Major English (Bachelors in Arts) | Tribhuvan University

 Reverend H.T. Johnson was a clergyman in America and "The Black Man's Burden" was written by him as a direct reply to Kipling's "The White Man's Burden". Johnson uses same form, similar rhyme scheme and meter to Kipling's poem to explicitly state that this is his counter to Kipling's highly divisive poem. The poem starts with the phrase "Pile on the Black Man's burden" that acts as a refrain which starts every stanza. Johnson sarcastically asserts to add up  to the black person's burden which is overbearing as it is. This creates a verbal irony as what he means is to leave the black man alone who already has a lot to deal with as it is. He points out specifically to the US as it need not look anywhere else but its "own door" and address the issue at home first. There is no reason to bother other countries like Cuba or Hawaii when the problem in your own country is burning.  He describes the armies of imperial forces a...

 "The White Man's Burden" is a poem written by a highly acclaimed poet Rudyard Kipling. However, the content and the message of the poem is controversial and highly divisive, especially when looked upon through modern perspective. The poem calls for the people of white race to take upon the burden of spreading civilization throughout the world. This is constantly enforced by the use of refrain "Take up the White Man's burden" in the beginning of every stanza. The speaker calls upon the "white men" to fulfill their natural calling by toiling for people that are nothing like them; to "civilize" them. Kipling firmly believes that this is the part of the greatest sacrifice the white race must make for the betterment of all humankind. The work that needs to be done will not be easy, hence he asks for the best men to assume this mammoth task. He stresses the sacrifice element by calling upon the mothers to send their sons into exile where they ...

I stand here ironing by Tillie Olsen is a short story that first appeared in Pacific Spectator. The story is written in first person format from the point of view of a mother of a troubled child addressed to the child’s teacher. The narrator is recounting her firstborn’s daughter’s troubled and precarious childhood. Hence the story takes a retrospective tone where she is reminiscing about her past and all the challenges faced by single mother in the middle of the twentieth century. The story begins with the narrator ironing some clothes. While doing this task, she is clearly troubled by a summon from the teacher of her firstborn child Emily to discuss about her current situation. It is hinted that Emily possessed high artistic potential but there lingers perhaps a dark side to her that is kept hidden. Hence she goes journeying into her past to the time Emily was born and all the hardships of that time. Emily was raised by the narrator as a single mother when she was herself merely nin...

"Is Arranged Marriage any Worst than Craigslist" is an article written by Anita Jain published in New York Times magazine. The author of this piece presents an Indian girl's scenario surrounding her marriage. She gives a first person account of the situations she has faced, the men she met and the idiosyncratic behavior of her loved ones regarding the issue. Since, the narration is given in first person perspective, it is safe to assume that the narrator is the author Jain herself. Jain masterfully presents the differences as well as similarities between two cultures - India against the Western culture exemplified by American society. By doing this she showcases numerous circumstances with humor which sets the tone of this story to be lighthearted. The story abruptly starts with a random instance when the narrator's father similarly cc'd an email to her regarding a match he had found for her. She was taken aback by this spontaneous and incongruous nature of her fa...

 "The Dead" is the last and arguably the most important of the short stories in the collection of Dubliners by James Joyce. Born in Dublin himself, Joyce was an Irish poet and novelist, revered as one of the most influential modernist writers. Joyce's "The Dead" is one of the short stories in the aptly named "Dubliners" which is the collection of tales about the people of Dublin from various walks of life. It focuses on the people rather than the place, the people who are the inhabitants of the city. "The Dead" on a superficial level is a simple story that can be encountered in normal life of the people. The majority of the story takes place at a Christmas party in the household of Julia and Kate Morkans. They are older women who seem to belong to upper class society but curiously who give piano lessons and consequently many of the guests are their pupils. They live with their niece Mary Jane and housekeeper Lily. The protagonist, Gabriel Con...

"The Book of the Dead" by Edwidge Danticat is an introspective tale of grief, repentance and the actions of the past as well as the question of possibility to finally move on and forgive. 'Ka', the protagonist is of Haitian heritage who resides in the United States. Her family moved to the USA as refuges during the violent revolution in Haiti. Although living a secure life, Ka notices certain behavior in her family that she finds strange. When the truth about her father's past life in Haiti is revealed, everything starts making sense, throwing her into a mental turmoil. The story begins with Ka and father on a road trip to Florida to the house of Gabrielle Fontanue, a celebrity TV star who too has her heritage in Haiti. Ka is delivering a sculpture she molded after her father to Gabrielle's which was made possible by a mutual friend. She takes her father along as he is a great admirer of Gabrielle. The story takes an awry turn when her father disappears with t...