Play :- The Proposal

Play :- The Proposal


* About the Author :- 

                           Anton Pavlovich Chekhov born 29 January 1860 and death 15 July 1904 was a Russian playwright and short story writer who is considered to be among the greatest writers of short fiction in history. his career as a playwright produced four classics, and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics. Chekhov practiced as a medical doctor throughout most of his literary career: " medicine is my lawful wife", he once said, " and literature is my mistress".

* About the Play :- 

                      A Marriage Proposal is a one act farce by Anton Chekhov, written in 1888-1889 and first performed in 1890. it is a fact paced play of dialogue based action and situational humour. A young man Lomov comes to propose his neighbour Natalya but they keep on fighting on various topics. it has three characters. Natalya, Lomov and Chubukov. Lomov is 35 years old unmarried ladlord. Chubukov his neighbour who have twenty five years old daughter, Natalya. Lomov wants to marry her and so go to her house with marriage proposal. Chubukov warmly welcomes him. he tells why he is there. he says that he has come for marriage proposal to Natalya. Chubukov is very happy to hear that and kisses him. he goes to call his daughter. Lomov starts to think about him and Natalya. he thinks that if he will not marry now then he will never get married. 

                         Natalya is a good housekeeper, not bad looking and well educated. Chubukov had not told Natalya that Lomov has come for marriage proposal. Lomov was very nervous and he can not speak about his intention. he speaks of the old relations of the Lomov and the Chubukovs. he tells her that his late aunt and his late uncle had a great regard for her father and her late mother, and furthermore his property adjoins hers; his oxen meadows touch her birch woods. Natalya is shocked to her that the oxen meadows belong to Lomov. she claims that the meadows are hers, and not his. 

                            Chubukov comes and he takes his daughter's side. Lomov starts to palpitate and like he will faint. he runs out of the house and Chubukov warns him to never come again. when Natalya come to know that Lomov had came for marriage proposal, she blames her father for not telling her that and asks to bring him back. Chubukov brings Lomov back and they start conversation. again they starts quarrel. this time on their dog. Lomov says that his dog guess is best while Natalya says that her dog leap is far better than guess. again Chubukov enters and yell on Lomov. Lomov starts to faint and like he is dead. Natalya starts crying and asks to call doctor. Lomov starts to recover and Chubukov thrusts Natalya hand into Lomov's hand. both kiss and Chubukov gives them blessing. This play in Happy ending.

Thank You   

                         

Novel :- Heart of Darkness

Novel :- Hart of Darkness 

* About the Author :-

                                       

                           Joseph Conrad born 3 December 1857 and Death 3 August 1924 was polish-British writer regarded as one of the greatest novelists to write in the English language. Though he did not speak English fluently until his twenties, he was a master prose stylist who brought a non-English sensibility in to English literature. Conrad wrote stories and novels, many with a nautical setting, that depict trials of the human spirit in the midst of what he saw as an impassive,inscrutable universe. Heart of Darkness published in 1899.

* About the Novel :-

                             Heart of Darkness published in 1899 is a novella by polish-British novelist Joseph Conrad about a narrated voyage up the Congo River into the Congo free state in the Heart of Africa. Charles Marlow, the narrator, tells his story to friends aboard a boat anchored on the River Thames. This setting provides the frame for Marlow's story of his obsession with the successful ivory trader Kurtz. conrad offers parallels between London and Africa as places of Darkness.

                         Marlow takes a job as a river boat captain with the company, a Belgian concern organized to trade in the Congo. as he travels to Africa and then up the Congo, Marlow encounters widespread inefficiency and brutality in the company's stations. the native inhabitants of the have been forced in to the company's service,and  they suffer terribly from overwork and ill treatment at the hands of the company's agents.

                          Marlow arrives at the central station, run by the general manager, an unwholesome, conspiratorial character. he finds that his steamship has been sunk and spends several months waiting for parts to repair it. his interest in Kurtz grows during this period. the manager and his favorite, the brick maker, seem to fear Kurtz as a threat to their position. Kurtz is rumored to be ill, making the delays in repairing the ship all the more costly. Marlow eventually gets the parts he needs to repair his ship. 

                           They reaches at the area surrounded by a dense fog. when the fog clears, the ship is attacked by an unseen band of natives, who fire arrows from the safety of the forest. the African helmsman is killed before Marlow frightens the natives away with the ship's steam whistle. not long after, Marlow and his companions arrive at Kurtz's inner station, expecting to find him dead, but a half-crazed Russian trader, who meets them as they come ashore, assures them that everything is fine and informs them that he is the one who left the wood. Kurtz has established himself as a god with the natives and has gone on brutal raids in the surrounding territory in search of ivory. 

                              The manager brings Kurtz, who is quite ill. aboard the steamer. a beautiful native woman, apparently Kurtz's mistress, appears on the shore and stres out at the ship. The Russian reveals to Marlow, after swearing him to secrecy, that Kurtz had ordered the attack on the steamer to make them believe he was dead in order that they might turn back and leave him to his plans. 

                                    Malow listens to Kurtz talk while he pilots the ship, and Kurtz entrusts Marlow with a packet of personal documents, including an eloquent on civilizing the savages which ends with a scrawled message that says, "Exterminate all the brutes!" the steamer breaks down, and they have to stop for repairs. Kurtz dies, uttering his last words "The horror! The horror!" in the presence of the confused Marlow. Marlow falls ill soon after and barely survives. Eventually he returns to Europe and goes to see Kurtz's finance. she is still in mourning, even though it has been over a year since Kurtz's death, and she praises him as a paragon of virtue and achivement. she asks what his last words were, but Marlow cannot bring himself to shatter her illusions with the truth.

Thank You    

                         

Reflective Blog on ELT Professor :- Atanu Bhattacharya

Reflective Blog on ELT Professor :- Atanu Bhattacharya

                      This 3 Days Session on ELT (English Language Teaching) by Professor Atanu Bhattacharya from Central University Gandhinagar. From Date 25th to 28th Atannu Bhattacharya sir came to our Department for ELT-2. sir has talk about the History of ELT, Literature for Language Teaching Poem, Fiction, Testing and Evaluation: Validity, Realizability, Washback and Stages of Test Development. He also say that literature has not only useful. that language skill but also useful to critical skill.  

                      The first day sir talk about History of English language teaching. He said that established of Universities of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras (1857). This History is divided in to Five parts.

1) The Classical.

2) The Middle Age.

3) The Renaissance.

4) The 17th and 18th Century.

5) The 19th and Early 20th Century.

                            The Classical and Middle Age was taught is Logic, Grammar, Rhetoric, Philosophy, Theology. The Renaissance was taught is Education, Grammar, Rhetoric. The 17th and 18th Century was taught is Grammar, Philosophy, Education, Rhetoric. The 19th and Early 20th was taught is Linguistics, Psychology, Education, Anatomy. Then sir talk about the IPA (International Phonetic Association) in 1880 IPA realized it is important teach spoken language. the teaching of a second language in the classroom. the spoken language of everyday life and not the archaic language of literature. the language teaching an India perspective. sir connected it classical age.

                           Then sir talk about the Three Method.

1) Natural Method :- The Natural method it expose the students in natural language or teach directly.

2) Grammar Translation Method:- The Grammar Translation method use to our children. this sir talk about Latin and Greek grammar method.

  

3) Audio-Lingual Method :- The Audio-Lingual method as Audio visual and Army method. The audio-lingual method is an oral based approach using the method of deills with students to make them acquire the use of grammatical sentence patterns.

                        Then sir talk about the Five major fiction. 

1) Representative (Common part of speech).

2) Directive (ordering & questioning).

3) Commissive (offering).

4) Expressive (welcoming).

5) Declaration (specific person).

                   The Testing and Evaluation. Testing and Evaluation both are a very difference. There are Three terms.

1) Testing :- Specific, Particular objective. test can be created. Teasing generali in Score. testing also have different kind of pressure.

2) Evaluation :- Evaluation is not a score. generalized objective.

3) Assessment :- Feedback.

                         Basic concepts in Testing and Evaluation.

1) Proficiency Test :- tests people's ability in a language regadless of the learning process that one has gone through.

2) Achievement Test :- can be final achievement tests like your final exams. can be progress achievement tests or progress monitored tests should relate to objectives of the language use and also the way feedback is given.

3) Diagnostic Tests :- Diagnostic tests used to identify learners strengths and weaknesses. generally used in ESP (English for Specific Purpose). oxford practice grammar.

4) Placement Tests :- intended to provide a certain goal or objective in which the students are supposed to fit in. ex:- placement in any job.

5) Norm - Referenced Testing :- Norm-referenced testing is dependent on the test scores of other students. does not tell much about what the student is capable of. most achivement tests are norm-referenced. i testual ability, percentile score.

6) Criterion - Referenced Testing :- Provides information about what the student can perform in the language. the criteria are pre-defined and the students know why they are tested for. this is long process.

                                   Key Concept in Testing  

1) Validity :- Can be of two types content validity and criterion related validity. content validity depends on what the test is meant for and whether it is testing that. criterion related validity relates to examining the test results to highly dependable and independent alternative sources.

2) Reliability :- Depends on two factors whether the test can be used repeatedly; and whether the test can be used for various levels of students. use of different level.

3) Backwash :- The Backwash effect that rests have on learning and teaching. can be of two types: Negative and Positive.

                            Thank You so much Dilip Barad sir for organised this session. 

THANK YOU 

  

                        

                           

                        

Poem :- To His Coy Mistress

Poem :- To His Coy Mistress

About the Author :- 

                        Andrew Marvell born 31 March 1621 and Death 16 August 1678 was an English metaphysical poet, satirist and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1659 and 1678. During the Commonwealth period he was a colleague and friend of John Milton. His poems range from the love-song "To His Coy Mistress".

* About the Poem :-

                      

                        "To His Coy Mistress" is divided into three stanzas. it's spoken by a nameless man. the speaker tells the mistress that if they had more time and space, her "Coyness" wouldn't be a "crime". he be a "crime". poem focus more on "love" and "God". This poem is also about "love" and shyness of the beloved. the poet starts with the coyness of beloved saying that if both the lover, had enough time then beloved's coyness was no crime but hence beloved is so shy that is like a crime her shyness has become a crime because they have very less time left and if they could think over how to pass their "long love's day".

                       Then poet says that if beloved shall continue her coyness then one day when the death will arive her beauty will be no more as well as the echoing song also want be there once she is dead. the beloved is very coy and therefor she is not allowing the lover came close to her and therefore the poet says once she dead. then the poet compares with "youth" with mourning due. This poem is a very interesting. 

Thank You 

Novel :- Moby Dick

Novel :- Moby Dick 

* About the Author :- 

                          Herman Melville born 1 August 1819 and Death 28 September 1891 was an American novelist, short story writer and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are his magnum opus, Moby Dick Published in 1851 and Typee 1846, A romantic account of his experiences of Polynesian life. Moby Dick although now considered one of the great American novels was initially not well received by contemporary critics. his psychological novel.

* About the Novel :- 

                       Moby Dick or The Whale is an 1851 novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is sailor Ishmael's narrative of the obsessive quest of Ahab, Captain of the Whaling ship Pequod, for revenge on Moby Dick, the giant white sperm whale that on the ship's previous voyage bit off Ahab's leg at the knee.  

                           The tale of seen through the eyes of Ismael, a young man aspiring to be a sailor. He meets Captain Ahab of the Pequod, a whaling boat. The purpose of their excursion is to hunt whales and profit by harvesting their oil. However, he is driven to seek revenge against Moby Dick, a great white whale who took his leg. It is apparent by the first day, when he offers a reward for whoever harpoons Moby Dick.

                           The captain of the ship, the dark brooding Ahab, is obsessed with hunting a giant white sperm whale, Moby Dick. Some years ago during an encounter at sea, Moby Dick had bitten off Ahab’s leg. Thirsting for revenge, the one-legged Ahab decides to hunt the whale down. Thus, Ishmael, along with the ship's crew, is caught under the spell of Ahab’s obsession for Moby Dick.

                      Several days into the voyage, Ahab finally appears as a man seemingly made of bronze who stands on an ivory leg fashioned from whalebone. He eventually gets into a violent argument with Stubb when the second mate makes a joke at Ahab's expense, and kicks him. This leads Stubb to dream of kicking Ahab's ivory leg off, but Flask claims that the kick from Ahab is a sign of honor.At last, Ahab tells the crew of the Pequod to look for a white-headed whale with a wrinkled brow: Moby Dick, the legendary whale that took Ahab's leg. Starbuck tells Ahab that his obsession with Moby Dick is madness, but Ahab claims that all things are masks and there is some unknown reasoning behind that mask that man must strike through. For Ahab, Moby Dick is that mask. Ahab himself seems to recognize his own madness. Star buck begins to worry that the ship is over matched by the mad captain and knows that he will see an impious end to Ahab.

                       Moby Dick is a huge white whale. He was responsible for Captain Ahab losing his leg. Now Ahab is obsessed with destroying him. Despite being written during a time when whaling was acceptable in the western world Melville shows a distinct sympathy for the whales who were destroyed in their thousands by the whaling industry. The protagonist in this novel is Ishmael, an ex-schoolteacher who arrives in the coastal town favoured by whalers and signs up as a deckhand. He befriends Queeqeg, a harpooner, who helps him adapt to life aboard ship. Melville describes his subjects down to the very last detail so this book is almost as good as a text book on the whaling industry and the whales themselves. Ahab is one of those dark and brooding characters familiar in literature who is prepared to risk his ship, his crew and his life to capture his prey. Moby Dick, however, thinks differently and evades Ahab till the end.

Thank You