Essays: Introduction

ESSAYS: INTRODUCTION AND DEFINITION

An **essay** is a short composition in prose that discusses a matter, expresses a point of view, or persuades readers to accept an idea on any subject. The key characteristics include:

Addressed to a **general rather than specialised audience**, making it accessible to the common reader

Uses **non-technical language** and avoids jargon

Employs **anecdotes, illustrations, and humour** liberally to engage readers

Stands as an independent piece of writing that can be understood without prior context

**Historical Background**: Essays have been written since ancient times. The French writer **Montaigne** first used the term **"Essaies"** (meaning 'attempts') for his short literary pieces. **Francis Bacon** inaugurated the English tradition of essay writing. The founding of literary periodicals and magazines gave tremendous impetus to essay writing, shifting publication from books to magazines.

---

FORMAL VS. INFORMAL ESSAYS

Formal Essay

**Relatively impersonal** in tone and perspective

**Logically organised** with clear structure and argumentation

Filled with **serious purpose** and intent

Often addresses significant or weighty topics

Maintains academic or professional tone throughout

Informal Essay

**Personal** and reflective in nature

Written in a **relaxed, often whimsical fashion**

Deals with **everyday things and ordinary experiences**

Uses conversational language and tone

May employ humour, anecdotes, and personal observations

**Example**: "My Watch" by Mark Twain is an informal essay because it deals with an everyday object (a watch), employs humour throughout, and presents a personal perspective on a common experience of watch repair.

---

MARK TWAIN (SAMUEL L. CLEMENS): AUTHOR PROFILE

**Life and Background** (1835–1910):

American humorist, short story writer, and novelist

Used the **pseudonym "Mark Twain"** throughout his literary career

Born and raised in **Hannibal, Missouri**—a small town that shaped his writing

Had **less than 10 years of formal schooling**, learning primarily through life experience

Worked diverse jobs: **printer's apprentice, steamboat pilot, prospector, and journalist**

These varied experiences gave him **wide knowledge of humanity** and authentic perspectives

**Major Works**:

**Adventures of Tom Sawyer**: Drew from his own childhood experiences in Hannibal

**Adventures of Huckleberry Finn**: Initially planned as a sequel but became a masterpiece; narrated through an uneducated boy's perspective, showcasing Twain's ability to capture authentic voices

**Literary Significance**: Twain's background in journalism and varied professions informed his distinctive voice—combining keen social observation with humour.

---

"MY WATCH": ESSAY SUMMARY AND PLOT

Part I: The Initial Problem and First Repairs

The narrator possessed a **beautiful new watch** that had run flawlessly for eighteen months without losing, gaining, or breaking any part. He considered it **infallible in its judgments about time** and believed its constitution to be **imperishable**. When the watch finally ran down one night, he became **superstitious and anxious**, fearing it was a **messenger and forerunner of calamity**. He set it by guesswork and calmed himself.

**First Repair—The Jeweller**: The narrator took the watch to the **chief jeweller**, who declared it **four minutes slow** and that the **regulator needed pushing up**. Despite the narrator's protests, the jeweller adjusted it. This single intervention caused catastrophic consequences:

The watch began to **gain time rapidly**

Within a week, it reached **"raging fever"** status, gaining 150 minutes (metaphor for rapid malfunctioning)

After two months, it was **thirteen days ahead** of the almanac

It was in November while October leaves were still turning—completely disorienting to the user

**Second Repair—The Watchmaker**: The narrator took the watch to a watchmaker, who **"looked a look of vicious happiness"** upon learning it had never been repaired. After cleaning, oiling, and regulating, the watch **slowed dramatically**—the narrator drifted backward in time, missing appointments and dinners, eventually feeling he was **"lingering alone in week before last"** while the world moved forward. He humorously compares himself to a **mummy in the museum**.

**Third Repair**: Another watchmaker diagnosed a **swelled barrel**. After three days of work, the watch averaged reasonably well but became unpredictable—sometimes running ahead like **"the very mischief"** (making barking, wheezing, whooping, and sneezing sounds), then slowing down until other clocks caught up.

Part II: Continued Deterioration and Successive Repairs

**Fourth Repair—The King-Bolt**: A watchmaker identified a **broken king-bolt**. Though repaired, the watch now alternated between running and stopping sporadically, **kicking back like a musket** with each restart. The narrator **padded his breast** for protection from the violent kicks.

**Fifth Repair—Fresh Start Issues**: Another watchmaker found what appeared to be a **fresh start** problem. The repair created a new malfunction: at **ten minutes to ten, the hands would shut together like scissors** and travel as one unit, making time-reading impossible.

**Sixth Repair—Crystal and Mainspring**: The watchmaker identified a **bent crystal** and **crooked mainspring**. After correction, the watch occasionally **buzzed like a bee** and the hands would **spin so fast** that they appeared as a **delicate spider's web**, reeling off twenty-four hours in six or seven minutes before stopping with a bang.

**Seventh Repair—The Final Straw**: The narrator took the watch to yet another watchmaker—an **old acquaintance, a former steamboat engineer, and not a good engineer either**. After examining all parts, the engineer delivered a verdict completely inappropriate for a watch: **"She makes too much steam—you want to hang the monkey-wrench on the safety-valve!"** This absurdity—treating a watch like a steam engine—pushed the narrator over the edge. He **"brained him on the spot and had him buried at my own expense."**

---

LITERARY DEVICES AND TECHNIQUES IN "MY WATCH"

Personification

The watch is consistently treated as a **living being with human characteristics**:

"She is four minutes slow" (using feminine pronoun)

"It sickened to a raging fever" (illness metaphor)

"Its pulse went up to a hundred and fifty" (bodily function)

"She makes too much steam" (treating mechanical watch like breathing person)

**Effect**: This personification makes the watch's malfunctions seem tragic and comical simultaneously, inviting reader empathy.

Metaphor

**"Raging fever"** for rapid time-gaining

**"Pulse went up to a hundred and fifty in the shade"** for malfunction intensity

**"Delicate spider's web"** for fast-spinning hands

**"Week before last"** as a temporal location the narrator inhabits

**Effect**: Medical and temporal metaphors elevate the essay from technical complaint to universal human frustration.

Hyperbole (Extreme Exaggeration)

Watch gains **thirteen days** in two months

Narrator drifts into **"week before last"** unable to live in present time

Paid **"two or three thousand dollars"** for repairs on a two-hundred-dollar watch

Violence at the end—**braining the watchmaker**

**Effect**: Exaggeration amplifies the humorous impact and makes the frustration relatable.

Irony

**Situational Irony**: Each repair makes the watch worse, not better. The expert interventions cause greater problems than the original issue.

**Dramatic Irony**: The narrator's initial faith in the watch's infallibility contrasts sharply with the chaos that follows

**Verbal Irony**: Describing the watchmaker as looking with **"vicious happiness"** when examining the watch

**Effect**: Creates comedy through the gap between expectations and reality.

Understatement

"A correct average is only a mild virtue in a watch" (understating the importance)

"The king-bolt was broken. I said I was glad it was nothing more serious" (pretending minimal concern about damage he doesn't understand)

**Effect**: Creates dry humour through deliberate downplaying.

---

CHARACTERISATION: THE NARRATOR

Key Character Traits

**Naïve Trust in Expertise**: The narrator initially believes in the **infallibility** of both the watch and those who repair it. He trusts professionals without question, despite mounting evidence they are making things worse.

**Emotional Investment**: He becomes **superstitious** about the watch, treating it as a **messenger of calamity**. He describes his anxiety while the jeweller works as **dancing around in anguish**.

**Conflicting Knowledge**: He admits **"I had no idea what the king-bolt was, but I did not choose to appear ignorant to a stranger."** This reveals his vanity—preferring to accept false expertise rather than admit ignorance.

**Growing Frustration**: As repairs multiply, his frustration escalates from **grieving** to **anguish** to finally **violent action** (braining the engineer). His trajectory is one of increasing exasperation.

**Self-Deprecating Humour**: He compares himself to a **mummy**, paddles his breast for protection, and ultimately admits to murder—all presented with comic self-awareness.

---

THEMES AND CENTRAL IDEAS

The Danger of Blind Faith in Expertise

The essay satirises the **unquestioning acceptance of professional expertise**. Each watchmaker speaks with **confidence and authority** despite causing catastrophic results. The narrator's initial unwillingness to appear ignorant leads to compounding disasters.

**Real-life Relevance**: This theme reflects CBSE Class 11 students' experiences with teachers, doctors, or mechanics—questioning when to trust expertise versus when to seek alternatives.

The Law of Unintended Consequences

Every intervention creates new problems. The jeweller's four-minute adjustment cascades into two months of gain. Each repair addresses one issue while creating two new ones. The essay illustrates how **complex systems (whether watches, ecosystems, or societies) respond unpredictably to intervention**.

Sentimental Attachment vs. Practical Necessity

The narrator cannot abandon the watch despite its uselessness. He invests **thousands of dollars** trying to fix a **two-hundred-dollar purchase**. The essay suggests humans become **emotionally attached to objects** and struggle with letting go.

The Gap Between Theory and Practice

The various watchmakers possess theoretical knowledge but lack practical competence. The final engineer tries to apply steam-engine principles to a watch, revealing how **specialised knowledge can be inappropriate when applied blindly**.

---

UNCLE WILLIAM'S WISDOM

The essay concludes with the narrator's recollection of **Uncle William's observation**:

**"A good horse was a good horse until it had run away once"**

**"A good watch was a good watch until the repairers got a chance at it"**

This reflects the essay's central irony: **professional intervention—intended to fix—actually breaks what was once functional**. Uncle William's wondering about **"unsuccessful tinkers, gunsmiths, and shoe-makers, engineers, and blacksmiths"** suggests these inept professionals represent a broader problem in society.

**Implication**: Sometimes it is better to **leave well enough alone** than to risk expert "help."

---

STYLE AND HUMOUR TECHNIQUES

Comic Timing and Understatement

Twain places punchlines at sentence ends: **"I brained him on the spot and had him buried at my own expense."** This casual statement of violence is presented as logical consequence.

Absurdist Comparison

The engineer's advice about **steam and monkey-wrenches** on a watch is so completely inappropriate that it becomes surreal—the absurdity generates laughter.

Repetitive Structure

The pattern of "watch is broken → narrator visits watchmaker → repair fails → new problem emerges → narrator visits next watchmaker" creates rhythm that builds comic tension.

Anthropomorphic Language

Calling the watch "she," describing its "pulse," "fever," and ability to "buzz like a bee" makes mechanical failure seem almost biological.

---

THEMATIC CONNECTIONS TO ESSAY UNIT

The essay collection explores **wide thematic range**:

**"My Watch"**: Humorous perspective on **taken-for-granted instruments**

**"My Three Passions"**: **Eternal concepts of love and pity**

**"Tribal Verse"**: **Rich oral literatures of India**

**"Bridges"**: **Autobiographical glimpse into kathak dancer's life**

**"Patterns of Creativity"**: **Creativity in poetry and science**

"My Watch" uniquely employs **humour as a vehicle for social commentary**—a lighter approach compared to the philosophical depth of other essays.

---

EXAMINATION-IMPORTANT POINTS

**Key Quotations to Remember**:

"She is four minutes slow—regulator wants pushing up"

"I sickened to a raging fever and its pulse went up to a hundred and fifty in the shade"

"I seemed to detect in myself a sort of sneaking fellow-feeling for the mummy in the museum"

"A good watch was a good watch until the repairers got a chance at it"

**Character Motivation**: Understanding why the narrator **didn't abandon the watch earlier** is crucial—it reveals human nature's **reluctance to accept failure and emotional attachment to possessions**.

**Essay Type**: This is an **informal essay** using **personal anecdote and humour** to make observations about expertise, trust, and unintended consequences.

**Writing Technique**: Twain's approach of **treating mechanical dysfunction as medical crisis** through metaphor and personification is a model for **how to add literary interest to potentially tedious subjects**.

---

VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS

**Bodings**: Premonitions or forebodings of bad events

**Human cabbage**: Contemptuous term for a stupid, unthinking person

**Vicious happiness**: Malicious pleasure or satisfaction (schadenfreude)

**Prised**: Forced or pried open

**Brained him**: Struck him on the head (violent act presented humorously)

**Regulator**: Device that controls speed in a watch

**Sickened to a raging fever**: Metaphorical description of rapid malfunction

**Pulse went up to a hundred and fifty in the shade**: Watch gains 150 minutes

**Mummy in the museum**: Reference to existing in preserved, dead state (temporal displacement)

**Barking and wheezing**: Onomatopoetic descriptions of mechanical sounds

**King-bolt**: Hypothetical part (possibly invented for comic effect)

**Monkey-wrench on the safety-valve**: Completely inappropriate technical advice