Development of Drama and its prominent Writers in The Elizabethan Age

 Development of Drama and its prominent Writers in The Elizabethan Age

Introduction

 The Elizabethan age is also known as the age of William Shakespeare. Because, he was the dominant figure of the Elizabethan age in literary terms, it is called the period of Renaissance. The term ‘Renaissance’ means rebirth or revival of Greek and Italian culture, literature, art, learning etc. it was an age of drama therefore, it is necessary to discuss the development of drama in Elizabethan age

 Let’s have a look on the growth of drama in the Elizabethan age in detail

 Development of drama

The drama had a religious origin in Greece. Then it started to rise in England. The object of the first play was to emphasize moral lesson by showing the reward of the good and the punishment of the evil doer. In England the religious plays where more famous, and started to perform on the stage in the sixteenth century. The theme of the drama was religious, that’s why the existence of miracle and mystery plays can be observed

Let’s elaborate these plays in detail.

Miracle plays:

A Miracle play is basically a religious play. They deal with the lives of saints and the miracles performed by them. The life and martyrdom of a saint formed the central theme of a Miracle play. The name Miracle was used indiscriminately for all plays having their origin in the Bible. For four centuries after this first recorded play the miracles increased steadily in number and popularity in England. Miracles were acted on the continent earlier than this. The Normans undoubtedly brought the religious plays with them, but it is probable that they began in England before the conquest.

Mystery plays:   

    

 The Mystery plays basically deal with the themes taken from the Bible. They present in chronological order major events from the Creation and Fall of a Man through Nativity, Crucifixion on, Resurrection of Christ to the last Judgement.Mystery play represent scenes from the life of Christ or stories from the old testament of Bible, which associated the coming of Messiah. In England, The Mystery was used to distinguish a certain class of plays.

Morality Plays:

Morality plays are allegorical plays. They present on the stage personified virtues and vices. Everyman is presented as hero, Satan, personified as vice, God or Christ as virtue, and death as the reward of sin. The moral of the drama is shown by the increasing prevalence of the morality plays. The characters of these plays were allegorical personages-Life, Death, repentance, Goodness, Love, Greed, and other virtues and vices. The moralities may be regarded as the dramatic counterpart of the once-popular allegorical poetry exemplified by the Romance of the Rose”. Most of the old moralities are of unknown date and origin. Two famous authors were there like John Skelton, who wrote” Magnificence” and Sir David Lindsay. These both are the writers of high quality.

Interludes Plays:

The Interludes were generally short entertainment inserted within a longer play or amidst some other festivities or festivals. Their primary function was to entertain the audience by humor or even by farce. The Interludes originated undoubtedly, in a sense of humor, and to John Heywood, who raised the Interlude to the distinct dramatic form known as comedy.

Apart from that, the artistic period plays a vital role to raise the English drama. It is a different from the earlier plays like Miracles and Mysteries. Because it represents human life as it is. In English Literature,” Ralph Royster doyster”,the first English comedy, which was written by Nicholas Udall in 1550.The first comedy “Ralph Royster Doyster” is a first wholly comedy is a full of fun and coarse humours,and is wonderfully true to the life it represents. To raise the growth of drama, first tragedy can also be found,”Gorboduc”, which was written in collaboration by Thomas Sackville and Thomas Norton. It was written in 1561, but performed on the stage in the year of 1562.

Due to classical influence, the growth of English drama can be observed. This influence started to develop from the Mystery and Miracle plays.

So, let’s discuss major dramatists of this Age in detail.

Shakespeare

Ben Jonson

Marlowe

John Lyly

George Peele

Robert Greene

Thomas kyd

Thomas Nashe

Thomas Lodge

Beaumont

Fletcher.etc

1)      William Shakespeare:

Known as one of the most shining stars of the Elizabethan Age, and prominent figure among English Dramatists. He was born on 26^th April, 1564.As It was customary to baptize the children on the third day after birth, so 23^rd April is considered as the real birth date of Shakespeare. In 1582, Shakespeare was married to Anne Hathway.Around 1587, he left his town and family and went to London to try his luck as an actor, but unfortunately he couldn’t be an actor.So, he started to write Dramas in four periods.

First Period is a period of early experimentation. It is marked by youthfulness and exuberance of imagination, by using rhymed couplets with his blank verse. This is a period from 1590 to 1595.

Some of his plays are

Henry sixth

Richard second

King John

Comedy of Errors

Love’s Labor’s Lost

Two Gentleman of Verona

The Second period is considered between 1595 to 1600.A period of rapid growth and development. In this period we may observe artistic work. In this period we can see the better plots and a marked increase in knowledge of human nature in his plays.

Some of his dramas are as given below

Romeo and Juliet

Midsummer night’s dream

Merchant of Venice

Henry fourth

As You Like it

Much a do about nothing

Mercy wives of Windsor

The third period of his life was a period of gloom and depression, from 1600 to 1607.In this period we may find full maturity of his powers. Some of his great production can be noticed in this period like four great tragedies as given below

Hamlet

Othello

Macbeth

King Lear

Julius Caesar

Twelfth Night

Taming of the shrew

Antony and Cleopatra

The Fourth period is a period of restored serenity, of calm after storm, which marked the last years of his artistic work, For Example

Coriolanus

Cymbeline

Winter’s Tale

The Tempest

2)      Ben Jonson:

In Elizabethan times, Ben Jonson was given more respect than Shakespeare. Because his plays were more popular than of Shakespeare’s plays. Ben Jonson was born at Westminster in 1573.he married when he was only twelve years old. His Father was an educated gentleman. His father died before Jonson’s Birth. And then he educated from the Cambridge University. For twenty five years, he was the literary dictator of London. He was influenced more by French.

Some of his plays are

Every man in his humor

Every man out of his humor

Volpone

The Alchemist

The Silent woman

The Devil as an Ass

The masque of Beauty

“Every man in his Humor”, is a first comedy, which was written by Ben Jonson. The main object of this comedy was to ridicule the humors of the city.here, by this pay, Jonson gives to his leading character some prominent humours, and exaggerates it.”Volpone”, is the third play of Ben Jonson, which gives us a merciless analysis of a man governed by an overwhelming love of money for its own sake. It possesses some powerful humors in it.”The Alchemist” is a study of gullibility and of quackery. This is an almost perfect specimen of the best English drama. It has a more effective element of humors, which contains some remarkable passages and it is the most readable of Jonson’s plays. He wrote only comedy, during his life time, and “The Silent woman” is one of them, which has a well-built plots and characteristics of a humorous play. It offers an excellent opportunity for the actors. In this comedy, full of life, abounding in fun and unexpected situations. The chief and major character is Morose, and the story of him can be found in this play.

3)      Christopher Marlowe:

Christopher Marlowe was born on 1564, in Canterbury, only a few months before Shakespeare. He was the son of a poor shoemaker. He took education education from the Cambridge University. Marlowe was more famous as well as most outstanding figures among Elizabethan dramatists and University Wits. Marlowe was the model for Shakespeare. Therefore one scholar comments about him

“Had there been no Marlowe

There would have been no Shakespeare

Shakespeare learnt from Marlowe at least two major dramatic technique like

Theory of Tragedy

Blank Verse

Some of his plays are as under

Edward second

Doctor Faustus

The Jew of Malta

Tamburlaine the great

The massacre of Parish

Dido queen of carthage

The first of this is”Tamburlaine”, the story of timur the tartar. Timur begins as a shepherd chief, who first rebels then triumphs over the Persian king. It is an Epic rather than a Drama. It doesn’t contain 12 books, but it has some elements of Epic.”Edward second”, his last tragedy, which studies a weaknesses of King Edward and his misery. It is by far the best of Marlow’s plays in style and dramatic construction.”Doctor faustus”, the best of all his tragedies. In a Dr.Faustus there is a story of a man named Faustus, who longs for infinite knowledge. Due to learn magic he sells himself to the devil on condition that he shall have twenty four years of absolute power and also knowledge.”The Jew of malta”, a study of the lust for the wealth. The first part of the pay is well-constucted, but the last part of the play is of melodramatic horrors.

john Lyly:

He was the leader of the University Wits and selected the themes from the classical literature. He was given much honor of this comedies like

Alexander

Campaspe and Diogenes

Sapho and Phao

Endimion

The man on the moon

Love is the principal theme of his dramas. We can see courtly life and behavior This way this allegory upon political life. About him one critic comments

                                                           “John Lyly was the master of prose style in English

                                                             Comedy, who was essentially a court dramatist, and

                                                             Added to drama the feminine qualities of delicacy, grace, Charm”

 George peele:

 He was born on 1558 in London, and become a member of university wits he wrote many plays but  unfortunately only few of them are popular like

Edward first

The old wives

The love of king David

Arraignment of Paris

We can observe the varieties in the dramas of George Peele like “A pastoral”,” mask in his arrangement”,” king David” a satirical drama the last one is his most memorable play

Robert Greene: 

 He travelled widely over Europe and liked Italian author he was scholar of both Oxford and Cambridge University. He developed a regular plot expressing deep human feelings .Green was most noticeable romantic writer and disciple of john Lyly

His Plays are

The Comical history  of allophones king of Aragon

A looking glass for London and England

The history of Orlando Furioso

The history of James  fourth

“James Fourth” is not a chronicle play just a story of a king “Friar Bacon” is a sort of Idyllic romance. his contribution to the development of regular well constructed English drama commendable

 Thomas lodge:

 He belonged to the university wit’s group who was not most remarkable but some of his plays are more famous like

The wounds of civil war

A looking glass for London and England.

“The wounds of Civil war” has some week scene of thrills and horrors the second one was written in collaboration with Greene

Thomas Nashe:

 Thomas Nashe was basically a pamphleteer and story writer. After writing this, he started to write English drama. He was the creator of the new genre in English prose. He defended the classical tradition of drama.

Few of them are

Dido queen of Carthage and summer last will and testament

The unfortunate traveler etc.  

 Thomas Kyd:

Thomas Kyd was born in London, in 1558,who was a very important member of the group called University Wits.His contribution is remarkable for both intrinsically and historically.

One critic states about him

                                                                “He was the first Dramatist to discover the bearing

                                                                 Of episode and of dramatic movement upon the character,

                                                                 And the first to give the audience a hint of the development

                                                                 That follows from his interaction”                                                                     

 Thomas Kyd was first English Dramatist who wrote dramatically. His importance in the group of University Wits is next to Marlowe.

His remarkable are plays such as

Spanish Tragedy

Geronimo

Apology for Actors

The Tragedy of Solyman and Perseda

 John Webster:

 He belonged among major dramatists of the Elizabethan Age. His extraordinary powers of expression rank him with Shakespeare.

Some of the popular dramas of Webster are

The White Devil

The Duchess of Malfi

The Devil’s law case

His talent seems to have been largely devoted to the blood and thunder play.Therefore, he ranks among the greatest masters of the Elizabethan Tragedy.

 Francis Beaumont:

Beaumont was born in warwickshire, who was the brother of Sir John Beaumont. He came to London from Oxford to study law, but soon gave it up to write for the stage. The work of Beaumont is so closely associated or interwoven that, though Fletcher outlived Beaumont by nine years, but later on Fletcher wrote alone. Still many persons class them together. And only scholars’ attempt to separate their works. So as to give each writer’s work. They both came from noble and cultured families and were university trained. Beaumont lived 32 years, but some of his works are very remarkably written in collaboration with Fletcher. But here, it is necessary to separate their work.

His plays are

A King and No King

The Night of the Burning Pestle

12 John Fletcher:

John Fletcher was one of the sons of the bishop of London, who took education at Cambridge University. In his work, we may observe the influence of his high social position and his Cambridge Education.

Philaster

The Maid’s tragedy

To Sum Up:

A few words more, we can say that the dramatists like Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, Webster, John Lyly, Marlowe etc.writers of a very high quality. They all tried their level best to raise the position of Drama. That’s why the drama of Elizabethan Age occupies a unique place in the world of Literature.

Essay on Dramatic Poesy

Essay on Dramatic Poesy

                                                                                             -Dryden

John Dryden was one of the most shining stars of the Restoration Age, that’s why this age is also known as the age of Dryden. He was the great critic. So, Dr.Samuel Johnson quotes as...

“The Father of English Criticism, who first taught us to 

Determine upon principles the merits of composition”

His Life:

Born-9, August, 1631, Aldwincle, Thrapston, Northampire, England.

Death-1 May,1700(aged 68 years) London, England.

Occupation-Poet Laureate, Critic, Dramatist.

Education-At Cambridge University.

His Creative Works:

Ø  Preface to the Fables

Ø  Preface to the Indian Emperor

Ø  The Wild Gallant

Ø  An Essay on Dramatic Poesy

Ø  All for Love

Ø  Absalom and Achitophel

Ø  Macflecknoe.

 But, here we are Only Concerned with ‘An Essay on Dramatic Poesy’. So let’s discuss this essay in detail.

An Essay on Dramatic Poesy: Introduction

Dryden developed a very ingenious plan of writing his essay. In 1665 great plague broke out in London. In order to escape from the infection of the plague, many people left London. So, Dryden takes this situation and develops a plan to write a great treatise on drama. He imagines the  he and his friends sails out  of London in a boat on the river of thames.so,to avoid boredom the journey, they decide to hold some useful discourse on the theory of drama in different ages in Greece,Rome,France and of England. They decide to allot one age to each of the four friends.

Each taking up the defense of dramatic Literature of one country or one age. Crites speaks for the Greek and the Roman dramatists and their principles.  Lisideius expresses his view that the French drama is superior to the English drama. So, he favors French dramatists. Eugenius claims that the English Drama of the last age in England is better than the Ancient Dramatists. Neander (For Dryden himself) pleads for England and Liberty. So, Dryden holds that ancient principle should be respected, but should not be followed blindly.

                                           Dryden’s definition of drama

 Here, Dryden expresses his views on Drama that what a play should be, therefore, he defines drama as

“Just and Lively Image of human nature,

Representing its passions and humors,

And the changes of fortunes to which it

Is subject, for the delight and instruction Of mankind”.

Therefore, Dryden and his friends talk about what a play should be, further, Lisideius conveys his view about Drama as ‘a just lively image of Human nature ‘.after this discussion, they start to give their views and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of French and English Drama. At last the debate goes on about the comparison between Ancient and Modern writers.

Violation of the three unities

As far as the unities of the time, place and action are concerned. This group further discusses the playwrights like Ben Jonson, Moliere and Shakespeare with a deeper insight. John Dryden himself. 

Also defenses English tragic-Comedy.

He comments that the French plays may be more regular but they are not as lively as that of English. For example in William Shakespeare’s Plays the more lively and just images of life can also be observed. Therefore, Dryden here condemns French Plays s lack of just and lively image.

          

Eugenius’s arguments on the superiority of the Moderns over the Ancients

            

Eugenius defends the English dramatists of the last age with a highly penetrating insight. It is true, he says that the Ancients Greek and Roman scholars laid down many basic principles of Drama. The English authors gave due respect to them, but they had no clear-cut concept of dividing a Play into Acts. The Dramatist set the voyage of dividing a play into five acts. Most of the Ancient Greek Playwrights wrote their plays on highly popular episodes of Thebes or troy on which many narrative poems, epics and plays had already been written. Therefore, the spectators found nothing new in them. Many times they spoke out the dialogues before the actors spoke them. The English Dramatist wrote their Plays on new Themes. In Comedies, the Greek and Roman playwrights repeated common theme of lost children coming back to their home after gap of many years. This often repeated theme lost its interest to the spectators.so,the English Dramatist invented new and interesting themes. In all these respects the English Dramatists of the last age were better than the Greek or Roman Dramatists.

Crites’s arguments in favor of the Ancients

Crites begins defending the Ancient Greek and Roman Poets and dramatists, and expresses his views that Ancients are better than the Modern one. The Ancient writers set rules of drama like, Aristotle also laid down the principles of the three unities of time place and action. By the unity of Time he meant that the action of a play should not be exceed “Compass of a natural day”, By the Unity of Place he meant that scene ought to be continued in the same place from the beginning to the end for the stage s “But one and the same Place”. It is Unnatural to shift the action from one place to another, especially to distant places. This will give the greatest likelihood to untruth. By the Unity of action, he meant that there should not be two or more actions. There should be only one action at a time to cover the whole Plot. The Ancient observed the three dramatic unities faithfully, and The Romans, The French, and The English dramatists tried their best to observe them, though not always successfully.Thus, The Ancients are our first law-givers as well as models for the Moderns to follow.

  

Lisideius view in favor of the superiority of the French drama over the English Drama

Defending the French Drama and Dramatist, Lisideius says that they far surpass the English and even the Greek dramatists.Corneill and some other French dramatists have so reformed their theatre that no European theatre stands comparison to it. So as far as the three dramatic unities are concerned, the French Dramatists observe them more faithfully than the Greeks themselves who propounded them. In observing the unity of time, they are so scrupulous that the action in some of their plays is limited to only twelve hours. The French are equally faithful in observing the unity of place. Many of them limit to the very spot of ground where the play is supposed to begin.However, none of them exceeds the compass of the same town. Equally conspicuous is the observance of the unity of action. There are under plots in their plays.

Further, the French generally write their tragedies on well-known historical facts which the people can easily comprehend. They do not make their plots so complicated that the spectators may lose their patience. In their plays the hero is most important, and rest of the characters are marginalized to him.Finally,The French write their plays in beautiful rhyming verse which is far sweeter than the blank verse in which the English plays are written. To Sum Up, The French playwrights are superior to the English.

   

Neander’s view in favor of English Drama

Dryden in the person of Neander rises up in defence of English dramatists and strongly pleads that English Dramatist are fully justified in not slavishly accepting the classical principles in many respects. They have developed their own principles and proved themselves to be superior to the Greek and French dramatists in many ways. In the First place French drama, whether comic or tragic, lacks in emotion and passion. English dramatists surpass them in both. The English tragedies produce fear and pity more powerfully, and their comedies excel in producing delightful humors and Romantic love. He equally defends the insertion of under plots which highlight the main plot.

Coming to the dramatic unities of Time and Place, he says that their observance might adversely affect the total impact of a play. It is unbelievable that sufficient material for the plot of a good play.Finally, coming to Shakespeare, he says “He was the man who of all modern, and perhaps ancient poets, had the largest and most comprehensive soul. He was naturally learned; he needed not the spectacle of books to read literature; he looked inwards and found him there.

The Ancient versus Modern Playwrights

Here, by this essay, John Dryden makes comparison between Ancients versus Modern Playwrights.Crites makes favor of the Ancients by giving some views about them.

A. Crites favors the Ancients

The first significant thing which favors Ancients that they are acknowledged models of the modern. They had a special technique for writing drama is that of perfection. And further, Crites expresses his views that the Ancients were honored and rewarded by the merits of their drama. They closely observed nature and depicted faithfully in their plays. The Rules and unities of composing drama, which were made by the Ancients. Therefore, Crites favors Ancients rather than Moderns.

B. Eugenius favors Moderns

Eugenius tries to reply to Crites by making Modern dramatists better than that of Ancients. Of course, Moderns have written drama the way the Ancients were written. But, they have not _blindly imitated them. Their themes of the drama were similar, but not Moderns tried to present the same thing in a better way and in a different way. They have perfected the division of plays and divided their plays not into acts but into various scenes. The Ancient observed the three unities of time place and actions are not perfect. In fact, the Moderns tried to get perfection of these unities in their dramas.Ancients’s plays do not perform one of the function of drama, that of giving delight as well as instruction. There was no rule to punish vice, but even, they have mostly shown a prosperous wickedness. Therefore, by giving the reply to Crites in favor of Moderns, Eugenius tries to differentiates Moderns from the Ancients.

Mixture of tragedy and comedy

Being a liberal Critic, Dryden, who tries to give his view on mingling of tragedy and comedy.sometimes, it may be possible that one becomes bore after watching comedy drama. so here, the same thing is told by Dryden that the eye can pass from an unpleasant object to  pleasant one.so,also the soul can move from the tragic to the comic. There were no rules of mixing tragedy and comedy in their plays. But, they had written play of tragedy, no comic elements were there. But, perhaps, Aristotle would have revised his rules. That’s why, Dryden puts here that “Had Aristotle seen the English plays, He might have changed his mind”.Hence,the views of John Dryden proves that he is more frank as well as liberal as he suggests the mixture of Tragedy and Comedy must be there.

Rhymed verse versus Blank verse

Heroic couplet was used as a form of poetry in the Restoration Age as this form was mastered by John Dryden. He puts his idea on Rhyme through the mouth of Neander, while Crites attacks on Rhyme and puts forward his ideas that Rhyme must not be used in the drama. Of course, it may be utilized in comedy plays, because a play is made up of dialogues, if Rhyme is used, than the play seems unnatural or we may call a Rhymed Verse play, which is not permitted to use it.

 Neander’s Defence

In making attempt to give reply to Crites, Neander favors Rhyme and further says that Rhyme makes the play natural.Therefore, it must be used in the play.Moreover, he puts forward his view that Rhyme is different from Blank Verse. Rhyme is a type of similar word at the end of the lines, while a Blank Verse stand alone, which was used by Christopher Marlowe and other Elizabethans. In a form of tragedy they used Rhyme.So, at last, Neander makes a comment and it indicates that he favors Rhyme.

Comparison between Shakespeare and Ben Jonson

In this essay, Dryden makes comparison between two great Elizabethan Dramatists like William Shakespeare and Ben Jonson. So let’s discuss this comparison in detail.

A. Shakespeare:

William Shakespeare was one of the prominent dramatists of the Age of Elizabeth. He describes the thing in such a way that not only one can see, but also you feel it. He wrote 37 Plays and in which he portrayed all the things in his Dramas and Sonnets. Though, he was not considered a great writer in the days of Elizabethan.

B. Ben Jonson:

Another writer of high quality in the Elizabethan Age was Ben Jonson, who was considered superior to William Shakespeare in those days. Because, Wit; Humour in his Dramas makes him a learned man. Jonson was a judge himself, therefore, as one can observe in his Dramas that he wrote plays, which contain Homour and Wit also.

       

One critic Atkins states,

“If I would compare him with Shakespeare,

 I must acknowledge him with the more correct    

 Poet, but Shakespeare the great wit, Shakespeare

 Was the Homer, or father of our dramatic poets;

 Jonson was the Virgil, the pattern of elaborate writing

 I admire him, but I love Shakespeare”.

So, Neander expresses his view about this comparison. Now let’s explain his ideas about another comparison between Fletcher and Beaumont in detail.

A. John Fletcher

John Fletcher belonged to the Age of Elizabeth, who was Dramatist of high quality and poet too. Fletcher wrote most of his play as a comedy and of course his real talent lay in it. By writing tragicomedy he generates laughter and power of arousing emotions. John Fletcher was the first person, who Customized 10 syllable line of Elizabethan Dramatic Blank Verse. The Themes of his plays were love or honor .sometimes both theme or subject can be observed in a tragicomedy. So, he was a man of technical abilities too.

B. Francis Beaumont:

The most influential play Wright and poet of Elizabethan Age. He also more wrote comedies and his comedies help Beaumont to stand as a man of talent. He was more famous for his tragicomedies, which he wrote with Fletcher. They both have written ten Plays in collaboration. So these collaborations had helped to establish both men in the ranks of the best dramatists. Therefore; Dryden makes comparison of both the Dramatists.

Tagore's contribution

Tagore's contribution

Introduction

The Talented writer who made India proud by becoming the first Indian to win the Nobel Prize in literature was also the first non-European to win the prestigious award. The writer dazzled the world with his brilliant writings and spiritual in sights. He composed India’s stirring national anthem and is well-loved even after 150 years of his birth. Also known by the sobriquet e , the versatile genius being discussed in none other than Rabindranath Tagore.

His life:

            Rabindranath Tagore was born in Calcutta on 7 may, 1861. At the time of his birth there were three revolutionary movements in Bengal. The first was the great socio-religious movement of the Brahmo Samaj, which started by Ram mohan Roy the early years of 19^th century revolutionary movement in Bengali Literature .The third, was the beginnings of a national movement. The Tagore family very activity participated in all three movements. Tagore was mostly educated at home his father name was Devendranath Tagore. He passed away on 6 August, 1941.

Let’s analyze Rabindranath Tagore as the playwright in detail.

Tagore as The playwright

Though, Tagore was a poet and a novelist, he was dramatist too. He was a man of a versatile genius, who achieved eminence in almost all the literary genres even though he was chiefly a poet , a novelist and a writer a short-stories. In addition to, he also wrote a large number of plays. Therefore, some of them are enlisted, as given below

Ø  Sanyasi or The Ascetic

Ø  The King and The Queen

Ø  ‘Sacrifice’ or ‘Visarjan’

Ø  ‘Malini’

Ø  ‘Natir puja’

Ø  ‘Chandulika’

Ø  The cycle of spring

Ø  Red oleanders

Ø  Mukta-Dhara

Ø  Chitra

Ø  Gandhari’s prayer

Ø  ‘Karna and Kunti’

Ø  The king of The Dark- Chamber

Ø  The post office

‘Sanyasi’ which was Tagore first important play. It deals with the conflict between truth and beauty, between reason and love, between rejections and acceptance. The protagonist in this play turns a Sanyasi. After getting lots of miseries from life, he achieves his redemption. So this conveys philosophical message to this readers.

       The King and The Queen is a play which depicts a conflict between Love and duty. Vikram, the king is in the beginning spirituality and morally blind. He is Self –centered and is leading a life of sensual self indulgence. But sumitra, his Queen is not willing to live merely as his wife, but she wants to walk for the betterment of the people.

       “Sacrifice” in this play, the protagonist is queen by the name of Gunavati,who, who thinks only of the expected joys of motherhood. She sends flowers and also animals to be offered as a sacrifice to the terrible mother, Kali.when priest Raghupati assures the queen that the sacrifice would please Goddess Kali.when Aparna,a beggar girl whose goat has been sacrificed to Kali.And then the king,Govinda comes personally to the Temple, and restricts not to offer animals to the Goddess.Therefore,the queen feels repentance to sacrifice, the animals.So,it’s a play about innocent animal’s sacrifice.

       “Malini”,which deals with the conflict between old and outmoded.Malini,who is the principal character, who stands as princess with strong Buddhist views.So,this is the story of beauty and revelation clash with fear and fanaticism.

         “Natir Puja”, this play depicts a conflict between the temporal power of king and the spiritual power of the lord Buddha.Srimati is the court dancer, who is murdered by the Royal guard under the orders of the king.”Natir Puja” is one of the well-known play, which contains the elements of Buddhism.

          “Chandalika” is a famous play by Rabindranath Tagore. The Protagonist of the play is Prakriti, belonging to the untouchable class. She falls in love with a Buddhist Bhikshu named Ananda.Prakriti’s mother knows black magic, so she performs spell to please her daughter. The conflict between the desires of the flesh and the aspirations of a soul has most effectively been conveyed to us, through this play.

           “The cycle of spring”, this play depicts the passing away of winter, and the advent of spring.So, this play ends with a choral song celebrating festivals of spring.

               “Red Oleanders”,is a play,which possesses principal characters like Governor,The Assistant Govenor etc.but no queen can be found through this play.At the end of the play there is a Bishu’s song of autumn and fruitfulness.

               “Mukta Dhara”,the greatest symbolical play.Bibhuti,the royal engineer in the mountain kingdom of Uttarkut,has performed a marvelous engineering feat by building a dam across the waters of Mukta Dhara with the help of steel Machine.It is one of the most moving play.

                “chitra”,is a play,which deals with the woman of extra-ordinary beauty named Chitra,who falls in love with Arjuna,who is ascetic.Chitra is not happy because she knows that Arjuna doesn’t love her.So,Tagore has depicted the evaluation of human love from the physical plane to the spiritual.

                  “Gandhari’s Prayer” is a drama,by Tagore,which deals with the relation between a Mother and her son.Gandhari was the great and large hearted mother of the Kauravas including the eldest of them,namely Duryodhana

                   “Karna and Kunti”,is a well-known play by tagore.Through,this play,he depicts here the relationship between Kunti and her son Karna.Kunti may be described as the mother of sorrows because she is too great and has suffered immensely.

                    “The King of the dark Chamber”,is a famous one,but still it has some characteristics that make this play readable.the theme of the play is somberely impressive,the relationship between man and God.Therefore,this play is about the human soul’s adventures in its attempt to know God.

                    “he Post Office”,is a masterpiece play,which was written by Rabindranath Tagore.This play deals with the soul’s adventures in the divine;and the adventures leave the soul as well as the body cured.

     Tagore as a Novelist

                              Being a versatile genius,tagore also wrote some novels,which were more famous and even today these are more readable.some are given below by describing the analysis of novels.

          Let’s illustrate his novels in detail.

                “Chokher Bali” is a story of an extramarital affair that takes place within the confines of a joint family.It is the story of the Rich,flamboyant Mahendra and his simple,demure,beautiful wife,Asha a young couple who are befriended by the Pragmatic Bihari.This novel deals with a complelling portrayal of the complexity of relationships and of human characters.

                 “The Home and The World”,is a well-known novel,which takes place in the revolutionary Bengal of 1905.there are three principal characters such as Nikhil-The Idealistic husband,Bimal his wife,and Sandip his friend and their autobiographical narratives interwined to make this novel.this novel deals with politics including conflict of it.

                   “ Naukhadubi”,is a  novel,which has an improbable beginning;two marriage parties are drowned in a boat wreck,the only survivors being one of the bridgegrooms and the other bridge.Ramesh and kamala,both are the recently married couple and try to settle down.It has a happy ending.

                   “Gora”,is a masterpiece of Tagore,which has been described by Krishna kripalini as something like a Mahahasbharata of modern india.The hero,gora grows up as an orthodox almost s a fanatic hindu till he learns that he is but a foundling.This is a story about the clash between the old and new,mere revivalism and blind iconoclasm.

                     “Four Chapters”,is not more celebrated novel,yet it has its own significance.Though it has a political background,Tagore has explained a love story through this novel.It was Tagore’s great gesture of protest,but it is also benediction born of compassion and love.this novel is no more thana seed,yet the seed of a mighty banyan.

         Tagore as a Poet:

                            Tagore was a prolific writer and he tried his hand successfully at the most all major forms of Literature. As Edward Thompson points out,even Victor Hugo could not have claimed a wider range of form and mood than was evinced by Tagore who wroteTragic and Comic symbolic writing them in blank verse, in Rhymed couplets in prose. Tagore wrote poetry-Reflective poetry,religious,elegiac poetry and purely lyrical poetry; and who wrote short stories too.

Ø  A Moments of Indulgence

Ø  At the last watch

Ø  Benediction

Ø  Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva

Ø  Brink of Eternity

Ø  Broken Song

Ø  Chain of Pearls

Ø  Colored Toys

Ø  Death

Ø  Defamation

Ø  Distant Time

Ø  Face to Face

Ø  Free love

Ø  Freedom

Ø  Gitanjali

Ø  The Gardener

Ø  The Crescent Moon

Ø  Fruit Gathering

Ø  Stray Birds

Ø  Love’s Gift  and Crossing

Ø  The Golden Boat

Ø  The Herald of Spring

Ø  Wings of death

Ø  Sheaves: Poems and Songs

Ø  Poems from Tagore etc.

The one hundred odd songs in the Poetry “Gitanjali” from a mighty piece prayer and pleading and exultation.”The Gitanjali” songs are mainly poems of bhakti in the Great Indian Tradition.

In Rabindranath Tagore’s collection of poetry “The Crescent Moon”, Tagore depicts the child’s capacity for wonder and joy. He found in them beauty, innocence, humor, charity and a kind of wisdom. Some of the pieces in this poem seem to have as it were overflowed from the well-known “The Gitanjali” volume.

“Urvashi” is an old myth as the rig Veda, and Brahmana, epic, purana.Here, Tagore’s views that “Urvashi” as the Sheer woman-not child, nor Mother, nor wife-but the beautiful woman who is goddess. She carries nectar in one hand and a chalice of poison in the other.

“The Child” is unique among the poet-Tagore’s poems because it was written in English and later on translated it into Bengali as Shishutirtha.

In other poems”Superior”, Tagore makes a rather older child ‘Impeach’ a mere baby to their Mother.”Authorship” is another piquant piece of fancy. The father, who is an author, goes on scribbling; he is supposed to be writing books.

The last three sections of the poems are an anti-climax, and seem almost to blur the intention of the poet. Some of the volume appeared, seemingly in a endless, sequence, readers began to feel allegoric to such dreaminess and mistiness, dissolving cadences and vanishing color, this feeling deepened when the “Collected poems and Pla” appeared in 1936, and one critic wrote

“Much of Tagore’s writing is only a kind of mellifluous musing

Or is even lost, in the endless mist of vague sweetness”

So, Because of his poems, He belongs among the creative writers of Indian Writing in English.

To Wind Up:

As a whole, Rabindranath Tagore was a poet, Dramatist, actor, producer; who was a musician and a painter; He was an Educationist, Reformer, philosopher, Prophet and above all, He was a Novelist and Short story writer, and a Critic of of Life and Literature.