Target Exam

CUET

Subject

English

Chapter

Comprehension - (Poetry / Literary)

Question:

Read the following poem. Answer the question that follow:

At the Museum

But in 2500 B.C. Harappa,
who cast in bronze a servant girl?
No one keeps records
of soldiers and slaves,
The sculptor knew this,
polishing the ache
off her fingers stiff
from washing the walls
and scrubbing the floors,
from stirring the meat
and the crushed asafoetida
in the bitter gourd.
But I'm grateful she smiled
at the sculptor,
as she smiles at me
in bronze,
a child who had to play women
to her lord
when the warm June rains
came to Harappa.

What is the poet grateful about according to the poem?

Options:

The poet is grateful that the servant girl was cast in bronze

The poet is grateful for having encountered a relic from the past

The poet is grateful that the servant girl smiled at the sculptor while he was casting her

The poet is grateful that the sculptor polished the ache off the servant girl's fingers

Correct Answer:

The poet is grateful that the servant girl smiled at the sculptor while he was casting her

Explanation:

The correct answer is Option (3) → The poet is grateful that the servant girl smiled at the sculptor while he was casting her

The poet reflects on the servant girl's life and acknowledges the hardships she endured. The poet emphasizes her smile, which persists in the bronze sculpture, a testament to her existence in history. This smile is what the poet is specifically grateful for.

This is clear from these lines of the poem "But I'm grateful she smiled at the sculptor,as she smiles at me in bronze,"