New Year

-          Parijat (1934-1993)

(Translated by Padma Devkota)

I. Literal Comprehension

            Context: This poem is written by Parijat, Nepal (1934-1993).

            When the speaker sees the strongly blowing wind, the bright and hot sun, the flitting nightingale, and the buds of the bottlebrush, she knows that New Year has come. But her enthusiasm and happiness at the arrival of the New Year day vanishes when she sees the mason wasps returning to their nests and her own black and smoky ceiling of her room. Then, she realizes that she is poor and remembers her unfulfilled old dreams. At that moment, she wishes to change everything around her.

II. Interpretation

            The poem might be trying to tell us that one’s poverty deprives one of celebration and happiness. It has depicted the cruel adversity that a poor has to go through in his or her life. Though the poor want to celebrate the New Year day and get happiness, they cannot because they live in a house with a sooty ceiling.

III. Critical Thinking

            The poem is written in free verse style using simple and lucid language. Very beautifully, it has presented a poor person’s anguish for not being able to celebrate New Year and share happiness. The poem has taken the side of the poor, and has presented the bleak future for them.  

IV. Assimilation

            After reading the poem, I have understood why the poor are often unhappy. They are unhappy because they have many unfulfilled dreams.