Edexcel anthology poems
‘An Unknown Girl’ – Moniza Alvi
This poem is describing the poet's visit to India and the time she had her hand hennaed by
a girl in the market place. It has proved to be an experience she has never forgotten.
1. Count how many times the poet uses the phrase ‘an unknown girl’. What is
the significance of this phrase and why do you think it is repeated so many
times?
2. Alvi uses colour to highlight how she remembers this event. Write down all
the different ones that are mentioned in the poem and colour the lines of the
poem to correspond with them. What sort of colours are they? Rich? Warm?
Cold? Bright? What might the significance of this be?
3. The poet is keen to emphasise how much she remembers the country where
this happened. Are these fond or difficult memories and how do we know?
Write down all the words or phrases that tell you that this poem is set in India.
4. In lines 5–7 the poet describes the girl as if she were ‘icing’ her hand. Write
down as many reasons as you can think of as to why she has likened the
tattooing to icing. E.g. someone who ices cakes is creating patterns and
pictures …
5. Do you get any idea of what the tattoo looks like? Do you think this is
important? If so why?
6. Why do you think she has used the simile of her clinging to her tattoo like
‘people who cling to the sides of a train’?
7. What does it say about how she feels about her tattoo and the experience?
8. The henna tattoo is linked with India in the poet’s mind. What is the
significance of ‘it will fade’ and how does the poet feel about this? Can you
explain what the poet means in lines 43–46?
9. The poem isn't like some of the others in that it doesn't rhyme and hasn't got
any verses – what does this make it sound like? Sometimes the meaning of
the line ‘runs on’ to the next. Find and label and example of this. What is this
technique called?
10. Why might the poet want to write her poem like this?
Links with other poems
As this is about a memorable experience it can be linked to: ‘Miracle on St David's Day’,
‘Mid-term Break’, ‘The Barn’, and ‘I shall paint My Nails Red’.
Look at the table on the next page and decide which poems use the techniques given and
write the name of the relevant poem in the box. You can then use this grid help you to
revise by finding and adding relevant quotations from the poems.
© 2007 www.teachit.co.uk
7186.doc
Page 1 of 2
Edexcel anthology poems
Technique
Relevant poems
1. The poet looking back at a time they
or the poem’s narrator will not forget.
2. The use of first person perspective to
add immediacy and authenticity.
3. The use of colours to highlight the
event or a feeling about the event.
4. The poet describing what the light
was like when the event happened.
5. The poet or narrator remembering
specific words that were spoken at an
event.
6. The poet painting a very detailed
word picture of the event.
7. The poet changing the structure of
the verses to highlight something
about the event.
© 2007 www.teachit.co.uk
7186.doc
Page 2 of 2