CBSE Class 10 English The Ball Poem Assignment Set 03

Short Answer Type Questions
 

Question. How is the boy learning ‘the epistemology of loss” from the loss of his ball ?
Answer: The poet feels that the boy is learning to understand what it means to lose something. This is what most people learn by losing something, that gain and loss are the two sides of the same coin. They must learn to make a determined effort to cope with their losses on their own.

Question. How did the boy react after his ball fell into the water of the harbour?
Answer: The falling of the ball in the water was quite sudden. Actually, it was an unexpected loss. The boy was completely shaken but couldn’t even move a step. He stood there fixed to the ground like a statue. He continued staring at the point where his ball fell into the harbour. It seemed as if he was thinking of his childhood days which had disappeared forever like the lost ball.

Question. Does the lost ball stand for the metaphor of the boy’s lost childhood? How?
Answer: The boy had lost his ball. It had fallen down into the harbour. Thus, it will not be found back again. However, through the metaphor of the lost ball, the poet wants to highlight a bigger loss. It is the loss of his childhood. Like the lost ball, the childhood days which he cherishes even now, have been lost forever. This makes the loss inconsolable.

Question. Why did the poet not console the boy ?
Answer: The poet did not console the boy for two reasons-One, the boy was too shocked and grief-stricken to listen to any sense. Second, the poet also observed that the boy was trying to stand up or bear the loss on his own through self-understanding, which is much more reflective and lasting. The poet’s or anybody else’s consoling would not be that effective.

Question. Express your views on the title of the poem, ‘The Ball Poem’.
Answer: When one reads the title ‘The Ball Poem’, one assumes that the poem may be a light-hearted one, perhaps about the joys of childhood. But on the contrary, it talks about how we must not feel disheartened, dejected and desperate about some loss in life but try to stand up and bear the loss through self-understanding.

Question. “Money is external”. What does the poet mean by this expression taken from ‘The Ball Poem’?
Answer: By this expression the poet intends to make us realize the mere material value of money which in no way helps us to understand the essential worth of a commodity. In this world of possessions, the value of money is only to buy things and this does not make us understand the true value of things.

Question. “And no one buys a ball back. Money is external”. What does the poet imply by this expression?
Answer: Through this expression the poet implies that a lost ball cannot be bought back even with money. Money can only be used to buy valuable things but not to restore or compensate for a thing that is lost.

Question. ‘He is learning, well behind his desperate eyes’. What is the boy learning from the loss of the ball?
Answer: The boy is learning the epistemology of loss from the loss of the ball. He is understanding what it means to lose something he greatly admires.

Question. No use to say ‘O there are other balls’: What do the words in inverted commas mean? Why does the poet think that it is useless to give this suggestion to the boy?
Answer: The words in inverted commas try to suggest that the loss of the ball is not that significant. The poet thinks that it is useless to give this suggestion to the boy as the boy has lost his priceless possession.

Question. ‘An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy’. Who is the boy? What is his state of mind? Why is he in such a state of mind?
Answer: The boy is playing with the ball. He is in the state of grief, sadness and disappointment. His ball has fallen down into the water which can’t be retrieved.

Question. What is the theme of the poem- ‘The Ball Poem’?
Answer: In this world, sometimes we lose things which we love and are deeply attached to. We must not feel dejected and lament the loss. We must face the loss with positivity and anticipation of gains in the future. The boy in the poem who lost the ball he loved, was trying to learn to accept his loss and move ahead in life .

Question. A ball is an easily available, inexpensive thing. Then, why is the boy so sad to lose it?
Answer: No doubt, the ball is an easily available and inexpensive item but the ball the boy has lost is valuable for him. His memories of young days are associated with it for he had been playing with it for a long time. It was not an ordinary but a special ball for him. No other ball could take its place. So, he is sad to lose it.

Question. What does show that the ball was valuable for the boy?
Answer: The ball was valuable for the boy is obvious from the way he reacts after losing it, he was under shock, remained fixed, trembled with grief staring at the place where the ball had fallen. All this shows that he loved the ball and it was valuable for him.

Question. ‘He senses first responsibility’- what responsibility is referred to here?
Answer: The responsibility referred to here is how to stand up or bear the loss through self-understanding and trying to console oneself on his own as the boy who lost his ball was trying to do.
 

Long Answer Type Questions

Question. How did the boy really react on the loss of the ball or was he fearful of something or someone.....? Can our attention be directed towards his family and other people ? Are there any lessons to be learnt?
Answer: (i) The boy was not fearful of anyone, infact he was really upset on the loss of the ball. The ball was valuable for him. He was shocked, remained fixed, trembled with grief staring at the place where the ball had fallen. His family must not have been affected by the loss as a ball is an easily available and inexpensive item.
(ii) The loss of the ball teaches a lesson to us. Money is external in the sense that it can give you only outer happiness or pleasure not inner. Money cannot buy the emotions and heavenly virtues. It cannot be linked with old memories. More-over, self-consolation, realisation or understanding is more effective and lasting than done by an external agency or a person.

Question. Why is it important for everyone to experience loss and stand up after it ?
Answer: It is important for everyone to understand the epistemology of loss. Loss is inevitable. Every human being has to face loss in one form or another. Too much grieving can hinder progress and make a person depressed. It is important to understand the nature of loss and overcome it. One must learn to cope with loss.
All human relations, different stages of life and all memories are prized possessions that can be lost due to one reason or another. It is our responsibility to keep all our precious things carefully. But if lost, we must learn to move on without harming ourselves. A sad mind cannot unfurl its full potential so it is important to understand that life should go on in spite of any kind of loss. The poet does not console the boy, or offer to get him any other ball. Because, the one who has lost some needs to stand up, learn to face reality, and cope with the loss and should not keep grieving.

Question. How is the lost ball, the metaphor of the lost childhood of the boy ? Why doesn’t the poet want to ‘intrude on’ the boy by offering him money to buy another ball ?
Answer: Perhaps the boy has a lot of love for the ball and has been keeping it for a long time. He must have developed a lot of attachment and love with the ball. Suddenly, while he is playing, the ball bounces down the street. And after a few bounces, it falls down into the harbour. Thus, it is lost forever. The boy stands there shocked and fixed to the ground. He continuously goes on staring at the spot where his ball fell down into the water. Outwardly, the loss seems to be quite small. The boy seems to be making a big fuss over a small loss. Many boys have lost such balls and will lose so in future as well as. A new ball can be easily bought in a dime. But the metaphor of the lost ball is beautifully linked to the loss of sweet childhood. No amount of money can buy the ball back that has been lost forever. Similarly, no worldly wealth can buy back the lost childhood. The poet doesn’t want to sermonise on this issue. The boy himself has to learn epistemology or the nature of the loss. He has to move ahead in life forgetting all the losses he has suffered in the past.

Question. What is the epistemology of loss in this world of possessions ? How has the child learned to stand up in life ?
Answer: Gain and loss are the two sides of the same coin. Getting, spending and losing things forms a natural cycle of life. The boy is inconsolable at the loss of his ball. Actually, it is not the ordinary ball but his long association and attachment with it that makes the loss so unbearable. It is like the good sweet days of childhood that the boy cherishes so much but are lost and gone forever. They will never come back again. So, what is the remedy? He can bear this loss by understanding the epistemology or nature of the loss. In this world of material wealth and possessions, it seems that money can buy anything. However, it is a false conception. Money has its own limitations. Its nature is external. It cannot compensate for the losses that a person suffers emotionally or internally. No wealth can buy back the ball that has been lost forever. Similarly, no wealth can buy back the lost childhood. The child will have to move ahead and stand up in life. He has to stop weeping over his past losses and start living life as it should be lived.
 

Extract Based Questions

1. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :
An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went. I would not intrude on him; ...
 

Question. In the line, “ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy”, what does the following tell us?
(a) “ultimate” - This tells us _____
(b) “fixes” – This tells us _____
Answer: (a) that the grief experienced by the boy is profound ; (b) that the grief becomes a central and unshakeable part of the boy’s emotional state.

Question. Complete the following with a correct option.
The use of “rigid” and “trembling” in the same line creates a powerful contrast between _____.
(a) unchangeable circumstances and visible sobbing
(b) defence mechanism and submission to a situation
(c) emotional numbness and physical quivering
(d) strong beliefs and unexpected reality
Answer: (c) emotional numbness and physical quivering

Question. State why the following is FALSE.
The line “All his young days into the harbour where/His ball went” refers to losing the ball as just a material loss.
Answer: The given claim is False because the loss of the ball signifies a moment of transition, a loss of innocence, and a realisation of the complexities of life which is far more than just a material loss.

Question. Fill the blank with an appropriate phrase from those given in the brackets.
The speaker chooses not to intrude on the boy. The decision of not to intrude, reflects a sensitivity to the boy’s emotional state and a respect for the _____ of the grieving process. (universal occurrence/passing over/personal nature)
Answer: personal nature

2. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow :
Merrily over — there it is in the water!
No use to say ‘O there are other balls,’
An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went. I would not intrude on him;
A dime, another ball, is worthless. Now
He senses first responsibility
In a world of possessions. People will take
Balls, balls will be lost always, little boy.
And no one buys a ball back. Money is external.
 

Question. Complete the conversation with what the boy would most likely say. Answer in one sentence.
John: Oh don’t worry, there are plenty of other balls to play with.
Boy : _____.
Answer: No, there is none like that ball.

Question. Which line first indicates that the ball is a metaphor for something else?
(a) Merrily over — there it is in the water!
(b) An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
(c) All his young days into the harbour where
(d) I would not intrude on him;
Answer: (c) All his young days into the harbour where

Question. Which literary device does the speaker use to describe the boy’s sorrow? Why does the speaker use this device? Answer in one sentence.
Answer: The speaker uses visual imagery to describe the boy’s sorrow because it creates a clear picture of the depth of the boy’s grief. The lines ‘An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy. As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down’ paints a visual picture of the boy’s grief and sorrow

Question. Based on the extract, what makes a possession valuable? Answer in about 40 words.
Answer: The line ‘And no one buys a ball back. Money is external’ indicates that the value of a possession is not determined by its cost or monetary value. Instead, the value of a possession is determined by the emotional attachment towards it, as seen in the way the boy values his ball.

3. Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follows
What is the boy now, who has lost his ball,
What, what is he to do? I saw it go
Merrily bouncing, down the street, and then
Merrily over-there it is in the water!
 

Question. In what way does the language used in this poem challenge traditional ideas of what poetry should be?
Answer: The poem is written in free verse with ample use of enjambment. These features combine to show a very unusual and unconventional style of writing poetry.

Question. What is the significance of the use of no punctuation after the words ‘What is the boy now, who has lost his ball,’ and the use of a dash in ‘Meetly over-there it is in the water!’ in the poem and how does this contribute to the overall mood and tone of the poem? Answer in about 40 words.
Answer: The unusual use of punctuation makes the loss of the boy more final and transformational. It suggests that the boy is nothing now that his ball is gone. A dash after ‘Merrily over’ helps draw attention to a specific moment in the poem for a dramatic pause or a suspenseful moment. The ball has gone for good.

Question. Complete the sentence with the appropriate option.
The poet seems to have indicated the merry bouncing of the ball to _____.
(a) create a sense of rhythm in these lines.
(b) support the happiness of the experience of playing.
(c) contrast with the dejected feeling of the boy.
(d) indicate the cheerful mood of the boy.
Answer: (c) contrast with the dejected feeling of the boy.

Question. Identify the use and purpose of repetitive sounds used in the given lines of the poem.
Answer: The poet repeatedly uses ‘what’ to address the absent audience. He uses assonance by repeating the vowel ‘o’ in “now, who has lost his ball” ‘bouncing’, ‘over.’ He has repeated the word ‘what’ in lines 1 and 2 and ‘merrily’ in lines 3 and 4 for emphasis and rhythmic effect.