Poem Explanation

Poem :
A slumber did my spirit seal—
I had no human fears.
She seemed a thing that could not feel
The touch of earthly years.
Word meaning
Slumber: sleep
Spirit: soul
Explanation of the above poem – The poet’s soul had drifted into deep
sleep as he did not have any realization of the truth. He had taken life for
granted and had never thought that one day death would take Lucy away
from him. When she was taken away, he could not bear the loss.
Poem:
No motion has she now, no force—
She neither hears nor sees,
Rolled round in earth’s diurnal course
With rocks and stones and trees.
Word meaning
diurnal: daily
(Earth’s diurnal course” is earth’s daily rotation on its axis)
Explanation of the above poem – The poet accepts the truth that Lucy is
no more. She is motionless, lifeless. She cannot see nor hear. She has
been buried in the earth. She will assimilate into the earth and is rotating
along with the earth. One day she will become one with the rocks, stones
and trees that are a part of the Earth.
Literary devices
1. Rhyme scheme – abab cdcd
2. Alliteration – The repetition of a consonant sound at the start of two or
more consecutive words is called alliteration. The instances of alliteration
are as follows –
‘Spirit sealed’, ‘rolled round’
3. Enjambment – when a sentence continues into two or more lines ending
without any punctuation marks, it is called Enjambment. The instances of
enjambment are as follows –
“She seemed a thing that could not feel
The touch of earthly years.”
“Rolled round in earth’s diurnal course
Rolled round in earth’s diurnal course
With rocks and stones and trees.”
Q. Answers
Q1. “A slumber did my spirit seal,” says the poet. That is, a deep
sleep ‘closed off ’ his soul (or mind). How does the poet react to his
loved one’s death? Does he feel bitter grief ? Or does he feel a great
peace?
A. The poet is full of grief and regret that he had taken things for granted
and did not fear the fact that one day death could separate him from his
beloved.
Q2. The passing of time will no longer affect her, says the poet. Which
lines of the poem say this?
A. She seemed a thing that could not feel The touch of earthly years.
Q3. How does the poet imagine her to be, after death? Does he think
of her as a person living in a very happy state (a ‘heaven’)? Or does
he see her now as a part of nature? In which lines of the poem do you
find your answer?
A. The poet feels that she is a part of nature. As she has been buried in the
Earth, she is a part of it and will assimilate with the rocks, stones and trees.
The lines which indicate this are as follows-
“Rolled round in earth’s diurnal course
With rocks and stones and trees.”

On Killing a Tree Introduction

The poet sensitizes the reader and highlights the fact that trees are living things. He equates
trees with humans to convey that trees should not be cut because destroying trees is just like
killing a human being.
A tree does not die by merely cutting because it regrows from where it is cut. If it has to be
destroyed, then it has to be uprooted.
On Killing a Tree Summary – “On Killing a Tree” is a sensitive poem. The poet persuades the
reader not to destroy trees and equates it with “killing” a human being. He says that a plant
takes sunlight, water, air, and nutrients from the soil to gradually become a huge tree. It
develops a strong trunk and gets numerous leaves.
Merely cutting the trunk of the tree does not kill it. When a tree is cut, the sap flows out just like
a wounded man bleeds. Once the wound heals, new branches and tiny leaves grow from there
which grow into trees.
In order to destroy a tree, it has to be uprooted. The roots which are white in color and are
damp due to the moisture that they get from the soil are hidden in a pit in the Earth. These
roots are the most sensitive part of the tree as they bind it to the earth. In order to kill the tree,
theseroots have to be detached from the soil.
Once the roots are detached, the tree starts dying, It withers, dries up with the action of heat
and wind, twists, hardens and finally, dies. Poem :
It takes much time to kill a tree,
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.
Word Meaning:
Jab: sudden rough blow
Leprous hide: discolored bark
Explanation of the Poem: TA simple cut does not destroy a tree. A tree grows gradually, it is
rooted in the soil. A plant takes nutrition from the soil to grow into a big tree. The tree is firmly
bound with the soil. It takes in sunlight, water and air to grow into a strong trunk and have
numerous leaves.
Poem :
So hack and chop
But this alone won’t do it.
Not so much pain will do it.
The bleeding bark will heal
And from close to the ground
Will rise curled green twigs,
Miniature boughs
Which if unchecked will expand again
To former size.
Word Meaning:
Hack: cut roughly by striking heavy blows
Explanation of the Poem: THumans cut and chop the bark of trees into many pieces but that is
not sufficient to destroy the tree. The point of the tree which gets cut gives out sap just like a
human being bleeds. Gradually, this would heals and from there new branches start growing
again.
Poem :
No,
The root is to be pulled out —
Out of the anchoring earth;
It is to be roped, tied,
And pulled out-snapped out
Or pulled out entirely,
Out from the earth-cave,
And the strength of the tree exposed
The source, white and wet,
The most sensitive, hidden
For years inside the earth.
Word Meaning:
Anchoring earth: trees are held securely with the help of the roots in the earth
Snapped out: chopped out
Explanation of the Poem: TThe poet says that in order to kill the tree, it has to be uprooted.
One has to separate the tree from the Earth which supports it. The roots of the tree bind the
tree with the soil in the pit of the Earth. From there, the most sensitive and hidden part of the
tree – the roots have to be detached. The roots are white in colour and are damp.
Poem :
Then the matter
Of scorching and choking
In sun and air,
Browning, hardening,
Twisting, withering,
And then it is done.
Word Meaning:
Scorching and choking: the drying up of the tree after being uprooted
Explanation of the Poem: TOnce the tree has been uprooted, then gradually it withers and dries
up with the action of heat and wind. The trunk will become brown, twist and will harden. Finally,
the tree will die this way.
On Killing a Tree 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
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
1. Can a “simple jab of the knife” kill a tree? Why not?
A. No, a simple jab of the knife cannot kill a tree. The place from where the tree is cut will give
out sap and once the wound heals, new branches and leaves will grow from it which will
develop into trees.
2. How has the tree grown to its full size? List the words suggestive of its life and activity.
A. The tree has grown by consuming nutrients from the Earth, absorbing sunlight, air and
water. The words suggestive of its life and activity are – consuming the earth, Rising out of it,
feeding Upon its crust, absorbing years of sunlight, air, water.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. What finally kills the tree?
A. The tree dies when it is uprooted. When it is detached from the Earth, it withers, hardens
twists and finally dies.