The Bangle Sellers

📖 Poem Overview

  • Poet: Sarojini Naidu

  • Theme: Celebration of Indian womanhood through bangles

  • Focus: Different types and colors of bangles represent different stages in a woman’s life — childhood, maidenhood, marriage, and motherhood.

  •  The poem blends beauty, tradition, and emotion.


🧠 Stanza-wise Explanation (Simple Points)

🟣 Stanza 1 – The Bangle Sellers' Call

  • The sellers go to the market, offering bangles.

  • Bangles are “bright for happy daughters and wives” — showing joy and tradition.

  • They describe their bangles as rainbow-tinted circles of light — shiny, colorful, and magical.

🔵 Stanza 2 – Bangles for Maidens

  • Bangles are silver and blue like mountain mist — calm and dreamy.

  • These suit young, unmarried girls, full of dreams and hopes.

  • Represents their innocence and purity.

🔴 Stanza 3 – Bangles for Brides

  • Bangles are bright red, rich like fire or corn — symbolizing marriage and love.

  • Red and yellow bangles show the joy of being a new bride.

  • The bride leaves her home and walks into a new life.

🟢 Stanza 4 – Bangles for Mothers

  • Bangles are purple and gold-flecked grey — mature and graceful.

  • These suit middle-aged women, who have served and sacrificed, and are now proud mothers.

  • They symbolize strength, love, and motherhood.


✍️ Form and Meter

  • Form: Lyric poem with four stanzas

  • Lines: Each stanza has 6 lines

  • Rhyme Scheme: AABCCB

  • Meter: Mostly iambic (da-DUM rhythm), musical and rhythmic


Poetic Devices

  1. Metaphor:

    • “Rainbow-tinted circles of light” = Bangles as symbols of joy and beauty

    • Bangles represent life stages of women

  2. Simile:

    • “Silver and blue as the mountain mist”

    • “Flushed like the buds that dream of bloom”

  3. Alliteration:

    • “Silver and blue as the mountain mist”

    • “Some are flushed with the flame of her marriage fire”

  4. Imagery:

    • Vivid pictures of colors, life, emotions, and traditions

  5. Symbolism:

    • Bangles = Indian woman’s identity and emotional journey

  6. Personification:

    • Buds that “dream” of blooming (gives nature human-like emotion)


🌟 Themes

  • Stages of womanhood – Maiden, bride, wife, and mother

  • Tradition and culture – Role of bangles in Indian life

  • Femininity and celebration – Women's inner strength and beauty

  • Color and emotion – Feelings expressed through color and imagery



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