The Nightingale and the Rose by Oscar Wilde

About the story

This is a fairy tale. Fairy tales are stories in which fairies play a part or which
contain other supernatural or magical elements such as imaginary persons,
animals, and inanimate objects. These stories are of course primarily meant for
children, but the best fairy tales such as those by Hans Andersen, are also
eagerly read by older people who are interested in their deeper meaning.

The plot of the story is very simple. A young student thought that he was
madly in love with the professor's daughter. He felt miserable because he
could not find a single red rose in the whole garden to give to his love, and he
knew that without the rose she would not agree to dance with him in the ball to
be given by the prince the next day. The Nightingale overheard this and was
deeply touched by what she believed was the expression of the young man's
true love. So she decided to help the young man, but she was told that the only
way to get a red rose in this cold winter was for her to build it out of her music
and her heart's blood. The Nightingale of course also valued her life, but she
was ready to lay down her own life for the happiness of the young couple. She
therefore did what she was told to do. The next morning, the most beautiful
red rose appeared, but the Nightingale was found dead under the rose-tree.
Not knowing what it had cost to produce the rose, the student thought that he
was very lucky to find this flower and he immediately plucked it and ran to the
professor's daughter. The professor's daughter, however, turned him down
because she had already agreed to dance with the Chamberlain's nephew who
had given her precious stones. The student was very angry, so he threw the
rose away and returned to his reading.

This is a touching story of love, but not the love between the young student and
the professor's daughter, because neither of them understood what true love
is. The girl was interested only in power and money, and the young man, in what
he considered practical. The only person who understood love, treasured love,
and was ready to sacrifice her life for love was the Nightingale. For her love is
eternal music, love is the most precious thing: even more precious than life
itself, and true love is always in the giving rather than in the taking.

The story however, contains some veiled comments on life. In fact, as is often
the case, the author is very much an actor in this little drama. Like Hans
Andersen's "The Ugly Duckling" in which the author's childhood was clearly
reflected, in this story, there are also things that remind us of the author's
life. Oscar Wilde advocated the idea of art for art's sake, and for this he was
much criticized. So what the student said about the Nightingale's music ("It
has form, but no feelings") could be viewed as a sarcastic response to the
author's critics. Wilde seemed to be saying here that he was like the
Nightingale, singing song after song, producing love and beauty with blood from
his heart, and yet the world was too stupid to understand and appreciate him.

Fairy tales have a few interesting features:

1) The frequent use of personification

This is self-evident because it is the very definition of fairy tales. In this

story, the rose-trees, the lizard, the daisy, the butterfly, the oak, the moon,
and of course the Nightingale are all personified.

2) The symbolic meaning given to words

The rose of course is the symbol of love, but many things mentioned in the text
also stand for something, including the lizard, daisy, and butterfly, which the
author used on more than one occasions to stand for certain character types.

3) The vivid, simple narration, which is typical of the oral tradition of fairy
tales

4) The repetitive pattern used

A typical fairy tale would often have a sequence of three episodes or three
steps or three people.

It might go something like this: Once upon a time, there were three sisters.
The first was ugly, and the second was stupid, but the third was both pretty
and clever. They would then marry three men. The first two were invariably
obscenely rich whereas the third was always poor. Then they were for some
reason sent to look for some treasure. The first two failed and the third
succeeded, but he only succeeded in his third attempt after overcoming many
difficulties...
Detailed Study of the Text

Part One

1. From her nest... the Nightingale... looked out through the leaves and won-
dered.

The bird is here personified, hence the capitalization. The Red Rose, the
Lizard, etc. are capitalized for the same reason.

2. "Ah, I have read all that the wise men have written... my life is made wretch-
ed.

Notice the sarcastic tone of the author when he had the Student refer to the
"wise men". As a champion for "art for art's sake", the author argues that one
should not paint or write for financial , political or religious reasons. He
therefore keeps poking fun at the Student, the professor, the dusty heavy
books, logic, philosophy, intellect, and metaphysics. Many people however reject
this view. They do not believe it possible to have such a thing as art for art's
sake. "Art for art's sake," said Somerset Maugham, "makes no more sense than
gin for gin's sake. " The artist's works, being part of his human activities, must
be guided by his sense of moral responsibility, by what he conceives to be true,
good and beautiful.

for want of: for the lack of

e.g. For want of a better word, let's call it Me-firstism. (As I can't think of a
better word, let's call it Me-firstism.)

For want of something better to do she decided to try gardening. (As she could
not find anything more interesting to do, she decided to try gardening.)

3. "Here at last is a true lover," said the Nightingale. "Night after night have I
sung of him, and now I see him."

Notice the inverted order.

sing of him: to sing about him

lover: a person who loves. In modern English, it is often used to mean
"mistress".

4. "The Prince gives a ball tomorrow night, ... and my love will be there. "

give a ball: to give a dancing party

Notice the use of the present indefinite tense for expressing the future.
Notice also the use of "give" in the sense of "organize" in the following: to give
a reception; to give a banquet, to give a cocktail party; to give a press
conference; to give a dance.

"Ball" here refers to a large formal occasion at which people dance.

my love: my sweetheart. The word "love" here is used as a term of endearment

as in:

My love is like a red, red rose.

Newly sprung in spring.

—Robert Burns (1759—1796)

5. "... so I shall sit lonely and my heart will break."

"Lonely" here is an adjective, used as a subject complement, or as part of the

complex subject.

6. emeralds and opals

different kinds of gems or precious stones including ruby, diamond, emerald,

sapphire, opal, jade

7. "The musicians will play upon their stringed instruments, ... and my love will
dance to the sound of the harp and the violin. "

stringed instruments: Musical instruments can be divided into stringed

instruments,

percussion, instruments and wind instruments.

dance to the sound of the harp: dance according to the sound of the harp, e.
g.

The snake would then dance to the music.

The soldiers marched through the square to the drumbeat.

8. "But with me she will not dance, for I have no red rose to give her," and he
flung himself down on the grass,...

for: When used as a conjunction, it means "because", but it is now considered

quite formal, and it is not as strong as "because", therefore in adverbial clauses
of reason, "because" is always used. Like "and" and "but", "for" is used in
coordinate clauses. flung himself down on the grass: threw himself down on
the grass

9. ... fluttering about

flying by a quick, light flapping of the wings

10. ... and the little Lizard, who was something of a cynic, laughed outright.

something of a cynic: a cynic without fully deserving the name, e. g.

He is something of an economist among us because his grandfather used to own

a little store.

She is something of a dentist in our village although the method she uses is
quite crude.

cynic; a cynical person; a person who believes that everybody is motivated by

selfishness

laughed outright: laughed out loud; burst out laughing

11. But the Nightingale understood the Student's sorrow and sat silent in the
oak-tree.

sat silent: "Silent" here is again part of the complex subject.

in the Oak-tree: Notice the use of "in" instead of "on" here. The use of "in"
suggests that it is a large tree for a little bird like the Nightingale.

Part two

12. Suddenly she spread her brown wings for flight, and soared into the air.

night: noun of "to fly". It can also be used as the noun of "flee". soar: to fly
upward quickly

13. grass-plot

The word "plot" can mean many things in different contexts. Make students
check in the dictionary and decide which suits the context here. (Here it means
a small piece of ground used for a special purpose.)

14. "Give me a red rose, ... and I will sing you my sweetest song."

Refresh students' memory of the use of "and" here which means "as a result of
this". More examples:

One step forward, and he would fall down the cliff.

Come late again, and you are fired.

Give it one little push, and it will collapse.

"Sweet" could refer to taste, smell, or sound. Ask students to translate the
following phrases into Chinese: sweet air; sweet song; sweet music; sweet wine;
sweet flowers; sweet cake; sweet smile; sweet temper; sweet lady; sweet
water.

15. "My roses are yellow, .. .as yellow as the hair of the mermaiden, and yellower
than the daffodil that blooms in the meadow. "

mermaiden (also mermaid): a fabled creature of the sea with the head and
upper body of a woman and the tail of a fish

blooms in the meadow: bears flowers in the meadow

Bloom, when used as a noun, usually refers to the flower of plants admired
mainly for their flowers.

The roses are in full bloom now.

The sun shone bright and the meadows were in bloom.

Compare with "blossom" which usually refers to the flower of fruit trees.

16. "... and redder than the great fans of coral ."

Notice the metaphorical use of the word "fan", which refers to anything
resembling a fan.

More examples: The mouth of a river; the foot of the page; the northern face
of the mountain; the limbs of a tree; the eye of a needle; the nose of a plane;
an arm of the sea; the tail of a comet; the teeth of a saw

17. "But the winter has chilled my veins, and the frost has nipped my buds, and
the storm has broken my branches, and I shall have no roses at all this year."

chill: to freeze; to numb; to lower the temperature

chilly (adj.): cold

nip the buds: to stop the growth of the buds

nip it in the bud: to prevent sth. from becoming a problem by stopping it as

soon as it starts, e.g.

Their policy was to throw the first person who dared to protest openly into
prison so as to nip it in the bud.

You must take immediate action and nip it in the bud. Otherwise this economic
slowdown could easily snowball into a serious recession.

Notice the use of "and" again in this sentence. The first two "and"s mean "also"
or "in addition to" whereas the last "and" means "as a result".

18. "One red rose is all that I want, ...only one red rose! Is there no way by
which I can get it?"
 When used as the object of the verb or preposition of the relative clause, the
relative pronoun "that" is usually left out, especially in informal English. Notice
that when the relative pronoun is the object of a preposition and the
preposition is placed before the relative pronoun as often the case in formal
style, only "which" is used, and not "that". More examples:

There near the beautiful pond, he built himself a little cabin in which he lived
for three years.

The importance of agriculture is something on which we all seem to agree.

19. "If you want a red rose, .. .you must build it out of music by moonlight, and
•tain it with your own heart's blood. "

out of music: using music as the material, e. g.

This chair is made out of hardwood.

You can't build a big house out of sand.

We can't produce anything out of nothing.

stain: color; to dye; to tarnish

1. "... what is the heart of a bird compared to the heart of a man?"

Another example of a rhetorical question—a question in form, but a statement

in meaning. This sentence means: The heart of a bird is nothing compared to
the heart of a man. In other words, for the Nightingale, the Student's love is
much more important than her life.

21. ... swept over the garden...

...moved quickly over the garden...

Observe how the word "sweep" and its derivatives are used in the following:

A new broom always sweeps the room clean, (proverb) A terrible storm swept
across the whole city.

The general's eyes swept over the soldiers and gave the order to attack.
You can't say they are all corrupt. That's too sweeping. There might be a few
exceptions.

22. "Be happy, ... you shall have your red rose."

The modal verb "shall" is used here to convey a solemn promise. It is used to
say that something will definitely happen. Notice that this usage is considered
formal and old-fashioned.

23. The Student looked up from the grass, and listened, but he could not
understand what the Nightingale was saying to him.

Why couldn't the Student understand what the Nightingale was saying to him?
Obviously, it was not because he could not understand bird language, but rather
because he could not understand true love.

24. ... and her voice was like water bubbling from a silver jar.

"Water bubbling" is used here as the complex object of the preposition "like".

25. "She has form ... she is all style without any sincerity."

"Form" is the design, pattern, or structure as opposed to the substance. In

music, it refers to such things as melody, rhythm, and harmony.

Notice the irony when the Student say) that the Nightingale has no feelings.
His comments on the Nightingale's music remind us of what people said about
Oscar Wilde's views on art. Notice the use of "all" in the sentence "It's all
style". It means "apart from style, there ii nothing else". More examples:

He is as strong as a horse. He is all muscle.

Don't listen to him. It's all stuff and nonsense.

He was all hot air. A lot of beautiful words, but completely meaningless.

The second time she saw him she was all smile because she knew the man had
power.

26. ... and after a time, he fell asleep.

 In modern English we would say "after some time" or "after a moment". Notice
the irony in how the Student could fall asleep so quickly.

Part three

27. And on the topmost spray of the Rose-tree there blossomed a marvelous
rose,...

"Spray" here means a small branch bearing buds, flowers or berries.

Notice that the subject of this sentence is "rose" and the predicate is the
intransitive verb "blossomed”

28. a delicate flush of pink

When used to refer to color, "delicate" means "soft, subdued, or faint".

29. ...a fierce pang of pain shot through her.

a pang: a sudden sharp pain shoot through: to pass through swiftly

30. ... the Love that is perfected by Death, of the Love that dies not in the
tomb.

... the love that grows and grows until they die, and of the love that will live in
eternity. "... the love that dies not in the tomb" is old-fashioned. In modern
English, it should be "... the love that does not die in the tomb".

31. the girdle of petals

girdle: a belt or something like a belt worn at the waist. Here it means a band
of red color round the middle of the petals.

32. .. .a film came over her eyes.

film: a thin covering or coating

33. ...lingered on in the sky.

.. tried to delay the departure? stayed in the sky, reluctant to leave or move on
34. .. .trembled all over with ecstasy,... (HEB ) ecstasy; intense delight all
over: everywhere or all parts of one's body, e. g.

He was sweating all over. / She was shuddering all over. / I was aching all over.

35. .. .for she was lying dead in the long grass,...

Notice the use of "in" rather than "on" to emphasize the tallness and thickness
of the grass.

Part four

36. "... it will not go with my dress,"

go with my dress: to match my dress; to be harmonious with my dress

Another example; This furniture does not go with the color of these walls.

37. the Chamberlain

The official who manages the household of the king. Here, it refers to a high-
ranking official in general.

38. "Well, upon my word, you are very ungrateful,"...

Notice the irony. The Student accused the girl of being ungrateful without
realizing that he was no better.

39. "In fact it is quite unpractical, and as in this age ... I shall go back to Philo-
sophy. "

Notice the different uses of the word "as" in this paragraph. It means
"because" here, and in the previous sentence, it means "when" or "while".

unpractical: also "impractical"

The Nightingale and the Rose Literary Analysis

The story “The Nightingale and the Rose” is written by Oscar Wilde. It was
published in 1888 in a collection of children’s story named as The Happy Prince
and the Other Tales.

Although, it is a children’s story but it deals with philosophical and emotional

issues that are beyond the understanding of children. It is also enriched with
the wealth of deep meaning. It is full of indirect comments on life,
personifications, similes and symbolism.

Moreover, in this story Oscar Wilde raises the most common issues of
materialism and idealism present in the conventional society he lived in.

THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE ROSE SUMMARY

The story begins with a young student who is lamenting in his garden because
the love of his life will dance with him in the ball only if he brings her a red
rose but there is no red rose in his garden. The Nightingale, living in the oak-
tree of his garden, hears the young man crying over his helplessness and
lamenting the fact that all his learning is useless since it cannot win him a girl’s
love. The nightingale comes to know that the young man is weeping for a red
rose. She feels the pain of that boy and wants to help him.

The bird flies and goes to the various bushes but cannot find a red rose. Finally
she comes to know about a way of getting a red rose by a tree. She performs a
suicidal act while singing with his heart on the thorn, giving her heart’s blood to
a white rose which turns it in to a beautiful red rose. In this process the
Nightingale dies.

When the student wakes up, he sees the red rose under his window, plucks it
joyously and brings it to his love. The girl rejects the rose by saying that it will
not match her blue dress and someone else has brought her jewels that are
worth more than a rose. The boy throws the rose in the gutter and a cart runs
over it.

At the end he decides that logic is better than love and love is unrealistic. He
goes back to his home and starts reading a book.
THEMES IN THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE ROSE

THEME OF SACRIFICE:

The theme of sacrifice is explored through Nightingale’s self - sacrifice in the

name of true love and for the sake of helping others.

When the Nightingale sees the student crying for his sweetheart, her whole
hearted believe in love compels her to help the boy. So she decides to help him
and goes out of her house in search of a red rose. After searching for it
everywhere she comes to know about a way of getting the rose. She has to give
her heart’s blood to a white flower and make it red. She believes that it is
worth giving her life for the sake of true love.

As we know that Nightingale has an unshakeable believe in love because of

which she sacrifices her life but at the end of the story nobody appreciates
her sacrifice and it is wasted when the student throws the red rose in the
gutter where it is destroyed.

THEME OF LOVE:

In the story “The Nightingale and the rose” is about the nature of love. In the
beginning of the story, the student claims to be in love with his professor’s
daughter and is crying for a red rose because he will dance with her in the balls
if he will give her a red rose.

Moreover, the Nightingale sacrifices her life for the sake of love. She thinks
that it is worth sacrificing her life for true love. This sacrifice shows that true
love does exist but at the end no one appreciates it.

Wilde is trying to convey that true love does exist but people make it shallow
and selfish. The student who thinks that he is in love does not truly know the
meaning of love. When the girl rejects him and his red rose, he calls her
ungrateful and says that love is silly and unpractical which shows him more as a
materialistic person rather than a true lover.
MATERIALISM:

The theme of materialism is explored by the human characters. The young

student, Professor’s daughter and Chamberlain’s nephew are materialistic in
some sense.

The student who claims to be in love is not really in love rather he evokes
rational side of materialism. For him a red rose is worth more than
Nightingale’s life and true love. When the Nightingale sings a song, he says that
her voice is beautiful but shallow and lacks any emotion which shows that he is
a materialistic person who is unable to feel deep emotions.

On the other hand, his love, the professor’s daughter also shows materialism by
rejecting the red rose. She thinks that precious jewels are more worthy than a
red rose. In the end of the story the sacrifice of Nightingale goes wasted
when the girl rejects the rose and the boy destroys it.

Furthermore, Chamberlain’s nephew is also materialistic because he brings

precious jewels for the girl to show his love for her. Love is shown as a material
pursuit rather than a true emotion by these characters.

THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE ROSE CHARACTERS ANALYSIS

THE NIGHTINGALE:

The Nightingale is the protagonist of the story. She is romantic by nature and
is inspired by student’s love. She sings about love all the time and waits to see
it. When she sees the student crying for a red rose, she decides to sacrifice
her life to help him out. She gives her heart’s blood to a white flower to color
its petals and fulfill the need of student and in this process she dies. The whole
story revolves around her sacrifice and selfless nature which is not appreciated
throughout the story.

At the end of the story, her sacrifice is ignored and wasted by everyone when
the red rose, stained by her heart’s blood, is rejected and destroyed. Her
selfless nature and unshakeable believe in true love shows that true does exist
but people make it selfish.
THE STUDENT:

He is a young boy with beautiful eyes and red lips who claims to be in love with
a girl. In the very beginning of the story the student appears as a true lover
who laments in his garden for the love of his life. He inspires the bird to
sacrifice her life to help him out but as the story goes we come to know about
his true nature. He is pre-occupied by practicality and lacks the ability to feel
true emotions.

When the girls reject the red rose given by him, he calls her ungrateful and
suddenly all his love fades away. He decides that love is unpractical and
unrealistic. It shows him as a materialistic person rather than a person who
believes in love and selflessness.

He does not appreciate Nightingale’s sacrifice and does not fulfill her last wish
that was to be true to his love.

THE ROSE TREE:

There are three rose trees in the story but only one plays a major role in it.
This is the tree under student’s window that helps the Nightingale in creating a
red rose.

When Nightingale asks him for a way of getting a red rose, he refuses to tell
her because he does not want her to lose her life. But the Nightingale performs
this suicidal act by pressing her heart against one of his thorns, giving her
heart’s blood to the rose to dye it red.

The rose-tree is the only one in the story who recognizes her sacrifice and
remains sympathetic her.

THE GIRL:

The girl is briefly introduced in the story. She expresses an important theme.
She is the student’s sweetheart and professor’s daughter. She tells the
student to bring a red rose for her if he wants to dance with her in the party.
When the student brings her a bright red-rose she rejects it because she is
provided with jewels by another rich suitor.

This act of selfishness shows her as a materialistic and shallow person who
values wealth more than true love.
THE LIZARD:

This character appears in the beginning of the story. When the student cries,
he overhears him and laughs at him because he finds it useless to cry for a red
rose.

It shows the lizard as a pessimist who believes that the people are motivated
by self-interest rather than acting for selfless reasons.

This belief of lizard can be seen in the end of the story when the rose, a
symbol of sacrificial love, is rejected by the girl and destroyed by the student
for their self-interests.

THE OAK-TREE:

The Oak-tree is the minor character of the story. This is the tree where the
Nightingale resides. He knows about the seriousness of Nightingale’s decision
of sacrificing her life and begs her to sing a last song for him.

THE WHITE ROSE-TREE:

The Red-rose tree is a minor character of the story. When the Nightingale
goes in the search of a red rose, she asks the white rose-tree to help her but
he does not have any red rose so he suggests her to go to another tree to seek
help from.

THE YELLOW ROSE-TREE:

This is a minor character and the second tree the Nightingale visits in search
of a red rose. He also does not have one so he suggests her to go to another
tree, the red rose-tree, to seek help from.
THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE ROSE ANALYSIS

The story begins with a young boy who is lamenting in his garden for a red rose.
The boy is physically very attractive and utters about love and pain tearfully
which shows him as a hero. The Nightingale who sings the songs about love and
has an unshakeable believe on true love overhears him crying and desires to
help the student. She gets inspired by the true love of the student and thinks
that at last she has witnessed the love about which she sung all her life.

She, after searching for a red rose everywhere, comes to a red rose-tree
where she comes to know about a method of creating a red rose but for that,
she has to sacrifice her life. She thinks that it is worth dying for the sake of
true love and pierces her heart against a thorn to transfer her heart’s blood to
stain a rose with red color.

The red rose is a symbol of true love. The Nightingale stains the rose with her
own blood which shows the value of true love and self sacrifice. When the
student sees the rose under his window, he becomes thrilled and plucks it for
the girl without thinking for its life once. It shows the materialistic and selfish
nature of people and how shallow they are from inside.

When the student brings the rose to the girl she rejects it and values the
expensive jewels over it. On the other hand, the boy’s love fades away in an
instance and he starts calling love unrealistic. It also shows the materialism
side of the society and how people value money over selfless acts and true
feelings.

The sacrifice of the Nightingale goes wasted and is not appreciated by anyone
except the red rose-tree who knew about the seriousness of her intended
sacrifice. It also shows that the sacrifices made for others are not given
importance rather material pursuits are more important for people.
Model Answer on the short story Nightingale and the Rose by Oscar Wilde:

1. Attitude towards love in the present society are reflected in the short
story, The Nightingale and the Rose. Discuss this statement with
particular reference to professor’s daughter.

“The Nightingale and the Rose”, a famous short story by Oscar Wilde is an
onslaught on the materialistic attitude of the Victorian society towards human
relationships - especially towards love. The lovers in the story betray
materialistic attitude towards love through their shallow behaviour which is
also symptomatic of the modern society.

In "The Nightingale and the Rose," the young girl is the daughter of the
Professor and the object of the student's affections. Although Wilde does not
describe the girl physically, the story teaches us much about her character.
She does not appreciate the true meaning of love, as we see in the opening
paragraph when she demands the student bring her a red rose. This shows she
has a superficial understanding of love based on appearances and objects. This
idea is also echoed at the end of the story when she rejects the student
because the color of the rose he brings her clashes with her dress.

But the girl frowned. “I am afraid it will not go with my dress,” she answered.

This quote also demonstrates two more of the girl's character traits: her
fickleness and materialism which are typical of the modern society. Her
decision to choose the Chamberlain's nephew because he sends her jewels
shows how quickly she changes her affections. In her mind, the girl judges the
monetary value of the jewels to be much higher than that of the rose and this
proves the nephew loves her more than the student. When called "ungrateful"
by the student, the girl proves just how materialistic she is when she ridicules
his appearance. Tragically, the student is too naïve to realize she does not
represent true love and he turns his back (presumably forever) on matters of
the heart.

The boy too, reacts harshly to the nightingale. When she decides to sacrifice
her life and sings about her love for the boy, he makes assumptions about her
character because he cannot understand what she is saying.

“She has form,” he said to himself, as he walked away through the grove, “that
cannot be denied her; but has she got feeling? I am afraid not."
Furthermore, the boy accuses the nightingale of lacking "sincerity" and being
"selfish." This is ironic because if the boy understood the words of her song,
he would realize she is quite the opposite; she demonstrates considerable
sincerity and selflessness because she sacrifices her life so he can have a red
rose.

Finally, the boy's belief that her song "does not mean anything" or "do any
practical good" is harsh because it further belittles her sacrifice. For the
nightingale, killing herself is a hugely symbolic act; it demonstrates the
strength of her feeling towards the boy and towards the idea of love, more
generally.

Thus in "The Nightingale and the Rose," Wilde mocks several aspects of
Victorian society which can be equally applied to the modern society. Firstly,
through the character of the girl, Wilde satirizes contemporary courtship
rituals and conceptions of love. That she will only accept a red rose, for
example, demonstrates the shallow and materialistic understanding of love
among young people of the Victorian middle class. This attitude is also not
uncommon in the modern society where offering of a rose by a lover on the
Valentine’s day, for example, is considered as token of true love by some girls.
Similarly, Wilde further mocks the middle class when the girl refuses the red
rose, on the grounds that it does not match her dress.

Secondly, Wilde satirizes Victorian society when the Nightingale sings of her
pending sacrifice to the student. We see this most clearly in the following
lines:

The student could not understand what the Nightingale was saying to him, for
he only knew the things that were written down in books.

In this example, Wilde mocks the Victorian definition of knowledge and

suggests that true knowledge and understanding comes from the everyday
world, not just academic books. Had the student grasped this idea, he would
have realized the Nightingale's sacrifice and, in turn, understood the real
meaning of love. Applied to the modern society, the commercialization and
branding of love through media, cinema and tele-dramas etc. has created such a
confusion in the minds of the younger generation, that ideal romantic love is
tended to be regarded as something so pedantic and even ‘foolish’.
2. What criticism of Victorian education is made by Oscar Wilde in his
short story "Nightingale and the Rose"?

Oscar Wilde's short story The Nightingale and the Rose is written in the fairy
tale style about a love- loran student and a high class girl for whom a
nightingale sacrifices her life. Victorian education is one of the main themes
which is critically treated by the writer.

Education is given a fairly negative value in the short story. It is represented

through the self- consuming study of Philosophy and Metaphysics. Though the
Student peruses the nature of existence, truth, life and the universe it has not
taught him of human emotions. He is unable to discern between true love and
infatuation.

The education received by the Student is symbolized by "great dusty books‟.

Theoretically it is great as it contains knowledge which comes down from
renowned philosophers in the world. But the term dusty denotes that it is
ancient knowledge which theoretically searches for meaning, in addition to
other things, of human life such education has left the Student's defining
his short experience in love as a "quite unpractical‟, shallow emotion.
Furthermore as far as human behavior is concerned, he states that "in this age
to be practical is everything‟. This is lopping sided philosophy.

Wild’s technique carefully keeps the Student away from responding or feeling
the stronger emotions of mankind. His reaction to the beauty of the rose is "I
am sure it has a long Latin name'. He has no qualms about plucking it. Wilde
makes him see the rose but not the Nightingale "dead in the long grass, with
the thorn in her heart‟. Symbolically he may be suggesting that the form of
education the Student is engaged in has left him blind to sacrifice and
selflessness. Additionally, he lacks an aesthetic sense which is concerned with
beauty and art. This is heightened by his cynicism towards artists

Thus the system of education undergone by the Student has left him an
unbalanced individual. Devoid of the fine-tuning of his aesthetic sense,
education has created a human being who is "practical in everything‟. Wilde is
critical of an education system which is unbalanced. As symbolized through the
Student it spews out insensitive human beings lacking the higher forms of
human emotion.
Thus Wilde suggests that intellectual development devoid of aesthetic
development results in an individual with a shallow viewpoint towards life. This
story also throws some light on our present system of education which is
increasingly distancing itself from the basic tenets and principles of education
and veering towards unsympathetic materialism.

3. What makes Oscar Wilde’s Nightingale and the Rose particularly

appealing to children?

The Nightingale and the Rose is a 'fairy tale' story written by Oscar Wilde,
originally for his two sons, in the late 1880s. Oscar Wilde was born in Dublin
(Ireland) 1854, and was well known for his wit and story telling. The Happy
Prince and other stories and is a story, which focuses on a lovelorn student,
anxious to find a rose to bring his love and a sympathetic nightingale, observing
the student's anguish. As there is no rose, the student fears his heart will be
broken. The nightingale then seeks a rose for the student, encountering a tree
that can provide a rose, but only if the nightingale sacrifices itself, its own
blood providing the redness of the rose. The nightingale embarks on one final
flight prior to its martyrdom, telling the student to only be a true lover, "...for
love is wiser than philosophy." Here, the student attempts to analyse the bird,
and while enjoying her singing, claims, "they do not mean anything or do any
practical good." The final outcome is tragic, the student's love refuses the rose
for jewels, the student throws away the rose and doesn't realise how it was
produced. So the nightingale's sacrifice is not appreciated by the girl.

There are a number of reasons why this story appeals to children. First of all,
it is written in simple diction so that it appeals to children very much. The
language of the story is very descriptive and full of figures of speech, yet the
choice of words is fairly simple, related to feelings and natural elements, so the
overall understanding of the text is not a problem. This should be connected to
the fact that the story is part of the collection “The Happy Prince and Other
Tales”, which was intended by the author to target the children readership.

Another feature of the story that makes it especially appealing to children is

its fairy tale structure. Fairy tales have a few interesting features:
1)The frequent use of personification

This is self-evident because it is the very definition of fairy tales. In this

story, the rose-trees, the lizard, the daisy, the butterfly, the oak, the moon,
and of course the Nightingale are all personified.

2) The symbolic meaning given to words

The rose of course is the symbol of love, but many things mentioned in the text
also stand for something, including the lizard, daisy, and butterfly, which the
author used on more than one occasions to stand for certain char¬acter types.

3) The vivid, simple narration, which is typical of the oral tradition of fairy
tales

4) The repetitive pattern used

A typical fairy tale would often have a sequence of three episodes or three
steps or three people. It might go something like this: Once upon a time, there
were three sisters. The first was ugly, and the second was stu¬pid, but the
third was both pretty and clever. They would then marry three men. The first
two were invariably obscenely rich whereas the third was al¬ways poor. Then
they were for some reason sent to look for some treasure. The first two failed
and the third succeeded, but he only succeeded in his third attempt after
overcoming many difficulties...This pattern is evident in the Nightingale and the
Rose too. For example, the nightingale finds his rose that later becomes the
red rose in his third attempt. The above features would definitely appeal to
children as fairy tales have never failed to entertain children The universal
demand for the Harry Potter stories by children is a good example for that.

The romantic element in the story may or may not appeal to the children in Sri
Lanka due to the cultural difference. However, the vivid descriptions in the
story will be surely enjoyed by them.

4. What makes the Nightingale and the Rose appealing to the adults?

It appeals to the adults mainly due to its serious themes such as social status,
materialism and irony etc. I’m going to discuss those reasons now.

One reason for the story’s appeal to the adults is its theme of social status.
The writer brings out the issue of social status through the representation of
two different classes between the Student and the Chamberlain’s Nephew. The
Student here is categorized as the middle class member while the
Chamberlain’s Nephew represents the higher class. The issue of importance of
social status and unequal social treatment becomes obvious through the
Professor’s Daughter’s attitude toward the difference.

Another theme that appeals to the adults is the theme of materialism. The
materialistic quality of the nineteenth century England is presented especially
from the middle class’ perspective. The different attitude received by the rich
compared to the attitude shown towards the less rich is clearly depicted here.
It is shown in two ways: the first is the Student’s attitude toward the
Nightingale’s song, and the second is the Professor’s Daughter’s attitude
toward the Student’s effort. The way the Student criticizes the Nightingale’s
song shows his tendencies to material things rather than a true art and sincere
feeling, “She has form … that cannot be denied to her; but has she got feeling?
I am afraid not. In fact, he is like most artists; she is all style without any
sincerity. She would not sacrifice herself for others. She thinks merely of
music, and everybody knows that the arts are selfish. Still, it must be admitted
that she has some beautiful notes in her voice. What a pity it is that they do
not mean anything, or do any practical good.” (“Nightingale” 16) Wilde seems to
criticize the society’s ignorance of other people’s feeling as the result of their
materialism and individualism.

The irony is another aspect in the story which is mainly identified and
appreciated by adults as children normally depend on the surface meaning only.
The story has situational as well as verbal irony. The situational irony in this
story is that the nightingale expects that her sacrifice will allow the Student
to be happy and will allow love between him and the girl, while the Student only
expects the happiness of the girl, which the nightingale doesn’t really care for.
In the end none of these things happened which is an example of situational
irony. There are several instances of verbal irony also in this story. For
example the student exclaims “Why, what a wonderful piece of luck! “ when he
finally gets his red Rose. The irony, however , is that he will not be lucky at all.
He and his red rose would be rejected by the professor’s daughter.

Thus, it is clear that this story also appeals to the adults as well. Although
romantic themes are common even in fairy tales, this story may be far too
serious for children than to adults. The nightingale seems to symbolize pure
love and her sacrifice is something which can be appreciated only by a mature
person.

5. Oscar Wilde's "Nightingale and the Rose" short story highlights human
selfishness. Discuss.

The Nightingale and the Rose is a short story written by Oscar Wilde. Oscar
Wilde was a famous author and poet. The Nightingale and the Rose was not a
book nor a poem, but a short story that he wrote during his lifetime. Like in
each short stories, there is a theme, in this one, the theme of the story is love
and sacrifice. However, the author also highlights human selfishness in this
story.

This seemingly simple story, when examined closely, develops several

meaningful themes in regard to human nature, one of them being that of blind
selfishness. The student is selfish in that he is totally focused upon himself--
his own feelings, his own needs, and his arrogant security in his own education
and intellect. As the result of his selfishness, he is both blind and ignorant.
When the story begins, he weeps and pities himself, for he lacks a red rose
that would bring the girl he loves into his arms. He lingers upon all that is being
denied him, suffering with every detail summoned up in his tortured
imagination. He wallows in his pain and rails at the injustice of it all. He, after
all, deserves better.

Not even the beautiful song of the nightingale can break his obsession with
himself. Hearing the lovely music as she sings for him, he takes out his
notebook and arrogantly critiques her heartfelt performance. He is, after all,
a well educated student who knows music. In focusing on his own intellect and
reveling in it, he is blind to the beauty of the gift she gives him with her song,
and he is ignorant of her devotion. The student is selfish and ignorant.

The same obsession with self is found in the girl the student loves. Carrying
the red rose created by the blood of the nightingale, he goes to her and is
turned away. She refuses him, scoffs at the gift of the rose, and scorns him in
a haughty manner. The rose is the wrong color for her dress, she tells him, and
it is only a rose. She has been offered jewels. Noting her selfishness, he calls
her ungrateful--surely an ironic moment in the story. In response, she rejects
him as being "only a student," and one who lacks silver buckles for his shoes. In
her selfish concern for appearances and wealth, she turns away someone who
loved her.
Many other themes are developed in the story, but through these two
characters, the nature of love is examined. Both of them are too selfish to
love. As soon as he is rejected, the student throws the rose in the gutter and
closes his heart. Only the nightingale understood the meaning of love and loved
truly.
 The Bear

Anton Chekhov translated by Julius West

The Bear is one of Chekhov’s lesser-known plays performed in 1888. The three
main characters in this play create humour with their absurd behavior and
dialogues. Their emotions are exaggerated and change unexpectedly. The play is
also suggestive of the emancipation of women.

The Plot

Elena Ivanovna Popova is a landowning widow mourning for the death of her
husband who had died seven months ago. Her aged footman, Luka, coaxes her to
stop being buried inside the four walls and to enjoy life. She refuses firmly as
she intends to prove her true love and faithfulness to her husband, in spite of
him being unfaithful to her. He reminds her that she is still beautiful. The bell
announces the entry of Smirnov, a person who comes to collect the money due
to him by her husband. Popova refuses to see him but without courtesy he
enters the dining room. As she does not have spare cash she promises to pay
the day-after tomorrow. She also says her ‘state of mind’ prevents giving
money matters her concern. Smirnov refuses to leave. In the argument that
follows Popova calls Smirnov a bear for his boorish manners. Smirnov challenges
her to defend her feminine rights- in the form of a duel. She accepts.
Surprised by her boldness he begins to fall in love with her which he is forced
to admit. Even then she is not willing to back down from the challenge. The
argument that follows ends up in Smirnov kissing Popova passionately. The play
ends with Luka and some workers armed with household weapons entering,
intending to break up the duel.

Development of the Plot

The conversation between Popova and Luka reveals that he is trying to convince
her that she should enjoy life while her beauty lasts. He further highlights the
futility of mourning for her dead husband for such a long time.
 Despite her late husband’s unfaithfulness to her she, vows to prove her love by
mourning for him till her death.
 She is irritated by Luka announcing the arrival of Smirnov to whom her dead
husband owes 1200 rubles. He asks for cash to pay the interest on a mortgage.
Popova’s peace is disturbed.
 She is willing to pay Smirnov only after her steward comes back the day after
tomorrow. But Smirnov reiterates that he needs the money desperately.
 The argument builds up to a climax as Smirnov highlights the infidelity of
women and Popova reveals the same about men.
 Popova insults Smirnov calling him a bear. Smirnov is asked to go out. He
refuses. Popova calls Luka to show Smirnov out.
 The insulting continues.
 Smirnov suggests Popova should pay for insulting him by engaging in a duel with
him.
 Popova brings her late husband’s pistols but asks Smirnov to teach her how to
fire.
 In teaching her, he is captivated by the beauty of her eyes and is touched by
her boldness.
 The climax heightens as Popova suggests going out for the duel. Smirnov is not
interested in the duel anymore as he cannot resist falling in love with her.
 The anticlimax is when the servants see them kissing each other passionately

Characterization

 There are 3 main characters in the play.

 Their physical features are presented at a minimum. eg. Popova is a little widow
with dimples
 on her cheeks. Smirnov is attracted by the beauty of her eyes.
 Smirnov is middle-aged and Luka is an aged footman.
 Chekov makes use of absurd behavior and dialogues to bring out character

Popova

Despite the exaggerated behaviour the play demands, Popova’s character

reveals certain traits.

i. She is very emotional

The play opens with Popova fixing her eyes on a photograph of her late
husband. She weeps and talks to him about her love.
ii. Has a strong determination

Even though it is impractical to mourn for the rest of her life, she vows to do
it.

iii. Bold and courageous

When Smirnov challenges her to a duel, she accepts it and does not give up even
after he expresses his love for her.

Smirnov

i. He is rude and ill-mannered. He enters the house without a show of

courtesy and behaves rudely.

ii. Irritable

When Popova refuses to pay him, he gets angry and shouts at her without any
sympathy for a woman in mourning.

iii. Chauvinistic

He highlights his male superiority over women.

iv. Manipulative

He has lent money to many men and they have all evaded him. His intention is to
get what Popova owes him at any cost.

Luka

Loyal - He advises Popova to stop mourning as she should enjoy life. He tries
to save her form smirnov’s insults.
Themes

i. Money

The effect of money on human behavior.

ii. Infidelity

Popova reveals about her late husband’a relationship with other women.

iii. Emanicipation of women

Popovas behavior suggests the extent of action a woman is capable of. Smirnov
is taken aback by Popova’s boldness.

iv. Inconsistency of human behavior

Popova’s and Smirnov’s attitudes towards each other change rapidly.

v. Condition of the woman in Russian society

Setting

Pre-revolutionary Russia; The main characters belong to the land owning class.

Literary Techniques

i. Humour

Absurd behavior and dialogues create humour

ii. Metaphor

Popova says “You’re a boor! A coarse bear!

iii. Incongruity and contrast

Violence and love are juxtaposed at the end of the play.

iv. Suspense

The arguments between Popova and Smirnov bring about tense situation

Though the behavior of the character evokes humour, it shows the duality of
people; there are no black or white characters in the world. All change with the
course of time. In plays these characters are called round characters.
 A Brief Discussion of the Play "The Bear" by Anton Chekov

First Impression

The Boor or The Bear is an interesting one–act play. It is a play about the
fickleness of feelings and commitment. It tells about how faithful a woman,
even her husband had died, she was still faithful, and how irritated she was,
after knowing that her husband had betrayed her, but she didn’t change, she
still loved her husband very much by imprisoning herself in her house and
receiving no one. Her faithful and personality made one man, Mr. Smirnov,
finally fell in love with her, even it had been a confrontation, duel, and insulting
each other. The main problem is she couldn’t pay her husband debt but Mr.
Smirnov wanted her to pay, because he needed the money. This problem seems
like a door open Mrs. Popov’s new life after about seven month imprisoning her
herself. This play explores the ironies of life. It could happen today to life of
any body.

The Fact of the Play

Mrs. Popov was a widow grieving a lot because of her husband death. She had
been imprisoning herself for about seven months after her husband death and
receiving no one. She had no spirit of life. It was showed from her saying “My
life is over. He lies in his grave, and I have buried myself within these four
walls. We are both dead.” She had proved her faithful even her husband
betrayed her. Mr. Smirnov, proprietor of a country estate, a farmer, came
asking for money that her husband had loaned because he had bought oats.
Mrs. Popov and Mr. Smirnov had a duel after insulting each other. It seems
that they looked like a dog and cat, which couldn’t be together. But,
unpredictable Mr. Smirnov said that he loved her.

Exposition and Antecedent action

The story started by appearance of Mrs. Popov and her servant, Luka, it was
stated “A well-furnished reception-room in MRS. POPOV'S home. MRS. POPOV
is discovered in deep mourning, sitting upon a sofa, gazing steadfastly at a
photograph. LUKA is also present.” It showed that Mrs. Popov was grieving. And
her servant tried to rise her spirit of life; “It isn't right, ma'am. You're
wearing yourself out! The maid and the cook have gone looking for berries;
everything that breathes is enjoying life; even the cat knows how to be happy-
slips about the courtyard and catches birds--but you hide yourself here in the
house as though you were in a cloister. Yes, truly, by actual reckoning you
haven't left this house for a whole year.” The next statement of Luka answer
the cause of her grieving, “There you are again! It's too awful to listen to, so it
is! Nikolai Michailovitch is dead; it was the will of the Lord, and the Lord has
given him eternal peace. You have grieved over it and that ought to be enough.”

The Setting

In the beginning of the story the author stated the setting clearly, “A well-
furnished reception-room in MRS. POPOV'S home. MRS. POPOV is discovered
in deep mourning, sitting upon a sofa, gazing steadfastly at a photograph. LUKA
is also present.” Then the entire story set in Mrs. Popov house, in the reception
room, in the dining room and at the garden. Setting is much less consequence in
this story. The Greek convention of the unities of place and time reduce the
significance of setting in Antigone. The action occurred in one place, in Mrs.
Popov’s house, within one day.

The plot

The plot or the structure of action which this one-act play has is closed
plot, where in here with its definite resolution of conflict. And the drama
seems happy ending.

The story began with a conversation between Mrs. Popov and her servant. This
is the exposition. Luka, they talk about her grieving because of her husband
death. She had been imprisoning herself since her husband death and receiving
no one.

Then she had to meet Mr. Smirnov who asked her to pay her husband loan. This
is the complication appeared, she couldn’t pay him because she hadn’t any money
in hand. She could pay it the following two days. But Mr. Smirnov couldn’t
receive it. He wanted the money directly at that time, because he needed it to
pay interest of a bank. But Mrs. Popov had nothing to do. Mr. Smirnov didn’t
want to leave; consequently, she started to feel disturbed, while she was in
grief and not interesting in talking about money matter. But Mr. Smirnov was
mad, he could not receive it that because she was in grief, she didn’t care about
this problem, while he needed the money very much to pay interest tomorrow,
he was being pursued by the bank. He told her his problems and especially the
problem with women and then he stared to throw off on women, he said “I am
not speaking of present company, but of women in general; from the tiniest to
the greatest, they are conceited, hypocritical, chattering, odious, deceitful
from top to toe; vain, petty, cruel with a maddening logic ……… have you ever in
your life seen a woman who was really true and faithful? Never! Only the old
and the deformed are true and faithful. It's easier to find a cat with horns or
a white woodcock, than a faithful woman.”

Then the crisis started to appear with a conflict when they were insulting each
other. Mrs. Popov could not receive what he talked about women. She told her
how she was irritated because her husband had betrayed her, but she still love
her husband very much, she could not forget about him and she was still in
grief after seven months imprisoning her herself and receive no one, she
explain “Men true and faithful! So long as we have gone thus far, I may as well
say that of all the men I have known, my husband was the best; I loved him
passionately with all my soul, as only a young, sensible woman may love; I gave
him my youth, my happiness, my fortune, my life. I worshipped him like a
heathen. And what happened? This best of men betrayed me in every possible
way. After his death I found his desk filled with love-letters. While he was
alive he left me alone for months--it is horrible even to think about it--he made
love to other women in my very presence, he wasted my money and made fun of
my feelings--and in spite of everything I trusted him and was true to him. And
more than that: he is dead and I am still true to him. I have buried myself
within these four walls and I shall wear this mourning to my grave.” Mrs. Popov
was really mad, many times she wanted him to leave her house, but he would
just if she paid him the money. They were insulting each other and starting to
use bad language.

Then, this is the crisis, Mrs. Popov and Mr. Smirnov in a duel with guns, pistols.
He was surprised he had never met a woman like her. After Mrs. Popov took the
pistols she wanted them to move to the garden and have a duel there. But then
suddenly he didn’t want to fight. It was because he liked her.

Then the falling action happened with a surprised statement of Mr. Smirnov
that he loved her. She couldn’t understand how came, she didn’t believe it after
all what had happened; they were confronting, insulting, and even dueling. But
he tried to make her sure “I love you as I have never loved before. Twelve
women I jilted, nine jilted me, but not one of them all have I loved as I love
you. I am conquered, lost; I lie at your feet like a fool and beg for your hand.
Shame and disgrace! For five years I haven't been in love; I thanked the Lord
for it, and now I am caught, like a carriage tongue in another carriage. I beg
for your hand! Yes or no? Will you?--Good!” Mrs. Popov had a conflict inside she
was confused she wanted him to leave but would she let him go.

Finally she couldn’t avoid Mr. Smirnov kiss and the story ended.

Characters

HELENA IVANOVNA POPOV, Mrs. Popov, was a grieving widow because of her
husband death. She was a faithful woman that even her husband had betrayed
her she was still true and faithful. She was a pretty woman as her servant,
Luka, said “Oh, my dear, dear ma'am, young and pretty as you are, if you'd only
let your spirits live--! Beauty can't last forever. When ten short years are over,
you'll be glad enough to go out a bit and meet the officers--and then it'll be
too late.”

GRIGORI STEPANOVITCH SMIRNOV, proprietor of a country estate, Mr.

Smirnov was a farmer, he stated his self “I'm too tender-hearted with them.
But…” and there is some of Mr. Smirnov saying about himself, “Ugh, a fine
figure! No use denying that. Dust, dirty boots, unwashed, uncombed, straw on
my vest--the lady probably took me for a highwayman.” He was a frank man,
even Mrs. Popov considered him as a Boor and vulgar man. But I think Mr.
Smirnov was honest and expressive.

LUKA, servant of Mrs. Popov was an obedient man. He was kind and gentle, he
suggested the best for Mrs. Popov.

A gardener, a Coachman, and several workmen were as obedient as Luka.

The Brief Summary

Mrs. Popov was a widow grieving a lot because of her husband death. She had
been imprisoning herself for about seven months after her husband death and
receiving no one. Then suddenly a man, Mr. Smirnov, came asking for money that
her husband had loaned and he needed the money very much. But Mrs. Popov
couldn’t pay at that day; she could pay the following two days. That made them,
Mrs. Popov and Mr. Smirnov, had a confrontation and then insulted each other.
Then they changed the conversation about their own problem in their insulting,
about a faithful of a man or a woman. They started to be angry then she took
guns, pistols, they had a duel. But they didn’t fight, because he told her that he
like her. That was hard to believe. And the story ended in contrasting point Mr.
Smirnov fell in love with Mrs. Popov.