Assignment Code: BEGC-133 / TMA / 2021-22

Course Code: BEGC-133

Assignment Name: British Literature

Year: 2021 -2022 (July 2021 and January 2022 Sessions)

Verification Status: Verified by Professor

Answer all the questions in this assignment.

SECTION A

I Explain the following passages with reference to the context. 10x4=40

Q1. “I have no spur

To prick the sides of my intent, but only

Vaulting ambition, which o’erleaps itself

And falls on th’ other.”

Ans) Macbeth is describing his lack of motivation in this statement, as well as the reality that the only thing motivating him at the moment is ambition. He recognises that ambition might cause people to rush and make mistakes at this point in the play, so he's almost foreshadowing the calamities to come. Elvin Semrad, a lesser-known psychiatrist, famously observed, "You can achieve anything you want as long as you are willing to pay the price."

Ambition is defined as a strong desire to succeed or attain a goal. It might encourage someone to work hard for something they want. If someone truly desires something, their ambition will motivate them to persevere until they attain their goal. However, if a person has too much ambition, it may drive them to do destructive things in order to achieve their goals, and they may harm everyone or anything who stands in their way.

Q2. “Out, damned spot: out I say!

One, Two: Why then ’tis Time to do’t.

Hell is murky. Fie,

My Lord, fie: a Soldier, and affear’d?

What need we fear? Who knows it,

When none can call our Power to accompt”?

Ans) ‘Out damned spot‘ is a line spoken by Lady Macbeth in Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth.

In her sleep, she is strolling and talking about King Duncan's assassination, in which she is implicated. Since they murdered Duncan, both Lady Macbeth and Macbeth have been unable to sleep, but when she does, she is troubled by nightmares about the murder and the blood they have spilt. In this episode, she is watched by a serving lady and a doctor who overhear her confession of committing regicide.

She massages her hands as she walks, as if cleaning them, to get rid of the blood. A blotch of blood on her hand is the location she's referring about. She is scratching it, attempting to remove it, but she is unable to do so. “Here's another spot,” she yells as she rubs furiously. “Here's the last of the blood.”

Q3. “How strange it is to be talked to in such a way! You know, I’ve always gone on like that. I mean the noble attitude and the thrilling voice. I did it when I was a tiny child to my nurse. She believed in it. I do it before my parents. They believe in it.”

Ans) First, in Bluntschli's conversation with Raina, we see him as a practical man who will not allow Raina to assume any of her positions; instead, he will laugh at all of them. While being charmed and attracted by Raina, Captain Bluntschli refuses to take her poses seriously; that is, he enjoys her posturing but is not fooled by it: "I adore you when you strike that heroic pose and talk in that fascinating voice, but I can't trust a single word you say."

As a result, Bluntschli compels Raina to disclose her true character, and she is overjoyed that someone has seen through her mask and allowed her to dethrone herself. We were expecting this revelation when she informed her mother that she wanted to surprise Sergius; we've already seen that she finds "greater love" to be a strain on her. As a result, it's a relief for her to get rid of all of her fake positions and finally be herself.

Q4. “Thou hast betray’d thy nature and thy name,

Not rendering true answer, as beseem’d

Thy fealty, nor like a noble knight:

For surer sign had follow’d, either hand,

Or voice, or else a motion of the mere.”

Ans)  When Arthur returns, he asks if he followed the orders and what he heard and observed. As though he had tossed the blade into the sea, Bedivere recounts a storey about hearing a ripple and wild water hitting the cliff. The sword cannot fall into water because it will be seized by an arm rising from the water, according to King Arthur. He chastises Bedivere for lying because if he had thrown the sword as instructed, he would have received another indication, almost miraculously. As a result, Arthur instructs Bedivere to return and carry out the command.

Section B

II. Write short notes on the following: 5x4=20

Q2. a. Thomas Hardy and the fictional region of Wessex.

Ans) The works of Thomas Hardy are set in the fictional setting of Wessex. Prior to the Norman conquest, he named the region Wessex after the mediaeval Anglo-Saxon kingdom that existed in the southern region of England. All of the sites in Hardy's Wessex are based on real-life locations in England's south and southwest. Despite the fact that many of the locales in his novels have fake names, they are quite similar to the names of real places.

Wessex originally featured in chapter 50 of the serialised version of his novel Far from the Madding Crowd. By this time, Hardy had already authored three books set in the south of England that did not mention Wessex. Because of the excellent response to Wessex from readers, Hardy continued to use the imaginary region in his subsequent novels. Hardy used the imaginary cities and areas of Wessex in his adaptations of his earlier works for new editions. The Wessex Novels was the title of his revised editions. As a result, we get a completely developed picture of Wessex when we read Hardy's works today.

Hardy wrote on his native county of Dorset, where Wessex is primarily located, because it was what he knew best. Dorset was one of the poorest and least inhabited counties in England for much of the nineteenth century. Hardy represented country life in Dorset, its customs, people, and rural landscape, from the perspective of the working class. Hardy created a brand for his writings and revealed insight into a place that was little recognised by Victorian England at the time, which was intriguing and fascinating to the outside world.

Q2. b. Tennyson’s “Idylls of the King” and the Arthurian Legend.

Ans) Alfred, Lord Tennyson was the most prominent Victorian poet, and his writings comprise some of the best poetry ever written in English. One of his most well-known works, The Idylls of the King, contains much of lasting value for the reader.

The Idylls of the King is set during an exciting period in English history, with figures like King Arthur, Guinevere, Sir Lancelot, and the other Knights of the Round Table. The poem, like many excellent novels, is tough in sections, but reading it will be a gratifying and inspirational experience.

Tennyson drew inspiration and substance for his Idylls from a large body of mediaeval literature devoted to King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Because of the heroic and evocative picture of the British past that the Arthurian legends provide, they have always had a strong hold on the English mind. Tennyson was under a lot of pressure to write a long poem on an epic matter, so it was only logical that he chose a figure who would elicit strong feelings of patriotism, pride, and admiration in the hearts of all Englishmen as his subject.

Q2. c. The ‘Banquet Scene’ in Macbeth.

Ans) The banquet scene in "Macbeth" is one of the most affecting passages in the play, and it has a huge dramatic impact and intensity in terms of Macbeth's tragedy. This scene marks both the pinnacle of Macbeth's rule and the start of his downfall. It depicts Macbeth's guilty conscience manifesting itself in the form of Banquo's ghost. Macbeth's strange behaviour perplexes and concerns his audience, reinforcing their suspicions that he is mentally ill. It also depicts Macbeth's progressive conquering of moral misgivings.

The scene (scene IV, Act III) begins in Scotland's royal hall, with a banquet prepared to celebrate Macbeth's crowning. The couple has reached the pinnacle of double-dealing. Macbeth's remarks and phrases to the thanes, such as "You know your own degrees" and "Both sides are even: here I'll sit in the midst," imply a restoration of order and symmetry in Scotland, yet the spectator is well aware that this is not the case. Because Banquo is missing, neither side is on an equal footing. Macbeth's assassination of the monarch and assumption of the throne effectively pervert’s degree, or rank order. Lady Macbeth's words of introduction, as in Act I, Scene 6, conceal her genuine thoughts. The Macbeths act suspiciously confident once more.

Q2. d. The ‘Victorian Conflict’ as expressed in the poems of Tennyson.

Ans) Victorian poetry, like other forms of Victorian literature, has been found to be dominated by societal ideas of the day. Victorian poetry was written during a period of ideological strife. The tensions of competing demands can be apparent in poetry's form and content. The Victorian era was marked by ideological strife. It is an epoch in which the confrontation between science and faith, reason and mysticism, and technological advancement and religious orthodoxy is stark and obvious. Tennyson's and Browning's poetry, in particular, show struggle in all of its phases and facets.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892) is the Victorian Age's representative poet. He totally immersed himself in the sentiments of his generation. He shaped and then satisfied his contemporaries' preferences. He has triumphed in demonstrating the restless spirit of his country. His poetry reflects the social, political, moral, and religious trends of the day and, like a mirror, reveals national spirit rather than personal spirit.

Tennyson's poetry reflects the prevalent attitudes of his time toward the great issues of the day, such as religion, morals, and social life. For example, “Ulysses” embodies the spirit of inquiry, intellectual ferment, and the desire for knowledge, as well as the urgency of moving forward, continuing, and living a life full of seriousness.

III. Write short essays on the following: 10x2=20

Q3. a. Write a short essay on Bernard Shaw’s political vision. To what extent did this vision colour his dramatic work?

Ans) The Fabian Society, a socialist political think tank, released this three-page pamphlet titled "What Socialism Is" in 1890. George Bernard Shaw, an Irish dramatist and Fabian, wrote it. Shaw discusses themes of private property, labour, poverty, education, and the upper-class domination in government in the pamphlet. Shaw explains:

Poverty and wealth are synonymous with the diversion of our capital and industry to the creation of frippery and luxury, while the country rots due to a lack of good food, comprehensive education, and sanitary clothing and housing for the masses.

‘Socialism means equal rights and possibilities for all,' he says, laying out the Fabian vision for nationalisation (government control and ownership) of ‘land and machines,' or, in other words, property, including housing and industry, such as railways.

In 1884, the Fabian Society was created. Its members were united in their opinion that capitalism had resulted in a society that was unfair, unjust, and defective. Their objective was to alter Britain through slow, debate-based reform through local government and trade unions. Unlike some other socialists, the Fabians were opposed to direct revolutionary action and the use of violence to effect change. Many Fabians were instrumental in the establishment of the Labour Party in 1900.

Shaw began writing pamphlets and speeches for the Society in 1884 with a political platform. The Fabian Society's reformist strategy included the production of this type of literature. It was seen as a chance to disseminate information about living circumstances and other social issues, as well as to promote socialist views to the general people.

Throughout his life and career, Shaw was a passionate socialist. Many of his plays, such as Mrs Warren's Profession and Pygmalion, are socialist in nature and deal with problems like women's rights, poverty, and capitalism.

Q3. b. According to Terry Eagleton, the real heroines of the play Macbeth, are the witches. Do you agree with this view? Justify your answer with your views on the role of the witches in Macbeth.

Ans) Terry Eagleton's work, William Shakespeare, gives a contentious perspective on the Witches' involvement in Macbeth. The Witches, according to Eagleton, are the drama's heroines because they expose the truth about the hierarchical social order, which he describes as "the religious self-deception of a civilization based on everyday tyranny and ceaseless warfare."

This paper will look at the ramifications of Eagleton's ideas, demonstrating that, while contentious and novel, they can be extremely correct. This will be done while considering the play's historical setting, the Witches' position as agents of fate and evil, and the play's effect of masculinity and a hierarchical social order.

The social actuality of the witches is important to Eagleton. They are outcasts, living on the outskirts of society in a female commune, in opposition to the masculine world of "civilization," which cherishes military butchery. They are excluded from others because they are female and associated with the wild world outside of the aristocratic oppression in the castles. Their equality in a female group demonstrates their defiance to militaristic society's masculine power. They have little direct power, but they have honed their skills in manipulating or appealing to their military overlords' self-destructive contradictions. They can regard Macbeth's demise as a kind of victory: another ferociously individualistic, violent masculine oppressor has fallen.

The witches are significant in "Macbeth" because they are Macbeth's major call to action. Lady Macbeth is affected by the witches' prophecies, albeit indirectly, when Macbeth writes to his wife about encountering the "strange sisters," as he refers to them. She is immediately prepared to plot the king's assassination after receiving his letter, and she is concerned that her husband will be too "full o' th' milk of human compassion" to do such a crime. Although Macbeth first doubts his ability, Lady Macbeth is confident that they will prevail. His resolve is tempered by her ambition.

As a result, the witches' influence on Lady Macbeth simply serves to amplify their impact on Macbeth himself—and, by extension, the play's whole plot.

Section C

IV Discuss Thomas Hardy’s philosophical views. In what way is his philosophy as expressed in Far From the Madding Crowd different from that in later novels like The Mayor of Casterbridge? 20

Ans) Hardy is basically a storyteller who should be seen as a chronicler of moods and actions rather than a philosopher. A novel like Far from the Madding Crowd, on the other hand, that raises numerous concerns about society, religion, morals, and the difference between a decent life and its rewards, is bound to pique the reader's interest in the author who raises them.

Hardy lived at a period of change. The agricultural life was being destroyed by the industrial revolution, and the resulting population movement created a collapse of rural customs and traditions that had provided people with security, stability, and dignity. It was a time when fundamental beliefs — religious, social, scientific, and political — were shattered, and the "pain of modernism" took their place. Many people's emotional needs were not met by the new philosophies. Hardy read Darwin's Origin of Species and Essays and Reviews (a manifesto of a few churchmen with radical theological convictions) as a young man, and both of these books influenced his views on religion. He struggled, if not failed, to reconcile the idea of a benign, omnipotent, and omniscient creator with the reality of pervasive evil and the continual inclination of circumstances toward misery.

When one thinks about Hardy the author, one of the first things that comes to mind is his frequent use of chance and circumstance in storey development. But, because Hardy alternates between fatalism and determinism, the reader must learn to read Hardy's stories in light of the author's fatalistic stance on life. Fatalism is a way of life that recognises that all activity is governed by the nature of things, or by a Fate that exists in all eternity, completely independent of human wills and superior to any god established by man. Determinism, on the other hand, recognises that man's struggle against the will of things is futile, that the laws of cause and effect are in action — that is, the human will is not free and human beings have no control over their own fate, no matter how hard they strive. Hardy sees life as a series of actions, a futile struggle against the forces of circumstance that conspire against happiness. For example, incident plays a significant influence in generating happiness or suffering, and an act of indiscretion in early youth can often ruin one's chances for happiness. Fate emerges as an artistic motif throughout Hardy's writings in a wide range of forms, including chance and coincidence, nature, time, woman, and convention. None of these are Fate in and of themselves, but rather manifestations of the Immanent Will.

Many Victorian authors employed chance and happenstance to advance the plot, but Hardy elevates it to something more than a mere tactic. Fatal occurrences (for example, overheard conversations and undeliverable letters) are forces fighting against man's efforts to control his own fate. Furthermore, Fate takes the aspect of nature, endowing it with different moods that have an impact on the protagonists' lives. Those who are in tune with their surroundings are usually the happiest; similarly, those who enjoy the beauty of nature can find peace in it. Nature, on the other hand, can take on dark elements, becoming more than just a backdrop for the action.

Aside from the importance of nature in Hardy's writings, the issue of time should be considered. The value of the instant is enormous because time is a big sequence of moments. Life's pleasures are fleeting, and happiness can be replaced with bitterness over time. Woman is also one of Fate's most powerful vehicles for opposing man's happiness, according to Hardy. Woman is defenceless in the hands of Fate and carries out Fate's work, being closer to primordial impulses than man. Woman becomes an agency in her own destiny in her desire for love, her life's animating passion. In other words, according to Hardy, one is unable to modify Fate's workings, but those things devised by man — such as social laws and customs — and which act against him can be modified. Man is not doomed indefinitely.

Hardy was not a philosopher, but he was a novelist who wrote philosophical stories. In essence, his novels are ethical reflections on the universe as well as the social world. In his fiction, the Universe is constantly there. In his early novels, Under the Greenwood Tree and A Pair of Blue Eyes, and in his major novels, The Return of the Native, The Mayor of Casterbridge, and Jude the Obscure, as well as in his epic drama The Dynasts, Hardy developed his ethical view of the universe in general and Victorian society in particular. The characters in Hardy's work serve as metaphors for his melancholy view of humanity.