Chapter: MIRACLES | JKBOSE Class 10th English Notes
Chapter: MIRACLES | JKBOSE Class 10th English Notes | jkboseclass10.kashmirstudent.com
Textual Questions of Miracles Chapter
Ans 1: Miracles are considered to be unexpected or a supernatural event. But according to the Walt Whitman, miracles happen in everyday life. According to him, everything around him is a miracle, for instance, the people of city, various natural creatures and phenomenon, serenity of woods, life in sea, motion of waves, and busy streets of Manhattan etc.
Ans 2: Although, this poem is full of miracles, but, when we read the poem, we definitely notice that there are some of the miracles which are from nature and some are connected with people and city life. Miracles from nature are:- serenity of woods, honey bees busy in sucking nectar, animals feeding in the fields, sunset, shining of stars, thin curve of new moon, life in sea, fishes, motion of waves. The ‘miracles’ connected with people and city life are:- Busy streets of Manhattan, multistoried building of Manhattan, to one’s beloved, moving along the beach, talking to one’s beloved, dining with family, strangers riding in the car and subway cars.
Ans 3: The lines about Manhattan and subway cars tell us that Whitman is a great lover of human kind. When he ponders over the huge constructions and the busy streets of Manhattan, he gets thrilled and considers it a miracle. The subway cars which run underground carrying people, also fascinate Whitman, and his love for humanity increases many fold.
Ans 4: Do it on your own
Chapter: MIRACLES | JKBOSE Class 10th English Notes | jkboseclass10.kashmirstudent.com
Literary Devices:
Metaphor: It a literary device that makes an implicit, implied or direct comparison between two unlike things. The poet has used ‘metaphor’ immoderately in this poem. He has compared ‘miracles’ to everything present around him.
Some of the examples stated in the poem are:
a) Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan
b) Dart my sight over the roofs…
c) Wade with naked feet along the beach.
d) Stand under trees
e) Every cubic inch of space
f) Every square yard of the surface of earth
g) Buzzing of honeybees around the hive.
h) Wonderfulness of sundown
i) Sea, fishes, rocks, motion of the waves etc.
Imagery: Is the use of words that create visual representation of ideas in our minds. The word ‘imagery’ is associated with mental pictures.
The poet has impeccably used different imageries in the poem e.g.
i. Kinesthetic Imagery: it is the representation of the actions and movements of an object or a character. Some of the verses from the poem that represent ‘kinesthetic imagery’are:
a) Walk the streets of Manhattan
b) Dart my sight over the roof
c) Talk by day with anyone I love
d) Swimming of fishes and
e) Motion of waves
ii. Tactile Imagery: It refers to sense of touch. The verse “wade with naked feet along the beach” just in the edge of water represents tactile imagery as the poet can feel water by touching it with his bare feet.
iii. Gustatory Imagery: It refers to ‘sense of taste’. As is comprehended by the verse ‘animals feeding in the fields’ is a perfect example of ‘gustatory imagery’ as it talks about the taste that animals get when they are fed.
iv. Organic imagery or subjective imagery: It pertains to personal experiences of a character’s body, including emotion and the senses of hunger, thirst, fatigue and pain. When poet talks about his feelings of being able to talk to anyone he loves or sitting at table at dinner with the rest shows his intense feelings and emotions towards his loved ones. His perception towards ‘miracles’ is also an example of ‘organic imagery’ as it shows his love for nature.
v. Visual imagery: It pertains to ‘Sense of vision’. This imagery has been used throughout the poem. Every miracle talked about in the poem is exquisitely portrayed, helping us to create immaculate pictures in our minds.
Alliteration: It is the repetition of initial consonant sounds in two or more neighbouring words or syllables. Some of the examples from the poem are:
i. Makes much;
ii. Whether I walk;
iii. Wade with
iv. Feeding in the fields
v. Stars shining so
vi. Me miracles
Repetition: It is the repetition of a word or phrase. The words that have been repeatedly used in the poem are as follows: or, at, every, miracles, same and me. Apart from these words, the phrase ‘to me’ has been used twice.
Anaphora: It is one of the types of repetition. It is the repetition of a word at the beginning of two or more than two successive verses in a poem. For example, all the verses in more than two stanzas start with the same word ‘or’ and in the last stanza, three successive verses start with the same word ‘every’.
Epistrophe: It refers to the figure of speech which consists of the repetition of words or phrases at the end of the successive clauses. For example the word ‘miracles’ has been used twice at the end of two successive clauses followed by the word ‘same’ which has been used in consecutive verses in the same stanza.
Rhetorical Question: It is a figure of speech in the form of a question that is asked to make a point rather than to elicit an answer. “What stranger miracles are there?” can be taken as an example of rhetorical question from this poem.
Free Verse: The poet has not followed any particular rhyme scheme in the poem.