IGNOU MEG-09 Solved Question Paper PDF Download

IGNOU MEG-09 Previous Year Solved Question Paper in Hindi

IGNOU MEG-09 Previous Year Solved Question Paper in English

Q1. Does history influence literature ? If so, then explain with examples from any nineteenth century Australian text that you have studied.

Ans. Yes, history profoundly influences literature. Literature is often a reflection and critique of the historical, political, and cultural contexts in which it is produced. It records past events, shapes national identity, and interrogates historical traumas. In the context of nineteenth-century Australian literature, this influence is particularly stark. The most prominent example is Marcus Clarke’s novel For the Term of His Natural Life (1874). This novel is directly influenced by Australia’s foundational history: the convict system . The novel serves as a powerful literary documentation of the horrors and brutalities of the convict system. It reflects history in the following ways:

• Historical Realism: Clarke based the novel on his research into actual penal settlements like Port Arthur and Norfolk Island in Tasmania. The harsh punishments, inhumane living conditions, and the psychological degradation of convicts described in the novel are grounded in historical records.
• Characterisation: The protagonist, Rufus Dawes, is an unjustly convicted man who symbolises the victimhood and suffering engendered by the system’s cruelty. His ordeal represents the suffering of thousands of convicts transported to Australia. Characters like the commandant, Frere, on the other hand, represent the dehumanising authority of the system.
• Forging a National Identity: The convict past was a source of shame and trauma for Australia. Clarke’s novel helped confront this repressed history. By presenting the convict as a victim rather than a villain, it helped to reshape how Australians thought about their origins.

Thus,

For the Term of His Natural Life

proves that literature is not only influenced by history but also plays a crucial role in shaping the national memory and understanding of that history.

Q2. Critically examine how settler images of the land shaped Australian literature in English in its early stages of development.

Ans. In the early development of Australian literature in English, settler images of the land were central and formative. For settlers accustomed to the European landscape, the Australian bush was often an alien, hostile, and intimidating place. This experience profoundly shaped early literary output. The images of the land in the initial phase fall predominantly into two categories:

1. The Land as a ‘Gothic’ or ‘Antagonistic’ Force: European settlers found the Australian ‘bush’ strange and frightening. Its gum trees, strange animals, and vast, monotonous expanses were the antithesis of the familiar European countryside. This perception gave rise to a literary tradition where the land was depicted as an antagonist.
   • Narratives often featured characters getting lost, dying of thirst, or going mad in the mysterious and hostile bush.
   • It was described as possessing a “weird melancholy,” a feeling that pervades the work of poets like Charles Harpur and Henry Kendall, who attempted to articulate the gloom and loneliness of the Australian landscape.
2. The Land as a ‘Blank Canvas’ (Terra Nullius): The colonial concept of terra nullius (empty land) also influenced literature. Settlers often viewed the land as empty, untamed, and waiting to be conquered, thereby ignoring the millennia of Indigenous presence and connection. This perspective justified narratives of exploitation and the imposition of European order onto the land. Literature portrayed the land as something to be subdued and ‘civilised’.

Furthermore, some writers also attempted to find a new, distinct beauty in the Australian landscape. They saw it as a place that could inspire a new national identity, free from European traditions. However, even these attempts were often coloured by an outsider’s perspective, trying to impose meaning onto the land rather than understanding it on its own terms.

In summary, the early images of the land in Australian literature were fraught with feelings of fear, alienation, conquest, and possession. These images reflected the colonial experience of the settlers and their uneasy relationship with an environment they failed to comprehend, laying the foundation for Australia’s literary imagination.

Q3. Write a note on the significance of Hell’s Gate mentioned in “The Seizure of Cyprus”. How does this short story reflect the horrors of the convict system ?

Ans. The significance of Hell’s Gate mentioned in Marcus Clarke’s story “The Seizure of the Cyprus” is both literal and symbolic, encapsulating the horrors of the convict system. Hell’s Gate was the notoriously dangerous entrance to Macquarie Harbour Penal Settlement in Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania), a secondary penal colony for the most hardened criminals. The Significance of Hell’s Gate:

• Literal Significance: It was a treacherous, narrow waterway where powerful currents and hidden rocks made navigation almost impossible. The name itself speaks volumes; it was literally a gateway to a living hell, from which escape was near impossible. This natural barrier reinforced the man-made prison walls.
• Symbolic Significance: Symbolically, Hell’s Gate represents the point of no return for the entire convict system. It signifies entry into a world where hope, humanity, and freedom cease to exist. It represents the ultimate despair and suffering that convicts had to endure. It is a symbol of the natural world mirroring and amplifying human cruelty.

Reflection of the Convict System’s Horrors:

The story reflects the horrors of the convict system in several ways, with Hell’s Gate playing a central role:

1. Extreme Desperation: The story shows that the conditions at Macquarie Harbour were so unbearable that convicts would risk a dangerous mutiny like seizing the brig Cyprus . The threat of death posed by Hell’s Gate seemed preferable to the slow, certain death within the settlement. This highlights the depth of desperation where any risk was better than life inside the prison.
2. Dehumanisation: The system reduced men to their base instincts. Starvation, brutal punishment, and constant misery dehumanised them. The mutiny was a desperate act of survival, not merely a political act for freedom.
3. Nature as a Gaoler: The story illustrates that the tyrants of the convict system were not just human guards. The treacherous waters of Hell’s Gate and the impenetrable forest surrounding it also acted as gaolers, intensifying the feeling of being trapped, both physically and psychologically.

In conclusion, Hell’s Gate is not just a geographical location but a powerful symbol in Clarke’s story for the entire brutality, hopelessness, and inhumanity of the convict system, making the convicts’ mutiny seem rational and almost inevitable.

Q4. How does Barbara Baynton sensitize the readers on the gender issue through “The Chosen Vessel” ?

Ans. Barbara Baynton’s story “The Chosen Vessel” powerfully sensitizes readers to the gender issue by subverting the masculine and romanticised myths of late nineteenth-century Australian bush life. It starkly exposes the dangers and vulnerabilities of the bush from a woman’s perspective, contrasting with the bush celebrated by male writers like Henry Lawson. Baynton sensitizes the readers in the following ways:

• Portrayal of Female Isolation and Vulnerability: The protagonist, who remains unnamed, is utterly alone with her baby while her husband is away. Baynton masterfully portrays her mounting fear and isolation. The bush, which might be a place of adventure for men, is for her a menacing and threatening space. The sounds of the night, the uncanny stare of a sheep, and the approaching footstep of a stranger build her terror.
• Exposure of Male Indifference and Violence: The male characters in the story are either predators or indifferent. The swagman is an obvious threat, who ultimately rapes and murders her. More damningly, the man on horseback, a potential saviour, fails to help her, mistaking her for an apparition of the Virgin Mary. This incident highlights the deep-seated indifference of a patriarchal society, where a woman’s real terror is misunderstood and dismissed through the lens of a man’s fantasy or religious fancy.
• Use of the Ironic Title: The title, “The Chosen Vessel,” is deeply ironic. She is indeed “chosen,” but for sacrifice, not adoration. She is “chosen” by the swagman for his lust and by the horseman for his romanticised vision. In both cases, her real, terrified humanity is ignored, and she is reduced to an object or a symbol.
• The Reality of Motherhood: The story presents motherhood not as a sacred ideal but as a desperate and fierce protective role. Her attempt to save her child is her final act, highlighting the heart-breaking reality of her situation.

Through these techniques, Baynton exposes the brutal reality of a woman’s life in the bush, shattering patriarchal myths and bringing to the forefront female powerlessness, fear, and suffering in a society that renders their voices unheard.

Q5. Discuss the themes of identity and suffering in Patrick White’s Voss.

Ans. Patrick White’s novel Voss is a landmark of Australian literature that profoundly explores the themes of identity and suffering. The two themes are intrinsically linked, with suffering becoming the medium through which identity, both personal and national, is sought and attained. Suffering: Suffering is an all-pervading force in the novel, manifesting in both physical and spiritual forms.

• Physical Suffering: The protagonist, Johann Ulrich Voss, leads an expedition to cross the Australian continent. The party endures the brutalities of the desert—thirst, hunger, disease, and extreme heat. This physical suffering strips the characters of their ego and pretensions, forcing them to confront their human limitations. It is a crucible that reveals their true nature.
• Spiritual Suffering: Voss’s suffering is not just physical; it is deeply spiritual. He is a megalomaniac who wants to conquer the land and become a god. His journey is a painful process of breaking down his hubris and learning humility. Similarly, Laura Trevelyan, who remains in Sydney, experiences suffering through a mystical connection with Voss. Hers is a suffering of empathy and spiritual surrender, presenting an alternative path to identity based on understanding rather than conquest.

Identity:

The novel is a quest for both personal and national identity.

• Personal Identity: Voss, a German immigrant, is an outsider who seeks to forge his identity by imposing his will on the Australian landscape. However, the novel suggests that true identity comes not from conquest but from surrender. It is only at the end of his journey, when Voss relinquishes his ambitions and accepts suffering, that he attains an authentic self.
• National Identity: The novel is an allegory for Australia’s national identity. It critiques the superficial colonial attempt to simply possess and dominate the land. A true Australian identity, White suggests, is not forged by dominating the land but by understanding it, accepting its spirituality, and becoming one with it. Voss’s failure, paradoxically, becomes a success in the creation of a new kind of national consciousness, rooted in suffering and mystical connection with the landscape.

In

Voss

, suffering is the necessary path to the discovery of identity. It is the force that purges the ego and leads to a deeper, more authentic existence, defining both the individual and the nation.

Q6. Explain the significance of the title of the play The Removalists.

Ans. The title of David Williamson’s play The Removalists is multilayered and its significance extends far beyond its literal meaning. It encapsulates the play’s central themes of violence, the abuse of power, and the breakdown of social order. The significance of the title can be understood on the following levels:

1. Literal Meaning: On the surface, the title refers to a removalist (a furniture mover) who has been hired by a woman, Fiona, to move her furniture out of the home she shares with her abusive husband, Kenny. The play begins with this straightforward action, which serves as the catalyst for the story.
2. Removal of People: A deeper meaning of the title relates to the police’s attempt to “remove” Kenny. Sergeant Simmonds and Constable Ross arrive, at Fiona’s sister’s request, to intimidate Kenny. This process of “removal” quickly spirals out of control, escalating from verbal threats to brutal physical violence, culminating in Kenny’s death. The title thus becomes a symbol of the abuse of power, where the keepers of the law become violent “removers” themselves.
3. Removal of Illusions: The play systematically “removes” the audience’s illusions about authority, law, and order. The police, who should be protectors, are shown to be corrupt, violent, and driven by their own masculine insecurities. The play exposes the brutality that lies just beneath the surface of peaceful Australian suburbia.
4. Removal of Civility: As the play progresses, the thin veneer of civility and social decorum is “removed.” A simple apartment transforms into an arena of barbarism. The characters succumb to their primal instincts, and violence becomes the primary mode of communication. The title symbolizes this social collapse.
5. Removal of Responsibility: Finally, after Kenny is dead, Simmonds and the Removalist attempt to “remove” the evidence of their complicity and concoct a cover story. This is a desperate attempt to “remove” their own guilt and moral responsibility.

Thus, the title

The Removalists

is a powerful and ironic device that underscores the play’s social critique, showing how authority, civility, and ultimately life itself can be violently “removed” by those who are meant to protect them.

Q7. How does Remembering Babylon represent the question of Australian Identity ?

Ans. David Malouf’s novel Remembering Babylon represents the question of Australian identity as a complex, unstable, and ongoing negotiation. It portrays identity not as a fixed entity, but as a tense space between different cultures, languages, and worldviews. The novel represents the question of Australian identity in the following ways:

• The Notion of ‘Insider’ vs. ‘Outsider’: The central character, Gemmy Fairley , embodies this dichotomy. He is a white man who has lived with Aboriginals for sixteen years. When he stumbles back into an isolated white settler community, he is neither fully white nor fully Aboriginal. His hybridity challenges the community’s own fragile identity. They see him as a threat, a symbol of their fear that the Australian bush can transform a ‘civilised’ Englishman into a ‘savage’.
• Language and Identity: Gemmy’s broken English is symbolic of his fractured identity. He struggles to articulate his thoughts, highlighting the gulf between the ‘civilised’ world and the Aboriginal one. For the novel, language is not just a tool of communication but a creator of identity and belonging. For the settlers, the English language is a symbol of order and Britishness, and Gemmy’s existence challenges this linguistic certainty.
• The Fear of the ‘Other’: The novel shows that early Australian identity was largely built on a fear of the ‘Other’—the Aboriginal people and the unfamiliar landscape. Gemmy, who is part of both worlds, personifies this fear. The community’s rejection of him reflects their own uncertainty of belonging and the fragility of their identity.
• The Possibility of a Hybrid Identity: While the novel depicts fear and division, it also suggests the possibility of a more inclusive, hybrid identity. Characters like Janet and Lachlan, who show empathy towards Gemmy, represent a new type of Australian—one who is willing to understand and adapt. The novel argues that a true Australian identity can be formed not by imposing European heritage, but by forging a connection with the land and its original inhabitants, through reconciliation.

In conclusion,

Remembering Babylon

represents Australian identity as a question whose answer lies in reconciliation, empathy, and a willingness to cross cultural boundaries, rather than in exclusion and fear.

Q8. Critically comment on the representation of the condition of women in Australian society in the story “The Drover’s Wife”.

Ans. Henry Lawson’s “The Drover’s Wife” is an iconic text in Australian literature that presents a powerful, albeit complex, representation of the condition of women in Australian society. The story highlights the harsh reality of a woman’s life in the bush, often in contrast to the romanticised adventures experienced by men. Representation of the Woman’s Condition: The story portrays the drover’s wife as a woman whose life is defined by isolation, hardship, and relentless struggle.

• Isolation and Loneliness: Her husband is away for months, and she is left entirely alone with her children. The story emphasizes her profound loneliness; she is devoid of a community of other women and must face all her problems alone. This isolation is not just physical but emotional, as evidenced by her reminiscences of her youth.
• Resilience and Competence: Despite these harsh conditions, the drover’s wife is not shown as a passive victim. She is immensely competent and resilient . She protects her home and children from various threats—floods, fires, and, most notably, the snake in the story. Her battle with the snake is a testament to her strength and determination.
• Motherhood: Her existence is primarily defined by her role as a mother. The safety of her children is her highest priority and the driving force behind her tireless efforts.

Critical Commentary:

While the story celebrates the woman’s strength, it also reinforces traditional gender roles.

• The Anonymous Archetype: She is never given a name; she is simply “the Drover’s Wife.” This reduces her to an archetype rather than an individual—the symbol of the Australian bushwoman. Her identity is defined in relation to her husband and children.
• The Domestic Sphere: She is confined to the domestic sphere, while her husband is out in the ‘real’ world of work and adventure. The story acknowledges her strength, but only within traditionally feminine roles: the caretaker of the home and children.
• Lack of Personal Aspiration: The story gives little attention to her personal desires or aspirations beyond the needs of her family. Her life is one of survival and duty.

In conclusion, “The Drover’s Wife” provides a poignant representation of the condition of women in Australian society, highlighting their isolation and hardships while celebrating their extraordinary resilience. However, it does so by placing her within a traditional, patriarchal framework, making her an anonymous hero of nation-building whose own individual identity is subsumed by her roles.