FYJC Poem 2.2 The Sower by Victor Hugo translated by Torulata Dutt Part II Brainstorming activities

 

 Answer :- 

Sr.No.	Challenges	Solutions
1.	Water Scarcity	Rain Water Harvesting.
2.	Credit and Indebtedness	Providing subsidies and waiving loans.
3.	Land Issues	Preventing soil erosion, watershed management, crop diversification, etc.
4.	Climatic changes	Compulsion for Crops Insurance due to natural disasters, Provide advance training to farmers, engaging in climate forecasting to limit the extent of damage
5.	Social Groups	Formation of appropriate social groups to get information about government policies/best seeds/best market prices.
6.	Lack of advanced technology	Provision of modern solutions to deal with modern problems, adopting methods that increase yield, making advanced technology available at subsidised rates.
7.	Diversification	Provision of agriculture insurance to limit the risks involved in crop diversification, and educate farmers to grow variety of crops.
8.	Market Risks	Regularization of market prices by the government, minimum revenue guarantees for farmers, etc.

(A2) The poet has observed the sower closely. Express in your words the reverence the poet has for the sower.

Answer: 

The poet observes the sower at twilight sets in. The sower captures the poet's attention because the working hours are over, but the sower is still working hard in the field. As the poet continues to observe the sower, he realizes that the sower is committed to his work. The poet's reverence increases when he sees the sower striding across the field in order to scatter the grains far and wide, despite the deepening darkness. For the poet, the actions of the sower are dignified because he knows that the sower was not sowing only for himself, but for everyone else. He persevered so that others could enjoy the fruits of his hard work. The sower is described as hardworking, honest, optimistic and a man of patience.

(A3) The poet is prompted to call the sower an ‘august personality’ which means one who reached the highest position in his work place.
Explain this using the following points.
Hard work          Perseverance              Dedication

Answer: 

The sower is working hard. Though the working hours came to an end, he lingers in his work place. He sows the seeds and waits for the crop all the season. He works day and night to grow his crops.

Hard work: The sower is termed as an 'august personality' by the poet for his absolute commitment towards his work . The sower's diligence can be seen when he continues to work well beyond the working hours. Though the daytime is over, the sower maintains a calm and patient attitude and carries on with his work.

Perseverance: The sower's perseverance can be seen when he marches along the plain with determination to sow the seeds and hopes for a good harvest. The poem suggests that the sower is old and must have seen many bad harvests in his lifetime. In spite of this, he continues to persevere. He sows the seeds with the same hope and enthusiasm - that of a good harvest.

Dedication: The dedication of the sower can be seen when he takes strides to move back and forth in the field to ensure that the grains are scattered all around so that it results in a good yield. He works very hard inspite of being an old.  

(A4) (I)  Pick out the examples of alliteration from the poem and write them down.

Answer: 

1.  Sunlight, I see, dying fast - The consonantal sound 's' is repeated pleasingly.
2. Darkness deepens. -The consonantal sound 'd' is repeated pleasingly.

A4 (II) 'Seems to touch the starry skies'. The poet has used word imagery. Describe
the idea and pick out other similar examples from the poem.

Answer:  The poet has created a mental picture of a farmer touching the sky filled with  stars .

Similar examples of word imagery are as follows: 

1.Twilight hastens on to rule
2. Marches he along the plain.

A2. "Soon shall come a time to reap". Name and explain the figure of speech and find one another of similar type.

Answer: Inversion : The words are not arranged in correct prose order. Correct order - A time shall come soon to reap.

 Other examples of inversion :

1. Marches he along the plain

2. Now to sow the task is set.

A3 Pick out the line that shows evening time.

Answer: The following lines indicate evening time
         1. Sunlight, I see, dying fast
         2. Twilight hastens on to rule
         3. Shadows run across the lands

(A5) (i) Write an appreciation of the poem considering the following points:

 • About the poem/poet/title.
 • Theme
 • Poetic devices, language, style
 • Special features/ novelties/focussing elements
 • Values, message
 • Your opinion about the poem

Answer: 

Appreciation of the poem 'The Sower'

 

'The Sower' is a poem about the hard work and persistence of a sower, who works tirelessly and relentlessly while the poet observes his actions and terms him as an august personality, who works not for himself, but for others. Originally written by Victor Hugo in French, this poem has been translated to English by the Bengali poet, Torulata Dutt, who was the first Indian poetess to write verses in English and French. The poem is about a sower (farmer),  who is sowing seeds in his field. The sower is a poor old man who had seen many bad harvests in his life. Every year he is optimistic of having a good harvest.  The title of the poem indicates the central character of the poem.

The toiling life of a farmer is the major theme of the poem, while the poet observes him and begins to revere him for his noble actions. The poet describes his feelings for the farmer who is an old man . The farmer shows true perception in his assessment of scattering the precious grains in the farm. Though he has seen many bad harvests in his life, he is optimistic of having a good harvest in coming days.

The poetic devices used in the poem are Alliteration, Antithesis, Inversion, Hyperbole,  Personification and Repetition. The language used by the poet is slightly complex because it has been written in a way that it maintains the rhyme scheme of 'abab'. Imagery are used  to make the description more vivid. There are rhyming words in the poem. The poet follows the narrative style of writing, where he gives a first-person account of observing the sower working hard in the field.

It is Allegorical poem focusing on life and hard work of the sower. The poet has the feeling of gratitude for the farmers  throughout the poem. We can see the poet's reverence for the farmer. He gives emphasis on the hard work done by the farmer. The farmer works in the fields for day and night. The poet has also used word imagery to describe the evening time . He has created  a huge image of the sower. The poet used picturesque language in the poem. The focusing elements in the poem are the dedication and commitment of the sower, his perseverance.

The poem gives a very important message to the society. Farmer and farm labourers are neglected in the world. We should recognize the value of their hard work . We should be thankful to farmers. We must do something to improve the lives of our farmers. Work of farmers teaching us a valuable message ‘Live and let live.’ The values that one can learn from this poem are determination, perseverance, and selflessness.

The poem is inspiring us to work hard with dedication to achieve success and for completion of our dream. Remember that failure is the first step to success. It is a motivational poem. It helps us to learn and achieve success. It represents  the life story of the farmer.

A5 (ii)Write a summary of the poem using the following points:

·                Title

·                Introductory paragraph (about the poem, type, nature, tone)

·                Main body (central idea, the gist of the poem)

·                Conclusion (opinion, views, appeal)

Answer: 

The Sower

The poem centres on the act of sowing by the farmer, who tirelessly sows the seeds, despite having seen many bad harvests. Still an optimist, he hopes for a good harvest each time he sows the seeds. The poem is an ode to the sower, whose noble actions make him the receptor of the poet's admiration. It is a gripping narrative by the poet of his observations about the sower. The tone of the poem is optimistic and complimentary. As the poem progresses, the poet's description of the sower takes on a tone of reverence. The central idea of the poem is that with dedication, commitment, perseverance, and hard work, one can achieve anything that one sets one's mind too. The poet's observations about the sower tell us that the sower's undeterred faith in the likelihood of a good harvest in the future makes him work hard today. Though the sower is old and in tattered clothes, he is calm and patient, because he knows that even if he doesn't get to reap the benefits of his labour, others will certainly benefit from it. The sower braves the darkness and continues to sow the seeds by marching to and fro in the field, scattering the grain far and wide and ensuring that the grains cover the entire field. This is when the poet realises that the sower's actions are noble because he does not sow merely for himself. For the greatness of his actions, the sower appears to be a towering figure, whose nobility elevates his position in the poet's eyes such that his height seems to be touching the starry skies.

The poem is full of positive elements that aim to encourage the reader. The constantly focusses on the values such as  persistence, optimistic, patience and motivational tone and the extensive use of word imagery make the poem appealing to the readers.

 

A5 (iii) Compose a poem on a farmer in 4 to 6 lines in continuation of the following.

1.           He sweats ________________

2.           He does not fret ________________

3.           He sows ________________

4.           To the soil he bows ________________

Answer: 

1.           He sweats every day in the farm dawn to dusk,

2.           He does not fret of any problems,

3.           He sows the seeds for abundant yield,

4.           To the soil, he bows for God in the field.

A6  : Imagine that you are a farmer from a drought-prone area. Write a letter to a newspaper editor, discuss the problems, and suggest possible solutions.

Answer : - 

Laxmi Niwas, 

M.P. Road,

Latur  - 413520

10^th March 2021

 

To,

The Editor,

The Times of India,

D.N. Road,

Mumbai - 400 001

Subject: Drawing attention to the farmers of the drought-prone Vidarbha region in Maharashtra

Respected Sir,

I, a farmer having a vast stretch of land in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra, am writing this letter to request your kind attention to the drought situation that my fellow farmers and I have been facing for the past few months.

Our farming activities have been stalled due to a lack of water. The storage water in the dam has already been used and the groundwater can only be obtained by drilling a very deep borewell. There is no other source of water than the water-tankers that supply drinking water to a number of villages in Vidarbha. The situation is going from bad to worse. Many of us had taken loans from the Moneylenders  in order to purchase growth-boosters for the crops. Despite using growth-boosters, 80% of our crops got damaged. It has become very difficult to earn anything from just a 20% yield. Neither are we able to manage our day-to-day expenses nor save any money for the repayment to the  Moneylenders.

By writing to you, I would like to urge financial institutions to help us get out of this situation. Offering easy loan schemes with flexible payment plans can help many farmers repay their debts and have some money for survival. Also, if there are any policies that can help us insure our land, seeds, and crops, a huge burden will be taken off us. By ensuring our crops, we'll be able to minimize our losses due to weather-related damages, provided it is covered under the policy.

The debt keeps increasing and the burden is way too much. This is a distress call. We really need help. I am hoping that you will publish an article on this and draw more attention to the problems we're facing due to the drought.

Yours truly/faithfully,

Vijay Gaikwad 

A9 Visit your college library or through the web, quest collects information on the ‘Green Revolution’ and ‘White Revolution’ in our country.

Answer: - 

Green Revolution

Green Revolution was the introduction of modern agricultural methods to industrialize the agricultural sector. This was done by introducing High Yielding Variety (HYV) seeds, laying emphasis on better food grains such as wheat and rice, the introduction of machinery like drills, tractors, irrigation  etc., and the availability of fertilizers and pesticides. It started in the year 1965.M.S. Swaminathan is  known as the father of Green Revolution . 

White Revolution

White Revolution, also known as Operation Flood, was a program that was started by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) with a view to making India the largest producer of milk in the world. This was done by connecting the main milk sheds of the country to the metro cities, increasing the number of milk sheds, setting up new dairies, and enabling dairy cooperatives to strengthen infrastructure. The adoption of the three-tier 'Amul-model' was the key to the success of the White Revolution. Helping in eradication of poverty. Verghese Kurein is considered as the father of India's White Revolution. 

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