Kushwant Singh's Mano Majra

Introduction

Kushwant Singh is a famous Indian writer.  Mano Majra is the first chapter of his famous novel Train to Pakistan.  This chapter describes the village and its people.

Description of Mano Majra

The village Mano Majra is situated in between Delhi and Lahore, at the banks of river Sutlej.  It is half a mile away from the village because the river floods during rainy season and it comes into the village.  There are three brick buildings in Mano Majra.  One is the house of Lala Ram Lal, the only Hindu in Mano Majra.  Lala Ram Lal is a moneylender.  The two brick buildings are a mosque and Sikh temple respectively.  Apart from these religions there is a pseudo Christian in the village.  In spite of their religion, all the villagers go the stone bench and offer prayers.

Description of Railway Station

The railway station at Mano Majra is a busy place.  The train passing the station takes the single track that runs over the river Sutlej; therefore, many trains stop at Mano Majra station.  There are many wagons around the station, to load the goods train.  There are many sellers in the station.  The stationmaster of Mano Majra sells tickets, collects them, sends and receives messages, and waves the flag.  A person who changes the track and takes the light signal during night assists him.

Morning mail train

Trains play a vital role in the life of Mano Majra.  Early in the morning, the morning mail train crosses Mano Majra.  It blows two whistles on which the Mullah of the mosque wakes up and sings the Morning Prayer.  On hearing the mullah’s prayer, the priest of the Sikh temple wakes up and cleans the temple and starts chanting a prayer.  The whole of the village wakes up after sometime.

The passenger train

By 10.30 in the morning, a passenger train from Delhi to Lahore crosses Mano Majra.  During the time it passes the men are in the fields, the women are busy doing their daily works, the children are busy grazing their cattle.  The bullocks are busy, the sparrows are flying and the dogs are sleeping in the street.

The Noon Train

At noon when the express train cross, the men in the fields has their lunch, the children start to swim in the pond, the women in house pick lice and talk about many things.

The Evening Passenger

At evening, the passenger train comes from Lahore to Delhi.  When it crosses, all the people come back to their homes.  They put their cattle at the respective places.  The women in the house are found busy preparing meals for dinner.

The Night Train

During night, a train passes Mano Majra.  During that time, the Mullah of the temple sings a prayer and the Sikh priest follows him.  The villagers will fall asleep on hearing the sound of train.

Summary of J. C. Hill's Good Manners

         

Introduction

J. C. Hill is a famous English writer.  J. C. Hill’s Good Manners is an extract from his famous book An Introduction to Citizenship.  This essay talks about the manners one should have in the society.

The story of the young man

The author opens the essay with a story of a young man.  The young man would be very proud of himself.  He would be selfish.  He never minds about others.  Once a disease attacked him and then it was difficult for him to walk and stand in the bus.  Only at that time, he saw others, who were unmindful of him.  He was cured and later he started helping others.  Through this story, the author wishes to say that we should care for people around us, which is a good manner.  He asks us not to laugh at the old people who find it hard to cross the road.  He says that our laughter will turn back to us soon, as it happened with the young man.

Speaking in company

He asks us to be cautious while speaking with others.  If we are talking with another person, we should give him a chance to speak too.  If they do not speak, it means that they do not want us to talk too.  Then we are asked to be listener cautious too.  If we speak of some subject, we should be aware of the fact that the listener might have a different idea about what we are talking.  The author gives different meanings for the word socialism for different people.

Understanding ourselves

The author advises us to understand ourselves before teasing or talking ill about others.  He gives several examples for this.  If an old woman asks a boy with scout uniform whether he is a scout boy then the boy should explain himself.  He should not scold her for being silly.  He also says that none of understand ourselves.  He gives an experiment as an example.  The experiment conducted in a college in which the students were shown a bull picture.  Some students said that the bull’s tongue was out of its mouth, but it was not so.  The author says that every one of us are not aware of ourselves and we should take care of what we argue and speak.

Conclusion

The author concludes the essay by saying that there is not single truth in the world.  What might be true to us might be false for someone else.  So he asks us to cultivate the good manners of understanding other people and not hurting them.

Summary of R. K. Narayan’s Better Late

Introduction

R.K. Narayan is one of the pioneers of Indian writing in English.  He has written many novels and short stories.  All his stories are simple in its subject and in language.  Better Late is a prose, which talks about punctuality in Indian context.  R.K. Narayan prefers to do things a bit late than being punctual.

Student’s Explanation for Late Coming

            The author opens essay by quoting an incident: a student comes to the class regularly late.  When the teacher asks for the reason, the student replies as ‘better late than never’.  The teacher accepts the reason because the student has not dropped his education altogether. 

Writer’s Opinion on Delay and Unpunctuality

            The speaker accepts a little delay and unpunctuality in daily life.  Circumstances lead to such delays.  Punctuality is expecting too much from others.  Expectations always deceive us.  According to the author most things can survive a little delay.

Indian Punctuality

            In Indian context punctuality is something that is never to be expected.  If we tend to expect punctuality then even a carpenter would give shock to us.  If we ask a carpenter to do a work for us and he would promise to do the work the next day, we should not be particular about the timing.  We should give him about 15 days or more for the work to be carried out.  He would not forget his promise but he must have said the same to others.  He would some day or the other finish the work because he needs money.

Time in Contracts and Agreements

            The author strongly believes that wisdom comes late.  When we talk to a person or face a situation, we would think of better ideas or dialogue after a long time.  So the author thinks that it is better to postpone certain things for better results.  When the author was in a critical situation he would delay making a decision so that he may not suffer due to wrong decisions.  He gives joint families as an example, wherein it is easy to postpone things by saying that we have to consult with someone in the family and that someone will never be available.  This happens in business when we say that we have to consult our partner.

Wrist Watch

The author gives a man who is time conscious.  He is time conscious because he is wearing a costly wristwatch.  He often stares at his watch and complain people who are not punctual.  A watch in our context must be a mere ornament and not a guiding factor.  Women’s watch are said to be ideal, because the dial in it is small and they would not let the time clearly and easily.  They permit a little delay in doing things.

Committees in Government

            Most times the government postpone certain threats and troubles by forming committees.  Committees will spend more time in eating and by doing many odd things rather being constructive.  They delay their work to an extent that the urgency or the need of currency will be forgotten and people will be busy with some other work.

Conclusion

            This is a personal essay, which reflects R.K. Narayan’s ideas about punctuality.

Summary of Stephen Leacock’s How T Be A Doctor

Introduction

            Stephen Leacock is a Canadian essayist and short story writer.  All his writings are humorous  in nature.  He is a satirist, who makes fun of human nature.  In this essay he makes fun of educated doctors and science.  He compares and contrasts modern science with old age wisdom.  He questions about the pathetic condition of patients.

Progress of Science

            Stephen Leacock is proud while discussing the progress of science.  He feels as if he invented electricity and vacuum cleaner.  He says that the progress in the field of medicine makes our heart expand with pride.  Hundred years ago, there were no diseases like bacilli, ptomaine poisoning, diphtheria, appendicitis, rabies, psoriasis and parotits.  Today, they all have become common household names.  Leacock satirically thanks the advancements in the field of medicine for this.

Harmful Diseases and Substances Before Many Years

            Before 100 years, fever was cured by letting of the blood.  Before 70 years, sedative drugs were given for fever.  Before 30 years, low diet and application of ice was given for fever.  Today, no such simple medication is followed to eradicate fever.  During olden days, people carried potatoes in their pockets to kill rheumatism.  Now no such thing happens.  Advancement in medical science has led to complications.  Epilepsy was also cured easily during olden days.

Modern Doctors

            Leacock discusses about the time taken by a person to become a qualified practioner.  During olden days, it takes two winters to complete a medical course.  During summer, the learners would do some other work.  However, in modern days a learner takes more than eight years to be a practioner.  It makes the person lazy.

Doctors Handling the Patients

            Modern doctor’s business could be acquired in two weeks, says Leacock.  When a patient consults the doctor, the doctor hits him at his back and sends a hook under the heart of the patient to know whether if pains or not.  The doctor gives a blow on his stomach, which makes the patient fall.  The doctor would read the morning newspaper and ask the patient to be quiet and go to bed.  The patient will get well quietly, if not he will die quietly.  They never question the doctor.

Advice On Diet

            A doctor’s advice on diet to his patient, varies according to his mood.  It the doctor is hungry, he will ask the patient to eat anything he likes.  If the doctor has eaten well, then he would suggest his patient not to eat anything.  The same is the case with the intake of drinks.  The patients are pathetic in the hands of the doctors.

Conclusion

            Even after knowing all these hardships, all of us, including Leacock, would like to rush to a hospital to save our lives.

Summary of Rabindranath Tagore's The Paper Boat

Introduction

Rabindranath Tagore is an Indian poet.  He has won Nobel Prize for literature for his English translation Gitanjali from Bengali.  He has written the Indian national anthem.  He has also written the national anthem of Bangladesh.  The Paper Boat is a short poem.  It talks about Tagore’s childhood days.  It shows a child’s perception of nature and world.

Reminiscences of Childhood

            Tagore writes this poem in the month of July.  July is a month of rain and shower.    Tagore recollects a particular day of July during his childhood.   He flashes back to that particular day.  Tagore, as a lad, plays alone.  He floats a paper boat in a small stream, which might have been a cause of rain.  Tagore is alone, yet he is happy with his paper boat.

            All on sudden thick clouds gather in the sky, the wind gushes heavily and there is heavy down pour of rain.  The still water is disturbed by the rain.  Mud mixes with the water and there are rills in the muddy water.  These disturb the smooth run of the Tagore’s paper boat and his mind set.

            The rain upsets Tagore’s boat and his peace of mind.  Tagore, as a lad, concludes that the rain had come on purpose.  Its motive was to spoil his happiness.  Tagore considers that the rain was angry with him.

            After thinking of his childish past, Tagore settles with his present.  He, at present, is blaming his fate for playing many tricks with him.  He regrets for scolding the rain when he was young.  At the same time, he is also laughing at his innocence about rain and nature, when he was young.

Conclusion

            Tagore’s The Paper Boat is a small prose poem.  Almost all his poems are prosaic.  This poem is small in its size and thought.  Tagore explores his mind as a child and relishes his own innocence after becoming an adult.  The poem depicts the worlds of innocence and knowledge.