Class 11 English Lesson 8: Poem: Corona Says by Vishnu Sing Rai

 

Poem: Corona Says by Vishnu Sing Rai ( page 241)

About the Poet

             The poem ‘Corona Says’ is written by Vishnu S Rai. He was educated in India, Nepal, and the UK. He taught English at Tribhuvan University for three decades. He is a retired professor of English who writes many English and Nepali stories, and those are Martyrs and Other Stories.

Central Idea of the Poem

This poem is written by presenting the causes and impact of the present situation of the world. The title of the poem, “Corona Says,” itself represents what a corona wants to say to us. The poem "Corona Says" is a satire on human activities.

Summary of the Poem

The poem "Corona Says" is a poem written by Vishnu S. Rai. It is on the theme of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is caused by a coronavirus and its devastating impact. It is one of the most burning crises of the present world. From the title of the poem, it is clear that Corona is saying something to humans. Nowadays, the coronavirus is quite common among people on Earth. All are quite familiar with it. This pandemic has taken the lives of many people around the world.

The speaker of the poem is the corona. It asks the listeners, human beings, not to cry and curse for its damage because the listeners are polluting the earth. Because of their irrational behaviours, the corona is compelled to come to the Earth. It has been invited. Corona (like other pandemics) is the result of human behaviour and activities that are not responsible for nature. It claims that their activities have invited it. Because of their invitation, the coronavirus has no choice except to let people suffer and die. The speaker also claims that the number of deaths caused by wars is higher than the number of deaths caused by the coronavirus.

In this poem, human superiority over other creatures on the earth is criticized sharply. The pandemic question is that other inferior creatures have much more freedom than us. We are taking ourselves as the most intelligent ones, but we are becoming victims due to the pandemic. Our so-called superiority is useless. We think of ourselves as the king of the earth. We can easily sell or kill the living organisms flying in the sky, living in the ocean, and crawling on land, which are now free and not affected by the pandemic, but we are in great trouble.

In the poem, some positive impacts of the disease are mentioned. Because of the pandemic, the blue sky is clean and clear without dust and smoke, because human beings are in a situation like the animals in a cage. They can't do any activity outside their homes. They have the feeling of caged animals. The Earth has a very good chance to take a rest.

The speaker threatens us that other creatures like it will come to the earth if we don't change or stop our inflated (air-filled) ego. In that situation, we have to stay or remain in the cave, which happened many years ago.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CY_aRLDAjAI

Understanding the text

Answer the following questions.

a.      Who is the speaker in the poem?

Coronal is the speaker in the poem.

b.     Who claims that they are superior to all?

Human beings claim that they are superior to all.

c.      Why has the speaker come to Earth?

The speaker has come to earth to make human beings realize that they are not superior to all and the earth isn’t the property of only human beings.

d.     What positive changes have occurred on Earth after the speaker’s visit?

The positive changes that have occurred on Earth after the speaker’s visit are that the environment becomes fresh, due to which the sky appears blue, and Mother Earth gets to rest.

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