IGNOU MEG-01 Solved Question Paper PDF Download

IGNOU MEG-01 Previous Year Solved Question Paper in Hindi

IGNOU MEG-01 Previous Year Solved Question Paper in English

Q1. Explain any two of the following passages with reference to the context : 2×10=20 (a) Sinking he left his drugget robe behind, Borne upwards by a subterranean wind : The mantle fell to the young prophet’s part, With double portion of his father’s art. (b) Ye learned sisters which have often times Beene to me ayding, others to adorne : Whom ye thought worthy of your gracefull rymes, That even the greatest did not greatly scorne To heare theyr names sung in your simple playes, (c) Begin then, Sisters of the sacred well That from beneath the seat of Jove doth spring; Begin, and somewhat loudly sweep the string. (d) And thus we sit together now, And all night long we have not stirred, And yet God has not said a word !

Ans. (a) These lines are taken from John Dryden’s masterful satire, ‘Mac Flecknoe’ . In this poem, Dryden attacks his contemporary, the poet Thomas Shadwell, casting him as the heir to the kingdom of dullness and nonsense. The context of these lines is the moment of succession, where the current king of dullness, Flecknoe, relinquishes his throne to his ‘son’, Shadwell. The ‘drugget robe’ (a robe of coarse, cheap wool) symbolizes Flecknoe’s shoddy poetic talent. His sinking and being ‘borne upwards by a subterranean wind’ is a mock-heroic, absurd departure. The most crucial line is ‘The mantle fell to the young prophet’s part’, a satirical allusion to the biblical story where the prophet Elijah’s mantle falls upon his successor Elisha, granting Elisha a double portion of Elijah’s spirit. Here, Dryden ironically suggests that Shadwell inherits a ‘double portion’ of his ‘father’ Flecknoe’s ‘art’—which is the art of being dull and nonsensical. This makes him not a great successor but a doubly great fool. Thus, Dryden masterfully uses a sacred allusion to mock Shadwell and cement his reputation as the epitome of dullness.

(b) These lines are from the opening of Edmund Spenser’s celebrated wedding ode, ‘Epithalamion’ . The poem was written to celebrate Spenser’s own wedding day with his bride, Elizabeth Boyle. In these lines, the poet is invoking the nine Muses of classical mythology, whom he addresses as the ‘learned sisters’. He acknowledges that the Muses have often aided him in writing poems to ‘adorne’ (adorn or praise) others. He states that those whom the Muses deemed worthy of their ‘gracefull rymes’ were so honoured that even the greatest of men did not scorn to be praised in poetry (‘simple playes’). This invocation is a traditional poetic device, but here it is deeply personal. The poet is asking for inspiration to create a particularly beautiful and enduring poem for his wedding day. It shows both humility and high poetic ambition, as he wants to craft a song for his bride that will stand the test of time and be a worthy monument to their love.

(c) These lines are from John Milton’s great elegy, ‘Lycidas’ . The poem was written in memory of Milton’s friend, Edward King, who drowned in the Irish Sea. These lines form part of the poem’s formal invocation . Here, the poet addresses the Muses as the ‘Sisters of the sacred well’. This ‘sacred well’ is the Pierian Spring, located on Mount Olympus, believed to spring from beneath the seat of Jove (Zeus) and to be the haunt of the Muses. This invocation is an essential convention of the pastoral elegy genre. The plea to ‘Begin, and somewhat loudly sweep the string’ indicates the poet’s intention to tackle a weighty and solemn theme. The grief is not merely personal but will be explored on a grand scale, touching on questions of death, fame, and divine justice. This forceful beginning sets the serious and ambitious tone of the poem that follows.

(d) These lines are the chilling conclusion to Robert Browning’s famous dramatic monologue , ‘Porphyria’s Lover’ . In the poem, an unnamed speaker describes his lover, Porphyria, coming to him on a stormy night. She adores him but is unable to commit to him fully due to social constraints. Desiring to preserve forever the ‘perfect’ moment when she was entirely his, the speaker strangles her to death with her own hair. In these final lines, the speaker is sitting with his dead beloved, her head propped on his shoulder. The calm, matter-of-fact tone of ‘And thus we sit together now’ is deeply horrifying. The phrase ‘And all night long we have not stirred’ implies a significant passage of time since the murder. The most shocking line is ‘And yet God has not said a word!’. This reveals the speaker’s twisted logic and moral bankruptcy. He interprets God’s silence as tacit approval of his act, a sign that he has committed no crime. The line leaves the reader with a profound sense of unease, highlighting the speaker’s madness and the enormity of his transgression.

Q2. What individualizes the portraits of the characters in the ‘Prologue to the Canterbury Tales’?

Ans. In Geoffrey Chaucer’s ‘Prologue to the Canterbury Tales’, the character portraits are individualized and brought to life through a masterful combination of techniques, making them stand out as unique individuals rather than mere medieval ‘types’. Chaucer’s genius lies in his ability to blend social commentary with vivid, personal detail. The key techniques that individualize the characters are:

• Physical Description: Chaucer provides specific physical details that often hint at a character’s personality or moral state. For instance, the Wife of Bath’s ‘gap-teeth’ were considered a sign of a bold and lustful nature in Chaucer’s time. The Miller’s wart with a tuft of red hair and his brutish, stout build immediately suggest his coarse and vulgar character. The Summoner’s ‘fire-red’ face covered in boils signifies his lecherous and corrupt nature.
• Clothing and Possessions: A character’s attire and the items they carry are powerful indicators of their social status, aspirations, and values. The Knight’s fustian tunic is stained and worn from his armor, showing his dedication to his profession and his humility. In contrast, the Prioress’s delicate coral rosary, ending in a golden brooch inscribed with ‘Amor Vincit Omnia’ (Love Conquers All), suggests a worldly and sentimental nature, perhaps unsuited for a nun.
• Psychological and Behavioural Traits: Chaucer goes beyond surface appearances to reveal the inner lives of his pilgrims through their habits and behaviours. The Monk loves hunting and fine clothes, directly contradicting his monastic vows of poverty and contemplation. The Pardoner’s high-pitched voice and beardless face are described in a way that suggests his moral ambiguity and cunning nature.
• Professional Satire: Chaucer individualizes characters by showing how they perform (or fail to perform) their professional duties. The ideal characters, like the devout Parson and the honest Plowman , are defined by their integrity. In stark contrast, the Doctor is more interested in astrology and his love for gold than his patients’ well-being, and the Friar cultivates relationships with the rich while avoiding the poor he is meant to serve.

In essence, Chaucer individualizes his pilgrims through a rich tapestry of

physical attributes, clothing choices, personal habits, and professional conduct

. This realistic and multi-faceted approach makes the characters feel like living, breathing people, creating a vibrant and unforgettable cross-section of medieval English society.

Q3. Critically evaluate ‘Lycidas’ as an elegy.

Ans. John Milton’s ‘Lycidas’ is widely regarded as one of the greatest elegies in the English language, a poem that both masters and transcends the genre. Written to mourn the death of his college friend Edward King, ‘Lycidas’ uses the framework of the pastoral elegy not just to express personal grief, but to explore profound questions about religion, art, and mortality. Adherence to Elegiac Conventions: The poem skilfully employs many traditional elements of the genre, inherited from classical poets like Theocritus and Virgil:

• Invocation of the Muse: The poem begins with an appeal to the Muses to inspire a fitting lament.
• Procession of Mourners: A variety of figures, both from nature (valleys, woods) and mythology (Camus, the river god), come to mourn the death of Lycidas (Edward King).
• Nature’s Sympathy: The poet imagines that the natural world shares in his sorrow.
• Questioning of Divine Justice: The speaker poignantly asks why a virtuous young man with great potential should be allowed to die prematurely.
• Apotheosis and Consolation: The elegy concludes with a turn from grief to consolation. Lycidas is not dead but has been resurrected in Heaven, becoming the ‘Genius of the shore’.

Transcending the Genre:

The greatness of ‘Lycidas’ lies in how it uses this traditional framework to address larger, more complex issues through two major

digressions

:

1.

The Attack on the Clergy:

The speech by St. Peter (“the Pilot of the Galilean lake”), who denounces the corrupt and self-serving clergy of the time, elevates the poem from a personal lament to a powerful piece of social and religious critique. Milton connects the loss of one good man to the spiritual decay of the entire Church.

2.

The “Fame” Digression:

The poet meditates on his own poetic ambitions and the seeming futility of a dedicated life if death can cut it short. The answer he finds is that true fame is not earthly but heavenly, “in the pure eyes / And perfect witness of all-judging Jove.” This transforms the poem into a meditation on the very nature of a poet’s vocation.

Furthermore, Milton masterfully blends

Christian and pagan imagery

. Classical figures like Nymphs and Satyrs coexist with Christian figures like St. Peter. This synthesis gives the poem a universal resonance, bridging the classical past with Milton’s Christian present.

In conclusion, ‘Lycidas’ is a masterful elegy. It fulfils the genre’s primary function of mourning and consolation while expanding its scope to tackle profound theological, personal, and political concerns. It is a testament to Milton’s poetic genius that a poem for a departed friend becomes an enduring statement on faith, art, and the human condition.

Q4. Comment on the crowd accompanying the car in ‘The Triumph of Life’.

Ans. The crowd accompanying the car in Percy Bysshe Shelley’s final, unfinished masterpiece, ‘The Triumph of Life’ , represents a deeply pessimistic vision of humanity subjugated by the crushing force of worldly existence. This “masked festival” of figures, chained to the chariot of Life, forms a haunting procession of the defeated and disillusioned. The poem is a Dantesque vision in which the narrator observes a triumphal procession, but this is a triumph not of glory, but of “Life”—a blind, impersonal force represented by a speeding “Car” or chariot. The crowd is the central spectacle of this grim parade, and its composition is key to the poem’s meaning. Composition and Significance of the Crowd:

• Historical Captives: The crowd is a “wreched crew” comprised of people from all walks of life, including the most powerful and celebrated figures in history: emperors like Napoleon, popes, and, most shockingly, the greatest minds like Plato, Aristotle, and Francis Bacon . Their presence as captives signifies that no one, regardless of power or intellect, can escape the corrupting influence of life.
• The Extinguishing of Light: These figures, once beacons of wisdom and power, have been vanquished. Shelley describes them as having lost their “sacred Sceptre,” the symbol of their true, inner identity and potential. They have been corrupted by worldly ambition, compromise, and “the contamination of the world’s slow stain.”
• Loss of Identity: The members of the crowd are distorted and barely recognizable. They dance in a “cold glare” cast by the chariot, their movements frenzied and meaningless. They have lost their individuality and become part of a faceless mob, dragged along by a force they cannot resist or understand.
• Rousseau as Guide: The narrator’s guide through this vision is the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau , himself one of the captives. Rousseau, who championed natural goodness and freedom, explains how he too fell victim to the Triumph of Life, his youthful ideals trampled by worldly experience. His role underscores the poem’s central tragedy: the inevitable defeat of the ideal by the real.

In summary, the crowd in ‘The Triumph of Life’ is a powerful allegory for humanity’s enslavement to the tyranny of social convention, ambition, and the disillusionment that comes with experience. It is a procession of the spiritually dead, a stark and terrifying image of human potential crushed by the unthinking, relentless march of life itself.

Q5. Write a critical appreciation of either ‘To His Coy Mistress’ or ‘The Garden’.

Ans. ‘To His Coy Mistress’ by Andrew Marvell Andrew Marvell’s ‘To His Coy Mistress’ stands as a pinnacle of the carpe diem (“seize the day”) poetic tradition and a quintessential example of Metaphysical poetry. Its enduring power lies in its brilliant fusion of passionate argument, intellectual wit, and a profound awareness of mortality. The poem is structured as a tight, three-part syllogism , a logical argument that moves from premise to conclusion with compelling force. 1. The Hypothesis (“Had we…”): The first section sets up a hypothetical scenario. “Had we but world enough and time,” the speaker declares, his mistress’s coyness would be no crime. He would spend centuries adoring every part of her. The imagery here is vast and hyperbolic, employing Metaphysical conceits like a “vegetable love” that would grow “vaster than empires, and more slow.” The tone is leisurely and expansive, painting a picture of an ideal, unhurried courtship. 2. The Reality (“But…”): The second section abruptly shatters this idyllic vision with the word “But.” The tone shifts dramatically to one of urgency and grim reality. The speaker constantly hears “Time’s winged chariot hurrying near.” The imagery becomes morbid and stark: he foresees her beauty vanishing in the marble vault of the tomb, her “long-preserved virginity” turning to dust, and her “honour” eaten by worms. This unflinching confrontation with death and decay provides the powerful impetus for his argument. 3. The Conclusion (“Now therefore…”): The final section presents the logical solution. Since time is short, they must act now. The imagery becomes forceful, energetic, and passionate. He urges that they “roll all our strength and all our sweetness up into one ball” and “tear our pleasures with rough strife / Thorough the iron gates of life.” The speaker argues that while they cannot make the sun stand still, they can, through the intensity of their passion, “make him run.” In conclusion, ‘To His Coy Mistress’ is a masterpiece of control and passion. It uses a logical framework to explore the most illogical of human impulses. The poem’s brilliance lies in its seamless blend of witty intellectualism, vivid sensory imagery, and an urgent, universal message about the fleeting nature of time and the imperative to live and love fully. OR ‘The Garden’ by Andrew Marvell Andrew Marvell’s ‘The Garden’ is a profound and beautiful meditation on the virtues of solitude, contemplation, and the superiority of nature over human society. It is a classic “poem of retreat,” celebrating the peace and spiritual fulfilment found in a garden, far from the “busie Companies of men.” The poem follows a clear progression, moving from a rejection of the outer world to an exploration of the inner world of the mind and soul. 1. Rejection of Worldly Ambition: The speaker begins by mocking the “uncessant labours” of men who strive for public glory, represented by the “Palm, the Oke, or Bayes” (symbols of military, civic, and poetic achievement). He finds all these honours combined in the “lovely green” of the garden. 2. Superiority over Romantic Love: The poem then provocatively suggests that nature’s beauty surpasses that of women. The speaker dismisses romantic love, noting that mythological figures were transformed into trees (Apollo and Daphne, Pan and Syrinx) only after their passions were frustrated. The garden offers a “purer” and more satisfying love. 3. Sensuous Union with Nature: The speaker describes a state of ecstatic, sensuous immersion in the garden. Nature is so abundant and welcoming that “luscious Clusters of the Vine” burst against his mouth, and he stumbles on melons and falls among flowers. It is a passive, blissful state, reminiscent of a pre-lapsarian Eden. 4. Transcendence of the Mind: From this physical bliss, the poem elevates to the life of the mind. The speaker’s mind, a “Sea where each kind / Does straight its own resemblance find,” withdraws from the world and creates “other Worlds, and other Seas.” This is a key Metaphysical moment, celebrating the mind’s power to create its own reality, a state of pure intellectual freedom. 5. The Ecstasy of the Soul: Finally, the soul itself is liberated. It “plumes her feathers” and prepares for her “longer flight” to the divine, preening like a bird in a tree. This is the poem’s mystical climax, a moment of spiritual ecstasy. In conclusion, ‘The Garden’ is a rich and complex poem that celebrates the contemplative life. It is not merely a nature poem but a philosophical journey that explores the relationship between the body, mind, and soul, ultimately arguing that true paradise is found not in society or even in love, but in the quiet, green retreat of the self.

Q6. Attempt a critique of John Dryden as a poet.

Ans. John Dryden dominated the literary landscape of the late 17th century, a period so influenced by him that it is often called the ‘Age of Dryden’. As a poet, playwright, and critic, he shaped the Neoclassical aesthetic in England. A critique of his work reveals a poet of immense technical skill, intellectual vigour, and public influence, though one whose style was later challenged by the Romantics. Dryden’s Strengths:

• Master of the Heroic Couplet: Dryden perfected the heroic couplet (a rhyming pair of iambic pentameter lines), transforming it into a versatile and powerful instrument for satire, argument, and narrative. His couplets are celebrated for their precision, balance, energy, and clarity, as seen in works like Absalom and Achitophel .
• The Great Satirist: Dryden is arguably England’s first great verse satirist. In poems like Mac Flecknoe and Absalom and Achitophel , he wielded satire with devastating effect. He created brilliant, biting portraits of his political and literary enemies, using wit, irony, and powerful invective to shape public opinion.
• The Public Poet: As the first official Poet Laureate, Dryden saw poetry as a public art form. He engaged directly with the political and religious controversies of his day, making poetry a vital voice in national discourse. His work provides a vivid commentary on the turbulent Restoration period.
• Versatility: Dryden’s range was remarkable. Beyond satire, he wrote magnificent odes (e.g., Alexander’s Feast ), complex religious poems ( The Hind and the Panther ), celebrated translations of classics like Virgil, and numerous prologues and epilogues.

Criticisms and Limitations:

• Reason over Imagination: The primary criticism, famously articulated by Romantic poets and critics, was that Dryden’s poetry was one of “reason and wit” rather than “imagination and feeling.” Dr. Johnson famously called the poetry of Dryden and Pope “the poetry of prose,” implying it lacked the sublime, emotional qualities of “true” poetry. (This view was later revised by T.S. Eliot, who praised Dryden’s “wit” as a form of intellectual and emotional fusion).
• Topicality: Because so much of his work is tied to specific historical events and figures, it can sometimes feel inaccessible to a modern reader without historical context.
• Lack of Lyrical ‘Singing’ Quality: Compared to Shakespearean or Romantic verse, Dryden’s poetry is often seen as less lyrical. His focus was on argument, statement, and satire, rather than the “spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings.”

In conclusion, John Dryden was a poet of monumental importance. He established a new poetic order for his age, one characterized by clarity, reason, and formal polish. While he may lack the emotional immediacy of the Romantics, his intellectual power, technical mastery, and satirical genius are undeniable. He is a master craftsman who made the English language a more precise and forceful tool for public discourse, securing his place as a major figure in the English poetic tradition.

Q7. Discuss Kubla Khan as an allegorical poem.

Ans. Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s ‘Kubla Khan’, subtitled “A Vision in a Dream. A Fragment,” is famous for its exotic imagery and mysterious origins. While it can be enjoyed as a pure flight of fancy, one of the most compelling interpretations reads it as a profound allegory for the process of poetic creation . In this reading, the poem is not a fragment at all, but a complete statement about the nature of inspiration and the power of the poet. The key elements of the poem can be interpreted allegorically as follows:

• Kubla Khan: He represents the conscious will of the artist . It is he who “did… a stately pleasure-dome decree.” This act of decreeing is the initial, willed decision to create a work of art.
• The Pleasure-Dome and Garden: This is the work of art itself . It is a constructed paradise, a product of imagination, but it is also a place of contradictions: a “sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice.” This suggests that a great work of art contains both order and beauty (the walls, towers, and gardens) and wild, chaotic, elemental energy (the chasm, the sacred river).
• Alph, the Sacred River: The river symbolizes the flow of inspiration or creative energy. It erupts from a deep, mysterious source (the “deep romantic chasm”), which represents the unconscious mind. It flows through the ordered world of the artwork (the garden) before sinking into a “lifeless ocean,” perhaps signifying the end of the creative burst or the return of inspiration to the unknown.
• The Damsel with a Dulcimer: She represents the pure source of inspiration or a specific, un-recapturable vision . She is a memory of a perfect song that, if the poet could “revive within me,” would grant him the power to recreate the pleasure-dome. She is the elusive muse, the catalyst for creation that cannot be summoned by will alone.
• The Poet-Figure in the Final Stanza: This is the poet who has successfully harnessed inspiration and created his art. He becomes a transcendent, almost terrifying figure: “His flashing eyes, his floating hair!” He is set apart from ordinary humanity, who must “Weave a circle round him thrice” in a gesture of holy fear. Having “fed on honey-dew, and drunk the milk of Paradise,” he has tasted divine inspiration and is no longer an ordinary man.

In conclusion, when read as an allegory, ‘Kubla Khan’ ceases to be merely a dream fragment and becomes a sophisticated and complete exploration of artistic creation. It maps the journey from the conscious will to create, through the chaotic influx of inspiration from the unconscious, to the final, awe-inspiring power of the finished work and the transformed artist.

Q8. Do you agree with Johnson’s view that “Poetry is the art of uniting pleasure with truth, by calling imagination to the help of reason”?

Ans. Samuel Johnson’s famous definition of poetry, found in his Lives of the Poets , is a brilliant encapsulation of the Neoclassical literary ideal. Whether one agrees with it depends on which poetic tradition one holds as the standard. The statement is a powerful and accurate description of a certain kind of poetry, but it is not a universally applicable definition for all poetry. Deconstructing Johnson’s Definition:

• “Truth”: For Johnson, ‘truth’ meant general, universal truths about human nature—what he called the “grandeur of generality.” It is moral, psychological, and social truth that is stable and recognizable to all, not idiosyncratic or subjective feelings.
• “Pleasure”: This is the aesthetic delight derived from the formal properties of poetry: meter, rhyme, polished language, and elegant structure. It is the Horatian principle of dulce (the sweet) that makes the utile (the useful truth) palatable.
• “Reason”: This is the dominant faculty in Johnson’s hierarchy. Reason is the controlling, ordering principle that structures the poem, ensures its logic, and validates its “truth.”
• “Imagination”: Imagination’s role is to be a servant to reason. It is “called to the help of reason” to provide vivid illustrations, metaphors, and images that make the rational truth more engaging and memorable. It is a decorative, not a primary, faculty.

Arguments for Agreement (The Neoclassical View):

Johnson’s definition perfectly describes the poetry of his own Augustan age. The works of Dryden and especially Pope, whose goal was to give “what oft was thought, but ne’er so well expressed” (

Essay on Criticism

), are prime examples. Pope’s

An Essay on Man

is a philosophical treatise in verse, a perfect union of “truth” (as he saw it) and “pleasure.” This view champions poetry’s didactic purpose, emphasizing its role in moral and civil instruction, and provides clear standards of clarity, order, and propriety.

Arguments for Disagreement (The Romantic and Modern View):

The

Romantics

would fundamentally disagree with this hierarchy. For them,

imagination

was the supreme, creative, and truth-discerning faculty, not a handmaiden to reason. Wordsworth’s definition of poetry as the “spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings” is a direct antithesis to Johnson’s rationalism. Johnson’s definition has little room for the raw emotion of a lyric by Keats, the visionary mysticism of Blake, or the subjective dreamscape of Coleridge’s ‘Kubla Khan’. Keats’s concept of

“Negative Capability”

—the ability to exist in “uncertainties, Mysteries, doubts, without any irritable reaching after fact & reason”—is the polar opposite of Johnson’s ideal. Modern and postmodern poetry, with its embrace of ambiguity, fragmentation, and subjectivity, lies even further outside Johnson’s framework.

Conclusion:

One must agree that Johnson’s definition is a masterfully concise summary of the Neoclassical ideal of poetry. It is an invaluable lens through which to understand and appreciate a major and enduring tradition in English literature. However, it is not a timeless or universal truth about the nature of all poetry. The Romantic revolution and subsequent literary movements demonstrated that alternative models, which prioritize imagination, emotion, and individuality, are equally valid and capable of producing masterpieces. Therefore, Johnson’s view is historically significant and theoretically coherent, but ultimately limited as a comprehensive definition of poetry itself.