The document analyzes and provides examples of various literary devices used in the poem "The Gift of India". It discusses how personification is used to portray India as a grieving mother who has lost her sons. Metaphors are also used, such as comparing fallen Indian soldiers to "priceless treasures". Similes explicitly compare the dead bodies to pearls in shells. Alliteration and rhetorical questions are presented as additional devices employed in the poem.
The document analyzes and provides examples of various literary devices used in the poem "The Gift of India". It discusses how personification is used to portray India as a grieving mother who has lost her sons. Metaphors are also used, such as comparing fallen Indian soldiers to "priceless treasures". Similes explicitly compare the dead bodies to pearls in shells. Alliteration and rhetorical questions are presented as additional devices employed in the poem.
The document analyzes and provides examples of various literary devices used in the poem "The Gift of India". It discusses how personification is used to portray India as a grieving mother who has lost her sons. Metaphors are also used, such as comparing fallen Indian soldiers to "priceless treasures". Similes explicitly compare the dead bodies to pearls in shells. Alliteration and rhetorical questions are presented as additional devices employed in the poem.
It is a figure of speech in which an inanimate object or abstract ideas are invested
with the attributes of living beings. The most evident example of personification in this poem is observed when the the country India is given the emotions and attributes of a mother. The whole poem is narrated from the perspective of a mother who laments the loss of her sons but in the same time, is proud of their contributions to live up to their global commitments. The entire poem is narrated in the first person narrative. For example, she calls the Indian soldiers her “Priceless treasures” torn from her breast. Other instances are of personification are –
“ Remember the blood of my martyred sons”
“ Can ye measure the grief of the tears I weep Or compass the woe of the watch I keep?”
Metaphor in The Gift of India
Metaphor is a figure of speech in which a comparison between two different things is
implied, but not clearly stated. For instance, in this poem, the Indian soldiers are compared to “Priceless treasures”.
Simile in The Gift of India
It is a figure of speech in which a similarity between two different objects is stated
explicitly, using the words ‘as’ or ‘like’. For example, the gathered dead bodies of Indian soldiers in their graves are compared to pearls in their shells. “Gathered like pearls in their alien graves” “ Scattered like shells on Egyptian sands” “They are strewn like blossoms move down by chance”
Alliteration in The Gift of India
Alliteration is the close repetition of consonant sounds in a sentence.
For example, “Silent they sleep…” “Scattered like shells…” “They lie with pale brows and brave, broken hands” Rhetorical Question in The Gift of India
Rhetorical question is a question asked in order to create a dramatic impact or make
a point rather than to get an answer. An instance of rhetoric can be seen in the line, “Can ye measure the grief of the tears I weep Or compass the woe of the watch I keep?”
6. Oxymoron – It is a figure of speech in which two contradictory terms appear
together in a sentence. For example: “ And the far sad glorious vision I see” If you feel that some of the poetic devices in The Gift of India is missing and worth a mention, kindly share those in the comments section and we will include them in our list here.
Surrounded by Idiots: The Four Types of Human Behavior and How to Effectively Communicate with Each in Business (and in Life) (The Surrounded by Idiots Series) by Thomas Erikson: Key Takeaways, Summary & Analysis
Body Language: Decode Human Behaviour and How to Analyze People with Persuasion Skills, NLP, Active Listening, Manipulation, and Mind Control Techniques to Read People Like a Book.