Page 194 - DENG201_ENGLISH_II

English - II

Notes The poem is remembered particularly for its ‘memorable close’ - me last three lines:
My Mother only said
Thank God the scorpion picked on me
And spared my children.
The use of the restricted adverb ‘only’ distinguishes the mother from the peasants, the father and the
holy man. The, other does not blame God but she thanks God because the scorpion stung her and
spared her children. Her agony would have been greater if any of her children were bitten. Ultimately,
it assumes universal dimensions. The poet throws light on the selfless lore of the Indian mother.

Self-Assessment
1. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
“I remember the night my mother. He risked the rain again”.
(i) Who does “he” refer to?
(ii) Why did he come inside the house? Where did he hide?
(iii) Why does the poet refer to his tail as diabolic?

12.3 Summary

• “Night of the scorpion” is a poem that can be understood at two levels at one level, the poet
describes how, on a rainy day the narrator’s mother is bitten by a scorpion and what are the chain
reactions to it. At another level, it depicts the India ethos and cultured richness through a simple
incident and epitomizes the typical Indian motherhood which depicts sacrifice and affection.
• The narrator remembers the night when the scorpion had bitten his mother. The heavy rain
had driven the scorpion to crawl under a sack of rice and unexpectedly had bitten his mother’s
toe; flashing its devilish tail and parting with its poison.
• The peasants or villages came into their hut “like swarms of flies” to sympathize with the
family. The neighbours buzzed the name of god hoping to paralyse the scorpion as they believed
that if the mother moved the poison would spread. They searched for the scorpion with candles
and lanterns. They clicked their tongues that the mother’s sufferings may decrease “the
misfortunes of her next birth”. They also prayed that the sum of evil may be balanced in this
unreal world against the sum of good that she had done. They prayed that the poison would
purify her of her desires and ambitions.
• All the people sat around, the mother in the centre, while she continued to groan and twist with
pain, on the mat.
• The narrators father who was normally a rationalist and a practical man, also gave in to the
superstitious beliefs of the villages and joined them in their cursing and praying then putting a
mixture of powders and herbs on her toe, a little paraffin on the bite and lit it with a match -
hoping to burn the poison away. The narrator saw his mother’s toe on fire and must have felt
afraid. A holy man, the priest, performed some rites’ to probably tame the poison. Only after
(20) twenty hours did the poison subside the mother was relieved of the pain, and thanked god
that the scorpion bit her and spared her children.
• The poem thus brings out the mother’s love and sacrificial thoughts - the maternal instinct, as
well as beautifully describes the superstitions and ignorant practices followed by the villagers.
The title of the poem thus is very deceptive, as it does not focus on the scorpion at all.

12.4 Key-Words

1. Incarnation : embodied in flesh or taking on flesh
2. Ingenuity : It is the quality of being clever, original and inventive, often in the process of
applying ideas to solve problems of meet challenges
3. Craftmanship : A man who practices a craft with great skill

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