“The Sunshine Cat” by Kamala Das line by line explanation

They did this to her, the men who know her, the man

The poem begins by introducing the woman and the various men in her life who have influenced her.

She loved, who loved her not enough, being selfish

The man she loved was selfish and did not reciprocate her love adequately.

And a coward, the husband who neither loved nor

Describes the husband as a coward who neither loved her nor fulfilled any emotional or physical connection.

Used her, but was a ruthless watcher, and the band

The husband, while not loving or using her, was watchful and possessive. The “band” refers to a group of cynics she sought solace in.

Of cynics she turned to, clinging to their chests where

The woman sought comfort from a group of cynics, holding onto them as if seeking solace in their embrace.

New hair sprouted like great-winged moths, burrowing her

Describes the men’s chests, suggesting new hair growth resembling moths, possibly symbolizing fleeting attractiveness or allure.

Face into their smells and their young lusts to forget

The woman buried her face in their scents and youthful desires, trying to forget her own emotional pain.

To forget, oh, to forget, and, they said, each of

Emphasizes her desperate attempt to forget her troubles. The men, however, express an inability to love, stating it’s not in their nature.

Them, I do not love, I cannot love, it is not

The men declare their incapacity to love, emphasizing their emotional limitations.

In my nature to love, but I can be kind to you.

Despite their inability to love, they offer kindness, suggesting a superficial form of solace.

They let her slide from pegs of sanity into

The men contribute to her mental decline, symbolized by sliding from “pegs of sanity.”

A bed made soft with tears, and she lay there weeping,

Her emotional distress is vividly depicted as she weeps on a bed softened by her tears.

For sleep had lost its use. I shall build walls with tears,

Sleep no longer provides relief. The woman contemplates building emotional walls to shield herself from further pain.

She said, walls to shut me in. Her husband shut her

The woman’s decision to construct emotional walls contrasts with her husband’s literal act of confining her.

In, every morning, locked her in a room of books

The husband confines her daily to a room filled with books, emphasizing her isolation.

With a streak of sunshine lying near the door like

Initially, there’s a streak of sunshine resembling a cat, offering a sense of warmth and companionship.

A yellow cat to keep her company, but soon

The sunshine cat symbolizes comfort but diminishes over time.

Winter came, and one day while locking her in, he

Winter symbolizes a metaphorical coldness and harshness in her life.

Noticed that the cat of sunshine was only a

The husband realizes that the comforting sunshine cat is reduced to a mere line.

Line, a half-thin line, and in the evening when

The cat of sunshine diminishes to a half-thin line, indicating the fading warmth and comfort.

He returned to take her out, she was a cold and

When he returns in the evening, she has become emotionally cold and distant.

Half dead woman, now of no use at all to men.

The poem concludes with the woman being perceived as useless to men, emphasizing the societal view based on traditional roles.