The Bangle-Sellers | Summary, Questions, and Answers

Poems | Class 8th | jandkncert

The Bangle-Sellers | Summary, Questions, and Answers

 

Poem 3: The Bangle-Sellers

Bangle-sellers are we who bear

Our Shining loads to the temple fair…

Who will buy these delicate, bright

Rainbow-tinted circles of light?

Lustrous tokens of radiant lives

For happy daughters and happy wives.

 

Some are meet for a maiden’s wrist

Silver and blue as the mountain mist,

Some are flushed like the buds that dream

On the tranquil brow of a woodland stream;

Some are aglow with bloom that cleaves

To the limpid glory of new born leaves.

 

Some are like fields of sunlit corn,

Meet for a bride on her bridal morn,

Some, like the flame of her marriage fire,

Or, rich with the hue of her heart’s desire

Tinkling luminous, tender and clear,

Like her bridal laughter and bridal tear.

 

Some are purple and gold flecked grey,

For she who has journeyed through life midway

Whose hands have cherished, whose has blest

And cradled fair sons on her faithful breast,

And serves her household in fruitful pride,

And worships the gods at her husband’s side.

                                                  (Sarojini Naidu)

 

 

Central Idea of the Poem

           The poem revolves around bangles and the bangle sellers who carry them to fairs. The bangles they sell are delicate, bright, and colorful ornaments that enhance the beauty of their wearers and serve different purposes at various stages of a woman’s life. The colour and design of the bangles reflect the changing phases of a woman’s life—from youth to maturity, from marriage to motherhood. Through vivid imagery, the poet draws parallels between bangles and natural elements such as flowers, sunlight, and fruits, symbolizing the joy, vitality, and cultural significance associated with each stage. Thus, the bangles become more than mere jewellery; they are emblems of tradition, identity, and the rhythm of life.

 

 

Summary of the Poem

          The poem ‘The Bangle-Sellers’ has been written by Sarojini Naidu. Sarojini Naidu is also called the Nightingale of India. In this poem, the bangle-seller is the narrator of the poem. At the beginning of the lines the narrator describes the colour, lustre, delicacy of the bangles. He says that the bangle-sellers carry this shining load of bangles to the temple fair to sell them. They carry these bright and rainbow-tinted bangles for the happy daughters and happy wives. He says that some of these bangles are made for unmarried girls. He compares the colour of these bangles to the mountains mist, and the buds of the woodland stream that shine the wrists of the bearers.

          Some of these bangles are just like the shining corn field suitable for the newly married bride. Some are like the marriage fire with the colour that fits the desire of her heart. Some have the sound of the laughter and some have the tender sound like the tear of a bride. These bangles describe the emotions of a daughter. Some purple and gold-flecked bangles are made for the middle-aged mothers whose hands have cherished by feeding their loved ones and swaying their cradles. And for those wives who served and worshipped their husbands just like gods. The narrator says that just like a woman passes through the different stages of her life from her childhood to old age, the colour and the design of her also change accordingly. The bangle seller has all the kinds of bangles that suit the age of the bearer.

Structure of the Poem

          The poem is full of expressions and simile. The poem consists of four stanzas. Each stanza consists of six lines. The poem has a nice style of rhyming scheme. It has ‘aa’ ‘bb’ type of rhyme scheme. The length of the lines is almost the same in all stanzas.

 

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