Chapter 1.1 - Past, Present, Future
The poet asks the child, who is smiling, what the past is like for him. The child replies that the past is like an autumn evening, soft and mild, with a wind that sighs sadly.
The poet then asks the child his or her opinion of the present. The child replies that the present is like a green branch of flowers on which a young bird sits, gathering strength to fly away.
The poet asks the happy child about the future. To this, the child replies that the future is like a sea that is beneath the sun in a cloudless sky. The sea is very powerful, glorious, and shining brightly, and it stretches on without an end.
ENGLISH WORKSHOP
1. Read the poem aloud using proper rhythm and intonation.
Ans: Students must do this on their own.
2. Link the items in the three columns properly.
Ans:
3. Find the meaning of the following words.
(i) thee
Ans: you.
(ii) mournfully
Ans: sadly.
(iii) spray
Ans: a stem or small branch of a tree or plant, bearing flowers.
(iv) mighty
Ans: possessing great power or strength; very powerful.
4. Write the adjectives that are used to describe the following.
(i) evening
Ans: soft and mild.
(ii) spray
Ans: green and flowery.
(iii) sea
Ans: mighty, glorious, dazzling.
5. Write one line about each of the following with the help of the poem.
(i) wind in the autumn evening
Ans: The wind in the autumn evening sighs sadly.
(ii) young bird on the spray
Ans: The young bird sits on the flowery plant gathering strength to get up and fly away.
(iii) the sea
Ans: The mighty, glorious and dazzling sea stretches on without an end.
6. Language Study :
A simile is an imaginative comparison of two different things which have something in common. A simile always includes the words ‘as’ or ‘like’.
For example :
(i) As tall as a tree.
(ii) As lovely as a flower.
A metaphor is an imaginative expression that refers to someone/something as another person/thing. It shows that the person or thing has some quality of that other person or thing. The words ‘as’ or ‘like’ are not used in a metaphor.
For example :
(i) He is a gem of a person.
(ii) Time is money.
(iii) Books are our friends.
(iv) The clouds are white sheep.
There are three metaphors in the poem. Can you find them?
Ans:
(i) What is the past like to thee? An autumn evening soft and mild.”
Reason: Here the past is compared to an autumn evening.
(ii) ‘Tell me, what is the present hour?
A green and flowery spray.’
Reason: Here the present is compared to a green and flowery spray.
(iii) ‘And what is the future, happy one?
A sea beneath a cloudless sun.
Reason: Here the future is compared to a sea beneath a cloudless sun.