2

My Grandmothers House
KAMALA DAs

About the Poet

Kamala Das (1934-2009) was major Indian poet wno
Suraiyya a

published most of her work under the name 'Kamala Das. Her
grandtather and her mother were poets whose work was publisneu
Das
inMalayalam. Known for her forthrightness and direct voice,
grapples courageously with women's issues including female sexua
s wich
The contessional elements in her works have invited comparison
or
Sylvia Plath. Some of Das' themes include the hypocrisyHer work s
life and the constraints
imposed by a patriarchal society.
ciety.
Ic and.
she

considered to be highly influential in Indian English poet by

poetry
was acclaimed as the 'mother of modern
English Indian|
The Times in 2009.

About the Poem grandmothers hous

aterher
The speaker of the poem describes
gran her
live. But
.

place where once was loved and was happy

she to
ger
carryin

r
grandmother died, the house became cold and dark, the
thepe
reade

the happiness it once had. addresses

Though the speaker lines
darling (implying an intimate relationship), thefinal
 My Grandmother's House
73
and disilusioned with her life and that
hat she is unhappy
indicate
is filled with a sense of
for love. The poem discontent at
house, nanow empty.
s eager
the grandmother's
loss love signihed by

Mr Grandnmother's House

house now tar away where once

There is a
woman died,
I received love... That
withdrew into silence, snakes moved
The house
I then too
young
Among books
was

To read, and my blood turned cold like the moon.

How often I think of going

There, to peer through blind eyes of windows or
Just listen to the frozen air,
Or in wild despair, pick an armful of
Darkness to bring it here to lie
Behind my bedroom door like a
brooding
Dog ....you cannot believe, darling
Can you, that I lived in such a house and
Wasproud, and loved......I who have lost
My way and beg now at
Keceive love, at least strangers doors to
in small change:

Glossary
wichdraw: here, to become reserved, quiet and cold
peer
brood to look
keenly or carefully something
at
to think deeply about something that makes one

&arling unhappy
here, the speaker's husband
Compr
A.Write eshorhenst iaon
short
How answers for the
2. 1Wha is the
housf following
n os
h questions.
 Pearls of Wisdom

74
the bedroomn door>
What is described as lying
behind
What
4. u s e here?
does the poet
of speech
figure narrator once
have?
5. What did the do?
narrator now
want to
does the
6. What
in about 150 words.
B. Answer each ofthefollowing as a child with the speaker as
and contrast the speaker
1. Compare
an adult.
about growing up. What things change in our lives
2. The poem is
when we grow up
poet's reaction to growing up and going away from
3. Discuss the
her ancestral house
used to establish the tone of
the poem?
4. What imagery is
of love in this poem.
5. Examine the theme
6. What does the house represent?