Sunday reading : Sitanshu Yashachandra's 'Tree Once Agains'

 Sunday Reading:

🔹Sitanshu Yashachandra's 'Tree Once Agains'🔹

Helllo Beautiful People..

               On 10th November we had online session on Ecocritical thinking by Devang Nanavati sir on Sitanshu Yashachandra's poem 'Tree Once Again'.Our professor Dr.Dilip Barad sir gave us task as a sunday reading of this online session.So this blog is a response to the Barad sir on Ecocriticism.

❇️What is Ecocriticism?

 

  Ecocriticism is an intentionally broad approach that is known by a number of other designations, including "green (cultural) studies", "ecopoetics", and "environmental literary criticism", and is often informed by other fields such as ecology, sustainable design, biopolitics, environmental history, environmentalism, and social ecology, among others

     Thus, if we wish to understand our contemporary attitude toward the environment, its literary history is an excellent place to start. While authors such as Thoreau and Wordsworth may first come to mind in this context, literary responses to environmental concerns are as old as the issues themselves. Deforestation, air pollution, endangered species, wetland loss, animal rights, and rampant consumerism have all been appearing as controversial issues in Western literature for hundreds, and in some cases, thousands of years.

❇️Sitanshu Yashachandra's'Tree Once Again'

Thus poem is about satire on human beings.In this poem Sitanshu Yashachandra make powerful satire on using tree as our need.In this poem poet describe his own thought of one trunk and also said that the dinning table, chairs, writing table, books, all are made with wood of tree and we have not idea how many trunks were used in this process of making furniture. and what we should do with them? we easily changed them and replaces with new one. we can not though the processing of these and for making these all comfort human has cut down so many trees

1)Chipko Movement:

 The Chipko movement or Chipko Andolan, was a forest conservation movement in India. It began in 1973 in Uttarakhand, then a part of Uttar Pradesh (at the foothills of Himalayas) and went on to become a rallying point for many future environmental movements all over the world. It created a precedent for starting nonviolent protest in India.However, it was Sunderlal Bahuguna, a Gandhian activist, who gave the movement a proper direction and its success meant that the world immediately took notice of this non-violent movement, which was to inspire in time many similar eco-groups by helping to slow down the rapid deforestation, expose vested interests, increase social awareness and the need to save trees, increase ecological awareness, and demonstrate the viability of people power. 

    He used the slogan , "Ecology is the permanent economy." Above all, it stirred up the existing civil society in India, which began to address the issues of tribal and marginalized people. And it's true that the support for the movement came mainly from the womenfolk. 

  The Chipko Andolan or the Chipko movement is a movement that practiced methods of Satyagraha where both male and female activity cests from Uttarakhand played vital roles, including Gaura Devi, Suraksha Devi, Sudesha Devi, Bachni Devi and Chandi Prasad Bhatt, Virushka Devi and others. 

2)The Bishnoi Movement:

    Bishnoi (also known as Vishnoi) is a Hindu religious sect found in the Western Thar Desert and northern states of India. They follow a set of 29 principles/commandments given by Guru Jambeshwar (1451-1536).

    They are not a caste but a sect. As of 2019, there are an estimated 960,000 followers of Vishnoi sect residing in north and central India.[2] Shree Guru Jambeshwar founded the sect at Samrathal Dhora in 1485 and his teachings, comprising 120 shabads, are known as Shabadwani. 

     He preached for the next 51 years, travelling across India. The preaching of Guru Jambhoji inspires his followers as well as the environmental protectors.

3)Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA):

Conclusion:

To conclude we can say that we all human being must take care about the nature.Because on the earth we not only human beings are living but there are many others like trees ,insects and many others are also living here

Here is the full video recording by Dr.Dilip Barad sir on the online session.Please watch this video for more information about this poem and Ecocritical thinking.

❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️❇️

Sunday Reading : Postcolonialism

Sunday Reading

       🌟Postocolonialism🌟

Hello Beautiful People 

On Sunday 22th November we had online session on Postcolonialism organized by iSPELL (Indian Society for the Promotion of English language and literature).The chief speaker of this event was Prof.Bill Ashcroft.The chairperson of this event was Dr.Jyoti Patil,president of iSPELL.And the master of the ceremony was Miss. Parvathy Ramchadran,Assistant Prof.English Kerala.So today i would like to summarize this session in my blog as a sunday reading task given by Prof. Dr.Dilip Barad sir.

❇️ Intro about Chief Speaker:

      The chief speaker ok today's session was Prof.Bill Ashcroft.Bill Ashcroft is an Emeritus Professor in the School of English, Media and Performing Arts. 

    A founding exponent of post-colonial theory, co-author of The Empire Writes Back, the first text to examine systematically the field of post-colonial studies. He is author and co-author of twenty one books, variously translated into five languages, Including Post-Colonial Transformation (Routledge 2001), Post-Colonial Futures (Continuum 2001); Caliban's Voice (Routledge 2008) Intimate Horizons (ATF 2009) and Utopianism in Postcolonial Literatures (Routledge 2016). He is the author of over 200 chapters and papers, and he is on the editorial boards of ten international journals.

Click here to know more about his publications, awards and his area of expertise.

❇️What is Postcolonialism?

Postcolonialism is the critical academic study of the cultural legacy of colonialism and imperialism, focusing on the human consequences of the control and exploitation of colonized people and their lands. More specifically, it is a critical-theory analysis of the history, culture, literature, and discourse of (usually European) imperial power.

    Postcolonialism encompasses a wide variety of approaches, and theoreticians may not always agree on a common set of definitions. On a simple level, through anthropological study, it may seek to build a better understanding of colonial life—based on the assumption that the colonial rulers are unreliable narrators—from the point of view of the colonized people. 

    On a deeper level, postcolonialism examines the social and political power relationships that sustain colonialism and neocolonialism, including the social, political and cultural narratives surrounding the colonizer and the colonized. This approach may overlap with studies of contemporary history, and may also draw examples from anthropology, historiography, political science, philosophy, sociology, and human geography. Sub-disciplines of postcolonial studies examine the effects of colonial rule on the practice of feminism, anarchism, literature, and Christian thought.

At times, the term postcolonial studies may be preferred to postcolonialism, as the ambiguous term colonialism could refer either to a system of government, or to an ideology or world view underlying that system. 

     However, postcolonialism (i.e., postcolonial studies) generally represents an ideological response to colonialist thought, rather than simply describing a system that comes after colonialism, as the prefix post- may suggest. As such, postcolonialism may be thought of as a reaction to or departure from colonialism in the same way postmodernism is a reaction to modernism; the term postcolonialism itself is modeled on postmodernism, with which it shares certain concepts and methods.

❇️Postcolonialism and Globalization:

Language of postcolonialism drove the cultural turn in globalization in 1990s.Prof.Bill Ashcroft put the information about SIMON GIKANDI and they have gave two important things in common:

1.They are concern with explaining forms of social and cultural organization whose ambition is to transcend the boundaries of the nation state.

2.They seek to provide new ways to understand cultural flows that can longer be explained by a homogeneous Eurocentric narrative of development and social change.

❇️Thomas More's 'Utopia':

    Utopia is a work of fiction and socio-political satire by Thomas More (1478–1535), written in Latin and published in 1516. The book is a frame narrative primarily depicting a fictional island society and its religious, social, and political customs. Many aspects of More's description of Utopia are reminiscent of life in monasteries.

Transnation:

⏩Another concept that was discussed by Prof.Bill Ashcroft was about Trans naction.

❇️Trans naction

 The transaction now all these only subjects all these citizens moving around the boarders of the state .The nation has always tried to identify a certain identify for itself.Prof.Ashcroft says that now in young nations  such as Australia this becomes almost an obsession as it grows.People are obssessed with the idea of Australian national identity . 

     Probably in India too the idea of national  identity is something that people can escape really whether they are drawn to it or not.But this picture shows the actual multiplicity of a nation of the different strand that go to make it could put in another way that a nation is a big tossed salad.

  ⏩⏩  To conclude we can say that the term postcolonial has a different perspective.This term is also very huge one.No one can describe this term in briefly. 

❇️Some images about Post colonialism:

Thinking activity: Macbeth

 Thinking Activity :

          ❇️ MACBETH ❇️

Hello Beautiful People,

      Today we discuss about 'Mecbeth'.This blog is about Metaphysical poetry and this is also part of my thinking activity assigned by Prof. Dr. Dilip Barad sir, Head of the English Department of Maharaja Krishnkumarsinhji Bhavsinhji Bhavangar University (MKBU).

   So here we compare various film adaptation of Macbeth. So let's start this ...

 🔷 Macbeth' 

  The Tragedy of Macbeth, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It was probably first performed in 1606. This is very amazing play of Shakespeare.

    In the play, Macbeth is a Scottish general under the rule of King Duncan. Three witches tell Macbeth that he will become king of Scotland. Macbeth is spurred by his ambition and his wife, murdering Duncan and acceding to the throne. His reign is bloody and tyrannical and is ended by the combined forces of Scotland and England. 

   There are 5 acts and it's really creating amazing work by writer. Macbeth is an anomaly among Shakespeare's tragedies in certain critical ways. It is short: more than a thousand lines shorter than Othello and King Lear, and only slightly over half the length of Hamlet.  

🔷 Maqbool 

 

So here we discuss & also compare maqbool and macbath. Maqbool is a 2004 Indian crime drama film directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and starring Irrfan, Tabu, Pankaj Kapur and Masumeh Makhija in an adaptation of the play Macbeth by Shakespeare. 

      The plot of the film is based on that of Macbeth with regard to events and characterisation. The film is based on William Shakespeare's Macbeth, with the Mumbai underworld as its backdrop. Miyan Maqbool is the right-hand man of Jahangir Khan (alias Abba Ji), a powerful underworld don. 

   Maqbool is grateful and feels a close connection and personal indebtedness to Abba Ji. Seeing their close relationship, but also sensing Maqbool's ambition, two corrupt policemen predict that Maqbool will soon take over the reins of the Mumbai Underworld from Abba Ji. 

Reference..

  A full movie 'Maqbool'here....

🔷Is maqbool based on Macbeth?

     Maqbool is a 2004 Indian crime drama film directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and starring Irrfan, Tabu, Pankaj Kapur and Masumeh Makhija in an adaptation of the play Macbeth by Shakespeare. The plot of the film is based on that of Macbeth with regard to events and characterisation. 

🔷 Comparison 

       Here, we compares Vishal Bhardwaj's 'Maqbool' and Shakespeare's 'Macbeth'. Maqbool, an Indian film directed by Vishal Bhardwaj is an adaptation of Shakespeare play, Macbeth.

     Changes were made most likely due to cultural reasons, and so the re imagined plot made sense.

      For example, the roles the characters play are very much different. One other big difference is, Nimmi gives birth to a son that could’ve been either Abbaji’s or Maqbool’s.

  Another difference is,In the play Macbeth, it is implied Lady Macbeth commits suicide.In the movie Maqbool, Nimmi dies in Maqbool’s arms

   However, Maqbool does make many parallels that are quite close to Macbeth Neither Maqbool nor Macbeth wholeheartedly wished to kill their superior

  And, at the end both Maqbool and Macbeth die.Both the original and the adaptation are tragic stories

  Maqbool and Macbeth compare and contrast Macbeth is a Scottish general. And, the power that is sought after is the power of the king. Killing Duncan made Macbeth the king of Scotland.

   Maqbool is a gang member. And, the power sought for in this movie is the power of a gang. Killing Abbaji made Maqbool the new leader of the gang

    Nimmi, Instead of being Maqbool’s wife is Abbaji’s mistress. She does not control Maqbool in this movie the way she does in the play. She puts ideas and thoughts into Maqbool’s head at first. Slowly she breaks him down and gives him an ultimatum; Kill her or Abbaji. Maqbool of course chooses to kill Abbaji, as he is in love with Nimmi.

    Both Nimmi and Lady Macbeth spiral into madness after the murders are committed. They both imagine seeing blood on themselves

   Lady Macbeth is Macbeth’s wife. Lady Macbeth manipulates her husband with remarkable effectiveness, overriding all his objections; when he hesitates to murder, she repeatedly questions his manhood until he feels that he must commit murder to prove himself. Lady Macbeth is stronger, more ruthless, and more ambitious than her husband. She seems fully aware of this and knows that she will have to push Macbeth into committing murder. At one point, she wishes that she were not a woman so that she could do it herself.

    Though their character roles are different and the plot and setting in the adaptation is different, at its core both are about male characters influenced by a manipulative female lover into murdering their superior to gain their power.

🔷What is the relevance of Macbeth to a modern day audience?..

       The themes that are explored in Macbeth that would still have relevance today in modern society include guilt, power, bravery and violence. ... In the play, Macbeth's guilt prevents him from enjoying what he has gained after the murder of King Duncan. 

 

🔷What is the message of Macbeth?...

 (1)The Corrupting Power of Unchecked Ambition….

    The main theme of Macbeth—the destruction wrought when ambition goes unchecked by moral constraints—finds its most powerful expression in the play’s two main characters. 

(2) The Relationship Between Cruelty and Masculinity….

      women are also sources of violence and evil. The witches’ prophecies spark Macbeth’s ambitions and then encourage his violent behavior; Lady Macbeth provides the brains and the will behind her husband’s plotting; and the only divine being to appear is Hecate, the goddess of witchcraft. 

   Whether because of the constraints of her society or because she is not fearless enough to kill, Lady Macbeth relies on deception and manipulation rather than violence to achieve her ends. 

(3) Ambition….

   Although he is encouraged by the Witches, Macbeth’s true downfall is his own ambition. Lady Macbeth is as ambitious as her husband, encouraging him to commit murder to achieve their goals. 

   Both Macbeths fail to see how their ambition makes them cross moral lines and will lead to their downfall. Rather than being able to enjoy the fruits of his ambition, he becomes obsessed with maintaining the power he’s won. Macbeth’s blind pursuit of power can be contrasted with other ambitious character Banquo also hears the Witches’ prophesies, and similarly has ambition for his sons. But ulike Macbeth, Banquo’s morality prevents him from pursuing his goal at any cost.

   At the end of the play, Macbeth has achieved all he wanted, but has nothing. With his wife gone and no hope of producing a prince, Macbeth sees what his unchecked ambition has cost him: the loss of all he holds them.

🔷Some images of Macbeth'play...

(Words:1111)

"Metaphysical poetry"

Thinking activity:

       💠METAPHYSICAL POETRY💠

Hello Beautiful People,

      Today we discuss about 'Metaphysical poetry'.This blog is about Metaphysical poetry and  this is also  part of my thinking activity assigned by Prof. Dr. Dilip Barad sir, Head of the English Department of Maharaja Krishnkumarsinhji Bhavsinhji Bhavangar University (MKBU). Also I thanked Prof. Dr. R.K.Mandilya sir, Head of the English Department of S.P.University for teaching this beautiful concept

🌀 What is Metaphysical poetry? :

   What is metaphysical poetry? And who were the metaphysical poets? In this post about metaphysical poetry we’re going to take a closer look at the origins of the term and some examples of this curious and enigmatic school of early modern poetry.

   Poets associated with metaphysical poetry include John Donne, George Herbert, Andrew Marvell, and Henry Vaughan: Donne is often said to be first metaphysical poet, and Donne’s genius for original, intellectually complex poetry certainly helped to set the trend for the poetry that followed him.

🌀 Metaphysical Poet introduction :

     The term Metaphysical poets was coined by the critic Samuel Johnson to describe a loose group of 17th-century English poets whose work was characterised by the inventive use of conceits, and by a greater emphasis on the spoken rather than lyrical quality of their verse. These poets were not formally affiliated and few were highly regarded until 20th century attention established their importance. 

🌀 Critical Notes about Metaphysical poetry:

   The term ‘metaphysical poets’ was popularised (though not invented) by Samuel Johnson (1709-84) in his critical biography of the seventeenth-century poet Abraham Cowley, in Johnson’s Lives of the Poets (1779-81). Before Johnson, John Dryden had written (in 1692) of the ‘metaphysics’ of Donne’s poetry, and before Dryden, William Drummond of Hawthornden had used the term in relation to a group of poets in a letter of around 1630. Samuel Johnson employed the term disparagingly: he disliked the ‘conceits’ used by metaphysical poets and complained that their poetry ‘stood the trial of the finger better than of the ear’. Johnson went on to write:  

"The most heterogeneous ideas are yoked by violence together; nature and art are ransacked for illustrations, comparisons, and allusions; their learning instructs, and their subtlety surprises; but the reader commonly thinks his improvement dearly bought, and, though he sometimes admires, is seldom pleased. […] Yet great labour, directed by great abilities, is never wholly lost: if they frequently threw away their wit upon false conceits, they likewise sometimes struck out unexpected truth: if their conceits were far-fetched, they were often worth the carriage. "

🌀 CHARACTERISTICS OF THE METAPHYSICAL POETRY : 

    Short notes to know about characteristics of metaphysical poetry by slides …..

🌀 Metaphysical poetry' theme :

        Short notes to know about themes of metaphysical poetry by slides …..

                         ✨✨✨

⏩And now we discuss about John Done and other poet's poetry…..

✴️THE FLEA ✴️

    The poem uses the conceit of a flea, which has sucked blood from the male speaker and his female lover, to serve as an extended metaphor for the relationship between them. The speaker tries to convince a lady to sleep with him, arguing that if their blood mingling in the flea is innocent, then sexual mingling would also be innocent. His argument hinges on the belief that bodily fluids mix during sexual intercourse. 

  According to Laurence Perrine, this poem, along with many other of Donne's poems, solidifies his place in the literary movement, creating what is now known as Metaphysical poetry. Although the term was not found until after his death, it is still widely used and will continue to be traced back to work such as "The Flea".  

✴️HOLY SONNET :10✴️

  (Death ,be not proud)

   Death Be Not Proud" presents an argument against the power of death. Addressing Death as a person, the speaker warns Death against pride in his power. Such power is merely an illusion, and the end Death thinks it brings to men and women is in fact a rest from world-weariness for its alleged “victims.” The poet criticizes Death as a slave to other forces: fate, chance, kings, and desperate men. Death is not in control, for a variety of other powers exercise their volition in taking lives. Even in the rest it brings, Death is inferior to drugs. Finally, the speaker predicts the end of Death itself, stating “Death, thou shalt die."

✴️THE SUN RISING ✴️

    Stanza one begins with the speaker in bed with his lover, complaining about sun's beaming rays. Donne uses expressions such as, "Busy old fool" and "Saucy Pedantic Wretch"to describe his annoyance with it. The speaker of the poem questions the sun's motives and yearns for the sun to go away so that he and his lover can stay in bed.

     Donne is tapping into human emotion in personifying the sun, and he is exhibiting how beings behave when they are in love with one another. The speaker in the poem believes that, for him and his lover, time is the enemy. He asks, "Must to thy motions lovers' seasons run?" or, in other words, 'why must lovers be controlled by the sun?'. The speaker then tells the sun to bother someone else, "go chide late schoolboys and sour prentices, Go tell court huntsmen that the king will ride..."and that love knows no season, climate, hour, day, nor month. 

“The Sun Rising” is one of John Donne’s most famous metaphysical poems. It is written with a humorous style and lots of exaggeration."

✴️TO HIS COY MISTRESS ✴️

     The speaker of the poem starts by addressing a woman who has been slow to respond to his romantic advances. In the first stanza he describeshow he would pay court to her if he were to be unencumbered by the constraints of a normal lifespan. He could spend centuries admiring each part of her body and her resistance to his advances (i.e., coyness) would not discourage him. In the second stanza, he laments how short human life is. Once life is over, the speaker contends, the opportunity to enjoy one another is gone, as no one embraces in death. In the last stanza, the speaker urges the woman to requite his efforts, and argues that in loving one another with passion they will both make the most of the brief time they have to live. 

✴️THE COLLAR ✴️

  "The Collar" portrays a man who is relaying a previous struggle he's had with his faith. The poem begins with the speaker striking a board, most likely a pulpit or altar. The physical outburst is then followed quickly by a verbal one, as the speaker declares that he "...will abroad!", or leave his current place.  

 The speaker then decides to abandon this state of pining and misery, to no longer worry about living a pious life. He chooses instead to live only for himself, instead of occupying his "cage" that he has seemingly made of his own doing; he claims his cage was built upon “petty thoughts”, meaning that God himself did not place the speaker in the cage, but rather the speaker placed himself there by believing in a false spirituality. 

  The speaker again tells himself to "abroad", to leave this life behind. He assures himself that he will make preparations by “tying up” his fears, so that they do not hang over him any longer. He claims that anyone who would serve to God the way he chose "deserves" the load he bears as a result. 

   The speaker suddenly hears a voice call, "Child!" and the man immediately calms himself, replies to the voice with the simple acknowledgement: "My Lord". The speaker has recognized God's presence, feels chided and immediately submissive to a greater One than himself alone, once again. His ravings are forgotten once God shows himself to the speaker, suggesting that his commitment to his faith has not been fruitless after all, or is at least ongoing. 

                        ✨✨✨

 🌀 Conclusion :

     In summary, then, metaphysical poetry often uses elaborate imagery, complex conceits, and colloquial speech to explore ‘big’ topics, or frequently to argue a position about them – whether it’s love, death, sex, the afterlife, or even what lies beyond our own world (Donne was particularly fond of using planetary imagery and the idea of space travel in his work). It’s often challenging but, as Johnson acknowledged, worth sticking with. It’s little wonder that the modernist poet ..

I hope you all enjoy this blog and also known that Metaphysical poetry. 😊

Reference:

What is metaphysical poetry?...

(https://youtu.be/SZ5_42Zh74s)

Sunday Reading : "Post Truth''

The Oxford dictionary word of the year 2016

                ✨ POST TRUTH ✨

Hello Beautiful People…

  This blog is about Post Truth. And this is also  part of my Sunday reading activitie assigned by Prof. Dr. Dilip Barad sir, Head of the English Department of Maharaja Krishnkumarsinhji Bhavsinhji Bhavangar University (MKBU).

So here we discuss about 'Post Truth' and also my views on this word..

 💠Defination of 'Post Truth' :

  Post Truth means which is beyond truth, truth when there is no truth, when there is no difference between lie and truth, when the idea of ​​right wrong is not from fact or knowledge but feelings. It is on the basis of post-truth

 ( जो सत्य से परे हो, सत्य जब सत्य न रहे, जब झूठ और सच में कोई अंतर न हो, जब सही गलत का विचार तथ्य या ज्ञान से न हो बल्कि भावनाओं के आधार पे हो उसे पोस्ट-ट्रुथ केह्ते है)

✴️The Oxford Dictionary defines the word 'Truth Post' as..

  It is defined as an adjective relating to circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than emotional appeal.

For reference…Post Truth'(The word of the year 2016)

💠 Frequency of 'Post Truth' :

 So here we see this chart and also decided that why was this word chosen by Oxford dictionary for word of the year 2016.

💠 Relationship of Post-Truth and Politics : 

  Now the time has come, when the person started thinking that I would like to hear the same truth behind me, this time came the internet / social media and leaders like Trump Modi. All these leaders had to do was to win the hearts of crores with their personality. Just what, this crowd will find anything true. Leaders like Modi Trump are a core part of Post Truth Politics. Their mass appeal, personality is very strong, and they know the pain of human suffering well, they do not speak unpleasant truths, they lie beautiful which people like. Then lies and spread by social media.

💠The Daily Lies of Political Leaders :

 A  post-truth political weapon The recent election of Brexit in the United Kingdom, Donald Trump in the USA and Narendra Modi in India are said to be the hand of the narrator spread by social media. The devotees of these leaders believe in them as God, and believe one thing coming out of their mouths as true. In the last few days in India it has been seen that Modi ji often tells anything and that no question arises. He attacked Nehru saying that Nehru never went to meet Bhagat Singh. This is a sheer lie, Nehru met him on August 8, 1929 and as a proof, the news of this meeting was also printed in the 10th August 1929 Tribune newspaper. These leaders also deny the factual evidence that exists, but their devotees do not feel bad, they do not raise questions, even believe the evidence to show lies. 

💠Post-Truth Public Relations

Communication in an Era of Digital Disinformation :( By Gareth Thompson)

 

 This book explores the purpose, practice and effects of public relations (PR) at a time that has been variously described as an era of populism, post-truth and fake news. It considers how PR processes have contributed to the current social condition of post-truth and what constitutes PR work in this environment. 

💠 Humorous images about Post Truth :

💠Post Truth in other words :

  Situation is one in which people are less influenced by factual information than by their emotions or by beliefs they already hold.

For reference..

(The post truth problem)

https://youtu.be/d8fVjwrBbPw