IGNOU BEGC-109 Solved Question Paper PDF Download

IGNOU BEGC-109 Previous Year Solved Question Paper in Hindi

IGNOU BEGC-109 Previous Year Solved Question Paper in English

Q1. Write short notes on any two of the following: (a) The second generation of Romantic poets (b) Justine Moritz (c) To a Skylark (d) Lyric

Ans. (a) The second generation of Romantic poets The second generation of Romantic poets primarily includes Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and John Keats . These poets were distinct from the first generation (Wordsworth, Coleridge) in several ways. While the first generation, inspired by the French Revolution, later became more conservative, the second generation remained more politically and socially radical and rebellious throughout their lives. Some common characteristics of these poets were:

• Hellenism: A deep admiration for the art, literature, and culture of ancient Greece, which is clearly reflected in their works.
• Personal Myth-Making: They often crafted a personal heroic figure in their poems, such as Byron’s ‘Byronic Hero’.
• Emphasis on Beauty and Art: For Keats, beauty was truth, and Shelley saw the poet as an “unacknowledged legislator of the world.”
• Tragic and Short Lives: All three poets died young and away from their homeland, which created a romantic aura around them.

Their poetry is often more passionate, intense, and escapist, exploring themes of beauty, love, liberty, and the enduring power of art.

(b) Justine Moritz Justine Moritz is a significant character in Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein . She is a loyal and pious servant in the Frankenstein household, adopted by Victor’s mother before her death. Justine serves as a powerful symbol of innocent suffering and social injustice in the novel. When Victor’s younger brother, William, is murdered by the Monster, the blame is cunningly shifted onto Justine. A locket belonging to William is found in her possession, planted there by the Monster. Victor knows Justine is innocent but is too terrified to reveal his monstrous secret, fearing no one would believe his story. Justine’s trial and conviction highlight the prejudiced and flawed justice system of the society. Under pressure, she makes a false confession, hoping to gain divine forgiveness. Her execution deepens Victor’s guilt and demonstrates the devastating consequences of his ambition and irresponsibility. Justine becomes a tragic example of the collateral damage of Victor’s actions .

(c) To a Skylark “To a Skylark” is a famous ode by Percy Bysshe Shelley . In this poem, the speaker hears the song of a skylark and compares its nature to human life and art. The skylark here is a symbol of pure, spontaneous joy and unbridled inspiration . The poem highlights how the skylark’s song is “unpremeditated art,” flowing without effort or sorrow. This is contrasted with human songs and art, which are often filled with sadness, loss, and longing (“Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought”). The poet is curious to understand the nature of the skylark’s song—is it like a poet, a maiden, a glow-worm, or a rose? He feels that the bird’s happiness is beyond human experience, as it knows not death or fear. At the end of the poem, Shelley begs the skylark to teach him “half the gladness” that it knows, so he could write poetry that would make the world listen in awe, just as he is now listening to the skylark’s song. The poem is a profound meditation on the nature of art and the gap between the ideal and the real .

(d) Lyric A lyric is a form of poetry that expresses deep personal emotions, thoughts, or feelings from a single speaker’s perspective. The name derives from the ancient Greek instrument, the ‘lyre’, which was used to accompany the recital of such poems. Hence, a key characteristic of the lyric is its musicality and rhythmic quality . The main features of a lyric are:

• Subjectivity: It is usually written in the first person (“I”) and focuses on the inner world of the poet.
• Emotionality: It aims to express or evoke a strong emotion, such as love, grief, joy, or awe.
• Brevity: It is often shorter than epic or narrative poetry and concentrates on a single idea or feeling.

The lyric became the dominant poetic form during the Romantic era because it was the perfect vehicle for the

Romantic emphasis on individualism, emotion, and imagination

. Wordsworth’s “Tintern Abbey,” Shelley’s “Ode to the West Wind,” and Keats’s Odes are all powerful examples of lyric poems that explore the poets’ personal responses and philosophical insights.

Q2. Compare and contrast the treatment of the sublime in the works of Wordsworth and Coleridge. Discuss how both the poets understand and depict the concept of the sublime in nature, and how it contributes to their overall poetic philosophy. 25

Ans. William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, both foundational poets of the Romantic movement, utilize the concept of the sublime in their poetry, but their understanding and depiction of it differ significantly. The sublime is an experience that inspires feelings of awe, terror, and transcendence, often arising from an encounter with the vastness and power of nature.

Wordsworth’s Depiction of the Sublime: For Wordsworth, the sublime is found primarily in the grand and powerful aspects of physical nature . In his autobiographical poem The Prelude , he describes moments when the immensity of the Alps or the solitude of the lakes overwhelmed him. Wordsworth’s sublime experience often has a moral and spiritual dimension . The experience can be terrifying, but it ultimately leads the poet to a sense of deep connection with a divine presence in nature and a tranquil perspective on human affairs. In “Tintern Abbey,” the power of nature helps him hear “the still, sad music of humanity.” Thus, the Wordsworthian sublime is a restorative force that calms the mind and fosters moral growth. It is rooted in the natural world and connected to its benevolent influence on the human mind.

Coleridge’s Depiction of the Sublime: In contrast, Coleridge’s sublime is often more supernatural, psychological, and imaginative . While Wordsworth finds the sublime in the real world of nature, Coleridge finds it in the mysterious and often terrifying creations of the imagination. In his poem “Kubla Khan,” the exotic and wondrous landscape of Xanadu is an example of a sublime that transcends physical reality. It is a dream-vision, born from the limitless power of the imagination. Similarly, in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner , supernatural elements like the terrifying stillness of the polar ice and the ship haunted by dead sailors create a psychological sublime. For Coleridge, the sublime is tied to his theory of Imagination versus Fancy , where Imagination is a creative power that can reshape the world and reveal mysterious truths.

Conclusion: In summary, both poets use the sublime to explore the limits of human consciousness. However, Wordsworth’s sublime is natural and restorative , leading to a calm wisdom gained through nature. Coleridge’s sublime, on the other hand, is supernatural and psychological , delving into the deep, mysterious, and often unsettling corners of the human mind. Wordsworth finds God in nature, while Coleridge confronts the mysteries of the universe through the power of the imagination. This difference reflects their overall poetic philosophies: Wordsworth as the teacher-priest of Nature, and Coleridge as the mystical explorer of the Imagination.

Q3. Give an account of the theme of the futility of war in “After Blenheim”. How does Southey convey the senselessness and destructive nature of war through the characters and events in the poem? 25

Ans. Robert Southey’s poem “After Blenheim” is a powerful satire on the futility and senselessness of war. Using characters, dialogue, and irony, Southey highlights the stark contrast between the glorification of a “famous victory” and the brutal reality of its human cost.

Senselessness Conveyed Through Characters: The poem makes its point through three central characters: Old Kaspar and his two grandchildren, Wilhelmine and Peterkin.

• Old Kaspar: He represents the older generation that has accepted the official narrative about the war without question. When the children ask him about the Battle of Blenheim, all he can do is repeat that it was a “famous victory.” He is unable to explain its cause or its outcome. His oft-repeated phrase, “But ’twas a famous victory,” becomes a hollow refrain that exposes the irrationality behind the glory of war. He has become desensitized to human suffering, as shown by his casual handling of a skull.
• Wilhelmine and Peterkin: The children represent the voice of innocence and logic. Their simple, direct questions—”Now tell us what ’twas all about?” and “But what good came of it at last?”—expose the absurdity at the heart of the entire notion of war. When Kaspar is unable to answer, the whole idea of war’s glory collapses. The children’s intuitive response that war is a “wicked thing” reflects Southey’s own viewpoint.

Message Conveyed Through Events and Imagery: The poem uses vivid and disturbing imagery to counter the glorification of war. The poem opens with Peterkin finding a skull in the field, which immediately introduces the deadly reality of conflict. Kaspar casually remarks that such remains are common, indicating that the land is littered with human remains. He describes how “many thousand bodies lay / Rotting in the sun,” a grim reality that stands in sharp contrast to his praise for the Duke of Marlbro’.

Use of Irony: Southey’s primary tool is dramatic irony . Kaspar continuously praises the victory while his own words describe its horrific consequences—burning homes, dead new-born babies, and thousands of rotting corpses. This ironic gap between the praise and the gruesome reality shows the glorification of war to be absurd and immoral.

In conclusion, “After Blenheim” effectively portrays the futility of war by juxtaposing the naive but piercing curiosity of children with the conditioned acceptance of an adult. Through the characters’ dialogue and the disturbing imagery, Southey argues that war, no matter how “famous,” is ultimately a senseless and destructive act with no real justification.

Q4. Analyse the role of the nightingale in the poem. How does Keats use the bird as a symbol of eternal beauty and artistic inspiration and what does this reveal about his views on the nature of art and creativity? 25

Ans. In John Keats’s “Ode to a Nightingale,” the nightingale is a central and multifaceted symbol, representing eternal beauty, immortal art, and an escape from a world of intense suffering. The poem uses the bird and its song to explore the complex relationships between art, death, reality, and imagination.

Symbol of Eternal Beauty and Art: For Keats, the nightingale’s song is immortal and unchanging . The speaker addresses the bird directly: “Thou wast not born for death, immortal Bird!” This same song has been heard through centuries by emperors and clowns, and even by the biblical Ruth. This stands in stark contrast to the transience and pain of human life, which Keats describes as a place of “fever and the fret,” where people grow old, fall sick, and die. The nightingale’s song symbolizes an ideal form of art—pure, eternal, and untouched by sorrow. It represents the permanent beauty that Keats aspires to capture in his own poetry.

Symbol of Artistic Inspiration: The nightingale’s song acts as a catalyst for the poet, transporting him from his painful reality into a world of imagination. He wishes to join the bird “on the viewless wings of Poesy.” The song leads him into a world of deep, fragrant darkness, where he experiences nature through his senses. It is a creative escape, a moment where the poet transcends his sorrows through the power of art. The nightingale becomes a muse, whose “easy” art inspires the poet to create his own.

Keats’s Views on Art and Creativity: The poem reveals Keats’s complex views on the nature of art.

1. Art as Escape: Art (the nightingale’s song) offers a temporary reprieve from the harsh realities of human suffering. It allows the imagination to create a world that is more beautiful and lasting than the real one.
2. The Limits of Escape: However, Keats also acknowledges that this escape cannot be permanent. At the end of the ode, the word “Forlorn!” tolls him back “to my sole self.” The bird flies away, and its song fades, leaving the poet in a state of uncertainty, “Was it a vision, or a waking dream?”
3. Tension Between the Ideal and the Real: The poem does not resolve the tension between the ideal world of art (the nightingale’s song) and the real world of suffering. It explores both the power and the limitations of art.

In conclusion, the nightingale for Keats is a symbol of the ideal artist, whose song represents eternal beauty. Using the poem, Keats meditates on the transformative power of art, but also acknowledges that the escape provided by imagination is fleeting, ultimately returning us to the painful reality of the human condition.

Q5. Discuss the use of humour in Charles Lamb’s “A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig”. How does Lamb use satire and playful exaggeration to explore the themes of culinary history and human behaviour? 25

Ans. Charles Lamb’s essay “A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig” is a masterclass in his distinctive humour, characterized by whimsy, gentle irony, and playful exaggeration. In this essay, Lamb takes a trivial subject—roast pork—and treats it with the utmost seriousness and scholarly gravity, creating a comical and delightful effect.

Use of Satire and Playful Exaggeration: Lamb’s humour primarily stems from his mock-seriousness . He invents an elaborate and entirely fabricated origin story for the discovery of roast pig.

1. Satire on Culinary History: Citing a “Chinese manuscript,” Lamb tells the tale of how a boy named Bo-bo accidentally burned down his house, roasting a litter of pigs in the process. The discovery was so delightful that people began to deliberately burn down their houses to eat roast pig. This absurd story is a satire on scholarly and historical writing . By using formal language, footnotes, and a serious tone, Lamb gives a veneer of credibility to a preposterous narrative, mocking academic pomposity in the process.
2. Satire on Human Behaviour: The story is a playful commentary on human gluttony and the absurdity of our desires. The idea that people would burn down their homes for the taste of roast pig is a hyperbolic depiction of passion triumphing over reason in human behaviour. The eventual invention of the gridiron by a “sage” is a comment on human ingenuity—how our greatest advancements are often driven by our most basic appetites, like hunger.

Exploration of Themes Through Humour: The essay’s humour is not just for entertainment; it also explores deeper themes.

• Celebration of Sensual Pleasure: Beneath the surface satire, Lamb genuinely celebrates the simple, sensual pleasure of roast pig. He describes the taste, texture, and aroma with such detail and enthusiasm that it becomes an almost spiritual experience. The humour comes from the extremity of this passion, which elevates food to the level of art or religion.
• Innocence and Experience: The story of Bo-bo charts a course from innocence (accidental discovery) to experience (deliberate destruction and, eventually, ingenuity).

In conclusion, Charles Lamb masterfully uses humour in “A Dissertation Upon Roast Pig.” Through satire and playful exaggeration , he not only pokes fun at academic pretension but also comments on human behaviour, gluttony, and the illogical nature of our desires. While doing so, he also offers a joyful and heartfelt tribute to one of life’s simplest pleasures, making the essay an enduring masterpiece of Lamb-esque humour.

Q6. Analyse the final stanza of “Ode to the West Wind”. How does Shelley transition from his personal longing for transformation to a broader, more universal message, and what does this reveal about his vision for the future? 25

Ans. The final stanza of Percy Bysshe Shelley’s “Ode to the West Wind” marks a crucial turning point in the poem, where the speaker’s personal suffering is transformed into a powerful, universal, and revolutionary message. This transition reveals Shelley’s understanding of his role as a poet and his prophetic vision for the future.

The Transition from Personal to Universal: The first three stanzas of the ode describe the West Wind’s power over the earth, sky, and sea, affecting leaves, clouds, and waves. In the fourth stanza, the speaker expresses his personal anguish. He was once “tameless, and swift, and proud” like the wind but has now fallen upon the thorns of life and is bleeding. He pleads with the wind to lift him “as a wave, a leaf, a cloud!” This is a moment of deep personal suffering and powerlessness.

The final stanza transforms this personal despair into an active, creative role. The transition begins with the line, “Make me thy lyre, even as the forest is.” Here, the speaker no longer wishes to be just a passive object carried by the wind; he wants to become an active instrument through which the wind’s power can speak. He wants his own spirit to merge with the wind’s to produce a powerful, sad music.

This message becomes even more universal when he urges the wind: “Drive my dead thoughts over the universe / Like withered leaves to quicken a new birth!” Here, the “dead thoughts” are Shelley’s own radical political and social ideas, which may seem ineffective or “dead” in the oppressive society of his time. He wants the wind to scatter these ideas like seeds, which will inspire an intellectual and spiritual renaissance among humanity.

Shelley’s Vision for the Future: This final stanza reveals Shelley’s revolutionary optimism for the future. He sees the poet as a prophet or “the trumpet of a prophecy.” The duty of the poet is not just to express personal feelings but to awaken humanity to a better future.

The poem’s famous concluding line, “If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?”, encapsulates this vision. This is not merely an observation about the seasons but a powerful political metaphor. ‘Winter’ represents the current era of oppression, tyranny, and social decay. ‘Spring’ symbolizes the inevitable arrival of freedom, justice, and renewal. Shelley believes that history is cyclical, and periods of oppression will necessarily be followed by an era of liberation. Thus, the poem begins in a moment of personal despair and ends with an unwavering expression of political hope and a revolutionary call to all of humanity.

Q7. Discuss the theme of ambition in ‘Frankenstein’. How does Victor Frankenstein’s ambition drive the plot of the novel, and what are the consequences of his pursuit of scientific knowledge? 25

Ans. In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein , unchecked ambition is a central and destructive theme. The character of Victor Frankenstein embodies this theme, and his unrestrained pursuit of scientific knowledge and glory sets in motion the tragic events of the novel.

Ambition as the Plot’s Driving Force: From the outset, Victor is driven by a fervent desire to “penetrate the secrets of nature” and to “pioneer a new way… and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation.” This ambition leads him to his secret and monstrous experiment of creating life. His ambition is so all-consuming that he neglects his family, friends, and even his own health. His sole focus is on his creation, which he believes will be a testament to his greatness. Thus, his ambition directly leads to the creation of the Monster who is the fulcrum of the plot. It is Victor’s ambition that drives him to play God, which is the novel’s original sin or crime.

The Consequences of Ambition: The consequences of Victor’s pursuit of ambition are catastrophic and far-reaching, serving as a moral warning.

1. Hubris and Transgression: Victor’s ambition is a form of hubris. He transgresses the natural and divine order. The moment he succeeds, he is horrified by the hideousness of his creation, but this realization comes too late. His crime lies not just in the creation, but also in his immediate abandonment of the creature.
2. Irresponsibility and Neglect: His ambition is selfish. After giving life to his creation, he abandons it in disgust and fear. This act of abandonment is what causes the Monster to become lonely, confused, and ultimately vengeful. All of the Monster’s subsequent crimes—the murders of William, Justine, Clerval, and Elizabeth—are a direct result of Victor’s failure to take responsibility for his own creation.
3. Isolation: His obsessive pursuit of knowledge isolates him from society and his loved ones. This isolation is later mirrored in his Monster, who is rejected by society due to his appearance. Both creator and creation end up suffering from profound loneliness.
4. Utter Destruction: Ultimately, Victor’s ambition leads not to glory, but to the complete destruction of himself, his family, and his creation. He acknowledges near the end of his life that his ambition was the cause of his ruin.

The novel reinforces this theme through the character of Robert Walton, who is driven by a similar ambition to reach the North Pole. However, after hearing Victor’s story, Walton makes the wise decision to abandon his ambition and save the lives of his crew. Thus, the novel functions as a powerful cautionary tale, demonstrating that unchecked ambition and the pursuit of knowledge without responsibility lead only to misery and destruction.