The Nightingale and the Glow-Worm

William Cowper (1731-1800) was an English poet who wrote about everyday life. His poetry reflected the image of the English countryside. He was one of the most popular poets of his time, and was greatly admired by Samuel L Coleridge and William Wordsworth.

A Nightingale that all day long

Had cheered the village with his song,

Nor yet at eve his note suspended,

Nor yet when eventide was ended,

Began to feel, as well he might,

The keen demands of appetite;

When looking eagerly around,

He spied, far off upon the ground,

A something shining in the dark,

And knew the glow-worm by his spark;

So stooping down from hawthorn top,

He thought to put him in his crop;

The worm, aware of his intent,

Harangued him thus right eloquent:

"Did you admire my lamp", quoth he,

"As much as I your minstrelsy.

You would abhor to do me wrong.

As much as I to spoil your song,

For 'twas the self-same power divine

Taught you to sing. and me to shine,

That you with music, I with light.

Might beautify and cheer the night."

The songster heard his short oration,

And warbling out his approbation,

Released him, as my story tells,

And found a supper somewhere else.

1.
On the basis of your understanding of the poem, complete the sentences by choosing the correct options.
1. The nightingale decided to stop singing in the
  1. morning.
  2. afternoon.
  3. evening.
  4. dawn.
2. Aware of the nightingale's intention of eating him, the glow worm reacted with
  1. anger.
  2. admiration.
  3. calmness.
  4. sadness.
3. To save his life, the argument put forward by the worm to the nightingale was
  1. everyone should not admire each other.
  2. ever one has been created to eat each Other.
  3. everyone has been created for a purpose.
  4. everyone must sing together.
4. At the end of the poem the nightingale
  1. ate the worm.
  2. released the worm
  3. became friends with the worm
  4. hated the worm.
2.
Which line in the poem shows that though the glow-worm is small in size, it is quite courageous?
3.
Do you think the glow-worm was a firm believer of divinity, or was he crafty enough to save himself? Justify your answer.
4.
In the poem the glow-worm tells the nightingale:
"Did you admire my lamp, quoth he,
As much as I your minstrelsy?
You would abhor to do me wrong,
As much as I to spoil your song"
Do you think the glow-worm really means what he says, or he just says it to flatter the nightingale? Give the reasons for your answer.
5.
Two traits of the nightingale's character have been described, one at the beginning of the poem and one at the end. What are these traits?
6.
Replace the underlined words in each of the following sentences with one word from the poem.
1. She shouted joyfully from the sidelines at the racing cyclists.
2. I to sit by the sea and stare at the horizon during the Iatter half of the day.
3. Mohan caught side a bearded man peeping through the window of the house next door.
4. With alarm I realized the zookeeper's purpose of entering the gorilla's cage.
5. The Economics Professor lectured in an angry and critical manner on the monetary policy of India.
6. Tom was regarded with feeling of complete hatred by us as he always tortured the frogs in the biology experiment class.
7. His formal public speech was met with a lot of cheer.
8. I needed to get my mother's approval to sleep over at my friend's house at night.

Skywalk Coursebook 6

Sraboni Das, Wordworth

Chapters

The Nightingale and the Glow-Worm

Available Answers