Last lesson of the noon - New Oxford Modern English - Class 8 - English

Use these expressions in sentences of your own. Try to bring out the meaning of the words in a lively way.
a. waste my soul
b. with all my might
c. strained apart
d. slovenly work
e. the same abyss

Join these sentences using a present participle.
Example:              I saw a man. He was singing in a field.
                                I saw a man singing in a field.
a.            She noticed a snake. It was sliding into a hole.
b.            They heard a peacock. It was shrieking out loud.
c.             The man spied a ship. It was sailing into the harbour.
d.            The boys watched the bees. They were flying into the hive.

Rewrite the following sentences, making corrections or alterations where necessary.

1. In the house and in the garden small bees flying, and speeding about in confusion, causing much distress to the family.

2. Walking along the quiet path last night, the crescent moon looked beautiful.

3. A small rabbit hopping along, chasing butterflies in the garden.

4. Shouting loudly they arrested the demonstrators outside the City Hall.

5. Seeing that all was ready, the pistol went off for the race to start.

6. Crossing the Bay of Bengal the sea was very rough.

7. The children saw five rose bushes, walking through the forest this afternoon.

8. Driving his car round the corner, a dog ran under Govind’s wheel.

9. Watching the passengers carefully and waiting for his family, the old man sitting on a bench all day.

10. Cycling across the field, a ball suddenly appeared in front of me.

Choose three or four emotions and try to write a few lines reflecting each emotion you have chosen. Alter your style of writing to suit the emotions you are describing.
Here are some ‘qualities’ or ‘emotions’; but you may choose to describe others if you wish:

No longer now can I endure the brunt
Of the books that lie out on the desks, a full threescore
Of several insults of blotted pages and scrawl
Of slovenly work that they have offered me.
I am sick, and what on earth is the good of it all?
What good to them or me, I cannot see!

a. What can he not endure?
b. What is the ‘insult’ that the poet refers to?
c. What is the poet sick about?
d. What is the ‘it’ that is referred to?
e. What question does the speaker subsequently ask?
f. What are the poetic devices used in the above stanza?

What metaphor does the poet use in the first stanza of the poem? With which words is this metaphor sustained?

Why does the poet think of his pupils as a pack of unruly hounds?

What is the ‘insult’ that the poet refers to in stanza 3?

In stanza 3, the poet seems angry. Why?

In stanza 4, the poet (remember he is a teacher) uses the word ‘abyss’. What does he want to show about his own situation by the use of this word?

In stanza 5, Lawrence says, ‘And yet I’m supposed to care, with all my might.’ With reference to the notes for the poem, what does this mean?

What is the poet’s final decision or resolve?

The poet shows his feelings in the poem. Which of the following words best describes them?
i) sadness
ii) joy
iii) despair
iv) anger
v) frustration

(More than one of the above may be correct! Give evidence for your choice. Can you think of other emotions the poet may have been experiencing?)

Give two examples of the use of metaphors in the poem.

I am sick, and what on earth is the good of it all?

i) What is the speaker sick about?
ii) What is the ‘it’ that is referred to?
iii) What question does the speaker subsequently ask?
iv) What action does the speaker decide on?

… and take the toll Of their insults in punishment?

i) What does the word ‘toll’ imply?
ii) In what senses is it applicable to the speaker’s situation?
iii) What does the speaker decide to do?

What is the point? To us both, it is all my aunt!

i) What is the ‘point’ that the speaker is referring to?
ii) What does the expression ‘it is all my aunt’ mean?
iii) What does this show about the speaker’s feelings about his profession?