An Artist of the Floating World

This blog is a response to the task based on Kazuo Ishiguro’s Novel An Artist of the Floating World., assigned by Dr. Dilip Barad sir. His blog deals with several questions charged by sir. I hope it will be useful to you.

AN ARTIST OF THE FLOATING WORLD

Introduction:

Author-

Sir Kazuo Ishiguro born 8 November 1954, a British novelist, screenwriter, musician, and short-story writer. He was born in Nagasaki , Japan and moved to Britain in 1960 with his parents when he was five.

His first two novels A Pale View of Hills and An Artist of the Floating World explored Japanese identity and their elegiac tone. He also wrote in other genres life historical fiction and science fiction, The Remains of the Day (Man booker prize winner), Time, Never Let Me Go are his best science fiction novels.

In 2017, the Swedish academy awarded Ishiguro the Nobel Prize in Literature, describing him in its citation as a writer "who, in novels of great emotional force, has uncovered the abyss beneath our illusory sense of connection with the world". He is also nominated for the man booker prize four times.

Novel-

The novel an Artist of the Floating world is considered to be both Fiction and global literature. This novel is set in Post World War II Japan. The chief conflict deals with Ono's need to accept responsibility for his past actions, rendered politically suspect in the context of post-War Japan. The novel has an unreliable narrator, it is narrated by old aging Masuji Ono, a painter who is looking back on his life. The narration technique of the novel is really tough, it confuses us about every situation. It takes us in flashback inside the flashback.

The novel's title is based on the literal translation of Ukiyo-e, a word referring to the Japanese art of prints. Therefore, it can be read as "a printmaker" or "an artist living in a changing world," given both Ono's limited understanding and the dramatic changes his world, Japan in the first half of the twentieth century, has undergone in his lifetime.

'Lantern' appears 34 times in the novel. Even on the cover page, the image of lanterns is displayed. What is the significance of Lantern in the novel?

Lantern is connected with the Ono’s Art teachers who involve Lantern in his every painting. Lantern words appear around 30 times in the novel. Also the cover page of the novel has the pictures of the lantern. The lanterns are not the one which can be reused or reframed, it talks about the lanterns which die once they are aflamed, they have a very short life. Mori San used to involve lanterns in his painting, he always tried to capture the lantern in specific lights. If we light a lantern in the dusk, various new colors of nature and lantern mix and are painted by Mori- Sane. This period of specific lights and colors in nature and the life of nature both have very small life, they die in no time. This easily extinguished quality shows ‘transience of beauty’ and the ‘importance of giving careful attention to small moments and details in the physical world’. It is an old-fashioned, aesthetically focused, and more traditional way of viewing the world.

Lanterns can also be read as the alternative of the fire, a symbol of destruction. When Ono started making paintings other than aesthetic delights, Mori - San took his paintings . He didn't burn the paintings but he lit up the lantern which can be read as he did so to burn the paintings. There is no direct reference to the burning of the painting but we interpret the act of Mori- San lighting the lantern as he is/ was going to burn the lantern.

Write in brief a review of the film based on the novel

An Artist of the Floating World, a Japanese movie by Kazuki Watanbe is devoted to Kazuo Ishiguro’s novel An Artist of the Floating World. The narrative technique is the novel is difficult and also problematic but the Movie has wonderfully captured it and stayed loyal to the novel. The movie has the benefit of telling a story through camera, even the silence in the movie tells something, camera without talking to viewers. Also the background music gives us the sense of happening, past to future.

There are various scenes which without dialogues say many things: in the park when Majusi Ono asks his elder daughter Setsuko about his painting there is a suspicious sound in the background which hints that someone is hiding something.

Nextly, the Camera angle: the camera captures the Ono’s painting class from a higher/ top angle which symbolizes that they are under the control of someone. And in the Takeda firm’s view we find everyone is sitting in the line which reminds us of the assembly line in the manufacturing companies.

There are also several changes in the movie. For example; there is a scene where we find Masuji Ono burning his own paintings but nothing like this is found in Novel. We even don't find a specific vision behind that scene. We interpret that scene as ono disowning his own painting and he in his mind, internally is burning his own paintings.

Movie provides better understanding, it helps us to better understand the novel and to remember the characters. And this movie of Kazuki Watanbe is most faithful to the novel.

Debate on the Uses of Art / Artist (Five perspectives: 1. Art for the sake of art - aesthetic delight, 2. Art for Earning Money / Business purpose, 3. Art for Nationalism / Imperialism - Art for the propaganda of Government Power, 4. Art for the Poor / Marxism, and 5. No need of art and artist (Masuji's father's approach)

The novel is an Artist of the floating world, the title itself talks about an Artist which suggests that the novel will talk about art. The novel is Ono's psychology, finding itself crushed by the riding tide of anti humane values rolling through pre war imperial Japan. Masuji Ono is the titular figure, an artist in the novel around whom the novel is written. He talks with a bridge of hesitation, hiding something behind every thing but at the end of the novel we actually get to know about the tragedy or the one wrong step taken by him is his field of art which he is not regretting or guilty of.

The novel moves around the art and explores the role of responsibility. The novel presents art from five different perspective:

1. Art for the sake of art - aesthetic delight

Mori- san, art teacher of Masuji Ono was a master of ukiyo- e (pictures of the floating world) which meant they painted leisure art, paintings of the higher class; and taught the same to his pupils. he believed that is an artist want to stay alive through his arts that must adapt aesthetic art. Art is for inner happiness not for moral purpose.

We find Masuji Ono sharing the views of Aristotle about art- “Art is to provide aesthetic delight, communicable expression, express emotion and represent life.”

2. Art for Earning Money / Business purpose

Art is a beautiful process which never ends. Painting is something which can be improvised a number of times whenever an artist gets a new idea. It's for the delight. But in the novel we find the firm- ‘Takeda firm’ which does the business of Japanese painting as they are in demand. They hire some young artists, give them money and task them with complete painting for a specific duration. We have also seen this scene in the movie. Artists sit in the ‘assembly line’ and keep on painting, as if machines are working and in this process the delight or the process of making the painting is not enjoyed.

3. Art for Nationalism / Imperialism - Art for the propaganda of Government Power

Ono earned a great position in government and respect too when he started making paintings for the nation/ government/ imperialism. Here we see the idea of Mori- San was right if those who want an art to stay alive forever paint aesthetic delight. If one is painting for the government what will be his condition once the government will change. He will definitely lose position but also the respect in society. Ono painted the painting for war and later everyone realized the decision of the war was wrong. Then everyone starts blaming the artist who painted for war and motivated them for war. Art for imperialism on nationalism would never give lifetime honor to the artist.

4. Art for the Poor / Marxism

Chisu Matsuda was the one who influenced ono for nationalist paintings. He took him to underdeveloped parts of the city and showed him the poor society. Ono being a good hearted decided to do something for them. Chisu influenced him that for the poor we need money and for money we need to attack. The idea of war for Ono was for the betterment of his society. If one wants to draw for the poor they must spread awareness about it through paintings but should not start adapting the things which are not correct at all.

5. No need of art and artist (Masuji's father's approach)

Ono’s father was a businessman and he used to believe that art doesn't pay for a good and leisure life. When he came to know about Ono thinking of profession as an artist he burnt his paintings and explained about the downtrodden life of artists. According to him, to live a good life one needs money which can be earned in paintings. And so he always supported ‘no need for art and artists.’

Also Plato shared the same idea, he said an artist should not be allowed in any state because they don't have any moral teaching or truth. Which was answered by Aristotle by saying, “Art is to provide aesthetic delight, communicable expression, express emotion and represent life.”. The only moral function is to please. We see this discussion has already been done in the past and people like Ono’s father share the same idea as Plato.

What is the relevance of this novel to our times?

An Artist of the Floating World deals with the various themes, it teaches importance of respect and obedience towards elders. The Novel introduces us to the theme of intergenerational conflict and distrust. The Novel is set in the after war period, the younger generation blames the older generation for this disastrous war as they were leading the country during the war. This intergenerational conflict is not only between families but between student - teachers also.

This theme of Intergenerational conflict is completely relevant in today’s society and perhaps will stay for ever as the new generation, younger life has different ways of understanding and fun which conflicts between upbringing of parents and children and grows conflict and distrust among them. Everyone wishes to live a life according to self- deception and self- perception.

This is my understanding of the novel. If you find anything to an in Relevance of the novel in present time please write in the comment box. Thank you for reading.

[words-1840]

The Wasteland by T.S. Eliot

This blog deals with several assigned questions by Dr. Dilip Barad regarding T.S. Eliot’s poem The Wasteland, contradiction of Eliot with between Nietzsche and Freud and Indian thoughts in the poem.

THE WASTELAND

Let us discuss the summary of The Wasteland in brief.

Read original poem

The poem The Wasteland poem was published in T.S. Eliot in 1922. It is the most important work of modernist poetry. The poem is divided into five sections. 

The five parts of The Waste Land are entitled:

• The Burial of the Dead
• A Game of Chess
• The Fire Sermon
• Death by Water
• What the Thunder Said

The Burial of the Dead:

The title refers to fertility and the burial service. It however brings out the spiritual death of citizens of wasteland. The citizens of the wasteland don't want to get disturbed from their routine of modern life. The idea of spiritual regeneration is painful to them, the value system of the citizens is different from the value system of the traditional one. April is generally the symbol of spring and rebirth while winter is a symbol of decay of death but for waste landers April is bad and cruel because it reminds them of The Spiritual decay and makes them think of regeneration and they enjoy winter because they can enjoy it.

A Game of Chess:

A Game of Chess is used by Middleton in the play entitled ‘Women beware Women’ where this game is played to hide the seduction of a young girl by a noble man. The first scene is about drawing room of a fashionable lady who is interested is sexual relations. And it also shares the story of Philomel, the raped girl who was transformed into Nightingale - is a symbol of purification through sufferings but in modern times, love has degenerated into lust and there is no hope of regeneration.

The Fire Sermon:

The title Fire Sermon is borrowed from the sermon of Lord Buddha where he said that the world is on fire, "burning with the fire of hatred, with the fire of infatuation, with birth, old age and death, sorrow, lamentation and misery, grief and despair". Which gives us the idea of spiritual degradation.

Death by Water:

this section-Death by Water says- water is a means of purification and re-birth. There are two metaphors/ stories in this section one from Shakespeare The Tempest and the other from the ancient Egyptian myth of the god of fertility. The death of Phlebas, the Greek sailor, is an example of people who devote themselves to worldly pursuits. Their youth and strength ultimately will be consumed by death.

What the Thunder said:

Reading the title, it indicated through thunder that it declares the liberation of society from spiritual barrenness. The first example is of the mythical journey of the knight to Chapel Perilous in the time of the Fisher King who was successful in removing the curse from his land. The second is the Biblical journey of Christ's disciples to Emmaus when they were accompanied by Christ in disguise and who disclosed his identity to confirm the truth of his resurrection.

Thus, Wasteland is a poem about brokenness and loss. The key theme of the poem in sexual perversion and spiritual degradation.

What are your views on the following image after reading 'The Waste Land'? Do you think that Eliot is regressive as compared to Nietzsche's views? or Has Eliot achieved universality of thought by recalling mytho-historical answers to the contemporary malaise?

Nietzsche claimed the exemplary human being must craft his/her own identity through self-realization and do so without relying on anything transcending that life—such as God or a soul; which is considered to be the progressive and forward looking. While Eliot in the waste land uses the myths, stories and identities from the past with an idea of mistake not being repeated whether in present or at. Elliot is trying to give a universal idea, using the myths of varied culture Eliot has tried to bring universality which inspires society to move on the path of peace.

Nietzsche believed in the idea about ‘God is dead’ and every man has to develop his own powers, will power and self esteem to be a ‘superhuman’, he is finding a solution for the present in future. While Eliot gave references of various spiritualities, myths, religions etc., he is not trying asking or driving us to believe in god but is trying to show the real world. With the reference of myths he is presenting scenarios of the present. He is trying to find the solution of the present and future in the past.

Nietzsche and Eliot both has different ideas about bringing peace and togetherness in society but I personally disagree with Eliot’s idea being ‘regressive and backward’ as it is thinking about present and future with strong foundation of Upanishad, Buddhism and Christianity which have been practiced since years.

For example Eliot discuss very prominent contemporary issues like-

1) sexual perversion - Rape

2) loss of spirituality

3) Depression - mental illness

4) war - political issues

Prior to the speech, Gustaf Hellström of the Swedish Academy made these remarks:

What are your views regarding these comments? Is it true that giving free vent to the repressed 'primitive instinct' leads us to a happy and satisfied life? Or do you agree with Eliot's view that 'salvation of man lies in the preservation of the cultural tradition'?

Freud has talked about the ‘primitive instincts’ which give rise to individuality. if one person works according to his wishes and own personal pleasures may be harmful and worrisome to others and if others are working according to their wishes and for their pleasure may be harmful or make us uncomfortable. As Matthew Arnold also said in his essay ‘Culture and Anarchy’:-

“Doing as one likes may bring chaos in the society”

While Eliot is talking about the preservation of cultural tradition. Culture is a network which connects the society and everyone gets ready to work, to live their life according to the culture which provides togetherness to the society.

Sudeep talks about the progress of individuals while Elliot talks about the progress of the universe. Thus, I personally agree with Eliot’s view that ‘salvation of man's lies in the preservation of cultural tradition.’

Write about allusions to the Indian thoughts in 'The Waste Land'. (Where, How and Why are the Indian thoughts referred?)

Eliot in the Wasteland has brought the various cultures and spirituality together and brought universality in the poem to solve the European problem in spiritual degradation and sexual perversion. Eliot has brought few Indian spiritual thoughts from Upanishads and Buddhism also to fertilize their barren land.

As we discussed the poem is divided in five sections. In the very second section of ‘Fire sermon’ comes the reference of ‘sermon’ which is the idea of buddha. The Buddha's sermon which talks about the four Noble truths in A sacred book of Buddhism named Adittapariyaya sutta. They are the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering. Fire is used as a metaphor. Which reflects sexual perversion in the world.

Secondly in the fifth section ‘What the Thunder Said’ takes the reference of ‘Ganga’ river. And also the Title ‘What the Thunder Said’ is from Upanishad, Prajapati spoke in thunder ‘akashwani’ to his devotees and pointed out the way of salvation.

And through reference of ‘Ganga’, ‘Himavat’ in this part. Eliot refers to Wisdom of India for spiritual salvation of modern humanity.

Eliot uses the three “Da” taken from “Brihadaranyaka Upanishad".

Datta – giver; Dayadhvam – compassion; Damyata – self-control

The first ‘Da’ is a message by Prajapati for the Humans to be ‘Datta’ - be a giver, have charity not only charity but give oneself for a noble cause.

The second ‘Da’ is a message for the Demons - ‘Dayathvam’- have compassion, sympathize and come out of your isolation and live into others.

And the third ‘Da’ is a message for the Gods - ‘Damyata’ - to have self-control, self-restraint over one’s passions and desires.

And the Poem ends with “Shantih… shantih… shantih” an ambiguous note, with the triple repetition of the Sanskrit word 'Shantih', which Eliot translates as 'the peace which passeth understanding'. Which is repeatedly used in Indian culture after every mantra or shloka for the inner and outer peace.

Is it possible to read 'The Waste Land' as a Pandemic Poem?

In the literature we find that Spanish flu or any other pandemic is rarely recorded. We can read that through the literature only if we get any autobiographical context of a writer or that period. if we see the west land is published in 1922 between World War I and World War 2. It is similar to the period of the Spanish flu which spread widely.

We find autobiographical context of Eliot with pandemic flu, Eliot and his wife caught the virus in Dec 1918 in the second wave of the pandemic. Many critics are dealing with the idea of the war fragments though we may say that, in the part of the poem Eliot has portrayed the same thing by post-pandemic consciousness, according to Elizabeth Outka.

We see that the poem is written in fragmented form, it seems like a collage picture which we can read as Eliot might be suffering from fever, infected by a pandemic and is not able to write his thoughts clearly in the poem. He might be having a delirious state of mind.

In the beginning lines we can find a kind of negative atmosphere like all the bodies are suffering from the acute illnesses. ‘Feverish hallucination’ speaks about the symptoms of the feverish body. “ Burning burning burning burning” these lines may show the bodily pain of one’s own or the body of infected are burning in fever

Many such references are obtained while reading the Wasteland poem. We can read this poem from a pandemic lens as we have recently faced a corona pandemic and still the world is not completely cured.

Give link of the Google Sheet with tabular information on Myths, Allusions, Languages, Animals/birds, colors etc

CLICK HERE FOR THE ANSWER

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1SU2naaslHZwH0T1v_12RfEy59pHxSvmXnGLLpMuHijM/edit?usp=sharing

I hope this blog is useful to you thanks for visiting.

[words- 1740]

Long Day's Journey into Night

Hello readers! This blog is assigned to us by Yesha Bhatt ma’am. This blog deals with the novel Long Day’s Journey into Night by Eugene O’ Neill. In this blog I am explaining the theme Addiction from the Long Day’s journey into a night novel.

LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT

About Author:

Eugene Gladstone O’ Neill was born on 6 October 1888 in the United states. He was an American playwright and Nobel Laureate in Literature. He was awarded the Nobel prize "for the power, honesty and deep-felt emotions of his dramatic works, which embody an original concept of tragedy , in 1937. He is best known for his masterpiece, Long Day's Journey into Night (produced posthumously 1956), is at the apex of a long string of great plays, including Beyond the Horizon (1920), Anna Christie (1922), Strange Interlude (1928), Ah! Wilderness (1933), and The Iceman Cometh (1946). His aim was telling a story with shocking themes and seeing what the reaction would be. O'Neill introduced psychological and social realism to the American stage.

About Novel:

Long Day's Journey into Night is a play in four acts written by American playwright Eugene O’ Neill in 1939–41, first published posthumously in 1956. The play is widely considered to be his magnum Opus. O'Neill posthumously received the 1957 Pulitzer prize for drama for Long Day's Journey into Night. The work concerns the Tyrone family, consisting of parents James and Mary and their sons Edmund and Jamie. The "Long Day" refers to the setting of the play, which takes place during one day. The play is autobiographical. The play takes place on a single day in August 1912, from around 8:30 a.m. to midnight. The play portrays a family struggling to grapple with the realities and consequences of the failings of other family members in relation to their own. The Plot of Long Day's Journey into Night focuses on a dysfunctional family trying to come to grips with its ambivalent emotions in the face of serious familial problems, including drug addiction, moral degradation, deep-rooted fear and guilt, and life-threatening illness.

Character's in the play are:

1) Mary Tyrone (Mother)

2) James Tyrone (Father)

3) Jamie Tyrone (Elder son)

4) Edmund Tyrone (younger son)

5) Cathleen (maid)

Themes dealt in play:

1)Alienation and Loneliness

2)Lies and Deception

3) The Destructive power of Addiction

4) Guilt and innocence

5) Search for self

6) Fate and free will

7) The haunting presence of past

8) Wealth and poverty

ADDICTION

In this blog we will discuss Theme of addiction - Long Day’s Journey into Night

Addiction:

An addiction is a chronic dysfunction of the brain system that involves reward, motivation, and memory. It’s about the way your body craves a substance or behavior, especially if it causes a compulsive or obsessive pursuit of “reward” and lack of concern over consequences

.

The addicted person be unable stay away from the substance or stop the addictive behavior, displays a lack of self-control, have an increased desire for the substance or behavior, dismiss how their behavior may be causing problems and lack an emotional response

As we are reading 20th century American literature, drugs and alcohol is a salient theme of this literature and Eugene O'Neill who always depicts social concerns in his plays is bringing his own personal experience on drugs and alcohol in Long Day's Journey into Night. In the play Long Day's journey into night the most addicted is Mary Tyrone who is not at all ready to control or stop her addiction and all the above signs of an addicted person is clearly seen in her. Mary Tyrone, a woman who abuses prescription painkillers and relapses into full-blown morphine addiction. It is also the story of how Mary's addiction rips her family apart, as her morphine use slowly becomes apparent to her husband and two sons. It is widely believed that Long Day's Journey into Night is an autobiographical play, and that the troubled characters in it are based on members of O'Neill's own family, including his mother, Ella, who struggled with morphine addiction for most of her life. In his dedication of the play to his wife Carlotta, O'Neill states that it is a "play of old sorrow, written in tears and blood," and that he wrote it "with deep pity and understanding and forgiveness for all the four haunted Tyrone's." O'Neill wrote the play for personal reasons, and the Addiction Performance Project presented the plays to diverse audiences to elicit personal responses and candid discussion about addiction.

The question also arises why Mary is addicted to morphine. It seems that Tyrone is the reason for her addiction; he refused to pay for a good doctor to treat Mary’s pain after Edmund’s birth. Which led Mary to use alcohol to reduce her pain and slowly she became addicted. She has been addicted for two decades yet she refuses for her addiction. She has also been sent to sanatorium but she yet resumes to the morphine.

Due to this addiction of the female protagonist, Mary Tyrone; Tyrone family which was hopeful for happy family lost their all hope and the novel which started with optimistic tone ended with a pessimist tone.

If we look at the theme of addiction connecting with the present time we do in the people who are addicted to morphine, drugs or drinking alcohol. But in this digital era the addiction which is rising in the young generation is addiction to mobile phones and games. Addiction of mobile phones have resulted to be worse than the addiction of drugs and alcohol. Today's various news comes about the children spending lakhs of money in buying +games or arms in games. This addiction ends up with insomnia in children, it affects the mental health of children. psychology , thinking patterns, sleep cycles, and behavior which also affects their studies, attention span and potential.

Smartphones, computers, tablets are hugely productive tools. But people spend more time on social media than real people and keep on checking text, messages etc. Such smartphone addiction is known as NOMOPHOBIA.

Recently there was a game in the market, Blue Whale. Which used to give a suicide challenge according to various sources. In this game players were given tasks and they needed to complete in 50 days and many news came up of children suiciding playing this game. Blue Whale", also known as the "Blue Whale Challenge", is a social network phenomenon dating from 2016 that is claimed to exist in several countries. It is a "game" reportedly consisting of a series of tasks assigned to players by administrators over a 50-day period, initially innocuous before introducing elements of self- harm and the final challenge requiring the player to committed suicide.

The Garena free fire game was heavily famous in India which was banned under national security threat with 53 Chinese apps. Youngsters were widely addicted to this game and many cases also came in which they spent lakhs of money in buying various arms and weapons in the game. The money used to get deducted easily from the parents account. This is how addiction ruins life and money.

There was a recent incident of mobile addiction. In the place named ‘chitod’ a boy was playing a game and suddenly his mobile got switched off. In mobile getting off he hyped off or can be said lost his mental stability and started shouting ‘hackers hacked his phone’. The people in the surrounding, had to tie him with rope to control him.

There was also a study done which said smartphone addiction is similar to addiction of alcohol.

The study said that the people who are addicted can be addicted to behavior and that habit. Cell phone users can begin to depend upon their phone in a way that seems quite similar to how people respond to drugs. For example; spending time away from the cellphone makes them feel anxious, they start getting panicked and they keep on getting angry with others. if the phone is on charging or is switched off they keep on creating chaos. People need the cell phone to lift up their moods, they get the same level for enjoyment through mobile phones just as some drug users. it puts a strain on their personal social and professional life the same happen same can happen true for the smartphone addicts.

Which the change of the time the addictions to change intertwined beginning of the 20th century the addiction of alcohol and more pain was considered to be the highest addiction and the worst thing a person can do but intertwined beginning of the 20th century the addiction of alcohol and Morphine was considered to be the highest addiction and the worst thing a person can do but today we find People are changing their ideas are changing along that their addictions are also changing but as usual at the overuse or addiction of anything is harmful to mental and Physical health not only of the user but also of the people who are living with them.

Thank you for visiting. I hope this blog is useful to you.

[words 1520]

Bridge Course- War Poetry

Hello readers! This blog is assigned to us by Vaidehi Haryani ma’am. It deals with the topic of war poetry. M.A. Sem 2 syllabus deals with 20th century literature and it is incomplete without understanding wars. It's always a question of how soldiers used to share their emotions or their experience. We realize that literature is the best means to spread ideas/ emotions etc. Many civilians and soldiers have written various poems which depict the war periods and in this blog we will discuss a few questions related to it.

WAR POETRY

What is your understanding of war poetry?

The term war poetry chiefly denotes writing under the direct impact of world war I. The genre which is directly influenced by war. This type of poetries was also written in the ancient Greek period but it was established as genre during world war I. Majorly the war poetries are Anti- war, that oppose war. The term was coined by Randall Jarrell in his essay “The Literature of War” (1961). Jarrell defines war poetry as “a poem that has as its theme war and that is written during or about a war”.

War poets are also known as trench poets. These are the poets who themselves used to participate in the wars and used to write their experiences in the form of poems. But it's not only that soldiers used to write, civilians too used to write war poetry.

The purpose of the war poetry was; firstly the soldiers needed a medium to express their feelings, emotions and poetry was the good medium for it. Another idea behind writing war poetry was to show the dark side and horrors of war and lastly, poetry was the best means to spend free time in the wars.

World war I continued for around 4 years and approximately 9 million people died. This brought the state of mental stress and degrading feeling in the people. Heroic ideals of war seemed meaningless. First the war poems were written to celebrate the sense of honor and glory of war but after world war I poets also realized that there is no honor and glory in the war. It is just settled by the ministries in order to gain power.

Characteristics of war poetry:

It used gruesome and shocking imagery.

It signaled a break off from the contemporary poetic tradition.

It uses the actual language of men engaged in war.

Realistic documentation of war with all its beauty.

War poetry is not only anti-war but it also deals with immediate answers to humanity, innocence, courage, loyalty, guilt, identity, duty, desire , health. War poetry has become an expression of historical and political conscience. It also deals with what we are and what we want to be.

Themes of War Poems

· The loss of innocence

· Brotherhood and friendship

· The horrors of war

· Disillusionment with religion

· Nature

· Irrationality of war

· Emotions and feelings

Note down the difference of all the War Poets.

The important war poets and their poem we are going to study are:

Dulce et Decorum Est - Wilfred Owen

The Soldier - Rupert Brooke

The Fear – Wilfrid Wilson Gibson

The Hero - Siegfried Sassoon

The Target - Ivor Gurney

As we discussed before, War poetry is not necessarily 'anti-war'. It is about the very large questions of life: identity, innocence, guilt, loyalty, courage, compassion, humanity, duty, desire, death. Every poet has a different vision to look towards war and they share varied emotions in their poem. Let us see the difference in the feelings of the poets in the same genre of poetry.

Poets	Emotions in their poem
Wilfred Owen	Optimistic view: fear of war, horror, sacrifice, glory, questioning life's purpose, visions of ghastly suffering,  the waste & futility of war, Horror of trench, gas warfare, loss of faith and fear of death.
Rupert Brooke	Idealistic war sonnets: Patriotism, Unbroken Glory and nationhood
Wilfrid Wilson Gibson	pity of war: anger at the cruelty and waste of war and his pity for its victims; to show the soldiers' emotions, as many committed suicide, unable to live with their regrets, Guilt, Madness, death, Injury and sense of identity.
Siegfried Sassoon	anti war poetry: a bleak and unflinching look at the horrors of combat, anti war poetry and for his fictionalized autobiographies, praised for their evocation of English country life, Death, Horror, sympathy for soldiers, Religious Authority and disillusionment with the war.
Ivor Gurney	mourning his loss and regretting that he will never have the pleasure of the dead soldier's company again, Style of monologue

Compare any two poems with reference to the subject, style of writing and patriotism.

The Hero by Siegfried Sassoon

Subject:

Siegfried Sassoon’s “The Hero” dramatizes society’s attempt to maintain an ideal about war and honor inapplicable to modern warfare. In the poem, an officer delivers news to a soldier’s mother about her son’s death using romantic old-war rhetoric. Sassoon’s poem embodies the irony of World War I on a small and large scale.

The message in the poem is It expresses anger to those who start wars and send their fellow men to their death. The main message is that army officers plan battles from the safety of their base, and are usually not involved in the fighting, and therefore do not know the horrors that they are forcing soldiers to face.

Style:

The poem is written in iambic pentameter. It comprises three stanzas of six lines length largely made up of rhyming couplets, the first four lines of the second stanza have an alternating rhyme scheme.

Patriotism:

The poet wants the world to acknowledge his bravery and valor. He has a faithful and sincere love for his mother, proved by his willingness to save her at the cost of his own life; it is this, says the poem, that transforms him into a real hero.

The Soldier by Rupert Brooke

Subject:

“The Soldier” explores the bond between a patriotic British soldier and his homeland. The key themes of this poem are love and death which are the two most powerful things that recall the feelings of readers. Death, as he is a soldier going into World War One, and love in the sense of loving his country. It reflects British sorrow over and pride in the young men who died in World War I. The tone is uplifting and idealistic but also self-sacrificial. There is a sense of romantic inevitability about the privilege and duty of dying for one's country

Style:

This poem is written in fourteen lines in a Petrarchan/Italian sonnet form. The poem is divided into an opening octet, and then followed by a concluding sestet (the last six lines of a sonnet). Rhyme scheme of the poem; the octet is rhymed after the Shakespearean/Elizabethan (ABAB CDCD) form, while the sestet follows the Petrarchan/Italian (EFG EFG) form.

Patriotism:

The Soldier is a sonnet in which Brooke glorifies England during the First World War. It is a deeply patriotic and idealistic poem that expresses a soldier's love for his homeland—in this case England, which is portrayed as a kind of nurturing paradise.

Do you find any such regional poems/movies/web series/songs which can be compared to any one of the poems given here. Also, give a proper explanation of the similarity.

“लब पे आती है दुआ बनके तमन्ना मेरी

ज़िन्दगी शम्मा की सूरत हो खुदाया मेरी

लब पे आती है दुआ बनके तमन्ना मेरी ”

ऐ वतन, मेरे वतन

ऐ वतन आबाद रहे तू

आबाद रहे तू

आबाद रहे तू

ऐ वतन, वतन मेरे, आबाद रहे तू

ऐ वतन, वतन मेरे, आबाद रहे तू

ऐ वतन, वतन मेरे, आबाद रहे तू

मैं जहा रहू जहाँ में याद रहे तू

मैं जहा रहू जहाँ में याद रहे तू

ऐ वतन मेरे वतन

ऐ वतन मेरे वतन

तू ही मेरी मंजिल है, पहचान तुझी से

तू ही मेरी मंजिल है, पहचान तुझी से

पहुंचू मैं जहां भी

मेरी बुनियाद रहे तू

पहुंचू मैं जहां भी

मेरी बुनियाद रहे तू

ऐ वतन, वतन मेरे, आबाद रहे तू

मैं जहा रहू जहाँ में याद रहे तू

ऐ वतन मेरे वतन

ऐ वतन मेरे वतन

तुझपे कोई गम की आंच आने नहीं दूं

तुझपे कोई गम की आंच आने नहीं दूं

कुर्बान मेरी जान तुझपे शाद रहे तू

कुर्बान मेरी जान तुझपे शाद रहे तू

ऐ वतन, वतन मेरे, आबाद रहे तू

मैं जहा रहू जहाँ में याद रहे तू

ऐ वतन ऐ वतन

मेरे वतन मेरे वतन

आबाद रहे तू, आबाद रहे तू

ऐ वतन मेरे वतन

आबाद रहे तू.

These are the lines from the song from the Raazi movie ‘Ae Watan’. This song talks about the one who is sacrificing her life for the nation/ homeland. This song can be compared with the war poem The Soldier by Rupert Brooke which also talks about the bond between the soldier and his homeland. The poem also deals with love and death, Death, as he is a soldier going into World War One, and love in the sense of loving his country.

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