Here we have given NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight Poem 1 Dust of Snow By Robert Frost.
Dust of Snow By Robert Frost
About the Poet
Robert Frost, (Robert Lee Frost), born on March 26, 1874 in San Francisco, California, U.S. and died on January 29, 1963 in Boston, Massachusetts was the greatest American poet of the 20th century who was much admired for his depictions of the rural life of New England. His father, William Prescott Frost, Jr., was a journalist. His mother, Isabelle Moodie Frost was an immigrant from Scotland.
Robert Frost was honored frequently during his lifetime and is the only poet to receive four Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry. In 1924, he won the first of four Pulitzer Prizes for the book “New Hampshire” (P. 1923). He was also awarded Pulitzers for ’Collected Poems’ (P. 1930) in 1931, ’A Further Range’ (P. 1936) in 1937, and ’A Witness Tree’ (P. 1942) in 1943.
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Depiction | चित्रण/वर्णन- the action of depicting something, especially in a work of art |
| Immigrant | अप्रवासी- newcomer- a person who comes to live permanently in a foreign country |
| Pulitzer Prizes | The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction is one of the seven American Pulitzer Prizes that are annually awarded for Letters, Drama, and Music. |
Central idea of the Poem
The poem ‘Dust of Snow’ is composed by 20th century American poet Robert Frost. In this poem the poet highlights a simple incident of his life when a crow sitting in a hemlock tree dusted some snow particles on him which brought a positive change in his mood and saved a great part of the day he might have ruined due to his pensive mood.
Due to this small incident, the feeling of loss and regret and that of helplessness is replaced by the feeling of cheerfulness and optimism. The dust of snow falling from the insignificant hemlock tree by the crow had a great impact on the poet.
So, after going through the poem, we come to the conclusion that we should be ready to see what life offers and be ready to accept any change in our life.
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Pensive mood | dreamily or wistfully thoughtful |
| Regret | feel sad, repentant, or disappointed over (something that one has done or failed to do) |
| Optimism | hopefulness and confidence about the future or the success of something. |
| Insignificant | unimportant |
Analysis of Poem
- This poem was was published in the Pulitzer Prize-winning volume of poetry ‘New Hampshire’ in 1923.
- It juxtaposes two fundamentals – human complexity and animal simplicity – in such a compact and symbolic form.
- ‘Dust of Snow’, is only eight lines long and seems to be the simplest of short poems.
- This poem deals with a trivial event concerning a crow, a tree, snow and a human being.
- The main themes of this poem are: communication between nature and humans, nature healing and helping with negative human emotions and the significance of small natural events.
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Juxtaposes | places side by side |
| Complexity | the state or quality of being intricate or complicated |
| Compact | सुसम्बद्ध- composed or made up of |
| Symbolic | प्रतीकात्मक-serving as a symbol |
| Trivial | तुच्छ-of little value or importance |
| Healing | alleviate- उपचारात्मक- the process of making or becoming sound or healthy again |
The opening lines of the poem reveal that the poet is in a bad mood and is either walking by a hemlock tree or is sitting under a tree. It’s probably winter season, there’s snow on the tree, an evergreen pine called a hemlock (a poisonous tree with small white flowers), and a crow (indicator of doom and fear) has happened to send some snow dust down on the poet.
The reason, the crow dusted some particles of snow upon poet’s head, is not known. But one can guess that the crow might be preening its feathers with its beak, merely shaking, flying off, landing, or readjusting its feet on a branch, somehow a light dusting of snow is the result, and it lands on the poet.
Whether the dust of snow falls on to poet’s head or down his neck , is also unknown because it’s not mentioned by the poet in the poem and also it’s not really relevant to the poem. What matters is the way the crow makes it happen.
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Preening | (of a bird) tidy and clean its feathers with its beak. |
| Relevant | प्रासंगिक- closely connected or appropriate to what is being done or considered. |
In the line “The way a crow Shook down on me”, here the word shook, denotes that the crow was shivering in the snowy tree. the crow’s action caused an unexpected fall of snow dust on the poet.
The snow instantly makes him happier. His day gets a lot better. Thus, the supremacy of nature as a whole made him realise how petty his problem was. The fact that hemlock tree is poisonous combined with the crow, traditionally given a bad name as a harbinger of doom and fear, become a catalyst for positive change.
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Harbinger | सूचक/अग्रगामी- a person or thing that announces or signals the approach of another |
| Doom | death, destruction, or some other terrible fate. |
| Catalyst | something that causes an important event to happen |
The poet, because of the snow dust falling on him, finds himself partially relieved – his day just got a whole lot better – the event somehow allowing him to see life from a different angle.
Thus, the message conveyed through this poem is clear enough. The poet, through the objects like poisonous hemlock tree & crow, has tried to highlight that sometimes creatures linked with negative aspects of life can also bring positive change and happiness in life. Being outdoors in nature, with all it’s unpredictability can benefit anyone, anywhere at any time.
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Unpredictability | अस्थिरता- inability to be predicted |
| Relieved | bring or give relief to, glad, thankful, grateful, pleased, happy |
Literary Devices: (Stanza-I)
Rhyme scheme: a b a b (crow―snow, me―tree)
Assonance:(स्वरावृत्ति) “Shook down on me” – ‘o’ sound is prominent. (Two or more words, close to one another repeat the same vowel sound, but start with different consonant sounds.)
Metaphor: ‘Dust of snow’ (a thing regarded as representative or symbolic of something else.)
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Shook | to move (somebody/something) from side to side or up and down with short, quick movements |
| Hemlock | a poisonous tree with small white flowers |
Literary Devices: (Stanza-II)
Rhyme scheme: c d c d (heart ― part, mood ― rued)
Alliteration: (अनुप्रास) (A number of words, having the same first consonant sound, occur close together in a series.)
Examples:
Has given my heart
And saved some part
Enjambment– (अपूर्णान्वय) (the continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza)
Synecdoche: (अंगांगिवाचन) use of ‘heart’ to represent the ‘entire person’
(Apart of something represents the whole, or it may use a whole to represent a part.)
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Rued | held in regret/to regret something which often cannot be undone |
| Saved | to rescue or keep safe |
Textbook Question Answers
Q1. What is a “dust of snow”? What does the poet say has changed his mood? How has the poet’s mood changed?
Ans: “Dust of snow” refers to a freckle of snow , the tiny particles of snow or the little white flowers that can be found on hemlock tree. The particles are so small that poet referred to them as “dust”. The poet was in bad mood (was holding the day in regret) when the dust of snow fell on him. This simple little thing “dust of snow” changed his mood from that of dismay to joy.
Q 2. How does Frost present nature in this poem? The following questions may help you to think of an answer.
(i) What are the birds that are usually named in poems? Do you think a crow is often mentioned in poems? What images come to your mind when you think of a crow?
Ans: Robert Frost has presented nature in quite an unconventional manner. While in other nature poems we come across birds such as nightingales, peacocks or sparrows, Frost has used a crow in this poem. A crow can be associated with something dark, black, and foreboding. In another words crows are often seen as the indicators of doom and fear. They are often used for negative references. That is why other poets usually mention singing nightingales or beautiful white doves in their poems.
Q 2. How does Frost present nature in this poem? The following questions may help you to think of an answer.
(ii) Again, what is “a hemlock tree”? Why doesn’t the poet write about a more ‘beautiful’ tree such as amaple, or an oak, or a pine?
Ans: The poet has written about a hemlock tree, which is a poisonous tree. He has not written about a more beautiful tree such as a maple, or oak, or pine because these trees symbolise beauty and happiness. Frost wanted to symbolise the feelings of sadness and regret, that’s why he has used a hemlock tree.
Q 2. How does Frost present nature in this poem? The following questions may help you to think of an answer.
(iii) What do the ‘crow’ and ‘hemlock’ represent — joy or sorrow? What does the dust of snow that the crow shakes off a hemlock tree stand for?
Ans: Both crow and the hemlock tree represent sorrow. The negative creatures such as crow and the hemlock tree have been depicted as the carriers of positivism and strength that transformed poet’s day for the better.
The dust of snow that is shaken off the hemlock tree by the crow stands for joy that Frost experiences. He has, therefore, used an unconventional tree and bird in order to contrast them with joy in the form of snow.
Additional Questions
Q 1. Identify the symbols used in the poem.
Ans: Crow―ugliness, hemlock tree―evil
Q 2. What is the rhyme scheme of the poem?
Ans: abab cdcd
Q 3. What is the turning point in the poem?
Ans: A small incident of snow falling on the poet changes his mood. He suddenly visualizes the beauty of nature around him and feels happy and relaxed. He feels grateful to nature as it has saved his day from being rued or wasted.
Q 4. What do you learn from this poem?
Ans: The lesson that we learn from this poem is―‘depending on the circumstances, even negative things can create a positive effect in our life.
Q 5. What do the crow and the Hemlock tree represent?
Ans: Both the crow and the hemlock tree represent the dark, pensive, sorrowful and bitter side of nature. Crow is a black in colour and has a very unpleasant harsh voice. On the other hand the hemlock is a tree with poisonous bitter fruit.
Q 6. Define the role of nature played in the poem.
Ans: Nature plays a very significant role in bringing a positive change in poet’s life. When the crow shook down the dust-particles on the poet, it changed his mood in a positive way.
Q 7. How was the poet feeling before the dust of snow fell on him?
Ans: Before the dust of snow fell on the poet, he was feeling sad. He was in a depressed mood.
MCQs Based on Extract
The way a crow
Shook down on me
The dust of snow
From a hemlock tree
Has given my heart
A change of mood
And saved some part Of a day I had rued.
(i) Of the many symbols the hemlock tree represents, choose the one that Frost drew upon in all likelihood, for this poem.
(a) Symbol of longevity. (b) Symbol of togetherness.
(c) Symbol of healing. (d) Symbol of protection.
(ii) Choose the option that lists the possible feelings of the poet prior to the experience shared in the poem.
(1) reassured (2) disappointed (3) curious (4) demotivated (5) thankful (6) disheartened (7) impulsive
(a) 1, 3 &7 (b) 2, 4 & 6
(c) 5 & 7 (d) 1 & 3
(iii) Identify the option that DOES NOT use the word ‘rue’ correctly.
(a) The film was a disaster and he rued his decision to act in it.
(b) I am sure she rued the day she listened to a fortune-teller.
(c) It wasn’t long before I rued my disobedience and my deceit.
(d) Others finally rue the one who is dishonest and heartless.
(iv) Synecdoche is a poetic device that uses a part to represent the whole. E.g.
That’s a great set of wheels! (Set of wheels has been used for car.)
Pick an example of synecdoche from the poem.
(a) Has given my heart / A change of mood
(b) The way a crow / Shook down on me
(c) The dust of snow / From a hemlock tree
(d) And saved some part / Of a day I had rued
(v) Choose the option showing the reason NOT corresponding with “… a crow / Shook down on me / The dust of snow”.
(a) The crow’s landing on the branch of the tree.
(b) The shivering of the crow, due to the cold.
(c) The readjustment of position of the crow on the branch.
(d) The cawing of the crow hidden in the foliage.
Answer key for MCQs
| (i) c | (ii) b | (iii) d | (iv) a | (v) d |
MCQs for Practice
1. How did the poet feel when the crow shook down the dust of snow on him?
(A) Happy and excited
(B) Afraid and sad
(C) Bored and unhappy
(D) Anxious and confident
2. Identify the figure of speech in “Shook down on me”.
(A) Simile
(B) Mataphor
(C) Assonance
(D) Personification
3. The hemlock tree symbolizes—.
(A) sorrow
(B) evil
(C) bad mood
(D) All of these
4. The effect of the fall of dust of snow on the poet was—.
(A) changed his behaviour
(B) changed his mood
(C) removed all the laziness
(D) Option (B) & (C)
5. What was saved for the poet?
(A) His whole day
(B) Remaining part of the day
(C) His body and soul
(D) His energy
6. The four elements in the poem are—.
(A) snow, maple, swallow, poet’s mood
(B) snow, oak, nightingale, poet’s mood
(C) snow, hemlock, crow, poet’s mood
(D) snow, pine, dove, poet’s mood
Home Assignment
Q 1. Write the name of the poem and the poet.
Q 2. Imagine you are the poet. Write a letter to your friend about a small incident that changed the course of your life.
Q 3. Have you experienced a change of mood where nature played the role of an agent for change?
Q 4. Read the poem “Dust of Snow” and identify the literary devices used in the poem.
Q 5. What do you associate a crow and a hemlock tree with?
Q 6. What message is being conveyed by the poet through the poem “Dust of Snow?
