Tryst with Destiny- Jawaharlal Nehru

The given text is a speech which was orated by Jawaharlal Nehru “at the stroke of the midnight hour” when India attained her freedom in 1947. He effectively uses rhetorical devices such as metaphors, anaphora, hypophora, and distinctio to create one of the most appreciated speeches in the world and arguably the most iconic speech ever to be orated in front of the largest democracy in the world. The speech addressed many things that were to be done in order to raise India from the “ill fortunes” of the colonial period to a successful nation in “neutrality” and peace with other nations. Nehru also praised the “soldiers of freedom”, such as Mahatma Gandhi who “without praise or reward, have served India even unto death” and recognised that India was in the midst of an “unending quest” for glory and its well deserved success. 

The purpose of this speech was to inform, persuade and convince the audience that there was a lot of work that had to be done and that they should rise to “opening of opportunity” and “accept the challenge of the future.” The audience of this speech is clearly stated within it as Jawaharlal Nehru says that the responsibility that comes with freedom and power “rests upon this assembly, a sovereign body representing the sovereign people of India.” That being said, the audience of this speech was possibly, the new formed government body comprising of well educated men who understood English, which was the language in which this speech was delivered. An evidence of this is the time period when this speech was given. India attained freedom in 1947, and back then very little people knew the English language and so logically the audience should have been well-educated people who understood English.

Although full of mixed emotions, the “Tryst with Destiny” was still a well articulated political speech which effectively gathered ideas and presented them in a very patriotic and logical manner. In his speech, Nehru understands the limitations of the current generation at that time and gives the assembly inspiration and faith in order to fulfil the dream of building “the noble mansion of free India where all her children may dwell”. Nehru goes on to say that although the sorrows of the past may stick to Indians for some time, they should still rejoice in their freedom but also remember and praise the freedom fighters and “the architect of this freedom, the father of the our nation”, Mahatma Gandhi who lead India carrying “the torch of freedom” which “lighted up the darkness" that surrounded them. Nehru insists on redeeming the pledge in full, which was to “make all the people of India what destiny intended them to be”. Towards the end of the speech, Jawaharlal Nehru becomes the voice of the assembly and concludes by saying that the sovereign body will bind themselves afresh to India’s service.

The tone of this speech is very objective.  Despite this it includes happy and sad tones here and there when expressing the different thoughts of the past and present which gives great dynamics to this speech. He uses a happy tone in certain sentences within the speech by saying words like “celebrate”, “adventure”, “freedom” and uses a sad tone when talking about the past using words like “sorrow”, “pain, and “failures”. This sets a very patriotic and festive mood among the audience, which is the assembly and allows people to reflect on their past and present, hence appreciating the freedom fighters and giving into India’s service.   

In his speech, Jawaharlal Nehru has effectively used rhetorical devices and this helped in engaging the assembly. There are a lot of metaphors like “torch of freedom, “soul of a nation”, soldiers of freedom”, “star of freedom” and more which is a way of imagery in which someone imagines a real thing and relates it to an abstract noun. Jawaharlal Nehru then uses an anaphora to emphasize his point that there is “no time for for petty and destructive criticism, no time for ill will or blaming others”. He opens up the next part of the speech with a metabasis by saying “Our next thoughts…”. He uses this to transition well in his speech and brings the focus of the audience to a more patriotic and thankful mindset. Nehru then  uses a hypophora within the speech, “what shall be our endeavour?” and then answers it himself by informing the assembly a set of goals that were to be accomplished. He uses an anaphora within this sentence and says “to” four times at the starting of each of the goals that he spoke about.  Because India is the largest democracy int he world and because it has so many religions, Nehru is careful on the words he uses but instead he uses a distinctio when saying “All of us, to whatever religion we may belong, are equally the children of india with equal rights, privileges and obligations.” This creates a very nice atmosphere as he acknowledges all of India and not just a certain religion or caste at a time when Hinduism was extremely prominent. Towards the end of his speech he uses an antithesis by saying “the ancient, the eternal and the ever new”. This makes the audience imagine India as a new revived nation free in every regard in its ever lasting beauty of the ancient times. 

As said above the “Tryst with Destiny” was one of the most iconic speeches made in India’s history and it is for good reasons. The speech is very objective, it is to the point and it has a good flow throughout. It also embraces the whole community within it which was vital to the speech’s success in a country with so many people and religions. In essence, Jawaharlal Nehru talks about advancing forward and raising India to be a world superpower and in order to do that he asks for the cooperation of the common people, especially the audience the government assembly. 

IOC practice

Hey!

Here's the link to the commentary: https://soundcloud.com/rhit-1/sample-ioc

Thanks for listening and please leave a comment below! :)

Language as a resistance?

I read an essay called 'the language of power' by bell hooks and in it, she talks about how the displaced Africans made up their own intimate language by mixing in English words and grammatical structures of African languages to create what we call AAVE or the vernacular English. Through her knowledge of the language, she tells us that AAVE , in its pure form was used as a resistance against the oppressors, who used standard English. Through the creation of this hybrid, subaltern language, the "homeless" Africans created a community which resisted the oppressors. AAVE is still used by African Americans but they have to use standard English academically, which is proved to be the case as bell hooks talks  about how she wrote an article in AAVE and then how that same article was sent back to her by the editor who changed it into standard English. In the 20th century as well AAVE was still used as a resistance even after slavery was banned. It was used in the form of rap which the African Americans used to express their feelings of inequality, racism and oppression.

One part of the essay which caught my attention was this excerpt:

“This is the oppressor’s language yet I need it to talk to you.” I’ve never forgotten it. Perhaps I could not have forgotten it even if I tried to erase it from memory. Words impose themselves, lake root in our memory against our will.

I can relate this to my own experiences with English unknowingly overthrowing my own language Malayalam ever since I joined an international school. Lately, I have been doing a lot of code switching when speaking to my relatives. Now when I call my grandfather, I always say "hey" which is not anywhere near how I used to speak 3 years back. Things for me have changed but I am still trying to resist the infiltration of English into my linguistic memory by speaking my mother tongue constantly with my parents and my close relatives so that I don't lose a language so intimate, and unique to me.

How is linguistic imperialism affecting my country?

Well as you know, I am from India and when people meet me they ask if I am from America or at times, where did I learn how to speak English. I always answer them by saying it from the schools I have been to and from cartoons I watched when I was a little kid; cartoons like Ed, Edd and Eddy, Powerpuff girls, Dexter's Laboratory etc.

The English language, for many years, has been taking advantage of the fact that there is no actual national language in India. My country is hugely diverse with 1.2 billion people and 700 languages to deal with and this very vast diversity has given the English language the opportunity to seep through the cracks of time. In fact, almost 250 languages has become extinct in 40 years time not to mention the massive change or transfer into a western outlook; I know this because I have studied in India for 7 years and all my subjects, except for my mother tongue was taught in English.

 A major impact of the vast variety of languages is the lack of a common language that everyone can communicate with. The lack of this language is the core reason for the emergence of English in India not to mention the influences of the British colonization of India. There is a positive and negative impact of this situation: The positive being that Indians now have a medium through which they can communicate on a national scale but the negative being that cultural values and languages are becoming increasingly moribund or endangered because the influence of this imperial language has encouraged people in India to forget their values to better accommodate this devastating change  happening right under our noses, both explicitly and implicitly.

The English language has definitely affected education in India as  far as the medium through which subjects are taught and it has reached to the extent that it is considered a very great thing to get good grades in English, which I think is a wrong mentality as by learning English you are forgetting your mother toungue, your culture and eventually through time, the history of a once great civilization.

Paper 1 Commentary- Text 2

This text is an article which was published by the non-profit organization, Oxfam International, which aims to convince readers about the efforts being undertaken by Oxfam to contain the food crisis that is being faced by people in the Sahel region of west and central Africa. The text uses a lot of literary devices and statistics effectively to bring their massage forward, possibly in an attempt to attract sponsors or increase the organization's general popularity.  

The fact that the article is published on a website makes the target audience vague but could in fact be people interested in sponsoring an organization like Oxfam or people who are actively following the food crisis in Africa. This is made clear by the reason that no person who is not interested in the issues happening in Africa would research about such a website and only a person who is actively looking for an organization to sponsor would bother reading the article. The purpose is very evident through analysis of the sentences and literary devices used and it is to inform as well as convince the audience about the food crisis in the African regions of Chad, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and other regions in Sahel and what Oxfam International is doing to prevent further damage of agriculture and people. 

 The content portrays themes of service towards the community, commitment, and generosity. At the same time it puts forward imagery of people suffering in these regions which draws in empathy from the readers. The article discusses how this food crisis has been a stagnant problem in the region for a long time since 2005 and that the very “underlying” cause of the crisis has not been cured or taken care of. Oxfam points out how the organization is going to meet its aims by stating how it is going to become closer with the poorest of people, near the areas of Gorgol and Brakhna, in Mauritania, providing them with equipment and therefore finding a permanent cure for the crisis which has had a long lasting effect on the population there. Despite of this, the main focus in the article is on statistics regarding the situation in the region of Sahel and after much of the information was sufficiently conveyed, the organization plugs-in the massive efforts that Oxfam is putting into action in order to have a greater impact on the audience which helps to convince them of the legitimacy of the organization, hence making it popular among readers or potential sponsors.

The tone is informative and objective. The article also has formal vocabulary and diction in order to raise the seriousness of the issue, attracting more investment in the organization. The tone shows enthusiasm by using phrases such as “gearing up” or “getting ready” which raises morale and hopes of humanitarian aid being actually provided by the organization and further enhances their legitimacy and undying commitment to the noble effort they are putting forward. The mood is also hopeful but the atmosphere is still, in context, very gloomy and saddening although it indicates Oxfam’s efforts to keep the crisis at bay.

The use of literary devices is prominent in this particular article and they enhance the readers understanding and overall impact of the text on them. Firstly, this article relies a lot on the pathos of the people of Africa as that impacts the reader’s interest and participation in a topic like this.

The article takes a very objective standpoint by stating the issue and then outlining the solutions and efforts being made by Oxfam. It hooks the reader by plugging in statistics which draws in and surprises a viewer who is obviously in a better situation than the people in those regions are, and hence making the readers empathize the situation in Africa. The article starts of by stating a quote which says “The humanitarian response must tackle the underlying causes of crises like to prevent from recurring.” This triggers a question of what the underlying causes could be and makes the reader want to read more about the issue. The article is well structured giving an introduction, and then outlining the issues faced in the region of Sahel, and then stating what Oxfam is doing to prevent it and stop it from recurring. The effects created by this article, personally, is very long lasting with its facts and statistics along with the humanitarian efforts being taken by countries to prevent this issue from occurring. The register is very serious which makes the whole issue rise in importance and concern.

 

Generation LIKE!

I was watching a documentary on a phenomenon called generation LIKE referring to 'likes' obtained from social media sites and its effect on teens including other age groups. It was done by Frontline and was very informative including interviews, statistics and expert opinions. The main focus of Frontline was to portray the advertainment techniques that we as consumers or "you tubers" are being drawn into doing by knowingly or unknowingly selling out on your initial message.

When I watched the video, it emphasized on the 'fact' that obtaining likes or shares or good comments are a way in which the teens become empowered. I liked to question this as I feel that this creates unnecessary ego and actually reduces self esteem of everyone who has less likes than others which is the majority. I also don't believe that likes or comments are a constant source of empowerment and it can be said that having sparks or being in the Top 100 fans of a billion dollar enterprise is not at all empowering in any way but rather it is an addiction like smoking to get empowered!

Ok, I accept that getting likes will prove that everyone likes you and that you are famous or popular. But the word 'empowerment' in this context, is just an excuse for an addiction.
 

All About that Bass- A song against marginalizing fat people

Meghan Trainor's song ' All about that bass' encourages fat people to be confident and tries to prove that fat people are better off than the thin people. Her bubble-gum pink music video, instantly-memorable lyrics, and addictive bass line, makes the song hard not to love:

Because you know
I'm all about that bass
'Bout that bass, no treble
I'm all about that bass
'Bout that bass, no treble
I'm all about that bass
'Bout that bass, no treble
I'm all about that bass
'Bout that bass

Yeah, it's pretty clear, I ain't no size two
But I can shake it, shake it
Like I'm supposed to do
'Cause I got that boom boom that all the boys chase
And all the right junk in all the right places

I see the magazine workin' that Photoshop
We know that shit ain't real
C'mon now, make it stop
If you got beauty, beauty, just raise 'em up
'Cause every inch of you is perfect
From the bottom to the top

Yeah, my mama she told me don't worry about your size
She says, "Boys like a little more booty to hold at night."
You know I won't be no stick figure silicone Barbie doll
So if that's what you're into then go ahead and move along
*CHORUS*

I'm bringing booty back
Go ahead and tell them skinny bitches that
No, I'm just playing. I know you think you're fat
But I'm here to tell ya
Every inch of you is perfect from the bottom to the top

Yeah my mama she told me don't worry about your size
She says, "Boys like a little more booty to hold at night."
You know I won't be no stick figure silicone Barbie doll
So if that's what you're into then go ahead and move along

 *CHORUS* (x3)

Looking into the lyrics of this song it starts off with the chorus with which it draws in listeners and gives a starting bass to the song. In the first paragraph she states that she is fat by saying she is not "size 2" but then saying "that all the boys like chase" women like her with big 'booties' rather than skinny girls. The song goes against the norms of beauty ideals of being extremely slim like the models in magazines who are "workin' that Photoshop" and tells the fat people no to worry and that "every inch of you is perfect from the bottom to the top."

In the video a fat man dances confidently and without any shame of doing so. This shows the listener or viewer that one does not have to be shying away from anything if your are fat. The fat man also does a leg split which gives a strong message that people who are fat are also able to do acrobatics and be as well off in terms of flexibility as the "skinny bitches". The 3rd verse says that Meghan Trainor's mom told her to not worry about your size and tells us that she recommended having a bigger 'booty' for men to hold at night.

This song tries to empower fat people by telling them they are as good as thin or skinny people in this world. So I think that this song has hit the mark as many people have reported being empowered after seeing the video and listening to the song because they are all about that base.