A Roadside Stand- Solutions- Class 12 English
By Robert Frost
Summary:
The poem “A Roadside Stand” by Robert Frost portrays the plight of poor farmers who put up roadside stands in hopes that passersby will stop and buy their produce. These farmers are disillusioned as they see the wealthier urban population rushing past without a thought for their hardship. The poem reflects on the widening gap between the rich and the poor and the unfulfilled promises of the modern age.
Questions and Answers:
Q1: The city folk who drove through the countryside hardly paid any heed to the roadside stand or the sorrows of the poor villagers. Pick out the words/phrases that reflect their indifference to the roadside stand and the people who run it.
Answer:
– “City traffic speeding past”
– “Of speeding cars”
– “A pathetically pledged support that was never meant”
– “Greedy good-doers”
– “Beneficent beasts of prey”
– “Go their way”
– “Feel in the heart of the poor”
– “So much they don’t see and so much they can’t see”
These phrases indicate the city folks’ disregard and indifference towards the plight of the roadside stand owners and the rural population.
Q2: What is the ‘childish longing’ that the poet refers to? Why is it ‘vain’?
Answer:
The ‘childish longing’ refers to the naive and innocent hope of the roadside stand owners that city people will stop, buy their goods, and provide them with some economic relief. It is ‘vain’ because the city folks are largely indifferent to the plight of the villagers and rarely stop to buy anything, dashing the villagers’ hopes.
Q3: Which lines show that the poet is bitterly critical of the city people’s attitude towards the countryside?
Answer:
The following lines show the poet’s critical stance towards the city people:
– “Of greedy good-doers, beneficent beasts of prey”
– “Swarm over their lives enforcing benefits”
– “That are calculated to soothe them out of their wits”
These lines reflect the poet’s bitterness and critique of the city people’s superficial and self-serving approach to rural upliftment.
Q4: Explain the irony in the following lines:
“The polished traffic passed with a mind ahead,
Or if ever aside a moment, then out of sorts
At having the landscape marred with the artless paint
Of signs that with N turned wrong and S turned wrong
Offered for sale wild berries in wooden quarts.”
Answer:
The irony lies in the fact that the city folks, who might briefly notice the roadside stand, feel irritated by its presence. They see it as an eyesore that mars the natural beauty of the landscape, yet they fail to recognize the desperation and hard work of the villagers who run the stand. Instead of feeling compassion, they are annoyed by the imperfect signs and the rustic attempts at earning a livelihood.
Q5: What are the ‘benefits’ mentioned in the poem? Do you think they actually benefit the rural people?
Answer:
The ‘benefits’ mentioned in the poem refer to the various schemes and interventions by city folks, government, or NGOs purportedly aimed at helping the rural population. However, these so-called benefits often do not address the real needs of the villagers and instead end up being superficial measures that soothe the conscience of the benefactors without bringing any substantial improvement to the lives of the rural poor.
Q6: In what way does the poem depict the social and economic disparity between the urban and rural populations?
Answer:
The poem highlights the social and economic disparity through the indifference of the urban population towards the rural people’s hardships. The roadside stand is a symbol of the villagers’ desperate attempts to participate in the economy, yet they are overlooked and ignored by the city traffic. The poem criticizes the broken promises and ineffective policies that fail to bridge the gap between the rich urbanites and the poor rural folk.