The short story Pigeons at
Daybreak describes the life and finally the death of Mr Basu, as seen through
the eyes of his caring and loving wife, Otima. Basu has been sick for quite a
long time now and he suffers from a multiple of emotional and physical problems
that often result in depression, asthma and poor eyesight. Otima on the
other hand loves and cares for his husband because he has loved him all along
despite his complex illness. There is nothing Basu can do and Otima does for
him exclusively everything including reading the newspaper. As she reads the
paper loudly one day, the family realizes that there is a planned shortage of
power that night and Basu reacts with an attack from asthma since he fears that
a hot night is coming and there is no electricity to run the fan.
Following this, his wife suggests that they move up on the
terraces and spend the night there because air is cool in the night. However,
Basu is uncomfortable and the night passes when he is in agony. At some point,
he remembers the fun he had with his grandson when he took him to the roofs to
see pigeons when he as still young. Nevertheless, this reminds him of the
passage of time. Unable to sleep because of his increasing discomfort
ability, Basu recites the name of his grandson several times as though praying.
As the night ushers in the light of the day, Otima goes back to the house to
fetch some iced water for Basu. To her surprise, she finds that the power
problem has been settled and there is power in the house.
Otima rushes back to the terraces so that he
can help him back into the house but he refuses to claim that it is cooler on
the terraces and that he should be left alone. Otima notes the calmness in his
voice and becomes assured that gentleness in his voice is a sign of acceptance,
resignation and preparation for death. Meanwhile, Basu is convinced that that
is the right place and time for his long-awaited death. He finally lies flat,
looks up and his mouth hangs open as the pigeons swing in the air and finally
they disappear from his sight.
Throughout the story, we find out that Basu
has never been comfortable in his life. He is ill and does not get contented in
anything the wife does for him. He knows well that the finishing point to his
illness is death but he does not want to accept this reality. He often snaps
and mocks his wife as he is losing the battle against illness, time and death.
However, when he is taken out on the terrace, even though he goes not to get enough
sleep, as usual, he is happy to see the pigeons after a long time. The pigeons
remind him of the sweet memories he had with his grandson and it is at this
point that the ice in his heart melts and reality downs on him. The birds, therefore, prepare him for his last journey thus signifying the missing link
that would connect him to heaven.
Desai describes the pigeons as “opalescent, sunlit, like
small pearls”, because she wanted the reader to have a clear picture of how
Basu’s death was connected to them. As Basu’s spirit left his body, the birds
first appeared to him like opalescent beings hovering above his head, and as
the spirit moved further, their size decreased as well and became brighter as
the sun shone on them, and finally, their size diminished and became like small
pearls when Basu had finally died.
Analysis: ‘Pigeons at Daybreak’ describes
the love between human throughout one’s life. Otima Basu contributes all her
love to her husband Mr.Basu. Despite ignorance and rebuke, Otima still cares
about her husband every single minute, “I’ll bring you your inhaler. Don’t get
worried, just don’t get worried.’’ Mr.Basu cannot breathe after hearing the news
that there is no electricity tonight, and he is angry with his wife, ‘You will
manage,’ he spat at her, ‘but I?’. Otima is just trying to pacify Mr.Basu
however after the abuse from her husband; she still tries her best to help him.
When Mr.Basu was lying on the terrace, he reveals his
love towards his grandson, “he had taken his daughter Charus’s son by the hand
to show him the pigeon roosts on so many of the Darya Ganj rooftops.” Mr Basu
loves his grandson and thinks about him even though he is very close to the
heaven. In the end, the pigeons at daybreak mark the end of Mr.Basu’s life.
• The Theme of the story: Freedom
Evidence:
~ Basu is portrayed as
irritable, ungrateful and fragile in the beginning and is extremely alarmed at
the idea of having to sleep on the roof at the beginning, missing his stuffy
room with a rickety electric fan.
~Basu is in effect, willingly
limiting himself to prison, due to his fears of sleeping exposed on the
terrace, a deviation from the familiar.
~His disposition is symbolized
by the caged parrot, which is similar to his situation, both losing the ability
to live with freedom.
Symbols
1 Bird
~a symbol for the state of Mr Basu.
~two types of birds used by the author are the
caged parrot
and pigeons.
2. The caged parrot
~the state
of Basu when he is in his living room, drawing attention to his ungrateful
attitude towards what he has, just as the parrot refused Mr Basu's offered
chillies.
~significant
that the parrot is caged, giving a visual metaphor for his captivity.
3. The pigeons
~ represent Basu's desire for happiness and
freedom
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