Child Labor

In 2012, the International Labour Organization released a report stating that 168 million
children around the world are engaged in child labor. That number accounts for 11 percent of
the worlds child population. Children are forced to commit commercial sex acts, forced into a
system of domestic servitude, and employed in occupations that are mentally, physically,
socially and morally harmful.
Supply needs and industry demand for cheap, unskilled labor are some of the leading causes of
child labor. Specifically, production processes that require certain physical attributes, such as
small stature and agility, lead to the employment of children. In addition, price pressures
encourage suppliers - especially those at the top of the supply chain - to find the cheapest
labor. Poverty leads these children to accept the job, or their parents ask them to work to
supplement the family income. These supply and demand factors are reinforced by systemic,
structural issues such as lack of access to education, inadequate employment opportunities for
the educated, corruption and social stratification.
Today, child labor is present in many industries - from the carpet sector in Afghanistan to the
cocoa plantations in the Ivory Coast.

International Definition
According to the ILOs Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, child labor is the enslavement
(i.e., sale, trafficking, debt bondage, serfdom, compulsory labor) of anyone under the age of
18. The definition includes the use of children in armed conflict, prostitution and illegal
activities such as drug trafficking. Lastly, any work deemed to be harmful to the health, safety
or morals of the child is considered to be child labor.

United States Definition

The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 prohibits the employment of minors in oppressive child
labor. Oppressive child labor is the employment of a child under 16 by anyone other than that
childs parent(s) or guardian(s). However, the Secretary of Labor permits the employment of
individuals between 14 and 16 so long as the work is not in the manufacturing or mining
industries and so long as the childs health, well-being and education are not negatively
affected. Occupations that are deemed hazardous to the health or well-being of individuals
between 16 and 18 years old are also considered to be oppressive child labor.
Children have always worked in the United States. Child labor was significantly present during
industrialization, the Great Depression and the 19th and 20th centuries when a number of poor
immigrants migrated to the U.S. Today, American and foreign children who are forced into
prostitution, domestic servitude and other forms slavery fall into the child labor category.

Child Sex Trafficking

Around the world, an influx in sex tourism, the insatiable demand for child pornography and
greed play key roles in the prevalence of child sex slavery and trafficking. In addition to
strangers, family and close friends have been known to sell children off to individuals,
businesses and groups involved in the sex industry. Once sold, the children are forced to
perform commercial sex acts. In the U.S. and in most countries abroad, any commercial sex
with a minor is considered sex trafficking.
In the U.S. the average age at which girls are forcibly prostituted is 12-14 years old. For boys
and transgendered youth, the average is 11-13 years old. Sometimes, the kids are much
younger. These adolescents are chosen by traffickers for different reasons. Although kids from
broken families, runaways and poor children are at higher risk of being trafficked, middle and
upper class children may also be targeted. Generally, online predators and individuals looking
to profit from the sex trade pick children that have certain insecurities and vulnerabilities
someone they can manipulate and dominate. It is through this manipulation and domination
that traffickers are able to continuously sell and profit from the children.
The standard price for sex at a brothel in the U.S. is $30. Typically, trafficked children see 2548 customers a day. They work up to 12 hours a day, every day of the week; every year, a pimp
earns between $150,000 and $200,000 per child.

Abuse and indoctrination, mixed with alcohol and drug addiction, enable traffickers to enslave
these children for years.
Children still face challenges even when they reach out for help, escape or are rescued. Some
survivors of child sex trafficking are, at first, arrested and treated as delinquents. Society
prescribed labels for those in the sex industry are often degrading, and children feel as if they
cant live a normal life anymore. They might think that theyre stuck living a life of
prostitution and that they dont have any options. In some cases and in many cultures,
children particularly girls that have been sexually violated are no longer accepted in their
families or communities because they are seen as tainted.
Child sexual slavery and trafficking are connected to other forms of slavery. Children may be
forced into domestic servitude and, along the way, are sexually abused by their new family. At
times, minors are forced into marrying to give the family financial stability or to pay off a
debt.
"Out of school children comprise the workers and non workers. In our view they together signify a
measure of deprivation among children and can be considered as a potential labour pool always being at
the risk of entering the labour force" - NCEUS, 2007

India is sadly the home to the largest number of child labourers in the world. The census
found an increase in the number of child labourers from 11.28 million in 1991 to 12.59
million in 2001. M.V. Foundation in Andhra Pradesh found nearly 400,000 children, mostly
girls between seven and 14 years of age, toiling for 14-16 hours a day in cottonseed
production across the country of which 90% are employed in Andhra Pradesh. 40% of the
labour in a precious stone cutting sector is children. NGOs have discovered the use of child
labourers in mining industry in Bellary District in Karnataka in spite of a harsh ban on the
same. In urban areas there is a high employment of children in the
zari and embroidery industry.
Poverty and lack of social security are the main causes of child
labour. The increasing gap between the rich and the poor,
privatization of basic services and the neo-liberal economic policies
are causes major sections of the population out of employment and
without basic needs. This adversely affects children more than any
other group. Entry of multi-national corporations into industry
without proper mechanisms to hold them accountable has lead to the
use of child labour. Lack of quality universal education has also contributed to children
dropping out of school and entering the labour force. A major concern is that the actual
number of child labourers goes un-detected. Laws that are meant to protect children from
hazardous labour are ineffective and not implemented correctly.
A growing phenomenon is using children as domestic workers in urban areas. The conditions
in which children work is completely unregulated and they are often made to work without
food, and very low wages, resembling situations of slavery. There are cases of physical,
sexual and emotional abuse of child domestic workers. The argument for domestic work is
often that families have placed their children in these homes for care and employment. There

has been a recent notification by the Ministry of Labour making child domestic work as well
as employment of children in dhabas, tea stalls and restaurants "hazardous" occupations.
According to HAQ: Centre for child rights, child labour is highest among schedules tribes,
Muslims, schedule castes and OBC children. The persistence of child labour is due to the
inefficiency of the law, administrative system and because it benefits employers who can
reduce general wage levels. HAQ argues that distinguishing between hazardous and non
hazardous employment is counter-productive to the elimination of child labour. Various
growing concerns have pushed children out of school and into employment such as forced
displacement due to development projects, Special Economic Zones; loss of jobs of parents in
a slowdown, farmers' suicide; armed conflict and high costs of health care. Girl children are
often used in domestic labour within their own homes. There is a lack of political will to
actually see to the complete ban of child labour.
Bonded child labour is a hidden phenomenon as a majority of them are found in the informal
sector. Bonded labour means the employment of a person against a loan or debt or social
obligation by the family of the child or the family as a whole. It is a form of slavery. Children
who are bonded with their family or inherit a debt from their parents are often found in
agricultural sector or assisting their families in brick kilns, and stone quarries. Individual
pledging of children is a growing occurrence that usually leads to trafficking of children to
urban areas for employment and have children working in small production houses versus
factories. Bonded labourers in India are mostly migrant workers, which opens them up to
more exploitation. Also they mostly come from low caste groups such as dalits or
marginalised tribal groups. Bonded child labourers are at very high risk for physical and
sexual abuse and neglect sometimes leading to death. They often are psychologically and
mentally disturbed and have not learnt many social skills or survival skills.
In 2000 the ILO estimated 5.5 million children had been forced in labour in Asia, while the
Bonded Labour Liberation Front placed 10 million bonded children in India alone. In 1998
the government of India labelled bonded child labour as a marginal problem with only 3000
or so cases. A survey in Tamil Nadu in 1995 found 125,000 bonded child labourers in the
state alone. Child bonded labour in India is mostly in the agricultural sector but has in recent
times been moving into other sectors as well such as beedi-rolling, brick kilns, carpet
weaving, commercial sexual exploitation, construction, fireworks and matches factories,
hotels, hybrid cottonseed production, leather, mines, quarries, silk, synthetic gems, etc.

Child labour is very common problem in India, to indulge small child below 14 years in any kind
of work or job that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend
regular school and to exploit them mentally, physically, socially or morally comes under the child
labour act. If you look in your surrounding you can find small kids working in
canteens/restaurants, or are found engaged in picking rags and hawking goods on footpath and
work as a domestic helps when they are supposed to play or go to school.Do you know who is
responsible for this we all society, parents, government, individuals, low wages, unemployment,

poor standard of living, deep social prejudices and backwardness are directly responsible for
child labour in India which is now become curse for society.
How child labour is curse for society? There are lots of reasons that we should stop child labour
as it is a curse for any country some of them are pointed below.

Child labor leads to social backwardness as child will go to work instead of schools and
children will be toiling in the fields instead of playing in the grounds which all leads to
social backwardness in the form of poverty, illiteracy, over population underemployment
and many other evils in the society.

Child labor promotes crimes as they start working in very early age moreover they got
very less salary and some time treated very badly by the employer this leave a bad impact
on them. They start doing crimes like stealing and other petty crimes and this graph of
crime increases with their age.

Child labor is the biggest reason behind the child abuse as it not only affects a child
mentally but physically as well. Sometimes employers become harsh on them. They are
scolded, slapped, pummeled by their employers for the slightest mistakes. Child
Trafficking is also one of the vices of child labor. Children are also sexually harassed at
the workplace.

Children who are indulge in Child labour has no future as they do not get time to go
school or colleges, they earn for their family and have no plans for their future and when
they have no future then how they can become the future of our society.

From the above all it is clear that Child labour is a curse for the entire world as it promotes
illiteracy. For the better growth of any country it is compulsory that every child must be educated,
recruited a job after their education and must be enabled to lead a happy life so that they can
become the good citizen and participate in overall growth of their country.
Undernourished, with a starved look, aptly describes a child who has been made
a commodity and an article of commerce. Such is the sad plight of many
children, whose childhood is not a period of enjoyment but is spent in trying to
make both ends meet. The reason for many children working as labourers can be
attributed to factors like illiteracy, our population and of course poverty. These
three factors result in many children taking up jobs in factories, which snatch
their childhood and force them, to work like adults. The unhygienic conditions,
late working hours and above all being subjected to the atrocities of hard
taskmasters make them lose their mental balance and make them misfits in
today's society. Child labour is cheap and the employers exploit their innocence
and make them work for many hours at a stretch. The atmosphere is not
congenial and these children are given jobs in hazardous industries like
manufacturing glass and crackers. The Supreme Court had decided to ban child
labour and passed orders to implement the decision strictly. But will banning
them from working, send them to school?
Child labour is still a curse for our society which exists in almost every corner of our country. Even capital city
Delhi is full of child labourers. Government should take required steps to eradicate child labour from our society
for the all round d IN INDIA, child labour is still a bad curse for the society. Being the capital city Delhi still has to
fight a lot to remove this curse from the society. Barakhamba, Connaught Place are the heart of the city where

top companies are running successful business and earning millions of rupees. But at the same time and at the
same places we can easily find out kids who are fighting for their livelihood.
We can see them begging, polishing shoes, doing every cheap work which they should not do in this age. Child
labour organisations are also not working properly for the benefit of these poor children. Even after complaining
so many times they still didnt take any actions.
Government of Delhi has spent millions of rupees for the construction of the city in order to beautify it for the
upcoming Commonwealth Games, but yet not taking any action to eradicate the curse of child labour from the
society. They are still looking for hope. We all should come forward and help these poor and needy children. They
dont need words they need action.

Ben Jonson
Born in 1572, Jonson began his working life as a bricklayer and then a soldier, and it is perhaps
experiences in these fields and his prodigious intake of falling down water that shaped his nononsense, confrontational personality.
Jonson became an actor after serving in the army in the Netherlands. By all accounts, he was not a very
good actor, but during his time with Pembroke's Men he co-authored a play, "Isle of Dogs," with Nashe.
The play, accused of spreading sedition, would lead to one of many brushes with the State, and he was
imprisoned for some months.
Jonson wrote for the Admiral's Men until 1856, when a quarrel with Gabriel Spencer, one of the
company's leading players, led to a duel. Spencer was killed and Jonson only spared execution by
drawing on his knowledge of Latin to invoke the benefit of the clergy, which enabled the convicted
criminal to pass as a clergyman, and therefore obtain a discharge from the civil courts. It is believed
that while in Newgate Prison he converted to Roman Catholicism, and here was branded on his thumb
with the "T" for Tyburn (the most famous place of execution in London after the Tower) to ever more
remind him of his lucky escape.
Jonson's first box office successes came about with comedies like "Every Man In His Humour," which
featured Shakespeare in the cast. It is thought Shakespeare was probably the one who first championed
Jonson as a writer of note. Jonson's method of working began to crystallize about this time, and he
began to produce more hard-edged, biting satire dispensing with a lot of the farce and frippery that
were Shakespeare's tools. As his work became ever more distinctive and classically inspired he began to
heap disdain on other writers and their work.

Boys' Company performance of

"Poetaster"In the early 1600's, Jonson embraced a new phenomenon. Boys Companies were as seductive

to audiences and as threatening to Shakespeare's brand of theatre as N*Synch and Boys 2 Men were to
today's Springsteens, REMs and Rolling Stones.
Boys Companies were highly trained in vocal and instrumental music, and with their youthful looks and
skin were probably a lot easier to relate to in women's roles than the half shaved, former soldiers of the
adult theatre companies.

Jonson, the classical scholar, and Shakespeare, the populist crowd-pleaser as Jonson saw him, even
came to blows in a "discussion" over the merits, or otherwise, of the Boys Companies. A protracted, and
wordy, War of the Poets ensued, with both sides of the argument trading digs and insults through their
work.
Imagine an episode of the TV show Frasier that lasts three years, and features an unbroken argument
between Niles and Frasier Crane on the relative merits of Jung and Freud, and you get the general idea.
Jonson would find himself in trouble with the State time and time again for ridiculing the Scots in
"Eastward Ho!" and most seriously when he was questioned over the gunpowder plot, after which he
renounced his "provocative" Roman Catholicism. Later his play, "Sejanus," would also fall foul of the
censors.
Jonson, always something of a misunderstood outsider in his own writing, would comment on his lot at
the hands of a society rife with envy and suspicion:
know, tis a dangerous age,
Wherein who writes had need present his scenes
Forty-fold proof against the conjuring means
Of base detractors and illiterate apes
(It's interesting that spooky rock person Marilyn Manson has been quoted as referring to Limp Bizkit's
front man Fred Durst as an "illiterate ape," Manson being another artistic figure who felt his work was
being misrepresented after the atrocious events at Columbine.)
With the arrival of James I on the throne, Jonson found himself in favor once again, and, with his cowriter Inigo Jones, created Court Masques for Queen Anne until their inevitable quarrel. Jonson and
Shakespeare seem to have called a truce on their dispute and become close again around 1609. Until
Shakespeare's death they seem to have continued their almost good natured jibes and sniping, with
Jonson typically dismissing his friend as having "small Latin and less Greek."
Ben Jonson clearly saw himself as a champion of intellectualism totalitarian states often don't care for
intellectuals to the point that they will generally kill most of them. Shakespeare could ultimately be said
to be cleverer in diluting his classical influences to reach a wider audience. It's that old Hollywoodversus-arthouse debate.
It was said at the time that "gentle Will" Shakespeare showed Jonson a courtesy that was not returned.
Jonson certainly seems to have been brusque and volatile, a matter not helped by his drinking. Everyone
drank alcohol in Elizabethan and Jacobean London because the quality of the available drinking water
was so bad. But Jonson literally turned it into an art form, composing whole poems about his favorite
drinking holes.
There seems to have been an almost brotherly relationship between Jonson and Shakespeare. Though
their rivalry was strong, and their verbal jibes at each other cutting, both seemed to recognize the talent
in each other Jonson grudgingly, Shakespeare more generously. They seem to have spent a great deal
of time in each other's company. It is believed that Shakespeare may have become ill prior to his death
after a typically uproarious night out drinking (something strong and noxious, probably with an odd
name like Left Leg) with Jonson and others.
Ultimately it was Jonson perhaps his greatest and most constant critic who gave Shakespeare his
most enduring epitaph: "He was not of an age, but for all time."
Ben Jonson died in 1637.

Works by Ben Jonson:

"The Alchemist"
"Cynthia's Revels"
"Every Man in His Humour"
"Every Man out of His Humour"
"Poetaster"
"Volpone"
"Sejanus"
"Catiline"
"Bartholomew Fair"
"The Devil is an Ass"
"Staple of News"
"Eastward Ho!"
"Epicoene"

A study of the decline of the drama, as shown in Jonson's plays, will give us a better
appreciation of the genius of Shakespeare. We may change Jonson's line so that it
will state one reason for his not maintaining Shakespearean excellence:
"He was not for all time, but of an age."
His first play, Every Man in his Humor, paints, not the universal emotions of men, but
some special humor. He thus defines the sense in which he uses humor:
"As when some one peculiar quality
Doth so possess a man, that it doth draw
All his affects, his spirits and his powers,
In their connections, all to run one way,
This may be truly said to be a Humor."
Unlike Shakespeare, Jonson gives a distorted or incomplete picture of life. In
Volpone everything is subsidiary to the humor of avarice, which receives unnatural
emphasis. In The Alchemist there is little to relieve the picture of credibility and
hypocrisy, while The Silent Woman has for its leading character a man whose
principal "humor" or aim in life is to avoid noise.
No drama which fails to paint the nobler side of womanhood can be called complete.
In Jonson's plays we do not find a single woman worthy to come near the
Shakespearean characters, Cordelia, Imogen, and Desdemona. His limitations are
nowhere more marked than in his inability to portray a noble woman.
Another reason why he fails to present life completely is shown in these lines, in
which he defines his mission:
"My strict hand
Was made to seize on vice, and with a gripe
Squeeze out the humor of such spongy souls
As lick up every idle vanity."
Since the world needs building up rather than tearing down, a remedy for an ailment
rather than fault-finding, the greatest of men cannot be mere satirists. Shakespeare
displays some fellow feeling for the object of his satire, but Jonson's satire is cold
and devoid of sympathy.
Jonson deliberately took his stand in opposition to the romantic spirit of the age.
Marlowe and Shakespeare had disregarded the classical unities and had developed

the drama on romantic lines. Jonson resolved to follow classical traditions and to
adhere to unity of time and place in the construction of his plots. The action in the
play of The Silent Woman, for instance, occupies only twelve hours.
General Characteristics. Jonson's plays show the touch of a conscientious artist
with great intellectual ability. His vast erudition is constantly apparent. He is the
satiric historian of his time, and he exhibits the follies and the humors of the age
under a powerful lens. He is also the author of dainty lyrics (p. 137), and forcible
prose criticism.
Among the shortcomings of his plays, we may specially note lack of feeling and of
universality. He fails to comprehend the nature of woman. He is not a sympathetic
observer of manifold life, but presents only what is perceived through the frosted
glass of intellect. His art is self-conscious. He defiantly opposed the romantic spirit of
the age and weakened the drama by making it bear the burden of the classical
unities.
Shakespeare
Beyond the records of his baptism in 1564 and his burial in 1616 there is little documentary
evidence for William Shakespeares life, although there are many unverifiable stories and
anecdotes. Even the traditional date for his birth, St Georges Day, 23 April, is uncertain. What
evidence there is connects him firmly to Stratford-upon-Avon, where he was born, married, and
died. Nothing is known of Shakespeares early life before his marriage, at the age of 18, in 1582.
For five years, when he was in his 20s, there is nothing to tell us where Shakespeare was or what
he was doing. He disappears from Stratford records after 1587, and reappears only in 1592 in
London.
We do not know how and when he became an actor, or when he began writing plays either in
collaboration with other dramatists or alone. His work as a dramatist is recorded through his published
plays, but his career as an actor is virtually undocumented. Shakespeare is mentioned occasionally, in
official records, in the records of the lives of his relations and friends, and in the writings of his fellow
actors and dramatists, and that is all. His life and career have been more extensively researched than
those of any other writer, but the evidence remains elusive.

Within the class system of Elizabethan England, William Shakespeare did not seem destined for greatness.
He was not born into a family of nobility or significant wealth. He did not continue his formal education at
university, nor did he come under the mentorship of a senior artist, nor did he marry into wealth or
prestige. His talent as an actor seems to have been modest, since he is not known for starring roles. His
success as a playwright depended in part upon royal patronage. Yet in spite of these limitations,
Shakespeare is now the most performed and read playwright in the world.
Born to John Shakespeare, a glovemaker and tradesman, and Mary Arden, the daughter of an affluent
farmer, William Shakespeare was baptized on April 26, 1564, in Stratford-upon-Avon. At that time, infants
were baptized three days after their birth, thus scholars believe that Shakespeare was born on April 23, the
same day on which he died at age 52. As the third of eight children, young William grew up in this small
town 100 miles northwest of London, far from the cultural and courtly center of England.

Shakespeare attended the local grammar school, King's New School, where the curriculum would have
stressed a classical education of Greek mythology, Roman comedy, ancient history, rhetoric, grammar,
Latin, and possibly Greek. Throughout his childhood, Shakespeare's father struggled with serious financial
debt. Therefore, unlike his fellow playwright Christopher Marlowe, he did not attend university. Rather, in
1582 at age 18, he married Anne Hathaway, a woman eight years his senior and three months pregnant.
Their first child, Susanna, was born in 1583, and twins, Hamnet and Judith, came in 1585. In the seven
years following their birth, the historical record concerning Shakespeare is incomplete, contradictory, and
unreliable; scholars refer to this period as his lost years.
In a 1592 pamphlet by Robert Greene, Shakespeare reappears as an upstart crow flapping his poetic
wings in London. Evidently, it did not take him long to land on the stage. Between 1590 and 1592,
Shakespeare's Henry VI series, Richard III, and The Comedy of Errors were performed. When the theaters
were closed in 1593 because of the plague, the playwright wrote two narrative poems, Venus and Adonis
and The Rape of Lucrece, and probably began writing his richly textured sonnets. One hundred and
fiftyfour of his sonnets have survived, ensuring his reputation as a gifted poet. By 1594, he had also
written, The Taming of the Shrew, The Two Gentlemen of Verona and Love's Labor's Lost.
Having established himself as an actor and playwright, in 1594 Shakespeare became a shareholder in the
Lord Chamberlain's Men, one of the most popular acting companies in London. He remained a member of
this company for the rest of his career, often playing before the court of Queen Elizabeth I. Shakespeare
entered one of his most prolific periods around 1595, writing Richard II, Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer
Night's Dream, and The Merchant of Venice. With his newfound success, Shakespeare purchased the
second largest home in Stratford in 1597, though he continued to live in London. Two years later, he joined
others from the Lord Chamberlain's Men in establishing the polygonal Globe Theatre on the outskirts of
London. When King James came to the throne in 1603, he issued a royal license to Shakespeare and his
fellow players, organizing them as the King's Men. During King James's reign, Shakespeare wrote many of
his most accomplished plays about courtly power, including King Lear, Macbeth, and Antony and
Cleopatra. In 1609 or 1611, Shakespeare's sonnets were published, though he did not live to see the First
Folio of his plays published in 1623.
In 1616, with his health declining, Shakespeare revised his will. Since his only son Hamnet had died in
1596, Shakespeare left the bulk of his estate to his two daughters, with monetary gifts set aside for his
sister, theater partners, friends, and the poor of Stratford. A fascinating detail of his will is that he
bequeathed the family's second best bed to his wife Anne. He died one month later, on April 23, 1616. To
the world, he left a lasting legacy in the form of 38 plays, 154 sonnets, and two narrative poems.
When William Shakespeare died in his birthplace of Stratford-upon- Avon, he was recognized as one of the
greatest English playwrights of his era. In the four centuries since, he has come to be seen as not only a
great English playwright, but the greatest playwright in the English language. Reflecting upon the

achievement of his peer and sometimes rival, Ben Jonson wrote of Shakespeare, He was not of an age, but
for all time.

William Shakespeare's plays

The first of Shakespeares plays to be printed in quarto was Titus Andronicus, in 1594.
The earliest quartos were anonymous. Shakespeares name did not appear on a titlepage until 1598, with Loves Labours Lost. Until recently, scholars have been agreed
that Shakespeare took no interest in the printing of his plays. Fresh research suggests
that he and his company, the Lord Chamberlains Men, intended to have his plays
printed.
Nineteen of Shakespeares plays had appeared in quarto by 1622. In the following year the
first folio added another 18. A handful of plays were excluded from the first folio, probably
because they were known not to be wholly by Shakespeare. One of these, Pericles, is now
accepted as his. At least one of the excluded plays, Cardenio (which Shakespeare wrote in
collaboration with John Fletcher in 1612-1613), is now lost.
Many of the plays which had been printed before the first folio continued to appear in new
quarto editions after 1623. One, The Taming of the Shrew, was printed in quarto for the
first time in 1631. The first folio was followed by a second folio in 1632. The first folio
divided Shakespeares plays into comedies, histories, and tragedies, and they have been
thought of in this way ever since.
Seventeen of Shakespeares plays are usually thought of as comedies:

The Taming of the Shrew, created in about 1590-1591 or perhaps earlier.

The Two Gentlemen of Verona, created in about 1592-1593. First printed in the
first folio of 1623.

The Comedy of Errors, created by 1594. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Loves Labours Lost, created in about 1594-1595. First printed in quarto in

First printed in the first folio of 1623. Reprinted in quarto in 1631.

1598.

A Midsummer Nights Dream, created in about 1595-1596. First printed in

quarto in 1600.

The Merchant of Venice, created between 1596 and 1598. First printed in
quarto in 1600.

Much Ado About Nothing, created in about 1598-1599. First printed in

quarto in 1600.

As You Like It, created in about 1599. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

The Merry Wives of Windsor, created in about 1599-1600. First printed in

quarto in 1602.

Twelfth Night, created in about 1601. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Troilus and Cressida, created in about 1601. First printed in quarto in 1609.

Alls Well that Ends Well, created in about 1603-1604. First printed in the first
folio of 1623.

Measure for Measure, created in about 1604. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Pericles, created in about 1607-1608. George Wilkins may have written part of
the play. First printed in quarto in 1609. Excluded from the first folio of 1623.

Cymbeline, created in about 1609. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

The Winters Tale, created in about 1611. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

The Tempest, created in about 1611. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Spenser's The Shepheardes Calender was one of Shakespeare's sources for A Midsummer Night's
Dream . Edmund Spenser, The Shepheardes Calender, 1579. British Library, G.11532, f. 16r. Larger
image

Shakespeare wrote 10 plays which drew on English history:

Henry VI, Part 2, created by 1591. First printed in quarto, with the title The
First Part of the Contention Betwixt the Two Famous Houses of Yorke and
Lancaster, in 1594.

Richard III, created in about 1591. First printed in quarto in 1597.

Henry VI, Part 3, created by 1592. First printed in octavo, with the title The
True Tragedie of Richard Duke of York, and the Death of Good King Henrie the
Sixt, in 1595.

Henry VI, Part 1, created in about 1592. Shakespeare may have collaborated with
other dramatists, including Thomas Nash. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

King John, created between 1593 and 1596. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Richard II, created in about 1595. First printed in quarto in 1597.

Henry IV, Part 1, created in about 1596-1597. First printed in quarto in 1598.

Henry IV, Part 2, created in about 1597. First printed in quarto in 1600.

Henry V, created in about 1599. First printed in quarto in 1600.

Henry VIII (All is True), created in 1613. Shakespeare may have collaborated with
John Fletcher. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Hall's chronicle was used by Shakespeare as a source for several of his history plays . Edward Hall, The
Union of the Two Noble and Illustrate Famelies of Lancastre & Yorke, 1548. British Library, C.122.h.4.
Titlepage. Larger image

Shakespeare wrote 10 tragedies:

Titus Andronicus, created in about 1593. First printed in quarto in 1594.

Romeo and Juliet, created in about 1595. First printed in quarto in 1597.

Julius Caesar, created in about 1599. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Hamlet, created in about 1600-1601. First printed in quarto in 1603.

Othello, created in about 1601-1602. First printed in quarto in 1622.

King Lear, created in about 1605-1606. First printed in quarto in 1608.

Macbeth, created in about 1606. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Anthony and Cleopatra, created in about 1606-1607. First printed in the first folio
of 1623.

Timon of Athens, created in about 1607-1608. First printed in the first folio of
1623.

Coriolanus, created in about 1608. First printed in the first folio of 1623.

Shakespeare's plays admired. Francis Meres, Palladis Tamia, 1598. British Library, G.10375, f. 282.
Larger image

At least three other plays were written by Shakespeare in collaboration with others:

Sir Thomas More, written in collaboration with Henry Chettle, Thomas Dekker and
Thomas Heywood. This play survives only in a manuscript, now in the British
Library (Harley MS 7368). One section of the play is thought to be in
Shakespeares hand.

The Raigne of King Edward the Third, created between 1588 and 1595. First
printed in quarto in 1596. Excluded from the first folio of 1623.

The Two Noble Kinsmen, written with John Fletcher in about 1613-1614.
Excluded from the first folio of 1623. First published in quarto in 1634.

Thomas Kyd

Thomas Kyd (baptised 6 November 1558; buried 15 August 1594) was an English
playwright, the author of The Spanish Tragedy, and one of the most important figures in the
development of Elizabethan drama.
Although well known in his own time, Kyd fell into obscurity until 1773 when Thomas
Hawkins (an early editor of The Spanish Tragedy) discovered that Kyd was named as its
author by Thomas Heywood in his Apologie for Actors (1612). A hundred years later,
scholars in Germany and England began to shed light on his life and work, including the
controversial finding that he may have been the author of a Hamlet play pre-dating
Shakespeare's, which is now known as the Ur-Hamlet.

Early life
Thomas Kyd was the son of Francis and Anna Kyd and was baptised in the church of St Mary
Woolnoth in the Ward of Langborn, Lombard Street, London on 6 November 1558. The
baptismal register at St Mary Woolnoth carries this entry: "Thomas, son of Francis Kydd,
Citizen and Writer of the Courte Letter of London". Francis Kydd was a scrivener and in
1580 was warden of the Scriveners' Company.
In October 1565 the young Kyd was enrolled in the newly founded Merchant Taylors' School,
whose headmaster was Richard Mulcaster. Fellow students included Edmund Spenser and
Thomas Lodge. Here, Kyd received a well-rounded education, thanks to Mulcaster's
progressive ideas. Apart from Latin and Greek, the curriculum included music, drama,

physical education, and "good manners". There is no evidence that Kyd went on to university.
He may have followed for a time his father's profession; two letters written by him are extant
and his handwriting suggests the training of a scrivener.

Career

Title page of Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy, with a woodcut showing (left) the hung
body of Horatio discovered by (centre) Hieronymo; and Bel-Imperia being taken
from the scene by a blackface Lorenzo (right).

Evidence suggests that in the 1580s Kyd became an important playwright, but little is known
about his activity. Francis Meres placed him among "our best for tragedy" and Heywood
elsewhere called him "Famous Kyd". Ben Jonson mentions him in the same breath as
Christopher Marlowe (with whom, in London, Kyd at one time shared a room) and John Lyly
in the Shakespeare First Folio.
The Spanish Tragedie was probably written in the mid to late 1580s. The earliest surviving
edition was printed in 1592; the full title being, The Spanish Tragedie, Containing the
lamentable end of Don Horatio, and Bel-imperia: with the pittifull death of olde Hieronimo.
However, the play was usually known simply as "Hieronimo", after the protagonist. It was
arguably the most popular play of the "Age of Shakespeare" and set new standards in
effective plot construction and character development. In 1602 a version of the play with
"additions" was published. Philip Henslowe's diary records payment to Ben Jonson for
additions that year, but it is disputed whether the published additions reflect Jonson's work or
if they were actually composed for a 1597 revival of The Spanish Tragedy mentioned by
Henslowe.
Other works by Kyd are his translations of Torquato Tasso's Padre di Famiglia, published as
The Householder's Philosophy (1588); and Robert Garnier's Cornelia (1594). Plays attributed
in whole or in part to Kyd include Soliman and Perseda, King Leir, Arden of Feversham and

Edward III. A play related to The Spanish Tragedy called The First Part of Hieronimo
(surviving in a quarto of 1605) may be a bad quarto or memorial reconstruction of a play by
Kyd, or it may be an inferior writer's burlesque of The Spanish Tragedy inspired by that play's
popularity.[1] Kyd is more generally accepted to have been the author of a Hamlet, the
precursor of the Shakespearean play (see: Ur-Hamlet). Some poems by Kyd exist, but it
seems that most of his work is lost or unidentified.
The success of Kyd's plays extended to Europe. Versions of The Spanish Tragedy and his
Hamlet were popular in Germany and the Netherlands for generations. The influence of these
plays on European drama was largely the reason for the interest in Kyd among German
scholars in the nineteenth century.
He is also the presumed author of a pamphlet in prose entitled The Murder of John Brewen
(1592), a grisly report on murder in a family, in which a goldsmith is murdered by his wife.

Later life
From 1587 to 1593 Kyd was in the service of an unidentified noble, since, after his
imprisonment in 1593 (see below), he wrote of having lost "the favours of my Lord, whom I
haue servd almost theis vi yeres nowe". Proposed nobles include the Earl of Sussex,[2] the Earl
of Pembroke,[3] and Lord Strange.[4] He may have worked as a secretary, if he did not also
write plays. Around 1591 Christopher Marlowe also joined this patron's service, and for a
while Marlowe and Kyd shared lodgings, and perhaps even ideas.
On 11 May 1593 the Privy Council ordered the arrest of the authors of "divers lewd and
mutinous libels" which had been posted around London. The next day, Kyd was among those
arrested; he would later believe that he had been the victim of an informer. His lodgings were
searched and instead of evidence of the "libels" there was found an Arianist tract, described
by an investigator as "vile heretical conceits denying the eternal deity of Jesus Christ found
amongst the papers of Thos. Kydd (sic), prisoner ... which he affirmeth he had from C.
Marley (sic)". It is believed that Kyd was tortured brutally to obtain this information.
Marlowe was summoned by the Privy Council after these events, and, while waiting for a
decision on his case, was killed in an incident involving known government agents.
Kyd was eventually released but was not accepted back into his lord's service. Believing he
was under suspicion of atheism himself, he wrote to the Lord Keeper, Sir John Puckering,
protesting his innocence, but his efforts to clear his name were apparently fruitless. The last
we hear from the playwright is the publication of Cornelia early in 1594. In the dedication to
the Countess of Sussex he alludes to the "bitter times and privy broken passions" he had
endured. Kyd died later that year at the age of 35, and was buried on 15 August in London. In
December of that same year, Kyd's mother legally renounced the administration of his estate,
probably because it was debt-ridden.

What is Pollution?
Pollution, we hear it every other day at school, college and read about it in
newspapers. So what is it? Pollution occurs when pollutants contaminate the
natural surroundings; which brings about changes that affect our normal
lifestyles adversely. Pollutants are the key elements or components of pollution
which are generally waste materials of different forms. Pollution disturbs our
ecosystem and the balance in the environment. With modernization and
development in our lives pollution has reached its peak; giving rise to global
warming and human illness.
Pollution occurs in different forms; air, water, soil, radioactive, noise, heat/
thermal and light. Every form of pollution has two sources of occurrence; the
point and the non-point sources. The point sources are easy to identify, monitor
and control, whereas the non-point sources are hard to control. Let us discuss
the different types of pollutions, their causes and effects on mankind and the
environment as a whole.

Photo by dylanpassmore

Types & Causes of Pollution

Air Pollution is the most prominent and dangerous form of pollution. It occurs
due to many reasons. Excessive burning of fuel which is a necessity of our daily
lives for cooking, driving and other industrial activities; releases a huge amount
of chemical substances in the air everyday; these pollute the air.
Smoke from chimneys, factories, vehicles or burning of wood basically occurs
due to coal burning; this releases sulphur dioxide into the air making it toxic. The
effects of air pollution are evident too. Release of sulphur dioxide and hazardous
gases into the air causes global warming and acid rain; which in turn have
increased temperatures, erratic rains and droughts worldwide; making it tough
for the animals to survive. We breathe in every polluted particle from the air;
result is increase in asthma and cancer in the lungs.
Water Pollution has taken toll of all the surviving species of the earth. Almost
60% of the species live in water bodies. It occurs due to several factors; the
industrial wastes dumped into the rivers and other water bodies cause an
imbalance in the water leading to its severe contamination and death of aquatic
species. If you suspect that nearby water sources have been contaminated by a
corporation then it might be a good idea to hire an expert to see your options.
Also spraying insecticides, pesticides like DDT on plants pollutes the ground
water system and oil spills in the oceans have caused irreparable damage to the
water bodies. Eutrophication is another big source; it occurs due to daily
activities like washing clothes, utensils near lakes, ponds or rivers; this forces
detergents to go into water which blocks sunlight from penetrating, thus
reducing oxygen and making it inhabitable.
Water pollution not only harms the aquatic beings but it also contaminates the
entire food chain by severely affecting humans dependent on these. Waterborne diseases like cholera, diarrhoea have also increased in all places.
Soil pollution occurs due to incorporation of unwanted chemicals in the soil due
to human activities. Use of insecticides and pesticides absorbs the nitrogen
compounds from the soil making it unfit for plants to derive nutrition from.
Release of industrial waste, mining and deforestation also exploits the soil. Since
plants cant grow properly, they cant hold the soil and this leads to soil erosion.

Noise pollution is caused when noise which is an unpleasant sound affects our
ears and leads to psychological problems like stress, hypertension, hearing
impairment, etc. It is caused by machines in industries, loud music, etc.
Radioactive pollution is highly dangerous when it occurs. It can occur due to
nuclear plant malfunctions, improper nuclear waste disposal, accidents, etc. It
causes cancer, infertility, blindness, defects at the time of birth; can sterilise soil
and affect air and water.
Thermal/heat pollution is due to the excess heat in the environment creating
unwanted changes over long time periods; due to huge number of industrial
plants, deforestation and air pollution. It increases the earths temperature,
causing drastic climatic changes and extinction of wildlife.
Light pollution occurs due to prominent excess illumination of an area. It is
largely visible in big cities, on advertising boards and billboards, in sports or
entertainment events at the night. In residential areas the lives of the
inhabitants is greatly affected by this. It also affects the astronomical
observations and activities by making the stars almost invisible.

Effects of Pollution
1. Environment Degradation : Environment is the first casualty for increase in
pollution weather in air or water. The increase in the amount of CO2 in the
atmosphere leads to smog which can restrict sunlight from reaching the earth.
Thus, preventing plants in the process of photosynthesis. Gases like Sulfur
dioxide and nitrogen oxide can cause acid rain. Water pollution in terms of Oil
spill may lead to death of several wildlife species.
2. Human Health : The decrease in quality of air leads to several respiratory
problems including asthma or lung cancer. Chest pain, congestion, throat
inflammation, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease are some of diseases
that can be causes by air pollution. Water pollution occurs due to contamination
of water and may pose skin related problems including skin irritations and
rashes. Similarly, Noise pollution leads to hearing loss, stress and sleep
disturbance.

Photo by dylanpassmore

3. Global Warming : The emission of greenhouse gases particularly CO2 is

leading to global warming. Every other day new industries are being set up, new
vehicles come on roads and trees are cut to make way for new homes. All of
them, in direct or indirect way lead to increase in CO2 in the environment. The
increase in CO2 leads to melting of polar ice caps which increases the sea level
and pose danger for the people living near coastal areas.
4. Ozone Layer Depletion: Ozone layer is the thin shield high up in the sky that
stops ultra violet rays from reaching the earth. As a result of human activities,
chemicals, such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), were released int to the
atmosphere which contributed to the depletion of ozone layer.
5. Infertile Land : Due to constant use of insecticides and pesticides, the soil
may become infertile. Plants may not be able to grow properly. Various forms of
chemicals produced from industrial waste is released into the flowing water
which also affects the quality of soil.
Pollution not only affect humans by destroying their respiratory, cardiovascular
and neurological systems; it also affects the nature, plants, fruits, vegetables,
rivers, ponds, forests, animals, etc, on which they are highly dependent for

survival. It is crucial to control pollution as the nature, wildlife and human life are
precious gifts to the mankind.

What are the different types of pollution?

Different Types of pollution are categorized based on the part of the
environment which they affect or result which the particular pollution
causes. Each of these types has its own distinctive causes and
consequences. Categorized study of pollution helps to understand the
basics in more detail and produce protocols for the specific types.
Accordingly, the main types of pollution are:

Water Pollution
Air Pollution
Soil Pollution
Thermal Pollution
Radioactive Pollution
Noise Pollution
Light Pollution
Let us observe these types of pollution in a more comprehensive way.
Water Pollution

As the name suggests, Water Pollution is the type of pollution that

involves the contamination of various water bodies. Various aquatic
creatures depend on these water bodies and its natural nutritious features
to support its life.

Water Pollution (Image source: Wikipedia)

What Causes Water Pollution?

Industrial waste gets dumped into these water bodies. This causes a
chemical imbalance in the water leading to death of the aquatic
beings.
Insecticides, pesticides and ripening chemicals that are used on
plants run into the ground water system or nearby streams.
Washing clothes near lakes and rivers causes detergents also
causes a condition called Eutrophication which blocks sunlight
from entering inside and reduces oxygen values in the water causing
an inhabitable environment.
Oil Spills are caused when giant oil tankers and oil rigs which are
present in the oceans are damaged by either natural or human errors
cause a long-time damage to the ocean as oil is lighter than water
and floats on water forming a layer blocking sunlight.
Certain natural disasters like flash floods and hurricanes cause the
intermixing of water with harmful substances on the land.

People can take certain preventable measures to stop water pollution like
being more cautious of dumping contaminants onto the water. For the
repair of the damage that has already been done, water treatment plants
are being constructed with innovative techniques to clean the polluted
water. But as always a certain part of the damage can be resolved
therefore, it is better to prevent water pollution as water is basic need for
the survival of man.
Air Pollution

The contamination of the air present in the atmosphere is known as Air

pollution. Respiration is an important life process of all living things. We
breathe in the air present in the atmosphere. Therefore if the air around us
is contaminated with poisonous gases, it would have a fatal effect on us.

Air Pollution (Image source: sxc.hu)

The air naturally comprises of 78% of nitrogen, 21% of oxygen, 0.9% of
oxide gases and 0.1% of inert gases. When this balance is disturbed, it
causes disruptions of severe proportions.

What Causes Air Pollution?

Partially

combusted

exhaust

gases

released

from

internal

combustion engines add poisonous gases into the atmosphere.

 Certain industries release some gases like sulphur dioxide and

carbon monoxide which mix with the air and clouds and cause acid
rains.
Burning of discarded plastic, wood and rubber also release
carcinogenic gases into the atmosphere.

Air pollution is very much fatal to living things as almost all living beings
respire directly from the atmosphere without undergoing any treatment like
water. Hence use of catalytic converters in vehicles, preventing the burning
of used products, leaving vehicles running for lengthy periods of time
during halts and such environment friendly actions.

Soil Pollution

Stripping soil of its natural fertility by using artificial chemicals like

pesticides, insecticides, ripening agents etc. is known as Soil Pollution.
Plants depend on the nitrogenous compounds present in the soil for their
nutrition. Use of insecticides, pesticides and other artificial chemicals
absorbs the nitrogen from the soil making it unfit for the growth for plants.
Plants are responsible for holding the soil together firmly so, when the
plants cant grow the soil splits, leading to soil erosion.

Soil Pollution (Image courtesy: Dumelow@Wikipedia)

Thermal Pollution

Rise in the temperature in the ecosystem due the release of excessive heat
energy into the environment by artificial methods or natural disasters is
called Thermal Pollution. Generally, manufacturing industries release a lot
of heat energy which gets transferred to the air and water bodies. Even
vehicles which have combustion engines release a lot of heat energy as
they require high temperatures to function. Carbon dioxide has a property
of blocking heat from exiting the atmosphere and so the heat coming in
from the sun is trapped in the atmosphere.

Thermal Pollution (Image source: sxc.hu)

Thermal pollution results in a temperature rise which is the main cause for
the melting of the polar ice caps, which is in turn leading to a rise in the
water levels. Thermal pollution has increased significantly since the
eighteen hundreds resulting in a hotter earth.

Radioactive Pollution

Radioactive pollution occurs when Radioactive metals disintegrate

releasing dangerous beta rays which can cause cancer and other mutative
diseases. These types of pollution can occur by either the dumping of
radioactive waste from nuclear power plants into water bodies, damage of
nuclear reactors leading to radioactive contamination that would last for

many years and many more. In the Second World War, when the U.S.A
attacked Hiroshima and Nagasaki of Japan, the atomic bomb left a
radioactive footprint leading to highly mutative diseases. So, most of the
people who survived the atomic bombing died eventually from cancers and
mutations.

Nuclear Power Plant (Image source: morgueFile.com)

Noise Pollution:

There are different qualities of sounds. The sounds which are not pleasant
to hear are called Noises. So an excess of noise in the outdoors leads to
Noise Pollution. This can be experienced by too many vehicles honking
at the roads, heavy machinery being operated in the open (for ex, a
jackhammer), trains, clubs, over populated crowds and many more. Noise
pollution is known to cause mental stress and depression. It can also cause
damage to the ear drum which can cause deafness. Noise pollution has
more of a psychological effect rather than a physical one.

Light Pollution

Bright lighting in functions, big cities, etc. causes Light Pollution.

Excessive light on the retina causes extreme discomfort in the eyes,
especially in dim conditions like during night time. Bright lights strain the
eyes and also give headaches and migraines. If we observe, light pollution,

thermal pollution and noise pollution all are types of pollution that are
caused by the different forms of energy.

Light Pollution (Image source: morgueFile.com)

Conclusion

Pollution in all its various forms causes immense damage covering all
possible aspects that can be damaged. Therefore it is important to prevent
all these forms to look forward to a greener cleaner and much more
pleasant living experience.
Timeline
1. 322 BC : Chandragupta Maurya founds the Mauryan Empire by
overthrowing the Nanda Dynasty.
2. 317316 BC : Chandragupta Maurya conquers the Northwest of the Indian
subcontinent.
3. 305303 BC : Chandragupta Maurya gains territory from the Seleucid
Empire.
4. 301269 BC : Reign of Bindusara, Chandragupta's son. He conquers parts
of Deccan, southern India.
5. 269232 BC : The Mauryan Empire reaches its height under Ashoka,
Chandragupta's grandson.
6. 261 BC : Ashoka conquers the kingdom of Kalinga.
7. 250 BC : Ashoka builds Buddhist stupas and erects pillars bearing
inscriptions.

8. 184 BC : The empire collapses when Brihadnatha, the last emperor, is

killed by Pushyamitra Sunga, a Mauryan general and the founder of the
Sunga Empire.

THE MAURYAN EMPIRE

Category: South and Southeast Asia

By Master of Puppets
Introduction
In the year 327 BC Alexander crossed the Hindu Kush. With great difficulty, he conquered pieces
of land along the Indus and fought the famous king Poros at the river Hydaspes, where his army
encountered elephants for the first time. Alexander won the battle and wanted to move on to the
Ganges, the end of the known world. This was where the Okeanos was, the stream that surrounds
the entire world. But his soldiers are tired of the strange climate, the battles and the marches, and
thus Alexander returned to Babylon. Four years after the crossing of the Hindu Kush, Alexander
the Great died and his Empire collapsed. His most important generals fought for tion,
Seleukos eventually acquiring he bigger piece of land, including the valley of the Indus. At the
beginning of the era that will be known as Hellenistic Age, when Greek culture was spread over
much of the known world, from the colonies in Spain to the rainforests of India, another mighty
general arose, this time in India. He would be the first to unite most of the Indian subcontinent.
His grandson would be known as a bringer of peace. The founder of this new dynasty was
Chandragupta Maurya.
The Empire is Founded
In 324 BC. Chandragupta pushed the Macedonian garrisons in Punjab and Sindh out
of India. Afterwards he attacked the kingdom of Magadha that controlled the
Ganges and conquered it. His mighty army, that he used to conquer the Nnrthern
half of the subcontinent, was composed of infantry, cavalry, war elephants and
chariots.
Under Chandragupta's rule trade flourished. The treasury was filled and the capital
Pataliputra was one of the biggest and most beautiful cities in the world.
Chandragupta used his wealth to build up a large governing body.
Just like the first ruler of united China one century later, the first Emperor of this
Tomb of Atsiz,
new Empire had a very important advisor. His name was Kautilya. According to his
Gurgenc
teachings, the state should control everything. Therefore, the Empire was full of
spies. However, there also was tolerance towards private enterprise and there was
great local autonomy, bounded by the rules of the state. Even the monarch had his duties.
In 305 Seleukos Nikator invaded the Punjab. It is not known whether there was fighting or not,
but it is certain that Chandragupta kept the Punjab and annexed three of the richest provinces of
Seleukos. The border was moved to the western side of the Hindu Kush. In this way the young
empire was secured.
As he got older, Chandragupta became interested in religion. According to Jain tradition,
Chandragupta left his throne to his son Bindusara in 301 BC and slowly starved himself to in a Jain
monastery.
Ashoka

Bindusara conquered the Deccan highland during his reign of 28 years. His wife (or wives) gave
birth to seven sons, including one being rather ugly, called Ashoka.
After the of his father, a struggle for power erupted within the Empire. After four years, Ashoka
was victorious and became Emperor in the year 269 BC. It took him eight years to consolidate his
power. Then it was time to launch a new campaign; Ashoka invaded the kingdom of Kalinga in
southern India and conquered it after a long and y war.
The war was a turning point in Ashoka's life. He was so shocked by the horrors that the war had
caused, that he converted to Buddhism in the tenth year of his rule. He rejected the old system of
spies and started to rule his Empire in a moral way. Ashoka didn't really bother about the ancient
system of castes and had good relations with Buddhists, Jainas and Hindu Brahmans. There were
no troops within the Empire, but civil rulers were sent to the provinces so that the central rule was
able to take into account local wishes. Laws were strict, but there was peace within the Empire.
To forge these different peoples into one nation, a common identity was required. Therefore,
Prakrit was made the official language in the whole Empire with the exception of the utmost
North-West, where Greek was an official language too. Ashoka spoke about the Indians as his
children, made sure that free hospitals were built for both men and animals were built. During his
reign, roads with halting-places were constructed. At the halting-places people could drink, sleep
and read wise Buddhistic phrases and royal decrees that had been hewn into pillars.
The army was stationed in the North-West, where the Seleucid Empire was. Ashoka sent
ambassadors to Hellenistic areas.
The arts flourished during Ashoka's reign. Beautiful palaces were built, and everywhere in the
Empire monastries and stupas, domes where relics were kept or that marked sacred Buddhist or
Jain holy places.
The great Emperor Ashoka died in 232 BC. After his civil war erupted and the economy became
instable. However, the sons of Ashoka would remain on the throne for 48 years, until the last
Emperor was killed by one of his officers. India was divided again. But the Mauryans had proved
that unity was possible, and Indian dynasties to follow would try to achieve a unified subcontinent,
just like the Mauryans had done.

Emperors
Chandragupta Maurya c.340 - 297 BCE
Bindusara c. 297-272 BCE
Asoka c.272-235 BCE
Kunala
Salisuka
Devavarman
Satadhanvan
Brhadratha c 190 -181 BCE

Alexander

Macedonian cavalry attacking an Indian elephant

In the final weeks of 327 BCE, the Macedonian king Alexander the Great invaded
the valley of the river Kabul, and in the next months, he conquered Taxila,
defeated the Indian king Porus at the river Hydaspes, and reached the eastern
border of the Punjab. He wanted to continue to the kingdom of Magadha in the
Lower Ganges valley, but his soldiers refused to go any further, and Alexander
was forced to go south. Many Indians now resisted the invaders. By the end of
325, the Macedonian king had left the area of what is now Karachi, and his
admiral Nearchus was forced out of Patala.

Alexander's conquests had been spectacular, but he had not conquered

India. On the contrary. Not even the Punjab and the Indus valley were safe
possessions of his kingdom. Before Alexander had died in 323, he had
redeployed nearly all his troops west of the Indus. For the first time, he
had lost part of his empire. On the other hand, his invasion changed the
course of Indian history. In Taxila, a young man named Chandragupta
Maurya had seen the Macedonian army, and - believing that anything a
European could do an Indian could do better - decided to train an army on
a similar footing. In 321, he seized the throne of Magadha. The Mauryan
empire was born.

Chandragupta
Chandragupta was a pupil of a famous Brahman teacher, Kautilya. Once
Chandragupta had conquered the Nanda throne, he invaded the Punjab and he was lucky. In 317, one of Alexander's successors, Peithon, the
satrap of Media, tried to subdue the leaders of the eastern provinces, who
united against him. This civil war offered Chandragupta the opportunity he
needed and he was able to capture Taxila, the capital of the Punjab.
When the situation in Alexander's former kingdom had stabilized, one of
his successors, Seleucus, tried to reconquer the eastern territories, but the
war was inconclusive, and the Macedonian offered a peace treaty to
Chandragupta. The latter recognized the Seleucid Empire and gave his
new friend 500 elephants; Seleucus recognized the Mauryan empire and
gave up the eastern territories, including Gandara and Arachosia (i.e., the
country northeast of modern Qandahar). Finally, there was epigamia,
which can mean that either the two dynasties intermarried, or the unions
of Macedonians/Greeks with Indians were recognized.
Chandragupta had now united the Indus and Ganges valley - a formidable
empire. There was a secret service, there were inspectors, there was a
large army, and the capital at Patna became a beautiful city. His adviser
Kautilya wrote a guide to statecraft which is known as Arthasastra. A
Greek visitor, Megasthenes, gives a very strange description of the caste
system (accepting seven instead of the usual four classes of people), and
it is likely that he describes an attempted reform. This is certainly not
impossible, because Chandragupta turned out to be not deeply attached
to orthodox Brahmanism. According to the ancient scriptures of the
Jainists, the king abdicated at the end of his life (in 297?) in favor of
Bindusara, and converted to the Jaina faith; he died as an ascetic, having
fasted to death.

Bindusara

The Mauryan Empire

Bindusara was the son of Chandragupta. His reign lasted a quarter of a century,
until 272, but of the three great Mauryan emperors, he is the least known. For
example, he is mentioned as the man who conquered "the country between the
two seas" (i.e., the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea), which suggests that he
conquered central India, but the same deeds are ascribed to his son Ashoka. We
can not choose between these two.

Bindusara had some contacts with the far west, where Antiochus I Soter
had succeeded his father Seleucus as king of the Seleucid empire.
Bindusara approached him, asking for wine, figs, and a philosopher - the
king sending him only the two first products, saying that philosophers
were not fit for export. Whatever one thinks about this anecdote, it proves
that there were diplomatic contacts. It comes as a surprise, therefore, that
Bindusara is called Amitrochates in Greek sources, which simply can not
be a rendering of Bindusara's name. A possible explanation is that
Bindusara had accepted a throne name Amitragatha, 'destroyer of
enemies'. Possible. But why isn't this mentioned in Indian sources? This
king remains a mystery.

Ashoka

The two rock edicts

Texts from southern India mention the Mauryan chariots invading the country
"thundering across the land, with white pennants brilliant like sunshine". Indeed,
Ashoka, who succeeded his father Bindusara in 272, was a great conqueror, and
the first to unite the Indian subcontinent, except for the extreme south. However,
the emperor came to hate war after he had seen the bloodshed of the conquest
of Kalinga in eastern India, and he converted to Buddhism. He wanted to
establish dhamma, 'the law of justice', everywhere in India and Arachosia. In the
rock edicts he left behind on several places in his realm, the emperor says:

The beloved of the gods [...] conquered Kalinga eight years after his
coronation. One hundred and fifty thousand people were deported, one
hundred thousand were killed and many more died from other causes.
After the Kalingas had been conquered, the beloved of the gods came to
feel a strong inclination towards the dhamma, a love for the dhamma and
for instruction in dhamma. Now the beloved of the gods feels deep
remorse for having conquered the Kalingas.

Indeed, the beloved of the gods is deeply pained by the killing, dying and
deportation that take place when an unconquered country is conquered.
But the beloved of the gods is pained even more by this -that Brahmans,
ascetics, and householders of different religions who live in those
countries, and who are respectful to superiors, to mother and father, to
elders, and who behave properly and have strong loyalty towards friends,
acquaintances, companions, relatives, servants and employees- that they
are injured, killed or separated from their loved ones. Even those who are
not affected by all this suffer when they see friends, acquaintances,
companions and relatives affected. These misfortunes befall all as a result
of war, and this pains the beloved of the gods.

Drawing of a coin showing Buddha. It is not from the Mauryan age, but Kushan.

It seems that Ashoka was sincere when he proclaimed his belief in ahimsa (nonviolence) and cooperation between religions ("contact between religions is
good"). He never conquered the south of India or Sri Lanka, which would have
been logical, and instead sent out missionaries -as far away as Cyrenaica- to
convert others to the same beliefs, and sent his brother to Sri Lanka. He erected
several stupas, founded Buddhist monasteries, softened the harsh laws of
Bindusara and Chandragupta, forbade the brutal slaughter of animals, and
organized a large Buddhist council at Patna, which had to establish a new canon
of sacred texts and repress heresies.

Decline

Indian capital from the age of Ashoka

After the death of Ashoka, the Mauryan empire declined. In c.240, the Bactrian
leaders -who were of Greek descent- revolted from their Seleucid overlords, and
although king Antiochus III the Great restored order in 206, the Bactrian leader
Euthydemus declared himself independent within a decade. Not much later, the
Graeco-Bactrian kingdom expanded into Drangiana and Gandara.

The invasion of the Punjab, which took place in 184, revitalized the Greek
culture in the region south of the Hindu Kush mountain range, where
Euthydemus' son Demetrius created a new kingdom, consisting of
Gandara, Arachosia, the Punjab and even a part of the Ganges valley.
Demetrius died in c.170 and left his kingdom to his sons, who continued to
fight against the Mauryan empire. However, they were divided. But when
king Menander reunited the Indo-Greek kingdom in c.135, the westerners
were able to invade the heartland of the already contracted Mauryan

empire, and even captured Patna. Never has a Greek army reached a
more eastern point.

Coin of Menander I

Yet, the Indo-Greek kings had to accept the realities created by the Mauryan
empire. Buddhism was to be the religion of the future. King Menander converted
and became something of a Buddhist saint. One of the sacred texts of Buddhism
is called Milindapaha, "Questions of Menander".

Administration and Organization

The Maurya Empire was divided into four provinces, with the imperial capital at Pataliputra. From the
Edicts of Ashoka, we know that the names of the four provincial capitals are Tosali (in the east), Ujjain
(in the west), Suvarnagiri (in the south), and Taxila (in the north). The head of the provincial
administration was the Kumara (royal prince), who governed the provinces as king's representative.
The Kumara was assisted by Mahamatyas and council of ministers.

Maurya Empire at its maximum extent (Dark Orange), including its vassals (Light Orange) in 265 BCe.

The Maurya Empire provided political stability with a unified central government, which in turn
encouraged economic prosperity.
This organizational structure was reflected at the imperial level with the Emperor and his
Mantriparishad (Council of Ministers). The empire provided a sophisticated bureaucracy to govern
everything from municipal hygiene to international trade. The largest standing army of its time, the
Mauryan army supported the expansion and defense of the empire. According to scholars of the time,
the empire wielded a military of 600,000 infantry, 30,000 cavalry, and 9,000 war elephants, while a
vast espionage system collected intelligence for both internal and external security purposes.
Although king Ashoka renounced offensive warfare and expansionism, he maintained this large army
to protect the Empire and instill stability and peace across West and South Asia.

Trade and Commerce

For the first time in South Asia, political unity and military security encouraged a common economic
system, increased agricultural productivity, and enhanced trade and commerce. Before the Maurya
Empire, the Indian subcontinent was fragmented into hundreds of kingdoms, many small armies,
powerful regional chieftains, who engaged in internecine warfare.
Under the disciplined central authority of the Maurya Empire, farmers were freed of tax and crop
collection burdens from regional kings, paying instead to a nationally administered and strict-but-fair
system of taxation. Chandragupta Maurya established a single currency across India, a network of
regional governors and administrators, and a civil service to provide justice and security for
merchants, farmers and traders. The Mauryan army eliminated bandits, regional private armies, and
powerful chieftains who sought to impose their own supremacy in small areas. Although regimental in
revenue collection, Maurya also sponsored many public works and waterways to enhance productivity.
During the Maurya Empire, political unity and internal peace encouraged the expansion of trade in
India.

Coins during the Maurya empire

Chandragupta Maurya established a single currency across India. Silver punch mark coin of the
Maurya empire, with symbols of wheel and elephant. 3rd century BCE.
Under the Indo-Greek friendship treaty during Ashoka's reign, the Mauryan international network of
trade expanded. The Khyber Pass, on the modern boundary of Pakistan and Afghanistan, became a
strategically important port of trade and intercourse with the outside world. Greek states and Hellenic
kingdoms in West Asia became trade partners. Trade also extended through the Malay peninsula into
Southeast Asia. India's exports included silk, textiles, spices ,and exotic foods. The external world
came across new scientific knowledge and technology with expanding trade with the Mauryan Empire.
Like his father and grandfather, Ashoka also sponsored the construction of thousands of roads,
waterways, canals, hospitals, rest-houses and other public works.

Religion
Hinduism was the major religion at the beginning of the Maurya Empire in 322 BCE. Hindu priests and
ministers, such as the advisor Chanakya, were an important part of the emperor's court. Even after
embracing Buddhism, Ashoka retained the membership of Hindu Brahmana priests and ministers in
his court. Despite this, after Ashoka converted to Buddhism, many people also converted and it
became a prominent religion in India. Mauryan society also began embracing the philosophy of
ahimsa, an idea integral to all the major Indian religions at the time. Ashoka eventually discouraged
the caste system--which had been an aspect of Hinduism--and orthodox discrimination, supporting the
ideals and values of Jain and Buddhist teachings along with traditional Vedic Hindu teachings. When

Chandragupta Maurya renounced his throne, he also renounced his material possessions and
embraced Jainism.

Buddhist proselytism at the time of king Ashoka (260218 BCE).

Under the patronage of king Ashoka, Buddism spread throughout the Maurya Empire.

Religious policy of Ashoka

The spirit of philanthropy, humanitarianism lay at the bottom of the religious policy of Ashoka the
Great.

Maurya Emperor Ashoka found that in his vast empire there were various races, sects and
diverse cultures. Ashoka found that application of force was no solution to the problem of
separatism and disintegration. The frequent revolts during his fathers reign awakened him
regarding the urgency of the problem.
Maurya King Ashoka sought to promote sense of unity by his philanthropy and religious policy.
The common ethics which he tried to inculcate was aimed to bind the people together by a
common culture. He hoped that most people would be loyal to Ashoka for his religious policy.
Ashoka wants to unite the divergent groups by his policy of toleration. His new faith was to act as
a cementing force among them and consolidate the authority of Ashoka.
There was economic evolution of North Indian society had led to the growth of new social
classes. They were quite prosperous and influential but the traditional pattern of caste ridden
society did not allow them to enjoy due importance like the high castes. The growth of trade had
led to the rise of merchants who had no aristocracy of birth but had aristocracy of wealth. They
resented the vested class interests of the so-called high born.
Ashoka tried to solve this problem caste system for all his subjects, stressing of non-violence and
toleration. Brahmanism, due to its caste distinction rooted to it failed to offer any panacea to the
deep socio-economic conflict. Buddhism with its concept of social democracy and non-violent
principle appeared to Ashoka as the suitable remedy to the ills that affected the society.
Ashoka considered Buddhism to be the best tool for consolidation of his empire. Ashoka
preached toleration and non-violence to cement the people with a bond of unity. He hoped to
reconcile the sects rather than aggravate their conflict.
Hence he maintained that people should not condemn other religions. Ashoka wanted to conquer
the the heart of the people.
Ashoka was one of the greatest kings of the Mauryan dynasty. Ashoka ascended the throne in 273 B.C and
proved himself a mighty conqueror. In the history of ancient India, the reign of Ashoka is marked with his
aggressive imperialism as well as his own policy of religion. The personal religion of Ashoka and the religious
policy he followed, provide a glimpse into the religious trends of the age. However Ashoka is known in the history
of India as the king who turned out to be a resolute non-violent Buddhist from a mighty vanquisher. But the
scholars are at variance about the personal religious belief of Ashoka, his date of conversion into Buddhism and
the actual causes, which prompted him to adopt Buddhism.
Both the modern and the classical interpreters disagree regarding the personal religion of Ashoka. Moreover
Buddhist texts also provide some other theories about the personal religion of Ashoka. Formerly some scholars
put that Ashoka was a Brahmanist or Jainist and not a Buddhist. Later this view was refuted and was declared
that such an argumentative view arose due to the misinterpretation of the Ashokan edicts and the confusion of
his personal views with the principles of the Mauryan policy as a whole. However the scholars again pointed out
that in the accounts of Buddhaghosa, Ashoka was mentioned as "Brahmana Bhatto" or the adherent to
Brahmanism. The "Samanta -padasiaka" also corroborates the fact that Ashoka was a Brahmana. According to
Kalhana, Ashoka was a follower and worshiper of Lord Shiva. Later the Ceylonese chronicles depicted that
originally Ashoka was a Brahman but later turned into a Buddhist and paid visits to the Buddhist communities or
the Samghas. Therefore the contemporary historical records testify Ashoka as a Brahman. However historians, in
the later years have opined that Ashoka's identification with Buddhism as his personal religion was gradual rather

than sudden.
Personal religion of Ashoka or rather the policies he followed is a subject of keen controversy among the
historians and the scholars. According to Bongard Levin, Ashoka was a tolerant towards all other creeds
throughout the major parts of his reign. But Levin also admitted that Ashoka had a close link with Buddhism and
he also constructed a number of Viharas or Buddhist monasteries. As Levin has pointed out-- Ashoka's
benevolence to all the religions is in some way a methodical administrative policy of Ashoka. During Ashoka's
times, the sectarian rivals between Brahmanism, Ajivikism, Jainism and Buddhism weakened the very foundation
of society and national integrity. Henceforth Ashoka practiced toleration towards all the religious creeds in order
to restore national integrity. Moreover his toleration ceased to identify him as the orthodox and the sectarian king.
Personal religion of Ashoka prompted him to reconcile among all the religions rather than to aggravate their
conflict. In his own Rock edict Ashoka spoke about the essence (Sara) of all religions. He preached against the
condemnation of others religion and the exaltation of one's own religion. Ashoka's meetings and tours with the
Brahmans and the Sramanas is mentioned in the rock edict VIII. Nevertheless Levin thinks that towards the end
of his reign Ashoka departed the policy of religious toleration. Levin also holds that the sectarian edicts and the
Bhabru edict and Brahmagiri edicts were issued during the end of his period. Ashoka's open and complete
identification with Buddhism occurred during this period. In Bhabru Edict Ashoka himself had inscribed his
allegiance towards Buddhism. Bongard Levin has also interpreted that it was during this time when the sectarian
conflict between Buddhism and other religions began, which sowed the seed of Pushyamitra's campaign against
the Buddhist Mauryas.
Ashoka was the first ruler of ancient India who consciously used Buddhism for the consolidation of his Empire.
During the reign of Bimbisara and Ajatasatru, Buddhism survived in the shape of a Samgha. Ashoka sought the
support of Buddhism to improve the social and the spiritual life of his subjects. Prior to Ashoka, Buddhism existed
as a regional religion, but Ashoka adopted it as his personal religion and during his reign the creed expanded
vastly. Relations between the samgha and society assumed a new character. He himself followed the non-violent
traits of Buddhism in order to inspire his subjects for spiritual enlightenment through non-violence. With the
adoption of Buddhism as Ashoka's personal faith, this absolutely monkish religion assumed a socio-ethical
character, which overflowed the geographical frontiers of India. Therefore historians in the later years have
opined that the personal religion of Ashoka during his reign had become the state religion.

Child Labour a menace

Child labour, also referred

to as child slavery by
many, is one of the worst
effects of poverty as seen
in India and many other
countries.
What is child labour ?
Child labour actually refers to employing children for various tasks at an
age when they should play, learn and need education. They are instead put
to work for long continuous hours and that too with minimal earnings.
From employment of children for domestic purposes to pushing them into
dangerous mines, all comes under the name of child labour. Employing any
child of the age group 4-16 is now a punishable offence against child
labour.
Where did child labour originate ?

The origin of child labour can be dated back to the Industrial Revolution
when the children of slaves were put to work by the rich lords. Children
were made to work forcibly in industries, factories, mines etc and even in
dangerous conditions. Most of these children used to die at early ages as
they had to work for upto 15 hours without a break.
We often find descriptions in History books regarding the stories of many
talented and known personalities who had to face the menace of child
labour in their life to support their poor familys needs. Those days children
were found employed at every nook and corner. Some were employed as
domestic care-takers while some had to sell items of their employer
roaming about on roads, some even had to work for the major part of the
day in dark and risky mines while some had to work as sweepers and
cleaners.
How is the situation now ?
Child labour is still prevailing in many parts of the world. Children can often
be seen working as domestic servants. They can easily be found working
in small shop as helpers and are even found carrying heavy loads inspite
of the fact that they are minutely paid. We see children working in small
Restaurants washing utensils and doing cleaning work.
The stats state that there are presently around 160 million employed
children in the world.
What causes Child labour?
Poverty is the root cause of child labour. Poor slum dwellers have the
opinion that more children means more working hands and this way with
no source of income, nourishing the living of 5-6 household members is

impossible. So, they make their children a part of this practice. It is their
necessity and this necessity takes the form of child labour. Having their
children work along with them is the only way to live for these poor people.
Actually, Poverty can be traced back to Population outburst, more
population means less earning opportunities and more poverty thereby
leading to child labour.
Steps taken to curb this menace
UNICEF is the international organisation that has been established to look
into such malpractices through out the world. Strict and stringent laws have
been enforced to see to it that child labour no longer exist. Indian govt. has
also passed a law that gives every child under the age of 14 right to
education irrespective of his or her category or caste or religion.
This step has invited praises from all sections of the country. Also,
enforcement of strict punishment for those found guilty in any case of child
labour is another great step against this menace and this has even
reduced employment of small children publicly in shops in cities and towns.
Although the situation is improving day by day, but the villages and rurals
still need more attention. The international organisations from different
countries including India is looking closely into this matter.
Hope, we see a world where child labour get its place only in History Books
owned by children.
The child is a soul with a being, a nature and capacities of its own, who must be
helped to find them, to grow into their maturity, into a fullness of physical and vital
energy and the utmost breadth, depth and height of its emotional, intellectual and
spiritual being; otherwise there cannot be a healthy growth of the nation.--- P N
Bhagawati, Former CJI.
Almost one-third of the world population consists of children. Therefore they need to
be cared and protected, to keep up and improve posterity. Children are important
component in social structure and potential future carries to the culture. Now the
question arises, who is a child? Or who can be considered as a child? Finding a single
definition to describe a "child" is becoming an uphill task. The plain dictionary
meaning of the word child is that, a young person especially between infancy and
youth.1
Biologically, a child is anyone between the stages of infancy and adulthood, or child
is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty. The legal definition of
"child" refers to a minor, or somebody who is yet to become an adult. It is used as an
opposite to adult. It is not concerned with the age. The only qualification is that the
child should be unable to maintain himself. Hence a child though not a minor is still a
child as long as it is unable to maintain himself.2

In contrast to the preceding decades India seems to have done enough for the
protection of children from all untoward circumstances. In keeping with international
development in the area of child welfare, India as a democratic state has launched
scores of program and policies devised on statutory footing. The Ministry of Women
and Child has been instrumental in this direction and it has particularly catered to
children in crisis situation such as street children, children who has been abused,
abandoned, children in conflict with law etc.
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child defines a child as "every
human being below the age of 18 years unless under the law applicable to the child,
majority is attained earlier."3 "Child" means a person who, if a male, has not
completed twenty-one years of age, and if a female, has not completed eighteen
years of age.4
A child is a person who is going to carryon what you have startedthe fate of
humanity is in his hands.--- Abraham Lincoln.
Whether children have any rights? Yes. Of course, like other human beings, even
children have certain rights. They shall not be deprived of it. The childrens right is a
world widely accepted phenomenon. Moreover, UN adopted the Declaration of the
Rights of Child.5 Children have rights as human beings and need special care and
protection. "A child is any human being below the age of eighteen years, unless
under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier."6
Recognizing that the child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her
personality, should grow in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness,
love and affection. Considering that the child should be fully prepared to live an
individual life in society he has to be guaranteed with the spirit of peace, dignity
tolerance, freedom equality and solidarity.
Children's rights are the perceived human rights of children with particular attention
to the rights of special protection and care afforded to the young,7 including their
right to association with both biological parents, human identity as well as the basic
needs for food, universal state-paid education, health care and criminal laws
appropriate for the age and development of the child.8The compulsory education law
says children up to 14 are entitled to free education.9
Child10 labour refers to the employment of children at regular and sustained labour.
This practice is considered exploitative by many international organizations and is
illegal in many countries. Children' who are below 14 cannot take out a livelihood. If
they are found working in an establishment,11 the employer is charged under labour
laws that prohibit employment of any child until they attain adulthood.
In this project researcher tries to identify the rights of children, the problem of child
labour and its socio-ethical and legal dimensions in the Indian society.
Child Labour
Meaning
The children should not have to work is universally accepted, but there are no
universal answer why the problem of child labour persist and how it needs to be
tackled. India is faced with the crucial task of eliminating the child labour which is
prevalent in all spheres of life. Thousands of children are engaged in the carpet

factories, glass factories and other hazardous industries all over the country.
The term child labour has generally two-fold interpretations. Firstly, it is implied to be
an economic necessity of poor households and secondly, the explosive aspect in
childrens work concerned with the profit maximizing urge of commercial
establishment wherein children are made to work for long hours, paid low
remuneration and deprived of educational opportunities.
International Labour Organisation12 (ILO) defines child labour to include children
leading permanently adult lives, working long hours for low wages under conditions
damaging to their health and physical and mental development, sometime
separated from their families, frequently deprived of meaningful educational and
training opportunities that could be open up to them a better future.
Reasons For Child Labour
There are many reasons for the existence of child labour and it varies with place and
place to place. In India, poverty is one of the important factors for poverty, but its
not the sole factor. Children provide cheap labour, the person who wants labour has
to pay less to them than adult labour. The child can be commanded more than an
adult. The pull factor of the child labour is the profit maximization.
The main causes to failure to control the child labour are; poverty, low wages than
adult, unemployment, absence of schemes for family allowance, migration to urban
areas, large family size, children being cheaply available, non existence of strict
provisions for compulsory education, illiteracy, ignorance of parents and traditional
attitudes13.
Child Labour In India
India accounts for the second highest number where child labour in the world is
concerned. Africa accounts for the highest number of children employed and
exploited. The fact is that across the length and breadth of the nation, children are in
a pathetic condition.
Child labour in India is a human right issue for the whole world. It is a serious and
extensive problem, with many children under the age of fourteen working in carpet
making factories, glass blowing units and making fireworks with bare little hands.
According to the statistics given by Indian government there are 20 million Child
labours in the country, while other agencies claim that it is 50 million.
The situation of Child labours in India is desperate. Children work for eight hours at a
stretch with only a small break for meals. The meals are also frugal and the children
are ill nourished. Most of the migrant children, who cannot go home, sleep at their
work place, which is very bad for their health and development. Seventy five percent
of Indian population still resides in rural areas and are very poor. Children in rural
families who are ailing with poverty perceive their children as an income generating
resource to supplement the family income. Parents sacrifice their childrens
education to the growing needs of their younger siblings in such families and view
them as wage earners for the entire clan.
In Northern India the exploitation of little children for labour is an accepted practice
and perceived by the local population as a necessity to alleviate poverty. Carpet
weaving industries pay very low wages to Child labours and make them work for long
hours in unhygienic conditions. Children working in such units are mainly migrant

workers from Northern India, who are shunted here by their families to earn some
money and send it to them. Their families dependence on their income, forces them
to endure the onerous work conditions in the carpet factories.
While experts blame the system, poverty, illiteracy, adult unemployment; yet the
fact is that the entire nation is responsible for every crime against a child. Instead of
nipping the problem at the bud, child labour in India was allowed to increase with
each passing year. And today, young ones below the age of 14 have become an
important part of various industries; at the cost of their innocence, childhood, health
and for that matter their lives.
Indian Constitution And Child Labour
Article 2314 of Indian Constitution prohibits the trafficking in human beings and
forced labour. And Article 2415 prohibits the employment of children in factories. It
says that No child below the age of fourteen years shall be employed to work in any
factory or mine or engaged in any other hazardous employment.
The general understanding was that right secured by Article 24 will hardly be
effective in the absence of legislation prohibiting and penalising its violation.
However, Supreme Court clearly stated that Article 24 must operate proprio vigour
even if the prohibition lay down in it is not followed up by appropriate
legislation.16 In Labourers, Salal Hydro Project v. State of J&K17 it was again held
that the employment of children below 14 in construction work violates Article 24.
It was noted in M C Mehta v. State of Tamilnadu,18 that menace of child labour was
wide spread. Therefore it issued wide ranging directions in the context of
employment and exploitation of children in Sivakasi, prohibiting employment of
children below the age of 14 and making arrangement for their education by creating
a fund and providing employment to the parents or the able bodied adults in the
family. These directions were reiterated in Bandhu Mukti Morcha v. Union of India19,
concerning the employment of children in carpet weaving industry in U.P.
The State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards securing the health and
strength of workers, men and women, and the tender age of children are not abused
and that citizens are not forced by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited
to their age or strength.20 Also the State shall, direct its policy towards securing the
given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of
freedom and dignity and that childhood and youth are protected against exploitation
and against moral and material abandonment to the children.21
Article 4522 of Indian Constitution made provision for early childhood care and
education to children below the age of six years. As per this Article the State shall
endeavours to provide early childhood care and education for all children until they
complete the age of six years.
International Framework To Eliminate Child Labour
The problem of child labour is not limited to our country but is worldwide. Many
International Conventions were adopted by General Assembly of International Labour
Organisation and many countries have ratified it; we are also the signatory to many
of them.
1. ILO Con. No. 5 of 1919 prohibits the employment of persons below 14 years of
age.23

2. ILO Con. No. 6 of 1919 prohibits the employment during night of persons below
18 years of age.24
3. ILO Con. No. 15 of 1921 prohibits a person who is below 18 years of age from
being employed on Vessel as Toimmer or Stockers.25
4. ILO Con. No. 16 of 1921 compulsory medical examination of child.26
5. ILO Con. No. 90 of 1948 revised the convention 6 of 1919 and put 12 consecutive
hours.27
6. ILO Con. No. 123 of 1965 prohibits the employment in mines of the child below
the age of 16 years.28
7. ILO Con. No. 124 of 1965 compulsory medical examination of child working in
mine.29
8. ILO Con. No. 138 of 1973 prohibits the employment of a child below the age of
15 but allowed after permission up to 14 years.30
National Framework To Eliminate Child Labour
Our Constitution provides special provisions for the protection of children. Some
Articles are as follows 15(3)31, 2132, 21-A33, 2334, 2435, 39 (e)36, 39 (f)37, 4338,
4539 and 51-A (k)40. In relation with the above mentioned Conventions and
Constitutional provisions, we have enacted special laws to eliminate the child labour;
some important ones are as follows.
1. The Children (Pleading of Labour) Act, 1933.
2. The Factories Act, 1948.
3. The Minimum Wages Act, 1948.
4. Plantation Labour Act, 1951.
5. The Mines Act, 1952.
6. The Merchant Shipping Act, 1958.
7. The Motor Transport Workers Act, 1961.
8. The Apprentices Act, 1961.
9. The Schools and Establishments Act, 1961.
10. The Beedi Cigar Workers (Conditions of Employment) Act, 1966.
11. The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act 1986.
Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, 1986
Recognizing the increasing problem of child labour in India, the Parliament passed
The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986. The purpose of this Act
was to declare child labour as illegal and make it a punishable act by any citizen of
India. The Act is to bring to the notice of the people of this nation that there are child
labour laws to protect the child. However, in spite of this the situation has not
improved, nor has it been brought under control.
National Child Labour Project
The Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act was enacted in the year 198641.
Under the provisions of this Act a National policy on child labour was formulated in
the year 1987. The policy seeks to adopt a gradual and sequential approach with a
focus on rehabilitation of children working in hazardous occupations and process in
first instance. As poverty is the root cause of child labour, the action plan
emphasizes the need to cover these children and their family under various poverty
alleviation and employment generation schemes of the government.
Pursuant to this, in 1988, the NCLP scheme was launched in 9 districts of high child
labour population in the country. The scheme envisaged special schools for the child
labour withdrawn from work. The coverage of the NCLP scheme has increased from

12 districts in 1988 to 250 district in 10th plan. Some of the salient features of the
plan strategy 200142 are focused and reinforced action to eliminate child labour in
the hazardous occupation by the end of plan period.
Present Scenario
At national level as well as local level many organizations43 are busy to protect the
rights of child as well as to solve the problem of child labour with the help of funding
agencies and with the help of government machinery. Governments commitment to
addressing the problem of child labour is reflected in the National Agenda of
governance. And when we looks in to the statutes on child labour, minimum wage is
not prescribed for the occupation permitted for children and no provision exists for
working children.
Role Of Judiciary In Solving Child Labour
The Supreme Court of India, in its judgement dated 10th December, 1996 in Writ
Petition (Civil) Number 465/1986, has given certain directions regarding the manner
in which children working in the hazardous occupations are to be withdrawn from
work and rehabilitated, and the manner in which the working conditions of children
working in non-hazardous occupations are to be regulated and improved. The
judgement of the Supreme Court envisages:
(a) Simultaneous action in all districts of the country;
(b) Survey for identification of working children (to be completed by June 10, 1997)
(c) Withdrawal of children working in hazardous industries and ensuring their
education in appropriate institutions;
(d) Contribution of Rs.20, 000 per child to be paid by the offending employers of
children to welfare fund to be established for this purpose;
(e) Employment to one adult member of the family of the child so withdrawn from
work, and if that is not possible a contribution of Rs.5000 to the welfare fund to be
made by the State Government;
(f) Financial assistance to the families of the children so withdrawn to be paid out of
the interest earnings on the corpus of Rs.20,000/25,000.00 deposited in the welfare
fund as long as the child is actually sent to the schools;
(g) Regulating hours of work for children working in non-hazardous occupations so
that their working hours do not exceed six hours per day and education for at least
two hours is ensured. The entire expenditure on education is to be borne by the
concerned employer;
(h) Planning and preparedness on the part of Central and State Governments in
terms of strengthening of the existing administrative/regulatory/enforcement framework (covering cost of additional manpower, training, mobility, computerization etc.)
implying additional requirement of funds.
Conclusion
Children of the nation are supremely important asset. Childrens programs should
find a prominent part in our national plans for the development of human resources.
So that our children grow up to become robust citizen, physically and mentally fit,

and morally healthy; endowed with the skills and motivations needed by the society.
Child labour is a significant problem in India. The prevalence of it is shown by the
child work participation rates which are higher in Indian than in other developing
countries. Equal opportunities for development to all children during the period of
growth should be our aim. For this purpose even we citizen should join hands with
government and other institutions which are set up for this purpose.
Educating the child can be a solution for solving the problem of child labour. To
provide compulsory primary education and in order to reduce the burden on parents
to meet the expenditure for their childrens education, while they are struggling for a
days meal, our Government had allotted funds. But due to the lack of awareness
most of the poor families are not availing these facilities. So, proper steps have to be
taken to create awareness.
Child labour cannot be eliminated by focusing on one determinant, for example
education, or by brute enforcement of child labour laws. The government of India
must ensure that the needs of the poor are filled before attacking child labour. If
poverty is addressed, the need for child labour will automatically diminish. No matter
how hard India tries, child labour always will exist until the need for it is removed.
The development of India as a nation is being hampered by child labour. Children are
growing up illiterate because they have been working and not attending school. A
cycle of poverty is formed and the need for child labour is reborn after every
generation. India needs to address the situation by tackling the underlying causes of
child labour through governmental policies and the enforcement of these policies.
Only then will India succeed in the fight against child labour.

Aspirations, dreams and wishes have no meaning. Hope has never grown and imagination is
killed at a very early stage. Having been forced and pressed to produce a living for
themselves and for their families. The tiny little hands struggling in sustaining the living of
their family who would work very hard in making both ends meet. These children who grow
up being forgotten the pleasure of their childhood are a neglected part of our society. They are
referred as child labour who instead of getting education earns livelihood tolerating rudeness
and disrespect at work and boorish behavior in the society.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) defines child Labour as:
1- When a child is working during the early age
2- He overworks or gives over time to Labour
3- He works due to the psychologically, socially, and materialistic pressure
4- He becomes ready to Labour on a very low pay
India is one of the countries where child labour practices are not very uncommon. Child
labour in India are highly deprived of the pleasures of life, they have accepted the life as it is
to them. They are unaware of their basic rights as a citizen and their non-access to education.
It is not other than the outcome of some socio-economic factors which directly stands on the
roots of poverty. Unemployment due to high rate of population growth and a plethora of other
factors are giving rise to child labours in our society. A considerable chunk of the population
in India is living below the poverty line where the people are unable to fulfill their basic

necessities of life like food, clothing, shelter, education and health safety, hence end up send
their young children to work on low wages in order to stay alive.
Class-based education system is a most debatable reason for increasing child labour in India.
In addition to increasing poverty, unemployment and other social problems, the rural areas
are deprived of education and the trend of young children coming to cities to earn livelihood
has become very usual. Although the government has not put its laws strict to stop child
labour but some well known and active organizations are playing their role to stop this evil.
Once these issues are addressed the concept of child labour can easily be eradicated to a great
extent. As there is no other way to overcome this problem than to make education
compulsory.
The western world has realized this issue long time ago and made laws to ensure education
for working children. Our government should also take some initiatives in considering this
global issue. Elementary education must be made compulsory and the matter of child labour
should be considered seriously. Now the expectations from new government are very high on
educational reforms and to revamp the education system throughout the country.
Introduction
A Child is a father of the man( This famous line quoted by William Wordsworth refers to the
importance of the child in a society for the development of society as well as for the
development of the whole nation.). Child labour is done by any working child who is under
the age specified by law. The word, work means full time commercial work to sustain self or
add to the family income. Child labour is a hazard to a Childs mental, physical, social,
educational, emotional and spiritual development. Broadly any child who is employed in
activities to feed self and family is being subjected to child labour.
Child labour is work that harms children or keeps them from attending school. The various
problems arising in the countries economic, political and social condition is one of the major
reasons for growth of this problem. The International Labour Organization estimates that 246
million children between the ages of 5 and 17 currently work under conditions that are
considered illegal, hazardous, or extremely exploitative.
Child labour in India is a human right issue for the whole world. It is a serious and extensive
problem, with many children under the age of fourteen working in carpet making factories,
glass blowing units and making fireworks with bare little hands. According to the statistics
given by Indian government there are 20 million child laborers in the country, while other
agencies claim that it is 50 million.
United Nations secretary General Kofi Annan quoted, Child labour has serious consequences
that stay with the individual and with society for far longer than the years of childhood. Young
workers not only face dangerous working conditions. They face long-term physical,
intellectual and emotional stress. They face an adulthood of unemployment and illiteracy.
Also former president of India and a well known scientist Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam Azad said, All
of us should feel proud on all literate, intellectuals, entrepreneurs and affluent citizens of the
country but it should not be forgotten that such categories of persons are almost surrounded
from all corners by large number of people who are poor, illiterate and malnutrition. They
make our life comfortable and worth living by hard work of day and night and it may be
dangerous to neglect them .

Who Is A Child:
Definition of child is subjective and depends upon the matters it is related to. In general term
child is used for a person who on account of his young age, is considered to be of immature
intellect ad imperfect discretion and thus unable to comprehend the consequences of his own
act. Such a person is known as minor.
According to article 1 of United Nations Convention on Rights of the Child 1989:A child
means every human being below the age of eighteen years unless, under the law applicable
to the child, majority is attained earlier.
UNICEF defines child labour as work that exceeds a minimum number of hours, depending on
the age of a child and on the type of work. Such work is considered harmful to the child and
should therefore be eliminated.
Ages 5-11: At least one hour of economic work or 28 hours of domestic work per week.
Ages 12-14: At least 14 hours of economic work or 28 hours of domestic work per week.
Ages 15-17: At least 43 hours of economic or domestic work per week.
In case of child labour the definition of child can be referred under Child Labour (Prohibition
and Regulation) Act 1986 it states that: Child means a person who had not completed 14
years of age.
From the above point, it is clear that a person up to the age of 14 year is a child while
concerning child labour. Convention 59th of International Labour Organisation lays down that
No child below the age of 14 years shall be employed to work in any factory or mine or
engaged in any other hazardous employment.
Some Important Acts formulated to combat the problem of Child Labour
a. Minimum Wages Act, 1948: It provides for fixation of minimum time rate of wages by
state government. It also includes the fixation of minimum piece rate of wages, guaranteed
time rates for wages for different occupations and localities or class of work and adult,
adolescence, children and apprentices. The act is aimed at occupations, which are less well
organised and more difficult to regulatewhere there is much scope for exploitation of labour.
b. The Plantation labour Act: The employment of children between the ages of 12 years is
prohibited under the Act. However, the act permits the employment of child above 12 years
only on a fitness certificate from the appointed surgeon.
c. The Mines Act, 1952: It states that no child shall be employed in any mines nor shall any
child be allowed to be present in any part of mine, which is below ground, or in any open cast
working in which any mining operations being carried on.
d. The Merchant Shipping Act, 1958: The act prohibits employment of children below the
age of 14 in a ship except a training ship, home ship or a ship where other family members
work. It also prohibits employment of young persons below the age of 18 as trimmers and
stokers except under certain specific conditions.
e. The Apprentices Act, 1961: It states that no person shall be qualified for being engaged
as an apprentice to undergo apprenticeship training in any designated trade unless he is 14
years of age and satisfied such standards of education and physical fitness as may be
prescribed.

Factors leading to child labour:

The question arises in every mind concerned with child labour that what leads to child labour.
The answers can be obtained from the following points:
a.) Poor family and less income leads to child labour. The child is forced to work and earn at a
very lower age. It becomes a compulsion for them to work and earn livelihood for themselves
and their families. Thus a child for the sake of his family is compelled to work in several
places.
b.) Ignorance of parents towards education results in lack of education of child and he have
no other options but to work and earn his livings.
c.) Children are found to be better producers of certain products such as knotted carpets and
other such kinds of goods. Hence, these children are hired and exploited to work and produce
such

types

of

goods.

This

is

known

as

NIMBLE

FINGER

THEORY.

( www.oecd.org/dataoecd/27/13/2955776.pdf)
d.) Discrimination on grounds including gender, race or religion also plays its part in why
some children work at such tender age.
e.) Child trafficking is another cause of child labour. A number of children are bought and sold
and are exploited to work as labourers, beggars, domestic workers, etc.
f.) In domestic matters, children can be made to work easily and at the low wage. Moreover,
the masters can dominate them easily. Thus, the number of children working in households
constitutes the major part of child labour.
However, across the world, millions of children do extremely hazardous work in harmful
conditions, putting their health, education, personal and social development, and even their
lives at risk. These are some of the circumstances they face:
Full-time work at a very early age
Dangerous workplaces
Excessive working hours
Subjection to psychological, verbal, physical and sexual abuse
Obliged to work by circumstances or individuals
Limited or no pay
Work and life on the streets in bad conditions
Inability to escape from the poverty cycle no access to education
The problem of child labour must be recognized as a human rights problem, both directly
(e.g. slavery) and indirectly (e.g. compulsory labour that results in denial of the right to
education). It embraces not only the rights of the child per se, but also the broad panoply
of entitlements across the whole spectrum of rights through which, at least civil, political,
social, cultural and economic rights. The policymakers as also the ordinary citizens must
understand that the future of children would not be secured unless their rights are clearly
identified, redefined and restored. Seen from this perspective, it becomes a mandatory duty
of all governments across the world to take all possible steps to put and end to the problem

of child labour once and for all. Todays children will constitute the backbone of tomorrows
society. Hence, it is the obligation of every generation to bring up children, who will be
citizens of tomorrow, in a proper way.

Earthquakes are the vibrations caused by rocks breaking under stress. The underground surface along which the rock
breaks and moves is called a fault plane.
Earthquakes in Australia are usually caused by movements along faults as a result of compression in the Earths crust.

The size or magnitude of earthquakes is determined by measuring the amplitude of the seismic waves recorded on a
seismograph and the distance of the seismograph from the earthquake. These are put into a formula which converts
them to a magnitude, which is a measure of the energy released by the earthquake. For every unit increase in
magnitude, there is roughly a thirty-fold increase in the energy released. For instance, a magnitude 6.0 earthquake
releases approximately 30 times more energy than a magnitude 5.0 earthquake, while a magnitude 7.0 earthquake
releases approximately 900 times (30x30) more energy than a magnitude 5.0.
A magnitude 8.6 earthquake releases energy equivalent to about 10 000 atomic bombs of the type developed in World
War II. Fortunately, smaller earthquakes occur much more frequently than large ones and most cause little or no
damage.
Earthquake magnitude was traditionally measured on the Richter scale. It is often now calculated from seismic
moment, which is proportional to the fault area multiplied by the average displacement on the fault.
The focus of an earthquake is the point where it originated within the Earth. The earthquake epicentre is the point on
the Earths surface directly above the focus.

The effects of an earthquake

Railway track damage caused

by the 1968 Meckering Earthquake
Reproduced with permission from
Alice Snooke

The amplitude of the shaking caused by an earthquake depends on many factors, such as the magnitude, distance from
the epicentre, depth of focus, topography, and the local ground conditions.
Earthquake effects, as noted by people, are rated using the Modified Mercalli (MM) intensity scale, which ranges
from I (imperceptible) up to XII (total destruction).
For the very shallow earthquakes common in many parts of southern Australia, with a focal depth of less than 10km,
people who are near the epicentre and on average ground will usually experience the maximum MM intensities in the
Table below.

Magnitude

MM Intensity

1.2

II

2.0

III

3.0

IV

4.0

V-VI

5.0

VI-VII

Magnitude

MM Intensity

6.0

VII-VIII

7.0

VIII-IX

If the people or buildings are on soft ground such as old river sediments, the MM intensity experienced may be one to
two units higher; if on solid rock, it may be one unit lower. The intensity with which the earthquake is felt may also be
higher on hilltops.
In Australia, earthquakes with magnitudes of less than 3.5 seldom cause damage, and the smallest magnitude
earthquake known to have caused fatalities is the magnitude 5.6 Newcastle earthquake in 1989. However, magnitude
4.0 earthquakes occasionally topple chimneys or result in other damage which could potentially cause injuries or
fatalities.
Apart from causing shaking, earthquakes of magnitude 4.0 or greater may also trigger landslides which can cause
casualties. The larger the magnitude of the earthquake, the bigger the area over which landslides may occur.
In areas underlain by water-saturated sediments, large earthquakes, usually magnitude 6.0 or greater, may cause
liquefaction. The shaking causes the wet sediment to become quicksand and flow. Subsidence from this may cause
buildings to topple, and the sediment may erupt at the surface from craters and fountains.
Undersea earthquakes can cause a tsunami, or a series of waves which can cross an ocean and cause extensive damage
to coastal regions.
The destruction from strong earthquake shaking can be worsened by fires caused by downed power lines and ruptured
gas mains.
Interesting fact: Earthquake vibrations travel very fast, up to 14 kilometres per second. The
fastest seismic waves take less than 20 minutes to reach the other side of the earth, a
distance of almost 13 000 kilometres!

Modified Mercalli (MM) Scale of

earthquake intensity (after Eiby
1966)
Contents

Categories of non-wooden construction

Related Information

MM I Not felt by humans, except in especially favourable circumstances, but birds and animals may be disturbed.
Reported mainly from the upper floors of buildings more than ten storeys high. Dizziness or nausea may be
experienced. Branches of trees, chandeliers, doors, and other suspended systems of long natural period may be seen to
move slowly. Water in ponds, lakes, reservoirs, etc., may be set into seiche oscillation.

MM II Felt by a few persons at rest indoors, especially by those on upper floors or otherwise favourably placed. The
long-period effects listed under MMI may be more noticeable.
MM III Felt indoors, but not identified as an earthquake by everyone. Vibrations may be likened to the passing of
light traffic. It may be possible to estimate the duration, but not the direction. Hanging objects may swing slightly.
Standing motorcars may rock slightly.
MM IV Generally noticed indoors, but not outside. Very light sleepers may be awakened. Vibration may be likened
to the passing of heavy traffic, or to the jolt of a heavy object falling or striking the building. Walls and frame of
building are heard to creak. Doors and windows rattle. Glassware and crockery rattle. Liquids in open vessels may be
slightly disturbed. Standing motorcars may rock, and the shock can be felt by their occupants.
MM V Generally felt outside, and by almost everyone indoors. Most sleepers awakened. A few people frightened.
Direction of motion can be estimated. Small unstable objects are displaced or upset. Some glassware and crockery
may be broken. Some windows crack. A few earthenware toilet fixtures crack. Hanging pictures move. Doors and
shutters swing. Pendulum clocks stop, start, or change rate.
MM VI Felt by all. People and animals alarmed. Many run outside. Difficulty experienced in walking steadily.
Slight damage to masonry D. Some plaster cracks or falls. Isolated cases of chimney damage. Windows and crockery
broken. Objects fall from shelves, and pictures from walls. Heavy furniture moves. Unstable furniture overturns.
Small school bells ring. Trees and bushes shake, or are heard to rustle. Material may be dislodged from existing slips,
talus slopes, or slides.
MM VII General alarm. Difficulty experienced in standing. Noticed by drivers of motorcars. Trees and bushes
strongly shaken. Large bells ring. Masonry D cracked and damaged. A few instances of damage to Masonry C. Loose
brickwork and tiles dislodged. Unbraced parapets and architectural ornaments may fall. Stone walls crack. Weak
chimneys break, usually at the roof-line. Domestic water tanks burst. Concrete irrigation ditches damaged. Waves seen
on ponds and lakes. Water made turbid by stirred-up mud. Small slips, and caving-in of sand and gravel banks.
MM VIII Alarm may approach panic. Steering of motor cars affected. Masonry C damaged, with partial collapse.
Masonry B damaged in some cases. Masonry A undamaged. Chimneys, factory stacks, monuments, towers, and
elevated tanks twisted or brought down. Panel walls thrown out of frame structures. Some brick veneers damaged.
Decayed wooden piles break. Frame houses not secured to the foundation may move. Cracks appear on steep slopes
and in wet ground. Landslips in roadside cuttings and unsupported excavations. Some tree branches may be broken
off.
MM IX General panic. Masonry D destroyed. Masonry C heavily damaged, sometimes collapsing completely.
Masonry B seriously damaged. Frame structures racked and distorted. Damage to foundations general. Frame houses
not secured to the foundations shift off. Brick veneers fall and expose frames. Cracking of the ground conspicuous.
Minor damage to paths and roadways. Sand and mud ejected in alluviated areas, with the formation of earthquake
fountains and sand craters. Underground pipes broken. Serious damage to reservoirs.
MM X Most masonry structures destroyed, together with their foundations. Some well-built wooden buildings and
bridges seriously damaged. Dams, dykes, and embankments seriously damaged. Railway lines slightly bent. Cement
and asphalt roads and pavements badly cracked or thrown into waves. Large landslides on river banks and steep
coasts. Sand and mud on beaches and flat land moved horizontally. Large and spectacular sand and mud fountains.
Water from rivers, lakes, and canals thrown up on the banks.
MM XI Wooden frame structures destroyed. Great damage to railway lines. Great damage to underground pipes.
MM XII Damage virtually total. Practically all works of construction destroyed or greatly damaged. Large rock
masses displaced. Lines of slight and level distorted. Visible wave-motion of the ground surface reported. Objects
thrown upwards into the air.

No part of Earth's surface is free from earthquakes, but some regions experience them more frequently. They are most
common at tectonic plate boundaries where different plates meet. The largest events usually happen where two plates
are colliding, or colliding and sliding past one another, particularly around the edge of the Pacific Plate, for example
in New Zealand, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Japan and the Americas, and in Indonesia, where
the Indo-Australian Plate collides with the Eurasian Plate. The depths of focus in these collision zones can range from
0-700km.
Large shallow earthquakes also happen where two plates are pulling apart with the creation of new oceanic crust along
mid-ocean ridges and on the transform faults that intersect them.
Shallow intraplate earthquakes occur in the relatively stable interior of continents away from plate boundaries. They
are less common and do not follow easily recognisable patterns. This type of earthquake generally originates at
shallow depths.
Although Australia is not on the edge of a plate, the continent experiences earthquakes because the Indo-Australian
plate is being pushed north and is colliding with the Eurasian, Philippine and Pacific plates. This causes the build up
of mainly compressive stress in the interior of the Indo-Australian plate which is released during earthquakes.
Interesting fact: There are on average 80 earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or more in Australia each year. Earthquakes
above magnitude 5.5, such as the 5.6 magnitude event in Newcastle in 1989, occur on average every two years. About
every five years there is a potentially disastrous earthquake of magnitude 6.0 or more.
Adelaide has the highest earthquake hazard of any Australian capital. It has experienced more medium-sized
earthquakes in the past 50 years than any capital because South Australia is being slowly squeezed in an east-west
direction by about 0.1mm/yr. Although earthquakes cannot be predicted accurately, measuring these changes and
combining that information with Adelaide's earthquake history helps to develop an understanding of when the next big
earthquake might happen.
Australia's largest recorded earthquake was in 1941 at Meeberrie in Western Australia with an estimated magnitude of
7.2 but it occurred in a remote, largely unpopulated area. A magnitude 6.8 earthquake at Meckering in 1968 caused
extensive damage to buildings and was felt over most of southern Western Australia. Earthquakes of magnitude 4.0 or
more are relatively common in Western Australia with one occurring approximately every five years in the Meckering
region.

The Science of
Earthquakes
Originally written by Lisa Wald for The Green Frog News

What is an earthquake?

An earthquake is what happens when two blocks of the earth suddenly slip past one another.
The surface where they slip is called the fault or fault plane. The location below the earths
surface where the earthquake starts is called the hypocenter, and the location directly above it
on the surface of the earth is called the epicenter.
Sometimes an earthquake has foreshocks. These are smaller earthquakes that happen in the
same place as the larger earthquake that follows. Scientists cant tell that an earthquake is a
foreshock until the larger earthquake happens. The largest, main earthquake is called the
mainshock. Mainshocks always have aftershocks that follow. These are smaller earthquakes
that occur afterwards in the same place as the mainshock. Depending on the size of the
mainshock, aftershocks can continue for weeks, months, and even years after the mainshock!

What causes earthquakes and where

do they happen?

The earth has four major layers: the inner core, outer core, mantle and crust. (figure 2) The
crust and the top of the mantle make up a thin skin on the surface of our planet. But this skin
is not all in one piece it is made up of many pieces like a puzzle covering the surface of the
earth. (figure 3) Not only that, but these puzzle pieces keep slowly moving around, sliding
past one another and bumping into each other. We call these puzzle pieces tectonic plates, and
the edges of the plates are called the plate boundaries. The plate boundaries are made up of
many faults, and most of the earthquakes around the world occur on these faults. Since the

edges of the plates are rough, they get stuck while the rest of the plate keeps moving. Finally,
when the plate has moved far enough, the edges unstick on one of the faults and there is an
earthquake.

Why does the earth shake when

there is an earthquake?

While the edges of faults are stuck together, and the rest of the block is moving, the energy
that would normally cause the blocks to slide past one another is being stored up. When the
force of the moving blocks finally overcomes the friction of the jagged edges of the fault and
it unsticks, all that stored up energy is released. The energy radiates outward from the fault in
all directions in the form of seismic waves like ripples on a pond. The seismic waves shake
the earth as they move through it, and when the waves reach the earths surface, they shake
the ground and anything on it, like our houses and us! (see P&S Wave inset)

How are earthquakes recorded?

Earthquakes are recorded by instruments called seismographs. The recording they make is
called a seismogram. (figure 4) The seismograph has a base that sets firmly in the ground,
and a heavy weight that hangs free. When an earthquake causes the ground to shake, the base
of the seismograph shakes too, but the hanging weight does not. Instead the spring or string

that it is hanging from absorbs all the movement. The difference in position between the
shaking part of the seismograph and the motionless part is what is recorded.

How do scientists measure the size of

earthquakes?
The size of an earthquake depends on the size of the fault and the amount of slip on the fault,
but thats not something scientists can simply measure with a measuring tape since faults are
many kilometers deep beneath the earths surface. So how do they measure an earthquake?
They use the seismogram recordings made on the seismographs at the surface of the earth to
determine how large the earthquake was (figure 5). A short wiggly line that doesnt wiggle
very much means a small earthquake, and a long wiggly line that wiggles a lot means a large
earthquake. The length of the wiggle depends on the size of the fault, and the size of the
wiggle depends on the amount of slip.

The size of the earthquake is called its magnitude. There is one magnitude for each
earthquake. Scientists also talk about the intensity of shaking from an earthquake, and this
varies depending on where you are during the earthquake.

How can scientists tell where the

earthquake happened?

Seismograms come in handy for locating earthquakes too, and being able to see the P wave
and the S wave is important. You learned how P & S waves each shake the ground in different
ways as they travel through it. P waves are also faster than S waves, and this fact is what
allows us to tell where an earthquake was. To understand how this works, lets compare P and
S waves to lightning and thunder. Light travels faster than sound, so during a thunderstorm
you will first see the lightning and then you will hear the thunder. If you are close to the
lightning, the thunder will boom right after the lightning, but if you are far away from the
lightning, you can count several seconds before you hear the thunder. The further you are
from the storm, the longer it will take between the lightning and the thunder.
P waves are like the lightning, and S waves are like the thunder. The P waves travel faster and
shake the ground where you are first. Then the S waves follow and shake the ground also. If
you are close to the earthquake, the P and S wave will come one right after the other, but if
you are far away, there will be more time between the two. By looking at the amount of time
between the P and S wave on a seismogram recorded on a seismograph, scientists can tell
how far away the earthquake was from that location. However, they cant tell in what
direction from the seismograph the earthquake was, only how far away it was. If they draw a
circle on a map around the station where the radius of the circle is the determined distance to
the earthquake, they know the earthquake lies somewhere on the circle. But where?

Scientists then use a method called triangulation to determine exactly where the earthquake
was (figure 6). It is called triangulation because a triangle has three sides, and it takes three
seismographs to locate an earthquake. If you draw a circle on a map around three different
seismographs where the radius of each is the distance from that station to the earthquake, the
intersection of those three circles is the epicenter!

Can scientists predict earthquakes?

No, and it is unlikely they will ever be able to predict them. Scientists have tried many
different ways of predicting earthquakes, but none have been successful. On any particular
fault, scientists know there will be another earthquake sometime in the future, but they have
no way of telling when it will happen.

Is there such a thing as earthquake

weather? Can some animals or people
tell when an earthquake is about to
hit?
These are two questions that do not yet have definite answers. If weather does affect
earthquake occurrence, or if some animals or people can tell when an earthquake is coming,
we do not yet understand how it works.
What are the types of earthquakes?
Earthquakes can come in three main forms, depending on the plate movements that occur
beneath the earth's surface. They could occur on a Convergent Boundary, Divergent
Boundary or a Transform Fault.

Convergent boundary:
Here, one plate is forced over another plate during movement creating a thrust fault.
Divergent boundary:
Here, plates are forced apart each other, usually forming a Rift Zone. This kind is common in
ocean floors where new floors are created. An example is the Mid Atlantic Ridge.

Transform fault:
Unlike divergent and convergent, the plates here slip by each other. This is also called StrikeSlip.
Earthquake Waves
There are 2 types of earthquakes waves and the difference lies in the way the seismic waves
are transmitted. To understand this better, let us see what a seismic wave is.
These are waves of energy that travel through the earth's layers, and other elastic layers, often
as a result of earthquakes. A wave, by general definition is the transfer of energy from one
place to another without transferring solid, liquid or gas matter. Examples include light and
sound waves.
During an earthquake, the waves released may be P or S waves depending on the speed
and ways in which they travel.
P-Waves (Primary Waves)

P-waves are longitudinal in nature. The vibrations are along the same direction as the
direction of travel. It is also known as compressional waves. P-waves travel faster than Swaves.
S-Waves (Secondary waves)

Here the waves travel at right angles to the direction of travel. They are also known as
transverse waves and example include water waves.
With this in mind, you will notice that if you are close to the point where an earthquake
struck, you will feel both P and S waves close within the same time frame. If you are further
away, you will feel the P-wave first and then the S-wave a bit later.
Both waves can be destructive, but their study helps us to know where the earthquake struck.

The Top 5 Strongest Earthquakes ever

Recorded

Location

Southern
Chile

Prince
William
2 Sound,
Alaska,
USA.
Northern
Sumatra,
3 Indonesia
(West
coast)
North
4 Coast of
Japan

Magnitu
de

Dat
e

Death
s

9.5 Mw

May
22nd
,
1960

1,655

9.2 Mw

Mar
28th,
1964

131

9.1 Mw

Dec
26th, 227,898
2004

9.0 Mw

Mar
11th,
2011

15,891

Location

Kamchatk
5
a, Russia.

Magnitu
de
8.9 - 9.0
Mw

Dat
e

Death
s

Nov
>10,00
4th,
0
1952

Sources: United Sates Geological Survey, WHO.

List Notes: Data is strongest earthquakes ever recorded since 1900. Magnitude data is
measured using the "moment magnitude" scale (mw). Deaths are official death tolls and
best estimates. The exact 1952 Kamchatka earthquake death toll is unknown but
estimates place it at less than 10,000. Deaths can be attributed directly to the
earthquake or at times, to a resulting tsunami (such as the case in Sumatra). Please
note that exact death tolls can be difficult to calculate even in modern times and these
figures should be considered as near estimates.

1. The 9.1 Mw earthquake that generated the great Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004,
one of the deadliest tsunamis in known history, is estimated to have released the
energy of 23,000 Hiroshima-type atomic bombs, according to the U.S. Geological
Survey.
2. On December 26th, local Indonesia time 07:58:53 a magnitude 9.15 earthquake
took place on the seafloor west of Northern Sumatra,Indonesia (3.267 degrees
North / 95.821 degrees East), 255 kilometres south-southwest of the city of
Banda Aceh. The resulting tsunami reportedly reached speeds of as much as 800
kilometres per hour (500 miles per hour) throughout much of the Indian Ocean
Basin. (a.). The earthquake was the result of the sliding of the portion of the
Earth's crust known as the India plate under the section called the Burma plate.

The process has been going on for millennia, one plate pushing against the other
until something gave. The result on December 26 was a rupture the USGS
estimates was more than 600 miles (1,000 kilometres) long, displacing the
seafloor above the rupture by perhaps 10 yards (about 10 meters) horizontally
and several yards vertically. An incredible amount considering the scale. The
Indian Ocean tsunami travelled as much as 3,000 miles (nearly 5,000 kilometres)
reaching parts of Africa and in the end affected 12 countries. (b.). The 2004 Asian
tsunami resulted in over 175,000 deaths, nearly 50,000 missing, and over 1.7
million people displaced in the Indian Ocean region. Indonesias Aceh Province,
closest to the epicentre of the quake, was exceptionally hard hit, with an
estimated 129,775 deaths, 38,786 missing and 504,518 persons displaced in that
province alone. (e.).
3. The earthquake in Chile on May 22, 1960, is the strongest to be recorded in the
world with magnitude 9.5, and killed more than 4,000 people. The largest U.S.
earthquake occurred on March 28, 1964, in Alaska. It was a magnitude 9.2 quake
and took 131 lives. (c.). The epicentre of the Chilean earthquake (the point on the
earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake) was 60 meters down
below the ocean floor about 100 miles off the coast of Chile out in the Pacific. A
total of 130,000 houses were destroyed in the Chilean earthquake, one in every
three in the earthquake zone. Approximately two million people were left
homeless. Total damage losses, including agriculture and industry, were
estimated to be over a half billion dollars in 1960 dollars. The total number of
fatalities associated with both the tsunami and the earthquake was never
established accurately for the region. Estimates of fatalities ranged between 490
to 5,700 with no distinction as to how many deaths were caused by the
earthquake and how many were caused by the tsunami However, it is believed
that most of the deaths in Chile were caused by the tsunami. (d.)
4. On November 4, 1952, at 16:52 GMT, a strong earthquake off the coast of
Kamchatka Peninsula, in the far east of Russia, generated a great destructive
Pacific-wide tsunami. The tsunami waves struck the Kamchatka Peninsula, the
Kuril Islands and other areas of Russia's Far East, and caused considerable
damage and loss of life. The tsunami caused severe damage along the Pacific
coastal area of the Kamchatka Peninsula, and was also very damaging in the
Hawaiian Islands. (d.). By far the largest tsunami waves outside the generating
earthquake area were observed in the Hawaiian Islands. No human lives were
lost in Hawaii from this tsunami, but damage was extensive, estimates ranging
from $800,000 - $1,000,000 (in 1952 US dollars). The earthquake off the coast of
Kamchatka Peninsula generated a great destructive Pacific-wide tsunami. Its
waves struck the Kamchatka Peninsula, the Kuril Islands and other areas of
Russia's Far East, causing considerable damage and loss of life. (e.).

5. The Alaskan earthquake occurred on Good Friday, March 27, 1964, at 5:36 PM
local time. It was the largest earthquake ever recorded in North America and
duration estimates range from 3 to 5 minutes. Sources vary as to the magnitude
of this earthquake, in part because a variety of scales are used to measure
earthquakes. The epicenter was located between Valdez and Anchorage, near
Prince William Sound and occurred on a thrust fault. This fault was a subduction
zone, where the Pacific plate plunges underneath the North American plate. The
sudden uplift of the Alaskan seafloor caused a tsunami, which was responsible
for 122 of the 131 total deaths. The tsunami propagated at speeds over 400 miles
(640 kilometres) per hour and reached as far as the Hawaiian Islands. The
tsunami also struck Crescent City, California, where giant redwood logs from a
nearby sawmill were thrust into the city streets killing ten people. A total of 16
people died in Oregon and California. (g.).

Five major earthquakes in India

The recent floods in Uttarakhand are a cruel reminder of the natural disasters the country
has faced in the past. These disasters have impacted millions of lives in the country and
also proved our lack of competence to tackle such tragedies on a large scale. Here is a list
of five major earthquakes that have struck India.

2001 Gujarat earthquake:

On January 26, 2001 an earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale hit the state
of Gujarat killing over 20,000 people. The earthquake occurred at 8:40 in the
morning and lasted for two minutes. Several towns and villages were destroyed in
the catastrophe. Being close to the epicenter, Bhuj was among the worst affected
areas including Anjaar, Vondh and Bhachau. Several buildings were damaged or
destroyed in the quake. The famous Swaminarayan temple in the city of Bhuj was
also partially damaged.
1934 Bihar earthquake:
The 1934 Bihar earthquake is considered to be one of the worst quakes in Indian
history. The quake occurred on January 15, 1934 and was recorded 8.1 on the
Richter scale. Over 30,000 people were said to have been killed in the disaster. The
epicenter of the earthquake was located in eastern Nepal. Extensive damage was
caused to life and property. The intensity of the earthquake was so strong that its
effect was felt in Kolkata-650 km from epicenter. Purnea, Munger, Muzaffarpur and
Champaran were among the worst affected areas.
1993 Maharashtra earthquake:
Over 20,000 people were killed in the earthquake that occurred on September

1993 Maharashtra earthquake:

Over 20,000 people were killed in the earthquake that occurred on September 30,
1993 in the state of Maharashtra. The quake measured 6.4 on the Richter scale with
epicenter at Killari village in Latur district. Osmanabad and Latur were the worst
affected areas. The destruction was massive with over 52 villages being raised
completely to the ground.
1950 Assam earthquake:
1950 Assam earthquake: The Assam earthquake also known as the Medog earthquake
occurred on August 15, 1950 and had a magnitude of 8.6 on the Richter scale. The
epicenter was located at Rima in Tibet. The quake caused widespread destruction in both
Assam and Tibet. Over 1,500 people were killed in Assam alone. It was considered to be
among the ten largest earthquakes of 20th century. -

1991 Uttarkashi earthquake

On October 20, 1991 an earthquake measuring 6.1on the Richter scale shook the
districts of Uttarkashi,Chamoli and Tehrilocated in the state of Uttarakhand. Over a
thousand people were killed in the quake and extensive damage was caused to
property. The tremors of the quake were felt up to Delhi.

Christopher
Marlowe Biograp
hy
Poet, Playwright (c. 15641593)
Name
Christopher Marlowe
Occupation
Poet, Playwright
Birth Date
c. February 26, 1564
Death Date
May 30, 1593
Education
King's School, Corpus Christi College
Place of Birth
Canterbury, England
Place of Death
Deptford, England
Playwright, poet. Christopher Marlowe was a poet and playwright at the
forefront of the 16th-century dramatic renaissance. His works influenced
William Shakespeare and generations of writers to follow.

Christopher Marlowe - Mini Biography (TV-PG; 04:13) During Christopher

Marlowe's short career, he produced one of the most controversial and
well-known plays of all time, "Doctor Faustus." The truth behind his sudden
death still remains suspicious and unresolved.
Synopsis
Born in Canterbury, England, in 1564. While Christopher Marlowe's literary
career lasted less than six years, and his life only 29 years, his
achievements, most notably the play The Tragicall History of Doctor
Faustus, ensured his lasting legacy.
Early Years
Christopher Marlowe was born in Canterbury around February 26, 1564
(this was the day on which he was baptized). He went to King's School and
was awarded a scholarship that enabled him to study at Corpus Christi
College, Cambridge, from late 1580 until 1587.

Marlowe earned his bachelor of arts degree in 1584, but in 1587 the
university hesitated in granting him his master's degree. Its doubts

(perhaps arising from his frequent absences, or speculation that he had

converted to Roman Catholicism and would soon attend college elsewhere)
were set to rest, or at least dismissed, when the Privy Council sent a letter
declaring that he was now working "on matters touching the benefit of his
country," and he was awarded his master's degree on schedule.
Marlowe as a Secret Agent?
The nature of Marlowe's service to England was not specified by the
council, but the letter sent to Cambridge has provoked abundant
speculation, notably the theory that Marlowe had become a secret agent
working for Sir Francis Walsingham's intelligence service. No direct
evidence supports this theory, but the council's letter clearly suggests that
Marlowe was serving the government in some secret capacity.

Surviving Cambridge records from the period show that Marlowe had
several lengthy absences from the university, much longer than allowed by
the school's regulations. And extant dining room accounts indicate that he
spent lavishly on food and drink while there, greater amounts than he could
have afforded on his known scholarship income. Both of these could point
to a secondary source of income, such as secret government work.
But with scant hard evidence and rampant speculation, the mystery
surrounding Marlowe's service to the queen is likely to remain active. Spy
or not, after attaining his master's degree, Marlowe moved to London and
took up writing full-time.
Early Writing Career
After 1587, Christopher Marlowe was in London, writing for the theater and
probably also engaging himself occasionally in government service. What
is thought to be his first play, Dido, Queen of Carthage, was not published
until 1594, but it is generally thought to have been written while he was still
a student at Cambridge. According to records, the play was performed by
the Children of the Chapel, a company of boy actors, between 1587 and
1593.

Marlowe's second play was the two-part Tamburlaine the Great (c. 1587;
published 1590). This was Marlowe's first play to be performed on the
regular stage in London and is among the first English plays in blank verse.
It is considered the beginning of the mature phase of the Elizabethan
theater and was the last of Marlowe's plays to be published before his
untimely death.

There is disagreement among Marlowe scholars regarding the order in

which the plays subsequent to Tamburlaine were written.
Some contend that Doctor Faustus quickly followed Tamburlaine, and that
Marlowe then turned to writing Edward the Second, The Massacre at Paris,
and finally The Jew of Malta. According to the Marlowe Society's
chronology, the order was thus: The Jew of Malta, Doctor Faustus, Edward
the Second and The Massacre at Paris, with Doctor Faustus being
performed first (1604) and The Jew of Malta last (1633).
What is not disputed is that he wrote only these four plays after
Tamburlaine, from c. 1589 to 1592, and that they cemented his legacy and
proved vastly influential.
The Plays
The Jew of Malta

The Jew of Malta (fully The Famous Tragedy of the Rich Jew of Malta), with
a prologue delivered by a character representing Machiavelli, depicts the
Jew Barabas, the richest man on all the island of Malta. His wealth is
seized, however, and he fights the government to regain it until his death at
the hands of Maltese soldiers.
The play swirls with religious conflict, intrigue and revenge, and is
considered to have been a major influence on Shakespeare's The
Merchant of Venice. The title character, Barabas, is seen as the main
inspiration for Shakespeare's Shylock character in Merchant. The play is
also considered the first (successful) black comedy, or tragicomedy.
Barabas is a complex character who has provoked mixed reactions in
audiences, and there has been extensive debate about the play's portrayal
of Jews (as with Shakespeare's Merchant). Filled with unseemly
characters, the play also ridicules oversexed Christian monks and nuns,
and portrays a pair of greedy friars vying for Barabas' wealth. The Jew of
Malta in this way is a fine example of what Marlowe's final four works are in
part known for: controversial themes.
Edward the Second
The historical Edward the Second (fully The Troublesome Reign and
Lamentable Death of Edward the Second, King of England, with the
Tragical Fall of Proud Mortimer) is a play about the deposition of England's

King Edward II by his barons and the queen, all of whom resent the undue
influence the king's men have over his policies.
Edward the Second is a tragedy featuring a weak and flawed monarch, and
it paved the way for Shakespeare's more mature histories, such as Richard
II, Henry IV and Henry V.
It is the only Marlowe plays whose text can be reliably said to represent the
author's manuscript, as all of Marlowe's other plays were heavily edited or
simply transcribed from performances, and the original texts were lost to
the ages.
The Massacre at Paris
The Massacre at Paris is a short and lurid work, the only extant text of
which was likely a reconstruction from memory, or "reported text," of the
original performance. Because of its origin, the play is approximately half
the length of Edward the Second, The Jew of Malta and each part of
Tamburlaine, and comprises mostly bloody action with little depth of
characterization or quality verse. For these reasons, the play has been the
most neglected of Marlowe's oeuvre.
Massacre portrays the events of the Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre of
1572, in which French royalty and Catholic nobles instigated the murder
and execution of thousands of protestant Huguenots. In London, agitators
seized on its theme to advocate the murders of refugees, an event that the
play eerily warns the queen of in its last scene. Interestingly, the warning
comes from a character referred to as "English Agent," a character who has
been thought to be Marlowe himself, representing his work with the queen's
secret service.
Doctor Faustus
Marlowe's most famous play is The Tragicall History of Doctor Faustus, but,
as is the case with most of his plays, it has survived only in a corrupt form,
and when Marlowe actually wrote it has been a topic of debate.
Based on the German Faustbuch, Doctor Faustus is acknowledged as the
first dramatized version of the Faust legend, in which a man sells his soul
to the devil in exchange for knowledge and power. While versions of story
began appearing as early as the 4th century, Marlowe deviates significantly
by having his hero unable to repent and have his contract annulled at the

end of the play. He is warned to do so throughout by yet another Marlowe

variation of the retelling--a Good Angel--but Faustus ignores the angel's
advice continually.
In the end, Faustus finally seems to repent for his deeds, but it is either too
late or just simply irrelevant, as Mephistopheles collects his soul, and it is
clear that Faustus exits to hell with him.
Arrest and Death
The constant rumors of Christopher Marlowe's atheism finally caught up
with him on Sunday May 20, 1593, and he was arrested for just that
"crime." Atheism, or heresy, was a serious offense, for which the penalty
was burning at the stake. Despite the gravity of the charge, however, he
was not jailed or tortured but was released on the condition that he report
daily to an officer of the court.

On May 30, however, Marlowe was killed by Ingram Frizer. Frizer was with
Nicholas Skeres and Robert Poley, and all three men were tied to one or
other of the Walsinghams--either Sir Francis Walsingham (the man who
evidently recruited Marlowe himself into secret service on behalf of the
queen) or a relative also in the spy business. Allegedly, after spending the
day together with Marlowe in a lodging house, a fight broke out between
Marlowe and Frizer over the bill, and Marlowe was stabbed in the forehead
and killed.
Conspiracy theories have abounded since, with Marlowe's atheism and
alleged spy activities at the heart of the murder plots, but the real reason
for Marlowe's death is still debated.
What is not debated is Marlowe's literary importance, as he is
Shakespeare's most important predecessor and is second only to
Shakespeare himself in the realm of Elizabethan tragic drama.
Shakespeare's life and times

Very little is known for certain about William Shakespeare. What we do know about his life
comes from registrar records, court records, wills, marriage certificates and his tombstone in
Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon.
William Shakespeare was baptised on 26 April 1564 at Holy Trinity in Stratford-Upon-Avon.
Traditionally his birthday is celebrated three days earlier, on 23 April, St George's Day.
William's father, John Shakespeare, was an affluent glove maker, tanner and wool dealer who
owned property in Stratford. For a number of years he played a prominent role in the
municipal life of the town. He served on the town council and was elected bailiff (mayor).
However, around 1576 John Shakespeare was beset by severe financial difficulties and he
was forced to mortgage his wife's inheritance.
William's mother, Mary Arden, was the daughter of a prosperous farmer, Robert Arden, who
had left her some land in Wilmcote, near Stratford. John and Mary Shakespeare had eight
children: four daughters, of whom only one (Joan) survived childhood. William was the
eldest of the four boys.
William almost certainly went to one of Stratford's 'petty' or junior schools where he would
have learnt his letters with the help of a hornbook. From the age of seven or thereabouts, he
would have progressed to the King's New School with the emphasis would have been on
Latin, it being the international language still of Europe in the 1500s. Shakespeare probably
left school at the age of 14 or 15.
In 1582, when he was 18, Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway. She was twenty six. Anne
was the daughter of a well-to-do farmer, Richard Hathaway of Hewlands Farm in nearby
Shottery. Their first child, Susanna, was born in May 1583. Twins, Hamnet and Judith, were
christened in February 1585.

From 1585 until 1592, very little is known about Shakespeare. These are generally referred to
as 'The Lost Years'. But by 1592 we know that he was in London where he was singled out by
a rival dramatist, Robert Greene in his bitter deathbed pamphlet, A Groats-worth of Witte.
Plague broke out in London in 1593, forcing the theatres to close. Shakespeare turned to
writing poetry. In 1593 Shakespeare published an erotic poem, Venus and Adonis, dedicated
to Henry Wriothesley, Third Earl of Southampton, a young courtier and favourite of Queen
Elizabeth.
Shakespeare's earliest plays included Henry VI Parts I, II & III, The Two Gentlemen of
Verona, and Titus Andronicus. The sonnets were also written about this time, though they
were not published until 1609.
In 1594, Shakespeare became a founding member, actor, playwright and shareholder of the
Lord Chamberlain's Men. Richard Burbage was the company's leading actor. He played roles
such as Richard III, Hamlet, Othello and Lear. Under James VI/I, the company was renamed
The King's Men. They performed at court more often than any other company.
Whereas John Shakespeare had lost a fortune, his son managed to amass great wealth in his
lifetime. In 1597, he bought New Place, one of the largest properties in Stratford. In 1598, he
is listed as a resident of Chapel Street ward, in which New Place was situated. In 1601, when
his father died, he may also, as the eldest son, have inherited the two houses in Henley Street.
In 1602 Shakespeare paid 320 in cash to William Combe and his nephew John for roughly
107 acres of land in Old Stratford. He also bought a cottage and more land in Chapel Lane. In
1605, for 440, Shakespeare bought a half-interest in a lease of many tithes which brought
him an annual interest of 60. When he died in 1616, he was a man of substantial wealth.
Shakespeare's elder daughter, Susanna, married a physician, John Hall in Stratford in 1607.
Their only child, a daughter, Elizabeth, was born in 1608, the year in which Shakespeare's
mother died. Judith Shakespeare married a vintner, Thomas Quiney in 1616. They had three
sons: Shakespeare Quiney, who died in infancy; Richard (1618-139) and Thomas (16201639).
Sometime after 1611, Shakespeare retired to Stratford. On 25 March 1616, Shakespeare
revised and signed his will. On 23 April, his presumed birthday, he died, aged 52. On 25
April, he was buried at Holy Trinity Church in Stratford.
Shakespeare's widow, Anne, died in 1623 and was buried beside him. Shakespeare's family
line came to an end with the death of his grand-daughter Elizabeth in 1670.
In 1623, seven years after Shakespeare's death, John Heminge and Henry Condell (two actors
from The King's Company) had Shakespeare's plays published by William Jaggard and his
son, Isaac. This first folio contained 36 plays and sold for 1.

Marlowe and Shakespeare

The question of Marlowe's influence can be construed on so many different levelseven when the
focus is on the topic of "artistry"that a comprehensive account of this subject will probably never be
written. More importantly, although there is currently a scholarly consensus that elements of
Marlowe's innovative language, meter, characterization, plotting, and thematic ambiguity influenced
Shakespeare's writing, the nature and extent of this influence continue to be subjects of debate.
Logan, to his credit, recognizes this problem and begins his first chapter by ridiculing the claim that
Shakespeare explicitly refers to Marlowe's Hero and Leander in The Two Gentlemen of Verona
(1.1.2126 and 3.1.11720), when the play offers conventional mythological allusions to the famous
tragic lovers. Indeed, in an effort to be more precise, Logan distinguishes between "source" and
"influence," between the most patent and more conjectural signs of contact. When Sir Hugh in The
Merry Wives of Windsor consoles himself by singing verses from "The Passionate Shepherd" and
when Phebe in As You Like It quotes a line from Hero and Leander, the sources of these allusions are
self-evident. The critical assertion that The Jew of Malta influenced The Merchant of Venice, however,
rests on indirect verbal, character, and plot parallels that are inherently more speculative. Yet even
though Logan admits that Marlowe's influence on Shakespeare is difficult to assess, he nevertheless
maintains, with considerable justification, that this project still affords one of the best methods literary
historians possess for tracing Shakespeare's creative development as a playwright.
How, then, did Marlowe influence Shakespeare? What Logan finds is largely what others have already
discovered. His primary conclusion is that "the most important Marlovian contribution to
Shakespeare's artistry was an inventiveness with dramaturgical ambiguities." "Marlowe's Prologue
to Tamburlaine," Logan writes, "undoubtedly set in motion a heightened awareness of the writer's
artistry" (167). This new sense of artistry, he stresses, not only encouraged Shakespeare to be
creative, but also led him to form an "aesthetic viewpoint" that "allows a suspension of the desire to
make moral judgments and a freedom to be awed through the responses of our senses and
emotions." Through Marlowe's influence, according to Logan, Shakespeare acquired the ability to
escape a "moral viewpoint" that required "a need to reason, judge, and become reductive" (108).
It is within this overarching category of the "aesthetic" that Logan considers the customary markers of
Marlovian influence which can be defined as concretely as the "mighty line" and villain-hero or
rendered as ethereal as "epic grandeur" or "majestic amplitude" (176). These include verbal dexterity,
the ability to reconfigure genre, the internalization of character, the creation of overreachers, gender
reconceptualizations, and an emphasis on the creative imagination. What consequently differentiates
Shakespeare from Marlowe, Logan explains, is Shakespeare's "emotionally connotative language"
(156) and his greater accommodation to political and social orthodoxy, although what Logan means
when he describes Titus Andronicus as displaying an "orthodox morality" remains questionable (38).