Saturday, May 30, 2020

2. An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum


2. An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum

ABOUT THE POET: 

Stephen Spender (1909 - 1995) was an English poet and an essayist. He left University college, Oxford without taking a degree and went Berlin in 1930. Spender took a keen interest in politics and declared himself to be a socialist and pacifist. Books by Spender include Poems of Deduction, The Edge of Being, World Within World. In, An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum, he has concentrated on the themes of social injustice and class inequalities.

POEM


Far far from gusty waves these children’s face,
Like rootless weeds, the hair torn round their pallor:
The tall girl with her weighed down head. The paper
Seeming boy, with rat’s eyes. The stunted, unlucky heir
Of twisted bones, reciting a father’s gnarled disease,
His lesson , from his desk. At back of the dim class
One unnoted, sweet and young. His eyes live in a dream,
Of squirrel’s game, in tree room, other than this.

On sour cream walls, donations. Shakespeare’s head,
Cloudless at dawn, civilized dome riding all cities.
Belled, flowery, Tyrolese valley. Open-handed map
Awarding the world its world. And yet, for these
Children, these windows, not this map, their world,
Where all their future’s painted with a fog,
A narrow street sealed in with a lead sky
Far far from rives, capes, and stars of words.

Surely, Shakespeare is wicked, the map a bad example,
With ships and sun and love tempting them to steal
For lives that slyly turn in their cramped holes
From fog to endless night ? On their slag heap, these children
Wear skins peeped through by bones and spectacles of steel
With mended glass, like bottle bits on stones.
All of their time and space are foggy slum.
So blot their maps with slums as big as doom.

Unless, governor, inspector, visitor,
This map become their lives like catacombs,
Break O break open till they break the town
And show the children to green fields, and make their world
Run azure on gold sands, and let their tongues
Run naked into books the white and green leaves open
History theirs whose language is the sun.

Analysis of the poem.

Poor children have no opportunity to enjoy the real blessings of life:

In this poem, The poet voices his concern for children who live all their life in slum and have no opportunity to enjoy the real blessings of life. The poet sees some children sitting in a school classroom in a slum. The faces of  these poor children have no signs of any warm blood running them. They are all Pale and look lifeless. The untidy hair hanging around their pale face looks like rootless weeds.There is a tall girl with her head weighed down. There  a boy  who looks as as thin as paper and and has small terrified eyes like those  of a rat. A boy with twisted bones is reading out his lesson from his desk. He has swollen joints as his father has. At the back of the dim classroom, there is a sweet little child. He seems to be lost in his dreams of what games the squirrels play in their tree home.

Slum Classroom:

The walls of this classroom smell of sour cream. They bear the names of those who have given donation to build this classroom. They have also pictures of a cathedral dome, of Shakespeare's bust, of a cloudless dawn and of the flowery valley of Tyrol. A big open map is also hanging on the wall. It shows all the seas and lands that the world has. But the world that these poor children see is not this world of the map. It is the world they see from the windows of their classroom. It is a world that shows only foggy street under a dull sky. It is a world far from the world of rivers and capes. it is far different from the stars of words promised for them by the politicians.

Useless Things in Classroom:

 The poet says that the picture and maps hung on the wall of the classroom have no meaning for those poor children. They can only arouse in them the temptations that will lead them to steal. These children spend all their lives in homes that are no better than cramped holes. They are so weak and thin that their bones can be clearly seen under their skin. For these children,maps of the world have no meaning. In place of these maps, there should be  slums big as doom.

school governors, inspectors, and also the visitors pay no attention: 

The poet call upon the school governors, inspectors, and also the visitors to such school to take these children out of the slums. They Should take them out of these places that are no better than catacombs. They should take these poor children to place where they can play in the green fields and on the golden sands. They should be kept in places where the can only read from their books but also play among the trees. The poet says that history belongs only to those nations where children can live freely and enjoy all the blessings under the sun.

हिंदी सारांश 

कक्षा में बच्चों की दयनीय दशा 

इस कविता में कवि  कवी ऐसे बच्चों के लिए अपनी  चिंता ब्यक्त करता है जो अपना पूरा जीवन गन्दी बस्तियों में बिताते है तथा जीवन की वास्तविक खुशियों को प्राप्त करने का जिन्हे कोई अवसर नहीं होता है। कवि  एक गन्दी बस्ती के स्कूल की कक्षा में कुछ बच्चों को बैठे हुए देखता है।  इन बच्चों के चेहरों पर ऐसा कोई चिह्न नहीं है जिससे पता चलता हो कि उनके अंदर गर्म खून बह रहा है।  वे सभी ढीले पड़े हुए है तथा निर्जीब प्रतीत होते है। उनके चेहरे पीले हो रखे है। उनके बिना धुले और कंघी किये बाल पीले चेरे पर बिना जड़ की घास की तरह लड़के हुए है। वहां एक लम्बी लड़की है जिसका सर नीचे को झुका हुआ है मानो बोझ से लदा हो। वहां एक लड़का है जो कागज के सामान पतला लग रहा है।  तथा एक चूहे की तरह छोटी छोटी डरी  हुई आंखे रखता है।  वहां मुड़ी हुई हड्डियों वाला एक लड़का अपनी डेस्क पर से अपना पाठ पढ़ रहा है।  उसके जोड़ सूझे हुए है।  जिस तरह उसके पिता के है। धुंधले प्रकाश वाली कक्षा के अंत में एक प्यारा सा छोटा बच्चा बैठा हुआ है।  वह अपने सपनों में खोया प्रतीत होता हैकि  गिलहरियां अपने पेड़ वाले घर में कौन कौन से खेल खेलती है।

कक्षा-कक्ष की स्तिथि 

इस कक्षा के कमरे की दीवारों से बासी क्रीम के जैसी गंध आती है। उन पर उन लोगों के नाम अंकित है जिन्होंने इस कक्षा के कमरों को बनाने के लिए दान दिया हैं। ; वह एक गिरजे के गुंम्बद , शैक्सपीयर के धड़ का चित्र ,  रहित प्रभात का चित्र , तथा टायरोल की फूलों से भरी घाटी के चित्र भी है। दीवार पर एक खुला नक्शा भी लटका हुआ है।  इसमें वे सब सागर और प्रदेश दिखाई गए है।  जो संसार में है।  किन्तु वह संसार जो ये गरीब देखते है, वह इस नक़्शे वाले संसार में नही है। यह वह संसार है जो वे  अपनी कक्षा वाले कमरे की खिड़कियों में से देखते है। यह एक ऐसा संसार है जहाँ वे एक घुसार आकाश के नीचे कोहरे से ढकी हुई केवल एक गली ही दिखाई देती है.  यह एक ऐसा सस्सार है जो नदियां और अन्तरीपों वाले संसार से बहुत दूर है।   यह शब्दों के उन सितारों से बिलकुल भिन्न है जिनका वायदा राजनीतिज्ञों ने उनके साथ किया था।

 बच्चों की मनोदशा 

कवी कहता है कि  कक्षा के कमरे की दीवारों के ऊपर टंगे हुए चित्र और नक़्शे इन गरीब बच्चों के लिए कोई अर्थ नहीं रखते है।  वे इनमे कोई ऐसे प्रलोभन पैदा कर सकते है जो उन्हें चोरी करने को प्रेरित कर सकते है। ये बच्चे अपना पूरा जीवन ऐसे घरों में व्यतीत करते है जो तंग सुराखों से कोई बेहतर नहीं है।  वे इतने पतले और कमजोर है कि उनकी चमड़ी के नीचे उनकी हड्डियां साफ़ साफ़ दिखाई देती है।  इन बच्चो के लिए संसार के नक्शों का कोई महत्व नहीं है। इन नक्शों की वजाए  वहां गन्दी बस्तियों के प्रलय  समान बड़े बड़े चित्र होने चाहिए।

कक्षा के छात्र- छात्राओं के प्रति  गवर्नरों, इंस्पैक्टरों का दायित्व 

कवि  स्कूल के गवर्नरों, इंस्पैक्टरों , तथा वहां देखने आने वाले लोगों से आवाहन करता है  कि वे इन बच्चों को  गन्दी बस्तियों से बाहर ले जाएँ। वे इन्हें  इन जगहों से बाहर ले जाये जो कब्रों वाले तहखानों से कोई बेहतर नहीं है।  वे इन गरीब बच्चों को बाहर ऐसी जगहों पर ले जाएँ जहाँ  वे हरे हरे खेतों में और सुनहरी रेत  के ऊपर खेल सके उन्हें ऐसी जगहों में रखा जाना चाहिए जहाँ वे न केवल अपनी पुस्तकों में से पड़ सके अपितु पेड़ों के मध्य खेल भी सके। कवि कहता है कि इतिहास केवल उन्ही राष्ट्रों का होता है जहाँ बच्चे स्वतंत्र रूप से रह सकते हों।  तथा सूर्य के नीचे उपलब्ध होने वाले सभी आनंदों का सुख प्राप्त कर सकते हो।


Main Points of the Poem

  1.  The poet sees some children sitting in an elementary school classroom in a slum. These children have pale faces and untidy hair.
  2. A tall girl is sitting with her head weighed down. There is a boy who looks as thin as paper. He has very small terrified eyes eyes like those of a rate. There is another one who has a stunted body with twisted bones. A little sweet child remains unnoticed  at the back of the dim class. He seems to be lost in his dreams.
  3. There are some pictures and a map of the world hung on the wall. There are also the names of those who gave donations to build this room.
  4. On the wall there is a picture of Shakespeare's bust, another of a cathedral dome, another of a cloudless dawn and still another of a flowery valley.
  5. The poet says that these pictures and the map look out of place in this classroom. They can only tempt the little children to steal.
  6. The nap shows the world but the world of these poor children is very different. There world is what they can see from the windows of the classroom.
  7. Through these windows, they can see only a foggy street under a dull sky. It is the only future they can imagine for themselves.
  8. So in place of the map of the world, there should be only the pictures of big slums on these walls.
  9. These poet calls upon the school governors, inspectors and also those who come to visit these school. He ask them to take steps by which these children can be taken out of the slum.
  10. These children live all their life in a sort of catacombs. They should be taken out from these and taken to places where they can not only read from their books but also play in the green fields and on the golden sands.
  11. The poet says that history always belongs to those nations where the children can live a joyful life and enjoy all the blessings that can be had under the sun.

Q.1. how does the poet describe the faces of the children in the classroom?
Ans. The poet says that the faces of the children don't show any signs of strength or vitality. They look very pale. Their untidy hair hangs around their pale faces like rootless weeds.

Q.2. What do you think in the colour of ' Sour Cream'? Why do you think the poet has used this expression to describe the classroom walls.
Ans. Sour cream indicates the colour cream or dirty white. The poet has used this expression to describe the poor dull and ill- equipped environment of the classroom. the wall were painted long ago by donations and since then no attention has been given to them. We see the neglect these children face. It adds to the dull ambience.

Q.3.The walls of the classroom are decorated with the picture of 'Shakespeare', building with domes, world map and beautiful valleys .How do these contrast with the world of these Children.

Answer

All these totally contrast with the world of the children in the slum. They get half education, the value of education for the children is minimal and to have these pictures which are symbols of high quality education is incongruous here. The buildings with domes are examples of a civilised world, the world unknown to them. The world map is irrelevant to them because the slums, their world cannot be located by them. Finally, the beautiful valley with rivers and capes is meaningless to them. They just have the polluted sky to watch from the broken window panes. These children are deprived of natural beauty. 

4. What does the poet want for the children of the slums? How can their lives be made to change?

Answer

He wants the children of the slums to venture into the outside world, beyond the boundaries of their slums, and experience a better present and future life.
The elementary school in the slum does not serve any purpose with its poor infrastructure and disinterested students. The poet feels that the governor, inspector and visitors should take initiative to bring about a real change in their situation. To ensure a better way of living for them, they need to be given proper education and freedom from their present confines. They need opportunity, encouragement and optimism to be able to live life with purpose and zest.
 

Sunday, May 24, 2020

3. Deep Water - Alphonse Daudet

Deep Water - W.O. Douglas

Introduction:

William Douglas (1898-1980) was born in Maine, Minnesota. after graduating with bachelors of Arts in English and economics, he spend two years teaching in high school in Yakima. However, he got tired of this and decided to pursue a legal career.He met Franklin D. Roosevelt at Yale and become an friend and adviser  to the president. Douglas was a leading advocate of individual rights. He retired in 1975 with a term lasting thirty six year and remains the longest serving Justice in the history of the court.The following excerpt is taken from Of Men and Mountains by William O Douglas. It reveals how a young boy William Douglas nearly drowned in a swimming pool. In this essay he talk about his fear of water and thereafter,How he finally overcame it. Notice how the biographical part of the selection is used to support his discussion of fear.
Deep Water 

परिचय :

विलियम डगलस का जन्म मैन मिनिसोटा में हुआ था. अंग्रेजी और अर्थशास्त्र में स्नातक की उपाधि लेने के बाद डगलस ने दो साल हाईस्कूल याकिमा में पढ़ाया। वहां वे दो वर्ष पढ़ाने में ही ऊब चुके थे और उन्होंने फिर कानून की पढाई शरू कर दी। वे फ्रेंक्लिन डी0 रूज़वेल्ट को येल में मिले और फिर उनकी दोस्ती हो गयी और रूज़वेल्ट के सलाहकार भी बन गए। डगलस मानव अधिकारों के वरिष्ट वकील बन गए थे। फिर 36 वर्ष तक वे जज के तौर पर कोर्ट में रहे और 1975 में 36 वर्ष की सबसे लंबी जज की सेवा के पश्चात् सेवानवृत हो गए।  डगलस की किताब  ऑफ़ मेंन एंड माउन्टेन से यह  पाठ लिया गया है।इसमें बताया गया है कि कैसे युवा विलियम डगलस एक स्विमिंग पूल में डूब गए थे और उनके अंदर पानी का डर घुस जाता है और फिर अंत में कैसे वो पानी के डर से निजात पाते है। 

W.O. DOUGLAS
(W.O. Douglas) decided to learn to swim.
The writer (W.O. Douglas) decided to learn to swim. An association named Y.M.C.A.(Young Men's Christian association) had a swimming pool.It was in the American state of Yakima . This association offered an opportunity to learn swimming. The Yakima river flowing through this state  was deep and dangerous. The writers mother often warned him of the dangers of this river. She kept reminding him of the various drowning accidents in it. But the Y.M.C.A. pool was safe.It was only two or three feet deep at one end, and nine at the other end. the writer had thin legs and was rather ashamed of baring them. However, he got a pair of water wings and went to the pool to swim.

Incident of Childhood:

The  writer narrates and incident from his childhood. It had created in him a fear of getting into water. He was then three or four years old. His father took him to the California sea beach. Both were standing together in water and the beach. The child was clinging to his father. But a strong wave come and knock him down. The water swept over him. His breath was gone for a moment. Father laughed but the writers heart was filled terror.

YMCA SWIMMING POOL

Y.M.C.A.swimming pool, the unpleasant memorises:

Later, When he joint the Y.M.C.A.swimming pool, the unpleasant memorises of the childhood come back to him. They re-started his fears. But in little while, he gathered confidence. He looked at the other boys and started paddling with his new water wings. He did this two or three times on different days. He begin to feel at ease in the water.
But one day he had a terrible experience. When he went to the pool, there was no one there. The place was quite. He was Afraid of going in the water alone. So he sat on the side of the pool and waited for others to come.
Soon a bog boys, about 18 years old come in. He had big strong mussels. He ha had think hair on his chest" hi, skinny! He said" how'd you would like to dived?" with that he pick the writer up and tossed him into the deep end. the writer landed with a sitting position. He went at once to the bottom of the pool. He was frighted, but not much. on the way down he made a plan. He thought he would hit the bottom and make a big jump. Then he would come to the surface.

W.O DOUGLAS
But it seemed a long way down. those nine feet were more like ninety. His lungs were ready to burst when his feet hit the bottom. He used all his strength to spring upwards. He had imagine he would come to the surface like a cock.

Battling for Life:

But he come up slowly. He opened his eyes, he could see nothing but water.He grew panicky. "He was suffocating. he tried to cry but no sound come. His eyes and nose come out of the water,but not his mouth. He tried to bring his legs up. But a great force was pulling him under. He had started on the journey back to the bottom. He has lost his breath. His lungs ached.His head throbbed. He was getting dizzy. He was going Down and down endlessly. He open his eyes.These was nothing but dark water!. Nothing could seen through it.Complete terror seized the writer it was terror that known but who has experience of it, can understand. He was crying under the water. He was stiff with fear. Even the cries in his throat were frozen. only his heart said that he was still alive.
At last he felt the tiles under him. He jumped with all his might but jump made no difference. the water was still around him. He shook and trembled with fear. His arms would not move. His legs would not move. He tried to call for help, but could do nothing. But then strangely there was light. He was coming out of the water.Hos eyes and nose were almost out of the water.

Feeling tender arms of his mother:

But then he started down a third time. He sucked for air but got water.Then he stopped all efforts. He relaxed. A bleakness swept over his brain. It wiped out all fear. There was no more panic. It was quite and peace full. Nothing to be afraid of. He begin to think: "This is nice ......to be Drowsy... to go to sleep. There is no need to jump. Its nice to carried gently..... tender arms around around me....Tender arms like mothers....now i must go to sleep...." Then the curtain of life fail and everything blank out.

Got conscious :

The next thing he remembered was that he was lay on his stomach beside the pool. He was vomiting. The Chap who had thrown him in was saying," But I was only fooling" Someone said," The Kid Nearly died" Several hours later he walked home. He was weak and trembling. He shook and cried when he lays on his bet. He could eat nothing that night. Forth day a terrible fear filled his heart. He never went back to the pool. He feared Waster. He avoided it whenever he could.

fear of water destroyed his trip:

A few years later the the writer happened to visit some lovely water spot, like the Cascades,and
TIETON RIVER
Tieton River,The Bumping river and the Warm Lake. But whenever he wanted to put his Foot into them,the same old fear would come back. His legs would become become paralysed. Deep horror would fill his heart. This fear stayed with him for years. It followed him whenever he went boating or fishing. It ruined his fishing trips. It deprived him all the joy of voting and fishing.
BUMPING RIVER

Keen desire to swim:

The writer used every way to overcome this fear but in vain. but finally,one October, he decided to get an instructor and learn to swim.He went to a pool and practised five days a week, an hour each day. The instructor put a belt around him. A rope was attached to the belt. It went through a pulley that ran on an overhead cable. the instructor held on to the end of the rope. Thus the writer went back and forth across the pool. He practised hour after hour, day after day, week after week. Each time the instructor relaxed his hold, some of the old terror would come back to the writer. After three months, the tension begin to grow less. Then the instructor taught him to put his face under water and exhale. He also taught him to raise his nose and inhale. The writer repeated the exercise hundreds of time. Bit by bit, he lost some of his old fear.

 The instructor's job was finished.

Next the instructor gave him practice to kick with his legs. for weeks. the writer did just that. At first his leg refused to work.But gradually, he was able to command them. Thus, piece by piece, the instructor built out of the writer a swimmer. And at last he said,"Now you can swim. Dive off swim the length of the pool." The writer was able to do it. The instructor's job was finished.

Practice very hard:

But the writer still wondered if he would again be filled with terror when he was alone in the pool. he tried it. He swam the length up and down. Little memories of the old terror would return.But he would drive all fear out of his mind. He would go off for another length of the pool.
This went on for four months. But he was still no satisfied. He was not sure that all his fear has left. So he went to Lake Wentworth
LAKE WENTWORTH
in New Hampshire. He swam two miles across the lake. Only once did the Terror return. When he was in the middle of the lake, he put his face under the water. He saw nothing but bottomless water. The old fear returned a little, but soon all fear fled and he swam on.
Yet he had some doubts remaining. Once he went and complete by the side of the Warm Lake.
WARM LAKE
The next morning he dived into the lake. He swam across to the other shore and back. He shouted with joy. He has conquered his fear of water.

Motivation:

The writer's experience had a deep meaning for him. In death,there is piece. There is terror only in fear of death. Roosevelt had once said," All we have to fear is fear itself."The writer has experience both the sensation of dying and the terror of dying.


गहरा पानी 

प्रस्तावना :
विलियम ओ0 डगलस की बचपन से ही एक महान तैराक बनने की तीब्र इच्छा थी। और अंततः वह इस मुकाम पर सफल भी होता है। डगलस तब तीन या चार वर्ष का था जब उसके पापा उसे कलिफ़ोर्निया बीच पर ले गए थे. वहां अपने पापा का हाथ पकडे खड़ा था कि अचानक तेज़ समुद्री लहार उसके ऊपर आ जाती है और उसे नीचे गिरा देती है। डगलाद दर जाता है उसकी जान पर बन आती है।  उसके पापा हंस रहे होते है। तब से डेगलस के मन में तैरना सीखने की इच्छा हुई। परन्तु उसे दर लगता था. बगल में यकिमा नदी थी पर उसकी मां उसको वहां जाने से रक्ति थी क्यूंकि वह बड़ी खतरनाक नदी थी।  उसकी मां डूबने की हर खबर से डगलाद को सचेत करती थी। 
वाई0 एम्0 सी0 ए0 स्विमिंग पूल में तैराकी:
 तभी डगलस ने वाई0 एम्0 सी0 ए0 स्विमिंग पूल में तैराकी सीखने की ठान  ली। तब वह १० या ११ वर्ष का था।  उसने वाटर विंग्स खरीदे और स्विमिंग पूल चला गया। यधपि डगलस दुबला था और उसकी टंगे पतली थी।  परन्तु सीखने की तीब्र इच्छा  से उसने शर्म छोड़ी  और कपडे उतार  कर पूल में उतर गया. एक तरफ तीन फ़ीट और दूसरी तरफ ९ फ़ीट गहरा था।  पहले दिन तो अन्य बच्चों को देखकर वह किनारे पर  पानी  मारता  है। परन्तु दुसरे दिन वह जोश के साथ  पहले स्विमिंग पूल सबसे पहले पहुँच जाता है। पूल   शांत रहता है नीचे टाइल साफ दिख रही है।  वह  लोगों की इंतजारी  के किनारे बैठ जाता है।
डगलस के साथ दुर्घटना :
तभी 18 वर्ष का हट्टा कट्टा लंबा चौड़ा, जिसकी छाती पर बाल होते है, सुडौल शरीर का लड़का वहां आता है और डगलस को कहता है," हाय पतलू, (डगलस को उठाता है)कैसे रहेगा अगर मैं तुम्हे पानी में फेंक दूँ।" और बोलते ही उसे पूल के गहरे छोर 9 फ़ीट की तरफ फेंक देता है।
जिंदगी मौत से जंग :
अब डगलस को पानी में फेंका जा चूका है। डगलस बहुत तेजी से  से नीचे जाता है। डगलस डर जाता है पर बहुत ज्यादा डर अभी नहीं होता है। वह बैठी हुई मुद्रा में नीचे की तरफ जाता है और प्लान बनाता है दिमाग में की जैसे ही नीचे टच होऊंगा वैसे ही स्प्रिंग की तरह जम्प करके कॉर्क की तरह ऊपर सतह पर आ जाऊंगा और फिर तैर कर किनारे चला जाऊंगा। परंतु वह बहुत धीरे से ऊपर को आता है। उसको 9 फ़ीट भी 90 लगते है। अब डगलस बहुत डर जाता है। फिर दो तीन बार डगलस नीचे जाता है उछलने की और तैरने की कोशिश करता है परंतु सब प्रयास व्यर्थ जाता है। वह मदद के लिए चिल्लाना चाह रहा है पर उसकी आवाज बाहर नहीं आती है।  और मुह में पानी भरने लगता है। डर के कारण अब उसके हाथ पैर भी काम करना बन्द कर देते है। उसको लकवा जैसे मार जाता है। और अब उसके दिमाग में अँधेरा छाने लगता है केवल दिल की धड़कन बताती है कि वह जिन्दा है। अब उसको डर नहीं लग रहा है, शांति से छाने लगी है और  नींद आने लगती है ऐसा लगता है मानो उसकी माँ ने उसे अपनी कोमल बाँहों में पकड़ रखा हो और वह सो जाता है।
डगलस को बचा लिया गया :
फिर डगलस को जब होश आता है तो वह अपने को स्विमिंग पूल के किनारे पाता है उसे पेट के बल लेटा रखा है और वह उल्टी कर रहा है। तभी जिस लड़के ने उसे फेंका उसने कहा, " मैं तो इस बच्चे के साथ मजाक कर रहा था।" तभी अन्य समझदार व्यक्ति ने कहा कि तुमार इस घटिया मजाक से यह बच्चा मरने वाला था। डगलस कांपते हुए घर जाता है और बिस्तर पर लेट कर रोने लगता है। वह खाना भी ढंग से नहीं खा पाता। पानी का डर उसके ज़हन में फिर घर कर जाता है।
डर से सारी यात्राओं का सत्यानाश  :
कुछ साल बाद डगलस को पानी वाली जगहों जैसे झरने, टाइटन और बम्पिंग नदी गर्म झील में घूमने का अवसर मिलता है। जब वह वहां जाता है तो उसका पुराना डर वापस आ जाता है। कुछ वर्षों बाद जब भी डगलस बोटिंग और फिशिंग पर जाते थे तो यह डर उसके हर ट्रिप के एन्जॉय को ख़त्म कर देता था। पानी देखकर उसके पैर जम जाते है और सांसें रुक जाती है।
दॄढ़ इच्छा शक्ति :
अंत में अक्टूबर के महीने में डगलस फिर गहन मन बनाकर तैराकी सीखने के लिए एक टीचर की नियुक्ति करता है और सप्ताह में पांच दिन एक घंटे की कड़ी मेहनत करता है। टीचर रस्सी को पुली की सहायता से पूल में डगलस की कमर पर बंधता है और फिर रस्सी के सहारे उसको तैरना सिखाता है। परंतु हर बाद डगलस का डर वापस आ जाता और उसके हाथ पैर काम न करते। फिर शिक्षण के डगलस के पैरों पर लात मारी जिससे उसके पैर तैरते समय लचीले हो जाये। शिक्षक कभी रस्सी को ढीला करता था जिससे डगलस का मुंह पानी के अंदर जाये और डगलस का डर ख़त्म हो जाये। डगलस ने इस तरह दिनों-दिन, कई सप्ताहों और महीनों तक कड़ी मेहनत की। कई बार पूल के इस छोर से उस छोर तक गया। शिक्षक ने सिखाया कि सांसों का तालमेल बिठाते हुए  कैसे पानी के अदर जाते है और कैसे बाहर निकलते है। जब शिक्षक संतुष्ट हो गया तो उसने डगलस को कहा कि अब बिना सहारे के तुम डाइव मारो और तैरो। डगलस को थोडा डर लगा पर उसने कर दिखाया।
अंत में शिक्षक ने कहा कि अब तुम तैर सकते हो। मेरा काम समाप्त।
हिम्मत और साहस का परिचय :
लेकिन डगलस  सोचता था कि जब वह ताल में अकेला होयेगा तो शायद डर जायेगा। उसने इसका परीक्षण किया। इस छोर से उस छोर गया और फिर वापस आया। जब पानी के बीचों बीच था तो कुछ डर जरूर वापस आया पर अब मै  उस आतंक पर गुर्राकर कह सकता था। " अरे! तुम मुझे डरने की कोशिश करते हो,? ठीक , यहाँ तुम्हारा डराना  है देखो। फिर कूदता है और एक छोर  से दूसरे छोर तक तैरता है ।"
बड़े स्तर पर तैरने की तैयारी :
अब भी डगलस संतुष्ट नहीं कि सारा डर भाग गया। वह न्यू हैम्पशायर  में वेन्टवर्थ झील पर गया।  मई बिभिन विधियों से तैरा - रेंगकर , छाती के बल, पार्श्व बल और पृष्ठ बल। केवल एक बार डर लगा जब मैं मध्य में था। मैंने अपना चेहरा अंदर रखा और पानी की गहराई के अतिरिक्त कुछ देखा।  पुराना  डर किसी तरह वापस आया। मैं हंसा और कहा, " मिस्टर आतंक, तुम क्या सोचते हो  कि  मेरे साथ क्या  हो?" वह भाग गया और मैं तैरता रहा।
 फिर  डग कार्परोन  की तरह वार्म झील  में छलांग लगाई और तैरकर दूसरे किनारे पर गयाऔर वहां से वापस आया।  मैं  ख़ुशी से चिल्लाया, और गिल्बर्ट पीक ने प्रतिध्वनि लौटाई । मैंने पानी के अपने दर पर विजय प्राप्त कर ली थी।
निष्कर्ष:
डगलस कहता है कि उसके लिए अनुभव का गहरा अर्थ है।जैसे केवल वे लोग, जिन्होंने गहरे आतंक का अनुभव किया है उस पर विजय प्राप्त की है, इसका महत्व समझते है। मृत्यु में शांति है। मृत्यु के डर मात्र में आतंक है, जैसा रूजवेल्ट जानते थे। उन्होंने कहा," हम सबको जिस चीज़ से डरना चाहिए वह डर स्वयं है। क्योंकि मैंने दोनों का अनुभव किया है– मरने का संवेदन और आतंक जो मरने का डर डर पैदा करता है। जीवित रहने की इच्छा किसी भी तरह से तीव्रता से पैदा होती है। अंत में डगलस ने सीखा कि वह पगडंडियों और पर्वतों पर चढ़ने के लिए स्वतंत्र था उसके अंदर हर चीज़ का डर समाप्त हो गया था।



Q.1. Why was Douglas determined to get over his fear of water?
Ans. Douglas's fear of water spoiled all his joys of fishing, boating, and swimming. So he was determined to get over his fear.

Q.2. What is the 'misadventure' that William Douglas speaks about?
Ans. The misadventure referred to happened at the Y.M.C.A. swimming pool.one day, the writer was sitting alone on the side of the pool. there was no other there. He was afraid of going into the water alone. So He was waiting for other to come. Suddenly a big boy came in.  He picked the writer up and tossed him into the pool. the writer at once went to the bottom of the pool. On the way down, he made a plan. He would hit the bottom and make a big jump to the surface. But he came up very slowly. He could see nothing but water.He grew panicky. Twice he tried to jump, but the jump made no difference. At last he stopped all efforts. He relaxed. There was no more panic.Everything blanked out. The curtain of life was about to fell. But , luckily, Before he was dead, he was taken out of the pool and saved.

Q.3. How did the instructor “build a swimmer” out of Douglas?

Answer

The instructor built a swimmer out of Douglas piece by piece. For three months he held him high on a rope attached to his belt. It went through the pulley. The pulley ran on an overhead cable. The instructor  held on to the end of the rope.He went back and forth across the pool. He practised for many weeks. Panic seized the author every time. The instructor taught Douglas to put his face under water and exhale and to raise his nose and inhale. Then Douglas had to kick with his legs for many weeks till these relaxed. After seven months the instructor told him to swim the length of the pool. The tension begin to grow less. At last He said," Now you can swim. Dive off and swim the length of the pool." The writer was able to do it.

Q.4. How did Douglas make sure that he conquered the old terror?

Answer

Even after the swimming training was over, Douglas wasn't confident about his swimming or that he had overcome the fear. He was determined to completely get rid of it ७. He swam alone in the pool. He went to Lake Wentworth to dive. There, he tried every possible stroke he had learnt. He fought back the tiny vestiges of terror that gripped him in middle of the lake. Finally, in his diving expedition in the Warm Lake, he realised that he had truly conquered his old terror.


1.
Editor
Mr. Dhananjay Uniyal
Senior English Lecturer
SLV intermediate college
Dehradun.

2. Editor
Naresh Tamta
English lecturer
SGRR IC Bhauwala
Dehradun.





Thursday, May 21, 2020

DEEP WATER

''BE NOT AFRAID OF GROWING SLOWLY
BE AFRAID OF STANDING STILL''.

Deep Water, Deep will Power

William Douglas(1898-1980)
William Douglas (1898-1980) was born in Maine, Minnesota. after graduating with bachelors of Arts in English and economics, he spend two years teaching in high school in Yakima. The following excerpt is taken from Of Men and Mountains by William O Douglas.

Decided to learn swim:

YAKIMA RIVER
Douglas decided to swim when he was eleven years old. there was a pool at the Y.M.C.A  in Yakima that offered exactly the opportunity. The Yakima river was treacherous. His mother continuously warned against it, and kept fresh in his mind the details of each drowning in the river. But the Y.M.C.A. pool was safe. It was two or three feet deep at the shallow end; and it was nine feet deep at the other,the drop was gradual. He hated to walk  naked into it and show his skinny legs.But he subdued his pride and did it.

Fear of Water

From the beginning, however, he had an aversion to the water when he was in it. this started when he was three or four years old and his father took him to the beach in California.Douglas and his father stood together in the surf. He hung on to his father , yet the waves knocked him down and swept over him. Douglas was buried in water. His breath was gone. he was frightened. father laughed but there was terror in his heart at the overpowering force of the waves.

Y.M.C.A. Swimming Pool

Douglas introduction to the Y.M.C.A. Swimming Pool revived unpleasant memories and stirred childish fears. But a little while i gathered confidence. I paddled with my new water wings, watching the other boys and trying to learn by aping them. I did this two or three times on different days and was just beginning  to feel at ease in the water when the misadventure happened.
He went to the pool when no one else was there. The place was quiet. The water was still, and the tiled bottom was as white and clean as a bathtub. He was timid about going in alone, so he sat on the side of the pool to wait for others.

Turning Point of His Life 

He had not been there long when there came a big bruiser of a boy, probably eighteen years old. He had thick hair on his chest. He was a beautiful physical specimen, with legs and arms that showed rippling muscle. He yelled, “Hi, Skinny! How’d you like to be ducked?”
With that he picked Douglas up and tossed him into the deep end. Douglas  landed in a sitting position, swallowed water , and went at once to the bottom. He was frightened, but not yet frightened out of his wits. On the way down he planned:  when my feet hit the bottom, I would make a big jump, come to the surface, lie flat on it, and paddle to the edge of the pool.

Battling with Death

It seemed a long way down. Those nine feet were more like ninety, and before he touched bottom his lungs were ready to burst. But when Douglas feet hit bottom he summoned all his strength and made what he thought was a great spring upwards. Douglas imagined he would bob to the surface like a cork. Instead, he came up slowly.  Douglas opened his eyes and saw nothing but water- water that had a dirty yellow tinge to it. He grew panicky. He reached up as if to grab a rope and his hands clutched only at water. Douglas was suffocating. He tried to yell but no sound came out. Then his eyes and nose came out of the water- but not my mouth.

Helpless against water's overpowering force 

Douglas flailed at the surface of the water, swallowed and choked. He tried to bring his legs up, but they hung as dead weights, paralyses and rigid. A great force was pulling him under. He screamed, but only the water heard me. He had started on the long journey back to the bottom of the pool.
Douglas struck at the water as he went down, expending  his strength as one in a nightmare fights as irresistible force. He had lost all his breath. His lungs ached, his head throbbed. He was getting dizzy. But he remembered the strategy- I would spring from the bottom of the pool and come like a cork to the surface. I would lie flat on the water, strike out with my arms, and thrash with my legs. Then I would get to the edge of the pool and be safe.
He went down, down, endlessly. He opened my eyes. Nothing but water with a yellow glow- dark water that one could not see through.

unconscious

And then sheer, stark terror seized him, terror that knows no understanding, terror that knows no control, terror that no one can understand who has not experienced it . Douglas was shrieking under water. He was paralysed under water- stiff, rigid with fear. Even the screams in his throat were frozen. Only his heart, and the pounding in his head,’ said that he was still alive.

And then in the midst of the terror came a touch of reason. He must remember to jump when  he hit the bottom. At last Douglas  felt the tiles under him. His  toes reached out as if to grab them. Douglas jumped with everything he had.
But the jump made no difference. The water was still around him, He looked for ropes, ladders, water wings. Nothing but water. A mass of yellow water held him. Stark terror took an even deeper hold on him, like a great charge of electricity. He shook and trembled with fright. His arms wouldn’t move. Douglas legs wouldn’t move. He tried to call for help, to call for mother. Nothing happened.
And then, strangely, there was light. Douglas was coming out of the awful yellow water. At least his eyes and nose was almost out too.
Then Douglas  started down a third time. He sucked for air and got water. The yellowish light was going out.
Then all effort ceased. he relaxed. Even his legs felt limp; and a blackness swept over his brain. It wiped out terror. There was no more panic. It was quiet and peaceful. Nothing to be afraid of. This is nice …to be drowsy… to go to sleep… no need to jump… too tired to jump… it’s nice to be carried gently… to float along in space… tender arms around me… tender arms like Mother’s… now he must go to sleep…
He  crossed to oblivion, and the curtain of life fell.

He was saved:

The next Douglas remember he was lying on his stomach beside the pool, vomiting . The chap that threw me in was saying, “But I was only fooling.” Someone said, “The kid nearly died. Be all right now. Let’s carry him to the locker room.”
Several hours later, Douglas walked home. He was weak and trembling. He shook and cried when he lay on my bed. Douglas couldn’t eat that night. For days a haunting fear was in his heart. The slightest exertion upset him, making him wobbly in the knees and sick to his stomach.
Douglas  never went back to the pool. He feared water. He avoided it whenever he could.
A few years later when he came to know  that water of the cascades,he wanted to get into them. And whenever I did- whether I was wading the Tieton or Bumping River or Bathing in Warm Lake of the Goat Rocks- The terror that has seized him in the pool would come back. it would take possession of him completely. His legs would become paralysed.Icy horror would grab his heart.
गहरा पानी 
हिंदी सारांश 




1.MY MOTHER AT SIXTY-SIX


MY MOTHER AT SIXTY-SIX


KAMALA DAS
ABOUT THE AUTHOR :

Kamala Das (31 March,1934- 31 May, 2009) was born in Malabar, Kerala.She is recognised as one of the India's foremost poets. Her Works are Known for their originality,versatility and the indigenous flavour of soil. Kamala Das has published many novels and short stories in English and Malayalam under the name" Madhavikutty ".Some of her works in English include the novel Alphabet of Lust (1977),a collection of short stories Padmavati the Harlot and other stories (1992),in addition to five books of poetry. She is a sensitive writer who capture the complex the subtleties of human relationship in lyrical idiom,My Mother at sixty-six is an example.
WRINKLED FACE


MERRY CHILDREN
late winters moon
COCHIN AIRPORT

Driving from my parents home to Cochin last Friday
 morning, I saw my mother,beside me,
doze,open mouthed,her face ashen like that
of a corpse and realised with pain
that she thought away ,and looked but soon
put that thought away,and looked out at young
trees sprinting, the merry children spilling
 out of their homes,but after the airports
 security check,standing a few yards
away, I looked again at her, wan, pale
as a late winters moon and felt that old
familiar ache, my childhoods fear,
but all i said was, see you soon, Amma
all I did was smile and smile and smile.....Kamala Das 

कविता का हिंदी सारांश :

कमला दास पिछले शुक्रवार को सुबह अपने माता- पिता के घर से कोचीन  एयरपोर्ट जाती है।  कार में उसके साथ बगल में उसकी माता जी बैठी होती है जिनकी उम्र ६६ वर्ष हो चुकी है। जब वह अपनी माता जी को देखती है तो वह खुले मुंह से कार में सो रही होती है। उसकी माता का चेहरा इतना कमजोर हो गया है कि मृत शरीर के समान राख रंग लिए हुए था। वह अपनी माता की तुलना एक मृत शरीर से करती है। कवियत्री अपनी माता को इस रूप में देखकर बड़ा दुःख होता है। अब वह समझ जाती है कि उसकी माता का साथ उसके साथ ज्यादा लम्बा नहीं है। इस दुखद सोच से अपना ध्यान बांटने के लिए दूसरे साइड कार से बाहर झांकती है। जब वह बाहर देखती है तो पाती है कि हरे भरे जवान पेड़ पीछे की तरफ भाग रहे है और छोटे बच्चे घरों से बाहर खेलने के लिए दौड़ रहे है। और उन्हें देखकर कवियत्री का मन प्रसन्न हो जाता है।परन्तु  जब कवियत्री  एयरपोर्ट पहुँचती है और उसका सिक्योरिटी चेक हो रहा होता है तो फिर वह कुछ दूरी से अपनी मां  की तरफ दुबारा देखती है तो फिर अपनी मां को इतना दुर्बल, बुजुर्ग पाती  है कि  उसकी तुलना शर्दियों में देर से आने आने चाँद से करती है जो काफी फीका लगता है। और फिर उसको वही मां से बिछड़ने का बचपन वाला डर वापस आ जाता है। वह सोचती है कि शायद अगली बार अपनी माँ को देख पायेगी या नहीं परन्तु फिर भी  अपने दिल को सांत्वना  हुए कमला दास अपनी माँ से मुस्कुराते हुए कहती है कि  माँ जल्दी मिलेंगे।  और फिर कमला दास मुस्कुराई , मुस्कराई  और मुस्कराई। ...   

DETAILED ANALYSIS OF THE POEM
In this poem, the poetess relates a personal experience. Through it, she brings out a common paradox of human relationships. Sometimes,we do feel deep sympathy for someone but we fail to express it in a proper manner.

It was a Friday morning. The poetess was driving from her parents home to the Cochin airport. Her mother was sitting beside her in the car . The mother was then sixty-six years old. While going, the poetess turned to look at her mother. she found that the mother was dozing and her mouth was open. Her face was as pale as that of a dead person. the poetess painfully realised that her mother was not going to live long .but soon she drove this painful thought away from her mind. She started looking at the young trees on the roadside that seemed to be running fast. She saw children running out of their houses in joy.
After reaching the airport, the poetess went through the security check. Her mother was standing outside a few yards away. After the security check, the poetess again looked at her mother from that distance. the mothers face was pale white. It was as pale as the face of the moon in late winter. The poetess felt an old familiar ache in her body. It was like she used to feel in her  childhood when some fear overpowered her. Yet she spoke no word to her mother .All that she said was,"See you soon Amma "the only thing the poetess did was smile and smile and smile.
SPRINTING

Word- Notes:
Doze –  sleep
Corpse – Dead body
Sprinting – running
Spilling- going out
Wan – colourless

Q.1-  Poets mother was at sixty-six. Why did she go to Cochin airport with her?
Ans-  Mother’s love is indefinable. Though the poetess was grown up, the link of maternal love dragged her to Cochin airport. She got satisfaction to bid the poet farewell.

Q2- what kind of pain and ache that the poetess feel?
Ans- Poetess mother at sixty- six. She is sick. She has lost her energy and colour. The poet feels the pain and ache of insecurity of parting from her ageing mother.

Q.3-  Why are the young trees described as sprinting?
Ans- This question has also a symbolic meaning. The young trees have energy and lively life. They seem running fast. The other meaning is while the poet’s car speeds ahead, the young trees seem running back.

Q.4- Why has the poetess brought in the image of the merry children ‘spilling out of their homes’?
Ans- The merry children ‘ spilling out of their homes’ present an image of happiness, energy and lively life. They are enjoying the golden period of their life in contrast of the poetess mother who is sitting beside her in the car. She looks lifeless and pale like a corpse. She presents an image of ageing, decay and passively.

 Q.6. Why has the mother been compared to the late winters moon?
Ans. The mother has turned sixty- six. She looks pale and week. She has lost her shine and energy of life. The late winter’s moon looks pale and weak. It also loses its shine in the haze and mist of the winter. Hence the mother has been compared to the late winter’s moon.

Q.5. What do the parting words of the poetess and her smile signify?
Ans. The poetess parting words- see you soon Amma- give assurance and hope to her old mother that she will come soon to see her mother. The word smile has been repeated thrice. It expresses poet’s intense feeling of love and affection for the broken heart of her mother.

2. LOST SPRING: STORIES OF STOLEN CHILDHOOD


LOST SPRING: STORIES OF STOLEN CHILDHOOD

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Anees Jung (1964) was born in Rourkela, Odisha, India and spent her childhood and adolescence in Hyderabad. She received her education in Hyderabad and in United States of America. Her parents were both writers. Aneej jung began he career as a writer in India. She has been an editor and columnist for major newspapers in India and abroad, and has authored several books. the following is an excerpt from her book titled Lost Spring, Stories of Stolen Childhood. Here she analyses the grinding poverty and traditions which condemn these children to a life of exploitation. 
अनीस जंग 1964 का जन्म राउरकेला उड़ीशा भारत में हुआ था। और उनका बचपन और किशोरावस्था हैदराबाद में बीते। उनकी शिक्षा हैदराबाद और अमेरिका में हुई। उनके माता पिता दोनों ही लेखक लेखक थे। अनीस जंग ने भारत में लेखिका के रूप में अपनी आजीविका का प्रारम्भ किया। वे भारत और विदेशों प्रख्यात समाचार पत्रों की संपादक और स्तम्भ लेखिका रह चुकी है। उन्होंने बहुत सी पुस्तिका लिखी। यहाँ दिया गया अवतरण उनकी पुस्तक LOST SPRING: STORIES OF STOLEN CHILDHOOD से लिया गया है। यहाँ से वह भयंकर गरीबी और परम्पराओं का विश्लेषण करती है। जिन्होंने इन बच्चों को शोषण का जीवन बिताने के लिए मजबूर किया।


Anees Jung


SUMMARY OF THE LESSON


Introduction:
In story, the writer describe the pitiable condition of poor children  who have to live in slums and work hard in very dirty condition. They are never sent to school because their parents are too poor to pay for their education. There are two motivational stories of two poor children.
  1. One is Saheb. He works as a rag-picker with his family and all the people of his slum area do the same.
  2. Second is Mukesh, a bangle maker in Firozabad. He wants to be a motor mechanic.
परिचय : इस कहानी में अनीस जंग गरीब बच्चों की दयनीय स्तिथि के बारे में वर्णन करती है जो मलिन बस्तियों में रहते है और गन्दगी में उनको जीवन यापन के लिए कार्य करना पड़ता है।उनको कभी स्कूल नहीं भेजा गया क्यूंकि उनके मन बाप के पास उनकी फीस के लिए पैसे नहीं है।  इस पाठ में दो गरीब बच्चों की प्रेरणात्मक कहानियां है।  
  1. पहली कहानी साहेब की है जो कूड़ा बीनने का काम करता है और उसके परिवार और बस्ती के सभी कबाड़ का काम करते है। 
  2.  दूसरी कहानी मुकेश की है जो मुरादाबाद की तंग गलियों में रहकर चूड़ी बनाने का काम करते है।  परन्तु मुकेश मोटर मैकेनिक बनना चाहता है। 







Migrated from Bangladesh:
Some Bangladeshis migrated to India in 1971 when there were many storms that swept away their green fields and homes in Dhaka. they squatted in Seemapuri which was then a wilderness. They made their houses of mud with roofs of tine and tarpaulin.There lived 10000 rag pickers. They have got ration cards that got their names on voter’s lists and enabled them to buy grain.
SAHIB


Saheb a rag-picker:
The family of sahib was one of them. He and other boys of his age do the rag-picking. They roam barefoot in the streets picking rags. The family of sahib was one of them. He and other boys of his age do the rag-picking. They roam barefoot in the streets picking rags. They scrounge garbage. Sahib says “ I sometimes find a rupee, even a ten rupee note.” For the children is wrapped in wonder, for the elders, it is a mean of survival. These rag-pickers are not willing to go to school. They scrounge garbage for survival.


Now Saheb is not his own Master:
One day the author sees Saheb going to a milk booth. He has a steel canister to bring milk. Now he works in a tea stall down the road. He is paid 800 rupees and all his meals but he is not happy there. He is no longer his own master!

हिंदी सारांश
बांग्लादेश से दिल्ली सीमापुरी में माइग्रेट:
बांग्लादेश की राजधानी ढाका में जब तूफान आता था तो वहां के निवासियों के घर उजड़ जाते थे और हरी भरी खेती सब नष्ट हो जाती थी। तो फिर वहां की निवासियों का वहां जीवन यापन करना मुश्किल हो गया था और वे बांग्लादेश से माइग्रेट होकर भारत में दिल्ली दे दूर सटे सीमापुरी क्षेत्र में आकर बस गए। उस समय सीमापुरी इलाका जंगल था। इन्होंने मिटटी से लिपाई पुताई करके, टिन और तिरपाल से कच्चे मकान बनाये और रहने लग गए। इनका मुख्य व्यवसाय कूड़ा बीनना है। लगभग 10000 लोग कूड़ा बीनने वाले वाले रहते है। इनके राशन कार्ड बनवाये गए है ताकि इनको राशन मिले और इसी के जरिये वोट दे सकें।
साहेब -ए  - आलम :
इन्ही के बीच साहेब का परिवार भी रहता था।  साहेब का पूरा नाम साहेब इ आलम था किसका मतलब ब्रह्माण्ड का स्वामी होता है। परन्त साहेब को अपने नाम का मतलब मालूम नहीं होता है। साहेब और उसकी उम्र के अन्य बच्चे कूड़ा बीनने का कम करते थे। वे खाली पैर कूड़े की ढूंढ में इधर उधर गलियों में भटकते थे। वे कूड़े के ढेर में कूड़ा बीनते है।
साहेब कहता है कि मुझे कूड़े के ढेर में एक रूपयमिल्ट है और कभी कभी मुझे 10 रुपये मिल जाते है। बच्चों के लिये तो कूड़े का ढेर किसी गिफ्ट से कम नहीं है जो कि रैपर से लिपटा हुआ है परन्त माता पिता के लिए यह रोजी रोटी है। ये कूड़े कबाड़ वाले बच्चे स्कूल नहीं जाते बस परिवार का पेट पालने के लिए कूड़ा छानते है।
साहेब अब अपना मालिक नहीं रहा:
एक दिन लेखिका देखती है कि साहेब डेरी की तरफ जा रहा है उसके हाथ में दूध का डिब्बा है अब वह चाय की दुकान में काम करता है। उसको खाने के साथ 800 रुपये पगार मिलती है परंतु साहेब खुश नहीं है क्योंकि वह अब परतंत्र है स्वतंत्र नहीं। उसको दूध का डिब्बा अपने कूड़े की बोरी से भारी लगता है. क्यूंकि पहले वह अपने काम में अपना मालिक था और अब दूसरे की नौकरी कर रहा है। 

"I want to drive a car"

MUKESH
Introduction:

Mukesh insists on being his own master. He says, “ I will be motor mechanic.” He is the son of a poor bangle maker of Firozabad. Glass bangle making in Firozabad is a cottage industry. These bangle makers live in a slum. There are stinking lanes choked with garbage. They live in hovels with crumbling walls, wobbly doors and no window.

Bangle Maker become blind before adult:
In dark barracks, next to lines of oil lamps, sick boys and girls with their fathers and mothers. They weld pieces of coloured glass into circle of bangles. they often end up losing their eye-site before they come adults.
20000 children works in this industry. the low of child labour cannot be enforced their with the convince of the the middlemen the policeman, the keepers of low, the bureaucrats and the politicians.

Afraid being organised: 
The author asks a group of young man, Why the do not organise themselves into a cooperative. They says," Even if we get organised we are the once who will be hauled up by the police, beaten and dragged to jail for doing something illegal." 
There is no leader among them. No one could help the see things differently. they talk endlessly in a spiral that moves from poverty to empathy to greed and to injustice.

Dedication of Mukesh:
When the author senses a flesh of daring in Mukesh she is Cheered. He repeats," I want to be a motor mechanic." He has a sense of initiative an determination. He will go to a garage.; The garage is a long way from his home, but he insist "I will walk."
His attitude is different to his situation from that of his family.

हिंदी सारांश
मुकेश का सपना :
"मै  कार चलाना चाहता हूँ "
मुकेश अपना मालिक स्वयं बनना चाहता है। वह मोटर मकैनिक बनना चाहता है। मुकेश फीरोजाबाद में एक चूड़ी बनाने वाले  का बेटा है। कांच की चूड़ी बनाना फीरोजाबाद में मुख्य ब्यवसाय है और घर घर में चूड़ियाँ बनती है यह उनका परम्परागत कुटीर उद्योग है। चूड़ी बनाने वाले तंग बस्तियों में रहते है जहाँ कूड़े का ढेर रहते है संकरी गलियां, कच्चे मकान और इन पर टूटे फूटे दरवाजे और बिना खिड़की के घर है।
घरों में बच्चे शाम को अपने माँ बाप के साथ डिम लैम्पों की रौशनी में चूड़ी बनाने का काम करते है जिससे उनकी आँखों की रौशनी 30 से 40 वर्ष की उम्र में कम हो जाती है और आगे का जीवन अँधा हो जाता है। चूड़ियों की फॅक्टरियों में भी बच्चे कम रौशनी में काम करते है लेखिका कहती है अगर कानून का सख्ती से पालन किया जाये तो लगभग 20000 बाल मजदूर फैक्टरियों से बाहर आ जायेंगे। यहाँ सबका मानना यही है कि चूड़ी बनाना की उनके भाग्य में लिखा है।
परंतु पूंजीपति, राजनेता कभी ऐसा नहीं चाहेंगे। लेखिका युवाओं के ग्रुप  से पूछती है कि तुम लोग एकत्रित होकर संघ क्यों नहीं बनाते हो? अपनी आवाज जुल्म के खिलाफ क्यों नहीं उठाते? तो वे लोग कहते है कि  यदि हम आवाज उठा भी देते है तो पुलिस के द्वारा हमें प्रताड़ित किया जायेगा झूठे केश में हमें फंसाकर जेल में बंद कर देंगे। 
उनके बीच कोई नेता नहीं  है।  किसी के पास भी ऊँचे सपने देखने की दूरदृध्टि नहीं है , सभी परंपरागत कार्य को अपनी किस्मत मान चुके है। सभी अपनी इस दुर्दशा का कारण  अपने पूर्वजों को मानते है और वही पुराना  गरीबी  राग अलापते है। 
मुकेश का साहस और सपना :
जब लेखिका मुकेश की आँखों में कुछ अलग और ऊँचा कार्य करने का सपना देखती है तो बड़ी प्रसन्न होती है। मुकेश दुबारा बोलता है कि मुझे मोटर मैकेनिक बनना है। उसके पास दिमाग और साहस था कुछ अलग करने का.  वह गैराज जायेगा परंति मैंने मुकेश कहा कि गैराज बहुत दूर है तो उसने कहा कि  मैं पैदल चलूँगा पर मंजिल तक पहुंचूंगा। 
उस परिवेश में मुकेश का रुख भिन्न था। 

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Q.1. What is Saheb looking for in the Garbage dumb? Where is he and where has he come from?
Ans. Saheb is looking for gold in the garbage dumps. The dumps are in the his neighbourhood. He lives in Seemapuri. His native place is Bangladesh from where his parents came in 1971 as refugees.
Q.2. What was the full name of saheb? Did he know what it means? What did it represent?
Ans. The full name of Saheb was 'Saheb-e-Alam'. He did not know its meaning. It represented - lord of the universe.
Q.3. How is the garbage gold to the rag-pickers?
Ans. garbage is gold to the rag-pickers because it give them their daily bread and a roof over their heads.
Q.4. Who is Mukesh? What is his dream? What dome it look like?
Ans. Mukesh is the son of a poor bangle- maker in Firozabad. He dreams to be a motor mechanic. His dreams looms like a mirage amidst the dust of streets of Firozabad.


LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Q.1. What could be some of the reasons for the migration of people from villages to cities?
Ans. There could be some of the following reasons for the migration of the people from         village to cities:
1.  Poor people migrate from villages to cities to seek livelihood.
2.  When there is no work the agriculture farms, some people partly migrate from village         to cities.
3. The farm labourers does not get proper wages in the villages, so the have to migrate           form village to village to cities.
4. Some weak and poor people find themselves in fear of security for their women,girls           and children in villages. They therefore migrate from the villages to cities.
5. Mechanisation of agriculture forces the labourers to migrate from village to cities.
6. Some rich people migrate from the villages to cities to educate their children in cities.
7. Some rich people who belong to minority migrate from village to cities for reason of           security.
8. Some educated people migrate from village to cities to maintain their standard of living.


2. What could be some of the reasons for the migration of people from villages to cities?

Answer

There are many factors that cause migration of people from villages to cities. Some villagers voluntarily move to the cities in search for jobs and better civic and health facilities, etc. Others are forced to migrate when natural disasters like flood, storm, drought, famine, etc. destroy their houses and properties. History has records of large scale migrations caused by wars. Also, many villagers who are better off than others manage to send their children to study in the cities.
In the lesson ‘Lost Spring’, Saheb and his family migrates to Seemapuri from Dhaka after their houses were destroyed in the storms.

3. Would you agree that promises made to poor children are rarely kept? Why do you think this happens in the incidents narrated in the text?

Answer

Yes, the promises made to poor children are rarely kept. Often, they are not taken seriously or have been made on the pretext of retaining a child’s fancy for something. This keeps the child hoping for a better possibility till he/she realises the truth. It is difficult for people to shatter the children’s dreams; while it is also painful to see these children thrive of false hopes given to them.
Once, while interacting with Saheb, the narrator ends up encouraging him to study and jokingly talks about opening a school herself. At that time she fails to realise that unknowingly she has sown a seed of hope in Saheb’s heart. She becomes conscious of her mistake when, after a few days, Saheb approaches her, enquiring about her school. Her hollow promise leaves her embarrassed.

4. What forces conspire to keep the workers in the bangle industry of Firozabad in poverty?

Answer

The unfavourable social and legal systems, the deceptive middlemen, and their own sad destinies keep the workers in the bangle industry of Firozabad in perpetual poverty.

Talking about the Text

1. How, in your opinion, can Mukesh realise his dream?

Answer

Mukesh was different from the others of his community. By daring to dream, he has already taken the first step towards a big change. He wants to become a motor mechanic and drive a car. He can realise this dream with determination and hard work. There might be many obstacles on his way but a strong willpower will help him move towards the way to success. The fact that he is willing to walk a long distance in order to learn the vocation, underlines his firm resolve. The only thing left for him to do is to make that first journey to that garage and request the owner to take him in and guide and direct him on his journey as a mechanic.

2. Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry.

Answer

The impoverished workers in the glass bangles industry toil in potentially hazardous working conditions while welding. The furnaces they work in have extremely high temperature and lack proper ventilation. Persistently working in low light conditions, without any protective eye gear, leaves them blind. Even burns and cuts are quite common. The workers are quite prone to ailments such as lung cancer.

3. Why should child labour be eliminated and how?

Answer

Child labour should be eliminated because it takes away from the child his childhood and the prospect of elementary education. Moreover, since the child labourers are cheap, and consequently engaged in hazardous and dangerous employment, they are often vulnerable to mental and physical illness. In order to curb this problem, it is important to make education easily accessible. Apart from that, the parents must be made aware of the consequences of working in harmful environments. It is also important to make the public aware of the fact that child labour is a criminal offence and is punishable under law. The government must ensure stricter child labour laws and that the offenders are punished.