The details of the Bangle Sellers
‘The Bangle Sellers’ by Sarojini Naidu pictures the stages of Indian women comparing
it to different colors of bangles sold by the bangle sellers. It is included in
her collection of poems called “The Bird of Time” published in 1912. The poem
brings out the social, religious, and symbolic value of bangles in Indian
culture like her other poem “In the Bazars of Hydrebad “. In India, bangles are
a mandatory ornament of women, also suggests happiness, peace, and prosperity.
Summary of The Bangle Sellers
The poem ‘The Bangle Sellers’ by Sarojini Naidu revolves around bangles and bangle
sellers. It describes the stages in the life of a woman as well as the life of
bangle sellers. The speaker of the poem is one of the
bangle sellers who are selling bangles at the temple fair. They call out to the
people passing by and urge them to buy bangles for their daughters and wives.
In the second, third, and fourth stanzas, they describe the bangles of
different colors they have to match the woman of different age groups. The
different colors meant for different stages of life indicate the importance
given to bangles in the life of Indian women in Indian Culture and Tradition.
Form and Structure of The Bangle Sellers
‘The Bangle Sellers’ is a well written lyric poem of 24
lines, divided into 4 stanzas of six lines. Each stanza consists of three
rhyming couplets, following a simple rhyme scheme of ‘AABBCC.’
Though the lines are mostly ‘Octasyllabic,’ it follows no particular metrical
style. The poem follows a definite structure. Of the four stanzas, the first
stanza serves as an introduction, while the three subsequent stanzas deals,
three important stages of a woman respectively.
Theme and Settings of The Bangle Sellers
Sarojini
Naidu’s ‘The Bangle Sellers’ touches upon the theme of Indian culture and
people. Like her poems, it is also set on Indian settings and depicts a temple
fair where the bangle sellers sell their bangles. The theme of the poem
revolves around the “bangles” and the role of bangles in each stage of a
women’s life.
Poetic / Literary Devices used in The Bangle Sellers
Sarojini Naidu’s poem ‘The Bangle Sellers’ in
terms of using literary devices. Here too we find imagery, simile, metaphor, anaphora, and other poetic devices and figures of speech employed to express her command over the
language.
Simile
Since
the poem associates the colors of bangles to the stages of women, we could see
a lot of comparisons being made by the poet. In the second stanza, while
describing the colors suitable for young maidens she uses the similes “Silver
and blue as the mountain mist” and “Some are flushed like the buds that dream.”
Again, in the third stanza too, the poet compares the colors of bangle for a
bride to the “fields of sunlit corn,” and “flame of her marriage fire.” The
simile used in the last line of the third stanza “bridal laughter and bridal
tear” comprises the joy and sorrow of getting married.
Metaphors
The poet has employed Metaphors also to make comparisons.
Compared to the simile’s they are crisp and direct. In the first stanza she
addresses the bangles as “Rainbow-tinted circles of light,” and the heaviness
of their life and the bangle is called “shining loads.” In the second stanza,
the young maiden’s are compared to the “buds that bloom” to picture the color
“rosy-red.”
Imagery
Besides
the use of simile and metaphor the poet has skillfully employed ‘Imagery.’ Her
adept use of words creates images in the mind of the readers. One could
visualize the “mountain mist,” “buds that dream”, “new born leaves” and “flame
of her marriage fire” and the ‘tinkling’ sound. They beautifully describe the
scene.
Alliteration
Alliteration is a poetic device
denotes the consonant sounds that are repeated in two or
more words in a sentence. In this poem, we could see that the sound ‘h’ is
repeated in two lines that are located next to or near each other. “Or, rich
with the hue of her heart’s desire” and “Whose hands have cherished,
whose love has blest”.
Rhetorical
Questions
The poet uses the rhetorical
question in the first passage, which pays the way for further development in
the poem. While advertising the quality of their bangles, also while wondering
about his/her prospective customer the speaker asks, “Who will buy these delicate,
bright/ Rainbow-tinted circles of light?”
Anaphora
The
poet has used the rhetorical device anaphora when describing the ideal wife or
a complete woman. Consecutive three lines in the last stanza begin with the
word “and” making emphasis on the incidents marking woman a good wife.
Analysis
of The Bangle Sellers
Stanza
One
Bangle
sellers are we who bear
Our shining loads to the temple fair…
Who will buy these delicate, bright
Rainbow-tinted circles of light?
Lustrous tokens of radiant lives,
For happy daughters and happy wives.
In the first stanza of ‘The Bangle Sellers’,
the poet refers to the bangle sellers who go to the temple fair. They carry
their “Shining loads,” representing the heaviness of life upon them. It is made
clear that they know that a temple fair is where they get to meet women of
every age. They call out to the people to buy their bangles which are “delicate, bright, Rainbow-tinted circles of light.” The Bangles here are
called as ‘lustrous tokens of radiant
lives,‘ it relates to
the Indian custom of associating bangles with happiness and prosperity.
Stanza
Two
Some
are meet for a maiden’s wrist,
Silver and blue as the mountain mist,
Some are flushed like the buds that dream
On the tranquil brow of a woodland stream,
Some are aglow wth the bloom that cleaves
To the limpid glory of new born leaves
In the second stanza of ‘The Bangle
Sellers’ the poet talk of the bangles of different colors, they have
for young maidens. They are “Silver and Blue” like “the mountain mist,” “flushed”,
like the flower buds growing beside “a woodland stream” and “green” like “new
born leaves.” The poet using “flushed like the buds that dream” to describe the
color “pale or rosy red” could be an indication of “shyness” of young girls
dreaming of marriage.
Stanza
Three
Some
are like fields of sunlit corn,
Meet for a bride on her bridal morn,
Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,
Or, rich with the hue of her heart’s desire,
Tinkling, luminous, tender, and clear,
Like her bridal laughter and bridal tear.
In the third stanza of ‘The Bangle Sellers,’ the
poet talks of the bangles, that is worn by brides on the day of their marriage.
The colors of bridal bangles “Yellow” and “Red” are compared to the “fields of
sunlit corn,” “flame of her marriage fire,” and the “hue of her heart’s
desire.” The bangles are “tinkling, luminous, tender and clear” like her
“bridal laughter” of starting the new life and “bridal tear” of
leaving her parents behind. The final line of this stanza captures the
bittersweet transition of Indian women, leaving their family to her husband’s
home after marriage.
Stanza
Four
Some
are purple and gold flecked grey
For she who has journeyed through life midway,
Whose hands have cherished, whose love has blest,
And cradled fair sons on her faithful breast,
And serves her household in fruitful pride,
And worships the gods at her husband’s side.
The final stanza of ‘The bangle Sellers,” describe the
bangles the bangle sellers have for a middle-aged married woman. The stanza
gives insight into the image of a complete woman in a patriarchal society,
especially in the Indian context. The ideal wife begets sons, serves her
household in a fruitful way. She must worship “gods at her husband’s side”. The
colors of the bangles also not so bright as in the previous stanzas. The
bangles in “purple” and “gold-flecked grey” represent a quiet contented life.
The poet’s use of “cradled fair sons” suggests the ingrained attitude of
male preference in the time of Sarojini Naidu’s times.
About Sarojini Naidu
The
Nightingale of India, Sarojini Naidu, lived between 1879 and 1949, was an
Indian political activist and poet. She was the first female Indian governor of
Uttar Pradesh in independent India. Songs (1895), The Golden Threshold (1905),
The Bird of Time (1912), and The Broken Wing (1917) comprises all the poems of
Sarojini Naidu. She became a close associate of Gopal Krishna Gokhale and
Mahatma Gandhi during the Indian Freedom Struggle. Also, she was a good friend
of Rabindranath Tagore and Sarladevi Chaudhrani.
Bangle sellers are we......daughters and happy wives.
1. What is being referred to as 'shining loads'? Who all are its prospective buyers?
The shining bangles that are being carried by the bangle sellers to the temple fair for sale are referred to as shining loads. Women of every age group are the prospective buyers of these bangles.
2. Bangle sellers could sell their goods anywhere. Why do they choose to go to the temple fair?
Temple fair is the place which is visited by women of all age groups. Here the bangle sellers can sell their goods to 'happy daughters and happy wives.'
3. Which figure of speech is used in the line 'Rainbow-tinted circles of light'? Explain what is linked to the happiness of daughters and wives.
The figure of speech used here is a metaphor as multi-hued bangles are compared to the radiant lives of 'happy daughters and happy wives.' The multicoloured bangles have been linked to the dreams, youthfulness and aspirations of 'happy daughters and happy wives.'
4.Explain how the poet uses her descriptive skills to present facts. Give two examples from the extract.
The bangle sellers go to the temple fair to sell bangles as women of every age would be present there. The poet's descriptive skills are reflected in the way she has expressed the different stages in a traditional Indian woman's life. For example, in a single stanza she had described bangles as 'shining loads', 'rainbow tinted circles of light' and 'lustrous tokens of radiant lives.'
5.What role do the bangle sellers play in a traditional Indian set-up according to this extract?
The bangle sellers are the carriers of those 'shining loads' that glorify the idea of Indian womanhood. They try to convince buyers of the spiritual and symbolic importance of the bangles in the lives of 'happy daughters and happy wives.' The bangles are symbolic of different stages of womanhood.
Extract II
Some are met for a ........of new born leaves.
1. What type of bangles are befitting for a maiden's wrist? Why are silver and blue colours compared to the mountain mist?
Silver and blue coloured bangles are befitting a maiden's wrist. These bangles are compared to the blue and silver mist of mountains as they symbolise the freshness and the beauty of young maidens.
2. In what way are the buds set to dream? What figure of speech is used in 'the buds set to dream'?
The bangles are suitable for the bud-like young maidens who dream of their happy future. They dream of growing up and blossoming like beautiful flowers. The figure of speech- personification.
3. Give the meaning of:
Some are flushed like the buds that dream
On the tranquil brow of a woodland stream
Some of the bangles have shades of pink of yet to bloom flowers on a woodland stream.
4. How are the bangles compared to the newborn leaves?
The bangles suitable for a maiden's wrist are seen in association with the freshness of 'new born leaves' or the clear dew drops on newborn leaves. The maidens like the newborn leaves or dew drops are pure, fresh and chaste. They are yet to see the world.
5. State the colours of the bangles meant for a maiden. What do these colours symbolise?
Silver and blue coloured bangles are meant for a maiden. These colours have their association with mountain mist or streams, which are fresh, beautiful and evolving.
Extract III
Some are like fields of sunlit corn......laughter and bridal dear.
1. What is being compared to 'fields of sunlit corn'? Why?
Golden or yellow coloured bangles, suitable for a bride, are compared to fields of sunlight corn. The corn fields- a proof of Mother Nature's fertility are symbolic of the fertility of a young girl getting married.
2. What do you understand by the phrases 'bridal laughter' and 'bridal tear'? With what have they been compared in the extract?
Bridal laughter means the happiness and blissfulness a bride experiences while getting married. Bridal tear means sadness that accompanies a bride while leaving her parental abode.
These phrases are compared to the bangles suitable for a bride, which are luminous, bright and tinkling. The bangles are symbolic of her entry into a new life.
3. Which figure of speech is used in these two lines? Explain with examples.
Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,
Or, rich with the hue of her heart's desire
Simile, in which a likeness between two different things is stated in an explicit way using the words 'like' or 'as'.
In these lines the golden and red coloured bangles suitable for a bride are compared to the flame of her marriage fire and the love that she would experience in her new life.
4. Bring out the relevance of the line:
Some, like the flame of her marriage fire
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 bangles is appropriate to symbolise the flame of love in marriage.
5. Weddings become befitting occasions to wear bangles. In what ways does the poet associate bangles with a bride?
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 bangles suitable at that stage from a dreamy maiden to an excited bride and finally to a mature matriarch. 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 bangles also have the colour of 'her heart's desire' which is suggestive of dreams and hopes of a newly wedded bride.
Extract IV
Some are purple and gold.....her husband's side.
1. For whom are the 'purple and gold flecked grey' bangles suitable for? Which phase of their lives is symbolised by these bangles?
For a woman who has journeyed through life midway' and has gained experience and wisdom.
These bangles symbolise that phase when the maiden turned bride becomes a proud mother and responsible wife. She has experienced all the aspects of being a woman.
2. Discuss the use of colour imagery in the above extract.
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, the woman wearing purple bangles has gained maturity, reared her children with love and at last has achieved the fullness of her role as wife and mother.
3. Explain briefly the following lines:
Whose hands have cherished, whose love has blest,
And cradled fair sons on her faithful breast.
The lines are relevant to the concept of Indian motherhood. 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.
4. What special significance does the phrase 'faithful pride' hold in the above extract?
'Faithful 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 India woman. She has been productive and fecund for her family and thus 'serves her household in fruitful pride.
5. Comment on the changes in the life of a woman vis-à-vis the colour of her bangles.
Rainbow-tinted bangles are symbolic of different shades of womanhood.
The blue and silver coloured bangles 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 coloured like 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 golden flecked grey bangles are suitable for a woman who has journeyed through life midway.
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