1. The peasants came like swarms of flies and buzzed the name of God a hundred times to paralyse the Evil One.
a. Why did the peasants come?
b. What figure of speech has been used here and what fact does it convey?
c. What role did the peasants play?
d. Who has been referred to as 'the Evil One? Do you think this is an appropriate epithet?
Answers
The answers to the following questions are as follows:
Enlightening the overview of the poem:
a) The peasants descended on the Evil One like swarms of insects, buzzing the name of God a hundred times to paralyze him. They searched for him with candles and lanterns, casting gigantic scorpion shadows on the mud-baked walls, but he was not found. They made tongue clicks.
b) The poem makes extensive use of the figure of speech. The poem employs metaphor, personification, simile, imagery, hyperbole, irony, and alliteration.
c) Food, fuel, wool, and other resources were harvested by peasants. The land was split into estates, each of which was administered by a lord or an institution such as a monastery or college.
d) The scorpion is referred to as "the evil one" in this case. It is an inappropriate epithet because it is a monster that had accidentally stung the poet's mother.
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