The Bangle Sellers
Sarojini Naidu
Extract 1: Bangle sellers are we who bear
Our shining loads to the temple fair….
Q.1. What is being referred to as ‘shining loads’? Who all are its prospective buyers?
Ans: The shining bangles that are being carried by the bangle sellers to the temple fair for sale are called the ‘shining loads’.
The prospective buyers of these bangles are the women of every age group.
Q.2. Why does the bangle sellers choose to sell their bangles at the temple fair?
Ans: The temple fair is a place which is visited by women of all age groups. Therefore, the bangle sellers choose to sell their bangles to the ‘happy daughters and happy wives’ at the temple fair.
Q.3. Which figure of speech has been used in the line, “Rainbow-tinted circles of light”?Explain how is this related to the happiness of daughters and wives?
Ans: The figure of speech used here is metaphor as the multi-hued bangles are compared with the radiant lives of happy daughters and happy wives.
The multi-coloured bangles are symbolic of the different shades of womanhood. They represent dreams, youthfulness and aspirations of happy daughters and happy wives.
Q.4. What role do the bangle sellers play in a traditional Indian set-up?
Ans: The bangle sellers are the carriers of those ‘shining loads’ glorifying the idea of womanhood. They try to convince buyers of the spiritual and symbolic importance of the bangles in a traditional Indian set up. Each stage of an Indian woman’s life from a dreamy maiden to an excited bride and finally to a matured matriarch is described according to the colour of bangles of the bangle sellers.
Extract 2:Some are meet for a maiden’s wrist,
Silver and blue as the mountain mist,
Q.1. What colour of bangles are befitting for a maiden’s wrist? Why are these colourscompared to the mountain mist?
Ans: Silver and blue coloured bangles are befitting for a maiden’s wrist.
The silver and blue colours are compared to the mountain mist symbolizing the freshness, innocence, purity and beauty of the young maidens.
Q.2. In what way are the buds set to dream? What figure of speech is used in ‘the buds dream’?
Ans: The word ‘buds’ here is suggestive of chastity. The ‘buds that dream’ present before us an image of bud-like young maidens who dream of their happy future. The poet presents the stage of youth in a woman’s life dreaming of marriage. They dream of growing up and blossoming like beautiful flowers.
The figure of speech used here is personification.
Q.3. What is meant by the ‘limpid glory of new born leaves’? What are the ‘new born leaves’ symbolic of?
Ans: The poet compares the shiny green bangles to the transparent beauty of the light green new-born leaves. The new-born leaves shine like the freshness of the clear dew-drops on the new-born leaves.
The new-born leaves or dew-drops are symbolic of the young maiden’s purity, freshness and chastity. This has connotations to new beginnings and the promise of life.
Extract 3: Some are like fields of sunlit corn,
Meet for a bride on her bridal morn,
Q.1. What is being compared to ‘fields of sunlit corn’? Why?
Ans: Golden or yellow coloured bangles suitable for a bride are compared to ‘fields of sunlit corn’.
The golden and yellow colours represent the happiness of a bride-to-be on the morning of her wedding. The colour is symbolic of the hope that the bride has for her future and her happiness. The corn fields- a proof of Mother Nature’s fertility is symbolic of the fertility of a young girl getting married.
Q.2. Bring out the relevance of the line: ‘Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,’.
Ans: The colour of the bangles suitable for a woman on her wedding day is compared to the reddish yellow flame of marriage around which the bride takes marriage vows with her groom. The flame-like colour of the bangles is appropriate to symbolize the flame of love in marriage.
Q.3. Weddings become befitting occasions to wear bangles. In what ways does the poet associate bangles with a bride?
Ans: The bangles worn by a bride in a traditional Indian wedding have spiritual and symbolic significance. Each stage of an Indian woman’s life is described according to the colour of the bangles suitable at that stage, from a dreamy maiden to an excited bride and finally to a matured mother and wife. The bangles that are suitable for a bride are golden coloured like the holy fire around which the bride takes marriage vows with her groom. The red bangles depict the colour of ‘her heart’s desire’ which is suggestive of dreams and hopes of a newly wedded bride.
Q.4. What do you understand by the phrases ‘bridal laughter’ and ‘bridal tear’? To what have they been compared?
Ans: ‘Bridal laughter’ refers to the happiness and blissfulness a bride experiences while getting married. ‘Bridal tear’ refers to the sadness that accompanies a bride while leaving her parental abode.
These bangles create a light, ringing sound as the bride walks. They are shining and delicate as the laughter of the bride as she is entering her new wedded life and also her tear as she weeps being separated from her parents to begin a new phase of her life.
Extract 4: Some are purple and gold flecked grey
For she who has journeyed through life midway,
Q.1. For whom are the ‘purple and gold-flecked grey’ bangles suitable for? Which phase of their lives is symbolized by these bangles?
Ans: The ‘purple and gold-flecked grey’ bangles are suitable for a woman who has ‘journeyed through life midway’ and has gained experience, wisdom and maturity.
These bangles symbolize the phase of a woman who has lived the phases of life as a young maiden, bride, a proud mother and a responsible wife and earned a position as a matriarch.
Q.2. Discuss the use of colour imagery in the last stanza of the poem.
Ans: Colours represent various moods and aspects of life. In the above extract, all the aspects of being a woman have been experienced. The colours chosen for the bangles are purple and gold flecked grey. Purple colour indicates power, authority, pride and dignity and gold-flecked grey, a sober colour, indicates experience and wisdom. Thus, a woman wearing these bangles has gained maturity, reared her children with love and at last has achieved the fullness of her role as a mother and a wife.
Q.3. Explain how the colour of the bangles represent motherhood.
Ans: The bangle sellers attribute purple and gold-flecked grey bangles to the mother who has attained maturity by rearing her children. The bangles are suitable for those hands that have cherished, loved, blessed and cradled her sons representing motherhood.
Q.4. What special significance does the phrase ‘fruitful pride’ hold in the extract?
Ans: ‘Fruitful pride’ is a significant phrase in context of a woman who has journeyed through life midway. She has been a loving daughter, a happy bride, a responsible wife and mother. Her experiences have made her a perfect woman. She has been productive and fecund in her family and thus serves her household in fruitful pride.
Q.5. Comment on the changes in the life of a woman vis-à-vis the colour of her bangles.
Ans: The various colours of the bangles represent emotions like hope, happiness, desire, love and pride. The after effect is a rainbow encompassing different emotions felt by a woman in each passing phase of her life. These rainbow-tinted bangles are symbolic of different shades of womanhood. The blue and silver coloured bangles are like the blue and silver mist of mountains; shades of pink of yet to blossom flowers or the clear dew drops on new born leaves are suitable for young maidens. The golden colour represents the holy fire around which the bride takes marriage vows and the golden coloured bangles, compared to yellow sunlit corn fields are suitable for a bride. The purple and gold-flecked grey bangles are suitable for a woman who has journeyed through life midway, has gained experience, wisdom and maturity. Thus the ‘rainbow-tinted’ bangles celebrate the beauty and meaning of womanhood.
_________________________
Sarojini Naidu
Extract 1: Bangle sellers are we who bear
Our shining loads to the temple fair….
Q.1. What is being referred to as ‘shining loads’? Who all are its prospective buyers?
Ans: The shining bangles that are being carried by the bangle sellers to the temple fair for sale are called the ‘shining loads’.
The prospective buyers of these bangles are the women of every age group.
Q.2. Why does the bangle sellers choose to sell their bangles at the temple fair?
Ans: The temple fair is a place which is visited by women of all age groups. Therefore, the bangle sellers choose to sell their bangles to the ‘happy daughters and happy wives’ at the temple fair.
Q.3. Which figure of speech has been used in the line, “Rainbow-tinted circles of light”?Explain how is this related to the happiness of daughters and wives?
Ans: The figure of speech used here is metaphor as the multi-hued bangles are compared with the radiant lives of happy daughters and happy wives.
The multi-coloured bangles are symbolic of the different shades of womanhood. They represent dreams, youthfulness and aspirations of happy daughters and happy wives.
Q.4. What role do the bangle sellers play in a traditional Indian set-up?
Ans: The bangle sellers are the carriers of those ‘shining loads’ glorifying the idea of womanhood. They try to convince buyers of the spiritual and symbolic importance of the bangles in a traditional Indian set up. Each stage of an Indian woman’s life from a dreamy maiden to an excited bride and finally to a matured matriarch is described according to the colour of bangles of the bangle sellers.
Extract 2:Some are meet for a maiden’s wrist,
Silver and blue as the mountain mist,
Q.1. What colour of bangles are befitting for a maiden’s wrist? Why are these colourscompared to the mountain mist?
Ans: Silver and blue coloured bangles are befitting for a maiden’s wrist.
The silver and blue colours are compared to the mountain mist symbolizing the freshness, innocence, purity and beauty of the young maidens.
Q.2. In what way are the buds set to dream? What figure of speech is used in ‘the buds dream’?
Ans: The word ‘buds’ here is suggestive of chastity. The ‘buds that dream’ present before us an image of bud-like young maidens who dream of their happy future. The poet presents the stage of youth in a woman’s life dreaming of marriage. They dream of growing up and blossoming like beautiful flowers.
The figure of speech used here is personification.
Q.3. What is meant by the ‘limpid glory of new born leaves’? What are the ‘new born leaves’ symbolic of?
Ans: The poet compares the shiny green bangles to the transparent beauty of the light green new-born leaves. The new-born leaves shine like the freshness of the clear dew-drops on the new-born leaves.
The new-born leaves or dew-drops are symbolic of the young maiden’s purity, freshness and chastity. This has connotations to new beginnings and the promise of life.
Extract 3: Some are like fields of sunlit corn,
Meet for a bride on her bridal morn,
Q.1. What is being compared to ‘fields of sunlit corn’? Why?
Ans: Golden or yellow coloured bangles suitable for a bride are compared to ‘fields of sunlit corn’.
The golden and yellow colours represent the happiness of a bride-to-be on the morning of her wedding. The colour is symbolic of the hope that the bride has for her future and her happiness. The corn fields- a proof of Mother Nature’s fertility is symbolic of the fertility of a young girl getting married.
Q.2. Bring out the relevance of the line: ‘Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,’.
Ans: The colour of the bangles suitable for a woman on her wedding day is compared to the reddish yellow flame of marriage around which the bride takes marriage vows with her groom. The flame-like colour of the bangles is appropriate to symbolize the flame of love in marriage.
Q.3. Weddings become befitting occasions to wear bangles. In what ways does the poet associate bangles with a bride?
Ans: The bangles worn by a bride in a traditional Indian wedding have spiritual and symbolic significance. Each stage of an Indian woman’s life is described according to the colour of the bangles suitable at that stage, from a dreamy maiden to an excited bride and finally to a matured mother and wife. The bangles that are suitable for a bride are golden coloured like the holy fire around which the bride takes marriage vows with her groom. The red bangles depict the colour of ‘her heart’s desire’ which is suggestive of dreams and hopes of a newly wedded bride.
Q.4. What do you understand by the phrases ‘bridal laughter’ and ‘bridal tear’? To what have they been compared?
Ans: ‘Bridal laughter’ refers to the happiness and blissfulness a bride experiences while getting married. ‘Bridal tear’ refers to the sadness that accompanies a bride while leaving her parental abode.
These bangles create a light, ringing sound as the bride walks. They are shining and delicate as the laughter of the bride as she is entering her new wedded life and also her tear as she weeps being separated from her parents to begin a new phase of her life.
Extract 4: Some are purple and gold flecked grey
For she who has journeyed through life midway,
Q.1. For whom are the ‘purple and gold-flecked grey’ bangles suitable for? Which phase of their lives is symbolized by these bangles?
Ans: The ‘purple and gold-flecked grey’ bangles are suitable for a woman who has ‘journeyed through life midway’ and has gained experience, wisdom and maturity.
These bangles symbolize the phase of a woman who has lived the phases of life as a young maiden, bride, a proud mother and a responsible wife and earned a position as a matriarch.
Q.2. Discuss the use of colour imagery in the last stanza of the poem.
Ans: Colours represent various moods and aspects of life. In the above extract, all the aspects of being a woman have been experienced. The colours chosen for the bangles are purple and gold flecked grey. Purple colour indicates power, authority, pride and dignity and gold-flecked grey, a sober colour, indicates experience and wisdom. Thus, a woman wearing these bangles has gained maturity, reared her children with love and at last has achieved the fullness of her role as a mother and a wife.
Q.3. Explain how the colour of the bangles represent motherhood.
Ans: The bangle sellers attribute purple and gold-flecked grey bangles to the mother who has attained maturity by rearing her children. The bangles are suitable for those hands that have cherished, loved, blessed and cradled her sons representing motherhood.
Q.4. What special significance does the phrase ‘fruitful pride’ hold in the extract?
Ans: ‘Fruitful pride’ is a significant phrase in context of a woman who has journeyed through life midway. She has been a loving daughter, a happy bride, a responsible wife and mother. Her experiences have made her a perfect woman. She has been productive and fecund in her family and thus serves her household in fruitful pride.
Q.5. Comment on the changes in the life of a woman vis-à-vis the colour of her bangles.
Ans: The various colours of the bangles represent emotions like hope, happiness, desire, love and pride. The after effect is a rainbow encompassing different emotions felt by a woman in each passing phase of her life. These rainbow-tinted bangles are symbolic of different shades of womanhood. The blue and silver coloured bangles are like the blue and silver mist of mountains; shades of pink of yet to blossom flowers or the clear dew drops on new born leaves are suitable for young maidens. The golden colour represents the holy fire around which the bride takes marriage vows and the golden coloured bangles, compared to yellow sunlit corn fields are suitable for a bride. The purple and gold-flecked grey bangles are suitable for a woman who has journeyed through life midway, has gained experience, wisdom and maturity. Thus the ‘rainbow-tinted’ bangles celebrate the beauty and meaning of womanhood.
_________________________
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