ENGLISH_THE BALL POEM

Questions from the textbook.

Thinking about the Text

In pairs, attempt the following questions.

1.     Why does the poet say, “I would not intrude on him”? Why doesn’t he offer him money to buy another ball?

When a person is trying to come over his grief on his own, he is busy making himself understand certain things. Then, if someone intrudes or disturbs, his chain of thoughts is broken. It makes him irritated. Moreover, self-consolation, realization or understanding is more effective and lasting than when it is done by an external agency or a person. The poet knows it. So, he does not intrude on him. His offer of money to buy another ball is useless for the boy wants the same ball he is attached to and has been playing for a long time. No other ball will be able to take its place.

2.     ”…staring down /All his young days into the harbour where/His ball went…” Do you think the boy has had the ball for a long time? Is it linked to the memories of days when he played with it?

Yes, the boy has had the ball for a long time. It is clear from the lines in the poem ‘staring down/all his young days…’ These lines show that the ball is linked to the memories of many days when he played with it.

3.     What does ‘in the world of possessions’ mean?

It means ‘the world’ of materialistic things. In such a world, ones’ possessions carry importance.

4.     Do you think the boy has lost anything earlier? Pick out the words that suggest the answer.

The boy has lost something earlier also. It is clear in the opening line ‘What is the boy now’.

5.     What does the poet say the boy is learning from the loss of the ball? Try to explain this in your own words.

The poet says that the boy is learning to live with his loss. In this world, loss is a fact. The boy has lost his ball. He is shaken by it. But he must try to understand the emotional implication of the sense of loss.

6.     Have you ever lost something you liked very much? Write a paragraph describing how you felt then, and saying whether and how you got over your loss.

(Suggested answer)

Yes. I have lost many things in life. But the loss of my camera will always remain fresh in my memory. My father had given it to me on my fourteenth birthday. I was very happy. I showed it to many friends. One day we went to see a match. We went to the local bus. I placed it on my seat. When the bus stop came, I left the bus and forgot the camera on the bus. It was lost forever. I remained sad for many days at that loss.