Class 10 Notes

Fog
Read the stanza given below and answer the questions that follow :-
Q1. The fog comes on little cat feet.
(a) The poet thinks that the fog is like a ____________.
Ans :- cat
(b) „Cat‟s feet‟ refers to the softness of ____________.
Ans :- movement
(c) Fog is a symbol of ______________.
Ans :- sorrow.
(d) Give the meaning of the phrase „on little cat feet‟ from the extract.
Ans :- silently/quickly
Q2. It sits looking
over harbour and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.
(a) The fog spreads over the ………….. and city on silent haunches like a cat.
Ans :- harbour
(b) The fog …….……. after some time just as a cat does.
Ans :- disappears
(c) The poetic device in the extract is personification.
Ans :- True
(d) Find the same meaning of „port‟ in the extract.
Ans :- harbour
Q3. How does the fog spread over the harbour and the city?
Ans :- The fog-comes to a city stealthily just like a cat. It makes no noise. It spreads over the
harbour and the city and settles over them for sometimes. There, it rises high and moves away.
In this way the fog arrives over a city, observes it and then leaves it to move away.
Q4. Difficulties come but they are not to stay forever. They come and go. Comment
referring to the poem “Fog‟.
Ans :- None can deny that fact that after every nightfall, there is sunshine. In other words
sorrows follow happiness. Life has many ups and downs. We must all accept that problems as
a part of life. We should strengthen ourselves so much that we are able to face them and stand
up to solve these problems. We should not get carried away. We should learn that time and tide
wait for none.
Fog is also symbolic of darkness but it comes quietly like a cat and goes away. It symbolises
that if we are not disturbed by difficulties then life will itself move to lighter side and things
will be easy to confront. We should always remember that, we must face all the problems
boldly.
Q5. How is the fog like a cat?
Ans :- The poet finds the fog like a cat. The fog comes stealthily like a cat. It sits looking over
the harbour and city as a cat does. Later, it moves on just like a cat to settle somewhere else.
These things prove that the fog‟s comparison to a cat is appropriate.
Q6. „Nothing lasts forever‟. How far does the poem „Fog‟ depict this idiom?
Ans :- The fog in the poem makes a silent, but all-pervasive entry on the scene. It gives no
indication of its temporary nature, at this stage. Its silent arrival, as if on cat feet, does not
indicate its onward spread. It seems to be surrounding the entire countryside like a child
sitting on its haunches, indicating a mysterious aura without exposing its next move.
The reader anticipates some dramatic outcome of this all-pervasive presence from the harbour,
right down to the city. In the final outcome, the fog makes a silent exit, as secretively as its
arrival. The entire drama seems to suggest that even in the most engulfing of circumstances, is
but temporary in nature.
Q7. Write the central idea of the poem “Fog”.
Ans :- The poet Carl Sandburg in his poem „Fog‟ describes fog as a cat. Fog is treated to be a
living creature. Fog comes quietly and stealthily like a cat. Fog sits looking over the harbour
like a cat does. Then it moves to settle somewhere else. Just as cat doesn‟t settle at one place
and in the same way fog keeps on moving and finally vanishes.
Q8. The poet is able to visualize the image of a cat in the fog. Similarly there is an
inseparable connection between native and all creations in it. Based on the reading of the
poem, write a paragraph on the topic “God lives in His creations in native”.
Ans :- God is omnipresent and nature is a gift of God to us. Nature has both, the power to
sanctify and power to destroy. He makes his presence which provides us with the vital oxygen,
the food that grows beneath and above the ground, the water that satisfies out thirst etc. He has
made everything and everyone with a purpose and he lives in all of them. Nature cannot exist
on its own. It is because God‟s reflection falls on each of his creation that we, mere mortals
survive and thrive on this planet. Thus, we must always respect, love, and care for all of God‟s
creations.
Q9. What metaphor has the poet used in the poem „Fog‟? Do you think it is appropriate?
Ans :- In the poem, „Fog‟, Carl Sandburg has metaphorically compared the fog to a cat. The
first strange thing about the metaphor is the comparison of a phenomenon with a living
animal. Perhaps the poet wants to emphasize the silent nature and mysterious ways of the fog,
so he has compared the fog to a cat. A cat does not make a sound when it walks. So also is the
fog, but its presence is apparent. Its “silence” is very much like that of a cat moving on its
little feet. Then the fog stays in its place looking over the harbour and city which creates a
hazy atmosphere all around. The way it sits is very much like a cat sitting on its haunches,
looking here and there before it makes a move. This is as if the fog remains a silent spectator
of the happenings in the city. Whatever the purpose may be, both the fog as well as a cat make
their impression and make their presence felt. The comparison of the fog to a cat seems very
appropriate because, reading the poem, one feels that truly, the fog approaches stealthily, just
like a cat.
Q10. How does Carl Sandburg describe the arrival, stay and departure of the fog
through the image of a metaphorical cat?
Ans :- The poet employs a double image. The fog is converted into a cat and the cat morphs
back into the fog. The arrival of the fog is silent and sudden. It comes as if from nowhere. Its
arrival is like a small cat. It sits and stays for a while. It engulfs everything in its all-embracing
fold. It spreads its fold everywhere from the harbour to the city. It sits silently as a cat sits on
its haunches. The fog stays but not for long. A cat never stays at one place for a long time. So,
the fog moves ahead no one knows where. Carl Sandburg describes the raw aspect of nature,
the all-embracing and prevailing fog. Its silent power is felt everywhere from the harbour to
the city.

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