On Killing A Tree

Vocabulary:

Leprous hide : discoloured bark

Anchoring earth : trees are held securely with the help of the roots in the earth
Scorching and choking: the drying up of the tree after being uprooted

Literary Devices:

1. No rhyme scheme is there in the poem. It is written in free verse. There is no rhyme or rhythm.

2. Enjambment: When one sentence continues into two or more lines.

Not a simple jab of the knife
Will do it. It has grown
Slowly consuming the earth
Rising out of it, feeding
Upon its crust, absorbing
Years of sunlight, air, water,
And out of its leprous hide
Sprouting leaves.
The most sensitive, hidden
For years inside the earth.

3. Metaphor: indirect comparison

Leprous hide - the uneven colour of the surface of the trunk of a tree is compared to the skin of a person
suffering from leprosy.
Bleeding bark - the sap coming out of tree where it is cut is compared to the bleeding from the wound in a
human’s body.

4. Alliteration: repetition of a consonant sound in 2 or more closely places words.

Bleeding bark - ‘b’ sound
White and wet - ‘w’ sound

5. Repetition: a word or sentence is repeated to lay emphasis on it.

‘Pulled out’ is repeated

Question & Answers:

1. What is the meaning of “bleeding bark”? What makes it bleed?

A. Bleeding bark refers to the sap which flows out of the tree’s bark where it is cut. The tree bleeds when it is
cut with a knife.
 
2. The poet says “No” in the beginning of the third stanza. What does he mean by this?
A. ’No’ means that the tree will not die by cutting or chopping the trunk.
 
3. What is the meaning of “anchoring earth” and “earth cave”?
A. “Anchoring Earth” means that the Earth supports the tree firmly. “Earth cave” refers to the pit in the Earth
where the roots of the tree bind it firmly to the Earth.
 
4. What does he mean by “the strength of the tree exposed”?
A. “the strength of the tree exposed” means that upon being uprooted, the most sensitive and important part of
the tree i.e. the roots will no longer remain hidden in the Earth

Additional Questions:

1. Contrast 'bleeding bark' with 'green twigs'.

The poet has used the words and phrases very skillfully. 'Bleeding bark' is suggestive of deterioration whereas
'green twigs' suggest fresh growth. 'Bleeding' represents destruction; ‘Green’ shows the springing of life. 'Green'
and 'bleeding' symbolize the change from destruction to life

2. “The bleeding bark will heal.” How will the bleeding bark heal?
In the poem ‘On Killing a Tree’, the poet says that a man may cut a tree with his repeated blows. But this alone
will not be able to kill a tree. The affected tree does not seem to express its pain because its bleeding bark will
heal itself in time. ‘Curled green twigs’ of the tree closely attached to earth will grow from the miniature
boughs. The strength of the tree lies in the roots. If the tree is not completely uprooted, the tree will expand and
become a full grown tree again.

3. Justify the title of the poem.

The title of the poem is simple and appropriate as it contains the major concern of the poet i.e. merciless and
callous felling of trees. It indicates appropriately that the poem is about the process of killing of tree. The entire
poem explains the view that killing a tree is not a simple, short or easy process. Trees have tremendous strength
and great instinct for survival.

4. What is the message conveyed in the poem?

The poem conveys the message that trees are living beings just like any other form of life. They have strong
survival instincts and can withstand any type of assault, trauma or crisis. It is not easy to kill them, for they have
a never-say-die attitude to life. Every time they are attacked, injured or scraped, they heal themselves and regain
their glory. However, if they are uprooted and left in the air and the sun, they die.
title