INTER ACTIVE SESSION

AMANDA (POEM)
• This poem expresses the state of a little girl’s
mind who is constantly instructed about do’s
and don’ts by her mother. The little girl
Amanda keeps dreaming about freedom of life
in the open. She is unable to understand her
parent’s concern for her.
• Q1- How old do you think Amanda is? How do you
know this?
• ANS. Amanda must be entering her teenage. We
know this because her parent stops her from
eating chocolate since she has acne. We also
notice that Amanda is very fanciful since she
imagines herself to be fairytale character while her
parent nags at her.
• Q2- Who do you think is speaking to her?
• ANS. In the poem, it seems as if one of
Amanda’s parents, most probably her mother
is speaking to her.
• Q3- Why are Stanzas 2, 4 and 6 given in
parenthesis?
• ANS. Stanzas 2, 4 and 6 are given in parenthesis,
because they represent Amanda's inner
thoughts, her retreat into a magical world
where she no longer can hear the voice of her
parent. It also shows that she is unconcerned by
the constant badgering and has her own
fantastical world where she is free and happy.
• Q4- Who is the speaker in Stanzas 2, 4 and 6?
Do you think this speaker is listening to the
speaker in Stanzas 1, 3, 5, and 7?
• Ans. The child Amanda is the speaker in
Stanzas 2, 4 and 6.
• No, the child is not listening to the speaker in
Stanzas 1, 3, 5, and 7. She is so accustomed
to being instructed, that she is lost in her
own thoughts and her mind is far away.
• Q5- What could Amanda do if she were a
mermaid?
• ANS: If Amanda were a mermaid, she would
be the sole inhabitant of the languid emerald
sea on which she would drift blissfully.
• Q6- Is Amanda an orphan? Why does she say so?
• ANS. No, Amanda is not an orphan. However,
because her parent is continuously lecturing and
correcting her she feels that an orphan has more
freedom than herself. She imagines herself as an
orphan, roaming about on the streets, walking
around and making patterns in the soft dust with
her bare feet. The silence she experiences is
golden and the freedom is sweet.
• Q7- Do you know the story of Rapunzel? Why does she want to be
Rapunzel?
• ANS. Rapunzel was a young girl who was locked up in a tower by a
wicked witch. The tower had no doors or stairs to enter, only a single
room at the top with one window. Rapunzel was visited by no one but
the witch. Whenever the witch needed to see her, Rapunzel used to let
down her long hair. The witch would hold on to it and climb into the
room.

• Amanda is tired of her parent's continuous lecturing. She prefers the

life of Rapunzel who is all alone in the high tower without a care in the
world. She wishes to live all alone in the peaceful tower the way
Rapunzel did. Amanda is so fed up of her mother's constant nagging
that, unlike Rapunzel, she would never let her hair down to allow
anyone to climb up into her room. She prefers solitude.
• Q8- What does the girl yearn for? What does this poem tell you about Amanda?
• ANS. The girl, Amanda, yearns for freedom and peace.
• From the poem, we learn that Amanda longs to fulfil her magical fantasies. She
wishes to lead a life like a mermaid, to be the sole inhabitant of a languid
emerald sea and blissfully drift along in the ocean.
• She wouldn't mind being an orphan roaming the streets all alone making
patterns in the dust with her bare feet. She would enjoy the golden silence and
the freedom which she says is sweet. Even an orphan, she feels, has more
freedom than her.
• She even wishes that she were Rapunzel. She would live alone in the peaceful
tower without a care in the world and would not let her hair down for anyone to
visit her.
• All this tells us that Amanda feels that her freedom is curtailed because of her
parent. She is fed up of the constant nagging and restrictions. She longs to go
away and live a life of solitude.
• Q9- Read the last stanza. Do you think
Amanda is sulking and is moody?
• ANS - Yes, I think Amanda is sulking and
moody. She does not want any interference
or restrictions . Whenever she is instructed
not to do something, she sulks. That is why
her parent asks her to stop sulking and listen
to what is being told.