The Poetry of Earth – Notes for HS Exam, for WBCHSE students, Important Questions and Answers

Get here notes, short questions on “The Poetry of Earth” by John Keats. For the Students of WBCHSE. Prepare yourself and grab good results. Descriptive type questions and answers from “The Poetry of Earth”.

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MCQ from “The Proposal” – Click here.

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The poetry of Earth:

By John Keats.

1. Title of the poem.

Ans:

The title of the poem was originally “On the Grasshopper and Cricket”. In the very first line of “The Poetry of Earth”, the poet says ‘The poetry of earth is never dead.’ The music of earth never stops. In the hot summer when all the birds become exhausted, the Grasshopper comes forward and carries on the music of the earth. He runs from hedge to hedge in a joyous mood. In winter the earth’s music still continues. This time comes the Cricket. He sings a song as warm as that of the Grasshopper. In this way, the music of the earth continues without any break. So, the title of the poem is appealing and appropriate.

2. Show how in the poem the tone of the octave changes from the sestet.

Ans:

The poem “The Poetry of Earth” celebrates the music of the earth. In summer when all birds are tired and take shelter in the cooling trees, the Grasshopper comes out and sings running from hedge to hedge. He rejoices in summer. After the completion of his task, he takes rest beneath some pleasant weed.

In the sestet, the frost has wrought a silence. The song of the Cricket pierces silent frost. It creates a hoarse tone. When the silent frost represents hibernation of most creatures, Nature is still alive and vibrant in the song of the Cricket.

3. Identify the voices of poetry in the poem. How does Keats establish continuity through these voices?

Ans:

The Grasshopper’s chirp, the Cricket’s shrill song are the voices of poetry in the poem “Poetry of Earth”.

Here a great continuity is maintained by connecting up the song of the Grasshopper in summer with the song of the Cricket in winter. So, the music of Nature is never silent. In scorching heat when all the birds become exhausted and take rest in shadowy trees, Grasshopper runs singing from hedge to hedge. He takes lead in summer enjoyment. When he is tired, he takes rest beneath some pleasant weed. On a quiet winter evening,  from behind the stove, there is the chirping of the Cricket. To one who is sitting over the fire, half asleep,  It seems to be the continuation of the Grasshopper’s song.

MCQ from “The Proposal” – Click here.

4. “He takes the lead/In summer luxury. “- Who is ‘he’? When does he take the lead? How does he take the lead? What is ‘Summer luxury’?

Ans:

Here ‘he’ is the Grasshopper. 

In the scorching heat of summer when all birds are tired and take shelter in the cooling trees, the Grasshopper takes the lead. It starts singing.

The grasshopper takes the lead by continuing the songs of nature. He moves from hedge to hedge about the new-mown mead and continues singing. His song heightens the ‘summer luxury’. Thus he takes the lead.

Summer is beautiful. But sometimes it becomes intolerable due to scorching heat. Birds take rest in the cooling sun. But surprisingly, Grasshopper fit it pleasant and delightful. It flies around and sings. He drinks the golden sunlight out of extreme delight. He sings song ceaselessly. So, summer is luxurious to Grasshopper.

5. “He has never done/With his delights.” – Who is ‘he’? What are the ‘delights’? Why has he never done with his delights?

Ans:

Here ‘he’ is the Grasshopper. 

Out of joy the Grasshopper runs about singing in the scorching heat of the sun. It runs from hedge to hedge. It moves about the newly – mown mead. Thus he enjoys delights. Playing, flying, singing, resting are the delights.

6. “Poetry of earth is never dead.” – From where is the quoted line taken? Name the poet of the poem. What is the meaning of “the poetry of earth”? Why is the ‘poetry of earth’ never dead?  1+1+2+2 =6

Ans:

The above-quoted line has been taken from the sonnet “The Poetry of Earth”, a beautiful poetic art.

The name of the poet is John Keats.

Here ‘poetry of earth’ is the everlasting music or poetry of Nature. This music of Nature is carried on by the insects like grasshopper, cricket etc. Nature’s music knows no break. It goes on continually.

It is never dead because the Grasshopper and the Cricket take the responsibility. They carry on the music of nature. The Grasshopper carries on the music in summer and the Cricket in winter. Thus they celebrate the music through the cycle of seasons.

7. “And seems to one in drowsiness in half lost
The grasshopper among some grassy hills” – Who is ‘one’ referred to here? What seems to him the grasshopper’s song? what is the illusion here? Why does ‘one’ have such illusion?

Ans:

Here in the above-quoted lines from “The Poetry of Earth”, ‘one’ refers to a person who, sitting by the hearth, is enjoying the song of the cricket in December.

The shrill sound of the cricket from near the fireplace seems to him to be the grasshopper’s song.

Here in the above-quoted lines from “The Poetry of Earth”, ‘one’ refers to a person who, by sitting beside the hearth, is enjoying the song of the cricket.

The man half-lost in drowsiness is enjoying the warmth of the hearth in a wintry evening. He is in a dreamy condition. In such a situation, the song of the cricket appears to him like that of the grasshopper.

8. Write a substance of the poem The Poetry of Earth.

Ans:

The poetry of earth never comes to an end. During hot summer noon, being exhausted (ক্লান্ত হয়ে), all the birds take rest and stop singing. At that time the grasshopper comes forward and takes over the responsibility. The Grasshopper springs from hedge to hedge about the new-mown meadow. lt makes the chirping sound and continues the music of the earth. The grasshopper enjoys the summer luxury and takes shelter under some pleasant wild plants.

In the lonely wintry evening, all on earth keep indoors. An atmosphere of silence prevails all around. Even then the poetry of earth continues without any stop. Now, the Cricket comes and sings. It finds the warmth of the stove. From the stove comes out the shrill song of the cricket. With increasing warmth, it sings louder and louder. Thus the grasshoppers and crickets continue their symphony to the earth.

9. “He rests at ease……” Where does the line occur? Who is ‘he’ referred to here? Where does he take rest? How does he enliven nature?

Ans:

The above-quoted line occurs in the poem “The Poetry of Earth” by John Keats.

Here ‘he’ refers to the grasshopper.

Here in this poem “The Poetry of Earth” by John Keats, the grasshopper takes rest beneath some pleasant weed.

The grasshopper plays a great role to enliven nature in the scorching heat of summer. When all birds are exhausted due to hot summer, The grasshopper moves about from hedge to hedge and chirps merrily. He takes the lead in summer luxury. In this way, the grasshopper enlivens nature with his continual chirping.

10. Give the roles of the Grasshopper and the Cricket in continuing nature’s music through seasons in the poem “The poetry of Earth”.

Ans: In the poem “The Poetry of Earth ” by John Keats, the two main figures – the Grasshopper and the Cricket – take the major responsibility to continue nature’s music through the cycle of seasons. Both the grasshopper and the cricket are the representatives of life and joy of nature. When the birds are exhausted due to the scorching sun, they cease singing and take shelter in the cooling trees. Yet the music of earth never ceases. At that very moment, the Grasshopper takes the responsibility to continue nature’s music in ‘summer luxury’ in summer. When the Grasshopper takes shelter beneath some pleasant weed after making excessive fun, the Cricket comes out to break the silence of winter evening by singing. To a man, who is half-lost in drowsiness, The song of the Grasshopper seems to be the song of the Cricket. Thus, the Grasshopper and the Cricket continue nature’s music through the cycle of seasons.

11.”He takes the lead…..” Who takes the lead? When does he take the lead? Why does he take the lead? What does he do? (1+1+2+2) = 6

Ans: In the poem “The Poetry of Earth” by John Keats, the grasshopper takes the lead.

The grasshopper takes the lead in the season of Summer in this poem.

The grasshopper takes the lead in the season of summer, because, all the birds are faint in the hot sun of summer. And they take rest in the cooling trees. But the music of summer can never stop. The grasshopper comes forward to carry on the earth’s music.

The grasshopper runs from hedge to hedge across the newly-cut mead. It has its free brisk movement. The delight of the grasshopper is not decreased. The grasshopper keeps the earth’s poetry alive and intact.

12. “A voice will run…” – Whose ‘voice’ is referred to here? When will the voice run? What does the poet say about the ‘voice’? (1+1+1+3)

Ans: Here in the above-mentioned line, the ‘voice’ of the Grasshopper is referred to.

The ‘voice’ will run in hot summer.

The ‘voice’ will run from hedge to hedge across the newly-cut meadows.

In the poem ‘The poetry of Earth’, John Keats says that the Grasshopper takes the lead in hot summer. The Grasshopper makes summer musical (সুরেলা). He enjoys endless (অসীম) rapture (আনন্দ) in continuous singing. When the birds are faint in the hot sun of summer, the Grasshopper finds ample (প্রচুর) luxury in summer. The movement of the Grasshopper makes summer very charming.

13. “When the Frost has wrought a silence.” – Where from is the line taken? Who is the poet? What does the poet imply here? How is the silence removed?

Ans:

The above-quoted line is taken from the sonnet “The Poetry of Earth” by John Keats.

John Keats, the famous worshipper of nature, is the poet here.

Through this line the poet wants to imply the silence and loneliness of winter. In the winter evening, frost covers the entire atmosphere. People remain at home. No sound prevails there. It seems that the frost depends the silence.

The silence of winter is removed by the shrill sound of the Cricket’s song. The silent winter becomes musical with the song of the Cricket. Thus, the cold winter becomes warmed and animated (প্রাণময়).

14. What type of poem is “The Poetry of Earth”? Describe the structure or the form of the poem.

Ans:

The poem “The Poetry of Earth” by John Keats is a regular Petrarchan Sonnet.

“The Poetry of Earth” is a good lyrical sonnet. In this poem, John Keats follows the structure of the sonnet. He imports the conventional Petrarchan model. It has two parts – octave and sestet. In the octave, the argument is put forward. In the sestet, the argument is explained. Both the parts clarify the logic. The rhyme scheme of the sonnet is abba abba cde cde. The well-built structure is in perfect assonance with the spirit of the poem.

15. “That is the Grasshopper’…..” – What is referred to by ‘that’? What does the poet want to say? Why does the poet use capital letter in Grasshopper?

Ans: Here in the poem “The Poetry of Earth”, ‘that’ refers to the song of the Grasshopper.

Here the poet wants to say that all the song birds are exhausted with the scorching heat of sun in summer. They take shelter in the cool shade of the trees stopping singing. In such condition, the void is filled up by the Grasshopper. The grasshopper comes out and takes the lead luxuriating in the gaiety and ambience of Summer. Hi chirps merely from hedge to hedge.

The poet John Keats uses capital letter in the Grasshopper because he has parsonified it. He takes the Grasshopper for the poet of Summer.

16. Why does the poet feel that the poetry of earth is never dead? (H.S. Exam – 2016)

Ans: To the poet John Keats, there is no closure to poetry in the different expressions of earthly nature. According to him, the meanest notes of nature compose the harmonious song of the earth. In the present poem, Keats recognizes two singing voices in two different seasons. In hot summer, the Grasshopper takes the lead in making the earth musical. In winter, the Cricket warms the surroundings with his sweet shrill songs. So, Keats asserts that the music of earth is perpetual. The poet believes that the earth’s music is deathless amidst the change and variety of nature.

Short Questions:

1. Who wrote the poem “Poetry of Earth”?

Ans: John Keats, the famous romantic poet, wrote this poem.

2.What type of poem is “The Poetry of Earth”?

Ans: “The Poetry of Earth” is a Petrarchan sonnet.

3.Give the rhyme scheme of this sonnet.

Ans: The rhyme scheme is abba abba cde cde.

The phrase ‘new-mown mead’ refers to the grass of land which has been trimmed newly.

4. ‘The poetry of earth is never dead ‘- What does ‘poetry’ stand for?

Ans,: Here the ‘poetry’ stands for music or song of life.

HS English Suggestion 2023

5. Who takes the lead in summer luxury? (2015)

The Grasshopper takes the lead in summer luxury.

6. When has the frost wrought a silence?

Ans: On a lonely winter evening the frost has wrought a silence.

7. What does the Cricket’s shrill voice seem to one in drowsiness?

Ans: The Cricket’s shrill voice seems to the song of the Grasshopper to one in drowsiness.

8. Where was the Grasshopper seen in summer? (2017)

Ans: The Grasshopper was seen in the bushes, under the weeds, in the grassy hills in summer. 

MCQ from “The Proposal” – Click here.

9. What might one hear ona lone cold silent winter evening?

Ans: On a lone cold silent winter evening one might hear the shrill song of the Cricket near the stove. 

10. ‘…a voice will run.’ – Whose voice refers to here?

Ans: Here the voice refers to that of the Grasshopper.  


11. Mention the seasons in “The Poetry of Earth”?

Ans:The seasons portrayed in “The Poetry of Earth” are summer and winter.


12. Where do all the birds take rest in hot summer?

Ans : All the birds take rest in cooling trees. 


13. Where does the Grasshopper take rest?

Ans: The Grasshopper takes rest beneath some pleasant weed.

HS English Suggestion 2023

14. Who carries the music of Nature in winter?

Ans: Cricket carries the music Nature in winter.

15. From where does the Cricket shrill on a lone winter evening?

Ans: On a lone winter evening the Cricket makes a shrill sound from the fireplace. 

16. What does Keats celebrates in the poem?

Ans: The poet Keats celebrates the music of earth in this poem. 

17. What type of poem is ‘The Poetry of Earth”?

Ans: “The Poetry of Earth” is a descriptive poem.

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3 thoughts on “The Poetry of Earth – Notes for HS Exam, for WBCHSE students, Important Questions and Answers

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