My Grand Mother’s House
– Kamala Das
Kamala Das’s poem “My Grandmother’s House” is a lyric. It deals with nostalgia, memory, love, loss, and loneliness. The poem describes the poet’s childhood memories of her grandmother’s house. This poem was first published in the poetry collection Summer in Calcutta (1965).
The poem begins with the poet remembering a house in a particular town where she once received love. The house belongs to her grandmother. She loved the poet deeply and genuinely. The grandmother’s death, however, changes everything. The house becomes a “house of silence” and the “snakes move among the books.” The word “silence” suggests both the physical and emotional emptiness of the poet.
The poet says that “darkness” has become almost a living presence in her life. It represents death, loneliness, and the loss of the warmth that once existed in the house. She longs to go to her grandmother’s house just “to peer through” and “listen to the frozen air.” Later, she says that she “picks an armful of darkness” and lies in her room “like a brooding dog.” The simile conveys the poet’s present loveless life.
The poet contrasts her past with her present life. In the grandmother’s house, she experienced unconditional love. At present, she feels emotionally neglected and lonely. She says that her loneliness has made her feel tired and hopeless. At the end, the poet admits that she is desperate for love and begs “love at stranger’s doors.” It reveals her emotional vulnerability.
The language of the poem is simple but powerful. Kamala Das uses images of darkness, silence, death, and distance to express emotional pain. The grandmother’s house represents a lost world of affection and belonging. Through this poem, the poet illustrates that when unconditional love is lost, even a familiar place can become a symbol of loneliness.
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