Q1.
I The poet has used phrases like 'blooms of the dawn' and 'fairies of sleep' in the poem. In the same way we can create phrases. Now, select words from Column 1 and Column 2 and combine them with 'of'. Write as many phrases as possible in Column 3. An example has been done for you: wings of the wind. Column 1: wings, waves, dreams, songs, glimmers, cries, tears, roars, shadows. Column 2: the birds, the wind, the evening, the children, the rain, the stars, the thunder, the ocean, the clouds.
Answer
Any word of Column 1 may join any word of Column 2, so long as the picture makes sense. Here are the strongest combinations:
| Column 1 | Column 3 — phrases you can make |
|---|---|
| wings | wings of the wind (given), wings of the birds, wings of the evening |
| waves | waves of the ocean, waves of the wind, waves of the thunder |
| dreams | dreams of the children, dreams of the stars, dreams of the evening |
| songs | songs of the birds, songs of the children, songs of the rain, songs of the evening |
| glimmers | glimmers of the stars, glimmers of the ocean, glimmers of the clouds |
| cries | cries of the birds, cries of the children, cries of the wind |
| tears | tears of the rain, tears of the clouds, tears of the children |
| roars | roars of the thunder, roars of the ocean, roars of the wind |
| shadows | shadows of the clouds, shadows of the evening, shadows of the birds |
Why it happens: This 'X of the Y' pattern is one of the commonest ways poetry makes a metaphor. It quietly claims that Y owns X — clouds do not really weep, but 'tears of the clouds' makes rain into weeping in three words. Tagore's own two phrases work the same way: dawn 'owns' the shiuli blossoms, and sleep 'owns' its fairies.
Try This: Use any three of your phrases in one sentence about a monsoon evening, for example: The roars of the thunder drowned the songs of the birds, and the tears of the clouds fell on the shadows of the evening.