Fire and Ice Class 10 Questions and Answers
Textbook Questions
Thinking about the Poem :
Question 1.
There are many ideas about how the world will ‘end’. Do you think the world will end some day ? Have you ever thought what would happen if the sun got so hot that it’burst’ or grew colder and colder ?
बहुत से विचार हैं कि संसार का अन्त कैसे होगा। क्या आप सोचते हैं कि किसी दिन संसार का अन्त होगा? क्या आपने कभी सोचा है कि अगर सूर्य इतना गर्म हो जाये कि फट जाये या ठंडे से ठंडा होता जाये तो क्या होगा?
Answer:
Yes, I think the world will end one day, though it might take billions and billions of years. There are many ideas about how the world will perish. One is through ‘global warming’. The ice of Antarctica will melt, the level of water will increase. It will gradually gulf all the land. No plants or vegetation will grow, no oxygen will be there, so no life will be possible and the world will come to an end. The other speculations (अनुमान) are that sun will get so hot that it will burst or grow colder and colder. Well, if there is no sun, there will be no oxygen or vegetation – all creatures will die and the world will perish.
Question 2.
For Frost, what do ‘fire’ and ‘ice’ stand for ? Here are some ideas:
greed
cruelty
conflict
intolerance
insensitivity
indifference
avarice
lust
fury
rigidity
coldness
hatred
फ्रॉस्ट के लिए ‘आग’ और ‘बर्फ’ किसके द्योतक हैं? यहाँ कुछ विचार है :
लालच
लोभ निर्दयता
लोलुपता विरोध
क्रोध
असहनशीलता
कड़ापन/कठोरता
अचेतनता
ठंडापन(व्यवहार का)
विमुखता
घृणा
Answer:
For Frost, ‘fire’ stands for desire, greed, avarice or lust. The more you try to satisfy them, the more they grow or if you try to satisfy one desire, many more crop up. There is no end to them. Like fire they spread in all directions and engulf your whole life. They also increase your greed, avarice and lust One becomes selfish, indifferent, even cruel to others.
‘Ice’ stands for hatred, coldness and conflict. One becomes rigid in attitude. Intolerance in behaviour leads to fury and cruelty. One becomes hard-hearted and insensitive to the feelings of others. ‘Fire’ and fice’ both bring destruction.
Question 3.
What is the rhyme scheme of the poem? How does it help in bringing out the contrasting ideas in the poem ?
कविता की लय-योजना क्या है? यह कविता में विरोधी-भाव कैसे उजागर करती है?
Answer:
The rhyme scheme of the poem in the first stanza is a, b; a, b and in the second stanza it is – a, b, a, b, a. The lines ending with the same rhythm have the same idea but the line that ends with a different note has the contrasting idea. In the first stanza, the first, third and fourth lines end with the words fire, desire, fire-same rhythm but the second line ends with the word ‘ice’, a different note, also it contrasts with ‘fire’. Thus, the poet has brought out the contrasting ideas in the poem by using different rhythm.
Additional questions short answer type questions
Answer the following questions in about 30-40 words.
Question 1.
Which two ideas about how the world will end have been mentioned in the poem ? Which idea does the poet support more?
Answer:
The two ideas mentioned are that the world will end in fire or in ice. Though the poet thinks both are great for destruction, yet he seems to favour the idea of destruction of world in fire a little more than in ice.
Question 2.
What does ‘fire’ and ‘ice’ stand for and what is the general opinion regarding the world?
Or
According to the poet what do ‘fire’ and ‘ice’ represent? Do you agree with him ?
Answer:
According to the poet, ‘fire’ represents desire and ‘ice’ represents hatred. I do agree with the poet. Desires like fire spread rapidly and engulf one’s whole life. Similarly ‘hatred’ fills the whole life with poison. It makes one hard-hearted and cruel.
Question 3.
What is the underlying idea of the poem ‘Fire and Ice’?
Answer:
The poet equates fire with ‘desire’ and ice with ‘hatred’. Both of these are growing with enormous speed. If we don’t check them from growing, the world will perish. So we must restrain our desires and love our fellow-beings.
Question 4.
What do you think would be enough to destroy the world ? Can Fire and Ice contribute to it?
Answer:
Our desires and hatred would be enough to destroy the world. According to the poet, ‘fire’ represents ‘desire’ and ‘ice’ represents ‘hatred’. Desires like fire, spread rapidly and engulf one’s whole life. Similarly, ‘hatred’ fills the life with poison.
Long answer type question
Answer the following question in about 100-150 words:
1. ‘I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great..!
How does the poem depict the two contrasting ideas-Fire’ and ‘Ice’? Can hatred destroy us and the world ? Explain bringing out values which can make this world a better place to live in.
Answer:
i. In this poem, Robert Frost refers to two contrasting ideas-Fire and Ice as he predicts of how the world will end. According to him, some people say that the world will end in fire while some others hold the view that it will end in ice. The poet equates desire with fire and hatred with ice. Both desire and hatred are growing at such a rapid speed that the world will come to an end either way.
ii. Yes, hatred can destroy us and the world. Intolerance in behaviour creates hatred that leads to fury and cruelty. One becomes hard-hearted and insensitive to the feelings of others.
iii. Love, brotherhood, tolerance, peace, contentment, sensitivity, benevolence, generosity among people can make this world a better place to live in.
Summary :
In this poem, Robert Frost refers to two predictions of how the world will end. Some say it will end in fire. According to others it will end in ice. The poet equates desire with fire and hatred with ice. Both are growing with such a rapid speed that the world will perish either way in fire or in ice.
इस कविता में कवि राबर्ट फ्रॉस्ट दो अनुमानों की ओर संकेत करता है कि संसार का अन्त कैसे होगा। कुछ कहते हैं कि इसका अन्त आग में होगा। दूसरों के अनुसार इसका अन्त बर्फ में होगा। कवि इच्छा को अग्नि के तथा घृणा को बर्फ के समान मानता है। दोनों ही इतनी तीव्र गति से बढ़ रहे हैं कि संसार का अन्त किसी भी तरह-आग या बर्फ से हो जायेगा।
Complete text with hindi translation and extract based short answer type questions
Stanza – I
Some say the world will end in fire
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favour fire.
Vocabulary :
- desire (डिजायर) – wish/longing (इच्छा);
- hold with (होल्ड विद) – agree with/support (सहमत होना / अनुमोदन करना )
अनुवाद : कुछ (लोग) कहते हैं कि संसार का अन्त आग में होगा और कुछ कहते हैं कि बर्फ में। मैंने इच्छा का जो स्वाद चखा है उसके अनुसार मैं उनका अनुमोदन करता हूँ जो संसार का अंत आग द्वारा मानते हैं।
Question i.
What are the different opinions of people about the end of world?
Answer:
About the end of the world, some say it will end in fire, hike some others say that it will end in ice. In other words the world will end it with too much of desire or with too much of coldness or hatred.
Question ii.
What does the poet think about the end of the world?
Answer:
According to the poet who had himself tasted desire, the world would end with too much of it. He had seen how dangerous fire, meaning desire or lust could be, as to destroy the entire world.
Stanza – II
But if it had to perish twice, I think I know enough of hate To say that for destruction ice Is also great And would suffice.
Vocabulary:
- perish (पैरिश) – die/end (समाप्त / अन्त हो जाना)
- destruction (डिस्ट्रक्शन) – cause of ruin (विनाश)
- suffice (सफ्फाईस) – be sufficient (पर्याप्त)।
अनुवाद : परन्तु अगर इसका (संसार का) अन्त दो बार होना हो तो मेरे विचार में मैं घृणा को भी काफी जानता हूँ और कह सकता हूँ कि विनाश के लिए बर्फ भी जोरदार है और पर्याप्त होगी।
Question i.
What is the ‘it’ referred to here? How would it perish twice?
Answer:
‘It’ here refers to the world. It would perish twice:. Once by fire or desire and then by ice or hatred.
Question ii.
How is it sufficient to bring destruction ?
Answer:
While desire consumes quickly, hate can occur and linger in people’s minds and hearts for years and sometimes even lifetimes. Hate consumers the hater perhaps even more than the person or group hated and it can ruin lives. Hate can, thus, be very destructive and sufficient to bring destruction.