Sonnet 73 -- S.A.Q

Mark – 2

(১) “When yellow leaves, or none or few, do hang”- What do the yellow leaves symbolize in this line ? (“যখন হলুদ পাতা, অথবা শূন্যতা বা কয়েকটি ঝুলে থাকে”- এই লাইনে হলুদ পাতা কীসের প্রতীক হিসেবে ব্যবহৃত হয়েছে ?) 

( Text  Book Question ) 

Ans – The leaves turn yellow in late autumn before falling down finally. In this line, yellow leaves are mentioned as a symbol of aging and the impending death.

(২) “Which by and by black night doth take away”- What does black night refer to in this poem ? (“যাকে ক্রমে ক্রমে অন্ধকার রাত্রি হরণ করে নেয়”- এই কবিতায় অন্ধকার রাত্রি বলতে কীসের উল্লেখ করা হচ্ছে ?) ( Text Book Question )

Ans – In this poem the poet has presented three imageries of aging. The second one among this is the twilight of a day with a sun setting. Metaphorically the black night here refers to the death.

(৩) What time of the year is suggested in Sonnet 73 by the poet and why ? (সনেট ৭৩ কবিতায় বছরের কোন্ সময়ের ইঙ্গিত দেওয়া হয়েছে এবং কেন দেওয়া হয়েছে ?)

Ans – In Sonnet 73 the time of the year suggested by the poet is late-autumn, when the leaves of the tree turn yellow before falling down. It suggests that the poet has been old and has reached the fag end of his life.

(৪) What is meant by the expression ‘bare ruined choirs’ ? (‘জনহীন ধ্বংসপ্রাপ্ত বৃন্দগানের দল’ এই অভিব্যক্তির দ্বারা কী বোঝানো হয়েছে ?)

Ans – The expression suggests the image of a church which has been ruined and abandoned and its choir no longer exists. Here, this image is indirectly compared with a bare leafless tree of autumn where the birds no longer sing.

(৫) Who is supposedly addressed as ‘thou’ in Sonnet 73 ? (সনেট ৭৩ কবিতায় ‘তুমি’ বলতে কার উল্লেখ করা হয়েছে বলে মনে করা হয় ?)

Ans – The Sonnets of Shakespeare are addressed to W.H., ‘the onlie begetter’ but the identity of this person is not known. However, the Sonnet is addressed to someone, with whom the poet is involved in a love relationship.

(৬) What is meant by ‘Death’s second self” ? (‘মৃত্যুর দ্বিতীয় সত্তা’ বলতে কী বোঝানো হয়েছে ?)

Ans – The expression ‘Death’s second self refers to sleep which is brought by the black night for providing rest to all. The poet thinks that sleep is akin to death as it provides rest for anyone like the death.

(৭) What is the leafless branch of a tree compared with in Sonnet 73 ?  (সনেট ৭৩ কবিতায় গাছের পত্রহীন ডালগুলিকে কীসের সঙ্গে তুলনা করা হয়েছে ?)

Ans – In Sonnet 73, the leafless branch of a tree in autumn is compared with a ruined and abandoned church. The poet has called it ‘bare ruined choir’ and the choir is a part of church.

(৮) What three imageries of aging is presented in the poem ‘Sonnet 73’ ?  (‘সনেট ৭৩’ কবিতায় বার্ধক্যের কোন্ তিনটি চিত্রকল্প উপস্থাপিত হয়েছে ?)

Ans – The three quatrains of Sonnet 73 present three different pictures of aging. In the first, it is the yellow leaves of a bare tree in autumn, in the scond it is the twilight of a day while in the third it is a dying fire.

(৯) When, according to the poet, should one love his or her beloved more ?  (কবির মতে কখন একজনের তার প্রেমিক বা প্রেমিকাকে আরও বেশি করে ভালোবাসা উচিত ?)

Ans – According to the poet, a lover should love his beloved more when he perceives that his lover would die soon and be separated for ever from him.

(১০) “… do hang upon the boughs, which shakes against the cold”-What does ‘shaking’ suggest in this line ?

Ans – This line draws a picture of autumnal scene when the branches and leaves of a tree shake in the cold north wind. At the same time line suggests the shaking of limbs which can be observed in old age for the infirmity and fear of death.

(১১) “In me thou see’st the twilight of such a day”- What does the poet mean to say by ‘the twilight of such a day’ ? (“আমার মধ্যে তুমি দেখতে পাবে এমনই দিনের গোধূলি”- ‘এমনই দিনের গোধূলি’ বলতে কবি কী বলতে চেয়েছেন ?)

Ans – In this line, the poet compares his aging with the twilight of a day with the sun setting in the west. The day is nearly spent and the night will come soon. In other words, the life is nearly passed and death will come soon.

(১২) “This thou perceivest”- What is meant by ‘this’ in the line ? (“এটি যদি তুমি উপলব্ধি করো”- এই লাইনে ‘এটি’ বলতে কোন জিনিসকে বোঝানো হয়েছে ?)

Ans – In this line, ‘this’ refers to the realisation of the poet’s beloved that the poet has reached the fag end of his life and he will die very soon.

(১৩) How does the poet draw a picture of the gradual fading of twilight in Sonnet 73 ?  (সনেট ৭৩ কবিতায় কবি কেমন করে গোধূলির ক্রমে ক্রমে মিলিয়ে যাওয়ার চিত্র অঙ্কন করেছেন ?)

Ans – The poet has drawn the picture of a fading twilight in the second quatrain of the poem. The sunlight is gradually fading in the west. Gradually the black night will come and envelope everything in a state of rest.

(১৪) What idea is expressed by the line ‘Consumed with that which it was nourished by’ ?  (‘যা দিয়েছিল পুষ্টি তাতেই হবে ক্ষয়’- এই লাইনটিতে কোন ধারণার প্রকাশ করা হয়েছে ?)

Ans – The line expresses a popular epigram of Shakespeare’s time. It tells that the force of nature which nourishes us ultimately kills us. The duality of nature in creating, sustaining and destroying is conveyed through this.

(১৫)  “In me thou see’st the glowing of such fire,” – What fire is referred to in the line ? How does the poet describe the condition of that fire ? ( “আমার মধ্যে তুমি এমনই আগুনের আভা দেখতে পাবে”- এখানে কোন আগুনের কথা বলা হয়েছে ? কবি কেমন করে সেই আগুনের বর্ণনা করেছেন ?)

Ans – Here, the fire refers to the life-force or the vitality and energy of youth. The poet has described the fire as dying and it is lying on the ashes of the youth for final expiry.

(১৬) What is a choir ? How does the poet make a comparison of the choir in Sonnet 73 ? ( কয়্যার বলতে কী বোঝ ? সনেট ৭৩ কবিতায় কবি ক্যয়ারের তুলনা কেমন করে করেছেন ?)

Ans – Choir is the group of singers that sings religious hymns in a church. The poet describes bare trees of autumn as a ruined choir of a church. The birds previously used to sing like the choir in the church, in that leafless tree.

(১৭) “As the death-bed, whereon it must expire”- What does ‘it’ refer to here ? Whose expiry is metaphorically suggested  ?(“ঠিক যেন মৃত্যুশয্যা যেখানে সেটির বিলুপ্তি ঘটবে”- ‘এখানে ‘সেটি’ বলতে কোন জিনিসের উল্লেখ করা হয়েছে ? কার বিলুপ্তির পরোক্ষ ইঙ্গিত দেওয়া হয়েছে ?)

Ans – ‘It’ in this line refers to a dying fire, with which the poet has compared himself in the poem. The expiry or the death of the poet himself is metaphorically suggested by this line.

(১৮)  Discuss the theme of Sonnet 73. (সনেট ৭৩-র বিষয়বস্তু সম্বন্ধে আলোচনা করো।)

Ans – The main theme of Sonnet 73 is senility or aging and its impact on the love. The poet tells about his senile condition and urges his lover to love him more as he will soon depart from this world.

(১৯) What does the speaker compare himself to in the Sonnet ? What significance does it hold ?  (এই সনেটে কবি নিজেকে কীসের সঙ্গে তুলনা করেছেন ? এই তুলনার তাৎপর্য কী ?)

Ans – The poet compares himself to a tree in autumn, the twilight of a day and a dying fire. All these signify that he has reached the final stage of his life and he will die soon.

(২০) What time of the day does the speaker compare himself to ? [ বক্তা নিজেকে দিনের কোন সময়ের সঙ্গে তুলনা করেছেন ?]

Ans – The speaker compares himself to twilight, the time just after sunset. This metaphor signifies the waning light of life, with darkness (death) approaching, indicating his life’s ending stage.

(২১) How does the speaker describe the coming of the night ? [ বক্তা রাতের আগমনের বর্ণনা কীভাবে দিয়েছেন ?]

Ans – The speaker describes the coming of the night as the “black night” that takes the light after the sunset. This represents the finality of death, enveloping all that was once vibrant.

(২২) What does the speaker want his loved one to understand in ‘Sonnet 73’ ? [‘Sonnet 73’ কবিতায় বক্তা তাঁর প্রিয়জনকে কী বোঝাতে চান ? ]

Ans – The speaker wants his loved one to understand that love is precious and valuable because life is fleeting, and they should cherish their love while they still can.

(২৩) How does the poet’s awareness of death affect his view of love in ‘Sonnet 73’ ?  [ ‘Sonnet 73’ কবিতায় মৃত্যুর প্রতি কবির সচেতনতা তাঁর প্রেমের দৃষ্টিভঙ্গিকে কীভাবে প্রভাবিত করে ?]

Ans – The speaker’s awareness of death makes him cherish and value love more deeply, understanding that love’s worth is magnified by its impermanence.