Read the following passage and answer the questions.
What is the life if full of care,
we have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs,
And stare as long as the sheep or cows.
No time to see when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can,
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
Why does the poet envy sheep or cows?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Because they have all the time to stand beneath the boughs and stare
The poet regrets that we have "No time to stand beneath the boughs, / And stare as long as the sheep or cows." Grazing animals stand under the trees and gaze for as long as they like; busy human beings cannot, and the poet envies them this leisure.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 1: Because they have all the time to graze — Incorrect. Wrong focus: the poem does not speak of grazing; it speaks of standing and staring.
Option 3: Because they have all the time to run amuck in the meadows — Incorrect. Contradicted: to run amuck is to behave wildly and out of control; the animals in the poem stand still, the very opposite.
Example: The bull broke loose and ran amuck in the market.
Option 4: Because they have all the time to stare at each other — Incorrect. Not mentioned: the animals stare at the world around them; the poem says nothing of their staring at each other.