Myth and Modernity in Indo-Anglian Poetry: Aurobindo & Dutt
Introduction
Indian English literature in the nineteenth century presents a fascinating dialogue between tradition and modernity, East and West, as well as myth and modern consciousness. Poets like Sri Aurobindo and Toru Dutt stand out as pioneers who sought to reconcile their Indian cultural inheritance with the English literary forms they inherited through colonial education. While Sri Aurobindo’s poem “To a Hero-Worshipper” reflects his early struggles with poetic identity and his refusal to conform to the heroic expectations imposed on poets, Toru Dutt’s Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan reimagines Indian myths for a global readership. Taken together, their works highlight two significant tendencies of the age: the negotiation of poetic authenticity in a colonial context and the reclamation of Indian tradition through literary re-interpretation.
Critical Note on “To a Hero-Worshipper” by Sri Aurobindo
Context
“To a Hero-Worshipper” is a poem by Sri Aurobindo included in Collected Poems, CWSA Volume 2, Part One: England and Baroda, Poems from Manuscripts, ca. 1891–1898.
The poem reflects Sri Aurobindo’s early poetic consciousness during the period when he was beginning to struggle with identity, poetic purpose, and comparing literary traditions (especially the Western canon) with his experience of Indian spiritual and cultural heritage.
Structure & Themes
The poem is addressed to a “hero-worshipper” someone who expects from poetry heroism, oracular power, prophetic rage, moral fire. Sri Aurobindo’s speaker distinguishes his own poetic voice from that type.
Key themes include the tension between expectation and authenticity, cultural inheritance vs. originality, the role of nature and beauty vs. didactic or heroic purpose, and the poet’s self-awareness of limitations and heritage.
Literary Elements
Tone and voice: The speaker is self-critical, somewhat humble, even defensive: “My life is then a wasted ereme, / My song but idle wind” rejecting the claims of grandeur.
Imagery: Nature plays a large role; flowers, music, birds, etc., as expressions of beauty rather than vehicles for moral or prophetic meaning. § II, with daisy, crocus, cowslips, lilies.
Allusions/comparisons: References to Byron, Wordsworth, Shelley, Keats Western poetic giants representing different heroic, moral, or lyrical modes. The speaker explicitly says he is not those.
Cultural orientation: The speaker refers to “Indian waters vast” and “glimpsed the magic of the past,” suggesting a source of inspiration in Indian tradition and the past, even if his voice is not prophetic or mythic in the heroic mode.
Critical Interpretation
Sri Aurobindo here is engaging in a kind of poetic self-positioning. He resists being placed under the burden of heroism or expected to produce poetry with grand public purpose. Instead, he prefers authenticity, aesthetic vision, and the organic voice of nature and beauty.
The poem thus can be read as a critique of hero-worship (in both literary/poetic and social terms): the expectation that the poet must always be a speaker for nations, a prophet, a guide, etc. Sri Aurobindo seems to find value in the more modest, earth-rooted, and intrinsic poetic impulse.
There's also a tension between two poetic traditions: the Western romantic/heroic (Byron, Shelley, etc.) and the Eastern or Indian tradition of more contemplative, nature-oriented, spiritually imbued poetry. The speaker seems to accept that he is more aligned with the latter, though not grandly so.
Finally, there is the theme of limitations: the speaker acknowledges what he is not, which paradoxically defines (and modestly affirms) what he is. The self-limiting act becomes a kind of poetic honesty.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths:
The poem is honest, introspective. It avoids grandiosity despite the speaker's exposure to such expectations.
Rich imagery; the way nature is used creates a sense of delicate beauty, even when contrasted with “harsh figures” and “ominous stars.”
The poem negotiates identity poetic, cultural in a colonial era when many Indian writers were comparing, integrating, resisting Western forms.
Weaknesses / Limitations:
Because the speaker disclaims prophetic or heroic purpose, the poem risks being self-denying or appearing to undervalue poetry’s capacity for social or moral import. Some readers might wish for more assertiveness or commitment to a public purpose.
The references to Western poets, while effective, might also highlight a dependence on Western poetic benchmarks. The speaker’s critique of hero worship doesn’t entirely escape the draw of those traditions.
Critical Note on Toru Dutt’s Approach to Indian Myths
Introduction
Toru Dutt (1856–1877), one of the earliest Indian poets writing in English and French, occupies a significant position in Indian literature for her ability to reinterpret Indian myths in a colonial context. Though she lived only 21 years, her poetry particularly Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan (published posthumously in 1882) reflects her deep engagement with Hindu mythology. Dutt’s approach was not one of simple retelling; rather, she sought to translate the spirit of Indian myths into a form accessible to Western readers, while simultaneously reclaiming her cultural roots.
Re-interpretation and Mediation
Dutt’s treatment of myths represents a double movement:
1. Cultural Mediation She bridges the gap between Indian mythological traditions and English literary culture. Writing in English, she narrates stories of Savitri, Sita, Lakshman, Dhruva, Prahlad, etc., in forms familiar to Victorian readers, often using the ballad or lyric style. This act of mediation made Indian myths intelligible and appealing to the colonial readership.
2. Re-interpretation She did not merely translate mythological episodes; instead, she infused them with personal sensibility, romantic imagination, and moral depth. For instance, in Savitri, the emphasis is on love, fidelity, and courage, all framed in a tone that resonates with Romantic poetry.
Themes and Vision
Humanisation of Mythic Characters: Toru Dutt presents mythological figures not as distant archetypes but as relatable, human characters. Sita in Lakshman is depicted as a suffering, vulnerable woman, a departure from the idealized, submissive figure of the Ramayana.
Moral and Emotional Appeal: Instead of stressing ritual or theology, she foregrounds universal emotions such as devotion, sacrifice, and love, thereby emphasizing the ethical and humanistic value of myths.
Cultural Assertion: Writing during colonial India, she uses myths as a way of affirming the richness of Indian culture, countering Orientalist stereotypes of India as decadent or stagnant. Her work demonstrates that Indian tradition contains deep moral and aesthetic resources.
Style and Technique
Dutt adapts Western literary forms particularly the ballad but fills them with Indian content. This stylistic hybridity itself reflects her bicultural identity: educated in France and England, yet rooted in Indian traditions. Her language often retains a simplicity and lyrical quality, making her mythic retellings both accessible and emotionally resonant.
Critical Evaluation
Toru Dutt’s approach to Indian myths reflects her role as a cultural translator and pioneer. She neither rejected Western literary models nor passively imitated them; instead, she appropriated them to revive Indian legends in a colonial language. However, some critics note that her mythological poems occasionally lean toward Victorian sentimentalism, softening the epic grandeur of the originals. Yet, this very quality also enabled her myths to reach a wide readership across cultural boundaries.
Conclusion
The writings of Sri Aurobindo and Toru Dutt illustrate the creative negotiations of Indian poets working in English under colonial conditions. Aurobindo, in “To a Hero-Worshipper”, positions himself against the burden of heroic prophecy, choosing instead a more authentic, nature-oriented vision of poetry. Toru Dutt, through her re-telling of Hindu legends, bridges Indian cultural memory with English literary forms, humanising mythic figures and asserting the vitality of Indian tradition. Both poets, though different in focus, embody a larger project of cultural synthesis — using English not as a medium of subordination, but as a vehicle for self-expression and cultural reclamation. Their works remain early yet powerful examples of how Indian literature in English could both resist and transform colonial discourse.
References :
The Project Gutenberg eBook of Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan, by Toru Dutt. www.gutenberg.org/files/23245/23245-h/23245-h.htm.
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