Poem: Fire and Ice Class10th cbse, Detailed notes

FIRST FLIGHT  CLASS: 10  poem 'FIRE AND ICE ' Explanation of Stanzas  word Meaning and Questions Answers.
             
      prepared by : Sujeet Kumar

           
             Fire and Ice
                 Robert Frost
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INTRODUCTION
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The poem titled ' Fire and Snow ' by Robert Frost is about the factors which are supposed to lead the end of the world. The poet does say anything away from the classical point of views he has heard about the doomsday. He simply interprets and explains the pre - established theories about it in his own way.

STANZA: 1
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Some say the world will end in fire
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favour fire.

WORDS
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tasted - examined, observed, proved
favour- support, approve

EXPlANATION
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Here, the poet tells about two classical theories about the end of the world ; and then puts forward his own interpretation.

According to the poet there is a group of people who say that a day Will come when this world will be destroyed because of the burning action of fire.

The possible reasons for this might be the explosion in the Sun which might lead to the increase in earth's temperature to an intolerable degree or due to some physical changes the earth's core might get so heated up as to destroy the land's surface completely.

The poet does not reject the idea. He simply relates the ' fire ' to fiery desires of human beings and says that ' fire' and ' fiery desires' have equal properties. Both , if uncontrolled,  can do away with any existing entity.


LITERARY DEVICES
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1. Alliteration
Line 1. some say
             world will

Line 2. some say

Line 4. favour fire

2. Rhyming scheme of the extract :
     abaa


 IMPORTANT QUESTIONS
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Q1. What according to the poet is the general conception about doomsday ?

Ans : According to the poet the general conception about the doomsday is that the earth will meet its end because of the destructive power of either the fire or the ice.


Q2. Who is 'I ' in the last line ?

Ans: Narrator / poet / speaker


Q3. How will the earth be destroyed because of the desires of the human beings ?


Ans : Human beings are the creators as well as the carriers of innumerable desires. Desires if unbridled go on rising like the waves of an ocean. Desires have intensity - some are mild, some strong.
Unfulfilled strong desires give birth to anger ; anger does away with wisdom and the wisdomless men are sure to act so erratically as to end the purpose of everything including the earth.


Q4. What is the similarity between the desire and the fire ?


And: There are following similarities between the desire and the fire:
# If uncontrolled both the desires and the fire lead to destruction.

# both have intensity - mild to strong. If mild, they are likely to create; if strong they may cause destruction.


Q5. Find a word from the extract Which means proved.


Ans: tested.


Q6. Find a word from the extract Which means to support somebody and something.


Ans: favour.

Q 7. What is the rhyming scheme of the extract ?

Ans: abaa


STANZA : 2
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But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.


WORDS
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perish - destroy, to put to death
suffice- be sufficient


EXPLANATION
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In this extract, the poet expounds the second theory regarding the destruction of the world by ice.

The poet says that there is yet another group of people who say that the world will be destroyed because of ice.

A day might come when the temperature of the whole earth might go down to the freezing point making life practically impossible on earth.

The poet interprets this idea in his own philosophical way. He simply relates ' ice ' to the sense of ' hatred ' and say that both ' ice ' and sense of ' hatred ' are equal in nature. Water and feelings of relationship are something which must flow from one place to another and From one person to another.
When water becomes ice the flow of the liquid stops and when the sense of hatred grows , the feeling of oneness is blocked. The human beings become self centered and don't take part the pain and pleasure of the people of his race. This is nothing but the solidification of humanity which puts the real life to a real death.


LITERARY DEVICES
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1. Rhyming scheme of this extract :
   Ababa

2. Imagery
Line - 3
To say that for destruction ice.


IMPORTANT QUESTIONS
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Q 1. Explain " I think I know enough of hate ".


Ans : This line explains the narrator's point of view regarding the end of the earth. The narrator says that the growth of hate among humans for various reasons will create social and mutual distance between man and man and they will start practising enmity among them. This will freeze the sense of humanity. The day it gets to the peak , the end of the earth will come.


Q 2. Find a word from the extract Which means antonym to Creation.


Ans: Destruction.


Q 3. What is the rhyming scheme of this extract ?


Ans: ababa


Q 4. Find a word from the extract Which means sufficient.


Ans: Suffice


Q 5. What does ' it ' refer to in line 1 ?


Ans : World.


ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS
   ( 100 - 150 words )
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Q 1. What is the opinion of the narrator regarding the end of the earth ?

Ans : The narrator associates the fire with unbridled desires of human beings and that of the ice to the sense of hate and says that the unfulfilled desires of the human leads to the birth of anger followed by senselessness and activities that like strifes and broils. It involves the whole human race in a war of  never ending fulfillment. Struggles become so common in use that it finally wipes off the civilization.
This is just one aspect. As fiery desires cause destruction do does the sense of hatred. Ice is the solidification of water and hatred is the solidification of the sense of oneness as and fraternity. It takes a person of human race so far away from the another person of the same race that the sense of humanity is ceased. The death of humanity is nothing but the death of human civilization.
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