Grab free access to top-quality NCERT Solutions for the poem “Anne Gregory”. The solutions provide a thorough understanding of the chapter which will help students of Class 10th get a good grasp of the poem. Written in an easy-to-understand language, NCERT Solutions for Class 10th covers the entire topic accurately in order to make students’ exam ready in no time.
”Anne Gregory” is a poem by William Butler Yeats. The poem is written in a form of a conversation wherein the poet is saying that a person only falls in love with the outer beauty of a girl instead of focusing on her inner beauty. He wants girls’ inner beauty and nature to be appreciated along with outer beauty or physical appearance.
Question 1:
What does the young man mean by ‘great honey-coloured / Ramparts at your ear’ ? Why does he say that young men are ‘thrown into despair’ by them ?
Answer:
Wealth, position and riches never last long. One is sure to lose them one day. And when one loses them, the state of despair begins. And one who has fallen in despair, tries to win the affection of others in one way or the other.
Question 2:
What colour is the young woman’s hair ? What does she say she can change it to ? Why would she want to do so ?
Answer:
The young woman’s hair is of yellow colour. She says that she can change it into brown, black or carrot. She wants to do so because she wants to have one who loves her for herself alone and not for the colour of her hair.
Question 3:
Objects have qualities which make them desirable to others. Can you think of some objects (a car, a phone, a dress ......) and say what qualities make one object more desirable than another ? Imagine you were trying to sell an object : what qualities would you emphasise ?
Answer:
It is true that external looks do have some value. But ultimately, it is the inner worth that decides the true value of a thing. It is true in the case of any material thing. It is true in the case of human beings also. In order to sell an object, I would emphasise its durability, its workability and its being comparatively cheap in terms of price.
Question 4:
What about people ? Do we love others because we like their qualities, whether physical or mental ?
Or
is it possible to love someone ‘for themselves alone’ ? Are some people ‘more lovable’ than others ?
Answer:
In any case, we love a person for his qualities only. Relations and affections do count in our likings, but ultimately it is the integrated personality of a person that counts. It includes his physical, mental, moral as well as spiritual qualities. We never love a person for himself alone. We love him as a friend, as a relative or as a man of high qualities. Love is never in isolation from other things. Only God can love us for ourselves because He wants nothing from us in return.
Question 5:
You have perhaps concluded that people are not objects to be valued for their qualities or riches rather than for themselves. But elsewhere Yeats asks the question : How can we separate the dancer from the dance ? Is it possible to separate ‘the person himself or herself ’ from how the person looks, sounds, walks, and so on ? Think of how you or a friend or member of your family has changed over the years. Has your relationship also changed ? In what way ?
Answer:
It is true that we cannot compartmentalize a person. We always look at him/her as a whole. We can’t say that we like the dance of a person but we dislike the dancer. We love a person because we like his looks and also the qualities that he has. Our relationship naturally changes if we notice a change in the person we love. Love is a many-sided thing and we can’t dissect it.