Maharashtra Board Class 7 English Unit 3 Chapter 3.4 The Brook Poem Solutions

Question 1. Read the poem aloud with proper pace and rhythm.
Answer: N/A (This is an activity, not a question with a textual answer).
In simple words: This activity encourages you to read the poem with feeling and appropriate speed to appreciate its musicality and flow.

🎯 Exam Tip: While not directly scored, practicing reading aloud helps in understanding the poem's rhythm and theme, which can be useful for descriptive questions.

Question 2. Find the meaning of the following words.
Answer:
1. ridges: Long narrow hill to or range (mountain bridges).
2. brimming: full of the margin/over followed. Full of water up to the to pledge.
3. eddying: spiral movement of water.
4. babble: meaningless talking/sound made when ones talk loudly
5. fallow: wasteland/left land
6. trout: A big freshwater fish
7. netted: Form of a net.
In simple words: Understanding these words helps you grasp the detailed imagery and actions described in the poem about the brook.

🎯 Exam Tip: Knowing vocabulary is crucial for comprehension and can help you answer questions requiring definitions or contextual understanding.

3. Answer The Following.

Question 1. Who is the speaker in this poem?
Answer: The brook is the speaker in this poem.
In simple words: The poem is narrated by the brook itself, giving us a first-person perspective of its journey.

🎯 Exam Tip: Identifying the narrator helps in understanding the poem's perspective and the emotions conveyed.

Question 2. Which lines are repeated in the poem? What do they mean?
Answer: The lines 'For men may come and men may go, But I go on forever' are repeated. They mean that nature is immortal whereas we are mortal. Men are born and will die but nature is eternal.
In simple words: The repeated lines highlight the contrast between the temporary nature of human life and the eternal, continuous flow of nature, represented by the brook.

🎯 Exam Tip: Identifying repeated lines (refrains) and understanding their significance is key to analyzing a poem's central theme and message.

Question 3. Where does the brook join the river?
Answer: The brook joins the river near Philip's farm.
In simple words: The brook's journey ends by merging with the main river at a specific location near a farm.

🎯 Exam Tip: Specific details like locations are easy marks if remembered correctly, demonstrating close reading of the text.

Question 4. Mention the various places that the brook flows past.
Answer: The brook flows past the dwellings of coot and hern, the ferns, a town, villages, valleys, hills, ridges, several bridges and Philip's farm.
In simple words: The brook travels through a diverse landscape, including bird habitats, natural formations, and human settlements.

🎯 Exam Tip: Listing geographical features or landmarks mentioned in the poem helps illustrate the brook's extensive journey and its interaction with the environment.

Question 5. Often the brook speaks of itself as if it is human. For example, 'I bicker down a valley'. Find two other examples of the human activities of the brook.
Answer:
1. I slip, I slide, I gloom, I glance.
2. I murmur under moon and stars.
In simple words: The poem uses personification, giving the brook human-like actions such as slipping, sliding, feeling gloomy, glancing, and murmuring.

🎯 Exam Tip: Identifying personification is important for understanding poetic devices and how they enrich the description of inanimate objects.

Question 4. Spot and write any three alliterative phrases or sentences from the poem.
Answer: N/A (This is a general instruction, answered by the specific question below).

🎯 Exam Tip: This type of instruction prepares you for detailed analysis of poetic language.

Question 1. Spot and write any three alliterative phrases or sentences from the poem. (Alliterative phrases/sentences are those in which the same sound is repeated.)
Answer:
1. I slip, I slide, I gloom, I glance. Sound of 's' and 'g' is repeated.
2. I bubble into eddying bays. I babble on the pebble. Sound of 'b' is repeated.
3. By many a field and fallow. Sound of 'f' is repeated.
In simple words: Alliteration is a poetic technique where words close together start with the same sound, creating a musical effect, as seen in the examples provided.

🎯 Exam Tip: Recognizing alliteration shows your understanding of poetic devices and how they contribute to the poem's sound and impact.

Question 5. List the prepositions you find in this poem.
Answer: N/A (This is a general instruction, answered by the specific question below).

🎯 Exam Tip: This instruction helps you focus on grammar and parts of speech within the text.

Question 5. List the prepositions you find in this poem.
Answer: from, among, to, in, with, etc.
In simple words: Prepositions are words that show the relationship between a noun or pronoun and other words in a sentence, often indicating location or direction within the poem.

🎯 Exam Tip: Identifying prepositions demonstrates your grasp of English grammar, which is foundational for sentence structure and meaning.

Question 6. List the phrases which have the expression 'many a...'.
Answer: N/A (This is a general instruction, answered by the specific question below).

🎯 Exam Tip: This instruction directs you to find specific linguistic patterns in the poem.

Question 6. List the phrases which have the expression 'many a...'.
Answer: many a curve, many a fairy foreland, many a silvery water break.
In simple words: The phrase 'many a' is used to emphasize a large number of individual items or instances, creating vivid imagery of the brook's journey.

🎯 Exam Tip: Recognizing specific repetitive phrases shows attention to detail in the poem's language and structure.

Question 7. The poet uses words to create pictures or 'images' in the reader's mind.
Answer: N/A (This is a general statement, answered by the specific question below).

🎯 Exam Tip: Understanding how poets create imagery is crucial for literary analysis and appreciating the poem's descriptive power.

Question 7. The poet uses words to create pictures or 'images' in the reader's mind. For example, 'And sparkle out among the fern'. Write down other lines that create images or pictures in your mind. (Any 3)
Answer:
1. By twenty thorpes, a little town An half a hundred bridges.
2. By thirty hills I hurry down, or slip between the ridges.
3. I make the netted sunbeam dance Against my sandy shallows.
In simple words: The poet uses descriptive language to paint mental pictures, such as the brook flowing past numerous villages, hills, and the sunlight creating a 'dance' on the water.

🎯 Exam Tip: Citing specific lines that evoke visual imagery demonstrates your ability to identify and appreciate the poet's use of figurative language.

Question 8. Write a short autobiography of a brook.
Answer: N/A (This is a general instruction, answered by the specific question below).

🎯 Exam Tip: This instruction encourages creative writing and applying the poem's themes to a new narrative form.

Question 8. Write a short autobiography of a brook. (20 to 30 lines)
Answer:
Autobiography of a Brook
I took origin among the mountains and glaciers in the lap of a slopy snowy terrain as a bubbly ever youthful brook. Many others joined me making me look bigger. I express my happiness by dancing and jumping as I flow down the valley. I am ever so glad to help birds and animals to quench their thirst. The trees in the valley are so grateful to me that they honour me by showering flowers upon me.
As I reach the plains, I slow down. My calm within and outside, inspires many great poets to offer their literary best. I am obstructed by many boulders, but I do not stop. I find my way by flowing around them. By the time I meet the big river, many small rivulets have formed from me. But now, their number is decreasing,.
I hear that the rains are often scanty. If this goes on, I might not exist at all in the future. I have served mankind for as long as I know. I plead with you all to plant more trees and preserve and protect nature for our mutual well being. Help us to survive and continue to serve you.
In simple words: This autobiography describes the brook's life journey from its mountain source, its joyful flow through different landscapes, its interaction with nature and humans, and its plea for environmental protection.

🎯 Exam Tip: Writing an autobiography from the brook's perspective requires imaginative thinking and the ability to integrate themes from the poem into a narrative structure, often testing your descriptive writing skills.

Question 9. Which other things in nature can say.
Answer: N/A (This is a general instruction, answered by the specific question below).

🎯 Exam Tip: This instruction prompts you to think broadly about the poem's universal themes in nature.

Question 9. Which other things in nature can say – 'For men may come and men may go, But I go on forever.'?
Answer: The sun, stars, clouds, moon, wind, space are things in nature that can say the given lines.
In simple words: Many elements of nature, like celestial bodies and atmospheric phenomena, share the brook's timeless existence, contrasting with the transient nature of human life.

🎯 Exam Tip: This question assesses your ability to extrapolate the poem's central theme of eternity in nature to other natural phenomena, demonstrating broader comprehension.

Question 10. Use the internet, your school library or other sources for the following activities.
Answer: N/A (This is a general instruction, answered by the specific question below).

🎯 Exam Tip: This instruction encourages research skills and exploration beyond the textbook.

Question 10. Use the internet, your school library or other sources for the following activities. 1. Try to find other nature poem.
Answer:
Trees
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.
- Joyce Kilmer
In simple words: This answer provides a well-known nature poem, "Trees" by Joyce Kilmer, which celebrates the beauty and divine creation of trees, similar to how "The Brook" celebrates its subject.

🎯 Exam Tip: This activity enhances your appreciation for poetry and your ability to connect themes across different literary works.

Answer In One Sentence.

Question 1. What does the chattering sound of the brook seem like?
Answer: The chattering sound of the brook seems like musical sounds.
In simple words: The noise made by the brook is compared to pleasant, melodious music.

🎯 Exam Tip: Pay attention to sensory descriptions in poems, as they often reveal the mood or character of the subject.

Question 2. Why does the bank fret?
Answer: The bank frets because the brook changes its shape quite often by curving.
In simple words: The brook's constantly changing path causes erosion, making the banks appear agitated or 'fretted'.

🎯 Exam Tip: Understanding words like 'fret' in a poetic context is crucial for interpreting personification and vivid imagery.

Question 3. The brook mentions exact numbers of hills, villages and bridges. What does it mean?
Answer: The brook mentions exact numbers to maintain the rhythm of the poem. It actually means that it flows past several hills, villages and bridges.
In simple words: The specific numbers are used poetically to create a rhythmic flow, implying a multitude of places rather than literal counts.

🎯 Exam Tip: Poets often use numbers or exaggerations (hyperbole) for rhythmic effect or to emphasize quantity, not always for literal accuracy.

Question 4. What do we learn from the brook?
Answer: The brook teaches us to be cheerful and enjoy what we do. It also teaches us that we should never stop when we come across obstacles. With grit and patience, we should overcome these obstacles and achieve our goals.
In simple words: The brook teaches important life lessons: to stay joyful, persevere through challenges, and patiently work towards our objectives.

🎯 Exam Tip: Questions about moral lessons or themes are important for demonstrating deeper understanding and connecting the poem to real-life values.

Reading Skills, Vocabulary And Grammar.

Simple Factual Questions.

Question 1. What do the following do?
Answer:
- blossom - sail
- swallow - skim
- sunbeam - dance
In simple words: This lists actions associated with specific elements mentioned in the poem, such as blossoms sailing, swallows skimming, and sunbeams dancing.

🎯 Exam Tip: Connecting nouns with their corresponding verbs or actions from the poem demonstrates good recall and comprehension of descriptive passages.

Complex Factual Questions.

Question 1. Name the marine beings mentioned in the poem?
Answer: The poet mentions fishes such as trout and grayling and also the swallow bird.
In simple words: The poem refers to specific aquatic life like trout and grayling fish, along with the swallow bird that interacts with the water.

🎯 Exam Tip: Remembering specific fauna mentioned in the poem shows attention to descriptive details and enhances your overall understanding of the brook's ecosystem.

Question 2. Which words of movement does this part of the extract mention?
Answer: The extract mentions many words of movement such as travel, go, slip, slide, flow sail, loiter.
In simple words: The poem uses a variety of verbs to depict the brook's diverse movements, highlighting its dynamic and active nature.

🎯 Exam Tip: Identifying action verbs related to the brook's movement helps in analyzing how the poet conveys its energetic and continuous journey.

Poetic Device.

Question 1. Pick out an example of Antithesis.
Answer: I wind about, and in and out.
In simple words: Antithesis is a figure of speech where contrasting ideas are placed together, like 'in' and 'out', to create a balanced effect.

🎯 Exam Tip: Recognizing antithesis helps in understanding how poets use contrasting concepts to add depth and emphasis to their lines.

Question 2. State the rhyme scheme used in the second last stanza.
Answer: Rhyme scheme - abab.
In simple words: The rhyme scheme 'abab' means that the first and third lines rhyme, and the second and fourth lines rhyme within a stanza.

🎯 Exam Tip: Identifying rhyme schemes is a fundamental skill in poetry analysis, as it reveals the poem's structure and musicality.

Question 3. What according to you is the tone/mood of the poem? Why?
Answer: The mood/tone of the poem is cheerful as it traces the journey of a happy brook right from its origin to its mouth. There is a hint of music in lines that helps us visualize the flow of the brook.
In simple words: The poem has a joyful and lively tone because it describes the brook's happy journey, using musical language to depict its flowing movement.

🎯 Exam Tip: Analyzing the tone and mood of a poem helps you understand the poet's attitude and the emotional impact of the work on the reader.

State And Explain The Figures Of Speech.

Question 1. I come from haunts of coot and hem.
Answer: Alliteration - the sound of 'h' is repeated in 'haunts' and 'hern' in a pleasant manner.
In simple words: The repetition of the 'h' sound in 'haunts' and 'hern' is an example of alliteration, creating a smooth, musical quality.

🎯 Exam Tip: When explaining figures of speech, always identify the device, provide the example, and explain its effect on the line or poem.

Question 2. I make a sudden sally.
Answer: Alliteration - the sound of 's' is repeated in 'sudden' and 'sally' for a better poetic effect.
In simple words: The repeating 's' sound in 'sudden' and 'sally' is alliteration, which gives the line a quick, flowing rhythm.

🎯 Exam Tip: Look for initial consonant sounds repeated in close words to spot alliteration, and then consider how it enhances the imagery or sound of the line.

Question 3. To bicker down a valley.
Answer: Personification - the brook has been given the human quality of 'bickering'.
In simple words: Giving the brook the human action of 'bickering' makes it seem like a person arguing, which is personification.

🎯 Exam Tip: Personification adds liveliness and relatability to inanimate objects, making the poem more engaging.

Question 4. By thirty hills I hurry down.
Answer: Inversion: the prose order has been changed. The correct word order is 'I hurry down by thirty hills'. Alliteration: the sound of 'h' repeated in hills and hurry for poetic effect.
In simple words: This line uses inversion by changing normal word order for poetic emphasis and alliteration with the repeated 'h' sound in 'hills' and 'hurry' for a musical effect.

🎯 Exam Tip: Poetic inversion is used to maintain rhythm or rhyme, or to emphasize certain words, while alliteration contributes to the poem's sound texture.

Question 5. By twenty thorpes, a little town An half a hundred bridges.
Answer: Hyperbole - the statement is exaggerated for a poetic effect.
In simple words: The use of large, specific numbers like 'twenty thorpes' and 'half a hundred bridges' is an exaggeration (hyperbole) to show the vastness of the brook's journey.

🎯 Exam Tip: Hyperbole is a figure of speech used for emphasis or to create a strong impression, not to be taken literally.

Question 6. Till last by Philip's farm I flow
Answer: Alliteration - the sound of 'f is repeated in 'farm' and 'flow' for a better poetic effect and also the word Philip as it has an 'f sound.
In simple words: The repetition of the 'f' sound in 'Philip's', 'farm', and 'flow' is an example of alliteration, creating a smooth, flowing sound.

🎯 Exam Tip: Alliteration often creates a sense of movement or texture in the lines, reinforcing the poem's subject matter.

Question 7. I chatter over stony ways
Answer: Personification - the brook has been given the human quality of 'chattering'.
In simple words: The brook's noisy movement over stones is described as 'chattering', giving it a human-like vocal quality through personification.

🎯 Exam Tip: Look for human actions or emotions attributed to non-human things to identify personification, which makes the subject more vivid.

Question 8. With many a curve my banks I fret
Answer: Inversion - the word order has been changed. The correct word order is 'I fret my banks with many a curve'.
In simple words: The normal sentence structure is altered, placing 'my banks I fret' instead of 'I fret my banks', which is an inversion used for poetic effect.

🎯 Exam Tip: Inversion is a common poetic device that adjusts syntax for rhythm, rhyme, or emphasis, so rephrasing helps clarify the literal meaning.

Question 9. With willow-weed and mallow
Answer: Alliteration - the sound of 'w' is repeated in the world 'with', 'willow' and 'weed'.
In simple words: The repetition of the 'w' sound in 'with', 'willow-weed', and 'mallow' is alliteration, which creates a gentle, flowing sound.

🎯 Exam Tip: Alliteration contributes to the musicality of a poem, making it more pleasing to read or hear.

Question 10. I chatter, chatter as I flow
Answer: Repetition - the word 'chatter' is repeated for a poetic effect.
In simple words: The word 'chatter' is repeated to emphasize the continuous, noisy sound of the brook.

🎯 Exam Tip: Repetition is used to create emphasis, rhythm, or to reinforce a particular idea or sound in a poem.

Question 11. I wind about and in and out
Answer: Antithesis - two opposite words 'in' and 'out' are used in the same line for a better poetic effect.
In simple words: The phrase uses contrasting directions, 'in' and 'out', to describe the winding movement, which is antithesis.

🎯 Exam Tip: Antithesis highlights contrast effectively, making the description more dynamic and memorable.

Question 12. And here and there a lusty trout
Answer: Antithesis - two words of opposite meaning 'here' and 'there' are used in the same line for poetic effect.
In simple words: The contrasting words 'here' and 'there' create antithesis, showing the scattered presence of trout along the brook.

🎯 Exam Tip: Antithesis can be used to show distribution or variety across a space, enhancing the vividness of the scene.

Question 13. And here and there a foamy flake
Answer: Alliteration - the sound of 'f is repeated in 'foamy' and 'flake' for a better poetic effect.
In simple words: The repeating 'f' sound in 'foamy' and 'flake' is alliteration, giving the line a soft, airy quality.

🎯 Exam Tip: Alliteration helps create sensory impressions, in this case, mimicking the light, fleeting nature of foam.

Question 14. For men may come and men may go
Answer:
1. Antithesis: two words it opposite meaning 'come' and 'go' are used in the same line for a better poetic effect.
2. Repetition: the word 'men' is repeated for a better poetic effect.
In simple words: This line uses antithesis with the opposing ideas 'come' and 'go', and repetition of 'men', to emphasize the fleeting nature of human life.

🎯 Exam Tip: Multiple figures of speech can appear in a single line; identifying all of them showcases a thorough understanding of poetic analysis.

Question 15. I make the netted sunbeam dance
Answer: Personification - sunbeam is given the human quality of 'dancing'.
In simple words: The sunbeam is personified by being given the human action of 'dancing', making the light on the water seem lively and animated.

🎯 Exam Tip: Personification helps bring abstract or inanimate concepts to life, making the poem more engaging and imaginative.

Question 16. I linger by my shingly bars; I loiter round my cresses
Answer: Personification - the brook is given the human quality of 'lingering' and 'loitering'.
In simple words: The brook is personified through the human actions of 'lingering' (staying around) and 'loitering' (moving idly), suggesting a relaxed pace in certain areas.

🎯 Exam Tip: Personification like 'linger' and 'loiter' adds a sense of personality to the brook, making its movements more relatable to human experience.

The Brook Summary In English

The narrator of the poem, The Brook, takes us along its course. It narrates that it begins from the places often visited by birds. It makes noise while coming down the valley. The sunlight makes the brook's water sparkle as it flows among the ferns and through several villages. Finally it passes by Philip's farm and joins the overflowing river. It creates a lot of bubbles and noise while swirling around an obstacle.

The brook says that it makes a lot of turns and etches out a path full of curves. Passing by many ups and downs, the brook carries blossoms on its way. A lot of fishes accompany it. Moving through different curves, the brook clashes and creates silvery water break. At the base of the brook, there are golden coloured stones. The reflection of the sunlight on the moving waters of the brook makes it seems as if the sun beams are dancing. At night under the moon and the stars, it murmurs through thorny bushes. Avoiding the obstacles, it finally flows into the river.

Introduction:

The poem 'The Brook' by Lord Tennyson or Alfred Lord Tennyson traces the journey of a brook from its origin to its mouth. Though very simple, the poem conveys a very deep message in a very subtle manner. The refrain in the poem 'But I go on forever' tells us that nature is eternal whereas we are emphemeral or short lived. We may come and go but nature stays forever.

Glossary:

1. haunt (n) - a place that one visits often, where one spends a lot of time
2. coot and hem (n) - water birds
3. sally (n) a quick journey like an entrance to fairy land
4. bicker (v) - run noisily
5. ridges (n) - a long, narrow mountain range
6. thorpes (n) - old English word for a village
7. brimming (adj) - be full to the point of overflowing
8. sharpes and trebles (n) - musical sounds
9. eddying (adj) - move in a circular motion.
10. babble (v) - to make murmuring sound of on the bottom. water flowing over stones
11. fret (v) - wear out, gnaw
12. fallow (n) - uncultivated land
13. fairy foreland (n) - a scenic place that looks
14. willow-weed (n) - a type of plant
15. mallow (n) a plant with purple flowers
16. lusty (adj) - healthy and strong
17. front (n) a freshwater fish
18. flake (n)- small, flat piece of something
19. water break (n) a place in a brook where the surface of the water is broken by irregularities on the bottom.
20. grayling - a freshwater fish with a long fin.
21. gravel (n) - pounded stones
22. skimming swallows (n) - swallows that touch the brook lightly and quickly as they or stones. fly over it.
23. shallows an area of the brook where the water is not very deep.
24. brambly (adj) - full of prickly shrubs.
25. wildernesses (n) - an uncultivated region
26. shingly (adj) - full of small, rounded pebbles
27. bars (n) - barrier, obstacle
28. cresses (n) - small plants
29. trout (n) - freshwater fish of salmon family