NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Poem Chapter 2 Wind

Thinking about the poem
(Page 31)

I.
Question 1.
What are the things the wind does in the first stanza?

Answer:
The wind breaks the doors of the window, scatters the papers, and throws down the books on the shelf. It also tears the pages of the books and brings rain.

Question 2.
Have you seen anybody winnow grain at home or in a paddy field? What is the word in your language for winnowing? What do people use for winnowing? (Give the words in your language, if you know them.)

Answer:
Yes, I have seen ladies winnow grain in my village. People winnow grains to remove straws, chaff, and dust found in grains there. It is called ‘Barsana’.

Question 3.
What does the poet say the wind god winnows?

Answer:
The wind god winnows all the things available at home.

Question 4.
How do we make wind our friend?

Answer:
The poet suggests that we should build strong houses and fix the doors firmly to make friends with the wind. Moreover, we should be strong enough to face the difficulties in life.

Question 5.
What do the last four lines of the poem mean to you?

Answer:
The last four lines convey the message that those who are not determined and lack confidence face defeat. And those who set their targets and make sincere efforts are not disturbed by any obstacle.

Question 6.
How does the poet speak to the wind—in anger or with humour? You must also have seen or heard of the wind “crumbling lives”. What is your response to this? Is it same as the poet’s?

Answer:
The poet speaks to the wind with humour. I opine that the poet’s behaviour is pertinent and I have also seen the wind devastating the property mercilessly. The poet invites the wind to attack him and intends to prepare himself for the attack.

II.
Question 1.
The poem you have just read is originally in Tamil. Do you know any such poems in your language?

Answer:
Yes, I know many poems like the one given here.

Additional Questions

Short answer type questions

Question 1.
Who are disturbed by the wind?

Answer:
The wind disturbs only those people who are not determined. The self-confident people overcome the obstacles put before them by the wind. The wind does not have the knack to disturb the peace of mind of such people. The wind blows out weak fires and makes strong fires roar and flourish.

Question 2.
What does the wind do with the books?

Answer:
The wind tears the pages off and throws them down from the bookshelf. The potent (powerful) wind scatters the books and sheets of paper on the floor. It disturbs everything.

Question 3.
Why does the author ask the wind to come swiftly?

Answer:
The author asks the wind to come swiftly so that the earthly peace and order can be retained. The wind damages the shutters of the windows, scatters the papers and tears the pages of books. It disturbs everything and everyone. So, the poet pleads for the welfare of society.

Question 4.
How does the wind become the cause of rain?

Answer:
The wind sometimes becomes violent and appears to be a storm. It brings clouds with it from distant lands. There is no need to say that clouds bring rain. It is a universal truth and scientific fact that clouds bring rain from the blue sky.

Question 5.
Why should the earthly people build strong houses?

Answer:
They should build strong houses so that they may not be damaged by the wind. They should be strong enough to endure violent winds and become a challenge to the potent wind.

Question 6.
Does the wind god do what we tell him?

Answer:
The wind god is all-powerful. He is not influenced by any external factors. He doesn’t do what we tell him to do. Neither our requests nor our commands will influence him. He is mighty and sweeps away all weaklings with him. He loves strength and befriends with strong and steadfast hearts.

Question 7.
What does the wind symbolise?

Answer:
The wind symbolises the raw and brutal power of nature. The wind god is a symbol of might and strength. He hates weaklings. He rather pokes fun at them. Be they are frail houses, crumbling doors or crumbling hearts and bodies, he spares none. He befriends only the strong.

Question 8.
What does the poet ask us to do?

Answer:
The poet wants us to realise the true nature and power of the wind. He advises us to build strong homes. The doors must be closed firmly. Weak hearts will never succeed. Let us make our heart strong and steadfast. The wind god leaves strength and steadfastness.

Question 9.
Why and how does the wind blow out weak fires? Who roars and flourish?

Answer:
The god of wind is against any and every shaky and weak thing. Our heart should be fired with determination and strength. Weak fires and weaklings are flown out. Only the strong roar and flourish. His friendship is well rewarding. Let us praise the wind, the symbol of power and strength.

Long answer type questions

Question 1.
Why does the poet suggest to the people that they have to be strong? Write your answer in the context of the poem, ‘Wind’.

Answer:
According to the poet, the wind is very powerful. It has the power to break the shutters of the windows, scatter the papers and throw the books down the shelf. When it blows violently, it brings the clouds. It mocks at the weak and destroys their homes. The weak persons are really helpless before the wind.

But the poet is quite hopeful. He thinks that when people build strong houses, they can challenge the wind. Actually, the poet suggests people that they should be strong at heart because weak persons can not face the challenges of life. Only people with strong hearts have the courage to face the challenges of life.

Question 2.
How can you say that the poet of the poem ‘Wind’ is a great lover of mankind?

Answer:
The poet wants to make people strong at hearts. His desire is that they should be bold enough to face the challenges of life. When we have strong houses, we can protect ourselves from the angry wind. In the same manner, when we are strong at heart we can face the challenges of life. Only the weak persons are defeated by the problems of life. Similarly, the poet wants that people should face the challenges of life and make their life happy. His thought shows that he is really a great humanist. His heart is filled with compassion for mankind.

Question 3.
The wind is a symbol of power and strength. How can we befriend it and survive in our struggle for existence?

Answer:
The wind symbolises the uncontrollable and raw power of nature. The wind god symbolises strength and steadfastness. Weaklings who are weak in the mind and body are swept away by the mighty power of the wind. Only those who are blessed with steadfast minds and hearts survive in the bitter struggle of life. The poet gives a broader message. Whatever we do or think must stand on the foundations of strength and power. Only strong minds and bodies can face the anger of the wind and the challenges of life. We can befriend the god of wind by building strong homes and doors. We can also win his favour by firming the body and making the heart steadfast.

Value-based questions

Question 1.
What moral lesson do you get from the poem ‘Wind’?

Answer:
The poem ‘Wind’ is full of moral lessons. The poet has poured out his heart in the present poem. He says that people must be strong at heart because only the weak at heart are troubled by difficulties. Here wind symbolises difficulties which has the power to devastate life on the earth. But if the people are strong at heart, they face the challenges thrown out by difficulties. They struggle and at last, come out with flying colours.

Question 2.
How can you say that friendship with the strong is good?

Answer:
When we have friendships with the strong, we learn several new things. We learn that we may become strong when we fight with difficulties. The people say that if we are strong, the wind may be our friend. Because the wind likes to be friend the strong. So, if we desire to have the strong to be our friends, we have to show courage ourselves. This is the main reason that the poet talks about the steadfast heart in the poem.

Extract Based Questions (3 marks each)

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

Question 1:
The wind blows out weak fires
He makes strong fire roar and flourishes His friendship is good
We praise him everyday

1. How does the wind affect the weak fires?
2. What is the effect of the wind on strong fire?
3. Trace a word from the extract that means “prosper”.

Answer:

1. The wind blows out the weak fires.
2. The wind makes the strong fire even more strong and increases its power.
3. Flourish.

Question 2:
Wind, come softly
Don’t break the shutters of the windows
Don’t scatter the papers
Don’t throw down the books on the shelf.

1. Whom does the poet request in the above lines?
2. Write any one action of the wind.
3. Trace a word from the extract which means “thrown in different directions”.
   (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-015)

Answer:

1. The poet makes a request to the wind in the above lines.
2. Scattering of paper/throwing books from the shelf/breaking the shutters of the window.
3. Scatter. (Any one)

Question 3:
He won’t do what you tell him,
So, come, let’s build strong homes.
Let’s joint the doors firmly Practice to from the body.
Make the heart steadfast.

1. What does the poet advise?
2. He won’t do what you tell him”, what does it mean?
3. Find a word from the extract that means “loyal/faithful”.(Board Term 1,201?, ELI-020)

Answer:

1. The poet advises us to build strong homes, join the door firmly, and make our body firm and strong.
2. It means that the wind does not follow our commands.
3. Steadfast.

Question 4:
He won’t do what you call him So, let’s build strong homes Let’s join the door firmly
Practice to firm the body „
Make the heart steadfast

1. What does “he” stands for?
2. What should we do to save our homes?
3. The word which stands for “to fix” is (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-024)

Answer:

1. “He” stands for wind.
2. To save our homes, we should build strong homes and join the door firmly.
3. Join.

Question 5:
Wind, come softly
Don’t break the shutters of the windows.
Don’t scatter the papers
Don’t throw down the books on the shelf
There, look what you did – you threw them all down.
You tore the pages of the books.
You brought rain again.
You’re very clever at poking fun at weaklings.

1. Write about any two destructive activities of the wind.
2. How can we make friends with the wind?
3. Find the word from the extract which is an antonym of “foolish”.
   (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-027)

Answer:

1. Two destructive activities of the winds are –
   (a)Breaks the shutters of windows.
   (b)Scatters the papers.
   (c)Throws down the books.
   (d)Tears the pages of books. (Any two)
2. We can make friends with the winds by building strong homes and strong body and heart.
3. Clever.

Short Answer Type Questions (2 marks each)
(About 30-40 words each)

Question 1:
Describe the central idea of the poem.

Answer:
The poem “Wind” inspires us to face the challenges thrown at us with grit and firm determination. We should be strong enough to face all the hardships of life with courage. Wind symbolizes problems and obstacles that we all face and go through at some point time in our lives.

Question 2:
Is wind regarded as a symbol of destruction in the poem? Explain.

Answer:
In the poem, the first stanza depicts the destruction caused by wind. The wind tears the pages of the books, brings rain again and destroys the daily life of the weaker section of the world. The strong or gusty winds represent turmoil and trouble in our life. These troubles are to be ignored.

Question 3:
What are the figures of speech in the poem ‘Wind’?

Answer:
The most common figure of speech in the poem is ‘Anaphore’ which means repeating certain words. The repetition of the word ‘don’t’ in the first three lines of the poem is an example of Anaphora. Also, the entire poem is a metaphor as it ends on a note of application to humanity to stand against all ravages, natural or man-made.

Question 4:
Can wind ever be friends with us?

Answer:
Wind, literally, can be our friend. Wind is a phenomenon that teaches us to be strong. Our friends always teach us to be strong and determined. In times of need, wind wants us to bravely face our obstacles. Hence, we have to be strong when there are obstacles in our life so that we don’t get beaten up by them.

Long Answer Type Questions (4 marks each)
(About 80-100 words each)

Question 1:
What challenges are posed by wind in the life of the poet and the common man?

Answer:
In our lives, wind destructs our daily routine. It hampers and dampens the spirit of life around. According to the poet, rain and wind were deeds of nature that are perceived as the tempest forces which destroy the old and evil inside a man in order to create joy and liberty in his mind. Wind is a difficult natural phenomenon that is very difficult to be predicted accurately just as our problems which can arise from nowhere. It can hit us at any time of our life. It mocks the very being of being alive. For frail people, literally and metaphorically, wind creates barriers. Winds do not let a frail body or a frail mind survive but on the other hand if you are strong, you have the power and the will to survive and fight back, wind can never be a threat to your living being.

Question 2:
Does the poem reflect the human suffering being initiated by the wind? Explain with examples.

Answer:
I believe that wind is a poignant example of the metaphor of God’s will for a variety of reasons. First wind is invisible, but the effects it has on other aspects of this world are clear and evident. Our poem reflects upon both the constructive and destructive paths taken by the wind. The wind is extreme and violent, but not necessarily legitimately with anger and emotions. Wind creates compassion, but apathy at the same time in human life. Winds emphasize the passionate, intense nature of the poet, while the decay and death inherent in the metaphor suggest the sacrifice and suffering of humans. We also see that wind is a metaphor for god’s will because its effects in this world can be both beneficial or ostensibly destructive.

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