FIRST LANGUAGE ENGLISH - KSEEB - CLASS 10 - COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS - A POISON TREE

 

Poem – 5

A POISON TREE

William Blake

Comprehension Questions

I. Answer the following questions briefly.

1) What happened when the speaker expressed his anger?

Ans: When the speaker expressed his anger then the anger ended.

 

2) What happened when the speaker suppressed his anger?

Ans: The speaker anger grew when he suppressed his anger.

 

3) How are the results differ in the two instances?

Ans: The two instances differ in the results, in first instance the confusion got cleared but in the second instance confusion grew.

 

4) When the poet is thinking about his anger, the picture of a tree comes to his mind. Which word in the first stanza suggests a tree?

Ans: The word “grow” in the first stanza suggests a tree.

 

5) The speaker helped his anger to grow. The second stanza mentions the different ways in which he helped his anger grow. What are the different ways?

Ans: The speaker watered the tree with tears and fears, sunned it with smiles and deceitful wiles.

 

6) “Water’d it in fears” suggests that

a) the speaker did not have the courage to express his anger

b) the speaker was afraid of the consequences

c) the speaker didn’t want to displease his enemy

Ans: a) the speaker did not have the courage to express his anger

 

 7) The word “tears” suggests that

a) the speaker too suffered for suppressing his anger

b) the enemy suffered

c) the speaker had to go through a lot of anxiety

Ans: c) the speaker had to go through a lot of anxiety.

 

8) “sunned it with smiles” suggests that

a) the speaker cunningly hid his anger with bright smiles

b) the speaker pretended that he was not angry

c) the speaker let his anger grow secretly

Ans: a) the speaker cunningly hid his anger with bright smiles.

 

9) Which line tells you that the speaker is a scheming and cunning friend?

Ans: And I sunned it with smiles

And with soft deceitful wiles.

 

10) The second stanza continues the image (picture) of a tree suggested in the first stanza. Which words in the second stanza refer to a growing?

Ans: “Water’d I and sunned it’ are the words in the second stanza referring to a growing.

 

11) The poet so far, has been talking about

a) his suppressed anger

b) a growing tree

c) both

Ans: a) his suppressed anger.

 

12) What kind of a tree and fruit (her apple) can grow when they are nurtured by fears, tears, hypocritical smiles and deceitful wiles?

Ans: A poison tree and poisonous fruit (her apple) can grow when they are nurtured by fears, tears, hypocritical smiles and deceitful wiles.

 

13) The word “it” occurs in all the four lines of the 3rd stanza. What does “it” refer to in each line?

Ans: “it” refers to the anger the speaker had for his enemy that he permitted to grow into a poison tree and fruit.

14) “Apple” in the poem refers to

a) the forbidden but tempting apple in the garden of Eden (in The Bible)

b) the consequence of suppressing anger

c) the fruit of his enmity

Ans: b) the consequence of suppressing anger.

 

15) The apple is “bright” because

a) it is intended to attract the foe

b) it is intended to tempt the foe

c) it is cunningly devised to hide the bitterness

Ans: c) it is cunningly devised to hide the bitterness.

 

16) Who “stole” into the speaker’s garden?

Ans: The speaker’s garden was stolen by the speaker’s enemy.

 

17) The word “stole” means

a) that the enemy stole the apple

b) that the enemy entered the speaker’s garden stealthily

Ans: b) that the enemy entered the speaker’s garden stealthily.

 

18) What does the speaker see in the morning?

Ans: The speaker sees his enemy lying dead under the apple tree in the morning.

 

19) Why, do you think, “dies” at the end? Is it only the enemy? Does the speaker also die? What kind of death does he die?

Ans: The hatred for his enemy dies. The speaker’s enemy dies in the end, physically. The speaker’s anger also dies.

 

20) “A Poison Tree” could refer to

a) the tree of hatred and enmity grew by the seed of suppressed anger

b) the destructive effect of being hypocritical and deceitful

c)  the spiritual death of a person for nurturing base passions

Ans: All of the above.

 

B.  Close Study:

Read the following extracts .carefully. Discuss in pairs and then write the answers to the questions given below them:

 1) “And into my garden stole/when the night had veiled the pole”.

a) Who stole into the garden?

b) Why did he steal into the garden?

c) Explain the phrase ‘veiled the pole’.

Ans: a) The speaker’s enemy stole into the garden.

b) The speaker’s enemy wanted to eat the apple so he stole it.

c) It means to cover.

 

2) And I sunned it with smiles and with soft deceitful wiles

a) What does the word “sunned’ suggest?

b) Explain the phrase “deceitful wiles.”

c) Why had the speaker “sunned” it?

Ans: a) It means to nourish and to grow.

b) It means to deceive someone or to play tricks on his enemy.

c) The anger was not expressed by the speaker and he betrayed him with a smile and he allowed his anger to grow and nourish until it bore an apple.

 

III. Paragraph Writing

Discuss, in pairs or groups of 4 each, the answers to the following questions. Note down the important points and then develop them into a paragraph.

 1) How does the poet use the image of a tree to bring out the destructive effect of suppressed anger?

Ans: In this poem “A Poison Tree” the speaker unable to represent his anger with his enemy. He kept it in his heart and allowed it to grow with his deceitful tears, fears and sunned it with smiles and it grew into a poison tree and bore an apple on it. The speaker tricked on his enemy and made him to proceed toward the apple tree. The speaker’s enemy stealthily he went to garden one night and was attracted by that beautiful apple bright. He took that apple and ate it and died. The hatred for his enemy dies. The speaker’s enemy dies in the end, physically. The speaker’s anger also dies.

 

 

 (memorization)

I was angry with my friend; 

I told my wrath, my wrath did end.

I was angry with my foe: 

I told it not, my wrath did grow. 

 

And I waterd it in fears,

Night & morning with my tears: 

And I sunned it with smiles,

And with soft deceitful wiles. 

 

And it grew both day and night. 

Till it bore an apple bright. 

And my foe beheld it shine,

And he knew that it was mine. 

 

And into my garden stole, 

When the night had veild the pole; 

In the morning glad I see; 

My foe outstretched beneath the tree.