“Oh, comrades of my youth! I appeal to you in the names of those virgins whom your hearts have loved, to lay a wreath of flowers on the forsaken tomb of my beloved, for the flowers you lay on Selma’s tomb are like falling drops of dew from the eyes of dawn on the leaves of a withering rose”.
The heart touching plead of Kahlil Gibran discloses about his first love in his renowned novel ‘The Broken Wings’. The author of Lebanese origin has mystically ruled over the hearts of different generations through his enchanting works on both prose and poetry.
Kahlil Gibran was brought up in the village of Maronite Christians, Bechari (Bsharri). He started to grasp the knowledge of modeling, drawing and writing at an early age. F. Holland Day, polished his penchant/talent for art and literature. The philosophical author and poet is best known for his bestseller since 1920s, The Prophet. His other masterpieces include Stonefolds, The forerunner, Blue Flame, Fires, Dramas of life, Mirrors of the soul and the list continues.
He was a believer in the spiritual way of living and thinking .His writings appeal to the sensible lot of people. He wanted people to develop the idea of his philosophical writings, which will lead them to live peaceful lives.
In ‘The Broken Wings’, the author reveals his tender feelings towards his beloved. Through his work, he tells the world about his ecstacy on finding his true love as Selma Karamy. “Selma Karamy was the one who taught me to worship beauty by the example of her own beauty and revealed to me the secret of love by her affection; she was the one who first sang to me the poetry of real life”.
The anomalous style of writing of Kahlil Gibran keeps aside the conventional stories of Adam and Eve and of Romeo and Juliet. The novel has been written so artistically that if you have not fallen in love yet you will feel the exotic aura of love and its expression The author himself admits that “in every young man’s life there is a “Selma” who appears to him suddenly while in the spring of life and transforms his solitude into happy moments and fills the silence of his nights with music.”
The story moves around Kahlil, Selma Karamy and their tacit love for each other. In the latter part the “Oriental Woman” as the author calls her, falls in the hands of the greedy priest, as a prey on account of her father Ferris Effandy Karamy’s wealth. Kahlil has well justified the characters according to his work. The helplessness of the age-old father and the tribulations that he undergoes, involves the readers emotionally. The author says on Ferris’s helplessness “thus the sun enlivens and kills the fields with its heat”.
The climax appropriately fits/suits the dialogues and the touchy lines will make you feel as if everything is happening around you and with you. The tragic day when Kahlil comes to know the fact that Selma has been given to someone else and the conversation they have with each other arouses sympathy in the hearts of the readers. Selma as Kahlil’s beloved shows concern to/for him and asks him to be strong. “I want you to love me as a poet loves his sorrowful thoughts. I want you to remember me as a traveler remembers a calm pool in which his image was reflected as he drank its water. I want you to remember me as a mother remembers her child that died before it saw the light, and I want you to remember me as a merciful king…..”
Mansour Bey Galib, Selma’s husband was her materialistic lover and tortured her for not bearing him his heir. A very important role has been played by Selma’s son, who rescues her from all the torments of her husband. Though a very short appearance in the scene yet it is significant as a part of the story would have been incomplete.
Selma is portrayed as strong person, who held her tongue against her wishes and did all those things that her father wanted as a duty towards him. When her soul could not resist her emotions she broke down by saying, “Oh, Lord God, have mercy on me and mend my broken wings!”
The rhythmic flow and the expressive style of the author turn each and every word of the novel into a realistic environment.It is for those who believe in the power of love and also for those who don’t to make that essential start.
The heart touching plead of Kahlil Gibran discloses about his first love in his renowned novel ‘The Broken Wings’. The author of Lebanese origin has mystically ruled over the hearts of different generations through his enchanting works on both prose and poetry.
Kahlil Gibran was brought up in the village of Maronite Christians, Bechari (Bsharri). He started to grasp the knowledge of modeling, drawing and writing at an early age. F. Holland Day, polished his penchant/talent for art and literature. The philosophical author and poet is best known for his bestseller since 1920s, The Prophet. His other masterpieces include Stonefolds, The forerunner, Blue Flame, Fires, Dramas of life, Mirrors of the soul and the list continues.
He was a believer in the spiritual way of living and thinking .His writings appeal to the sensible lot of people. He wanted people to develop the idea of his philosophical writings, which will lead them to live peaceful lives.
In ‘The Broken Wings’, the author reveals his tender feelings towards his beloved. Through his work, he tells the world about his ecstacy on finding his true love as Selma Karamy. “Selma Karamy was the one who taught me to worship beauty by the example of her own beauty and revealed to me the secret of love by her affection; she was the one who first sang to me the poetry of real life”.
The anomalous style of writing of Kahlil Gibran keeps aside the conventional stories of Adam and Eve and of Romeo and Juliet. The novel has been written so artistically that if you have not fallen in love yet you will feel the exotic aura of love and its expression The author himself admits that “in every young man’s life there is a “Selma” who appears to him suddenly while in the spring of life and transforms his solitude into happy moments and fills the silence of his nights with music.”
The story moves around Kahlil, Selma Karamy and their tacit love for each other. In the latter part the “Oriental Woman” as the author calls her, falls in the hands of the greedy priest, as a prey on account of her father Ferris Effandy Karamy’s wealth. Kahlil has well justified the characters according to his work. The helplessness of the age-old father and the tribulations that he undergoes, involves the readers emotionally. The author says on Ferris’s helplessness “thus the sun enlivens and kills the fields with its heat”.
The climax appropriately fits/suits the dialogues and the touchy lines will make you feel as if everything is happening around you and with you. The tragic day when Kahlil comes to know the fact that Selma has been given to someone else and the conversation they have with each other arouses sympathy in the hearts of the readers. Selma as Kahlil’s beloved shows concern to/for him and asks him to be strong. “I want you to love me as a poet loves his sorrowful thoughts. I want you to remember me as a traveler remembers a calm pool in which his image was reflected as he drank its water. I want you to remember me as a mother remembers her child that died before it saw the light, and I want you to remember me as a merciful king…..”
Mansour Bey Galib, Selma’s husband was her materialistic lover and tortured her for not bearing him his heir. A very important role has been played by Selma’s son, who rescues her from all the torments of her husband. Though a very short appearance in the scene yet it is significant as a part of the story would have been incomplete.
Selma is portrayed as strong person, who held her tongue against her wishes and did all those things that her father wanted as a duty towards him. When her soul could not resist her emotions she broke down by saying, “Oh, Lord God, have mercy on me and mend my broken wings!”
The rhythmic flow and the expressive style of the author turn each and every word of the novel into a realistic environment.It is for those who believe in the power of love and also for those who don’t to make that essential start.
