Somebody's Mother

 

Poem Appreciation

1. On the basis of your understanding of the poem choose the best option for the answer.

a. Where is the setting of the poem?

i. in an old age home      ii. in the poet’s neighbourhood iii. outside the poet’s school        iv. on the busy street

b. What was the woman’s fear?

i. her old age      ii. the traffic        iii. the winter     iv. all of the above

2. Why was it difficult for the woman to cross the road?

The woman was old, tired. It is cold and the road was slippery. She was afraid that the crowd, the horses, or the carriages might harm her.

3. Who helped the old lady?

An unknown schoolboy, who was the gayest of all the boys helped the old lady.

4. What was his reason for helping her?

The old lady was somebody’s mother. He hoped that someday, his mother would be helped by an unknown person in case he is far away from home and not in a position to help her himself.

5. What was the old woman’s reaction to being helped?

The old woman was very happy and grateful to being helped. That night prayed to God to look after the good boy, somebody’s son, who had helped her.

6. Pick a simile from this poem and explain it?

Writers use a simile to compare two things with words like ‘as’ and ‘like’. ‘Came the boys like a flock of sheep’ is the simile in this poem. Here the poet compares a group of boys who are coming out of their school to a flock of sheep.