'Remember no men are foreign
II. Read the following lines and answer the following questions given below
Let us remember
, whenever we are told
To hate our brothers it is ourselves.
That we shall dispossess, betray, condemn.
Remember, we who take arms against each other.
It is the human earth that we defile.
Our hells of fire and dust outrage the innocence,
Of air that is everywhere our own.
Remember, no men are foreign, and no countries strange.
1. Should we hate our fellow men ?
2. Should we take arms against each other?
3. How do we defile the human earth?
4. Do all breathe the same air ?
5. Explain: 'no men are foreign, and no countries strange'
.
Answers
The questions refer to the poem 'No men are foreign' by James Kirkup.
1. Should we hate our fellow men ?
No, there should be no hatred in our hearts for our fellow men. In fact the poet is saying that we are all brothers and not enemies; so, there is no place for hatred.
2. Should we take arms against each other?
No, it does not make sense to take arms against each other, because essentially we are all the same and equal citizens of the earth.
3. How do we defile the human earth?
We defile the human earth by getting into wars with our own fellow human beings. War causes a lot of destruction. Explosions, widespread destruction and bloodshed all defile the earth. Similarly, drawing geographical boundaries and fighting for them also ruins the sanctity of the earth.
4. Do all breathe the same air ?
Yes, all human beings breathe the same air. Though land is divided into countries, it is not possible to make compartments in the air. Therefore, things like air and sunlight are common to all human beings and shared by them.
5. Explain: 'no men are foreign, and no countries strange'.
This line conveys that all human beings are equal and residents of the earth. Man himself has drawn up boundaries between countries. However these are superficial boundaries because all human beings are the same everywhere. All of mankind shares the same natural resources like the sun and air, and feel the same emotions. This means that if we ignore boundaries, it becomes evident that no men are foreign and no countries are strange.