SELF-ESTEEM AND LACK OF COMMUNICATION IN SELECT SHORT STORIES OF RABINDRANATH TAGORE

Rabindranath Tagore, the first to win a Nobel Prize in Asia for literature, has contributed in a myriad ways not only to literature but also to philosophy, music and education. He has focused on various themes such as family, love, woman and child psychology, consciously or otherwise. He focuses on human associations. It is common knowledge that communication plays a key role to building and maintaining relationships. Moreover, to say that the lack of it can cause misunderstandings is an understatement. In order to protect one’s self-esteem, people tend to take drastic measures. Sometimes, it leads to psychological and emotional distress, but in some cases, it may even lead to accepting death over life. Problems caused by lack of communication play an important role in shaping Tagore’s characters. The Postmaster and The Ghat’s Tale are two such stories in which the characters face difficulties because of, inter alia, lack of communication. This article undertakes a textual analysis to analyse the relation between ‘self-esteem’ and “lack of communication” in the aforementioned short stories. It estimates what would happen if the characters had communicated with each other. Additionally, it also reflects on the importance of the absence of communication, to bring out the intended emotions in a reader.