CLASS 10 BLISS
Lesson 4: My Own True Family by Edward James ‘Ted’ Hughes
The author and the text:
Edward James ‘Ted’ Hughes (1930-1998) was a noted English poet, and had been the Poet Laureate of Great Britain from 1984 till his death. His famous works include Birthday Letters, The Hawk in the Rain and Tales from Ovid.
The poem describes the magical experience of a young child in an oakwood, and indicates that human beings and trees should thrive as a single family. It focuses strongly on the need to protect our natural environment for the welfare of mankind.
Read the following poem:
Once I crept in an oakwood—I was looking for a stag.
I met an old woman there—all knobbly stick and rag.
She said: ‘I have your secret here inside my little bag.’
Then she began to cackle and I began to quake.
She opened up her little bag and I came twice awake—
Surrounded by a staring tribe and me tied to a stake.
They said: ‘We are the oak-trees and your own true family.
We are chopped down, we are torn up, you do not blink an eye.
Unless you make a promise now—now you are going to die.’
‘Whenever you see an oak-tree felled, swear now you will plant two.
Unless you swear the black oak bark will wrinkle over you
And root you among the oaks where you were born but never grew.’
This was my dream beneath the boughs, the dream that altered me.
When I came out of the oakwood, back to human company,
My walk was the walk of a human child, but my heart was a tree.
Word Nest
- stag: male deer
- knobbly: unsteady
- swear: promise
- altered: changed
Comprehension Exercises
1. Choose the correct alternative to complete the following sentences:
- (a) Creeping in an oakwood, the poet was looking for a…
(iii) stag - (b) Whenever an oak tree is felled, the number of trees the poet must plant is…
(i) two - (c) When the poet came out of the oakwood, his heart was that of a…
(ii) tree
2. State whether the following statements are True or False. Provide sentences/phrases/ words in support of your answer:
- (a) The old woman held the poet’s secrets in her little bag. True
Supporting statement: `She said: ‘I have your secret here inside my little bag.’` - (b) The tree tribe said that the poet is bothered to see the chopping down of oak trees. False
Supporting statement: `We are chopped down, we are torn up, you do not blink an eye.` - (c) The poet never came out of the oakwood. False
Supporting statement: `When I came out of the oakwood, back to human company`
3. Answer the following questions:
- (a) When did the poet come twice awake?
The poet came twice awake when the old woman opened up her little bag. - (b) What would happen to the poet if he failed to make the promise?
If he failed to make the promise, the black oak bark would wrinkle over him and root him among the oaks where he was born but never grew. - (c) What was it that altered the poet?
The dream that he had beneath the boughs of the oakwood altered the poet.
Grammar in Use
4. Change the following into indirect speech:
- (a) Rahul asked Dipa, “Will you go to school today?”
Rahul asked Dipa if she would go to school that day. - (b) Rita said to Ayesha, “Please give me a glass of water.”
Rita requested Ayesha to give her a glass of water. - (c) The old man told the little girl, “May you be happy!”
The old man wished that the little girl might be happy.
5. Do as directed:
- (a) Ranjan said, “Who does not know the name of Rabindranath?” (Change into affirmative sentence)
Ranjan said that everybody knows the name of Rabindranath. - (b) Sangeeta runs faster than any other girl in her class. (Rewrite using the positive degree of ‘faster’)
No other girl in Sangeeta’s class runs as fast as she does. - (c) Kaushiki blamed her friend for the trouble. (Rewrite using the noun form of ‘blamed’)
Kaushiki put the blame on her friend for the trouble.
Writing Activities
6. Read the following composition carefully:
This is an example of a notice.
Students are hereby informed that our school is going to organize an inter-school music competition on 3 September, 2015 in the school auditorium. The competition will be on several categories of music. Students of class VIII to XII can participate in the competition. There will be a screening prior to the competition. Interested students should register their names with the music teacher before 22 July, 2015. The categories in the competition are: Hindustani Classical, Rabindra Sangeet and Folk. A student can compete in any two categories. No registration fee is required for participating in the competition. For any further information the undersigned may be contacted.
Features of a Notice:
- A specific format is used.
- The name of the organization/institution is mentioned.
- The word ‘Notice’ is written in capitals. Capital letters are also used in the heading for the name of organization/institution and also for the topic of the notice to attract the attention of the readers.
- The date of the notice is written generally on the top right hand corner.
- The caption or topic of the notice should be written.
- The notice is to be signed by the issuing authority and counter-signed by the Head of the institution in case of a school notice.
- The content of the notice should include all specific information in detail.
- The notice should be enclosed within a box.
7. Your school is going to host the Inter-school District Sports Competition. Suppose you are the Secretary of the Sports Club of your school. Write a notice (within 100 words) calling students to participate in the competition. Mention the time, date and venue of the competition. Your notice should be countersigned by the Headmistress/Headmaster of your school.
Sample Answer:
All students are hereby informed that our school is hosting the Inter-school District Sports Competition on 25th November 2025. The events will be held on our school grounds, starting at 9:00 a.m. Students from Class VIII to XII interested in participating in sprints, long jump, high jump, and relay events must register their names with the undersigned by 15th November 2025. Trials will be held on 18th November. For further details, contact the undersigned.