The exercise book by rabindranath tagore

Her sister-in-law was reading a mystery story, and had kept it under her pillow. Uma hunted it out and scrawled all over it with pencil: "kalo jaw, lal phul" (black water, red flower). She had almost obliterated the fine print of the horoscope book the family constantly referred to, in large letters. Right in the middle of her father's housekeeping accounts, she had written: "lekhapara karey jei garighora charey shei" (It is the one who studies who gets to ride in cars). Uma's elder brother Gobindolal, though not a great intellectual, often wrote popular pieces for magazines. He had put in a lot of effort in one and got it printed, but Uma scribbled all over it with big black letters: "Gopal baro bhalo chheley" (Gopal is a very good boy). Gobindolal was furious. He beat his little sister up and took away whatever meager writing material she had (such as, a pencil stub, a blunt and ink-stained pen). The humiliated girl could not fully Comprehend why she was being so severely punished. She sat in a corner and cried. Uma went to the girls' school in the village, escorted by the maid. The exercise book accompanied her, causing surprise and envy among her classmates. In the first year she took down short rhymes in it. She used to sit on the bedroom floor, clutch her copy, and loudly sing out what she had noted down. In the second year, she began to jot down lines of her own. For example, just below a fable she had copied down, she had written: I love Jashi a lot. Uma felt quite...

DR. ABHA TIWARI 1 P a g e COMMENTING ON THE FEMINIST PERSPECTIVES OF RABINDRANATH TAGORE BASED ON SOME OF HIS FICTIONAL WORKS DR. ABHA TIWARI Assistant Professor Dept of English, TMIMT Teerthanker Mahaveer University Moradabad (UP) INDIA Rabindranath Tagore is a prodigy of the nineteenth century Bengal Renaissance and is a versatile genius, who besides a poet, dramatist, essayist, musician and painter also distinguishes himself as a prolific writer of fiction. His novels and short stories often deal with some or the other social problems, more particularly ones related to women, like illiteracy, child marriage, dowry, mismatched marriage, etc. Tagore seems to be deeply concerned with the plight and predicament of women under patriarchy, which renders them prone to various kinds of oppressions. He has, therefore, strongly impressed in his narratives upon the need of women’s emancipation, self -identity and independence. In the light of the above, the present paper explores the various strands of Tagore’s feminist perspective s based on some of his Fictional Works Keywords: Bengal Renaissance, Colonial, Patriarchy, Emancipation, Feminist perspective, etc. INTRODUCTION Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), one of the most celebrated literary luminaries of the colonial India, was a byproduct of the Bengal Renaissance, which was brought about mainly by the introduction of English education and culture by the colonial Government in Bengal in the mid of the nineteenth century. Althoug...

R Tagore The Exercise Book | An Analytical Study R Tagore The Exercise Book | An Analytical Study ‘The Exercise Book’ by Rabindranath Tagore is a short story. It deals with the themes of contradiction between age-long prejudice against female education and new progressive thought of equality in educational opportunities for women. Along with this theme, the theme of child marriage is also juxtaposed in the story. The protagonist of the short story is a little girl named Uma. As a child, she was an exception as she had a chance to attend school. But as soon as she learnt to write, she became a nuisance in the eyes of others. She took to scribble on every wall of their house. She would draw unnecessary lines with a piece of coal and she wrote the rhyme: ‘Raindrops on treetops’. With huge scrawled letters, she obliterated most of the auspicious dates in the new almanac kept for household use. Right in the middle of the credits column in her father’s account book, she wrote: ”He who writes and studies hard Will one day ride a horse and cart.” Uma had a brother named Gobindalal who occasionally wrote essays on physiology. One day she took out her brother’s pen and ink and scribbled on an essay written by her brother. When her brother came to see her wickedness, he became angry and confiscated her store of writing implements — a stubby pencil, a blunt ink-pot and a stained pen. The humiliated little girl, unable to fully understand the reason for so severe a punishment, sat in a...

The Exercise Book • Rabindranath Tagore The story of Uma, a 7-9 yr. old Bengali girl , who loved to read and write in the Exercise Book which was given to her by her brother Gobindalal. She was married to Pyarimohan at the age of 9. Her maid, Jashi (Jashoda) brings Uma's exercise book when they go to Pyarimohan's house after her marriage. Uma writes in the book in the afternoons. But her sisters in law, Thilakmanjari , Kanakamanjari and Anangamanjari find out about it, informs Pyarimohan, who takes away the book from Uma. Theme A critique of the patriarchal society , who denies opportunity to women to receive education - Pyarimohan believes that if women learnt to read and write, it will be difficult to maintain household virtues. Women's education will be "danger" to their husbands' life. Child Marriage Girl children married off without their consent at a very young age. Uma doesn’t understand why she is sent away from her parents' house and thinks that it is because she used to read and write. She feels it like a kind of punishment. She is not allowed to come back to her parents' house (or even go out of her husband's house). Her brother Gobindalal believes that young brides shouldn't be allowed to visit her parents. Instead they should be devoted to their husbands. There are people who support whatever men like Gobindalal and Pyarimohan writes or believes, but there are no one to support Uma.

Little Uma pens down innocent throughts and songs in her exercise book. The book becomes her constant companion and she carries it with her even to her in-law's house. Married off at a young age, Uma does not know that society frowned upon reading and writing by women. She continues to scribble in her book, till one day it is snatched away from her cruelly.