Answer the following questions from the poems (any five). (a) Do you think that the speaker of the poem "O Me! O Life!" has got any answer to his questions? Explain in brief. (b) "Reading a book is a magical experience". Explain in the light of the poem "Books". (c) "I had two mothers". Explain how the speaker had two mothers. (d) What is the setting of the poem "The Sands of Dee"? (e) What is the tone of the poem "The Sands of Dee"? (f) Which cities are mentioned in the poem "Time, You Old Gipsy Man"? What do these cities signify? (g) What ideas can you draw from the poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening"? (h) What is the significance of the title "Solitude"?

উত্তর: Answering questions from poems (a) Yes, the speaker finds an answer to his questions. He realizes that life is valuable because we exist and each person can add their own contribution or 'verse" to the world. (b) Really, reading a book is a magical experience. At the time of reading a book, it makes us oblivious of our surroundings and transports us magically to wonderful worlds and ages where we get acquainted with interesting people and exciting events. (c) The speaker had two mothers. The first mother was the biological mother who gave birth to and reared her most affectionately and enabled her to start her career while the second mother was the same biological mother who grew old, helpless and dependent on her. Thus by the two mothers, the speaker means two different states of life of the same mother. (d) The setting of the poem "The Sands of Dee" is treacherous estuary of the river Dee, rough weather, rising tide and misty atmosphere. (e) The tone of the poem "The Sands of Dee" is melancholy, tragic, ominous and wistful. (f) The cities mentioned in the poem "Time. You Old Gipsy Man," are Babylon, Rome and implicitly London. Babylon signifies ancient civilizations, Rome also signifies another historic past civilization and power. Finally, St. Paul's dome indicating London signifies its existing civilization. (g) The ideas I draw from the poem "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" are the conflict between desire and duty, and the poet's desire to fulfil his commitments winning over his desire to yield to the appeal of the eternal sleep namely death. (h) The significance of the title "Solitude" lies in the poem's ultimate message that humans are basically alone or solitary. The poem shows that people come to us and remain beside us in times of our peace and happiness, but they leave us in times of our sadness, thus highlighting our inevitable loneliness or solitude.

SSC ইংরেজি ১ম পত্র CQ — Prosthuti প্রশ্নব্যাংক