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The Ballad of East and West

2021-07-04T09:09:29Z

75.172.12.227:

{{short description|Poem by Rudyard Kipling}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{essay-like|date=June 2011}}
{{Refimprove|date=November 2009}}
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"'''The Ballad of East and West'''" is a poem by [[Rudyard Kipling]]. It was first published in 1889, and has been much collected and anthologized since.

==The poem==
Kamal, a tribal chieftain in the [[Military history of the North-West Frontier|North-West Frontier]] of the [[British Raj]], steals a British Colonel's prize mare. The Colonel's son, who commands a [[troop]] of the [[Guides Cavalry]], asks if any of his men know where Kamal might be. One does, and tells him, but warns of the dangers of entering Kamal's territory, which is guarded by tribesmen concealed among the rocks and scrub.

The Colonel's son takes a [[wikt:dun#Adjective|dun]] horse and sets off to retrieve the mare. He catches up with Kamal at the edge of the chieftain's territory and fires his pistol, but he misses. Kamal challenges the Colonel's son to a riding contest, and the two men gallop until dawn. The dun falls when crossing a river, and Kamal pulls the Colonel's son to safety and knocks the pistol out of his hand. When Kamal says that the Colonel's son is only still alive because he has not gestured to his hidden men to kill the young man, the Colonel's son counters that the retribution for his death by the Raj would likely cost Kamal more than the act would be worth. He demands that Kamal return the mare and says he will fight his own way back to his territory.

Through the chase and their posturing, the two men have developed respect each other. Kamal helps the Colonel's son to his feet, and the young man offers to give the mare to the chieftain as a gift from his father. However, the mare goes over to the Colonel's son and nuzzles him, so Kamal decides to respects the animal's choice. He gives her back to the Colonel's son, along with the fine [[horse furniture|tack]] with which he has equipped her. The Colonel's son offers another pistol to Kamal, saying the first was taken from a foe, but this one is offered by a friend. As a final gesture, Kamal commands his only son go with the Colonel's son to protect and serve him, even though that will mean fighting for England against her enemies, which include Kamal himself.

The Colonel's son and Kamal's son swear [[blood brotherhood]] and ride back to the British fort. Kamal's son is greeted with hostility by the guards, but the Colonel's son admonishes them, saying that his companion is now no longer a border thief, but a fellow soldier.

==Critical analysis==
The first line of the poem is often quoted, sometimes to ascribe racism to Kipling in regard to his views on [[Asians]].<ref>
{{cite journal | url = http://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/rg_eastwest1.htm
|title = Notes on "The Ballad of East and West"
| author = John McGivering
| date = June 27, 2010
| journal = The New Readers' Guide to the Works of Rudyard Kipling
| publisher = The Kipling Society
| access-date = June 24, 2016}}
</ref> Those who quote it thus often miss the third and fourth lines, which [[contradiction|contradict]] the opening line. The full refrain that opens and closes the poem reads:
{{poemquote|
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, though they come from the ends of the earth!<ref name="RK2336">{{cite book |last=Kipling |first=Rudyard |author-link=Rudyard Kipling |title=Rudyard Kipling's Verse |date=1940 |publisher=Doubleday |location=Garden City, NY |edition=Definitive |oclc=225762741 |url=https://archive.org/details/rudyardkiplingsv0000kipl/page/232 |pages=233–236}}</ref>
|source=lines 1-4}}

This may be read as saying that it is indisputable that geographic points of the compass will never meet in this life, but that when two strong men [''or'' equals] meet, the accidents of birth, whether of nationality, race, or family, do not matter at all—the mutual respect such individuals have, each for the character, prowess, and integrity of the other, are their only criteria for judging and accepting one another. Any differences in ethnicity between such individuals are never even considered.

The poem is written with rhyming [[heptameter]]s, two of which are equivalent to a [[ballad stanza]]. Some texts print the poem in [[quatrain|groups of four lines]].

It is written in the style of a [[border ballad]]. The vocabulary, stock phrases and rhythms are reminiscent of the old ballads, and the culture described is not unlike that of the [[Border Reivers]]. The first line of the actual story, for example, is: "Kamal is out with twenty men to raise the Border-side," meaning that a raid is in progress to cause trouble in the Border. In this poem, the border is the [[North-West Frontier (military history)|North West Frontier]] of the [[British Raj]] (which was, at the time the poem was written, on the boundary of the Raj, but is now in [[Pakistan]]),<ref>The poem mentions [[Abazai]] and [[Peshawur]], which fix the location.</ref> but it harks back to the [[Anglo-Scottish border|English/Scottish Border]]. The second line contains the word "lifted", a [[Scots language|Scots]] term for "stolen". The fourth line contains the word "calkin", a term for part of a horseshoe, which Kamal is said to have "turned", referring to a trick used by horse-mounted brigands of reversing horseshoes to leave misleading tracks. The second quatrain (line 9) has the stock phrase: "Then up and spoke the Colonel's son that led a troop of the [[Corps of Guides (India)|Guides]]", which is also found in the Scottish ballad ''[[Sir Patrick Spens]]''. Such echoes are found throughout the poem.

There is a couplet that is repeated with slight variations several times:
{{poemquote|
There is rock to the left, and rock to the right, and low lean thorn between,
And ye may hear a breech-bolt snick where never a man is seen. (lines 19-20)

There was rock to the left and rock to the right, and low lean thorn between,
And thrice he heard a breech-bolt snick tho' never a man was seen. (lines 35-36)

There was not a rock for twenty mile, there was not a clump of tree,
But covered a man of my own men with his rifle cocked on his knee. (lines 43-44)<ref name="RK2336" />}}

[[T. S. Eliot]] included the poem in his 1941 collection ''[[A Choice of Kipling's Verse]]''.

==References==
{{wikisource|Departmental Ditties and Ballads and Barrack-Room Ballads/The Ballad of East and West|The Ballad of East and West}}
{{reflist}}

{{Rudyard Kipling}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballad of east and west, the}}
[[Category:Rudyard Kipling poems about India]]
[[Category:Poetry by Rudyard Kipling]]
[[Category:1899 poems]]

Gunga Din

2021-07-04T07:11:47Z

75.172.12.227:

{{short description|Poem by Rudyard Kipling}}
{{About|the poem}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2013}}

"'''Gunga Din'''" is an 1890 poem by [[Rudyard Kipling]] set in [[British Raj|British India]].
The poem is much remembered for its final line: "You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poems/detail/46783|title=Gunga Din by Rudyard Kipling|date=31 March 2018|website=Poetry Foundation}}</ref>

==Background==
{{Quote box |width=300px |align=right |salign=right
|quote =<poem>
Though I've belted you and flayed you,
By the livin' Gawd that made you,
You're a better man than I am, Gunga Din!<ref>{{cite book |last=Kipling |first=Rudyard |author-link=Rudyard Kipling |title=Rudyard Kipling's Verse |date=1940 |publisher=Doubleday |location=Garden City, NY |edition=Definitive |oclc=225762741 |url=https://archive.org/details/rudyardkiplingsv0000kipl/page/404 |pages=404–406}}</ref></poem>
|source ="Gunga Din", lines 82-84<br/>
View the [[wikisource:Gunga Din|full poem]] on [[Wikisource]]}}

The poem is a rhyming narrative from the point of view of [[Army of India|a British soldier in India]]. Its titular character is an Indian water-carrier (a ''[[bhishti]]'') who, after the narrator is wounded in battle, saves his life, only to be shot and killed. In the final three lines, the soldier regrets the abuse that he dealt to Din and admits that Din is the better man. The poem was published as part of a set of martial poems called the ''[[Barrack-Room Ballads]]''.

In contrast to Kipling's later poem "[[The White Man's Burden]]", "Gunga Din" ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|ɡ|ʌ|ŋ|ɡ|ə|_|ˈ|d|iː|n}}) is named after the Indian and portrays him as a heroic character who is not afraid to face danger on the battlefield as he tends to wounded men. The white soldiers who order Din around and beat him for not bringing them water fast enough are presented as being callous and shallow and ultimately inferior to him.

Although "Din" is frequently pronounced to rhyme with "pin", the rhymes within the poem make it clear that it should be pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|d|iː|n}}, to rhyme with "green".

[[T. S. Eliot]] included the poem in his 1941 collection ''[[A Choice of Kipling's Verse]]''.

==Adaptations and references in popular culture==
The poem inspired the 1939 adventure film ''[[Gunga Din (film)|Gunga Din]]'' from [[RKO Pictures]], starring [[Sam Jaffe]] in the title role, along with [[Cary Grant]], [[Victor McLaglen]], [[Douglas Fairbanks Jr.]], and [[Joan Fontaine]]. This movie was remade in 1961 as ''[[Sergeants 3]]'', starring the [[Rat Pack]] with [[Sammy Davis Jr.]] as the Gunga Din character, in which the locale was moved from British-colonial India to the old West.<ref>{{Cite news|last=French|first=Philip|date=2007-07-14|title=Philip French's DVD club: No 79: Gunga Din|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2007/jul/15/dvdreviews|access-date=2020-07-09|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> Many elements of the 1939 film were also incorporated into ''[[Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom]]''.<ref>Jaap van Ginnekan, ''Screening Difference: How Hollywood's Blockbuster Films Imagine Race, Ethnicity, and Culture'', p. 143. {{ISBN|978-0-7425-5584-6}} "Spielberg conceded that ''Gunga Din'' was one of the major sources of inspiration for the second Indiana Jones movie, and it does indeed contain many of the same elements."</ref> The film [[Three Kings (1999 film)]], set during the [[Gulf War]] of 1990-1991, also has many resemblances, including a "heist theme", to the film ''Gunga Din''.

[[Grantland Rice]]'s 1917 column describing [[Heinie Zimmerman]]'s infamous World Series gaffe wherein Zimmerman futilely chased speedster Eddie Collins across home plate (rather than initiating a [[rundown]] by tossing the ball to a player covering home) ended with "I'm a faster man than you are, Heinie Zim."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/I%27m+a+faster+man+than+you+are%2C+Heinie+Zim-a0216411856 |title=You're A Faster Man Than I Am, Heinie Zim |author=Richard A. Smiley |date=2006 |work=The National Pastime |issue=26 |publisher=SABR (Society for American Baseball Research) |pages =94–103 |accessdate=February 24, 2021}}</ref>

[[Robert Sheckley]]'s short story "Human Man's Burden" (1956, anthologized in ''[[Pilgrimage to Earth]]'') alludes to the story by featuring a robotic servant named Gunga Sam, programmed to behave in a manner similar to the stereotypical colonial native servant. While stated to have no soul, he ultimately proves to be no less human and wise than his owner in actions.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

In 1958, [[Bobby Darin]] wrote and recorded the song "That's the Way Love Is" in which, referring to the unsolved riddle of love, he sings "And if ya come up with the answer, You're a better man, sir, than I ... Gunga Din".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bobbydarin.com/thatsthewayloveis.html|title=BobbyDarin.com: That's The Way Love Is|website=www.bobbydarin.com}}</ref>

In 1962, Sonny Gianotta recorded "The Last Blast of the Blasted Bugler", a comedic retelling of the story.<ref>Allmusic listing: https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-last-blast-of-the-blasted-bugler-mw0001002737</ref>

An animated version featuring [[Jim Backus]] was made in 1964, as part of ''[[The Famous Adventures of Mr Magoo]]''. It is the third episode of the series.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

The English singer [[Peter Bellamy]] included a setting of the poem on his 1975 record, ''Barrack Room Ballads of Rudyard Kipling''.

Songwriter Jim Croce set the words to music and released it on his 1966 ''[[Facets (album)|Facets]]'' album.

[[List_of_M*A*S*H_characters#Hawkeye_Pierce|Hawkeye Pierce]] in M*A*S*H{{which|reason=The Movie or the TV show? The Pierce character is in both|date=February 2021}} made multiple references to "Gunga Din".{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

[[Alan Moore]]'s [[Watchmen]] features a restaurant called the Gunga Diner.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

In 1996, the animated television series [[Animaniacs]] featured a segment called "Gunga Dot", in which the "Warner Sister" Dot has a job serving water to the patrons of a resort in a boiling hot desert near [[Bombay]]. After growing tired of the constant complaining, she releases the valve on the [[Warner Bros. Water Tower]], which placates the guests and somehow creates the [[Indian Ocean]]. <ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSpv2tdMBvE</ref>

Season 1, episode 6, of [[The Sopranos]], Livia is complaining to Tony about her neighbor at Green Grove running the water all day long, and she says "I'm living next to Gunga Din!" In the season 6, episode 14, of [[The Sopranos]] ([[Stage_5_(The_Sopranos)|Stage 5]]), Warren Feldman asks John Sacrimoni whether he may look at Sacrimoni's health chart. Sacrimoni replies, "What about Gunga Din?" in reference to his prison doctor, Ajit Gupte.

In 2001, [[Hellboy]], in "[[Hellboy: Conqueror Worm|Conqueror Worm]]", says goodbye to [[Roger_(Hellboy)|Roger]] with the last lines of Gunga Din.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

Several references are made to the poem in the series [[Downton Abbey]] by several characters, among them Lord Grantham (portrayed by [[Hugh Bonneville]]).{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}

The poem's last line is quoted to Richard Haig, the main character in the 2014 film [[Some Kind of Beautiful]], by his father Gordon on his deathbed, both characters being English literature professors.

In 2015, [[The Libertines]], an English rock band, composed the single "Gunga Din" for their comeback album ''[[Anthems for Doomed Youth]]''. The verse "You are a better man than I am" is used throughout the lyrics.

Bob Dylan's song "[[You Ain't Goin' Nowhere]]" has been recorded with a variety of lyrics, and in one version the first two lines are "Crowd so swift, the rain fallin' in. Gonna see a movie called ''Gunga Din''." It is likely that this was a rhyming artifice. Dylan's original lyrics contained the phrase "Pick up your money, pack up your tent", but when the Byrds, led by Roger McGuinn and who frequently covered Dylan's songs, recorded it, the line was transposed to "Pack up your money, pick up your tent". In a revised version, Dylan rewrote the third line to read "Pack up your money pull up your tent McGuinn", so he likely needed something to rhyme with "McGuinn."

==See also==
*''[[No Heaven for Gunga Din]]'', with a similar theme about the treatment of native servants by colonial military officers.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources==
* George Robinson: "Gunga Din" (article on the 1939 Hollywood film). ''Soldiers of the Queen'' (journal of the Victorian Military Society). September 1994.

==External links==
* {{wikisource-inline|Gunga Din|"Gunga Din"|single=true}}
* [http://www.bartleby.com/103/48.html Text of the poem from Bartleby.com]

{{Rudyard Kipling}}

[[Category:Poetry by Rudyard Kipling]]
[[Category:Rudyard Kipling poems about India]]
[[Category:1890 poems]]
[[Category:Jim Croce songs]]
[[Category:Characters in poems]]