Kate Humphreys
And no one understands my plight.
Only the wounded
Understand the agonies of the wounded,
When the fire rages in the heart.
Only the jeweller knows the value of the jewel,
Not the one who lets it go.
In pain I wander from door to door,
But could not find a doctor.
Says Mira: Harken, my Master,
Mira's pain will subside
When Shyam comes as the doctor.
Picture: This explains the author's "fire" that "rages in the heart" because she is "mad with love."
Mirabai Biographical Information:
Mirabai lived from 1498 to 1546 and was a princess of a royal family. She was unwillingly married Boj Raj, the prince of Merwar. In the Wars of Delhi Sultanate, her husband died of battle wounds in 1518. Shortly after, her father and father in law passed away in Hindu-Muslim wars. Mirabai was extremely devoted to the Lord. She often mentioned him as "The Husband of her soul." She was a central poet during the Bhatki movement. This period included a trend of devotion to a spirit or god (diety). According to legends, many of her in laws attempted to kill her with poison and snakes.
Analysis:
Paraphrase: I am mad with love and only those who have felt the same understand my sorrow. My pain will go away when Shyam, a deity helps me.
Paraphrase: I am mad with love and only those who have felt the same understand my sorrow. My pain will go away when Shyam, a deity helps me.
Speaker: Because she lost her husband, father, and father in law, she feels pain for the loss of them. Mirabai is devoted to God, so she believed that they could aid with anything.
Figurative Language: Mirabai compares the understanding of love to knowing the value of a jewel in order to explain that those who experience can share feelings. The "fire" that "rages in the heart" is used to describe the speakers emotions. Shyam is a doctor in the poem because Mirabai believes that they will heal her. When she says she is "mad with love," she feels pain because of something that happened to a loved one or she feels many emotions for them.
Form: There is no rhyme scheme; it makes this poem flow easier than if it rhymed. There are also line breaks in the middle of sentences to make built in pauses if the poem is being performed.
Tone: The poem depicts a tone of pain and sadness. The piece frequently states words like "wounded"and "rages" to further describe that tone. The author also feels this way because not many understand her feelings.Theme: When people feel a certain way, others who have not experienced the same occurrences cannot empathize. If there is no one to share with, your faith will give you hope.
Poem found:https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/i-am-mad-with-love/
Biographical info:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meera
I agree that Mirabai's poem shows that a persons feeling can only be understood by another who has felt the same way. She shows that empathy is more important than sympathy in any situation. Mirabai is telling the message from personal experience; many people close to her have died. Even though this poem is very old, the concept of looking to a god for help in a difficult situation is timeless. I think this poem resonates with people today because of the commonalities of lost love and a higher power.
ReplyDelete- Noah Volin
Mirabai's line of "only the wounded understand the agonies of the wounded" is an interesting one. The rest of the poem is explaining how only those who experience a particular thing, in her case, seemingly the death of a loved one. So, her saying that only those who have experienced the same can sympathize and then going on to say no one understands her pain is one of two possibilities: Ignorant, or genius. Mirabai cannot truly believe no one else has ever experienced what she has, though lost of people feel this way...Or, is she commenting on how every person's experience with losing someone is different? Do you think when she says she is "mad with love" she could mean that she is mad with grief because of her love?
ReplyDeleteI agree that the losses in Mirabai's life have influenced the way she views love, and those around her who she cares for. In the line, "only the wounded understand the agonies of the wounded," I think she is using the losses in her life to connect to other people who understand her feelings. Since Mirabai has gone through so much turmoil in her life, having a person who can make her feel less alone seems to act as reason to remain hopeful. Mirabai talks about god in such a way that it makes me believe she is being told from others to remain loyal that the Shyam will come save her. But Mirabai does not agree with that viewpoint in the poem which makes me think that she may be questioning her religious beliefs.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that the line referring to the wounding is representing the idea that only those who have been through the same situation truly know how you feel inside. In addition, I think line 5, "Only the jeweler knows the value of the jewel," is referring to the fact that only the person going through this difficult time knows the magnitude of the effects resulting from it. This also alludes to the idea that only this person in pain can know what must be done to fix this problem. Lastly, towards the end of the poem, "In pain I wander from door to door, But could not find a doctor," is used to show how hopeless this feeling can be. It tells the reader that help can be found if you take the initiative to find it.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that since Mirabia has had a fair amount in losses for the one's she loved and only the people who have experienced it will understand what she is expressing in her poem, as though she stated in lines 3 and 4. I think that the overall reasoning for Mirabia writing this poem was to express the idea that when you love someone so hard and for a long period of time, when it's time to let go it can really hard to deal with to the point where it will feel like you will only get better if the person who you wanted to spend your life with would come back into your life again. I also agree that the reason for no rhyme scheme was to make sure Mirabia could get the tone of the poem and the main message across the reader's mind. A the end of the poem Mirabai states that she goes from "door to door" but however she "could not find a doctor" to show how the saying of a "love doctor" is exaggerating. Yes there are times in where someone else can fix your problems in a relationship but the likely hood of that is slim and I feel that she trying to set the perspective that the "love doctor" is certainly not true from her experience because in the moment of loss it can feel like your hopeless and there is no one or nothing that can resolve this everlasting loss feeling.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the theme statement it fits really well with what the poems acutally emphasizing. You can't connect on the same level of emotion if you havent suffered the same pain the person has experinced. Only those who have been hurt or been in the same situation would understand the concept of the situation and would be able to console them more by sharing their own experiences. The part about if theres no one to share with your faith will give you hope, this exmplifies being hopeful of whats yet to come and getting over the situation at hand. It would help you get over the situation and move on by letting it all out and go through every stage of emotional pain. "Only the jeweler knows the value of a jewel", it shows how much the value is of a person and not the person who threw it away acting like it doesnt have a value meaning that somehow expplains how Mira was treated.
ReplyDelete-Beatrice