The Ball Poem Class 10 MCQ Quiz – Test Your Understanding!

Money is external.
He is learning, well behind his desperate eyes,
The epistemology of loss, how to stand up
Knowing what every man must one day know
And most know many days, how to stand up

According to the poet, from whom do we mostly learn about loss?

Money is external.
He is learning, well behind his desperate eyes,
The epistemology of loss, how to stand up
Knowing what every man must one day know
And most know many days, how to stand up

What does the boy learn by losing the ball, according to the extract?

1. Loss is the unavoidable truth of life.
2. Material objects can be replaced.
3. Money buys happiness.
4. Losses in life can be prevented with care.
5. Life continues despite losses.

An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went. I would not intrude on him;

Why does the speaker choose not to intrude?

This is so because the poet

An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went. I would not intrude on him;

The poet uses the word ‘ultimate’ to describe the boy’s reaction.

Pick the meaning that DOES NOT display what, ‘ultimate’ means in the context given.

What is the boy now, who has lost his ball,
What, what is he to do? I saw it go
Merrily bouncing, down the street, and then
Merrily over- there it is in the water!

Choose the situation that corresponds to the emotion behind the exclamation mark in the poem.

An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went. I would not intrude on him;

Choose the option that lists the meaning of ‘harbour’ as used in the extract.

Noun:

1. a place on the coast where ships may moor in shelter.
2. a place of refuge.

Verb:

3. keep (a thought or feeling, typically a negative one) in one's mind, especially secretly.
4. shelter or hide (a criminal or wanted person).

An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went. I would not intrude on him;

The boy is very young in this poem. As a mature, balanced grown-up, he might look back and think that his reaction of ‘ultimate shaking grief’ was

1. disproportionate to the loss.
2. pretension to procure a new toy.
3. according to his exposure and experience then.
4. a reaction to the failure of retrieving the toy.
5. justified and similar to what it would be currently.

I saw it go
Merrily bouncing, down the street, and then
Merrily over — there it is in the water!
No use to say ‘O there are other balls’:
An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went

The poet feels that there is no point in consoling the boy as

What does the poet mean by "the epistemology of loss"?

What is the boy now, who has lost his ball,
What, what is he to do? I saw it go
Merrily bouncing, down the street, and then
Merrily over- there it is in the water!

The poem begins with a question. Based on your reading of the poem, the speaker

Money is external.
He is learning, well behind his desperate eyes,
The epistemology of loss, how to stand up
Knowing what every man must one day know
And most know many days, how to stand up

The poet says money is external. What does it mean in this extract?

Money is external.
He is learning, well behind his desperate eyes,
The epistemology of loss, how to stand up
Knowing what every man must one day know
And most know many days, how to stand up

The boy is learning how to stand up…

This means that he is learning to be _____ in the face of difficulties.

I saw it go
Merrily bouncing, down the street, and then
Merrily over — there it is in the water!
No use to say ‘O there are other balls’:
An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went

The word ‘harbour’ DOES NOT have a meaning similar to

How does the poem suggest the boy should cope with his loss?

I saw it go
Merrily bouncing, down the street, and then
Merrily over — there it is in the water!
No use to say ‘O there are other balls’:
An ultimate shaking grief fixes the boy
As he stands rigid, trembling, staring down
All his young days into the harbour where
His ball went

‘Merrily over — there it is in the water!’ The dash here is meant to convey