Prizes for fiction for his novels Rabbit is Rich (in 1982) and Rabbit at Rest (1991). He is known for his Rabbit series of novels in which he carved the character of Henry Rabbit Angstrom, a middle-class American everyman. His Rabbit series is considered his magnum opus in which he wrote four novels, Rabbit Run (1960), Rabbit Redux (1971), Rabbit is Rich (1981), and Rabbit at Rest (1990). In addition, he also wrote a novella titled Rabbit Remembered which was published in 2001.
Characters of Rabbit, Run:
Harry Armstrong is a 26 years old married man who used to be a star basketball player during his school days. However, he failed to attain much success and now he works as a kitchen gadget salesman. He is nicknamed Rabbit for his looks and athleticism. Just like the anecdotal rabbit, Harry never completes the race but takes rest much before the completion. Janice Armstrong is Rabbit’s wife and her childhood love. They were hastily married when Rabbit was only 21 because she got pregnant. Though Janice loves Rabbit, there are tensions between them. She is addicted to alcohol while Rabbit is a careless man. Jack Eccles is a Church minister who likes Rabbit and wishes to help him. He is too much inclined towards religion and just like Rabbit, ignores his familial responsibilities. Ruth Leonard is a single woman in her late 20s. She used to be a prostitute in the past. Nelson is the two-year-old son of Rabbit and Janice and Rebecca is their infant child. Lucy Eccles is the wife of Jack Eccles who is unhappy in her marriage. She blames religion for her husband’s indifference towards her. Ronnie Harrison is also an unsuccessful former basketball player. Rabbit and Ronnie used to play for the same team during the schooldays but both were bitter competitors. Margaret Kosko is a friend of Ruth Leonard who is dating Ronnie. Marty Tothero is the former basketball coach of Rabbit and Ronnie. He used to be a skilled and popular coach but lost his job because of some scandal.
Summary of Rabbit, Run:
The novel begins as Harry Armstrong nicknamed Rabbit is returning home from his business as a kitchen gadget salesman. He sees that some kids are playing a basketball match on the street of Mt. Judge. As Rabbit sees the game, he remembers the old days when he used to be a star basketball player on his school team. He was the most prized player of his coach Marty Tothero but now he is leading a boring, mundane life with not much success or satisfaction. He works as a kitchen gadget salesman and often fails to achieve the targets. Furthermore, his married life is also not going well. For a while, he forgets all his troubles and joins the boys to play the game. After some time, he returns home.
At home, he comes to know that his wife Jaine is again pregnant while they already have a two-year-old son. The two quarrel for some minor reason and then Janice sends irritated Rabbit to fetch some grocery items. Rabbit is so much angry that he decides to leave Mt. Judge and go far away and thus, he moves his car towards the interstate highway. He decides to go to Florida and after driving for a while, he stops for fuel and directions. However, he fails to find any map of Florida. Instead, the fuel station manager tells him, “The only way to get somewhere, you know, is to figure out where you’re going before you go there.” Perplexed, Rabbit leaves the fuel station and moves on. He fails to find out the route and gets lost. He finally turns around and heads back to Mt. Judge but instead of going back home, he decides to go and meet Marty Tothero, his former basketball coach. Marty Tothero is also as broke as Rabbit as he too lost his job as the head coach because of some scandal. Both decide to go to the town and have a fun time. In the town, he meets Ruth Leonard and Margaret Kosko and manages a double date with Marty. However, Margaret looks at Marty with contempt. Rabbit and Marty learn that Margaret is dating Ronnie who used to be Rabbit’s teammate. Meanwhile, Ruth and Rabbit develop a nice rapport and Rabbit spends the night in Ruth’s apartment. They both grow very fond of each other and spend two months together.
Meanwhile, Janice is alone at home and she is pregnant. She decides to go back to her parent’s home. When local minister Jack Eccles comes to know about Rabbit’s estrangement, he decides to try bringing him back to his wife and children. Jack meets Rabbit and develops a friendship with him. He invites him to the public golf course where he teaches him how to play gold while suggesting that he must return to his family. Rabbit starts visiting Jack at his home and learns that Jack himself is leading an unhappy married life and his wife, Lucy Eccles is too frustrated by Jack’s leaning towards religion.
Meanwhile, Rabbit has left his job as a kitchen gadget salesman and has started tending the huge garden of Mrs. Smith who is a 75 years old widowed woman and likes Rabbit. Ruth is now a month pregnant yet, she has not revealed this to Rabbit. One day, Rabbit learns that Ruth was in a relationship with Ronnie Harrison, his old teammate. This angers Rabbit who enquires more about her past relationship with Ronnie. Ruth admits that they had casual sex and she used to give him fellatio. This further irritates Rabbit and he forces Ruth to give him a blowjob. Though Ruth submits, her service fails to calm Rabbit down. During the same night, Jack Eccles calls Rabbit to inform him that Janice has been admitted to the hospital as she is in labour. Rabbit hastily leaves Ruth and goes to the hospital. That night, after seeing Janice, Rabbit feels as if he has started a new life. He thanks Eccles and puts the affair with Ruth behind him.
While Janice is still recovering in the hospital, Rabbit moves back into their old apartment with his son Nelson and cleans the place up while spending quality time with the boy. He starts working for Janice’s dad in the business of selling used cars. Janice returns home after some days and finds the house well-maintained. She feels elated and decides never to touch alcohol again. Rabbit and Janice try to strengthen their family for a while but things go sour sooner than expected. Rebecca, the newly born child continues to cry the whole night while Rabbit finds himself consumed with lust for his wife, who is now more or less incapable of having sex. Janice’s disinterest in sex further irritates Rabbit who starts visiting Jack Eccles’s Church and home. He starts flirting with Lucy and one day, he playfully smacks Lucy’s bottom that startles Lucy but she doesn’t complain. The next day, when Rabbit goes to Jack’s home, he learns that he went to the Church. Lucy invites him inside the house which Rabbit mistakes as an invitation for an extramarital affair and says that he is a married man and he won’t engage in an extramarital affair. This angers Lucy who closes the door of her home in Rabbit’s face forever.
Rabbit returns home with a determination to have sex with Janice. He offers some alcohol to Janice. Janice has already stopped drinking but Rabbit insists that a little alcohol won’t harm her. As Janice feels the effect of alcohol, Rabbit tries to have sex with her but she snaps back and shouts "I'm not your whore" - he walks out and wanders the town. Janice becomes wracked with fear and despair, certain that Rabbit has left her again. In her fear, she drinks more alcohol and finally, in a drunken hysteria, accidentally drowns Rebecca in the bathtub.
Rabbit doesn’t return home but he calls Jack Eccles and comes to know that his newly born child is dead. This fills him with sorrow and remorse. He goes to the home of Janice’s parents where she is staying. He apologizes to her and promises to make a strong bond with her again. The husband and wife unite for a while but just after the funeral of Rebecca, Rabbit feels a sudden awakening. He questions himself if he is the reason for the death of Rebecca and thinks that he is certainly not. Janice sees him with questioning eyes to which he gets irritated and shouts "Don't look at me...I didn't kill her."
Rabbit runs away again and reaches to Ruth’s apartment where he learns that Ruth is pregnant. He is happy to know that despite being mistreated by him, Ruth didn’t abort the child. He promises Ruth that he will never leave her and will be a good father to their child. Ruth says that if he wants to live with her, he must divorce Janice, otherwise, he must forget her and her child. Ruth agrees to divorce Janice and marry Ruth. He goes out to bring some food for Ruth but as soon as he comes out of her apartment, he finds himself confused again. He wonders how can he divorce Janice and if he does so, what will happen to Nelson, his two-year-old son. He contemplates and decides that he cannot leave Janice ever and thus, he runs away from Ruth and the ensuing responsibilities.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of American English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
