2.1 Song of the Open Road
- Walt Whitman
ICE BREAKERS
Ø Choose the mode of travel that you would like the most for a journey.
a) Airways b) Waterways c) Railways d) Roadways
Give reasons for your preference.
I would like to prefer Railways-
a) It is affordable for everyone.
b) For long journey it is very comfortable.
c) Well Equipped with many facilities like toilet, catering, AC & sleeper coach.
Ø Discuss with your partner, the preparations you would like to make for the journey chosen.
a) First, I would like to choose the destination & work out the plan to reach there.
b) Booking the taxi and lodging of my destination.
c) Well preparation for essential luggage, medicine kit, money / credit cards etc.
d) Planning for visiting places, their best time to see & nearest route of that place.
Discuss the ways in which you would overcome the problems/ hindrances/ difficulties you face during your journey.
a) If I suffer from illness, I will visit nearest hospital & follow the doctor’s prescription.
b) In case of shortage of cash, I will use my credit cards & prefer online banking.
c) If I lose my essential documents/mobile phone/ luggage etc. I will visit the nearest police station and report it.
d) Unfortunately, if the weather changes, I will take shelter to nearest lodge or accommodation.
Ø During every journey we have to observe certain rules. Discuss your ideas of the journey without any restrictions. You can begin like this-
a) I would go with my selected friends.
b) I would like to take my own car.
c) I would prefer/select the place where I can enjoy
d) In my journey I would like to wear different dresses without any kind of restrictions.
FEATURES-
Free verse-
Free Verse is a poetry that does not rhyme or have a regular rhythm. The features of Free Verse are-
-Free verse poem have no regular metre of rhythm.
-It doesn’t rhyme with fixed forms.
- No regular rhyme schemes.
-According to his/her desire the poet gives shape to a poem.
- The poet gets freedom to express his ideas, emotions freely.
BRAINSTORMING
(A1) (i) Pick out the lines showing that the poet is prepared to enjoy every moment of his journey.
- Afoot and light-hearted I take to the open road,
- The long brown path before me leading wherever I choose.
- Strong and content I travel the open road.
(ii) By ‘old delicious burdens’ the poet means-
(a) the luggage
(b) the food he carries
(c) the stress he bears during the travels
(d) sweet memories of the past
- (d) sweet memories of the past
(iii) The poet is a person who is free from all inhibition. Discuss how the concept of ‘freedom’ is expressed in the poem.
- Whitman exalts the carefree pleasures of traveling, encouraging others to break free from their stifling domestic attachments to join him. He describes himself as being “free,” and he realizes he is the only person who is in complete control of his life; he chooses his own destiny. Because of this realization, he does not have to wish or hope or pray for good fortune. The journeyer is “free” for he is done with the routines, customs, and safe behaviors of his previous life
(A2) (i) Following are the activities of the poet related to his journey on the road.
Divide them into two parts as ‘activities the poet will practice’ and ‘activities he will not practice’.
(a) Walking along the road though he does not know where it reaches
(b) Complaining about the discomforts during the journey
(c) Postponing the journey
(d) Praying for good fortune
(e) Carrying the fond memories of the good people
(f) Creating contacts with famous and influential people
(g) Striving to achieve high and bright success
(h) Reflecting and developing his own ‘self’
|
Activities the poet will practice |
Activities he will not practice |
|
(e) Carrying the fond memories of the good people
|
a) Walking along the road though he does not know where it reaches
|
|
(f) Creating contacts with famous and influential people |
(b)Complaining about the discomforts during the journey |
|
(g) Striving to achieve high and bright success |
(c) Postponing the journey |
|
(h)Reflecting and developing his own ‘self’ |
(d) Praying for good fortune |
(ii) Write down the traits the poet exhibit through following lines. One is done for you.
(a) Henceforth, I ask for no good fortune- I myself am good fortune:
- Self-confident
(b) Henceforth, I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing-
- Confidence /encouragement
(c) I do not want the constellations any nearer-
- Fearlessness/self-trust/satisfaction/self-respect
(d) I swear it is impossible for me to get rid of them-
- Optimistic/acceptance
(e) I am filled with them- I will fill them in return-
- Will power/optimism
(iii) ‘Healthy, free, the world before me.’
Express your views regarding the above line.
- The poet is on the journey of his life. He says that there is no tension for making his journey happy. Additionally, the poet recognizes that it is he who is in control of his journey. The world before him is democratic, healthy and liberal. He will choose where the path will take him on his journey for his self development.
(A3) The poet has used many describing words such as ‘healthy’ in this poem.
Make a list and classify them as-
(a) For the world - free, healthy, sufficient,
(b) For himself - light-hearted, good-fortune, whimper, strong, content
(c) For the road - free, long brown path
(A4) (ii) The road in the poem does not mean only the road to travel. The poet wants to suggest the road of life.
Explain the metaphor with the help of the poem.
- Open Road” symbolizes freedom and opportunity. The poet wants to suggest the road of life means the freedom and opportunity. There are so many opportunities in our life we have to take those opportunities and build our life. There are so many ways/ roads in front of you. In this poem Whitman celebrates the out-of-doors, and the road in particular, as a space where men can come together in a meaningful way, where status and social markers matter less. A road is something everyone uses, whether they are rich or poor, and it forces all levels of people to associate with one another. The road, furthermore, signifies mobility: one can take the road to somewhere new. For Whitman, too, the road is a space for gathering the material for poetry. As he travels along it, he sees a variety of people and places, and hears a plethora of stories. He argues against staying in one place for too long, although the hospitality may be a lure, for only the tests of the open road will do.
(iv) There are certain words that are repeated in the poem.
For example, ‘no more’ (line 7)
Find out other similar expressions. Explain the effect they have created in the poem.
- Good-fortune
- i carry them
(v) The use of personal pronoun ‘I’ is evident and prominent in this poem. Give reasons. - The pronoun 'I' of the poem could not be merely the wanderer, it could be Whitman himself, the reader, and everyone or he is "a type of the all human race."
- It makes the universal appeal.
(A5) (ii) Write four to six lines of Free Verse on the topic ‘The road that leads to my college’. Express that it is the road to Knowledge and bright future.
You may begin like this: Every day I tread with the bag of books------
- Every day I tread with the bag of books
Marching towards my knowledge house. (college)
Learning the new things, making the future,
Marching towards my knowledge house. (college)
To build my future, to build my Nation,
Every day I tread with the bag of books.
 |
| ANUP MHETRE |
8 comments:
Nice activities.
Very well narration and tact to solve activities
Good one sir
Thank you
Oh god..this was really helpful.thanks 💓
Thankq so much
What are the poet's underlying feelings related to the memories of his past?
He calls the past memories delicious. He says that his life is occupied by them and he also keep them in the journey of his life. It means he can't separate himself from the past experiences that he got in the journey of his life. In the poem the poet calls his past memories has 'delicious burdens'. Here he wants to suggest the difficulties, bad memories that he faced in the journey of his life. But he calls them delicious because he has learned a lot of things from those difficult situations and made his life happy. But in future also he can not separate himself from the difficulties in life.here he will live the life with difficulties and sweet experiences that he faced in his life.
Thanks again 😃😃😃😃😃
Post a Comment