6. AMANDA!

- ROBIN KLEIN

SUMMARY:

This poem depicts the state of mind of a little girl called

Amanda who is constantly instructed about do’s and don’ts by
her parents. She is told not to hunch her shoulders and to sit
straight. She is told to finish her homework and tidy her room.
She is forbidden to eat chocolate or else she could get acne. But
all the time the litttle girl keeps dreaming of a life of freedom in
the open. She dreams of mermaids in the sea, of wandering
barefoot in the dusty street like an orphan. She also dreams
herself of golden haired Rapunzel who lived alone in a high tower.
She takes no note of what is being said to her. Then she is
rebuked for being moody and sulking all the time.

KEY POINTS:

 Amanda, a teenage girl is given a lot of instructions by her

parents.
 She is instructed not to bite her nails and sit properly.
 She wants to be like a mermaid blissfully drifting in the
tranquil sea.
 She is asked about her homework and daily chores.
 She feels like an orphan roaming freely in the street.
 Lest she should get acne, she is forbidden to eat chocolate.
 She wants to be like Rapunzel living carefree life in a tower.
 Amanda is asked not to sulk and look moody. Seeing her face
someone will think she is nagged.

COMPREHENSION OF THE STANZAS:

Stanza 1. ‘Don’t
bite....................................................Amanda!’

i. What does Amanda bite?

Ans. She bites her nails.

ii. What does the word ‘hunch’ mean?

Ans. It means ‘to bend’.

iii. What three instructions does Amanda get in the stanza?

Ans. Amanda is instructed not to bite her nails, to sit properly

and not to slouch.

iv. What is the tone of the stanza?

Ans. It is imperative.

Stanza 2. ‘there is....................................................blissfully’

i. What is the colour of sea water?

Ans. It is green.

ii. What is her state of mind?

Ans. She is lost in her imagination.

iii. What does she imagine herself to be?

Ans. She imagines herself to be a mermaid.

iv. How would she feel as a mermaid?

Ans. She would be blissfully drifting in the sea.

Stanza 3. ‘Did you....................................................Amanda!’

i. What did the speaker ask her in the first line?

Ans. The speaker asked if she had finished her homework.

ii. Which word in the extract means ‘spick and span or neat’?

Ans. Spick and span or neat means Tidy.

iii. What had the speaker told her to do?

Ans. The speaker had told her to clean her shoes.

Stanza 4. ‘I am.................................................... sweet’

i. What does she think about herself?

Ans. She thinks about herself as an orphan.

ii. what does she want to do?

Ans. She wants to wander freely in the street.

iii. What does she do on the dust?

Ans She draws patterns on the soft dust with her bare feet.

iv. identify the poetic device used in the last line of the stanza?

Ans. It is metaphor.

Stanza 5. ‘Don’t
eat....................................................Amanda!’

i. What does she like to eat?

Ans. She likes to eat chocolate.

ii. What does speaker forbid Amanda to?

Ans. The speaker forbids Amanda to eat chocolate.

iii. What was Amanda asked to remember?

Ans. She was asked to remember her acne.

iv. While speaking to her, what does the speaker expect from
her?

Ans. The speaker expects Amanda to look at her.

Stanza 6. ‘I am....................................................bright hair.’

i. What does she think about herself?

Ans. She thinks herself as Rapunzel.

ii. How is life in a tower?

Ans. It is tranquil and rare.

iii. What is the colour of her hair?

Ans. It is bright.

iv. What does she decide not to do with her hair?

Ans. She decides not to let her hair drop down ever.

Stanza 7. ‘Stop....................................................Amanda!’

i. How does she react to the chiding?

Ans. She sulks.

ii. Who is feeling moody?

Ans. Amanda is feeling moody.

iii. Seeing Amanda’s sulky face what would anyone say?

Ans. Anyone would think that the speaker nagged her.