ENGLISH LANGUAGE THROUGH LITERATURE-II
3rd and 4th Semester
Understanding
Life Narratives
Introduction
Life narrative is a general term used to describe the stories people tell about their life or those of others. It could be in the form of a biography, an autobiography, Chronicle, or even an article about a specific event. It could be also in digital format like a blog.
People write life narratives for a variety of reasons: to express their pain or loneliness, to help others going through similar struggles, record their memory is for important historical events, or document their journey from fame to success.
- Kamala Das the park street home,
my story
- Mayank Austen soofi I had come too
far nobody can love you more life in Delhi's red-light district
- Kishalay Bhattacharjee back to
where I never belonged.
- Walter Isaacson Attari and India
zen and the art of game design Steve jobs.
Kamala
Das my story
About
the author
Kamala
Das was a famous Indian poet and novelist who wrote in both English and
Malayalam, her mother while writing in Malayalam she used the pen name Madhavi
Kutty she was born in Thrissur, Kerala into a privileged family. Her mother
nalapat balamani Amma was a well-known Malayali poet who had published around
20 collections of poems. And her father V.M Nair was a senior executive in an
automobile company editor of the journal mathrubhumi.
Kamala
Das has written three collections of poems in English summer in Kolkata 1965,
The descendants 1967 and the old playhouse, and other poems 1973. In addition, she has written a collection of short stories to
novels, and several essays as a syndicated columnist.
she
has published 25 books and a collection of poetry.
It
is her autobiography My story 1976 that remains her most
well-known work. Kamala Das was honored with the Kendriya Sahitya Akademi award
in 1984 and nominated for the Nobel prize in literature the same
here. On 1st February 2018, Google was honored with a doodle.
My
story was published originally in serialized from In the Malayanadu and as a
book in 1973.
Kamala
Das's autobiography caused a sensation when it first started appearing. Honest and
undiluted depiction of lowliness in her marriage her adulterous affairs and her
career applied to readers.
In
my story, Kamala Das tells us life from her childhood in Kolkata and Malabar to
her marriage with much older Banker Madhav Das when she was just 15-year-old
and motherhood at 16. her loneliness while her husband is busy with his work and
her dissatisfaction with her marriage.
Her
husband encouraged her to write. In her autobiography she asks questions about the
traditional rules on women in patriarchal society, writing openly about her
relationship with other man Kamala Das influenced an entire generation of women
writers in Kerala but her honesty is depicting(describe) her physical design
remaining unmatched. It is no wonder that my story remains the bestselling
autobiography written by an Indian woman.
The
Park Street home is the second chapter of Kamala Das's autobiography. Park Street
was a famous, posh locality in Kolkata in pre-independence India, her father
was a senior executive at the Wolford transport company sealing luxury cars to
princes and their relatives. The family lived above the repair yard transport
company. in this chapter, she described her earlier life in Kolkata where she
and her brother went to British School. Neglected by their parents the sister
and brother find ways to keep themselves occupied.
the
chapters begin with description of her parents wedding like many educated
middle class people, a father was deeply influenced by Gandhiji idols of simplicity
and nationalism Kamala Das mother belonged to upper class family of land lords
without much money.
And
when she got married, her husband did not permit had to wear any gold jewelers
or expensive cloth.
My
mother did not fall in love with my father they were this dissimilar and
horrible mismatched.
The
author even as a young child sensed that her parents’ marriage was an illusion
of domestic harmony and that too because her mother remained timid (showing
a lack of courage or confidence).
It requires immense(much) courage to write so openly about the shortcoming of
people close to you, especially your parents.
In another part of the autobiography Kamala Das write about her own married life, in the
conventional sense, her marriage was a flop.
At first, children spread their time lying on the bed writing poems while her father was busy ceiling royals’ car.
even as a young child the author could sense the lake of appreciation in her parents’ eyes without any irony she writes.
Our parents face a lot of problems but they did not tell us but we can see those problems in their every gestures.
Children
in unhappy marriages often blame themselves for the problems between their
parents. it must have been painful for her to look at herself with way there is
no doubt her childhood was lonely she describes their drawing room as one where
visitor relay come at the same time this loneliness new treated her ability to
reflect and observe.
In an interview Kamala Das once sad if had been loved person, I would not have become a with write.
the 6-year-old Kamala Das has a special bond with her brother and two children spend their time playing around the house, which was above the yard of the motor company for which their father word play attention to the description of their house.
We lived on the top floor of the repair yard of a motor car company. one had to climb 36 steps to reach our flat. In the space of a few lines, the author describes sound and smiles additional events and an important detail like the number of steps and use of metaphor as well sadly.
Question and answer of the House on the park street by Kamala Das
1
write about the author's father's occupation
- Arthur's father was a senior executive
at the Wolford transport company sealing luxurious cars to princes and their
relatives
2
why has the narrator's childhood been described as lonely
- since the relation between earthers
mother and the father was not good as their marriage was an illusion of
domestic harmony so there was not any type of family gathering in home and
described by the author her mother was different towards her children, spending
her time lying on her bad writing poem while her father was busy to sealing
royal Royce and Bentleys.
3
give a description of the Author house
- Author's family was living on the top floor
of the repair yard off the motor car company, the flat was 36 steps of claims from the
ground floor. At midway there was right opening lead on the servant’s quarter.
Mayank
Austen Soofi “No One Can Love You More”
About The Author:
Mayank
Austen Soofi was born in 1980, He is a well-known author and photo journalist,
his real name is Mayank Singh.
-Favorite
English novelist Jane Austen.
-Famous
blog Delhi wala published in Hindustan Times.
-In
his daily blog he always talks about rickshaw pullers street vendor rag pickers
migrant people.
-In
this chapter we will discuss about his book nobody can love you more
2012, Soofi describe the life of the sex worker in Delhi in
famous red-light district.
-He
talked about GB Road in his Book.
The author started visiting one of the kothas there to teach English to the children for three years he kept visiting there.
Sex
workers have always been treated with disrespect by society and their families.
Soofi
takes interviews of shopkeepers on GB Road, A priest at the temple and a fellow
writer, and many more peoples living around the GB Road.
Most
of the first chapter is the conversation with Sushma a middle-class Sex worker
at Kotha. He never called sex workers a prostitute.
Sushma
treats him like a friend, she cooks food for him, offers him to color her hair
with Henna.
Sushma
had a close friend chhavi who lived at GB Road. She never contacts Sushma after leaving that place.
In the long passage, the author describes the room of the Sushma, the faded mattress,
plastic plates, aluminum bowls, and half a Jar of rice the overall effect is said.
She
doesn't have a spoon to give the author when she serves food to the author.
Narrative
style:
·
Take
interviews over 3-year learning more about the place and the sex workers.
·
He
allows people to tell their stories as far as possible in their own words.
·
This makes
his narrative more convincing.
“He described Sushma he writes " she is a sex worker, her
rate is 150 rupees after bargaining, it can come down to 120 rupees. Customer
can bring it down for the 100 rupees".
Journalists are taught to keep an emotional distance between
themselves and their subject matter. “
Q-
Write a brief account of Sushma's life.
Q-
Mention some distinctive features of Soofi writing.
Kishalay Bhattacharjee
Back to where I never belonged
About
the author: Kishalay
Bhattacharjee was born in 1969. He is well known as the academic
documentary filmmaker and former senior journalist.
-He
is the founder-director of Reachout foundation.
-He
Born in Guwahati and take education in Shillong, he was also an editor in NDTV.
He
has authored three books based on his experiences as a journalist and resident
editor of NDTV:
-
Che in Paona Bazaar: Tales of Exile and Belonging from India’s Northeast (2013)
-
Blood on my Hands: Confessions of Staged Encounters (2015)
-
An Unfinished Revolution: A Hostage Crisis, Adivasi Resistance and the Naxal
Movement (2017).
About
the chapter:
India
has an uncomfortable record of racial prejudice against people from the North East
in its major cities.
Bhattacharjee
spent his childhood in Shillong during its troubled in its history.
In
1972 Shillong become the capital of Meghalaya. The author left Shillong
around 1990. He returns after 15 years and takes a walk-through town.
After
returning to Shillong he noticed that Shillong long has lost some of the charm,
too many overhead wires and vehicles crowded in the street. But the attitude of
people towards non-local is unchanged.
Walking
around town the author recognizes some of his known tribal friends, who have
stayed behind. Walking through market place has seen the Orchard and oranges
and feels at home.
Though
he never
talks
about his Shillong days the memories of its beauty are part of his
consequences.
Questions:
-The
author uses many words to express his feelings about Shillong such as homeless,
fugitive, non-local, and so on make a list.
-Discuss the article with reference to its title.
-Describe
the Shillong as per the above reading: Shillong area was the capital of the US and
become the capital of Meghalaya when the state was formed in 1972. it was a hill
town where Christian missionaries with a large Bengali population.
-Why
did many Bengali Leave Shillong?: For their safety, many Bengalis left Shillong
because of the height of the anti-National agitation.
What
changes were there in Shillong after 15 years: Well, the outward appearance was
quite changed there was less greenery, many overhead wires, the relation of
vehicles on street and the city lost some of its charms as per author
observation.
Steve
Jobs by Walter Isaacson
About
the Author: Walter Isaacson (1952) American author, journalist, historian, and
academic formed CEO of CNN and magazine. He is the author of some well-known
biography like Benjamin Franklin an American life 2003 and Albert Einstein his
life and the universe 2007
It
was sat Steve Jobs who approached Isaacson in 2004, requested him to write his
biography. But at that time Walter was not convinced that the time was right.
Job relative Lee was young and had so much more to accomplish. Steve Jobs made
another request in 2009 and this time Walter agreed as he had found out that
steel suffering from cancer.
The job was to keep that Isaacson talks to as many people could and assured him that
would not even read the book it was published.
The book was published in 2011, Exactly 19 days after Jobs died. It was a New York Times bestseller that you and broke all records for sealer of the biography. Isaacson got the financial time and Goldman Sachs business book of the award for it.
Steve
Jobs is one of the most famous people in the 20th century, the responsibility of the personal computer revolution in the United State.
Apple-I Wozniak's personal computers and founder computers in 1977 to sell it.
Later they launched Apple II's most successful computer.
He
was Fired from Apple in 1985 to a few former employees from Apple, after being fired from Apple he started NEXT computer development company.
In
1986 he found a new company Pixar and produced the first 3D animated film Toy
story in 1995. Apple acquired NEXT in 1997 and Steve jobs was again hired
by Apple, And the half-eaten Apple logo becomes one of the most famous logos in this
world.
Search-
In
1974 on the advice of friends he decided to travel to India and he left his job
at a videogame company and went to India in the search of Guru. When he reached
India, he found that the Guru is already dead a few years.
He
continued to practice meditation his whole life always in a search of inner
peace.
Atari:
- job joined Reed
college in 1974 and dropped after a few months because he don't want to waste the time and money of his family. Read the advertisement in the newspaper and join the
Atari game-making company.
Did
not talk with their colleagues in good behavior, work as a technician for five-dollar in our in an Atari.
He
improved his game designing while working in Atari game company.
It
was excited to start their own company and Ron Wayne is the best friend of
steel and they start a company. The author uses a lot of quotations to build a
multidimensional Steve Jobs personality.
India:
- one of the reasons to take job in
Atari save money to travel in India Spiritual journey.
College
friend suggest him to meet Neem Karoli Baba who lived in village near Nainital.
Jobs made his interest in meditation as Jobs said: "For me it was a serious
search . . . I’d been turned on to the idea of enlightenment
and
trying to figure out who I was and how I fit into things."
Just
quit his job and went to India in search of peace.
He
took a flight to New Delhi after a few days he went to Haridwar to see Kumbh Mela. A few days after he went ashram of neem Karoli Baba but he had died a few months ago.
Where
he lived with a local family to feed him there, we found a copy of the autobiography
of Yogi by Paramanansa yogendra.
When
he goes to young Guru so guru laughs at him and took him to a well and shaved
off his long hair. After 7 months he returned to America but continued his search
for inner peace.
his
friend kattke she is that in the morning and evening he would meditate and study.
The
search: - Steve Jobs was 19 when he traveled to India but he is interested in
Hindu religious philosophy and Jain Buddha continued rest of his life.
"The
people in the Indian countryside don’t use their intellect like we do, they use
their
intuition instead, and their intuition is far more developed than in the rest
of
the
world. Intuition is a very powerful thing, much more powerful than intellect,
in
my opinion. That’s had a big impact on my work"
The Start took regular classes on meditation in LA after opening a new center in LA.
Breakout: - After returning from India jobs go back to Atari for the job. Wozniak alleged that the job did not inform him about the bonus of
$700 offered by Bushnell nor did he share it.
Isaacson
includes everything in Steve Jobs's biography.
Questions
Q1-
Write a few lines about Jobs experience in India.
Q2-
Based on this chapter prepare a character sketch of Steve Jobs.
Q3-
When and why had the author dropped out of his college?
Q4-
Why was Steve willing to undertake the job at Atari?