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Class 12th English Keeping Quite NCERT Solutions

    Think it out:

  1. What will counting upto twelve and keeping still help us achieve?

  2. Do you think the poet advocates total inactivity and death?

  3. What is the 'sadness' that the poet refers to in the poem?

  4. What symbol from Nature does the poet invoke to say that there can be life under apparent stillness?

Class 12th English, Chpater- Keeping Quite Explanation

Keeping Quite

Poet: Pablo Neruda

Theme:
In this poem poet talks about the necessity of quiet introspection and creating a feeling of mutual understanding.

Line by Line Poem Explanation:

Explanation of each line in written in bold
  1. Now we will count till twelve and we will all keep still.
    Poet is saying that we will be not be doing any activity till the count of twelve.

  2. For once on the face of the Earth
    let's not speak in any language,
    let's stop for one second,
    and not move our arms so much
    Poet is say lets do not speak any language as languages divides us into groups and affects unity and it also mean to be quite and still, not perform any activity.

  3. It would be an exotic moment
    without rush, without engines,
    we would all be together
    in a sudden strangeness.
    It will be an unusual and memorable moment for mankind where no one will be in tension or hurry and will not be using any machinery. We all will be experiencing this strangeness altogether

  4. Fishermen in the cold sea
    Would not harm whales
    and the man gathering salt
    would look at his hurt hands.
    Humans will not hurt any living being. And people will get time to look at consequences of their activities.

  5. Those who prepare green wars,
    wars with gas, wars with fire,
    victory with no surviviors,
    would put on clean clothes
    and walk about with their brothers
    in the shade, doing nothing.
    The people who are in war with each other and against nature, what is point of a war where no one survives to celebrate the victory. At least for some time keep their differences aside and will be together as brothers doing nothing.

  6. What I want should not be confused
    with total inactivity.
    Life is what it is about;
    I want no truck with death.
    If we were not so single-minded
    about keeping our lives moving,
    and for once could do nothing,
    perhaps a huge silence
    might interrupt this sadness
    of never understanding ourselves
    and of threatening ourselves with death.
    Here poet says that by this he does not mean total inactivity or death, he mean to live the life as we use to but also to be quite and still for a moment to understand ourself and others. We keep saying ourself saying we do not have much time and are frightened of death.

  7. Perhaps the Earth can teach us
    as when everything seems dead
    and later proves to be alive.
    We can learn from earth that there can life in quietness and stillness. At first everything seems to be dead but later it comes back to life.

  8. Now I'll count up to twelve
    and you keep quiet and I will go.
    At the end poet says that now he will count to twelve and we will be quite and still.