Elise Mackin
Rabindranath Tagore
1912- "Where the mind is without fear"
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;
Where knowledge is free;
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls;
Where words come out from the depth of truth;
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way;
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by thee;
Into ever-widening thought and action;
Into that heaven of freedom,
My Father, let my country awake.
The poet translated this poem from it's original language of Bengali to English himself, it was not translated by an outside source.
This poem was written as an independence protest when Britain was in control of India. Britain had total control over government and military affairs, which caused Indian nationalism to grow until the Indian Independence Act was signed in 1947.
https://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/modern-world-history-1918-to-1980/india-1900-to-1947/
Rabindranath Tagore was born on May 7, 1861 in Calcutta, British India. His father sen him to Europe for formal schooling multiple times, but each time he dropped out, as he did not agree with the education system and how learning was forced upon students in school. He is known for his legacy in writing the National Anthem of India. He also won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1913.
Rabindranath Tagore was born on May 7, 1861 in Calcutta, British India. His father sent him to Europe for formal schooling multiple times, but each time he dropped out, as he did not agree with the education system and how learning was forced upon students in school. Tagore supported Indian Independence, which was noticeable in his writing. He is known for his legacy in writing the National Anthem of India. He also won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1913.
1912- "Where the mind is without fear"
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;
Where knowledge is free;
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls;
Where words come out from the depth of truth;
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way;
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by thee;
Into ever-widening thought and action;
Into that heaven of freedom,
My Father, let my country awake.
This poem was written as an independence protest during the time period when Britain was in control of India. Britain had total control over government and military affairs, which caused Indian nationalism to grow until the Indian Independence Act was signed in 1947. The poet translated this poem from its original language of Bengali to English himself, it was not translated by an outside source.
As India breaks away from Britain, the people have achieved freedom from a constrictive power that controlled their government, social aspects, and implemented rules they had to follow in their own country. Breaking away from that toxic relationship is like ripping a binding rope between your wrists that restricted the Indian people from effectively carrying out their own wishes.
Paraphrasing: A country where people are in control of their lives, not afraid, united in peace, is the ideal society described in this poem. Freedom from imperial control is what allows the people living in society to begin to advance and grow.
Speaker: The speaker of the poem is glorifying an India that can only be attained once India has become independent from Britain. His political identity supports the dream in India where people have not lost reason and intelligence, and where people are free to learn and grow without being controlled by another country.
Figurative Language: When the poet writes, “Where the world has not been broken up into fragments,” he is using a hyperbole. The world has not been literally physically broken, but he means that divisions had risen between people throughout the process of fighting for independence and he hopes for his nation to be united again when they achieve their freedom. Then Tagore uses imagery when he says, “Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit.” He is appealing to the readers sense of sight by describing a barren, endless landscape in relation to an endless cycle of unreasonable relations with Britain.
Form: The enjambment of the poem aims to leave the reader pausing at select words, which helps to portray the purpose of the writing. In line three, Tagore ends the line in the middle of a sentence on the word, “fragments,” leaving your brain a longer moment to think about the broken pieces India needs to put back together.
Tone: The word choice of the poem conveys the tone and author’s purpose. Tagore uses words like, “clear… awake… reason… knowledge,” giving the impression that he views the solution to India’s problems as straightforward. He also uses, “heaven” and, “perfection” when describing how his nation will look when it is free.
Theme: Freedom in society allows knowledge and success to thrive.
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This poem made me think back to my childhood when we were fearless and accepting. We didn't realize how painful the world we lived on truly was. This poem highlighted what life was like before you're grown up, living freely instead of working harder, stressing longer, and worrying more. As a child, we are vulnerable to those above us.The poet could be comparing childhood to the aspects of an undeveloped or weakened country.
ReplyDeleteThis poem used a lot of symbolism to represent the feeling of innocence and freedom. The use of the domestic walls and the desert really helped me picture the idea of freedom to roam where you want with your thoughts. The poet could be using the idea of innocence to set a tone of pity to the reader to get his point across.
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