Category Personalities

What is the life story of Abhijit Banerjee?

By now you may be familiar with the name, Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee. An Indian-American economist, he became the ninth Indian to win the Nobel Prize (jointly with Esther Dufi and Michael Kremer) in 2019. But did you know Banerjee spent his childhood in Kolkata? Or that he actually wanted to study Mathematics instead of Economics? Read on to learn more about him…

Economics in his blood

Born on February 21, 1961, Banerjee grew up in Kolkata, West Bengal. Observing the disparity between the rich and the poor from close quarters helped him gain insights into economics and poverty. Both his parents, Nirmala and Dipak, were eminent economists.

From Maths to Economics

However, Banerjee was more interested in Mathematics than Economics. He chose to study the subject at the prestigious Indian Statistical Institute. However, he quit within a week because he disliked the long commute from home to the institute. That’s how he switched over to Economics at Presidency College, which was closer home. It also happens to be the alma mater of another Nobel laureate Amartya Sen. A close friend of the family. Sen also mentored Banerjee.

Spreading his wings

After graduation, Banerjee went on to pursue his masters in Economics from the Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi. Once during a student protest over the expulsion of the president of the student union, he was arrested along with hundreds of other students for ‘gheraoing’ the vice-chancellors house. He spent 10 days in the notorious Tihar jail and was later released on bail. Subsequently, the charges were dropped against the students.

He earned a Ph.D from Harvard University in the U.S. in 1988. Later, he moved to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he worked with his co-researcher and second wife Duflo. The two co authored the book “Poor Economics” after working 15 years in five continents to find practical solutions to poverty. They broke down large social problems into smaller pieces and then conducted randomised controlled trials to learn from the behaviour of people and understand where welfare policies may be failing them. For instance, they sought answers to questions such as ‘Does having lots of children actually make you poorer? and ‘Why would a man in Morocco who doesn’t have enough to eat buy a television’?

Their work earned them the nickname the Randomistas. The duo also co-founded the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab with fellow economist Sendhil Mullainathan. Started in June 2003, the lab today is the hub of scientific research and it comes up with innovative solutions to economic problems.

Nobel honour

Their work made the study of poverty alleviation more scientific and saved countless lives. “As a direct result of one of their studies, more than 5 million Indian children have benefited from effective programs of remedial tutoring in schools.” The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said while announcing the Nobel Prize on October 14, 2019.

OH REALLY!

  • Abhijit Banerjee’s CV is 17-pages long.
  • He received the Infosys Prize 2009 in the social sciences category of economics.
  • In 2014, Banerjee received the Bernhard Harms-Prize from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy.
  • He is currently the Ford Foundation International Professor of Economics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He had also taught at Harvard University and Princeton University.
  • Popular works: “Good Economics for Hard Times”, “Poor Economics”, and “What the Economy Needs Now”.

 

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What is Charles Dickens most famous work?

Charles Dickens depicted the best of times and the worst of times through his books. Full of wit, astute observations, and autobiographical experience, they offer a realistic portrayal of the Victorian society in the 19th Century.

Hard times

Born in England in 1812, Dickens’ family fell back on hard times when his father was sent to a debtors’ prison. Just 12 years of age, Dickens was forced to drop out of school and work in a shoe polish factory to repay the debts.

A debtors’ prison was where people unable to pay their debts were incarcerated in the 19th Century. With its dingy rooms and stale food, people lived in wretched conditions in these places. They either have to do hard labour or secure outside funds to repay their debts.

At the factory, Dickens worked ten hours a day, Monday through Saturday, pasting labels onto individual pots of polish. All he received was six shillings per week. He toiled in the factory for nearly a year before his father was released from prison. Dickens recounted the harsh conditions he experienced in the factory in his semi-autobiographical novel “David Copperfield and it continued to shape his writing.

Beating the odds

Learning shorthand on his own, Dickens became a journalist and worked as a court reporter. He went on to edit a weekly journal for 20 years, wrote 15 novels, five novellas, hundreds of short stories and non-fiction articles.

Controversy

Although he is highly regarded as a writer, Dickens’ reputation is far from unblemished. Some of his works have been criticised for their racist and xenophobic views.

Significant works

Dickens is credited with popularising serialised novels. “The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club” (popularly known as “The Pickwick Papers”) was published in instalments over 19 issues from March 1836 to October 1837. Dickens wrote most of “The Pickwick Papers” under the pseudonym Boz. His other popular works include “Great Expectations”, “Oliver Twist”, “A Tale of Two Cities” and “A Christmas Carol”.

Did you know?

  • India connection: Dickens’ second son, Lietuenant Walter Landor Dickens died in Kolkata in 1864. His original grave is located at the Bhowanipore Cemetery, while his tombstone has been moved to South Park Street Cemetery.
  • More than cats or dogs, Dickens preferred the company of ravens. His pet raven was named Grip. After its death, Dickens had the bird stuffed and mounted in a display case. You can view it at the Free Library in Philadelphia in the U.S. In fact, Grip also features in his novel “Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of Eighty”. It is also believed that Edgar Allan Poe, a friend of Dickens, was inspired by Grip when writing “The Raven”, one of his most celebrated poems.
  • While working in the shoe polish factory, Dickens used to visit his parents in prison on Sundays.
  • The greeting ‘Merry Christmas’ became popular after A Christmas Carol was published.
  • He called his favourite daughter Kate, “Lucifer Box” because her temper could flare up in an instant.
  • Dickens is credited by the Oxford English Dictionary with introducing no less than 247 new words and usages into the language including “butter-fingers”, “fluffiness” and the verb “to manslaughter”.

 

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What is the life story of author Laura Ingalls Wilder?

With its endless grasslands and a slow pace of life, it may appear like nothing much happens in the prairies, the golden wheat-covered land in the middle of the U.S. But reading author Laura Ingalls Wilder’s “Little House on the Prairie” reveals that there is more to this heartland than what catches the eye.

Her semi-autobiographical books set in the period between 1870 and 1894, capture the life of the pioneers, the first people to settle in the frontiers of North America.

Who were the pioneers?

Many of the pioneers were farmers, who embarked on a long and arduous journey (of about 3,200 km) to take advantage of the U.S. government’s offer to homestead land in the Midwest. Homesteading was a scheme launched to develop millions of acres of tribal land.

People left behind their family and friends as they made their way to the Midwest. Days and even years were spent on the road, travelling the length and breadth of the country in tiny wagon carts. Often the pioneers were attacked by Native Americans, who were upset about losing their land.

Wilder belonged to one such pioneer family. And though life was hard, Wilder and her family found happiness in little things such as making homemade toys and treats for Christmas, going on their first trip to town, and bringing in the harvest.

Fear of eviction, a bad harvest and ruined crops often forced the family to change towns. They moved from Wisconsin to Kansas and then to Minnesota and lowa, before finally settling down in De Smet in South Dakota.

Despite all the hardship, Wilder and her sisters felt safe and warm in their little house. And years later, Wilder drew upon these happy childhood memories to paint a beautiful portrayal of the American frontier.

A feminist

At a time when there were not many job opportunities for women, she broke the glass ceiling by taking up multiple jobs, including in traditionally male-dominated fields. To help her family make ends meet, Wilder worked as a teacher, dressmaker, and even in a financial institution that lent money to the farmers.

Her writing career started when she took on the position of a columnist and editor for a local publication, the Missouri Ruralist. Her column, “As a Farm Woman Thinks” made her a favourite among the local farmers. She wrote on diverse topics from home and family to current affairs and travel.

“Little House on the Prairie” books

In the 1930s as America descended into the Great Depression, Wilder wrote “Little Big Woods”, the first of her “Little House on the Prairie” books. But did you know that her first manuscript was rejected by every publisher she approached? In fact she was even told that writing for children was a waste of time. But she did not give up and boldly continued writing. The “Little House on the Prairie” series consists of eight books based on Wilder’s childhood experiences. Some of the best books in the series are “Little Big Woods”, “Little House on the Prairie”, and “On the Banks of Plum Creek”.

“Little Big Woods” is about four-year-old Laura who lives in a log cabin on the edge of the Big Woods of Wisconsin. Adventures of Laura and her family continue in the third book “Little House on the Prairie” as they travel to Kansas in their covered wagon until they find the best spot to build their little house on the prairie. In “On the Banks of Plum Creek”, the family is forced to leave their prairie house and settle in a little house made of sod on the banks of beautiful Plum Creek.

Popular adaptations

The “Little House on the Prairie” series appealed to different generations of readers around the world.

  • TV show: In 1974, the series was adapted into a television series by NBC. It ran for nine seasons until 1983. It bagged 17 Emmy and three Golden Globe nominations along with two People’s Choice Awards. It even won two Western Heritage Awards.
  • Mini-series: The series was adapted into a mini-series by Disney in 2005. Directed by David Cunningham, the television series is a faithful adaptation of Wilder’s semi-autobiographical novels.

OH REALLY?

  • Wilder is related to the former U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and astronaut Alan Shephard.
  • Wilder’s daughter Rose convinced her to write the “Little House on the Prairie” books and even helped edit them.
  • Wilder was 65 when the first book in the “Little House on the Prairie” series was published.
  • The Laura Ingalls Wilder Award honours children’s authors and illustrators. Maurice Sendak and Dr. Seuss are among its recipients.

 

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What is the life story of Margery Williams Bianco?

The author who brought toys to life

Toys, whether it is a doll, a car, or a stuffed animal, are our childhood companions. Do you remember hugging and cuddling them and hosting imaginary tea parties for them or perhaps even confiding your deepest secrets into their inanimate ears? As we grow up, however, newer toys and gizmos replace them. And so, a quintessential children’s classic, “The Velveteen Rabbit” by Margery Williams Bianco chronicles a stuffed rabbit’s quest to become ‘real’ and relevant to its owner.

Writing: A legacy from her father

Born on July 22, 1881 in London, Margery became a professional writer at the age of 19. Her father Robert, who was a distinguished scholar and barrister, inculcated a love for reading in her and honed her imagination. He would often regale her with stories, making it a point to vividly describe the characters and the world they inhabited. Life struck a cruel blow when Margery at the age of seven lost her beloved father. His demise had a profound impact on Margery and her writing. Most of her work revolved around the themes of death and loss. And even though she faced criticism for the sad undertones in her children’s books, Margery maintained that these sentiments were an undeniable part of the growing up process.

Getting published

Margery published her first novel, “The Late Returning” in 1902. It was aimed at an adult audience, but it did not do well. Her subsequent novels too failed to make a mark. In 1904, Margery married Francesco Bianco and changed her name to Margery Williams Bianco. After marriage, she moved to Turin, Italy. It was only at the age of 44 that she wrote “The Velveteen Rabbit”, which gained her fame and recognition.

“The Velveteen Rabbit”

Inspired by the innocence and playful imagination of her children, Margery wrote “The Velveteen Rabbit” after the end of World War I. The book was first publishes in 1922 and has been republished many times since.

In the story, a little boy receives a stuffed rabbit as a Christmas gift. The toy lives in the cupboard of the boy’s nursery, where it is looked down upon by the fancier toys who claim to be ‘real’. “What is real?” the rabbit asks another toy, the skin horse. The horse, who always speaks the truth, tells him that toys become ‘real’ through the love of their owner. “Does it hurt?” asks the Velveteen Rabbit. “Sometimes. When you are Real, you don’t mind being hurt,” says the horse.

Gradually, the bond between the Velveteen Rabbit and the boy grows stronger, and so does the Rabbit’s desire to become real so that he could be with his owner forever.

Although it’s a children’s story, the tale has undercurrents of poignancy and sentimentality, which are some of the trademarks of the author. It also ponders on deeper questions about existence and the meaning of life. Margery was influenced by mysticism while writing the story.

Margery also wrote many other novels and short stories in which she continued the theme of toys coming to life, conferring upon them the ability to express human emotions and feelings.

“Winterbound”

In her final years, Margery wrote books for young adults as well. Her most significant book for young adults, “Winterbound” tells the story of two teenage girls who are suddenly thrust with responsibilities of raising their younger siblings. The book was a runner-up for the Newbery Medal in 1937, and won the Newbery Honor, a prestigious literary citation, in 1971.

With England joining World War II, Margery began writing books on patriotism as well. Her last book “Forward Commandos!” is an inspirational wartime story, acknowledging the contribution of African-Americans to the war effort. However, Margery died before the war came to an end. As the book went on sale, she breathed her last on September 4, 1944 in New York.

OH REALLY?

  • Margery’s book for young adults “Winterbound” was a runner-up for the Newbery Medal in 1937, and won the Newbery Honor, a prestigious literary citation, in 1971.
  • Her daughter Pamela illustrated many of her works including “The Skin Horse” and “The Little Wooden Doll”.
  • In 1914, Margery wrote a horror novel “The Thing in the Woods”. The book, about a werewolf in Pennsylvania in the U.S., is believed to have inspired future works on werewolves, including the renowned “The Dunwich Horror” by pulp fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft.
  • Margery was inspired by Walter de la Mare, a poet, she regarded as her spiritual mentor.
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Which Dutch painter’s popular work is “Girl with a Pearl Earring”?

In 1999, American author Tracy Chevalier published Girl with a Pearl Earring, a novel directly inspired by one of Vermeer’s most famous works of the same name. Set in 17th century Delft, Holland, Chevalier presents a fictional account of Vermeer, the girl in the painting and the artwork itself.

Girl with a Pearl Earring portrays a young woman sitting before a dark backdrop. Though seemingly inconsequential, this stark and shallow background beautifully contrasts the figure’s cream-colored skin and translucent eyes, which are fixed on the viewer. In addition to an exquisite blue and yellow turban, she dons a large, tear-shaped pearl earring.

While, on the surface, this depiction seems to have the classic characteristics of a portrait, it is actually known as a tronie. Popular during the Dutch Golden Age, a tronie is a painting of an individual intended as a study. Often, artists opted to portray these figures in “exotic” garments, as rendering opulent fabric allowed them to show off their advanced painting techniques.

Vermeer is known for his ability to create contours and forms using light rather than line. This distinctive approach to modeling is particularly evident in the figure’s face, which Vermeer rendered in planes of light and shadow. To achieve this aesthetic, Vermeer followed a meticulous four-step technique popular with 17th-century artists.

First, he would “invent,” or create an initial drawing on the canvas. Then, he crafted a monochromatic underpainting—a technique known as “dead-coloring.” Next, he added color. And, finally, in order to make the piece exceptionally luminous, he would apply a thin layer of glaze to certain parts of the painting. A recent restoration has revealed that he glazed two areas of Girl with a Pearl Earring: the blue section of her turban and the entire background (which, originally, would have been an opalescent green).

 

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Which is the Dutch post-impressionist painter whose popular works include “The Starry Night”?

The Starry Night is an oil on canvas painting by Dutch Post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh. Painted in June 1889, it depicts the view from the east-facing window of his asylum room at Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, just before sunrise, with the addition of an imaginary village.

In the aftermath of the 23 December 1888 breakdown that resulted in the self-mutilation of his left ear, Van Gogh voluntarily admitted himself to the Saint-Paul-de-Mausole lunatic asylum on 8 May 1889. Housed in a former monastery, Saint-Paul-de-Mausole catered to the wealthy and was less than half full when Van Gogh arrived, allowing him to occupy not only a second-story bedroom but also a ground-floor room for use as a painting studio.

During the year Van Gogh stayed at the asylum, the prolific output of paintings he had begun in Arles continued. During this period, he produced some of the best-known works of his career, including the Irises from May 1889, now in the J. Paul Getty Museum, and the blue self-portrait from September, 1889, in the Musée d’Orsay. The Starry Night was painted mid-June by around 18 June, the date he wrote to his brother Theo to say he had a new study of a starry sky.

In the fall of 1880, van Gogh decided to move to Brussels and become an artist. Though he had no formal art training, his brother Theo offered to support van Gogh financially. 

He began taking lessons on his own, studying books like Travaux des champs by Jean-François Millet and Cours de dessin by Charles Bargue.

Van Gogh’s art helped him stay emotionally balanced. In 1885, he began work on what is considered to be his first masterpiece, “Potato Eaters.” Theo, who by this time living in Paris, believed the painting would not be well-received in the French capital, where Impressionism had become the trend.

 

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