Maharashtra State Board Std 11 English Yuvakbharti Poem Upon Westminster Bridge Solution

Students can find here the perfect guide to the poem Upon Westminster Bridge by William Wordsworth. Icebreakers will enable them to understand the poem. Here they can find solutions to icebreaker activities, brainstorming, appreciation and activity sets.

Icebreakers : Upon Westminster Bridge

(i) A bridge connects people at either sides of a river or valleys in cities or villages. Discuss with your partner the importance of a bridge to both-the cities and the villages and complete the table.

Cities	Villages
Helps to reach other part Helps to cross the road Over bridge helps to smooth traffic Avoids accidents	Shortens the distance Saves time Saves life Increases contacts

• (ii) Building a bridge needs careful planning. Think about what goes on before the actual construction begins.
• Proper planning
• Inspecting sights
• Measurement
• Drawing of the bridge (Blueprint)
• Estimate
• Purchasing land
• Tendering

(iii) You might have visited a bridge. Complete the web describing the sights you could see from the bridge.

BRAINSTORMING of Upon Westminster Bridge

Complete the following statements.
1. He would be dull soul who …….
2. ……. lie open to field and sky.
3. ……. never steeped so beautifully.
4. The city wears…….

Key

1. The garment is compared with morning
2. The morning looks beautiful because it is silent.
3. Guess the meaning of ‘glideth’. It is archaic word meaning glide , here swim .
4. Guess what is referred to as the ‘Mighty heart’. People of the city

(A1) For preparing questions based on the poem, overall understanding of the poem is a must. Discuss with your partner and prepare a set of five questions.
For example:
a. What is the name of the bridge?
b. What does the city wear?
c. What is the beautiful morning compared to?
d. Mention the beautiful sights referred to in the poem.
e. State beautiful sights that can be seen from the bridge
f. How is the river?
g. What does the poet tell to the god?

(A2) (i) Choose the correct alternative for the given lines. Focus on the inference of the poet.
(a) ‘Earth has not anything to show more fair:’
The line means-
(1) The poet thinks that the place was not so good.
(2) The poet thinks that there is another place which is more beautiful than this.
(3) The poet thinks that there is no place on the earth which is as beautiful as this one.

(b) ‘Dull would he be of soul who could pass by’
The line means-
(1) One can walk over the bridge and ignore the surrounding beauty.
(2) One can halt at the place to enjoy the beauty.
(3) Anyone with an appreciative mind would not be able to ignore the beauty.

(c) Never did sun more beautifully steep. The line means –
(1)The sun did not shine so beautifully.
(2) The sun rise was more beautiful the poet had ever seen.
(3) The sun did not rise more beautifully that morning.

(ii) ‘Earth has not anything to show more fair.’
This line expresses the poet’s feelings. The sight he saw from the bridge is beautiful. There are a few more lines similar to the above. With the help of your partner find them and discuss what they express.

1. Never did sun more beautifully steep

2. Ne’er saw I, never felt, a calm, so deep!

3. The river glideth at his own sweet will:



(iii) The poem creates a delightful picture of the city, rich in its natural beauty. Work in pairs, groups and pick out the lines from the poem which give the pictorial effect to the poem. Write it in your own words.

This city now doth, like a garment, wear
The beauty of the morning;


Ships, towers, domes, theaters, and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky;

(A3) Find out the words and phrases which describe the following. One is done for you.

Words	Description
sight	touching in its majesty
air river house morning sun Heart Sky	smokeless sweet will asleep like a garment steep in his splendour mighty bright

(A4) Read the line :
(i) ‘The city now, doth, like a garment wear’. The poet imagines that the city is wearing a beautiful garment. Hence, the figure of speech is personification. Find out more examples of personification from the poem Upon Westminster Bridge.

Examples of personification

1. Never did sun more beautifully steep
2. In his first splendour

(ii) ‘Dull would he be of soul who could pass by.’
The line is not in a prose order. This line of the poem can be rewritten in prose order as:
‘He would be of dull soul.’
The figure of speech is known as ‘Inversion’.
Find out one more examples of Inversion from the poem Upon Westminster Bridge.

1. Never did sun more beautifully steep
2. Ne’er saw I
   (iii) The poem is a Petrarchan Sonnet. The poem is divided into two parts-
   (a) An Octave
   The first part comprising eight lines.
   (b) A sestet
   The second part comprising six lines.
   Read the first four lines of the poem. The rhyme scheme is a b b a. Read the rhyme scheme for next four lines. It is a b b a. Now read the first three lines of the sestet and note the rhyme scheme. It is c d c. The rhyme scheme of the last three lines is d c d. This is the common design of a Petrarchan Sonnet.

Appreciation : Upon Westminster Bridge

(A5) (i) Write the appreciation of Upon Westminster Bridge .
The poem ‘Upon Westminster Bridge’ is a Petrarchan sonnet. In this poem the poet describes the beauty of the bridge. It is a romantic poem. The poet was mesmerised with the panoramic landscape, beauty, calm and quiet nature seen from the Westminster Bridge.
Theme: The theme of the poem is the beauty of the common things seen from the poet’s eyes. The nature is filled with varied beautiful object. The beauty lies in the eyes of beholder.
Poetic Devices:
The use of poetic devices like metaphor, simile, personification adds pictorial beauty to the poem.
The poem is a sonnet (14 lines) which is divided into two parts i.e Octave and sestet . The rhyme scheme is abba abba cdc dcd. The figures of speech like inversion adds special effect. There is use of archaic words. The poet has used simple and lucid language.
Message
Ordinary things also look beautiful if seen from the poet’s eye.

 Frequently Asked Questions

What is the message of the poem upon Westminster Bridge?

Ans: Ordinary things also look beautiful if seen from the poet’s eye.

What type of poem is upon Westminster Bridge answer?

Ans: The poem ‘Upon Westminster Bridge’ is a Petrarchan sonnet.

What does the poet see from the Westminster Bridge answer?

Ans: Ships, towers, domes, theatres and temples

What is the rhyme scheme of the poem upon Westminster Bridge?

The rhyme scheme of the poem is abba abba cdc dcd.

What is referred to as Mighty Heart ‘?

Ans : Mighty Heart refers to the people of London

What is the tone of Westminster Bridge?

Ans: The tone of the poem is joyous and calm.