Saturday, September 22, 2012

Analyze one poem from The Sun and Her Flowers.

In "Accent," Rupi Kaur addresses the struggle of being from two different worlds. She uses her voice and accent to explain to a reader how something that should not have shame attached to it still can.
Kaur writes that "my voice is the offspring of two countries colliding" in reference to her heritage and living situation. As a child, she moved from India to Canada. According to The Globe and Mail, her father moved shortly after she was born and she and her mother followed 3.5 years later. So she grew up in Canada but was strongly influenced by India and the culture her parents grew up in. This is why she says that her voice comes from two different countries.
She goes on to ask what there is to be ashamed of. She grew up speaking English but speaks it with an accent like her mother. The people she grew up around—people she loved—influenced the sound of her words and the way she speaks. It's clear that in the past, someone shamed her for her accent. If they hadn't, she wouldn't say there was nothing to be ashamed of.
At the end of the poem, she says that her mouth carries two worlds and asks why it matters. Ultimately, it doesn't—unless it matters to Kaur. Her perception of herself and how she's influenced by the people around her are what count. Of course, it's possible that her self-image was influenced negatively by the opinion of people who didn't like the sound of her voice.
https://www.thecut.com/2017/10/profile-rupi-kaur-author-of-milk-and-honey.html

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/rupi-kaur-the-superpoet-of-instagram/article36516870/

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