the poet phoebe cary in the poem a legend of northland tells a story to her readers but she says i don't believe this true why according to you does she use such contradiction
Answers
Which country or countries do you think “the Northland refers to?
Ans: Northland is described as a land somewhere in the north of the earth. It is a cold
country where people move on sledges drawn by reindeers. People wear heavy fur
clothes to keep themselves warm.
2. What did Saint Peter ask the old lady for? What was the lady’s reaction?
Ans: Saint Peter asked for a piece of cake to satiate his hunger as it had been a long
day preaching the gospels to humanity. The little woman did not refuse, but each time
she baked a cake for him, she found it was too small to eat but too big to give away for
free. She could not make herself give him even a wafer thin cake.
3. How did he punish her?
Ans: He punished her by transforming her into a woodpecker. Like a woodpecker, she
would have to make her own house and go in search of the scanty food she needed by
boring in the hard wood of trees.
4. How does a woodpecker get her food?
Ans: A woodpecker gets her food by boring/pecking in the hard barks of the trees.
5. Do you think that the old lady would have been so ungenerous if she had
known who Saint Peter really was? What would she have done?
Ans: Definitely not, she would not have behaved in such a selfish and greedy way.
Instead, she would have pleased him and served him most generously with as many
cakes as he wanted. Her behaviour was inhuman because of her ignorance.
6. Is this a true story? Which part of this poem do you feel is the most important?
Ans: It is a legend as humans cannot be changed to birds or vise versa. The main
purpose of the story is to teach and ingrain in the minds of the young, the value of
generosity and charity without any discrimination.
What is a legend? Why is this poem called a legend?
Ans: A legend is an old traditional story, usually with a moral teaching. The story is a
narration for children. The poet in the very onset says that she doesn’t believe this tale
to be true. This poem is called a legend because it teaches the purpose and value of generosity and charity to all fellow beings.
8. Write a story of ‘A Legend of the Northland’ in about ten sentences.
Ans: Once, Saint Peter stopped by a little woman’s cottage as he was very tired and
hungry, after a long day of preaching to humanity. The woman was baking cakes and
placing them in the shelf. He requested the lady to give him a single piece of cake. She
was not ready to part with any from her stock, as they seemed too big to be given in
charity. She therefore, started to prepare cakes, but each time she was to give it to him,
she thought it was too big. So, every time she took smaller balls of dough to bake the
cake. Finally, when she prepared a wafer-thin cake, she could not bear to part with that
too, as it also seemed too big to give for free. This act of the woman angered the saint
and in turn, he cursed her. She was punished to be a woodpecker, who would have to struggle to secure food remain alive.