Summary of "WHEN LINCOLN CAME TO PITTSBURGH" by DOROTHY CALHOUN

WHEN LINCOLN CAME TO PITTSBURGH

DOROTHY CALHOUN

“When Lincoln Came to Pittsburgh” is a radio drama written by Dorothy Calhoun. Radio dramas have the challenge to convey something in a short span of time by means of sound effects and dialogue. It replaces the visual presentation by sound effects and dialogue. The major features of a radio drama are music and occasional interventions by the narrator. This radio drama is an episode of ‘American Yesterdays’. It is about the historical visit of Abraham Lincoln, the elect President of the U.S. to Pittsburgh in February 1861 for a short while and based on the short stay this play is written.

          This play presents one day incident in Pittsburgh. It aims to project the American historical heroes in their own times and whether the others of the same period recognize such great men as historical figures in future. By stating the aim through the narrative the play tires to present the views/impressions of the American citizens around 1860’s about the then President Abraham Lincoln.

          Dr. John Goucher is a very committed doctor who concerns more about his patients. Mrs. Goucher is an ideal mate of Dr. Goucher, who helps her husband in the treatment of patients. The visit of Mr. Lincoln to Pittsburgh creates excitement among the children of Mr & Mrs. Goucher. Tom and Mark the grown up boys, decide to see Mr. Lincoln. Dr. Goucher states that he saw him the previous day and describes Mr. Lincoln personality as six feet three inches tall and his features are friendly, kind and determined. By listening to his father’s description of Mr. Lincoln’s personality, John, the youngest son becomes curious to meet Mr. Lincoln and to talk to him. When the children share their desire to meet Mr. Lincoln, Dr. Goucher leaves for his duty. Before leaving he asks his wife to meet one of his patience Mrs. Moore as she needs hope than medicine.

          Mark and Tom leave home in a hurry to see Mr. Mr. Lincoln. John’s pleaded his elder brothers to take him as well to see Mr. Lincoln. They reject his request by stating that he is young and it is difficult to manage him in the crowd. Even when their mother asked them to take him, they rejected by cautioning that he may get lost in the crowd and they have to see the President. It leaves John in tears. Spike, another young boy and friend of John, comes to meet John. John goes with Spike to meet the President with his mother’s approval. Mark and Tom get struck in the middle of the crowd and they could not see the President fully. They saw only his legs and head and they could not listen to the President’s speech completely. Meanwhile John and Spike enters through the crowd and see Mr. Mr. Lincoln and listen to his speech fully. Mr. Lincoln shapes his happiness to be in Pittsburgh and states that the people of Pittsburgh are privileged to live in a place which is surrounded by beautiful hills. In less than a month he is about to be inaugurated President of the U.S. He has a great responsibility as he could see unrest, which may lead to war in the south. He calls the development of tension towards South as clouds. He concludes his speech with a confidence note that in spite of the threat the nation will see a rainbow above the clouds of war. Spike, a small boy understood the President’s speech literally by pointing out the black cloud in the sky. When Mr. Lincoln finishes his speech John in an urge to shake hands with Mr. Lincoln, crawls under the legs of the crowd and goes near him. He introduces himself to Mr. Lincoln and says that he has many questions to ask. The impressed President appreciates his braveness. John tells Mr. Lincoln that he wants to be a great man like him in future. Mr. Lincoln encourages and advises John to do good deeds and to serve others which is the golden rule to be followed. If he follows that he will be a successful person in future. John promises to follow his advice and leaves the place, to meet his friend. He shares his happiness with spike.

               The night falls, Mrs. Allen, Goucher’s neighbors comes to meet Mrs. Goucher. She comes to return a cup of flour which she borrowed the previous week. They both discuss about Mr. Lincoln’s talk.  Mrs. Allen says that she saw a small boy who remembered John shaking hands with Mr. Lincoln and praises Mr. Lincoln’s speech as inspiring. Dr. Goucher and the elder boys return home. They worry about John as he was not seen around and around that time John returns home. Tom and Mark convinces John by stating that they only saw the President’s leg and hat and could not even listen his speech fully. John repeats Mr. Lincoln’s talk and narrates about his meeting with the President. Tom and Mark feel upset about their mistake of leaving John. John questions his father whether he could be a great man as Mr. Lincoln said. His father replies John that if he puts his full effect, he would succeed. The play ends with a promise to listen to another delightful episode in the next week.

summary of John Keats' "Ode on a Grecian Urn"

Ode on a Grecian Urn

John Keats

John Keats is a great English poet of the Romantic age. The poem “Ode on a Grecian Urn” presents the complexity between art and reality.  This poem is written in the pattern of Ode, means a type of lyrical poem usually gives the writer’s personal emotions about a person or an object. This poem is written in five stanzas each containing ten lines. Keats observation and his personal emotion towards the Greek Urn are depicted in this poem.

Keats looks at a Greek Urn which is decorated with many images in a museum or in his imagination. The following five stanzas are his imagination or his personal feel towards the urn. He calls the urn as an untouched bride of quietness. The urn is seen as a female whose foster parents are silence and time, as it is not destroyed by time and represent the past silently. The pictures on the urn give more sweet tales than the writers could and thus he calls the urn as ‘sylvan historian’. As the urn presents the Greek rustic life of the past, it is seen as a historian. By calling the urn as historian Keats looks at the urn closely and he could see the borders by a line of leaves around the pictures. Each picture has its own tale. It has the shapes of gods, humans or both of them present in the valley Tempe or in the region of Arcady. He could see some images and speculates whether they are god or men, some girls are being chased by some wild boys, musical instruments are being played and humans or god becomes wild due to the music. 

Now the poet looks at the specific picture where a piper plays some music. Keats states that heard melodies are sweet and the melodies in the urn could not be heard whereas one could imagine the song.  Thus the songs of the piper will remain sweeter in fantasy or imagination and that music is not for the physical ear whereas for the spiritual ear. He then describes about a young man who is playing a song by sitting under a tree. As the urn is immortal the young man will sing forever under the tree which will be full with leaves forever. There is a bold lover who could not kiss his ladylove though he is near her as the picture standstill. The poet asks him not to worry about it as his ladylove will always be beautiful and he will love her forever.  Through these lines Keats tries to imply that the imagined world on the vase is superior to the real world of experience.

Keats feel jealous about the urn as it keeps everything immortal. He says that the tree in the picture remains happy as it does not shed its leaves and also enjoys the spring season forever. The pipers in the picture also are happy as they sing new songs ever. Keats imagines that the lovers are happier as they will love and enjoy forever. Their love is above all the human passion. Human love leaves one with passion or with sorrow.

The other part of the urn with different scenery is presented to the readers by Keats.  He sports a scene on the urn where a group of people coming for sacrifice. He sees a place to sacrifice a heifer which is dressed with garlands by a mysterious priest. The little town by the river side or by the sea shore is built among the peaceful surrounding. As all the people of the town have gone for the sacrifice on a pious day, the town is empty without people. Thus the little town will always be empty and the streets will be silent forever.

Keats address the urn directly as a symbol of Athenian art, beautiful in shape, carved on the embroidered space with the images of men and women. With the beautiful pictures the silent urn confuses and teases humans about eternity. The poet calls the urn as ‘cold pastoral’ to mean either its marble texture or as it remains still in time. The mortals get aged whereas the urn will remain the same amidst the problems of humans as a friend to them. The urn advises humans about what they need to know on earth. The message is “Beauty is truth, truth beauty” that is beauty and truth are one and the same. It in turn consoles humans.

summary of "Women Writing the Nation" by Susie Tharu & K.Lalitha

Women Writing the Nation

Susie Tharu & K.Lalitha

The essay “Women Writing the Nation” is an extract from the introduction of the book titled The Twentieth Century: Women Writing the Nation written by Susie Tharu & K.Lalitha. They talk about the Indian women writing, its theme and style especially after independence. The introduction part advises the readers to read women writing against the conventional methods in order to understand the challenges undergone by the women writers.

The essay begins by stating the decades 1940s and 1950s concluded the long and unhappy period of imperial domination. Moreover those decades presented the initiation of new authorities and hence new skills were circulated among the Indians. It resulted in the establishment of imaginative geography of India. Such established notions/ skills were extended and reworked in the second half of the twentieth century. At present people expect a feminist literary history to project the forces/struggles the women writers underwent to read and write literary texts during their hard times instead of giving it as repetition of rebellious act or as a dream to win. They expect the feminist literary history to present a different approach by highlighting the women writers’ conflicts in the then determined world and about women’s position. Such history should read literary texts to point out the real world’s task, rather focusing upon the aesthetic effects. In addition the writers want the feminist literary history to present schemes of the nation by reading such texts in unconventional way. Thus women’s writing enables the readers to know a history of feminist initiatives, its situations.  Such reading will reveal a literary text as a source of information about the debate, protest and negotiation which are closely connected to women in each historical moment.

The narratives of women across the nation contribute powerful articulation through which the world is recreated. The book The Twentieth Century: Women Writing the Nation focuses on three major themes:  

1.     Questions the emergence of caste and communalism during Swadeshi Strand                  of the Nationalist Movement

2.     Raises the issue of gender and class in the context of the Progressive Writer’s Associations

3.     Women’s movement of the 1920’s and 1930’s which is shaped by the liberal electoralism.

By dwelling on these three major themes, the work attempts to understand gender and nation –in process, to provide the narrative and analytical context especially to the works from the 1970’s, the third phase of the modern women’s movement. The authors believe that such reading will illustrate the construction of gender. Moreover they aim to bring out the transformation of themes and languages of the women writing in the cultural politics of each period. It enables the readers to understand the difficulties and challenges inherited by the women writers of the 1970's.

"Decolonising the Mind" by Ngugi wa Thiong’o- summary

The essay “Decolonising the Mind” is written by Ngugi wa Thiong’o, an African writer. Many countries were colonized by the Europeans in the past. They introduced their culture and language in the colonized countries as part of their own development. English was forced into the colonized countries as an official language by the British, which also colonized the mind of the natives. Even after decolonization of such countries by the British, people of those countries are still colonized mentally. They celebrate the British language and try to mimic the British. This essay talks about the implementation of  English as the official language by the British in the colonized countries, impact of such act upon the native languages and its present condition. This essay also tries to give suggestion to decolonize the mind. Thiong’o uses a suitable title by providing suggestions to decolonize the mind.

          Thiong’o talks about his personal experience with his mother tongue and the English language. He was born in a larger family with around 35 members. Their mother tongue was Gikuyu and it was used for communication. He remembers the evenings of storytelling around the fireside with his family members. The grownups narrated stories to the children and the following day the children would retell the stories while working in the fields. The stories were narrated in Gikuyu and most of them had animals as main characters, especially hare, though small, it was full of wit and cunning. The children identified themselves with hare as it struggled against big animals like lion, leopard or hyena. The children personified the victory of hare as their victories and it developed their confidence as the weak could outwit the strong. The children were also interested to observe the hostile natural elements which confront for animals cooperation and sometimes their struggles amongst themselves. The children compared the animals struggle against nature and other animals with the real life struggles of the human.

Stories with humans as the lead role had the central theme: togetherness is ultimate for a community. Those stories had two sets of characters (1) humans with all positive characterization and (2) humans with all negative characters, who could eat other humans. Such stories cultivated moral values among the children. Thiong’o talks about good and bad storytelling. The good storytellers could narrate the same story interestingly many times with rich usage of different words and images with varying tones of voices. This kind of effective storytelling enabled the children to understand the value of words. He believes that language is not a mere connection of words but it is a powerful one. They enriched that power though language games like riddles, proverbs. It enabled them to understand the music of the language and also they could view the world with its images and symbols. The language they used in their house and the community was the same.

          Thiong’o joined school and during the first four years of schooling teaching was in his mother tongue. He had a pleasant school experience. Later he joined a colonial school which broke the harmony of the language usage. The language used for education was not his cultural language. After the declaration of a State of Emergency over Kenya in 1952 all the schools were under the guidance of District Education. Thiong’o states that since then English became more than a language in Kenya.

          Thiong’o shares incidents of humiliating experiences undergone by the Gikuyu speaking children in school. Different types of punishments were given (1) five strokes of a cane on their buttocks (2) made to carry a metal plate around the neck with inscriptions of ‘I AM STUPID’ or ‘I AM DONKEY’ (3) fined with unaffordable money. Every day teachers handed over a button to particular students to give it to a student who speaks in mother tongue. At the end of the day the students would give the list of students who had the button that day. This practice transformed the students as traitors to their own community. Moreover attitude towards English language also got changed. Slowly English language was seen as intelligence and ability. People started believing English as the main source for a child’s progress.

          Apart from the racial demarcation, the colonial education system followed a pyramid structure to reduce the number of educators in Africa. The primary system was a broader one and when it goes to the college level the structure becomes very narrow. The students should clear 10 papers from Maths to Science in English. The student who failed in a single paper though very brilliant, could not continue his/her education. Thiong’o remembers a boy who scored distinctions in all subjects except English, later became a turn boy in a bus company. On the other hand Thiong’o who passed with low marks got placed in one of the elitist institutions in colonial Kenya. Students in spite of their brilliancy were denied admission in University colleges due to failure in English language. Hence English was seen as the magic formula for higher education. Consequently Orature (Oral literature) in Kenyan languages has stopped. Moreover, in primary schools they had British and American classics. This increased gap between the usage of mother tongue and English.

          Thiong’o has started writing his works in Gikuyu since 1977. In his  native language he wrote 2 plays, 1 novel and 3 books for children. Since then he was confronted with a question particularly in Europe about the reason for his writing in Gikuyu language. His writing in mother tongue was perceived as an abnormal act. The common practice in other culture, i.e., writing in mother tongue was criticized and questioned that indicate the imperialistic attitude. As a result abnormal was perceived as normal and vice-versa. In reality Africa enriches Europe whereas Africans were made to believe that Europe rescues them from poverty. Africa’s resources like natural and humans developed Europe and America but in reality it is projected in the reverse manner.

          Thiong’o believes that his writing in Gikuyu is a part of the anti-imperialistic struggles of African especially Kenyan people. In educational institutes the Kenyan languages were associated with negative aspects such as underdeveloped, humiliation and punishment. He does not want to see the future generation especially school children growing up in the imperialistic tradition. He wants them to surpass the colonial alienation. Thiong’o gives two interlinked forms of colonial alienation, (1) distancing themselves from the reality around (2) identification with what is most external to one’s environment. This colonial alienations starts with disassociation of a language in educational environment but used at home and society. He compares it with separating a society with bodiless heads and headless bodies.

          Thiong’o visualizes a future where he could see the restoration of harmony in language which enables the Kenyan child to be restored with his/her environment. He desires to see the Kenyan national languages having a literature which reflect the rhythms of the language as well as the natives’ social nature and their struggle with nature. In such a harmonious situation (understanding harmony himself, language and his environment) one can learn other languages and could enjoy revolutionary elements in the other languages without any complex about his/her mother tongue, environment and him/herself. It will benefit the future generation of Kenya to live in harmony.

The Mosquito by D.H. Lawrence- summary

The Mosquito

D. H. Lawrence

The poem ‘The Mosquito’ is taken from D.H. Lawrence’s collection of poem titled Birds, Beasts and Flowers. He is a famous novelist and poet of the 20^th century. The poem uses the poetic technique called ‘pathetic fallacy’ ascribes human emotions to animals and objects.   In this poem the poet talks to the mosquito by treating it as fellow companion.

The poem is in a form of assumed conversation between the poet and a mosquito. The poet raises many questions to the mosquito by using the second person narration ‘you’ regarding its trick. The poet calls the mosquito as ‘Monsieur’ and question when did it start its trick? He observes the movements of the mosquito and comments about its high and shredded legs. It lifts its weightless body and stand upon him without his knowledge. He questions whether it is a ‘phantom’ as it comes and goes without others knowledge. The poet heard a woman calling mosquito as ‘the Winged Victory’ symbolizing its action and triumph. The poet exaggerates that the mosquito listens this and smiles at her.

The poet raises his doubt again to the mosquito that how can it put such cruelty in such a half transparent weak body. It is surprising that with its thin wings and legs, it could sail like a heron in water and in air. Though it looks as nothingness, it is surrounded by evil aura. The mosquito’s secret moves in search of prey give a kind of numbness on the poet’s mind. The poet wonders about its trick and magic to be invisible. The mosquito is very tricky; it prowls and circles around the poet to approach him to devour his blood. Due to its greediness for human blood, he calls it as ‘Ghoul on wings’ (an evil spirit who eats dead bodies).

The poet describes the action of the mosquito. It stands on its thin legs, settle on him and looks at him cunningly in sideways and by knowing his awareness of its presence it speck him. Later by understanding his anger it flies quickly from that place. This bluff game continues between man and mosquito.  The poet calls the mosquito as evil and its bulge in the poet’s ears is an advantage for it and it increases his sudden hatred.

The poet calls its activity of biting as a bad policy and asks a reason for such behavior. As others say it as natural for a mosquito, the poet believes in the destiny of protecting the innocent. According to the poet the sound of the mosquito is like a slogan, which the mosquito makes as a yell of triumph for scratching his scalp. For mosquito blood is super magical liquor. It sucks blood and stands for a second in imposed forgetfulness. It is in silence, without any movement, stuffing blood without permission. The poet feels that the weightlessness of the mosquito saves it from getting killed. Such thoughts develop his ego to kill it in order to prove his power. He kills it and it leaves a stain of his sucked blood and the mosquito disappears as a dim smudge. In the beginning of the poem, the poet looks at the mosquito as powerful almost equal to humans. But in the end it becomes nothing.

Summary of Amitav Ghosh's The Iman and I

The Iman and I

Amitav Ghosh

Amitav Ghosh is an important contemporary writer of Indian English literature. This extract is taken from his autobiographical work In an Antique Land, which is based on Ghosh’s travel to Egypt for his anthropological work. His experience with the local community is narrated in this extract which acts as a combination of history, travelogue, proud of civilisation and fiction.

In Egypt, Ghosh had a friend named Khamees. Of late Khamees was haunted by his childlessness which had an impact on his behaviour. Once on a cold winter day Ghosh visited Khamees’ house and met Khamees and his father. Though the old man was huddled in a blanket, he was shivering due to the cold climate. He invited Ghosh affectionately to sit beside him. The old man worked as a labourer in Alexandria during the World War II and befriended many Indian soldiers that created deep impression in his mind about the Indians. As a result he accepted Ghosh as an intimate member in the family.  The old man by examining the quality of Ghosh’s sweater reminded of the Indian soldiers. The Egyptians were afraid of the Indian soldiers as they were tall and dark. Though the soldiers appeared rough, they were the most generous people. The old man contradicted the generous nature of the Indian soldiers with his children. He complained that his children did not even buy him a better sweater to survive in the winter. Khamees got upset by this complaint and left the room in anger.

The old man happened to be a man of moods. First he complained about his son for not being considerate about the aged father and immediately expressed his concern for his children. He lamented that his daughter was facing hardship in life by taking care of her two sons alone and Khamees suffered due to his childlessness. The old man blames himself for the sufferings of Khamees. Kahmees was married early as the old man wanted to see his grandchildren. This incident enables the writer to know about Khamees trauma due to childlessness.

Later once in a spring season, Ghosh was walking with Khamees across fields and they spotted Imam Ibrahim sitting on the steps of the mosque. Ghosh and Imam used to be friendly earlier but after a feast at Yasir’s house, Imam started neglecting Ghosh’s gesture of friendship. Khamees who was ignorant of the incident requested Ghosh to invite Iman to treat his wife. As Khamees and Iman were not in talking terms, he asked Ghosh to invite Iman. Ghosh was cynical about Iman’s treatment as he used blunt needles and recommending others. But Khamees convinced that Iman would react well as Ghosh was a foreigner.  Iman was talking with an old man. Ghosh greeted Iman and Iman responded for the greeting but turned immediately to the old man. Shocked old man invited Ghosh and introduced Ghosh to Iman as a student of the University of Alexandria from India.

Iman had a difference of opinion about the Indians; due to it he started avoiding Ghosh. He assumed that Indian languages and English were the easiest languages. To express his disapproval of Ghosh being in Egypt, Iman questioned why Ghosh was studying in Egypt without the knowledge of Arabic language. He looked at the cultural practices of Indians as primitive. He expressed his anger by asking why do the Indians worship cow and why do they burn the dead? He states that the Europeans were advanced in science and technology, they did not practice such customs and why the Indians were doing. As Ghosh has travelled Europe, Iman asked him to raise his voice against such primitive practices in his homeland. Ghosh replied that even the Europeans burn the dead in electronic furnaces and like the Europeans the Indians were also advanced in education. Indian had a nuclear explosion too.

As the argument was going on, many people gathered to see the argument.  By understanding the situation Khamees took Ghosh home.

Ghosh looked at their conversation as a claim to the technology of modern violence. He understood that though they both belong to different countries, they both were travelling towards the west and for everyone west meant science and guns and bombs. Both their civilizations are older and they are known for their rich culture and tradition which gave importance for humanity. Contradictorily now they both are fighting to establish their superiority in terms of violence. He felt upset about their controversy as they both broke the harmony people had once in spite of differences. Both of them looked at the west as developed in terms of weapons.

Later at Khamees house, Ghosh considered himself as a conspirator in the betrayal of history. Khamees took him home and comforted him by stating that he would like to visit India later but he concluded with a request of burying him than burning if he dies in India.

This essay presents the transformation of ideology in the course of time. Earlier development meant something related to characteristics and humanity whereas at present advance/development is seen in association with weapons.

summary of Bertolt Brecht's General, Your Tank

General, Your Tank

Bertolt Brecht

The poem “General, Your Tank” is an extract from Bertolt Brecht’s anti-war poem A German War Primer. This poem presents his concern for humanity. It is also an anti war poem where the poet ironically presents the horror of war. His works in general project his concern towards soldiers in war. He states that in general the soldiers fight and get killed in a war but it brings glory to the General. The General is celebrated as a hero whereas the soldier is forgotten.

The poem is addressed to the Generals and each stanza begins with the word General. The poet is the speaker and the addressee is the General. It is in second person narration and it looks as if the speaker is talking to the general in the present. The poet states to the General that his tank is a powerful vehicle which can smash down forests and can crush hundreds of men. Though it is a powerful tank, it needs a human to drive. The General’s bomber is also a powerful one as it flies faster than a storm and carries more weight than an elephant. It too has a defect that it needs a mechanic. Both powerful machines need a human to operate it or to make it powerful. The General has humans who are useful. They can fly and kill in the war and they too have a defect that is they can think. The machines’ defect is they need a man to operate but they are powerful. Where as humans’ defect is their ability to think may be about the consequences of the war. Here thinking becomes a defect as it may enable humans to avoid war by understanding its destructive nature. The poem is an ironic one as it celebrates the two machines as powerful in the beginning and later claims that it needs human to be operated. Unless a human operates they are just objects without any use.

Through the repetition of certain terms the writer is trying to create an impression upon the readers. He believes that if the humans know about their power they can stop the horror caused by war. Through this poem the poet tries to activate the defect of humans in the positive way to create a peaceful world.