Question

Read the following poem and write an appreciation of it with the help of the given points in a paragraph format:

Night of the Scorpion I remember the night my mother was stung by a scorpion. Ten hours of steady rain had driven him to crawl beneath a sack of rice. Parting with his poison - flash of diabolic tail in the dark room - he risked the rain again. The peasants came like swarms of flies And buzzed the name of God a hundred times to paralyse the Evil One. With candles and with lanterns throwing giant scorpion shadows on the mud-baked walls they searched for him: he was not found. They clicked their tongues. With every movement that the scorpion made his poison moved in Mother's blood, they said. May he sit still, they said May the sins of your previous birth be burned away tonight, they said. May your suffering decrease the misfortunes of your next birth, they said. May the sum of all evil balanced in this unreal world against the sum of good become diminished by your pain. May the poison purify your flesh of desire, and your spirit of ambition, they said, and they sat around on the floor with my mother in the centre, the peace of understanding on each face. More candles, more lanterns, more neighbours, more insects, and endless rain. My mother twisted through and through, groaning on a mat. My father, sceptic, rationalist, trying every curse and blessing, powder, mixture, herb and hybrid. He even poured a little paraffin upon the bitten toe and put a match to it. I watched the flame feeding on my mother. I watched the holy man perform his rites to tame the poison with an incantation. After twenty hours it lost its sting. My mother only said Thank God the scorpion picked on me And spared my children.

Points:

• The title and the poet of the poem
• Rhyme scheme
• Figures of speech
• Central Idea/Theme

Answer 1

Appreciation of the poem 'The Night of the scorpion'

The poem 'The Night of the scorpion' by Nissim Ezekiel, revolves round the sting of a scorpion that the poet's mother experienced on a rainy night. The poem follows the narrative style of storytelling where an incident is narrated in a free verse having no fixed rhyme scheme. The poem is enriched using various figures of speech such as Alliteration, Antithesis, Hyperbole, Inversion, Metaphor, Onomatopoeia, Oxymoron, Repetition, Simile, and transferred Epithet. An example of personification from the poem is "I watched the flame feeding on my mother" as the flame is given the human quality of 'feeding'. The poem is a first-person account of how a son (the poet) watches helplessly as his mother suffers from a scorpion's sting. The villagers' blessing and curses, a holy man's chants and the rational husband's experiments cannot bring relief to the poet's mother. It shows how the behaviour of the villages is characterised by their illiteracy and the lack of medical facilities, which thereby results in blind beliefs and superstitions. Nissim Ezekiel's night of the scorpion is a strong yet simple statement on the power of self-effacing love. The ironic twist in the poem comes when in the end the mother who suffered in silence opens her mouth and says "Thank God the scorpion picked on me and spared my children." Yes, I like this poem because this poem mention the bond between the mother and son.

Answer 2

Appreciation of the Poem "Night of the Scorpion"

The poem "Night of the Scorpion" is written by Nissim Ezekiel, a well-known Indian poet. It narrates a real-life incident where the poet's mother is stung by a scorpion, and the villagers, along with the poet's father, attempt to cure her using various traditional and scientific methods.

The poem does not follow a fixed rhyme scheme; it is written in free verse, which gives it a natural and conversational flow. This structure enhances the realism and intensity of the situation described.

Several figures of speech enrich the poem, including alliteration, imagery, and metaphor. The phrase "diabolic tail" is a metaphor that highlights the scorpion's dangerous nature. Personification is seen in "flame feeding on my mother", where the fire is given human-like qualities. The use of imagery vividly describes the chaotic scene, making the reader feel the tension and suffering.

The central idea of the poem revolves around superstition, human emotions, and maternal love. It contrasts the blind faith of the villagers with the rational approach of the poet’s father. Despite the pain and suffering, the poem ends on a note of selflessness and love, as the mother expresses gratitude that the scorpion stung her instead of her children.

Overall, the poem beautifully captures a moment of crisis, cultural beliefs, and a mother’s unconditional love, making it a deeply moving and thought-provoking piece.