English Summaries

Million Man March -       Maya Angelou Introduction Maya Angelou was an American poet, singer, memoirist and civil rights activist. She has written seven autobiographies, books of essays poetry and plays. In her poetry she uses wit, sarcasm, imagery and diverse rhythm. Historical background The Million Man March was a large gathering of African-American men in Washington D.C. on October 16, 1995. It was held on and around the National Mall. The African-American men from across the United States converged in Washington to convey to the world a vastly different picture of the Black male and to unite in self-help and self-defense against economic and social ills plaguing the African-American community.   Synopsis In this poem, the poet seems to address the men on the march. She uses varied imagery to narrate how a million men had come out to demonstrate their solidarity against the government for its ill-treatment of the ...

Fidelity -       William Wordsworth Introduction William Wordsworth is often said to be the harbinger of Romanticism in English poetry. He is known as one of the greatest lyric poets in the history of English literature. His poems are best known for their simplicity in terms of language and subject. Nature is a strong influence on the poet. Synopsis The poem “Fidelity” opens on a beautiful mountainous backdrop where a shepherd is startled to see a little dog barking unusually among rocks and fern. He wonders how the little dog could be there all alone in the rocky mountainous region away from human settlement. The shepherd sights a fish jumping out of a pool and a raven cawing as a mark of life in that isolated region. The sun’s rays and the howling wind seem to be rushing past the region. In the meanwhile, the shepherd anticipates something and follows the dog across the terrain only to be shocked to find a human skeleton on the ground. He r...

Cartooning -       R.K. Laxman Rashipuram Krishnaswami Laxman is the most popular cartoonist India has ever seen. His creation of the “Common Man” through his comic strip “You Said It” remains ever etched in the memory of Indians. Besides being a renowned cartoonist, he was also a writer and had published short stories, essays and travel articles. “Cartooning” is an excerpt taken from R.K. Laxman’s autobiography “The Tunnel of Time.” The writer recollects from his memory his teacher’s appearance, a stereotypical image. He smoked beedis. Whenever the urge came on him, he would appoint a monitor and go away. The boy’s stale stories would irritate the other students. He would write down the names of the suspects and would submit the list to the teacher. One day the teacher set the students a task of drawing the picture of a leaf. All set about it enthusiastically. One fellow drew a banana leaf that went out of the wooden frame of the slate. Another...

Alone -       Sheila Nayampalli Barua Sheila began writing late at the age of sixty. She completed her M.A. in English from Madras University. She taught English at a local college in Guwahati for twelve years. This story narrates the routine events of a day in the life of Anasuya who lives a lonely life on a flat in Bombay. It also presents a dreary outlook of an individual who chooses to live alone having lost her dear ones owing to unforeseen circumstances. Her routine observation begins at her apartment as the children next door say their goodbyes in a hurry to catch their school bus at 8:00 a.m. and the gates clash as they leave. This is followed by Mr. Hedge’s preparations for his Pooja in the opposite flat at 8:30 a.m. Next, at 9:30 a.m. he neighbor Nandita, the eldest daughter at home and the breadwinner leaves for her work. She closes the gates behind carefully and meticulously. Then, there is the absentminded Sarala who needs to close the ...

The Toys of Peace -           H.H. Munro (SAKI) Hector Hugh Munro was a British author who published under the pen name SAKI or H.H. Munro. He wrote many short stories and sketches. During the World War I, Munro fought in France and was killed in action. The story “The Toys of Peace” satirizes the campaign by the National Peace Council (Founded in 1908, and disabled in 2000, Britain), a coordinating Committee of anti-war organization, against violent toys. It proves that attempts by the parents and organizations to nurture children against their nature would not be successful. Eleanor Boper, mother of Eric, about eleven and Bertie who is nine and a half is concerned about her sons’ upbringing who she fears might be influenced by wars. Hence, she asks her brother Harvey to buy them peace toys so that they would become peace loving citizens. She reads out from a newspaper (London morning paper) cutting about the Children’s Welfa...

Money                                                                -      Muppala Ranganayakamma ‘Money’ is a short story written by Muppala Ranganayakamma who is a well-known Marxist writer best known for her work “Ramayana Vishavruksham”. This story, originally written in Telugu is a translation into English by N. Usha. It targets the social evil of dowry and shows how human relationships lose their sanctity owing to human greed for money. The writer critically looks at the social issue of dowry through this story. She highlights the degenerating human relationships as the greed for money increases. The narrator experiences surprises after surprises as the would-be son-in-law meets his prospective father-in-law to negotiate dowry with him. The prospective father-in-law agrees to give one crore in ...