Back to: Karnataka Board Class 10th Notes
Table of Contents
Introduction
The poem ’I am the Land’ is written by Marina de Bellagenta. In this poem, the earth speaks to the people. The people buy the land and say they own it. They shout but the earth lies patiently. The earth imagines itself with muddy holes and cars parked on with lights on as its staring eyes.
Stanza 1
“I am the land. I wait. You say you own me, I wait.”
The poetess wants to describe the patience of the earth. The earth is personified and like a mother, she can tolerate all sorts of violations. The earth is the first person in the poem and expresses the things it tolerates. In the first stanza, she explains the man thinks that they own the earth and she simply waits.
Stanza 2
“You shout. I lie patient you buy me, I wait with muddy holes and car lot eyes I stare…….”
People shout and proclaim the earth to be theirs but she lies patiently. People buy land, drill holes that become muddy, and cars drive over her yet the mother earth patiently waits and stares at these things.
Stanza 3
“Then someone tickles me, plants life … fruit grass… trees/ children dance/someone sings.”
The earth then expresses that any random person comes and plows her and plants trees, and she in return gives them fruits, grass, trees, etc. This makes people happy and children dance and some sing out of joy
Stanza 4
“You come with guns a chainlink necklace chokes me now”
When people try to create boundaries and soldiers come with guns and put a fence on her and fight with each other which results in war to claim the land, such circumstances choke and suffocate the mother earth and cause her injury.
Stanza 5
“I wait. YOU CANNOT PUT A FENCE AROUND THE PLANET EARTH I am the land. I wait.”
Though mother earth suffers a lot because of humans, she patiently tolerates and challenges man that he cannot put a fence around the planet earth. Earth as a whole planet is huge and man will not be able to put a fence all over as it is impossible. She thus patiently waits for men to realize the hurt they are causing her as she is the mother, the land.
Conclusion
In the poem ‘I am the land’ the poet says that the mother earth has an ocean of patience. Man uses land in many ways but she lies patiently. People do many activities and disturb the land. Chain-link necklace chokes and suffocates her. But the land’s self-assertion is that man cannot put a fence around the planet earth. Man can’t get control over the land. In front of man, the land is always supreme.
In this poem earth is the speaker. Earth is speaking to the reader. Man thinks that he owns the earth. People buy land, drill holes. People put fences, soldiers fight with guns, which chokes the land. When people plow her, she gives fruits and flowers. Some come with guns and try to fence her. But people do not know that no one can fence her. She can punish the people. But earth waits patiently for men to realize.
