The Confessional Voice: Kamala Das and the Poetics of Unfulfilled Desire

Abstract

This paper explores Kamala Das’s poetry as a confessional space where unfulfilled passion becomes a recurring motif. Through close readings of poems like An Introduction and The Old Playhouse, the study examines how Das uses personal experiences to challenge societal expectations of womanhood, marriage, and sexuality. Her bold articulation of emotional and physical longing is positioned as a radical act of truth-telling in a conservative literary landscape.