The Professor — POETRY

The Professor – Nissim Ezekiel Summary:
 It is a chance meeting between a Professor Sheth and one of his pupils. The speaker here is the professor who himself reveals his identity. He reminds his former student that he is Professor Sheth who taught him Geography once. He is retired now, but he is keeping good health. His wife died a few years ago. With God’s grace, his children are well-settled in life.
 The professor is the speaker throughout. He indulges in a monologue. He refers to his sons. He takes pride in telling his student that one of his sons is a Sales Manager, the other is a Bank Manager. Both are men of status. Both have cars, considered symbols of status. Another son of his is not doing very well. Other children are settled satisfactorily. Both his daughters, Sarala and Tarala are married. Their husbands are very nice boys.
 The professor is proud of his children as well as his grand children. He has eleven grand children, an impressive number. He learns that his student has three children. The professor admits that family planning is necessary. In his youth, no one cared to limit the family. Now times have changed. One must change with time.
 As for his activities, the professor generally confines himself to his home. He does go out only now and then old age does not permit much activity. However, he has good health generally. He has no problem like diabetes, blood pressure or heart attack. He is glad that his good health is the result of his good habits formed in his youth He is pleased to know that his student is enjoying good health.
 At the end the professor reveals that his age is sixty-nine but he hopes to live for a century. Then, he suddenly thinks of the time when his student was still studying in college. Then he was thin like a stick. Now he has put on weight. He is a man of weight and consequence. The professor concludes his speech by giving a casual invitation to his student to visit him if anything brings him to that side again, and his house is close to his student’s house.
Critical Appreciation:
 The poet depicts the picture of a retired professor’s meeting with his former student. The poet’s remarkable talent to ‘Indianise’ a poem is seen in his conversational language with great poetic genius the poet draws a pen picture of a self-absorbed professor who exaggerates and raves and rants about his family status. The words and phrases like ‘Our progress is progressing’ ‘opposite house’s backside’ ‘if you are coming’, all are examples of grammatical peculiarities of English used by Indian speakers. The poet very skilfully shows how Indians excessively use the present continuous tense in place of simple present tense. The poet also scorns the scholarly professor because of his grammatical peculiarities wrong English.
 By using unidiomatic and ungrammatical language the poet very deftly makes the poem humourous. The reader finds the poem amusing due to the flow of Indian thoughts. The poet also makes fun of the practices of the society that advertises their children with their designation and status. A hint of satire is displayed when the professor flaunts the cars his sons possess. He also brings forth with great masterful artistry the topics of generation gap and the blending of the old and the new. The poet also depicts the attitude of Indian parents who feel fully relieved of their responsibilities when the girls get married. Thus the poem caricatures the geography professor who thinks he has full command over the language and who is boastful and egocentric. The poet’s choice of words is humourous the tone is serious even though the subject is trivial. Theconversational ease with which the poem is written serves as an indicator of the poet’s understanding of the society of which he himself is an inseparable part.
Paraphrase:
 Can you recall me ? Let me remind you that I am Professor Sheth, your geography teacher, At present I am leading a retired life even though I am healthy and energetic. I lost my wife a few years back. God has been kind and benevolent and my children are well settled. Two of my boys have good designations. One is a Sales Manager and one is a Bank Manager and they enjoy a good social status. Both maintain good cars. Other boy is doing reasonably well. You know every family has a member who doesn’t come up to their expectations I am relieved and contented that I have dispensed my responsibilities. My daughters are married to well off boys.
 You might not believe it but I have eleven grandchildren. How many children have you got? Probably three ! It is good to be wise as these days family planning is important and I also advocate it.
 The whole world is transforming. There is advancement in our country also. It is a matter of concern that old values are deteriorating and new ethics and scruples are taking their place. These changes are sudden and quick.
 Now a days I remain confined to the house. Well I have accepted that old age brings along with it loneliness and usual aches and pains. As such, my health is satisfactory. I don’t suffer from any major ailments or health hazards like diabetes, blood pressure or heart problems
 This is the consequence of not being a victim of any wrong habits in my youth. Anyway, how is your health. I’m happy that you are healthy and in good shape.
 Well, I am sixty nine years of age and I hope to live till the age of hundred. You were once slender and bony like a stick. But now you are fat and a man with dignity and eminence. That is a good joke ! However, if you happen to come this side, do pay a visit to my modest house for it is close to yours.
Central Idea:
 The central idea is clearly a coming together of the old and the new. The poem mocks typically Indian ideals and practices. He depicts how Indian society considers a number of cars one possesses to be significant for status in society.
 The poet with the deft touches of his pen makes a dig at the Indian habit of keeping rhyming names like (Sarala and Tarala). The poet also illustrates how Indian society considers ‘marriage’ as the be-all and end-all of a girl’s life and the parent’s responsibility towards a girl-child. The poet also acquaints us with typical Indian conversation which includes discussion of health and ailments as well as the enquiry on how fat or thin one has become with the passage of time. The poet in a dexterous manner shows the hypocrisy of people. The professor advocates ‘family planning’ but at the same time proudly talks about eleven grand children by making the poem replete with grammatical errors, he shows what is ‘Indian English’
 He uses this to aggravate the effect of ‘Indianess’.