Hi Everyone!! This article will share Slum Children At Play Questions & Answers.
This poem is written by Ruskin Bond. In my previous posts, I have shared the questions and answers of The Beast Within, The Copper Beeches and Harry Pushed Her so, you can check these posts as well.
Slum Children At Play Questions & Answers
Question 1: Who are the ‘imps of mischief’?
Answer: The slum children are the ‘imps of mischief’.
Question 2: Why have slum children been called ‘imps of mischief’?
Answer: The slum children have been called ‘imps of mischief’ because they are young, carefree kids who lead their life in their own way and keep on indulging in frequent mischiefs.
Question 3: Describe the attitude of the imps while begging for a crust.
Answer: While begging for a crust, the imps grin and mock.
Question 4: How do they feel when they receive some money or food?
Answer: The slum children feel amused when they receive food or money. They do not feel grateful to others or show any sense of gratitude and do not thank them for it.
Question 5: Explain the phrase ‘eager hands’. What are the imps’ hands eager for?
Answer: The phrase mean that the imps’ hands are eager for money. That’s why they are called ‘eager hands’.
Question 6: When do the imps find the others funny?
Answer: When others give them more money than expected, they find them funny.
Question 7: ‘You’re just a joke’. Who are referred to as ‘you’ here?
Answer: ‘You’ here represents the rich city folks.
Question 8: Read the lines and answer the questions:
‘You are just a joke
Your life is soft
And theirs all grime and smoke.’
(a) How are the people in the city just a joke?
Answer: People in the city are ‘just a joke’ as despite having a life better than slum dwellers, they always strive for more.
(b) Explain the sentence: Your life is soft…
Answer: ‘Your life is soft’ means that their life is much more comfortable.
(c) What does the speaker mean by ‘all grime and smoke’?
Answer: ‘All grime and smoke’ here means that the lives of slum children are full of challenges and devoid of basic necessities.
Question 9: Who helps these children? And why?
Answer: The rich help these children to make amends for their exploitation of the poor.
Question 10: Why don’t they seek love and pity?
Answer: They don’t seek love and pity as they know that the city is heartless.
Question 11: What ‘kindred need’ do the people have?
Answer: People have the ‘kindred need’ for power and more money.
Question 12: How do the rich city folks lead their lives?
Answer: The rich city folks lead their lives under stress and worry a lot. Their life is full of duties and tension. They fail to enjoy their life due to their hectic schedule of fulfilling the responsibilities.
Question 13: The rich often give alms to the poor. Why did they do so, according to the poet?
Answer: According to the poet, the rich has a sense of guilt for not carrying about their social duties. So, they give alms to the poor to get rid of their guilt.
Question 14: How do the slum children lead their lives?
Answer: The slum children lead their life in hardship. They struggle for living, but they are carefree. They laugh, play and enjoy their life.
Question 15: What message do you get from the poem?
Answer: The poem leaves a message for us that even if we are established, our life is full of worry and tension whereas even though the slum children are deprived of all facilities they lead a joyous life. This teaches us that happiness is not about what physical goods or comfort we have but a state of mind. Also, it is the responsibility of the society to help the slum children to ensure that they get the few basic necessities of living.
Question 16: Read the lines and answer the questions:
You’II fuss and fret through life
While they do all the living.
(a) What do people ‘fuss and fret’ about?
Answer: People ‘fuss and fret’ about having more power and money.
(b) Who are ‘they’ being referred to in the above lines?
Answer: ‘They’ here refers to the slum children.
(c) What does the speaker mean by ‘they do all the living’?
Answer: ‘They do all the living’ means that the slum children, despite their lives being so full of challenges, still live happily.
Question 17: Happiness is a state of mind. How does the poet underline it in the poem?
Answer: The poet tries to highlight that even though people live in all comforts, they keep striving for more power and wealth. In this process, they live a life of worries and unhappiness. On the other hand, the slum children do not have any food or money and they lead a hard life but they still live in joy. Hence, the poet beautifully underlines that happiness is a state of mind.
So, these were Slum Children At Play Questions & Answers.