Modern Gallantry
by
Charles Lamb
(Summary &
Analysis)
Charles Lamb (1775-1834) is a famous
essayist who wrote under his pseudonym of Elia. His sister, Mary, under the
severe attack of insanity killed her own mother in 1796. His love affair with
Ann Simmons of Hertfordshire was unsuccessful and unfortunate.
He was a well-known letter writer of
great charm and quality. Lamb tried to write poetry and dramas also but he is
chiefly known for his essays. Lamb’s Essays of Elia appeared in 1823, his most
remarkable work, which made him “The Prince of the Essayists”.
Some of his famous essays are:
1. Dream Children: A Reverie
2. The Praise of Chimney Sweepers.
3. Imperfect Sympathies.
4. All Fools’ Day
5. The Old Familiar Faces.
6. A Bachelor’s Complaint Against the
Behaviour of Married People.
7. The Old and the new School Master.
8. Poor Relations.
9. Witches, and Other Night Fears.
Most of Lamb’s essays are deeply
personal and autobiographical. These essays are a good vehicle for
self-revelation. The first-person singular pronoun in the essays stands for the
writer and is not a persona. Lamb’s essays are full of wit and homour. He makes
fun of himself as well as of others. His wit and humour are usually not full of
hatred or personal revenge.
Pathos is closely related to Lamb’s
humour. At the back of pathos is lamb’s won tragic life. His essays are full of
brief character-sketches. Lamb’s remarkable characterization makes his
characters memorable. Some of them are master pieces of humour.
Lamb’s essays are full of anecdotes. In
Modern Gallantry also he has conveyed his ideas of regard and respect for
ladies through the story of Susan Winstanley and Joseph Plaice. These anecdotes
provide a narrative appeal to his essays and become a part and parcel of his
essays.
Lamb is considered as one of the wisest
persons of his limes. His essays are full of philosophical, terse, pithy,
proverbial, aphoristic and didactic lines which can be explained in detail.
Lamb provides the wisdom which is expected from a genius. In the essay, Modern
Gallantry Lamb has expressed his dissatisfaction over the behaviour and
attitude of men towards the women of his age. He has given many examples of his
observations on different occasions and in different capacities where men
missed the mark of paying respect to their counterpart i.e. females as females.
Wealth, beauty, age, rank, relation and circumstances are vital factors which
decrease or increase amount of reverence towards the female members of society.
Lamb observes the bad habits, not only of men folk but also of the ladies. He
suggests the women, to first learn to pay respect themselves and their sex. If
this happens, others will also pay respect to them.
What a woman should demand of a man is
courtship, after it, respect for her as she is a woman; and next to that – to
be respected by him above all other women. Let her first lesson be to reverence
her sex.
This is a bitter truth for both the
parties – the male as well as the female. Moreover, the essence of the essay
has universal appeal for all times to come. This is applicable in every kind of
society throughout the world and is away from racial prejudice.
In this essay, Lamb expresses his views
about gallantry of his age i.e., the beginning of the 19th Century. Lamb says
that his contemporary British congratulate themselves on the point of being
more gallant during the modern age. He defines what gallantry means. Gallantry
is the social respect, humbleness shown by males towards females as females.
People considered that moderns age has become more civilized and cultured and
therefore shows more respect to females because they are females.
Lamb does not agree to the idea of
being more civilized and cultured in modern times. He cites many situations
where people do not show respect to females as females but the respect shown to
females depends upon their rank, beauty, wealth, age, relation and many other
factors. Thus, according to him, womanhood is not paid respect irrespective of other
factors.
The definition at the very beginning of
the essay makes the title very clear and the subject matter of the essay can be
guessed at the very start. The prose of Lamb is terse, pithy, aphoristic. The
essay is didactic one and has universal appeal due to its subject matter and
style.
Lamb has written many essays which are
autobiographical and reveal his personal life. But this essay is didactic one
and has universal appeal. The writer has provided a good advice to the
women-folk, if they wish more respect from the men-folk.
The woman in love is usually jealous of
others and becomes selfish. She wants more and more respect for herself
individually but not for females in general. That diminishes respect for
individual female also. According to the essayist, a woman in love should ask
for respect for her because she is a woman. Being a woman is her foundation,
solid ground on which additions can be made. Those additions are like
ornaments. Demand of respect above all other women comes next. If a woman
detracts respect from her own sex, she detracts that much respect for herself
also. Respect for female should be demanded on the basic ground of being a female,
and not because of beauty, rank, age, wealth, position, or any other such
factor.
The writer has conveyed his ideas on
gallantry in a very precise, brief, aphoristic and terse manner. He had
directly advised females how to demand more and more respect from men and that
must be the best method for all types of women belonging to any category, rank,
society or position.
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