2nd - PUC - ENGLISH LITERATURE - HAND BOOK - VERY IMPORTANT POINTS TO REMEMBER

 

2nd - PUC - ENGLISH LITERATURE - HAND BOOK - VERY IMPORTANT  POINTS TO REMEMBER FOR UPCOMING EXAMINATION

LAST MINUTE PREPARATION 

01. ROMEO AND JULIET                  

William Shakespeare

Important points to remember:

Romeo says:

v  Juliet teaches the torches to burn bright.

v  She hangs upon the cheek of night.

v  She is like a rich jewel in an Ethiope’s ear.

v  Juliet’s beauty is too rich for use and too dear for the earth.

v  Juliet appears as a white dove among the crows.

v  He wants to make his rude hand blessed by touching hers.

v  He asks if his heart is loved till then.

v  He never saw true beauty till that night.

 

Juliet says:

v  He lies on the wings of night.

v  Romeo is the day of her night.

v  He should be cut out in little stars after her death.

v  He as little stars will make the face of heaven very fine.

v  The world will be in love with night.

v  People will not worship the garish sun.

 

Summary:

 One night, Romeo went to see Roseline. There, he saw Juliet. He loved her instantly. Her beauty excelled the brightness of torches. He compared her beauty with a rich jewel in an Ethiope’s ear. She shined like a snowy white dove among crows (co- dancers). After the dance, he wanted to make his rude hands soft by touching her soft hand.

Juliet welcomed Romeo. Romeo was like a day at night for Juliet. His charm excelled the whiteness of new snow on a raven’s back. After his death, she wanted Romeo to be cut in little stars. His bright shine will make the face of heaven very fine. People will stop worshipping the garish sun and the whole world will love the night.

 

2. TOO DEAR!                            

Leo Tolstoy

 

Important points to remember:

v  Monaco had a population of 7000. It had an army of 60 men.

v  Monaco was called a toy kingdom. It had a king, palace, ministers, army, generals, bishops, and courtiers on a small scale.

v  Tax was levied on spirits, wine, and tobacco. There was also a poll tax.

v  As income was less, the king had a special source of income – a Gaming House.

v  Once a murder was committed and the criminal was arrested. The court announced the death sentence.

v  Monaco had no guillotine. France expected 16,000 francs to supply the machine and an expert. Italy expected 12,000 francs for the machine.

v  In order to reduce the expense, the king changed the criminal’s punishment from a ‘death sentence’ to ‘life imprisonment’.

v  The king noticed that 600 francs were spent on the prisoner for a year.

v  Finally, the council awarded a pension of 600 francs to the prisoner.

 

Summary:

Monaco was a toy kingdom. Monaco’s population was seven thousand. It consisted of a king, palace, courtiers, ministers, bishop, and an army of 60 men. A tax was collected on tobacco, wine, and spirits. A special revenue came from the gaming house.

Once, a strange incident took place in Monaco. A murder was committed by a man. But there was no guillotine to cut his head. So, Monaco consulted the French Government to supply the machine. The French Government quoted 16,000 francs. It was considered expensive. So, Monaco consulted the Italian Government. The Italian Government quoted 12,000 francs. It was also considered expensive. So the council changed its decision from a death sentence to life imprisonment. The murderer was imprisoned. But the annual prison charges of 600 francs were also considered expensive.

The council met again and they dismissed the guard. But the criminal did not run away. He went at the proper time and brought his food from the prince’s kitchen. When they told him to run away, he said that he had no place to go and his character was ruined. People will turn their backs on him and he had also forgotten the way of working.

Finally, the council offered him a pension of 600 francs and settled the matter. He received one-third of his annuity in advance. He left Monaco and settled across the border. He bought some land and started market - gardening. He went to Monaco at the proper time to draw his pension, gambled, and lived peacefully.

 

3. ON CHILDREN                         

Khalil Gibran

Important points to remember:

 v  Children come ‘through’ but not ‘from’ parents.

v  Children are the sons and daughters of life’s longing for itself.

v  Parents can give their love to their children, but not their thoughts.

v  Children live in the house of tomorrow. Parents can never visit it, even in their dreams.

v  ‘Parents’ are the ‘bows’ from which ‘children’ as ‘living arrows’ are sent forth.

v  The bows should bend in the archer’s hand for gladness.

v  ‘God’ is the ‘archer’, ‘children’ are the ‘arrows’ and ‘parents’ are the ‘bows’.

v  God loves both the arrows and bows equally.

 

Summary:

In this poem, the speaker advises the parents in bringing up their children. He says our children are not our children. They are God’s creation. They come through us but not from us. Though they are with us they do not belong to us. Parents may give their love but not their thoughts to children. Our children think differently. We may try to be like our children. But, we should not force them to be like us. Life always moves forward. The speaker compares ‘the parents’ to ‘bows’, ‘the children’ to ‘arrows’ and ‘the archer’ to ‘God’. The archer loves both the bows and arrows. The archer bends the bows to make his arrows move swift and far.

4. EVERYTHING I NEED TO KNOW I LEARNED IN THE FOREST

Vandana Shiva

Important points to remember:

Ecological Journey:

 

v  Vandana Shiva’s ecological journey begins in the forests of the Himalayas.

v  Chipko - A non- violent response to the large scale deforestation.

v  Bachni Devi led resistance against her own husband.

v  Forests produce profit, resin and timber.

 

Beyond Monocultures:

 

v  Vandana Shiva’s book - ‘Monocultures of the mind’

v  Navdanya Farm was started in 1994 in the Doon Valley

v  Conservation and growth of 630 varieties of rice and 150 varieties of wheat.

v  Practice and promote biodiversity intense form of farming.

v  ‘Navdanya’-the movement for bio diversity conservation and organic farming.

v  100 community seed banks and 3000 rice varieties.

v  Transition from fossil fuel and chemical based monocultures to biodiverse ecological systems.

v  Biodiversity has been Vandana’s teacher of abundance.

 

Rights of Nature on the Global Stage:

 

v  We co-create and recognize nature’s agency and her rights.

v  Ecuador has recognized the ‘rights of nature’ in its constitution.

v  ‘Separatism’ is at the route of disharmony with nature and violence against nature and people.

v  ‘Apartheid’ means ‘separateness’ of humans from nature in our minds and lives.

 

The Dead-Earth World View:

 

v  Monocultures replaced diversity.

v  Francis Bacon - called the ‘Father of Modern Science’.

v  Carolyn Merchant - Philosopher and Historian.

v  Shift of perspective of nature from living to non-living, leading to capitalism.

 

What Nature Teaches:

v Multiple crises intensified by globalization.

v Earth University teaches earth democracy.

v Earth democracy is a shift from ‘anthropocentrism’ to ‘ecocentrism’.

v Earth University is located at Navadanya .

v Two popular courses offered by Earth University - ‘The A to Z of Organic Farming and Agro- Ecology’ and ‘Gandhi and Globalization’.

 

The Poetry of the Forest:

 

v The      Earth     University      is      inspired      by Rabindranath Tagore.

v Tagore’s essay is ‘Tapovan’.

v The    peace    of   the    forest   has    helped    the intellectual evolution of man.

v Unity in diversity is the basis of both ecological sustainability and democracy.

v The forest teaches us union and compassion.

v Principle of equity- Enoughness.

v The end of consumerism and accumulation is the beginning of the joy of living.

 

Summary:

 

Ecological Journey of Vandana Shiva:

 

Vandana Shiva is an environmentalist. She advocates biodiversity, organic farming and preservation of rights of nature. She developed the love for nature through her father and mother in childhood. Her involvement with nature began with Chipko movement. She spent her vacation in pad yatras, she documented the deforestation and the work of forest activists. She supported Bachni Devi and her friends in their resistance against forest officials to cut trees.

 

Beyond Monocultures:

 

Vandana Shiva, has described man’s failure to understand biodiversity and its functions in her book “Monocultures Of The Mind”. She understood protection of biodiversity and organic farming in our farms. So, she started “Navdanya Farm” in 1994 in the Doon Valley. In Navadanya farm, demonstration and training was given to save seeds from farmers’ fields. Today, they conserve and grow 630 varieties of rice and 150 varieties of wheat. There are more than 100 community seed banks across India. Biodiversity is her teacher of abundance and

freedom, of co-operation and mutual giving.

 

The Dead - Earth World View:

 

Man has separated himself from earth. Living earth was transformed into dead matter to facilitate the industrial revolution. ‘Terra Nullius’ (empty land) replaced ‘Terra Madre’ (mother earth). Father of modern science Francis Bacon gave importance to the power of science and inventions to conquer nature. But philosopher and Historian Carolyn Merchant has given importance to nature. He has said that we cannot damage nature without damaging ourselves.

 

The Poetry of the Forest:

 

The Earth University is inspired by Rabindranath Tagore. Tagore started ‘Shantiniketan’ in West Bengal to take inspiration from nature. In Tagore’s essay ‘Tapovan’, he writes that civilization has its source in the forest. Man’s best ideas have come from communion with tress and forests. Unity in diversity is the basis of ecological sustainability and democracy. Forest is the source of beauty and joy. Forest teaches us enoughness - a principle of equity. The end of consumerism and accumulation is the beginning of the joy of living.

 

                    5. A SUNNY MORNING                   

Serafin and Joaquin Alvarez Quinter

Important points to remember:

v Petra -Dona Laura’s maid servant.

v Juanito - Don Gonzalo’s male servant.

v Scene- Retired corner of a park in Madrid.

v Season - Autumn.

v Petra was 20years old.

v Bread crumbs for the pegions.

v Don Gonzalo was 70 years old.

v Dona Laura was about 70 years old.

v Three priests were sitting on a bench.

v A carriage would not raise more dust than Gonzalo’s feet.

v Gonzalo scared away the birds who were feeding on Laura’s bread crumbs.

v Gonzalo said that Juanito played havoc with the nurse maids.

v Gonzalo touched his hat to greet Laura.

v Gonzalo called Laura ‘senile old lady’.

v Gonzalo used his hand kerchief to brush the dust from his shoe.

v “A neighbour’s right”, said Laura to criticize Gonzalo’s actions.

v Laura compared Gonzalo’s pair of glasses to a telescope.

v Gonzalo took out his gun and dog every Sunday.

v Gonzalo’s estate was near Aravaca.

v Gonzalo had a wild boar’s head in his study.

v Laura had a tiger’s skin in her boudoir.

v A pinch of snuff brought peace between Laura and Gonzalo.

v They sneezed three times alternately.

v Laura was called ‘The Silver Maiden’.

v Laura had been forced to marry a merchant.

v Gonzalo grasped the flag of Spain when he died.

v Gonzalo said that Laura was indifferent as she was chasing butterflies in the garden.

v Laura wanted herself to be remembered as the black-eyed girl.

v The guard gave Violets to Petra to be given to Laura

v Laura and Gonzalo departed with a promise to meet again on ‘A Sunny Morning’

 

Summary:

 

This play revolves around the ex-lovers Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo. They met after a long time in a park in Madrid. But they pretend as strangers. Don Gonzalo was angry because his bench was occupied by three priests. But Laura was happy because he had chased away the pigeons feeding on her bread crumbs. Gonzalo called Laura as a ‘senile old lady’. Laura called him an ‘ill-natured man.

 

After some time, they became friends through a pinch of snuff. Gonzalo said that he lived in Valentia. Laura said that she too lived in Valentia and her friend lived in a villa at Maricela. Both startle and identify each other but do not disclose their true identity. Laura lied that, ‘The Silver Maiden’ was her friend. Gonzalo lied that the ‘gallant young horseman’ was his cousin. He had loved her friend. Laura thought that he did not suspect. Gonzalo thought that she was also innocent, and both continue pretention. Gonzalo feels happy that he had kept the information of his elopement to Paris with a ‘ballet dancer’, a secret. Laura feels happy that she too had kept the information of her marriage with the horseman, a secret.

The play has a perfect climax. Both bluff about their own deaths. Gonzalo told her that his cousin joined the army, went to Africa and died in the war field. Laura told him that her friend, ‘The Silver Maiden’ wrote her lover’s name on the sand, sat upon the rock and the waves swept her. Both agree to meet the next day and leave the park. Gonzalo guesses if it could be her (Laura). Laura guesses if it could be him (Gonzalo).

 6. WHEN YOU ARE OLD                  

W.B. Yeats

 

Important Points to Remember:

 

v Poet tells her to read his book when she is old and gray.

v He tells his beloved to dream of the soft look her eyes had once.

v Many loved her moments of glad grace.

v Only he loved her pilgrim soul and sorrows of her changing face.

v She would murmur how love fled upon the mountains and hid his face amid the crowd of stars.

 

Summary:

 

In this poem love poem, the speaker addresses his beloved. He wants his beloved to repent. So, he tells her to sit by the fire and read this book of poems, when she becomes old. He also tells her to dream of the soft look her eyes had once and their deep memories. She would realize that he loved her ‘pilgrim soul’ and the sorrows of her changing face. But others loved her ‘physical beauty’. After reading the book she would murmur how love fled upon the mountains and his face amid a crowd of stars.

   7. THE GARDENER                      

P. Lankesh

Important points to remember:

 

v The author uses a distinctive style of narration.

v The story has a typical beginning and an abrupt ending.

v The structure of the story is complex, as there is a story within the story.

v The gardener and the owner of the plantation is the same person -Tammanna.

v The story throws light on the strange personality of human nature.

v Man is very complicated.

v After a particular age man loses his name.His age becomes important.

v Tammanna    was    a    labourer,    overseer    and philosopher.

v The old man was well-versed in agriculture.

v The plantation which was only ten acres had expanded beyond imagination after the old man’s arrival.

v The old man offered the lady tender coconuts.

v The old man’s story began on the embankment of the well, when the sun was slipping into the western horizon.

v The plantation consisted of coconut, mango and jack fruit trees.

v The plantation expanded and the owner became lethargic and shied away from hard work.

v Tammanna’s most important possession was his rival Basavaiah.

v Tammanna had one thousand acres and Basavaiah owned eight hundred acres of land.

v Basavaiah acquired two hundred acres of Tammanna’s land forcibly and built a fence around it.

v Tammanna could approach the court of law or the police but he was in search of a new method that could annihilate (destroy) Basavaiah completely.

v Tammanna moved from the visible towards an invisible, abstract domain.

v Art had become the raison-d’etre (n)(French)(meaning reason, cause of life) for Tammanna.

v Scholars of folklore and critics were after Tammanna.

v Basavaiah filled his life with material wealth.

v Basavaiah invited scholars, poets and musicians to his place.

v Tammanna’s disease was Basavaiah’s health.

v Tammanna’s    another    method   of    punishing Basavaiah was death.

v A nation is capable of withstanding strains but not a human being.

v The young child of Lokya who paints well was bedridden with fever.

v The story begins with,”Elaboration can only impoverish this account and make it less authentic” and ends in, ‘Forgive me’.

v Unable to elaborate, I have told you whatever I felt as it is. I had seen all this in a dream”.

 

Summary:

 

The Gardener is a short story written by P. Lankesh. The story narrates the strange nature of human beings.

 

The narrator begins the story by introducing us to an old man. He says that he saw him in a coconut grove and had come from a far off place. He knew agriculture. The owner of this plantation wanted such a person. The old man tackled all kinds of problems of the workers. Petty thefts stopped and things improved dramatically. The plantation expanded and the income increased. But, the lifestyle of the owner changed. He avoided hard work and became lethargic. He learned many vices. This worried the wife of the owner.

 

The gardener met her one day and narrated the story of Tammanna.Tammanna was a rich person. But he had a rival named Basavaiah. Both competed with each other for posessing more and more lands. There was no land left to acquire in their village. Basavaiah forcibly encroached upon Tammanna’s land. Tammanna became angry. He thought of a new method to destroy Basavaiah completely. He composed songs and ballads about Basavaiah’s meanness and cruelty. He became very popular and was honoured as the poet of his times. Basavaiah was humiliated. He tried to compensate for it by accumulating more riches and hired flatterers to praise him. But he failed to match Tammanna.

 

Once Tammanna fell ill. This news thrilled Basavaiah. He felt good that he had established supremacy over Tammanna. However, Tammanna thought of punishing Basavaiah more severely. So, he gave up everything and went to an unknown place. When Tammanna went Basavaiah felt he had no essence to live on and died soon. With the death of Basavaiah, Tammanna forgot all his songs. Thus, Tammanna was able to avenge Basavaiah in a non-violent method.

 

         8. TO THE FOOT FROM ITS CHILD         

Pablo Neruda

Important points to remember:

v The poem narrates the harsh realities of life’s struggles.

v The foot of the child wants to become a butterfly or an apple.

v Later, ladder, bits of glasses, rough paths teach the foot that it cannot fly or become an apple.

v The foot is defeated and imprisoned in the shoes.

v Slowly, the soft nails become quartz. They become opaque substances and hard as horns.

v The petaled toes of the child become eyeless reptiles with triangular heads.

v Imprisoned in the shoes, foot walks one after the other. It moves through the fields, mines, markets, ministries, inward, forward and backwards.

v The foot walks until man chooses to stop.

v After the death of the foot, it is buried underground but it is unaware it is dead.

 

Summary:

 

The poem ‘To the Foot from its Child’ is written by Pablo Neruda.The poet speaks about the hardships and struggles faced by people in life.

 

In the poem, the foot dreams to become a butterfly or an apple. But, it doesn’t know that it is only a foot. The foot learns a lesson by the rough paths, bits of glasses and ladder. It becomes aware that it is only a foot and it can never become a butterfly or an apple. Slowly, the foot gets imprisoned in shoes. The foot lives in total darkness without contact with the other foot. The soft nails of the foot, which were once quartz, become opaque substances. They become hard as horns. The petaled toes of the child take the shape of eyeless reptiles with triangular heads.

 

The imprisoned foot continues to live in total darkness. It walks, they walk one after the other. It walks through the fields, mines, markets, ministries, inward, forward and backwards. It continues to walk until man stops to walk. Finally, the man dies, and the foot is buried underground. Now, the foot can become anything it wishes. Unfortunately, the foot has forgotten that it had aspired to become a butterfly or an apple.

09. I BELIEVE BOOKS WILL NEVER DISAPPEAR

Jorge Luis Borges

Important points to remember:

 

v Borges’ first literary reading was ‘Grimm’s Fairy Tales’.

v Borges’ was educated in his father’s library.

v His mother was an extra-ordinary person. She had no enemies.

v For Borges, blindness was a way of life.

v He said that every misfortune, humiliations, embarrassments are given to humans as raw materials as clay to shape our art.

v Borges said that poetry is magical and brings happiness. It is intimate and essential one. Poetry is an aesthetic act.

v Books are sacred and they go beyond the author’s intention.

v Borges said that every book worth being re- read has been written by the spirit.

v There are five basic metaphors – time and river; life and dream;

v death and sleep; stars and eyes; flowers and women.

v Borges said that telephone is the extension of human voice, telescope and micro-scope are the extensions of eyes, and sword and plough are the extensions of human arms.

v Borges said that books are the extension of human imagination and memory. Hence books are the great memory of all centuries.

v Borges said that history would disappear if books disappear. If history disappears man would disappear.

 

Summary:

 

This lesson is an excerpt from ‘Twenty Four Conversations with Borges’. The interviewer asks various questions to Borges on topics like poetry, metaphor and books.

 

Borges revealed that he had his early readings in his father’s library. His first literary reading was ‘Grimm’s Fairy Tale’. He said blindness was a way of life for him and he had accepted it as a resource. He said all embarrassments, misfortunes, and humiliations were given to humans as resources. They should shape their lives from them. Books that are re-read are written by spirit. He felt guilty for he did not take proper care of his mother. His mother was an intelligent and gracious woman. She had no enemies.

Borges said that poetry is very intimate. It is difficult to define. Poetry is magical and mysterious. He said that there are five basic metaphors. They are – time and river; life and dreams; death and sleep; stars and eyes; flowers and women. He said that books will never disappear. Books are the most astounding inventions of man. He said that the telescope and the microscope are extensions of our sight, telephone is the extension of our voice, and the sword and the plough are the extensions of our arms. Similarly, books are the extensions of human memory and imagination. Books are the memories of all centuries. He said that if books disappear, surely history would disappear. If history disappears, man disappears.

10. HEAVEN, IF YOU ARE NOT HERE ON EARTH

Kuvempu

 

Important points to remember:

 

v  The speaker says that if heaven is not on earth, it is not elsewhere.

v  If the people themselves are not gods, there are no Gods

v  If the people are not nymphs, they are no nymphs

v  Murmuring stream, the surf at the end of the waves, the tender sunshine in the green gardens and gentle sun-allmake this earth heaven.

v  Heaven is scattered everywhere in the form of harvest and moonlight

v  The poet drinks the nectar of song and creates real heaven on earth.

 

Summary:

 

People are in search of heaven. In this poem, the poet asks us to find heaven on earth and not elsewhere. Gods and heavenly nymphs are present in ourselves. We can also find heaven in the roaring stream, rolling surf of waves , the tender sunshine on verdant gardens and the gentle sun. Heaven is also present in the splendour of harvest and moonlight. Heaven is everywhere. The poet creates heaven on earth by imbibing and spilling the song of nectar through his poem.

11. JAPAN AND BRAZIL THROUGH A TRAVELER'S EYE

George Mikes

Important points to remember:

 

v  George Mikes writes about his travelling experiences in Japan and Brazil.

v  Travel writing is about one’s own experience of visiting new places. Travel Writing is very popular as it highlights how one culture gets represented by another.

v  George Mikes brings out the best aspects of Japanese culture, mannerisms and how courtesy substitutes privacy.

v  Bowing is a mania in Japan. Everybody bows to everybody in Japan. Bowing is more oriental, formal and quainter.

v  There is a complicated hierarchy in bowing.

v  Japanese have a distinct style of eating soup. Making a fearful noise while eating soup is a sign of appreciation.

v  Brazilians have an aesthetic way of decorating the grey pavements with black mosaics in the streets of Copacabana.

v  Brazilians are very passionate about cars but motor cars are very expensive in Brazil.

v  Drivers in Brazil are always on the look-out for pedestrians. The war between the drivers and pedestrians is like hunter and prey, but an amicable smile puts an end to the game.

v  The war between drivers is murderous yet there is no anger, hostility and mad hooting.

 

Summary:

 

George Mikes, a Hungarian writer, writes about his travelling experiences in Japan and Brazil. The author finds bowing in Japan is quainter and formal. But bowing in Japan is a natural practice in their culture. Bowing is very infectious in Japan. Anybody who goes to Japan starts bowing to others after a few hours.

 

There is a complicated hierarchy in bowing. It is, who bows to whom, how deeply and for how long. Though bowing is complicated to the author, Japanese manage it without any difficulty. George Mikes notices the basic rules in the family. Wife bows to her husband, child bows to the father, and younger brothers bows to elder brothers and sisters to all brothers. The writer is astonished to see even a deer bowing in a Park and how the bowing gentlemen transform themselves into savages when a bus arrives. Japanese have a distinct style of eating soup. While eating soup, you should make a fearful noise to appreciate.

 

Brazilians have craze for cars and speed. The author highlights the number of motor cars growing enormously. The war between drivers and pedestrians is like hunter and prey. The war between drivers themselves is murderous but good tempered. Crossing the road in Brazil is challenging. It is humorous and fascinating to see how a person stands contemplating on one side of the road to get to the other side of the place in Avenida Presidente Vargas.

 

12. THE VOTER                           

Chinua Achebe

Important points to remember:

 

v  Rufus Okeke – known as Roof.

v  Very popular young and energetic man.

v  He spent two years as a bicycle repairer’s apprentice in Port Harcourt.

v  Umuofia’s people needed his guidance.

v  Umuofia’s most illustrious son was Marcus Ibe.

v  Marcus Ibe was minister of culture in the outgoing government.

v  Roof was an expert and the most trusted in election campaigning.

v  He could tell the mood and temper of the electorate.

v  Marcus Ibe became rich after he became minister.

v  Marcus Ibe was not a successful mission school teacher.

v  Marcus Ibe had two long cars and a big house.

v  Marcus Ibe named his house “Umuofia Mansions”.

v  Marcus Ibe was prepared for the forth coming elections by drawing five months salary in advance.

v  PAP – People’s Alliance Party.

v  POP – Progressive Organization Party.

v  People of Umoufia demanded more money for their votes.

v  POP campaigners met at night.

v  POP campaigners offered five Pounds to Roof to cast his vote for Maduka.

v  Maduka – POP candidate.

v  Symbol of PAP – motor car.

v  Symbol of POP – a man’s head.

 

Summary:

‘The Voter’ is a short story by Chinua Achebe. Rufus Okeke was known as Roof. He was a popular young man from Umoufia. He was the most trusted men among the PAP workers of Marcus Ibe , minister of culture in the outgoing government. He had become a real expert in election campaigning in the village. He used to bribe the voters for votes in favour of Marcus Ibe.

 

Marcus Ibe was not too successful Mission School teacher. He joined politics and became minister of culture. He had two long cars and the biggest house called ‘Umuofia Mansions”. Roof met five elders in the village and offered them two shillings each. But the people of Umoufia noticed the enhanced wealth of Marcus’s Ibe, after he became the minister and demanded more shillings for their votes. Finally, Roof ended up giving four shillings each.

 

The Team of POP campaigners met Roof secretly and offered him five pounds to cast his vote for Maduka – A POP candidate. He was trapped by the sight of red notes on the floor. Roof accepted the bribe. They asked him to swear in the name of iyi from Mbanta.

 

On the election day Roof was in a fix. Finally, Roof tore the ballot paper in two along the crease and put one half in each box. He had kept his promise to the POP campaigner but had certainly cheated Marcus Ibe. He also had wasted his valuable vote.

 

           13. WHERE THERE IS A WHEEL          

P. Sainath

Important points to remember:

 

v  Cycling was the chosen medium for the rural women in Pudukottai district.

v  Bicycling symbolized independence, freedom and mobility for most of the neo-literates.

v  More than 100,000 rural women most of them were neo-literates had taken to bicycling.

v  Jameela Bibi said that cycling was her right.

v  Fathima – a secondary school teacher said that cycling gave them freedom and independence.

v  The beneficiaries of cycling were, women agricultural workers, quarry labourers, andvillage health nurses, balawadi and anganwadi workers, gem cutters, school

teachers, gramasevikas and mid day meal workers.

v Arivoli Iyakkam meant Light of Knowledge Movement.

v N.Kannammal a science graduate and the Arivoli Central Co- Ordinator was one of the pioneers of the cycling movement.

v Cycling reduced the dependence of rural women on men.

v Arivoli gave cycling a social sanction and encouraged women to come out of male imposed barriers.

v The rural women have the perception that all women ought to learn cycling to empower themselves and enrich the literacy movement.

v Muthu Bhaskaran, a male Arivoli activist wrote the famous cycling song that had become their anthem.

v Cycling as a social movement was the brainchild of the popular former district collector Sheela Rani Chunkath.

v Sheela Rani included mobility as a part of the literacy drive.

v Some women preferred gents’ bicycles as these had an additional bar and they could seat the children.

v Over 1500 female cyclists took Pudukottai by storm on “The International Women’s Day” in 1992.

v S.Kannakarajan, owner of Ram Cycles was the only bicycle dealer in Pudukkottai.

v Manormani, a quarry worker and an Arivoli volunteer said that, “those who know cycling, can be mobile”.

v UNICEF sanctioned 50 mopeds for Arivoli women activists.

v More than 70,000 women displayed their cycling skills at the public ‘exhibition-cum- contests’ run by Arivoli.

v Cycling boosts income, some of the rural women could sell their agricultural produce.

v Bicycle cuts down on time wasted in waiting for bus.

v Cycling reduced their dependency on men.

v Cycling saves time and helps to earn more money from their produce.

v Bicycle is a humble vehicle and acts as a metaphor for freedom.

 

Summary:

Pudukkottai, one of the poorest districts of Tamil Nadu was a witness to radical change. The rural women especially the neo-literates had taken to cycling. It had become a symbol of independence, freedom and mobility. The cycling movement had given women confidence. It had reduced their dependence on men. The productivity of rural women had increased due to cycling. Women no longer had to walk long distances to fetch water or sell their products or bring provisions.

 

Neo-Literate and Neo-cyclist women had a direct link between cycling and their personal independence. Cycling had offered them a way out of enforced routines and around male-imposed barriers. Thus bicycle is a humble vehicle and is a metaphor for freedom. It was a Himalayan achievement, like flying an aeroplane for the rural women.

 

                               14. WATER                              

Challapalli Swaroopa Rani

Important Points to Remember:

v  Water is a witness to centuries of social injustice.

v  It knows the generations old strife between the village and the wada.

v  It knows the difference of race between the Samaria woman and Jesus the Jew.

v  It knows the sub-caste difference between leather and spool.

v  Water also knows the agony of the panchama who had no right to draw a pot of water.

v  It knows the humiliation of the wada girl.

v  Karamchedu Suvarthamma opposed kamma landlords.

v  Water is not just H2O for the poet, but a mighty movement.

v  Mahad struggle at the Chadar tank is a social movement for a single drop of water.

v  The wada people welcomed their weekly bath as a wondrous festival.

v  Malapalle was burnt to ashes for want of a pot of water.

v  Water can give life and also devour lives.

v  It became the killer Tsunami wave that swallowed whole village after village.

v  The poor are but playthings in the vicious hands of water.

v  Water sits innocently in a Bisleri bottle.

v It dances in to the Pepsi man’s bottle.

v The new name of water is ‘mineral water’.

v It is a multinational market commodity.

v Water is considered to be Omniscient.

 

Summary:

In this poem, Challapalli Swaroopa Rani deals with the issues of the caste system. According to the poet, water knows the caste discrimination, that untouchability never disappears. It knows the difference of race, sub-caste difference, agony of the Panchama, humiliations of the wadagirl and also the righteous rage of Karamachedu Suvarthamma. It is a witness to centuries of social injustice. But water is just a mute witness to all these. Water is a reminder that embodies tears shed over several generations. Water is here a metaphor depicting the sorrows and sufferings of the wada and the village people

 

Water has become a reason for many movements and struggles. It can give life and devour lives. But only poor are the victims. Water can ignite many struggles and strife between villages, states and nations. Water is a multinational market commodity.

Omniscient water contains the world.