Rohan M
How has the poet portrayed child labour in the poem?
“Carpet-Weavers, Morocco,” written by Carol Rumens, vividly depicts child labour, poverty, and inequality amongst people today. Rumens uses several literary features to sympathize, but not empathize with the children suffering through child labour.
The “Carpet-weavers,” being children, live in poor countries, and are unpaid. The children, who are referred to in this poem, are compared to the children who have a normal life – those who come from a richer family. The first line itself refers to “another world.” Though the clear meaning of the word is not known at first, we can understand later in the poem that the word suggests a place that other children live in; a better life. The depiction of inequality prevails throughout the poem. The simile, “They watch their flickering knots like television,” shows inequality in the world. Television is what richer children watch as entertainment. However, the young carpet-weavers consider watching their work like television – for long never-ending hours – as their only form of entertainment. “As the garden of Islam grows,” is one of the most important lines in the poem, and it makes use of a key literary device – irony. Morocco is an Islamic country, and the Islamic religion speaks of equality. In addition, “garden of Islam” is a representation of paradise. Ironically, child labour is present, which is completely against the religion of Islam. Other words showing irony and inequality is ‘merchant’s truck’ and ‘servants,’ where the thoughts are juxtaposed. Also, the word ‘servants’ is placed with ‘mosque,’ which demonstrates the irony of the religion, where there are servants in the mosque itself.
