Wednesday, October 4, 2023

WARNED, Sylvia Stults

UNIT 2C

SAVE OUR HOME 

Warned, Sylvia Stults 

WORD MEANING:

1.         Rendered – caused to come or happen

2.         Dimmed – not clear, faded

3.         Obscured – blocking the view from visibility, not clear

4.         Haze – causing or ending in death

5.         Gleamed – showed

6.         Abundant – available in plenty

7.         Littered – making dirty

8.         Plight – condition

9.         Barring – hindering, not allowing

10.       Baring – carrying

11.       Reap – harvest, producing crop

12.       Weed – unwanted grass

13.       Scarce – rare, shortage

 

C.2 READ THE STORY

a. What is meant by sands of time?

By ‘sands of time', the poet means the years that have passed by.

b. The phrase trunks baring professed love means.

These lines describe the beauty of trees. The author means that the trees were so tall and their huge branches were like trunks. As they go high and with wind falls on each other, the poet sees it as expressing their feeling, love and care by extending their branches.

 

C.6 ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

 

a. What does the poet mean by the, paper joined pollution’s team?

'Paper joined pollution's team' means that pollution caused by the production and use of paper. It talks about manufacture of paper which is also responsible for deforestation.

 

b. In what ways have our waters changed over time? How do you think the narrator feels about this change?

Before pollution our waters was crystal clear, gleamed and abundant with fish. Now littered, brown and polluted. It indicates a shift from gleamed waters to sandy brown ocean floor.

The narrator is sad by this change.

 

c. Why does the poet urge the reader to – Tear out old roots, cultivate, weed?

The poet urges the reader to "Tear out old roots, cultivate, weed" in order to encourage and promote a healthier environment. Deforestation has led the remains of the roots and needs immediate replacement with trees. Therefore, poet wants us to plant and cultivate trees.

 

d. What has been referred to in the poem as that fatal day? Why has it been called fatal?

The fatal day, in the poem, is referred to the day when the natural resources and beauty of our environment are lost due to pollution and human negligence. It is called fatal because once they’re gone, they cannot come back; and we cannot say, we did not know about it, for we were warned.

 

Ex. C.4 Based on your reading choose the correct options. (Page: 55)

The sands of time have rendered fear

Blue skies on high no longer clear

Stars where bright whence they came

Now dimmed, obscured, pollution’s haze

Crystal clear our waters gleamed

Ocean floors sandy white

Now littered, brown, pollution’s plight

a.         Find out the first line from the extract hinting that the poem talks about pollution.

            i. line 2

b.         Which of these adversities have NOT been mentioned in the extract?

            ii. noise pollution

c.         Which of these sentences can be determined based on the information given in the extract?

Sentence 1: The skies used to be blue and clear in the past.

Sentence 2: The skies are blue and clear now.

Sentence 3: The starts used to be dim and obscured by haze in the past.

Sentence 4: The stars are dim and obscured by haze now.

Sentence 5: The ocean floors used to be sandy and white in the past.

            ii. Sentences 1, 4 and 5 and 4

d.         Which option best describes the mood of the extract quoted from the poem.

            iii. lamenting

e.         Now dimmed, obscured, pollution’s haze – What does the word haze mean here?

            i. Something such as heat or smoke in the air that makes it less clear, so that it is difficult to see well.

 

C.7 ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

a. Why is the poem titled Warned? What is the warning about? How relevant is this warning today? Discuss.

The poem is titled "Warned" because it serves as a warning against degradation and pollution.

The warning is about irreversible damage. Once our natural resources, such as clean waters, blue skies, abundant wildlife, and healthy forests are gone, damaged or polluted, it will certainly affect us. Hence, the poet is warning us to take immediate action to protect and preserve these vital elements of our planet.

The warning is highly relevant even today as environmental issues like pollution, deforestation, and climate change continue to pose significant threats to our planet and future generations.

 

b. Imagine a tree that has seen the destruction of many other trees in the forest is talking to a woodcutter who has come to cut it down. Write a dialogue.

Tree: I beg you woodcutter, please do not hurt me. Woodcutter: But I need your wood to survive. If I do not sell the wood, my family will go hungry.

Tree: I understand, However, if you kill all the trees, will you and your family survive? Will any human be able to breathe if there are no trees around?"…

DO BY SELF

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