Chapter - 3 Selected Poems of Iqbal
CHAPTER 3 3.0: Introduction This research work concentrates on selected poetry works of Iqbal. The methodology and techniques related to the present study are discussed in this chapter and the research questions and hypothesis of this study are outlined. The researcher analyzes the poems carefully and also to follow the thought of the author. The communication strategies in poetry were investigated in this section. In poetry, the researcher can use the language to describe the experience of the world, including the inner world, to describe events, states, and the entities involved (language serves as a system that is related to the relationship between man and nature) is called the ideational function. Halliday (1970: 140 ff) defined the functions of the language with regard to linguistic representations: ideational, interpersonal and textual function. In the ideational function, the language serves to express the content. Poetry can be classified into different parts on the basis of ideational function. The researcher also explains the content analysis, analyze the basic understanding of Iqbal s poems and examine the form, structure, language, and style of the poems. 3.1: Methodology and Techniques 3.1.1: Data for the Study The data for this work obtained from Iqbal s collection Baang-e-Dara (The Call of the Marching Bell). The researcher analyzes all the data systematically to examine the various pragmatic and stylistic features that Iqbal used in his poems. The data has been collected from the secondary sources and this study uses the descriptive qualitative method of analysis. 3.1.2: Methodology This research focuses on selected poetry works by Iqbal. The researcher analyzes these poems carefully follows the thinking of the author. The nature of this research is analytical, descriptive and interpretive to analyze the present study and also analyze the poems of Iqbal according to the notion of modern stylistics and pragmatics. 45
Most of the stylistic and pragmatic features found in the poems were identified and taken up for the analysis and interpretation. The interpretations have been made in relation to the context of the occurrence. The figurative and connotative aspects in the author s language, phonological, lexical and semantic aspects have been analyzed. This analysis has also been done to analyze the speech acts along with implicature, presupposition, and discourse. The analysis of the various pragmatic and stylistic features was carried out in the research undertaken. 3.1.3: Technique of Data Collection The technique used to collect the data for this study is reading. The researcher has read the poems of Iqbal's collection Baang-e-Dara. The researcher selected poems from the Baang-e-Dara that have especially been written for the children. In this technique, the researcher has done the pragmastylistic analysis of the selected poems. 3.1.4: Research Questions 1. What type of writing style is needed for the specific communication purpose? 2. Whether the choice of word changes at the level of age group? 3. What type of sound symbols is used by Iqbal, which makes the text less complex for children? 4. What kind of object did the author use in the text? 3.1.5: Hypotheses 1. Different writing styles are needed for specific goals of communication. 2. The selection of words varies according to the level of readers across age group. 3. Metaphors are less complex in texts for children. 4. Use of the concrete object is more compatible with children s responses. 5. Poetry, especially in children s case, is a process of approximation between writer - reader. 3.2: Communicative Strategies in Poetry 3. 2.1: The Dynamics of Language in Poetry Poetry (means something made or created) is an art form in which the human language is additionally used for its aesthetic qualities, or instead of its fictional and 46
semantic content. It consists essentially of oral or literary works, in which language is used so that its users and the audience feel that they differ from the ordinary prose. It may use condensed or compressed form to convey emotion or ideas to the reader's or listener's mind or ear; it may also use devices such as assonance and repetition to achieve musical or incantatory effects. Poems frequently rely for their effect on imagery, word association, and the musical qualities of the language used. According to Wordsworth Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility: the emotion is contemplated till, by a species of reaction, the tranquility gradually disappears, and an emotion, kindred to that which was the subject of contemplation, is gradually produced, and does itself actually exist in the mind (cited by Kneale, 1986, p.266). Robert Frost (1923) A poem begins with a lump in the throat, a home-sickness or a love-sickness. It is a reaching-out toward expression; an effort to find fulfillment. A complete poem is one where the emotion has found its thought and the thought has found the words. In poetry, we use language to talk about our world experience, including our inner world, which describes events, states, and an organization (the language serves as a relationship between man and nature system) is called ideation function. Halliday (1970: 140 ff) defines the functions of language in their linguistic representations: ideational, interpersonal, and textual functions. In the ideational function, the language serves to express the content. In interpersonal function, language serves to construct and cultivate social relations, for example, to ask questions or answers. The textual function is a typically linguistic function, whereby language serves to create texts through various linking devices such as anaphoric words (that, which etc.), conjunctions and elliptical forms of responses such as Yes! Well! etc. All these functions are reflected in the structure of a clause. The most relevant to our purpose is the ideational function. Halliday (1970: 146) groups the vast number of processes that are distinguished in a language under two broad categories, transitive and intransitive, and discusses the ideational function in relation to transitivity in 47
language. Associated with it are three participant functions or roles are taken by persons and objects viz., actor, goal (or patient) and the beneficiary. Halliday s ideational function, though basically cognitive and representational, can be extended to the domain of creative use of language that expresses a unique cognition of experience. As Halliday, he puts it into the ideational function expresses the speaker s experience of the real world encompasses the inner world of his own consciousnesses i.e. process of perception and cognition and thus provides for the possibility of individual interpretations of the shared experience of a speech community. Poetry can be classified into different parts on the basis of ideational function: 3.2.1.1: Poetry as Expression Poetic expression is more than just a set of words that were written together to describe a person's mind or emotions. On the contrary, it is an art that weaves words together with imagination, emotions, passion, dreams, hopes and an undeniable energy that moves people around. Art as a pure expression is independent of any audience. A hymn, a song, a lyric, a meditation can only be a feeling of effusion, quite personally and subjectively; The lyrics and music can even be made on a deserted island, they can create their own sense of loneliness and abandonment in a hostile or indifferent universe.... the expression of emotions, Collingwood wrote, just as the expression is not addressed to any specific audience. But an artist is not an isolated being. Even living physically in isolation, the artist is connected to the general human consciousness. His experience, however, personal and individual, is after all the human experience born of his mental and emotional relationships with nature and with a man. To repeat, the disinterestedness of art does not exclude political, moral, and religious personal interests and motives, only those interests and motives must be sincere and authentic, and must be expressed in a complete, vivid and lucid manner. There should be no lie in the soul of a true artist: the veracity of his own experience and consciousness and vision are the only laws that bind an artist as an artist.every great work of art comes from the depth of a certain intense experience: We cannot hide the fact that the most beautiful lyrics of love in the world were originally composed fact, not in aesthetic 48
freedom that is independent of all effects, but with the express purpose of obtaining the ear and in favor of a beloved woman. Foreign and non-aesthetic motives do not mean the lack of personal and sincere motives; they only mean the absence of strange considerations of reward or reputation, power or wealth, flattery or fear. To please others, it was not the only object of any genuine artist. 3.2.1.2: Poetry as Thought The poetic thought is characterized by a deep sensitivity to the environment and to a firm philosophy, which moves through a person who, in turn, moves the heart of a person and asks questions. The mind of a poet cannot be fulfilled by the secular or continuation of the status quo; it is thirsty to look for the human condition and to look deeply at the characters of the people. What is the purpose of the life of a child? It is to play and to be loved! What does the heat of the summer sun, when absorbed by the body, evoke? It evokes nostalgia, comfort and a will for togetherness. That is why this poetic idea, which drives the poet s spirit, and while the people go evenly into the crowd, the different flavors and the expressions on the faces of the people call the poet and then everything that is transformed into poetic creativity. 3.2.1.3: Poetry as Social Message Poetry has been used for thousands of years as a means of transmitting historical and cultural information. Poets throughout history have also waged war against social ills and crimes against humanity through their verses. Poets have taken their knowledge and experience, sometimes personal from this dark practice and it has become a beacon to illuminate the truth about this stain on the soul of mankind. Poetry is a perfect example of how people are political - there is nothing more reliable than someone else s history and emotions. Before individuals can intervene in any kind of action, they must first become aware of the problems surrounding the environment. The emotional connections that result from the reading and listening of poetry unleash the illumination on social and political issues and serve as an effective form of increasing awareness. 49
Personal narratives are also a key point for people to connect in person. Political and personal experiences are rarely isolated incidents but are associated with major social and political issues. These personal experiences play in the least on a daily basis; they are also associated with structural systems. The real power in poetry isn't just connecting with audience members or having work featured in fancy publications; it can sometimes lie in the self-awareness and innerpeace that derives from writing for smaller audiences, or even just for your own benefit. Words are our most powerful tools; when they are combined, they shape future landscape trajectories of our nation in small and large scales to create and communicate the most important documents in the world We use words to tell the stories of other people; we bring our own stories and convince others to agree with our own way of thinking. They come together to form ideas, stories, and sometimes just a simplified kind of beauty that cannot be captured in any other way. Words are also one of the most effective ways to achieve social change, and poetry is specifically a very useful tool that should embrace more students in the consideration of activism. 3.2.1.4: Poetry as a Mode of Communication The aim of art (poem, drama, sculpture, etc.) is communicate and not the show. The art exhibition is supposed to satisfy the senses and is therefore purely emotional. It is subjective and is the artist, not the art that counts. The pleasure is derived only from the physical form, be it a composition of colors, sounds or words. In rare cases, such art tries to convey the implicit knowledge; the basic idea behind the order of physical form. The work of art must first communicate and communicate effectively with the precision and completion of imitations of divine truth. It does this by providing the appropriate forms with analogies and balanced ornaments to eventually establish a harmony between the self spirit and intellectual and the universal truth. The later in the poetry is enjoyed by the flavor produced, which is only known by tasting. 50
The poetic experience is a state of contemplative ecstasy. It is not for poetry to educate moral and facts, at least not as an end. The ultimate goal of poetry is the creation of an aesthetic break ; an experience in all physical things; a tasting ecstasy of God. Such an experience is a harmonious combination of emotional and intellectual elements, but less emotional and colorful than the intellectual experience. Poetry is executed by converting the medium in which it operates in a corresponding way. For poetry, the average language and the raw material is speech. The language is an effective organization of words that are a combination of words and meaning in them. Poetry, on the other hand, where the words and the meaning, sound, and sense, communicate in coherent ways dissolve transcendent. 3.3: Content Analysis Poetry is a compact language that expresses complex feelings. To understand the multiple meanings of a poem, the researcher must analyze his words and phrases from the perspectives of the rhythm of sound, the images, the obvious meaning and implied meanings. Convinced of the power of poetry and its revolutionizing effect on human thought, Iqbal decided to make his poetry into a vehicle of a life that gave a philosophy which he considered to be the only panacea for human ills. As a true idealist philosopher, he sincerely believed that thought comes first and the war of liberation of mankind must begin in the minds and hearts of men. Minds can easily be conquered because the impact on mind loses its effect soon, but hearts conserve the imprints much longer. Hence poetry, that conqueror of hearts, may be much more effective than philosophy, the conqueror of minds. The purpose of content analyses is the basic understanding of Iqbal s poems and examines the form, structure, language, and style of the poems. The researcher analysed two selected poems and point-by-point explanation below: 3.3.1: Selection of the poems Baang-e-Dara is the first Urdu poetry collection of Iqbal, which was published in 1924. The collection contains philosophical, classic, national anthems and a more pleasing exemplary poetry supported by the difficult meaning of Urdu language. 51
Researcher aims to analyze some poems from the collection of Baang-e-Dara specifically written for children. A. Hamdardi (Sympathy) ṭahni: pe kisi: šaĵar ki tanha:, bulbul tha: koi: uda:s bӕṭha: kehta: tha: ra:t sar pe a:i:,uṛne čuɣne mẽ din ɣuzra: pahučũ kis taraha:šiyã tak, har či:z pe čha: ɣaya: andhera: sun ke bulbul ki: a:hoza:ri, J ugnu koi pa:s hi: se bola: ha:zir hũmadad ko Ĵa:n-o-dil se, kiṛa: hũ aɣarčah mӕ zara: sa: kya: ɣam hӕ ɣo ra:t hӕ andheri:,mӕra:h me rošni: karunɣa: alla:h ne di: hӕ muĵhko maša:l, čamka ke muɣhe di:ya: bana:ya: hӕ loɣ wahi Ĵahã me aččhe, a:te hӕ Ĵo ka:m dusrõ ke. Translation It was a sad and lonely nightingale, who was sitting on the branch of tree. He was thinking, The night is approaching, I spent all day flying and feeding. How can I reach to the nest, darkness covers everything. After hearing the nightingale-suit, a nearby glowworm spoke like this. I am willing to help you my heart and soul, even though I am only an insignificant insect. No matter if the night is dark; I will light up when the path is dark. God has given me a torch; He gave me a lamp that shines. Only those are good in the world, which are willing to help others. B. Maa ka Khawab (Mother s Dream) mӕ soi: Jǒ ik šab to dekha: ye Xawa:b, baḍha: ɔ:r Ĵis se mera: izti:ra:b ye dekha: ke mӕ Ĵa: rahi: hũ kahĩ, andhera hӕ ɔ:r ra:h milti: nahĩ larazta: tha: dar se mera: ba:l ba:l, qadam ka tha dahšat se uṭhna muha:l Ĵo kučh hɔ:sla: pa:ke a:ɣe baḍhi:, to dekha: qata:r ek laṛkõ ki: thi: zamurrad si: poša:k pehne hue, di:ye unke ha:thõ me Ĵalte hue wo čupča:p the a:ɣe pi:čhe ravã:, Xuda: Ĵa:ne Ĵa:na: tha: unko kahã: isi: soč me thi: ke mera: pi:sar, muĵhe us Ĵama:t me a:ya: nazar wo pi:čhetha: ɔ:r tez člta: natha:, di:ya: uske ha:thõ me Ĵalta: na tha: kaha: mӕne pehča:n kar meri: Ĵa:n, muĵhe čhoṛ kar a:ɣaye tum kahã:? Ĵuda:i me rahti hũ mӕ beqara:r, piroti: hũ har roz aškõ ke Ha:r na parwa: hama:ri: zara: tum ne ki:, ɣaye čhoṛ aččhi: wafa: tum ne ki: Ĵo bačče ne dekha: mera: peč-o-ta:b, diya: usne mũh pher kar yũ Ĵawa:b rula:ti: hӕ tuĵhko Ĵudai meri:, nahĩ ismẽ kučh bhi bhala:i meri: ye kah kar wo kučh der tak čup raha:, di:ya: phɪr di:kha ke ye kehne laɣa: samaĵhti: hӕ tu ho ɣaya kya ise?, tere ansuõ ne buɣha:ya: ise. Translation When I slept one night, I saw this dream, which further increased my annoyance. I dreamed I was going somewhere, and it was dark and impossible to find the way. I was trembling all over with fear, and was difficult to take even a step. 52
With some courage as I moved forward, I saw some boys who were drawn in beautiful array. They were dressed in emerald-like raiment, with carrying lighted lamps in their hands. They were silently behind each other; No one knew where they were to go. They were silent after each other; nobody knew where to go. When I was involved in this thought, I saw my son in this group. He stayed behind in the queueand did not go fast; the lamp he had in his hand was also not lighted. When I recognized him, I said, "O my dear", Where did you come leaving me there. I am restless because of separation, I cry every day forever. You did not care about me, what loyalty you showed, you left me. When the child saw anguish in me, he responded like this by turning to me. The separation from me makes you cry, not very good doing this to me. He remained silent for a while after talking, showing me the lamp, then he began to speak. Do you understand what happened with it, your tears have extinguished this. 3.3.2: Context of the poems In the poem Hamdardi, the poet tries to impress the quality of empathy among the children through the history of a little glow-worm and a nightingale. In the poem, the nightingale lost the way to the nest because of the darkness that covered everything and made it difficult to see or find the way. She began to cry, a little glow-worm heard her screams. He felt sympathy and showed himself willing to help her find the way to her nest. Thus, the poet conveyed a very strong message with the help of this short poem that the people who are willing to be helpful and useful to someone in his / her needs or in bad time are good in the world. Ma: ka: Xawa:b is one of the poems of Iqbal in Baang-e-Dara. This poem is the description of a mother s dreams of her young son who has died. The mother describes her suffering to the child (and to us) and is a testimony to her love. The child did not refuse but became the consequence of an intense bond indicating his difficulty in finding the way to the dream (and probably in life) because of his mother's tears and sadness. 3.2.3: Speaker of the poems Iqbal was a poet, who dreams of the glorious mankind to be achieved through the realization of Man s inner resources. He wrote poetry almost various aspects of life. Most of his poetry is for the young generation. He wrote many poems for children in 53
Baang-e-Dara. In these poems, Iqbal teaches the children moral values and way of living. He motivated children for religious life as well as social life. In both poems Hamdardi and Maa Ka Khawab, Iqbal wrote in simple language and style whereby the speaker/reader understands and read clearly. In the poem, Hamdardi, he conveyed a message to the reader, to help those people who are in bad time or in need. The next poem, Maa Ka Khawab, describes the mother s love and grief for a son. 3.3.4: Narration of the poems Iqbal s poetry has a strong dramatic element. First, he frequently uses the device of dialogue. Many of his poems have the structure of a dialogue for example, Aql aur Ishq, Shama aur Parwana which compares the merit of reason and the institution, according to the preference of the letter. Scattered throughout Iqbal s Urdu poetical work are anecdotes and stories of various kinds. Several of the poems he adapted from the other writers such as Ek Makrha aur Makkhi, Ek Gaye aur Bakri etc. where he rephrases the poems for children from a different perspective. A number of poems are about actual events in Islamic history and patriotism. Some poems he wrote to children give moral and way of living. In some cases, Iqbal chooses the medium of stories to present his ideas. Selected both the poems, Hamdardi and Maa Ka Khawab present in the dialogical form. In the poem Hamdardi, Iqbal says that a glow-worm talking to a nightingale and wants to help in the dark night. In the poem Maa Ka Khawab, a mother spoke to her son in a dream. 3.3.5: Imagery in the poems Iqbal s poetry, specially selected poems, can easily be used as a caption to an image. The images are very representational and realistic, hence by reading the poems, the reader can easily understand the message and read the poet s intuition behind writing this particular poem. For example Ek Makrha aur Makkhi, Ek Paharh aur Gilehari, Ek Gaye aur Bakri, Hamdardi, Bacche ki Dua, Maa ka Khawab, Parinday ki Fariyad, etc. These poems are composed of a series of objects, which could be very well illustrated in the images. 54
The poem Hamdardi, poet draws an image in mind, in the first line of the poem he draws a nightingale sat on a tree branch, the night was dark and she was sad and lonely. In the other sixth line, the Glow-worm told her, no matter if the night is dark; I ll light up when the road is dark. In the second poem Maa ka Khawab, poet draws an image in the epic style. The first three lines paint a complete picture: She slept one night and saw a dream. She was going somewhere on the way; the night was dark. The next lines of the poem create images in mind, some boys are going somewhere in line and dress up in emerald color with carrying lighted lamps in their hands. Then she saw her son in the troupe, but his lamp was not lightened. 3.3.6: Language of the poems Iqbal has published 'Baang-e-Dara' in the Urdu language. At that time, Urdu was one of the popular languages in India. He was thinking that Urdu is such language that can easily convey his message to the people and this can possibly help them to solve the problems in their life. S. A. Vahid says (Iqbal, his Art and Thought: 1944) quoted that, Iqbal s poetry is the sense of newness, and main reason for this is that although Iqbal was not actually traditionalist, he uses certain words and combination of word to express his visions which are entirely original; some of these words are coined by him; others represent old words used in an entirely new sense. He is also a superb phrase marker and has the wonderful felicity of phrasing by which language acquires meaning beyond formally assigned by the lexicographer. These words and phrases act as the keystone of the entire arch of the poetic inspiration. As the removal of the keystone is sure to cause the downfall of the entire arch, so if we try to substitute something else for the master word or phrase, the whole artistic expression is marred The use of those words and phrases give to Iqbal s poetry not only a sense of newness found in very few Urdu and Persian poets, but also the quality of surprise which characterizes all great poetry. Iqbal has a great variety of lexical items that he used in both poems i.e. Hamdardi & Maa Ka Khawab to make the creative themes and to get the attention of other 55
readers to introduce the new rhythm. Iqbal has an excellent quality of writing style that he used successfully in both poems. Hindi, Arabic and Persian words are very common in the Iqbal s children poems, which he wrote for the religious and patriotic purpose. This is evident in his poems. In general, any other language can be used in the Urdu literature and this is not wrong but it must have a unique style to use that was in the Iqbal s poetry. Important Note: The transcription mentioned in this chapter is not an exact transcription but it is a spoken form. 56