roshani

OUR CASUARINA TREE by Toru Dutt

Extract 1

Ans 1 The tree referred to in the extract is the casuarina tree. The

creeper is said to be like a python because it climbs and winds around

the tree tightly and is so thick that it appears to embrace the tree till the

summit.

Ans 2 The creeper is thick and quite old since it has reached the summit

of the tree. It is quite strong and covers the tree completely. It looks like

a huge python crushing the tree in its grasp.

Ans 3 The extract serves as a background to the theme of the poem in

that it symbolises the narrator’s lost childhood and the many scars of

pain she has endured as a result of losing her companions. Just like the

tree crushed in the embrace of the creeper, the narrator too, goes on

living in spite of being suffocated by life.

Ans 4 The tree is very dear to the poet because she and her

companions played under it when they were children; the tree is a

symbol of her lost childhood.

Ans 5 (a) deep cuts which heal, but leave marks

(b) no other tree could live in such a tight grasp

Ans 6 At the end of the poem, the poet says that she will write a poem

in honour of the tree. By doing this she hopes that even when she is no

more, the tree will be immortalised; it will never be forgotten.

Extract 2

Ans 1 The casuarina tree is the giant. The creeper winding itself around

the tree is the scarf. Earlier in the poem the poet calls the creeper a

python that climbs up the tree tightly right up to its summit.

Ans 2 Gallantly means bravely, with valour. The scarf is uncomfortable,

yet the tree does not complain but wears it because the tree is a strong

giant who the creeper cannot crush.

Ans 3 (a) that has no end

(b) sung in the dark from the casuarina tree

Ans 4 The flowers in crimson clusters add beauty to the tree. They

delight the various birds and bees that gather on it all day and night and

sing beautifully.

Ans 5 (I