2.5 Father Returning Home, Learn in a simple way

2.5 Father Returning Home, Learn in a simple way

Test

A1. Rewrite the following sentences as per their occurrence.
1] Father Indulge into his past and future.
2] He doesn’t get a place in a crowded train.
3] Father does not eat nutritional food.
4] He listens to static on the radio.

A2. Eating a stale chapati, reading a book. Explain the line in your words.
Ans:
A3. How should we treat our parents?
Ans: 1] --------------------------
2] --------------------------
3] --------------------------
4] --------------------------

A4. Listening to the static on the radio, dreaming. (Find and explain the figure of speech)
Ans:
A5. Compose 4 lines on your own on 'Senior citizen'.
Ans:
B] Write an appreciation of the poem “Father Returning Home”

Answers

Poem

My father travels on the late evening train
Standing among silent commuters in the yellow light
Suburbs slide past his unseeing eyes
His shirt and pants are soggy and his black raincoat
Stained with mud and his bag stuffed with books
Is falling apart. His eyes dimmed by age
Fade homeward through the humid monsoon night.
Now I can see him getting off the train
Like a word dropped from a long sentence.
He hurries across the length of the grey platform,
Crosses the railway line, enters the lane,
His chappals are sticky with mud, but he hurries onward.

Home again, I see him drinking weak tea,
Eating a stale chapati, reading a book
He goes into the toilet to contemplate
Man’s estrangement from a man-made world.
Coming out he trembles at the sink,
The cold water running over his brown hands,
A few droplets cling to the greying hair on his wrists.
His sullen children have often refused to share
Jokes and secrets with him.
He will now go to sleep
Listening to the static on the radio, dreaming
Of his ancestors and grandchildren, thinking
Of nomads entering a subcontinent through a narrow pass.

The synonyms/ Vocabulary

1. Late - Delayed - उशीर
2. Evening - Nightfall - संध्याकाळ
3. Train - Railway - रेल्वे
4. Silent - Quiet - शांत
5. Commuters - Travelers - प्रवासी
6. Yellow - Golden - पिवळा
7. Suburbs - Outskirts - उपनगर
8. Slide - Glide - सरकणे
9. Unseeing - Blind - आंधळा
10. Soggy - Wet - ओलसर
11. Stained - Soiled - डाग पडलेला
12. Stuffed - Filled - भरलेले
13. Dimmed - Faded - मावळलेले
14. Homeward - Returning - घरी येणे
15. Monsoon - Rainy Season - पावसाळा
16. Hurries - Rushes - धावणे
17. Length - Distance - लांबी
18. Platform - Station Base - फलाट
19. Crosses - Traverses - ओलांडणे
20. Sticky - Adhesive - चिकट
21. Weak - Feeble - अशक्त
22. Stale - Old - शिळे
23. Contemplate - Think - विचार करणे
24. Estrangement - Separation - विभक्त होणे
25. Trembles - Shakes - थरथरणे
26. Sullen - Unhappy - उदास
27. Refused - Declined - नकार
28. Jokes - Humour - विनोद
29. Secrets - Confidentials - रहस्य
30. Static - Noise - आवाज
31. Dreaming - Imagining - स्वप्न पाहणे
32. Ancestors - Forefathers - पूर्वज
33. Nomads - Wanderers - भटक्या लोक
34. Subcontinent - Peninsula - उपखंड
35. Narrow - Slim - अरुंद
36. Pass - Pathway - रस्ता

Line-by-Line Explanation of the Poem:

“My father travels on the late evening train”
Explanation: The poem begins by describing the father’s daily routine of traveling home on a late evening train. This indicates that he works long hours and returns home late. It portrays his dedication and the weariness that comes with such a schedule.

“Standing among silent commuters in the yellow light”
Explanation: The father stands quietly among other passengers in the dim, yellow light of the train compartment. The silence of the commuters suggests a shared exhaustion or resignation, typical of late-night travelers.

“Suburbs slide past his unseeing eyes”
Explanation: The suburbs passing by are described as sliding past his “unseeing eyes,” suggesting that although his eyes are open, he is not really observing his surroundings. He’s lost in thought or too tired to care.

“His shirt and pants are soggy and his black raincoat”
Explanation: The poet describes the father’s appearance. His clothes are wet, and his raincoat is black, possibly due to the rain. This shows the hardships he faces during his commute.

“Stained with mud and his bag stuffed with books”
Explanation: The father’s raincoat is dirty with mud, and his bag is full of books. This suggests he’s coming from a place where he had to walk through muddy streets, emphasizing the struggle he faces. The books could symbolize his profession or responsibilities.

“Is falling apart. His eyes dimmed by age”
Explanation: The father’s bag is described as “falling apart,” reflecting his deteriorating condition. His “eyes dimmed by age” suggests he is getting old and his vision is not as sharp as it used to be.

“Fade homeward through the humid monsoon night.”
Explanation: This line depicts the father’s journey home through a humid monsoon night. The use of “fade homeward” suggests that he is barely holding on, tired and drained.

“Now I can see him getting off the train”
Explanation: The poet watches his father get off the train. This suggests that the speaker is observing his father’s routine, perhaps feeling sympathy or understanding his struggles.

“Like a word dropped from a long sentence.”
Explanation: The poet uses a simile to describe the father’s disconnection. He compares his father getting off the train to a word dropped from a long sentence, suggesting that the father feels isolated and insignificant in the life.
Imagine a word removed from a long text— it doesn’t seem to affect the whole sentence much, similar to how the father’s existence seems unnoticed.

“He hurries across the length of the grey platform,”
Explanation: The father quickly walks across the “grey platform.” He is eager to get home and rest after a long day. The use of “grey” shows a sense of dullness and monotony, reflecting his daily routine.

“Crosses the railway line, enters the lane,”
Explanation: The father crosses crossing a railway line or street in the dark, taking a familiar path home, indicating that he still has a little way to go before reaching home. It shows his determination to complete his journey despite fatigue.

“His chappals are sticky with mud, but he hurries onward.”
Explanation: His chappals (sandals) are covered in mud, but he doesn’t stop. He doesn’t slow down because he wants to reach home quickly, showing his perseverance and resilience.

“Home again, I see him drinking weak tea,”
Explanation: The father finally reaches home, and the speaker sees him drinking “weak tea,” which symbolizes his unwanted living.

“Eating a stale chapati, reading a book”
Explanation: The father eats a “stale chapati,” without complaining, indicating that he does not have fresh food and that his circumstances are not very comfortable. Yet, he continues to read, showing his dedication to knowledge or habit.

“He goes into the toilet to contemplate”
Explanation: The father goes into the toilet to think. It’s a private moment for him to reflect on his life, perhaps his struggles and the meaning of his existence.
Example: An old man standing alone, staring at his reflection, thinking about his past and future.

“Man’s estrangement from a man-made world.”
Explanation: The father thinks how people have become disconnected from the very world they have built. This reflects his sense of loneliness and loss of purpose. it shows a person standing in a bustling city, feeling out of place and disconnected from the modern, fast-paced world.

“Coming out he trembles at the sink,”
Explanation: After coming out of the toilet to washes his hands., he trembles at the sink, perhaps due to old age or physical weakness, showing his vulnerability.

“The cold water running over his brown hands,”
Explanation: An old man washing his hands in cold water, The cold water runs over his “brown hands,” shivering but accepting it as a part of his routine, symbolizing the harshness and of his life.

“A few droplets cling to the greying hair on his wrists.”
Explanation: An image of an elderly person’s wrists with a few drops of water sticking to the hair, highlights the details of his aging body,

“His sullen children have often refused to share”
Explanation: The father’s children are described as “sullen,” indicating that they are often moody or indifferent. They don’t share their thoughts or emotions with him, creating a gap in their relationship. Imagine a father coming home, wanting to talk to his children, but they turn away or remain silent, showing lack of communication.

“Jokes and secrets with him.”
Explanation: The children don’t share their jokes or secrets with him, which is a sign of the emotional distance between them. They avoid conversations with their parents.

“He will now go to sleep”
Explanation: The father goes to bed, ending his long and tiring day. After a stale meal, an elderly man goes to bed early due to indifferent nature of the children.

“Listening to the static on the radio, dreaming”
Explanation: He listens to the radio, but there is only static. This could symbolize his loneliness and the lack of meaningful interaction or fulfillment in his life.

“Of his ancestors and grandchildren, thinking”
Explanation: The father dreams about his ancestors and grandchildren, showing his attachment to family and his thoughts about the past and future generations. An elder person remembers about his family history and wonders about the future.

“Of nomads entering a subcontinent through a narrow pass.”
Explanation: The father thinks about ancient times, imagining nomads entering the subcontinent through a narrow pass, thinking about how people moved and lived in earlier times, contrasting with his monotonous lifestyle.

The poem in short

The poem describes the speaker’s father, who returns home after a long day at work, traveling on the late evening train. He stands among other tired commuters, his clothes wet and dirty from the rainy weather. He looks worn out and aged. As he reaches home, he drinks weak tea, eats stale food, and reads a book. The father is lonely and isolated, with his children often ignoring him. He then goes to bed, listening to the static on the radio and dreaming of the past, thinking about his ancestors and future generations. The poem reflects the father’s struggles, loneliness, and longing for connection. 

Brainstorming (Questions and Answers)

(A1) (i) Discuss with your friend the difficulties faced by the father in the poem.
Ans: (a) The father faces a tough, an uncomfortable and tiring journey every day, standing in a crowded train.
(b) During the rainy season, his problems get worse as his clothes get wet, and his raincoat and sandals become muddy.
(c) When he gets home, he is not given good, nutritious food to eat.
(d)  His children don’t talk to him or share anything with him.
(e)  He has no other form of entertainment except for listening to the radio.

(ii) Discuss the character sketch of the father with the help of the given points.
(His pathetic condition, the treatment he receives at home, his solitude, the way he tries to overcome it)
Ans: (a) Pathetic Condition: The father returns home every day in a crowded train without getting a seat. His clothes are wet from the rain, and his raincoat and sandals are covered in mud. He appears tired and worn out.

(b) Treatment at Home: When he reaches home, things don’t get any better. He is given weak tea and stale chapatti to eat, showing that his needs not given any importance by his family.
(c) Solitude: His children ignore him and don’t interact with him. but the father doesn't make any complaint and silently accepts it.
(d) Overcoming Solitude: He overcomes the problems by listening to the static on the radio and goes to sleep dreaming about his past and the future that allows him to forget temporarily his unhappy present.

(iii) What do weak tea and stale chapati suggest?
What do the following lines suggest in Dilip Chitre’s poem ‘Father Returning Home’?
Home again, I see him drinking weak tea,
Eating a stale chapati, reading a book
Ans: In Dilip Chitre’s heart touching poem, the phrases “stale chapati” and “weak tea” show father's insignificance and unwanted burden in his own home. He does not get emotional and mental support from his family although he is the sole earner of the family.

(iv) Complete the following web with the routine of the farther when he comes back to home.

Ans:

(vi) Write some words that suggest rainy season.

Ans: 1] Soggy
2] Muddy
3] Humid
4] Raincoat
5] Wet
6] Monsoon
7] Sticky chappals

(vii) Write some words that suggest old age of the father.

Ans:1] Dimmed eyes
2] Greying hair
3] Trembles
4] 
5] 
6] 

(A2) (i) Find the lines to prove the following facts from the poem.
1] Father is deprived of good food.
Ans: Eating a stale chapati, reading a book
2] Children did not have a healthy relation with the father.
Ans: His sullen children have often refused to share
3] Father thinks about the past and the future
Ans: Of his ancestors and grandchildren, thinking
4] Father has seen passing scene from the train many a times
and finds nothing new or interesting in it
Ans: Suburbs slide past his unseeing eyes.
5] Father does not eat nutritional food.
Ans: Eating a stale chapati, reading a book

(ii) Given below are the ideas conveyed through the poem. Match the pairs and draw out the hidden meaning from those expressions.

Answer

(iii) Complete the following table with lines that shows the fathers poor relations with his family.

(iv) The poet deals with the theme of man’s estrangement from a man-made world. Analyze it with the help of the poem./
How does Dilip Chitre in the poem, Father Returning Home, highlight man's estrangement from a man-made world?

Ans: In this poem, Dilip Chitre highlights the theme of man’s estrangement from a man-made world by showing the father's loneliness. The man-made world means the social system or society in which father lives his routine life. Despite being surrounded by people in the crowded train and living in a house full of family members, the father is completely disconnected from the man-made world.

(v) The father contemplates about his past and peeps into his future. Give reasons.
Ans: The father thinks about his past and future because he is disappointed with his present life and feels utterly alone and isolated. He finds no support, joy or excitement in his present life. All the people including his own family members do not care for him. His past memories and future dreams offer him a temporary escape from his harsh present reality. Thinking on the past makes him happy while thinking about the future gives him hope for a better time ahead.

(vi) “The father is travelling in a late evening train” what does this sentence suggest?

Ans: The sentence "The father is travelling in a late evening train" suggests that the father works long hours and returns home very late in the evening. It highlights his dedication, hard work, his commitment and sacrifice to support his family, despite his family members don't care him. 

(vii) “Standing among silent commuters in the yellow light” Explain the line
Ans: The father is standing among the silent passengers in the yellow light inside the train compartment. This line shows the father’s sufferings during the journey. After working so hard, he is returning home standing on the foot-board, as he doesn’t get a seat there to relax. The ‘silent commuters’ are not friendly enough to converse with him or among themselves. The yellow light is not the best thing either to promote any cheerfulness. All these things further intensify his agony and make the journey monotonous

(A3) Complete the following using suitable describing words as appeared in the poem with the help of the words given in the brackets :
(weak, dim, muddy, soggy, stale)
1] Father’s attire (dress) – soggy
2] Father’s tea – Weak
3] Father’s foot ware – muddy
4] Father’s food – stale
5] Father’s eyesight - dim

(A4) (i) 'Fade homeward through the humid monsoon night'.
In the above line the weather is humid, not the night. The epithet or adjective is transferred from the weather to the night. This figure of speech is Transferred Epithet.
Find out such other expressions from the poem.
Home again I see him drinking weak tea
Transferred epithet in the above line an adjective week is transferred from person to tea.

‘Fade homeward through the humid monsoon night’.
Transferred epithet because here an adjective “humid” is transferred from air to night.
(ii) Identify and write the lines from the poem which express the following figures of speech.

(ii) The Figures of speech:

iii).Find and explain the figure of speech.
1) My father travels on the late evening train
Alliteration because the sound of a letter ‘t’ is repeated to create poetic effect in the poem.
2) Standing among silent commuters in the yellow light
Alliteration because the sound of a letter ‘s’ is repeated to create poetic effect in the poem.
3) Suburbs slide past his unseeing eyes.
Alliteration because the sound of a letter ‘s’ is repeated to create poetic effect in the poem.
Paradox because the two contradictory ideas have been put forward through the phrase “unseeing eyes”,
4) his shirt and pants are soggy
Alliteration because the sound of a letter ‘s’ is repeated to create poetic effect in the poem.
5) Stained with mud and his bag stuffed with books
Alliteration because the sound of a letter ‘s’ is repeated to create poetic effect in the poem.
6) Fade homeward through the humid monsoon night
Transferred Epithet because an adjective’ humid ‘ transferred from weather to the night . weather is humid not the night.
7) Like a word dropped from a long sentence.
Simile because here a direct comparison has been made between the father and a word.
8) He hurries across the length of the grey platform
Metaphor because here the grey platform is indirectly compared with old age of poet’s father.
9) Home again I see him drinking weak tea
Transferred epithet in the above line an adjective week is transferred from person to tea.
10) Man’s estrangement from a man made world
Alliteration because the sound of a letter ‘m’ is repeated to create poetic effect in the poem.
Paradox because the two contradictory ideas have been put forward.
11) crosses the railway line enters the lane
Alliteration because the sound of a letter ‘l’ is repeated to create poetic effect in the poem.
12) Home again I see him drinking weak tea eating a stale chapati reading a book.
Synecdoche because here the part (chapati) symbolises the whole(food).
13) the cold water running over he is brown hands.
Personification because here water is given the human quality of running.
14) listening to the static on the radio .
Onomatopoeia because here the word static represents the sound.

(iv) Compose 4-6 lines on your own on 'Father'.
He never expects praise.
He never boasts.
He just works everyday
For those he loves the most

2] on old people.

Back bent, eyes dim,
No one listens to him.
Memories are waving like rain,
Hoping love from the grandchildren.

3] 

Poetic Appreciation

(B) Write an appreciation of the poem “Father Returning Home”

About the poet:
Dilip Purushottam Chitre was a notable Indian poet, painter and filmmaker of the modern era. He was a bilingual poet and translator with a remarkable work in Marathi and English. He was felicitated by the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award, both for poetry as well as for his well- known translation work ‘Says Tuka’, popular abhangas by Sant Tukaram.

This poem is an account of an old man who works hard for his family but leads a monotonous life where no one takes care of him, converses with him or understands his feelings. The poet described it giving the example of his father.

Theme :
The poet shows the loneliness of an old man in the modern society by depicting a picture of his own father returning home from work. The poem expresses the generation gap between a “father” and “children”. This modern world has no place for elderly people.

Poetic Style:
The poem is an autobiographical which consists of two stanzas of 12 lines each. This two stanza poem has been written in the form of a dramatic monologue. It does not follow any rhyme scheme as it is written in free-verse.
Poetic devices and language:
The language of the poem is very easy and simple but full of symbolic expressions and poetic devices. The poet uses here simile, alliteration, Transferred Epithet, Synecdoche, Paradox, personification, onomatopoeia and metaphor. The strong use of imagery makes the poem attractive.

Special features of the poem:
Visual imagery is a special feature of this poem like The words “evening train”, “yellow light”, “eyes dimmed by age”, “grey platform”, “soggy shirt and pants”, “black raincoat stained with mud”, “chappals sticky with mud”, “a word dropped from a long sentence” etc are some examples of imagery.

The message
The poem gives us a message that old people are neglected and not cared in the modern society. No one thinks about their loneliness or care for them. Indirectly the poet gives us the message that we should take care of the elderly people and give them good treatment at home.

My Opinion about the poem:
I like this poem most because of the simplicity with which it conveys a strong message to the readers.