G 5008 MA DEGREE EXAMINATION, JUNE 2019-10-30

THIRD SEMESTER
FACULTY OF LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
BRANCH I- ENGLISH
PAPER XI- MODERNISM IN CONTEXT

I. Answer any one

1. Easter, 1916 is- poem by W. B. Yeats - describing the poet's torn emotions regarding the
events of the Easter Rising staged in Ireland against British rule on Easter Monday, April
24, 1916-the uprising was unsuccessful- the Irish republican leaders involved were
executed for treason - The deaths of these revolutionary figures at the hands of the
British- a shock to Yeats - working through his feelings about the revolutionary
movement - the insistent refrain that "a terrible beauty is born" turned out to be prescient,
as the execution of the leaders of the Easter Rising by the British had the opposite effect
to that intended. The killings led to a reinvigoration of the Irish Republican movement
rather than its dissipation.
2. In Memory of W. B. Yeats, by W.H. Auden is a modern poem in its imagery, concept
and versification - an elegy written to mourn the death of W.B. Yeats, but it is different
from the conventional elegy. Traditionally, in an elegy, all nature is represented as
mourning the death; here nature is represented as going on its course indifferent and
unaffected. The great poet's death goes unnoticed both by man and nature- Secondly, in
the traditional elegy the dead is glorified and his death is said to be a great loss for
mankind at large. But Auden does not glorify Yeats- goes to the extent of calling him
'silly' and further that his poetry could make nothing happen - Auden reverses the
traditional elegiac values and treats them ironically - Auden reverses and departs from the
known traditions of elegy- He proceeds to embody certain general reflections on the art
of a poet and the place of poetry in the flux of events, which constitute human history. So
the death of Yeats remains at the focus of the poem only to support the peripheral
reflections in the poem.

II. Answer any one

3. Freud's "Oedipus complex" is the central theme of the novel Sons and Lovers - D. H.
Lawrence offers an insight into a complex psychological problem- Sons and Lovers -
recreates the author's personal experiences through the protagonist, Paul Morel –
externalises the recondite thoughts which lie hidden in the inner recesses of the sub-
conscious and unconscious minds - allows the readers to discern the incessant flow of
sensations and impressions which rise up in the minds of the characters –The possessive
character of Mrs. Morel- her influence on the life of Paul- his attachment to the mother
with the warmth and passion of a lover- this complex psychological problem has been
delineated with an unfailing observation and insight of a true psychologist.
4. “To the lighthouse” - by Virginia Woolf - centred on the visit of the Ramsey’s to the
Scotland Isle of Skye between 1910 and 1920. The novels plot appears to be secondary to
its own philosophical introspection - following and extending modern novelist traditions
such as James Joyce and Marcel Proust-almost no action and very little dialogue-often
cited as an example of multiple focalization as a literary technique- most parts of the
novel are written in form of observations and thoughts as the novel highlights
relationships at adult age and recollect childhood emotions- reflects the female species’
struggle to obtain autonomy and how it is threatened and undermined in communities and
societies that are built on patriarchal foundations- more emphasis on a subversion of
female traditional gender roles with Lily Briscoe’s character autobiographical elements -
Lily’s meditations concerning her unfinished painting - used by Woolf in exploring her
own creative writing process, since Lily thought of painting the same way that Woolf
thought of writing.

III. Answer any one

5. Maurya - an old woman, is the mother of Bartley, Michael, Cathleen and Nora – an
embodiment of inner strength -she has weathered the deaths of her husband, her
husband’s father, and the rest of her sons- her religious faith is a mixture of Catholicism
and pagan beliefs indigenous to the Aran islands where she lives-her Catholic faith seems
to be waning- leans at times on her pagan beliefs to help understand and predict the will
of the sea. By the end of the play Maurya seems undone, seems to give up her Catholic
faith
Cathleen - Maurya’s older daughter, about twenty years old- stepped up as the most
capable woman in the household- because of her mother’s broken spirit. With most of her
brothers gone, Cathleen is prepared to take on more responsibility at home- firmly
believes in traditional gender roles
Nora - a young girl, assists her sister Cathleen in household tasks - she copes with all the
deaths happening around her - Nora seems to have more confidence in the
catholic priest than Cathleen or Maurya, though her confidence in the priest proves
misplaced after Bartley’s death.
6. Riders to the Sea – a story of the inhabitants of Aran Islands who are dependent solely on
the sea - celebrates their dignity and stoicism - a great tragedy in its representation of
human suffering and cathartic appeal - the play is not merely a tragedy of an individual
rather it is the tragedy of humanity, struggling for survival against the heavy odds of life -
Synge incorporates mostly Greek tragic vision of life- it is more a tragedy of fate than a
tragedy of character- the characters confront their downfall without any hamartia or tragic
flaw- destiny or the fate controls everything and none can change either its decree or
direction. Hence, life means nothing but tragedy and unconditional surrender to the
merciless fate.
 VI. Annotate any two

7. The lines are from Part II of The Waste Land -"A Game of Chess" - opens with a
description of a woman sitting inside a really expensive room. The "burnished throne" is
a reference to Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra, which heightens the queen-like sense
of the room the speaker is describing- also mentions marble, fruited vines, Cupidon
which is little cherub and seven branched candelabra with seven holes to fit candles- the
descriptions to suggest the luxury of the lady's life.
8. Taken from “In Memory of W. B. Yeats” – describes the day of Yeats death- he died in
winter - the brooks were frozen, airports were all but empty, and statues were covered in
snow. The thermometer and other instruments told the day he died “was a dark cold day.”
– the mournful section describes the coldness of death- the environment reflects the
coldness - the cold and frozen conditions symbolise the loss of activity and energy in
Yeat’s death.
9. The words are spoken by Maurya in Riders to the Sea – Maurya expects the dead body of
Michael to be washed to the shore –She reminds Bartley that there has to be a coffin for
Michael, especially since she just bought new white boards with which to build it. Bartley
asks why the body would wash up now since they’ve been checking for nine days, and
also how she could think his own boat would be harmed. Maurya refers to the star rising
in the night against the moon, saying that the horses are not worth losing her son.
10. Maurya, in The Riders to the Sea, speaks these words-She wants to stop Bartley from
going to the sea-She has a premonition of Michael’s death and wits for his dead body to
be washed to the shore- Bartley arrives at the cottage and asks for the rope he bought at
Connemara. Maurya tells him he ought to leave it there because if Michael washes up the
next morning they will need it for the deep grave.

IV. Write short notes on any two

11. Georgian poetry refers to the works composed by a group of male British poets during
the reign of King George V- the works were anthologized in a series called Georgian
Poetry - characterized by formalism, lyricism, use of rhyme and metrical regularity- The
Georgian poets are neither impressionistic nor pantheistic - themes include nature, love,
leisure, old age, childhood, domestic or wild animals etc.
12. The early period of romanticism- was a time of war- French Revolution followed by
Napoleonic wars- the political and social turmoil that went along with the wars served as
the background for romanticism- characterised by the emphasis on emotion and
individualism- depiction of apprehension, awe, terror and horror- opposed modernism- a
craving to return to the past – a reaction to the Industrial Revolution and the aristocratic
social and political norms of the age
13. A nickname for the group of younger left‐wing poets of the 1930s, chiefly Auden,
Day‐Lewis, MacNeice, and Spender, alluding to the rather self‐conscious use of
industrial imagery in their work - got the name from Spender's poem ‘The Pylons’
published in 1933 – exhibit a socialist and Marxist position in their writings and lives-
chose to be self-consciously concerned with their own time
14. Bloomsbury Group – name given to a group of English writers, philosophers and artists
of the first half of 20th century- including Virginia Woolf, John Maynard Keynes,
E. M. Forster and Lytton Strachey- who frequently met in the Bloomsbury, district of
London—discussed aesthetic and philosophical questions in a spirit of agnosticism-
searched to define the good, the true and the beautiful-questioned accepted ideas- male
members had been at Trinity or King’s College, Cambridge.

V. Answer the following in a word, phrase or sentence.

15. T. S. Eliot’s The Waste Land

16. Virginia Woolf committed suicide by drowning herself in the River Ouse at Lewes.
17. “The Charge of the Light Brigade” by Tennyson
18. Baby Tuckoo
19. Madame Sosostris from The Waste Land
20. Alexander Dumas's novel The Count of Monte Cristo
21. By her sister's husband, Tereus.
22. Andrew Ramsay is killed in World War I.
23. To the Lighthouse—published on May 5, 1927
24. The sight of the girl on the beach