CBSE Class 11 English A Photograph Worksheet Set 01

About the Poet

Kathleen Shirley Toulson was an English writer, poet, journalist and local politician. She was born on 20 May 1924, at Henley-on-Thames, United Kingdom. Toulson attended Prior’s Field School and worked with the Auxiliary Territorial Service during World War II. Starting in 1977 with her book, The Drovers’ Roads of Wales, Toulson was the author of several books on the subject of walking routes used by farmers moving livestock from Wales to England.

 

Introduction

The poem presents a contrast between the permanence of nature and the transitory (ever-changing) nature of the lives of human beings. Human life is not permanent. We undergo stark changes from birth until old age when we finally meet the end. On the other hand, elements of nature like the sea, tend to remain in the same state. Man is a mortal being but nature has the quality of permanence. The poet is reminiscing about her past while also recollecting the past of her mother as she looks at a photograph of her mother when she was a young girl.

 

THEME

The poem ‘A Photograph’ focuses on the concept of loss, memory and the transience of life, which forms the basis of human life. The poet establishes that people may die, but strangely, they continue to live within individuals in the form of memories.

 

Summary

The poet has a photograph of her late mother and her two cousins when they had gone paddling. Her mother was the eldest of the three. She was around 12 years of age at the time the photograph was taken. The poet says that her mother had such a lovely face, before she was born. The three girls were escorted to the beach by their uncle, and the photograph was taken by him. The girls stood in the shallow waters, as the sea waves seemed to be washing their transient feet. The sea remains as permanent as ever.

After a gap of over 20-30 years, when her mother looked at the photograph, she would be amused at the way in which they had been dressed for the beach. She would laugh as she thought about her wonderful childhood.

The poet now says that as she looks at the photograph, she realises that the sea holiday was her mother’s past, and now that her mother is no longer with her, the joy and laughter of her mother, has become a thing of the past for the poet. Both mother and daughter, had lost their joy and laughter with the passage of time. And both of them were disappointed as they had to struggle to handle their respective losses. It has been over 12 years since her mother’s demise, and all that remains in the world for the poet is the silence that was brought upon her by the loss of her dear mother.

 

Poetic Devices

• Allusion: “The cardboard” is an indirect reference to something that originates from outside the text.
• Transferred Epithet: “Terribly transient feet” – human life is temporary, not the feet itself (we transfer an adjective which is usually associated with a human being to another object or idea)
• Alliteration: “my mother’s”, “stood still to smile”, “terribly transient feet” (repetition of sound ‘t’) and “its silence silences” (repetition of sound ‘s’)
• Oxymoron: “laboured ease” (the coming together of two opposite ideas to describe the same concept)
• Personification: “the cardboard shows me”, “and the sea, which appears to have changed less”, “silence silences” (the situation has been given a human quality)
• Enjambment: Used by the poet in the second and third verses (the continuation of a sentence or phrase from one line of poetry to the next). An enjambed line typically lacks punctuation at its line break, so the reader is carried smoothly and swiftly – without interruption – to the next line of the poem.
• Synechdoche: “transient feet” (in this, a small part is used to describe the whole thing) Here, “feet” is used to describe the whole human being and not only their feet.

 

Explanation of the Poem

1. The cardboard shows me how it was
When the two girl cousins went paddling,
Each one holding one of my mother’s hands,
And she the big girl — some twelve years or so.
All three stood still to smile through their hair
At the uncle with the camera. A sweet face,
My mother’s, that was before I was born.
And the sea, which appears to have changed less,
Washed their terribly transient feet.

Exp- In the first verse, the poet has a photograph that has been stuck on to a piece of cardboard. The picture is of her mother and cousins, when they had gone paddling to the beach. She was just twelve years of age at that time. In the picture, the three girls were smiling at the camera through their hair that was strewn all over their face. The poet looks at the picture and exclaims about the beauty of her mother before she was born. She says this perhaps, as she had seen the changes in her mother’s face while she was growing old. The poet says that the picture showed the waves that were slipping away from under the feet of her mother and aunts. This is to point out the transient nature of human beings in contrast to the permanence of nature. The waves keep going back to their source and repeat their flow to and from the shore. (Feet is used to refer to human beings)

 

2. Some twenty — thirty — years later
She’d laugh at the snapshot. “See Betty
And Dolly,” she’d say, “and look how they
Dressed us for the beach.” The sea holiday
Was her past, mine is her laughter. Both wry
With the laboured ease of loss.

Exp- The poet says that some twenty to thirty years after the picture was taken, her mother would look at the photograph and laugh. She would take the names of her cousins Betty and Dolly and tell her daughter in an amused way, to look at the attire they were made to wear by the elders while going to the beach. With great sorrow, the poet says that for her mother, the sea holiday was her past. But for the poet, the past is the laughter of her mother while she reminisced about the sea holiday. She adds that both of them were very cynical when faced with loss, but tried hard to lessen the pain that loss had given them.

 

3. Now she’s been dead nearly as many years
As that girl lived. And of this circumstance
There is nothing to say at all.
Its silence silences.

Exp- The poet says that the number of years that have passed since her mother died is equal to her age when the photograph was taken. With great sorrow she says that the circumstances that had resulted have caused a great deal of silence in her life. With great poignance, she says that the silence of the circumstance supersedes all words and does not leave room to say anything.

 

Answers to NCERT Questions

Question. What does the word ‘cardboard’ denote in the poem? Why has this word been used?
Answer: 1. In the poem, the word ‘cardboard’ means a medium or base, which supports the photograph. In the olden days, the pictures would be developed, printed and stuck on to cardboards to ensure that they do not get spoiled. Sometimes it would be further strengthened by framing it within a glass and wooden frame.

 

Question. What has the camera captured?
Answer: 2. The camera has captured the poet’s mother and her two cousins, Betty and Dolly, on the beach. They went for paddling where her mother’s uncle captured the nostalgic moment. Her mother was around twelve years old and stood in the middle. She was holding the hands of her cousins who were on either side of her. It was one of her mother’s favourite memories of the past. Therefore, it would be appropriate to state that youth, innocence, and memories were captured by the camera.

 

Question. What has not changed over the years? Does this suggest something to you?
Answer: 3. The lines ‘And the sea, which appears to have changed less’ depicts that the sea which touched her mother’s feet is the one which has remained unchanged in all these years. Contrarily, her mother and her cousins grew older. And her mother has bid good bye to the mortal world. The sea symbolises eternity and immortality. Human beings have a life span and they are known as mortal beings. That is, this human life is not permanent. The poet’s mother had aged and changed from what she was in the photograph, and the poet’s life too has undergone a drastic change with the demise of her dear mother. This suggests that ‘change’ is the only thing ‘permanent’ in man’s life.

 

Question. The poet’s mother laughed at the snapshot. What did this laugh indicate?
Answer: 4. The poet’s mother laughed at the snapshot while recalling the occasion when she was enjoying on the beach with her cousin sisters. She looked at the photograph and remembered how their parents would dress them up for the beach holiday. Her laugh indicated the joy that she experienced while leading a carefree and pleasure–filled life as a child. Childhood is the best part of our lives. Behind the laugh, perhaps there is a hidden longing for the times gone by, and it was also indicative of a closure to the memories of childhood. The nostalgia that accompanied the photograph was inexplicable.

 

Question. What is the meaning of the line “Both wry with the laboured ease of loss.”
Answer: 5. In the poem, the poet is talking about losses – the loss of her mother’s memorable childhood, and the loss of the poet’s memories of her mother reminiscing about her childhood. Strangely, both of them have lost the best memories of their lives to time. Both of them have changed with the circumstances, but they have been working very hard to ensure that they handle the irony of life with greater ease.

 

Question. What does “this circumstance” refer to?
Answer: 6. The words ‘this circumstance’ refers to the situation they were in. Time keeps moving and changes happened in the lives of her mother and her own. The mother could not change the life she led and the poet could not enliven her memories. She says that there is nothing one can say to pacify someone who is facing such circumstances, thus, granting silence the power to take charge and supersede words, actions and thoughts.

 

Question. The three stanzas depict three different phases. What are they?
Answer: 7. The first stanza depicts her mother’s childhood days when she was around twelve years of age. It illustrates the fun and frolic that was part of her life as a little girl. In the second stanza, the poet refers the child who has changed over the years and grown older. Here the childhood of the poet is paralleled with the mother who is probably around thirty-two to forty-two years of age. In the last stanza, the poet speaks about a time when it was about twelve years since her mother’s demise. The poem covers the childhood, middle age and demise of the poet’s mother.

 

Additional Questions

Question. How does this extract contrast with the rest of the poem?
Answer: (a) This extract contrasts with the rest of the poem by showing the happiness and innocence of the past, while the rest of the poem shows the sadness and loss of the present.

 

Question. Why is there no punctuation at the end of line 1 of the stanza?
(a) To show that the poet is speaking in a casual tone
(b) To create a sense of continuity between the past and the present
(c) To indicate that the poet is confused about her feelings
(d) Both (a) and (b)
Answer: (d) Both (a) and (b)

 

Question. What does the use of the word ‘paddling’ suggest?
Answer: (c) The use of the word ‘paddling’ suggests that the girls were having fun in the water.

 

Question. Who is the uncle with the camera in the stanza?
Answer: (a) The uncle with the camera is the poet’s mother’s uncle.

 

Question. What is the effect of using the word ‘still’ in line 1 of the stanza? Select the option that is NOT TRUE.
(a) To show that the photograph captures a moment in time
(b) To contrast the movement of the sea with the stillness of the people
(c) To imply that the people are no longer alive or smiling
(d) To create a sense of suspense and mystery
Answer: (d) To create a sense of suspense and mystery

 

Question. How does this extract relate to the theme of nostalgia in the poem?
Answer: (c) This extract relates to the theme of nostalgia in the poem by showing the poet’s longing for her mother and her childhood.

 

Question. Explain the phrase ‘laboured ease of loss’.
Answer: (a) The phrase ‘laboured ease of loss’ suggests that the poet and her mother have learned to cope with their losses, but it is not easy or natural for them.

 

Question. What does the use of the word ‘holiday’ suggest?
(a) The poet’s mother enjoyed her time at the sea.
(b) The poet’s mother was a carefree and adventurous person.
(c) The poet’s mother had a different lifestyle than the poet.
(d) All of the options
Answer: (d) All of the options

 

Question. What does the word ‘wry’ mean in the context?
Answer: (c) The word ‘wry’ means dry or mocking in this context.

 

Question. Explain, ‘Its silence silences.’
Answer: (a) The loss of her mother is too deep for the poet. Now she has nothing to say at all. The silence of the whole situation silences the poet and leaves her quiet.

 

Question. Why is there nothing to say about the death of the poet’s mother?
(a) Because the poet was more focussed on the photograph
(b) Because the poet was not on talking terms with her mother
(c) Because the death of the poet’s mother has left a deep void in the poet’s heart
(d) Because the poet did not have a good relationship with her mother
Answer: (c) Because the death of the poet’s mother has left a deep void in the poet’s heart

 

Question. What does the poet remember of that girl?
Answer: (c) The poet remembers how much her mother had changed from a young girl. She also remembers the sweet laughter of her mother.

 

Question. Who are Betty and Dolly?
Answer: (a) Betty and Dolly were her cousins who had gone with her to the beach for paddling.

 

Question. Why did ‘she’ laugh?
(a) Because of the funny dresses they were wearing for the beach holiday
(b) Because she remembered a joke one of them had cracked
(c) Because of the funny dresses they were wearing as children
(d) Because of the funny man they saw at the sea holiday
Answer: (a) Because of the funny dresses they were wearing for the beach holiday

 

Question. Identify the poetic device used in the given stanza.
Answer: (c) The poetic device, enjambment, has been used in the given stanza.

 

Short Answer Questions

Question. What was in the cardboard that the poet has spoken about?
Answer: The cardboard had the picture of three girls who had gone on a beach holiday. The girls were her mother and her cousins when they were small children. This photograph had captured the joy, buoyant spirits and freedom of her mother’s childhood.

 

Question. What do you learn about the poet’s mother from the photograph?
Answer: The poet’s mother was a twelve-year-old girl and was the eldest of the three girls in the picture. She had a sweet face and enjoyed swimming as well as wading in the seawater with her cousins. She held the memories of her childhood very close to her heart.

 

Question. How did the three girls face the camera?
Answer: The three of them stood still to smile through their hair that was strewn all over their face, as their uncle captured the moment in his camera. The poet’s mother stood in the middle with her two younger cousins standing on either side.

 

Question. The poet’s mother laughs at her past. How does the poet react to her past?
Answer: The sea holiday was a past experience for the poet’s mother. A glimpse of the photograph perhaps revived some feelings of shared joy and she laughed. She was thinking about the time when her mother was reacting to her childhood photograph, some twenty to thirty years after it was taken. The poet was overcome with emotion as she was not able to express in words the sorrow she experienced due to the loss of her mother.

 

Question. Why, do you think, the poet says, “Its silence silences.”?
Answer: The poet has no words to express her reaction to such a solemn and painful incident. Death silences everyone. The extensive quietness and prevailing misfortune silences her and her mother. Her mother has lost her happy childhood, while the poet is embroiled in a pall of gloom even after twelve years of her mother’s death. The circumstances of loss that she and her mother underwent were so painful that she is at a loss of words to express them. The silence of the loss is so powerful that no sound or expression can express it as well as the silence itself.

 

Question. Comment on the tone of the poem.
Answer: The tone of the poem is that of sadness. Shirley Toulson looks at an old paragraph of her mother and is sadly reminded of her, who is no more. She mentions the death of her mother indirectly and this photograph has made her speechless and silent.

 

Question. Why does the poet feel nostalgic?
Answer: The poet sees an old photograph of her mother in which she was standing on the beach with her two cousins – Dolly and Betty. They were enjoying themselves. The photograph captured her mother’s sweet and smiling face. At that time, she was around twelve years old. The poet remembers how her mother used to laugh whenever she looked at that old photograph. But time has passed and now the poet has been left only with the memories of her mother. Thus, she feels nostalgic.

 

Question. The poet’s mother laughed at the snapshot. What does this laugh indicate?
Answer: The poet’s mother laughed at the snapshot. This is an indication of the fun and joy she had experienced during the beach holiday and she had fond memories of that particular incident. It brought joy to her when she looked at the snapshot.

 

Question. Explain, ‘the sea holiday was her past, mine is her laughter’.
Answer: Gone are the childhood days of the poet’s mother and the sea holiday that had become her past. The photograph flashes her back to the scene that was captured around 30 years ago. Gone is the carefree laughter of her mother which was love at one time. But now, the laughter of her mother has eventually become a thing of the past for the poet. She has silently resigned herself to this fate.

 

Question. What is the meaning of the line “Both wry with the laboured ease of loss.”?
Answer: The line expresses the similarity between the facial expressions of her mother and herself. Both faces had turned very cynical owing to the terrible feeling of loss in their respective lives. The mother was sad about the absence of a happy and cheerful childhood. The poet had turned sad at the loss of her mother’s laughter as the latter was dead.

 

Question. Briefly evaluate the poet’s attitude towards life as seen in the last stanza of the poem, ‘A Photograph’.
Answer: The period of nearly twelve years since the poet’s mother passed away, has been painful for the poet. She can not hear her laughter anymore. There is only silence now. The life of the poet has been dull and eventless after the death of her mother. The void created by her death is slowly becoming less painful. The time that passes silently but steadily weakens old memories of loss and grief.

 

Question. What did the girls do on the sea beach?
Answer: The poet’s mother is on the beach with two of her girl cousins. Each of the cousins is holding one of the hands of the poet’s mother who is older than them. The wind was blowing on the beach, the hair was flying on the girls’ faces and they were very happy. Their smiles could be seen even through their hair. They were smiling at the person who was taking their snap at that time. It was their uncle who was capturing the three girls on his camera. While the young girls stood in the sea, the water washed their mortal feet.

 

Long Answer Questions 

Question. What impression do you form of the poet and the poet’s mother after reading the poem ‘A Photograph’? 
Answer: The poem presents the poet as a sensitive person who is quite affectionate towards her mother and is deeply attached to her. She loves her ‘sweet’ face and has obviously observed the changes in it as she advanced in age. She remembers all the incidents connected with her life including her laughter as she sat looking at the photograph, years after it was taken. She finds it hard to bear her death. The pangs of separation push her to speechlessness. The poet’s mother appears as an attractive person with a sweet face and beautiful smile. She has a friendly temperament and interacts well with other people. She has great affection towards her cousins and goes with them for a sea holiday where they appear to have created magical and nostalgic moments. She poses with them smilingly for a snap. Her laughter on seeing the dresses in the snap shows her fine temperament and sense of humour.

 

Question. “Its silence silences,” writes Shirley Toulson. The loss of her mother has silenced her. Do you think that this attitude of the poet is the right attitude to live life? Why/Why not? (Constructed Response Question)
Answer: There is no doubt that Shirley Toulson has given a very touching tribute to her mother by remembering her through her poem ‘A Photograph.’ It is apparent that she is nostalgic and is grieving the loss of her mother. She avers that despite it being nearly twelve years since her mother’s passing, she has not been able to adjust to the circumstances too well. She finds herself surrounded by silence and a deep void. It is difficult to handle the loss of someone close to one’s heart. But the attitude shown by the poet may hamper the progress she needs to make in her life. Man is mortal, and death is imminent. Therefore, instead of succumbing to emotions, we must try to live the life our beloved ones wanted us to lead. If we let ourselves get depressed because of their passing and forget to live, we may be distressing the souls of those who have gone.

 

Question. Happy moments are short-lived but they provide a lifetime memory. They provide a cushion to bear the difficulties which the future has in store for us. Comment in light of the poem ‘A Photograph’ by Shirley Toulson. 
Answer: Our life is a mixture of happy as well as adverse times. We must learn to hold on to those happy memories which provided us with immense joy and happiness. As life is not a bed of roses, everyone at one stage or another is likely to face difficulties. Life is like a roller-coaster ride with all its high and low moments. The happy moments can help to give us solace and fill us with positivity that may come handy to tackle difficult times. Change is the only thing that is permanent in life. Therefore, if times are bad, that too will change and usher in good times. It is this combination that provides the cushion to soften the difficult times, and to maintain control when the going is good.

 

Question. ‘Both wry with the laboured ease of loss.’ The poet is missing her mother. What is the role of the mother in forming the personality of a child? 
Answer: A mother’s role in shaping the personality of a child is significant. The child watches his/ her mother intently and learns the techniques of surviving in the world. The mother plays an important role in making a child become a good human being. When a mother is nurturing and taking care of her child, she develops a strong and healthy bond with the child. This bond snaps after a while, when the parent is aged and has to surrender to the final phase of life – death. This is a traumatic moment for the child. But loss of loved ones, moments, and things is imminent. Just as, when the poet lost her mother, and the mother her childhood, and both of them were trying to ease the pain that ensued, with a great deal of difficulty. One wonders whether it was the exceptionally sensitive nature of the mother in dealing with her loss that was seen in her daughter, who was unable to handle the loss of her mother, even after twelve years of her demise.