CLASS-VIII

Chapter-7 Poem-The Children’s Song

by Joseph Rudyard Kipling

B.

Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow:

1.  Teach us to bear the yoke in youth,

With steadfastness and careful truth;

That, in our time, Thy Grace may give

The Truth whereby the Nations live.

a.  What yoke is the speaker referring to in the first line?

Ans. The speaker is referring to the yoke that children would strengthen the nation by firmly standing by the truth.

b.  What does the speaker mean by ‘careful truth’?

Ans.  ‘Careful truth’ means the truth which id unbiased, focused and builds a strong, prosperous and developed nation.

c.  What does the phrase ‘in our time’ in line 3 refer to?

Ans. The phrase ‘in our time’ refers to the time when children become grown ups and take the responsibility to serve their motherland.

d.  Explain: ‘The Truth whereby the Nations live’.

Ans. ‘The Truth whereby the Nations live’ means that children who are the future citizens of the country pray to God to make them honest, responsible and truthful. They also pray to give them the strength to always stand by the truth as it is a strong foundation of a country’s progress and prosperity.

2.  Land of our Birth, or faith, our pride,

For whose dear sake our fathers died;

Oh, Motherland, we pledge to thee

Head, heart and hand through the years to be!

a.  Why does the speaker call their motherland ‘Land of … …. faith, …pride’?

Ans. The speaker calls his motherland the land of faith….pride because it comprises of the customs, beliefs and traditions which he believes in and it has given him his identity and recognition. He is proud of his cultural heritage.

b.  How does the speaker wish to serve their motherland?

Ans. The poet wished to serve his motherland by being sincere, honest, hardworking, responsible and loving. He wishes to do good deeds and contribute to the betterment of human race. He is willing to make supreme sacrifices for his motherland.

c.  What do the words ‘head’, ‘heart’ and ‘hand’ refer to?

Ans. ‘Head’ refers to intelligence and knowledge. ‘heart’ refers to love and patriotism and ‘hand’ refers to hardwork. This reference has been made to signify that children should have intelligence, love and  sincerity towards their motherland.

d.  What purpose is served by the repetition of the word ‘our’ in line 1?

Ans. In line 1, the repetition of the word ‘our’ creates a sense of belongingness to the motherland. It gives a feeling that all the countrymen are equal for the motherland.

C. Explain the following.

1. …we pledge to thee

Our love and toil in the years to be.

Ans. The children pledge to serve their motherland woth sincerity and devotion when they grow up. They want to do their best possible for their country and make necessary sacrifices.

2.That we may bring, if need arise,

No maimed or worthless sacrifice.

Ans. The children wish to grow as disciplined and upright human beings capable of making sacrifices which are not half-hearted and worthless.

3.That we, with Thee, may walk uncowed

By fear or favour of the crowd.

Ans. The children pray to God to make them fearless and face any situation courageously and with faith in Him. They wish to be courageous so that they may be able to walk in any sphere of life without any fear, criticism or favour of the people around them.

4.Mirth that has no bitter springs.

Ans. The children pray to God to teach them to find happiness in small things of life and they should  not have any ill feelings against anyone. They should take life as it comes.

D. The repetition of a sound to create a musical effect in a poem is called ‘alliteration’. Find atleast four examples of alliteration in the poem.

Ans. The examples of alliteration in the poem are:

Head, heart and hand through the   a.  years to be

b.  That we, with Thee, may walk uncowed

c.  Controlled and cleanly night and day

d.  Forgiveness free of evil done

E. What is the rhyme scheme of the poem?

Ans. The rhyme scheme of the poem is ‘aabb’.

HOTS

Why is the poem titled ‘The Children’s Song’?

Ans. The poem deals with children’s wishes. They are making a prayer before God and the entire poem is in the form of a song offered to God. The poem is also very musical. Hence, it is titled ‘The Children’s Song’.

What is the theme of the poem 'The Children's Song '?

The poem deals with the children's wish to be the best  of the capabilities . Acquiring virtues like truth,fearlessness , compassion ,self control and selflessness they would like to leave behind an unpolluted heritage.They want to enjoy the innocent joys of life, heal the bleeding soul and have no malice in their heart.

Life Skills

A. ‘The Children’s Song’ has a definite message for the people of every country in every age. What is that message?

Ans.The poem conveys a patriotic message that the children will serve their motherland with all their strength and hardwork. For that, one needs to be a perfect human being of great virtues. Only an upright man with moral character can fulfil the responsibility of serving the motherland.