Amanda

A. About the Poetess

Robin Mc Maugh Klein is an Australian author of books for

children. She was born on 28th February 1936 in New South

Wales and now resides near Melbourne. She had her first short

story published at the age of sixteen. Several of her books have

been listed for CBCA Children’s Book of the Year Award. Hating

Alison Ashley” Halfway Across the Galaxy’, ‘turn left’ and ‘Boss

of the Pool ‘are some of her famous writings.

B. Central Idea of the Poem

The greatest wealth that a child wants to possess is his/her

freedom. And the thing that he or she never likes is the constant

nagging, unwanted instructions and even overprotection of the

parents. `Amanda’ is the story of a young girl who is constantly

 controlled and instructed to do one thing or the other by her

parents. Every child wants to enjoy the dreamy and romantic world

of his/her childhood. She doesn’t want to cut this romantic and

fascinating world of hers short. Any kind of instruction or

interference curtails her freedom. She doesn’t want to be denied

chocolate and wants to sit and behave exactly as she wants. She

would rather indulge in fantasies than clean her room or her shoes.

She wants to postpone growing up. She wants to remain a child for

just a little bit longer

each of the stanza spoken by her mother follows the rhyme

scheme: as ba. The last word of the first, second and fourth lines are the

same. On the other hand, the stanzas spoken by Amanda consists of the

three rhyming lines each. The use of metaphor is used effectively as a

poetic device in 2nd, 4th and 6th stanzas. Amanda imagines herself as

first as a mermaid, then as an orphan and finally becomes Rapunzel.

 C. Summary

This poem is about the views of a small girl named Amanda about

liberty in life. She is instructed not to bite her nails and not to hunch her

shoulders. She is instructed to sit straight. She wants freedom and wishes

to draft in the sea like a mermaid. The speaker asks her if she has done

her homework, cleaned her room and shoes. The girl wishes that she

should be an orphan roaming freely in the dusty streets. The speaker

forbids her to eat chocolate but the little girl does not even look at the

speaker because she does not like this type of restrictions. She considers

herself to be Rapunzel and yearns that some prince will come for the

sake of her liberty.

 D. Detailed Summary

1.Childhood — a Period of Fantasies: Childhood is a period when

children indulge in fantasies. But when they start growing up, their

parents expect them to behave more responsibly. Parents start nagging

and giving instructions at every step. Children don’t want to be

instructed and guided the way their parents want.

They feel that their freedom is being curtailed. If parents keep on

nagging, their children escape to the dreamy world of fantasies. They

don’t want to come out of this fanciful world so early.

2. Amanda is biting her nails: Her mother asks her not to do so. Nor does

the mother want that she should hunch her shoulders down. She wants

her to sit straight. Amanda seems to be dropping her body towards one

side. Her mother wants her to adopt the right posture and sit up straight.
3. Amanda doesn’t Bother: Amanda doesn’t bother what her mother

wants. She is lost in her dreamy world. She imagines as if she were in a

quiet emerald island. There is no one there except her. There, she moves

around freely and blissfully like a mermaid.

4. Mother gives Instructions: Amanda’s mother asks if she has finished

her homework. She asks if she has made her room tidy or not.

Amanda has not cleaned her shoes yet. Her mother has already asked

her to clean her shoes.

5. Prefers to be an Orphan: Amanda doesn’t want to be instructed at

every step. She wants to lead her own kind of life. She prefers to be an

orphan roaming aimlessly around the streets. She wants to walk over the

soft dust with her bare feet. She wants her bare feet to leave patterns or

designs on the dust. She wants to lead a silent and peaceful life. She

wants to preserve her freedom. It is the sweetest thing to her in life.

6. No Chocolate: Amanda’s mother instructs her not to eat chocolate.

She must remember that she has acne. Eating chocolate can create

problems for her. Amanda doesn’t bother what her mother is saying. Nor

does she look at her mother when she is giving her instructions. The

mother expects her to look towards her while she is speaking.

7. Amanda Becomes Rapunzel: Again, Amanda doesn’t care a bit what

her mother says. She is again lost in her dreamy world. She imagines

herself as Rapunzel living in a lonely tower. In that tower, life is free

from all cares. It is rare peace and tranquillity that prevails there all the

time. She is proud of her beautiful hair as Rapunzel was. She will

certainly never let down her bright hair like her.

8. Mother Finds her Moody: Amanda’s mother asks her not to sulk or

feel unhappy any more. She feels that Amanda is always moody and

keeps on behaving like that she must stop sulking and feeling unhappy.

Otherwise, people will think that Amanda is unhappy because

her mother is always nagging at her.

E. Main Points of the Poem

1. The little girl Amanda is biting her nails.

2. Her mother asks her not to do it.

3. Amanda is putting her shoulders down to one side.

4. Her mother asks her to lift up her shoulders and adopt the right

posture.

5. Amanda seems to be stooping on one side.

6. Her mother asks her to sit up straight.

7. Amanda doesn’t bother what her mother says.

8. She is lost in a world of dreams and fantasy.

9. She imagines herself as a mermaid.

10. She lives in a peaceful emerald sea all alone.

11. She is moving all around freely and blissfully like a mermaid.

12. Amanda’s mother asks if she has finished her homework.

13. She asks if she has made her room tidy and clean.

14. Amanda’s mother reminds her that she instructed her to clean

her shoes and she hasn’t done so.

15. Amanda doesn’t care a bit what her mother says to her.
16. She is again in the world of dreams and fantasy.

17. She prefers to be an orphan than living such a life.

18. She wants to roam around the streets freely and aimlessly.

19. She wants to walk on the soft dust with her bare feet.

20. The pressing of the feet will create designs on the soft dust.

21. She loves silence, and freedom is the sweetest thing that she values

in her life.

22. Again, Amanda’s mother stops her from eating chocolate.

23. She must remember that eating chocolate might cause her some

problem.

24. Her mother reminds her to observe good manners.

25. She must not look the other way when her mother is speaking to

her.

26. Again, Amanda ignores her mother.

27. She imagines herself as Rapunzel living in a tower where there is a

reign of peace and tranquillity.

28. Amanda is proud of her beautiful hair and would not let them

down like Rapunzel.

 29. Amanda’s mother calls her moody.

30. She asks her to stop being sulky and unhappy at once.

31. If she remains unhappy, people will think that her mother has been

nagging her.

F. Thinking about the Poem

(Page 62)

Question 1.

How old do you think Amanda is? How do you know this?

Answer:

Amanda is about a 9-10 year old school going girl. She is being scolded

for things typical for that particular age. Her parents are trying to

inculcate in her good manners and etiquettes. Amanda is very innocent

and immature.
Question 2.

Who do you think is speaking to her?

Answer:

One of her parents is speaking to her. Most probably it is her mother. In

a traditional household mother is held responsible for the conduct of

child. In this case also, the range of instructions suggests that the speaker

is Amanda’s mother.

Question 3.

Why are stanzas 2, 4 and 6 given in parenthesis?

Answer:

Stanzas 2, 4 and 6 are given in parenthesis because they reflect the inner

thoughts of Amanda. They can be taken as the reaction of the child for

the instructions given in stanzas 1, 3 and 5. Here, there is an alternate

sequence of scolding of the mother, and corresponding reaction to it

given by the child. Also, parenthesis is used here to make the reading of

‘ the poem friendly

Question 4.

Who is the speaker in stanzas 2, 4 and 6? Do you think this speaker is

listening to the speaker in stanzas 1, 3, 5 and 7?

Answer:

Speaker of the stanzas 2, 4 and 6 is the child, Amanda. No, she is not

paying any attention to the speaker of stanzas 1, 3 and 5 as she is lost in

a world of her own. Her imagination provides her an escape from her

sorry reality.

Question 5.

What could Amanda do if she were a mermaid?

Answer:

Amanda wishes to be a mermaid so she could carelessly move along on

a languid emerald sea. She just wishes to be carried away by the green

sea waves slowly and gradually. Amanda longs for a place where she is

all by herself as her happiness is not dependant on any other human

being. Hence, she desires to be a mermaid because for a child, mermaid

is a symbol of freedom and wonder.

Question 6.

Is Amanda an orphan? Why does she say so?

Answer

No, Amanda is not an orphan, though she wishes to be one. She is so

much stressed with the continuous nagging of her parents that she

imagines herself to be better without them. The mere presence of her

parents around her depresses her. Amanda is a little girl who seeks

‘golden’ silence and ‘sweet’ freedom. She wishes to roam around streets

and draw patterns with her bare feet. Indeed it is horribly depressing that

Amanda expects being an orphan.

Question 7.

Do you know the story of Rapunzel? Why does she want to be

Rapunzel?

Answer:
Story of Rapunzel – Rapunzel’s story revolves around her life on a

tower Rapunzel was made to live on a high tower by a witch. She

eventually got used to living there. She was happy and satisfied with her

life. Rapunzel had very long golden hair, using which the witch used to

pay her a visit. The fate of Rapunzel took a turn when one day a prince

came to meet her using her hair. The witch had punished both of them

by separating them. Finally they met after a couple of years only to be

united forever this time. Amanda Wishes to live like Rapunzel on a high

tower away from everyone. She seeks peace and harmony. That is the

reason Amanda wishes to be like Rapunzel. However, she also makes a

point that in order to avoid being disturbed she would never let her hair

down for anyone to climb to her. She needs no one to make her life

happy.

Question 8.

What does the girl yearn for? What does this poem tell you about

Amanda?

Answer:
A girl like Amanda yearns for freedom and space for herself. She is

incapable to fulfil the expectations of her parents. Amanda is no less

than a symbol for all the children who face similar fate irrespective of

class, colour or nationality. Traditional societies demand a certain type

of behaviour from the individuals and the training to produce such

begins at a very young age. Parents ignore the innocence and

understanding level of their children and thereby the young ends up

killing their imagination and thoughts.

Question 9.

Read the last stanza. Do you think Amanda is sulking and is moody?

Answer:

No, Amanda is neither sulking nor moody. She is simply not interested

enough in the nagging business of her parents. Amanda cares more

about her imagination and thought process over the manners her parents

are trying to inculcate into her.

 G. Short Answer Type Question

1. What are the role/ importance of punctuation marks in language? Why

has the poet used the exclamation mark after Amanda? Comment on the

title of the poem.

Ans. (i) Punctuation is an important part of grammar. It is used to create

sense, clarity and stress in sentences. It is used to structure and organise

our writing.

(ii) The exclamation mark is used after Amanda! to show the mother’s

surprise on seeing Amanda. Amanda is a sulky and moody girl which

upsets the mother.

2. Is the purpose of someone constantly giving instructions to Amanda

being fulfilled? Explain.

Ans. No, Amanda sulks and becomes moody when her mother gives her

too many instructions. She does not listen to her mother and didn’t care

to follow them but she can’t dare to ignore them either so, she sulks.
Parents in their endeavour to make their children well-behaved, give

them too many instructions.

3. Amanda imagines herself to be Rapunzel, yet would not like to do

what all she did. Identify and state the reasons for her decision.

Ans. Amanda wants to be Rapunzel to live a peaceful life in a tower,

where no one gives any instruction and she doesn’t have to do any work.

But she doesn’t want to escape with a prince like Rapunzel. She never

wants to escape and leave such a peaceful atmosphere, with no

instruction and no work to do.

4. Who is the mermaid in ‘Amanda’, what does ‘she’ wish to do?

Ans. The mermaid is Amanda herself; as imagined by Amanda. She

wishes to drift blissfully on a dreamy, emerald sea, without anyone else

accompanying her.
5. What is the theme of the poem — ‘Amanda’?

Ans. Too many instructions and too much control are resented by

children. They get bored and fed up. Then, they listen to their parents

half-heartedly and indulge in daydreaming.

6. What message does the poet want to give through the poem —

‘Amanda’?

Ans. The poet wants to convey that parents in their endeavour to make

their children well-behaved, mannerly having good habits, give them too

many instructions or nag (always finding fault) them. They should adopt

positive measures, acceptable to children. Otherwise, they will stop

listening to them and indulge in daydreaming as Amanda did.

7. Who was Amanda? What idea do you form her through the poem?

Ans. Amanda was a little school going, girl. She seems to love fairy

tales, stories like Rapunzel and mermaids. She does not like too many

instructions or nagging which make her sulk and become moody. Then

she does not listen to her mother attentively and starts daydreaming.
8. Why does she dream to be an orphan?

Ans. She thinks orphans lead a carefree life. There is no one to pester

them with instructions. They can wander in a street and make patterns in

the soft dust with their bare feet. They don’t have to clean the shoes or

room or do the homework.

9. Amanda imagines herself to be Rapunzel, yet would not like to do

what all she did. Identify and state the reasons for her decision.

Ans. Amanda says it. In the story, Rapunzel lets down her long,

beautiful hair to escape with the prince. But Amanda is fascinated by

Rapunzel’s life in the tower. She never wants to escape and leave such a

peaceful atmosphere, with no instruction and no work to do.

10. What made Amanda sulk and become moody?

Ans. Amanda sulks and becomes moody when her mother gives her too

many instructions. She does not want to follow them but she can’t dare

to ignore them either, so she sulks.

Q.11. How does Amanda is seen behaving when the poem starts? What

does the speaker ask her not to do?

Ans. When the poem beings, we find that Amanda is biting her nails.

She is hunching her shoulders. She is sitting in a slouching posture. That

is why the speaker asks her to behave normally. He asks her not to bite

her nails and hunch her shoulders. She should sit up straight.

Q.12. In her day-dreaming, Amanda reaches the sea. What does she

imagine herself to be?

Ans. Amanda finds that the sea is relaxed and peaceful. She is the only

creature in the sea. She imagines herself to be a mermaid. She is happy.

She is drifting on the waves blissfully.

Q.13.What three things the speaker ask Amanda to do which she has not

done?

Ans. The speaker asks Amanda to finish her homework. Then he asks

her if she has cleaned up her room. Finally, he finds that her shoes are

not clean even though he had asked her to clean them.

Q.14. How does Amanda describe her life as an orphan?

Ans. Amanda says that she is an orphan. She is free and roams the street.

There is soft dust in the street under her feet. She walks silently and

creates patterns on the soft dust with her bare feet. She thinks that

silence is golden and freedom is sweet.

Q.15. Why is Amanda forbidden to eat chocolate? How does Amanda

behave when she is addressed by the speaker?

Ans. The speaker asks Amanda not to eat chocolate. It is because she has

had acne already. Eating chocolate might create more pimples. Amanda

listens to the speaker without raising her face.

Q.16. What does Amanda say, ‘I am Rapunzel’? What does she promise

not to do?

Ans. Rapunzel was a beautiful girl with long hair. She was locked up in

a tower by a witch. In her imagination, Amanda thinks herself to be like

Rapunzel who led a peaceful life. She promises never to let down her

bright hair.
Q.17. What does the speaker tell Amanda in the end? What is the

speaker afraid of?

Ans. The speaker thinks that Amanda is sulking and moody. He thinks

that Amanda is always moody. He asks her not to sulk because he is

afraid that people will think that he is nagging Amanda.

Q.18. What is the central idea of the poem?

Ans. The central idea of the poem is that children love freedom. They

do not want any restrictions on their activities. Secondly, they have a

dream world of their own. They like to spend most of their time in that

dream world. But the elders are always destroying that dream world by

ordering them around.

Q19. Do you think that Amanda doesn’t like to be controlled and

instructed not to do one thing or the other? Give a reasoned answer.

Ans. Amanda loves her freedom. She doesn’t want it to be curtailed. She

wants to lead her own kind of life. If she is asked what to do and what
not, she feels that her freedom is curtailed. She doesn’t bother to answer

her mother when she goes on instructing her what to do and what not.

Q20. List the things which Amanda’s mother doesn’t want her to do.

Ans. Her mother doesn’t want her to hunch her shoulders and bend her

body down. She stops her from eating chocolates as it would not be

good for her pimpled face. She wants her to stop sulking as others would

think that she is being nagged by her mother.

Q21. Why does Amanda want to be a mermaid?

Ans. Amanda is an escapist. She imagines herself to be a mermaid. She

wants to live on an island where she is the only inhabitant. She loves

freedom. She loves drifting blissfully like a mermaid on that lonely

island.
Q22. Why does Amanda want to be an orphan?

Ans. Amanda values freedom more than anything in her life. She feels

suffocated at home as she is constantly nagged by her mother there. She

wants to be an orphan. Like an orphan, she likes to wander about the

streets freely with bare feet.

Q23. Why does Amanda want to be Rapunzel?

Ans. Amanda is an escapist. She imagines herself as a fairy-like

Rapunzel. She wants to live happily in her lonely tower far from the

maddening crowd of the world. Like Rapunzel, she wants to take care of

her beautiful golden hair.

Q24. Why does Amanda’s mother ask her to stop sulking?

Ans. Amanda’s mother thinks that she is moody as her mood is always

shifting. If she puts on an unhappy appearance, others will blame her

mother. They will think that she is being constantly nagged by her

mother.
Q25. What could Amanda do if she were a mermaid?

Ans. Amanda is a little girl. She, in fact, is a symbol of every child who

is instructed by the parents to do or not to do this or that. If she were a

mermaid she would blissfully drift in the sea.

Q26. What does Amanda yearn for?

Ans. Amanda is a little girl. She is asked to do or not to do this and that.

She is nagged at by her parents. So Amanda yearns for freedom. She

wants to lead a life without any restrictions.

Q27. Don’t eat that chocolate, Amanda!

Remember your acne, Amanda!

Why is Amanda asked not to eat chocolate?

Ans. Amanda already suffers from acne, a skin disease. If she eats

chocolate it will aggravate her problem further. That is why she is asked

not to eat chocolate.

Q28. What is the fear of the speaker that is explained in the last stanza?

Ans. In the last stanza, the speaker advises Amanda not to remain

moody and sulking. The reason behind this is that she does not want to

expose it before others. Otherwise, people will think that she was teased

by the speaker. It was her fear.

H. Long Answer Questions

1. Is Amanda’s attitude a typical teenage behaviour? What is the lesson

for parents from this poem?

Ans. Amanda’s attitude is typical of a teenager. Teenagers can be

rebellious and apparently hot-headed with a highly independent

perspective. In such circumstances, yelling at them and nagging them, as

done in the poem with Amanda, will only make matters worse. Forcing

decisions on them only make them more detached as we see in

Amanda’s case, where she wishes to be a love mermaid, an orphan or

the lonely Rapunzel. She doesn’t want to listen to anyone.

2. Bringing up teenagers can be both a challenge and fun. How far do

you agree? Express your views with reference to Amanda’s life.

Ans. Bringing up teenagers is truly challenging and fun. Teenagers can

be rebellious and apparently hot-headed with a highly independent

perspective. In such circumstances, yelling at them, and nagging them,

as done in the poem with Amanda, will only make matters worse.

Forcing decisions on them only make them more detached, as we see in

Amanda’s case, where she wishes to be the alone mermaid, an orphan,

or the lonely Rapunzel. To make things fun, one must become a friend

where needed. Sometimes, one needs to just ‘chill’ with one’s kids!

3. What does the girl yearn for? What does this poem tell you about

Amanda?

Ans. Most of the children feel that they are controlled and instructed not

to do one thing or the other by their parents. So, the child or the girl

yearns for freedom, to live her life peacefully, in her own way. Nobody

should give her any instructions and tell her what to do and what not to?
Amanda also thinks so. She is fed up getting instructions and being

nagged by her mother. She wants to escape all this. She is a moody,

imaginative girl who loves fantasy and wants to live in her world of

imagination.

Q4. What picture do you form of Amanda’s mother/parents after reading

the poem `Amanda’?

Ans. Amanda’s mother seems to be an overprotective mother. She

believes that Amanda is still a girl and must live her life as her mother

wants. Being a girl, she needs constant tutoring and taking instructions

from her. She should be very careful the way she sits and stands. She

should not bend down but sit up straight. She forbids her eating

chocolate as it would not be good for her pimples. Her constant nagging

leads her daughter far away from her. Amanda escapes into the world of

dreams imagining herself a mermaid, an orphan or a fairy. She doesn’t

look at her mother while she is speaking to her. Amanda’s mother fails

to understand why her daughter remains unhappy and moody. She only
asks her to stop sulking lest people should blame her mother for nagging

her.

Q5. Why does Amanda escape into the dreamy world of mermaids,

fairies and orphans? Does she find any solace there?

Ans. Amanda is a teenager. Like all teenagers, she loves freedom. She

wants to lead her own kind of life. She doesn’t want to be an

overprotected child. Nor does she want that her parents should control

and guide her activities. What she should do and what not is her own

choice. She should not be dictated by her mother. Mother’s constant

nagging leads her away from her. She creates a world of her own. Her

world is not the world of harsh realities but it is an imaginary world of

fairies and mermaids. There she finds solace as she can wander in a

lonely island blissfully like a mermaid. She can enjoy freedom by

roaming around the streets like an orphan. She craves to live in a lonely

tower leading a peaceful life like Rapunzel. She avoids her mother as

she doesn’t like her constant nagging. She even doesn’t look at her while

she is speaking to her.