Chapter 3.5 - The Donkey
Paraphrase of the Poem:
The poem “The Donkey” describes the behaviour of a newborn donkey for whom life is a new experience as he is taking the first steps of his life. He clumsily tries to walk around, his huge head and shaky, loose legs making it all the more difficult for him to do so. The poem ends with the poet hoping that the world around the foal (baby donkey) would treat him with care.
The one-day-old foal tries to explore his surroundings, but his shaky legs and large head render his steps more clumsy than normal. He tries to frolic and leap but doesn’t quite know how to do it. His head, just like that of a human baby, is too heavy for his weak neck to firmly hold it. He adorned himself with a rather strange coat in the guise of soft, grey fur, wrapped in a lovely way around his neck.
His face looked serious, almost as if he was thinking of something that he longed for. He unsteadily moved around, as if on a daring, adventurous quest. Just as he lay down to relax, the poet realised how puny he was and hoped that the world treated the frail foal with care.
Meanings:
- rocketed – moved suddenly
- staggered – tottered, moved unsteadily
- gambol – to leap, move playfully
- wistful – full of hope, longing for something
- venturesome – daring, adventurous
- quest – search, the act of looking for
- something
- frisk – gambol, skip, dance
- queer – weird, odd
- slim – slender, thin
Pointers
1. Rewrite the poem in the form of a prose passage.
Ans: Refer to the Paraphrase of the Poetry given above.
2. List the pairs of rhyming words from the poem.
Ans: The pairs of rhyming words in the poem are;
old – hold
loose – use
bit – it
grey – way
doubt – about
quest – rest
slim – him
round – ground
3. What does the poet pray for ? Why ?
Ans: The poet realises that the one-day-old donkey is very frail and certainly can’t take care of himself. He prays that the world treats the little foal with care.
4. Have you seen a newborn young one of an animal?
Ans: Yes, I have seen the newborn of a dog. The newborns, that is the puppies cling onto their mother for their dear life. They are very puny and their mother is very protective of them. All the puppies nestle close to their mother at the time of drinking milk.
5. Talk to your parents and family members and write what you could do when –
you were a day old
Ans: When I was a day old, time could only open my eyes. Newborn babies can open their eyes and do, in fact, see when they are born. However, their eyesight is poor, and they aren’t able to focus very well, especially on anything beyond 12 inches away.
you were one month old
Ans: I was one month old at the time and wasn’t aware of my actions. I used to suck, swallow, search for milk, and grasp anything if anyone put it in my palm.
you were six months old
Ans: At 6 months, I began to express my emotions. I used to mimic sounds like “ma,” “da,” “ah,” “oh,” and even “no!” I began to recognise familiar faces, reach and grasp for toys, and soon started to crawl.
you were one year old.
Ans: Creeping, crawling, and cruising along the furniture eventually led me to walk. By 12 months, I had already taken my first steps without support. I had better hand-eye coordination. I fed myself finger foods, grasping items between the thumb and forefinger.
6. Form groups and hold debates on the following topics. Make bulleted lists of points in favour (pros) and those against (cons) the given statement. Let the whole class vote on who won the debate.
(a) Man should use animals for his own needs.
Ans:
PROS:
(i) Animal testing has contributed to many life-saving cures and treatments.
(ii) There is no other alternative method to testing a whole body system.
(iii) Animals are appropriate research subjects because they are similar to human beings in many ways.
(iv) Animal research is highly regulated, with laws in place to protect animals from mistreatment.
(v) Animals often make better research subjects than human beings because of their shorter life spans.
CONS:
(i) Animal testing is cruel and inhumane.
(ii) Alternative methods are now available that can replace the need for animals.
(iii) Animals are very different from human beings and therefore make poor test subjects.
(iv) Ninety-five percent of the animals used in the research are not protected by the Animal Welfare Act.
(v) Animal tests do not reliably predict results in humans.
(b) Contact with man has helped animals to survive.
Ans:
PROS:
(i) Species that were going extinct are kept alive in sanctuaries by man. Research has helped preserve many species.
(ii) In many cases, a man helps wounded and fragile animals, helping them to survive.
CONS:
(i) It is a man who is a threat to animals; if there were no human beings, animals would never have any difficulty surviving.
(ii) Man is playing havoc with the environment and thus troubling animals, not helping them to survive.
7. Find what the young ones of the following animals are called :
donkey –
Ans: foal
sheep –
Ans: lamb
owl –
Ans: owlet
horse –
Ans: foal
lamb – (Wrong Question)
Ans: Lamb itself is the young one
swan –
Ans: cygnet
lion –
Ans: cub
cow –
Ans: calf
eagle –
Ans: eaglet
tiger –
Ans: cub
pig –
Ans: piglet
duck –
Ans: duckling
elephant –
Ans: calf
whale –
Ans: calf
peacock –
Ans: peachick
8. Complete the following using your own ideas :
(a) His head was too big to hold his neck.
(b) He was too shy to ………..
Ans: He was too shy to sing for the class.
(c) She was too proud to ………..
Ans: She was too proud to apologise.
(d) They were too tired to ………..
Ans: They were too tired to explore any further.
(e) We are too busy to ………..
Ans: We are too busy to go on a vacation.
(f) He was too lazy to ………..
Ans: He was too lazy to open the door.
9. Write a conversation between :
(a) A donkey and a dog
Ans:
Donkey: Hi, friends, How are you? I haven’t seen you in a long time.
Dog: I’m fine. How are you?
Donkey: What are you doing here?
Dog: I’m hungry and was wondering if there is something to kill my hunger.
Donkey: Oh, that’s bad. I hope you find a bone fast!
Dog: Are you still caring a lot?
Donkey: Yes, my master is very implacable towards me.
Dog: Oh, poor creature, that’s bad for today.
Donkey: Bye; I have to go across the pond.
Dog: Bye; see you soon.
(b) A donkey and a horse
Ans:
Horse: Hi Donkey, how are you?
Donkey: I’m fine; how about you?
Horse: I’m okay, but my front leg hurts a bit since the last race.
Donkey: Did you win the race?
Horse: No, I hurt myself on the track, but I still finished third, which did not please my owner.
Donkey: Tell me about it. No matter what we do, humans are not pleased. I carry so much burden, but still, there seems to be no thought about reducing the burden any day.
Horse: Yes, we are pushed to our limits. At least we are lucky that our owner does not ill-treat us or kick us badly.
Donkey: True that.
Horse: Okay, I’ve got to take some rest. I will meet you later.
Donkey: Okay, bye.
Horse: Bye
(c) A donkey and a school boy.
Ans:
Donkey: Hello boy. How are you?
Schoolboy: Hello, Mr. Donkey. I am fine. What’s the matter?
Donkey: I carry loads to help my master with his work. What are you carrying on your back?
Schoolboy: It’s my bag in which I carry my books.
Donkey: Can I know where you are going?
Schoolboy: Yes. I am going to tution.
Donkey: Did you go to school today?
Schoolboy: Yes, Mr. Donkey.
Donkey: If you went to school, there is no need to go to tuition. They teach the same thing, which is already explained in school.
Schoolboy: Yes. You’re right, Mr. Donkey, but my parents want me to study more. That’s the reason they are sending me to tutoring.
Donkey: It’s really hard to hear the same thing. Can you explain to your parents about this issue?
Schoolboy: Yes, but I think they won’t agree.
Donkey: Give it a try. If you continue going to school, you’ll lose interest in studying.
Schoolboy: Okay, I will try. By the way, I’m getting late for tuition. Bye, Mr. Donkey.
Donkey: Bye boy.
10. If you saw someone abusing an animal, what would you do ? Write about it in 5 lines.
Ans: If I were to see someone ill-treating an animal, the first thing I would do is calmly but firmly suggest the person stop his misbehaviour. I will explain to him that these vulnerable animals can’t speak for themselves. I will tell him that it is our duty to protect them and not harm them. If he continues the ill treatment, I would call the Animal Protection Services.
11. Visit a library : Find poems about animals. Copy them and recite them to your friends.
Ans: Students must do this on their own.