19.06.2008

Some interesting facts about Mahatma Ghandi, the hero of India…

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Mahatma Gandhi

 

-          born on October 02, 1869 in Gujarat

-          died on January 30, 1948

-          was a law-student in England

-          made experiences with apartheid in Africa when he was thrown out of a train because he refused to sit on a place of the third class only because of his skin colour

-          afterwards he decided to become active in politics

-          leaded India to Independence by non-violent arrangements

-          the Indians call him “Father of the Nation”

-         he was the  initiator of the salt march and the boycott of the English goods like salt and draperies

-          was shot by a Hindu radical

 

18.06.2008

How did you like doing a reading log in form of a blog…

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In my opinion the reading log on the web was an interesting experience and I think there are positive and negative aspects. The work on the pc was much easier because you can quickly look up the words you need or if you are searching for some background information. What I didn’t like is that you get distracted by everything thats around. I tend to play games if I’m on the web instead of doing my work, and so I needed much longer to finish my reading log. But this is rather a problem of self-discipline on my side. Also I think that you have much more mistakes in your writing as if you are doing something by hand. Another problem for me was that the whole work on the pc is more arduous than writing per hand. Sometimes I got a bit drowsy when I had to work on too much things.  Further, there are times when you absolutely don’t fancy to switch on your pc and rather do your work the next day. This is something absolutely unnatural for me as I normally do my homework quite promptly. This way I sometimes got in trouble with my time-management.

As a conclusion I would say that a reading log on the web is a really nice idea, but maybe the tasks should be more regulated and not too costly like a book review. Some small tasks with some key-words are okay. It would also be possible to have a bit more time to do the tasks during the lessons and  maybe present some of the tasks to the others. I know we did that but I think we should have done it more often.

04.06.2008

Book Review of the novel „Heat and Dust“…

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The novel „Heat and Dust“  takes place in Satipur, India and was written by Ruth Prawer Ihabvala. The book was published in 1975.

The novel actually contains two stories. One is the story of he narrator, whose name is not mentioned in the whole story, in the 1970’s. The other story takes place in the 1920’s and tells the story of a British Junior officer’s wife  whose name is Olivia.

In the story of the 1970’s a young woman comes to India to make researches concerning her grandfather’s first wife Olivia, who lived in Satipur during the 1920’s. She caused a big scandal because she eloped with an Indian prince. The narrator discovers bit by bit the story of Olivia and hereby falls in love with her landlord Inder Lal. He is married and lives together with his mother, his children and his wife Ritu, who is mentally ill. They get atrracted by each other and a love is developing. When Inder Lal’s family and Chid, a friend  of the narrator’s, want to make a pilgrimage to improve Ritu’s state, Inder Lal often stays in the narrator’s room at night and consequently she soon gets pregnant. She first is not sure whether she should keep the baby and even asks the midwife Maji, for advice and thinks about having an abortion.

The story of Olivia in the 1920’s is a bit different. After having visited a party of the Nawab, she falls in love  with him and starts to meet him while Douglas is at work. She cannot believe what the other Englishmen are talking about him as he obviously is responsible for some recent crime activities in Satipur. She gets pregnant but doesn’t now whose baby it is. She could not deny that it is the Nawabs baby if it is and the other way round. Being torn in this difficult situation she thinks about having an abortion.

03.06.2008

Film Review of Heat and Dust…

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The film „Heat and Dust“, based on the novel of the same title is a film by Merchant Ivory Prodctions. The screenplay was written by the author of the novel, Ruth Prawer Ihabvala.

The film actually includes two stories. The one of Olivia, in the 1920’s and  Anne’s story in the 1970’s.

The film basically has the same plot as the novel, but obviously the author made some changings for the screenplay and some characters may not be presented in the way they are in the book but all in all I think the movie is made quite good.

The action is that a young Englishwoman, Anne, comes to India in the 1970’s to research for the footsteps of her great-aunt Olivia who lived in India in around 1923. By discovering more and more the different aspects of Olivia’s life, she falls in love with her landlord Inder Lal. He already has a family but his wife is mentally ill and so his life is quite difficult and not satisfying. When his mother, his wife and the children go for a pilgrimage, the relationship gets even more and more deeper. On one of her excursions, Anne makes the acquaintance of a young Canadian man who now calls himself Chid after he had a spiritual healing by a guru. He is a very strange character I think. In the end she becomes pregnant by Inder Lal and is unsure whether she should keep the baby or rather have an abortion…

The story of Anne’s great-aunt Olivia shows many parallels to Anne’s experiences in India. Olivia is the wife of a young British Junior officer during the British Raj. Douglas, her husband is working very much and so she mostly has to spend the days alone in the bungalow of the couple. One day, an Indian prince called „Nawab“ invites to a party in his palace in the town of Kathm, a town near to Satipur, where Olivia and Douglas live. She is so fascinated by the Nawab that she begins to visit the palace without the knowledge of Douglas. She and the Nawab begin to have a relationship as well and Olivia gets pregnant. She now is in a very difficult situation because she and Douglas tried to get a baby as well and she doesn’t definitely know whose baby it is. She doesn’t want to lose neither of her lovers.

22.05.2008

Search for book-reviews and comment on those…

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first review

I think this review is already quite good, but there is one thing I absolutely don’t like about it. It is said that the narrator of the book is called Anne, but this information is not given in the book at all. In my opinion it is quite likely the name of the woman in the movie. I think this is not indicating a good researched book review.

second review

This review I even like a bit more because it gives some additional information about the author and the situation in India. Again the narrator is called Anne, which is as I already said not mentioned in the book. Further, I think that there are some parts written in informal language, which is no sign of a good review…

third review

This review is written really well and I think that everyone who read it knows wether he/she would like the book or not, without taking too much tention from the end. It is really a shame that the author of this review didn’t mention that there are two stories in the book and that the narrator of Olivia’s story goes through a big evolution as well…

 

 

 

19.05.2008

Continue the sentence and write a new ending to the story…

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When I left Maji’s hut I felt much better and now I knew that I would  make my life together with the baby. I stopped searching for Olivia’s footprints since I think that she did not choose the right decisions. I soon left my room and Inder Lal’s family  and made myself going to the airport. I bought a ticket and for the first time I really felt happy for having a new perspective of life. It is very difficult to live a life without any goals and nothing really interesting to do. I’m going to be a good mother as I’m planning to do everything for the baby. When I came to London I stayed in a hotel for some days. I quite quickly found a nice flat with much space for me and the baby. Soon I even found a place to work and earned some money. In the first time I didn’t have much furniture but I was used to that. I now work as a woman in an office for young mothers who have problems in their lifes.  

15.04.2008

Heat and Dust Vocabulary

(pp. 145-165)

 

 Some useful words…

 

1.      p. 145, l. 14 à amenity – Anmut

2.      p. 146, l. 11 à eloquent – redegewandt

3.      p. 147, l. 09 à ludicrous – drollig / albern

4.      p. 148, l. 12 à to consult – konsultieren

5.      p. 149, l. 26 à to struck – verwundern

6.      p. 150, l. 06 à submerged – verschütted

7.      p. 151, l. 27 à piled – hoch

8.      p. 152, l. 12 à collapse – Einsturz

9.      p. 153, l. 16 à squatted – gedrungen

10.    p. 154, l. 05 à swivelled – gedreht

11.    p. 155, l. 25 à grimfaced – grimmigschauend

12.    p. 156, l. 01 à presumably – vermutlich

13.    p. 157, l. 22 à mutineers – Meuterer

14.    p. 158, l. 30 à heights – Höhen

15.    p. 159, l. 06 à inaccessible – unerreichbar

16.    p. 160, l. 03 àembroidery – Ausschmückung

17.    p. 161, l. 16 à scribbled – Krakelei

18.    p. 162, l. 07 à purloined – entwenden

19.    p. 164, l. 26 à sodden – durchnässt

20.    p. 165, l. 17 à austere – ernst

14.05.2008

Write a short text describing Douglas’s reaction to his wife’s elopement…

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I consider that Douglas feels uncomfortable over the way to the other English officers because he was not able to keep his wife. To be left for an Indian is a really big ignominy for him. I think he even knows why Olivia had the miscarriage, not only because Dr. Saunders told him that this kind of miscarriage is typical of the Indian midwives. Maybe he curses himself for not noticing Olivia’s feelings for the Nawab and for not „rescuing“ her from him. He thought there would be no reason to be sceptical because as an English women, it is unthinkable to flirt or even to have a relationship with an Indian man, even if it is a prince. He also didn’t expect that the Nawab would go this far, as he should  know as well that this behaviour causes a scandal, at least in te 1920’s. I think Douglas married another wife so quickly because he wanted to save his image. In my opinion he also wanted to show that he is able to keep a wife and that he can stand the pain that Olivia brought him. He wants to pretend that he isn’t interested in her anymore.

13.05.2008

Parallels between the two stories…

Diary	History
Our narrator makes the acquaintance of Inder Lal	Olivia makes the acquaintance of the Nawab and Harry shortly after her arrival in Satipur
Narrator sees the Angel in the graveyard	Olivia sees the Angel in the graveyard
The wife of Inder Lal is mentally ill	The wife of the Nawab is mentally ill
The people celebrate the Husband’s Wedding Day	British people don’t like the Husband’s Wedding Day
Inder Lal’s family and Chid leave for the mountains	The wives of the British officers leave for the mountains
The narrator helps a dying beggar-women	Harry gets ill
The Narrator and Inder Lal make love under the Baba Firdaus’ Shrine for the first time	Olivia and the Nawab make love under the Baba Firdaus’ Shrine for the first time
Inder Lal stays with the Narrator every night and after she gets pregnant, she thinks about having an abortion	Douglas and the Nawab both know that Olivia is pregnant. Nawab treats her as is she was a mistress
Chid wants to return to England	Harry wants  to return to England
Narrator changes her mind about the abortion	Olivia has an abortion by Indian midwives
Chid goes back to England	Harry goes back to England
The Narrator visits the home of Olivia	Olivia spends the rest of her life by living in the mountains

12.05.2008

Express your reaction to the abortion episode… 

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In my opinion the abortion was the only way out for Olivia. Although I’m normally absolutely against abortions, because I think one should take reponsibility for what he or she has done, I think it was the right thing to do in Olivia’s situation. No British person would have talked to her again if he knows what happened to her. Without the support of a man, she would have no possibility to go on living like she did before. How could she earn money? She and the baby would have to live on the streets and I wonder if an Indian family would let Olivia work for them, as the relationship between Indians and Englishmen was actually quite bad. On the other hand I think Olivia’s behaviour is a bit selfish and even a bit craven. She doesn’t have the power to tell Douglas what’s really going on and she is not able to say who she loves more… She tries everything to hold both of them Douglas and the Nawab. All together Olivia is in a really difficult situatian and it is very difficult to do the best if you have such a big problem.