ICSE Class 10 English Solutions Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening [Poem]
Passage 1
Question 1.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
Who is referred to as ‘his’ in the above extract? What does the speaker say about the person he refers to as ‘his’?
Answer:
The owner of the woods is referred to as ‘his’ in the extract. The speaker says that he knows the person who owns the woods and further informs us that the person lives in the village.
Question 2.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
Where was the speaker going? What stopped him on his way?
Answer:
The speaker was going back home with his horse and he had to pass through the woods. He found the woods beautifully queer and he was enchanted by the frozen lake in the woods. The snow falling on a cold winter night and gradually filling up the woods amazed and stopped the speaker in his tracks.
Question 3.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
What happens while the speaker stops by?
Answer:
While the speaker stops by, the snow continues to fall and cover the earth like a blanket.
Question 4.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
What is the meaning of word ‘woods’?
Answer:
An area of land smaller than a forest covered with thick growth of trees is called woods.
Passage 2
Question 1.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
Identify and explain the figure of speech used in the first line of the poem.
Answer:
The figure of speech in the first line of the poem is anthropomorphism, the attribution of human characteristics or behaviour to a god, animal, or object. The poet gives the horse a human quality of being capable of thinking.
Question 2.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
What according to the speaker will surprise his horse?
Answer:
According to the speaker, his horse will think it queer or strange to stop in the woods as it is a place with no house nearby. In addition, it is the coldest evening of the year as even the lake is frozen.
Question 3.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
Explain the figurative contrast between the farmhouse and the frozen lake.
Answer:
The farmhouse represents warmth and homeliness. In contrast to this, the woods are cold and lonely. Also, the valley and farmhouse are terms representing habitation and community life. They can be seen as the first phase of a person’s life.
Question 4.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
Explain the last two lines of the extract.
Answer:
The extract is from the point of view of the horse. The horse is alarmed at being stopped in the middle of the journey. He cannot see any dwelling nearby. Also the darkness of the night scares him. The horses’ reaction is in contrast to that of the travellers who finds the place oddly calming and beautiful.
Passage 3
Question 1.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
What role does the horse play in the poem?
Answer:
The horse is the voice of reason in the poem. It can also be seen as a string which binds the speaker’s inner self to his earthly self which is dominated by reason.
Question 2.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
What are the sounds that the poet hears in the forest? What kind of sounds are they?
Answer:
Apart from the sound of his horse’s harness bell, the poet hears the sound of the sweeping wind and falling snow flakes. The fact that the speaker mentions hearing the sound of the snow fall indicates how quiet the forest is on that snowy day. The sounds heard by the speaker are sounds of nature.
Question 3.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
What effect does the silence in the woods have on the speaker?
Answer:
The silence in the woods creates a serene ambiance which enchants the speaker and stops him from moving ahead to his destination.
Question 4.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
What is the rhyme scheme of the given extract?
Answer:
The rhyme scheme of the poem is A-A-B-A.
Passage 4
Question 1.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
Identify and explain the contrast in the first line of the extract.
Answer:
The speaker uses contrasting imagery to describe the woods. He calls them lovely, dark and deep all at the same time. The words ‘dark’ and ‘deep’ connote an alarmingly mysterious characteristic while the word ‘lovely’ makes the woods an attractive location. The three words give the woods a mystical character. Though the darkness serves as a warning to the uncertainties lying within the forest, he is also mesmerised by its serene beauty.
Question 2.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
What stops the speaker from moving on?
Answer:
The calm and soothing beauty of the deserted woods stops the speaker from moving on.
Question 3.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
What does the line ‘But I have promises to keep’ symbolise?
Answer:
The line ‘but I have promises to keep’ indicates that the speaker is bound by his earthly responsibilities and can therefore not embrace the celestial beauty of the forest though he dearly wishes to stay back in the woods.
Question 4.
Read the extract and answer the questions that follow:
The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
What is the significance of the last two lines of the poem?
Answer:
The last two lines of the poem reinforce the point that the speaker cannot shrug off his responsibilities despite being awed by the beauty of the forest. The lines remind the speaker of his duties and urge him to move ahead in the direction of his village where his family must be waiting for him.