Read the following stanza and answer the questions given below. Says the ant to the cricket, "I'm your servant and friend, But we ants never borrow; we ants never lend. But tell me, dear cricket, did you lay nothing by When the weather was warm?" Quoth the cricket, "Not I! My heart was so light That I sang day and night, For all nature looked gay." "You sang, Sir, you say? Go then," says the ant, "and dance the winter away." Thus ending, he hastily lifted the wicket, And out of the door turned the poor little cricket. Folks call this a fable. I'll warrant it true: Some crickets have four legs, and some have two. Now answer the following questions. Is the ant speaking politely with the cricket? Quote words from the poem to pr Why could the cricket not save anything for winter? What is the meaning of the phrase, "... dance the winter away"? How can you describe the ant in your own words? What is the two-legged cricket mentioned in the last line?
Answers & Comments
Answer:
1. The ant is not being impolite, but is rather straightforward and to the point with the cricket. The ant's words are not necessarily rude, but they do show a lack of sympathy for the cricket's situation.
2. The cricket explains that he did not save anything for the winter because he was too busy singing and enjoying himself during the warm weather. This suggests that the cricket did not prioritize preparing for the future and instead focused on immediate pleasures.
3. The phrase "dance the winter away" means to enjoy oneself without worrying about the difficulties of the winter season. In the context of the poem, the ant is essentially telling the cricket to continue singing and enjoying himself during the winter, but that he will not be able to rely on the ant for help.
4. The ant is a practical and hardworking character who prioritizes preparation and self-sufficiency. He is not interested in borrowing or lending and expects others to be responsible and self-reliant as well.
5. The last line is meant to be humorous and is not meant to be taken literally. The line "Some crickets have four legs, and some have two" is a playful way of concluding the fable, suggesting that there are many different types of crickets and that the story is just one variation on a common theme.
The ant is not speaking very politely with the cricket.
The cricket could not save anything for winter, as, it's heart was so light that it said day and night for all the nature had been looking gay. He danced the winter away meaning basically tried to get rid of the season as soon as possible.
Dance the winter away- Dance all through winter because dance winter away would infer that the character wants winter to go as quickly as possible, dancing through it would make it go quicker.
The ant was not very polite in talking. The ants never borrow nor lend. It does say something at the very last line of the stanza to the cricket that, "some crickets have four legs, some have two".