The Bull
Bhimnidhi Tiwari
Summary:
The Bull Is a one-act play
written by famous Nepali poet and Dramatist Bhimnidhi Tiwari. The play shows the
strong love of Ranabahadur Shah towards the four-footed animals. He was fond of
bulls. The play makes a satire on the feudal system which dehumanizes human
beings in the 18th Century. The play turns around the death of king
Ranabahadur’s bull and the panic condition of the bull doctor and cowherds
after that. The setting of the play is the yard of Laxminarayan. It takes place
at dawn in the month of Ashwin of 1854 B.S. The two cowherds Gore and Jitman
arrive there feeling so nervous and worried. They come there to inform about
the death of the bull of king Ranabahadur Shah. Now, Laxmi, Jitman and Gore are
all very worried about the possible punishment from the king. He can even give
them the death penalty. Laxmi is afraid of saving them from the happening. Gore
explains that the bull died because it didn’t get enough food (grass) and
couldn’t digest fine rice and soup of split gram. Laxmi suggests Gore and
Jitman not tell “the bull has died”.
He also says them to go to the
bull and care for it and go to the palace to tell about the illness of the
bull. Laxmi reaches the courtyard of Basantpur palace to inform about the ill
health of the bull. Laxmi bows down to the king with full respect uttering
Swosti and informs him that the bull is ill instead of saying the bull has
died. He says “The bull doesn’t wake up and eat breakfast. He doesn’t speak or
move. He is sleeping as if he is relaxed….”. Laxmi describes the good habits of
the bull and proposes to be taken to the hill to heal the health of the bull.
Due to climate change. Then the king himself wants to check the bull’s
condition and goes to the cowshed located at Thulo Gauchar on the palanquin
with a convoy. Before the king reaches there, Jitman and Gore wait desperately
to hear the decision of the king. They are in the cowshed beside the dead bull.
They even think of escaping to
save their life but they think they will be arrested again and killed. Laxmi
runs ahead of the convoy at Thulo Gauchar to tell Gore and Jitman to massage
the back feet of the bull and wave the fan at the bull. They do as Laxmi has
suggested. Laxmi grinds medicine for the bull. Ranabahadur reaches there and
calls the bull but he doesn’t get up. Laxmi tells the king that they have been
caring for the bull since midnight. The bull is in fact lying dead on the
mattress. It is neither breathing nor eating anything. Its tail has loosened
and ears have drooped down. Yet, the cowherds and Laxmi cannot declare their
death due to fear. King Ranabahadur Shah himself says the bull is dead. After
listening to the king, Jitman starts crying and says he has been an orphan
after the bull’s death. The King asks Dahal to console him. He also declares a
tip of 400 rupees and tells to be quiet. Gore also does the same as Jitman.
The king again declares the tip
of 500 rupees to Gore. At last, Laxminarayan himself starts weeping and
pretends to be in agony. The king scolds him to shut up and orders him to bury
the bull with his own hands. He also asks him to manage the funeral rites and
give offerings to the priest himself. At last, Jitman and Gore take a deep
breath to be alive. In this way, the one-act play ends. The play shows the
feudal society of that time. It also shows the condition of normal citizens how
they are sucked by the kings and how their condition is.
Understanding the text
Answer the following questions.
A.
Why have Gore and Jitman come to see
Laxminarayan?
Gore and Jitman have come to see
Laxmi Narayan because they want to tell him about the death of King
Ranabahadur’s bull.
B.
What, according to cowherds, is the
reason behind the death of Male?
According to cowherds, the reason
behind the death of the male was that he couldn’t eat more grass and couldn’t
digest fine rice and a split gram soup.
C.
Why does Ranabahadur want to see the bull
himself?
Rana Bahadur wants to see the
bull himself because he wants to see and examine the condition of the bull. He
wants the bull to be cured if possible at Gauchar, Kathmandu so it doesn’t need
to be transported to a hill.
D.
Why does Laxminarayan run ahead of the
convoy at Thulo Gauchar?
Laxminarayan runs ahead of the
convoy at Thulo Gauchar because he wants to convey the message to cowherds to
tell them to take care of the bull. He urges to massage the bull’s back feet
and wave the fan at the bull. In actuality, he wants to show king Rana bahadur
shah that they are taking care of the bull. If not, the king would become angry
and he would punish them.
E.
Why do Gore and Jitman cry when the king
declares that Male is dead?
Gore and Jitman cry when the king
declares that male is dead to show their supposed sympathy and affection for
the bull. They cry in a pompous manner, seeking the king’s forgiveness. They
want an excuse from the king’s punishment. Otherwise, the king may become
enraged and may punish them, making them responsible for the bull’s death.
F.
How do we learn that the bull is dead?
There are various indications of
the bull’s death. The conversation between cowherds, Laxminarayan and the king
clearly indicates the death of the bull. Alongside the physical appearance of
the bull as his eyes are motionless, tail has loosened, it was breathless and
ears were dropped down and he was unable to eat anything.
G.
How does the play make a satire on the
feudal system?
The play ‘the bull’ written by
Bhimnidhi Tiwari is one of the mirrors of the feudal system and its terrific
act. The horrible acts towards ordinary people by the feudal system have been
tried to show as it was then in the play. The domination and dehumanization
towards ordinary people have been tried to portray in the play. The feudal
system at its best is cruel and doesn’t value the people. In the play, the
survived cowherds are presented in such a panic even though they have survived
by the mercy of their lord. The play shows that the king’s animal receives more
respect, comfort and care than the people there. The people there are living in
terror and they are hiding their reality in order to save their lives in front
of the king. Thus the play satires on the feudal system showing the oppression
and dehumanization of the king’s workers.
H.
Write down the plot of the play in a
paragraph.
The play ‘The Bull’ was written
by well-known Nepali poet and dramatist, Bhimnidhi Tiwari. The plot of this
play shows the emotional connection between bull and King Rana Bahadur Shah.
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.
As we know, during the eighteenth
century the monarchy system was prevalent in Nepal. Nepal was ruled by the shah
dynasty. They were used to being strict and so is the Nepalese society.
People’s choices were under the king’s or ruler’s dominance. They weren’t free
to conduct their lives.
The same similarity is portrayed
in the play ‘the bull’. It shows a horrible society in which people are
compelled to lavender the terror of kings or lords. Their masters treated them
horrifically. Also if they or their opinion went against the masters, they were
punished. This play shows the miserable life condition of Nepalese society.
People were not given even
fundamental rights. They were deprived of political and financial knowledge.
They were bound by patriarchal rules and ideals. The society was purely male
dominated. Men’s were allowed to marry multiple wives. In this play,
Laxminarayan also has seven wives. And the king had complete control over the
lives of common people.
B.
What does the relation between
Laxminarayan and his wives tell us about the society of that time? To what
extent has the Nepali society changed since then?
Laxminarayan is the main
character of the play and a Forty years old legal officer and king’s bull’s
doctor. Taking the scenario of his relationship with his wives, he has seven
wives. Yet he is not satisfied with all of them and he is planning to marry his
eighth wife. He calls his wives with different nicknames. This practice of
having more wives shows about the male dominant society. Men’s are allowed to
marry multiple wives whereas women’s are compelled to live their life under the
full dominance and violence of their husbands. Women’s were illiterate and
unconscious about their rights. People especially women’s are deprived of
political and financial knowledge. Child marriage was prevalent at that time.
Society was reliant on male supremacy.
But the Nepalese society has altered this situation dramatically since then. The current situation of Nepali society and especially Nepali women is significantly better. Human rights and women rights are there to protect them with their basic rights. The literacy rate of women has also increased substantially. They were in a higher power of economic and political authority. The concept of equality and equity is operational in Nepalese society. Many of the patriarchal traditions like child marriage and prathas are at the end. Many organizations are working for the betterment of women. Overall the society is significantly changed.
C. Shed light on the practice of
chakari as portrayed in the play. Have you noticed this practice in your
society?
The practice of chakari was
prevalent and very popular during the king’s rule. During the royal system,
there used to be a craze or we can say the majority of people were involved in
the chakari of their leaders, monarchs and lords. Chakari was famous for
gaining wealth or gifts from the king. They aimed to please the king by doing
chakari and receiving wealth. They do chakari in the hope of their advancement
of life and living but meanwhile, there are serious consequences if they do not
perform correctly.
The practice of chakari was shown
very perfectly in the play too. The play’s main characters Laxminarayan and
cowherds Gore and Jitman are frequently seen as doing the chakari of their
king. Laxminarayan was once also punished due to his bad deed of speaking in a
loud voice in front of the king. They used to be very anxious from the deed of
kings. When the bull dies, Laxminarayan is so aware of the king’s anger and
punishment so he picks his moves carefully to save his and cowherds life from
severe
punishment. In the play, it is
shown that they are calling the bull by “the bull sir“. Therefore the action of
Laxminarayan and cowherds demonstrates the chakari they are doing.
D.
How does Laxminarayan outsmart Rana
Bahadur?
Laxminarayan outsmarts Rana
Bahadur with his great trickery. Laxminarayan is 40 years old, one of the legal
officers and doctors of the king’s bull. As Gore and Jitman inform him about
the death of the king’s bull, he rushes to the king’s palace. He has the
amazing talent of flattering the king away from his emotion. He knew the king
will be angry and enraged by the death of the bull, so Laxminarayan didn’t
inform immediately. Rather than telling the truth immediately, he tells the
bull about the bull’s sickness to the king. He even tells cowherds to massage
and wave fans at the bull. By this action, the king believes the bull died due
to sickness despite excellent care and treatment. It helps to protect the lives
of cowherds. This way Laxminarayan flattered the king and protected the life of
his and cowherds from the king’s severe punishment.
E.
Sketch the character of Laxminarayan.
Laxmi Narayan Dahal is one of the main characters of the play ‘the bull’. he is forty years old, one of the legal officers and king’s bull’s doctor. He is married to seven wives. It is shown that he is still unsatisfied with all of them despite having seven different women at home. He is planning to marry eighth wife. When he learns about the king’s bull’s death, he flatters the king using his intellectual moves. Instead of telling the news immediately, he tells the king about the bull’s sickness first. When the king arrives at the cowshed at thulo Gauchar to see his bull, Laxminarayan tells the cowherds to massage and wave fan to the bull in order to please the king and save his life. due to this act of Laxminarayan and cowherd, they were saved from the king’s punishment. Therefore, we can say Laxminarayan was a cunning man and he unmastered the king with his trickery.