Amanda- Important Extra Questions – Long Answer Type

Amanda

 By Robin Klein

Important Long/ Detailed Answer Type Questions- to be answered in about 100 -150 words each

1. Is Amanda’s attitude a typical teenage behaviour? What is the lesson for parents from this poem?

Ans. Amanda’s attitude is typical of a teenager. Teenagers can be rebellious and apparently hot-headed with a highly independent perspective. In such circumstances, yelling at them and nagging them, as done in the poem with Amanda, will only make matters worse. Forcing decisions on them only make them more detached as we see in Amanda’s case, where she wishes to be a love mermaid, an orphan or the lonely Rapunzel. She doesn’t want to listen to anyone.

2. Bringing up teenagers can be both a challenge and fun. How far do you agree? Express your views with reference to Amanda’s life.

Ans. Bringing up teenagers is truly challenging and fun. Teenagers can be rebellious and apparently hot-headed with a highly independent perspective. In such circumstances, yelling at them, and nagging them, as done in the poem with Amanda, will only make matters worse. Forcing decisions on them only make them more detached, as we see in Amanda’s case, where she wishes to be the alone mermaid, an orphan, or the lonely Rapunzel. To make things fun, one must become a friend where needed. Sometimes, one needs to just ‘chill’ with one’s kids!

3. What does the girl yearn for? What does this poem tell you about Amanda?

Ans. Most of the children feel that they are controlled and instructed not to do one thing or the other by their parents. So, the child or the girl yearns for freedom, to live her life peacefully, in her own way. Nobody should give her any instructions and tell her what to do and what not to?

Amanda also thinks so. She is fed up getting instructions and being nagged by her mother. She wants to escape all this. She is a moody, imaginative girl who loves fantasy and wants to live in her world of imagination.

Q4. What picture do you form of Amanda’s mother/parents after reading the poem `Amanda’?

Ans. Amanda’s mother seems to be an overprotective mother. She believes that Amanda is still a girl and must live her life as her mother wants. Being a girl, she needs constant tutoring and taking instructions from her. She should be very careful the way she sits and stands. She should not bend down but sit up straight. She forbids her eating chocolate as it would not be good for her pimples. Her constant nagging leads her daughter far away from her. Amanda escapes into the world of dreams imagining herself a mermaid, an orphan or a fairy. She doesn’t look at her mother while she is speaking to her. Amanda’s mother fails to understand why her daughter remains unhappy and moody. She only asks her to stop sulking lest people should blame her mother for nagging her.

Q5. Why does Amanda escape into the dreamy world of mermaids, fairies and orphans? Does she find any solace there?

Ans. Amanda is a teenager. Like all teenagers, she loves freedom. She wants to lead her own kind of life. She doesn’t want to be an overprotected child. Nor does she want that her parents should control and guide her activities. What she should do and what not is her own choice. She should not be dictated by her mother. Mother’s constant nagging leads her away from her. She creates a world of her own. Her world is not the world of harsh realities but it is an imaginary world of fairies and mermaids. There she finds solace as she can wander in a lonely island blissfully like a mermaid. She can enjoy freedom by roaming around the streets like an orphan. She craves to live in a lonely tower leading a peaceful life like Rapunzel. She avoids her mother as she doesn’t like her constant nagging. She even doesn’t look at her while she is speaking to her.

Want to Read More Check Below:-

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Amanda- About the Author & Introduction

Amanda- Central Idea & Style of the Poem

Amanda- Short & Detailed Summary

Amanda- Value Points of the Poem

Amanda- Summary in Hindi – Full Text

Amanda- Comprehension Passages

Amanda- Multiple Choice Questions in Quiz

Amanda- Extract Based comprehension test Questions

Amanda- Important Extra Questions- Very Short Answer Type

Amanda- Important Extra Questions – Short Answer Type

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