Characters:
Ranabahadur Shah
Laxminarayan Dahal
Jitman
Gore
Summary
Bhimnidhi Tiwari's one-act play "The Bull" uses an incident involving Ranabhadhur Shah's obsession with bulls to satirize the feudal system, which reduces humans to the level of animals and makes their existence dependent on subservience to four-legged creatures like bulls.
Set in the month of Ashwin in 1854 BS, the play centers around the news of the death of King Ranabahadur Shah's prized bull, which is brought to Laxminarayan Dahal's attention by cowherds Gore and Jitman. Fearful of punishment, Laxminarayan warns the cowherds not to tell the king about the bull's death, as it could lead to severe consequences for them all.
Laxminarayan then goes to the Basantpur palace to inform the king about the bull's illness, but instead of admitting to its death, he extols its virtues and proposes taking it to the hills for better treatment. The king agrees to visit the cowshed where the bull is being kept accompanied by a convoy.
Jitman and Gore anxiously wait at the cowshed, fearing for their lives, Laxminarayan instructs them to massage the bull's hind feet and wave a fan to make it seem as it is still alive. The king arrives and Laxminarayan continues to deceive him by describing the bull's supposed condition.
Eventually, the king realizes that the bull is dead, and he announces a reward for those who cared for it, with Jitman and Gore expressing their grief. Laxminarayan pretends to be in pain and is scolded by the king, who orders him to arrange for the bull's funeral and make offerings to the priest.
The play highlights the dehumanization, servitude, and subjugation prevalent in feudal society, where animals of the wealthy are treated with more respect than ordinary people.
Understanding the Text
a. Why have Gore and Jitman come to see Laxminarayan?
Answer:
Gore and jitman have come to see Laxminarayan to inform about the death of the bull of the king.
b. What, according to cowherds, is the reason behind the death of Male?
Answer:
According to the cowherds the bull died because it didn't get enough food and couldn't digest fine rice and soup of split gram.
c. Why does Ranabahadur want to see the bull himself?
Answer:
Ranabahadur wants to see the bull himself because he wants to check the bull's condition and doesn't want the bull to be taken to the hill if it gets cured at Thulo Gaucharan.
d. Why does Laxminarayan run ahead of the convoy at Thulo Gauchar?
Answer:
Laxminarayan runs ahead of the convoy at Thulo Gaucharan to tell the cowherds to massage the hind feet of the bull and wave the fan at the bull to please the king.
e. Why do Gore and Jitman cry when the king declares that Male is dead?
Answer:
When the king declares that the Male is dead, Gore and Jitman didn't actually cry. They were rather pretending to be crying to have mercy of the king on them otherwise the king might punish them and blame them for the death of the bull.
f. How do we learn that the bull is dead?
Answer:
We learn that the bull has died when the cowherds say the bull's tail has loosened and eyes are still and the king also says, "The bull does not breathe, his tail has loosened, ears have drooped down, and doesn't eat anything either.
g. How does the play make a satire on the feudal system?
Answer:
The feudal system dehumanized the ordinary people. Their life was at the mercy and grace of their lords. To save their life, they hid the truth and pretended something else. Animals of lords got more respect and facility than the common people. In this way, the play makes a satire on the feudal system.
Reference to the Context
a. Discuss the late eighteenth century Nepali society as portrayed in terms of the relation between the king and his subjects as portrayed in the play.
Answer:
In the late eighteenth century in Nepal the Shah dynasty was ruling in Nepal. There was no much freedom for the people like today. People lived under the domination of the king and his men. Ordinary people's condition was worse than animals. Even if someone didn't bow down to the lords with respect to the lords/kings, people were punished. There were no fundamental rights as we are enjoying today. People lacked political awareness. Women lived under the male domination. One could have as many wives as he wished like Laxminarayan in the play. Laxminarayan has 7 wives and still he is planning to marry another. Life of the people was at the mercy of the kings/lords.
b. What does the relation between Laxminarayan and his wives tell us about the society of that time? To what extent has Nepali society changed since then?
Answer:
Laxminarayan is a bichari (legal officer) and bull doctor of the king Ranabahadur Shah. He is 40 years old. Having 7 wives, he is not satisfied and still he is planning to marry another. He calls his wives with derogatory names such as flat-nosed, beautiful, butterfly, swallow, ugly face, etc. From this, it can be guessed that women were suppressed and dominated. Polygamy was a common practice at that time. The main causes behind it were illiteracy, poverty, lack of awareness and feudal rule.
Todays society has more changed. Women's awareness and literacy has increased significantly. They are not confined within the four walls of the house. They are capable of holding the highest positions of the country.
Women have been given special nights and protection. Many NGOS and INGOS are advocating their rights.
c. How does Laxminarayan outsmart Ranabahaur Shah?
Answer:
Laxminarayan is the bull doctor of the king Ranabahadur Shah. When the bull dies, Laxminarayan doesn't directly tell the death of the bull to the king because the king could be angry. He says the bull is ill. He orders the cowherds proper care and treatment just in front of him in this way. Laxminarayan outsmarts the king Ranabahadur Shah.
d. Shed light on the practice of chakari as portrayed in the play. Have you noticed this practice in your society?
Answer:
Chakari was the common practice during king's rule. Common people served and greeted the kings and their lords to massage and wave a fan at the bull with great respect even if they did want to do it from their heart in this play, Laxminarayn and two cowherds are doing the chakari of the king Ranabahadur Shah. They themselves sleep on the straw in the cowshed. They pretend to love the bull and massage the bull's feet and wave the fan at the bull to please the king. They say 'bull sir' even to the animal.
Even today, we can see people doing chakari in several ways. Mainly, people do chakari of the political leaders. For getting the jobs and promotion in different posts, people go to the high level political leaders and even bribe them.
At local levels, common people are found to be doing chakari of their leaders to get their favour..
e. Sketch the character of Laxminarayan.
Answer:
Laxminarayan Dahal is a 40 year-old legal officer and bull doctor of the king Ranabadur Shah. He has seven wives but he is not satisfied with them. He wants to marry another woman. When the bull of the king dies, he acts very smartly to save his and cowherds' lives from the king's punishment. He doesn't directly tell the news of the bull's death to the king. He is good at doing chakari of the king. So, he orders the cowherds to massage and wave fan at the dead bull to please the king. Due to his smart technique, their lives have been saved. In this way, we can say that Laxminarayan is capable enough to adjust, handle and act accordingly in the then context of servitude and flattery.
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