Name Journeys

• The title 'Name Journeys' 


  1. Poem has an inviting and soft tone towards people who too have had their own name journey. Inlusivity and readers can relate as her journey is one of many.
  2. Her name is a representation of who she is and what she has been through, and the collision of cultures she has endured.
• ''Like Rama I have felt the wilderness''


  1. Simile comparing herself to a diety symbolising a deity who embodies chivarly and virtue highlights her hardships of being cast out and exiled from her homeland and abroad.
  2. Wilderness can connote a testing ground for her identity.
• ''but I have not been blessed''

  1. Theme of isolation is first introduced as we get the first bit of romance within the anthology. She indulges in her misfortunes and doesn't shy away from the brutality of migration.
• ''with a companion as sweet as she,''

  1. Contemporary British audience are unlikely to know who Mundair is referring to, highlighting the uniqueness of this standalone poem, as Mundair indulges in her ethnic history.
• ''Sita; loyal, pure and true of heart.''


  1. Sita accompanies Rama in 14 years of exile, and acts as a comparison to the harsh treatment she faced from society. Sita would have been kind to her.
• ''Like her I have been chastened''

  1. Simile conveys a strong bond between speaker and their culture, connecting real life to Hindu stories, emphasising that her struggles has brought her closer to her religion. Sita and Rama's tale is being celebrated as a lesson that shouldn't be confined by the bounds of which religion you follow.
• ''through trial by fire. Sita and I,''


  1. Alludes to the Hindy myth where the sinful are punished and humbled through challenges, whilst the innocent are saved by Gods.
• ''spiritual sari-sisters entwined''

  1. Sibilance employed evokes a joyful tone as she finds belonging in her history. The sari is a symbol for the adversities of women and their flourishing throughout the hardships.
• ''in an infinite silk that would swathe''

  1. Metaphor when referring to the infinite silk.