An introduction

1. What does the phrase "very brown" indicate?

Ans. The phrase indicates that the poet both accepts and celebrates the brown colour of her
skin. She seems to argue that Indians should assert their brown skin colour rather than feeling
ashamed of it.

2. Which is the narrator's region of birth?

Ans. Kamala Das is an Indian poet. She was born in the Southwest region of India or Malabar
region in Kerala.

3. Why do they ask the narrator not to write in English?

Ans. The poet is not allowed to write in English by the patriarchal society as they want to restrict
her freedom of expression. They say that English is not her mother tongue and criticise her for
writing in English.

4. Whom does the word "they" in the poem represent?

Ans. The term 'they' refers to the patriarchal society that includes critics, friends, visiting cousins
and everyone around her. It is also a reference to the so-called categorizers who interfere into
the poet's life.
. How did the narrator try to ignore her womanliness?

Ans. The narrator tried to ignore her womanliness by cutting her hair short and wearing her
brother's shorts. She sat on walls and peeped through the windows. These acts were against
the prescribed notions of womanliness.

6. What are the specific chores assigned as the duty of "women" in the poem?

Ans. Women are permitted to perform embroidering, and [Link] were given the right to
quarrel only with their [Link] are expected to take care of the family and discharge
their wifely duties toward their husbands as well.

7. Who are the "categorisers" mentioned in the poem?

Ans. The categorisers in the poem are the voices of the patriarchal society that try to shape
women as per the expectations of men. They want a woman to fit into the patriarchal society
with womanliness.

8. What is wrong with sitting on walls and peeping through lace-draped windows?
Ans. The categorisers who want women to embrace their womanliness do not want women to
sit on walls or peep through windows, because acts like these break away from the traditionally
accepted notion of womanliness. This might present a woman or a girl as a rebel against the
patriarchal system.

9. How according to the "categorisers" should the narrator behave when jilted in love?
Ans. A woman when she is jilted in love should not behave like a nymph or a schizophrenic.
She should also not cry loudly when she is abandoned or jilted in love.

10. What is the significance of the title "An Introduction"?

Ans. The title is significant, because the poem is written in aconversational manner and it forms
an introduction to the poet's own life. It is significant to note that the title of the poem avoids the
definite article "the" and uses the indefinite article "an". In other words, this poem is one of the
many ways in which the life and struggles of the poet could be represented.

11. What are the pretending games forbidden by the "categorisers"?

Ans. The categorisers want the narrator to choose an identity and fit into the community rather
than playing games like cutting her hair and wearing her brother's shorts. Through these games,
she try to move away from womanliness.

12. Give an example of transferred epithet in the poem.

Ans. A transferred epithet is a figure of speech where a modifier qualifies a noun other than the
person or thing it is actually describing. The phrase "Blind speech" is an example of transferred
epithet in the poem.

Essay
An Introduction" is a famous poem that forms part of the collection Summer in Calcutta. This is a
confessional poem that tries to present Kamala Das' emotions toward patriarchy that continues
to control the lives of women all around the world.

The poet begins by stating that she does not know about politics, but at the same time she
claims to know the names of different political leaders. She knows them as precisely as she can
recount the days of a week or names of months. This knowledge is a tribute to the power
possessed by these leaders. She, then, illustrates her complex identity as a brown, coloured
Indian who was born in the Malabar region in Kerala. She adds that she can speak in three
languages, write in two languages and dream in one language. The people around her have
tried to stop her from writing in English, but she wanted them to leave her alone. Critics, friends,
visiting cousins and men are the people who ask her not to write in English.

The author wants the freedom to speak in any language of her choice. She says that the
language she speaks becomes her own, as it would undergo minute changes made by her. The
language spoken by her is half Indian and half English. But she states that it is honest without
any corruptions.

She adds that her language has life like her, because it isthrough that language she expresses
her joys, desires, and hopes. She considers her language as important, just as cows and lions
find their voices important to themselves. She also adds that her speech is not like the unheard
voices of trees during monsoon or storm or sound from the burning funeral pyre. For her,
freedom is attained through her own voice. But she adds that there are several circumstances in
life that control her freedom. In the remaining part of the poem she introduces those problems in
detail.

She still considers herself to be a child, but people around her keep reminding her that she has
grown up because of hair growth in two different parts of her body. When she was sixteen, she
was married to a man who dragged her to the bedroom and closed the door behind them. He
did not beat her or physically torture her. Nevertheless, she experienced a strong sense of lack
of freedom. The weight of her womanly features along with this sense of lack of freedom made
her feel that she was badly beaten. But all these came to a stop.

She, then, tried to endorse masculinity by dressing up and behaving like a man. But the
patriarchal society forced her to discharge wifely and womanly duties. They all wanted her to fit
in as a woman. The categorisers wanted her to stop sitting on walls or peeping through the
windows. They wanted her to assume a woman-like identity. They either wanted her to be a girl,
Ami, or a woman, Kamala. She could also be Madhavikutty. They forced her to choose a name
that would define her role as a wife or a woman. The categorisers don't want her to play any
pretending games or cry loudly when she is abandoned in love.

She describes a time when she fell in love with a man. This man is not given a name because
he represents every man who uses a woman as the object of his desires. Once the poet asked
this man who he was, he replied that "it is I". 'I', here, is a reference to the power man has in this
world as he has the authority to take decisions as well as get whatever he wants from others,
especiallywomen. Slowly, the distinction between male and female identities starts to disappear
and the poet begins to present both of them together. She argues that "I" has the ability to
laugh, make love, and at the same time be ashamed of those deeds. Here, the first two ideas
might be attributed to a man and the last one to a woman. She also represents "I" as a sinner
(women) and a saint (man). The speaker is attempting to merge both masculine and feminine
identities here. The poet seems to say that there is a woman and a man, a sinner and a saint in
every human being.

She ends the poem on a note of resistance stating that she does not experience any happiness
or sadness other than those given by men. This poem can be taken as an example of
resistance against the patriarchal system.

Kitchen Rag

1. What does the word 'grime represent in the poem Kitchen Regs
→The word 'Crime refers to dirt. The dirt is on the rags used in the kitchen Kitchen Rags also
refers to the oppressed condition of Woman after Marriage.

What is meant by'Never allowed to rinse & dry'?

→The Rags were never washed Similarly the Woman are or dry & they remained dirty. not
allowed to liberate themselves from the harse conditions of their life.

How does the rag become rock hard"?

→The Rag has become "rock hard due to the accumulation of distt. Similasily Woman have
become rock hard because of the oppressions they had to face within the family.

4. What is the used by the poet's to describe the bygone nature of the Rags?

← The Word used to refer I to the bygone nature of the Rag is [Link] shows that the Rag
was not rough earlier. But the cloth has become rough & hard as a rexill of excessive use.

5 Whose frock was turned into a Kirchen rag ?

← Kunjumal frock was hommed wito a mean that Kitchen rag This could she has lost hen
delicate natusue & had become, hand. after marriage

6. How does the poet remember Kunjumol?

→The poet recounts that Kunjumol before her manage was happy & used to sing around the
kitchen - But she never sang after her marriage.

7 Where is kujund now?

→ kunjumol is now married & she is unfortunately in another kitchen she used to sing as a child,
but now does not even hum

8. "Not a hum these days." Explain?

← Kunjumal was married & taken to another house. The poet exclaims that kumjumol also
became rock hard like the rag She does nd even sing like she used to do in her childhood.
9 Who is the "one in a tiny frock"?

The one in a with her tiny frock to a is a reference to young child whe "delicate nature could
refluvenates the grimed rags by pusting them into rain.

10. How does the poam end?

poet

→The poet concludes with a note of hope. The believes that a little girl in a a frock would come
& pushed the woman in diste into rain, so that she would deaned off all the tormants &
oppressions she had to face.
11. How does the poem "Kitchen Rag" portray the condition of Women in Kerala?

Vyjila chirapadu an Indian Dalit poet through her poetry highlighted the problems of double
marginalization confronted by dalit Woman. Through the poem Kitchen Rags' the poet further
presents the plight of married woman who had to live according to the rules set by patriarchal
society. Kitchen Rags is a poem written by Vijlla Chirapadu was originally written in malayalam
with the title "Kaikkala Thunikal. This poem is translated Into english by Rakhi Raghavan. Vijila's
"work include collection of poems namely "Home without Kitchen", Copied notes", Her poetry
explores how the double burden of gender & caste shapes the loves & Stringles of the Dalit
Woman in Kerala in distinct ways than woman of the dominant caste.

Kitchen Rags is a thought-provoking poem in which kitchen rags symbolize the sufferings of
women who are trapped within the 4 walls of the Kitchen. The poet talks about the
transformation of a soft textured dress worn by the girl on her bygone days into a rough textured
Linen used in the kitchen comparing it with the life of Women Inside the kitchen.

The 1st stanza describes the Kitchen Rags. Kitchen Rags are always covered with grime Color
they are never washed like other clothes, Gradually the surface becomes like a rock. The
patriarchal society traps women inside the kitchen. The women in the kitchen suffer a lot & do
not get time even to attend to their personal needs like taking baths. Like the kitchen rags which
are never washed though dirt seeps in layer by layer the women are never allowed to find some
time for them. Thus the rags become rock hard due to deposited grim similarly life becomes
harder for the woman who is trapped inside the kitchen.

Before entering into the service in the kitchen the life of all the clothes used later as kitchen rags
was very colorful. Those clothes were [Link] this poem it was a beautiful frock of Kunjumol
in the past days. When Kunjumol" frock became old & useless it was brought to the kitchen.
Along with the frock Kunjumol was also pushed into kitchen duty though in a different home.
This means that for a woman marriage is a movement to another kitchen. Kunjumol was very
happy & pretty when she was a child, but now she is trapped in the Kitchen of another home,
her life has also become dull like the kitchen rag, in childhood the life of all girl children might
have been colorful but when they grow up their life becomes colorless. The speaker remembers
how Kunjumol used to sing when she was a little girl. But now she does not even hum as she is
in the kitchen. All beauty & color of her life has faded like the kitchen rags. This reminds us of
the great sacrifice that women perform to run the family. They sacrifice all their talents & spent
their life in the kitchen with no good things to follow. The poet ends the poem with the hope of
having an end to all these sufferings. Freedom will come to their life in the form of a girl wearing
a tiny flock & pushing them into the rain to have all the dirt washed away by the rain. The rain
here stands for as a rejuvenating & cleansing agent which will release them from all the
bondages.

The poem strongly describes the protest of the writer against the social as well as gender
discriminations which victimise woman.
Dakshayani Velayudhan

1. In which caste was Dakshayani Velayudhan

Dakshayani Velayudhan was born in a rural slave caste called Pulaya Pulaya is a lower caste in
kerala

2. In which year did Ayyankali begin his "walk for freedom"?

→ Ayyankali walk for freedom began in 1893

3. Mention any 2 symbols of caste slavery that Ayyankali tried to eradicate.

→Ayyankali tried to eradicate the prohibition of lower class people from public roads through
walk for freedom. He wanted to abolish the use of stone necklaces by lower caste women as it
was a symbol of slavery.

4 What was Dakshayini Velayudhan's father by profession?

→ Dakshyani Velayudhan's father was a village school teacher by profession. Her father also
went for contract works of bunds along with other men.

. What were the hardships that Dakshayini Velayudhan's brother's had to face when they
entered public spheres?

← People used to hoot at them as they walked on were thrown at them by people when they
were on country boats They were harmed because they wore clothes like upper caste people
the roads. Stones

6. How did the Pulaya Mahajana Sabha overcome the Maharajas order that the untouchables
should not hold their meetings on "his land"?

→The Pulaya Mahajana Sabha overcame the Maharaja "orders by organizing meetings In
country boats thed together In the sea at Bolghatty They held their meetings in the sea because
the sea did not have any caste.

[Link] did Pulayas gain entry to the agricultural exhibition held in Ernakulam?
→The members of the Pulaya Community gained entry through written appeal in the form of a
poem by Dakshayani Velayudhan's brother to the Cochin Mahoraja. This pleased the Maharaja
& he provided entry to the Pulayas.

8. Who was the Indian Dalit woman graduate?

→Dakshayani Velayudhan was the first Indian Dalit woman graduate. She graduated in
Chemistry with a high second class in the year 1935.

[Link] did journalists want to photograph Dakshayini Velayudhan as she entered Maharaja's
college?
→The journalist wanted to photograph Dakshayaoi Velaytidhan because she was the first
woman from Pulaya Community enter into collage for gaining education
10. Why did Dakshayani Velayudhan have to learn chemistry experiments from a distance?

Ans. Dakshayani Velayudhan was forced to learn chemistry experiments from a distance,
because the upper-class teachers were hesitant of teaching her as she belonged to a slave
community.

11. Why was Dakshayani Velayudhan's application for nomination to Cochin Legislative Council
rejected?

Ans. DakshayaniVelayudhan's application for nomination to

Cochin Legislative Councilwas rejected because she was a government servant. She was an L2
teacher in the High School, Peringothikara in Trichur district.

Ji12. Which was the language chosen by Dakshayani Velayudhan for her maiden speech at
Cochin Legislative Council?

Ans. The language chosen by Dakshayani Velayudhan for her maiden speech was English. She
spoke about the issues faced by the lower-class people.

13. To which parties did Dakshayani Velayudhan and her husband R Velayudhan belong to?

Ans. Dakshayani Velayudhan was a member of Indian National Congress and R Velayudhan
belonged to the Socialists led by Ram Mahohar Lohia.

14. What was Dakshayani Velayudhan's reason for not joining AIWC?

Ans. Dakshayani Velayudhan did not join AIWC after Independence because she thought that
AIWC was elitist in nature.

15. What was the organisation formed by Dakshayani Velayudhan in 1977?

Ans. The organisation formed by Dakshayani Velayudhan in 1977 is called the Mahila Jagriti
Parishad or MPJ.

Essay
Dakshaynai Velayudhan is a revolutionary figure who has brought about several social changes
in India. She became an inspiration for many Dalit women to uplift themselves from their
oppressed lives through education. She had to constantly encounter caste-based injustices in
her life.
When Dakshayni Velayudhan joined Maharaja's College for BSc Chemistry, she gained a lot of
media attention for being the first Dalit woman to attend a college. But these attentions were
mere elements of news. She had to face many caste based oppressions in her college life. The
teachers were hesitant to teach her because of her caste identity. She was forced to stand at a
distance and learn in the college Chemistry laboratory.

The underprivileged sections of the society were not allowed to make use of public spaces and
properties. Dakshayani was not allowed to draw water from a nearby public well as she
belonged to the Pulaya Community. Dakshayani was once asked by a Nair woman to stay away
from a public road so that the Nair woman could walk without being impure.

Dakshayani had filed a nomination for the post of a member in the Cochin Legislative Council.
She went to visit the Minister of Rural Development in connection with her nomination, but she
was not even offered a seat and was told that her nomination was rejected. Dakshayani
Velayudhan faced many atrocities throughout her life. The experience of such social and cultural
discriminations must have given her the power to fight for justice, equality and social
representation.

Dakshayani Velayudhan also put her efforts in the social and cultural upliftment of the people of
the Schedule caste. She was born in 1912 a slave caste, Pulaya. She is considered as the child
of social change, because during the time of her birth there were seven anti-caste struggles
taking place in Kerala under the leadership of people like Ayyankali. Ayyankali was against
caste-based discrimination. He worked on democratizing public spaces and for labour rights. He
also organized rural labour and working-class organisations. He conducted "walk for freedom"
movement, and Kallumalla agitation for liberating the lower caste people. His "walk for freedom"
was organized in 1893 in order to provide rights for lower caste people to walk on publie roads.
Though the lower caste people faced resistance from an upper caste mob, they were able to
gain the right to walk on most of the roads except a few private and special roads. Ayyankali
also organised the "Kaluumalla Agitation" and fought for the lower caste women's right to cover
the torso and avoid wearing stone necklace as both were symbols of caste slavery. These
revolutionary activities resulted in quite a lot of social and cultural changes in Kerala. It was
during this time that Dakshayani was born and brought up. Hence, she was highly influenced by
both the spirit and ideals of such [Link] also argued that the word "Harijan" remained
meaningless as long as untouchability prevailed in India.

To conclude, Dakshayni Velayudhan's stay at Gandhi ashram resulted in her deeper

understanding of Gandhian philosophy. Gandhian perspectives gave her a deeper insight into
the politics of discrimination in India. Ambedkar further broadened her notions on untouchability
and the need to abolish it. Dakshayani has contributed immensely for the upliftment of the Dalits
and she is truly a child of social change.

Learning to be a mother
1. What are the "nuggets of wisdom" that the author is talking about?
Ans. The author is talking about motherhood and the concept of mother she has picked up from
her mother.

2. What did Shashi Deshpande realise about a mother when she was a child?

Ans. Shashi Deshpande realised that mothers get tired of their children. They would even say
things like "Oh God, what do you want now?", 'why don't you go out?" or 'get out of my sight.

3. What happened to the realisation as she grew older?

Ans. Shashi Deshpande states that as she grew older, she realised that mothers stood against
their children's ambitions and desires. Mothers mention that they want nothing for themselves,
but they try to get things from their children.
4. What is the author nostalgic about?

Ans. The author is nostalgic about her mother as well as herself as a mother. She presents the
problems that she had to face as a mother.

Ans.

5. What were the "tangled threads" that Shashi Deshpande eventually unravelled?

Ans. The tangled threads that she unravelled were the idealised concepts of a mother's role that
her mother, who had lost her mother in her infancy, fantasised. She experienced a sense of
guilt, because, in reality, she was nowhere near the fantasy figure.

6. Comment on the portrayal of mothers in movies.

Ans. In the movies, mothers are portrayed as pure and simple and ideal. Most of the time, such
representations are unrealistic.

7. How is a mother portrayed in the stories of Shashi Deshpande as mentioned in the essay?

Ans. In her story Death of a Child, the mother decides to abort her foetus. Her novel The Dark
Holds No Terror represents a mother-daughter conflict. It could be said that mothers are
portrayed as unwomanly and unloving in her works.

8. What is "perfect motherhood" according to the author?

Ans. According to the author, there are different forms of motherhood: ideal mother, cruel
mother, sadistic mother etc. In this trajectory of motherhood, there is nowhere a point to mark
perfect motherhood as it is something that cannot be measured.

9. What are the doubts and agonies of a new mother?

Ans. The doubts and agonies of a new mother are related to her inability to breast feed her
child, her sense of being trapped and the inevitable failure to live up to the mythical image of
selfless mother.
10. Why does the author feel guilty?

Ans. The author feels guilty when her son mentioned that he did not disturb her because he
knew that she was working. He adds that he decided not to bother her with his problems.

11. What is Bernard Shaw's opinion about parenthood?

Ans. Bernard Shaw argues that people become parents without having the necessary
qualifications or training. He speaks about the oddness of the fact that people take up most
difficult of all professions without having any qualifications for it.

12. What is the concept of self-sacrifice that the author is talking about?

Ans. The author has rejected the concept of self-sacrifice, because there was nothing sacrificial
in being a mother. She thinks that whatever she did for her children was not sacrifice, but the
things she actually wanted to do.

Essay

"Learning to be a Mother" is an attempt to demystify the concept of motherhood. The author

Shashi Deshpande got inspired about the nature of motherhood from her mother. She had
heard stories of the self-sacrifices made by women for the welfare of the family. The writer in her
questions the idea of being an ideal mother at the cost of one's individuality.

All patriarchal societies show discrimination to women in some way or other. Women are
expected to look after children and attend to the needs of the family members. This image ofthe
women as mother and nurturer is deep-rooted in our mind. Everyone seems to take it for
granted that by becoming a mother a woman is fulfilling her life's mission. Shashi
UDeshpande in this context shows courage to point out that motherhood is a constructed trap
and one should realize it.

Shashi Deshpande takes a bold act of tearing up the labels of ideal motherhood pasted on her
forehead by the patriarchal society. What we are taught to imagine about mothers may be totally
different from our experiences in real life. Shashi finds that motherhood is not a state of grace
that automatically descends upon a woman at the moment of child birth. Motherhood Is not a
transition of a woman to nobility and virtue. These are all cultural attributes thrust upon women.

This is a truth that women have known for generations but never dared to tell even to their own
mothers or children. Women themselves al times retain the myth of the ideal mother by telling
cooked up stories of self-sacrifice of mothers. The result is that guilt and conflicts remain forever
in the mind of the free woman who becomes a mother. Unless is faced and dealt with
motherhood becomes a traumatic experience

Is motherhood a full-time job? Can a mother be a writer too? Yes, if she can manage the work
Inad, lack of rest and constant guilt. Her own performance as a mother filled her with feelings of
gullt and inadequacy. Her urge to write added fuel to her creativity. How could she shut the door
on a child who wanted her? Yet how could she shut the door own her creativity. There are some
disturbing questions that the writer poses to the readers A tug of war is there in between
motherhood and individuality in the midst of various responsibilities. Her urge to write hinders
her motherly duties. For her, selflessness and creativity are uneasy partners. Creativity
demands her to put herself first. And to put oneself, one's work first, is to fall one's children.
Children of all age expect their mother to put them first, and are never comfortable with the
thought of their mother having a life of her own

Shashi Deshpande is not qualified to be a mother in terms of the patriarchal system. She was
short tempered, lacked patience, wanted freedom and hated to clung on. She aspired to write
and writing demanded a great deal of one's time. Being a self-critical woman Deshpande knew
the fact that she was inefficient, confused, unreasonable, tyrannical At the same time, she
wished to be a very good mother always in need of her children, but she could never
accomplish her dream of being a good mother in the middle of her individual desire to write

She could never surrender herself to the selfless service that motherhood demands in the midst
of her desire to write books She was caught up in the crossfire between individual responsibility
and motherly duties. Deshpande preferred to choose her career as a writer leaving her children
aside so as to fill the vacuum that existed within her. She claimed that when her children no
longer needed her, life did not seem empty.

When one becomes a mother, one does not automatically shed all one's personality and
become just a mother. One is still the person, an individual, who has lived and developed for
years before becoming a mother. Motherhood is neither sacred nor holy it is natural. She looks
at motherhood as one of many roles of a woman. Not a state that defines her and puts her in a
[Link] states that her children no longer need her and she does not feel empty without them.
This shows that she has completely absorbed nature's concept of birth and survival. She wants
everyone to consider children as human beings and also wants to move away from the
specialness attached to motherhood. She ends the essay by stating a crucial point: "I'm a
human being first, a mother next."

IS THIS DESIRABLE?- Lalithambika Antharjanam

1 Answer the following in two or three sentences

1. What is the name of the newspaper the character Pappi was reading?

Ans. Pappi was reading a newspaper by the Yogashemasabha called Yogashemam.

2. What is the reason for the baby's wailing?

Ans. The baby wailed because Pappi got up to make coffee and broke his suckling.

3. Why does Pappi's husband shout with anger at her?

Ans. Pappi's husband shouted at her because she did not prepare coffee for him, instead she
was reading a newspaper. He was further raged by the crying of the baby.

4. How does the granny react when Unni shouts at his wife?

Ans. The granny blamed Unni for letting Pappi reform her attire and allowing her to speak
publicly. She feels that Unai's approval for such progressive acts has led to this situation.

5. How does Pappi react to her husband's anger?

Ans. Pappi reacted by saying that one can control the horses by tying it to the carriage but will
lose its speed if they are not provided with hay and water.

6. What does Pappi say when her husband walks out with rage after attempting to slap her?
Ans. Pappi said that all these things have happened because she was reading a newspaper
while nursing the baby. She was shocked by her husband's attitude. She could not understand
how a man like her husband can call himself progressive.

7. How did N P bring social transformation in his own family?

Ans. N P was caught in a surge for social transformation. Hebrought about a change by
reforming his wife's attire and by allowing her to speak in public spaces.

8. How did his revolutionist attitude change over a period of time?

Ans. The newness of the social transformation faded soon. He repented and wanted to purify
himself. He started to confine his wife again within the house.

9. How did the article in Yogashemam affect Pappi?

Ans. The piece of writing that appeared in Yogashemam wounded her self-esteem. She
experienced a sense of hatred coupled with a feeling of disgrace towards its author. The article
left her in a state of grief.

10. Who is the author of the article in Yogashemam?

Ans. The author was Pappi's husband or N P.

11. What is the content of the article? What does Pappi tell her husband about it?
Ans. The article was an abuse on antharjanams who could not speak unless men have written
speeches for them to memorise. Pappi says that it is wrong to say that women were elevated by
men.

12. What was N P's reaction when a rejoinder penned by an antharjanam appeared in the
paper?

Ans. N P was taken aback by the article and thought that it was written by a man. He was
unable to accept that an antharjanam who quarrels in the kitchen would ever be able to write
this.

13. What is the title of the second rejoinder by the antharjanam in the next issue of the paper?

Ans. The title of the second rejoinder was "The Blindness of Namboodiri Youth or their
Audience."

14. How does the husband react when he learns that it was his wife who wrote under the
pseudonym of antharjanam?
Ans. He was thunderstruck. At first, he felt that his wife had turned against him. But soon he
understood Pappi's concerns and began to appreciate her.

15. Does the story end on a positive note? Why?

Ans. Yes, the story ends on a positive note. Pappi's husband wants her to be victorious and he
adds that he would find Pappi's victory as his as well.

Essay

Lalithambika Antharjanam is a well known writer in Malayalam. Her works highlight the
predicament of the Namboodiri women folk and problematize the role of women in society, in the
family sphere and as an individual. She has written short stories, poems and a novel. Her
magnum opus is the novel [Link] autobiography is Aathmakadhakkoru Aamugham. 'Is
This Desirable?' is a short story by Lalithambika Antharjanam and is translated into English by
Dr. Sheeba K.M. The story presents a Namboodiri couple N.P. / Unni and his wife Pappi who
belong to the Thaliparambathu mana The story exposes the hypocrisy of men who consider
themselves as reformers but make the lives of their women miserable.

The story opens with a question, "Isn't it coffee time yet?" by N.P. to Pappi. Pappi, who was
skimming through the newspaper 'Yogakshemam' while breast feeding the child gets up
suddenly keeping aside both the child and the paper. Due to the unexpected break in its
sucking, the child starts crying which angers N.P. and he shouts at Pappi. He asks what she
was doing all the time. He finds fault with Pappi for failing to serve him coffee in time. He
convicts her of causing nuisance to her husband intentionally by making the child cry. Then, the
Granny who was sitting in a corner mumbling prayers retorts. Granny says Unni (i.e.N.P.) is
responsible for all these because he taught Pappi everything. He let her give up 'marakkuda'
and 'puthappu' and wear 'kuppayam' and 'thuppatti' instead. He is the one who took Pappi to all
the Sabha meetings and lectures. According to Granny these all influenced Pappi and now
Pappi has time only to sit in the chair and read the paper rather than doing the household tasks.
In a mocking way, she says that now Unni can make the coffee and take care of the child
himself since Pappi won't be ready for it. The pungent words of Granny enrage Unni.

By then Pappi appears with coffee in her hand. Unni warns her not to get over excited about the
freedom given to her by him. According to him the liberated Antharjanam is like a horse that
grew horns. What Unni means to say is that the Antharjanams are intoxicated by the freedom
and they exploit it. Pappi responds to this in a calm yet powerful voice. She says, people like
N.P. can fasten the horses like her to the carriage but until and unless they are fed with hay and
water they may lose speed. She indirectly critiques the attitude of men who deny the basic
human rights of women. Granny interrupts saying that if Unni's father were in his position, he
would have smashed Pappi's bones. This enrages Unni and he tries to slap Pappi.
Unni's slap doesn't reach Pappi as she steps back. He walks out furiously and Pappi gets back
to her walling child. Walking back to the kitchen, she wonders how a progressive man like her
husband can be so rude to her for reading the newspaper while nursing the baby.

N.P. Is the head of Thaliparambathu mana. The revolutionary ideas to uplift the Namboodiri
community of its age old customs and beliefs cast a spell on him and coming under its influence
he took his wife Pappi to the meetings and let her break the restrictions related to dressing. But
eventually the spirit in him died out and like many others, he too withdrew from action.
Restrictions were again imposed on Pappi. But Pappi, who imbibed the ideals of emancipation
and empowerment through the exposure she got, couldn't submit herself to the constraints laid
upon her.

The piece of writing she read in the Yogakshemam paper hit her hard because it was abusing
the Antharjanams as good for nothing and degrading them as incapable of speaking or writing.
That night she asks her husband about it because she wanted to know the truth about its
author. Her questioning irritates N.P. who strongly sticks on to what he mentioned in the writing
and he reiterates that the men uplifted the Antharjanams and they know well how to put them
down. Pappi gives a tit for tat to this accusation by saying that there are men who memorise the
already composed speeches and copy others thereby making names out of it. This hurts his self
pride and he asks Pappi whether she intends to say that her husband is incapable of writing.
Pappi tries to calm him saying that she doesn't have any such intentions but gives a hint about
the help he seeks from his friends for writing. N.P refutes this and points out he does so only
when he is busy. Then she draws his attention to the endless chores of the Antharjanams and
says that it's unfair to call them as useless for someone would turn up to prove their capacity.
N.P. mocks at her saying that the Antharjanams can't even lift a blade of grass then how they
can lift a pen. Pappi winds up the argument without saying anything but she is unable to sleep
that night. When her husband is asleep, he takes a paper and pen and goes to the other room
and starts writing furiously.
The next part of the story begins with a rejoinder to the writing by an Antharjanam that appears
in the next issue of the paper. This rejoinder makes N.P. uneasy and he feels it as a thorn in his
flesh. He is quite sure that this has been written by a man for an Antharjanam can't write
something like this. He prepares a rebuttal to it with the help of his friends. This was further
degrading the Antharjanams. Instead of addressing the issues raised by the Antharjanam, it
focused on defaming them.

N.P. eagerly waits for the next issue of the paper. He was confident that no Antharjanam would
come up with a rejoinder. Days pass. Against his expectations, there appeared a brilliant
rejoinder , "The a Blindness of Namboodiri Youth or their Audience" was written and published
by Pappi anonymously. In the work, she wrote that men have provided women the opportunity
by giving them self- esteem, but they are now showering insults. This is like murdering the sick
person after bringing back to health. She presents it as disgraceful to shut women down in the
kitchens. She adds as a final note that men who are educated and powerful do not have the
ability to write without the help of their secretaries.

This enraged Papi's husband and though he tried to contact his friends to write a rejoinder, none
of them turned up and he wasn't able to write anything all by himself. Once her husband fell
asleep, Pappi started to write. Her husband found her writing and read it with immense joy. It
was a rejoinder to the article that was written by her. He asked her about the person who wrote
the other articles supporting the antharjanams. She replied that those articles were written by
her. Her husband was shocked but Pappi said that those writings represent the self-esteem of
an antharjanam. She says that those counter articles represent the mental courage of a
helpless woman who was uplifted and motivated to speak by her husband. But later on, he
started to dominate all the thoughts and speeches. Whenever women write, men raise the
question:" is this desirable?".

The analysis of the story draws our attention to the plight of Namboodiri women who are
confined to the home and denied any access to the outside world. N.P. is a representative of the
so called progressive men who publicly demand freedom for their women but privately deny the
same to them. Pappi symbolizes the women who are capable enough to internalize the ideals of
reformation and emerge as notable speakers and writers if given a chance.