1.

Bangle sellers are we who bear

Our shining loads to the temple fair...
Who will buy these delicate, bright
Rainbow-tinted circles of light?
Lustrous tokens of radiant lives,
For happy daughters and happy wives.

1. What is meant by "shining loads"? Where are the bangle sellers going to
sell their bangles and why?

Answer

In this stanza, "shining loads" means the various types of bright and colourful
bangles that the bangle sellers carry. The bangle sellers are going to the temple fair.
They are going there to sell their bangles to women of different age groups i.e., in
different stages of life.

2. What rhyme scheme is followed in the poem? Who are the buyers of the
bangles suggested here? Describe the bangles mentioned in the extract.

Answer

Each stanza of the poem is arranged in three couplets that follow the rhyme scheme
of aabbcc. The buyers suggested here are happy daughters and wives. The bangles
described here are delicate, bright, colourful like a rainbow, and shining

3. What do the metaphorical expressions 'shining loads', 'delicate, bright

rainbow-tinted circles of light' and 'lustrous tokens of radiant lives' imply?

Answer

These metaphors describe their features like brightness, softness and colourfulness
that make them catchy and fascinating. Due to these features, the bangles are a
symbol of positivity, happiness, beauty and hope rather than just objects of cosmetic
value worn by women on their wrists.

4. Explain how the poet uses her descriptive skills to present facts. Give two
examples from the extract?

Answer

In this extract, the poet touches upon the popularity of bangles not merely as an
ornament, but also as a deep-rooted cultural symbol that allows them a kind of
freedom in terms of choosing and buying something according to their own
preferences. The extract also suggests that temples, apart from being the centres of
spiritual activities, may also account for economic activities in the form of purchase
and sale of different items and goods used by people.
5. Give the relevance of the role of bangle sellers in a traditional Indian set-up,
according to this extract?

Answer

Bangle sellers are a community of people who can be easily spotted. The bangles
they sell are a distinctive mark of womanhood and femininity in India's socio-cultural
context. They also symbolise an old and culturally established practice associated
with women in the traditional Indian society. Thus, bangle sellers can be regarded as
people who are responsible for maintaining an old tradition, which in turn lends
uniqueness to womanhood.

2. Some are made for a maiden's wrist,

Silver and blue as the mountain mist,
Some are flushed like the buds that dream
On the tranquil brow of a woodland stream,
Some are aglow with the bloom that cleaves
To the limpid glory of new born leaves

1. What type of bangle is suitable for a maiden's wrist? Why are silver and blue
colours compared to the mountain mist?

Answer

According to the speaker, some of the bangles that are suitable for a maiden's wrist
are blue and silver like the mist in the mountains. Some others are reddish in colour
like the flushed buds found along a stream. Then, there are others that glow like
newborn leaves. Mountain mist is characterised by beauty, freshness and purity.
That is why silver and blue colours are compared to it.

2. In what way are the buds set to dream? Explain the simile used here?

Answer

Here, the speaker is alluding to the appearance of a particular type of bangle

suitable for maidens. She says that it looks rosy with a glow like 'the buds that dream
on the tranquil brow of a woodland stream'. The figure of speech used here is a
simile because two dissimilar things (bangle' and 'buds') are compared here for an
attribute that is identical (their 'rosiness').

3. Explain the line: "On the tranquil brow of a woodland stream."

Answer

In this line, the speaker has used the phrase 'tranquil brow to imply the calm height
or crest of a stream flowing through a forest. It's rather plausible to read it with the
noun phrase 'the buds that dream', which precedes it. Keeping in mind the use of
words like 'dream', 'tranquil' and 'brow, it seems to be an example of personification.
 4. How are the bangles compared to the newborn leaves?

Answer

Describing one type of bangles, the speaker states that it has a pure, untrammelled
glow of freshness. This glow of freshness is compared here to the brightness and
charm of nascent leaves. The comparison here is metaphorical, because unlike what
we see in case of a simile, 'like' or 'as' has not been used to compare two dissimilar
objects.

5. What colours of the bangles are meant for maidens? What do the colours
symbolize?

Answer

Silver, blue, rosy red and leaf-green are the colours of the bangles that are meant for
maidens. While silver is the symbol of purity and brightness, blue symbolises
emotional intensity and depth. Rosy red and leaf-green colours are symbols of
beauty and freshness, respectively.

6. The word 'some' has been repeated in the poem for a purpose. What is it?
Which phrases used in these lines reflect the poet's keen understanding of the
beauty of nature?

Answer
2. The word 'some' represents the different types of bangles in the poem. "Mountain
mist', 'woodland stream' and 'newborn leaves are the phrases that reflect the poet's
keen understanding of the beauty of nature.

3. Some are like fields of sunlit corn,

Meet for a bride on her bridal morn,
Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,
Or, rich with the hue of her heart's desire,
Tinkling, luminous, tender, and clear,
Like her bridal laughter and bridal tear.

1. What do the first two lines of the extract explain? What is being compared to
the "fields of sunlit corn"? Why?

Answer

In the first line, some bangles are compared to 'fields of sunlit corn'. In the context of
a bride to whom it relates, it suggests the bright and joyful prospect of a new phase
of life that is about to begin. Thus, the colour of the bangles described here
corresponds to the appearance of a bride preparing to set out for a fresh and
extremely meaningful journey in her life.

2. What does the simile 'the flame of her marriage fire' suggest about the
colour of some bangles? Which phrases used in these lines tell you about the
life of a married woman?

Answer

It suggests that some bangles referred to by the narrator are crimson red or orange
resembling the colour of the flames of marriage fire. The phrases that tell us about
the life of a married woman are 'a bride on her bridal morn', 'flame of her marriage
fire', 'bridal laughter' and 'bridal tear'.

3. Explain with examples the simile and metaphor used in these two lines.
Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,
Or, rich with the hue of her heart's desire,

Answer

In the first line, the colour of some bangles is likened to the flame of marriage fire.
The figure of speech used here is a simile, implying that the bangles referred to are
yellow in colour. In the second line, another comparison has been made between the
colour of bangles and the colour of the desire of a bride's heart. The figure of speech
employed here is a metaphor because the comparison is more direct.

4. Bring out the applicability of the line: "Some, like the flame of her marriage
fire".

Answer

In traditional Indian society, the flame of marriage fire holds immense significance. It
is regarded as a symbol of promise, hope and assurance for an enduring bond of life
that marriage essentially signifies. As the speaker states, some of the bangles worn
by a newly married woman have the colour of marriage fire. This suggests that the
yellow colour of these bangles seems to be reflecting the same promise, hope and
assurance as does the marriage fire.

5. What do the contrasting images of 'bridal laughter' and 'bridal tear ‘imply
here?

Answer

The phrase 'bridal laughter' captures the mood of natural joy and happiness
exhibited by a young woman after her marriage. It reinforces the significance of
marriage as a source of fulfilment and self-satisfaction for a young maiden. 'Bridal
tear' probably suggests a bride's grief caused by her separation and going away
from her childhood home.
4. Some are purple and gold flecked grey
For she who has journeyed through life midway,
Whose hands have cherished, whose love has blest,
And cradled fair sons on her faithful breast,
And serves her household in fruitful pride,
And worships the gods at her husband's side.

1. How does the narrator describe an adult or middle-aged woman?

Answer

As the narrator says, an adult or middle-aged woman is an embodiment of emotional

stability, equanimity and self-assurance. She may look back and see herself
performing a number of tasks for the betterment of her family. She exudes a sense
of contentment as she knows that she has performed her duties and now, she is in a
position to see the fruits of her commitment and dedication to family values, with
pride. Thus, the phase of life she is passing through marks the peak in her life.

2. What special significance does the phrase "fruitful pride" hold in the above
extract?

Answer

The phrase "fruitful pride' has been used in this extract to indicate the basic trait of a
woman's involvement in household tasks. In a traditional social system like ours, a
woman is expected to play multiple roles and perform a lot of duties. Her
commitment, though undervalued at times, is selfless and undemanding. This is
propelled by the conviction that her dutifulness will bear fruits someday, and prove to
be beneficial for the entire family. The phrase 'fruitful pride' suggests the realization
of this hope in some way or the other that brings in for her a sense of contentment
with her work as a homemaker.

3. For which type of women are the bangles described in these lines, suitable
for?

Answer

The bangles described in these lines have colours that are completely different from
those described earlier. This is because the type of women they are suitable for are
seasoned, experienced, balanced, judicious and emotionally poised. They have
travelled a long way on the path of life and have seen the seeds of their dedication
grow into plants. They have performed their household duties on all counts, with a
sense of selfless commitment.

4. Discuss the use of colour imagery in the extract.

Answer

Purple and grey are colours that signify depth and maturity. Women and men usually
develop these traits in their understanding, after a transition from youth to adulthood.
Due to this change, their preferences also change. Bangles of purple and grey
colours, as the speaker says, are therefore suitable for middle-aged women. Thus,
the use of colour imagery indicates the poet's mastery as a very sensitive,
empathetic and discerning observer of life.

5. Comment on the changes in the life of a woman vis-à-vis the colour of her
bangles.

Answer

As the speaker says, the colours of bangles correspond to the different stages of life
of those women who wear them. Accordingly, bangles of different hues are referred
to for women who are unmarried and those who have just begun the journey of
married life. Life of a middle-aged is marked with maturity, calm of mind and sense
of contentment. She has already spent a greater part of her life as a wife, mother
and homemaker. Corresponding to this change, the speaker states that bangles of
purple and golden grey colours are meant for her. Here, the speaker seems to be
offering a view of life based on its segmentation into interrelated patterns of
existence each of which comprises a set of emotions, ideas and practices explicable
in terms of certain colours.