Question

Who is the speaker in the poem? Who are the people the speaker meets? What are they doing?

Answer 1

Hint: In the poem ‘Vocation’ by Rabindranath Tagore, A child expresses his desires and interests. It reflects the state of his shaky yet innocent mind. The poem is about a child who is drawn to the behaviours of individuals around him and discovers many interesting things about them. He is unaware of the difficult schedule they must follow. It also demonstrates his naiveté and lack of worldly experience.

Complete answer:
The speaker in the poem is a child. He notices different hawkers at three different times during the day and is amazed by their freedom of choice and independent way of life.

When the gong tolls at ten a.m., he rushes to his school, where he encounters a seller screaming, "Bangles, precious stone bangles!" He desires he could be a peddler like him and roam freely.

He saw the plant specialist burrowing the ground at four o'clock in the evening while coming from school, and he decided to be a nursery worker. He wanted to play on the sand.
When night falls, his mother sends him to bed, and he observes the guardian through the window, wishing he could be a gatekeeper so that he may freely walk around the streets at night.

Note: The poem Vocation's theme is a child's desire for freedom. He dislikes having to follow rigid rules both at home and at school. When he makes a mistake, his parents and teachers reprimand him. He's tired of it all. So, when he sees the hawker, gardener, and watchman going about their business freely, he wants to be like them since he is unaware of their unpleasant reality.