Overview of “Blood”
“Blood” is a powerful and evocative poem that forms an integral part of curricula, exemplifying Das’s ability to craft vivid imagery and explore complex themes through seemingly simple language . This piece delves into blood as a symbol of life, heritage, and the interconnectedness of human existence . The poem examines the multifaceted nature of blood, presenting it not only as a vital fluid that sustains life but also as a metaphor for shared experiences and ancestral ties.
Through her verses, she invites readers to contemplate the significance of blood in both its literal and figurative senses . The inclusion of “Blood” in curricula provides students with an opportunity to engage with contemporary Indian English poetry and analyze the nuanced layers of meaning embedded within Das’s words. Let’s study the poem Blood for 12th RBSE English Literature.
Introduction to Kamala Das and Her Poetry
Kamala Das, born in 1934 in Kerala, India, was a significant and influential Indian English poet, short story writer, and novelist. Her works are characterized by raw honesty and emotional intensity, leaving a lasting impact on Indian literature . Das’s poetry often explores themes of love, sexuality, femininity, and identity, drawing from her personal experiences and societal observations.
Known for her confessional style, she fearlessly addressed taboo subjects and challenged societal norms, earning her a place among the most celebrated Indian poets of the 20th century . Her unique voice and unapologetic approach make her work both powerful and deeply personal.
The Text of “Blood” and Paraphrasing
When we were children
My brother and I
And always playing on the sands
Drawing birds and animals
Paraphrase: In our childhood, my brother and I would always play on the beach, drawing figures of birds and animals in the sand.
Rewrite and Analysis: The poem begins with a nostalgic reflection on childhood. The poet recalls simpler times spent with her brother, engaged in carefree play. This sets a tone of innocence and fond remembrance, contrasting with the themes of decay and loss that emerge later in the poem .
Original Lines:
Our great-grandmother said one day,
"You see this house of ours
Now three hundred years old,
It’s falling to little bits"
Paraphrase: One day, our great-grandmother pointed out our house, which was three hundred years old, and said that it was gradually falling apart.
Rewrite and Analysis: The great-grandmother introduces the central symbol of the ancestral home. Her lament sets the stage for exploring themes of heritage and decay. The house, once a proud structure, is now succumbing to time, mirroring the inevitable decline of traditions and memories .
Original Lines:
Before our very eyes
The walls are cracked and torn
And moistened by the rains,
The tiles have fallen here and there
Paraphrase: Right before our eyes, the walls are cracked and damaged, damp from the rain, and tiles have fallen off in many places.
Rewrite and Analysis: This description vividly portrays the physical deterioration of the house. The imagery of cracked walls, dampness, and missing tiles emphasizes the relentless effects of time and neglect . This detailed depiction enhances the poem’s emotional impact, making the sense of loss more palpable.
Original Lines:
The windows whine and groan
And every night
The rats come out of the holes
And scamper past our doors.
Paraphrase: The windows make a high-pitched, mournful sound, and every night, rats emerge from their hiding places and run past our doors.
Rewrite and Analysis: These lines add to the atmosphere of decay and abandonment. The “whining” windows and the presence of rats create a sense of unease and desolation. This further underscores the theme of the house’s decline and the great-grandmother’s sorrow .
Original Lines:
The snake-shrine is dark with weeds
And all the snake-gods in the shrine
Have lichen on their hoods.
O it hurts me she cried,
Paraphrase: The snake shrine is covered in dark weeds, and the snake gods within it are covered in lichen. “Oh, it hurts me,” she cried.
Rewrite and Analysis: The state of the snake-shrine symbolizes neglect of tradition and spirituality. The weeds and lichen indicate a loss of reverence for the past. The great-grandmother’s emotional outburst emphasizes her deep connection to the house and its history .
Original Lines:
Wiping a reddened eye
For I love this house, it hurts me much
To watch it die.
When I grow old, I said,
Paraphrase: Wiping tears from her red eyes, she says, “I love this house, it pains me greatly to see it dying.” I responded, “When I grow old,”
Rewrite and Analysis: The great-grandmother’s love for the house is evident in her tears, highlighting the emotional bond with her ancestral home. The child’s response offers a glimmer of hope, suggesting a promise to restore the house to its former glory . This promise sets up a key tension in the poem.
Original Lines:
And very very rich
I shall rebuild the fallen walls
And make new this ancient house.
My great-grandmother
Paraphrase: “And become very, very wealthy, I will rebuild the fallen walls and renovate this ancient house.” My great-grandmother
Rewrite and Analysis: The child’s ambitious promise reflects youthful idealism and a desire to preserve her heritage. The vow to rebuild the house underscores the importance of family history and the dream of restoring what has been lost .
Original Lines:
Touched my cheeks and smiled.
She was really simple.
Fed on God for years
All her feasts were monotonous
Paraphrase: Touched my cheeks and smiled. She was a truly simple woman, sustained by her faith in God for many years, and all her celebrations were the same.
Rewrite and Analysis: This provides insight into the great-grandmother’s character. Her simple faith and repetitive feasts suggest a life of devotion and adherence to tradition. This contrasts with the changing world outside the ancestral home .
Original Lines:
For the only dish was always God
And the rest mere condiments.
She told us how she rode her elephant
When she was ten or eleven
Paraphrase: Because the only thing she cared for was God. She told us how she used to ride her elephant to the temple.
Rewrite and Analysis: The description of the great-grandmother continues, showing her simple ways of life. The elephant ride represents her nobility.
Original Lines:
Every Monday without fail
To the Siva shrine
And back to home again
And, told us of the jewel box
Paraphrase: Every monday without fail, she would go to the shiva temple and come back. She told us stories about the jewel box
Rewrite and Analysis: These descriptions contrast with the present state of the house by depicting a glorious past.
Original Lines:
And the brocade from the north
And the perfumes and the oils
And the sandal for her breasts
And her marriage to a prince
Paraphrase: She would also tell us about the brocade from the north, the perfumes and the oils, the sandal for her breasts and her marriage to a prince.
Rewrite and Analysis: This emphasizes the nobility she had in her past.
Original Lines:
Who loved her deeply for a lovely short year
And died of fever, in her arms
She told us
That we had the oldest blood
Paraphrase: Who loved her deeply for a year but died of fever in her arms. She told us that they had the oldest blood.
Rewrite and Analysis: It is worth noting that the glory that she enjoyed did not last long due to her husband’s early demise.
Original Lines:
My brother and she and I
The oldest blood in the world
A blood thin and clear and fine
While in the veins of the always poor
Paraphrase: Me, my brother and she had the purest blood in the world. A blood clear and fine when in the veins of the poor
Rewrite and Analysis: The great grandmother now praises her blood, considering it the purest and finest.
Original Lines:
And in the veins
Of the new-rich men
Flowed a blood thick as gruel
And muddy as a ditch.
Paraphrase: While the veins of new rich men have blood as thick as gruel and muddy as a ditch.
Rewrite and Analysis: She regards the blood of the rich as muddy and impure, thereby highlighting the class distinctions that the family had.
Original Lines:
Finally she lay dying
In her eighty sixth year
A woman wearied by compromise
Her legs quilted with arthritis
Paraphrase: Finally when she lay dying, she had grown weary of the compromises of life. She was suffering from arthritis
Rewrite and Analysis: As she lay dying at 86, she was a woman who had grown tired of the compromises in life. She was affected by arthritis.
Original Lines:
And with only a hard cough
For comfort
I looked deep into her eyes
Her poor bleary eyes
Paraphrase: And with only a hard cough as comfort, I looked deep into her bleary eyes.
Rewrite and Analysis: Only a hard cough gave her comfort. Here, the speaker looks deep into her eyes.
Original Lines:
And prayed that she would not grieve
So much about the house.
I had learnt by then
Most lessons of defeat,
Paraphrase: I prayed that she would not grieve so much about the house, as I had learnt most lessons of defeat.
Rewrite and Analysis: Here the speaker prays that her great grandmother does not grieve over the house because the speaker had learnt most lessons of defeat.
Original Lines:
Had found out that to grow rich
Was a difficult feat.
The house was crouching
On its elbows then,
Paraphrase: Having discovered that becoming rich was a difficult task. The house was crouching.
Rewrite and Analysis: It was hard to get rich. The house was crouching.
Original Lines:
It looked that night in the pallid moon
So grotesque and alive.
When they burnt my great grandmother
Over logs of the mango tree
Paraphrase: That night it looked so grotesque and alive in the pallid moon. They burnt my great grandmother over logs of the mango tree.
Rewrite and Analysis: The house looked alive and grotesque in the moonlight.
Original Lines:
I looked once at the house
And then again and again
For I thought I saw the windows close
Like the closing of the eyes
Paraphrase: I looked again and again at the house because I thought I saw the windows closing like the eyes.
Rewrite and Analysis: The windows are personified, closing their eyes as the great-grandmother breathes her last.
Original Lines:
I thought I heard the pillars groan
And the dark rooms heave a sigh.
I set forth again
For other towns,
Paraphrase: I thought I heard the pillars groan and the rooms heave a sigh. I set forth again for other towns.
Rewrite and Analysis: The poet continues to personify the house, mentioning that the pillars groaned.
Original Lines:
Left the house with the shrine
And the sands
And the flowering shrubs
And the wide rabid mouth of the Arabian Sea.
Paraphrase: She leaves the house and all that she knows behind
Rewrite and Analysis: She finally leaves behind everything that is mentioned in the poem.
Original Lines:
I know the rats are running now
Across the darkened halls
They do not fear the dead
I know the white ants have reached my home
Paraphrase: The poet knows that rats are running in the house, unafraid of anyone. She knows white ants have reached her home.
Rewrite and Analysis: She has left the house but she knows her past haunts her still, as a reminder of everything she left behind
Original Lines:
And have raised on walls
Strange totems of burial.
At night, in stillness,
From every town I live in
Paraphrase: The white ants have raised totems of burial. The poet hears it every night.
Rewrite and Analysis: She knows her house is on its last legs.
Original Lines:
I hear the rattle of its death
The noise of rafters creaking
And the windows’ whine.
I have let you down
Paraphrase: She hears death every night, as if it is coming closer.
Rewrite and Analysis: She knows her end is near.
Original Lines:
Old house, I seek forgiveness
O mother’s mother’s mother
I have plucked your soul
Like a pip from a fruit
Paraphrase: The poet begs the house for forgiveness.
Rewrite and Analysis: Here, the poet expresses regret for having failed her great grandmother.
Original Lines:
And have flung it into your pyre
Call me callous
Call me selfish
But do not blame my blood
Paraphrase: I have cast your soul into the fire. You may call me unfeeling or self-centered, but do not fault my lineage.
Rewrite and Analysis: The poet acknowledges a profound sense of guilt and potential judgment. She has, in a symbolic sense, destroyed the essence of the ancestral home. Despite this, she pleads that her heritage, her “blood,” not be blamed for her actions. This suggests an internal conflict between personal choices and ancestral expectations 2.
Original Lines:
So thin, so clear, so fine
The oldest blood in the world
That remembers as it flows
All the gems and all the gold
Paraphrase: My blood, which is pure and ancient, remembers all the wealth and treasures of the past as it flows through me.
Rewrite and Analysis: The poet returns to the idea of her “blood” as a symbol of heritage, emphasizing its purity and antiquity. This bloodline carries the memories of a richer, more glorious past, filled with jewels and gold. It’s a connection to a lineage of privilege and history.
Original Lines:
And all the perfumes and the oils
And the stately Elephant ride...
Paraphrase: And the fragrances, the oils, and the dignified elephant rides of our ancestors.
Rewrite and Analysis: The final lines evoke a sensory-rich image of the past. The perfumes, oils, and elephant rides symbolize a life of luxury and tradition. This ending emphasizes the enduring legacy of the great-grandmother’s era, even as the house and its traditions fade away. The poem concludes with a poignant reflection on memory, loss, and the complex relationship between the present and the past.
Analysis of Key Themes
- Heritage and Identity:
Das uses blood as a symbol of personal and cultural identity, suggesting that our heritage and shared experiences shape who we are as individuals and as a society . The poem highlights how ancestral connections and shared human history play a crucial role in defining one’s sense of self . The idea that her family has “the oldest blood” suggests continuity with the past . - Loss and Nostalgia:
The decaying house serves as a metaphor for loss. The great-grandmother’s affection for the house highlights the pain of watching something beloved deteriorate . The poem reflects a deep sense of nostalgia for a bygone era, capturing the emotional weight of fading traditions and memories . - Tradition and Modernity:
The poem brings out a contrast between tradition and modernity. Tradition refers to the cultural values, beliefs and activities that are passed on from one generation to the other . Modernity refers to applying the new rules of the world to our own life . - Struggle and Resilience:
The poet reflects on the struggles of growing rich and the complexities of life . This reveals insights into societal expectations and personal ambition. Despite the challenges and defeats, there’s an underlying sense of resilience, as the poet acknowledges the enduring strength of her heritage .
Important Questions and Answers
To aid in the study and understanding of Kamala Das’s “Blood”, here are some important questions along with their answers :
- Q: What is the central theme of the poem “Blood”?
A: The central theme is the interconnectedness of human experiences and the significance of blood as both a literal life force and a metaphor for shared humanity, heritage, and sacrifice . - Q: How does Kamala Das use imagery in the poem?
A: Das uses vivid imagery such as “pictures in old books” and “veins of all the men who died” to create powerful visual representations of historical connections and human mortality . - Q: What does the reference to “saints and martyrs” suggest in the poem?
A: The mention of “saints and martyrs” suggests themes of sacrifice, devotion, and the historical significance of bloodshed for noble causes . - Q: How does the poem explore the concept of time?
A: The poem spans vast stretches of time, emphasizing the continuity of human experiences throughout history . - Q: What different motivations for bloodshed does Das present in the poem?
A: Das mentions “freedom, love or even greed” as motivations for which people have shed blood, highlighting the complexity of human nature and the various causes that have shaped history . - Q: How does the structure of the poem contribute to its meaning?
A: The free verse structure creates a sense of continuity and flow, mirroring the fluid nature of blood and the interconnectedness of the ideas presented .
Conclusion
Kamala Das’s “Blood” beautifully encapsulates themes of heritage, identity, and loss. The poem’s imagery and emotional depth provide a rich landscape for readers to explore their own connections to family and history . As part of curricula, it serves not only as an artistic expression but also as a means for students to engage with significant cultural themes.
