Matchbox - Ashapurna Debi

THINK AND WRITE

1. Sketch the character of Nomita. You may analyze the sentences given below:
Why, why does she keep on begging like this?
“Stop it! What a common, vulgar man you are!”
Nomita laughs a laugh that can bring an attractive flush to a white face.

       Nomita is the wife of Ajit. They live in a joint family. Altogether there are 26 members in that family. Nomita comes from a very poor family. But she is very beautiful and that is how she gets married into a rich family. Her mother, who is a widow, was the one who managed to find a rich boy for her daughter. Nomita has no brothers or sisters. She is referred to as ‘queen’ by her mother.

       Her mother frequently writes to Nomita requesting her for money. She used to write in postcards which could be read by anyone. Nomita is ashamed that her mother is always begging for money. To prevent others from reading, Nomita asks her mother to write letters in an envelope. The requests are so frequent that Ajit says that there is no need for reading the letter, but send some money to her. Nomita also secretly helps her mother. It seems her mother is very demanding and shameless as she goes on begging.

       One day while collecting the soiled clothes forgiving to the washer-man, Nomita sees a letter in the pocket of Ajit. It is torn and crumpled. It is addressed to her and from the postmark, it is obvious that Ajit got it some 3 days earlier. But he had not told anything about it. Nomita is unhappy because Ajit reads the letters addressed to her. She had told him many times not to do it. He says he is checking to see if any love letter is sent to her by somebody. At this point Nomita gets angry and tells him that he is a common, vulgar man. This enrages Ajit and he says she is a dung-picker’s daughter. He will do what he wants to do and what can she about it?

       Nomita, flaming with anger, picks a matchbox and lights a stick and puts it on her sari which instantly catches fire. Ajit rushes and with his bare hands he puts out the fire telling her that she loses her common sense when she is angry. Nomita can be very sarcastic and can make faces effectively. She can easily tell lies as she calmly says her sari got burned as she was taking down a hot pot from the stove.

       Nomita is good at making retorts. When her sister-in¬law accuses her of rushing to Ajit at every small opportunity, she asks herto come and peek into her room to see what is happening there. Nomita can forget things fast. Soon after the burning of the sari, she is ready to peel potatoes. Even while peeling potatoes she is thinking how she can help her mother by sending her some money.

       Nomita seems to be a snob. She has forgotten that she came from a poor family. She calls Ajit a ‘common’ and vulgar man, forgetting that she is a common girl gifted with some beauty. People who forget their past are not good people. She seems to have forgotten her roots.

2. Do you think there is a set pattern for exhibiting a woman’s emotions? Is she always emotionally under stress? Justify your answer.
         I don’t think there is a set pattern for exhibiting a woman’s emotions. They express their emotions in different patterns. I don’t think she is always emotionally under stress. We wee how Nomita tries to burn herself one moment; the next moment we see her teasing her sister-in-law and soon we find her settling down to peel potatoes. She even tells lies about the burning of her sari.

3. Prepare a write-up discussing the space of women in a family.

        The women are the lamps of the family. It is impossible to imagine a family without a woman. Although we say the man is the lord of the family, in most homes things are decided by the women. They decide what to cook and what the members of the family should eat. They not only deliver children but look after them and bring them up in the right way. They do all the household chores. They also give a lot of love to their husbands and their children. Men are often rash but women are compassionate and generous. People are so attached to their mothers that often when facing troubles the word comes to their lips is ‘mother’. It is said that God created mothers because he could not be everywhere at the same time.

4. How does the author substantiate the comparison between a woman and a matchbox?
         The author compares women to matchboxes. Matchboxes contain enough gun powder to make a hundred Lankas burn. But they sit around meek and innocent in the kitchen, in the pantry, in the bedroom, in fact in any place. Women are the same. We see Nomita getting inflamed when Ajit insults her. She takes out the matchbox and lights a stick and puts it to her sari which catches fire. Fortunately Ajit is able to put the fire out. Soon she becomes a normal person and starts peeling potatoes. That is why the author says that even when they have material within themselves to burn many things, they never flare up to burn away the mask of men’s high-mindedness and their large¬heartedness. They don’t burn even their own colourful shells. The men know that. That is why they leave them scattered carelessly in the kitchen, in the pantry, in the bedroom, here, there and everywhere. Without fear, they also put them in their pockets.

Activity - 1 (Review)

Prepare a review of the story, emphasizing the role of its women characters.

        The story is very simple. Nomita is married to Ajit. They live in a joint family. Nomita’s mother is a poor widow. Nomita has no brothers and so her mother always demands money from Nomita for her needs. She writes letters to her always telling misfortunes of various kinds with the intention of getting financial help from her son-in-law. Nomita is ashamed of the beggarly nature of her mother, but she continues helping her.

        Ajit has the habit of opening and reading all the letters that are addressed to Nomita. Once she sees a crumpled letter addressed to her in one of his trousers’ pockets. The letter was written by her mother. He had received the letter some 3 days ago but he never told Nomita about it. Nomita had asked him many times not to open and read her letters. When she questions him about his bad habit, he says he will always do as he likes and what could she do stop him. There is a heated exchange and Nomita picks up a matchbox and sets fire to her sari. Ajit is able to put out the fire. All this drama takes place as the washer-man was waiting for the dirty clothes. Soon Nomita gives the dirty clothes to the washer¬man and gets busy with household work. There is some teasing by a sister-in-law who accuses Nomita of spending too much time in the company of her husband, neglecting her duties in the joint family.

         The two most important women characters in the story are Nomita and her mother. Nomita is a beautiful young girl who wants to assert her freedom but her husband Ajit does not allow it. He insists on reading the letters addressed to her. Nomita’s mother is a typical widow who wants to get as much help as possible from her rich son-in-law. Her begging behaviour makes Nomita lose her face before her husband and other family members.

         It is true that an empowered woman is the one who can ‘find her own voice’, ‘speak up’, and ‘be seen and heard’. We need gender equality and then only we can have a healthy world. Dominance by any sex will ruin the equilibrium of the family and the society.

Activity - II (Panel Discussion)

conduct a panel discussion on the topic ‘Indian women – finding a space in the socio cultural milieu’.

Panelists and their Designation

1. Dr. Ammini Jacob - Senior Lecturer

2. Dr. Ranbir Kaur - HOD

3. Dr. GeetaAgarwal - Moderator

4. Simi Ibrahim - Vice Principal

Prepare the script of a speech welcoming the panellists and introducing them to the audience.

       Good morning,

               It gives me immense pleasure to welcome you all to this panel discussion on “Indian women – finding a space in the socio cultural milieu”. We all know that everything is not rosy for the women in India. Although we got our freedom in 1947, the Indian women are still not free to live their lives the way they want. They have to face so many problems because of our male-dominated society. Our women too need freedom to live their lives the way they want.

        The panellists in this discussion are Dr. Ammini Jacob, a Senior Lecturer in St. Joseph’s College Irinjalakuda, Dr. Ranbir Kaur, the HOD of English, at St. John’s College, Kochi, and Dr. Geeta Agarwal, the Vice Principal of Hamidia College, Mancheri. We are sure their discussion will throw light on some of the vexing problems that women face in our country. The moderator is Simi Ibrahim, the well- known activist for women rights.

After the panel presentation and discussion, the moderator synthesizes and summarizes the key points.
Prepare a script of a speech summarizing the panel discussion.

       Let’s review what we have discussed today. On the whole, it has turned out to be a fruitful venture. We saw how Indian women are not given their rightful places in the society. There are 1.2 billion Indians, nearly half of which are women. India had only one woman President and one woman PM so far. Look at our Parliament. How many women MPs are there? Look at the Kerala Government. How many women Ministers are there? Is it not shame that although we got our independence in 1947, ourwomen are still left behind when it comes to education, employment and leadership?

       Dr. Ammini Jacob had some good suggestions regarding the effect of the media on a woman’s self-image. She showed that how healthy women make a healthy nation. Dr. Ranbir Kaur emphasized the need for cultivating mental strength and mental toughness in women. She spoke of the need for a productive and harmonious work environment for women. She said that educated women should act as mentors and guides to other women and girls. Dr. Geeta Agarwal was greatly concerned with the other marginalized sections of the society. She showed how women played a pivotal role in the past, quoting the examples of Rani Laxmi Bai and Sarojini Naidu. Women should come forward to take up leadership positions. She asked the women not to wait patiently for their rights but grab them.

        I would like to thank the panellists for giving us great ideas. I also thank the audience for being so disciplined and well-behaved. I am sure they have benefited immensely from the discussion. Together, let’s make a better tomorrow.

     Thank you All.

Activity - III (Blurb Writing)

Prepare a blurb of’Pratham Pratishruti’ making use of the hints given on page 25.

       Pratam Pratishruti is a novel about an uncommon woman, Satyavatie, who dared to breakthe so-called rules made to control the lives of the Bengali women in her days. The novel depicts the endless suffering and the liberation of women in Bengal. In fact it is the story of women everywhere in India.

       Ashapurna Debi, the novelist, created a space of her own in the world of creative literature, and Gender Studies. She once said, “Slowly and steadily a completely new world was getting created within my mind. It was a world of comprehension, of feeling. It was a world with a never- ending flow of feelings.” Most of her writings marked a firm protest against the inequality and injustice rooted in gender discrimination.

       Pratama Pratishruti inspires young minds to create an enlightened world free of segregation. It was published by Ananda Publishers, first in 1964. Other notable works of the writer are Subarnolata and Bakui Katha.