Hedda Gabler Reference to the context

Hedda Gabler Reference to the context

(a) Yes, but have you .......... we went away?
Yes, but have you noticed how strong and healthy she's looking? And how she's filled out since we went away?

REFERENCE

(i) Drama: Hedda Gabler

(ii) Dramatist: Henrik Ibsen

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Act I

(ii) Content:

Hedda marries George but finds life with him to be dull. George spends most of his time in libraries doing research in history for a book. A friend of Hedda comes to visit her and tells her of Lovborg, an old friend of both women. Lovborg has also written a book on history. In the past, he has lived a life of degeneration. Now he has quit drinking and has devoted himself to serious work. Lovborg loses his manuscript at a party. When George returns home with Lovborg's manuscript, Hedda burns it. Lovborg comes to Hedda and confesses how he has failed in his life. Hedda talks him into committing suicide which he does. George begins to reconstruct Lovborg's manuscript with the help of Thea. In the end, Hedda commits suicide with her pistol.

EXPLANATION

In these lines Tesman wants to tell his aunt Juju that Hedda, his wife has become pregnant. Tesman here talks of Hedda as if she were the gun-dog who had been off her food for a whole but is now doing remarkably well and filling out nicely. The gun-dog image is one Ibsen uses in his notes, "His solicitude for her is the same as one gives to a thoroughbred horse or a valuable gun-dong." One can almost feel Hedda squirming as Tesman says this, but he is of course reminding her, in the nicest possible way, of the factual situation. She belongs to him as a piece of property, and, as the owner, he has the right to be proud of her. Fortunately, for him, Tesman is not aware of the wider implication of his remark about Hedda's "filling out". It is difficult enough to imagine Hedda and Tesman lying in bed together, let alone making love. It probably happened the night they spend at Gossensass and met all those 'amusing people'. There is just a hint of this possibility when Hedda and Tesman comment on their honeymoon photographs to Loevborg. In short, the thought of Hedda being pregnant and carrying Tesman's child is just Tesman's speculation.

(b) Quite irreproachably, I .......... may happen to him.
Quite irreproachable, I assure you. In every respect. All the same -- in this big city -- with money in his pockets -- I'm so dreadfully frightened something may happen to him.

REFERENCE

(i) Drama: Hedda Gabler

(ii) Dramatist: Henrik Ibsen

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Act 1

(ii) Content:

Hedda marries George but finds life with him to be dull. George spends most of his time in libraries doing research in history for a book. A friend of Hedda comes to visit her and tells her of Lovborg, an old friend of both women. Lovborg has also written a book on history. In the past, he has lived a life of degeneration. Now he has quit drinking and has devoted himself to serious work. Lovborg loses his manuscript at a party. When George returns home with Lovborg's manuscript, Hedda burns it. Lovborg comes to Hedda and confesses how he has failed in his life. Hedda talks him into committing suicide which he does. George begins to reconstruct Lovborg's manuscript with the help of Thea. In the end, Hedda commits suicide with her pistol.

EXPLANATION

These lines show Mrs. Elvsted love and concern for Eilert Lovborg. After Lovborg comes to tutor the stepchildren of Mrs. Elvsted, she falls in love with him. However, after two years, Lovborg leaves Elvsted's house and goes to the "terrible town, with so many temptations on all sides". Mrs. Elvsted follows him. She shows up at the Tesman's house in distress. She tells Tesman and Hedda that, for the last two years, Lovborg's conduct has be "quite irreproachable"; he has been free of drunkenness. He has been perfect and faultless in every respect. She is perturbed that Lovborg will get into trouble now that he is back in the city with a pile of money to boot. She is worried about his running around with a "dangerous crowd". She fears a relapse of his drinking habit. In short, Mrs. Elvsted wants to save her beloved from bad company, bad habits or any sort of trouble that might ruin his life.

(c) [Nervously crossing .......... how to explain it.

[Nervously crossing the room.] Well, you see -- these impulses come over me all of a sudden; and I cannot resist them. [Throws herself down in the easy-chair by the stove.] Oh, I don't know how to explain it.

REFERENCE
(i) Drama: Hedda Gabler

(ii) Dramatist: Henrik Ibsen

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Act 2

(ii) Content: 
Hedda marries George but finds life with him to be dull. George spends most of his time in libraries doing research in history for a book. A friend of Hedda comes to visit her and tells her of Lovborg, an old friend of both women. Lovborg has also written a book on history. In the past, he has lived a life of degeneration. Now he has quit drinking and has devoted himself to serious work. Lovborg loses his manuscript at a party. When George returns home with Lovborg's manuscript, Hedda burns it. Lovborg comes to Hedda and confesses how he has failed in his life. Hedda talks him into committing suicide which he does. George begins to reconstruct Lovborg's manuscript with the help of Thea. In the end, Hedda commits suicide with her pistol.

EXPLANATION

In these lines Hedda says to Brack that her behaviour suddenly assumes the form of uncontrollable impulses. Hedda has insulted her old, devoted aunt Juju by feigning to believe that the bonnet left on a chair of the drawing room belonged to some careless servant, when she knew that it was her aunt's. The aunt is deeply wounded by Hedda's remark, which was exactly the effect sought by Hedda, yet without justification or apparent realization. Brack expresses surprise at Hedda's behaviour. "Now, my dear Mrs. Hedda", says Brack, "how could you do such a thing? To that excellent old lady, too!" Crossing the room nervously, Hedda replies that her "impulses" are beyond her control. She cannot resist her impulses because she is desperate for a release of her anger. She sits in an easy-chair by the stove and says that she cannot explain to him her pent-up emotions. In short, Hedda is a frustrated woman who does not feel comfortable in any of the suitable roles for women. Rather than defy social convention, she attempts to conform which results in uncontrollable impulses.

Waiting For Godot Reference to the context

Waiting For Godot Reference to the context

(a) Why he doesn't make .......... reasoning for you.

Why he doesn't make himself comfortable? Let's try and get this clear. Has he not the right to? Certainly he has. It follows that he doesn't want to. There's reasoning for you.

REFERENCE

(i) Drama: Waiting for Godot

(ii) Dramatist: Samuel Beckett

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Act I

(ii) Content:

Two men, Vladimir and Estragon, meet near a tree. They wait there for a man named Godot. Two other men enter; Pozzo is on his way to the market to sell his slave, Lucky. He pauses for a while to converse with Vladimir and Estragon. After Pozzo and Lucky leave, a boy, a messenger form Godot, enters and tells Vladimir that Godot will not come tonight. Vladimir and Estragon decide to leave. The next night, Vladimir and Estragon again meet near the tree to wait for Godot. Lucky and Pozzo enter again, but this time Pozzo is blind and Lucky is dumb. They leave and Vladimir and Estragon continue to wait. The boy enters and once again tells Vladimir that Godot will not come. Estragon and Vladimir decide to leave.

EXPLANATION

This is arguably the most explicit statement of classic existentialist reasoning in the play. There is no such thing as slavery or confinement, Pozzo argues here, since every action one performs is a matter of choice. Lucky is Pozzo's dutiful assistant who, unlike a slave, internalizes his own oppression. By means of a rope tied around his neck, Lucky obediently pulls Pozzo along a road to nowhere. He responds to Pozzo's every condescending, monosyllabic command and unfailingly holds his bags even when they are at a standstill. They encounter the bystanders Estragon and Vladimir who are waiting in vain for a man named Godot. They wish to know why Lucky does not put down Pozzo's bags to make himself more comfortable. Pozzo unequivocally explains that Lucky has not put the bags down because he has not chosen to do so. It is not because he is not allowed to do so. He has the right to put down the bags to make himself comfortable. However, it is his own choice that he does not want to do so.

(b) Perhaps I haven't got .......... not exactly it either.

Perhaps I haven't got it quite right. He wants to mollify me, so that I'll give up the idea of parting with him. No, that's not exactly it either.

REFERENCE

(i) Drama: Waiting for Godot

(ii) Dramatist: Samuel Beckett

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Act I

(ii) Content:

Two men, Vladimir and Estragon, meet near a tree. They wait there for a man named Godot. Two other men enter; Pozzo is on his way to the market to sell his slave, Lucky. He pauses for a while to converse with Vladimir and Estragon. After Pozzo and Lucky leave, a boy, a messenger form Godot, enters and tells Vladimir that Godot will not come tonight. Vladimir and Estragon decide to leave. The next night, Vladimir and Estragon again meet near the tree to wait for Godot. Lucky and Pozzo enter again, but this time Pozzo is blind and Lucky is dumb. They leave and Vladimir and Estragon continue to wait. The boy enters and once again tells Vladimir that Godot will not come. Estragon and Vladimir decide to leave.

EXPLANATION

In these lines Pozzo it telling Estragon and Vladimir the reason of his assistant's docility and servility. Lucky is Pozzo's dutiful assistant who, unlike a slave, internalizes his own oppression. By means of a rope tied around his neck, Lucky obediently pulls Pozzo along a road to nowhere. He responds to Pozzo's every condescending, monosyllabic command and unfailingly holds his bags even whey they are at standstill. They encounter the bystanders Estragon and Vladimir who are waiting in vain for a man named Godot. They wish to know why Lucky does not put down Pozzo's bags down to make himself more comfortable. Pozzo unequivocally explains that Lucky has not put the bags down because he has not chosen to do so. However, Pozzo has not got it quite right. He assumes that by doing so Lucky wants to impress him. He wishes to soften his master's feelings for him so that he will keep hem and not sell in the market. In fact, Lucky does not want to part with Pozzo. Pozzo's statement "No, that's not exactly it either" suggests that there might be other reasons of Lucky's excessive obedience for him.

(c) Remark that I .......... each one his due.

Remark that I might just as well have been in his shoes and he in mine. If chance had not willed otherwise. To each one his due.

REFERENCE

(i) Drama: Waiting for Godot

(ii) Dramatist: Samuel Beckett

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Act I

(ii) Content:

Two men, Vladimir and Estragon, meet near a tree. They wait there for a man named Godot. Two other men enter; Pozzo is on his way to the market to sell his slave, Lucky. He pauses for a while to converse with Vladimir and Estragon. After Pozzo and Lucky leave, a boy, a messenger form Godot, enters and tells Vladimir that Godot will not come tonight. Vladimir and Estragon decide to leave. The next night, Vladimir and Estragon again meet near the tree to wait for Godot. Lucky and Pozzo enter again, but this time Pozzo is blind and Lucky is dumb. They leave and Vladimir and Estragon continue to wait. The boy enters and once again tells Vladimir that Godot will not come. Estragon and Vladimir decide to leave.

EXPLANATION

In these lines Pozzo wants to elaborate that chance rather than reason is the main influence on our lives. Human life is based on chance, which determines existence. Pozzo and Lucky are a perfect example of this. It is chance that has made Pozzo a master and Lucky, a servant. If chance had willed otherwise, then Pozzo would have been a servant and Lucky, his master. Thus chance could easily reverse the roles. The words "just as well" refer to the chance remarks made by the two thieves in the Bible. Out of all the evildoers, out of all the millions and millions of criminals that have been, executed in the course of history, only two had the chance of salvation. One happened to make a hostile remark; he was damned. The other happened to contradict that hostile remark; and he was saved. A different fate for the thieves proves the role of chance in our existence. In short, human life is totally based on chance, opportunity and luck; there is nothing anymore can do to insure it savior.

MR BLEANEY BY PHILIP LARKIN REFERENCE TO CONTEXT

MR BLEANEY BY PHILIP LARKIN

REFERENCE TO CONTEXT

That how we live measures our own nature,
And at this age having no more to show
Than one hired box should make him pretty sure
He warranted no better, I don't know.
That how we live ........... I don't know.

REFERENCE

(i) Poem: Mr Bleaney

(ii) Poet: Philip Larkin

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: End of the Poem (Lines 25-28/28)

(ii) Content: 
The poet is lodging in a room that once belonged to a man called Mr Bleaney. As he observes the bare furnishings, he draws intimate conclusions about the former lodger. The predecessor was a poor fellow without any belongings, and without any house of his own. He was an eccentric kind of old man, and had no literary or artistic tastes. He used to prefer sauce to gravy; spend his summer holiday with his relatives in Frinton, and Christmas with his sister in Stoke. Although he may not intend to, the poet himself is very much like or perhaps turning into Mr Bleaney.

EXPLANATION

In these lines the poet is measuring his own worth in the mode of comparison with Mr. Bleaney. The statement "The how we live measures our own nature" is a judgment of Mr. Bleaney, and his life. It is also an ironic reference to the Humanist dictate of "Man as the measure", and the phrase carries associations from Hamlet and particularly of Hamlet's soliloquies and Polonius' advice to his son. Having lived a whole life, Mr Bleaney achieves no more than "one hired box". The term "hired box" refers to coffin. Finally, the poet refuses to declare his own views, although the fact that he has raised the question about the value of Mr Bleaney's life is, in itself, perhaps sufficient indication of an overall stance. Whatever he concludes about the value and purpose of Mr Bleaney's life, a previous tenant, must also inevitably apply to himself. In these final lines it is difficult to decide whose voice the poet is echoing. Is it the Landlay's? Is it his own inner doubting voice? Phrases like "warranted no better" remain ambiguous, and may properly belong to the poet himself, imagining the terms of a final tribunal in the afterlife.

MR BLEANEY BY PHILIP LARKIN

But if he stood and watched the frigid wind
Tousling the clouds, lay on the fusty bed
Telling himself that this was home, and grinned,
And shivered, without shaking off the dread
But if he stood ........... shaking off the dread.

REFERENCE

(i) Poem: Mr Bleaney

(ii) Poet: Philip Larkin

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: End of the Poem (Lines 21-24/28)

(ii) Content:

The poet is lodging in a room that once belonged to a man called Mr Bleaney. As he observes the bare furnishings, he draws intimate conclusions about the former lodger. The predecessor was a poor fellow without any belongings, and without any house of his own. He was an eccentric kind of old man, and had no literary or artistic tastes. He used to prefer sauce to gravy; spend his summer holiday with his relatives in Frinton, and Christmas with his sister in Stoke. Although he may not intend to, the poet himself is very much like or perhaps turning into Mr Bleaney.

EXPLANATION

These lines present a deep-rooted fear for the lodger, the fear of being trapped in the same cyclic anomie as the previous tenant. The word "But" is a clear change of mood and gear, moving towards further questions and uncertainties. The word marks the limits of the poet's assured knowledge, and from this point we move into the realms of the speculative and reflective. "Frigid wind" along with the reference to the "fusty bed" conjures up the sense of sexually unfulfilling quality of Mr Bleaney's life, bereft of sensuality and characterized by infertility and frigidity. "Clouds" here reflect Mr Bleaney's own vulnerability to the pressures of the world. The phrase "grinned and shivered" carries associations of the macabre here, with the skeletal Mr Bleaney grinning in the face of his environment, his life, and the limits of his own bodily life. The word "dread" which concludes the stanza, reinforces this sense of menace. In short, these lines emphasize the cold dreariness of the poem and give it a chilling edge.

THE ANCIENT MARINER BY COLERIDGE

 THE ANCIENT MARINER BY COLERIDGE

EXPLANATION WITH REFERENCE TO CONTEXT -

(a) An orphan's curse .......... I could not die.

REFERENCE

(i) Poem: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

(ii) Poet: Samuel Taylor Coleridge

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Part IV (Lines 258 - 263)

(ii) Content:

An ancient Mariner detains a Wedding Guest to narrate the story of a sailor. During a voyage, the sailor kills an albatross. This crime invites sufferings. After much suffering, he understands the oneness of God's creation and blesses the water snakes. This marks the breaking of the curse. However, the avenging spirit imposes a heavy penance on him. Finally the ship sinks and the sailor is saved in a pilot's boat. Ever since that day, the sailor rooms from land to land to relate his story.

EXPLANATION
In these lines the poet says that the curse of a murdered man is worse than the curse of an orphan. A curse is an appeal to a supernatural power or prayer for evil or misfortune to befall someone or something. An orphan, being a child deprived of one or both parents, is very dear to God. Any maltreatment or cruelty to this child may result into a curse. This curse is very powerful. It can drag even a blessed spirit from heaven to hell. However, the curse of a murdered man is more horrible than that of an orphan's. All members of the Mariner's crew except for the Mariner himself die for briefly condoning the shooting of the albatross. The eyes of the dead sailors are fixed on the Mariner with blame. The Mariner saw the curse in their eyes for seven days and nights but he could not die. No doubt, the Mariner has begun to understand and accept his responsibility for their deaths. In short, an orphan's curse can cause death but the curse of a murdered one can cause life-in-death.

(a) It is an ancient .......... stopp'st thou me?

REFERENCE

(i) Poem: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

(ii) Poet: Samuel Taylor Coleridge

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Part I (Lines 1-4/626)

(ii) Content:

An ancient Mariner detains a Wedding Guest to narrate the story of a sailor. During a voyage, the sailor kills an albatross. This crime invites sufferings. After much suffering, he understands the oneness of God's creation and blesses the water snakes. This marks the breaking of the curse. However, the avenging spirit imposes a heavy penance on him. Finally the ship sinks and the sailor is saved in a pilot's boat. Ever since that day, the sailor rooms from land to land to relate his story.

EXPLANATION

In these lines the poet describes the Mariner's detaining a guest on his way to a wedding. The Mariner is the central figure of the poem. There is a strange sense of mystery about him. It is not proper to use "it is" when referring to a human being. However, Coleridge uses the phrase to introduce his Mariner has the effect of transforming him from a man of flesh and blood into something akin to a force of nature. The word 'ancient' conveys the two-fold sense of 'old' and 'of old time'. The Mariner stops one of the three Wedding Guests. The number 'three' is one of the numbers to which a mystical or supernatural significance has been attached. The main features of this Mariner are his grey beard and glittering eyes. The grizzled beard shows the old age of the Mariner. However, his glittering eyes are hypnotic. He holds the attention of the Wedding Guest with his eyes. The Wedding Guest asks him why he is detaining him. The protest of the Wedding Guest is truly dramatic and introduces and element of action.

(b) And I had done .......... the breeze to blow.

REFERENCE

(i) Poem: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

(ii) Poet: Samuel Taylor Coleridge

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Part II (Lines 91-94/626)

(ii) Content: An ancient Mariner detains a Wedding Guest to narrate the story of a sailor. During a voyage, the sailor kills an albatross. This crime invites sufferings. After much suffering, he understands the oneness of God's creation and blesses the water snakes. This marks the breaking of the curse. However, the avenging spirit imposes a heavy penance on him. Finally the ship sinks and the sailor is saved in a pilot's boat. Ever since that day, the sailor rooms from land to land to relate his story.

EXPLANATION

In these lines the poet describes the self-awareness of the ancient Mariner for his crime and the condemnation of his shipmates for the crime. The ancient Mariner has killed an albatross with his cross bow. Now he comprehends the evil of his act and the coming punishment. So he says that he has done a 'hellish thing'. He also realizes that his crime will also affect his shipmates. This will bring misfortune to all of them. On the other hand, his shipmates also cry out against the ancient Mariner. They all assert that he has killed the bird which had made the favourable wind to blow. For them, the bird was an agent of life and luck. It allowed them to continue their journey and survive. In short, Man is a sinful creature, but redemption awaits him if he repents his wrongdoing and performs penance.

(c) Are those her ........ the Woman's mate?

REFERENCE

(i) Poem: The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

(ii) Poet: Samuel Taylor Coleridge

CONTEXT

(i) Occurrence: Part III (Lines 185-189/626)

(ii) Content:

An ancient Mariner detains a Wedding Guest to narrate the story of a sailor. During a voyage, the sailor kills an albatross. This crime invites sufferings. After much suffering, he understands the oneness of God's creation and blesses the water snakes. This marks the breaking of the curse. However, the avenging spirit imposes a heavy penance on him. Finally the ship sinks and the sailor is saved in a pilot's boat. Ever since that day, the sailor rooms from land to land to relate his story.

EXPLANATION

In these lines the poet describes a spectre-ship and its crew. This ship has ribs like bars of a grate. In other words, the ship looks like a skeleton. The mysterious ship sails in front of the setting sun, and rather then blocking out part of the sun completely, it just looks like the sun has bars in front of it. The ship's skeletal appearance contributes to the poem's creepy vibes. The crew of this skeleton ship comprises of two figures. One is male and the other is female. Male is the personification of Death. Death here represents complete death. The other is its bride. It is the personification of "Life-in-Death". It represents a state of death that exists in life. In short, these lines are replete with supernatural elements and create an atmosphere of fear and horror.

RAPE OF THE LOCK PAST PAPERS till 2021

RAPE OF THE LOCK PAST PAPERS

YEAR 2004

Attempt any FOUR questions including Question No. 1 which is COMPULSORY. All questions carry equal marks. Be brief and to the point. 

Draw a character sketch of Belinda as portrayed in the Rape of the Lock.

 YEAR 2005

In the 'Rape of the Lock' the metamorphosis of the epic gains full creative freedom. Discuss.

 YEAR 2006

 Do you agree that in The Rape of the Lock, the mock-heroic element is not the dominant interest but the brilliant picture of fashionable life? Discuss.

 YEAR 2007

 Discuss Pope as a satirist.

 YEAR 2008

Pope described 'The Rape of the Lock' as a heroic-comical poem. What did Pope mean and how far did he succeed in his purpose.

 YEAR 2009

Discuss Pope's 'The Rape of the Lock' as a satire on the manners and morals of contemporary English upper class.

 YEAR 2010

 How far do you thin Pope's Rape off the Lock breaks free of the biographical and becomes a satire on the universal?

YEAR 2011

Discuss the main characteristics of Pope's satire in the light of his poem The Rape of the Lock.

YEAR 2012

 Discuss "The Rape of the Lock" as a social satire.

YEAR 2013

How far do you agree that Pope has successfully exploited the mock epic form to satirize the fashionable eighteenth century English society in The Rape of the Lock?

YEAR 2014

Discuss the significance of the supernatural machinery in The Rape of the Lock (Pope's The Rape of the Lock).

YEAR 2015

 Why is Pope considered a representative poet of the 18th century England? 

YEAR 2016 :

 Pope exposes the follies of the time in Rape of the lock. Discuss with reference to the poem

YEAR 2016/S :

 Discuss Belinda as the representative of 18th century feminine sensibility

YEAR 2017: 

What kind of a picture of the 18th century social life do we get in the rape of the lock ?

YEAR 2017/S :

To make a trivial episode into an epic theme and to treat the social emotions of the 18th century England with an assumed epic seriousness is the hallmark of Pope as a poet in the RAPE OF THE LOCK . Do you agree ? Elaborate your answer

social customs*

YEAR 2018: 

Pope's Rape of the lock is a satire on the 18th century England ?

17. How is Belinda representative of eighteen-century elite society? What moral lesson do you draw from "The Rape of the Lock"? (2019) 

18. Critically examine Canto I in The Rape of the Lock 1/2 (2019)

Write a note on Belinda's character in Rape of the Lock.(2020)

Write a  critical note on significance of supernatural machinery in rape of the lock.(2020)

PREPARED BY ASMA SHEIKH