Class 12 English Flamingo My Mother at Sixty-six (Kamala Das)

 

NCERT Solutions For Class 12 English

Flamingo

My Mother at Sixty-six (Kamala Das)

 CONTENTS

Ø Theme

Ø Stanza

Ø Question Answers

Ø Word Meaning

 

 THEME

‘My Mother at Sixty-Six’ encapsulates the narrator's apprehension about losing her mother due to the inevitable decline in health and loss of vitality that accompanies old age. The poet acknowledges this reality and grapples with the conflict between her mother's dependency on her and her own set of duties and responsibilities. The poem poignantly conveys a sense of helplessness in the face of these conflicting emotions. The sentiments expressed by the poet are fundamentally universal, tapping into the common fear of losing a beloved individual that resonates with readers.

In terms of its form, the poem adopts a narrative structure comprised of fourteen lines composed as a single sentence, employing enjambment. The use of commas punctuating this extended sentence creates a stream of consciousness effect, where one thought seamlessly transitions into the next. This stylistic choice enhances the organic flow of the narrative.

IMPORTANT STANZAS FOR COMPREHENSION

Read the stanzas given below and answer the questions that follow each:

1. Driving from my parents home to Cochin last Friday morning, 1 saw my mother, beside me,
doze, open mouthed, her face ashen like that of a corpse and realised with pain
that she was as old as she looked but soon

Questions

(a) While driving, where was the poet headed, and who accompanied her on the journey?

 (b) Regarding her mother, what did the poet notice?

(c) What caused her mother's face to resemble that of a lifeless body?

(d) Point out terms in the text that indicate: (i) nap (ii) inert body (iii) sensed.

Top of Form

Answers:

(a) The poet was en route from her parents' residence to the Cochin airport, with her mother as her companion.

 (b) She observed that her mother was napping, mouth agape.

(c) Her mother's countenance appeared pallid, faded, and devoid of vitality, resembling that of a deceased person due to the effects of aging.

(d) (i) doze (ii) corpse (iii) realised.

2She looked but soon
put that thought away, and
looked out at Young
Trees sprinting, the merry children spilling
out of their homes,

Questions

(a) What dawned on the poet, and what emotions did she experience?

 (b) Following that realization, what action did the poet take?

(c) What observations did she make about the external world?

 (d) Locate terms in the text that signify: (i) sprinting swiftly (ii) joyous.

Answers:

(a)Her mother was lost in her thoughts. It pained her.

(b) The poet redirected her focus away from her mother and turned her gaze outward.

 (c) The juvenile trees seemed to race backward, akin to a swift sprint, while cheerful children emerged from their homes.

 (d)(i) sprinting (ii) merry.

3 but after the airport’s
security check, standing a few yards away, I looked again at her, wan, pale
as a late winter’s mooft and felt that old
familiar ache, my childhood’s fear, but all I said was, see you soon,
Amma,
all I did was smile and smile and
smile

Questions

(a) Following the security check, what action did the poet take?

 (b) What prompted the poet to liken her mother’s face to a moon in the late winter?

(c) What constitutes the fear from the poet’s childhood?

 (d) In what manner do the poet’s farewell words and her smile contrast with her actual emotions?

Answers:

(a) Post the security check, the poet cast her gaze once more upon her mother's face from a short distance.

(b) The mother's visage, pallid and devoid of color, mirrors the late winter moon, lacking both brilliance and vigor.

 (c) The dread of growing old and the inevitable experiences of death and separation.

(d) The poet’s reassuring parting words and smiles sharply contrast with the familiar ache of childhood fear. Her expressions and words are a conscious effort to conceal the turmoil within.

QUESTIONS ANSWERS

Q1. What type of discomfort and anguish does the poet experience?

 Ans: Upon witnessing her mother's pallid and cadaverous countenance, the poet is afflicted by a familiar, longstanding pain. This ache, possibly rooted in her childhood, resurfaces. Aging, an inherent facet of life, affects everyone indiscriminately. The poet's mother, like all, is not exempt from the passage of time and its inevitable consequences, including separation and mortality.

Q2. Why are the young trees described as ‘sprinting’?

Ans: The poet, en route to the Cochin airport, observes the young trees seeming to pass by rapidly as she looks outside the moving car. The speed of the vehicle creates an illusion of the trees running swiftly or sprinting. This description serves to contrast the poet's dozing mother with the energetic, lively impression of the trees.

Q3. Why has the poet brought in the image of the merry children ‘spilling out of their homes’?

Ans: The poet introduces the image of joyful children 'spilling out of their homes' to establish a sharp contrast. The exuberant children emerging from their residences in abundance create an image of happiness and a spontaneous overflow of life. This vivid contrast enhances the impact, particularly when compared to the poet's dozing, aged mother, whose pallid face resembles that of a lifeless corpse. The stark opposition of these two images intensifies the poetic effect.

Q4. Why has the mother been compared to the ‘late winter’s moon’?

Ans: The poet's mother, at the age of sixty-six, exhibits a shriveled and pallid visage resembling that of a corpse. Her countenance has lost the radiance and vigor of youth. Similarly, the late winter’s moon appears dim and obscured, lacking its characteristic shine and strength. This comparison is fitting and effective, employing a simile that accurately reflects the shared attributes of the mother and the late winter’s moon.

Q5. What do the parting words of the poet and her smile signify?

 Ans: The poet’s farewell words of reassurance and her continuous smiles stand in stark contrast to the familiar childhood ache or fear. Her expressions and words are a purposeful effort to conceal her genuine emotions. The parting words, "See you soon, Amma," serve as a comforting assurance to her aged mother, whose ashen face resembles that of a lifeless body. Likewise, the persistent smiles function as a means to suppress the internal turmoil and childhood fears within the poet's heart.

Q6. What was the poet’s childhood fear? [All India 2014]
Ans: The child is always in fear of being separated from his parents. In the same way, the poet’s fear as a child was that of losing her mother or her company.

Q7. Describe the world inside the car and compare it to the activities taking place outside?
Ans: The pale and faded face of the poet’s mother looks lifeless like a corpse. Her dozing with mouth wide open suggests passivity, decay and death. Outside the car, the poet watches young trees speeding past them. They seem to be running fast or sprinting. Happy children are moving out of their homes cheerfully. They present an image of life, dynamism and activity.

Q8. What poetic devices have been used by Kamala Das in ‘My Mother at Sixty-six’?
Ans: The poem 'My Mother at Sixty-six' is abundant in vivid imagery, skillfully employing the literary techniques of comparison and contrast. Kamala Das effectively employs similes to enhance the descriptive elements of the poem. The poet vividly depicts her mother's aged countenance, describing it as 'ashen,' akin to that of a lifeless corpse. Another simile is employed, likening the mother's 'wan, pale' face to the appearance of 'a late winter’s moon.'

The poem stands out for its adept use of contrasts. The elderly, 'dozing' woman indoors is juxtaposed against the youthful trees appearing to be 'sprinting,' and the joyful children enthusiastically 'spilling' out of their homes. These contrasts contribute to the overall depth and impact of the poetic composition.

 

WORD MEANING

 

1.    Ashen: pale

2.    Beside: alongside

3.    Corpse: dead body

4.    Doze: nap

5.    Pale: dull, colourless

6.    Spilling: let out

7.    Sprinting: Moving fast

8.    Wan: dim, weak