Poetry for Students

60 Poetry for Students

play a huge part in the spice trade. Sri Lanka has

been synonymous with the Eastern spice trade for

thousands of years, and the island of Ceylon has

been a central trading point for spices during this

time period. In fact, the spice that Ondaatje focuses

on in his poem, cinnamon, is a spice that is native

to Sri Lanka. It comes from Cinnamomum zeylan-

icum, a form of evergreen tree that belongs to the

laurel family. Cinnamon has always had exotic as-

sociations, and has been used in various cultures

for spiritual rites and even witchcraft. In the mod-

ern world, it is used mainly as a flavoring, espe-

cially in baked goods. Its oil is also used in liqueur,

perfume, and even drugs. Yet, despite the wide-

spread use of cinnamon worldwide, its importance

as a Sri Lankan export—and in fact the importance

of other Sri Lankan agricultural products, such as

tea and rubber—declined by the mid-1980s, when

Ondaatje was writing “The Cinnamon Peeler.”

While these products were still being exported, they

were no longer the number one export, a designa-

tion that was held by textiles and garments.

Critical Overview

Ondaatje’sSecular Lovehas not received as much

attention as his other works, most notably his 1992

novel,The English Patient, which became a criti-

cal and popular success, especially after it was

adapted into a Hollywood film in 1996. Neverthe-

less, some critics have commented on Secular

Love, and a handful have also commented specifi-

cally on “The Cinnamon Peeler.” The overwhelm-

ing majority of critics discuss Secular Love in

relation to the author’s life, most notably the mar-

riage breakup and new relationship that Ondaatje

experienced while he was writing the poetry col-

lection. Ann Mandel states in her entry on Ondaatje

forDictionary of Literary Biographythat “In Sec-

ular Love... the pain of the marriage breakup and

the sensual and emotional growth of new love make

their way into the poems.” In fact, as Lucille King-

Edwards notes in Books in Canada, this autobio-

graphical focus was not evident in his earlier works.

King-Edwards writes “Until Running in the Fam-

ilyand now Secular Love, the passion that Ondaatje

has put into his poems and novels has been pro-

jected onto characters from the myths of his imag-

ination.”

InSecular Love, this autobiographical focus is

apparent even from the book’s structure, which is

another of the elements upon which most critics fo-

cus. Sam Solecki, in his article in the Canadian Fo-

rum, notes the four sections of the book that

chronicle “the break-up of a marriage and a way of

life, the poet’s own near breakdown and finally, af-

ter what one section calls ‘Rock Bottom,’ his re-

covery and return through the love of another

The Cinnamon Peeler

Compare

&

Contrast

• 1980s:The Sri Lankan government faces a re-
  bellion from the Tamil minority, although this
  rebellion is largely suppressed by certain groups
  of the Sri Lankan people.
  Today:Following the assassination of the Sri
  Lankan president in 1993, the premier is ap-
  pointed acting president. The Sri Lankan army
  continues to battle the Tamil rebels.


• 1980s:Sri Lanka tries to shore up its faltering
  economy by developing offshore banking and
  insurance industries.

Today: Despite its efforts to strengthen its

economy through foreign trade and investments,

Sri Lanka is still dependent on foreign aid.

• 1980s:Sri Lanka’s economy is primarily agri-
  cultural, although textiles and garments become
  the biggest export product.

Today:Although Sri Lanka’s agricultural prod-

ucts—including cinnamon, tea, rubber, and co-

conut—continue to be in demand, textiles and

garments are still the biggest export product.

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