ENGLISH PROJECT

William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet and
actor. He was baptised at 26 April 1564. He is regarded as the
greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-
eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet
and the "Bard of Avon" (or simply "the Bard"). His extant -
works, including collaborations, consist of some 39 plays, 154
sonnets, three long narrative poems, and a few other verses,
some of uncertain authorship. His plays have been translated
into every major living language and are performed more
often than those of any other playwright. He remains
arguably the most influential writer in the English language,
and his works continue to be studied and reinterpreted.
Shakespeare was born and raised in Stratford-upon-Avon,
Warwickshire. Shakespeare was the son of John Shakespeare,
an alderman and a successful glover (glove-maker) originally
from Snitterfield in Warwickshire, and Mary Arden, the
daughter of an affluent landowning family. His date of birth is
unknown, but is traditionally observed on 23 April, Saint
George's Day. This date, which can be traced to William Oldys
and George Steevens, has proved appealing to biographers
because Shakespeare died on the same date in 1616. He was
the third of eight children, and the eldest surviving [Link] the
age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had
three children: Susanna, and twins Hamnet and Judith.
Sometime between 1585 and 1592, he began a successful
career in London as an actor, writer, and part-owner of a
playing company called the Lord Chamberlain's Men, later
known as the King's Men. At age 49 (around 1613), he
appears to have retired to Stratford, where he died three
years later. Shakespeare produced most of his known works
between 1589 and 1613. His early plays were primarily
comedies and histories and are regarded as some of the best
works produced in these genres. Shakespeare's first plays
were written in the conventional style of the day. He wrote
them in a stylised language that does not always spring
naturally from the needs of the characters or the drama.
He then wrote mainly tragedies until 1608, among them
Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth,
all considered to be among the finest works in the English
language. In the last phase of his life, he wrote tragicomedies
(also known as romances) and collaborated with other
playwrights. Shakespeare's work has made a significant and
lasting impression on later theatre and literature. In
particular, he expanded the dramatic potential of
characterisation, plot, language, and genre. Until Romeo and
Juliet, for example, romance had not been viewed as a
worthy topic for tragedy. Shakespeare died on 23 April 1616,
at the age of 52. He died within a month of signing his will, a
document which he begins by describing himself as being in
"perfect health". No extant contemporary source explains
how or why he died.
MERCHANT OF VENICE CHARACTERISATION:-
Shylock
A Jewish moneylender in Venice. Angered by his
mistreatment at the hands of Venice’s Christians, particularly
Antonio, Shylock schemes to eke out his revenge by ruthlessly
demanding as payment a pound of Antonio’s flesh. Although
seen by the rest of the play’s characters as an inhuman
monster, Shylock at times diverges from stereotype and
reveals himself to be quite human. These contradictions, and
his eloquent expressions of hatred, have earned Shylock a
place as one of Shakespeare’s most memorable characters.
Portia
A wealthy heiress from Belmont. Portia’s beauty is matched
only by her intelligence. Bound by a clause in her father’s will
that forces her to marry whichever suitor chooses correctly
among three caskets, Portia is nonetheless able to marry her
true love, Bassanio. Far and away the most clever of the
play’s characters, it is Portia, in the disguise of a young law
clerk, who saves Antonio from Shylock’s knife.
Antonio
The merchant whose love for his friend Bassanio prompts
him to sign Shylock’s contract and almost lose his life. Antonio
is something of a mercurial figure, often inexplicably
melancholy and, as Shylock points out, possessed of an
incorrigible dislike of Jews. Nonetheless, Antonio is beloved
of his friends and proves merciful to Shylock, albeit with
conditions.
Jessica
Although she is Shylock’s daughter, Jessica hates life in her
father’s house, and elopes with the young Christian
gentleman, Lorenzo. The fate of her soul is often in doubt:
the play’s characters wonder if her marriage can overcome
the fact that she was born a Jew, and we wonder if her sale of
a ring given to her father by her mother is excessively callous.
Bassanio
A gentleman of Venice, and a kinsman and dear friend to
Antonio. Bassanio’s love for the wealthy Portia leads him to
borrow money from Shylock with Antonio as his guarantor.
An ineffectual businessman, Bassanio proves himself a
worthy suitor, correctly identifying the casket that contains
Portia’s portrait.
Gratiano
A friend of Bassanio’s who accompanies him to Belmont. A
coarse and garrulous young man, Gratiano is Shylock’s most
vocal and insulting critic during the trial. While Bassanio
courts Portia, Gratiano falls in love with and eventually weds
Portia’s lady-in-waiting, Nerissa.
Lorenzo
A friend of Bassanio and Antonio, Lorenzo is in love with
Shylock’s daughter, Jessica. He schemes to help Jessica escape
from her father’s house, and he eventually elopes with her to
Belmont.
Nerissa
Portia’s lady-in-waiting and confidante. She marries Gratiano
and escorts Portia on Portia’s trip to Venice by disguising
herself as her law clerk.
Launcelot Gobbo
Bassanio’s servant. A comical, clownish figure who is
especially adept at making puns, Launcelot leaves Shylock’s
service in order to work for Bassanio.
Salarino
A Venetian gentleman, and friend to Antonio, Bassanio, and
Lorenzo. Salarino escorts the newlyweds Jessica and Lorenzo
to Belmont, and returns with Bassanio and Gratiano for
Antonio’s trial. He is often almost indistinguishable from his
companion Solanio.

Solanio
A Venetian gentleman, and frequent counterpart to Salarino.

Tubal
A Jew in Venice, and one of Shylock’s friends.
CHARACTER ANALYSIS:-
ANTONIO:-
Although the plot turns on Antonio's predicament, his
character is not sharply drawn. He is a rich man, and a
comfortable man, and a popular man, but still he suffers from
an inner sadness. One obvious, dramatic reason for Antonio's
quiet melancholy is simply that Shakespeare cannot give
Antonio too much to do or say without taking away valuable
dialogue time from his major characters. Therefore,
Shakespeare makes Antonio a quiet, dignified figure.

One of Antonio's most distinguishing characteristics is his

generosity. He is more than happy to offer his good credit
standing so that Bassanio can go to Belmont in the latest
fashions in order to court Portia. And one of the reasons why
Shylock hates Antonio so intensely is that Antonio has
received Shylock's borrowers by lending them money at the
last minute to pay off Shylock; and Antonio never charges
interest. He is only too happy to help his friends, but he
would never stoop to accepting more than the original
amount in return. Antonio's generosity is boundless, and for
Bassanio, he is willing to go to the full length of friendship,
even if it means that he himself may suffer for it.

Antonio is an honorable man. When he realizes that Shylock

is within his lawful rights, Antonio is ready to fulfill the
bargain he entered into to help Bassanio. "The Duke cannot
deny the course of the law," he says. And later, he adds that
he is "arm'd / To suffer, with a quietness of spirit . . . For if the
Jew do cut but deep enough, / I'll pay it presently with all my
heart."

Antonio's courage and goodness are finally rewarded; at the

end of the play, when the three pairs of lovers are reunited
and happiness abounds at Belmont, Portia delivers a letter to
Antonio in which he learns that the remainder of his ships
has returned home safely to port.
ALL THE CHANGES I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE IN THE PLAY:-
1)THE ANTI SEMETIC MESSAGE:-
The play includes shylock one of the main characters who is
jewish and there fore embodies the entire jewish culture and
heritage, hence when Antonio one of the many Christian
character and the protagonist berates his entire religion , the
play becomes extremely anti-semetic . Some of the
comments are downright derogatory and hostile . On top of
all that shylock is proselytized to Christianity all due to the
anti semetic views held by antonio.
The argument may come up that the entire play is a satirical
view or presentation of many topics that includes these anti
semetic comments and ideas but these arguments are just
not valid since there is less difference between the “affluent
Christians” and the “lowly jews” hence the one race
exploiting the other is unacceptable
The hate towards the prince of morroco due to his
complexion is also an example of racism.
2)PORTRAYAL OF SHYLOCK AS A VILLAIN:-
The betrayal by his own daughter the harassment by the
Christians particularly by Antonio and with all these odds he
is still portrayed as a villain and is punished as such. In this
case I would argue that shylock has all the privilege to spite
Antonio , since Antonio’s deeds were to cause harm towards
him and his community , and yet he is the one who has to
face the punishment of converting to Christianity and bare
the humiliation of his daughter running away and recklessly
spending his fortune that he has built with his hard work.
Though he is a victim of prejudice and seeks for revenge , but
this is basic human nature as these actions are justifiable
since the acts of Antonio are also not moral.
 ENGLISH PROJECT PT-2
Maya Angelou was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on April 4,
1928, the second child of Bailey Johnson, a doorman and
navy dietitian, and Vivian (Baxter) Johnson, a nurse and card
dealer. Angelou's older brother, Bailey Jr., nicknamed
Marguerite "Maya", derived from "My" or "Mya Sister. was an
American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She
published seven autobiographies, three books of essays,
several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays,
movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She
received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary
degrees. Angelou is best known for her series of seven
autobiographies, which focus on her childhood and early
adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
(1969), tells of her life up to the age of 17 and brought her
international recognition and acclaim. She became a poet and
writer after a string of odd jobs during her young adulthood.
She was also an actress, writer, director, and producer of
plays, movies, and public television programs. In 1951,
Angelou married Tosh Angelos, a Greek electrician, former
sailor, and aspiring musician, despite the condemnation of
interracial relationships at the time and the disapproval of
her mother. When I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings was
published in 1969, Angelou was hailed as a new kind of
memoirist, one of the first African-American women who
were able to publicly discuss their personal lives. According to
scholar Hilton Als, up to that point, Black female writers were
marginalized to the point that they were unable to present
themselves as central characters in the literature they wrote.
THE FREE BIRD AGAINST THE CAGED BIRD:-
To start this topic context must be provided . in this poem
Angelou has represented the free bird as the white
Americans or as the people who enjoy equal right whereas
the caged bird represents the black Americans . the free bird
has the privilege to move around and travel whereas the
basic right of the caged bird is stripped away from it and tht is
to fly around . The caged bird in hopes of liberty looks down
from his cage and the poet in this occasion has emphasized
the anger possessed by the bird due to his limited
boundaries. The only form of expression of the bird is to sing
which in this context is for the black Americans is a method to
fight back even though they have been abused since the
white people can’t take that away. The caged bird longs to
know the joy of freedom or the same joy that the free bird
thrives on and the songs it sings reaches to the distant hill
which symbolises the amount of singing the bird needs to do
to achieve freedom. the free bird’s main concern seem
pointless compared to the caged bird since the only thing the
free birds thinks about is the fat worms to eat and the skies
which take it to a different point of life whereas the caged
bird has not given up hope even though the odds are against
him.
HUMAN RIGHT VIOLATION BASED ON RACISM:-
What are human rights:-
Human rights are rights we have simply because we exist as
human beings - they are not granted by any state. These
universal rights are inherent to us all, regardless of
nationality, sex, national or ethnic origin, color, religion,
language, or any other status. They range from the most
fundamental - the right to life - to those that make life worth
living, such as the rights to food, education, work, health, and
liberty.
What is racism:-
Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different
behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and
can be divided based on the superiority of one race over
another.
 ENGLISH PROJECT PT-3
Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author and was born
in Odense, Denmark on 2 April 1805. He had a stepsister
named Karen. His father, also named Hans, considered
himself related to nobility (his paternal grandmother had told
his father that their family had belonged to a higher social
class, but investigations have disproved these stories).
Although it has been challenged, a persistent speculation
suggests that Andersen was an illegitimate son of King
Christian VIII. Danish historian Jens Jørgensen supported this
idea in his book H.C. Andersen, en sand myte Although a
prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is
best remembered for his literary fairy tales.

Andersen's fairy tales, consisting of 156 stories across nine

volumes, have been translated into more than 125 languages.
They have become culturally embedded in the West's
collective consciousness, readily accessible to children but
presenting lessons of virtue and resilience in the face of
adversity for mature readers as well. His most famous fairy
tales include "The Emperor's New Clothes", "The Little
Mermaid", "The Nightingale",
In early 1872, at age 67, Andersen fell out of his bed and was
severely hurt; he never fully recovered from the resultant
injuries. Soon afterward, he started to show signs of liver
cancer.
SUMMARY OF THE LITTLE MATCH GIRL:-
This story, the Little Match Girl Summary is a story of a
little girl. It was New Year’s evening, snow was falling
and darkness was gathering. The evening was bitterly
cold. In this darkness a poor little girl walked,
bareheaded and barefoot, through the streets. She had
been wearing slippers of her mother when she left
home. The little girl had been trying to cross the street
and suddenly she saw two carriages coming very fast.
So naturally, she trying to cross quickly and in the
process, her slippers came off they were too big for her.
One slipper was lost and the other one was taken away
by the unknown boy. The boy bullied the girl as she was
a soft target for [Link] the little girl walked about the
streets on her naked feet and her foot became red and
blue with the cold. In her bag, she carried many matches
and she had a packet of them in her hand as well. Today
she was unable to sell any matches and no one had
given her a single penny. She crept along, shivering and
hungry. The narrator called it’s a picture of [Link]
snowflakes fell on her long golden hair but the girl did
not think of her appearance now. Lights were shining in
every window of every house and there was a beautiful
smell of roast goose in the street as it was an evening of
the new year. But the little could not think of anything
[Link] went to a corner formed by two houses, one of
which projected further out into the street than other.
She tucked her legs up under her but she felt colder and
colder. As she had not sold any matches and earned not
a single penny she did not dare to go home. She
thought her father would beat her and besides, it was so
cold at home. Their home had an only roof above them
and the wind whistled through that. Her hands were
almost numb with cold. She pulled just one small match
from the packet to warm her [Link] had a warm and
bright flame like a small candle but it seemed to the little
girl if she were sitting in front of a great iron stove. The
fire gave out such lovely warmth as the child already
stretched her feet to warm them too. The flame vanished
and she sat with the burnt match in her [Link] she
lights the second match and imagines a table filled with
delicious food and wishes she could have some. She
lights up the third match and then imagines a beautiful
Christmas tree and then spots a star falling in the sky.
While she lights up the fourth match and sees her
grandmother. She cries out that she wants to be with her
grandmother. She wants to be with her grandmother so
desperately that she lights up all the matches to keep
her grandmother with her. Her grandmother takes her in
her arms and they fly away from the earth towards
[Link] the next morning people passing by the lane
and see the poor girl lying dead in the corner and think
that she must have frozen to death in the cold. The
people see the brunt matches and conclude that she
had been trying to warm herself. The narrator says
these people have no idea of the beautiful visions she
has seen and now she is far away from the cruel world.
CLASS DIFFERENTIATION: -

In the modern world, class differentiation remains a

significant theme that continues to shape societies and
influence social dynamics. While the specific
manifestations and characteristics of class differentiation
may vary across countries and regions, the general
presence of social and economic inequality persists.
Here are a few key points to consider regarding class
differentiation in the modern world:
Economic Inequality: One of the most prominent aspects
of class differentiation today is economic inequality. The
gap between the wealthy elite and the rest of the
population has widened in many countries.
Globalization, technological advancements, and
changing labor markets have contributed to the
concentration of wealth in the hands of a few, while
many others struggle to meet their basic needs.

Social Mobility: Class differentiation also intersects with

social mobility, which refers to the ability of individuals to
move between different social classes. In many
societies, the chances of upward mobility have become
more challenging, with barriers such as unequal access
to quality education, limited job opportunities, and
systemic biases. This can create a sense of social
stratification, where individuals born into lower-income
families find it difficult to break free from their
circumstances, while those from affluent backgrounds
have better prospects for success.

Education Divide: Education plays a crucial role in class

differentiation. Access to quality education is often
influenced by socioeconomic status, creating an
education divide between the privileged and
disadvantaged. Higher-quality schools, better resources,
and opportunities for advanced education tend to be
concentrated in wealthier areas or private institutions. As
a result, individuals from lower-income backgrounds
may face limited educational opportunities,

Overall, class differentiation remains a pressing issue in

the modern world, impacting various aspects of
individuals' lives and shaping the overall structure of
societies. Addressing this issue requires concerted
efforts to reduce economic disparities, improve
educational opportunities, promote social mobility, and
ensure equitable access to resources and opportunities
for all members of society.