Summary: The poet here talks about the affects of colonization or globalization for that matter. Whatever the case she addresses a sudden change in the way society thinks and how we should try to preserve it. She also talks about the loss of culture that comes with globalization and the loss of part of our history as we reject the teachings of the old culture and of our old heritage. It could be for this reason that she decided to name the poem A Different History. Significant poetic devices and their significance (eg: Metaphors, symbols, rhyme scheme, form, imagery, repetition… etc) Structure based analysis
1. Note lines 9 to 14 and notice the indentations of the lines. “It is a sin to shove a book aside with your foot, a sin to slam books down hard on a table, a sin to toss one carelessly across a room” Note that the poet has done this purposely to accentuate the action described. Similar to when you kick a book, the sentence suddenly shifts to the right, as if you have kicked it into that position. In the same way when you slam a book hard on a table or toss it carelessly across the room you move the book, although perhaps not as far if you had kicked it, thus the exaggerated indentation in the first line.
2. Similarly, the whole of the second stanza is indented. This shows perhaps a form of limitation or segregation between the two. a. The first stanza represents the ones unaffected by globalization and the western society. People who maintained their “original” culture. b. The second stanza represents those who chose to migrate and are bound to or favour the expat or international or western culture. Note that although the degree of indentation is different, the border is the same. This means that the second stanza has less ‘line space’.
The Essay on Organizational Culture Line Management Employees
About four times a year I am faced with the same scenario. My store manager comes running up to me and announces that some executive manager is going to be visiting the store today. He tells me to get everything "ship shape" so that we can be inspected. When the visitor arrives various middle and front line managers flank him. They ask questions about certain customer service or sales work ...
This perhaps can address the issue that the thinking of the next generation is narrower and less open minded. It also shows how little in breath they know about their society and their heritage, especially one as rich as India. 3. Assonance. This means that we can find internal syllables rhyming with each other. Note the word “book”, “foot”, “room”, “wood”, “swooping”. The significance of it being that perhaps with globalization, you still retain some of your heritage, which still allows you to be saved. Note how the four “oo” sounds can be found in the first stanza, while the last one is only found at the end.
Perhaps this can be used as an index to show your level of knowledge of your past. Similarly, it can mean that you never really truly forget your culture, but perhaps lose a bit or remember little, no matter how much you are influenced by globalization, colonization or one of those –izations. Especially in places like America, a lot of the Asians are Westernised, but keep parts of their heritage alive, perhaps like eating Chinese food or something. 4. Free verse. a. This demonstrates the fact that the poem is a completely free and is basically used to vent the poet’s opinions on the matter.
She perhaps is saying that her opinion belongs to her and she just wishes to express them onto the world. She could perhaps be saying that she is not right, nor is she saying that globalization is necessarily a bad thing. b. On the other hand, she could be saying that globalization or westernization is a completely different thing, a phenomena that humans have not ever experienced in the history of us living together. It breaks all conventions as it has never been done before, similar to how this poem, with its free verse and peculiar paragraphing, breaks all conventions of a typical poem.
5. The whole poem is in English. This completely contradicts the fact that she is ranting about the change in culture and language and the horrible effects of the something-ization when she is speaking the language caused by it. She is in this way putting herself not on the pedestal but beside it, saying that she is one of the stupid something-ized people to create an empathy link between the reader and the poet, perhaps making it look as if ‘we can do this together’ kind of image. She is putting herself in the humble position. Text level analysis 1.
The Essay on Soul Sin Knew God
'A cold lucid indifference reigned in his soul. At his first violent sin he had felt a wave of vitality pass out of him and had feared to find his body or his soul maimed by the excess. Instead the vital wave had carried him on its bosom out of himself and back again when it receded: and no part of body or soul had been maimed but a dark peace had been established between them. The chaos in which ...
“Great Pan is not dead; he simply emigrated to India” Take note that Great Pan is the only God ever died in Roman history. What she is saying here is that he is not dead, but actually emigrated to India. Take note that people tend to migrate to places that are more beneficial to us, showcasing the fact that India is a beautiful place to go to to live your life. She goes on to talk about this in the next line. 2. “here the gods roam freely; disguised as snakes or monkeys…” we can find juxtaposition here. How can one roam freely if you have to disguise yourself as something else?
This once again relates to globalization or one of the –izations. Note that Pan is a Greek God and he has moved to India. Similarly, it can perhaps show that foreigners are allowed to roam freely and have been for many years, as long as they do not make their presence known. They do not separate themselves from the local people nor do they treat themselves any differently. Therefore they adopt the culture of the people and act accordingly, similar to how the Gods have to be succumb to be one of the animals that can be usually found in India (such as the snakes and monkeys) Become one of the crowd, and you will live a happy life.
3. “Every tree is sacred and it is a sin to be rude to a book. It is a sin to shove a book aside with your foot, a sin to slam books down hard on a table, a sin to toss one carelessly across a room. You must learn how to turn the pages gently without disturbing Sarasvati,” Here she continues her description, using the word sacred, relating to the divinity of the area, as if the area was a garden for Gods. However, she starts becoming negatives and starts listing what not to do. She uses the
contrasting word, sin, to exemplify the vast contrast between the two and to make what you are not allowed to do a mortal sin, something that is almost a tragedy to do. Once again, note the repetition of the word sin, once again amplifying how terrible it is to do such a thing. At the end she explains her actions that we must learn to respect books and use them in such a way that would make Sarasvati, the God of the arts, happy. The poet obviously treats poetry as an art so it would be normal for her to be mentioned.
The Review on Silas Marner: The Cass Family and the Seven Deadly Sins book report 3446
Silas Marner Paper Andrew Purcell Deadline Draft 2.7.00 The Cass Family and the Seven Deadly Sins Thesis: Through the deeds of Squire Cass, Dunstan Cass, and Godfrey Cass, the family, as a whole, serves as the embodiment of the seven deadly sins. Outline: . Squire Cass . Anger . Sloth . Dunstan Cass . Envy . Gluttony . Covetousness . Godfrey Cass . Pride . Lust In literature, both the positive and ...
Books, of course, hold history, and she is basically saying that we should respect our history (culture, heritage… wink wink) 4. “without offending the tree from whose wood paper was made. ” Of course by this she is saying that to not insult the tree, who sacrificed its life to make a work of art that we can do nothing else but enjoy and appreciate what it has done for us. 5. “Which language , has not been the oppressor’s tongue? Which language Truly meant to murder someone? ” Here she is addressing the loss in language.
Because of globalization, we are now speaking the tongue of the foreigners. It is this way that she is using this as a form of mockery to say that ‘by speaking the language of the enemy, we have already given up mentally’. She is trying to say in a sense ‘wake up! Can’t you see what you’re doing? Why are you speaking the tongue of our enemies? Which language destroyed (murdered) our heritage/culture? ’ It can be a slap to the dignity and the inner heritage of every man. Oppressor a Conquerer 6. “And how does it happen that after the torture, after the soul has been cropped
with a long scythe swooping out of the conqueror’s face- the unborn grandchildren grow to love that strange language. ” This is obviously an attack on the morals of every man in India, basically by trying to get them guilty. Of course here she is saying that the something-izers have caused a lot of turmoil in a country that was otherwise very happy before. They have tortured us and made us do things we didn’t like (after the torture,after the soul has been cropped with a long scythe swooping out of the conqueror’s face-)perhaps either physically or mentally, or both.
Why is it that after all this time that the next generation (unborn grandchildren) are going to grow up in that strange language? This demonstrates the despair in the heart of the poet as she already knows that the children are about to adopt the language of the foreigners, perhaps because the father or mother have already grown to love that language because it is already so deeply ingrained into the minds of the people that make up the society. They don’t even know how to talk their own native language anymore.
The Essay on English Language and British English
Language is a social-cultural-geographical phenomenon. There is a deep relationship between language, culture and society. When we study a language, we have to study its dialects, register, slang, taboo, idiolects, etc. We can find the role of language and culture in The Parent Trap movie. The movie tells us about the differences culture of 2 girls who live in London and California. They were ...
The fact that she mentions grandchild illustrates the fact that she is talking to the elders, the ones most considered wise in almost every society. This shows that she is talking to them, indicating that getting an audience with them is hard and that only people with relevant arguments can arrange a meeting with them, making her argument a very significant one. 7. The use of repetition in the last stanza “which language”. In addition to the phrase being on its own line, this phrase exudes an accusive tone in her phrase, expressing severe criticalness in her expression. Speaker of the poem: The writer herself.
Sujata Bhatt Speaker’s attitude toward the subject of the poem: Dissatisfied, distressed, hopeful, still optimistic that we can change, moralistic, relies of emotions rather than logic (emotional) Paired poems (Identify poems in the anthology and why they are appropriate to be paired) 1. Perhaps The Planners in the sense of inevitability and distress over the fact that nothing will ever be the same again and how fake everything really is and how different it is compared to the past. It also in a sense mocks the system that governs the development implying that it causes more damage than good. 2.
Where I come from in the sense of the comparison between urbanization and rural atmosphere. We can to a certain extent say the same as India was really quite a rural area before one of those –izations. 3. Where I come from as we can see a similar style in structure as they are split to show a bigger contrast and that there is a indentation in the beginning of the second stanza. Memorable lines 1. “You must learn how to turn the pages gently without disturbing Sarasvati” 2. “Here the gods roam freely, disguised as snakes or monkeys” 3. “without offending the tree from whose wood the paper was made” 4.
“Which language truly meant to murder someone? ” The poetess Sujata Bhatt, while writing this poem has given importance to the culture and various religions in India. She has emphasized in her poem by repeating words and questions and thereby making her poem stronger. She writes about Indian traditions, lost identities, importance of language, cultural difference to create different moods and themes. In the first part of the poem, she concentrates on respect for education and learning. She claims that in Indian religion every object is sacred. There is God in trees.
The Term Paper on Answer The Narrator Poem Man Life
1. William Shakespeare "The Marriage of True Minds" Simple love sonnet: What one characteristic must true love have? What can cause love to change? What does the final couplet mean? Answer: One characteristic must be true love should have is an impediment. Love can be change when one starts having too much expectation or starts comparing with other things. The last couplet means that love is not ...
You should treat your books as the goddess of knowledge. You should be gentle when turning the pages of the book that you read for knowledge of religion. She has written this poem describing the British colonization days when the British oppressed the Indians. They force them to learn the English language though in India various languages were spoken. She is angry at this attitude of the British. She also explains how British tried to change the identities of the people of India with a scythe. She claims that the future generation will love this strange language like they love their mother tongue.
According to her language had been used as a weapon to target its victims in a figurative sense. The poem appeals to the reader because it is full of culture of a different country. In the initial stage it is descriptive and then changes to interrogative. The cultural background of Sujata is reflected in the first part of the poem. She has referred to God and books to talk about Indian culture. As you read the poem further you realize that she is talking about learning a new language. She admits that, in spite of having to learn 4 languages she had to adapt herself to the English language.
She compares herself with any one, who would feel scared to learn a new language because of ending up in making mistakes. She is of the opinion that when you learn a new language, its start dominating you especially when it is the linga Franca of a particular country. It is just like the British forced upon India to adapt to the English language. She also suggest in her line ‘languages kills’, she is against this forced learning. But she claims that after a few years, they all speak the language which they are forced to, sacrificing their culture.
In this way the children grow up forgetting their mother tongue and learn a foreign language and even adapt to their culture. There are some readers who feel that ‘A Different History’ is a poem that tells us about a different language. It also tells how a change of culture affects the people of a country. This is when a foreign rule forces you to adapt to their life style, learn their language and inculcate their culture in you. She makes references to Indian gods and goddesses. This makes the poem appealing as the reader wants to gain knowledge and learn about Indian culture. But as you read further it is about learning a new language.
The Essay on Earnest Hemingway Man Life World
In A Clean Well-Lighted Place, Earnest Hemingway focuses on the pain of old age suffered by a man that we meet in a caf late one night. Through the use of dialogue, Hemingway creates three characters that symbolize the stages of life: birth, living, and death. Additionally, the tone of the story is created in three ways. First, he contrasts light and dark to show the difference between the ...
She claims that she found it very hard and had to go through great difficulties in learning the Indian traditional language and the English language. She calls this language as a strange language because at that time she was very young. She refers to this foreign language as an oppressor language. It affects not only the mother tongue of the people but also changes their culture, way of living and many adapt to new religion. Sujata Bhatt was born in Pune in the year 1956. At the age of 12 she migrated with her parents to the US. She completed her education and received a Master’s in Fine Arts from the University of Iowa.
Later in Canada she went on to be a resident writer at the University of Victoria in Canada. In recent years she was in Pennsylvania at Dickinson College as a visiting fellow. She is a well known poetess at present and resides in Bremen, Germany with her daughter and husband. She has won accolades and awards for her poems not only in Asia but also in other parts of the world. In 1991 she receives a Cholmondeley. Sujata considers language as a physical act of speaking, which is synonymous with the tongue. She considers her mother tongue Gujarati and her childhood in India as the deepest layer of her identity.
Then ironically she claims that she has chosen English as the language she speaks in. She uses the same in her daily life and by large chooses to right her poems in English. In most of her works she depicts repercussions of this divided heritage. She explains the complex status of English. She has the art to convey ironically the beauties of English and colonial implications in her poem in a different history. She informs about her grandfather being in prison during the British days who in order to comfort himself during his time in prison read Tennyson.
She has written wonderful poems but all of them had some or the other relation with Indian and Western culture. Sujata acknowledges that language splits you from experience but through the strength of her writing she brings you closer to it. In conclusion Sujata Bhatt expresses to the generation of today by giving example of the British rule in India. How many Indians had to give up their culture, their mother tongue and forced to do everything English. Of course today such type of an oppressive rule is impossible. You cannot force someone to change his religion or culture and learn a foreign language under duress.
The British not only brought about a change in India but also in all its colonies spread over the world. Today English has become an international language. But if you ask anyone who is not a British how he feels about the language, most of them will be proud to tell you like the poetess herself that they have been educated in English. And this is the language in which they freely converse and they are comfortable with The Author Katherine Mansfield was born in New Zealand where she lived for the first nineteen years of her life before moving to Britain.
There she came under the influence of the Modernists like DH Lawrence and Virginia Woolf, both of whom she knew intimately. She schooled at Queen’s College in London along with her sisters and at the end of the schooling she moved back to New Zealand. But she was less than happy there and at the end of two years she went back to London, this time, permanently. She lived a very unconventional life, getting into relationships and marriages and out of them very quickly. She contracted tuberculosis in her early thirties and succumbed to the illness when she was 34.
Background/Setting The background of the story is a ball, the first one for the heroine, Leila. She looks at everything with a mixture of wonder and excitement. Nothing escapes her eye, including the wisps of tissue paper that her brother removes from his new gloves. She is at the ball with her cousins, the Sheridan girls who are experienced at this kind of thing. Balls were the highlight of the season and girls spent all the time planning for it. The story has a very feminine feel to it and the only male character that stands out to some extent is the older ‘fat man’.
The balls were occasions when young women found future partners, so they were important dates in the social calendar. Characters/Characterization ‘Her First Ball’ is seen through Leila’s inexperienced eyes but as the evening wears on we see her becoming more knowledgeable and losing that feeling of wonder and excitement. Leila creates a fairyland where young women and men remain young and charming forever. She finds dark clouds blowing over the azure skies that she thinks will last forever, but resolutely believes that the fat man’s story with its touch of realism is not to be taken seriously.
When the story ends, we find Leila swept away to another dance by another personable man. But this is not the Leila who arrived here couple of hours ago. Themes (major and minor) The main theme is the raw youth and inexperience of the heroine who is filled with unbearable excitement, who thinks that she is to have the time of her life at the ball. As the evening wears on, she grows up till she reaches the stage where she is ready to ignore the worldly wisdom of the fat man. Woven into this theme is the theme of the impermanence of youth.
Mansfield has been called the “Keats of fiction” for the poetic language she uses and images of dewy beauty that does not last. Running alongside is the political theme dealing gender issues like lack of empowerment for women who are expected to just look lovely and kissable all the time. While painting the picture of middle age, the fat man says “because no one wants to kiss you now”. Leila treats this as a great tragedy and wonders whether the old man says this just to upset her. Plot The plot is razor thin. There are echoes of the Cinderella story here.
A young girl arrives at her first ball waiting to be rushed off her feet by personable young men. She is captivated by the wonderful images that she sees around her: armloads of flowers, masses of lace and tulle, well coiffed hair and handsome men, eager to please and be pleased. Leila is at the threshold of life. Just when she begins to forget her diffidence and enjoy herself, comes the old man with his visions of middle age and drabness. For a while, Leila longs for familiar sights and sensations of her home in the country and wants the safety they signify, but that is momentary.
Soon she succumbs to the attractions of youth. Summary Leila has just come from the country to attend her first ball. Filled with feverish excitement she can barely wait for the action to begin. The excitement is tempered by a touch of apprehension and diffidence. She is acutely aware of what is happening around and eagerly takes it all in. Sensations and images go fleeting by and snippets of conversation reach her ears. To be charming and be charmed is what everyone wants. Everything is brittle and superfluous and Leila is in danger of believing ‘this is reality’. The old man’s arrival is timed to perfection.
His role is to inject a touch of realism into Leila and remove the rose tinted spectacles through which she views life. But that moment of unease passes and all is well in Leila’s world. Analysis How the insulation around the lives of the upper middle class shuts out the harsh realities of life, then and now, is shown here by Katherine Mansfield. Life was considered one long party and a young woman’s life centered on looking desirable and marrying advantageously. All thoughts to the contrary were resolutely shut out. The voice of realism is the old man’s words, “Of course,” he said, “you can’t hope to last anything like as long as that….
And your heart will ache, ache” – the fat man squeezed her closer still, as if he really was sorry for that poor heart –”because no one wants to kiss you now” and that, as though is the greatest tragedy of all. Symbolism The ball here is a symbol of decisive change in the central character; this is true of Leila as it was of Cinderella. The old man is a kind of a symbolic link to the story’s theme of the mutability of youth. He arrives at the critical moment and holds a mirror up to her of what awaits her: “Of course,” he said, “you can’t hope to last anything like as long as that.
No-o,” said the fat man, “long before that you’ll be sitting up there on the stage, looking on, in your nice black velvet. And these pretty arms will have turned into little short fat ones,” See how sarcastically he refers to Leila as “Mademoiselle Twinkletoes,” enjoy the present for tomorrow may never come is what he seems to say. Important vocabulary and Expression We have to take the dance as a metaphor for life. When young Leila arrives at the ball, she is just an enthusiastic observer taking in large gulps of all that is happening around her.
Soon she becomes an enthusiastic participant. The clarity of her observations seems to merge and the sharpness dulls,”The azaleas were separate flowers no longer; they were white and pink flags streaming together”. Life becomes a fast moving stream of images with no time to pause. Literary devices used with examples Katherine Mansfield frequently uses figurative language that gives a poetic feel to the story. Personifications abound: “Her first real partner was the cab”, “the waltzing lampposts and houses and fences and trees” The similes used add to the poetic feel.
See how Leila talks about her ride in the cab: Resting her hand on one of the bolsters in the car, she thinks it was, “like the sleeve of an unknown young man’s dress suit”. The shoes that peep out from the long dresses are referred to thus: “Little satin shoes chased each other like birds. ” Her First Ball – By Katherine Mansfield Plot summary: Leila, the main character, a 14-year-old girl from the country, is in a cab with the Sheridan family, her cousins. They are going to a ball. It is Leila’s first ball. They go to the ladies room then collect their cards. One of Leila’s partners turns out to be the fat old man.
He tells her that she will grow old. She is upset and wants to go home. But another man comes and she dances with him, then she’s happy again. Setting: A ballroom at night in probably New Zealand. Author: Katherine Mansfield Protagonist: Leila Reason: Because the antagonist is he person we must feel for. And in this story it is obvious we all feel for Leila since she enters this state of despair when she speaks with the bitter old man. Besides the whole story is revolved around her. Antagonist: Fat bitter old man Reason: Naturally the antagonist is the force that opposes the protagonist.
And therefore I believe it is the fat old bitter man because he was the one that had the most negative effect on Leila. It was so big she decided she didn’t want to stay anymore. Subject: Leila’s First Ball Theme: Youth against age, fun and seriousness, enjoy life as it comes. Genre: Realistic Point of view: It’s a 3rd person narrative with Leila’s point of view. Tone: Dramatic Characters: [for mention a character and describe him question] Leila – Naive and young and inexperienced. She comes from the country while her cousins don’t and feel sort of jealous from her cousins since they go to balls all the time.
Meg- Tuberoses Jose- long loop of amber, hair is up. Laura- Dark head pushing away on the white fur, pink velvet cloak. Laurie [guy]- New gloves Old man: quite old, fat with a bald patch on his head. Climax: when Leila dances with the bitter fat old man. The Author Thomas Hardy was born in rural England where he spent his early life training as an architect. His family did not have much money and this made him acutely conscious of social inequalities in Victorian England. He moved to London when he was a young man and worked there for a time. He later returned to Dorset, becoming a fulltime writer.
The decay of rural Britain, the status of women in society and social inequalities of his times and the Christian idea of God are some of the recurring themes we see in Thomas Hardy’s novels. Many of his stories are set in semi-fictional Wessex. Thomas Hardy’s characters struggle against adverse social circumstances, strong passions and an inexorable fate that decides the path of their life. Thomas Hardy’s works were much admired by later day writers and his position as a poet has seen enhancement in the later twentieth century. Background/Setting
The story A Son’s Veto is set in rural England in its early parts before moving to inner city London. Sophy, the principal female character of this story belongs to Gaymead, a village set in a remote corner of North Wessex where she worked as a parlour maid in the parson’s house. The story later shifts to London suburbs. Like Thomas Hardy himself, Sophy too never felt completely at home in London. The values of Victorian England and the social mores find echoes in this story. The vicar’s marriage to Sophy is considered “social suicide” and they escape to London with its anonymity to escape scrutiny.
Characters/Characterization Rev. Twycott Rev. Twycott was the vicar at Gaymead, a little village in North Wessex. Following the death of his wife, he becomes aware of Sophy’s devotion in caring for him. Following the sad little accident that left Sophy incapacitated, perhaps feeling responsible, Twycott proposes marriage to her. Twycott has committed what in his eyes was “social suicide” and he moves, exchanging the charming Gaymead for dull and drab south of London. The Reverend seems to have had a poor opinion of Sophy as a manager of money and on his death allowed her only a small allowance and the use of a small house.
Twycott continued to control Sophy’s life from his grave. Twycott is a typical Victorian man who decides for others what he thinks is best for them. Sophy Hardy’s women characters suffer at the hands of fate and an unkind society. Sophy is gentle and attractive and devoted. Her only flaw was that she was not a great judge of what was best for her. She agrees to marriage with Rev. Twycott. She respects him but there is no love in this marriage, naturally. Her influence on Randolph her son is negligible and the boy grows up thinking his mother to be inferior to him in learning and position. Sophy has no control over her life.
Her husband has left her only a small sum of money; the rest is under the control of trustees. She loves her son with tenderly and does not want to hurt him in any way but the boy has only crumbs to shower on her. Too late she realizes that she would have been happy with Sam but Randolph does allow her the freedom to make her decision and follow it. Too long Sophy has allowed others to control her life. Her immobility becomes a symbol for her dependence in life on her son’s will. Randolph Randolph is a poor specimen of humanity. Even as a young boy he displayed a condescending attitude towards his mother that bordered on impatience.
As he grows up, he becomes acutely conscious of the difference in their status. He is the son of a gentleman but his mother is of poor stock. She lacks education and “culture” and is not worthy of being considered his equal. She dotes on him but he considers her with ill concealed impatience. Her love for him is of no importance to him and he seeks the company of others of equal station in life. When he enters Church, she hopes that he would take a more humane view of her and the less fortunate world but the more he studies the more humanity he seems to lose it.
Her desire to marry Sam is met with consternation and Randolph’s concern is not his mother’s happiness but his position in society which he feels will be undermined by that action. Sophy’s isolation from the company of Sam who cared for her and her remoteness from Randolph who no longer had any love for his mother led her to her premature death. Themes (major and minor) Social inequalities were a major concern for Thomas Hardy as was the issue of lack of choices for women in the Victorian England. Social issues remained unsolved in the larger social fabric and in A Son’s Veto, we see it is not resolved even within families.
Randolph forbids her mother from marrying a man who he feels is below his own status though he is eminently suitable for his mother; this is one man who can bring joy to her life. Failed marriages are a recurring theme in Hardy’s novels. Here the marriage is not a failed one but there is no spark, no fulfillment for Sophy. She has some material comforts but no inner sustenance. Lack of educational opportunities for women was also a subject that Hardy explored. Only the girls from upper classes had the luxury of being privately tutored.
Plot / Summary Sophy is a maid in the vicar’s house in the village of Gaymead in Wessex. Following the death of his wife, Rev. Twycott is nursed with devotion by Sophy. Sophy is injured in an accidental fall and is rendered partly invalid. The Rev. Twycott is moved by her plight and proposes to her though he feels it is an unwise action that will bring social censure. Sophy is not in the least in love with him, but the veneration she feels and the little quarrel she has had with her friend Sam makes her accept this proposal.
Following marriage they move to London to escape attention which would have been inevitable in the village. Soon a son, Randolph, is born to them. The boy is educated in a public school and thence at Oxford. Following the death of her husband Sophy has nothing much to do and is bored by the uneventful life that she leads looking forward only to the occasional arrival of Randolph. But he has grown estranged from her and is supercilious and critical in his attitude. A chance meeting with Sam rekindles their feelings and Sam proposes to her again.
Sophy wants to take this second chance though she knows that a marriage will mean the loss of the house and inheritance. When she broaches the subject with Randolph, he voices strong disapproval. Sam waits for another five years in the meantime becoming prosperous. When Sophy turns to Randolph once again for his approval, he makes her swear against marriage to Sam. Isolated from the man who loves her and starved of her son’s love, Sophy dies. While the funeral procession moves along, Randolph sees Sam waiting in his front of his shop. But even now Randolph has no grace in him. Analysis
Thomas Hardy’s characters struggle against adverse social circumstances, strong passions and an inexorable fate that decides the path of their life. Woven along with the story are many of Hardy’s themes which find expression in many of his stories and novels. Symbolism The wheel chair in which Sophy spends all her time is a symbol of her lack of independence. At first she is dependent on her husband and then on her son. She is not in control of her life though she knows what she wants. Important vocabulary and expression The window at which Sophy sits watching the world go by becomes her only contact w