Students can Download English Poem 7 My People Questions and Answers, Summary, Notes Pdf, Activity, KSEEB Solutions for Class 6 English helps you to revise the complete Karnataka State Board Syllabus and to clear all their doubts, score well in final exams.
Karnataka State Syllabus Class 6 English Poem Chapter 7 My People
My People Questions and Answers, Summary, Notes
Preparatory Activity:
1. a) Write the names of the professions:
- A person who mends shoes.
Cobbler - A person who stitches clothes.
Tailor - A person who makes ornaments.
Goldsmith - A person who represents people in court.
Advocate - A person who works in the field.
Farmer - A person who sells fruits and vegetables.
Green Grocer
b) Do you know any other professions? Write them down and discuss the nature of work.
- Carpenter – makes furniture,
- Mason – builds buildings.
Let’s understand:
C1. Answer the following in two or three sentences:
Question 1.
Who is referred to as ‘they’ in the poem?
Answer:
Hard-working skilled laborers of various work are referred to as ‘they’ here.
Question 2.
“They weave cloth, but they go naked”. Why do they weave cloth? Why do they go naked?
Answer:
They weave cloth for people to dress up well but their meager in¬come makes them go naked.
Question 3.
Why do people sigh?
Answer:
After a day-long work, if they return home empty-handed, the people sigh
Question 4.
Who does the poet refer to as God-loving men?
Answer:
Men who pose themselves as Godmen. They preach that all men are equal, but never; try to uplift the poet’s people.
Question 5.
Is the poet sympathetic to them? How do you know?
Answer:
Yes, the poet is sympathetic to them. Because the poet refers to them as ‘my people’ and highlights the miseries they suffer.
C2. Discuss in small groups and answer the following:
Question 1.
Who is the speaker in the poem? Who is he talking to?
Answer:
Dr. Siddalingayya is the speaker in the poem and he is talking to the people of India.
Question 2.
What, as mentioned in the poem, are the different activities done by them?
Answer:
Carrying stones for buildings, excavating gold. Plowing the field, sowing the seeds, cutting the crops, build shops and raise bungalows, make footwear.
Question 3.
Why does the poet have sympathy for his people?
What, as mentioned in the poem, are the different activities done by them?
Answer:
His people are all hard workers and thy work for the benefit of society. But they suffer from poverty, so he sympathizes with them.
Question 4.
Isn’t-it a pity that some people build the shops but get into heavy debts? How does this happen?
Answer:
Even though the poet’s people toil day and night, they are paid a pittance. Many of them can’t be offered even a square meal a day because of their meager earnings. They are forced to borrow money from their employer’s for huge interest rates. The employers deduct the loans from their payment and the poet’s people go home empty-handed or borrow again.
Question 5.
What do you think should be done to solve their miseries?
Answer:
The government should take the responsibility of maintaining the equal status of people in the country. The daily wage workers must be well paid and enjoy all the benefits from the government like the government employees.
Let’s appreciate:
- Select and write the five most important words from the poem. Say why you chose those words. Import words from the poem
- They get kicked until they swoon
- They weave cloth, but they go naked
- They cut the crops and they are baked in the sun
- When they collapse on the street, they don’t cry for help
- They fall at others’ feet and they get kicked.
- The poem highlights the miseries of downtrodden society in our country. India is the only country Where the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. Most of the rich are not aware of the difficulties of the poor. In this way, the poem paves a way for. their clear understanding.
My People by Siddalingayya About the Poet:
Siddalingayya (1954), Professor of Kannada in Bangalore University is a major poet in Kannada Literature. He pioneered the Dalit voice in 1975. ‘Dalit’ is a cultural term denoting the oppressed class which was treated as untouchable by the so-called upper castes. The administrative term used now for such a class in India is ‘Scheduled Caste’. The trendsetting work on Dalit Literature in Kannada is ‘Holemaadigana Haadu’ (1975), a collection of poems by Siddalingayya. He uses the native term ‘Holemaadiga’ to give the indigenous Dalit identity for this exploited class.
The influence of the poems of Siddalingayya paved the way for the Dalit movement in Karnataka. His autobiography ‘OoruKeri’ is translated into English and also many of his poems are translated to various Indian and other languages.
My People Summary in English
Siddalingayya, professor of Kannada in Bangalore University is a major poet in Kannada Literature. Dr. Sumathendra R. Nadig has translated the original poem of Siddalingayya in English.
In this poem, the poet presents before us the miseries of people and comes to the conclusion that the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. There is no end to the miseries of the people. They go only for hard work and are not in a position to enjoy the fruits of hard work.
The people carry stones for building sites till they faint. They don’t get enough food. So they starve. The people dig a lot and excavate gold but they are short of food. Some people weave cloth and make silk sarees but they don’t wear them. So they go naked. The farmer works from dawn to dusk. They can’t enjoy it because of their poverty.
So they come home empty-handed and heave a sigh of relief because they don’t know what is rest. They face many problems and live in misery. It is these ordinary people who can build shops and raise bungalows but they can’t stay in it. They work and take their money but at last, they get into heavy debts.
These hard-working people work round the clock. Sometimes they collapse on the street but they are not after somebody’s help. They never cry for help but don’t disclose it. They hide their suffering and go to work the next day as usual.
We hear fiery speeches about these people but they become ash. They prepare footwear for god loving men who are happy. They do not have the strength to face. So they fall at other’s feet but they are not helped but discarded and neglected but the people who work are very much devoted. They carry the commands of others like the verdict of God but don’t expect anything in return. They live on-air and face the world. Like this, the poet expresses the miseries of hard-working people in the poem.