To the Foot from its Child question and answer for class 12. We have discussed important questions from the poem To the Foot from its Child.
In this post we learn notes of the poem To the Foot from its Child for second PUC students. We have discussed text book questions and extra questions from To the Foot from its Child.
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important questions from the poem To the Foot from its Child
Comprehension I
1. What would the foot like to be?
Answer: It would like to be a butterfly or an apple.
2. Line 1 of the poem conveys
(a) the immense possibilities of life.
(b) the unrestricted nature of a child’s imagination.
(c) the child’s ignorance of harsh realities.
Answer: (c) the child’s ignorance of harsh realities.
3. What does time teach the child?
Answer: Time teaches the child that it cannot be a butterfly or an apple, nor it could fly.
4. The line ‘stones and bits of glass, streets, ladders and the paths in the rough earth’
(a) indicates hardships one has to face in life.
(b) provides a mere description of a road.
(c) suggests the good and bad experiences of growing up.
Answer: (a) indicates hardships one has to face in life.
5. Why does the child’s foot feel defeated?
Answer: The child’s foot feels defeated because the outside world does not allow the child’s foot to fulfil its dreams.
6. Mention the words that convey the real experiences of the foot?
Answer: bit by bit, in the dark, it grows to know the world.
7. Which lines in the poem suggest the transformation of the foot?
Answer: The lines “And the tiny, petaled toes of the child grow bunched and out of trim, take on the form of eyeless reptiles with triangular heads, like worms” suggest the transformation of the foot.
8. “… condemned to live in a shoe” suggests that the foot is
(a) a prisoner
(b) a criminal
(c) forced to give up its dreams
Answer: (c) forced to give up its dreams
9. What does the line “until the whole man chooses to stop” mean?
Answer: death.
To the Foot from its Child poem extra questions for second PUC
Comprehension II
1. We think of a foot as belonging to a person, but Neruda says ‘To The Foot From Its Child’. Why?
Answer: It is true that we think of a foot as belonging to a person. Even in the poem ‘the foot’ refers to the adult foot. Neruda uses ‘foot’ as a metaphor for life and focuses on the changes seen in the transition of an infant’s foot through adulthood until it dies and gets buried.
2. Pick out the expressions that suggest the child’s imagination is fertile.
Answer: Butterfly and an apple are two expressions which indicate the child’s fertile imagination.
3. What contrasting descriptions of the foot does the poem offers? Why?
Answer: A child’s foot offers many contrasting descriptions in the poem. At the child’s age, it does not realise that it was a foot, but after facing many difficulties in life, it understands that it was a prisoner inside a man’s shoe. It felt the darkness inside the shoe that it couldn’t even get an opportunity to communicate with the other foot.
4. The poem begins with the idea that the child’s foot is not yet aware that it is a foot; at the end, the foot is unaware that it had ceased to be a foot. What is the poet trying to convey through these statements?
Answer: The foot is ignorant about the incidents happening around it. It is unaware of its freedom, or where took birth. The man leads a prisoner’s life and in the same way, the foot also faces many struggles in life. After his death, the man’s soul could transform into anything, but the foot is unaware of it.
To the Foot from its Child notes for class 12
5. How does Neruda describe the busy life of the individual as represented by the foot?
Answer: The poet describes the busy life of the individual as represented by the foot by restless walk to provide for his family. He couldn’t stop the work, because if he stops he couldn’t survive and can’t take care of his family. He has to work, sometimes even without sleep and work hard.
6. What does the last stanza of the poem mean? Can you think of parallels in nature?
Answer: Man’s death is a recycle in many other forms as after his death his dead body gets buried and decomposes and becomes fertilizer which helps an apple tree to grow. The apple tree helps the butterfly to sit on it and gives shelter. So Man’s death is a cyclic process.
Comprehension III
1. Examine how Neruda’s poem works out the contrast between colourful dreams and the humdrum reality of life.
Answer: Dreams are always colourful. The foot has many dreams: to fly like a bird and to be an apple, but they are all far away from real life, as in reality there are only difficulties and we are completely surrounded by bonds and there is no freedom. Hence the dream is always colourful and reality is always bitter.
2. Neruda’s poem is a salute to the ordinary human being, who continues with life braving all odds. Do you agree? Give reasons.
Answer: Yes, I agree Neruda gives importance to the ordinary man, as he is the symbol of hard work, who works for his daily life. Though he is diseased or tired, he has to work continuously to achieve his goals. Hence, the poet has given much importance to the ordinary people.
To the Foot from its Child poem questions and answers
3. Is Neruda criticizing how society crushes childhood dreams forces people into rigid moulds?
Answer: Yes, Neruda criticizes society for burdening the children with marks and awards. Instead of spending its childhood happily, the child works very hard to get good marks to shape its future. Society does not leave the child according to its will and wish.
4. ‘Foot’ is a keyword in the poem. Comment on Neruda’s skilful use of the word and its associations in terms of imagery to convey his ideas.
Answer: ‘Foot’ is an image which signifies the child. As a child one is innocent and works hard at an early age without dreams and games. Neruda excellently uses the word to create awareness in the society as we are treating children negligently and not giving any importance for their own dreams and aspirations.
To the Foot from its Child question and answer
Extra questions from To the Foot from its Child:
1. Why did the foot hate to live in a shoe?
Answer: Though the shoe protects the foot from injuries, because of the surrounding darkness, it hated to live in shoes. Moreover, it could not communicate with the other foot.
2. Why is the foot unaware of its reality in the beginning.
Answer: Because of its innocence.
3. Why did the poet consider the foot to be a prisoner?
Answer: As to walk on a rough path, stones, climb ladders man has to wear shoes but the poet considers that it is too dark to be in a shoe for a foot. Hence he called it a prisoner.
4. What were the nails of a child’s toe compared to?
Answer: To nails were compared to eyeless reptiles
5. The words stones? glasses, streets signify.
(a) Problems
(b) Solutions
(c) Pleasures
Answer: (a) Problems
To the Foot from its Child: To the Foot from its Child question and answer
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