Chapter 4.1 - Please Listen!
The poet says that when he asks someone to listen to him and they start giving him advice, they have not done what he has asked. When he asks someone to listen to him and they tell him why he shouldn’t feel that way, they are trampling on his feelings. When he asks someone to listen to him and they feel that they have to do something to solve his problem, they have failed him, even though this may appear strange. He says that all he asks is that the person listen— not talk or do anything, just listen.
He says that advice is cheap. For 20 cents, he can get advice from the newspaper columnists of a paper, like ‘Dear Abby’ and ‘Billy Graham’. He can look after himself; he is not helpless. He may be discouraged or he may be uncertain, but he is not helpless. When someone does something for him that he can do by himself, then that helper is contributing to the poet’s feelings of fear and inferiority.
But if someone accepts as a simple fact that the poet feels what he feels, however irrational, only then can the poet stop trying to convince that person and get on with the work of finding out what the reason for that irrational feeling is.
When the reasons for his irrational feelings become clear to him, the answers to his questions become obvious, and he then needs no advice. He says that irrational feelings make sense only when one understands the reason behind them.
He guesses that that is perhaps why prayer works sometimes for some people. God is silent. He doesn’t give advice or try to fix things. God just listens silently and lets the person find his own answers.
The poet finally requests that people just listen to him and hear him out. He says that if the listener wants to talk, he should wait a minute for his turn, and then the poet will listen to him.
Title: Please Listen!
Rhyme Scheme:
The poem is in free verse. Hence there is no rhyme scheme.
Favourite line:
God just listens and lets you work it out for yourself.
Theme/Central idea:
The poet tells us how he just wishes that people would listen to a person’s problems silently, instead of giving advice or telling him/her why he/she shouldn’t feel that way, or trying to solve the problems. The poet is confident that he will find out the reasons behind his irrational feelings and then he will be able to solve his problems. He feels that prayers probably work because God just listens to us silently when we pray and then lets us work things out ourselves.
Figure of Speech:
Repetition: ‘When I ask you to listen to me’. This line has been repeated in the poem for emphasis.
Special Feature/Implied meaning, etc.:
The poet tells us that we should work things out ourselves when we are faced with some difficulties or get some irrational feelings. In fact, we should try to understand what is behind these irrational feelings. The poet uses a free, conversational style in his poem.
Why I like/don’t like the poem:
I like the poem because it is easy to read and understand. It also advises us on how to behave when people discuss their problems with us.
Warming up!
Twenty Questions
Form groups of 6-8. One person (leader) chooses one item – a picture, a paragraph or a lesson from any one of the 9th standard textbooks and writes the reference on a slip of paper and folds it. Others ask him/her questions and try to guess what it is, from his/her answers. Follow the rules given below.
The maximum number of questions the rest of the group can ask is 20.
You cannot ask a direct question like ‘What do you have in mind?’
You can ask ‘Wh-’ questions or ‘Yes/no’ questions.
The leader has to give truthful answers.
Ans: Students must do this on their own.
Agreements and Disagreements
Form pairs. List the things on which you have the same opinion and also the ones
on which you have different opinions. Prepare a list of ten things in all and see how far you agree or disagree with your friend. Some useful phrases are given alongside.
You could talk about:
- Clothes, latest fashion
- Performance of sportsmen and women
- Traffic/Transport in your area
- Cleanliness and hygiene in your area
- Future occupations/Careers
- Latest news items
- TV programmes
- Mobile Apps
- Any subject of your choice
Agreement
- I totally agree with you.
- Exactly/Absolutely!
- You are right.
- I don’t know, I need to think about it. (partial agreement)
- I suppose so.
Disagreement
- No, I don’t think so.
- I totally disagree.
- Not necessarily.
- I’m not sure about that.
- Let’s agree to disagree!
Ask for your friend’s opinion:
- Do you think …?
- Do you agree …?
- What do you think?
- What is your opinion?
- How do you feel about that?
In Between the Poetry!
Q1. What’s the difference between ‘hear’ and ‘listen’?
Ans: ‘To hear’ means to receive with the ear the sound made by someone or something; to be aware of some sound.
‘To listen’ means to consciously give one’s attention to a sound and try to understand it.
Q2. How old is the speaker in the poem?
Ans: The speaker is probably a young person who is impatient and does not want advice or solutions.
Q3. Who is he/she talking to?
Ans: He/She is talking to someone older – a parent or a friend.
Q4. What must have happened before the speaker says all this ?
Ans: The speaker must have had some emotional stress and problems, some feelings that he/she could not find reasonable explanations for.
Q5. Is the speaker aware of his shortcomings?
Ans: Yes, the speaker is aware of his shortcomings.
Q6. Does he/she want to improve ?
Ans: Yes, he/she wants to improve.
Q7. Is he/she confident that he/she can improve ?
Ans: Yes, he/she is confident that he/she can improve.
Q8. How does he/she want to work it out ?
Ans: He/She wants to work it out on his/her own.
Q9. Is the poet willing to listen to others?
Ans: Yes, the poet is willing to listen to others.
Q10. Discuss how you can be a good listener.
Ans: To be a good listener, we must pay attention to what a person is saying without interruption. We must only listen and not try to form replies in our own mind. We must also nod and show correct expressions to encourage the speaker.
ENGLISH WORKSHOP
1. The poet uses a free, conversational style in his poem. It is also called Colloquial style. Pick out and write down such lines or expressions that support the above statement.
(a) ……….. you have not done what I asked.
(b) ………..………..………..
(c) ………..………..………..
(d) ………..………..………..
(e) ………..………..………..
(f) ………..………..………..
Ans:
(a) You have not done what I asked.
(b) You are trampling on my feelings.
(c) All that I ask is that you listen.
(d) When you do something for me that I can and need to do for myself, you contribute to my fear and inadequacy.
(e) But when you accept it as a simple fact that I feel what I feel.
(f) Then I can stop trying to convince you
(g) So please listen, and just hear me
(h) And if you want to talk, wait a minute for your turn – and I will listen to you.
2. Put the following expressions in a table of Do’s and Don’ts as expressed by the poet.
(a) Please listen.
(b) Give me advice.
(c) Tell me why.
(d) Solve my problem.
(e) Just hear me.
(f) Accept as a simple fact.
(g) Contribute to my fear.
(h) Wait a minute.
| Dos | Don’ts |
|---|---|
Ans:
| Dos | Don’ts |
|---|---|
(a) Please listen. | (b) Give me advice. |
(e) Just hear me. | (c) Tell me why. |
(f) Accept as a simple fact. | (d) Solve my problem. |
(h) Wait a minute. | (g) Contribute to my fear. |
3. Write in your own words :-
(a) What does the listener do when the poet asks him to just listen? Give 3 points.
Ans: When the poet asks the listener to just listen. the listener either:
(i) gives advice
(ii) tells him why he shouldn’t feel that way, or
(iii) tries to solve his problem.
(b) Why does the poet remark that advice is cheap?
Ans: The poet remarks that advice is cheap because everyone is willing to give advice. You only had to write to newspapers with your problems and you could get advice from the columnists. You had to spend just 20 cents to buy the paper.
(c) Which two facts show that the poet is confident of overcoming his irrational feeling?
Ans: The two facts that show that the poet is confident of overcoming his irrational feelings are: first, he says he will understand what is behind these feelings. Second, he says that when the answers become obvious, he will not need any advice.
4. According to the poet, how does God help people, when they pray to him for help?
Ans: According to the poet, God doesn’t try to give advice or fix things. He is silent and let’s one work things out by oneself. That is how God helps people when they pray to him for help.
5. Why should one learn to tackle one’s problems by one’s own self ?
Ans: When one tackles problems by oneself, one overcomes feelings of fear and inadequacy. Hence one should learn to tackle one’s problems by one’s own self.
6. Why should seniors not over- protect or over-pamper juniors ?
Ans: If seniors over-protect or over-pamper juniors, the juniors will be unable to stand on their own feet and face the world. They will not be able to overcome their feelings of fear and inadequacy. They will not become confident. Hence, seniors should not over-protect or over-pamper juniors.
7. Find out and write down some proverbs/axioms/quotations that convey a message similar to ‘Self-help is the best help.’
Ans:
(1) God helps those who help themselves.
(2) Self-help is the root of all success.
8. Maintain a diary at least for a week. Write about your interactions with other people in your surroundings in 3-4 lines. Also write whether you find the interactions happy-unhappy, satisfactory-unsatisfactory, enjoyable-stressful, etc.
Ans: Students must do this on their own
9. Write an informal letter from a teenager to his/her parent, expressing a few thoughts from the poem.
(My dear …../Dearest ……./Hi! ….. Are you surprised to see this letter? I wanted to
talk to you about this, but then I thought I will be able to express myself better in
a letter…. Love,/Yours lovingly/Yours …………)
Ans:
Dearest Mom,
Hi! Sorry, sorry, dear Mom. Are you surprised to see this letter? I wanted to talk to you about this, but then I thought I would be able to express myself better in a letter.
Mom, when I told you about the problems I was having with my room partner here at the hostel, I only wanted you to listen. I knew I was being irrational at times, and I was trying to understand this feeling. It would have taken me some time, but I would have finally got things clear on my own. I’m sorry, but I did not need advice, or any solutions. Now I’ve solved my problem and I am at peace.
I’m sorry, Mom, if I’ve hurt you by snapping at your good intentions. But I’m learning. I still need your support, but I have to make my own way in this world, and this is the first step. Please try to understand this.
Love you always.
Your loving son,
Amaan.
10. Read aloud a couple of stanzas of the poem ‘Invictus’ and ‘Please Listen’. In what ways do they differ ? Think and fill up the table with ‘Yes’ or ‘No’.
(1) Rhyming lines
(2) Steady rhythm
(3) Uniformity in length of lines
(4) Uniformity of number of lines
in each stanza
(5) Figurative language
‘Invictus’ is an example of Traditional Poetry. ‘Please Listen’ is an example of Free Verse.
Ans:
Invictus
(1) Rhyming lines – Yes
(2) Steady rhythm – Yes
(3) Uniformity in length of lines – Yes
(4) Uniformity of number of lines in each stanza – Yes
(5) Figurative language – Yes
Please Listen
(1) Rhyming lines – No
(2) Steady rhythm – No
(3) Uniformity in length of lines – No
(4) Uniformity of number of lines in each stanza – No
(5) Figurative language – No