Assignment Sem -3 : Topic : An Introduction by Kamala Das

Name : Pina Gondaliya 

Semester: 3 

Paper No. : 7 

Subject :  Indian  English literature post - Independence 

Topic  : Critical Analysis of the poem 'An Introduction by Kamala Das 

Submitted : Department of English M.K.Bhavnager. 

An Introduction by Kamala Das 

In ‘An Introduction,’ Das explores her complex emotions regarding the system controlling her life and the lives of countless suffering women. She also has the experience to back up her assertions about freedom and oppression as she played a critical role in the establishment of the Indian feminist movement.

This particular piece is one of her most well-known. It was published in her first collection, Summary in Calcutta in 1965. The collection focuses on love and the pain that follows betrayal.

Summary 

An Introduction begins with the speaker, Das, stating that she knows all the male leaders of India. Their names are a part of her, a tribute to their overwhelming power. This contrasts significantly with the lack of power she felt growing up and getting married at sixteen. She struggles with her identity and is finally able to step away from the traditional role of wife. 

Das describes the way that men are able to move through the world with a solid identity. They are allowed their choices and emotions. In the last lines, she pushes back against this way of life by stating that she feels things that do not belong to the man she loves. She too can be “I.” 

Themes 

Das explores powerful themes of feminism/equal rights, freedom, and marriage in ‘An Introduction’. This poem is a very clear feminist statement that advocates for free choice for all women. This is in regards to every aspect of life, but the poet puts a special emphasis on marriage. She compares and contrasts the roles of men and women in society and explains for the reader how her life, the rules she’s forced to obey, infringe on her freedom. Readers should be able to ask themselves while moving through the poem how, if at all, the things Das is talking about apply to their own life. If nothing matches up, they might ask themselves why and if some kind of unaddressed or unacknowledged privilege is making their lives better.

Structure and Form 

‘An Introduction’ is a sixty-line poem that is contained within a single stanza. The lines range from three words up to eleven and do not follow a specific metrical pattern. Das also chose not to use a rhyme scheme. The lines also vary greatly in length and syllable number. This means that the poem is written in free verse. This style of writing allows the poet to explore various structures and make use of more sporadic rhymes. There are several examples of half-rhyme and internal rhyme in ‘An Introduction’. 

Literary Devices 

Kamala Das uses techniques such as enjambment, repetition, and anaphora in ‘An Introduction’. Repetition and anaphora are seen at the beginning of a number of lines, such as four and five. In this instance, the speaker is giving two conviction-filled statements about who she is. This is conveyed through the repetition of the pronoun “I”.  Later on, repetition is used again to define her language as both “English” and “human”. She is a human being, as equal and valuable as any other.

There are also several examples of allusion. She references a specific place and the name of a politician that requires some research in order to understand. Enjambment is another important technique. it can be seen throughout this poem, but one good example is the transition between lines fifty-eight and fifty-nine.

Analysis of An Introduction 

Lines 1-13

I don’t know politics but I know the names

Of those in power, and can repeat them like (…)

Becomes mine, its distortions, its queernesses

All mine, mine alone.

In the first section of ‘An Introduction,’ the speaker begins by comparing her knowledge of politicians to the days of the week and months of the year. Although she does not have a firm grasp on politics itself, those in power have remained in her mind. This shows their power to be much greater than their role should allow. The first of these she is able to recall is “Nehru,” who served as India’s first prime minister after the withdrawal of the British. 

After these opening lines that set the scene, the speaker moves on to describe her own being. She is “Indian” and she is “very brown.” Lastly, she is from Malabar in southwest India. These are the basics of her life, but of course not everything. She adds that she is able to, 

[…]speak three languages, write in 

Two, dream in one. 

She continues to describe language and the role it plays in her life by saying that she is judged for writing in English.  It is not her “mother-tongue.” Whenever she is criticized for how she speaks and writes she feels as if she is alone. There is no one, not her friends or cousins, who back her up. They are critics of “Every one.” 

She directs the next line at this group, asking them why they care what she speaks. She feels a deep connection to the words she uses and how, through “distortions,” her language can only be defined as her own. 

Lines 13-25

It is half English, halfIndian, funny perhaps, but it is honest,

It is as human as I am human, don’t (…)

Funeral pyre. I was child, and later they

Told me I grew, for I became tall, my limbs

In the next twelve lines of ‘An Introduction,’ the speaker goes on to describe herself as “half English, half Indian.” She sees the humor in this combination and acknowledges that fact as it is “honest.” This seems to be one of the most important parts of her, a desire for authenticity and honesty. Her identity, as seen through her voice, is “human” just as she is human. It should be held under that single defining category and no other. 

Das describes the control she has over her voice, whether through speech or text. It can display all of her emotions and her, 

[…] mind that sees and hears and 

Is aware. 

Human speech is to humans as roaring is to lions. It is intelligible, unlike the roaring of a storm or the “mutterings of the blazing fire.” The speaker defines her freedom through the use of her voice. In the next lines, she explains to the reader that there are other circumstances in her life that infringe on that freedom. They are out of her control. 

She introduces this section by stating that she only felt older as she grew because she was told of her own physical changes. 

Lines 26-38

Swelled and one or two places sprouted hair.

WhenI asked for love, not knowing what else to ask (…)

Be a quarreller with servants. Fit in. Oh,

Belong, cried the categorizers. Don’t sit

Her unhappiness is defined in the next section of lines of ‘An Introduction’ and is directly related to a need for freedom. When she was young she “asked for love,” because she didn’t know what else to want. This ended with her marriage at sixteen and the closing of a bedroom door. Although her husband did not beat her, her, 

[…] sad woman-body felt so beaten. 

This line of An Introduction is interesting as she is placing her own body in one of the categories she rebelled against in the first stanza. It is due to this simplification of a woman as nothing more than a body that led her to marriage at sixteen. She also places blame on her own body for leading her to this place. Her distinctly female parts, “breasts and womb” are a crushing weight on her life. The pressure placed on her by her husband and by her family led to an emotional and mental shrinking. It was a “Pitiful” process. But it ended. 

She goes on to state that a change came over her. She decided to put on her “Brother’s trousers” and cut off her hair. The speaker is ridding herself of the female image that has harmed her. Now that she is remaking her identity she is able to say no to the traditions of womanhood. These include fitting in and dressing in “saree.” The “categorizers” might tell her not to, 

[…] peep in through our lace-draped windows 

But she is not going to listen. She chose to move her life beyond the traditional and therefore expand her presence in the world. 

Lines 39-50

On walls or peep in through our lace-draped windows.

Be Amy, or be Kamala. Or, better

(…)

Of rivers, in me . . . the oceans’ tireless

Waiting. Who are you, I ask each and everyone,

In the first two lines of the next section of ‘An Introduction,’ it becomes clear that the speaker is truly meant to be the poet herself. She wonders at her own identity and marvels over the fact that she can now be, 

Amy, or be Kamala. Or, better

Still, be Madhavikutty.

It is by this final name that the poet, Kamala Das, came to be known and is still called.  Das added another few reminders on behalf of the “categorizers.” She shouldn’t “play pretending games” or “cry embarrassingly loud.” Her role as a woman is supposed to be meek, quiet, and contained.

She goes on to describe a time in which she met and loved a man. This person is referred to as “man,” he is not named. This strips him of some of the agency he is so in control of in the next lines. Additionally, the name is of little importance as he is meant to represent every man in the world who uses women as he pleases.

At one point, at the height of her emotions, she asks the “man” who he is. He replies “it is I.” The “I” represents the agency he has in the world. Men make their own decisions and have the ability to use the pronoun in order to get what they want. 

Lines 51-61

The answer is, it is I. Anywhere and,

Everywhere, I see the one who calls himself I

(…)

Betrayed. I have no joys that are not yours, no

Aches which are not yours. I too call myself I.

‘An Introduction’ begins its conclusion with the speaker acknowledging the constant presence of “I” around her. In the world, she’s a part of there are “I” men everywhere she looks. A person of this nature is able to go and “Drink… at twelve” and stay in “hotels of strange towns.” As the lines continue the division between the speaker and the “I” is blurred. Eventually, a reader comes to understand that she is trying to come to terms with her own independence and identity as both “saint” and “sinner.”

She is trapped between her own need for free life and the world which tries to keep her contained. The final statement is one of protest and resistance. Das states that she has “Aches” which belong to no one but herself. She too can be “I.” 

How does Kamala Das introduce herself and her poetry in ‘An Introduction?’

She introduces herself as “Indian,” “born in Malabar,” “very brown,” and as a speaker of three languages. Two, she says, she writes in, and one she dreams in. She also notes that the languages she speaks are “mine,” tinted by her history and ideas.

What is Kamala Das' poetry known for?

Her poetry is for its open exploration of women’s lives, sexuality, oppression, and contemporary Indian life and politics.

What did Kamala Das want to say in ‘An Introduction?’

Kamala Das wanted to promote equal rights for women. She was concerned with the confines of marriage, societal restrictions and how they differ for men and women.

Why is ‘An Introduction’ a confessional poem?

‘An Introduction’ addresses personal emotions and experiences, trademarks of confessional poetry. Often, this type of poetry also engages with “taboo” feelings, or those that society normally doesn’t engage with.

How does Kamala Das speak for women in ‘An Introduction?’

She promotes independence for women and a respect for their individual lives. She spends parts of the poem talking about herself but does so in a way that advocates for equal rights between the sexes.

Citation 

Baldwin, E. (2021, May 28). An introduction by Kamala Das. Poem Analysis. Retrieved September 23, 2021, from https://poemanalysis.com/kamala-das/an-introduction/.

Assignment Sem-3 : Various Aspects of Film Studies

 

Name : Pina Gondaliya 

Semester  : 3 

Assignment : Paper No Contemporary Western Theory and Film Studies 

Topic  : Film Studies 

Submitted : Department of English M.K.Bhavnager University 

Film Studies 

Films can be analyzed both as stories, like novels, and as visual objects, like paintings. Narrative films are constructed in the same way as novels through the selection and combination of scenes; the same critical approaches that apply to verbal fiction, such as Formalism and Structuralism or Historical and Psychological Analysis, also apply to film. But as a visual medium, film demands a different set of analytic and critical tools in order to be understood. Films are carefully constructed visual objects, and each element of that construction can function to generate meaning. The primary elements of meaning in film are composition (the arrangement of objects within the visual frame), editing, and art direction, which encompasses everything from color and sound to set and location. An important element of compositional meaning is the frame. Where the camera is placed in relation to the action determines the size and shape of the frame of the image. Terms like “long,” “close,” “medium,” and “high angle” describe the various possibilities for camera placement. A close shot (one in which the camera is close to the action) generates “tight framing,” while a long shot (one in which the camera is distant from the action) generates “loose framing.”

The same kind of image, say a close-up, can vary in use and in meaning. In one film it may signify emotional openness and authenticity; in another, it might signify untrustworthiness, especially if it is combined with other elements of image construction such as dark lighting. Film techniques and the meanings they convey vary according to the context in which they are used. No particular meaning is guaranteed by a particular technique. The individual images created by the camera are combined in a narrative chain through editing. Most narrative editing provides “continuity,” the smooth flow from one image to another through similitude of setting and action. But editing can also use contrast to create meaning. And sometimes a long editing sequence (a montage sequence) can constitute a significant part of a film’s narrative.

The third major element of film meaning – art direction – comprises set design, sound, choice of location, props or significant objects, lighting, and color.

• Sound 

Sound, voice and music are integral to most films and/or film viewing experiences. Even the earliest silent films were often shown with live musical accompaniment. Sound enhances the imaginary world, it can provide depth, establish character and environment, introduce a new scene or cue the viewer to important information. We have organized the page according to the following categories: sound source, sound editing and film music.

DIEGETIC VS. NON-DIEGETIC SOUND

Diegetic sound is any sound that the character or characters on screen can hear. So for example the sound of one character talking to another would be diegetic. Non-diegetic sound is any sound that the audience can hear but the characters on screen cannot. Any appearance of background music is a prime example of non-diegetic sound. This clip from Edgar Wright’s Shaun of the Deadsimultaneously depicts both diegetic and non-diegetic sound. The sounds of the characters speaking, the records flying, and the zombies are all diegetic; the characters can hear them. Meanwhile, the beats and riffs of the background music serves as an example of non-diegetic sound that goes unheard by Shaun, Pete, and the menacing zombies.

  2 . Camera Angles and moments 

There are so many camera movements and camera angles; it can be hard to keep track. To make film and television like the masters, you need to practice and learn the various camera movements, angles, shots, and tools. 

Shot sizes

Camera angles

Camera movements

Once you understand the basic principles of each type of shot, you can use them as building blocks to make more interesting combinations.

• Shot Sizes

Shot size refers to how big or small the frame is in relation to the subject. Does your character fill the frame or are they so far away as to be nearly invisible? What else is visible in your shot? Multiple characters? Objects? Landscapes?

Let’s look at the 5 most important shot sizes and see how they work

Close-up (CU)

The close-up is one of the most common shot sizes in cinema. It’s used when you want to highlight the facial features of your character without any other distractions in the shot. A typical close-up shows the character’s face from their forehead to their chin.

However, there’s room for some variation. An extreme close-up goes further, often showing nothing more than the character’s eyes. Think of a classic Western in which two characters stare each other down before a duel. This shot draws the viewer’s attention to facial features and expressions that would be lost in a wide shot.

• Long shot (LS)

A long shot is in some ways the opposite of a close-up. It shows the character’s entire body in frame, from their head to their toes. This gives the viewer a better sense of the subject’s surroundings, and conveys information that would be lost in a close-up.

Long shots are often used in action scenes, when it’s important to see how the character is moving through his or her environment. You might cut from that extreme close-up of your two dueling characters to a long shot that shows just how far they’re actually standing from each other, giving the viewer a better perspective on the scene.

One variation of this shot is an extreme long shot, in which the character is so far away they’re nearly lost in the frame or obscured by their surroundings. Think of a character riding off into the sunset, getting smaller as they get further away from the camera.

• Medium shot (MS)

The medium shot or mid shot is somewhere between a close-up and long shot. A typical medium shot shows the subject from their head to their waist. It’s close enough that you can still see their face, while also including some of their body language.

You might use this shot when a character is carrying an object or pointing a gun. Or, if they’re sitting at a desk, you can show them writing in a book, while avoiding wasting valuable screen space on their feet or their knees.

It’s also useful for when a character is moving through the frame, since it contains enough background information that the viewer doesn’t get disoriented.

Single, two shot, three shot

Another way to categorize a shot is by the number of people in the frame. We call this a single shot, a two shot, or a three shot, depending on how many people are in it.

Typically, you’ll combine this with one of the other shot sizes we’ve already looked at. For example, you might use a two-shot close-up for a scene of two characters kissing. Three characters in an office might call for a medium three .

• Camera Angles

The next category that we’ll look at is camera angle. Once you’ve decided on a shot size, you can add a bit more perspective to your shot by choosing an angle. The camera angle can help you create a sense of fear, empathy, or disorientation in the viewer.

Eye level

The most neutral camera angle is the eye level shot. The camera points straight ahead at about the same level as the subject’s face. This is how you would shoot an interview scene if you wanted to maintain a sense of objectivity.

The goal is to let the viewer follow the action without manipulating their emotions. While it’s called “eye level,” it doesn’t have to be a shot of the character’s face. You can get an eye level shot of an object by maintaining a neutral camera angle.

Low angle

A low-angle shot adds some subjectivity to the scene. Instead of facing straight ahead, the camera looks up at the subject from a low angle. This can make a character appear threatening, dominant, or in a position of power relative to another character.

As with some of the other shots we’ve looked at, you can vary the intensity of it. A slight low angle might be used to convey a sense of authority, such as a teacher looking down at a student. An extreme low angle shot might be used to show a monster like Godzilla or King Kong bearing down on other characters.

High angle

The reverse of the low angle shot is the high angle shot, which creates the opposite impression, and makes the subject of the camera seem small. For example, a shot from King Kong’s POV might point down from a higher angle to show how powerless the characters are in relation to him.

You can also take this to the extreme with a top angle or bird’s eye view. This shot looks down on the character from above and can be used indoors or outdoors. For example, you might look down on your subject entering a church or stadium.

Or, you could use this to show your character running away from a helicopter, in which case it would be an aerial shot or a drone shot.

Dutch angle

A Dutch angle is one of the most common ways to convey disorientation. For this shot, simply tilt the camera to one side so it isn’t level with the horizon. You might use this shot to show the POV of a drunk character stumbling down the street, or in a horror movie to give the impression that the walls of a haunted house are closing in.

Over-the-Shoulder (OTS)

An over-the-shoulder shot is another angle that can shift a viewer’s perception of the scene. A OTS shot is generally a close-up of another character’s face from “over the shoulder” of another character and is used to convey conflict or confrontation.

You could also use an OTS wide shot to show a character looking out over a landscape or moving through an action sequence, when you don’t want to use a POV.

Camera Movement

The third category that we’ll look at is camera motion or movement. Most of the shot sizes and angles we’ve look at can be used as either static shots or moving shots. By adding motion to a scene, you can move between camera angles easily, sometimes even within the same shot. Let’s look at 5 common camera movements here:

Pan or tilt

The simplest camera movement is a pan or tilt. A pan is when you keep the camera in one place and turn it to the side, and a tilt is when you turn it up or down.

If your camera is on a tripod, then you can simply turn the head of the tripod, just as you would turn your head to one side to get a new perspective on a scene. If a subject stands up, you can turn an eye-level shot into a low-angle by tilting the camera up as they rise.

A pan or tilt is also a good opportunity to experiment with speed. You could spend an entire minute slowly panning from left to right to show off a room or a landscape, or you can do a whip pan, in which the movement happens so fast that it becomes a blur.

Tracking shot, dolly shot, or crane shot

The key to a pan or tilt is that the camera itself doesn’t move, so the viewer feels mostly like a spectator. If you want to move with a subject and make the viewer feel like a part of the action, you can use a tracking shot, dolly shot, or crane shot.

Typically, a tracking shot moves sideways, a dolly shot moves forwards or backwards, and a crane shot moves up or down. Depending on your equipment, you can use these movements separately, or combine them to move on multiple axes at once.

Zoom

A zoom shot moves into or out of the frame by using a zoom lens rather than moving the camera. You can turn a medium shot into a close up by slowly zooming in on a subject’s face as they deliver an emotional monologue. Or you can zoom out to reveal a character or object that wasn’t previously in frame.

A zoom can be slow and subtle so that the viewer barely notices it happening, or it can be more obvious to give the shot a cinema verite style.

Random motion

Random motion is used to create energy and intensity, particularly in an action scene. Think of The Bourne Identity, in which the camera bounces around so quickly that the subject of the scene isn’t even always framed in the shot.

While random motion can be effective in creating a sense of disorientation, sometimes it can be too effective, leaving viewers dizzy and confused.

360-degree motion

The last type of motion that we’ll look at is 360-degree motion, in which the camera moves entirely around the subject of the shot. These shots can be challenging to do on large film sets, because they require hiding the crew and equipment from view, but they’re more common in the days of Steadicams and CGI.

The Matrix used a special camera setup for its 360-degree fight scenes, but you can also use a handheld camera or a drone.

Compound motion

The great thing about camera motion is that you don’t have to restrict it to one axis at a time. You can combine movements to move in multiple dimensions at once and create more complex shots. Let’s look at two popular compound shots:

Dolly zoom

The dolly zoom is used to create a sense of vertigo or unease. It was famously used in Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo and Steven Spielberg’s Jaws. In this shot, the camera moves forward or backwards while the lens zooms in the opposite direction.

Single Take

A single take combines multiple movements, shot sizes, and angles into one extended shot. Rather that cutting from a long shot to a close-up, for example, the camera might track, zoom, pan, and tilt between a variety of different shots.

This can be the hardest to get right, but it’s an effective way to orient viewers to a new environment, such as with the opening shot in Goodfellas. It can also lend a theatrical feel to a movie, as in Birdman, which is made to appear like one very long shot.

3 . Lighting 

Without good lighting, the best camera in the world can’t capture a perfect picture. Learn how a film crew uses lighting to enhance images, create depth, and support the story’s mood and atmosphere

What Is Cinematic Lighting?

Cinematic lighting is a film lighting technique that goes beyond the standard three-point lighting setup to add drama, depth, and atmosphere to the story. Cinematic lighting utilizes lighting tricks like bouncing light, diffusing light, and adjusting color temperatures.

Why Lighting Is Important

Lighting is fundamental to film because it creates a visual mood, atmosphere, and sense of meaning for the audience. Whether it’s dressing a film set or blocking actors, every step of the cinematic process affects the lighting setup, and vice-versa.

Lighting tells the audience where to look. The lighting setup guides the eye to a specific actor, prop, or part of a scene.Lighting reflects the psychology of characters. The amount, size, color, and harshness of light surrounding a character can be adjusted to match their emotions.Lighting defines and supports the genre of the film. Lighting is the tool that conveys mood most clearly. For example, one of the film genres most known for its distinct lighting style is film noir, characterized by stark contrasts between light and dark, dramatically patterned shadows, and unique framing and composition choices.

Who Determines the Lighting Setup for a Scene?

The director shares visual inspirations and ideas for cinematic lighting.The director of photography or cinematographer: creates the lighting plan with input from the director.The gaffer designs and executes the cinematographer’s lighting plan and oversees the crew that brings the lighting plan to life.

How to Create a Simple But Effective Lighting Setup in 3 Easy Steps.

The most basic lighting setup is a three-point lighting setup, which highlights the main actor or subject of a scene and makes them stand out from their background. Here’s how to do it:

Place your main and strongest source of light, called a key light, off to one side of the actor to create a slight shadow on the opposite side of their face.Add a second light, called a fill light, on the opposite side of the actor to soften any harsh shadows created by the key light.Place a third light, a back light, behind the actor to help define and highlight their features and outlines.

4 . Explain Montage

it’s a technique that can help the director and editor of a movie advance the story quickly and effectively.

What Is a Montage?

Montage is a technique of film editing that combines a series of short shots or clips into one sequence, often set to music. The word montage is French for “assembly” or “editing.”

Montage sequences often imply the passage of time or multiple simultaneous events, and are a vehicle to present the audience with a lot of information at once. They can be used to evoke a range of emotions—for example:

In a romantic comedy, a montage can show a sense of growing love or attraction between two love interests getting to know one another. Example:In a sports movie, a montage can show an athlete training for a big game, and heighten suspense or tension about the outcome.In a drama, a montage can underscore grief and sadness by showing a widow struggling with the loss of her husband.In a horror movie, a montage can show the main characters preparing to defend their home against a killer or supernatural force.

Why Use Montage? 6 Things Successful Montages Do

A montage can accomplish various goals in a motion picture, including:

Speed up time. Whether it’s a day, a week, a month, a year, or a decade, a montage can accelerate time in a way that makes sense to the audience and stays true to the story. It can be like a highlight reel for the action passing.Convey a lot of information at once. Sometimes, a story has crucial details to communicate, but a director doesn’t want to devote a great deal of time to explaining them. A montage can speed up that process and catch the audience up in a matter of seconds.Heighten tension. You may have noticed that many montages happen about two-thirds of the way through a movie, often right after the climax of the story. A montage can renew and reinvigorate an audience’s interest in a character or a storyline as the film builds to a conclusion.Compare and contrast. Alternatively, sometimes montages happen at the very beginning of a movie. A montage that compares and contrasts the daily lives or routines of two characters can establish their statuses, and thus their levels of power, in relation to one another.Reveal character. A montage can be a vehicle to reveal the ways a character is changing. From quick cuts of a drug hallucination one night to the effects of illness over the course of six months, a montage can help the audience quickly understand a dramatic shift in a character’s physical and/or mental state.Combine multiple storylines. There isn’t always time to feature every single storyline from start to finish. A montage is an effective way to combine storylines and ensure every character gets their due.

Citation 

Film sound and music. College Film & Media Studies. (2011, September 27). Retrieved September 24, 2021, from https://collegefilmandmediastudies.com/film-sound-and-music/. 

MasterClass. (2020, November 8). Learn about montage in filmmaking: How to create a memorable movie montage - 2021. MasterClass. Retrieved September 24, 2021, from https://www.masterclass.com/articles/what-is-montage-in-filmmaking-how-to-create-a-memorable-montage#common-montage-film-techniques.

MasterClass. (2021, August 23). Film 101: Understanding Film lighting - 2021. MasterClass. Retrieved September 24, 2021, from https://www.masterclass.com/articles/film-101-understanding-film-lighting#who-determines-the-lighting-setup-for-a-scene. 

Sudhakaran, P. author B. S., Christensensays:, J., Johnsonsays:, J., Mikesays: JAREDsays: & Sawantsays:, R. S. (n.d.). 15 essential CAMERA Shots, angles and movements. wolfcrow. Retrieved September 24, 2021, from https://wolfcrow.com/15-essential-camera-shots-angles-and-movements/. 

Thinking Activity : Final Solutions Movie Adaptation by Mahesh Dattani

 

Hello Readers!

Welcome to my blog I'm going to write about The play Final Solutions written by Mahesh Dattani and the movie adaptation of The Final Solutions. Let's we look at. This task was given by Vaidehi ma'am. 

👉Mahesh Dattani 

Mahesh Dattani is an Indian playwright, actor and director who is the first playwright in English to receive Sahitya Akademi award. He has written successful plays for acclaimed play directors like Arvind Gaur, Alyque Padamsee and Lillete Dubey. Thirty Days in September, Dance Like a Man, Final Solutions, On a Muggy Night in Mumbai, Tara and Bravely Fought the Queen are his noted plays as a playwright.His plays are often described as `total theatre'. He often incorporates dance forms in his plays. He is trained in Bharatnatyam and ballet too. Mahesh Dattani was born in Bangalore. He went to Baldwin Boys High School and then went on to join St. Joseph's College, Bangalore. Dattani is a graduate in History, Economics and Political Science. He is a post-graduate in Marketing and Advertising Management.

👉Final Solutions by Mahesh Dattani 

Mahesh Dattani has written many illustrious plays but his Final Solutions have been considered as the masterpiece among the other plays. It centers on the Hindu-Muslim problem Final Solutions foregrounds. It also tackles the theme of transferred resentment in the context to family relations. The large part of the play is good theatre and that makes it technically sound. The language is handled quite competently. Our present concern is with the play’s thematic side so let us focus on that. Dattani has attempted a neat balancing act when It comes to tracing the malady of communal disharmony to certain elements within both the communities-Hindu and Muslim. The diagnosis offered is also sound enough. Paid people cause riots or neither plays upon the susceptibilities of the two communities on certain key issues.

👉Does the movie help you to understand the narrative structure of the play?

Through the Movie adaptation of the final Solutions it was very easy to understand whole concept of play. Any adaptation helps us to understand the structure of the literary work, if they are truthful with the original work. In The Final Solution, we see the story is told by the perspective of Daksha in diary form. She wrote a diary and tells us what and how everything has happened. The other perspective is Javed. His experience and his story also shown in flashback mode. Bobby's story also shown different perspective. So this all Techniques are used in the play, which we understand better through screening of a film. 

👉What do you think about women’s situation during the time of communal riots? 

The situation of women during the time of communal riots very bad. Even in common situation it is not good. They don't have freedom of speech, not right to do what they wanted, and also they don't have right to choose her hobby. So slowly and steadily the situation is changing nowadays. In the movie and play we see that Daksha wanted to be a singer, but her father in law and mother in law denied to do so. Even she haven't right to listen songs also. 

👉Does the women characters like Daksha, Aruna etc. have helped you in understanding it.If you were the director of the movie, what kind of changes would you make in the movie. Does the movie do justice to the play? 

Dattani has always given importance to women in his plays. The women in his plays are sometimes meek, submissive, calm and cool in nature. Whereas sometimes they are intelligent, brave, courageous and protest when required. In this particular play Dattani talks about three different women who represent three different generations. Hardika represents the first generation, Aruna represents the second generation and Smita represents the third generation. Hardika, is also known as Daksha in the play, who has seen the partition of India and the communal tension as well. Hardika even talks about her father's dream of an independent India. Hardika is such a woman who did love the Muslims until they killed her father in a communal riot. Aruna, daughter in law of Hardika is a typical Indian house wife who is seen busy in doing Pooja and household chores most of the time in the play. She even teaches her daughter to learn the works of God and the household chores as well. Aruna is very particular about her God and she can never really compromise with anything when it comes to her God.She loves her mother but at one point of time she feels stifled and expresses her feelings to Aruna. She requests her mother not to bind her with prejudices any more. She even did not have hatred for the Muslims as her close friend is a Muslim girl whose name is Tasneem.

All women characters helps us to understand the play. If I was the director, I will end the play with solution. And all we know the solution is to be aware about what others says about other religions. We should not conclude any point without knowing everything about the matter. We have to see that we should not provoked by other peoples.  So overall this adaptation is good and it helps us to understand the concept of the play by Mahesh Dattani. The play is also portrayed in a very interesting way, and also it presents the harsh reality of society. We have to be careful while watching and listening to those nusense. Because many times it's happened that we don't know anything, but we join the groups of those people who are violent and provoke us against other religions. 

Thank you ! 

Thinking Activity : Feminism and Cyberfeminism: Artificial intelligence and unconscious business

 Hello Readers! 

Welcome to my blog I'm going to write about what is Cyberfeminism and talk of Kirti Sharma on How tobkeep women bias out of AI and talk of Robin Hauser on Can we protect AI from our biases. This task is given by Dr. Dilip Barad click here to learn more about this. 

• What is Cyberfeminism

Social and artistic practices on the net with feminist ideological content. Learn more in: Collaborative and Open Education by Interdisciplinary Women's Networks: FemTechNet and Feminist Pedagogies in Digital Education.

Feminist movement interpreting the evolution of cybernetics as allowing the development of a culture in which inequalities are eradicated and traditional gender relations and stereotypes are defied (for instance, through the experimentation with gender identities or the creation of sisterhood networks on the Internet), empowering women and marking a shift away from their traditional symbolic representation as technologically ignorant. Learn more in: From Digital Divides to Digital Inequalities.

Discipline within feminism that sees cyberspace and virtual reality as neutral realms in terms of gender. This school of thought visions a society beyond gendered bodies where women can communicate and act outside the restrictions imposed by patriarchal societies. Learn more in: Gender, Body, and Computing Technologies in the Science-Fiction Film.

Cyberfeminism: Artificial Intelligence and the Unconscious Biases

Cyberfeminism appeared in the 1980s and founded on the ideas post-humanist feminist thinker Donna Haraway expresses in her A Cyborg Manifesto. In this manifesto, she lays the groundwork for the concept of the internet being a revolutionary tool to overthrow patriarchy, destroy the existing gender binary and achieve feminist liberation. She sees the internet as a new neutral space women need to ally with and that needs to be shaped by women in a way that will allow them to overthrow the existing social order.

1. Kirti Sharma: How to keep human bias out of AI?

We see this everywhere. This media panic that our robot overlords are taking over. We could blame Hollywood for that. But in reality, that's not the problem we should be focusing on. There is a more pressing danger, a bigger risk with AI, that we need to fix first. 

When you work in technology and you don't look like a Mark Zuckerberg or Elon Musk, your life is a little bit difficult, your ability gets questioned. 

Here's just one example. Like most developers, she often join online tech forums and share my knowledge to help others. And she've found, when she log on as myself, with my own photo, my own name, she tend to get questions or comments like this: 

"What makes you think you're qualified to talk about AI?" "What makes you think you know about machine learning?"

 So, as you do, she  made a new profile, and this time, instead of her own picture, she chose a cat with a jet pack on it. And she chose a name that did not reveal my gender. You can probably guess where this is going, right? So, this time, she didn't get any of those patronizing comments about my ability and she was able to actually get some work done. And it sucks, guys. She've been building robots since she  was 15, she have a few degrees in computer science, and yet, she had to hide my gender in order for my work to be taken seriously. 

Kirti Sharma very asked question that ,

Are men just better at technology than women? 

Another study found that when women coders on one platform hid their gender, like myself, their code was accepted four percent more than men. So this is not about the talent. This is about an elitism in AI that says a programmer needs to look like a certain person. What we really need to do to make AI better is bring people from all kinds of backgrounds. We need people who can write and tell stories to help us create personalities of AI. We need people who can solve problems. We need people who face different challenges and we need people who can tell us what are the real issues that need fixing and help us find ways that technology can actually fix it. Because, when people from diverse backgrounds come together, when we build things in the right way, the possibilities are limitless.

2. Robin Hauser: Can we protect AI from our biases?

Robin is the director and producer of cause‐based documentary films at Finish Line Features, Inc. and Unleashed Productions, Inc. As a business woman, long time professional photographer and social entrepreneur, Robin brings her leadership skills, creative eye and passion to her documentary film projects. Her artistic vision and experience in the business world afford her a unique perspective on what it takes to motivate an audience. Her most recent award‐winning film, CODE: Debugging the Gender Gap, premiered at Tribeca Film Festival 2015, and has caught the eye of the international tech industry and of policy makers and educators in Washington, DC and abroad. Robin is currently directing and producing bias, a documentary about unconscious bias and how it affects our lives socially and in the workplace.

As humans we're inherently biased. Sometimes it's explicit and other times it's unconscious, but as we move forward with technology how do we keep our biases out of the algorithms we create? Documentary filmmaker Robin Hauser argues that we need to have a conversation about how AI should be governed and ask who is responsible for overseeing the ethical standards of these supercomputers. "We need to figure this out now," she says. "Because once skewed data gets into deep learning machines, it's very difficult to take it out."

Thank you ! 

Sunday Reading : Visit to an Art Gallery: Ajanta Exhibition

 

Hello Readers!

Welcome to my blog. This blog is a part of Sunday Reading activities.  We have a task that we go to visit Art  Gallery about Exhibition of Ajanta Caves as a part of cultural studies. We have to write experience of visiting Art Gallery Exhibition. 

History of Ajanta Caves 

The Ajanta Caves are generally agreed to have been made in two distinct phases, the first during the 2nd century BCE to 1st century CE, and a second several centuries later.

The caves consist of 36 identifiable foundations, some of them discovered after the original numbering of the caves from 1 through . The later-identified caves have been suffixed with the letters of the alphabet, such as 15A, identified between originally numbered caves 15 and 16. The cave numbering is a convention of convenience, and does not reflect the chronological order of their construction.

Painting of Ajanta Caves 

While showing this all painting of Ajanta cave we feel like we are in Ajnta cave. Very beautiful painting. 

The paintings in the Ajanta caves predominantly narrate the Jataka tales. These are Buddhist legends describing the previous births of the Buddha. These fables embed ancient morals and cultural lores that are also found in the fables and legends of Hindu and Jain texts. The Jataka tales are exemplified through the life example and sacrifices that the Buddha made in hundreds of his past incarnations, where he is depicted as having been reborn as an animal or human.

Mural paintings survive from both the earlier and later groups of caves. Several fragments of murals preserved from the earlier caves (Caves 10 and 11) are effectively unique survivals of ancient painting in India from this period, and "show that by Sātavāhana times, if not earlier, the Indian painters had mastered an easy and fluent naturalistic style, dealing with large groups of people in a manner comparable to the reliefs of the Sāñcī toraņa crossbars". Some connections with the art of Gandhara can also be noted, and there is evidence of a shared artistic idiom.

Some painting of Ajanta Exhibition 

👆Bodhisattva Padmapani 

A painting in cave number 1 of Ajanta caves, this is Buddha’s former existence portrayed as a painting. Cave number 1 of Ajanta caves is known for some of the most elaborate carvings and sculptures from the life of Gautam Buddha.

Thank you !

Thinking Activity: Foe . M. Coetzee

 

Foe  By  J . M. Coetzee 

• Cruso: the anti-hero

In the character of Robinson Crusoe, whose counterpart in Coetzee's novel is only called 'Cruso', we find the most evident and startling alterations of all characters. From the positive hero and master of even the most desperate situations in life, the former protagonist of Defoe's novel has turned into an anti-hero in Foe.

The actions of the original Robinson Crusoe are probably well known, so the behaviour of Cruso in Foe will mostly be contrasted to them[10].

Especially in his mode of living, Cruso differs enormously from his literary predecessor.

Cruso does not save anything from the wreck except for a knife [F16]. Moreover, he says that there is no need for tools [F32], and the few tools he has made himself are a needle made of fishbone [F9f.], a wooden spade, a "sharp stone lashed to a stick" as mattock, and carved blocks of wood as bowls [all F15f.]. Those are only the most essential tools for survival, i.e. the tools to build a hut, sew clothes, and eat. Compared to the equipment of his 18th-century predecessor, Cruso's equipment is indeed relatively poor: Robinson Crusoe had gotten clothes, tools, and firearms from the wreck [RC39], also razors, scissors, knives, and forks [RC41ff.]. Later on, he manages to make baskets [RC80], earthenware [RC89], a mortar and pestle [RC90], candles [RC106], a canoe [RC100], a tobacco pipe [RC106], etc. While Robinson Crusoe puts a lot of effort into improving his equipment and is always eager to get new tools[11], Cruso is satisfied once he reaches the state when mere survival is guaranteed[12]. In a way, both Crusoe and Cruso represent different 'stages' of civilisation: whereas Crusoe is constantly progressing to reach the state of an early agricultural society, Cruso does not intend to 'develop' or even change his lifestyle[13] but stays 'hunter and collector'. He is in no way interested in progress, and he rationalises not making any candles in a rather philosophic way: "Which is easier: to learn to see in the dark, or to kill a whale and seeth it down for the sake of a candle?"[14]. His cryptic explanation is both a hint to human laziness and a critique of progress itself. Juxtaposed with the never-ending energy of the original Crusoe to better and enhance his daily life towards a state of higher civilisation, Coetzee's interpretation of the castaway's character doubts the ideal of man as master of all nature. Instead of being the innovative, self-made engineer like Crusoe, Cruso is very much indifferent to his environment, also to his fellow castaways[15]. He thus is the exact opposite of Robinson Crusoe as representative of humanism, who first saves Friday and then a Spanish prisoner of the 'savages' (later on also Friday's father, who is tied in a canoe) from being slaughtered [RC148;171] and frees the victims of a mutiny [RC187].

Summary of the 'Foe'

Part 1

Susan Barton, searching for her missing daughter in Brazil, is thrown up on the island after a shipboard mutiny, and gradually adjusts to the basic environment and company of long-term castaway Cruso and African slave. Friday. Rescued a year later and upon Cruso's death from fever, Captain Smith, their rescuer, predicts great interest in the story and encourages Susan to write or team up with a writer.

Part II

Marooned again in English society when the chosen writer, Daniel Foe, flees his debits and runs from the bailiffs, Susan struggles to survive with the newly freed Friday in tow, impoverished and in danger, searching for the writer who has taken on her project - and taken over her life.

Part III

Susan eventually finds Foe and queries the book's progress, disputing content, shape and emphasis and exploring their conflicting views and goals. Susan is a realist and seeker of truth and Foe represents the commercial class in the new capitalist system but he is also a philosopher. Together they speculate about story and truth and the act of writing. And what to do with Friday is a key concem.

Part IV

An unidentified, neutral voice traces the generalised beginning and end of the story-unhinged from the embodied search for verifiable fact. Is this the "true" perspective? In two versions, it comes upon the characters in the submerged wreck of the ship. lifeless, only Friday is still barely alive. The speaker's point of view then travels out into a dimension of experience and sensation beyond humans and island and sea, beyond both speech and writing. "But this is not a place of words. This is a place where bodies are their own signs. It is the home of Friday" (157)

Themes

The Power of Stories

The novel explores the power of stories. Coetzee's book is written in parallel to Robinson Crusoe (1719) and the narrative of Foe repurposes an existing story. The book then examines the difficulty of telling such a story Coetzee's reinterpretation of the story of Robinson Crusoe dwells on the potential power of the story whereas Daniel Defoe's original book does not. Foe switches the focus away from Robinson Crusoe and toward Friday Coetzee portrays the world through the eyes of Susan Barton and examines the way in which a secondary character in the original story can find a voice and thus become imbued with new power.

Thinking Activity: Wide Sargasso Sea

 Hello Readers!

Welcome to my blog. Now I'm going to write about the comparison of Jane Eyre and wode Sargasso Sea. This task was given by Yesha ma'am. 

Question:1 Compare Jane Eyre with Wide Sargasso Sea. 

The two books Jane Eyre’s novel by Charlotte Brontë and Wide Sargasso Sea Novel by Jean Rhys, reveal various motifs including the concepts of feminism and postcolonialism. As such, the authors bring up substantial ideas on the way of living for people after colonization. They also reflect on the diversity of women globally by introducing a different approach to address human issues whereby a system of fairness, justice, and equal rights replaces the presiding patriarchy. This essay will explore the concepts of postcolonialism and feminism theory, as presented by Jane Eyre’s novel by Charlotte Brontë and Wide Sargasso Sea Novel by Jean Rhys.

In the novel Jane Eyre, Brontë reveals a firm stance on feminism by critiquing the assumptions about social class and gender. She also places the context within the postcolonialism era during the Victorian society age. Throughout the novel, Jane is subjected to some kind of oppression, where she has no financial or social freedom. The challenges she faces existed during the Victorian era, whereby women were considered powerless and as objects to serve their families and society. Jane fights gender hierarchies and class to ensure a status quo.

Jane is the epitome of femininity, the first instance where Jane starts to reveal feminism is when she fights with her cousin, blamed even if she was not the one at fault, and locked up for a night. She says to Mrs. Reed, “I’m not deceitful. If I were, I should say I loved you, but I declare, I don’t love you (Brontë, 2016).” Jane’s words seem mean; nonetheless, they are true. It is only fair to precisely tell others what one feels, instead of pretending as Mrs. Reed did even though she did not like Jane. The words are also ironic. In some way, Jane is trying to tell Mrs. Reed that she is deceitful as she had always acted as if she loved Jane and therefore being unfair.

More feminist ideals are revealed in Jane’s relationship with Rochester. The two do not belong to the same social class. Jane is a governess and, therefore, less than a family member. Her financial status can also not be compared with Mr. Rochester, who is successful and wealthy, while Jane is just an employee. Despite the clarity on the differences between the two, Jane refuses to consider herself inferior. For example, she says to Mr. Rochester, “Do you think I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong — I have as much soul as you, — and full as much heart…I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh; — it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God’s feet, equal, — as we are” (Brontë, 2016). The statement shows Jane denying being of lesser status. She even ignores the fact that she is a woman and Rochester, a man, and instead focuses on a spiritual stance to define their identities, which demonstrates equality.

Further, more ideas on feminism theory reveal Jane’s belief in love. When she realizes Mr. Rochester is married; she does not agree to marry him. Jane believes marriage should be based on respect, equality, true love, not appearance, social class, or material possessions. Jane further demonstrates the same belief when she turns down John after proposing. Jane believes John’s love would be “one of duty and not of passion” (Brontë, 2016). This reveals Jane’s irony reflection of her determination to pursue true love.

Brontë’s work also demonstrates postcolonialism whereby Western culture is considered Eurocentric. This means that European values are universal and natural compared to Eastern ideas that are inferior (Hobson, 2012). For instance, Bertha, a foreign woman, reflects the Eurocentric and dominant ideologies of England in the 19th century concerning race. Bertha is the racial other and colonized madwoman who threatens British men and women as embodied in Mr. Rochester and Jane. Jane presents Bertha Mason as Vampiric, who sucks away from Mr. Rochester’s innocence. According to Mr. Rochester, he was innocent until the savage woman took his goodness. Also, Jane, a British, cannot get married because Bertha has occupied the wife’s position, denying Jane’s identity. The situation shows how British people characterized and feared women and foreigners during postcolonialism. The fear was not because they thought the subjects were powerful, but because they considered them inferior and evil. The “blood-red” moon reflected in Bertha’s eyes represents her sexual potency, whereby Bertha refuses to be controlled. Her stature is almost equal to her husband’s. According to postcolonialism, Bertha’s death is meant as a sacrifice to restore British people’s superiority, whereby Mr. Rochester acquires freedom to marry Jane while Jane achieves her self-identity.

Further, in the postcolonialism era, men considered women to be their appendages (Katrak, 2006). Men would work, own business, and remain in public. However, only family life and marriage belonged to women. They had to depend on men spiritually, financially, and physically. For example, Adele and her mother demonstrate this idea, whereby they depend on Mr. Rochester for everything. Their dependence is further despised by the British people like Jane and Mr. Rochester consider them sensual and materialistic, characteristics associated with foreign women at the time.

Jane’s description of Bertha Marson and Adele and her mother is ironic. Jane is driven by feminism theory. The goal of feminists is to ensure there is gender equality in all humanity. As such, no woman should be discriminated against, oppressed, or subjected to the hierarchy (Tong, 2018). Nonetheless, Jane plays a significant role in discriminating against foreign women. She represents Jane as Vampiric and Adele and the mother materialistic. By doing so, she supports Mr. Rochester, who considers himself innocent even though that is not the case. The actions go against what she stands for.

Additionally, Wide Sargasso Sea Novel by Jean Rhys also reveals aspects of feminism theory and postcolonialism. Rhys is a British born writer who wrote the novel Wide Sargasso Sea in 1966 in response to Jane Eyre’s novel by Charlotte Brontë. Rhys describes the marriage of Rochester from Antoinette, his mad wife. The author creates another picture and perspective of Antoinette by focusing on the reasons behind her madness. During the postcolonialism era, the English people prejudiced against the West Indies. Antoinette was from this discriminated group, and she was married to an English Black man. Therefore, Antoinette went through a double tragedy due to racism that was common during the postcolonialism period. First, she grew up in slavery and received barely any attention from her mother. The black community also did not accept her as she was white. Additionally, her marriage was arranged, and she got married to a man that did not like her and, together with his English community, discriminated against her (Rhys, 1992). These events reveal oppressions which Antoinette had to overcome. All her life, Antoinette was caught up between the black native and English imperialists; hence, she tried to fight for acceptance, love, and happiness. Her efforts represent the propositions of feminism theory, whereby equality in all humans is necessary. However, this leads to her being renamed and enslaved in the Thornfield attic.

According to Rhys, patriarchal oppression and imperialism drove Mr. Rochester’s first wife mad (Olaussen, 1993). The reasoning represents the feminism concept where oppression, discrimination, and torture for women was real. This is unlike in Brontë’s Jane Eyre, whereby Antoinette’s madness represents the evilness and inferiority of foreign women.

Further, the idea of inequality and dependence of women on men is revealed more in Rhys’ work. This can be seen as the author intertwines madness, enslavement, and womanhood. The author presents feminine deportment ideals to the protagonists since she was young while studying at the convent school. Two Creole girls, including Helene de Plana and Miss Germaine, symbolize the feminine virtues that Antoinette should emulate. These include even-tempered manners, chastity, and mild and beauty. Further, mother St. Justine praises the “imperturbable” and the “poised” sisters. This indicates that Creole women in the 19th century were supposed to assume such ideals of womanhood. Nonetheless, Antoinette’s nature was at odds with the suggested requirements as she was fiery and hot. Consequently, her behavior contributes to her implied madness and melancholy.

It is unexpected that positive energy attracts problems, as in Antoinette’s case. This also reveals more irony. People turn a blind eye to the challenges the protagonist goes through. The problems have the potential to affect someone as they did to Antoinette. However, still, no one seems to consider that, based on the statement that her fiery and hotness contributed to her madness and melancholy. The irony can be noted in Mr. Rochester’s words when he says, “I hated the mountains and the hills, the rivers, and the rain. I hated the sunsets of whatever color, I hated their beauty and its magic and the secret I would never know. I hated its indifference and cruelty, which was part of its loveliness. Above all, I hated her. For she belonged to the magic and the loveliness. She had left me thirsty, and all my life would be thirst and longing for what I had lost before I found it” (Rhys, 1992). This statement has antagonism where the beauty that attracts Antoinette to Rochester initially drives her away in the end. Rochester’s words also indicate that she does not like the loveliness of her wife and home, too, as they threaten to bewitch and ensnare him. The passage palpably exposes his cruel desire to gain control over Antoinette. Again, an indication of women’s oppression associated with feminism during the postcolonialism period.

Moreover, Rhys represents women as appendages to men who depend on them for financial and legal support (Friedman, & Fuchs, 2014). In the beginning, Antoinette’s mother depends on her husband, Antoinette’s father, who was a slave. When the father dies, Antoinette’s mother seeks a second marriage and uses it as a way to regain status and escape her poverty life at Colibri. Also, men increase their wealth by marrying women and gain access to the inheritance of their wives. The two scenarios present womanhood as synonymous with dependence exhibited by children by relying on the nearest man for survival. Antoinette seeks to assuage her fears of a vulnerable outsider by marrying the White English man; however, the husband, Mr. Rochester, betrays and abandons her.

Another aspect that comes out in Rhys’ novel Wide Sargasso Sea is irony. To begin with, the representation of the entire book, whereby she antagonizes Brontë’s Jane Eyre, is ironic. Rhys considers Antoinette as a woman who has gone through many challenges in life and became mad while trying to discover her happiness. This is quite the opposite of Brontë’s version, which represents Bertha’s madness, an unfortunate and inferior behavior associated with foreign women. Brontë’s heroine, Jane, does not examine the case of Bertha in-depth when she finds out Mr. Rochester is married. Instead, she believes in Mr. Rochester’s version of the wife, which gives the representation of the Creole woman. This kind of stereotyping was common in England in the 19th century (Dhawan, 2000).

The Wide Sargasso Sea novel also portrays irony as the author tries to describe the idea of postcolonialism. Rhys wants readers to realize that being a casted woman is demanding. Therefore, with Antoinette’s Creole character, individuals have to understand that they cannot change their inevitable, and thus they should accept events as they turn out.

In conclusion, aspects of feminism and postcolonialism contributed a lot to the works of the 19th century. Rhys and Brontë reveal this as they reveal the representation of women in the Victorian era. The authors also utilize irony to develop feminism further and postcolonialism ideas.-

Question: 2  Compare character of Jane with Antoinette  

Jane and Antoinette

Rhys draws parallels between Jane Eyre and Antoinette:

• Both are isolated, powerless and without protection, in a world hostile to unsupported women.
• Both of them lose their mothers, if in different ways, but find important substitutes who are teachers or servants.
• Both experience dreams that are significant for later events in their stories.

However, there are also strong contrasts between them:

• Antoinette is vulnerable while Jane is made stronger by her experiences.
• Jane has a more coherent sense of herselfJane establishes equality in her relationship with Rochester.