The Old Playhouse is a poem written by famous Indian poetess, Kamala Das. The poem was originally written in 1973. The story of poem revolves around a life of husband and wife and it talks about a problems which women faces after marriage.
The Old Playhouse By Kamala Das
Summary of The Old Playhouse By Kamala Das
The story of poem begins with poetess who is comparing herself with a tame swallow and her husband to a bird catcher. She says you have try control a swallow with your planning. You gave little bird a greed of love so that she would forget her home. I’m a little bird and my husband gave me a greed of love so that I forget my home. I was born to fly anywhere in the world but you trapped me so that I can’t go anywhere.
Here author is indicating her husband and telling that she was very happy before marriage and I came to you to know myself but later I came to know that you are self centered man.
During lovemaking, you had only interested in my body which used to makes you very happy. When you think deeply, you will learn that our poetess, Kamala Das in a voice of all the female in India. The author is trying to saying that physical relation in not enough until you understand the responses of your partner. If there is no feeling in lovemaking then it is not lovemaking.
The poetess says my husband had no idea what is love and affection. I was just housewife to my husband at day and sex partner at night. Nothing else. You used to kiss me very bad during lovemaking and dribble saliva into my mouth. You used to force every part of my poor body and penetrate in every part of my body.
You just does not care about me whether I’m emotionally satisfied or not. You never realize that wife do needs love and affection. She says I’m stuck in domestic work of my house, I was taught to put sugar into your tea, I was also taught to give you vitamins on time, your ego was so high that sometimes I felt slave.
You lost your identity that you are a human being. There was nothing left in me. Whenever you asked me a questions, I just used to shake my neck and respond. I felt suffocated in my husband’s house and I missed my bachelor’s life.
I felt suffocated even after having AC in room. There was a smell of masculinity in that house. She did not hear the sounds of birds and dance from a long time. My mind was turned like old playhouse. Her mind was turned into that type of theater which has no lights and play.
I need freedom from all these things. The author’s purpose is not to tell her husband evil, she just wants to tell things which most of the female in India hesitates to say. The author is saying that a man should need to understand many – many things about women. One female body is different from male body and not just body but mind as well.
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