Literature-Critique

29
love with each other. A Pathan princess later does have a crush on him. And finally
the prince marries the first one because of their religious commonness.
His Chandrashekhar, despite having a historical background, is exuberant in
psychological revelation of socially deprived lovers. Lovers denying social barrier
suffer from guilt-complex and Shaivalini’s vision of hell is the result of her remorse for
committing such a ‘sin’. In this novel, Bankim depicts sexual perverts along with true
lovers. And at the end of the novel, he glorifies sacrifice for religiosity and piety on
the question of love and sexuality.
Rajani, another fictional work by him, is a dramatic presentation (comprised of
monologues) of different characters who are inflicted with psychological dilemma.
The characters uphold their own speech and thus the exposition of the writer’s own
mind seems objective.
And Krishnakanter Will (The Will of Krishnakanta) is a social novel having
deep psychological revelation. A babu (i.e. Bengali Hindu gentleman), who loved his
wife sincerely, leaves her for a widow who has extraordinary physical beauty. Later
that woman betrays with him and he kills her mercilessly. His first wife also dies, and
he becomes a bohemian hermit forsaking social life. Bankim, in this outstanding
novel, depicts man’s sexual hunger, thirst for beauty and false lovers’ immorality. He
champions pure and loyal love, a love based on religiosity, a love beyond mere
physical attraction and false moments’ momentary impulse.
His Kamalakanter Daptar (Kamalakanta’s Office) is a memorable satire,
perhaps the best in this genre. The behavioral incongruities of a Bengali gentleman
are drawn and ridiculed in this writing; his words are mostly philosophical and
sometimes poetic. Lokrahashya (Mysteries of Men) and Muchiram Goorer
Jibancharit (A Life-sketch of Muchiram Goor) are his other satires.
Philosophically Bankim was a Positivist – a follower of August Comte. He took
Comte’s religion of human welfare and finally reshaped it into the service of
motherland.
Bankim was also a ruthless moralist. His humanism is overshadowed by his
religious thoughts. And he always vilified the idea of ‘love’ that is to him, a mere thirst
for beauty.
Nevertheless, through his works of huge range and complexities, Bankim
shows us his gigantic might in visualizing the dark deep ocean of human mind. His
discovery of human psyche largely reminds us of the great Shakespeare. Such
attempt makes Bankim a visionary and prophet; he truly passed this tough trial.
Biharilal Chakraborty (1835-’94)
Biharilal is recognized in literary history as Tagore’s inspirer. Tagore admitted
his debt to him, and called him his guru and also the ‘Morning Bird’ of lyrical poem.
His poems have, at the same time, qualities of epic and lyrical poetry. He
stressed on natural objects, naive emotional expressions, idealized fair sex, and a
mysterious vision of the cosmos. Among the modern Romantic poets, he is the
earliest one.