CBSE Class 10 - English (C) - Mirror (Poem)

Mirror

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Poem by: Sylvia Plath
MCQs

Q.1 MCQs:

(a) When the mirror is being described as being 'unmisted by love or dislike' we understand that the mirror is
1. not misted
2. not prejudiced
3. has four angles
4. is silver in colour

(b) The other word for 'contemplation' is.....
1. contempt
2. meditation
3. mediation
4. thoughtful

(c) When the mirror says'it has no preconceptions' it means that:
1. it reflects back an image objectively
2. it modifies an image as it reflects it
3. it beautifies an image as it reflects it
4. it gives a biased view of a person/object

(d) The mirror has been called 'a four-cornered god' because:
1. it is square shaped
2. like God it watches you unbiased and fair from all four angles
3. it reflects back all that it sees
4. it never stops reflecting

(e) The 'speckles' refer to:

1. a pink object
2. the opposite wall which has spots on it
3. a person with pink pimples
4. pink spots in general

(f) The phrase 'agitation of the hand' suggests that the person is:
1. very ill
2. very upset
3. very angry
4. very happy

(g) By saying 'Now I am a lake' the narrator wants to show that
1. the poem is not only about external beauty but also the inside of a person
2. the lake can also reflect surfaces
3. the depth of the lake is important
4. the lake does not show as exact an image as a mirror



ANSWERS:
(a) 2. not prejudiced
(b) 2. meditation
(c) 1. it reflects back an image objectively
(d) 2. like God it watches you unbiased and fair from all four angles
(e) 2. the opposite wall which has spots on it
(f) 2. very upset
(g) 2. the lake can also reflect surfaces

Q.4 Answer the following questions briefly:
(a) What is the poetic device used when the mirror says 'I swallow'?
Answer: The poetic device used here is 'personification'. The mirror has been
personified. It swallows or absorbs an image which comes in front of it and then
reflects it truthfully.

(b) How does the mirror usually pass its time?

Answer: The mirror usually passes its time on temping to the opposite wall which  is
pink in colour and has spots on it.

(c) What disturbs the mirror's contemplation of the opposite wall?
Answer: The mirror's contemplation of the opposite wall is disturbed by faces and
darkness. When people come to view themselves in the mirror, its contemplation to
see the opposite wall is disturbed. The view of the wall is also disturbed by the
darkness of the night.

(d) Why does the mirror appear to be a lake in the second stanza? What aspect of the mirror do you think is being referred to here?

Answer: The mirror appears to be a lake because it reflects an image in the same manner
as it is reflected in the clear water of the lake. The mirror also appears to be
the lake because of its depth. An object which is thrown into the lake gets drowned
into it. Similarly youthful images cannot be reflected by the mirror again.

(e) What is the women searching for in the depths of the lake?

Answer: The women has become old. When she looks at herself in the mirror, the mirror
in turn reflects her true image. She is not satisfied with the signs of her aging. So
she tries to look into its depth so as to look for her lost beauty and youth.

(f) How does narrator convey the fact that the women looking at her reflection in the lake is deeply distressed?
Answer: The narrator conveys the fact that the women looking at her reflection is
deeply distressed and dissatisfied because she turns away to find her answers in the
candles and the moon. She has tears in her eyes and her agitation in hand express her
distress.

(g) What makes the woman start crying?
Answer: The fact that now she is old and has lost her beauty and youth, makes the woman
start crying. This truth is bitter for her to bear.

(h) What do you think the 'terrible fish' in the last line symbolizes? What is the poetic device used here?
Answer: The truth shown by the mirror is here described here as 'terrible fish'. This
poetic device is 'Simile'.

Q.5 (a) List out the adjectives that have been used to describe the mirror. Add a few more adjectives to the list.
Answer: Adjectives used to describe the mirror are-
exact, unmisted, truthful, not cruel, faithful,four-cornered and important.

Some other adjectives are-
honest,clear,reflective, bitter, deep and significant.

(b)In the second stanza why has the narrator replaced the mirror with a lake? What is he/she trying to focus on?

Answer: In the second stanza the mirror is replaced with a lake because it reflects an
image in the same manner as it is reflected in the clear water of the lake. The
mirror also appears to be the lake because of its depth. An object which is thrown
into the lake gets drowned into it. Similarly youthful images cannot be reflected by
the mirror again. The poet is trying to express the reality of the human's aging
process and the difficulties faced by persons to accept this bitter truth.

Q.6 Find the various instances of personification used in this poem.
Answer: There are many instances of personification in this poem, such as:
Now, I am a lake; Mirror as a terrible fish; Whatever I see, I swallow immediately;
I am not cruel, only truthful.

Q.7 Read the given lines and answer the questions that follow by the correct choice:       
        A woman bends over me,
        Searching my reaches for what she really is.
        Then she turns to those liars, the candles or the moon.

(a) What is the woman bending over?    (i) the mirror           
    (ii) the lake
    (iii) the opposite wall       
    (iv) the moon and the candles

(b) Why have the candles and the moon been called 'liars'?       (i) because they make people beautiful
       (ii) they hide the blemishes of people with their soft light
       (iii) they hide the blemishes and make people look beautiful in their soft glow
       (iv) they can't talk

(c) Why does she turn to them in spite of calling them 'liars'?       (i) the reality is too harsh for her to bear
       (ii) she is desperately looking for someone to comfort her
       (iii) she wants to be told that she is still beautiful
       (iv) she can hide her signs of graying in their light

Answers:
(a) (i) the mirror
(b) (iii) they hide the blemishes and make people look beautiful in their soft glow
(c) (ii) she is desperately looking for someone to comfort her