NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter 8 The Solitary Reaper
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Q. Sometimes we see something beautiful and striking, and we remember it for a long time afterwards. Can you recollect this ever happening to you? If so, what was it? What do you remember about it now? Are the details of what you saw or the feelings you experienced at that time fresh in your mind? Think for a few minutes, then share your thoughts with the class.
Ans. Do it yourself.
Q. Listen to one of William Wordsworth’s poems, that describes a memorable experience he had, while out on a walk. (Your teacher will play a recording ) Listen to the poem at least twice.
Ans. Do it yourself.
Note: Read the poetry, The Solitary Reaper, given in the book
Q. Imagine that you are the poet, William Wordsworth. You continue on your walk, and when you reach home you tell a friend what you saw and felt. Which of the following best describes your experience? (Work in pairs, then have a class discussion.)
(a) “I was walking past some fields when I saw a young girl, a farm worker, harvesting grain by hand, with a sickle. She was so beautiful that I stood out of sight and watched her for a long time. I have never seen anyone more gorgeous! In fact, she reminded me of other beautiful experiences I’ve had - the song of the nightingale or the cuckoo, for instance. I’d certainly like to see her again!”
(b) “As I was standing on the hill top just now, I heard a very sad and plaintive song. I looked down, and saw a young woman reapinggrain, singing as she did so. She seemed quite melancholy as she sang. But somehow her song brought great comfort and joy to me. In fact, I found it a very emotional experience. As I continued my walk along the hill top, I also heard a nightingale and a cuckoo. But the young farm worker’s song affected me most deeply, even though I couldn’t understand the words.”
(c) “Just now, as I was walking in the valley, I saw a young farm worker in the field. She was singing to herself as she worked. I was so affected by her singing that I stopped and listened. She had a beautiful voice which seemed to fill the whole valley. The song was a sad one and I couldn’t understand the words. But its plaintive tone and melancholy sound touched me greatly and its beauty reminded me of the song of a nightingale and a cuckoo. After some time, I walked up the hill, carrying the memory of the young woman’s hauntingly beautiful song with me.”
Ans. (c) “Just now, as I was walking in the valley, I saw a young farm worker in the field. She was singing to herself as she worked. I was so affected by her singing that I stopped and listened. She had a beautiful voice which seemed to fill the whole valley. The song was a sad one and I couldn’t understand the words. But its plaintive tone and melancholy sound touched me greatly and its beauty reminded me of the song of a nightingale and a cuckoo. After some time, I walked up the hill, carrying the memory of the young woman’s hauntingly beautiful song with me.”
Q. The poet could not understand the words of the song, yet he raised several possibilities about its theme. In the chart below are some of these possibilities. Read the third stanza again, and find the phrase that matches each. Complete the chart by writing a phrase in each of the empty boxes. Work in pairs.
Ans.
Q. On the basis of your understanding of the poem, answer the following questions by ticking the correct choice.
(i) The central idea of the poem ‘The Solitary Reaper’ is _______.
(a) well sung songs give us happiness
(b) melodious sounds appeal to all
(c) beautiful experiences give us life-long pleasure
(d) reapers can sing like birds
Ans. (c) beautiful experiences give us life-long pleasure.
(ii) In the poem ‘The Solitary Reaper’ to whom does the poet say, ‘ Stop here or gently pass’?
(a) to the people cutting corn
(b) to himself
(c) to the people who make noise
(d) to all the passers by
Ans. (d) to all the passers by
(iii) ‘The Solitary Reaper’ is a narrative poem set to music. This form of verse is called a _______ .
(a) ballad
(b) soliloquy
(c) monologue
(d) sonnet
Ans. (a) ballad
(iv) The poet’s lament in the poem ‘The Solitary Reaper’ is that _______.
(a) he cannot understand the song
(b) he did not know the lass
(c) she stopped singing at once
(d) he had to move away
Ans. (a) he cannot understand the song
(v) Why does the poet feel that the reaper was most likely singing sorrowful songs?
(a) The poet himself was sad
(b) The tune was melancholic
(c) The surrounding was dismal
(d) The reaper was weeping
Ans. (b) The tune was melancholic
Q. Read the given stanzas and answer the questions given below by selecting the correct option
1. Alone she cuts and binds the grain,
And sings a melancholy strain;
O listen! for the Vale profound
Is overflowing with the sound.
(i) The exclamation mark used in O listen! suggests
(a) a call for attention.
(b) a request to listen.
(c) a sense of wonder.
(d) a warning to alert.
Ans. (a) a call for attention.
(ii) Select the option that illustrates the task done by “she”.
(a) Option (1)
(b) Option (2)
(c) Option (3)
(d) Option (4)
Ans. (b) Option (2)
(iii) Select the option that displays lines with the same rhyme scheme as that of the given stanza.
(a) Clear sky, no clouds high up The farmer looks and sighs No monsoons yet, God why?
It will rain, it must.
(b) The farmer looks at the sky Thankful for the monsoon days I am sure it’s going to rain, he says
Thankful for the clouds up so high
(c) Are any clouds visible?
No, none that I see. How unfortunate, poor me. Faith is my only reprieve.
(d) The farmer looks at the sky Thankful for the clouds up so high. I am sure it’s going to rain, he says
Thankful for the monsoon days.
Ans. (d) The farmer looks at the sky Thankful for the clouds up so high. I am sure it’s going to rain, he says Thankful for the monsoon days.
Q. Answer in detail.
(a) Do you think that the poet feels overwhelmed by the song of the Solitary Reaper? Why/Why not?
Ans. Yes, the poet feels overwhelmed by emotions after listening to the reaper’s song. He is overwhelmedat the beauty of its tune and becomes restless to know in what language the ‘highland lass’ is singing or what the lyrics of her song mean. He cannot seem to forget the song long even after he walks past her.
(b) The use of imagery in the poem has a major impact on the reading experience. Discuss.
Ans. The poet uses words like ‘Highland’ and ‘vale’ to tell us that the poem takes place in the rural setting of Scotland. He paints a picture of the reaper’s song with metaphors of nightingale and cuckoo. He admires her honest labour as he tells us that she bends and cuts the grain with her ‘sickle’. All these imagery used in the poem create a major impact on the reading experience. Wordsworth wanted his readers to visualise and therefore, feel the reaper’s song in a beautiful solitary rural landscape.
(c) The language of music is universal. Justify with reference to The Solitary Reaper.
Ans. The poet could not understand the lyrics of the reaper’s song because he did not know the language, but the tune and melody pierced through his heart. Its melancholy chant touched him and made him further inquire about the song. The song remained in his heart long after that
Q. (a) Read the second stanza again in which Wordsworth compares the solitary reaper’s song with the song of the nightingale and the cuckoo. On the basis of your reading (and your imagination), copy and complete the table below. Work in groups of four, then have a brief class discussion.
| Place | Heard by | Impact on listener | |
| Solitary Reaper | Scottish Highlands | the poet | holds him spellbound |
| Nightingale | |||
| Cuckoo |
Ans:
| Place | Heard by | Impact on listener | |
| Solitary Reaper | Scottish Highlands | the poet | holds him spellbound |
| Nightingale | Arabian Sands | Travelers | welcomes them |
| Cuckoo | Hebrides | The seas | breaks the silence |
(b) Why do you think Wordsworth has chosen the song of the nightingale and the cuckoo for comparison with the solitary reaper’s song?
Ans. The song of the nightingale and the cuckoo are known for being very sweet, melodious and lovely. The solitary reaper’s song is as melodious as the cuckoo or a nightingale and so the poet compares them.
(c) As you read the second stanza, what images come to your mind? Be ready to describe them in your own words to the rest of the class. Be imaginative enough and go beyond what the poet has written.
Ans. The image that is conjured in one’s mind is that of a lonely maiden that is devoted to her farm work and is sincerely cutting and binding her crops whilst she sings a song so unique and surreal that her sound echoes in the whole valley and anyone listening to it can feel the sadness in her tune. The lyrics of the song is incomprehensible, but the valley is brimming with the beautiful melancholic tune of the solitary reaper’s song.
Q. In the sixth line of the first stanza, we read:
“... and sings a melancholy strain,...”
This “s” sound at the beginning of sings and strain has been repeated. Poets often do this. Do you know why? Do you know what this “poetic repetition” is called? Can you find other instances of this in The Solitary Reaper?
Ans. The repetition of sounds produces a gratifying effect to the ear and can also serve as a subtle connection or emphasis of key words in the line. This repetition is called Alliteration.
Poetic repetition/Alliteration
• welcome notes to weary bands
• silence of the seas
Q. In the first stanza, some words or phrases have been used to show that the girl working in the fields is alone. Which words and phrases highlight her being alone? What effect do they create in the mind of the reader?
Ans. Words and phrases that show that the girl is alone in the field:
• single in the field,
• solitary Highland lass!
• by herself;
These words create a picture of solitude and quiet in nature. The lone reaper is singing without a care in the world
Q. Wordsworth was so moved by this experience that later he wrote this poem as a recollection of a memory. Think back in your own life and try to recall an experience that affected you greatly and left a deep impression on you. Then write a poem for your school magazine in which you describe that experience and its impact.
Ans. Poem – The Stray
For there it lay curled up in a box
Shivering and whimpering in the cold,
Not a single soul bothered to stop
And help the poor dog, hungry and old.
Looks like no took pity on him
For it wasn’t appealing in any sense and way,
I wonder what the case would be
If it were a handsome pup and not stray.
