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LESSON - 4
P10214 - The Prose of U.Ve.Sa.
U.Ve.Sa., hailed as the ‘Tamil Thattha’, is an important figure in the history of Tamil prose. This lesson discusses the characteristic features of his prose style and his contribution to the growth of Tamil prose.
A versatile genius, U.Ve. Sa or U.Ve Saminatha Iyer, was a renowned poet, a skilled public speaker, an essayist, biographer and publisher. He is also famous for the commentaries that he wrote for a number of important literary texts. The commentaries that he wrote for ‘Manimekalai’ and ‘Kurunthogai’ reflect his distinctive prose style.
As an editor - cum - publisher, he initiated the practice of including ‘Preface’ and ‘Introduction’ in his books. Almost all the ancient literary texts he published contain an interesting preface and informative notes on the literary merits of the work. Written by him, these prefaces and introductions are noted for their in-depth analysis, and meticulous research.
The bulk of U.Ve. Saminatha Iyer’s prose works may be classified into essays and biographies. ‘Nalluraikovai’, ‘Ninaivu Manjari’, ‘Nan Kandathum Kettathum’, ‘Puthiyathum Pazhayathum’, ‘Manimekalai Kathaic curukkam’, ‘Buddha saritham’, ‘Thirukkuralum Thiruvalluvarum’ and ‘Madyaarjuna Maanmeeyam’ are some of his important collection of essays.
A prolific writer, he has 7 biographies to his credit. U. Ve Sa. wrote in an interesting style that captured the attention of the reader immediately. His prose, especially the titles of some of his works are striking for their poetic beauty. U.Ve Sa firmly believed that lucidity and simplicity are two important qualities of great prose. These are also the strengths of his prose style. He wrote in a clear, straight-forward language that appealed even to the layman. U. Ve. Sa excelled in handling descriptive, narrative and dramatic prose. His prose is also noted for its inherent humour.