Chapter: AN EVENING WET WITH RAIN | JKBOSE Class 10th English Notes | www.kashmirstudent.com
Central Idea: The poem “An Evening wet with Rain” is written by Ved Pal Deep, famous Dogri writer reflects an atmosphere of complete silence. To heighten the effect of silence and solitude, the poet draws the numerous images from nature. The poet is in a desperate mood. He regrets that the days gone by do not return.
Paraphrase:
Line (1-5): On an evening, the poet is walking through the lane which is wet with rain. The poet is lost in the memories of his childhood days when he was free, without any burden of anxieties, worries and when he had not to shoulder any responsibility. Now, the poet is burdened with responsibilities and worries. So, he beckons the hands of his companion. His mind knows that the gentle breezes are signaling him to go and be nearer to his companion and hold his (companion’s) hand with love. The poet appears astounded/confused. He doesn’t know whither he should stand on the ground and take a stroll down memory lane or allow himself to move with air.
Line (6-9): Windows, doors, sheets of canvas all are wet with rain. The leaves of the Banyan tree standing at a distance stir owing to the cold breezes. Only the sound of the movement of leaves is audible. The collar of he poet’s coat is wet with the drops of rain.
Line (10-13): The poet’s feet have gone cold due to the water percolating through his shoes. The poet’s eyes are heavy with sleep or the is feeling feverish because he is tired (his eyes and body specifically feel feverish). He feels the ground under his feet slippery. He could not find any place to stand. He is worn-out and his mind is completely tired. So he is looking for some place to take rest.
Line (14-17): Here the loss of hope has darkened the evening of poet’s life. He is in a state of despair and anxiety. Clouds of despair, anxiety, hopelessness has gathered in his mind and as they pass / move through the dark lands of his mind, tears start coming out of his eyes. He falls into a complete state of depression because he doesn’t find anything comforting in the evening of troubles. So, he calls his companion to hold his (poet’s) arm and take him (poet) along.
Line (18-21): The poet recollects his childhood days, when he would stand alone in the courtyard and listened to the sound produced by cymbals. The waves (movements) of air would bring the sweet tunes of the cymbals to his ears. The poet regrets that the days gone by do not return. He regrets that past cannot be brought back.
Line (22-25): The poet says that the evening is nearing to an end as the darkness (night) is about to fall. The sky appears touching the ground (earth), owing to the darkness which is about to fall. Shadows of the trees continue to rest in the dark tends. The passing clouds are sending shadows over the hills. Everything around appears silent owing to the fall of darkness.
Line (26-29): The houses which are lit with electric bulbs are lively and full of laughter. All the activities are going on in these bright houses. But the poet is wandering aimlessly and knows nothing about his destination. Moonlight holding the edge of the moon is laughing at him. The poet is in no hurry because he is unaware about/ of his destination. He doesn’t know where his destiny lies. He only knows that the light of an earthen lamp on the side of a road in the modest inn awaits him.
Poetic Devices:-
1. Symbolism:- In this poem, the dark wet evening creates a gloomy, sad and serious atmosphere, similarly, the poet's life is companionless and seems to have no hope left. Just as an earthen life flickers, in the same way, the poet's life is at an ebb and can extinguish at anytime.
2. Imagery:- The poet has used Visual, Kinesthetic, auditory and organic imagery in this poem.
a) Visual Imagery:- Visual Imagery has been extensively used in this poem.
i) The poet beautifully draws the visuals of evening wet with rain, wet doors, windows, awnings and wet collar of the poet's coat in our minds.
ii) We can see leaves stirring in the cool breeze.
iii) Water seeping through the poet's shoes can be clearly visualised.
iv) The reader can perspicuously visualise the poet standing alone in the courtyard, trees casting shadows on the tank, electric lights in a house and the flickering light of an earthen lamp.
b) Auditory Imagery:- The poet successfully makes the reader listen to the sound of cymbals through an auditory imagery.
c) Kinesthetic Imagery:- Walking on a rainy evening, standing alone in a courtyard stirring of leaves are the examples of Kinesthetic Imagery.
d) Organic Imagery:- Organic Imagery has been used throughout the poem in terms of love, that poet has for the days that have passed and in terms of pain that nostalgia brings to him. Pain, that is caused to him by his loneliness.
3. Alliteration:- Following phrases are the examples of alliteration in this poem.
i) Hands to hold
ii) Subtle signals
iii) Should I stand
iv) Waft with the wind
v) Wet with
vi) All around
vii) With water
viii) Is it
ix) Some spot
x) Slowly softly
xi) Cloud casts
xii) Holding the hem.
4. Rhetorical Questions:- The examples that stand for rhetorical questions in this poem are:-
i) Where is my destination?
ii) Where is the hurry?
5. Anaphora:- Anaphora can be identified easily by the reader in the following examples:-
i) The word 'The' has been repeated twice in the beginning of last two successive verses of the 1st stanza. For example " The heart beckons the hands to hold them with love The mind also knows subtle signals of the breeze"
ii) Another example of anaphora is seen in the third stanza wherein both the verses of the 1st couplet start with the same word 'My' and next two verses of the second couplet start with the same word 'The' For example:- "My feet are cold with water seeping through my shoes My eyes are heavy with sleep, or is it fever? The ground is very slippery; there is no place to stand The mind is exhausted, looks for some spot to rest".
6. Enjambment:- Enjambment has been used throughout the poem as each and every verse of the poem is connected to each other. The meaning of any verse cannot be understood without getting the meaning of the verse before it.
7. Free verse:- The poem does not follow any rhyme scheme, so it is a free Verse poem.
8. Metaphor:- The poet has compared the rainy evening with the evening of his life, depicting sadness and loneliness of his life. He tries to state that his life is full of despair and is at an ebb through this comparison. Another example of metaphor can be seen in the last stanza wherein the poet compares the flickering light of an earthen lamp with his life which is on the verge of its end.
9. Personification : The poet has personified clouds and sky in this poem. For example:
a) Clouds shed tears
b) Sky’s feet
Chapter: AN EVENING WET WITH RAIN | JKBOSE Class 10th English Notes | jkboseclass10.kashmirstudent.com
(Question/Answers &Literary Devices)
Q1: What are the memories that the poet talks about in the poem?
Ans: The poet talks about his childhood memories. He remembers the time when he used to stand alone in the courtyard and listened to the melodious sound of cymbals brought to his ears by waves of cool breeze.
Q2: What kind of atmosphere is created in the poem?
Ans: The poem reproduces the atmosphere of an evening which is wet with rain. The dark wet evening creates a gloomy and serious atmosphere. The evening symbolizes the decline of poet’s life. He has become old and is in despair. The poet is comparing his life to a flickering earthen lamp a which can go out any time. Thus, the atmosphere throughout the poem is very depressing.
Q3: What makes the poet tired?
Ans: The sleepless nights have made poet’s eyes heavy. He is feeling feverish and cannot find some place to take rest. The other thing apart from sleepless nights that makes the poet tired is the hopelessness. It is only hope that keeps one going in one’s life. If there is no hope, there is no desire to live. A depressed person obviously feels exhausted and tiresome.
Q4: What has darkened the evening of poet’s life?
Ans: Hope is the guiding principle of life. Life is based on hope; it guides us the way we should follow. If there is no hope, life becomes dull and full of darkness. Poet’s life is also in despair and that is what has darkened the evening of his life.
Q5: Discuss the poet’s regret in the poem.
Ans: The poet feels nostalgic and reminisces his good old times. He remembers the days when his life was full of joy and happiness. In contrast, the present life of poet is full of despair. The poet also feels bad for he can’t call back the days gone by.
Learning about the literary device:
Q 6: Comment on the imagery used by the poet in the poem.
Ans: Imagery refers to the use of words, especially in poetry, to describe ideas or situations. Imagery is of different kinds such as auditory, visual, tactile, olfactory, gustatory and kinesthetic. The poet uses visual imagery in the poem. He creates a clear picture of an evening wet with rain. Wet windows, doors and awnings, wet collar of the coat, water seeping through the poet’s shoes, fluttering of banyan leaves with cold breezes, sound of cymbals, and activities in the houses lit with electric bulbs, moonlight laughs holding the hem are all the imageries used by the poet in the poem which leaves a lasting expression on our minds.
