The Justification Of Title- The Rivals: C.U. English Honours Part-II Notes

A very befitting title

This comedy of intrigues has a very befitting title because almost all intrigues in it refer to the rivalry of different characters for winning their prize. The title thus refers to the central theme of the play. Although at its face it might seem a comical title but in essence it is deeply satirical. In other way, the title can also be taken as a satire on the husbands in general who were suspicious of unknown rivals and the foolishly romantic girls who found pleasure in surrounding themselves with contending rivals.

The main rivals in the play

Some critics opine that the title The Rivals does not carry a very precise relevance. It has however been suggested that by his title Sheridan was referring to the pseudo rivalry of Captain Absolute and Ensign Beverly. Captain Absolute has to assume the personality of a poor sub-lieutenant to tickle the humour of Lydia Lnguish, the romantic heroine, who according to Fag is a lady of a very singular taste, a lady who like him better as half-pay ensign than if she knew he was son and heir to Sir Anthony Absolute, a baronet of three thousand a year.” Lydia is dissuaded from marrying Beverly by her caperon Mrs. Malaprop, who intercepts his letters written to her. Later she herself brings with the help of Sir Anthony, his son Captain Absolute as a suitor to Lydia and so rival to Ensign Beverly is provided. He is therefore at the same time in Lydia’s eyes, the two rivals—the adored Beverly and the detested Captain Absolute.

However, there are two pretenders to Lydia’s hand, even if neither one plays an important part in the love plot. Bob Acres versus Ensign Beverly and Sir Lucius O’Trigger versus Captain Absolute are the avowed duels to be fought in the course of the play. Acres was encouraged by Mrs. Malaprop to become the suitor of Lydia and he thus hold the rivalry with Beverly. Acres is the type of the rich landlord of the countryside who tries to pose himself to be a city dandy by changing his country dress and style of hair and learning fashionable French dances. He is a coward at heart and does not like to fight a duel for the sake of his beloved Lydia though egged on by the fiery Lucius he sends a challenge to Ensign Beverly. 

A third rival is Sir Lucius O’Trigger, a poor Irish baronet who is duped by Lucy into believing that he has been corresponding with Lydia, and not Mrs. Malaprop though it was actually the reverse. He wishes to marry the rich heiress for the sake of improving his finances. The Irishman had been a permanent comic figure on the contemporary English stage and Sir Lucius is no exception. He is always eager to fight a duel and he also cites other to do same. Unlike Acres, he is not a coward and is ready to risk his life for the sake of making his fortune.

Problem of rivalry is finally solved

The tangle of the three rivals is finally cleared at King’s Mead Fields, where the three are about to be engaged in duels. The main problem of rivalry is solved when the identity of Captain Absolute is discovered by all. After that nothing much remains to be done than to bring Lydia round to accept Captain Absolute in his own person, and his rivalry with Beverly in the main plot ends. Bob Acres’s rivalry with Captain Absolute ends as soon as he comes to know his real identity. He takes the first opportunity to back out from the duel and promptly gives up all claims on Lydia. Sir Lucius also, when discovers his mistake of confusing Delia with Lydia, remains no more a rival of Captain Absolute.

Then there are imaginary rivalry is too in Faulkland’s mind. And, being foolishly jealous of them, he not only prepares his bitter cup for himself but also tortures Julia. He too is purged of his suspicious nature in the end. The complications of the play end on a happy note as was typical of all comedies of manners. Hence we can say that the title of the play is not only befitting but the theme it suggests, serves to interlink the three plots.

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CU Exam Dates 2015 Rescheduled

C.U. B.A. /B.Sc. PART-I, II, III EXAMINATION SCHEDULE

(Only for B.A and B.SC. students.) 

University of Calcutta had released a rescheduled exam routine for the upcoming 2015 undergraduate examinations. It is being sought that the upcoming elections of the Kolkata Municipal Corporations had made it necessary to reschedule the exam dates.

Check out the new list of CU exam dates very carefully and prepare for the exams.
Have a look and be prepared for the upcoming 2015 CU examinations.

The New Schedule or Routine for B.A. & B.Sc. Honours Examinations 2015.

This pdf was released on the University of Kolkata Official Website.
You can check out under the date 20th March 2015 on the www.cuexam.net

Here is the link which can directly give you access to the pdf: CU Reschedule Exam Routine 2015

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Edward II Abdication Scene: C.U. English Honours Part-II Notes

The Abdication Scene (Act V, Scene I.)

Write a commentary on the Abdication Or Deposition Scene Or,

Attempt a critical analysis, with a note of dramatic significance of the Deposition or Abdication scene.

Critical Analysis:

The Abdication or Deposition scene is considered the most admirable piece of Marlowe’s dramatic art in his historical tragedy of Edward II. The scene appears almost as a long soliloquy of the fallen weak king. Yet, in dramatic action and suspense, in dramatic poetry and pathos, it has but a few peers in the dramatic literature of England.

The scene (Act V,Sc I)  is set in the castle of Killingworth (Kneilworth), where the king is kept imprisoned under the custody of Duke of Leicester.

The scene opens with the pleading of Leicester with the king to have repose and security in mind. This is followed by a long soliloquy of the king in which he dwells on his fallen state and on the deep pathos of hid riyal fall. The king, enraged by the secret working of Mortimer and Isabella, expresses his determination to cling to his crown. He will not yield his crown to make Mortimer the king of England.

The Bishop of Winchester who has come from Mortimer and Isabella to take his crown, along with the Duke of Leicester, entreats the king to yield his crown. But the king, still flaming with his passion and rage, is most unwilling and holds the crown dearly. He gives vent, in impulsive an imaginative poetry, to his profound eagerness for retaining the crown, and fondly puts on the same.

The followers of Mortimer who are extremely anxious to carry the crown safely away, are sparing of words, but they threaten that the prince may lose his right because of the obstinacy of the king to yield his crown. Now the king agrees to give crown, but his passion and resentment remain unabated. He makes over the crown most unwillingly, as he feels that his abdication is an inescapable doom.

As the Bishop of Winchester and others are about to leave, the king gives them a handkerchief, soaked with his tears and dried by his sighs, for presenting to Isabella.

The scene concludes with the arrival of Lord of Berkeley who comes with an order from the queen. The king, under his order, is placed under his custody and goes with him.

This pic is taken from ancestryimages.com.

Dramatic Significance:

 The Abdication Scene is truly an epitome of Marlowe’s dramatic genius. From the structural standpoint, the action reaches here the climax, no doubt. The king is presses for abdication in favour of his son. With a severe mental pan, the unfortunate sovereign is compelled to give up that which he considers more precious than his life even. The Abdication Scene completes the fall of king, and the retribution against Mortimer starts hereafter.

The scene well represents Edward’s nature in which much of Marlovian poetry is conspicuously evident. The king speaks here, like a poet, and her, his parallelism with Shakespeare’s Richard II is distinct. The king dwells, with a remarkable poetic passion, on his acute suffering and torment. He reflects on the greatness of his rank which sets him always much above average man, in adversity as well as in prosperity.

“The griefs of private men are soon allayed,

But not of kings.”

He muses, with no less poetic vigour, on the irony of his lot, as a helpless captive at the hands of his powerful nobles,--

“ My noble rule, I bear the name of King;

I wear the crown, but I am controlled by them.”

The scene brings out clearly Edward’s passionate nature in which his violent and ineffectual fits of anger are particularly noticeable. His soliloquy, rich in his poetic vigour, records his vehement passion. The very thought of the younger Mortmier irritates him and makes him reiterate his resolve to keep the crown at all costs. As the crown is made over to Mortimer’s followers, the king gives way to another passionate outburst—

“But stay a while, let me be the king till night.

That I may gaze upon this glittering crown.”

The scene is well employed to win for the king sympathy and compassion. Marlowe’s hero in this play is nothing of the grandeur of a typical tragic hero, and he is found too weak to be a hero of a high tragedy. Marlowe’s conception of the character of Edward is much controlled by his historical materials, and consequently his weak king never mounts to heroism. Yet Marlowe has the craft of a born dramatist to derive pity even for his weak king. One of the effective means by which this is achieved is this Abdication Scene. The pang of the fallen sovereign, compelled to give up his cherished crown, touches everyone with compassion. The king now appears no more foolish or inactive man, but a pitiful victim of a tyrannical ambition. His faults and follies are now the matters of the past. In his poetry and passion, he is not simply pathetic, but tragic, too. He does not win here the pity that a tragic hero deserves, but a feeling of sympathy and a sense of awe dominate this scene of abdication, and is found to be an effective measure to change the attitude of the audience to one whose doom is implied in his character.

This grand and moving scene has, however, one discordant note, and this is the incident of the handkerchief. It offends the cult of refinement and proves a ridiculous element in the otherwise brilliant scene. It also degenerates the tragic grandeur to which the character of Edward II partly reaches in this scene.

In conclusion, it need to be noted that the scene is a necessary prelude to the tragic end of the king. The custody of the king is taken away from Leicester and given to Berkley by Mortimer. Mortimer’s purpose is to accomplish the execution of the king smoothly and secretly. This is his preparation to fulfil his tyrannical design. 

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CU EXAM DATE 2015

C.U. B.A. /B.Sc. PART-I, II, III EXAMINATION SCHEDULE

(Only for B.A and B.SC. students.) 

THIS EXAM DATE HAS BEEN REVISED.
CHECK THE NEW CU EXAM DATE.

Here is the tentative list of CU exam dates issued by the University of Calcutta itself.
Have a look and be prepared for the upcoming 2015 CU examinations.

This exam date is tentative in nature. A complete exam date will be released within a few months. But the initial beginning date will help all the students in focusing their studies and channeling their energies in the right direction.

The Schedule or Routine for B.A. & B.Sc. Honours Examinations 2015.

These could also be downloaded from University Official Website:

www.cuexam.net.

Here is the link: CU EXAM DATE 2015

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Character of the Boss- The Fly: C.U. English Honours Part-II Notes

Give an estimate of the character of the Boss in Katherine Mansfield short story ‘The Fly’.

Katherine Mansfield’s short story is a classic short story as it belongs to a class in itself. This short story is taken from the collection ‘Dove’s Nest’ and inspired by her dear brother Leslie’s death, it is indeed one of her finest short stories. “The Fly” is the story of person haunted for six years by the death of his son. It is the deception of anguish. Mansfield’s technique in her stories was to make her characters how their thoughts by a kind of mental soliloquy, ‘fluttering, gossipy, breathless with questions and answers’. Moreover like Lawrence she creates an intense atmosphere through suggestive details.

The character of the Boss in the story The Fly is represented through a dialogue, monologue and symbolism. These are the three clear cut sections in the story. The first introduction to boss is to his outside appearance. The second ventures into his mind. The third presents a thoroughly complex character that one has to think over.

The Boss is introduced through a conversion with his friend Woodifield. Woodifield is old, retired, physically weak, and financially not very well off. Boss is presented through the method of contrast. The Boss is stout, rosy, healthy, although five year senior to him, but still going strong and in control of affairs. He has a comfortable office with new carpet, new furniture, electric heating and with all the physical comforts that would give him ‘solid satisfaction’.

The Boss in this story represents the irony of human life. Irony consists in the difference between appearance and reality. The existence of boss is a sort of caricature or parody of the actual reality. In fact his life is a deception with himself. The Boss has been dreaming of building up an empire for his son so that he could step into his shoes. But he is a victim of what Aristotle called “perepetia” or reversal of situation. He hoped that his son would replace him as his successor. But it changed with news of his son being killed in the battlefield. Mr. Woddifield had accepted his son’s death and could talk about it freely. While the boss, before the exit of the Woodifield from his chambers, is for an instance of a tragic father who has been trying hard to forget the bitter memory through material pre-occupation. That is why he is found to be quite complacent, confident and at ease with himself.


The tragedy of the boss’s life is of course a generalization of human existence. It gives an extra dimension to his character i.e. his realization of the futility and fragility of human endeavour. He has been endeavouring for the last six years to forget the memory of his dead son. But a casual remark by Woodifield brings him back to reality. What he has been successful so far has been destroyed by the whims of a moment. The boss surrenders to the inevitability of human fate. He develops a kind of pessimism and nihilism.

The Fly episode projects the Boss as the Caprious God who kills small fly not for sport but for negative pleasure. From this point onwards the Boss starts paralleling the plight of the fly with that of his son. Perhaps his son too had struggled like that on the battlefield.  But the killing of the Fly by the boss is a kind of self killing. The Boss negates possibilities and promises of new life. It is very simplistic to describe the boss as a tragic figure. He minimizes the tragic greatness by resulting to uncontrollable despair and depression. 

The final impression of boss character that emerges at the end of the story is that of insignificance, helplessness and denial of life. The boss thus has the streak of Dostoyevsky’s resignation of death.

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C.U. English Honours PART-II Question Paper 2014 [Fourth Paper]

2014

ENGLISH-HONOURS

Fourth Paper

Full Marks-100

The figures in the margin indicate full marks.

Candidates are required to give their answers in their own words as far as practicable.

Group-A

1.       Answer any one of the following questions: (within 600 words)    16x1                                                                                              

a)      Comment on Jane Austen’s treatment of the theme of marriage in Pride and Prejudice.

b)      Pride and Prejudice has been called a ‘comedy of manners’. Do you agree with this view? Justify your answer.

c)       Write a note on Scott’s treatment of history in Kenilworth. 

d)      Illustrate Scott’s art of characterization, focusing on any two characters in Kenilworth. 

Group-B

2. Answer any one of the following questions: (within 600 words)    16x1       

a)      Comment on Lamb’s style as an essayist with reference to the prescribed essay.

b)      Discuss Orwell’s views about imperialism in Shooting an Elephant.

 3. Explain with reference to the context. Any one of the following phrases: (within 300 words)  8x1

a)      “….. for Naturall Abilities are like Naturall Plants, that need Proyning by Study”.

b)      Had I a little son, I would christen him, Nothing-To-Do, he should do nothing.

Group-C

4. Write note (in around 200 words each) on any two of the following literary terms.      5 x 2

a.       Picaresque Novel

b.      Point of view

c.       Theme

d.      Short Story

Group-D

5. Answer any two of the following questions: (each within 600 words)                                                16 X 2

a)      Discuss the significance of the title of James Joyce’s Araby.

b)      Analyse the use of symbols in Bate’s short story The Ox.

c)       Would you consider The Fly to be a complex short story with no rigid meaning? Give reasons for your answer.

Group-E

5. Answer any one of the following questions: (within 700 words)                                          18 X 1

a)      Examine the role of Leggat in Conrad’s The Secret Sharer.

d)      Comment on Conrad’s narrative strategy in The Secret Sharer.

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More Question Papers:

• 2015 Paper-IV
• 2015 Paper-III
• 2013 Paper-IV
• 2013 Paper-III
• 2012 Paper-IV
• 2012- Paper-III
• 2011- Paper-IV
• 2011- Paper-III  

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C.U. English Honours PART-II Question Paper 2014 [Third Paper]

2014

ENGLISH-HONOURS

Third Paper

Full Marks-100

The figures in the margin indicate full marks.

Candidates are required to give their answers in their own words as far as practicable.

Group-A

(Word Limit 600 words for Question No.1 and 2)

1. (a) Examine critically how in Edward II Marlowe has transformed the chronicle play into tragedy.                                                                                                                                                                        16

Or

(b) Bring out the dramatic significance of the Abdication Scene (Act V, Sc. i) in Edward II.                     

2. (a) Comment on how the woodland setting in  A Midsummer Night’s Dream contributes to the theme of the play.                                                                                                                                         16

Or

(b) Examine the significance of the title in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

3. Explain any one of the following with reference to the context. (Word Limit 300 words)         8x1

a)      Then so am I, and live to

do him service:

But while I have a sword,

A hand, a heart,

I will not yield to any

Such upstart.

 Or

b)      And as imagination bodies forth

The forms of things unknown, the poet’s pen

Turns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing

A local habitation and a name.

Group-B

4. Write on any two of the following literary terms within 200 words each:          5x2

Climax, Comic Relief, Hamartia, Three Unities.

Group-C

(Word Limit 600 words for Question No.5 and 6)

5. (a) Examine the significance of the Faulkland-Julia episode in The Rivals.                       16

Or                                                                                                            

(b)Sheridan’s The Rival was intended as a mockery of ‘the Sentimental Muse’. Discuss.

6. (a) Analyse Shakespeare’s treatment of the supernatural in Macbeth.                                                   16

Or

(b) Critically comment on the role of Macduff in Macbeth.                               16

7. Explain the following with reference to the context. (Word Limit 350 words)                      9x2

a)      ‘Thou hast it now, King, Cawdor, Glamis, all,

As the Weird Women promis’d; and, I FEAR,

Thou play’dst most foully for’t; yet it was said,

It should not stand in thy prosperity;

Or

b)      – Then fly, false Thames:

And mingle with the English epicures:

The mind I sway by, and the heart I bear,

Shall never sag with doubt, nor shake with fear.

c)       Then, sir, she should have a supercilious knowledge in accounts; -- and as she grew up, I would have her instructed in geometry, that she might know something of the contagious countries;--

Or

d)      What, you have been treating me like a child! – humouring my romance! and laughing, I suppose, at your success ! 

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More Question Papers:

• 2015 Paper-IV
• 2015 Paper-III
• 2013 Paper-IV
• 2013 Paper-III
• 2012 Paper-IV
• 2012- Paper-III
• 2011- Paper-IV
• 2011- Paper-III  

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