Please answer this question with reference to the chapter "An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum" by Stephen Spender from the class 12 English textbook 'Flamingo'.
Q. The first three stanzas spell a scene of dejection and despair. Justify.
Dear student,
The first three stanzas of the poem end with the same line 'Was that the day!' culminating in an exclamation mark. It is the poet's emphatic way of trying to ascertain the particular moment of the loss of his childhood. The doubt expressed by the poet pertains to his burning question of where his childhood may have gone. He conjectures about the possible moments when he could see the transition occurring but the doubt comes from the fact that he cannot be certain.
The poet remarks towards the end of the poem that he still cannot speak with certainty when it comes to ascertaining the place that his childhood could have gone to. He says that it must have gone to a forgotten place because he cannot remember when he left it behind, possibly it could be hidden in the face of the infant that he used to be.
This shows that every moment since our birth, we are growing up and our childhood slips away from us step by step. So there is no definite marker in life which can pinpoint towards a specific moment of loss. The poet concludes that he cannot ascertain or pinpoint the moment of his loss of childhood but he can conjecture that it must have gone to a forgotten place.
Regards
The first three stanzas of the poem end with the same line 'Was that the day!' culminating in an exclamation mark. It is the poet's emphatic way of trying to ascertain the particular moment of the loss of his childhood. The doubt expressed by the poet pertains to his burning question of where his childhood may have gone. He conjectures about the possible moments when he could see the transition occurring but the doubt comes from the fact that he cannot be certain.
The poet remarks towards the end of the poem that he still cannot speak with certainty when it comes to ascertaining the place that his childhood could have gone to. He says that it must have gone to a forgotten place because he cannot remember when he left it behind, possibly it could be hidden in the face of the infant that he used to be.
This shows that every moment since our birth, we are growing up and our childhood slips away from us step by step. So there is no definite marker in life which can pinpoint towards a specific moment of loss. The poet concludes that he cannot ascertain or pinpoint the moment of his loss of childhood but he can conjecture that it must have gone to a forgotten place.
Regards