Showing posts with label The North Ship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The North Ship. Show all posts

Questions and answers from "The North Ship" by Philip Larkin.

Exercise 1:-

Tick the correct answer from the given alternatives:


1) The number of ships sailing by were-------

        a) three

2) The wind carried the third ship to a-------

          c) rich country

3) The second ship turned towards the-------

            d) east

4) The decks of the third ship shone --------

           b) frostily

5) The northern sky rose over the------

           a) unfruitful sea

6) The third ship was rigged for a-------

          a) long journey


Exercise 2:-

Answer the following questions within twenty-five words:


a) What did the wind do to the second ship?

Ans. The second ship went towards the east by being chased by the wind which was haunted like a beast and finnaly captivated it.

b) Give any two points of difference between the journey of the third ship and the other two ships.

Ans. Though three ships started their journey together, there are some points of difference present in their journey. The first two ships were influenced a lot by the wind and finally returned to their place, but the third ship went for a long journey which is the symbol of aspiration for us. Secondly, the first two ships were captivated by the beast like wind, but the third ship was obstinate, nothing could stop it.


Exercise 3:-


Replace the underlined words with suitable phrasal verbs given in the list below. Change the form if necessary. There are two extra phrasal verbs: 



( List of phrasal verbs: bring out, set up, put up, run after, give up, look down upon, take after)


a) The child (resembles) his grandfather.

Ans. Takes after

b) They (published) a magazine recently.

Ans. Brought out

c) My mother taught me not to (disrespect) anyone.

Ans. Look down upon

d) We should (abolish) bad habits.

Ans. Give up

e) A new university was (built) at Coochbehar.

Ans. Set up


Exercise 4:-


Do as directed:


a) The Man was so weak that he could not walk. (Rewrite using 'too')


Ans. The man was too weak to walk.

b) Titir is one of the (most intelligent) girls in the class. (Rewrite using the positive degree of the bracketed adjective)


Ans. Few girls in the class are as intelligent as Titir.

c) As soon as he reached home, it started raining heavily. (Change into a negative sentence)


Ans. No sooner did he reach home than it started raining heavily.

d) Why cry over spilt milk? (change into an assertive sentence)


Ans. There is no profit of crying over spilt milk.

e) Blood is thicker than water. (Change into an Interrogative sentence)


Ans. Is blood not thicker than water?

f) He told a lie intentionally.(rewrite using the noun form of "intentionally")


Ans. It was his intention to tell a lie.

g) Run fast or you will be late. ( Change into a complex sentence)


Ans. If you do not run fast, then you will be late.

h) The reporter made the news public. (Rewrite using the verb form of "public")


Ans. The reporter publicized the news.

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Summary of the poem, "The North Ship" by Philip Larkin.

"The North Ship" is a poem by Philip Larkin which was published in the first collection of his poems of the same name. The poem is very short, the language is easy and the rhyme of the poem gives the readers a mental satisfaction after reading it.


The poem describes the journey of three ships of which two have returned and one has gone for a long journey by avoiding all the obstacles. This third ship is a symbol of aspiration for us. The poem is written in first person narrative. The poet wrote the poem as his own experience. He said that, "I saw three ships go sailing by......" The three ships began their journey from one place over the sea. And in the very 1st quatrain, the poet mentions that one of them goes for a long journey: "And one was rigged for a long journey."


Because of the obstacles, the first ship turned towards the west and it was completely destroyed by the storm and finally it reaches to a "rich country". Because of the storm, the second ship turned towards the east and it was also destroyed by the wind which hunted that ship like a beast. The poet here uses the imagery of beast to suggest the power , the strength of the wind which has captivated the 2nd ship.


The journey of the third ship is completely different. It turned towards the north. But it was not ruined or captivated by the wind. The decks of the ship was shining brightly as it was covered with frost. And finally when all the storms stopped and the circumstances became calm, the first two ships came back either happily or unhappily. But only the third ship did not return back and it went to a long unstoppable journey. The repitition of the line "And it was rigged for a long journey" shows the importance. It actually emphasizes the concept that if we have that inner will to do something, nothing can stop us. We must reach to our goal, to our destination.
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