NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter-1 Poem

The Hornbill Chapter 1 NCERT Solutions is for the poem section of Class 11 English textbook and it is about the poem A Photograph written by poet, educational journalist, editor, and English teacher Shirley Toulson. It is the first poem in the book and is placed just after The Portrait of a Lady due to the thematic relationship between the two.

Running heavily on the theme of nostalgia, Class 11 English Chapter 1 A Photograph is about the contrast between the transitory state of human beings and the eternal state of nature, wherein the nature changes at a snail’s pace while the human life is a fast-changing process. There are three stanzas in English Class 11 Chapter 1 A Photograph, and each of them represents a different stage. While the first stanza is about early adolescence or girlhood, the second stanza is about adulthood with the third and final stanza represents death.

The poet also marks the poem by a melancholy of loss. It represents her mother’s sadness for her loss of youth and also the poet’s grief for the loss of her mother. At the same time, an underlying victory over the loss is also implied.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English A Photograph – A General Overview

In the NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English A Photograph, the poet talks about a photograph that captures beautiful moments from her mother’s childhood. The photograph is in the cardboard and was taken by her mother’s uncle when her mother went for a holiday by the sea with her two sister cousins.

The English Class 11 Chapter 1, Toulson remembers her mother’s laughter when the photograph was taken. She describes her mother as a “big girl”, around twelve years old. Both her sister cousins are holding her hand as they are paddling in the photograph.

The poet recalls how her mother when she was in her forties or fifties, would often look back at the photograph and laugh at the way she and her cousins were dressed. However, when the poet now looks at the photograph, she is clouded by a gloom of sadness as her mother is no more with her.

It has been explained in Class 11 Hornbill Chapter 1 NCERT Solutions that it has been around 12 years that she has passed away, which is understood from the lines “Now she’s been dead nearly as many years as that girl lived.”

One of the most captivating aspects of Hornbill Class 11 Chapter 1 A Photograph is the similarity of both the poet and her mother’s reconciliation with their respective sorrow. While the mother’s past was the sea holiday, the poet’s sorrow is the absence of her mother’s laughter due to her death. It is about coming to terms with the losses that both these women felt. The severe silence of such an unfortunate situation leaves the poet with absolutely no words to express her misery. This is how the silence silences her at the end of the poem.

Despite the melancholic tone of the poem, there is a sense of belonging that is established with the victory over these losses. By coming to terms with these unfortunate facts of life, both the poet’s mother and the poet make a distant memory alive in their hearts.  What is even more beautiful is the fact that the poem in itself is functioning as a photograph, thereby helping preserve the rich past so that it never disappears completely.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter A Photograph – Infer the Meanings

The first exercise in Class 11 English Chapter 1 is about finding the meanings of two words that are present in the poem. The task is to look up the dictionary to see if your inference is correct or not.

These two words are ‘paddling’ and ‘transient.’ NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph provides the meaning of both these words within the context of the poem so that you don’t have to refer to a dictionary. The term ‘paddling’ has two meanings. It can refer to the act of dabbling in water, and it can also mean moving a boat with the help of paddles.

On the other hand, as per NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph, the word ‘transient’ means transitory, something that stays at the same place for a short amount of time.

NCERT English Book for Class 11 Hornbill PDF – Important Questions

Vedantu has made sure that it solves all the questions of Hornbill Class 11 Chapter 1 A Photograph in a comprehensive yet straightforward way so that you understand them easily without compromising the quality of the answers.

Our study material has been updated as per the latest syllabus. It contains all the essential questions from NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph in a step-by-step fashion so that you can grasp the underlying theme of the said poem. The questions in this chapter have been designed to examine the inferential and factual comprehension while also nurturing the quality of empathy in you. Furthermore, they will also draw attention not only to the structure of the poem but also in the choice of words.

We recommend you take a look at our NCERT English Book for Class 11 Hornbill PDF, which is free to download since it will allow you to access our study material even when you are offline.

We provide answers to the entire questionnaire from the ‘Think it out’ section that is there in the textbook Hornbill Class 11. Let us take a glimpse into the Class 11 English Hornbill Poem A Photograph Question Answers.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph – Question 1

The first question in the ‘Think it out’ exercise of NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter A Photograph is a two-part question. It asks, “What does the word ‘cardboard’ denote in the poem? Why has this word been used?”

Here, you have to look at what the word ‘cardboard’ implies within the context of Hornbill Class 11 Chapter 1 A Photograph. You also have to figure out what is the motive of the poet behind using this word specifically.

Our study material clearly states the significance of the word ‘cardboard’ in the poem and also goes to explain its relevance within the context of the poem. We dig deep into the intention of poet Shirley Toulson behind using this specific word.

The word ‘cardboard’ denotes the fact that the photograph is pasted on a thick hard paper. This refers to an old practice when photographs were simply pasted on cardboards and were framed with a glass front in order to preserve them. The NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph suggests that it is an extremely old photograph. It is now just a piece of paper that serves as a memory of her mother since she is dead now.

The word further shows how transitory life of a human is since the cardboard has remained the same, but the woman in the photograph has since then grown up, lived her adulthood, and finally died. In a way, it shows the contrast between the permanence of the photograph and the temporary state of human life. To put it in other words, it shows the static nature of the cardboard and the dynamic, ever-changing state of human life.

Our study material beautifully explains the inner depth of the word ‘cardboard’ which you can find in our Class 11 Hornbill Chapter 1 NCERT Solutions PDF.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph – Question 2

In the second question in the ‘Think it out’ section of Hornbill Class 11 Chapter 1 A Photograph, the textbook asks, “What has the camera captured?”

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter A Photograph provides the answer to this question as well in its study material. We breakdown everything about this question, which bring us to the significance and context of the camera in the poem, which serves as the primary tool of the story of the poem since it is with the help of the camera that the photograph was taken, which inspired the events mentioned in the poem.

The main job here for you is to understand the aesthetic value that this photograph holds for poet Shirley Toulon for her mother.

As per the NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English A Photograph, the camera captured some of the happiest moments from the adolescent life of the poet’s mother. It was taken during a holiday by the sea that her mother took along with her two sister cousins, Betty and Dolly when she was around twelve years of age.

The photograph was taken by the uncle of the poet’s mother and captured the exact moment when Betty and Dolly were paddling in the water while holding the hand of the poet’s mother. It shows them smiling as the wind made their hair move, almost covering their smiling faces. The poet specifically mentions how sweet her mother’s face was.

Vedantu’s explanation of the answer makes the memory vivid, which will, in turn, help you in understanding the situation in the poem better and score better grades in your final examination.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph – Question 3

The third question in the ‘Think it out’ section of NCERT English Book for Class 11 Hornbill PDF is again a two-part question, like the one we encountered in the first question. It asks, “What has not changed over the years? Does this suggest something to you?”

Let us help you understand this question step-by-step by breaking down one part of the question first. The first part of the question “What has not changed over the years? requires you to identify the unchanging element from the poem that had remained the same since when the photograph was taken.  The answer provided by NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English A Photograph will help you understand the value that time holds.

It is the sea that hasn’t changed over time. Even after all these years, it is still the same. Its waves are still as tireless, fresh, and shining as they were when the poet’s mother visited the beach in her adolescent days.

The next part of the third question of Class 11 English Hornbill Poem A Photograph Question Answers, which is, “Does this suggest something to you?” has also been answered by us. The unchanged state of the sea suggests its eternity.

It is highlighted even more when compared to the transitory nature of human life that evolves and changes with the passage of time. While time has turned the poet’s mother from an adolescent to an adult who ultimately meets her death, the sea, however, has remained entirely unchanged. The transient state that was used to describe the feet of those three girls in the photograph stands in contrast with the permanent status of nature. The changes in a human face are put against the changelessness of the sea.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph – Question 4

In the Class 11 Hornbill Chapter 1 NCERT Solutions, we also provide the answer to the fourth question, which is, “The Poet’s mother laughed at the snapshot. What did this laugh indicate?” So, as you can see this requires you to explain a specific line from the poem.

Our comprehensive NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph has been formulated to be specific, analytical, and just. Before we answer this question, we have to figure out what is the requirement of the question.

Well, the question requires you to give an insight into the intention behind the laughter of the poet’s mother when she sees the photograph. Let us help you decipher its answer.

In the poem, when the poet’s mother looks at the snapshot, it has already been twenty or thirty years since the holiday that she took with her cousin sisters by the sea. The picture takes her mother to a happy memory from her adolescent days.

She remembers how happy she was that day. It took her to an event from her past when she was care-free and young, without any worries or tensions in the world. The NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English A Photograph states that the photograph raises a sense of nostalgia in her when she remembers the innocent days and playful demeanour from her childhood. It reminds her of the day which seems far long from where she is now in her adulthood.

What makes her specifically laugh is how she and her cousin sisters were dressed that day.  We advise you to take a look at our NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph PDF, which is free to download since it has all the answers to the questions in the ‘Think it out’ section. By downloading it, you can have access to it anytime, anywhere.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph – Question 5

The fifth question in the ‘Think it out’ section of Class 11 English Chapter 1 A Photograph is “What is the meaning of the line “Both wry with the laboured ease of loss”?

This is one of the most important lines from the poem which brings forth the melancholic tone that the poet feels when remembering her mother. This question requires you to explore the meaning of the specified line. Interestingly, the explanation of this line will reveal the entire theme of the poem.

You can get the answer to this question in NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter A Photograph which is also available in a PDF format for you to download and refer to later. However, for your help, let us give you an essence of the answer here.

The line “Both wry with the laboured ease of loss” implies that although some memories are beautiful, they can still cause us pain. The very fact that memories are events of distant past is painful enough.

Wry means twisting one’s face into an expression of disappointment, annoyance, or disgust. Here, it refers to the feeling of loss that both the poet and her mother felt. The mother’s loss stemmed from the fact that she can’t bring back her adolescent life back while the poet’s loss stems from the loss of her mother.

The NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph states that the sea holiday is remembered by the poet’s mother and the laughter of the mother upon seeing the photograph taken during the holiday is remembered by the poet. Both incidents belong to the past now. Although the memories were beautiful in both cases, they were somehow extremely painful to recall as well.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph – Question 6

In the ‘Think it out’ section of Class 11 English Hornbill Poem A Photograph Question Answers, the sixth question asks the students, “What does “this circumstance” refer to?”

The NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English A Photograph states that this phrase refers to the present time when the poet Shirley Toulson is remembering her mother. She feels consumed by a sense of grief and has nothing to say because of the overwhelming silence.

She realizes that it has been twelve years since her mother’s death, which is the same number as her mother’s age when the photograph was taken. Her mother was twelve years old at that time. The terrible circumstance that the poet talks about in Hornbill Class 11 Chapter 1 A Photograph is too tough for her to bear.

However, there is a sense of triumph that is there in knowing and accepting the loss. A recurring theme that is presented throughout the poem is the lack of permanence in our life. Nothing lasts long; what remains of the past are just lovely, happy, painful memories. So, one has to make peace with this fact.

Our lives aren’t like the sea, which will remain unchanged over years and years. The sea was present many years before the poet’s mother went on the holiday, it was present when the holiday was actually taking place, and it is also present now many years after the death of the poet’s mother.

While learning the answer to this question, we suggest you go back and read the full poem once again in order to understand the emotions of the poet. It will help you get an overall feeling that you would need to write the answer. When that is done, refer to our NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter A Photograph to get the answer to the question.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 1 A Photograph – Question 7

The seventh and final question in the ‘Think it out’ section of NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter A Photograph is “The three stanzas depict three different phases. What are they?” It is quite intriguing how three different phases of life are represented in the three stanzas of the poem by poet Shirley Toulson. Let us figure out these stages.

In the first stanza of Hornbill Class 11 Chapter 1 A Photograph, the poet talks about the adolescent period of her mother. This is way before the birth of the poet. It refers to the girlhood of the poet’s mother when she was around twelve years old.

In the second stanza, the poet Shirley Toulson reminisces the adulthood of her mother. This is around thirty or forty years after the event of the first stanza, meaning this is when her mother is middle-aged. It is also the childhood stage of the poet. 

In the third and final stanza of the poem, the poet talks about the death of her mother. This period is roughly twelve years after the death of her mother. 

So, the three stanzas of Hornbill Class 11 English Chapter 1 A Photograph represent the three distinct stages, both in respect to the poet’s life as well as her mother’s life. They are as follows:

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The online learning facilities provided by Vedantu are cost-effective, time-saving, and efficient. They are updated as per the latest CBSE syllabus and help you prepare for your examinations. Similar to the NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English A Photograph, study materials are available for all NCERT textbooks of every subject for every class.