My Mother at Sixty-six
Kamala Das
My Mother At Sixty-Six (www.hikha.in)
IMPORTANT STANZAS FOR COMPREHENSION
1)“Driving from my parent’s
home to Cochin last Friday
morning, I saw my mother,
beside me,
doze, open mouthed, her face
ashen like that
of a corpse and realised with
pain”
Questions
i) Where was the poet driving to? Who was sitting beside her?
Ans: The poet was driving from her parent’s home to the Cochin airport. Her mother was sitting beside her.
ii) What did the poet notice about her mother?
Ans: She noticed that her mother was dozing by keeping her mouth opened.
iii) )Why was her mother’s face looked like that of a corpse?
Ans: Her mother’s face looked pale, faded and lifeless like a dead body because she had grown old.
iv) Find words from the passage which mean :
a) sleep lightly (b) dead body (c) felt.
Ans: a) Doze means sleep lightly
b) Corpse means dead body.
c)Realized means felt.
2) “realised with pain
that she was as old as she
looked but soon
put that thought away, and
looked out at Young
Trees sprinting, the merry children spilling
out of their homes,”
Questions
i)Who looked out at young trees?
Ans: The poet looked out at the young trees growing outside went past as if they were sprinting.
ii)What thought did she put away?
Ans: The poet put away the thought of her ageing and decaying mother away from her mind. Her corpse like as ‘ashen’ face reminded of the mother’s approaching death.
iii)What do the young trees sprinting signify?
Ans: The young sprinting trees signify energy lie action of the youth.
iv) How were the young trees sprinting?
Ans: As the car moved on, the young trees growing outside went past as if they were sprinting.
v) What did she notice the children doing?
Ans: She saw that the happy children were moving out of their homes a large numbers which signify the energetic action of the youth.
vi) Find words from the passage which mean: (a) running fast (b) happy (c) moving out.
Ans: a) Sprinting means running fast.
b) Merry means happy.
c) Spilling means moving out.
3)“….but after the airport’s
security check, standing a few yards
away, I looked again at her, wan,
pale
as a late winter’s mooft and felt that
old
familiar ache, my childhood’s fear,
but all I said was, see you soon,
Amma,
all I did was smile and smile and
smile………..”
Questions
i) What did the poet do after the security check?
Ans: After the security check, the poet stood a few yards away from her mother and looked at her face again.
ii) Why did the poet compare her mother’s face to a late winter’s moon?
Ans: The late winter moon lacks brightness as well as strength. The pale and colourless face of the mother resembles the late winter moon.
iii) What is her childhood fear?
Ans: The fear of ageing and ultimate death/separation.
iv) How do the parting words of the poet and her smile present a contrast to her real feelings?
Ans: The poet’s parting words of assurance and her smiles present a stark contrast to the old familiar ache or childhood fear. Her words and smiles are a deliberate attempt to hide what is going on inside.
QUESTIONS FROM TEXTBOOK SOLVED
Q1.Why did the poet compare her mother’s face to a late winter’s moon?
Ans: Generally the late winter’s Moon loses its brightness and strength. So the poet compared the pale and faded face of her mother to a late winter’s Moon.
Q2. Why did the poet smile and smile?
OR
“All I did was smile and smile and smile”
-----What did the line suggest?
Ans: The pale and colourless face of the poet’s mother worry the poet. Seeing this the poet is confused that her mother will die soon. But the poet has to hide her real feelings from her mother. She only smiles and smiles to reassure that they will meet soon.
Q3.What was the poet’s childhood fear?
Ans: The child is always in fear of being separated from his parents. In the same way, the poet’s fear as a child was that of losing her mother or her company as her mother was growing old day by day.
Q4.Why did the poet’s parting word suggest?
Ans: The poet’s parting words reveal both hope and fear. The poet thinks that at sixty-six, anything can happen to her mother. Though the poet is confused yet she hides her real fear and hopes that they will meet again.
Q5. Why are the young trees described as sprinting?
Ans: It is our common experience that whenever we travel by a fast-moving vehicle, the standing objects always appear to be running fast. The appearance of fast-racing of the standing objects are described as ‘sprinting’. Here it is said about young trees to provide a stark contrast to the passive old lady sitting inside the car.
Q6.What is the kind of pain and ache that the poet feels?
Ans: When the poet is driving from her mother’s home to Cochin airport, her mother is sitting beside her who is dozing by keeping her mouth open. As that moment her face looks lifeless like a dead body. It arouses pain and ache in the poet’s heart. The poet knows that time spares none. It has not spared her mother too. With ageing, separation and death become unavailable. So, the poet feels a fear of decay and death of her mother.
Q7. How does Kamala Das try to put away the thoughts of her aging mother?
Ans: kamala Das was in much trouble after seeing the lifeless and faded face of her mother. The old lady seemed to be lost in her own thoughts. The poet turned away her attention from her mother and looked outside. The outside world was full of life and activity. The young trees seemed to be running fast. The children looked happy while moving out of their homes.
Q8.What is the poet’s familiar ache and why does it return?
Ans: The poet is pained at the ageing and decaying of her mother. The fear is that with ageing comes decay and death. The sight of her old mother ‘ashen’ and corpse like face arouses that old familiar ache in her heart. Her childhood fear returns. She is also pained and frightened by the idea that she may have to face all things herself.
Q9.What does the poet do after the security check-up? What does she notice?
Ans: After the security check-up at the airport, stands a few yards away. Before saying parting words to her mother, she looked at her mother again. Her face looks pale and colourless like the late winter’s moon. She presents a picture of ageing and decaying.
Q10.Why has the poet brought in the image of the merry-children ‘Spilling out of their homes’?
Ans: The merry children stand in sharp contrast to the old mother of the poet. The poet’s mother who is sitting beside her is dozing. Her mother’s ashen face looks lifeless and pale like a corpse. She is in an image of ageing, decaying and passivity. On the other hand, the children are seen to be happy. They are moving out of their homes in large numbers. Here is an image of happiness and spontaneous overflow of life.
Q11.What do the poet’s parting words and her smile signify?
Ans: The poet’s parting words reveal both hope and fear. The poet thinks that at sixty-six age anything can happen to her mother. Though the poet is confused, yet hides her real fear and hopes that they will meet again soon. The pale and faded face of the poet’s mother worry the poet. Seeing this, the poet is confused that her mother will die soon. But the poet wants to hide her real feelings from her mother. She only smiles and smiles to reassure that they will meet again.
The poet’s continuous smiling is an attempt to overcome the ache and fear inside her heart.
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