Child marriage, a practice that forces millions of girls into marriage before they reach adulthood, is a pervasive human rights issue. It cuts across cultures, affecting the lives of young girls in many regions of the world. While activism, policy reform, and education play vital roles in combating this practice, art, particularly poetry, serves as a powerful medium to bring attention to the emotional and psychological aspects of child marriage. Through the use of metaphor, symbolism, and narrative, poets have captured the pain, resistance, and resilience of young girls caught in the trap of early marriage, transforming personal trauma into collective awareness and global calls for justice.
This article explores how child marriage is portrayed in poetry, examining the ways poets use language to convey the complexities of power, gender, and social norms that perpetuate this practice.
The Silent Voices: Giving Expression to Voiceless Suffering
Poetry often gives voice to those who are silenced. Child brides, often too young to fully understand or express their plight, become voiceless victims in patriarchal societies. Poetry provides a platform to articulate their emotions, thoughts, and experiences, which are often suppressed or ignored. Through evocative language, poets bring readers into the inner worlds of these young girls, capturing their fear, confusion, and isolation.
Take, for example, the poem “I Am Not a Bride” by South African poet Khaya Dlanga, which portrays the inner turmoil of a child forced into marriage. The poet uses stark, direct language to convey the loss of childhood and the emotional trauma of the young girl:
“Do not dress me in white, For white is the color of innocence, And I have been robbed of it.”
In these lines, the poet challenges the traditional symbolism of a white wedding dress, typically associated with purity and joy, by contextualizing it as a symbol of lost innocence. The simplicity of the words mirrors the simplicity of a child’s desires, making the message even more powerful. Poetry like this allows readers to confront the reality of child marriage from the perspective of the victims, creating empathy and fostering a deeper understanding of the issue.
2. Metaphor and Symbolism: Power Dynamics and Gender Inequality
Poetry is rich in metaphor and symbolism, which can powerfully reflect the imbalances of power and the entrenched gender inequalities that drive child marriage. These literary devices allow poets to depict complex social dynamics in ways that transcend literal description, revealing the emotional depths of the practice.
In Nafissa Es-Sayed’s poem “Caged Bird, Sold Bride”, the metaphor of the caged bird is used to symbolize the entrapment of the child bride:
“My wings clipped, My voice stifled, I am a bird in a cage, Singing only for survival.”
Here, the image of a bird with clipped wings conveys the restriction of freedom and the loss of autonomy experienced by child brides. The “singing for survival” evokes the resilience of these girls, who, despite their confinement, find ways to cope and endure. By using the bird as a symbol of both vulnerability and survival, the poet captures the duality of child marriage an oppressive institution that strips away a girl’s agency while also revealing her strength and perseverance.
Similarly, in many cultures, poets use the metaphor of a flower to symbolize young girls, as seen in Aliah Ahmed’s poem “Wilted Before Bloom”:
“A flower plucked before its bloom, Crushed by the weight of a man’s hand. Her petals, soft and unwritten, Fall silent, her story untold.”
The image of a flower cut before it blooms reflects the interrupted potential of young girls forced into marriage before they can experience education, freedom, or self-expression. The “man’s hand” represents the societal and patriarchal forces that control these girls’ destinies. In this way, poetry serves as a means to critique the power structures that sustain child marriage, highlighting the personal losses that result from the practice.
Resistance and Resilience: Poetry as a Medium for Defiance
While many poems about child marriage highlight the pain and suffering of victims, poetry also serves as a medium for defiance and resistance. The act of writing and expressing emotions through poetry can itself be an act of rebellion, especially for those from communities where girls are expected to remain silent and submissive.
Malala Yousafzai, the Nobel laureate and global advocate for girls’ education, has used poetry to challenge the oppressive systems that prevent girls from achieving their full potential. In her poem “I Am the Voice of Girls”, she writes:
“I am the voice of girls who will not bow, Who will not let silence crush our truth, For in every line we write, We write our freedom.”
Through the repetitive assertion of “I am the voice,” Yousafzai reclaims the narrative, positioning herself and other girls as agents of change. This poem, like many others focused on resisting child marriage, transforms poetry into an empowering tool that shifts the narrative from victimhood to empowerment.
Poetry that focuses on resilience emphasizes the inner strength of child brides who resist or escape forced marriages, reclaiming their futures. In these works, language becomes a weapon of survival, and words become vehicles for asserting self-worth and agency. Such poetry inspires both individual girls and global audiences to reject child marriage and advocate for girls’ rights.
Cultural Critique and Global Solidarity
Poetry is also an effective tool for critiquing cultural practices that normalize child marriage. Poets from affected communities often use their work to challenge the cultural justifications for early marriage, weaving social critique into their verses.
In Kamilia Hussein’s poem “A Girl’s Dowry”, she critiques the commodification of girls through the practice of dowries:
“A price upon her head, A bride not yet a woman, Bartered, sold, and given away, Her childhood erased by a contract.”
The poem draws attention to the transactional nature of child marriage, where girls are seen as commodities rather than individuals with rights and dreams. This critique is common in poetry from regions where child marriage is prevalent, with poets using their words to call for a reexamination of cultural practices that dehumanize young girls.
At the same time, poetry that addresses child marriage often transcends cultural boundaries, building global solidarity around the issue. Anthologies like “Girls Write Now: Two Decades of True Stories from Young Female Voices” feature contributions from poets around the world, all united in their condemnation of gender-based violence, including child marriage. These collections show how poetry can build bridges between different cultures, highlighting the universal harm caused by child marriage while celebrating the shared strength of girls in their fight for freedom.
The Role of Poetic Form and Structure
The form and structure of poetry whether free verse, haiku, or rhymed couplets can itself be used to reflect the constraints and liberation of child marriage. In poems about child marriage, rigid forms can mirror the social restrictions placed on girls, while free verse may symbolize the breaking of those bonds.
For instance, poems written in tight, structured meter can evoke the oppressive rigidity of forced marriages. Conversely, poems that use free verse often reflect the longing for freedom and the breaking away from social norms. The use of fragmented verses or enjambment can signify a fractured childhood, cut off too soon by the demands of marriage. In this way, the structure of the poem becomes an extension of its meaning, amplifying the emotional and symbolic weight of the words.
