In "An Unknown Girl," by Moniza Alvi, the speaker describes getting her hand decorated with henna by "an unknown girl" at a night market in India. The speaker tenderly observes the contradictions of the market, which is filled with both traditional and modern elements and reflects the influence of both Eastern and Western cultures. The speaker's henna, which is in the shape of the national bird of India, as well as her later "longing" to reach out to the girl who painted her hand suggest the speaker's desire for a sense of cultural identity and belonging. "An Unknown Girl" was published in Alvi's second poetry collection, A Bowl of Warm Air, in 1996. Alvi herself was born in Pakistan (a few years after the 1947 Partition of India) but grew up in England, and the poem is informed by her own experience of being split between different ways of life.

• Read the full text of “An Unknown Girl”

• “An Unknown Girl” Summary

• “An Unknown Girl” Themes

  • 

    Cultural Identity and Belonging

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-17
    • Lines 27-48
  • 

    Globalization, Tradition, and Modernity

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-4
    • Lines 10-26

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “An Unknown Girl”

  • Lines 1-6

    In the evening bazaar ...
    ... from a nozzle.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 7-13

    She is icing ...
    ... hennaing my hand.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 14-19

    As a little ...
    ... up in balloons.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 20-26

    Dummies in shop-fronts ...
    ... canopy me.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 27-31

    I have new ...
    ... hennaing my hand.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 32-35

    I am clinging ...
    ... of a train.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 36-43

    Now the furious ...
    ... in a week.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 44-48

    When India appears ...
    ... the neon bazaar.

    

    

    

    

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• “An Unknown Girl” Symbols

  • 

    The Peacock

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 16-17: “a peacock spreads its lines / across my palm.”
    • Lines 32-33: “I am clinging / to these firm peacock lines”
    • Lines 41-42: “reveal soft as a snail trail / the amber bird beneath.”
  • 

    The Miss India Banner and the Mannequins

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 20-26: “Dummies in shop-fronts / tilt and stare / with their Western perms. / Banners for Miss India 1993, / for curtain cloth / and sofa cloth / canopy me.”

• “An Unknown Girl” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

  • Repetition

    

    

    

    

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    Where repetition appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “In the evening bazaar”
    • Line 2: “neon”
    • Lines 3-4: “an unknown girl / is hennaing my hand.”
    • Line 5: “She,” “brown,” “line”
    • Line 7: “She,” “hand”
    • Line 10: “In the evening bazaar”
    • Lines 12-13: “an unknown girl / is hennaing my hand.”
    • Line 16: “peacock,” “lines”
    • Line 24: “cloth”
    • Line 25: “cloth”
    • Line 27: “brown”
    • Line 28: “In the evening bazaar”
    • Lines 30-31: “an unknown girl / is hennaing my hand.”
    • Line 32: “clinging”
    • Line 33: “peacock,” “lines”
    • Line 34: “cling”
    • Line 39: “brown,” “lines”
    • Line 44: “appears,” “reappears”
    • Line 46: “hands”
    • Lines 47-48: “the unknown girl / in the neon bazaar.”

  • Consonance

    

    

    

    

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    Where consonance appears in the poem:

    • Line 4: “hennaing,” “hand”
    • Line 5: “squeezes”
    • Line 6: “nozzle”
    • Line 11: “for,” “few”
    • Line 13: “hennaing,” “hand”
    • Line 14: “catches”
    • Line 15: “shadow-stitched kameez”
    • Line 16: “peacock spreads its”
    • Line 17: “across,” “palm”
    • Line 21: “tilt,” “stare”
    • Line 22: “with,” “Western”
    • Line 24: “curtain cloth”
    • Lines 25-26: “cloth / canopy”
    • Line 27: “new brown veins”
    • Line 28: “evening”
    • Line 29: “very”
    • Line 31: “hennaing,” “hand”
    • Line 41: “soft,” “snail trail”
    • Line 42: “amber bird beneath”
    • Line 45: “across,” “country”

  • Imagery

    

    

    

    

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    Where imagery appears in the poem:

    • Line 2
    • Lines 5-6
    • Lines 7-9
    • Lines 14-17
    • Lines 18-22
    • Lines 23-27
    • Lines 32-37
    • Lines 38-42

  • Simile

    

    

    

    

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    Where simile appears in the poem:

    • Lines 32-35: “I am clinging / to these firm peacock lines / like people who cling / to the sides of a train.”

  • Enjambment

    

    

    

    

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    Where enjambment appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “bazaar / studded”
    • Lines 2-3: “neon / an”
    • Lines 3-4: “girl / is”
    • Lines 5-6: “line / from”
    • Lines 8-9: “hers / on”
    • Lines 10-11: “bazaar / for”
    • Lines 11-12: “rupees / an”
    • Lines 12-13: “girl / is”
    • Lines 14-15: “catches / my”
    • Lines 15-16: “kameez / a”
    • Lines 16-17: “lines / across”
    • Lines 18-19: “street / float”
    • Lines 20-21: “shop-fronts / tilt”
    • Lines 21-22: “stare / with”
    • Lines 24-25: “cloth / and”
    • Lines 25-26: “cloth / canopy”
    • Lines 28-29: “bazaar / very”
    • Lines 29-30: “deftly / an”
    • Lines 30-31: “girl / is”
    • Lines 32-33: “clinging / to”
    • Lines 33-34: “lines / like”
    • Lines 34-35: “cling / to”
    • Lines 36-37: “streets / are”
    • Lines 38-39: “off / the”
    • Lines 39-40: “lines / before”
    • Lines 41-42: “trail / the”
    • Lines 44-45: “reappears / I'll”
    • Lines 45-46: “country / with”
    • Lines 46-47: “outstretched / longing”
    • Lines 47-48: “girl / in”

• “An Unknown Girl” Vocabulary

  Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

  • Bazaar
  • Studded
  • Neon
  • Hennaing
  • Nozzle
  • Satin-peach
  • Rupees
  • Shadow-stitched
  • Kameez
  • Dummies
  • Canopy
  • Miss India
  • Deftly
  • Snail trail
  • Amber
  • (Location in poem: Line 1: “In the evening bazaar”; Line 10: “In the evening bazaar”; Line 28: “In the evening bazaar”; Line 48: “in the neon bazaar.”)

• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “An Unknown Girl”

  • Form

  • Meter

  • Rhyme Scheme

• “An Unknown Girl” Speaker

• “An Unknown Girl” Setting

• Literary and Historical Context of “An Unknown Girl”

• More “An Unknown Girl” Resources

  • External Resources

    • Moniza Alvi's Website — Read a short biography and reviews of Alvi's various books, including A Bowl of Warm Air, in which "An Unknown Girl" was published. 

    • The Poet's Life — Check out an in-depth look at Alvi's life and work via the Poetry Archive.

    • What Is Henna? — Dig into the history of this "ancient art."

  • LitCharts on Other Poems by Moniza Alvi

    • Presents from My Aunts in Pakistan

    • The Wedding

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