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Notice the Use of the Word ‘Turn’ in the First Line, “I Think I Could Turn and Live with Animals…”. What is the Poet Turning From? - English - Language and Literature

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Question

Notice the use of the word ‘turn’ in the first line, “I think I could turn and live with animals…”. What is the poet turning from?

Solution

In this line here, the poet wants to turn from human into an animal. This turning is symbolic of the poet’s detachment from human beings and their nature and his appreciation of the animal kind.

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Animals
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Chapter 6.2: Animals - Exercise 1 [Page 84]

APPEARS IN

NCERT English - First Flight Class 10
Chapter 6.2 Animals
Exercise 1 | Q 1 | Page 84

RELATED QUESTIONS

At times, especially when you are frustrated, you wish you were an animal/ a bird/ a fish/ a butterfly and not a human being. Say which of the above you would choose to transform to and give 3 or 4 reasons for your choice.

I wish I could be a ______________________________

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________


We come across many animals in our vicinity. We have also read about different animals in books. Make a list of all animals that fall under various categories. One is given to you.

Amphibians Mammals Wild Animals Aquatic Animals Pet Animals
frog cow lion octopus cat

Encourage students to read/use reference material to complete the activity.


Match the words given in table A with their meanings in table B.

No

A

Words

 

B

Meaning

(i) whine (a) an offence against the religious or moral law
(ii) sin (b) complain in an annoying way
(iii) evince (c) craze
(iv) mania (d) failing to take proper care
(v) negligent (e) show

Find adjectives from the poem which refer to positive and negative thinking.

Positive Negative
1. ____________________ 1. ____________________
2. ____________________ 2. ____________________
3. ____________________ 3. ____________________

Complete the following.

The poet wishes he could _____________.


Complete the following.

Animals do not complain about _________________.


State whether the following statement is true or false.

Animals quarrel for their possessions.


State whether the following statement is true or false.

Animals suffer humiliation.


State whether the following statement is true or false.

The poet has retained all his natural virtues.


With the help of the poem find the differences between animals and human beings.

Animals

I think I could turn and live with animals, they are so placid and self-contain’d
I stand and look at them long and long.
They do not sweat and whine about their condition,
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins, They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God, Not one is dissatisfied, not one is demented with
the mania of owning things.
Not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that lived thousands of years ago,
Not one is respectable or unhappy over the whole earth.
So they show their relations to me and I accept them,
They bring me tokens of myself, they evince
them plainly in their possession
I wonder where they get those tokens,
Did I pass that way huge times ago and negligently drop them?

-Walt Whitman

Human beings Animals
  • Always complain about their condition _________________
  • Never complain about anything
    ________________________

Read the text again, and complete the web, highlighting the good values/habits which we can learn from animals.


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

Animals

I think I could turn and live with animals, they are
     so placid and self-containe'd
I stand and look at them long and long.
  They do not sweat and whine about their condition,
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins,
They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God,
Not one is dissatisfied, not one is demented with
     the mania of owning things.
Not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that
lived thousands of years ago,
Not one is respectable or unhappy over the whole earth.
So they show their relations to me and I accept them,
They bring me tokens of myself, they evince
them plainly in their possession
I wonder where they get those tokens,
Did I pass that way huge times ago and negligently drop
them?
                                                             - Walt Whitman

You can use the following points while appreciating the given poem.

  1. The title and the poet of the poem   (01)
  2. Rhyme scheme   (01)
  3. Figures of speech   (01)
  4. Central Idea/Theme   (02)

Read the following extract and do the given activities.

A1. Match the words from cloud 'A' with cloud 'B':  (2)

Cloud 'A' Cloud 'B'
(a) Stand and look (i) Not one is demented
(b) Not one is dissatisfied (ii) long and long
(c) They do not sweat (iii) over the whole earth
(d) Not one is unhappy (iv) about their condition

 

I think I could tum and live with animals, they are
so placid and self-contain'd
I stand and look at them long and long.
They do not sweat and whine about their condition,
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins,
They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God,
Not one is dissatisfied, not one is demented with
the mania of owning things.
Not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that
lived thousands of years ago,
Not one is respectable or unhappy over the whole earth.
So they show their relations to me and I accept them,
They bring me tokens of myself, they evince
them plainly in their possession
I wonder where they get those tokens,
Did I pass that way huge times ago and negligently drop them?

-Walt Whitman

A2. Why does Walt Whitman feel more at home with animals?  (2)

A3. Name and explain the figure of speech in the given sentence.  (1)

'They bring me tokens of myself'.  


Mention any two reasons why Walt Whitman appreciates animals more than humans.


List any two things that animals do and humans don't.


Walt Whitman speaks of the human race with a tinge of sarcasm. Which are the two reasons that you agree with?


'They do not sweat and whine about their condition.' What human traits does the poet condemn in these lines?


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