Activities on Nose Versus Eyes

Std 11 English Poetry Section

Poem:Nose versus Eyes

Notes

The web of adjectives used to describe eyes and nose in all respect.

Legal Terminology and Description

Sr. No.	Legal Terminology	Description
1.	Affidavit.	A written statement confirmed by oath or affirmation for use as evidence in court.
2.	Argument	An exchange of diverging or opposite views.
3.	Consent	Agreement to do something.
4.	Counsel	A legal adviser conducting a case.
5.	Judgement	The ability to make considered decision.
6.	Trial	A formal examination of evidence by a judge.
7.	Verdict	A decision on an issue of fact in civil .
8.	Contempt of court	The offence of being disobedient to a court of law.
9.	Notice	Notification or warning of something .
10.	Stay order	The act of temporary stopping a judicial proceeding through the order.

Sensory Organs and related idioms 

1) To turn a deaf ear

2) Nothing between your ears

3) In the blink of an eye

4) To turn blind eye

5) To follow your eyes

6) To follow your nose

7) Under someone's nose

8) In poor taste

9) A bad taste in your mouth

10) To keep in touch 

(A1) (i) State whether the following statements are true or false. Correct the false statements.

(a) Nose can use spectacles. True
(b) Eyes have to be shut when the Nose wears / puts on the spectacles. True
(c) The Ear was appointed as a judge. True
(d) Eyes cannot use spectacles. True
(ii) Discuss with your partner and match the following expressions given in column A with their interpretations in column 'B'.

(ii) Match the following.

Sr. No.	Column A	Column B
1.	While Chief Baron Ear sat to balance the laws.	(a) Eyes are refrained from using spectacles.
2.	They are made with the straddle as wide as the ridge of the Nose is.	(b) The responsibility of giving verdict rested on the shoulders of the hearing organ.
3.	That whenever the Nose put his Spectacles on, by daylight or candlelight Eyes should be shut!	(c) Spectacles are meant for none other than the nose.
4.	So his lordship decreed with a grave solemn tone, decisive and clear, without one if or but.	(d) The judge delivered a firm verdict without any doubt.

Ans: 1-b;2-c;3-a;4-d


(A2) (i) The tongue justifies the possession of the spectacles on behalf of the nose. Pick up the expressions from the poem that argue in favour of the Nose and complete the following web diagram. Arguments in favour of Nose

(ii) Comment on the following characters depicted in the poem, in a sentence or a phrase.
On the Nose- Nose claims ownership of a spectacles.               
On the Eyes - Having no proof of ownership of spectacles, though spectacles belongs to it, eyes are on the verge of loosing case.

(A3) Pick out examples of Inversion(figures of speech) from the poem.
Ans : 1. Between Nose and Eyes a strange contest arose.
2. In behalf of the Nose it will quickly appear,

(A4) (i) Justify the verdict delivered in the poem. I can support my answer with the help of the following suitable arguments:
(a)The nose always wear the spectacles .
(b)The spectacles are  designed to sit close to the nose
(c) It is impossible  to wear spectacles without resting on the nose.
(ii) Compose two lines of your own on any sensory organ (poetic creativity).

Nose is so close to us.
Far fragrance it tells .

(iii) Imagine that you are a lawyer defending the case of the eyes in court. Present your counter statement in support of your client.
Ans : Spectacles are made for eyes. They  protect the eyes from sunlight and dust. They improve eyesight . They are of no use to nose.

Activity Sheet

A1 Mention the names of human organs referred to in the poem.
A2 Judgment is based on hearsay. Explain.
Ans: The judgement given by the Baron Ear is based on the argument by tongue and listened by ear. It is not passed on the truth about who does the spectacles belong to . It is quite true that spectacles are for the use of eyes not for nose . But the judge passes the judgment in favour of nose .
A3 Give your views regarding the argument made by the tongue.

Ans: The tongue argued that nose always wear the spectacles so it belongs to nose. It is a funny argument. The argument is one sided .
A4 Find out examples of Simile and personification and give explanation . (any two)
Simile: Designed to sit close to it, just like a saddle.
Personification: While Chief Baron Ear sat to balance the laws.
A5 Compose four lines on fight between ear and mouth.

Appreciation : Nose versus Eyes

Nose versus Eyes is a satirical poem on the judiciary system. It makes fun of blind justice. It emphasizes the lack of empathy and common sense in judgment. The poem is humorous and satirical.
The poet uses human organs as characters in the poem. He describes the fight between eyes and nose. The dispute is over the ownership of spectacles. Ear is deputed to judge. Tongue is the lawyer who defend the nose. With the clever argument by the tongue Ear is convinced and passes the judgment in favour of nose.
The poet has used different figures of speech such as inversion, personification, simile and Metonymy. The rhyme scheme of the poem is abab.
The poem gives close resemblance to the human life. The images in the poem describes human tendencies. People believe in hearsay rather than truth.

Summary : Nose versus Eyes

There  was a dispute between nose and eyes about the possession of spectacles. The tongue was the lawyer . It argued the case with a professional skill.  Chief Baron Ear sat in the court to settle the dispute. He was famous for his intelligent judgment .
The argument began in favour of the nose . The  lawyer argued that the Nose always has spectacles to wear .He was the possessor and therefore , the spectacles belonged to him .Then it had a straddle as wide as the ridge of the Nose .It was designed to rest on the nose as perfectly as a saddle was on a horse .This again proved that the spectacles belonged to the Nose.
Another argument was even more interesting .The lawyer drew the attention of the judge to the fact that every face had a nose .There is never a face without nose. Suppose for the sake of argument,that there was such a face .Then who could wear spectacles? He  concluded that the spectacles were plainly made for the nose and nose was meant for the spectacles.
The same lawyer then shifted his side .Now he began to argue in favour of the eyes .He argued in the best possible way he could. But none knew what his arguments were. The court remained unconvinced. The arguments in the favour of eyes were not as convincing as they were in the favor of nose. So the judge gave nose put his spectacles on,by daylight or candle light and ordered  eyes to shut.

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