CBSE ENGLISH LANGUAGE & LITERATURE

Detailed explanation-1: -Answer: He stood staring down the harbour where his ball was lost.

Detailed explanation-2: -Solution : Actually, the loss of ball here stands for the loss of his childhood. Like the ball fell into water and lost forever, his childhood has been lost in the harbour of life. It seems that the boy is inconsolable as he has kept the ball for a long time.

Detailed explanation-3: -Where was the boy staring down? Answer: The boy was staring down the harbour where his ball had gone.

Detailed explanation-4: -When it bounced into the water, all his memories of the days of childhood flashed in front of him. This led to a realisation that those moments would not come back, just like the ball. He can buy new balls and can similarly create new moments, but those that are gone would not return. Was this answer helpful?

Detailed explanation-5: -The word ‘harbor’ in “The Ball poem” by John Berryman stands for Vastness of life. in the above poem, the poet is talking about a boy who has lost his most beloved thing, his ball and he is very depressed about it. the word ball here is referred to the lost childhood and the word harbor refers to the vastness of life.