Radical Voices in Indian English Poetry: A Study of the Poetry of Kamala Das

Dr Karabi Goswami

doi:10.24113/ijellh.v7i12.10241

Abstract

The creative genius of Kamala Das, one of the most prominent voices of protest in Indian English Literature is often compared to the American poet Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton as both of them used the confessional mode of writing in their poetry. Kamala Das, born in 1934 in Thrissur district of kerela emerged as a distinctive poetic voice with the publication of the first volume of her poetry Summer in Calcutta. In her poems Kamala Das has always raised a voice against the conventionalized figure of a woman, seeking a more dignified and honourable position for woman as an entity. In fact her poetry addresses the most critical issue in the contemporary society-the need to awaken the women. Her poetry collections include- Summer in Calcutta (1965), The Descendents (1967), The Old Playhouse and Other poems (1973), Tonight, This Savage Rite (1979), The Collected Poems (1984). My Story published in 1976 is her autobiography

Highlights

1965, the feminist movement was at its pick
While the first wave feminists dealt with the inequalities between men and women; the second wave feminists are concerned with the oppression of women in the patriarchal world
Toru Dutt and Sorjini Naidu represent the romantic tradition in Indian English poetry and Kamala Das makes a distinctive shift from this tradition

Summary

Introduction

1965, the feminist movement was at its pick. Feminism is a movement against the discrimination of women on the basis of gender. The proposed study is an attempt to show the radical voice of Kamala Das in her poems against the institution of marriage.

Results

Conclusion