Let’s revisit and enjoy the poem (page 78)
Song Of The Rain Questions And Answers Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 1.
Who is the “I” referred to in the poem?
Answer:
Rain is the “I” referred to in the poem.
Song Of The Rain Question Answers Pdf Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 2.
What does nature do with the silver threads?
Answer:
Nature takes the silver threads to decorate her fields and valleys.
Song Of The Rain Poem Question Answers Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 3.
What is rain compared to?
Answer:
Rain is compared to beautiful pearls plucked from the crown of Ishtar, the Babylonian goddess of love and war.
Song Of The Rain Question Answers Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 4.
Who could be the daughter of dawn?
Answer:
Aurora / Daybreak /Sunrise.
Song Of The Rain Appreciation Hss Live Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 5.
Comment on the expression “when I cry, the hills laugh”.
Answer:
When the rain falls, the hills become happy as it gives them life. The word cry implies that rain falls as tears on the hills.
Song Of The Rain Appreciation Pdf Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 6.
How does the rain act as a messenger of mercy?
Answer:
The rain quenches the thirst of the fields and unburdens the clouds.
Song Of The Rain Notes Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 7.
In what sense are the cloud and the field lovers?
Answer:
Parched fields wait for the rain for their existence. Fields love the clouds as they bring rain to them.
Song Of The Rain Activities Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 8.
What do the words “cry” and “humble” imply?
Answer:
‘Cry indicates that rain falls as tears on the hills. ‘Humble’ indicates that rain falls gently and softly.
Song Of The Rain Class 9 Kerala Syllabus Question 9.
Who are “the thirsty” and “the sick ones” described in the fourth stanza?
Answer:
The fields are the thirsty ones and the clouds are the sick ones.
9th Class English Song Of The Rain Kerala Syllabus Question 10.
“I am like earthly life” – Explain the comparison
Answer:
It is referred to as earthly life because it has a beginning and comes to an end too. It begins at the sea as water vapours and ends under the lifted wings of death.
Song Of The Rain Poem Class 9 Kerala Syllabus Question 11.
“I am dotted silver threads…” is an example of a first-person narration. Identify similar lines from the first two stanzas.
Answer:
‘I am beautiful pearls plucked from the Crown of Ishtar by the daughter of Dawn’.
Song Of The Rain Appreciation Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Activity -1 (page 78)
a) The poet compares the rain to many things. Look at the following expressions.
“I am like earthly life…”
“I am beautiful pearls…”
In what way are the comparisons different? Comment on the poetic devices used.
Answer:
“I am like earthly life” is an example of simile where we find the comparison is direct. ‘I am beautiful pearls’ is an example of metaphor where we find an implied comparison.
b) Pick out the metaphorical expressions in the poem.
Answer:
- I am the sigh of the sea
- I am the laughter of the field
- I am dotted silver threads…
- I am beautiful pearls, plucked from the Crown of Ishtar…’
- My announcement is a Welcome song.’
c) “I am beautiful pearls, plucked from the Crown of Ishtar by the daughter of Dawn To embellish the gardens.”
Can’t you visualise the image of beautiful pearls while reading this stanza?
Pick out other visual images in the poem.
Answer:
- I descend and embrace the flowers and the trees in a million little ways.
- I am beautiful pearls, plucked from the crown of Ishtar.
- I am dotted silver threads dropped from heaven by the Gods.
d) When I cry, the hills laugh’ This line gives us an auditory image of crying and laughter. Pick out another auditory image from the poem.
Answer:
- The voice of thunder declares my arrival
- The laughter of the field
- Sighs from the deep sea of affection
e) Describe the arrival and departure of rain, quoting the relevant lines. What effects do they create in the poem?
Answer:
We can hear the voice of thunder declaring the arrival or rain.
We can also see the rainbow announcing the departure of rain from the earth.
These lines give an auditory as well as a visual image to the poem.
f) “I touch gently at the windows with my Soft fingers,…” Does the rain have fingers to touch the window? Here, the poet gives a human quality to the rain. It is an example of personification.
Answer:
- When I cry the hills laugh
- When I humble myself, the flowers rejoice
- I descend and embrace the flowers
- I quench the thirst of one
- I cure the ailment of the other
- I touch gently at the windows
g) Read the following lines.
1. “I am beautiful pearls, plucked from the crown of Ishtar.”
2. “I am a messenger of mercy.”
3. …………………
4. …………………
Answer:
- I am beautiful pearls plucked from…
- I am a messenger of mercy
- I am dotted silver threads dropped from heaven
- Crown of Ishtar by the daughter of Dawn
h) Match the lines in the poem with their meanings.
Tears from the ………… Heaven sheds tears ……… I quench ………. Rain satisfies the thirst ……….. I am like earthly life The rain is as short-lived …….. When I cry …….. The deafening sound
Answer:
i) Tick whether True or False. Give the correct expressions for the false statements, if any.
Answer:
| Expressions | True | False | Correction,if necessary |
| The tone and mood of the poem reflects the rain’s love for the earth | True | ||
| The rain has a beginning and an end like all living things. | True | ||
| ‘I descend and embrace the flowers’ is an example of a metaphor. | False |
j) Now, let’s prepare an appreciation of the poem. The beginning is given.
‘Song of the Rain’ is a poem by Khalil Gibran describing the heavenly beauty of the rain. The poem is written in the first person, and the rain itself is the speaker. The rain looks like ……………….
Answer:
silver threads dropped from heaven by the gods which nature takes away to adorn her fields and valleys. She is beautiful pearls plucked by the Daughter of Dawn from the crown of the goddess of love. The clouds and fields are lovers and rain is a messenger between them. By pouring out the water, rain cures the cloud and by coming down to the ground she quenches the thirst of the field. The voice of thunder declares her arrival and the rainbow her departure. When her cries come down from the skies the hills laugh. When she reaches the ground the flowers rejoice, and when she has seeped down deep into the soil all things feel very happy.
Rain emerges from the heart of the sea and soars high with the breeze. When she sees a field in need, she descends and embraces it and the flowers bloom and trees grow. In the home of people, she touches the windows with her soft gentle fingers and all can hear her joyful song which everybody except the insensitive can understand. She is born out of heat in the air which in her turn she kills. Rain is the sigh of the sea, the laughter of the field and the tears of the Heaven and Love.
One wonders at the way Kahlil Gibran has presented a scientific fact. It is as if he entered the very soul of the Rain to sing on her behalf. As the rain reaches earth, life in the planet rejuvenates. Rivers, rivulets, streams, ponds, lakes, lagoons and oceans are replenished. Nature appears as if she has been washed out clean and lain to dry in the sunshine. Grass turns lush green, squirrels, birds and cows come out to eat and the sky is once more serene. Rivers, meadows and mountains all sing happily after a rain.
Gibran has used many similes, metaphors, personifications and alliterations in the poem. There are fine auditory and visual images that make the poem truly exquisite. (Quote examples from the answers to the questions.)
Song of the Rain Additional Questions
A) Read the extract given and answer the questions that follow:
I am dotted silver thread dropped from heaven By the gods. Nature then takes me, to adorn Her fields and valleys.
I am beautiful pearls, plucked from the Crown of Ishtar by the daughter of Dawn To embellish the gardens.
Song Of The Rain Poem Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 1.
How does the rain define itself?
Answer:
The rain defines itself as the dotted silver threads dropped from heaven by gods.
Song Of The Rain By Khalil Gibran Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 2.
Why has nature adopted the rain?
Answer:
Nature has adopted it to add beauty to the fields and valleys.
Song Of The Rain Appreciation Note Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 3.
‘l am beautiful pearls’. Name the poetic devices used in this line.
Answer:
‘Personification’ and ‘metaphor’ are the poetic devices used in this line.
B) Read the extract given and answer the questions that follow:
When I cry the hills laugh:
When I humble myself the flowers rejoice:
When I bow, all things are elated.
The field and the cloud are lovers
And between them, I am a messenger of mercy.
I quench the thirst of the one;
I cure the ailment of the other.
9th Class English Unit 3 Kerala Syllabus Question 4.
Why does the rain sigh from the deep sea?
Answer:
The rain sighs from the deep sea because of love and affection.
Song Of The Rain Summary Kerala Syllabus 9th Standard Question 5.
How does it fall down from the endless heaven of memories?
Answer:
The rain falls down like tears from the endless heaven of memories.
Question 6.
When the rainbows, what happens?
Answer:
When it bows all things are elated.
Question 7.
Why is the rain divine?
Answer:
The rain is divine because it comes down from heaven. The shimmering drops of rain look like silver threads dropped from heaven by the gods. Moreover, it is a life-giving force that elates all flowers, fields and valleys, making them smile.
Question 8.
Mention “a few million little ways” in which the rain embraces flowers and trees.
Answer:
The poet says that the rain embraces flowers and trees in a million little ways. It is just a hyperbolic expression. The rain embraces the trees when the showers or drops
of rainfall on them. The showers fall on the trees and go deep into their roots. The rivers, lakes and ponds carry rainwater that reaches plants and trees.
Question 9.
“All can hear, but only the sensitive can understand.” What does the poet want to convey?
Answer:
The rain has its own music. Everyone can hear the music and song of the rain. But not all can understand and feel it deeply. Only those with sensitive and delicate
hearts can feel and understand the song of the rain.
Question 10.
Notice the imagery built around ‘sigh of the sea’, ‘laughter of the field’ and ‘tears of heaven’. Explain the three expressions in the context of rain.
Answer:
The poet has built a very suggestive imagery of rain. He uses the alliteration ‘sigh of the sea’ to express the way seawater evaporates in the form of water vapours. The rain becomes the ‘laughter1 of the field when it helps the growing crops to smile and laugh in joy. As it drops from the sky; it appears as if heaven (sky) is shedding tears’ from above.
Question 11.
So with love-
Sighs from the deep sea of affection:
Laughter from the colourful field of the spirit:
Tears from the endless heaven of memories.
Explain the ending of the song.
Answer:
Khalil Gibran ends the poem with Philosophical overtones. The rain is termed as a ‘sigh’ rising from deep love and affection. It is like a laughter that colours the soul. It is like ‘tears’ that fall from the endless heaven of memories.
Question 12.
How is the rain compared to ‘the silver threads’ and ‘beautiful pearls’?
Answer:
The poet Khalil Gibran presents some beautiful images of the rain. The shimmering drops of rain falling one after the other look like the ‘dotted silver threads’. It appears as if the gods themselves are dropping those silver threads from heaven. Similarly, the pure white drops of the rain are compared to the ‘beautiful pearls’ plucked from the crown of Ishtar. Both the comparisons appear to be apt and logical.
Question 13.
Describe the various images, movement and sounds of the rain.
How is the rain associated with the various objects of the earth and the emotions of human beings?
Answer:
Khalil Gibran presents the rain in all its glory, movements, sounds and colours. The very first image gives a divine touch to the rain. Its shimmering dotted silver threads are dropped from the heaven by the gods themselves. In the next image, Gibran compares the rain to ‘beautiful white pearls’ plucked from the crown of Ishtar. Then in three images, the poet expresses the different intense movements and sounds of the rain.
When it ‘cries’, the hills laugh. When it falls down in ‘humble’ and soft drops, the flowers rejoice. When it bows and spreads showers all around, everyone is ‘elated’. The ‘voice of thunder1 declares its arrival. The rainbow announces its departure. It emerges from the heart of the sea and soars with the breeze. It embraces flowers and trees in a ‘million little ways’. It is a ‘sigh’ of the sea. It is the ‘laughter’ of the field. It is ‘the tears of heaven’.
The rain has its own music and song. It can be heard by all but only a few can understand and feel its music or song. Only the sensitive and delicate souls and hearts can feel and understand the melodies of rain. Collect poems which give us images of rain. Here are some examples:
1) The Art Of Rain:
— Mitchell D.
Wilson Falling Down, pooling up,
Out of the sky, into my cup.
What is this wet that comes from above,
That some call disaster and others find love.
The harder it falls, the fess it is nice,
The colder it falls the harder the ice.
The rain has an art that I may not get,
So I stand still here and get soaking wet.
2. Rainfall
— S.Arun Kumar
Cool guy knocking the door,
Wind blow with whistle sound,
Fresh air is waiting for us,
Rainy, Rainy be with us.
Sky turns to the dark,
Flowers are smiling and dancing,
All over darkness hangs with us,
Rainy, Rainy be with us.
Rainy the beauty of the world,
Memories of the past remind with us,
Fog is coming to hug me,
Rainy, Rainy be with us.
Dew on the grass,
Lighting of the sky,
Makes me feel lovely,
Rainy, Rainy be with us.
Lovely sun smiling on us,
Children dancing like peacock,
Lover’s turning to birds,
Rainy, Rainy be with us.
Farmers are so happy,
Greenish nature all over the place,
Snow comes to kiss my feet,
Rainy, Rainy be with us.
