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प्रश्न
Shakespeare’s poetry has come to be valued for its own sake on the stage. Comment with reference to the play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream.’
उत्तर
William Shakespeare is known as the greatest playwright of all time. Known for his coherence and witty wordplay, Shakespeare‘s writings have a deep impact on its readers even today. Whether it is comedy or tragedy, Shakespeare knows how to skilfully weave the words together, so as to evoke just the right kind of emotion.
In the case of 'A Midsummer Night‘s Dream‘, Shakespeare has used the blank verse, a style of writing that was relatively new back in his time. In fact, most of Shakespeare‘s plays fall into the blank verse pattern. In this play, however, he uses different constructions for different characters. For example, the interactions between Bottom and the other workmen are presented in a rustic and simple manner while the conversation between Oberon and Titania is complex and full of magical references, so as to give their dialogues the mystical quality of the land of the fairies.
Shakespeare uses rhyming couplets for the verse of the four lovers - Helena, Hermia, Lysander, and Demetrius, for their passionate declarations and emotional outburst. An example of this is -
“You are unkind, Demetrius; be not so;
For you love Hermia; this you know I know:
And here, with all goodwill, with all my heart,
In Hermia’s love I yield you up to my part:
And yours of Helena to me bequeath,
Whom I do love, and will do till my death.”
Shakespeare also uses rhyming couplets for most of the conversation between the fairies. However, these couplets have a light and casual tone to make them stand apart from the verse of the lovers. An example of this is -
“Captain of our fairy band,
Helena is here at hand,
And the youth mistook by me,
Pleading for a lover’s fee.
Shall we their fond pageant see?
Lord, what fools these mortals be!”
On the other hand, the language between Bottom and the other workmen is just like prose, without any meter or rhyme.
Even the interactions between Bottom and Titania are in stark contrast with each other. Titania expresses her emotions like a beautiful verse, while Bottom responds with his thoughts in simple prose. This contrasts the sophistication of the Fairy Queen‘s world with the crudeness of the commoner, i.e., Bottom. Apart from the beautiful language, Shakespeare also makes use of various literary devices to enhance the experience of the readers. His use of nature and animal imagery to maintain the continuity of the forest atmosphere as well as to communicate the various actions, sounds, and emotions in a scene helps the reader understand the scene better.
Shakespeare‘s expertise in creating a rich blend of varied patterns for multiple characters and combining them with the use of a range of literary devices is testimony to his skills as a writer whose poetry has come to be valued for its own sake on the stage.
APPEARS IN
संबंधित प्रश्न
A1. (i) Two activities that mother was free to do:
(a)...........................................
(b)............................................
(ii)Two activities that children avoided doing because of television:
(a) .....................................
(b) ...................................
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash thedishes in the sink
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
It rots the sense in the head!
It kills imagination dead!
It clogs and clutters up the mind!
It makes a child so dull and blind
He can no longer understand
A fantasy, a fairyland!
His brain becomes as soft as cheese!
His power of thinking rust and freeze!
He cannot think - He only sees!
'All right!' you'll cry. 'All right!' you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall-we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?'
'How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
A2. According to the poem, why is excessive watching of TV harmful?
A3. His brain became as soft as cheese. The figure of speech is ..........because............
Maggu’s achievements are particularly noteworthy because – as is well known – academic institutions in India are less than sold on the idea of inclusive education. In fact, when Maggu lost her sight in class IV, her school (which she declines to name) expelled her while suggesting she attend a “blind school”. Though shocked, Maggu rejected the advice. “Attending a special school would have tarred me with a handicap forever, which was not how I saw my future. Therefore I did the rounds of other public schools with my father, a small – time merchant, explaining that my case was different Since I had vision till the age of ten,” she recalls.
Impressed by her persistence and ambition, Delhi’s Bluebells School not only admitted her but pulled out all the stops to support her in academics sporting events and also notched up a respectable 73 percent average in the class XII exam with the help of Braille, interactive textbooks and extra coaching.
The respectable average in her CBSE exam paved the way for admission into LSR where again she proved her mettle by winning medals in a slew of inter – collage events (100 200 and 400 metre sprints) high jump, long jump, javelin and discuss throw: resulting in her being declared ‘Athlete of the year’ 2003’ at a sports meet for 100 physically challenged athletes. And the cherry on the cake was the selection to the IBSA Games last year. “It was a tough regimen,” recalls Maggu. “I had to attend sports camps manage my studies and officiates as sports president. But I managed.”
Questions:
(1) What qualities of Maggu are highlighted in this passage?
(2) Why did Maggu refuse to attend a ‘blind school’?
(3) Quote the lines that show that Jyoti Maggu was good in academics as well as in sports.
(4) Use any two phrases in sentences of your own :
(a) To win laurels
(b) To pave the way
(c) To prove one’s mettle
(d) A tough regimen
(5)
(a) I did the rounds of other public schools with my father [Change the voice]
(b) though shocked Maggu rejected the advice [Rewrite as a simple sentence]
(6) Should the physically challenged be sent to special schools? Express your views.
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| 1. | Have a clear subject line. | Don’t forget your signature. |
| 2. | Use a professional salutation. | Don’t use humour and sarcasm. |
| 3. | Recheck your e-mail. | Don’t assume the recipient knows what you are talking about. |
| 4. | Keep private material confidential. | Don’t punctuate poorly. |
| 5. | Keep your email short and flawless. Stay concise. | Don't hit 'Reply All'. |
| 6. | Check your attachments before sending them. | Don’t think that no one but the intended recipient will see your email. (No predictions) |
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