ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -Answers. The poet started looking out of the window because she wanted to drive away the pain and agony she was experiencing by looking at her aged mother. She looked outside at the world which was full of life and activity. She saw young trees running past her and merry children sprinting out of their homes to play.

Detailed explanation-2: -The sprinting of the trees symbolises the rapidly passing years of human’s life from childhood to old age.

Detailed explanation-3: -She has incorporated the image of the merry children, running out of their houses to play, in order to signify liveliness, vigor, health, beauty and happiness. This image is a sharp contrast to that of her mother who is nearing her death and has become old, inactive, weak and withered.

Detailed explanation-4: -The poet is driving to the Cochin airport. When she looks outside, the young trees seem to be walking past them. With the speed of the car they seem to be running fast or sprinting. The poet presents a contrast-her ‘dozing’ old mother and the ‘sprinting’ young trees.

Detailed explanation-5: -As per the passage, sitting beside the poet in the car, the poet’s mother was dozing open mouthed and she looked ‘ashen like that of a corpse’. The poet, with some pain, realized that her mother was actually as old as she looked. This is what the poet noticed.