Here’s a full breakdown of ‘Search for My Tongue’ by Sujata Bhatt, tailored towards GCSE / IGCSE students but also useful for those studying at a higher level. Enjoy!
Includes:
VOCABULARY
STORY/SUMMARY
SPEAKER/VOICE
LANGUAGE
STRUCTURE/FORM
CONTEXT
THEMES
“You ask me what I mean
by saying I have lost my tongue.”
(Full poem unable to be reproduced due to copyright)
VOCABULARY
Mother tongue - The language that you grew up with / the first language you
learned to speak.
Foreign tongue - A language spoken by people who are not from your native
country.
STORY / SUMMARY
The speaker talks directly to an unnamed addressee - we don’t know if she’s got a
specific person in mind, but we assume it is addressed to all of us English speakers.
She says she has ‘lost her tongue’ and asks us to imagine having two tongues in our
mouth - the second being parasitic and eventually taking over the place of the first.
She explains that she has lost her first tongue but doesn’t fully feel comfortable with
the other - this demonstrates an inability to fully communicate or express herself
properly. Her change of location has caused the original tongue to ‘rot and die’.
There is a volta beginning with the line ‘but overnight while I dream’, where the poem
shifts in tone - we realise that in her imagination and her subconscious, the original
tongue (language) grows back, powerfully like a spring flower, and eventually it
‘blossoms’ out of her mouth.
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller natashatabani. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for £4.49. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
