Essay --

Imagine yourself strapped upright in a chair, so tightly that you can move nothing, not even your head. A sort of pad grips your head from behind, forcing you to look straight in front of you. This place is bigger than most of the cells you had been in. But you hardly notice your surroundings. All you notice is that there are two small tables straight in front of you, each covered with green baize. One is only a meter or two from you; the other is further away, near the door. For a moment you're alone; then the door opens and I come in. You asked me once what's in Room 101. I told you that you knew the answer already. Everyone knows it. The thing that's in Room 101 is the worst thing in the world. The door opens again. A guard comes in, carrying something made of wire, a box or basket of some kind. He sets it down on the further table. Because of the position in which I'm standing, you can't see what the thing is. The worst thing in the world varies from individual to individual. It may be burial alive, or death by fire, or by drowning, or by impalement, or fifty other deaths. There are cases where it's some quite trivial thing, not even fatal. You move a little to one side, so that you have a better view of the thing on the table. It's an oblong wire cage with a handle on top for carrying it by. Fixed to the front of it is something that looked like a fencing mask, with the concave side outwards. Although it is three or four meters away from you, you could see that the cage is divided lengthways into two compartments, and that there's some kind of creature in each. They're scorpions. In your case, the worst thing in the world happens to be deathstalker scorpions. A sort of premonitory tremor, a fear of you're not certain what, ha... ...ck panic takes hold of you. You're blind, helpless, mindless. [As didactically as ever:] It was a common punishment in ancient Persia. The mask is closing on your face. The wire brushes your cheek. And then -- no, it's not relief, only hope, a tiny fragment of hope. You're falling backwards, into enormous depths, away from the scorpions. You're still strapped in the chair, but you'd fallen through the floor, through the walls of the building, through the earth, through the oceans, through the atmosphere, into outer space, into the gulfs between the stars -- always away, away, away from the scorpions. You're light-years distant, but I'm still standing at your side. There's still the cold touch of wire against your cheek. But through the darkness that envelopes you, you hear another metallic click, and know that the cage door had clicked shut and not open. Wake up now.

Dijkstra’s Algorithm Essay

1) Write short notes on: a) Pains of Partition b) Family bonding and disintegration Ans. a) India was a colony for over 200 years and this struggle for independence is deeply rooted in the Indian psyche. More than this, another momentous event of partition is taken up by the authors. Heinous activity, cruelty, barbarism have left deep scars in Indian minds. Different aspects of partition have been dealt with by many writers specially who have themselves undergone that experience. His most famous book is â€Å"Train to Pakistan†. Another important book by him is â€Å"Ghadar 1915: India’s first Armed Revolution†. There are some women writers who have also written about the partition of 1947. Manju Kapur has, in fact, made it the background of her novel â€Å"Difficult Daughter† that was published in 1998. Nina Sibal painted a vivid picture of partition in her novel â€Å"Yatra† and â€Å"What the body remembers† by Shauna Baldwain also throws light on the pains of Partition. b) Among all the countries of the world, the institution of family is of supreme importance in India. Even in this post modern world, Family still plays the pivotal role. There have been continuous twists and turns in the cobweb of family relationship. Many writers have written profusely on it but basically women writers have dealt with an extra edge. Shashi Deshpandey, Kamala Markandeya, Nayantara Sahgal , to name a few. Earlier, India had joint family system but with rapid industrialization and to meet out the search of better opportunities of employment, the families gradually acquired the shape of nuclear ones. Urban migration started with the shifting of masses from rural to urban areas to meet out the challenges of earning living. Such issues also dealt with seriously by many writers in all the languages in India. Both the genres of short stories and novels take up ‘Family’ as an important issue and then the different equations between members of the family always make interesting plot for the stories. Relation between mother and son, husband and wife, brother and brother, brother and sister requires minute detailing and a lot of sensitivity. 2) Write a note on basket-selling girl. Ans. The writer is shown as eighteen years old and studying in the Delhi University. The girl , that he meets at Deoli station, is very poor as her feet were bare but he was struck by the sheer dignity with which she carried herself. She had a typical charm about her personality. She had a beautiful , pale visage with shiny, black hair. The feature of profound attraction was her pair of dark, troubled eyes. In a way the writer was mesmerized by the simple beauty and grace oozing out of her personality. â€Å"She stood by my window for some time and neither of us said anything. But when she moved on, I found myself leaving my seat and going to the carriage door. † The use of the words â€Å"I found myself† amply suggests that he was motivated from within to follow that girl. The germination of love in this story does not seem to be unrequited as the girl also gets sparkled up looking at the writer for the second time. In fact her maiden meeting with the writer instills a spark of happiness within her. He writes, â€Å" I watched her as the platform slipped away. She was alone on the platform and she did not move, but she was looking at me and smiling. I watched her until the signal-box in the way, and then the jungle hid the station, but I could still see her standing there alone †¦.. â€Å" 3. What are the unique features of Desai’s prose style ? Ans. Desai is part of a new literary tradition of Indian writing in English which dates back only to the ’30s or ’40s. She explains that this is because â€Å"at one time all literature was recited rather than read and that remains the tradition in India. It is still rather a strange act to buy a book and read it, an unusual thing to do†. Her new style of writing is also different from that of many Indian writers, as it is much less conservative than Indian literature has been in the past. For these reasons, she says, she is not widely read in India, mainly in Indian universities if at all. Throughout her novels, children’s books, and short stories, Desai focuses on personal struggles and problems of contemporary life that her Indian characters must cope with. She maintains that her primary goal is to discover â€Å"the truth that is nine-tenths of the iceberg that lies submerged beneath the one-tenth visible portion we call Reality†. She portrays the cultural and social changes that India has undergone as she focuses on the incredible power of family and society and the relationships between family members, paying close attention to the trials of women suppressed by Indian society. Desai is praised for her broad understanding on intellectual issues, and for her ability to portray her country so vividly with the way the eastern and western cultures have blended there. 4) Write the character sketch of Daga . Ans. Daga was a contractor who earned huge amount of money. As money begets money, he piled up bundles of notes by hook or by crook. He was involved in the quagmire of immoral deeds like murder, kidnapping, trafficking etc. He had an unsatiating appetite for money and he blew it up on women and alcohol. There was nothing congenial or friendly in Daga’s personality. He did not think twice before slashing anybody from his scheme of life but if someone tried to leave his gang, he would akin it an act of treacherous absconder. For example, there was a man Kannan who wanted to leave Daga’s world of heinous crime but no sooner than this news reached Daga’s ear, he was murdered. When Kailas extricated himself from the company of Daga, he could not take it casually. In spite of Kailas’ escaping to a far off place, in fact a continent away, he managed to find him. To Kailas’ utter discomfort, his greed of money is not quashed. He demanded fifty thousand rupees from him. Kailas tried his level best to make him understand that his current job did not flourish him with unlimited money but Daga was not ready to listen. He was violent enough to have forgotten that Kailas once used to work for him. He used harsh body language while dealing with Kailas. â€Å"If you run again, I will kill you, no matter which gutter you hide in. Tomorrow this time. Fifty thousand. † This threat sent the shivers down Kailas’ spine. He knew that Daga was a killer and that hunting lodge was an ideal place for his murder to be taken place without any news of it to anybody. Finally Daga meets his death as a murderer should die. 5) Write a note on suitability of the title â€Å" Panch Parmeshwar’ . Ans. The story ‘Panch Parmeshwar’ deals with the supremact of

Fernando Botero (Colombian Artist) Free Essay Example, 2000 words

In his Mona Lisa, he replaces the Italian background with erupting volcanoes, a distinctive feature of South America. Botero also features religion in his work. During his time, the Catholic Church was a distinctive feature of Latin America. It had massive influence in the lives of people throughout the region. Indeed it practically dominated everything in South America. For example, it was active and powerful in the society, politics, culture, and even people’s private lives. Thus, by featuring religion in his work, Botero reveals his Latin American identity. In addition to religion, Botero features politics in his works. Many countries in the region have encountered both civilian and military rule. Through his works, Botero satirizes Latin American politics that are characterized by military coups and human rights abuses. Thus, by featuring the distinct politics of the region, Botero discloses his ties with Latin America. 2. Bullfighting Bullfighting became Botero’s second major theme in his painting career. Although he had ignored the subject matter, he made a dramatic return that provided him with inexhaustible content to illustrate. His focus was mainly on the bullfighting that is considered bad, perhaps a portrayal of his hatred towards inaccuracy. We will write a custom essay sample on Fernando Botero (Colombian Artist) or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now However, the paintings could still be interpreted as a representation of his ideas about reality. To him, what matters is not the faultless illustration of reality, but the creation of the artist’s aesthetic. 3. Violence Violence is also a characteristic feature of some of Botero’s works. Botero has produced two major series of paintings featuring violence. The first series features his native Colombia. Through this series, Botero chose to expose Colombia’s bloody history in some of his paintings. Throughout the twentieth century, Colombia’s politics was dominated by military coups and bloodshed. The subject matter inspired Botero. His purpose of focusing on violence was to reveal what was happening. However, he did not have the intention of changing the situation in his country. The second major series of Botero’s work featuring violence is Abu Ghraib, his impression of Iraqi detainees in the hands of U. S. forces. Botero was inspired by the 2004 revelations of torture of Iraqi detainees in the notorious Abu Ghraib prison. He obtained most of his information from newspapers. Some of the paintings depict naked men with their hands or legs suspended from the roofs of the cells. Others depict blindfolded detainees with blood-stained clothes, an indication of torture.