to make them sad and unh, a lappy. The loss of freedom’ Weighs heavily’ on their hearte They are totally helpless and desolate. In their cramped world they fail to decipher why they have been co1 t y nfined there. There is a boring, limited space to move about, There is no music except that of the whistle blown by their trainer or upkeeper, The dolphins are hopeless and know they have only bleak future before them. There is a man and our mind knows we will die here. Is there any message which Carol Ann Duffy wants to convey through her poem ‘The Dolphins’ ? Discuss. ‘The Dolphins’ is a modern poem. It only aims at recording the feelings of the entrapped dolphins in a pool in a water park to stage ‘dolphin shows’ for the entertainment of visitors. Like any other modern poet, it does not convey any message explicitly. If there is any message, it is for us to derive. We are implicitly exhorted to give up our apathetic attitude towards animals in general. We should not imprison animals in zoos, acquariums and theme parks. We should allow animals to enjoy their freedom in their natural environs. The feelings assigned to the captive dolphin in the water park evoke pathos. There is no hope. We sink to the limits of this poo! until the whistle blows. There is a man and our mind knows we will die here. SET - 2) phins’ by Carol Ann Duffy conveys aaa crc though implicitly, that isolation and dislocation cause painful nostalgia. Discuss with close reference to the text. who are forcibly isolated and Eiascated suffer » Jot. When they are alone they recall the pleasant days which they uved to enjoy in the company of their dear ones, The sons Who have to migrate within | or calde their homeland are aware of oi painful nostalgia that haunts them day and (b) Ans. ight. They feel helpless and hopeless and begin to wait for their deaths. “The Dolphins’ by Duffy conveys the feelings of nostalgia felt by the dolphins imprisoned in a water pool for the entertainment of visitors. They have been forcibly taken away from their natural habitat, the sea. The forced isolation makes them sad and unhappy. The loss of freedom weighs heavy on the isolated dolphins. The state of isolation in a cramped space makes them nostalgic. The image of the expansive ocean, where they once lived, flashes across their mind and makes them restless And now we are no longer blessed, for the world will not deepen to dream in, The other knows and out of love reflects me for myself We see our silver skin flash by like memory of somewhere else The new cramped artificial world is puzzling to the dolphins who are generally intelligent It is known that the dolphins receive a lot of information through their skin. They also have a largely developed sonar. Despite their intelligence, they make no sense of the world in which they have been put. They find it totally artificial. Here the moon of their natural habitat has been replaced with a ‘coloured ball’. There is no freedom here. There is a boring, limited space to travel There is no music except that of the whistle blowing - something that is not pleasing. The plight of the dolphins is revealed by their awareness of their dark future There is a man and our mind knows will will die here In short, ‘The Dolphins’ pinpoints the Psychological effects. of isolation and dislocation. The dolphin here gives a voice to the feelings of all isolated and dislocated creatures. The poet wants to make us aware of it, as we know only of human isolation and dislocation, We need to be reminded of the pain and anguish of those animals who are trapped and isolated for various reasons. In what sense is “The Dolphins’ a typical modern poem ? Modern poetry is known for the element of obscurity deliberately brought in by the poet when the issue is complex. “The Dolphins’ is an©) Ans, a typical modern poem, Written in colloquial style, it seems to be simple. However, a close reading of the poem shows that some of its lines are quite ambiguous, and are open to varied interpretations. For instance, the line - ‘There is a constant flowing guilt’ - is quite ambiguous. Who is guilty - the dolphins or the humans ? The dolphins have no reason to feel guilty, while the humans have the reason to feel so, but ironically they do not. In fact, they are even unaware of their wicked deed. Then consider these lines, too. The other has my shape. The other's movement forms my thoughts. And also mine. It is not clear who or what is meant by "The other’. We can, of course, guess that the ‘other’ refers to another dolphin in the pool. As in modern poetry, the poet relies for poetic effects on the use of imagery and suitable sense of sound. There is no use of traditional literary figures as rhyme or metre. The use of enjambment is brilliant. It conveys the feelings of the captive dolphins quite effectively. ‘The poem ‘The Dolphins’ contrasts the man - made world with the world of nature. Discuss. In the poem “The Dolphins’ the contrast between man-made world and the world of nature is clear. The man-made world can only be artificial, limited and joyless. On the other hand, the world of nature is real, joyful and limitless, Animals are meant to live in the world of nature. They live there happily. When they are removed from their natural habitats, they remain unhappy and yearn for their freedom. This is how the captive dolphin expresses its anguish in its new man- made world. We were blessed and now we are not blessed. A dolphin is known to receive a lot of information through its skin. It has a highly developed sonar. And yet in the new man- made world it is unable to make any sense of its existence. There is no explanation as to why it is there. It does not find any truth in the new world, The only thing the dolphins can understand is that once they were Ans. blessed and that now they are not blessed, The limited space in the pool which they have to travel again and again has become monotonous. The expression ‘above it is the man’ reveals the superiority and the culpability of humans in the abduction and control of the dolphins. “10. LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS “The Dolphins’ is a poem of protest against the slow destruction of Nature and natural creatures by Man. Discuss. (ISC Specimen Question Paper) Man is proud of his superiority and wants to have control over everything in the universe, particularly over the animal world. The history is a witness to his cruel treatment of animals. "The Dolphins’ by Carol Ann Duffy is indeed a poem of protest against man’s cruel treatment of even such intelligent and man-friendly creatures as dolphins. Dolphins are used as objects of entertainment and means of making money. In the poem, the speaker is one of the two dolphins entrapped in a pool in a water park. They are made to play with a plastic ball or cross the hoops to entertain the visitors. The dolphin, representing all dolphins in similar circumstances, gives expression to its longing for freedom World is what you swim in, or dance, it is simple. We are in our element but we are not free. The speaker-dolphin makes it clear that dolphins cannot be happy to move ina limited space. They only lead a monotonous life and dance to the tunes of their trainer. Their world is unnatural. In place of the moon there is the Plastic ball. In place of the natural, soothing music of the waves in the ocean which is theit natural habitat there is artificial, jarring music of the whistle. Their life is totally sad and hopeless. The speaker-dolphin predicts its own death and that of others in such artificial habitats ; . There is no hope. We sink #° the limits of this pool until the whistle blQ2 There is aman and our mind knows we will die here, Thus, the poet draws our attention to the ill- effects of imprisonment of animals in water parks, aquariums, zoos, etc. We must let the animals live freely in their natural habitats yhere they are happy and satisfied. If we continue to treat animals cruelly many more species will go extinct which is not in the interest of mankind in the long run. We need to limit our needs and stop using animals to fulfil our irrational desires and needs. We must learn to live in peaceful co-existence with creatures other than humans. What is the main theme of the poem ‘The Dolphins’ by Carol Ann Duffy ? How has it been worked out in the poem ? Discuss with close reference to the text. . Each one of us likes to dwell in our natural environs. If we are removed from our natural abodes we are bound to feel the pangs of isolation and dislocation. We are sure to be afflicted with unhappy feelings including nostalgia for our lost world. ‘The Dolphins’ by Carol Ann Duffy focuses on this idea of isolation and dislocation which cause painful nostalgia. The dolphins are water-creatures; they live and move freely and happily in the ocean. If they are imprisoned in water pool, as is shown in the poem, they are bound to be affected negatively. "The Dolphins’ presents a situation in which dolphins have been trapped and made to live in an artificial world. They are kept in a pool in a water park for the amusement of the visitors. They are under the awe of their keeper. They are made to do some tricks like jumping through hoops or playing with a ‘coloured ball’. That the dolphins - probably two in number in the pool - are unhappy is made clear in the opening stanza by the speaker-dolphin. They are unhappy due to several reasons. First of all, they are isolated from their ilk. They can no longer enjoy the company of other ee as they used to do. Secondly, they eer dislocated. They have been removed om their natural habitat, the sea, to the confined Q3. is forced isolation and space of a pool. This forces Gislocation are enough to make them sad ea unhappy. The loss of freedom weighs heavily on them : World is what you swim in, or dance, it is simple. We are in our element but we are not free. They are totally helpless and desolate. Their state of isolation in a cramped space makes them nostalgic. The image of the expansive ‘ocean, where they once lived, flashes across their mind and makes them restless : ‘And now we are no longer blessed, for the world will not deepen to dream in. The other knows and out of love reflects me for myself. We see our silver skin flash by like memory of somewhere else. The new cramped artificial world is puzzling to the dolphins who are generally intelligent. It is known that the dolphins receive a lot of information through their skin. They also have a largely developed sonar. Despite their intelligence, they make no sense of the world in which they have been put. They find it totally artificial. Here the moon of their natural habitat has been replaced with a ‘coloured ball’. There is no freedom here. There is a boring limited space to travel. There is no music except that of the whistle blowing. = something that is not pleasing. The plight of the dolphins is revealed by their awareness of their dark future : There is a man and our mind knows we will die here. In short, ‘The Dolphins’ pinpoints the psychological effects of isolation and dislocation. The dolphin here gives a voice to the feelings of all isolated and dislocated creatures. The poet wants to make us aware of it, as we know only of human isolation and dislocation. We need to be reminded of the pain and anguish of those animals who are trapped and isolated for various reasons. Give a critical appreciation of the poem ‘The Dolphins’ by Carol Ann Duffy. How does the poem appeal to you ? Ans. Carol Ann Duffy is known for taking up issues Gs)of discrimination, oppression and violence. In ‘The Dolphins’ she chooses the imprisoned dolphins in a water pool to draw attention to man’s abuse of wildlife and exploitation of animals. ‘The Dolphins’ is a poem of protest. The speaker is one of the two dolphins entrapped in a water pool in a water park. The dolphins have been taken away from the ocean, their natural habitat. Here in the constricted space of the pool they feel unhappy and desperate. Here they are forced to play with a plastic ball or cross the hoops to entertain the visitors. They are for their captors mere objects for making money. The artificial world in which they move at the call of their trainer is hopeless. The dolphins feel that they will die here one day. The memory of good old days where they were free to move in the ocean only adds to their misery and boredom. Thus, the poem gives us a clear message that we need to change our mindset towards animals. We should not imprison them in zoos, aquariums, water parks, etc. We should not use them to satisfy our needs and desires. The loss of freedom is as painful to human beings as is to animals. In form ‘The Dolphins’ is a monologue. The speaker is one of the two entrapped dolphing It gives vent to its feelings which are, of course, the poet’s own. The presence of the other dolphin is felt, though it remains mute Divided into four stanzas, each stanza has six lines. The poem relies for its poetic effects on the use of imagery and suitable sense of sound, There is no use of traditional literary figures as rhyme or metre. The use of caesuras provides a variety to the rhythm, as, for instance : The other has my shape. The other’s movement forms my thoughts. And also mine. There is a man The use of enjambment is brilliant. It also conveys the feelings of imprisoned dolphin effectively. The poem appeals to us because of its simple language and conversational style. Though the structure is complex at times, the message it wants to give is clear. The image of the entrapped dolphin makes us share its feelings of gloom and hopelessness. It prepares us to broach the subject of animal welfare from a fresh perspective.