Storm in Robinson Crusoe

Robinson Crusoe Crusoe’s father wanted him to study law, but his mind was filled with “rambling thoughts” of going to the sea. His parents strongly opposed his idea. His father advised him not to set out on sea life for adventure or for riches. He said that if Crusoe did not pay heed to his advice he would soon find himself a most miserable fellow ever born. Crusoe resolved to follow his father’s advice and was calm for few days. But before long, he was again overcome by a desire to leave home and go to the sea. He stayed no more than a year when he made up his mind to quit.

One day Crusoe went to the seaport of Hull casually without any purpose. There he happened to meet one of his acquaintances who was going to London by his father’s ship. This friend offered him a free passage to London in the same ship. Inspired by his friend, Crusoe boarded the ship bound for London on the 1^st September 1651. No sooner had the ship sailed out of the harbor than a strong wind began to blow. For the first time, Crusoe faced the storm on the sea and so he felt indescribably sick both in body and mind which reminded him of his father’s warning. Immediately he took a vow that he would go directly home to his father and mother and never would think of venturing on a ship.

On the sixth day of Crusoe’s first voyage to London, the ship entered the waters of the Yarmouth harbor. The ship was compelled to drop anchor as the wind was against the purpose. The ship stayed there for seven or eight days waiting for a favorable wind. But on the eight day, in the morning, the wind developed into a storm. Soon the storm turned into a terrific tempest. The waves were raising mountain high and they broke upon the ship every three or four minutes. The ship was being so badly shaken that the sailors began to cry in fear. At midnight it was discovered that the ship had sprung a leak, and that the water in the hold of the ship was already four feet high. All the sailors were called to the pump. Everybody worked their best to save the ship from sinking. The severity of the exertion was so high that Crusoe fell into a swoon. As he recovered consciousness he found that the captain ordered his men to fire ship’s guns as a signal of distress seeking help. In response to the signal, a passing ship lowered one of its boats. As there was no hope of survival for the ship, all the sailors managed to get into the boat. A little later they found their ship sinking into the sea. Somehow Robinson Crusoe and his fellow sailors managed safely to land the shore near Winterton.

After two years of slavery, he succeeds to escape from his master and goes to Brazil where he establishes himself as a plantation owner. However, he was not satisfied with settled life. He finds that he leads the same life which his father has recommended to him. Once again he is overcome by a desire to wander abroad. It was an evil hour on the 1^st September 1659 when Crusoe boarded the ship in the company of other merchants. Incidentally it was the same unlucky date on which Crusoe launched into his first voyage from the port of Hull.

For twelve days Crusoe and his companions sailed fairly without any hazard. But when they crossed Ecuador, a violent storm began to blow driving their ship in a direction which they could not determine. For the next ten or twelve days they found themselves helpless in the face of the storm. In that distress one of their men died of a high fever, and one man and a boy-servant were washed overboard. On the twelfth day the weather improved somewhat, but on the next day the second storm came and the ship was carried away westward driving them out of the way of human commerce.

The ship had become leaky and very soon it struck against a sand bank and got stuck there. Then the sailors lowered a boat into the sea in order to get to the shore. Soon the boat was overwhelmed by a mountain like wave. The wave was so strong and furious that all men were washed away from the boat and perished in the sea with the exception of Crusoe who was carried ashore. Crusoe soon learns he is the only survivor of the expedition.

He was cast ashore on a deserted island for twenty-eight years. It helped him to be transformed from an unsure, immature, and disobedient son to a religious, experienced man with a strong faith in God and strong set of morals and values. He experienced a religious transformation. He was transformed from reckless and rush to steady. Crusoe realizes his fault and as a result he is forgiven by God. He is rescued by an English ship after a twenty-eight-year isolation on a desert island. 

International Mother Language Day

To human beings, mother language is as favorite thing as like their lives. With the use of mother language, people present the identity of their nation to the world. Bengali language was born almost thousand years ago after going through evolution. The history of the evolution of Bengali language is very old. Like all things in material world, language is also changeable. These words are equally applicable to our mother tongue Bengali. Out of four thousand languages on earth, Bengali comes sixth in terms of number of speakers around the world. Almost 25 crore people speak in Bengali language, which is a great pride for us. Writing literature in Bengali language, many litterateurs have earned special fame in this world. Creating literature in Bengali language, Rabindranath Tagore won Nobel Prize in 1913. With the achievement of Nobel Prize by Rabindranath Tagore, the status of Bengali language was elevated to the international standard in the world. Giving speech in Bengali in a session of the United Nations in 1974, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman also held the glory of Bengali language very high.

Bengali’s sole-searching regarding the status of Bengali language in Bengal gave birth to a spirit of language, which later on influenced the beginning of language movement in November–December, 1947 in the post-partition Dhaka, the capital of East Pakistan. In March 1948, a small protest took place on this matter and on 21 February 1952, it exploded. On 21 February 1952, the spirit that stimulated Bengalis to establish their mother tongue in a fitting dignified place by sacrificing their blood has now been recognized internationally, going beyond the country’s border.  

Based on the two-nation theory, Pakistan as a nation emerged in 1947 following the partition of British India. But there were many fundamental differences between the two parts of Pakistan, East Pakistan and West Pakistan, in terms of culture, geography and language. In 1948, Pakistan government declared that Urdu would be the only state language of Pakistan. In the context of this announcement, there arose a deep-rooted discontent and adverse reaction among the Bengali-speaking general people in East Pakistan. With the demand of equal status for Bengali language, movement began pretty rapidly in East Pakistan.

The police imposed the section 144 to stop the movement. On 21 February 1952, by disobeying this order, a number of students and some progressive political activists of the University of Dhaka jointly started the procession. When the procession arrived near Dhaka Medical College, police fired on protesters on the pretext of the contempt of section 144. The roads were colored with the blood of martyrs. Intense anger broke out in all over East Pakistan following this tragic incident. In the face of growing mass movement, the central government of Pakistan was forced to concede defeat. Bengali language was recognized as one of the state languages of Pakistan in the constitution adopted in 1956.

Recognition as the International Mother Language Day:

In 1998, Rafiqul Islam and Abdus Salam, two non-residential-Bangladeshis living in Vancouver, Canada, requested Kofi Annan, the then Secretary General of the United Nations, to declare 21st February as the International Mother Language Day. They were the first Bangladeshis to take this initiative. The 21st February was declared as the International Mother Language Day in Paris session of UNESCO held on 17 November 1999, and since 21st February 2000, it has been celebrated in the United Nations member states with due respect. On 21 October 2010, at the 65th session of the United Nations General Assembly, the United Nations passed a resolution that every year from now on, they would celebrate the International Mother Language Day on 21 February. To recognize February 21 as the ‘International Mother Language Day’, the government of Bangladesh sent a written proposal to UNESCO, which was passed with absolute support at the 30th General Conference of that organization on 17 November 1999.

Sources-

http://uttarannews.net/site2/?article=%E0%A6%86%E0%A6%A8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%B0%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%9C%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%95-%E0%A6%AE%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%A4%E0%A7%83%E0%A6%AD%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B7%E0%A6%BE-%E0%A6%A6%E0%A6%BF%E0%A6%AC

http://uttarannews.net/site2/?article=আন্তর্জাতিক-মাতৃভাষা-দিব

Narendrapur: A village of cricket bat

In our country, at this moment, the name of the most popular sport is ‘cricket’. For good performance of our cricketers at international tournaments, this game has become popular in rural areas of Bangladesh. So, a lot of cricket equipments are being sold everywhere in the country. There was a time when all types of cricket equipments were imported from abroad. But time has changed. Advanced equipments are still brought from abroad, but many of these equipments are now made in our country. Cricket bat is one of them. Narendrapur area of Jashore is one of the suppliers of cricket bat all over the country. In this village, by using local technology, so many cricket bats are being manufactured and sold. Hence, it has become famous as the “Village of cricket bat”. Many people have changed their fortunes by making cricket bats.

Narendrapur village is about 19 kilometers away from Jashore city. Mistripara (an area having a number of artisans) of that village is specially known as the ‘village of cricket bat’. This fairy tale story was started by the villager Sanjit Majumder.

On behalf of The Bangla Tribune, I went to Narendrapur to find Sanjit Majumder, the artisan of cricket bat. Upon searching for a while, neighbors showed me his house. The story of making cricket bat is heard from his mouth.

Sanjit said, “In 1984, I visited my elder sister’s house in West Bengal, India. Seeing many wooden artworks there, I got the idea of doing something new. Afterwards, coming back home, I along with my nephew, tried to make something new. Cricket attracted me a lot. Owing to this, I talked with brother Babu, the owner of a sports shop ‘Leading Sports’ in Jashore and resident of Ghop area. He advised us to start making cricket bat. In 1986, under the inspiration of brother Babu, I along with my nephew made the cricket bat for the first time. Initially, we used to sell those bats in Jashore. Brother Babu inspired us to make even more bats. That was the beginning and we did not have to look back since then. Afterwards, this bat spread to the surrounding areas of Jashore.”

Sanjit further said, “In 1986, we first made bat by hand. That year, we started selling those bats in local market. Having seen our success in this business, many people started making bats.”

Cricket bat factories have now been spread to other villages beyond Narendrapur, such as Mohajerpara, Balrampur, Rudrapur etc. In total, more than 60-65 factories have been built. At the beginning, in those factories, all works were done manually, but many people are now doing it with machine. As a result, the production speed has been increased. In those factories, around 50-60 thousand bats are being made in a month.

Sanjit said that Chatian, Kadam, Neem, Jibon, Pithagara, Amra and other different types of local woods are used to make bat. Alongside the employees, the housewife and children of the family also lend their hands in making cricket bats by doing little things such as applying pudding as well as putting sticker on bats, packaging, scrubbing etc.

Workers involved in production of cricket bats said that if they make 100 bats, they get Tk 1000-1500 in wage. It is possible for them to make 400 bats in a week. Others do the work of applying pudding, putting sticker and polishing bat.

Omar Ali has been working in cricket bat factory for 10-11 years in this area. He said, “Cost of each bat is Tk 55-60. It is sold at Tk 70. Three workers under my direction do this work.” He also revealed, “I am now quite well-off than before.”

Omar Ali also said that apart from the market in Jashore, cricket bats made by them are bought by businessmen from the regions of Bogura, Dinajpur, and Rangpur.”

Source- http://www.banglatribune.com/country/news/72875/যশোরের-নরেন্দ্রপুর-এখন-‘ব্যাটের-গ্রাম

Blind singer Rajib runs his family singing song

Begging is an art of asking alms to someone modestly or earnestly. This art gets its fulfillment when the person engaged in begging can get some money or food as bounty or charity. However, it is easier to ask for help to someone but hard to get something in exchange. If the person the beggar approaches is penny-pincher or ill-mannered then it becomes a big challenge to even bring out a one taka coin from his or her pocket. With the advancement of time, this profession is changing. If you watch English movies, you might have seen that people take alms in exchange of entertainment. They play several musical instruments or perform pantomime on the street and people happily donate them money. It looks like this trend is going to start in our country too. A person named Rajib sings song at a certain place on a certain time and in exchange, he gets money by which he runs his family. Here is the story of this person. 

Singing many popular songs like “Brother, give me just a penny, I don’t need 100 taka, 500 taka” (একটা টাকা দাওনা ও ভাই একটা টাকা দাওনা) or “This world is a gathering of blind people” (এসব দেখি কানার হাটবাজার), blind singer Rajib has been bathed in love by his listeners while carrying on with his burdensome life.

Rajib’s home is at Sindukai village in Tanore Upazila of Rajshahi district. Everyone in Rajshahi and its surrounding areas knows him as blind Rajib who sings song.

Many fans of Rajib said, “To earn some money by singing song, Rajib more or less goes to Bhabaniganj New Market terrace of Baghmara. He earns quite well singing for an hour at the New Market terrace on Friday during market day.” There, in conversation with Rajib at the break of song, the reporter came to know about his life story.

Blind Rajib has been supporting his family singing song for almost 10 years. He has to provide food to his family consisting of eight members including his wife, two daughters, parents and two siblings. But the beginning of his life was not like this. At childhood, being affected by typhoid suddenly, Rajib lost his vision of his both eyes and his two legs gradually became numb. He lost his ability to walk. He became a big burden of his parents’ poverty stricken family. The only path left open to him was begging. But self-conscious Rajib took decision of doing something instead of taking any step in this path. His voice is quite nice. So, he took decision of earning some money by singing song. But who will provide him musical instrument? So, Rajib started singing relying on his own voice without any musical instrument. Later, he used a silver-colored water jar as a musical instrument to keep the song’s rhythm perfect. And this way, Rajib’s song reaches to the heart of the audience.

Rajib said that videos of his songs were uploaded on YouTube. If you search on YouTube with the name “Blind Rajib beats the pitcher” (রাজিব কানা কলসি বাজায়) then you will see videos of his songs. At present, he earns Tk 500-1000 daily by singing songs at the market place. Now, to sing song, Rajib has added a sound box along with water jar.

Rajib said that Tanore Municipality Mayor helped him to buy this sound box. With the help of Mayor, he sang four songs at a concert in Foy's Lake in Chittagong and received Tk 14,000 honorarium last year. On his way home, he bought this sound box from Pabna for Tk 5500. The sound box generates more volume which means more people can now hear him singing. More people now gather to listen to his song. Everyone loves his songs and in return, gives him Tk 5-10. Now, he does not return home empty handed. And in this way Rajib is somehow managing his life. But if he sometimes cannot song due to storm-rain or weather, Rajib’s family has to suffer. 

Source-

http://www.ittefaq.com.bd/wholecountry/2018/08/11/166733.html

Transformation of Sentences Part Four (4): Assertive to Imperative

“Transformation of sentences” is one of the few difficult English grammar rules. Most of the students fall into big trouble when it comes to change the pattern of sentences without changing their meaning. Despite being a complicated one, a student or a job holder or an English language learner cannot avoid this part. Without learning this grammar rule, one cannot achieve mastery of the English language. Moreover, questions from this grammar part often come in competitive examinations, such as- BCS, Bank, Varsity admission etc. In this article, I have shown several problems related to “Assertive to Imperative” and their solutions. I hope you will find this article useful. If you find any mistake, do not hesitate to mention it in the comment box. 

Transform the following sentence into imperative:

1.       We should go out.

Answer: Let us go out.

2.       Selim did not tell a lie.

Answer: Let not Selim tell a lie.

3.       She wants to go out.

Answer: Let her go out.

4.       We shall never tell a lie.

Answer: Let us never tell a lie.

5.       We do not look down upon the poor.

Answer: Let us not look down upon the poor.

6.       You do not go out.

Answer: Do not / Don’t go out.

7.       You should not go out in cold weather.

Answer: Do not / Don’t go out in cold weather.

8.       You should not kill your time.

Answer: Do not / Don’t kill your time.

9.       You read the book.

Answer: Please, read the book. Or, Read the book, please.

10.   You should think before you leap. / You should look before you leap.

Answer: Think before you leap. / Look before you leap

11.   You ought to obey your parents.

Answer: Obey your parents.

12.   You should not find fault with others.

Answer: Do not / Don’t find fault with others.

13.   He plays football.

Answer: Let him play football.

14.   We do not hate the poor.

Answer: Let us not hate the poor.

15.   We should settle the dispute.

Answer: Let us settle the dispute.

16.   You open the door.

Answer: Please, open the door. Or, Open the door, please.

17.   One should not ignore one’s duty.

Answer: Let one not ignore one’s duty.

18.   I shall not miss the class.

Answer: Let me not miss the class.

19.   I look after my parents.

Answer: Let me look after my parents.

20.   He does not want it.

Answer: Let him not want it.

21.   Nabil does not tell e lie.

Answer: Let not Nabil tell a lie.

22.   You should always speak the truth.

Answer: Always speak the truth.

23.   You never ought to disobey the rules.

Answer: Never disobey the rules.

24.   You are advised to read the whole book.  

Answer: Read the whole book.

25.   I request you to give me a glass of water.

Answer: Please, give me a glass of water. Or, Give me a glass of water, please.

26.   You are requested to help me.

Answer: Please, help me. Or, Help me, please.

27.   If you do not hurry up you will miss the bus.

Answer: Hurry up or you will miss the bus.

28.   You are asked to leave the room.

Answer: Please, leave the room.

29.   I asked you to stand up.

Answer: Please, stand up.

30.   I request you not to make a noise.

Answer: Please, do not make a noise.

31.   Would you post the letter for me, please?

Answer: Please, post the letter for me.

32. He should be warned. 

Answer: Let him be warned.

33.   Will you help my brother, please?

Answer: Please, help my brother. 

Transformation of Sentences Part Three (3): Assertive to Exclamatory

"Transformation of sentences" is perhaps the most complicated part of English grammar. Most students find it difficult to change the sentence from one format to another format without changing its meaning. However, questions from this grammar part are a must when it comes to any competitive examination, such as BCS, Bank, Varsity admission. Being good at it means the examinee or candidate having the highest possibility of getting enrolled in any good university or getting a good job offer. I hope this article will be helpful to many of you. If you find any mistake, do not hesitate to mention it in the comment box. 

Transformation of sentence from Exclamatory to Assertive: 

 

1.   What a fool you are!

Answer: You are a great fool.

2.   How talkative she was!

Answer: She was very talkative.

3.   How pretty the girl is!

Answer: The girl is very pretty.

4.   What a fine flower it is!

Answer: It is a very fine flower.

5.   Would that we could enter the house!

Answer: We wish we could enter the house.

6.   How exciting the first day in Cox’s Bazar is!

Answer: The first day in Cox’s Bazar is very exciting.

7.   How sweetly the cuckoo sings!

Answer: The cuckoo sings very sweetly.

8.   What a nice flower the rose is!

Answer: The rose is a very nice flower.

9.   What a big river the Padma is!

Answer: The Padma is a very big river.

10.                Hurrah! We have won the match.

Answer: It is a matter of joy that we have won the match.

11.                Hurrah! We are victorious.

Answer: It is a matter of joy that we are victorious.

12.                Alas! I am undone.

Answer: It is a matter of sorrow that I am undone.

13.                What a lovely place it is!

Answer: It is a very lovely place.

14.                How beautiful the youngest sister was!

Answer: The youngest sister was very beautiful.

15.                If I could be a child again!

Answer: I wish I could be a child again.

16.                Had I been a merchant!

Answer: I wish I had been a merchant.

17.                What a beautiful bird it is!

Answer: It is a very beautiful bird.

18.                How fortunate the porter was!

Answer: The porter was very fortunate.

19.                Had I possessed a lot of wealth!

Answer: I wish I had possessed a lot of wealth.

20.                How charming is the first meal in a strange town!

Answer: The first meal in a strange town is very charming.

21.                How charming still is Italy!

Answer: Italy is still very charming.

22.                How time does fly!

Answer: Time flies very fast.

23.                How deep her love for Selim was!

Answer: Her love for Selim was very deep.

24.                What a wonderful scenery it is!

Answer: It is a very wonderful scenery.

25.                If I were a millionaire!

Answer: I wish I were a millionaire.

26.                If I were a philosopher like Socrates!

Answer: I wish I were a philosopher like Socrates.

27.                How sweet the mango is!

Answer: The mango is very sweet.

28.                How tall the tower is!

Answer: The tower is very tall.

29.                What a pity it is!

Answer: It is a great pity.

30.                What a luxurious life he leads!

Answer: He leads a very luxurious life.

31.                Ah! What a sight was there!

Answer: There was a great sight.

32.                What a good command he has over English!

Answer: He has a very good command over English.

33.                Would that we may soon meet!

Answer: I wish we may soon meet.

34.                Fie! He is a traitor!

Answer: It is shameful that he is a traitor.

35.                Oh that we were freedom fighters!

Answer: I wish we were freedom fighters.

36.                Oh that I were safe at home!

Answer: I wish I were safe at home.

37.                Oh for the wings of a dove!

Answer: I wish for the wings of a dove.

38.                How correct his pronunciation is!

Answer: His pronunciation is much/very correct.

39.                How attractive his method of teaching is!

Answer: His method of teaching is very attractive.

40.                What a wonderful creature an elephant is!

Answer: An elephant is a wonderful creature.

41.                O that we two were infants playing!

Answer: I wish we two were infants playing.

42.                Oh that I were young again!

Answer: I wish I were young again.

43.                How poor was his performance in the SSC examination!

Answer: His performance in the SSC examination was very poor.

44.                How brightly the stars shine!

Answer: The stars shine very brightly.

45.                How sweetly the moonlight sleeps upon the bank!

Answer: The moonlight very sweetly sleeps upon the bank. / The moonlight sleeps most sweetly upon the bank.

46.                How fiercely the sun is shining!

Answer: The sun is shining very fiercely.

47.                How melodiously the parrot was singing!

Answer: The parrot was singing very melodiously.

48.                What a dangerous thing politics is!

Answer: Politics is a very dangerous thing.

49.                Fie! Fie! You are coward.

Answer: It is a matter of contempt that you are a coward.

 

Transformation of sentence from Assertive to Exclamatory:

 

1.   I wish I had the wings of a dove.

Answer: Had I the wings of a dove! / If I had the wings of a dove!

2.   A little learning is a very dangerous thing.

Answer: What a dangerous thing a little learning is!

3.   The heat was very terrible.

Answer: How terrible the heat was!

4.   She was very talkative.

Answer: How talkative she was!

5.   It was an exciting game.

Answer: What an exciting game it was!

6.   He leads a most unhappy life.

Answer: What an unhappy life he leads!

7.   I earnestly desire to see her once. / I wish I could see her once.

Answer: Would that I could see her once! / If I could see her once!

8.   The scenery of the place is very charming.

Answer: How charming the scenery of the place is!

9.   I wish I were young again.

Answer: If I were young again!

10.                It was a very lucky day.

Answer: What a lucky day it was!

11.                It is a very beautiful bird.

Answer: What a beautiful bird it is!

12.                I wish I could fly in the sky.

Answer: If I could fly in the sky! / Would that I could fly in the sky!

13.                You are a great fool.

Answer: What a fool you are!

14.                The fob chain of Jim was very nice.

Answer: How nice the fob chain of Jim was!

15.                My hair grows very fast.

Answer: How fast my hair grows!

16.                The sun shone very hotly overhead.

Answer: How hotly the sun shone overhead!

17.                The next few days were very terrible.

Answer: How terrible the next few days were!

18.                The Padma is a very big river.

Answer: What a big river the Padma is!

19.                The girl sings very sweetly.

Answer: How sweetly the girl sings!

20.                I wish I could go there in time.

Answer: If I could go there in time! / Would that I could go there in time!

21.                The sight is very pathetic.

Answer: How pathetic the sight is!

22.                I have got a very nice gift for you.

Answer: What a nice gift I have got for you!

23.                I wish I were a king.

Answer: If I were a king!

24.                I wish I were a bird.

Answer: If I were a bird!

25.                I wish I were a president.

Answer: If I were a president!

26.                It is a very nice creature.

Answer: What a nice creature it is!