Author: Manas Kumar Bhuniya
DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.70798/Bijmrd/04040027
Abstract: Folk beliefs and rural superstitions had occupied a significant position in the cultural and social fabric of traditional Indian life. These belief systems, rooted in collective memory and oral traditions, had often governed the everyday experiences of rural communities. Nissim Ezekiel, a pioneering figure in postindependence Indian English poetry, had sensitively depicted these beliefs in several of his poems. While Ezekiel had been frequently associated with urban modernity, his engagement with rural India revealed a nuanced understanding of folk practices, superstitions, and cultural anxieties prevalent among village communities. The present study had examined the representation of folk beliefs and rural superstitions in Ezekiel’s poetry, with particular reference to poems such as “The Night of the Scorpion,” “Enterprise,” and “The Patriot.” The study had explored how Ezekiel had portrayed superstition not merely as irrational belief but as a cultural response to fear, suffering, and uncertainty. By employing irony, realism, and compassionate observation, Ezekiel had exposed the psychological and social dimensions of rural superstition. The analysis had demonstrated that Ezekiel’s poetic treatment of folk beliefs had served both as cultural documentation and subtle social critique, reflecting the tensions between tradition and emerging rationalism in post-independence India.
Keywords: Nissim Ezekiel, Folk Beliefs, Rural Superstitions, Indian English Poetry, Cultural Practices.
Page No: 203-207