MY PERSONAL

Monday, December 5, 2011

Notes of Chinar I
The Suitor & Papa
The story "The suitor & Papa" by Russian writer, Anton Chekov describes the futility of
marriage relationship and family in European society. It portrays the contemporary society where
marriage is given second importance rather than job & enjoyment.
Pyotr Petrovich Milkin was a single man living in the town. He used to visit Kondraskins
frequently. He used to have dinner and supper at them together. He used to wak out with Nastya
Kondrashkin and used to take bunches of flowers to her. Due to this, everybody thought that he
was going to marry Nastya.
One day at the summer ball, one of Pyotr's friends asked him when he was going to arrange his
stag party. He refused to accepta that he had affair with Nastya. He couldn't defend himself
because his behaviour had already shown this possible marriage. In order to avoid the calamity,
he went to Kondraskin's study to say goodbye to him because he wanted to leave the town as
soon as possible.
Kondraskin wanted Pyotr to marry Nastya but Pyotr on the other hand wanted to avoid this
marriage. So he pretended that he was bad man so that Kondraskin would think that Nastya
should not marry him. He said that everything Pyotr said was false. Pyotr again tried to escape
from them saying that he was a drunkard, he was runaway convict, he was on a trial for
embezzlement and even he was mad. But Kondrandraskin refused to accept all of them because
mad man couldn't speak so logically. Pyotr said that he would bring certificate of madness and
further said that marriage is forbidden to mad & insane. Then Pyotr went to his friend, Dr.
Fitiyuv. But the doctor also refused to certify him mad as he was wise to avoid marriage. He
further said that he would certify him mad when he would come & say that he would marry
Nastya. So he failed to bring that certificate too.
DAFFODILS
Daffodils is a poem about the beauty of nature written by a famous romantic English poet,
William Wordsworth. This poem describes the beauty of nature in a superb way. The poet is very
happy to be in the lap of nature.
When the poet sees a place where daffodils are fluttering and dancing, he imagines that he is
wandering lonely as a cloud that floats high over the valleys and hills in pleasure. He sees
thousands of daffodils in continuously in the never ending lines. The daffodils are seen to be
continuous as stars that shine and twinkle on the milky way. They seem to be tossing their heads
in sprightly dance. The poet could not remain without being happy in such a cheerful company of
nature. Then he gazes and thinks about how splendid the sight is.
When the poet lies on couch in his vacant or in pensive mood, the scene of daffodils flashes upon
his mind which for him, is the bliss of loneliness. The poet is extremely happy when he recollects
his emotions in tranquility.
QUALITY

Mr. Gessler used to make boots of the narrator's father from his extreme youth. The Gessler
brothers had a shop in a tenement house in west end of London. They used to make fine boots.
The narrator visited their shop quite often. When the narrator asked him whether making boots
was a hard job, he would reply that it was art. The two brothers were exactly alike. The narrator
was often confused. The only way to differentiate between them was that the elder brother would
ask his brother for making any decision. Both the brothers used to make fine boots made of
leather. The Gessler brothers used to stress quality, but were not fashionable. Perhaps he was the
best boot maker in town.
Once the narrator told Mr. Gessler that his boots had creaked. Mr. Gessler was very unhappy to
hear this. He replied that he would like to see them and if they really created, he would return the
money. He was a very honest professional man.
One day the narrator went, by mistake, to Gessler's shop wearing the shoes which Gessler had
not made. He looked at those boots seriously and remarked that they were not his boots. He also
said that those big firms had no self respect, that they were only concerned with fashion but not
with quality, that they had taken away their customers and the skilled shoemakers had lost their
job.
For two years, the narrator went abroad. When he came back, he found that Gessler brother's
shop was contracted. There had come another boot maker who would of course make boots for
royal family. The narrator talked to Gessler, felt sympathy for him and ordered 3 pairs although
he only needed 2. When he went to the shop to collect his boots, he had expected the elder
brother but to his surprise, Gessler replied that his elder brother was dead. The younger brother
himself had become aged. The narrator said that he was sorry for the death of his elder brother.
Then he ordered several pairs of shoes.
After a year, the narrator went to Gessler's shop again. Gessler asked him if he wanted some
boots. He said that it was a slack time so he could make them quickly. The narrator ordered the
boots of all kinds, designs and qualities. The boots came to house with fine make, finishing and
quality. The amount of bill was attached to the shoes. He quickly wrote the cheque and sent to
pay for them.
A week later he came to visit Gessler's shop but he did not find it. Instead there was a young
English man who reported that Mr. Gessler died of slow starvation. He worked hard but could
not complete with the firms. He could not make enough money.
THE LISTENERS
'The listeners' by Walter De La Mare is a poem about the supernatural and mysterious condition
of the haunted house in a rural part of the country. The poem describes about the traveler's visit
to the house and his eventual return from that place without any significant achievement except
that the traveler kept his words.
The traveler knocked at the door and asked if there was anybody inside the house but nobody
answered. Suddenly a bird flew up out of the turret. The traveler knocked at the door again but
there was no answer again. So he stood perplexed and still. It seemed that there were only
phantom listeners who dwelt in the house. They listened to the voice from the world of men. The
empty hall was stirred and shaken by lovely traveler's call. He could simply feel that their
strangeness and stillness were answering his cry.
When his horse moved, the traveler suddenly knocked at the door and said, "Tell them I came,
and no one answered. That I kept my word." His words simply echoed through the shadowiness
of the still house. Then the traveler rode on his horse and went back leaving the silence once

more in the lonely house.

The poem leaves impression of supernatural and mysterious atmosphere of apparently ghost
house where the phantom listeners seemed to be living.
ONCE UPON A TIME
This poem is composed by a Nigerian poet Gabriel Okara. In this poem the speaker is father who
addresses his son revealing the reality of the modern man's behaviour. This is a satire on modern
life of human beings. It mocks and ridicules some of the common behavioral patterns of modern
man. The modern man says one thing politely but he means another. There is a difference
between appearance and reality. This poem is an ironical expression in which the hidden truth is
the language in different. He talks about the manner of the modern people who use double talk
very often. Their laughter is very meaningful.
The persona of this poem, addressing his son, says that the people in the past used to laugh with
their hearts and eyes. They were very lovely. They did not have any bad intention. They were
kind and generous, helpful and unselfish. But the people now have changed their behaviour. With
the passing time, they have become selfish. Now they laugh only with their teeth and winning
eyes. In the past they used to shake hands with their hearts. But now their left hands are busy to
search his empty pockets. Their generous hands changed into the hands of thief. They use very
polite and formal language. They welcome him with flattery he has learnt many things. He has
learnt to behave differently with different people. He has learnt to change his face like dresses. It
means that he can show his manners differently with everyone he meets. He hides the truth using
double talk. He can change his face like home face, office face, street face, host face and cocktail
face. The speaker (father) wants to move with time. The modern age has taught him to be selfish.
He also smiles like the smile of a fixed portrait. He also laughs with only his teeth and shakes
hands without his heart. The double talks he uses are "Goodbye" when he means "Good
riddance", "Glad to meet you" without being glad. "It's been nice talking to you" after being
bored. The poet expresses a desire to his son to teach him how to smile as he used to do in past,
when he was a child.
THE SURGEON
Dr. Robert sandy had recently saved the life of a Saudi Arabian prince. And as a reward he was
given a very large diamond. Sandy was amazed when his local jeweler told him it's worth almost
a million dollars. He rushed home to show it to his wife, who was just as excited. Robert and
Betty wished to go on a tour to Egypt and turkey and also baalbek, and other places. They are
going away for the weekend, though, so they decided to freeze the diamond into an ice cube tray
in order to hide it from any thieves. When they returned, they were shocked to see that their
house had, in fact, been burgled. Everything in their kitchen had been smashed and thrown on the
floor, including the contents of the freezer. The police were called and searched them every
where, but they couldn't locate the diamond. The next day, another surgeon at the hospital was
operating on a young man with something lodged in his intestine. To the surgeon's amazement, it
was a large diamond. He and one of the hospital theater sisters took it to the local jeweler to have
it appraised. The jeweler recognized it as Dr. Sandy's and called the police. Sandy was also
notified, and by the time he got to the spot the surgeon and sister were both in handcuff. Sandy
recognized him and they told him their story. He had the police release them and told them to
head to the hospital to arrest the recovering thief. The young hooligan had evidently made
himself a drink in Dr. Sandy's house and he had swallowed the ice cube.

NATIONAL PREJUDICES
The essay National Prejudice by Oliver Goldsmith is writers own personal experience about
the European people. This essay is on prejudices that we harbour about people from other
nations. Prejudice is an unfair and unreasonable feeling that develops in us over a period of time.
Every common man has prejudice to some extent.
As the writer is one of the wanderers of Europe, he got an opportunity to observe the characters
of Europeans closely. Once he suddenly reached into a group of half a dozen gentlemen who
ware making a hot dispute about political affair. They were equally divided and were expressing
their sentiments. Each group tried to convince the writer to support and share the conversation.
He was engaged in one of the companies. They talked about different characters of several
nations of Europe. One of the English gentlemen showed his prejudice over the people of other
nations. He said that Dutch were a parcel of greedy wretches, French were flatterers, Germans
were drunkards and beastly gluttons, Spaniards were proud, haughty and rude tyrants but in all
other aspect, English were brave, generous, merciful and virtuous.
Almost all the participants agreed with the opinion but when the writer was asked to put forth his
sentiments, he gave more impartial judgment on them. He said that Dutch were more frugal and
industrious, French were more temperate and polite, Germans were hardy and patient of labour
and fatigue, Spaniards were sober and peaceful but English though were at the same time rash,
headstrong and impetuous. When the writer presented such a judgment among his friends they
began to see him with a jealous eye. Then the writer came to know that it was in vain to argue
with the men full of national prejudices. So he went back home thinking of the absurd and
ridiculous nature of national prejudice.
According to the writer, philosophers consider a man of any country as a citizen of the world.
They globalize everything and do not have national prejudice, unlike the English gentleman who
was narrow-minded, and thought only the particular country or petty society.
The writer says that national prejudice infects our minds and influences our conduct. It makes
our mind vulgar, unnatural and proud. We should love our country but without hate towards the
natives of other countries. He says that it is just like the superstition and enthusiasm which too is
the product of religion. Therefore we should be the citizen of the world, not the citizen of a
particular country or petty society. He prefers the title a citizen of the world to that of an
English, a French, a German, a Spaniard, a European or so on.
"THE MOSQUITO"
"The mosquito" by English poet D.H. Lawrence, deals with the tricks, cruelty, cunning and some
surprising activities of a mosquito. The poet has described the mosquito as magician, musician
and a weak creature. He has explained the mosquito with various qualities like phantom,
sorcerer, trump etc.
In this poem, the poet addresses the mosquito in various ways to explain its activities. The poet
asks when it starts its tricks and why it stands on tall legs. The poet says that it has long and thin
legs to raise its body high. It raises its body high to lift its central body. It sits upon the poet but it
seems to be a phantom because it is weightless. The poet has heard a woman call him a winged
victory. The poet thinks that it joins head and tail and smiles. He asks how it can put so much
mischief in weak transparent body. It has capacity to sail in the air like a heron in water as if
there is no presence of it. The poet explains the way of living of the mosquito and says it can
exist in aura of environment by doing some tricky activities. It remains invisible and the poet
cannot feel its arrival and sucking blood as a senseless person.
The poet has now known the existence, trick and arrival of the mosquito by using various ways

to come to the poet as an evil spirit. The poet thinks that it understands the negative thought of
the poet and roams in the air that the poet does not like. The poet threatens the mosquito to fight
and judge who will win. He wants to come to the conclusion to see who is powerful. The poet
hates it because it is like a monster to shock him. The poet complains the bad policy of mosquito
but says that it also cannot exist without sucking blood. So the poet believes that God saves the
innocent creature. The poet turns to the beautiful sound of the mosquito and thinks he sings a
victory by flying away after taking the blood. The mosquito acts in a low manner to take blood
breaking simple norms. The poet says the weightlessness saved it from the anger of the man. The
mosquito wins and flies away by taking bood. The poet thinks that it can win the mosquito and
easily kill it. Finally, the poet kills it and gets surprised because the sucked blood makes a big red
mark but the body of the mosquito makes a very small black mark. The mosquito is supposed to
be disappearing but actually it is killed.
MACHINE & EMOTION
This essay "machines and emotions" written by English philosopher and mathematicians,
Bertrand Russell deals with some merits and demerits of machines, human responses and some
remedies to the problems created by the use of machines. The relationship between machine and
human emotion are clearly identified. In the beginning the writer takes the side of machine and
machinery developments, later, he comes to feel some problems created by machines which are
and gives some hopeful solutions to solve the problems which are not addressed by the sciences
or machines.
Bertrand Russell in the essay says that machines and human emotions contradict to each other.
This contradiction is growing more along with the growth of the use of machine in modern time.
He includes some examples of Japanese people and Asiatic civilization that they dislike their
own traditional cultures but like western automobiles. Western people also like machinery but
some poets and aesthetes criticizes this attitude. Machines are beautiful, attractive and ugly and
hideous. They provide power and impose slavery. This liking disliking attitude can't be
absolutely wrong. Machines are slave for their masters and dreadful weapons for their enemies.
The master of machine doesn't know the harmful effects of the machine because he stays away
from the noise and smell of machine only those who stay and work with the machines are
directly and terribly affected and harmed. But the master claims that because of only the
operations of the machines they are having much better life than their forefather.
The possessions of material goods increase happiness of human beings. The person who has
more goods becomes happier than the person who has fewer goods. Some moralists and religious
personalities reject the emphasis given to material goods but that is only superficial and
prejudiced because with much money and better income they also become happier than they
remain with less income. So happiness felt by human beings is related to psychological factors
along with the goods. Human emotions are also related with physical needs. A physical
fulfillment increases satisfaction. In poverty and lack of goods human beings can't be satisfied
and happy. All of then people try to increase their income because their happiness with better life
depends on material prosperity. Material prosperity gains social prestige as well as mental and
spiritual satisfaction. Although people don't know everything about the things that they have and
they keep that because other people in society know the value and importance of the things.
Social prestige and respect differ from society to society.
The possession of material prosperity should work as a competitive matter. People who have
much material prosperity are superior and the people who don't have material prosperity get pain
if they are poorer than their neighbors. On the other hand, human happiness depends on the

control of population. If any country has smaller population, people can be more prosperous than
that of the people of those countries which have greater population. So if we think only machine
brings happiness and prosperity that is a wrong concept. So, to replace the importance of
machine4 and material prosperity, we should control starvation too. Machine makes people
regular and lack of it makes them irregular. Irregular life is called bad life because there is no
punctuality, seriousness and exactness.
"THE NEW HANGMAN"
"The New Hangman", a play by Lawrence Housman, deals with a theme of humanity against the
execution of culprits. The refusal of the Hangman to do his job is the main theme of the play. The
play tries to show that it is wrong to execute the people and also states that execution is the main
thing to make human civilization really worse. The writer presents the bad points in the old
civilization. It is the expression of hatred to the system of execution and expresses this idea
through the Hangman.
In this drama, the warders had prepared everything for hanging. The priest was also uninterested
to see the execution so he was a bit drunk. His heart was full of pain. When the Governor came
for the order of hanging, the Hangman disagreed to perform his duty. He rejected to execute the
criminal. He had been an assistant of the earlier Hangman for twelve times but says that being an
assistant, he found himself immoral and criminal. The heart of the Hangman was full of pain and
guilty feelings. He was aware that society and even authority didn't like the system of execution
and hanging job of anyone. The Hangman wanted to have a prestigious life in society. So, he
decided not to carry on the hanging job. He was ready to give up job and take any new job in
London instead. Less money from any job was no matter for him. The priest was in real dilemma
because in the beginning, he was against the execution and indirectly he was supporting the
Hangman but later when the Governor scolded him, he reprimanded the Hangman. He accused
the Hangman of making them feel ashamed. After the refusal of the Hangman to hang the
waiting criminal, the Governor asked the warders to take the job of the Hangman but no one
there was ready to execute the person. It was much difficult situation for the Governor to
complete his responsibility for execution. So, he threatened and scolded the Hangman. But he
didn't do it after his decision. So the Governor asked the Chief Commissioner to instruct him for
what he could do at the time. But there was no way out to conduct the execution right away as no
one was ready to carry out the job of hanging. The execution was postponed because it was eight
o' clock, the time of hanging. The bell was ringing and the time of hanging was almost over.
People gathered outside the prison. Finally, the Hangman left the place and went out to make the
crowd hear his decision of giving up his job. The crowd welcomed and appreciated his decision;
they cheered up and shouted with a loud sound. It was the symbol of rejection and avoidance of
the system execution.
"A Handful of Dates"
The story "A Handful of Dates" written by Tayeb Salih is a story about a rich man, speaker's
grandfather and a poor man, Massod. The writer's grandfather had bought most of the land which
once belonged to Massod. Massod married many women and each time he got married, he sold
some part of his land. Now he has been very poor although he was once a rich man.
The story teller was a small boy. He used to go with his grandfather anywhere he went. He used
to go to the mosque to learn Koran. He was talented at learning Koran by heart. The Sheikh used
to ask him to recite the poem of the chapter Merciful when visitors used to come to visit the
mosque. Except the mosque, he used to go to the river and fields. After coming from the mosque

be used Jo eat and go to swim in the river. Sitting on the bank of the river he used to imagine that
there were some giants like his grandfather living behind the forests. His grandfather had fairly
white beard and a long nose. He was tall and slim too. So, everyone used to look him up and he
used to bend down low to enter any houses.
The boy narrator was a favourite grandchild of his grandfather. He was called an intelligent
child. He was obedient and sincere to help his grandfather. He used to do some usual works such
as to bring a blanket and fill the jug (pot) with water for his grandfather. His grandfather used to
listen to bis reciting Koran in free time. Once be asked his grandfather about their neighbour,
Masood. Grandfather commented that he was a lazy person and he didn't like such lazy people.
Then he showed a large part of land from the side of the desert to the Nile to him He also said
that the land once belonged to Masood, The boy had only known that there he used to play.
Grandfather further said that fifty years ago behind come there. At that time he had no piece of
land but later on be bought land from Masood. The land was now full of date palms. But die boy
had been thinking that his grandfather bad possessed them from the God's creation.
The boy came to know about die story of the land fill of dates. He asked why Masood sold the
land to him. Grandfather answered that me cause was Vonun'r He also knew mat Masood
married more than0 ninety women- He still used to know his many wives, his poor condition,
and his Tame donkey. Masood came and they stopped talking about him because Masood was
coming there. Masood explained (bat it was the day of harvesting dates and be unwillingly
invited die grandfather. Grandfather and me boy went la me field of dates. Many people gathered
there. The date palms belonged to Masood but he was totally unconcerned to the dates. A boy
climbed up the tree and cut down me fruits of dates and asked him not to cut the 'heart' of dates.
Finally, the dates were gathered and put into the sacks. There were Hussein (a businessman)
Mousa (A neighbouring landlord) and two strange men. They divided the sacks of dates. Hussein
took ten, Mousa took five, the strangers took five for each and grandfather took five. Grandfather
gave the boy a fistful of dates. He started to chew them.
The boy saw Masood coming towards them. He was walking so slowly that the boy saw his feet
moving with difficulty. When Masood arrived there grandfather told him Out he still had to pay
him fifty pounds. The boy heard a painful sound inside the throat of Masood. Although the boy
didnt know the cause he felt unbearable pain in his his chest due to the pitiable condition of
Masood. The boy ran away from there. He reached the river bank, Unknowingly he put his
fingers into his throat and vomited all the dates he had eaten.
This story reveals a fact that the boy loves Masood by seeing his poor and helpless condition.
The boy even hates the activities of Ms grandfather so he vomits out the dates at last. During the
childhood human thought is so sacred, innocent, selfishless, and sensitive that children want to
create better world man the old do. The writer has tried to convey the idea of being just against
injustice and corruption.