I will Get on Tomorrow

In the poem "I’ll Get one tomorrow", the one that the poet is getting tomorrow is hair-cut. But he will say "I’ll Get one tomorrow", when tomorrow comes. The reason is that he is afraid of the armory of the barber. He descries himself as solitary because he is the only one who never visits a barber's den. Due to this, the poet is troubled by his long grown hair. It troubled him climbing like an ivy round his ears, jumped playfully across his collar, moved irregularly down his neck, tripped, trickled and ticked him. Thus it caused him great irritation. 

Then, he decided to visit the barber. He wants a thorough and overhaul hair-cut by almost plucking the hair from its very roots. After the hair-cut, he think, he will look like a wizard. 

Humorous comparison in the poem:

1. The hair is compared to a torrent (a rushing stream of water), ivy (a creeper), jungle, flora (plants growing in wild) and crop.
2. The barber's shop is compared to a den (cave) (refer line 12)
3. The barber's tools are compared to armory (a collection of weapons), shears. snippers (scissors), scythes (reaping implements), electric clippers, sweepers (combs), harvesters, reapers (Refers lines 18, 33, 34, 35, 36)
4. Angora is breed of goat famous for its long silky hair. The poet compared his long hair to this animal's fur (refer line 25)

Exaggerations in the poem are: a) Sloth is strong, but hair is stronger 
b) Employ a dozen extra sweepers 
c) Bring giant harvesters and reapers 
d) A Bumper crop waits to overwhelm your shop 

Public Questions:

1. 'I'll get one tomorrow' what is the one the poet is getting tomorrow? Do you think he will say: 'I' II get one tomorrow' when tomorrow comes? (Sept 99)
   A. The poet is getting a haircut tomorrow. He will not say he will get one tomorrow when tomorrow comes. He has already postponed if for a long time and cannot stand it any longer. 
2. Why did the poet finally decide to visit the barber? (March 93, Sept99)
   A. The poet has not visited a barber's shop for a very longtime. His hair has grown so much that it irritates and wears him down. It twists round his ears, leaps across his collar and moves down his neck. It has become unmanageable. As it falls irregularly it produces a tingling sensation. As it trips and trickles it tickles.
   Tormented and irked by the heavy growth of hair like that the poet has finally decided to visit the barber. 
3. 'Men no braver than myself confront the armory on thy shelf
   Who is the poet talking about? What does his 'armory' consist of? What does one need to 'confront' him?
   A. a) The poet is talking about the men who are not braver than himself, the barber and his tools.
   b) He calls his tools an armory which consists of weapons (shaving tools such as razor, scissors etc.,)
   c) One needs courage, determination to confront the weapons of the barber. 
4. "I alone am shy and flustered solitary, cowardly custard Shaggy as a prize Angora". Why does the poet say he is 'shy and flustered'? Why does he describe himself as 'solitary' and 'cowardly'? Why does he compare himself to an Angora? (March 91)
   A. a) The poet says that men not busier, not brave, and not wealthier than he, have already visited the barber to have the wild growth of their hair that gambols across their collar, cut for a fraction of a dollar. But he alone is shy and cowardly. He has not visited the barber.
   b) He calls himself as 'solitary' and 'cowardly' because he was the only one who was afraid to face the barber whereas the men no braver than himself could do so.
   c) He compares himself to an Angora because with his long grown hair, he looks like the Angora which was famous for its long and silky hair. 
5. "The bell has rung, the hour has struck Sloth is strong, but hair is stronger, I cannot stand it any longer". What do the lines mean? What effect do they produce? (March 89)
   A. a) The poet says that he was lazy enough not to go to the barber and have a shave. These lines mean that it is time for the poet to have his haircut. His hair has grown so enormously that it has defeated his laziness. But a point has been reached when he could not bear the trouble given by the hair. So he decided to go to the barber. Laziness was strong enough to keep him away from the barber for some time. but the hair gave him so much trouble that he had to set aside laziness. So he says that hair is stronger than sloth.
   
   One would expect to find such lines in religious poetry or in the holy texts. Such lines are used by poets while describing trivial things with the seriousness of a religious ceremony. In a mock-heroic poem the poets use such a method, where little things are made great. Well, this technique does create humour. 
6. "Bring on your shears, your scythes, your snipers, Bring giant harvesters and reapers". Notice the names of the tools the barber is asked to use. Is the poet really asking the barber to use these instruments? What does he want to suggest?
   A. a) Shears, scythes, snippers, crisp electric clippers, giant harvesters and reapers are mentioned here as barber's tools. They are normaly used by agriculturists in agricultural occupation. They are indeed not the right names for the barber's tools.
   b) The poet is not really asking the barber to use those instruments.
   c) He just wants to suggest to the barber that much hair has grown on his head. So it might be difficult for him to use the ordinary shaving instruments. 
7. "Employ a dozen extra sweepers; Bring giant harvesters and reapers". Why does the poet ask the barber's make these preparations? (Oct 96)
   A. The poet asks the barber to employ a dozen extra sweepers because he had no hair cut for quite a long time. The poet is very witty. In these amusing lines the poet wants the barber to know that a golden harvest awaits him. He is going to reap a rich bumper crop. So the poet asks him seriously to employ more servants to clear the bumper crop of hair which is going to overwhelm his shop. It is a humourous exaggeration used here. 
8. What kind of haircut does the poet want? What will he look like after the haircut? (March 2000, w008 - June 2006)
   A. a) The poet wants a close haircut.
   b) He will look like a lizard after the hair-cut. He will look bald. 
9. "Barber dear, I wish I knew why I do not visit you, Rather than to mount you chair". What is that he could not understand?
   A. He could not understand why he had not visited barber to have his hair cut, why he could not spend just ten minutes in his shop, and why he preferred to suffer due to hair rather than to sit in the barber's chair for a shave. 
10. What does the poet request the barber finally?
    A. The poet requests the barber to clip him close and leave him hairless as a lizard. He asks the barber to make him bald if possible He would then be the happiest of men and never thinks of him again.

Additional Questions:

1. What are the different ways in which the poet is troubled by his hair?
   A. His long flowing hair irritates him and damages him. It climbs his ears like a creeper. It gambols across the collar and moves leisurely down his neck. It tickles when it moves lightly and quickly. 
2. What else is the hair compared to?
   A. The hair is compared to a creeping flora, a jungle and a bumper crop. 
3. What is the barber's shop called? Would you expect a den to be sanitary? A. a) The barber's shop is called a sanitary den.
   b) We cannot expect a den to be sanitary. But everybody expects a barber's shop to be sanitary. 
4. What are the barber's tools called? What does the poet say one needs to 'confront' the barber?
   A. a) The barber's tools are called the armory.
   b) The poet says one needs determination to 'confront' the barber. 
5. The poet says he is a coward. What does he compare himself to? Do you think custards are particularly cowardly? Why then does the poet use the word?
   A. a) The poet compares himself to solitary cowardly custard.
   b) Custards are not practically cowardly.
   c) While many have visited he has not visited the barber for a long time. So he considers himself a coward. 
6. Shaggy as a prize Angora. Overrun with creeping flora. What is an Angora? What is it famous for? Do you think the comparison is apt? Is it a flattering to man with long hair?
   A. a) Angora is a breed of goat. It is famous for its long and silky hair.

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Upagupta

About The Author:

Rabindranath Tagore (7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941),sobriquet Gurudev, was a Bengali polymath who reshaped his region's literature and music. Author of Gitanjali and its "profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse", he became the first non-European to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913. In translation his poetry was viewed as spiritual and mercurial; however, his "elegant prose and magical poetry" remain largely unknown outside Bengal. Tagore introduced new prose and verse forms and the use of colloquial language into Bengali literature, thereby freeing it from traditional models based on classical Sanskrit. He was highly influential in introducing the best of Indian culture to the West and vice versa, and he is generally regarded as the outstanding creative artist of modern South Asia.

Summary:

First Scene (1-15 Lines) 
Upagupta lay asleep in the dust by the city wall of Mathura. He slept in the dust because he was a saint and he hated comfort, luxury and wealth. The night was described as murky because it was dark and unpleasant every where. It was the rainy season. So, people stayed indoors and they closed the doors and put out all lights. At that time of the night the dancing girl was returning home from the royal court. As it was dark at that time, she approached the city wall and couldn't see the path clearly. She touched Upagupta with her feet. He didn't mind her feet touching him since it wasn't deliberate attempt. 

(6-10 Lines) 
The dancer was attracted by Upagupta's austerely handsome face. She thought that the dusty earth wasn't the proper place for the ascetic to sleep on. So, she requested Upagutpa to come to her house. But he was a saint. He hated comfort, wealth and worldly pleasure. So, he declined the dancer's invitation of going with her to her house as he understood what she meant. He promised her that he would visit her house at an appropriate time by saying that Woman, go on your way! His words your way have a special significance. He asks her to go on with her worldly pleasures. She is too young to renounce material and physical pleasures. Her way was to enjoy herself. But he was a saint and renounced all worldly pleasures. His way was to lead a simple and spiritual life. 

(11-12 Lines) 
When the young ascetic had spoken his words, the black night showed its teeth in a flash of lighting and a storm growled from the corner of the sky. Due to this, the dancing girl trembled in fear. 

Second Scene 
It is the spring season. The branches of the trees were full of flowers. The air was warm and the breeze made musical sounds. The citizens went to the trees to attend the festival or flowers. 

(16-20 Lines) 
The town was silent and there was no passerby because most of the citizens left for the woods to attend the festival of flowers. The dancing girl was suffering from a deadly disease and she was driven away from the town. She had severe sores on her body. They were very painful and the disease was contagious. She lay in the shadow of the city wall suffering. She should be looked after by someone. She was in dire need of an attendant. The time for the ascetic, Upagupta, had come to serve her. He sat by the side of the suffering woman. He took her head on his knees, watered her lips, applied some balm to her sores and showed great care towards her. 

(21-22 Lines) 
The dancing girl asked who the merciful one was. He was Upagupta. He said that it was the right time for him to visit her because the duty of an ascetic was to render service to humanity. 

Public Question:

1. Graciously come to my house
   The dusty earth is not a fit bed for you
   The ascetic answered, "woman go on you way
   When the time is ripe, I will com to you"
   What did the dancing girl ask the ascetic to do? Why do you think he declined her invitation? What did he promise her? (Sep 90, March 2001, 2002)
   A. a) The dancing girl asked the ascetic to come to her house
   b) She felt that the dusty earth was not a fitting bed for him. In fact she was attracted by his beauty. But the ascetic had already given up all the worldly pleasures. So he declined her invitation
   c) He promised that he would visit her when the right time had come. 
2. Woman, go on you way,
   When the time is ripe, I will come to you.
   Do you think 'your way' has any special meaning? What was 'her' way? What was 'his' (March 89)
   A. a) It has a special meaning 'your way' means the way the dancing girl is leading the life - a life of enjoying bodily pleasures, a wordly way (or earthly pleasures)
   b) Her way was the way of enjoying worldly pleasures.
   c) Upagupta was an ascetic. An ascetic is one who follows the principle of self-denial. His way is spiritual the one of anunciation and meditation. 
3. "Who are you, merciful one?" asked the woman.
   Who is asking the question? Who is the 'merciful one'? When had the woman met him first? (Sept 94)
   A. a) The dancing girl is asking the question. She is now stricken by a dreadful disease and driven away from the town. The merciful one is Upagupta, the yound ascetic. The woman had first met him when she was in her youthful pride. 
4. The ascetic sat by her side, taking her head on his knees, and moistened her lips with water and smeared her body with balm. (Sept 91, 93, 97, April98)
   "Who are you, merciful one?" asked the woman.
   "The time, at last, has come to visit you, and I am here," replied the young ascetic.
   Who was the young ascetic? Who was the woman he was treating?
   Why did the woman call him 'the merciful one'?
   Why did the ascetic tell the woman that the time to visit her had come at last?
   A. a) They young ascetic was Upagupta.
   b) The woman was the dancing girl who met him at the temple gate long ago when she was young. She was very proud of her youth when they first met.
   c) When she was attacked by a dreadful disease, she was driven away from the town. Nobody cared for her. Then he was the only one who pitied her and helped her the young ascetic sat by her. He took her head on his knees, put some water on her lips and applied balm to her body. So she called him 'the merciful one'.
   d) When the woman lay down suffering from a dreadful disease, who was really in need of somebody's help. So the ascetic said that the time at last had come to visit her and serve her. It was the time she needed him the most to soothe her in sorrow, nurse her and lead on the right path. 
5. The time, at last, has come to visit you, and I am here, (March 88, 89, 99, Sept97)
   Who is the 'I' in the poem? Who is 'you' in what sense has the time come?
   A. a) 'I' in the poem is Upagupta.
   b) 'You' is the dancing girl.
   c) The time has come for the ascetic to come to her in order to attend on her, when she is really in need of his help. 
6. The time, at last, has come to visit you,
   And I am here, what is the significance of these words spoken by the ascetic?
   (March 97, Sept93)
   A. When Upagupta first met the dancing girl, she welcomed him to her house. But he did not accept her invitation. He told her that he would come when the time was ripe. But not who was suffering from a dreadful disease. She was driven away by the people from the town. So the ascetic decided to cure her and put her on the proper path. He tells her that the time has come to visit her. 
7. Two kinds of lives are depicted in the poem Upagupta. What are “They”? (June 2005)
   A. Two kinds of lives are depicted in the poem Upagupta by the two main characters - Upagupta and the dancing girl.
   Upagupta is a disciple of Buddha and depicts a life of renunciation and spiritual pursuit.
   The dancing girl is drunk with the wine of ther youth and despicts a life of worldly pleasures and material pursuit. 
8. What did Upagupta mean when he said to the young woman that he would come to her when the time was ripe?
   A. When Upagupta said to the young woman that he would come to her when the time was ripe, means that his way was one of renunciation, meditation and helping others in time of need. So he came to help her when she needed it most. 
9. What happened as soon as the young ascetic had spoken his words? (Mar 2000)
   A. Suddenly the black night showed its teeth in a flash of lighteing. The storm growled from the corner of the sky and the woman trembled in fear.

Additional Questions:

1. Why was the dancing girl up and about at that time of the night? The girl touched Upagupta with her feet. Why? What had happened?
   A. a) The dancing girl was on her way back home from the royal court at that time of the night. She approached the city wall.
   b) Whe touched Upagupta with her feet because she could not see him in the darkness of the night.
   c) So she begged his pardon. She invited him to her hous saying that the dustry earth was not the proper place for him to sleep. 
2. "He woke up started and the light from a woman's lamp struck his forgiving eyes". What woke up Upagupta? Why was he started? Would any one have liked it? Why his eyes are described as 'forgiving'?
   A. a) The touch of the dancing girl woke him up.
   b) He was started because he was suddenly woken up and also he saw a beautiful woman in front of him.
   c) No one would have liked a strong light striking ones eyes when one opened.
   d) His eyes are described as 'forgiving' because there were no signs of anger in them. 
3. 'Forgive me, young ascetic', said the woman. Why did she ask him for his forgiveness? What had she done?
   A. a) The dancing girl touched the ascetic with her feet because she could not see him in the darkness of the night. So she asked him for his forgiveness.
   b) She invited him to her house. 
4. Suddenly the black night showed its teeth in a flash of lighting
   The storm growled from the corner of the sky and the woman trembled in fear
   Who shows teeth when angry? Who growls? What is nature compared to? Do you think fate was indicating what was to come? How did the woman react?
   A. a) A monkey shows its teeth when angry.
   b) A tiger growls.
   c) Nature is compared to a tiger
   d) Fate was indicating what was to come.
   e) The woman trembled with fear. 
5. Why was the street lonely and the town silent? What was happening to the woman, while the whole world was rejoicing? What had the people done to her? Why do you think she was driven away hurriedly?
   A. a) The street was lonely and the town silent because it was midnight.
   b) While the whole world was rejoicing, the woman was suffering from a dreadful disease.
   c) The people had driven her away from the town
   d) The people were afraid that her disease would spread fast in the town. 
6. What did the ascetic do?
   A. The ascetic sat by the side of the woman and took her head on his knees. He moistened her lips with warm water and daubed her body with balm.

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The Snake

About The Author:

David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English novelist, poet, playwright, essayist, literary critic and painter who published as D. H. Lawrence. His collected works represent an extended reflection upon the dehumanising effects of modernity and industrialisation. In them, Lawrence confronts issues relating to emotional health and vitality, spontaneity, and instinct.

Lawrence's opinions earned him many enemies and he endured official persecution, censorship, and misrepresentation of his creative work throughout the second half of his life, much of which he spent in a voluntary exile which he called his "savage pilgrimage."At the time of his death, his public reputation was that of a pornographer who had wasted his considerable talents. E. M. Forster, in an obituary notice, challenged this widely held view, describing him as, "The greatest imaginative novelist of our generation." Later, the influential Cambridge critic F. R. Leavis championed both his artistic integrity and his moral seriousness, placing much of Lawrence's fiction within the canonical "great tradition" of the English novel. Lawrence is now valued by many as a visionary thinker and significant representative of modernism in English literature

Summary:

In "snake", Lawrence does not develop the poetic image much beyond the traditional common place meaning, but in the context of his life. The poem is interesting because of its relaxed tone. It has lovely fluidity of movement. It is written in free verse, combining some of the elements of traditional rhyme, and prose rhythm. 

On an extremely hot day, a snake comes to the poets water trough to drink water. The poet comes to the water trough with a pitcher. Both of them need water. The poet recognizes it as someone like him, who needs to drink the water. He has to wait since the snake has the first claim because he had arrived before him. 

The golden yellow snake moves his soft belly over edge of the stone trough, and rests his throat on it . He begins to sip with his mouth, slowly, noiselessly, and with much confidence. 

The poet describes the place from where the snake comes. Its home lies in the dark golden brown earth , the place of volcanoes. The snake brings something of that place with him. while drinking the water, the snake suddenly lifts up his head just as some cattle and animals do. It looks at the poet rather uncertainly, and continues to drink leisurely. 

Being satisfied to its hearts content, the snake turns around slowly and goes to words the terrible hole from which it came. The poet is horrified to see the snake return deliberately into that black hole. He does not understand why it wants to go back. 

His natural instinct tells him that the black snakes ate harmless, and the golden snakes Poisonous. His education tells him that he should take a stick and kill it but he is fascinated by it. He welcomes it as a guest. He wants it to return to the place from where it has come. The poet does not understand why the snake is disappearing from the sight of the so called civilized man. 

Thus the poet is divided in his attitude towards the snake. It shows his ambivalence. He does not know whether he will let it go because of his cowardice. He does not know if his desire to talk to the snake is unnatural. He does not know if he feels honored because he is humbled by its presence. Fully satisfied, the snake turns around slowly to return to its horrid black hole. At this point, the poet describe the snake as a God who comes from the deep earth to remind man of his own dark buried instinctive life. 

Uncertain though he is, pick up a stick, and throws it at the snake. Instantly the part of the snake which is left behind, recoils in an undignified haste like lightning. 
The next moment the poet repents his action in disturbing it. He regrets that his education has made him insensitive to the Godly presence of the snake. The poet wants the snake to come back . He despises himself, and is reminded of the albatross in Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem. "The Ancient Mariner".

A sailor had killed a bird which brought him bad luck. The poet feels that he also would suffer bad luck like the Ancient Mariner for having attempted to kill an innocent snake.
Thus in 'snake' the winding beauty and fearsomeness of reptiles are described along with the poet's ambivalent feelings of admiration, anxiety and shame.

QUESTION AND ANSWERS

1. Why did the poet decide that he had to stand and wait? How did he treat the snake?
   A. As the snake come to the water trough much ahead of him, the poet thought that it should drink first. He adopted the principle. "First come, first served". So he showed hospitality towards it and decided to stand and wait till his turn comes. More over the poet liked the snake and treated it as a guest. 
2. Where did the snake come from? 'And trailed - trough'. Does it suggest the slow soft movement of the snake?
   A. The snake came from a deep crack in the earth wall. The snake trailed his yellow brown slackness soft belied down. Over the edge of the water though". These words suggest the slow soft movement of the snake. 
3. His body has been described as 'slackness'. In what sense was it slack? Slow and lazy confident and relaxed?
   A. The body of the snake has been described in the sense that it was slow, confident and relaxed.
4. what did the snake do at the trough? The way the snake drank is described as softly and silently. What do the words suggest? Lack of noise/confidence/ lack of hurry / dignity?
   A. The snake sipped water at the trough softly and silently. The words 'softly and silently suggest that the snake was not in a hurry. 
5. 'Someone was there before me' what does someone suggest? Just anyone who happened to be ahead of the poet? Someone important whose right have to be respected?
   A. 'Someone' suggests the regard the poet has towards the snake. He thought that there was someone much ahead of him whose rights he had to respect. 
6. 'He lifted his head from his drinking' as cattle do .. 'why do you think the snake is compared to cattle?
   A) while drinking , the snake lifted his head . Here the snake is compared to cattle because they do not drink water at a stretch and will be lifting their heads several times. 
7. 'Being earth brown …..'. Three things have been mentioned in this and the next line to rein force the idea of heat what are they?
   A. To reinforce the idea of heat, the poet has mentioned three things - the burning bowels of the earth the day of Sicilian july and mount Etna an active volcano in Sicily , smoking. 
8. The voice of my education said to me, he must be killed, for in Sicily, the black, black snakes are innocent, the gold are venomous. What did the voice of education ask the poet to do ? what is the argument for killing a golden snake? Do you think that the distinction is rational?
   A. The voice of my education asked the poet to kill the snake because the golden snakes of Sicily are highly poisonous where as the black ones are not . No, I don't think this distinction is rational . since he considered the snake his guest. But killing a venomous snake is quite rational. 
9. What does Lawrence mean when he speaks of the voice of my education? What did it say to him?
   A. "The voice of education" here means the knowledge that Lawrence had acquired about the Sicilian snakes through books. According to it, the golden snakes in his county were harmful but not the black ones. As the snake that had come to the water trough was a golden one, total him that he should kill the snake if he were a man. 
10. What does the poet do to the snake? How does he feel after it?
    A. The poet first treats the snake as his guest and allows it to drink water first, But finding the snake going back in to its hole he takes a clumsy log and throws it at the snake. It misses the target but the poet regrets his haste and mean act. 
11. Why was the poet glad that the snake want to harm anybody?
    A. The poet was glad that the snake had come to him like a guest. More over the snake did not want to harm anybody. 
12. "Was it cowardice ,that I dared not kill him? Was it perversity , that I longed to talk to him? Was it humility to feel so honoured? I felt so honoured". Who is the poet talking about here? Why does he ask himself these questions? What does he feel honoured by?
    A. D.H Lawrence is the poet. He is talking about the guest, the snake. He asks himself these questions because the voice of his education is in conflict with his inner voice. He feels honoured by his act of kindness to the snake. It has drunk water peacefully. 
13. The poet had four different feelings towards the snake. What were they?
    A. The four different feelings that the poet had towards the snake are cowardice, perversity, humility and honour the last being the strongest of all. 
14. Where did the snake crawl into? What are the words used to describe the hole? How did the poet feel when the snake went back in the hole? Why?
    A. The snake crawled into the hole in the wall. The words, "dreadful, horrid black, dark door of the secret earth" are used to describe the hole. When the snake went into the hole, a sort of horror and a sort of protest against his with-drawing into the hole overcome the poet. He anticipated, some danger for the snake. 
15. What feeling overcame the author as the snake was with drawing into the hole? What did he do and with what result? What did he think?
    A. As the snake was slowly with drawing into the hole a sort of horror and protest overcome the poet. He pocked up a log and threw it at the snake but did not hit him. The snake shook violently and pulled the remaining part of its body into the black hole.
    The poet then felt sorry for his mean and hasty action. He cursed himself and the voices of his education. 
16. What are the words used to describe the haste with which the snake disappeared into the hole? Contrast these words with those used to describe his calm dignified movement earlier? A. The words convulsed in undignified haste, and "writhed like lightening" are used to describe the haste with which the snake disappeared into the hole. There words are in contrast with the snake's calm dignified movement earlier. It shows a clear difference between the two movements of the snake. 
17. " And immediately I regretted it , I though how paltry , how vulgar, what a mean act, I despised myself and the voices of my accursed human education "
    A. The poet threw a log at the snake and later it. It refers to the poet's hasty action of throwing a log at the snake. He thought that his act was paltry, vulgar and mean. Since he was prompted by his voice of education to do so he despised it. 
18. The poet thinks of the snake in two images. What are they? Why do you think the snake is described in these terms?
    A. The poet thinks of the snake in two images a king due to be crowned and one of the lords of life. The king who is soon to be crowned will punish the wrong doers. The snake is kingly but the writer is mean. He anticipates some punishment. So he competes the snake to "a king due to be crowned" and "one of the lords of life". 
19. And I have something to expiate.What wrong did the poet do?
    A. The snake was slowly withdrawing into the hole. A kind of horror overcame the poet. He picked up a log and threw it at the snake but missed his aim. He later felt sorry for his hasty action. 
20. "And truly I was most afraid, But even so honoured still more". Why did the poet feel honoured in spite of being afraid?
    A. The poet felt honoured in spite of being afraid because the snake came there on a hot day to drink water but not to cause harm to the poet. Even though it was a poisonous snake, it simply drank water and went in to the deep crack in the wall.

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The Gallows

About The Author:

Philip Edward Thomas (3 March 1878 – 9 April 1917) was an Anglo-Welsh poet and essayist. He is commonly considered a war poet, although few of his poems deal directly with his war experiences. Already an accomplished writer, Thomas turned to poetry only in 1914. In 1915, he enlisted in the British Army to fight in the First World War and was killed in action during the Battle of Arras in 1917, soon after he arrived in France.

Summary:

Gallows is a poem about those who protect and violate the law. In this poem, the poet talks about a game keeper and the punishment he confers on a weasel, a crow and a magpie.
The game keeper killed the weasel(a funny little animal) and hung it on the branch of a dead oak tree because it killed other animals.

The keeper shot the crow and hung it on the tree because it a thief and a murderer. He says that now it cannot commit any more sins.

In the same way, the poet writes about the magpie (bird with a long beautiful tail) It was a petty thief which picked up many small shining objects.

1. What did the keeper do to the weasel? Why do you think he did so? Why does he swing there without pleasure, without pain?The keeper shot the weasel with his gun and hung him up on a tree. He did so because the weasel lived in the sun with his family and was a nillisance to other birds. He swings them without pleasure or pain because he is dead.

2. What had the crow done? "And the keeper made him one of the things that were"... What does it mean? can the crow commit any more sins on the branch of the oak tree?The crow had committed theft and murder. It means that the keeper shot him too. The crow cannot commit any more sins on the branch of the tree because he is dead.

3. "There are no more sins to be sinned. On the dead oak tree bough". Who do these lines speak off? What sins did he commit previously? What happened to him and why were there no more sins to be sinned?These lines speak of a crow. He stole small things and also killed insects, worns and chicks. He was killed by the keeper and hung up on the tree. As he was dead. he could commit no more sins.

4. What kind of a bird was the magpie? Did his ability to talk and his beauty save him?The magpie was a noisy bird with black and white feathers. It could make nice sounds with its long tongue. It looked beautiful with its long tail. Neither his ability to talk his beauty saved him from death because the keeper killed him too.

5. The weasel, the crow and the magpie were wicked, certainly, But could they help being what they were? Do you think they deserved the punishment they got?Though the weasel, the crow and the magpie were wicked, they could not help being what the were. They did not deserve the punishment they got because it is in the nature of things that they had to prey upon smaller animals for their basic needs.

6. It is the keeper's duty to protect the birds and beasts under his care. Why then did he have to shoot some of them? Should he be blamed for what he did?The keeper shot some of the birds and beasts on the pretext that they were killing the smaller ones. This is a clear dereliction of duty. He should be blamed for it.

7. Who do you think was more cruel-the weasel that killed smaller animals or the keeper who killed the weasel? Why?I think the keeper who killed the weasel was more cruel than the weasel that killed the smaller animals. Because he forgot his legitimate duty of protecting the birds and beasts under his care instead of killing the weasel, he would have driven him away.

8. Who do think are the poet's sympathies with the birds and beasts, or the keeper?The poet's sympathies are with the birds and beasts because it is in the nature of things that they should live on other smaller animals. But the keeper had shot them dead for no fault of theirs.

9. What did the keeper do to the weasel, the crow and the magpie?It was the duty of the keeper to protect the birds and beasts under his care. But he shot the weasel, the crow and the magpie dead and hung them on the branch of the dead oak tree. He thought he had done them a favour but it was a serious dereliction of duty.

10. What was the fate of the weasel, the crow and the magpie?The weasel, the crow and the magpie were shot dead by the keeper and hung on a dead oak tree bough. They had neither pleasure nor pain. They were just hanging in snow, rain and the sun with enormous leisure.

11. Why does the keeper hang the dead creature from a tree?The keeper hangs the dead creature from a tree so that they could not commit any more sins, besides not being a feast to others. He also thinks that he has provided them with endless leisure.

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On Killing A Tree

About The Author:

Gieve Patel is considered to be the poet of the body since human body is a recurrent theme in a majority of his poems. In his poems, the body acts as a living metaphor. His sympathies are with the oppressed or down-trodden and anyone devoid of his basic right to live. In an appropriately titled poem, The Ambiguous Fate of Gieve Patel, he being neither a part of Hinduism nor Islam in India, he grieves the isolation faced by the Parsis in the starting line of the short poem based on communal riots, when he writes; "To be no part of this hate is deprivation". As a Parsi observer, he cannot choose to be a part of either side, he poignantly remarks, "Planets focus their fires/into a worm of destruction/Edging along the continent. Bodies/Turn ashen and shrivel. I only burn my tail." He is thus counted among the well-known Parsi writers in India.

Paraphrase of the Poem:
[1-9 lines]
It takes a lot of time and strength to kill a tree because it grows slowly and rises out of the earth by absorbing years of sunlight air and water. So, it is not easy to kill a tree with a single stroke of a knife.

[10-19 lines] 
The tree has deep roots which draws its sap from the earth. It gives rise to tiny twigs and miniature boughs. We hack and chop to kill a tree. But hacking and chopping cannot destroy it completely as green twigs are sure to emerge from the bleeding bark. The miniature boughs (branches) will grow from close to the ground and grow back to its normal size.

Here the poet uses imagery of violence like cutting, jabbing, bleeding contrasted with the spreading of leaves and boughes.

[20-29 lines]
The source of the tree is its roots which is white and wet. The secret of its strength is that it is hidden inside the earth for years together. It is fixed firmly in the earth. Thus to kill a tree it has to be uprooted, scorched and choked in the sun. It takes much time to kill a tree.

[30-35 lines]
After uprooting, the roots are to be exposed to the sunlight till they dry and become brown. Then it stops breathing. It becomes hardened, twisted and browned.

1. "It takes much time to kill a tree" Why does it takes so much time to kill a tree?It takes much time to kill because it has grown slowly consuming the earth, rising out of it, feeding upon its crust and absorbing years of sunlight, air and water.

2. "It takes much time to kill a tree. Not a simple job of the knife. Will do it...." Why does it takes so much time to kill a tree?
It is not easy to kill a tree simply with a stroke of a knife. The tree has deep roots which give rise to tiny twigs and miniature boughs. The root has to be uprooted, and it has to be scorched and choked in sun and air. This process takes much time and it requires a lot of effort. Then only the tree is killed.

3. "Not a simple Job of the knife will do it", There are several images of death and violence in the poem. can you list them?The images of death are "hack, chop, scorching, choking, browning, hardening, twisting and withering". The words that show violence are roped tied, pulled out and snapped out entirely from earth crust.

4. Why does the poet use the word 'kill' rather than 'destory? Does it suggest his attitude to trees? What do you think is his attitude to them?The poet treats trees as living organisms which feel pain and pleasure alike the human beings. He, therefore, feels that trees should not be deprived of their right to live. So his attitude to trees is quite humane.

5. Why does the poet talk about 'killing' a tree?The poet considers every tree as a living organism. It too feels pain and pleasure alike the human beings. So he uses the expression 'killing the tree' rather than 'destroying' or 'cutting' it. According to him a tree cannot be denied the right to live. So his attitude towards trees is fairly humane is sympathetic.

6. It has grown slowly... 'The word 'grow' is suggestive of life. There were several words of the same kind. Can you spot them? Why do you think the poet uses such words?Besides the word 'grow' there were several words of the same kind such as consume, rise feed, absorb, sprout ect., are suggestive of life. The poet uses these words to emphasize that the tree is also a living being.

7. The bark of the tree is described the 'leprous hide'. What grows from it? How is it "Ironic" that the leprous hide sproute leaves?Leaves grow from the leprous hide is the bark of the tree. Leprosy usually eats away the body. It never promotes growth. But, here, the leprous hide that has a cruel tendency of killing has been depicted as a source of growth. Thus, it is ironical.

8 How much does hacking and chopping help in destroying a tree? Why? Which words suggest that the tree is very much a living organism?Hacking and chopping will not help in destroying a tree. It may give a death blow to the tree but it cannot annihilate it, for green twigs will soon emerge from the bleeding bark.The words bleeding, heal, rise, expand suggest that the tree is very much a living organism.

9." So hack and chop But this alone won't do it". What methods are generally used to kill a tree? Do the methods can fully be worked out? What does 'it' refer to?Hacking and chopping are generally used to kill a tree. These methods cannot be fully worked out. They may give a death blow to the tree but cannot destroy it completely as green twigs are sure to emerge from it. 'It' refers to 'killing a tree'.

10. Contrast 'bleeding bark' with 'green twigs'. What does 'blood represent? What does 'green' show? Have you noticed the change from death to life?'Bleeding bark' is suggestive of deterioration whereas 'green twigs' suggest fresh growth. 'Blood' represents death. Green shows the springing of life. 'Green' and 'blood' symbolize the change from death to life.

11.How does the poet describe the uprooting of a tree?1."Neither a simple job of a knife nor hacking and chopping kill a tree.
2. Hence the root of the tree should be pulled out of the earth.
3. It whould, then, be roped, tied and snapped out.
4. So it should be pulled out entirely from the earth cover.
5. It should be exposed to sunlight.
6. This, according to the poet, is the complete process of uprooting a tree.

12. "The sources, white and wet, The most sensitive, hidden for years inside the earth". What is the source of the the tree? How is it? What is the secret of its strength?The source of the tree is its root. It is white and wet. The secret of its strength is that it is hidden inside the earth for years together. It clings firmly to the layers of the earth.

13. "And the strength of the tree exposed the source, white and wet, the most sensitive...." Where does the strength of the tree lie? Why is it referred to as 'the source'? Why is the source most sensitive one?The strength of the tree lie in its roots. The roots give strength to the tree. So they are the source of the strength. It is the most sensitive because it has been hidden for years inside the earth.

14. Why does the poet describe the killing of a tree in such graphic detail?Gieve patel is sympathetic towards trees and treats them as living organisms. He feels that they should not be denied the right to live. What he means is that trees should not be destroyed indiscriminately. He, therefore, describes the killing of a tree in such graphic detail as to evoke sympathy to trees. According to him, to hurt a tree is to hurt a human being.

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