The Jazz Poem Two
I Read the first stanza and see how closely the description of the Jazz – the player is made and filled in the columns in the table.
1. Face Wrinkled old face, full of worries, rough unshaven face
2, Eyes Closed Eyes, Still down eyes
3, Ears Still closed ears
4, Shirt a faded-blue old shirt, turn dark with sweat.
5. Collar Frayed Collar
6. Jacket Worn out, old Jacket
7. Shoes run-down shoes had paper in them
Question 1 & 2 Self-assessment ( Do it yourself)
3.The poem is full of images [word pic-tures]. Some examples are given. Now find as many images as you can in the poem.
Answer:
a) Wrinkled old face.
b) Sagging stomach
c) rough down head
d) still down head
e) still closed eyes
g) an old alto saxophone lies across his chest.
Ii Multiple Choice Questions
1.Jazz Poem Two belongs to the unit
a) Music the Ambrosia
b) Music
c) Science
d) Happiness
Answer:Music the Ambrosia
2.Jazz Poem Two is written by
a) Coleridge
a) Carl Wendall Hines, Jr
b) Shakespeare
c) Margaret
Answer:Carl Wendall Hines, Jr
3.He stands like a black
a) man
b) Satute
c) Ancient Mariner
d) Person
Answer:Ancient Mariner
4. His _____ old face a) Shaved
b) Wrinkled
c) handsome
d) ugly
Answer:Wrinkled
5.The old face so full of the _____ of living
a) wag
b) sag
c) worries
d) faded
Answer:worries
6.He is turned downward with _____ eyes.
a) opened
b) dreaming
c) shining
d) closed
Answer:closed
7.His frayed-collar faded ______ old shirt a) green
b) bhie
c) yellow
white
Answer: b) bhie
8.The old shirt turn dark with sweat and the old _____
a) necktie
b) collar
c) pocket
d) sleeves
Answer:necktie
9.The undone drops loosely about the worn _____?
a) old shirt
a) old collar
b) old Jacket
c) old coat
Answer: old Jacket
10.Just barely holding his ____ stomach in.
a) large
b) small
c) empty
d) sagging
Answer: sagging
11.His run-down shoes have ____ in them
a) leather
b) soles
c) paper
d) rubber
Answer: paper
12.His rough unshaven face shows ____
a) happiness
b) sadness
c) solitude
d) pain
Answer: d) pain
13.He stands in ______ solitude head
a) Self
b) Self-brought
c) big
d) round
Answer:Self-brought
14.Across his chest lies an old _____.
a) alto saxophone
b) Jacket
c) faded shirt
d) necktie
Answer:alto saxophone
15.Alto Saxophone supported from his neck by a wire ______
a) thread
a) hanger
b) coat hanger
c) strip
Answer:coat hanger
16.To tell all the world that he is a ____
a) Musician
b) Traveler
c) Mariner
d) Black man
Answer:Black man
17.He was sent here to _____
a) sing
b) preach
c) travel
d) do magic
Answer:preach
18.He came here to preach the Black _____ of Jazz.
a) Gospel
b) Magic
c) Music
d) Religion
Answer:Gospel
19.Now preaching it with words of _____notes & chords.
a) music
a) screaming
b) loud
c) melodious
Answer:screaming
20.He is no longer a man, no not even a _____.
a) Religious man
b) Black man
c) Mariner
d) Stout man
Answer: Black man
21.He was turned into not even a Black man but _____
a) an animal
b) Religious man
c) Magic man
d) a bird
Answer:a bird
22.One that gathers his wings and flies _____
a) into the sky
b) down
c) high
d) away
e) Answer: c) high
II. Match the following : Follow Textbook
IV Give phrases or one word for the following :
1.no longer interested in or enthusiastic about anything in life.
Answer:wearies of living
2.threads in a piece of cloth starting to come apart.
Answer:Fray
3.The state of being alone.
Answer:Solitude
4.a type of religious music in which religious songs are sung very loudly.
Answer:Gospel
5.Loud musical sounds.
Answer:Screaming notes.
Answer the following questions in a word or a sentence each:
1.What is the ancient mariner?
Answer:The Ancient Mariner’ is a very famous poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge in which a seaman shoots an albatross, a bird of good omen, and suffers supernatural punishment.
2.Why is the musician weary?
Answer:The musician is weary because of all the experiences that life has put him through.
3.Why is the musician’s shirt turning dark?
Answer:The musician’s shirt is turning dark because of his sweat.
4.Why are the shoes of the musician in bad shape?
Answer:The musician cannot afford new shoes or even repair them, so his shoes are in a very bad condition.
5.Why is there pain in each wrinkle on the musician’s face?
Answer:The musician is a poor, black man, who has experienced many hardships in life and therefore there is pain in each of his wrinkles.
6.Which musical instrument does the jazz player play?
Answer:The alto saxophone.
7.What is supported by the musician’s neck?
Answer:His instrument, the alto saxophone, is supported by the musician’s neck.
8.Why are the musician’s lips parted?
Answer:The musician’s lips are parted because he is about to begin playing his instrument.
9.Why are the words and musical notes described as‘screaming?
Answer:The words and musical notes are described as ‘screaming’ because they are loud and full of passion and harmony.
10.Why did he stop being a man?
Answer:The musician stops being a man because, when he starts playing, he is transformed into a bird.
11.How does the musician find himself a black man again?
Answer:After he transforms into a bird and flies away, he discovers himself afresh as a black man again.
12.How could the musician go away from the earth?
Answer:With the power of music. Music had transformed him into a bird.
13.What does the Jazz player look like the moment he plays the saxophone?
Answer:The moment the Jazz player plays the saxophone, he turns into a bird with wings.
14.What is the Jazz player supposed to be when he plays music?
Answer:The Jazz player is supposed to be a bird when he plays music.
15.The old Jazz musician’s shirt was dark due to
Answer: sweat.
16.Why do you think the Jaazz player keeps his head down? [Line 1-6]
A:-Jazz player was very old and he had no interest in life. He was alone and had pain in his heart. So he kept his head down.
17.The word ‘old’ has been repeated several times in the first two stanzas. What does this suggest?
A:-The word old suggests belonging to the past. Jazz player was aged and the things are worn out or outdated.
18.What description do the lines from 13 to 18 suggest about the jazz, player?
A:-Jazz player had lost his interest in the Jazz player had lost his interest in life. He didn’t care to wear the tom dress. He had more pain that could be seen in each wrinkle of his face. He was alone.
19.Read the lines from 19 to 25 carefully. Is there any change in the stature of the Jazz player
A:- Yes, we found some changes in Jazz player. He put his still down and eyes still closed but ears brighter up. He was started to play some religious musical notes in a low voice.
20.Now read the lines from 31 to 35. Can you guess what he is meditating on?
A:-He was meditating that he wanted to tell that he was a Black Man to all the world..
21.How has he held his instrument?
A:-His instrument saxophone was hung from his neck by a wire coat hanger.
22. ‘Preaching it with words’ (line 35). What does ‘it’ stand for here?
A:- ‘it’ stands for the Black Gospel of Jazz.
23. ‘He is no longer a man’, says the poet (line 37). Who else is he supposed to be if he is no longer man?
A;-The poet said that if he is no longer a man, he became a bird.
24..His rough unshaven face shows pain in each wrinkle.
a) Whose face is referred to?
A:-The jazz players
b)Why is there pain in each wrinkle on the musician’s face?
A:- The musician is a poor, black man. He has experienced many hardships in life and therefore there is a pain in eachof his wrinkles.
c)How does the pain in each wrinkle of the musician’s face help him?
Answer:The pain helps him to play good music, and it fills his music with a passion.
25.“his run-down shoes have paper in them and his rough unshaven face shows pain in each wrinkle”.
a)Why do the shoes have paper in them?
A:- The Jazz player is a poor man. His shoes are old and torn and he has put paper in them to be able to wear them.
b)Why is there pain in each wrinkle on the musician’s face?
A:- The musician is a poor, black man. He has experienced many hardships in life and therefore there is pain in each ofhis wrinkles.
c)What does the description of the face suggest?
A:-The Jazz player’s face is unshaven which suggests that he does not care for his appearance. He has led a hard life,so his face is wrinkled.
26.“he is no longer a man, no not even a Black Man, hut (yeah!) a Bird”
a) Who is the man referred to here?
a) A:- The jazz player.
b)When is he no longer a man?
a) A:- When he plays jazz music.
C)What do these lines suggest?
A:- These lines suggest that music can transform a man from the slavish condition to the free, masterly position. Thetransformation is symbolic of the liberating spirit of music
Answer the following questions in 2-3 sentences each:
1.Comment on the phrase, ‘full of wearies of living.’
Answer:The poet heightens the long, tiring life of the jazz musician by employing the expression ‘wearies of living’. Wearies refers to fatigue and other tiring acts highlighting the drudgery of life.
2.Give at least two descriptions of the Jazz player to show that he is sad while not playing the instrument.
Answer:The Jazz player keeps his head down bogged by life’s wearies. He has experienced many hardships in life and therefore his rough unshaven face shows pain in each wrinkle.
3.‘He is no longer a man’, says the poet in the poem ‘Jazz Poem Two’. What does the poet mean by this?
Answer:The poet conveys the idea that an artist can transcend his physical being and free his spirit from the confinement of the flesh. When he plays jazz, he is a free-soaring spirit like a bird. , The poet wants to highlight the liberating spirit of music.
4.Why do you think the word ‘old’ has been repeated several times in the first two stanzas?
Answer:The poet wants to convey the idea that the Jazz player is old in every sense. He is advanced in his age, his clothes are old and his spirit is dull. This aspect that is emphasized in the beginning is a total contrast in the concluding part of the poem wherein the Jazz musician soars like a bird.
5.Why does the Jazz player keep his head down? When does he feel like a bird?
Answer:The Jazz player keeps his head down bogged by life’s wearies. He has experienced many hardships in life and therefore his rough, unshaven face shows pain in each wrinkle. He feels like a bird when he produces jazz music from his saxophone.
Answer the following questions in 6-8 sentences each:
1.The poet uses the word ‘see’ twice. What is his intention in doing this?
Answer:The poet uses the word ‘see’ once at the beginning while he introduces the Jazz musician to the readers, and once again when the Jazz musician lifts the musical instrument to his lips. The poet’s intention is to draw the attention of the reader to the transformation that is going to take place in the musician once he starts playing the instrument. It is as if the poet is urging the readers to take note of the magical power of music. The poet wants the readers to take note of the transformation completely, moment by moment.
2.What do you think is meant by the Black Gospel of Jazz?
Answer:The traditional black gospel is music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life. It is a form of Christian music and a subgenre of gospel music. The origins of gospel music are during American slavery when enslaved Africans were introduced to the Christian religion and converted in large numbers.
In the 1930s gospel music of the civil rights movement was referred to as the black gospel period because this was the most prosperous era for gospel music. The message of many of the civil rights activists was supported by the message gospel music was putting forth. Hence the poet talks about the Black Gospel of Jazz. On the whole, we can see that the message the musician has to share is from the black perspective.
3.How does the poet discriminate against the Jazz player’s appearance with his artistic character?
Answer:The poet describes the old Jazz player and how he is transformed when he plays the music he loves. The Jazz player has a rough unshaven face and sagging stomach. He wears a faded blue shirt, a loose necktie, and an old jacket. His shoes are run down. Across his chest is an old alto saxophone supported from his neck by a wire coat hanger. He keeps his head down bogged by life’s wearies. He has experienced many hardships in life and therefore his rough, unshaven face shows pain in each wrinkle. The player, who looks old, defeated and dejected, has a complete transformation in the end when he starts playing jazz music. He is now a messenger of God, soaring higher and higher like a free bird. Tli,e poverty-filled life of the Jazz player Cannot bring down his spirits on the music. On the contrary, the music liberates him from his miseries, though temporarily.
Read the following extracts and answer the questions given below them:
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