10th Std Not marble nor the gilded monuments

                                Short Answer Type Questions

1.     What is the theme of the poem "Not Marble Nor the Gilded Monuments"?

Ans. The poet pays tribute to the poetry created by him. He also highlights his love for his friends and         the power of verses which will last for ever. He is confident that the praise of his friends in his             verses will last forever.

2.     In what way is the poet stronger than powerful rulers?

Ans. The monuments of the kings will be destroyed by war. With the passage of time they will be               covered by dust or ravaged with time. But the poet's work (poetry) will last for posterity. Time             cannot destroy his creation.

3.     Why is war called wasteful?

Ans. The war is called wasteful because it destroys the monuments. It causes a lot of destruction of             life and property. Nobody gains anything by war. People die, women become widows, the                   economy of the country shatters.

4.     How will the poet's friend dwell in lover's eyes?

Ans. The poet immortalizes his friend by stating that his friend shall live forever in this sonnet and in         the eyes of future generations. Also, this poem will wear out this world till the judgement day             and outlive it. Everything will be destroyed except for the poet's verses.

5.     Describe how the monuments and statues bear the ravages of time.

Ans. Monuments and statues brave the ravages of time in various ways. They withstand the vagaries of nature and get somewhat tarnished in the process. Some of them may survive for a few                   thousand years. While doing so, these monuments often tell us about their glorious days.

               Long Answer Type Questions

1.     The materialistic thing do not last forever. What lasts is our good behaviour and the values we  posses. Elaborate.

Ans. Materialistic things are temporary. They do not last forever. The kings and the rich monarchs get          statues and big domes erected in their memory, a sign of their power and strength but everything          is ravaged by time . Our posterity may not remember us for the money passed on to them but              for the values we made them learn. All the guided monuments and memorials fall to decay                  because of utter neglect. They fall to dust as they are unable to meet the utter destruction of  time. Money and riches will not be there for ever but the love of our loved ones will never die and it will remain with s for ever.  

2.     What quality of the work of the author is reflected in this poem?

Ans. The poem written by the poet will last forever. It will not be destroyed by time. Within his  verses his friends will live forever. It will be remembered till posterity. Even the godly powers of         the god of war will not be able to destroy it. It will survive in the hearts of its lovers. In this                 ways, the poet is quite sure of the immortality of his poetry

        The poet's extreme optimism and deep faith in the power of love is revealed in these lines. The           poet believes that not only natural forces but human wars and battles cannot blot out his sonnets,         which are a "living record" of the youth. The poet assures his friend that his beauty will remain           immortal as long as one single person still lives to read these sonnets, which themselves will be           immortal.  

3.     Why does the poet refer to 'time' as being sluttish?

Ans. In this case, the poet is referring to the tarnishing effect which time can have on many things.             For example; what once may have been a magnificant monument is no more than ruins; in the             name of some of the famous historical monuments. Time has been personified as a women with           loose character a slut who is not faithful to anyone. Time is also sluttish as he destroys                         everything. It is not loyal to anyone. It keeps changes. It is good for someone one day and bad             for others but it would not remain the same for ever. It keeps changing for people. It never                   remains the same.

4.     What is the theme of the sonnet 'Not Marble, nor the Gilded Monuments ?

Ans. Shakespeare's 'Sonnet 55' deals with the idea that the subject of poetry or poet's friend will be made immortal in these verses, though everything else will be lost through war, sluttish time or other violent forces.Shakespeare elevates poetry as superior, and the only assurance of   immortality in this world but lowers this particular sonnet itself as being unworthy of his   subject. Thus, the theme is that everything will be destroyed and forgotten except the subject,             who will be praised forever. The subject according to the poet has lent magnificence to the                   verses. Shakespeare calls time and war as two destructive forces. The soul of the poem, is the             subject only. The poet wants to keep the youth's reputation and memory alive until Doomsday.             The poet here wants to say that his poetry is a piece of art and as Keats has said, "A thing of                 beauty is a joy forever", his poetry will be shining forever.  

10th Std THE LETTER

THE LETTER    (By Dhumaketu)

Ques1:    Describe the early morning scene, when Ali visited the post Office.
     Ans:    The whole town was asleep at that time, more due to the cold and biting wind. Ali plodded on his way to the Post office, drawing his tattered clothes tighter, to shield his body. He heard the sound of grinding mills, singing of the women and the occasional barking of a dog.

Ques2:    Who was Ali? Where did he go every morning?
    Ans :    Ali was an old man, in the evening of his life. He was a good hunter in his youth and was now known as “Coachman Ali” by the post office officials. He used to go to the post office everyday, hoping to receive a letter from his only daughter Miriam who was married five years ago and was living in the Punjab regiment with her soldier husband.

Ques3:    How was Ali looked upon by the post office officials?
     Ans:    Ali had been visiting the post office every single day, at five in the morning, expecting a letter from his only daughter Miriam. The officials at the post office poked fun at him by sometimes calling out his name, making him jump, thinking it was a letter from his daughter. They also called him “a mad man” who worried them everyday sitting for hours at the post office.

Ques4:    What did Ali do in his youth? What made him leave his old ways?
     Ans:    In his youth, Ali was a very skilled Shikari. He could trace and obtain the earth-brownpartridge from a bush, even when the dogs had failed to detect it. Ali was also a very skilled points man. Besides being a shikari, he would often go out fishing with his friends. He left his old ways became he had now grown old and there was no one to bring his rewards to. He also realized how much pains the animal or bird was going through, being parted from its loved ones so reflecting on all this, he gave up hunting.

Ques5:    What view of life did Ali come to acquire and when?
     Ans:    Loneliness had come into Ali’s life since his only daughter Miriam had married and gone away to Punjab where her husband was a soldier in the regiment. He began to admire the green cornfields and came to a conclusion on reflection – the whole universe was built up on love and that grief of separation was inescapable. He wept bitterly on contemplating this reality.

Ques6:    How does the author describe the postmaster?
     Ans:   The postmaster had a sad and inexpressive face like a pumpkin. There was no glimmer of animation in his features. He had the prominent features of village schoolmasters, clerks, postmaster etc.

Ques7:   What did the official at the post office have to say about Ali?
     Ans:   The postmaster thought that Ali was probably mad when informed that Ali used to visit the post office everyday since the past five years, waiting for one single letter. Another postman remarked that he had probably committed many sins and was paying for them now. Each of the others started narrating their experiences about madmen. The postmaster then said that madmen were strange people and lived in a world of their own making, somewhat like a poet.

Ques8:   Why did Ali go to the postmaster one fine day? How was he received by the postmaster?
     Ans:   Ali hadn’t been to the post office for several days. One fine day, breathing with great difficulty he went straight to the postmaster. Ali requested him to note down his address in case his letter came when he was not there. The postmaster lost his temper and calling him a pest, asked him to go away. He coldly told Ali that no one was going to eat his letter. Ali felt every humiliated at that and with tears of helplessness turned away.

Ques9:   How did Ali react when the postmaster behaved very rudely with him?
     Ans:   When the postmaster called Ali a pest and spoke very rudely and coldly to him asking him to go away, Ali came out slowly and gazed at the Post office. His eyes were filled with tears of helplessness. His patience was exhausted. Yet he had hope that he would one day hear from Miriam. He felt totally broken from within.

Ques10:  The Postmaster says to Ali “What a pest you are brother!” Do you agree with this statement. Give reasons for your answer.
      Ans:   Ali would go every single day to the post office for five years, waiting for a letter from his daughter. He does not disturb anyone, nor does he complain or say anything to displease anyone. Yet the officials there find his presence irritating and annoying and they do not tolerate his being there; make fun of him. This only shows their own lack of sensitivity and inhumanness.

Ques11:   What did Ali do to ensure that he would get his letter even after his death?
       Ans:  One day, Ali came after several days of absence, with heavy breathing and looking very sick to the post office. He went to the clerk and offered him five gold guineas to forward his daughter Miriam’s letter to his grave. The clerk, Lakshmi Das was shocked at his words, but pocketed the money emotionlessly.

Ques12:   How did the postmaster shed his haughty temper?
        Ans:  The post master’s daughter fell very ill and lived in another town. He was anxiously waiting for news of her. In the pile of letters, he saw an envelope of the colour and shape he was expecting. He snatched it, but on looking at it closely, he saw that it was addressed to Ali. He dropped it as if it had given him an electric shock. Thereafter his haughtiness left him.

Ques13:   What change came over the postmaster after he saw Ali’s letter?
      Ans:    The postmaster was waiting to receive a letter from his own daughter who was sick in another town. One day, on seeing a letter of the colour and shape he was expecting, he snatched it, but saw that it was addressed to Ali. He dropped it as if it had given him an electric shock. This made him shed his haughty temper. He now understood Ali’s feelings. His heart was full of sympathy for Ali who had waited patiently for five long years. He gave the letter to Lakshmi Das, the clerk to deliver it to Ali.

Ques14: Describe the post master’s encounter with Ali after his death.
     Ans:   The postmaster was anxiously waiting for news of his sick daughter who was living in another town. He was unable to sleep all night due to his anxiety. He came to the post office at 4 am hoping to receive some news of her. The day before, realization had dawned upon him, how unmerciful he had been towards Ali. At the stroke of 5 am, he heard a soft knock on the door. He saw Ali leaning against his stick, tears wet on his face; a soft look of kindliness. The postmaster also saw a strange light in Ali’s eyes. It was so unearthly that the postmaster shrank back in fear and astonishment.

Ques15: What was the postmaster’s state of mind after Lakshmi Das told him about Ali’s death?
       Ans:   The postmaster when told that Ali had died three months ago was shocked and perplexed. He was so sure he had seen Ali in his office at 5 am as usual, enquiring after Miriam’s letter that he was filled with disbelief – had he really seen Ali or was it his imagination; or was it Lakshmi Das whom he had been talking to. He was too confused at his encounter with Ali.

Ques16:   How is the postmaster’s mind revealed in the end?
    Ans:   The postmaster is a changed person in the end. He now understands Ali’s anxiety and restlessness for news of his daughter. He is torn and tortured by doubt and remorse by what has happened to him. He is perplexed and confused whether he has seen Ali or not. He is filled with guilt at having treated Ali so unsympathetically.

Ques17:   The Author, Dhumketu carefully builds up an atmosphere of loneliness and grief in the story “The letter” . Bring out this element with instances from the text.
     Ans:   The atmosphere of loneliness is built around the person – coachman Ali. Like him, the streets he walks through are also lonely. It is “the grey sky of early dawn” when this old man in tattered clothes walks through the silent streets every morning at 5 am. The sounds which come from some houses “help him along his lonely way”. Even the post office, which is his destination, is quiet and forlorn.The grief is also brought to the front when the author narrates how some clerks at the post office play a practical joke on the poor man by calling out his name as if there is a letter for him when in reality there isnt any. Also “although the hunter’s instinct was in his very blood and bones” he gave up hunting thinking about “the bewildered terror of the young partridges bereft of their parents”.His only daughter, who has been married and who lives with her soldier husband in the Punjab regiment has not written to him for the past five years. He realizes that the whole universe is based on love and thief of separation is inevitable. He was indeed a very lonely man.

9th Std A TRULY BEAUTIFUL MIND

A TRULY BEAUTIFUL MIND.

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS :-

Q1. Who is a ‘freak’? Why did Einstein’s mother think him to be a ‘freak’?

Ans:A ‘freak’ is a word used disapprovingly for a person who is unusual in looks and behaviour . Einstein’s mother thought him to be a ‘freak’ because his head seemed too large to her. This made him look different from the other children of his age.

Q2. During his childhood, Einstein did not show any traces of becoming a genius one day. How?

Ans:As a child, Einstein had a large head and did not start to speak till he was two-and-a-half years old. Finally, when he did speak, he used to utter everything twice. He could not interact freely with his playmates either. All this showed the absence of any traces in him of becoming a genius one day.

Q3. Why did Einstein’s playmates call him “Brother Boring”?

Ans:Einstein did not know what to do with other children. His shy and introvert nature made his company boring to his playmates. So, they teased him as “Brother Boring” and did not include him in their games. Therefore, he played all alone when he was a child.

Q4. What kind of toys attracted the attention of Einstein when he was a child? Why?

Ans:Einstein could not enjoy the company of playmates because of his introvert nature. Instead as a child, he was attracted only by mechanical toys. It showed his scientific temperament since mechanical toys work on some kind of scientific principles.

 Q5. Why did Einstein try to look for wheels on the body of his newly born sister?

Ans:Einstein was much too interested in mechanical toys and had scientific inclinations. When his sister was born, he thought her to be a new toy; that is why he tried to search for wheels on her body.

Q6. What was the opinion of the school headmaster about Einstein?

Ans:The school headmaster considered Einstein to be a good-for-nothing boy. He was of the opinion that Einstein would never succeed in any profession. Therefore, choice of profession would not make any difference to the results of his efforts.

Q7. Which musical instrument did Einstein begin to learn? Why?

Ans: Einstein began to learn playing upon the violin at the young age of six. He kept this interest alive throughout his life and became a gifted amateur violinist. He began learning the violin because his mother wanted him to.

 Q8. How did Einstein perform in various subjects while studying in Munich?

Ans:Although as a young child Einstein was very slow, still while studying in Munich, he showed great progress in almost all the subjects and scored very good marks. He showed a special interest in Physics and Mathematics.

Q9. Why did Einstein leave the school in Munich?                                                                        

 Ans:Einstein left the school in Munich because of the stifling environment that suppressed his scientifically curious mind. The excessively stern discipline and rigid rules in that school led to frequent clashes with his teachers. He thus began to feel that such a place was inappropriate for a liberal person like him.

Q 10. Why did Einstein shift to Switzerland to continue his education?                              

Ans:Einstein shifted to the German-speaking part of Switzerland to continue his education because he had left his school in Munich midway. This new place was more liberal than Munich and Einstein’s curious and free temperament got a favourable environment over here.

 Q11. Why did Einstein see an ally in Mileva Maric?                                                                      
Ans:Einstein saw an ally in his Serbian fellow student Mileva Maric because, like him, she too was against philistines – the people who have disregard for art and culture. As both shared similar tastes, Einstein developed a liking for her and they both fell in love.

Q12. What did Einstein call his desk drawer at the patent office? Why?                              

Ans:Einstein jokingly called his desk drawer at the patent office as “bureau of theoretical physics”. He did so because his office job required him to assess the inventions of other people while he secretly developed his own ideas regarding his keen interest in Physics.

 Q13. Why did Einstein’s mother not want him to marry Mileva?

Ans:There were two reasons for Einstein’s mother not wanting him to marry Mileva. Firstly, the girl was three years older than Einstein and secondly, she was much too intelligent – ‘a book’ just like him, in his mother’s opinion.

Q14. Why did Einstein’s marriage with Mileva not survive long?

Ans:Although Einstein and Mileva had been in love, still their marriage did not survive long because Mileva gradually lost her intellectual vigour and aspirations. She became a frustrated housewife. There were frequent scuffles between the couple which resulted in their ultimate divorce in 1919.

Q15. What was the new personal chapter in Einstein’s life? How did it coincide with his fame?

Ans:The new personal chapter in Einstein’s life was his marriage to his cousin Elsa in the year 1919 immediately after his divorce from Mileva. This chapter coincided with his rise to world fame when his paper on General Theory of Relativity, published in 1915, was found to be accurate due to the proof that came through the eclipse of the sun in 1919.

Q16. When and for what did Einstein gain international fame?

Ans:Einstein gained international fame when his paper on General Theory of Relativity was found to be accurate in 1919. As per this theory, the calculations made by Einstein in advance about the deflection of light in the solar gravitational field during the eclipse were proven true. This theory was treated as “a scientific revolution.”

Q17. How was Einstein honoured for his achievements?

Ans:Honours came pouring in for Einstein after his theories proved him to be a scientist with exceptional abilities. He was awarded the prestigious Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921. Honours and invitations were conferred on him from all over the world. The newspapers too applauded his genius.



Q18. Why did Einstein leave Germany and emigrate to America?

 Ans:Einstein had always been a lover of freedom and liberal ideas. The Nazi government, which came to power in 1933, was very suppressive and autocratic. Therefore, Einstein left Germany and emigrated to America.

Q19. Why did the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin disturb the American physicists?
                                                                                           

Ans: The American physicists were disturbed by the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin because they were afraid that Germany would make an atom bomb and use it for destructive purposes.

 Q20. Why did Einstein write a letter to Franklin Roosevelt?                                                      

 Ans:Einstein wrote to the American president, Roosevelt, because he wanted to forewarn him regarding the massive destructive power of the atom bomb which the Germans were expected to build after the discovery of nuclear fission. If dropped on a port, the bomb could destroy the whole port as well as the area around it.

Q21. What was the effect of Einstein’s letter on Roosevelt?

Ans:The warning sounded by Einstein in his letter to Franklin D. Roosevelt about how dangerous an atom bomb made by German)’ could be, had a lightening effect on the Americans. They at once rose to action and secretly developed an atom bomb of their own.

 Q22. How did Einstein react to the bombing of the Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki by America?                                                                                                                                                            (Textual)

Ans: Einstein was completely shaken by the immense destruction caused due to the bombing of the Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki by America. As a reaction to this tragic event, he wrote a letter to the United Nations proposing the establishment of a world government that could counter such fierce enmity among nations.

 Q23. What did Einstein campaign for after he got involved in politics?

Ans:After getting involved in politics, Einstein made earnest efforts for world peace and harmony. He campaigned against the race for armaments and supported the cause of peace and democracy.

 Q24. Why does the world remember Einstein as a “world citizen”?

Ans:The world remembers Einstein as a world citizen because, towards the later part of his life, he strived for the peace and well-being of the entire world and not just his own country. He was no longer solely a scientific genius but a visionary as well, who felt that the solution to enmity between countries was a world government.

FORMAL LETTER STRUCTURE & INTRODUCTORY LINES

FORMAL LETTER STRUCTURE &
 INTRODUCTORY LINES:

Sender's address

Receiver's address

Date:

Subject :

Salutation

Body (intro, main content, conclusion)

Subscription
(Sign)
(Full name)


INTRODUCTORY LINES:

An awareness publicity from a well established newspaper like yours would bring a huge revolution in the field of banning  plastics/alcohol/smoking....

Through the columns of your esteemed newspaper I would like to express my views on the crucial fact .....

Through the columns of your esteemed newspaper I would like to draw your attention towards the commonest problem of .....

Through the lines of your daily I would like to introduce the horrendous/ pressing/ serious/gruesome facts prevailing in our society/ community/locality.....

9th Std Rain on the roof

Rain on the roof

Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow in one or two lines.

(I)

When the humid shadows hover

Over all the starry spheres

And the melancholy darkness

 Gently weeps in rainy tears,

 What a bliss to press the pillow

Of a cottage-chamber bed

 And lie listening to the patter

 Of the soft rain overhead!

(a) What does the poet imply by “humid shadow?

Ans: By “humid shadows”, the poet implies the clouds full of rain.

(b) What does the phrase “starry spheres” refer to?

Ans:The phrase “starry spheres” refers to the sky filled with numerous stars shining at night.

 (c) What does the poet consider to be a ‘bliss’ in the rainy season?

Ans: In the rainy season when the showers are falling on the roof, the poet considers it a bliss to lie comfortably in the bed pressing his head against the pillow.

 (d) Which poetic device has been used in “lie listening”?

Ans: In “lie listening”, the poetic device used is alliteration as ‘I’ sound is repeated.

(e) Which poetic device has been used in the third and the fourth lines?

Ans:The third line employs ‘transferred epithet’ by the words “melancholy darkness”. Here darkness is not sad or melancholy but some man who is sad in the darkness.The fourth line uses ‘personification’ by presenting the sadness as weeping gently by shedding tears in the form of rain.

(II)

Every tinkle on the shingles

Has an echo in the heart;

And a thousand dreamy fancies

Into busy being start,

And a thousand recollections

Weave their air-threads into woof,

As I listen to the patter

Of the rain upon the roof.

(a) What finds an echo in the heart of the poet?

Ans:The tinkling sound of the rain drops falling on the roof overhead finds an echo in the heart of the poet.

 (b) How does this sound of the rain affect the busy mind of the poet?

Ans:The sound of the rain triggers a large number of imaginative and fanciful ideas in the busy mind of the poet.

(c) Explain the metaphor used in And a thousand recollection/Weave their air-threads into woof.”

Ans:Here the recollections are compared to the weavers and the memories to a fabric. The entwined memories create a unique fabric of memories.

(d) Which poetic device has been used in the last line of the stanza?

 Ans:The poetic device used in the last line is alliteration as ‘r’ sound is repeated in ‘Of the rain upon theroof’.

(III)

Now in memory comes my mother,

 As she used in years agone,

 To regard the darling dreamers

Ere she left them till the dawn:

0! I feel her fond look on me

As I list to this refrain

Which is played upon the shingles

By the patter of the rain.

(a) Who comes in the memory of the poet and when?

Ans:The poet’s mother comes in his memory as he sleeps in his bed chamber on a rainy night when rain lashes the tiles of the roof of his house.

(b) What does the poet remember about his mother?

Ans:The poet remembers the affectionate look of his mother as she was about to leave her children in their bed chamber for the night when she herself went to sleep in her own room.

 (c) What does the poet imply by “the darling dreamers”?

 Ans:By “the darling dreamers”, the poet implies the children in the family – the poet himself and his siblings – who were about to go to sleep. They would often have pleasant dreams in their sleep.

 (d) What refrain is the poet talking about?

 Ans:By ‘refrain’ the poet here means a song or recurring melody and in this stanza it refers to the musical sound of the rain.

SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS

(to be answered in about 30 – 40 words each)

Q1. What do the following phrases mean?                                                                              

Ans:                                                                                    

Humid shadows: ‘Humid shadows’ here refers to the clouds which are water-laden and shadow or cover the starry sky.
Starry spheres: ‘Starry spheres’ implies the night sky studded with stars.
What a bliss: ‘What a bliss’ is an exclamatory expression showing great pleasure.
A thousand dreamy fancies into busy being start: The clause implies that a large number of memories are revived in an otherwise much occupied mind.
A thousand recollections weave their air-threads into woof : This clause is a metaphorical expression. Recollections are presented as weavers and the particular memories are the threads woven into the fabric of the mind.

Q2. Describe the weather just before the rain starts.

Ans:As described by the poet, the weather before the rain is humid. It is dark, and the starry-night sky is covered by thick clouds just before it begins to rain.

 Q3. What does the poet want to do when it rains?                                                                      

Ans:When it rains, the poet wants to lie snugly in his cosy cottage with a soft pillow under his head. He wants to enjoy the rhythmic, soft music of the rain drops falling on the roof.

Q4.According to the poet, what is nature’s mood in ‘rainy darkness’?

Ans: The poet shows the darkness to be in a melancholy or sad mood. This sadness is further heightened when the poet shows the darkness to be weeping and shedding tears in the form of rain drops.

Q5. How is the mood of the poet contrasted with the mood of darkness?

Ans:Whereas the darkness is in a sad and gloomy mood, the poet is in a happy mood as he considers it a bliss to lie comfortably in bed pressing the head against the pillow and listening to the music made by the showers of the rain.

Q6. Is the rain referred to in the poem a heavy downpour?

Ans: No, the rain referred to in the poem is not a heavy downpour. Instead, it is soft and gentle as is obvious from the pattering sound made by it while falling on the roof.

Q7. What is the impact of the tinkle of the rain drops on the poet’s heart?

Ans:The tinkle of the rain drops echo in the heart of the poet as if his heart beat responds to every sound of the rain by its rhythm. Moreover, the rain kindles many memories in the poet’s mind and he gets lost in dreamy imagination.

Q8. Which is the single major memory that comes to the poet?      
                                             Or

Which distinctive memory is revived in the poet’s mind?

Ans:The single major memory that comes distinctly to the poet is or his mother. The rain revives his thoughts of the time when his mother used to look lovingly at him and his siblings before she went to sleep in her bed chamber.

Q9. Who are the “darling dreamers” referred to by the poet?                                                

Ans:The darling dreamers are the poet and his siblings. They were very dear to their mother and they are called ‘dreamers’ because they would often have sweet dreams in their sleep. Their mother must have always wished them “sweet dreams” before retiring to her room.

Q 10. Why does the poet call the sound of the rain as “refrain”?

Ans:A refrain is a line repeatedly used in a song or a poem. The drops of the rain produce a distinct and continuous music by way of their pattering. This repetitive sound of the rain is called ‘refrain’ by the poet.

Q11. Is the poet now a child? Is his mother still alive?                                                                

Ans:The poet is no longer a child. He has grown up and his mother is no more alive. He thinks of his mother and his childhood with a feeling of nostalgia which makes it clear that his mother is no more.

LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS

(to be answered in about 100 – 150 words each)

Q1. How does the poet react to the sound of the rain falling on the roof?

Or

What is the effect of the sound of the rain on the heart and mind of the poet?

 Ans:The poet’s heart and mind react strongly to the sound of the rain falling on the roof. He is in a blissful mood as he enjoys the comfort of his bedroom, leisurely listening to the music of the rain. The music stirs a corresponding echo in the heart of the poet. His heart beat responds to the sound of the rain by its rhythmic throbbing. He gets engrossed in fanciful, dreamy thoughts. Moreover, the rain awakens many memories of the past. Particularly, it revives the memory of his mother as she looked at her children very affectionately before she went to sleep in her room. He recollects the fond, affectionate look of his mother which she cast on him. Thus, the poet’s mind and heart respond sensitively to the soft pattering sound of the rain falling on the roof.

Q2. The poet says:
“What a bliss to press the pillow Of a cottage-chamber bed”

Is rain ‘bliss’ for everybody? What do different people feel about the rain?

Or

Does everybody have a cosy bed? Look around and describe how different kinds of people or animals spend time, seek shelter etc. during rain?                                                                            

Ans: In the poem “Rain on the Roof”, the poet Coates Kinney relates the various blissful emotions he has while he lies comfortably in his bed. For him, it is pure bliss to listen to the patter of the rain drops falling on the roof. But enjoying this bliss is not a privilege for everyone. There are many poverty-stricken people for whom rain brings a number of difficulties. Some of these people are without shelter, while some live in poor, thatched cottages with leaking roofs. When we look around, we find people reacting differently to the rain. Rich people sit comfortably in the verandas of their luxurious houses and enjoy delicious snacks while watching rain. Those who are burdened with a busy schedule, feel uncomfortable when they have to run around in the rain. Exposed to the rain, the poor homeless are forced to take cover lest they are drenched in rain.

Animals too are uncomfortable when the rain falls. The domestic animals may be protected but the stray ones have to seek shelter. Thus, rain is not a  bliss for everybody.