Summary of the poem Amanda
Answers
Answer:
This poem has been written by Robin Klein. It depicts the state of a little girl's mind who is continuously instructed about what to do and what to do not.
The little girl Amanda is told not to bite her nails. She is told not to hunch her shoulders and to sit straight. She is told to finish her homework and tidy her room and she is strictly forbidden to eat chocolate for fear that she might get acne. She is also accused of sulking (sadness). But, the little girl Amanda keeps dreaming of a life of freedom in the open. She dreams that she is a mermaid in the sea. She also dreams that she is an orphan and she is roaming barefoot in the dusty street. She also dreams that she is rapunzel who lives alone in the high tower.
Answer:
Introduction to the lesson
Robin Klein has expressed the views of a little girl, Amanda who is constantly pointed out by her mother for making mistakes. Mistakes which she considers so as they are not part of the code of good conduct laid out by the society in which we live.
Amanda Summary of the poem
The poem describes a girl named Amanda and her mother who is nagging her for her mistakes. She is first pointed out most probably by her mother for biting her nails and for not sitting in the right posture. The mother also feels that Amanda sits in a very lazy manner. To this, Amanda imagines herself as a mermaid who lives a calm and relaxing life in the beautiful green sea. Further, she is nagged for not cleaning her room and shoes and also for not doing her homework. She then imagines herself to be an orphan because she is now fed up of being watched by her parents continuously. She says that she would have enjoyed her freedom then, by making the patterns of her bare feet on the sand and would live a peaceful life. Next, Amanda is scolded for eating too many chocolates as this causes pimples. She is also scolded for not listening to her mother. So, now Amanda thinks of being Rapunzel, a character from a fairy tale and wants to live in a huge tower like her. In the tower she will be alone and will live a peaceful life and will never allow anyone to come in. Finally, the mother asks her to stop being moody because she doesn’t want anyone to blame her for harassing her daughter. At this time the poet has not written any reaction from Amanda’s side. This constant nagging has made her so sad that she has even stopped to imagine herself as someone else. She used to do so in order to escape from the continuous harassment and dominance of her parents.