Samacheer Kalvi 6th English Solutions Term 2 –  Poem Chapter 2 From a Railway Carriage

Poem Chapter 2-  From a Railway Carriage

Poem Overview

No.	Poem Line	Explanation
1-2	Faster than fairies, faster than witches, Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches;	The poet says that the train runs more quickly than the fairies that can fly or the witches can move. It rushes leaving behind bridges, houses, fences and ditches.
3-4	And charging along like troops in a battle, All through the meadows the horses and cattle:	When the train advances forward it seems as the soldiers are attacking enemy in a battlefield. It runs and leaves behind the green fields where horses and cattle are grazing.
5-6	All of the sights of the hill and the plain Fly as thick as driving rain;	All the scenes of hill and plain were being crossed by train as quick as one drop of rain follows another drop in a storm.
7-8	And ever again, in the wink of an eye, Painted stations whistle by.	Again and again in a very short moment, the train was crossing painted stations with a whistle.
9-10	Here is a child who clambers and scrambles, All by himself and gathering brambles;	He also sees a child climbing a steep ground by himself with difficulty. During his climb, he gathers blackberries.
11-12	Here is a tramp who stands and gazes; And there is the green for stringing the daisies!	He sees a tramp or a homeless person who was looking at the train with amazement. Some ladies were making garlands of daisy flowers.
13-14	Here is a cart run away in the road, Lumping along with man and load;	He sees a cart moving slowly in the middle of a highway. It was loaded with a cart driver and a load.
15-16	And here is a mill and there is ariver: Each a glimpse and gone forever!	He sees a watermill and a river, while travelling in the train. All these objects appeared and disappeared so quickly that the poet looked at them only for a short time and they can never be seen again.

Read And Understand

A. Read the lines and answer the questions given below.

1. Faster than fairies, faster than witches,
Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches;

a. What is faster than fairies and witches?
Answer:
The train runs faster than fairies and witches.

b. Why does the poet mention ‘bridges and houses, hedges and ditches’? Where are they?
Answer:
The poet mentions them because we can see them while travelling in a train.
They are on the way of the train journey.

2. Here is a child who clambers and scrambles,
All by himself and gathering brambles;

a. Where do you think the child is?
Answer:
The poet sees a child in the fields climbing up a very steep ground.

b. What does ‘gathering brambles’ mean?
Answer:
He climbs with difficulty and gathers blackberries.

3. And ever again, in the wink of an eye,
Painted stations whistle by.

a. ‘In the wink of an eye’ means very quickly. Explain ‘painted stations whistle by’.
Answer:
Many colourful buildings of stations appear and disappear in a glance due to the speed of the train.

4. Each a glimpse and gone forever;

a. What is ‘each’ over here? Why is it gone forever?
Answer:

Each refers to the place or object , the poet come across while travelling.
All the objects appeared and disappeared so quickly that the poet looked at them only for a short time and they can never be seen again.

I. Poem Comprehension And Poetic Devices. (Additional)

1. And charging along like troops in a battle,
All through the meadows the horses and cattle:

Question a.
How does the train move forward?
Answer:
The train moves forward, like the soldiers attacking the enemy in a battlefield.

Question b.
Where do the horses and cattle graze?
Answer:
They graze in the meadows.

Question c.
What is the figure of speech in the first line?
Answer:
Simile.

2. Here is a tramp who stands and gazes;
And there is the green for stringing the daisies!

Question a.
Who is a tramp?
Answer:
A tramp is a homeless person, who travels from place to place on foot in search of work.

Question b.
What does the poet mention in the line ‘There is the green’?
Answer:
Green is a common grassy village land, where ladies make garlands of daisies.

Question c.
Pick out the rhyming words.
Answer:
gazes – daises are rhyming words.

3. Here is a cart run away in the road,
Lumping along with man and load;

Question a.
Where was the cart?
Answer:
The cart was in the middle of the road.

Question b.
How was it moving?
Answer:
Due to the heavy load, it was moving awkwardly. The cartman was also sitting on the cart.

Question c.
Identify the rhyming words here?
Answer:
The rhyming words are road – load.

4. Faster than fairies, faster than witches,
Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches;
And charging along like troops in a battle,
All through the meadows the horses and cattle:

Question a.
Who is moving faster than fairies and witches?
Answer:
The train is moving faster than fairies and witches.

Question b.
What is the rhyming scheme used here?
Answer:
The rhyming scheme is ‘a a b b’.

Question c.
Write down the words in Alliteration.
Answer:
The Alliterated words are :
(1) faster – fairies – faster
(2) houses – hedges

5. And ever again, in the wink for an eye, Painted stations whistle by
‘In the wink of the eye’ means very ________.
Answer:
Quickly.

6. All of the sights of the hill and the plain
Fly as thick as driving rain;
And ever again, in the wink of an eye,
Painted stations whistle by.

Question a.
What is the rhyme scheme of these lines?
Answer:
The rhyme scheme of these lines is ‘a a b b’.

Question b.
What figure of speech is employed in the second line.,
Answer:
Simile. The hill and plain fly as the driving rain. They pass quickly as one drop of the rain follows another drop in a storm.

Question c.
How do the painted stations pass by?
Answer:
The stations pass by in a very short moment.

7. Here is a child who clambers and scrambles,
All by himself and gathering brambles;

Question a.
Pick out the alliterated words in these lines.
Answer:
The Alliterated words are :
by – brambles

Question b.
What does the child do?
Answer:
The child clambers and scrambles to gather blackberries.

Question c.
Is the child alone?
Answer:
Yes, the child is alone.

B. Answer the following questions.

1. What does ‘charges along like troops in a battle’ mean?
Answer:
The train runs forward as quickly as army soldiers attack the enemy in the battlefield.

2. What word could best replace ‘charges’ in the poem – marches, rushes or pushes?
Answer:
‘Marches’ could best replace ‘charges’ in the poem.

3. Why does the child clamber and scramble?
Answer:
The child clambers and scrambles to gather blackberries.

C. Think and write.

1. Write a paragraph about 5O words describing the scenes that the poet passed by.
Answer:
The scenes described by the poet are the following. There were bridges and houses, hedges and ditches. The horses and cattle were seen on the meadows. A child was clambering and scrambling to gather brambles. A cart was running away in the road carrying a load. There were a mill and a river. But all the scenes were gone for ever.

2. There is a connection between the rhyming words and rhythms of the train. Present your views about it.
Answer:
The poem coveys the experience of a railway journey through the rhythm of verse. This poem is a masterly piece of versification, using its sprightly rhythm to evoke the movement of a train. The rhythm of the poem echoes the rhythm of the train, with the rhyme scheme suggesting the sense of repetition – the poem being written in rhyming couplets. For example witches / ditches, battle / cattle, plain / rain, etc. The rhythm of the poetic lines is regular and steady, but the view from the window of the train is constantly changing.

D. Fill in the blanks to complete the summary.

Ever since their introduction, rhymes, and their unique rhythms have inspired poets. In this poem, the poet shares his experience of a Journey in a Railway Carriage with us. He presents natural scenes seen from the window of a railway carriage. The rhythm of the lines is regular and steady but the view from the window of the train is constantly changing. The poem’s rhythm and phrases bring speed and exhilaration to a railway journey. The poet looks out of the window at the fast-moving array of images outside. Every line we see here is a quick account of something seen for a short moment. The line that best sums up is the final one: “Each a glimpse and gone forever!”

E. Find me in the poem.

1. I can help you to cross the river – ________.
2. I can border your garden – ________.
3. I can alert you – ________.
4. I can carry you – ________.
5. You can ride on me – ________.
6. You can climb on me – ________.
7. You can lay down on me – ________.
8. You can play with me – ________.

Answers:

1. bridge
2. hedge
3. troop
4. cart
5. horse
6. bramble
7. meadow
8. child

Appreciating The Poem

F. Work in pairs.

A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two things. Similes explicitly use connecting words such as ‘like’ and ‘as’,

eg. ‘as cool as’; ‘like a child’.

1. Discuss with your partner and pick out the similes used in the poem. Which one do you like the most? Why?
Answer:
Similes used in this poem are :
(i) ‘And charging along like troops in a battle’.
(ii) ‘Ely as thick as driving rain’
I like the second one the most because the poet says all the sights of hills and plains fly as quickly as a drop of rain following another drop in a storm.

2. Discuss with your, partner, and pick out the rhyming words from the poem.
Answer:
The rhyming words in the poem are :
“witches – ditches ; battle – cattle ; plain – rain; eye – by ; scrambles – brambles; gazes – daisies ; road – load ; river – forever”.

Creative Writing

Cinquain Poem:

• Brainstorm some interesting nouns, verbs, and adjectives connected to travel.
• Pick out the most descriptive words from your brainstorming and put your cinquain together.
• Your cinquain should have five lines and the finished poem should have only eleven words.

A cinquain poem has eleven words arranged like this :
Line 1: A single word title -a noun.
Line 2: Two words that describe the title- adjectives.
Line 3: Three words that describe the action of the title.
Line 4: Four words that describe a feeling in a phrase.
Line 5: One word that repeats the title.

e.g.:
Train
long snaking
hooting, chugging, steaming
along the winding tracks
Procession

Answer:
(1) Nouns: Train, plane, carriage, compartment, journey, window, scenery, view, sights, pictures, landscape, hedges, ditches, fairies, houses, bridges, witches, plains, hills, rivers, child, mill, stations, horses and cattle, flight.

(2) Verbs: run, move, see, view, fly, clambers, scrambles, charge, stand, gaze, enjoy, look, gather, carry, board.

(3) Adjective: colourful, painted, twisting, curving, winding, crossing, driving, stringing, charging, gathering, booking, boarding, landing, next, international.

Cinquain poem connected to travel.

e.g.:

Flight
next, international
booking, boarding, landing
no place like home
plane

G. Pick out the nouns from the poem. Write as many Cinquain poems as you can.

Answer:
1. Fairy
humble, sweet
working, dreaming, helping
heart full of action
goddess

2. Flowers
colourful, fragrant
swaying, growing, blooming
make me feel happy
blossoms.

3. Child
innocent, playful
laughing, running, dreaming
lonely in the track
tramp

From a Railway Carriage Summary

Robert Louis Stevenson’s poem ‘From a Railway Carriage’ communicates a child’s excitement at travelling by train and takes us on an unforgettable picture book journey. The poet shares his experience of a railway journey. He says that the train runs faster than the fairies and witches. It runs so fast that the bridges, houses, rows of thorny plants, and ditches pass by in a moment. It goes forward as quickly as army soldiers attack the enemy on the battlefield.

The train runs through common grassy lands, where horses and cattle are grazing. All the sights pass as quickly as a drop of rain follows another drop. Many colourful buildings of stations appear and disappear at a glance due to the speed of the train.

The poet sees a child climbing up the steep ground. He moves with difficulty and gathers blackberries. He also sees a homeless person looking at the train with amazement. He sees some ladies making garlands of daisies in a common grassy village land. In the middle of the road, there was a cart with the load. Due to the heavy load, it was moving awkwardly. The cart man was sitting on the cart. He sees a river and a flour mill. All these scenes appeared and disappeared in a very short moment.