WORKBOOK QUESTION-ANSWERS, BEETA PUBLICATIONS:WHEN GREAT TREES FALL.

 

Answers

Workbook: Beeta Publications, Xavier Pinto

ASSIGNMENTS

Section A: Multiple-Choice Questions

Question 1. Choose the correct answers to the questions from the given options. (Do not copy the question; write the correct answer only.)

1.    Which of the following poetic devices is used in the title of the poem?
(a) Simile
(b) Metaphor
(c) Personification
(d) Metonymy
Ans. (b) Metaphor

2.    What happens to the 'small things' when great trees fall?
(a) They die due to shock.
(b) They look up to large things for shelter.
(c) They curl up in silence.
(d) None of the above
Ans. (c) They curl up in silence.

3.    Which figure of speech is used in the line given below?
‘The air around us becomes light, rare, sterile.’
(a) Asyndeton
(b) Anaphora
(c) Refrain
(d) Polyptoton
Ans. (a) Asyndeton

4.    Which of the following poetic devices is used in the lines given below?
‘We breathe, briefly.
Our eyes, briefly, see with...’
(a) Anaphora
(b) Polyptoton
(c) Epizeuxis
(d) Epistrophe
Ans. (d) Epistrophe

5.    What is suggested by the phrase ‘memory gnaws on’?
(a) The phase of forgetfulness
(b) Time spent on grieving for the dead
(c) Unsaid words and unkept promises
(d) None of the above
Ans. (c) Unsaid words and unkept promises

6.    How do the survivors see the world after the departure of the great souls from this world?
(a) The world becomes unrecognisable.
(b) The world remains the same.
(c) The world loses its beauty.
(d) All of the above
Ans. (a) The world becomes unrecognisable.

7.    Which figure of speech is used in the line given below?
‘Our minds, formed and informed by their radiance…..’
(a) Alliteration
(b) Simile
(c) Metaphor
(d) Polyptoton
Ans. (d) Polyptoton

8.    What is suggested by the line ‘Our minds, formed and informed’?
(a) The great souls remain in our minds.
(b) The great souls shape the way people think.
(c) The great souls have great minds.
(d) The great souls cannot touch the minds of people.
Ans. (b) The great souls shape the way people think.

9.    The image of ‘dark, cold caves’ conveys which of the following?
(a) Loneliness and incomprehension that accompanies the loss of great souls.
(b) The feeling of despair felt by the bereaved
(c) The world after the departure of great souls
(d) Both (a) and (b)
Ans. (d) Both (a) and (b)

10. What is suggested by Maya Angelou when she says, ‘after a period peace blooms’?
(a) Healing follows grief.
(b) Peace occurs while remembering the great souls.
(c) People remain silent during the period of mourning.
(d) None of the above
Ans. (a) Healing follows grief.

11. How does the speaker think that the bereaved can continue to ‘Be and be better’?
(a) By forgetting the departed souls after some time
(b) By the inspiration provided by the great souls
(c) By accepting the fact that they are gone forever
(d) None of the above
Ans. (b) By the inspiration provided by the great souls

12. Which of the following lines contains the same literary device as the one in the title, ‘When Great Trees Fall’?
(a) ‘Were gathered there for vengeance and I knew
That if I dipped my hand the spawn would clutch it.’
(b) ‘The woods decay, the woods decay and fall.
The vapours weep their burden to the ground.’
(c) ‘Admit impediments, love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove.’
(d) ‘In small towns by the river
We all want to walk with the gods.’
Ans. (d) ‘In small towns by the river / We all want to walk with the gods.’

Section B: Context Questions

I. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

When great trees fall,
rocks on distant hills shudder,
lions hunker down
in tall grasses,
and even elephants
lumber after safety.

(i) State three effects of the fall of great trees in the forest.
Ans. The rocks on distant hills shudder, lions hunker down in tall grasses, and even elephants lumber after safety.

(ii) Why do the ‘rocks on distant hills shudder’? What is suggested by their shuddering?
Ans. The rocks shudder because the impact of the fall of great trees is so powerful that its effects are felt even at a great distance. Their shuddering suggests that the loss of great souls affects the entire world and creates a deep sense of shock and insecurity.

(iii) Lions are regarded as fearsome predators. Still, they hunker down in ‘tall grasses’. Why? What does their fear symbolise?
Ans. The lions hunker down because the fall of great trees creates a sudden sense of fear and uncertainty even among the strongest creatures. Their fear symbolises the helplessness and insecurity felt by people after the death of great souls.

(iv) (a) Explain briefly the meaning of the line: ‘......and even elephants lumber after safety.’
Ans. The line means that even the mighty elephants, which are usually strong and fearless, become frightened and move slowly towards a place of safety. It emphasises the immense impact of the loss of great souls.

(b) Which figure of speech is used in the above line?
Ans. Personification.

(v) Explain with examples the metaphoric use of ‘trees’ in the poem.
Ans. The ‘trees’ are used metaphorically for great and influential people whose presence provides strength, guidance and inspiration to others. Just as the fall of a great tree affects everything around it, the death of a great soul deeply affects individuals and society.

II. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

When great trees fall
in forests,
small things recoil into silence,
their senses
eroded beyond fear.

(i) What are the ‘small things’ referred to in this extract? What happens to them when great trees fall?
Ans. The ‘small things’ refer to the smaller creatures and living beings in the forest. When great trees fall, they become frightened and withdraw into silence. They are so overwhelmed that their senses seem to be weakened beyond fear.

(ii) What are the ‘small things’ contrasted with in the previous extract of the poem?
Ans. The ‘small things’ are contrasted with the ‘great trees’. The great trees symbolise great souls, while the small things represent those who are affected by their loss.

(iii) What happens to the ‘senses’ of small things when great trees fall? How can this be compared with those of human beings?
Ans. The senses of the small things become ‘eroded beyond fear’, suggesting that they are so shocked that they become almost numb. Similarly, human beings may become emotionally numb and helpless when they lose someone who has been a source of strength and guidance.

(iv) State two poetic devices used in this extract. Give an example of each.
Ans.

1. Metaphor: ‘great trees’ metaphorically represent great souls or influential people.
2. Personification: ‘small things recoil into silence’ gives human-like behaviour to the small creatures.

(v) Explain briefly how the fall of great trees impacts both big and small things.
Ans. The fall of great trees creates shock and insecurity throughout the forest. Even large and powerful creatures are frightened, while the smaller creatures become silent and numb. Similarly, the death of great souls deeply affects people of all kinds, leaving them shocked, helpless and disoriented.

III. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

When great souls die,
the air around us becomes
light, rare, sterile.
We breathe, briefly.
Our eyes, briefly,
see with a hurtful clarity.
Our memory, suddenly sharpened,
examines,
gnaws on kind words
unsaid,
promised walks
never taken.

(i) What is the effect of the death of great souls on the air around us? What does it suggest?
Ans. The air around us becomes ‘light, rare, sterile’. It suggests that the death of a great soul creates a sense of emptiness, lifelessness and loss in the world around us.

(ii) Which figure of speech is used in the lines given below? What does it suggest?
We breathe, briefly.
Our eyes, briefly, see...
Ans. The figure of speech used is epistrophe, as the word ‘briefly’ is repeated at the end of successive phrases. It emphasises the temporary and uncertain state of the bereaved person after the death of a great soul.

(iii) What do our eyes see with ‘hurtful clarity’? Why?
Ans. Our eyes see the reality of the loss with painful clarity. The death of a loved one makes us painfully aware of things left undone and moments that can never be recovered.

(iv) What happens to ‘our memory’ after the death of a loved one?
Ans. Our memory becomes ‘suddenly sharpened’. It brings back memories of kind words left unsaid, promises and walks that were never fulfilled, causing feelings of regret and sorrow.

(v) Explain how this extract portrays the feelings of despair and regret felt by the bereaved person after the loss of someone close.
Ans. The extract portrays grief as a state of emptiness, pain and regret. The bereaved person becomes painfully conscious of all the things left undone or unsaid. Memories become sharper and repeatedly remind the person of missed opportunities, deepening the sense of loss and despair.

IV. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

Great souls die and
our reality, bound to
them, takes leave of us.
Our souls,
dependent upon their
nurture, now shrink, wizened.
Our minds, formed and informed by their
radiance, fall away.
We are not so much maddened
as reduced to the unutterable ignorance of dark, cold
caves.

(i) What happens to ‘our reality’ when great souls die?
Ans. When great souls die, the reality that was connected to their presence also seems to disappear. The survivors feel that the familiar world has changed and that they have lost their sense of security and meaning.

(ii) Explain how our souls depend on great souls for their nurture. What happens when these great souls depart?
Ans. Great souls nurture our minds and spirits through their love, wisdom, ideas and inspiration. When they depart, our souls feel weakened and diminished, as if they have lost an important source of nourishment and guidance.

(iii) (a) Which figure of speech is used in the line given below?
Our minds, formed and informed...
Ans. The figure of speech used is polyptoton, as the words ‘formed’ and ‘informed’ are derived from the same root.

(b) How do the great souls impact our minds?
Ans. Great souls shape and influence our minds through their wisdom, ideas, achievements and inspiring example. Their influence continues even after their death.

(iv) Why does the speaker say that ‘we are not so much maddened’?
Ans. The speaker says this because the survivors do not simply lose their sanity through grief. Instead, they are overwhelmed by a profound sense of emptiness, helplessness and ignorance after losing the guidance and presence of great souls.

(v) Explain the connotations associated with the phrase ‘dark, cold caves’.
Ans. The phrase ‘dark, cold caves’ suggests loneliness, emptiness, ignorance and emotional isolation. It symbolises the state of the survivors who feel lost and without guidance after the death of great souls.

V. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

And when great souls die,
after a period peace blooms,
slowly and always
irregularly. Spaces fill
with a kind of soothing electric vibration.
Our senses, restored, never
to be the same, whisper to us.
They existed. They existed.
We can be. Be and be better.
For they existed.

(i) How does peace bloom after a period?
Ans. Peace blooms slowly and irregularly after a period of grief. As time passes, the pain of loss gradually lessens, and the survivors begin to recover emotionally.

(ii) Which ‘spaces’ is the speaker talking about? How are these spaces filled?
Ans. The ‘spaces’ refer to the emotional and spiritual emptiness created by the death of great souls. These spaces are gradually filled with a soothing sense of their presence, influence, memories and inspiration.

(iii) How are our senses restored? What do they whisper to us?
Ans. Our senses are gradually restored as we recover from grief and begin to accept the loss. They whisper to us that the great souls existed and that their lives and achievements continue to inspire us.

(iv) Which poetic device is used in ‘They existed. They existed.’? What is suggested by this repetition?
Ans. The poetic device used is repetition. The repetition emphasises the fact that the great souls truly lived and made a lasting impact. It also reinforces the idea that their existence gives the survivors strength and inspiration to live better.

(v) Explain how this extract signifies the role played by ‘great souls’ or immensely talented people to bring about massive cultural change.
Ans. The extract shows that great souls leave a lasting influence on society even after their death. Their ideas, achievements and values continue to inspire people and shape their way of thinking. Their lives demonstrate what is possible and encourage others to ‘be and be better’. Thus, their influence can bring about significant and lasting cultural change.