Question

Would you like to consider the stance of the speaker in 'Dawn at Puri' as that of a traditional devotee? Argue.​

Answer 1

Answer:

Stanza 1 – In the first line of the poem, “Endless crow noises” is a hyperbole. In the second line “skull” is a metaphor of poverty and hunger. These problems still haunt the lower section of Indian society. In the third line, “empty country” is a metonym for the people living in India. Here the poor people of India are hungry or their belly is empty for the need for food.

Stanza 2 – In the first line of this stanza, “White-clad” is a metaphor of the white saree worn by Hindu widowed women. In this stanza “past the centers of their lives” is another metaphor. It means that the widows have passed the age of 50. In the last line, “Great Temple” is a symbol of the famous Jagannath Temple of Odisha.

Stanza 3 – In this stanza the “austere eyes” is an example of synecdoche. Here the poet associates the widows with only their eyes. Readers can treat the word “austere” as a transferred epithet or hypallage. This quality actually belongs to the “widowed Women” in the poem. In the next section, readers can find a simile. Here the poet compares the widows’ eyes to the eyes of the fish caught in a net. In the last line “dawn’s shining strands of faith” is a metaphor. Here the sunlight at dawn is like a ray of faith to the poet.

Stanza 4 – In the fourth stanza of ‘Dawn at Puri’, Mahapatra personifies the early light of the dawn and compares it to a woman. The “leprous shells” in the poem is an example of a personal metaphor. By this phrase, the poet tries to compare the old widows to the shells lying on the shore.

Stanza 5 – In this stanza, the “sullen solitary pyre” is the use of personification or readers can say it is an example of a personal metaphor.

Stanza 6 – In the last stanza of the poem Mahapatra compares the twisting of her to the “light on the shifting sands”. Here the poet uses the literary device called a simile.