How to Tell Wild Animals, The Ball Poem
Question 1: Does ‘dyin’ really rhyme with ‘lion’? Can you say it in such a way that it does?
Answer: No, ‘dyin’ and ‘lion’ do not really rhyme, but the poet has written them in such a way that if spoken quickly with the right rhythm, they sound like they rhyme.
Question 2: How does the poet suggest that you identify the lion and the tiger?
Answer: The poet says you can identify the lion if it roars at you as you are dying. You can identify the tiger if it eats you — this is his funny way of describing them.
Question 3: When can you identify the lion and tiger according to the poet?
Answer: You can identify them when you meet them in the jungle — the lion by its roar and the tiger when it attacks and eats you.
Question 4: Do you think the words ‘lept’ and ‘lep’ in the third stanza are spelt correctly?
Answer: No, they are not correct spellings. The poet has spelled them like this to create humour and to maintain the rhyme and rhythm of the poem.
Question 5: What is a ‘bearhug’?
Answer: A bearhug is a very strong and tight hug, just as bears are thought to give when they attack or hold someone.
Question 6: How can you distinguish a crocodile from a hyena according to the poet?
Answer: The poet says hyenas come with merry smiles, but if the animal weeps, it is a crocodile — this is a humorous way to distinguish them.
Question 7: How does the poet describe the chameleon?
Answer: The poet says the true chameleon is a small, lizard-like creature with no ears and no wings, and if you see nothing on the tree, that means it is there — blending with the surroundings.
Question 8: Look at the line “A novice might nonplus.” How would you write this ‘correctly’?
Answer: The correct way to write it is “A novice might be nonplussed.” The poet uses the shorter form to keep the rhythm and humour of the poem.
Question 9: Why does the poet say, “I would not intrude on him”?
Answer: The poet does not want to disturb the boy because he is learning to face the loss and understand its meaning by himself.
Question 10: Why doesn’t the poet offer him money to buy another ball?
Answer: The poet feels that buying another ball will not solve the boy’s grief. The boy needs to learn the lesson of responsibility and loss on his own.
Question 11: Do you think the boy has had the ball for a long time?
Answer: Yes, the line “staring down/All his young days into the harbour” shows that the ball was with him for a long time and is linked to many memories.
Question 12: What does “in the world of possessions” mean?
Answer: It means the world where people own things, and losing something teaches the value of those possessions.
Question 13: Do you think the boy has lost anything earlier?
Answer: No, the words “He senses first responsibility” suggest that this is his first experience of losing something valuable.
Question 14: What is the boy learning from the loss of the ball?
Answer: The boy is learning the nature of loss — that things cannot always be replaced and that he must learn how to face such situations and stand up again.
Question 15: What does the poet mean by “Money is external”?
Answer: It means money cannot buy back the memories or emotions attached to what is lost — money is outside these feelings.
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