Song of the Rain

Song of the Rain

Read the following lines from the poem ' Song of the Rain' and answer the questions that follow:

 

I am dotted silver threads dropped from heaven

By the Gods. Nature then takes me, to adorn

Her fields and valleys.

 

I am beautiful pearls, plucked from the

Crown of Ishtar by the daughter of Dawn

To embellish the gardens.

 

When I cry, the hills laugh;

When I humble myself, the flowers rejoice;

When I bow, all things are elated.

The field and the cloud are lovers

 

And between them I am a messenger of mercy.

I quench the thirst of one;

I cure the ailment of the other.

 

1. Who is the 'I' referred to here?

Answer : The rain

2.Who is mentioned here as 'dotted silver threads dropped from heaven'?

Answer : The rain

3. Why does nature take the rain?

Answer : To adorn

her fields and valleys.

4.Who is mentioned here as daughter of dawn?

Answer : Sunrise

5. What is rain compared to?

Answer : Rain is compared to dotted silver threads dropped from heaven

by the Gods and beautiful pearls, plucked from the

Crown of Ishtar.

6. Pick out examples for metaphors.

Answers : I am dotted silver threads”, “I am beautiful pearls”, and “I am a messenger of mercy.”

7. Pick out instances for alliteration.

Answer : "pearls, plucked",  “daughter of Dawn”, and “messenger of mercy"

8. "When I cry, the hills laugh" - comment on the line.

Answer : It means how the hills and its livings are happy  when the rain falls down. The falling down of rain is considered here as crying.

9. Pick out visual images.

Answer : 'dotted silver threads', 'fields and valleys', 'beautiful pearls', and 'Crown of Ishtar'

10. Pick out auditory images.

Answer : ' When I cry', and 'hills laugh'

11. Who are the lovers mentioned here?

Answer : The field and cloud.

12. Who is the messenger of mercy between the field and cloud?

Answer : The rain

13. 'I quench the thirst of one' - Whose quench is mentioned here?

Answer : Field's

14. "I cure the ailment of the other"- Who is sick here?

Answer : The cloud

15. In what sense, are the cloud and the field being lovers?

Answer : The field is thirsty for being dried. So it is waiting for the rain. On the other hand, the cloud is sick with the weight of water droplets. So the cloud expects the rainfall to free itself. Thus both the field and cloud longs to meet. In that sense, they are considered as lovers and the rain becomes a messenger of mercy between the cloud and the field.

 

Read the following lines from the poem ' Song of the Rain' and answer the questions that follow:

 

The voice of thunder declares my arrival;

The rainbow announces my departure.

I am like earthly life, which begins at

The feet of the mad elements and ends

Under the upraised wings of death.

 

I emerge from the heart of the sea

Soar with the breeze. When I see a field in

Need, I descend and embrace the flowers and

The trees in a million little ways,

I touch gently at the windows with my

 

Soft fingers, and my announcement is a

Welcome song. All can hear, but only

The sensitive can understand.

16. Who announces the arrival of rain?

Answer : The voice of thunder

17. Who announces the departure of the rain?

Answer : The rainbow

18. Pick out the lines that indicate the rain is like a living thing.

Answer : I am like earthly life, which begins at

The feet of the mad elements and ends

Under the upraised wings of death.

19. Pick out an instance of simile from the above lines.

Answer : I am like earthly life.

20. Where does the rain emerge?

Answer : From the heart of the sea

21. Pick out an instance for personification used here.

Answer : I touch gently at the windows with my Soft fingers.

22. Pick out an instance fo alliteration from the lines.

Answer : windows with..

23. Pick out an instance for each visual and auditory images from the above lines.

Visual image : The Rainbow

Auditory image: The voice of thunder

 

24. Write a critical appreciation of the poem' Song of the Rain'.

                   Song of the Rain

                                     Khalil Gibran

'Song of the Rain' is a beautiful poem written by Khalil Gibran, the popular Lebanese poet. The poem deals with the heavenly beauty and divine quality of the rain. The rain itself is the speaker here. The rain says that it is a silver thread sent from heaven by God.  Nature uses the rain, to decorate her fields and valleys. The rain claims that it is the pearls plucked from the crown of ishtar, the goddess of love and fertility.

 When the rain cries, the hills will laugh.The flowers will rejoice at the arrival of the rain. It touches every window with its soft fingers. The heat of the atmosphere give birth to the rain, but in turn, it kills the heat. The rain is the sigh of the sea.

This is a free verse poem. The poem is divided into three , four and five line stanzas. The poem doesn't follow any rhyme scheme. The poet uses many poetic devices and imageries to adorn his poem. The phrases like 'I am dotted silver threads', 'I am beautiful pearls' are examples for metaphors. The expression 'I am like earthly life' gives an instance of simile. The words and phrases like 'fields and valleys', 'beautiful pearls', and 'Crown of Ishtar' are examples for visual images. The phrases 'when I cry', 'The hills laugh' and 'voice of thunder' are auditory images. 

 The phrases 'The hills laugh' and 'I touch gently at the windows with my soft fingers' reminds the use of personification. The phrases like 'dotted silver threads dropped', 'pearls, plucked', 'daughter of Dawn', and messenger of mercy are examples for alliteration. The Language used here is very simple and clear . As a whole, the poem is an excellent piece work.