Poem Analysis: Dark Imagery
XAT 2019 · Verbal Ability & Logical Reasoning · Medium · Reading Comprehension
Passage / data set
Read the poem given below and answer the questions that follow it:
Black lake, black boat, two black, cut-paper people. Where do the black trees go that drink here? Their shadows must cover Canada. A little light is filtering from the water flowers Their leaves do not wish us to hurry: They are round and flat and full of dark advice. Cold words shake from the oar. The spirit of blackness is in us, it is in the fishes. A snag is lifting a valedictory, pale hand; Stars opening among the lilies. Are you not blinded by such expressionless sirens? This is the silence of abandoned souls.
Question 1 of 2
Which of the following options best explains the effect of the images in Line 1?
- A.
The first line encapsulates the theme of the poem.
- B.
The images are suffused with an overpowering sense of rebellion.
- C.
The atmosphere indicates a cyclical nature of life and death.
- D.
The black lake lacks regenerative potential; 'black boat' connotes the funerary boat; cut-paper people are unreal.
- E.
The repeated use of black suggests evil.
D
Explanation
Line 1 introduces gloomy and lifeless imagery: black lake, black boat (funerary connotations), and cut-paper people (unreal). Option D captures these nuanced connotations accurately.
Question 2 of 2
Which of the following options presents a convincing evaluation of the line, 'Stars opening among the lilies'?
- A.
The stars are flowers in the sky and the flowers in the lake are stars in water.
- B.
The ethereal light of the stars gets reflected among the lilies.
- C.
The spirit of blackness does not hinder the appearance of beauty in nature which is symbolic of hope blossoming in the soul.
- D.
The mirror images, the worlds above and overlap.
- E.
Lilies purify the 'dark' into 'light' as symbolized in and by stars.
C
Explanation
Amidst the darkness, 'stars opening among the lilies' brings a ray of beauty and hope, signifying that blackness does not completely eliminate beauty or hope. Option C accurately evaluates this imagery.
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