Maja Strzelczyk, 4KMT2

Topic: Analyse and interpret the passage below, backing up your reading of these lines with apt cultural examples, relating, too, to other literary texts:
OH, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet,
Till Earth and Sky stand presently at God’s great Judgment Seat;
But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth,
When two strong men stand face to face, tho’ they come from the ends of the earth!

There is quite possibly no greater reason for artists' trepidation and anxiety than being misunderstood and misinterpreted. Yet, it is still a common occurrence, even in modern times. First published in 1889, Rudyard Kipling's famous and extremely complex poem “The Ballad of East and West”, and more specifically its four opening lines, is one of the works that have been freely quoted and, probably to Kipling's great disappointment, very often misquoted, therefore misinterpreted in the opposite sense of Kipling's intentions, creating a spurious and misguided reputation of its author. The four lines opening Rudyard Kipling's poem, “The Ballad of East and West,” are a reflection on the topic of equality and possibility of mutual understanding and respect of polar opposites. Let us break down the quatrain into two parts. The first two lines imply that the author believes in absolute contrariety of East and West. They suggest that there is no possible way of reconciliation of the two, that seemingly they are like day and night, black and white or oil and water - without any prospects of both of them meeting, coming together, working and living alongside of one another. It does seem as if it had been universally top-down assumed that any and all kinds of attempts at cooperation and coexisting would be impossible and that they would bring no, or maybe even negative outcome. The only occasion for the encounter of the people of East and West is suggested to be the very end, “God's great Judgment Seat.” Now let us move on to the following two lines, which, actually, completely contradict what has previously been stated in the first two lines of the poem. The author tries to get across a message of unity. In lines number three and four, much like in the entire poem, Kipling endeavors to disaffirm his initial statements and strives to convince the reader that no matter the race, the place of birth or even what family or social position one has been born into, people are all equal. Differences seem to be just superficial and artificial. It is not people's origins that are the hearts of the mankind's imbroglios, but in fact it is things artificially generated and multiplied by them that are the causes of conflicts and dissensus. It is atrocious that Kipling's glorious words often get misquoted or cut off before one has read the author's statement in its entirety. It is very much ironic that what was initially intended to be an idea of promoting equality and unity turns out to attract negative comments because it seems to be giving out a totally opposite opinion. The full four opening lines of the poem underline the premise that two intelligent, honorable and respectful people who come from different cultures really do have the ability to understand and respect one another's personal beliefs, traditions, language, or even, to interpret the excerpt in a modern way, one's sexual orientation and lifestyle. The plot of the rest of the poem is a perfect embodiment of its opening. It is a tale of two men: an English officer and an Afghan horse-thief who, despite the initial animosity, grow to respect and admire each other. Having at first been very hostile to one another, come to a conclusion that in fact they are not that different and that there is no reason for preconceptions and enmity. To introduce certain texts referring to the discussed quote, let me bring up the Bible. It is very clear that the opening couplet is a modernized interpretation, or one could even potentially go as far as to say that is actually is a paraphrase, of the Biblical Psalm 103,12 which goes as follows: “Look how wide also the east is from the west: so far hath he set our sins from us.” It is only God that does have the upper hand over everybody, it is He who decides people's fate, every single one of us, no matter our origins. In Psalm 107,3 it is also said “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story - those he redeemed from the hand of the fore, those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.” No man is capable of saying that he is superior to someone who speaks a different language, whose skin color is different or who comes from a far away land. A very compelling opinion which Michael O'Donovan-Anderson has shared in The Incorporated Self: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Embodiment, seems to be begging to be mentioned, as it aptly alludes to Kipling's words. O'Donovan-Anderson states that “Feminine is feminine, masculine is masculine, and ne'er the twain shall meet. The woman warrior triumphs not by being a successful woman in a male world (the exception which proves the rule or the token which solidifies convention), nor by transcending gender difference in androgynous equality, but by passing as a man, denying her biological sex altogether... Passing as a male, the woman warrior would refuse her body the power to determine her identity.” O'Donovan-Anderson, though not discussing people's differences based on where they come from, points to an interesting observation, that it is not only two men who are similar. From a feminist perspective it is implied that despite the trouble and the struggle, a woman can be just as strong and just as great as a man, without losing her femininity. Women have been fighting for equality long and hard, when, in fact, we never should have had to do so in the first place, as there are no real valid differences which could allow men to think of themselves as better than women, just like no easterner is inferior to any westerner, and the other way round. Another quote I shall cite comes from a movie Animal Crackers by Marx Brothers. One of the characters, Captain Spaulding, states that “We must remember that art is art. Still, on the other hand, water is water, isn't it? And east is east and west is west and if you take cranberries and stew them like apple sauce, they taste much more like prunes than rhubarb does.” Another allusion to Kipling's words discusses, using a metaphor, how two different things can become so similar to one another, just like the differences between people can be forgotten or, at least, blurred. Yes, it is true than not all things and not all people are totally and utterly the same, but certain minor dissimilarities are no reasons for wars, conflicts, and, surely, prejudice. Courage, integrity, honor, values, sympathy, understanding - those are the things that should be considered when meeting a fellow man. East and West must come together, and find mutual respect and admiration for one another. Just like in the story, an Afghan and an Englishman overcome their resentment having gotten to know each other and having discovered the other man's values and dominant personality traits, as well as having recognized their similarities within their differences. Two ends of the Earth can never meet, that is true, but if the men of each territory would try to put aside their deeply rooted preconceptions, they would most likely grow to appreciate the other man's uniqueness, because, in the words of Lucy Maud Montgomery, “It's dreadful what little things lead people to misunderstand each other.” Therefore neither a reader should rely on just an excerpt of an author's piece of mind, nor a man should assume things about a fellow man without actually having ever met and gotten to know said person.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Heerman, Victor, dir. Animal Cracker. Paramount Pictures, 1930.
Kipling, Rudyard. “The Ballad of East and West.” In: Barrack-Room Ballads, and Other Verses. London: Methuen Publishing Ltd, 1889.
Montgmonery, Lucy Maud. Emily's Quest. New York City: Booklassic, 2015.
O'Donovan-Anderson Michael. The Incorporated Self: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Embodiment. New York City: Rowman & Littlefield, 1996.
The Holy Bible. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1728.

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[ 1 ]. Rudyard Kipling, “The Ballad of East and West,” in: Barrack-Room Ballads, and Other Verses (London: Methuen Publishing Ltd, 1889).
[ 2 ]. “Psalm 103,12,” in: The Holy Bible, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1728).
[ 3 ]. “Psalm 107,3,” in: The Holy Bible, (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1728).
[ 4 ]. Michael O'Donovan-Anderson, The Incorporated Self: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Embodiment (New York City: Rowman & Littlefield, 1996).
[ 5 ]. Victor Heerman, dir., Animal Crackers (Paramount Pictures, 1930).
[ 6 ]. Lucy Maud Montgmonery, Emily's Quest (New York City: Booklassic, 2015).