Appreciation : (4 marks)Read the extract and write the appreciation of the poem :Weavers, weaving at break of day,Why do you weave a garment so gay ? ......Blue as the wing of a halcyon wild,We weave the robes of a new-born child.Weavers, weaving at…

Answer: Appreciation of ‘Indian Weavers’ by Sarojini Naidu (rhyme scheme aabb; similes, apostrophe, interrogation, repetition, alliteration, symbolism).

Appreciation : ‘Indian Weavers’ is a short lyric by Sarojini Naidu, ‘the Nightingale of India’. The title refers to the traditional Indian weavers, and through their work the poet presents the three stages of human life — birth, youth (marriage) and death. The poem is in the form of questions and answers : the poet asks the weavers what they are weaving at break of day, at fall of night and in the moonlight chill, and they reply that they weave the robe of a new-born child, the marriage-veil of a queen and a dead man’s funeral shroud. The time of day matches the stage of life. The poem has three stanzas of four lines each with the rhyme scheme aabb (day–gay, wild–child), which gives it a song-like rhythm. The poet uses Apostrophe (the weavers are addressed directly), Interrogation (‘Why do you weave a garment so gay ?’), Simile (‘Blue as the wing of a halcyon wild’, ‘Like the plumes of a peacock’, ‘White as a feather and white as a cloud’), Repetition and Alliteration (‘Weavers, weaving’). The colours are symbolic : blue for the joy of birth, purple and green for the splendour of youth, and white for the peace and solemnity of death. The language is simple and pictorial. The message is that life moves through joy, celebration and sorrow, and death is its natural end. I like the poem for its vivid imagery and its calm, philosophical view of life.