English (Core) · Class 11 Languages
Ch 11Father to Son — Class 11 English (Core), concept-first.
Elizabeth Jennings (1926-2001) was a well-known English poet whose work is admired for its quiet honesty, clear language and deep feeling. She often wrote about relationships, faith, loneliness and the difficulty of truly understanding another person.
18
Q&A
6
Concepts
31m
Section weightage
Section C · Literature Textbooks (Hornbill & Snapshots) · across all 16 lessons
Key concepts
Hover a concept to preview it and jump to its most relevant Q&A.
Generational Communication Gap
Think about the last time you tried to explain a meme to your parents. Or the time your grandparents asked why you "waste time" staring at a phone. You probably felt a wall — not of hostility, but of understanding.
Most relevant Q&A
- Does the poem talk of an exclusively personal experience or is it fairly universal?Free
- How is the father's helplessness brought out in the poem?Free
- Identify the phrases and lines that indicate distance between father and son.Preview
- Does the poem have a consistent rhyme scheme?Preview
- Why does the father confess that he does not understand his son even though the two of them have lived under the same roof for years? (Answe…Free
Chapter contents
The NCERT structure, section by section. Open a section to see its questions, then read the concept-first solution.
About the Poet and the Poem
Elizabeth Jennings (1926-2001) was a well-known English poet whose work is admired for its quiet honesty, clear language and deep feeling.
Central Idea and Summary
The central idea of the poem is the emotional distance between a father and his son, and the sorrow this distance causes.
Stanza-wise Explanation
The poem is written in four six-line stanzas, spoken throughout in the father's voice.
Poetic Devices
Jennings uses simple language, but several devices deepen the poem's feeling of distance and sorrow.
Theme and Message
The message: Jennings gently reminds us that love within a family is not automatic; it must be nurtured through understanding, patience and honest communication.
Summary
- Poet: Elizabeth Jennings (1926-2001), an English poet known for her plain, honest and emotionally deep verse. - Form: Four six-line stanzas, spoken throughout in the father's voice.
Think it out
+−Think it outi4 questions
Additional Practice
Extra exam-style practice questions written by us on this lesson — beyond the NCERT textbook's own exercises — for more CBSE board-exam preparation.
+−Additional Practicei14 questions
- Q1Why does the father confess that he does not understand his son even though the two of them have lived under the same roof for years? (Answe…Free
- Q2How does the father try to rebuild his relationship with his son, and why does this attempt fail? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Free
- Q3What doubt troubles the father when he thinks of his son in terms of a seed sown in the land? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Free
- Q4The father says that he and his son talk to each other like strangers. What does this tell us about the state of communication between them?…Preview
- Q5What is the father's complaint about the child who was shaped according to his own design? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Preview
- Q6What does the father wish for when he remembers the story of the Prodigal Son? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Preview
- Q7What does the father mean when he speaks of building a new love out of his sorrow? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Preview
- Q8How does the son's brief utterance near the end of the poem show that he too is confused and unhappy? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Preview
- Q9What is suggested by the image of the father and the son each holding out an empty hand at the close of the poem? (Answer in 30–40 words.)Preview
- Q10Explain the meaning of the final stanza of 'Father to Son'. How does the shift to the son's point of view and the closing image of the empty…Preview
- Q11Discuss the chief poetic devices used by Elizabeth Jennings in 'Father to Son' — the extended metaphor of sowing, the Biblical allusion, par…Preview
- Q12'Father to Son' is a poem about the generation gap and the failure of communication between parent and child. Discuss this central theme wit…Preview
- Q13Who, in your opinion, is responsible for the estrangement between the father and the son — the father, the son, or both? Give a reasoned ans…Preview
- Q14Justify the title 'Father to Son' and bring out the message the poem conveys to parents and children in every age. (Answer in 120–150 words.…Preview