D.A.V.

Public School, Lawrence Road Amritsar

Topic: Amanda. Std: X
INTRODUCTION
The Poem ‘Amanda’ is written by Robin Klein. This poem focuses
on the upbringing of a small child, whose name is Amanda. It
focuses on the struggles which a child is facing. Poet Robin Klein
makes the important point that the children should never be
deprived of their freedom. However, it is the parents who are
responsible for the proper upbringing of their child. But that
should not make the children feel imprisoned. The whole
trajectory of this poem is something with which we are all very
much familiar.
MESSAGE
This poem conveys the moral that children need to be allowed
more freedom. Excessive nagging may make them disobedient
and hence they may develop a type of dislike for real life and start
escaping into the world of dreams and imagination. In fact, the
poem indirectly emphasizes the need of a healthbond between
parents and children. Parents should understand the psychology
of children, who in turn, should be respectful and responsible to
their parents.
Stanza 1
Don’t bite your nails, Amanda!
Don’t hunch your shoulders, Amanda!
Stop that slouching and sit up straight,
Amanda!
Word Meaning
1. Hunch - bend
2. Slouching - sitting in a lazy way
Explanation
The poet is describing Amanda, a little girl who is always pointed
out by her mother for her mistakes and how she imagines her life
to be. The poet says that the mother is pointing out Amanda for
biting nails which is a bad habit. Next she asks her to sit straight
without bending her shoulders. Amanda who has habit of bending
her shoulders and sitting lazily is being pointed out because her
mother wants her to sit in the right posture.
Stanza 2
(There is a languid, emerald sea,
where the sole inhabitant is me-
a mermaid, drifting blissfully.)
Word Meaning
1. Languid - relaxed
2. Emerald - here, green color
3. Inhabitant - resident
4. Drifting - moving slowly, carried slowly by the water
5. Blissfully - happily
Explanation
When Amanda is being scolded by her mother, she imagines
herself to be in a deep green sea. She says that she wants to be the
only resident of this beautiful green sea. She imagines herself like
a mermaid who is alone there and leads her life in a very relaxing
way. She says that she wants to be carried away by the current of
water and feel the relaxing environment there
Stanza 3
Did you finish your homework, Amanda?
Did you tidy your room, Amanda?
I thought I told you to clean your shoes,
Amanda!
Word Meaning
1. Tidy - clean up
Explanation
Here the poet says that Amanda’s mother is inquiring her about
whether she has done her homework or not? And then she asks
her whether she has cleaned her room or not. Moreover she is
also reminded to clean her shoes. So, here we can see that the
mother is constantly asking her questions regarding her
homework being done or not or whether she had cleaned up her
room and shoes or not.
Stanza 4
(I am an orphan, roaming the street.
I pattern soft dust with my hushed, bare feet.
The silence is golden, the freedom is sweet.)
Word Meaning
1. Orphan - a child whose parents are dead
2. Pattern - make patterns
3. Hushed - quiet and still place
Explanation
Amanda is listening to her mother’s instructions, she imagines
herself to be an orphan who is roaming in the streets. This means
that she imagines if she would have been without parents she
would have walked freely in the streets. She would have drawn
designs on the soft dust with her uncovered feet very quietly. So,
we can see that she thinks opposite to her mother. Her mother
wants her to keep everything neat and clean. But Amanda wants
to play in dust with her bare feet. Moreover, she is so fed up of
these constant instructions from her mother, that she says silence
is golden which means that silence is very crucial and precious.
She further says that freedom is sweet. This means she never feels
free when she is with her mother.
Stanza 5
Don’t eat that chocolate, Amanda!
Remember your acne, Amanda!
Will you please look at me when I’m speaking to you,
Amanda!
Word Meaning
1. Acne - Pimples
Explanation
Next, Amanda’s mother is disallowing her to eat chocolates. She
reminds her of pimples that Amanda faces due to eating
chocolates. At last she scolds her for not paying attention to what
her mother says.
Stanza 6
(I am Rapunzel; I have not a care;
life in a tower is tranquil and rare;
I’ll certainly never let down my bright hair!)
Word Meaning
1. Rapunzel - A girl in the fairy tale by Brothers
Grimm
2. Tranquil - calm, quiet
3. Rare - uncommon
Explanation
Amanda imagines herself to be Rapunzel. Rapunzel was a
character from a fairy tale that was captured in tower by a witch.
The witch used to climb the tower with the help of long hair of
Rapunzel that were let down by her through the window. So, now
Amanda wants to be Rapunzel because she feels that life in the
tower will be peaceful and unusual. She thinks she will be free
and live in a peaceful environment in the tower. She also confirms
to herself that she will never let her hair down to anyone so that
nobody could come to her in the tower.
Stanza 7
Stop that sulking at once, Amanda!
You’re always so moody, Amanda!
Anyone would think that I nagged at you,
Amanda!
Word Meaning
1. Sulking - be in a bad mood
2. Moody - unstable
3. Nagged - harass
Explanation
Amanda’s mother now warns her for behaving in a very odd
manner. She asks her to stop being in a bad mood. Moreover she
blames her of having such an unstable mood. She also scolds her
by saying that her behavior will one day make people think that
Amanda was constantly being harassed by her mother. So, here
we can say that though Amanda is always pointed out by her
mother on every small thing but she can’t react to this. If she
reacts towards this by getting emotional her mother takes this
against her sense of pride and scolds her that she should not
behave like this as others would think that Amanda’s mother is
very dominating towards her.
Literary Devices
1.Alliteration : Repetition of initial consonant
sounds in the same line.
a. Stop that slouching and sit up straight
b. I thought I told you to clean your shoes
c. Stop that sulking at once, Amanda!
2. Allusion : A reference to statement, person, place
etc. from history , religion, literature or any other
field.
a. Mermaid – To be free and contained in their
own. (Taken from fairy tales)
b. Rapunzel – Who lived alone on a tower for a
long time. (Part of German fairy tale)
3. Metaphor : A device which compares two things
or qualities which are unlike.
a. Orphan – Who don’t have nagging parents
above their head as Amanda’s.
b. Languid, emerald sea – languid and emerald
type qualities are assigned to sea.
c. Silent is golden
d. Freedom is sweet
4. Repetition : Poets often repeat single words or
phrases, lines, and even whole stanzas at intervals
to create a musical effcet to emphasize a point, to
draw the readers' attention or to lend unity to a
piece. In the poem the name of 'Amanda' has been
repeatedly used to emphasize the commanding
manner in which the mother addresses the young
girl.
5. Anaphora : A poetic device in which a word or
group of words is used repeatdly at the beginning
of sentence or clauses to creat a special effect or
to emphasise something. For example,
a. Don't bite your nails, Amanda!
Don' t hunch your shoulders, AinaliA!
Each sentence in this example starts with
"Don't" which stresses the authoritative tone
of the mother.
b. Did you finish your homework, Amanda?
Did you tidy your room, Amanda?
Here, each line begins with 'Did you' and
emphasizes the harsh treatment of Amanda
at the hands of her mother.
Short questions with answers
1.What does the girl yearn for? What does this poem tell you
about Amanda?
Ans.Amanda yearns for freedom and space for herself. She is
incapable to fulfill the expectations of her parents. Amanda is no
less than a symbol for all the children who face similar fate
irrespective of class, colour or nationality. Traditional societies
demand a certain type of behaviour from the individuals and the
training to produce such begins at a very young age. Parents
ignore the innocence and understanding level of their children
and thereby the young ends up killing their imagination and
thoughts.
2. Read the last stanza. Do you think Amanda is sulking and is
moody?
Ans :No, Amanda is neither sulking nor moody. She is simply not
interested enough in the nagging business of her parents. Amanda
cares more about her imagination and thought process over the
manners her parents are trying to inculcate into her.
3.What kind of an image does “languid, emerald sea” evoke?
Ans It evokes the image of a calm and green sea. The word
‘languid’ means ‘relaxed’ which points towards silent water.
‘Emerald’ is a green coloured gemstone that refers to the green
colour of seawater.
4. What does the line “never let down my bright hair” tell us
about Amanda?
Ans : It tells us that Amanda does not want anybody to come up
and spoil the silence or disturb her in any way. She is fed up with
the chaos and constant nagging in her life and wants to live alone.
5. The reader sympathises with the speaker in the poem. Support
this opinion with a reason.
Ans : The speaker, probably her mother, is worried about her
posture, skin, and school homework. But, Amanda gives her a
deaf ear which makes the reader sympathizes with the speaker.
6. What do you think is the significance of the exclamation mark
in the title of the poem ‘Amanda!’?
Ans : An exclamation mark is used to show sudden happiness,
sadness, or anger. This mark is used with the word ‘Amanda’ In
the poem to display the anger of the speaker who is not replied to
even after repeated calling.
7.‘Amanda is alone but not lonely in the world she envisions.’
Justify the statement with reference to any one image she pictures
in her mind.
Ans :She wants to live alone and away from her parent’s do’s
and don’ts. She imagines herself as a mermaid who is drifting
happily in the sea. She envisions herself enjoying her solitude,
whereas a lonely person feels sad and upset. That’s why it is said
that she wants to live alone and not lonely.‘
8.The silence is golden, the freedom is sweet’ Why does Amanda
say so?
Ans : Amanda says that 'the silence is golden, the freedom is
sweet' because she wants to lead a life without any restrictions.
She likes silence because she wants to roam freely and
undisturbed in a calm green sea like a mermaid. Again, she likes
freedom in life like an orphan to escape the nagging of her
parents and have the liberty to roam freely on the streets.
9. (I am an orphan, roaming the street ....)Who is ‘I’? Is she an
orphan? Why does she say so?
Ans : ‘I’ here refers to Amanda. No, she is not an orphan. She
imagines to be an orphan as she feels her freedom is curtailed in
her present position. By imagining herself as an orphan she can
do whatever she wants to do.
Mani Marwaha