MIXED BAG

  BY    PRAGYANSHARMA POLAVARAPU  INTRODUCTION  (1)The British empire reached its biggest  extent in early 19th century and existed till end of world war two.   England (United Kingdom /great Britain) was most powerful and dominated world affairs for three and half centuries. The pressures and strains of modern world, the two terrible World Wars and the power of glorious  freedom movements in former colonies –all factors led to dissolving  the old empire soon after World War 2 . The world has now progressed to an era of gigantic educational, technological progress and an era of glorious freedom ,equality and fraternity ,an era of parliamentary democracy ,world unity and friendship and economic cooperation. The United Nations Organization represents the spirit of freedom, equality of all people and friendship between all people. With the aid of high scientific technologies in various fields assisted by the speed o...

  BY P ragyansharma  Polavarapu   (1) How difficult it is to study history of a language. When we read good story or poem in   English or any other language we see and experience the delicate, kind and beautiful feelings passing through the heart of the writer at the moment he was writing it --one year back or even hundred or thousand years back. when we read old English poems/sonnets   of Shakespeare ,Dryden, Milton, Keats, Shelley, Wordsworth, Byron, Lord Tennyson, Mathew Arnold (The Forsaken Merman) etc or old English novels of Sir Walter Scott, Oliver Goldsmith or even   recent versatile Thomas Hardy we feel as if we   hear   their heartbeats of the moments when they were penning those lines. What I write here is for the “foreigner”—the distant South Asian, East Asian, Indian, African, Chinese, South American ,Arab etc—who enjoy reading the hundreds of good English books which contain   beautiful nature descriptions, descriptions of...

BY P ragyansharma  Polavarapu (1)  Centuries before  arrival of Anglo-Saxons in Britain   , there lived  all over the British isles  the Celtic people . The Celtic people  ,though entirely different in culture and customs from Anglo-Saxons   ,were   of same Aryan ethnic  origin as the  Anglo-Saxons but chose different lands to settle millennia ago. History tells that the  Celts lived in   central Europe around  1300 BC  and later spread to other parts of Europe . The European sub culture called “La Tène culture” (c. 450–50 BCE) is said to be a pure  Celtic culture. La Tène-culture  spread into the  British isles from around 500 bc and came  in multiple waves .The earliest Celtic-speaking inhabitants of Scotland were said to be Picts( 500 BC ). (2) The majority of the...

   BY P ragyansharma  Polavarapu     In the   Mediterranean region, perhaps in the region of about   1600 BC(about 3600 years from now) a glorious ancient Greek civilization existed. later an equally glorious   Roman civilization was born and a great Roman empire existed   upholding   the majestic Greco-Roman culture. In those   times   Celts and after them Anglo-Saxons lived a rural agriculture and fishing based life in contrast to   the urban oriented aristocratic and military oriented civilization of Romans.   The Roman empire was frequently involved in wars with   Asian empires   . The Romans were a most sophisticated urban oriented society with aristocratic warrior families dominating the military and ruling classes. They followed the   beautiful   older Greek philosophy. They   were in some respects harsh and maintained   slaves. They   maintained trained armies with tough ...

  BY P ragyansharma  Polavarapu INTRODUCTION People all over the world in this modern age are getting awakened and may wish to develop modern literature of high cultural and spiritual   value in their   mother tongues their own languages. Quite many   in modern world also developed   interest in old classical English literature ---the many outstanding novels examining human psychology, the most beautiful   poems of Wordsworth, Shelley , Keats, Byron   and the like, dramas of Shakespeare, old novels of Sir Walter Scott , Charles Dickens,Thomas Hardy   and the like , old writings of HGWells and Sir Arthur Connan Doyle and the like .   A few such people may feel that such old English literature may be among the first eligible to create a modern   world literature for coming centuries. Such books   form   a treasure trove of great beauty, art and intellect. Here let us also know the general desire of many   millio...

  BY P ragyansharma  Polavarapu The   story of development of parliamentary democracy in world is very interesting when one follows it systematically through a British history book. In England     about 1200 AD a group of independent minded princes were determined to control   king’s autocratic powers . They might have been   supported by other liberal minded princes , rich city merchants and liberal philosophers. They felt that the king should listen to   other princes   and not become authoritarian. The result was Magna Carta of 1215 signed by the autocratic King John . In subsequent times some   kings   approved of   the idea. Some kings were forcibly made to agree. It is surprising that whole people, the intellectuals and richer classes like merchants, all were bent upon creating the tradition that the king of England should rule in consultation with other princes and leading citizens. It is really surprising that a whole p...

 Pragyansharma  Polavarapu I write a few more lines about my very limited reading habit. About the few   English books of high literary merit, some   old classical works which secured permanent place on library racks and in hearts.  (a)The immortal works of   Shakespeare with their old   medieval world charm and majestic movement of words and phrases and equally great magical (spiritual/philosophic /poetic) meaning  (b) The nature descriptions   of Wordsworth with mighty jolly smiling   nature filling all the poet’s canvas ( c ) Sir Walter Scott with   knights and warriors riding the horse at wind speed(some times kidnapping a loved woman warrior-like ,some times rescuing   an isolated warrior fallen and suffering on the wayside, the warriors seen galloping on speedy steeds on   special trescue missions   passing   thick forests among hills and dales and beside the fast   streams or placid lakes (d)Jane Aust...