Important Questions for CBSE Class 11 English Woven Poem Chapter 9 - Refugee Blues

A. Very Short Answer Questions:         1 Mark

1. How does the poet feel? 

Ans: The poet is composing the poem in a serious tone, and he is unhappy and mistreated as he observes and realises what is going on around him.

2. What is an atlas and how is it used? 

Ans: An atlas is a world map that may be used to locate any location on the globe. It is used to get to any location or destination.

3. What was the reaction of the committee? 

Ans: The poet approached the committee, who offered him a chair and invited him to return the next year.

4. What did the poet see in the dream? 

Ans: The poet had a dream in which he saw a skyscraper with a thousand stories, windows, and doors.

5. Where did the poet go at the end? 

Ans: The poet went down to the train station to catch the express and requested two happy tickets, but every coach was filled.

B. Short Answer Questions                       2 marks 

6. Word – Meaning from the given chapter

i. Consul 

Ans: A governmental officer assigned to live in a foreign city and defend the citizens and interests of the state.

ii. Poodle 

A dog with a curly coat that is often ornamentally cut, of which there are various kinds. Poodle breeds are classed according to their size.

iii. Quay

A stone or metal platform for loading and unloading ships that are located alongside or projects into the water.

iv. Banged 

To strike with great force and vigour

7. Give opposites of the given terms from the chapter

i. Place

Ans: Displace

ii. Offered

Refused

iii. Dreamed

Reality

iv. Blossom

Fade

8. How did the poet describe the city? 

Ans: According to the poet, the metropolis contained about 10 million souls, some of whom lived in mansions and others in pits with no room for more.

9. What happens every spring? 

Ans: An old yew tree, a gymnosperm, grows in the village churchyard and blossoms with new flowers and young leaves every spring. This tree does not dry out and remains as it is.

10. What was officially dead and why? 

Ans: The consul slammed his fist on the table and warned the poet that if the individuals did not have their passports, they would be proclaimed officially dead to the rest of the world.

C. Short Answer Questions 3 marks 

11. Give the synonyms of the words from the given chapter

i. Living 

Ans:  Livelihood

ii. Fair 

Equitable

iii. Mind 

Intellect

iv. Fasten 

Secure

v. Stride

Secure 

vi. Rumbling

Grumbling

12. What do you understand by ‘blues’ in Refugee blues? 

Ans: A refugee is someone who flees their home country to avoid being persecuted because of their religion, politics, or conflict. The term ‘blues' here refers to the grief and dissatisfaction of slaves, and these gloomy songs portray their sadness through a slow and sad tune. 

13. What is a ‘yew’ and what is it compared to? 

Ans: The word ‘yew' is employed in the poem to represent an ever-blooming life. It never loses its leaves, and its branches never dry out. This tree is constantly in great shape. The poem compares the yew to a passport, which must be renewed on a regular basis.

14. What refers to ‘two tickets of happiness’? 

Ans: The poem's "two tickets of bliss" relate to the poet's and his partner's wishes for happiness. Because they were both homeless and unhappy, they were so anxious to be happy that they were willing to pay for it.

15. What do you understand by ‘steal our daily bread’? 

Ans: The poet refers to the food or money that the Jews carried with them when he says, "steal our daily bread." It was decreed that if Jews were allowed to live in their land, they would steal their food, money, and jobs once they arrived. They didn't want Jews to settle down and dwell in their nation, which they didn't own.

D. Long Answer Questions 5 marks 

16. What is the theme of the poem? 

Ans: The poem's central issue is that of refugees and their unhappiness. They were dismal and melancholy, and were known as "sad slave songs." The poet captures their anguish, despair, and persecution during their time as slaves and in refugee camps. The poem tells the storey of a Jewish couple who flees Germany and immigrates to America. These migrants were in excruciating pain since they had nowhere to go to resume their usual lives. They were also plagued by the fear of losing their house and dying.

17. What does the poem tell us about the experience and life of the refugees? 

Ans: The poem depicts the exiles' miserable and unhappy lives. The poem is about the losses of Jews during World War II, and it demonstrates that the refugee experience was not pleasant and that they lived in continual fear. They were in physically difficult and difficult circumstances, and their emotional feelings were equally difficult and low as a result of the bodily and mental agony. This agony and pain, which the exiles experienced most of the time, prompted the poet to emphasise the theme of freedom several times throughout the poem.

18. What was the role of birds and animals in the poem? 

Ans: The poet compares the lives of free birds and animals to that of Jews. The animals were free to roam and live wherever they pleased, whereas the Jews were terrorised and unwelcome in their new homes. The Jews were not as fortunate or respected as the birds and animals who lived in freedom. According to the Nazi administration, Jews did not even have the right to survive. The fish under the sea even felt free to swim without limitations or conditions, whereas the Jews had to live a life of suffering.

19. How were the human conditions compared with each other and why? 

Ans: The poet drew a parallel between human problems and political behaviour. The poem was written in a time when Germany was embracing Nazi philosophy and political intellectuals were eager to exterminate the whole Jewish community. The Jews were looked down upon with venom. They were terrified and perplexed because they were unable to return to the country that had once belonged to them. They were stripped of their identities and were constantly threatened with death. On the other hand, there was a group of people who wanted them to die and who wanted to murder the Jews. One was the one who was in pain, and the other was the one who was inflicting it.

20. What were the things that the poet witnesses in the poem? 

Ans: The poet noticed a yew tree in the village churchyard that produced new branches every spring. He could hear thunder thundering in the distance. He noticed a poodle inside the pin-fastened jacket. He noticed an open door and let the cat in through it. He walked down the wharf and down the harbour. He noticed the fish swimming around 10 feet away from him as if they were all free. He took a trip through the woods and noticed birds singing freely in the trees.

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