Looking for a Cousin on a Swing
Looking for a Cousin on a Swing
By A.K. Ramanujan
About the Author
Attipate Krishnaswami Ramanujan (1929 – 1993) was a well-known Indian poet, scholar, and linguist. He made important contributions to Indian literature and language studies as a poet, translator, philologist, playwright, and professor. His poetry is known for its deep thoughts, unique style, and emotional power. He won the Sahitya Akademi Award and was also awarded with Padma Shri by the Government of India.
Ramanujan began his academic career as a lecturer in India. In 1962, he moved to the United States and joined the University of Chicago as an assistant professor, where he helped develop the South Asian Studies program. In the same year, he married Molly Daniels, a journalist and novelist from India. They had a son and a daughter. However, their relationship had problems. The couple separated few years before his death. Ramanujan also taught at other universities in the United States, including Harvard, the University of Michigan, and the University of California at Berkeley.
He wrote in five languages: English, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, and Sanskrit. He believed that local and less commonly used dialects should be valued in literature. He experimented with both old and modern styles in his writing. Many of his poems show the struggles between Eastern and Western cultures. For example, his poem Conventions of Despair reflects his views on cultural differences. His first poetry book, Relations, came out in 1971. Another collection, Second Sight, was published in 1986. It included the poem Waterfalls in a Bank. After his death, two more books of his work were published. The Collected Poems came out in 1995 that brought him the Sahitya Akademi Award posthumously in 1999. His Uncollected Poems and Prose was published in 2001.
Ramanujan died on 13 July 1993 in Chicago due to a reaction to anaesthesia before surgery. After his death, his work continues to influence and inspire readers and writers. His poetry and scholarly work act as a bridge between Indian and Western literature.
Paraphrase
When she was four or five
[When she was a little girl, around four or five years old,]
She sat on a village swing
[She used to sit on a swing in her village.]
And her cousin, six or seven,
[Her cousin, who was about six or seven years old,]
Sat himself against her;
[Sat close to her, leaning against her.]
With every lunge of the swing
[As the swing moved back and forth,]
She felt him
[She could feel his presence.]
In the lunging pits
[This feeling stirred something deep inside her,]
Of her feeling;
[A strange and unfamiliar sensation.]
And afterwards
[After playing on the swing,]
We climbed a tree, she said,
[She said they climbed a tree together.]
Not very tall, but full of leaves
[It wasn’t very tall, but it was covered in leaves,]
Like those of a fig tree,
[Similar to the leaves of a fig tree.]
And we were very innocent | About it.
[They were completely innocent at that time, without any deeper understanding of their actions.]
Now she looks for the swing
[Now, as an adult, she searches for a swing,]
In cities with fifteen suburbs
[Even in big cities with many suburbs.]
And tries to be innocent | About it
[She tries to hold on to that sense of innocence, but it is not easy.]
Not only on the crotch of a tree
[She remembers the tree branch,]
That looked as if it would burst
[Which seemed so full that it might break]
Under every leaf
[Under the weight of its leaves,]
Into a brood of scarlet figs
[And the leaves seemed ready to bloom into bright red figs]
If someone suddenly sneezed
[If someone so much as sneezed near them.]
Interpretation
A.K. Ramanujan’s Looking for a Cousin on a Swing is a reflective poem that focuses on themes of childhood innocence, emotional awakening, and the longing for lost purity in adulthood. The poet uses simple yet effective language and vivid imagery to show how early life experiences influence and shape our emotions and understanding as we grow up.
The poem begins with a memory from the speaker’s childhood. She was “four or five” years old and sitting on a swing in a village. Her cousin, who was “six or seven,” joined her. As the swing moved back and forth, the physical closeness between them grew that she felt deep within her consciousness. This closeness stirred emotions she couldn’t yet understand: “she felt him / in the lunging pits / of her feeling.” The swinging motion represents more than just play. It symbolises the early stages of emotional and physical awareness. The word “lunging” emphasises the swinging movement and also suggests the beginning of strong feelings. These feelings are innocent and natural, but the speaker does not fully understand them at the time.
After playing on the swing, the children climbed a tree. The speaker describes it as “not very tall, but full of leaves / like those of a fig tree.” The mention of the fig tree and its leaves carries a Biblical significance. In the Bible, Adam and Eve used fig leaves to cover themselves when they first felt ashamed of their nakedness. This moment symbolised their transition from innocence to awareness. It appears that the poet uses the fig tree and its leaves as a symbol of transformation. It represents the shift from the innocence of childhood towards the awareness and maturity of adulthood.
The speaker says, “and we were very innocent / about it.” This shows that, as children, they did not fully understand the emotions they were experiencing. They were just playing and enjoying the moment together without having some deeper thoughts or meanings. Their actions were pure and free from the worries that society imposes on adults.
The poem then shifts to the present. The speaker, now an adult, feels a strong desire to return to the simplicity and innocence of her childhood. She says, “Now she looks for the swing / in cities with fifteen suburbs.” The experience she is having in the large modern city is very different from the small village of her childhood. But she continuously longs for her earlier experiences of childhood days. She longs for the simplicity and the innocence related to childhood ignorance.
Besides, there is also an amorous undertone suggesting the intensity of physical experience, the “swing” that she had experienced with her cousin in her childhood and she wants to have the similar intense ecstasy as an adult. However, she is completely aware and conscious about the fact that she cannot have it now as a woman who understands adult experiences and therefore, she “tries to be innocent / about it.” She had already lost her innocence—her ignorance about the feeling that she had as a child while “playing” with her cousin. It is a paradox that we cease to be ignorant about something the moment we become aware of it, and cannot be ignorant about it again, no matter how badly we want to revert to prior ignorance.
As a child, she “played” with her cousin without fully understanding the emotions or implications of their actions. This lack of understanding gave the situation a kind of innocence. However, as she grew older and gained awareness of what those feelings or actions meant, the innocence attached to her ignorance disappeared. The moment we understand or become conscious of something, we cannot “un-know” it. Even if we wish to go back to the simpler, unknowing state. It is impossible because awareness changes how we perceive and remember things. Here, the poet also reflects on the irreversible nature of gaining knowledge and how it affects our perceptions and experiences permanently.
The speaker compares her feelings to a tree that looks as if it would “burst / under every leaf / into a brood of scarlet figs / if someone suddenly sneezed.” The “crotch of a tree” and the description of it “bursting under every leaf into a brood of scarlet figs” create an imagery that symbolises the fragility of her hope. The figs, overripe and ready to burst with the slightest disturbance, represent how easily the dream of reclaiming innocence can be shattered in adulthood. Even a “sneeze” can disrupt this delicate hope.
The image of the fig tree, heavy with fruits ready to burst, is a powerful symbol for the speaker’s longing for childhood innocence and how fragile that longing is in adulthood. The tree itself, with its abundance of overripe figs, suggests the passage of time and the weight of experiences accumulated over the years. The overripe figs are ready to burst with even the slightest movement. This implies that the innocence the speaker longs for exists only in her memory, in her hope, in her dream. It cannot be manifested in reality. This hope is fragile and delicate, much like the overripe fruit. In childhood, innocence is natural and unspoiled, but as time passes, experiences, responsibilities, and emotions build up, much like the ripening of fruit. Once fruit becomes overripe, it cannot return to its earlier, fresher state. Similarly, innocence, once affected by life’s complexities, cannot be fully reclaimed.
The act of bursting also suggests a sense of irreversibility. Just as a fig that bursts open cannot be restored, innocence that has been touched by the realities of adult life can never be regained. The fragility of the figs further emphasises how easily the speaker’s hope of reclaiming innocence can be disrupted. Even a small disturbance, like a sneeze, is enough to cause the fruit to burst, symbolising how trivial issues in adult life can destroy the hopes of the fleeting joy or simplicity the speaker seeks. In this way, the image of the fig tree shows that innocence is not only fragile but also deeply tied to a specific time in life. It cannot withstand the weight of adult experiences and remains beyond the speaker’s reach, no matter how much she longs for it.
To sum up, the poem’s main idea is that childhood innocence is fleeting and cannot be fully recaptured in adulthood. The swing symbolises the purity of childhood, while the sprawling city represents the complexities of adult life. The speaker’s search for the swing shows her longing for the simple, carefree emotions she once had. The fig tree and its ripe fruits also symbolise this loss of innocence. The bursting figs suggest how adult feelings are more intense, complicated, and harder to manage. The poem shows that early experiences shape our emotions and relationships. However, the simplicity and purity of those experiences cannot be reclaimed as life becomes more complicated.
Themes
- The fleeting nature of childhood innocence
- The awakening of emotional and physical awareness
- The simplicity and purity of childhood experiences
- The complexities and burdens of adult life
- The longing to reclaim lost innocence
- The fragility and irreversibility of hope tied to innocence
- The transformative impact of early experiences on later life
Form and Structure
The form and structure of the poem contribute significantly to its meaning and emotional impact. Some of the important elements used in the poem are:
Free Verse
The poem is written in free verse, meaning it does not follow a specific rhyme scheme or metre. This allows the poet to focus on the flow of thoughts and emotions rather than being constrained by traditional poetic forms. The lack of rhyme or rhythm mirrors the fluidity of memory and the speaker’s reflective tone.
Line Lengths and Enjambment
The lines are of varying lengths, and many sentences spill over into the next line without a pause (enjambment). This irregularity reflects the natural, unstructured flow of memories and emotions. For example:
“Now she looks for the swing / in cities with fifteen suburbs / and tries to be innocent / about it.”
The continuation of ideas across lines mirrors the speaker’s unresolved longing for her childhood innocence.
Fragmented Narrative
The poem moves between past and present, creating a fragmented narrative. It begins with a vivid memory of childhood, shifts to a symbolic description of innocence, and ends with the speaker’s adult longing for simplicity. This structure mirrors how memory works—jumping between vivid moments and present emotions.
Stanza Organisation
The poem does not have traditional stanzas. Instead, it is divided into two distinct parts. The first part focuses on the speaker’s childhood experience on the swing and in the tree, filled with innocence and playfulness. The second part shifts to the adult perspective, where the speaker reflects on her longing for the simplicity and innocence of those childhood moments. This division depicts the contrast between the purity of childhood and the complexity of adulthood.
Tone and Pacing
The tone of the poem is reflective and nostalgic. The irregular structure and free verse create a conversational pacing, as if the speaker is recounting her memories and feelings directly to the reader.
Symbolic Imagery and Repetition
The repeated references to the swing and the fig tree provide structural anchors for the poem. These symbols connect the childhood innocence of the past with the adult’s longing in the present, giving the poem a cohesive thematic structure.
Literary Devices
Imagery
Imagery is a literary device where the poet uses words and descriptions to create vivid pictures in the reader’s mind. This device appeals to the senses—sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell. It helps the reader imagine and feel the experiences described in the poem.
In the lines:
“with every lunge of the swing / she felt him / in the lunging pits / of her feeling,”
the poet uses imagery to describe both the physical and emotional sensations of swinging. The word “lunge” gives a sense of movement, as if the swing is pushing forward and backward. The phrase “lunging pits of her feeling” suggests an emotional depth, as if the swinging motion awakens some strong and confusing emotions inside her. This imagery helps readers imagine a young girl enjoying the simple act of swinging while feeling emotions she does not fully understand.
Another example of imagery is found in the description of the tree:
“a tree… full of leaves like those of a fig tree.”
Here, the poet gives a detailed image of the tree. By comparing its leaves to those of a fig tree, the reader can clearly imagine the scene exactly the way the poet wants. It should be noted that the poet used fig tree to describe the tree. Fig tree is often associated with fertility in Biblical tradition. The poet wants readers to imagine the tree to be a fig tree about which he later says that it “would burst…into a brood of scarlet figs,” again asserting the connotation of fertility and adulthood.
Symbolism
Symbolism is a literary device where objects, actions, or ideas represent deeper meanings beyond their literal sense. In this poem, the poet uses various symbols to highlight themes like innocence, growing up, and the loss of simplicity in adulthood.
One of the most important symbols in the poem is the swing. In the line:
“she sat on a village swing,”
the swing represents the carefree and joyful nature of childhood. It symbolises innocence, freedom, and the simplicity of a child’s world. However, as the poem progresses, the absence of the swing in adulthood shows the loss of this innocence and the carefree days. The speaker’s search for the swing in the adult world suggests a longing to regain the simplicity of childhood, which is now impossible.
Another significant symbol is the tree described in the lines:
“a tree… not very tall, but full of leaves / like those of a fig tree.”
The tree is a symbol of growth and transformation. Its description links to the Biblical story of Adam and Eve, where the fig tree represents the moment they gained awareness and lost their innocence. Similarly, in the poem, the tree stands for the transition from the pure, innocent world of childhood to the more aware, complex world of adulthood.
The bursting figs mentioned in:
“a brood of scarlet figs / if someone suddenly sneezed,”
symbolise fragility and the irreversible nature of innocence. The bright, red figs “bursting” open suggest that once innocence is lost, it cannot be restored. This vivid image highlights how the adult world, with its responsibilities and realities, has replaced the simplicity of childhood. Through symbolism, the poet provides a deeper meaning to the poem. The swing, the tree, and the figs go beyond their physical descriptions and convey important ideas about life’s inevitable transformations that leave us nostalgic.
Alliteration
Alliteration is a literary device where the same consonant sound is repeated at the start of two or more nearby words.
Note: It is important to note that alliteration is about the repetition of sounds, not letters. This means that the consonant sound at the beginning of the words must be the same, even if the letters are different.
There are a series of alliterative lines that can found in the poem such as:
When she was four or five
she sat on a village swing
and her cousin, six or seven,
sat himself against her;
Assignment
Find other examples of alliteration in the poem.
Paradox
A paradox is a statement or idea that seems contradictory or impossible at first but reveals a deeper truth when examined closely. In this poem, a paradox can be seen in the line:
“tries to be innocent about it.”
This line implies a conflict: the speaker is now an adult and fully aware of her feelings, yet she tries to recapture the innocence of her childhood emotions. However, true innocence comes from not knowing or fully understanding something. Once we become aware or gain knowledge, we cannot go back to being innocent about it.
When the speaker was a child, she says, “we were very innocent about it,” referring to her time playing on the swing and climbing the tree with her cousin. At that time, she did not fully understand the emotions or sensations she was experiencing. Her actions were pure and without deeper thought. Now, as an adult, she looks back at those memories with full awareness of what they might mean. She longs to feel the same way she did as a child, but she cannot “un-know” or forget what she has learned as an adult. This creates a paradox: she wants to experience those moments with the same innocence, but her adult awareness makes it impossible.
This paradox is further highlighted in the description of the fig tree:
“a tree… that looked as if it would burst / under every leaf / into a brood of scarlet figs / if someone suddenly sneezed.”
The tree’s readiness to burst shows how delicate and fragile her hope of reclaiming innocence is. Even a small disturbance, like a sneeze, can disrupt it. This reflects how adulthood, with its complexities and responsibilities, does not allow her to return to the simplicity of childhood.
The paradox in this poem reflects a universal truth: once we gain awareness, we cannot reverse it. Just as we cannot “unlearn” something, we cannot return to a state of pure innocence once it is lost. The speaker tries to reclaim that feeling, but the knowledge she now has makes it unattainable. Thus, the paradox in the poem underlines the conflict between the speaker’s longing to return to innocence and her inability to do so because of her adult awareness. It reflects the irreversible nature of gaining knowledge and how it permanently changes our perception of life.
Enjambment
Enjambment is a literary device where a sentence or idea continues from one line of poetry to the next without a pause or punctuation. This technique creates a flow in the poem that mirrors the natural rhythm of thoughts or emotions. It often helps to maintain the desired momentum of the poem, making it feel continuous or broken as well as reflective.
In the poem, enjambment is used to convey the speaker’s ongoing longing and unresolved feelings about her childhood innocence. For example:
“Now she looks for the swing / in cities with fifteen suburbs / and tries to be innocent / about it.”
Here, the idea of searching for the swing flows across several lines without a full stop or comma, just as the speaker’s longing flows through her thoughts and memories. This technique reflects how her desire for childhood simplicity is persistent and uninterrupted, much like the emotions she cannot escape. The lack of punctuation also allows the lines to blend together, creating a sense of continuity between past and present. It emphasises how the speaker’s memories of the swing from her childhood remain intertwined with her adult life. The enjambment mirrors her inability to separate the two completely. Besides, this fluidity in the poem echoes the swinging motion itself—back and forth, just like the movement of her thoughts between past innocence and present awareness.
By employing enjambment, the poet accentuates the reflective tone thereby enhancing the reader’s understanding of the speaker’s inner conflict and emotional struggle. It draws the reader into the flow of her thoughts, making the longing and gravity of her feelings more vivid and relatable.
Assignment
Find other examples of enjambment in the poem.
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