any woman Text Presentation with explanation

HIGHER SECONDARY
XII ENGLISH

UNIT 1
LESSON 2

ANY WOMAN (POEM) -
KATHARINE TYNAN

UNIT 1
FLIGHTS OF FREEDOM

• THE THREE Ls OF EMPOWERMENT

(Christine Lagarde)

• ANY WOMAN (Katharine Tynan)

• MATCHBOX (Ashapurna Debi)

• HOREGALLU (Sudha Murty)

‘ANY WOMAN’
Katharine Tynan

‘ANY WOMAN’ Katharine Tynan

Katharine Tynan (1859-1931) is
an Irish-born writer known mainly
for her novels and poetry. She has
to her credit more than a score of
novels and seven books of verse.
She usually wrote under the name
Katharine Tynan Hinkson. Her
human sympathy is keen, tender,
warm, and constant. The poem
"Any Woman" presents the all -
embracing power of a woman to
hold a family together.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

INTRODUCTION
The poem "Any Woman" presents the all - embracing

power of a woman to hold a family together.

EMBRACE = TAKE A PERSON INTO ONE’S ARMS, AS A SIGN OF AFFECTION

The role of a woman / mother in a family is
metaphorically described here.

METAPHOR = A WORD OR EXPRESSION USED TO IDENTIFY SOMEBODY OR SOMETHING WITH
ANOTHER PERSON OR THING

It also describes the selfless love of a mother.
A mother / woman is the backbone of a family.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

I am the pillars of the house;
The keystone of the arch am I.
Take me away, and roof and wall
Would fall to ruin me utterly.

Ruin = destroy
Utterly = completely

Pillar

Arch

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

Here the lady of the house
considers herself as a pillar
of the house. If the pillar is

not strong or if it is taken
away, the house will fall.
Same with the key stone of
an arch. Mother / the woman
of the house is the back bone

of the house. Without
mother, the family will not

hold together.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

1. Did you understand the
first stanza?

2. What will happen if the
keystone is removed?

3. Mention the underlying
ideas in the expression
‘pillars of the house.’

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

I am the fire upon the hearth,
I am the light of the good sun,
I am the heat that warms the earth,
Which else were colder than a stone.

Hearth = fire place

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

Here the poet says that woman is
fire, light and heat. A mother’s
affection, love and care can be

compared to the warmth given by
the sun. Without these the world
would be like a cold stone or even

worse than that.

1. Did you get the idea of these lines?
2. Pick out words which tell us of the
warmth of motherly love.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

At me the children warm their hands;
I am their light of love alive.
Without me cold the hearthstone stands,
Nor could the precious children thrive.

Precious = of great value
Thrive = grow

A mother holds her family together by her
love. The family without the love of the
mother is like a cold stone. In a family
children get warmth from the mother.
Otherwise they will die.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

I am the twist that holds together
The children in its sacred ring,
Their knot of love, from whose close tether
No lost child goes a-wandering.

Knot Sacred = holy
Tether = rope
a-wandering =
travelling without an

aim.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

I am the twist that holds together
The children in its sacred ring,
Their knot of love, from whose close tether
No lost child goes a-wandering.

Here the mother says that she binds the family and
her children together with her love. With her love
no child goes away from family.

What does the mother compare herself to?

The mother compares herself to a twist that holds
together the children in its sacred ring.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

I am the house from floor to roof,
I deck the walls, the board I spread;
I spin the curtains, warp and woof,
And shake the down to be their bed.

Warp and woof

Deck = decorate.
Spread = unfold.
Down = soft under feathers of a
bird used for pillows.
Spin = produce.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

I am the house from floor to roof,
I deck the walls, the board I spread;
I spin the curtains, warp and woof,
And shake the down to be their bed.

The mother is the most important person in a
family. She is the house itself, from floor to roof.
She decorates the wall, spins the curtains and
becomes the bed for all others to give sound sleep.

Comment on the expression ‘ from floor to roof.’ Attempt
another expression without changing the meaning.
‘From floor to roof’ means every article of the house.

‘Head to foot’, ‘top to toe’, etc are similar expressions.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

I am their wall against all danger,
Their door against the wind and snow,
Thou whom a woman laid in a manger,
Take me not till the children grow!

Manger = a long feeder from which horses or cattle feed.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

I am their wall against all danger,
Their door against the wind and snow,
Thou whom a woman laid in a manger,
Take me not till the children grow!

In this last stanza the mother states that
she protects all from calamities and
dangers. In the last two lines she prays to
Jesus Christ not to allow her to die before
her children grow up. When baby Jesus
Christ was born, Mother Mary laid Him in
manger to protect Him from cold. So He
knows the role of a mother in protecting
her children.

ANY WOMAN

1. What is the mother’s KATHARINE TYNAN
prayer?
Ans. Not to take her till her I am their wall against all danger,
children grow.
2. To Whom does she pray? Their door against the wind and snow,
Ans. To Jesus Christ, born Thou whom a woman laid in a manger,
to Mary
3. Who is the ‘woman’ Take me not till the children grow!

referred to here? In this last stanza the mother states that
Ans. Holy Mary, mother of she protects all from calamities and
Jesus Christ. dangers. In the last two lines she prays to
4. What is the symbolic Jesus Christ not to allow her to die before
significance of ‘wind and
snow’?
Ans. Troubles and dangers, her children grow up. When baby Jesus
calamities and problems, Christ was born, Mother Mary laid Him in
tragedies and diseases, etc manger to protect him from cold. So He
5. Explain in your own
words, the concluding line of
the poem. knows the role of a mother in protecting
her children.

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

Let us discuss.

1. Do you think woman is the focal
point of the family?

2. What are the qualities needed for a
woman to face challenges of life?

ANY WOMAN
KATHARINE TYNAN

Think and write

1. Analyse the theme of the poem keeping in
view the plight of women in the Indian social
scenario.

2. Identify the major figure of speech used
in the poem and describe its significance.

3. What is the quantum of work done by a
woman in a household? Can it be reduced? How?

THOMAS A A,
HSST English, GHSS
KODUNGALLUR, THRISSUR.