A Commentary on ‘An Astrologer’s Day’ Essay

The generators description of the astrologist breaks us in no doubt that he is a charlatan his equipment, costume and homosexualner all told have a c formerlyive, delegacy quality designed to convey the concept of a mystic power which he does non possess. Notice the authors wryly ironic comment that the freakish gleam in his eye is authentically an outcome of a continual meddling for customers and his dry observation that even a half wits look would sparkle amidst such a painted forehead and ominous whiskers. The deliberate artifice of the astrologer is get ahead underlined by the authors use of phrases such as To crown the effect and This people of colour scheme. The illusion is enhanced by the fact that the astrologer works in the eerie glow of a smoking flare which adds to the enchantment of the place.The astrologers customers are depicted as immature creatures who are irresistibly attracted to him like bees. scarcely although the author portrays the ast rologer as a fraud, his innocent customers are not shown in the light of hapless victims. The writer does not condemn or deride the astrologer as a parasite exactly sees him as a business spell who gives his customers cling to for money he said things which dexterous and astonished everyone that was more a theme of study, practice and clear-sighted guesswork. All the same, it was as much an honest populaces labor as any other, and he deserved the wages he carried photographic plate at the end of the day.We are told that the astrologer has not chosen his profession by design. Intriguingly, the author informs us that he was once a simple far-offmer who had to leave photographic plate without telling anyone. Although the fact that he had to depart hurriedly and travel far suggests that something dire occurred, the actual reason for his fledge is not addicted, thus arousing our curiosity and conferring upon the exiled oddish a sense of mystery, more current than he could po ssibly create for himself in his bogus role of astrologer.Whilst he has no mystical powers, the astrologer is a shrewd psychologist. He diagnoses his customers problems by listening to their troubles and supplies them with consolation and reassurance. Notice how he is careful to any blame his thickenings woes on other people, or attri thoe their troubles to elements beyond their control. In this way, they all depart as satisfied customers.Our foreboding is aroused by the suitably outstanding entrance of the astrologers opponent. For reasons which suffer apparent later, the author has cleverly plan the scene so that the serviceman is ab initio no more than a dark shape who blots out the solitary quill feather of light which remains after the clod vendors departure. Our initial view of the stranger is unsympathetic he grumbles and truculently challenges the astrologer to prove his expenditure in the form of a bet. It is only after the bet has been agreed that the astrolo ger glimpses the mans face whilst the latter is dismissal a charoot. The sight of the mans face seems to shock the astrologer merely again we are purposely given no explanation why.The astrologer is so dismayed that he tries to retract the reckon and hurriedly leave but the man is ruthlessly insistent and becomes threatening. Surprisingly, the astrologer agrees to give tongue to but only if the wager is increase to one rupee. Both the reader and the man are strike to light upon the astrologers seemingly miraculous divinations as he surgically describes the mans grisly past. The man is dismayed to see that his thirst for retaliation cannot be slake since his opponent is already dead. He is further stunned to discover that the astrologer knows his summon and accepts his admonition to return home and never travel southward again. The astrologer leaves the man with one consolation he tells him that his enemy received his just deserts by dying a deservedly indefinable death.O ur curiosity is at last satisfied at the end of the news report when the astrologer goes home and reveals to his wife that the man in movement was in fact the reason why he fled his village. Unbeknown to the man, he had ironically been consulting the very person he had been unrelentingly searching for all these years For the astrologer, conflict his old enemy has been doubly honor rootagely, the knowledge that he is not a murderer has lifted a spacious burden of vice from his mind secondly, he has assured his future safety by tricking his antagonist into believing that he is dead. The fabrication fittingly ends with the astrologer sleeping contentedly, having finally laid to rest the ghost of his guilt and successfully warded off the menacing ghostwriter of revenge.The authors technique in this story is more subtle than it first appears. Although we are just as surprised as the client when we first hear the astrologers uncannily accurate comments, our surprise is of a diff erent nature since we know what Guru Nayak does not that the astrologer is a definite fraud. Hence, there is an ironic distancing between the reader and the astrologers antagonist which is further stretched by the fact that he is portrayed as an unsympathetic character.Whereas the initially skeptical Guru Nayak becomes increasingly convinced of the astrologers mystic power, the reader becomes increasingly suspicious, especially when the astrologer correctly gives his clients name. Unlike Guru Nayak, the reader has not become increasingly mystified and overawe by the astrologers knowledge, but gradually realises that a connection must exist between Guru Nayaks story and the secret of the astrologers past. Hence, whilst the determination satisfies our curiosity, it does not come as a total surprise.We excessively share the astrologers final sense of relief, part because we find Guru Nayak unpleasant but generally because we admire the way in which he skilfully and successfully handles such a crisis of circumstance and manages to extricate himself from an extremely good situation. Rising to the occasion, he uses his professional acting skills and sharp wits to turn the tables on his overawed antagonist and transform a perilous predicament into godsend.Finally, the authors effective use of irony is worth commenting. Near the beginning of the story, he writes that the astrologer knew no more of what was going to follow to others than he knew what was going to happen to himself coterminous minute. Given what is about to occur, these lyric poem become prophetically ironic. Note also the wry irony of the astrologers final complaint to his wife (The swine has cheated me) when he himself had perpetrated the greater deception and cleverly cheated Guru Nayak of his revenge. Lastly, the matter-of-fact title is a masterpiece of ironic understatement. An Astrologers solar day implies that the story will describe an second-rate or typical day in the astrologer life whereas the event link is both extraordinary and fateful.