2. 3 stages of mother-daughter relationship
INFANT/BABY/CHILD YOUNG ADULT/TEENAGER
ADULT

3. MOTHER DAUGHTER BONDING

4. TASK- 2
USE ONE ADJECTIVE TO DESCRIBE
YOUR MOTHER.

5. TASK 3
 GIVE ONE MINUTE SPEECH ON ‘MY
MOTHER’.

8. Driving from my parent’s home to
Cochin last Friday morning
Kamala Das had gone to her parent’s house .
She was then going to Cochin Airport from where she had to
board an airplane for her journey back home.
COCHIN AIRPORT

9. I saw my mother, beside me, doze, open mouthed,
her face ashen like that of a corpse and realised with
pain that she was as old as she looked
 The poetess describes her
mother as old and pale
 She looked almost like a
corpse, her face was
colourless and seemed to
have lost the fervour of
life

10. But soon put that thought away, and
looked out at young
trees sprinting, the merry children spilling
out of their homes
To drive away the pain and
agony Kamala Das looked
out of the window
 Trees symbolise life and
growth
 Children are symbolic of
youth, vitality, vigour, life
and growth

11. 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…
 Poet’s mother was aged and hence looked
pale and colourless like a late winter’s
moon.
 Winter’s moon lacks luster and brightness
similarly mothers face has lost radiance and
is now misted by age
 The winter’s moon that appears at the end
of the year also symbolizes the ebbing state
of the mother’s life

12. And felt that old familiar ache, my
childhood’s fear
 Familiar ache refers to the ache of helplessness;
the pain of separation that arises at the thought
of mother’s death.
 Childhood fear refers to the fear of losing her
mother, getting separated from her or that death
would consume her mother

13. …but all I said was, see you soon, Amma, all I
did was smile and smile and smile……
 Kamala Das bids a formal adieu to her
mother with the hope of seeing her soon.
 She smiles only to hide her anxiety and fear
of the unknown.
 She also wants to bid a cheerful farewell to
her mother before she boards the flight.
 The poetess tries to put up a brave front in
order to hide her true feelings of pain at
seeing her old and weak mother.
 Her smile also reflects her optimism.

14. A simile is a figure of speech that draws a
comparison between two different things,
especially a phrase containing the word “like” or
“as”.
Sleeping like a log
My Love is like a red, red rose (Robert Burns)
Idle as a painted ship upon a painted ocean
(S. T. Coleridge)
Examples from the poem:
Like that of a corpse
As a late winter’s moon

15. Repetition is the repeated occurrence
of a word in the same line.
Smile and smile and smile
Contrast
 her face like that of a corpse/ trees
sprinting, the merry children playing
Old age/ youth

16. TASK 4 - MCQ
THE POEM IS ABOUT….
a. Fear of separation between mother
and daughter
b. Mother aging thereby inching
close to death
c. The daughter’s fear of losing her
mother
d. All of the above

17. The tone of the poem is ….
 a. sad
 b. happy
 c. undergoes transition
 d. depressive

18. TASK 5- Arrange the words
under 2 categories – young & old
merry, ashen face, wan,
sprinting, pale, doze off, corpse,
young, open mouthed, games,
lively, grey, green, cheerful,
senile, Alzheimer's disease,
energetic, spilling out.

19. Assignment
In groups prepare greeting cards for your mother to
express your true feelings for her.
OR
Create a little poem for your mother.

20. THANK YOU