CBSE Sure-Shot Poetry Long Answer Questions Class 12 English will benefit the students in two ways. Firstly, you will get the Sure-Shot questions for your upcoming CBSE Class 12 English (Core) exam in 2022-2023. Secondly, you get small notes for quick revision and help to adopt an exam strategy just before the final examinations of English 12 (core). So, if you do CBSE Sure-Shot Poetry Long Answer Questions Class 12 English before your senior secondary CBSE exams, you will always come out ahead and feel less stressed about the tests.
CBSE Sure-Shot Poetry Long Answer Questions Class 12 English will be Q.No.VII. One Long answer type question, from Prose/Poetry (Flamingo), to be answered in 120-150 words. Questions can be based on incident/theme/passage/extract/event as reference points to assess extrapolation beyond and across the text. The question will elicit an analytical and evaluative response from the student. Any 1 out of 2 questions to be done. (1×5=5 Marks)
CBSE Sure-Shot Poetry Long Answer Questions Class 12 English: My Mother at Sixty-six
Theme or Main Idea of the Poem: My Mother at Sixty-six(CBSE/HBSE)
The poetess, Kamla Das, discussed in the poem, “My Mother at Sixty-six,” the problems of old age and how we feel about old age. The bonding between a mother and daughter is visible in the poem. Aging is a universal fact, and we are all going to be old one day. She explains all her apathy toward old age with the example of her mother, who is an old lady with an open mouth, and no shine on her face, and she is compared with a corpse and a winter moon. It is human nature that we don’t want to be old. Therefore, we never realise the pain of old age. We must all feel the apathy of old age so that we don’t face any burden of old age.
Everyone wants to be young their whole life. The poetess turns her attention from her mother toward the young trees and children who were playing outside. On the contrary, the elderly are unable to play and enjoy life like children. It’s our sole duty towards our elderly parents that they should not feel isolated in their old age. The poem ends with a positive note that we should always smile, irrespective of our age.
Q.1. Explain the theme of the poem’ An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum’.CBSE/HBSE
Or
What is the message that Stephen Spender wants to convey through the poem,’ An elementary school in a Slum’?
or
Q. 4. What does the poet want for the children of the slums? How can their lives be made to change?
Stephen Spender, a poet, discusses the injustice and inequality in our educational system. In the school system, social justice reigns supreme. Students in slum schools face discrimination in a variety of ways. The infrastructure of slum schools is deteriorating.
The poet describes the differences in schools, and students in slum schools are extremely poor and physically weak. Their eyes are like rats’ eyes, which indicates that they are physically very weak. The girls’ bodies are frail, and their necks are unable to support the weight of their heads. The rooms are dark and lack natural light. Their gaze is constantly drawn to dreams that cannot be realised under these conditions. Rich people live and move in a comfortable city. They simply donate something to such schools and are unconcerned about the future of students in slum schools.
As a result, the future of students in such schools is as bleak and dim as the light in their classrooms. They also have the right to move freely in open spaces to enjoy the sun and nature. The sun is a symbol of progress, and these students deserve to have the sun in their lives as well.
Essay Type Questions: What is the theme or central idea of the poem or title, Keeping Quiet? (H.B.S.E. 2014, 2020)
The poet, Pablo Neruda, wants to convey through his poem, Keeping Quiet, that stillness is important for human beings. He conveys this idea through the title of the poem. We are always busy with our actions and don’t have time for self-reflection. Therefore, the poet wants us to be still for a second, and during this stillness, we will realise the importance of being quiet in our acts. This moment of silence will be an esoteric moment for the whole world.
Fishermen are not going to harm whales when we stop our minutes for a second. The salt workers will get time to check their hands. He further requests the people who are engaged in green wars to stop such activities and to work together with the people. His emphasis is not on total “inactivity” but on silence, where we can introspect ourselves. He wants people to be happy and feel attached. This quietness will help us to remove our sadness and anxiety. This process will help us to understand each other. Therefore, keeping quiet will create an understandable world where everyone will introspect themselves.
Question 2. Do you think the poet advocates total inactivity and death? Why/Why not? (H.B.S.E. 2019, 2020)
The poet’s emphasis on stillness doesn’t mean complete inaction in all things. He wants calmness in all things to give relief to the Earth and the people who don’t understand the importance of self-realisation. They don’t have enough time to understand their problems. Fishermen are not going to harm whales when we stop our actions for a second. The salt workers will get time to check their hands. He further requests the people who are engaged in green wars to stop such activities and to work together with the people. His emphasis is not on total “inactivity” but on silence, where we can introspect ourselves. He wants people to be happy and feel attached. This quietness will help us to remove our sadness and anxiety. Therefore, stillness is not total inactivity but a balance between action and silence.
A Thing of Beauty Summary Complete NCERT Solutions For Class 12 English
Introduction
“A Thing of Beauty” is a small part of his poem “Endymion: A Poetic Romance” and is based on a Greek legend, in which Endymion, a beautiful young shepherd, and poet who lived on Mount Latmos, had a vision of Cynthia, the moon Goddess. The youth resolved to seek her out; therefore, he wandered away in the forest and down under the sea. The poem’s main idea is explained in the first line, “A Thing of Beauty.” The poet starts with a positive note that beauty never ends and its attraction goes on increasing.
Summary main points
Beautiful things boost positivity.
What pleasure does a beautiful thing give us? “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.” John Keats elaborates on his main idea through this line. A beautiful thing always brings joy to our lives. It never “passes into nothingness”. He emphasises that beautiful things never go extinct. Its attraction always increases. Beautiful things always act as a “bower”, which gives us shade in the summer, where everyone can relax and calm down. The poet uses all positive words like joy, loveliness, beauty, bliss, quiet, sleep, and sweet dreams. They convey the positive aspects of beautiful things. John Keats belonged to the Romantic Era when poets used to write about nature and its surroundings. The poet explains the natural things that are always beautiful. John Keats was a sensual poet, and his theme of beauty is related to the human senses.
Beautiful things eliminate our negativity.
Beautiful things are always helpful in decreasing our stress and anxiety. The poet discussed in the next stanza some negatives we have in our lives and how they can be neutralised by beautiful things. “morrow”, “wreathing”, “despondence”, “inhuman dearth”, “gloomy days”, and “dark spirits” are some of the negative words used by the poet in the second stanza to explain that these negative vibes can be wiped out by the positivity of beautiful things. Beautiful things’ acts are noble, and they help us to eradicate our gloomy days, despondence and darkened ways to make us happy and positive. The poet uses symbols of the sun, moon, trees, and shady boon to moving the pall from “dark spirits”.
Beautiful things are spiritual and act as a fountain of immortal drink.
In the third stanza of the poem, the poet compares “sheep” with human beings, and Endymion was a shepherd. Here the poet brings spirituality in the form of sheep. Sheep and daffodils live in a green world, which acts against the hot season where we find “fair musk-rose blooms.” This is the beauty of the green world, where things are dead but beauty always remains life in the form of nature. Beautiful things are compared to fountains of immortal drink. After drinking this immortal drink, humans will go to heaven. Such is the beauty of beautiful things. Heaven’s blessings are there in the form of an “immortal drink”.
Conclusion
In the poem, “A Thing of Beauty”, John Keats elaborates on his point that “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.”
Explain the theme/Central idea of ‘A Thing of Beauty’ Perfect NCERT Solution Class 12 English
The poem, “A Thing of Beauty,” written by John Keats, elaborates on beauty and its importance for human beings in everyday life. The poem is based on Romantic poetry where poets like William Wordsworth and Byron emphasize the fundamentals of “Return to Nature” due to the industrial revolution, which created greed, corruption, and materialism.
John Keats wants to embellish through his poem “A Thing of Beauty” that beautiful things always boost our happiness. They always bring us joy, regardless of our sorrow, stress, anxiety, or despondency. It is so beautiful that it can bring catharsis to our feelings and always soothe us in bad times.
The poet explains the main theme of the poem: a thing of beauty is a joy forever and it never ends. Noble acts of nature are always benign in reducing our despondency and sorrow during difficult times. Noble Nature always brings positive vibes during our “gloomy days”. Beautiful things bring light into our “darkened ways.” Our dark spirits can always be covered by “the pall”. Sheep and daffodils live in green places, and these green places give us cool.
Therefore, the poet compares the beautiful things with heaven, where a “sprinkling” of rose “musk” and a fountain of “immortal drink” make everyone happy in the lap of nature.
A Roadside Stand central idea/theme Complete NCERT Solution Class 12 English
Q.1. What is the theme of the poem, ‘A Roadside Stand’?
OR
Q.2. What is the central idea of the poem, ‘A Roadside Stand’, Discuss?
The poem “A Roadside Stand” portrays Robert Frost’s apathy toward the roadside stand dwellers and the attitude of wealthy people toward them. Despite what politicians claim, the plight of these booth owners endures.
These small farmers only sell “wild berries” in small wooden boxes. They want a small portion of their earnings to manage their families. The poem starts with the miserable condition of the poor booth owners at a roadside stand where they expect people to stop and buy some berries from their field. Their hopes are never fulfilled as most of the motorists, ‘The polished traffic passed with a mind ahead’ just turn their vehicles around and enquire about a gallon of gas. The poet wishes for the problems of such people to be solved in “one stroke,” and ‘asks city money to feel in hand’, but that never happens.
In his poem “The Roadside Stand,” Robert Frost shows how hard life is for the poor with a lot of humanity and compassion.
Talk about it
Group Discussion Question: The economic well-being of a country depends on the balanced development of the villages and the cities.
The development of any country cannot be considered the responsibility of cities alone; it is also the sole responsibility of any society to make the villages self-reliant. In a country like India, where two-thirds of people live in villages, it’s vital to have equivalent development in both cities and villages if we claim to be developed. The Indian economy has a major part in its agricultural products, which are produced by the farmers in villages. Even in the crisis of COVID-19, Indian agriculture showed positive growth when other sectors were poorly performed. Hence, the village economy of any country is vital for its development.
On the other hand, industries produce a lot of products and create a lot of employment for people. It means industries have a big hand in the development of any country. In this poem, ‘A Roadside Stand’, Robert Frost describes the imbalanced economy between the rural and urban areas of the country. Here, farmers are in pity because of the imbalanced growth of their village due to the petty interests of politicians who promise a lot but never fulfill it. Such fake development claims are responsible for the apathy of farmers who are unable to sell their products to make ends meet. The poet has clear ideas that the rural economy is equally responsible for the development of the country and that the problems of the peasants should be addressed. In this way, the economic well-being of the country can be strengthened.
Note: The students can have different points of view in this discussion.
Practice for students of class 12: Try this out with the help of the poem’s Roadside Stand'( Important for learning the language)
You could stop at a Dhaba or a roadside eatery on the outskirts of your town or city to see:
- how many travelers stop there to eat?
- how many travelers stop for other reasons?
- how the shopkeepers are treated?
- the kind of life do they lead?
Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers Summary for class 12 CBSE/HBSE
The poetess, Adrienne Rich, “wrote several pieces that explicitly tackle the rights of women in society” in her poem, “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers,” which addresses the pressure of married life a woman experiences in her life. “Her poems are famous for their feminist elements.” In her poem, “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers,” the poetess makes her ideology clear by supporting a married woman who is under pressure from the “massive weight of her uncle’s wedding band.” Marriage responsibilities are very heavy, and women feel burdened but can still fulfil their responsibilities. It means that a married woman always has a lot of responsibilities in the family. She is never taken care of, but on the contrary, she always sacrifices all her convenience for the family.
Aunt Jennifer’s tigers are a symbol of power who jump from here to there like a young tiger, making a great leap across the scene. The poetess wants to convey that the married woman’s life is full of struggle and anxiety, and she completes her life without caring for herself. Their marital stress is never relieved until they die. She used to make embroidered wall hangings. She may become old, but her art always remains young. She becomes old and unable to pull the ivory needle through her wool. Her fingers flutter, and her wrists feel the weight of the marriage band. This happens to all women. Once they are married, they can’t take the band off. Therefore, we can say that the poetess rightly explains the apathy of a married woman. She continues to serve the family her whole life, and she lives a life of continued hardships and responsibilities.
Aunt Jeniffer created the tiger’s embroidered wall hanging. Aunt Jennifer will never age as the tigers prance across the wall hanging. As a result, we can say that art is timeless.
Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers Theme or Central Idea
The poetess, Adrienne Rich, in her poem, “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers,” addresses the pressure of married life a woman experiences. In her poem, ‘Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers’, the poetess makes her ideology clear by supporting a married woman who is under pressure from the “massive weight of her uncle’s wedding band”. Marriage responsibilities are very heavy, and women feel burdened but can still fulfil their responsibilities. It means that a married woman always has a lot of responsibilities in the family. She is never taken care of, but on the contrary, she always sacrifies all her convenience for the family.
Aunt Jennifer creates immortal art for the walls of the house, and her tigers in the art always ‘prance a screen’. A married woman creates such an art and becomes old due to the excess burden of the family throughout her life and never cared for her hands. Her tigers never feel threatened, but she is always under her uncle’s marriage band pressure. Marriage presuure can easily be felt as her hands are unable to pull the needle. Her hands show the ‘ordeals’ of her marriage and her tigers will always prance on the screen irrespective of age. So, the poetess shows how hard it is to be married in a beautiful way through her character Aunt Jennifer.
ii. ‘Their mother sighed. Sophie watched her back stooped over the sink and wondered at the incongruity of the delicate bow which fastened her apron strings.’ The prose selection, Going Places includes this telling comment about Sophie’s mother. In Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers, we are told that – ‘The massive weight of Uncle’s wedding band Sits heavily upon Aunt Jennifer’s Hand.’
Imagine a conversation between Sophie’s mother and Aunt Jennifer. Create this exchange with reference to the two extracts given above.
You may begin the conversation like this … Sophie’s mother: Your embroidery is so beautiful. Do you love tigers?
Ans.
Sophie’s mother: Your embroidery looks very beautiful. Mrs. Jennifer, do you really love tigers?
Aunt Jennifer: I am afraid of living tigers, but I love the art of tigers.
Sophie’s mother: Can you explain why you like tiger art but, in real life, you feel afraid of tigers?
Aunt Jennifer: “I want to show my feelings through the art of tiger.”
Sophie’s mother: What does it mean? I didn’t get it. Can you explain in detail?
Aunt Jennifer: It means a show of strength for me, and this is the only way I can express myself as I am not listened to by my husband, and he always dominates the family. My life is spoiled.
Sophie’s mother: “Oh, very sad!” I get it now. I am also treated in the same way in my family. And you have chosen the right way to express your feelings.
Aunt Jennifer: I don’t expect that my situation will change in the near future. Therefore, I embroider, which will be remembered after my death, and my tigers will prance.
