The Little Match Girl Summary

                                             The Little Match Girl

                                                                    Hans Christian Anderson

The Little Match Girl is a fairy tale about a dying little girl’s wishes and her visions. The

harsh reality of poverty, hunger and lack of parental care is presented in this story.

The story begins on a freezing New Year’s Eve. A small, poor girl is shivering and

bareheaded. She had lost her mother’s big slippers, hence barefooted too. She tries to sell

match sticks in the street, but she is unable to get even a cent.

Despite the harsh weather, she is afraid to go home because her father usually beats her for

the unsold matches. As it is New Year’s Eve, all the houses are bright with lights she is

tempted by the smell of roast goose. She huddles between two houses and lights a match to

warm herself.

The freezing weather and hunger cause hallucinations. In the flame of the first match, she

sees a large warm stove and so she stretches her legs to get some warmth. The

stove disappears, as the match goes off. Then she strikes another match stick on the wall and

sees a big roast goose. That too disappears and with the striking of the third match, she sees a

large and beautiful Christmas tree with bright candles.

In the sky, she sees a shooting star and says that a soul is on its way to Heaven, just like her

beloved grandmother had taught her. Her grandmother was the only person who was kind and

loving to the little girl, but even she was no more. In the flame of the next match she sees her

grandmother and in order to prolong the vision, the little girl lights the entire bundle of

matches. She pleads her grandmother to take her along and so she carries the little girl’s soul

to Heaven. The Heaven is a place where there is no starvation and hunger.

The next morning, people find the little match girl with a smiling face sitting frozen and

express pity. They did not know anything about the amazing visions that the little match girl

had seen before she died.

Evil Allures, but Good Endures (Short Story by Leo Tolstoy) Summary

                                        Evil Allures, but Good Endures

                                                    Leo Tolstoy

        Leo Tolstoy, was a Russian writer who is regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time. He is best known for the novels War and Peace (1869) and Anna Karenina (1877). This short story "Evil Allures, but Good Endures", is about the evil ways in which the devil tempts us to commit sins against the kindness of God, and how God’s love sustains forever.

        The narrator introduces us to a few slaves who love their master for being very kind and gentle to them. The slaves speak about his greatness and the way he takes care of all their needs. The master is a gentleman who does not punish the slaves with difficult tasks. The Devil keeps listening to the praises about the master and feels jealous. So, he catches hold of one of the slaves named Aleb to fulfil his wish. He tempts Aleb to anger his master, so that his real face comes out.

        The next day, Aleb tries to persuade the other slaves to join him. The slaves start praising the master and refuse to join him. At last they agree to bet with him. If Aleb manages to make their master angry, the other slaves were to give him their holiday garments and also to defend him against the master, and to set him free if he should be imprisoned. If he fails, he was to lose his holiday garment. Having arranged this bet, Aleb gets ready to make his master angry the next morning.

        Aleb was a shepherd and the master brings a few visitors to see his ewes and lambs, and wishes to show them his finest ram. The ram had closely twisted horns and he treasured it so much. The master asks Aleb to catch the ram carefully, and hold him still for a moment. Aleb rushes in among the sheep and seized the left hind leg with one hand, so that it broke. The visitors and the slaves are shocked, and the Devil rejoices that Aleb had cleverly done his task. The master appears upset and angry but does not utter a word. After remaining silent for a while, the master lifts his eyes towards heaven, then smiles at Aleb. His anger has vanished and he says that Aleb had obeyed his master: the devil; and the master assures that he will obey his master: God. The master further angers the Devil by granting Aleb freedom without punishing him and offers him a holiday garment.

        The kind master returns with his guests to the house, but the disappointed Devil, grinds his teeth and falls down from the tree. Thus, the master overcomes the Devil’s temptation and upholds his serene Godly virtues.

Trifles (One-Act Play by Susan Gaspell) Summary

 

“Trifles”

Susan Gaspell

Susan Gaspell’s one-act play “Trifles” was written in 1916. This psychological play is loosely based on true events. The play begins with the murder of a farmer named Mr John Wright, for which his wife Minnie Foster Wright is suspected. The theme of the play deals with the psychological state of men and women along with their social roles. The word “trifles” typically refers to objects of little to no value. The interpretation may also be that men do not understand the value of women, and consider them trifles.

 

The sheriff, his wife Mrs Peters, the county attorney, and the neighbours (Mr. and Mrs. Hale) enter the kitchen of the Wright household. Mr. Hale explains how he paid a visit to the house on the previous day. Once there, Mrs. Wright greeted him but behaved strangely. She eventually stated in a dull voice that her husband was upstairs, dead. Mrs. Wright claimed that she was sound asleep while someone strangled her husband. It seems obvious to the male characters that she killed her husband, and she is taken into custody as the prime suspect.

 

Unlike the men, who are looking for forensic evidence to solve the crime, Mrs Peters and Mrs Hale observe clues that reveal the bleakness of Mrs. Wright’s emotional life. They theorise that Mr. Wright’s cold, oppressive nature must have been dreary to live with. The couple, Mr and Mrs Wright, has been married for thirty years and do not have children. Mr Wright is very strict and restricts his wife from indulging in social activities. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters’ conversation unveil the psychological profile of a desperate housewife.

 

When gathering up the quilting material, the two women discover a fancy little box. Inside, wrapped in silk, is a dead bird. Its neck has been wrung. The implication is that Minnie’s husband did not like the bird’s beautiful song (a symbol of his wife’s desire for freedom and happiness). So, Mr. Wright busted the cage door and strangled the bird. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters do not tell the men about their discovery. Instead, Mrs. Hale puts the box with the deceased bird into her coat pocket, resolving not to tell the men about this little “trifle” they have uncovered.

 

The play ends with the characters exiting the kitchen and the women announcing that they have determined Mrs. Wright’s quilt making style. She “knots it” instead of “quilts it”—a play on words denoting the way in which she killed her husband, Mr Wright.

“More Sinned against than Sinning” (Short Story by Umm-e-Ummara) Summary

“More Sinned against than Sinning”

                                                             by Umm-e-Ummara

“More Sinned against than Sinning” is an Urdu short story translated into English by Vishwamitter Adhil and Alok Bhalla. The story is written in first person and narrated by Munni Bitiya (Bibi). The title is taken from William Shakespeare famous tragic play King Lear where the titular character makes this utterance. The phrase means that though someone may be guilty of wrongdoing, they think themselves as the victim of a more serious wrong.

“More Sinned against than Sinning” talks about the violence and the destruction of Munni Bitiya’s family, because of her father’s decision of taking the family to Dhaka much against the wishes of the other family members. Though the action of the story takes place a few years after the Partition, the enmity between the two communities still existed, and both tried to destroy the other.

Munni Bitiya and and her family live in Patna, where their mother takes care of every household necessities efficiently. Their father visits them occasionally. Munni’s elder sister is married; she has an elder brother (Bade Bhaiya), younger brother and two younger sisters: Rani and Baby.

Munni’s life is very peaceful, under the efficient hands of her mother. She loves her father and feels happy to see him. The children are well-educated and live a comfortable life. During one visit, Baba tells them that they have to move to Bangladesh because of the political condition. Meanwhile, Bade Bhaiya marries a woman named Pakhi. She is a lovely woman and adopts the language, ritual and traditions of her husband’s family.

Bade Bhaiya is a man who is ready to forget his past and hopes for a bright future in the new land. Then the family leaves for Dhaka and Munni goes to the university. Bade Bhaiya leaves for Phoolbari with his family. Munni’s younger brother takes active part in the politics of the country and frequently gets arrested, much to the dismay of Amma and Baba. When Amma was on her deathbed, she had neither of her sons near her. After Amma’s death, Munni gets an opportunity to visit her brother and his family in Phoolbari.

Phoolbari was a very beautiful village, rich in greenery. Munni was able to rekindle her childhood love for flowers. Pakhi was cheerful always and her brother too looked like a Bengali. They adopted the lifestyle of the land, but still the scar of the partition was so deep. One day, Phoolbari was set to fire and the entire family, except Munni were burnt to death; even Amma’s grave was destroyed and her body floated on water.

The story gives a subtle description of the impact of Partition in the separated regions. The title is justified by the burning of Phoolbari, where Munni silently feels that she is responsible for the death of her brother’s family and also she considers herself a victim. This is because she has to live with the burden of witnessing the entire family’s death. Life itself is a punishment for Munni henceforth. 

"Homework" (Poem by Allen Ginsberg) Summary

"Homework" by Allen Ginsberg

Allen Ginsberg was a famous American writer, born in 1926. He was the founder of the Beat Generation. His poet usually discusses the problems in the society. The poem "Homework" begins with a homage to Kenneth Koch, another contemporary famous writer. This poem is about the cleansing of the world and to make the entire planet pollution- free. The poet uses 'washing' metaphor and puts forth his opinions about the cleansing of the world.

The poet begins by washing the dirty Iran and the United States as there is always war between the two countries. He wants to soap and scrub Africa and restore the animals and bats back into the jungle. He wants to wash the Amazon river in South America and clean the oil spills from Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. These two places have several oil rigs; hence the pollution of water due to oil spills.

He moves to the North Pole to rub the smog out of it. The poet focuses on the pollution of air water and land resources next. He talks about cleaning the oil circulating pipelines in Alaska. Rocky Flats was the place where the spare parts for nuclear bombs were made; Atom bomb was created in Los Alamos. The poet wants to cleanse these places from nuclear pollution and atomic wastes; Caesium is a sparkly gold colour liquid-metal which was disposed in large quantity by a chemical factory in love canal Niagara Falls.

The Greek Goddess Athena's temple is in Parthenon, Greece. Due to the acid rain, the heritage site is losing its beauty just like the Sphinx in Egypt. Sewage wastes have been directed into different Oceans and Ponds all over the world polluting the water bodies. The poet wants to cleanse the Mediterranean basin and colour the sky blue over river Rhine. He talks about cleansing river Hudson, Thames and Neckar and Lake Erie all of which were dangerously polluted due to human activities.

            Then he wants to throw the whole of Asia into the washing machine and clean the Agent Orange sprayed in Vietnam during the Vietnam War by the US soldiers. The poet moves on to throw Russia and China in the wringer. He also talks about the atrocities of US Central American police state. He lays stress on the cleansing of the planet and so, he says that it he wishes to put the whole planet inside the dryer for 20 minutes or for a thousand years until it comes out clean. Thus, the poet discusses about the cleansing of the world, by strongly putting forth the political problems and pollution associated with the places.

Thank You M'am (Short story by Langston Hughes) Summary

Langston Hughes was a 20th century American writer, best known as the leader of the Harlem Renaissance. James Mercer Langston Hughes was born in 1901 in Missouri. Thank You M’am is a short story about forgiveness and compassion.

The story begins with Roger, a teenager of 14 or 15 years, snatching the purse of Mrs Luella Bates Washington Jones. Mrs Jones is portrayed as a tough and brave woman who walks home at 11 o’clock in the night. Roger is a naive, adolescent boy who tries to steal Mrs Jones’ purse because he wants to buy a pair of blue suede shoes.

Mrs Jones, instead of punishing the boy, drags him to her home and makes him wash his dirty face. She pities Roger as there is no one to take care of him. Roger feels scared that Mrs Jones might take him to the police. So initially, he keeps looking for an opportunity to escape from the house.

Mrs Jones does not ask any personal questions to embarrass Roger. Instead, she tells about her young stage when she could not afford what she had wanted. She also had committed unspoken crimes during her youth and she advises him not to do the same.

When Roger realises that Mrs Jones is not punishing him, he stays back and makes sure not to break her trust. Mrs Jones goes to the kitchen to prepare some food for them. She no longer watches Roger, despite leaving the purse near him. They both trust one another due to the forgiveness and compassion shown by Mrs Jones. Then, Mrs Jones and Roger have supper. When it is time for him to leave, she asks him to behave well. She also gives him a $10 bill to buy the blue suede shoes that he wanted. Thus, this story shows the importance of trust, forgiveness and compassion.

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Exile (Partition Short Story by Jamila Hashmi) Summary

Exile is an Urdu short story written by Jamila Hashmi and translated into English by Alok Bhalla. The story traces the effects of the rape and abduction of women, in association to the partition of India.

The narrator is a young woman who was abducted by Gurpal, her now husband, during the partition of India. She is the nameless protagonist of the story and commonly addressed by everyone as Bibi. The partition of India resulted in a lot of violence and bloodshed. It involved the rape, kidnap, mutilation and murder of several Hindu and Muslim women. Bibi is one such Muslim woman who belonged to the other side of the country. After the tragic incident, she keeps thinking of her past and her childhood memories. She feels sad about the unexpected separation from her family and longs to be united with them.

Bibi’s parents were murdered by Gurpal. He had forcefully raped Bibi and dragged her to Sangraon to be his slave-wife. Bibi does not know what had happened to her brother and sister-in-law and keeps hoping for their arrival.Bibi is initially treated like a slave by Gurpal and his grandmother Badi Ma.

Later on, as years pass, Gurpal treats her with respect like a wife and Badi Ma also feels proud of the skills and beauty of her Bahu (daughter-in-law). One day, during Dusshera, Badi Ma asks Gurpal to take Bibi and the children to the Fair. Dusshera reminds Bibi about her past and she compares herself to Sita and her husband Gurpal to Ravana.

Munni, her daughter, keeps asking her questions during the Fair. She also says that her friend Swaroop received a soft, silk dress for Diwali, as gift from her Mama. So, Munni enquires her mom, if she has a Mama, who would send her gifts. Bibi is devastated by the questions, as she is once again reminded of her brother.

Her two sons and her daughter Munni feel very tired and so they halt for some time. Gurpal comments that, women are so careless that they forget and lose their children during the Fair, watching Ramlila. Bibi replies that children get lost even outside the Fair, referring to her past. This scene shows the deep impact of her rape and abduction still so fresh in her mind. The psychological trauma associated with the terrors of partition still haunts the young women who had fallen prey to it. Bibi hopes for her brother to come and take her back home.

After the abductions during the partition, both the governments in India and Pakistan initiate the repatriation of stranded women from both the sides. One day, soldiers arrive at Sangraon to take the abducted women back to their natives. Badi Ma and Gurpal are worried that Bibi would leave them. But, on seeing the soldiers, Bibi hides inside the house as she fears that her body is polluted and she might not be accepted by her family. She considers her daughter Munni as an obstacle for her to unite with her family. She cannot leave her present family abruptly and so she accepts her new situation and adapts to it. Thus, the story reveals how partition and its aftermath are like a permanent scar in the life of Bibi. She has no way to find peace, except, finally accepting the house of Ravana as her home