Updated 22/12/2021
Very Short Type Q-Ans.
1. Who is
the poetess of the poem ‘A Photograph?
Ans. Shirley Toulson
2. What does
the word ‘cardboard’ denote?
Ans. The photograph
3. How many
girls are there in the Photograph?
Ans. Three
4. How old
was the poetess when this photograph was taken?
Ans. She was not born
5. Who
snapped the photograph?
Ans. Her uncle
6. Who is
the ‘big girl’ in the photograph?
Ans. The poetess’s mother
7. How many
years have passed since the photograph was taken?
Ans. Twenty or thirty years
8. What are
the names of the two girls?
Ans. Betty and Dolly
9. Who were
Betty and Dolly?
Ans. They were mother’s girl cousins
10. What
were the two girls doing?
Ans. They were holding the hand of poetess’s mother
11. What was
the uncle doing?
Ans. He was taking the photograph
12. Who has
been dead?
Ans. The poetess’s mother
13. How long
has been she dead?
Ans. About twelve years
14. What
silences the poetess?
Ans. Her mother’s death
15. The sea
holiday was the past of her mother. What is the poetess past?
Ans. Her mother’s laughter
1. A Photograph (Shirley Toulson)
Short &
Essay Type Q-Ans.
1. What does the
word ‘cardboard’ denote in this poem? Why has this word been used?
Ans.
In the poem, the word 'cardboard'
means a frame which
supports the photograph. This word had been used in the poem because the
picture is very old when the cardboard was used as a photo frame.
2. The poet’s
mother laughed at the snapshot. What did this laugh indicate?
Ans.
The
poets mother laughed at the snapshot while recalling her joyful
moments of her past. She looks at the photograph and recollects her innocent
joys.In the photograph she as well as her two little cousins stood at the beach.
3. What is the
meaning of the line ’Both wry with the labored ease of loss’?
Ans.
The
poetess is sad about the fact that her mother's laughter is history. Her mother feels the same for her childhood days. The word 'wry' here means disappointment.
4. What is the
meaning of the line, ‘Washed their transient feet.’?
Ans.
This phrase means that human life is not
permanent. The human beings have to die one day but the sea is permanent. As in
this poem, 'feet' is used to describe the whole human beings.
5. Explain,
‘The sea holiday was her past, mine is her laughter.’
Ans.
The sea holiday was a part of the
mother's childhood, her past and the mother's laughter is the poet's past as her mother is no more. 'Both' refers to the mother's
laughter and the poet's memory of her mother. Both were tinged with loss-the
mother had lost those happy childhood days and the poet had lost her mother.
Long Answer
1. Write brief
summary of the poem ‘ A Photograph’.
Ans.
The poem 'A Photograph' is written
by Shirley Toulson. In this poem, she recalls her mother and her memories while looking at a childhood
photograph when her mother was twelve years old or so. She has been deceased twelve years ago and she cannot
explain her grief on her mother's loss. It explores how people may die
but in a strange way they continue to live on in the form of memories. The
poem describes three stages in the passage of time. In the first stage, the
photograph shows the poet's mother standing at the beach enjoying her holiday
with her two girl cousins. The second stage depicts the happy moments of
the poet with her mother at the beach. In third stage the poetess is sad
to remember her mother.