PRACTICE 1

Read the following stanza of Nature and answer the questions that follow.

We have neither Summer nor Winter

Neither Autumn nor Spring
We have instead the days
When the gold sun shines on the lush green canefields
Magnificently.
The days when the rain beats like bullets on the roofs
And there is no sound but the swish of water in the gullies
And trees struggling in the high Jamaica winds.
H. D. Carberry

(a)

How many seasons are mentioned in the poem above?

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(b)

Why is the poet still happy despite living in a land without seasonal change?
i.
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ii.
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(c)

What do you think of the weather in Jamaica? Using your own words, give a
reason to support your answer.

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Panitia Bahasa Inggeris, SMK Sultan Ismail, Johor Bahru

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PRACTICE 2
Read the following stanza of Nature and answer the questions that follow.
Also there are the days when leaves fade from off guango trees
And the reaped canefields lie bare and fallow to the sun.
But best of all there are the days when the mango and the logwood blossom
When the bushes are full of the sound of bees and the scent of honey,
When the tall grass sways and shivers to the slightest breath of air,
When the buttercups have paved the earth with yellow stars
And beauty comes suddenly and the rains have gone.
H. D. Carberry

(a)

What does the phrase And the reaped canefields lie bare and fallow to the
sun suggest?
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(b)

Which phrase shows that the wind is breezy?

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(c)

The poet has used imageries to describe the beauty of nature. Write them out
according to types of senses:
i.

Sense of sight: ____________________________________________

ii.

Sense of smell: ____________________________________________

iii.

Sense of hearing / sound: ____________________________________

Panitia Bahasa Inggeris, SMK Sultan Ismail, Johor Bahru

PRACTICE 3
Read the poem below and answer the questions that follow.
NATURE
H.D. Carberry
We have neither Summer nor Winter
Neither Autumn nor Spring
We have instead the days
When the gold sun shines on the lush green canefields
Magnificently.
The days when the rain beats like bullets on the roofs
And there is no sound but the swish of water in the gullies
And trees struggling in the high Jamaica winds.
Also there are the days when leaves fade from off guango trees
And the reaped canefields lie bare and fallow to the sun.
But best of all there are the days when the mango and the logwood blossom
When the bushes are full of the sound of bees and the scent of honey,
When the tall grass sways and shivers to the slightest breath of air,
When the buttercups have paved the earth with yellow stars
And beauty comes suddenly and the rains have gone.
(a)

What does the phrase the gold sun shines imply?

_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Panitia Bahasa Inggeris, SMK Sultan Ismail, Johor Bahru

(b)

Why is the rain described as beats like bullets on the roofs?

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(c)

How is the wind condition in Jamaica?

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(d)

What are the messages that the poet wants to convey to his readers?
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PRACTICE 4
Read the poem below and answer the questions that follow.
NATURE
H.D. Carberry
We have neither Summer nor Winter
Neither Autumn nor Spring
We have instead the days
When the gold sun shines on the lush green canefields
Magnificently.
The days when the rain beats like bullets on the roofs
And there is no sound but the swish of water in the gullies
And trees struggling in the high Jamaica winds.
Also there are the days when leaves fade from off guango trees
And the reaped canefields lie bare and fallow to the sun.
But best of all there are the days when the mango and the logwood blossom
When the bushes are full of the sound of bees and the scent of honey,
When the tall grass sways and shivers to the slightest breath of air,
When the buttercups have paved the earth with yellow stars
And beauty comes suddenly and the rains have gone.
(a)

What does the phrase trees struggling in the high Jamaica wind suggest?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Panitia Bahasa Inggeris, SMK Sultan Ismail, Johor Bahru

(b)

When do leaves fade from the guango trees?

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(c)

What does the phrase paved the earth mean?

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(d)

What do you understand by the phrase best of all? Using your own words,
give a reason to support your answer.
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

Panitia Bahasa Inggeris, SMK Sultan Ismail, Johor Bahru