W B Yeats Poems

 William Butler Yeats's Poems

Hello, I am Emisha Ravani, writing this blog as thinking activity for the great literary figure William Butler Yeats's poems. The Poems are "The Second Coming" and "On Being Asked for a War Poem". The questions are like,

1) Pandemic Reading of 'The Second Coming'.

2) Reread the poem 'War' poem by replacing the word 'war; with 'pandemic'. Does it make any sense?

3) Critical analysis of any other poem written by W B Yeats.

4) Apply concepts of Indian Poetics and re-read both the poems.

1).Pandemic reading of 'The Second Coming' :

The poem starts like “Turning and turning in the widening gyre/ The falcon cannot hear the falconer”. It seems like there was the gyre of fluish war while 1919 when poem got published. Also it is showing the political violence in Ireland. When we look at his biography then, his wife, George, who was pregnant and caught virus, almost near to death. At that time around seventy percent pregnant women were died. One can see this incident and can say that only at that time Yeats’s wrote this poem. Because it is more hallucinated when one looses loved one, and then he or she writing the emotions and feelings that one may feel by their works.

 If we are able to find the pessimism of pandemic in those texts. Generally, it is hard to see. “blood-dimmed tide”, Here we can imagine that this is the most infected imaginary of the poem to prove the pandemic reading. Just floods of blood, in the flu was bleeding from the nose, mouth, ears. Such a horrible visionary one can get by this line. “Ceremony of innocence being drowned”, when it’s his wife and unborn baby who were in the process of drowning like that. “ things are falling apart; the centre cannot hold” talks about the situation of emergency in the time of pandemic or the flu. 

If we want to make another reading of the poem we can do through the apocalypse vision. It leads towards the ‘ultimate destruction’ as main theme in the poem. In both the works one cannot find easily the tone of the pandemics. In The Waste Land, there are so many images portrayed by Thomas Stearns Eliot which can be studied by another perspectives rather than the pandemic one. Like myths, allusions, real images, religion centric elements. Though it could happen in the way we have seen. In The Second Coming , which is written by William Butler Yeats. There is also we could find the light of pandemic which has thrown by the poet’s own mind. So these are the symbols of the pandemic to look into both the poems through pandemic lens.

2) Reread the poem 'War' poem by replacing the word 'war; with 'pandemic'. Does it make any sense?

Yes, If we look at any war poem and try to read that poem by replacing 'war' with 'pandemic'. 

We can see the war poems communicating the shattered minds and bodies of his fellow patients and portrays the agony and torture that soldiers take with them after the war. Wars always have agony and also pandemic cannot get existence without agony. If we talk about torture, there we can go to the politic view about it that whenever pandemic happens the situation is similar to war for politicians.

3) Critical analysis of any other poem written by W B Yeats.

Here we will see the poem 'Death' by William Butler Yeats and it's critical analysis.

Nor dread nor hope attend

A dying animal;

A man awaits his end

Dreading and hoping all;

Many times he died,

Many times rose again,

A great man in his pride

Confronting murderous men

Casts derision upon

Supersession of breath;

He knows death to the bone –

Man has created death.

This poem is not that most famous poem of Yeats’s. it is shortest poem of his all poems. ‘Death’ was written in 1929 and included in Yeats’s 1933 volume The Winding Stair and Other Poems. Here is ‘death’, followed by a few words by way of analysis.

Yeats examine the human attitude to death. And also compare the human awareness of death and animal’s awareness of death. That humans are aware that they will die one day and animals are having lack of awareness that they will die one day too. Poet is saying that animals don’t have fear of death and also not having the hope of after life. These things humans are always having.

The lines , “Many times he died, Many times rose again”. By this lines might poet wants to say that, In human life so many times we died when we fail to live, when we feel dead, when we feel useless and so many other ways, But we always get another chance to move on or get good lives.  

Further, the poet jump to “A Great Man”. Where he tried to talk about the idea that when we breathe our last breath on this earth, do we replace any kind of existence with another? What happens to us when we die?  Yeats also said that death is the man maid concept “ Man has created death”- here he is saying that animals also die like men are dying. But animal’s lives are not having these questions that what happens when it shuffles off this mortal coil, what may await after the last breath.  

4) Apply concepts of Indian Poetics and re-read both the poems.

Let’s have a look upon both the poems with the concepts of Indian Poetics. In the ‘ The Second Coming’ poem first in this study.  “The Second Coming” of the God is the idea that all the religions are believing in this idea of second coming and it is the Theory of Vakrokti. Also here we can find ‘Vyanjana’ when poet says that “Falconer is not able to control falcon”- the falcon is kind of bird, this is direct meaning that bird is not being controlled. But we should go with other meaning that the situation is not in the control. If we go with Rasa theory then we can find ‘ Karunya’ ( compassion, mercy), ‘Bibhatasam’(disgust), ‘Bhayanakam’( horror, terror). The poem has ‘Auchitya’ in a proper way.

When we go with the another poem is “On Being Asked for a War Poem”. We can see the very use of irony in whole poem. The poem has Rasa like ‘Adbhutam’(wonder, amazement).’Auchitya’ is also found in the poem. Poet has used Vakrokti in very intelligent way in all the lines of poem.

THANK YOU ! 

I. A. Richard's Figurative Language

I. A. Richard's Figurative Language

Hello, I'm Emisha Ravani, writing this blog for the thinking activity given by Prof. Dilip Barad. Where we have to do figurative language analysis of any peom/song/devotional song Or like that kind of study. ( you can visit teacher's blog by clicking here).

We as human beings always like to have any thing as audio- visual to feel more anything. In this I have taken this above lyrical video to verbal analysis.

First, we will see the hard words used in this lyric with meanings.

Wadi- ghati

Chinar -the oriental plane tree

Kohra - Fog

Nargis – pila phool

Sard – sardi

Tawazzon – santulan

Shikare – kind of bird

Zeel – zarana

Lutfutana – when we fall for something

Khamosh – maun

 Now we are going to see the main thought of the poem/lyric.

In the whole poem poet is admiring the nature by the words of high recommendation. There is Urdu and Hindi both languages. Poet starts with the tree’s reference that how the valley is welcoming the trees of chinar. By addressing it ‘laal’. When “wadi me chinar ka laal utar aya hain”- the first line of it.

The second line “Phoolo par titliyaan bethne lagi hain , Kohre se bhari sabha mein” , it says that nature is welcoming the spring season.

The third “Nargis ki Khushboo tahalane lagi hain” the significance of flower of nargis ,This white petalled beauty is also considered a symbol of good health and prosperity and hence delivers a mandatory appearance at Kashmiri weddings as well as celebrations of the New Year. Might, poet is calling for the season of love.

“Jab raatein sard hoti hai to ye Khushboo tawazoon banaye rakhti hai wadi ka” – here poet is saying that in the winter night this fragrance is helping to maintain the balance in the valley.

Furtherly, “ Ye zeel jis par shikare terte hai, Kuch din me baraf ho jayengi, aayna ban jayegi, Jannat ke rung, iss zeel mein chamkenge! Ye char din ki Jannat hongi”-here poet is portraying when water will freeze it will not leave it’s quality of transparency. When it convert itself into ice it looks like mirror and there will be reflected the colors of heaven will shines. And it is for sometimes.

“Musaphir lutfutayenge laut jayenge”- Visitors come and be lunatic here and also get back after enjoy it thoroughly.

“Ek Jannat aur hai, magar Khamosh”  the lines are saying that after this heaven poet find another heaven as “silence”.  

 Scientific Reading / Misunderstanding :

When we look at this poetry we will find that in the very first line of it we can find that tress never moves like humans and it is not possible that trees can walk like humans so it is problematic here. “kohre se bhari sabha me” again we find that ‘sabha’ is useable for kind of mitting in Hindi language. Here it will not possible that the mitting of fog. Further it is talking that water will freeze and it will become a mirror so it can not be mirror but the poet wants to metaphor water’s transparency as mirror.  

Poetic Expression :

The poetry is itself “juniper”. Our hearts always carving for nature to praise, to appreciate, to love, to feel, to live. The first expression of mine is, I fell for the words and the style the post has used to appreciate the nature elements. In the last stanza poet says that visitors come and fall for it. And also it is making me wonder by the last words that “Ek Jannat Aur Hai, Magar Khamosh”. The poet has put the open end for the readers or the people to imagine or to set.

Another interpretation is, May it is talking about the beauty of women. And perhaps poet has admire the beauty of women by using the natural elements. Because they both are equally in a beautiful way in our literature.

Literary Analysis:

1)     Rasa theory :

This theory talks about the “ A particular state of mind gives rise to an aesthetic relish which emerges from the combination of various emotional factors. In this poetry I can find rasa like ‘shringara’( love/beauty), ‘Adbutha’( surprise/ wonder), ‘shantha’(peace or tranquility). 

1)     Dhavni theory :

Dhavni theory is a theory of meaning and symbolism which leads to the poetry of suggestion being accepted as the highest kind of poetry. There are three powers of words or three aspects of Dhavni . Abhidha , Lakshna , Vyanjana. Abhidha provides conventional meaning or the literal meaning of the expression. Lakshana is the indication power. It consists in the external characteristics of the expression which are indicative of something deeper. Vyanjana is third power which means what is suggestive. In this poetry as we have seen the second interpretation may it is about women beauty so we can say that poet has used the ‘Dhavni Theory’.

  Vakrokti theory :

Something which is able to give some individual meaning to each one. The meaning which is not direct but indirect. Alacrity is based on vakrokti. This theory seems in this poem at last when poet indicates the heavens.

2)     Alankara theory :

Language is itself a Alankara. An alankara is any pattern of musical decoration a musician or vocalist creates within or across tones, based on ancient musical theories or driven by personal creative choices, in a progression of svaras. Arthalankara and Shabdalankara , these two are major parts of it. When we see this poetry we can at many places poet has used alankara. Like, “Jannat ke rung”, “Chinar ka laal”, Kohre se bhari sabha”.

3)     Riti theory :

Every poet write in their own style. Either they create their own style of writing or they write in the imitation of style. In this poem we can his own style here.

4)     Auchitya theory :

If the work is written in a proper format, structure wise , beauty wise , use of figurative , flow of emotions , each and everything should be proper in this order. We can find here the flow the emotions of poet. 

So, We can see this piece of literature has many aspectes of it. and we could find it easily here.

THANK YOU!

War Poetry

War Poetry

Hello, I am Emisha Ravani, Writing this blog as the response to the teacher's blog as thinking activity (Bridge Course). Here i will discuss the answers which asked by teacher. 

1. What is your understanding of War Poetry? 

Poetry that deals with the subject of war. Often composed during a particular conflict, these poems are usually written by soldiers.War poetry is exclusively realistic, showing warfare in an unglamorous and unromantic light.  

War poetry got existence as literary genre during world war 1. Almost was poetries were anti romantic. Which seems against romantic poetry. War poets were known as also Trench poets. These poets wrote war poetries which they have experienced in the war. Though it is not like that only soldiers were writing this kind of poetries also civilians were writing war poetries.

Now, we should know that for what purpose they write war poetries! So, one reason we can say that when soldiers go to the wars they need the way of expressing their emotions. And poetry was the good way to express. By writing they want to show the horror of the war and as well as the dark side of the war.

Features of war poetry :

It is a kind of modern poetry. Naturalistic and painfully realistic, with shocking images and language, intending to show what the war really like, the war poetry showed the mud, the trenches, death, and sometimes even compassion for soldiers.

A war poet is a poet who participate in a war and writes about their experiences, or a non- combatant who writes poems about war. The reason that the soldiers in Worlds Wars wrote poetry is because they used it as an outlet for their feelings, they wanted to say what was happening in the trenches when others could not, and it was a pass-time for them during their downtime in the trenches.Let's see various figures of war poems,

Wilfred Owen

Siegfried Sassoon

Kingsley Amis

Christine Brooke-Rose

John McCrae

Rupert Brooke

Jack Beaching

Sidney Keyes

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

 2.Note down the difference of all the War Poets.

Wilfred Owen, Rupert Brook, Wilfrid Wilson Gibson, Siegfried Sassoon, Ivor Gurney.  

These are the five poets to compare here. Let’s move towards them one by one.

Wilfred Owen : Owen is known for his wrenching description of suffering in war. In this poem he illustrates the brutal everyday struggle of a company of soldiers.

Rupert Brook : A deep patriotic and idealistic soldier’s love for his homeland

Wilfred Wilson Gibson : Sense of honesty and compassion

Siegfried Sassoon : Disillusionment with the war

Ivor Gurney : Style of monologue

As above we can see that what is their specialities into writing poems. They were using their own ways to write. So we can say that by that view of style they are different to each other.

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

The Soldier - RUPERT BROOKE

If I should die, think only this of me:

That there’s some corner of a foreign field

That is for ever England. There shall be

In that rich earth a richer dust concealed;

A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,

Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam;

A body of England’s, breathing English air,

Washed by the rivers, blest by suns of home.

And think, this heart, all evil shed away,

A pulse in the eternal mind, no less

Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given;

Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;

And laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness,

In hearts at peace, under an English heaven.

This is the poem written during WW1. Deeply patriotic and idealistic poem which deals with expression of a soldier’s love for his homeland, in this poem England perhaps. The soldier feels that his country to be both the origin of his existence and the place to which his consciousness will return when he dies. We can feel here the particular type of patriotism. The Theme are here like war, patriotism and nationhood.

The Fear – Wilfrid Wilson Gibson

I do not fear to die

'Neath the open sky,

To meet death in the fight

Face to face, upright.

But when at last we creep

Into a hole to sleep,

I tremble, cold with dread,

Lest I wake up dead.

The poet Wilfred Wilson Gibson wrote this poem in the his collection ‘Battle’ , which centres upon the experience of WW1. He wrote with adoption of voice of both soldiers and civilians. The poem explores themes like guilt, madness, injury, death, and sense of identity. The poems contains brash patriotism.

 Here , we can compare both the poems by the structure, style and also adoption of emotions that how one is portraying the own emotions and another is portraying the two kind of emotions. Other thing is that one is optimistic point of view and another is pessimistic point of view.   

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

The Target- Ivor Gurney

I shot him, and it had to be

One of us 'Twas him or me.

'Couln't be helped' and none can blame

Me, for you would do the same

My mother, she cant sleep for fear

Of what might be a-happening here

To me. Perhaps it might be best

To die, and set her fears at rest

For worst is worst, and worry's done.

Perhaps he was the only son. . .

Yet God keeps still, and does not say

A word of guidance anyway.

Well, if they get me, first I'll find

That boy, and tell him all my mind,

And see who felt the bullet worst,

And ask his pardon,if I durst.

All's a tangle. Here's my job.

A man might rave, or shout, or sob;

And God He takes takes no sort of heed.This is a bloody mess indeed.

I can find these both are similar in the style of narration of ‘Monologue’. In the soldier is saying the emotions of killed another man and his thoughts on it. This poem shows us the effect of the war on the ordinary man , also in this song soldier is saying to ordinary people (family members), to not cry on his death. He urge to remember him as a optimistic breeze of air. He shows his patriotism by the words like if I will not come back next year so do not cry for me, believe that I have died for the our homeland.    

Thank you!  

Bob Dylan and Robert Frost

Hello, I am Emisha Ravani. Writing this blog for the thinking activity given by Vaidehi ma'am, in the American Literature. Here we have to do is, merge the five chosen shots and upload the video on own you tube channel which is prepared by us.

• Write down the message you want to give from your lyrics.

The lyrics i used is from the bollywood movie "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara".

Jab jab dard ka baadal chhaya

Jab gham ka saya lehraaya

Jab aansoo palkon tak aaya

Jab yeh tanha dil ghabraaya

Hum ne dil ko yeh samjhaya

Dil aakhir tu kyun rota hai?


Duniya mein yun hi hota hai

Yeh jo gehre sannate hain

Waqt ne sabko hi baante hain

Thoda gham hai sabka qissa

Thodi dhoop hai sabka hissa


Aankh teri bekaar hi nam hai

Har pal ek naya mausam hai

Kyun tu aise pal khota hai

Dil aakhir tu kyun rota hai

It says that our lives are like roller coaster. We all deal with ups downs one by one. As we expecting only happiness in all ways. If we don't experince sorrow we never know that what is happiness or how we can make it feel.

By the first shot of leaf we can get,

RISE, EVOLVE, GET OLD.

By the second shot of birds we can see that sorrow is not something we only feel. All are facing something and something.

WHATEVER HAS HAPPENED IS HEPPENING

WHATEVER IS HAPPENING HAS ALREADY HAPPENED IN PAST.

By the third shot of boat we can interpret that ,

LIFE IS JOURNEY OF CONSTANT STRUGGLE. 

By the forth shot we can see that every moment is new to us we should enjoy it in a joyfull way. Like there is an ant which is struggling even to find way.

JOY IS EVERLAST CURE.

By the last shot of video i tried to cover the relaxing nature.

BE WATER TO FLOW, BE CLOUD TO ROAM, BE BIRD TO FLY.

It says that every moment is new and fresh to live. Whatever is happening it is not happening with us only it is happening to everyone. Further it deal with idea of joy that every second has own joy then why we are not absorbing that joy! 

• Which poem/song of Bob Dylan/Robert Frost is relatable with your video. why?

 I think with my work the poem by Robert Frost "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" is going. Let's see the poem,

Whose woods these are I think I know.

His house is in the village though;

He will not see me stopping here

To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer

To stop without a farmhouse near

Between the woods and frozen lake

The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake

To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound’s the sweep

Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep,

And miles to go before I sleep.

The speaker in the poem is traveling at night through the snow and pauses with his horse near the woods by a neighbor's house to watch the snow falling around him. His horse shakes his harness bells, questioning the pause; perhaps this place isn't on their usual route, or he is curious that there doesn't appear to be a farmhouse nearby.

The speaker continues to stand near the woods, attracted by the deep, dark silence of his surroundings. He feels compelled to move further into the snowy woods, but he ultimately decides to continue, concluding with perhaps the most famous lines of the poem: 'But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep, and miles to go before I sleep.'

So, Here we can see that Robert Frost also saying that "KEEP GOING". Which in my video i tried to cover the whole idea of go on in the life , There must be struggle and sorrows in the way but keep going is ultimate truth.On the other side there is stuff about distractions. And it can be internal or external, though poet is saying that everything is beautiful but i only keep going on the way.

THANK YOU