Short Questions: Snake | Short & Long Answer Questions for Class 10 PDF Download

Q1: How is the poet guilty of violating the rule of hospitality?
Ans: The poet felt honoured when he noticed a majestic snake crawling towards his water trough, to quench its thirst. Later, he picked up a log and threw it at the harmless snake, while it was making a decent exit. The poet regretted his impulsive act and termed it as being, ‘vulgar’ ‘mean’ ‘petty; and rebukes the voices of human education. The poet believed that he ought to make amends for his unreasonable and undignified act. He experienced an acute sense of guilt for having violated the basic rules of hospitality.

Q2: Do you think the snake was conscious of the poet’s presence? How do you know?
Ans: Not in the beginning. He drank, completely oblivious of the poet’s presence there. Later on, when he looked at him, it showed no fear. Probably, it did not know that a man stood there in fascination with a very confused state of mind, that was giving him contrary instructions.

Q3: How do we know that the snake’s thirst was satiated?
Ans: After drinking enough water, the snake took out its forked tongue, moved it and smacked its lips as the cattle do. This was an indication that its thirst was quenched.

Q4: Why does the poet decide to stand and wait till the snake has finished drinking? What does this tell you about the poet? (Notice that he uses ‘someone’ instead of something for the snake.)
Ans: The poet had not expected this encounter with the snake. He felt extremely honoured that the snake had come there seeking his hospitality. As it had come there before him, he decided to wait, without disturbing him. He uses ‘someone, perhaps to personify the snake, by treating it as a guest.

Q5: In stanza 2 and 3, the poet gives a vivid description of the snake by using suggestive expression. What picture of the snake do you form on the basis of this description?
Ans: The poet is very vividly presenting the picture of a huge golden snake that had come in very peaceful and calmly, from its hot home beneath the earth. It was in no hurry, and moved about in a very lazy and harmless manner. The snake is also compared to a cattle by the poet probably to highlight that it did not have any vicious intentions. It had just come in to drink water and tried to slip away with the same laziness into its hole.

Q6: Why does the poet experience conflicting emotions on seeing the snake?
Ans: The poet experienced conflicting emotions because his head (education), and his heart (sensibilities) gave him different suggestions, opinions, on how to handle the snake. His heart did not want to listen to his mind that told him to kill the snake, if he were a man.

Q7: What did voice of education say to the poet in the poem, ‘snake’?
Ans: Education had made him understand that snakes are poisonous and that it should be killed for survival. Snake poison could result in death. It had not taught him to understand, respect and protect another living being, that was in no way disturbing him.

Q8: How does the poet describe the day and the atmosphere when he saw the snake?
Ans: The poet says that it was a very hot day in July, probably as hot as the day when Mount Etna in Sicily had erupted, releasing excessive heat, fire and lava.

Q9: Why did D.H. Lawrence, the poet, despise himself? How did he feel and describe his action?
Ans: He despised himself for throwing a log at the snake. He felt extremely disgusted when he saw the snake escaping in a hurry. He regretted his paltry, vulgar and mean behaviour. He hated himself and the education that had told him that snakes are harmful and must be killed. He felt his action was responsible for depriving him of the opportunity of honouring a king.

Q10: Why did the poet wait for the snake to quench its thirst first?
Ans: The poet waits for the snake to quench its thirst because he considered it to be an honoured guest. Besides, as the snake had come before him, it was first in the order.