In “Punishment,” author Tagore explores the ethical problem of lying when he writes, “Chidam’s only thought was to escape from the terrible truth – he forgot that a lie can be even more terrible,” (894). Through the use of the words “even more,” this quote suggests the idea that more lies have more consequences than the truth, even when the truth is terrible. Tagore demonstrates the belief that nothing good can come out of lies, and in fact, only bad things can come from it. This foreshadows the ending of the play, when Chidam’s wife dies a horrible death as a result of the lie her own husband said. The foreshadowing stems from the use of the word “escape,” which, when paired with the phrase “only thought,” gives readers the idea that this was last-ditch effort by Chidam, rather than a solid plan. By Chidam lying, he did not make the situation better; instead, he botched it further with a weak lie. By the way Tagore frames Chidam’s attempt at mitigating his problem in a desperate light, it is implied that this lie will be the cause of great trouble throughout the rest of the story.
Assignment 7
October 30, 2015 Written by mf152788 | 2 Comments
Categories: Uncategorized
2 responses so far ↓
al158379 // Oct 31st 2015 at 9:38 am
I agree with your idea that the phrasing of the quote leads to the foreshadowing of what happens. By the author stating that he forgot that a lie can be even more terrible, means what is going to happen can only get worse until the reader comprehends this lesson that lying once will only make the outcome worse that it would have been, had you told the truth. By continually saying terrible we know that the outcome will indeed be terrible, which is the sacrifice of Chandara.
JMERLE // Oct 31st 2015 at 12:19 pm
Milly,
What a nice analysis of your chosen quote! And you choose an ethical issue that many people don’t seem to notice, the ethics of lying. You also do a nice job connecting this issue/quote with the ending.
Great!
10/10