Class 8 English Bodo Medium Question Answer – Lesson 7: "Sympathy"

ACTIVITIES

1. Read the poem and choose the correct options to complete the sentences.

(a) The poet was in deep sorrow. A proud man came and helped him by

(i) offering him kind words

(ii) ignoring him

(iii) giving him gold

(iv) giving him pleasant company

Ans: (iii) giving him gold

(b) When the poet lay in want and grief, the one who helped him was

(i) a rich man

(ii) a poor man

(iii) a proud man

(iv) a holy man

Ans: (ii) a poor man

(c) The poor man gave the poet

(i) a cold look

(ii) sympathy

(iii) gold

(iv) not a kind word

Ans: (ii) sympathy

(d) When the poet's sorrow passed, he went to the proud man and

(i) gave him back the gold

(ii) ignored him

(iii) didn't give back the gold

(iv) helped him

Ans: (i) gave him back the gold

(e) The poet refers to sympathy as 'heavenly' because sympathy

(i) is a feeling found in proud people

(ii) is found only in rich people

(iii) is an ordinary human feeling

(iv) is a blessing from God

Ans: (iv) is a blessing from God

2. (a) Here are some questions to help you find out how much you have understood the poem:

(i) How did the proud person help the poet when the poet was unhappy?

Ans: The proud person helped the poet by giving him gold when the poet was unhappy.

(ii) What did the poor man do when he found the poet lying in pain and sadness?

Ans: when the poor man found the poet lying in pain and sadness, he bounded the poet's head, gave him bread, and watched over him night and day.

(iii) Why does the poet think that he cannot help the poor man back in the same way?

Ans: The poet thinks he cannot help the poor man back in the same way because he cannot repay the poor man's kindness and deep sympathy with gold. The sympathy was far more valuable than any material thing.

(iv) Why is the poor man's help greater than gold?

Ans: The poor man's help is greater than gold because it came with genuine sympathy, care, and a kindly word, which comforted the poet's heart and soul. The gold from the proud man lacked this emotional connection.

(v) "Oh, gold is great, but greater far

Is heavenly sympathy."

Why does the poet think so?

Ans: The poet thinks so because gold is a material thing that can be repaid, while sympathy is a profound emotional and spiritual comfort (a "heavenly gift") that cannot be valued or repaid with money. Sympathy healed the poet's deep sorrow, which gold alone could not do.

(b) Find in the poem lines that match the meaning of the following sentences.

(i) I was sad and very unhappy.

Ans: I lay in sorrow, deep distressed;

(ii) I was in need and was sad and hurt.

Ans: I lay in want, and grief, and pain;

(iii) He fed me and took care of me.

Ans: He bound my head, he gave me bread,

He watched me night and day.

(iv) Gold is valuable but sympathy and love are far more valuable.

Ans: Oh, gold is great, but greater far / Is heavenly sympathy.

(c) Make sentences with the following phrases:

Ans:

(i) looks were cold : His looks were cold.

(ii) night and day : She studied night and day.

(iii) pay him back : I’ll pay him back soon.

3. Below are some lines from the poem with some words underlined. Choose the correct meanings of the words from the options given in brackets.

(a) I lay in sorrow, deep distressed

(tired/unhappy/angry)

Answer : distressed - unhappy

(b) He gave me gold

(money/jewellery/sheets)

Answer : gold – money

(c) And blessed his charity

(money/kind help/pride)

Answer : charity - kind help

(d) A poor man passed my way

(to move past/stopped me)

Answer : passed - to move past

(e) Is heavenly sympathy

(selfishness/godly goodness/pride)

Answer : heavenly - godly goodness

(f) Greater far is heavenly sympatby

(the feeling of being sorry at another's sadness/the feeling of pain/a superior feeling)

Answer : sympathy - the feeling of being sorry at another's sadness

4. Let's have fun with words!

The jumbled words below have been taken from the poem. Spell the words correctly. List their antonyms (if any) alongside. Mention whether the words are nouns or adjectives. One has been done for you.

Ans:

5. As you know, the lines of a poem are not always written like prose.

Here are some of the main ideas of the lines of the poem, but in a jumbled order. Rearrange each set of words to get a complete sentence.

Remember to start the sentence with a capital letter and end it with a full stop.

(a) deeply/distressed/was/he

Ans: He was deeply distressed.

(b) heard/a proud man/of/his grief

Ans: A proud man heard of his grief.

(c) looks/cold/were/his

Ans: His looks were cold.

(d) didn't offer/he/a/kindly word

Ans: He didn't offer a kindly word.

(e) the gold/him/back/paid/to/he

Ans: He paid back the gold to him.

(f) even/thanked/him/I

Ans: I even thanked him.

(g) gave him/bread/the poor man/and/him/looked after

Ans: The poor man gave him bread and looked after him.

(h) than/the poor man's/is/gold/greater/sympathy

Ans: The poor man's sympathy is greater than gold.