6p


Solution : 1
(i) The poet is speaking about the garments the soldiers wear at the time of war so that they can be identified by their own men. The figurative meaning of the term "uniforms" could be factors such as race, creed, nationality and religion which group people into categories.

(ii) According to the poet, each one of us breathes and lives in the same way. Eventually, we will all be buried under the same earth when we die. Providence gifts man air, water and warmth to survive; these gifts are shared by everyone who walks the earth. Everyone prospers at the time of peace and suffers when there is war. Our hands that we use to work and the eyes that we use to behold the world are the same for all. The way each of us finds strength in love is the same for everyone.
Love and life, as understood by the poet, are universal concepts known to everyone. He thus concludes that all people on earth are the same.
Solution : 2
The words that show that we are all alike are:
  • No men are strange
  • No countries foreign
  • A single body breathes
  • The land our brothers walked upon
  • Earth like this, in which we all shall lie

Solution : 3
The common features in stanza 2 are;
  • "…aware of sun, air and water…"
  • "…fed by peaceful harvests…"
  • "Their hands are ours…"
  • "A labour not different..."
Solution : 4
When political and religious differences arise between two countries, the citizens of either nation are told to be mistrustful of each other.
Some political leaders try to provoke the people into hating the other country and its citizens through their speeches. Although soldiers have to fight to protect their own country, it is not essential for us to hate each other.
Even during the war, we should not forget our humanity.
The poet says that by hating our brothers, we also hate ourselves. Through hatred, we dispossess, betray and condemn ourselves.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

11

Solution : 1 (i) Gerrard has said the given line. (ii) He said so because the intruder had finally stopped threatening him and ordering him about and asked him to speak about himself. (iii) He was being sarcastic. The audience, i.e., the intruder was in no ways sympathetic. In fact, he told Gerard, at gunpoint, to talk about himself so that he could use the information to further his own interests. (ii)  Solution : 2 The intruder chose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wanted to take on because he was of the same build as Gerrard and so his clothes too would fit him fine. Also as Vincent Charles Gerrard, he would be free to go places and do nothing. He could eat well and sleep without having to be ready to run away at the sight of a cop. He would only have to wear specs and he would look enough like Gerrard to get way with it. Solution : 3 (i)    Gerrard has said the given line. (ii)   It means that when things went wrong with him, he ...
Read more

1 p

Solution 1 The traveller suddenly finds himself in the yellow woods at a point where the road forks into two. The problem that he faces is that he cannot decide which road to take to continue his journey since it is not possible for him to travel both roads at the same time. Solution 2 i) A yellow wood- Yellow wood symbolises the autumn season. Autumn corresponds with old age. The poet could be symbolically talking about the later stages of life. ii) It was grassy and wanted wear- It means the grassy path was not treaded on by many travellers and seemed to invite people to tread on it. This phrase represents the allure of the unconventional paths we take in life. iii) Passing there- The use of the path by passersby. iv) Leaves no step had trodden black- The leaves had not changed their colour and turned black because of less people stepping on them. It could represent a path one may have never/seldom taken in life for the fear of uncertainty. v) How way ...
Read more

5p

Solution : 1 The Northland may refer to the countries located in the polar  in the north, like Greenland, Norway, or northern parts of Russia, Canada etc. Solution : 2 Since the lady was baking cakes and Saint Peter was very hungry, he asked her to give him one her store of cakes. The lady made a small cake for him. As it was baking, she noticed that it seemed too big to give away, so she kneaded a smaller one. She found that this one is as big as the first one and so she took a really tiny piece of dough and rolled it thin as a wafer. Again, she couldn't part with it and so she put it on the shelf instead of giving it to Saint Peter. Solution : 3 Saint Peter was very hungry and was angered by the woman's behaviour. He told her that she was far too selfish to live in a human form and have luxuries such as food, shelter and fire to keep her warm. He punished her by changing her into a wood pecker that would have to build nests to live in and bore for food all ...
Read more