Animals
Questions & Answers
1. What is the poet turning from?
Answer: The poet wants to turn away from the complicated, unhappy and materialistic life of human beings. He is tired of human greed, complaints, guilt and hypocrisy and wishes to live with animals, who seem peaceful and contented.
2. Why does the poet wish to live with animals?
Answer: The poet wishes to live with animals because they are calm, peaceful, self-contained and satisfied with their lives. They do not complain about their condition, commit sins, or run after material possessions. Their simple and natural way of living attracts him.
3. What three things do humans do that animals do not?
Answer: Humans complain about their condition, feel guilty about their sins and become restless because of their desire to possess things. Animals, on the other hand, remain peaceful and contented.
4. What is the meaning of “whine”?
Answer: “Whine” means to complain or cry in an annoying and unhappy manner.
5. What is the meaning of “placid”?
Answer: “Placid” means calm, peaceful and undisturbed.
6. What is the “mania of owning things”?
Answer: The “mania of owning things” refers to the excessive desire of human beings to possess material things such as wealth and property. The poet criticizes humans for becoming obsessed with possessions.
7. What does the poet say about the attitude of animals towards their lives?
Answer: Animals are calm, peaceful, self-contained and satisfied with their lives. They do not complain about their condition or become restless about what they do not have.
8. Why does the poet say that animals do not “sweat and whine”?
Answer: The poet means that animals do not complain constantly about their lives or difficulties. They accept their natural condition peacefully instead of worrying and complaining like human beings.
9. Why do humans lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins?
Answer: Humans lie awake and weep because they have a sense of guilt about their wrong actions. Unlike animals, human beings often feel troubled by their conscience and regret their sins.
10. Do humans kneel to other humans who lived thousands of years ago?
Answer: Yes, humans often kneel before or worship people who lived thousands of years ago. The poet refers to the human tendency to show religious devotion or respect towards ancient or revered figures. Animals do not have such practices.
11. What are the “tokens” that the poet refers to?
Answer: The “tokens” refer to the natural qualities that human beings once possessed, such as innocence, simplicity, kindness and contentment. The poet feels that humans have lost these qualities, while animals still possess them.
12. What qualities have human beings given up?
Answer: Human beings have given up qualities such as innocence, kindness, simplicity, contentment and natural honesty. The poet feels that animals still possess these qualities.
13. What makes the poet feel “sick”?
Answer: The poet feels “sick” when he hears human beings discussing their duty to God and showing their religious superiority. He dislikes their hypocrisy and complicated behaviour.
14. What shows that the poet loves animals?
Answer: The poet says that he stands and looks at the animals “long and long.” His desire to live with them and his admiration for their peaceful nature also show his deep affection for animals.
15. How do the animals appear to the poet?
Answer: The animals appear calm, peaceful, self-contained, satisfied and natural to the poet. He finds them free from the greed, guilt and restlessness that trouble human beings.
16. According to the poet, who is better—humans or animals?
Answer: The poet considers animals better in many ways because they are contented, peaceful and free from greed, guilt and materialistic desires. He admires their simple and natural way of life.
17. What is the central idea of the poem “Animals”?
Answer: The poem contrasts the simple, peaceful and contented life of animals with the complicated and materialistic life of human beings. The poet admires animals because they do not suffer from greed, guilt, dissatisfaction and the desire to possess things. He wishes humans could regain the natural virtues they have lost.
Thinking About the Poem
1. What is the poet turning from?
Answer: The poet is turning away from the complicated and materialistic world of human beings. He is tired of their greed, dissatisfaction, guilt, hypocrisy and endless desire for possessions.
2. Mention three things that humans do and animals don’t.
Answer: Humans:
- Complain about their condition.
- Feel guilty and weep for their sins.
- Have a strong desire to possess material things.
Animals do none of these things and live peacefully and contentedly.
3. Do humans kneel to other humans who lived thousands of years ago?
Answer: Yes, human beings often kneel before or worship ancient and revered figures. They show religious devotion to people who lived long ago. The poet contrasts this behaviour with animals, which do not worship or show such artificial reverence.
4. What are the “tokens” that the poet speaks of?
Answer: The “tokens” are the natural virtues that human beings once possessed but have lost. They include innocence, simplicity, kindness, honesty and contentment. The poet believes that animals still possess these qualities.
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
1. Who is the poet of the poem “Animals”?
(a) Leslie Norris
(b) Robert Frost
(c) Carolyn Wells
(d) Walt Whitman
Ans. (d) Walt Whitman
2. According to the poet, who is better?
(a) Human beings
(b) Animals
(c) Plants
(d) Birds
Ans. (b) Animals
3. The poet wishes to live with:
(a) Human beings
(b) Animals
(c) Birds
(d) Plants
Ans. (b) Animals
4. Why does the poet want to live with animals?
(a) They are powerful
(b) They are rich
(c) They are calm and contented
(d) They can speak
Ans. (c) They are calm and contented
5. According to the poem, no animal is ever:
(a) Unhappy
(b) Greedy
(c) Restless
(d) Angry
Ans. (a) Unhappy
6. What does “whine” mean?
(a) Laugh loudly
(b) Complain or cry in an annoying way
(c) Sing softly
(d) Speak politely
Ans. (b) Complain or cry in an annoying way
7. What does “placid” mean?
(a) Peaceful and calm
(b) Angry
(c) Greedy
(d) Restless
Ans. (a) Peaceful and calm
8. What do animals not complain about?
(a) Their food
(b) Their condition
(c) Other animals
(d) Their homes
Ans. (b) Their condition
9. What “mania” do human beings suffer from?
(a) Mania of sleeping
(b) Mania of travelling
(c) Mania of owning things
(d) Mania of playing
Ans. (c) Mania of owning things
10. What do humans do because of their sins?
(a) They laugh
(b) They dance
(c) They lie awake and weep
(d) They sleep peacefully
Ans. (c) They lie awake and weep
11. Who lies awake in the dark and weeps for sins?
(a) Animals
(b) Humans
(c) Birds
(d) Plants
Ans. (b) Humans
12. Who does not kneel to another who lived thousands of years ago?
(a) Humans
(b) Animals
(c) Kings
(d) Priests
Ans. (b) Animals
13. What qualities have humans lost?
(a) Innocence
(b) Kindness
(c) Contentment
(d) All of the above
Ans. (d) All of the above
14. What do animals possess that humans have lost?
(a) Wealth
(b) Natural innocence and contentment
(c) Property
(d) Power
Ans. (b) Natural innocence and contentment
15. What makes the poet feel “sick”?
(a) Animals fighting
(b) Humans discussing their duty to God
(c) Human beings playing
(d) Animals sleeping
Ans. (b) Humans discussing their duty to God
16. How do animals appear to the poet?
(a) Greedy and restless
(b) Calm and self-contained
(c) Angry and violent
(d) Proud and selfish
Ans. (b) Calm and self-contained
17. What does the repetition of “They do not…” illustrate?
(a) Simile
(b) Metaphor
(c) Anaphora
(d) Irony
Ans. (c) Anaphora
18. Which literary device is used in “I think I could turn and live with animals”?
(a) Simile
(b) Assonance
(c) Personification
(d) Oxymoron
Ans. (b) Assonance
19. What do animals show towards the poet?
(a) Hatred
(b) A connection or relationship with him
(c) Fear
(d) Anger
Ans. (b) A connection or relationship with him
20. What does the poet do when he sees the animals?
(a) Runs away
(b) Shouts at them
(c) Stands and looks at them for a long time
(d) Feeds them
Ans. (c) Stands and looks at them for a long time
21. The poet feels more at home with animals than with:
(a) Birds
(b) Plants
(c) Human beings
(d) Insects
Ans. (c) Human beings
22. Animals are generally:
(a) Restless and greedy
(b) Calm, peaceful and self-contained
(c) Proud and dissatisfied
(d) Jealous and selfish
Ans. (b) Calm, peaceful and self-contained
23. Human beings have the desire to possess:
(a) Nothing
(b) Things
(c) Animals only
(d) Flowers
Ans. (b) Things
24. The “tokens” mentioned in the poem are:
(a) Coins
(b) Gifts
(c) Natural virtues or qualities
(d) Animals
Ans. (c) Natural virtues or qualities
25. The poem “Animals” mainly contrasts:
(a) Cities and villages
(b) Humans and animals
(c) Rich and poor people
(d) Nature and machines
Ans. (b) Humans and animals
26. The poet admires animals because they are free from:
(a) Greed and dissatisfaction
(b) Food
(c) Sleep
(d) Nature
Ans. (a) Greed and dissatisfaction
27. What do animals never do according to the poet?
(a) Complain about their condition
(b) Live peacefully
(c) Eat food
(d) Sleep
Ans. (a) Complain about their condition
28. The word “tokens” suggests:
(a) Natural qualities or virtues
(b) Money
(c) Clothes
(d) Possessions
Ans. (a) Natural qualities or virtues
29. The poem presents animals as:
(a) Materialistic
(b) Contented and natural
(c) Hypocritical
(d) Dissatisfied
Ans. (b) Contented and natural
30. What is the main message of the poem?
(a) Humans are always better than animals
(b) Animals should be feared
(c) Humans should learn simplicity and contentment from animals
(d) Animals should live like humans
Ans. (c) Humans should learn simplicity and contentment from animals
Teacher Generate Question Answer
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
1. Name the literary device used in: “I think I could turn and live with animals”
Ans: (B) Assonance (Repetition of the vowel sound ‘i’)
2. According to the poem, no animal is ever __.
Ans: (A) unhappy
3. The animals do not whine about:
Ans: (D) their condition
4. What qualities have humans given up?
Ans: (D) All of the above (Innocence, kindness, and truthfulness)
5. Name the poetic device used in the repetition of “They do not…” at the start of multiple lines:
Ans: (A) Anaphora
6. What is the meaning of “whine”?
Ans: (B) Cry or complain in an annoying way.
7. What is the meaning of “placid”?
Ans: (A) Peaceful and calm.
8. Who, according to the poet, is better?
Ans: (B) animals
9. How do the animals appear to the poet?
Ans: (B) calm, peaceful, and self-contained.
10. The poet feels that animals show their:
Ans: (D) relation to him.
11. Who is the poet of the poem ”Animals”?
Ans: (D) Walt Whitman
12. Human beings have the mania of owning:
Ans: (A) things (Material possessions)
13. The animals show that the “tokens” were:
Ans: (C) in their possession.
14. What is the attitude of humans toward ancestors who lived thousands of years ago?
Ans: (A) They kneel (Signifying hero-worship or religious devotion).
15. Why do humans lie awake in the dark and weep while animals do not?
Ans: (A) Because animals have a clear conscience. (Correction: In your original text, B was marked, but the reason humans weep is because they lack a clear conscience, whereas animals possess one.)
16. What shows that the poet loves animals?
Ans: (B) He stands and looks at them “long and long.”
17. What “mania” do human beings suffer from?
Ans: (C) Mania of possessing things.
18. What does the poet wish to live with?
Ans: (B) Animals
19. What is the attitude of the animals toward their life?
Ans: (B) Calm, peaceful, and self-confident.
20. What makes the poet feel “sick”?
Ans: (A) Humans discussing their duty to God (often with hypocrisy).
21. Which creature is never dissatisfied?
Ans: (B) animals
22. What do humans do that animals don’t?
Ans: (D) All of the above (Greed, jealousy, and restlessness).
Part II: Thinking About the Poem
- What is the poet ‘turning’ from?
In the first line, the poet expresses a desire to “turn.” He wants to turn away from the complicated, hypocritical, and restless world of human beings. He wishes to leave behind the society of men to live in the simpler, more honest world of animals. - Mention three things that humans do and animals don’t.
Complaining: Humans “sweat and whine” about their difficult conditions, whereas animals accept their lives as they are.
Guilt: Humans lie awake at night weeping for their sins; animals have a clear conscience and do not worry about moral failures.
Materialism: Humans suffer from the “mania of owning things,” while no animal is obsessed with possessing material wealth.
- Do humans kneel to other humans who lived thousands of years ago?
Yes, humans often practice hero-worship or religious devotion toward ancestors, saints, or historical figures. We build monuments and perform rituals for those who lived long ago. Whitman points out that animals do not do this; they treat each other as equals, and no one is considered “holy” or superior based on the past. - What are the ‘tokens’ the poet speaks of?
The “tokens” represent the innate virtues of living beings—qualities like innocence, kindness, simplicity, and contentment. The poet suggests that humans possessed these virtues long ago but “dropped” them (lost them) in civilization’s race for power and wealth. Animals, however, have “kept” these tokens and continue to show them naturally.
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