The Chimney Sweeper by William Blake | Structure, Summary, Analysis

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. The Chimney Sweeper is the title of two separate poems by William Blake. The first of these poems was published in his collection ‘Songs of Innocence’ in 1789. In 1794, Blake published the second poem by the same title in his collection ‘Songs of Experience’.

The earlier poem is told from the perspective of a young chimney sweeper who has been sold as a child laborer by his father. He meets another young kid named Tom Dacre who is terrified by the situations at the chimney workplace. During that period, young boys from poor families in England were sold to clean chimneys at the age of four or five. They were suitable for the work because of their diminutive size. Children in this field of work were often unfed and poorly clothed.

In most cases, these children died from either falling through the chimneys or from lung damage and other horrible diseases from breathing in the soot. This poem is titled The Chimney Sweeper which primarily deals with the dream of Tom Dacre in which he and other chimney sweepers are visited by an angel who releases them from their “coffins of black” and promises them eternal bliss, but at a cost. The angel tells Tom that if “he’d be a good boy/ He’d have God for his father & never want joy.” The emphasis on their “duty” as chimney sweepers belies Tom’s naivety—he accepts an implicit social contract that dictates his servitude in exchange for the abstract promise of salvation.

The Songs of Experience contain the second poem or the second part of the same poem titled THE Chimney Sweeper. In the second poem, the child is more clear about his situation with no illusions about the exploitative situation he has been forced into.

Structure of The Chimney Sweeper:

“The Chimney Sweeper” comprises six quatrains, each following the AABB rhyme scheme, with two rhyming couplets per quatrain. The regularity of the form offers a sense of a nursery rhyme of children's fable. The poem follows anapestic and iambic meter and is written in first person narrative. The poem is set in London, during the Industrial Revolution in the late 1700s.

The poem can be divided into four sections. In the first stanza, the narrator introduces himself and the misery and hardship of his life as a chimney sweep. The second stanza is Tom Dacre's arrival into the chimney sweep worker’s group, followed by shaving his head. The third, fourth, and fifth stanzas all deal with Tom Dacre's dream which has elements of pastoral poetry.

Summary of The Chimney Sweeper:

Stanza 1 Lines 1-4

“When my mother died I was very young,

And my father sold me while yet my tongue

Could scarcely cry " 'weep! 'weep! 'weep! 'weep!

"So your chimneys I sweep & in soot I sleep.”

The first stanza introduces the speaker, a young boy forced by circumstances into the hazardous occupation of a chimney sweeper. The little boy recounts how his mother passed away when he was quite young. When he was young enough to not even be able to say the word "sweep," he was sold by his father to a Master Sweeper instead, and he cried constantly. The sorrowful meaning of the pun created by the word "weep" appears three times in the third line of this stanza. Like him, the majority of chimney sweeps had an accent that caused them to pronounce sweep as "weep." Since he was a little child, the youngster has been cleaning the chimney and spending the night inside his soot-covered body without cleaning it off. The poet used a 2nd-person addressee (your) that stands in for English society: in other words, those whose chimneys are swept. This choice gives the poem an accusatory tone.

Stanza 2 Lines (5-8)

“There's little Tom Dacre, who cried when his head

That curled like a lamb's back, was shaved, so I said,

"Hush, Tom! never mind it, for when your head's bare,

You know that the soot cannot spoil your white hair."”

The speaker then introduces Tom Dacre, the hero of the poem. Tom was referred to as "Dacre" because he lived in Lady Dacre's Almshouse, which was tucked away between Buckingham Road and St. James Street. The almshouse only let in the needy among its residents, who were foundling orphans. The youngster, Tom, may have been sold to a master sweeper by a foster parent to represent him. In the same way, a lamb's back has been cut for wool, Tom cried when his head was being shaved. Then the narrator instructed Tom to stop crying and stop talking. Because there wouldn't be any chance of lice breeding in the pate or of hair catching fire, the narrator advised Tom to maintain his cool. The speaker says that now when Tom is bald, the soot cannot ruin the white color of his hair.

Stanza 3 Lines 9-12

“And so he was quiet, and that very night,

As Tom was a-sleeping he had such a sight!

That thousands of sweepers, Dick, Joe, Ned, & Jack,

Were all of them locked up in coffins of black;”

The speaker succeeds in calming Tom down. He was no more weeping for this bald head after that and he fell in a deep slumber that night. During his sleep, Tom had an amazing dream that began on a depressing note. In his dream, he saw the deaths of numerous chimney sweepers by the names of Dick, Joe, Ned, and Jack, and the remains of these men were found within cage-like coffins constructed of dark wood.

Stanza 4 Lines 14-16

“And by came an Angel who had a bright key,

And he opened the coffins & set them all free;

Then down a green plain, leaping, laughing they run,

And wash in a river and shine in the Sun.”

The dream continues in the fourth stanza. The speaker further explains the dream of Tom Dacre and says that an Angel, who was carrying a shining key, came near the coffins. The Angel opened the coffins containing the bodies and set all the bodies free from the bondage of coffins. The freed little sweepers of the chimney ran down a green ground, washed in the water of a river, and dried themselves in the sunlight to give out a clean shine. This was an excellent ending for the dream that began at a gloomy note. The chimney sweepers were freed from the shackles of bondage labor, exploitation, and child labor.

Stanza 5 Lines 17-21

“Then naked and white, all their bags left behind,

They rise upon clouds, and sport in the wind.

And the Angel told Tom, if he'd be a good boy,

He'd have God for his father & never want joy.”

The dream continues in the fifth stanza as the narrator says that as the children got rid of their shackles, they bathed in the clear shiny river. They were all naked and white, free of any soot, blackness, and dirty clothes as all their bags were left behind. The children travel through the clouds while having fun in the blowing air. The poet uses the imagery of free-floating clouds as a visual sign of liberation from the physical limitations of the body. The angel assured Tom that if he behaved well, he would have God as his father and would never be without happiness.

Stanza 6 Lines 22-24

“And so Tom awoke; and we rose in the dark

And got with our bags & our brushes to work.

Though the morning was cold, Tom was happy & warm;

So if all do their duty, they need not fear harm.”

The dream concludes in the sixth and final stanza. As Tom woke up, his dream ended abruptly. Tom and the other young sweeper lads got out of bed in the pitch black. They prepared for work by grabbing their bags for dirt and the scrubbers they needed for washing the chimney. Tom felt warm and content after having the dream, despite the chilly morning. The poet offers a suggestion in the last line; If everyone does their responsibility, they need not fear any damage.

In 1794, Blake published his other major poetic collection titled Songs of Experience which again contained a poem by the same title “THE Chimney Sweeper.” However, he capitalized all letters of the first word ‘The.’ In the same year, he published the unified version of these collections by the title Songs of Innocence and of Experience Shewing the Two Contrary States of the Human Soul. Both the poems were published in this version and they offer a contrast between the joy, freedom, and happiness that are the natural state of childhood with the oppression and exploitation of contemporary society.

While Blake offers the solace and comfort of organized religion while criticizing English society in the first poem, he attacks organized religion along with the society in this second poem. The children are still suffering in the chimneys despite their best efforts to commit to their duties. The little sweep boy is so covered in soot that he is barely recognizable. He explains that society has oppressed and exploited the natural joyfulness of his youth. He is so deteriorated and weak that there is no hope for him. Blake again wrote this poem in quatrains but it is rather short with just three stanzas (12 lines, four lines in each stanza). Blake used iambic and anapestic meter in this poem following a rhyming scheme of AABB CACA EFEF. Blake used alliteration, assonance, and imagery in the poem. This second poem can be divided into two sections. In the first section, an unspecified speaker notices a little black thing’, the little chimney sweep boy in the snow who is crying. The speaker wonders why the child is crying and asks him about his parents. The child then answers how he was trapped in the Chimney and how devastating his life has been.

Summary of THE Chimney Sweeper:

Stanza 1 Lines 1-4

“A little black thing among the snow,

Crying "weep! 'weep!" in notes of woe!

"Where are thy father and mother? Say?"

"They are both gone up to the church to pray.”

The unknown speaker notices a strange black thing in the snow. This thing is a child, who has lost both his parents. He is so covered in the soot that he is unrecognizable. The poet describes the child as ‘a little black thing,’ suggesting the inhumanity of the society of that period. As the speaker asks the child about his well-being and his parents, the child cries out, that both of his parents have “gone up the church to pray”. There is no one to care for him. No parents to provide for him or an organization that cares what happens to him. Many might say they care but then do nothing to prove it.

Stanza 2 Lines 5-8

“Because I was happy upon the heath,

And smil'd among the winter's snow,

They clothed me in the clothes of death,

And taught me to sing the notes of woe.”

The child hardly had anybody to share his sorrow and when this unspecified stranger asked him about his well-being, he took a chance to express his anguish. He thinks back to his earlier days and how happy he used to be. All of this was taken from him. “They,” the church, “clothed” the child in “death” and forced him to ‘sing the notes of woe”. He was taught the darkest parts of life during a very important period in his life. He should’ve been free to be happy and joyful in nature but instead, he’s a chimney sweeper.

Stanza 3 Lines 9-12

“And because I am happy and dance and sing,

They think they have done me no injury,

And are gone to praise God and his Priest and King,

Who make up a heaven of our misery."”

In the last stanza, the poet scathingly attacks the church or organized religion. The child says that the men and women who might help him, those who go to church, think he’s okay because he “dance[s] and sing[s]”. They don’t know that these things are done only to get by and sometimes to find some comfort somewhere. They think that they’ve done him “no injury”. The child speaker places the blame for his circumstances at the feet of “God and his Priest and King”. The Church, and more broadly organized religion, is at fault for his “misery”.

In the first poem (of Innocence) the poet offered organized religion as a solace against the ill conditions of the children by means of the strange vision of Tom Dacre. But in this second poem, there is no such illusion in the child’s mind. He realizes that the actual culprit for his ill-condition is the organized religion. It was the duty of the church to take good care of the orphan children but the church forced them in slavery to work in the chimneys.

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!

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury | Characters, Summary, Analysis

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Fahrenheit 451 is a fictional dystopian novel by American author and dramatist Ray Bradbury published in 1953. The story depicts a future American society where free thoughts, expression, and books are outlawed. Bradbury wrote the book during the Second Red Scare period also known as the McCarthy Era when people in America suffered the political repression and persecution of left-wing individuals and a campaign spreading fear of alleged communist and Soviet influence on American institutions and of Soviet espionage in the United States.

Bradbury was also inspired by the incidences of book burning in Nazi Germany. Bradbury claimed he wrote the book because he was concerned about the threat of Thought Control and restriction over Freedom of Speech in the United States. The novel stands against censorship and defends literature as necessary to the humanity of individuals and civilization.

In 1948, Bradbury’s short story Bright Phoenix was published that tells the story of a librarian who confronts a "Chief Censor", who burns books. In 1951, he published another short story ‘The Pedestrian’ which talked about a society in which citizens are expected to watch television as a leisurely activity. A common man, ‘The Pedestrian’ decides to go for a nighttime walk in his neighborhood and is harassed and detained by the police. Bradbury combined the elements of both short stories to write another short novel The Fireman published in 1951. He continued exploring the dystopian theme of his stories to produce his magnum opus Fahrenheit 451 published in 1953.

Characters of Fahrenheit 451:

Guy Montag is the protagonist of the novel. He is a 30-year-old married guy who works for the government as a fireman. His job is to burn books and the houses where they are illegally kept. Initially, he is a loyal fireman committed to his work. However, some instances instigate him to question the nature of his job. He begins feeling a conflict regarding his job. This inner conflict makes him feel apathy for his wife, job, and the society in which he lives. Mildred Montag (or Millie) is the wife of Guy Montag. She is addicted to sleeping pills, absorbed in the shallow dramas played on her television and seashell radio, and indifferent to the oppressive society around her. She epitomizes the shallowness and complacentness of society that Montag comes to despise. Clarisse McClellan is a teenage girl just one month short of her seventeenth birthday. Guy Montag is attracted to her because of her inquisitive nature. She is outgoing, naturally cheerful, unorthodox, and intuitive. Her classmates and teachers do not like her because she is too curious and asks ‘why’ instead of ‘how.’ She disappears without a trace and when Montag questions about her, Millie tells him that she was hit by a speeding car and her family left the place immediately after the accident. Montag doubts that Clarisse might have been assassinated. Captain Beatty is the antagonist of the novel. He is the manager of the firehouse where Montag works. He is loyal to the authorities and often lectures Montag, trying to prevent him from succumbing to the appeal of books. Professor Faber is an aging retired intellectual in a world with no place for such people, Faber greatly disapproves of the dehumanized, oppressive society in which he lives. He prefers living discretely rather than protesting or attempting to change the world. He helps Montag in clarifying his conflict regarding his job. Later on, he also helps in avoiding being caught by the Mechanical Hound. Faber escapes the atomic bomb, as he had planned to catch an early bus out of the city. Granger is the leader of a group of intellectuals living discretely who help Montag. The Old Woman is one of the victims of the firemen’s job. When Montag goes to burn her books and the house, she decides to stay within the house and burn herself to death among her treasured books. Black and Stoneman are colleaues of Guy Montag. They are devoted firemen who mindlessly follow authority. Mrs. Phelps and Mrs. Bowels are housewives and friends of Millie, sharing her interest in the television and her simplistic outlook on life.

Summary of Farenheit 451:

The novel is set in a futuristic American society in the 24^th century. Technological advancement has reached such an extent that nearly all buildings were made with fireproof materials, and firemen preventing fires were no longer necessary. The government then turned the firemen into officers of society's peace of mind: instead of putting out fires, they were charged with starting them, specifically to burn books, which were condemned as sources of confusing and depressing thoughts that complicated people's lives. The story is divided into three parts. The first part is titled ‘The Hearth and the Salamander.’ ‘Hearth’ is a place in homes where people have open fire to produce heat and prepare food. Salamander, on the other hand, is an attractive amphibian.

The novel begins as Guy Montag returns from his duty of burning a hidden collection of books. In the future, books are totally banned and firemen are those who put fire to the books and other possessions of those who keep illegal books. Montag is happy after completing his work as he feels it is a ‘pleasure to burn.’ After his duty hours, he returns home when he meets a young girl who lives in his neighborhood. She introduces herself as Clarisse McClellan and says that everybody thinks she is crazy. Montag finds her very energetic and inquisitive. He is astonished by her questions which prompts him to think and question himself. She discusses abstract issues such as happiness, satisfaction, purpose, love, and much more.

Montag tries to ignore her questions but he finds himself prompted to ponder more on these subjects. After reaching home, he finds that his wife Millie has taken an overdose of the prescribed sleeping pills. He wonders if Millie attempted suicide. He calls for emergency and health workers to visit his home to save his wife. As he tries to sleep, he begins thinking about the questions raised by Clarisse about life. He feels a certain discontent within himself. He feels disturbed by the fact that his wife who appears normal, conventional, and happy, tried to kill herself.

The next morning, he tries to ask why Mildred attempted suicide but she is not interested in any discussion. She completely declines that she took an overdose of sleeping pills. Rather she claims that she went to a wild party and woke up hungover. She ignores Montag and begins preparing for a new script she was given for a television interview. Her disenchantment frustrates Montag as he leaves for the Firehouse. On his way to work, he again meets Clarisse who begins a discussion. She further raises innocent questions that he never thought about such as, what is the taste of rain droplets and what dandelions represent. Her enthusiasm offers relief to Montag. He continues to meet Clarisse almost every day. Clarisse tells him that she is sent to therapy because she does not enjoy the normal activities of life and prefers to be outside and have conversations.

After reaching the Firehouse, he receives an alarm that an old woman has a stash of hidden literature. Montag and his two colleagues Black and Stoneman visit the old woman’s house. The woman refuses to give up her library, and the firemen break in and begin to tear the house apart. Montag warns the lady that she should move outside as they are going to burn her library. The old woman refuses to go out and opts to get burned with her loved books. Montag is startled by her adamance. He wonders why are these books so important for the lady. In the chaos, Montag steals a copy of the Bible on impulse while the old woman sets herself and her books on fire. Montag feels that perhaps the happiness he lacks can be found in books. The sight of the old woman burning to her death disturbs him deeply. After reaching home, he hides the Bible and thinks about the old woman. He asks Millie if she remembers where they met for the first time. None of them could remember their first meeting. Millie informs him about Clarisse’s death in an automobile accident.

Disturbed by the death of the old woman and by the news of Clarisse’s death, Montag decides to take a sick leave the next day and doesn’t go to work. He tells Millie that he is not willing to work as a fireman anymore. Mildred panics over the thought of not being able to afford their home and the large wall-sized televisions if he leaves the job. She then sees Montag having a book.

His senior officer Captain Beaty visits him at his home. Montag feels that Captain Beaty somehow knows about the book he took and hid from the old woman’s library as Beaty delivers a long lecture on the history of censorship, the development of mass media, the dumbing down of culture, the rise of instant gratification, and the role of firemen as society's "official censors, judges, and executors." Millie tries to point out that Montag has a book by lifting the pillow under which he had hidden the book but Montag stops him. Millie then asks Captain Beaty what will happen if a fireman himself has kept some book. Beatty says it's okay for a fireman to keep a book for 24 hours out of natural curiosity, so long as he turns it in the next day. When Beatty leaves, Montag shows Mildred twenty books, including a Bible, that he's been hiding in the house. He feels that their lives are falling apart and that the world doesn't make sense, and hopes some answers might be found in the books. Montag and Mildred try to read the books.

The second part is titled “The Sieve and the Sand.’

Millie tries to read the Bible but finds it difficult and soon gives up as she never read any book. She asks Montag to destroy the books immediately to ensure their safety. Montag then decides to take the help of an old, retired English professor, Faber, whom he had met in a park. Montag decides to visit Faber to gain more understanding about books and his recurrent thoughts. When Faber notices Montag in front of his house, he gets frightened that Montag came to burn his books at home. However, Montag shows him the Bible he stole. Montag asks him to help him in reading the book. Faber says that these are difficult times as the threat of an atomic war is impending. Faber agrees to teach him how to read and he gives Montag a seashell radio so they can communicate with one another.

When Montag returns home, he finds that two of Millie’s friends, Mrs. Phelps and Mrs. Bowels are at home and the three women are watching television. Montag is disgusted by his wife and her friends. He wonders why are they not worried about the impending atomic war that may destroy the whole human civilization. Montag abruptly puts the television off and tries to entertain the women by reading a poem titled Dover Beach. However, this frightens the women and Mrs. Phelps and Mrs. Bowels leave Millie’s house immediately. Millie too gets annoyed by Montag. Montag fears he may face consequences and decides to hide all the books he stole in his backyard. When Montag visits Firehouse for his work, he submits a book to Captain Beaty to dissuade Captain Beaty’s suspicion about him stealing the books. Captain Beaty tells him that once he too was an enthusiastic reader but soon learned how harmful books can be. He then lectures more anti-book, anti-intellectual rhetoric. The firemen are called to an alarm, and Montag is dismayed to discover that it is his own house that is to be burned. His wife Millie reported him.

The third part is titled “Burning Bright.”

This time, Captain Beaty accompanies, Montag, Black, and Stoneman. Captain Beaty orders Montag to burn his hidden books and all other possessions in each room of his house. Montag tries to use ‘The Salamander,’ the fire-throwing machine that can immediately burn his house but Captain Beaty insists that Montag must use ‘the flamethrower,’ a less powerful machine that burns slowly. This further pains Montag. After burning all his books and possessions, he confronts Captain Beaty who chides him for hiding and reading books and thus disobeying the authority. The two men get into a scuffle and Montag decides to use the flamethrower against Captain Beaty. Montag noticed that Beaty didn't oppose or try to save himself and got burned alive. Montag realized that Captain Beaty wasn’t happy with his life and wished to die and purposefully incited Montag to kill him. He decides to run away.

He takes some books and hides them at Black’s house to incriminate him and then reaches Faber’s house to get his help. Faber says that he cannot help him much because soon a Mechanical Hound will be set loose to catch Montag. He then tells him the way to escape and says that he must escape down the river where he will get some help. Montag helps Faber in getting rid of all the traces of him and then runs away to the river. A Mechanical Hound pursues him but he loses his trail as he dives and swims down the river. Meanwhile, Faber decides to run away as the atomic war is looming. He goes to St. Louis to ask a former printer he knows to print some books.

After swimming for long, Montag leaves the river. In the wild, he meets a group of former writers, clergymen, and academics by the riverbank. These are ‘drifters’, the protestors against the authority who have been outcasted. They take Montag to their leader Granger. Montag learns that they failed to save books though each of them has memorized at least one book to carry its knowledge into the future. As Montag studies with them, bombers fly overhead and drop nuclear bombs on the city. The Drifters are far enough away to survive. The next day, Granger tells them about the legendary Phoenix that rose from the ashes and muses that humans can do the same, except with the knowledge of their own mistakes to guide them. The group then begins walking towards the city to help rebuild society with their memorized wisdom.

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!

The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai | Characters, Summary, Analysis

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. The Inheritance of Loss is the second novel by Kiran Desai that was published in 2006. The novel won the Booker Prize in 2006. In 2007, the American Literary Society National Book Critics Circle also chose the book for the Best Fiction Award. The novel touches on the sensitive theme of Colonialism and its impact on postcolonial India. The novel explores the social and cultural conflicts that emerged due to the effect of Colonialism. The novel also stresses the social, cultural, economic, and psychological impacts on the migrants. It discusses the problems of illegal migrants in the U.S. Another major theme of the novel is the civil unrest in India during the mid-1980s and highlights the ethnic and cultural demands by Gorkhas in Northeast India for independence and a separate state government. The novel also raises the issue of Multiculturalism and Miscommunication.

Characters of Inheritance of Loss:

Biju is a nineteen-year-old boy whose father is a poor cook working in India. Biju leaves India for the US for a better future. He reaches New York City as an undocumented immigrant. Isolated and insecure, Biju struggles to make ends meet and dreams of returning home. Sai is a teen orphaned girl. Her parents died in an accident. She lives with her grandfather who is a retired Judge. Jemubhai Patel is the grandfather of Sai. He belonged to a poor farmer’s family but his father saved enough money for his good education. He went to Cambridge for higher education by using the money he got as a dowry in his marriage. At Cambridge University, he suffered excessive discrimination. He returned to India and cleared the Indian Civil Service examination to become a judge. Bose is one of Jemubhai Patel’s friends from his Cambridge days. He helped Jemubhai learn the English ways and customs. Gyan is a poor college graduate of Nepalese origin. He takes an active part in the Gorkha National Liberation Front activities. Meanwhile, he also begins tutoring physics to Sai who belongs to a rich family of Gujrati origin. Sai develops a romantic attachment with Gyan. While Gyan acknowledges her love, he cruelly betrays Sai, who he believes symbolizes the class of people who oppress him. Lola is an upper-class Bengali widowed woman who lives with her sister Noni. Lola’s daughter, Pixie, works for BBC London and Lola is very proud of her because she idolizes British culture. Lola is prejudiced against poor Nepali people and adheres to a strict interpretation of class division. Noni is a middle-aged unmarried woman living with her elder sister. She used to be the tutor of Sai during her younger age. Like Lola, Noni appreciates British culture. Bomanbhai Patel is Jemu’s father-in-law. He used to be a supplier during the British Raj and made a good fortune. He idolizes British culture and marries his daughter Nimi to Jemu because he is pursuing a Cambridge education. Nimi or Bela is the dauhter of Boman and wife of Jemu. She was married to Jemu when she was fourteen years old girl. She was a simple Indian teen girl. When Jemu returns from Cambridge, she tries to develop an emotional connection with him but finds him brutal. She resists his abuses but when she realizes that he hates her for being Indian, she becomes depressed because despite her trying, she fails to assimilate into British culture. Jemu rapes her, degrades her, and then leaves her at her father’s home. Harish-Harry is the owner of an Indian cafe in the U.S. where Biju works. He is a cruel and greedy employer who exploits the poor illegal immigrants. Father Booty is a Swiss missionary who lives in Kalimpong and runs a dairy farm. He has been illegally living in India for years. The police catch him during the insurgency of the Gorkha National Liberation Front and force him to leave India. Uncle Potty is a brat son of wealthy parents who studied at Oxford. He is the nearest neighbor of Jemu. Pradham is the leader of the Gorkha National Liberation Front.

Summary of The Inheritance of Loss:

The novel is set in 1986. The story begins at retired Judge Jemubhai Patel’s home called Cho Oyu who is sitting with his granddaughter in the verandah. It is a large, English-style Bungalow located outside of Kalimpong.

Armed insurgents of the Gorkha National Liberation Front attacked their home and demanded all the rifles and other valuables that Jemubhai had collected. After the robbery, Jemu sends his cook to the police station. After the initial investigation, the police accuse the poor cook of being an accomplice of the robbers. They search his hut for evidence but find nothing except some letters written by his son Biju who is working in the U.S. The cook suffers humiliation but the police get no evidence of his involvement.

Meanwhile, Biju is working at a restaurant in Manhattan. The owner of the restaurant is asked by the authorities to perform a green card check. Since Biju is an undocumented migrant, he is asked to leave the place and is forced to look for employment somewhere else. He continues getting jobs at various restaurants but nowhere he gets any job security. He continues to suffer from anxiety, ill-treatment, and discrimination.

At Kalimpong, Jemu has a flashback. He was the son of a poor farmer but was good at studies. He got a chance to go to Cambridge University for higher education but he didn’t have enough money. Jemu met Bomanbhai Patel, a businessman and supplier of goods to the British government, and asked for monetary help. Bomanbhai was impressed by Jemu’s future prospects so he suggested the marriage of Jemu with his fourteen-year-old daughter Nimi. Jemu agreed to the marriage and suggested that he would consummate the marriage after returning from England. He got enough dowry to go to England. He faces constant discrimination throughout his schooling in Cambridge and adapts himself to English speech and customs as a result. He decides to return to India and clears the Indian Civil Service examination to become a judge. He returns to India contemptuous of his native land and people. Bomanbhai sends Nimi to live with him but Jemu doesn’t like Nimi because of her Indianness. Nimi is a traditional girl with no idea of English culture. Jemu tries to teach her the English ways but he fails and then he begins to abuse her. Once she had taken the powder puff that he brought from England. As he looked for it, his family ridiculed him for using it. By the time he discovered that Nimi had taken it, he was furious, and he raped her. In the following days, he insisted that she speak English and follow English customs, which she refused to do. He took off her bangles, threw away her hair oil, and pushed her face into the Western-style toilet when he discovered her squatting on it. He then left her at their home while he went away on tour. After many years, he learned that Nimi had given birth to his son, and later on, she was probably murdered by her brother-in-law.

Bomanbhai took care of his son who went to Moscow for a job and got married there. Sai's parents were killed in a tragic bus accident in Moscow. As a result, Sai was withdrawn from a convent school and taken to live with her grandfather, Judge Patel. Judge isn’t too happy with the responsibility of Sai but he feels that God has given him a chance to correct the wrongs he did to Nimi. Sai finds a surrogate father in the cook who is very sympathetic towards her.

In the U.S. Biju begins working at the Queen of Tarts bakery where he meets a Pakistani young man Saeed. Saeed is cordial towards him and teaches him somehow to remain safe as an undocumented illegal immigrant in the U.S. Biju begins to question his prejudice against people from Pakistan and other ethnicities as they had never done anything harmful to him or to India, unlike white people. Saeed marries an American woman to get a green card and then he divorces her cordially.

Biju sends letters to his father in which he lies about his success in America. The cook sends letters to Biju, requesting him to help other young poor Nepalese to get a place in America which overwhelms Biju. Judge Jemu sends Sai to Nooni’s house for tuition. Nooni treats Sai very well and teaches her about Western culture. As Sai continues to grow, Nooni feels that she cannot teach her anymore. For her physics tutoring at age 16, the judge hires a young Nepali man named Gyan, with whom Sai becomes romantically involved.

The situation in Kalimpong continues to deteriorate due to the uprising of the Gorkha National Liberation Front. Police randomly torture civilians, GNLF members illegally take up residence on Noni and Lola's property, and shortages bring the entire community to the brink of starvation. Gyan and Sai's relationship turns sour as Gyan joins the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF). To Gyan, Sai represents the oppressive social and political systems that prevent him from advancing in life. Having tutored Sai in Cho Oyu, Gyan has intimate knowledge of the mansion. He informs the GNLF of the judge's cache of weapons.

After the robbery, Gyan feels guilty but doesn’t wish to reveal his involvement in the robbery. Thus, he begins to ignore Sai. One day, Sai decides to follow him and learns that he is living in very poor conditions. When Gyan sees her, they fight bitterly. Gyan slaps her in his anger and says that he supports GNLF and he hates Sai because she belongs to the upper class. Sai retorts that he used to enjoy cheesecakes with her at her house. Gyan’s sister listens to all this and she informs Gyan’s grandmother about his involvement with GNLF. Gyan’s mother is totally against any such insurgency. Being the matriarch of the family, he asks Gyan to immediately break all ties with Pradham, the leader of GNLF, and not to attend the upcoming Indo-Nepali Treaty burning, effectively ending his involvement with the GNLF. Relieved to no longer be politically aligned, Gyan considers making up with Sai.

Meanwhile, Pradham announces that he will require one man from every family in Kalimpong. The cook doesn’t wish to join GNLF so he tries to run away. On the day of protest against the Indo-Nepal treaty, the parade turns bloody, several police officers are beheaded, and many civilians are injured. The cook barely escapes; traumatized, he returns to Cho Oyu.
At the judge’s house, a poor woman arrives, requesting the release of her husband who was wrongfully jailed for robbing his house. The woman continues to beg the judge for mercy but he blatantly refuses. Saddened and desperate, the poor woman steals Judge Patel's beloved dog, Mutt, and sells her. Upon discovering the loss of his treasured pet, the judge frantically searches the village and then brutally beats the cook, blaming him for the dog's disappearance.

Meanwhile, Biju begins working at the Gandhi Cafe owned by Harish-Harry who is a mean man. Harish-Harry invites the staff to live in the basement below the kitchen, but then pays them a quarter of minimum wage. While working there and living in strenuous conditions, Biju falls ill. He asks for advance payment for his treatment but Harish declines to help him and says that if he cannot work he must return to India. Biju is too tired and brutalized by the continuous discrimination he faces in the U.S. and decides to come back to India. He brings all his savings and expensive American goods. In India, he finds that the roads to Kalimpong have been blocked because of curfew. Unable to find any way to go back to his home, he bribes GNLF members to drive him to the village. After days of driving, the insurgents rob Biju, taking even his clothes and shoes. His leg gets injured when he tries to oppose the GNLF members who leave him on the road. On his still injured leg, Biju walks to Cho Oyu wearing nothing but a woman's nightdress. The cook and Biju reunite, both overjoyed.

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!

Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchid by Kiran Desai | Characters, Summary, Analysis

Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchid by Kiran Desai | Characters, Summary, Analysis

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchid is the first novel by Kiran Desai which was published in 1998. Kiran Desai is the daughter of renowned Indian novelist Anita Desai. Kiran Desai was born in Delhi. At 14, she left India to live in England where her mother got a teaching job. Later on, Kiran moved to the United States with her mother where she completed her studies.

Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchid is in the genre of Magical Realism with themes including Nature vs Modernity, Traditions, Customs, Expectations, and Commercialization of Religion and Spirituality. The story of the novel is based upon the real-life incident of Kapila Pradhan, an Indian man living in Orissa who lived up a tree for 15 years. Kiran Desai took inspiration from his story and set her novel. The novel won the first prize in the Betty Trask Awards in 1998.

Characters of Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchid:

Sampath Chawla is the protagonist of the novel. He was born with rains after a long drought, so he is named Sampath, which means ‘good fortune.’ However, he doesn’t believe that he is lucky. He is a 20-year-old man who works at the local post office of the fictional village Shahakot. Sampath is highly imaginative and often fails to perceive the difference between reality and his imagination. He dislikes his boring job. Kulfi Chawla is Sampath’s mother. Like Sampath, she is also a bit strange and is known for her unusual behavior. When Kulfi’s father noticed her peculiar behavior, he was worried that it would be difficult to marry her and thus he arranged her marriage with Mr. Chawla in a hurry. Mr. Chawla loves Kulfi but fails to understand her unusual behavior and cravings for exotic food. Pinky Chawla is Samapth’s younger sister. She is a rather empty-headed teen Indian girl interested in clothes, appearances, and romance. She is embarrassed by her brother initially and only gradually feels sympathy for him. She is pretty and likes to get her own way; she is not afraid to ride the bus and stab aggressive men with her hairpin.

Mr. R. K. Chawla is the husband of Kufi and father of Sampath and Pinky. Unlike Kulfi and Sampath, he is a man of reason, a true bureaucrat and banker, he works at the Reserve Bank of Shahkot. Despite his love and lust for Kulfi, he gets disturbed by her nonchalance and strange behavior. Initially, he tries to change her but finds it impossible. When he sees that his son Sampath is also becoming like her mother, he tries his best to mold him but fails again. The C.M.O (Chief Medical Officer) of Shahkot is a corrupt man who is more worried about his own profits than the well-being of the public. The D.C. (District Collector) of Shahkot is a young, honest, hardworking man who tries to solve the crisis in Shahkot without enraging any of the involved communities. Mr. D.P.S. is the head of the post office and is Sampath's boss. He fires Sampath during his daughter's wedding when Sampath drops his pants in the fountain in front of the wedding guests. Mr. Gupta is a colleague of Sampath at the post office who is sympathetic towards him. Later on, he becomes the secretary to the new District Collector and advises him on the tense situation in Shahkot. Hungry Hop Icecream Boy is a young teen who sells Kwality ice cream from a cart in front of the cinema and rescues Pinky Chawla and her grandmother from the enraged monkey trapped in the cinema hall. Pinky gets infatuated by him but he fails to notice her romantic attention. Pinky begins writing letters to him and ultimately, he too begins growing feelings for her. Pinky plans to elope with him but he is not sure of doing such a daring task. Finally, he decides to elope but is caught by the forces who come to capture the monkeys in the guava orchard. Brother John was a missionary teacher of English literature at the school of Sampath during his school years. He was fired from his job for pinching the butt of a sweeper woman. Miss Jyotsna is a young beautiful woman working at the post office. Sampath loves her but fails to express his feelings. After Sampath accidentally comes to be viewed as a holy man, Miss Jyotsna grows to truly revere him and believe in his apparent holiness. Ammaji is Samapth’s grandmother. She is the kind of grandmother who is traditional and supportive to the younger generations, going along with her son, or granddaughter who wants to go to a movie—anything to keep the family together. The Atheist spy is a schoolteacher who hates his job in Shahkot and hopes to win fame as an undercover agent. Sampath Chawla is his first assignment from the Branch to Uncover Fraudulent Holy Men (BUFHM).

Summary of Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchid:

The novel is set in a fictional town Shahkot situated in the remotest part of northern India. The story begins during a strong heatwave during the insufferable summer that results in a long drought that turns the lives of the people of Shahkot miserable. Mr. R.K. Chawla is the head clerk of the Reserve Bank of Shahkot and his wife Kulfi is pregnant. She is known for her eccentric behavior and during her pregnancy she has been eating a lot of exotic food and fruits. Mr. Chawla tries to control her behavior but realizes that it is impossible and rather chooses to fulfill her demands. This makes Mr. Chawla and his family a topic of ridicule in the town. Kulfi is beautiful and Mr. Chawla loves her but she is not responsible enough to manage the homely duties. Thus, Ammaji, Mr. Chawla’s mother takes the responsibilities of home in her hands. The day when Kulfi gives birth to her child, everybody in the town rejoices because, on the same day, rains pour in the village streets. Right after his birth, the Swedish Red Cross makes a food drop right in front of Sampath's house.

The son of Mr. Chawla is celebrated as the harbinger of good fortune and rain by everyone. Not only does he bring on the much-needed rain, he causes the Red Cross, flying over Shahkot, to drop food for the hungry people. Thus, Mr. Chawla names his son Sampath which means good fortune.

While everyone believes that Sampath is destined to become a highly successful influential man, his eccentric mother and demanding father are not so sure about him. As he grows, Mr. Chawla realizes that just like her mother, Sampath too is a bit eccentric. He fails to concentrate on real subjects and often drifts in his own imagination. His father tries to discipline him so that he may attain a better education and become a successful person but he fails.

At the age of twenty, Sampath is a restless and absent-minded young man who works at the Shahkot post office. He still lives in the same house where he was born, with his mother Kulfi (whose odd behavior and cravings have persisted), his demanding father Mr. Chawla, and his kindly grandmother Ammaji. Pinki is Samapth’s younger fourteen-year-old headstrong sister who remains occupied with beautifying herself.

Sampath never did good in his studies and got a mediocre job at the post office. His father tries to counsel him on how he can get a better job or at least a raise in salary at the Post Office where he works. Sampath pays no attention to his father's advice. At the Post Office, Sampath spends hours alone, steaming open letters written to and from neighbors, and by so doing, he learns a great deal about their personal lives and their secrets. Sampath is fired from his job one night at the wedding of his boss's daughter, where he gets drunk and makes a fool of himself by stripping and dancing in a fountain. Disgraced Sampath returns home in distress. Kulfi feels sorry for Sampath, with whom she feels a great connection, and gives him a fresh guava. After he eats it, he immediately feels energized and transformed. With no job and no prospects of one, his father is frantic and orders his son to immediately go job hunting.

Sampath decides to run away from his house and the next morning, he takes a bus to the outskirts of town. The epiphany of the taste of guava that he ate last night still lingers in his mind. He notices a dense guava orchard and enters. He searches for the tallest guava tree. Atop this tree, he feels comfortable and at peace for the first time. He embraces the sweetness of the fruit and the tranquillity of the view. He begins imagining himself as a guava belonging to the tree. Alarmed by how much time Sampath begins spending in the guava tree, his family decides to arrange a marriage for him. However, Sampath has no interest in girls. He was infatuated by Miss Jyotsna who was his colleague at the post office but never dared to express his feelings. He dismisses the girl suggested by his father. This results in the growing curiosity of the townspeople who pass by him every day. Sampath used to read their postcards during his stint at the post office and thus he already knows a great deal of secrets about these people. When he begins questioning these passers-by about their daily lives, they imagine he is a holy man with psychic powers as he knows so much about them.

Mr. Chawla sees a business opportunity in this and allows Sampath to live atop the guava tree. Ammaji also helps her son and begins a tea stall near the guava orchard. Kulfi and Pinky begin caring for Sampath’s needs while he stays at the Guava tree. Soon Sampath begins offering sermons to the visitors who believe he is a holy man.

A schoolteacher of Shahkot daily notices this crowd gathering. He is an atheist and a member of the Branch to Uncover Fraudulent Holy Men (BUFHM). BUFHM appoints him as a spy to gather evidence against Sampath to expose his fraud. He begins to visit the guava orchard to listen to Sampath’s sermons. He notes down every dubious thing that Sampath says. But he fails to attain any clue against Sampath’s fraud while Sampath’s fame grows along with Mr. Chawla’s fortune. Soon local newspapers and TV channels begin featuring programmes and news items about Sampath.

As Sampath’s fate as a prophet is sealed, he lives entirely atop the tree, receiving food, clothes, supplies, and medicine from those below. Sampath hasn’t changed as a character, but people now revere him like a god – his previous laziness and drunken behavior are forgotten. His family moves into the orchard, and the economy benefits from this new-found prophet – buses make frequent visits to the site, merchants ply their trade, and those building the family’s new home at the orchard secure work. One day, a group of monkeys appears in Sampath’s orchard and takes a liking to him. But before long, they discover alcoholic beverages brought to the orchard by one of Sampath’s visitors. The monkeys become drunk and violent, and they’re soon hooked on alcohol, seeking it out wherever they can find it. Soon enough, the monkeys begin terrorizing the town of Shahkot in their unruly search for alcohol.

As the townspeople suffer the menace of monkeys, the inept government officials try to control them but fail. Meanwhile, some of the devotees of Sampath begin praying for the monkeys and giving them gifts as they feel they deserve respect. On the other hand, another group of people feel harassed by the monkeys and want to get rid of them. The monkey crisis becomes a huge controversy. Sampath feels sick and overwhelmed as his visitors argue furiously about the monkeys. He ran away and started living in this tree to escape from his responsibilities, but now he’s being forced to face new, more stressful expectations. He realizes that the peace and simplicity of the grove has been ruined, and he longs to escape before he’s trapped in this life forever.

He begins planning to run away again but finds no way. He decides to pretend as if he has been changed into a guava. The monkeys help him as they carry him further upward towards the top of the tree. Thus, the people and the atheist spy cannot see or catch him. Meanwhile, Kulfi makes a pot of stew beneath the tree. The spy tries to climb up and catch Sampath but Sampath disappears and after some time, something falls into the pot of stew. People notice that the branch on which the spy was standing had snapped and he fell down into the pot of stew. The novel ends here leaving the reader wondering if Sampath is still alive or not.

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!

Introduction to Songs of Innocence by William Blake | Structure, Summary, Analysis

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. The very first poem of the illustrative poetic collection Songs of Innocence by William Blake is titled ‘Introduction.’ In this poem, the poet explains the purpose and inspiration behind the poetry that he wrote for the book. Songs of Innocence is the first part of the later enlarged poetic collection Songs of Innocence and Experience; the two contrary states of the human soul. The whole theme of the poetic collection is that though a human being is innocent and pure during his infancy and childhood, he is prone to corruption and falls into the corrupt ways of the world as he grows old. Songs of Innocence is written in a pastoral setup. In the introductory poem, the narrator is described as a piper. He is happily piping when he sees a child on a cloud. The child asks him to pipe a song about a lamb, and when he does sing, the child weeps on hearing it. Again, the child asks the piper to sing and he sings the same song. The boy begins laughing with joy. The boy then demands that the narrator write his songs down so that "every child may joy to hear" them. Such fluent, creative joy, the poem suggests, is part of what innocence is all about. But darker notes in the poem remind readers that childlike innocence must also confront a world of pain and suffering.

Contrasting the figure of the Piper of Songs of Innocence, the introductory figure of Songs of Experience is the Bard.

Structure of Introduction to Songs of Innocence:

The poem is written in the form of a lyric. It is a 20-line poem set in five quatrains (four lines each). Some of these quatrains are written in heroic stanza form. The poem is written in trochaic tetrameter. There is no fixed rhyming scheme. Stanzas 1 and 4 follow the “ABAB” pattern, while stanzas 2, 3, and 5 use an “ABCB” pattern. This nursery rhyme shape suits a poem of childlike glee and creative inspiration.

It is the frontispiece of Songs of Innocence and works as the preface of the collection, giving a brief idea of the whole collection. In Hear Thy Voice (Introduction to Songs of Experience) the speaker describes his conversation with the Bard. Introduction to Songs of Innocence is structured as a dialogue between the narrator and the boy of vision which is described by the narrator to his audience. The poet has used Imagery, Symbolism, Allusion, Repetition, and Metaphor in the poem.

Summary of Introduction to Songs of Innocence:

Stanza 1 and 2 Lines 1-8

“Piping down the valleys wild

Piping songs of pleasant glee

On a cloud I saw a child.

And he laughing said to me.

Pipe a song about a Lamb;

So I piped with merry chear,

Piper pipe that song again—

So I piped, he wept to hear.”

The poet envisions himself as a shepherd who happily pipes the songs of happiness “down the valleys wild.” While doing so, he sees a vision of a boy sitting on a cloud. The poet feels that the child is admiring the song he is piping. The boy requests the shepherd to pipe another song about a Lamb. Blake used Allusion here. The ‘Lamb’ also refers to God, alluding to the innocence and the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ on the cross. The ‘valleys wild’ symbolizes the poem's rural, rustic, pastoral setting. The piper was happy finding an audience so he piped the song cheerfully. The boy asked him to pipe the song again and the piper obliged. But this time, the boy was sad as he thought about the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ on the cross.

Stanza 3 Lines 9-12

“Drop thy pipe thy happy pipe

Sing thy songs of happy chear,

So I sung the same again

While he wept with joy to hear ”

The narrator gets enchanted by the boy of vision. The boy requests again to sing the song about the Lamb. He asks the piper to “Drop his pipe” and sing his “songs of happy chear.” The shepherd realizes the divine nature of the boy from vision and he immediately obeys the request made by the boy. When the piper sings the song of Lamb, the child weeps again but this time, it is the cry of joy. The boy is too happy by the beauty of the song.

Stanza 4 Lines 13-16

“Piper sit thee down and write

In a book that all may read— 

So he vanish'd from my sight. 

And I pluck'd a hollow reed.”

In the stanzas 1-4, the narrator explains the inspiration and purpose of his writing the songs and poems that he wrote for the collection. He describes his conversation with the boy of vision that he saw sitting on a cloud. This conversation ends in the fourth stanza. The boy, after hearing the cheerful song of the piper, suggests him that he should “sit down and write” the songs he has created. The child suggests that he write them down “In a book that all may read”. The purpose is to spread the innocence and peity of these songs to a greater audience. The piper obliges again. The piper picks a hollow reed to use it as a pen.

Stanza 5 Lines 17-20
“And I made a rural pen,

And I stain'd the water clear,

And I wrote my happy songs

Every child may joy to hear”

The piper picked up a ‘hollow reed’ and used it as a ‘rural’ or not sophisticated pen. He used the clear water as stained ink. Here the poet used allusion again. Using the reed for a pen and stained water for the ink alludes to the act of creation to nature. The easily acquired tools provided by the natural world serve to emphasize the spontaneity of the works in Songs of Innocence. The narrator explains his purpose is to let every child have the joy of hearing these songs of innocence.

The poet also employed Parallelism in the poem. The shepherd's progression from piping, to singing, and finally to writing parallels the poet's own progression from inspiration, the music, to the initial composition of the poem, the lyrics, and finally the creative act of putting the words in poetic form.

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!

Hear thy Voice by William Blake | Introduction to the Songs of Experience

Hello and welcome to the Discourse. ‘Hear thy Voice’ is the first poem of the illustrated poetic collection Songs of Experience by William Blake which was published in 1794. Blake combined his two collections Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience in the same year and republished them. Hear Thy Voice is the first poem or frontispiece of Songs of Experience and it is also known as Introduction to the Songs of Experience. The very first poem offers the contrast between the two separate collections. While Blake wrote Songs of Innocence at an early age and most of those poems are written more simply to resonate with younger audiences, the poems of Songs of Experience are more captivating with rich and intricate symbolism, imagery, and metaphoric mysticism.

Blake wrote Songs of Innocence while opposing the idea of Original Sin and suggested that childhood is a protected state of innocence but it is not immune to the corrupt ways of the fallen world and its institutions. Thus, he stressed the importance of children's literature and juvenile education. His idea of innate innocence and goodness in human beings became the centerstone of Romanticism.

The Illustrative figure of Hear Thy Voice shows the same shepherd and winged child from the “Innocence” frontispiece. But the shepherd has captured the winged child and wrestled him firmly upon his head, pinning his arms to the earth, restricting his flying. The poem suggests that contemporary ideas and reason have restricted the creativity and imagination of people and they must raise their voice. Hear Thy Voice is an invocation to all of humankind to cast off their degenerate condition of suffering and blindness and to begin to self-govern the material universe (“fallen fallen light renew”) instead of remaining its prisoner.

Structure of Hear Thy Voice:

Blake used the Iambic tetrameter for this poem consisted of 20 lines set in four stanzas of five lines each. The poem has a consistent rhyme scheme of ABAAB in each stanza. Blake used Personification, Anthropomorphism, Symbolism, Imagery, Alliteration, and Repetition in this poem along with some illustrious Metaphors. The poem is structured as a dialogue between the Bard and the speaker. The Bard is a symbol of inspiration and creativity, while the speaker represents an individual who is struggling to find their voice. The dialogue between the two is meant to inspire the speaker and help them find their creative voice.

Summary of Hear Thy Voice:

Stanza 1 Lines 1-5

“HEAR the voice of the Bard,
Who present, past, and future, sees;
Whose ears have heard
The Holy Word
That walk'd among the ancient trees;”

The speaker suggests that one should hear the wise words of the Bard who has seen the present, past, and future, he is omniscient. The Bard heard the almighty and his ‘Holy Word’ that were meant to govern and bully all of mankind. Blake accuses the almighty of being an oppressive tyrant father figure. In line 5, Blake used Allusion to the Garden of Eden (“the ancient trees”) where Adam and Eve were punished for eating a fruit from the ancient tree. Blake used Capitalization with the beginning word (HEAR) to emphasize the importance of what the Bard has to say. The Bard appears to be some mystical person with cosmical awareness, who sees the present, past, and future.

Stanza 2 Lines 6-10

“Calling the lapsed soul,
And weeping in the evening dew;
That might control
The starry pole,
And fallen, fallen light renew!”

The poet explores the fallen state of humanity in this poem and calls him a ‘lapsed soul’. The sad humanity has been evicted from the state of innocence and hence has lost the connection with the divine. Thus, humanity weeps in the evening dew. The imagery suggests a compassionate feeling towards the human who just lost his innocence and fell for the corrupt world. Blake continues his Allusion to the Garden of Eden which is comparable to the state of innocence (childhood). He describes the expulsion from Eden and the individual’s loss of innocence upon becoming aware of mortality. The souls have fallen into sin and away from heaven.

The fallen man has a strong desire to ‘control the starry pole’, or to regain a sense of order, reason, and spiritual guidance that he lost in the fall. As he falls, he finds darkness all around and thus makes an earnest plea to ‘renew’ the light. The light is innocence, and the man requests for the restoration of the lost state of innocence, emphasizing the impact of individual awareness on the forfeiture of carefree childhood innocence.

Blake used metaphors (Starry Pole) for reason and spiritual guidance. ‘Weeping in the evening dew’ is a fine example of imagery. ‘Fallen, fallen light renew’ is an example of alliteration.

Stanza 3 Lines 11-15

“'O Earth, O Earth, return!
Arise from out the dewy grass!
Night is worn,
And the morn
Rises from the slumbrous mass.”

The Bard notices that the man is not able to stand again and thus he addresses the Earth. Blake used Anthropomorphism, casting Earth as a representation of the Divine Feminine. He tries to awaken the earth and ‘arise from out the dewy grass.’ The Bard offers an imagery of Divine earth sleeping in the dewy grass as if in hibernation which suggests the subjugation of the feminine by the patriarchial religious and societal setup. The Bard calls the feminine to arise and revolt. He says that the night is passing while the morning is arising from the ‘slumbrous mass’ which symbolizes a spiritual and feminine renaissance.

Stanza 4 Lines 16-20

“'Turn away no more;
Why wilt thou turn away?
The starry floor,
The watery shore,
Is given thee till the break of day.'”

The Bard again addresses Humanity and exhorts that humans must face the truth and must not turn away from it. “Turn away no more,” serves as a fervent plea, urging a cessation of avoidance or denial. The subsequent question, “Why wilt thou turn away,” adds a contemplative dimension, compelling humans to think why should they turn away or should they?

‘The starry floor’ and ‘watery shore’ suggest the limitless extent of a creative mind that the man can use if he breaks off the shackles. The Bard further warns that this opportunity is temporal or time-bound, this freedom that humans can enjoy is of a fleeting nature and thus humans must grab it. Instead of blaming themselves for being sinful, humans must attain pleasure through their creative capacities. The creator argues that the fall of humanity is a result of sin but the Bard counters, saying it is due to the creator’s restricted visions of inspiration and spirit and his lack of permission and allowance in a law-governed society.

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!