Entertainment by Nissim Ezekiel [Summary & Interpretation]

Entertainment by Nissim Ezekiel [Summary & Interpretation]

Summary of the Poem

The poem is about a street monkey show and the reaction of the people watching it. The poem Entertainment by Nissim Ezekiel is about a street monkey show. The poet has beautifully depicted the monkey show performance and the general reactions of the people watching the show.

A poor girl is performing the monkey show; she is sitting patiently, holding the strings to which the performing monkeys are bound; she has a baby in her arms. Monkeys are wearing red and purple pantaloons and are about to begin the dance. A crowd of people starts collecting to see the show; a boy is the master of ceremonies; he plays a handheld drum and cracks a whip. The monkeys begin to perform.  More and more people collect to see the climax of the performance.  In the crowd are children, untouchable women, and a coolie; all of them are happy, but the monkeys are sad.  

And all of sudden, the baby in the girl’s arms begins to cry. Most of the people go away as the performance heads towards ending without paying anything to the girl and the boy performing the monkey show. However, a few of the people give them the smallest coins. And thus the show carries on.

Interpretation

The poet describes the street monkey shown by a poor girl. She sits with great patience, holding the strings to make the monkey dance.  She has a baby in her arms.  The situation of the poor girl is very pathetic. It shows the sufferings of the poor girl.  She has another mouth to feed.  The small child in her arms suffers with her without knowing the situation.  Life is a struggle for the poor girl and the child.  The monkeys are wearing tiny red and purple pantaloons and

getting ready to dance.  The crowd gather and stands in a circle. The master of the performance cracks a whip more crowd gather to applaud the show.  Then they offer a few coins.  The children laugh and enjoy the show even the untouchable woman adjusts her uncombed hair and enjoy the show.  The word untouchable woman is a serious word which brings out the cultural background of India.  The traditional approach of the people who differentiate the society in the name of caste and profession is well expressed here.  

A coolie smiles and enjoys the show.  He shows his white teeth which shine in the sunlight.  But the monkeys are sad.  Suddenly the baby cries.  It is the time for the collection.  The time has come for the crowd to disperse from there as they are not interested to pay for the show. But few offer few coins and the show moves with the expectation of more.  There is no change in the situation of the monkey show as well as the crowd.  The show continues and the people peep on and off. 

The reactions of the crowd are different.  Part of the crowd dissolves, and the other part departs in shame offering a few coins. But the show continues else the monkey and master would starve.  It is a usual scene on the rural roadside of India. The poet brings out the darkness of the Indian society which cannot be justified as everyone has their needs and wants and obviously India is a thickly populated country where the daily struggle for survival is a question mark.

About the Poet Nissim Ezekiel

Nissim Ezekiel was born on 16th December 1924.  He was an Indian Jewish poet, actor, playwright, editor and critic.  The Ezekiels belonged to Mumbai’s Marathi-speaking Jewish-speaking community.\in 1947, he completed his B.A. in literature.  1947 – 48 he published literary articles.  He studied philosophy.  He was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award for his work “Later Day Psalms”

Nissim Ezekiel has been appreciated for his well-crafted work dealing with common and simple subjects.  He enriched Indian English Literature with his Modern Techniques.  His service to Indian English Literature helped immensely to move beyond spiritual themes.  In his works, he included various emotions such as anger, disappointments, familial events and social interest.  He has been described as the “Father of Post-Independence Indian Verse in English” his very popular works are “The Night of the Scorpion and the “The Patriot.  They have enjoyed it till now.  After a prolonged struggle with Alzheimer’s disease, Nissim died in Mumbai on 9th January 2004 at the age of 79.