Nissim Ezekiel Biography

  

         Nissim Ezekiel Biography 

TOPICS COVERED:

A▪︎ Life And Works,

B▪︎ As A Poet,

C▪︎ As A Poet Of Urban Life,

D▪︎ An Indian Poet,

E▪︎ Use Of Imagery And Symbolism. 

A▪︎ Life And Works-

Nissim Ezekiel comes from a Jewish family who had long ago migrated to India and settled down in Bombay. He was born in 1924 in the city of Bombay.  His parents were teachers by profession. After finishing School he went to college and there he stood first in the M.A. (English) Examination. Then he was appointed as a lecturer in English in Khalsa College, Bombay. 

He was invited by the American government under the visitors programme in 1974 and then he went to Australia as a Cultural Award visitor in the year 1975. He held the position of a Director of a Theatre unit in Bombay for some time. 

He lived in England from 1948 to 1952. He returned to India in 1952. On his return to India, he managed to get a job as one of the assistant editors of the well-known periodical. "The Illustrated Weekly Of India". In 1952, he got married with a Jewish girl whose name was Daisy Jacob. The Government of India conferred upon him the title of 'Padamshree' in recognition of his services to Literature.  He is also a recipient of the Sahitya Academy Award for literature. 

List Of Important Works:

1- Poetry

• Sixty Poems(1953),

• The Third( 1959),

• The Unfinished Man( 1960),

• The Exact Name( 1965),

• Hymns In Darkness And Poster Prayers( 1976),

• Collected Poems( 1966).

2- Dramas

'The plays' published by Writer's workshop, 1969 contain following plays:

• Nalini

• Marriage Poem

• The Sleep Walkers

• Song Of Depreciation

• Who Needs No Introduction. 

3- Books Edited

• Indian Writers In Conference (1964),

• Writing In India ( 1965),

• An Emerson Reader( 1965),

• A Martin Luther King Reader( 1969),

• Arthur Miller: All My Sons( 1972).

4- Literary Essay And Articles 

• Ideas And Modern Poetry( 1964),

• Introduction In Books Abroad, Autumn( 1969),

• Poetry As Knowledge In Quest No. 76,

• Poetry And Philosophy Quest No. 50.

5- Art Criticism

• Modern Art In India, A Point Of View, The Times Of India, March 23, 1969.

• The Aesthetic Vaccum In Bombay, The Times Weekly, Nov. 15, 1970.

• How Good Is Sabavala? Times Of India, March 18, 1973.

• Paintings Of The Year 1973 in the Illustrated Weekly of India, August 1973.

6- Books Published 

• Poems, Gieve Patel( 1966),

• Selected Poems, Chaman Revri( 1973).

 

B▪︎ As A Poet-

Nissim Ezekiel is the most outstanding Indian poet, writing in English today. He has published six anthologies of verse- A Time To Change; Sixty Poems; The Third; The Unfinished Man; The Exact Name; and The Hymns In Darkness  and Poster Poems. Besides a large number of poems published in literary journals and Magazines from time to time and till now not collected and brought together.  Besides teaching poetry and prosody at the University of Bombay, he also edits a large number of literary journals, written reviews, and has also a large number of literary and art Criticism to his credit.

A study of his Poetry reveals a great evolution of his art and genius. A number of major themes run through his Poetry gaining in depth and intensity with each successive volume that he has published. 

• The Clash Of Opposites

Indeed, the greatness of Ezekiel as a poet lies in the fact that in his Poetry he is constantly bringing together opposite concepts and trying to reconcile and harmonise them.

His poetry is battleground for the clash of Opposites. Contraries exist side by side, and the poet constantly tries to harmonise and resolve them. He is the poet of ordinary human situations and Common human relationships and the human interest comes to the fore in the host of lyrics.  'Night Of The Scorpion ' integrates the family with the community, the superstitions with the rational and the Scientific, the concern of the father, the children and the neighbours for the mother stung by the Scorpion, and the solicitude of the mother for her near and dear ones. The same human concern and the Ability to make Poetry out of the ordinary is seen in 'Poetry Reading ' in 'Art Lecture', and in 'The Visitor'. 

• Religion Philosophic Concern

His religion is a religion of love and charity. His poetry reveals that, "He is neither a saint negating the sensual pleasure nor a yogic wandering in the thick jungle to attain light, but a man of parts, a being of the world- participating and belonging. 

• His Language And Diction 

He uses 'Pidgin' or 'Babu English', and also that in his more recent verse he does not hesitate to use Common vernacular words. He tends more and more towards using conversational idiom and language and thus captures the flavour of day-to-day Indian speech. Of the countless Indian poets Writing in English, he is the one who best represents the national identity, and who best expresses the national aspirations and culture.

C▪︎ As A Poet Of Urban Life-

According to Linda Hess, "He is a poet of the city, Bombay.  The poet is fully alive to the ugliness, dirt, and wickedness of a city like Bombay.  

The artificial life of the city leaves a certain inexplicable spell on one who cannot get away from it.  Hence this stilted atmosphere creates confusion in his own subconscious. It is characteristics of Ezekiel that he finds most Bombay- Walas rootless. That busy man, changing trains, belongs only to the city's vulgar turmoil, hence they seems to poet like an active fool.

In one of his later poems called 'Island' he describes Bombay as a pleasure Island of 'slums and skycrapers'. The same paradox is expressed when he says that the city has its bright and tempting breezes but it fails to provide him with a single-willed direction. 

But while contemplating the city, and the horrors of life in it, the poet does not fail to perceive, as well as to communicate to the readers, the fact that even such a city like Bombay has its roots in the pastoral, and the primitive. The two contraries exists side by side, fuse and mingle.

For example, in the poem like the Love-Sonnet, the hill on which the lovers meet is not very remote from the city lights. There exists a tangible relationship between the urban and the primitive. 

D▪︎ An Indian Poet-

Nissim Ezekiel is a very Indian Poet writing in English.  His commitment to India, and to Bombay which is his chosen home, is total as is shown by Background, Casually, and a host of other autobiographical lyrics. He has not only tried to describe Indian culture but he has made good use of 'Babu Angrezi' or Indian English. 

• Realism-

That Ezekiel is a very Indian Poet can be seen from the way he has described a flood in Bihar. Though the subject is occasional, the treatment is Universal  in its evocation of the pangs of human suffering. 

• Indian Sensibility-

His essentially Indian Sensibility, is also revealed by a poem like 'Entertainment', which describes a monkey - show, a common sight in Indian bazaars, and also brings out the poverty of the master of the show, as well as the unwillingness of these to pay whom he entertains. 

E▪︎ Use Of Imagery And Symbolism 

In his Writings certain images are frequently repeated and thus they acquire symbolic overtones and enable the poet to make the abstract concrete and easy to understand. Thus in "Enterprise", the journey is a metaphor for the journey of life, it is also symbolic of the voyage(journey) into one's inner self, the voyage of self- exploration. "Home" symbolises the place where one lives, as also one's inner self. 

The woman, the city, and nature are the ever-recurring images in Ezekiel's poetry, and by repetition they acquire symbolic overtones. They are the key-images but round these are usually woven a number of associative images. So in this way, we get a cluster of images which enlarge the expressive range and vigour of the Language. 

Nature, on the other hand represents the opposite polarity of purity and tranquility. 

In "Morning Prayer"also, along with the stark imagery of the barbaric city the poet brings the images of hills, morning breeze, trees, and garden: "The Morning Breeze released no secrets to his ears".