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This poem is describing the poet's visit to India and the time she had her hand
hennaed by a girl in the market place. It has proved to be an experience she has
never forgotten.
Stuck?
Extension:
1.Count how many times the poet uses the phrase ‘an unknown girl’. What is the
significance of this phrase and why do you think it is repeated so many times?
2.Alvi uses colour to highlight how she remembers this event. Write down all the
different ones that are mentioned in the poem and colour the lines of the poem to
correspond with them. What sort of colours are they? Rich? Warm? Cold? Bright?
What might the significance of this be?
3.The poet is keen to emphasise how much she remembers the country where this
happened. Are these fond or difficult memories and how do we know? Write down
all the words or phrases that tell you that this poem is set in India.
4.In lines 5–7 the poet describes the girl as if she were ‘icing’ her hand. Write
down as many reasons as you can think of as to why she has likened the
tattooing to icing. E.g. someone who ices cakes is creating patterns and pictures
...
1.Do you get any idea of what the tattoo looks like? Do you think this is
important? If so why?
3.Whatdoesitsayabouthowshefeelsabouthertattooandtheexperience?
4.The henna tattoo is linked with India in the poet’s mind. What is the significance
of ‘it will fade’ and how does the poet feel about this? Can you explain what the
poet means in lines 43–46?
10. Why might the poet want to write her poem like this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otfIfMuaDq8&frags=pl%2Cwn