Important Questions for Amanda(Poetry) Class 10 First Flight English
Important Questions1
Write a short note on the title of the poem?
Answer
The title of the poem is Amanda as it revolves around the
upbringing of little girl named Amanda. Her life is full of struggles where she
is denied freedom and expression. Amanda is so much irate that she escapes
reality by living in her imaginative world. Through this gateway she
experiences calmness, away from her nagging parents.
2
How life on a tower would be different from life anywhere
else for Amanda?
Answer
Life on tower for Amanda would be very different from her
reality. Just like Rapunzel, even she desires to live on top of a tower, away
from everyday chaos. Amanda suffers due to the constant nagging from her
parents. She seeks a place full of peace and serenity, where there is no one to
disturb her. Hence, she wishes to live on a tower.
3
Why does Amanda wish to be a mermaid, an orphan, or
Rapunzel?
Answer
Amanda wishes to be a mermaid so she could drift alone by
blissfully languid, emerald sea. She yearns to be an orphan so that she is able
to roam the sea and make pattern using her bare feet. Being Rapunzel means she
could live carefree on a high tower. Amanda wishes to be these so that she
could avoid her suffocating reality.
4
Do you consider Amanda’s mother to be a nagging mother?
Answer
Amanda’s mother is indeed a nagging mother. She is all about
instructions and finding faults. No doubt it is her responsibility to instill good values into her daughter, but not at the cost of her child’s happiness.
One should know how to strike a balance between maintaining responsibilities
and taking good care.
5
What is the central theme of the poem Amanda?
Answer
The poem Amanda by Robin Klein highlights the importance of
upbringing of a child. It points out that upbringing doesn’t involve making a
child responsible and fit for the society only. It is important to note that
upbringing involves understanding from both the sides. One cannot just force a
child to be civilized and good mannered. “Love and proper care is required in
nurturing of a child.
6
Why does Amanda seem moody most of the times?Â
Answer
Amanda seems moody most of the time because she is trying to
make an escape from her sorry reality where she is nagged most of the times. It
is indeed a sorry state for a small child like Amanda to bear. Here the only defense against such reality is her imagination where she often escapes to.
Hence, it makes her look moody and uninterested.
7
How does it help Amanda to be an orphan?
Answer
Amanda feels troubled around her parents, so she wishes
herself to be an orphan. As then only she could live a life of her own without
much hassle.
8
Is Amanda at fault at all?
Answer
Amanda is not at fault at all. It is too harsh for a small
child to understand the concept of acne and not eating a chocolate. Love of
parents is missing from Amanda’s life. It is with pity that we look towards
Amanda. There is nothing worst for a child who wishes to be an orphan. Amanda
just seeks freedom from the overpowering environment around her.
1
Discuss the importance of proper upbringing with
reference to the poem Amanda by Robin Klein.
Answer
Upbringing plays an essential role in personality
development of an adult. Whenever we wish to admire or criticise someone we
question the upbringing of that person. Robin Klein’s poem Amanda highlights
the tension in the ‘proper’ upbringing of a child. To instill good values and
moral principles in a growing child comes as a foremost duty for the parents.
However, the poem Amanda shows how a child feels trapped within the cluster of instructions.
Amanda is no less than a victim in this travesty. No proper space is given to
her creativity. She is instructed for everything. As a result, she feels
trapped and seeks an escape. Her imagination proves to be her escape and also
her defense against her nagging parents. Situation of Amanda is so worse that
she wishes to be an orphan, in order to get rid of her parents. She imagines
enacting various roles varying from mermaid to Rapunzel. Amanda wishes to live
alone and carefree. It is very important to understand the situation of Amanda
where her freedom is cut short by constant instructions and guidelines. Proper balance
should be maintained when dealing with such delicate issues. Love and care
should always be part of this two way transaction.
2
State the key points in the poem Amanda. What do you
learn from it?Â
Answer
Every child is special in itself, and it requires a great
deal of patience and love to make them understand this. Parents should give
proper space to children, as they learn through experiences as well. Children
do tend to learn certain bad habits, to undo that requires great level of understanding
and right approach. One cannot teach their child everything in one day and
expect them to behave properly henceforth. It is natural for a childlike Amanda
to seek freedom at her place, to curb that freedom means to make her angry and
moody. Growing up of child should not be about dos and don’ts only. To have
nagging parents judging every action of child would do more harm than good.
Robin Klein points to the fact that Amanda is forbidden to do anything without
seeking permission. Everything she does it is corrected by her mother all the
time, she cannot perform a single thing according to her will. She can’t sit
lazily around, she can’t eat chocolate for that could cause acne. Life of Amanda
is very suffocating and limited in itself. She yearns for freedom and choice.
Her mother doesn’t understand the fact that Amanda is innocent and naive, she
is too small to understand the benefits of advice. Only thing that matters to
Amanda’s mother is what society will make of Amanda. We witness miserable
failure of parents when Amanda wishes to be an orphan so that she could be
free.
3
How does Amanda tackle the nagging nature of her parents?
Explain with examples from the poem. What values does it portray about Amanda?
Answer
Amanda is a small girl who is termed as moody for her
careless behavior. But it is very surprising to know that this is her defense
mechanism to shield against her nagging parents. Amanda is getting instructions
from her parents, which become too much to handle for the small girl. She is
told not to eat her nails and sit in a proper position. Amanda’s response to it
is her work of imagination where she is a mermaid drifting effortlessly by the
languid rive. Further, she is asked about cleaning her room and finishing her
homework to which she reacts being an orphan roaming in the street and making
patterns with her bare feet. Amanda then faces the heat for eating a chocolate,
which had once caused her acne. She takes the form of Rapunzel and wishes to
live on top of a tower away from everyone in her imagination. Amanda’s parents
are upset over her behavior and casualness, but she stays in her own world.
All these portray Amanda in a positive light while her parents in a negative light.
We as readers feel very sorry for a childlike Amanda.