Amanda! – Robin Klein

Summary

The poem is about a little girl, Amanda, who is constantly pointed out by her mother for making mistakes. Robin Klein has beautifully expressed the girl’s feelings in the poem about how she is controlled and instructed by her mother for small things. The poem conveys an important message that childreni should never be deprived of their freedom. They should not feel that for every small thing they do, their parents constantly nag them. It’s the responsibility of the parents to bring up their children in such a way that they understand their viewpoint instead of getting  frustrated. Children should not feel that an orphan has more freedom than them.

Amanda (Poem)

Don’t bite your nails, Amanda!

Don’t hunch your shoulders, Amanda!

Stop that slouching and sit up straight,

Amanda!

(There is a languid, emerald sea,

where the sole inhabitant is me—

a mermaid, drifting blissfully.)

Did you finish your homework, Amanda?

Did you tidy your room, Amanda?

I thought I told you to clean your shoes,

Amanda!

(I am an orphan, roaming the street.

I pattern soft dust with my hushed, bare feet.

The silence is golden, the freedom is sweet.)

Don’t eat that chocolate, Amanda!

Remember your acne, Amanda!

Will you please look at me when I’m speaking to you,

Amanda!

(I am Rapunzel, I have not a care;

life in a tower is tranquil and rare;

I’ll certainly never let down my bright hair!)

Stop that sulking at once, Amanda!

You’re always so moody, Amanda!

Anyone would think that I nagged at you

Amanda!

— By Robin klein

Explanation:-

The poet describes Amanda, who is continuously instructed by her mother about dos and don’ts. In the first stanza, the poet says Amanda’s mother is pointing out her mistakes and asking her not to bite her nails. Then she tells her not to bend her back and shoulders. She scolds her for walking in a lazy way with her head and shoulders hanging down and directs her to sit straight. By listening to all this, Amanda starts getting frustrated by her mother and starts imagining herself to be in a deep green sea. She imagines how blissful her life would be if she would be a sea god having a fish tail instead of legs. Then, she would have enjoyed the sea waves and moved along with the waves up and down in the water.

In the second stanza, Amanda’s mother is inquiring whether she has completed her homework or not. Then she asks her whether she has cleaned her room or not. She is also reminding her to clean her shoes. At this moment, Amanda visualises her life as an orphan. She thinks that being an orphan, she can freely roam in the street. She has the freedom to peacefully draw designs on the soft dust with her uncovered feet. There is no one to say anything to an orphan, so she can have a silent, peaceful life full of freedom. Here, the poet says that she gets so irritated with her mother that she thinks the opposite. Her mother was advising her to clean her shoes so that she lives a hygienic and healthy life. But Amanda took it in another way that her mother is snatching her freedom. That’s why she starts imagining that the life of an orphan is better than hers.

In the third stanza, Amanda’s mother is not allowing her to eat chocolates. Whenever she eats chocolates, she gets pimples on her face. Her mother then tells her to listen to her when she is speaking. She wants Amanda to pay attention to her words and follow them. After listening to her mother’s words, Amanda imagines herself to be Rapunzel, a character in a fairy tale. Rapunzel was captured in a tower by a witch. The witch used to climb the tower with the help of Rapunzel’s long hair. So, Amanda wants to live Rapunzel’s life as she feels that she can live a calm and quiet life in a pleasant environment. But, she will never let her hair down to anyone, so that no one can enter the tower.

In the last stanza, Amanda’s mother warns her to stop behaving in an odd manner. She says that she has become moody and is always in a bad mood. If anyone would notice this, then they will feel that her mother is harassing her. The poet wants to convey that Amanda can’t even react to what she feels about her mother. If she does so, her mother will take it against her sense of pride and scold her to behave properly as other children do. Here, Amanda’s mother nature is shown to be very dominating.

First flight- Class - 10

Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

Summary

This chapter is an extract from the autobiography of Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela (born- 18 July, 1918), the first Black  President of South Africa. It begins with the description of their inaugural ceremony which took place on the 10th of May 1994 where the entire nation along with many international leaders embraced the victory of a newly and fairly elected government. It involved speeches by the President and the two Deputy Presidents followed by an impressive air show of fighter jets and helicopters. Long ago, in the first decade of the twentieth century, white supremacy introduced the system of apartheid and made life a living hell for the dark- skinned population. It gave rise to one of the most inhumane societies of the world. Many people have struggled and sacrificed for basic human rights. The author expressed his desire to thank all those freedom fighters who couldn’t live to see this autumn day. He referred to the citizens as the greatest asset of the country. It is these people he gathered his courage from. Mandela believes that courageous is not the man who is fearless, but the man who has overcome fear. He also mentioned the two responsibilities every human has and how in order to fulfil his obligation towards the society, his obligation towards his family was neglected. I have given youtube link of speech by Nelson Mandela that is covered in this chapter in description.

A Long Walk to Freedom Notes

Here is a rundown of this chapter to help you quickly revise A Long Walk to Freedom

by Nelson Mandela:

The chapter Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom starts with Nelson Mandela talking about how it is a beautiful day for the country since they are getting their first non-white democratically elected government. He then tells the names of the people who become deputy Presidents before he takes his oath as the president in the presence of foreign dignitaries, people of his beloved country, the army officials and his daughter – Zenani.  This beautiful grand inauguration was the first largest gathering of international leaders in South Africa. His first speech as the president of South Africa hails this glorious moment as the victory of justice, peace and human dignity, which has been achieved with great difficulty after a very long fight against Apartheid. He concludes the speech by pledging to uplift his country’s people from poverty, deprivation, suffering, and discrimination. He also describes all the beautiful things that happen in the ceremony, like the show that jets, troop carriers and helicopters do with beautiful stunts and colours of the African national flag. When the defence forces and police salute and pledge loyalty to him, he is mindful of how far they have come because a few years before this day, the same officers would have arrested him instead of saluting him. The 2 national anthems playing with the whites singing the African and the Africans singing the anthem, which the state previously used, symbolized the harmony and peace he wanted to see in his country. Mandela seems a little overwhelmed when he takes his contemporary fighters’ names who worked and sacrificed for their country’s freedom and this day. He feels he is “the total of all the African patriots” who came before him and is saddened that he cannot personally thank them for all that they did for the country. He says he is no more virtuous or self-sacrificing than the next man, but he discovered that he could not enjoy whatever little freedom he had with the knowledge that his people were not free either.

In Nelson Mandela’s A Long Walk to Freedom, Mandela stated his belief that his country is rich in minerals and metals, but the people of his country were the real greatest wealth for him “finer and truer than the purest diamond”. Nelson Mandela believes “No one is born hating another person because of his skin colour or background or religion.”

THE TIGER IN THE ZOO

INTRODUCTION:

The poem written by Leslie Norris explains the agony and helplessness of a caged tiger that lives in a zoo. The poet explains what his life could be if he had been a free animal. The poet has tried to explain about the condition of animals that are caged by human beings for their own fun. The poem begins with description of a tiger that is very beautiful and is walking in his little cage. He is having beautiful stripes on his skin and has velvet-like soft paws. But he is not happy and is quite angry in the cage. The poet says that the tiger may try to hide behind the long grass, but here he is not able to do so. Actually nothing is happening naturally. He is in a strong cage and so he is helpless. He cannot show his power to the visitors. Poet is describing the tiger as being powerless and agonised. Cage life has totally changed his personality. Thus the intention of the poet is to say that the animal, famous for its fearlessness and freedom is confined and sad only due to human beings.

POEM COMPLETE EXPLANATION

A Tiger in the Zoo Poem Explanation

He stalks in his vivid stripes

The few steps of his cage,

On pads of velvet quiet,

In his quiet rage.

Word meanings – 

Vivid: bright coloured

Pads: paws of tiger

Rage: anger

Here the poet says that the tiger that is confined in the zoo

moves around in the cage under his bright coloured skin. He

further says that the tiger can take only a few steps because

the cage is small and it is not easy to move in it. One cannot

hear his footsteps because he has very soft feet, like velvet

because of which there is no sound of the tiger’s footsteps.

The tiger tries to control his anger by quietly walking in the

limited area of his cage. He is angry because he is not free.

He should be lurking in shadow,

Sliding through long grass

Near the water hole

Where plump deer pass.

Word meaning:

Lurking: To be hidden as to wait for your prey

The poet says that if this tiger was free, he would have hid

himself behind the long grass near the water bodies so that

he could easily catch a deer in order to have it as its food.

Basically, the poet wants to say that the actual life of a tiger

is to live in jungle where he could catch his prey and eat it

but the tiger in the cage can not do so.

He should be snarling around houses

At the jungle’s edge,

Baring his white fangs, his claws,

Terrorising the village!

Word meanings

Snarling: warning sounds made by animals

Baring: uncovered

Fangs: Sharp tooth of animals

The poet says that if the tiger would have been free, he

would have snarled around the houses located at the

outskirts of the forest. He would terrorise people with his

sharp tooth and claws. This would create fear among the

people living in the villages.

But he’s locked in a concrete cell,

His strength behind bars,

Stalking the length of his cage,

Ignoring visitors.

Word meaning:

Concrete: building made of bricks, cement, sand and water

Now the poet comes to the reality of the tiger that is inside

the cage. He says that the tiger is confined in a strong cell

which is made of strong building material. He further says

that as the tiger is behind bars, so his ferociousness is also

behind the bars. He just stalks in the cage. He never tries to

terrorise the visitors because his power is restricted by the

cage. Therefore, he never tries to terrorise the visitors as he

cannot attack them.

He hears the last voice at night,

The patrolling cars,

And stares with his brilliant eyes

At the brilliant stars.

Word meanings:

Patrolling: to guard, to vigil

The poet says that in the night, the tiger hears the sounds of

the patrolling cars. Patrolling cars are the vehicles of police

which are used to guard at night. So, in the night the tiger

hears the sounds of these cars. He then stares at the shining

stars with his shining eyes. The poet wants to say that the

tiger is sad and as he is confined in the cage, so, he cannot

do anything. Therefore, he stares at the stars in the night

and tries to divert his thoughts towards them.

THE BOOK THAT SAVED THE EARTH SUMMARY

The Book that saved the Earth

The author of the play is Claire Bioko. The play is all about the imaginary world. The characters of the play are Think Tank, Noodle, Oop, Omega, etc. They are the Martian living being, and the time set of the play is the twentieth century. All the characters reached to a library on earth and misinterpret the books with sandwiches. Later they try to understand the rhymes in the book. They felt that they are in danger and immediately left the earth. Hence, a mere children’s rhymes book saved the earth from the Martian invasion. The play illustrates in detail how the book saved the earth from the Martians invasion.