-John Berryman
Text:
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Summary:
'The Ball Poem' by John Berryman revolves around the experience of loss of a boy who loses his ball down the gutter.
The poem starts with the ball bouncing and going into the water.A spasm of sadness covers him.He is grief-stricken by then.Now,he is completely upset over his loss.He stands there completely motionless and shaking from the bottom of his heart.
The poet thinks it is useless to console the boy and give him explanations which would make him a bit happy.The poet would n't intrude on the boy then.Another ball or the money to buy him another ball is useless.This was because many childhood memories of tne boy were attached to the ball.
The boy then realises that in this world of possessions,things will come and go.Money is external as it cannot buy back the memories which would be associated with the things a person owns.He learns slowly how to cope up with loss.He begins to understand the nature of loss.The boy also becomes more aware of the fact that loss is universal and one needs to put up a brave face in such times.
Difficult Words:
1)Rigid:Stiff and motionless.
2)Intrude on:To interfere in a certain situation.
3)Dime:Ten cents or 1/10th of a Dollar.
4)Epistemology:It is the study of the nature of knowledge itself.
Rhyme Scheme:
Free Verse
Figures of Speech:
1)Metaphor:The boy's ball is metaphorically associated with his young days and happy innocence.
2)Alliteration:"And no one buys a new ball back."
3)Anaphora:"What is the boy,what,what is he to do?"
4)Assonance:"Boy, now,who lost"
5)Repetition:Use of the word "Ball".
6)Asyndeton:A dime,another ball,is worthless.
NCERT Questions:
A) Thinking about the Poem.
1)The poet didn't intrude on the boy to console him because he wants him to grow up.He wants the boy to become mature and responsible in this world.The poet could have easily got the boy a new ball but he practises tough love so that the boy could understand loss and get the lesson to face losses in life.
2)According to the poet,it seems the boy was quite attached to the ball for quite a long time.So,when he loses his ball,he starts trembling and grief engulfs him.But now the ball is gone,he starts to experience for the first time the meaning of loss.
3)"In the world of possessions" is a phrase quite meaningful.It means that we live in a world where material possessions are of prime importance.If the boy wants to genuinely grow up,he needs to taste failure nd loss.Nobody can keep going on in the one direction.Ups and downs are the fellow passengers of teh journey called life.
4)No,it seems he has not lost anything earlier.This is suggested by the line :"He senses first responsibility" and words such as "Now".
5)The poet says that the boy is learning the lesson of responsibility from the loss of the ball.He is learning how to cope with loss in life.Loss is universal and everybody experiences it one or the other time.The poet thinks that he should n't intrude on the boy.He feels that the boy must have the knowledge of loss as he may lose something more precious tomorrow.He must learn that loss is a part of this world.
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