13 January, 2010
2nd Year Poem Notes
Some of the poems in "Far From the Madding Crowd" have the same poet. For these poems, you can use the same notes. For example John Milton wrote "On his Blindness" and "Paradise Lost". John Milton's biography is present in "Paradise Lost"'s notes and also explains indirectly 'On his Blindness'.
Google Docs
11 January, 2010
The Divine Image (2)
Google Docs
By the way, this is one of my earliest works on Aqeedah. If you find any problems with it, email me at aarahman123@gmail.com
26 October, 2009
The Divine Image
Here is the Divine Image. You can see my proofreading with pencil on the pdf.
Google Docs
MediaFire
27 October, 2008
Gabriel Oak- Character Sketch
Gabriel Oak
A character from “Far from the Madding Crowd” by Thomas Hardy
Introduction
Gabriel Oak, the hero of the novel, is truly an admirable character from the onset of the novel. From the very first page, we are introduced to him and his sterling qualities. His characteristics make him unique and set him apart, and often above the rest of the characters. He is one of Bathsheba Everdene’s three lovers but his love is almost dormant and he does not openly express his relationship with Bathsheba. Unlike Boldwood, he does not use turn his affection for Bathsheba as his sole purpose in life nor does he flatter her like Troy so purposely did. Rather he expresses his devotion to her through ways that are neither frank nor obvious. In many ways, Gabriel Oak is an opposite to both Mr. Boldwood and Sergeant Francis Troy.
Appearance
When Hardy first introduces Oak, Oak is the owner of a small farm. Though he is a free man with high ambitions, he still wears modest clothing. His large coat, low crown felt hat and oversized boots adhere to this fact. Even when he gets promoted from a shepherd to a bailiff, the only noticeable change is that “He now wears shining boots with hardly a hob in 'em, two or three times a-week, and a tall hat a- Sundays,” In short, he is not too mindful of his clothes.
His Love for Bathsheba
Oak’s most distinctive quality is his love for Bathsheba. Hardy describes this love in the early part of the novel, “Gabriel had reached a pitch of existence he never could have anticipated a short time before. He liked saying "Bathsheba" as a private enjoyment instead of whistling; turned over his taste to black hair, though he had sworn by brown ever since he was a boy, isolated himself till the space he filled in the public eye was contemptibly small.
Throughout his time on Bathsheba’s farm, he does not mention once to anyone that he loves Bathsheba. Only those who know him closely have deciphered his affection for his mistress. Upon learning about Bathsheba’s marriage to
After
Even after Boldwood and
His trustworthiness and sense of Duty
One may say that Gabriel’s trustworthiness and sense of duty was due to his tremendous love for Bathsheba but there are many instances in the novel when he shows unnerving bravery and trustworthiness not because of Bathsheba. When Oak, then a weak and poverty-stricken man, arrives in Weatherbury he sees a fire. Instantly he rushes to the spot and tries to stop the fire. Because of his timeliness and skill, he succeeds in stopping it. Hardy also remarks that Boldwood later hires him as bailiff of his farm because of “the impossibility of discovering a more trustworthy man.”
Another instance of Gabriel’s trustworthiness is when he takes Fanny Robin’s dead body to Bathsheba. Bathsheba had entrusted the task to Joseph Poorgrass but he got carried away drinking until it became too late to hold the funeral that day. Gabriel scolds Joseph and takes the dead body himself.
With Bathsheba, his character was above exemplary. Without any instructions, he would make rounds each night on her property, making sure that everything was secure and safe. After her husband
His straightforwardness and truthfulness
Hardy comments that Gabriel Oak had too many Christian characteristics meaning that he is a simple, honest man who is not involved in or desired the least amount of trickery or deception.1 His straightforwardness is at the stem of these Christian qualities.
Early in the novel, during his conversations to Bathsheba, this characteristic is clearly shown. When he sees Bathsheba doing strange exercises on a pony which are usually unfit for a woman, he simply tells her. Bathsheba is taken back by his honesty and straightforwardness and becomes thoroughly ashamed. In the next chapter, when he proposes to Bathsheba, she tells him that she is a woman who has no property and he should instead marry one that can increase him in wealth. Oak naively answers, “That's the very thing I had been thinking myself!” Hardy rightfully ascertains that Oak’s lack of diplomacy will at this point get him no where near marrying Bathsheba.
Bathsheba, fully aware of this quality of Gabriel’s, uses it to her advantage. Whenever a problem arises or she is concerned about one matter or another, she decides to talk to her former lover, Gabriel Oak conscious of the fact that he will always tell her sound and truthful if not unpleasant advice. Near the end of the novel, she admits that Gabriel has been a mentor to her.
Gabriel’s dismissal from Bathsheba’s farm is because of this characteristic of his. When Bathsheba tells him to convey a message to her coworkers about Mr. Boldwood, he opts to tell her his opinion about the valentine she sent to Mr. Boldwood, knowing that it is harsh.
“That it is unworthy of any thoughtful, and meek, and comely woman.” “Perhaps you don't like the rudeness of my reprimanding you, for I know it is rudeness; but I thought it would do good.”
This straightforwardness though, has its good aspects as well. Near the end of the novel when Bathsheba asks why he has been avoiding her and has decided to leave his post as bailiff, he again replies with complete honesty. He assures her that his only reason for this supposed desertion of her is because people have started rumors of an affair between the two and he wants to preserve the dignity and respect of both Bathsheba and himself. She is belated and accepts his offer to marry her.
Simplicity and Appreciation of
One of the first things that Sergeant Francis Troy does upon his arrival is change the appearance of his (formerly Bathsheba’s) house. Oak protests by saying that the old things are still worthwhile and serve their purpose but
Another prominent example of the Oak’s simplicity and appreciation of old styles and themes is his promotion to bailiff at both Bathsheba’s and Boldwood’s farms. Hardy relates that
“…though his condition had thus far improved, he lived in no better style than before, occupying the same cottage, paring his own potatoes, mending his stockings, and sometimes even making his bed with his own hands. But as Oak was ... a man who clung persistently to old habits and usages, simply because they were old,…”
Self-Opinion
“The novel's hero, Gabriel Oak is a farmer, shepherd, and bailiff, marked by his humble and honest ways, his exceptional skill with animals and farming, and an unparalleled loyalty. He is Bathsheba's first suitor, later the bailiff on her farm, and finally her husband at the very end of the novel. Gabriel is characterized by an incredible ability to read the natural world and control it without fighting against it. He occupies the position of quiet observer throughout most of the book, yet he knows just when to step in to save Bathsheba and others from catastrophe.”-2
Notes
1- A Christian here, as well as in the novel, does not refer to a person’s religion or beliefs but rather his way of life. A Good Christian is known to be a person who is straightforward, honest and truthful to such an extent that he may be even called naïve or one who does not even understand the deception and deceit that people practice.
2-This paragraph has been taken from
Henchman, Anna. SparkNote on Far from the Madding Crowd. 27 Oct. 2008
25 October, 2008
Bathsheba Everdene- Character Sketch
Bathsheba Everdene
A character from “Far From the Madding Crowd” by Thomas Hardy
Introduction
Bathsheba Everdene, the heroine of the novel, is an intriguing character from the beginning of Thomas Hardy’s novel, “Far From the Madding Crowd.” Bathsheba is introduced in the first chapter along with Gabriel Oak. Though the two marry at the very end of the novel, their relationship at this stage as well as throughout most of the novel is turbulent.
Like all of Hardy’s characters, Bathsheba is inherently virtuous and is not in essence wicked. Nevertheless, she possesses characteristics which make her at times captivating while at other times abhorrent. It is these behavioral traits which cause the novel to be interesting and add new dimensions to an otherwise mundane plot.
Appearance
Fundamentally, “Far From the Madding Crowd” is a romantic tragedy. Hence, a romantic novel requires a character who is attractive and whom others are vying to be with. That character is Bathsheba Everdene. From the onset of the novel, the first man who meets her, Gabriel Oak, falls in love with her.
Even Mr. Boldwood, who had previously never set his eyes upon a woman, became infatuated with her. Liddy, Bathsheba’s maidservant companion remarked about him,
“Never was such a hopeless man for a woman! He's been courted by sixes and sevens -- all the girls, gentle and simple, for miles round, have tried him.”
Pride and Vanity
Foreshadowing a twisted and intriguing plot, Gabriel Oak remarks in the first chapter that though Bathsheba is beautiful, her greatest weakness is her vanity. This characteristic of hers influences many of her consequential decisions early in the novel, but soon dies away as she experiences the troubles and miseries of life.
The most memorable example of her vanity is in the first chapter when she looks herself in the mirror and blushes. This trait is further emphasized when Oak pays for her toll at the entrance of Norcombe Hill and she does not thank him.
After taking the management of her farm into her own hands, her workers express disdainfully that though she has little experience, she listens to no advice and thinks herself to be knowledge in all affairs. Henery Fray, one of workers says
“"A headstrong maid,1 that's what she is -- and won't listen to no advice at all. Pride and vanity have ruined many a cobbler's dog.”
Sergeant Troy, an impulsive and reckless man by nature entices Bathsheba due to this weakness of hers. As Hardy simply puts,
“He had been known to observe casually that in dealing with womankind the only alternative to flattery was cursing and swearing.
Bathsheba, as a result of the self-love of her charms, became a wretched victim to
Ironically, Bathsheba’s marriage to
Wildness and Impulsive Nature
As a young milkmaid, Bathsheba’s wild and impulsive nature is her second most prominent characteristic. Like her pride and vanity though, this too also erodes with the passage of time. As Bathsheba grows older, she becomes more thoughtful of the consequences of her actions.
Gabriel visits her house at Norcombe Hill with the intention of asking for her hand in marriage. She is not home and her aunt comments about her,
“You see, Farmer Oak, she's so good-looking, and an excellent scholar besides -- she was going to be a governess2 once, you know, only she was too wild.
Almost as if they are prophetic3 words, her aunt’s characterization of Bathsheba is shown in the same chapter when she runs to tell Gabriel that she has no suitors but still does not want to marry him.
"Well -- that IS a tale!" said Oak, with dismay." To run after anybody like this, and then say you don't want him!"
This characteristic is also later expressed when she, out of impulsiveness buys a valentine for one of her workers. And out of impulsiveness again, she decides to send it to Mr. Boldwood, a man of great respect and integrity. Glimpses of Bathsheba’s almost volatile nature are also brought out when she abruptly dismisses Gabriel and when she scolds her maids and her companion Liddy.
Another of Bathsheba’s prominent acts of impulsiveness is when she secretly tries to escape to
Boldness and Practicality
Early in the novel when Gabriel is suffocating in his hut, she, instead of becoming unnerved, throws milk unto an unconscious Gabriel and loosens his handkerchief to allow him to breathe. Months later, when Gabriel sees her as mistress of a large farm in Weatherbury, he is astonished at “the rapidity with which the unpractised girl of Norcombe had developed into the supervising and cool woman here.” Her abrupt dismissal of her bailiff, Pennyways, her decision to manage the farm herself and many other instances further enunciate this exceptional characteristic of hers.
Upon
“It is only women with no pride in them who run away from their husbands. There is one position worse than that of being found dead in your husband's house from his ill usage, and that is, to be found alive through having gone away to the house of somebody else. I've thought of it all this morning, and I've chosen my course. A runaway wife is an encumbrance to everybody, a burden to herself and a byword…”
This admirable characteristic is clearly depicted upon her husband Sergeant Troy’s death. As Hardy points out, “All the female guests were huddled aghast against the walls like sheep in a storm, and the men were bewildered as to what to do.” Bathsheba, on the other hand, was sitting upon the floor with her husband’s head in her lap. She was using a handkerchief to cover his wound and not allow the blood to flow. Upon Gabriel’s arrival, she immediately tells him to fetch a surgeon. Three hours later, when the surgeon arrives, he is astonished to see that everything has been arranged.
“It is all done, indeed, as she says," remarked Mr. Aldritch5, in a subdued voice. "The body has been undressed and properly laid out in grave clothes. Gracious Heaven -- this mere girl! She must have the nerve of a stoic6!"
Regard for her Maiden Purity and Want of
Bathsheba is not a shy woman but still views her maiden purity with high regard. When Bathsheba’s personality is first introduced early in the novel, Hardy remarks about her,
“Had she been put into a low dress she would have run and thrust her head into a bush. Yet she was not a shy girl by any means; it was merely her instinct to draw the line dividing the seen from the unseen higher than they do it in towns.”
After
“That minute's interval had brought … upon her a stroke resulting, as did that of Moses in Horeb7, in a liquid stream -- here a stream of tears. She felt like one who has sinned a great sin.”
This characteristic of hers propels the plot forward in many cases. For example she tells Gabriel that she would like to have all the niceties of a marriage but does not want to have a husband. And though she regards Boldwood with high esteem, she does not want to marry him and keeps delaying the decision to do so. It is only
Her regard for her maiden purity is associated with another desire of hers: her yearning to be independent. She tells Oak, “…nobody has got me yet as a sweetheart, instead of my having a dozen, as my aunt said; I HATE to be thought men's property in that way, though possibly I shall be had some day.”
Her Virtuous Nature
Like all of Hardy’s characters, Bathsheba is neither inherently evil nor possesses any malicious objective. Even
She sent her valentine to Boldwood on a whim without caring or thinking about its far-reaching effects. But after she realizes what it has done, she grieves for her mistake and tries in many ways to repent of her sin. Though she does not want to marry Boldwood, she does not want to reject him either, conscious of the fact that it was her actions which caused the love he had developed for her. She later agrees to marry him only because of this reason though every other instinct of hers tells her to do otherwise.
Self-Opinion
Bathsheba Everdene is an exemplary character in “Far From the Madding Crowd”. Though she has her faults and makes many wrong and disastrous decisions, she is always eager to correct her mistakes. Her good characteristics by far outweigh her bad ones and she is the most engaging and lovable character in the novel.
Notes
1-head-strong maid- This phrase used by Henery Fray means that Bathsheba is a woman who has little experience in how to manage a farm but still listens to no advice from anyone.
2-governess- Bathsheba’s aunt says that Bathsheba is fit to control and direct the making and administration of policy, meaning that Bathsheba has the traits necessary for management except that she often makes wild and inconsiderable actions, foreshadowing that she will become a manager some day.
3-prophetic-here I used the word prophetic to signify that her aunt’s words almost told the future, not necessarily that her aunt knew the future. The word prophetic has a different meaning from the word Prophet.
4-… high generation, hated at tea parties, feared in shops, and loved at crises.- here this quote refers to the fact that whatever Bathsheba, believes to be the right thing to do, she does it almost automatically.
5-Mr. Alderitch- in some versions of the novel, Mr. Granthead is used instead of Mr. Alderitch
6-stoic- meaning one apparently or professedly indifferent to pleasure or pain- refers to a member of a school of philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium about 300 b.c. holding that the wise man should be free from passion, unmoved by joy or grief, and submissive to natural law- Mr. Alderitch is impressed by the fact that she is almost emotionless.
7-Moses in Horeb- This phrase alludes to the verse 17:6 in the bible when Moses strikes a rock and water gushes forth from it so that the people can drink. Hardy uses this phrase to explain that Bathsheba cried so much that it was as if water from a spring was coming out from her eyes.
8-Jove- the Roman God Jupiter who was the king of Gods in
(Definitions of words taken from Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary)
17 October, 2008
Far From the Madding Crowd
Far from the Madding Crowd.
16 October, 2008
Humane Education- Critical Appreciation
Humane Education
By George Sampson
Critical Appreciation
In the essay, Humane Education, George Sampson elaborates the necessity of a humane education for every individual. He describes how education is beneficial to a person and how it is the need of every man. His argument is simple: A humane education is the right of every person and it has nothing to do with the economy, or a person’s social status or occupation. To further enhance his viewpoint, he also explains how society directly or indirectly undermines this belief and acts against it.
According to the author, humane education is a necessity for every man. It is one of the fundamental rights which should be available to every person, whether rich or poor, affluent, or miserly, intelligent or dumb. Humane education does not necessarily mean an extraordinary amount of education but, it means elementary education- or in other words- the basics. It does not refer to a specialization in one field or another but enough so that a man will look al the world a different way, in an intellectual manner. Sampson dismisses the idea that child labor itself is “humane education”. Education functions to broaden a person’s mind while work only causes him to learn to serve.
Humane education, according to the author, has numerous benefits. Education allows a person to think more broadly, understand things he previously could not, make better judgments of people and things, and creates a thirst for knowledge and art. Education turns a nomad into a cultured man, a person who knows the meaning of life, and how to live life to its fullest extent.
George Sampson explains how different segments of society dissuade humane education. The city councilor does not want everyone to be educated. He believes that education is “socially dangerous” because if everyone will get an education, there will be no factory hands and manual laborers. An educated person would not want a lower paying job and rather opt for higher paying one. His concern is that education for all would upset the social and cultural system as well as the economy.
The teacher, the child’s door to education, argues Sampson, is neither an advocate of humane education. The teacher supports education but with a catch. From day one, every teacher ingrains in a student’s mind that education is all about work and money. A person should study so that he can get higher wages later on in life and a better job. The teacher explains to the students that an educated person is wealthier and is higher up the social ladder than an uneducated person.
Sampson, on the other hand, says that Humane Education is not about money or wealth. Humane education is about living a life in the literal sense whether a person is rich or poor, low, high or middle class. So, when a teacher says that education betters a person’s financial state, or a city councilor exclaims that universal education will cause a societal upheaval, they are both wrong. Their methods are different but they are both teaching the same wrong lesson. Education should be understood as a necessity of life, not a means for wealth, social status or power. As the author says,
“A humane education is a possession in which the rich and poor can be equal with our disturbance to their material possessions.”