Question

(B) Read the following poem and write an appreciation of it with the help of the given points in a paragraph:

The Height of the Ridiculous I wrote some lines once on a time In wondrous merry mood, And thought, as usual, men would say They were exceeding good. They were so queer, so very queer, I laughed as I would die; Albeit, in the general way, A sober man am I. I called my servant, and he came; How kind it was of him To mind a slender man like me, He of the mighty limb. “These to the printer,” I exclaimed, And, in my humorous way, I added (as a trifling jest,) “There’ll be the devil to pay.” He took the paper, and I watched, And saw him peep within At the first line he read, his face Was all upon the grin He read the next; the grin grew broad And shot from ear to ear; He read the third; a chuckling noise I now began to hear. The fourth; he broke into a roar; The fifth; his waistband split; The sixth; he burst five buttons off, And tumbled in a fit. Ten days and nights, with sleepless eye, I watched that wretched man, and since, I never dare to write As funny as I can.

Points:

• The title and the poet of the poem.      (1)
• Rhyme scheme        (1)
• Figures of speech      (1)
• Central Idea/Theme      (2)

Answer 1

The title of the poem is 'The Height of the Ridiculous.' It is a humourous poem written by Oliver Wendell Holmes. It consists of eight stanzas, each with four lines. The Rhyme scheme of the poem is 'abcb'. The poet uses many figures of speech, such as Personification, Alliteration, Onomatopoeia, Repetition, Hyperbole, etc. The tone of the poem is humorous. The poem encourages us to remain happy at all times and to find humor even in severe or everyday situations. I greatly enjoy the poem due to its simple language and amusing words. Overall, it is a genuinely humorous poem that reminds us that laughter can be discovered even in the most unexpected or challenging circumstances.