Short summary of Rabindranath Tagore’s poem “Freedom”

 

Rabindranath Tagore’s poem “Freedom” is an impassioned address to his motherland, India.

This piece explores the importance of freedom in its entirety. It speaks vividly of the oppression and torture that his motherland faced during the colonial era. Tagore portrays the suffering of his countrymen by personifying the country. He projects it as a woman who is bogged down by the burden of shame and subjugation.

Through this poem, the poet expresses his idea of the complete freedom of Indians on both internal and external levels. He wants a country where people are not only free from enslavement but also able to think freely.

“Freedom” begins with a direct address to the poet’s motherland. Tagore’s persona wants to see his country free from fear of oppression. The burden of shameful servitude bends her head and breaks her back. It blinds her to future clarion calls. He wants to see his countrymen without the shackles of ignorance or slavery that keep them in darkness. In this situation, they cannot trust the stars that guided humanity from ancient times.

Tagore tells his motherland to be free from destiny’s anarchy. It is like a ship whose sails yield to uncertainty and the helm is controlled by death. Furthermore, he does not want to see her dwelling in a world of puppets where people lack original thinking. They are keen to imitate and satisfied in following their master. In this way, Tagore explores the idea of complete freedom of his countrymen from fear, slavery, ignorance, fatalism, and imitation.

As the title says, Tagore’s poem is all about the idea of freedom. This piece explores this topic from the perspective of India & its people during colonial rule.

 

Throughout the poem, Tagore informs his countrymen of the things they have to follow to be free.

Firstly, they need to shed fear from their hearts. They should not bow to the cruel blow of the colonizers. Indeed, they have blinded them from the light of hope. Still, they have to trust in themselves. Their minds should be free from the darkness of ignorance. If they want to be completely free, they need to trust reality rather than fate.

Lastly, Tagore metaphorically advises his countrymen not to play a puppet at the hands of colonizers. They have to think on their own in order to realize the value of freedom.

 

Theme

In this poem, Tagore explores the themes of freedom, slavery, ignorance, originality, blind obedience, and suffering. To begin with, the poet seeks a country where everyone can live fearlessly and have complete freedom for their spiritual and emotional growth.

 He talks about the fear of the colonizers’ brutality. In the following lines, he taps on the theme of slavery. He depicts an image of an individual who is on her knees for the burden of shame and oppression. She is also blinded to hope and truth.

Furthermore, Tagore showcases how ignorant his countrymen are. They are content with darkness rather than following the path of truth. By depicting the country as a “puppet’s world”, the poet presents the theme of blind obedience and lack of originality. Last but not least, the central idea of this piece is complete freedom on a mental, spiritual, and political level.