Group 1: Jane, Christine, Cassie, Racquel, and Amberle
First Part of Saguna
MAIN POINT/ARGUMENT: summarize in 2or 3 sentences what you think was the author’s main point, message, or argument.
Saguna’s main focus is on the life of women in India, in particular on the lives of young women who are first married. In Satthianadhan’s book, she explains that the Indian society was male dominated and that women were viewed as inferior objects to their husbands, brothers, and fathers. Thus education for women was not important.
EVIDENCE:
1. Krupabia is criticized for reading books, learning, and spending extra time with her brother in his study.
2. Radha, her mother, must move and leave her family in order with her husband’s family. Krupabia also mentions that she barely sees her sister because they are with their husband’s families.
3. She is fairly rebellious for a female, considering the time and place she lived in: "I tried to pick up little snatches of knowledge, and employed my time in working out the sums on which my brothers were engaged, and in getting their lessons by heart. I often knew more than they did, so that when they stumbled at a word or a sum I used to put them right at once to their great disgust" (21). She demonstrates knowledge for learning and bravery at breaking customs to learn in a male-dominated society. She also write with much candidacy and does not leave out details – “I often knew more than they (the men) did.”
M.I.T. (most interesting thing):
We are able not only to see the life of Rhadi through her eyes, which helps readers to understand what she is thinking and going through, but also through the eyes of those around her which helps us to get a sense of how she is perceived.
CONNECTIONS:
It is interesting that in Saguna, strong women are the central characters. In Letters from a Peruvian Women, a woman is also one of the central characters, however, Zilia does depend more on men. Also as Krupabai is learning new things, Zilia was learning a whole new life, which included a new language and culture. It is also amazing that women wrote these two novels, considering it was not an “acceptable” task at the time for women. Both women value nature and deal with how men put them down.
PROMPTINGS/REFLECTIONS:
The title, Saguna, literally means masterpiece of its time. How does to title reflect the actions of its characters?
How were the lives of women changing at the turn of the 19th century?
How did the lives of Rhadi and Krupabai fit into the scheme of how women were supposed to act?
How was education changing for women?
Was the gender inequality gap beginning to close?
How was Satthianadhan able to write Saguna?
How will nationalism play into the plot of the novel?
EVALUATION: your assessment of the reading, its argument, its persuasiveness, etc. Thumbs up? Thumbs down? Why?
Thumbs Up
The novel is interesting in a realistic manner. It has not been written to an extreme. It illustrates that women are capable of learning. Krupabai was able to learn and as a result she and her mother were not treated poorly all the time by their husbands. The novel is a very strong portrayal of women, especially in the context of the time and culture. The author is able to make the story of her parents flow like a fable even though it turns out to be true.
P.T. (perplexing thing): note briefly any ideas that you had trouble understanding or that seemed confusing—perplexities and uncertainties.
Krupabai’s relationship with her older brother is interesting. Why did he take such a liking to her and encourage her to learn when no one else did.
KEY TERMS OR VOCABULARY: list the terms or words that seem to carry special significance in the work and its argument. Also list any term that you don’t know or are unsure of. Look words that you don’t know in a dictionary.
Saguna
Family
God
Mother-in-law
Male figure head
Brahmin