हिंदी

Personification is a figure of speech that attributes human qualities to inanimate things and abstract ideas. How has it been used in the poem?

प्रश्न

Comment on the physical features of the hawk highlighted in the poem and their significance.

संक्षेप में उत्तर

उत्तर

Hawk Roosting signifies self-esteem or self-assertion of a Hawk that is so alienated from the human world. The poem is a dramatic monologue in a non-human voice; i.e., of the Hawk, who carries the false belief of himself being the most superior living being. The Hawk brandishes its supreme ego by boasting of its physical features. The outrageous fashion in which he brands his physiology insinuates his arrogance. The much-vaunted self-praise has criticised as an instance of fascism. The poet has brought out savagery by describing the unsophisticated physiology of the Hawk. In the first stanza of the poem, the Hawk claims to limit the whole of the world between his “hooked head” and “hooked feet”. The Hawk insinuates himself to embody the whole of creation and even while he is asleep he “rehearses perfect kills and eats” in his dream. In the third stanza, we see the Hawk challenging God. He flatters himself that “it took the whole of Creation” to design him, his foot, his each and every feather. Now the roles are reversed and he possesses and exercises his power over the whole world.

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Reading Skills

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अध्याय 2.07: Hawk Roosting - Understanding the Poem [पृष्ठ १२२]

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एनसीईआरटी English Woven Words (Elective) Class 11

अध्याय 2.07 Hawk Roosting
Understanding the Poem | Q 1 | पृष्ठ १२२

संबंधित प्रश्न

How did a story book, 'Little Lord Fauntleroy' open a window of knowledge to Helen and help to shape her career?

Helen's statement, "We worked hard and faithfully, yet we did not quite reach our goal" tells us about her failure to achieve the goal at the Wright-Humason School in New York City. What was the goal that she failed to achieve there?

Read the passage given below :

1. Maharana Pratap ruled over Mewar only for 25 years. However, he accomplished so much grandeur during his reign that his glory surpassed the boundaries of countries and time turning him into an immortal personality. He along with his kingdom became a synonym for valour, sacrifice and patriotism. Mewar had been a leading Rajput kingdom even before Maharana Pratap occupied the throne. Kings of Mewar, with the cooperation of their nobles and subjects, had established such traditions in the kingdom, as augmented their magnificence despite the hurdles of having a smaller area under their command and less population. There did come a few thorny occasions when the flag of the kingdom seemed sliding down. Their flag once again heaved high in the sky thanks to the gallantry and brilliance of the people of Mewar.

2. The destiny of Mewar was good in the sense that barring a few kings, most of the rulers were competent and patriotic. This glorious tradition of the kingdom almost continued for 1500 years since its establishment, right from the reign of Bappa Rawal. In fact, only 60 years before Maharana Pratap, Rana Sanga drove the kingdom to the pinnacle of fame. His reputation went beyond Rajasthan and reached Delhi. Two generations before him. Rana Kumbha had given a new stature to the kingdom through victories and developmental work. During his reign, literature and art also progressed extraordinarily. Rana himself was inclined towards writing and his works are read with reverence even today The ambience of his kingdom was conducive to the creation of high-quality work of art and literature. These accomplishments were the outcome of a longstanding tradition sustained by several generations.

3. The life of the people of Mewar must have been peaceful and prosperous during the long span of time; otherwise, such extraordinary accomplishment in these fields would not have been possible. This is reflected in their art and literature as well as their loving nature. They compensate for the lack of admirable physique by their firm but pleasant nature. The ambience of Mewar remains lovely thanks to the cheerful and liberal character of its people.

4. One may observe astonishing pieces of workmanship not only in the forts and palaces of Mewar but also in public utility buildings. Ruins of many structures which are still standing tall in their grandeur are testimony to the fact that Mewar was not only the land of the brave but also a seat of art and culture. Amidst aggression and bloodshed, literature and art flourished and creative pursuits of literature and artists did not suffer. Imagine, how glorious the period must have been when the Vijaya Stambha which is the sample of our great ancient architecture even today, was constructed. In the same fort, Kirti Stambha is standing high, reflecting how liberal the then administration was which allowed people from other communities and kingdoms to come and carry out construction work. It is useless to indulge in the debate whether the Vijaya Stambha was constructed first or the Kirti Stambha. The fact is that both the capitals are standing side by side and reveal the proximity between the king and the subjects of Mewar.

5. The cycle of time does not remain the same Whereas the reign of Rana Sanga was crucial in raising the kingdom to the acme of glory, it also proved to be his nemesis. History took a turn. The fortune of Mewar – the land of the brave, started waning. Rana tried to save the day with his acumen which was running against the stream and the glorious traditions for some time.

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage answer each of the questions given below with the help of options that follow :

(a) Maharana Pratap became immortal because :

(i) he ruled Mewar for 25 years.
(ii) he added a lot of grandeur to Mewar.
(iii) of his valour, sacrifice and patriotism.
(iv) both (ii) and (iii)

(b) Difficulties in the way of Mewar were :

(i) lack of cooperation of the nobility.
(ii) ancient traditions of the kingdom.
(iii) its small area and small population.
(iv) the poverty of the subjects.

(c) During thorny occasions :

(i) the flag of Mewar seemed to be lowered.
(ii) the flag of Mewar was hoisted high.
(iii) the people of Mewar showed gallantry.
(iv) most of the rulers heaved a sigh of relief.

(d) Mewar was lucky because :

(i) all of its rulers were competent.
(ii) most of its people were competent.
(iii) most of its rulers were competent.
(iv) only a few of its people were incompetent.

Answer the following questions briefly:

(e) Who is the earliest king of Mewar mentioned in the passage?

(f) What was Rana Kumbha's contribution to the glory of Mewar?

(g) What does the writer find worth admiration in the people of Mewar?
(h) How could art and literature flourish in Mewar?
(i) How did the rulers show that they cared for their subjects?
(j) What does the erection of Vijaya Stambha and Kirti Stambha in the same fort signify?
(k) Find words from the passage which mean the same as each of the following:

(i) surprising (para 4)
(ii) evidence (para 4)

Read the following extract and answer the questions given below:

How do you know
Peace is a woman?
I know, for
I met her yesterday
on my winding way
to the world's fare.
She had such a wonderful face
just like a golden flower faded
before her prime.

(1) How does the poet describe the face of peace?
(2) Do you think there is a way out of the war-ridden world? What is it?.
(3) Name and explain the figure of speech in the following line:
"I met her yesterday
on my winding way."
(4) The poet asks the question and herself answers it. What effect does it create in the extract?

Griffin failed not only as a son and a scientist, but also as a human being. Comment. (The Invisible Man)

Read the following passage and do the given activities:
B.1) Comparison
Write the comparison between the parts of the modular phone and the human body:

Modular Phone	Parts of Human Body

Every phone you buy, no matter how costly and latest it is, will go out of date in a year or so. That’s how quickly the smartphone world is moving right now. To keep yourself up to date with the current specification you will have to keep switching phones every once a while. What’s the solution to this problem?
MODULAR PHONES!
A modular device is a phone, tablet or another device where individual components such as the screen, camera, CPU, battery, memory can be removed by the user and replaced by others with a different specification. Imagine your body to be your phone and your clothes as the components, you can wear anything according to your needs and moods. Similarly, modular phones let you choose between components of different properties and specifications.
This would mean we’ll have the liberty to customize our phones, just like Lego building blocks! The main components of the phone will be Brain (processor), Spine (frame, screen) and Heart (battery). The other components may include a camera, storage memory, GPS, audio jack, speakers, USB module, etc. and the phone will have a motherboard, i.e. a base that will hold all components together

B.2) Give examples:
Write two examples that give the liberty to customize our phone.
• ____________________
• ____________________

B.3) Framing sentence:
Use the given phrases in sentences of your own:
(i) up to date
(ii) once a while

B.4) Write as instructed:
Rewrite the sentence as interrogative:
(i) We’ll have the liberty to customize our phones.
(ii) We will have the liberty to customize our phones. (Rewrite using the present participle form of the underlined word)

B.5) Personal Response
If given a chance to design a modular phone, what new features would you add?

Mention three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up.

The author’s grandmother was a religious person. What are the different ways in which we come to know this?

What has the camera captured?

Tick the item that is closest in meaning to the following phrase.

to meet one's match