1. The answers shared here are just for reference purpose. You all are encouraged to try writing your own answers.
2. Refer page 68 , 68 and 70 of std XI Textbook for questions.
A1. Find proof from the poem.
a. The poet has mentioned different seasons.
Ans. Ans suddenly that summer near the end of May,
Split it apart and a monsoon blight.
b. The poet's minute....
Ans. It was very small , five months child.
Next spring I watched three new shoots grow,
c. The color imagery in the poem.
Ans. Made a miracle from green growing pain
And next year there were blossoms small , pink , fragile, quick to fall.
d. The struggle of the cherry tree...
Ans. Goats ate the leaves , the grass cutter scythe split it apart and a monsson blight shrivelled the slender stem.
ii. State whether the following statements.....
a. The cherry tree did not take long to grow. -False.
Correct statement:It took eight long years for the cherry tree to grow into a 6 feet tall fruit bearing tree.
b. Birds and insects were benefited from tree. - True
c. The poem has an underlying message. - True
d. The poet repents planting the cherry tree. - False
Correct statement: The poet is extremely happy that he planted the cherry tree.
A2.i. Discuss in group.....
A. The life of the cherry tree was threatened.
Ans. Yes indeed the life of the cherry tree was threatened when it was a baby plant. To begin with , it was lost among tall grass and then goats ate its leaves. On top of it all even grass cutter’s scythe split it apart and due to monsoon blight it's slender stem shrivelled. Also , no one cared for it or looked after the baby plant. Yet , the young plant never gave up and bravely faced all threats like a true warrior and thrived to be a six feet tall fruit bearing plant.
B. The cherry blossomed..
Ans.The Cherry plant in its initial stage of life suffered a lot of setbacks from goats eating it's leaves to moonsoon blight damaging it's slender stem. Inspite of this all , It fought all these odds , took care of itself no matter how much it had to struggle for light , air and sun and with basic things provided by nature , it cinally became a huge tree laden with fruits which benefited not just the poet but birds , insects , etc. The tree can be termed as an epitome of resilience indeed.
A2.ii.A small thought put into action....
Ans. How true is that a small thought put into action , leads/led to a great achievement. In the beginning of the poem we see how the poet has this feeling that he must have a tree of his own ( "Must have a tree of my own," I said,)...He wanted to be the sole owner of a tree and it was just a simple , innocent passing thought. Yet he planted the seed instead of discarding the idea of having his own plant. He made a humble beginning by sowing the seed. And finally after a few years the cherry tree grew to be a tall tree irrespective of all obstacles it faced to survive and thrive !! And seeing the tall tree , even the poet was extremely happy and praised the tree in the following lines.
"Yes, I ! Praised...." Be was prooud of himself for sowing the seed.
A3. The Cherry tree has inspired...
Ans. The poem describing aspects of Nature are called Nature Poems and cherry tree is one of the finest examples of Nature poem. Some expressions from the poem that bring out the elements of beauty of nature are
a.Dappled green , Blue Blind Sky , Blossons small , pink , fragile quick to fall , finches as they flew and flitted , etc.
A.4 Figures of Speech
1. Climax - Climax is a figure of speech where successive ideas, words , phrases , sentences are arranged in ascending order of importance.
Examples
A. We searched our umbrella , our roof , our mother.
B. He came , he saw , he conquered.
C. Pink , fragile , quick to fall. ( This line is am example of Climax in the poem as the arrangement of words in the line moves from healthy to delicate. )
D. If you think it's bad , it gets worst.
2. Alliteration - A figure of speech where the sound of the intial letter of two or more than two words repeats.
Examples
1. I saw a beautiful blue bird yesterday. ( here the sound of "b" is repeating thrice.)
2. Start where you stand.
3. Made a miracle from green growing pain. ( poem's line on page 67)
4. Goats at the leaves , the grass cutter scythe
3. Antithesis - A figure of speech where contradictory words , ideas , thoughts are used for better poetic effect.
Examples
1. If you have will to live ,
And courage to die.
2. You are rich in money but poor at heart.
3. Came back thinner , rather poor ,
But richer by a cherry tree at my door.
4. Personification - A figure of speech where an inanimate object/thing is given a human quality/qualities.
Example
1. All trees dance during the strom.
2. The moon walks beautifully every night.
3. What a sight to behold when waves dance !!
4. And moon moths and singing crickets and I ( Here crickets are given the human quality of singing )
A.5.i. Cherry tree is a narrative......
Ans.
a.The poem has a beginning.... :
The poem “Cherry tree” is a narrative poem which tells us about the birth and growth of a cherry plant by the poet Ruskin Bond. Just like a story , this poem is carefully divided into three parts that is beginning (sowing of the seed ) , middle ( the plant struggling yet putting up a brave front ) and an end ( cherry plant turning into a fruit bearing tree ).
b. Different places are mentioned :
The poem shifts to different places at different times. The poem begins with poet’s garden/backyard where he sowed the seed. Thereafter, the poet mentions his visit to kashmir and his return back home and how at his door he finds tall cherry tree and is elated to see the tree. In the end the poet takes us back to his garden/backyard where cherry stands tall and he is lying under it on grass appreciating nature.
c. Characters are refered to :
Cherry tree is the lead/main character of the poem as we see different phases of its life. The poet himself too is one of the characters , in the poem as he is completely involved in the process of seeing the tree grow ( sometimes narrating and sometimes actively taking part in it.) Apart from these two characters , there are characters like goats , grass cutter , bees , crickets too which play small but significant role.
d. Incidents are arranged in sequence :
The poem clearly follows a proper sequence and provides continuity. From sowing the seed in the garden to its life as a baby plant to its strugggle to survive to its agressive growth to get air and light to finally growing into a six feet tall tree which is laden with fruits , the poem presents everything in a perfect flow.
e. There is a dialogue between.... :
No direct conversation among the poet , readers and other characters except in the beginning when the poet talks to readers in a direct tone/speech that “ Must have a tree of my own. I Said“. Rest of the time there is indirect conversation happening between the poet and the readers and readers get becomes active listeners and also between tree and the poet as if the tree is narrating its story to the poet and telling how strong and determined it is.
f. It is a time bound poem :
Indeed it is a time bound poem since the sowed cherry seed grows into a fully grown fruit bearing tree in the span of eights years. Change of seasons is also mentioned as the plant grows , his visit to kasmhir for a season and after his return his joy to see the tall tree.
A5.ii. Compose 8 to 10 lines....( Compose your own poem )
A5.iii. Write an appreciation...
( Please note that it is absolutely okay to write this answer either point wise or in paragraphs...what matters is how nicely you present it and how much of quality your answer/response contains. )
Ans. Appreciation of the poem " The Cherry Tree"
1.About the poem, poet , title : The poem “Cherry Tree” is written by Ruskin Bond who has written hundreds of short stories , essays , novellas and more than 30 books for children. He , at the tender age of seventeen , even received the John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize.He also received the Sahitya Akedemi Award for English writing in India and was awarded the Padmashri in 1999. The poem ‘Cherry Tree’ is all about poet’s ecstasy over a tree which he planted which took eight years to grow. The poet minutely observes the growth of the tree and wonders at the ways of Nature. The title of the poem is so apt as the moment we read it we realize the poem is about trees and their importance in our lives.
2. Theme/Central Idea : The theme of the poem revolves around the importance of trees in our lives and the lessons they teach us. The poem narrates how the poet planted a cherry seed in the grass as he wanted to have his own tree and how the plant grew on its own though nobody cared about it except rain and the sun. The poem further tells us how the little plant faced all problems head on and emerged as victorious by turning itself into a huge six feet tall tree laden with flowers and fruits. When poet returns back from Kashmir , he receives a pleasant surprise as he sees the tall tree and as he lies under it , he feels proud of the fact that he had planted the cherry seed.
3. Poetic Language/style , poetic devices used in the poem : Ruskin Bond has used easy and lucid language throughout the poem and what makes it an interesting read is the fact that the poem is written in a story form and that makes it a narrative poem. The figures of speech like alliteration ( in line "...green growing pain..", personification ( in line "....moon months and singing crickets..."add beauty to the poem and the rhyming words provide much needed rhythm. The poem also has run on lines ( where conversations end in second line ).
4.Special features/novelties/focusing elements : The very special feature of the poem is that it’s a narrative poem with a proper beginning, middle and an end. The poet has stuck to the topic right from the beginning till the end. The poem also makes the readers aware about the fact that if small efforts are nurtured carefully , with determination , can bring us great rewards. This poem is also a fine example of "Nature Poem."
5.Message/values/morals in the poem : The very first message this poem gives is never let go of hope and keep striving hard without giving up as there is always light at the end of each tunnel. The poem also teaches us to have trust on our wings and never let any obstacle ever stop us from achieving what we wish to achieve. Apart from this , the most important message from the poem is to respect trees , plant as many of them as we can , to not cut them and that be patient with plants because once they grow , they give us back the sweetest fruit of all our hardwork.
6.Your opinion about the poem : Being a hard core nature lover , this poem has made a permanent place in my heart. It was interesting to read about how a sapling grows into a tree and also realize how important trees are and impossible it is to survive without them.
A5.iv) Write a summary....
Ans.
The Fearless Cherry Tree
The title “Cherry Tree” is carefully chosen to make the readers understand how important trees are and how the poet is giving due importance to the cherry plant.This poem is a narrative poem that means it is narrated in a story form and has proper beginning, middle and end. The poem describes how the tree came into existence even when nobody cared about it.The poet also recalls how he planted a cherry seed in the grass and instantly forgot about it. But , the little seed , inspite of not being taken care of , came out , struggled, was almost killed but with sheer determination survived. The sun and air helped it to grow and flourish and thrive. One day when the poet came back from Kashmir after spending a season there , he was overjoyed to find a 6 feet tall tree with a berry !! In the closing lines , the poet is proud of himself for planting the cherry seed as he relaxes under it and sees bees , insects, moon moths having great time. To conclude, the poem is written in simple words but very effectively it gives the message that we all must save trees to save ourselves !
A6.i. Homework
A6.ii. Write in 100..........poem symbolises.
Ans. The cherry tree symbolizes courage , struggle , determination , growth , responsibility patience and selflessness. Just like us who face a lot of hurdles in life yet never give up and finally succeed , the cherry plant too doesn’t give up inspite of nobody caring about it and grows , with it’s sheer determination , into a tall beautiful 6 feet tree. Infact the cherry tree inspires us to be more determined and patient and positive. Apart from this , the cherry tree also symbolizes hope and how the beginning of fulfilling our dreams can be slow but if we are hopeful amd determined we do find our ways without giving excuses.
