Category: Literature

Literature broadly is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include oral literature, much of which has been transcribed.

How I Spend An Evening?

“Evening time” is the end of the day, And at this time we try to relax our body and mind, and every individual has a different way of relaxing oneself. Every person has a different way of greeting others. The Internet and mobile phones change our life completely. In the past few months, we have spent most of our time with friends and families more, but Today we use mobile phones all day and night. In other words, Today we can not live without a mobile phone; not only that, since social media has come, every person likes chatting in social media instead of talking to each other.

It’s impossible to even imagine how our life would be if there were no various tasty snacks. Most of us get back home, or complete our work by evening and relax with a cup of tea or coffee with something to munch on. The time where you have the deepest conversation or maybe end up overthinking. Snack is loved by people of all ages because it brings us a good taste, good mood and helps us heal from harms. Good food always brings good mood.

We face hard times! I am an optimistic and happy-go-lucky student of Class VIII who has firm faith in the good life, but my parents want me to stay ahead of everybody in this competitive world. There was a time when coming back after school meant joy to me. Four- thirty in the afternoon was good food, and seven in the evening meant time for studies. There was the beautiful period from four- thirty to seven in the evening when it was either cricket or football for me! How times have changed!

Ever since I reached high school, tuitions have been encroaching on my life like a desert encroaches upon a green pasture to destroy it. Well, it is not that tuitions are not important. Nor can I complain of a lack of dedication in my tuition teachers, but what I fail to comprehend is my parents’ obsession to ensure that this giant python called tuitions should develop a crush for me (pun intended!).

If I tell my dad that I am being made to take tuitions when I am quite comfortable with the subject, he gives a mature smile which betrays his being intrigued at my attempts to reason. He is perhaps under the impression that evolution is yet to catch with me. The final result is that he ensures that I meekly visit the concerned tutorial. up Thus my first tuition begins at 5 o’clock. From then to 6.30, I cram the concepts of organic and inorganic Chemistry. I leave this coaching sharp at 6.35 pm to reach another tutorial located 2 kilometres away before 7 pm. There begins my struggle with Shakespeare. It is not that I do not enjoy Shakespeare, but I do not have much stamina left by the time I reach the English tuition.

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My parents fail to recognise that the best part of a student’s waking hours is spent in school. And after that if I am sent to continuous tuition classes, when do I study myself? Moreover, we are taught to play for good health. If a boy does his schooling from ten to four and then does his tuitions from five to nine, when does he play to maintain good health? Yes, one may definitely expect destiny to play with my health. Thus, till 9 pm I struggle to stay awake in my English tuition and then I complete my projects, courtesy the Internet, for an hour after I reach home at about nine-thirty in the night!

I have dinner at ten-thirty which is when I also surf the television channels to locate some interesting entertainment. When I finally go to sleep at about eleven, I browse through some interesting book. My teachers always stress that reading builds character. I agree! But I can’t read for long! Although my school begins at ten am although I have Geography tuitions from 7.30 am to 9.00 am. Ah! So much for the sweet happiness of childhood!

MUST-READ TWO BOOKS BY PAULO COELHO – 2

Paulo Coelho wrote many best-selling books most of which are popular all around the world. And translated in various languages. One of his masterpieces is Alchemist. All of his works are related to self-help and motivational genres.

Book: Veronica Decides To Die

Veronica is a young woman who commits suicide due to being full of emptiness in her life. While she waiting for death after taking a lot of sleeping pills she fainted and found herself in an asylum alive. But Doctor said that she has only a few days to live due to a heart condition caused by the overdose. Her presence there affects all of the mental hospital’s patients, especially Zedka, who has clinical depression; Mari, who has panic attacks; and Eduard, who has schizophrenia, and with whom Veronika falls in love. At least she wants to live or not is the key base of this novel.

Why you should read this book: 

This one is not a boring plot, book content moves slow still does not let you drop the idea to read it. And this contains good vocabulary which is worth recommending to every reader. If you ever tried or at least thought once to end your life read this one it will make you believe in Miracle. 

Book Quotes:

People never learn anything by being told, they have to find out for themselves.

You are someone who is different, but who wants to be the same as everyone else. 

You have two choices, to control your mind or to let your mind control you.

Note: This book is also adapted as a film by Emily Young in 2009. 

Book: The Spy

Mata Hari, the beautiful woman, the dancer, the courtesan, and the spy. She was the center of attraction wherever she goes… As a dancer she delighted her audiences, as a courtesan, she bewitched the richest and powerful men of the era. But is she really a spy? 

Why you should read this one:

This book is based on real events. Mata Hari is a real person who is accused of espionage and executed.

On the back cover, it says, “Fiction.” But, I would rather love to say it’s a historical work. 

When a man sleeps with many women, do we care to say any terms? So, I can’t criticize Mata Hari for being a courtesan. 

In this work, I can visualize how men treated women as an object during those time. They gave preference for outer appearance. They wanted their wife to be loyal. But, those rules aren’t for them. And those things made my heart shrunk.

Book Quotes:

I decided to be who I always dreamed of. And the price of a dream is always high.

When we don’t know where life is taking us, we are never lost. 

At this moment, I look back at my life and realize that memory is a river, one that always runs backward.

Recommendations:

I don’t recommend both of these books to children especially if you are younger than sixteen. One book contains intimate scenes and another one contains sexual harassment scenes. Thus I would like to recommend these to elder readers who are more than sixteen.

TWO MUST-READ BOOKS OF PAULO COELHO https://eduindex.org/2021/07/18/two-must-read-books-of-paulo-coelho/

BOOK REVIEW: THE DA VINCI CODE https://eduindex.org/2021/07/19/book-review-the-da-vinci-code/

WHEN AND HOW TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATION CAME TO EXISTENCE?

The Victorian era witnessed great strides been taken in the fields of transport and communications. There was a remarkable improvement in the social life of England during the 19th century. With the introduction of steamships, railways, penny post, telegram and cables the entire society underwent a dramatic change. Life I was never the same again. The slow pace of the stage coach disappeared and the age of speed arrived.

RAILWAYS THE MOST IMPORTANT MEANS OF TRANSPORT:

The most important means of transport in the Victorian period was the railway. It was the outcome of experience conducted to find the best method of moving coal from mines to places where it was required. As Trevelyan puts it “the railways were England’s gift to the world”. The first efficient steam engine was made by James watt in 1769 this engines which was stationary were used at first to pump water out of mines or to operate the power loom in factories it was only later that these engines were used in vehicles the year 1819 is an important one in the history of steamship because the Atlantic ocean was cross for the first time by a ship fitted with steam engines “The Savannah”. The story of the railways is even more exciting. It brought about a complete revolution in the way of life and in the landscape of the country. Richard Trevithick what’s up pioneer of locomotives in 1804 steam carriage transporter carload of passengers for the first time. George Stephenson produced an engine which was used chiefly to carry coal. The first two railways lines in the world were built one between Stockton and Darlington and another between Liverpool and Manchester.

POPULARITY OF THE BICYCLE:

The popularity of railways founded the death knell of roads and canals. The public mail coach and the heavy family coach disappeared from the roads. They continue to exist on by roads connecting me railway station and the towns. The roads regain their importance only when the motor vehicles came into use. One thing that help the roads to regain their long lost importance was the fashionable use of the bicycle. The common use of the motor car and motor bicycle was yet to come when Queen Victoria died in 1901.

PENNY POST:

Many innovations were made in the area of communications in the 19th century. An outstanding development in the means of communication was the establishment of the penny post in 1840. It was the result of unselfish and tireless efforts of Sir Rowland Hill who was originally a teacher by profession.Post had been a government Monopoly in England’s in strain of James I. There was a tax on letters but it was very difficult to impose its deadly sins private travellers smuggled letters. The introduction of the penny post sending letters was a costly affair and something which the poor could not afford. Rowland Hill’s proposed hello rate of postage would increase the revenue of the state by increasing the volume of male, all postage rate should be the same without regard to distance and all mail should be prepaid for which he suggested a device which was known as the postage stamp. He he faced a lot of opposition in suggesting the postage stamp, from the indifference statement and uninformed civil service. Carlyle (a great writer of that time) in one of his letters to his mother expressed anxiety that the art of letter writing will become worsen. The letter writing system was very helpful to many and that was the first time for the poor, in the history of mankind to communicate with their loved ones from whom they were separated. It was a success.

ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH:

The same decade of penny post also witnessed the introduction of electric graph which was based on the invention of Samuel Morse. After the many difficulties Samuel Morse was able to build his first telegraph line in the United States from Baltimore to Washington in 1843. The next year he sent his first message “What hath God wrought”. Later after the spreading of telegraph lines, the inventor Samuel Moses was rewarded by many governments of Europe. The first telegraph company was formed in 1846 had 17 offices in London by 1854. the first successful cable was laid in 1866 and in 1870’s Stearns and Edison developed method of sending more than one messages over the wire at a time.

TELEPHONE:

The telephone was the most popular and easiest means of communication. It was invented by Alexander Graham bell and naturalized American. In 1856 with an apparatus embodying the results of office studies in the transmission of sound by electricity and this invention with modification and constitutes the modern telephone. After two years when Graham bell visited England he demonstrator is invention before Queen Victoria. Only per the support given by her, the first telephone exchange was opened in England in 1879 with 7 or 8 subscribers. Many telephone companies were organised in Great Britain in the cause of the next few years. The uses of telephone communication began to be appreciated the government gradually took over the service. It is today one of the easiest means of communications.

A Memorable Spooky Experience.

Image Source- google.

Ok, i will narrate my experience you can decide whether it was paranormal or not. Sorry some of you may find it lengthy. I am a big believer of paranormal, and may be this is the reason that i have had a couple of paranormal experiences.

Who Knocks?’ ‘I who was beautiful Beyond all dreams to restore, I from the roots of the dark thorn am hither And knock on the door.’

Lines from Walter De La Mare’s The Ghost haunt my memory as I take a walk back to the past. People usually refer to the past as dead and buried. Is it really so?

It was a cold night in Deogarh, Jharkhand. I was in Class V then. We were supposed to go to a party at a friend’s house about one-and-a-half kilometres away. My mother was working in the local school. Mum and Dad were supposed to reach the house of Barry Uncle, our host while I was to be accompanied by our caretaker, Ramu.

It was a moonlit night. Deogarh is surrounded by lovely hills and trees. The silhouette of trees in the moonlight is one combination I love. Ramu had an upset stomach after eating thirty-seven pakoras the day before. So I was going alone but I did not feel lonely. The moon was travelling with me. I could see it moving across the branches as I walked. The gentle laughter of a lady suddenly pierced the charming silence of the night air.

Image Source- google.

A girl in bright red appeared suddenly, ‘Why do you keep looking up to your left while you walk?

I was looking at the moon,’ I answered, rather embarrassed at having my romance with the moon noticed.

The girl asked, You are going to the party, right?”

“How do you know?

“It is a small place. People know each other. I will give you company.”

“So kind of you.

So we talked, laughed and joked for the next twenty minutes. 1 noticed her carefully. Red blouse, red and white skirt, light make up, bright red shoes. A small red bag. The lipstick was a bit too bright. She had amazing grace in the way she walked. Her lively but gentle laughter had the freshness of a mountain spring. We were discussing hobbies. She said she liked collecting old photographs. Why old?’ I asked.

She looked at me queerly and answered, ‘Old photographs have lots of hidden and forgotten stories.

“All right, I said.

Barry Uncle’s house was decorated beautifully. Music and lights welcomed us. Suddenly, the girl stopped smiling. She turned around. ‘What is wrong?’ I asked her.

I prefer the moonlight. I will not go in,’ she said and started walking away.

At least take this jacket,’ I offered her. She was my height and I knew about chivalry. She gave me a mysterious smile, wore the jacket, and walked into the darkness.

In the party, I grooved to the music for some time. I needed to have a wash. While moving towards the washroom, I suddenly came across a photograph of Barry Uncle with the stranger I had just met. “That’s my niece, Mary. She died two years ago in a tragic accident,’ Barry Uncle said, with a note of sadness in his voice. She is buried in the graveyard behind St Michael’s Church,’ he added.

This is indeed an experience that I would not dare to forget……………….

Time Management

Time management is the course of marshalling everyday routine to harness the maximum time available. Time management is a method to work smarter rather than harder to get more out of your time and resources. Everyone has the same amount of time – 24 hours a day; the key is to allocate appropriate time to your activities based on their importance.

It is up to one to utilize it whatever way one wants. One may waste it on insignificant things or use it productively; the decision is theirs. However, if one wants to get the maximum out of their time, one has to esteem time management. Time management can be very merely done through simple methodologies.

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Students should make a priority-based schedule regarding their studies and assignments. Time to different subjects must be allotted based on the individual difficulties faced by the students in that particular subject.

For example, if a student is good at physics and not so good in Biology; then he/she should award biology with a little extra time than physics. Even the time one likes to spend on TV or other activities must be included in the schedule to keep one in full control of their available time.

In today’s scenario people are so busy in their lives that they are not getting time for themselves. Due to which time management has become the need of the hour. Time management is playing a vital role in mankind. Time management creates discipline or vice versa. If you want to be successful in life then you need to manage your time. As a result, various billionaires teach about time management.

The Meaning of Time ManagementIn our daily life, we have got only twenty-four hours in a day. Therefore we cannot do everything in one day. This creates limitations in our everyday work. In order to manage work, social life and sleep, division of time is important. In a particular way division of time is the need. This will help the person to complete all his tasks. You should write your tasks in a schedule.Designing has to be in a way that each task gets enough time. Your work should have the highest priority. The second priority should sleep. And the last but not the least your social life. Your social life includes family and friends.In order to live a happy and peaceful life socializing is important. Too much workload can make a person ill. So, give your mind a little rest. Spending time with family can help you with this. Moreover, the main purpose to work is to fulfill the needs of the family. Since the fulfillment of needs is important. Which makes a person happy.

Importance of Time Management for StudentsThough adults are working, the students are not spared with work. The students today have many studies to do. Because of this, they are not getting time to enjoy their childhood. Time management for students has become a crucial need. Education has become vast. Therefore proper scheduling of time is important.

A good student knows the importance of studies. But he should also know time never comes back. Thus a student should take out time for personal development too. Since personal development is important for their proper growth. Moreover, personality development is also important for a student. They should at least take out one hour for sports. Sports teach student teamwork. Since it is enjoyable it lessens the stress of the day.The daily routine is School or college, and then coaching. This leaves with no time of self-studies. Self-study is an important aspect of education. The student should not neglect this. As the day ends, they get too tired. Due to which there is no energy left. This degrades the performance of the student.There is a difference between a topper and an average student. That difference is proper time management. A topper student schedules his time. While an average student does not do that. And because he never manages time, he gets no time for self-study. Which in turn leaves him behind.

Control of Air pollution

National air quality monitoring programme

  • Central pollution control board is executing a nationwide program of ambient air quality monitoring known as National air quality monitoring programme.
  • National Ambient Air Quality standards prescribed specific standards for residential, ruler, Industrialand other sensitive areas.
  • N. A. M. P, four air pollutants – Sulphur Dioxide, oxides of Nitrogen, suspended particulate matter and respirable suspended particulate matter (pm10) have been identified for regular monitoring at all the locations.
  • Network consists of 683 operating stations covering 300 cities and town in 28 states and 9 union territories of country.
  • Annual average- Annual arithmetic mean of minimum 104 measurements in a year taken twice a week 24 hour at uniform interval.
  • The level of air quality necessary with an adequate margin of safety to protect the public health vegetation and its property.

Air quality index

  • Air quality index is tool for effective dissemination of air quality information to people.
  • There are six categories namely – good, satisfactory, moderately, polluted, poor, very poor and severe.
  • The propose 82 I will consider 8 pollutants PM 10, PM 2.5 NO2, SO2 Co, O3, NH3 and Pb.

Control of air pollution

  • Control measures
    1. Technological
    2. Legal
    3. Economic

Technological approach

  • Adapting Lifestyle that uses less energy and pollutes less or using energy sources that produce less amount of pollutant as by-product.
  • Remove pollutant generating stuff from energy sources
    • example- Remove sulphur from coal before burning it.
  • Reduce the energy used without changing the way of life
    • Use more energy efficient car and replace existing bulb with CFL bulb and LED bulb.
  • Check the generation of pollutant their burned
    • Catalytic converter, electrostatic precipitator, scrubber, Bag house collection of particulate emission, cyclone separator etc.
    • Encouraging mass transportation.
Electrostatic precipitator
Scrubber
Catalytic converter

    Legal approach

    • After Stockholm conference, 1972 the Government of India under article 253 of the Constitution of India in enacted the Air Act, 1981 for the prevention control and abatement of air pollution.
    • To empower the central and state pollution control board. Air Amendment Act, 1987( for prevention and control of pollution) was enacted but this was not strong enough to play precautionary role.
    • After Bhopal disaster of Environment protection Act was passed in 1986 this act has punitive power to restrict any activity that would harm the environment.
    • To regulate vehicles pollution, the central motor vehicle act of 1939 was amended in 1989.
    • As per the current requirement all the transport vehicles must carry a fitness certificate which is to be renewed each year after the first two year of new vehicle registration.
    • National fuel policy announced on October 6, 2003 , a phased program for implementing the emission standards in India by 2010.

    Economic approach

    • Cost consideration of air pollution involves 2 factor:-
      1. Cost of controlling the air pollution
      2. Cost of not controlling the air pollution
    • Determination of cost of first in straight forward but that of second is difficult and can be subjective to some extent.
    • Direct air pollution control in India
      • Fuel wood and Biomass burning
      • Transport

    Control

    • Using low sulphur coal.
    • Use Proper air pollution control devices in industry
    • Individual efforts to control air pollution
      • Inform to Road Transport office and PCB about the vehicle polluting the environment
      • Regular engine tune up replacement of old more polluting vehicles
      • Shifting to less polluting fuels
      • Using mass transportation
      • Do not use CFC containing sprays for freshners that deplete the ozone layer.
      • Planting more trees
      • Say no to fire crackers in Diwali and other occasions.

    THE CHIEF CHARACTERISTICS OF A SHAKESPEAREAN TRAGEDY:

    Shakespeare wrote eleven tragedies such as Hamlet, Othello, Macbeth, King Lear, Julius Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra, Romeo and Juliet, etc… But, there are some chiefly Characters in Shakespearean tragedies. That’s what we are going to draught down one by one.

    1. Shakespeare’s tragedies are based on stories and incidents taken from history or legends. Some of the stories are borrowed from previous playwrights. He has recreated these stories giving them a sense of unity and ordering them into closely-knit plots. The essence of a Shakespearean tragedy is that action issues from character and plot. Generally, two groups of people and ideas are brought face to face leading to conflict. In a Shakespearean tragedy, the plot is composed of several parts like Exposition, Conflict, Crisis, Denouement, and Catastrophe. He did not observe the unities always.
    2. In a Shakespearean tragedy, the suffering of the hero is exceptional. A hero is a man of a high estates like Hamlet or King Lear. The hero identifies himself with a dominant passion from which he cannot deliver himself and which finally works out his destruction.
    3. Every tragic hero suffers from a ‘tragic flaw’ that leads him to the tragic end. Like, Othello
    4. The essence of a Shakespearean tragedy is conflict. The catastrophe rises out of the unsolved conflict. The conflict releases energy in the form of uncontrollable spiritual forces causing a violent disturbance in the moral order of the world. Thus, a Shakespearean tragedy in its final analysis is highly spiritual.
    5. There is a kind of fatality and inevitability in Shakespearean tragedy. All calamities come from a character in action. We feel helpless of man before the force he release. the tragic hero striking at himself. The hero’s character involves his fate.
    6. Shakespearean tragedy is not pessimistic. It gives us an insight into the possibilities of the human soul.
    7. Shakespeare presents abnormal states of mind like insanity, hallucination, and somnambulism in some of his tragedies like King Lear and Macbeth. Eg, supernatural agents like King Lear and Macbeth. Ghost’s in Macbeth.
    8. Shakespeare introduces accidents, chances, and prophecies in his tragedies. The most well-known among these are the incidents of the handkerchief in Othello and the witches in Macbeth.
    9. Shakespeare presents a moral world order in his tragedies. His concern was with the conflict causes a commotion in the moral world. Shakespeare’s tragedies show the successful emergence of good is destroyed but it survives. Thus, the tragedy is a presentation of ‘morality in emergence’. As Dowden says it is true that good can survive only at the expense of so much of the virtuous force of the world still it is well to be assured that evil, even at the expense of good can be subdued, such an assurance buoys us above despair.
    10. There is no poetic Justice in Shakespearean tragedies. But evil characters do not prosper. Iago goes away with a stern warning. Shakespeare was concerned with a stern warning. Shakespeare was concerned with the moral and spiritual order of the world and so his art refuses to recognize individual punishment or reward.

    TWO MUST READ BOOKS BY PAULO COELHO https://eduindex.org/2021/07/18/two-must-read-books-of-paulo-coelho/

    BOOK REVIEW: THE GIRL WHO SAVED THE KING OF SWEDEN https://eduindex.org/2021/07/19/book-review-the-girl-who-saved-the-king-of-sweden/

    Fantasy – A wizardry Land of the lost wanderers

    Photo by Mohan Reddy Atalu on Pexels.com

    We have always come across the word “Fantasy”, which is different for every person in this universe. For a poet, it is a place where they can get lost and live in those unending stories which don’t have any obstacles. Whereas for some philosophers, fantasy would be something which makes them realize as a beautiful place to live, and for saints, it would be a place where they can encounter God and live a peaceful life.

    Sometimes, Fantasy is when a dreamer dreams about their dreams. However, this is a controversial topic as for some fantasy is just a mere illusion of Thoughts.

    Although, Fantasy is where unexplored ideas pop up and due to fantasy many great personalities have contributed their best parts to the world of notions.

    However, the feeling of Fantasy gives us satisfaction to tackle the real world and provides us a sense of delight in accomplishing our dreams.

    “These mortal wizards are the explorers of their wonderland, where they traipse, fondle, gaze over their mystical thoughts.”

    The substantiality of our existence is revealed through our reality and our delusion of unrealistic thoughts. Those fictitious stories sprinting through our nerves and then vigorously to our hearts make us feel like the fairies of the fantasy land.

              We mortal beings are so devoid within ourselves but are fulfilled with the phantasm which exists within our heads forever. It is like the unrealistic elements of those magical fables which make us feel accomplished and satisfy our existence. 

                 Our existence relates to those oblivious thoughts which are every time inside us, inside our minds. Maybe this virtual world is filled with infinite fictional stories which are yet to be discovered. These never-ending illusioned stories flickering might be part of those parallel universes which is still a mystery.

                        It is the conundrum of my abundant conviction. We are the wizards of our concocted minds, which are still drifting around these mystifying islands. The mortals have a different notion.

                    The shattered humans are astray from their delusion and ponder about their fictional characters drifting in those summer haze forests, valleys which are still a blur of memories in this mortal world.

       They are emancipated with those clasped thoughts between the virtual land and the magic land. Perhaps, these fantasies are the mirage of our parallel universe, maybe it’s just the artistry of thoughts popping up out of the crafted minds.

         In those fantasies lies the stripped and naked pain or grief of those humans who are escaping from the harsh reality. The mortal beings are fragmented into deep emotions, sparkling in those never-ending illusions.

                        These artists dilute themselves in those fantasizing moments to get lost, lost from the truth. These tales are smoldering with the reality of their aura, possibly their identity lies somewhere deep under the ocean of those unreal dragons, or the mermaids which is still make oneself a bliss whenever he/she is living on those islands.

                   Being frail or fragile is the reason for he/her to be the daredevil in their cloud of thoughts. It’s very outlandish but it is the reality of oneself hiding through their existence.

    “Perhaps it’s an eerie or a bewilderment of one’s self.”

    15 Books Everyone Should Read At Least Once In Their Lives

    1.To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

    2. 1984, by George Orwell

    3.The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien

    4.Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen

    5.The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak

    6.The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien

    7.Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury

    8.Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte

    9.Animal Farm, by George Orwell

    10. Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell

    11.The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger

    12.The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck

    13.The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini

    14.A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens

    15.Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare

    THE SCIENCE FICTION

    With the rapid development of science and technology, science fiction has became popular in the modern times. The essence of fiction is the presentation of conflict in the human drama. Science fiction deals with conflict that arises out of the impact of scientific discoveries on the future life of humanity.

    The writer of science fiction must be well-versed in the modern scientific knowledge to enable him to create a credible science story. Through in science fiction the element of fantasy dominates, the science fiction writers do not commit errors regarding scientific discoveries, facts and possibilities.

    Types of science fiction:

    There are two types of science fiction.

    • The first type is based on known facts of science leading to the development of new possiblities as in Arthur C. Clarke’s ‘The Sands of Mars’ which deals with the conditions encountered by the explorers on Mars.
    • The second type is science fantasy which is very popular today. It introduces any kind of assumptions, realistic or imaginary, which are necessary for the story. The strongest element in science fiction is imagination which often goes beyond credibility or rational understanding as in Bradbury’s ‘Martian Chronicles’.

    Modern science fiction combines elements of scientific facts with fantasy. Most common themes in modern science fiction are the following:

    1. Space Travel, journey to other worlds and encounter with extra-terrestrial beings.
    2. Travelling in time past or future.
    3. Biological and psychological changes brought about by the appreciation of science in human beings and other species of life.
    4. Extraordinary powers acquired by man through the use of technology or abnormal mental powers possessed by some persons.

    Science fiction began to acquire importance in the latter part of the 19th century with the fictional writings of Jules Verne and H.G Wells. Some of the stories of Edgar Allen Poe and Mary Shelley’s novel ‘Frankenstein’ had anticipated the coming of science fiction. However, it was Jules Verne’s novels such as ‘Journey to the Centre of the Earth’ and ‘Around the World in Eighty Days’ that set the trend. Science fiction achieved greater popularity with the writings of H.G Wells who wrote such classics as ‘The War of the Worlds’ and ‘The Time Machine’.

    Modern science fiction presents most of the important technological achievements of the age — radar, rockets, medicines and robots, electronic brain, space vehicle, satellites, medicines and drugs with fantastic effects etc. Such materials are used with great imagination to create an exotic and weird effect.

    The most outstanding science fiction writers since the sixties have been Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke. Asimov was a prolific writer of science fiction. His novels of the Foundation Saga and the series of ‘Robot’ novels have become classics. Two other outstanding novels of Asimov are ‘Extra-Terrastrials’ and ‘The Gods Themselves’.

    The science fiction presents not only a fantastic world of wonders but, also a world more or less scientifically accurate. Most science fiction writings conform to the general principles of novel writing. They stimulate our imagination, satisfy our curiosity and lift us to a world of intense make-believe.

    BOOKISH TERMS https://eduindex.org/2021/07/17/bookish-terms/

    BOOK REVIEW: 1984 BY GEORGE ORWELL https://eduindex.org/2021/07/18/book-review-1984-by-george-orwell/

    How To Be A Customer Pleaser?

    “Business is all about putting oneself in the customer’s shoes!”

    – The Laconic Writer

    A New Customer is like an Angel who visits you with Nectar (Money) 😉 However, these Angels lend you their time when they consider the conditions with you and your company as comfortable and trustworthy. In short, these Angels need to be pleased just as we devote our time in prayers pleasing the lord so that he would fetch us some customers. Your prayers are answered because we will be revealing the ways of pleasing your customers and making them approach you. After reading this, you should gain some confidence in effective customer satisfaction services.

    Customers approach you through two possible ways: Either they read about your services and felt tempted to try you out or they were told about your impeccable quality of services and thus, this good feedback made them trust you. The former case needs more creativity because in that vast section of content, you want your advertisement to be noticed, either through digital or print medium. Thus, you may have to work on uniqueness to stand out. The way you present your ad matters a lot. Use beautiful and stunning colours in case of print medium while digital medium would demand creativity in the message imparted. The latter case however, includes good customer service and high quality delivery of the same which would incline the customer towards you and force them to generate sweet words regarding your services to others. In the process, you not only get a regular customer but also an appreciating puppet! In short, customer pleasing is all about standing out and being on top of the competition. This is the first stage of customer pleasing before they enter and alight on this journey with you.

    Moving to, after they get aboard and select you as their messiah over all other brands. An important point here is, that a business owner mustn’t take regular customers for granted. Just because they visit you almost every time, their importance in your company shouldn’t diminish. Most of the times, people tend to pay more attention to the newly arriving set of customers instead of the regular ones and thus, lose them in the process which isn’t a smart move. Also, since they are your family customers by now, make sure that you treat them with discounts and interesting attractions in an attempt to show that they matter. It is because these regular customers can scatter golden gossiping words that could uphold your company and its services. Regular customers should be your priority because they are responsible in fetching you a fresh set of customers. Attend them first and be extremely courteous to them so that they can, with the power of words, fetch you more regular customers. Of course, making regular customers requires that perfect attitude which should pass right through their hearts.

    Interact more with customers so that they don’t feel left out and ignored. However, interact with patience and love so that they don’t get offended with your remarks while leaving with a bad impression which too, with the power of feedbacks, could ruin your business. So, remember to take careful steps in business.

    Business is all about being friendly and honey coated! Dip your words in honey and sugar syrup before opening your mouth. Be lenient and patient when it comes to disclosing your services because customers sometimes tend to simply inquire without purchasing. However, a businessman shouldn’t have that myopic perspective of entertaining customers who would make a purchase and ignoring the ones who won’t. As stated earlier, every type of customer is important and shouldn’t be taken for granted because the customer may be testing your patience and estimating the quality of your services through your behavior. At times during such, patience is the key to success.

    Introduce attractions like giveaways, buy 1 get 1 free offers, sales, discount coupons, lucky draw competitions, limited period offers etc. to grab attention of your customers. However, remember to set a reasonable rate of your products and services when pricing so as to make it seem appealing. When beginning your business, remember to have economical pricing since you need customers to start with, and after gradually experiencing a hike in the same, slowly but steadily increase the prices at a turtle’s pace. You don’t want to annoy your regular customers with inflation! 50 pounds shouldn’t escalate to 60 pounds in one go! 50 pounds should be increased to 52 pounds in two months and then gradually reach 60 till the end of the year. In fact, that’s what I would do. This is a great strategy to avoid terrified and annoyed customers whom we don’t intend to lose. Nobody wants a downfall after all and the customers too would understand that a hike in prices is obvious by the end of the year! So, be strategic and smart working when it comes to business.

    In short, Business is all about honey coated words, excellent customer service, using attractions and benefits to show that customers matter, maintaining good interaction, and possessing the uniqueness to stand out!

    Thank You For Reading!

    WHAT ARE VOWELS ?

    Vowels are sounds in which there is no obstruction to the flow of air as it passes from the larynx to lips . Vowels are thus produced with a stricture of ‘open approximation ‘, that is the tongue (active articulator ), is raised towards , the roof of the mouth (passive articulator),so that there is enough gap between them for the air to flow out freely and continuously , without friction . Vowels are essentially a ‘tone’ or ‘hum’ issuing from the glottis with the vocal cords vibrating . Hence all vowels are voiced sounds .The quality of a vowel depends on the shape of the cavities of the pharynx ,the mouth and the nose , which in turn depend on the position of the soft palate , the tongue and the lips during its articulation .

    CLASSIFICATION OF VOWELS

    Vowels may be either long or short ./I/ for example ,is short while /i:/ is long Usually vowels from the ‘nucleus’ in a syllable . They are soft , voiced and musical .Vowels can be classified on the basis of

    • THE HEIGHT TO WHICH THE TONGUE IS RAISED
    • THE PART OF THE TONGUE THAT IS RAISED
    • THE POSITION OF THE LIPS

    CARDINAL VOWELS

    For the proper study of vowel sounds ,we need a set of fixed vowel points as references .The vowel sounds specially selected for this purpose are called Cardinal vowels .They are used as references to describe , classify and compare the the vowels of any language . If we learn them we are learning about the range of vowels that human vocal organs can make.

    Essay explanation ” El Dorado “by Robert Louis Stevenson

    “It seems as if a great deal were attainable in a world where there are so many marriages and decisive battles ….” 

                                            – El Dorado by R.L Stevenson.

    ” El Dorado ” by Robert Louis Stevenson is one of the most famous and inspiring essays about the journey for the travellers .

    “ El Dorado ”  means gilded one in Spanish .

    It is a legendary city or historical region of the New World , often thought to be in South America that was fabled for its great wealth of gold and precious jewels and eagerly sought by 16th and 17th century explorers including Sir Walther Raleigh. 

    This imaginary land of fabulous gold is a symbol of the unattainable

    El Dorado essay by R.L Stevenson is about the journey of  travellers which is more pleasurable than arriving at the destination .

    Stevenson, who was fond of traveling , expounds here his philosophy of traveling without ever resting . 

    According to him

    ” There is always a new horizon for onward looking men .”

    He discovers the secrets of happiness in the fact that our hopes and aspirations striving goes on for life .

    ” Our hopes are inaccessible like stars and the term of hoping is prolonged until the end of life .”

    Incessant striving and perpetual chase for something make life meaningful and fruitful rendering perennial pleasure to a man .

    Stevenson says “An aspiration is a joy forever ” . 

    Desire and curiosity are two eyes through which man sees the world in the most enchanted and captivating colours .

    Desire and curiosity  needs to be satisfied and perpetually renewed to keep up the interest in one’s life .

    Stevenson mentions a story of a young fellow who finished the works of Thomas Carlyle and weeped about no book of Carlyle left to read .

    Alexander the Great wept because he has no countries to conquer .

    He states that one who volume or measure his interest and desire has a fear to come to an end and be left with nothing to accompany his last stage of journey.

    Desire and curiosity is what keeps man continuing to exist .

    “Interests are only plucked up to sow themselves again ,like mustard “.

    Stevenson further says ,

    ” And when we discover a continent or cross a chain of mountains , it is only to find another ocean or another plain upon the further side . “

    Life can be thrilling and exciting when we go forward led by desire and curiosity.

    “Aspirations “ means desire to have more and more knowledge and experience in life .

    Aspirations can keep us going, making our life worth living .

    Stevenson points out that even a small corner of earth can offer us something new to start . Life and nature have infinite riches to be explored by curiosity and hence ,the journey of traveling continues life long .

    He concludes by advising man to remain engaged in some noble pursuits.

    He say, 

    ” To travel hopefully is better than to arrive and the true success is to labour .”

    About Robert Louis Stevenson 

    Robert Louis ( Balfour) Stevenson was a Scottish novelist ,poet , essayist and travel writer .

    He was born in Edinburgh on 13 November 1850 .

    His fourth four year life was a nearly constant journey in search of adventure and relief from the agonies of tuberculosis ,with which he was afflicted from early childhood .

    Stevenson attempted every species of writing but it is chiefly as an essayist that he continues to live .He was essentially an artist in words .He was an amazing storyteller ,an acute and sensitive critic , a genial and whole hearted lover of life .He was a master of rich , resilient prose style .

    There is a kind of primitivism in his writing which wins over the reader by its message of courage and virility – the traits which characterize Stevenson’s own life.

    Stevenson As an Essayist 

    Stevenson is considered one of the greatest essayists of the Victorian Age .He was influenced by Wiliam Hazlitt .

    He was a personal essayist and he himself became the subject matter of his essays .His essays are like mirrors which reflect his personality and show real aspects of his life .

    Stevenson’s essays are filled with whimsical paradoxes , keen and witty as those of Bernal Shaw . His work is invariably ethical.

    He wrote essays on different topics such as nature , philosophy , morality , children science etc. 

    Few of his essays deal with human miseries and problems of human life .

    Some of his essays and other works are , 

    . Travels with a Donkey, Virginibus Puerisque ,Familiar Studies of Men and Books , New Arabian Nights , Treasure Island ,  Prince Otto,  A Child’s Garden of Verses ,More New Arabian Nights., The Dynamiter. StrangEnglish Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde , Kidnapped , El Dorado , Memories and Portraits etc.

    His essays are highly  personal and autobiographical. He was a craftsman and artist who cared passionately about his writings.

    Hence , we can say Stevenson was a versatile genius of his age .

    ___________________________________________

    Referral link :- More about R.L Stevenson Read El Dorado online

    LITERARY CRITICISM

    Criticism is the branch of study concerned with defining, classifying, expounding and evaluating works of literature. Criticism deals with all branches of poetry, drama and novel and even criticism. The realm of literature consists mainly of three activities are the power to create, the power to appreciate and the power to criticise. Unlike the other two, the power to criticise may be an acquired power. The process of criticism is one of asking and answering rational questions about the literature and the study of the individual works of writers.

    WHO IS A CRITIC?

    A critic is who examines a work of literature and pronounces judgement upon it. It is the assessment of merit. According to Walter Pater criticism is a art of interpreting art. Carlyle also consider criticism as interpretation. This is a comprehensive view because criticism is more than interpretation or judgement. Arnold defines criticism as a disinterested endeavour to learn and propagate the best is known and thought in the world. According to Hudson the chief function of criticism is to enlighten and stimulate. Criticism helps the reader to partake in the great vision a work of literature presents. No analysis or criticism of a literary work alone can be substitute for our personal mastery of it. Criticism only help us to go forward. Bacon said, “some book may be read by deputy”. Good criticism helps the reader to penetrate into the heart of the work and to distinguish between what is permanent and what is temporary in it.

    TWO MAIN FUNCTIONS OF CRITICISM:

    JUDGEMENT AND INTERPRETATION – Every effort at judgement leads to appreciation. The purpose of a critic is to penetrate into the heart of the work he criticises. He should disengage its essential qualities of beauty and power. He should distinguish between different levels of values. He should elucidate the artistic principles which have controlled the work. As Pater said “To feel the virtue of the poet or the painter, to disengage it, to set it forth, these are the three stages of the critics’s duty”.

    APPROACHES TO CRITICISM:

    1. CLASSICAL- criticism held sway till the 18th century. Aristotle’s poetics was held as the master key to the treasure of literature by the classical critics. This type of criticism stands for judgement based on absolute standards and established conventions. It laid emphasis on the judicial function of criticism and advocated right judgement as the first step towards right appreciation. Classical criticism is severely restricted the free play of the critical faculty because it was bound by rules and standards laid down in ancient times.

    2. ROMANTIC- criticism which began with wordsworth is subjective. It list down that every work of art carries with it its own rules of enjoyment and there is no need to search for rules outside the work. It also begin to prop into the view point of the writer. Romantic critic is not concerned with outside standards he expresses what he personally feels in studying a work of literature. Wordsworth who initiated romantic criticism with the preface to the Lyrical ballads, Coleridge and Shelly were the other significant Romantic critics. Romantic criticism came under attack by the modern critics like T.S. Eliot, T.E. Hulme and I.A. Richards. modern criticism is based upon sound knowledge of the past and it respects tradition as exemplified in the writings of TS Eliot.

    KINDS OF CRITICISM:

    1. Theoretical criticism- is in which the property is common to all literature can be set out in a system of principles and these principles can be applied to a literary work while interpreting and evaluating it.

    2. Inductive criticism- is based on the assumption that there are laws of literature binding on the writers. Inductive criticism are purely scientific kind of literary criticism advocated by Professor Moulton.

    3. Judicial criticism- is a contest to inductive criticism it is concerned with the question of the order of merit among literary works.

    4. Impressionistic criticism- is part of romantic criticism which items to express the field qualities of a work and its impressions on The reader.

    5. Practical criticism- is concerned with the study of particular works for writers on the basis of general principles.

    6. Pragmatic criticism- view the literary work as something constructed in order to achieve certain effects on The reader.

    7. Expressive criticism- judges the work by its sincerity or genuineness in expressing the writers vision or state of mind.

    QUALIFICATIONS OF A CRITIC:

    W.H. Hudson says the “True critic is one who is equipped for his task by a knowledge of a subject which in breadth and soundness, far exceeds our own and who moreover is endowed with special faculties of insight an penetration and comprehension”.

    The critic must be entirely free from bias of all kinds of individual tastes, bias of education, bias of creed, sect, party, class and nation. The critic must be a person with scholarship. The critic must have proper training and technical skill to render scholarship serviceable. A critic should have thorough knowledge of one great literature besides his own. The critic must not go to the extremes. He should show a measure of celebrity and perspective in his pronouncements.

    GENDER EQUALITY

    Gender equality: what is it and why do we need it?

    We need gender equality urgently. Find out what gender equality means and why it’s important.

    Gender equality is when people of all genders have equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities. Everyone is affected by gender inequality – women, men, trans and gender diverse people, children and families. It impacts people of all ages and backgrounds.

    We need gender equality urgently. Gender equality prevents violence against women and girls. It’s essential for economic prosperity. Societies that value women and men as equal are safer and healthier. Gender equality is a human right. Everyone benefits from gender equality.  Gender equality is a fundamental human right. Yet despite progress, women and girls around the world do not fully experience equal rights and their potential as economic, social and sustainable development change-agents remains untapped.

    Gender equality is a fundamental human right. Yet despite progress, women and girls around the world do not fully experience equal rights and their potential as economic, social and sustainable development change-agents remains untapped. Empowering women and girls helps expand economic growth, promote social development and establish more stable and just societies. Women’s economic empowerment benefits both women and children. It is pivotal to the health and social development of families, communities and nations. Further, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) underscore women’s empowerment as an important development objective, in and of itself, and highlight the relevance of gender equality to addressing a wide range of global challenges.

    A growing number of business leaders recognize the importance of women as leaders, consumers, entrepreneurs, workers and caretakers. They are adapting their policies, programme and initiatives to create environments where women and girls thrive