her, in the total ensemble of her character. There is little doubt that the poet intended her as a strong contrast to the heroine of the piece. MANONMANI is intellectual, whereas VANI is a child of feeling. MANONMANI is the worshipper of smug conventions, whereas VANI is a rebel and revolutionary before whom these go down or should go down. MANONMANI is the obedient and devoted daughter of a loving parent, whereas VANI'S devotion is all turned to herself and her love.

Natarajan

NATARAJAN, the lover of VANI, should after all possess virtues. He could not be completely crazy சுத்தமே பித்தன் as represented by Sakada, whose valuation of men proceeds solely upon the cash capital they can command and not upon the qualities of head or heart which may stand to their credit. To the matter-of-fact prosaic mind of SAKADA the contemplative turn of NATARAJAN is not a little abnormal (I.iii.113-119). To JIVAKA and KUDILA too he appears as good for nothing, with all his goodly appearance. (I.iii. 126). Though these ordinary natures have not found anything valuable or lovable in NATARAJAN , he seems to have been a special favorite of Sage SUNDARA and should be considered on the account, to have virtues, though not of the commanding type. NATARAJAN may be a little out of the ordinary run of mankind. He is more contemplative than active and spends a good deal of his time in scanning the beauties of Nature. The glories of the dawn and the mysteries of cross fertilisation engage his attention more than the ordinary concerns of life. His reveries on a drop of water proceed from a mind highly observant and suggestive. The observation which escapes from him after his overhearing the conversation of the two farmers (III.ii.200-203) gives us a side-view of his deep reticent nature which will not be easily drawn out into any outward expression. Even when he felt enraged at the callous conduct of depraved Paladeva, he checks himself by a second thought (II.ii. 80-87). On another occasion he speaks to himself. 'நினைக்கலை தீயனை.................நமக்கேன் இச்சினம்'. As generally happens, this reticent nature is thrown upon its own thoughts and imaginings and becomes in the long run highly idealistic. Its tentacles shrink before realities, only to be thrown out in search of a fancied quest of its own. This quest is its ideal. He says 'எவ்வினையோர்க்கும்............ஓரிலக்குவேண்டும்' (III.ii. 9-11). His idealisation of the womankind as in II.ii. 123-129 and his terrible condemnation of his own sex as in II.ii. 116-120 and his pillorying them in unmeasured language as in II.ii. 134-7 all proceed from this high-strung idealistic temperament. To a man of the street, this denunciation may seem inexplicable but from one who has treasured up in his memory the virtues of the one sex as the vices of the other, it comes quite naturally. Still in this world of average, of compromises, such purely idealistic natures will feel themselves a bit out of tune at times and NATARAJAN,