Where the Mind is Without Fear: Summary & Analysis
Where The Mind Is Without Fear by Rabindranath Tagore is an inspiring poem on the value of a free state. The poem presents the poet’s prayer for the emancipation of his country.
However, we have represented the poem below for you to study:
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.
Background of the Poem
The poem Where the Mind is Without Fear was written during India’s struggle for independence from the British.
Furthermore, there were a variety of bad practices prevalent in society. People used to discriminate against one another, and they believed in superstitions rather than logic and reasoning.
Furthermore, Indian society was divided into small segments. There was no concept of brotherhood, fraternity, or unity.
The poem is written in the form of a prayer to God, in which the poet asks God for a perfect country free of such evils.
Where the Mind is Without Fear Theme
The poem is a prayer to God to protect the country from evil. Tagore wrote the poem while India was still under British control and people looked forward to their independence.
It is a petition to God for a nation free of all manipulation and corruption.
Where the Mind is Without Fear Literary Analysis
The poem moves from a religious to a patriotic theme. Tagore prays for the country’s freedom, and not just any freedom.
He wishes for his country to become a place where a man can go with his mind, without fear, and hold his head high with self-respect and dignity.
Where the Mind is Without Fear Summary
What is the Central Idea that Tagore Talks About in Where the Mind is Without Fear?
In the poem under review, the poet envisions the India of the future. In this country, nobody will be made to live in fear or act under duress.
Rather, they will possess a dauntless sense of self-dignity.
Where the Mind is Without Fear is a poem was Originally Written in which Language?
One of Rabindranath Tagore’s most famous and discussed poems is Where the Mind Is Without Fear. The poem was first written in Bengali, possibly around 1900, under the title “Prarthana,” which means prayer.
What are the Poetic Devices in Where the Mind is Without Fear?
The following poetic devices are utilized in the poem under review:
Metaphor
A metaphor is a figure of speech that presents a direct comparison between two unalike objects without the use of “as” and “like”.
There are numerous examples of metaphors in this poem, they include: “narrow domestic walls” which refers to various barriers, “clear stream of reason” which refers to a mind which is always guided by reason rather than superstitions, “dreary desert” symbolizes superstitions.
Alliteration
This is the repetition of consonant letters or sounds at the beginning of words within a line. Examples of alliterated sounds or letters in the poem are:
“where the mind is without fear”, “head is held high”, “not been broken”, “striving stretches”, “dreary desert sand of dead habit”.
Visual Imagery
The poem has numerous images or symbols which create a mental picture of the things. e.g. “domestic walls”, “clear stream of reason”, “the dreary desert sand”, “heaven of freedom” etc.
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February 5, 2024 at 4:51 am