Page 1 : LATIN AMERICAN WRITING : LOVE CLARICE LISPECTOR, Dr. Anil Aneja, Objectives, Dear Students,, This study material is intended to help you understand various aspects of the short story, “Love” written by Clarice Lispector. This story, as you may be aware is prescribed as a part of, your Discipline Paper III which you have opted to offer as a part of your B.A. (Programme), IIIrd Year studies. This story is included in the book titled Living Literatures. We hope that, after going through this study material along with the text of the short story, you will be able to, understand various (complexities and dimensions pertaining to this creative work. The material, includes information on the following :, Information about the examination pattern;, A note about the author of the story;, An introduction to “Love”;, Detailed analysis of the story focusing on narrative sequence and structure;, Important themes of the story;, Glossary of difficult words and expressions;, About important questions., We do hope that you enjoy reading this material and find it useful. If have any questions, or wish to submit any assignments pertaining to this short story, you could send it to the School, of Open Learning or on my email
[email protected]. At this point it is important to, emphasize that the study material is not a substitute for the text. You must procure a copy of the, book and read the original story before reading this study material. After reading this material, you should go back to the story and see whether your understanding of the work has been, enhanced. You should also attempt at least some of the writing assignments on this story so that, you are better prepared to answer questions in the examination. Questions for assignments are, given at the end of the story in your tex1book., Division of the Syllabus for Discipline Centred Course in English, Paper III, Paper III of the Disciplined Centre Course in English prescribed as one of the options in, B.A. (Programme) IIIrd Year contains the following texts:, a), , Living Literatures (Part II). You have already studied part one of this book in the IInd, Year., , b), , The play titled Silence! The Court is in Session by Vijay Tendulkar;, , c), , Two novels titled Things Fall Apart by Achebe and Such a Long Journey by Mistry., , 1
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According to the information received by us from the Department of English,, University of Delhi, for the purposes of examination the texts will be divided in 7 units in the, following manner:, Unit 1. Latin American Short Stories,, Unit 2. Poetry of Neruda,, Unit 3. Achebe's things Fall Apart,, Unit 4. Mistry's Such a Long Journey,, Unit 5. Tendulkar's Silence! The Court is in Session,, Unit 6. Indian Short Stories,, Unit 7. Ngugi's Decolonising The Mind (excerpt)., The Question Paper will have the following pattern:, a. 2 reference to context questions (10 x 2),, b. 2 short notes (10 x 2),, c. 2 essay type questions (15 x 2),, d. 1 short question on Ngugi (5 marks)., All the units 1 to 6 will be examined across the question types a, band c. There will only, be internal choice within the units. Ngugi will be a small but constant component., Thus, across the question paper all 7 units will be examined. For the regular students the, Paper will be of a total of 75 marks. For the students of School of Open Learning the marks of, each unit will be so arranged that the total paper is of 100 marks. In order to get good marks, it is, recommended that you pay considerable attention to all the units., About the Author : Clarice Lispector, Clarice Lispector (the author of the short story “Love”) is considered among the, foremost Brazilian writers of the 20th century. Her contribution to the Latin American, literature as well as her place as a leading woman writer of the 20th century is also well, established. Born in Tchetchelnian, Ukraine of Ukranian parents, Clarice was the youngest of, the three daughters., There has been some mystery surrounding the exact date of her birth which is, sometimes attributed to the writer not revealing .her exact age for various reasons. Earlier, it, was believed that she was born on 10th December, 1925, but recently, the date of her birth has, been established as 10th December, 1920. At times, 1921 and 1924 have also been considered as, years of Lispector's birth. It is certain however, that soon after her birth, the family moved to, Brazil, first they lived in Alagoas, then Recife, and finally in Rio de Janeiro. She studied at, Ginasio Pernambuco, 1935-36; Colegio Silvio Leite, 1937; Colegio Andrews and finally, at, National Faculty of Law, Rio de Janeiro, from 1941., Lispector received her Law degree in 1944, the same year in which her first novel Perto, do coraco (Near the Savage Heart) was published. .It is partly autobiographical and won critical, acclaim for its sensitive rendering of an adolescent mind. The novel also demonstrates an, innovative use of language. Her other important creative works are: Family Ties (a collection, of short stories), The Apple in the Dark, The living Water, The Passion According to G.H. and, The Hour of the Star., In 1943, Lispector married Mauri Gurgel Valente, a diplomat. The marriage to a, Diplomat gave her ample opportunities to widely travel in Europe and US which also appear to, have had bearing on her writings., 2
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Lispector's central concern in her writings appears to be the attempts of the protagonists, to find meaning and identity in an arbitrary world devoid of meaning. In this she closely, approaches the existential writers of her age. (The term “Existentialism” refers to philosophical, and literary responses to the experience of nothingness and absurdity which attempt to discover, meaning of life in and through this experience). Her use of the stream of consciousness, technique (a technique which seeks to record the random and apparently illogical flow of, impressions passing through a character's mind) and emphasis on the psychological effects of, an action rather than on the external action itself further enhance her appeal as a modern writer., At the same time, Lispector comes close to feminist writers in her being a strong advocate of the, assertion of female identity and, in her being a serious critique of the traditionally defined roles, of the woman in the patriarchal world view., All these themes are evident in the short story “Love” which is prescribed in your, course., Love : an Introduction, The title of a creative work is generally indicative of the theme, setting and/or character, of that particular work. The title of the story under consideration is simple enough: “Love”. We, are all familiar with this word and its multiple meanings and implications. The word “love” in, various contexts may refer to a feeling of empathy leading to strong affection or attraction, towards an individual, a group, a thing or an idea. It is often used to indicate the affection and, fascination of a person belonging to a particular gender for a person belonging to another, gender. The word also implies a desire for the object of that strong affection and fascination, (the object of love). It also denotes a sense of acceptance, approval and a sense of strong liking, for the loved. Though the term is generally used to denote a strong attraction of the man towards, a woman or vice-a-versa, it can easily be used in other contexts such as to indicate ones feelings, for a particular community or for humanity in general., Viewed in this context, the short story “love” lends itself to a variety of interpretations:, perhaps all correct to an extent., In terms of its narrative, the story describes one day in Ana's life, a day which shakes her, out of her routine existence and makes her aware of that part of her inner self from which she, appears to have consciously shut herself off. While returning home in a tram after making, purchases, Ana is viewing her present life with some contentment if not with happiness and, appears to feel that all is going well, when, suddenly, at a tram stop she sees a blind man, chewing gum in a relaxed manner. The sight, which others in the tram hardly take note of,, shakes Ana from her composed and self-contained world view, throwing her in a state of, inexplicable excitement, confusion and a kind of "fierce compassion". As an external, manifestation of that confusion and excitement, the bag in which she is carrying her purchases, breaks and the items are spread all around in a chaos., While others, forgetting the incident go back to their routine preoccupations, Ana is, unable to get over the sight of a "blind man chewing gum", and wonders why she has reacted to, him in such a manner. Is it the mere fact of the man being blind that has aroused in her a sense of, compassion, or is it some thing else? At one level, Ana feels insulted at the blind man not being, able to return her gaze. She gets the feeling that she has been deliberately ignored. But at the, same time, she finds him much more "relaxed", self assured and leading his life the way he, wants to, something which she has not been able to do because she has had to make many, compromises in her life. It appears to us that she responds to the blind man with compassion as, 3
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a human being, and, as is later made clear, also as a woman having a strong sense of attraction, towards him despite such momentary encounter., The sense of inner numbness in which she has allowed herself to remain all this while, gives way and she becomes sensitive to her individual self as a woman with the strong urge to, assert that identity. Her experience in the botanical garden is very important as it makes her, realize her yearning for a world of her own as per her innermost call and desire, something that, she had denied herself all the while., However, as evening approaches, she returns to reality, goes back home and tries to lead, a routine everyday existence. But, she is unable to forget the blind man and wonders whether, she should not obey her inner call by trying to become a part of the world that needs her more, and to which she desires to belong. Though she realizes that it is “love” for the blind man which, has made her so react, she, at the same time, also realizes that there are family ties that she, cannot break., Thus, whereas at one level the story is about the attempt of Ana to assert her, individualism and her distinct identity as a woman and not just as a role player, at the other, level, it can be read as an individual's endeavors to find self identity and meaning in a chaotic,, arbitrary world. In the final analysis we can say that both the existential theme of search for, meaning and identity and the feminist's denial to be only a stereo-type person fulfilling, pre-defined expectations, run parallel in the story. The following detailed analysis of the story, will further clarify these points., “Love” An Analysis, The story titled “Love” focuses on a certain experience of its central character Ana as, she catches a tram to return home after making some routine purchases. The primary strength of, the story lies in the fact that starting at the point of her , journey and by depicting Ana's state of, mind as she lives through this unusual experience till the end of the day, the writer is able to, portray Ana's routine as well as hidden life, the aspirations as well as the realities of her life,, what she has suppressed under the garb of happiness and what she longs to be., In terms of its structure, the story can be divided in four parts for a more comprehensive, grasp of its themes. However, it must be pointed out here that no such clear division is, suggested by the author herself. The first part of the story consists of Ana boarding the tram, her, reflections on her present existence and few but significant references to her life before, marriage. The second part could consist of her spotting the “Blind man chewing gum”, her, strong reactions as also the indifference of other passengers towards the blind man. Ana's, experience in the botanical garden forms the third and in our view, the central part of the story., The dawning of realities of life on Ana as the evening descends, her return home and attempts to, reconcile her expected routine life with the unique experience of the day constitute the, concluding part of the story., The First Part, As Ana ascends the Tram with her new string bag loaded with her purchases, she is like, any ordinary woman returning home after making routine purchases. As the tram moves, forward, Ana reflects on her present life with “mild satisfaction”. Through a conscious and, careful manipulation and juxtaposition of words the writer leaves us in no doubt that Ana's life, is far from satisfaction and happiness. She appears contented, but it is a “mild satisfaction”. She, appears to have every thing which an ordinary person might have desired during the period. In, which the story is set, but there is a problem with every thing she possesses. The children are, 4
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nice, but their misbehavior is increasing, the kitchen is spacious, but has an old stove which, sometimes may explode, the family owns the apartment, but the heat is oppressive. In short, it is, clear that Ana's life is a life of compromises. When the writer remarks “She had planted the, seeds she held in her hand, no others, but only those”, she implies that Ana has not made any, attempt to extract more from life than what she .could. It is a life of passive resignation., The elements of unhappiness and compromise in Ana's life are further stressed when the, writer says, “each thing could be given a harmonious appearance”. So it is the appearance of a, happiness and acceptance, and not the reality of it that characterizes Ana's world. Through, some pointers to her youth before marriage, it is suggested that like any other woman Ana also, had dreams and aspirations before marriage, but “through torturous paths, she had achieved a, woman's destiny”. It is not just Ana's destiny, it is the destiny of every woman who accepts, domination of the patriarchal world and allows herself, to fit in the predefined roles of the, woman., Ana's inner instincts sometimes do surface, she does experience the disquiet from, within specially when she is alone in the afternoons and there is no activity. The very life which, she has created for herself mocks at her. She is keenly conscious of the fact that by an effort of, will she has destroyed her own happiness., Ana's journey in the tram thus becomes more of a psychological journey into the past, and present of her own life, what she has left behind and what she has half-heartedly accepted., But as it may, Ana is of the view (which is soon to prove rather ironical) that life is on track. “As, far as Humaita she could relax” indicates a certain stop in her Tram journey as well as the, assumption that she does not expect any thing significant to happen in the near future which, would take her out of this compromise existence. The statement, as we shall see, is quite, ironical because in the very next sentence the writer describes her encounter with the blind man, which transports Ana into another world altogether., Part II: Ana's Encounter with the Blind Man, This section of the story lends itself to various and sometimes contradictory, interpretations. As a synthesis of these responses, we can perhaps say that Ana's momentary, breaking away from her present world is so complex that a single interpretation of this, experience would not demonstrate a complete understanding of the experience. The various, explanations of the scene are all partially correct and, we may even say complementary., Let us first examine what actually happens at the literal level. As Ana sits back to relax,, she sees a blind man at the tram stop. But it is not so much the fact of the man being blind which, draws Ana's attention towards him, it is more the fact that the blind man does not seem to have, any cares and constraints and as a symbol of that is happily chewing gum in a relaxed manner., When Ana looks at him he is unable to return her gaze, because he does not know that she is, looking at him. This makes Ana feel rather insulted., To the other passengers in the tram, it is just an ordinary sight, quite unnoticeable. These, are men of the “strong” world to whom the other side matters very little. In Ana's case, we have, already notice that her life is a life of compromises, and somewhere deep down she cherishes an, “anonymous” life very different from her visible preoccupations. It is to this “anonymous”, inner life and spirit of Ana that the sight of the blind man “chewing gum” appeals. Her first, reaction is that of insult because she feels that the blind man does not deliberately return her, gaze. At the same time there is a hidden feeling of empathy and understanding as she realizes, through the blind man that there is a world beyond her almost mechanized existence, a world, 5
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from which she and others have shut themselves off, a world which is perhaps more fascinating, than her own world. It is significant that we first see the total ,effect of the experience on Ana, and then we see Ana trying to understand and rationalize her own state of being after seeing the, blind man. In this sense, the scattering of items of Ana's bag is actually a symbolic, representation of the scattering of Ana's inner self. As Ana tries to understand what has just, passed, she is clear that it is not the blindness alone that has shook her out of her present, insolated state, it is the fact of the blind man being able to lead a life of his own calling,, something which Ana has not been able to do. As this realization dawns on her, she too yearns, to lead her life according to her innermost instincts, a life of choices and freedom. In so, depicting Ana as well as through her (Ana's) experience Lispector comes closest to asserting, the feminist view of life. The experience is also existential in so far as it, even if for half a day,, fills the void which exists in Ana's life despite its outward harmony., Clearly, Ana is swept away into another world. Her responses to and view of life is very, different now. She is totally disconnected from her earlier life. Her senses are more alert, she is, excited on having discovered that part of herself through the blind man of which she was hardly, conscious, and views life now “with intense pleasure”. At the same time, Ana, much like an, existentialist character, finds the world incomprehensible, people vulnerable and also without, any order and harmony, “Exiled from her on days, it seemed to her that the people in the streets, were vulnerable, that they barely maintained their equilibrium on the surface of the darkness, -and for a moment they appeared to lack any sense of direction. The perception of an absence of, law came so unexpectedly that Ana clutched the seat in front of her”., Though the actual sight of the incident has long passed, Ana repeatedly feels that, “damage had been done”. What then is this damage? A little later in the story, the answer is, provided by the writer when she comments that Ana had "skillfully pacified life; she had taken, so much care to avoid upheaval. She had cultivated an atmosphere of serene understanding ...”., She had accepted her life rather passively. The make belief world in which Ana had consciously, chosen to live in after her marriage, the possibilities of an independent existence which she had, her self destroyed by her passive acceptance of the pre-defined roles of the woman, have all, been shattered by the realization and the experience (even if momentary) of a life in which she, has been able to feel and react as per inner calling of her instincts rather than that of reason. This, makes the denial of such life for herself all the more painful for Ana. So her first reactions of, insult and hatred towards the blind man have now taken a positive turn. Ana's feelings have, gone beyond empathy for him, and as we learn later, it is actually a feeling of “Love” which, Ana experiences for the blind man. This assumption is also borne out by the title of the story., The experience thus begun in the tram finds its fullest expression in the botanical garden., Ana's Experience in the Garden, From the above analysis it is clear that through her encounter with the blind man, Ana, has been over-powered by that part of the self which she, perhaps, had consciously insolated, herself from. This experience appears to have transported her into another world altogether, a, world from which she is unable to relate to her earlier routine world as also to the world of, people around her. The people on the street seem more vulnerable to her, the world devoid of, order and harmony. Like an existentialist character she feels disconnected from everything, around her. Lost in her world, she even misses the stop where she had to get down., As Ana leaves the tram she is weak and vulnerable, unable to relate to the world outside., She feels as if she is “into the middle of the night”. Check. However, her newly discovered life, makes her feel a calm and gentle breeze around her. Instead of trying to reach home soon (as she, 6
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would be expected to do by the male-dominated world in which she has lived all along), she, goes into the botanical garden, where she undergoes an overwhelming experience and, realization about herself., The garden is empty and surrounded by walls, thus offering her an appropriate escape, from the external world. If after her encounter with the blind man, Ana felt internally, disconnected, the garden serves as a tool for Ana to create a world of her own (albeit, momentary) both internally and externally. To a significant extent, the garden becomes a, symbol for Ana's inner self. So, through the external reality of the garden she can understand, h~r own reactions and thought processes., In the first instance, the Botanical Garden serves as a soothing agent for Ana's confused, state of being. “The wilderness seemed to calm her”. Quietened by the peaceful surroundings,, Ana views that “Around her there were tranquil noises, the scent of trees, chance encounters, among the creeping plants”. The natural beauty of the garden presents to Ana a befitting, contrast between the life she has just discovered and the life she has been living all along in the, ugly world of so called “strong” people. This contrast is further amplified in her vision of the, fruits and leaves hanging on the trees and the dry stones on the ground: “On the trees, the fruits, were black and sweet as honey. On the ground there lay dry fruit stones full of circumvolutions, like small rotted cerebrums”. This perception of Ana should be read along with another, statement of hers later in the story when she remarks to herself that the blind man was hanging, among the fruits on the trees. Thus, it is clear that the life represented by the beauty of the trees, is the life which Ana has discovered after seeing the blind man whereas, the dry rotten fruits on, the ground refer to her life earlier to that experience. The life she has newly discovered is the, life of the spirit, of freedom.of self assertion, of passion and of joy. This new life is so real to, Ana that she temporarily mistakes it to another life after death (implying the end of her earlier, life). However, the death in this case is not a matter of decay, sorrow and loss. Rather, this death, has opened up the possibilities of a new fulfilling life for Ana. Reaffirming this fact she, remarks, “The murder was deep. And death was not what one had imagined ...This was a world, to be devoured with ones teeth, a world of voluminous. dahlias and tulips. ...Like the resistance, that precedes surrender, it was fascinating”. It is interesting to note that an implied sexual, imagery is used in the image of the woman's resistance before surrender. The intensity of Ana's, experience here is compared to the intensity and fascination which the woman experiences at, that moment of resistance before surrender., Any doubts which a reader might still have about Ana's love for the blind Check. Man, after that chance encounter is dispelled when she remarks, “Now that the blind man had guided, her to it, she trembled on the threshold of a dark, fascinating world”. The statement clearly, demonstrates that it is the blind man who is the cause of Ana's present intense experience as, well as of the realization of her inner self as a woman. Thus, her self identity as a woman is, realized by Ana through this experience. She is now ready to enter the dark world shown by the, blind man., When she had entered the garden, Ana was uncertain, confused and excited. But after, the experience in the garden, the vision of the fruits hanging on the trees and the world to which, the blind man has figuratively guided her makes her feel serene, and at one with nature., Therefore, the writer comments, “Under her feet the earth was soft”. This experience of Ana is, however too sublime to last long. As the night descends, she once more becomes aware of her, real world, the world of her husband and children. Interestingly, as Ana becomes conscious of, that practical world, the Botanical garden immediately changes meaning and appears very, 7
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different to her from her view of it just a few moments ago. “She saw the garden all around her,, aloof and impersonal”., As Ana returns home from the garden she is both a happy and a sad person. Though she, is more composed than when she entered the garden and more aware of the meaning of her, excitement and experience after her encounter with the blind man, this awareness adds an extra, burden on her: either to make her choice and follow the life of inner calling, a calling which has, been prompted by the blind man, or to reconcile to her earlier life of routine, pre-defined roles, which the male-dominated world expects a woman to fulfill. The last part of the story, demonstrates the choice that Ana ultimately makes., Ana's Final Choice, As Ana realizes that she has been away from her children for too long, her near blissful, state comes to an end. It is now replaced by a sense of guilt, guilt at having neglected the duties, which the male-dominated world expects her to fulfill as a woman. As she reaches home, Ana is, torn between two polar opposite states of being: her feelings for the blind man and her duty to, the world in which she has been a participant till now. She realizes that her feelings for the blind, man are much more than compassion, but initially, she is unable or perhaps hesitates to, recognize them for what these actually are. As she is in a state of confusion and perhaps also, mental agony, she terms these feelings as “compassion with anguish”. Latter, these appear to, her as “fierce compassion” and “the compassion of a lion”., The process of returning to her former world is not easy for Ana for she is constantly, torn between the world of her practical considerations and the world of the botanical garden, which has made her realize her real self. The all too familiar house seems to Ana as "new land", and the life which she has lived till now appears to be devoid of “Morality”. This is rather ironic, because in conventional terms (and Ana will herself confirm it later), it is not her family life but, her feelings for the blind man which conventional morality will be unable to accommodate. But, when she uses the word “morality” Ana appears to have in mind “a false life”. In her attempts to, get away from her newly discovered life, Ana clutches her child so tightly that he wants to run, away from her. Torn between the supposed “calling” of the blind man and her earlier world,, Ana is led to remark that life is “horrible”., On further considerations, Ana acknowledges to herself that it is not pity, but love for, the blind man which has driven her to this state. “Oh, but she loved the blind man! Meanwhile it, was not with this sentiment that one would go to church”. Clearly, Ana implies here that, feelings for a blind man would not be approved by her religion because these are much more, than pity or compassion., However, she lacks the courage of following her real self and tries her best to drown in, the world which had offered the appearance of perfection in lieu of suppressing her inner self., As guests arrive for dinner, she tries to mingle with them and by the time it is over, she is a part, of her former world once again. As opposed to the oppression of the house felt by Ana earlier,, now “the first cool breeze finally entered the room”. When left alone, she wonders whether her, feelings fo! the blind man would take a long time to perish and she hopes that wouldn't be the, case. Realizing what had actually happened Ana tells her husband “this afternoon something, tranquil had exploded”. By the time she goes to sleep, Ana has recovered from the “giddiness of, passion” for the blind man and “blows out” her feelings of love as if “she was snuffing a, candle”., 8
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Thus, Ana's journey has been from a state of apparent composure, to love for the blind, man even when their encounter lasted only for a few minutes. However, Ana's feelings for him, are not just the feelings of a woman for a man, these gain significance for her as the encounter, opens out the glimpse of a new life for her, a life which she had consciously buried to come to, terms with the world around her. Unable to accept her real feelings for the blind man and his, ability to live on his own terms, Ana first terms these as compassion, then fierce compassion, and finally, she realizes that these were indeed “love”. Thus the world “compassion” is, replaced at the end of the story with “passion”. The writer uses the word "lover" more than once, in the concluding paragraphs of the story so that we are left in no doubt as to Ana's real feelings, for the blind man., Themes, The above analysis makes it amply clear that the short story “love” can be read at, various levels. One can simply read it as a woman's attraction and feelings of passion and love, for someone with whom she has had only a chance encounter. Such attractions are not hard to, find even in ones every day life. The story can also be read as a process of self realization after, seeing someone, a realization from which one may have consciously escaped., The existentialist and the feminist influences on the story have been noted by many, critics and have been pointed out in the above discussion. In existential terms, Ana's journey, can be seen as a psychological journey in search of a meaning of ones existence after the, established world. view has been destroyed by some occurrence. Here, Ana's encounter with, the blind man makes her realize a world, both of the blind man and her own inner self to which, she had shut her eyes so far, This experience throws her in a confused and disconnected state, losing both her external as well as her internal composure. While the experience in the, Botanical Garden does provide some order and meaning, Ana realizes that it is not possible to, live life with this newly discovered meaning and therefore, attempts to reconstruct her earlier, world. That world, though made of appearances, at least would save her from the crisis which, confronts her during her journey., Seeing from the feminine point of view, the story can be read as a woman's search for, identity and meaning in a male-dominated world. This patriarchal world has assigned certain, roles to the woman for its on convenience. The woman is so conditioned as not to be able to, decline playing those roles. Ana too is. a victim of such conditioning. In fact when we first see, her in the story she is returning home after making routine purchases as any middle class, woman would do. Her encounter with the blind man and his ability to live life freely inspires in, Ana to live her life according to her own inner calling, a life of passion, of freedom and a life, dictated by her own desires., Though in the Botanical Garden, Ana is able to find such life momentarily, she realizes, that practically it is not possible to follow ones inner calling. And So, she returns to her home, and family “blowing out the candle” of her self identity. In this sense, though the story focuses, on the issues of self identity of the woman it is not able to take these issues to a positive, conclusion., Being a complex work of art, we can say that the story “Love” is rich and complex as it is, able to simultaneously handle a variety of themes without compromising the movement and, intensity of the narrative., , 9
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Glossary, The following are some of the difficult words from the story “Love”. The meanings of, these words are given on the right., Bulging, , Swellin or stickin out, , Oppressive, , Hot and airless, , Responding, , To be filled with booming or echoing sound, , Channeled, , Direct towards a particular purpose, , Supplanted, , To take the place of, , Tortuous, , Full of twists and turns, , Abolishing, , To put an end to, , Legion, , A large Number, , Exaltation, , Raised to high position, , Unobtrusively, , Not conspicuous or attracting attention, , Abrupt, , Sudden and unexpected, , Plunged, , Sudden and uncontrollably brought into, , Pacified, , Brought peace to, , Wilderness, , Uncultivated, uninhabitable region, , Fascinating, , Extremely interesting or attractive, , Replete, , Filled or well supplied with, , Werewolf, , A persons who periodically changes into a wolf, , Unleashed, , Set free, , Questions for Discussion, As many as six questions are given at the end of the story which pertains to various, important aspects. The important issues of the story which will help you answer these questions, have been discussed in this study material. You must prepare at least points on each of the, questions given in your text book at the end of this story. You should also try to write complete, answers to these questions as you would write in the examination. As already stated, you could, send these answers to us for correction., As reference to context and short note questions on this story may also be asked in the, examination, you must make it a point to know your text well., , 10