Asleep in the Valley- Important Questions and Answers for H.S students.

Asleep in the valley

Essay type ( in about 100 words) suggestive questions and answers of poem ” Asleep in the Valley” for W.B H.S ( Class 12) Exam.

Question 1: Justify the title of the poem “Asleep in the Valley”. (W.B H.S 2015)

Answer: In the  “Asleep in The Valley” Arthur Rimbaud’s has beautifully presented the reality of war. In the poem, poet has beautifully sketched valley where stream leisurely flow. Poet has focused more on scenic beauty of valley in first half of poem and destructive consequences of war is revealed at the very end of the poem. In Second Stanza of the poem, the poet describes blissfully sleeping a young soldier. Below his head is pillow of fern and his body stretches in the heavy bushes. The soldier is sleeping peacefully but he is dead. The two red holes on the side of soldier body show that he has been killed in the war. It exposes how inhumanly the soldier is victimized in war. So the title of the poem is very appropriate.



Question 2: “Asleep in the valley” is a war poem- Justify the statement. Or. How does the poet Arthur Rimbaud look upon war? ( W.B Sample-II)

Answer: The war poem “Asleep in the valley” deals with the tragedy of the war. The young soldier who is the focus the poem is the victim of the war. Though he seems to be asleep in the valley peacefully but he is dead. His open mouth, one hand on the breast and innocent smile like a infant’s smile do not help us to think that he is dead They rather prove that he is sleeping like a normal human But he is sleeping a perennial sleep. The two red holes on the sides of his body show that he has been killed in a war. Thus we can say that this poem war. It is the war which brings about the end of the young soldier.

Also read:
>>Essay type (100 words) Question & Answers on ‘Three Question’.
>>MCQ from the poem ‘Asleep in the Valley‘.
>> SAQ from the poem ‘Asleep in the Valley‘.

Question 3: “A soldier, very young, lies open mouthed”- Who is the soldier referred to here? Narrate in your own word how the soldier lies in the valley? (W.B H.S 2016)

Answer: A young soldier who is the victim of the war is referred to here. The young soldier in the poem “Asleep in the Valley” was sleeping on the grass surrounded by green plant. Beneath his head was pillow made of fern He seemed to be sleeping peacefully.  He is not disturbed by the humming insects. His open mount, innocent smile and a peaceful sleep make us feel that he is sleeping normal sleep. But he is sleeping a perennial sleep. The two red holes on the sides of his body show that he has been killed in a war.

Question 4:“In his side there are two red holes.”
Who is the person referred to here? What do the ‘two red holes’ signify? What attitude of the poet to war is reflected here? (W.B.H.S 2017)

Answer: The person referred to here is a dead soldier.The “two red holes” signify that the soldier has been a casualty of the war with two rifle-shots in his side. Suddenly we realize that he will never ever wake up from his deep sleep.
The “two red holes” reveals the fact that the soldier had suffered two bullet injuries and is a victim of the cruel and meaningless war. The bullet marks in the ribs were deep and red but they were not easily noticed just as the pity of war is not felt easily until and unless it hurts someone directly. When everything does look placid in the bountiful nature,” two red holes” leaves us shocked at the horrible brutality of war and this antithesis has been judiciously used by Arthur Rimbaud to arise human consciousness against the war.

1 thought on “Asleep in the Valley- Important Questions and Answers for H.S students.”

  1. Please upload all the questions paper of west Bengal board of class 12 in English pattern of 2016-19

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