English - Poetry Chapter 9: Snake Long Answer Questions

Long Answer Questions

Question 1.The speaker was fascinated by the snake. Do you think the time mentioned and the place it belonged to has anything to do with fascination?

Answer: It was an extremely hot summer’s night. The speaker felt thirsty and as such he came out of his room with a pitcher to take water to drink. He saw a snake near the water trough, who had come from a nearby hole for the same purpose i.e. to drink water, after feeling thirsty. Though it was a yellow-brown fierceful cobra with its eyes shinning but its manners were decent. It sipped the water softly and peacefully with its straight gums from the water-trough. Being pacified it returned back to the black hole of the earth, from where it had come. It vaguely looked at the speaker but did no harm. The speaker was so much enchanted with its action and behavior that he liked its association for some time. He was so admired that he thought it to be his guest. Furthermore, he was so fascinated that it (snake) looked like a god to him. As such the time and the place of its arrival on the scene bears no importance, but its gentle and sober look and behavior impressed the speaker.

Question 2.What does he mean by ‘the voice of my education?’

Answer:It is prevalent that snakes become poisonous. If most of them who are poisonous bite a human being, he will not survive and is bound to die. People become frightened it a snake appears before them. As such they kill the snake. Such type of training to kill the snake is being imparted by elderly persons to youngers. Elderly persons instruct their youngsters to kill the snake as and when they happen to see it. Here voice of my education denotes the same meaning to kill the snake when it appears before you. Here there is a special reference, a special meaning of the above term. In Sicily, where the speaker resides, there is a proverb “the black serpent are innocent and the gold (yellow) are poisonous”. This cobra happens to be brown-yellow and ought to be killed.

Question 3.There was a conflict in the mind of the poet How did he analyze this conflict?

Answer: Of course, there was a conflict in the poet’s mind when he met with the cobra. The cobra feeling thirsty in the hot summer night had come to drink water in the out-house of his residence. The poet was in the state of confusion regarding his role at that time and situation Several ideas and feelings engulfed his mind, such as

• was it cowardise that he did not dare to kill it.
• was it improper, out of his curiosity not to talk with the snake?
• was it his humble act or feeling of humanity to feel so honored (The poet had really felt honored.)
• and then he remembered the advice of elderly persons that if he was not afraid he would kill it (snake)
• and feeling of its being a guest too haunted his mind.
• and for its (snake’s) humbleness and peaceful behavior, it (snake) appears to him as uncrowned king in exile.

These were the issues of conflict in his mind.

Question 4.In what roles did he find the snake and himself ? Describe.

Answer: He (The poet) found the snake and himself in different roles according to the situation. The snake felt thirsty in the hot summer’s night and came out of the hole beneath the earth and moved towards the water-trough in the outhouse of the poet’s residence. Being thirsty, he also came out of his house with a pitcher and found the snake siping wafer from the water trough there. Poet, being the second person to go there thought it proper to wait. He considered the snake as his guest also, who had come there to drink water. He thought it proper to welcome his guest, at his place. The snake was gentle by behaviour according to the poet. It peacefully left the place after getting satisfied and did not cause any harm to him. So, both of them-the poet and the snake very well performed their roles.

Question. 5.The snake seemed like a king in exile. What are the qualities that makes the snake so majestic?

Answer:The snake was very sober and peaceful. It quietly came and satisfied its thirst by sipping water and looked around like a god. The poet was highly impressed with its make and gentle behavior. It caused no damage to the speaker nor it attacked on him. Most cordially it returned back to the black hole, through which it had come from. It did not react to the poet’s hitting its body by a stick. So it (snake) seemed to him like an uncrowned king in exile.

Question 6.What makes you think that hitting the snake was quite against the sensibility of the speaker?

Answer: Being panicky the speaker picked up an awkward piece of stick and threw it towards the snake which hit its latter part of the body. He thought that it did not hit it (snake). The part of the body left behind convulsed (suddenly shakened) which indicated that the stick had caused injury to its body that left behind. It was shocking to him. He became felt sorry for his indecent and undesirable act. He thought that he had committed a wrong. It shows that hitting the snake was quite against his sensibility.

Question 7.What is the sin committed by the speaker that he wanted to expiate?

Answer: A sort of horror and a sort of protest to see the snake, sipping water by its straight mouth from the water trough, compelled him to hit the snake by a stick (log). But immediately after hitting it (snake), the speaker regretted it. He thought that he had done a vulgar, shameful, and mean act. He felt that by doing this he had committed a sin, which he would not have done. He hated on himself and of such human education to kill a snake. He wanted to accept punishment for such ‘sin’.

Question 8.Give in short the summary of the poem, “Snake”. [B.M. 2009]
Or, Write a short note on the poem, “Snake”.

Answer:D. H. Lawrence is a noted poet, novelist, essayist, short story writer and letter-writer. In this poem, the poet describes how one night he felt thirsty and got up to drink water. While he was moving towards the tap he found a snake coming out from the fissure of the earth. The poet was fascinated by the look and movement of the snake. Instead of killing it, he began to watch its movement. It moved towards the tap and drank water. Thereafter it began to return towards the hole. A conflict seized the mind of the poet whether to kill the snake or not. In fact, he began to like it. The poet was confused. Sometimes he considered himself a coward, sometimes prevers and sometimes an honorable being. Finally, when the snake entered partly in the hole the poet killed it with a piece of log. The poet is filled with remorse. He considers this act of his as paltry, vulgar, and mean. He condemns human education that prompted him to kill it. The poet remembers and he thinks that he has done an albatross. To him, the snake was like a king in exile. He regrets that he has missed a chance “With o.ie of the Lords of Life”.