Explain how Ezekiel uses words and images to put striking effect in his
poem, ‘Night of the Scorpion’.(300-350 words)
Answers
Nissim Ezekiel’s Night of the Scorpion is a solid yet straightforward explanation on the
intensity of self-effacing love. Full to the overflow with Indianness, it catches a very much withdrew
high contrast depiction of Indian town existing with all its superstitious straightforwardness. The
writer sensationalizes a clash of thoughts battled during the evening in lamplight amongst great and
insidiousness; amongst haziness and light; amongst realism and visually impaired confidence. What’s
more, out of this disarray, there emerges a surprising champ – the magnanimous love of a mother.
Night of the Scorpion makes a significant effect on the reader with an interaction of pictures
identifying with great and malicious, light and dimness. At that point the impact is elevated indeed
with the droning of the general population and its mysterious, incantatory impact. The excellence of
the poem lies in that the mother’s remark handles the people suddenly on basic, compassionate
grounds with an unexpected punch.
Summary:
The poem opens in a way that recommends reflection—the speaker recollects the night his
own mother was stung by a scorpion, which bit his mother as a result of its savage drive, while
stowing away underneath a sack of rice to escape from the rain. The speaker particularly recollects
this night because of this occasion, the mother getting nibbled. The manner by which the mother is
chomped is likewise appeared in ‘blaze of fiendish tail’; the speaker figures out how to propose that
the scorpion is evil with its “diabolic” tail and stresses its speed with the word streak. The scorpion at
that point escapes the scene and, in this way, hazards the rain once more.
A photo of a religious town is made by what the neighbours do to deaden the scorpion
(“buzz the name of God”). Their purpose behind this is they trust that as the scorpion moves, his
toxin moves in the blood of the mother. It is likewise suggested that they live in a minding,
affectionate town by the way that the neighbours feel welcome by any stretch of the imagination.
The speaker is disappointed by their entry, contrasting them with flies (undesirable and bothering)
as they veritably hummed around the mother. They endeavoured to give reasons, and many
depended on superstition to think about what the issue was. The villagers attempted to discover the
scorpion, yet they proved unable. By saying,” With candles and with lanterns throwing giant
scorpion shadows on the sun-baked walls.” the speaker is suggesting there is yet fiendish
frequenting the house, even after the scorpion had gone out. This could likewise be inferring that
the shadows of the different household utensils and different things are changed over by the
cerebrum of the searchers into the shadow of a scorpion-as that is the thing that they are searching
for. Numerous things were attempted to help calm the mother’s agony, yet none worked. The
speaker watches, defenceless.
The speaker’s dad who was cynic and pragmatist, attempted to spare his better half by
utilizing powder, blend, herbs, cross breed and even by pouring a little paraffin upon the chomped
toe and put a match to it, this reflects to one of the town labourer saying, “May the transgressions
of your past birth be consumed with extreme heat today around evening time.” Which the dad
endeavours to do; not for consuming her wrongdoings but rather to consume with smouldering heat
the toxic substance living inside the mother, which mirrors her transgressions being gave penance
for. The speaker watches the vain sacred man playing out his beguiling spells, yet he can’t
successfully stop it. The laborers, at last tolerating the destiny of the mother, endeavour to put a
positive turn on the circumstance by saying that regardless of whether the mother kicked the
bucket, her next life (An Indian Conviction) would be less difficult, as she making amends for her
future sins by persevering through this agony. Following twenty hours, the toxic substance loses its
sting and the mother is alright. An indication of her overall love and love for her youngsters is
demonstrated when she expresses gratitude toward God that she was stung and not her kids.
It originated from a religious foundation and Nissim composed this lyric endeavouring to
give the impression of outrage, yet additionally a fundamental message of protective love, alongside
a trace of culture and superstition.