Literature provides a kaleidoscopic image of life. All the facets of experience are so reflected in literary texts that the resulting refraction, that is, twice removed from reality as Plato would put it, is almost as rich and complex and crazy, just like life itself.
Why this paean to literature? Is that your question? Well, today I read yet again Premchand's world classic, a short story entitled "Idgah." Have you read this story that presents a deeply felt and truly responsible innocent love? You have not read it as yet? Well, you have indeed missed a lot in this world!
Okay, I shall summarise the story for you. Its protagonist is a small five year old kid, Hameed. As his parents are both dead (though he is very sure they would soon return with truckloads of all sorts of goodies), his only support is his old grandma.
On the Id day, she is actually reluctant to let him go to the mosque as he is just a child. She relents, lets him go to the fair. She gives him three paise to buy something for the festival. All the other children eat sweetmeats, without sharing them with poor Hameed. They mock him when they buy playthings.
Poor Hameed cannot afford either the sweetmeats or the pricey playthings. Then he sees an ironsmithy, a blacksmith's shop. He remembers his poor grandma who burns her fingers constantly as they do not have any tongs. He buys the tongs for her. The end of the story is indeed worth a read!
Why do I like the story so much? Well, the third person narration in the story is from a child's perspective. This kid is innocence incarnate. He knows merely how to love deeply. He does not throw tantrums. He is kind and considerate, so much so that he shares with all his heartless friends the tongs he has bought for his grandmother.
Its simple plot houses very realistic characters with simple joys and griefs. Hence the subtle ethical tone in the background enriches us. The simple representative characters enjoy both narrative consistency and great psychological realism. Such is the diction Premchand uses that the flow of the story carries us effortlessly to the inevitable end! A gem of a story indeed!
Pratima@The tale lies in the telling!
No comments:
Post a Comment