Arundhati Roy's War Talk-Democracy(Chapter-3)-over view

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Roy begins this chapter in harsh tone that “right now people sipping from the poisoned chalice- a flawed democracy laced with religious fascism”. Roy use this reference laced with religious fascism to discus regarding the Sabarman Express incident and consequences. Roy’s friend from Baroda called her at late night and said how her friend Sayeeda caught by mob and how her stomach had been ripped open and stuffed with burning rags. After she dies someone carved “om” on her head.

Indian PrimeMinister, A.B.Vajpayee, also justified this as part of the retaliation by outraged Hindus against Muslim “terrorists” who burned alive fifty eight (58) Hindu passengers on the Sabarmati Express in Godhra. The two sides try & call attention to the religious difference by slaughtering each others. They workship at the same altar and both apostles of the same murderous god.

Godhra outrage, planned program was unleashed against the Muslim community. It was led by the Hindu nationalist (Vishwa Hindu Parishad & Bajrang Dal). It is officially informed that 800 people dead due to this but un official report said it is more than 2000. Moreover one hundred and fifty thousand people driven from their home and live in refuge camp. Women were stripped, gang raped, parents were bludgeoned to death in front of their children. Everywhere in country filled blood sheet. Roy mocked these two incidents by question which Hindu scripture preaches this? And which particular verse in the Koran required that they be roasted alive? This situation is like people in India, sipping from a poisoned chalice.

After this outrages, the Muslim business have been shut down, Muslim people are not served in restaurants. Muslim children are not welcome in schools. Muslim parents tell their children not to call them ‘Ammi’ or ‘Abba’ in public because it invite them sudden and violent death. Sabarmati express in Godhra with the same degree of outrage with which condemn the killings in the rest of Gujarat.  People did not know what exactly happen to Godhra Express whether it is political or religious. According to Government progrom against the Muslim community in Gujarat is Spontaneous reaction.

The Chief Minister of Gujarat, Modi resign from his post after attending the meeting of the nation executive of the BJP in Goa. Afterthat in public speech he compared the events of the last few weeks in Gujarat to Gandhi’s Dandi March-both according to him struggle for freedom. This situation made Roy to think contemporary India and pre-war Germany are equal. It is not surprising her because RSS frank in their admiration for Hitler and his methods. Only difference is instead of Hitler India have mobile symphonic orchestra.

India have pogroms before every kind of pogrom which directly at particular castes, tribes, religious faiths. In 1984, Following the assassination of Indira Gandhi, the Congress party presided over the massacre of three thousand (3000) Sikhs in Delhi. In every case, the congress sowed the seed and BJP has swept into reap the hideous harvest. Both parties has only one difference that Congress sinned and grieve at night but BJP does at day with pride.

Bal Thackeray of Shiv Sena, who gave upstaged by Modi has the lasting solution. He called people for civil war. This made Roy more anger so she said then “pakistan won’t need to bomb us, we can bomb ourselves. Let’s turn all of India into Kashmir”. This only benefit British & America arms dealers. Finally she concludes this chapter by saying, unless we join hands, nothing we can do for this injustice and inequality.

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 Killing the Water

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Ø The narrator reached the place Dhaka in Bangladesh. But it filled with air pollution. This is quiet different for him. The people were the mask where once filled with good air.

Ø Now he narrate the changes occur in the place. At first he says how Mymensingh Road named as Kazi Nazrul & later he say how railway line road change into Sonaragaon hotel

Ø However,his place still have the touch of traditional so that he find horse carriages, bullock carts etc

Ø Later his place is filled with palatial residences and they had a very rich life but his father is not like them.

Ø His father abandoned his job in Calcutta and settled in Dhaka when Second World War comes to close.

Ø He only had small land in Dhaka and Ford jeep

Ø This jeep is also not belong to him. He got this jeep from the American soliders who closed up their shop with the victory over Japanese.

Ø Now he runs small business of transporting and selling firewood.

Ø His mother married his father with the condition of continuing her schooling into medical college.

Ø But two years later she drop-out because his father (her husband) flirt with other nurses. Later they had four children

Ø His mother is city –born, learned modern medicines but she always use ayurveda for her children whenever they fall ill.

Ø His mother often said, the water is source of life whenever she said this his father murmured, water is death than life because his village is near to bank of river Jamuna. He lost his kinfolk due to flood.

Ø However his mother uses her chance to say how water is important. Once such a chance is Monsoon pilgrimage trip.  His father asks narrator’s elder brother to fetch water to prevent engine from overheating. This makes take her opportunity to say how water is source of life even for modern machine.

Ø Near to his home there is a pond, which filled with fish. This pond is always associated with story.

Ø The evil men insulted or attacked saint. This saints change the evil does in to fish, turtles or crocodiles with their magical power. However the saints is known for their mercy so they setup places of pilgrimage where travellers would gather & feed those unfortunate souls in to eternity

Ø The narrator place is filled with greenery so there is lot of ghost story associated with palmyra tree. Though narrator does not believe this he and his sister often hear swoosh swoosh sound above their rooftop near Palmyra tree where they play in  the morning

Ø One day dozens of dead fish float side way on the pond. They worried if the catch disease but his mother concluded by saying “somebody must have placed a curse”

Ø To remove the curse she poured blessed water. She believed it help the pound to clean. Moreover she asks her husband to dumb potassium permanganate. But that made water turned in to purple and settle in to state of greenish scum

Ø Later days they found the oil waste under the bridge but people does not care about it.

Ø Once birds flocked to the ponds but now they never return. The foul smell soon over whelmed the surface of the water. The pond is spoiled and many trees lost their life include Palmyra tree and swoosh-swoosh sound vanished from rooftop. That shows spirits also gone.

                                      

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Shakespearean Sonnet-12

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Sonnet-12

The sonnet’s position in the sequence at number twelve coincides with the 12 hours on a clock face. When the narrator observes the clock, it gives an account of speech by chiming. It makes him to see how the brave day sunk turning white as he becomes in the hideous night. This realizes him how the perfect period is fade. “When I behold the violet past prime” here “violet “refers the emblematic of the spring and new growth and “past prime “refers the fading of the perfect period. The narrator said he witness how black hair of young turning white as he becomes an old man.

In second quatrain the narrator describes how ageing happens to nature. The narrator added further by giving the example of lofty trees and summer green crops. During spring the trees covered with leaves and it gives shade to cattle and humans but heat turns the trees in to barren and alone. During harvesting time the summer’s green like wheat and barley cut and bound into bundles which were carried to the threshing barn on a bier. “Bier” is also used for carrying the coffin at a funeral so it symbolically refers when people turns old they were taken away by time.

“Then of thy beauty do I question make” this all events begin the narrator to question the reality of fair lord’s beauty because fair lord also will decline and decay like all things. Now the narrator realize even sweet and beautiful things never left forever because the time has power to change everything. “And die as fast as they see others grow” the line refers in this world the only continuous process is mutation as one thing dies; another thing grows to replace it. This line also refers the jealous of people who only witness the growth of others and fail to live their life.

The couplet describes how to save human beauty against the power of time. There is no defence against time and death which carrying a scythe but the only way he can fight against time is by breeding and making a copy of him.

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