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Question
Why did the poet throw the log at the snake?
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Solution 1
On realising that the snake was about to recede as he turned his back, the poet hit him with a log in protest. The snake had mesmerised the poet with his beauty and so the poet did not want him to return to "that horrid black hole."
Solution 2
The poet at first admired the snake, but when his education overpowered his instinct, he concluded that a snake is a dangerous creature which has to be killed in order to prevent a potential attack in the future. He therefore threw a log at the snake.
RELATED QUESTIONS
What is the poet’s dual attitude towards the snake?
What were the poet's thoughts after the snake had gone?
Based on your reading of the poem, answer the following question by ticking the correct option:
- 'I thought how paltry, how vulgar, what a mean act' -The poet is referring to
Answer the following question briefly:
Why does the poet decide to stand and wait till the snake has finished drinking? What
does this tell you about the poet? (Notice that he uses 'someone' instead of 'something'
for the snake.)
Answer the following question briefly:
How does the poet describe the day and the atmosphere when he had seen the snake?
Answer the following question briefly:
Do you think the snake was conscious of the poet's presence? How do you know?
Answer the following question briefly:
The poet seems to be full of admiration and respect for the snake. He almost regards him like a majestic God. Pick out at least four expressions from the poem that reflect these emotions.
Answer the following question briefly:
What is the difference between the snake's movement at the beginning of the poem and later when the poet strikes it with a log of wood? You may use relevant vocabulary from the poem to highlight the difference.
Answer the following question briefly:
You have already read Coleridge's poem The Ancient Mariner in which an albatross is killed by the mariner. Why does the poet make an allusion to the albatross?
Read the given excerpt and answer the questions briefly.
| But must I confess how I liked him, How glad I was he had come like a guest in quiet, to drink at my water-trough And depart peaceful, pacified, and thankless, Into the burning bowels of this earth? |
- What can be inferred about the speaker's attitude towards nature based on the excerpt? (1)
- List the meaning of the phrase "burning bowels of this earth”. (1)
- How is the snake's arrival and departure symbolic? (1)
- The speaker compares the snake to the guest. Which word in the extract displays the snake’s non-guest like behaviour? (1)
