Week 12: Buck's Mahabharata (pp. 93-189)

Assignments - Reading Guide A - Reading Guide B - Mahabharata Resources

Character

Your assignment is to write a Character Essay about one of the characters listed at the bottom of this page. If you want to write on a different character, contact me first (make sure you do that at least one day before the deadline so that you can receive an answer back in time). Each week you can take one of two approaches to writing your Character Essay:

Quotations. If you are doing the traditional analytical essay, you may quote a key phrase or a few words from the text, but do NOT quote anything longer than a few words. The words of the essay should contain your thoughts and ideas, not quotes from the book.

Title. You need to include the words "Character Essay for Week ___" in the title you give to the post, along with a title for your actual story (for example, "Character Essay for Week 2: Rama, My Hero")

Length. Your Storytelling post needs to be a minimum of 300 words long (maximum 1000 words). Make sure you do a spellcheck and a word count, and that you proofread your post by reading it out loud.

Image. You are required to include at least one image with the story, along with a link to the webpage where you found the image, plus information about the image. You are free to re-use the images you find at the course website, or you can choose some other image to use that you find on the internet. Remember: even if you are re-using an image from the course website, you need to provide image information about it.

When you are done, complete the Gradebook Declaration.

PLEASE READ CAREFULLY:

I have published a blog post with the words "Character Essay for Week ___" in the title, along with a specific title for my essay.

My post is between 300 words minimum and 1000 words maximum.

I have spellchecked and proofread the post.

I have included an image, along with Image Information.

LIST OF CHARACTERS FOR THIS WEEK:

Indra
Traditional Essay Option: Even though Indra is not a central character in either the Mahabharata or the Ramayana, you have now read many stories and anecdotes about Indra, including his involvement this week in the story of Nala and Damayanti. Find at least two other stories you know from your previous reading about Indra and write an essay where you summarize the main characteristics and traits of this god. Try to choose incidents that bring out different aspects of Indra's character.
or
Creative Writing + Analysis Option: Provide your imaginative retelling of the encounter between Indra and Karkotaka when Indra asks the naga to help him rescue Nala from possession by Kali. Make sure you provide a dialogue between the two characters, and also a physical description of both of the god and the naga. Whose idea is it for Karkotaka to bite Nala? How does Karkotaka feel about this situation? How does Karkotaka regard Indra's role in this story? After you tell your story, don't forget to include some analysis of Indra's character as it is revealed through the arrangement he makes with Karkotaka.

Nala:
Traditional Essay Option: Vyasa tells the story of Nala to Yudhishthira in order to give Yudhishthira some perspective on his own situation. What are the things that Yudhishthira and Nala have in common? What are the differences between them? What do you think Yudhishthira can learn from a study of Nala's character?
or
Creative Writing + Analysis Option: Imagine the scene when Nala is rejoined with Damayanti and write out the dialogue between them. What would the two of them say to each other? Make sure you pay careful attention to Nala's role in this scene. What does Damayanti need to learn from him? What does he need to learn from Damayanti? After you finish the dialogue, provide an explanation of the character traits of Nala that you tried to bring out in this scene.

Damayanti
Traditional Essay Option: Write an essay in which you compare and contrast Sita, Draupadi and Damayanti. What do these three women have in common? What are the differences between them? What are the outstanding character traits of Damayanti, and does she share those feature in common with these other women? What do you think Draupadi could learn from Damayanti's story? What could Sita learn from her story?
or
Creative Writing + Analysis Option: Although the ascetics in the forest tell Damayanti to return home, she ignores their advice and goes with the caravan to Chedi. Why does Damayanti not follow their advice? Imagine the thoughts that are going through Damayanti's mind as she decides to follow the caravan. What are her hopes? her fears? Why does she choose to ignore the advice that was given to her? What are the main thoughts in her mind as she sets off on the journey to Chedi? After you finish your portrait of Damayanti, provide a brief analysis of the character traits you tried to bring out in this portrait.

Śakuni
Traditional Essay Option: What do you make of Śakuni's character? How does his character suit him for the role that he plays in the plot of the epic? Compare and contrast Śakuni's character with that of Karna and that of Duryodhana, the three characters who are most destructive to the Pandavas. What are the motivations of these three characters, and how does Śakuni contribute to their group dynamic? Do you notice any striking differences in the way Śakuni was presented in Narayan's version of the story and the way that Śakuni is presented by Buck?
or
Creative Writing + Analysis Option: Śakuni is Gandhari's brother, yet we do not see a scene where the two of them confront one another. Imagine a confrontation between Śakuni and Gandhari before the game of dice. Gandhari has heard about the plans, and she confronts her brother about it. What would Śakuni say in his own defense? How would he explain himself to his sister? (You may or may not have other characters participate in this conversation as well.) After you tell your story, don't forget to include some analysis of Śakuni's character and how you see his role in the court at Hastinapura.

 

Modern Languages MLLL-4993. Indian Epics. Laura Gibbs, Ph.D. The textual material made available at this website is licensed under a Creative Commons License. You must give the original author credit. You may not use this work for commercial purposes. If you alter, transform, or build upon this work, you may distribute the resulting work only under a license identical to this one. No claims are made regarding the status of images used at this website; if you own the copyright privileges to any of these images and believe your copyright privileges have been violated, please contact the webmaster. Page last updated: January 15, 2005 1:35 AM