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The Author Robert Frost was an American poet. He was honored frequently during his lifetime and is the only poet to receive four Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry. He was born on 26 March 1874, San Francisco, California, United States to journalist William Prescott Frost. His mother was a Scottish immigrant. Frost’s father was a teacher and later an editor of the San Francisco Evening Bulletin. After his death on May 5, 1885, the family moved across the country to Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Frost graduated from Lawrence High School in 1892. In 1894, he sold his first poem, “My Butterfly” for $15 ($434 today). Proud of his accomplishment, he proposed marriage to Elinor Miriam White, but she demurred and asked him to finish his college. Frost attended Harvard University from 1897 to 1899, but he left voluntarily due to illness. Frost then went on an excursion to the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia and asked Elinor again upon his return. Having graduated, she agreed, and they were married at Lawrence, Massachusetts on December 19, 1895.
In 1912, Frost sailed with his family to Great Britain, settling first in Beaconsfield, a small town outside London. He met or befriended many contemporary poets in England, especially after his first two poetry volumes were published in London in 1913.
In 1915, during World War – I, Frost returned to America and bought a farm in Franconia, New Hampshire, USA where he launched a career of writing, teaching, and lecturing. Frost taught English at Amherst College in Massachusetts, notably encouraging his students to account for the myriad sounds and intonations of the spoken English language in their writing.
Robert Frost’s personal life was plagued by grief and loss. In 1885 when he was 11, his father died of tuberculosis, leaving the family with just eight dollars. Frost’s mother died of cancer in 1900. In 1920, he had to commit his younger sister Jeanie to a mental hospital, where she died nine years later. Mental illness apparently ran in Frost’s family, as both he and his mother suffered from depression, and his daughter Irma was committed to a mental hospital in 1947. Frost’s wife, Elinor, also experienced bouts of depression.
Elinor and Robert Frost had six children. Only Lesley and Irma outlived their father. Frost’s wife, who had heart problems throughout her life, developed breast cancer in 1937 and died of heart failure in 1938. Frost died in Boston on January 29, 1963 of complications from prostate surgery. He was buried at the Old Bennington Cemetery in Bennington, Vermont.
Source: en.wikipedia.org
A Roadside Stand Poem
The little old house was out with a little new shed
In front at the edge of the road where the traffic sped,
A roadside stand that too pathetically pled,
It would not be fair to say for a dole of bread,
But for some of the money, the cash, whose flow supports
The flower of cities from sinking and withering faint.
The polished traffic passed with a mind ahead,
Or if ever aside a moment, then out of sorts
At having the landscape marred with the artless paint
Of signs that with N turned wrong and S turned wrong
Offered for sale wild berries in wooden quarts,
Or crook-necked golden squash with silver warts,
Or beauty rest in a beautiful mountain scene,
You have the money, but if you want to be mean,
Why keep your money (this crossly) and go along.
The hurt to the scenery wouldn’t be my complaint
So much as the trusting sorrow of what is unsaid:
Here far from the city we make our roadside stand
And ask for some city money to feel in hand
To try if it will not make our being expand,
And give us the life of the moving-pictures’ promise
That the party in power is said to be keeping from us.
It is in the news that all these pitiful kin
Are to be bought out and mercifully gathered in
To live in villages, next to the theatre and the store,
Where they won’t have to think for themselves anymore,
While greedy good-doers, beneficent beasts of prey
Swarm over their lives enforcing benefits
That are calculated to soothe them out of their wits,
And by teaching them how to sleep they sleep all day,
Destroy their sleeping at night the ancient way.
Sometimes I feel myself I can hardly bear
The thought of so much childish longing in vain,
The sadness that lurks near the open window there,
That waits all day in almost open prayer
For the squeal of brakes, the sound of a stopping car,
Of all the thousand selfish cars that pass,
Just one to inquire what a farmer’s prices are.
And one did stop, but only to plow up grass
In using the yard to back and turn around;
And another to ask the way to where it was bound;
And another to ask could they sell it a gallon of gas
They couldn’t (this crossly); they had none, didn’t it see?
No, in country money, the country scale of gain,
The requisite lift of spirit has never been found,
Or so the voice of the country seems to complain,
I can’t help owning the great relief it would be
To put these people at one stroke out of their pain.
And then next day as I come back into the sane,
I wonder how I should like you to come to me
And offer to put me gently out of my pain.
By Robert Frost
A Roadside Stand Introduction
The poet contrasts the lives of the people who live in cities and those who live in the country. He highlights the plight of the deprived villagers who are aching for some money to lead a prosperous life. The life of the poor people is very miserable because they are in a paucity of money. It is only the money that can lift their living standard but they don’t have any. The poet wishes to relieve the rural people of the pain at one stroke.
A Roadside Stand Word Meanings
Traffic sped = fast movement of traffic
Pled = made a request
Dole of bread = (here) donations
Polished = refined
Faint = lifeless
Out of sorts = irritated
Marred = spoiled
Quarts = a measuring unit
Crook-necked = bent necked
Kin = relatives
Beneficent = generous
At one stroke = with one blow
Sane = sensible
Apathy = lack of interest/feeling/emotion/concern
A Roadside Stand Summary
Robert Frost presents the apathy of the city dwellers & rich persons towards the poor farmers who have constructed a roadside stand to sell their products and earn a living but they pass speedily in their cars and do not even bother to stop for a while and take a look at it. The farmers discover that nobody is interested in their products and never even stops to inquire about the prices. The villagers hope for a life of comfort like urban people by earning some money. The news of their settlement near the theatre or the store is also under discussion among them. The greedy good-doers solace them for restful sleep and livelihood but literally they are cheating and want to grasp their farms and lands. The poor farmers sit the whole day praying but all in vain. Sometimes, rarely, a car stops but for its own selfishness. They stop either to seek some fuel or ask the destination of the path. The poet is disturbed seeing the pitiful and misfortunate life of the villagers and anticipate some real consolation and concern for those ill-fated hard workers.
A Roadside Stand Detailed Explanation
Poor villagers have made little new huts out of the houses on the roadside. Traffic passes from that road speedily. Those little temporary huts do not ask for any donation but pray for some attention. They expect to earn some money by selling wild berries and golden squash. The money helps cities to develop. Vehicles pass without paying any attention. Even if someone looks at them, they find signs and symbols totally unshaped and unartistic. The travellers pass without buying anything. The poet is not angry or disappointed by the ignorance of scenery but disheartened because of empty hands. They have opened those roadside stands for not only their earnings but to facilitate the city dwellers with fresh and genuine objects. They also want to increase the standard of their living and follow their ideals as they are promised to be in comfort by the leaders and eminent persons.
There is the news that those poor farmers would be settled in the villages near the theatre and store where they will be looked after properly and will have nothing to worry about. The poet advocates that those greedy good-doers are cheating the innocent farmers and planning to capture their farms and lands deceitfully.
The poet often thinks about the miserable condition of these poor people and is unable to sustain the useless expectation that is never going to be fulfilled. Every hope remains pending because nobody cares about them. From morning to evening, the poor farmer waits and prays to God for some real customers to buy their products. They want to listen to the sharp sound of brakes but no one stops there to buy their products. Even if anyone stops, he stops not to inquire about the prices but to use that empty and broad space for backing and turning the vehicle or enquiring about the route’s rightness or the availability of the fuel. The anger of farmers is natural as they are only used for the selfishness. They reply irritatingly and question the common sense of the car owners.
The life of the poor people is very miserable because they are in a paucity of money. It is only the money that can lift their living standard but they don’t have any. This is why the spirit of poor people remains depressed. The poet wishes to relieve the rural people of the pain at one stroke.
A Roadside Stand Important Extracts
A Roadside Stand Extract – 1
1. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
The little old house was out with a little new shed
In front at the edge of the road where the traffic sped,
A roadside stand that too pathetically pled,
It would not be fair to say for a dole of bread,
But for some of the money, the cash, whose flow supports
The flower of cities from sinking and withering faint.
(a) Where was the new shed put up? What was its purpose?
Ans. A little house at one side of the road was extended and a shed was added to it to put up a road stand. It was set up to attract passersby to buy things from them so that they could earn some money.
(b) Why does the poet use the word ‘pathetic’?
Ans. By using the word ‘pathetic’ the poet emphasizes the fact that the condition of the shed was most humble and that it presented a rather pitiable sight.
(c) Explain: ‘too pathetically pled’
Ans. It was as if by putting up the shed the owner was desperately pleading to the rich city folks to stop by at his roadside stand and buy things from there so that they could earn some extra money.
(d) Who is referred to as ‘the flower of cities’?
Ans. ‘The flower of the cities’ here refers to the rich and wealthy city-dwellers who can afford the best things.
A Roadside Stand Extract – 2
2. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
The polished traffic passed with a mind ahead,
Or if ever aside a moment, then out of sorts
At having the landscape marred with the artless paint
Of signs that with N turned wrong and S turned wrong
Offered for sale wild berries in wooden quarts,
(a) What does the poet mean by ‘with a mind ahead?
Ans. The phrase ‘with a mind ahead’ suggests that the people who pass the roadside stand in their polished cars conveniently overlook the roadside stand as their mind is focussed only on their destination.
(b) What are N and S signs?
Ans. The N and S signs stand for the North and the South direction.
(c) Why have these sings turned wrong?
Ans. These signs have turned wrong because they have been painted in the wrong way and so these signboards are wrongly presented.
A Roadside Stand Extract – 3
3. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Or beauty rest in a beautiful mountain scene,
You have the money, but if you want to be mean,
Why keep your money (this crossly) and go along.
The hurt to the scenery wouldn’t be my complaint
So much as the trusting sorrow of what is unsaid
(a) What attraction does the place offer?
Ans. The place offers a scenic view of the beautiful mountains.
(b) What should one do if one wants to be mean?
Ans. If one wants to be mean he can keep his money and move on ahead.
(c) What does the poet not complain about?
Ans. The poet does not complain about the landscape which has been spoilt because of the artless painting done on the building.
(d) What do you think is the real worry of the poet?
Ans. The poet’s real worry is the unexpressed sorrow of the people who have put up the roadside stand.
A Roadside Stand Extract – 4
4. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
It is in the news that all these pitiful kin
Are to be bought out and mercifully gathered in
To live in villages, next to the theatre and the store,
Where they won’t have to think for themselves anymore,
While greedy good-doers, beneficent beasts of prey,
(a) Name the poem and the poet.
Ans. The poem is ‘A Roadside Stand’ by Robert Frost.
(b) Explain: why have merciful ones been called ‘greedy good-doers’ and ‘beneficent beasts of prey’?
Ans. The merciful are the crooked politicians, greedy people pretending to be good, who only pose as beneficiaries. These powerful men are actually beasts of prey in the guise of beneficiaries who ruthlessly exploit the common people.
(c) Why won’t these poor people have to think for themselves anymore?
Ans. These poor people are now in the hands of the so-called ‘merciful beneficiaries’, who will actually do them more harm than any good, so they will not have to think about themselves anymore.
A Roadside Stand Extract – 5
5. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Sometimes I feel myself I can hardly bear
The thought of so much childish longing in vain,
The sadness that lurks near the open window there,
That waits all day in almost open prayer
For the squeal of brakes, the sound of a stopping car,
Of all the thousand selfish cars that pass
(a) What cannot be borne by the poet and why?
Ans. The poet cannot bear the thought of how these country folks are lured with false promises which are never going to be fulfilled because he feels genuinely sad about so much deprivation to these innocent people.
(b) What is ‘childish longing’?
Ans. Like children, these country folk has many unfulfilled wishes and desires. So they keep their windows open expecting some prospective customers to turn up so that some good fortune can fall into their share.
(c) Why the longing has been termed as ‘vain’?
Ans. The longing has been termed as ‘vain’ because it will never be fulfilled.
(d) Why do the people driving in the cars stop sometimes?
Ans. The people driving in the car stop sometimes either to just enquire about the way to their destination or to ask for a gallon of gas if they ran short of it.
A Roadside Stand Extract – 6
6. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Sometimes I feel myself I can hardly bear
The thought of so much childish longing in vain,
The sadness that lurks near the open window there,
That waits all day in almost open prayer
(a) Why is ‘longing’ called ‘childish’?
Ans. Like children, these rural folk nurtures many unfulfilled dreams and desires which might never be satisfied. They crave in vain like children waiting for their wishes to be fulfilled.
(b) Where is the window?
Ans. The window is a part of their roadside stand where they wait expectantly.
(c) Why does sadness lurk there?
Ans. Sadness lurks there because no car halts there to buy anything from their roadside stand and the rural folk is unable to earn some extra money.
(d) Which open window is referred to?
Ans. The open window is that of the roadside stand where they wait expectantly for a car to stop by.
(e) What does the farmer pray for?
Ans. The farmer prays that the city folks apply the brakes of the car and halt at their roadside stand to buy something from there.
(f) Is the farmer’s prayer ever granted? How do you know?
Ans. The farmers’ prayers are not granted. The poet tells us that even if city folk does stop at the roadside stand it is only to enquire about the prices of the goods
A Roadside Stand Questions and Answers (2 Marks)
Q1. Why was the ‘little old house’ extended towards the road?
Ans. The little old house was extended on the roadside to attract the rich men passing in their cars and make a living by selling their products to them.
Q2. Which traffic is referred to here? Why are they ‘speeding?’
Ans. The traffic is referred to the cars and other vehicles of the rich people. These rich people are in a great hurry to make money in other cities.
Q3. Why is the Stand’s existence said to be ‘pathetic?’
Ans. The roadside stands expect to get some city-money into their hands by selling their products. But their expectations are never fulfilled as the rich people are not considerate about them and don’t stop there to buy their products.
Q4. Why is it unfair to say that these people are begging for a ‘dole of bread?’
Ans. These poor people are not beggars. They are not asking for any donations. They have made roadside stands only to sell their items and make a living.
Q5. What do poor people really expect from the rich?
Ans. The poor people expect a small share of the money from rich people.
Q6. How do the poor people look at the city money?
Ans. For poor people, money is very essential for growth and survival. It boosts the growth of the city and the city people.
Q7. What is the flower of the cities? How?
Ans. Prosperity is the flower of the cities. As the flower is the crowning glory of a plant, growth, and prosperity become the flower of a city. But the city people are quite insensitive to the poor sufferers and pass by their stands in their cars. They are not bothered at all to have a look at them.
Q8. What do you mean by ‘polished traffic?
Ans. Polished traffic portrays the insensitive attitude of the city-men for the poor farmers. They appear to be ‘polished’ from outside but their minds do not understand the sufferings of the poor people.
Q9. What attitude does the polished traffic show?
Ans. The polished traffic passes with a mind ahead and does not pay a little bit of attention to the roadside stands.
Q10. Explain, ‘passed with a mind ahead.’
Ans. The city people who pass by the roadside stand are selfish and self-centered. Their minds are restless with greed for money and ambitions for great profits in their business.
Q11. What are the usual complaints made by the city men when they stop at the roadside stand? / How senseless do the rich men’s complaints sound to the poor people?
Ans. The rich men’s complaints sound to be senseless as they say that they have distorted the beauty of the landscape by putting up their stalls on the roadside and painting their houses in the most awkward way. They have also erected boards near their stands with wrong signs of S and N.
Q12. How do poor people ruin the landscape?
Ans. The poor people ruin the beauty of the landscape by putting up their stands/stalls on the roadside. Their houses are painted in the most unprofessional manner with the most mismatching paint.
Q13. What articles are ‘offered for sale’ at the stand?
Ans. Wild berries, crook-necked golden squash, and paintings of mountain scenery are offered for sale at the roadside stand.
Q14. What do the poor people of the roadside stand feel when the city people decline from buying anything?
Ans. When rich people decline to buy their products from the roadside stand, they feel dejected and angry. They ask the city people to keep their money with them and make their own way.
Q15. What do you understand when the poet says that the trusting sorrow of the poor people is ‘unsaid?’
Ans. The poor people place their trust in the fake promises of the rich people and the ruling parties and consequently become sad. The poet complains that this sorrow of the poor people has not been brought to the serious concern of the concerned authorities, media, and the public.
Q16. What do the people at the roadside stand expect from the rich? What for?
Ans. The poor people at the roadside stand expect the generosity of the rich city people. They hope to alleviate their poverty by getting money from the city people.
Q17. What are the moving pictures? What kind of life is promised by the ‘moving pictures?
Ans. The movies the poor people have watched are full of promises for them. In those movies they saw people who journeyed from poverty to prosperity.
Q18. What do ‘the parties in power’ keep from the poor people?
Ans. The governments and corrupt politicians keep the shares and the allotted rights of the poor people away from them and use them for their selfish motives.
Q19. What is good news for poor people?
Ans. The media keep on advertising that the governments are planning schemes for the welfare of poor people.
Q20. Who are the greedy good doers? What is the irony in the ‘greedy good-doers?’
Ans. The leaders of political parties and businessmen are the greedy good-doers mentioned here. A greedy person cannot be a good doer. These good-doers intend to make money out of the poor people by appearing beneficent to them.
Q21. How do the rich ‘enforce benefits’ on the poor?
Ans. The rich businessmen convince the poor of the advantages of their new schemes and promotions and make them buy their products and be their customers.
Q22. What sort of calculation is made to ‘soothe the wits of the poor?’ Does this calculation work? How?
Ans. The business-minded city people attract poor people with their well-planned promotional offers and promises. These promises and offers are in such a way calculated that the poor people cannot escape the traps of the rich. The business man’s calculations work well as there is a more efficient brain behind all these promises.
Q23. How do the influential rich destroy the sleep of the poor? How is this done in ancient times?
Ans. The influential rich people give the poor great promises and exploit them for their personal gains. This destroys the sleep of poor people. This method of the rich and mighty is as old as the human civilizations.
Q24. What is the childish longing? Why is it in vain?
Ans. Children long to achieve things beyond their reach but never get them. The poor people’s expectation that the rich people would give them money is their childish longing. It is in vain because the hard-hearted rich people never give them a penny.
Q25. Why can’t the poet bear the childish longing of the poor people?
Ans. The poet is a true humanitarian who is genuinely concerned about the poor people’s misfortunes. He wants a solution to their poverty. But seeing how childish their longings are, the poet feels it unbearable.
Q26. What is the prayer of the open window?
Ans. The open window prays that the city people would stop on their stand and buy their products. Thus this generous amount can alleviate the distress of the poor people.
Q27. Why are cars called ‘selfish cars?
Ans. The cars are selfish because the people who travel in them are selfish and self-centred.
Q28. What do you understand by ‘farmer’s prices’?
Ans. Farmer’s prices refer to the prices of the berries, squash, and paintings displayed at the roadside stand for sale.
Q29. What is the strange demand of the rich man at the roadside stand? How is it quite strange?
Ans. The insensitive city man demands a gallon of gas at the roadside stand. This is quite strange because the city man is not aware of the fact that the poor man cannot provide him with expensive items such as gas.
Q30. Why are the poor people angry with the city men when they ask for gas?
Ans. The roadside stand has the store of wild berries, squash, and paintings that are never bought by the city men. On the contrary the city men require a gallon of gas and the roadside stand does not have it for sale. This helplessness makes the poor people angry.
Q31. What is the voice of the country?
Ans. The voice of the country is that the rich people have no concern for them and that they are being exploited, cheated, and given false promises by the parties in power. There is no end for their miseries.
Q32. What kind of relief does the poet dream for poor people?
Ans. The poet dreams of some magical help for the poor people, so that the poor people will be redeemed from their state of poverty and misery instantly.
Q33. Why does the poet seek an unrealistic solution for the poor people’s distress even though he himself blamed them earlier for their ‘childish longing in vain?’
Ans. The poet, unlike the greedy good-doers, genuinely wishes to get the poor people out of their pain, poverty, and endless miseries but he is sad and helpless to see that there is no one to help them come out of their poverty. This helplessness drives the poet to seek an unrealistic solution for poor people’s misery.
Q34. What is the poet’s pain?
Ans. The poet’s pain is that poor people are still waiting for rich people’s generosity and that rich people never help poor people. He is also sad that his insane dreams of the poor people helped by a stroke were only dreams.
Q35. How does the poet feel helpless?
Ans. The poet finally concludes that he is totally helpless to remove the pain of the farmers. He can’t put those people out of their pain at one stroke.
Q36. How can his readers remove the poet’s pain?
Ans. The readers can get the poet out of his pain by offering to help the poor people.
Q. Name the figures of speech used in the poem.
Ans. (a) Transferred Epithet: There are two examples of the transferred epithet in the poem:
1. ‘Polished traffic’ is referred to the city dwellers who pass by the roadside stand.
2. ‘Selfish cars’ is yet another use of a transferred epithet. This refers to the car owners who stop at the roadside stand not to buy their products but to ask about the path or the fuel.
(b) Personification: “the sadness that lurks behind the open window there…” Sadness is an example of personification. Sadness dwells in the windows of the farmers because they wait for cars to stop and buy their articles.
(c) Alliteration and Oxymoron: ‘Greedy good doers’ and ‘beneficent beasts of prey’ are examples of both alliteration and oxymoron.
A Roadside Stand Questions and Answers (6 Marks)
Q1. Summarise the poem in your own words.
Ans. Robert Frost experiences the pain of the poor farmers who have made their little shaded stalls on the roadside to sell their products but the poet observes that the city people are not at all interested in their offerings. On the other hand, selfish travellers criticize their presentations and pass thoroughly without having a look at them. Poet is hurt by their behaviour and attitude and has a complaint about their survival as they too want to be part of the flow of economy. They too have the right to live comfortably like their ideals. But they are always used for the self-motives of the greedy good-doers. They enforce their benefits over the poor farmers, misguide them, and destroy their ancient culture and way of living by lulling them. They just want to grasp their fields and houses. Poet is tired and finds his expectations failed. He is too much disappointed by the financial condition and struggle of the distressed peasants who for the whole day sit, pray and wait for the cars to stop at least to inquire or to buy their products but the self-centred egoistic persons use the empty place to turn their vehicles or sometimes stop to ask about the fuel or the route’s destination. The anger of farmers is natural, they reply and ask irritatingly for the common sense of the proud persons. Poet realizes that no miracle can be seen and he is unable to console the poverty-stricken farmers and it’s impossible to extricate the villagers out of their pain at one stroke. He realizes when finds himself sensible that his call is futile to help them and no one is ready to help them.
Q2. Have you ever stopped at a roadside stand? What have you observed?
Ans. Yes, I’ve stopped at a roadside stand on a highway twice or thrice and found that the villagers have too many expectations from us, who pass from those roads. They work hard for the whole day and their family members sit there to sell fresh vegetables, fruits, juices, and other products. Very few of us actually purchase something but only use them for general queries like asking about road map or petrol for our vehicles or many a time to use that broad empty space to turn our vehicles. I also observed that those farmers are pitiful and facing very miserable conditions and fighting for their existence and survival. Those merciful poor farmers should be helped and treated like human beings. They should not be cheated and used for introversion purposes. They also contribute to the growth and economy of the country as they grow crops for the whole of mankind.
IMPORTANT STANZAS FOR COMPREHENSION
Read the stanzas given below and answer the questions that follow each:
1.A thing of beauty is a joy forever Its loveliness increases, it will never Pass into nothingness; but will keep A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Questions
(a)Name the poem and the poet of these lines.
(b)How is a thing of beauty a joy for ever ?
(c)What do you understand by a ‘bower’l
(d)What kind of sleep does it provide?
Answers:
(а)The poem is A Thing of Beauty. The poet is John Keats.
(b)A thing of beauty is the source of constant joy. Its beauty goes on increasing. It will never pass into nothingness.
(c)A bower is a pleasant place in the shade under a tree. It protects persons/animals from the hot rays of the sun.
(d)It provides us a sound sleep, full of sweet dreams, health and peaceful breathing.
2. Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o’er-darkened ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Questions [All India 2014]
(a)Name the poem and the poet.
(b)Why are we despondent?
(c)What removes the pall from our dark spirits?
(d) What are we doing every day?
Answers:
(а)The poet is John Keats. The poem is A Thing of Beauty.
(b)We possess the evil qualities of malice and disappointment. We suffer from the lack of noble qualities. That is why we feel despondent.
(c) Some beautiful shapes or a thing of beauty removes the pall of sadness from our hearts or spirits.
(d) We are weaving a flowery wreath to bind us to the beauties of the earth.
3. Some shape of beauty moves away the pall From our dark spirits. Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old, and young, sprouting a shady boon For simple sheep; and such are daffodils
With the green world they live in; and clear rills That for themselves a cooling covert make ‘Gainst the hot season; the mid forest brake,
Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms;
Questions
(а)What removes the pall from our dark spirits?
(b)What sprouts a shady boon for sheep and how?
(c) How do ‘daffodils’ and ‘rills’ enrich the environment?
(d) What makes the mid-forest brake rich?
Answers:
(a)Some beautiful shape or a thing of beauty removes the pall of sadness from our hearts or spirits.
(b)Old and young trees sprout to make a green covering. It proves a blessing for simple sheep as it serves them as a shelter.
(c)Daffodils bloom among the green surroundings. The rills or small streams of clear water make a cooling shelter for themselves against the hot season.
(d)The mid forest brake is made rich by the blooming of beautiful musk-roses.
(e)(i) pall, (ii) boon, (Hi) rills, (iv) covert.
4. And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
Ml lovely tales that we have heard or read;
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven’s brink
Questions [Delhi 2014]
(a)Name the poem and the poet of these lines.
(b)Explain: ‘the grandeur of the dooms’.
(c)What is the thing of beauty mentioned in these lines’?
(d)What image does the poet use in these lines?
Answers:
(а)The poem is A Thing of Beauty. The poet is John Keats.
(b)The magnificence that we imagine for our mighty dead forefathers on the dooms day.
(c)The lovely tales of mighty men are mentioned in these lines.
(d)The poet uses the image of ‘an endless fountain of immortal drink’ to describe the beautiful bounty of the earth. The earth has bestowed us with sun, moon, flowers, rivers, greenery etc.
QUESTIONS FROM TEXTBOOK SOLVED
Q1. List the things of beauty mentioned in the poem.
Ans: Everything of nature is a thing of beauty and a source of pleasure. Some of them are: the sun, the moon, old and young trees, daffodil flowers, small streams with clear water, mass of ferns and the blooming musk-roses. All of them are things of beauty. They are a constant source of joy and pleasure.
Q2. List the things that cause suffering and pain.
Ans: There are many things that cause us suffering and pain. Malice and disappointment are “the biggest source of our suffering. Another one is the lack of noble qualities. Our unhealthy and evil ways also give birth to so many troubles and sufferings. They dampen our spirits. They act as a pall of sadness on our lives.
Q3. What does the line, ‘Therefore are we wreathing a flowery band to bind us to earth’ suggest to you?
Ans: Keats is a lover of beauty. He employs his senses to discover beauty. The link of man with nature is eternal. The things of beauty are like wreaths of beautiful flowers. We seem to weave a flowery band everyday. It keeps us attached to the beauties of this earth.
Q4. What makes human beings love life in spite of troubles and sufferings?
Ans: There are many things that bring us troubles and sufferings. They dampen our spirits. However, ‘some shape of beauty1 brings love and happiness in our lives in spite of such unpleasant things. A thing of beauty removes the pall of sadness and sufferings. It makes us love life.
Q5. Why is ‘grandeur’ associated with the ‘mighty dead’?
Ans: The mighty dead were very powerful and dominating persons during their own times. Their achievements made them ‘mighty’ and great. Their noble works dazzle our eyes. We imagine that such mighty dead forefathers will attain more grandeur on the doomsday. Hence ‘grandeur’ is associated with the ‘mighty dead’.
Q6. Do we experience things of beauty only for short moments or do they make a lasting impression on us?
Ans: We feel happy by coming into contact with things of beauty. They make a lasting impression on us. Keats makes it clear at the outset. A thing of beauty is a joy forever. It is a constant source of joy and pleasure. Its beauty never declines or diminishes. Its loveliness goes on increasing every moment. Its value remains undiminished. It never passes into nothingness. It removes the pall of sadness that covers our dark spirits.
Q7, What image does the poet use to describe the beautiful bounty of the earth?
Ans: John Keats uses a very beautiful image to describe the beautiful bounty of the earth. It is the endless fountain of immortal drink. It pours constantly into our hearts from heaven. Thus, the beautiful bounty of the earth is called “an endless fountain of immortal drink.”
MORE QUESTIONS SOLVED
SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS (Word Limit: 30-40 words)
Q1. How is a thing of beauty a joy forever?
Ans: According to John Keats a thing of beauty is a joy of forever. It is a constant source of happiness and pleasure. Its loveliness increases every moment. It will never pass into nothingness. In other words, a thing of beauty is never devalued.
Q2. How does a thing of beauts provide us shelter and comfort?
Ans: John Keats is a great Romantic poet. He is rich in sensuous imagery. Nature provides us things of rare beauty. It keeps a bower quiet for us. A bower is a pleasant place in the shade under a tree. A thing of beauty also provides us peace and security. We enjoy a sound sleep which is full of sweet dreams, health and peaceful breathing.
Q3. How do us bind our self to the earth every morning?
Ans: All the Romantic poets stress upon the relationship between man and nature. Keats believes that there is an unbreakable bond which binds man with nature and the earth. The beauties of the earth fascinate man. Every object of nature is a source of beauty and happiness. Everyday we are weaving a wreath of flowers. This flowery band binds us to the beauties of this earth.
Q4. What are the things that cause miseries, sorrows and sufferings to man ?
Ans: Man himself is the root cause of all his sufferings. We suffer from malice and distress because we lack human qualities that makes us inhuman. Our life becomes gloomy. We cultivate unhealthy and evil ways. All such things bring miseries, sorrows and sufferings to man.
Q5. What spreads the pall of despondence over our dark spirits? How is it removed?
Ans: Man is the creator of his woes. His own nature and actions make his life miserable. He faces miseries and pains. A pall of despondence covers his dark spirits. A thing of beauty provides a ray of hope to man. Some shape of beauty works wonders amid these sorrows and sufferings. It is a thing of beauty that removes the pall of despondence over our dark spirits.
Q6. Name the beauties of nature that are constant source of joy and happiness to man.
Ans: Nature is a store house of beauty. The beauties of nature are endless. The sun, the moon, old and young trees, beautiful daffodil flowers and green surroundings are some of such beautiful things. Small streams with clear water, thick mass of ferns, thickets of forest and musk-rose are some other things of beauty. All such things of beauty are a constant source of joy and happiness to man.
Q7. Why and how is ‘grandeur associated with the ‘mighty dead’?
Ans: The dooms day is considered the day of judgement, when the dead will receive what is due to them. Our mighty dead forefathers earned name and fame with their noble deeds. It is hoped that they will be rewarded with rare magnificence and grandeur.
Q8. How is a thing of beauty lovelier than all the lovely tales we have heard and read?
Ans: All beautiful things of nature are a boon for humanity. The magnificence and beauty of objects of nature surpasses the grandeur of dooms that we have imagined for our mighty dead forefathers. It is lovelier than all the lovely tales that we have heard or read.
Q9. What is the source of the ‘endless fountain’ and what is its effect?
Ans: A fountain of eternal joy’and immortality pours into the heart and soul of man. It flows right from the heavens brink and pours into the human heart. It is like an immortal nectar. The immortal drink that nature’s endless fountain pours into our hearts is a source of immense joy for us.
Q10. What is the message for the theme) of the poem ‘A Thing of Beauty’?
Ans: The very first line contains the message that John Keats, the great Romantic poet, wants to convey. Keats was a worshipper of beauty. For him beauty was truth and truth, beauty. Hence, for him a thing of beauty is a joy forever. Beauty never fades. Nor is it ever devalued. It never passes into nothingness. When we are full of sorrows and sufferings, some form of beauty comes to our rescue. It removes the pall of sadness and sorrows and gives us joy and pleasure. Thus, beauty is a boon for human beings.
MCQ Questions for Class 12 English Flamingo Poem 5 A Roadside Stand with Answers
Question 1.
What does the speaker or narrator call the thought of the owner of the stand?
(a) A chid like longing
(b) a very good thought
(c) a wise thought
(d) A childish longing in vain
Answer
Answer: (d) A childish longing in vain
Question 2.
What would be the state of poor rural folk at new location ?
(a) tension free as their needs will be looked after
(b) they will be able to visit city malls
(c) they will enjoy travelling malls and cinema halls
(d) they will be happy
Answer
Answer: (a) tension free as their needs will be looked after
Question 3.
What was the news?
(a) City people will give money
(b) city people will help the poor
(c) Relocation and resettlement of the rural folk to make them tension free by the government
(d) None
Answer
Answer: (c) Relocation and resettlement of the rural folk to make them tension free by the government
Question 4.
Who wanted to feel the money at hand and from whom?
(a) The rural folk from the government
(b) The rural folk from the social agencies
(c) The rural folk from the government officials
(d) The rural folk from the city people
Answer
Answer: (d) The rural folk from the city people
Question 5.
Why is the word pathetic used for road side stand?
(a) for city people’s attitude
(b) for government’s declaration
(c) for city people’s behavior
(d) for poor condition of the owner of the stand
Answer
Answer: (d) for poor condition of the owner of the stand
Question 6.
What is the poet’s call to the polished traffic passing ahead?
(a) he admires this
(b) he is indifferent to this
(c) he condemns this indifferent attitude of the city folk and feels the pain of the rural folk
(d) all these
Answer
Answer: (c) he condemns this indifferent attitude of the city folk and feels the pain of the rural folk
Question 7.
Why did a stopping car react?
(a) to point out at the wrongly marked N and S directions
(b) to buy some items
(c) to appreciate their hard work
(d) to soothe the villagers
Answer
Answer: (a) to point out at the wrongly marked N and S directions
Question 8.
What does support the flow of cities?
(a) travelling
(b) rural people
(c) government
(d) flow of money
Answer
Answer: (d) flow of money
Question 9.
Who will soothe the rural poor?
(a) Government and Social agencies
(b) Government officials
(c) Promises made by the Government
(d) City people will soothe ‘out of their wits’
Answer
Answer: (d) City people will soothe ‘out of their wits’
Question 10.
Why didn’t the polished traffic stop at the roadside stand?
(a) they didn’t like that place
(b) their focus was their interest of earning huge benefits
(c) they were greedy
(d) all these
Answer
Answer: (d) all these
Question 11.
What news in the poem ‘A Roadside Stand’ is making rounds in the village?
(a) City people are connive
(b) Villagers will be given homes near theatre and shopping malls
(c) Rural folk is earning money
(d) None
Answer
Answer: (b) Villagers will be given homes near theatre and shopping malls
Question 12.
Why are the city people called beasts of prey?
(a) because of their selfishness and tendency to dupe others for it
(b) because they are well dressed
(c) they know how to earn money
(d) all these
Answer
Answer: (a) because of their selfishness and tendency to dupe others for it
Question 13.
What is the special quality of the city people or folk?
(a) They are connive
(b) They are smart
(c) They are snobbish
(d) know how to get benefits in a calculative manner
Answer
Answer: (d) know how to get benefits in a calculative manner
Question 14.
Who are the greedy Doers?
(a) the government
(b) old people
(c) The Rural people
(d) The polished city folk
Answer
Answer: (d) The polished city folk
Question 15.
Why was the childish longing in vain ?
(a) because it was useless
(b) because they were shifting
(c) because their wish of earning from city folk couldn’t be realized or fulfilled
(d) none
Answer
Answer: (c) because their wish of earning from city folk couldn’t be realized or fulfilled
Question 16.
What is being sold on roadside stand?
(a) furniture
(b) cosmetics
(c) Diesel
(d) wild berries, golden squash and some other similar products
Answer
Answer: (d) wild berries, golden squash and some other similar products
Question 17.
Why was roadside stand built?
(a) so that people can wait there
(b) to make it a bus stop
(c) to earn money from polished city traffic
(d) none
Answer
Answer: (c) to earn money from polished city traffic
Question 18.
What does Frost describe in the poem?
(a) the feelings of the owners of a roadside shed
(b) the feelings of passengers
(c) the feelings of people on footpath
(d) none
Answer
Answer: (a) the feelings of the owners of a roadside shed
Question 19.
What does Frost’s poem deal with?
(a) human tragedies, fears and their solutions
(b) humans
(c) nature
(d) buildings
Answer
Answer: (a) human tragedies, fears and their solutions
Question 20.
Who is the poet of A Roadside Stand?
(a) Samuel Taylor Coleridge
(b) Robert Frost
(c) Lord Byron
(d) Percy Shelley
Answer
Answer: (b) Robert Frost
Question 21.
What is the open prayer from near the open window?
(a) For money to fall from the sky
(b) for more number of people to stop
(c) for getting money from the government
(d) for the sound of coming cars to stop at the road stand to help the owner to earn money from them
Answer
Answer: (d) for the sound of coming cars to stop at the road stand to help the owner to earn money from them
Question 22.
What does I stand for in the poem?
(a) owner of the stand
(b) city flower who stopped on the stand
(c) Poet of the poem-Robert Frost
Answer
Answer: (d) None
Question 23.
Who are the ‘pitiful kin’ in the poem?
(a) social agencies
(b) government officials
(c) city people with cars
(d) The poor rural folk and farmers
Answer
Answer: (d) The poor rural folk and farmers
Question 24.
Who went and waited in the lines?
(a) The rural folk to hear the government’s declaration
(b) The rural folk to talk to the social agencies
(c) The rural folk to have a word with the government officials
(d) The rural folk went to hear the sound of stopping cars
Answer
Answer: (d) The rural folk went to hear the sound of stopping cars
Question 25.
Who made roadside stand and where?
(a) The sarpanch made in the village
(b) The government made in the village
(c) social agencies made in the village
(d) The poor rural people made in the village
Answer
Answer: (d) The poor rural people made in the village