Class XI- ENGLISH

Hornbill
Chapter-2 ( A Photograph)
About the poet

Shirley Toulson (20th May 1924-23rd September

2018) born in Henley-on-Thames, England was a
poet, journalist, and travel-writer. She was a highly
regarded poet and an innovative writer. She was
greatly influenced by her father who was a writer
too. She edited the works of Charles Dickens ,
Rudyard Kipling, John Milton and William
Shakespeare.
Introduction

In this poem, the poet remembers her mother who died about twelve years
ago. She recalls her mother and her memories while looking at a childhood
photograph when her mother was twelve years old or so. While looking at
the photograph, she cannot explain her grief on her mother’s loss.

The poem presents a contrast between the permanence of the nature and
the ever changing nature of the lives of human beings. Human life is not
permanent we undergo stark changes from birth till old age till we finally
meet the end. On the other hand, elements of nature like the seat tend to
remain in the same state.
Stanza 1

The cardboard shows me how it was

When the two girl cousins went paddling,
Each one holding one of my mother’s hands,
And she the big girl — some twelve years or so.
All three stood still to smile through their hair
At the uncle with the camera. A sweet face,
My mother’s, that was before I was born.
And the sea, which appears to have changed less,
Washed their terribly transient feet.
Stanza 1

The cardboard shows me how it was

When the two girl cousins went paddling,
Each one holding one of my mother’s hands,
And she the big girl — some twelve years or so.
All three stood still to smile through their hair
At the uncle with the camera. A sweet face,
My mother’s, that was before I was born.
And the sea, which appears to have changed less,
Washed their terribly transient feet.
Stanza 1

The cardboard shows me how it was

When the two girl cousins went paddling,
Each one holding one of my mother’s hands,
And she the big girl — some twelve years or so.
All three stood still to smile through their hair
At the uncle with the camera. A sweet face,
My mother’s, that was before I was born.
And the sea, which appears to have changed less,
Washed their terribly transient feet.
Difficult words

cardboard- A thick paper

paddling- to walk with bare feet in shallow water

transient- temporary
Quick questions
1) Who is the poet of the poem ‘A Photograph’?
Ans-

1) What was the poet’s mother’s age when the photograph was taken?
Ans-

1) When did her mother die?

Ans-

1) What does the cardboard here refer to?

(a) A thick paper on which the poet’s photograph was pasted
(b) A thick envelope
(c) A thick paper on which the poet’s mother’s photograph was pasted
(d) A paper boat
Quick questions
5) What does the poet mean by ‘smile through their hair’?
Ans-

6) What has not changed over a period of time?

(a) The photo
(b) The cardboard
(c) The girls
(d) The sea
Stanza 2
Some twenty — thirty — years later
She’d laugh at the snapshot. “See Betty
And Dolly,” she’d say, “and look how they
Dressed us for the beach.” The sea holiday
Was her past, mine is her laughter. Both wry
With the laboured ease of loss.

Both wry with the laboured ease of loss- The poet and the mother are
unhappy at a loss they have faced.
Difficult words

wry - an expression of disappointment

laboured - to have difficulty in doing something, struggle

ease- absence of discomfort

Quick questions

1) Why did ‘she’ laugh?

Ans-

1) _________ is the synonym of ‘photograph’?

1) Who are Betty and Dolly?

Ans-