Read the given extract and
answer the Question follows:
Aud who ast thou? said I
to the falling showed. (a)who is being adressed here?
(b)what seems strange to the poet?
(c) name the poet
(d) what is the significance of the rain?
Answers
In this poem, the poet asks the soft falling raindrops that who she is. It is strange that the rain
answers, calling itself the poem of the Earth. The rain says that she cannot be touched and rises
up in the form of vapor out of the land and deep sea and floats up to heaven, where it changes its
form and becomes a cloud but its core existence remains the same. Then it falls back to the
surface of the Earth to refresh (wash) the drought-filled land. The seeds which are dormant under
the soil, grow (germinate) with its help. The Earth becomes vital and beautiful because it always
gives new life to the Earth when it returns to its origin (mother Earth). It makes the Earth clean
and green. The poet says that the rain returns to its birth place (the Earth) making complete its
cycle. It does not care whether anybody pays heed or not, rain continuously does her own work