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Cheat sheet · Class 11 · CBSE · Science English

Hornbill (Poem): A Photograph cheat sheet

The whole chapter on one page: key formulas, facts and the points to remember, for quick revision before a test.

CBSE Class 11 · English

Cheat sheet

Chapter 7A Photograph

Three stages: photo taken, mother laughing at it, poet mourning her.

1. About

Poet: Shirley Toulson. A poem about loss, memory and the passage of time.

2. Summary

  • A cardboard photograph shows the poet's mother as a girl at the seaside with two cousins.
  • Years later the mother would laugh at the photo, remembering that day fondly.
  • Now the mother is dead; the poet has no words for the loss, and silence fills the situation.

3. Devices

  • Contrast between the sea (unchanging) and humans (changing).
  • Imagery of the beach and dresses.
  • Three stanzas = three time periods.

4. Themes

  • mortality
  • memory
  • nostalgia
  • change

5. Key Points

  • The mother laughed at her past; the poet now grieves hers.
  • The unchanging sea contrasts with short human lives.
  • Photograph preserves a moment.
  • Tone: wistful, sad.

Remember: Seaside photo | mother's laughter | silence of loss

Hornbill (Poem): A Photograph: questions and notes

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