The Gardener 2nd PU Summary|Notes

The Gardener - Summary

Introduction
P Lankesh is an Indian writer who has written in Kannada language. His story “The Gardener” is a narrative of human competition that turns into rivalry as a result of greed. The writer has adopted the frame narrative style: the writer sets the tone while the character, Tammanna narrates the main story. It's a story within a story.

Theme / Summary
The author conceived this story in a flash when he met an old man accidently at a coconut farm. The old man takes up work on a coconut farm near Chennarayapatna after walking several hundreds of miles. He was a labourer, overseer and philosopher, all rolled into one. This well-versed farmhand was very useful whose work made the income from the garden improve dramatically. While he worked hard, the owner became lethargic and changed his lifestyle. He became crowded with colourful events in the company of new friends. When the landlady was in a fix, the gardener narrated a story to make her understand the situation.

The Gardener's story
Once in a far-off place lived a man named Tammanna who had initially ten acres of wetland, comfortable house and people to serve. He had a rival called Basavaiah. There was a stiff competition between them. If Tammanna bought four more acres, Basavaiah also followed suit. This continued until Tammanna owned 1000 acres of land whereas his rival Basavaiah had 800 acres of land and there was no land left in the village to buy. Basavaiah wanted to buy another 200 acres from Tammanna. As he was not willing to sell, Basavaiah encroached upon the lands of Tamma

nna. Though advised to approach the court of Law or the Police, Tammanna found an innovative way to compose all of his achievements in the form of ballads which became very famous. Basavaiah in turn amassed huge wealth and tried to increase his popularity by appointing people to praise his glories but in vain. Tammanna wanted to punish Basavaiah through another method, that was his death. So, he gave up everything and left the village causing the absence of a rival in Basavaiah’s life. Basavaiah died soon, finding life boring without a rival.

At the end the gardener admits that Tammanna in the story was the gardener himself. At the loss of Basavaiah, his rival, he forgets all his songs and becomes a non-entity. Thus, he avenges himself.

Conclusion
The reference to a similar situation between Russia and America further emphasizes the fact that it is hard to sustain rivalry. The story concludes stating that "Man is so complicated that till the day of his death, he goes on living for some revenge or the other, confronting one challenge or the other".

***

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