Poetry: Partition Flashcards
Author
partition
Sujata Bhatt
message
partition
inner conflict: was mum right to not do anything?
actual conflict: divide of india
themes
partition
witness vs victim
passiveness/consequences of inaction
structure
partition
- enjambment
- no rhyme scheme
- irregular/no metre
- last stanza is broken/shorter lines
poem laid out on page like busy, almost nonsensical thoughts in her head
shorter lines (“i still feel // guilty about that”) mirror the destruction of the country
> partition implies amicability, split as less painful and less controversial that it actually was
atmosphere/tone
partition
pity
quiet anger
Quote 1
partition
“she felt it was endless – their noise – //
a new sound added to the city”
caesura creates a break in words > silence vs the words speaking about noise
» pause makes you think about who is making this noise
» dashes = separation of her in her garden and people in railway station = witness vs victim
passive action of “feeling” but not doing anything about the “endless” suffering
“endless…new” > was not here before, but now it wont go away
» suffering is ubiquitous = it would take effort ot avoid but her passive actions suggest she wont take that action
Quote 2
partition
“stood… could hear… felt” vs “go”
passive verbs juxtaposing action” > sense of hoplessness/helplessness
Quote 3
partition
“And each day… And each day”
anaphora/repetition > consequences of inaction as she ends up “telling me (her daughter) at midnight”
Quote 4
partition
“India is ‘fifty’ “
monumental moment > start of a new nation
quote marks around “fifty” > sarcastic tone = not convinced by this colonial narrative
Quote 5
partition
“mother tells me this at midnight”
guilt
tonal shift demonstrates generational impact as well as historical one
Quote 6
partition
“I still feel // guilty about that”
“feeling” does not change the facts
“that” > inability to truly reference what happened, or rather, what didnt happen
colonial critical lens
partition
colonialism divides countries
