Rabindranath Tagore

 

 

 Rabindranath Tagore also known as Ravindranatha Thakura, was born on  7th May 1861 in Calcutta. He was born in a Bengali Brahman family. He was the youngest of his 14 siblings.

 

Early Life:

 

He got married when he was 19 years old, whereas Mrinalini Devi was only ten years old. They had five children, but two of them had deceased at a young age. Another nickname of Tagore was " Bhanu". His older brother Dwijendranath was a poet and a philosopher. Another brother of Tagore was jyotrindranath his wife was Kadambari was one of the most influential individuals in Tagore's life. Kadambari suicide in 1884 had left Tagore in a deep shock and an emotional breakdown for a period. At a very early  Tagore started writing poems and his brother would encourage him to read the poems in front of people in the mansion. His brother Hemendranath tutored Tagore at home and gave him valuable lessons that helped him throughout his life. In 1878, Tagore travelled to England for schooling, his intention was to become a barrister.  He was enrolled at the University of London but never completed his degree.  Being around the English language and his family tradition he was able to create unique poems, music, and drama.

Career: In 1913 Rabindranath became the first non- European to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. He wrote a poem when he was only eight years old.  Rabindranath Tagore is the only person in the world who wrote National Anthems for three countries which are India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. Tagore also had interests in science; he wrote a lot of essays on physics, astronomy, and biology. Tagore's relation with Mahatma Gandhi were not very friendly; they had different views on what the definition of power was. Tagore had also written a letter to Mahatma Gandhi on the topic of power and courage.

 

Notable Works:

 

Tagore's work consists of poems, short stories, drawings, paintings, dramas, and music. He was also a great philosopher.  At the age of 20 is when Tagore wrote his first drama that was showcased at his mansion.  Since the age of 16 Tagore wrote stories and there many stories that are very well known. Just to name a few are the Beggar woman, kabuliwalah, the hungry stones, the runaway and many more. Novels like shesher kobita, ghare baire and satyajit ray are one of the few famous ones. Tagore was awarded a noble price in 1913 for his famous book " Gitanjali ". Tagore wrote more than 2500 songs in his lifetime.  Tagore started drawing and painting at a very late age in his life. His painting was on display throughout the Europe.

Tagore was a known as a poet, but he was also a painter. He also wrote novels, dramas, and over  2000 songs known as "Tagore Song". The title of Mathama Gandhi was conferred upon Tagore.

 Influence:

 Kadambari, the wife of Tagore's brother jyotrindranath was one of the most influential people in Tagore's life. Tagore and Albert Einstein shared a love for music. Gagan Harkara who was a singer, his folk songs had influenced deeply in his life. For his paintings and drawings, he was influenced by scrimshaw a style of carvings famous in northern Europe.

 

Rabindranath Tagore died on August 7th, 1941 Kolkata, India.

 

 

 

References

 

"Literature - Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine." N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Sep. 2015 <http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/>.

 

Tagore, Rabindranath. "Punishment." Trans. William Radice. The Norton Anthology of World Literature: The Twentieth Century. Ed. Sarah Lawall. 2nd ed. Vol. F. New York: Norton, 2002. 1693-1699