What makes the depiction of a crumbling village house so authentic in the poem? Is this a common feature of most village houses in the context of rapid urbanisation? Is the poet speaking from actual experience?
What aspects of Indian society and history get highlighted in the poem?
Does the poem bring out the contrast between tradition and modernity? Illustrate your answer with examples from the poem.
While the poet respected her grandmother’s sentiments of royal grandeur, we can also see that she revolts against it. Identify the lines which bring this out.
Which lines reveal the poet’s criticism of class distinctions?
Is it ‘selfishness’ and ‘callousness’ that makes the poet break her childhood promise to her grandmother of renovating the house? Why does she do nothing about rebuilding the house?
What do you understand of the conflict in the poet’s conscience?
Comment on the changes in poetic expression in English from the time of Donne to that of Kamala Das with reference to
• prosodic features (rhyme, rhythm, and metre)
• vocabulary
• language
• themes.