Enhance your knowledge on He Had Such Quiet Eyes

QUESTIONS BASED ON THE POEM

1.            The eyes have a lot of functions other than seeing. Explain one function of the eyes that

            you know and give an example when that function is being used.

2.            Do you believe in ‘seeing is believing’? Give a reason for your answer and relate it to the poem “He had such quiet eyes”.

3.            Why do you think the persona in the poem fell for the guy’s quiet eyes? Give a reason why she likes his ‘quiet eyes’.

4.            How can you help a friend who fell for a person who you know is a pleasure seeking person? Give a suggestion on how to help this friend.

5.            In the poem there is a phrase “how’s and why’s”. Form a question for each of the question in the phrase with close relation to the situation of the persona in the poem.

6.            Which one is easier to do, giving advice or listening to advice? Give a reason for your answer with close reference to the poem.

Quick Revision on In The Midst of Hardship

1.         When did the people in the poem return home?

2.         What kind of a setting do you see in the poem, ‘ In the Midst of Hardship’ by Latiff             Mohidin?

3.         Describe the conditions of the people in this poem.

4.         Despite the conditions of the people in the above poem, did they give up?

            Which line tells you this?

5.         What do you understand by ‘ but on their brows, there was not a sign of despair’? 

6.         What natural disaster had occurred to the place?

7.         Name the animal that had gone missing in this poem.

8.         Do you think the people in the poem are rich? Justify your answer with evidence

            from the poem?

9.         Why do you think the people are desperately looking for the lost animal? 

10.       What is alliteration? Give an example of alliteration from the poem.

11.       Do you think the people here are hopeful and optimistic? Justify your answer.

12.       What can you learn from this poem?

13.       Do you think the poet has chosen a good title for this poem?  Give a reason for         

            your answer.

14.       Do you like the poem? Give a reason for your answer.

Exercise on Mr Nobody

SECTION A

Read the following stanza and then answer the questions below.

The  finger marks upon the door          By none of us  are  made; We never leave the blinds  unclosed,          To let the curtains fade; The ink we  never  spill; the boots           That lying  round you see Are not our  boots – they all  belong           To Mr. Nobody

1.         What do you think the following lines mean?

            “The finger marks upon the door / By none of us are made;”

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

2.      Why are the blinds never left undone?

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

3.         What do these  lines  “the boots /that  lying  round …” tell you about Mr, Nobody?

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

4.         Who do you think Mr. Nobody is?

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

SECTION B

Read the following questions and choose the best answer for each.

1.	Mr Nobody can be described as being
	A	agreeable
	C	careless
	D	quiet
	E	dirty

2.	Where is the poem set?
	A	In a house.
	C	Near a campsite.
	D	At a place of work.
	E	Outside the house.

3.	Why does the kettle not boil in stanza 3?
	A	Muddy feet
	C	Damp wood
	D	Soiled carpets
	E	Squeaky doors

4.	The mischief in the house was done by
	A	the mouse
	C	Mr. Nobody
	D	the people in the house

5.	Which one of these words from the poem suggests carelessness?
	A	quiet
	C	oiling
	D	mislaid
	E	squeaking

6.	The poem teaches us to be
	A	careless
	C	untruthful
	D	accountable
	E	irresponsible

 SECTION C

With reference to “Mr Nobody”, answer the following questions.

1.         How is Mr Nobody like a mouse?

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

2.         What happened to the buttons on the shirts?

            _______________________________________________________________

3.         Why is it important to oil the doors of the house?

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

4.         What is causing the curtains to fade?

            _______________________________________________________________

5.         Who do you think is doing all the mischief in the house?

            _______________________________________________________________

6.         Have you done anything in your home that you did not want to admit to?

Share it here.

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

            _______________________________________________________________

Exercise on The River 2

Answer the following questions based on the poem The River by Valerie Bloom.

Write your answer in about 50 words. Make references to the text.

Describe the persona of the poem.

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_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

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Describe the character of the persona.

_______________________________________________________________

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What is the message in the poem?

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

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Exercise on The River 1

 SECTION A

Question 1

Which of the following words does not show that the river is a wanderer?
A	nomad	C	traveller
B	tramp	D	camp

Question 2

Why is the river considered a hoarder?
A	The river twists and turns.	C	The river goes through valleys and hills.
B	The river sounds like a baby.	D	The river buries and keeps things.

Question 3

Which two words denote happiness?
A	baby and singer	C	nomad and monster
B	tramp and hoarder	D	winder and wanderer

Question 4

Which of the following words have the same meaning as ‘vexed’?
A	busy	C	flexible
B	angry	D	anxious

Question 5

Which stanza depicts the river as dangerous?
A	Stanza 1	C	Stanza 4
B	Stanza 2	D	Stanza 6

Are You Still Playing Your Flute by Zurinah Hassan

Are you still playing your flute?

When there is hardly time for our love

I am feeling guilty

To be longing for your song

The melody concealed in the slim hollow of the bamboo

Uncovered by the breath of an artist

Composed by his fingers

Blown by the wind

To the depth of my heart.

Are you still playing your flute?

In the village so quiet and deserted

Amidst the sick rice fields

While here it has become a luxury

To spend time watching the rain

Gazing at the evening rays

Collecting dew drops

Or enjoying the fragrance of flowers.

Are you still playing your flute?

The more it disturbs my conscience

to be thinking of you

in the hazard of you

my younger brothers unemployed and desperate

my people disunited by politics

my friend slaughtered mercilessly

this world is too old and bleeding.

Nature by H.D. Carberry

We have neither Summer nor Winter

Neither Autumn nor Spring.

We have instead the days

When the gold sun shines on the lush green canefields-

Magnificently.

The days when the rain beats like bullet on the roofs

And there is no sound but thee swish of water in the gullies

And trees struggling in the high Jamaica winds.

Also there are the days when leaves fade from off guango trees’

And the reaped canefields lie bare and fallow to the sun.

But best of all there are the days when the mango and the logwood blossom

When bushes are full of the sound of bees and the scent of honey,

When the tall grass sways and shivers to the slightest breath of air,

When the buttercups have paved the earth with yellow stars

And beauty comes suddenly and the rains have gone

He Had Such Quiet Eyes by Bibsy Soenharjo

He had such quiet eyes
She did not realise
They were two pools of lies
Layered with thinnest ice
To her, those quiet eyes
Were breathing desolate sighs
Imploring her to be nice
And to render him paradise

If only she'd been wise
And had listened to the advice
Never to compromise
With pleasure-seeking guys
She'd be free from "the hows and whys"

Now here's a bit of advice
Be sure that nice really means nice
Then you'll never be losing at dice
Though you may lose your heart once or twice

In The Midst of Hardship by Latiff Mohidin

At dawn they returned home

their soaky clothes torn

and approached the stove

their limbs marked by scratches

their legs full of wounds

but on their brows

there was not a sign of despair

The whole day and night just passed

they had to brave the horrendous flood

in the water all the time

between bloated carcasses

and tiny chips of tree barks

desperately looking for their son’s

albino buffalo that was never found

They were born amidst hardship

and grew up without a sigh or a complaint

now they are in the kitchen, making

jokes while rolling their cigarette leaves

Leisure by William Henry Davies

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.

No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.

No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.

No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.

No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.

A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

A Fighter's Lines by Marzuki Ali

I am old and worn

and have lost all my strength

sufferings

and the history of the fight for independence

have forced sacrifice

that know no name

or life

From the wheelchair of the of my days

I, body and energy crushed

see and cannot do much

these times are too big a challenge

for the remnants of my crippled years

the net of deceit spread everywhere

disturbs me

In the name of justice

Wake up and form ranks son of our ancestor

Be brave

And erect a wall of people

Stand up heirs of our freedom

I have no more voice

It is you now who should speak!

Heir Conditioning by M.Shanmughalingam

Grand dad did you breathe
Before air cons were invented
Wasn't it hard staying
Alive without modern inventions
Gandma weren't you flustered
As you fluttered with paper fans
Could you communicate before
Faxes and long distance calls
Became basic necessities?

Grand child we lived
Before your age because
Of our ignorance,
We did not know
Pollution, stress, traffic jams
Destruction of forests, streams and hills
We feared God and nature
Now nature fears you and
Money is your new God

Mr. Nobody by Unknown

I know a funny little man,
As quiet as a mouse,
Who does the mischief that is done
In everybody's house!
There's no one ever sees his face,
And yet we all agree
That every plate we break was cracked
By Mr. Nobody

`Tis he who always tears our books,
Who leaves the door ajar,
He pulls the buttons from our shirts,
And scatters pine afar;
That squeaking door will always squeak,
For, prithee, don't you see,
We leave the oiling to be done
By Mr. Nobody

The finger marked upon the door
By none of us are made;
We never leave the blind unclosed,
To let the curtains fade.
The ink we never spill; the boots
That lying round you. See
Are not our boots they all belong
To Mr. Nobody.

The River by Valerie Bloom

The river’s a wanderer,

a nomad, a tramp.

He doesn’t choose any one place 

to set up his camp.

The river’s a winder,

through valley and hill.

He twists and he turns, 

he just cannot be still.

The river’s a hoarder 

and he buries down deep

Those little treasures t

hat he wants to keep.

The river’s a baby, 

he gurgles and hums

And sounds like he’s happily 

sucking his thumbs.

The river’s a singer, 

as he dances along

The countryside echoes 

the notes of his song.

The river’s a monster,

hungry and vexed

He’s gobbled up trees 

and he’ll swallow you next.

I wonder by Jeannie Kirby

I wonder why the grass is green

And why the wind is never seen?

Who taught the birds to build a nest

And told the trees to take a rest?

O, when the moon is not quite round

Where can the missing bit be found?

Who lights the stars, when they blow out

And makes the lightning flash out?

Who paints the rainbow in the sky

And hangs the fluffy clouds so high?

Why it is now, do you suppose

That Dad won't tell me, if he know?