My Mother at Sixty Six Explanation With Reference to Context Questions and Answers

 My Mother at Sixty Six Explanation With Reference to Context

 My Mother at Sixty Six - Up CBSE board Class 12 Chapter 5 My Mother at Sixty Six Detailed Explanation of the lesson with summary and meaning of difficult words. In addition, the explanation is followed by a summary of the text. All questions and answers given in the lesson are covered

The name of the Lesson -My Mother at Sixty Six (छियासठ वर्ष की आयु में मेरी  माँ )

Writer of this Chapter – Kamala Das

Born – (March 31,1934 )

Dead - May 31, 2009)

 

About the Author

Kamala Das was born on 31 March 1934 in Malabar, Kerala. She is popularly known by her pen name Madhavikutty and married name Kamala Das. His work is known for his originality, versatility and earthy indigenous flavor. Kamala Das published several novels and short stories in English and Malayalam under her pen name. His important works are 'The Alphabet of Kama' and Padmavati the Prostitute and Other Stories. Kamala participated in literary events in Germany, Jamaica, London and Canada, where she was invited to read her poetry. He also held literary positions in his state of Kerala and for a national daily. In 2009, the Times called her "the mother of modern English poetry".

His many notable achievements include nominations for the Pen Asian Poetry Prize in 1963 and the Nobel Prize in 1984. She also became a syndicated columnist expressing her views on women, children and politics. Kamala lived all her life on her own terms, which is clearly visible in her writings.

He received many awards like Vayalar Award, Muttu Varkey Award, Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award. He died on 31 May 2009 in Pune.

• Summary of the Poem

The poet was driving from her parents home to the cochin airport , her sixty six years old mother was sitting beside her . she looked at her mother ‘s face . her face was pale and gray like ash. She dozing with her open mouth . her face was appearing like a dead body . the poet was extremely sad and afraid at the thought of losing her . to come out of this negative thought she diverted her attention . she looked  out side the car . the scene of seemingly fast running trees and merrily playing children was full of life and energy . after security check up at the airport , she again looked at her mother’s colorless and lifeless face . her heart was aching . she hid her tears . she smiled and said see you soon Amma .      

• Central Idea of the poem

The central idea of the poem is the poet ‘s fear of losing her mother .her mother is in the last phase of her life . so the poet feels that she will pass away soon . she gets scared of this thought . to come out of this negative feelings. She diverted her attention and looked outside the car. The trees seemed to her sprint backside and children were making merry . after the security check up at the airport , she looked again at her pale and lifeless face . hiding her tears , she said , ‘see you soon Amma .

Poem with Vocabulary and comprehension Question

Stanza -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 realized with pain

That she was as old as she looked but soon

Put that thought away , and looked out at  young

Trees sprinting , they merry children spilling

Out of their home .

• Difficult word

Beside- निकट में -by the side of

Doze-  ऊँघना - sleep lightly

Ashen- पीला - yellow

Corpse- शव -dead body

Put that thought away- उस विचार को मन से निकल दिया -remove the thought from mind

Sprinting -तेजी सो दौड़ते हुए -  running fast

Merry-खुश - happy

Spilling out - बाहर निकलते हुए -tumbling out

Question 1- what was the poet driving to why ?

Answer- The poet was going from her parents' house to Cochin by car. she was going to catch a flight there at the airport.

Question 2 – How did the poet’s mother look during the journey ?

Answer -The poet's mother was sixty-six years old. She looked weak and sick. She was sleeping with her mouth open.

Question 3 –What did the poet realize ? why did she ‘ put that thought  .

Answer – The poet felt that the end of his mother was near. It was a painful thought. She didn't want to think about it. So he looked outside to divert his attention.

Question 4- What is meant by ‘ was as old she looked ?

Answer – The color of ash and the wan, the yellow face of the mother reveal the age and ill condition of the mother.

Stanza – 2

… but after the airport’s

security check, standing a few yards

away, I looked again at her , wan pale

as a late winter ‘s moon and felt that old

familiar ach, my childhood’s fear,

but all I said was see you soon Amma ,

all I did was smile and  smile and smile …

• Difficult word

Check- जाँच -examination

Yard -  गज -a measure of length  nearby a meter long

Wan- फीका coloreless

Ache-पीड़ा – pain

Explanation - When the poet is going to Cochin with her old mother. So she looks at him closely and goes on to describe it.

 

 When she sees her mother's pale and pale face, she compares it to a corpse. So she is tormented by the fear and pain of losing him. A mother with a dozen faces and an open mouth is compared to a corpse.

 

The poet is distressed and shifts his attention outside the car to take out the negative emotions. She changes her sad mood. The view outside the window is of growing life and energy. Trees running fast along with children playing with fun are symbols of life, youth and vitality. The poetess here remembers her childhood when her mother was young, while now she is surrounded by the fear of losing her and this has made her insecure.

 

He is at the airport to take the flight. It indicates departure and separation which creates sadness. As she says goodbye to her mother, the image of the old, wan, tired mother in the twilight of the years strikes her again. Here again a simile is used to compare her mother to a late winter moon whose light is hindered by fog and haze as she now looks old, her personality affected by it.

 

The poet is feeling the pain of leaving his mother. Also, his childhood fear of losing his mother which he feels was temporary but may now be forever as she may die of old age, is haunting him. She is in so much pain that it is natural for her to cry but bravely she hides her tears and smiles.

 

She bids farewell to her mother and says, "See you soon, Amma", hoping to see her alive again. She hides her grief as she does not want to create a painful environment for her mother and tells her that just as she is enjoying her life, her mother should also be happy and enjoy her life.

 

Question 1` How was the scene outside different ?

Answer- The scene outside was full of joy and activity. Even the trees were seen running. The children were jumping with joy. This was in stark contrast to the old mother who was like a corpse.

Question 2- The poet described her mother with a smile . point out the smile and explain ?

Answer- Mother seemed ill. The poet describes him as Van, pale because the late winter moon looks very weak and dim.

Question 3- What do you think was her childhood fear ? why did say ,’ see soon Amma ?

Answer- As a child, the poetess was afraid of separation from her mother. Again the same fear was haunting. He also felt that his mother would be alone. That is his moral support. She smiled and assured him that she would be with him soon.

Question 4- which poetic device has the poet used in the last two lines ? why ?

Answer- The word 'repetition' is used in the last two lines. It expresses the poet's intense feeling for the well being of his mother .

 Explanation reference to the context -

1. Explanation reference to the context of the following stanzas:

(a).Driving  from my…. that  of  a corpse.

Reference - These lines are taken from the poem ' My Mother at Sixty Six ' by Kamala Das.

Context - The lines make the poet feel about his mother..

Explanation:  The poet was driving a vehicle from his parents' house to Cochin last Friday morning and during the journey, the poet saw his mother sitting beside him. She (mother) was asleep (half asleep), her mouth was opened (this happens because of old age), her face was turned to ashes like a corpse (dead body). Actually, due to increasing age, the color (redness) of the skin gradually starts to fade, the softness and brightness of the skin becomes yellow, colorless.

(b).And realized with…that thought  away.

Reference : These lines are taken from the poem 'My Mother at Sixty Six' by Kamala Das.

Context-In this verse the poet comes to know about the old age of his mother

Explanation:  When the poet was going to Cochin by car, on the way he saw that his mother was old. She looked so old that she could be recognized by her face. His face gave the colors of his old age. But the poet realized that those thoughts were not conducive and soon removed those thoughts from him to make himself positive.

(c). And looked out…Looked again at her.

Reference :These lines are taken from the poem 'My Mother at Sixty Six' by Kamala Das.

Context - In these lines the poet talks about the movement of trees and children and the happenings at the airport.

Explanation:   . :During a visit to Cochin, the poet looked outside to clear his negative thoughts, where he saw trees running (running) in the poet's poetic language but in reality it was an illusion and in the moving vehicle, everything outside shakes It seems that the poet saw the children jumping out of their houses, in fact they were very happy to come out to play. And then when they reached the airport, they had to pass a regular security check, there after that security check, the poet was standing a few steps away from his mother and then shage again looked at his mother and asked her See the feelings.

(d) Wan, pale as a… smile and smile.

Reference - These lines are taken from the poem 'My Mother at Sixty Six' by Kamala Das.

Context - The poet compares his mother and describes the parting movement with his mother

Explanation:  The poet found his mother colorless and pale. Its redness, the attractiveness and luster of the face fades and this is due to old age. The poet compared these impressions to the late winter moon, the setting moon. And immediately he felt his old familiar pain, the pain that had been in his heart since childhood, the fear of losing his mother sometime in childhood, the fear of being separated from his mother. Told his mother that he would soon see parting time with his mother.

Think it Out -

Question 1- What is the kind of pain and ache that the poet feels ?

Answer- The poet feels the pain that her mother looked like and that old familiar pain, her childhood 'fear of losing her mother'.

Question2 – why are the young trees described as ‘sprinting?

Answer – The young tree is said to be running as the poet and his mother were in a moving vehicle and constantly looking outside gives the illusion of the tree running.

Question 3- why has the poet brought in the image of the merry children’ spilling out of there homes ?

Answer- The poet has shown the children splashing out of the house with laughter as the children were running and jumping with great joy from there. Coming out to play brings them joy so they were quick to reach out.

Question-4 Why has the mother been compared to the “late winter ‘moon’?

Answer- Maa has been compared to the late moon as the moon sets in the winter season, some yellow, wan and so on that was the form of Maa at that time..

Question -5 what do the parting words of the poet and the smile signify ?

Answer- The parting words of the poetess and her smile indicate that she was completely positive that she would meet her mother very soon in the same situation as when she returned from abroad .

Before you read

Question 6 - Ageing is a natural process ; have ever thought what our elderly parents expect from us ?

Answer- People become weak in old age. Their movements and activities become restricted. They feel lonely. They expect us to give them company. We should take the time to sit with them, talk to them and cater to their needs.

Shorts Answer Type Question

Question 1- what did the poet realize looking at her mother in the  car ?

Answer- When the poetess saw her mother's face pale, lifeless ashes like a corpse in the car, she felt with pain that her mother had grown old, that she would soon die.

Question 2- How does the poet describe her mother ?

Answer- Compares her sixty-year-old mother to a late winter moon. Due to her old age she looks pale and dim like a late winter moon. The journey of his life will end soon.

Question 3- what does the poet mean by ‘ all I did was smile and smile and smile ?

Answer- At the time of departure, the poet again looks at his mother. The poet experiences the childhood fear of losing his mother again to see the condition of his mother. He tried to hide his feelings. In this effort, she smiles and smiles. The smile here is a forced smile, not a natural one.।

Question 4- what were the activities that the poet saw out saw outside the car window ?

  Answer- The poet looked at the young trees. It was as if they were running fast. He also noticed that happy, enthusiastic and energetic children were coming out of his house.

Question 5- why does the poet look outside ?

Answer- The thought of being separated from his old mother haunts and depresses the poet. She experiences the fear that she may never meet her mother again. To overcome this negative thought, she steps out of the window of her car.

Question 6- what is the poet familiar ache and why does it returns?

Answer- The poet is saddened to see the ashes-like face of his old mother. His weak and pale face resembles a dead body. It awakens in her heart the familiar pain of her childhood. The poet's fear returns because of the realization of reality. is his mother in the last stage of her life.

Question 7- what does the poet do after the security check up?

Answer Immediately after the security check at the airport, the poet stands a few yards away from his mother. From there observe his mother's face once again. She compares her mother to the dull and shrinking moon of winter.

Question 8- what poetic devices has the poet used in the poem?

Answer- The poem is full of imagination. The poet has used the tool of comparing and contrasting the difference between youth and old age.

Question 9- why does the poet  say ,’ see you soon Amma?

Answer- On departure from the airport, the poet also feels the pain of his old mother. She says that it makes her reassure herself who will see her soon. Although her heart aches, she is feeling the ultimate reality of life.