critically examine the essay 'The testimony of grandfathers bookcase' by Amitav Gosh
Answers
THE TESTIMONY OF MY GRANDFATHER'S BOOKCASE
Date of Publication: 1998-00-00
Place of Publication: Kunapipi; A Journal of Post-Colonial Writing (U.K.)
Language: English
Amitav Ghosh won a 1999 Pushcart Prize for the following essay, which has been published in several publications.
Published in Kunapipi; A Journal of Post-Colonial Writing (U.K.), Vol. XIX, No. 3, Kenyon Review, Vol. XX, No. 2, Spring 1998; Desh, Puja Issue, 1998 as as 'Kathashilper Mayay Gatha Ei Basundhara'
As a child I spent my holidays in my grandfather's house in Calcutta and it was there that I began to read. My grandfather's house was a chaotic and noisy place, populated by a large number of uncles, aunts, cousins and dependents, some of them bizarre, some merely eccentric, but almost all excitable in the extreme. Yet I learned much more about reading in this house than I ever did in school.
The walls of my grandfather's house were lined with rows of books, neatly stacked in glass-fronted bookcases. The bookcases were prominently displayed in a large hall that served, amongst innumerable other functions, also those of playground, sitting-room and hallway. The bookcases towered above us, looking down, eavesdropping on every conversation, keeping track of family gossip, glowering upon quarreling children. Very rarely were the bookcases stirred out of their silent vigil: I was perhaps the only person in the house who raided them regularly, and I was in Calcutta for no more than a couple of months every year. When the bookcases were disturbed in my absence, it was usually not for their contents but because some special occasion required their cleaning. If the impending event happened to concern a weighty matter, like a delicate marital negotiation, the bookcases got a very thorough scrubbing indeed. And well they deserved it, for at such times they were important props in the little plays that were enacted in their presence. They let the visitor know that this was a house in which books were valued; in other words that we were cultivated people. This is always important in Calcutta, for Calcutta is a bookish city.
Answer:
'The testimony of grandfathers bookcase'
by Amitav Ghosh.
I learned to read when I was a young child and spent my holidays at my grandfather's home in Calcutta. A great number of uncles, aunts, cousins, and dependents lived in my grandfather's house, which was chaotic and noisy. Some of these family members were odd or just eccentric, but nearly all of them were extremely energetic. Though I never learnt as much about reading in school as I did in this home.
Rows of books neatly packed in bookcases with glass doors lined the walls of my grandfather's home. A big hall that served as a playground, sitting area, and hallway, among countless other purposes, was where the bookcases were proudly displayed. The bookcases towered over us, peering down, listening in on every conversation, keeping tabs on family rumours, and scowling at rowdy kids. The bookcases were very rarely disturbed from their silent vigil because I was probably the only person in the house who raided them frequently.
When the bookcases were disturbed while I was gone, it was usually to clean them for a particular event rather than for their contents. If the next occasion involved a significant issue, such as a difficult marriage negotiation, the bookcases received a very thorough cleaning indeed. They merited it because, at the time, they served as significant props in the short plays that were performed in their presence. They demonstrated to the guest that we were well-educated and that this was a home where books were respected. This is crucial since Calcutta is a city that values books.
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