Class 11 English (Elective) Poem 3 – Coming Important Question Answers from Woven Words Book
Class 11 English (Elective) Coming Important Question Answers – Looking for questions and answers for CBSE Class 11 English (Elective) Poem 3- Coming? Look no further! Our comprehensive compilation of important questions will help you brush up on your subject knowledge. Practising Class 11 English question answers can significantly improve your performance in the exam. Improve your chances of scoring high marks by exploring Poem 3 – Coming now. The questions listed below are based on the latest CBSE exam pattern, wherein we have given NCERT solutions to the chapter’s extract-based questions, multiple choice questions and Extra Question Answers
Also, practising with different kinds of questions can help students learn new ways to solve problems that they may not have seen before. This can ultimately lead to a deeper understanding of the subject matter and better performance on exams.
- Coming NCERT Solutions
- Coming Extract Based Questions
- Coming Multiple Choice Questions
- Coming Extra Question Answers
Related:
Coming Textbook Questions (NCERT Solutions)
UNDERSTANDING THE POEM
1. What does the bird in the poem announce? How is this related to the title, ‘Coming’?
Ans. The bird, specifically, a thrush, announces the arrival of spring through its song. This connects directly to the title “Coming,” which refers to the seasonal change from winter to spring. The coming of spring symbolizes renewal, warmth, and life returning, both in nature and in the speaker’s emotional landscape.
2. Why is the speaker’s childhood described as ‘a forgotten boredom’?
Ans. The speaker reflects on his childhood as something distant and uneventful, “a forgotten boredom”, suggesting it was uneventful or emotionally disconnected. This detachment contrasts with the sudden, almost innocent joy the speaker feels now, reminiscent of a child witnessing a moment of adult reconciliation.
3. What causes the element of surprise when the child comes on the scene of ‘adult reconciling’?
Ans. The surprise comes from the child’s lack of understanding of adult emotions and situations. The reconciliation is not fully grasped, but the “unusual laughter” conveys a positive emotional shift. The child senses happiness without knowing the cause, and this emotional state triggers joy in the child.
4. What two things are compared in the poem?
Ans. The poem compares the arrival of spring to the emotional experience of a child witnessing adult reconciliation. It contrasts the external change in seasons with an internal emotional awakening in the speaker, capturing the innocence and purity of happiness.
5. How do you respond to these lines?
Light, chill and yellow,
Bathes the serene
Foreheads of houses
Ans. These lines evoke a calm and gentle transition into spring. The imagery of “yellow” light bathing the houses suggests a golden hour, delicate and peaceful. It reflects nature’s quiet beauty and its subtle influence on the human mood, marking the end of winter and the beginning of warmth and change.
6. Comment on the use of the phrase ‘fresh-peeled voice’.
Ans. The phrase “fresh-peeled voice” is a metaphor for the bird’s song. It suggests something newly revealed or tender, like fruit just peeled. This creates a sense of purity, freshness, and vulnerability in the bird’s call, showing its natural beauty and the freshness of the coming season.
TRY THIS OUT
1. The song of a bird is often the first sign of spring. Do you know the bird that signals the advent of vasant or spring in our country?
Ans. In India, the koel (Asian koel) is often associated with the arrival of Vasant (spring). Its melodious song is heard during the onset of spring and is deeply embedded in Indian poetry and folk traditions as a herald of the new season.
2. Do you know of other spring poems? How is this poem different from them?
Ans. Some well-known spring poems include, “Spring” by William Blake, “Lines Written in Early Spring” by William Wordsworth, “Spring” by Gerard Manley Hopkins. These poems often celebrate spring with exuberance, focusing on nature’s beauty and the joy of rebirth. Larkin’s Coming, however, blends nature’s change with introspective reflection. It is more subdued and emotionally layered, highlighting how a seasonal shift evokes emotional awakening and nostalgic happiness, rather than only praising the beauty of spring.
CBSE Class 11 English (Elective) Poem 3 Coming Extract-Based Questions
A.
“On longer evenings,
Light, chill and yellow,
Bathes the serene
Foreheads of houses.”
1. What time of year is suggested by the phrase “longer evenings”?
Ans. The phrase “longer evenings” suggests that the poem is set during the transition from winter to spring when days start to grow longer.
2. How is the light described, and what mood does it create?
Ans. The light is described as “chill and yellow,” which creates a calm yet slightly cold atmosphere, evoking the quiet stillness of early spring evenings.
3. What does the phrase “serene / Foreheads of houses” refer to?
Ans. The “serene foreheads of houses” metaphorically refers to the upper parts or fronts of houses, which are peacefully illuminated by the soft yellow light.
4. What is the effect of the word ‘bathes’ in this context?
Ans. The word ‘bathes’ gives a soothing and gentle quality to the light, suggesting a calm and nurturing presence of nature over the built environment.
5. How does this extract set the tone for the rest of the poem?
Ans. This extract sets a quiet, reflective, and transitional tone, which aligns with the poem’s theme of seasonal and emotional change.
B.
“A thrush sings,
Laurel-surrounded
In the deep bare garden,
Its fresh-peeled voice
Astonishing the brickwork.”
1. Which bird is mentioned in this extract and what is it doing?
Ans. A thrush is mentioned in this extract, and it is singing from within a garden.
2. What does “laurel-surrounded” suggest about the bird’s setting?
Ans. “Laurel-surrounded” suggests that the thrush is sitting amidst laurel bushes, indicating greenery and a sheltered spot in the garden.
3. Explain the meaning of “fresh-peeled voice.”
Ans. “Fresh-peeled voice” is a metaphor describing the bird’s song as new, clear, and pure, like the freshness of something newly uncovered or revealed.
4. Why is the brickwork said to be ‘astonished’?
Ans. The brickwork is described as ‘astonished’ to convey how the bird’s vibrant and sudden song contrasts with the stillness and silence of the garden walls, bringing life and surprise to the scene.
5. What theme does this extract reinforce?
Ans. This extract reinforces the theme of renewal and awakening that comes with spring, using the bird’s song to symbolize emotional and natural rebirth.
C.
“It will be spring soon,
It will be spring soon—
And I, whose childhood
Is a forgotten boredom,
Feel like a child
Who comes on a scene
Of adult reconciling,
And can understand nothing
But the unusual laughter,
And starts to be happy.”
1. What emotion does the repetition of ‘It will be spring soon’ convey?
Ans. The repetition emphasizes a sense of anticipation and emotional readiness for change, suggesting that spring brings hope and renewal.
2. How does the speaker describe his childhood?
Ans. The speaker describes his childhood as “a forgotten boredom,” indicating a sense of emotional detachment or lack of fond memories.
3. What is the child in the simile unaware of, and what does he notice instead?
Ans. The child is unaware of the reason for the adult reconciliation but notices the “unusual laughter,” which makes him instinctively feel happy.
4. What does the phrase “starts to be happy” suggest about the speaker’s emotional state?
Ans. The phrase suggests a subtle shift in the speaker’s emotions, indicating a slow and surprising return of joy triggered by the arrival of spring.
5. How does this extract capture the theme of emotional awakening?
Ans. The extract captures emotional awakening by showing how the speaker, like a child witnessing unfamiliar joy, begins to feel happiness without fully understanding it, mirroring the natural renewal of spring.
Class 11 Coming Multiple-Choice Questions
1. Who is the poet of the poem Coming?
(a) William Wordsworth
(b) Robert Frost
(c) Philip Larkin
(d) Ted Hughes
Ans. (c) Philip Larkin
2. What season is being welcomed in the poem?
(a) Winter
(b) Summer
(c) Spring
(d) Autumn
Ans. (c) Spring
3. What is the colour of the light described in the beginning of the poem?
(a) Red
(b) White
(c) Yellow
(d) Blue
Ans. (c) Yellow
4. What bird is mentioned in the poem?
(a) Sparrow
(b) Thrush
(c) Cuckoo
(d) Crow
Ans. (b) Thrush
5. Where is the thrush located?
(a) On the rooftop
(b) On a plant
(c) Laurel-surrounded in a bare garden
(d) Inside a house
Ans. (c) Laurel-surrounded in a bare garden
6. How is the bird’s voice described?
(a) Loud and shrill
(b) Hoarse and dry
(c) Sweet and mellow
(d) Fresh-peeled
Ans. (d) Fresh-peeled
7. What is the thrush’s voice said to astonish?
(a) The sky
(b) The grass
(c) The brickwork
(d) The garden tools
Ans. (c) The brickwork
8. What does the repetition “It will be spring soon” signify?
(a) Anxiety
(b) Despair
(c) Joy and anticipation
(d) Confusion
Ans. (c) Joy and anticipation
9. How does the poet describe his childhood?
(a) Full of wonder
(b) A forgotten boredom
(c) A joyful memory
(d) Full of love
Ans. (b) A forgotten boredom
10. What is the child in the poem confused by?
(a) Birds singing
(b) School lessons
(c) Adults reconciling
(d) The colours of spring
Ans. (c) Adults reconciling
11. What does the child understand from the adults?
(a) Their argument
(b) Their jokes
(c) Their unusual laughter
(d) Their sadness
Ans. (c) Their unusual laughter
12. How does the child react to the scene of adults laughing?
(a) Becomes sad
(b) Starts to cry
(c) Feels afraid
(d) Starts to be happy
Ans. (d) Starts to be happy
13. What literary device is used in “fresh-peeled voice”?
(a) Simile
(b) Alliteration
(c) Metaphor
(d) Hyperbole
Ans. (c) Metaphor
14. What kind of tone is established in the beginning of the poem?
(a) Harsh and violent
(b) Quiet and reflective
(c) Angry and loud
(d) Humorous
Ans. (b) Quiet and reflective
15. What does the poem Coming celebrate?
(a) End of childhood
(b) Arrival of summer
(c) Transition to spring and emotional renewal
(d) Daily routine
Ans. (c) Transition to spring and emotional renewal
16. What mood does the evening light evoke?
(a) Fear
(b) Aggression
(c) Calmness
(d) Jealousy
Ans. (c) Calmness
17. What is the poetic form of Coming?
(a) Sonnet
(b) Free verse
(c) Haiku
(d) Ballad
Ans. (b) Free verse
18. What kind of laughter does the child hear?
(a) Unusual
(b) Mocking
(c) Angry
(d) Silent
Ans. (a) Unusual
19. What does the speaker begin to feel towards the end of the poem?
(a) Anger
(b) Nostalgia
(c) Coldness
(d) Happiness
Ans. (d) Happiness
20. What is the overall theme of the poem?
(a) Loss of innocence
(b) Change and renewal through nature
(c) Conflict between generations
(d) The sadness of aging
Ans. (b) Change and renewal through nature
CBSE Class 11 English (Elective) Poem 3- Coming Extra Question and Answers
1. What is the significance of the light described as “chill and yellow”?
Ans. The description “chill and yellow” captures the delicate transition between winter and spring. The word “chill” reflects the lingering coldness of winter evenings, while “yellow” symbolizes the soft, early light of the approaching spring. This combination of words creates an atmosphere that mirrors both hesitation and hope. It suggests a natural shift in seasons that is both subtle and beautiful. The light bathing the “foreheads of houses” emphasizes the peaceful effect of this change. It sets the tone for the rest of the poem, where nature quietly announces renewal and emotional transformation.
2. Why is the bird’s song described as “astonishing the brickwork”?
Ans. The phrase “astonishing the brickwork” personifies the inanimate environment, suggesting that the thrush’s song is so pure and unexpected that even the ordinary surroundings seem amazed by it. The brickwork represents stability, dullness, and manmade life, whereas the bird’s song brings freshness, and natural beauty. This contrast symbolizes the power of nature to surprise, uplift, and transform human surroundings. The song of the bird disrupts the stillness of the setting, reminding the speaker, and the reader, of the emotional impact of seasonal change. It marks the arrival of spring not just physically, but spiritually and emotionally.
3. Why does the speaker feel like a child witnessing “adult reconciling”?
Ans. The speaker’s comparison to a child witnessing “adult reconciling” reflects confusion mixed with joy. The child does not fully understand the situation but can sense a positive shift through “unusual laughter.” Similarly, the speaker doesn’t intellectualize the arrival of spring but emotionally responds to it. The metaphor highlights a return to innocence, where feelings take precedence over logic. The joy of spring, like laughter after a dispute, is spontaneous and healing. It stirs something forgotten in the speaker’s heart, suggesting that even if childhood memories have faded, the instinct to feel happiness in renewal still remains.
4. How does the poem explore the theme of emotional renewal?
Ans. The poem reflects emotional renewal through the imagery of changing seasons. Spring symbolizes rebirth, fresh starts, and optimism. The singing thrush and the yellow evening light convey the revival of both nature and inner joy. The speaker, initially disconnected from his childhood and emotions, gradually feels uplifted by the surroundings. His transformation, feeling like a child again, illustrates how nature’s rhythms can awaken forgotten feelings. This renewal isn’t dramatic but gentle and subconscious. The poem suggests that emotional healing can occur quietly, much like spring’s arrival, and that happiness can emerge even from long-lost or neglected emotional spaces.
5. In what way is the poem a reflection on time and memory?
Ans. Coming subtly meditates on time and memory by contrasting the present sensory experience with the speaker’s forgotten past. The line “my childhood is a forgotten boredom” shows how distant and uneventful the past seems to him now. Yet, through nature’s transformation, he for a short time reconnects with childlike feelings. The image of a child stumbling upon adults laughing is a powerful metaphor for trying to grasp something once familiar but now foreign. The poem suggests that memory is not always literal, emotions can return even if exact memories do not. Nature’s cycles invite us to reflect on how time both changes and revives us.