MAJOR NOVELS IN ENGLISH LITERATURE

INDEX

1. HEART OF DARKNESS
2. MIDDLEMARCH
3. TESS OF THE D'URBERVILLES
4. A BEND N THE GANGES
5. BELOVED
6. POSSESSION
7. 1984
8. A PASSAGE TO INDIA
9. A PORTRAIT OF AN ARTIST AS A YOUNG MAN
10. DEATH IN VENICE
11. VANITY FAIR
12. TRISTAM SHANDY
13. THE GREAT GATSBY
14. DISGRACE
15. THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY
16. ROBINSON CRUSOE
17. WUTHERING HEIGHTS
18. GREAT EXPECTATIONS
19. IN CUSTODY
20. A TALE OF TWO TUB
21. NORTHANGER ABBEY
22. LITTLE DORRIT
23. MARRY BARTON
24. ULYSSUS
25. GRIMAS
26. MOLL FLANDERS
27. TO THE LIGHT HOUSE
28. SONG OF SOLOMON
29. THE HUNGRY TIDE
30. INVISIBLE MAN
31. KANTHAPURA
32. JANE EYRE
33. MOBY DICK
34. THE SOUND AND THE FURY
35. GUILLER'S TRAVEL
36. PRIDE AND PREJUDICE
37. A TALE OF TWO CITIE4S
38. THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA
39. EVELINA
40. LADY CHATTERLEY'S LOVER
41. LORD JIM
42. THE PILGRIM PROGRESS
43. THE EGOIST
44. THE PRIME OF MISS JEAN BRODIE
45. ADAM BEDE
46. OLIVER TWIST
47. LORD OF THE FLIES
48. EMMA
49. THINGS FALL APART
50. ARROW OF GOD
51. BLEAK HOUSE
52. THE TREE OF MAN BY P.WHITE
53. VOSS
54. TOM JONES
55. FRANKENSTEIN
56. THE FRENCH LIEUTENENT'S WOMAN
57. THE OLD CURIOSITY SHOP
58. WIDE SARGOSSA SEA
59. THE HEART OF MATTER
60. THE JOYS OF MOTHERHOOD
61. PAMELA
62. LIFE AND TIME OF MICHEAL K
63. OROONOKO
64. SARTOR RESARTUS
65. IF ON A WINTER'S NIGHT A TRAVELLER
66. A HOUSE FOR MR. BISWAS
67. MAYOR OF THE CASTERVRIDGE
68. ALL ABOUT H. HATTERR
69. TRUE HISTORY OF KELLY GANG
70. ANNA KARENINA
71. CEREMONY
72. THE POWER AND THE GLORY
73. A BRAVE NEW WORLD
74. WE
75. WHERE ANGELS FEAR TO TREAD
76. UNDER WESTERN EYES
77. THE ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FIN
78. SONS AND LOVERS
79. THE SWEET VENDOR
80. THE ZIG-ZAG WAY
81. CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
82. THE HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN
83. SHAME
84. FOE BY J.M COETZEE
85. DEAD SOULS BY NIKOLAI GOGOL
86. MRS. DALLOWAY
87. THE FEMALE QUIXOTE
88. NO LONG AT EASE
89. WOMEN IN LOVE
90. JULY'S PEOPLE
91. AN IMAGINARY LIFE BY DAVID MALOUF
92. SANSKARA
93. MAURICE
 94. GREAT EXPECTATIONS
95. THE UNFORTUNATE TRAVELLERS
96. ROMOLA BY GEORGE ELIOT
97. THE YELLOW WALLPAPER
98. MARTIN CHUZZLEWITT
99. SECOND CLASS CITIZEN
100. CASTLE OF OTRANRO
101. AGE OF IRON
102. CLARISSA
103. A HANDFUL OF DUST
104. BAUMGATNER'S BOMBAY
105. VILLETE
106. NORTH AND SOUTH
107. VICTORY BY CONRAD
108. NOSTROMO
109. THE NIGGER OF NARCISSUS
110. MADAME BOVARY
111. A FAIRY HONORABLE DEFEAT BY I. MURDOCH
112. THE CAT AND SHAKESPEARE
113. THE CHERY ORCHARD
114. WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS
115. HALF OF A YELLOW SON
116. TRAIN TO PAKISTAN
117. THE FINANCIAL EXPERT
118. FIRE AND THE MOUNTAIN

NOTE :- THESE WORKS ARE ASKED MORE THAN TWO TIMES IN NET-EXAM

********************************************************

1. Heart of Darkness
Heart of Darkness (1899) is a novella by Polish-British novelist Joseph Conrad, about a voyage up
the Congo River into the Congo Free State, in the heart of Africa, by the story's narrator Charles
Marlow. Marlow tells his story to friends aboard a boat anchored on the River Thames, London,
England. This setting provides the frame for Marlow's story of his obsession with the ivory trader
Kurtz, which enables Conrad to create a parallel between London and Africa as places of
darkness.

Central to Conrad's work is the idea that there is little difference between so-called civilised
people and those described as savages; Heart of Darkness raises questions about imperialism
and racism.
Originally issued as a three-part serial story in Blackwood's Magazine to celebrate the
thousandth edition of the magazine, Heart of Darkness has been widely re-published and
translated into many languages. In 1998, the Modern Library ranked Heart of Darkness
sixty-seventh on their list of the hundred best novels in English of the twentieth century.

When Conrad began to write the novella, eight years after returning from Africa, he drew
inspiration from his travel journals. He described Heart of Darkness as "a wild story" of a
journalist who becomes manager of a station in the (African) interior and makes himself
worshipped by a tribe of savages. Thus described, the subject seems comic, but it isn't." The tale
was first published as a three-part serial, February, March and April 1899, in Blackwood's
Magazine (February 1899 was the magazine's 1000th issue: special edition). Then later, in 1902,
Heart of Darkness was included in the book Youth: a Narrative, and Two Other Stories (published
on 13 November 1902, by William Blackwood).

The volume consisted of Youth: a Narrative, Heart of Darkness and The End of the Tether in that
order. For future editions of the book, in 1917 Conrad wrote an "Author's Note" where he, after
denying any "unity of artistic purpose" underlying the collection, discusses each of the three
stories, and makes light commentary on the character Marlow—the narrator of the tales within
the first two stories. He also mentions how Youth marks the first appearance of Marlow.

Notable works are : The Nigger of the 'Narcissus' (1897), Heart of Darkness (1899), Lord Jim
(1900)

Typhoon (1902) ,Nostromo (1904), The Secret Agent (1907), Under Western Eyes (1911),

Plot Overview

Heart of Darkness centers around Marlow, an introspective sailor, and his journey up the Congo
River to meet Kurtz, reputed to be an idealistic man of great abilities. Marlow takes a job as a
riverboat captain with the Company, a Belgian concern organized to trade in the Congo. As he
travels to Africa and then up the Congo, Marlow encounters widespread inefficiency and
brutality in the Company’s stations. The native inhabitants of the region have been forced into
the Company’s service, and they suffer terribly from overwork and ill treatment at the hands of
the Company’s agents. The cruelty and squalor of imperial enterprise contrasts sharply with the
impassive and majestic jungle that surrounds the white man’s settlements, making them appear
to be tiny islands amidst a vast darkness.

Marlow arrives at the Central Station, run by the general manager, an unwholesome,
conspiratorial character. He finds that his steamship has been sunk and spends several months
waiting for parts to repair it. His interest in Kurtz grows during this period. The manager and his
favorite, the brickmaker, seem to fear Kurtz as a threat to their position. Kurtz is rumored to be
ill, making the delays in repairing the ship all the more costly. Marlow eventually gets the parts
he needs to repair his ship, and he and the manager set out with a few agents (whom Marlow
calls pilgrims because of their strange habit of carrying long, wooden staves wherever they go)
and a crew of cannibals on a long, difficult voyage up the river. The dense jungle and the
oppressive silence make everyone aboard a little jumpy, and the occasional glimpse of a native
village or the sound of drums works the pilgrims into a frenzy.

Marlow and his crew come across a hut with stacked firewood, together with a note saying that
the wood is for them but that they should approach cautiously. Shortly after the steamer has
taken on the firewood, it is surrounded by a dense fog. When the fog clears, the ship is attacked
by an unseen band of natives, who fire arrows from the safety of the forest. The African
helmsman is killed before Marlow frightens the natives away with the ship’s steam whistle. Not
long after, Marlow and his companions arrive at Kurtz’s Inner Station, expecting to find him
dead, but a half-crazed Russian trader, who meets them as they come ashore, assures them that
everything is fine and informs them that he is the one who left the wood. The Russian claims
that Kurtz has enlarged his mind and cannot be subjected to the same moral judgments as
normal people. Apparently, Kurtz has established himself as a god with the natives and has gone
on brutal raids in the surrounding territory in search of ivory. The collection of severed heads
adorning the fence posts around the station attests to his “methods.” The pilgrims bring Kurtz
out of the station-house on a stretcher, and a large group of native warriors pours out of the
forest and surrounds them. Kurtz speaks to them, and the natives disappear into the woods.

The manager brings Kurtz, who is quite ill, aboard the steamer. A beautiful native woman,
apparently Kurtz’s mistress, appears on the shore and stares out at the ship. The Russian implies
that she is somehow involved with Kurtz and has caused trouble before through her influence
over him. The Russian reveals to Marlow, after swearing him to secrecy, that Kurtz had ordered
the attack on the steamer to make them believe he was dead in order that they might turn back
and leave him to his plans. The Russian then leaves by canoe, fearing the displeasure of the
manager. Kurtz disappears in the night, and Marlow goes out in search of him, finding him
crawling on all fours toward the native camp. Marlow stops him and convinces him to return to
the ship. They set off down the river the next morning, but Kurtz’s health is failing fast.

Marlow listens to Kurtz talk while he pilots the ship, and Kurtz entrusts Marlow with a packet of
personal documents, including an eloquent pamphlet on civilizing the savages which ends with a
scrawled message that says, “Exterminate all the brutes!” The steamer breaks down, and they
have to stop for repairs. Kurtz dies, uttering his last words—“The horror! The horror!”—in the
presence of the confused Marlow. Marlow falls ill soon after and barely survives. Eventually he
returns to Europe and goes to see Kurtz’s Intended (his fiancée). She is still in mourning, even
though it has been over a year since Kurtz’s death, and she praises him as a paragon of virtue
and achievement. She asks what his last words were, but Marlow cannot bring himself to shatter
her illusions with the truth. Instead, he tells her that Kurtz’s last word was her name.

Plot from Wiki

Aboard the Nellie, anchored in the River Thames near Gravesend, England, Charles Marlow tells
his fellow sailors about the events that led to his appointment as captain of a river steamboat
for an ivory trading company. As a child, Marlow had been fascinated by "the blank spaces" on
maps, particularly by the biggest, which by the time he had grown up was no longer blank but
turned into "a place of darkness" (Conrad 10). Yet there remained a big river, "resembling an
immense snake uncoiled, with its head in the sea, its body at rest curving afar over a vast
country and its tail lost in the depths of the land" (Conrad 10). The image of this river on the map
fascinated Marlow "as a snake would a bird" (Conrad 10). Feeling as though "instead of going to
the centre of a continent I were about to set off for the centre of the earth", Marlow takes
passage on a French steamer bound for the African coast and then into the interior (Conrad 18).
After more than thirty days the ship anchors off the seat of the government near the mouth of
the big river. Marlow, still some two hundred miles to go, now takes passage on a little
sea-going steamer captained by a Swede. He departs some thirty miles up the river where his
Company's station is. Work on the railway is going on, involving removal of rocks with
explosives. Marlow enters a narrow ravine to stroll in the shade under the trees, and finds
himself in "the gloomy circle of some Inferno": the place is full of diseased Africans who worked
on the railroad and now await their deaths, their sickened bodies already as thin as air . Marlow
witnesses the scene "horror-struck" .

Marlow has to wait for ten days in the Company's Outer Station, where he sleeps in a hut. At this
station, which strikes Marlow as a scene of devastation, he meets the Company's impeccably
dressed chief accountant who tells him of a Mr. Kurtz, who is in charge of a very important
trading-post, and a widely respected, first-class agent, a "'very remarkable person'" who "'Sends
in as much ivory as all the others put together'" (Conrad 28). The agent predicts that Kurtz will
go very far: "'He will be a somebody in the Administration before long. They, above—the
Council in Europe, you know—mean him to be'" .

Marlow departs with a caravan of sixty men to travel on foot some two hundred miles into the
wilderness to the Central Station, where the steamboat that he is to captain is based. On the
fifteenth day of his march, he arrives at the station, which has some twenty employees, and is
shocked to learn from a fellow European that his steamboat had been wrecked in a mysterious
accident two days earlier. He meets the general manager, who informs him that he could wait
no longer for Marlow to arrive, because the up-river stations had to be relieved, and rumours
had one important station in jeopardy because its chief, the exceptional Mr. Kurtz, was ill. "Hang
Kurtz", Marlow thinks, irritated (Conrad 34). He fishes his boat out of the river and is occupied
with its repair for some months, during which a sudden fire destroys a grass shed full of
materials used to trade with the natives. While one of the natives is tortured for allegedly
causing the fire, Marlow is invited in the room of the station's brick-maker, a man who spent a
year waiting for material to make bricks. Marlow gets the impression the man wants to pump
him, and is curious to know what kind of information he is after. Hanging on the wall is "a small
sketch in oils, on a panel, representing a woman draped and blindfolded carrying a lighted
torch" (Conrad 39). Marlow is fascinated with the sinister effect of the torchlight upon the
woman's face, and is informed that Mr. Kurtz made the painting in the station a year ago. The
brick-maker calls Kurtz "'a prodigy'" and "'an emissary of pity, and science, and progress'", and
feels Kurtz represents the "'higher intelligence, wide sympathies, a singleness of purpose'"
needed for the cause Europe entrusts the Company with (Conrad 39). The man predicts Kurtz
will rise in the hierarchy within two years and then makes the connection to Marlow: "'The same
people who sent him specially also recommended you'".

Marlow is frustrated by the months it takes to perform the necessary repairs, made all the
slower by the lack of proper tools and replacement parts at the station. During this time, he
learns that Kurtz is far from admired, but more or less resented (mostly by the manager).

Once underway, the journey up-river to Kurtz's station takes two months to the day. The
steamboat stops briefly near an abandoned hut on the riverbank, where Marlow finds a pile of
wood and a note indicating that the wood is for them and that they should proceed quickly but
with caution as they near the Inner Station.

The journey pauses for the night about eight miles below the Inner Station. In the morning the
crew awakens to find that the boat is enveloped by a thick white fog. From the riverbank they
hear a very loud cry, followed by a discordant clamour. A few hours later, as safe navigation
becomes increasingly difficult, the steamboat is attacked with a barrage of small arrows from
the forest. The helmsman is impaled by a spear and falls at Marlow's feet. Marlow sounds the
steam whistle repeatedly, frightening the attackers and causing the shower of arrows to cease.
Marlow and a pilgrim watch the helmsman die. In a flash forward, Marlow notes that the
International Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs had commissioned Kurtz to write a
report, which he did eloquently. A handwritten postscript, apparently added later by Kurtz,
reads "Exterminate all the brutes!".

At Kurtz's station Marlow sees a man on the riverbank waving his arm, urging them to land. The
pilgrims, heavily armed, escort the manager on to the shore to retrieve Mr. Kurtz. The man from
the bank boards the steamboat, and turns out to be a Russian wanderer who had happened to
stray into Kurtz's camp. He explains that he had left the wood and the note at the abandoned
hut. Through conversation Marlow discovers just how wanton Kurtz can be; how the natives
worship him; and how very ill he has been of late. The Russian admires Kurtz for his intellect and
his insights into love, life, and justice, and suggests that he is a poet. He tells of how Kurtz
opened his mind, and seems to admire him even for his power—and for his willingness to use it.
Marlow, on the other hand, suggests that Kurtz has gone mad.

From the steamboat, Marlow observes the station in detail and is surprised to see near the
station house a row of posts topped with the severed heads of natives. Around the corner of the
house, the manager appears with the pilgrims, bearing a gaunt and ghost-like Kurtz on an
improvised stretcher. The area fills with natives, apparently ready for battle, but Kurtz shouts
something from the stretcher, and the natives retreat into the forest. The pilgrims carry Kurtz to
the steamer and lay him in one of the cabins, where he and the manager have a private
conversation. Marlow watches a beautiful native woman walk in measured steps along the
shore and stop next to the steamer. When the manager exits the cabin he pulls Marlow aside
and tells him that Kurtz has harmed the Company's business in the region, that his methods are
"unsound". Later, the Russian reveals that Kurtz believes the Company wants to remove him
from the station and kill him, and Marlow confirms that hangings had been discussed.

After midnight, Marlow discovers that Kurtz has left his cabin on the steamer and returned to
shore. He goes ashore and finds a very weak Kurtz crawling his way back to the station house,
though not too weak to call to the natives for help. Marlow threatens to harm Kurtz if he raises
an alarm, but Kurtz only laments that he had not accomplished more in the region. The next day
they prepare for their journey back down the river. The natives, including the ornately dressed
woman, once again assemble on shore and begin to shout unintelligibly. Noticing the pilgrims
readying their rifles, Marlow sounds the steam whistle repeatedly to scatter the crowd of
natives. Only the woman remains unmoved, with outstretched arms. The pilgrims open fire as
the current carries them swiftly downstream.

Kurtz's health worsens on the return trip, and Marlow himself becomes increasingly ill. The
steamboat breaks down and, while it is stopped for repairs, Kurtz gives Marlow a packet of
papers, including his commissioned report and a photograph, telling him to keep them away
from the manager. When Marlow next speaks with him, Kurtz is near death; as he dies, Marlow
hears him weakly whisper: "The horror! The horror!" (Conrad 116). A short while later, the
"manager's boy" announces to the rest of the crew, in a scathing tone, "Mistah Kurtz—he dead"
(Conrad 117). The next day Marlow pays little attention to the pilgrims as they bury "something"
in a muddy hole .He falls very ill, himself near death.

Upon his return to Europe, Marlow is embittered and contemptuous of the "civilised" world.
Many callers come to retrieve the papers Kurtz had entrusted to him, but Marlow withholds
them or offers papers he knows they have no interest in. He then gives Kurtz's report to a
journalist, for publication if he sees fit. Finally Marlow is left with some personal letters and a
photograph of Kurtz's fiancée, whom Kurtz referred to as "My Intended" (Conrad 79). When
Marlow visits her, she is dressed in black and still deep in mourning, although it has been more
than a year since Kurtz's death. She presses Marlow for information, asking him to repeat Kurtz's
final words. Uncomfortable, Marlow lies and tells her that Kurtz's final word was her name.

Reception

Literary critic Harold Bloom wrote that Heart of Darkness had been analysed more than any
other work of literature that is studied in universities and colleges, which he attributed to
Conrad's "unique propensity for ambiguity." F. R. Leavis referred to Heart of Darkness as a
"minor work" and criticised its "adjectival insistence upon inexpressible and incomprehensible
mystery". Achebe described Conrad's novella as "an offensive and deplorable book" that
de-humanised Africans. Caryl Phillips stated that "Achebe is right; to the African reader the
price of Conrad's eloquent denunciation of colonisation is the recycling of racist notions of the
'dark' continent and her people. Those of us who are not from Africa may be prepared to pay
this price, but this price is far too high for Achebe."

Character List

Marlow - The protagonist of Heart of Darkness. Marlow is philosophical, independent-minded,

and generally skeptical of those around him. He is also a master storyteller, eloquent and able to
draw his listeners into his tale. Although Marlow shares many of his fellow Europeans’
prejudices, he has seen enough of the world and has encountered enough debased white men
to make him skeptical of imperialism.

Kurtz - The chief of the Inner Station and the object of Marlow’s quest. Kurtz is a man of many
talents—we learn, among other things, that he is a gifted musician and a fine painter—the chief
of which are his charisma and his ability to lead men. Kurtz is a man who understands the power
of words, and his writings are marked by an eloquence that obscures their horrifying message.
Although he remains an enigma even to Marlow, Kurtz clearly exerts a powerful influence on the
people in his life. His downfall seems to be a result of his willingness to ignore the hypocritical
rules that govern European colonial conduct: Kurtz has “kicked himself loose of the earth” by
fraternizing excessively with the natives and not keeping up appearances; in so doing, he has
become wildly successful but has also incurred the wrath of his fellow white men.

General manager - The chief agent of the Company in its African territory, who runs the Central
Station. He owes his success to a hardy constitution that allows him to outlive all his
competitors. He is average in appearance and unremarkable in abilities, but he possesses a
strange capacity to produce uneasiness in those around him, keeping everyone sufficiently
unsettled for him to exert his control over them.

Brickmaker - The brickmaker, whom Marlow also meets at the Central Station, is a favorite of
the manager and seems to be a kind of corporate spy. He never actually produces any bricks, as
he is supposedly waiting for some essential element that is never delivered. He is petty and
conniving and assumes that other people are too.

Chief accountant - An efficient worker with an incredible habit of dressing up in spotless whites
and keeping himself absolutely tidy despite the squalor and heat of the Outer Station, where he
lives and works. He is one of the few colonials who seems to have accomplished anything: he
has trained a native woman to care for his wardrobe.

Pilgrims - The bumbling, greedy agents of the Central Station. They carry long wooden staves
with them everywhere, reminding Marlow of traditional religious travelers. They all want to be
appointed to a station so that they can trade for ivory and earn a commission, but none of them
actually takes any effective steps toward achieving this goal. They are obsessed with keeping up
a veneer of civilization and proper conduct, and are motivated entirely by self-interest. They
hate the natives and treat them like animals, although in their greed and ridiculousness they
appear less than human themselves.
Cannibals - Natives hired as the crew of the steamer, a surprisingly reasonable and
well-tempered bunch. Marlow respects their restraint and their calm acceptance of adversity.
The leader of the group, in particular, seems to be intelligent and capable of ironic reflection
upon his situation.

Russian trader - A Russian sailor who has gone into the African interior as the trading
representative of a Dutch company. He is boyish in appearance and temperament, and seems to
exist wholly on the glamour of youth and the audacity of adventurousness. His brightly patched
clothes remind Marlow of a harlequin. He is a devoted disciple of Kurtz’s.

Helmsman - A young man from the coast trained by Marlow’s predecessor to pilot the steamer.
He is a serviceable pilot, although Marlow never comes to view him as much more than a
mechanical part of the boat. He is killed when the steamer is attacked by natives hiding on the
riverbanks.

Kurtz’s African mistress - A fiercely beautiful woman loaded with jewelry who appears on the
shore when Marlow’s steamer arrives at and leaves the Inner Station. She seems to exert an
undue influence over both Kurtz and the natives around the station, and the Russian trader
points her out as someone to fear. Like Kurtz, she is an enigma: she never speaks to Marlow, and
he never learns anything more about her.

Kurtz’s Intended - Kurtz’s naïve and long-suffering fiancée, whom Marlow goes to visit after
Kurtz’s death. Her unshakable certainty about Kurtz’s love for her reinforces Marlow’s belief that
women live in a dream world, well insulated from reality.

Aunt - Marlow’s doting relative, who secures him a position with the Company. She believes
firmly in imperialism as a charitable activity that brings civilization and religion to suffering,
simple savages. She, too, is an example for Marlow of the naïveté and illusions of women.

The men aboard the Nellie - Marlow’s friends, who are with him aboard a ship on the Thames
at the story’s opening. They are the audience for the central story of Heart of Darkness, which
Marlow narrates. All have been sailors at one time or another, but all now have important jobs
ashore and have settled into middle-class, middle-aged lives. They represent the kind of man
Marlow would have likely become had he not gone to Africa: well meaning and moral but
ignorant as to a large part of the world beyond England. The narrator in particular seems to be
shaken by Marlow’s story. He repeatedly comments on its obscurity and Marlow’s own
mysterious nature.

Fresleven - Marlow’s predecessor as captain of the steamer. Fresleven, by all accounts a

good-tempered, nonviolent man, was killed in a dispute over some hens, apparently after
striking a village chief.

2. MIDDLEMARCH
Middlemarch, A Study of Provincial Life is a novel by the English author George Eliot, first
published in eight installments. during 1871–72. The novel is set in the fictitious Midlands town
of Middlemarch, and it comprises several distinct stories and a large cast of characters.
Significant themes include the status of women, the nature of marriage, idealism, self-interest,
religion, hypocrisy, political reform, and education.

Although containing comical elements, Middlemarch is a work of realism that refers to many
historical events: the 1832 Reform Act, the beginnings of the railways, the death of King George
IV, and the succession of his brother, the Duke of Clarence (the future King William IV). In
addition, the work incorporates contemporary medical science and examines the deeply
reactionary mindset found within a settled community facing the prospect of unwelcome
change.

Eliot began writing the two pieces that would eventually form Middlemarch during the years
1869–70 and completed the novel in 1871. Although the first reviews were mixed, it is now
widely regarded as her best work and one of the greatest novels written in English.

Background[edit]

George Eliot

Middlemarch originates in two unfinished pieces that Eliot worked on during the years 1869 and
1870: the novel "Middlemarch"[a] (which focused on the character of Lydgate) and the long
story "Miss Brooke" (which focused on the character of Dorothea).The former piece is first
mentioned in her journal on 1 January 1869 as one of the tasks for the coming year. In August
she began writing, but progress ceased in the following month amidst a lack of confidence about
it and distraction caused by the illness of George Henry Lewes's son Thornie, who was dying of
tuberculosis. (Eliot had been living with Lewes since 1854 as part of an open marriage.)
Following Thornie's death on 19 October 1869, all work on the novel stopped; it is uncertain at
this point whether or not Eliot intended to revive it at a later date. In December she writes of
having begun another story, on a subject that she had considered "ever since I began to write
fiction".By the end of the month she had written a hundred pages of this story and entitled it
"Miss Brooke". Although a precise date is unknown, the process of incorporating material from
"Middlemarch" into the story she had been working on was ongoing by March 1871. In the
process of composition, Eliot compiled a notebook of hundreds of literary quotations including
excerpts from poets, historians, playwrights, philosophers, and critics in eight different
languages.

By May 1871, the growing length of the novel had become a concern to Eliot, as it threatened to
exceed the three-volume format that was the norm in publishing.The issue was compounded by
the fact that Eliot's most recent novel, Felix Holt, the Radical (1866)—also set in the same
pre-Reform Bill England—had not sold well. The publisher John Blackwood, who had made a
loss on acquiring the English rights to that novel, was approached by Lewes in his role as Eliot's
literary agent. He suggested that the novel be brought out in eight two-monthly parts,
borrowing from the method of Victor Hugo's novel Les Misérables.This was an alternative to the
monthly issuing that had occurred for such longer works as David Copperfield and Vanity Fair,
and it avoided the objections of Eliot herself to the cutting up of her novel into small
parts.Blackwood agreed to the venture, though he acknowledged "there will be complaints of a
want of the continuous interest in the story" due to the independence of each volume. The eight
books duly appeared throughout 1872, the last three instalments being issued monthly.

With the deaths of William Makepeace Thackeray and Charles Dickens (in 1863 and 1870,
respectively), Eliot was "generally recognized as the greatest living English novelist" at the time
of the novel's final publication.

Overall Summary

Middlemarch is a highly unusual novel. Although it is primarily a Victorian novel, it has many
characteristics typical to modern novels. Critical reaction to Eliot's masterpiece work was mixed.
A common accusation leveled against it was its morbid, depressing tone. Many critics did not
like Eliot's habit of scattering obscure literary and scientific allusions throughout the book. In
their opinion a woman writer should not be so intellectual. Eliot hated the "silly, women
novelists." In the Victorian era, women writers were generally confined to writing the
stereotypical fantasies of the conventional romance fiction. Not only did Eliot dislike the
constraints imposed on women's writing, she disliked the stories they were expected to
produce. Her disdain for the tropes of conventional romance is apparent in her treatment of
marriage between Rosamond and Lydgate. Both and Rosamond and Lydgate think of courtship
and romance in terms of ideals taken directly from conventional romance. Another problem
with such fiction is that marriage marks the end of the novel. Eliot goes through great effort to
depict the realities of marriage.

Moreover, Eliot's many critics found Middlemarch to be too depressing for a woman writer. Eliot
refused to bow to the conventions of a happy ending. An ill-advised marriage between two
people who are inherently incompatible never becomes completely harmonious. In fact, it
becomes a yoke. Such is the case in the marriages of Lydgate and Dorothea. Dorothea was saved
from living with her mistake for her whole life because her elderly husband dies of a heart
attack. Lydgate and Rosamond, on the other hand, married younG.

Two major life choices govern the narrative of Middlemarch. One is marriage and the other is
vocation. Eliot takes both choices very seriously. Short, romantic courtships lead to trouble,
because both parties entertain unrealistic ideals of each other. They marry without getting to
know one another. Marriages based on compatibility work better. Moreover, marriages in which
women have a greater say also work better, such as the marriage between Fred and Mary. She
tells him she will not marry if he becomes a clergyman. Her condition saves Fred from an
unhappy entrapment in an occupation he doesn't like. Dorothea and Casaubon struggle
continually because Casaubon attempts to make her submit to his control. The same applies in
the marriage between Lydgate and Rosamond.

The choice of an occupation by which one earns a living is also an important element in the
book. Eliot illustrates the consequences of making the wrong choice. She also details at great
length the consequences of confining women to the domestic sphere alone. Dorothea's
passionate ambition for social reform is never realized. She ends with a happy marriage, but
there is some sense that her end as merely a wife and mother is a waste. Rosamond's shrewd
capabilities degenerate into vanity and manipulation. She is restless within the domestic sphere,
and her stifled ambitions only result in unhappiness for herself and her husband.

Eliot's refusal to conform to happy endings demonstrates the fact that Middlemarch is not
meant to be entertainment. She wants to deal with real-life issues, not the fantasy world to
which women writers were often confined. Her ambition was to create a portrait of the
complexity of ordinary human life: quiet tragedies, petty character failings, small triumphs, and
quiet moments of dignity. The complexity of her portrait of provincial society is reflected in the
complexity of individual characters. The contradictions in the character of the individual person
are evident in the shifting sympathies of the reader. One moment, we pity Casaubon, the next
we judge him critically.

Middlemarch stubbornly refuses to behave like a typical novel. The novel is a collection of
relationships between several major players in the drama, but no single one person occupies the
center of the action. No one person can represent provincial life. It is necessary to include
multiple people. Eliot's book is fairly experimental for its time in form and content, particularly
because she was a woman writer.

Critical reception

Henry James offered a mixed opinion on Middlemarch, opining that it is "at once one of the
strongest and one of the weakest of English novels". Emily Dickinson expressed high praise for
the novel, exclaiming in a letter to a friend: "What do I think of Middlemarch? What do I think of
glory." Virginia Woolf describeD it as "the magnificent book that, with all its imperfections, is
one of the few English novels written for grown-up people".

Character List

Mr. Bambridge - Bambridge is a Middlemarch horse dealer. Fred Vincy sinks into his debt;
Raffles meets him at a horse-fair and tells him everything about Bulstrode's past.

Dorothea Brooke - Dorothea is a kind-hearted and honest woman. She longs to find some way
to improve the world. She thinks Casaubon is a great intellectual, but after she marries him, she
quickly discovers that he is not passionate enough to make her happy. She also learns that she is
not as submissive and sacrificing as she had previously thought. She draws plans for comfortable
cottages to replace the ramshackle buildings on large estates. She helps Lydgate when he suffers
for his connections with Bulstrode. She falls in love with Casaubon's young cousin, Will Ladislaw.
She defies Casaubon's machinations and marries Will even though it means losing her
inheritance as Casaubon's widow.

Arthur Brooke - Brooke is Dorothea and Celia's bachelor uncle. He is a bumbling man who can
never stick to an opinion, always wanting to please everyone. He hires Will Ladislaw to write for
his paper, the Pioneer. He runs for a seat in Parliament on the Reform platform, but he lets his
own tenants live in poverty and squalor. The scandal resulting from his hypocrisy prompts him
to improve conditions on his own estate, Tipton Grange.

Nicholas Bulstrode - Nicholas Bulstrode is a wealthy Middlemarch banker. He is married to

Walter Vincy's sister. Bulstrode professes to be a deeply religious Evangelical Protestant, but he
has a dark past: he made his fortune as a pawnbroker selling stolen goods. He married Will
Ladislaw's grandmother after her first husband died. Her daughter had run away years before,
and she insisted that Bulstrode find her daughter before she re-married, because she wanted to
leave her wealth to her only surviving child. Bulstrode located the daughter and her child, Will
Ladislaw, but he kept her existence a secret. He bribed the man he hired to find her, John
Raffles, to keep quiet. John Raffles blackmails him with this information. When Raffles becomes
ill, Bulstrode cares for him. However, he disobeys Lydgate's medical advice, and Raffles dies as a
result. When the scandal about his past and the circumstances of Raffles's death become known,
Bulstrode leaves Middlemarch in shame. He purchases Stone Court from Joshua Rigg
Featherstone.

Harriet Bulstrode - Harriet Bulstrode is Walter Vincy's sister. She is a kind, honest, religious
woman. No one in Middlemarch blames her for her husband's misdeeds. She resolves to stay
with her husband even after she learns of his wrongdoing.

Elinor Cadwallader - Elinor Cadwallader is the wife of the Rector at Tipton Grange, Brooke's
estate. She was born to a good family, but she married down and angered her friends and
families. She is a practical woman who is forever trying to play matchmaker to unmarried young
people, including Dorothea, Celia, and Sir James.

Humphrey Cadwallader - Humphrey Cadwallader is the Rector at Tipton Grange, Brooke's

estate. Unlike his wife, he doesn't believe in meddling in other people's affairs.

Edward Casaubon - Edward Casaubon owns a large estate called Lowick. He is a scholarly
clergyman. His lifelong ambition is to write the Key to all Mythologies, but he is insecure and
uncertain about his own abilities. He marries Dorothea because he thinks she is completely
submissive and worshipful. Her stubborn independence frustrates him, and he mistakenly
believes that she is constantly criticizing him. Casaubon is Will Ladislaw's cousin. His mother's
sister was disowned by her family for running away to marry a man they didn't like. Her own
daughter, Will's mother, also ran away to marry. Casaubon offers financial support to Will
because he feels obligated to make amends for his aunt's disinheritance. He becomes jealous of
Will's relationship with Dorothea. He includes an addendum in his will stating that Dorothea will
lose his wealth and property if she ever marries Will Ladislaw. He dies before finishing his Key.

Sir James Chettam - Sir James Chettam is a baronet. He owns a large estate called Freshitt. He
courts Dorothea, but she chooses to marry Casaubon. He later marries her sister. He enacts
Dorothea's cottage plans on his own estate.

Mr. Dagley - Dagley is one of Brooke's impoverished tenants. His son is caught poaching on
Brooke's lands. He refuses Brooke's request that he chastise his son.

Camden Farebrother - Camden Farebrother is a Vicar, but he doesn't consider himself to be a

very good clergyman, though many people like his sensible sermons. He becomes fast friends
with Lydgate and supports his mother, sister, and aunt on his small income. He must gamble to
make ends meet and to pursue his scientific hobbies. He loses in the election for the chaplaincy
at the New Hospital. He receives the Lowick parish after Casaubon's death. Fred Vincy enlists his
help in courting Mary Garth. He himself loves Mary, but he does his duty.

Mrs. Farebrother - Mrs. Farebrother is Camden Farebrother's widowed mother.

Winifred Farebrother - Winifred Farebrother is Camden Farebrother's unmarried sister.

Peter Featherstone - Peter Featherstone is a wealthy, manipulative old widower. He owns

Stone Court. He married twice, but had no legitimate children. His first wife was Caleb Garth's
sister. His second wife was Lucy Vincy's sister. He hints for years that he plans to leave his entire
estate to Fred Vincy, his nephew by marriage. He even writes two separate wills. Mary Garth
refuses to burn one of them. He leaves his property to his illegitimate son, Joshua Rigg.

Caleb Garth - Caleb Garth is a poor businessman. He earns his living managing large estates. He
co-signs a debt for Fred Vincy. When Fred is unable to pay, Garth's family suffers. He receives
new business, overcomes the loss, and hires Fred Vincy to work for him. He declines to manage
Stone Court for Bulstrode after Raffles reveals Bulstrode's dark past.

Susan Garth - Susan Garth is Caleb Garth's wife. She is a former schoolteacher.

Mary Garth - Mary Garth is the daughter of Caleb and Susan Garth. She loves Fred, but she
refuses to marry him if he becomes a clergyman and fails to find a steady occupation.

Will Ladislaw - Will Ladislaw is the grandson of Casaubon's disinherited aunt. Bulstrode tries to
give him money to atone for hiding his existence from his grandmother. He refuses the money
because he knows it came through thievery. He worships Dorothea. He doesn't care for money
and loves everything that is beautiful.

Tertius Lydgate - Tertius Lydgate is the orphan son of a military man. He chose the medical
profession at a young age, much to the chagrin of his wealthy, titled relatives. He comes to
Middlemarch hoping to test new methods of treatment. He marries Rosamond Vincy, whose
expensive habits get him into debt. He takes a loan from Bulstrode and becomes embroiled in
Bulstrode's scandal. Dorothea aids him in his darkest hour. He hopes to find the tissue that is the
most basic building block of life.

Sir Godwin Lydgate - Sir Godwin Lydgate is Tertius Lydgate's uncle.

Captain Lydgate - Captain Lydgate is Tertius Lydgate's foppish cousin. He takes Rosamond out
riding. She suffers a miscarriage as a result of an accident on horseback.

Naumann - Naumann is Ladislaw's painter friend in Rome. He uses Casaubon as a model for
Thomas Aquinas as a ruse to draw a sketch of Dorothea.

Miss Noble - Miss Noble is Mrs. Farebrother's sister. She steals small items of food to give to
the poor. She becomes fond of Will Ladislaw.

Selina Plymdale - Selina Plymdale is a good friend of Harriet Bulstrode. Her son courts
Rosamond Vincy, but he is rejected.

Ned Plymdale - Ned Plymdale courts Rosamond, but she refuses him.

John Raffles - John Raffles is an old business partner of Bulstrode. Bulstrode bribed him to keep
the existence of the daughter and grandchild of his first wife secret. He comes back to blackmail
Bulstrode. He is Joshua Rigg Featherstone's stepfather. He dies at Stone Court because
Bulstrode interferes with Lydgate's medical treatment.

Joshua Rigg Featherstone - Joshua Rigg Featherstone is Peter Featherstone's illegitimate son.
John Raffles is his stepfather. He inherits Stone Court. He sells it to Bulstrode because he wants
to become a moneychanger.

Borthrop Trumbell - Borthrop Trumbell is an auctioneer in Middlemarch.

Walter Tyke - Walter Tyke is an Evangelical Protestant minister. Bulstrode is a supporter of his.
He wins the election for the chaplaincy at the New Hospital, beating out Farebrother.

Rosamond Vincy - Rosamond Vincy is the daughter of Walter and Lucy Vincy. She grows up
accustomed to an expensive lifestyle. She marries Lydgate because she thinks he is rich and
because he has titled relatives. She dreams of leaving Middlemarch and living an exciting,
aristocratic lifestyle, but her expensive tastes get Lydgate deeply into debt.

Fred Vincy - Fred Vincy is the oldest son of Walter and Lucy Vincy. His father sends him to
college because he wants Fred to become a clergyman, but Fred doesn't want to work in the
Church. He gets himself into debt by gambling. He is accustomed to a lavish lifestyle. He causes
financial difficulty for the Garths because he cannot pay the debt on which Caleb Garth
co-signed his name. He wants to marry Mary Garth, but she won't have him unless he finds a
steady occupation other than the Church. He hopes to inherit Stone Court from his uncle, Peter
Featherstone. These hopes are disappointed, so he works for Caleb Garth.

Walter Vincy - Walter Vincy is a modestly well-off businessman in manufacturing. He is also

mayor of Middlemarch. Fred and Rosamond's expensive tastes infuriate him. He refuses to lend
Rosamond and Lydgate money to pay Lydgate's debt. He is Harriet Bulstrode's brother.

Lucy Vincy - Lucy Vincy is Walter Vincy's wife. She is the daughter of an innkeeper, much to
Rosamond's chagrin. She dotes on her son and doesn't want him to marry Mary Garth. She is the
sister of Featherstone's second wife.

Mr. Wrench - Mr. Wrench is a Middlemarch doctor. He misdiagnoses Fred when Fred catches
typhoid fever. Lydgate treats Fred's illness, and the Vincys fire Mr. Wrench. Mr. Wrench
becomes Lydgate's enemy as a result.

3. TESS OF THE D'URBERVILLES

Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented is a novel by Thomas Hardy. It
initially appeared in a censored and serialised version, published by the British illustrated
newspaper The Graphic in 1891[1] and in book form in 1892. Though now considered a major
nineteenth-century English novel and possibly Hardy's fictional masterpiece,[2] Tess of the
d'Urbervilles received mixed reviews when it first appeared, in part because it challenged the
sexual morals of late Victorian England.

Summary of the novel

Phase the First: The Maiden

The novel is set in impoverished rural England, Thomas Hardy's fictional Wessex, during the
Long Depression of the 1870s. Tess is the oldest child of John and Joan Durbeyfield, uneducated
peasants. However, John is given the impression by Parson Tringham that he may have noble
blood, as "Durbeyfield" is a corruption of "D'Urberville", the surname of an extinct noble
Norman family. Knowledge of this immediately goes to John's head.

That same day, Tess participates in the village May Dance, where she meets Angel Clare,
youngest son of Reverend James Clare, who is on a walking tour with his two brothers. He stops
to join the dance and partners several other girls. Angel notices Tess too late to dance with her,
as he is already late for a promised meeting with his brothers. Tess feels slighted.

Tess's father gets too drunk to drive to the market that night, so Tess undertakes the journey
herself. However, she falls asleep at the reins, and the family's only horse encounters a speeding
wagon and is fatally wounded. Tess feels so guilty over the horse's death and the economic
consequences for the family that she agrees, against her better judgement, to visit Mrs
d'Urberville, a rich widow who lives in a rural mansion near the town of Trantridge, and "claim
kin". She is unaware that, in reality, Mrs d'Urberville's husband Simon Stoke adopted the
surname even though he was unrelated to the real d'Urbervilles.

Tess does not succeed in meeting Mrs d'Urberville, but chances to meet her libertine son, Alec,
who takes a fancy to Tess and secures her a position as poultry keeper on the estate. Although
Tess tells them about her fear that he might try to seduce her, her parents encourage her to
accept the job, secretly hoping that Alec might marry her. Tess dislikes Alec but endures his
persistent unwanted attention to earn enough to replace her family's horse. Despite his often
cruel and manipulative behaviour, the threat that Alec presents to Tess's virtue is sometimes
obscured for Tess by her inexperience and almost daily commonplace interactions with him.
Late one night, walking home from town with some other Trantridge villagers, Tess
inadvertently antagonizes Car Darch, Alec's most recently discarded favourite, and finds herself
in physical danger. When Alec rides up and offers to "rescue" her from the situation, she
accepts. Instead of taking her home, however, he rides through the fog until they reach an
ancient grove in a forest called "The Chase", where he informs her that he is lost and leaves on
foot to get his bearings. Alec returns to find Tess asleep, and it is implied that he rapes her,
although there remains a degree of ambiguity.

Mary Jacobus, a commentator on Hardy's works, speculates that the ambiguity may have been
forced on the author to meet the requirements of his publisher and the "Grundyist" readership
of his time.

Phase the Second: Maiden No More

Tess goes home to her father's cottage, where she keeps almost entirely to her room,
apparently feeling both traumatized and ashamed of having lost her virginity. The following
summer, she gives birth to a sickly boy who lives only a few weeks. On his last night alive, Tess
baptises him herself, because her father would not allow the parson to visit, stating that he did
not want the parson to "pry into their affairs". The child is given the name 'Sorrow', but despite
the baptism Tess can only arrange his burial in the "shabby corner" of the churchyard reserved
for unbaptised infants. Tess adds a homemade cross to the grave with flowers in an empty
marmalade jar.

Phase the Third: The Rally

More than two years after the Trantridge debacle, Tess, now twenty, has found employment
outside the village, where her past is not known. She works for Mr. and Mrs. Crick as a milkmaid
at Talbothays Dairy. There, she befriends three of her fellow milkmaids, Izz, Retty, and Marian,
and meets again Angel Clare, now an apprentice farmer who has come to Talbothays to learn
dairy management. Although the other milkmaids are in love with him, Angel singles out Tess,
and the two fall in love.

Phase the Fourth: The Consequence

Angel spends a few days away from the dairy, visiting his family at Emminster. His brothers Felix
and Cuthbert, both ordained Church of England ministers, note Angel's coarsened manners,
while Angel considers them staid and narrow-minded. The Clares have long hoped that Angel
would marry Mercy Chant, a pious schoolmistress, but Angel argues that a wife who knows farm
life would be a more practical choice. He tells his parents about Tess, and they agree to meet
her. His father, the Reverend James Clare, tells Angel about his efforts to convert the local
populace, mentioning his failure to tame a young miscreant named Alec d'Urberville.

Angel returns to Talbothays Dairy and asks Tess to marry him. This puts Tess in a painful
dilemma: Angel obviously thinks her a virgin, and she shrinks from confessing her past. Such is
her love for him, though, that she finally agrees to the marriage, pretending that she only
hesitated because she had heard he hated old families and thought he would not approve of her
d'Urberville ancestry. However, he is pleased by this news because he thinks it will make their
match more suitable in the eyes of his family.

As the marriage approaches, Tess grows increasingly troubled. She writes to her mother for
advice; Joan tells her to keep silent about her past. Her anxiety increases when a man from
Trantridge, named Groby, recognises her and crudely alludes to her history. Angel overhears and
flies into an uncharacteristic rage. Tess, deciding to tell Angel the truth, writes a letter describing
her dealings with d'Urberville and slips it under his door. When Angel greets her with the usual
affection the next morning, she thinks he has forgiven her; later she discovers the letter under
his carpet and realises that he has not seen it. She destroys it.

The wedding ceremony goes smoothly, apart from the omen of a cock crowing in the afternoon.
Tess and Angel spend their wedding night at an old d'Urberville family mansion, where Angel
presents his bride with diamonds that belonged to his godmother. When he confesses that he
once had a brief affair with an older woman in London, Tess finally feels able to tell Angel about
Alec, thinking he will understand and forgive.

Phase the Fifth: The Woman Pays

However, Angel is appalled by the revelation, and makes it clear that Tess is reduced in his eyes.
Although he admits that Tess was "more sinned against" than she has sinned herself, he feels
that her "want of firmness" confronting Alec may indicate a flaw in her character and that she is
no longer the woman he thought she was. He spends the wedding night on a sofa. After a few
awkward days, a devastated Tess suggests they separate, saying that she will return to her
parents. Angel gives her some money and promises to try to reconcile himself to her past, but
warns her not to try to join him until he sends for her. After a brief visit to his parents, Angel
takes a ship to Brazil to see if he can start a new life there. Before he leaves, he encounters
Tess's milkmaid friend Izz and impulsively asks her to come with him as his mistress. She
accepts, but when he asks her how much she loves him, she admits "Nobody could love 'ee
more than Tess did! She would have laid down her life for 'ee. I could do no more!" Hearing this,
he abandons the whim, and Izz goes home weeping bitterly.

Tess returns home for a time. However, she soon runs out of money, having to help out her
parents more than once. Finding her life with them unbearable, she decides to join Marian at a
starve-acre farm called Flintcomb-Ash; they are later joined by Izz. On the road, she is again
recognised and insulted by Groby, who later turns out to be her new employer. At the farm, the
three former milkmaids perform hard physical labour.

One winter day, Tess attempts to visit Angel's family at the parsonage in Emminster, hoping for
practical assistance. As she nears her destination, she encounters Angel's older brothers, with
Mercy Chant. They do not recognise her, but she overhears them discussing Angel's unwise
marriage, and dares not approach them. On the way back home, she overhears a wandering
preacher and is shocked to discover that it is Alec d'Urberville, who has been converted to
Methodism under the Reverend James Clare's influence.

Phase the Sixth: The Convert

Alec and Tess are each shaken by their encounter. Alec claims that she has put a spell on him
and makes Tess swear never to tempt him again as they stand beside an ill-omened stone
monument called the Cross-in-Hand. However, Alec continues to pursue her and soon comes to
Flintcomb-Ash to ask Tess to marry him, although she tells him she is already married. He begins
stalking her, despite repeated rebuffs, returning at Candlemas and again in early spring, when
Tess is hard at work feeding a threshing machine. He tells her he is no longer a preacher and
wants her to be with him. When he insults Angel, she slaps him, drawing blood. Tess then learns
from her sister, Liza-Lu, that her father, John, is ill and that her mother is dying. Tess rushes
home to look after them. Her mother soon recovers, but her father unexpectedly dies from a
heart condition.

The impoverished family is now evicted from their home, as Durbeyfield held only a life lease on
their cottage. Alec, having followed her to her home village, tries to persuade Tess that her
husband is never coming back and offers to house the Durbeyfields on his estate. Tess refuses
his assistance several times. She had earlier written Angel a psalm-like letter, full of love,
self-abasement, and pleas for mercy, in which she begs him to help her fight the temptation she
is facing. Now, however, she finally begins to realize that Angel has wronged her and scribbles a
hasty note saying that she will do all she can to forget him, since he has treated her so unjustly.

The Durbeyfields plan to rent some rooms in the town of Kingsbere, ancestral home of the
d'Urbervilles, but arrive to find that the rooms have already been rented to another family. All
but destitute, they are forced to take shelter in the churchyard, under the D'Urberville window.
Tess enters the church and in the d'Urberville Aisle, Alec reappears and importunes Tess again.
The scene ends with her desperately looking at the entrance to the d'Urberville vault and
wishing herself dead.

In the meantime, Angel has been very ill in Brazil and, his farming venture having failed, heads
home to England. On the way, he confides his troubles to a stranger, who tells him that he was
wrong to leave his wife; what she was in the past should matter less than what she might
become. Angel begins to repent his treatment of Tess.

Phase the Seventh: Fulfilment

Upon his return to his family home, Angel has two letters waiting for him: Tess's angry note and
a few cryptic lines from "two well-wishers" (Izz and Marian), warning him to protect his wife
from "an enemy in the shape of a friend". He sets out to find Tess and eventually locates Joan,
now well-dressed and living in a pleasant cottage. After responding evasively to his enquiries,
she tells him Tess has gone to live in Sandbourne, a fashionable seaside resort. There, he finds
Tess living in an expensive boarding house under the name "Mrs. d'Urberville." When he asks
for her, she appears in startlingly elegant attire and stands aloof. He tenderly asks her
forgiveness, but Tess, in anguish, tells him he has come too late. Thinking he would never return,
she has yielded at last to Alec d'Urberville's persuasion and has become his mistress. She gently
asks Angel to leave and never come back. He departs, and Tess returns to her bedroom, where
she falls to her knees and begins a lamentation. She blames Alec for causing her to lose Angel's
love a second time, accusing Alec of having lied when he said that Angel would never return to
her.

The following events are narrated from the perspective of the landlady, Mrs. Brooks. The latter
tries to listen in at the keyhole, but withdraws hastily when the argument between Tess and
Alec becomes heated. She later sees Tess leave the house, then notices a spreading red spot – a
bloodstain – on the ceiling. She summons help, and Alec is found stabbed to death in his bed.

Angel, totally disheartened, is leaving Sandbourne; Tess hurries after him and tells him that she
has killed Alec, saying that she hopes she has won his forgiveness by murdering the man who
ruined both their lives. Angel does not believe her at first, but grants her his forgiveness and
tells her that he loves her. Rather than heading for the coast, they walk inland, vaguely planning
to hide somewhere until the search for Tess is ended and they can escape abroad from a port.
They find an empty mansion and stay there for five days in blissful happiness, until their
presence is discovered one day by the cleaning woman.

They continue walking and, in the middle of the night, stumble upon Stonehenge, where Tess
lies down to rest on an ancient altar. Before she falls asleep, she asks Angel to look after her
younger sister, Liza-Lu, saying that she hopes Angel will marry her after she is dead. At dawn,
Angel sees that they are surrounded by police. He finally realises that Tess really has committed
murder and asks the men in a whisper to let her awaken naturally before they arrest her. When
she opens her eyes and sees the police, she tells Angel she is "almost glad" because "now I shall
not live for you to despise me". Her parting words are, "I am ready."

Tess is escorted to Wintoncester (Winchester) prison. The novel closes with Angel and Liza-Lu
watching from a nearby hill as the black flag signalling Tess's execution is raised over the prison.
Angel and Liza-Lu then join hands and go on their way.
Character List

Tess Durbeyfield - The novel’s protagonist. Tess is a beautiful, loyal young woman living with
her impoverished family in the village of Marlott. Tess has a keen sense of responsibility and is
committed to doing the best she can for her family, although her inexperience and lack of wise
parenting leave her extremely vulnerable. Her life is complicated when her father discovers a
link to the noble line of the d’Urbervilles, and, as a result, Tess is sent to work at the d’Urberville
mansion. Unfortunately, her ideals cannot prevent her from sliding further and further into
misfortune after she becomes pregnant by Alec d’Urberville. The terrible irony is that Tess and
her family are not really related to this branch of the d’Urbervilles at all: Alec’s father, a
merchant named Simon Stokes, simply assumed the name after he retired.

Angel Clare - An intelligent young man who has decided to become a farmer to preserve his
intellectual freedom from the pressures of city life. Angel’s father and his two brothers are
respected clergymen, but Angel’s religious doubts have kept him from joining the ministry. He
meets Tess when she is a milkmaid at the Talbothays Dairy and quickly falls in love with her.

Alec d’Urberville - The handsome, amoral son of a wealthy merchant named Simon Stokes.
Alec is not really a d’Urberville—his father simply took on the name of the ancient noble family
after he built his mansion and retired. Alec is a manipulative, sinister young man who does
everything he can to seduce the inexperienced Tess when she comes to work for his family.
When he finally has his way with her, out in the woods, he subsequently tries to help her but is
unable to make her love him.

Mr. John Durbeyfield - Tess’s father, a lazy peddler in Marlott. John is naturally quick, but he
hates work. When he learns that he descends from the noble line of the d’Urbervilles, he is
quick to make an attempt to profit from the connection.

Mrs. Joan Durbeyfield - Tess’s mother. Joan has a strong sense of propriety and very particular
hopes for Tess’s life. She is continually disappointed and hurt by the way in which her daughter’s
life actually proceeds. But she is also somewhat simpleminded and naturally forgiving, and she is
unable to remain angry with Tess—particularly once Tess becomes her primary means of
support.

Mrs. d’Urberville - Alec’s mother, and the widow of Simon Stokes. Mrs. d’Urberville is blind and
often ill. She cares deeply for her animals, but not for her maid Elizabeth, her son Alec, nor Tess
when she comes to work for her. In fact, she never sees Tess as anything more than an
impoverished girl.

Marian, Izz Huett, and Retty Priddle - Milkmaids whom Tess befriends at the Talbothays Dairy.
Marian, Izz, and Retty remain close to Tess throughout the rest of her life. They are all in love
with Angel and are devastated when he chooses Tess over them: Marian turns to drink, Retty
attempts suicide, and Izz nearly runs off to Brazil with Angel when he leaves Tess. Nevertheless,
they remain helpful to Tess. Marian helps her find a job at a farm called Flintcomb-Ash, and
Marian and Izz write Angel a plaintive letter encouraging him to give Tess another chance.

Reverend Clare - Angel’s father, a somewhat intractable but principled clergyman in the town
of Emminster. Mr. Clare considers it his duty to convert the populace. One of his most difficult
cases proves to be none other than Alec d’Urberville.

Mrs. Clare - Angel’s mother, a loving but snobbish woman who places great stock in social class.
Mrs. Clare wants Angel to marry a suitable woman, meaning a woman with the proper social,
financial, and religious background. Mrs. Clare initially looks down on Tess as a “simple” and
impoverished girl, but later grows to appreciate her.

Reverend Felix Clare - Angel’s brother, a village curate.

Reverend Cuthbert - Clare Angel’s brother, a classical scholar and dean at Cambridge. Cuthbert,
who can concentrate only on university matters, marries Mercy Chant.

Eliza Louisa Durbeyfield - Tess’s younger sister. Tess believes Liza-Lu has all of Tess’s own good
qualities and none of her bad ones, and she encourages Angel to look after and even marry
Liza-Lu after Tess dies.

Sorrow - Tess’s son with Alec d’Urberville. Sorrow dies in his early infancy, after Tess christens
him herself. She later buries him herself as well, and decorates his grave.

Mercy Chant- The daughter of a friend of the Reverend Clare. Mr. Clare hopes Angel will marry
Mercy, but after Angel marries Tess, Mercy becomes engaged to his brother Cuthbert instead.

4. A BEND IN THE GANGES

A Bend in the Ganges is a novel by Indian author Manohar Malgonkar. The novel opens with the
civil disobedience movement of the early 1930s and ends with the partition riots in Punjab. It
encompasses the Swadeshi movement, the activities of the freedom fighters, the outbreak of
the Second World War, the British retreat from Rangoon, the Bombay dock explosion, and the
division of India in 1947.

A Bend in the ganges is an epic saga of the decade leading to partition and the forces which
engineered its bloody consummation plunging Modern India into its darkest hour; where over 3
million people died, over a million women were raped, abducted and mutilated, and several
million rendered helpless refugees, left to fend for themselves in the quagmire of post partition
existence teeming with poverty, disease and death.

Malgonkar deals with the sensitive and complicated issue of the seemingly sudden
transformation of Indian nationalism versus British colonialism into a direct Hindu Muslim
conflict which led to the partition of India.
Plot Summary

The tale is set a decade prior to partition in a small town of West Punjab. Debi Dayal is the son
Tekchand, an Indian cement tycoon; scrupulously honest, loyal to the British government but
neither nonchalant over the plight of the nation. He is also a lover of the arts and enjoys an
exquisite collection of ancient Hindu artifacts. His beautiful wife, and Debi’s mother share an
equally blissful relationship and with their daughter Sundari; who is indeed as beautiful and
charming as her simple name sounds; life could not have been more perfect. All, but for their
son Debi! The son who has every pleasure to boot, and a naturally secured promise of incessant
others to follow, chooses the painful path of adopting armed revolution to liberate not only his
bonded motherland, but more importantly his own self plagued with the harrowing memory of
an attempted rape of his mother by a drunken British soldier during his early teen years. The
parents are unable to understand his eccentricities, his fanatical devotion to fighting and fitness.
Debi Dayal is close to neither of them; and the only relationship he cares for is with his elder
sister. Debi Dyal ventures to be a part of a revolutionary organization headed by Shafi; the
daring, and equally cunning mastermind of the gang. Religion is weakness, is his motto and
Hindus of the organization eat beef and Muslims plaster pork on their faces to prove their only
religion is dedication to the nation by blowing up bridges, Queen Elizabeth Statues and other
government paraphernalia. But the crow of communalism rears it ugly but eternal head when
Shafi is successfully indoctrinated by a brotherly Muslim comrade to rid the organization of its
Hindu accessories, especially Debi Dayal whose charisma and daring is a constant source of
consternation for Shafi; for he realizes very soon his own leadership could be at stake. Availing
of an opportunistic moment; Shafi betrays 9 of his colleagues, all of them Hindus. Debi Dayal is
sentenced to a lifetime imprisonment term in the Andamans. Meanwhile, Sundari is betrothed
to a distinguished young gentleman; the latter, an apotheosis of the gentleman of the Raj…. the
marriage is a mismatch from day one, with husband betraying the wife for a cheap tart. Sundari
moves to Bombay to pick up the pieces of her life but the memory of her beloved brother
languishing in the andamans torments her night and day.

The story is beautiful set up with the simultaneous evolution of the character of the Gian; the
story’s antihero; and antithesis to DebiDayal; born amidst duress; with only an exceptionally
supportive but poor brother financing his studies; an ordinary man floundering in vacillation;
lacking both courage, vigour and strength so natural to Gian; who just cannot find fault with the
British and is a staunch Gandhian, with a seemingly inbuilt mechanism to abhor violence. A
chance encounter with Gandhia hypnotizes his soul; for Gandhi is god; the god who would lead
India to freedom….and how? The group of Gandhivadis lustily cheer the burning of foreign cloth;
and in a moment of supreme inspiration (set by a beautiful woman) Gian sacrifices his most
precious possession; a handsome English leather jacket to the flames, to reduce the memory of
British attire to ashes….

As we follow the fortunes of Gian, we come across a strong family feud which leads to the
murder of Hari; who despite having won a court order(from the impartial incorruptible white
British judge) is disposed of his land, and in a violent altercation is murdered…….Gian, in a fit of
fury avenges the murder with murder….The same Gian who theoretically eschewed violence,
had committed to it the very first time he actually faced a challenge in life. Gian is also
sentenced with the dreaded D ticket to the andamans where he meets up Debi Dayal.

The andamans again, is a new experience for both, and they both react different. Debi Dayal will
prefer death to a demeaning death in the island jail………Gian is wonderstruck at the incredulity
of the British for having designed a destination of reformation even for dreaded criminals like
murderers, while a few centuries ago, even a minor robbery could attest a fine involving
chopping off some limbs…only a masterful race could visualize such a system…..Gian cannot
help notice, that again, the British warden is caring and considerate for the inmates; while his
Indian subordinates lose no opportunity to abuse them, despite there being no rhyme or reason
for the same. Gian through his meticulous dedication to work, becomes a valuable aid for the
warden and is promised of a parole within 3 years, after which he could marry a native of
Andaman and live in the colonies forever. But Debi Dayal’s obstinate overtures lead him to
trouble especially with the Indian officers. His recalcitrant spirit attempts a jailbreak but in a
moment of weakness, Gian betrays him….Debi Dayal’s body is brutalized, and Gian is strung with
remorse….As WW-II breaks out; Andaman falls to the Japanese; and Gian uses the opportunity
to escape. Debi Dayal on the other hand coolly accepts the Japanese offer of resuming his
insurgent activities; but soon realizes he is a mere pawn in the game of Japanese imperialistic
designs. Gian meanwhile returns to East Punjab, meets up Debidayal’s father and introducing
him as his son's friend, takes up a job in Bombay where the elements conspire to fulfill his
youthful dream of earning the love of Sundari. However, in winning Sundari’s affections he uses
some false pretenses. When DebiDayal finally renounces his Japanese relationships, he realizes
it is time for a complete reassessment of the freedom he fought for……

The race for India’s freedom contrary to the spirit of India’s politically correct history texts was
not restricted to the arena of Mahatma Gandhi and his symbolic topi adorned followers,
teaching the state of the art charkha weaving and anti modernism to the masses. The ideas of
revolution was never unknown to Indians; although the lack of a critical mass led to their
inability to sustain a chain reaction, culminating into high explosion. Thousands of Indian
revolutionaries from all walks of life; lived, dreamed, and died for the cause of Indian Swaraj;
but Gandhi’s anathema to violence and his towering presence and control over the inertial
superstitious masses and thereby their opinion; meant that the majority of revolutionaries
would be classified as misguided patriots, to uphold his understanding of ahimsa.

Man said Somerset Maugham is ultimately a bundle of contradiction. No finer example exists
than our father of the nation. Gandhi’s dharma of ahimsa, was supposedly only for the strong
and not for the weak. Yet, ahimsa was a goal, a perfection to strive for; not a reify which existed
with space-time co-ordinates for one to catch hold off. Ahimsa was essential for the animal in
man to be killed in order for the man in us to live. But Gandhi never realized that as illustrated
by these words of Sri Aurobindo

I believe Gandhi does not know what actually happens to the man’s nature when he takes to
Satyagraha or non-violence. He thinks that men get purified by it. But when men suffer, or
subject themselves to voluntary suffering, what happens is that their vital being gets
strengthened. These movements affect the vital being only and not any other part. Now, when
you cannot oppose the force that oppresses, you say that you will suffer. That suffering is vital
and it gives strength. When the man who has thus suffered gets power he becomes a worse
oppressor…. Gandhi’s position is that he does not care to remove violence from others; he
wants to observe non-violence himself.

This internal inconsistency of Gandhi’s thought often reflected in his words. When, communal
riots flared up after the khilafat non co-operation movement especially in Moplah where Hindu
landlords were being massacred and their wives and daughters raped and mutilated; he could
only muster the courage to say that the Muslims were following what their religion taught them.
Yet, close to independence, when he comes across a Hindu town where an eerie silence
prevailed; where the Hindu women had been raped without resistance from their men-folk; he
strongly chastised them for their unmanliness with the words "it is better to be violent, if there
is violence in our hearts, than to put on the cloak of non-violence to cover impotence"

Was Gandhi himself not responsible for the emasculation of the Hindu race…..Debi Dyal
questions his friend Basu, the Bengali revolutionary who was also caught in Shafi’s conspiracy
and he definitely thought so! When questioned by Debi, on whether the congress movement
was as much a failure as their revolutionary movement; Basu answers:

“It is an even greater failure than ours. But will they (the congress) ever admit it? They will take
all the credit for achieving independence when the British finally leave, as though all the others
have done nothing. But there is a greater failure still in the emasculation of the people, making
them into a nation of sheep…The results of what non-violence has done will be seen as soon as
the British leave us to our desires. For every Hindu that had to die, five will die because of the
doctrine of non-violence has caught on. More women will be raped and abducted because the
men will be rendered incapable of defending themselves”

Gandhi himself in a moment of divination had himself posed the question “It almost appears as
if we are nursing in our bosom the desire to take revenge the first time we get the opportunity.
Can true, voluntary non-violence come out of this seeming forced non-violence of the week. Is it
not a futile experiment I am conducting? What if, when the fury bursts not a man, woman or
child is safe and every man’s hand is raised against his neighbour”

Would terrorism have won freedom at a lesser price. Debi certainly has no illusions regarding
the matter….No perhaps not “but at least it would have been an honest sacrifice, honest and
manly-not something that had sneaked upon them in the garb of non-violence.”

Basu had joined the Hindu Mahasabha, an organization shaped as a reaction to the communal
policy of Jinnah’s Muslim League. He knows another limitation of the current Hindu
consciousness is the subordination of the wife….women never prepared themselves to raise
themselves to the occasion and inspire their men for the sake. Basu’s own wife is the victim of
an acid attack from a Muslim mob which has left her face permanently defaced. Yet, she does
not care for revenge and retaliation. She will not demand of her husband to avenge her insult.
Perhaps, these Hindu women were more afraid of their potential widowhood than their honour.
Ironically, it is in such contrast to the ancient heroines like Draupadi who left no stone unturned
in galvanizing her confused husbands into action and total war to avenge the humiliation meted
to her by the Kauravas and in the process even extracted a promise from the crafty Krishna.

DebiDyal, decides to teach Shafi, now in Calcutta in company of a beautiful nautch girl a
lesson….he steals Mumtaz from her but Shafi manages to injure his hand……..DebiDyal is not
interested in women, but Mumtaz with her dogged devotion wins his love and affection. He opts
to marry her, and discloses it to her sister Sundari who easily accepts her. But as the ghost of
partition dawns close; the subcontinent becomes transformed into the arena of death; as blood
spills and mayhem marks the road to freedom

Basu questions the ambivalence of Gandhi when the hour will strike….What will he do “he will
go on a fast. A fast to purify himself, perhaps a fast unto death. But will he ever admit failure.
That non-violence has failed. And one more thing? What is the future of a country nurtured on
non violence in a world of raving violence? How are we to survive? defend our borders? Can a
non violent nation have a violent army? How will the fighting spirit manifest in our people”

On the eve of independence; Debi’s father delays crossing over….with no armoured guard, he is
trapped with his wife and Sundari who has come over? Debi attempts to cross over but his
uncircumcised organ reveals his Hinduness in the train……Mumtaz is gangraped and murdered,
in front of his eyes as he lays dying.

Meanwhile, Shafi confidently strides into Pakistan. He had always no doubt on this war; which
the Muslim league had meticulously planned and predicted, while all the time the congressmen
hid in their skirts awaiting a miracle, ignoring the naked truth that stared in their faces “a
yr….two yrs….they would then plunge into the war…..The Hindus were planning to do so to….but
they are ultimately pacifists at hearts…their leaders fond of extolling secularism. They were soft
and shrank from bloodshed. They would never be amatch for Muslims in civil war….. not even
the Mahasabhites who were nothing but a reaction to Muslim nationalism.”

As the violence reaches a crescendo, Shafi targets Debi Dayal and his family vowing to take
Sundari in exchange for Mumtaz. But it is the antihero; Gian who in his search for redemption is
led into the terror torn Punjab to save the woman he had always loved and longed for……

Main Characters

Salim: The narrator and protagonist of the book, he's a young Arab-African of Indian descent. He
tries to find his future in his native Africa, but finds that it no longer has any room for him.

Metty: One of Salim's family's servants in his hometown, she becomes Salim's shop assistant.
Metty is naive, and still clings to old African customs.

Ferdinand: The son of Zabeth, the village magician, whom Salim mentors as a kid. He later
becomes a high ranking government official, and bails Salim out of jail.

Raymond: A white former colonialist, now in charge of the university the government has built
in the town at a bend in the river. He's desperate to return to the capital, however, and hopes to
get there by constantly praising the Big Man as the savior of the nation.

5. BELOVED
Beloved is a 1987 novel by the American writer Toni Morrison. Set after the American Civil War
(1861–65), it is inspired by the story of an African-American slave, Margaret Garner, who
escaped slavery in Kentucky late January 1856 by fleeing to Ohio, a free state. Morrison had
come across the story "A Visit to the Slave Mother who Killed Her Child" in an 1856 newspaper
article published in the American Advocate and reproduced in The Black Book, a miscellaneous
compilation of black history and culture that Morrison edited in 1974.

In the novel, the protagonist Sethe is also a slave who escapes slavery, running to Cincinnati,
Ohio. After 28 days of freedom, a posse arrives to retrieve her and her children under the
Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, which gave slave owners the right to pursue slaves across state
borders. Sethe kills her two-year-old daughter rather than allow her to be recaptured and taken
back to Sweet Home, the Kentucky plantation from which Sethe recently fled. A woman
presumed to be her daughter, called Beloved, returns years later to haunt Sethe's home at 124
Bluestone Road, Cincinnati, Ohio. The story opens with an introduction to the ghost: "124 was
spiteful. Full of a baby's venom."

The novel won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1988 and was a finalist for the 1987 National Book
Award. It was adapted during 1998 into a movie of the same name starring Oprah Winfrey. A
New York Times survey of writers and literary critics ranked it the best work of American fiction
from 1981 to 2006.

The book's dedication reads "Sixty Million and more", referring to the Africans and their
descendants who died as a result of the Atlantic slave trade.[ The book's epigraph is Romans
9:25

I will call them my people,

which were not my people;

and her beloved,

 which was not beloved.

Plot summary

The book is the story of Sethe and her daughter Denver after their escape from slavery. Their
home in Cincinnati is haunted by a revenant, whom they believe to be the ghost of Sethe's
daughter. Because of the haunting—which often involves objects being thrown around the
room—Sethe's youngest daughter Denver is shy, friendless, and housebound, and her sons,
Howard and Buglar, have run away from home by the age of 13. Baby Suggs, the mother of
Sethe's husband Halle, dies in her bed soon afterwards.

Paul D, one of the slaves from Sweet Home—the plantation where Baby Suggs, Sethe, Halle, and
several other slaves once worked—arrives at Sethe's home and tries to bring a sense of reality
into the house. In attempting to make the family forget the past, he forces out the spirit. He
seems successful at first; he even brings housebound Denver out of the house for the first time
in years. But on the way back, they encounter a young woman sitting in front of the house,
calling herself Beloved. Paul D is suspicious and warns Sethe, but she is charmed by the young
woman and ignores him. Gradually, Paul D is forced out of Sethe's home by a supernatural
presence.

When made to sleep outside in a shed, Paul D is cornered by Beloved. While they have sex, his
mind is filled with horrific memories from his past. Overwhelmed with guilt, Paul D tries to tell
Sethe about it but cannot, and instead says he wants her pregnant. Sethe is elated, and Paul D
resists Beloved and her influence over him. But when he tells friends at work about his plans to
start a new family, they react fearfully. Stamp Paid reveals the reason for the community's
rejection of Sethe.

When Paul D asks Sethe about it, she tells him what happened: After escaping from Sweet Home
and reaching her waiting children at her mother-in-law's home, Sethe was found by her master,
who attempted to reclaim her and her children. Sethe grabbed her children, ran into the tool
shed, and tried to kill them all. She succeeded only in killing her eldest daughter, then two years
old, by running a saw along her neck. Sethe claims that she was "trying to put my babies where
they would be safe." The revelation is too much for Paul D and he leaves. Without him, sense of
reality and time moving forward disappears.

Sethe comes to believe that Beloved is the two-year-old daughter she murdered, whose
tombstone reads only "Beloved". Sethe begins to spend carelessly and spoil Beloved out of guilt.
Beloved becomes angry and more demanding, throwing tantrums when she doesn't get her
way. Beloved's presence consumes Sethe's life to the point where she becomes depleted and
sacrifices her own need for eating, while Beloved grows bigger and bigger.

In the novel's climax, youngest daughter Denver reaches out and searches for help from the
black community, and some of the village women arrive at the house to exorcise Beloved. At the
same time, a white man comes into view, the same man that helped Halle's mother, Baby Suggs,
by offering her the house as a place to stay after Halle bought her from their owner. He has
come for Denver, who asked him for a job, but Denver has not shared this information with
Sethe. Unaware of the situation, Sethe attacks the white man with an ice pick and is brought
down by the village women. While Sethe is confused and has a "re-memory" of her master
coming again, Beloved disappears. The novel resolves with Denver becoming a working member
of the community and Paul D returning to Sethe and pledging his love.

Major characters

Sethe is the protagonist of the novel. She is a freed slave from a plantation called Sweet Home.
She lives in the house named 124 (a house on 124 Bluestone Rd. but referred to only as "124")
which is believed to be haunted because she killed her infant child. Her two sons have fled
because of the haunting and she resides in the house with her daughter Denver. She is motherly
and will do anything to protect her children from suffering the same abuses she has as a slave.
Sethe is greatly influenced by her repression of the trauma she endured, she lives with "a tree
on her back", scars from being whipped. Her character is resilient, yet defined by her traumatic
past.

Beloved: The opaque understanding of Beloved is central to the novel. She is a young woman
who mysteriously appears from a body of water near Sethe's house and is discovered soaking
wet on the doorstep by Sethe, Paul D, and Denver, on their return from visiting the fair; they
take her in. It is widely believed that she is the murdered baby who haunted 124, as the
haunting ends when she arrives, and in many ways she behaves like a child. The murdered baby
was unnamed, her name is derived from the engraving on Sethe's murdered baby's tombstone,
which simply read "Beloved" because Sethe could not afford to engrave the word "Dearly" or
anything else. Beloved becomes a catalyst to bring repressed trauma of the family to the
surface, but also creates madness in the house and slowly depletes Sethe.

Paul D retains his slave name. All the male slaves at Sweet Home were named Paul, yet he also
retains many painful memories of his time as a slave and being forced to live in a chain gang.[11]
It is said that his heart is kept in a "tobacco tin", as he continuously represses his painful
memories. Many years after their time together at Sweet Home, Paul D and Sethe reunite and
begin a romantic relationship.

Denver is the only child of Sethe who is truly present in the novel. She is isolated by other young
girls in the community because they fear the haunting of her house. Over the course of the
novel Denver fights for her personal independence.

Baby Suggs is the elderly mother of Halle. Halle works to buy her freedom, after which she
travels to Cincinnati and establishes herself as a respected leader in the community. She lived in
124 where the majority of the novel takes place in the present time. After Sethe's act of
infanticide Baby Suggs retires to her death bed where she develops an obsession with colors and
Sethe inherits the house after her death.
Halle is the son of Baby Suggs, the husband of Sethe and father of her children. He and Sethe
were married in Sweet Home, yet they got separated during her escape. He is not in the present
of the novel, but is mentioned in flashbacks. Paul D was the last to see Halle, churning butter at
Sweet Home. It is presumed he went mad after seeing residents of Sweet Home violating Sethe
and raping her of her breast milk.

schoolteacher is the primary discipliner of the slaves in Sweet Home. His name is intentionally
not capitalized throughout the novel. He is the most violent and abusive to the slaves at Sweet
Home and eventually comes after Sethe following her escape but is unsuccessful in his attempt
to recapture her and her children.

Amy Denver is a compassionate, young white girl who finds Sethe desperately trying to make
her way to safety after her escape from Sweet Home. Sethe is extremely pregnant at the time,
and her feet are bleeding badly from the travel. Amy saves Sethe's life nurturing her back to
health. Later, Amy delivers Sethe's daughter on a small boat, and Sethe names the child Denver
after her.

6. POSSESSION
Possession: A Romance is a novel by British writer A. S. Byatt that won the 1990 Booker Prize.
The novel explores the postmodern concerns of similar novels, which are often categorised as
historiographic metafiction, a genre that blends approaches from both historical fiction and
metafiction.

The novel follows two modern-day academics as they research the paper trail around the
previously unknown love life between famous fictional poets, Randolph Henry Ash and
Christabel LaMotte. Possession is set both in the present day and the Victorian era, contrasting
the two time periods, as well as echoing similarities and satirising modern academia and mating
rituals. The structure of the novel incorporates many different styles, including fictional diary
entries, letters and poetry, and uses these styles and other devices to explore the postmodern
concerns of the authority of textual narratives. The title Possession highlights many of the major
themes in the novel: questions of ownership and independence between lovers; the practice of
collecting historically significant cultural artefacts; and the possession that biographers feel
toward their subjects.

Background

The novel concerns the relationship between two fictional Victorian poets, Randolph Henry Ash
(whose life and work are loosely based on those of the English poet Robert Browning, or Alfred,
Lord Tennyson, whose work is more consonant with the themes expressed by Ash, as well as
Tennyson's having been poet-laureate to Queen Victoria) and Christabel LaMotte (based on
Christina Rossetti), as uncovered by present-day academics Roland Michell and Maud Bailey.
Following a trail of clues from letters and journals, they collaborate to uncover the truth about
Ash and LaMotte's relationship, before it is discovered by rival colleagues. Byatt provides
extensive letters, poetry and diaries by major characters in addition to the narrative, including
poetry attributed to the fictional Ash and LaMotte.

A. S. Byatt, in part, wrote Possession in response to John Fowles' novel The French Lieutenant's
Woman (1969).

Plot summary

Obscure scholar Roland Michell, researching in the London Library, discovers handwritten drafts
of a letter by the fictional eminent Victorian poet Randolph Henry Ash, which lead him to
suspect that the married Ash had a hitherto unknown romance. He secretly takes away the
documents – a highly unprofessional act for a scholar – and begins to investigate. The trail leads
him to Christabel LaMotte, a minor poet and contemporary of Ash, and to Dr. Maud Bailey, an
established modern LaMotte scholar and distant relative of LaMotte. Protective of LaMotte,
Bailey is drawn into helping Michell with the unfolding mystery. The two scholars find more
letters and evidence of a love affair between the poets (with evidence of a holiday together
during which – they suspect – the relationship may have been consummated); they become
obsessed with discovering the truth. At the same time, their own personal romantic lives –
neither of which is satisfactory – develop, and they become entwined in an echo of Ash and
LaMotte. The stories of the two couples are told in parallel, with Byatt providing letters and
poetry by both of the fictional poets.

The revelation of an affair between Ash and LaMotte would make headlines and reputations in
academia because of the prominence of the poets, and colleagues of Roland and Maud become
competitors in the race to discover the truth, for all manner of motives. Ash's marriage is
revealed to have been unconsummated, although he loved and remained devoted to his wife.
He and LaMotte had a short, passionate affair; it led to the suicide of LaMotte's companion (and
possibly lover), Blanche Glover, and the secret birth of LaMotte's illegitimate daughter during a
year spent in Brittany. LaMotte left the girl with her sister to be raised by her, and passed off as
her own. Ash was never informed that he and LaMotte had a child.

As the Great Storm of 1987 strikes England, all the interested modern parties come together at
Ash's grave, where they intend to exhume documents buried with Ash by his wife, which they
believe hold the final key to the mystery. Reading them, Maud learns that rather than being
related to LaMotte's sister, as she has always believed, she is directly descended from LaMotte
and Ash's illegitimate daughter. Bailey thus is heir to the correspondence by the poets. Freed
from obscurity and a dead-end relationship, Michell remedies the potential professional suicide
of stealing the original drafts, and sees an academic career open up before him. Bailey, who has
spent her adult life emotionally untouchable, finds her human side and sees possible future
happiness with Michell. The sad story of Ash and LaMotte, separated by the mores of the day
and condemned to secrecy and separation, has a kind of resolution through the burgeoning
relationship between Bailey and Michell.

In a brief epilogue, it is revealed that both the modern and historical characters (and hence the
reader), have for much of the latter half of the book, misunderstood the significance of one of
Ash's key mementoes.

Reception

Critic Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, writing in the New York Times, noted that what he describes
as the "wonderfully extravagant novel" is "pointedly subtitled 'A Romance'." He says it is at once
"a detective story" and "an adultery novel."

Some Characters

Randolph Henry Ash, a famous Victorian poet. Both his art and his life reveal a man who
discovers the life of the mind first and the love of his life much later. He has hidden stories to tell
to whomever can enter into correspondence with him.

Christabel LaMotte, who lives a sheltered life as a single Victorian woman, first with her friend
Blanche Glover and later in the attic of her sister’s home. Her art is not widely appreciated,
suggesting gender attitudes that survive the Victorians and divide the modern researchers, who
study them.

Ellen Ash, Randolph’s wife, whose Victorian values demand that she hide the truth even in her
grave.

Blanche Glover, Christabel’s companion, whose death raises questions about love and gender.

Roland Mitchell, the protagonist. He has a doctorate in literature but has found only a bleak
position as a research assistant. His live-in relationship with Val is equally bleak. They met as
students; inertia and failure have kept them together. Roland’s research keeps him buried in the
London Library until he discovers evidence of a correspondence between Ash and LaMotte. His
ensuing quest carries him back in touch with life and reveals him to be Ash’s spiritual
descendanT.

7. NINETEEN EIGHTY-FOUR (1984)

Nineteen Eighty-Four, often published as 1984, is a dystopian novel published in 1949 by English
author George Orwell. The novel is set in Airstrip One, formerly Great Britain, a province of the
superstate Oceania. Oceania is a world of perpetual war, omnipresent government surveillance
and public manipulation. Oceania's residents are dictated by a political regime euphemistically
named English Socialism . The superstate is under the control of the privileged, elite Inner Party.
The Inner Party persecutes individualism and independent thinking known as "thoughtcrimes"
and is enforced by the "Thought Police".

The tyranny is ostensibly overseen by Big Brother, the Party leader who enjoys an intense cult of
personality. The Party "seeks power entirely for its own sake. It is not interested in the good of
others; it is interested solely in power." The protagonist of the novel, Winston Smith, is a
member of the Outer Party, who works for the Ministry of Truth, or Minitrue in Newspeak.
Minitrue is responsible for propaganda and historical revisionism. Winston's job is to rewrite
past newspaper articles, so the historical record always supports the Party's agenda. The
workers are told they are correcting misquotations, when they are actually writing false
information in the place of fact.Minitrue also destroys all previous editions of revised work. This
method ensures there is no proof of government interference.[8] Smith is a diligent and skillful
worker, but he secretly hates the Party and dreams of rebellion against Big Brother. Smith
begins his acts of rebellion by maintaining a sexual relationship with Julia, an employee from the
Fiction Department at Minitrue. He received a book from O'Brien, a member of the Inner Party
and fellow rebel, that details the truth behind the Party's actions. Smith's attempts at
self-education and rebellion are ultimately quashed when he is arrested by O'Brien himself.
Smith discovers that O'Brien was truly working for the Ministry of Love (Miniluv), the ministry in
charge of torturing dissidents.Smith is subjected to many forms of torture and is forced into the
horror chamber known only as Room 101. There he is tortured by his worst fear, rats, and is
forced to betray Julia. He is released from Miniluv, and Orwell describes his life after his release
for the rest of the book. Smith ends the story observing a military update on the telescreen and
feeling an intense love for Big Brother.

As literary political fiction and dystopian science-fiction, Nineteen Eighty-Four is a classic novel
in content, plot, and style. Many of its terms and concepts, such as Big Brother, doublethink,
thoughtcrime, Newspeak, Room 101, telescreen, 2 + 2 = 5, and memory hole, have entered into
common use since its publication in 1949. Nineteen Eighty-Four popularised the adjective
Orwellian, which describes official deception, secret surveillance, brazenly misleading
terminology, and manipulation of recorded history by a totalitarian or authoritarian state.

Background

The banner of the Party in the 1984 film adaptation of the book. Party flags are mentioned, but
never described in the actual novel.

Nineteen Eighty-Four is set in Oceania, one of three inter-continental superstates that divided
the world after a global war.

Smith's memories and his reading of the proscribed book, The Theory and Practice of
Oligarchical Collectivism by Emmanuel Goldstein, reveal that after the Second World War, the
United Kingdom became involved in a war fought in Europe, western Russia, and North America
during the early 1950s. Nuclear weapons were used during the war, leading to the destruction of
Colchester. London would also suffer widespread aerial raids, leading Winston's family to take
refuge in a London Underground station. Britain fell to civil war, with street fighting in London,
before the English Socialist Party, abbreviated as Ingsoc, emerged victorious and formed a
totalitarian government in Britain. The British Commonwealth was absorbed by the United
States to become Oceania. Eventually Ingsoc emerged to form a totalitarian government in the
country.

Simultaneously, the Soviet Union conquered continental Europe and established the second
superstate of Eurasia. The third superstate of Eastasia would emerge in the Far East after several
decades of fighting. The three superstates wage perpetual war for the remaining unconquered
lands of the world in "a rough quadrilateral with its corners at Tangier, Brazzaville, Darwin, and
Hong Kong" through constantly shifting alliances. Although each of the three states are said to
have sufficient natural resources, the war continues in order to maintain ideological control over
the people.

However, due to the fact that Winston barely remembers these events and due to the Party's
manipulation of history, the continuity and accuracy of these events are unclear. Winston
himself notes that the Party has claimed credit for inventing helicopters, airplanes and trains,
while Julia theorizes that the perpetual bombing of London is merely a false-flag operation
designed to convince the populace that a war is occurring. If the official account was accurate,
Smith's strengthening memories and the story of his family's dissolution suggest that the atomic
bombings occurred first, followed by civil war featuring "confused street fighting in London
itself" and the societal postwar reorganisation, which the Party retrospectively calls "the
Revolution".

Most of the plot takes place in London, the "chief city of Airstrip One", the Oceanic province that
"had once been called England or Britain".[40][41] Posters of the Party leader, Big Brother,
bearing the caption "BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING YOU", dominate the city, while the ubiquitous
telescreen (transceiving television set) monitors the private and public lives of the populace.
Military parades, propaganda films, and public executions are said to be commonplace.

The class hierarchy of Oceania has three levels:

(I) the upper-class Inner Party, the elite ruling minority, who make up 2% of the population.

(II) the middle-class Outer Party, who make up 13% of the population.

(III) the lower-class Proletariat, who make up 85% of the population and represent the
uneducated working class.

As the government, the Party controls the population with four ministries:

the Ministry of Peace deals with war and defence.

the Ministry of Plenty deals with economic affairs (rationing and starvation).
the Ministry of Love deals with law and order (torture and brainwashing).

the Ministry of Truth deals with news, entertainment, education and art (propaganda).

The protagonist Winston Smith, a member of the Outer Party, works in the Records Department
of the Ministry of Truth as an editor, revising historical records, to make the past conform to the
ever-changing party line and deleting references to unpersons, people who have been
"vaporised", i.e., not only killed by the state but denied existence even in history or memory.

The story of Winston Smith begins on 4 April 1984: "It was a bright cold day in April, and the
clocks were striking thirteen." Yet he is uncertain of the true date, given the regime's continual
rewriting and manipulation of history.

Plot

Winston Smith is a man who lives in Airstrip One, the remnants of Britain broken down by war,
civil conflict, and revolution in the year 1984. A member of the middle class Outer Party,
Winston lives in a one-room London flat in the Victory Mansions. Smith lives on rations
consisting of black bread, synthetic meals, and "Victory"-branded gin. Telescreens in every
building, accompanied by microphones and cameras, allow the Thought Police to identify
anyone who might compromise the Party's regime, and threat of surveillance forces citizens to
display an obligatory optimism regarding the country, who are afraid for being arrested for
thoughtcrime, the infraction of expressing thoughts contradictory to the Party's ideology.
Children are encouraged to inform the officials about potential thought criminals, including their
parents, and are indoctrinated by Party propaganda from an early age. Winston's neighbor, Mr.
Parsons, is deeply involved in patriotic activism, and his children are highly indoctrinated with
Party propaganda and desensitized to violence.

Winston works at the Ministry of Truth, or "Minitrue", as an editor. He is responsible for

historical negationism; he rewrites records and alters photographs to conform to the state's
ever-changing version of history itself, rendering the deleted people "unpersons"; the original
documents are destroyed by fire in a "memory hole". At work, he re-writes a Times article
reporting on a government official condemned as a thoughtcriminal by writing a story on a
nonexistent war hero named "Comrade Ogilvy", and notes the state-sponsored media reporting
an increase in the chocolate ration during an actual decrease. Despite his proficiency in his
profession, Winston becomes mesmerized by the true past after seeing a photograph of three
former high-ranking upper class Inner Party officials in New York, discounting the official
government account that they had been collaborating with Eurasian officials. Winston tries to
get more information about the true past, and purchases an old journal in an antiques shop in a
proletarian neighborhood of London. In a place beside his flat's telescreen where he believes he
cannot be seen, he begins writing a journal criticizing the Party and its enigmatic leader, Big
Brother. By doing so, he commits a crime that, if discovered by the Thought Police, warrants
certain death, and Winston quickly resigns himself to the fact that he will eventually be arrested
for thoughtcrime. In the journal, he records his sexual frustration over a young woman
maintaining the novel-writing machines at the ministry named Julia, whom Winston is attracted
to but suspects is an informant. He also suspects that his superior, an Inner Party official named
O'Brien, is a secret agent for an enigmatic underground resistance movement known as the
Brotherhood, a group formed by Big Brother's reviled political rival Emmanuel Goldstein.

The next day, Julia surreptitiously hands Winston a note confessing her love for him. Winston
and Julia begin an affair after Winston realizes she shares his loathing of the Party, first meeting
in the country, and eventually in a rented room at the top of the antiques shop where Winston
purchased the diary, which is owned by the seemingly kindly Mr. Charrington. They believe that
the shop is safe, as the room has no telescreen. During his affair with Julia, Winston remembers
the death of his family; during the civil war of the 1950s, Winston stole rationed chocolate from
his malnourished infant sister and his mother, and would return home to discover that they had
disappeared. He also recounts his terse relationship with his ex-wife Katharine, whom he was
forced to have sex with and despised to such an extent that he considered pushing her off a cliff
during a nature walk. Winston also interacts with his colleague Syme, who is writing a dictionary
for a revised version of the English language called Newspeak. After Syme insightfully reveals
that the true purpose of Newspeak is to reduce the capacity of human thought, Winston
speculates that he will be vaporized. He is later proven correct when Syme disappears without a
trace, and no one acknowledges his absence.

Weeks later, Winston is approached by O'Brien. They arrange a meeting at O'Brien's flat where
both Winston and Julia swear allegiance to the Brotherhood. A week later, O'Brien clandestinely
sends Winston a copy of "The Book", The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism by
Emmanuel Goldstein, the publicly reviled leader of the Brotherhood. Through The Book, the
author explains the structure and practices of Oceania. In particular, The Book explains the
concept of perpetual war, the true meanings of the slogans "War is peace", "Freedom is
slavery", and "Ignorance is strength", and how the Party can be overthrown through means of
the political awareness of the proles (proletarians).

The Thought Police capture Winston along with Julia in their rented room. The two are then
delivered to the Ministry of Love (Miniluv) for interrogation. Mr. Charrington, the shopkeeper
who rented the room to them, reveals himself as a Thought Police agent. O'Brien is also an
agent of the Thought Police. He is part of a special sting operation used by the police to find and
arrest suspected thoughtcriminals. Winston is placed in a prison cell with Parsons, who had been
reported by his children and believes himself to be guilty. O'Brien interrogates and tortures
Winston with electroshock, telling Winston that he can "cure" himself of his "insanity"—his
manifest hatred for the Party—through controlled manipulation of perception. Winston is held
in the prison for an unspecified length of time, and confesses to crimes that O'Brien tells him to
say that he has committed, but O'Brien understands that Winston has not betrayed Julia. After
awakening from a nightmare in which he confesses his love for Julia, O'Brien sends him to Room
101 for the final stage of re-education, a room which contains each prisoner's worst fear.
Winston shouts "Do it to Julia!" as a wire cage holding hungry rats is fitted onto his face, thus
betraying her.

After being put back into society, Winston meets Julia in a park. She admits that she was also
tortured, and both reveal betraying the other. Later, Winston sits alone in the Chestnut Tree
Cafe. As he remembers a rare happy memory of his family, he convinces himself that it is false.
A raucous celebration begins outside, celebrating Oceania's "decisive victory" over Eurasian
armies in Africa, and Winston imagines himself as a part of the crowd. As Winston imagines a
gun being pointed at his head, he feels that he has at last ended his "stubborn, self-willed exile"
from the love of Big Brother—a love Winston returns quite happily as he looks up in admiration
at a portrait of Big Brother.

World in novel[edit]

Ingsoc[edit]

Main article: Ingsoc

Ingsoc (English Socialism) is the predominant ideology and pseudophilosophy of Oceania, and
Newspeak is the official language of official documents.

Ministries of Oceania[

Main article: Ministries of Nineteen Eighty-Four

In London, the capital city of Airstrip One, Oceania's four government ministries are in pyramids
(300 m high), the façades of which display the Party's three slogans. The ministries' names are
the opposite (doublethink) of their true functions: "The Ministry of Peace concerns itself with
war, the Ministry of Truth with lies, the Ministry of Love with torture and the Ministry of Plenty
with starvation." (Part II, Chapter IX – The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism)

Ministry of Peace

The Ministry of Peace supports Oceania's perpetual war against either of the two other
superstates:

The primary aim of modern warfare (in accordance with the principles of doublethink, this aim is
simultaneously recognized and not recognized by the directing brains of the Inner Party) is to
use up the products of the machine without raising the general standard of living. Ever since the
end of the nineteenth century, the problem of what to do with the surplus of consumption
goods has been latent in industrial society. At present, when few human beings even have
enough to eat, this problem is obviously not urgent, and it might not have become so, even if no
artificial processes of destruction had been at work.

Ministry of Plenty

The Ministry of Plenty rations and controls food, goods, and domestic production; every fiscal
quarter, it publishes false claims of having raised the standard of living, when it has, in fact,
reduced rations, availability, and production. The Ministry of Truth substantiates Ministry of
Plenty's claims by revising historical records to report numbers supporting the current,
"increased rations".

Ministry of Truth

The Ministry of Truth controls information: news, entertainment, education, and the arts.
Winston Smith works in the Minitrue RecDep (Records Department), "rectifying" historical
records to concord with Big Brother's current pronouncements so that everything the Party says
is true.

Ministry of Love

The Ministry of Love identifies, monitors, arrests, and converts real and imagined dissidents. In
Winston's experience, the dissident is beaten and tortured, and, when near-broken, he is sent to
Room 101 to face "the worst thing in the world"—until love for Big Brother and the Party
replaces dissension.

Doublethink

The keyword here is blackwhite. Like so many Newspeak words, this word has two mutually
contradictory meanings. Applied to an opponent, it means the habit of impudently claiming that
black is white, in contradiction of the plain facts. Applied to a Party member, it means a loyal
willingness to say that black is white when Party discipline demands this. But it means also the
ability to believe that black is white, and more, to know that black is white, and to forget that
one has ever believed the contrary. This demands a continuous alteration of the past, made
possible by the system of thought which really embraces all the rest, and which is known in
Newspeak as doublethink. Doublethink is basically the power of holding two contradictory
beliefs in one's mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.

Political geography

Three perpetually warring totalitarian super-states control the world:

Oceania (ideology: Ingsoc, i.e., English Socialism); its core territories are the Western
Hemisphere, the British Isles, Australasia, Polynesia and Southern Africa.

Eurasia (ideology: Neo-Bolshevism); its core territories are Continental Europe and Russia,
including Siberia.
Eastasia (ideology: Obliteration of the Self, "Death worship"); its core territories are China,
Japan, Korea and Indochina.

The perpetual war is fought for control of the "disputed area" lying "between the frontiers of the
super-states", which forms "a rough parallelogram with its corners at Tangier, Brazzaville,
Darwin and Hong Kong",[45] and Northern Africa, the Middle East, India and Indonesia are
where the superstates capture and use slave labour. Fighting also takes place between Eurasia
and Eastasia in Manchuria, Mongolia and Central Asia, and all three powers battle one another
over various Atlantic and Pacific islands.

Goldstein's book, The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism, explains that the
superstates' ideologies are alike and that the public's ignorance of this fact is imperative so that
they might continue believing in the detestability of the opposing ideologies. The only
references to the exterior world for the Oceanian citizenry (the Outer Party and the Proles) are
Ministry of Truth maps and propaganda to ensure their belief in "the war".

The Revolution

Winston Smith's memory and Emmanuel Goldstein's book communicate some of the history
that precipitated the Revolution. Eurasia was formed when the Soviet Union conquered
Continental Europe, creating a single state stretching from Portugal to the Bering Strait. Eurasia
does not include the British Isles because the United States annexed them along with the rest of
the British Empire and Latin America, thus establishing Oceania and gaining control over a
quarter of the planet. Eastasia, the last superstate established, emerged only after "a decade of
confused fighting". It includes the Asian lands conquered by China and Japan. Although Eastasia
is prevented from matching Eurasia's size, its larger populace compensates for that handicap.

The annexation of Britain occurred about the same time as the atomic war that provoked civil
war, but who fought whom in the war is left unclear. Nuclear weapons fell on Britain; an atomic
bombing of Colchester is referenced in the text. Exactly how Ingsoc and its rival systems
(Neo-Bolshevism and Death Worship) gained power in their respective countries is also unclear.

While the precise chronology cannot be traced, most of the global societal reorganization
occurred between 1945 and the early 1960s. Winston and Julia once meet in the ruins of a
church that was destroyed in a nuclear attack "thirty years" earlier, which suggests 1954 as the
year of the atomic war that destabilised society and allowed the Party to seize power. It is stated
in the novel that the "fourth quarter of 1983" was "also the sixth quarter of the Ninth Three-Year
Plan", which implies that the first quarter of the first three-year plan began in July 1958. By then,
the Party was apparently in control of Oceania.

The War

In 1984, there is a perpetual war between Oceania, Eurasia and Eastasia, the superstates that
emerged from the global atomic war. The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism, by
Emmanuel Goldstein, explains that each state is so strong it cannot be defeated, even with the
combined forces of two superstates, despite changing alliances. To hide such contradictions,
history is rewritten to explain that the (new) alliance always was so; the populaces are
accustomed to doublethink and accept it. The war is not fought in Oceanian, Eurasian or
Eastasian territory but in the Arctic wastes and in a disputed zone comprising the sea and land
from Tangiers (Northern Africa) to Darwin (Australia). At the start, Oceania and Eastasia are
allies fighting Eurasia in northern Africa and the Malabar Coast.

That alliance ends and Oceania, allied with Eurasia, fights Eastasia, a change occurring on Hate
Week, dedicated to creating patriotic fervour for the Party's perpetual war. The public are blind
to the change; in mid-sentence, an orator changes the name of the enemy from "Eurasia" to
"Eastasia" without pause. When the public are enraged at noticing that the wrong flags and
posters are displayed, they tear them down; the Party later claims to have captured Africa.

Goldstein's book explains that the purpose of the unwinnable, perpetual war is to consume
human labour and commodities so that the economy of a superstate cannot support economic
equality, with a high standard of life for every citizen. By using up most of the produced objects
like boots and rations, the proles are kept poor and uneducated and will neither realise what the
government is doing nor rebel. Goldstein also details an Oceanian strategy of attacking enemy
cities with atomic rockets before invasion but dismisses it as unfeasible and contrary to the
war's purpose; despite the atomic bombing of cities in the 1950s, the superstates stopped it for
fear that would imbalance the powers. The military technology in the novel differs little from
that of World War II, but strategic bomber aeroplanes are replaced with rocket bombs,
helicopters were heavily used as weapons of war (they did not figure in World War II in any form
but prototypes) and surface combat units have been all but replaced by immense and
unsinkable Floating Fortresses, island-like contraptions concentrating the firepower of a whole
naval task force in a single, semi-mobile platform (in the novel, one is said to have been
anchored between Iceland and the Faroe Islands, suggesting a preference for sea lane
interdiction and denial).

Living standards

The society of Airstrip One and, according to "The Book", almost the whole world, lives in
poverty: hunger, disease and filth are the norms. Ruined cities and towns are common: the
consequence of the civil war, the atomic wars and the purportedly enemy (but possibly false
flag) rockets. Social decay and wrecked buildings surround Winston; aside from the ministerial
pyramids, little of London was rebuilt. Members of the Outer Party consume synthetic foodstuffs
and poor-quality "luxuries" such as oily gin and loosely-packed cigarettes, distributed under the
"Victory" brand. (That is a parody of the low-quality Indian-made "Victory" cigarettes, widely
smoked in Britain and by British soldiers during World War II. They were smoked because it was
easier to import them from India than it was to import American cigarettes from across the
Atlantic because of the War of the Atlantic.)
Winston describes something as simple as the repair of a broken pane of glass as requiring
committee approval that can take several years and so most of those living in one of the blocks
usually do the repairs themselves (Winston himself is called in by Mrs. Parsons to repair her
blocked sink). All Outer Party residences include telescreens that serve both as outlets for
propaganda and to monitor the Party members; they can be turned down, but they cannot be
turned off.

In contrast to their subordinates, the Inner Party upper class of Oceanian society reside in clean
and comfortable flats in their own quarter of the city, with pantries well-stocked with foodstuffs
such as wine, coffee and sugar, all denied to the general populace.[46] Winston is astonished
that the lifts in O'Brien's building work, the telescreens can be switched off and O'Brien has an
Asian manservant, Martin. All members of the Inner Party are attended to by slaves captured in
the disputed zone, and "The Book" suggests that many have their own motorcars or even
helicopters. Nonetheless, "The Book" makes clear that even the conditions enjoyed by the Inner
Party are only "relatively" comfortable, and standards would be regarded as austere by those of
the prerevolutionary élite.

The proles live in poverty and are kept sedated with alcohol, pornography and a national lottery
whose winnings are never actually paid out; that is obscured by propaganda and the lack of
communication within Oceania. At the same time, the proles are freer and less intimidated than
the middle-class Outer Party: they are subject to certain levels of monitoring but are not
expected to be particularly patriotic. They lack telescreens in their own homes and often jeer at
the telescreens that they see. "The Book" indicates that is because the middle class, not the
lower class, traditionally starts revolutions. The model demands tight control of the middle class,
with ambitious Outer-Party members neutralised via promotion to the Inner Party or
"reintegration" by the Ministry of Love, and proles can be allowed intellectual freedom because
they lack intellect. Winston nonetheless believes that "the future belonged to the proles".

The standard of living of the populace is low overall. Consumer goods are scarce, and all those
available through official channels are of low quality; for instance, despite the Party regularly
reporting increased boot production, more than half of the Oceanian populace goes barefoot.
The Party claims that poverty is a necessary sacrifice for the war effort, and "The Book" confirms
that to be partially correct since the purpose of perpetual war consumes surplus industrial
production. Outer Party members and proles occasionally gain access to better items in the
market, which deals in goods that were pilfered from the residences of the Inner Party.

8. A PASSAGE TO INDIA
A Passage to India (1924) is a novel by English author E. M. Forster set against the backdrop of
the British Raj and the Indian independence movement in the 1920s. The novel is based on
Forster's experiences in India, deriving the title[4] from Walt Whitman's 1870 poem "Passage
to India" in Leaves of Grass.
Awards

1924 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction.

1925 Femina Vie Heureuse

Plot Overview

Two englishwomen, the young Miss Adela Quested and the elderly Mrs. Moore, travel to India.
Adela expects to become engaged to Mrs. Moore’s son, Ronny, a British magistrate in the Indian
city of Chandrapore. Adela and Mrs. Moore each hope to see the real India during their visit,
rather than cultural institutions imported by the British.

At the same time, Aziz, a young Muslim doctor in India, is increasingly frustrated by the poor
treatment he receives at the hands of the English. Aziz is especially annoyed with Major
Callendar, the civil surgeon, who has a tendency to summon Aziz for frivolous reasons in the
middle of dinner. Aziz and two of his educated friends, Hamidullah and Mahmoud Ali, hold a
lively conversation about whether or not an Indian can be friends with an Englishman in India.
That night, Mrs. Moore and Aziz happen to run into each other while exploring a local mosque,
and the two become friendly. Aziz is moved and surprised that an English person would treat
him like a friend.

Mr. Turton, the collector who governs Chandrapore, hosts a party so that Adela and Mrs. Moore
may have the opportunity to meet some of the more prominent and wealthy Indians in the city.
At the event, which proves to be rather awkward, Adela meets Cyril Fielding, the principal of the
government college in Chandrapore. Fielding, impressed with Adela’s open friendliness to the
Indians, invites her and Mrs. Moore to tea with him and the Hindu professor Godbole. At Adela’s
request, Fielding invites Aziz to tea as well.

At the tea, Aziz and Fielding immediately become friendly, and the afternoon is overwhelmingly
pleasant until Ronny Heaslop arrives and rudely interrupts the party. Later that evening, Adela
tells Ronny that she has decided not to marry him. But that night, the two are in a car accident
together, and the excitement of the event causes Adela to change her mind about the marriage.

Not long afterward, Aziz organizes an expedition to the nearby Marabar Caves for those who
attended Fielding’s tea. Fielding and Professor Godbole miss the train to Marabar, so Aziz
continues on alone with the two ladies, Adela and Mrs. Moore. Inside one of the caves, Mrs.
Moore is unnerved by the enclosed space, which is crowded with Aziz’s retinue, and by the
uncanny echo that seems to translate every sound she makes into the noise “boum.”

Aziz, Adela, and a guide go on to the higher caves while Mrs. Moore waits below. Adela,
suddenly realizing that she does not love Ronny, asks Aziz whether he has more than one
wife—a question he considers offensive. Aziz storms off into a cave, and when he returns, Adela
is gone. Aziz scolds the guide for losing Adela, and the guide runs away. Aziz finds Adela’s
broken field-glasses and heads down the hill. Back at the picnic site, Aziz finds Fielding waiting
for him. Aziz is unconcerned to learn that Adela has hastily taken a car back to Chandrapore, as
he is overjoyed to see Fielding. Back in Chandrapore, however, Aziz is unexpectedly arrested. He
is charged with attempting to rape Adela Quested while she was in the caves, a charge based on
a claim Adela herself has made.

Fielding, believing Aziz to be innocent, angers all of British India by joining the Indians in Aziz’s
defense. In the weeks before the trial, the racial tensions between the Indians and the English
flare up considerably. Mrs. Moore is distracted and miserable because of her memory of the
echo in the cave and because of her impatience with the upcoming trial. Adela is emotional and
ill; she too seems to suffer from an echo in her mind. Ronny is fed up with Mrs. Moore’s lack of
support for Adela, and it is agreed that Mrs. Moore will return to England earlier than planned.
Mrs. Moore dies on the voyage back to England, but not before she realizes that there is no “real
India”—but rather a complex multitude of different Indias.

At Aziz’s trial, Adela, under oath, is questioned about what happened in the caves. Shockingly,
she declares that she has made a mistake: Aziz is not the person or thing that attacked her in the
cave. Aziz is set free, and Fielding escorts Adela to the Government College, where she spends
the next several weeks. Fielding begins to respect Adela, recognizing her bravery in standing
against her peers to pronounce Aziz innocent. Ronny breaks off his engagement to Adela, and
she returns to England.

Aziz, however, is angry that Fielding would befriend Adela after she nearly ruined Aziz’s life, and
the friendship between the two men suffers as a consequence. Then Fielding sails for a visit to
England. Aziz declares that he is done with the English and that he intends to move to a place
where he will not have to encounter them.

Two years later, Aziz has become the chief doctor to the Rajah of Mau, a Hindu region several
hundred miles from Chandrapore. He has heard that Fielding married Adela shortly after
returning to England. Aziz now virulently hates all English people. One day, walking through an
old temple with his three children, he encounters Fielding and his brother-in-law. Aziz is
surprised to learn that the brother-in-law’s name is Ralph Moore; it turns out that Fielding
married not Adela Quested, but Stella Moore, Mrs. Moore’s daughter from her second marriage.

Aziz befriends Ralph. After he accidentally runs his rowboat into Fielding’s, Aziz renews his
friendship with Fielding as well. The two men go for a final ride together before Fielding leaves,
during which Aziz tells Fielding that once the English are out of India, the two will be able to be
friends. Fielding asks why they cannot be friends now, when they both want to be, but the sky
and the earth seem to say “No, not yet. . . . No, not there.”

Character List

Dr. Aziz - An intelligent, emotional Indian doctor in Chandrapore. Aziz attempts to make friends
with Adela Quested, Mrs. Moore, and Cyril Fielding. Later, Adela falsely accuses Aziz of
attempted rape after an expedition to the Marabar Caves, but the charges are dropped after
Adela’s testimony at the trial. Aziz enjoys writing and reciting poetry. He has three children; his
wife died several years before the beginning of the novel.

Cyril Fielding - The principal of the government college near Chandrapore. Fielding is an
independent man who believes in educating the Indians to be individuals—a much more
sympathetic attitude toward the native population than that held by most English in India.
Fielding befriends Dr. Aziz, taking the doctor’s side against the rest of the English in Chandrapore
when Aziz is accused of attempting to rape Adela Quested.

Miss Adela Quested - A young, intelligent, inquisitive, but somewhat repressed Englishwoman.
Adela travels to India with Mrs. Moore in order to decide whether or not to marry Mrs. Moore’s
son Ronny. Miss Quested begins with an openminded desire to get to know Indians and see the
real India. Later, she falsely accuses Aziz of attempting to rape her in the Marabar Caves.

Mrs. Moore - An elderly Englishwoman who voyages to India with Adela Quested. Mrs. Moore
wishes to see the country and hopes that Adela will marry her son Ronny. Mrs. Moore befriends
Dr. Aziz, as she feels some spiritual connection with him. She has an unsettling experience with
the bizarre echoes in the Marabar Caves, which cause her to feel a sense of dread, especially
about human relationships. Mrs. Moore hurries back to England, and she dies at sea during the
journey.

Ronny Heaslop - Mrs. Moore’s son, the magistrate at Chandrapore. Ronny, though well
educated and open-minded at heart, has become prejudiced and intolerant of Indians ever since
he moved to India—as is standard for most Englishmen serving there. Ronny is briefly engaged
to Adela Quested, though he does not appear particularly passionate about her.

Mr. Turton - The collector, the man who governs Chandrapore. Mr. Turton is officious and
stern, though more tactful than his wife.

Mrs. Turton - Turton’s wife. In her interactions with Indians, Mrs. Turton embodies the novel’s
stereotype of the snobby, rude, and prejudiced English colonial wife.

Mr. McBryde - The superintendent of police in Chandrapore, who has an elaborate theory that
he claims explains the inferiority of dark-skinned races to light-skinned ones. McBryde, though
condescending, actually shows more tolerance toward Indians than most English do. Not
surprisingly, he and Fielding are friendly acquain-tances. McBryde himself stands up against the
group mentality of the English at Chandrapore when he divorces his wife after having an affair
with Miss Derek.

Major Callendar - The civil surgeon at Chandrapore, Dr. Aziz’s superior. Major Callendar is a
boastful, cruel, intolerant, and ridiculous man.

Professor Godbole - A Brahman Hindu who teaches at Fielding’s college. Godbole is very
spiritual and reluctant to become involved in human affairs.

Hamidullah - Dr. Aziz’s uncle and friend. Hamidullah, who was educated at Cambridge, believes
that friendship between the English and Indians is more likely possible in England than in India.
Hamidullah was a close friend of Fielding before Fielding and Aziz met.

Maouhmd Ali - A lawyer friend of Dr. Aziz who is deeply pessimistic about the English.

The Nawab Bahadur - The leading loyalist in Chandrapore. The Nawab Bahadur is wealthy,
generous, and faithful to the English. After Aziz’s trial, however, he gives up his title in protest.

Dr. Panna Lal - A low-born Hindu doctor and Aziz’s rival. Dr. Panna Lal intends to testify against
Aziz at the trial, but he begs forgiveness after Aziz is set free.

Stella Moore - Mrs. Moore’s daughter from her second marriage. Stella marries Fielding
toward the end of the novel.

Ralph Moore - Mrs. Moore’s son from her second marriage, a sensitive young man.

Miss Derek - A young Englishwoman who works for a wealthy Indian family and often steals
their car. Miss Derek is easygoing and has a fine sense of humor, but many of the English at
Chandrapore resent her, considering her presence unseemly.

Amoritra - The lawyer who defends Aziz at his trial. Amritrao is a highly anti-British man.

89. A PORTRAIT OF A LADY AS A YOUNG MAN

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is the first novel by Irish writer James Joyce. A
Künstlerroman in a modernist style, it traces the religious and intellectual awakening of young
Stephen Dedalus, a fictional alter ego of Joyce and an allusion to Daedalus, the consummate
craftsman of Greek mythology. Stephen questions and rebels against the Catholic and Irish
conventions under which he has grown, culminating in his self-exile from Ireland to Europe. The
work uses techniques that Joyce developed more fully in Ulysses (1922) and Finnegans Wake
(1939).

A Portrait began life in 1904 as Stephen Hero—a projected 63-chapter autobiographical novel
in a realistic style. After 25 chapters, Joyce abandoned Stephen Hero in 1907 and set to
reworking its themes and protagonist into a condensed five-chapter novel, dispensing with strict
realism and making extensive use of free indirect speech that allows the reader to peer into
Stephen's developing consciousness. American modernist poet Ezra Pound had the novel
serialised in the English literary magazine The Egoist in 1914 and 1915, and published as a book
in 1916 by B. W. Huebsch of New York.

Composition
 Et ignotas animum dimittit in artes.

("And he turned his mind to unknown arts.")

— Ovid, Epigraph to A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

At the request of its editors, Joyce submitted a work of philosophical fiction entitled "A Portrait
of the Artist" to the Irish literary magazine Dana on 7 January 1904. Dana's editor, W. K. Magee,
rejected it, telling Joyce, "I can't print what I can't understand." On his 22nd birthday, 2 February
1904, Joyce began a realist autobiographical novel, Stephen Hero, which incorporated aspects of
the aesthetic philosophy expounded in A Portrait.He worked on the book until mid-1905 and
brought the manuscript with him when he moved to Trieste that year. Though his main
attention turned to the stories that made up Dubliners, Joyce continued work on Stephen Hero.
At 914 manuscript pages, Joyce considered the book about half-finished, having completed 25 of
its 63 intended chapters.[6] In September 1907, however, he abandoned this work, and began a
complete revision of the text and its structure, producing what became A Portrait of the Artist as
a Young Man.[7] By 1909 the work had taken shape and Joyce showed some of the draft
chapters to Ettore Schmitz, one of his language students, as an exercise. Schmitz, himself a
respected writer, was impressed and with his encouragement Joyce continued work on the
book.

In 1911 Joyce flew into a fit of rage over the continued refusals by publishers to print Dubliners
and threw the manuscript of Portrait into the fire. It was saved by a "family fire brigade"
including his sister Eileen.[6][7][a] Chamber Music, a book of Joyce's poems, was published in
1907.

Joyce showed, in his own words, "a scrupulous meanness" in his use of materials for the
novel.He recycled the two earlier attempts at explaining his aesthetics and youth, A Portrait of
the Artist and Stephen Hero, as well as his notebooks from Trieste concerning the philosophy of
Thomas Aquinas; they all came together in five carefully paced chapters.

Stephen Hero is written from the point of view of an omniscient third-person narrator, but in
Portrait Joyce adopts the free indirect style, a change that reflects the moving of the narrative
centre of consciousness firmly and uniquely onto Stephen. Persons and events take their
significance from Stephen, and are perceived from his point of view.Characters and places are
no longer mentioned simply because the young Joyce had known them. Salient details are
carefully chosen and fitted into the aesthetic pattern of the novel.

Publication history

In 1913 the Irish poet W. B. Yeats recommended Joyce's work to the avant-garde American poet
Ezra Pound, who was assembling an anthology of verse. Pound wrote to Joyce, and in 1914 Joyce
submitted the first chapter of the unfinished Portrait to Pound, who was so taken with it that he
pressed to have the work serialised in the London literary magazine The Egoist. Joyce hurried to
complete the novel, and it appeared in The Egoist in twenty-five instalments from 2 February
1914 to 1 September 1915.

There was difficulty finding a British publisher for the finished novel, so Pound arranged for its
publication by an American publishing house, B. W. Huebsch, which issued it on 29 December
1916. The Egoist Press republished it in the United Kingdom on 12 February 1917 and Jonathan
Cape took over its publication in 1924. In 1964 Viking Press issued a corrected version overseen
by Chester Anderson. Garland released a "copy text" edition by Hans Walter Gabler in 1993.

PLOT

The childhood of Stephen Dedalus is recounted using vocabulary that changes as he grows, in a
voice not his own but sensitive to his feelings. The reader experiences Stephen's fears and
bewilderment as he comes to terms with the world in a series of disjointed episodes. Stephen
attends the Jesuit-run Clongowes Wood College, where the apprehensive, intellectually gifted
boy suffers the ridicule of his classmates while he learns the schoolboy codes of behaviour.
While he cannot grasp their significance, at a Christmas dinner he is witness to the social,
political and religious tensions in Ireland involving Charles Stewart Parnell, which drive wedges
between members of his family, leaving Stephen with doubts over which social institutions he
can place his faith in.Back at Clongowes, word spreads that a number of older boys have been
caught "smugging"; discipline is tightened, and the Jesuits increase use of corporal punishment.
Stephen is strapped when one of his instructors believes he has broken his glasses to avoid
studying, but, prodded by his classmates, Stephen works up the courage to complain to the
rector, Father Conmee, who assures him there will be no such recurrence, leaving Stephen with
a sense of triumph.

Stephen's father gets into debt and the family leaves its pleasant suburban home to live in
Dublin. Stephen realises that he will not return to Clongowes. However, thanks to a scholarship
obtained for him by Father Conmee, Stephen is able to attend Belvedere College, where he
excels academically and becomes a class leader.Stephen squanders a large cash prize from
school, and begins to see prostitutes, as distance grows between him and his drunken father.

As Stephen abandons himself to sensual pleasures, his class is taken on a religious retreat,
where the boys sit through sermons.Stephen pays special attention to those on pride, guilt,
punishment and the Four Last Things (death, judgement, Hell, and Heaven). He feels that the
words of the sermon, describing horrific eternal punishment in hell, are directed at himself and,
overwhelmed, comes to desire forgiveness. Overjoyed at his return to the Church, he devotes
himself to acts of ascetic repentance, though they soon devolve to mere acts of routine, as his
thoughts turn elsewhere. His devotion comes to the attention of the Jesuits, and they encourage
him to consider entering the priesthood. Stephen takes time to consider, but has a crisis of faith
because of the conflict between his spiritual beliefs and his aesthetic ambitions. Along
Dollymount Strand he spots a girl wading, and has an epiphany in which he is overcome with the
desire to find a way to express her beauty in his writing.

As a student at University College, Dublin, Stephen grows increasingly wary of the institutions
around him: Church, school, politics and family. In the midst of the disintegration of his family's
fortunes his father berates him and his mother urges him to return to the Church.An increasingly
dry, humourless Stephen explains his alienation from the Church and the aesthetic theory he has
developed to his friends, who find that they cannot accept either of them.Stephen concludes
that Ireland is too restricted to allow him to express himself fully as an artist, so he decides that
he will have to leave. He sets his mind on self-imposed exile, but not without declaring in his
diary his ties to his homeland:

... I go to encounter for the millionth time the reality of experience and to forge in the smithy of
my soul the uncreated conscience of my race.

Major characters

Stephen Dedalus – The main character of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Growing up,
Stephen goes through long phases of hedonism and deep religiosity. He eventually adopts a
philosophy of aestheticism, greatly valuing beauty and art. Stephen is essentially Joyce's alter
ego, and many of the events of Stephen's life mirror events from Joyce's own youth. His
surname is taken from the ancient Greek mythical figure Daedalus, who also engaged in a
struggle for autonomy.

Simon Dedalus – Stephen's father, an impoverished former medical student with a strong sense
of Irish nationalism. Sentimental about his past, Simon Dedalus frequently reminisces about his
youth. Loosely based on Joyce's own father and their relationship.

Mary Dedalus – Stephen's mother who is very religious and often argues with Stephen about
attending services.

Emma Clery – Stephen's beloved, the young girl to whom he is fiercely attracted over the course
of many years. Stephen constructs Emma as an ideal of femininity, even though (or because) he
does not know her well.

Charles Stewart Parnell – An Irish political leader who is not an actual character in the novel, but
whose death influences many of its characters. Parnell had powerfully led the Irish
Parliamentary Party until he was driven out of public life after his affair with a married woman
was exposed.

Cranly – Stephen's best friend at university, in whom he confides some of his thoughts and
feelings. In this sense Cranly represents a secular confessor for Stephen. Eventually Cranly
begins to encourage Stephen to conform to the wishes of his family and to try harder to fit in
with his peers, advice that Stephen fiercely resents. Towards the conclusion of the novel he
bears witness to Stephen's exposition of his aesthetic philosophy. It is partly due to Cranly that
Stephen decides to leave, after witnessing Cranly's budding (and reciprocated) romantic interest
in Emma.

Dante (Mrs. Riordan) – The governess of the Dedalus children. She is very intense and a
dedicated Catholic.

Lynch – Stephen's friend from university who has a rather dry personality.

10. DEATH IN VENICE

Death in Venice is a novella written by German author Thomas Mann, first published in 1912 as
Der Tod in Venedig. The work presents a great writer suffering writer's block who visits Venice
and is liberated, uplifted, and then increasingly obsessed, by the sight of a stunningly beautiful
youth. Though he never speaks to the boy, much less touches him, the writer finds himself
drawn deep into ruinous inward passion; meanwhile, Venice, and finally, the writer himself,
succumb to a cholera plague.

The novella is powerfully intertextual, with the chief sources being first the connection of erotic
love to philosophical wisdom traced in Plato's Symposium and Phaedrus, and second the
Nietzschean contrast between the god of restraint and shaping form, Apollo, and the god of
excess and passion, Dionysus.

The boy in the story (Tadzio) is based on a boy (Władzio or Tadzio, nicknames for the Polish
name Władysław or Tadeusz respectively) Mann had seen during a visit to Venice in 1911.

PLOT

Gustav von Aschenbach is an aging German writer who is the paragon of solemn dignity and
fastidious self-discipline. Determinedly cerebral and duty-bound, he believes that true art is
produced only in "defiant despite" of corrupting passions and physical weaknesses.

When Aschenbach has the urge to travel, he tells himself that he might find artistic inspiration
from a change of scene. Aschenbach's subsequent trip to Venice is the first indulgence he has
allowed himself in years; it signals the beginning of his decline. Aschenbach allows the languid
Venetian atmosphere and gently rocking gondolas to lull him into a defenseless state. At his
hotel he notices an extremely beautiful fourteen-year-old Polish boy named Tadzio, who is
visiting with his mother, sisters, and governess. At first, Aschenbach's interest in the boy is
purely aesthetic, or so he tells himself. However, he soon falls deeply and obsessively in love
with the boy, although the two never have direct contact.

Aschenbach spends days on end watching Tadzio play on the beach, even following his family
around the streets of Venice. Cholera infects the city, and although the authorities try to conceal
the danger from the tourists, Aschenbach soon learns the facts about the lethal epidemic.
However, he cannot bear to leave Tadzio and stays on in Venice. He becomes progressively
daring in his pursuit of the boy, gradually becoming more and more debased, until he finally dies
of the cholera, degraded, a slave to his passions, stripped of his dignity.

Plot Wiki

The main character is Gustav von Aschenbach, a famous author in his early fifties who has
recently been ennobled in honor of his artistic achievement (thus acquiring the aristocratic
"von" in his name). He is a man dedicated to his art, disciplined and ascetic to the point of
severity, who was widowed at a young age. As the story opens, he is strolling outside a cemetery
and sees a coarse-looking red-haired foreigner who stares back at him belligerently. Aschenbach
walks away, embarrassed but curiously stimulated. He has a vision of a primordial
swamp-wilderness, fertile, exotic and full of lurking danger. Soon afterwards, he resolves to take
a holiday.

After a false start in traveling to Pula on the Austro-Hungarian coast, Aschenbach realizes he was
"meant" to go to Venice and takes a suite in the Grand Hôtel des Bains on the Lido island. While
shipbound and en route to the island he sees an elderly man, in company with a group of
high-spirited youths, who has tried hard to create the illusion of his own youth with a wig, false
teeth, makeup, and foppish attire. Aschenbach turns away in disgust. Later he has a disturbing
encounter with an unlicensed gondolier--another red-haired, skull-faced foreigner--who repeats
"I can row you well" when Aschenbach orders him to return to the wharf.

Aschenbach checks into his hotel, where at dinner he sees an aristocratic Polish family at a
nearby table. Among them is an adolescent boy of about fourteen in a sailor suit. Aschenbach,
startled, realizes that the boy is supremely beautiful, like a Greek sculpture. His older sisters, by
contrast, are so severely dressed that they look like nuns. Later, after spying the boy and his
family at a beach, Aschenbach overhears the lad's name, Tadzio, and conceives what he first
interprets as an uplifting, artistic interest.

Soon the hot, humid weather begins to affect Aschenbach's health, and he decides to leave early
and move to a cooler location. On the morning of his planned departure, he sees Tadzio again,
and a powerful feeling of regret sweeps over him. When he reaches the railway station and
discovers his trunk has been misdirected, he pretends to be angry, but is really overjoyed; he
decides to remain in Venice and, wait for his lost luggage. He happily returns to the hotel and,
thinks no more of leaving.

Over the next days and weeks, Aschenbach's interest in the beautiful boy develops into an
obsession. So, he watches him constantly and, secretly follows him around Venice. One evening,
the boy directs a charming smile at him, looking, Aschenbach thinks, like Narcissus smiling at his
own reflection. Disconcerted, Aschenbach rushes outside, and in the empty garden whispers
aloud, "I love you!"

Aschenbach next takes a trip into the city of Venice, where he sees a few discreetly worded
notices from the Health Department warning of an unspecified contagion and advising people to
avoid eating shellfish. He smells an unfamiliar strong odour everywhere, later realising it is
disinfectant. However, the authorities adamantly deny that the contagion is serious and tourists
continue to wander round the city, oblivious. Aschenbach at first ignores the danger because it
somehow pleases him to think that the city's disease is akin to his own hidden, corrupting
passion for the boy. During this period, a third red-haired and disreputable-looking man crosses
Aschenbach's path; this one belongs to a troupe of street singers who entertain at the hotel one
night. Aschenbach listens entranced to songs that, in his former life, he would have despised –
all the while stealing glances at Tadzio, who is leaning on a nearby parapet in a classically
beautiful pose. The boy eventually returns Aschenbach's glances, and, though the moment is
brief, it instills in the writer a sense that the attraction may be mutual.

Next, Aschenbach rallies his self-respect and decides to discover the reason for the health
notices posted in the city. After being repeatedly assured that the sirocco is the only health risk,
he finds a British travel agent who reluctantly admits that there is a serious cholera epidemic in
Venice. Aschenbach considers warning Tadzio's mother of the danger; however, he decides not
to, knowing that if he does, Tadzio will leave the hotel and be lost to him.

One night, a dream filled with orgiastic Dionysian imagery reveals to him the sexual nature of his
feelings for Tadzio. Afterwards, he begins staring at the boy so openly and following him so
persistently that Aschenbach feels the boy's guardians have finally noticed, and they take to
warning Tadzio whenever he approaches too near the strange, solitary man. But Aschenbach's
feelings, though passionately intense, remain unvoiced; he never touches Tadzio, or even speaks
to him; and while there is some indication that Tadzio is aware of his admiration, the two
exchange nothing more than the occasional surreptitious glance.

Aschenbach begins to fret about his aging face and body. In an attempt to look more attractive,
he visits the hotel's barber shop almost daily, where the barber eventually persuades him to
have his hair dyed and his face painted to look more youthful. The result is a fairly close
approximation to the old man on the ship who had so appalled Aschenbach. Freshly dyed and
rouged, he again shadows Tadzio through Venice in the oppressive heat. He loses sight of the
boy in the heart of the city; then, exhausted and thirsty, he buys and eats some over-ripe
strawberries and rests in an abandoned square, contemplating the Platonic ideal of beauty
amidst the ruins of his own once-formidable dignity.

A few days later, Aschenbach goes to the lobby in his hotel, feeling ill and weak, and discovers
that the Polish family plan to leave after lunch. He goes down to the beach to his usual deck
chair. Tadzio is there, unsupervised for once, and accompanied by an older boy, Jasiu. A fight
breaks out between the two boys, and Tadzio is quickly bested; afterward, he angrily leaves his
companion and wades over to Aschenbach's part of the beach, where he stands for a moment
looking out to sea; then turns halfway around to look at his admirer. To Aschenbach, it is as if
the boy is beckoning to him: he tries to rise and follow, only to collapse sideways into his chair.

His body is discovered a few minutes later.

Origins

Mann's original intention was to write about "passion as confusion and degradation", after
having been fascinated by the true story of Goethe's love for 18-year-old Baroness Ulrike von
Levetzow, which had led Goethe to write his Marienbad Elegy. The May 1911 death of
composer Gustav Mahler in Vienna and Mann's interest in the boy Władzio during summer 1911
vacation in Venice were additional experiences occupying his thoughts. He used the story to
illuminate certain convictions about the relationship between life and mind, with Aschenbach
representing the intellectual. Mann was also influenced by Sigmund Freud and his views on
dreams, as well as by philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche who had visited Venice several times.

Characters

Gustav von Aschenbach - An aging writer, honorable, fastidious, and repressed, of high public
status in Germany. He travels to Venice and stays in a hotel where the beautiful boy Tadzio is
also a guest. As he gives way to his repressed sexuality and falls in love with Tadzio while
embracing beauty and the sensual side of art, he also abandons morality and dignity,
abandoning himself to passion, decadence, and ultimately death.

Tadzio - An intensely beautiful Polish boy of about fourteen. He stays with his mother, sisters,
and governess at the same hotel in Venice as Gustav von Aschenbach. Tadzio is pure and
innocent but also aware of Aschenbach's interest in him.

Jashu - Tadzio's closest companion at the hotel. He seems to idolize Tadzio, acting as his
"vassal." Jashu has glossy black hair, a sturdy build, and a rowdy temperament, serving as a
polar opposite to Tadzio.

11. VANITY FAIR

Vanity Fair is an English novel by William Makepeace Thackeray which follows the lives of Becky
Sharp and Emmy Sedley amid their friends and families during and after the Napoleonic Wars. It
was first published as a 19-volume monthly serial from 1847 to 1848, carrying the subtitle Pen
and Pencil Sketches of English Society, reflecting both its satirisation of early 19th-century British
society and the many illustrations drawn by Thackeray to accompany the text. It was published
as a single volume in 1848 with the subtitle A Novel without a Hero, reflecting Thackeray's
interest in deconstructing his era's conventions regarding literary heroism. It is sometimes
considered the "principal founder" of the Victorian domestic novel.

The story is framed as a puppet play and the narrator, despite being an authorial voice, is
notoriously unreliable. Late in the narrative, it is revealed that the entire account has been 2nd-
or 3rd-hand gossip the writer picked up "years ago" from Lord Tapeworm, British charge
d'affaires in one of the minor German states and relative of several of the other aristocrats in
the story but none of the main characters: "the famous little Becky puppet", "the Amelia Doll",
"the Dobbin Figure", "the Little Boys", and "the Wicked Nobleman, on which no expense has
been spared". Despite her many stated faults and still worse ones admitted to have been passed
over in silence, Becky emerges as the "hero"—what is now called an antihero—in place of
Amelia because Thackeray is able to illustrate that "the highest virtue a fictional character can
possess is interest."

Title

The book's title comes from John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress,a Dissenter allegory first published
in 1678. In that work, "Vanity Fair" refers to a stop along the pilgrim's route: a never-ending fair
held in a town called Vanity, which is meant to represent man's sinful attachment to worldly
things.Thackeray does not mention Bunyan in the novel or in his surviving letters about it,where
he describes himself dealing with "living without God in the world",but he did expect the
reference to be understood by his audience, as shown in an 1851 Times article likely written by
Thackeray himself. In a letter to the critic Robert Bell—whose friendship later became so great
that he was buried near Thackeray at Kensal Green Cemetery—Thackeray rebutted his
complaint that the novel could have used with "more light and air" to make it "more agreeable
and healthy" with Evangelist's words as the pilgrims entered Bunyan's Vanity Fair: "The heart is
deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?"

From its appearance in Bunyan, "Vanity Fair" or a "vanity-fair" was also in general use for "the
world" in a range of connotations from the blandly descriptive to the wearily dismissive to the
condemning. By the 18th century, it was generally taken as a playground and, in the first half of
the 19th century, more specifically the playground of the idle and undeserving rich. All of these
senses appear in Thackeray's work.

Summary

The story is framed by its preface and coda as a puppet show taking place at a fair; the cover
illustration of the serial instalments was not of the characters but of a troupe of comic actors[9]
at Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park.The narrator, variously a show manager or writer, appears at
times within the work itself and is highly unreliable, repeating a tale of gossip at second or third
hand.

Rebecca Sharp ("Becky") is a strong-willed, cunning, moneyless, young woman determined to

make her way in society. After leaving school, Becky stays with Amelia Sedley ("Emmy"), who is
a good-natured, simple-minded, young girl, of a wealthy London family. There, Becky meets the
dashing and self-obsessed Captain George Osborne (Amelia's betrothed) and Amelia's brother
Joseph ("Jos") Sedley, a clumsy and vainglorious but rich civil servant home from the East India
Company. Hoping to marry Sedley, the richest young man she has met, Becky entices him, but
she fails. George Osborne's friend Captain William Dobbin loves Amelia, but only wishes her
happiness, which is centred on George.

Becky Sharp says farewell to the Sedley family and enters the service of the crude and profligate
baronet Sir Pitt Crawley, who has engaged her as a governess to his daughters. Her behaviour at
Sir Pitt's house gains his favour, and after the premature death of his second wife, he proposes
marriage to her. However he finds that she has secretly married his second son, Captain Rawdon
Crawley. (Becky very much regrets having done that; however, when she married Rawdon she
had no idea that his father's wife would die so soon after). Sir Pitt's elder half sister, the spinster
Miss Crawley, is very rich, having inherited her mother's fortune, and the whole Crawley family
compete for her favour so she will bequeath them her wealth. Initially her favourite is Rawdon
Crawley. But his marriage with Becky enrages her. First she favours the family of Sir Pitt's
brother, but when she dies, she has left her money to Sir Pitt's oldest son, also called Pitt.

Chapter 32 ends with Waterloo: "No more firing was heard at Brussels—the pursuit rolled miles
away. The darkness came down on the field and city, and Amelia was praying for George, who
was lying on his face, dead, with a bullet through his heart.

Amelia's father, John Sedley, becomes bankrupt. George's rich father forbids George to marry
Amelia, who is now poor. Dobbin persuades George to marry Amelia, and George is
consequently disinherited. News arrives that Napoleon has escaped from Elba, so George
Osborne, William Dobbin and Rawdon Crawley are deployed to Brussels, accompanied by
Amelia and Becky, and Amelia's brother, Jos. George is embarrassed by the vulgarity of Mrs.
Major O'Dowd, the wife of the head of the regiment. Already, the newly wedded Osborne is
growing tired of Amelia, and he becomes increasingly attracted to Becky, which makes Amelia
jealous and unhappy. He is also losing money to Rawdon at cards and billiards. At a ball in
Brussels, George gives Becky a note inviting her to run away with him. But then the army have
marching orders to the Battle of Waterloo, and George spends a tender night with Amelia and
leaves. The noise of battle horrifies Amelia, and she is comforted by the brisk but kind Mrs.
O'Dowd. Becky is indifferent and makes plans for whatever the outcome (if Napoleon wins, she
would aim to become the mistress of one of his Marshals...). She also makes a profit selling her
carriage and horses at inflated prices to Jos, seeking to flee Brussels.

George Osborne is killed at Quatre Bras, while Dobbin and Rawdon survive Waterloo. Amelia
bears a posthumous son, who carries on the name George. She returns to live in genteel poverty
with her parents, spending her life in memory of her husband and care of her son. Dobbin pays
for a small annuity for Amelia and expresses his love for her by small kindnesses toward her and
her son. She is too much in love with her husband's memory to return Dobbin's love. Saddened,
he goes with his regiment to India for many years.

Becky also has a son, named Rawdon after his father. Becky is a cold, distant mother, although
Rawdon loves his son. Becky continues her ascent first in post-war Paris and then in London
where she is patronised by the rich and powerful Marquis of Steyne. She is eventually presented
at court to the Prince Regent and charms him further at a game of "acting charades" where she
plays the roles of Clytemnestra and Philomela. The elderly Sir Pitt Crawley dies and is succeeded
by his son Pitt, who had married Lady Jane Sheepshanks, Lord Southdown's third daughter.
Becky is on good terms with Pitt and Jane originally, but Jane is disgusted by Becky's attitude to
her son and jealous of Becky's relationship with Pitt.

At the summit of their social success, Rawdon is arrested for debt, possibly at Becky's
connivance.[23] The financial success of the Crawleys had been a topic of gossip; in fact they
were living on credit even when it ruined those who trusted them, such as their landlord, an old
servant of the Crawley family. The Marquis of Steyne had given Becky money, jewels, and other
gifts but Becky does not use them for expenses or to free her husband. Instead, Rawdon's letter
to his brother is received by Lady Jane, who pays the £170 that prompted his imprisonment. He
returns home to find Becky singing to Steyne and strikes him down on the assumption—despite
her protestations of innocence—that they are having an affair. Steyne is indignant, having
assumed the £1000 he had just given Becky was part of an arrangement with her husband.
Rawdon finds Becky's hidden bank records and leaves her, expecting Steyne to challenge him to
a duel. Instead Steyne arranges for Rawdon to be made Governor of Coventry Island, a
pest-ridden location. Becky, having lost both husband and credibility, leaves England and
wanders the continent, leaving her son in the care of Pitt and Lady Jane.

As Amelia's adored son George grows up, his grandfather Mr Osborne relents towards him
(though not towards Amelia) and takes him from his impoverished mother, who knows the rich
old man will give him a better start in life than she could manage. After twelve years abroad,
both Joseph Sedley and Dobbin return. Dobbin professes his unchanged love to Amelia. Amelia
is affectionate, but she cannot forget the memory of her dead husband. Dobbin mediates a
reconciliation between Amelia and her father-in-law, who dies soon after. He had amended his
will, bequeathing young George half his large fortune and Amelia a generous annuity.

After the death of Mr Osborne, Amelia, Jos, George and Dobbin go to Pumpernickel (Weimar in
Germany), where they encounter the destitute Becky. Becky has fallen in life. She lives among
card sharps and con artists, drinking heavily and gambling. Becky enchants Jos Sedley all over
again, and Amelia is persuaded to let Becky join them. Dobbin forbids this, and reminds Amelia
of her jealousy of Becky with her husband. Amelia feels that this dishonours the memory of her
dead and revered husband, and this leads to a complete breach between her and Dobbin.
Dobbin leaves the group and rejoins his regiment, while Becky remains with the group.

However, Becky has decided that Amelia should marry Dobbin, even though she knows Dobbin
is her enemy. Becky shows Amelia George's note, kept all this time from the eve of the Battle of
Waterloo, and Amelia finally realises that George was not the perfect man she always thought,
and that she has rejected a better man, Dobbin. Amelia and Dobbin are reconciled and return to
England. Becky and Jos stay in Europe. Jos dies, possibly suspiciously, after signing a portion of
his money to Becky as life insurance, setting her up with an income. She returns to England, and
manages a respectable life, although all her previous friends refuse to acknowledge her.

CHARACTERS

Rebecca Sharp - The protagonist of the novel, Becky is a strong-willed young woman obsessed
with status and wealth. She attends Miss Pinkerton's academy as an orphan alone in the world,
and makes only one friend, Amelia, who is friends with everyone. Rebecca frustrates her
classmates and instructors, acting superior to them all. For example, she insists on speaking
French when she knows that no one understands her, and demands payment for tutoring her
classmates.

As soon as she is out of the school, her manipulations begin. She feigns attraction to Joseph
Sedley because she understands the position and wealth a marriage with him would bring. She
also appeals to Rawdon Crawley, who ends up marrying her. Sir Pitt, the local baronet, also falls
for her. It is clear that men fall at her feet, but she doesn't ever express genuine love for them.
She finds Rawdon stupid, sees Sir Pitt only for his status and money, and hates George for his
interference in her plan to marry Joseph.

Rebecca is also a compulsive liar. She has an affair with George behind Amelia's back. While she
is with Rawdon, she flirts with men of status in order to steal their money, and she tries her best
to secure Aunt Matilda's estate by attending to her. As a final act of deceit, Rebecca manages to
have Joseph sign an insurance policy of which she is the sole beneficiary, earning her half of
what he owned before his death.

Amelia Sedley - Amelia is a good-natured person, and she is easy to like. As a young girl, she
makes many friends at Miss Pinkerton's school. Unfortunately, she is easily manipulated and
patronized when she emerges into society. George walks all over her, and his sisters are
condescending towards her. Regardless, Amelia remains infatuated with George, convinced that
he must love her in return. Her innocence is initially framed as something good, but soon the
author reveals that this quality is also her tragic flaw. She is a victim of so many things; her
family's designs, her family's financial ruin, Becky's ruthlessness, George's indifference, and high
society's overall cruelty.

Amelia is nevertheless a determined woman. Her son becomes her obsession, and she fights to
keep and provide for him, letting the rest of her family and herself starve and struggle so that he
can have nice things. She resolves to commit suicide when he is taken from her, but instead, she
spends all her time spying on the boy.

Joseph Sedley or Jos, is Amelia's elder brother and a tax collector in India. He is a relatively
wealthy man, and he admires people only based on whether or not they come from a nobility
line. He dresses in ridiculous, extravagant clothing and is grossly overweight. Jos' father
constantly makes jokes at his expense, which frightens him, just as he is frightened by women,
which becomes especially evident when Becky tries to flirt with him and win his hand in
marriage.

Jos enters the war as a civilian but dresses in military clothing to impress people. When the war
starts, he decides to change back into civilian clothing so that he won't be recognized as a
soldier. The sound of bombs frighten him, and he buys horses from Becky at a ridiculous price so
that he can escape. His timidity influences every major decision in his life.

Even though his family is at the point of starvation, Jos only sends them a small annual
allowance from his paycheck. He refuses to buy his father's wine, even though it will help his
business, because he deems the wine inferior. Near the end of the novel, Jos once again finds
himself in Becky's snares, and becomes another of her unsuspecting victims.

George Osborne - George is a disrespectful playboy. He is Amelia's love interest and the man
she has been promised to since childhood. He is obsessed with the chase and does not seem to
have the capacity to love anything other than himself. He gambles, drinks, constantly buys
things for himself, and takes advantage of Amelia's feelings for him and of Dobbin's loyal
friendship.

Eventually, George marries Amelia partly because she is so touchingly pathetic and partly
because it makes him feel generous to be giving the girl her heart's desire. He also seems to
derive pleasure from the fact that he is defying his father. George appears on the surface to take
his military responsibilities seriously by refusing the comfortable life his father offers him, and
as a result, he dies in the Battle of Waterloo.

William Dobbin- George's best friend Dobbin is one of the few characters not consumed by
vanity. He is sincere and kind, and he does not expect recognition for his altruism. He is very
much in love with Amelia, but he defers to George, and she doesn't even notice his affections for
her. He plays an instrumental role in making their marriage possible, but ends up confused
about his own gesture, due to his strong feelings for Amelia.

Dobbin is also extremely humble. There are several occasions in the book when he submits to
George, even when it is clear that he is in the right. But as often as he encourages George on the
right path, at the end of the day, he never truly speaks up for himself.

Sir Pitt Crawley is Rebecca's wealthy employer. He is a baronet but has accrued enormous debt
over the years and is relying on the beneficiary of his sister's fortune to bail him out when she
passes away. He is miserly and cruel and treats his wife with indifference. Furthermore, he has
an inappropriate affinity for younger women. The current Lady Crawley is younger than he, and
when she dies, he immediately seeks Rebecca's hand in marriage. When she refuses, he moves
on to the young Ms. Horrocks, the daughter of his butler.

The end of Sir Pitt's life is spent in embarrassing drunken debauchery. He reveals his true nature
when he starts spending all his time with common people, the friends of his servants, and
making passes at his butler's daughter. He feels more at ease with this crowd, which makes
sense when considering the narrator's commentary on his rough, crude manner at the beginning
of the novel.

Young Pitt Crawley The older son of Sir Pitt, he is one of the contenders for Aunt Matilda's
fortune. However, he stands in stark contrast to his irresponsible brother. He is Lady Crawley's
favorite and is the only person who pays her any attention. He eventually marries the young
Jane Sheepshanks and becomes the heir to Sir Pitt's estate. He treats Rebecca and Rawdon with
kindness by inviting them to come stay at his residence.

Eventually, young Pitt Crawley becomes the heir to Aunt Matilda's money and as a result,
Rebecca sends her son, Rawdon, to live with him. He turns out to be the most responsible
member of the Crawley family and seems to benefit because of it. At the same time, he is a
victim of Becky's deceit, since he finds her more intelligent, interesting, and potentially useful
than his own wife.

Rawdon is another of the novel's playboys. He doesn't care about education, and he spends his
time fighting duels and gambling. The first honest and honorable thing he does is marry
Rebecca, with whom he falls dearly in love, and vows to take care of her. In a gesture of love, he
purchases a house and furnishes it with credit, which indicates that he is also financially
irresponsible.

Rebecca's reflections make it clear that Rawdon is not very bright and he soon falls victim to her
designs. She promises to take care of him and, naively, he takes her word for it. He gambles to
earn money, and Rebecca makes sure, using her feminine wiles, that he wins often enough to
support them. He eventually lands himself in prison for not paying his debts and when Rebecca
doesn't bail him out, he finally becomes suspicious and uncovers all of the fraud she has
engaged in over the years with various men. In the end, he walks out on her.

Old Osborne is George's father. He used to be a friend and beneficiary of Mr. Sedley, but when
the Sedleys fall into financial ruin he breaks off all ties with them and encourages his son to
abandon their daughter. He also tries to push his son towards a wealthy heiress by encouraging
him to forget his military duties and consider joining Parliament.

John Osborne clearly does not have much integrity. He does feel a little remorse at turning his
back on the Sedleys, but this does not change his actions. He disowns his son when George
decides to marry Amelia, and when George dies he is more worried about appearances than the
tragedy itself. Finally, he is willing to wrest a son from his mother when Amelia is in financial
trouble, as if exacting revenge for marrying his son.

Lord Steyne is a marquis from a long line of wealthy nobles. He ignores his wife and tries to
drown his boredom in social gatherings. He has a son, George, who he does not acknowledge
because of George's mental illness.

Lord Steyne is one of the many men who falls for Becky's schemes. He finds himself enamored
with her and spends many evenings at her home. He gives her money and jewelry, which she
hides from her husband. He is quick to believe her lies, because he wants them to be true.

12. TRISTAN SHANDY

The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman (or Tristram Shandy) is a novel by
Laurence Sterne. It was published in nine volumes, the first two appearing in 1759, and seven
others following over the next seven years (vols. 3 and 4, 1761; vols. 5 and 6, 1762; vols. 7 and 8,
1765; vol. 9, 1767). It purports to be a biography of the eponymous character. Its style is marked
by digression, double entendre, and graphic devices.

Sterne had read widely, which is reflected in Tristram Shandy. Many of his similes, for instance,
are reminiscent of the works of the metaphysical poets of the 17th century, and the novel as a
whole, with its focus on the problems of language, has constant regard to John Locke's theories
in An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Arthur Schopenhauer cited Tristram Shandy as
one of the greatest novels ever written

Summary Sparknotes

The action covered in Tristram Shandy spans the years 1680-1766. Sterne obscures the story's
underlying chronology, however, by rearranging the order of the various pieces of his tale. He
also subordinates the basic plot framework by weaving together a number of different stories,
as well as such disparate materials as essays, sermons, and legal documents. There are,
nevertheless, two clearly discernible narrative lines in the book.

The first is the plot sequence that includes Tristram's conception, birth, christening, and
accidental circumcision. (This sequence extends somewhat further in Tristram's treatment of his
"breeching," the problem of his education, and his first and second tours of France, but these
events are handled less extensively and are not as central to the text.) It takes six volumes to
cover this chain of events, although comparatively few pages are spent in actually advancing
such a simple plot. The story occurs as a series of accidents, all of which seem calculated to
confound Walter Shandy's hopes and expectations for his son. The manner of his conception is
the first disaster, followed by the flattening of his nose at birth, a misunderstanding in which he
is given the wrong name, and an accidental run-in with a falling window-sash. The catastrophes
that befall Tristram are actually relatively trivial; only in the context of Walter Shandy's
eccentric, pseudo-scientific theories do they become calamities.

The second major plot consists of the fortunes of Tristram's Uncle Toby. Most of the details of
this story are concentrated in the final third of the novel, although they are alluded to and
developed in piecemeal fashion from the very beginning. Toby receives a wound to the groin
while in the army, and it takes him four years to recover. When he is able to move around again,
he retires to the country with the idea of constructing a scaled replica of the scene of the battle
in which he was injured. He becomes obsessed with re-enacting those battles, as well as with
the whole history and theory of fortification and defense. The Peace of Utrecht slows him down
in these "hobby-horsical" activities, however, and it is during this lull that he falls under the spell
of Widow Wadman. The novel ends with the long-promised account of their unfortunate affair.

Synopsis Wiki

"The Jack-boots Transformed into Mortars": Trim has found an old pair of jack-boots useful as
mortars. Unfortunately, they turn out to have been Walter's great-grandfather's. (Book III,
Chapters XXII and XXIII)

As its title suggests, the book is ostensibly Tristram's narration of his life story. But it is one of
the central jokes of the novel that he cannot explain anything simply, that he must make
explanatory diversions to add context and colour to his tale, to the extent that Tristram's own
birth is not even reached until Volume III.

Consequently, apart from Tristram as narrator, the most familiar and important characters in the
book are his father Walter, his mother, his Uncle Toby, Toby's servant Trim, and a supporting
cast of popular minor characters, including the chambermaid, Susannah, Doctor Slop, and the
parson, Yorick, who later became Sterne's favourite nom de plume and a very successful
publicity stunt. Yorick is also the protagonist of Sterne's second work of fiction A Sentimental
Journey Through France and Italy.

Most of the action is concerned with domestic upsets or misunderstandings, which find humour
in the opposing temperaments of Walter—splenetic, rational, and somewhat sarcastic—and
Uncle Toby, who is gentle, uncomplicated, and a lover of his fellow man.

In between such events, Tristram as narrator finds himself discoursing at length on sexual
practices, insults, the influence of one's name, and noses, as well as explorations of obstetrics,
siege warfare, and philosophy as he struggles to marshal his material and finish the story of his
life.

Though Tristram is always present as narrator and commentator, the book contains little of his
life, only the story of a trip through France and accounts of the four comical mishaps which
shaped the course of his life from an early age. Firstly, while still only a homunculus, Tristram's
implantation within his mother's womb was disturbed. At the very moment of procreation, his
mother asked his father if he had remembered to wind the clock. The distraction and annoyance
led to the disruption of the proper balance of humours necessary to conceive a well-favoured
child. Secondly, one of his father's pet theories was that a large and attractive nose was
important to a man making his way in life. In a difficult birth, Tristram's nose was crushed by Dr.
Slop's forceps. Thirdly, another of his father's theories was that a person's name exerted
enormous influence over that person's nature and fortunes, with the worst possible name being
Tristram. In view of the previous accidents, Tristram's father decreed that the boy would receive
an especially auspicious name, Trismegistus. Susannah mangled the name in conveying it to the
curate, and the child was christened Tristram. According to his father's theory, his name, being a
conflation of "Trismegistus" (after the esoteric mystic Hermes Trismegistus) and "Tristan"
(whose connotation bore the influence through folk etymology of Latin tristis, "sorrowful"),
doomed him to a life of woe and cursed him with the inability to comprehend the causes of his
misfortune.

Finally, as a toddler, Tristram suffered an accidental circumcision when Susannah let a window
sash fall as he urinated out of the window because his chamberpot was missing.

Characters

Tristram Shandy - Tristram is both the fictionalized author of The Life and Opinions of Tristram
Shandy and the child whose conception, birth, christening, and circumcision form one major
sequence of the narrative. The adult Tristram Shandy relates certain aspects of his family
history, including many that took place before his own birth, drawing from stories and hearsay
as much as from his own memories. His opinions we get in abundance; of the actual details of
his life the author furnishes only traces, and the child Tristram turns out to be a minor character.

Walter Shandy - Tristram's philosophically-minded father. Walter Shandy's love for abstruse
and convoluted intellectual argumentation and his readiness to embrace any tantalizing
hypothesis lead him to propound a great number of absurd pseudo-scientific theories.

Elizabeth Shandy (Mrs. Shandy) - Tristram's mother. Mrs. Shandy insists on having the midwife
attend her labor rather than Dr. Slop, out of resentment at not being allowed to bear the child in
London. On all other points, Mrs. Shandy is singularly passive and uncontentious, which makes
her a dull conversational partner for her argumentative husband.

Captain Toby Shandy (Uncle Toby) - Tristram's uncle, and brother to Walter Shandy. After
sustaining a groin-wound in battle, he retires to a life of obsessive attention to the history and
science of military fortifications. His temperament is gentle and sentimental: Tristram tells us he
wouldn't harm a fly.

Corporal Trim - Manservant and sidekick to Uncle Toby. His real name is James Butler; he
received the nickname "Trim" while in the military. Trim colludes with Captain Toby in his
military shenanigans, but his own favorite hobby is advising people, especially if it allows him to
make eloquent speeches.

Dr. Slop - The local male midwife, who, at Walter's insistence, acts as a back-up at Tristram's
birth. A "scientifick operator," Dr. Slop has written a book expressing his disdain for the practice
of midwifery. He is interested in surgical instrument and medical advances, and prides himself
on having invented a new pair of delivery forceps.

Parson Yorick - The village parson, and a close friend of the Shandy family. Yorick is lighthearted
and straight-talking; he detests gravity and pretension. As a witty and misunderstood
clergyman, he has often been taken as a representation of the writer, Sterne, himself.

Susannah - Chambermaid to Mrs. Shandy. She is present at Tristram's birth, complicit in his
mis-christening, and partly to blame for his accidental circumcision by the fallen window shade.

Obadiah - Servant to Walter Shandy.

Bobby Shandy - Tristram's older brother, who dies in London while away at school.

Widow Wadman - A neighbor who has marital designs on Captain Toby Shandy, and with
whom he has a brief and abortive courtship.

Bridget - Maidservant to Widow Wadman. Corporal Trim courts Bridget at the same time that
Toby courts Widow Wadman, and Trim and Bridget's relationship continues for five years
thereafter.

The midwife - The local delivery-nurse who is commissioned to assist at Mrs. Shandy's labor.

Eugenius - Friend and advisor to Parson Yorick. His name means "well-born," and he is often the
voice of discretion.

Didius - A pedantic church lawyer, and the author of the midwife's license.

Kysarcius, Phutatorius, Triptolemus, and Gastripheres - Along with Didius, they form the
colloquy of learned men whom Walter, Toby, and Parson Yorick consult about the possibility of
changing Tristram's name.

The curate - The local church official, also named Tristram, who misnames the baby when
Susannah fails to pronounce the chosen name "Trismegistus."

Aunt Dinah - Tristram's great aunt and, in Tristram's estimation, the only woman in the Shandy
family with any character at all. She created a family scandal by marrying the coachman and
having a child late in her life.

Lieutenant Le Fever - A favorite sentimental charity case of Uncle Toby's and Corporal Trim's.
Le Fever died under their care, leaving an orphan son.

Billy Le Fever - The son of Lieutenant Le Fever. Uncle Toby becomes Billy's guardian, supervises
his education, and eventually recommends him to be Tristram's governor.

13. THE GREAT GATSBY

The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel written by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald that follows a
cast of characters living in the fictional town of West Egg on prosperous Long Island in the
summer of 1922. The story primarily concerns the young and mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby
and his quixotic passion and obsession for the beautiful former debutante Daisy Buchanan.
Considered to be Fitzgerald's magnum opus, The Great Gatsby explores themes of decadence,
idealism, resistance to change, social upheaval, and excess, creating a portrait of the Jazz Age or
the Roaring Twenties that has been described as a cautionary tale regarding the American
Dream.

First published by Scribner's in April 1925. However, the novel experienced a revival during
World War II, and became a part of American high school curricula and numerous stage and film
adaptations in the following decades. Today, The Great Gatsby is widely considered to be a
literary classic and a contender for the title "Great American Novel." In 1998, the Modern
Library editorial board voted it the 20th century's best American novel and second best
English-language novel of the same time period.

Plot Overview

Nick Carraway, a young man from Minnesota, moves to New York in the summer of 1922 to
learn about the bond business. He rents a house in the West Egg district of Long Island, a
wealthy but unfashionable area populated by the new rich, a group who have made their
fortunes too recently to have established social connections and who are prone to garish
displays of wealth. Nick’s next-door neighbor in West Egg is a mysterious man named Jay
Gatsby, who lives in a gigantic Gothic mansion and throws extravagant parties every Saturday
night.

Nick is unlike the other inhabitants of West Egg—he was educated at Yale and has social
connections in East Egg, a fashionable area of Long Island home to the established upper class.
Nick drives out to East Egg one evening for dinner with his cousin, Daisy Buchanan, and her
husband, Tom, an erstwhile classmate of Nick’s at Yale. Daisy and Tom introduce Nick to Jordan
Baker, a beautiful, cynical young woman with whom Nick begins a romantic relationship. Nick
also learns a bit about Daisy and Tom’s marriage: Jordan tells him that Tom has a lover, Myrtle
Wilson, who lives in the valley of ashes, a gray industrial dumping ground between West Egg
and New York City. Not long after this revelation, Nick travels to New York City with Tom and
Myrtle. At a vulgar, gaudy party in the apartment that Tom keeps for the affair, Myrtle begins to
taunt Tom about Daisy, and Tom responds by breaking her nose.

As the summer progresses, Nick eventually garners an invitation to one of Gatsby’s legendary
parties. He encounters Jordan Baker at the party, and they meet Gatsby himself, a surprisingly
young man who affects an English accent, has a remarkable smile, and calls everyone “old
sport.” Gatsby asks to speak to Jordan alone, and, through Jordan, Nick later learns more about
his mysterious neighbor. Gatsby tells Jordan that he knew Daisy in Louisville in 1917 and is
deeply in love with her. He spends many nights staring at the green light at the end of her dock,
across the bay from his mansion. Gatsby’s extravagant lifestyle and wild parties are simply an
attempt to impress Daisy. Gatsby now wants Nick to arrange a reunion between himself and
Daisy, but he is afraid that Daisy will refuse to see him if she knows that he still loves her. Nick
invites Daisy to have tea at his house, without telling her that Gatsby will also be there. After an
initially awkward reunion, Gatsby and Daisy reestablish their connection. Their love rekindled,
they begin an affair.

After a short time, Tom grows increasingly suspicious of his wife’s relationship with Gatsby. At a
luncheon at the Buchanans’ house, Gatsby stares at Daisy with such undisguised passion that
Tom realizes Gatsby is in love with her. Though Tom is himself involved in an extramarital affair,
he is deeply outraged by the thought that his wife could be unfaithful to him. He forces the
group to drive into New York City, where he confronts Gatsby in a suite at the Plaza Hotel. Tom
asserts that he and Daisy have a history that Gatsby could never understand, and he announces
to his wife that Gatsby is a criminal—his fortune comes from bootlegging alcohol and other
illegal activities. Daisy realizes that her allegiance is to Tom, and Tom contemptuously sends her
back to East Egg with Gatsby, attempting to prove that Gatsby cannot hurt him.

When Nick, Jordan, and Tom drive through the valley of ashes, however, they discover that
Gatsby’s car has struck and killed Myrtle, Tom’s lover. They rush back to Long Island, where Nick
learns from Gatsby that Daisy was driving the car when it struck Myrtle, but that Gatsby intends
to take the blame. The next day, Tom tells Myrtle’s husband, George, that Gatsby was the driver
of the car. George, who has leapt to the conclusion that the driver of the car that killed Myrtle
must have been her lover, finds Gatsby in the pool at his mansion and shoots him dead. He then
fatally shoots himself.

Nick stages a small funeral for Gatsby, ends his relationship with Jordan, and moves back to the
Midwest to escape the disgust he feels for the people surrounding Gatsby’s life and for the
emptiness and moral decay of life among the wealthy on the East Coast. Nick reflects that just as
Gatsby’s dream of Daisy was corrupted by money and dishonesty, the American dream of
happiness and individualism has disintegrated into the mere pursuit of wealth. Though Gatsby’s
power to transform his dreams into reality is what makes him “great,” Nick reflects that the era
of dreaming—both Gatsby’s dream and the American dream—is over.

Title

Early drafts of the novel entitled Trimalchio: An Early Version of The Great Gatsby have been
published. A notable difference between the Trimalchio draft and The Great Gatsby is a less
complete failure of Gatsby's dream in Trimalchio. Another difference is that the argument
between Tom Buchanan and Jay Gatsby is more even,although Daisy still returns to Tom.

Fitzgerald expressed intense enthusiasm for the title Under the Red, White and Blue, but it was
at that stage too late to change. The Great Gatsby was published on April 10, 1925

Character List

Nick Carraway - The novel’s narrator, Nick is a young man from Minnesota who, after being
educated at Yale and fighting in World War I, goes to New York City to learn the bond business.
Honest, tolerant, and inclined to reserve judgment, Nick often serves as a confidant for those
with troubling secrets. After moving to West Egg, a fictional area of Long Island that is home to
the newly rich, Nick quickly befriends his next-door neighbor, the mysterious Jay Gatsby. As
Daisy Buchanan’s cousin, he facilitates the rekindling of the romance between her and Gatsby.
The Great Gatsby is told entirely through Nick’s eyes; his thoughts and perceptions shape and
color the story.

Jay Gatsby - The title character and protagonist of the novel, Gatsby is a fabulously wealthy
young man living in a Gothic mansion in West Egg. He is famous for the lavish parties he throws
every Saturday night, but no one knows where he comes from, what he does, or how he made
his fortune. As the novel progresses, Nick learns that Gatsby was born James Gatz on a farm in
North Dakota; working for a millionaire made him dedicate his life to the achievement of
wealth. When he met Daisy while training to be an officer in Louisville, he fell in love with her.
Nick also learns that Gatsby made his fortune through criminal activity, as he was willing to do
anything to gain the social position he thought necessary to win Daisy. Nick views Gatsby as a
deeply flawed man, dishonest and vulgar, whose extraordinary optimism and power to
transform his dreams into reality make him “great” nonetheless.

Daisy Buchanan - Nick’s cousin, and the woman Gatsby loves. As a young woman in Louisville
before the war, Daisy was courted by a number of officers, including Gatsby. She fell in love with
Gatsby and promised to wait for him. However, Daisy harbors a deep need to be loved, and
when a wealthy, powerful young man named Tom Buchanan asked her to marry him, Daisy
decided not to wait for Gatsby after all. Now a beautiful socialite, Daisy lives with Tom across
from Gatsby in the fashionable East Egg district of Long Island. She is sardonic and somewhat
cynical, and behaves superficially to mask her pain at her husband’s constant infidelity.

Tom Buchanan - Daisy’s immensely wealthy husband, once a member of Nick’s social club at
Yale. Powerfully built and hailing from a socially solid old family, Tom is an arrogant, hypocritical
bully. His social attitudes are laced with racism and sexism, and he never even considers trying
to live up to the moral standard he demands from those around him. He has no moral qualms
about his own extramarital affair with Myrtle, but when he begins to suspect Daisy and Gatsby
of having an affair, he becomes outraged and forces a confrontation.

Jordan Baker - Daisy’s friend, a woman with whom Nick becomes romantically involved during
the course of the novel. A competitive golfer, Jordan represents one of the “new women” of the
1920s—cynical, boyish, and self-centered. Jordan is beautiful, but also dishonest: she cheated in
order to win her first golf tournament and continually bends the truth.

Myrtle Wilson - Tom’s lover, whose lifeless husband George owns a run-down garage in the
valley of ashes. Myrtle herself possesses a fierce vitality and desperately looks for a way to
improve her situation. Unfortunately for her, she chooses Tom, who treats her as a mere object
of his desire.

George Wilson - Myrtle’s husband, the lifeless, exhausted owner of a run-down auto shop at
the edge of the valley of ashes. George loves and idealizes Myrtle, and is devastated by her
affair with Tom. George is consumed with grief when Myrtle is killed. George is comparable to
Gatsby in that both are dreamers and both are ruined by their unrequited love for women who
love Tom.

Owl Eyes - The eccentric, bespectacled drunk whom Nick meets at the first party he attends at
Gatsby’s mansion. Nick finds Owl Eyes looking through Gatsby’s library, astonished that the
books are real.

Klipspringer - The shallow freeloader who seems almost to live at Gatsby’s mansion, taking
advantage of his host’s money. As soon as Gatsby dies, Klipspringer disappears—he does not
attend the funeral, but he does call Nick about a pair of tennis shoes that he left at Gatsby’s
mansion.

Meyer Wolfsheim - Gatsby’s friend, a prominent figure in organized crime. Before the events of
the novel take place, Wolfsheim helped Gatsby to make his fortune bootlegging illegal liquor.
His continued acquaintance with Gatsby suggests that Gatsby is still involved in illegal business.

14. DISGRACE

Disgrace is a novel by J. M. Coetzee, published in 1999. It won the Booker Prize. The writer was
also awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature four years after its publication.

Summary

David Lurie is a Communications professor at Cape Town Technical University. He has been
twice divorced, has one child, and currently spends ninety minutes of his Thursday afternoons
with a prostitute named Soraya. After Lurie crosses the line by phoning Soraya at her home, he
turns to one of his students to fulfill his desires. Lurie first notices Melanie in the university
gardens and invites her to his home for wine and dinner. That very same night, Melanie is
almost caught in Lurie's web of seduction until he quotes a cliché Shakespeare line, and she
quickly leaves. Lurie does not stop his pursuits there however. Over the weekend, he travels to
campus and uses the University's records to find her address and phone number. Startled at his
call, Melanie agrees to have lunch with him. They return to his house and have sex on the living
room floor. Young Melanie is passive throughout the majority of the act but Lurie on the other
hand attains sensory overload and falls asleep on top of her. The next class is awkward, and later
that night Lurie spies on her while she is rehearsing for a play. The very next afternoon Lurie
arrives at Melanie's flat, pushes himself in and carries her to the bed. She does not resist and
asks him to leave after he is finished because her cousin is coming. She misses the mid-term the
next day and arrives at his house sobbing that night needing a place to stay. Soon after,
Melanie's boyfriend pays the professor a visit and events begin to snowball. Melanie withdraws
from all her classes and a sexual harassment case is filed again Professor Lurie.
The investigation unfolds like a criminal trial with the judges being his colleagues on the
committee. With Melanie's testimony already given, and with the press as well as activist groups
are waiting outside, Lurie is given the opportunity to feign remorse and pledge to seek
treatment; however, he refuses to be a spectacle. He is given no grace and is fired. His only
comment to the press is that he was "enriched" by the experience.

A social outcast, Lurie visits his daughter, Lucy, on her farm in Salem. The first days are slow as
Lurie adjusts to country life but Lurie soon finds plenty to occupy his time as he volunteers at an
animal shelter and helps the farm-hand, Petrus. Although both her parents are professionals,
Lucy has turned to the rural life and lives by selling the crops she has raised on the weekends
and running a small kennel.

The peace of the country does not last for long. As Lucy and Lurie are taking some of the dogs for
a walk, they encounter three Africans on the road who ask to use their phone. Lucy makes the
mistake of putting the dogs up in the kennel and within moments the men have taken Lucy into
the house and locked the door behind them. For moments, Lurie is unable to get inside and
protect his daughter. When he finally does get into the kitchen he is knocked unconscious by a
blow to the head. Lucy is taken into a back room and raped by the three men. Before they leave,
the robbers shoot the dogs in the kennel, ransack the house, set Lurie on fire, and steal his car.
Lucy seeks help from one of her neighbors to call the police and gets her father to the hospital to
treat his burns. For the night, they stay with the Shaws, who are friends of Lucy and run the
animal shelter Lurie volunteers at. Upon return to the farm the next day, they are able to access
the damage. The house is ransacked and all but one dog must be buried. Lucy reports to the
police officer the stolen property and her father's assault, but says nothing about the rape.

Lucy goes through a period of depression after the attack. Since she barely leaves her bed, her
father picks up a lot of the work around the house and is busy from sun up to sun down. Each
time Lurie tries to talk to his daughter about the incident she either evades his questions or
gives him a sharp reply. Lurie is enraged because the culprits have not been caught and Lucy
fears that they may come back. Lurie however does not believe the robbery was simply an
unfortunate event. He finds it suspicious that Lucy's farm-hand, Petrus, was no where to be
found until a couple of days after the robbery. When Petrus returns, he is wearing a new suit
and has bought building supplies for his house. Lurie believes Petrus intentionally left the house
unprotected so that it could be robbed. When Petrus invites Lucy and Lurie to a party to
celebrate his new acquisition of land, Lucy comes face to face with the one of her attackers, a
mentally disturbed young man named Pollux. Pollux is related to Petrus' wife. Lurie immediately
wants to call the police and have him arrested, but Lucy refuses and returns home.

Lurie becomes more and more involved at the shelter, even having a brief affair with Bev, the
shelter owner. Lurie's main duty at the shelter becomes clear: when Bev Shaw gives a lethal
injection to a dog, Lurie disposes of its body in the incinerator. Lurie does not realize how these
killings have affected him until one day he must pull over on the roadside and cry.
Petrus meanwhile makes progress with his land. He has borrowed a tractor, plowed the land,
and remodeled his home. Petrus' wife is expecting a child, and Pollux has come to live with
them. After a false alarm that Lurie's car had been recovered by the police, Lurie confronts his
daughter about the future. From his perspective, she has little other option than to move. It is
unsafe for a woman to live alone on the farm unprotected, and Petrus cannot be trusted. He
offers to send her to Holland, where her biological mother lives, with the money he receives
from selling his house. Lucy is not receptive to this idea at all. She is determined to stay in
Salem. Marking a breaking point in their father-daughter relationship, she writes him a note
saying, "I cannot be a child for ever. You cannot be a father forever. I know you mean well, but
you are not the guide I need, not at this time (161)."

Lurie returns to Cape Town, and on his way back he stops in George to visit Mr. Isaacs. Mr. Isaacs
is not home, and his daughter, Desiree Isaacs, answers the door. Finding the young girl very
attractive, Lurie does not stay long and instead finds Mr. Isaacs at his job. Mr. Isaacs is the
principal of a middle school. Lurie attempts to explain himself in the office. Even though Mr.
Isaacs is confused at his words, he invites Lurie to dinner with his family. The evening is clearly
uncomfortable, but Mr. Isaacs finally gets what he is seeking: an apology. When Lurie returns to
his house in Cape Town, he finds it has been robbed and vandalized. He returns to his office and
finds his replacement at his desk. For a while, Lurie tries to get his opera on Byron off the ground
but comes to an impasse. Life back in Cape Town is not the same; he finds he is an outcast. After
being given an update on Melanie by his ex-wife Rosalind, Lurie decides to see Melanie perform
in a play. During the play, Melanie's boyfriend sees Lurie in the audience and harasses him,
telling him to stick with his own kind.

Lurie stays in contact with Lucy by phone, but senses that she is not telling him everything. After
an ambiguous conversation with Bev Shaw, Lurie decides to visit his daughter. Lucy is pregnant
from the rape and has made a conscious decision to keep the child. Lurie is shocked because he
believed she had taken all precautions after the incident. Once more, he offers her an escape,
but she will not run. Lucy decides her own course of action. She will sign over her land to Petrus
(marrying him in a contractual sense) in exchange for protection and the right to remain in her
house. Resigned, Lurie rents a room in Grahmstown to help his daughter at the market once a
week and to dedicate himself to the disposal of the dogs' bodies at the shelter.

CharacterS

David Lurie - twice-divorced professor of Communications at Cape Technical University in Cape

Town South Africa,fifty-two years old.

Soraya - prostitute that Lurie has visited weekly for over a year.

Melanie Isaacs - student in Lurie's Romantics course who charges a sexual harassament
complaint against him after having sex with Lurie.

Lucy - Lurie's daughter who owns a farm and takes care of dogs. Lurie lives with her after he is
dismissed from his position at the University.

Bev Shaw - woman who runs the animal shelter and with whom Lurie has an affair.

Bill Shaw - Bev's husband, who sees Davis Lurie as his friend

Petrus - African who works for Lucy

Mr. Isaac - Melanie's father whom Lurie apologizes to after the incident.

Pollux- one of the three South Africans who raped Lucy; Petrus' brother-in-law

Katy - the surviving dog

Elaine Winter - chair of Communications department

Farodia Rassool - Social Studies professor, chair of the committee on discrimination

Aram Hakim - sympathetic member of Melanie's sexual harassment investigation

Rosalind - Lurie's second ex-wife

Evelina- Lucy's biological mother

Teresa Guiccoli - Byron's last mistress before he dies; Byron and Teresa's relationship is the topic
of Lurie's opera

Ryan - Melanie's boyfriend

Desiree - Melanie's younger sister

15. THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY

The Portrait of a Lady is a novel by Henry James, first published as a serial in The Atlantic
Monthly and Macmillan's Magazine in 1880–81 and then as a book in 1881. It is one of James's
most popular long novels and is regarded by critics as one of his finest.

The Portrait of a Lady is the story of a spirited young American woman, Isabel Archer, who, in
"confronting her destiny", finds it overwhelming. She inherits a large amount of money and
subsequently becomes the victim of Machiavellian scheming by two American expatriates. Like
many of James's novels, it is set in Europe, mostly England and Italy. Generally regarded as the
masterpiece of James's early period, this novel reflects James's continuing interest in the
differences between the New World and the Old, often to the detriment of the former. It also
treats in a profound way the themes of personal freedom, responsibility, and betrayal.

Plot Overview

Isabel Archer is a woman in her early twenties who comes from a genteel family in Albany, New
York, in the late 1860s. Her mother died when she was a young girl, and her father raised her in
a haphazard manner, allowing her to educate herself and encouraging her independence. As a
result, the adult Isabel is widely read, imaginative, confident in her own mind, and slightly
narcissistic; she has the reputation in Albany for being a formidable intellect, and as a result she
often seems intimidating to men. She has had few suitors, but one of them is Caspar Goodwood,
the powerful, charismatic son of a wealthy Boston mill owner. Isabel is drawn to Caspar, but her
commitment to her independence makes her fear him as well, for she feels that to marry him
would be to sacrifice her freedom.

Shortly after Isabel's father dies, she receives a visit from her indomitable aunt, Mrs. Touchett,
an American who lives in Europe. Mrs. Touchett offers to take Isabel on a trip to Europe, and
Isabel eagerly agrees, telling Caspar that she cannot tell him whether she wishes to marry him
until she has had at least a year to travel in Europe with her aunt. Isabel and Mrs. Touchett leave
for England, where Mrs. Touchett's estranged husband is a powerful banker. Isabel makes a
strong impression on everyone at Mr. Touchett's county manor of Gardencourt: her cousin
Ralph, slowly dying of a lung disorder, becomes deeply devoted to her, and the Touchetts'
aristocratic neighbor Lord Warburton falls in love with her. Warburton proposes, but Isabel
declines; though she fears that she is passing up a great social opportunity by not marrying
Warburton, she still believes that marriage would damage her treasured independence. As a
result, she pledges to accomplish something wonderful with her life, something that will justify
her decision to reject Warburton.

Isabel's friend Henrietta Stackpole, an American journalist, believes that Europe is changing
Isabel, slowly eroding her American values and replacing them with romantic idealism.
Henrietta comes to Gardencourt and secretly arranges for Caspar Goodwood to meet Isabel in
London. Goodwood again presses Isabel to marry him; this time, she tells him she needs at least
two years before she can answer him, and she promises him nothing. She is thrilled to have
exercised her independence so forcefully. Mr. Touchett's health declines, and Ralph convinces
him that when he dies, he should leave half his wealth to Isabel: this will protect her
independence and ensure that she will never have to marry for money. Mr. Touchett agrees
shortly before he dies. Isabel is left with a large fortune for the first time in her life. Her
inheritance piques the interest of Madame Merle, Mrs. Touchett's polished, elegant friend;
Madame Merle begins to lavish attention on Isabel, and the two women become close friends.

Isabel travels to Florence with Mrs. Touchett and Madame Merle; Merle introduces Isabel to a
man named Gilbert Osmond, a man of no social standing or wealth, but whom Merle describes
as one of the finest gentlemen in Europe, wholly devoted to art and aesthetics. Osmond's
daughter Pansy is being brought up in a convent; his wife is dead. In secret, Osmond and Merle
have a mysterious relationship; Merle is attempting to manipulate Isabel into marrying Osmond
so that he will have access to her fortune. Osmond is pleased to marry Isabel, not only for her
money, but also because she makes a fine addition to his collection of art objects.

Everyone in Isabel's world disapproves of Osmond, especially Ralph, but Isabel chooses to marry
him anyway. She has a child the year after they are married, but the boy dies six months after he
is born. Three years into their marriage, Isabel and Osmond have come to despise one another;
they live with Pansy in a palazzo in Rome, where Osmond treats Isabel as barely a member of
the family: to him, she is a social hostess and a source of wealth, and he is annoyed by her
independence and her insistence on having her own opinions. Isabel chafes against Osmond's
arrogance, his selfishness, and his sinister desire to crush her individuality, but she does not
consider leaving him. For all her commitment to her independence, Isabel is also committed to
her social duty, and when she married Osmond, she did so with the intention of transforming
herself into a good wife.

A young American art collector who lives in Paris, Edward Rosier, comes to Rome and falls in
love with Pansy; Pansy returns his feelings. But Osmond is insistent that Pansy should marry a
nobleman, and he says that Rosier is neither rich nor highborn enough. Matters grow
complicated when Lord Warburton arrives on the scene and begins to court Pansy. Warburton is
still in love with Isabel and wants to marry Pansy solely to get closer to her. But Osmond
desperately wants to see Pansy married to Warburton. Isabel is torn about whether to fulfill her
duty to her husband and help him arrange the match between Warburton and Pansy, or to fulfill
the impulse of her conscience and discourage Warburton, while helping Pansy find a way to
marry Rosier.

At a ball one night, Isabel shows Warburton the dejected-looking Rosier and explains that this is
the man who is in love with Pansy. Guiltily, Warburton admits that he is not in love with Pansy;
he quietly arranges to leave Rome. Osmond is furious with Isabel, convinced that she is plotting
intentionally to humiliate him. Madame Merle is also furious with her, confronting her with
shocking impropriety and demanding brazenly to know what she did to Warburton. Isabel has
realized that there is something mysterious about Madame Merle's relationship with her
husband; now, she suddenly realizes that Merle is his lover.

At this time, Ralph is rapidly deteriorating, and Isabel receives word that he is dying. She longs
to travel to England to be with him, but Osmond forbids it. Now Isabel must struggle to decide
whether to obey his command and remain true to her marriage vows or to disregard him and
hurry to her cousin's bedside. Encouraging her to go, Osmond's sister, the Countess Gemini, tells
her that there is still more to Merle and Osmond's relationship. Merle is Pansy's mother; Pansy
was born out of wedlock. Osmond's wife died at about the same time, so Merle and Osmond
spread the story that she died in childbirth. Pansy was placed in a convent to be raised, and she
does not know that Merle is her real mother. Isabel is shocked and disgusted by her husband's
atrocious behavior—she even feels sorry for Merle for falling under his spell—so she decides to
follow her heart and travel to England.

After Ralph's death, Isabel struggles to decide whether to return to her husband or not. She
promised Pansy that she would return to Rome, and her commitment to social propriety impels
her to go back and honor her marriage. But her independent spirit urges her to flee from
Osmond and find happiness elsewhere. Caspar Goodwood appears at the funeral, and
afterwards, he asks Isabel to run away with him and forget about her husband. The next day,
unable to find her, Goodwood asks Henrietta where she has gone. Henrietta quietly tells him
that Isabel has returned to Rome, unable to break away from her marriage to Gilbert Osmond.

Characters

Isabel Archer - The novel's protagonist, the Lady of the title. Isabel is a young woman from
Albany, New York, who travels to Europe with her aunt, Mrs. Touchett. Isabel's experiences in
Europe—she is wooed by an English lord, inherits a fortune, and falls prey to a villainous scheme
to marry her to the sinister Gilbert Osmond—force her to confront the conflict between her
desire for personal independence and her commitment to social propriety. Isabel is the main
focus of Portrait of a Lady, and most of the thematic exploration of the novel occurs through her
actions, thoughts, and experiences. Ultimately, Isabel chooses to remain in her miserable
marriage to Osmond rather than to violate custom by leaving him and searching for a happier
life.

Gilbert Osmond - A cruel, narcissistic gentleman of no particular social standing or wealth, who
seduces Isabel and marries her for her money. An art collector, Osmond poses as a disinterested
aesthete, but in reality he is desperate for the recognition and admiration of those around him.
He treats everyone who loves him as simply an object to be used to fulfill his desires; he bases
his daughter Pansy's upbringing on the idea that she should be unswervingly subservient to him,
and he even treats his longtime lover Madame Merle as a mere tool. Isabel's marriage to
Osmond forces her to confront the conflict between her desire for independence and the painful
social proprieties that force her to remain in her marriage.

Madame Merle - An accomplished, graceful, and manipulative woman, Madame Merle is a

popular lady who does not have a husband or a fortune. Motivated by her love for Gilbert
Osmond, Merle manipulates Isabel into marrying Osmond, delivering Isabel's fortune into his
hands and ruining Isabel's life in the process. Unbeknownst to either Isabel or Pansy, Merle is
not only Osmond's lover, but she is also Pansy's mother, a fact that was covered up after Pansy's
birth. Pansy was raised to believe that her mother died in childbirth.

Ralph Touchett - Isabel's wise, funny cousin, who is ill with lung disease throughout the entire
novel, which ends shortly after his death. Ralph loves life, but he is kept from participating in it
vigorously by his ailment; as a result, he acts as a dedicated spectator, resolving to live
vicariously through his beloved cousin Isabel. It is Ralph who convinces Mr. Touchett to leave
Isabel her fortune, and it is Ralph who is the staunchest advocate of Isabel remaining
independent. Ralph serves as the moral center of Portrait of a Lady: his opinions about other
characters are always accurate, and he serves as a kind of moral barometer for the reader, who
can tell immediately whether a character is good or evil by Ralph's response to that character.

Lord Warburton - An aristocratic neighbor of the Touchetts who falls in love with Isabel during
her first visit to Gardencourt. Warburton remains in love with Isabel even after she rejects his
proposal and later tries to marry Pansy simply to bring himself closer to Isabel's life.

Caspar Goodwood - The son of a prominent Boston mill owner, Isabel's most dedicated suitor
in America. Goodwood's charisma, simplicity, capability, and lack of sophistication make him the
book's purest symbol of James's conception of America.

Henrietta Stackpole - Isabel's fiercely independent friend, a feminist journalist who does not
believe that women need men in order to be happy. Like Caspar, Henrietta is a symbol of
America's democratic values throughout he book. After Isabel leaves for Europe, Henrietta fights
a losing battle to keep her true to her American outlook, constantly encouraging her to marry
Caspar Goodwood. At the end of the book, Henrietta disappoints Isabel by giving up her
independence in order to marry Mr. Bantling.

Mrs. Touchett - Isabel's aunt. Mrs. Touchett is an indomitable, independent old woman who
first brings Isabel to Europe. The wife of Mr. Touchett and the mother of Ralph, Mrs. Touchett is
separated from her husband, residing in Florence while he stays at Gardencourt. After Isabel
inherits her fortune and falls under the sway of Merle and Osmond, Mrs. Touchett's importance
in her life gradually declines.

Pansy Osmond - Gilbert Osmond's placid, submissive daughter, raised in a convent to guarantee
her obedience and docility. Pansy believes that her mother died in childbirth; in reality, her
mother is Osmond's longtime lover, Madame Merle. When Isabel becomes Pansy's stepmother,
she learns to love the girl; Pansy is a large part of the reason why Isabel chooses to return to
Rome at the end of the novel, when she could escape her miserable marriage by remaining in
England.

Edward Rosier - A hapless American art collector who lives in Paris, Rosier falls in love with
Pansy Osmond and does his best to win Osmond's permission to marry her. But though he sells
his art collection and appeals to Madame Merle, Isabel, and the Countess Gemini, Rosier is
unable to change Gilbert's mind that Pansy should marry a high-born, wealthy nobleman, not an
obscure American with little money and no social standing to speak of.

Mr. Touchett - An elderly American banker who has made his life and his vast fortune in
England who is Ralph's father and the proprietor of Gardencourt. Before Mr. Touchett dies,
Ralph convinces him to leave half his fortune to his niece Isabel, which will enable her to
preserve her independence and avoid having to marry for money.

Mr. Bantling - The game Englishman who acts as Henrietta's escort across Europe, eventually
persuading her to marry him at the end of the novel.

Countess Gemini - Osmond's vapid sister, who covers up her own marital infidelities by
gossipping constantly about the affairs of other married women. The Countess seems to have a
good heart, however, opposing Merle's scheme to marry Osmond and Isabel and eventually
revealing to Isabel the truth of Merle's relationship to Osmond and Pansy's parentage.
 16. ROBINSON CRUSOE
Robinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published on 25 April 1719. The first edition
credited the work's protagonist Robinson Crusoe as its author, leading many readers to believe
he was a real person and the book a travelogue of true incidents.

Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is presented as an autobiography of the
title character (whose birth name is Robinson Kreutznaer)—a castaway who spends
twenty-eight years on a remote tropical desert island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals,
captives, and mutineers, before ultimately being rescued. The story has since been thought to
be based on the life of Alexander Selkirk, a Scottish castaway who lived for four years on a
Pacific island called "Más a Tierra", now part of Chile, which was renamed Robinson Crusoe
Island in 1966, but various literary sources have also been suggested.

Despite its simple narrative style, Robinson Crusoe was well received in the literary world and is
often credited as marking the beginning of realistic fiction as a literary genre. It is generally seen
as a contender for the first English novel. Before the end of 1719, the book had already run
through four editions, and it has gone on to become one of the most widely published books in
history, spawning so many imitations, not only in literature but also in film, television and radio,
that its name is used to define a genre, the Robinsonade.

Plot Overview

Robinson Crusoe is an Englishman from the town of York in the seventeenth century, the
youngest son of a merchant of German origin. Encouraged by his father to study law, Crusoe
expresses his wish to go to sea instead. His family is against Crusoe going out to sea, and his
father explains that it is better to seek a modest, secure life for oneself. Initially, Robinson is
committed to obeying his father, but he eventually succumbs to temptation and embarks on a
ship bound for London with a friend. When a storm causes the near deaths of Crusoe and his
friend, the friend is dissuaded from sea travel, but Crusoe still goes on to set himself up as
merchant on a ship leaving London. This trip is financially successful, and Crusoe plans another,
leaving his early profits in the care of a friendly widow. The second voyage does not prove as
fortunate: the ship is seized by Moorish pirates, and Crusoe is enslaved to a potentate in the
North African town of Sallee. While on a fishing expedition, he and a slave boy break free and
sail down the African coast. A kindly Portuguese captain picks them up, buys the slave boy from
Crusoe, and takes Crusoe to Brazil. In Brazil, Crusoe establishes himself as a plantation owner
and soon becomes successful. Eager for slave labor and its economic advantages, he embarks on
a slave-gathering expedition to West Africa but ends up shipwrecked off of the coast of Trinidad.

Crusoe soon learns he is the sole survivor of the expedition and seeks shelter and food for
himself. He returns to the wreck’s remains twelve times to salvage guns, powder, food, and
other items. Onshore, he finds goats he can graze for meat and builds himself a shelter. He
erects a cross that he inscribes with the date of his arrival, September 1, 1659, and makes a
notch every day in order never to lose track of time. He also keeps a journal of his household
activities, noting his attempts to make candles, his lucky discovery of sprouting grain, and his
construction of a cellar, among other events. In June 1660, he falls ill and hallucinates that an
angel visits, warning him to repent. Drinking tobacco-steeped rum, Crusoe experiences a
religious illumination and realizes that God has delivered him from his earlier sins. After
recovering, Crusoe makes a survey of the area and discovers he is on an island. He finds a
pleasant valley abounding in grapes, where he builds a shady retreat. Crusoe begins to feel
more optimistic about being on the island, describing himself as its “king.” He trains a pet
parrot, takes a goat as a pet, and develops skills in basket weaving, bread making, and pottery.
He cuts down an enormous cedar tree and builds a huge canoe from its trunk, but he discovers
that he cannot move it to the sea. After building a smaller boat, he rows around the island but
nearly perishes when swept away by a powerful current. Reaching shore, he hears his parrot
calling his name and is thankful for being saved once again. He spends several years in peace.

One day Crusoe is shocked to discover a man’s footprint on the beach. He first assumes the
footprint is the devil’s, then decides it must belong to one of the cannibals said to live in the
region. Terrified, he arms himself and remains on the lookout for cannibals. He also builds an
underground cellar in which to herd his goats at night and devises a way to cook underground.
One evening he hears gunshots, and the next day he is able to see a ship wrecked on his coast. It
is empty when he arrives on the scene to investigate. Crusoe once again thanks Providence for
having been saved. Soon afterward, Crusoe discovers that the shore has been strewn with
human carnage, apparently the remains of a cannibal feast. He is alarmed and continues to be
vigilant. Later Crusoe catches sight of thirty cannibals heading for shore with their victims. One
of the victims is killed. Another one, waiting to be slaughtered, suddenly breaks free and runs
toward Crusoe’s dwelling. Crusoe protects him, killing one of the pursuers and injuring the
other, whom the victim finally kills. Well-armed, Crusoe defeats most of the cannibals onshore.
The victim vows total submission to Crusoe in gratitude for his liberation. Crusoe names him
Friday, to commemorate the day on which his life was saved, and takes him as his servant.

Finding Friday cheerful and intelligent, Crusoe teaches him some English words and some
elementary Christian concepts. Friday, in turn, explains that the cannibals are divided into
distinct nations and that they only eat their enemies. Friday also informs Crusoe that the
cannibals saved the men from the shipwreck Crusoe witnessed earlier, and that those men,
Spaniards, are living nearby. Friday expresses a longing to return to his people, and Crusoe is
upset at the prospect of losing Friday. Crusoe then entertains the idea of making contact with
the Spaniards, and Friday admits that he would rather die than lose Crusoe. The two build a boat
to visit the cannibals’ land together. Before they have a chance to leave, they are surprised by
the arrival of twenty-one cannibals in canoes. The cannibals are holding three victims, one of
whom is in European dress. Friday and Crusoe kill most of the cannibals and release the
European, a Spaniard. Friday is overjoyed to discover that another of the rescued victims is his
father. The four men return to Crusoe’s dwelling for food and rest. Crusoe prepares to welcome
them into his community permanently. He sends Friday’s father and the Spaniard out in a canoe
to explore the nearby land.

Eight days later, the sight of an approaching English ship alarms Friday. Crusoe is suspicious.
Friday and Crusoe watch as eleven men take three captives onshore in a boat. Nine of the men
explore the land, leaving two to guard the captives. Friday and Crusoe overpower these men
and release the captives, one of whom is the captain of the ship, which has been taken in a
mutiny. Shouting to the remaining mutineers from different points, Friday and Crusoe confuse
and tire the men by making them run from place to place. Eventually they confront the
mutineers, telling them that all may escape with their lives except the ringleader. The men
surrender. Crusoe and the captain pretend that the island is an imperial territory and that the
governor has spared their lives in order to send them all to England to face justice. Keeping five
men as hostages, Crusoe sends the other men out to seize the ship. When the ship is brought in,
Crusoe nearly faints.

On December 19, 1686, Crusoe boards the ship to return to England. There, he finds his family is
deceased except for two sisters. His widow friend has kept Crusoe’s money safe, and after
traveling to Lisbon, Crusoe learns from the Portuguese captain that his plantations in Brazil have
been highly profitable. He arranges to sell his Brazilian lands. Wary of sea travel, Crusoe
attempts to return to England by land but is threatened by bad weather and wild animals in
northern Spain. Finally arriving back in England, Crusoe receives word that the sale of his
plantations has been completed and that he has made a considerable fortune. After donating a
portion to the widow and his sisters, Crusoe is restless and considers returning to Brazil, but he
is dissuaded by the thought that he would have to become Catholic. He marries, and his wife
dies. Crusoe finally departs for the East Indies as a trader in 1694. He revisits his island, finding
that the Spaniards are governing it well and that it has become a prosperous colony.

Characters

Robinson Crusoe - The novel’s protagonist and narrator. Crusoe begins the novel as a young
middle-class man in York in search of a career. He father recommends the law, but Crusoe
yearns for a life at sea, and his subsequent rebellion and decision to become a merchant is the
starting point for the whole adventure that follows. His vague but recurring feelings of guilt over
his disobedience color the first part of the first half of the story and show us how deep Crusoe’s
religious fear is. Crusoe is steady and plodding in everything he does, and his perseverance
ensures his survival through storms, enslavement, and a twenty-eight-year isolation on a desert
island.

Friday - A twenty-six-year-old Caribbean native and cannibal who converts to Protestantism

under Crusoe’s tutelage. Friday becomes Crusoe’s servant after Crusoe saves his life when
Friday is about to be eaten by other cannibals. Friday never appears to resist or resent his new
servitude, and he may sincerely view it as appropriate compensation for having his life saved.
But whatever Friday’s response may be, his servitude has become a symbol of imperialist
oppression throughout the modern world. Friday’s overall charisma works against the emotional
deadness that many readers find in Crusoe.

The Portuguese captain - The sea captain who picks up Crusoe and the slave boy Xury from
their boat after they escape from their Moorish captors and float down the African coast. The
Portuguese captain takes Crusoe to Brazil and thus inaugurates Crusoe’s new life as plantation
owner. The Portuguese captain is never named—unlike Xury, for example—and his anonymity
suggests a certain uninteresting blandness in his role in the novel. He is polite, personable, and
extremely generous to Crusoe, buying the animal skins and the slave boy from Crusoe at well
over market value. He is loyal as well, taking care of Crusoe’s Brazilian investments even after a
twenty-eight-year absence. His role in Crusoe’s life is crucial, since he both arranges for Crusoe’s
new career as a plantation owner and helps Crusoe cash in on the profits later.

The Spaniard - One of the men from the Spanish ship that is wrecked off Crusoe’s island, and
whose crew is rescued by the cannibals and taken to a neighboring island. The Spaniard is
doomed to be eaten as a ritual victim of the cannibals when Crusoe saves him. In exchange, he
becomes a new “subject” in Crusoe’s “kingdom,” at least according to Crusoe. The Spaniard is
never fleshed out much as a character in Crusoe’s narrative, an example of the odd impersonal
attitude often notable in Crusoe.

Xury - A nonwhite (Arab or black) slave boy only briefly introduced during the period of
Crusoe’s enslavement in Sallee. When Crusoe escapes with two other slaves in a boat, he forces
one to swim to shore but keeps Xury on board, showing a certain trust toward the boy. Xury
never betrays that trust. Nevertheless, when the Portuguese captain eventually picks them up,
Crusoe sells Xury to the captain. Xury’s sale shows us the racist double standards sometimes
apparent in Crusoe’s behavior.

The widow - Appearing briefly, but on two separate occasions in the novel, the widow keeps
Crusoe’s 200 pounds safe in England throughout all his thirty-five years of journeying. She
returns it loyally to Crusoe upon his return to England and, like the Portuguese captain and
Friday, reminds us of the goodwill and trustworthiness of which humans can be capable,
whether European or not.

17. WUTHERING HEIGHTS

Wuthering Heights is Emily Brontë's only novel. Written between October 1845 and June
1846,Wuthering Heights was published in 1847 under the pseudonym "Ellis Bell"; Brontë died
the following year, aged 30. Wuthering Heights and Anne Brontë's Agnes Grey were accepted by
publisher Thomas Newby before the success of their sister Charlotte's novel, Jane Eyre. After
Emily's death, Charlotte edited the manuscript of Wuthering Heights, and arranged for the
edited version to be published as a posthumous second edition in 1850.

Plot Overview

In the late winter months of 1801, a man named Lockwood rents a manor house called
Thrushcross Grange in the isolated moor country of England. Here, he meets his dour landlord,
Heathcliff, a wealthy man who lives in the ancient manor of Wuthering Heights, four miles away
from the Grange. In this wild, stormy countryside, Lockwood asks his housekeeper, Nelly Dean,
to tell him the story of Heathcliff and the strange denizens of Wuthering Heights. Nelly consents,
and Lockwood writes down his recollections of her tale in his diary; these written recollections
form the main part of Wuthering Heights.

Nelly remembers her childhood. As a young girl, she works as a servant at Wuthering Heights for
the owner of the manor, Mr. Earnshaw, and his family. One day, Mr. Earnshaw goes to Liverpool
and returns home with an orphan boy whom he will raise with his own children. At first, the
Earnshaw children—a boy named Hindley and his younger sister Catherine—detest the
dark-skinned Heathcliff. But Catherine quickly comes to love him, and the two soon grow
inseparable, spending their days playing on the moors. After his wife’s death, Mr. Earnshaw
grows to prefer Heathcliff to his own son, and when Hindley continues his cruelty to Heathcliff,
Mr. Earnshaw sends Hindley away to college, keeping Heathcliff nearby.

Three years later, Mr. Earnshaw dies, and Hindley inherits Wuthering Heights. He returns with a
wife, Frances, and immediately seeks revenge on Heathcliff. Once an orphan, later a pampered
and favored son, Heathcliff now finds himself treated as a common laborer, forced to work in
the fields. Heathcliff continues his close relationship with Catherine, however. One night they
wander to Thrushcross Grange, hoping to tease Edgar and Isabella Linton, the cowardly,
snobbish children who live there. Catherine is bitten by a dog and is forced to stay at the Grange
to recuperate for five weeks, during which time Mrs. Linton works to make her a proper young
lady. By the time Catherine returns, she has become infatuated with Edgar, and her relationship
with Heathcliff grows more complicated.

When Frances dies after giving birth to a baby boy named Hareton, Hindley descends into the
depths of alcoholism, and behaves even more cruelly and abusively toward Heathcliff.
Eventually, Catherine’s desire for social advancement prompts her to become engaged to Edgar
Linton, despite her overpowering love for Heathcliff. Heathcliff runs away from Wuthering
Heights, staying away for three years, and returning shortly after Catherine and Edgar’s
marriage.

When Heathcliff returns, he immediately sets about seeking revenge on all who have wronged
him. Having come into a vast and mysterious wealth, he deviously lends money to the drunken
Hindley, knowing that Hindley will increase his debts and fall into deeper despondency. When
Hindley dies, Heathcliff inherits the manor. He also places himself in line to inherit Thrushcross
Grange by marrying Isabella Linton, whom he treats very cruelly. Catherine becomes ill, gives
birth to a daughter, and dies. Heathcliff begs her spirit to remain on Earth—she may take
whatever form she will, she may haunt him, drive him mad—just as long as she does not leave
him alone. Shortly thereafter, Isabella flees to London and gives birth to Heathcliff’s son, named
Linton after her family. She keeps the boy with her there.
Thirteen years pass, during which Nelly Dean serves as Catherine’s daughter’s nursemaid at
Thrushcross Grange. Young Catherine is beautiful and headstrong like her mother, but her
temperament is modified by her father’s gentler influence. Young Catherine grows up at the
Grange with no knowledge of Wuthering Heights; one day, however, wandering through the
moors, she discovers the manor, meets Hareton, and plays together with him. Soon afterwards,
Isabella dies, and Linton comes to live with Heathcliff. Heathcliff treats his sickly, whining son
even more cruelly than he treated the boy’s mother.

Three years later, Catherine meets Heathcliff on the moors, and makes a visit to Wuthering
Heights to meet Linton. She and Linton begin a secret romance conducted entirely through
letters. When Nelly destroys Catherine’s collection of letters, the girl begins sneaking out at
night to spend time with her frail young lover, who asks her to come back and nurse him back to
health. However, it quickly becomes apparent that Linton is pursuing Catherine only because
Heathcliff is forcing him to; Heathcliff hopes that if Catherine marries Linton, his legal claim
upon Thrushcross Grange—and his revenge upon Edgar Linton—will be complete. One day, as
Edgar Linton grows ill and nears death, Heathcliff lures Nelly and Catherine back to Wuthering
Heights, and holds them prisoner until Catherine marries Linton. Soon after the marriage, Edgar
dies, and his death is quickly followed by the death of the sickly Linton. Heathcliff now controls
both Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange. He forces Catherine to live at Wuthering
Heights and act as a common servant, while he rents Thrushcross Grange to Lockwood.

Nelly’s story ends as she reaches the present. Lockwood, appalled, ends his tenancy at
Thrushcross Grange and returns to London. However, six months later, he pays a visit to Nelly,
and learns of further developments in the story. Although Catherine originally mocked
Hareton’s ignorance and illiteracy (in an act of retribution, Heathcliff ended Hareton’s education
after Hindley died), Catherine grows to love Hareton as they live together at Wuthering Heights.
Heathcliff becomes more and more obsessed with the memory of the elder Catherine, to the
extent that he begins speaking to her ghost. Everything he sees reminds him of her. Shortly after
a night spent walking on the moors, Heathcliff dies. Hareton and young Catherine inherit
Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, and they plan to be married on the next New Year’s
Day. After hearing the end of the story, Lockwood goes to visit the graves of Catherine and
Heathcliff.

Chronology

The story of Wuthering Heights is told through flashbacks recorded in diary entries, and events
are often presented out of chronological order—Lockwood’s narrative takes place after Nelly’s
narrative, for instance, but is interspersed with Nelly’s story in his journal. Nevertheless, the
novel contains enough clues to enable an approximate reconstruction of its chronology, which
was elaborately designed by Emily Brontë. For instance, Lockwood’s diary entries are recorded
in the late months of 1801 and in September 1802; in 1801, Nelly tells Lockwood that she has
lived at Thrushcross Grange for eighteen years, since Catherine’s marriage to Edgar, which must
then have occurred in 1783. We know that Catherine was engaged to Edgar for three years, and
that Nelly was twenty-two when they were engaged, so the engagement must have taken place
in 1780, and Nelly must have been born in 1758. Since Nelly is a few years older than Catherine,
and since Lockwood comments that Heathcliff is about forty years old in 1801, it stands to
reason that Heathcliff and Catherine were born around 1761, three years after Nelly. There are
several other clues like this in the novel (such as Hareton’s birth, which occurs in June, 1778).
The following chronology is based on those clues, and should closely approximate the timing of
the novel’s important events. A “~” before a date indicates that it cannot be precisely
determined from the evidence in the novel, but only closely estimated.

1500 - The stone above the front door of Wuthering Heights, bearing the name of Hareton
Earnshaw, is inscribed, possibly to mark the completion of the house.

1758 - Nelly is born.

~1761 - Heathcliff and Catherine are born.

~1767 - Mr. Earnshaw brings Heathcliff to live at Wuthering Heights.

1774 - Mr. Earnshaw sends Hindley away to college.

1777 - Mr. Earnshaw dies; Hindley and Frances take possession of Wuthering Heights; Catherine
first visits Thrushcross Grange around Christmastime.

1778 - Hareton is born in June; Frances dies; Hindley begins his slide into alcoholism.

1780 - Catherine becomes engaged to Edgar Linton; Heathcliff leaves Wuthering Heights.

1783 - Catherine and Edgar are married; Heathcliff arrives at Thrushcross Grange in September.

1784 - Heathcliff and Isabella elope in the early part of the year; Catherine becomes ill with
brain fever; young Catherine is born late in the year; Catherine dies.

1785 - Early in the year, Isabella flees Wuthering Heights and settles in London; Linton is born.

~1785 - Hindley dies; Heathcliff inherits Wuthering Heights.

~1797 - Young Catherine meets Hareton and visits Wuthering Heights for the first time; Linton
comes from London after Isabella dies (in late 1797 or early 1798).

1800 - Young Catherine stages her romance with Linton in the winter.

1801 - Early in the year, young Catherine is imprisoned by Heathcliff and forced to marry Linton;
Edgar Linton dies; Linton dies; Heathcliff assumes control of Thrushcross Grange. Late in the
year, Lockwood rents the Grange from Heathcliff and begins his tenancy. In a winter storm,
Lockwood takes ill and begins conversing with Nelly Dean.
1801–1802 - During the winter, Nelly narrates her story for Lockwood.

1802 - In spring, Lockwood returns to London; Catherine and Hareton fall in love; Heathcliff
dies; Lockwood returns in September and hears the end of the story from Nelly.

1803 - On New Year’s Day, young Catherine and Hareton plan to be married.

Characters

Heathcliff - An orphan brought to live at Wuthering Heights by Mr. Earnshaw, Heathcliff falls
into an intense, unbreakable love with Mr. Earnshaw’s daughter Catherine. After Mr. Earnshaw
dies, his resentful son Hindley abuses Heathcliff and treats him as a servant. Because of her
desire for social prominence, Catherine marries Edgar Linton instead of Heathcliff. Heathcliff’s
humiliation and misery prompt him to spend most of the rest of his life seeking revenge on
Hindley, his beloved Catherine, and their respective children (Hareton and young Catherine). A
powerful, fierce, and often cruel man, Heathcliff acquires a fortune and uses his extraordinary
powers of will to acquire both Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange, the estate of Edgar
Linton.

Catherine - The daughter of Mr. Earnshaw and his wife, Catherine falls powerfully in love with
Heathcliff, the orphan Mr. Earnshaw brings home from Liverpool. Catherine loves Heathcliff so
intensely that she claims they are the same person. However, her desire for social advancement
motivates her to marry Edgar Linton instead. Catherine is free-spirited, beautiful, spoiled, and
often arrogant. She is given to fits of temper, and she is torn between her wild passion for
Heathcliff and her social ambition. She brings misery to both of the men who love her.

Edgar Linton - Well-bred but rather spoiled as a boy, Edgar Linton grows into a tender, constant,
but cowardly man. He is almost the ideal gentleman: Catherine accurately describes him as
“handsome,” “pleasant to be with,” “cheerful,” and “rich.” However, this full assortment of
gentlemanly characteristics, along with his civilized virtues, proves useless in Edgar’s clashes
with his foil, Heathcliff, who gains power over his wife, sister, and daughter.

Nelly Dean - Nelly Dean (known formally as Ellen Dean) serves as the chief narrator of
Wuthering Heights. A sensible, intelligent, and compassionate woman, she grew up essentially
alongside Hindley and Catherine Earnshaw and is deeply involved in the story she tells. She has
strong feelings for the characters in her story, and these feelings complicate her narration.

Lockwood - Lockwood’s narration forms a frame around Nelly’s; he serves as an intermediary

between Nelly and the reader. A somewhat vain and presumptuous gentleman, he deals very
clumsily with the inhabitants of Wuthering Heights. Lockwood comes from a more domesticated
region of England, and he finds himself at a loss when he witnesses the strange household’s
disregard for the social conventions that have always structured his world. As a narrator, his
vanity and unfamiliarity with the story occasionally lead him to misunderstand events.

Young Catherine - For clarity’s sake, this SparkNote refers to the daughter of Edgar Linton and
the first Catherine as “young Catherine.” The first Catherine begins her life as Catherine
Earnshaw and ends it as Catherine Linton; her daughter begins as Catherine Linton and,
assuming that she marries Hareton after the end of the story, goes on to become Catherine
Earnshaw. The mother and the daughter share not only a name, but also a tendency toward
headstrong behavior, impetuousness, and occasional arrogance. However, Edgar’s influence
seems to have tempered young Catherine’s character, and she is a gentler and more
compassionate creature than her mother.

Hareton Earnshaw - The son of Hindley and Frances Earnshaw, Hareton is Catherine’s nephew.
After Hindley’s death, Heathcliff assumes custody of Hareton, and raises him as an uneducated
field worker, just as Hindley had done to Heathcliff himself. Thus Heathcliff uses Hareton to seek
revenge on Hindley. Illiterate and quick-tempered, Hareton is easily humiliated, but shows a
good heart and a deep desire to improve himself. At the end of the novel, he marries young
Catherine.

Linton Heathcliff - Heathcliff’s son by Isabella. Weak, sniveling, demanding, and constantly ill,
Linton is raised in London by his mother and does not meet his father until he is thirteen years
old, when he goes to live with him after his mother’s death. Heathcliff despises Linton, treats
him contemptuously, and, by forcing him to marry the young Catherine, uses him to cement his
control over Thrushcross Grange after Edgar Linton’s death. Linton himself dies not long after
this marriage.

Hindley Earnshaw - Catherine’s brother, and Mr. Earnshaw’s son. Hindley resents it when
Heathcliff is brought to live at Wuthering Heights. After his father dies and he inherits the
estate, Hindley begins to abuse the young Heathcliff, terminating his education and forcing him
to work in the fields. When Hindley’s wife Frances dies shortly after giving birth to their son
Hareton, he lapses into alcoholism and dissipation.

Isabella Linton - Edgar Linton’s sister, who falls in love with Heathcliff and marries him. She sees
Heathcliff as a romantic figure, like a character in a novel. Ultimately, she ruins her life by falling
in love with him. He never returns her feelings and treats her as a mere tool in his quest for
revenge on the Linton family.

Mr. Earnshaw - Catherine and Hindley’s father. Mr. Earnshaw adopts Heathcliff and brings him
to live at Wuthering Heights. Mr. Earnshaw prefers Heathcliff to Hindley but nevertheless
bequeaths Wuthering Heights to Hindley when he dies.

Mrs. Earnshaw - Catherine and Hindley’s mother, who neither likes nor trusts the orphan
Heathcliff when he is brought to live at her house. She dies shortly after Heathcliff’s arrival at
Wuthering Heights.

Joseph - A long-winded, fanatically religious, elderly servant at Wuthering Heights. Joseph is

strange, stubborn, and unkind, and he speaks with a thick Yorkshire accent.
Frances Earnshaw - Hindley’s simpering, silly wife, who treats Heathcliff cruelly. She dies
shortly after giving birth to Hareton.

Mr. Linton - Edgar and Isabella’s father and the proprietor of Thrushcross Grange when
Heathcliff and Catherine are children. An established member of the gentry, he raises his son
and daughter to be well-mannered young people.

Mrs. Linton - Mr. Linton’s somewhat snobbish wife, who does not like Heathcliff to be allowed
near her children, Edgar and Isabella. She teaches Catherine to act like a gentle-woman, thereby
instilling her with social ambitions.

Zillah - The housekeeper at Wuthering Heights during the latter stages of the narrative.

Mr. Green - Edgar Linton’s lawyer, who arrives too late to hear Edgar’s final instruction to
change his will, which would have prevented Heathcliff from obtaining control over Thrushcross
Grange.

18. GREAT EXPECTATIONS

Great Expectations is the thirteenth novel by Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed
novel; a bildungsroman that depicts the personal growth and personal development of an
orphan nicknamed Pip. It is Dickens's second novel, after David Copperfield, to be fully narrated
in the first person. The novel was first published as a serial in Dickens's weekly periodical All the
Year Round, from 1 December 1860 to August 1861. In October 1861, Chapman and Hall
published the novel in three volumes.

The novel is set in Kent and London in the early to mid-19th century and contains some of
Dickens's most memorable scenes, including the opening in a graveyard, where the young Pip is
accosted by the escaped convict, Abel Magwitch. Great Expectations is full of extreme
imagery—poverty, prison ships and chains, and fights to the death—and has a colourful cast of
characters who have entered popular culture. These include the eccentric Miss Havisham, the
beautiful but cold Estella, and Joe, the unsophisticated and kind blacksmith. Dickens's themes
include wealth and poverty, love and rejection, and the eventual triumph of good over evil.
Great Expectations, which is popular both with readers and literary critics, has been translated
into many languages and adapted numerous times into various media.

Upon its release, the novel received near universal acclaim.[5] Although Dickens's contemporary
Thomas Carlyle referred to it disparagingly as that "Pip nonsense," he nevertheless reacted to
each fresh instalment with "roars of laughter." Later, George Bernard Shaw praised the novel, as
"All of one piece and consistently truthful." During the serial publication, Dickens was pleased
with public response to Great Expectations and its sales;[9] when the plot first formed in his
mind, he called it "a very fine, new and grotesque idea."
Plot Overview

Pip, a young orphan living with his sister and her husband in the marshes of Kent, sits in a
cemetery one evening looking at his parents’ tombstones. Suddenly, an escaped convict springs
up from behind a tombstone, grabs Pip, and orders him to bring him food and a file for his leg
irons. Pip obeys, but the fearsome convict is soon captured anyway. The convict protects Pip by
claiming to have stolen the items himself.

One day Pip is taken by his Uncle Pumblechook to play at Satis House, the home of the wealthy
dowager Miss Havisham, who is extremely eccentric: she wears an old wedding dress
everywhere she goes and keeps all the clocks in her house stopped at the same time. During his
visit, he meets a beautiful young girl named Estella, who treats him coldly and contemptuously.
Nevertheless, he falls in love with her and dreams of becoming a wealthy gentleman so that he
might be worthy of her. He even hopes that Miss Havisham intends to make him a gentleman
and marry him to Estella, but his hopes are dashed when, after months of regular visits to Satis
House, Miss Havisham decides to help him become a common laborer in his family’s business.

With Miss Havisham’s guidance, Pip is apprenticed to his brother-in-law, Joe, who is the village
blacksmith. Pip works in the forge unhappily, struggling to better his education with the help of
the plain, kind Biddy and encountering Joe’s malicious day laborer, Orlick. One night, after an
altercation with Orlick, Pip’s sister, known as Mrs. Joe, is viciously attacked and becomes a mute
invalid. From her signals, Pip suspects that Orlick was responsible for the attack.

One day a lawyer named Jaggers appears with strange news: a secret benefactor has given Pip a
large fortune, and Pip must come to London immediately to begin his education as a gentleman.
Pip happily assumes that his previous hopes have come true—that Miss Havisham is his secret
benefactor and that the old woman intends for him to marry Estella.

In London, Pip befriends a young gentleman named Herbert Pocket and Jaggers’s law clerk,
Wemmick. He expresses disdain for his former friends and loved ones, especially Joe, but he
continues to pine after Estella. He furthers his education by studying with the tutor Matthew
Pocket, Herbert’s father. Herbert himself helps Pip learn how to act like a gentleman. When Pip
turns twenty-one and begins to receive an income from his fortune, he will secretly help Herbert
buy his way into the business he has chosen for himself. But for now, Herbert and Pip lead a
fairly undisciplined life in London, enjoying themselves and running up debts. Orlick reappears in
Pip’s life, employed as Miss Havisham’s porter, but is promptly fired by Jaggers after Pip reveals
Orlick’s unsavory past. Mrs. Joe dies, and Pip goes home for the funeral, feeling tremendous
grief and remorse. Several years go by, until one night a familiar figure barges into Pip’s
room—the convict, Magwitch, who stuns Pip by announcing that he, not Miss Havisham, is the
source of Pip’s fortune. He tells Pip that he was so moved by Pip’s boyhood kindness that he
dedicated his life to making Pip a gentleman, and he made a fortune in Australia for that very
purpose.
Pip is appalled, but he feels morally bound to help Magwitch escape London, as the convict is
pursued both by the police and by Compeyson, his former partner in crime. A complicated
mystery begins to fall into place when Pip discovers that Compeyson was the man who
abandoned Miss Havisham at the altar and that Estella is Magwitch’s daughter. Miss Havisham
has raised her to break men’s hearts, as revenge for the pain her own broken heart caused her.
Pip was merely a boy for the young Estella to practice on; Miss Havisham delighted in Estella’s
ability to toy with his affections.

As the weeks pass, Pip sees the good in Magwitch and begins to care for him deeply. Before
Magwitch’s escape attempt, Estella marries an upper-class lout named Bentley Drummle. Pip
makes a visit to Satis House, where Miss Havisham begs his forgiveness for the way she has
treated him in the past, and he forgives her. Later that day, when she bends over the fireplace,
her clothing catches fire and she goes up in flames. She survives but becomes an invalid. In her
final days, she will continue to repent for her misdeeds and to plead for Pip’s forgiveness.

The time comes for Pip and his friends to spirit Magwitch away from London. Just before the
escape attempt, Pip is called to a shadowy meeting in the marshes, where he encounters the
vengeful, evil Orlick. Orlick is on the verge of killing Pip when Herbert arrives with a group of
friends and saves Pip’s life. Pip and Herbert hurry back to effect Magwitch’s escape. They try to
sneak Magwitch down the river on a rowboat, but they are discovered by the police, who
Compeyson tipped off. Magwitch and Compeyson fight in the river, and Compeyson is drowned.
Magwitch is sentenced to death, and Pip loses his fortune. Magwitch feels that his sentence is
God’s forgiveness and dies at peace. Pip falls ill; Joe comes to London to care for him, and they
are reconciled. Joe gives him the news from home: Orlick, after robbing Pumblechook, is now in
jail; Miss Havisham has died and left most of her fortune to the Pockets; Biddy has taught Joe
how to read and write. After Joe leaves, Pip decides to rush home after him and marry Biddy,
but when he arrives there he discovers that she and Joe have already married.

Pip decides to go abroad with Herbert to work in the mercantile trade. Returning many years
later, he encounters Estella in the ruined garden at Satis House. Drummle, her husband, treated
her badly, but he is now dead. Pip finds that Estella’s coldness and cruelty have been replaced by
a sad kindness, and the two leave the garden hand in hand, Pip believing that they will never
part again.

Character

Pip - The protagonist and narrator of Great Expectations, Pip begins the story as a young orphan
boy being raised by his sister and brother-in-law in the marsh country of Kent, in the southeast
of England. Pip is passionate, romantic, and somewhat unrealistic at heart, and he tends to
expect more for himself than is reasonable. Pip also has a powerful conscience, and he deeply
wants to improve himself, both morally and socially.

Estella - Miss Havisham’s beautiful young ward, Estella is Pip’s unattainable dream throughout
the novel. He loves her passionately, but, though she sometimes seems to consider him a friend,
she is usually cold, cruel, and uninterested in him. As they grow up together, she repeatedly
warns him that she has no heart.

Miss Havisham - Miss Havisham is the wealthy, eccentric old woman who lives in a manor called
Satis House near Pip’s village. She is manic and often seems insane, flitting around her house in
a faded wedding dress, keeping a decaying feast on her table, and surrounding herself with
clocks stopped at twenty minutes to nine. As a young woman, Miss Havisham was jilted by her
fiancé minutes before her wedding, and now she has a vendetta against all men. She
deliberately raises Estella to be the tool of her revenge, training her beautiful ward to break
men’s hearts.

Abel Magwitch (“The Convict”) - A fearsome criminal, Magwitch escapes from prison at the
beginning of Great Expectations and terrorizes Pip in the cemetery. Pip’s kindness, however,
makes a deep impression on him, and he subsequently devotes himself to making a fortune and
using it to elevate Pip into a higher social class. Behind the scenes, he becomes Pip’s secret
benefactor, funding Pip’s education and opulent lifestyle in London through the lawyer Jaggers.

Joe Gargery - Pip’s brother-in-law, the village blacksmith, Joe stays with his overbearing,
abusive wife—known as Mrs. Joe—solely out of love for Pip. Joe’s quiet goodness makes him
one of the few completely sympathetic characters in Great Expectations. Although he is
uneducated and unrefined, he consistently acts for the benefit of those he loves and suffers in
silence when Pip treats him coldly.

Jaggers - The powerful, foreboding lawyer hired by Magwitch to supervise Pip’s elevation to the
upper class. As one of the most important criminal lawyers in London, Jaggers is privy to some
dirty business; he consorts with vicious criminals, and even they are terrified of him. But there is
more to Jaggers than his impenetrable exterior. He often seems to care for Pip, and before the
novel begins he helps Miss Havisham to adopt the orphaned Estella. Jaggers smells strongly of
soap: he washes his hands obsessively as a psychological mech-anism to keep the criminal taint
from corrupting him.

Herbert Pocket - Pip first meets Herbert Pocket in the garden of Satis House, when, as a pale
young gentleman, Herbert challenges him to a fight. Years later, they meet again in London, and
Herbert becomes Pip’s best friend and key companion after Pip’s elevation to the status of
gentleman. Herbert nicknames Pip “Handel.” He is the son of Matthew Pocket, Miss Havisham’s
cousin, and hopes to become a merchant so that he can afford to marry Clara Barley.

Wemmick - Jaggers’s clerk and Pip’s friend, Wemmick is one of the strangest characters in Great
Expectations. At work, he is hard, cynical, sarcastic, and obsessed with “portable property”; at
home in Walworth, he is jovial, wry, and a tender caretaker of his “Aged Parent.”
Biddy - A simple, kindhearted country girl, Biddy first befriends Pip when they attend school
together. After Mrs. Joe is attacked and becomes an invalid, Biddy moves into Pip’s home to
care for her. Throughout most of the novel, Biddy represents the opposite of Estella; she is plain,
kind, moral, and of Pip’s own social class.

Dolge Orlick - The day laborer in Joe’s forge, Orlick is a slouching, oafish embodiment of evil. He
is malicious and shrewd, hurting people simply because he enjoys it. He is responsible for the
attack on Mrs. Joe, and he later almost succeeds in his attempt to murder Pip.

Mrs. Joe - Pip’s sister and Joe’s wife, known only as “Mrs. Joe” throughout the novel. Mrs. Joe is
a stern and overbearing figure to both Pip and Joe. She keeps a spotless household and
frequently menaces her husband and her brother with her cane, which she calls “Tickler.” She
also forces them to drink a foul-tasting concoction called tar-water. Mrs. Joe is petty and
ambitious; her fondest wish is to be something more than what she is, the wife of the village
blacksmith.

Uncle Pumblechook - Pip’s pompous, arrogant uncle. (He is actually Joe’s uncle and, therefore,
Pip’s “uncle-in-law,” but Pip and his sister both call him “Uncle Pumblechook.”) A merchant
obsessed with money, Pumblechook is responsible for arranging Pip’s first meeting with Miss
Havisham. Throughout the rest of the novel, he will shamelessly take credit for Pip’s rise in
social status, even though he has nothing to do with it, since Magwitch, not Miss Havisham, is
Pip’s secret benefactor.

Compeyson - A criminal and the former partner of Magwitch, Compeyson is an educated,

gentlemanly outlaw who contrasts sharply with the coarse and uneducated Magwitch.
Compeyson is responsible for Magwitch’s capture at the end of the novel. He is also the man
who jilted Miss Havisham on her wedding day.

Bentley Drummle - An oafish, unpleasant young man who attends tutoring sessions with Pip at
the Pockets’ house, Drummle is a minor member of the nobility, and the sense of superiority this
gives him makes him feel justified in acting cruelly and harshly toward everyone around him.
Drummle eventually marries Estella, to Pip’s chagrin; she is miserable in their marriage and
reunites with Pip after Drummle dies some eleven years later.

Molly - Jaggers’s housekeeper. In Chapter 48, Pip realizes that she is Estella’s mother.

Mr. Wopsle - The church clerk in Pip’s country town; Mr. Wopsle’s aunt is the local
schoolteacher. Sometime after Pip becomes a gentleman, Mr. Wopsle moves to London and
becomes an actor.

Startop - A friend of Pip’s and Herbert’s. Startop is a delicate young man who, with Pip and
Drummle, takes tutelage with Matthew Pocket. Later, Startop helps Pip and Herbert with
Magwitch’s escape.
Miss Skiffins - Wemmick’s beloved, and eventual wife.

19. IN CUSTODY
In Custody (1984) is a novel set in India by Indian American writer Anita Desai. It was shortlisted
for the Booker Prize in 1984.

Plot summary

Deven earns a living by teaching Hindi literature to uninterested college students. As his true
interests lie in Urdu poetry, he jumps at the chance to meet the great Urdu poet, Nur. Under the
advice of his friend Murad, an editor of a periodical devoted to Urdu literature, Deven procures
a secondhand tape recorder so that he can help transcribe Urdu's early poetry, as well as
conduct an interview or even write the memoirs of Nur. However, things do not happen as he
expects them to.

Devens' old friend Murad visits Deven with an offer for him to interview a great Urdu poet Nur
Sahjahanabadi who lives in Chandni Chowk, Old Delhi for his magazine. Deven is fond of Urdu
poetry. He accepts the offer. At FIRST, He thinks that he is getting a chance to meet a great Urdu
poet but after reaching his house he notices the unbearable condition of Nur's house. When he
meets Nur, he refuses to give an interview by saying that Urdu is now at its last stage and soon
this beautiful language will not exist. But he shows some trust in Deven. But Deven gets
annoyed by the condition of Nur's house and drops the idea of interviewing Nur. Murad again
convinces him to interview Nur with the help of tape recorder so that it can be further used for
audio learning by Urdu scholars. Deven, who is a poor lecturer, asks for money from the college
for a tape recorder. He goes to a shop to buy, where the shopkeeper, Jain, offers him a second
hand tape recorder. At first Deven refuses to purchase it but later Jain convinces him that it is a
machine with good quality and his own nephew Chintu will help them to operate it while
recording the interview. Unwillingly, Deven agrees to purchase it. Nur's first wife promises
Deven that she can arrange a room for Deven if he gives her some money. Deven arranged the
money for the payment to her by the college authority with the help of his colleague-cum-friend
Siddique. He then goes to Delhi with Chintu for recording. but he fails to record the interview.
Now, he not only has no recording but also has to bear the expenses like payment demanded by
poet, his wife, nephews of Jain etc.

Characters

Deven Sharma- he is a Hindi professor in Mirpore, who is tired of his mundane life. He loves
Urdu and is a big fan of Nur, a famous Urdu poet. He also gets the opportunity to meet Nur.

Nur- a famous Urdu poet who laments the loss of a beautiful language(Urdu), and thereby a
culture. He is a man of age and experience. He lives in misery and confusion as both his wives
are constantly involved in a row.
Murad- a cold and calculating friend of Deven who owns a publishing house in Delhi. He exploits
Deven and deceives him throughout the novel.

Siddiqui- Deven's fellow lecturer of Urdu, is a figure of the decline of the language and culture
for which he stands.

Nur's second wife- she is a jealous and calculating woman who is trying to steal the limelight off
Nur. She is hungry for fame and wealth.

20. A TALE OF A TUB

A Tale of a Tub was the first major work written by Jonathan Swift, arguably his most difficult
satire and perhaps his most masterly. The Tale is a prose parody divided into sections each
delving into the morals and ethics of the English. Composed between 1694 and 1697, it was
eventually published in 1704. It was long regarded as a satire on religion, and has famously been
attacked for that, starting with William Wotton.

The "tale" presents a consistent satire of religious excess, while the digressions are a series of
parodies of contemporary writing in literature, politics, theology, Biblical exegesis, and
medicine. The overarching parody is of enthusiasm, pride, and credulity. At the time it was
written, politics and religion were still closely linked in England, and the religious and political
aspects of the satire can often hardly be separated. "The work made Swift notorious, and was
widely misunderstood, especially by Queen Anne herself who mistook its purpose for profanity."
It "effectively disbarred its author from proper preferment within the church," but is considered
one of Swift's best allegories, even by himself. It was enormously popular, but Swift believed it
damaged his prospect of advancement in the Church of England.

Overview

A Tale of a Tub is divided between various forms of digression and sections of a "tale". The
"tale", or narrative, is an allegory of three brothers, Peter, Martin, and Jack, as they attempt to
make their way in the world. Each brother represents one of the primary branches of
Christianity in the West. This part of the book is a pun on "tub", which Alexander Pope says was
a common term for a Dissenter's pulpit, and a reference to Swift's own position as a clergyman.
Peter (named for Saint Peter) stands in for the Roman Catholic Church.[4] Jack (named for John
Calvin, but whom Swift also connects to "Jack of Leyden") represents the various dissenting
Protestant churches such as Baptists, Presbyterians, Quakers, Congregationalists and
Anabaptists.[4] The third brother, middle born and middle standing, is Martin (named for Martin
Luther), whom Swift uses to represent the 'via media' of the Church of England.[4] The brothers
have inherited three wonderfully satisfactory coats (representing religious practice) by their
father (representing God), and they have his will (representing the Bible) to guide them.
Although the will says that the brothers are forbidden from making any changes to their coats,
they do nearly nothing but alter their coats from the start. In as much as the will represents the
Bible and the coat represents the practice of Christianity, the allegory of the narrative is
supposed to be an apology for the Anglican church's refusal to alter its practice in accordance
with Puritan demands and its continued resistance to ally with the Roman church.

From its opening (once past the prolegomena, which comprises the first three sections), the
book alternates between Digression and Tale. However, the digressions overwhelm the
narrative, both in their length and in the forcefulness and imaginativeness of writing.
Furthermore, after Chapter X (the commonly anthologised "Digression on Madness"), the labels
for the sections are incorrect. Sections then called "Tale" are Digressions, and those called
"Digression" are also Digressions.

A Tale of a Tub is an enormous parody with a number of smaller parodies within it. Many critics
have followed Swift's biographer Irvin Ehrenpreis in arguing that there is no single, consistent
narrator in the work.[7] One difficulty with this position, however, is that if there is no single
character posing as the author, then it is at least clear that nearly all of the "personae" employed
by Swift for the parodies are so much alike that they function as a single identity. In general,
whether a modern reader would view the book as consisting of dozens of impersonations or a
single one, Swift writes the Tale through the pose of a Modern or New Man. See the abridged
discussion of the "Ancients and Moderns," below, for more on the nature of the "modern man"
in Swift's day.

Swift's explanation for the title of the book is that the Ship of State was threatened by a whale
(specifically, the Leviathan of Thomas Hobbes) and the new political societies (the Rota Club is
mentioned). His book is intended to be a tub that the sailors of state (the nobles and ministers)
might toss over the side to divert the attention of the beast (those who questioned the
government and its right to rule). Hobbes was highly controversial in the Restoration, but Swift's
invocation of Hobbes might well be ironic. The narrative of the brothers is a faulty allegory, and
Swift's narrator is either a madman or a fool. The book is not one that could occupy the
Leviathan, or preserve the Ship of State, so Swift may be intensifying the dangers of Hobbes's
critique rather than allaying them to provoke a more rational response.

The digressions individually frustrate readers who expect a clear purpose. Each digression has its
own topic, and each is an essay on its particular sidelight. In his biography of Swift, Ehrenpreis
argued that each digression is an impersonation of a different contemporary author. This is the
"persona theory," which holds that the Tale is not one parody, but rather a series of parodies,
arising out of chamber performance in the Temple household. Prior to Ehrenpreis, some critics
had argued that the narrator of the Tale is a character, just as the narrator of a novel would be.
Given the evidence of A. C. Elias about the acrimony of Swift's departure from the Temple
household, evidence from Swift's Journal to Stella about how uninvolved in the Temple
household Swift had been, and the number of repeated observations about himself by the Tale's
author, it seems reasonable to propose that the digressions reflect a single type of man, if not a
particular character.
In any case, the digressions are each readerly tests; each tests whether or not the reader is
intelligent and sceptical enough to detect nonsense. Some, such as the discussion of ears or of
wisdom being like a nut, a cream sherry, a cackling hen, etc., are outlandish and require a
militantly aware and thoughtful reader. Each is a trick, and together they train the reader to sniff
out bunk and to reject the unacceptable.

Cultural setting

During the Restoration the print revolution began to change every aspect of British society. It
became possible for anyone to spend a small amount of money and have his or her opinions
published as a broadsheet, and to gain access to the latest discoveries in science, literature, and
political theory, as books became less expensive and digests and "indexes" of the sciences grew
more numerous. The difficulty lay in discerning truth from falsehood, credible claims from
impossible one.[11] Swift writes A Tale of a Tub in the guise of a narrator who is excited and
gullible about what the new world has to offer, and feels that he is quite the equal or superior of
any author who ever lived because he, unlike them, possesses 'technology' and newer opinions.
Swift seemingly asks the question of what a person with no discernment but with a thirst for
knowledge would be like, and the answer is the narrator of Tale of a Tub.

Swift was annoyed by people so eager to possess the newest knowledge that they failed to pose
sceptical questions. If he was not a particular fan of the aristocracy, he was a sincere opponent
of democracy, which was often viewed then as the sort of "mob rule" that led to the worst
abuses of the English Interregnum. Swift's satire was intended to provide a genuine service by
painting the portrait of conspiracy minded and injudicious writers.

At that time in England, politics, religion and education were unified in a way that they are not
now. The monarch was the head of the state church. Each school (secondary and university) had
a political tradition. Officially, there was no such thing as "Whig and Tory" at the time, but the
labels are useful and were certainly employed by writers themselves. The two major parties
were associated with religious and economic groups. The implications of this unification of
politics, class, and religion are important. Although it is somewhat extreme and simplistic to put
it this way, failing to be for the Church was failing to be for the monarch; having an interest in
physics and trade was to be associated with dissenting religion and the Whig Party. When Swift
attacks the lovers of all things modern, he is thereby attacking the new world of trade, of
dissenting religious believers, and, to some degree, an emergent portion of the Whig Party.

Authorial background

Born of English parents in Ireland, Jonathan Swift was working as Sir William Temple's secretary
at the time he composed A Tale of a Tub (1694–1697).[13] The publication of the work coincided
with Swift's striking out on his own, having despaired of getting a good "living" from Temple or
Temple's influence. There is speculation about what caused the rift between Swift and his
employer, but, as A. C. Elias persuasively argues, it seems that the final straw came with Swift's
work on Temple's Letters. Swift had been engaged to translate Temple's French
correspondence, but Temple, or someone close to Temple, edited the French text to make
Temple seem both prescient and more fluent. Consequently, the letters and the translations
Swift provided did not gibe, and, since Swift could not accuse Temple of falsifying his letters, and
because the public would never believe that the retired state minister had lied, Swift came
across as incompetent.

Jonathan Swift

Even though Swift published the "Tale" as he left Temple's service, it was conceived earlier, and
the book is a salvo in one of Temple's battles. Swift's general polemic concerns an argument (the
"Quarrel of the Ancients and the Moderns") that had been over for nearly ten years by the time
the book was published. The "Quarrel of the Ancients and Moderns" was a French academic
debate of the early 1690s, occasioned by Fontenelle arguing that modern scholarship had
allowed modern man to surpass the ancients in knowledge. Temple argued against this position
in his "On Ancient and Modern Learning" (where he provided the first English formulation of the
commonplace that modern critics see more only because they are dwarves standing on the
shoulders of giants), and Temple's somewhat naive essay prompted a small flurry of responses.
Among others, two men who took the side opposing Temple were Richard Bentley (classicist and
editor) and William Wotton.

The entire discussion in England was over by 1696, and yet it seems to have fired Swift's
imagination. Swift saw in the opposing camps of Ancients and Moderns a shorthand of two
general ways of looking at the world (see the historical background, below, for some of the
senses in which "new men" and "ancients" might be understood). The Tale of a Tub attacks all
who praise modernity over classical learning. Temple had done as much, but Swift, unlike
Temple, has no praise for the classical world, either. There is no normative value in Rome, no
lost English glen, no hearth ember to be invoked against the hubris of modern scientism. Some
critics have seen in Swift's reluctance to praise mankind in any age proof of his misanthropy, and
others have detected in it an overarching hatred of pride.At the same time, the Tale revived the
Quarrel of Ancients and Moderns at least enough to prompt Wotton to come out with a new
edition of his pamphlet attacking Temple, and he appended to it an essay against the author of A
Tale of a Tub. Swift was able to cut pieces from Wotton's "Answer" to include in the fifth edition
of the Tale as "Notes" at the bottom of the page. Swift's satire also gave something of a
framework for other satirists in the Scriblerian circle, and Modern vs. Ancient is picked up as one
distinction between political and cultural forces.

If Swift hoped that the Tale of a Tub would win him a living, he would have been disappointed.
Swift himself believed that the book cost him any chance of high position within the church. It is
most likely, though, that Swift was not seeking a clerical position with the Tale. Instead, it was
probably meant to establish him as a literary and political figure and to strike out a set of
positions that would win the notice of influential men. This it did. As a consequence of this work,
and his activity in Church causes, Swift became a familiar of Robert Harley, future Earl of Oxford,
and Henry St. John, the future Viscount Bolingbroke. When the Tories gained the government in
1710, Swift was rewarded for his work. By 1713–14, however, the Tory government had fallen,
and Swift was made Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin—an appointment he considered an
exile.

Nature of the satire

Upon publication the public realised both that there was an allegory in the story of the brothers
and that there were particular political references in the Digressions. A number of "Keys"
appeared soon thereafter, analogous to contemporary services like CliffsNotes or Spark Notes.
"Keys" offered the reader a commentary on the Tale and explanations of its references. Edmund
Curll rushed out a Key to the work, and William Wotton offered up an "Answer" to the author of
the work.

Swift's targets included indexers, note-makers, and, above all, people who saw "dark matter" in
books. Attacking criticism generally, he appears delighted that one of his enemies, William
Wotton, offered to explain the Tale in an "answer" to the book and that one of the men he had
explicitly attacked, Curll, offered to explain the book to the public. In the fifth edition of the book
in 1710, Swift provided an apparatus to the work that incorporated Wotton's explanations and
Swift's narrator's notes. The notes appear to occasionally provide genuine information and just
as often to mislead, and William Wotton's name, a defender of the Moderns, was appended to a
number of notes. This allows Swift to make the commentary part of the satire itself, as well as to
elevate his narrator to the level of self-critic.

The Tale's satire is most consistent in attacking misreading of all sorts. Both in the narrative
sections and the digressions, the single human flaw that underlies all the follies Swift attacks is
over-figurative and over-literal reading, both of the Bible and of poetry and political prose. The
narrator is seeking hidden knowledge, mechanical operations of things spiritual, spiritual
qualities to things physical, and alternate readings of everything.

Within the "tale" sections of the book, Peter, Martin, and Jack fall into bad company (becoming
the official religion of the Roman empire) and begin altering their coats (faith) by adding
ornaments. They then begin relying on Peter to be the arbitrator of the will. He begins to rule by
authority (he remembered the handyman saying that he once heard the father say that it was
acceptable to don more ornaments), until such a time that Jack rebels against the rule of Peter.
Jack begins to read the will (the Bible) overly literally. He rips the coat to shreds to restore the
original state of the garment which represents the "primitive Christianity" sought by dissenters.
He begins to rely only upon "inner illumination" for guidance and thus walks around with his
eyes closed, after swallowing candle snuffs. Eventually, Peter and Jack begin to resemble one
another, and only Martin is left with a coat that is at all like the original.

An important factor in the reception of Swift's work is that the narrator of the work is an
extremist in every direction. Consequently, he can no more construct a sound allegory than he
can finish his digressions without losing control (eventually confessing that he is insane).[16] For
a Church of England reader, the allegory of the brothers provides small comfort. Martin has a
corrupted faith, one full of holes and still with ornaments on it. His only virtue is that he avoids
the excesses of his brothers, but the original faith is lost to him. Readers of the Tale have picked
up on this unsatisfactory resolution to both "parts" of the book, and A Tale of a Tub has often
been offered up as evidence of Swift's misanthropy.

As has recently been argued by Michael McKeon, Swift might best be described as a severe
sceptic, rather than a Whig, Tory, empiricist, or religious writer. He supported the Classics in the
Quarrel of the Ancients and the Moderns, and he supported the established church and the
aristocracy, because he felt the alternatives were worse. He argued elsewhere that there is
nothing inherently virtuous about a noble birth, but its advantages of wealth and education
made the aristocrat a better ruler than the equally virtuous but unprivileged commoner. A Tale
of a Tub is a perfect example of Swift's devastating intellect at work. By its end, little seems
worth believing in.

Formally, the satire in the Tale is historically novel for several reasons. First, Swift more or less
invented prose parody. In the "Apology for the &c." (added in 1710), Swift explains that his work
is, in several places, a "parody," which is where he imitates the style of persons he wishes to
expose. What is interesting is that the word "parody" had not been used for prose before, and
the definition he offers is arguably a parody of John Dryden defining "parody" in the Discourse
of Satire (the Preface to Dryden's translations of Juvenal's and Persius' satires). Prior to Swift,
parodies were imitations designed to bring mirth, but not primarily in the form of mockery.
Dryden imitated the Aeneid in "MacFlecknoe" to describe the apotheosis of a dull poet, but the
imitation made fun of the poet, not Virgil.

Swift's satire offers no resolutions. While he ridicules any number of foolish habits, he never
offers the reader a positive set of values to embrace. While this type of satire became more
common as people imitated Swift, later, Swift is quite unusual in offering the readers no way
out. He does not persuade to any position, but he does persuade readers from an assortment of
positions. This is one of the qualities that has made the Tale Swift's least-read major work.

Historical background

In the historical background to the period of 1696–1705, the most important political events
might be the Restoration of Charles II in 1660, the Test Act, and the English Settlement or
Glorious Revolution of 1688–1689. Politically, the English had suffered a Civil War that had
culminated with the beheading of the king, years of the Interregnum under the Puritan, Oliver
Cromwell, and then Parliament inviting the king back to rule in 1660. Upon Charles II's death, his
brother, James II of England took the throne. However, when James, a Roman Catholic, married
a Roman Catholic as his second wife, the English parliament invited William of Orange to rule in
his stead, forcing James to flee the country under military threat. Parliament decided on the way
in which all future English monarchs would be chosen. This method would always favour
Protestantism over blood line.

For politically aware Englishmen, Parliament had essentially elected a king. Although officially
he was supreme, there could be no doubt that the Commons had picked the king and could pick
another instead. Although there was now a law demanding that all swear allegiance to the
monarch as head of the church, it became less and less clear why the nation was to be so
intolerant.

Religious conflict at the time was primarily between the Church of England and the dissenting
churches. The threat posed by the dissenters was keenly felt by Establishment clerics like
Jonathan Swift. It was common enough for Puritans and other dissenters to disrupt church
services, to accuse political leaders of being the anti-Christ, and to move the people toward
violent schism, riots, and peculiar behaviour including attempts to set up miniature theocracies.
Protestant dissenters had led the English Civil War. The pressure of dissenters was felt on all
levels of British politics and could be seen in the change of the British economy.

The Industrial Revolution was beginning in the period between the writing and publication of A
Tale of a Tub, though no one at the time would have known this. What Englishmen did know,
however, was that what they called "trade" was on the rise. Merchants, importers/exporters,
and "stock jobbers" were growing very wealthy. It was becoming more common to find
members of the aristocracy with less money than members of the trading class. Those on the
rise in the middle class professions were perceived as being more likely to be dissenters than
members of the other classes were, and such institutions as the stock exchange and Lloyd's of
London were founded by Puritan traders. Members of these classes were also widely ridiculed
as attempting to pretend to learning and manners that they had no right to. Further, these "new
men" were not, by and large, the product of the universities nor the traditional secondary
schools. Consequently, these now wealthy individuals were not conversant in Latin, were not
enamored of the classics, and were not inclined to put much value on these things.

Between 1688 and 1705, England was politically unstable. The accession of Queen Anne led to a
feeling of vulnerability among Establishment figures. Anne was rumoured to be immoderately
stupid and was supposedly governed by her friend, Sarah Churchill, wife of the Duke of
Marlborough. Although Swift was a Whig for much of this period, he was allied most nearly with
the Ancients camp (which is to say Establishment, Church of England, aristocracy, traditional
education), and he was politically active in the service of the Church. He claims, both in "The
Apology for the &c." and in a reference in Book I of Gulliver's Travels, to have written the Tale to
defend the crown from the troubles of the monsters besetting it. These monsters were
numerous. At this time, political clubs and societies were proliferating. The print revolution had
meant that people were gathering under dozens of banners, and political and religious
sentiments previously unspoken were now rallying supporters. As the general dissenting
position became the monied position, and as Parliament increasingly held power, historically
novel degrees of freedom had brought an historically tenuous equipoise of change and stability.
 21. NORTHANGER ABBEY
Northanger Abbey is the coming-of-age story of a young woman named Catherine Morland. It is
divided into two sections, Book I and Book II. The two Books differ significantly from each other
in setting and, to a degree, in tone. Northanger Abbey was the first of Jane Austen's novels to be
completed for publication, in 1803. However, it was not until after her death in 1817 that it was
published, along with her other novel, Persuasion. The novel is a satire of Gothic novels, which
were quite popular at the time in 1798–99. This "coming of age," story revolves around the main
character, Catherine, a young and naïve "heroine," who entertains her reader on her journey of
self-knowledge, as she gains a better understanding of the world and those around her.Because
of her experiences, reality sets in and she discovers that she is not like other women who crave
for wealth or social acceptance, but instead she is a true heroine in that she is an ordinary young
woman who wishes to have nothing but happiness and a genuine sense of morality.

PLOT OVERVIEW

Book I begins when the Allens, family friends of the Morlands, offer to take Catherine with them
to Bath, a resort for the wealthier members of British society. The 17-year-old Catherine eagerly
accepts the Allens' invitation. Catherine is young and naïve. Her life has been relatively
sheltered, so Bath is a new world for her. In Bath, Catherine is introduced to Henry Tilney, a
young clergyman who impresses Catherine with his wit and pleasant conversation. Catherine
quickly falls for Henry, but after their first meeting she does not see him again for some time.
Mrs. Allen runs into an old acquaintance, Mrs. Thorpe, and her three young daughters, including
Isabella, who is slightly older than Catherine. Catherine and Isabella are soon best friends.
Isabella, superficial and fond of gossip, inducts Catherine into the social world of Bath, with all
its balls, dances, shows, fashion, and its gossip.

Just when Catherine and Isabella have settled into a close friendship, they are met with the
arrival of James Morland, Catherine's brother, and John Thorpe, Isabella's brother. James and
John are friends at Oxford University. Isabella wastes no time in flirting with James, and soon it
is obvious to everyone except Catherine that James and Isabella are in love. Taking a cue from
James, John tries to woo Catherine, asking her to be his dance partner. But at a ball, Catherine
sees Henry Tilney again and is more interested in Henry than in John. John's bragging and his
arrogant nature put off Catherine.

Soon all of Isabella's time is taken up with James. Without Isabella to spend her time with and
saddled with the unpleasant John Thorpe, Catherine decides to become friends with Eleanor
Tilney, Henry's sister. Eleanor quickly sees that Catherine has feelings for Henry, but does not
say anything. After rain seems to wash out her plans for a walk with Henry and Eleanor,
Catherine is pressured by James and Isabella into riding with John, much to her dismay. On the
way, she spots Henry and Eleanor walking toward her house for the planned walk. John refuses
to stop, angering Catherine.
Catherine apologizes to Eleanor and Henry, and plans are made for another walk. John, Isabella,
and James again intervene, pressuring Catherine into another outing. Catherine firmly refuses
this time and joins Eleanor and Henry in a walk around Beechen Cliff. They discuss novels, and
Catherine is delighted to find that Henry and Eleanor love books as much as she does. Catherine
returns home to discover that James and Isabella have become engaged. She briefly meets with
John, who is leaving Bath for several weeks. John leaves with the false impression that Catherine
is in love with him, although Catherine does not realize this.

Book II begins with the arrival of Henry's older brother, Captain Frederick Tilney. Isabella quickly
catches the eye of the captain and, dismayed by the discovery of James's modest income, begins
to flirt with Frederick. Eleanor invites Catherine to visit the Tilney home in Northanger Abbey.
The invitation is seconded by Eleanor's father, General Tilney. Catherine eagerly accepts the
invitation, delighted at the prospect of visiting a real abbey and at seeing more of Henry. Before
Catherine leaves, Isabella tells her that John is planning to propose to Catherine. Catherine tells
Isabella to write him and tell him, with her apologies, that he is mistaken. Frederick appears and
flirts with Isabella, who returns his attentions. Dismayed by this behavior, Catherine asks Henry
to convince Frederick to leave Isabella alone. Henry refuses, knowing that Isabella is at least as
guilty as the captain, but he tells Catherine that Frederick will probably leave Bath with his
regiment soon anyway.

Catherine leaves with the Tilneys for Northanger Abbey. On the way, Catherine tells Henry how
she imagines the Abbey to resemble the haunted ruins of the Gothic novels she loves. Henry,
amused, responds by giving a hypothetical account of her first night at the Abbey, complete with
mysterious chests, violent storms, and secret passages. Northanger Abbey turns out to be quite
dull, having been fixed up by General Tilney. Due to her overactive imagination, Catherine
entertains all sorts of frightening ideas about the place, each of which is thwarted. For instance,
a strange bureau in Catherine's room turns out to contain nothing more mysterious than
receipts. Catherine becomes intrigued by the death of Eleanor and Henry's mother years earlier.
Her mind full of Gothic plots, Catherine suspects that General Tilney of murdering his wife.
Catherine sneaks into the mother's old chamber and discovers nothing. She is caught by Henry,
who guesses her thoughts and scolds her. Mortified and ashamed, Catherine quickly resumes
her good behavior.

Catherine receives a letter from her brother telling her that his engagement to Isabella has been
called off. Catherine thinks that Frederick forced himself between them, but Henry convinces
her that it was as much Isabella's fault as Frederick's. Catherine visits Henry's house at
Woodston. The General drops hints about Catherine marrying Henry. Catherine gets another
letter, this time from Isabella, telling her that Frederick has left her, and asking Catherine to
apologize to James for her. Angry at being manipulated, Catherine wishes she had never known
Isabella. The General leaves on a business trip, and Henry goes back to Woodston for several
days. The General then returns unexpectedly and tells Eleanor to send Catherine away the next
morning. Though she is very embarrassed, Eleanor has no choice but to send Catherine to her
home in Fullerton.

Catherine's family is irritated by the General's rudeness, but is glad to have her home. Catherine
mopes around, despondent, until suddenly Henry arrives in Fullerton and proposes to her.
Henry explains that his father's behavior was due to John Thorpe. In Bath, when John thought
Catherine loved him, he had told General Tilney that Catherine was from a very wealthy family.
When the General ran into John much later, after Isabella had told John about Catherine's true
feelings, John had angrily told the General that the Morlands were almost poor. Mortified, the
General had sent Catherine away, furious that his hopes for John to make a wealthy match were
to be frustrated. Henry and Catherine decide to wait until the General gives his consent to their
marriage. Within a few months, Eleanor marries a very wealthy and important man, which puts
the General in a good mood. Once he is told of the true nature of the Morland's financial
situation, which is moderate, he gives his consent, and the novel ends with the marriage of
Henry and Catherine.

Characters

Catherine Morland - The protagonist of Northanger Abbey. Catherine is seventeen years old,
and has spent all her life in her family's modest home in the rural area of Fullerton. While
Catherine has read many novels (particularly Gothic novels), she is very inexperienced at
reading people. Her naiveté about the world and about the motivations and character of the
people she meets is an endless source of confusion and frustration for her. Nonetheless,
Catherine is very intelligent and learns from her mistakes, and can also be witty. Her strongest
attributes are her integrity and caring nature.

Henry Tilney - Henry Tilney is a 26-year-old parson in a small village called Woodston. He is
intelligent, well-tempered, and attuned to the motivations and behavior of those around him.
He is very well read, and enjoys novels as much as history books. He is good natured, but has a
wry cynical view of human behavior. He is often amused at the folly of others, but he takes care
to gently instruct them properly, if possible, particularly in the case of the naïve Catherine.

Eleanor Tilney - Henry's younger sister, Eleanor is a shy, quiet young woman. She shares an
interest in reading with her brother, but for the most part, her reserve prevents her from having
many friends. Like her brothers, Eleanor is often subject to the somewhat tyrannical behavior of
her father, General Tilney.

General Tilney - The domineering father of Henry, Eleanor and Captain Tilney. He is a widower.
Like several characters in the novel (such as Mrs. Allen), the General is very concerned with
material things. He takes great pride in his home, Northanger Abbey, which he has refurbished
himself. He is preoccupied with both earning money and spending it. He enjoys eating a large
dinner and having the best of everything, and he wants his children to marry wealthy people. He
has a gruff nature which make some, such as Catherine Morland, think poorly of him.

Isabella Thorpe - One Mrs. Thorpe's three daughters, and the sister of John Thorpe. She is
Catherine's best friend for the first half of the novel. Isabella is attractive and very spirited, but
like her mother, she is a gossip and often concerned with superficial things. She enjoys flirting
with many young men, which bothers the more reserved Catherine. Ultimately, Isabella's nature
causes her to lose both James and her other boyfriend, Frederick Tilney.

John Thorpe - The brother of Isabella, he is conceited, arrogant, and given to boasting and
exaggeration. He talks endlessly and rarely listens. Like his sister, John is given to superficiality.
John tries to woo Catherine, but his arrogance quickly turns her against him.

James Morland - The brother of Catherine and a fellow student of John Thorpe at Oxford
University. James is mild-mannered and very caring, like his sister. James falls for Isabella
Thorpe and becomes engaged to her, but breaks off the engagement when she begins a
flirtation with Frederick Tilney.

Frederick Tilney - Captain Frederick Tilney (often referred to simply as "Captain Tilney") is the
oldest sibling in the Tilney family. Unlike his brother Henry or his sister Eleanor, Frederick is a
flirt and given to mischief. Austen suggests that Frederick is the Tilney child closest in character
to General Tilney by identifying both men by their ranks rather than by their names. Frederick
flirts with Isabella Thorpe and leads her to break off her engagement with James Morland, then
abandons her in Bath.

Mr. and Mrs. Allen - The couple that invites Catherine to go to Bath with them. Like Catherine's
family, the Allens live in the rural town of Fullerton. They are older and wealthier than the
Morlands, but they are childless, and they see Catherine as a kind of surrogate daughter. Mr.
Allen is a practical man who spends most of his time in Bath playing cards; Mrs. Allen is greatly
concerned with fashion, and spends her time either shopping, knitting, or talking to Mrs. Thorpe.

Mrs. Thorpe - Mrs. Thorpe is the widowed mother of Isabella and of two other daughters. Like
her daughter, she is concerned primarily with gossip, fashion, and money. In conversation with
her friend Mrs. Allen, Mrs. Thorpe talks mostly about her pride in her children (Mrs. Allen has no
children) while Mrs. Allen talks about her gowns (Mrs. Thorpe is not nearly as wealthy as the
Allens).

Mr. and Mrs. Morland and family - The family, which includes Catherine and James, is from the
rural town of Fullerton. We visit the Morlands only briefly, at the beginning and end of the
novel. Mr. and Mrs. Morland are relatively simple, practical folk, especially compared to people
like Mrs. Thorpe and General Tilney. Both James and Catherine must get the approval of their
parents before they can marry their prospective spouses.

Allusions to other works

Several Gothic novels and authors are mentioned in the book, including Fanny Burney and The
Monk. Isabella Thorpe gives Catherine a list of seven books that are commonly referred to as
the "Northanger 'horrid' novels"; these works were initially thought to be of Austen's own
invention until the British writers Montague Summers and Michael Sadleir found in the 1920s
that they actually did exist.The list is as follows:

Castle of Wolfenbach (1793) by Eliza Parsons.

Clermont (1798) by Regina Maria Roche.

The Mysterious Warning, a German Tale (1796) by Eliza Parsons.

The Necromancer; or, The Tale of the Black Forest (1794) by 'Ludwig Flammenberg'

The Midnight Bell (1798) by Francis Lathom.

The Orphan of the Rhine (1798) by Eleanor Sleath.

Horrid Mysteries (1796) by the Marquis de Grosse

22. LITTLE DORRIT

Little Dorrit is a novel by Charles Dickens, originally published in serial form between 1855 and
1857. It satirises the shortcomings of both government and society, including the institution of
debtors' prisons, where debtors were imprisoned, unable to work, until they repaid their debts.
The prison in this case is the Marshalsea, where Dickens's own father had been imprisoned.
Dickens is also critical of the lack of a social safety net, the treatment and safety of industrial
workers, as well the bureaucracy of the British Treasury, in the form of his fictional
"Circumlocution Office". In addition he satirises the stratification of society that results from the
British class system.

Little Dorrit was published in nineteen monthly instalments, each consisting of 32 pages with
two illustrations by Hablot Knight Browne whose pen name was Phiz. Each instalment cost a
shilling except for the last, a double issue which cost two shillings.

Plot

The novel begins in Marseilles "thirty years ago" (i.e., c. 1826), with the notorious murderer
Rigaud telling his cell mate how he killed his wife. Arthur Clennam is returning to London to see
his mother after the death of his father, with whom he had lived for twenty years in China. On
his deathbed, his father had given him a mysterious watch murmuring "Your mother," which
Arthur naturally assumes is intended for Mrs Clennam, whom he believes to be his mother.

Inside the watch casing is an old silk paper with the initials DNF (Do Not Forget) worked into it in
beads. It is a message, but when Arthur shows it to the harsh and implacable Mrs Clennam, a
religious fanatic, she refuses to tell him what it means and the two become estranged.
In London, William Dorrit, imprisoned as a debtor, has been a resident of Marshalsea debtors'
prison for so long that his three children – snobbish Fanny, idle Edward (known as Tip) and Amy
(known as Little Dorrit) — have all grown up there, and Amy was born there. Their mother is
dead. The children are free to pass in and out of the prison as they please. Little Dorrit, devoted
to her father, supports them both through her sewing.

Once in London, Arthur is reacquainted with his former fiancée Flora Finching, who is now
unattractive and simpering. Mrs Clennam, though arthritic and wheelchair-bound, still runs the
family business with the help of her servant Jeremiah Flintwinch and his downtrodden wife
Affery. When Arthur learns that Mrs Clennam employs Little Dorrit as a seamstress, showing her
unusual kindness, he wonders whether the young girl might be connected with the mystery of
the watch. Suspecting his mother is partially responsible for the misfortunes of the Dorrits,
Arthur follows the girl to the Marshalsea. He vainly tries to inquire about William Dorrit's debt in
the poorly run Circumlocution Office, assuming the role of benefactor towards Little Dorrit, her
father, and her brother. While at the Circumlocution Office he meets the struggling inventor
Daniel Doyce, whom he decides to help by going into business with him. The grateful Little
Dorrit falls in love with Arthur, but Arthur fails to recognise Little Dorrit's interest. At last, aided
by the indefatigable rent-collector and researcher Pancks, Arthur discovers that William Dorrit is
the lost heir to a large fortune, enabling him to pay his way out of prison.

The newly released and wealthy Dorrits decide that they should tour Europe as a newly
respectable rich family. They travel over the Alps and take up residence for a time in Venice, and
finally in Rome, displaying an air of conceit over their new-found wealth. Little Dorrit is not so
impressed by their wealth. Eventually, after a spell of delirium, William Dorrit dies as does his
distraught elder brother Frederick, a kind-hearted musician who has always stood by him. Little
Dorrit, left alone, returns to London to stay with newly married Fanny and her husband, the
foppish and dim-witted Edmund Sparkler.

The fraudulent dealings (similar to a Ponzi scheme) of Edmund Sparkler's stepfather, Mr.
Merdle, end with Merdle's suicide and the collapse of his bank business, and with it the savings
of both the Dorrits and Arthur Clennam. Clennam is now himself imprisoned in the Marshalsea,
where he becomes ill and is nursed back to health by Amy. The French villain Rigaud, now in
London, discovers that Mrs Clennam hides the fact that Arthur is not her son by birth, and tries
to blackmail her. Arthur's biological mother was a beautiful young singer with whom his father
had gone through a non-legal marital ceremony, before being pressured by his wealthy uncle to
marry the present Mrs Clennam. The latter had insisted on bringing up little Arthur and denying
his mother the right to see him. Arthur's real mother died of grief at being separated from
Arthur and his father; but Mr Clennam's wealthy uncle, stung by remorse, had left a bequest to
Arthur's biological mother and to "the youngest daughter of her patron," a kindly musician who
had taught and befriended Arthur's real mother. That patron was Little Dorrit's paternal uncle,
Frederick. As Frederick Dorrit had no daughter, the inheritance was to go to the youngest
daughter of Frederick's younger brother, William; that is, to Little Dorrit.
Mrs Clennam knows of this inheritance and fails to tell Little Dorrit of it for years. Overcome by
remorse, the old woman rises from her chair and totters out of her house to reveal the secret to
Little Dorrit and beg her forgiveness, which the kind-hearted girl freely grants. Mrs Clennam
then falls in the street, never to recover the use of her speech or limbs, as the house of Clennam
literally collapses before her eyes, killing Rigaud. Rather than hurt Arthur, Little Dorrit chooses
not to reveal what she has learned even though this means forfeiting her legacy.

When Arthur's business partner Daniel Doyce returns from abroad a wealthy man, Arthur is
released with his fortunes revived, and Arthur and Little Dorrit marry.

Subplots

Like many of Dickens's novels, Little Dorrit contains numerous subplots. One subplot concerns
Arthur Clennam's friends, the kind-hearted Meagles. They are upset when their daughter Pet
marries an artist called Gowan, and when their servant and foster daughter Tattycoram is lured
away from them to the sinister Miss Wade, an acquaintance of the criminal Rigaud. Miss Wade
hates men, and it turns out she is the jilted sweetheart of Gowan.

The character Little Dorrit (Amy) was inspired by Mary Ann Cooper (née Mitton), whom Dickens
sometimes visited along with her family, and called by that name. They lived in The Cedars, a
house on Hatton Road west of London; its site is now under the east end of London Heathrow
Airport.[1]

Literary significance and reception

Like much of Dickens' later fiction, this novel has seen many reversals of critical fortune. It has
been shown to be a critique of HM Treasury and the blunders that led to the loss of life of 360
British soldiers at the Battle of Balaclava.[2] Imprisonment – both literal and figurative – is a
major theme of the novel, with Clennam and the Meagles quarantined in Marseilles, Rigaud
jailed for murder, Mrs. Clennam confined to her house, the Dorrits imprisoned in the
Marshalsea, and most of the characters trapped within the rigidly defined English social class
structure of the time.

23. MARY BARTON

Mary Barton is the first novel by English author Elizabeth Gaskell, published in 1848. The story is
set in the English city of Manchester between 1839 and 1842, and deals with the difficulties
faced by the Victorian working class. It is subtitled "A Tale of Manchester Life".

Plot summary

The novel begins in Manchester, where we are introduced to the Bartons and the Wilsons, two
working-class families. John Barton is a questioner of the distribution of wealth and the relations
between rich and poor. Soon his wife dies—he blames it on her grief over the disappearance of
her sister Esther. Having already lost his son Tom at a young age, Barton is left to raise his
daughter, Mary, alone and now falls into depression and begins to involve himself in the
Chartist, trade-union movement.

Mary takes up work at a dressmaker's (her father having objected to her working in a factory)
and becomes subject to the affections of hard-working Jem Wilson and Harry Carson, son of a
wealthy mill owner. She fondly hopes, by marrying Carson, to secure a comfortable life for
herself and her father, but immediately after refusing Jem's offer of marriage she realises that
she truly loves him. She therefore decides to evade Carson, planning to show her feelings to Jem
in the course of time. Jem believes her decision to be final, though this does not change his
feelings for her.

Meanwhile, Esther, a "street-walker," returns to warn John Barton that he must save Mary from
becoming like her. He simply pushes her away, however, and she's sent to jail for a month on
the charge of vagrancy. Upon her release she talks to Jem with the same purpose. He promises
that he will protect Mary and confronts Carson, eventually entering into a fight with him, which
is witnessed by a policeman passing by.

Not long afterwards, Carson is shot dead, and Jem is arrested for the crime, his gun having been
found at the scene. Esther decides to investigate the matter further and discovers that the
wadding for the gun was a piece of paper on which is written Mary's name.

She visits her niece to warn her to save the one she loves, and after she leaves Mary realises that
the murderer is not Jem but her father. She is now faced with having to save her lover without
giving away her father. With the help of Job Legh (the intelligent grandfather of her blind friend
Margaret), Mary travels to Liverpool to find the only person who could provide an alibi for Jem –
Will Wilson, Jem's cousin and a sailor, who was with him on the night of the murder.
Unfortunately, Will's ship is already departing, so that, after Mary chases after the ship in a small
boat, the only thing Will can do is promise to return in the pilot ship and testify the next day.

During the trial, Jem learns of Mary's great love for him. Will arrives in court to testify, and Jem
is found "not guilty". Mary has fallen ill during the trial and is nursed by Mr Sturgis, an old sailor,
and his wife. When she finally returns to Manchester she has to face her father, who is crushed
by his remorse. He summons John Carson, Harry's father, to confess to him that he is the
murderer. Carson is still set on justice, but after turning to the Bible he forgives Barton, who dies
soon afterwards in Carson's arms. Not long after this Esther comes back to Mary's home, where
she, too, soon dies.

Jem decides to leave England, where, his reputation damaged, it would be difficult for him to
find a new job. The novel ends with the wedded Mary and Jem, their little child, and Mrs Wilson
living happily in Canada. News comes that Margaret has regained her sight and that she and
Will, soon to be married, will visit.
Characters

Mary Barton – The eponymous character, a very beautiful girl.

Mrs Mary Barton – Mary's mother, who dies early on.

John Barton – Mary's father, a millworker, active member in trade unions.

George Wilson – John Barton's best friend, a worker at John Carson's mill.

Jane Wilson – George Wilson's wife, short-tempered.

Jem Wilson – Son of George and Jane, an engineer and inventor who has loved Mary from his
childhood.

John Carson – Wealthy owner of a mill in Manchester.

Harry Carson – Son of John Carson, attracted to Mary.

Alice Wilson – George Wilson's sister, a pious old washerwoman, herbalist, sick-nurse.

Margaret Jennings – Neighbour of Alice, blind, a sometime singer, a friend to Mary.

Job Legh – Margaret's grandfather, a self-taught naturalist.

Ben Sturgis – An old sailor, who looks after Mary during her stay in Liverpool.

Will Wilson – Alice's nephew (Jem's cousin), whom she raised after the death of his parents. A
sailor, he falls in love with Margaret.

Esther (last name unknown) – Sister of Mrs Mary Barton, she is a fallen woman and on the
periphery for most of the story.

24. ULYSSES
Ulysses is a modernist novel by Irish writer James Joyce. It was first serialised in parts in the
American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920 and then published in
its entirety in Paris by Sylvia Beach on 2 February 1922, Joyce's 40th birthday. It is considered to
be one of the most important works of modernist literature and has been called "a
demonstration and summation of the entire movement" According to Declan Kiberd, "Before
Joyce, no writer of fiction had so foregrounded the process of thinking".

Ulysses chronicles the peripatetic appointments and encounters of Leopold Bloom in Dublin in
the course of an ordinary day, 16 June 1904.[4][5] Ulysses is the Latinised name of Odysseus, the
hero of Homer's epic poem Odyssey, and the novel establishes a series of parallels between the
poem and the novel, with structural correspondences between the characters and experiences
of Leopold Bloom and Odysseus, Molly Bloom and Penelope, and Stephen Dedalus and
Telemachus, in addition to events and themes of the early 20th century context of modernism,
Dublin, and Ireland's relationship to Britain. The novel is highly allusive and also imitates the
styles of different periods of English literature.

Since publication, the book has attracted controversy and scrutiny, ranging from the 1921
obscenity trial in America to protracted textual "Joyce Wars". Ulysses' stream-of-consciousness
technique, careful structuring, and experimental prose—full of puns, parodies, and allusions—as
well as its rich characterisation and broad humour, have led it to be regarded as one of the
greatest literary works. Joyce fans worldwide now celebrate 16 June as Bloomsday.

Plot Overview

Stephen Dedalus spends the early morning hours of June 16, 1904, remaining aloof from his
mocking friend, Buck Mulligan, and Buck’s English acquaintance, Haines. As Stephen leaves for
work, Buck orders him to leave the house key and meet them at the pub at 12:30. Stephen
resents Buck.

Around 10:00 A.M., Stephen teaches a history lesson to his class at Garrett Deasy’s boys’ school.
After class, Stephen meets with Deasy to receive his wages. The narrow-minded and prejudiced
Deasy lectures Stephen on life. Stephen agrees to take Deasy’s editorial letter about cattle
disease to acquaintances at the newspaper.

Stephen Spends the remainder of his morning walking alone on Sandymount Strand, thinking
critically about his younger self and about perception. He composes a poem in his head and
writes it down on a scrap torn from Deasy’s letter.

At 8:00 A.M. the same morning, Leopold Bloom fixes breakfast and brings his wife her mail and
breakfast in bed. One of her letters is from Molly’s concert tour manager, Blazes Boylan (Bloom
suspects he is also Molly’s lover)—Boylan will visit at 4:00 this afternoon. Bloom returns
downstairs, reads a letter from their daughter, Milly, then goes to the outhouse.

At 10:00 A.M., Bloom picks up an amorous letter from the post office—he is corresponding with
a woman named Martha Clifford under the pseudonym Henry Flower. He reads the tepid letter,
ducks briefly into a church, then orders Molly’s lotion from the pharmacist. He runs into Bantam
Lyons, who mistakenly gets the impression that Bloom is giving him a tip on the horse
Throwaway in the afternoon’s Gold Cup race.

Around 11:00 A.M., Bloom rides with Simon Dedalus (Stephen’s father), Martin Cunningham,
and Jack Power to the funeral of Paddy Dignam. The men treat Bloom as somewhat of an
outsider. At the funeral, Bloom thinks about the deaths of his son and his father

At noon, we find Bloom at the offices of the Freeman newspaper, negotiating an advertisement
for Keyes, a liquor merchant. Several idle men, including editor Myles Crawford, are hanging
around in the office, discussing political speeches. Bloom leaves to secure the ad. Stephen
arrives at the newspaper with Deasy’s letter. Stephen and the other men leave for the pub just
as Bloom is returning. Bloom’s ad negotiation is rejected by Crawford on his way out.

At 1:00 P.M., Bloom runs into Josie Breen, an old flame, and they discuss Mina Purefoy, who is in
labor at the maternity hospital. Bloom stops in Burton’s restaurant, but he decides to move on
to Davy Byrne’s for a light lunch. Bloom reminisces about an intimate afternoon with Molly on
Howth. Bloom leaves and is walking toward the National Library when he spots Boylan on the
street and ducks into the National Museum.

At 2:00 P.M., Stephen is informally presenting his “Hamlet theory” in the National Library to the
poet A.E. and the librarians John Eglinton, Best, and Lyster. A.E. is dismissive of Stephen’s theory
and leaves. Buck enters and jokingly scolds Stephen for failing to meet him and Haines at the
pub. On the way out, Buck and Stephen pass Bloom, who has come to obtain a copy of Keyes’ ad.

At 4:00 P.M., Simon Dedalus, Ben Dollard, Lenehan, and Blazes Boylan converge at the Ormond
Hotel bar. Bloom notices Boylan’s car outside and decides to watch him. Boylan soon leaves for
his appointment with Molly, and Bloom sits morosely in the Ormond restaurant—he is briefly
mollified by Dedalus’s and Dollard’s singing. Bloom writes back to Martha, then leaves to post
the letter.

At 5:00 P.M., Bloom arrives at Barney Kiernan’s pub to meet Martin Cunningham about the
Dignam family finances, but Cunningham has not yet arrived. The citizen, a belligerent Irish
nationalist, becomes increasingly drunk and begins attacking Bloom’s Jewishness. Bloom stands
up to the citizen, speaking in favor of peace and love over xenophobic violence. Bloom and the
citizen have an altercation on the street before Cunningham’s carriage carries Bloom away.

Bloom relaxes on Sandymount Strand around sunset, after his visit to Mrs. Dignam’s house
nearby. A young woman, Gerty MacDowell, notices Bloom watching her from across the beach.
Gerty subtly reveals more and more of her legs while Bloom surreptitiously masturbates. Gerty
leaves, and Bloom dozes.

At 10:00 P.M., Bloom wanders to the maternity hospital to check on Mina Purefoy. Also at the
hospital are Stephen and several of his medi-c-al student friends, drinking and talking
boisterously about subjects related to birth. Bloom agrees to join them, though he privately
disapproves of their revelry in light of Mrs. Purefoy’s struggles upstairs. Buck arrives, and the
men proceed to Burke’s pub. At closing time, Stephen convinces his friend Lynch to go to the
brothel section of town and Bloom follows, feeling protective.

Bloom finally locates Stephen and Lynch at Bella Cohen’s brothel. Stephen is drunk and imagines
that he sees the ghost of his mother—full of rage, he shatters a lamp with his walking stick.
Bloom runs after Stephen and finds him in an argument with a British soldier who knocks him
out.
Bloom revives Stephen and takes him for coffee at a cabman’s shelter to sober up. Bloom invites
Stephen back to his house.

Well after midnight, Stephen and Bloom arrive back at Bloom’s house. They drink cocoa and talk
about their respective backgrounds. Bloom asks Stephen to stay the night. Stephen politely
refuses. Bloom sees him out and comes back in to find evidence of Boylan’s visit. Still, Bloom is
at peace with the world and he climbs into bed, tells Molly of his day and requests breakfast in
bed.

After Bloom falls asleep, Molly remains awake, surprised by Bloom’s request for breakfast in
bed. Her mind wanders to her childhood in Gibraltar, her afternoon of sex with Boylan, her
singing career, Stephen Dedalus. Her thoughts of Bloom vary wildly over the course of the
monologue, but it ends with a reminiscence of their intimate moment at Howth and a positive
affirmation.

Character List

Leopold Bloom - A thirty-eight-year-old advertising canvasser in Dublin. Bloom was raised in

Dublin by his Hungarian Jewish father, Rudolph, and his Irish Catholic mother, Ellen. He enjoys
reading and thinking about science and inventions and explaining his knowledge to others.
Bloom is compassionate and curious and loves music. He is preoccupied by his estrangement
from his wife, Molly.

Marion (Molly) Bloom - Leopold Bloom’s wife. Molly Bloom is thirty-three years old, plump with
dark coloring, good-looking, and flirtatious. She is not well-educated, but she is nevertheless
clever and opinionated. She is a professional singer, raised by her Irish father, Major Brian
Tweedy, in Gibraltar. Molly is impatient with Bloom, especially about his refusal to be intimate
with her since the death of their son, Rudy, eleven years ago.

Stephen Dedalus - An aspiring poet in his early twenties. Stephen is intelligent and extremely
well-read, and he likes music. He seems to exist more for himself, in a cerebral way, than as a
member of a community or even the group of medical students that he associates with. Stephen
was extremely religious as a child, but now he struggles with issues of faith and doubt in the
wake of his mother’s death, which occurred less than a year ago.

Malachi (Buck) Mulligan - A medical student and a friend of Stephen. Buck Mulligan is plump
and well-read, and manages to ridicule nearly everything. He is well-liked by nearly everyone for
his bawdy and witty jokes except Stephen, Simon, and Bloom.

Haines - A folklore student at Oxford who is particularly interested in studying Irish people and
culture. Haines is often unwittingly condescending. He has been staying at the Martello tower
where Stephen and Buck live.

Hugh (“Blazes”) Boylan - The manager for Molly’s upcoming concert in Belfast. Blazes Boylan is
well-known and well-liked around town, though he seems somewhat sleazy, especially toward
women. Boylan has become interested in Molly, and they commence an affair during the
afternoon of the novel.

Millicent (Milly) Bloom - Molly and Leopold Bloom’s fifteen-year-old daughter, who does not
actually appear in Ulysses. The Blooms recently sent Milly to live in Mullingar and learn
photography. Milly is blond and pretty and has become interested in boys—she is dating Alec
Bannon in Mullingar.

Simon Dedalus - Stephen Dedalus’s father. Simon Dedalus grew up in Cork, moved to Dublin,
and was a fairly successful man until recently. Other men look up to him, even though his home
life has been in disarray since his wife died. Simon has a good singing voice and a talent for
funny stories, and he might have capitalized on these assets if not for his drinking habit. Simon is
extremely critical of Stephen.

A.E. (George Russell) - A.E. is the pseudonym of George Russell, a famous poet of the Irish
Literary Revival who is at the center of Irish literary circles—circles that do not include Stephen
Dedalus. He is deeply interested in esoteric mysticism. Other men consult A.E. for wisdom as if
he were an oracle.

Richard Best - A librarian at the National Library. Best is enthusiastic and agreeable, though
most of his own contributions to the Hamlet conversation in Episode Nine are points of received
wisdom.

Edy Boardman - One of Gerty MacDowell’s friends. Gerty’s uppity demeanor annoys Edy, who
attempts to deflate Gerty with jibes.

Josie (née Powell) and Denis Breen - Josie Powell and Bloom were interested in each other
when they were younger. Josie was good-looking and flirtatious. After Bloom married Molly,
Josie married Denis. Denis Breen is slightly insane and seems paranoid. Looking after her “dotty”
husband has taken its toll on Josie, who now seems haggard.

Cissy, Jacky, and Tommy Caffrey - Cissy Caffrey is one of Gerty MacDowell’s best friends. She is
something of a tomboy and quite frank. She looks after her younger toddler brothers, Jacky and
Tommy.

The citizen - An older Irish patriot who champions the Nationalist cause. Though the citizen
seems to work for the cause in no official capacity, others look to him for news and opinions. He
was formerly an athlete in Irish sports. He is belligerent and xenophobic.

Martha Clifford - A woman with whom Bloom corresponds under the pseudonym Henry Flower.
Martha’s letters are strewn with spelling mistakes, and she is sexually daring in only a
pedestrian way.

Bella Cohen - A conniving brothel-mistress. Bella Cohen is large and slightly mannish, with dark
coloring. She is somewhat concerned about respectability, and has a son at Oxford, whose
tuition is paid by one of her customers.

Martin Cunningham - A leader among Bloom’s circle of friends. Martin Cunningham can be
sympathetic toward others, and he sticks up for Bloom at various points during the day, yet he
still treats Bloom as an outsider. He has a face that resembles Shakespeare’s.

Garrett Deasy - Headmaster of the boys’ school where Stephen teaches. Deasy is a Protestant
from the north of Ireland, and he is respectful of the English government. Deasy is
condescending to Stephen and not a good listener. His overwrought letter to the editor about
foot-and-mouth disease among cattle is the object of mockery among Dublin men for the rest of
the day.

Dilly, Katey, Boody, and Maggy Dedalus - Stephen’s younger sisters. They try to keep the
Dedalus household running after their mother’s death. Dilly seems to have aspirations, such as
learning French.

Patrick Dignam, Mrs. Dignam, and Patrick Dignam, Jr. - Patrick Dignam is an acquaintance of
Bloom who passed away very recently, apparently from drinking. His funeral is today, and Bloom
and others get together to raise some money for the widow Dignam and her children, who were
left with almost nothing after Paddy used his life insurance to pay off a debt.

Ben Dollard - A man known around Dublin for his superior bass voice. Ben Dollard’s business
and career went under a while ago. He seems good-natured but is perhaps rattled by a past
drinking habit.

John Eglinton - An essayist who spends time at the National Library. John Eglinton is affronted
by Stephen’s youthful self-confidence and doubtful of Stephen’s Hamlet theory.

Richie, Sara (Sally), and Walter Goulding - Richie Goulding is Stephen Dedalus’s uncle; he was
Stephen’s mother, May’s, brother. Richie is a law clerk, who has been less able to work recently
because of a bad back—a fact that makes him an object of ridicule for Simon Dedalus. Richie and
Sara’s son, Walter, is “skeweyed” and has a stutter.

Zoe Higgins - A prostitute in Bella Cohen’s brothel. Zoe is outgoing and good at teasing.

Joe Hynes - A reporter for the Dublin newspaper who seems to be without money often—he
borrowed three pounds from Bloom and has not paid him back. Hynes does not know Bloom
well, and he appears to be good friends with the citizen in Episode Twelve.

Corny Kelleher - An undertaker’s assistant who is friendly with the police.

Mina Kennedy and Lydia Douce - The barmaids at the Ormond hotel. Mina and Lydia are
flirtatious and friendly to the men who come into the bar, though they tend to be scornful of the
opposite sex when they talk together. Miss Douce, who is bronze-haired, seems to be the more
outgoing of the two, and she has a crush on Blazes Boylan. Miss Kennedy, who is golden-haired,
is more reserved.

Ned Lambert - A friend of Simon Dedalus and other men in Dublin. Ned Lambert is often found
joking and laughing. He works in a seed and grain warehouse downtown, in what used to be St.
Mary’s Abbey.

Lenehan - A racing editor at the Dublin newspaper, though his tip, Sceptre, loses the Gold Cup
horserace. Lenehan is a jokester and flirtatious with women. He is mocking of Bloom but
respectful of Simon and Stephen Dedalus.

Lynch - A medical student and old friend of Stephen (he also appears in A Portrait of the Artist
as a Young Man). Lynch is used to hearing Stephen’s pretentious and overwhelming aesthetic
theories, and he is familiar with Stephen’s stubbornness. He is seeing Kitty Ricketts.

Thomas W. Lyster - A librarian at the National Library in Dublin, and a Quaker. Lyster is the most
solicitous of Stephen’s listeners in Episode Nine.

Gerty MacDowell - A woman in her early twenties from a lower-middle-class family. Gerty
suffers from a permanent limp, possibly from a bicycle accident. She fastidiously attends to her
clothing and personal beauty regimen, and she hopes to fall in love and marry. She rarely allows
herself to think about her disability.

John Henry Menton - A solicitor in Dublin who employed Paddy Dignam. When Bloom and
Molly were first courting, Menton was a rival for Molly’s affections. He is disdainful of Bloom.

Episode Twelve’s Nameless Narrator - The unnamed narrator of Episode Twelve is currently a
debt collector, though this is the most recent of many different jobs. He enjoys feeling like he is
“in the know” and has gotten most of his gossip about the Blooms from his friend “Pisser” Burke,
who knew them when they lived at the City Arms Hotel.

City Councillor Nannetti - A head printer for the Dublin newspaper, and a member of
Parliament. Nannetti is of mixed Italian and Irish heritage.

J. J. O’Molloy - A lawyer who is now out of work and money. O’Molloy is thwarted in his
attempts to borrow money from friends today. He sticks up for Bloom in Barney Kiernan’s pub in
Episode Twelve.

Jack Power - A friend of Simon Dedalus and Martin Cunningham and other men around town.
Power possibly works in law enforcement. He is not very nice to Bloom.

Kitty Ricketts - One of the prostitutes working in Bella Cohen’s brothel. Kitty seems to have a
relationship with Lynch and has spent part of the day with him. She is thin, and her clothing
reflects her upper-class aspirations.

Florry Talbot - One of the prostitutes in Bella Cohen’s brothel. Florry is plump and seems slow
but eager to please.

23. GRIMAS
Grimus is a 1975 fantasy and science fiction novel by Salman Rushdie. It was his literary debut.

The story loosely follows Flapping Eagle, a young Indian who receives the gift of immortality
after drinking a magic fluid. After drinking the fluid, Flapping Eagle wanders the earth for 777
years 7 months and 7 days, searching for his immortal sister and exploring identities before
falling through a hole in the Mediterranean Sea. He arrives in a parallel dimension at the
mystical Calf Island where those immortals who have tired of the world but are reluctant to give
up their immortality exist in a static community under a subtle and sinister authority.

Published in 1975, Grimus was Salman Rushdie's first published novel. To a large extent it has
been disparaged by academic critics; though Peter Kemp's comment is particularly vitriolic, it
does give an idea of the novel's initial reception:

"His first novel, Grimus (1975), a ramshackle surreal saga based on a 12th-century Sufi poem and
copiously encrusted with mythic and literary allusion, nosedived into oblivion amid almost
universal critical derision."

Style

Amongst other influences Rushdie incorporates Sufi, Hindu, Christian and Norse mythologies
alongside pre- and post-modernist literature into his construction of character and narrative
form. Grimus was created with the intention of competing for Rushdie's then publisher, Victor
Gollancz Ltd.’s ‘Science Fiction Prize.’ As an intended work of science fiction it is comparable to
David Lindsay's Voyage to Arcturus in that there is very little actual science fiction. Rather
inter-dimensional/interstellar travelling provides a narrative framework that loosely accords to
the bildungsroman narrative form to allegorically encounter and investigate multiple social
ideologies whilst in a search for a coherent centre of identity. It can be seen as growing out of
and extending the techniques and the literary traditions identified with Jonathan Swift's
Gulliver's Travels, or Sir Thomas More's Utopia, in that its journey traverses both outer and inner
dimensions, exploring both cultural ideologies and the ambivalent effects that they have on
one's psychological being.

Like much of Rushdie's work, Grimus undermines the concept of a 'pure culture' by
demonstrating the impossibility of any culture, philosophy or weltanschauung existing in sterile
isolation. This profoundly post-structuralist approach gains overt expression, for example, in
Virgil's comment on the limitations of aesthetic theories that attempt to suppress their own
contingencies; ‘Any intellect which confines itself to mere structuralism is bound to rest trapped
in its own webs. Your words serve only to spin cocoons around your own irrelevance.’

Further, in Grimus the habits that communities adopt to prevent themselves from
acknowledging multiplicity gain allegorical representation in the Way of K. The Way of K may be
seen as Rushdie probing the Rousseau-influenced theories of man and society that influenced
much post-18th century Western travel writing and the modernist influenced literature of 1930s
England in particular. In light of this, we can see Rushdie as having produced what Linda
Hutcheon terms a 'histiographic novel.' That is, novels that explore and undermine concepts of
stable cultural origins of identity.

Like his later work Midnight's Children, with Grimus Rushdie draws attention to the provisional
status of his text’s ‘truth’ and thus the provisional status of any received account of reality, by
using meta-texts that foreground the unnaturalness and bias of the text’s construction as an
entity. For example, Grimus’s epilogue includes a quotation from one of its own characters.
Thus, the text revolves around the ‘symptoms of blindness which mark its conceptual limits’
rather than the direct expression of didactic insights.

Rushdie has argued that ‘one of the things that have happened in the 20th century is a colossal
fragmentation reality.’ Hence, like Gabriel García Márquez, Grimus incorporates Magic Realism
to transgress distinctions of genres, which mirrors ‘the state of confusion and alienation that
defines postcolonial societies and individuals.’

Structure

One of Grimus’s structural devices draws upon Farid Ud 'Din Attar's 'The Conference of the
Birds.' An allegorical poem that argues ‘God’ to be the transcendental totality of life and reality
rather than an entity external to reality. This is a fundamental aspect of Sufism, and Rushdie’s
use of it prefigures his exploration of the relation of religion to reality in The Satanic Verses,
Shame, East West and a number of his non-fiction works. Both narratives build towards the
revelation of the 'truth' which waits atop of the Mountain Qâf. The footnote in Virgil’s diaries
‘explains’ the use of ‘K’ rather than ‘Q’, which both overtly draws attention to the narrative as a
construction, the effects of which are discussed above, and in a quite dark irony prefigures the
‘Rushdie Affair’ when it states that ‘A purist would not forgive me, but there it is.’

The Dante Comedia provides the structure for Grimus's exploration of inner dimensions. i.e. a
journey through concentric circles and a crossing of a river to arrive at the most terrifying,
central region. Hence, Flapping Eagle's realisation that ‘[He] was climbing a mountain into the
depths of an inferno plunging deep into myself’ and his mistaking of Virgil Jones for 'a demon'
manifest as part of ‘some infernal torture.’ [Grimus p. 69] This manipulation of the Inferno
trope, so that it acts to reveal psychological rather than empirical reality, blurs the boundaries
dividing internal and external realities, which is a fundamental conceit to the novel and
Rushdie's works as a whole. Whilst the basing of Calf Island on a merger of Eastern and Western
references (i.e. Dante's Mount Purgatory and Attar's Qâf Mountain) is emblematic of Rushdie's
locating of post-colonial identity in an eclectic coalescence of cultures.

Paired characters

Kathryn Hume argues that one of Rushdie's most effective techniques for emphasising
problematic dualistic thinking is the pairing of characters.[6] However, with Grimus’s lack of
initial commercial success and the furore over The Satanic Verses, most critics have overlooked
the far more interesting exploration of religious tropes embodied in the pairing of Grimus and
Flapping Eagle. Grimus representing the godhead of Islam/Sufism whilst Flapping Eagle
represents Hinduism's Shiva. As is typical of Rushdie the divisions of characteristics
distinguishing the polarities of this pair are traumatised and blurred as these characters are
structurally and literally paired, blended and unified within the text.

Reviews of the book when first it was published emphasised its science fiction elements. The
science fiction author Brian Aldiss has claimed that he, Kingsley Amis and Arthur C. Clarke
served on a science fiction book prize jury at the time which identified Grimus as the best
candidate for a science fiction book of the year award, but this prize was refused by the
publishers who did not want the book to be classified as science fiction for marketing reasons'.

26. MOLL FLANDERS

The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders Who was born in Newgate, and
during a life of continu'd Variety for Threescore Years, besides her Childhood, was Twelve Years
a Whore, five times a Wife (whereof once to her brother) Twelve Years a Thief, Eight Years a
Transported Felon in Virginia, at last grew Rich, liv'd Honest and died a Penitent (commonly
known simply as Moll Flanders) is a novel by Daniel Defoe, first published in 1722. It purports to
be the true account of the life of the eponymous Moll, detailing her exploits from birth until old
age.

By 1721, Defoe had become a recognised novelist, with the success of Robinson Crusoe in 1719.
His political work was tapering off at this point, due to the fall of both Whig and Tory party
leaders with whom he had been associated; Robert Walpole was beginning his rise, and Defoe
was never fully at home with the Walpole group. Defoe's Whig views are nevertheless evident in
the story of Moll, and the novel's full title gives some insight into this and the outline of the plot:

The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders, &c. Who was Born in Newgate, and
during a Life of continu'd Variety for Threescore Years, besides her Childhood, was Twelve Year a
Whore, five times a Wife (whereof once to her own Brother), Twelve Year a Thief, Eight Year a
Transported Felon in Virginia, at last grew Rich, liv'd Honest, and died a Penitent. Written from
her own Memorandums.

It is usually assumed that the novel was written by Daniel Defoe, and his name is commonly
given as the author in modern printings of the novel. However, the original printing did not have
an author, as it was an apparent autobiography. The attribution of Moll Flanders to Defoe was
made by bookseller Francis Noble in 1770, after Defoe's death in 1731.

The novel is based partially on the life of Moll King, a London criminal whom Defoe met while
visiting Newgate Prison.

Summary

The full title of Moll Flanders gives an apt summary of the plot: "The Fortunes and Misfortunes
of the Famous Moll Flanders, Etc. Who was born in Newgate, and during a life of continu'd
Variety for Threescore Years, besides her Childhood, was Twelve Year a Whore, five times a Wife
(whereof once to her own brother), Twelve Year a Thief, Eight Year a Transported Felon in
Virginia, at last grew Rich, liv'd Honest and died a Penitent. Written from her own
Memorandums."

Moll Flanders is born to a mother who has been convicted of a felony and who is transported to
America soon after her birth. As an infant, Moll lives on public charity, under the care of a kind
widow who teaches her manners and needlework. She grows into a beautiful teenager and is
seduced at an early age. Abandoned by her first lover, she is compelled to marry his younger
brother. He dies after a few years, and she marries a draper who soon flees the country as a
fugitive from the law. She marries yet again and moves to America, only to find out that her
husband is actually her half-brother. She leaves him in disgust and returns to England, where she
becomes the mistress of a man whose wife has gone insane. He renounces his affair with Moll
after a religious experience.

Moll's next marriage offer is from a banker whose wife has been cheating on him. Moll agrees to
marry him if he can obtain a divorce, and meanwhile she travels to the country and marries a
rich gentleman in Lancashire. This man turns out to be a fraud--he is as poor as she is--and they
part ways to seek their fortunes separately. Moll returns to marry the banker, who by this time
has succeeded in divorcing his wife. He dies soon after, however, and Moll is thrown back upon
her own resources once again. She lives in poverty for several years and then begins stealing.
She is quite talented at this new "trade" and soon becomes an expert thief and a local legend.
Eventually she is caught, imprisoned, and sentenced to death. In prison at Newgate, she reunites
with her Lancashire husband, who has also been arrested. They both manage to have their
sentences reduced, and they are transported to the colonies, where they begin a new life as
plantation owners. In America, Moll rediscovers her brother and her son and claims the
inheritance her mother has left her. Prosperous and repentant, she returns with her husband to
England at the age of seventy.
Marriages, relationships, and children

Throughout the novel, Moll goes through a series of relationships, legitimate and not, and
through these relationships she bears many children. The lack of character names and Defoe’s
inability to keep clear distinctions between his many, nameless characters give the reader the
difficult task of keeping track of not just characters as a whole, but specifically Moll’s marriages,
relationships, and children, which make up a majority of her life’s story. The following maps out
Moll’s relationships and marriages in the order that they appeared in the novel as well as any
children that might have been born as a result of their union.

Characters
Moll Flanders - The narrator and protagonist of the novel, who actually goes by a number of
names during the course of her lifetime. Born an orphan, she lives a varied and exciting life,
moving through an astonishing number of marriages and affairs and becoming a highly
successful professional criminal before her eventual retirement and repentance. "Moll Flanders"
is the alias she adopts, or rather is given by the criminal public, during her years as an expert
thief.

Moll's Mother - A convicted felon, Moll's mother was transported to the American colonies
soon after her daughter was born. She reappears as Moll's mother-in-law midway through the
novel, when Moll travels to Virginia with the husband who turns out to be her half-brother. She
leaves her daughter a sizable inheritance when she dies, which Moll reclaims in America at the
end of the novel.

The Nurse - A widow in Colchester who takes care of the child Moll from the age of three
through her teenage years. The sudden death of this nurse precipitates Moll's placement with a
local wealthy family.

The Elder Brother - One of the two brothers in the family with which Moll spends her teenage
years, he falls in love with her. She becomes the mistress of this older brother, under the
mistaken understanding that he intends to marry her when he comes into his inheritance.

Robert - The younger of the two brothers who fall in love with Moll. He eventually marries her,
in spite of his family's disapproval, but dies after five years.

The Draper - Moll's second husband, a tradesman with the manners of a gentleman. His
financial indiscretions sink them into poverty, and he eventually escapes to France as a fugitive
from the law.

The Plantation Owner - A man who marries Moll under the deception that she has a great
fortune. Together they move to Virginia, where he has his plantations. There, Moll learns that he
is actually her half-brother and leaves him to return to England.
The Gentleman - A well-to-do man who befriends Moll and eventually makes her his mistress.
His wife is mad, but he keeps Moll for six years before an illness and religious experience
prompt him to break off the affair.

The Banker - A prosperous man whom Moll agrees to marry if he will divorce his unfaithful
wife. They live happily for several years, but he then dies.

Jemy - Also called James and "my Lancashire husband," he is the only man that Moll has any
real affection for. They marry under a mutual deception and then part ways. Eventually they are
reunited in prison and begin a new life together in America.

"My Governess" - Moll's landlady and midwife, later her friend and confederate in crime. She
helps Moll manage an inconvenient pregnancy and initiates her into the criminal underworld.

Humphrey - Moll's son by the husband who was also her brother. She meets him with an
overwhelming affection on her return to America, and he very generously helps her get
established there.

27. TO THE LIGHT HOUSE

To the Lighthouse is a 1927 novel by Virginia Woolf. The novel centres on the Ramsays and their
visits to the Isle of Skye in Scotland between 1910 and 1920.

Following and extending the tradition of modernist novelists like Marcel Proust and James
Joyce, the plot of To the Lighthouse is secondary to its philosophical introspection. Cited as a key
example of the literary technique of multiple focalization, the novel includes little dialogue and
almost no action; most of it is written as thoughts and observations. The novel recalls childhood
emotions and highlights adult relationships. Among the book's many tropes and themes are
those of loss, subjectivity, the nature of art and the problem of perception.

Plot summary

Part I: The Window

The novel is set in the Ramsays' summer home in the Hebrides, on the Isle of Skye. The section
begins with Mrs Ramsay assuring her son James that they should be able to visit the lighthouse
on the next day. This prediction is denied by Mr Ramsay, who voices his certainty that the
weather will not be clear, an opinion that forces a certain tension between Mr and Mrs Ramsay,
and also between Mr Ramsay and James. This particular incident is referred to on various
occasions throughout the section, especially in the context of Mr and Mrs Ramsay's relationship.

The Ramsays and their eight children have been joined at the house by a number of friends and
colleagues. One of them, Lily Briscoe, begins the novel as a young, uncertain painter attempting
a portrait of Mrs. Ramsay and James. Briscoe finds herself plagued by doubts throughout the
novel, doubts largely fed by the claims of Charles Tansley, another guest, who asserts that
women can neither paint nor write. Tansley himself is an admirer of Mr Ramsay, a philosophy
professor, and his academic treatises.

The section closes with a large dinner party. When Augustus Carmichael, a visiting poet, asks for
a second serving of soup, Mr Ramsay nearly snaps at him. Mrs Ramsay is herself out of sorts
when Paul Rayley and Minta Doyle, two acquaintances whom she has brought together in
engagement, arrive late to dinner, as Minta has lost her grandmother's brooch on the beach.

Part II: Time Passes

The second section gives a sense of time passing, absence, and death. Ten years pass, during
which the First World War begins and ends. Mrs Ramsay dies, as do two of her children - Prue
dies from complications of childbirth, and Andrew is killed in the war. Mr Ramsay is left adrift
without his wife to praise and comfort him during his bouts of fear and anguish regarding the
longevity of his philosophical work. This section is told from an omniscient point of view and
occasionally from Mrs. McNab's point of view. Mrs. McNab worked in the Ramsay's house since
the beginning, and thus provides a clear view of how things have changed in the time the
summer house has been unoccupied.

Part III: The Lighthouse

In the final section, “The Lighthouse,” some of the remaining Ramsays and other guests return
to their summer home ten years after the events of Part I. Mr Ramsay finally plans on taking the
long-delayed trip to the lighthouse with daughter Cam(illa) and son James (the remaining
Ramsay children are virtually unmentioned in the final section). The trip almost does not
happen, as the children are not ready, but they eventually set off. As they travel, the children
are silent in protest at their father for forcing them to come along. However, James keeps the
sailing boat steady and rather than receiving the harsh words he has come to expect from his
father, he hears praise, providing a rare moment of empathy between father and son; Cam's
attitude towards her father changes also, from resentment to eventual admiration.

They are accompanied by the sailor Macalister and his son, who catches fish during the trip. The
son cuts a piece of flesh from a fish he has caught to use for bait, throwing the injured fish back
into the sea.

While they set sail for the lighthouse, Lily attempts to finally complete the painting she has held
in her mind since the start of the novel. She reconsiders her memory of Mrs and Mr Ramsay,
balancing the multitude of impressions from ten years ago in an effort to reach towards an
objective truth about Mrs Ramsay and life itself. Upon finishing the painting (just as the sailing
party reaches the lighthouse) and seeing that it satisfies her, she realises that the execution of
her vision is more important to her than the idea of leaving some sort of legacy in her work.
Character List
Mrs. Ramsay - Mr. Ramsay’s wife. A beautiful and loving woman, Mrs. Ramsay is a wonderful
hostess who takes pride in making memorable experiences for the guests at the family’s
summer home on the Isle of Skye. Affirming traditional gender roles wholeheartedly, she
lavishes particular attention on her male guests, who she believes have delicate egos and need
constant support and sympathy. She is a dutiful and loving wife but often struggles with her
husband’s difficult moods and selfishness. Without fail, however, she triumphs through these
difficult times and demonstrates an ability to make something significant and lasting from the
most ephemeral of circumstances, such as a dinner party.

Mr. Ramsay - Mrs. Ramsay’s husband, and a prominent metaphysical philosopher. Mr. Ramsay
loves his family but often acts like something of a tyrant. He tends to be selfish and harsh due to
his persistent personal and professional anxieties. He fears, more than anything, that his work is
insignificant in the grand scheme of things and that he will not be remembered by future
generations. Well aware of how blessed he is to have such a wonderful family, he nevertheless
tends to punish his wife, children, and guests by demanding their constant sympathy, attention,
and support.

Lily Briscoe - A young, single painter who befriends the Ramsays on the Isle of Skye. Like Mr.
Ramsay, Lily is plagued by fears that her work lacks worth. She begins a portrait of Mrs. Ramsay
at the beginning of the novel but has trouble finishing it. The opinions of men like Charles
Tansley, who insists that women cannot paint or write, threaten to undermine her confidence.

James Ramsay - The Ramsays’ youngest son. James loves his mother deeply and feels a
murderous antipathy toward his father, with whom he must compete for Mrs. Ramsay’s love
and affection. At the beginning of the novel, Mr. Ramsay refuses the six-year-old James’s
request to go to the lighthouse, saying that the weather will be foul and not permit it; ten years
later, James finally makes the journey with his father and his sister Cam. By this time, he has
grown into a willful and moody young man who has much in common with his father, whom he
detests.

Paul Rayley - A young friend of the Ramsays who visits them on the Isle of Skye. Paul is a kind,
impressionable young man who follows Mrs. Ramsay’s wishes in marrying Minta Doyle.

Minta Doyle - A flighty young woman who visits the Ramsays on the Isle of Skye. Minta marries
Paul Rayley at Mrs. Ramsay’s wishes.

Charles Tansley - A young philosopher and pupil of Mr. Ramsay who stays with the Ramsays on
the Isle of Skye. Tansley is a prickly and unpleasant man who harbors deep insecurities regarding
his humble background. He often insults other people, particularly women such as Lily, whose
talent and accomplishments he constantly calls into question. His bad behavior, like Mr.
Ramsay’s, is motivated by his need for reassurance.
William Bankes - A botanist and old friend of the Ramsays who stays on the Isle of Skye. Bankes
is a kind and mellow man whom Mrs. Ramsay hopes will marry Lily Briscoe. Although he never
marries her, Bankes and Lily remain close friends.

Augustus Carmichael - An opium-using poet who visits the Ramsays on the Isle of Skye.
Carmichael languishes in literary obscurity until his verse becomes popular during the war.

Andrew Ramsay - The oldest of the Ramsays’ sons. Andrew is a competent, independent young
man, and he looks forward to a career as a mathematician.

Jasper Ramsay - One of the Ramsays’ sons. Jasper, to his mother’s chagrin, enjoys shooting
birds.

Roger Ramsay - One of the Ramsays’ sons. Roger is wild and adventurous, like his sister Nancy.

Prue Ramsay - The oldest Ramsay girl, a beautiful young woman. Mrs. Ramsay delights in
contemplating Prue’s marriage, which she believes will be blissful.

Rose Ramsay - One of the Ramsays’ daughters. Rose has a talent for making things beautiful.
She arranges the fruit for her mother’s dinner party and picks out her mother’s jewelry.

Nancy Ramsay - One of the Ramsays’ daughters. Nancy accompanies Paul Rayley and Minta
Doyle on their trip to the beach. Like her brother Roger, she is a wild adventurer.

Cam Ramsay - One of the Ramsays’ daughters. As a young girl, Cam is mischievous. She sails
with James and Mr. Ramsay to the lighthouse in the novel’s final section.

Mrs. McNab - An elderly woman who takes care of the Ramsays’ house on the Isle of Skye,
restoring it after ten years of abandonment during and after World War I.

Macalister - The fisherman who accompanies the Ramsays to the lighthouse. Macalister relates
stories of shipwreck and maritime adventure to Mr. Ramsay and compliments James on his
handling of the boat while James lands it at the lighthouse.

Macalister’s boy - The fisherman’s boy. He rows James, Cam, and Mr. Ramsay to the lighthouse.

28. SONG OF SOLOMOM

Song of Solomon is a 1977 novel by American author Toni Morrison. It follows the life of Macon
"Milkman" Dead III, an African-American man living in Michigan, from birth to adulthood.

This book won the National Books Critics Award, was chosen for Oprah Winfrey's popular book
club, and was cited by the Swedish Academy in awarding Morrison the 1993 Nobel Prize in
Literature. In 1998, the Radcliffe Publishing Course named it the 25th best English-language
novel of the 20th century.

Plot Overview

Robert Smith, an insurance agent in an unnamed Michigan town, leaps off the roof of Mercy
Hospital wearing blue silk wings and claiming that he will fly to the opposite shore of Lake
Superior. Mr. Smith plummets to his death. The next day, Ruth Foster Dead, the daughter of the
first black doctor in town, gives birth to the first black child born in Mercy Hospital, Milkman
Dead.

Discovering at age four that humans cannot fly, young Milkman loses all interest in himself and
others. He grows up nourished by the love of his mother and his aunt, Pilate. He is taken care of
by his sisters, First Corinthians and Magdalene (called Lena), and adored by his lover and cousin,
Hagar. Milkman does not reciprocate their kindness and grows up bored and privileged. In his
lack of compassion, Milkman resembles his father, Macon Dead II, a ruthless landlord who
pursues only the accumulation of wealth.

Milkman is afflicted with a genetic malady, an emotional disease that has its origins in
oppressions endured by past generations and passed on to future ones. Milkman’s grandfather,
Macon Dead, received his odd name when a drunk Union soldier erroneously filled out his
documents (his grandfather’s given name remains unknown to Milkman). Eventually, Macon
was killed while defending his land. His two children, Macon Jr. and Pilate, were irreversibly
scarred by witnessing the murder and became estranged from each other. Pilate has become a
poor but strong and independent woman, the mother of a family that includes her daughter,
Reba, and her granddaughter, Hagar. In contrast, Macon Jr. spends his time acquiring wealth.
Both his family and his tenants revile him.

By the time Milkman reaches the age of thirty-two, he feels stifled living with his parents and
wants to escape to somewhere else. Macon Jr. informs Milkman that Pilate may have millions of
dollars in gold wrapped in a green tarp suspended from the ceiling of her rundown shack. With
the help of his best friend, Guitar Bains, whom he promises a share of the loot, Milkman robs
Pilate. Inside the green tarp, Milkman and Guitar find only some rocks and a human skeleton.
We later learn that the skeleton is that of Milkman’s grandfather, Macon Dead I. Guitar is
especially disappointed not to find the gold because he needs the funds to carry out his mission
for the Seven Days, a secret society that avenges injustices committed against
African-Americans by murdering innocent whites.

Thinking that the gold might be in a cave near Macon’s old Pennsylvania farm, Milkman leaves
his hometown in Michigan and heads south, promising Guitar a share of whatever gold he finds.
Before he leaves, Milkman severs his romantic relationship with Hagar, who is driven mad by his
rejection and tries to kill Milkman on multiple occasions. After arriving in Montour County,
Pennsylvania, Milkman discovers that there is no gold to be found. He looks for his long-lost
family history rather than for gold. Milkman meets Circe, an old midwife who helped deliver
Macon Jr. and Pilate. Circe tells Milkman that Macon’s original name was Jake and that he was
married to an Indian girl, Sing.

Encouraged by his findings, Milkman heads south to Shalimar, his grandfather’s ancestral home
in Virginia. Milkman does not know that he is being followed by Guitar, who wants to murder
Milkman because he believes that Milkman has cheated him out of his share of the gold. While
Milkman initially feels uncomfortable in Shalimar’s small-town atmosphere, he grows to love it
as he uncovers more and more clues about his family history. Milkman finds that Jake’s father,
his great-grandfather, was the legendary flying African, Solomon, who escaped slavery by flying
back to Africa. Although Solomon’s flight was miraculous, it left a scar on his family that has
lasted for generations. After an unsuccessful attempt to take Jake, his youngest son, with him on
the flight, Solomon abandoned his wife, Ryna, and their twenty-one children. Unable to cope
without a husband, Ryna went insane, leaving Jake to be raised by Heddy, an Indian woman
whose daughter, Sing, he married.

Milkman’s findings give him profound joy and a sense of purpose. Milkman becomes a
compassionate, responsible adult. After surviving an assassination attempt at Guitar’s hands,
Milkman returns home to Michigan to tell Macon Jr. and Pilate about his discoveries. At home,
he finds that Hagar has died of a broken heart and that the emotional problems plaguing his
family have not gone away. Nevertheless, Milkman accompanies Pilate back to Shalimar, where
they bury Jake’s bones on Solomon’s Leap, the mountain from which Solomon’s flight to Africa
began. Immediately after Jake’s burial, Pilate is struck dead by a bullet that Guitar had intended
for Milkman. Heartbroken over Pilate’s death but invigorated by his recent transformation,
Milkman calls out Guitar’s name and leaps toward him.

Character List

Milkman Dead - The protagonist of the novel, also known as Macon Dead III. Born into a
sheltered, privileged life, Milkman grows up to be an egotistical young man. He lacks
compassion, wallows in self-pity, and alienates himself from the African-American community.
As his nickname suggests, Milkman literally feeds off of what others produce. But his eventual
discovery of his family history gives his life purpose. Although he remains flawed, this newfound
purpose makes him compassionate and caring.

Pilate Dead - Macon Jr.’s younger sister. Born without a navel, Pilate is physically and
psychologically unlike the novel’s other characters. She is a fearless mother who is selflessly
devoted to others. Pilate is responsible for Milkman’s safe birth and continues to protect him for
years afterward. She also takes care of her daughter, Reba, and granddaughter, Hagar.

Macon Jr. - Milkman’s father and Ruth’s husband, also known as Macon Dead II. Traumatized by
seeing his father murdered during a skirmish over the family farm, Macon Jr. has developed an
obsession with becoming wealthy. In the process, he has become an emotionally dead slumlord.
His stony heart softens only when he reminisces about his childhood. Macon Jr.’s stories about
his childhood help fuel Milkman’s investigation into the history of the Dead family.

Guitar Bains - Milkman’s best friend. Having grown up in poverty after his father was killed in a
factory accident, Guitar harbors a lifelong hatred for white people, whom he sees as responsible
for all evil in the world. Morrison points out that while Guitar’s rage is justifiable, his murders of
white people neither combat racism nor help the African-American community.

Hagar - Pilate’s granddaughter and Milkman’s lover. Hagar devotes herself to Milkman, even
though he loses interest and frequently rejects her. Like her biblical namesake—a servant who,
after bearing Abraham’s son is thrown out of the house by his barren wife, Sarah—Hagar is used
and abandoned. Her plight demonstrates a central theme in Song of Solomon: the inevitable
abandonment of women who love men too much.

Macon Dead I - Macon Jr.’s father and Milkman’s grandfather, Macon Dead I is also known as
Jake. Macon Dead I was abandoned in infancy when his father, Solomon, flew back to Africa and
his mother, Ryna, went insane. Macon Dead I was raised by an Indian woman, Heddy. The
mysterious legend of his identity motivates Milkman’s search for self-understanding.

Ruth Foster Dead - Macon Jr.’s wife and the mother of Milkman, First Corinthians, and Lena.
After growing up in a wealthy home, Ruth feels unloved by everyone except her deceased
father, Dr. Foster. Although her existence is joyless, she refuses to leave Macon Jr. for a new life,
proving that wealth’s hold is difficult to overcome.

Dr. Foster - The first black doctor in the novel’s Michigan town. Dr. Foster is an arrogant,
self-hating racist who calls fellow African-Americans “cannibals” and checks to see how
light-skinned his granddaughters are when they are born. His status as an educated black man at
a time when many blacks were illiterate makes him an important symbol of personal triumph
while contrasting with his racist attitude.

Reba - Pilate’s daughter and Hagar’s mother, also known as Rebecca. Reba has a strong sexual
drive but is attracted to abusive men. Nevertheless, because Pilate is her mother, the few men
who dare mistreat her are punished. Reba’s uncanny ability to win contests such as the Sears
half-millionth customer diamond ring giveaway demonstrates that wealth is transient and
unimportant.

First Corinthians Dead - Milkman’s worldly sister, educated at Bryn Mawr and in France. First
Corinthians shares her name with a New Testament book in which the apostle Paul seeks to
mend the disagreements within the early Christian church. Like the biblical book, the character
First Corinthians tries to unify people. Her passionate love affair with a yardman, Henry Porter,
crosses class boundaries. Her actions prove that human beings of different backgrounds and
ages can share a bond.

Magdalene Dead - Another of Milkman’s sisters, also known as Lena. Lena’s submissive attitude
in Macon Jr.’s home makes her one of the many submissive women who populate Song of
Solomon. But her rebuke of Milkman’s selfishness demonstrates her inner strength.

Michael-Mary Graham - The Michigan poet laureate. Graham is a liberal who writes sentimental
poetry and hires First Corinthians as a maid. Graham represents the double standard of white
liberals. Although they claimed to support universal human rights, liberal whites often refused
to treat African-Americans as equals.

Circe - A maid and midwife who worked for the wealthy Butler family. Circe delivered Macon
Jr. and Pilate. In her encounter with Milkman, Circe plays the same role as her namesake in
Homer’s Odyssey, the ancient Greek account of a lost mariner’s ten-year voyage home. Just as
Homer’s Circe helps Odysseus find his way back to Ithaca, Morrison’s Circe provides crucial
information that reconnects Milkman with his family history. In this way, Morrison’s Circe
connects Milkman’s past and future.

Sing - Milkman’s grandmother and Macon Dead I’s wife. Sing is an Indian woman also
known as Singing Bird. Sing’s name commands Macon Dead I, Pilate, and Milkman to connect
the missing links of their family history through Solomon’s song.

Henry Porter - First Corinthians’s lover and a member of the Seven Days vigilante group, which
murders white people. Porter’s tender love affair with First Corinthians proves that a personal
connection between two human beings is stronger than differences of background and class.

Robert Smith - An insurance agent and member of the Seven Days vigilante group. Smith’s
attempt to fly off of the roof of Mercy Hospital begins the novel’s exploration of flight as a
means of escape. Smith’s failure to fly contrasts with Milkman’s eventual success in escaping the
confining circumstances of his life.

Freddie - A janitor employed by Macon Jr. Freddie is the town gossip. Freddie spreads rumors
through the town, illustrating how information was often disseminated within African-American
communities. Freddie coins the nickname “Milkman” for Ruth’s son, showing that original
names are often forgotten and replaced.

Solomon - Milkman’s great-grandfather, who supposedly flew back to Africa but dropped his
son Jake shortly after taking off. Solomon’s flight is a physical demonstration of the liberation
that is felt when a person escapes confining circumstances. However, Solomon’s crying wife,
Ryna, and traumatized children show that escape has negative consequences as well.

Ryna - Milkman’s great-grandmother and Solomon’s wife. When Solomon abandons her, Ryna
goes mad. According to legend, her cries can still be heard.

Sweet - A prostitute with whom Milkman has a brief affair. Unlike Milkman’s affairs with
other women, especially Hagar, his relationship with Sweet is mutually respectful and entirely
reciprocal. His interactions with her demonstrate that the most gratifying relationships in the
novel are those in which both partners treat each other as equals.
 29. THE HUNGRY TIDE
The Hungry Tide (2004) is the sixth novel by Indian-born author, Amitav Ghosh. It won the
Hutch Crossword Book Award for Fiction.

Off the easternmost coast of India, in the Bay of Bengal, lies the immense labyrinth of tiny
islands known as the Sundarbans. For settlers here, life is extremely precarious. Attacks by
deadly tigers are common. Unrest and eviction are constant threats. Without warning, at any
time, tidal floods rise and surge over the land, leaving devastation in their wake. In this place of
vengeful beauty, the lives of three people from different worlds collide. Piyali Roy is a young
marine biologist, of Indian descent but stubbornly American, in search of a rare, endangered
river dolphin, Orcaella brevirostris. Her journey begins with a disaster, when she is thrown from
a boat into crocodile-infested waters. Rescue comes in the form of a young, illiterate fisherman,
Fokir. Although they have no language between them, Piya and Fokir are powerfully drawn to
each other, sharing an uncanny instinct for the ways of the sea. Piya engages Fokir to help with
her research and finds a translator in Kanai Dutt, a businessman from Delhi whose idealistic aunt
and uncle are longtime settlers in the Sundarbans. As the three of them launch into the
elaborate backwaters, they are drawn unawares into the hidden undercurrents of this isolated
world, where political turmoil exacts a personal toll that is every bit as powerful as the ravaging
tide. Already an international success, The Hungry Tide is a prophetic novel of remarkable
insight, beauty, and humanity.

The Morichjhanpi massacre incident of 1978-79, when government of West Bengal forcibly
evicted thousands of Bengali refugees who had settled on the island, forms a background for
some parts of the novel. The novel explores topics like humanism and environmentalism,
especially when they come into a conflict of interest with each other.

Characters

Kanai Dutt

He is a wealthy translator and businessman, who comes to the Sundarbans to visit his Aunt and
to read his deceased uncle's journal. Kanai also tries to develop a relationship with Piya, and
because of this decides to loan his boats and crew to Priya out of jealousy of her and Fokir.

Piyali Roy (Piya) - She is an Indian-American scientist specializing in marine biology, who came to
the Sundarbans to research the rare Irrawaddy Dolphins. Piya is friends with Kanai, and Fokir
who both help her with her research.

Fokir - A brave and giving local illiterate fisherman who helps Piya research the dolphins. His
family is friends of Kanai Dutt. Fokir proves his bravery through giving his life trying to save Piya
in the storm
Mashima - Kanai's aunt, who lives in Lusibari and founded the local hospital.

Saar - Mashima's deceased husband, and Kanai's uncle who wrote the journal.

Mej-da - Owns the boat that the local government gave to Piya to use, is also a friend of the local
forest guard.

Forest Guard - Local man hired by government to protect the mandgrove forests, and to prevent
people from illegally fishing.

30. INVISIBLE MAN

Invisible Man is a novel by Ralph Ellison about an African American man whose color renders
him invisible, published by Random House in 1952. It addresses many of the social and
intellectual issues facing African-Americans early in the twentieth century, including black
nationalism, the relationship between black identity and Marxism, and the reformist racial
policies of Booker T. Washington, as well as issues of individuality and personal identity.

Invisible Man won the U.S. National Book Award for Fiction in 1953. According to The New York
Times, former U.S. president Barack Obama modeled his memoir Dreams from My Father on
Ellison's novel.

Plot Overview

The narrator begins telling his story with the claim that he is an “invisible man.” His invisibility,
he says, is not a physical condition—he is not literally invisible—but is rather the result of the
refusal of others to see him. He says that because of his invisibility, he has been hiding from the
world, living underground and stealing electricity from the Monopolated Light & Power
Company. He burns 1,369 light bulbs simultaneously and listens to Louis Armstrong’s “(What Did
I Do to Be So) Black and Blue” on a phonograph. He says that he has gone underground in order
to write the story of his life and invisibility.

As a young man, in the late 1920s or early 1930s, the narrator lived in the South. Because he is a
gifted public speaker, he is invited to give a speech to a group of important white men in his
town. The men reward him with a briefcase containing a scholarship to a prestigious black
college, but only after humiliating him by forcing him to fight in a “battle royal” in which he is
pitted against other young black men, all blindfolded, in a boxing ring. After the battle royal, the
white men force the youths to scramble over an electrified rug in order to snatch at fake gold
coins. The narrator has a dream that night in which he imagines that his scholarship is actually a
piece of paper reading “To Whom It May Concern . . . Keep This Nigger-Boy Running.”

Three years later, the narrator is a student at the college. He is asked to drive a wealthy white
trustee of the college, Mr. Norton, around the campus. Norton talks incessantly about his
daughter, then shows an undue interest in the narrative of Jim Trueblood, a poor, uneducated
black man who impregnated his own daughter. After hearing this story, Norton needs a drink,
and the narrator takes him to the Golden Day, a saloon and brothel that normally serves black
men. A fight breaks out among a group of mentally imbalanced black veterans at the bar, and
Norton passes out during the chaos. He is tended by one of the veterans, who claims to be a
doctor and who taunts both Norton and the narrator for their blindness regarding race relations.

Back at the college, the narrator listens to a long, impassioned sermon by the Reverend Homer
A. Barbee on the subject of the college’s Founder, whom the blind Barbee glorifies with poetic
language. After the sermon, the narrator is chastised by the college president, Dr. Bledsoe, who
has learned of the narrator’s misadventures with Norton at the old slave quarters and the
Golden Day. Bledsoe rebukes the narrator, saying that he should have shown the white man an
idealized version of black life. He expels the narrator, giving him seven letters of
recommendation addressed to the college’s white trustees in New York City, and sends him
there in search of a job.

The narrator travels to the bright lights and bustle of 1930s Harlem, where he looks
unsuccessfully for work. The letters of recommendation are of no help. At last, the narrator goes
to the office of one of his letters’ addressees, a trustee named Mr. Emerson. There he meets
Emerson’s son, who opens the letter and tells the narrator that he has been betrayed: the letters
from Bledsoe actually portray the narrator as dishonorable and unreliable. The young Emerson
helps the narrator to get a low-paying job at the Liberty Paints plant, whose trademark color is
“Optic White.” The narrator briefly serves as an assistant to Lucius Brockway, the black man who
makes this white paint, but Brockway suspects him of joining in union activities and turns on
him. The two men fight, neglecting the paint-making; consequently, one of the unattended
tanks explodes, and the narrator is knocked unconscious.

The narrator wakes in the paint factory’s hospital, having temporarily lost his memory and
ability to speak. The white doctors seize the arrival of their unidentified black patient as an
opportunity to conduct electric shock experiments. After the narrator recovers his memory and
leaves the hospital, he collapses on the street. Some black community members take him to the
home of Mary, a kind woman who lets him live with her for free in Harlem and nurtures his
sense of black heritage. One day, the narrator witnesses the eviction of an elderly black couple
from their Harlem apartment. Standing before the crowd of people gathered before the
apartment, he gives an impassioned speech against the eviction. Brother Jack overhears his
speech and offers him a position as a spokesman for the Brotherhood, a political organization
that allegedly works to help the socially oppressed. After initially rejecting the offer, the narrator
takes the job in order to pay Mary back for her hospitality. But the Brotherhood demands that
the narrator take a new name, break with his past, and move to a new apartment. The narrator
is inducted into the Brotherhood at a party at the Chthonian Hotel and is placed in charge of
advancing the group’s goals in Harlem.

After being trained in rhetoric by a white member of the group named Brother Hambro, the
narrator goes to his assigned branch in Harlem, where he meets the handsome, intelligent black
youth leader Tod Clifton. He also becomes familiar with the black nationalist leader Ras the
Exhorter, who opposes the interracial Brotherhood and believes that black Americans should
fight for their rights over and against all whites. The narrator delivers speeches and becomes a
high-profile figure in the Brotherhood, and he enjoys his work. One day, however, he receives an
anonymous note warning him to remember his place as a black man in the Brotherhood. Not
long after, the black Brotherhood member Brother Wrestrum accuses the narrator of trying to
use the Brotherhood to advance a selfish desire for personal distinction. While a committee of
the Brotherhood investigates the charges, the organization moves the narrator to another post,
as an advocate of women’s rights. After giving a speech one evening, he is seduced by one of the
white women at the gathering, who attempts to use him to play out her sexual fantasies about
black men.

After a short time, the Brotherhood sends the narrator back to Harlem, where he discovers that
Clifton has disappeared. Many other black members have left the group, as much of the Harlem
community feels that the Brotherhood has betrayed their interests. The narrator finds Clifton on
the street selling dancing “Sambo” dolls—dolls that invoke the stereotype of the lazy and
obsequious slave. Clifton apparently does not have a permit to sell his wares on the street.
White policemen accost him and, after a scuffle, shoot him dead as the narrator and others look
on. On his own initiative, the narrator holds a funeral for Clifton and gives a speech in which he
portrays his dead friend as a hero, galvanizing public sentiment in Clifton’s favor. The
Brotherhood is furious with him for staging the funeral without permission, and Jack harshly
castigates him. As Jack rants about the Brotherhood’s ideological stance, a glass eye falls from
one of his eye sockets. The Brotherhood sends the narrator back to Brother Hambro to learn
about the organization’s new strategies in Harlem.

The narrator leaves feeling furious and anxious to gain revenge on Jack and the Brotherhood. He
arrives in Harlem to find the neighborhood in ever-increased agitation over race relations. Ras
confronts him, deploring the Brotherhood’s failure to draw on the momentum generated by
Clifton’s funeral. Ras sends his men to beat up the narrator, and the narrator is forced to
disguise himself in dark glasses and a hat. In his dark glasses, many people on the streets
mistake him for someone named Rinehart, who seems to be a pimp, bookie, lover, and reverend
all at once. At last, the narrator goes to Brother Hambro’s apartment, where Hambro tells him
that the Brotherhood has chosen not to emphasize Harlem and the black movement. He
cynically declares that people are merely tools and that the larger interests of the Brotherhood
are more important than any individual. Recalling advice given to him by his grandfather, the
narrator determines to undermine the Brotherhood by seeming to go along with them
completely. He decides to flatter and seduce a woman close to one of the party leaders in order
to obtain secret information about the group.

But the woman he chooses, Sybil, knows nothing about the Brotherhood and attempts to use
the narrator to fulfill her fantasy of being raped by a black man. While still with Sybil in his
apartment, the narrator receives a call asking him to come to Harlem quickly. The narrator hears
the sound of breaking glass, and the line goes dead. He arrives in Harlem to find the
neighborhood in the midst of a full-fledged riot, which he learns was incited by Ras. The narrator
becomes involved in setting fire to a tenement building. Running from the scene of the crime, he
encounters Ras, dressed as an African chieftain. Ras calls for the narrator to be lynched. The
narrator flees, only to encounter two policemen, who suspect that his briefcase contains loot
from the riots. In his attempt to evade them, the narrator falls down a manhole. The police
mock him and draw the cover over the manhole

The narrator says that he has stayed underground ever since; the end of his story is also the
beginning. He states that he finally has realized that he must honor his individual complexity and
remain true to his own identity without sacrificing his responsibility to the community. He says
that he finally feels ready to emerge from underground.

31. KANTHAPURA
In Kanthapura, Raja Rao tells a story about a village in the southern portion of India where there
is a traditional caste system. The town known as Kanthapura does not abide by modern
processes, however most people within the location believe that they are blessed by an entity
known as Kenchamma. The village has approximately 120 homes with about 700 people. Within
the caste system, the Brahmins are said to be the highest group and then there are two different
groups that are known as tradesmen who are both weavers and potters. After the tradesmen,
there are sudras who are known as laborers and pariahs who are known as untouchables.

During the introduction and first chapter of the novel, the reader is informed that the story is
told during the 1930s, during the same time that Mahatma Gandhi tries to facilitate liberation in
terms of politics. The narrator of the story is an old widow by the name of Achakka and she is
known to a Brahmin, which is the highest caste in the system. She tells the story of the main
character known as Moorthy, also a Brahmin, who has left University in order to become an
activist for the congress of India.

In chapters two and three, Moorthy tries his best to promote the teachings of Gandhi
throughout the nation of India. He firmly believes in non-cruelty and he indicates that each
person should be able to have a sense of inner peace. Even though he tries to relay this
message, he is often distracted by the many negative factors within the village of Kanthapura.
Many people do not believe in Gandhi’s message and in turn they do not take Moorthy
seriously. Since there is a great level of resistance in the village, police authorities are forced to
oversee daily life in Kanthapura. One of the policemen known as Bade Khan does not believe in
Moorthy’s actions at all and he indicates that Gandhi’s teaching undermines all of social order
and religion in the world.

As the chapters progress, Moorthy continues to spread his knowledge about Gandhi’s message
to the nation and he slowly begins to grow a following, especially among people who are in the
lower groups in the caste system. He shows his courage and he even stands up to local authority
when he is questioned about his peaceful protests.

Eventually, Moorthy’s mother passes away. The Brahmin clerks of Kanthapura invite Moorthy to
the estate in order to create an increased sense of awareness regarding the social injustice
taking place. When Moorthy enters the estate, Bade Khan shows up and physically injures him.
Fortunately, there are other members in the estate who are able to defend Moorthy. After the
incident, Moorthy is very unhappy with the turn of events and he prays that the violence would
just come to an end.

Due to the injustice that was faced at the estate, Moorthy decides to go on a fast for three days,
just like Gandhi would participate in. At the end of the fast, Moorthy is very happy and he feels
victorious that he is able to rise above those people with small minds. Even though he is
satisfied with himself, the foreign government approaches Moorthy and tells him that he is
provoking violence throughout Kanthapura. Due to his actions, the police officers decide to
arrest him.

Moorthy is sent to prison for three months because the authorities believe that he is the reason
that there are many violent outbursts. In his presence, Rangamma stays active and she develops
a volunteer corps committee. Within the group, she inspires women to have courage and to
continue fighting for their freedom through the use of non-violence.

Once Moorthy is released from jail, he maintains a positive stance. When he approaches his
home, he finds that there are many people waiting for him, cheering him on since they believe
in his peaceful attitude.

After Moorthy’s release from prison, there continue to be arrests of people who are protesting
social injustice and brutality, especially against women. There are police officers who are seen
chasing women and trying to abuse them. There are also instances where the officers start
beating people for no justifiable reason. Within Kanthapura, the increased violence that is seen
is disturbing to Moorthy especially since he has taken the time to promote peace, following
Gandhi’s philosophy. Regardless, Moorthy continues to try and make strides in order to change
the ways of Kanthapura.

Once one year has passed, it is seen that approximately 30 refugees from Kanthapura have fled
and have settled in Kashipur. These people look to their Lord to save them from the injustices
that were once brought to them in Kanthapura. As time goes on, they still have a desire to make
their nation free again through the assistance of Gandhi and the belief in their deities.

32. JANE EYRE

Jane Eyre /ɛər/ (originally published as Jane Eyre: An Autobiography) is a novel by English writer
Charlotte Brontë. It was published on 16 October 1847, by Smith, Elder & Co. of London,
England, under the pen name "Currer Bell". The first American edition was published the
following year by Harper & Brothers of New York.

Primarily of the Bildungsroman genre, Jane Eyre follows the emotions and experiences of its
eponymous heroine, including her growth to adulthood and her love for Mr. Rochester, the
Byronic[1] master of fictitious Thornfield Hall. In its internalisation of the action—the focus is on
the gradual unfolding of Jane's moral and spiritual sensibility, and all the events are coloured by
a heightened intensity that was previously the domain of poetry—Jane Eyre revolutionised the
art of fiction. Charlotte Brontë has been called the 'first historian of the private consciousness'
and the literary ancestor of writers like Proust and Joyce.[2] The novel contains elements of
social criticism, with a strong sense of Christian morality at its core, but is nonetheless a novel
many consider ahead of its time given the individualistic character of Jane and the novel's
exploration of classism, sexuality, religion, and proto-feminism.

Plot

This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by
removing unnecessary details and making it more concise. (October 2017) (Learn how and when
to remove this template message)

Introduction

The novel is a first-person narrative from the perspective of the title character. The novel's
setting is somewhere in the north of England, late in the reign of George III (1760–1820).[a] It
goes through five distinct stages: Jane's childhood at Gateshead Hall, where she is emotionally
and physically abused by her aunt and cousins; her education at Lowood School, where she gains
friends and role models but suffers privations and oppression; her time as governess at
Thornfield Hall, where she falls in love with her Byronic employer, Edward Rochester; her time
with the Rivers family, during which her earnest but cold clergyman cousin, St. John Rivers,
proposes to her; and her reunion with, and marriage to, her beloved Rochester. During these
sections, the novel provides perspectives on a number of important social issues and ideas,
many of which are critical of the status quo. Literary critic Jerome Beaty opines that the close
first person perspective leaves the reader "too uncritically accepting of her worldview", and
often leads reading and conversation about the novel towards supporting Jane, regardless of
how irregular her ideas or perspectives are.

Jane Eyre is divided into 38 chapters, and most editions are at least 400 pages long. The original
publication was in three volumes, comprising chapters 1 to 15, 16 to 27, and 28 to 38; this was a
common publishing format during the 19th century (see three-volume novel).

Brontë dedicated the novel's second edition to William Makepeace Thackeray.

Jane's childhood[

Young Jane argues with her guardian Mrs. Reed of Gateshead, illustration by F. H. Townsend

The novel begins with the titular character, Jane Eyre, aged 10, living with her maternal uncle's
family, the Reeds, as a result of her uncle's dying wish. It is several years after her parents died
of typhus. Mr. Reed, Jane's uncle, was the only person in the Reed family who was ever kind to
Jane. Jane's aunt, Sarah Reed, dislikes her, treats her as a burden, and discourages her children
from associating with Jane. Mrs. Reed and her three children are abusive to Jane, physically,
emotionally, and spiritually. The nursemaid Bessie proves to be Jane's only ally in the household,
even though Bessie sometimes harshly scolds Jane. Excluded from the family activities, Jane is
incredibly unhappy, with only a doll and books for comfort.

One day, after her cousin John Reed knocks her down and she attempts to defend herself, Jane
is locked in the red room where her uncle died; there, she faints from panic after she thinks she
has seen his ghost. She is subsequently attended to by the kindly apothecary Mr. Lloyd to whom
Jane reveals how unhappy she is living at Gateshead Hall. He recommends to Mrs. Reed that
Jane should be sent to school, an idea Mrs. Reed happily supports. Mrs. Reed then enlists the aid
of the harsh Mr. Brocklehurst, director of Lowood Institution, a charity school for girls. Mrs. Reed
cautions Mr. Brocklehurst that Jane has a "tendency for deceit", which he interprets as her being
a "liar". Before Jane leaves, however, she confronts Mrs. Reed and declares that she'll never call
her "aunt" again, that Mrs. Reed and her daughters, Georgiana and Eliza, are the ones who are
deceitful, and that she will tell everYone at Lowood how cruelly Mrs. Reed treated her.

Lowood

At Lowood Institution, a school for poor and orphaned girls, Jane soon finds that life is harsh, but
she attempts to fit in and befriends an older girl, Helen Burns, who is able to accept her
punishment philosophically. During a school inspection by Mr. Brocklehurst, Jane accidentally
breaks her slate, thereby drawing attention to herself. He then stands her on a stool, brands her
a liar, and shames her before the entire assembly. Jane is later comforted by her friend, Helen.
Miss Temple, the caring superintendent, facilitates Jane's self-defence and writes to Mr. Lloyd,
whose reply agrees with Jane's. Jane is then publicly cleared of Mr. Brocklehurst's accusations.

The 80 pupils at Lowood are subjected to cold rooms, poor meals, and thin clothing. Many
students fall ill when a typhus epidemic strikes, and Jane's friend Helen dies of consumption in
her arms. When Mr. Brocklehurst's maltreatment of the students is discovered, several
benefactors erect a new building and install a sympathetic management committee to
moderate Mr. Brocklehurst's harsh rule. Conditions at the school then improve dramatically.

The name Lowood symbolizes the "low" point in Jane's life where she was maltreated. Helen
Burns is a representation of Charlotte's elder sister Maria, who died of tuberculosis after
spending time at a school where the children were mistreated.

Thornfield Hall

After six years as a student and two as a teacher at Lowood, Jane decides to leave, like her friend
and confidante Miss Temple, who recently married. She advertises her services as a governess
and receives one reply, from Alice Fairfax, housekeeper at Thornfield Hall. Jane takes the
position, teaching Adèle Varens, a young French girl.

One night, while Jane is walking to a nearby town, a horseman passes her. The horse slips on ice
and throws the rider. Despite the rider's surliness, Jane helps him to get back onto his horse.
Later, back at Thornfield, she learns that this man is Edward Rochester, master of the house.
Adèle is his ward, left in his care when her mother abandoned her.

At Jane's first meeting with him within Thornfield, Mr. Rochester teases her, accusing her of
bewitching his horse to make him fall. He also talks strangely in other ways, but Jane is able to
stand up to his initially arrogant manner. Mr. Rochester and Jane soon come to enjoy each
other's company, and spend many evenings together.

Odd things start to happen at the house, such as a strange laugh, a mysterious fire in Mr.
Rochester's room (from which Jane saves Rochester by rousing him and throwing water on him
and the fire), and an attack on a house guest named Mr. Mason. Then Jane receives word that
her aunt Mrs. Reed is calling for her, because she suffered a stroke after her son John died. Jane
returns to Gateshead and remains there for a month, attending to her dying aunt. Mrs. Reed
confesses to Jane that she wronged her, giving Jane a letter from Jane's paternal uncle, Mr. John
Eyre, in which he asks for her to live with him and be his heir. Mrs. Reed admits to telling Mr.
Eyre that Jane had died of fever at Lowood. Soon afterward, Mrs. Reed dies, and Jane helps her
cousins after the funeral before returning to Thornfield.

Back at Thornfield, Jane broods over Mr. Rochester's rumoured impending marriage to the
beautiful and talented, but snobbish and heartless, Blanche Ingram. However, one midsummer
evening, Rochester baits Jane by saying how much he will miss her after getting married, but
how she will soon forget him. The normally self-controlled Jane reveals her feelings for him.
Rochester is then sure that Jane is sincerely in love with him, and he proposes marriage. Jane is
at first sceptical of his sincerity, but eventually believes him and gladly agrees to marry him. She
then writes to her Uncle John, telling him of her happy news.

As she prepares for her wedding, Jane's forebodings arise when a strange woman sneaks into
her room one night and rips her wedding veil in two. As with the previous mysterious events,
Mr. Rochester attributes the incident to Grace Poole, one of his servants. During the wedding
ceremony, Mr. Mason and a lawyer declare that Mr. Rochester cannot marry because he is
already married to Mr. Mason's sister, Bertha. Mr. Rochester admits this is true but explains that
his father tricked him into the marriage for her money. Once they were united, he discovered
that she was rapidly descending into congenital madness, and so he eventually locked her away
in Thornfield, hiring Grace Poole as a nurse to look after her. When Grace gets drunk,
Rochester's wife escapes and causes the strange happenings at Thornfield.

It turns out that Jane's uncle, Mr. John Eyre, is a friend of Mr. Mason's and was visited by him
soon after Mr. Eyre received Jane's letter about her impending marriage. After the marriage
ceremony is broken off, Mr. Rochester asks Jane to go with him to the south of France, and live
with him as husband and wife, even though they cannot be married. Refusing to go against her
principles, and despite her love for him, Jane leaves Thornfield in the middle of the night.

Other employment

Jane travels as far from Thornfield as she can using the little money she had previously saved.
She accidentally leaves her bundle of possessions on the coach and has to sleep on the moor,
and unsuccessfully attempts to trade her handkerchief and gloves for food. Exhausted and
hungry, she eventually makes her way to the home of Diana and Mary Rivers, but is turned away
by the housekeeper. She collapses on the doorstep, preparing for her death. St. John Rivers,
Diana and Mary's brother and a clergyman, saves her. After she regains her health, St. John finds
Jane a teaching position at a nearby village school. Jane becomes good friends with the sisters,
but St. John remains aloof.

The sisters leave for governess jobs, and St. John becomes somewhat closer to Jane. St. John
learns Jane's true identity and astounds her by telling her that her uncle, John Eyre, has died and
left her his entire fortune of 20,000 pounds (equivalent to over £1.3 million in 2011[8]). When
Jane questions him further, St. John reveals that John Eyre is also his and his sisters' uncle. They
had once hoped for a share of the inheritance but were left virtually nothing. Jane, overjoyed by
finding that she has living and friendly family members, insists on sharing the money equally
with her cousins, and Diana and Mary come back to live at Moor House.

Proposals

Thinking Jane will make a suitable missionary's wife, St. John asks her to marry him and to go
with him to India, not out of love, but out of duty. Jane initially accepts going to India but rejects
the marriage proposal, suggesting they travel as brother and sister. As soon as Jane's resolve
against marriage to St. John begins to weaken, she mystically hears Mr. Rochester's voice calling
her name. Jane then returns to Thornfield to find only blackened ruins. She learns that Mr.
Rochester's wife set the house on fire and committed suicide by jumping from the roof. In his
rescue attempts, Mr. Rochester lost a hand and his eyesight. Jane reunites with him, but he fears
that she will be repulsed by his condition. "Am I hideous, Jane?", he asks. "Very, sir: you always
were, you know", she replies. When Jane assures him of her love and tells him that she will
never leave him, Mr. Rochester again proposes, and they are married. He eventually recovers
enough sight to see their firstborn son.
Characters

Jane Eyre: The novel's protagonist, second wife of Edward Rochester, and title character.
Orphaned as a baby, she struggles through her nearly loveless childhood and becomes
governess at Thornfield Hall. Jane is passionate and strongly principled, and values freedom and
independence. She also has a strong conscience and is a determined Christian. She is ten at the
beginning of the novel, and nineteen or twenty at the end.

Mr. Reed: Jane's maternal uncle, who adopts Jane when her parents die. According to Mrs.
Reed, he pitied Jane and often cared for her more than for his own children. Before his own
death, he makes his wife promise to care for Jane.

Mrs. Reed: (née Gibson) Jane's maternal aunt by marriage, who reluctantly adopts Jane on her
husband's wishes, but abuses and neglects her. She eventually casts her off and sends her to
Lowood School.

John Reed: Jane's fourteen-year-old cousin who bullies her incessantly, sometimes in his
mother's presence. John eventually ruins himself as an adult by drinking and gambling, and is
rumoured to have committed suicide.

Eliza Reed: Jane's thirteen-year-old first cousin. Jealous of her more attractive younger sister
and a slave to rigid routine, she self-righteously devotes herself to religion. She leaves for a
nunnery near Lisle after her mother's death, determined to estrange herself from her sister.

Georgiana Reed: Jane's eleven-year-old first cousin. Although beautiful and indulged, she is
insolent and spiteful. Her elder sister Eliza foils Georgiana's marriage to the wealthy Lord Edwin
Vere, when the couple is about to elope. Georgiana eventually marries a, "wealthy worn-out
man of fashion."

Bessie Lee: The nursemaid at Gateshead. She often treats Jane kindly, telling her stories and
singing her songs, but she has a quick temper. Later, she marries Robert Leaven and gives him
three children.

Robert Leaven: The coachman at Gateshead, who brings Jane the news of John Reed's death,
which has brought on Mrs. Reed's stroke, and Mrs. Reed's wish to see Jane before Mrs. Reed
died.

Mr. Lloyd: A compassionate apothecary who recommends that Jane be sent to school. Later, he
writes a letter to Miss Temple confirming Jane's account of her childhood and thereby clears
Jane of Mrs. Reed's charge of lying.

Mr. Brocklehurst: The clergyman, director, and treasurer of Lowood School, whose
maltreatment of the students is eventually exposed. A religious traditionalist, he advocates for
his charges the most harsh, plain, and disciplined possible lifestyle, but not, hypocritically, for
himself and his own family. His second daughter Augusta exclaimed, "Oh, dear papa, how quiet
and plain all the girls at Lowood look... they looked at my dress and mama's, as if they had never
seen a silk gown before."

Miss Maria Temple: The kind superintendent of Lowood School, who treats the students with
respect and compassion. She helps clear Jane of Mr. Brocklehurst's false accusation of deceit
and cares for Helen in her last days. Eventually, she marries Reverend Naysmith.

Miss Scatcherd: A sour and strict teacher at Lowood. She constantly punishes Helen Burns for
her untidiness but fails to see Helen's substantial good points.

Helen Burns: Jane's best friend at Lowood School. She refuses to hate those who abuse her,
trusts in God, and prays for peace one day in heaven. She teaches Jane to trust Christianity and
dies of consumption in Jane's arms. Elizabeth Gaskell, in her biography of the Brontë sisters,
wrote that Helen Burns was 'an exact transcript' of Maria Brontë, who died of consumption at
age 11.[9]

Edward Fairfax Rochester: The master of Thornfield Hall. A Byronic hero, he is tricked into
making an unfortunate first marriage to Bertha Mason many years before he meets Jane, with
whom he falls in love.

Bertha Antoinetta Mason: The violent and insane first wife of Edward Rochester. Bertha moved
to Thornfield, was locked in the attic, and eventually committed suicide after setting Thornfield
Hall aflame.

Adèle Varens: An excitable French child to whom Jane is governess at Thornfield. Adèle's
mother was a dancer named Céline. She was Mr. Rochester's mistress and claimed that Adèle
was Mr. Rochester's daughter, though he refuses to believe it due to Céline's unfaithfulness and
Adèle's apparent lack of resemblance to him. Adèle seems to believe that her mother is dead
(she tells Jane in chapter 11, "I lived long ago with mamma, but she is gone to the Holy Virgin"),
but Mr Rochester later tells Jane that Céline actually abandoned Adèle and "ran away to Italy
with a musician or singer" (ch. 15). Adèle and Jane develop a strong liking for one another, and
although Mr. Rochester places Adèle in a strict school after Jane flees Thornfield, Jane visits
Adèle after her return and finds a better, less severe school for her. When Adèle is old enough to
leave school, Jane describes her as "a pleasing and obliging companion – docile, good-tempered
and well-principled", and considers her kindness to Adèle well repaid.

Mrs. Alice Fairfax: An elderly, kind widow and the housekeeper of Thornfield Hall.

Leah: The housemaid at Thornfield Hall.

John: An old, and normally the only, manservant at Thornfield.

Mary: Normally referred to as 'John's wife' and sometimes 'the cook'.

Blanche Ingram: A socialite whom Mr. Rochester temporarily courts to make Jane jealous. Ms.
Ingram is described as having great beauty and talent, but displays callous behaviour and
avaricious intent.

Richard Mason: An Englishman from the West Indies, whose sister is Mr. Rochester's first wife.
He took part in tricking Mr. Rochester into marrying Bertha. He still, however, cares for his
sister's well-being.

Grace Poole: Bertha Mason's caretaker. Mr. Rochester pays her a very high salary to keep Bertha
hidden and quiet, and she is often used as an explanation for odd happenings. She has a
weakness for drink that occasionally allows Bertha to escape.

St. John Eyre Rivers: A clergyman who befriends Jane and turns out to be her cousin. St. John is
thoroughly practical and suppresses all of his human passions and emotions in favour of good
works. He is determined to go to India as a missionary, despite being in love with Rosamond
Oliver.

Diana and Mary Rivers: St. John's sisters and (as it turns out) Jane's cousins. They are poor,
intelligent, and kind-hearted, and want St. John to stay in England.

Rosamond Oliver: A beautiful, kindly, wealthy, but not deep thinking, young woman, and the
patron of the village school where Jane teaches. Rosamond falls in love with St. John, only to be
rejected because she would not make a good missionary's wife.

Mr. Oliver: Rosamond Oliver's wealthy father, who owns a foundry and needle factory in the
district. He is a kind and charitable man, and is fond of St. John.

Alice Wood: Jane's maid when Jane is mistress of the girls' village school in Morton.

John Eyre: Jane's paternal uncle, who leaves her his vast fortune and wished to adopt her when
she was 15. Mrs. Reed prevented the adoption out of spite towards Jane.

33. MOBY DICK

Moby-Dick; or, The Whale is a novel by American writer Herman Melville, published in 1851
during the period of the American Renaissance. Sailor Ishmael tells the story of the obsessive
quest of Ahab, captain of the whaler Pequod, for revenge on Moby Dick, the white whale that on
the previous whaling voyage bit off Ahab's leg at the knee. The novel was a commercial failure
and out of print at the time of the author's death in 1891, but during the 20th century, its
reputation as a Great American Novel was established. William Faulkner confessed he wished
he had written it himself,[1] and D. H. Lawrence called it "one of the strangest and most
wonderful books in the world", and "the greatest book of the sea ever written"."Call me
Ishmael" is among world literature's most famous opening sentences.
The product of a year and a half of writing, the book draws on Melville's experience at sea, on
his reading in whaling literature, and on literary inspirations such as Shakespeare and the Bible.
The white whale is modeled on the notoriously hard to catch actual albino whale Mocha Dick,
and the ending is based on the sinking of the whaler Essex by a whale. The detailed and realistic
descriptions of whale hunting and of extracting whale oil, as well as life aboard ship among a
culturally diverse crew, are mixed with exploration of class and social status, good and evil, and
the existence of God. In addition to narrative prose, Melville uses styles and literary devices
ranging from songs, poetry, and catalogs to Shakespearean stage directions, soliloquies, and
asides.

Dedicated to Nathaniel Hawthorne, "in token of my admiration for his genius", the work was
first published as The Whale in London in October 1851, and under its definitive title in New
York in November. Hundreds of differences, mostly slight and some important, are seen
between the two editions. The London publisher censored or changed sensitive passages and
Melville made revisions, as well, including the last-minute change in the title for the New York
edition. The whale, however, appears in both editions as "Moby Dick", with no hyphen.

Plot Overview

Ishmael, the narrator, announces his intent to ship aboard a whaling vessel. He has made
several voyages as a sailor but none as a whaler. He travels to New Bedford, Massachusetts,
where he stays in a whalers’ inn. Since the inn is rather full, he has to share a bed with a
harpooner from the South Pacific named Queequeg. At first repulsed by Queequeg’s strange
habits and shocking appearance (Queequeg is covered with tattoos), Ishmael eventually comes
to appreciate the man’s generosity and kind spirit, and the two decide to seek work on a whaling
vessel together. They take a ferry to Nantucket, the traditional capital of the whaling industry.
There they secure berths on the Pequod, a savage-looking ship adorned with the bones and
teeth of sperm whales. Peleg and Bildad, the Pequod’s Quaker owners, drive a hard bargain in
terms of salary. They also mention the ship’s mysterious captain, Ahab, who is still recovering
from losing his leg in an encounter with a sperm whale on his last voyage.

The Pequod leaves Nantucket on a cold Christmas Day with a crew made up of men from many
different countries and races. Soon the ship is in warmer waters, and Ahab makes his first
appearance on deck, balancing gingerly on his false leg, which is made from a sperm whale’s
jaw. He announces his desire to pursue and kill Moby Dick, the legendary great white whale who
took his leg, because he sees this whale as the embodiment of evil. Ahab nails a gold doubloon
to the mast and declares that it will be the prize for the first man to sight the whale. As the
Pequod sails toward the southern tip of Africa, whales are sighted and unsuccessfully hunted.
During the hunt, a group of men, none of whom anyone on the ship’s crew has seen before on
the voyage, emerges from the hold. The men’s leader is an exotic-looking man named Fedallah.
These men constitute Ahab’s private harpoon crew, smuggled aboard in defiance of Bildad and
Peleg. Ahab hopes that their skills and Fedallah’s prophetic abilities will help him in his hunt for
Moby Dick.

The Pequod rounds Africa and enters the Indian Ocean. A few whales are successfully caught
and processed for their oil. From time to time, the ship encounters other whaling vessels. Ahab
always demands information about Moby Dick from their captains. One of the ships, the
Jeroboam, carries Gabriel, a crazed prophet who predicts doom for anyone who threatens Moby
Dick. His predictions seem to carry some weight, as those aboard his ship who have hunted the
whale have met disaster. While trying to drain the oil from the head of a captured sperm whale,
Tashtego, one of the Pequod’s harpooners, falls into the whale’s voluminous head, which then
rips free of the ship and begins to sink. Queequeg saves Tashtego by diving into the ocean and
cutting into the slowly sinking head.

During another whale hunt, Pip, the Pequod’s black cabin boy, jumps from a whaleboat and is
left behind in the middle of the ocean. He goes insane as the result of the experience and
becomes a crazy but prophetic jester for the ship. Soon after, the Pequod meets the Samuel
Enderby, a whaling ship whose skipper, Captain Boomer, has lost an arm in an encounter with
Moby Dick. The two captains discuss the whale; Boomer, happy simply to have survived his
encounter, cannot understand Ahab’s lust for vengeance. Not long after, Queequeg falls ill and
has the ship’s carpenter make him a coffin in anticipation of his death. He recovers, however,
and the coffin eventually becomes the Pequod’s replacement life buoy.

Ahab orders a harpoon forged in the expectation that he will soon encounter Moby Dick. He
baptizes the harpoon with the blood of the Pequod’s three harpooners. The Pequod kills several
more whales. Issuing a prophecy about Ahab’s death, Fedallah declares that Ahab will first see
two hearses, the second of which will be made only from American wood, and that he will be
killed by hemp rope. Ahab interprets these words to mean that he will not die at sea, where
there are no hearses and no hangings. A typhoon hits the Pequod, illuminating it with electrical
fire. Ahab takes this occurrence as a sign of imminent confrontation and success, but Starbuck,
the ship’s first mate, takes it as a bad omen and considers killing Ahab to end the mad quest.
After the storm ends, one of the sailors falls from the ship’s masthead and drowns—a grim
foreshadowing of what lies ahead.

Ahab’s fervent desire to find and destroy Moby Dick continues to intensify, and the mad Pip is
now his constant companion. The Pequod approaches the equator, where Ahab expects to find
the great whale. The ship encounters two more whaling ships, the Rachel and the Delight, both
of which have recently had fatal encounters with the whale. Ahab finally sights Moby Dick. The
harpoon boats are launched, and Moby Dick attacks Ahab’s harpoon boat, destroying it. The next
day, Moby Dick is sighted again, and the boats are lowered once more. The whale is harpooned,
but Moby Dick again attacks Ahab’s boat. Fedallah, trapped in the harpoon line, is dragged
overboard to his death. Starbuck must maneuver the Pequod between Ahab and the angry
whale.

On the third day, the boats are once again sent after Moby Dick, who once again attacks them.
The men can see Fedallah’s corpse lashed to the whale by the harpoon line. Moby Dick rams the
Pequod and sinks it. Ahab is then caught in a harpoon line and hurled out of his harpoon boat to
his death. All of the remaining whaleboats and men are caught in the vortex created by the
sinking Pequod and pulled under to their deaths. Ishmael, who was thrown from a boat at the
beginning of the chase, was far enough away to escape the whirlpool, and he alone survives. He
floats atop Queequeg’s coffin, which popped back up from the wreck, until he is picked up by
the Rachel, which is still searching for the crewmen lost in her earlier encounter with Moby Dick.

34. THE SOUND AND THE FURY

The SounD and the Fury is a novel written by the American author William Faulkner. It employs
a number of narrative styles, including stream of consciousness. Published in 1929, The Sound
and the Fury was Faulkner's fourth novel, and was not immediately successful. In 1931,
however, when Faulkner's sixth novel, Sanctuary, was published—a sensationalist story, which
Faulkner later claimed was written only for money—The Sound and the Fury also became
commercially successful, and Faulkner began to receive critical attention.

Plot Overview

Attempting to apply traditional plot summary to The Sound and the Fury is difficult. At a basic
level, the novel is about the three Compson brothers’ obsessions with the their sister Caddy, but
this brief synopsis represents merely the surface of what the novel contains. A story told in four
chapters, by four different voices, and out of chronological order, The Sound and the Fury
requires intense concentration and patience to interpret and understand.

The first three chapters of the novel consist of the convoluted thoughts, voices, and memories of
the three Compson brothers, captured on three different days. The brothers are Benjy, a
severely retarded thirty-three-year-old man, speaking in April, 1928; Quentin, a young Harvard
student, speaking in June, 1910; and Jason, a bitter farm-supply store worker, speaking again in
April, 1928. Faulkner tells the fourth chapter in his own narrative voice, but focuses on Dilsey,
the Compson family’s devoted “Negro” cook who has played a great part in raising the children.
Faulkner harnesses the brothers’ memories of their sister Caddy, using a single symbolic
moment to forecast the decline of the once prominent Compson family and to examine the
deterioration of the Southern aristocratic class since the Civil War.

The Compsons are one of several prominent names in the town of Jefferson, Mississippi. Their
ancestors helped settle the area and subsequently defended it during the Civil War. Since the
war, the Compsons have gradually seen their wealth, land, and status crumble away. Mr.
Compson is an alcoholic. Mrs. Compson is a self-absorbed hypochondriac who depends almost
entirely upon Dilsey to raise her four children. Quentin, the oldest child, is a sensitive bundle of
neuroses. Caddy is stubborn, but loving and compassionate. Jason has been difficult and
mean-spirited since birth and is largely spurned by the other children. Benjy is severely mentally
disabled, an “idiot” with no understanding of the concepts of time or morality. In the absence of
the self-absorbed Mrs. Compson, Caddy serves as a mother figure and symbol of affection for
Benjy and Quentin.

As the children grow older, however, Caddy begins to behave promiscuously, which torments
Quentin and sends Benjy into fits of moaning and crying. Quentin is preparing to go to Harvard,
and Mr. Compson sells a large portion of the family land to provide funds for the tuition. Caddy
loses her virginity and becomes pregnant. She is unable or unwilling to name the father of the
child, though it is likely Dalton Ames, a boy from town.

Caddy’s pregnancy leaves Quentin emotionally shattered. He attempts to claim false

responsibility for the pregnancy, lying to his father that he and Caddy have committed incest.
Mr. Compson is indifferent to Caddy’s promiscuity, dismissing Quentin’s story and telling his son
to leave early for the Northeast.

Attempting to cover up her indiscretions, Caddy quickly marries Herbert Head, a banker she met
in Indiana. Herbert promises Jason Compson a job in his bank. Herbert immediately divorces
Caddy and rescinds Jason’s job offer when he realizes his wife is pregnant with another man’s
child. Meanwhile, Quentin, still mired in despair over Caddy’s sin, commits suicide by drowning
himself in the Charles River just before the end of his first year at Harvard.

The Compsons disown Caddy from the family, but take in her newborn daughter, Miss Quentin.
The task of raising Miss Quentin falls squarely on Dilsey’s shoulders. Mr. Compson dies of
alcoholism roughly a year after Quentin’s suicide. As the oldest surviving son, Jason becomes
the head of the Compson household. Bitterly employed at a menial job in the local farm-supply
store, Jason devises an ingenious scheme to steal the money Caddy sends to support Miss
Quentin’s upbringing.

Miss Quentin grows up to be an unhappy, rebellious, and promiscuous girl, constantly in conflict
with her overbearing and vicious uncle Jason. On Easter Sunday, 1928, Miss Quentin steals
several thousand dollars from Jason and runs away with a man from a traveling show. While
Jason chases after Miss Quentin to no avail, Dilsey takes Benjy and the rest of her family to
Easter services at the local church.

A Note on the Title

The title of The Sound and the Fury refers to a line from William Shakespeare’s Macbeth.
Macbeth, a Scottish general and nobleman, learns of his wife’s suicide and feels that his life is
crumbling into chaos. In addition to Faulkner’s title, we can find several of the novel’s important
motifs in Macbeth’s short soliloquy in Act V, scene v:

Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day

To the last syllable of recorded time,

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools

The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle.

Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,

And then is heard no more. It is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing.

The Sound and the Fury literally begins as a “tale / Told by an idiot,” as the first chapter is
narrated by the mentally disabled Benjy. The novel’s central concerns include time, much like
Macbeth’s “[t]omorrow, and tomorrow”; death, recalling Macbeth’s “dusty death”; and
nothingness and disintegration, a clear reference to Macbeth’s lament that life “[s]ignif[ies]
nothing.” Additionally, Quentin is haunted by the sense that the Compson family has
disintegrated to a mere shadow of its former greatness.

In his soliloquy, Macbeth implies that life is but a shadow of the past and that a modern man,
like himself, is inadequately equipped and unable to achieve anything near the greatness of the
past. Faulkner reinterprets this idea, implying that if man does not choose to take his own life, as
Quentin does, the only alternatives are to become either a cynic and materialist like Jason, or an
idiot like Benjy, unable to see life as anything more than a meaningless series of images, sounds,
and memories.

Characters

Jason Compson III – father of the Compson family, a lawyer who attended the University of the
South: a nihilistic thinker and alcoholic, with cynical opinions that torment his son, Quentin. He
also narrates several chapters of Absalom, Absalom!.

Caroline Bascomb Compson – wife of Jason Compson III: a self-absorbed neurotic who has never
shown affection for any of her children except Jason, whom she seems to like only because he
takes after her side of the family. In her old age she has become an abusive hypochondriac.

Quentin Compson III – the oldest Compson child: passionate and neurotic, he commits suicide as
the tragic culmination of the damaging influence of his father's nihilistic philosophy and his
inability to cope with his sister's sexual promiscuity. He is also a character in Absalom, Absalom!.
The bridge over the Charles River, where he commits suicide in the novel, bears a plaque to
commemorate the character's life and death.
Candace "Caddy" Compson – the second Compson child, strong-willed yet caring. Benjy's only
real caregiver and Quentin's best friend. According to Faulkner, the true hero of the novel.
Caddy never develops a voice, but rather allows her brothers' emotions towards her to develop
her character.

Jason Compson IV – the bitter, racist third child who is troubled by monetary debt and sexual
frustration. He works at a farming goods store owned by a man named Earl and becomes head
of the household in 1912. Has been embezzling Miss Quentin's support payments for years.

Benjamin (nicknamed Benjy, born Maury) Compson – the mentally disabled fourth child, who is
a constant source of shame and grief for his family, especially his mother, who insisted on his
name change to Benjamin. Caddy is the only family member who shows any genuine love
towards him. Luster, albeit begrudgingly, shows care for him occasionally, but usually out of
obligation. Has an almost animal-like "sixth sense" about people, as he was able to tell that
Caddy had lost her virginity just from her smell.The model for Benjy's character may have had its
beginning in the 1925 New Orleans Times Picayune sketch by Faulkner entitled "The Kingdom of
God".

Dilsey Gibson – the matriarch of the servant family, which includes her three children—Versh,
Frony, and T.P.—and her grandchild Luster (Frony's son); they serve as Benjamin's caretakers
throughout his life. An observer of the Compson family's destruction.

Miss Quentin Compson – daughter of Caddy who goes to live with the Compsons under Jason
IV's care when Herbert divorces Caddy. She is very wild and promiscuous, and eventually runs
away from home. Often referred to as Quentin II or Miss Quentin by readers to distinguish her
from her uncle, for whom she was named.

35. GUILLERS TRAVEL

Gulliver's Travels, or Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By
Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships, is a prose satire by Irish
writer and clergyman Jonathan Swift, that is both a satire on human nature and the "travellers'
tales" literary subgenre. It is Swift's best known full-length work, and a classic of English
literature. He himself claimed that he wrote Gulliver's Travels "to vex the world rather than
divert it".

The book became popular as soon as it was published. John Gay wrote in a 1726 letter to Swift
that "It is universally read, from the cabinet council to the nursery."

Plot summary

Part I: A Voyage to Lilliput

The travel begins with a short preamble in which Lemuel Gulliver gives a brief outline of his life
and history before his voyages.

During his first voyage, Gulliver is washed ashore after a shipwreck and finds himself a prisoner
of a race of tiny people, less than 6 inches (0.50 ft) tall, who are inhabitants of the island country
of Lilliput. After giving assurances of his good behaviour, he is given a residence in Lilliput and
becomes a favourite of the Lilliput Royal Court. He is also given permission by the King of Lilliput
to go around the city on condition that he must not harm their subjects.

At first, the Lilliputians are hospitable to Gulliver, but they are also wary of the threat that his
size poses to them. The Lilliputians reveal themselves to be a people who put great emphasis on
trivial matters. For example, which end of an egg a person cracks becomes the basis of a deep
political rift within that nation. They are a people who revel in displays of authority and
performances of power. Gulliver assists the Lilliputians to subdue their neighbors the
Blefuscudians by stealing their fleet. However, he refuses to reduce the island nation of Blefuscu
to a province of Lilliput, displeasing the King and the royal court.

Gulliver is charged with treason for, among other crimes, "making water" in the capital though
he was putting out a fire. He is convicted and sentenced to be blinded. With the assistance of a
kind friend, "a considerable person at court", he escapes to Blefuscu. Here, he spots and
retrieves an abandoned boat and sails out to be rescued by a passing ship, which safely takes
him back home.

Part II: A Voyage to Brobdingnag

Gulliver soon sets out again. When the sailing ship Adventure is blown off course by storms and
forced to sail for land in search of fresh water, Gulliver is abandoned by his companions and is
left on a peninsula on the western coast of the North American continent.

The grass of that land is as tall as a tree. He is then found by a farmer who was about 72 ft. tall,
judging from Gulliver estimating a man's step being 10 yards (9 m). He brings Gulliver home and
the farmer's daughter Glumdalclitch cares for Gulliver. The giant-sized farmer treats him as a
curiosity and exhibits him for money. After a while the constant shows make Gulliver sick, and
the farmer sells him to the queen of the realm. Glumdalclitch (who accompanied her father
while exhibiting Gulliver) is taken into the Queen of Brobdingnag's service to take care of the
tiny man. Since Gulliver is too small to use their huge chairs, beds, knives and forks, the Queen
of Brobdingnag commissions a small house to be built for him so that he can be carried around
in it; this is referred to as his "travelling box".

Between small adventures such as fighting giant wasps and being carried to the roof by a
monkey, he discusses the state of Europe with the King of Brobdingnag. The King is not happy
with Gulliver's accounts of Europe, especially upon learning of the use of guns and cannons. On a
trip to the seaside, his traveling box is seized by a giant eagle which drops Gulliver and his box
into the sea where he is picked up by some sailors who return him to England.
Part III: A Voyage to Laputa, Balnibarbi, Luggnagg, Glubbdubdrib and Japan

Setting out again, Gulliver's ship is attacked by pirates and he is marooned close to a desolate
rocky island near India. He is rescued by the flying island of Laputa, a kingdom devoted to the
arts of music, mathematics, and astronomy but unable to use them for practical ends. Rather
than use armies, Laputa has a custom of throwing rocks down at rebellious cities on the ground.

Gulliver tours Balnibarbi, the kingdom ruled from Laputa, as the guest of a low-ranking courtier
and sees the ruin brought about by the blind pursuit of science without practical results, in a
satire on bureaucracy and on the Royal Society and its experiments. At the Grand Academy of
Lagado in Balnibarbi, great resources and manpower are employed on researching completely
preposterous schemes such as extracting sunbeams from cucumbers, softening marble for use
in pillows, learning how to mix paint by smell, and uncovering political conspiracies by
examining the excrement of suspicious persons (see muckraking). Gulliver is then taken to
Maldonada, the main port of Balnibarbi, to await a trader who can take him on to Japan.

While waiting for a passage, Gulliver takes a short side-trip to the island of Glubbdubdrib which
is southwest of Balnibarbi. On Glubbdubdrib, he visits a magician's dwelling and discusses
history with the ghosts of historical figures, the most obvious restatement of the "ancients
versus moderns" theme in the book. The ghosts consist of Julius Caesar, Brutus, Homer,
Aristotle, René Descartes, and Pierre Gassendi.

On the island of Luggnagg, he encounters the struldbrugs, people who are immortal. They do
not have the gift of eternal youth, but suffer the infirmities of old age and are considered legally
dead at the age of eighty.

After reaching Japan, Gulliver asks the Emperor "to excuse my performing the ceremony
imposed upon my countrymen of trampling upon the crucifix", which the Emperor does. Gulliver
returns home, determined to stay there for the rest of his days.

Part IV: A Voyage to the Land of the Houyhnhnms

Despite his earlier intention of remaining at home, Gulliver returns to sea as the captain of a
merchantman, as he is bored with his employment as a surgeon. On this voyage, he is forced to
find new additions to his crew whom he believes to have turned the rest of the crew against
him. His crew then commits mutiny. After keeping him contained for some time, they resolve to
leave him on the first piece of land they come across, and continue as pirates. He is abandoned
in a landing boat and comes upon a race of hideous, deformed and savage humanoid creatures
to which he conceives a violent antipathy. Shortly afterwards, he meets the Houyhnhnms, a race
of talking horses. They are the rulers while the deformed creatures that resemble human beings
are called Yahoos.

Gulliver becomes a member of a horse's household and comes to both admire and emulate the
Houyhnhnms and their way of life, rejecting his fellow humans as merely Yahoos endowed with
some semblance of reason which they only use to exacerbate and add to the vices Nature gave
them. However, an Assembly of the Houyhnhnms rules that Gulliver, a Yahoo with some
semblance of reason, is a danger to their civilization and command him to swim back to the land
that he came from. Gulliver's "Master," the Houyhnhnm who took him into his household,
bought him time to create a canoe to make his departure easier. After another disastrous
voyage, he is rescued against his will by a Portuguese ship. He is disgusted to see that Captain
Pedro de Mendez, a Yahoo, is a wise, courteous, and generous person.

He returns to his home in England, but he is unable to reconcile himself to living among
"Yahoos" and becomes a recluse, remaining in his house, largely avoiding his family and his wife,
and spending several hours a day speaking with the horses in his stables.

Character List

Gulliver - The narrator and protagonist of the story. Although Lemuel Gulliver’s vivid and
detailed style of narration makes it clear that he is intelligent and well educated, his perceptions
are naïve and gullible. He has virtually no emotional life, or at least no awareness of it, and his
comments are strictly factual. Indeed, sometimes his obsession with the facts of navigation, for
example, becomes unbearable for us, as his fictional editor, Richard Sympson, makes clear when
he explains having had to cut out nearly half of Gulliver’s verbiage. Gulliver never thinks that the
absurdities he encounters are funny and never makes the satiric connections between the lands
he visits and his own home. Gulliver’s naïveté makes the satire possible, as we pick up on things
that Gulliver does not notice.

The emperor - The ruler of Lilliput. Like all Lilliputians, the emperor is fewer than six inches tall.
His power and majesty impress Gulliver deeply, but to us he appears both laughable and
sinister. Because of his tiny size, his belief that he can control Gulliver seems silly, but his
willingness to execute his subjects for minor reasons of politics or honor gives him a frightening
aspect. He is proud of possessing the tallest trees and biggest palace in the kingdom, but he is
also quite hospitable, spending a fortune on his captive’s food. The emperor is both a satire of
the autocratic ruler and a strangely serious portrait of political power.

The farmer - Gulliver’s first master in Brobdingnag. The farmer speaks to Gulliver, showing that
he is willing to believe that the relatively tiny Gulliver may be as rational as he himself is, and
treats him with gentleness. However, the farmer puts Gulliver on display around Brobdingnag,
which clearly shows that he would rather profit from his discovery than converse with him as an
equal. His exploitation of Gulliver as a laborer, which nearly starves Gulliver to death, seems less
cruel than simpleminded. Generally, the farmer represents the average Brobdingnagian of no
great gifts or intelligence, wielding an extraordinary power over Gulliver simply by virtue of his
immense size.

Glumdalclitch - The farmer’s nine-year-old daughter, who is forty feet tall. Glumdalclitch
becomes Gulliver’s friend and nursemaid, hanging him to sleep safely in her closet at night and
teaching him the Brobdingnagian language by day. She is skilled at sewing and makes Gulliver
several sets of new clothes, taking delight in dressing him. When the queen discovers that no
one at court is suited to care for Gulliver, she invites Glumdalclitch to live at court as his sole
babysitter, a function she performs with great seriousness and attentiveness. To Glumdalclitch,
Gulliver is basically a living doll, symbolizing the general status Gulliver has in Brobdingnag.

The queen - The queen of Brobdingnag, who is so delighted by Gulliver’s beauty and charms
that she agrees to buy him from the farmer for 1,000 pieces of gold. Gulliver appreciates her
kindness after the hardships he suffers at the farmer’s and shows his usual fawning love for
royalty by kissing the tip of her little finger when presented before her. She possesses, in
Gulliver’s words, “infinite” wit and humor, though this description may entail a bit of Gulliver’s
characteristic flattery of superiors. The queen seems genuinely considerate, asking Gulliver
whether he would consent to live at court instead of simply taking him in as a pet and inquiring
into the reasons for his cold good-byes with the farmer. She is by no means a hero, but simply a
pleasant, powerful person.

The king - The king of Brobdingnag, who, in contrast to the emperor of Lilliput, seems to be a
true intellectual, well versed in political science among other disciplines. While his wife has an
intimate, friendly relationship with the diminutive visitor, the king’s relation to Gulliver is
limited to serious discussions about the history and institutions of Gulliver’s native land. He is
thus a figure of rational thought who somewhat prefigures the Houyhnhnms in Book IV.

Lord Munodi - A lord of Lagado, capital of the underdeveloped land beneath Laputa, who hosts
Gulliver and gives him a tour of the country on Gulliver’s third voyage. Munodi is a rare example
of practical-minded intelligence both in Lagado, where the applied sciences are wildly
impractical, and in Laputa, where no one even considers practicality a virtue. He fell from grace
with the ruling elite by counseling a commonsense approach to agriculture and land
management in Lagado, an approach that was rejected even though it proved successful when
applied to his own flourishing estate. Lord Munodi serves as a reality check for Gulliver on his
third voyage, an objective-minded contrast to the theoretical delusions of the other inhabitants
of Laputa and Lagado.

Yahoos - Unkempt humanlike beasts who live in servitude to the Houyhnhnms. Yahoos seem to
belong to various ethnic groups, since there are blond Yahoos as well as dark-haired and
redheaded ones. The men are characterized by their hairy bodies, and the women by their
low-hanging breasts. They are naked, filthy, and extremely primitive in their eating habits.
Yahoos are not capable of government, and thus they are kept as servants to the Houyhnhnms,
pulling their carriages and performing manual tasks. They repel Gulliver with their lascivious
sexual appetites, especially when an eleven-year-old Yahoo girl attempts to rape Gulliver as he
is bathing naked. Yet despite Gulliver’s revulsion for these disgusting creatures, he ends his
writings referring to himself as a Yahoo, just as the Houyhnhnms do as they regretfully evict him
from their realm. Thus, “Yahoo” becomes another term for human, at least in the semideranged
and self-loathing mind of Gulliver at the end of his fourth journey.

Houyhnhnms - Rational horses who maintain a simple, peaceful society governed by reason and
truthfulness—they do not even have a word for “lie” in their language. Houyhnhnms are like
ordinary horses, except that they are highly intelligent and deeply wise. They live in a sort of
socialist republic, with the needs of the community put before individual desires. They are the
masters of the Yahoos, the savage humanlike creatures in Houyhnhnmland. In all, the
Houyhnhnms have the greatest impact on Gulliver throughout all his four voyages. He is grieved
to leave them, not relieved as he is in leaving the other three lands, and back in England he
relates better with his horses than with his human family. The Houyhnhnms thus are a measure
of the extent to which Gulliver has become a misanthrope, or “human-hater”; he is certainly, at
the end, a horse lover.

Gulliver’s Houyhnhnm master - The Houyhnhnm who first discovers Gulliver and takes him into
his own home. Wary of Gulliver’s Yahoolike appearance at first, the master is hesitant to make
contact with him, but Gulliver’s ability to mimic the Houyhnhnm’s own words persuades the
master to protect Gulliver. The master’s domestic cleanliness, propriety, and tranquil
reasonableness of speech have an extraordinary impact on Gulliver. It is through this horse that
Gulliver is led to reevaluate the differences between humans and beasts and to question
humanity’s claims to rationality.

Don Pedro de Mendez - The Portuguese captain who takes Gulliver back to Europe after he is
forced to leave the land of the Houyhnhnms. Don Pedro is naturally benevolent and generous,
offering the half-crazed Gulliver his own best suit of clothes to replace the tatters he is wearing.
But Gulliver meets his generosity with repulsion, as he cannot bear the company of Yahoos. By
the end of the voyage, Don Pedro has won over Gulliver to the extent that he is able to have a
conversation with him, but the captain’s overall Yahoolike nature in Gulliver’s eyes alienates him
from Gulliver to the very end.

Brobdingnagians - Giants whom Gulliver meets on his second voyage. Brobdingnagians are
basically a reasonable and kindly people governed by a sense of justice. Even the farmer who
abuses Gulliver at the beginning is gentle with him, and politely takes the trouble to say
good-bye to him upon leaving him. The farmer’s daughter, Glumdalclitch, gives Gulliver perhaps
the most kindhearted treatment he receives on any of his voyages. The Brobdingnagians do not
exploit him for personal or political reasons, as the Lilliputians do, and his life there is one of
satisfaction and quietude. But the Brobdingnagians do treat Gulliver as a plaything. When he
tries to speak seriously with the king of Brobdingnag about England, the king dismisses the
English as odious vermin, showing that deep discussion is not possible for Gulliver here.

Lilliputians and Blefuscudians - Two races of miniature people whom Gulliver meets on his first
voyage. Lilliputians and Blefuscudians are prone to conspiracies and jealousies, and while they
treat Gulliver well enough materially, they are quick to take advantage of him in political
intrigues of various sorts. The two races have been in a longstanding war with each over the
interpretation of a reference in their common holy scripture to the proper way to eat eggs.
Gulliver helps the Lilliputians defeat the Blefuscudian navy, but he eventually leaves Lilliput and
receives a warm welcome in the court of Blefuscu, by which Swift satirizes the arbitrariness of
international relations.

Laputans - Absentminded intellectuals who live on the floating island of Laputa, encountered by
Gulliver on his third voyage. The Laputans are parodies of theoreticians, who have scant regard
for any practical results of their own research. They are so inwardly absorbed in their own
thoughts that they must be shaken out of their meditations by special servants called flappers,
who shake rattles in their ears. During Gulliver’s stay among them, they do not mistreat him, but
are generally unpleasant and dismiss him as intellectually deficient. They do not care about
down-to-earth things like the dilapidation of their own houses, but worry intensely about
abstract matters like the trajectories of comets and the course of the sun. They are dependent in
their own material needs on the land below them, called Lagado, above which they hover by
virtue of a magnetic field, and from which they periodically raise up food supplies. In the larger
context of Gulliver’s journeys, the Laputans are a parody of the excesses of theoretical pursuits
and the uselessness of purely abstract knowledge.

Mary Burton Gulliver - Gulliver’s wife, whose perfunctory mention in the first paragraphs of
Gulliver’s Travels demonstrates how unsentimental and unemotional Gulliver is. He makes no
reference to any affection for his wife, either here or later in his travels when he is far away
from her, and his detachment is so cool as to raise questions about his ability to form human
attachments. When he returns to England, she is merely one part of his former existence, and he
records no emotion even as she hugs him wildly. The most important facts about her in
Gulliver’s mind are her social origin and the income she generates.

Richard Sympson - Gulliver’s cousin, self-proclaimed intimate friend, and the editor and
publisher of Gulliver’s Travels. It was in Richard Sympson’s name that Jonathan Swift arranged
for the publication of his narrative, thus somewhat mixing the fictional and actual worlds.
Sympson is the fictional author of the prefatory note to Gulliver’s Travels, entitled “The
Publisher to the Readers.” This note justifies Sympson’s elimination of nearly half of the original
manuscript material on the grounds that it was irrelevant, a statement that Swift includes so as
to allow us to doubt Gulliver’s overall wisdom and ability to distinguish between important facts
and trivial details.

James Bates - An eminent London surgeon under whom Gulliver serves as an apprentice after
graduating from Cambridge. Bates helps get Gulliver his first job as a ship’s surgeon and then
offers to set up a practice with him. After Bates’s death, Gulliver has trouble maintaining the
business, a failure that casts doubt on his competence, though he himself has other explanations
for the business’s failure. Bates is hardly mentioned in the travels, though he is surely at least as
responsible for Gulliver’s welfare as some of the more exotic figures Gulliver meets.
Nevertheless, Gulliver fleshes out figures such as the queen of Brobdingnag much more
thoroughly in his narrative, underscoring the sharp contrast between his reticence regarding
England and his long-windedness about foreigners.

Abraham Pannell - The commander of the ship on which Gulliver first sails, the Swallow.
Traveling to the Levant, or the eastern Mediterranean, and beyond, Gulliver spends three and a
half years on Pannell’s ship. Virtually nothing is mentioned about Pannell, which heightens our
sense that Gulliver’s fascination with exotic types is not matched by any interest in his fellow
countrymen.

William Prichard - The master of the Antelope, the ship on which Gulliver embarks for the South
Seas at the outset of his first journey, in 1699. When the Antelope sinks, Gulliver is washed
ashore on Lilliput. No details are given about the personality of Prichard, and he is not important
in Gulliver’s life or in the unfolding of the novel’s plot. That Gulliver takes pains to name him
accurately reinforces our impression that he is obsessive about facts but not always reliable in
assessing overall significance.

Flimnap - The Lord High Treasurer of Lilliput, who conceives a jealous hatred for Gulliver when
he starts believing that his wife is having an affair with him. Flimnap is clearly paranoid, since
the possibility of a love affair between Gulliver and a Lilliputian is wildly unlikely. Flimnap is a
portrait of the weaknesses of character to which any human is prone but that become especially
dangerous in those who wield great power.

Reldresal - The Principal Secretary of Private Affairs in Lilliput, who explains to Gulliver the
history of the political tensions between the two principal parties in the realm, the High-Heels
and the Low-Heels. Reldresal is more a source of much-needed information for Gulliver than a
well-developed personality, but he does display personal courage and trust in allowing Gulliver
to hold him in his palm while he talks politics. Within the convoluted context of Lilliput’s factions
and conspiracies, such friendliness reminds us that fond personal relations may still exist even in
this overheated political climate.

Skyresh Bolgolam - The High Admiral of Lilliput, who is the only member of the administration
to oppose Gulliver’s liberation. Gulliver imagines that Skyresh’s enmity is simply personal,
though there is no apparent reason for such hostility. Arguably, Skyresh’s hostility may be
merely a tool to divert Gulliver from the larger system of Lilliputian exploitation to which he is
subjected.

Tramecksan - Also known as the High-Heels, a Lilliputian political group reminiscent of the
British Tories. Tramecksan policies are said to be more agreeable to the ancient constitution of
Lilliput, and while the High-Heels appear greater in number than the Low-Heels, their power is
lesser. Unlike the king, the crown prince is believed to sympathize with the Tramecksan, wearing
one low heel and one high heel, causing him to limp slightly.

Slamecksan - The Low-Heels, a Lilliputian political group reminiscent of the British Whigs. The
king has ordained that all governmental administrators must be selected from this party, much
to the resentment of the High-Heels of the realm. Thus, while there are fewer Slamecksan than
Tramecksan in Lilliput, their political power is greater. The king’s own sympathies with the
Slamecksan are evident in the slightly lower heels he wears at court.

36. PRIDE AND PREJUDICE

Plot Overview

The news that a wealthy young gentleman named Charles Bingley has rented the manor of
Netherfield Park causes a great stir in the nearby village of Longbourn, especially in the Bennet
household. The Bennets have five unmarried daughters—from oldest to youngest, Jane,
Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia—and Mrs. Bennet is desperate to see them all married. After
Mr. Bennet pays a social visit to Mr. Bingley, the Bennets attend a ball at which Mr. Bingley is
present. He is taken with Jane and spends much of the evening dancing with her. His close
friend, Mr. Darcy, is less pleased with the evening and haughtily refuses to dance with Elizabeth,
which makes everyone view him as arrogant and obnoxious.

At social functions over subsequent weeks, however, Mr. Darcy finds himself increasingly
attracted to Elizabeth’s charm and intelligence. Jane’s friendship with Mr. Bingley also continues
to burgeon, and Jane pays a visit to the Bingley mansion. On her journey to the house she is
caught in a downpour and catches ill, forcing her to stay at Netherfield for several days. In order
to tend to Jane, Elizabeth hikes through muddy fields and arrives with a spattered dress, much
to the disdain of the snobbish Miss Bingley, Charles Bingley’s sister. Miss Bingley’s spite only
increases when she notices that Darcy, whom she is pursuing, pays quite a bit of attention to
Elizabeth.

When Elizabeth and Jane return home, they find Mr. Collins visiting their household. Mr. Collins
is a young clergyman who stands to inherit Mr. Bennet’s property, which has been “entailed,”
meaning that it can only be passed down to male heirs. Mr. Collins is a pompous fool, though he
is quite enthralled by the Bennet girls. Shortly after his arrival, he makes a proposal of marriage
to Elizabeth. She turns him down, wounding his pride. Meanwhile, the Bennet girls have become
friendly with militia officers stationed in a nearby town. Among them is Wickham, a handsome
young soldier who is friendly toward Elizabeth and tells her how Darcy cruelly cheated him out
of an inheritance.

At the beginning of winter, the Bingleys and Darcy leave Netherfield and return to London, much
to Jane’s dismay. A further shock arrives with the news that Mr. Collins has become engaged to
Charlotte Lucas, Elizabeth’s best friend and the poor daughter of a local knight. Charlotte
explains to Elizabeth that she is getting older and needs the match for financial reasons.
Charlotte and Mr. Collins get married and Elizabeth promises to visit them at their new home.
As winter progresses, Jane visits the city to see friends (hoping also that she might see Mr.
Bingley). However, Miss Bingley visits her and behaves rudely, while Mr. Bingley fails to visit her
at all. The marriage prospects for the Bennet girls appear bleak.
That spring, Elizabeth visits Charlotte, who now lives near the home of Mr. Collins’s patron, Lady
Catherine de Bourgh, who is also Darcy’s aunt. Darcy calls on Lady Catherine and encounters
Elizabeth, whose presence leads him to make a number of visits to the Collins’s home, where
she is staying. One day, he makes a shocking proposal of marriage, which Elizabeth quickly
refuses. She tells Darcy that she considers him arrogant and unpleasant, then scolds him for
steering Bingley away from Jane and disinheriting Wickham. Darcy leaves her but shortly
thereafter delivers a letter to her. In this letter, he admits that he urged Bingley to distance
himself from Jane, but claims he did so only because he thought their romance was not serious.
As for Wickham, he informs Elizabeth that the young officer is a liar and that the real cause of
their disagreement was Wickham’s attempt to elope with his young sister, Georgiana Darcy.

This letter causes Elizabeth to reevaluate her feelings about Darcy. She returns home and acts
coldly toward Wickham. The militia is leaving town, which makes the younger, rather man-crazy
Bennet girls distraught. Lydia manages to obtain permission from her father to spend the
summer with an old colonel in Brighton, where Wickham’s regiment will be stationed. With the
arrival of June, Elizabeth goes on another journey, this time with the Gardiners, who are
relatives of the Bennets. The trip takes her to the North and eventually to the neighborhood of
Pemberley, Darcy’s estate. She visits Pemberley, after making sure that Darcy is away, and
delights in the building and grounds, while hearing from Darcy’s servants that he is a wonderful,
generous master. Suddenly, Darcy arrives and behaves cordially toward her. Making no mention
of his proposal, he entertains the Gardiners and invites Elizabeth to meet his sister.

Shortly thereafter, however, a letter arrives from home, telling Elizabeth that Lydia has eloped
with Wickham and that the couple is nowhere to be found, which suggests that they may be
living together out of wedlock. Fearful of the disgrace such a situation would bring on her entire
family, Elizabeth hastens home. Mr. Gardiner and Mr. Bennet go off to search for Lydia, but Mr.
Bennet eventually returns home empty-handed. Just when all hope seems lost, a letter comes
from Mr. Gardiner saying that the couple has been found and that Wickham has agreed to marry
Lydia in exchange for an annual income. The Bennets are convinced that Mr. Gardiner has paid
off Wickham, but Elizabeth learns that the source of the money, and of her family’s salvation,
was none other than Darcy.

Now married, Wickham and Lydia return to Longbourn briefly, where Mr. Bennet treats them
coldly. They then depart for Wickham’s new assignment in the North of England. Shortly
thereafter, Bingley returns to Netherfield and resumes his courtship of Jane. Darcy goes to stay
with him and pays visits to the Bennets but makes no mention of his desire to marry Elizabeth.
Bingley, on the other hand, presses his suit and proposes to Jane, to the delight of everyone but
Bingley’s haughty sister. While the family celebrates, Lady Catherine de Bourgh pays a visit to
Longbourn. She corners Elizabeth and says that she has heard that Darcy, her nephew, is
planning to marry her. Since she considers a Bennet an unsuitable match for a Darcy, Lady
Catherine demands that Elizabeth promise to refuse him. Elizabeth spiritedly refuses, saying she
is not engaged to Darcy, but she will not promise anything against her own happiness. A little
later, Elizabeth and Darcy go out walking together and he tells her that his feelings have not
altered since the spring. She tenderly accepts his proposal, and both Jane and Elizabeth are
married.

CHARACTERS

119. Elizabeth Bennet – the second of the Bennet daughters, she is twenty years old
and intelligent, lively, playful, attractive, and witty—but with a tendency to judge on
first impressions. As the story progresses, so does her relationship with Mr. Darcy. The
course of Elizabeth and Darcy's relationship is ultimately decided when Darcy
overcomes his pride, and Elizabeth overcomes her prejudice, leading them both to
surrender to their love for each other.

120. Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy – the wealthy friend of Mr. Bingley. A newcomer to the
village, he is ultimately Elizabeth Bennet's love interest. Mr. Darcy is the twenty-eight
year old wealthy owner of the renowned family estate of Pemberley in Derbyshire, and
is rumoured to be worth at least £10,000 a year. While being handsome, tall, and
intelligent, Darcy lacks ease and social graces, and so others frequently mistake his aloof
decorum and rectitude as further proof of excessive pride (which, in part, it is).

121. Mr. Bennet – A late-middle-aged landed gentleman of a modest income of

£2000 per annum, and the dryly sarcastic patriarch of the now-dwindling Bennet family
(a family of Hertfordshire landed gentry), with five unmarried daughters. His estate,
Longbourn, is entailed to the male line.

122. Mrs. Bennet – the middle-aged wife of her social superior, Mr. Bennet, and the
mother of their five daughters. Mrs. Bennet is a hypochondriac who imagines herself
susceptible to attacks of tremors and palpitations ("[her] poor nerves"), whenever things
are not going her way. Her main ambition in life is to marry her daughters off to wealthy
men. Whether or not any such matches will give her daughters happiness is of little
concern to her.

123. In a letter to Cassandra dated May 1813, Jane Austen describes a picture she
saw at a gallery which was a good likeness of "Mrs. Bingley" – Jane Bennet. Deirdre Le
Faye in The World of Her Novels suggests that "Portrait of Mrs. Q-" is the picture Austen
was referring to. (pp. 201–203)

124. Jane Bennet – the eldest Bennet sister. Twenty-two years old when the novel
begins, she is considered the most beautiful young lady in the neighbourhood and is
inclined to see only the good in others. She falls in love with Charles Bingley, a rich
young gentleman recently moved to Hertfordshire and a close friend of Mr. Darcy.

125. Mary Bennet – the middle Bennet sister, and the plainest of her siblings. Mary
has a serious disposition and mostly reads and plays music, although she is often
impatient to display her accomplishments and is rather vain about them. She frequently
 moralises to her family. According to James Edward Austen-Leigh's A Memoir of Jane
Austen, Mary ended up marrying one of her Uncle Philips' law clerks and moving into
Meryton with him.

126. Catherine "Kitty" Bennet – The fourth Bennet daughter at 17 years old. Though
older than Lydia, she is her shadow and follows her in her pursuit of the officers of the
militia. She is often portrayed as envious of Lydia and is described a "silly" young
woman. However, it is said that she improved when removed from Lydia's influence.
According to James Edward Austen-Leigh's A Memoir of Jane Austen, Kitty later married
a clergyman who lived near Pemberley.

127. Lydia Bennet – the youngest Bennet sister, aged 15 when the novel begins. She
is frivolous and headstrong. Her main activity in life is socializing, especially flirting with
the officers of the militia. This leads to her running off with George Wickham, although
he has no intention of marrying her. Lydia shows no regard for the moral code of her
society; as Ashley Tauchert says, she "feels without reasoning."[4]

128. Charles Bingley – a handsome, amiable, wealthy young gentleman who leases
Netherfield Park, an estate three miles from Longbourn, with the hopes of purchasing it.
He is contrasted with Mr. Darcy for having more generally pleasing manners, although
he is reliant on his more experienced friend for advice. An example of this is the
prevention of Bingley and Jane's romance because of Bingley's undeniable dependence
on Darcy's opinion.[5] He lacks resolve and is easily influenced by others; his two sisters,
Miss Caroline Bingley and Mrs. Louisa Hurst, both disapprove of Bingley's growing
affection for Miss Jane Bennet.

129. Caroline Bingley – the vainglorious, snobbish sister of Charles Bingley, with a
dowry of £20,000. Miss Bingley harbours designs upon Mr. Darcy, and therefore is
jealous of his growing attachment to Elizabeth. She attempts to dissuade Mr. Darcy from
liking Elizabeth by ridiculing the Bennet family and criticising Elizabeth's comportment.
Miss Bingley also disapproves of her brother's esteem for Jane Bennet, and is disdainful
of society in Meryton. Her wealth and her expensive education seem to be the two
greatest sources of Caroline Bingley's vanity and conceit. The dynamic between Caroline
Bingley and her sister, Louisa Hurst, seems to echo that of Lydia and Kitty Bennet's; that
one is a no more than a follower of the other, with Caroline Bingley in the same position
as Lydia, and Louisa Hurst in Kitty's.

130. George Wickham – Wickham has been acquainted with Mr. Darcy since infancy,
being the son of Mr. Darcy's father's steward. An officer in the militia, he is superficially
charming and rapidly forms an attachment with Elizabeth Bennet. He later runs off with
Lydia with no intention of marriage, which would have resulted in her complete
disgrace, but for Darcy's intervention to bribe Wickham to marry her by paying off his
immediate debts.
131. Mr. William Collins – Mr. Collins, aged 25 years old as the novel begins, is Mr.
Bennet's distant second cousin, a clergyman, and the current heir presumptive to his
estate of Longbourn House. He is an obsequious and pompous man who is excessively
devoted to his patroness, Lady Catherine de Bourgh.

132. Lady Catherine de Bourgh – the overbearing aunt of Mr. Darcy. Lady Catherine is
the wealthy owner of Rosings Park, where she resides with her daughter Anne and is
fawned upon by her rector, Mr. Collins. She is haughty, pompous, domineering, and
condescending, and has long planned to marry off her sickly daughter to Darcy, to 'unite
their two great estates', claiming it to be the dearest wish of both her AND her late
sister, Lady Anne Darcy

133. Mr. Edward and Mrs. M Gardiner – Edward Gardiner is Mrs. Bennet's brother
and a successful tradesman of sensible and gentlemanly character. Aunt Gardiner is
genteel and elegant, and is close to her nieces Jane and Elizabeth. The Gardiners are
instrumental in bringing about the marriage between Darcy and Elizabeth.

134. Georgiana Darcy – Georgiana is Mr. Darcy's quiet, amiable (and shy) younger
sister, with a dowry of £30,000, and is aged barely 16-years-old when the story begins.
When still 15, Miss Darcy almost eloped with Mr. Wickham, but was saved by her
brother, who she idolises. Thanks to years of tutorage under masters, she is
accomplished at the piano, singing, playing the harp, and drawing, and modern
languages, and is therefore described as Caroline Bingley's idea of an 'accomplished
woman'.

135. Charlotte Lucas – Charlotte is Elizabeth's friend who, at 27 years old (and thus
past prime marriage age), fears becoming a burden to her family and therefore agrees
to marry Mr. Collins to gain financial security. Though the novel stresses the importance
of love and understanding in marriage, Austen never seems to condemn Charlotte's
decision to marry for money. She uses Charlotte to convey how women of her time
would adhere to society's expectation for women to marry even if it is not out of love,
but convenience. Charlotte is the daughter of Sir William Lucas and Lady Lucas, friends
of Mrs. Bennet.

37. A TALE OF TWO CITIES

A Tale of Two Cities (1859) is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and
during the French Revolution. The novel tells the story of the French Doctor Manette, his
18-year-long imprisonment in the Bastille in Paris and his release to life in London with his
daughter Lucie, whom he had never met; Lucie's marriage and the collision between her
beloved husband and the people who caused her father's imprisonment; and Monsieur and
Madame Defarge, sellers of wine in a poor suburb of Paris. The story is set against the
conditions that led up to the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror.

Plot Overview

The year is 1775, and social ills plague both France and England. Jerry Cruncher, an odd-job
man who works for Tellson’s Bank, stops the Dover mail-coach with an urgent message for
Jarvis Lorry. The message instructs Lorry to wait at Dover for a young woman, and Lorry
responds with the cryptic words, “Recalled to Life.” At Dover, Lorry is met by Lucie Manette,
a young orphan whose father, a once-eminent doctor whom she supposed dead, has been
discovered in France. Lorry escorts Lucie to Paris, where they meet Defarge, a former
servant of Doctor Manette, who has kept Manette safe in a garret. Driven mad by eighteen
years in the Bastille, Manette spends all of his time making shoes, a hobby he learned while
in prison. Lorry assures Lucie that her love and devotion can recall her father to life, and
indeed they do.

The year is now 1780. Charles Darnay stands accused of treason against the English crown. A
bombastic lawyer named Stryver pleads Darnay’s case, but it is not until his drunk,
good-for-nothing colleague, Sydney Carton, assists him that the court acquits Darnay. Carton
clinches his argument by pointing out that he himself bears an uncanny resemblance to the
defendant, which undermines the prosecution’s case for unmistakably identifying Darnay as
the spy the authorities spotted. Lucie and Doctor Manette watched the court proceedings,
and that night, Carton escorts Darnay to a tavern and asks how it feels to receive the
sympathy of a woman like Lucie. Carton despises and resents Darnay because he reminds
him of all that he himself has given up and might have been.

In France, the cruel Marquis Evrémonde runs down a plebian child with his carriage.
Manifesting an attitude typical of the aristocracy in regard to the poor at that time, the
Marquis shows no regret, but instead curses the peasantry and hurries home to his chateau,
where he awaits the arrival of his nephew, Darnay, from England. Arriving later that night,
Darnay curses his uncle and the French aristocracy for its abominable treatment of the
people. He renounces his identity as an Evrémonde and announces his intention to return to
England. That night, the Marquis is murdered; the murderer has left a note signed with the
nickname adopted by French revolutionaries: “Jacques.”
A year passes, and Darnay asks Manette for permission to marry Lucie. He says that, if Lucie
accepts, he will reveal his true identity to Manette. Carton, meanwhile, also pledges his love
to Lucie, admitting that, though his life is worthless, she has helped him dream of a better,
more valuable existence. On the streets of London, Jerry Cruncher gets swept up in the
funeral procession for a spy named Roger Cly. Later that night, he demonstrates his talents
as a “Resurrection-Man,” sneaking into the cemetery to steal and sell Cly’s body. In Paris,
meanwhile, another English spy known as John Barsad drops into Defarge’s wine shop.
Barsad hopes to turn up evidence concerning the mounting revolution, which is still in its
covert stages. Madame Defarge sits in the shop knitting a secret registry of those whom the
revolution seeks to execute. Back in London, Darnay, on the morning of his wedding, keeps
his promise to Manette; he reveals his true identity and, that night, Manette relapses into
his old prison habit of making shoes. After nine days, Manette regains his presence of mind,
and soon joins the newlyweds on their honeymoon. Upon Darnay’s return, Carton pays him
a visit and asks for his friendship. Darnay assures Carton that he is always welcome in their
home.

The year is now 1789. The peasants in Paris storm the Bastille and the French Revolution
begins. The revolutionaries murder aristocrats in the streets, and Gabelle, a man charged
with the maintenance of the Evrémonde estate, is imprisoned. Three years later, he writes
to Darnay, asking to be rescued. Despite the threat of great danger to his person, Darnay
departs immediately for France.

As soon as Darnay arrives in Paris, the French revolutionaries arrest him as an emigrant.
Lucie and Manette make their way to Paris in hopes of saving him. Darnay remains in prison
for a year and three months before receiving a trial. In order to help free him, Manette uses
his considerable influence with the revolutionaries, who sympathize with him for having
served time in the Bastille. Darnay receives an acquittal, but that same night he is arrested
again. The charges, this time, come from Defarge and his vengeful wife. Carton arrives in
Paris with a plan to rescue Darnay and obtains the help of John Barsad, who turns out to be
Solomon Pross, the long-lost brother of Miss Pross, Lucie’s loyal servant.

At Darnay’s trial, Defarge produces a letter that he discovered in Manette’s old jail cell in the
Bastille. The letter explains the cause of Manette’s imprisonment. Years ago, the brothers
Evrémonde (Darnay’s father and uncle) enlisted Manette’s medical assistance. They asked
him to tend to a woman, whom one of the brothers had raped, and her brother, whom the
same brother had stabbed fatally. Fearing that Manette might report their misdeeds, the
Evrémondes had him arrested. Upon hearing this story, the jury condemns Darnay for the
crimes of his ancestors and sentences him to die within twenty-four hours. That night, at the
Defarge’s wine shop, Carton overhears Madame Defarge plotting to have Lucie and her
daughter (also Darnay’s daughter) executed as well; Madame Defarge, it turns out, is the
surviving sibling of the man and woman killed by the Evrémondes. Carton arranges for the
Manettes’ immediate departure from France. He then visits Darnay in prison, tricks him into
changing clothes with him, and, after dictating a letter of explanation, drugs his friend
unconscious. Barsad carries Darnay, now disguised as Carton, to an awaiting coach, while
Carton, disguised as Darnay, awaits execution. As Darnay, Lucie, their child, and Dr. Manette
speed away from Paris, Madame Defarge arrives at Lucie’s apartment, hoping to arrest her.
There she finds the supremely protective Miss Pross. A scuffle ensues, and Madame Defarge
dies by the bullet of her own gun. Sydney Carton meets his death at the guillotine, and the
narrator confidently asserts that Carton dies with the knowledge that he has finally imbued
his life with meaning.

CHARACTERS

136. Charles Darnay - A French aristocrat by birth, Darnay chooses to live in England
because he cannot bear to be associated with the cruel injustices of the French
social system. Darnay displays great virtue in his rejection of the snobbish and cruel
values of his uncle, the Marquis Evrémonde. He exhibits an admirable honesty in his
decision to reveal to Doctor Manette his true identity as a member of the infamous
Evrémonde family. So, too, does he prove his courage in his decision to return to
Paris at great personal risk to save the imprisoned Gabelle.

137. Sydney Carton - An insolent, indifferent, and alcoholic attorney who works with
Stryver. Carton has no real prospects in life and doesn’t seem to be in pursuit of any.
He does, however, love Lucie, and his feelings for her eventually transform him into
a man of profound merit. At first the polar opposite of Darnay, in the end Carton
morally surpasses the man to whom he bears a striking physical resemblance.

138. Doctor Manette - Lucie’s father and a brilliant physician, Doctor Manette spent
eighteen years as a prisoner in the Bastille. At the start of the novel, Manette does
nothing but make shoes, a hobby that he adopted to distract himself from the
tortures of prison. As he overcomes his past as a prisoner, however, he proves to be
a kind, loving father who prizes his daughter’s happiness above all things.

139. Lucie Manette - A young French woman who grew up in England, Lucie was
raised as a ward of Tellson’s Bank because her parents were assumed dead. Dickens
depicts Lucie as an archetype of compassion. Her love has the power to bind her
family together—the text often refers to her as the “golden thread.” Furthermore,
 her love has the power to transform those around her. It enables her father to be
“recalled to life,” and it sparks Sydney Carton’s development from a “jackal” into a
hero.

140. Monsieur Defarge - A wine shop owner and revolutionary in the poor Saint
Antoine section of Paris, Monsieur Defarge formerly worked as a servant for Doctor
Manette. Defarge proves an intelligent and committed revolutionary, a natural
leader. Although he remains dedicated to bringing about a better society at any
cost, he does demonstrate a kindness toward Manette. His wife, Madame Defarge,
views this consideration for Manette as a weakness.

141. Madame Defarge - A cruel revolutionary whose hatred of the aristocracy fuels
her tireless crusade, Madame Defarge spends a good deal of the novel knitting a
register of everyone who must die for the revolutionary cause. Unlike her husband,
she proves unrelentingly blood-thirsty, and her lust for vengeance knows no
bounds.

142. Jarvis Lorry - An elderly businessman who works for Tellson’s Bank, Mr. Lorry is
a very business-oriented bachelor with a strong moral sense and a good, honest
heart. He proves trustworthy and loyal, and Doctor Manette and Lucie come to
value him as a personal friend.

143. Jerry Cruncher - An odd-job man for Tellson’s Bank, Cruncher is gruff,
short-tempered, superstitious, and uneducated. He supplements his income by
working as a “Resurrection-Man,” one who digs up dead bodies and sells them to
scientists.

144. Miss Pross - The servant who raised Lucie, Miss Pross is brusque, tough, and
fiercely loyal to her mistress. Because she personifies order and loyalty, she
provides the perfect foil to Madame Defarge, who epitomizes the violent chaos of
the revolution.

145. Marquis Evrémonde - Charles Darnay’s uncle, the Marquis Evrémonde is a

French aristocrat who embodies an inhumanly cruel caste system. He shows
absolutely no regard for human life and wishes that the peasants of the world would
be exterminated.

146. Mr. Stryver - An ambitious lawyer, Stryver dreams of climbing the social ladder.
Unlike his associate, Sydney Carton, Stryver is bombastic, proud, and foolish.

147. John Barsad - Like Roger Cly, John Barsad is a British spy who swears that
patriotism is his only motive. Barsad falsely claims to be a virtuous man of
upstanding reputation.

148. Roger Cly - Like John Barsad, Roger Cly is a British spy who swears that
 patriotism alone inspires all of his actions. Cly feigns honesty but in fact constantly
participates in conniving schemes.

149. Gabelle - The man charged with keeping up the Evrémonde estate after the
Marquis’ death, Gabelle is imprisoned by the revolutionaries. News of his
internment prompts Darnay to travel to France to save him.

38. THE OLD MAN AND TH SEA

The Old Man and the Sea is a short novel written by the American author Ernest Hemingway in
1951 in Bimini, Bahamas, and published in 1952.[1] It was the last major work of fiction by
Hemingway that was published during his lifetime. One of his most famous works, it tells the
story of Santiago, an aging Cuban fisherman who struggles with a giant marlin far out in the Gulf
Stream off the coast of Cuba.

In 1953, The Old Man and the Sea was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and it was cited by
the Nobel Committee as contributing to their awarding of the Nobel Prize in Literature to
Hemingway in 1954.

Plot Overview

The Old Man and the Sea is the story of an epic struggle between an old, seasoned fisherman
and the greatest catch of his life. For eighty-four days, Santiago, an aged Cuban fisherman, has
set out to sea and returned empty-handed. So conspicuously unlucky is he that the parents of his
young, devoted apprentice and friend, Manolin, have forced the boy to leave the old man in
order to fish in a more prosperous boat. Nevertheless, the boy continues to care for the old man
upon his return each night. He helps the old man tote his gear to his ramshackle hut, secures
food for him, and discusses the latest developments in American baseball, especially the trials of
the old man’s hero, Joe DiMaggio. Santiago is confident that his unproductive streak will soon
come to an end, and he resolves to sail out farther than usual the following day.

On the eighty-fifth day of his unlucky streak, Santiago does as promised, sailing his skiff far
beyond the island’s shallow coastal waters and venturing into the Gulf Stream. He prepares his
lines and drops them. At noon, a big fish, which he knows is a marlin, takes the bait that
Santiago has placed one hundred fathoms deep in the waters. The old man expertly hooks the
fish, but he cannot pull it in. Instead, the fish begins to pull the boat.

Unable to tie the line fast to the boat for fear the fish would snap a taut line, the old man bears
the strain of the line with his shoulders, back, and hands, ready to give slack should the marlin
make a run. The fish pulls the boat all through the day, through the night, through another day,
and through another night. It swims steadily northwest until at last it tires and swims east with
the current. The entire time, Santiago endures constant pain from the fishing line. Whenever the
fish lunges, leaps, or makes a dash for freedom, the cord cuts Santiago badly. Although wounded
and weary, the old man feels a deep empathy and admiration for the marlin, his brother in
suffering, strength, and resolve.

On the third day the fish tires, and Santiago, sleep-deprived, aching, and nearly delirious,
manages to pull the marlin in close enough to kill it with a harpoon thrust. Dead beside the skiff,
the marlin is the largest Santiago has ever seen. He lashes it to his boat, raises the small mast,
and sets sail for home. While Santiago is excited by the price that the marlin will bring at market,
he is more concerned that the people who will eat the fish are unworthy of its greatness.

As Santiago sails on with the fish, the marlin’s blood leaves a trail in the water and attracts
sharks. The first to attack is a great mako shark, which Santiago manages to slay with the
harpoon. In the struggle, the old man loses the harpoon and lengths of valuable rope, which
leaves him vulnerable to other shark attacks. The old man fights off the successive vicious
predators as best he can, stabbing at them with a crude spear he makes by lashing a knife to an
oar, and even clubbing them with the boat’s tiller. Although he kills several sharks, more and
more appear, and by the time night falls, Santiago’s continued fight against the scavengers is
useless. They devour the marlin’s precious meat, leaving only skeleton, head, and tail. Santiago
chastises himself for going “out too far,” and for sacrificing his great and worthy opponent. He
arrives home before daybreak, stumbles back to his shack, and sleeps very deeply.

The next morning, a crowd of amazed fishermen gathers around the skeletal carcass of the fish,
which is still lashed to the boat. Knowing nothing of the old man’s struggle, tourists at a nearby
café observe the remains of the giant marlin and mistake it for a shark. Manolin, who has been
worried sick over the old man’s absence, is moved to tears when he finds Santiago safe in his
bed. The boy fetches the old man some coffee and the daily papers with the baseball scores, and
watches him sleep. When the old man wakes, the two agree to fish as partners once more. The
old man returns to sleep and dreams his usual dream of lions at play on the beaches of Africa.

Character List

Santiago - The old man of the novella’s title, Santiago is a Cuban fisherman who has had an
extended run of bad luck. Despite his expertise, he has been unable to catch a fish for
eighty-four days. He is humble, yet exhibits a justified pride in his abilities. His knowledge of the
sea and its creatures, and of his craft, is unparalleled and helps him preserve a sense of hope
regardless of circumstance. Throughout his life, Santiago has been presented with contests to
test his strength and endurance. The marlin with which he struggles for three days represents
his greatest challenge. Paradoxically, although Santiago ultimately loses the fish, the marlin is
also his greatest victory.

The marlin - Santiago hooks the marlin, which we learn at the end of the novella measures
eighteen feet, on the first afternoon of his fishing expedition. Because of the marlin’s great size,
Santiago is unable to pull the fish in, and the two become engaged in a kind of tug-of-war that
often seems more like an alliance than a struggle. The fishing line serves as a symbol of the
fraternal connection Santiago feels with the fish. When the captured marlin is later destroyed by
sharks, Santiago feels destroyed as well. Like Santiago, the marlin is implicitly compared to
Christ.

Manolin - A boy presumably in his adolescence, Manolin is Santiago’s apprentice and devoted
attendant. The old man first took him out on a boat when he was merely five years old. Due to
Santiago’s recent bad luck, Manolin’s parents have forced the boy to go out on a different fishing
boat. Manolin, however, still cares deeply for the old man, to whom he continues to look as a
mentor. His love for Santiago is unmistakable as the two discuss baseball and as the young boy
recruits help from villagers to improve the old man’s impoverished conditions.

Joe DiMaggio - Although DiMaggio never appears in the novel, he plays a significant role
nonetheless. Santiago worships him as a model of strength and commitment, and his thoughts
turn toward DiMaggio whenever he needs to reassure himself of his own strength. Despite a
painful bone spur that might have crippled another player, DiMaggio went on to secure a
triumphant career. He was a center fielder for the New York Yankees from 1936 to 1951, and is
often considered the best all-around player ever at that position.

Perico - Perico, the reader assumes, owns the bodega in Santiago’s village. He never appears in
the novel, but he serves an important role in the fisherman’s life by providing him with
newspapers that report the baseball scores. This act establishes him as a kind man who helps
the aging Santiago.

Martin - Like Perico, Martin, a café owner in Santiago’s village, does not appear in the story. The
reader learns of him through Manolin, who often goes to Martin for Santiago’s supper. As the
old man says, Martin is a man of frequent kindness who deserves to be repaid.

39. EVALINA
Evelina, in full Evelina; or, The History of a Young Lady’s Entrance into the World, novel of
manners by Fanny Burney, published anonymously in 1778. Although published anonymously,
its authorship was revealed by the poet George Huddesford in what Burney called a "vile
poem".

In this 3-volume epistolary novel, title character Evelina is the unacknowledged, but legitimate
daughter of a dissipated English aristocrat, thus raised in rural seclusion until her 17th year.
Through a series of humorous events that take place in London and the resort town of Hotwells,
near Bristol, Evelina learns to navigate the complex layers of 18th-century society and earn the
love of a distinguished nobleman. This sentimental novel, which has notions of sensibility and
early romanticism, satirizes the society in which it is set and is a significant precursor to the work
of Jane Austen and Maria Edgeworth, whose novels explore many of the same issues.

Plot summary

The novel opens with a distressed letter from Lady Howard to her longtime acquaintance, the
Reverend Arthur Villars, in which she reports that Mme. Duval, the grandmother of Villars' ward,
Evelina Anville, intends to visit England to renew her acquaintance with her granddaughter
Evelina. Eighteen years earlier, Mme. Duval had broken off her relationship with her daughter
Caroline, Evelina's mother, and has never acknowledged Evelina. Reverend Villars fears Mme.
Duval's influence could lead Evelina to a fate similar to that of her mother Caroline, who secretly
wedded Sir John Belmont, a libertine, who afterwards denied the marriage. To keep Evelina
from Mme. Duval, the Reverend lets her visit Howard Grove, Lady Howard's home, on an
extended holiday. While she is there, the family learns that Lady Howard's son-in-law, naval
officer Captain Mirvan, is returning to England after a seven-year absence. Desperate to join the
Mirvans on their trip to London, Evelina entreats her guardian to let her attend them, promising
that the visit will last only a few weeks. Villars reluctantly consents.

In London, Evelina's beauty and ambiguous social status attract unwanted attention and unkind
speculation. Ignorant of the conventions and behaviors of 18th-century London society, she
makes a series of humiliating (but humorous) faux pas that further expose her to social ridicule.
She soon earns the attentions of two gentlemen: Lord Orville, a handsome and extremely
eligible peer and pattern-card of modest, becoming behavior; and Sir Clement Willoughby, a
baronet with duplicitous intentions. Evelina's untimely reunion with her grandmother and the
Branghtons, her long-unknown extended family, along with the embarrassment their boorish,
social-climbing antics cause, soon convince her that Lord Orville is completely out of reach.

The Mirvans finally return to the country, taking Evelina and Mme. Duval with them. Spurred by
Evelina's greedy cousins, Mme. Duval concocts a plan to sue Sir John Belmont, Evelina's father,
and force him to recognize his daughter's claim in court. Reverend Villars is displeased, and they
decide against a lawsuit, but Lady Howard writes to Sir John, who responds unfavorably.

Mme. Duval is furious and threatens to rush Evelina back to Paris to pursue the lawsuit. A
second compromise sees Evelina return to London with her grandmother, where she is forced to
spend time with her ill-bred Branghton cousins and their rowdy friends, but she is distracted by
Mr. Macartney, a melancholy and direly-poor Scottish poet. Finding him with a pair of pistols,
she supposed him to be considering suicide and bids him to look to his salvation; later he
informs her that he has been contemplating not only self-destruction but highway robbery. He is
in dreadful financial straits, is engaged in tracing his own obscure parentage, as well as
recovering from his mother's sudden death and the discovery that his beloved is actually his
sister. Evelina charitably gives him her purse. Otherwise, her time with the Branghtons is
uniformly mortifying: during her visit to Marylebone pleasure garden, for instance, she's
attacked by a drunken sailor and rescued by prostitutes—and in this humiliating company she
meets Lord Orville again! Sure that he can never respect her now, she is stunned when he seeks
her out in London's unfashionable section and seems interested in renewing their acquaintance.
When an insulting letter supposedly from Lord Orville devastates her and makes her believe she
misperceived him, she returns home to Berry Hill and falls ill.

Slowly recuperating from her illness, Evelina agrees to accompany her neighbour, a sarcastically
tempered widow named Mrs. Selwyn, to the resort town of Clifton Heights, where she
unwillingly attracts the attention of womanizer Lord Merton, on the eve of his marriage to Lord
Orville's sister, Lady Louisa Larpent. Aware of Lord Orville's arrival, Evelina tries to distance
herself from him because of his impertinent letter, but his gentle manners work their spell until
she is torn between attraction to him and her belief in his past duplicity.

The unexpected appearance of Mr. Macartney reveals an unexpected streak of jealousy in the
seemingly imperturbable Lord Orville. Convinced that Macartney is a rival for Evelina's
affections, Lord Orville withdraws. However, Macartney has intended only to repay his financial
debt to Evelina.

Lord Orville's genuine affection for Evelina and her assurances that she and Macartney are not
involved finally win out over Orville's jealousy, and he secures a meeting between Evelina and
Macartney. It appears that all doubts have been resolved between Lord Orville and Evelina,
especially when Mrs. Selwyn informs her that she overheard Lord Orville arguing with Sir
Clement about the latter's inappropriate attentions to Evelina. Lord Orville proposes, much to
Evelina's delight. However, Evelina is distraught at the continuing gulf between herself and her
father and the mystery surrounding his false daughter. Finally, Mrs. Selwyn is able to secure a
surprise meeting with Sir John. When he sees Evelina, he is horrified and guilt-stricken because
she closely resembles her mother, Caroline. Evelina is able to ease his guilt with her repeated
gentle pardons and the delivery of a letter written by her mother on her deathbed in which she
forgives Sir John for his behavior if he will remove her ignominy (by acknowledging their
marriage) and acknowledge Evelina as his legitimate daughter.

Mrs. Clifton, Berry Hill's longtime housekeeper, is able to reveal the second Miss Belmont's
parentage. She identifies Polly Green, Evelina's former wetnurse, mother of a girl 6 weeks older
than Evelina, as the perpetrator of the fraud. Polly has been passing her own daughter off as
that of Sir John and Caroline for the past 18 years, hoping to secure a better future for her.
Ultimately, Lord Orville suggests that the unfortunate girl be named co-heiress with Evelina;
kindhearted Evelina is delighted.

Finally, Sir Clement Willoughby writes to Evelina, confessing that he had written the insulting
letter (she had already suspected this), hoping to separate Evelina and Lord Orville. In Paris, Mr.
Macartney is reunited with the false Miss Belmont, his former beloved: separated by Sir John, at
first because Macartney was too poor and lowly to marry his purported daughter, and then
because his affair with Macartney's mother would have made the sweethearts brother and
sister, they are now able to marry because Miss "Belmont"'s true parentage has been revealed.
They are married in a joint ceremony alongside Evelina and Lord Orville, who decide to visit
Reverend Villars at Berry Hill for their honeymoon trip.

Characters

Miss Evelina Anville, the novel's main character, is the daughter of Lady Caroline Belmont (born
Caroline Evelyn) and Sir John Belmont. A series of letters convey the story, and she summarizes
specific experiences of her life, mainly to her guardian/pseudo-father Reverend Villars. She
embodies the desirable traits for women at the time. Although she is called a social "nobody" by
the fop Mr. Lovel, other characters have high opinions of her. She is deemed "a very pretty
modest-looking girl" by Lord Orville and an "angel" by Sir Clement in the first volume. The novel
traces her trials and tribulations and growing confidence in her own abilities and discernment.

Reverend Arthur Villars is the man who raised Evelina as his own and refers to her as the "child
of his heart." He is her tutor and guardian. Taking in the disgraced Lady Belmont, he vowed to be
the protector of her child. He is Evelina's moral guide and confidant throughout the novel.

Sir Clement Willoughby is a minor nobleman (baronet). Evelina meets him at the infamous
Ridotto during her first visit to London. A steadfast pursuer of Evelina's good favour, he courts
her very forwardly with flamboyant proclamations and flattering speeches. Evelina dislikes him,
only tolerating him because he curries favour with Captain Mirvan and Mrs. Selwyn. He also
accompanies Captain Mirvan whenever he assaults, provokes or teases Madame Duval.

Lord Orville is a fine gentleman and earl who rescues Evelina on several occasions, including
from the advances of Sir Clement. He falls into her good graces simply by conducting himself in a
manner befitting his rank and person. He is open, engaging, gentle, attentive, and expressive.

Captain Mirvan is a retired navy captain who despises foreigners and constantly annoys
Madame Duval. Husband of Mrs. Mirvan and father of Maria, he sometimes greatly embarrasses
his family (or so Evelina perceives).

Mrs. Mirvan is a woman who shows much compassion and concern for Evelina. She looks after
her during her visits to London and Howard Grove, treating Evelina as her second child.

Miss Maria Mirvan is a childhood friend of Evelina's, her true companion and confidante.

Mme Duval is Evelina's English grandmother, who pretends to be French. She wants to take
Evelina to France, away from English influence in general and Rev. Villars in particular. She is
stubborn and ignorant; therefore, she is repugnant to Evelina.

M. Dubois is Madame Duval's companion. He speaks only French and some broken English.
Evelina bonds with him during her second residence in London because comparisons to her
Branghton cousins elevate her opinion of him. Unfortunately, this encourages him to make
unwanted advances that infuriate Mme. Duval. Captain Mirvan nicknames him "Monseer
Slippery" because he once slipped in mud while carrying Mme. Duval.
The Branghtons are Evelina's London relations, a low-bred family who own a silversmith's shop
in High Holborn. Evelina must associate with them on her second visit to London; she grows
impatient with their crass behaviour and is embarrassed to be thought of as in their party,
especially when she meets Lord Orville in their company. The Misses Branghton are jealous of
the attention their own beaux give Evelina; their brother eventually attempts, unsuccessfully, to
propose to Evelina through Mme. Duval.

Mr. Macartney is an impoverished Scottish poet who boards with the Branghtons and is the butt
of many of their contemptuous jokes. Evelina rescues him during what she perceives to be a
suicide attempt; he later revelaled he had been unable to decide between that and armed
robbery. This desperate action had been brought on by his mother's death and the discovery
that his beloved was actually his unacknowledged sister. When the young woman's actual
parentage is revealed, they are able to marry. He is Evelina's half-brother as his father is Sir John
Belmont.

Lord Merton first met Evelina at an assembly. He is reintroduced to her in Bristol as Lord
Orville's sister's fiancé. Along with his companion, Mr. Coverly, Lord Merton reveals himself as a
drunken, gambling rake.

Mr. Lovel is Evelina's rejected dance partner from her first assembly. Though he knows her
action of accepting another dance partner (Lord Orville) after refusing him is due to her lack of
knowledge about society, he is furious and seizes every opportunity to embarrass her.

40. LADY CHATTERLEY'S LOVER

Lady Chatterley's Lover is a novel by D. H. Lawrence, first published privately in 1928 in Italy, and
in 1929 in France and Australia. An unexpurgated edition was not published openly in the United
Kingdom until 1960, when it was the subject of a watershed obscenity trial against the publisher
Penguin Books. Penguin won the case, and quickly sold 3 million copies. The book soon became
notorious for its story of the physical (and emotional) relationship between a working class man
and an upper class woman, its explicit descriptions of sex, and its use of then-unprintable words.

The story is said to have originated from events in Lawrence's own unhappy domestic life, and
he took inspiration for the settings of the book from Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, where he grew
up. According to some critics, the fling of Lady Ottoline Morrell with "Tiger", a young
stonemason who came to carve plinths for her garden statues, also influenced the story.
Lawrence at one time considered calling the novel Tenderness and made significant alterations
to the text and story in the process of its composition. It has been published in three versions.

Summary

Lady Chatterley's Lover begins by introducing Connie Reid, the female protagonist of the novel.
She was raised as a cultured bohemian of the upper-middle class, and was introduced to love
affairs--intellectual and sexual liaisons--as a teenager. In 1917, at 23, she marries Clifford
Chatterley, the scion of an aristocratic line. After a month's honeymoon, he is sent to war, and
returns paralyzed from the waist down, impotent.

After the war, Clifford becomes a successful writer, and many intellectuals flock to the
Chatterley mansion, Wragby. Connie feels isolated; the vaunted intellectuals prove empty and
bloodless, and she resorts to a brief and dissatisfying affair with a visiting playwright, Michaelis.
Connie longs for real human contact, and falls into despair, as all men seem scared of true
feelings and true passion. There is a growing distance between Connie and Clifford, who has
retreated into the meaningless pursuit of success in his writing and in his obsession with
coal-mining, and towards whom Connie feels a deep physical aversion. A nurse, Mrs. Bolton, is
hired to take care of the handicapped Clifford so that Connie can be more independent, and
Clifford falls into a deep dependence on the nurse, his manhood fading into an infantile reliance.

Into the void of Connie's life comes Oliver Mellors, the gamekeeper on Clifford's estate, newly
returned from serving in the army. Mellors is aloof and derisive, and yet Connie feels curiously
drawn to him by his innate nobility and grace, his purposeful isolation, his undercurrents of
natural sensuality. After several chance meetings in which Mellors keeps her at arm's length,
reminding her of the class distance between them, they meet by chance at a hut in the forest,
where they have sex. This happens on several occasions, but still Connie feels a distance
between them, remaining profoundly separate from him despite their physical closeness.

One day, Connie and Mellors meet by coincidence in the woods, and they have sex on the forest
floor. This time, they experience simultaneous orgasms. This is a revelatory and profoundly
moving experience for Connie; she begins to adore Mellors, feeling that they have connected on
some deep sensual level. She is proud to believe that she is pregnant with Mellors' child: he is a
real, "living" man, as opposed to the emotionally-dead intellectuals and the dehumanized
industrial workers. They grow progressively closer, connecting on a primordial physical level, as
woman and man rather than as two minds or intellects.

Connie goes away to Venice for a vacation. While she is gone, Mellors' old wife returns, causing
a scandal. Connie returns to find that Mellors has been fired as a result of the negative rumors
spread about him by his resentful wife, against whom he has initiated divorce proceedings.
Connie admits to Clifford that she is pregnant with Mellors' baby, but Clifford refuses to give her
a divorce. The novel ends with Mellors working on a farm, waiting for his divorce, and Connie
living with her sister, also waiting: the hope exists that, in the end, they will be together.

Characters

Lady Chatterley - The protagonist of the novel. Before her marriage, she is simply Constance
Reid, an intellectual and social progressive, the daughter of Sir Malcolm and the sister of Hilda.
When she marries Clifford Chatterley, a minor nobleman, Constance--or, as she is known
throughout the novel, Connie--assumes his title, becoming Lady Chatterley. Lady Chatterley's
Lover chronicles Connie's maturation as a woman and as a sensual being. She comes to despise
her weak, ineffectual husband, and to love Oliver Mellors, the gamekeeper on her husband's
estate. In the process of leaving her husband and conceiving a child with Mellors, Lady
Chatterley moves from the heartless, bloodless world of the intelligentsia and aristocracy into a
vital and profound connection rooted in sensuality and sexual fulfillment.

Oliver Mellors - The lover in the novel's title. Mellors is the gamekeeper on Clifford Chatterley's
estate, Wragby. He is aloof, sarcastic, intelligent and noble. He was born near Wragby, and
worked as a blacksmith until he ran off to the army to escape an unhappy marriage. In the army
he rose to become a commissioned lieutenant--an unusual position for a member of the
working classes--but was forced to leave the army because of a case of pneumonia, which left
him in poor health. Disappointed by a string of unfulfilling love affairs, Mellors lives in quiet
isolation, from which he is redeemed by his relationship with Connie: the passion unleashed by
their lovemaking forges a profound bond between them. At the end of the novel, Mellors is fired
from his job as gamekeeper and works as a laborer on a farm, waiting for a divorce from his old
wife so he can marry Connie. Mellors is the representative in this novel of the Noble Savage: he
is a man with an innate nobility but who remains impervious to the pettiness and emptiness of
conventional society, with access to a primitive flame of passion and sensuality.

Clifford Chatterley - Connie's husband. Clifford Chatterley is a minor nobleman who becomes
paralyzed from the waist down during World War I. As a result of his injury, Clifford is impotent.
He retires to his familial estate, Wragby, where he becomes first a successful writer, and then a
powerful businessman. But the gap between Connie and him grows ever wider; obsessed with
financial success and fame, he is not truly interested in love, and she feels that he has become
passionless and empty. He turns for solace to his nurse and companion, Mrs. Bolton, who
worships him as a nobleman even as she despises him for his casual arrogance. Clifford
represents everything that this novel despises about the modern English nobleman: he is a
weak, vain man, but declares his right to rule the lower classes, and he soullessly pursues money
and fame through industry and the meaningless manipulation of words. His impotence is
symbolic of his failings as a strong, sensual man.

Mrs. Bolton - Ivy Bolton is Clifford's nurse and caretaker. She is a competent, complex,
still-attractive middle-aged woman. Years before the action in this novel, her husband died in an
accident in the mines owned by Clifford's family. Even as Mrs. Bolton resents Clifford as the
owner of the mines--and, in a sense, the murderer of her husband--she still maintains a
worshipful attitude towards him as the representative of the upper class. Her relationship with
Clifford--she simultaneously adores and despises him, while he depends and looks down on
her--is probably the most fascinating and complex relationship in the novel.

Michaelis - A successful Irish playwright with whom Connie has an affair early in the novel.
Michaelis asks Connie to marry him, but she decides not to, realizing that he is like all other
intellectuals: a slave to success, a purveyor of vain ideas and empty words, passionless.

Hilda Reid - Connie's older sister by two years, the daughter of Sir Malcolm. Hilda shared
Connie's cultured upbringing and intellectual education. She remains unliberated by the raw
sensuality that changed Connie's life. She disdains Connie's lover, Mellors, as a member of the
lower classes, but in the end she helps Connie to leave Clifford

Sir Malcolm Reid - The father of Connie and Hilda. He is an acclaimed painter, an aesthete and
unabashed sensualist who despises Clifford for his weakness and impotence, and who
immediately warms to Mellors.

Tommy Dukes - One of Clifford's contemporaries, Tommy Dukes is a brigadier general in the
British Army and a clever and progressive intellectual. Lawrence intimates, however, that Dukes
is a representative of all intellectuals: all talk and no action. Dukes speaks of the importance of
sensuality, but he himself is incapable of sensuality and uninterested in sex.

Charles May, Hammond, Berry - Young intellectuals who visit Wragby, and who, along with
Tommy Dukes and Clifford, participate in the socially progressive but ultimately meaningless
discussions about love and sex.

Duncan Forbes - An artist friend of Connie and Hilda. Forbes paints abstract canvases, a form of
art both Mellors and D.H. Lawrence seem to despise. He once loved Connie, and Connie
originally claims to be pregnant with his child.

Bertha Coutts - Although Bertha never actually appears in the novel, her presence is felt. She is
Mellors' wife, separated from him but not divorced. Their marriage faltered because of their
sexual incompatibility: she was too rapacious, not tender enough. She returns at the end of the
novel to spread rumors about Mellors' infidelity to her, and helps get him fired from his position
as gamekeeper. As the novel concludes, Mellors is in the process of divorcing her.

Squire Winter - A relative of Clifford. He is a firm believer in the old privileges of the aristocracy.

Daniele, Giovanni - Venetian gondoliers in the service of Hilda and Connie. Giovanni hopes that
the women will pay him to sleep with them; he is disappointed. Daniele reminds Connie of
Mellors: he is attractive, a "real man."

41. LORD JIM

Lord Jim is a novel by Joseph Conrad originally published as a serial in Blackwood's Magazine
from October 1899 to November 1900. An early and primary event in the story is the
abandonment of a passenger ship in distress by its crew, including a young British seaman
named Jim. He is publicly censured for this action and the novel follows his later attempts at
coming to terms with himself and his past.
Plot summary

Recovered from an injury, Jim seeks a position on the Patna, a steamer serving the transport of
800 "pilgrims of an exacting faith" to a port on the Red Sea. He is hired as first mate. After some
days of smooth sailing, the ship hits something in the night and begins taking on water. The
captain thinks the ship will sink, and Jim agrees, but wants to put the passengers on the few
boats before that can happen. The captain and two other crewmen think only to save
themselves, and prepare to lower a boat. The helmsmen remain, as no order has been given to
do otherwise. In a crucial moment, Jim jumps into the boat with the captain. A few days later,
they are picked up by an outbound steamer. When they reach port, they learn that the Patna
and its passengers were brought in safely by a crew from a French navy ship. The captain's
actions in abandoning both ship and passengers are against the code of seamen and the crew is
publicly vilified. When the other men leave town before the magistrate's court can be convened,
Jim is the only crew member left to testify. All lose their certificates to sail. Brierly, a captain of
perfect reputation who is on the panel of the court, commits suicide days after the trial.

Captain Charles Marlow attends the trial and meets Jim, whose behavior he condemns, but the
young man intrigues him. Wracked with guilt, Jim confesses his shame to Marlow, who finds him
a place to live in the home of a friend. Jim is accepted there but leaves abruptly when an
engineer who had also abandoned the ship appears to work at the house. Jim then finds work as
a ship chandler's clerk in ports of the East Indies, always succeeding in the job then leaving
abruptly when the Patna is mentioned. In Bangkok, he gets in a fistfight. Marlow realises that
Jim needs a new situation, something that will take him far away from modern ports and keep
him occupied so that he can finally forget his guilt. Marlow consults his friend Stein, who sees
that Jim is a romantic and considers his situation. Stein offers Jim to be his trade representative
or factor in Patusan, a village on a remote island shut off from most commerce, which Jim finds
to be exactly what he needs.

After his initial challenge of entering the settlement of native Malay and Bugis people, Jim
manages to earn their respect by relieving them of the depredations of the bandit Sherif Ali and
protecting them from the corrupt local Malay chief, Rajah Tunku Allang. He builds a solid link
with Doramin, the Bugis friend of Stein, and his son Dain Waris. For his leadership, the people
call him "tuan Jim", or Lord Jim. Jim also wins the love of Jewel, a young woman of mixed race,
and is "satisfied... nearly". Marlow visits Patusan once, two years after Jim arrived there, and
sees his success. Jewel does not believe that Jim will stay, as her father left her mother, and she
is not reassured that Marlow or any other will not arrive to take him from her. Her mother had
been married before her death to Cornelius, previously given the role of factor by Stein for her
benefit. Cornelius is a lazy, jealous, and brutal man who treats his stepdaughter cruelly and
steals the supplies Stein sends for sale; he is displaced by Jim's arrival and resents him for it.

"Gentleman" Brown, a marauder captain notorious for his evil ways, then arrives in Patusan, his
small crew on the brink of starvation. The local defence led by Dain Waris manages to prevent
the marauders from looting the village and holds them entrenched in place while Jim is away in
the island's interior. When Jim returns, Brown deceptively wins Jim's mercy, who hesitantly
negotiates to allow them to leave Patusan unobstructed, but reminds Brown that the long
passage down river to the sea will be guarded by armed men. Cornelius sees his chance to get
rid of Jim. He tells Brown of a side channel that will bypass most of the defenses, which Brown
uses, stopping briefly to ambush the defenders he finds. Dain Waris is killed among others, and
Brown sails on, leaving Cornelius behind; Jim's man Tamb' Itam kills Cornelius for his betrayal.
Jim is mortified when he receives word of the death of his good friend, and resolves to leave
Patusan. Jewel, who had wanted Jim to attack Brown and his ship, is distraught. Jim then goes
directly to Doramin and takes responsibility for the death of his only son. Doramin uses his
flintlock pistols, given him by Stein, to shoot Jim in the chest.

On his regular route, Marlow arrives at Stein's house a few days after this event, finding Jewel
and Tamb' Itam there, and tries to make sense of what happened. Jewel stays in Stein's house.

Characters
Marlow: Sea captain in the merchant service of the British Empire who helps Jim after his fall
from grace, trying to understand how "one of us" could lack the bravery and judgment expected
of seamen. Marlow is also the narrator of three of Conrad's other works: Heart of Darkness,
Youth, and Chance.

Jim: Young parson's son who takes to the sea, training for the merchant service as steam ships
mix with sailing ships. He dreams of heroic deeds. He is a strong, tall, blond Englishman whose
life is the story told by Marlow.

Captain Gustav: Captain of the Patna, an Australian born in Germany, who is interested in the
money made from this ship, with no concern for his honour as a captain. He is a man of huge
girth. He orders the engineers to free a boat for them to leave the ship. After learning ashore
that the ship came in ahead of them, he knows his certificate will be cancelled and he leaves,
never seen again.

Ship's engineers: Three men who keep the steam boiler working; one is George, who dies of a
heart attack on the Patna as the others leave the ship. Another shows up later by chance at the
same place where Jim is living, driving Jim away. The third becomes completely drunk, left in the
hospital.

Montague Brierly: Captain in the merchant service with a perfect reputation. He sits in the court
that hears the case of the Patna crew, telling Marlow that Jim ought to hide somewhere, as he
can never work as a seaman again. A few days after the trial, this superior man ("indeed, had
you been Emperor of East and West, you could not have ignored your inferiority in his
presence", Chapter 6) kills himself by jumping off his ship at sea, leaving no explanation.

Stein: Head of Stein & Co., friend of Marlow, and a man with a long, interesting life. He has had
success in trade in the East, collecting produce from various ports in the Dutch colonial areas
and settling far from his native Bavaria after losing in the uprisings of 1848. He learned botany
and natural philosophy, which became his passionate hobby, gaining him a reputation for all the
specimens he sent to contacts in Europe in this age of scientific discovery. He was married and
had a child, both lost to him by disease. He understands Jim's temperament instantly.

Jewel: Daughter of a Dutch-Malay woman and a white European man, never named, who
deserted them. Her stepfather is Cornelius. Her mother died a year or two before she meets
Jim.

Cornelius: Former factor for Stein & Co., on account of his wife, whom Stein admired. He is a lazy
man of no morals, and brutal. He is Malacca Portuguese. When replaced by Jim, he does not
leave the area, nor does he find any useful occupation for himself. He connives with the
marauder Brown to kill Jim, which happens indirectly when Brown's men spontaneously kills
Dain Waris. Cornelius is killed by Tamb' Itam, who sees him after the attack and realizes the role
he played.

De Jongh: Friend to Marlow, and the last of the ship's chandlers who accepts Jim on Marlow's
recommendation.

Doramin: Old chief of the Bugis people in Patusan and father of Dain Waris, his only son. He was
a friend to Stein, and the two exchanged gifts on parting: Doramin gave a ring to Stein, and Stein
gave pistols to Doramin. He becomes an ally to Jim.

Dain Waris: The only son of Doramin; a young, strong, and fiercely devoted leader of his people.
He becomes fast friends with Jim.

Sherif Ali: Local bandit who is a trial to all others in Patusan, extorting fees and stealing crops
and resources from others. He is defeated by Jim, but not killed.

Rajah Tunku Allang: Malay chief in Patusan who took Jim prisoner on his first entry into the
country. Jim escapes, starting life there on his own terms.

Tamb' Itam: Malay servant and loyal bodyguard to Jim.

Captain Brown: A cruel captain of a latter-day pirate crew, who kills because he can, and is not a
success in life. He has a ship in poor condition and a crew of men similar to him when he runs
short of food near Patusan. He goes up the river to the village, which successfully forces him to
retreat to a nearby hilltop. On leaving, Brown orders a vengeful attack on Patusan's defenders,
killing Dain Waris, which leads to the end of Jim's life. Marlow meets Brown in a hospital just
before his death, and hears the story of the encounter from Brown's viewpoint.

42. THE PILGRIM PROGRESS

The Pilgrim's Progress from This World, to That Which Is to Come is a 1678 Christian allegory
written by John Bunyan. It is regarded as one of the most significant works of religious English
literature has been translated into more than 200 languages, and has never been out of print. It
has also been cited as the first novel written in English.

Bunyan began his work while in the Bedfordshire county prison for violations of the Conventicle
Act, which prohibited the holding of religious services outside the auspices of the established
Church of England. Early Bunyan scholars such as John Brown believed The Pilgrim's Progress
was begun in Bunyan's second, shorter imprisonment for six months in 1675,[8] but more recent
scholars such as Roger Sharrock believe that it was begun during Bunyan's initial, more lengthy
imprisonment from 1660 to 1672 right after he had written his spiritual autobiography, Grace
Abounding to the Chief of Sinners.

The English text comprises 108,260 words and is divided into two parts, each reading as a
continuous narrative with no chapter divisions. The first part was completed in 1677 and
entered into the Stationers' Register on 22 December 1677. It was licensed and entered in the
"Term Catalogue" on 18 February 1678, which is looked upon as the date of first publication.[10]
After the first edition of the first part in 1678, an expanded edition, with additions written after
Bunyan was freed, appeared in 1679. The Second Part appeared in 1684. There were eleven
editions of the first part in John Bunyan's lifetime, published in successive years from 1678 to
1685 and in 1688, and there were two editions of the second part, published in 1684 and 1686.

PLOT

The narrator defends the story he is about to tell, which is framed as a dream. He explains that
he fell asleep in the wilderness and dreamed of a man named Christian, who was tormented by
spiritual anguish. A spiritual guide named Evangelist visits Christian and urges him to leave the
City of Destruction. Evangelist claims that salvation can only be found in the Celestial City,
known as Mount Zion.

lot OverviewChristian begs his family to accompany him, unsuccessfully. On his way, Christian
falls into a bog called the Slough of Despond, but he is saved. He meets Worldly Wiseman, who
urges him to lead a practical, happy existence without religion. Refusing, Christian is sheltered in
Goodwill’s house. Goodwill tells Christian to stop by the Interpreter’s home, where Christian
learns many lessons about faith.

Walking along the wall of Salvation, Christian sees Christ’s tomb and cross. At this vision, his
burden falls to the ground. One of the three Shining Ones, celestial creatures, hands him a rolled
certificate for entry to the Celestial City. Christian falls asleep and loses his certificate. Since the
certificate is his ticket into the Celestial City, Christian reproaches himself for losing it. After
retracing his tracks, he eventually finds the certificate. Walking on, Christian meets the four
mistresses of the Palace Beautiful, who provide him shelter. They also feed him and arm him.
After descending the Valley of Humiliation, Christian meets the monster Apollyon, who tries to
kill him. Christian is armed, and he strikes Apollyon with a sword and then proceeds through the
desert-like Valley of the Shadow of Death toward the Celestial City.
Christian meets Faithful, a traveler from his hometown. Faithful and Christian are joined by a
third pilgrim, Talkative, whom Christian spurns. Evangelist arrives and warns Faithful and
Christian about the wicked town of Vanity, which they will soon enter. Evangelist foretells that
either Christian or Faithful will die in Vanity.

The two enter Vanity and visit its famous fair. They resist temptation and are mocked by the
townspeople. Eventually the citizens of Vanity imprison Christian and Faithful for mocking their
local religion. Faithful defends himself at his trial and is executed, rising to heaven after death.
Christian is remanded to prison but later escapes and continues his journey.

Another fellow pilgrim named Hopeful befriends Christian on his way. On their journey, a
pilgrim who uses religion as a means to get ahead in the world, named By-ends, crosses their
path. Christian rejects his company. The two enter the plain of Ease, where a smooth talker
named Demas tempts them with silver. Christian and Hopeful pass him by.

Taking shelter for the night on the grounds of Doubting Castle, they awake to the threats of the
castle’s owner, the Giant Despair, who, with the encouragement of his wife, imprisons and
tortures them. Christian and Hopeful escape when they remember they possess the key of
Promise, which unlocks any door in Despair’s domain.

Proceeding onward, Christian and Hopeful approach the Delectable Mountains near the
Celestial City. They encounter wise shepherds who warn them of the treacherous mountains
Error and Caution, where previous pilgrims have died. The shepherds point out travelers who
wander among tombs nearby, having been blinded by the Giant Despair. They warn the
travelers to beware of shortcuts, which may be paths to hell.

The two pilgrims meet Ignorance, a sprightly teenager who believes that living a good life is
sufficient to prove one’s religious faith. Christian refutes him, and Ignorance decides to avoid
their company. The travelers also meet Flatterer, who snares them in a net, and Atheist, who
denies that the Celestial City exists. Crossing the sleep-inducing Enchanted Ground, they try to
stay awake by discussing Hopeful’s sinful past and religious doctrine.

Christian and Hopeful gleefully approach the land of Beulah, where the Celestial City is located.
The landscape teems with flowers and fruit, and the travelers are refreshed. To reach the gate
into the city, they must first cross a river without a bridge. Christian nearly drowns, but Hopeful
reminds him of Christ’s love, and Christian emerges safely from the water. The residents of the
Celestial City joyously welcome the two pilgrims. In his conclusion to Part I, the narrator
expresses hope that his dream be interpreted properly

In the Introduction to Part II, Bunyan addresses the book as “Christiana,” which is the name of
Christian’s wife. This part of The Pilgrim’s Progress tells the story of Christiana and her children’s
journey to the Celestial City. The narrator recounts having met an old man, Sagacity, who tells
the beginning of Christiana’s story. She decides to pack up and follow Christian to the Celestial
City, taking her four sons and a fellow townswoman named Mercy along as a servant. On the
way, they cross the Slough of Despond but are blocked at the gate by an angry dog. The
gatekeeper lets them through. Continuing on, the sons steal fruit from the devil’s garden, and
two ruffians threaten to rape the women, but they escape.

The pilgrims are lodged in the Interpreter’s house. The Interpreter orders his manservant
Great-heart to accompany them to the House Beautiful. Mr. Brisk pays court to Mercy but soon
stops courting her because of her involvement in charity work. As a result of eating the devil’s
fruit, Matthew falls ill but is cured by Dr. Skill. The pilgrims descend into the Valley of
Humiliation and cross the Valley of the Shadow of Death. They encounter the giant Maul and
slay him. After meeting the old pilgrim Honest, they take shelter with Gaius. The pilgrims
continue on their journey and kill the Giant Good-slay then rescue the pilgrims Feeble-mind and
Ready-to-Halt. They lodge with Mnason. Crossing the river of life, they kill the Giant Despair and
greet the kind shepherds who welcome them into the Delectable Mountains.

Christiana meets the great fighter Valiant-for-truth, who accompanies them. They cross the
Enchanted Ground and meet the pilgrim Standfast, who has just spurned Madam Bubble, a
beautiful temptress. The pilgrims are welcomed in the Celestial City. Christiana goes to meet her
maker, the Master. The other pilgrims soon follow.

CHARACTERS

PART ONE

150. Christian, who was born with the name Graceless, the protagonist in the First Part,
whose journey to the Celestial City is the plot of the story.

151. Evangelist, the religious man who puts Christian on the path to the Celestial City. He also
shows Christian a book, which readers assume to be the Bible.

152. Obstinate, one of the two residents of the City of Destruction, who run after Christian
when he first sets out, in order to bring him back. Like his name, he is stubborn and is
disgusted with Christian and with Pliable for making a journey that he thinks is nonsense.

153. Pliable, the other of the two, who goes with Christian until both of them fall into the
Slough of Despond, (a boggy mire composed of the decadence and filthiness of sin and a
swamp that makes the fears and doubts of a present and past sinner real). Pliable escapes
from the slough and returns home. Like his name, he is insecure and goes along with some
things for a little while but quickly gives up on them.

154. Help, Christian's rescuer from the Slough of Despond.

155. Mr. Worldly Wiseman, a resident of a place called Carnal Policy, who persuades
Christian to go out of his way to be helped by a friend named Mr. Legality and then move to
the City of Morality (which focuses salvation on the Law and good deeds instead of faith and
love in Jesus Christ). His real advice is from the world and not from God, meaning his advice
 is flawed and consists of three objectives: getting Christian off the right path, making the
cross of Jesus Christ offensive to him, and binding him to the Law so he would die with his
sins. Worldly Wiseman has brought down many innocent pilgrims and there will be many
more to come.

156. Goodwill, the keeper of the Wicket Gate through which one enters the "straight and
narrow way" (also referred to as "the King's Highway") to the Celestial City. In the Second
Part we find that this character is none other than Jesus Christ Himself.

157. Beelzebub, literally "Lord of the Flies," is one of Satan's companion archdemons, who
has erected a fort near the Wicket Gate from which he and his soldiers can shoot arrows of
fire at those about to enter the Wicket Gate so they will never enter it. He is also the Lord,
God, King, Master, and Prince of Vanity Fair. Christian calls him "captain" of the Foul Fiend
Apollyon, who he later met in the Valley of Humiliation.[9]

158. The Interpreter, the one who has his House along the way as a rest stop for travellers to
check in to see pictures and dioramas to teach them the right way to live the Christian life.
He has been identified in the Second Part as the Holy Spirit.

159. Shining Ones, the messengers and servants of "the Lord of the Hill," God. They are
obviously the holy angels.

160. Formalist, one of two travelers and false pilgrims on the King's Highway, who do not
come in by the Wicket Gate, but climb over the wall that encloses it, at least from the hill
and sepulchre up to the Hill Difficulty. He and his companion Hypocrisy come from the land
of Vainglory. He takes one of the two bypaths that avoid the Hill Difficulty, but is lost.

161. Hypocrisy, the companion of Formalist and the other false pilgrim. He takes the other of
the two bypaths and is also lost.

162. Timorous, one of two men who try to persuade Christian to go back for fear of the
chained lions near the House Beautiful. He is a relative of Mrs. Timorous of the Second Part.
His companion is Mistrust.

163. Watchful, the porter of the House Beautiful. He also appears in the Second Part and
receives "a gold angel" coin from Christiana for his kindness and service to her and her
companions. "Watchful" is also the name of one of the Delectable Mountains' shepherds.

164. Discretion, one of the beautiful maids of the house, who decides to allow Christian to
stay there.

165. Prudence, another of the House Beautiful maidens. She appears in the Second Part.

166. Piety, another of the House Beautiful maidens. She appears in the Second Part.
167. Charity, another of the House Beautiful maidens. She appears in the Second Part.

168. Apollyon, literally "Destroyer;" the King, Lord, God, Master, Prince, Owner, Landlord,
Ruler, Governor, and Leader of the City of Destruction where Christian was born. He is one
of Satan's companion archdemons, who tries to force Christian to return to his domain and
service. His battle with Christian takes place in the Valley of Humiliation, just below the
House Beautiful. He appears as a huge demonic creature with fish's scales, mouth of a lion,
feet of a bear, second mouth on his belly, and dragon's wings. He takes fiery darts from his
body to throw at his opponents. Apollyon is finally defeated when Christian uses the Sword
of the Spirit to wound him two times.

169. "Pope" and "Pagan," giants living in a cave at the end of the fearsome Valley of the
Shadow of Death. They are allegories of Roman Catholicism and paganism as persecutors of
Protestant Christians. "Pagan" is dead, indicating the end of pagan persecution with
Antiquity, and "Pope" is alive but decrepit, indicating the then diminished power and
influence of the Roman Catholic pope. In the Second Part, Pagan is resurrected by a demon
from the bottomless pit of the Valley of the Shadow of Death, representing the new age of
pagan persecution, and Pope is revived of his deadly wounds and is no longer stiff and
unable to move, representing the beginning of the Christian's troubles with Roman Catholic
popes.

170. Faithful, Christian's friend from the City of Destruction, who is also going on pilgrimage.
Christian meets Faithful just after getting through the Valley of The Shadow of Death. He
dies later in Vanity Fair for his strong faith and first reaches the Celestial City.

171. Wanton, a temptress who tries to get Faithful to leave his journey to the Celestial City.
She may be the popular resident of the City of Destruction, Madam Wanton, who hosted a
house party for friends of Mrs. Timorous.

172. Adam the First, "the old man" (representing carnality and deceit) who tries to persuade
Faithful to leave his journey and come live with his 3 daughters: the Lust of the Flesh, the
Lust of the Eyes, and the Pride of Life.

173. Moses, the severe, violent avenger (representing the Law, which knows no mercy) who
tries to kill Faithful for his momentary weakness in wanting to go with Adam the First out of
the way. Moses is sent away by Jesus Christ.

174. Talkative, a pilgrim that Faithful and Christian meet after going through the Valley of the
Shadow of Death. He is known to Christian as a fellow resident of the City of Destruction,
living on Prating Row. He is the son of Say-Well and Mrs. Talk-About-The-Right Things. He is
said to be better looking from a distance than close up. His enthusiasm for talking about his
faith to Faithful deceives him into thinking that he is a sincere man. Christian lets Faithful
know about his unsavory past, and in a conversation that Faithful strikes up with him he is
 exposed as shallow and hypocritical in his Christianity.

175. Lord Hate-Good, the evil judge who tries Faithful in Vanity Fair. Lord Hate-Good is the
opposite of a judge, he hates right and loves wrong because he does wrong himself. His jury
are twelve vicious rogue men.

176. Envy, the first witness against Faithful who falsely accuses that Faithful shows no respect
for their prince, Lord Beelzebub.

177. Superstition, the second witness against Faithful who falsely accuses Faithful of saying
that their religion is vain.

178. Pick-Thank, the third witness against Faithful who falsely accuses Faithful of going
against their prince, their people, their laws, their "honorable" friends, and the judge
himself.

179. Hopeful, the resident of Vanity Fair, who takes Faithful's place as Christian's fellow
traveler. The character Hopeful poses an inconsistency in that there is a necessity imposed
on the pilgrims that they enter the "King's Highway" by the Wicket Gate. Hopeful did not;
however, of him we read: "... one died to bear testimony to the truth, and another rises out
of his ashes to be a companion with Christian in his pilgrimage." Hopeful assumes Faithful's
place by God's design. Theologically and allegorically it would follow in that "faith" is trust in
God as far as things present are concerned, and "hope," biblically the same as "faith," is trust
in God as far as things of the future are concerned. Hopeful would follow Faithful. The other
factor is Vanity Fair's location right on the straight and narrow way. Ignorance, in contrast to
Hopeful, was unconcerned about the end times of God, unconcerned with true faith in Jesus
Christ, and gave false hope about the future. Ignorance was told by Christian and Hopeful
that he should have entered the highway through the Wicket Gate.

180. Mr. By-Ends, a false pilgrim met by Christian and Hopeful after they leave Vanity Fair. He
makes it his aim to avoid any hardship or persecution that Christians may have to undergo.
He supposedly perishes in the Hill Lucre (a dangerous silver mine) with three of his friends,
Hold-the-World, Money-Love, and Save-All, at the behest of Demas, who invites passersby
to come and see the mine. A "by-end" is a pursuit that is achieved indirectly. For By-Ends
and his companions, it is the by-end of financial gain through religion.

181. Demas, a deceiver, who beckons to pilgrims at the Hill Lucre to come and join in the
supposed silver mining going on in it. He is first mentioned in the Book of 2 Timothy by the
disciple Paul when he said, "Demas has deserted us because he loved the world". Demas
tries two ways to trick Christian and Hopeful: first he claims that the mine is safe and they'll
be rich, and then he claims that he is a pilgrim and will join them on their journey. Christian,
filled with the Holy Spirit, is able to rebuke Demas and expose his lies.

182. Giant Despair, the savage owner of Doubting Castle, where pilgrims are imprisoned and
 murdered. He is slain by Great-Heart in the Second Part.

183. Giantess Diffidence, Despair's wife, known to be cruel, savage, violent, and evil like her
husband. She is slain by Old Honest in the Second Part.

184. Knowledge, one of the shepherds of the Delectable Mountains.

185. Experience, another of the Delectable Mountains shepherds.

186. Watchful, another of the Delectable Mountains shepherds.

187. Sincere, another of the Delectable Mountains shepherds.

188. Ignorance, "the brisk young lad", (representing foolishness and conceit) who joins the
"King's Highway" by way of the "crooked lane" that comes from his native country, called
"Conceit." He follows Christian and Hopeful and on two occasions talks with them. He
believes that he will be received into the Celestial City because of his doing good works in
accordance with God's will. For him, Jesus Christ is only an example, not a Savior. Christian
and Hopeful try to set him right, but they fail. He gets a ferryman, Vain-Hope, to ferry him
across the River of Death rather than cross it on foot as one is supposed to do. When he gets
to the gates of the Celestial City, he is asked for a "certificate" needed for entry, which he
does not have. The King upon hearing this, then, orders that he be bound and cast into Hell.

189. The Flatterer, a deceiver dressed as an angel who leads Christian and Hopeful out of
their way, when they fail to look at the road map given them by the Shepherds of the
Delectable Mountains.

190. Atheist, a mocker of Christian and Hopeful, who goes the opposite way on the "King's
Highway" because he boasts that he knows that God and the Celestial City do not exist.

PART TWO

191. Mr. Sagacity, a guest narrator who meets Bunyan himself in his new dream and
recounts the events of the Second Part up to the arrival at the Wicket Gate.

192. Christiana, wife of Christian, who leads her four sons and neighbour Mercy on
pilgrimage.

193. Matthew, Christian and Christiana's eldest son, who marries Mercy.

194. Samuel, second son, who marries Grace, Mr. Mnason's daughter.

195. Joseph, third son, who marries Martha, Mr. Mnason's daughter.
196. James, fourth and youngest son, who marries Phoebe, Gaius's daughter.

197. Mercy, Christiana's neighbour, who goes with her on pilgrimage and marries
Matthew.

198. Mrs. Timorous, relative of the Timorous of the First Part, who comes with Mercy
to see Christiana before she sets out on pilgrimage.

199. Mrs. Bat's-Eyes, a resident of The City of Destruction and friend of Mrs.
Timorous. Since she has a bat's eyes, she would be blind or nearly blind, so her
characterization of Christiana as blind in her desire to go on pilgrimage is hypocritical.

200. Mrs. Inconsiderate, a resident of The City of Destruction and friend of Mrs.
Timorous. She characterizes Christiana's departure "a good riddance" as an
inconsiderate person would.

201. Mrs. Light-Mind, a resident of The City of Destruction and friend of Mrs.
Timorous. She changes the subject from Christiana to gossip about being at a bawdy
party at Madam Wanton's home.

202. Mrs. Know-Nothing, a resident of The City of Destruction and friend of Mrs.
Timorous. She wonders if Christiana will actually go on pilgrimage.

203. Ill-favoured Ones, two evil characters Christiana sees in her dream, whom she
and Mercy actually encounter when they leave the Wicket Gate. The two Ill Ones are
driven off by Great-Heart himself.

204. Innocent, a young serving maid of the Interpreter, who answers the door of the
house when Christiana and her companions arrive; and who conducts them to the
garden bath, which signifies Christian baptism.

205. Mr. Great-Heart, the guide and body-guard sent by the Interpreter with
Christiana and her companions from his house to their journey's end. He proves to be
one of the main protagonists in the Second Part.

206. Giant Grim, a Giant who "backs the [chained] lions" near the House Beautiful,
slain by Great-Heart. He is also known as "Bloody-Man" because he has killed many
pilgrims or sent them on mazes of detours, where they were lost forever.

207. Humble-Mind, one of the maidens of the House Beautiful, who makes her
appearance in the Second Part. She questions Matthew, James, Samuel, and Joseph
about their godly faith and their hearts to the Lord God.

208. Mr. Brisk, a suitor of Mercy's, who gives up courting her when he finds out that
she makes clothing only to give away to the poor. He is shown to be a foppish,
 worldy-minded person who is double minded about his beliefs.

209. Mr. Skill, the godly physician called to the House Beautiful to cure Matthew of
his illness, which is caused by eating the forbidden apples and fruits of Beelzebub which
his mother told him not to but he did it any way.

210. Giant Maul, a Giant whom Great-Heart kills as the pilgrims leave the Valley of
the Shadow of Death. He holds a grudge against Great-Heart for doing his duty of saving
pilgrims from damnation and bringing them from darkness to light, from evil to good,
and from Satan, the Devil to Jesus Christ, the Savior.

211. Old Honest, a pilgrim from the frozen town of Stupidity who joins them, a
welcome companion to Great-Heart. Old Honest tells the stories of Mr. Fearing and a
prideful villain named Mr. Self-Will.

212. Mr. Fearing, a fearful pilgrim from the City of Destruction whom Great-Heart
had "conducted" to the Celestial City in an earlier pilgrimage. Noted for his timidness of
Godly Fears such as temptations and doubts. He is Mr. Feeble-Mind's uncle.

213. Gaius, an innkeeper with whom the pilgrims stay for some years after they leave
the Valley of the Shadow of Death. He gives his daughter Phoebe to James in marriage.
The lodging fee for his inn is paid by the Good Samaritan. Gaius tells them of the wicked
Giant Slay-Good.

214. Giant Slay-Good, a Giant who enlists the help of evil-doers on the King's
Highway to abduct, murder, and consume pilgrims before they get to Vanity Fair. He is
killed by Great-Heart.

215. Mr. Feeble-Mind, rescued from Slay-Good by Mr. Great-Heart, who joins
Christiana's company of pilgrims. He is the nephew of Mr. Fearing.

216. Phoebe, Gaius's daughter, who marries James.

217. Mr. Ready-to-Halt, a pilgrim who meets Christiana's train of pilgrims at Gaius's
door, and becomes the companion of Mr. Feeble-mind, to whom he gives one of his
crutches.

218. Mr. Mnason, a resident of the town of Vanity, who puts up the pilgrims for a
time, and gives his daughters Grace and Martha in marriage to Samuel and Joseph
respectively.

219. Grace, Mnason's daughter, who marries Samuel.

220. Martha, Mnason's daughter, who marries Joseph.

221. Mr. Despondency, a rescued prisoner from Doubting Castle owned by the
 miserable Giant Despair.

222. Much-Afraid, his daughter.

223. Mr. Valiant, a pilgrim they find all bloody, with his sword in his hand, after
leaving the Delectable Mountains. He fought and defeated three robbers called
Faint-Heart, Mistrust, and Guilt.

224. Mr. Stand-Fast For-Truth, a pilgrim found while praying for deliverance from
Madame Bubble.

225. Madame Bubble, a witch whose enchantments made the Enchanted Ground
enchanted with an air that makes foolish pilgrims sleepy and never wake up again. She
is the adulterous woman mentioned in the Biblical Book of Proverbs. Mr. Self-Will went
over a bridge to meet her and never came back again.

PLACES

226.City of Destruction, Christian's home, representative of the world (cf. Isaiah 19:18)

227.Slough of Despond, the miry swamp on the way to the Wicket Gate; one of the hazards of
the journey to the Celestial City. In the First Part, Christian falling into it, sank further under the
weight of his sins (his burden) and his sense of their guilt.

228.Mount Sinai, a frightening mountain near the Village of Morality that threatens all who
would go there.

229.Wicket Gate, the entry point of the straight and narrow way to the Celestial City. Pilgrims
are required to enter by way of the Wicket Gate. Beelzebub's castle was built not very far from
the Gate.

230.House of the Interpreter, a type of spiritual museum to guide the pilgrims to the Celestial
Ciblematic of Calvary and the tomb of Christ.

231.Hill Difficulty, both the hill and the road up is called "Difficulty"; it is flanked by two
treacherous byways "Danger" and "Destruction." There are three choices: Christian takes
"Difficulty" (the right way), and Formalist and Hypocrisy take the two other ways, which prove to
be fatal dead ends.

232.House Beautiful, a palace that serves as a rest stop for pilgrims to the Celestial City. It
apparently sits atop the Hill Difficulty. From the House Beautiful one can see forward to the
Delectable Mountains. It represents the Christian congregation, and Bunyan takes its name from
a gate of the Jerusalem temple (Acts 3:2, 10).

233.Valley of Humiliation, the Valley on the other side of the Hill Difficulty, going down into
which is said to be extremely slippery by the House Beautiful's damsel Prudence. It is where
Christian, protected by God's Armor, meets Apollyon and they had that dreadful, long fight
where Christian was victorious over his enemy by impaling Apollyon on his Sword of the Spirit
(Word of God) which caused the Foul Fiend to fly away. Apollyon met Christian in the place
known as "Forgetful Green." This Valley had been a delight to the "Lord of the Hill", Jesus Christ,
in his "state of humiliation."

234.Valley of the Shadow of Death, a treacherous, devilish Valley filled with demons, dragons,
fiends, satyrs, goblins, hobgoblins, monsters, creatures from the bottomless pit, beasts from the
mouth of Hell, darkness, terror, and horror with a quick sand bog on one side and a deep
chasm/ditch on the other side of the King's Highway going through it (cf. Psalm 23:4).

235.Gaius' Inn, a rest stop in the Second Part of the Pilgrim's Progress.

236.Vanity Fair, a city through which the King's Highway passes and the yearlong Fair that is
held there.

237.Plain Ease, a pleasant area traversed by the pilgrims.

238.Hill Lucre, location of a reputed silver mine that proves to be the place where By-Ends and
his companions are lost.

239.The Pillar of Salt, which was Lot's wife, who was turned into a pillar of salt when Sodom
and Gomorrah were destroyed. The pilgrim's note that its location near the Hill Lucre is a fitting
warning to those who are tempted by Demas to go into the Lucre silver mine.

240.River of God or River of the Water of Life, a place of solace for the pilgrims. It flows through
a meadow, green all year long and filled with lush fruit trees. In the Second Part the Good
Shepherd is found there to whom Christiana's grandchildren are entrusted.

241.By-Path Meadow, the place leading to the grounds of Doubting Castle.

242.Doubting Castle, the home of Giant Despair and his Giantess wife, Diffidence; only one key
could open its doors and gates, the key Promise.

243.The Delectable Mountains, known as "Immanuel's Land." Lush country from whose heights
one can see many delights and curiosities. It is inhabited by sheep and their shepherds, and from
Mount Clear one can see the Celestial City.

244.The Enchanted Ground, an area through which the King's Highway passes that has air that
makes pilgrims want to stop to sleep. If one goes to sleep in this place, one never wakes up. The
shepherds of the Delectable Mountains warn pilgrims about this.

245. The Land of Beulah, a lush garden area just this side of the River of Death.

246.The River of Death, the dreadful river that surrounds Mount Zion, deeper or shallower
depending on the faith of the one traversing it.

247.The Celestial City, the "Desired Country" of pilgrims, heaven, the dwelling place of the
"Lord of the Hill", God. It is situated on Mount Zion.

43. THE EGOIST

The Egoist is a tragicomical novel by George Meredith published in 1879.

Synopsis

The novel recounts the story of self-absorbed Sir Willoughby Patterne and his attempts at
marriage; jilted by his first bride-to-be, he vacillates between the sentimental Laetitia Dale and
the strong-willed Clara Middleton. More importantly, the novel follows Clara's attempts to
escape from her engagement to Sir Willoughby, who desires women to serve as a mirror for
him and consequently cannot understand why she would not want to marry him. Thus, The
Egoist dramatizes the difficulty contingent upon being a woman in Victorian society, when
women's bodies and minds are trafficked between fathers and husbands to cement male
bonds.

Critical response

In an afterword by Angus Wilson, The Egoist was called "the turning point in George Meredith's
career." Wilson saw Meredith as "the first great art novelist"; his afterword interprets the book
as an adaptation of a stage comedy, an achievement he arrogates to few English authors, who,
he suggests, present only "farce or satire."[3] He compliments Meredith most when he is
detached from his characters, as "it is then that our laughter is most thoughtful." Wilson is most
taken by "the absolute truth of much of the dialogue," such as how "the way Sir Willoughby
continues to speak through the answers of other characters, returning to notice their replies
only when his own vein of thought is exhausted" is a "wonderful observation of human
speech."

In his essay "Books Which Have Influenced Me," Robert Louis Stevenson reports the following
story: "A young friend of Mr. Meredith's (as I have the story) came to him in agony. 'This is too
bad of you,' he cried. 'Willoughby is me!' 'No, my dear fellow,' said the author; 'he is all of us.'"

E. M. Forster discussed the book in his lecture series Aspects of the Novel, using it as an example
of a "highly organized" plot.Much of his discussion, however, focuses on Meredith and his
popularity as an author.

More materially, Forster compliments Meredith on not revealing Laetitia Dale's changed
feelings for Willoughby until she rejects him in their midnight meeting; "[i]t would have spoiled
his high comedy if we had been kept in touch throughout ... in fact it would be boorish. ...
 Meredith with his unerring good sense here lets the plot triumph" rather than explaining Dale's
character more fully.

Forster further compares Meredith with Thomas Hardy, complimenting Hardy on his pastoral
sensibilities and Meredith on his powerful plots, "[knowing] what [his] novel[s] could stand."

44. THE PRIME OF MISS JEAN BRODIE

Considered a modern classic and having been adapted for both television and film, The Prime of
Miss Jean Brodie is a short novel written by Muriel Spark published in 1961. It tells the story of
the charismatic Scottish school teacher Miss Jean Brodie and her influence on the lives of six
impressionable students at the Marcia Blaine School for Girls in Edinburgh, Scotland, in the
1930s.

The story opens in 1936 as Miss Brodie comes upon The Brodie Set, the name given to the group
of students the teacher selected six years ago from the junior class to become “the créme de la
créme,” the best of the best, through lessons often having little to do with academics.
Supremely confident in her views of the world, Miss Brodie expands their ideas and knowledge
while also manipulating their growing perceptions to remain as much in alignment with her
own as possible. Still, it’s known Brodie’s girls are the brightest in the school, and now, at
sixteen and in their fourth form, they still remain under her influence despite no longer being in
her classroom. As she states, “Give me a girl at an impressionable age, and she is mine for life.”

The narrative continually moves forward and back through time to explore events, people, and
relationships that will shape not only the girls’ futures, but Miss Brodie’s as well. The narrative
voice is not only omniscient, but timeless, often revealing the future fate of a girl while
narrating her experience as a child. In this manner, the majority of the plot is revealed early,
although one central mystery is left in place. In one flash-forward we learn that one of the girls
will eventually betray their teacher, but the who isn’t revealed until later.

The story dips back to 1930 when the girls—Monica Douglas, famous for her mathematics and
temper; Sandy Stranger, a small-eyed girl famous for her English pronunciation and who will
become Brodie’s most trusted confidante; Rose Stanley, who will undeservedly become famous
for sex; Jenny Gray, Sandy’s best friend who is known for her beauty; Eunice Gardiner, famous
for her gymnastics; and Mary Macgregor, the dim-witted scapegoat of the group—are 10 years
old and just entering junior school with Miss Brodie. The teacher is already considered too
progressive in her methods by the majority of the faculty, including the headmistress, Miss
Mackay, who tries throughout the story to gather evidence of misconduct to remove Brodie
 from her position. Brodie’s instruction often focuses on controversial concepts of art, politics,
religion and interpersonal relationships, all being influenced by her personal views on these
subjects. An early lesson with the girls includes sharing a story of the time she was engaged to
her lover, Hugh, who died on Flanders Field during World War I. It is her hubris in her views and
teachings that will eventually be her downfall.

During the course of the story two prominent characters—the singing instructor, Gordon
Lowther and the art master, Teddy Lloyd—form a love-triangle with Miss Brodie, who is, as she
constantly tells her girls, “in her prime.” Both men love her, but Brodie truly only holds
affection for Lloyd, although expression of her feelings never moves beyond a single kiss, due
to Lloyd being married. Believing the singing instructor to be a more appropriate romantic
interest, Miss Brodie begins an affair with Lowther during two weeks away from school.
However, over the course of the story Brodie neglects the relationship and Lowther later
marries the school’s chemistry teacher, Miss Lockhart.

A bit obsessed with romantic, and usually inaccurate, concepts of love and sex, the girls often
engage in wild speculation on Miss Brodie’s experiences in these areas, especially Sandy and
Jenny. Sandy goes so far as to imagine her teacher having sex and imagining herself a
policewoman looking for evidence of a relationship between Brodie and Lowther, on a mission
to “stop sex” completely.

By the age of twelve, the girls graduate from Brodie’s care into the Senior School, and the
headmistress does her best to break the girls up and remove them from Brodie’s influence.
However, the connection between the girls remains solid despite having little in common.
Although no longer their instructor, Brodie still invites the girls into her personal world,
continuing to mold and influence their lives. By the time they are around sixteen, Brodie
decides to make Sandy her most trusted confidante, deciding that she is the most trustworthy.

Eventually a new girl, Joyce Emily Hammond, tries to enter the group. Although rejected by the
girls, Brodie takes her under her wing. At one point, Brodie encourages Joyce Emily to run off to
fight in the Spanish Civil War. Later she will do so, only to be killed. This incident will play a part
in Brodie’s eventual betrayal.

As the girls enter their late teens, prepare to graduate, and head their separate ways, Brodie
sets on the idea of Jenny, who often models for Lloyd, having an affair with the artist in order to
 enjoy the relationship vicariously. When it’s clear Jenny isn’t interested in Lloyd, Sandy enters
into the affair instead. She eventually loses interest in him as a lover, but grows interested in
his love of Miss Brodie. She also becomes interested in his Roman Catholic beliefs, and we
learn Sandy will eventually become a nun. However, before doing so, having been disturbed by
Brodie’s part in the death of Joyce Emily and perhaps growing resentful of her old teacher’s
controlling influence, Sandy gives the headmistress the ammunition she needs against Brodie
by revealing her teachings on fascism. Miss Brodie only begins to suspect it was her most
trusted student that betrayed her as she lays on her death bed several years later. Despite this,
later, while a nun, Sandy is asked about her greatest influence. She says: “There was a Miss
Jean Brodie in her prime.”

Main characters

Jean Brodie

"She thinks she is Providence, thought Sandy, she thinks she is the God of Calvin."[8] In some
ways she is: in her prime she draws her chosen few to herself, much as Calvinists understand
God to draw the elect to their salvation. With regard to religion, Miss Brodie "was not in any
doubt, she let everyone know she was in no doubt, that God was on her side whatever her
course, and so she experienced no difficulty or sense of hypocrisy in worship while at the same
time she went to bed with the singing master."[9] Feeling herself fated one way or another,
Brodie acts as if she transcends morality.

Sandy Stranger

Of the set, "Miss Brodie fixed on Sandy," taking her as her special confidante.[10] She is
characterised as having "small, almost nonexistent, eyes" and a peering gaze. Miss Brodie
repeatedly reminds Sandy that she has insight but no instinct. Sandy rejects Calvinism, reacting
against its rigid predestination in favour of Roman Catholicism.

Rose Stanley

In contrast to Sandy, Rose is an attractive blonde with (according to Miss Brodie) instinct but no
insight. Though somewhat undeservedly, Rose is "famous for sex", and the art teacher Mr.
Lloyd asks her to model for his paintings: it rapidly becomes clear that he has no sexual interest
in her and uses her simply because she is a good model. In every painting, Rose has the likeness
of Brodie, whom Mr. Lloyd stubbornly loves. Rose and Sandy are the two girls in whom Miss
Brodie places the most hope of becoming the crème de la crème. Again unlike Sandy, Rose
"shook off Miss Brodie's influence as a dog shakes pond-water from its coat."

Mary Macgregor

Dim-witted and slow, Mary is Brodie's scapegoat. Mary meekly bears the blame for everything
that goes wrong. At the age of 23 she dies in a hotel fire, killed running back and forth through
 the hotel, unable to escape.

Supporting characters

Monica Douglas – one of the set; famous for mathematics and her anger

Jenny Gray – one of the set; famous for her beauty

Eunice Gardiner – one of the set; famous for her gymnastics and glorious swimming

Teddy Lloyd – the art master

Gordon Lowther – the singing master

Miss Mackay – the headmistress

Miss Alison Kerr – the sewing mistress of Marcia Blaine with her sister Ellen

Miss Ellen Kerr – Miss Alison's elder sister

Miss Gaunt – a school mistress and a sister to the minister of Cramond

Miss Lockhart – a chemistry teacher, the nicest teacher in Marcia Blaine

Joyce Emily Hammond – a girl who was sent to Marcia Blaine. She died in the Spanish Civil War

45. ADAM BEDE

Plot Overview

Dinah Morris, a Methodist preacher, arrives in Hayslope, a small village in England, in 1799. She
stays with her aunt and uncle, Mr. and Mrs. Poyser, although she plans to return soon to
Snowfield, where she normally lives. Seth Bede, a local carpenter, loves her and is learning to
live with her rejection of his marriage proposal. Seth’s brother, Adam Bede, also lives in
Hayslope and works as the foreman at the carpentry shop where he and his brother work.
Adam loves a seventeen-year-old village beauty named Hetty Sorrel. Hetty, who is Mr. Poyser’s
niece, lives with the Poysers and helps with the chores.

Thias Bede, the father of Seth and Adam, drowns in the river near their house after a drinking
binge. Their mother, Lisbeth, is distraught. Dinah goes to comfort Lisbeth, and she is able to
soothe her where no one else can. Lisbeth wishes that Dinah could be her daughter-in-law.

The local landlord, Squire Donnithorne, rules the parish with an iron fist. His grandson and heir,
Captain Donnithorne, who is a member of the regimental army, has broken his arm and is living
with the Squire. The villagers all respect and adore Captain Donnithorne, who considers himself
a gallant man. Captain Donnithorne flirts secretively with Hetty after first meeting her at the
Poysers. He asks her when she will next be visiting the Squire’s residence and arranges to meet
 her alone in the wood when she passes through.

When Captain Donnithorne meets up with Hetty in the woods, they are alone for the first time
and both are bashful. Captain Donnithorne teases Hetty about her many suitors, and she cries.
He puts his arms around her, but he then immediately panics at the inappropriateness of his
advances and runs off. Later Captain Donnithorne meditates on what he has done and decides
he needs to see Hetty to clear up what happened. He meets her on her way back through the
woods, and they kiss. This encounter begins a summer-long affair, which only ends when
Captain Donnithorne leaves to rejoin his regiment. Hetty believes that Captain Donnithorne will
marry her and make her into the great socialite she dreams of being. Although she does not
exactly love him, she loves the wealth and privilege he represents.

Captain Donnithorne throws a coming-of-age party for himself to which he invites all the
members in the parish. Everyone comes and has a wonderful time with a feast, dancing, and
games. Adam discovers that Hetty is wearing a locket that Captain Donnithorne gave her. He
becomes suspicious that she might have a secret lover but concludes that it would not be
possible for her to conceal such a thing from the Poysers.

On the last night Captain Donnithorne is in town, Adam catches him kissing Hetty in the woods.
Adam and he have a fight, which Adam wins. Captain Donnithorne lies to Adam that the affair
was no more than a little flirtation. At his response, Adam tells him he must write a letter to
Hetty letting her know that the affair is over. Captain Donnithorne does so, and Adam delivers
the letter. Hetty is crushed, but after some time she resolves to marry Adam as a way out of her
current life. Adam proposes, and Hetty accepts. By the time Captain Donnithorne leaves, Hetty
is pregnant, although neither of them knows it. She resolves to go out to find Captain
Donnithorne because she cannot bear to have those who know her find out about her shame.
She believes that Captain Donnithorne will help her, even though she feels he can never erase
her shame.

Hetty sets out to locate Captain Donnithorne. At the end of an arduous journey, she learns that
he has gone to Ireland. She heads in the direction of home, more or less intending to visit
Dinah, who she believes will help her without judging her. Along the way, she gives birth to her
child. Distraught, she takes the child into the woods and buries it under a tree. Hetty goes
away, but she cannot escape the sound of the child’s cry. She returns to where she left the
baby. A farm laborer and the Stoniton constable discover her, and the constable takes her into
custody for the murder of her child.

Adam is distraught when he cannot find Hetty and concludes that Captain Donnithorne must
have lured her away from their upcoming marriage. Before traveling to Ireland to find him, he
first goes to Mr. Irwine to inform him of his plan. Mr. Irwine tells Adam that Hetty is in jail for
murder. Adam goes to her trial, even though the situation troubles him. Dinah arrives and is
able to reach Hetty through her depression and convince her that she must repent to save her
soul. Hetty is convicted and sentenced to die.
At the last possible moment, Captain Donnithorne arrives with a stay of execution. Hetty is
transported, meaning that she is sent away from England for her crimes. She dies just before
she is set to return to Hayslope. Captain Donnithorne goes away for a few years because of the
shame he has brought on the Poysers and Adam. Adam realizes that he is in love with Dinah.
He proposes, but she rejects him until she comes to realize that it is God’s will that she marry
Adam. They are married, and they have two children. Seth lives with them and does not marry.
Captain Donnithorne ultimately returns to Hayslope, and he and Adam meet one last time at
the conclusion of the novel. They are able to stay friends despite all that has come between
them.

46. OLIVER TWIST

Oliver Twist, or The Parish Boy's Progress, is author Charles Dickens's second novel, and was first
published as a serial 1837–39. The story centres on orphan Oliver Twist, born in a workhouse
and sold into apprenticeship with an undertaker. After escaping, Twist travels to London, where
he meets "The Artful Dodger," a member of a gang of juvenile pickpockets led by the elderly
criminal, Fagin.

Oliver Twist is notable for its unromantic portrayal by Dickens of criminals and their sordid lives,
as well as for exposing the cruel treatment of the many orphans in London in the mid–19th
century.The alternate title, The Parish Boy's Progress, alludes to Bunyan's The Pilgrim's
Progress, as well as the 18th-century caricature series by William Hogarth, A Rake's Progress
and A Harlot's Progress.

In this early example of the social novel, Dickens satirises the hypocrisies of his time, including
child labour, the recruitment of children as criminals, and the presence of street children. The
novel may have been inspired by the story of Robert Blincoe, an orphan whose account of
working as a child labourer in a cotton mill was widely read in the 1830s. It is likely that
Dickens's own youthful experiences contributed as well.

Oliver Twist has been the subject of numerous adaptations for various media, including a highly
successful musical play, Oliver!, and the multiple Academy Award-winning 1968 motion
picture. Disney also put its spin on the novel with the movie called Oliver & Company in 1988.

Plot Overview

Oliver Twist is born in a workhouse in 1830s England. His mother, whose name no one knows, is
found on the street and dies just after Oliver’s birth. Oliver spends the first nine years of his life
in a badly run home for young orphans and then is transferred to a workhouse for adults. After
the other boys bully Oliver into asking for more gruel at the end of a meal, Mr. Bumble, the
parish beadle, offers five pounds to anyone who will take the boy away from the workhouse.
Oliver narrowly escapes being apprenticed to a brutish chimney sweep and is eventually
apprenticed to a local undertaker, Mr. Sowerberry. When the undertaker’s other apprentice,
 Noah Claypole, makes disparaging comments about Oliver’s mother, Oliver attacks him and
incurs the Sowerberrys’ wrath. Desperate, Oliver runs away at dawn and travels toward London

Outside London, Oliver, starved and exhausted, meets Jack Dawkins, a boy his own age. Jack
offers him shelter in the London house of his benefactor, Fagin. It turns out that Fagin is a
career criminal who trains orphan boys to pick pockets for him. After a few days of training,
Oliver is sent on a pickpocketing mission with two other boys. When he sees them swipe a
handkerchief from an elderly gentleman, Oliver is horrified and runs off. He is caught but
narrowly escapes being convicted of the theft. Mr. Brownlow, the man whose handkerchief
was stolen, takes the feverish Oliver to his home and nurses him back to health. Mr. Brownlow
is struck by Oliver’s resemblance to a portrait of a young woman that hangs in his house. Oliver
thrives in Mr. Brownlow’s home, but two young adults in Fagin’s gang, Bill Sikes and his lover
Nancy, capture Oliver and return him to Fagin.

Fagin sends Oliver to assist Sikes in a burglary. Oliver is shot by a servant of the house and, after
Sikes escapes, is taken in by the women who live there, Mrs. Maylie and her beautiful adopted
niece Rose. They grow fond of Oliver, and he spends an idyllic summer with them in the
countryside. But Fagin and a mysterious man named Monks are set on recapturing Oliver.
Meanwhile, it is revealed that Oliver’s mother left behind a gold locket when she died. Monks
obtains and destroys that locket. When the Maylies come to London, Nancy meets secretly with
Rose and informs her of Fagin’s designs, but a member of Fagin’s gang overhears the
conversation. When word of Nancy’s disclosure reaches Sikes, he brutally murders Nancy and
flees London. Pursued by his guilty conscience and an angry mob, he inadvertently hangs
himself while trying to escape.

Mr. Brownlow, with whom the Maylies have reunited Oliver, confronts Monks and wrings the
truth about Oliver’s parentage from him. It is revealed that Monks is Oliver’s half brother. Their
father, Mr. Leeford, was unhappily married to a wealthy woman and had an affair with Oliver’s
mother, Agnes Fleming. Monks has been pursuing Oliver all along in the hopes of ensuring that
his half-brother is deprived of his share of the family inheritance. Mr. Brownlow forces Monks
to sign over Oliver’s share to Oliver. Moreover, it is discovered that Rose is Agnes’s younger
sister, hence Oliver’s aunt. Fagin is hung for his crimes. Finally, Mr. Brownlow adopts Oliver,
and they and the Maylies retire to a blissful existence in the countryside.

Characters

Oliver Twist – an orphan (mother dead, paternity unknown (for most of action; father dead
when paternity eventually revealed)

Fagin – criminal boss of a gang of young boys

Nancy – a prostitute

Rose Maylie – Oliver's maternal aunt

Mrs. Lindsay Maylie – Harry Maylie's mother. Rose Maylie's adoptive aunt

Mr. Brownlow – a kindly gentleman who takes Oliver in

Monks – a sickly criminal, an associate of Fagin's, and long-lost half-brother of Oliver

Mr. Bumble – a beadle in the parish workhouse where Oliver was born

Bill Sikes – a professional burglar

Agnes Fleming – Oliver's mother

Mr. Leeford – Oliver's and Monks's father

Mr. Losberne – Mrs. Maylie's family doctor

Harry Maylie – Mrs. Maylie's son

The Artful Dodger – Fagin's most adept pickpocket

Charley Bates – a pickpocket

Old Sally – a nurse who attended Oliver's birth

Mrs. Corney – matron at Oliver's workhouse

Noah Claypole – a cowardly bully, Sowerberry's apprentice

Charlotte – the Sowerberrys' maid

Toby Crackit – an associate of Fagin and Sikes

Mrs. Bedwin – Mr. Brownlow's housekeeper

Bull's Eye – Bill Sikes's vicious dog

Monks' mother – an heiress

Mr. Sowerberry – an undertaker

Mrs. Sowerberry – Mr. Sowerberry's wife

Mr. Grimwig – a friend of Mr. Brownlow's

Mr. Giles – Mrs. Maylie's butler

Mr. Brittles – Mrs. Maylie's handyman

Mrs. Mann – superintendent of Oliver's workhouse

Mr. Gamfield – a chimney sweep

Bet – a prostitute

Mr. Fang – a magistrate

Barney – a Jewish criminal cohort of Fagin

Duff and Blathers – two incompetent policemen

Tom Chitling – one of Fagin's gang members

47. LORD OF THE FLIES

Lord of the Flies is a 1954 novel by Nobel Prize-winning British author William Golding. The book
focuses on a group of British boys stranded on an uninhabited island and their disastrous
attempt to govern themselves.

Plot Overview

In the midst of a raging war, a plane evacuating a group of schoolboys from Britain is shot down
over a deserted tropical island. Two of the boys, Ralph and Piggy, discover a conch shell on the
beach, and Piggy realizes it could be used as a horn to summon the other boys. Once
assembled, the boys set about electing a leader and devising a way to be rescued. They choose
Ralph as their leader, and Ralph appoints another boy, Jack, to be in charge of the boys who will
hunt food for the entire group.

Ralph, Jack, and another boy, Simon, set off on an expedition to explore the island. When they
return, Ralph declares that they must light a signal fire to attract the attention of passing ships.
The boys succeed in igniting some dead wood by focusing sunlight through the lenses of Piggy’s
eyeglasses. However, the boys pay more attention to playing than to monitoring the fire, and
the flames quickly engulf the forest. A large swath of dead wood burns out of control, and one
of the youngest boys in the group disappears, presumably having burned to death.

At first, the boys enjoy their life without grown-ups and spend much of their time splashing in
the water and playing games. Ralph, however, complains that they should be maintaining the
signal fire and building huts for shelter. The hunters fail in their attempt to catch a wild pig, but
their leader, Jack, becomes increasingly preoccupied with the act of hunting.

When a ship passes by on the horizon one day, Ralph and Piggy notice, to their horror, that the
signal fire—which had been the hunters’ responsibility to maintain—has burned out. Furious,
Ralph accosts Jack, but the hunter has just returned with his first kill, and all the hunters seem
gripped with a strange frenzy, reenacting the chase in a kind of wild dance. Piggy criticizes Jack,
who hits Piggy across the face. Ralph blows the conch shell and reprimands the boys in a
speech intended to restore order. At the meeting, it quickly becomes clear that some of the
 boys have started to become afraid. The littlest boys, known as “littluns,” have been troubled
by nightmares from the beginning, and more and more boys now believe that there is some
sort of beast or monster lurking on the island. The older boys try to convince the others at the
meeting to think rationally, asking where such a monster could possibly hide during the
daytime. One of the littluns suggests that it hides in the sea—a proposition that terrifies the
entire group.

Not long after the meeting, some military planes engage in a battle high above the island. The
boys, asleep below, do not notice the flashing lights and explosions in the clouds. A parachutist
drifts to earth on the signal-fire mountain, dead. Sam and Eric, the twins responsible for
watching the fire at night, are asleep and do not see the parachutist land. When the twins wake
up, they see the enormous silhouette of his parachute and hear the strange flapping noises it
makes. Thinking the island beast is at hand, they rush back to the camp in terror and report that
the beast has attacked them.

The boys organize a hunting expedition to search for the monster. Jack and Ralph, who are
increasingly at odds, travel up the mountain. They see the silhouette of the parachute from a
distance and think that it looks like a huge, deformed ape. The group holds a meeting at which
Jack and Ralph tell the others of the sighting. Jack says that Ralph is a coward and that he
should be removed from office, but the other boys refuse to vote Ralph out of power. Jack
angrily runs away down the beach, calling all the hunters to join him. Ralph rallies the
remaining boys to build a new signal fire, this time on the beach rather than on the mountain.
They obey, but before they have finished the task, most of them have slipped away to join Jack.

Jack declares himself the leader of the new tribe of hunters and organizes a hunt and a violent,
ritual slaughter of a sow to solemnize the occasion. The hunters then decapitate the sow and
place its head on a sharpened stake in the jungle as an offering to the beast. Later,
encountering the bloody, fly-covered head, Simon has a terrible vision, during which it seems
to him that the head is speaking. The voice, which he imagines as belonging to the Lord of the
Flies, says that Simon will never escape him, for he exists within all men. Simon faints. When he
wakes up, he goes to the mountain, where he sees the dead parachutist. Understanding then
that the beast does not exist externally but rather within each individual boy, Simon travels to
the beach to tell the others what he has seen. But the others are in the midst of a chaotic
revelry—even Ralph and Piggy have joined Jack’s feast—and when they see Simon’s shadowy
figure emerge from the jungle, they fall upon him and kill him with their bare hands and teeth.

The following morning, Ralph and Piggy discuss what they have done. Jack’s hunters attack them
and their few followers and steal Piggy’s glasses in the process. Ralph’s group travels to Jack’s
stronghold in an attempt to make Jack see reason, but Jack orders Sam and Eric tied up and
fights with Ralph. In the ensuing battle, one boy, Roger, rolls a boulder down the mountain,
killing Piggy and shattering the conch shell. Ralph barely manages to escape a torrent of spears.

Ralph hides for the rest of the night and the following day, while the others hunt him like an
 animal. Jack has the other boys ignite the forest in order to smoke Ralph out of his hiding place.
Ralph stays in the forest, where he discovers and destroys the sow’s head, but eventually, he is
forced out onto the beach, where he knows the other boys will soon arrive to kill him. Ralph
collapses in exhaustion, but when he looks up, he sees a British naval officer standing over him.
The officer’s ship noticed the fire raging in the jungle. The other boys reach the beach and stop
in their tracks at the sight of the officer. Amazed at the spectacle of this group of bloodthirsty,
savage children, the officer asks Ralph to explain. Ralph is overwhelmed by the knowledge that
he is safe but, thinking about what has happened on the island, he begins to weep. The other
boys begin to sob as well. The officer turns his back so that the boys may regain their
composure.

Character List

Ralph - The novel’s protagonist, the twelve-year-old English boy who is elected leader of the
group of boys marooned on the island. Ralph attempts to coordinate the boys’ efforts to build a
miniature civilization on the island until they can be rescued. Ralph represents human beings’
civilizing instinct, as opposed to the savage instinct that Jack embodies.

Jack - The novel’s antagonist, one of the older boys stranded on the island. Jack becomes the
leader of the hunters but longs for total power and becomes increasingly wild, barbaric, and
cruel as the novel progresses. Jack, adept at manipulating the other boys, represents the
instinct of savagery within human beings, as opposed to the civilizing instinct Ralph represents.

Simon - A shy, sensitive boy in the group. Simon, in some ways the only naturally “good”
character on the island, behaves kindly toward the younger boys and is willing to work for the
good of their community. Moreover, because his motivation is rooted in his deep feeling of
connectedness to nature, Simon is the only character whose sense of morality does not seem to
have been imposed by society. Simon represents a kind of natural goodness, as opposed to the
unbridled evil of Jack and the imposed morality of civilization represented by Ralph and Piggy.

Piggy - Ralph’s “lieutenant.” A whiny, intellectual boy, Piggy’s inventiveness frequently leads to
innovation, such as the makeshift sundial that the boys use to tell time. Piggy represents the
scientific, rational side of civilization.

Roger - Jack’s “lieutenant.” A sadistic, cruel older boy who brutalizes the littluns and eventually
murders Piggy by rolling a boulder onto him.

Sam and Eric - A pair of twins closely allied with Ralph. Sam and Eric are always together, and
the other boys often treat them as a single entity, calling them “Samneric.” The easily excitable
Sam and Eric are part of the group known as the “bigguns.” At the end of the novel, they fall
victim to Jack’s manipulation and coercion.

The Lord of the Flies - The name given to the sow’s head that Jack’s gang impales on a stake and
erects in the forest as an offering to the “beast.” The Lord of the Flies comes to symbolize the
 primordial instincts of power and cruelty that take control of Jack’s tribe.

48. EMMA
Emma, by Jane Austen, is a novel about youthful hubris and the perils of misconstrued romance
and was the last of her six novels to be completed, written while she was in Chawton. The story
takes place in the fictional village of Highbury and the surrounding estates of Hartfield,
Randalls, and Donwell Abbey and involves the relationships among individuals in those
locations consisting of "3 or 4 families in a country village". The novel was first published in
December 1815. As in her other novels, Austen explores the concerns and difficulties of genteel
women living in Georgian–Regency England; she also creates a lively comedy of manners
among her characters and depicts issues of marriage, gender, age, and social status.

Before she began the novel, Austen wrote, "I am going to take a heroine whom no one but
myself will much like." In the first sentence, she introduces the title character as "Emma
Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich." Emma is spoiled, headstrong, and self-satisfied; she
greatly overestimates her own matchmaking abilities; she is blind to the dangers of meddling in
other people's lives; and her imagination and perceptions often lead her astray.

Plot summary

Emma Woodhouse has just attended the wedding of Miss Taylor, her friend and former
governess, to Mr Weston. Having introduced them, Emma takes credit for their marriage, and
decides that she likes matchmaking. After she returns home to Hartfield with her father, Emma
forges ahead with her new interest against the advice of her brother-in-law, Mr Knightley, and
tries to match her new friend Harriet Smith to Mr Elton, the local vicar. First, Emma must
persuade Harriet to refuse the marriage proposal from Robert Martin, a respectable, educated,
and well-spoken young farmer, which Harriet does against her own wishes. However, Mr Elton,
a social climber, thinks Emma is in love with him and proposes to her. When Emma tells him
that she had thought him attached to Harriet, he is outraged. After Emma rejects him, Mr Elton
leaves for a stay at Bath and returns with a pretentious, nouveau-riche wife, as Mr Knightley
expected. Harriet is heartbroken and Emma feels ashamed about misleading her.

Frank Churchill, Mr Weston's son, arrives for a two-week visit to his father and makes many
friends. Frank was adopted by his wealthy and domineering aunt and he has had very few
opportunities to visit before. Mr Knightley suggests to Emma that, while Frank is clever and
engaging, he is also a shallow character. Jane Fairfax also comes home to see her aunt, Miss
Bates, and grandmother, Mrs Bates, for a few months, before she must go out on her own as a
governess due to her family's financial situation. She is the same age as Emma and has been
given an excellent education by her father's friend, Colonel Campbell. Emma has not been as
friendly with her as she might because she envies Jane's talent and is annoyed to find all,
including Mrs Weston and Mr Knightley, praising her. The patronising Mrs Elton takes Jane
under her wing and announces that she will find her the ideal governess post before it is
 wanted. Emma begins to feel some sympathy for Jane's predicament.

Emma decides that Jane and Mr Dixon, Colonel Campbell's new son-in-law, are mutually
attracted, and that is why she has come home earlier than expected. She shares her suspicions
with Frank, who met Jane and the Campbells at a vacation spot a year earlier, and he
apparently agrees with her. Suspicions are further fueled when a piano, sent by an anonymous
benefactor, arrives for Jane. Emma feels herself falling in love with Frank, but it does not last to
his second visit. The Eltons treat Harriet badly, culminating with Mr Elton publicly snubbing
Harriet at the ball given by the Westons in May. Mr Knightley, who had long refrained from
dancing, gallantly steps in to dance with Harriet. The day after the ball, Frank brings Harriet to
Hartfield, she having fainted after a rough encounter with local gypsies. Harriet is grateful, and
Emma thinks this is love, not gratitude. Meanwhile, Mrs Weston wonders if Mr Knightley has
taken a fancy to Jane but Emma dismisses that idea. When Mr Knightley mentions the links he
sees between Jane and Frank, Emma denies them, while Frank appears to be courting her
instead. He arrives late to the gathering at Donwell in June, while Jane leaves early. Next day at
Box Hill, a local beauty spot, Frank and Emma continue to banter together and Emma, in jest,
thoughtlessly insults Miss Bates.

When Mr Knightley scolds Emma for the insult to Miss Bates, she is ashamed and tries to atone
with a morning visit to Miss Bates, which impresses Mr Knightley. On the visit, Emma learns
that Jane had accepted the position of governess from one of Mrs Elton's friends after the
outing. Jane now becomes ill, and refuses to see Emma or accept her gifts. Meanwhile, Frank
was visiting his aunt, who dies soon after he arrives. Now he and Jane reveal to the Westons
that they have been secretly engaged since the autumn but Frank knew that his aunt would
disapprove. The strain of the secrecy on the conscientious Jane had caused the two to quarrel
and Jane ended the engagement. Frank's easygoing uncle readily gives his blessing to the
match and the engagement becomes public, leaving Emma chagrined to discover that she had
been so wrong.

Emma is certain that Frank's engagement will devastate Harriet, but instead Harriet tells her
that she loves Mr Knightley, although she knows the match is too unequal, but Emma's
encouragement and Mr Knightley's kindness have given her hope. Emma is startled, and
realizes that she is the one who wants to marry Mr Knightley. Mr Knightley returns to console
Emma from Frank and Jane's engagement thinking her heartbroken. When she admits her own
foolishness, he proposes and she accepts. Now Harriet accepts Robert Martin's second
proposal and they are the first couple to marry. Jane and Emma reconcile, and Frank and Jane
visit the Westons. Once the period of deep mourning ends, they will marry. Before the end of
November, Emma and Mr Knightley are married with the prospect of "perfect happiness".

Principal characters

Emma Woodhouse, the protagonist of the story, is a beautiful, high-spirited, intelligent, and
'slightly' spoiled young woman of twenty when the story opens. Her mother died when she was
 young. She has been mistress of the house (Hartfield) since her older sister got married.
Although intelligent, she lacks the discipline to practice or study anything in depth. She is
portrayed as compassionate to the poor, but at the same time has a strong sense of class
status. Her affection for and patience towards her valetudinarian father are also noteworthy.
While she is in many ways mature, Emma makes some serious mistakes, mainly due to her lack
of experience and her conviction that she is always right. Although she has vowed she will
never marry, she delights in making matches for others. She has a brief flirtation with Frank
Churchill, however, she realises at the end of the novel that she loves Mr Knightley.

George Knightley is a neighbour and close friend of Emma, aged 37 years (16 years older than
Emma). He is her only critic. Mr Knightley is the owner of the estate of Donwell Abbey, which
includes extensive grounds and farms. He is the elder brother of Mr John Knightley, the
husband of Emma's elder sister Isabella. He is very considerate, aware of the feelings of the
other characters and his behaviour and judgement is extremely good. Mr Knightley is furious
with Emma for persuading Harriet to turn down Mr Martin, a farmer on the Donwell estate; he
warns Emma against pushing Harriet towards Mr Elton, knowing that Mr Elton seeks a bride
with money. He is suspicious of Frank Churchill and his motives; he suspects that Frank has a
secret understanding with Jane Fairfax.

Mr Frank Churchill, Mr Weston's son by his first marriage, is an amiable young man, who at age
23 is liked by most everyone, although Mr Knightley sees him as immature and selfish for
failing to visit his father after his father's wedding. After his mother's death, he was raised by
his wealthy aunt and uncle, the Churchills, at the family estate Enscombe. His uncle was his
mother's brother. By his aunt's decree, he assumed the name Churchill on his majority. Frank is
given to dancing and living a carefree, gay life and is secretly engaged to Miss Fairfax at
Weymouth, although he fears his aunt will forbid the match because Jane is not wealthy. He
manipulates and plays games with the other characters to ensure his engagement to Jane
remains concealed.

Jane Fairfax is an orphan whose only family consists of her aunt, Miss Bates, and her
grandmother, Mrs Bates. She is a beautiful, clever, and elegant woman, with the best of
manners. She is the same age as Emma. She is extremely well-educated and talented at singing
and playing the piano; she is the sole person whom Emma envies. An army friend of her late
father, Colonel Campbell, felt responsible for her, and has provided her with an excellent
education, sharing his home and family with her since she was nine years old. She has little
fortune, however, and is destined to become a governess – a prospect she dislikes. The secret
engagement goes against her principles and distresses her greatly.

Harriet Smith, a young friend of Emma, just seventeen when the story opens, is a very pretty but
unsophisticated girl. She has been a parlour boarder at a nearby school, where she met the
sisters of Mr Martin. Emma takes Harriet under her wing early on, and she becomes the subject
of Emma's misguided matchmaking attempts. She is revealed in the last chapter to be the
natural daughter of a decent tradesman, although not a "gentleman". Harriet and Mr Martin
 are wed. The now wiser Emma approves of the match.

Robert Martin is a well-to-do, 24-year-old farmer who, though not a gentleman, is a friendly,
amiable and diligent young man, well esteemed by Mr George Knightley. He becomes
acquainted and subsequently smitten with Harriet during her 2-month stay at Abbey Mill Farm,
which was arranged at the invitation of his sister, Elizabeth Martin, a school friend of Harriet's.
His first marriage proposal, in a letter, is rejected by Harriet under the direction and influence
of Emma, (an incident which puts Mr Knightley and Emma in a disagreement with one another),
who had convinced herself that Harriet's class and breeding were above associating with the
Martins, much less marrying one. His second proposal of marriage is later accepted by a
contented Harriet and approved by a wiser Emma; their joining marks the first out of the three
happy couples to marry in the end.

Philip Elton is a good-looking, initially well-mannered, and ambitious young vicar, 27 years old
and unmarried when the story opens. Emma wants him to marry Harriet; however, he aspires
to secure Emma's hand in marriage to gain her dowry of £30,000. Mr Elton displays his
mercenary nature by quickly marrying another woman of lesser means after Emma rejects him.

Augusta Elton, formerly Miss Hawkins, is Mr Elton's wife. She has 10,000 pounds, but lacks good
manners, committing social vulgarities such as using people's names too intimately (as in
"Jane", not "Miss Fairfax"; "Knightley", not "Mr Knightley"). She is a boasting, pretentious
woman who expects her due as a new bride in the village. Emma is polite to her but does not
like her. She patronises Jane, which earns Jane the sympathy of others. Her lack of social graces
shows the good breeding of the other characters, particularly Miss Fairfax and Mrs Weston, and
shows the difference between gentility and money.

Mrs Weston was Emma's governess for sixteen years as Miss Anne Taylor and remains her
closest friend and confidante after she marries Mr Weston. She is a sensible woman who loves
Emma. Mrs Weston acts as a surrogate mother to her former charge and, occasionally, as a
voice of moderation and reason. The Westons and the Woodhouses visit almost daily. Near the
end of the story, the Westons' baby Anna is born.

Mr. Weston is a widower and a business man living in Highbury who marries Miss Taylor in his
early 40s, after he bought the home called Randalls. By his first marriage, he is father to Frank
Weston Churchill, who was adopted and raised by his late wife's brother and his wife. He sees
his son in London each year. He married his first wife, Miss Churchill, when he was a Captain in
the militia, posted near her home. Mr Weston is a sanguine, optimistic man, who enjoys
socialising, making friends easily in business and among his neighbours.

Miss Bates is a friendly, garrulous spinster whose mother, Mrs Bates, is a friend of Mr
Woodhouse. Her niece is Jane Fairfax, daughter of her late sister. She was raised in better
circumstances in her younger days as the vicar's daughter; now she and her mother rent rooms
in the home of another in Highbury. One day, Emma humiliates her on a day out in the country,
 when she alludes to her tiresome prolixity.

Mr Henry Woodhouse, Emma's father, is always concerned for his health, and to the extent that
it does not interfere with his own, the health and comfort of his friends. He is a valetudinarian
(i.e., similar to a hypochondriac but more likely to be genuinely ill). He assumes a great many
things are hazardous to his health. His daughter Emma gets along with him well, and he loves
both his daughters. He laments that "poor Isabella" and especially "poor Miss Taylor" have
married and live away from him. He is a fond father and fond grandfather who did not remarry
when his wife died; instead he brought in Miss Taylor to educate his daughters and become
part of the family. Because he is generous and well-mannered, his neighbors accommodate
him when they can.

Isabella Knightley (née Woodhouse) is the elder sister of Emma, by seven years, and daughter of
Henry. She is married to John Knightley. She lives in London with her husband and their five
children (Henry, 'little' John, Bella, 'little' Emma, and George). She is similar in disposition to her
father and her relationship to Mr. Wingfield, (her and her family's physician) mirrors that of her
father's to Mr. Perry.

John Knightley is Isabella's husband and George's younger brother, 31 years old (10 years older
than Jane Fairfax and Emma). He is an attorney by profession. Like the others raised in the area,
he is a friend of Jane Fairfax. He greatly enjoys the company of his family, including his brother
and his Woodhouse in-laws, but is not the very sociable sort of man who enjoys dining out
frequently. He is forthright with Emma, his sister-in-law, and close to his brother.

Minor characters

Mr. Perry is the apothecary in Highbury who spends a significant amount of time responding to
the health issues of Mr. Woodhouse. He and Mrs. Perry have several children. He is also the
subject of a discussion between Miss Bates and Jane Fairfax that is relayed in a letter to Mr.
Frank Churchill that he inadvertently discloses to Emma. He is described as a "...intelligent,
gentlemanlike man, whose frequent visits were one of the comforts of Mr. Woodhouse's
life.[6]"

Mrs. Bates is the widow of the former vicar of Highbury, the mother of Miss Bates and the
grandmother of Jane Fairfax. She was very old and hard of hearing, but was a frequent
companion to Mr. Woodhouse when Emma attended social activities without him.

Mr. & Mrs. Cole were residents of Highbury who had been there for several years, but had
recently benefited from a significant increase in their income that allowed them to increase the
size of their house, number of servants and other expenses. In spite of their "low origin" in
trade, their income and style of living made them the second highest in Highbury, the highest
being the Woodhouses at Hartfield. They hosted a dinner party that was a significant plot
element.
Mrs. Churchill was the wife of the brother of Mr. Weston's first wife. She and her husband, Mr.
Churchill live at Enscombe and raised Mr. Weston's son, Mr. Frank Churchill. Although never
seen directly, her demands on Frank Churchill's time and attention prevent him from visiting
his father. Her disapproval is the reason for keeping the engagement between Frank Churchill
and Jane Fairfax secret and her death provides the opportunity for the secret to be revealed.

Colonel and Mrs. Campbell were friends of Jane Fairfax's late father. After a period of time when
Jane was their guest for long visits, they offered to take over her education in preparation for
potentially serving as a governess when she grew up. They provided her every advantage
possible, short of adopting, and were very fond of her.

Mrs. Goddard is the mistress of a boarding school for girls in which Harriet Smith is one of the
students. She is also a frequent companion to Mr. Woodhouse along with Mrs. Bates.

Mr. William Larkins is an employee on the Donwell Abbey estate of Mr. Knightley. He frequently
visits the Bates, bringing them gifts, such as apples, from Mr. Knightley.

49. THINGS FALL APART

Things Fall Apart is a novel written by Nigerian author Chinua Achebe in 1958. The story's main
theme concerns pre- and post-colonial life in late nineteenth century Nigeria. It is seen as the
archetypal modern African novel in English, one of the first to receive global critical acclaim. It
is a staple book in schools throughout Africa and is widely read and studied in English-speaking
countries around the world. It was first published in 1958 by William Heinemann Ltd in the UK;
in 1962, it was also the first work published in Heinemann's African Writers Series. The title of
the novel comes from a line in W. B. Yeats' poem "The Second Coming".

The novel follows the life of Okonkwo, an Igbo ("Ibo" in the novel) leader and local wrestling
champion in the fictional Nigerian village of Umuofia. The work is split into three parts, with
the first describing his family, personal history, and the customs and society of the Igbo, and
the second and third sections introducing the influence of British colonialism and Christian
missionaries on the Igbo community.

Things Fall Apart was followed by a sequel, No Longer at Ease (1960), originally written as the
second part of a larger work along with Arrow of God (1964). Achebe states that his two later
novels A Man of the People (1966) and Anthills of the Savannah (1987), while not featuring
Okonkwo's descendants, are spiritual successors to the previous novels in chronicling African
history.

PLOT

Okonkwo is a wealthy and respected warrior of the Umuofia clan, a lower Nigerian tribe that is
part of a consortium of nine connected villages. He is haunted by the actions of Unoka, his
cowardly and spendthrift father, who died in disrepute, leaving many village debts unsettled. In
 response, Okonkwo became a clansman, warrior, farmer, and family provider extraordinaire.
He has a twelve-year-old son named Nwoye whom he finds lazy; Okonkwo worries that Nwoye
will end up a failure like Unoka.

In a settlement with a neighboring tribe, Umuofia wins a virgin and a fifteen-year-old boy.
Okonkwo takes charge of the boy, Ikemefuna, and finds an ideal son in him. Nwoye likewise
forms a strong attachment to the newcomer. Despite his fondness for Ikemefuna and despite
the fact that the boy begins to call him “father,” Okonkwo does not let himself show any
affection for him.

During the Week of Peace, Okonkwo accuses his youngest wife, Ojiugo, of negligence. He
severely beats her, breaking the peace of the sacred week. He makes some sacrifices to show
his repentance, but he has shocked his community irreparably.

Ikemefuna stays with Okonkwo’s family for three years. Nwoye looks up to him as an older
brother and, much to Okonkwo’s pleasure, develops a more masculine attitude. One day, the
locusts come to Umuofia—they will come every year for seven years before disappearing for
another generation. The village excitedly collects them because they are good to eat when
cooked.

Ogbuefi Ezeudu, a respected village elder, informs Okonkwo in private that the Oracle has said
that Ikemefuna must be killed. He tells Okonkwo that because Ikemefuna calls him “father,”
Okonkwo should not take part in the boy’s death. Okonkwo lies to Ikemefuna, telling him that
they must return him to his home village. Nwoye bursts into tears.

As he walks with the men of Umuofia, Ikemefuna thinks about seeing his mother. After several
hours of walking, some of Okonkwo’s clansmen attack the boy with machetes. Ikemefuna runs
to Okonkwo for help. But Okonkwo, who doesn’t wish to look weak in front of his fellow
tribesmen, cuts the boy down despite the Oracle’s admonishment. When Okonkwo returns
home, Nwoye deduces that his friend is dead.

Okonkwo sinks into a depression, neither able to sleep nor eat. He visits his friend Obierika and
begins to feel revived a bit. Okonkwo’s daughter Ezinma falls ill, but she recovers after
Okonkwo gathers leaves for her medicine.

The death of Ogbuefi Ezeudu is announced to the surrounding villages by means of the ekwe, a
musical instrument. Okonkwo feels guilty because the last time Ezeudu visited him was to warn
him against taking part in Ikemefuna’s death. At Ogbuefi Ezeudu’s large and elaborate funeral,
the men beat drums and fire their guns. Tragedy compounds upon itself when Okonkwo’s gun
explodes and kills Ogbuefi Ezeudu’s sixteen-year-old son.

Because killing a clansman is a crime against the earth goddess, Okonkwo must take his family
into exile for seven years in order to atone. He gathers his most valuable belongings and takes
his family to his mother’s natal village, Mbanta. The men from Ogbuefi Ezeudu’s quarter burn
 Okonkwo’s buildings and kill his animals to cleanse the village of his sin.

Okonkwo’s kinsmen, especially his uncle, Uchendu, receive him warmly. They help him build a
new compound of huts and lend him yam seeds to start a farm. Although he is bitterly
disappointed at his misfortune, Okonkwo reconciles himself to life in his motherland.

During the second year of Okonkwo’s exile, Obierika brings several bags of cowries (shells used
as currency) that he has made by selling Okonkwo’s yams. Obierika plans to continue to do so
until Okonkwo returns to the village. Obierika also brings the bad news that Abame, another
village, has been destroyed by the white man.

Soon afterward, six missionaries travel to Mbanta. Through an interpreter named Mr. Kiaga, the
missionaries’ leader, Mr. Brown, speaks to the villagers. He tells them that their gods are false
and that worshipping more than one God is idolatrous. But the villagers do not understand how
the Holy Trinity can be accepted as one God. Although his aim is to convert the residents of
Umuofia to Christianity, Mr. Brown does not allow his followers to antagonize the clan.

Mr. Brown grows ill and is soon replaced by Reverend James Smith, an intolerant and strict man.
The more zealous converts are relieved to be free of Mr. Brown’s policy of restraint. One such
convert, Enoch, dares to unmask an egwugwu during the annual ceremony to honor the earth
deity, an act equivalent to killing an ancestral spirit. The next day, the egwugwu burn Enoch’s
compound and Reverend Smith’s church to the ground.

The District Commissioner is upset by the burning of the church and requests that the leaders of
Umuofia meet with him. Once they are gathered, however, the leaders are handcuffed and
thrown in jail, where they suffer insults and physical abuse.

After the prisoners are released, the clansmen hold a meeting, during which five court
messengers approach and order the clansmen to desist. Expecting his fellow clan members to
join him in uprising, Okonkwo kills their leader with his machete. When the crowd allows the
other messengers to escape, Okonkwo realizes that his clan is not willing to go to war.

When the District Commissioner arrives at Okonkwo’s compound, he finds that Okonkwo has
hanged himself. Obierika and his friends lead the commissioner to the body. Obierika explains
that suicide is a grave sin; thus, according to custom, none of Okonkwo’s clansmen may touch
his body. The commissioner, who is writing a book about Africa, believes that the story of
Okonkwo’s rebellion and death will make for an interesting paragraph or two. He has already
chosen the book’s title: The Pacification of the Primitive Tribes of the Lower Niger.

Character List

Okonkwo - An influential clan leader in Umuofia. Since early childhood, Okonkwo’s

embarrassment about his lazy, squandering, and effeminate father, Unoka, has driven him to
succeed. Okonkwo’s hard work and prowess in war have earned him a position of high status in
his clan, and he attains wealth sufficient to support three wives and their children. Okonkwo’s
 tragic flaw is that he is terrified of looking weak like his father. As a result, he behaves rashly,
bringing a great deal of trouble and sorrow upon himself and his family.

Nwoye - Okonkwo’s oldest son, whom Okonkwo believes is weak and lazy. Okonkwo continually
beats Nwoye, hoping to correct the faults that he perceives in him. Influenced by Ikemefuna,
Nwoye begins to exhibit more masculine behavior, which pleases Okonkwo. However, he
maintains doubts about some of the laws and rules of his tribe and eventually converts to
Christianity, an act that Okonkwo criticizes as “effeminate.” Okonkwo believes that Nwoye is
afflicted with the same weaknesses that his father, Unoka, possessed in abundance.

Ezinma - The only child of Okonkwo’s second wife, Ekwefi. As the only one of Ekwefi’s ten
children to survive past infancy, Ezinma is the center of her mother’s world. Their relationship
is atypical—Ezinma calls Ekwefi by her name and is treated by her as an equal. Ezinma is also
Okonkwo’s favorite child, for she understands him better than any of his other children and
reminds him of Ekwefi when Ekwefi was the village beauty. Okonkwo rarely demonstrates his
affection, however, because he fears that doing so would make him look weak. Furthermore,
he wishes that Ezinma were a boy because she would have been the perfect son.

Ikemefuna - A boy given to Okonkwo by a neighboring village. Ikemefuna lives in the hut of
Okonkwo’s first wife and quickly becomes popular with Okonkwo’s children. He develops an
especially close relationship with Nwoye, Okonkwo’s oldest son, who looks up to him. Okonkwo
too becomes very fond of Ikemefuna, who calls him “father” and is a perfect clansman, but
Okonkwo does not demonstrate his affection because he fears that doing so would make him
look weak.

Mr. Brown - The first white missionary to travel to Umuofia. Mr. Brown institutes a policy of
compromise, understanding, and non-aggression between his flock and the clan. He even
becomes friends with prominent clansmen and builds a school and a hospital in Umuofia.
Unlike Reverend Smith, he attempts to appeal respectfully to the tribe’s value system rather
than harshly impose his religion on it.

Reverend James Smith - The missionary who replaces Mr. Brown. Unlike Mr. Brown, Reverend
Smith is uncompromising and strict. He demands that his converts reject all of their indigenous
beliefs, and he shows no respect for indigenous customs or culture. He is the stereotypical
white colonialist, and his behavior epitomizes the problems of colonialism. He intentionally
provokes his congregation, inciting it to anger and even indirectly, through Enoch, encouraging
some fairly serious transgressions.

Uchendu - The younger brother of Okonkwo’s mother. Uchendu receives Okonkwo and his
family warmly when they travel to Mbanta, and he advises Okonkwo to be grateful for the
comfort that his motherland offers him lest he anger the dead—especially his mother, who is
buried there. Uchendu himself has suffered—all but one of his six wives are dead and he has
buried twenty-two children. He is a peaceful, compromising man and functions as a foil (a
character whose emotions or actions highlight, by means of contrast, the emotions or actions
 of another character) to Okonkwo, who acts impetuously and without thinking.

The District Commissioner - An authority figure in the white colonial government in Nigeria. The
prototypical racist colonialist, the District Commissioner thinks that he understands everything
about native African customs and cultures and he has no respect for them. He plans to work his
experiences into an ethnographic study on local African tribes, the idea of which embodies his
dehumanizing and reductive attitude toward race relations.

Unoka - Okonkwo’s father, of whom Okonkwo has been ashamed since childhood. By the
standards of the clan, Unoka was a coward and a spendthrift. He never took a title in his life, he
borrowed money from his clansmen, and he rarely repaid his debts. He never became a warrior
because he feared the sight of blood. Moreover, he died of an abominable illness. On the
positive side, Unoka appears to have been a talented musician and gentle, if idle. He may well
have been a dreamer, ill-suited to the chauvinistic culture into which he was born. The novel
opens ten years after his death.

Obierika - Okonkwo’s close friend, whose daughter’s wedding provides cause for festivity early
in the novel. Obierika looks out for his friend, selling Okonkwo’s yams to ensure that Okonkwo
won’t suffer financial ruin while in exile and comforting Okonkwo when he is depressed. Like
Nwoye, Obierika questions some of the tribe’s traditional strictures.

Ekwefi - Okonkwo’s second wife, once the village beauty. Ekwefi ran away from her first
husband to live with Okonkwo. Ezinma is her only surviving child, her other nine having died in
infancy, and Ekwefi constantly fears that she will lose Ezinma as well. Ekwefi is good friends
with Chielo, the priestess of the goddess Agbala.

Enoch - A fanatical convert to the Christian church in Umuofia. Enoch’s disrespectful act of
ripping the mask off an egwugwu during an annual ceremony to honor the earth deity leads to
the climactic clash between the indigenous and colonial justice systems. While Mr. Brown,
early on, keeps Enoch in check in the interest of community harmony, Reverend Smith
approves of his zealotry.

Ogbuefi Ezeudu - The oldest man in the village and one of the most important clan elders and
leaders. Ogbuefi Ezeudu was a great warrior in his youth and now delivers messages from the
Oracle.

Chielo - A priestess in Umuofia who is dedicated to the Oracle of the goddess Agbala. Chielo is a
widow with two children. She is good friends with Ekwefi and is fond of Ezinma, whom she calls
“my daughter.” At one point, she carries Ezinma on her back for miles in order to help purify
her and appease the gods.

Akunna - A clan leader of Umuofia. Akunna and Mr. Brown discuss their religious beliefs
peacefully, and Akunna’s influence on the missionary advances Mr. Brown’s strategy for
converting the largest number of clansmen by working with, rather than against, their belief
 system. In so doing, however, Akunna formulates an articulate and rational defense of his
religious system and draws some striking parallels between his style of worship and that of the
Christian missionaries.

Nwakibie - A wealthy clansmen who takes a chance on Okonkwo by lending him 800 seed
yams—twice the number for which Okonkwo asks. Nwakibie thereby helps Okonkwo build up
the beginnings of his personal wealth, status, and independence.

Mr. Kiaga - The native-turned-Christian missionary who arrives in Mbanta and converts Nwoye
and many others.

Okagbue Uyanwa - A famous medicine man whom Okonkwo summons for help in dealing with
Ezinma’s health problems.

Maduka - Obierika’s son. Maduka wins a wrestling contest in his mid-teens. Okonkwo wishes he
had promising, manly sons like Maduka.

Obiageli - The daughter of Okonkwo’s first wife. Although Obiageli is close to Ezinma in age,
Ezinma has a great deal of influence over her.

Ojiugo - Okonkwo’s third and youngest wife, and the mother of Nkechi. Okonkwo beats Ojiugo
during the Week of Peace.

50. ARROW OF GOD

Arrow of God is a 1964 novel by Chinua Achebe, his third. It followed his book No Longer At
Ease. These two works, along with the first book, Things Fall Apart, are sometimes called The
African Trilogy, as they share similar settings and themes. The novel centers on Ezeulu, the
chief priest of several Igbo villages in Colonial Nigeria, who confronts colonial powers and
Christian missionaries in the 1920s. The novel was published as part of the influential
Heinemann African Writers Series.

The phrase "Arrow of God" is drawn from an Igbo proverb in which a person, or sometimes an
event, is said to represent the will of God. Arrow of God won the first ever Jock Campbell/New
Statesman Prize for African writing.

Plot summary

The novel is set amongst the villages of the Igbo people in British Nigeria during the 1920s.
Ezeulu is the chief priest of the god Ulu, worshipped by the six villages of Umuaro. The book
begins with Ezeulu and Umuaro fighting against a nearby village, Okperi. The conflict is abruptly
resolved when T.K. Winterbottom, the British colonial overseer, intervenes.

After the conflict, a Christian missionary, John Goodcountry, arrives in Umuaro. Goodcountry
begins to tell the villages tales of Nigerians in the Niger Delta who abandoned (and battled)
 their traditional "bad customs" in favor of Christianity.

Ezeulu is called away from his village by Winterbottom and is invited to become a part of the
colonial administration, a policy known as indirect rule. Ezeulu refuses to be a "white man's
chief" and is thrown in prison. In Umuaro, the people cannot harvest the yams until Ezeulu has
called the New Yam Feast to give thanks to Ulu. When Ezeulu returns from prison, he refuses to
call the feast despite being implored by other important men in the village to compromise.
Ezeulu reasons to the people and to himself that it is not his will but Ulu's; Ezeulu believes
himself to be half spirit and half man. The yams begin to rot in the field, and a famine ensues
for which the village blames Ezeulu. Seeing this as an opportunity, John Goodcountry proposes
that the village offer thanks to the Christian God instead so that they may harvest what remains
of their crops with "immunity".

Many of the villagers have already lost their faith in Ezeulu. One of Ezeulu's sons dies during a
traditional ceremony, and the village interprets this as a sign that Ulu has abandoned their
priest. Rather than face another famine, the village converts to Christianity.

51. BLEAK HOUSE

Bleak House is a nineteenth century novel by English author Charles Dickens, first published as a
serial between March 1852 and September 1853. The novel has many characters and several
sub-plots, and the story is told partly by the novel's heroine, Esther Summerson, and partly by
an omniscient narrator. At the centre of Bleak House is a long-running legal case, Jarndyce and
Jarndyce, which came about because someone wrote several conflicting wills. Dickens uses this
case to satirise the English judicial system. Though the legal profession criticised Dickens' satire
as exaggerated, this novel helped support a judicial reform movement, which culminated in the
enactment of legal reform in the 1870s.

There is some debate among scholars as to when Bleak House is set. The English legal historian
Sir William Holdsworth sets the action in 1827; however, reference to preparation for the
building of a railway in Chapter LV suggests the 1830s.

Plot Overview

Esther Summerson describes her childhood and says she is leaving for the home of a new
guardian, Mr. Jarndyce, along with Ada Clare and Richard Carstone. On the way to the home,
called Bleak House, they stop overnight at the Jellybys’ chaotic home. When they finally reach
Bleak House, they meet Mr. Jarndyce and settle in. They meet Mr. Skimpole, a man who acts
like a child.

The narrator describes a ghost that lurks around Chesney Wold, the home of Lady and Sir
Leicester Dedlock.

Esther meets the overbearing charity worker Mrs. Pardiggle, who introduces her to a poor
 brickmaker’s wife named Jenny, whose baby is ill. Esther says she is sure that Ada and Richard
are falling in love. She meets Mr. Boythorn, as well as Mr. Guppy, who proposes marriage.
Esther refuses him.

At Chesney Wold, Tulkinghorn shows the Dedlocks some Jarndyce documents, and Lady Dedlock
recognizes the handwriting. Tulkinghorn says he’ll find out who did it. He asks Mr. Snagsby, the
law-stationer, who says a man named Nemo wrote the documents. Tulkinghorn visits Nemo,
who lives above a shop run by a man named Krook, and finds him dead. At the coroner’s
investigation, a street urchin named Jo is questioned and says that Nemo was nice to him.
Later, Tulkinghorn tells Lady Dedlock what he’s learned.

Richard struggles to find a suitable career, eventually deciding to pursue medicine. But he is
more interested in the Jarndyce and Jarndyce lawsuit, which he believes will make him rich.
Neither Esther nor the narrator ever fully explains the lawsuit, because nobody remembers
what originally prompted the parties to begin the suit.

In London, Esther meets a young girl named Charlotte who is caring for her two young siblings. A
lodger who lives in the same building, Mr. Gridley, helps care for the children as well.

A mysterious lady approaches Jo and asks him to show her where Nemo is buried.

Mr. Jarndyce tells Esther some details about her background. He reveals that the woman who
raised Esther was her aunt. The next day, a doctor named Mr. Woodcourt visits before leaving
on a trip to China and India. An unidentified person leaves a bouquet of flowers for Esther.

Richard begins working in the law. Esther, Ada, and others visit Mr. Boythorn, who lives near
Chesney Wold. There, Esther meets Lady Dedlock for the first time and feels a strange
connection to her. Lady Dedlock has a French maid, Mademoiselle Hortense, who is jealous
that Lady Dedlock has a new young protégée named Rosa.

A man named Mr. Jobling, a friend of Mr. Guppy’s, moves into Nemo’s old room above Krook’s
shop.

Two men, George and Grandfather Smallweed, talk about some money that George owes
Smallweed. They reach an agreement, and George leaves.

Tulkinghorn introduces Bucket and Snagsby, and Snagsby introduces Bucket to Jo. Bucket figures
out that the woman Jo led to the burial ground was disguised in Mademoiselle Hortense’s
clothes. Mademoiselle Hortense soon quits her post at Chesney Wold.

Caddy Jellyby tells Esther she is engaged to Prince Turveydrop. Charley Neckett becomes
Esther’s maid. Mr. Jarndyce warns Ada and Richard to end their romantic relationship since
Richard is joining the army. Gridley dies.

Smallweed visits George and says that Captain Hawdon, a man he thought was dead, is actually
 alive, and that a lawyer was asking about some handwriting of his. He asks George if he has any
handwriting to offer. George visits Tulkinghorn, who explains that George will be rewarded if
he gives up some of Hawdon’s handwriting. George refuses.

Guppy visits Lady Dedlock in London and tells her he thinks there is a connection between her
and Esther. He says that Esther’s former guardian was someone named Miss Barbary and that
Esther’s real name was Esther Hawdon. He says that Nemo was actually named Hawdon, and
that he left some letters, which Guppy will get. When Guppy leaves, Lady Dedlock cries: Esther
is her daughter, who her sister claimed had died at birth.

Charley and Esther visit Jenny and find Jo lying on the floor. He is sick, and Esther takes him back
to Bleak House, putting him up in the stable. In the morning, he has disappeared. Charley gets
very ill. Then Esther gets extremely ill.

Guppy and his friend Jobling want to get Hawdon’s letters from Krook. But when they go down
to Krook’s shop, they find that he has spontaneously combusted. Later, Grandfather Smallweed
arrives to take care of Krook’s property. Guppy eventually tells Lady Dedlock the letters were
destroyed.

Smallweed demands payment from George and the Bagnets, on whose behalf he borrowed the
money. Desperate, he tells Tulkinghorn he’ll turn over the Hawdon’s handwriting if he’ll leave
the Bagnets alone.

Esther recovers slowly. Miss Flite visits her, telling her that a mysterious woman visited Jenny’s
cottage, asking about Esther and taking away a handkerchief Esther had left. She also tells
Esther that Mr. Woodcourt has returned. Esther goes to Mr. Boythorn’s house to recover fully.
She looks in a mirror for the first time and sees that her face is terribly scarred from the
smallpox. While there, Lady Dedlock confronts her and tells her she’s Esther’s mother. She
orders Esther to never speak to her again, since this must remain a secret.

Richard pursues the Jarndyce lawsuit more earnestly, aided by a lawyer named Vholes. He no
longer speaks to Mr. Jarndyce, who doesn’t want anything to do with the suit.

Esther visits Guppy and instructs him to stop investigating her.

Tulkinghorn visits Chesney Wold and hints that he knows Lady Dedlock’s secret. She confronts
him and says she will leave Chesney Wold immediately because she knows her secret will
destroy Rosa’s marriage prospects. Tulkinghorn convinces her to stay, since fleeing will make
her secret known too fast. When Tulkinghorn is back home, he is visited by Mademoiselle
Hortense, who demands he help her find a job. He threatens to arrest her if she keeps
harassing him.

Esther tells Mr. Jarndyce about Lady Dedlock. He reveals that Boythorn was once in love with
Miss Barbary, who left him when she decided to raise Esther in secret. Mr. Jarndyce gives
 Esther a letter that asks her to marry him. Esther accepts.

Esther tries to convince Richard to abandon the Jarndyce suit. While she is visiting him, he tells
her he has left the army and devoted himself entirely to the lawsuit. Esther sees Mr.
Woodcourt on the street. She asks Mr. Woodcourt to befriend Richard in London, and he
agrees.

In London, Woodcourt runs into Jo on the street and gives him some food. He discovers that Jo
once stayed with Esther. Jo tells him that a man forced him to leave and that he’s now scared of
running into him. Woodcourt helps Jo find a hiding place at George’s Shooting Gallery. Jo soon
dies.

Lady Dedlock dismisses Rosa with no explanation in order to protect her. Tulkinghorn is enraged
and says he’ll reveal the secret. That night, Tulkinghorn is shot through the heart. The next day,
Bucket arrests George for the murder.

Ada reveals to Esther that she and Richard have been secretly married.

Bucket investigates Tulkinghorn’s murder. He receives a few letters that say only “Lady
Dedlock.” He confronts Sir Leicester and tells him what he knows about Lady Dedlock’s past.
Instead of arresting Lady Dedlock, however, he arrests Mademoiselle Hortense, who killed
Tulkinghorn and tried to frame Lady Dedlock.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Rouncewell, the housekeeper at Chesney Wold, finds out that George is her
long-lost son. She begs Lady Dedlock to do anything she can to help him. Guppy arrives and
tells Lady Dedlock that the letters were actually not destroyed. Lady Dedlock writes a note to
Sir Leicester, saying she didn’t murder Tulkinghorn, and then she flees.

Sir Leicester collapses from a stroke. Mrs. Rouncewell gives him Lady Dedlock’s letter, and he
orders Bucket to find her, saying he forgives her for everything. Bucket asks Esther to join him,
and they set out in search of Lady Dedlock in the middle of the night. While Sir Leicester waits
at home, unable to speak clearly, Esther and Bucket search. Eventually Bucket figures out
where to find her. They finally find Lady Dedlock at the gate of the burial ground where
Hawdon is buried. She is dead.

Richard is sick and still obsessed with Jarndyce and Jarndyce. Ada is pregnant and hopes the
baby will distract Richard from his obsession with the lawsuit. After visiting Richard one night,
Woodcourt walks Esther home and confesses he still loves her as he once did. She tells him she
is engaged to Mr. Jarndyce.

Smallweed finds a Jarndyce will among Krook’s property and gives it to Vholes.

George moves to Chesney Wold, where he helps tend to Sir Leicester.

Esther begins to plan the wedding. Mr. Jarndyce goes to Yorkshire on business and then sends
 for her. When she arrives, she finds out that Mr. Jarndyce has bought a house for Woodcourt
out of gratitude. He shows her the house, which is decorated in Esther’s style, and tells her that
he’s named the house Bleak House. Then he reveals that he knows she loves Woodcourt and
that they should be married. He says he will always be her guardian. Woodcourt appears, and
he and Esther reunite.

The Jarndyce and Jarndyce case is finally dismissed. No one gets any money since the
inheritance had been used up to pay the legal fees. Richard dies.

Esther says she and Woodcourt have two daughters and that Ada had a son. She is very happy.

Character List
Esther Summerson - The narrator and protagonist. Esther, an orphan, becomes the housekeeper
at Bleak House when she, Ada, and Richard are taken in by Mr. Jarndyce. Everyone loves Esther,
who is selfless and nurturing, and she becomes the confidante of several young women.
Although she eventually does find her mother, circumstances prevent them from developing a
relationship. At first a hesitant, insecure narrator, Esther’s confidence in her storytelling grows,
and she controls the narrative skillfully.

Mr. John Jarndyce - Esther’s guardian and master of Bleak House. Mr. Jarndyce becomes the
guardian of the orphans Ada and Richard and takes Esther in as a companion for Ada. Generous
but uncomfortable with others’ gratitude, Mr. Jarndyce provides a warm, happy home for the
three young people. When Esther is an adult, he proposes marriage, but he eventually rescinds
his offer when he realizes she’s in love with someone else. Mr. Jarndyce has sworn off any
involvement whatsoever with the Jarndyce and Jarndyce lawsuit.

Ada Clare - A ward of Jarndyce. Kind, sweet, and naïve, Ada becomes Esther’s closest confidante
and greatest source of happiness. She falls in love with Richard, and although they eventually
marry and have a baby, she never finds full happiness with him because of his obsession with
the Jarndyce and Jarndyce lawsuit.

Richard Carstone - A ward of Jarndyce. Affable but lazy, Richard can’t decide on a career and
seems to have no passion for a particular field. Eventually, he becomes obsessed with Jarndyce
and Jarndyce and ultimately sacrifices his life for the lawsuit. He pursues the suit for Ada’s sake
but never succeeds in providing a real home for her.

Lady Dedlock - Mistress of Chesney Wold, married to Sir Leicester, and Esther’s mother. Lady
Dedlock, revered and wealthy, has kept the secret of her illegitimate child throughout her life,
believing the child died at birth. She reveals her true identity to Esther but is wary of pursuing a
relationship because she believes Sir Leicester’s reputation will suffer. When the truth
threatens to come out, she runs away, certain that Sir Leicester will hate her. She dies outside
of a cemetery.
Sir Leicester Dedlock - Master of Chesney Wold. Sir Leicester is a strong, respected man who
ultimately withers and weakens because of Lady Dedlock’s disappearance. Fully willing to
forgive her, Sir Leicester does his best to find her, but he is too late.

Mr. Tulkinghorn - A lawyer involved in the Jarndyce and Jarndyce lawsuit. Mr. Tulkinghorn
shares Lady Dedlock’s secret and threatens to reveal it. He is eventually murdered by Lady
Dedlock’s former maid, Mademoiselle Hortense.

Mrs. Baytham Badger - A woman who talks incessantly about her former husbands.

Mr. Badger - A doctor who agrees to take Richard on as an apprentice.

Mr. Matthew Bagnet - A soldier who owns a musical instrument shop. Mr. Bagnet incurred
debts to help George Rouncewell.

Mrs. Bagnet - A woman who does all the talking for her husband.

Inspector Bucket - A detective hired by Tulkinghorn to investigate Lady Dedlock’s past. Bucket
eventually winds up investigating Tulkinghorn’s murder and arrests Mademoiselle Hortense for
the crime. His wife helps him with his detective work.

Mr. Lawrence Boythorn - Mr. Jarndyce’s friend who is given to hyperbole. Mr. Boythorn feuds
with Sir Leicester about trespassing. He was once in love with Lady Dedlock’s sister, Miss
Barbary, who left him when she decided to secretly look after Lady Dedlock’s illegitimate child,
Esther.

Mr. Chadband - A pompous preacher who takes any opportunity to orate.

Mrs. Rachael Chadband - Esther’s former caretaker.

Volumnia Dedlock - Sir Leicester’s cousin.

Miss Flite - An insane elderly woman who lives above Krook’s shop.

Mr. Gridley - A man who gave up his life for the Jarndyce and Jarndyce suit.

Mr. William Guppy - A clerk at Kenge and Carboy. Mr. Guppy proposes to Esther, but she
refuses him. He investigates her parentage with the hope of changing her mind and reveals to
Lady Dedlock that Esther is her daughter.

Guster - The Snagsbys’ maid, given to having fits.

Captain Hawdon (Nemo) - Krook’s dead lodger. Hawdon is Lady Dedlock’s former lover and
Esther’s father.

Mademoiselle Hortense - Lady Dedlock’s French maid. Mademoiselle Hortense is jealous of

 Lady Dedlock’s attention to young Rosa. She kills Tulkinghorn and frames Lady Dedlock.

Mrs. Jellyby - A blustery woman who is obsessed with her “mission,” Borrioboola-Gha in Africa.
She neglects her family entirely.

Mr. Jellyby - The defeated husband of Mrs. Jellyby.

Caroline (Caddy) Jellyby - Mrs. Jellyby’s put-upon daughter and a friend of Esther’s.

Jenny - The wife of an abusive brickmaker.

Jo - A street urchin who helps Lady Dedlock find Captain Hawdon’s grave.

Mr. Tony Jobling (Mr. Weevle) - A friend of Mr. Guppy’s, who takes Captain Hawdon’s old room.

Mr. Krook - Owner of the rag-and-bottle shop. Mr. Krook collects documents even though he
can’t read. He dies by spontaneous combustion.

Liz - The wife of an abusive brickmaker.

Charlotte (Charley) Neckett - The oldest of three orphaned siblings. Charley becomes Esther’s
beloved maid.

Mrs. Pardiggle - An obnoxious do-gooder who forces her sons to give their money to her
charities.

Rosa - Lady Dedlock’s protégée, who is in love with Watt Rouncewell.

Mr. George Rouncewell - Mrs. Rouncewell’s wayward son and a soldier. He runs a shooting
gallery.

Mr. Rouncewell - An ironmaker who is George’s brother.

Mrs. Rouncewell - The loyal housekeeper at Chesney Wold.

Mr. Watt Rouncewell - Mrs. Rouncewell’s grandson, who wants to marry Rosa.

Harold Skimpole - A friend of Mr. Jarndyce, who calls himself a “child” and claims to have no
idea about time or money. Mr. Skimpole borrows money liberally with no thought of repaying
it. He eventually betrays Mr. Jarndyce by telling Inspector Bucket that Jo is in the stable at
Bleak House.

Bartholomew (Chick) Smallweed - Grandfather Smallweed’s grandson.

Judy Smallweed - The granddaughter who accompanies her chair-bound grandfather

everywhere.

Grandfather Smallweed - A shrill old man who can barely sit upright in his chair. Grandfather
 Smallweed threatens and wheedles other people to get his own way. He lends George money.

Grandmother Smallweed - The put-upon wife of Grandfather Smallweed.

Mr. Snagsby - A law-stationer. Mr. Snagsby gets inadvertently caught up in everyone else’s
secrets, although he pays Jo not to tell anyone a secret of his own. He sneaks around to avoid
his wife’s prying eyes.

Mrs. Snagsby - Mr. Snagsby’s suspicious wife, given to drawing inaccurate conclusions from her
eavesdropping and spying.

Phil Squod - A crippled lodger at George’s Shooting Gallery.

Mr. Turveydrop - A man proud of his deportment.

Prince Turveydrop - The young dancing teacher who marries Caddy Jellyby.

Mr. Vholes - The sneaky, immoral lawyer determined to get as much money as possible out of
Richard’s involvement with the Jarndyce and Jarndyce lawsuit.

Allan Woodcourt - A doctor and friend of Mr. Jarndyce. Mr. Woodcourt marries Esther, and they
live together in the new Bleak House.

Mrs. Woodcourt - Allan Woodcourt’s mother, who stays at Bleak House to observe Esther’s
steadfast commitment to Mr. Jarndyce.

52. THE TREE OF MAN

The Tree of Man is the fourth published novel by the Australian novelist and 1973 Nobel
Prize-winner, Patrick White. It is a domestic drama chronicling the lives of the Parker family
and their changing fortunes over many decades. It is steeped in Australian folklore and cultural
myth, and is recognised as the author's attempt to infuse the idiosyncratic way of life in the
remote Australian bush with some sense of the cultural traditions and ideologies that the epic
history of Western civilisation has bequeathed to Australian society in general. "When we came
to live [in Castle Hill, Sydney]", White wrote, in an attempt to explain the novel, "I felt the life
was, on the surface, so dreary, ugly, monotonous, there must be a poetry hidden in it to give it
a purpose, and so I set out to discover that secret core, and The Tree of Man emerged.". The
title comes from A. E. Housman's poetry cycle A Shropshire Lad, lines of which are quoted in
the text.

The man returned to his chair on the edge of the room, and looked at the blank book, and tried
to think what he would write in it. The blank pages were in themselves simple and complete.
But there must be some simple words, within his reach, with which to throw further light. He
would have liked to write some poem or prayer in the empty book, and for some time did
consider that idea, remembering the plays of Shakespeare that he had read lying on his
 stomach as a boy, but any words that came to him were the stiff words of a half-forgotten
literature that had no relationship with himself.

The novel is one of three by White included in 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. The
others are Voss and The Living and the Dead.

The first part of the book was translated into Mandarin by Jin Liqun, a Chinese literary scholar
who subsequently joined the World Bank and eventually became the first President of the
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

53. VOSS
Voss (1957) is the fifth published novel of Patrick White. It is based upon the life of the
nineteenth-century Prussian explorer and naturalist Ludwig Leichhardt who disappeared whilst
on an expedition into the Australian outback.

Plot summary

The novel centres on two characters: Voss, a German, and Laura, a young woman, orphaned and
new to the colony of New South Wales. It opens as they meet for the first time in the house of
Laura's uncle and the patron of Voss's expedition, Mr Bonner.

Johann Ulrich Voss sets out to cross the Australian continent in 1845. After collecting a party of
settlers and two Aborigines, his party heads inland from the coast only to meet endless
adversity. The explorers cross drought-plagued desert then waterlogged lands until they
retreat to a cave where they lie for weeks waiting for the rain to stop. Voss and Laura retain a
connection despite Voss's absence and the story intersperses developments in each of their
lives. Laura adopts an orphaned child and attends a ball during Voss's absence.

The travelling party splits in two and nearly all members eventually perish. The story ends some
twenty years later at a garden party hosted by Laura's cousin Belle Radclyffe (née Bonner) on
the day of the unveiling of a statue of Voss. The party is also attended by Laura Trevelyan and
the one remaining member of Voss's expeditionary party, Mr Judd.

The strength of the novel comes not from the physical description of the events in the story but
from the explorers' passion, insight and doom. The novel draws heavily on the complex
character of Voss.

54. TOM JONES

The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, often known simply as Tom Jones, is a comic novel by
English playwright and novelist Henry Fielding. It is both a Bildungsroman and a picaresque
novel. It was first published on 28 February 1749 in London, and is among the earliest English
prose works to be classified as a novel.[1] It is the earliest novel mentioned by W. Somerset
 Maugham in his 1948 book Great Novelists and Their Novels among the ten best novels of the
world.[2] It totals 346,747 words divided into 18 smaller books, each preceded by a discursive
chapter, often on topics unrelated to the book itself. It is dedicated to George Lyttleton.

The novel is highly orgnized, despite its length. Samuel Taylor Coleridge argued that it has one of
the "three most perfect plots ever planned", although critic Samuel Johnson took exception to
Fielding's "robust distinctions between right and wrong". It became a best seller, with four
editions being published in its first year alone.

The book opens with the narrator stating that the purpose of the novel will be to explore
"human nature."

The kindly and wealthy Squire Allworthy and his sister Bridget are introduced in their wealthy
estate in Somerset. Allworthy returns from London after an extended business trip and finds an
abandoned baby sleeping in his bed. He summons his housekeeper, Mrs Deborah Wilkins, to
take care of the child. After searching the nearby village, Mrs Wilkins is told about a young
woman called Jenny Jones, servant of a schoolmaster and his wife, as the most likely person to
have committed the deed. Jenny is brought before them and admits being the baby's mother
but refuses to reveal the father's identity. Mr Allworthy mercifully removes Jenny to a place
where her reputation will be unknown. Furthermore, he promises his sister to raise the boy,
whom he names Thomas, in his household.

Two brothers, Dr Blifil and Captain Blifil, regularly visit the Allworthy estate. The doctor
introduces the captain to Bridget in hopes of marrying into Allworthy's wealth. The couple soon
marry. After the marriage, Captain Blifil begins to show a coldness to his brother, who
eventually feels obliged to leave the house for London where he soon dies "of a broken heart".
Captain Blifil and his wife start to grow cool towards one another, and the former is found dead
from apoplexy one evening after taking his customary evening stroll prior to dinner. By then he
has fathered a boy, who grows up with the bastard Tom. Captain Blifil's son, known as Master
Blifil, is a miserable and jealous boy who conspires against Tom.

Tom grows into a vigorous and lusty yet honest and kind-hearted youth. Tom tends to be closer
friends with the servants and gamekeepers. He is close friends with Black George, who is the
gamekeeper. His first love is Molly, gamekeeper Black George's second daughter and a local
beauty. She throws herself at Tom; he gets her pregnant and then feels obliged to offer her his
protection. After some time, however, Tom finds out that Molly is somewhat promiscuous. He
then falls in love with a neighbouring squire's lovely daughter, Sophia Western. Tom and
Sophia confess their love for each other after Tom breaks his arm rescuing Sophia. Tom's status
as a bastard causes Sophia's father and Allworthy to oppose their love; this criticism of class
friction in society acted as a biting social commentary. The inclusion of prostitution and sexual
promiscuity in the plot was also original for its time, and the foundation for criticism of the
book's "lowness".

Sophia's father, Squire Western, is intent on making Sophia marry the hypocritical Master Blifil,
 but she refuses, and tries to escape from her father's influence. Tom, on the other hand, is
expelled from Allworthy's estate for his many misdemeanours. Allworthy had become ill and
was convinced he was dying. The servants of his estate and family members gather around his
bed as he disposes his wealth. He gives a favorable amount of his wealth to Tom Jones which
displeases Blifil. Tom doesn't care about what he has been given, his only concern is Allworth's
health. Allworthy's health improves and we learn that he will live. Tom Jones is so excited that
he begins to get drunk and gets into a fight with Blifil. Sophia wants to conceal her love for Tom
so she gives a majority of her attention to Blifil when the three of them are together. This leads
to Sophia's aunt, Mrs. Western, believing that Sophia and Blifil are in love. Mr. Western wants
Sophia to marry Blifil in order to gain property from the Allworthy estate. Blifil learns of
Sophia's true affection for Tom Jones and is angry. Blifil tells Allworthy that the day he almost
died, Tom was out drinking and singing and celebrating his death.[8] This is what leads Tom to
be banished. He starts his adventures across Britain, eventually ending up in London. Along his
journey, he meets up with a barber, whom we learn is Partridge, who was banished from town
because he was thought to be the father of Tom Jones. He becomes Tom's faithful companion
in hopes of gaining his name back. During their journey they end up at an Inn where a lady and
her maid arrive. An angry man arrives and the chambermaid points him in the direction she
thinks he needs to go. He bursts in on Mrs. Waters, a woman Tom rescued along his journey,
and Tom Jones in bed together. The man, however, was looking for Mrs. Fitzpatrick and leaves.
Sophia and her maid arrive at the same Inn, and Partridge unknowingly reveals the relationship
between Tom and Mrs. Waters. Sophia leaves with Mrs. Fitzpatrick, who is her cousin, and
heads for London. They arrive at the home of Lady Bellaston, followed by Tom and Partridge.
Eventually, Tom is able to tell Sophia that his true love is for her and no one else. Tom ends up
getting into a duel with Mr. Fitzpatrick, which leads to his imprisonment.

Eventually the secret of Tom's birth is revealed, after a brief scare that Mrs Waters (who is really
Jenny Jones) is his birth mother and that he has committed incest. Tom's real mother is Bridget,
who conceived him after an affair with a schoolmaster — hence he is the true nephew of Squire
Allworthy himself. After finding out about Tom's half-brother Master Blifil's intrigues, Allworthy
decides to bestow the majority of his inheritance to Tom. Tom and Sophia Western marry after
this revelation of his true parentage, as Squire Western no longer harbours any misgivings over
Tom marrying his daughter. Sophia bears Tom a son and a daughter, and the couple live on
happily with the blessings of Squire Western and Squire Allworthy.

List of characters
Master Thomas "Tom" Jones, a bastard and Allworthy's ward

Miss Sophia "Sophy" Western /ˌsoʊˈfaɪə/, Western's only daughter, the model of virtue, beauty,
and all good qualities

Master William Blifil /ˈblɪfəl/, the son of Captain Blifil and Bridget; a hypocrite and Tom Jones's
 rival

Squire Allworthy, the wealthy squire of an estate in Somerset and Tom's guardian; of
irreproachable character and good nature

Squire Western, a wealthy squire and huntsman who owns a neighbouring estate to Squire
Allworthy; a simpleton who wants to marry his daughter Sophia to Allworthy's heir (first Blifil
and then Jones)

Miss Bridget Allworthy (later Mrs. Blifil), Allworthy's sister

Lady Bellaston, Tom's lover and a leading figure in London society, who tries to force Sophia into
marriage to a Lord by having her raped by him, so she would have Jones to herself

Mrs. Honour Blackmore, Sophia's maid; egotistical and inconstant to her employer

Dr. Blifil, Captain Blifil's brother; dies of a broken heart at his brother's rejection

Captain John Blifil, a captain in the army and Allworthy's husband; with Methodist tendencies

Lawyer Dowling, a lawyer

Lord Fellamar, a peer and socialite; unsuccessfully conspires with Lady Bellaston to rape Sophia
so as to force her into marriage

Brian Fitzpatrick, an Irishman; abuses his wife Harriet Fitzpatrick

Harriet Fitzpatrick, Mrs. Western's former ward and Fitzpatrick's wife; a cousin and friend of
Sophia but lacking her virtue

Miss Jenny Jones (later Mrs. Waters), the Partridges' servant, a very intelligent woman who is
believed to be Tom's mother

Mrs. Miller, mother of Nancy and Betty Miller

Miss Betty Miller, pre-adolescent daughter of Mrs. Miller

Miss Nancy Miller (later Nightingale), a good-natured girl who is imposed on by Mr Nightingale
and would be ruined by him, together with her family, by lack of constancy in virtue

Mr. Nightingale, a young gentleman of leisure; saved from ruining his first true love by Jones's
entreaties

Mr. Benjamin "Little Benjamin" Partridge, a teacher, barber, and surgeon, suspected to be Tom
Jones's father

Mrs. Partridge, Partridge's extremely ill-natured first wife

Mr. George "Black George" Seagrim, Allworthy and later Western's gamekeeper; a poor man
and the object of much charity from Tom

Miss Molly "Moll" Seagrim, Black George's second daughter and Tom Jones's first lover; has a
bastard son, possibly by Tom

Mr. Thomas Square, a humanist philosopher and school teacher to Tom and Master Blifil; a
hypocrite who hates Jones and favours Blifil, but who refrains from conspiration and eventually
repents

The Rev. Mr. Roger Thwackum (Reverend/school teacher to Tom and Master Blifil, a hypocrite
who hates Tom Jones, favours Master Blifil and conspires with the latter against the former)

Miss Western, Squire Western's unmarried sister, who wrongly believes herself to "know the
World" (both in international and national politics and in social mores)

Mrs. Deborah Wilkins, Bridget's servant

55. FRANSKENTIEN
Plot Overview

<<

>>

In a series of letters, Robert Walton, the captain of a ship bound for the North Pole, recounts to
his sister back in England the progress of his dangerous mission. Successful early on, the
mission is soon interrupted by seas full of impassable ice. Trapped, Walton encounters Victor
Frankenstein, who has been traveling by dog-drawn sledge across the ice and is weakened by
the cold. Walton takes him aboard ship, helps nurse him back to health, and hears the fantastic
tale of the monster that Frankenstein created.

Victor first describes his early life in Geneva. At the end of a blissful childhood spent in the
company of Elizabeth Lavenza (his cousin in the 1818 edition, his adopted sister in the 1831
edition) and friend Henry Clerval, Victor enters the university of Ingolstadt to study natural
philosophy and chemistry. There, he is consumed by the desire to discover the secret of life
and, after several years of research, becomes convinced that he has found it.
Armed with the knowledge he has long been seeking, Victor spends months feverishly
fashioning a creature out of old body parts. One climactic night, in the secrecy of his apartment,
he brings his creation to life. When he looks at the monstrosity that he has created, however,
the sight horrifies him. After a fitful night of sleep, interrupted by the specter of the monster
looming over him, he runs into the streets, eventually wandering in remorse. Victor runs into
Henry, who has come to study at the university, and he takes his friend back to his apartment.
Though the monster is gone, Victor falls into a feverish illness.

Sickened by his horrific deed, Victor prepares to return to Geneva, to his family, and to health.
Just before departing Ingolstadt, however, he receives a letter from his father informing him
that his youngest brother, William, has been murdered. Grief-stricken, Victor hurries home.
While passing through the woods where William was strangled, he catches sight of the monster
and becomes convinced that the monster is his brother’s murderer. Arriving in Geneva, Victor
finds that Justine Moritz, a kind, gentle girl who had been adopted by the Frankenstein
household, has been accused. She is tried, condemned, and executed, despite her assertions of
innocence. Victor grows despondent, guilty with the knowledge that the monster he has
created bears responsibility for the death of two innocent loved ones.

Hoping to ease his grief, Victor takes a vacation to the mountains. While he is alone one day,
crossing an enormous glacier, the monster approaches him. The monster admits to the murder
of William but begs for understanding. Lonely, shunned, and forlorn, he says that he struck out
at William in a desperate attempt to injure Victor, his cruel creator. The monster begs Victor to
create a mate for him, a monster equally grotesque to serve as his sole companion.

Victor refuses at first, horrified by the prospect of creating a second monster. The monster is
eloquent and persuasive, however, and he eventually convinces Victor. After returning to
Geneva, Victor heads for England, accompanied by Henry, to gather information for the
creation of a female monster. Leaving Henry in Scotland, he secludes himself on a desolate
island in the Orkneys and works reluctantly at repeating his first success. One night, struck by
doubts about the morality of his actions, Victor glances out the window to see the monster
glaring in at him with a frightening grin. Horrified by the possible consequences of his work,
Victor destroys his new creation. The monster, enraged, vows revenge, swearing that he will be
with Victor on Victor’s wedding night.

Later that night, Victor takes a boat out onto a lake and dumps the remains of the second
 creature in the water. The wind picks up and prevents him from returning to the island. In the
morning, he finds himself ashore near an unknown town. Upon landing, he is arrested and
informed that he will be tried for a murder discovered the previous night. Victor denies any
knowledge of the murder, but when shown the body, he is shocked to behold his friend Henry
Clerval, with the mark of the monster’s fingers on his neck. Victor falls ill, raving and feverish,
and is kept in prison until his recovery, after which he is acquitted of the crime.

Shortly after returning to Geneva with his father, Victor marries Elizabeth. He fears the
monster’s warning and suspects that he will be murdered on his wedding night. To be cautious,
he sends Elizabeth away to wait for him. While he awaits the monster, he hears Elizabeth
scream and realizes that the monster had been hinting at killing his new bride, not himself.
Victor returns home to his father, who dies of grief a short time later. Victor vows to devote the
rest of his life to finding the monster and exacting his revenge, and he soon departs to begin his
quest.

Victor tracks the monster ever northward into the ice. In a dogsled chase, Victor almost catches
up with the monster, but the sea beneath them swells and the ice breaks, leaving an
unbridgeable gap between them. At this point, Walton encounters Victor, and the narrative
catches up to the time of Walton’s fourth letter to his sister.

Walton tells the remainder of the story in another series of letters to his sister. Victor, already ill
when the two men meet, worsens and dies shortly thereafter. When Walton returns, several
days later, to the room in which the body lies, he is startled to see the monster weeping over
Victor. The monster tells Walton of his immense solitude, suffering, hatred, and remorse. He
asserts that now that his creator has died, he too can end his suffering. The monster then
departs for the northernmost ice to die.

Character List

248. Victor Frankenstein - The doomed protagonist and narrator of the main portion
of the story. Studying in Ingolstadt, Victor discovers the secret of life and creates an
intelligent but grotesque monster, from whom he recoils in horror. Victor keeps his
creation of the monster a secret, feeling increasingly guilty and ashamed as he realizes
how helpless he is to prevent the monster from ruining his life and the lives of others..

249. The monster - The eight-foot-tall, hideously ugly creation of Victor

Frankenstein. Intelligent and sensitive, the monster attempts to integrate himself into
human social patterns, but all who see him shun him. His feeling of abandonment
 compels him to seek revenge against his creator.

250. Robert Walton - The Arctic seafarer whose letters open and close Frankenstein.
Walton picks the bedraggled Victor Frankenstein up off the ice, helps nurse him back to
health, and hears Victor’s story. He records the incredible tale in a series of letters
addressed to his sister, Margaret Saville, in England.

251. Alphonse Frankenstein - Victor’s father, very sympathetic toward his son.
Alphonse consoles Victor in moments of pain and encourages him to remember the
importance of family.

252. Elizabeth Lavenza - An orphan, four to five years younger than Victor, whom the
Frankensteins adopt. In the 1818 edition of the novel, Elizabeth is Victor’s cousin, the
child of Alphonse Frankenstein’s sister. In the 1831 edition, Victor’s mother rescues
Elizabeth from a destitute peasant cottage in Italy. Elizabeth embodies the novel’s motif
of passive women, as she waits patiently for Victor’s attention.

253. Henry Clerval - Victor’s boyhood friend, who nurses Victor back to health in
Ingolstadt. After working unhappily for his father, Henry begins to follow in Victor’s
footsteps as a scientist. His cheerfulness counters Victor’s moroseness.

254. William Frankenstein - Victor’s youngest brother and the darling of the
Frankenstein family. The monster strangles William in the woods outside Geneva in
order to hurt Victor for abandoning him. William’s death deeply saddens Victor and
burdens him with tremendous guilt about having created the monster.

255. Justine Moritz - A young girl adopted into the Frankenstein household while
Victor is growing up. Justine is blamed and executed for William’s murder, which is
actually committed by the monster.

256. Caroline Beaufort - The daughter of Beaufort. After her father’s death, Caroline
is taken in by, and later marries, Alphonse Frankenstein. She dies of scarlet fever, which
she contracts from Elizabeth, just before Victor leaves for Ingolstadt at age seventeen.

257. Beaufort - A merchant and friend of Victor’s father; the father of Caroline
Beaufort.

258. Peasants - A family of peasants, including a blind old man, De Lacey; his son and
daughter, Felix and Agatha; and a foreign woman named Safie. The monster learns how
to speak and interact by observing them. When he reveals himself to them, hoping for
friendship, they beat him and chase him away.

259. M. Waldman - The professor of chemistry who sparks Victor’s interest in

science. He dismisses the alchemists’ conclusions as unfounded but sympathizes with
Victor’s interest in a science that can explain the “big questions,” such as the origin of
 life.

260. M. Krempe - A professor of natural philosophy at Ingolstadt. He dismisses

Victor’s study of the alchemists as wasted time and encourages him to begin his studies
anew.

261. Mr. Kirwin - The magistrate who accuses Victor of Henry’s murder.

56. THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT WOMAN

The French Lieutenant's Woman is a 1969 postmodern historical fiction novel by John Fowles. It
was his third published novel, after The Collector (1963) and The Magus (1965). The novel
explores the fraught relationship of gentleman and amateur naturalist Charles Smithson and
Sarah Woodruff, the former governess and independent woman with whom he falls in love.
The novel builds on Fowles' authority in Victorian literature, both following and critiquing many
of the conventions of period novels.

Plot summary

Set in the mid-nineteenth century, the narrator identifies the novel's protagonist as Sarah
Woodruff, the Woman of the title, also known as "Tragedy" and as "The French Lieutenant's
Whore". She lives in the coastal town of Lyme Regis as a disgraced woman, supposedly
abandoned by a French ship's officer named Varguennes who had returned to France and
married. She spends some of her limited free time on The Cobb, a stone jetty where she stares
out to sea.

One day, Charles Smithson, an orphaned gentleman, and Ernestina Freeman, his fiancée and a
daughter of a wealthy tradesman, see Sarah walking along the cliffside. Ernestina tells Charles
something of Sarah's story, and he becomes curious about her. Though continuing to court
Ernestina, Charles has several more encounters with Sarah, meeting her clandestinely three
times. During these meetings, Sarah tells Charles of her history, and asks for his emotional and
social support. During the same period, he learns of the possible loss of place as heir to his
elderly uncle, who has become engaged to a woman young enough to bear a child. Meanwhile,
Charles's servant Sam falls in love with Mary, the maid of Ernestina's aunt.

In fact, Charles has fallen in love with Sarah and advises her to leave Lyme for Exeter. Returning
from a journey to warn Ernestina's father about his uncertain inheritance, Charles stops in
Exeter as if to visit Sarah. From there, the narrator, who intervenes throughout the novel and
later becomes a character in it, offers three different ways in which the novel could end:

First ending: Charles does not visit Sarah, but immediately returns to Lyme to reaffirm his love
for Ernestina. They marry, though the marriage never becomes particularly happy, and Charles
 enters trade under Ernestina's father, Mr. Freeman. The narrator pointedly notes the lack of
knowledge about Sarah's fate. Charles tells Ernestina about an encounter which he implies is
with the "French Lieutenant's Whore", but elides the sordid details, and the matter is ended.
The narrator dismisses this ending as a daydream by Charles, before the alternative events of
the subsequent meeting with Ernestina are described. Critic Michelle Phillips Buchberger
describes this first ending as "a semblance of verisimilitude in the traditional 'happy ending'"
found in actual Victorian novels.[11]

Before the second and third endings, the narrator appears as a character sharing a railway
compartment with Charles. He tosses a coin to determine the order in which he will portray the
other two possible endings, emphasising their equal plausibility. They are as follows:

Second ending: Charles and Sarah have a rash sexual encounter in which Charles realises that
Sarah was a virgin. Reflecting on his emotions during this, Charles ends his engagement to
Ernestina, and proposes to Sarah through a letter. Charles's servant Sam fails to deliver the
letter and, after Charles breaks his engagement, Ernestina's father disgraces him. His uncle
marries and his wife bears an heir, ensuring the loss of the expected inheritance. To escape the
social suicide and depression caused by his broken engagement, Charles goes abroad to Europe
and America. Ignorant of Charles' proposal, Sarah flees to London without telling her lover.
During Charles' trips abroad, his lawyer searches for Sarah, finding her two years later living in
the Chelsea house of the painter and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti, where she enjoys an artistic,
creative life. Sarah shows Charles the child of their affair, leaving him in hope that the three
may be reunited.

Third ending: The narrator re-appears outside the house at 16 Cheyne Walk and turns back his
pocket watch by fifteen minutes. Events are the same as in the second-ending version until
Charles meets Sarah, when their reunion is sour. The new ending does not make clear the
parentage of the child and Sarah expresses no interest in reviving the relationship. Charles
leaves the house, intending to return to the United States, wondering whether Sarah is a
manipulative, lying woman who exploited him.

Characters

The Narrator – as in other works of metafiction, the narrator's voice frequently intervenes in the
story with a personality of its own. Though the voice appears to be that of Fowles, Magali
Cornier Michael notes that chapter 13, which discusses the role of author and narrator within
fiction, distinguishes between the author's role in the text and the narrator's.[12] Alice Ferrebe
describes the narrator as both a lens for critiquing traditional gender roles and a perpetuation
of the perspectives on gendered identity perpetuated by the male gaze.[13]

Sarah Woodruff – the main protagonist according to the narrator. Formerly a governess, she
becomes disgraced after an illicit, but unconsummated, liaison with an injured French naval
merchant. The feminist critic Magali Cornier Michael argues that she is more a plot device, not
 interpretable as a main character because her thoughts and motivations are only interpreted
from the perspective of outside male characters. Sarah offers a representation of myth or
symbol within a male perspective on women.[14]

Charles Smithson – the main male character. Though born into a family with close ties to
nobility, Smithson does not possess a title but has a sizable income and considerable education.
Early in the novel he is described both as a casual naturalist and a Darwinist. Though trying to
become an enlightened and forward-thinking individual, the narrator often emphasises,
through commentary on Smithson's actions and situation, that his identity is strongly rooted in
the traditional social system.[14] Moreover, conflicting identification with social forces, such as
science and religion, lead Smithson to an existential crisis.

Ernestina Freeman – Smithson's fiancee and daughter to a London-based owner of department

stores. Unlike Sarah, Ernestina's temperament is much less complex, and much more
simple-minded.

Sam Farrow – Charles's Hackney servant with aspirations to become a haberdasher. Throughout
the novel, Sam becomes the narrator's model for the working class peoples of Victorian Britain,
comparing Sam's identity with Charles's ignorance of that culture. According to critic David
Landrum, the tension between Sam and Charles Smithson importantly demonstrates Marxist
class struggle, though this aspect of the novel is often overlooked by criticism emphasizing
Charles's relationship to Sarah.[16]

Dr Grogan – an Irish doctor in the town of Lyme Regis who both advises the various upper-class
families in the town, and becomes an adviser to Charles. His education and interest in Darwin
and other education make him a good companion for Charles.

Mr Freeman – the father of Ernestina, he earned his wealth as an owner of a drapery and clothes
sales chain of stores. He "represents the rising entrepreneurial class in England" which stands
in stark contrast to the old money which Smithson comes from.[16]

Aunt Tranter – a prominent member of Lyme Regis society who is friends with Grogan and, as
her maternal aunt, hosts Ernestina during her stay.

Mrs Poulteney – a wealthy widow and, at the beginning of the novel, the employer of Sarah
Woodruff. Hypocritical, and hypersensitive, her character fulfills the archetype of high-society
villainess.

Mary – stereotypical lower class servant to Ernestina Freeman and future wife to Sam Farrow.

Montague - Charles Smithson's family lawyer of a firm which has been around since the
eighteenth century. 2–3 years older than Charles, he helps his client in search of Sarah towards
the end of the novel.
 57. THE OLD CURIOSITY SHOP
The Old Curiosity Shop is a novel by Charles Dickens. The plot follows the life of Nell Trent and
her grandfather, both residents of The Old Curiosity Shop in London.

The Old Curiosity Shop was one of two novels (the other being Barnaby Rudge) which Dickens
published along with short stories in his weekly serial Master Humphrey's Clock, which lasted
from 1840 to 1841. It was so popular that New York readers stormed the wharf when the ship
bearing the final instalment arrived in 1841. The Old Curiosity Shop was printed in book form in
1841.

Queen Victoria read the novel in 1841, finding it "very interesting and cleverly written."

Plot summary

The Old Curiosity Shop tells the story of Nell Trent, a beautiful and virtuous young girl of "not
quite fourteen". An orphan, she lives with her maternal grandfather (whose name is never
revealed) in his shop of odds and ends. Her grandfather loves her dearly, and Nell does not
complain, but she lives a lonely existence with almost no friends her own age. Her only friend is
Kit, an honest boy employed at the shop, whom she is teaching to write. Secretly obsessed with
ensuring that Nell does not die in poverty as her parents did, her grandfather attempts to
provide Nell with a good inheritance through gambling at cards. He keeps his nocturnal games
a secret, but borrows heavily from the evil Daniel Quilp, a malicious, grotesquely deformed,
hunchbacked dwarf moneylender. In the end, he gambles away what little money they have,
and Quilp seizes the opportunity to take possession of the shop and evict Nell and her
grandfather. Her grandfather suffers a breakdown that leaves him bereft of his wits, and Nell
takes him away to the Midlands of England, to live as beggars.

Convinced that the old man has stored up a large and prosperous fortune for Nell, her wastrel
older brother, Frederick, convinces the good-natured but easily led Dick Swiveller to help him
track Nell down, so that Swiveller can marry Nell and share her supposed inheritance with
Frederick. To this end, they join forces with Quilp, who knows full well that there is no fortune,
but sadistically chooses to 'help' them to enjoy the misery it will inflict on all concerned. Quilp
begins to try to track Nell down, but the fugitives are not easily discovered. To keep Dick
Swiveller under his eye, Quilp arranges for him to be taken as a clerk by Quilp's lawyer, Mr.
Brass. At the Brass firm, Dick befriends the mistreated maidservant and nicknames her 'the
Marchioness'. Nell, having fallen in with a number of characters, some villainous and some
kind, succeeds in leading her grandfather to safety in a far-off village (identified by Dickens as
Tong, Shropshire), but this comes at a considerable cost to Nell's health.

Meanwhile, Kit, having lost his job at the curiosity shop, has found new employment with the
kind Mr and Mrs Garland. Here he is contacted by a mysterious 'single gentleman' who is
looking for news of Nell and her grandfather. The 'single gentleman' and Kit's mother go after
 them unsuccessfully, and encounter Quilp, who is also hunting for the runaways. Quilp forms a
grudge against Kit and has him framed as a thief. Kit is sentenced to transportation. However,
Dick Swiveller proves Kit's innocence with the help of his friend the Marchioness. Quilp is
hunted down and dies trying to escape his pursuers. At the same time, a coincidence leads Mr
Garland to knowledge of Nell's whereabouts, and he, Kit, and the single gentleman (who turns
out to be the younger brother of Nell's grandfather) go to find her. Sadly, by the time they
arrive, Nell has died as a result of her arduous journey. Her grandfather, already mentally
infirm, refuses to admit she is dead and sits every day by her grave waiting for her to come
back until, a few months later, he dies himself.

Background

The events of the book seem to take place around 1825. In Chapter 29 Miss Monflathers refers
to the death of Lord Byron, who died on 19 April 1824. When the inquest rules (incorrectly) that
Quilp committed suicide, his corpse is ordered to be buried at a crossroads with a stake
through the heart, a practice banned in 1823.[3] Nell's grandfather, after his breakdown, fears
that he shall be sent to a madhouse, and there chained to a wall and whipped; these practices
went out of use after about 1830.[citation needed] In Chapter 13, the lawyer Mr. Brass is
described as "one of Her Majesty's attornies" [sic], putting him in the reign of Queen Victoria,
which began in 1837, but given all the other evidence, and the fact that Kit, at his trial, is
charged with acting "against the peace of our Sovereign Lord the King" (referring to George IV),
this must be a slip of the pen.

Characters in The Old Curiosity Shop

Major characters

Nell Trent, the novel's main character. Portrayed as infallibly good and angelic, she leads her
grandfather on their journey to save them from misery. She gradually becomes weaker
throughout the journey, and although she finds a home with the help of the schoolmaster, she
sickens and dies before her friends in London find her.

Nell's grandfather, Nell's guardian. After losing both his wife and daughter, he sees Nell as the
embodiment of their good spirits. His grandson Fred is seen as the successor to his son-in-law,
who he felt unworthy of his daughter. As such, he shows him no affection. He is paranoid about
falling into poverty and gambles to try to stave that off; as his money runs out, he turns to Quilp
for loans to continue to furnish for Nell the life he feels she deserves. After believing Kit has
revealed his secret addiction he falls ill and is mentally unstable afterwards. Nell then protects
him as he had done for her. Although he knows Nell is dead he refuses to acknowledge it and
does not recognise his brother whom he had protected in their childhood. He dies soon after
Nell, and is buried beside her.

Christopher 'Kit' Nubbles, Nell's friend and servant. He watches out for Nell when she is left in
the shop alone at night (although she doesn't know he's there) and will 'never come home to
 his bed until he thinks she's safe in hers'. After Quilp takes over the shop, he offers him a place
in his house. His mother is concerned about his attachment to Nell, and at one point jokes,
'some people would say that you'd fallen in love with her', at which Kit becomes very bashful
and tries to change the subject. He is later given a position at the Garlands' house, and
becomes an important member of their household. His dedication to his family earns him the
respect of many characters, and the resentment of Quilp. He is framed for robbery, but is later
released and joins the party traveling to recover Nell.

Daniel Quilp, the novel's primary villain. He mistreats his wife, Betsy, and manipulates others to
his own ends through a false charm he has developed over the years. He lends money to Nell's
grandfather and takes possession of the curiosity shop during the old man's illness (which he
had caused by revealing his knowledge of the old man's bad gambling habit). He uses sarcasm
to belittle those he wishes to control, most notably his wife, and takes a sadistic delight in the
suffering of others. He eavesdrops so as to know all of 'the old man's' most private thoughts,
and teases him, saying 'you have no secrets from me now'. He also drives a wedge between Kit
and the old man (and as a result between Kit and Nell) by pretending it was Kit who told him
about the gambling.

Richard 'Dick' Swiveller, in turn, Frederick Trent's manipulated friend; Sampson Brass's clerk; and
the Marchioness' guardian and eventual husband. He delights in quoting and adapting
literature to describe his experiences. He is very laid-back and doesn't seem to worry about
anything, despite the fact that he owes money to just about everybody. Following Fred's
departure from the story, he becomes more independent and eventually is seen as a strong
force for good, securing Kit's release from prison and the Marchioness' future. His
transformation from an idle and vacant youth to a key helpmate bridges the depiction of the
main characters that are either mostly villainous or goodly in nature.

The single gentleman, who is never named, is the estranged younger brother of Nell's
grandfather. He leads the search for the travelers after taking lodging in Sampson Brass's
rooms and befriending Dick, Kit and the Garlands.

Other characters

Mrs. Betsy Quilp, Quilp's mistreated wife. She is mortally afraid of her husband, but appears to
love him in spite of everything, as she was genuinely worried when he disappeared for a long
period.

Mr. Sampson Brass, an attorney (what would now be called a solicitor) of the Court of the King's
Bench. A grovelling, obsequious man, he is an employee of Mr. Quilp, at whose urging he
frames Kit for robbery.

Miss Sarah ('Sally') Brass, Mr. Brass's obnoxious sister and clerk. She is the real authority in the
Brass firm. She is occasionally referred to as a "dragon", and she mistreats the Marchioness.
 Quilp makes amorous advances towards her, but is rebuffed.

Mrs. Jarley, proprietor of a travelling waxworks show, who takes in Nell and her grandfather out
of kindness. However, she only appears briefly.

Frederick Trent, Nell's worthless older brother, who is convinced that his grandfather is secretly
wealthy (when in actuality he was the primary cause of the old man's poverty, according to the
single gentleman). Initially a major character in the novel and highly influential over Richard
Swiveller, he is dropped from the narrative after chapter 23. Briefly mentioned as travelling to
Great Britain and the wider world following his disappearance from the story, before being
found injured and drowned in the River Seine after the story's conclusion. The character was
named after the novelist's younger brother, Frederick Dickens.[6]

Mr. Garland, a kind-hearted man, father of Abel Garland and employer of Kit.

The small servant, Miss Brass's maidservant. Dick Swiveller befriends her and, finding that she
does not know her age or name (Sally Brass simply refers to her as "Little Devil") or parents,
nicknames her The Marchioness and later gives her the name Sophronia Sphynx. In the original
manuscript it is made explicit that the Marchioness is in fact the illegitimate daughter of Miss
Brass, possibly by Quilp, but only a suggestion of this survived in the published edition.

Isaac List and Joe Jowl, professional gamblers. They are fellow guests at the public house where
Nell and her grandfather, unable to get home, pass a stormy night. Nell's grandfather is unable
to resist gambling with them, and fleeces Nell of what little money she has to this end. That
same night, he also robs her of even more money.

Mr. Chuckster, the dogsbody of the notary Mr. Witherden, who employs Mr. Abel Garland. He
takes a strong dislike to Kit after Mr. Garland overpays Kit for a job and Kit returns to work off
the difference; he shows his dislike at every opportunity, calling Kit 'Snobby'.

Mr. Marton, a poor schoolmaster. He befriends Nell and later inadvertently meets her and her
grandfather on the roads. Nell approaches him to beg for alms, not realising who he is. She
faints from a combination of shock and exhaustion, and, realising she is ill, he takes her to an
inn and pays for the doctor, and then takes her and her grandfather to live with him in the
distant village where he has been appointed parish clerk.

Thomas Codlin, proprietor of a travelling Punch and Judy show.

Mr. Harris, called 'Short Trotters', the puppeteer of the Punch and Judy show.

Barbara, the maidservant of Mr. and Mrs. Garland and future wife of Kit.

The Bachelor, brother of Mr. Garland. Lives in the village where Nell and her grandfather end
their journey, and unknowingly alerts his brother to their presence through a letter.

Mrs. Jiniwin, Mrs. Quilp's mother, and Quilp's mother-in-law. She resents Quilp for the way he
 treats her daughter, but is too afraid to stand up to him.

58. WIDE SARGOSSA SEA

Wide Sargasso Sea is a 1966 postcolonial novel by Dominica-born British author Jean Rhys. The
author lived in obscurity after her previous work, Good Morning, Midnight, was published in
1939. She had published other novels between these works, but Wide Sargasso Sea caused a
revival of interest in Rhys and her work. It was her most commercially successful novel,
benefited as well by feminist exploration of power relationships between men and women.

The novel is written as a prequel and response to Charlotte Brontë's novel Jane Eyre (1847),
describing the background to the marriage that Jane learns about after going to work for Mr.
Rochester. It is the story of Antoinette Cosway, a Creole heiress, from the time of her youth in
Jamaica, to her unhappy marriage to a certain English gentleman—he is never named by the
author. He renames her to a prosaic Bertha, declares her mad, and requires her to relocate to
England. Caught in an oppressive patriarchal society in which she fully belongs neither to the
Europeans nor the Jamaicans, Antoinette Cosway is Rhys' version of Brontë's devilish
"madwoman in the attic." As with many postcolonial works, the novel deals with the themes of
ethnic inequality and the harshness of displacement and assimilation. It is also concerned with
power relations between men and women.

Plot

The novel opens a short while after the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 ended slavery in the British
Empire on 1 August 1834. The protagonist Antoinette relates the story of her life from
childhood to her arranged marriage to an unnamed Englishman (implied as Mr Rochester from
Jane Eyre). As their marriage progresses, Antoinette, whom he renames "Bertha" and confines
to a locked room, descends into madness, in part from despair at being torn from her island
home in the Caribbean and subjected to an alien culture and climate.

The novel is split into three parts:

Part One takes place in Coulibri, Jamaica, and is narrated by Antoinette as a child. Since the
abolition of slavery caused her family to become very poor, Antoinette's mother, Annette, must
remarry to wealthy Englishman Mr. Mason. Angry at the returning prosperity of their
oppressors, freed slaves living in Coulibri burn down Annette's house, killing Antoinette's
mentally disabled younger brother. As Annette had been struggling with her mental health up
until this point, the grief of losing her son weakens her sanity. Mr. Mason sends her to live with
a couple who torment her until she dies and Antoinette does not see her again.

Part Two alternates between the points of view of her husband and of Antoinette during their
"honeymoon" excursion to Granbois, Dominica. Likely catalysts for Antoinette's downfall are
 the mutual suspicions that develop between the aforementioned couple, and the machinations
of Daniel, who claims he is Antoinette's (illegitimate) brother; he impugns Antoinette's
reputation and mental state and demands hush money. Antoinette's old nurse Christophine
openly distrusts the Englishman. His apparent belief in the destructive accounts about
Antoinette aggravate the situation; Rochester becomes visibly unfaithful to her and
emotionally abuses her. He begins to call her Bertha rather than her real name and flaunts his
affairs in front of her to cause her pain. Antoinette's increased sense of paranoia and the bitter
disappointment of her failing marriage unbalance her already precarious mental and emotional
state. She flees to Christophine's house, her former servant and the woman who raised her.
Antoinette pleads with Christophine for an obeah potion to attempt to reignite her husband's
love, which Christophine reluctantly gives her. Antoinette returns home and poisons Mr.
Rochester unwittingly. He does not accept Christophine's suggestions of help for his wife and
decides to take her back to England.

Part Three is the shortest part of the novel; it is from the perspective of Antoinette, renamed by
her husband as Bertha. She is largely confined to "the attic" of Thornfield Hall, the Rochester
mansion she calls the "Great House." The story traces her relationship with Grace, the servant
who is tasked with guarding her, as well as her disintegrating life with the Englishman, as he
hides her from the world. He makes empty promises to come to her more but sees less of her.
He ventures away to pursue relationships with other women – and eventually with the young
governess, Jane Eyre. It is clear that Antoinette is not of sound mind and has little
understanding of how much time she has been confined to her attic internment. She fixates on
options of freedom including her stepbrother Richard Mason who, however, will not interfere
with her husband, so she attacks him with a stolen knife. Expressing her thoughts in stream of
consciousness, Antoinette dreams of flames engulfing the house and her freedom from the life
she has there, and believes it is her destiny to fulfill the vision. Waking from her dream she
escapes her room, sets the fire, and takes her own life by jumping from the roof.

Character List

Antoinette - The daughter of ex-slave owners and the story's principal character, based on the
madwoman Bertha from Charlotte Brontë's gothic novel Jane Eyre. Antoinette is a sensitive and
lonely young Creole girl who grows up with neither her mother's love nor her peers'
companionship. In a convent school as a young woman, Antoinette becomes increasingly
introspective and isolated, showing the early signs of her inherited emotional fragility. Her
arranged marriage to an unsympathetic and controlling English gentleman exacerbates her
condition and pushes her to fits of violence. Eventually her husband brings her to England and
locks her in his attic, assigning a servant woman to watch over her. Delusional and paranoid,
Antoinette awakes from a vivid dream and sets out to burn down the house.

Annette - Antoinette's young and beautiful mother. Annette is the second wife first to
Alexander Cosway and later to Mr. Mason. The white Jamaican women ostracize Annette
because of her beauty and outsider status—she is originally from Martinique. A disembodied
 presence throughout the book, Annette shows signs of madness and melancholy in her
daughter's earliest recollections. Often the subject of gossip, she feels abandoned, scared, and
persecuted. After the fire, Mr. Mason leaves Annette in the care of a black couple who
reportedly humiliate her and mock her condition. Annette dies when Antoinette is at the
convent school.

Rochester - Antoinette's English husband who, though never named in the novel, narrates at
least a third of the story. Rochester, the youngest son of a wealthy Englishman, travels to the
West Indies for financial independence, as his older brother will inherit his father's estate.
When Rochester arrives in Spanish Town he comes down with a fever almost immediately. He
is pressured into marrying Antoinette, although he has only just met her and knows nothing of
her family. He soon realizes the mistake he has made when he and Antoinette honeymoon on
one of the Windward Islands. Eventually, they abandon the Caribbean lifestyle Rochester has
come to abhor. They move back to England, where he locks his deranged wife in an upstairs
garret.

Christophine - A servant given to Annette as a wedding present by her first husband, Alexander
Cosway. Christophine, like her mistress, comes from Martinique and is therefore treated as an
outsider by the Jamaican servant women. A wise and ageless figure, Christophine is loyal to
both Annette and her daughter, and she exercises an unspoken authority within the household.
Christophine practices obeah, a Caribbean black magic, with which she tries to help Antoinette
regain first her husband's love and then her sanity.

Mr. Mason - One of the elegant English visitors who visits Antoinette's mother at Coulibri
Estate. Mr. Mason is a wealthy Englishman who comes to the West Indies to make money.
Captivated by his second wife's beauty, he intends to become even more prosperous by
restoring Coulibri. He is confident in his authority to control the servants, believing them
harmless and lazy and dismissing his wife's fears of revolt. Mr. Mason effectively abandons
Annette and her daughter after the fire.

Aunt Cora - The widow of a prosperous slave owner. Aunt Cora lives alone in Spanish Town.
Unlike Antoinette's own mother Annette, Cora nurtures and cares for Antoinette, and
eventually enrolls her in a convent school. But eventually Cora, too, abandons Antoinette when
she moves to England for a year. On her return, Cora tries to ensure Antoinette's financial
independence by giving her a silk pouch and two of her treasured rings. Ill and in bed, Cora tells
her niece that she does not trust Richard and that she fears that the Lord has forsaken them.

Alexander Cosway - Antoinette's deceased father. Alexander Cosway was a debased ex-slave
owner known for fathering illegitimate children, squandering the family's money, and drinking
himself into a stupor. His family lived on Jamaica for several generations as detested plantation
owners; according to his bastard child, Daniel, madness ran in their genes. By the time Mr.
Cosway died, leaving his second wife and their two children on their own, the Emancipation Act
had led to the ruin of his sugar plantation and the end of his fortune.
Amelie - A young half-caste servant who accompanies Antoinette and her husband to Granbois.
The lovely and cunning Amelie snickers at her newlywed employers with a sort of knowing
contempt, using her thinly veiled amusement to unsettle them. When Antoinette slaps Amelie
for an impudent comment, Amelie slaps Antoinette back, calling her a "white cockroach" and
smiling suggestively at her husband. Later, Amelie feeds and comforts Antoinette's husband,
then sleeps with him. When he offers Amelie a gift of money the following morning, she
refuses it and announces that she is going to leave Massacre and go to Rio, where she will find
rich, generous men.

Sandi Cosway - One of Alexander Cosway's bastard children. Sandi helps his half-sister,
Antoinette, when she is harassed on her way to school. Although Antoinette would like to call
him "Cousin Sandi," Mr. Mason scolds her for acknowledging her black relatives. According to
Daniel Cosway, Sandi is "more handsome than any white man" and is well received by polite
white society. Daniel also suggests that Sandi and Antoinette were sexually involved as young
children. Indeed, Antoinette's fragmented memory of a goodbye kiss with Sandi supports this
possibility that the two may have been intimate at some point.

Daniel Cosway - Another of Alexander Cosway's bastard chidren. Daniel writes a letter to
Rochester that informs him of the madness that runs in Antoinette's family. The half-white,
half-black Daniel is a racially split counterpart to the culturally split Antoinette.

Richard Mason - Mr. Mason's son by his first marriage. After studying for several years in the
Barbados, Richard moves to Spanish Town, where he negotiates Antoinette's marriage
arrangements after his father's death. He persuades the nameless English gentleman to marry
his stepsister, offering him £30,000 and rights over the girl's inheritance. Later, Richard visits
the couple in England and hardly recognizes Antoinette as the madwoman locked in the attic.
She flies at him in a delusional rage, cutting him with a secretly obtained knife.

Tia - Maillotte's daughter and Antoinette's only childhood friend. At the water pool, Tia betrays
Antoinette by taking her pennies and stealing her clothes. Tia's disloyalty manifests the allure
and corrupting power of money in the text. Like Mr. Mason and Mr. Rochester, she appears to
covet money more than a loving relationship, whether it be a childhood friendship or a
marriage.

Pierre - Antoinette's mentally and physically disabled younger brother. While not explicitly
stated, it is suggested that Pierre's illness is a result of inbreeding and physical decline in the
Cosway family. When the house at Coulibri is set on fire, Pierre is trapped in his burning room
for some time, and he dies soon after.

Mr. Luttrell - One of Annette Cosway's only friends after the death of her husband. Mr. Luttrell
lives at Nelson's Rest, the estate that neighbors the Cosway home. Suffering financial hardship
in the wake of the Emancipation Act, in sudden desperation he shoots his dog and swims out to
sea, never to be seen again. Distant relatives finally reclaim Mr. Luttrell's abandoned estate.
Baptiste - One of servants at Granbois, the overseer of the mansion. Baptiste is a dignified man
of advanced age.

Godfrey - One of the old Cosway servants who stays on after the master's death. Godfrey is
considered a greedy and untrustworthy "rascal," at least in Annette's view. He makes constant
allusions to death and damnation.

Sass - One of the servants who has been at Coulibri for several years, ever since his mother
abandoned him there as a child. Sass leaves the estate when Annette's money runs out, but he
returns when Mr. Mason arrives. Annette distrusts Sass, believing him to be greedy and
self-serving.

Grace Poole - A woman who answers an advertisement placed by Mrs. Eff for a servant to look
after the deranged Antoinette. Grace is promised twice as much as the other household
servants as long as she keeps her mouth shut and guards Antoinette well. Sharing the same
garret space with Antoinette, Grace drinks frequently, often falling asleep with the garret key in
plain view of her captor and charge.

Leah - The cook employed by Antoinette's husband. Leah is one of only three servants who
know about the woman in the attic.

Mrs. Eff - An incarnation of Mrs. Fairfax and the head housekeeper at Thornfield Hall. While
Mrs. Eff never appears in the novel, Grace mentions her in her conversation with Leah.

Mother St. Justine - The head instructor at the convent school. Mother St. Justine tells the girls
about the lives of female saints, instructs them on manners and cleanliness, and teaches them
how to be proper Christian ladies.

Mannie - A groom. Mannie is one of the new servants who Mr. Mason brings to Coulibri.

Maillotte - Like Christophine, a black servant who distinguishes herself by not being Jamaican.
Maillotte is Tia's mother and Christophine's only friend.

59. THE HEART OF MATTER

The Heart of the Matter (1948) is a novel by English author Graham Greene. The book details a
life-changing moral crisis for Henry Scobie. Greene, a British intelligence officer in Freetown,
Sierra Leone, drew on his experience there. Although Freetown is not mentioned in the novel,
Greene confirms the location in his 1980 memoir, Ways of Escape.

The Heart of the Matter was enormously popular, selling more than 300,000 copies in the
United Kingdom upon its release. It won the 1948 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction. In
 1998, the Modern Library ranked The Heart of the Matter 40th on its list of the 100 best
English-language novels of the 20th century. In 2005, the novel was chosen by TIME magazine
as one of the one hundred best English-language novels from 1923 to the present. In 2012, it
was shortlisted for the Best of the James Tait Black.

The book's title appears halfway through the novel: "If one knew, he wondered, the facts, would
one have to feel pity even for the planets? If one reached what they called the heart of the
matter?"

Plot summary
Major Scobie lives in a colony in the West Coast of Africa during World War II, and is responsible
for local security during wartime. His wife Louise, an unhappy, solitary woman who loves
literature and poetry, cannot make friends. Scobie feels responsible for her misery, but does
not love her. Their only child, Catherine, died in England several years before. Louise is a
devout Catholic. Scobie, a convert, is also devout. Scobie is passed over for promotion to
Commissioner, which upsets Louise both for her personal ambition and her hope that the local
British community will begin to accept her. Louise asks Scobie if she can go and live in South
Africa to escape the life she hates.

At the same time, a new inspector, named Wilson, arrives in the town. He is priggish and socially
inept, and hides his passion for poetry for fear of ostracism by his colleagues. He and Louise
strike up a friendship, which Wilson mistakes for love. Wilson rooms with another colleague
named Harris, who has created a sport for himself of killing the cockroaches that appear in the
apartment each night. He invites Wilson to join him, but in the first match, they end up
quarrelling over the rules of engagement.

One of Scobie's duties is to lead the inspections of local passenger ships, particularly looking for
smuggled diamonds, a needle-in-a-haystack problem that never yields results. A Portuguese
ship, the Esperança (the Portuguese word for "hope"), comes into port, and a disgruntled
steward reveals the location of a letter hidden in the captain’s quarters. Scobie finds it, and
because it is addressed to someone in Germany, he must confiscate it in case it should contain
secret codes or other clandestine information. The captain says it’s a letter to his daughter and
begs Scobie to forget the incident, offering him a bribe of one hundred pounds when he learns
that they share a faith. Scobie declines the bribe and takes the letter, but having opened and
read it through (thus breaking the rules) and finding it innocuous, he decides not to submit it to
the authorities, and burns it.

Scobie is called to a small inland town to deal with the suicide of the local inspector, a man
named Pemberton, who was in his early twenties and left a note implying that his suicide was
due to a loan he couldn’t repay. Scobie suspects the involvement of the local agent of a Syrian
man named Yusef, a local black marketeer. Yusef denies it, but warns Scobie that the British
have sent a new inspector specifically to look for diamonds; Scobie claims this is a hoax and
 that he doesn't know of any such man. Scobie later dreams that he is in Pemberton's situation,
even writing a similar note, but when he awakens, he tells himself that he could never commit
suicide, as no cause is worth the eternal damnation that suicide would bring.

Scobie tries to secure a loan from the bank to pay the two hundred pound fee for Louise’s
passage, but is turned down. Yusef offers to lend Scobie the money at four per cent per annum.
Scobie initially declines, but after an incident where he mistakenly thinks Louise is
contemplating suicide, he accepts the loan and sends Louise to South Africa. Wilson meets
them at the pier and tries to interfere with their parting.

Shortly afterwards, the survivors of a shipwreck begin to arrive after forty days at sea in
lifeboats. One young girl dies as Scobie tries to comfort her by pretending to be her father, who
was killed in the wreck. A 19-year-old woman named Helen Rolt also arrives in bad shape,
clutching an album of postage stamps. She was married before the ship left its original port and
is now a widow, and her wedding ring is too big for her finger. Scobie feels drawn to her, as
much to the cherished album of stamps as to her physical presence, even though she is not
beautiful. She reminds him of his daughter.

He soon starts a passionate affair with her, all the time being aware that he is committing a
grave sin of adultery. A letter he writes to Helen ends up in Yusef's hands, and the Syrian uses it
to blackmail Scobie into sending a package of diamonds for him via the returning Esperança,
thus avoiding the authorities.

After Louise unexpectedly returns, Scobie struggles to keep her ignorant of his love affair. But he
is unable to renounce Helen, even in the confessional, where the priest instructs him to think it
over and postpones absolution. Still, to placate his wife, Scobie attends Mass with her and
receives communion in his state of mortal sin—a sacrilege according to Catholic teaching. Soon
after Yusef's servant delivers a "gift" to Scobie, which he refuses; however, Scobie's servant, Ali,
witnesses this and a romantic embrace between Scobie and Helen. Scobie visits Yusef to
confront him about the gift but more so to unburden his suspicion that Ali, whom he had
trusted for all of their 15 years together, is disloyal. Yusef says he will take care of the matter,
which within a few hours ends up in Ali being killed by local teenagers known as "wharf rats".
The reader is led to believe that Yusef arranged the killing; however, Scobie blames himself.

Having gone this far down the path of ruin and seeing no way out, the proud Scobie decides to
free everyone from himself—including God—and plots his death by faking a heart ailment and
getting a prescription for sleeping pills. Knowing full well that suicide is the ultimate damnation
according to Church doctrine, he proceeds in the end to commit suicide with the pills. The act,
however, yields ambiguous results. Helen continues her dreary existence. And Louise, who
knew about the affair all along, is made to realize by her suitor, Wilson, that Scobie’s death was
a suicide. She tells Wilson she won’t marry him but might in time.

The concluding chapter consists of a short encounter between Louise and the confessional
priest. Louise tries to square Scobie’s suicide with his Catholicism, to which the priest advises
 that no one can know what’s in a person’s heart or about God’s mercy.

Characters

Major Henry Scobie – Longtime police deputy commissioner and protagonist of the novel.

Louise Scobie – Henry's devout Catholic wife.

Catherine Scobie – Deceased daughter of Henry and Louise.

Ali – Scobie's long-time African servant.

Edward Wilson – New inspector who secretly spies on the actions of Major Scobie, and is in love
with Louise.

Harris – Housemate to Wilson

"Dicky" Pemberton – Inspector who commits suicide due to his large debt to Yusef.

Helen Rolt – Newly arriving widow who becomes Scobie's mistress.

Yusef – Syrian local black marketeer who blackmails Scobie after finding a letter in which he
expresses his love for Helen.

Tallit – Catholic Syrian who is the main competitor to Yusef.

Father Rank – Local Catholic priest.

Father Clay – Catholic priest at Bamba who reads about saints.

60.THE JOYS OF MOTHERHOOD

The Joys of Motherhood is a novel written by Buchi Emecheta. It was first published by Allison &
Busby in 1979 and was reprinted in Heinemann's African Writers Series in 2008. The basis of
the novel is the "necessity for a woman to be fertile, and above all to give birth to sons". It tells
the tragic story of Nnu-Ego, daughter of Nwokocha Agbadi and Ona, who had a bad fate with
childbearing. This novel explores the life of a Nigerian woman, Nnu Ego. Nnu’s life centres on
her children and through them, she gains the respect of her community. Traditional tribal
values and customs begin to shift with increasing colonial presence and influence, pushing Ego
to challenge accepted notions of "mother", "wife", and "woman". Through Nnu Ego’s journey,
Emecheta forces her readers to consider the dilemmas associated with adopting new ideas and
practices against the inclination to cleave to tradition. In this novel, Emecheta reveals and
celebrates the pleasures derived from fulfilling responsibilities related to family matters in
child bearing, mothering, and nurturing activities among women. However, the author
 additionally highlights how the ‘joys of motherhood’ also include anxiety, obligation, and pain.

In the words of critic Marie Umeh, Emecheta "breaks the prevalent portraitures in African
writing.... It must have been difficult to draw provocative images of African motherhood
against the already existing literary models, especially on such a sensitive subject.

Plot Overview

Nnu Ego, the protagonist, stumbles across the Yaba compound, almost delusional with grief. She
makes her way to the waterfront, heading to Carter Bridge, intent on throwing herself off.

The action shifts to twenty-five years previous to this moment, in the village of Ogboli in the
Ibuza homeland. Agbadi, the esteemed local chief, is enamored by the one woman he cannot
possess, the beautiful and strong-willed Ona. During a hunting trip, Agbadi is gored by an
injured elephant and not expected to live long. Ona slowly nurses him back to health. As he
heals, he humiliates her in the compound by loudly forcing his sexual attentions on her. She
becomes pregnant as the result of this union. If it is a boy, the child will belong to Ona’s father,
but if it is a girl, Agbadi will accept responsibility. When Nnu Ego is born, a medicine man
concludes that her chi, or guiding spirit, is the slave girl who was forcibly killed and buried with
one of Agbadi’s wives. Within the year, Ona dies during childbirth.

Sixteen years later, Nnu Ego is of marrying age. She is first betrothed to Amatokwu. When she
does not become pregnant, relations cool between her and Amatokwu, and she is soon moved
to another hut to make room for a new wife. Nnu Ego is relegated to working in the fields and
taking care of the new wife’s infant son. When Amatokwu catches Nnu Ego breast-feeding the
hungry child, he beats her. Nnu Ego returns to her father to rest and recover, and the marriage
ties are severed. Dedicated to finding his daughter a better match, Agbadi arranges a marriage
between Nnu Ego and Nnaife, who lives in faraway Lagos. Nnaife’s older brother escorts Nnu
Ego to the city and her new life with Nnaife.

Nnaife and Nnu Ego live in the Yaba compound, where Nnaife does laundry for the Meers, a
British couple. Happy in her marriage, Nnu Ego becomes pregnant and gives birth to a son,
Ngozi. She also starts her own business selling cigarettes and matches beside the road. One
morning, she discovers Ngozi dead in their one-room home. Distraught and devoid of hope, she
rushes to the waterfront to throw herself off Carter Bridge. Nwakusor, an Ibo man coming off
his shift at work, prevents her with the help of the crowd that has gathered.

Recovering from Ngozi’s death is a slow and painful process. Eventually, Nnu Ego becomes
pregnant again and gives birth to Oshia. She decides to focus solely on raising the child instead
of making extra income at her market stall. But economic pressures set in when the Meers
return to England and Nnaife is suddenly out of a job. Nnu Ego resumes her local trade in
cigarettes. Nnaife eventually secures a position that takes him far from home, working for a
group of Englishmen. While he is away, British soldiers enter the abandoned compound and tell
Nnu Ego that she and Oshia must vacate the premises. Nnu Ego takes a rented room in another
 part of town, where she gives birth to another son, Adim. Left on their own, the family slowly
succumbs to malnutrition. Neighbors step in to help. Nnu Ego returns from her search for more
contraband cigarettes to find that her husband has returned, flush with money. Nnu Ego
secures a permanent stall in the marketplace and pressures Nnaife to find his next job.

One evening, Nnaife’s friends arrive with the news that his brother has died in Ibuza. Nnaife has
inherited all of his brother’s wives, but only one will come to live with them in Lagos. Adaku
arrives with her daughter, setting off tensions and rivalry between the two women. As Nnu Ego
tries to sleep nearby, Nnaife invokes his rights as a husband and has sexual relations with
Adaku. Nnaife starts a new job cutting grass for the railroad. With less space and more mouths
to feed, Nnu Ego and Adaku become pregnant around the same time. Nnu Ego gives birth to
twin girls, while Adaku’s son dies shortly after he is born. Feeling they are not being given
enough money to support the household, the women go on strike. Nnu Ego’s firm resolve
eventually wavers, and she cooks a large conciliatory meal. But Nnaife does not come home to
enjoy it. He has been forced to join the army and is shipped off to India and then Burma to fight
in World War II.

With Nnaife away and his pay partially secure in a savings account, Nnu Ego, again pregnant,
takes her family to Ibuza and to the deathbed of her father. After his two funerals, Nnu Ego is
unwilling to return to Lagos. However, Adankwo, the eldest wife of Nnaife’s older brother,
urges her to return to the city to keep an eye on Adako. Nnu Ego returns to find that Nnaife had
been home for a brief visit and had left some money for her that she failed to receive. Relations
between Nnu Ego and Adako grow increasingly strained, culminating in Nnu Ego’s rude and
brusque treatment of one of Adako’s visiting cousins. When Nnaife’s friends step in to resolve
the conflict, Adako decides that she and her daughters will move out on their own.
Impoverished once again, Nnu Ego spends the last of her savings before learning she had not
been receiving her husband’s yearly stipends due to an institutional error. Nnaife returns and
spends most of this windfall. Though Nnu Ego is pregnant again, Nnaife decides to return to
Ibuza, where he impregnates Adankwo and returns with a teenage bride, Okpo. Nnu Ego gives
birth to twin girls.

The family moves to a mud house in another part of town. First Oshia and then Adim announce
their intentions of furthering their educations. When Oshia tells Nnaife he has won a
scholarship to study in the United States, Nnaife denounces him for his dereliction of his filial
duty. Taiwo’s marriage is arranged to an Ibo clerk, but Kehinde runs away to marry a Yoruba.
Hearing the news, Nnaife flies into a rage and attempts to murder Kehinde’s father-in-law with
his cutlass. Nnaife is put in jail, tried, and sentenced to five years, a stint that is reduced
provided he return to Ibuza after his release. Nnu Ego has also returned to her homeland,
where she dies several years later, alone by the roadside. Oshia returns to honor Nnu Ego with
a costly funeral, befitting her sacrifices as a mother.

Character List
Nnu Ego - The novel’s protagonist. At the beginning of the novel, slim, long-necked Nnu Ego is
known for her youthful beauty and is often compared to her mother, the high-spirited Ona.
Although she has her mother’s strength and singleness of purpose, she is more polite and
compliant and less aggressive and outspoken than Ona. She leaves her husband after she
cannot get pregnant, and she later attempts suicide when her firstborn is found dead.
Eventually, she settles into a bittersweet life of challenge and sacrifice with Nnaife and her
children in Lagos.

Amatokwu - Nnu Ego’s first husband. When Amatokwu fails to impregnate Nnu Ego, he
eventually asks her to move to an outer hut to make room for his second wife. He forces Nnu
Ego to work in the fields if she cannot be productive bearing children. When he discovers Nnu
Ego breast feeding his second wife’s son, he savagely beats her, prompting their eventual
divorce. Despite the abuse, Nnu Ego still holds him up as the standard of Ibo manhood.

Nnaife - Nnu Ego’s second husband. Nnaife is short, with a large paunch, pale skin, puffy cheeks,
and untraditionally long hair. He is both sensitive and tender with his wife as well as nasty and
unsympathetic about the demands made of her as a woman. After he loses his job washing for
the Meers, he becomes an assistant to a group of Englishmen and is then employed cutting
grass for the railroad, where he is forced to join the army. He is sent to India and Burma to fight
in World War II. Eventually disillusioned with his life and family, he attempts to murder
Kehinde’s Yoruba father-in-law and is sentenced to five years in prison. When he is released
early, he returns to Ibuza a broken man.

Ngozi - Nnu Ego and Nnaife’s first child. Ngozi dies in infancy, and his death marks a turning
point in the novel, prompting Nnu Ego’s suicide attempt. He is a source of guilt and regret, a
specter that haunts Nnu Ego for years.

Adaku - Nnaife’s brother’s wife whom Nnaife inherits when his brother dies. Young, attractive,
peaceful, and self-satisfied, Adaku joins the family in Lagos and soon starts a thriving and
lucrative business selling in the marketplace. Her wealth and success go unrecognized because
she bears no sons, only two daughters. Tired of her role of inferiority, she moves out of the
household and threatens to become a prostitute. The name Adaku means “daughter of
wealth.”

Adankwo - The eldest wife of Nnaife’s older brother. Tough, strong, wiry, and dependable,
Adankwo is in her early forties and a voice of wisdom and reason among the Ibuza women. She
advises Nnu Ego to return home to Lagos in order to keep an eye on Adaku. When Nnaife
impregnates her with her last child, she refuses to return to Lagos with him and arranges to
have Okpo sent instead.

Adimabua - The second living son of Nnu Ego and Nnaife, known as Adim. Observant and
intelligent, Adim grows up in the shadow of his older brother. He quickly figures out the
entitlement due him as a male and realizes the opportunities denied him as the second oldest.
Quick to act, he prevents his father from murdering the Yoruba butcher. Like Oshia, Adim
 aspires to better things and later leaves Nigeria to pursue his education in Canada. His name
means “now I am two” and shows his place in the male hierarchy of the family.

Agbadi - Nnu Ego’s father. Agbadi is a highly respected local chief known for both his skill at
oratory and for his physical prowess. Cold, disrespectful, and cruel to his wives, he is loving and
indulgent to his daughter, whom he treats as the embodiment of and last link to his beloved
mistress, Ona. He is a constant source of support and a voice of reason in Nnu Ego’s life.

Cordelia - Ubani’s wife. Cordelia is kindhearted and a good friend to Nnu Ego when she makes
the initially tough transition to life in Lagos. She is also a source of jealousy and conflict. Nnu
Ego resents the easier, more stable life Cordelia seems to have, an attitude that sparks
squabbles and petty disagreements between the women. Her name reveals the colonial
influence on the region.

Mama Abby - A prosperous Ibo woman and confidant of Nnu Ego’s. Mama Abby earns
respectability through the advancement of her son, the intelligent, upwardly mobile Abby. Her
husband was a European who had worked in the Nigerian colonial service. He eventually
returned to Europe, leaving his family well provided for. She, too, is of a mixed racial
background. Slim, ladylike, and an eventual mother figure to Nnu Ego, Mama Abby is
considered upper class but likes to live modestly with other Ibos. Many of the men view her as
a negative influence and do not want their wives associating with her.

Dr. Meers - Nnaife and Ubani’s employer. Dr. Meers is the chief occupant of the Yaba
compound and works at the Forensic Science Laboratory in Taba. The doctor makes little
attempt to hide his racist attitudes concerning his African employees, overtly calling Nnaife a
“baboon.”

Mrs. Meers - Dr. Meers’s wife. Mrs. Meers, the only white female character in the novel, has
gray, sunken eyes, and appears to have been prematurely aged by the climate and her life in
West Africa. She believes she is kind to her African staff, chiding her husband for his racist
remarks, but at the same time she maintains a haughty and aloof demeanor of social
superiority in their presence.

Obi Umunna - Ona’s father. A great chief and doting father, Obi Umunna is particularly
protective of his daughter’s honor and freedom. He allows her to have lovers but does not
force her to commit to a marriage. He prizes only an elusive male heir, which his daughter
never produces. He is ridiculed for not finding a suitable match for his daughter and viewed by
some as an ineffective father because of it.

Okpo - Nnaife’s sixteen-year-old bride. Okpo is sent to Lagos to live with the family when
Adankwo refuses to leave Ibuza. Though she is Nnaife’s wife, Okpo has childlike qualities
herself. She understands her traditional role as a wife and praises and flatters Nnu Ego for
raising such clever and accomplished children.
Ona - Nnu Ego’s mother. Ona is known for her catlike grace and youthful exuberance as she
runs about the village with her breasts exposed. She wears expensive waist beads and is later
held to be conservative, haughty, cold, and remote when she wins the role of Agbadi’s favorite
mistress. She is often reminded of her place as an Ibuzan women when she openly challenges
and taunts her lover.

Oshiaju - Nnu Ego’s oldest surviving son, known as Oshia. Medicine men predict Oshiaju will be
an intelligent man of infinite resources whose success will provoke jealousy in others. Tender
and firm, Oshia physically resembles his father. He aggressively pursues higher education,
working in a laboratory in Lagos and eventually winning a scholarship to a university in
America. His name means “the bush has refused this,” referencing his health and the long life
predicted for him.

Taiwo and Kehinde - Nnu Ego and Nnaife’s oldest twin girls. Kehinde is quieter and more
introspective than Taiwo. She radically breaks with tradition by marrying a Yoruba man. Taiwo
is the more fun-loving and adaptable twin. She aspires for a dependable husband and stable
home life, both of which she finds with the clerk Magnus. He finds his ideal match in an
uneducated wife content with the more traditional role of bearing and raising children.

Ubani - Friend of the Owulums. At first, Ubani is a cook in the Meers’s compound. A good
provider, he later gets Nnaife a job cutting grass for the railroad. He is a stable presence in the
lives of those around him. He is the one who calmly informs Nnaife that his son, Ngozi, has
died.

61. PAMELA
Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded is an epistolary novel by English writer Samuel Richardson, first
published in 1740. It tells the story of a beautiful 15-year-old maidservant named Pamela
Andrews, whose country landowner master, Mr. B, makes unwanted and inappropriate
advances towards her after the death of his mother. After Mr. B attempts unsuccessfully to
seduce and rape her multiple times, he eventually rewards her virtue when he sincerely
proposes an equitable marriage to her. Pamela, who is emotionally fragile and confused by Mr.
B's manipulation, accepts his proposal. In the novel's second part, Pamela marries Mr. B and
tries to acclimatize to upper-class society. The story, a best-seller of its time, was very widely
read but was also criticized for its perceived licentiousness and glorification of abuse.

Plot summary

Volume 1

A plate from the 1742 deluxe edition of Richardson's Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded showing Mr.
 B intercepting Pamela's first letter home to her mother.

Pamela Andrews is a pious, innocent fifteen-year-old who works as Lady B's maidservant in
Bedfordshire. The novel starts after Lady B has died, when her son, the squire Mr. B, begins to
pay Pamela more attention, first giving her his mother's clothes, then trying to seduce her in
the Summer House. When he wants to pay her to keep his failed attempt at seduction a secret,
she refuses and tells Mrs. Jervis, the housekeeper, her best friend at the house. Undaunted, he
hides in her closet and pops out and tries to kiss her as she undresses for bed. Pamela debates
returning to her impoverished parents to preserve her innocence, but remains undecided.

Mr. B claims that he plans to marry her to Mr. Williams, his chaplain in Lincolnshire, and gives
money to her parents in case she will let him take advantage of her. She refuses and decides to
go back to her parents, but Mr. B intercepts her letters to her parents and tells them that she is
having a love affair with a poor clergyman and that he will send her to a safe place to preserve
her honour. Pamela is then driven to Lincolnshire Estate and begins a journal, hoping it will be
sent to her parents one day. The Lincolnshire Estate housekeeper, Mrs. Jewkes, is no Mrs.
Jervis: she is a rude, "odious", "unwomanly" woman who is devoted to Mr. B; Pamela suspects
that she might even be "an atheist!". Mrs. Jewkes constrains Pamela to be her bedfellow. Mr. B
promises that he won't approach her without her leave, and then in fact stays away from
Lincolnshire for a long time.

Pamela meets Mr. Williams and they agree to communicate by putting letters under a sunflower
in the garden. Mrs. Jewkes continues to maltreat Pamela, even beating her after she calls her a
"Jezebel". Mr. Williams asks the village gentry for help; though they pity Pamela, none will help
her because of Mr. B's social position. Sir Simon even argues that no one will hurt her, and no
family name will be tarnished since Pamela belongs to the poor Andrews family. Mr. Williams
proposes marriage to her to escape Mr. B's wickedness.

Mr. Williams is attacked and beaten by robbers. Pamela wants to escape when Mrs. Jewkes is
away, but is terrified by two nearby cows that she thinks are bulls. Mr. Williams accidentally
reveals his correspondence with Pamela to Mrs. Jewkes; Mr. B jealously says that he hates
Pamela, as he has claimed before. He has Mr. Williams arrested and plots to marry Pamela to
one of his servants. Desperate, Pamela thinks of running away and making them believe she
has drowned in the pond. She tries unsuccessfully to climb a wall, and, when she is injured, she
gives up.

Mr. B returns and sends Pamela a list of articles that would rule their partnership; she refuses
because it means she would be his mistress. With Mrs. Jewkes' complicity, Mr. B gets into bed
with Pamela disguised as the housemaid Nan, but, when Pamela falls into a fit and seems like
to die, he seems to repent and is kinder in his seduction attempts. She implores him to stop
altogether. In the garden he implicitly says he loves her but can't marry her because of the
social gap.
Volume 2

A gypsy fortuneteller approaches Pamela and passes her a bit of paper warning her against a
sham-marriage. Pamela has hidden a parcel of letters under a rosebush; Mrs. Jewkes seizes
them and gives them to Mr. B, who then feels pity for what he has put her through and decides
to marry her. She still doubts him and begs him to let her return to her parents. He is vexed but
lets her go. She feels strangely sad when she bids him goodbye. On her way home he sends her
a letter wishing her a good life; moved, she realises she is in love. When she receives a second
note asking her to come back because he is ill, she accepts.

Pamela and Mr. B talk of their future as husband and wife and she agrees with everything he
says. She explains why she doubted him. This is the end of her trials: she is more submissive to
him and owes him everything now as a wife. Mr. Williams is released. Neighbours come to the
estate and all admire Pamela. Pamela's father comes to take her away but he is reassured
when he sees Pamela happy.

Finally, she marries Mr. B in the chapel. But when Mr. B has gone to see a sick man, his sister
Lady Davers comes to threaten Pamela and considers her not really married. Pamela escapes
by the window and goes in Colbrand's chariot to be taken away to Mr. B. The following day,
Lady Davers enters their room without permission and insults Pamela. Mr. B, furious, wants to
renounce his sister, but Pamela wants to reconcile them. Lady Davers, still contemptuous
towards Pamela, mentions Sally Godfrey, a girl Mr. B seduced in his youth, now mother of his
child. He is cross with Pamela because she dared approach him when he was in a temper.

Lady Davers accepts Pamela. Mr. B explains to Pamela what he expects of his wife. They go back
to Bedfordshire. Pamela rewards the good servants with money and forgives John, who
betrayed her. They visit a farmhouse where they meet Mr. B's daughter and learn that her
mother is now happily married in Jamaica; Pamela proposes taking the girl home with them.
The neighbourhood gentry who once despised Pamela now praise her.

62. LIFE AND TIME OF MICHAEL K

Life & Times of Michael K is a 1983 novel by South African-born writer J. M. Coetzee. The novel
won the Booker Prize for 1983. The novel is a story of a man named Michael K, who makes an
arduous journey from Cape Town to his mother's rural birthplace, during an imaginary civil war
during the apartheid era, in the 1970-80s.

Plot summary

The novel is split into three parts.

The novel begins with Michael K, a poor man with a cleft lip who has spent his childhood in
institutions and works as a gardener in Cape Town. Michael tends to his mother who works as a
 domestic servant to a wealthy family. The country descends into civil war and martial law is
imposed, and Michael's mother becomes very sick. Michael decides to quit his job and escape
the city to return his mother to her birthplace, which she says was Prince Albert.

Michael finds himself unable to obtain the proper permits for travel out of the city so he builds a
shoddy rickshaw to carry his mother, and they go on their way. Soon after escaping, Michael’s
mother dies in a hospital. He lingers for some time, carrying his mother’s ashes around with
him in a box. Finally, Michael decides to continue on his journey to Prince Albert to deliver his
mother’s ashes. Along the way, though, he is detained for not having the required travel
papers, thus being assigned to work detail on a railway track.

After his job on the railway track is finished, Michael makes his way to the farm his mother
spoke of on Prince Albert. The farm is abandoned and desolate. Soon, Michael discovers how to
live off the land. However, when one of the relatives of the real owners of the farm arrives, he
treats Michael like a servant. Michael dislikes this treatment so he escapes up into the
mountains.

In the mountains, Michael goes through a period of starvation while he becomes aware of his
surroundings. In his malnourished state he finds his way down to a town where he is picked up
by the police and is sent to work on a work camp. Here, Michael meets a man named Robert.
Robert explains that the workers in the camp are exploited for cheap labor by the townspeople.
Eventually, there is an attack on Prince Albert and the workers of the camp are blamed. The
local police captain takes over and Michael escapes.

Michael finds his way back to the farm but soon feels claustrophobic within the house.
Therefore, he builds a shelter in the open where he is able to watch his garden. Rebels come
out of the mountains and use his garden. Although Michael is angered by this he stays in
hiding. Michael becomes malnourished and delirious again because he has not come out of
hiding. He is found by some soldiers and is taken to a rehabilitation camp in Cape Town. It is
here that Michael is identified as "CM," an abbreviation most likely signifying "colored male."

At the rehabilitation camp, a doctor becomes interested in Michael. He finds Michael’s simple
nature extremely fascinating and finds him to be unfairly accused of aiding rebels. Michael
becomes very sick and delirious because he refuses to eat. The doctor tries to understand
Michael’s stubborn ways while attempting to get Michael released. However, Michael escapes
on his own.

Upon his escape, Michael meets with a group of nomadic people who feed him and introduce
him to a woman who has sex with him; later we see him attracted to women for the first time.
He returns to the apartment where he and his mother lived in Cape Town, the same apartment
and city he had tried to escape some time ago. Michael reflects on the garden he made in
Prince Albert.

Some commentators notice a connection between the character Michael K and the protagonist
 Josef K. in The Trial by Franz Kafka. The book also bears many references to Kafka, and it is
believed, "K" is a tribute to Kafka. Comparisons have also been drawn between the novel and
Heinrich von Kleist's novella Michael Kohlhaas, based upon the protagonist's name and
similarities of plot, though it is often suggested that Coetzee's work is an antithetical response.

Major character

Michael K - A simple man born in South Africa, K bears the deformity of a hare lip. K’s central
role is underscored by his appearance—he is deformed and because of this, people look down
upon him. His mother, the police, and Visagie’s grandson all treat him with respect of a lesser
human on the basis that he looks and acts slow. This is shown by the fact that K’s mother
institutionalizes him until she needs him, the police let him wander around unnoticed because
he has a childish innocence, and Visagie’s grandson treats him as a common servant. But K is
also dedicated to being true to his beliefs. When K’s mother becomes very ill, he dedicates his
life to taking her home at whatever the cost. And when she dies along the way, K continues to
show his dedication by carrying her ashes all the way to Prince Albert so she can finally be
home. When K is institutionalized he becomes a gardener, where he learns to enjoy isolation
and the freedom it grants him. We see K’s isolation and freedom continue throughout the
book, starting at the Visagie's house where he first begins to learn to live off the land. But when
his freedom is encroached on, K flees even further from society, maintaining his freewill. In the
mountains he understands how he wants to live his life, which involves only eating food he has
grown from the Earth. K ultimately returns to Cape Town and to his mother’s old apartment,
never giving up his longing for freedom.

Anna K - Michael K's mother disliked him since she saw his disfigurement. Anna put K into a
government institution and ignored him until she had no one else to turn to because of her
health. Though she seems to have been uncaring and absent during his childhood, K shows his
unconditional love for her by taking care of her until her death. Anna lived her life in fear: fear
of losing her job, getting sick, or being put out on the street.

The Medical Officer - The infirmary medical officer at the rehabilitation camp is responsible for
taking care of K when he is brought in. The medical officer was the only one of the staff at the
hospital to realize K is an innocent civilian, being unfairly treated for being in the wrong place at
the wrong time. The medical officer becomes fascinated by K and his childish nature and his
reasons for not eating.

The medical officer originally thinks K wants to kill himself — hence his reason for not eating —
but he comes to understand that K does want to live, just on his own terms. After K's escape,
the medical officer realizes that because the camp is becoming under more strict military
control, he is envious of K's freedom. K changes the medical officer’s outlook on life: the
medical officer fantasizes about following K and begging K to let him live like him.
 63. OROONOKO
Oroonoko: or, the Royal Slave is a short work of prose fiction by Aphra Behn (1640–1689),
published in 1688 by William Canning and reissued with two other fictions later that year. The
eponymous hero is an African prince from Coramantien who is tricked into slavery and sold to
British colonists in Surinam where he meets the narrator. Behn's text is a first person account of
his life, love, rebellion, and execution.

Behn, often cited as the first known professional female writer, was a successful playwright,
poet, translator and essayist. She began writing prose fiction in the 1680s, probably in response
to the consolidation of theatres that led to a reduced need for new plays. Published less than a
year before she died, Oroonoko is sometimes described as one of the earliest English novels.
Interest in it has increased since the 1970s, with critics arguing that Behn is the foremother of
British women writers, and that Oroonoko is a crucial text in the history of the novel.

SUMMARY

Oroonoko’s tale is told from the perspective of a female narrator, possibly Aphra Behn herself.
The narrator claims to have known Oroonoko during his captivity in Suriname, South America.
Suriname is a British colony at the time the narrative takes place (the 1660s). As the novel’s full
title announces, Oroonoko is not just any old slave—he is the last descendant of a royal line,
and the prince of an African country called Coramantien (probably modern-day Ghana).
Coramantien is a brave and warlike nation that participates in the trans-Atlantic slave trade,
selling prisoners of war to Western ships.

Oroonoko has grown up away from the court, and has been trained to be a great military leader
by Imoinda’s father. One day, during an intense battle, Imoinda’s father takes a fatal arrow in
the eye and saves Oroonoko’s life. The seventeen-year-old Oroonoko becomes the new
general, and returns to court an elegant and intelligent young man. The narrator spends much
time describing Oroonoko’s noble characteristics, and is particularly interested in detailing his
exceedingly fine physical beauty, which is a blend of Roman and African traits.

While at court, Oroonoko visits the daughter of his foster father, the beautiful and pure Imoinda.
They fall in love at first sight. They participate in a marriage ceremony but Oroonoko still has to
ask his grandfather, the King, for his blessing, in keeping with the patriarchal customs of the
society. However, the king, a lecherous old man, hears about Imoinda’s beauty. After seeing
her at court, he decides he wants her to become one of his concubines. While Oroonoko is off
hunting, the king sends her the royal veil, a sign of invitation for attractive women to come to
court. Imoinda is duty-bound to obey.

Separated from her true love, Imoinda is kept cloistered at the Otan, the King’s pleasure palace.
She is still a virgin and refuses, as much as she can, the King’s advances. Due to the strict laws of
the Otan, Oroonoko is prevented from seeing Imoinda until the King invites him.
Despite being persuaded otherwise by those around them, the lovers remain faithful to each
other. Oroonoko confirms Imoinda’s longing to return to him from Onahal, one of the King’s old
wives, and by exchanging secret glances with Imoinda when visiting the Otan.

Before Oroonoko leaves for war, he is determined to consummate his marriage to Imoinda.
With the help of his good friend and fellow warrior, Aboan, he concocts a plan to do so. Aboan
seduces Onahal, who quickly agrees to help the lovers, and Oroonoko and Imoinda spend the
night together. Unfortunately, the King, who had been suspicious that something might
happen, sends his guard to confront Oroonoko, but Oroonoko flees to the battlefront. As
punishment for her perfidy, the King sells Imoinda into slavery, an ignoble punishment, but he
tells Oroonoko he has executed her.

Upon hearing this, Oroonoko gives up his will to live and fight, and he abandons his troops,
retiring to his tent. When they are about to lose, however, Oroonoko rouses himself from his
lovesick stupor and leads his army to victory.

An English sea captain comes to Coramantien, and Oroonoko receives him as a royal guest. The
Captain double-crosses Oroonoko, however, inviting him onboard his ship and then kidnapping
him, along with a hundred of Oroonoko’s attendants. The Captain brings Oroonoko across the
Atlantic to Suriname, where he sells him to an intelligent and kind-hearted slave-owner named
Trefry. Trefry gives Oroonoko the name “Caesar,” and promises to help free him one day.
Trefry also unwittingly reunites Caesar with Imoinda, whom Trefry knows as “Clemene.”
Together at last, though in undesirable circumstances, “Caesar” and “Clemene” conceive a child
and spend their days mingling with the white nobility, who immediately accept the couple
because they are noble, virtuous, and beautiful.

As Imoinda’s pregnancy develops, Caesar becomes increasingly restless and wants to take his
new family back home. Though he esteems some white people, like Trefry and the narrator, he
is also rightly suspicious of the lengthy delay regarding his release. He feels that he will once
again be tricked and his family will remain in slavery. Indeed, this is exactly the plan of Deputy
Governor Byam, who is part of the colonial government in Suriname and intends to keep
Caesar a slave.

Because he is a man of action, Caesar determines to take matters into his own hands and
convince the slaves to run away. Led by Caesar, they manage to escape, but their journey ends
in disaster when the white colonists come after them. With the exception of Caesar’s friend
Tuscan, most of the slaves flee the group, leaving Caesar and a heavily pregnant Imoinda to
confront the plantation owners. They all fight bravely and Imoinda wounds Byam in the
shoulder with a poisoned arrow.

With the help of Trefry, Byam convinces Caesar to surrender peacefully and promises to fulfill all
his demands. They write a contract, but Byam almost immediately breaks it. He sequesters
Imoinda and brutally whips Tuscan and Caesar. Now that he is fully awakened to Byam’s
treachery, Caesar vows revenge. He murders Imoinda and their child, with Imoinda’s
 permission and blessing, to save them from prolonged suffering. Caesar then fails to enact his
revenge against Byam, however, when he succumbs to a debilitating grief beside his wife’s
corpse.

When The colonists come looking for Caesar, he is rescued against his will by his friends. Sick
and dying, he tells them of his plan to kill Byam. They try to encourage him to abandon this idea
and focus on recovery. One day, the ruthless Irishman Banister kidnaps Caesar at Byam’s
behest. Caesar is again tied to the stake, where he is slowly dismembered, dying without
making a sound.

Oroonoko Characters

Prince Oroonoko

The last descendant of the King of Coramantien, Oroonoko was raised away from the court to be
a skillful warrior by Imoinda’s father.

Imoinda (a.k.a Clemene)

Imoinda is described as a “black Venus,” corresponding to Oroonoko as the “black Mars.” To the
narrator, Imoinda perfectly complements Oroonoko in beauty and virtue.

Narrator (Aphra Behn)

The narrator is a female Englishwoman, and possibly the direct voice of the author, Aphra Behn,
who lived in Suriname for a while and may have had similar experiences to the narrator.

King of Coramantien

Over 100 years old, the king is Oroonoko’s grandfather. He has many wives, both old and young.

Aboan

A young warrior and good friend of Oroonoko, Aboan is basically Oroonoko’s “wingman.”

Onahal

A former wife of the king, Onahal takes charge of Imoinda after she becomes a concubine.

Jamoan

Jamoan is the leader of the opposing army that besieges Oroonoko’s troops. For most of the
fight, the lovesick Oroonoko pines for the presumed death of Imoinda.

The Captain

A seemingly well-bred and genteel English sea captain, the Captain, as he is called, first pretends
 to be Oroonoko’s friend.

Trefry

Trefry is a young Cornish gentleman in Suriname. He is skilled in math and linguistics, and
manages Governor Byam’s affairs. He also speaks French and Spanish.

Tuscan

Tuscan is a slave in Suriname who stands out from his fellow slaves, not only because he is taller
than the rest, but also because he has a “noble look” about him. He joins Oroonoko…

Governor Byam

A deputy governor in Suriname, Byam is not afraid to use low and dishonorable tactics to keep
things running smoothly on the sugar plantations. He is not well regarded amongst the
colonists, who all love… (read full character analysis)

Colonel Martin

A British colonel in Suriname, he is very well-respected amongst the colonists and is a dear
friend of Oroonoko, who trusts his judgment like a child trusts a parent. Colonel Martin
deplores the actions… (read full character analysis)

Imoinda’s father

An old and acclaimed general of Coramantien, and the father to the beautiful Imoinda. The
general saves Oroonoko’s life during a battle by stepping into the path of an arrow aimed at the
prince. He dies, and Oroonoko becomes the next general.

Frenchman

Exiled from France for his heretical opinions, the Frenchman becomes Oroonoko’s tutor and
teaches him morality, languages, and science. Though he is not very religious, the Frenchman is
nevertheless very moral. He stays by Oroonoko’s side after Oroonoko is captured and sold into
slavery.

Banister

A rich and uncouth Irishman, Banister carries out Byam’s orders to kidnap the recovering
Oroonoko from Parham house and transport him to the whipping post. Banister is a member of
the infamous Council, a body composed of former convicts and other ruthless characters led by
Byam.

Lord Governor

Though he never actually appears in the work, the Lord Governor is the head authority of the
 colony and is responsible for all the plantations. Oroonoko waits impatiently for his arrival to
petition him to free him and his wife, but Oroonoko is murdered before he arrives.

64. SARTOR RESARTUS

Sartor Resartus (meaning 'The tailor re-tailored') is an 1836 novel by Thomas Carlyle, first
published as a serial in 1833–34 in Fraser's Magazine. The novel purports to be a commentary
on the thought and early life of a German philosopher called Diogenes Teufelsdröckh (which
translates as 'god-born devil-dung'), author of a tome entitled "Clothes: Their Origin and
Influence", but was actually a poioumenon ("product"). Teufelsdröckh's Transcendentalist
musings are mulled over by a sceptical English Reviewer (referred to as Editor) who also
provides fragmentary biographical material on the philosopher. The work is, in part, a parody
of Hegel, and of German Idealism more generally. However, Teufelsdröckh is also a literary
device with which Carlyle can express difficult truths.

Plot

The novel takes the form of a long review by a somewhat cantankerous unnamed Editor for the
English Publication Fraser's Magazine (in which the novel was first serialized without any
distinction of the content as fictional) who is upon request, reviewing the fictional German
book Clothes, Their Origin and Influence by the fictional philosopher Diogenes Teufelsdröckh
(Professor of "Things in General" at Weissnichtwo University). The Editor is clearly flummoxed
by the book, first struggling to explain the book in the context of contemporary social issues in
England, some of which he knows Germany to be sharing as well, then conceding that he
knows Teufelsdröckh personally, but that even this relationship does not explain the curiosities
of the book's philosophy. The Editor remarks that he has sent requests back to the
Teufelsdrockh's office in Germany for more biographical information hoping for further
explanation, and the remainder of Book One contains summaries of Teufelsdröckh's book,
including translated quotations, accompanied by the Editor's many objections, many of them
buttressed by quotations from Goethe and Shakespeare. The review becomes longer and
longer due to the Editor's frustration at the philosophy, but desire to expose its outrageous
nature. At the final chapter of Book One, the Editor has received word from the Teufelsdröckh's
office in the form of several bags of paper scraps (rather esoterically organized into bags based
on the signs of the Latin Zodiac) on which are written autobiographical fragments.

At the writing of Book Two, the Editor has somewhat organized the fragments into a coherent
narrative. As a boy, Teufelsdröckh was left in a basket on the doorstep of a childless couple in
the German country town of Entepfuhl ("Duck-Pond"); his father a retired Sergeant of Frederick
the Great and his mother a very pious woman, who to Teufelsdröckh's gratitude, raises him in
utmost spiritual discipline. In very flowery language, Teufelsdröckh recalls at length the values
instilled in his idyllic childhood, the Editor noting most of his descriptions originating in intense
 spiritual pride. Teufelsdröckh eventually is recognized as being clever, and sent to Hinterschlag
(slap-behind) Gymnasium. While there, Teufelsdröckh is intellectually stimulated, and
befriended by a few of his teachers, but frequently bullied by other students. His reflections on
this time of his life are ambivalent; glad for his education, but critical of that education's
disregard for actual human activity and character; for both his own treatment, and his
education's application to politics. While at University, Teufelsdröckh encounters the same
problems, but eventually gains a small teaching post some favour and recognition from the
German nobility. While interacting with these social circles, Teufelsdröckh meets a woman he
calls Blumine (Goddess of Flowers; the Editor assumes this to be a pseudonym), and abandons
his teaching post to pursue her. She spurns his advances for a British aristocrat named
Towgood. Teufelsdröckh is thrust into a spiritual crisis, leaving the city to wander the European
countryside, but even there encounters Blumine and Towgood on their honeymoon. He sinks
into a deep depression, culminating in the celebrated Everlasting No, disdaining all human
activity. Still trying to piece together the fragments, the Editor surmises that Teufelsdröckh
either fights in a war during this period, or at least intensely uses its imagery, which leads him
to a "Centre of Indifference", and on reflection of all the ancient villages and forces of history
around him, ultimately comes upon the affirmation of all life in "The Everlasting Yes". The
Editor, in relief, promises to return to Teufelsdröckh's book, hoping with the insights of his
assembled biography to glean some new insight into the philosophy.

Characters

Diogenes Teufelsdröckh: (Greek/German:"God-Born Devil-Dung") The Professor of "Things in

General" at Weissnichtwo University, and writer of a long book of German idealist philosophy
called "Clothes, Their Origin and Influence," the review of which forms the contents of the
novel. Both professor and book are fictional.

The Editor: The narrator of the novel, who in reviewing Teufelsdröckh's book, reveals much
about his own tastes, as well as deep sympathy towards Teufelsdröckh, and much worry as to
social issues of his day. His tone varies between conversational, condemning and even
semi-Biblical prophecy. The Reviewer should not be confused with Carlyle himself, seeing as
much of Teufelsdröckh's life implements Carlyle's own biography.

Hofrath: Hofrath Heuschrecke (i. e. State-Councillor Grasshopper) is a loose, zigzag figure, a

blind admirer of Teufelsdröckh's, an incarnation of distraction distracted, and the only one who
advises the editor and encourages him in his work; a victim to timidity and preyed on by an
uncomfortable sense of mere physical cold, such as the majority of the state-counsellors of the
day were.

Blumine: A woman associated to the German nobility with whom Teufelsdröckh falls in love
early in his career. Her spurning of him to marry Towgood leads Teufelsdröckh to the spiritual
crisis that culminates in the Everlasting No. Their relationship is somewhat parodic of Werther's
spurned love for Lotte in The Sorrows of Young Werther (including her name "Goddess of
 Flowers", which may simply be a pseudonym), though, as the Editor notes, Teufelsdröckh does
not take as much incentive as does Werther. Critics have associated her with Kitty Kirkpatrick,
with whom Carlyle himself fell in love before marrying Jane Carlyle.

Towgood: The English Aristocrat who ultimately marries Blumine, throwing Teufelsdröckh into a
spiritual crisis. If Blumine is indeed a fictionalization of Kitty Kirkpatrick, Towgood would find
his original in Captain James Winslowe Phillipps, who married Kirkpatrick in 1829.

65. IF ON A WINTER'S NIGHT A TRAVELLER

If on a winter's night a traveler (Italian: Se una notte d'inverno un viaggiatore) is a 1979 novel by
the Italian writer Italo Calvino. The postmodernist narrative, in the form of a frame story, is
about the reader trying to read a book called If on a winter's night a traveler. Each chapter is
divided into two sections. The first section of each chapter is in second person, and describes
the process the reader goes through to attempt to read the next chapter of the book he is
reading. The second half is the first part of a new book that the reader ("you") finds. The second
half is always about something different from the previous ones and the ending is never
explained. The book was published in an English translation by William Weaver in 1981.

Structure

The book begins with a chapter on the art and nature of reading, and is subsequently divided
into twenty-two passages. The odd-numbered passages and the final passage are narrated in
the second person. That is, they concern events purportedly happening to the novel's reader.
(Some contain further discussions about whether the man narrated as "you" is the same as the
"you" who is actually reading.) These chapters concern the reader's adventures in reading Italo
Calvino's novel, If on a winter's night a traveler. Eventually the reader meets a woman named
Ludmilla, who is also addressed in her own chapter, separately, and also in the second person.

Alternating between second-person narrative chapters of this story are the remaining (even)
passages, each of which is a first chapter in ten different novels, of widely varying style, genre,
and subject-matter. All are broken off, for various reasons explained in the interspersed
passages, most of them at some moment of plot climax.

The second-person narrative passages develop into a fairly cohesive novel that puts its two
protagonists on the track of an international book-fraud conspiracy, a mischievous translator, a
reclusive novelist, a collapsing publishing house, and several repressive governments.

The chapters which are the first chapters of different books all push the narrative chapters
along. Themes which are introduced in each of the first chapters will then exist in succeeding
narrative chapters, such as after reading the first chapter of a detective novel, then the
narrative story takes on a few common detective-style themes. There are also phrases and
 descriptions which will be eerily similar between the narrative and the new stories.

The ending exposes a hidden element to the entire book, where the actual first-chapter titles
(which are the titles of the books that the reader is trying to read) make up a single coherent
sentence, which would make a rather interesting start for a book.

The theme of a writer's objectivity appears also in Calvino's novel Mr. Palomar, which explores if
absolute objectivity is possible, or even agreeable. Other themes include the subjectivity of
meaning (associated with post-structuralism), the relationship between fiction and life, what
makes an ideal reader and author, and authorial originality.

Cimmeria

Cimmeria is a fictional country in the novel. The country is described as having existed as an
independent state between World War I and World War II. The capital is Örkko, and its
principal resources are peat and by-products, bituminous compounds. Cimmeria seems to have
been located somewhere on the Gulf of Bothnia, a body of water between Sweden to the west
and Finland to the east. The country has since been absorbed, and its people and language, of
the 'Bothno-Ugaric' group, have both disappeared. As Calvino concludes the alleged, fictional
encyclopedia entry concerning Cimmeria: "In successive territorial divisions between her
powerful neighbors the young nation was soon erased from the map; the autochthonous
population was dispersed; Cimmerian language and culture had no development" (If on a
winter's night a traveler, pp. 43–44).

The pair of chapters following the two on Cimmeria and its literature are followed by one
describing another fictional country called the Cimbrian People's Republic, a communist nation
which allegedly occupied part of Cimmeria during the latter's decline.

Languages named Cimmerian and Cimbrian have both existed. The Cimmerians were an ancient
tribal group, contemporary with the Scythians, who lived in southern Ukraine. The Cimbrian
language still exists today, and is spoken by about 2230 people in northern Italy, not too
remote from Calvino's home in Turin. However, these real-world items have no clear
relationship to their fictional namesakes.

Characters

The main character in the first part of each chapter is you, the reader. The narrative starts out
when you begin reading a book but then all of the pages are out of order. You then go to a
bookstore to get a new copy of the book. When at the bookstore, you meet a girl, Ludmilla,
who becomes an important character in the book. You think Ludmilla is beautiful, and you both
share a love of books. Throughout the rest of the narrative, you and Ludmilla develop a
relationship while on the quest for the rest of the book you had started reading. There are a
number of minor characters that appear at various points in the story including Lotaria
 (Ludmilla's sister), Ermes Marana (translation scammer), and Silas Flannery (an author).

66. A HOUSE FOR MR. BISWAS

A House for Mr Biswas is a 1961 novel by V. S. Naipaul, significant as Naipaul's first work to
achieve acclaim worldwide. It is the story of Mohun Biswas, an Indo-Trinidadian who
continually strives for success and mostly fails, who marries into the Tulsi family only to find
himself dominated by it, and who finally sets the goal of owning his own house. Drawing some
elements from the life of Naipaul's father, the work is primarily a sharply drawn look at life that
uses postcolonial perspectives to view a vanished colonial world.

Plot
Mohun Biswas is born in rural Trinidad and Tobago to Hindu Indian parents and his father is a
Brahmin. His birth was considered inauspicious as he is born "in the wrong way" and with an
extra finger. A pundit prophesies that the newborn child "will be a lecher and a spendthrift.
Possibly a liar as well", and that he will "eat up his mother and father". The pundit advises that
the boy be kept "away from trees and water. Particularly water". A few years later, Mohun
leads a neighbour's calf, which he is tending, to a stream. The boy, who has never seen water
"in its natural form", becomes distracted and allows the calf to wander off. Mohun then hides
in fear of punishment. His father, believing his son to be in the water, drowns in an attempt to
save him, thus in part fulfilling the pandit's prophecy. This leads to the dissolution of the family.
Mohun's sister is sent to live with a wealthy aunt and uncle, Tara and Ajodha. Mohun, his
mother, and two older brothers go to live with other relatives.

The boy is withdrawn prematurely from school and apprenticed to a pandit, but is cast out on
bad terms. Ajodha then puts him in the care of his alcoholic and abusive brother Bhandat, an
arrangement which also ends badly. Finally, the young Mr Biswas decides to make his own
fortune. He encounters a friend from his school days who helps him get into the business of
sign-writing. While on the job, Mr Biswas attempts to romance a client's daughter but his
advances are misinterpreted as a wedding proposal. He is drawn into a marriage which he does
not have the nerve to stop and becomes a member of the Tulsi household.

Mr Biswas becomes very unhappy with his wife Shama and her overbearing family. The Tulsis
(and the big decaying house where they live) represent the communal way of life which is
traditional throughout Africa and Asia. Mr Biswas is offered a place in this cosmos, a
subordinate place to be sure, but a place that is guaranteed and from which advancement is
possible. But Mr Biswas wants more. He is, by instinct, a modern man. He wants to be the
author of his own life. That is an aspiration with which Tulsis cannot deal, and their decaying
world conspires to drag him down.[4] Despite his poor education, Mr Biswas becomes a
journalist, has four children with Shama, and attempts several times to build a house that he
 can call his own, a house which will symbolize his independence. Mr Biswas’ desperate struggle
to acquire a house of his own can be linked to an individual’s need to develop an authentic
identity.He feels that only by having his own house he can overcome his feelings of
rootlessness and alienation.

67. THE MAYOR OF CASTERBRIDGE

he Mayor of Casterbridge (1886), subtitled "The Life and Death of a Man of Character", is a
novel by British author Thomas Hardy. It is set in the fictional town of Casterbridge (based on
the town of Dorchester in Dorset). The book is one of Hardy's Wessex novels, all set in a
fictional rural England.

Hardy began writing the book in 1884 and wrote the last page on 17 April 1885. Within the
book, he writes that the events took place "before the nineteenth century had reached
one-third of its span". Literary critic Dale Kramer sees it as being set somewhat later—in the
late 1840s, corresponding to Hardy's youth in Dorchester.

Plot Overview

Michael Henchard is traveling with his wife, Susan, looking for employment as a hay-trusser.
When they stop to eat, Henchard gets drunk, and in an auction that begins as a joke but turns
serious, he sells his wife and their baby daughter, -Elizabeth-Jane, to Newson, a sailor, for five
guineas. In the morning, Henchard regrets what he has done and searches the town for his wife
and daughter. Unable to find them, he goes into a church and swears an oath that he will not
drink alcohol for twenty-one years, the same number of years he has been alive.

After the sailor’s death, eighteen years later, Susan and Elizabeth-Jane seek Henchard;
Elizabeth-Jane believes he is merely a long-lost relative. They arrive in Casterbridge and learn
that Henchard is the mayor. The parents meet and decide that in order to prevent
Elizabeth-Jane from learning of their disgrace, Henchard will court and remarry Susan as
though they had met only recently.

Meanwhile, Henchard has hired Donald Farfrae, a young Scotchman, as the new manager of his
corn business. Elizabeth-Jane is intrigued by Farfrae, and the two begin to spend time together.
Henchard becomes alienated from Farfrae, however, as the younger man consistently outdoes
Henchard in every respect. He asks Farfrae to leave his business and to stop courting
Elizabeth-Jane.

Susan falls ill and dies soon after her remarriage to Henchard. After discovering that
Elizabeth-Jane is not his own daughter, but Newson’s, Henchard becomes increasingly cold
toward her. Elizabeth-Jane then decides to leave Henchard’s house and live with a lady who has
just arrived in town. This lady turns out to be Lucetta Templeman, a woman with whom
 Henchard was involved during Susan’s absence; having learned of Susan’s death, Lucetta has
come to Casterbridge to marry Henchard.

While Lucetta is waiting for Henchard to call on her, she meets Farfrae, who has come to call on
Elizabeth-Jane. The two hit it off and are eventually married. Lucetta asks Henchard to return to
her all the letters she has sent him. On his way to deliver the letters, the messenger, Jopp,
stops at an inn. The peasants there convince him to open and read the letters aloud.
Discovering that Lucetta and Henchard have been romantically involved, the peasants decide to
hold a “skimmity-ride,” a humiliating parade portraying Lucetta and Henchard together. The
event takes place one afternoon when Farfrae is away. Lucetta faints upon seeing the spectacle
and becomes very ill. Shortly afterward, she dies.

While Henchard has grown to hate Farfrae, he has grown closer to Elizabeth-Jane. The morning
after Lucetta’s death, Newson, who is actually still alive, arrives at Henchard’s door and asks for
Elizabeth-Jane. Henchard tells him that she is dead, and Newson leaves in sorrow.
Elizabeth-Jane stays with Henchard and also begins to spend more time with Farfrae. One day,
Henchard learns that Newson has returned to town, and he decides to leave rather than risk
another confrontation. Elizabeth-Jane is reunited with Newson and learns of Henchard’s deceit;
Newson and Farfrae start planning the wedding between Elizabeth-Jane and the Scotchman.

Henchard comes back to Casterbridge on the night of the wedding to see Elizabeth-Jane, but she
snubs him. He leaves again, telling her that he will not return. She soon regrets her coldness,
and she and Farfrae, her new husband, go looking for Henchard so that she can make her
peace. Unfortunately, they find him too late, discovering that he has died alone in the
countryside. He has left a will: his dying wish is to be forgotten.

Character List

Michael Henchard - As the novel’s protagonist, Henchard is the “Man of Character” to whom
the subtitle of The Mayor of Casterbridge alludes. When the novel opens, Henchard is a
disconsolate twenty-one-year-old hay-trusser who, in a drunken rage, sells his wife and
daughter at a county fair. Eighteen years later, Henchard has risen to become the mayor and
the most accomplished corn merchant in the town of Casterbridge. Although he tries to atone
for his youthful crimes, he focuses too much on his past misdeeds and enters a downward
trajectory that embroils him in a fierce competition with a popular Scotchman named Donald
Farfrae.

Elizabeth-Jane Newson - The daughter of Susan and Newson. Elizabeth-Jane bears the same
name as the child born to Susan and Henchard, who actually dies shortly after Henchard sells
Susan and his daughter. Over the course of the novel, the independent and self-possessed
Elizabeth-Jane transforms herself from an unrefined country girl into a cultured young lady.
Though she experiences much hardship over the course of the novel, she maintains an even
temperament throughout.
Donald Farfrae - The Scotchman who arrives in Casterbridge at the same time as Susan
Henchard and Elizabeth-Jane. Farfrae’s business efficiency, good humor, and polish make him
extremely popular among the town’s citizens. These same qualities, however, eventually make
him Henchard’s rival. Despite this tension in their friendship, Farfrae remains fair-minded,
patient, and even kind in his dealings with the ruined Henchard.

Lucetta Templeman - A woman whom Henchard meets, courts, and proposes to marry. Lucetta
bucks convention, choosing to love whom she pleases when she pleases. Like Henchard, she is
guided by her emotions, and her reactions are thus not always rational.

Susan Henchard - A meek, unassuming woman married to Michael Henchard when the novel
opens. Overly concerned with propriety, Susan attempts to keep secrets about Henchard’s and
Elizabeth-Jane’s identities in order to give the appearance of perfect family harmony.

Newson - The sailor who buys Susan and Elizabeth-Jane from Henchard. Newson is absent for
most of the novel; his eventual reappearance contributes to the feeling that Henchard is
besieged by fate.

Joshua Jopp - The man Henchard intends to hire as his assistant before meeting Farfrae.

Abel Whittle - One of the workers in Henchard’s hay-yard. Whittle is also the source of the first
disagreement between Henchard and Farfrae, as Farfrae thinks that Henchard is too rough with
Whittle when he is constantly late for work.

Benjamin Grower - One of Henchard’s creditors.

Christopher Coney - A peasant in Casterbridge. Coney represents the bleak reality of peasant
life.

Nance Mockridge - A peasant who is instrumental in planning the skimmity-ride.

Mother Cuxsom - A peasant in Casterbridge.

Solomon Longways - A peasant in Casterbridge.

68. ALL ABOUT H.HATTERR

All About H. Hatterr (1948) is a novel by G. V. Desani chronicling the adventures of an
Anglo-Malay man in search of wisdom and enlightenment. "As far back as in 1951," Desani later
wrote, "I said H. Hatterr was a portrait of a man, the common vulgar species, found
everywhere, both in the East and in the West".
Literary significance and reception

Salman Rushdie comments:

“ The writer I have placed alongside Narayan, G.V. Desani, has fallen so far from favour that the
extraordinary All About H. Hatterr is presently out of print everywhere, even in India. Milan
Kundera once said that all modern literature descends from either Richardson's Clarissa or
Sterne's Tristram Shandy, and if Narayan is India's Richardson then Desani is his Shandean
other. Hatterr's dazzling, puzzling, leaping prose is the first genuine effort to go beyond the
Englishness of the English language. His central figure, 'fifty-fifty of the species,' the half-breed
as unabashed anti-hero, leaps and capers behind many of the texts in this book. Hard to
imagine I. Allan Sealy's Trotter-Nama without Desani. My own writing, too, learned a trick or
two from him. ”

The mad English of All About H. Hatterr is a thoroughly self-conscious and finely controlled
performance, as Anthony Burgess points out in its preface:

“ But it is the language that makes the book, a sort of creative chaos that grumbles at the
restraining banks. It is what may be termed Whole Language, in which philosophical terms, the
colloquialisms of Calcutta and London, Shakespeareian archaisms, bazaar whinings, quack
spiels, references to the Hindu pantheon, the jargon of Indian litigation, and shrill babu
irritability seethe together. It is not pure English; it is, like the English of Shakespeare, Joyce and
Kipling, gloriously impure. ”

Comments Amardeep Singh, Assistant Professor of English at Lehigh University on the novel's
mad English:

“ One of the reasons many people are afraid of this novel is its reputation for slang-ridden
obscurity. Actually, it's not that obscure -- certainly not as difficult as Ulysses (and not even on
the same astral plane as Finnegans Wake). Moreover, the obscurity is generally literary, not
linguistic. In the first 100 or so pages of the novel, I counted a total of ten Hindi words in the
text. And most of those are 'Hobson-Jobson' words like topi (hat), which would have been
readily familiar to readers in 1948...

Anthony Burgess, in his preface to the 1969 edition of the novel, is also careful to disavow the
métèque label that dogged late colonial African writers like Amos Tutuola. F. W. Bateson
coined Métèque as a way of referring to writers for whom English was a second or third
language, who don't respect (or don't know) 'the finer rules of English idiom and grammar'.

It's not that such writing can't produce interesting effects. But successful forays into slang or,
even further, dialect English, are rarely interesting to fluent English speakers unless they are
carefully controlled -- by a writer who is quite confident (and of course competent) in the
language. The writer may have a memory of learning English, but he or she cannot still be
learning English at the time of the writing of the novel. Conrad, Nabokov, and even the
 contemporary writer Jonathan Safran Foer (Everything Is Illuminated) knew exactly what they
were doing. So did Desani.

69.TRUE HISTORY OF KELLY GANG - PETER CARRY

Prologue
True History of the Kelly Gang opens with an anonymous and handwritten third-person account
of Kelly and his gang's last stand in the town of Glenrowan. Kelly himself provokes the battle at
Glenrowan when he lures the police, or the "traps," into a shootout. The account describes the
moment that defines Kelly in the Australian imagination: Kelly and his boys appear on a hotel
veranda, clad in homemade body armor and bucket-shaped helmets, and Kelly declares himself
"The Monitor," after a famous iron-sided battleship in service during the American Civil War.
The document has an acquisition number and purports to be housed in the Melbourne Public
Library, which serves to establish historical authenticity.

Parcel 1: His Life until the Age of 12

Shortly before the end of his career, the historical Kelly composed what has come to be called
the "Jerilderie Letter," an 8300-word account of his life, his motivations, and his hopes for the
future; which he wanted to have printed in a newspaper, any newspaper. The document was
lost or ignored and was never made available to the public, which infuriated Kelly. The True
History of the Kelly Gang alleges to be Kelly's second effort as an author, a series of letters to his
unborn daughter that "will contain no single lie may I burn in Hell if I speak false."

Kelly begins his tale with the transportation of his father, John "Red" Kelly, from Ireland to Van
Dieman's Land, a small island near Australia known today as Tasmania, for crimes about which
Kelly never heard his father speak. Constable O'Neill, a sinister representative of the local police,
tells Ned Kelly a story about "A Certain Man," who plotted with others back in Ireland to murder
a landowner whose policies they thought unfair. Eventually, this "Certain Man" was caught and
transported to Van Dieman's land. Kelly understands this Certain Man" to be his father. Later,
O'Neill tells Kelly about the night he saw Red Kelly wearing a dress, which Kelly does not believe
until he accidentally finds the dress, exactly as it was described by O'Neill, buried in a metal
trunk.

Kelly depicts his mother, Ellen Kelly, as resolute and tough. She alternately fights with and
entertains the police in her home. She stands up to the law for her family, above all else. Late in
Parcel 1, Kelly commits his own first crime when he kills a neighboring farmer's calf to put food
on the Kelly table. Despite Kelly's admissions of guilt, his father is arrested and jailed for
poaching, and he later dies as a result of his stay in prison.

Parcel 2: His Life Ages 12-15

Kelly's family, led by their mother, moves to Greta, leaving Kelly and his brother Jem behind to
work for their mother's sisters. After the arrest of her brother James and other injustices, Ellen
Kelly's dreams of a more prosperous future are dashed. Now that her husband is dead, Ellen
Kelly begins to take a number of unsavory suitors.

Harry Power, a bushranger and outlaw, appears at the Kelly's one night. He becomes one of
Ellen Kelly's suitors briefly, and then he becomes Ned Kelly's mentor. Power has escaped from
Pentridge Prison, where he knew Ellen Kelly's brother James, and he gives Ellen Kelly money to
hire a better lawyer for him. Kelly and Jem follow their mother, sisters, and little brother to
Greta.

Kelly reveals that Ellen Kelly's dream of fertile land, domestic peace, and a prosperous,
legitimate livelihood have taken root in him as well. It is, he will later insist, all he ever wanted.
Writing directly to his unborn daughter, he tells her that Ellen Kelly's new house is where she
will eventually be conceived.

Parcel 3: His Life at 15 Years of Age

At the wedding of his sister Annie to yet another troublemaker, Alex Gunn, Kelly sees his mother
dancing with a "ferret faced fellow" named Bill Frost. He is disturbed by his mother's gay and
girlish behavior in Frost's presence. During the reception, Power appears and lures Kelly away
for what Kelly believes will be a brief excursion on horseback. In fact, it is the beginning of his
apprenticeship to Power.

Kelly and Power ride into the bush to Power's hideout on Bullock Creek, in the Wombat
Mountain Range. Soon, Kelly is Power's accomplice in a stagecoach robbery, and though all they
manage to get from the robbery is some lace, an English clock, and a bag full of marbles, his fate
as an outlaw is sealed: "that was the moment … I made myself a bushranger as well."

Following a fight with one of Power's friends, Kelly is sent home, where he finds that Frost has
moved in. He also discovers that his mother has betrayed him and sold him into servitude to
Power. The police come for Kelly, to arrest him for his part in the robbery of Chinese merchant
Ah Fook, but Power arrives in time to pay Kelly's bail.

Parcel 4: His Life at 16 Years of Age

Not long after Kelly learns his mother is carrying Frost's child, Power arrives at Ellen Kelly's home
to claim the merchandise he has paid for: her son Ned Kelly. As soon as Kelly rides off into the
bush with Power, Frost abandons Ellen Kelly. When Kelly finds out about it from Power, he vows
to murder Frost.

Kelly and Power pass through a hellish brushfire as they search for Frost, whom they find with a
prostitute. Kelly shoots Frost in the stomach with his rifle and leaves him for dead on the steps
of the whorehouse. Later, and despite knowledge to the contrary, Power assures Kelly that Frost
did indeed die of his gunshot wounds.

Following the robbery of R. R. McBean, a powerful landowner, Power and Kelly travel to Tambo
Crossing, seeking the safety of anonymity. Frost makes a surprise reappearance and tells Kelly
that Power has been, and continues to be, involved with his mother, too. In a blind rage, Kelly
almost kills Power, steals his beloved horse Daylight, and embarks on a journey into the bush.

Parcel 5: His Early Contact with Senior Policemen

Kelly returns home, meets his new baby sister Ellen, and learns that the town of Greta is
crawling with police, who soon arrest him for his connections to Power and the McBean
robbery. As he learns more about what he can expect from the police and the wealthy from
increased interactions with them, Kelly's growing awareness of English injustices against the
Irish is made plain.

Tricked into a fistfight for his freedom by police commissioners who want to capture Power,
Kelly wins the fight but is returned to a jail cell when he refuses to betray Power. His opponent
in the fight, Constable John Fitzpatrick, befriends Kelly and warns him that Kelly's uncle Jack
Lloyd is about to turn in Power for the reward money.

When Kelly is released from prison as Power is taken into custody, everyone, including his
mother, takes it as a sign that Kelly, and not Lloyd, turned in Power to secure his own release.
Kelly becomes a pariah, or outcast, in the community, and two of his other uncles, Jimmy and
Pat Quinn, are among the most upset.

Parcel 6: Events Precipitated by the Arrest of Harry Power

Another former prisoner of Van Dieman's Land, Ben Gould, a traveling salesman of sorts, arrives
with his cart of housewares at the Kelly place. He has a broken-down horse that he says belongs
to the McCormicks, a husband and wife in the same line of work as Gould. What Gould does not
say is that the horse is stolen, and that Gould harbors a passionate hatred of Mr. McCormick,
who was a warden at Van Dieman's Land.

The McCormicks, following a humiliating confrontation with Gould, get their horse back and
retreat to town, where Kelly delivers them a Mafia-like message from Gould: a pair of sheep
testicles wrapped in cloth with a note telling McCormick he will need them in bed with Mrs.
McCormick.

Constable Hall feels himself betrayed by Kelly in an earlier public confrontation with his uncles
Jimmy and Pat, an outgrowth of the Power arrest. Though he once promised to watch out for
Kelly, he manufactures the false charge of horse theft that sends Kelly to prison for three years.

Parcel 7: His Life Following His Later Release from Pentridge Gaol
When Kelly is released from prison, he returns to his mother's house once again, and once again
he is disappointed to find that Ellen Kelly has not only taken another unsuitable husband,
George King, who is Kelly's age, but that she has had King's child. Kelly, who has come home to
save the farm, laments, "All my life all I wanted were a home." He finds that King, who wants to
get into the horse-thieving business, is a bad influence.

Kelly takes a job at a sawmill—the first real job he has ever had—but cannot forget about Wild
Wright, whom he believes was instrumental in the betrayal that sent him to prison. Seeing an
opportunity, a pub owner talks Kelly out of a street fight with Wright in favor of a boxing match.
Kelly's narration of the brawl is bloody and once again underscores English mistreatment of the
Irish.

By the end of this chapter, Kelly is living a quiet life, working at the sawmill, breeding horses
with his cousin Tom Lloyd, and cultivating his literary side. His friend Joe Byrne has given him a
Bible, some Shakespeare, and a copy of Lorna Doone, which Kelly reads three times in two years,
and which he especially loves for the parallels in the story to his own life.

Parcel 8: 24 Years
Kelly's horse is impounded when it wanders onto former common ground now controlled by the
wealthy landowner McBean, and Kelly simply walks into the impoundment lot and retrieves it.
When he is accused of horse stealing, he quits his job at the sawmill and heads for Power's old
hideout at Bullock Creek. The poet and opium addict Byrne soon shows up, as do Kelly's younger
brother Dan and his friend Steve Hart. Hart loves old tales and songs of the Irish rebels, and like
Kelly's father, he sometimes wears a woman's frock.

The new constable, Alex Fitzpatrick, turns out to be the brother of John Fitzpatrick, whom Kelly
had fought and then befriended in Melbourne. One night, Alex introduces Kelly to Mary Hearn,
who will become Kelly's lover and mother to the daughter he addresses in his letters.

Alex Fitzpatrick betrays Kelly by courting his fourteen-year-old sister, Kate. Fitzpatrick has two
other women—one of them pregnant—in other towns. In a confrontation on the Kelly porch,
Ellen Kelly bashes Fitzpatrick over the head with a shovel and Kelly shoots him in the wrist. Kelly
flees for Bullock Creek an outlaw.

Parcel 9: The Murders at Stringybark Creek

In Kelly's absence, the police arrest his mother and take away her baby. She is detained in
Beechworth Prison as an accomplice to her son's shooting of Alex Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick then
tries to persuade Mary Hearn to turn Kelly in. Meanwhile, to Kelly's unease, the Kelly Gang
continues to grow; as Jimmy Quinn, Wild Wright, and Aaron Sherritt, Byrne's lifelong friend and
fellow opium addict, arrive.

A manhunt begins, and there is ample evidence that the police intend to bring the Kelly Gang in
dead. Kelly and the others get wind of this as they prepare to defend themselves at a hideout on
Stringybark Creek. When the police arrive, Kelly and his gang are prepared to ambush them, and
three policemen die in the ensuing violence. The gang's reputation grows among the poor, even
as they are hunted as outlaw killers by the law.

In retreat and crossing the flood-swollen Murray River on horseback, Kelly's beloved copy of
Lorna Doone is ruined. Byrne suggests that he, Kelly, and Mary Hearn flee to California, but Kelly
is determined to return to his family's home in Greta. He is also determined to free his mother
from prison.

Parcel 10: The History Is Commenced

When Kelly arrives in Greta, he discovers that a modified version of events has made the
newspapers, and he stays up all night telling Hearn how it really happened. She encourages him
to write it all down and tells him she is pregnant with his daughter.

In the aftermath of the shootout on Stringybark Creek, Donald Cameron, a member of

Parliament, wonders publicly if the police were not to blame. This provides further motivation
for Kelly to write the true version of his story. Hearn, who was born and raised in Ireland, tells
Kelly, Dan Kelly, and Hart the story of the Sons of Sieve, Irish rebels who wore women's dresses
and smeared their faces with ash to frighten unjust landowners—precisely the activity for which
Red Kelly was sentenced to Van Dieman's Land. Kelly reflects on the horror of transporting Irish
prisoners to Van Dieman's Land. He feels that those who were transported would rather forget
the past, while Kelly and the others of his generation are "left alone ignorant as tadpoles
spawned in puddles on the moon."

Having written his story just as Hearn asked him to and hoping to influence the disposition of his
case, Kelly sends his long narrative to the Melbourne newspaper for publication. He also comes
to the realization that the sympathy of the poor can be bought—just as his uncle sold out
Power—and hatches a plan to rob a bank at Euroa, an act that will enhance the Kelly Gang's
growing legend and ensure their status as folk heroes.

Parcel 11: His Life at 25 Years of Age

The authorities' manhunt in Kelly's home district widens and twenty-one men are arrested for
simply knowing Kelly, including Jack McMonigle, who is well-known for having publicly
denounced Kelly. Kelly and his men set out to do chores and help out on the farms of the
twenty-one arrested men while they are in jail. Kelly determines that in addition to freeing his
mother, he must liberate these newly imprisoned men as well.

Just as Byrne did earlier, Hearn tries to talk Kelly into fleeing with her to California, but he will
not leave as long as his mother and the twenty-one men still languish in jail. Hearn boards a ship
for California without him.

Kelly grows angry when he realizes the newspaper is not going to print his long letter, so he
composes another; this one for government officials. Even without the newspapers to spread it,
Kelly realizes his renown is growing: "I were the terror of the government being brung to life in
the cauldron of the night."

Parcel 12: Conception and Construction of Armour

With the police drawing nearer and Kelly feeling increasingly pressured, Hearne sends word that
Kelly's daughter has been born in San Francisco. Perhaps as a reaction to the birth, Kelly's vision
broadens—now he decides he will have to free not only his mother and the twenty-one men
from prison, but all "the innocents" as well.

With the authorities on his heels, Kelly heads to an abandoned shepherd's cabin in the bush. The
walls of the cabin are papered over with old newspapers, some of them from the time of the
American Civil War, which ended fifteen years before. Alone and bored, Kelly begins reading the
newspapers. One story captures his attention: the story of a titanic battle between two ironclad
battleships, the Union's USS Monitor and Southern States' CSS Virginia. Kelly realizes almost at
once that men could be ironclad too and become "Soldier[s] of Future Time," or "our 1st
Monitor." He organizes and outfits a makeshift forge and foundry, where he and his men are
soon banging iron into breastplates, leg-protectors, and the bucket-shaped helmets for which
they will be best remembered. In the weeks that follow, they make a number of ironclad suits
for local farmers, other men "perjured against and falsely gaoled."

Parcel 13: His Life at 26 Years of Age

Bearing their iron suits, Kelly and his gang arrive in the town of Glenrowan, where Kelly has
lured the police and where he will make his last stand on what he calls "[t]his historic night." The
ironclad men set up headquarters in a hotel and tavern. They take dozens of hostages, who end
up having such a good time with the Kelly gang that when given a chance to escape, only one—a
constable—flees.
Outside, Kelly meets school teacher Thomas Curnow as he arrives into town by buggy and takes
him hostage. Curnow—nervous, effeminate "prim & superior"—is carrying a thick copy of the
plays of William Shakespeare, and Kelly takes it from him. Curnow is surprised to discover that
the outlaw knows the work of the Bard, as Shakespeare is called. Later, Curnow interrupts Kelly
as he works on his personal history, and is even more surprised to discover that Kelly is an
author. Curnow asks him if he knows Lorna Doone, which produces a flood of memories and
feelings in Kelly. Lorna Doone, of course, is Kelly's favorite book. Seeming to slip into character,
Curnow recites the opening passage of Lorna Doone from memory, and then, after Kelly lets him
read a page of his manuscript, he offers to help Kelly with his five-hundred-page "history."
That night, the Kelly Gang sings, dances, and drinks with their hostages. Kelly is clearly intrigued
at the idea of Curnow helping with his manuscript, although Curnow insists he would have to
take the manuscript home with him to do Kelly's work justice. This is the end of Kelly's narration,
if not quite his story.

"The Siege at Glenrowan" and "The Death of Edward Kelly"

Because Curnow has talked Kelly into handing over his manuscript, Kelly's narration comes to an
end. These two brief chapters recount, in the third person, the gang's last hours and Kelly's
execution.

With Kelly's five hundred handwritten pages under his arm, Curnow hurries home, deposits the
manuscript, and then runs to the railroad tracks to stop the train carrying the group of
policemen that Kelly has lured into Glenrowan. Curnow tells them that the Kelly Gang is waiting
for them. The police, armed with this information as well as with Webley and Enfield rifles and
buckets of deadly Martini-Henry bullets, surround the hotel. Once the shooting begins, the
police fire indiscriminately, killing local men, women, and children. Byrne is killed when one of
the bullets pierces his armor. Many bullets are deflected off Kelly's armor, but he is eventually
wounded and captured. Dan Kelly and Hart stay on and fight until they are burned alive inside
the hotel.

Curnow is taken into protective custody in Melbourne and never quite becomes the Australian
hero he believes he should be. He keeps the manuscript, despite his often-voiced low opinion of
Kelly, and numerous pencil markings on the manuscript seem to prove that he continued to
work obsessively on it for years.

Kelly is taken to the Melbourne jail, where he will await his execution. As he mounts the hanging
scaffold, his last words are, "Such is life." His final requests are for the release of his mother
from prison and that he be buried in consecrated ground. Neither is honored, and he is buried
inside the walls of the prison.

70.ANNA KARENINA
The Oblonsky family of Moscow is torn apart by adultery. Dolly Oblonskaya has caught her
husband, Stiva, having an affair with their children’s former governess, and threatens to leave
him. Stiva is somewhat remorseful but mostly dazed and uncomprehending. Stiva’s sister, Anna
Karenina, wife of the St. Petersburg government official Karenin, arrives at the Oblonskys’ to
mediate. Eventually, Anna is able to bring Stiva and Dolly to a reconciliation.
Meanwhile, Dolly’s younger sister, Kitty, is courted by two suitors: Konstantin Levin, an awkward
landowner, and Alexei Vronsky, a dashing military man. Kitty turns down Levin in favor of
Vronsky, but not long after, Vronsky meets Anna Karenina and falls in love with her instead of
Kitty. The devastated Kitty falls ill. Levin, depressed after having been rejected by Kitty,
withdraws to his estate in the country. Anna returns to St. Petersburg, reflecting on her
infatuation with Vronsky, but when she arrives home she dismisses it as a fleeting crush.

Vronsky, however, follows Anna to St. Petersburg, and their mutual attraction intensifies as
Anna begins to mix with the freethinking social set of Vronsky’s cousin Betsy Tverskaya. At a
party, Anna implores Vronsky to ask Kitty’s forgiveness; in response, he tells Anna that he loves
her. Karenin goes home from the party alone, sensing that something is amiss. He speaks to
Anna later that night about his suspicions regarding her and Vronsky, but she curtly dismisses his
concerns.

Some time later, Vronsky participates in a military officers’ horse race. Though an accomplished
horseman, he makes an error during the race, inadvertently breaking his horse’s back. Karenin
notices his wife’s intense interest in Vronsky during the race. He confronts Anna afterward, and
she candidly admits to Karenin that she is having an affair and that she loves Vronsky. Karenin is
stunned.

Kitty, meanwhile, attempts to recover her health at a spa in Germany, where she meets a pious
Russian woman and her do-gooder protégée, Varenka. Kitty also meets Levin’s sickly brother
Nikolai, who is also recovering at the spa.

Levin’s intellectual half-brother, Sergei Koznyshev, visits Levin in the country and criticizes him
for quitting his post on the local administrative council. Levin explains that he resigned because
he found the work bureaucratic and useless. Levin works enthusiastically with the peasants on
his estate but is frustrated by their resistance to agricultural innovations. He visits Dolly, who
tempts him with talk of reviving a relationship with Kitty. Later, Levin meets Kitty at a dinner
party at the Oblonsky household, and the two feel their mutual love. They become engaged and
marry.
Karenin rejects Anna’s request for a divorce. He insists that they maintain outward appearances
by staying together. Anna moves to the family’s country home, however, away from her
husband. She encounters Vronsky often, but their relationship becomes clouded after Anna
reveals she is pregnant. Vronsky considers resigning his military post, but his old ambitions
prevent him.

Karenin, catching Vronsky at the Karenin country home one day, finally agrees to divorce. Anna,
in her childbirth agony, begs for Karenin’s forgiveness, and he suddenly grants it. He leaves the
divorce decision in her hands, but she resents his generosity and does not ask for a divorce.
Instead, Anna and Vronsky go to Italy, where they lead an aimless existence. Eventually, the two
return to Russia, where Anna is spurned by society, which considers her adultery disgraceful.
Anna and Vronsky withdraw into seclusion, though Anna dares a birthday visit to her young son
at Karenin’s home. She begins to feel great jealousy for Vronsky, resenting the fact that he is
free to participate in society while she is housebound and scorned.

Married life brings surprises for Levin, including his sudden lack of freedom. When Levin is called
away to visit his dying brother Nikolai, Kitty sparks a quarrel by insisting on accompanying him.
Levin finally allows her to join him. Ironically, Kitty is more helpful to the dying Nikolai than
Levin is, greatly comforting him in his final days.

Kitty discovers she is pregnant. Dolly and her family join Levin and Kitty at Levin’s country estate
for the summer. At one point, Stiva visits, bringing along a friend, Veslovsky, who irks Levin by
flirting with Kitty. Levin finally asks Veslovsky to leave. Dolly decides to visit Anna, and finds her
radiant and seemingly very happy. Dolly is impressed by Anna’s luxurious country home but
disturbed by Anna’s dependence on sedatives to sleep. Anna still awaits a divorce.

Levin and Kitty move to Moscow to await the birth of their baby, and they are astonished at the
expenses of city life. Levin makes a trip to the provinces to take part in important local elections,
in which the vote brings a victory for the young liberals. One day, Stiva takes Levin to visit Anna,
whom Levin has never met. Anna enchants Levin, but her success in pleasing Levin only fuels her
resentment toward Vronsky. She grows paranoid that Vronsky no longer loves her. Meanwhile,
Kitty enters labor and bears a son. Levin is confused by the conflicting emotions he feels toward
the infant. Stiva goes to St. Petersburg to seek a cushy job and to beg Karenin to grant Anna the
divorce he once promised her. Karenin, following the advice of a questionable French psychic,
refuses.

Anna picks a quarrel with Vronsky, accusing him of putting his mother before her and unfairly
postponing plans to go to the country. Vronsky tries to be accommodating, but Anna remains
angry. When Vronsky leaves on an errand, Anna is tormented. She sends him a telegram
urgently calling him home, followed by a profusely apologetic note. In desperation, Anna drives
to Dolly’s to say goodbye, and then returns home. She resolves to meet Vronsky at the train
station after his errand, and she rides to the station in a stupor. At the station, despairing and
dazed by the crowds, Anna throws herself under a train and dies.

Two months later, Sergei’s book has finally been published, to virtually no acclaim. Sergei
represses his disappointment by joining a patriotic upsurge of Russian support for Slavic peoples
attempting to free themselves from Turkish rule. Sergei, Vronsky, and others board a train for
Serbia to assist in the cause. Levin is skeptical of the Slavic cause, however.

Kitty becomes worried by Levin’s gloomy mood. He has become immersed in questions about
the meaning of life but feels unable to answer them. One day, however, a peasant remarks to
Levin that the point of life is not to fill one’s belly but to serve God and goodness. Levin receives
this advice as gospel, and his life is suddenly transformed by faith.

Later that day, Levin, Dolly, and Dolly’s children seek shelter from a sudden, violent
thunderstorm, only to discover that Kitty and Levin’s young son are still outside. Levin runs to
the woods and sees a huge oak felled by lightning. He fears the worst, but his wife and child are
safe. For the first time, Levin feels real love for his son, and Kitty is pleased. Levin reflects again
that the meaning of his life lies in the good that he can put into it.

71.CERMONY - Leslie Marmon Silco

Returning home to the Laguna Pueblo reservation from World War II, via a Veteran's Hospital,
Tayo must find a way to cure himself of his mental anguish, and to bring the rain back to his
community. Combining prose and poetry, Ceremony interweaves the individual story of Tayo
and the collective story of his people. As Tayo's journey unfolds, it is paralleled by poems telling
old stories.

The trauma of thinking he saw his uncle Josiah's face among a crowd of Japanese soldiers he was
ordered to shoot, and then of watching his cousin Rocky die, drove Tayo out of his mind. A
period of time in a Veterans' Hospital gets him well enough to return to his home, with his
Grandmother, his Auntie, and her husband Robert. This is the family unit that raised him after
his mother, who had conceived him with an unknown white man, left him for good at the age of
four. In his family's home Tayo faces not only their disappointment at the loss of Rocky, but also
his continued grieving over his favorite uncle Josiah's death. He also contends with his guilt over
a prayer against the rain he uttered in the forests of the Philippines, which he thinks is
responsible for the six-year drought on the reservation.

As he slowly recuperates, Tayo realizes that he is not alone. His childhood friends Harley, Leroy,
Emo, and Pinkie who also fought in the war contend with similar post-traumatic stress,
self-medicating with alcohol. The company is little comfort. His old friends spend their drunken
hours reminiscing about how great the war was and how much respect they got while they were
in uniform. These stories only make Tayo think about the tremendous discrimination the Native
Americans face at the hands of the whites, whom they nonetheless seem to admire, and he is
even more saddened and infuriated. Just as Tayo begins to give up hope and to wish he could
return to the VA hospital, his grandmother calls in the medicine man, Ku'oosh. Ku'oosh performs
for Tayo a ceremony for warriors who have killed in battle, but both Ku'oosh and Tayo fear that
the ancient ceremonies are not applicable to this new situation.

Tayo is helped but not cured by Ku'oosh's ceremony. It prompts him to consider his childhood,
especially the summer before he left for the army. Although Auntie did her best to keep the two
boys separate, Tayo and Rocky became close friends, and the summer after they graduated from
high school, they enlisted in the army together. That summer, Josiah fell in love with Night
Swan, a Mexican woman who lived just outside the reservation. At her urging, he invested in a
herd of Mexican cattle, which Tayo helped him to care for. As so often happens, there is a
drought that summer. Having heard the old stories of how droughts are ended, Tayo goes to a
spring and invents a rain ceremony. The following day it rains. In addition to helping the crops
and the cattle, the rain keeps Josiah from visiting Night Swan. He asks Tayo to bring her a note.
Tayo delivers the note, and in the process is seduced by Night Swan.

Realizing that his ceremony has not been enough for Tayo, Ku'oosh sends him to the nearby
town of Gallup to see another medicine man, Betonie, who knows more about the problems
incurred by the contact between Native American and white cultures. Although he is skeptical of
Betonie's strange ways and especially high connection with the white world, Tayo tells him of his
what is troubling him. Betonie listens and explains that they must invent and complete a new
ceremony. Tayo accepts. Betonie tells Tayo stores of the old ceremonies as he performs them.
Then Betonie tells Tayo stories of his grandfather, Descheeny, and the beginning of the creation
of a new ceremony to stop the destruction the whites, an invention of Native American
witchery, are wreaking on the world.

Betonie sends Tayo back home, reminding him that the ceremony is still far from complete.
When he meets Harley and Leroy on the way home, Tayo slips back into their lifestyle for a
moment, but soon moves on, heeding the signs Betonie told him of as he searches for Josiah's
cattle. Tayo follows the stars to a woman's house. After spending a night with the woman, Ts'eh,
Tayo heads up into the mountains. He finds Josiah's cattle fenced into a white man's pasture.
While Tayo breaks into the pasture, the cattle run off to its far reaches, and Tayo spends all night
looking for them. As dawn approaches, Tayo is about to give up when a mountain lion comes up
to him. Tayo honors the mountain lion, and follows its tracks to the cattle. Just as he herds the
cattle out of the pasture, two white patrolmen find Tayo. Not realizing that the cattle are
missing, but knowing Tayo has trespassed, the patrolmen arrest Tayo. Before they can bring him
to town, however, they notice the mountain lion tracks and let Tayo go in order to hunt it. As
Tayo heads out, it begins to snow. Tayo knows this will cover the tracks of his cattle and of the
mountain lion, making the patrolmens' efforts fruitless. On the way down the mountain, Tayo
meets a hunter, who lives with Ts'eh. When they arrive back at her house, she has corralled
Tayo's cattle, which she keeps until Tayo and Robert return with a cattle truck to gather them
up.

Returning home with Josiah's cattle, Tayo feels cured. However, the drought persists, and Tayo
knows the ceremony is not complete. He goes to the family's ranch with the cattle, where he
finds Ts'eh . They spend the summer together, but as it draws to an end Robert visits and warns
Tayo that Emo has been spreading rumors about him. Shortly thereafter, Ts'eh tells Tayo that
Emo and the white police are coming after him. Before she leaves, she tells Tayo how to avoid
capture.

Following Ts'eh's instructions, Tayo easily evades the white police. Still running from Emo, he
meets Harley and Leroy. Almost too late, Tayo realizes that Harley and Leroy have joined forces
with Emo. Running again, Tayo finds himself in an abandoned uranium mine. As he looks at the
gaping hole left in the earth, Tayo realizes that this is the last station of his ceremony, the one
where he incorporates an element of white culture, the mine. All he has to do is to spend the
night there and the ceremony will be complete. Soon Emo and Pinkie arrive. From a hiding
place, Tayo must watch them torture Harley to death, and restrain himself from killing Emo in
order to save Harley. With the help of the wind, Tayo survives the night. He returns home and
goes back to Ku'oosh. After hearing all about Tayo's ceremony, Ku'oosh pronounces that Ts'eh
was in fact A'moo'ooh, who has given her blessings to Tayo and his ceremony; the drought is
ended and the destruction of the whites is stopped. Tayo spends one last night in Ku'oosh's
house to finish off the ceremony, and then he returns home.

72. The Power and the Glory (1940) - Graham Greene

At the beginning of the novel, the priest is waiting for a boat that will take him out of the capital
city. He is on the run from the police because religion has been outlawed in his state and he is
the last remaining clergyman. While talking to a man named Mr. Tench, he is summoned to a
dying woman's house and misses his boat. He hides out in a barn on the estate of a plantation
owner, befriending the owner's daughter. Forced to move on, he heads to a village in which he
used to live and work as pastor. There he meets Maria, a woman with whom he has had a brief
affair, and Brigida, his illegitimate daughter. He spends the night in the town and wakes before
dawn to say mass for the villagers. The lieutenant—a sworn enemy of all r eligion—arrives at
the end of mass, leading a group of policemen in search of the priest, and the priest goes out to
the town square to face his enemy. No one in the village turns him in, however, and the
lieutenant does not realize that he has foun d the man he is looking for. Instead, the lieutenant
takes a hostage, whom he says he will execute if he finds that the villagers have been lying to
him about the whereabouts of the wanted man.

The priest heads to the town of Carmen, and on the way he meets a man known simply as the
mestizo. Uninvited, the mestizo accompanies the priest on his journey, and it very soon
becomes clear that he is an untrustworthy figure, and most likely interes ted in following the
priest so that he can turn him in and collect the reward money. The priest finally admits that he
is, indeed, a priest. But the mestizo, who has become feverish by the second day of their journey
together, does not have the strength t o follow the priest when he veers off course. The priest
knows that if he enters Carmen he will surely be captured, and he lets the mestizo ride on
towards the town by himself.

The priest then backtracks to the capital city. He is in disguise, wearing a drill suit, and he tries to
procure a bottle of wine so he can say mass. He meets a beggar who takes him to a hotel and
introduces him to a man who says he can supply him with th e wine. The man arrives and sells
the priest a bottle of wine and a bottle of brandy. But, taking advantage of the priest's offer to
share a drink with him, the man proceeds to drink the entire bottle of wine, thwarting the
priest's plan. The priest then leaves the hotel but is caught with the bottle of brandy by a state
official. After a lengthy chase through the streets of the town, during which the priest
unsuccessfully attempts to take refuge at the house of Padre Jose, he is caught and taken to j ail.
In jail he speaks with the prisoners, admitting to them that he is a priest. A pious woman, in jail
for having religious articles in her home, argues with the priest. The next day, the priest is
ordered to clean out the cells and, while doing so, meets the mestizo again. But the mestizo
decides not to turn the priest in to the authorities. The priest has another face-to-face encounter
with the lieutenant, but again goes unrecognized, and is allowed to go free.

The priest spends a night at the abandoned estate of the Fellows and then moves on to an
abandoned village. He meets an Indian woman whose son has been shot and killed by the
gringo, an American outlaw who is also on the run from police. He accompanie s the woman to a
burial ground and then leaves her there. Fatigued, and almost completely drained of the will to
live, the priest staggers on, eventually coming upon a man named Mr. Lehr who informs him
that he is out of danger, having crossed the bor der into a neighboring state where religion is not
outlawed.

After spending a few days at the home of Mr. Lehr, the priest prepares to leave for Las Casas.
But before he can depart, the mestizo arrives, informing him that the gringo has been mortally
wounded by the police and is asking for someone to come and hear his confession. The priest,
aware that he is walking into a trap, finally agrees to accompany the mestizo back across the
border. There he meets the gringo, who refuses to repent for his sins and then dies. Then, as
expected, the lieutenant arrives and ta kes the priest into custody. The two men have a long
conversation about their beliefs and then, when the storm front clears, the lieutenant takes the
priest back to the capital city for his trial.

On the night before the priest is to be executed, the lieutenant goes to the home of Padre Jose
to see if he will come and hear the confession of the captured priest. Padre Jose refuses and the
lieutenant returns to the police station with a bottle of bra ndy for the priest. That night, the
priest tries to repent for his sins, but finds he cannot. He wakes up the next morning afraid of
the impending execution.

The next day, Mr. Tench watches the execution from the window of the jefe's office. Later that
night the boy hears about what happened to the priest and realizes that the man is a martyr and
a hero. He dreams about him that night, and wakes up to the sound of knocking at the door.
Opening the door, he finds a man seeking shelter, and when the boy learns that the man is a
priest, he swings the door wide open to let him in.

73. A Brave New World (1931) - Aldus Huxley

The novel is set in A.F. 632, approximately seven centuries after the twentieth century. A.F.
stands for the year of Ford, named for the great industrialist Henry Ford who refined mass
production techniques for automobiles. World Controllers rule the world and ensure the
stability of society through the creation of a five-tiered caste system. Alphas and Betas are at the
top of the system and act as the scientists, politicians, and other top minds, while Gammas,
Deltas, and Epsilons are at the bottom and represent the world's industrial working class. A drug
called soma ensures that no one ever feels pain or remains unhappy, and members of every
caste receive rations of the drug. Pre- and post-natal conditioning further ensures social
stability.

Brave New World opens with the Director of the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning
Centre giving a group of young students a tour of the facilities. An assembly line creates
embryos using the latest advancements in science. The students view the various techniques for
producing more babies and watch as the process segregates babies into various castes. After the
babies are decanted from their bottles, they are conditioned through Neo-Pavlovian
conditioning and hypnopaedia. In Neo-Pavlovian conditioning, babies enter a room filled with
books and roses. When the babies approach the books or the roses, alarms and sirens sound,
and the babies receive a small electric shock, which frightens them so that when they confront
the same items for a second time, they recoil in fear. Hypnopaedia teaches babies and children
while they are asleep by playing ethical phrases numerous times so that the phrases will
become a subconscious part of each person.

The World Controller of Western Europe, His Fordship Mustapha Mond appears and gives the
students a lecture about the way things used to be. Before the Utopian world order was
established, he explains that people used to be parents and have children through live birth.
This existence led to dirty homes with families where emotions got in the way of happiness and
stability. The first world reformers tried to change things, but the old governments ignored
them. War finally ensued, culminating in the use of anthrax bombs. After the so-called Nine
Years' War, the world suffered through an economic crisis. Exhausted by their disastrous living
conditions, people finally allowed the world reformers to seize control. The reformers soon
eradicated religion, monogamy, and most other individualistic traits, and they stabilized society
with the introduction of the caste system and the use of soma.

Bernard Marx is introduced as a short, dark haired Alpha who is believed to have accidentally
received a dose of alcohol as a fetus on the assembly line. His coworkers dislike him and talk
about him in derogatory tones. Bernard has a crush on Lenina Crowne, another Alpha, and she
informs the reader that he asked her to go with him to the Savage Reservations several weeks
earlier. Lenina has been dating Henry Foster for the past several months, but since long-term
relationships are discouraged, she agrees to go with Bernard Marx to the Reservations.

Bernard goes to Tomakin, the Director, and gets the Director’s signature to enter the
Reservations. The Director tells a story about how he went there twenty-five years earlier with a
woman. During a storm, she became lost, and circumstances forced him to leave her there. The
Director then realizes he should not have told Bernard this story and defensively begins to yell at
him. Bernard leaves unruffled and goes to talk to his good friend Helmholtz Watson about his
meeting with the Director.

Helmholtz Watson is an intellectually superior Alpha who has become disillusioned with the
society. He is tired of his work, which consists of writing slogans and statements to inspire
people. Helmholtz indicates that he is searching for a way of expressing something, but he still
does not know what. He pities Bernard because he realizes that neither of them can completely
fit into the society.

Bernard flies with Lenina to the Savage Reservations. While there he realizes he left a tap of
perfume running in his room, and so he calls Helmholtz Watson to ask him to turn it off.
Helmholtz tells him that the Director is about to transfer Bernard to Iceland because Bernard has
been acting so antisocial lately.

Bernard and Lenina enter the compound and watch the Indians perform a ritualistic dance to
ensure a good harvest. A young man named John approaches them and tells them about
himself. He was born to a woman named Linda who had been left on the Reservation nearly
twenty-five years earlier. John is anxious to learn all about the Utopian world. Linda turns out to
be the woman that the Director took to the Reservation and left there. She was unable to leave
because she became pregnant with John, and since the Utopian society finds the notion of live
birth disgusting, mothers and children are taboo topics.

Bernard realizes that John and Linda could save him from a transfer to Iceland. He calls
Mustapha Mond and receives approval to bring them back to London. When Bernard finally
returns, he has to meet with the Director in public. The Director publicly shames him and
informs Bernard that he must go to Iceland. Bernard laughs at this and introduces Linda and
John. At the disclosure of his past, the Director is so humiliated that he resigns. Bernard
becomes an overnight celebrity due to his affiliation with John Savage, whose good looks and
mysterious past make him famous. Reveling in his sudden popularity, Bernard starts to date
numerous women and becomes extremely arrogant.

Bernard eventually hosts a party with several prominent guests attending. John refuses to come
and meet them, which embarrasses Bernard in front of his guests. The guests leave in a rage
while Bernard struggles to make amends. John is happier afterwards because Bernard must be
his friend again.

Helmholtz and John become very good friends. Helmholtz has gotten into trouble for writing a
piece of poetry about being alone and then reading it to his students. John pulls out his ancient
copy of the Complete Works of Shakespeare and starts to read. The fiery passion of the language
overwhelms Helmholtz, who realizes that this is what he has been trying to write.
Lenina has developed a crush on John the Savage, and she finally decides to go see him. After a
few minutes, he tells her that he loves her. Lenina is very happy to hear this and strips naked in
front of him in order to sleep with him. Immediately taken aback, John becomes extremely
angry with her. Crying, "Strumpet!" he hits her and chasse her into the bathroom. Fortunately
for Lenina, a phone call interrupts John and he rushes off.

John goes to the hospital where Linda has finally succumbed to taking too much soma. While he
tries to visit her, a large group of identical twins arrives for their death conditioning. They notice
Linda and comment on how ugly she is. John furiously throws them away from her. He then talks
to Linda, who starts asking for Pope, an Indian she lived with back on the Reservation. John
wants her to recognize him and so he starts to shake her. She opens her eyes and sees him but
at that moment, she chokes and passes away. John blames himself for her death. The young
twins again interrupt him, and he silently leaves the room.

When he arrives downstairs, John sees several hundred identical twins waiting in line for their
daily ration of soma. He passionately thinks that he can change the society and tells them to give
up on the soma that is poisoning their minds. He grabs the soma rations and starts to throw the
soma away. The Deltas get furious at this and start to attack him. Bernard and Helmholtz receive
a phone call telling them to go to the hospital. When they arrive and find John in the middle of a
mob, Helmholtz laughs and goes to join him. Bernard stays behind because he fears the
consequences.

All three men are taken to meet Mustapha Mond who turns out to be an intellectual. He tells
Bernard and Helmholtz that they must go to an island where other social outcasts are sent. The
island is for people who have become more individualistic in their views and can no longer fit in
with the larger society.

John and Mustapha engage in a long debate over why the society must have its current
structure. John is upset by the regulation and banning of history, religion, and science. Mustapha
tells him that the society’s design maximizes each person's happiness. History, religion, and
science only serve to create emotions that destabilize society and thus lead to unhappiness. In
order to ensure perfect stability, each person receives conditioning and learns to ignore things
that would lead to instability. John continues protesting. The climax of the book comes when
Mustapha tells John, "You are claiming the right to be unhappy." Mustapha then mentions a
long list of mankind's ills and evils. John replies, "I claim them all."

Mustapha sends Bernard and Helmholtz away to an island, but refuses to allow John to leave.
He tells John that he wants to continue the experiment a little longer. John runs away from
London to an abandoned lighthouse on the outskirts of the city, where he sets up a small garden
and builds bows and arrows. To alleviate his guilty conscience over Linda’s death, John makes a
whip and hits himself with it. Some Deltas witness him in self-flagellation, and within three days,
reporters show up to interview him. He manages to scare most of them away. However, one
man catches John beating himself and films the entire event. Within a day hundreds of
helicopters arrive, carrying people who want to see him beat himself. John cannot escape them
all. Lenina and Henry Foster also arrive and when John sees Lenina, he starts to beat her with
the whip. The crowd soon begins to chant “Orgy-porgy,” a sensual hymn used to generate a
feeling of oneness. John loses himself within the crowd and wakes up the next day after taking
soma and engaging in the sensual dance of the hymn. He is overwhelmed with guilt and
self-hatred. That evening he is found dead in the lighthouse as he hangs from an archway.

74 . We (1924) - Yevgeny Zamyatin

One thousand years after the One State's conquest of the entire world, the spaceship Integral is
being built in order to invade and conquer extraterrestrial planets. Meanwhile, the project's
chief engineer, D-503, begins a journal that he intends to be carried upon the completed
spaceship.
Like all other citizens of One State, D-503 lives in a glass apartment building and is carefully
watched by the secret police, or Bureau of Guardians. D-503's lover, O-90, has been assigned by
One State to visit him on certain nights. She is considered too short to bear children and is
deeply grieved by her state in life.
O-90's other lover and D-503's best friend is R-13, a State poet who reads his verse at public
executions.
While on an assigned walk with O-90, D-503 meets a woman named I-330. I-330 smokes
cigarettes, drinks alcohol, and shamelessly flirts with D-503 instead of applying for an
impersonal sex visit; all of these are highly illegal according to the laws of One State.
Both repelled and fascinated, D-503 struggles to overcome his attraction to I-330. I-330 invites
him to visit the Ancient House, notable for being the only opaque building in One State, except
for windows. Objects of aesthetic and historical importance dug up from around the city are
stored there. There, I-330 offers him the services of a corrupt doctor to explain his absence from
work. Leaving in horror, D-503 vows to denounce her to the Bureau of Guardians, but finds that
he cannot.
He begins to have dreams, which disturbs him, as dreams are thought to be a symptom of
mental illness. Slowly, I-330 reveals to D-503 that she is involved with the Mephi, an
organization plotting to bring down the One State. She takes him through secret tunnels inside
the Ancient House to the world outside the Green Wall, which surrounds the city-state. There,
D-503 meets the inhabitants of the outside world: humans whose bodies are covered with
animal fur. The aims of the Mephi are to destroy the Green Wall and reunite the citizens of One
State with the outside world.
Despite the recent rift between them, O-90 pleads with D-503 to impregnate her illegally. After
O-90 insists that she will obey the law by turning over their child to be raised by the One State,
D-503 obliges. However, as her pregnancy progresses, O-90 realizes that she cannot bear to be
parted from her baby under any circumstances. At D-503's request, I-330 arranges for O-90 to be
smuggled outside the Green Wall.
In his last journal entry, D-503 indifferently relates that he has been forcibly tied to a table and
subjected to the "Great Operation", which has recently been mandated for all citizens of One
State in order to prevent possible riots;[7] having been psycho-surgically refashioned into a state
of mechanical "reliability", they would now function as "tractors in human form".[8] This
operation removes the imagination and emotions by targeting parts of the brain with X-rays.
After this operation, D-503 willingly informed the Benefactor about the inner workings of the
Mephi. However, D-503 expresses surprise that even torture could not induce I-330 to denounce
her comrades. Despite her refusal, I-330 and those arrested with her have been sentenced to
death, "under the Benefactor's Machine".
Meanwhile, the Mephi uprising gathers strength; parts of the Green Wall have been destroyed,
birds are repopulating the city, and people start committing acts of social rebellion. Although
D-503 expresses hope that the Benefactor shall restore "reason", the novel ends with One
State's survival in doubt. I-330's mantra is that, just as there is no highest number, there can be
no final revolution.

75. Where Angels fear to Tread (1905) - E M Froster

On a journey to Tuscany with her young friend and traveling companion Caroline Abbott,
widowed Lilia Herriton falls in love with both Italy and Gino, a handsome Italian much younger
than herself, and decides to stay. Furious, her dead husband's family send Lilia's brother-in-law
Philip to Italy to prevent a misalliance, but he arrives too late. Lilia has already married the
Italian and becomes pregnant again. While giving birth to her son, she dies. The Herritons send
Philip again to Italy, this time to save the infant boy from an uncivilized life and to save the
family's reputation. Not wanting to be outdone—or considered any less moral or concerned
than Caroline for the child's welfare—Lilia's in-laws try to take the lead in traveling to Italy. In
the public eye, they make it known that it is both their right and their duty to travel to
Monteriano to obtain custody of the infant so that he can be raised as an Englishman. Secretly,
though, they have no regard for the child; only public appearances.

Similarly to A Room with a View, both Italy and its inhabitants are presented as exuding an
irresistible charm, to which eventually Caroline Abbott also succumbs. However, there is a tragic
ending to the novel: the accidental death of Lilia's child, which spurs a series of drastic changes
within the story. Gino's physical outburst toward Philip in response to the news makes Philip
realize what it is like to truly be alive. The guilt felt by Lilia's sister-in-law Harriet causes her to
lose her mind. Finally, Philip realizes that he is in love with Caroline Abbott but that he can never
be with her, because she admits, dramatically, to being in love with Gino.

76. Under the Western Eye (1911) - Joseph Conrad

The narrator, an English teacher of languages living in Geneva, is narrating the personal record
of Kyrilo Sidorovitch Razumov. Razumov is a student in the University of St. Petersburg in the
early 1910s. He never knew his parents and thus has no family tradition. He is trusted by his
fellow students, many of who hold revolutionary views, but he takes no clear positions in the
great questions of his time because he considers all of Russia his family.

Mr. de P—, the brutal Minister of State, is assassinated by a team of two, but the bombs used
claim the lives of his footman, the first assassin and a number of bystanders.

Razumov enters his rooms where he finds Victor Haldin, a fellow student. Haldin informs him
that he was the one who murdered Mr. de P—, but he and his accomplice did not make a proper
escape plan. He requests Razumov's help because he trusts him even though he realises that
they do not quite belong in the same camp. Razumov agrees to help, if only to get Haldin out of
his flat. Haldin tasks him with finding Ziemianitch, who was supposed to help Haldin escape.
Haldin’s request launches Razumov into a deep identity crisis as he feels that his life will be
destroyed by the authorities simply out of association with Haldin. Consequently, he becomes
intensely aware of his social isolation and lack of family ties. Harbouring no sympathy for
Haldin's actions or his ideals, Razumov is brought closer to conservatism out of simple fear for
survival. He seeks Ziemianitch and when he finds him drunk and incapacitated, beats him.
Afterwards he makes up his mind to betray Haldin to save his own life and turns to his university
sponsor, Prince K. They go to the chief of police, General T—. A trap is laid for Haldin.

Razumov returns to his apartment and attempts to explain his predicament to Haldin while
concealing the fact that he has just betrayed him. Haldin leaves and, later that night, is caught.
Razumov is distressed for days after Haldin's capture. Finally, he receives a summons to the
police headquarters and meets Privy Councillor Mikulin. In a scene reminiscent of Crime and
Punishment, Razumov is highly paranoid that Mikulin suspects him of being a revolutionary.
Mikulin reveals that Haldin was interrogated, sentenced and hanged the same day without
implicating Razumov. Mikulin also reveals that he supervised a search Razumov’s quarters and is
interested in Razumov’s future plans.

Part Second

The narrative shifts to Haldin's sister, Natalia, and their mother, Mrs Haldin, who live in
Switzerland after Haldin persuaded them to sell their house in Russia and move. Having lived in
Zurich for a while, they settled in Geneva, which has a vibrant Russian community. There, they
wait for Haldin. Natalia has been friendly with the narrator for some time from whom she
receives English lessons.

One day, the narrator chances upon the news of Haldin's arrest and execution in an English
newspaper and tells Natalia and her mother. Natalia takes the news stoically but her mother is
deeply distressed. Peter Ivanovitch, a leader in the revolutionary movement, having learnt of
Haldin's execution meets with Natalia and attempts to recruit her, but Natalia is sceptical and
noncommittal. He also tells her that Razumov is about to arrive in Geneva, which excites Natalia,
as Haldin had described him in glowing terms in his letters.

Natalia is invited to the Chateau Borel, a big, neglected house that Madame de S— rents from
the widow of an Italian banker, and meets Tekla, the abused companion of Madame de S— and
secretary to Peter Ivanovitch. Tekla recounts her life story. Afterwards, they come upon Peter
Ivanovitch and Razumov. Peter Ivanovitch leaves and Natalia introduces herself to Razumov.

Part Third

The narrative shifts to a few weeks earlier and describes how Razumov arrived in Geneva,
having first stayed in Zurich for three days with Sophia Antonovna, the right hand of Peter
Ivanovitch. Razumov did not further seek Peter Ivanovitch after their first meeting but instead
took long walks with Natalia, where she took him into her confidence and asked about her
brother's last hours, to which Razumov gave no definite answer. Razumov is abrasive towards
the narrator, who detects a deep distress under Razumov's exterior. He is invited to the Chateau
Borel, where he is received on friendly terms, as Madame de S— and Peter Ivanovitch think that
he was a collaborator of Haldin. In fact, Razumov he has gone to Geneva, working as a spy for
the Russian government.

His taciturnity and reserve are interpreted by each character in their own way. The
revolutionaries reveal some of their plans to Razumov and he is given his first assignment: to
bring Natalia to Peter Ivanovitch so he can convert her, as Peter Ivanovitch cherishes female
followers above everything else.

Razumov then meets Sophia Antonovna and comes to realise her as his most dangerous
adversary because of her single-mindedness and perception. Suppressing his distress, he
manages to deceive her. Sophia Antonovna reveals that Ziemianitch hanged himself soon after
Haldin's execution, which makes the revolutionaries believe that he was the one who betrayed
Haldin.

Part Fourth

The narrative shifts back to Razumov's initial interview with Mikulin. Mikulin admits having read
Razumov's private notes but reassures him that he is not suspicious of him. After telling
Razumov that some of the best Russian minds ultimately returned to them (referring to
Dostoevsky, Gogol and Aksakov), he lets him go. Razumov spends the next few weeks in an
increasing state of malaise where he alienates his fellow students and professors. In the
meantime, Mikulin has received a promotion and sees an opportunity to use Razumov. He
summons him to further interviews where he recruits him, with the blessings of Prince K., to act
as a secret agent for the Czarist authorities of the Russian Empire.

The narrative shifts to Geneva, where Razumov is writing his first report to Mikulin. On his way
to the post office, the narrator comes upon him, but Razumov takes no notice of him. The
narrator goes to Natalia's flat, only to learn that Natalia must find Razumov urgently and bring
him to her dying mother, as she needs to meet the only friend of Haldin that she knows. The
professor and Natalia go to the Chateau Borel to ask Peter Ivanovitch where Razumov stays.
There, they find the revolutionaries preparing an insurgency in the Baltic provinces. They return
to their quarters where Razumov unexpectedly visits them. After a long conversation with
Natalia in which Razumov makes several obscure and cryptic remarks, and Natalia asks how her
brother spent his last hours, he implies that he was the one who betrayed him.

Razumov retires to his quarters where he writes his record. He explains to Natalia that he fell in
love with her as soon as she took him into her confidence and had never been shown any kind of
love before, he felt he had betrayed himself by having betrayed her brother.

He mails the record to Natalia and goes to the house of Julius Laspara where a social gathering
of revolutionaries is taking place. Razumov declares to the crowd that Ziemianitch was innocent
and explains his motives only partially but confesses that he was the one who gave up Haldin.
Some revolutionaries, led by Necator, attack him and smash his eardrums. A deaf Razumov is
crushed by a tramcar and crippled. Tekla finds him and stays by his side at the hospital.

A few months pass, and Mrs Haldin has died. Natalia has returned to Russia to devote herself to
charity work and gives Razumov's record to the narrator. Tekla has taken the invalid Razumov to
the Russian countryside, where she looks after him.

77. The Adventures of Huckleburry Fin (1884) - Mark

Twain
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn opens by familiarizing us with the events of the novel that
preceded it, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Both novels are set in the town of St. Petersburg,
Missouri, which lies on the banks of the Mississippi River. At the end of Tom Sawyer,
Huckleberry Finn, a poor boy with a drunken bum for a father, and his friend Tom Sawyer, a
middle-class boy with an imagination too active for his own good, found a robber’s stash of gold.
As a result of his adventure, Huck gained quite a bit of money, which the bank held for him in
trust. Huck was adopted by the Widow Douglas, a kind but stifling woman who lives with her
sister, the self-righteous Miss Watson.

As Huckleberry Finn opens, Huck is none too thrilled with his new life of cleanliness, manners,
church, and school. However, he sticks it out at the bequest of Tom Sawyer, who tells him that in
order to take part in Tom’s new “robbers’ gang,” Huck must stay “respectable.” All is well and
good until Huck’s brutish, drunken father, Pap, reappears in town and demands Huck’s money.
The local judge, Judge Thatcher, and the Widow try to get legal custody of Huck, but another
well-intentioned new judge in town believes in the rights of Huck’s natural father and even takes
the old drunk into his own home in an attempt to reform him. This effort fails miserably, and
Pap soon returns to his old ways. He hangs around town for several months, harassing his son,
who in the meantime has learned to read and to tolerate the Widow’s attempts to improve him.
Finally, outraged when the Widow Douglas warns him to stay away from her house, Pap kidnaps
Huck and holds him in a cabin across the river from St. Petersburg.

Whenever Pap goes out, he locks Huck in the cabin, and when he returns home drunk, he beats
the boy. Tired of his confinement and fearing the beatings will worsen, Huck escapes from Pap
by faking his own death, killing a pig and spreading its blood all over the cabin. Hiding on
Jackson’s Island in the middle of the Mississippi River, Huck watches the townspeople search the
river for his body. After a few days on the island, he encounters Jim, one of Miss Watson’s
slaves. Jim has run away from Miss Watson after hearing her talk about selling him to a
plantation down the river, where he would be treated horribly and separated from his wife and
children. Huck and Jim team up, despite Huck’s uncertainty about the legality or morality of
helping a runaway slave. While they camp out on the island, a great storm causes the Mississippi
to flood. Huck and Jim spy a log raft and a house floating past the island. They capture the raft
and loot the house, finding in it the body of a man who has been shot. Jim refuses to let Huck
see the dead man’s face.

Although the island is blissful, Huck and Jim are forced to leave after Huck learns from a woman
onshore that her husband has seen smoke coming from the island and believes that Jim is hiding
out there. Huck also learns that a reward has been offered for Jim’s capture. Huck and Jim start
downriver on the raft, intending to leave it at the mouth of the Ohio River and proceed up that
river by steamboat to the free states, where slavery is prohibited. Several days’ travel takes
them past St. Louis, and they have a close encounter with a gang of robbers on a wrecked
steamboat. They manage to escape with the robbers’ loot.
During a night of thick fog, Huck and Jim miss the mouth of the Ohio and encounter a group of
men looking for escaped slaves. Huck has a brief moral crisis about concealing stolen
“property”—Jim, after all, belongs to Miss Watson—but then lies to the men and tells them that
his father is on the raft suffering from smallpox. Terrified of the disease, the men give Huck
money and hurry away. Unable to backtrack to the mouth of the Ohio, Huck and Jim continue
downriver. The next night, a steamboat slams into their raft, and Huck and Jim are separated.

Huck ends up in the home of the kindly Grangerfords, a family of Southern aristocrats locked in a
bitter and silly feud with a neighboring clan, the Shepherdsons. The elopement of a Grangerford
daughter with a Shepherdson son leads to a gun battle in which many in the families are killed.
While Huck is caught up in the feud, Jim shows up with the repaired raft. Huck hurries to Jim’s
hiding place, and they take off down the river.

A few days later, Huck and Jim rescue a pair of men who are being pursued by armed bandits.
The men, clearly con artists, claim to be a displaced English duke (the duke) and the long-lost
heir to the French throne (the dauphin). Powerless to tell two white adults to leave, Huck and
Jim continue down the river with the pair of “aristocrats.” The duke and the dauphin pull several
scams in the small towns along the river. Coming into one town, they hear the story of a man,
Peter Wilks, who has recently died and left much of his inheritance to his two brothers, who
should be arriving from England any day. The duke and the dauphin enter the town pretending
to be Wilks’s brothers. Wilks’s three nieces welcome the con men and quickly set about
liquidating the estate. A few townspeople become skeptical, and Huck, who grows to admire the
Wilks sisters, decides to thwart the scam. He steals the dead Peter Wilks’s gold from the duke
and the dauphin but is forced to stash it in Wilks’s coffin. Huck then reveals all to the eldest
Wilks sister, Mary Jane. Huck’s plan for exposing the duke and the dauphin is about to unfold
when Wilks’s real brothers arrive from England. The angry townspeople hold both sets of Wilks
claimants, and the duke and the dauphin just barely escape in the ensuing confusion.
Fortunately for the sisters, the gold is found. Unfortunately for Huck and Jim, the duke and the
dauphin make it back to the raft just as Huck and Jim are pushing off.

After a few more small scams, the duke and dauphin commit their worst crime yet: they sell Jim
to a local farmer, telling him Jim is a runaway for whom a large reward is being offered. Huck
finds out where Jim is being held and resolves to free him. At the house where Jim is a prisoner,
a woman greets Huck excitedly and calls him “Tom.” As Huck quickly discovers, the people
holding Jim are none other than Tom Sawyer’s aunt and uncle, Silas and Sally Phelps. The
Phelpses mistake Huck for Tom, who is due to arrive for a visit, and Huck goes along with their
mistake. He intercepts Tom between the Phelps house and the steamboat dock, and Tom
pretends to be his own younger brother, Sid.

Tom hatches a wild plan to free Jim, adding all sorts of unnecessary obstacles even though Jim is
only lightly secured. Huck is sure Tom’s plan will get them all killed, but he complies
nonetheless. After a seeming eternity of pointless preparation, during which the boys ransack
the Phelps’s house and make Aunt Sally miserable, they put the plan into action. Jim is freed, but
a pursuer shoots Tom in the leg. Huck is forced to get a doctor, and Jim sacrifices his freedom to
nurse Tom. All are returned to the Phelps’s house, where Jim ends up back in chains.

When Tom wakes the next morning, he reveals that Jim has actually been a free man all along,
as Miss Watson, who made a provision in her will to free Jim, died two months earlier. Tom had
planned the entire escape idea all as a game and had intended to pay Jim for his troubles. Tom’s
Aunt Polly then shows up, identifying “Tom” and “Sid” as Huck and Tom. Jim tells Huck, who
fears for his future—particularly that his father might reappear—that the body they found on
the floating house off Jackson’s Island had been Pap’s. Aunt Sally then steps in and offers to
adopt Huck, but Huck, who has had enough “sivilizing,” announces his plan to set out for the
West.

78. Sons and lovers (1913) - D.H.Lawerence

Part I
The refined daughter of a "good old burgher family," Gertrude Coppard meets a rough-hewn
miner, Walter Morel, at a Christmas dance and falls into a whirlwind romance characterised by
physical passion. But soon after her marriage to Walter, she realises the difficulties of living off
his meagre salary in a rented house. The couple fight and drift apart and Walter retreats to the
pub after work each day. Gradually, Mrs. Morel's affections shift to her sons beginning with the
oldest, William.
As a boy, William is so attached to his mother that he doesn't enjoy the fair without her. As he
grows older, he defends her against his father's occasional violence. Eventually, he leaves their
Nottinghamshire home for a job in London, where he begins to rise up into the middle class. He
is engaged, but he detests the girl's superficiality. He dies and Mrs. Morel is heartbroken, but
when Paul catches pneumonia she rediscovers her love for her second son.
Part II[edit]
Both repulsed by and drawn to his mother, Paul is afraid to leave her but wants to go out on his
own, and needs to experience love. Gradually, he falls into a relationship with Miriam, a
farmer's daughter who attends his church. The two take long walks and have intellectual
conversations about books but Paul resists, in part because his mother disapproves. At Miriam's
family's farm, Paul meets Clara Dawes, a young woman with, apparently, feminist sympathies
who has separated from her husband, Baxter.
After pressuring Miriam into a physical relationship, which he finds unsatisfying, Paul breaks
with her as he grows more intimate with Clara, who is more passionate physically. But even she
cannot hold him and he returns to his mother. When his mother dies soon after, he is alone.
Lawrence summarised the plot in a letter to Edward Garnett on 12 November 1912:
It follows this idea: a woman of character and refinement goes into the lower class, and has no
satisfaction in her own life. She has had a passion for her husband, so her children are born of
passion, and have heaps of vitality. But as her sons grow up she selects them as lovers — first
the eldest, then the second. These sons are urged into life by their reciprocal love of their
mother — urged on and on. But when they come to manhood, they can't love, because their
mother is the strongest power in their lives, and holds them. It's rather like Goethe and his
mother and Frau von Stein and Christiana — As soon as the young men come into contact with
women, there's a split. William gives his sex to a fribble, and his mother holds his soul. But the
split kills him, because he doesn't know where he is. The next son gets a woman who fights for
his soul – fights his mother. The son loves his mother – all the sons hate and are jealous of the
father. The battle goes on between the mother and the girl, with the son as object. The mother
gradually proves stronger, because of the ties of blood. The son decides to leave his soul in his
mother's hands, and, like his elder brother go for passion. He gets passion. Then the split begins
to tell again. But, almost unconsciously, the mother realises what is the matter, and begins to
die. The son casts off his mistress, attends to his mother dying. He is left in the end naked of
everything, with the drift towards death.

79. The Vendor of Sweet(1967) - R.K.Narayan

Jagan is a 55 year old sweetmeat vendor, a successful businessman, a vehement follower of

Gandhi and an honest, hardworking and humble resident of the fictional suburb, Malgudi. In his
youth, he was influenced deeply by Mahatma Gandhi and left his studies and his peaceful life to
become an active member in India's struggle for freedom from the British Empire. The Bhagavad
Gita forms the staple of his life; he tries to act on the principles described in the great epic.
Naturopathy forms the pivotal of his life and he even desires to publish his natural way of living
in the form of a book, but it becomes obvious that it is a futile dream as the draft has been
gathering dust in the publisher’s office for the last five years. He wears hand spun cloth that
signifies purity to him, and he has been commended for it by Gandhi himself. In his early days
Jagan's wife, Ambika, dies from a brain tumour and leaves him to care for his only son, Mali.
Mali is gradually spoilt by Jagan and his almost 'maternal' obsession towards his son's life. Later,
in his college days, Mali displays his deep dislike for education and says that he would like to be
a 'writer', which Jagan at first inteprets as a clerical occupation. Afterwards, Mali decides to
leave to America to study Creative Writing. He gets his passport and tickets ready without even
informing Jagan about his plans. But, Jagan accepts this diversion with good heart and treasures
every letter received from Mali and proudly exhibits it to anyone whom he met in his daily
activities. A few years later, Mali returns to Malgudi very Westernized and brings along a
half-American, half-Korean girl, Grace, whom Mali claims is his 'wife'. Jagan assumes that they
are married according to the social norms and standards, but also realizes that Mali's
relationship with him has further eroded. However, Jagan develops an affection for Grace and
feels that Mali is not giving her the attention she deserves.
Soon Mali expresses his grandiose scheme of starting a machine factory with some partners
from America. He asks his father to invest in this factory. Jagan is unwilling to provide the
financial infrastructure of this venture, which causes more friction between Jagan and Mali.
Troubled by the turmoil, Jagan decides to retire from active working. As this is happening, Mali
is caught by the police for driving under the influence of alcohol and deserts his wife. Jagan then
asks his cousin to make sure that Mali stays in prison for some time, so that he can learn his
mistakes. Jagan also gives some amount of money to the cousin so that he can buy a plane ticket
to Grace so she can go back to her hometown.

80. The Zig Zag Way (2004) - Anita Desai

The Zigzag Way is a 2004 novel by Anita Desai. The novel is about an American academic and
writer who goes with his girlfriend to Mexico and rediscovers his passion for fiction writing. The
novel was received with mixed reviews. Liz Hoggard of The Guardian emphasized how the
characters often get overwhelmed by the descriptions of the scenery losing the patience of the
reader.[1] Similarly, The Scotsman emphasized how the novel often is distant from the reader,
often providing more information than the reader needs and not engaging with the
characters.[2]
81.Crime and Punishment(1866) - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov, a former student, lives in a tiny garret on the top floor of a
run-down apartment building in St. Petersburg. He is sickly, dressed in rags, short on money, and
talks to himself, but he is also handsome, proud, and intelligent. He is contemplating committing
an awful crime, but the nature of the crime is not yet clear. He goes to the apartment of an old
pawnbroker, Alyona Ivanovna, to get money for a watch and to plan the crime. Afterward, he
stops for a drink at a tavern, where he meets a man named Marmeladov, who, in a fit of
drunkenness, has abandoned his job and proceeded on a five-day drinking binge, afraid to
return home to his family. Marmeladov tells Raskolnikov about his sickly wife, Katerina
Ivanovna, and his daughter, Sonya, who has been forced into prostitution to support the family.
Raskolnikov walks with Marmeladov to Marmeladov’s apartment, where he meets Katerina and
sees firsthand the squalid conditions in which they live.

The next day, Raskolnikov receives a letter from his mother, Pulcheria Alexandrovna, informing
him that his sister, Dunya, is engaged to be married to a government official named Luzhin and
that they are all moving to St. Petersburg. He goes to another tavern, where he overhears a
student talking about how society would be better off if the old pawnbroker Alyona Ivanovna
were dead. Later, in the streets, Raskolnikov hears that the pawnbroker will be alone in her
apartment the next evening. He sleeps fitfully and wakes up the next day, finds an ax, and
fashions a fake item to pawn to distract the pawnbroker. That night, he goes to her apartment
and kills her. While he is rummaging through her bedroom, looking for money, her sister,
Lizaveta, walks in, and Raskolnikov kills her as well. He barely escapes from the apartment
without being seen, then returns to his apartment and collapses on the sofa.

Waking up the next day, Raskolnikov frantically searches his clothing for traces of blood. He
receives a summons from the police, but it seems to be unrelated to the murders. At the police
station, he learns that his landlady is trying to collect money that he owes her. During a
conversation about the murders, Raskolnikov faints, and the police begin to suspect him.
Raskolnikov returns to his room, collects the goods that he stole from the pawnbroker, and
buries them under a rock in an out-of-the-way courtyard. He visits his friend Razumikhin and
refuses his offer of work. Returning to his apartment, Raskolnikov falls into a fitful,
nightmare-ridden sleep. After four days of fever and delirium, he wakes up to find out that his
housekeeper, Nastasya, and Razumikhin have been taking care of him. He learns that Zossimov,
a doctor, and Zamyotov, a young police detective, have also been visiting him. They have all
noticed that Raskolnikov becomes extremely uncomfortable whenever the murders of the
pawnbroker and her sister are mentioned. Luzhin, Dunya’s fiancé, also makes a visit. After a
confrontation with Luzhin, Raskolnikov goes to a café, where he almost confesses to Zamyotov
that he is the murderer. Afterward, he impulsively goes to the apartment of the pawnbroker. On
his way back home, he discovers that Marmeladov has been run over by a carriage. Raskolnikov
helps to carry him back to his apartment, where Marmeladov dies. At the apartment, he meets
Sonya and gives the family twenty rubles that he received from his mother. Returning with
Razumikhin to his own apartment, Raskolnikov faints when he discovers that his sister and
mother are there waiting for him.

Raskolnikov becomes annoyed with Pulcheria Alexandrovna and Dunya and orders them out of
the room. He also commands Dunya to break her engagement with Luzhin. Razumikhin,
meanwhile, falls in love with Dunya. The next morning, Razumikhin tries to explain Raskolnikov’s
character to Dunya and Pulcheria Alexandrovna, and then the three return to Raskolnikov’s
apartment. There, Zossimov greets them and tells them that Raskolnikov’s condition is much
improved. Raskolnikov apologizes for his behavior the night before and confesses to giving all
his money to the Marmeladovs. But he soon grows angry and irritable again and demands that
Dunya not marry Luzhin. Dunya tells him that she is meeting with Luzhin that evening, and that
although Luzhin has requested specifically that Raskolnikov not be there, she would like him to
come nevertheless. Raskolnikov agrees. At that moment, Sonya enters the room, greatly
embarrassed to be in the presence of Raskolnikov’s family. She invites Raskolnikov to her
father’s funeral, and he accepts. On her way back to her apartment, Sonya is followed by a
strange man, who we later learn is Svidrigailov—Dunya’s lecherous former employer who is
obsessively attracted to her.

Under the pretense of trying to recover a watch he pawned, Raskolnikov visits the magistrate in
charge of the murder investigation, Porfiry Petrovich, a relative of Razumikhin’s. Zamyotov is at
the detective’s house when Raskolnikov arrives. Raskolnikov and Porfiry have a tense
conversation about the murders. Raskolnikov starts to believe that Porfiry suspects him and is
trying to lead him into a trap. Afterward, Raskolnikov and Razumikhin discuss the conversation,
trying to figure out if Porfiry suspects him. When Raskolnikov returns to his apartment, he learns
that a man had come there looking for him. When he catches up to the man in the street, the
man calls him a murderer. That night Raskolnikov dreams about the pawnbroker’s murder.
When he wakes up, there is a stranger in the room.

The stranger is Svidrigailov. He explains that he would like Dunya to break her engagement with
Luzhin, whom he esteems unworthy of her. He offers to give Dunya the enormous sum of ten
thousand rubles. He also tells Raskolnikov that his late wife, Marfa Petrovna, left Dunya three
thousand rubles in her will. Raskolnikov rejects Svidrigailov’s offer of money and, after hearing
him talk about seeing the ghost of Marfa, suspects that he is insane. After Svidrigailov leaves,
Raskolnikov and Razumikhin walk to a restaurant to meet Dunya, Pulcheria Alexandrovna, and
Luzhin. Razumikhin tells Raskolnikov that he is certain that the police suspect Raskolnikov.
Luzhin is insulted to find that Raskolnikov, contrary to his wishes, is in attendance at the meal.
They discuss Svidrigailov’s arrival in the city and the money that has been offered to Dunya.
Luzhin and Raskolnikov get into an argument, during the course of which Luzhin offends
everyone in the room, including his fiancée and prospective mother-in-law. Dunya breaks the
engagement and forces him to leave. Everyone is overjoyed at his departure. Razumikhin starts
to talk about plans to go into the publishing business as a family, but Raskolnikov ruins the mood
by telling them that he does not want to see them anymore. When Raskolnikov leaves the room,
Razumikhin chases him down the stairs. They stop, face-to-face, and Razumikhin realizes,
without a word being spoken, that Raskolnikov is guilty of the murders. He rushes back to Dunya
and Pulcheria Alexandrovna to reassure them that he will help them through whatever
difficulties they encounter.

Raskolnikov goes to the apartment of Sonya Marmeladov. During their conversation, he learns
that Sonya was a friend of one of his victims, Lizaveta. He forces Sonya to read to him the biblical
story of Lazarus, who was resurrected by Jesus. Meanwhile, Svidrigailov eavesdrops from the
apartment next door.
The following morning, Raskolnikov visits Porfiry Petrovich at the police department, supposedly
in order to turn in a formal request for his pawned watch. As they converse, Raskolnikov starts
to feel again that Porfiry is trying to lead him into a trap. Eventually, he breaks under the
pressure and accuses Porfiry of playing psychological games with him. At the height of tension
between them, Nikolai, a workman who is being held under suspicion for the murders, bursts
into the room and confesses to the murders. On the way to Katerina Ivanovna’s memorial dinner
for Marmeladov, Raskolnikov meets the mysterious man who called him a murderer and learns
that the man actually knows very little about the case.

The scene shifts to the apartment of Luzhin and his roommate, Lebezyatnikov, where Luzhin is
nursing his hatred for Raskolnikov, whom he blames for the breaking of his engagement to
Dunya. Although Luzhin has been invited to Marmeladov’s memorial dinner, he refuses to go.
He invites Sonya to his room and gives her a ten-ruble bill. Katerina’s memorial dinner goes
poorly. The widow is extremely fussy and proud, but few guests have shown up, and, except for
Raskolnikov, those that have are drunk and crude. Luzhin then enters the room and accuses
Sonya of stealing a one-hundred-ruble bill. Sonya denies his claim, but the bill is discovered in
one of her pockets. Just as everyone is about to label Sonya a thief, however, Lebezyatnikov
enters and tells the room that he saw Luzhin slip the bill into Sonya’s pocket as she was leaving
his room. Raskolnikov explains that Luzhin was probably trying to embarrass him by discrediting
Sonya. Luzhin leaves, and a fight breaks out between Katerina and her landlady.

After the dinner, Raskolnikov goes to Sonya’s room and confesses the murders to her. They have
a long conversation about his confused motives. Sonya tries to convince him to confess to the
authorities. Lebezyatnikov then enters and informs them that Katerina Ivanovna seems to have
gone mad—she is parading the children in the streets, begging for money. Sonya rushes out to
find them while Raskolnikov goes back to his room and talks to Dunya. He soon returns to the
street and sees Katerina dancing and singing wildly. She collapses after a confrontation with a
policeman and, soon after being brought back to her room, dies. Svidrigailov appears and offers
to pay for the funeral and the care of the children. He reveals to Raskolnikov that he knows
Raskolnikov is the murderer.

Raskolnikov wanders around in a haze after his confession to Sonya and the death of Katerina.
Razumikhin confronts him in his room, asking him whether he has gone mad and telling him of
the pain that he has caused his mother and sister. After their conversation, Porfiry Petrovich
appears and apologizes for his treatment of Raskolnikov in the police station. Nonetheless, he
does not believe Nikolai’s confession. He accuses Raskolnikov of the murders but admits that he
does not have enough evidence to arrest him. Finally, he urges him to confess, telling him that
he will receive a lighter sentence if he does so. Raskolnikov goes looking for Svidrigailov,
eventually finding him in a café. Svidrigailov tells him that though he is still attracted to Dunya,
he has gotten engaged to a sixteen-year-old girl. Svidrigailov parts from Raskolnikov and
manages to bring Dunya to his room, where he threatens to rape her after she refuses to marry
him. She fires several shots at him with a revolver and misses, but when he sees how strongly
she dislikes him, he allows her to leave. He takes her revolver and wanders aimlessly around St.
Petersburg. He gives three thousand rubles to Dunya, fifteen thousand rubles to the family of his
fiancée, and then books a room in a hotel. He sleeps fitfully and dreams of a flood and a
seductive five-year-old girl. In the morning, he kills himself.

Raskolnikov, who is visiting his mother, tells her that he will always love her and then returns to
his room, where he tells Dunya that he is planning to confess. After she leaves, he goes to visit
Sonya, who gives him a cross to wear. On the way to the police station, he stops in a
marketplace and kisses the ground. He almost pulls back from confessing when he reaches the
police station and learns of Svidrigailov’s suicide. The sight of Sonya, however, convinces him to
go through with it, and he confesses to one of the police officials, Ilya Petrovich.

A year and a half later, Raskolnikov is in prison in Siberia, where he has been for nine months.
Sonya has moved to the town outside the prison, and she visits Raskolnikov regularly and tries to
ease his burden. Because of his confession, his mental confusion surrounding the murders, and
testimony about his past good deeds, he has received, instead of a death sentence, a reduced
sentence of eight years of hard labor in Siberia. After Raskolnikov’s arrest, his mother became
delirious and died. Razumikhin and Dunya were married. For a short while, Raskolnikov remains
as proud and alienated from humanity as he was before his confession, but he eventually
realizes that he truly loves Sonya and expresses remorse for his crime.

82. The Heart of Midlothian(1818) - Walter Scott

The first volume of the novel, opening in Edinburgh in 1736, is dominated by the Porteous Riots.
A condemned criminal Andrew Wilson has helped his accomplice 'Robertson' (the assumed
identity of the reckless young nobleman George Staunton) to escape. Won over by this selfless
act, the crowd are incensed when Captain Porteous, the soldier presiding over Wilson's hanging,
treats him with great brutality. At their protest, Porteous fires into the crowd, killing
half-a-dozen people. Porteous is subsequently condemned for murder but reprieved at the last
minute. A mob, led by Staunton, storm the Old Tolbooth Prison (known as 'The Heart of
Midlothian'), seize Porteous and lynch him. Staunton had also hoped to liberate his lover Effie
Deans who is awaiting trial for child-murder, but she refuses to escape. The second volume is
concerned with her trial and condemnation. Having been seduced and made pregnant by
Staunton, Effie has hidden her condition from her sister, father, and employers. Since she cannot
produce the child in court and has informed nobody of her condition, it is presumed that she has
murdered her child to conceal her guilt. The truth is that the baby has been stolen by Staunton's
demented former mistress Madge Wildfire while Effie lay sick. Effie's sister Jeanie faces a moral
dilemma in court when asked whether Effie told her of her condition. Although a white lie would
save Effie's life, Jeanie's religious and moral convictions forbid her to tell an untruth. Effie is
sentenced to death. Volume III covers Jeanie's journey to London in the course of which she
meets both Madge Wildfire and her mother Meg Murdockson who has sold Effie's son to a
vagrant woman in revenge for Staunton's seducing her daughter. In London Jeanie is aided by
the Duke of Argyle, who manages to secure her a successful interview with the Queen. The final
volume describes Jeanie's marriage to the Presbyterian minister Reuben Butler and their
newfound prosperity living on the estate of the Duke of Argyle. Effie, meanwhile, marries
Staunton. Many years later Staunton, while searching for his lost child, is killed by an outlaw
who turns out to be his own son. The son then flees to America and joins an Indian tribe.

83. Shame (1983) - Rushdie

Shame begins and ends in a fantastic house in the town of Q., located on the arid, isolated
border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Nicknamed Nishapur, home of the great Persian poet
Omar Khayyam, it is inhabited by three sisters who for twelve years raise a son, named for the
poet. They rear him in strict isolation from the world, instilling in his brilliant mind a strange
feeling of being peripheral and inverted. In exchange for being allowed to attend school, Omar is
ordered never to feel shame (sharam in Arabic). He goes away to medical school and a brilliant
career as an immunologist and shame does indeed appear to have no part in his voyeuristic,
misogynistic character.

Omar befriends and debauches with a rich playboy, Iskander ("Isky") Harappa, who marries Rani
Humayun, who immediately sees Omar as a threat. Isky and Rani have one daughter, Arjumand,
nicknamed the "Virgin Ironpants," for her determination to overcome her gender sexually and
professionally. On his 40th birthday, Isky hears the call of History and abandons his debauchery
to enter politics. For years, he has been the rival of Raza Hyder, a military hero who calls himself
"Old Razor Guts." Raza has married Bilquìs Kemal, a woman whose mind is shaken by the suicide
of her idealistic father. After a wrenching stillbirth, they bear two daughters, Sufiya Zinobia
(nicknamed "Shame") and Naveed (nicknamed "Good News").

The elder, left mentally retarded by a fever as an infant, takes within herself all the unfelt shame
of the world, which eventually becomes incarnate as a Beast. The Beast makes her behead a
flock of turkeys and she falls ill with the plague of shame. Omar treats her immunological
disorder and falls in love with her. At her sister's wedding, the Beast again makes her lash out
and she bites the groom in the neck. Omar marries her quietly, nonetheless, but he is forbidden
to have sexual relations with her. Despite her mental limitations, Sufiya Zinobia knows husbands
are for giving women babies and when her Omar impregnates her ayah Shahbanou,, the Beast
again takes over and four young men are forced to have sex with Sufiya Zinobia and have their
heads torn off.

Omar and Raza Hyder realize the truth and drug and imprison Sufiya Zinobia, unable to kill her.
Raza Hyder, who was placed in charge of the army by Prime Minister Iskander Harappa, has
overthrown him, instituted Islamic law and allowed Isky to be tried, brutally imprisoned and
executed. Raza is himself overthrown by a military coup and flees with Bilquìs and Omar, to
supposed safety in fortress-like Nishapur, disguised shamefully in women's burqas. There,
Omar's three mothers rejoice to find Raza, the murderer of their second son Babar, in their
hands. After the visitors endure the wild ravings of malaria, the three sisters dispatch Raza
Hyder with great gore in the dumbwaiter they had specially customized to serve as their means
of limited communications with the outside world. The Beast that has taken over Sufiya Zinobia
hunts Omar in the bed where his grandfather died and after a last eye-to-eye confrontation,
beheads him. The shell of Sufiya Zinobia is cast off, set free and the spouse-protagonists are
consumed in a great fire.

84 . Foe by J M Koetzee
At the opening of Foe, Susan Barton washes up on the shore of a small rocky island, somewhere
in the South Seas, sometime in the early eighteenth century. She is found by Friday, a black man
with bare feet. Friday brings her to Cruso, a weather-beaten white man with a peaked straw hat.
Susan remarks on the race of both men. Because he’s white, she considers Cruso to be Friday’s
master. Friday doesn’t speak. Susan tells Cruso her story: she was born of an English mother and
a French father. She has a daughter was abducted by an Englishman and taken to the New
World. Susan followed her to Bahia in Brazil. She hunted for her high and low, but couldn’t find
her. She stayed in Bahia for two years, until she finally caught a ship to Lisbon. She reveals to the
reader, but not to Cruso, that she was the the captain's lover. But during the voyage, the sailors
mutinied and killed the captain. They set Susan adrift in a small boat. This is how she landed on
the island with Cruso.

Cruso is stubborn and irrational. He has no idea how long he’s been on the island because he’s
kept no record. It could be months; it could be decades. He has also lost track of everything that
happened to him and Friday before being on the island. Susan is appalled that he has never tried
to keep any record. He mixes up all his stories. She has no idea what’s true or not. He reveals
however that Friday doesn’t speak because he has no tongue. He gets Friday to open his mouth
and show Susan. His tongue was cut out either by slavers or by Cruso himself. Cruso blames the
slavers. Susan doesn’t know how to look at Friday after learning this. She gets nervous around
him.

Susan spends a year on the island with Cruso and Friday. She sleeps with Cruso once. He falls
into bouts of fever. He spends his days leveling useless terraces all over the island. There is
nothing to plant on the terraces and they have no purpose, but he labors over them as though
they are the greatest necessity. Friday catches fish. They don’t go hungry. They live in a small
shack. The winds get terrible.

Finally, an English ship comes by and they are rescued – or at least, Susan is rescued. Cruso is
experiencing a fever at the time and is carried on board against his will. Friday tries to run and
hide, but Susan insists that they must get him; she believes it’s the humanitarian thing to do.
They travel back to England but en route Cruso dies and Friday becomes Susan’s charge.

In England, Susan is desperate and Friday is dependent on her. He is terrified by London. Susan
seeks out a famous writer named Daniel Foe and persuades him to turn her story of the island
into a book. Foe isn’t interested in Cruso and Friday. Their island existence seems tedious to
him. He is much more interested in Susan’s time in Bahia. He wants to hear how she survived.
He knows that it’s very difficult for a woman to survive alone. But she refuses to tell him (or the
reader) what happened to her there.

Foe is in debt and one day abandons his house to get away from creditors. Susan moves into his
abandoned house with Friday. They eat carrots from the garden and she teaches him to garden.
She sells off Foe’s belongings for money. Friday finds Foe’s robes and takes up dancing in them.
He twirls endlessly, with nothing on underneath the robes. One day while he’s dancing the robes
spin open and she sees that it’s not only his tongue that was cut off. Friday is also castrated.

Susan grows more and more curious about Friday. She speaks to him, confesses all kinds of
things and shares her thought on him and on language. She feels bad for bringing him to
England and decides to take him back to Africa. She has no money but walks with him from
London to Bristol. They sleep in barns and under hedges. They get chased down by drunken
soldiers. They get called gypsies. They’re muddy and filthy. They reach the ports in Bristol and
she attempts to put Friday on a ship bound for Africa but realizes that there’s no hope: he will
get sold back into slavery if she sends him out on any ship.

She brings Friday back to London and they find Foe. He has been too busy to write her book; but
mostly he wants to know about what happened to her in Bahia. She and Foe argue over what
the real story is. Foe feeds her and Friday and they debate the true story. She believes that the
story that needs to be told is on the island and it has to do with Friday. It has to do with his
tongue. The story that Friday isn’t able to tell is the story they must tell. Foe resists this, and
pushes Susan to tell her scandalous affairs. She refuses. She tells him about Friday’s castration.
They discuss how Friday thinks. Foe wants to teach Friday to write. He gives him a slate and
Friday draws o’s all over it. Friday sleeps in the alcove of Foe’s room and Susan gets in Foe’s bed.
They sleep together. His motion reminds her too much of Cruso, so she gets on top of him,
frightening him at first. Then she tells him to think of her as his Muse. They lie in bed talking
about Friday.

A dream-like sequence ensues in which Susan returns to the beginning of the story, where she
swims toward the island. Buts instead of going ashore, she goes under the water to a wreck of a
ship. She finds Friday chained up, sinking into the sand. She meditates on his body being his
story. His voice is like the water that moves through his body, out his mouth, reaching every
shoreline.

85. Dead Soul by J M Koetzee

The story follows the exploits of Chichikov, a middle-aged gentleman of middling social class and
means. Chichikov arrives in a small town and turns on the charm to woo key local officials and
landowners. He reveals little about his past, or his purpose, as he sets about carrying out his
bizarre and mysterious plan to acquire "dead souls."

The government would tax the landowners based on how many serfs (or "souls") the landowner
owned, determined by the census. Censuses in this period were infrequent, so landowners
would often be paying taxes on serfs that were no longer living, thus the "dead souls." It is these
dead souls, existing on paper only, that Chichikov seeks to purchase from the landlords in the
villages he visits; he merely tells the prospective sellers that he has a use for them, and that the
sellers would be better off anyway, since selling them would relieve the present owners of a
needless tax burden.
Although the townspeople Chichikov comes across are gross caricatures, they are not flat
stereotypes by any means. Instead, each is neurotically individual, combining the official failings
that Gogol typically satirizes (greed, corruption, paranoia) with a curious set of personal quirks.
Setting off for the surrounding estates, Chichikov at first assumes that the ignorant provincials
will be more than eager to give their dead souls up in exchange for a token payment. The task of
collecting the rights to dead people proves difficult, however, due to the persistent greed,
suspicion, and general distrust of the landowners. He still manages to acquire some 400 souls,
swears the sellers to secrecy, and returns to the town to have the transactions recorded legally.
Back in the town, Chichikov continues to be treated like a prince amongst the petty officials, and
a celebration is thrown in honour of his purchases. Very suddenly, however, rumours flare up
that the serfs he bought are all dead, and that he was planning to elope with the Governor's
daughter. In the confusion that ensues, the backwardness of the irrational, gossip-hungry
townspeople is most delicately conveyed. Absurd suggestions come to light, such as the
possibility that Chichikov is Napoleon in disguise or the notorious vigilante 'Captain Kopeikin'.
The now disgraced traveller is immediately ostracized from the company he had been enjoying
and has no choice but to flee the town in disgrace.
Chichikov is revealed by the author to be a former mid-level government official fired for
corruption and narrowly avoiding jail. His macabre mission to acquire "dead souls" is actually
just another one of his "get rich quick" schemes. Once he acquires enough dead souls, he will
take out an enormous loan against them, and pocket the money.
In the novel's second section, Chichikov flees to another part of Russia and attempts to continue
his venture. He tries to help the idle landowner Tentetnikov gain favor with General Betrishchev
so that Tentetnikov may marry the general's daughter, Ulinka. To do this, Chichikov agrees to
visit many of Betrishchev's relatives, beginning with Colonel Koshkaryov. From there Chichikov
begins again to go from estate to estate, encountering eccentric and absurd characters all along
the way. Eventually he purchases an estate from the destitute Khlobuyev but is arrested when
he attempts to forge the will of Khlobuyev's rich aunt. He is pardoned thanks to the intervention
of the kindly Mourazov but is forced to flee the village. The novel ends mid-sentence with the
prince who arranged Chichikov's arrest giving a grand speech that rails against corruption in the
Russian government.

86. Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

Mrs. Dalloway covers one day from morning to night in one woman’s life. Clarissa Dalloway, an
upper-class housewife, walks through her London neighborhood to prepare for the party she will
host that evening. When she returns from flower shopping, an old suitor and friend, Peter
Walsh, drops by her house unexpectedly. The two have always judged each other harshly, and
their meeting in the present intertwines with their thoughts of the past. Years earlier, Clarissa
refused Peter’s marriage proposal, and Peter has never quite gotten over it. Peter asks Clarissa if
she is happy with her husband, Richard, but before she can answer, her daughter, Elizabeth,
enters the room. Peter leaves and goes to Regent’s Park. He thinks about Clarissa’s refusal,
which still obsesses him.

The point of view then shifts to Septimus, a veteran of World War I who was injured in trench
warfare and now suffers from shell shock. Septimus and his Italian wife, Lucrezia, pass time in
Regent’s Park. They are waiting for Septimus’s appointment with Sir William Bradshaw, a
celebrated psychiatrist. Before the war, Septimus was a budding young poet and lover of
Shakespeare; when the war broke out, he enlisted immediately for romantic patriotic reasons.
He became numb to the horrors of war and its aftermath: when his friend Evans died, he felt
little sadness. Now Septimus sees nothing of worth in the England he fought for, and he has lost
the desire to preserve either his society or himself. Suicidal, he believes his lack of feeling is a
crime. Clearly Septimus’s experiences in the war have permanently scarred him, and he has
serious mental problems. However, Sir William does not listen to what Septimus says and
diagnoses “a lack of proportion.” Sir William plans to separate Septimus from Lucrezia and send
him to a mental institution in the country.

Richard Dalloway eats lunch with Hugh Whitbread and Lady Bruton, members of high society.
The men help Lady Bruton write a letter to the Times, London's largest newspaper. After lunch,
Richard returns home to Clarissa with a large bunch of roses. He intends to tell her that he loves
her but finds that he cannot, because it has been so long since he last said it. Clarissa considers
the void that exists between people, even between husband and wife. Even though she values
the privacy she is able to maintain in her marriage, considering it vital to the success of the
relationship, at the same time she finds slightly disturbing the fact that Richard doesn’t know
everything about her. Clarissa sees off Elizabeth and her history teacher, Miss Kilman, who are
going shopping. The two older women despise one another passionately, each believing the
other to be an oppressive force over Elizabeth. Meanwhile, Septimus and Lucrezia are in their
apartment, enjoying a moment of happiness together before the men come to take Septimus to
the asylum. One of Septimus’s doctors, Dr. Holmes, arrives, and Septimus fears the doctor will
destroy his soul. In order to avoid this fate, he jumps from a window to his death.

Peter hears the ambulance go by to pick up Septimus’s body and marvels ironically at the level
of London’s civilization. He goes to Clarissa’s party, where most of the novel’s major characters
are assembled. Clarissa works hard to make her party a success but feels dissatisfied by her own
role and acutely conscious of Peter’s critical eye. All the partygoers, but especially Peter and
Sally Seton, have, to some degree, failed to accomplish the dreams of their youth. Though the
social order is undoubtedly changing, Elizabeth and the members of her generation will
probably repeat the errors of Clarissa’s generation. Sir William Bradshaw arrives late, and his
wife explains that one of his patients, the young veteran (Septimus), has committed suicide.
Clarissa retreats to the privacy of a small room to consider Septimus’s death. She understands
that he was overwhelmed by life and that men like Sir William make life intolerable. She
identifies with Septimus, admiring him for having taken the plunge and for not compromising his
soul. She feels, with her comfortable position as a society hostess, responsible for his death. The
party nears its close as guests begin to leave. Clarissa enters the room, and her presence fills
Peter with a great excitement.

87. The Female Quixote by Charlotte Lenox

The Female Quixote; or, The Adventures of Arabella is a novel written by Charlotte Lennox
imitating and parodying the ideas of Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quixote. Published in 1752, two
years after she wrote her first novel, The Life of Harriot Stuart, it was her best-known and
most-celebrated work. It was approved by both Henry Fielding and Samuel Richardson,
applauded by Samuel Johnson, and used as a model by Jane Austen for Northanger Abbey.

Arabella, the heroine of the novel, was brought up by her widowed father in a remote English
castle, where she reads many French romance novels, and imagining them to be historically
accurate, expects her life to be equally adventurous and romantic. When her father died, he
declared that she would lose part of her estate if she did not marry her cousin Granville. After
imagining wild fantasies for herself in the country, she visits Bath and London. Granville is
concerned at her mistaken ideas, but continues to love her, while Sir George Bellmour, his
friend, attempts to court her in the same chivalric language and high-flown style as in the
novels. When she throws herself into Thames in an attempt to flee from horsemen whom she
mistakes to be "ravishers" in an imitation of Clélie, she becomes weak and ill. This action might
have been inspired by the French satire The Mock-Clielia, in which the heroine "rode at full
speed towards the great Canal which she took for the Tyber, and wherein to she threw her self,
that she might swim over in imitation of Clelia whom she believed herself to be.[5] This leads to
Arabella falling ill, upon which a doctor is called to take care of her. It is then that the doctor
learns of Arabella's delusions concerning romance, and explains to her the difference between
literature and reality. As a result, she finally decides to accept Granville's hand in marriage.

88.No Long at Ease(1960) by Chinua Achebe

The novel begins with the trial of Obi Okonkwo on the charge of accepting a bribe. It then jumps
back in time to a point before his departure for England and works its way forward to describe
how Obi ended up on trial.
The members of the Umuofia Progressive Union (UPU), a group of Ibo men who have left their
villages to live in major Nigerian cities, have taken up a collection to send Obi to England to
study law, in the hope that he will return to help his people navigate British colonial society. But
once there, Obi switches his major to English and meets Clara for the first time during a dance.
Obi returns to Nigeria after four years of studies and lives in Lagos with his friend Joseph. He
takes a job with the Scholarship Board and is almost immediately offered a bribe by a man who
is trying to obtain a scholarship for his sister. When Obi indignantly rejects the offer, he is visited
by the girl herself, who implies that she will bribe him with sexual favors for the scholarship,
another offer Obi rejects.
At the same time, Obi is developing a romantic relationship with Clara Okeke, a Nigerian woman
who eventually reveals that she is an osu, an outcast by her descendants, meaning that Obi
cannot marry her under the traditional ways of the Igbo people of Nigeria. He remains intent on
marrying Clara, but even his Christian father opposes it, although reluctantly due to his desire to
progress and eschew the "heathen" customs of pre-colonial Nigeria. His mother begs him on her
deathbed not to marry Clara until after her death, threatening to kill herself if Obi disobeys.
When Obi informs Clara of these events, Clara breaks the engagement and intimates that she is
pregnant. Obi arranges an abortion, which Clara reluctantly undergoes, but she suffers
complications and refuses to see Obi afterwards.
All the while, Obi sinks deeper into financial trouble, in part due to poor planning on his end, in
part due to the need to repay his loan to the UPU and to pay for his siblings' educations, and in
part due to the cost of the illegal abortion.
After hearing of his mother's death, Obi sinks into a deep depression and doesn't go home for
the funeral, this is because he thought that the money he would have used to go and come back
would be better served in the funeral and to help out across the house. When he recovers, he
begins to accept bribes in a reluctant acknowledgement that it is the way of his world.
The novel closes as Obi takes a bribe and tells himself that it is the last one he will take, only to
discover that the bribe was part of a sting operation. He is arrested, bringing us up to the events
that opened the story.

89. Women in Love by Lawerence

The novel opens with the sisters Ursula and Gudrun Brangwen chatting about marriage one
morning at their father’s house in Beldover. Gudrun has recently returned home from art school
in London. The two later decide to drop by a local wedding, where they first see Gerald Crich
and Rupert Birkin, the two men with whom they will develop affairs that drive the action of the
novel. Birkin is a school inspector with extremely unconventional attitudes about life, and
Gerald is the heir to the local mining operation that is the central industry of Beldover. Birkin
and Gerald hate each other passionately at the beginning of the novel, but after a chance
encounter on the way to London they begin to become friends.

Rupert is haunted by his lingering attachment to Hermione Roddice, an aristocratic woman

whom he loathes but finds difficult to abandon. Hermione wants to marry Birkin and have him
dominate her completely. This situation complicates Birkin’s growing fondness for Ursula, and
Hermione and Ursula become enemies. During a weekend gathering at Hermione’s estate,
Breadalby, she becomes enraged and smashes a paperweight against the back of Birkin’s head
with the intention of killing him. He escapes and considers it the end of their relationship.

Birkin decides to move into a mill house on Willey Water Lake, and Ursula begins visiting him
there. The two slowly start to fall in love. One evening, the Crich family hosts their annual public
party by the lake, and the Brangwen sisters attend. They meet Gerald and Birkin there and
romantic sparks fly, but this is interrupted by the tragic drowning death of Gerald’s sister, Diana
Crich, and a young doctor who attempts to rescue her. After the tragedy, Birkin falls ill again and
Gerald visits him. He realizes that he loves Gerald, and asks him to exchange a vow of lasting
commitment between them. Gerald hesitates to do so although he also loves Birkin.

Gerald’s father Thomas Crich falls ill and is near death. He and Gerald decide to hire Gudrun to
tutor Gerald’s youngest sister, Winifred, in art. Gudrun begins visiting their home, Shortlands,
nearly every day to teach Winifred. Mr. Crich builds an artist’s studio for Gudrun to use, and she
and Gerald grow closer. Meanwhile, Birkin is frustrated with Ursula's indecision and leaves for a
vacation in the south of France. Ursula hears nothing for some time, and one evening during a
walk sees Birkin in front of his home. They talk and exchange promises of love. The next day
Birkin goes to Ursula’s house, intending to propose. He meets her father Tom Brangwen instead,
and asks the man for his daughter's hand. Ursula is enraged and refuses him. Birkin stomps
away and goes to see Gerald at Shortlands, where the two engage in a violently eroticized
wrestling match.

Meanwhile, after a few days Ursula decides she is deeply in love with Birkin and must fight to
transform his passion to match hers. Time passes, and one afternoon Birkin surprises Ursula at
her school, offering to take her on a car ride. She agrees and he gives her a gift of three rings.
This leads to an argument, and Ursula abandons him on the side of the road. Only moments
later she returns to make peace, and the two decide to go into town to take tea. Their bond is
solidified that night when they sleep together on the ground of Sherwood Forest. Meanwhile,
Gerald struggles with his father’s illness, and Mr. Crich finally succumbs to death. Several nights
pass, and Gerald finds himself wandering alone night, and eventually makes his way to Gudrun’s
house. He sneaks inside and upstairs, and wakes Gudrun up in her bedroom. He spends the
night there, asleep while Gudrun watches him.

After a violent argument with her father, Ursula decides to move in with Birkin. The two marry
soon thereafter, and Gerald proposes a winter holiday in Europe for the two couples. He talks at
length with Ursula and Birkin about the trip, hoping it will be an occasion to develop the
romance between him and Gudrun. Gerald and Gudrun leave first, and stop for a night in
London where Gudrun meets Gerald’s former mistress Minette Darrington at the Café
Pompadour. Ursula and Birkin eventually join Gerald and Gudrun at Innsbruck, a picturesque
Austrian retreat town. Things are lovely at first, but soon sour. The group lodges in a small hostel
outside of Innsbruck and friction develops between them, in part due to a German artist named
Herr Loerke who takes an interest in Gudrun. Ursula begins to loathe the cold and convinces
Birkin to leave.

Gerald and Gudrun remain, and Loerke continues to pursue Gudrun. One afternoon she and
Loerke are on a picnic that Gerald violently interrupts. Gerald knocks Loerke to the ground and
strangles Gudrun nearly to death. He stomps away deeper into the mountains as the sun falls.
He freezes to death and his body is brought back to the hostel the next morning by a rescue
team. Gudrun sends a telegram to Birkin and Ursula, who return immediately. Birkin is
devastated, and the novel ends with him insisting to Ursula that he believes a lasting and
intimate bond with Gerald was possible, even while remaining married to Ursula.

90. July's People by Gordimer

s People, published in the 1981, is set in an imminent South African future in which riots have
broken out across the country and evolved into an all out black liberation revolution. With the
support of militias from neighboring countries, ports are seized, airports are bombed, and all
white people are in danger. Bam and Maureen, with their three young children, have no choice
but to flee Johannesburg, hiding in the back of a truck with their black servant, July.

They pack their bags in a rush, forgetting many things, including extra clothes, though they do
bring Bam’s bird rifle (not a powerful gun, but something). After three days of driving, they
arrive at a rural African settlement. They find themselves forced to adapt to a primitive life,
living in mud huts, gathering wild greens, and coping with insects and the muck of rainstorms.
On top of this, they are now the guests of July, their young black man who has served them for
fifteen years in their modern house in Johannesburg with many rooms and a swimming pool.

As they settle in and try to make sense of their situation, tension begins to rise between
Maureen and July. While Maureen considers herself a liberal person, opposed to apartheid and
in support of black liberation, she becomes mistrustful of July now that he has more power than
her. One night soon after arriving, July takes the couple's truck—the bakkie—and drives away
from the settlement with his friend. Maureen and Bam panic and they argue with each other in
the confines of the mud hut, airing all the pent up resent that they have for each other. Late at
night, July returns.

Maureen is unsettled by the fact that July keeps the keys to the bakkie. But as she tries to ask for
them back, July realizes that she doesn’t trust him with the keys. July is upset by this. He feels
that he’s still their servant and he’s doing exactly as he would at their home, where he had the
keys to their house and they trusted him with everything. Here, they can’t drive away from the
settlement without being in danger, so it only makes sense for him to use the bakkie. The
trouble for Maureen is that he didn’t ask. This tension breaks out in a small argument and July
feels insulted by Maureen, who in turn learns that he always felt her to be passive aggressive
and controlling.
Days pass in which the family adapts to the primitive life. Maureen picks wild greens with July’s
wife and the other women. Bam goes out to hunt warthog with the bird rifle. He shows July’s
friend Daniel how to use the rifle. They get a warthog and roast meat. They endlessly turn the
dial on an old radio, searching for an English or Afrikaans voice with any information about
what’s happening. They only pick up fragments.

After an ambiguous stretch of time in which Maureen recalls her childhood in the extreme
apartheid conditions of a gold mining town, the chief of July’s people hears of the white people
hiding in his area and he calls them to him. They try to clean themselves up and then July and his
friend Daniel accompany them to see the chief. The chief asks Bam everything he knows about
the war. Bam tells him that black people are finally rising up against their white oppressors. He
tells him that militias from Mozambique and Botswana are coming to their aid. The chief asks
about Bam’s gun. He wants to learn to shoot. He doesn’t want other African tribal people
invading his territory. Bam and Maureen are shocked to hear that the chief is opposed to black
liberation. He wants a return to the apartheid status quo.

Dismayed, they drive back with July. July speaks angrily about the idiocy of the chief, saying that
if white people invaded his territory he would give them everything; but if it’s black people, he
wants to kill them. Bam and Maureen listen to July’s anger and when they come back to their
hut, Maureen says that she thinks July was expressing anger with himself: he helped white
people and not his own people. Maureen and Bam feel that they have to leave. They decide to
flee, but they don’t know how or where.

A couple of nights pass and a man with a music box comes to the settlement. All the people
come out to dance and drink. Maureen and Bam go back to their hut and discover that the gun is
gone. Maureen runs out and confronts July. But she can see in his face that he’s telling the truth
when he says he didn’t take it. He doesn’t understand why she’s so upset though. What does she
need it for? They realize that it must’ve been Daniel who took it. Daniel is gone.

Time passes. Maureen is dull, sewing in the hut. The heat is oppressive. The insects are
everywhere. A noise comes from somewhere distant, and then it grows louder. A helicopter is
overhead. All the people of the settlement run out. They’ve never seen a helicopter so close. It
starts to lower down but rises up again. The people are screaming. The helicopter flies over the
river. Maureen starts to run toward the sound. She leaves her family as she wades across the
river. She hears the helicopter landing behind the trees. She runs to it. The novel closes here.

91. An Imaginary Life(1978) - David Malouf

It tells the story of the Roman poet Ovid, during his exile in Tomis.
While there, Ovid lives with the natives, although he doesn't understand their language, and
forms a bond with a wild boy who is found living wild in nature. The relationship between Ovid
and the boy, at first one of protector and protected, becomes an alliance between two people in
a foreign land.
Ovid comes to Tomis enculturated with a Roman world view and through his attempts at
teaching the boy language is able to free himself from the constrictions of Latin and the
encompassing perception of reality that is his only barrier against transcendence.
Ovid is continually searching for the Child and what he represents to him. He goes so far as to
capture him in an attempt to learn from him, and to teach him language and conventions.
Malouf has been described as a post-colonialist author. He wrote this novel when issues with
the treatment of the indigenous people of Australia was under question, and the White Australia
Policy and paternalistic mentality were inherent in society. These values can be seen in An
Imaginary Life, with the Child, so wild and close to nature, captured by an encultured person
who wishes to teach him.

92. Samskara by U R Anantmurty

Samskara is set in Durvasapura, an agrahara, a closed-off brahmin community that lives

according to tightly -- and ultimately suffocatingly -- circumscribed rules and norms, the weight
of tradition now crushing a community that is unable to adapt.
The story begins with the death of Naranappa. Long a thorn in the side of the community, as
he had undermined the local ways every which way possible, he nevertheless had not been
excommunicated and was still technically one of their own. In death this became a problem that
previously they managed to sidestep: hard caste rules mean that only a brahmin can handle the
body, and the appropriate rites can only be performed by a relative or, if need be, another
brahmin. However, given who Naranappa was -- "a smear on the good name of the agrahara" --,
no one wants to associate themselves with performing the vital rites for him.
Matters are further complicated by Naranappa's concubine Chandri throwing her gold
jewelry into the ring, as it were, offering it to anyone willing to perform the rites. The two
thousand rupees worth of gold is a fortune to the villagers, and obviously a great temptation --
yet no one wants to be seen as having been bought off, so in fact Chandri's offer makes it even
more difficult for anyone to step forward.
There is also considerable urgency to resolving this problem. Not only does a corpse not fare
well in this climate, but caste rules are firm:

According to ancient custom, until the body is properly removed there can be no worship, no
bathing, no prayers, no food, nothing.
Indeed, as soon as village guru Praneshacharya learns of Naranappa's death he madly rushes
to the others in the village to make sure they don't take even a bite of food. So:
Alive, Naranappa was an enemy; dead, a preventer of meals; as a corpse, a problem, a nuisance.
The community looks to Praneshacharya -- not yet forty, but the most learned and devoted
brahmin, and treated like the local wise old man -- to find a solution, trusting him to get this
important matter right (and reminding him: "The brahminism of your entire sect is in your
hands. Your burden is great."). Praneshacharya consults the religious books, but is paralyzed by
the issues. He carries his own burden, too: his wife of twenty years is an invalid, and so in some
respects he has not been able to live the life expected of him, either -- no sex, no family beyond
the ill wife -- and clearly the rigid rules of this community leave him feeling boxed in.
As he eventually recognizes:
But, my dilemma, my decision, my problem wasn't just mine, it included the entire agrahara.
This is the root of the difficulty, the anxiety, the double-bind of dharma. When the question of
Naranappa's death-rites came up, I didn't try to solve it for myself. I depended on God, on the
old Law Books. Isn't this precisely why we have created the Books ? Because there's this deep
relation between our decisions and the whole community. In every act we involve our
forefathers, our gurus, our gods, our fellow humans. Hence this conflict.
It is Chandri who takes matters into her own hands again in dealing with what becomes of
Naranappa. Praneshacharya's inability to make a decision is, in a way, ultimately freeing: he has
failed, but Chandri's solution is presumably the best outcome for this bad situation. And
Praneshacharya also moves further from the constricting bonds of the community -- finding
release with Chandri, and then going on what amounts, in a way, to a pilgrimage, facing a world
in which he encounters much that goes against what the small community permits, even as he
debates what path to choose.
Naranappa had once told Praneshacharya: "Your text and rites don't work any more", and his
death seems emphatic proof of that. And, as others note:
'If you really look -- how many real brahmins are there in this kali age, Manjayya ?'
'I agree, I agree, Acharya-re. The times are rotten, it's true.'
And even Praneshacharya, the embodiment of a 'real brahmin', ultimately fails to fully live
up to the exacting standards of caste.
The rot is evident throughout Samskara, too, beyond just the moral rot, with the
decomposing body and the rats and cockroaches. Death is pervasive, too, and as the plague
sweeps through the area Naranappa is not the only one to die, with others, outside the
community and within it, also succumbing.
Praneshacharya, long devoted entirely to the cause and tradition, is forced (and/or allowed)
by circumstance to question it, freed, over the course of the story, from several of his burdens.
Tellingly, however, Ananthamurthy does not offer a resolution here: Samskara remains
open-ended.
Samskara is an effective tale of a community choked by unsustainable tradition.
Ananthamurthy offers fine portraits of a variety of characters as they struggle between natural
urges and societal expectations, and has crafted an impressive story here.

93. Maurice by E M Froster

Maurice is a novel by E. M. Forster. A tale of homosexual love in early 20th-century England, it

follows Maurice Hall from his schooldays through university and beyond. It was written in
1913–1914, and revised in 1932 and 1959–1960.[1][2] Forster was close friends with the poet
Edward Carpenter, and upon visiting his Derbyshire home in 1912, was motivated to write
Maurice. The relationship between Carpenter and his partner, George Merrill, was the
inspiration for that of Maurice and Alec Scudder.

Maurice by E.M. Forester is a tale of a young man struggling with his sexual orientation in a time
when little was known or understood about homosexuality. Maurice feels as though he must
hide his true character from everyone, even those closest to him, for fear that they will not
understand or that he will be placed in prison. As Maurice grows older, he finds a small group of
people who understand him, including a young man who pledges him his love. However, these
others outgrow their feelings, but Maurice cannot. It is a struggle that still rings true today,
causing modern readers to root for a man who is struggling with the basic crisis all people face,
the discovery of who he really is.
Maurice is given a lecture on sex as a fourteen year old boy. As a result of this lecture Maurice
begins to realize there is something different about him. When Maurice goes to high school and
hears other boys talk about girls, he realizes that his thoughts are not only different, but
something to hide. Maurice pretends to be like the other boys while in the back of his mind he
desires not women, but men. It is a struggle for Maurice to keep his thoughts to himself and it
causes him to disengage from the people around him in fear that they will learn what he really
is.

Maurice goes to Cambridge to further his education. While there, Maurice meets a young man
who, unlike Maurice, feels free to speak his mind. Maurice wants to befriend this young man
because he feels that with him he too can be the person he really is rather than the fake persona
he has developed over the years. When Maurice goes to this man's room, however, he finds
another young man there. Maurice and this man talk and soon Maurice discovers in him a
kindred spirit. Maurice and Clive Durham become close friends. Shortly before a school
vacation, Clive suggests to Maurice that he read a book about the Ancient Greeks. Maurice reads
the book and discovers it speaks about homosexuality with openness. Maurice has never
experienced this type of openness before and is excited to discuss the book with Clive. When
Clive learns that Maurice read the book and embraced its message, he tells Maurice that he
loves him.

Maurice is shocked by Clive's announcement. Maurice reacts as society would have him do,
shunning Clive. Clive is heartbroken and refuses to speak with Maurice again. Maurice finally
cannot hide his true feelings anymore and goes to Clive to apologize. Clive is so angry and hurt
that he refuses Maurice's apology. Maurice hangs around outside Clive's room all night until he
hears Clive call his name in his sleep. Maurice goes into the room and Clive welcomes him. For
three years Clive and Maurice have a close relationship. However, due to his religious
upbringing, Clive is reluctant to consummate the relationship. Maurice is content with this as
long as Clive wants to be with him. Maurice is of the opinion that homosexuality is so rare and
morally wrong that he is lucky to have found one man willing to share anything with him.

Maurice is kicked out of school shortly after his affair with Clive begins. Maurice returns home
and takes a position with his father's old stock broker firm. Clive finishes his education and
becomes a lawyer. Maurice and Clive spend a great deal of time together, with Maurice often
spending Wednesday nights at Clive's city apartment. The two families of the two men also
become acquainted. After three years, Clive becomes ill with the flu. During this illness, Clive
begins to believe he has been healed of his homosexual desires. Clive becomes distant with
Maurice, leaving Maurice to believe that the illness has caused a change in personality. Clive
travels to Greece on holiday and while he is gone sends Maurice a letter telling him that their
relation must end. Maurice refuses to accept this.

When Clive returns home, he tells Maurice that although he wants to remain friends, he no
longer feels a sexual connection to Maurice. Clive wants to get married to a woman. Maurice is
heartbroken. However, Maurice realizes he must remain friends with Clive in order to protect
himself from discovery. Clive's desertion causes Maurice to desire a cure for his homosexual
thoughts. Maurice runs into an old college friend and accepts from him the name of a man who
is rumored to have cured men of homosexual desires. Maurice sets up an appointment with this
man while visiting with Clive at his country estate.
Maurice's desire to find a cure increases when Clive offers Maurice one last kiss. Maurice
desperately wants to marry a woman to end the deep loneliness and heartache he feels. The
first meeting with Lasker Jones, the hypnotist, goes well. That night, Maurice is contemplating
his future when one of Clive's employees sneaks into his room. Maurice lies with this man,
Scudder, and finds himself content for the first time. Maurice is ashamed of his feelings,
however, and rushes away from Clive's home the next day in order to avoid Scudder. Scudder is
heartbroken by Maurice's actions and begins to send him letters that frighten Maurice into
believing Scudder intends to call the police on him.

Maurice arranges to meet Scudder in London. After a short conversation, the two men go to a
hotel where they spend the night. Maurice believes he has fallen in love with Scudder. Maurice
begs Scudder to run away with him rather than move to Argentina where he is planning to go.
Scudder at first refuses. However, Scudder decides at the last moment to stay with Maurice.
Maurice goes to Clive and tells him about his love for Scudder and tells him that he plans to
disappear to a place where he and Scudder can live happily together. Clive disapproves, but
Maurice does not care.

94. Great Expectation by Charles Dickens

Great Expectations is the story of Pip, an orphan boy adopted by a blacksmith's family, who has
good luck and great expectations, and then loses both his luck and his expectations. Through this
rise and fall, however, Pip learns how to find happiness. He learns the meaning of friendship and
the meaning of love and, of course, becomes a better person for it.

The story opens with the narrator, Pip, who introduces himself and describes a much younger
Pip staring at the gravestones of his parents. This tiny, shivering bundle of a boy is suddenly
terrified by a man dressed in a prison uniform. The man tells Pip that if he wants to live, he'll go
down to his house and bring him back some food and a file for the shackle on his leg.

Pip runs home to his sister, Mrs. Joe Gragery, and his adoptive father, Joe Gragery. Mrs. Joe is a
loud, angry, nagging woman who constantly reminds Pip and her husband Joe of the difficulties
she has gone through to raise Pip and take care of the house. Pip finds solace from these rages
in Joe, who is more his equal than a paternal figure, and they are united under a common
oppression.

Pip steals food and a pork pie from the pantry shelf and a file from Joe's forge and brings them
back to the escaped convict the next morning. Soon thereafter, Pip watches the man get caught
by soldiers and the whole event soon disappears from his young mind.

Mrs. Joe comes home one evening, quite excited, and proclaims that Pip is going to "play" for
Miss Havisham, "a rich and grim lady who lived in a large and dismal house."

Pip is brought to Miss Havisham's place, a mansion called the "Satis House," where sunshine
never enters. He meets a girl about his age, Estella, "who was very pretty and seemed very
proud." Pip instantly falls in love with her and will love her the rest of the story. He then meets
Miss Havisham, a willowy, yellowed old woman dressed in an old wedding gown. Miss Havisham
seems most happy when Estella insults Pip's coarse hands and his thick boots as they play.

Pip is insulted, but thinks there is something wrong with him. He vows to change, to become
uncommon, and to become a gentleman.

Pip continues to visit Estella and Miss Havisham for eight months and learns more about their
strange life. Miss Havisham brings him into a great banquet hall where a table is set with food
and large wedding cake. But the food and the cake are years old, untouched except by a vast
array of rats, beetles and spiders which crawl freely through the room. Her relatives all come to
see her on the same day of the year: her birthday and wedding day, the day when the cake was
set out and the clocks were stopped many years before; i.e. the day Miss Havisham stopped
living.

Pip begins to dream what life would be like if he were a gentleman and wealthy. This dream
ends when Miss Havisham asks Pip to bring Joe to visit her, in order that he may start his
indenture as a blacksmith. Miss Havisham gives Joe twenty five pounds for Pip's service to her
and says good-bye.

Pip explains his misery to his readers: he is ashamed of his home, ashamed of his trade. He
wants to be uncommon, he wants to be a gentleman. He wants to be a part of the environment
that he had a small taste of at the Manor House.

Early in his indenture, Mrs. Joe is found lying unconscious, knocked senseless by some unknown
assailant. She has suffered some serious brain damage, having lost much of voice, her hearing,
and her memory. Furthermore, her "temper was greatly improved, and she was patient." To
help with the housework and to take care of Mrs. Joe, Biddy, a young orphan friend of Pip's,
moves into the house.

The years pass quickly. It is the fourth year of Pip's apprenticeship and he is sitting with Joe at
the pub when they are approached by a stranger. Pip recognizes him, and his "smell of soap," as
a man he had once run into at Miss Havisham's house years before.

Back at the house, the man, Jaggers, explains that Pip now has "great expectations." He is to be
given a large monthly stipend, administered by Jaggers who is a lawyer. The benefactor,
however, does not want to be known and is to remain a mystery.

Pip spends an uncomfortable evening with Biddy and Joe, then retires to bed. There, despite
having all his dreams come true, he finds himself feeling very lonely. Pip visits Miss Havisham
who hints subtly that she is his unknown sponsor.

Pip goes to live in London and meets Wemmick, Jagger's square-mouth clerk. Wemmick brings
Pip to Bernard's Inn, where Pip will live for the next five years with Matthew Pocket's son
Herbert, a cheerful young gentleman that becomes one of Pip's best friends. From Herbert, Pips
finds out that Miss Havisham adopted Estella and raised her to wreak revenge on the male
gender by making them fall in love with her, and then breaking their hearts.

Pip is invited to dinner at Wemmick's whose slogan seems to be "Office is one thing, private life
is another." Indeed, Wemmick has a fantastical private life. Although he lives in a small cottage,
the cottage has been modified to look a bit like a castle, complete with moat, drawbridge, and a
firing cannon.

The next day, Jaggers himself invites Pip and friends to dinner. Pip, on Wemmick's suggestion,
looks carefully at Jagger's servant woman -- a "tigress" according to Wemmick. She is about
forty, and seems to regard Jaggers with a mix of fear and duty.

Pip journeys back to the Satis House to see Miss Havisham and Estella, who is now older and so
much more beautiful that he doesn't recognize her at first. Facing her now, he slips back "into
the coarse and common voice" of his youth and she, in return, treats him like the boy he used to
be. Pip sees something strikingly familiar in Estella's face. He can't quite place the look, but an
expression on her face reminds him of someone.

Pip stays away from Joe and Biddy's house and the forge, but walks around town, enjoying the
admiring looks he gets from his past neighbors.

Soon thereafter, a letter for Pip announces the death of Mrs. Joe Gragery. Pip returns home
again to attend the funeral. Later, Joe and Pip sit comfortably by the fire like times of old. Biddy
insinuates that Pip will not be returning soon as he promises and he leaves insulted. Back in
London, Pip asks Wemmick for advice on how to give Herbert some of his yearly stipend
anonymously.

Narrator Pip describes his relationship to Estella while she lived in the city: "I suffered every kind
and degree of torture that Estella could cause me," he says. Pip finds out that Drummle, the
most repulsive of his acquaintances, has begun courting Estella.

Years go by and Pip is still living the same wasteful life of a wealthy young man in the city. A
rough sea-worn man of sixty comes to Pip's home on a stormy night soon after Pip's
twenty-fourth birthday. Pip invites him in, treats him with courteous disdain, but then begins to
recognize him as the convict that he fed in the marshes when he was a child. The man,
Magwitch, reveals that he is Pip's benefactor. Since the day that Pip helped him, he swore to
himself that every cent he earned would go to Pip.

"I've made a gentleman out of you," the man exclaims. Pip is horrified. All of his expectations
are demolished. There is no grand design by Miss Havisham to make Pip happy and rich, living in
harmonious marriage to Estella.

The convict tells Pip that he has come back to see him under threat of his life, since the law will
execute him if they find him in England. Pip is disgusted with him, but wants to protect him and
make sure he isn't found and put to death. Herbert and Pip decide that Pip will try and convince
Magwitch to leave England with him.

Magwitch tells them the story of his life. From a very young age, he was alone and got into
trouble. In one of his brief stints actually out of jail, Magwitch met a young well-to-do gentleman
named Compeyson who had his hand in everything illegal: swindling, forgery, and other white
collar crime. Compeyson recruited Magwitch to do his dirty work and landed Magwitch into
trouble with the law. Magwitch hates the man. Herbert passes a note to Pip telling him that
Compeyson was the name of the man who left Miss Havisham on her wedding day.

Pip goes back to Satis House and finds Miss Havisham and Estella in the same banquet room. Pip
breaks down and confesses his love for Estella. Estella tells him straight that she is incapable of
love -- she has warned him of as much before -- and she will soon be married to Drummle.

Back in London, Wemmick tells Pip things he has learned from the prisoners at Newgate. Pip is
being watched, he says, and may be in some danger. As well, Compeyson has made his presence
known in London. Wemmick has already warned Herbert as well. Heeding the warning, Herbert
has hidden Magwitch in his fiancé Clara's house.

Pip has dinner with Jaggers and Wemmick at Jaggers' home. During the dinner, Pip finally
realizes the similarities between Estella and Jaggers' servant woman. Jaggers' servant woman is
Estella's mother!

On their way home together, Wemmick tells the story of Jaggers' servant woman. It was Jaggers'
first big break-through case, the case that made him. He was defending this woman in a case
where she was accused of killing another woman by strangulation. The woman was also said to
have killed her own child, a girl, at about the same time as the murder.

Miss Havisham asks Pip to come visit her. He finds her again sitting by the fire, but this time she
looks very lonely. Pip tells her how he was giving some of his money to help Herbert with his
future, but now must stop since he himself is no longer taking money from his benefactor. Miss
Havisham wants to help, and she gives Pip nine hundred pounds to help Herbert out. She then
asks Pip for forgiveness. Pip tells her she is already forgiven and that he needs too much
forgiving himself not to be able to forgive others.

Pip goes for a walk around the garden then comes back to find Miss Havisham on fire! Pip puts
the fire out, burning himself badly in the process. The doctors come and announce that she will
live.

Pip goes home and Herbert takes care of his burns. Herbert has been spending some time with
Magwitch at Clara's and has been told the whole Magwitch story. Magwitch was the husband of
Jaggers' servant woman, the Tigress. The woman had come to Magwitch on the day she
murdered the other woman and told him she was going to kill their child and that Magwitch
would never see her. And Magwitch never did. Pip puts is all together and tells Herbert that
Magwitch is Estella's father.

It is time to escape with Magwitch. Herbert and Pip get up the next morning and start rowing
down the river, picking up Magwitch at the preappointed time. They are within a few feet of a
steamer that they hope to board when another boat pulls alongside to stop them. In the
confusion, Pip sees Compeyson leading the other boat, but the steamer is on top of them. The
steamer crushes Pip's boat, Compeyson and Magwitch disappear under water, and Pip and
Herbert find themselves in a police boat of sorts. Magwitch finally comes up from the water. He
and Compeyson wrestled for a while, but Magwitch had let him go and he is presumably
drowned. Once again, Magwitch is shackled and arrested.

Magwitch is in jail and quite ill. Pip attends to the ailing Magwitch daily in prison. Pip whispers
to him one day that the daughter he thought was dead is quite alive. "She is a lady and very
beautiful," Pip says. "And I love her." Magwitch gives up the ghost.

Pip falls into a fever for nearly a month. Creditors and Joe fall in and out of his dreams and his
reality. Finally, he regains his senses and sees that, indeed, Joe has been there the whole time,
nursing him back to health. Joe tells him that Miss Havisham died during his illness, that she left
Estella nearly all, and Matthew Pocket a great deal. Joe slips away one morning leaving only a
note. Pip discovers that Joe has paid off all his debtors.

Pip is committed to returning to Joe, asking for forgiveness for everything he has done, and to
ask Biddy to marry him. Pip goes to Joe and indeed finds happiness -- but the happiness is Joe
and Biddy's. It is their wedding day. Pip wishes them well, truly, and asks them for their
forgiveness in all his actions. They happily give it.

Pip goes to work for Herbert's' firm and lives with the now married Clara and Herbert. Within a
year, he becomes a partner. He pays off his debts and works hard.

Eleven years later, Pip returns from his work overseas. He visits Joe and Biddy and meets their
son, a little Pip, sitting by the fire with Joe just like Pip himself did years ago. Pip tells Biddy that
he is quite the settled old bachelor, living with Clara and Herbert and he thinks he will never
marry. Nevertheless, he goes to the Satis House that night to think once again of the girl who got
away. And there he meets Estella. Drummle treated her roughly and recently died. She tells Pip
that she has learned the feeling of heartbreak the hard way and now seeks his forgiveness for
what she did to him. The two walk out of the garden hand in hand, and Pip "saw the shadow of
no parting from her.

95. The Unfortunate Travellor by Thomas Nashe

In this rollicking and stylistically daring work of prose fiction, Nashe's protagonist Jack Wilton
adventures through the European continent and finds himself swept up in the currents of
sixteenth-century history. Episodic in nature, the narrative jumps from place to place and danger
to danger. Jack begins his tale among fellow Englishmen at a military encampment, where he
swindles his superiors out of alcohol and money, framing others as traitors. Commenting by the
way on the grotesque sweating sickness, Jack arrives in Munster, Germany, to observe the
massacre of John Leyden's Anabaptist faction by the Emperor and the Duke of Saxony; this
brutal episode enables Nashe to reflect on religious hypocrisy, a theme to which he frequently
returns.
Following the massacre of the Anabaptists at Munster, Jack Wilton has a number of personal
encounters with historical figures of the sixteenth century, many of them important for their
literary contributions. Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey functions as a sustained travel partner for
Jack, and the two journey to Italy to fulfill the Earl's pledge to defend the honor of his beloved
Geraldine in a tournament. Surrey's grandiloquent praise for Geraldine evinces clearly the
author's ability to play with literary history, for although the poet was in truth married to
Frances Howard, Nashe fashions her into the beloved object of the poet's courtly affections.
Surrey and Jack pass through Rotterdam, where they meet both Erasmus and Sir Thomas More,
who are at work on their important prose works The Praise of Folly and Utopia. Following this
episode, the pair reaches the university city of Wittenberg, which enables Nashe to mock the
customs of Renaissance academia, especially its convoluted orations and bizarre gestures and
body language. Following the orations, the magician Cornelius Agrippa reveals in an enchanted
mirror the image of Surrey's beloved, "weeping on her bed, and resolved all into devout religion
for the absence of her love."[1] The image causes Surrey to burst into poetry and spurs him
forward with his new page Jack.
Passing into Italy, the land where the remainder of the narrative unfolds, Jack and Surrey
exchange identities as a security measure and because the earl means "to take more liberty of
behaviour."[2] The two engage in acts of deceit and trickery with pimps, prostitutes, and
counterfeiters. Forced to dig themselves out of a succession of plots, the disguised Jack and
Surrey assume much of the duplicitous behaviour that Italians were stereotypically known for in
Renaissance England. Commenting on the pander Petro de Campo Frego, Jack states that "he
planted in us the first Italianate wit that we had."[3] While imprisoned for fraud, Surrey and Jack
meet Diamante, who had been falsely accused of adultery and cast out by her husband; Jack
takes her up as his romantic companion and financier. All three characters are freed soon
enough thanks to an English connection to the famous satirist Pietro Aretino. Nashe, who
professed elsewhere his own desires to emulate Aretino's literary style, offers praise for the
satirist as "one of the wittiest knaves that ever God made."[4]
Departing from Venice, Surrey and Jack arrive in Florence, the city where Geraldine was born.
Surrey is overcome with poetry and speaks a sonnet in honor of her fair room, a moment in
which Nashe can slyly mock the overbearing, lovesick verse of contemporary imitators of
Petrarch. The copia of Surrey's verse then gives way to a tournament in which the Earl competes
for his beloved's fair name, and Nashe offers gratuitous descriptions of the competitors' armor
and horses in a manner that recalls printed accounts of early modern masques and other festive
spectacles. The most worthy competitor, Surrey emerges from the tournament victorious, but is
suddenly called back into England for business matters.
Jack and Diamante then travel to Rome, which Jack admires for its classical ruins (he is less
impressed by its religious relics). By this point in time, Jack clearly sticks out as a foreigner and a
tourist, "imitat[ing] four or five sundry nations in my attire at once." [5] After praising the
marvelous wonders of artificially-engineered gardens and lamenting the gruesome,
simultaneous realities of the plague, the protagonist stumbles into one of the most memorable
episodes of the narrative. Esdras of Granado and his lackey Bartol the Italian break into the
house where he and Diamante are lodging, and Esdras rapes the virtuous matron Heraclide, who
commits suicide after an eloquent oration. Jack witnesses the episode "through a cranny of my
upper chamber unsealed,"[6] and some critics believe this act of voyeurism makes Jack complicit
in the act of rape.[7]
Heraclide's husband accuses Jack of the rape, but another English character known as the
"Banished Earl" stays Jack's execution. This comes at a slight cost, however; banned from his
beloved home country, the Earl rattles off a catalogue of reasons to avoid travel at all costs. In
Italy, one only learns "the art of atheism, the art of epicurizing, the art of whoring, the art of
poisoning, the art of sodomitry."[8] France gains one only a knowledge of wine and the "French
disease," syphilis. In Spain, one only acquires strange clothing. The Dutch excel only in their
drinking. Such an admonitory catalogue follows the precepts found in the writings of the
Elizabethan education theorist Roger Ascham, who warned his fellow Englishmen about the
dangers of Italy and its books.[9]
In spite of the Banished English Earl's suggestions, Jack remains in Italy in search of his beloved
Diamante. In so doing, he becomes entangled with and entrapped by Zadok the Jew and
Zachary, the Papal Physician, who plan to use Jack as a specimen at the anatomical college.
Freed from the brutal pair by the wiles of Juliana, the Pope's courtesan, Jack reunites with
Diamante and robs Juliana of her goods, while Zachary flees and Zadok faces a grotesque
combination of torture and execution.
The final episode of The Unfortunate Traveller returns to the character of Esdras, who figures
now as a victim. At Bologna, Jack and Diamante observe the public execution of Cutwolf, the
brother of Esdras's lackey Bartol. Standing before the crowd, Cutwolf delivers a speech
recounting his vile actions. Seeking vengeance for his brother's murder, Cutwolf tracked down
the villain Esdras, confronted him, and forced him to blaspheme against God and against
salvation before discharging a pistol into his mouth, thereby damning his soul eternally in death.
Self-righteously, he declares in his own defense before the crowd that "This is the fault that hath
called me hither. No true Italian but will honour me for it. Revenge is the glory of arms and the
highest performance of valour." [10] In spite of such an oration, Cutwolf joins the ranks of the
narrative's brutally-executed characters, and Jack and his newly-wed Diamante flee out of "the
Sodom of Italy" back toward the English encampment in France, where the story first began.

96.ROMOLA BY GEORGE ELIOT

Romola (1862–63) is a historical novel by George Eliot set in the fifteenth century, and is "a deep
study of life in the city of Florence from an intellectual, artistic, religious, and social point of
view".[citation needed] The story takes place amidst actual historical events during the Italian
Renaissance, and includes in its plot several notable figures from Florentine history.
The novel first appeared in fourteen parts published in Cornhill Magazine from July 1862 (vol. 6,
no. 31) to August 1863 (vol. 8, no. 44), and was first published as a book, in three volumes, by
Smith, Elder & Co. in 1863.
Florence, 1492: Christopher Columbus has sailed towards the New World, and Florence has just
mourned the death of its legendary leader, Lorenzo de' Medici. In this setting, a Florentine
trader meets a shipwrecked stranger, who introduces himself as Tito Melema, a young
Italianate-Greek scholar. Tito becomes acquainted with several other Florentines, including
Nello the barber and a young girl named Tessa. He is also introduced to a blind scholar named
Bardo de' Bardi, and his daughter Romola. As Tito becomes settled in Florence, assisting Bardo
with classical studies, he falls in love with Romola. However, Tessa falls in love with Tito, and the
two are "married" in a mock ceremony.
Tito learns from Fra Luca, a Dominican monk, that his adoptive father has been forced into
slavery and is asking for assistance. Tito introspects, comparing filial duty to his new ambitions
in Florence, and decides that it would be futile to attempt to rescue his adoptive father. This
paves the way for Romola and Tito to marry. Fra Luca shortly thereafter falls ill and before his
death he speaks to his estranged sister, Romola. Ignorant of Romola's plans, Fra Luca warns her
of a vision foretelling a marriage between her and a mysterious stranger who will bring pain to
her and her father. After Fra Luca's death, Tito dismisses the warning and advises Romola to
trust him. Tito and Romola become betrothed at the end of Carnival, to be married at Easter
after Tito returns from a visit to Rome.
The novel then skips ahead to November 1494, more than eighteen months after the marriage.
In that time, the French-Italian Wars have seen Florence enter uneasy times. Girolamo
Savonarola preaches to Florentines about ridding the Church and the city of scourge and
corruption, and drums up support for the new republican government. Piero de' Medici, Lorenzo
de' Medici's son and successor to the lordship of Florence, has been driven from the city for his
ignominious surrender to the invading French king, Charles VIII. The Medici palace is looted and
the Medici family formally exiled from the city. In this setting, Tito, now a valued member of
Florentine society, participates in the reception for the French invaders. Tito encounters an
escaped prisoner, who turns out to be his adopted father, Baldassarre. Panicked and somewhat
ashamed of his earlier inaction, Tito denies knowing the escaped prisoner and calls him a
madman. Baldassarre escapes into the Duomo, where he swears revenge on his unfilial adoptive
son. Growing ever more fearful, Tito plans to leave Florence. To do this, he betrays his late
father-in-law, Bardo, who died some months earlier, by selling the late scholar's library. This
reveals to Romola the true nature of her husband's character. She secretly leaves Tito and
Florence, but is persuaded by Savonarola to return to fulfil her obligations to her marriage and
her fellow Florentines. Nevertheless, the love between Romola and Tito has gone.
Again the action of the novel moves forward, from Christmas 1494 to October 1496. In that
time, Florence has endured political upheaval, warfare and famine. Religious fervour has swept
through Florence under the leadership of Savonarola, culminating in the Bonfire of the Vanities.
The League of Venice has declared war on the French king and his Italian ally, Florence.
Starvation and disease run rampant through the city. Romola, now a supporter of Savonarola,
helps the poor and sick where she can. Meanwhile, Tito is embroiled in a complex game of
political manoeuvring and duplicitous allegiances in the new Florentine government. Mirroring
this, he has escaped attempts by Baldassarre to both kill and expose him, and maintains a secret
marriage to Tessa, with whom he has fathered two children. Romola becomes defiant of Tito,
and the two manoeuvre to thwart each other's plans. Romola meets an enfeebled Baldassarre,
who reveals Tito's past and leads her to Tessa.
Political turmoil erupts in Florence. Five supporters of the Medici family are sentenced to death,
including Romola's godfather, Bernardo del Nero. She learns that Tito has played a role in their
arrest. Romola pleads with Savonarola to intervene, but he refuses. Romola's faith in Savonarola
and Florence is shaken, and once again she leaves the city. Meanwhile, Florence is under papal
pressure to expel Savonarola. His arrest is effected by rioters, who then turn their attention to
several of the city's political elite. Tito becomes a target of the rioters, but he escapes the mob
by diving into the Arno River. However, upon leaving the river, Tito is killed by Baldassarre.
Romola makes her way to the coast. Emulating Gostanza in Boccaccio's The Decameron (V, 2),
she drifts out to sea in a small boat to die. However, the boat takes her to a small village
affected by the Plague, and she helps the survivors. Romola's experience gives her a new
purpose in life and she returns to Florence. Savonarola is tried for heresy and burned at the
stake, but for Romola his influence remains inspiring. Romola takes care of Tessa and her two
children, with the help of her older cousin. The story ends with Romola imparting advice to
Tessa's son, based on her own experiences and the influences in her life.
Characters in Romola
Romola de' Bardi – Daughter of classical scholar Bardo de' Bardi who lives in Florence. She has
an insular, non-religious upbringing, immersed in classical studies. She falls in love with Tito
Melema and marries him, but she begins to rebel after gradually realizing his true character.
Girolamo Savonarola later becomes a great influence in her life.
Tito Melema – A handsome, young, Italianate-Greek scholar who arrives in Florence after
being shipwrecked. He forsakes his adoptive father and makes a new life for himself in Florence.
He marries Romola, and charms his way into the influential circles of Florence. He also "marries"
Tessa in a mock ceremony. His sense of duty towards others is gradually replaced with ambition
and self-preservation, earning the disdain of his wife and the vengeful anger of his adoptive
father, Baldassarre.
Baldassarre Calvo – Adoptive father of Tito Melema. Travelling at sea with Tito, his galley is
attacked and Baldassarre is sold into slavery in Antioch. He is eventually brought in chains to
Florence, where he escapes. He encounters Tito, who denies him and calls him a madman.
Baldassarre, feeble yet fervent, becomes solely motivated by vengeance.
Girolamo Savonarola – Charismatic Dominican preacher. He preaches to Florentines about
religious piety and upcoming upheaval in Florence and the Church. Romola feels her life being
guided by his influence, both direct and broad. Savonarola inspires the people of Florence at
first, but the continuing hardship endured by the city leads to his persecution.
Tessa – Young and naive Florentine girl. Her young life has been tragic up until she meets Tito
Melema. She "marries" him in a mock wedding ceremony, but is treated as a secret, second
wife. As Tito's relationship with Romola wanes, he increasingly seeks the company of the
non-judgmental and ignorant Tessa, eventually preferring her to the virtuous and intelligent
Romola.
Bardo de' Bardi – Blind, classical scholar living in Florence. He has one estranged son, Dino,
and a daughter, Romola. Bardo is a descendant of the once-powerful Bardi family, but is living in
poverty with his daughter, who helps him with his classical studies. He is an ally of the Medici
family. He maintains a classical library, and tries to preserve it beyond his own death.
Nello the barber – Florentine barber, who fancies his establishment as a meeting place for the
Florentine intelligentsia and a forum for political and philosophical discussion. He is a staunch
supporter of Tito Melema.
Piero di Cosimo – Eccentric artist living in Florence. He paints a betrothal picture for Tito and
Romola, representing them as Bacchus and Ariadne (though not in the style of Titian's Bacchus
and Ariadne). He distrusts Tito, particularly since many other Florentines (especially Nello the
barber) take a quick liking to him. He remains a good friend to Romola.
Dino de' Bardi (aka Fra Luca) – Estranged son of Bardo de' Bardi. His father had hoped that
Dino would also study classical literature, but instead Dino became a Dominican monk,
estranging him from his non-religious family. Just before his death, he warns Romola against a
future marriage that will bring her peril.
Bratti Ferravecchi – Trader and iron scrap dealer (hence the name). He encounters Tito
Melema, who has just arrived in Florence. Various characters in the story often buy and sell
various items through him.
Niccolò Machiavelli – In this story, Machiavelli often talks with Tito and other Florentines
(particularly in Nello's shop) about all matters political and philosophical in Florence. His
observations add a commentary to the ongoing events in the city.

97.THE YELLOW WALLPAPER BY Charlotte Perkins Gilman

The narrator begins her journal by marveling at the grandeur of the house and grounds her
husband has taken for their summer vacation. She describes it in romantic terms as an
aristocratic estate or even a haunted house and wonders how they were able to afford it, and
why the house had been empty for so long. Her feeling that there is “something queer” about
the situation leads her into a discussion of her illness—she is suffering from “nervous
depression”—and of her marriage. She complains that her husband John, who is also her doctor,
belittles both her illness and her thoughts and concerns in general. She contrasts his practical,
rationalistic manner with her own imaginative, sensitive ways. Her treatment requires that she
do almost nothing active, and she is especially forbidden from working and writing. She feels
that activity, freedom, and interesting work would help her condition and reveals that she has
begun her secret journal in order to “relieve her mind.” In an attempt to do so, the narrator
begins describing the house. Her description is mostly positive, but disturbing elements such as
the “rings and things” in the bedroom walls, and the bars on the windows, keep showing up. She
is particularly disturbed by the yellow wallpaper in the bedroom, with its strange, formless
pattern, and describes it as “revolting.” Soon, however, her thoughts are interrupted by John’s
approach, and she is forced to stop writing.

As the first few weeks of the summer pass, the narrator becomes good at hiding her journal, and
thus hiding her true thoughts from John. She continues to long for more stimulating company
and activity, and she complains again about John’s patronizing, controlling ways—although she
immediately returns to the wallpaper, which begins to seem not only ugly, but oddly menacing.
She mentions that John is worried about her becoming fixated on it, and that he has even
refused to repaper the room so as not to give in to her neurotic worries. The narrator’s
imagination, however, has been aroused. She mentions that she enjoys picturing people on the
walkways around the house and that John always discourages such fantasies. She also thinks
back to her childhood, when she was able to work herself into a terror by imagining things in the
dark. As she describes the bedroom, which she says must have been a nursery for young
children, she points out that the paper is torn off the wall in spots, there are scratches and
gouges in the floor, and the furniture is heavy and fixed in place. Just as she begins to see a
strange sub-pattern behind the main design of the wallpaper, her writing is interrupted again,
this time by John’s sister, Jennie, who is acting as housekeeper and nurse for the narrator.

As the Fourth of July passes, the narrator reports that her family has just visited, leaving her
more tired than ever. John threatens to send her to Weir Mitchell, the real-life physician under
whose care Gilman had a nervous breakdown. The narrator is alone most of the time and says
that she has become almost fond of the wallpaper and that attempting to figure out its pattern
has become her primary entertainment. As her obsession grows, the sub-pattern of the
wallpaper becomes clearer. It begins to resemble a woman “stooping down and creeping”
behind the main pattern, which looks like the bars of a cage. Whenever the narrator tries to
discuss leaving the house, John makes light of her concerns, effectively silencing her. Each time
he does so, her disgusted fascination with the paper grows.

Soon the wallpaper dominates the narrator’s imagination. She becomes possessive and
secretive, hiding her interest in the paper and making sure no one else examines it so that she
can “find it out” on her own. At one point, she startles Jennie, who had been touching the
wallpaper and who mentions that she had found yellow stains on their clothes. Mistaking the
narrator’s fixation for tranquility, John thinks she is improving. But she sleeps less and less and is
convinced that she can smell the paper all over the house, even outside. She discovers a strange
smudge mark on the paper, running all around the room, as if it had been rubbed by someone
crawling against the wall.

The sub-pattern now clearly resembles a woman who is trying to get out from behind the main
pattern. The narrator sees her shaking the bars at night and creeping around during the day,
when the woman is able to escape briefly. The narrator mentions that she, too, creeps around at
times. She suspects that John and Jennie are aware of her obsession, and she resolves to destroy
the paper once and for all, peeling much of it off during the night. The next day she manages to
be alone and goes into something of a frenzy, biting and tearing at the paper in order to free the
trapped woman, whom she sees struggling from inside the pattern.
By the end, the narrator is hopelessly insane, convinced that there are many creeping women
around and that she herself has come out of the wallpaper—that she herself is the trapped
woman. She creeps endlessly around the room, smudging the wallpaper as she goes. When John
breaks into the locked room and sees the full horror of the situation, he faints in the doorway, so
that the narrator has “to creep over him every time!”

98.MARTIN CHUZZLEWITT BY DICKENS

The Life and Adventures of Martin Chuzzlewit (commonly known as Martin Chuzzlewit) is a
novel by Charles Dickens, considered the last of his picaresque novels. It was originally serialised
between 1842 and 1844. While writing it Dickens told a friend that he thought it his best
work,[1] but it was one of his least popular novels.[2] Like nearly all of Dickens' novels, Martin
Chuzzlewit was released to the public in monthly instalments. Early sales of the monthly parts
were disappointing, compared to previous works, so Dickens changed the plot to send the title
character to America.[3] This allowed the author to portray the United States (which he had
visited in 1842) satirically as a near wilderness with pockets of civilisation filled with deceptive
and self-promoting hucksters.

Martin Chuzzlewit has been raised by his grandfather and namesake. Years before, Martin
senior took the precaution of raising an orphaned girl, Mary Graham. She is to be his nursemaid,
with the understanding that she will be well cared for only as long as Martin senior lives. She
thus has strong motivation to promote his well-being, in contrast to his relatives, who only want
to inherit his money. However, his grandson Martin falls in love with Mary and wishes to marry
her, ruining Martin senior's plans. When Martin refuses to give up the engagement, his
grandfather disinherits him.
Martin becomes an apprentice to Seth Pecksniff, a greedy architect. Instead of teaching his
students, he lives off their tuition fees and has them do draughting work that he passes off as his
own. He has two spoiled daughters, nicknamed Cherry and Merry, having been christened as
Charity and Mercy. Unbeknown to Martin, Pecksniff has actually taken him on to establish closer
ties with the wealthy grandfather, thinking that this will gain Pecksniff a prominent place in the
will.

Young Martin befriends Tom Pinch, a kind-hearted soul whose late grandmother had given
Pecksniff all she had, believing Pecksniff would make an architect and gentleman of him. Pinch is
incapable of believing any of the bad things others tell him of Pecksniff, and always defends him
vociferously. Pinch works for exploitatively low wages, while believing he is the unworthy
recipient of Pecksniff's charity.
When Martin senior hears of his grandson's new life, he demands that Pecksniff kick young
Martin out. Then, Martin senior moves in and falls under Pecksniff's control. During this time,
Pinch falls in love with Mary, but does not declare it, knowing of her attachment to young
Martin.
One of Martin senior's greedy relatives is his brother, Anthony Chuzzlewit, who is in business
with his son, Jonas. Despite considerable wealth, they live miserly, cruel lives, with Jonas
constantly berating his father, eager for the old man to die so he can inherit. Anthony dies
abruptly and under suspicious circumstances, leaving his wealth to Jonas. Jonas then woos
Cherry, whilst arguing constantly with Merry. He then abruptly declares to Pecksniff that he
wants to marry Merry, and jilts Cherry - not without demanding an additional 1,000 pounds on
top of the 4,000 that Pecksniff had promised him as Cherry's dowry, with the argument that
Cherry has better chances for matchmaking.
Jonas, meanwhile, becomes entangled with the unscrupulous Montague Tigg and joins in his
pyramid scheme-like insurance scam. At the beginning of the book he is a petty thief and
hanger-on of a Chuzzlewit relative, Chevy Slyme. Tigg cheats young Martin out of a valuable
pocket watch and uses the funds to transform himself into a seemingly fine man called "Tigg
Montague". This façade convinces investors that he must be an important businessman from
whom they may greatly profit. Jonas eventually ends up murdering Tigg, who has acquired some
kind of information on him.
At this time, Tom Pinch finally sees his employer's true character. Pinch goes to London to seek
employment, and rescues his governess sister Ruth, who he discovers has been mistreated by
the family employing her. Pinch quickly receives an ideal job from a mysterious employer, with
the help of an equally mysterious Mr Fips.

Young Martin, meanwhile, has encountered Mark Tapley. Mark is always cheerful, which he
decides does not reflect well on him because he is always in happy circumstances and it shows
no strength of character to be happy when one has good fortune. He decides he must test his
cheerfulness by seeing if he can maintain it in the worst circumstances possible. To this end, he
accompanies young Martin when he goes to the United States to seek his fortune. The men
attempt to start new lives in a swampy, disease-filled settlement named "Eden", but both nearly
die of malaria. Mark finally finds himself in a situation in which it can be considered a virtue to
remain in good spirits. The grim experience, and Mark's care nursing Martin back to health,
change Martin's selfish and proud character, and the men return to England, where Martin
returns penitently to his grandfather. But his grandfather is now under Pecksniff's control and
rejects him.
At this point, Martin is reunited with Tom Pinch, who now discovers that his mysterious
benefactor is old Martin Chuzzlewit. The older Martin had only been pretending to be in thrall to
Pecksniff. Together, the group confront Pecksniff with their knowledge of his true character.
They also discover that Jonas murdered Tigg to prevent him from revealing that he had planned
to murder Anthony.
Senior Martin now reveals that he was angry at his grandson for becoming engaged to Mary
because he had planned to arrange that particular match himself, and felt his glory had been
thwarted by them deciding on the plan themselves. He realises the folly of that opinion, and
Martin and his grandfather are reconciled. Martin and Mary are married, as are Ruth Pinch and
John Westlock, another former student of Pecksniff's. Tom Pinch remains in unrequited love
with Mary for the rest of his life, never marrying, and always being a warm companion to Mary
and Martin and to Ruth and John.

99.SECOND CLASS CITIZEN BY BUCHI EMECHETA

The main character of Second Class Citizen is a woman named Adah who was born in Nigeria
and belonged to the Ibo tribe. Adah is a young girl who begins to have this dream when she is
about eight to get to the United Kingdom. The novel takes place seven to eight years after World
War II and, as part of the colonial educational system, outstanding students can travel to Europe
to study. Because Nigeria was a British colony, the United Kingdom becomes the land that
Adah often hears about as a child and also the place from which people in her town have come
from. She hears her father speak of the United Kingdom one day, "The Ibuza women who lived
in Lagos were preparing for the arrival of the town's first lawyer from the United Kingdom. The
title "United Kingdom" when pronounced by Adah's father sounded so heavy, like the type of
noise one associated with bombs. It was so deep, so mysterious, that Adah’s father always
voiced it as if he were speaking of God's Holiest of Holies. Going to the United Kingdom must
surely be like paying God a visit. The United Kingdom, then, must be like heaven."

The story starts out with Adah as a young girl who is stuck at home with her mother who does
not pay much attention to her. Adah's brother is away at school all day while her father is away
working. Adah decides that she wants to go to school too and she sneaks away from her mother
one day and runs all the way to school. She has met the teacher a few times before and she goes
hoping that he will let her sit in on his class. When she arrives she disrupts the entire class by
bursting into the room. The children all stare at her but the teacher just looks at her and smiles
and lets her sit in on the rest of the class.

Adah's dream is to go to the United Kingdom to study and to see the greatness that she is
sure is there. Her troubles begin from the first moment she realizes what her dream is. First she
is not allowed to go to school because she is a girl and the family does not want to spend the
money for her to go. She is a girl of her own mind though and she goes to school anyway which
ends up getting her mother in trouble.

Her next set of problems occurs when her father dies and she is sent to live with her mother's
brother. Any money that her family had went to her brother's education, and the only reason
she was kept in school (though not very good ones) was because it was thought that her uncle
would be able to get more money for her when they finally married her off. "Children, especially
girls, were taught to be very useful very early in life, and this had its advantages. For instance,
Adah learned very early to be responsible for herself. Nobody was interested in her for her own
sake, only in the money she would fetch, and the housework she could do and Adah, happy at
being given this opportunity of survival, did not waste time thinking about its rights or wrongs.
She had to survive."(18). This desire to persevere and survive in her society is what leads Adah
on her journey through life. It is also the driving force behind her desire to never give up on her
dreams. She avoids marriage over and over until she realizes that marriage might be her only
way to continue on with her dreams. She then uses her marriage in the sense that she gets a
good job and takes care of her husband and her children and she saves money with the intent
for her family to go over to United Kingdom. The plan is that she will go along with her husband
and both of them will continue their educations and become prominent figures in society.

Adah is alone hoping for her dream to come true, "So she found herself alone once more,
forced into a situation dictated by society in which, as an individual, she had little choice. She
would rather that she and her husband, who she was beginning to love, moved to new
surroundings, a new country and among new people. So she said special prayers to God, asking
Him to make Pa (her husban'd's father), agree to their going to the land of her dreams, the
United Kingdom! Just like her Pa, she still said the name United Kingdom in a whisper, even
when talking to God about it, but now she felt it was coming nearer to her. She was beginning to
believe she would go to England" (27). The news Adah receives from her husband is not that she
will go to England, but that her husband will go to England to study to better himself while Adah
will stay at home and continue to support the family. Her husband's father does not approve of
women going to England and so he will not allow both of them to move there. At first Adah is
filled with rage, but she controls her anger and she comes up with a plan. "'Be as cunning as a
serpent but as harmless as a dove,' she quoted to herself." (28). Once again she uses her smarts
to get what she wants. She sends Francis (her husband) off to England to study and in the
meantime she works and sends him money.

Adah does not give up here, she keeps her hopes up and when her husband writes to her a
few months later that he is going to be in England for at least four or five more years she decides
it is time to make her move and she convinces her in-laws that it is necessary for her to be in
England with her husband and that Francis wants her there, which he did say to her in his letter.
She soon books herself and her two children first class tickets on a ship to England and as the
real struggle begins for Adah she is arriving in England, welcomed by cold, rainy and cloudy
skies. A foreshadowing of all that is to come for her. She is shocked by the grayness but she will
not give up on her dream. Adah has arrived in the United Kingdom and this is where she goes
from a first class citizen in her native Nigeria to a Second Class Citizen in England.

Some of the main points of struggle for Adah are being a black woman in a predominantly
white society, learning of the women's rights movement during the seventies and the fact that
there is birth control available to her, and her struggle to pursue her goal in becoming a writer
and ultimately between four children and a lazy abusive husband the time to write. This book
deals with many different issues and movements and how they all interconnect and relate to
one another and also one woman. Just as the reader starts to find hope for Adah another
circumstance arises and as the book progresses one wonders how one woman can put up with
so much and yet be so strong not only for herself but also for her children. She never gives up on
them or on her dreams, not even when her first piece of work is burned by her husband.
100. CASTLE OF OTRANTO BY HORACE WALPOLE

The Castle of Otranto tells the story of Prince Manfred and his family, which includes his wife
(Hippolita) and his children (Conrad and Matilda). The story begins on the wedding day of
Manfred’s son, Conrad, and the Princess Isabella. The wedding does not take place, however, for
Conrad is crushed to death by a giant helmet moments before the event. Among the crowd is a
handsome young peasant named Theodore, who muses that the helmet is like the one from the
statue of Otranto’s founder, Alfonso. Though he has no reason to truly suspect Theodore of
Conrad’s death, Manfred makes a big to-do about the peasant’s putative guilt, and imprisons
him under the helmet.

The death of his son terrifies Manfred that a prophecy that the castle will pass on from their
family is beginning to come true. Manfred plots to divorce his wife, Hippolita, on the grounds
that she has failed to bear him a proper heir (he also claims they are related) and marry Isabella
himself. Even though strange things begin to happen in the castle, Manfred is not deterred.
When Manfred tells this to Isabella, she is horrified and flees into a passage beneath the castle.
There she meets Theodore, newly escaped from the helmet; he aids her in escaping to a nearby
convent.

The search for Isabella continues until Manfred confronts Theodore in the vault of the castle.
Theodore says he has no knowledge of Isabella, but Manfred’s pride and rage persist. Matilda
hears Theodore’s woeful singing and speaks to him briefly, admiring his piety and wondering if
she can help him.
Father Jerome arrives from the convent and assures Manfred of Isabella’s safety, but he adds
that Manfred’s plan to divorce his wife and marry the young girl offends Heaven. Manfred
orders the execution of Theodore. As Theodore removes his shirt, Jerome recognizes the mark
below his shoulder and identifies him as his own son, lost for years. Theodore, then, is the heir
to Jerome, who was once the count of Falconara before his house was ruined and he turned to
religion. Jerome begs for his son’s life, and Manfred offers to spare him in exchange for the
release of Isabella.

They are interrupted as a herald enters, proclaiming that a great knight has arrived to rescue
Isabella. The wily Manfred invites the mysterious knight, whose face is not seen, to palaver. The
conversation ends and the search for Isabella recommences. In the meantime, Matilda frees
Theodore from his imprisonment and helps him arm himself and flee the castle. Theodore finds
Isabella in the woods and hides her in a cave, vowing to protect her. The great knight arrives and
demands the girl, but Theodore, thinking he is an ally of Manfred’s, engages him in battle.
Wounded seriously, the knight says he is Frederic, Isabella’s father who was presumed dead in
the Holy Land. Isabella weeps over him, and Theodore helps her take him back to the castle.

Back in the castle, Frederic’s wounds are declared not too serious, and Manfred works on
convincing him to wed Matilda if he will get to marry Isabella. His intention is to keep Otranto in
his name, as he knows that Frederic’s line has also claimed lineage from Alfonso. Frederic is
wary at first, but he is very attracted to Matilda and therefore agrees. Manfred tells Hippolita
the truth about his plans, and, ever the dutiful wife, she seeks counsel from Jerome about a
divorce. She also tells Matilda about her planned nuptials to Frederic, but by this time Matilda
has realized she is in love with Theodore and is quite dismayed.

Manfred believes that Isabella will be meeting with Theodore for a tryst at the church, so he
takes a knife with him. It is actually Matilda who is meeting Theodore, but Manfred does not
know this and accidentally kills his own daughter.

Shock reverberates through the family and everyone else. Theodore is eventually revealed to be
the true prince of Otranto with Matilda dead, and the grieving Manfred is left to repent. He
abdicates the principality and retires to religion along with Hippolita. Theodore becomes prince
and is married to Isabella, for she is the only one who can truly understand his sorrow.

101. AGE OF IRON BY J M COETZEE

This story is narrated in a letter from Mrs. Curren, the main character, to her daughter. She lives
in Cape Town during the Apertheid. She's just been told by her doctors that her cancer is
incurable and that she's going to die soon. Upon arriving home, she turns away a homeless man
who is camped out near her house. He leaves, but comes back right away. Mrs. Curren gives him
food and offers him work, which latter offer offends him. Later that evening, she spots the man
staring at the TV through her window. Needless to say she's annoyed. In the night, however, she
has a sudden painful attack, and the man helps her. They form a sort of weird friendship as
Vercueil spends most of his time near her house. One day she asks him to deliver mail to her
daughter. He takes a really long time to agree, but eventually he mails the letter.

Mrs. Curren's housekeeper, Florence, returns from a trip and brings her two daughters and her
son Bheki with her. Mrs. Curren resents having Bheki in the house, but he has no other place go.
His friend, whom Mrs. Curren thinks is a no-good hoodlum, hang out a lot and gets into a fight
with Vercueil, who disappears for a bit. Around this time, policemen start hanging out near the
house, apparently keeping tabs on Bheki and his friends. Tensions are rising. When Vercueil
returns, he brings home a woman and they both pass out drunk in the living room.
Overwhelmed with people, Mrs. Curren starts to feel like everyone is conspiring against her to
take over her property before she even dies.

One day Mrs. Curren witnesses a couple cops force Bheki and his friend, John, who are on bikes
to run into a truck. John injures his head badly, and she sits in the street holding his wound until
the ambulance arrives. Insulated from racial hatred, Mrs. Cullen starts to realize that her neat
little white world doesn't match the reality of police brutality against black people. She wants to
demand justice from the authorities for John's injury, but Florence won't let her because she's
afraid to cause trouble with the police. They all go to the hospital to visit Bheki's friend, but
Vercueil and Mrs. Curren wait in the car because she's in too much pain. Brought to tears, she
admits to him that she hasn't told her daughter about her impending death. He encourages her
to tell the truth, so her daughter doesn't resent her after she's gone. At home that night, Mrs.
Curren invites Vercueil to sleep on the couch. She catches herself wishing he lives there.

Tragedy strikes again when Florence gets a phone call in the middle of the night saying her son is
in trouble. Mrs. Curren drives Florence and her daughter to Guglethu, an unsafe place, where
they meet Mr. Thabane, Florence's cousin. They drive to a part of town in chaos - fire, screaming
people, and dead bodies. Faced with so much destruction and fear, Mrs. Curren essentially
throws a fit and is put to shame about her privileged sensibility by Mr. Thabane. Eventually they
find Bheki. He and four other black men have been murdered and left lying against a wall, their
eyes and mouths full of sand. Horrified, Mrs. Curren finds a policeman and demands he do
something, but he brushes her off. The next day some women come to pick up Florence's things
as she won't return.

After all of that, Vercueil asks Mrs. Curren if she intends to kill herself that day. She says yes, so
they go for a drive. She's unable to go through with it however, so Vercueil buys some liquor and
tells her to get drunk. Offended, she screams at him to leave, which he does. He stays away for a
while. One night Mrs. Curren wakes up to find John asking about Bheki. She tells him that his
friend is dead, but the boy doesn't seem to understand. He's injured, so she looks after him for a
bit. When she finds him stashing something in the floorboards one day, she calls Mr. Thabane to
take John away.

The next morning the police come to her house asking about John. She says that everything is
fine, but John is afraid. Promising not to let anything hurt him, she tries to comfort him. In a
cruel trick, an officer distracts Mrs. Curren and the others shoot John. The cops then say she can
return to her home, but she can't stand the thought of it. She wanders the streets until she falls
asleep under a bridge. Waking to kids groping her, she's robbed and in excruciating pain.
Somehow Vercueil finds her, but she still refuses to go home. They fall asleep in the woods
together before returning the next day. Her house has been trashed, and a policeman is there
who interrogates her about John and Vercueil. After he leaves, she calls Mr. Thabane to warn
him.

From this point on, Mrs. Curren fades quickly as the cancer progresses. Her pain gets worse, and
she has bizarre nightmares. Vercueil, who is caring for her now, encourages her to commit
suicide repeatedly. They start sharing a bed so that she can stay warm. Their relationship is
completely platonic; she just can't stay warm anymore. When she wakes up extremely cold one
day, she asks Vercueil if today is the day. Without a word, he climbs into bed and embraces her.
Her final words are that he can't make her any warmer.

102. CLARISSA BY SAMUEL RICHARDSON

Clarissa tells the story of a virtuous, beautiful young woman who is brought to tragedy by the
wickedness of her world. The eighteen-year-old Clarissa Harlowe is universally loved and
admired, considered an exemplary woman by everyone around her. The Harlowes are an
up-and-coming family, possessing great wealth but little status. The other members of the
family are avaricious and eager to improve their standing in the world, and Clarissa becomes the
victim of their greed. The trouble starts when Richard Lovelace, a dashing libertine, comes to
pay court to Clarissa’s sister, Arabella, but is attracted by Clarissa instead. Arabella’s jealousy
combines with the resentment of their brother, James, who holds a grudge against Lovelace
from college days, and sets the family against him.

A duel between the two, in which Lovelace wounds James but spares his life, crystallizes their
hatred. The family becomes suspicious of Clarissa, forbids her from corresponding with
Lovelace, and commands her to marry a horrible rich man named Roger Solmes. Clarissa refuses
to consider marrying Solmes and carries on a clandestine correspondence with Lovelace. She
also continues to secretly correspond with her best friend, Anna Howe. As she continues to
resist marriage to Solmes, Clarissa is increasingly confined, until she is barely able to leave her
room. Finally Lovelace takes advantage of Clarissa’s fear of a forced marriage by tricking her into
running away with him.

Once Clarissa has run away, she is in Lovelace’s power. Her reputation is ruined and her family
refuses to forgive her. Lovelace is an adept manipulator, enjoying the “contrivances” he invents
to keep Clarissa in his web. He is in love with her, but he hates the idea of marriage, so his goal is
to force her into “cohabitation,” rather than marriage. Clarissa is innocent and virtuous and does
not see through Lovelace’s tricks. Furthermore, she refuses to compromise any of her strict
tenets of behavior, even to save herself. Lovelace repeatedly tests Clarissa’s virtue as a means of
testing the character of the entire sex: if Clarissa is truly an exemplary woman, she will
withstand his contrivances and remain a model of goodness. His intention, however, is to force
Clarissa to compromise her strict morals, sully her reputation, and gain full control over her.
Without suspecting that she is playing into his hands, she goes with him to London, where he
secures lodgings at Mrs. Sinclair’s house. Clarissa is unaware that this is a brothel and the
women she meets there are whores. Having been involved with (and ruined by) Lovelace in the
past, these women are jealous of Clarissa and encourage Lovelace to rape her.

At the same time, Clarissa’s virtue has a powerful effect on Lovelace and sometimes sways him
away from his bad intentions. After several battles between his wicked heart and his protesting
conscience, Lovelace’s joy in intrigue and the whores’ instigations seal Clarissa’s doom. Finally
suspecting Lovelace’s vileness, Clarissa escapes, but Lovelace finds her and tricks her back to
Mrs. Sinclair’s brothel. There, Mrs. Sinclair drugs Clarissa and Lovelace rapes her while she is
unconscious. When she awakes, Clarissa goes temporarily mad, and Lovelace regrets his action.
The rape has failed to put Clarissa fully in his power because she has never compromised her
virtue. He begins to talk with more seriousness about marrying her, but also thinks he will try to
rape her again and see if he can get her consent, thus abandoning her principles. Clarissa,
sensing the danger, runs away, this time successfully.

Once Clarissa has been raped, she stops eating and no longer worries about worldly problems
like reputation. She continues to seek reconciliation with her family, but they remain adamant.
One of Lovelace’s plots gone wrong allows him to accidentally discover Clarissa’s location, but at
the same time it damages her health and cements her conviction of his wickedness. Lovelace’s
friend Belford becomes Clarissa’s protector, keeping Lovelace away but mediating between him
and Clarissa. Lovelace is now truly determined to marry Clarissa, but she prefers the idea of
death to that of marrying such a criminal. Her health steadily worsens, and she begins to
prepare for death.

With remarkable equanimity, Clarissa makes her will, appoints Belford her executor, puts her
affairs in order, and even orders a coffin. She finally dies, expressing forgiveness for everyone in
her life and joyful anticipation of heaven. The Harlowes finally see how wrong their treatment of
Clarissa has been. Mr. and Mrs. Harlowe die soon after, and James and Arabella marry badly and
are miserable for the rest of their lives. Lovelace fails to reform and is killed by Clarissa’s cousin
Morden in a duel. Anna, Hickman, Belford, and the other good characters are rewarded with
happy marriages. Belford takes on the project of collecting the letters that tell Clarissa’s story so
that it can be an example to protect other women from similar fates.

103. A HANDFUL OF DUST BY EVELYN WAUGH

Tony and Brenda Last are a young married couple who have been together for eight years. The
have a son named John Andrew and they live on a wealthy estate called Hetton. The estate is in
England, two hours outside of London. One weekend, a young man named John Beaver holds
Tony to a casual invitation made for him to visit Hetton. Brenda meets Beaver for the first time
and is attracted to him. At Hetton, Brenda has been cut off from the social scene she once
enjoyed in London. Beaver and Brenda spend the weekend gossiping on all of the latest parties,
people, and trends. The next time she visits her sister in London she immediately begins to
inquire about Beaver. It isn't long before she sees him and makes advances toward him. An
affair begins and Brenda decides to get an apartment in London to make it easier for her to
spend time with Beaver. She convinces her husband to pay for the apartment,giving him the
impression that she is going to take a course in economics. Brenda spends more time in London
that at home. Everyone in the London scene knows about the affair, but Tony never figures it
out.

A tragedy befalls the family and John Andrew Last is killed in a horse accident during an annual
hunt at Hetton. Brenda decides to choose Beaver over Tony and asks for a divorce. Tony is
completely blind-sided by the entire situation; losing his son and wife within the same week. He
plays fair and decides to give Brenda a divorce, which at this time means that he must pretend
that he is the one having the affair. After a time, when Brenda becomes greedy and
unreasonable, Tony takes a stance. He refuses to pay the money that Brenda and her family try
to squeeze out of him and decides to take a six month trip, allowing Brenda to think about what
she has done.
Tony's trip takes him to Brazil with a strange doctor named Messinger. They explore unknown
territory in search of a lost or legendary city. It becomes clear that the doctor's plan was not well
thought out and everything starts falling apart quickly. Tony becomes deathly ill with fever and
the doctor drowns trying to find help for him. Meanwhile in London, Brenda has no money, so
Beaver and her friends all leave her to her misery. They have no interest in her now that she is
no longer a part of the upper class elite.

Delirium leaves Tony wandering through the forest and he finds the city that he and Messinger
searched for. Unfortunately for Tony, the city is led by a deranged old man, Mr. Todd. The man
is illiterate, and once had his father read to him from a library of Charles Dickens books every
day. Once his father passed away the man longed for someone to take his place reading the
stories. Since no one comes to the city much, after nursing Tony back to health, Todd keeps him
prisoner. Tony spends the rest of his days trapped there and the estate at Hetton is passed on to
his cousin Richard Last. Brenda remarries quickly to Tony's old friend Jock and Beaver moves to
New York.

104. BAUMGARTNER'S BOMBAY BY ANITA DESAI

Hugo Baumgartner, a German Jew, lives in Germany. His father, is
a prosperous furniture dealer. The II world war being imminent, Hugo’s
father loses all his wealth under the Nazi rule. He is tortured and
humiliated, and is reduced to the status of psychological devastation and
he ultimately commits suicide. In Germany, the Jews were tormented and
banished by the Nazi Germans. The onset of the II world war,
precipitated torment for the native Jews even in India, under the British
rule. They were arrested and detained in Internment camps.
Circumstances force Hugo to leave Germany and come to India through
the assistance of Herr Pfuehl, his father’s business partner. As directed by
Herr Pfuehl, Hugo arrives in Bombay, and meets Chimanlal, who is Herr
Pfuehl’s business associate. Hugo finds a kindred soul in Chimanlal, who
provides him with security and help. An intimate friendship develops
between the two, along with the enhancement of business. Hugo
occasionally even visits his home and also accompanies Chimanlal to the
horse race course. Soon, both Hugo and Chimanlal together buy a horse
and train it to participate in races. It wins several races and obtains
fortune for Chimanlal. Chimanlal is overwhelmed by love and gratitude
to Hugo and persuades Hugo to keep the silver trophies for himself.
Though his early life in India is happy and quite prosperous, through his
business with Chimanlal, as wood merchant, it does not last long. As
Hugo holds a German passport, he is arrested by the British and taken to
the Internment camp in Ahmednager. Hugo is a very lonely man and he
makes no attempt to initiate friendship with Indians, except with
Chimanlal. However, he maintains friendly relations with Lotte, a
German cabaret dancer. But it is not possible to forego his belief in
Germany and his childhood days. He remains fastened to Germany and to
his childhood, even after his mother’s death; he can no longer go back to
Germany. With Chimanlal’s death, Hugo loses his business connections.
He develops into a bedraggled, shabby, solitary and desolate man. He
becomes a recluse and leads an atrophied existence. He keeps numerous
stray cats for company and becomes known in the vicinity as the
‘billiwallah pagal’. He exhibits peculiar traits, in that, he regularly
collects leftovers from restaurants to feed his brood of cats.
In Germany, he had been dark–his darkness had marked him the
Jew, der jude. In India, he was fair– and that marked him the firangi. In
both the lands, he is not accepted. Hugo remains an outsider throughout.

In Germany,v he was an outsider marked by his dark complexion. But in

India he is a foreigner marked by his fair complexion. Hugo aspires for
acceptance and friendship only from Germans. This trait of seeking
friendship only from Germans lands him into trouble and claims his life.
He befriends a young German drug addict, by name Kurt. Out of
compassion for the vagabond, he takes him to his poor lodgings. But Kurt
murders him and decamps with some of Hugo’s silver trophies.

105. VILLATE BY CHARLOTTE BRONTE

Lucy Snowe, a young Englishwoman of the educated class, narrates the story of her life—in a
particularly partisan and sometimes unreliable manner. She is left destitute after the death of
her mysterious family and, after briefly being a nurse-companion, takes herself off on a blind,
daring trip to the Continent. She goes to the kingdom of Labassecour (perhaps modeled on
Belgium) and, through a series of very fortunate occurrences, manages to land herself a job and
a place to live on her first night in the town of Villette. She becomes a nursery governess to the
three daughters of the proprietress of a large school for girls. During her time as the bonne
d'enfants, she impresses her employer, Madame Beck, with her modesty and excellent English.
She is elevated to the position of English teacher, though she has no qualifications for it and has
a poor command of the French language spoken in Villette. Lucy, however, comes to excel at
teaching and to love it.

Dr. John Graham Bretton, a friend of Lucy’s in her childhood, also happens to be working in
Villette. Their paths cross, but he does not recognize her. During this time Lucy and a student at
Madame Beck's, Ginevra Fanshawe, become friends, and Lucy learns of Ginevra's secret suitors.
One of them is Dr. John, for whom Lucy has also formed an attachment. Ginevra is fickle and
selfish, and Lucy cannot understand how Ginevra could prefer another (the Count De Hamal) to
her adored Dr. John. Meanwhile, the imperious and difficult M. Paul, a professor of literature, is
paying Lucy attention, but chiefly to admonish her and instruct her about what he considers
proper conduct for a young lady.

Two more friends from Lucy's childhood, Paulina Home and her father, now live in Villette. Mr.
Home has inherited a title and a fortune, and he and his daughter live in fine style. Paulina
(Polly), who is younger than both Dr. John and Lucy, stayed with the Brettons when a young
child and formed an interestingly adult attachment to Dr. John. Dr. John, who was enamored of
Polly's flighty cousin Ginevra, now transfers his affections to the seventeen-year-old.

During this time Lucy is visited by a spectral nun, said to the be the shade of a sister buried alive
in the garden when Madame Beck's school was a convent. Lucy learns that M. Paul, with whom
she has had several battles but has formed a friendship, was engaged to be married twenty
years ago to a woman named Justine Marie. Because of debts and the unforeseen death of M.
Paul's father, the two were unable to marry, and she died very young in a convent. M. Paul
supports Justine's family in a house with a priest named Pere Silas. Lucy also learns that M. Paul
lives quietly in two rooms at a nearby boys' college, keeping no servants.

Lucy and M. Paul become very good friends, and he calls her his sister. At one moment,
however, Lucy thinks that perhaps M. Paul feels more strongly for her. He tries to convert her to
Catholicism, but Lucy is a truly faithful believer in the Protestant faith of her upbringing, and
becoming a Catholic for her is not possible. Though the two finally come to some agreement on
the relative worth of their faiths, it is clear that Lucy's Protestantism will keep her from ever
being M. Paul's wife. Pere Silas and Madame Beck counsel M. Paul that marriage to Lucy is an
impossibility, and M. Paul decides he must go to Guadalupe to take care of some business
interests of Madame Malravens.

Dr. John and Polly fall in love. They exchange letters, hoping to become engaged. M. de
Bassompierre is against letting his daughter go, but he eventually relents. The couple marry and
are happy, having many healthy children. Ginevra, formerly loved by Dr. John, is now jealous
and dislikes her cousin Polly.

M. Paul and Lucy fall in love, but she is not a Catholic, and the decision has already been made
for him to leave. Before he goes he is very mysterious and does not see Lucy until the night
before his departure. He has procured a house for her to set up a new school so that she may be
independent and wait for him to return from Guadalupe. They exchange pledges of love, and M.
Paul leaves.

Ginevra has been seeing the Count De Hamal secretly. He has been visiting her at the school
dressed as the spectral nun. On the night Ginevra elopes with the Count, it is revealed to Lucy
that the ghostly visitation was nothing other than Count De Hamal in disguise. Lucy is relieved
that she has never seen a ghost.

Lucy leaves the school and prospers at her own school while she waits for M. Paul's return. She
receives an unexpected legacy from an old friend, with which she turns her day school into a
boarding school. The ending of the novel is ambiguous, but it is implied that M. Paul dies in a
shipwreck on his way home. Lucy lives out her life alone, at least comforted by the memory of
love.

106. NORTH AND SOUTH BY ELIZABETH GASKEL

When the novel opened, Margaret Hale was preparing for her cousin Edith’s wedding to Captain
Lennox. Following the celebration she returned to the village of Helstone where her father was
vicar. She had spent the past ten years living with her aunt and cousin and was now looking
forward to the idyllic life of Helstone with her parents. This quiet genteel life in Southern
England was shattered by an unexpected and unwanted proposal from Edith’s brother-in-law,
Henry Lennox, and her father’s shocking news that doubts about the Church of England led him
to leave the Church and move his family to the industrial Northern town of Milton.

The three Hales relocated to the North, where Mr. Hale became a private tutor and Margaret
tried to reconcile herself to her new and unlovely environs. She disliked the business and
coarseness of the inhabitants and was disdainful of the prominence of business in public life. Mr.
Hale’s friend and pupil Mr. Thornton, one of Milton’s most influential and wealthiest
manufacturers, garnered her particular disapproval. The two of them were at odds over
capitalism and the relationship of masters and laborers. Mr. Thornton grew to love Margaret
both despite and because of her pride, but she disliked him immensely. The imminent strike by
Milton’s working class was a point of contention; Mr. Thornton professed derision for the
strikers and Margaret, while mostly ignorant of the reasons for a strike, identified with the
laborers. This was due in part to her acquaintance with a Milton laborer, Nicholas Higgins, and
his sweet, dying daughter Bessy.

While in Milton Mrs. Hale developed a serious illness. One day Margaret went to the Thornton
home to borrow a water-bed for her ailing mother and found herself amidst a roiling mass of
laborers who had erupted into anger and violence over Mr. Thornton’s choice to employ Irish
hands because of the strike. On the doorstep of his home Margaret was roused into action,
throwing her arms around him to protect him from the crowd’s projectiles. He later confessed
his love for her but she claimed that she was only doing what any woman would have done, and
coldly refused him.

The young Bessy Higgins died from her long sickness derived from factory work. Mrs. Hale’s
death was also near, and she begged her daughter to call her brother Frederick home. Frederick
Hale was a fugitive from England due to his assumed role in a mutiny in the Royal Navy.
Frederick, risking capture, stole into Milton and visited his dying mother on her deathbed. His
visit was short-lived, however, as it was too dangerous for him to remain.

Frederick’s visit brought complications for Margaret. While at the train station bidding his sister
goodbye, the two were noticed by Mr. Thornton, who believed Frederick to be Margaret’s secret
lover. Frederick was also noticed by an old enemy who tried to accost him. He pushed the man
away from him; these injuries later led to the man’s death and a police inquiry of Margaret, who
was noticed at the station by other Milton townspeople. Margaret lied to the inspector to
protect Frederick. This falsehood caused an immense amount of guilt, especially since Mr.
Thornton, a magistrate, protected Margaret by ending the police inquiry. The fact that he knew
of her moral lapse and she was unable to tell him the reasons for it smote her conscience.

After his son left, Mr. Hale departed for Oxford to spend time with Mr. Bell, his former tutor and
Margaret’s godfather. While there he passed away in his sleep. Margaret, overcome with grief,
returned to her aunt’s house. Her cousin and Captain Lennox had returned from living abroad
and resided in the same house as well. Margaret spent time alone coming to terms with all of
the tragedy she had suffered from in the past two years.

Her affection and esteem for Mr. Thornton had slowly been growing. She hoped Mr. Bell, who
was Mr. Thornton’s landlord, would tell Mr. Thornton about the reasons for her falsehood. This
was now possible because attempts to clear Frederick’s name had been abandoned; he would
remain living in Spain with his new wife and his secret visit was no longer problematic.

Mr. Bell, however, also passed away from illness. Margaret inherited a great sum of money. One
day Mr. Thornton came to visit as a guest of Henry Lennox. He explained that his business had
been destroyed by the strike –his own decision to hire Irish hands and the instability of the
market led to his final decision to sell the business he had built from scratch. He had, however,
come to practice a more humanitarian way of conducting business and no longer maintained an
absolute separation between master and workers. This change was symbolized by the respectful
and mutually beneficial relationship between Mr. Thornton and Nicholas Higgins, who he had
grudgingly hired to work at the mill after the strike’s cessation.

When Margaret heard of the failure of his business and his new mode of thinking, she
sympathized with him and decided to use her inheritance to help save the mill. When she told
him of this, the final barriers to their love and intimacy were abandoned; they embraced and
expressed their love for each other.

107. VICTORY BY CONRAD

Victory (also published as Victory: An Island Tale) is a psychological novel by Joseph Conrad first
published in 1915,[1] through which Conrad achieved "popular success."[2] The New York Times,
however, called it "an uneven book" and "more open to criticism than most of Mr. Conrad's best
work.
Through a business misadventure, the European Axel Heyst ends up living on an island in what is
now Indonesia, with his Chinese assistant, Wang. Heyst visits a nearby island when a female
band is playing at a hotel owned by Mr. Schomberg. Schomberg attempts to force himself
sexually on one of the band members, Alma, later called Lena. She flees with Heyst back to his
island and they become lovers. Schomberg seeks revenge by attempting to frame Heyst for the
"murder" of a man who had died of natural causes and later by sending three desperadoes
(Pedro, Martin Ricardo and Mr. Jones) to Heyst's island with a lie about treasure hidden on the
island. The three die (Wang kills one) but Lena dies as well and Heyst is overcome with grief and
commits suicide.

Like many of Conrad's novels, Victory is set in the Indonesian archipelago, then the Dutch Indies.
The story is fairly straight forward, although the narrative develops slowly. Axel Heyst, a Swede,
resides on the virtually uninhabited island where a business venture failed. During a holiday trip
visiting another island, he meets and unhappy young English woman, who is attached to a music
band. They steal away together. This angers and frustrates the owner of the hotel, Mr
Schomberg, whose wife is a hovering presence in the background. Out of spite, Schomberg puts
three desperados, Mr Jones, Ricardo and their servant on Heyst's trail, suggesting that Heyst
guards a hoard of money. The three men, ruthless, sail to the island, but Mr Jones idea of finding
Heyst alone, and an easy prey, runs completely awry. On the island, Jones meets his nemesis.

108. NOSTROMO BY CONRAD

Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard is a 1904 novel by Joseph Conrad, set in the fictitious South
American republic of "Costaguana". It was originally published serially in two volumes of T.P.'s
Weekly.
Nostromo is set in the South American country of Costaguana, and more specifically in that
country's Occidental Province and its port city of Sulaco. Though Costaguana is a fictional nation,
its geography as described in the book resembles real-life Colombia. Costaguana has a long
history of tyranny, revolution and warfare, but has recently experienced a period of stability
under the dictator Ribiera.
Charles Gould is a native Costaguanero of English descent who owns an important silver-mining
concession near the key port of Sulaco. He is tired of the political instability in Costaguana and
its concomitant corruption, and uses his wealth to support Ribiera's government, which he
believes will finally bring stability to the country after years of misrule and tyranny by
self-serving dictators. Instead, Gould's refurbished silver mine and the wealth it has generated
inspires a new round of revolutions and self-proclaimed warlords, plunging Costaguana into
chaos. Among others, the forces of the revolutionary General Montero invade Sulaco after
securing the inland capital; Gould, adamant that his silver should not become spoil for his
enemies, orders Nostromo, the trusted "capataz de los cargadores" (head longshoreman) of
Sulaco, to take it offshore so it can be sold into international markets.
Nostromo is an Italian expatriate who has risen to his position through his bravery and daring
exploits. ("Nostromo" is Italian for "shipmate" or "boatswain", but the name could also be
considered a corruption of the Italian phrase "nostro uomo," meaning "our man.") Nostromo's
real name is Giovanni Battista Fidanza—Fidanza meaning "trust" in archaic Italian.
Nostromo is a commanding figure in Sulaco, respected by the wealthy Europeans and seemingly
limitless in his abilities to command power among the local population. He is, however, never
admitted to become a part of upper-class society, but is instead viewed by the rich as their
useful tool. He is believed by Charles Gould and his own employers to be incorruptible, and it is
for this reason that Nostromo is entrusted with removing the silver from Sulaco to keep it from
the revolutionaries. Accompanied by the young journalist Martin Decoud, Nostromo sets off to
smuggle the silver out of Sulaco. However, the lighter on which the silver is being transported is
struck at night in the waters off Sulaco by a transport carrying the invading revolutionary forces
under the command of Colonel Sotillo. Nostromo and Decoud manage to save the silver by
putting the lighter ashore on Great Isabel. Decoud and the silver are deposited on the deserted
island of Great Isabel in the expansive bay off Sulaco, while Nostromo scuttles the lighter and
manages to swim back to shore undetected. Back in Sulaco, Nostromo's power and fame
continues to grow as he daringly rides over the mountains to summon the army which
ultimately saves Sulaco's powerful leaders from the revolutionaries and ushers in the
independent state of Sulaco. In the meantime, left alone on the deserted island, Decoud
eventually loses his mind. He takes the small lifeboat out to sea and there shoots himself, after
first weighing his body down with some of the silver ingots so that he would sink into the sea.
His exploits during the revolution do not bring Nostromo the fame he had hoped for, and he
feels slighted and used. Feeling that he has risked his life for nothing, he is consumed by
resentment, which leads to his corruption and ultimate destruction, for he has kept secret the
true fate of the silver after all others believed it lost at sea. He finds himself becoming a slave of
the silver and its secret, even as he slowly recovers it ingot by ingot during nighttime trips to
Great Isabel. The fate of Decoud is a mystery to Nostromo, which combined with the fact of the
missing silver ingots only adds to his paranoia. Eventually a lighthouse is constructed on Great
Isabel, threatening Nostromo's ability to recover the treasure in secret. The ever resourceful
Nostromo manages to have a close acquaintance, the widower Giorgio Viola, named as its
keeper. Nostromo is in love with Giorgio's younger daughter, but ultimately becomes engaged
to his elder daughter Linda. One night while attempting to recover more of the silver, Nostromo
is shot and killed, mistaken for a trespasser by old Giorgio.

Major characters
Nostromo (or Giovanni Battista Fidanza) – a charismatic Italian seaman who has settled in Sulaco
and established a reputation for leadership and daring; as an employee of the Oceanic Steam
Navigation Company, he earns the unofficial title of the Capataz de Cargadores, or "head
longshoreman"
Charles "don Carlos" Gould, a.k.a. "King of Sulaco" – an Englishman by ancestry and
temperament, he is nevertheless a third generation Costaguanero; owner of the San Tomé Silver
Mine, a bequest from his late father who was forced into ownership of the then derelict mine as
repayment for many forced loans made to the corrupt government of Guzman Bento; the mine
becomes his single-minded obsession
Mrs. "dona Emilia" Gould – the English-born wife of Charles Gould; an altruistic and refined
woman of strong will but who ultimately finds herself second to the mine in her husband’s
attentions
Dr. Monygham – a misanthropic and taciturn English doctor and long-time resident of
Costaguana; rumors swirl about him regarding his past involvement in political plots
Martin Decoud – a Costaguanero who has spent much of his time in Paris and considers himself
a European by temperament if not birth; he returns to Costaguana and becomes an outspoken
journalist and editor of the progressive newspaper Porvenir ("The Future"); initially a cynic, he
becomes the intellectual force behind the idea of independence for the Occidental Province of
Costaguana; he is also in love with Antonia Avellanos
Don José Avellanos – the patriarch of one of the most prominent families of Sulaco and a close
confident of Charles Gould; he suffered greatly under the dictatorship of Guzman Bento and
now has complete allegiance to Gould
Antonia Avellanos – a highly educated and cosmopolitan daughter of Don José; held in awe by
the other young women of Sulaco
Giorgio Viola – an exiled Italian revolutionary who once fought alongside Garibaldi but who is
now a shopkeeper in Sulaco and the father of two daughters
Teresa Viola – the wife of Giorgio Viola
Linda Viola – the eldest daughter of Teresa and Giorgio; she is in love with Nostromo
Giselle Viola – the youngest daughter of Teresa and Giorgio
Captain Joseph "Fussy Joe" Mitchell – the English Superintendent of the Oceanic Steam
Navigation Company’s offices in Sulaco and supervisor of Nostromo
President don Vincente Ribiera – Costaguana’s first civilian head of state, who takes over after
the overthrow of the tyrannical Guzman Bento; a member of the landed aristocracy; corpulent
to the point of infirmity; highly respected abroad and full of good intentions, and many of the
characters, including Charles Gould, place their hopes in his ability to bring democracy and
stability to Costaguana
Guzman Bento – a former dictator of Costaguana whose death some years before the novel
opens had ushered in a renewed period of political and economic instability; the period of his
rule was a dark and bloody chapter in the history of Costaguana
General Montero – an early supporter of Ribiera; a self-made man from peasant stock; he
manages to muster an army of supporters to eventually overthrow Ribiera
Pedro Montero – the younger brother of General Montero
Senor Hirsch – a Jewish fur trader who finds himself in Sulaco at the time of the political
upheavals that comprise most of the novel
Colonel Sotillo – the commander of a military unit in Esmeralda, up the coast from Sulaco; he
abandons the Ribiera regime and joins the uprising of General Montero and is the first to arrive
in Sulaco after the fall of the Ribiera government; his loyalties, however, are soon consumed by
a mad desire to get hold of the silver of the San Tomé Mine
Don Pepe – the manager of the San Tomé Silver Mine under Charles Gould; under Gould’s
orders, he is prepared to blow up the mine rather than let if fall into the hands of the Montero
forces.

109. THE NIGGER OF THE NARCISSUS BY CONRAD

The Nigger of the 'Narcissus': A Tale of the Forecastle (1897; also subtitled A Tale of the Sea and
published in the US as The Children of the Sea) is a novella by Joseph Conrad. Because of its
quality compared to earlier works, some have described it as marking the start of Conrad's
major, or middle, period;[1][2] others have placed it as the best work of his early, or first, period.

Preface
The author's preface to the novel, regarded as a manifesto of literary impressionism,[3] is
considered one of Conrad's most significant pieces of non-fiction writing.[4] This preface begins
with the line: "A work that aspires, however humbly, to the condition of art should carry its
justification in every line".[5]
Plot
The title character, James Wait, is a dying West Indian black sailor on board the merchant ship
Narcissus sailing from Bombay to London. Wait, suffering from tuberculosis, becomes seriously
ill during the voyage, and his plight arouses the humanitarian sympathies of many of the crew.
However, the ship's master Captain Alistoun and an old sailor named Singleton remain
concerned primarily with their duties and appear indifferent to Wait's condition. Off the Cape of
Good Hope the ship capsizes onto her beam-ends with half her hull submerged, and the crew
clings onto the deck for an entire night and day, waiting in silence for the ship to turn over the
rest of the way and sink. Alistoun refuses to allow the masts to be severed, which might allow
the hull to right itself. Five of the men, realizing that Wait is unaccounted for, climb down to his
cabin and rescue him at their own peril. When the storm passes and a wind returns, Alistoun
directs the weary men to catch the wind, which succeeds in righting the ship. Later in the voyage
Alistoun prevents a near-mutiny led by a slippery Cockney named Donkin. Wait eventually
succumbs and dies within sight of land, as Singleton had predicted he would.

110.MADAME BOVARY BY GUSTAVE FLAUBERT

Madame Bovary is the debut novel of French writer Gustave Flaubert, published in 1856. The
character lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial
life.

Madame Bovary begins when Charles Bovary is a young boy, unable to fit in at his new school
and ridiculed by his new classmates. As a child, and later when he grows into a young man,
Charles is mediocre and dull. He fails his first medical exam and only barely manages to become
a second-rate country doctor. His mother marries him off to a widow who dies soon afterward,
leaving Charles much less money than he expected.

Charles soon falls in love with Emma, the daughter of a patient, and the two decide to marry.
After an elaborate wedding, they set up house in Tostes, where Charles has his practice. But
marriage doesn’t live up to Emma’s romantic expectations. Ever since she lived in a convent as a
young girl, she has dreamed of love and marriage as a solution to all her problems. After she
attends an extravagant ball at the home of a wealthy nobleman, she begins to dream constantly
of a more sophisticated life. She grows bored and depressed when she compares her fantasies
to the humdrum reality of village life, and eventually her listlessness makes her ill. When Emma
becomes pregnant, Charles decides to move to a different town in hopes of reviving her health.

In the new town of Yonville, the Bovarys meet Homais, the town pharmacist, a pompous
windbag who loves to hear himself speak. Emma also meets Leon, a law clerk, who, like her, is
bored with rural life and loves to escape through romantic novels. When Emma gives birth to
her daughter Berthe, motherhood disappoints her—she had desired a son—and she continues
to be despondent. Romantic feelings blossom between Emma and Leon. However, when Emma
realizes that Leon loves her, she feels guilty and throws herself into the role of a dutiful wife.
Leon grows tired of waiting and, believing that he can never possess Emma, departs to study law
in Paris. His departure makes Emma miserable.

Soon, at an agricultural fair, a wealthy neighbor named Rodolphe, who is attracted by Emma’s
beauty, declares his love to her. He seduces her, and they begin having a passionate affair.
Emma is often indiscreet, and the townspeople all gossip about her. Charles, however, suspects
nothing. His adoration for his wife and his stupidity combine to blind him to her indiscretions.
His professional reputation, meanwhile, suffers a severe blow when he and Homais attempt an
experimental surgical technique to treat a club-footed man named Hippolyte and end up having
to call in another doctor to amputate the leg. Disgusted with her husband’s incompetence,
Emma throws herself even more passionately into her affair with Rodolphe. She borrows money
to buy him gifts and suggests that they run off together and take little Berthe with them. Soon
enough, though, the jaded and worldly Rodolphe has grown bored of Emma’s demanding
affections. Refusing to elope with her, he leaves her. Heartbroken, Emma grows desperately ill
and nearly dies.

By the time Emma recovers, Charles is in financial trouble from having to borrow money to pay
off Emma’s debts and to pay for her treatment. Still, he decides to take Emma to the opera in
the nearby city of Rouen. There, they encounter Leon. This meeting rekindles the old romantic
flame between Emma and Leon, and this time the two embark on a love affair. As Emma
continues sneaking off to Rouen to meet Leon, she also grows deeper and deeper in debt to the
moneylender Lheureux, who lends her more and more money at exaggerated interest rates. She
grows increasingly careless in conducting her affair with Leon. As a result, on several occasions,
her acquaintances nearly discover her infidelity.

Over time, Emma grows bored with Leon. Not knowing how to abandon him, she instead
becomes increasingly demanding. Meanwhile, her debts mount daily. Eventually, Lheureux
orders the seizure of Emma’s property to compensate for the debt she has accumulated.
Terrified of Charles finding out, she frantically tries to raise the money that she needs, appealing
to Leon and to all the town’s businessmen. Eventually, she even attempts to prostitute herself
by offering to get back together with Rodolphe if he will give her the money she needs. He
refuses, and, driven to despair, she commits suicide by eating arsenic. She dies in horrible
agony.

For a while, Charles idealizes the memory of his wife. Eventually, though, he finds her letters
from Rodolphe and Leon, and he is forced to confront the truth. He dies alone in his garden, and
Berthe is sent off to work in a cotton mill.

111. A FAIRLY HONORABLE DEFEAT(1970) BY IRISH MURDOCH

The lives of several friends are thrown into disarray by the machinations of Julius King. Julius
makes a bet with his ex-girlfriend Morgan that he can break up the homosexual couple Axel and
Simon; meanwhile, Morgan and her brother-in-law Rupert are tricked into embarking on an
affair, and Morgan's nephew Peter is falling in love with her.
Characters
Julius King, academic biochemist
Rupert Foster, his former colleague, a senior civil servant writing a book on living morally
Hilda Foster, Rupert's wife
Simon Foster, Rupert's brother
Axel Nilsson, Rupert's colleague and Simon's partner
Morgan Browne, Tallis' wife, Julius's rejected lover and Hilda's sister
Tallis Browne, Morgan's estranged husband
Peter Foster, Rupert and Hilda's son
Leonard Browne, Tallis's father

112. THE CAT AND THE SHAKESPEARE BY RAJA RAO

The Cat and Shakespeare' is a gentle, almost teasing, fable of two friends by the legendary
author Raja Rao. This story has an excellent presentation. A brilliant craftsman shows the raw
texture of Indian life in this plain spoken and humorous tale. Raja Rao is a major novelist of this
age, and this book is the most mature of his novels. This can be called as a refreshingly different
novel. In this novel the conversation of two friends are narrated very nicely. Govindan Nair is a
sharp, down-to-earth philosopher and clerk, who tackle the problems of routine living with,
extraordinary, commonsense and zest, and whose refreshing and unorthodox conclusions
continually panic Ramakrishna Pai. This person is Nair's friend, neighbor and also the narrator of
the story. Descriptions of daily concerns are compassionate and evocative as well.

Cat and Shakespeare was published in 1965 by Raja Rao is a metaphysical comedy that
answered philosophical questions posed in the earlier novels.

An answer to the concept of Hindu karma, Raja Rao's " Cat and Shakespeare is a metaphysical
novel where the Indian philosophy ideally blends with the western thoughts. English is
somewhat "de anglicized" and creatively unified with Sanskrit chants. The indo European affinity
between Sanskrit and English is nicely braided in this novel whilst making the Sanskrit rhythm to
gel well the sophistication of English.
113.THE CHERRY ORCHARD BY CHEKOV - PLAY

114. WAITING FOR BARBARIANS(1980) BY J M COETZEE

The story is narrated in the first person by the unnamed magistrate of a small colonial town that
exists as the territorial frontier of "the Empire". The Magistrate's rather peaceful existence
comes to an end with the Empire's declaration of a state of emergency and with the deployment
of the Third Bureau—special forces of the Empire—due to rumours that the area's indigenous
people, called "barbarians" by the colonists, might be preparing to attack the town.
Consequently, the Third Bureau conducts an expedition into the land beyond the frontier. Led by
a sinister Colonel Joll, the Third Bureau captures a number of barbarians, brings them back to
town, tortures them, kills some of them, and leaves for the capital in order to prepare a larger
campaign.
In the meantime, the Magistrate begins to question the legitimacy of imperialism and personally
nurses a barbarian girl who was left crippled and partly blinded by the Third Bureau's torturers.
The Magistrate has an intimate yet uncertain relationship with the girl. Eventually, he decides to
take her back to her people. After a life-threatening trip through the barren land, during which
they have sex, he succeeds in returning her—finally asking, to no avail, if she will stay with
him—and returns to his own town. The Third Bureau soldiers have reappeared there and now
arrest the Magistrate for having deserted his post and consorting with "the enemy". Without
much possibility of a trial during such emergency circumstances, the Magistrate remains in a
locked cellar for an indefinite period, experiencing for the first time a near-complete lack of
basic freedoms. He finally acquires a key that allows him to leave the makeshift jail, but finds
that he has no place to escape to and only spends his time outside the jail scavenging for scraps
of food.
Later, Colonel Joll triumphantly returns from the wilderness with several barbarian captives and
makes a public spectacle of their torture. Although the crowd is encouraged to participate in
their beatings, the Magistrate bursts onto the scene to stop it, but is subdued. Seizing the
Magistrate, a group of soldiers hangs him up by his arms, deepening his understanding of
imperialistic violence by a personal experience of torture. With the Magistrate's spirit clearly
crushed, the soldiers mockingly let him roam freely through the town, knowing he has nowhere
to go and no longer poses a threat to their mission. The soldiers, however, begin to flee the
town as winter approaches and their campaign against the barbarians collapses. The Magistrate
tries to confront Joll on his final return from the wild, but the colonel refuses to speak to him,
hastily abandoning the town with the last of the soldiers. The predominant belief in the town is
that the barbarians intend to invade soon, and although the soldiers and many civilians have
now departed, the Magistrate helps encourage the remaining townspeople to continue their
lives and to prepare for the winter. There is no sign of the barbarians by the time the season's
first snow falls on the town.

115. HALF OF A YELLOW SON BY Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Half of a Yellow Sun is a novel by Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Published in 2006
by Knopf/Anchor, the novel tells the story of the Biafran War[1] through the perspective of the
characters Olanna, Ugwu, and Richard.
The novel takes place in Nigeria prior to and during the Nigerian Civil War (1967–70). The effect
of the war is shown through the dynamic relationships of five people’s lives including twin
daughters of an influential businessman, a professor, a British citizen, and a houseboy. After
Biafra's declaration of secession, the lives of the main characters drastically changed and were
torn apart by the brutality of the civil war and decisions in their personal lives.
The book jumps between events that took place during the early and late 1960s, when the war
took place, and extends until the end of the war. In the early 1960s, the main characters are
introduced: Ugwu, a 13-year-old village boy who moves in with Odenigbo, to work as his
houseboy. Odenigbo frequently entertains intellectuals to discuss the political turmoil in
Nigeria. Life changes for Ugwu when Odenigbo’s girlfriend, Olanna, moves in with them. Ugwu
forms a strong bond with both of them, and is very loyal. Olanna has a twin sister, Kainene, a
woman with a dry sense of humor, tired by the pompous company she runs for her father. Her
lover Richard is an Englishman who has come to Nigeria to explore Igbo-Ukwu art.
Jumping four years ahead, trouble is brewing between the Hausa and the Igbo people and
hundreds of people die in massacres, including Olanna's beloved auntie and uncle. A new
republic, called Biafra, is created by the Igbo. As a result of the conflict, Olanna, Odenigbo, their
infant daughter, whom they refer to only as "Baby", and Ugwu are forced to flee Nsukka, which
is the university town and the major intellectual hub of the new nation. They finally end up in
the refugee town of Umuahia, where they suffer as a result of food shortages and the constant
air raids and paranoid atmosphere. There are also allusions to a conflict between Olanna and
Kainene, Richard and Kainene and Olanna and Odenigbo.
When the novel jumps back to the early 1960s, we learn that Odenigbo slept with a village girl,
who then had his baby. Olanna is furious at his betrayal, and sleeps with Richard in a moment of
liberation. She goes back to Odenigbo and when they later learn that Amala refused to keep her
newborn daughter, Olanna decides that they would keep her.
Back during the war Olanna, Odenigbo, Baby, and Ugwu were living with Kainene and Richard
where Kainene was running a refugee camp. The situation is hopeless as they have no food or
medicine. Kainene decides to trade across enemy lines, but does not return, even after the end
of the war a few weeks later. The book ends ambiguously, with the reader not knowing if
Kainene lives.

116. A TRAIN TO PAKISTAN by Khushwant Singh

Train To Pakistan is a historical novel by Khushwant Singh, published in 1956. It recounts the
Partition of India in August 1947. Instead of depicting the Partition in terms of only the political
events surrounding it, Singh digs into a deep local focus, providing a human dimension which
brings to the event a sense of reality, horror, and believability.

Train to Pakistan is a harrowing tale of a country divided by religious and political differences.
The narrative takes place during the historic Partition of India in the summer of 1947, which is
considered one of the bloodiest times in the country’s history. This division of India into two
separate states caused a nationwide resettlement, thus dividing the previously single country
into a Hindu India and a Muslim Pakistan, with devastating results.

With the division of the country on the basis of belief systems, Singh’s narrative marks how
entire families are made to abandon their lives and uproot themselves to realign their lives
based on religious allegiance to ensure safety and survival. The resettlement, however, was
anything but safe and secure for those caught up in the ensuing violence. Trying to quickly avoid
the oncoming troubles, people fled on foot, cart and train. Yet as these refugees attempted to
flee the violence, they often became caught up in sanctioning violence themselves or were the
victims of violence as Hindus and Muslims fought all over the country.

Many refugees attempted to flee to the far outskirts of the skirmish, where they imagined they
might outrun the violence. Ironically, the farther people got from the cities, the more casual the
killing became. It is estimated that nearly ten million people were assigned for relocation, and of
that number, more than a million were killed in the resulting violence. Amidst the unspeakable
horror, the trains continued to run. Moreover, the trains became a way of killing large numbers
of people in one place. These “ghost trains” or “funeral trains,” as they are nicknamed, are what
the narrative’s title references.

For many remote villages, such as Mano Majra, supply trains were what kept them functioning.
The trains’ arrivals and departures were also a part of the daily life cycle of these villages. In
time, however, the trains began pulling into stations silently, overburdened with human cargo
and off-schedule. People’s initial complacency soon gave way to fear and then, at times,
violence, as the tensions reached the outer areas due in fact to the trains.

The novel’s narrative addresses the people of Mano Majra, a tiny village that relies on trains for
its daily needs. Like other villages, the people living in the village are unconcerned with the
troubling news about violence and resettlement. The village itself is made up of Hindu, Sikh,
Muslim and quasi-Christians, and has existed for hundreds of years in this state of cooperation.
Given the diverse population, the village runs on mutual cooperation as opposed to tension and
religious/political division. The villagers need one another for survival, and because of this
mutual need, are kept secure in their false sense of security.

Life for the villagers of Mano Majra begins to change suddenly when the first ghost train arrives.
The villagers are shocked at the number of dead and the silent train moving along the tracks.
People stop working to watch from rooftops as the train goes by. When the second ghost train
arrives in the village, the villagers’ lives are altered even further when they are ordered to help
bury the dead passengers before the monsoon season begins. Though the order to help bury the
passengers is a shocking twist for the villagers, things become achingly real and surreal for them
when the Muslims in the village are ordered to evacuate the village immediately. With
overtures that harken to the death trains of the holocaust during World War II, the Muslims are
stripped of their possessions and only allowed to take what they can carry.

The rest of the villagers, including the Sikhs and Hindus, are then told that there will be an attack
on the next train to Pakistan, and that they will assist in the attack. The soldiers will begin the
attack with gunfire, and the villagers will then finish with clubs and spears. Adding to the horror
of their situation, the villagers realize that the next train to Pakistan will actually be carrying the
Muslims from their village, meaning their former friends and neighbors. Train to Pakistan is
made all the more personal by the fact that Jugga, a Sikh thief, knows that his intended wife,
who is Muslim, is one of the passengers on the train. This crisis in faith and belief causes the
narrative to explore what the heart is capable of in the face of love, loss and fear. The ethnic
cleansing has not begun with the first or second train to arrive in Mano Majra, and Jugga, though
a thief and complicit in the killing, must now decide if this baseless violence should be
perpetuated based on the fact that it is the only thing the villagers now know, or if he should
transcend the current mode of thinking and speak out against the violence.

Train to Pakistan shows how themes of love, religion and allegiance cause mankind to do
unthinkable things, things that include both heartbreaking actions and life-affirming ones. Singh
does not paint any of the villagers above reproach. They are all thrown into a system where the
value of human life is based on caste systems, religious beliefs and politics. The villagers are but
one part in a hopeless, seemingly endless cycle of bloodshed and history. The relationship
between Jugga and his intended, between Sikh and Muslim, shows that, despite the death,
carnage and madness, people can choose to be different, to walk a different path, even if that
path might be one of self-sacrifice.

117. THE FINANCIAL EXPERT BY R.K. NARAYAN

Narayan’s The Financial Expert (1952), is his masterpiece. William Walsh hails Margayya, the
hero of the novel as “probably Narayan’s greatest single comic creation.” It is an extremely well
constructed novel, in five parts corresponding to the five Acts of an Elizabethan drama. The
Financial Expert tells the story of the rise and fall of Margayya, the financial expert.

The protagonist of the novel, Margayya begins his career as petty money-lender doing his
business under the Bunyan tree, in front of the Central Co-operative Land Mortgage Bank in
Malgudi. He helps the shareholders of the bank to borrow money at a small interest and lends it
to the needy at a higher interest. In the process, he makes money for himself.

The Secretary of the Bank and Arul Doss, the peon, seize from his box the loan application forms
he has managed to get from the Bank through its shareholders; they treat him with contempt,
and threaten to proceed against him. This sets the path of improving his position.

118.FIRE ON THE MOUNTAIN (1977) BY ANITA DESAI

The novel starts out with Nanda Kaul, who has almost renounced the world and is now living a
quiet life in Kausali amidst the hills and pinecones. The book is about her, and how her life is
disrupted when her great grand daughter Raka, comes to live with her, who is just recovering
from a severe case of typhoid. Nanda does not want to take care of her. She doesn’t feel like
conversing again and doesn’t want to make sure of another life’s comfort.

What I loved most about the book were the small interactions between Nanda and Raka. The
short conversations are enough to foretell the future events. Though for some readers, it might
be a slow and dull book, however let me assure you that it is one delightful read. The approach
is minimal and amidst all this Nanda’s childhood friend, Ila Das arrives to live with them. A story
of three women who are brought together under one roof is done without any drama attached
to it.

What takes place in the last few pages of the novel catches the reader by surprise. All the signs
of the end were present in the novel, in the descriptions, in the tone of the narrator, and in the
few chosen words of the characters. This, to me, is the strongest feature of the novel. A must
read.

****************************************************************