Search For My Tongue, a poem by Sujata Bhatt. 10 GCSE exam essay quotes, fully analysed for language, structure and form. There’s even a line-by-line translation and more! – perfect for your GCSE exam or essay!
Congratulations! You hit the GCSE analysis jackpot! Keep reading… here’s everything you need to smash your GCSE or iGCSE English Literature exam…
What is the poem about?
At the beginning of Search For My Tongue, Sujata appears to be asked what she means by someone when she struggles to communicate. During the poem, she asks readers what they would do if they spoke another language and were trying to juggle them both like her. During the poem, she also reveals her fears about losing her native language, culture and identity. However, she realises that her native language is part of her identity and culture and its beauty will not fade away.
What is the purpose?
To explore the following issues.
- The difficulties of immigrant life
- Belonging and acceptance
- Challenges of knowing multiple languages
- Fears of losing culture in a foreign land
- A foreigner can never fully know a new language
- The beauty of a native language
- Emotional connection to one’s native language
- The struggle between fitting in and keeping one’s heritage identity
- The internal conflict of adapting to a new culture
- The sense of loss and missing one’s homeland
- The strength of cultural identity despite outside pressures
What is the message of the poem Search For My Tongue?
The message of Search For My Tongue is that the connection to a native language is a natural part of a person that can never be forgotten because it forms part of their culture, identity and DNA.
LINE-BY-LINE TRANSLATION: Search For My Tongue by Sujata Bhatt
Click on the arrow under each poem stanza to reveal the translation. Each matching line is numbered to help you.
TIP: try to work out how and why the translation is connected to the original line. Notice what words have been swapped. This will help you in the future when you have to understand unseen poems in your GCSE exam.
Search For My Tongue by Sujata Bhatt
- You ask me what I mean
- by saying I have lost my tongue.
- I ask you, what would you do
- if you had two tongues in your mouth,
- and lost the first one, the mother tongue,
- and could not really know the other,
- the foreign tongue.
- You could not use them both together
- even if you thought that way.
- And if you lived in a place you had to
- speak a foreign tongue,
- your mother tongue would rot,
- rot and die in your mouth
- until you had to spit it out.
- I thought I spit it out
- but overnight while I dream,
Click for Translation
- You (an English speaker) mock me
- You claim I can’t find the words (to speak English).
- I ask you (speaker of one language), what would you do
- if you spoke two languages,
- and forgot the first one, the native language,
- And was struggling culturally to understand the other,
- the foreign language.
- It’s hard to speak them both at the same time
- even if you think in both languages.
- And if you also tried to live abroad
- And were forced to speak a second language,
- your native language would fade,
- fade and die in your mouth
- until you too couldn’t find the words.
- I thought I had lost my native language
- but overnight while I dream,
- Munay hutoo kay aakhee jeebh aakhee bhasha.
- May thoonky nakhi chay.
- Parantoo rattray svupnama mari bhasha pachi aavay chay.
- Foolnee jaim mari bhasha mari jeebh
- Modhama kheelay chay
- fullnee jaim mari bhasha mari je
- modhama pakay chay
Click for Translation
- (In Gujarati) I once thought the whole tongue was the whole language.
- I have spit it out.
- But at night, in my dreams, my language returns.
- Like a flower, my language (in) my tongue
- Blooms in my mouth
- Like a flower, my language (in) my mouth
- Ripens
- it grows back, a stump of a shoot
- grows longer, grows moist, grows strong veins,
- it ties the other tongue in knots,
- the bud opens, the bud opens in my mouth,
- it pushes the other tongue aside.
- Everytime I think I’ve forgotten,
- I think I’ve lost the mother tongue,
- it blossoms out of my mouth.
Click for Translation
- My native language starts to come back, it grows slowly like a plant
- returns, becomes more fluid/ fluent, gains strength,
- it is stronger than the new language,
- the words form naturally from my roots, words form in my mouth,
- it becomes my main language again.
- Every time I think I’ve forgotten,
- I think I’ve lost my native language,
- it reappears like a beautiful flower in my speech
IMAGE: “You ask me what I mean by saying I have lost my tongue.“
– Search For My Tongue
Grade 9 GCSE Language Analysis Paragraph Example
Here’s the first quote from our quotes table below written up as a short paragraph to show you how amazing your answers could be if you use the information in this guide.
How does Sujata Bhatt use language in Search For My Tongue?
Example Exam or Essay Paragraph
In the poem Search for my tongue, Bhatt implies that speaking two languages is difficult in, “if you had two tongues.” The use of the conditional verb “if” addresses English readers in the UK and highlights that many of them only speak one language by assuming they only speak one language. Furthermore, the metaphor “two tongues,” which means to be bi-lingual, creates an almost grotesque image that readers would find unnatural, alien and almost impossible to manage because of the conflict that is implied.
Right, now it’s time for you to get your hands on all those beautiful GCSE quotes…
LANGUAGE QUOTES.
| EVDENCE | ANALYSIS |
| lost my tongue | Wordplay “lost my tongue” – the poet uses the phrase in [2] different ways: [1] Idiom: “lost my tongue” – to ‘lose one’s tongue’ means to be temporarily unable to speak because of fear or other emotions. This suggests speaking in a foreign language is fearful and embarrassing. Idioms are figurative/metaphorical phrases that do not mean what they say and can only really be understood with extra knowledge about the new culture. The poet believes that she lacks this cultural understanding. This idea, which depicts the difficulty of learning a language, is explored later in the poem in “could not really know the other.” [2] Metaphor: “lost my tongue” – “tongue” implies she has lost her language – Sujata Bhatt uses the idiom incorrectly on purpose to portray how communication can become confused between a native and non-native speaker who does not yet understand the new foreign culture. Rather than the widely accepted meaning above in [1], she has used it to mean she ‘has forgotten to speak in her original language of Gujarati.’ |
| if you had two tongues | Conditional Verb: “if”– the poet addresses white English readers in the UK and highlights that many of them only speak one language by assuming they only speak one language. Metaphor: “two tongues” – to be bi-lingual (speak two languages) – creates an almost grotesque image that readers would find unnatural, alien and almost impossible to manage because of the conflict that is implied. |
| mother tongue would rot, rot and die | Personification/ idiom: “mother tongue” – means native language – “Mother” depicts language as part of cultural identity through connotations of family suggesting a duty to keep culture alive. Therefore, in Search For My Tongue, Bhatt is anxious about losing her native language because she feels it is part of her culture and identity. “Mother” also represents safety and comfort which depicts speaking another language is uncomfortable and scary. Repetition of emotive verb: “rot” – implies the idea of culture perishing is gruesome to her. Personification “die” – her culture is a living thing to which she is emotionally attached. Forgetting and neglecting her language would be like murdering her culture. |
| grows longer, grows moist, grows strong veins | Triplet “grows” – has connotations of nature therefore her native language is a natural part of her. The imagery of language as a living plant also has connotations of roots which is usually used to describe culture. This common idea of ‘cultural roots’ strongly links culture to a specific region of land somewhere in the world suggesting that identity, language and culture take root like a tree. Search For My Tongue could also reveal that the poet feels uprooted and far away from her own culture. Metaphor: “moist” – has connotations of being fluid and free-flowing which implies she is regaining her fluency in her native language as she sleeps. Metaphor: “veins” – Has connotations of blood, identity and the heritage of a family tree. In Search For My Tongue, Bhatt suggests her culture flows into and feeds the life of her native language, preventing it from dying out. |
| it blossoms out of my mouth | Metaphor “blossoms” – present her native language as a beautiful flower whilst reinforcing her previous ideas about it being a natural part of her identity and culture. |
If you want to learn more about analysing LANGUAGE, visit our incredible GCSE English Language Analysis | EASY Grade 9 Guide
FORM AND STRUCTURE QUOTES.
| FORM: Free Verse Poem | There is no rhyme scheme which creates a conversational tone which is suitable to the poet’s discussion of her personal thoughts and feelings about the intimate nature of her identity and culture. |
| STRUCTURE: could not really know the other… could not use them both together | Repetition: “could not” links together her repeating idea that knowing one culture can block full understanding of another. “really know” – the poet implies that a foreign language cannot be fully learnt because a foreigner is unable to fully understand the new culture. This is a controversial view that is discussed in the Gold Ideas section below. “use them both” – the poet also controversially suggests that two languages cannot be used together. However, she contradicts herself by writing the poem in two different languages that could be understood by someone who speaks both languages. Additionally, it is common for bi-lingual people to switch between two languages mid-sentence when addressing other bi-lingual people. |
| STRUCTURE: Stanza 2 is written in Gujarati. | The poet’s Gujarati language suddenly and naturally returns to her “overnight” in her sleep” as if by magic. Search For My Tongue reinforces the idea of native language being a permanent and effortless part of a person. Additionally, Bhatt hopes to create empathy, by suddenly and unexpectedly plunging English speaking readers into ignorance which forces them to experience the same discomfort and insecurity she feels as an immigrant trying to understand a foreign language. They are unable to understand the whole of Search For My Tongue unless they humble themselves and try to explore her culture as she explores theirs. |
| STRUCTURE: ties the other tongue in knots… it pushes the other tongue aside | Idiom “ties …in knots” – the poet uses two different idioms at the same time. “ties …in knots” – means to overpower or frustrate an opponent. It also links to the idiom “tongue tied” which means temporarily being unable to speak clearly. In Search For My Tongue, rather than withering away, the native language overpowers the new foreign language that she is forced to use everyday in her new land. Personification “ties… pushes” – these verbs reinforce that her native language is more powerful than her new language because it is more strongly rooted in her culture and identity. |
If you want to learn more about analysing STRUCTURE, visit our incredible GCSE English Structure Analysis | EASY Grade 9 Guide
Need to learn about analysing Form? Visit our incredible GCSE English Form Analysis | EASY Beginner’s Grade 9 Guide.
Now, back to this guide…
IMAGE: “Munay hutoo kay aakhee jeebh aakhee bhasha (I once thought the whole tongue was the whole language).”
– Search For My Tongue – Sujata Bhatt.
CONTEXT and Grade 9 ‘GOLD IDEAS’.
| What is culture? | In the poem Search For My Tongue, Bhatt appears to believe that culture is mainly influenced by where someone is born. In 1988, as an immigrant to the UK she stated that she “could never really know” British culture and therefore could never really speak her new language. Through this, the poet implies that culture is fixed and constant and that all people within a culture are the same. Sujata At the time of writing, Bhatt believed that she could not truly belong to a different culture that seemed alien to her. However, this idea of culture as fixed is less widely believed as levels of discrimination slowly reduce and acceptance of multicultural society increases in the twenty-first century. The new perspective argues that, because people are individuals, they only share a small section of their identity with other people of the same national culture (e.g. British). We are complicated beings and generally have more differences than similarities. Each one of us is a unique mixture of what we believe, who we socialise with, where we live, where our ancestors came from, our personal interests and so much more. As an additional point, just as British culture is not fixed, the English language is also spoken in a variety of different accents in different parts of Britain. Therefore, from a modern perspective, Bhatt’s view of culture is very narrow. However her views are understandable in the context of 1988 when discrimination and exclusion would have forced immigrants to feel as if they were outsiders. Being in a new country can be intimidating and this is still true even in modern society as concerns over UK immigration have grown. Though there are additional pressures on immigrants, the reality is that we all struggle to fit in and belong to the society and culture that we are supposedly part of. We question our differences because we wrongly think everybody else is exactly the same as each other and that we are not included. Actually, we’re just a society of incredible individuals that share some similarities. It’s our uniqueness that makes life so interesting. Therefore, when Imitiaz Dharker claims he can never really speak English because she can never really know the new culture, it could be argued that no one ever fully understands a culture because everyone is different. She could learn enough to communicate as well as anyone. |
If you want to learn more about analysing STRUCTURE, visit our incredible GCSE English Structure Analysis | EASY Grade 9 Guide
Need to learn about analysing Form? Visit our incredible GCSE English Form Analysis | EASY Beginner’s Grade 9 Guide.
Now, back to this guide…
IMAGE: “what would you do if you had two tongues in your mouth”
– Search For My Tongue – Sujata Bhatt.
Possible GCSE English Literature Exam Questions
In each case below, don’t forget to explore how language (techniques and keywords), structure and form create a dramatic image. Some exam boards may require you to discuss context too (see our notes above) – make sure you check with your teacher or on the examination board website in the specification.
| Discuss how Sujata Bhatt explores the theme of identity in Search for My Tongue. | The poem Search For My Tongue (and the analysis above) focuses on Sujata Bhatt’s concerns over losing her native language and how that links to loss of culture and her sense of identity. You could be asked about all three of these ideas together or separately. Just remember that they are all linked and that you will need to discuss native language, culture and identity together to help explain your ideas regardless of what you are asked. Use the quote tables above to find language, structure and form quotes to help you. Remember to keep your answer focused on whichever one they actually ask you about! |
