THE GIFT OF INDIA

Sarojini Naidu
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

- Sarojini Naidu wrote the poem in 1915, during the time of

World War I
- At that time, India was one of the colonies of the British
Empire
- Over ten lakh Indian soldiers fought along with the British
Army in different locations of significance
- During the colonial expansion, India was exploited for its
riches and resources
- The poet has used these two situations as a background in
this poem to express her patriotism.
FORM AND LANGUAGE
- 24 lines
- 4 stanzas
- Rhyme scheme - aabbcc
- The first two lines of each stanza introduce an idea, and the next two lines build upon them.
The final two lines serve as a conclusion for the stanza.
- Patriotic tone, starts with some disappointment, distress, anger and ends on a note of hope
- subtle flow in it where Mother India herself proclaims proudly her gifts to the west
● The first stanza introduces the various gifts India has bestowed upon the colonisers
● The second stanza focuses more on the wistful state of martyred Indian soldiers.
● The third stanza talks of the grief those deaths have brought
● The fourth stanza is a sort of appeal to honour the sacrifices of the Indian soldiers for the
cause of the war.
 LITERARY DEVICES SIMILE
'Gathered like pearls in their alien graves'
'Scattered like shells on Egyptian sands’
'They are strewn like blossoms move down by
RHETORICAL QUESTIONS chance’
'Is there ought you need that my hands withhold,
-highlights the qualities of her sons as she sees it :
Rich gifts of raiment or grain or gold.’ they are precious, fragile and innocent to her
- Expresses disappointment and anger - Denotes the disrespect as well as careless treatment
given the bodies of the soldiers

'Can you measure the grief of the tears I weep ANAPHORA

'Or compass the woe of the watch I keep?
Or compass the woe of the watch I keep?’
Or the pride that thrills thro’ my heart’s despair’
-Enumerate the distress of the speaker
-Expresses anguish over death of soldiers as well as
the hope of the emotional sobbing country
SYNDETON -Expresses how Mother India is proud of the sacrifices
Rich gifts of raiment or grain or gold? made by her sons for the greater good
- Emphasizes the extent of help provided to the British
METAPHOR
PERSONIFICATION
‘Priceless treasures’
‘Remember the blood of my martyred sons!’
- Refers to the Indian soldiers who are fighting for the ‘Can ye measure the grief of the tears I weep
British
Or compass the woe of the watch I keep?’
‘the sabers of doom’
-Mother India is personified and given emotional attributes
- Represent the nature of the war and the destruction
that could happen in its wake -The image of a mother who gives away the sons of her
‘the tumult of hate’ womb to the service of the Allied forces speaks as much of
her own valour and sense of duty as that of her brave sons’.
- Refers to the confusion and destruction of war

OXYMORON ALLITERATION

'And the far sad glorious vision I see.’ ‘Silent they sleep by the Persian waves’

‘Scattered like shells.’

-signifies and symbolises that the victory is glorious
but also sad as sacrifices are made which do not ‘They lie with pale brows and brave broken hands.’
overpower the victory
- heighten the image of war and the sacrifice of the soldiers
IMAGERY
The poet uses a lot of imagery to show the disheveled
and fragmented bodies of the dead Indian martyrs on the
blood-tainted battlefield brings forward a picture of the
cruelty existing in the world.

'Gathered like pearls in their alien graves

- Words like gathered, scattered and strewn capture the
Silent they sleep by the Persian waves, recklessness and the negligence with which the bodies of
the dead soldiers have been treated. 
Scattered like shells on Egyptian sands,

They lie with pale brows and brave, broken hands,

- The violence of war and the horrors of it is captured by a
powerful visual imagery towards the end of the stanza
They are strewn like blossoms mown down by chance when the Mother laments how the soldiers have become
like blossoms ruthlessly sheared and cut down on the blood
On the blood-brown meadows of Flanders and France.' soaked meadows of France

’torn red banners of Victory’

- The banners of Victory are torn and red for it is bathed in the
blood of Indians who sacrificed their for the victory of the
British Empire in the war.
CONCLUSION

In conclusion, Sarojini Naidu has used a lot of literary qualities to highlight and bring out the horrors of war.
She has laid down the patriotic fervour by personifying Mother India. The soldiers were the priceless gems torn
ruthlessly from Mother India. They yielded to ' the drum-beats of duty' and fought till the last. This was the most
precious gift of India- richer than the gifts of garments, grain or gold.

As a patriot, Sarojini Naidu upholds the strong feeling of seeing her country free from the shackles of the British
rule, and optimistic mood visualizes the world to return to the 'anvils of peace' where no son of India would be
snatched ruthlessly from Mother India's 'stricken womb' neither would they be 'Shattered like shells on Egyptian
sands' lying there ' with pale brows and brave, broken hands'.
The poet seems to remind everybody that those who laid down their lives sincerely and honestly deserve to be
commemorated. Their sacrifices should be acknowledged and honoured.