The New Poets, Three Prose Writers & Conclusion

This blog is part of thinking activity. Assigned by Prakruti Bhatt mam to enhance our understanding on various writer's point of view about different field like nationalism, education, politics etc.

Here is the full poem

Write a critical note on any one of the poems by Nissim Ezekiel.

Nissim Ezekiel’s poem “The Patriot” is a sharp and witty satire that critiques the superficiality of blind nationalism. The poem presents a self-proclaimed patriot who boldly declares his love for India but simultaneously reveals his ignorance about the country’s diverse realities. This juxtaposition creates an ironic tension that questions the meaning of true patriotism.

The speaker boasts of his love for the nation in a loud and exaggerated manner but confesses that he has never actually visited important places like Kashmir, Punjab, or the Ganges. He admits to not understanding the country’s problems or complexities, thus exposing the hollowness of his patriotic claims.

Ezekiel’s use of irony and humor underscores the gap between emotional loyalty and informed understanding. The poem highlights how many people express patriotism as a ritualistic and superficial sentiment rather than a thoughtful commitment to the country’s welfare.

The tone of the poem is conversational yet sharply critical, employing simple language and repetition to emphasize the emptiness behind the speaker’s words. Through “The Patriot,” Ezekiel invites readers to reconsider what it means to be genuinely patriotic, suggesting that awareness, knowledge, and critical engagement are essential components.

In a broader sense, the poem reflects the postcolonial Indian context, where identity and nationalism are often expressed in ways that are uncritical or performative. Ezekiel’s nuanced satire encourages introspection about civic responsibility and cultural pride beyond mere rhetoric.Write a critical note 

on Kamala Das' An Introduction. 

Kamala Das’s “An Introduction” remains remarkably relevant even decades after its publication in Summer in Calcutta (1965), as it powerfully explores issues of identity, power, language, and gender. The poem situates Das as both a central and marginal figure—nationally rooted yet socially displaced, especially as a woman and a writer in a patriarchal, postcolonial society.

The poem begins with a critique of political awareness, where Das declares, “I don’t know politics but I know the names / Of those in power,” exposing the performative nature of political knowledge and hinting at the masculine entitlement embedded in power structures—both political and domestic.

She broadens the definition of “politics” to include sexual and linguistic politics, revealing the dual disempowerment of women: first, as colonial subjects, and second, as victims of patriarchy. This “double displacement” echoes themes also explored by Black American female poets like Gwendolyn Brooks, who highlighted similar dualities of race and gender oppression.

Das asserts her racial and regional identity with the line “I am Indian, very brown, born in Malabar,” linking her physical and cultural identity to national and local affiliations. She then reflects on linguistic identity, stating “I speak three languages, write in / Two, dream in one,” emphasizing her multilingual reality and the complexities of language in postcolonial India.

Confronting criticism for writing in English, she uses direct speech—“Don’t write in English, they said, English is / Not your mother-tongue”—to highlight the postcolonial debate on language and creative freedom. Her defiant response—“Why not let me speak in / Any language I like?”—is both a personal protest and a universal plea for artistic liberty.

Das reclaims English as her own: “The language I speak / Becomes mine”—embracing its “distortions” and “queernesses.” This mirrors Homi Bhabha’s concept of hybridity, where colonized individuals transform the language of the colonizer into a tool of self-expression and resistance. Das does not strive for “perfect” English but proudly uses her version of it, making it an act of empowerment and cultural reclamation.

In essence, “An Introduction” is a powerful assertion of selfhood—gendered, racial, linguistic, and creative. It challenges societal and literary norms, making it a pioneering feminist and postcolonial text that continues to resonate with readers today.

Detailed article in answer of given question

S. Radhakrishnan’s Perspective on Hinduism

Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, a philosopher and India’s second President, offered a profound and nuanced understanding of Hinduism. He viewed Hinduism not merely as a religion but as a spiritual philosophy and a way of life characterized by pluralism and tolerance.

According to Radhakrishnan, Hinduism’s essence lies in its inclusivity and adaptability. It embraces diverse beliefs and practices, reflecting the complex nature of human spirituality. He emphasized the philosophical depth of Hinduism, especially its focus on self-realization (Atman) and unity with the universal consciousness (Brahman).

Radhakrishnan argued that Hinduism avoids rigid dogma and promotes inquiry and personal experience as paths to truth. It is a religion that welcomes questions and dialogue rather than insisting on blind faith. This pluralistic worldview fosters harmony in a diverse society.

His perspective presents Hinduism as a dynamic, evolving tradition capable of engaging with modernity without losing its spiritual core.

According to Radhakrishnan, What is the Function of Philosophy?

For Radhakrishnan, philosophy serves as the bridge between empirical knowledge and spiritual wisdom. Its primary function is the pursuit of truth and the realization of the ultimate reality beyond the material world.

Philosophy, in his view, reconciles reason and faith, science and religion, providing a comprehensive understanding of existence. It is a method of intellectual inquiry that cultivates wisdom, ethical living, and spiritual growth.

Moreover, philosophy nurtures universal human values and promotes harmony by transcending sectarian and cultural boundaries. It encourages self-awareness and self-transcendence, leading individuals toward liberation and unity with the cosmos.

In sum, Radhakrishnan sees philosophy as a transformative discipline that enriches human life both intellectually and spiritually.

Raghunathan’s Views on Change in Educational/Academic and Political Contexts

Education : 

Universities in the modern world should serve as natural harborage of the Intellectual but they have failed the country. 

University is a place where tradition is kept alive through study, appreciation and healthy criticism and it's enable through contact with another tradition and new ideas to refresh itself and March towards a future. 

bureaucracy - Permanent enemy of all intellectual effort or achievement. Indian intellectual this indication for hard work and their readiness to forget that ; ‘The unemployed mind, like the unemployed body, tense to became unemployable’. 

Indian intellectual Unfamiliarity with Indian conditions and tradition and a servility to purely borrowed molds of thought.

Politics

To Raghunath, Bharatvarsh is not the ridiculous concoction - India that is Bharat - truncated India and a fissure Bharat at that. It's rather something which unifies everything. 

Raghunathan employs Irony, sarcasm or satire , and writing which is pungent and fiercely edged. When writing about politics. 

Example: 

‘In post Gandhian war for power the first causality is to be sincere… In a world they has lost its mooning, The secular state is the survive  state. 

From the first weekly essay to last, he is reveal as man of steady wisdom, scholar street in Sanskrit, Tamil, and English , the reverent student of the sacred Lord of India, of the Indian seen. From vantage ground of him scholar's sanctum.