AHSEC (ASSEB) Class 11 English Hornbill – Chapter 7 Solutions –The Voice of the Rain | Assam Eduverse
Chapter Overview:
Assam Eduverse presents the summary and solutions of Class 11 English (AHSEC/ASSEB) – Hornbill, Chapter 7: The Voice of the Rain by Walt Whitman. This chapter from the Class 11 Hornbill textbook is a reflective and metaphorical poem that explores nature, life cycles, renewal, and harmony, making it essential for exam preparation with both summary and textbook solutions.
The poem The Voice of the Rain presents a symbolic conversation between the poet and the rain. The poet inquires about the rain’s identity, and the rain replies that it is the “Poem of Earth.” The rain describes its endless cycle: rising from the land and sea, forming clouds, and descending to nourish the earth, purifying and revitalizing life. Its journey is likened to a song that flows from its birthplace, wanders across the world, and returns home with love, fulfilling its purpose. The poem beautifully portrays the interconnectedness of nature, the continuity of life, and the quiet, sustaining power of natural forces.
Chapter 7: The Voice of the Rain emphasizes renewal, the cycles of nature, and the poetic beauty of the earth, providing Class 11 students (AHSEC/ASSEB) with both a vivid summary and insights to solve textbook questions, making it a spiritually uplifting chapter in the Hornbill textbook.
AHSEC (ASSEB) Class 11 English Hornbill – Chapter 7: The Voice of the Rain Solutions & Question Answers
📖 Summary of The Voice of the Rain
Chapter 7 – Class 11 Hornbill
This poem presents a metaphorical dialogue between the poet and the rain. When asked about its identity, the rain replies that it is the “Poem of Earth”. It narrates its endless cycle, rising from the land and sea, forming clouds, and descending to nourish and purify the earth. Through this cycle, the rain sustains life, bringing freshness and beauty to the natural world.The rain’s journey is compared to a song, issuing from its birthplace, wandering across the world, and returning home with love, completing its purpose. The poem emphasizes the interconnectedness of nature, the continuity of life, and the renewing power of natural forces. Whitman’s imagery and rhythm convey the harmony and poetic beauty inherent in the natural world, showing how life and nature sustain and complement each other.Conclusion: Chapter 7 highlights renewal, life cycles, and the harmony of nature, leaving the reader with a deep appreciation for the sustaining power and poetry of the earth.
— From the book Hornbill
Think it out
Q1. There are two voices in the poem. Who do they belong to? Which lines indicate this?
Answer: There are two voices: the poet’s and the rain’s.
The poet’s voice is in the first line: “And who art thou? said I to the soft-falling shower…”
The rain’s voice is in the lines that follow, starting with: “I am the Poem of Earth, said the voice of the rain…”
Q2. What does the phrase “strange to tell” mean?
Answer: It means that it’s surprising or unusual that the rain gave a reply. The poet finds it strange that an inanimate thing like rain could talk to him and give a meaningful answer.
Q3. There is a parallel drawn between rain and music. Which words indicate this? Explain the similarity between the two.
Answer: The parallel is shown in the last two lines, where the rain says: “For song, issuing from its birth-place… duly with love returns.” The rain and a song are similar because they both follow a cycle. A song originates from a singer’s heart and, after reaching and affecting others, returns to its source with love and fulfillment. Similarly, the rain rises from the earth, travels, and then returns to the earth to enrich it.
Q4. How is the cyclic movement of rain brought out in the poem? Compare it with what you have learnt in science.
Answer: The poem describes the rain’s cycle beautifully. It “rises impalpable out of the land,” then “upward to heaven, whence, vaguely form’d, altogether changed, and yet the same,” it “descends to lave the droughts, atomies, dust-layers of the globe.” This is very similar to the scientific water cycle: evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. The rain evaporates from the earth and sea, forms clouds in the sky, and then falls back as rain, nourishing the earth.
Q5. Why are the last two lines put within brackets?
Answer: The last two lines are in brackets because they act as a parenthesis. They are a reflection by the poet, a personal thought that compares the rain’s journey to a song’s journey. It’s an extra comment that isn’t part of the direct conversation between the poet and the rain.
Q6. List the pairs of opposites found in the poem.
Answer: The pairs of opposites are:
- Day and night
- Rise and descend
- Reck’d (cared for) and unreck’d (uncared for)
- Earth and heaven
II. Rewrite the above sentences in prose.
- I asked the softly falling shower, “Who are you?”
- The rain replied, “I am the Poem of Earth.”
- The rain said that it rises eternally.
- A song returns with love, duly fulfilling its purpose.
III. Look for some more poems on the rain and see how this one is different from them.
Answer: Many poems describe rain in terms of beauty, freshness, or its role in nature, often focusing on its soothing effect or its connection with human emotions. For example, some poets highlight how rain cools the earth or evokes nostalgia. However, in The Voice of the Rain, the rain speaks for itself, presenting a unique dialogue between nature and the poet. Unlike other poems, it portrays rain as a cycle of giving and renewal—rising from the earth, purifying the world, and returning with love like a song.
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