The Freaks by Kamala Das - Summary
The poem written by Kamala Das, depicts the intimate moments of the narrator shared with her husband. It is a personal poem of the poetess which also shows the vacuum of emotional warmth between them, although the husband seems to be unaware of absence of love. Like her another poem The Sunshine Cat, there is a lack of chemistry between her husband and her.
She doesn't feel the love between them and only acts as a formality to engage in sex to gratify her husband. Her husband's only contention is with his sexual desire to be fulfilled and he has no other thought of knowing what she really yearns. He may be deluded by the narrator acting as enjoying sex, she is aware of his only contention with sex and she doesn't deny him. She doesn't associate with her husband and calls him "man with Nimble finger-tips". She has no expectations from him other than fulfilling her sexual needs but she wants something else which she knows that he can never grant her, emotional support.
But in her heart, she feels heartbroken because he has failed in loving her. Her heart is like a "An empty cistern". To fake the true emotions, she has to "fills itself/ With coiling snakes of silence". She admits faking a high sexual drive to hide her emotions from her indifferent husband.
Although the poem is personal but it also represents the condition of women in a highly patriarchal society like India where women are bound to serve and satisfy their husbands who don't feel the need to treat their wives at the par with them. Male chauvinist are aware of the upcoming "problems" when both sex are given equal rights. The poetess, Kamala Das had to face wrath of people who criticised her frankness.
She doesn't feel the love between them and only acts as a formality to engage in sex to gratify her husband. Her husband's only contention is with his sexual desire to be fulfilled and he has no other thought of knowing what she really yearns. He may be deluded by the narrator acting as enjoying sex, she is aware of his only contention with sex and she doesn't deny him. She doesn't associate with her husband and calls him "man with Nimble finger-tips". She has no expectations from him other than fulfilling her sexual needs but she wants something else which she knows that he can never grant her, emotional support.
But in her heart, she feels heartbroken because he has failed in loving her. Her heart is like a "An empty cistern". To fake the true emotions, she has to "fills itself/ With coiling snakes of silence". She admits faking a high sexual drive to hide her emotions from her indifferent husband.
Although the poem is personal but it also represents the condition of women in a highly patriarchal society like India where women are bound to serve and satisfy their husbands who don't feel the need to treat their wives at the par with them. Male chauvinist are aware of the upcoming "problems" when both sex are given equal rights. The poetess, Kamala Das had to face wrath of people who criticised her frankness.