Class 12: English (Poem) Chapter 1 solutions. Complete Class 12 English (Poem) Chapter 1 Notes.
NCERT Solutions for 12th Class English (Poem): Chapter 1-My Mother at Sixty-six
NCERT 12th English (Poem) Chapter 1, class 12 English (Poem) chapter 1 solutions
Page No: 90
Before You Read (NCERT 12th Class English Chapter 1)
Ageing is a natural process; have you ever thought what our elderly parents expect from us?
Answer
Aged people usually undergo pangs of loneliness and need companionship. The pessimistic approach they develop towards life can be shunned only if we provide them with abundant love, care, importance and empathy. They expect their children to sit calmly and talk to them about the happenings of their lives and to take their suggestions for making significant decisions. Their lost vitality can thus be easily rejuvenated. This happiness will encourage them to live life enthusiastically.
Page No: 91
Think it Out (NCERT 12th Class English Chapter 1)
1. What is the kind of pain and ache that the poet feels?
Answer
The emotional pain and ache that the poet feels is due to the realization that her mother has gone old and has become frail and pale like a corpse. She is dependent on her children. The ache also refers to the old familiar ache of the childhood that revisits the poet due to the mother’s old age and her approaching end.
2. Why are the young trees described as 'sprinting'?
Answer
The young trees are personified in the poem. They seem to be running in the opposite direction when seen through the window of the moving car. The movement is juxtaposed with the expression on the mother’s face i.e. ashen like a corpse. The movement of the children and the trees is in stark contrast with the stillness associated with the mother.
3. Why has the poet brought in the image of the merry children 'spilling out of their homes'?
Answer
The poet highlights the helplessness and frailty of old age with the help of contrasts. The mother dozes off mouth open, whereas the children spilling out of their homes signify movement and energy, enthusiasm and vivacity, which the old people are bereft off.
4. Why has the mother been compared to the 'late winter's moon'?
Answer
The mother has been compared to the late winter’s moon which is dull and shrouded. It symbolizes the ebbing of life. The moon brings to the poets mind night or the approaching end of life. The mother like the late winter’s moon is dull, dim and dismal.
5. What do the parting words of the poet and her smile signify?
Answer
The parting words ‘see you soon Amma’ are used by the poet to reassure the mother and to infuse optimism in the poet herself. The poet accepts the reality yet keeps up the façade of smiling in order to put up a brave front. It requires a lot of effort and hence the poet has used the poetic device of repetition.
NCERT Solutions for 12th Class English (Poem): Chapter 1: Download PDF
NCERT Solutions for 12th Class English (Poem): Chapter 1-My Mother at Sixty-six
Download PDF: NCERT Solutions for 12th Class English (Poem): Chapter 1-My Mother at Sixty-six PDF
Chapterwise NCERT Solutions for Class 12 English (Poem):
- Chapter 1 - My Mother At Sixty-six
- Chapter 2 - An Elementary School Classroom In a Slum
- Chapter 3 - Keeping Quiet
- Chapter 4 - A Thing Of Beauty
- Chapter 5 - A Roadside Stand
- Chapter 6 - Aunt Jennifer's Tigers
About NCERT
The National Council of Educational Research and Training is an autonomous organization of the Government of India which was established in 1961 as a literary, scientific, and charitable Society under the Societies Registration Act. Its headquarters are located at Sri Aurbindo Marg in New Delhi. Visit the Official NCERT website to learn more.