English Medium Class 9 - CBSE Question Bank Solutions for English - Communicative

Answer the following question briefly.

 Does the speaker seem happy about his decision?

Answer the following question briefly.

The poet says “I took the one less travelled by, And that has made all the difference.” What is ‘the difference’ that the poet mentions?

Identify the rhyme scheme of the poem.

Fill in the blanks to complete the following paragraph that highlights the theme of
the poem. Use the words given in the box below.

decision             sorry             foresee            choices             pleasant            direction
fork                    trail               rewarding       chance              wonder              both

The poem "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost is about the __________ that one
makes in life. It tells about a man who comes to a ___________ in the road he is
travelling upon. He feels ___________ that he can not travel___________ paths as he
must choose one. Frost uses this fork in the road to represent a point in the man's life
where he has to choose the ___________ he wishes to take in life. As he thinks about
his ___________ he looks down one path, as far as he can see trying to ___________
what life will be like if he walks that path. He then gazes at the other and decides that the
outcome of going down that path would be just as ________________. At this point he
concludes that the ________that has been less travelled on would be more
___________ when he reaches the end of it. The man then decides that he will save the
other path for another day, even though he knows that one path leads to another and
that he won't get a ___________ to go back. The man then says that he will be telling
this story with a sigh, someday in the future suggesting that he will ___________ what
life would have been like if he had chosen the more walked path even though the path
he chose has made all the difference.

Roads are fascinating as metaphors for life, change, journeys, partings,
adventure, etc. or simply as roads. This is probably why they, and all their
attendant images, have permeated art, literature and songs. In the poem, Frost
uses the fork in the road as a metaphor for the choices we make in life. Thus the
roads are, in fact, two alternative ways of life. What other nouns, according to
you could be used to represent life?

River
________________

________________
________________
________________

________________

In groups of six, select, write the script of and present a skit that demonstrates
decision making and conflict resolution. Follow the steps given below :

• choices to be made
• options to be considered
• the influence of others
• the decisions/actions taken
• the immediate and future consequences of the decision.

'The Road Not Taken' is a biographical poem. Therefore, some personal
biographical information is relevant for the deeper understanding of the poem
we have read. Go to www.encarta.com and complete the following worksheet
about Robert Frost.
a) What "momentous decision" was made by Frost in 1912?
b) How old was he when took that decision?
c) Why was it so difficult to take that decision? Think and give more than one reason.
d) Was the "road" taken by Frost an easy one "to travel"?
e) Do you think he wrote "The Road Not Taken" before sailing from the USA to
England or after? Can you quote a line or two from the poem that can support your
answer?
f) Do you think Frost finally became popular in America as a poet?

You can find more information about Robert Frost at the following websites.
http://www.poets.org/poets/poets.cfm?prmID=1961.
Hear the poet (who died almost forty years ago!) reading the poem at
http://www.poets.org/poems/poems.cfm ?prmID= 1645
To view a beautiful New England scene with each poem on this web site: "Illustrated
Poetry of Robert Frost":
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Olympus/1487/index.html

You can find more information about Robert Frost at the following websites.
http://www.poets.org/poets/poets.cfm?prmID=1961.
Hear the poet (who died almost forty years ago!) reading the poem at
http://www.poets.org/poems/poems.cfm ?prmID= 1645
To view a beautiful New England scene with each poem on this web site: "Illustrated
Poetry of Robert Frost":
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Olympus/1487/index.html

Sometimes we see something beautiful and striking, and we remember it for a
long time afterwards. Can you recollect this ever happening to you? If so, what
was it? What do you remember about it now? Are the details of what you saw or
the feelings you experienced at that time fresh in your mind? Think for a few
minutes, then share your thoughts with the class.

Listen to one of William Wordsworth's poems, that describes a memorable
experience he had, while out on a walk. (Your teacher will play a recording.)
Listen to the poem at least twice.

Now read the poem.
Behold her, single in the field,
Yon solitary Highland Lass!
Reaping and singing by herself;
Stop here, or gently pass!
 Alone she cuts, and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain;
O listen! for the vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound.
No nightingale did ever chant
 More welcome notes to weary bands
Of travellers in some shady haunt.
Among Arabian Sands

A voice so thrilling ne' er was heard
In spring-time from the cuckoo-bird,
 Breaking the silence of the seas
Among the farthest Hebrides.
Will no one tell me what she sings?
Perhaps the plaintive numbers flow
For old, unhappy, far-off things,
 And battles long ago:
Or is it some more humble lay,
Familiar matter of to-day ?
Same natural sorrow, loss, or pain,
that has been, and may be again ?
 Whate'er the theme, the maiden sang
As if her song could have no ending;
I saw her singing at her work,
And o'er the sickle bending;
I listen'd, motionless and still;
 And, as I mounted up the hill,
The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more.

About the Poet
William Wordsworth was born on 7th April 1770, in Cockermouth in the Lake District,
England. When many poets still wrote about ancient heroes in their grandiloquent
style, Wordsworth focused on nature, children, the poor, common people and used
ordinary words to express his feelings. He defined poetry as "the spontaneous
overflow of powerful feelings" arising from "emotions recollected in tranquility". He
died at Rydal Mount on April 23, 1850.

Imagine that you are the poet, William Wordsworth. You continue on your walk,
and when you reach home you tell a friend what you saw and felt. Which of the
following best describes your experience? (Work in pairs, then have a class
discussion.

a) "I was walking past some fields when I saw a young girl, a farm worker, harvesting
grain by hand, with a sickle. She was so beautiful that I stood out of sight and
watched her for a long time. I have never seen anyone more gorgeous! In fact,
she reminded me of other beautiful experiences I've had - the song of the
nightingale or the cuckoo, for instance. I'd certainly like to see her again!"
b) "As I was standing on the hill top just now, I heard a very sad and plaintive song. I
looked down, and saw a young woman reaping grain, singing as she did so. She
seemed quite melancholy as she sang. But somehow her song brought great
comfort and joy to me. In fact, I found it a very emotional experience. As I
continued my walk along the hill top, I also heard a nightingale and a cuckoo. But
the young farm worker's song affected me most deeply, even though I couldn't
understand the words."
c) "Just now, as I was walking in the valley, I saw a young farm worker in the field.
She was singing to herself as she worked. I was so affected by her singing, that I
stopped and listened. She had a beautiful voice, which seemed to fill the whole
valley. The song was a sad one, and I couldn't understand the words. But its
plaintive tone and melancholy sound touched me greatly, and its beauty
reminded me of the song of a nightingale and a cuckoo. After some time, I walked
up the hill, carrying the memory of the young woman's hauntingly beautiful song
with me."

The poet could not understand the words of the song, yet he raised several
possibilities about its theme. In the chart below are some of these possibilities.
Read the third stanza again, and find the phrase that matches each. Complete the
chart, by writing a phrase in each of the empty boxes. Work in pairs.

On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following question
by ticking the correct choice.

The central idea of the poem 'The Solitary Reaper' is _____.

On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following question
by ticking the correct choice.

In the poem 'The Solitary Reaper' to whom does the poet say, ' Stop here or gently
pass'?

On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following question
by ticking the correct choice.

'The Solitary Reaper' is a narrative poem set to music. This form of verse is called
a______.

On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following question
by ticking the correct choice.

The poet's lament in the poem 'The Solitary Reaper' is that __________.

On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following questions
by ticking the correct choice.

The setting of the poem is ___________.

a) Read the second stanza again, in which Wordsworth compares the solitary
reaper's song with the song of the nightingale and the cuckoo. On the basis of
your reading (and your imagination), copy and complete the table below. (Work
in groups of four, then have a brief class discussion.

b) Why do you think Wordsworth has chosen the song of the nightingale and the
cuckoo, for comparison with the solitary reaper's song?

c) As you read the second stanza, what images come to your mind? Be ready to
describe them in your own words, to the rest of the class. (Be imaginative
enough and go beyond what the poet has written.)