On Children Questions & Answers

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Comprehension I

1. 1. And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said, “Speak to us of Children.” And he said: Here ‘he’ refers to

 Ans: (b) the Prophet

 2.       ‘Your children are not your children’ means

Ans: (c) parents should not be possessive of their children.

3.       ‘They come through you, but are not from you’ means

Ans: (a) though parents give birth to their children they do not own them.

4.       According to the prophet, what may be given to the children?

Ans: Love

5.  ‘Their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow’ means

Ans: (a) children belong to the future.

6.       ‘The bows’ and ‘living arrows’ refer to parents and children.

Comprehension II

  

1.Why does the prophet categorically state ‘Your children are not your children’?

Ans: Kahlil Gibran is a Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist. He is best known for his great work “The Prophet.” This poem “On Children” is a selection from “The Prophet,” which is a critique of the expectations of the parents about their children. The prophet while preaching a woman, who sought to know how much one must be possessive of one’s children, firmly makes the statement above.  According to him, they are the wonderful creations of Life. Parents are just the means; children come through them. Though they are with their parents, yet they do not belong to them. They have their own thoughts and identities. So, the prophet asks parents to give the children just their love.  He stresses on the point that parents only house their bodies whereas their souls live in the house of tomorrow. Parents should rather try to become like the children than moulding them. Thus, the prophet says that children do not belong to their parents.

2.2. What does the metaphor, bows and arrows signify with regard to parent-children relationship?

Ans: Kahlil Gibran is a Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist. He is best known for his great work “The Prophet.” This poem “On Children” is a selection from “The Prophet,” which is a critique of the expectations of the parents about their children. Here in this poem, the metaphors ‘bows’ stand for parents while ‘arrows’ stand for children. These two are part of God’s beautiful creation of life. He as an archer bends the bows to send the arrows into the infinite. Both of them have an important role to play. Bows should be steady and take all the pain in order to issue forth the arrows of Future. Parents should be happy in taking more pain for the children. God loves both the bows and arrows equally.

3. 3. According to the prophet, what attitude should parents have towards their children?

Ans: Kahlil Gibran is a Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist. He is best known for his great work “The Prophet.” This poem “On Children” is a selection from “The Prophet,” which is a critique of the expectations of the parents about their children. According to the prophet, parents should not be possessive of their children, which is natural though. The stress is laid on children’s individuality and independent ideas without any influence of the parents. Apparently enough, parents try to realize their unfulfilled dreams through the children which should not be done according to the prophet. He wants parents to be more loving towards them. He does not want parents to fill the children with their ideas, for children have their own thoughts.  

Comprehension III

1.  In this poem, ‘parents’ could stand as a metaphor for

a.   the older generation.

b.  leaders.

c. religious heads.

d. teachers.

Having considered the above options, offer different readings of the poem.

Ans: This is from the poem, “On Children” written by Kahlil Gibran, a Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist. He is best known for his great work “The Prophet.” This poem “On Children” is a selection from “The Prophet,” which is a critique of the expectations of the parents about their children. With reference to the options above, we can give different readings.

a. Parents as the older generation

The older generation generally think that they are more experienced and expect the younger generation to follow their ideas. They even think that their times were very ideal and are very apprehensive about the impressionable youngsters. As model individuals they try to mould their following generation.

b.  b.  Parents as leaders

Leaders want to lead people. They force their views on the youth. They feel that in order to achieve their goals, they should control the youth. So, they do not allow the young minds to think independently. In a bid to prove their power and influence, leaders often snub the tender minds.

c.  c. Parents as religious heads

Religious heads use faith and belief as strong weapons to control the innocent minds. They rather want the devotees to accept the practices unquestionably. Here, thinking takes the back seat and believing occupies the mind overall. These heads capitalize on this laid-out principle. They continue to conquer the young minds in a society dominated by beliefs.

d.  d. Parents as teachers

Teachers command more respect than any one in every society as they nourish young minds with love and help students acquire knowledge. Though they facilitate to develop independent thinking, students are largely controlled. Instead, they should be appreciated for their innovative and independent ideas. They need to be encouraged to make their own path.

2. 3. In the light of the poem, think of different levels of freedom children must have shaping their lives.

Ans: This is from the poem, “On Children” written by Kahlil Gibran, a Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist. He is best known for his great work “The Prophet.” This poem “On Children” is a selection from “The Prophet,” which is a critique of the expectations of the parents about their children. A child is creative by birth. It learns by exploring the world around; it experiments with everything it meets in the process of its physical and mental growth. Children need support and encouragement at all levels: from parents at home; from people outside and from teachers at school. They ought to enjoy greater degree of freedom so that their creativity flourishes. Parents are always concerned about their children’s future. They influence children with their ideas and forget to understand that children have their own ideas. Some are too protective that they don’t give children needed freedom. Teachers need to give children more space to learn on their own instead of strict adherence to the curriculum. Society plays a key role in shaping the lives of children. There should not be too many restrictions for the young minds. Thus, children need more freedom to excel in their individual lives.

3.  4. The poem does not focus merely on the lives of children, but also talks about the responsibility of parents. Discuss.

Ans: This is from the poem, “On Children” written by Kahlil Gibran, a Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist. He is best known for his great work “The Prophet.” This poem “On Children” is a selection from “The Prophet,” which is a critique of the expectations of the parents about their children. The poet surprises the parents through his words, “Your children are not your children.” He then continues to explain what should be the attitude of parents towards their children. He says that parents are only the means in the life of children. They don’t belong to the parents. They are rather the most beautiful creation of Life itself. The responsibilities of parents lie in giving unconditional love to children and not changing their thoughts. Since the souls of the children belong to the future, parents cannot control them. Like bows in the hands of the Archer, they should take the pain happily to bend and send the children into the future. God loves those responsible parents who take all the pain to remain stable. Thus, this poem is not just about children and their independent ideas; it is also about a much better attitude of parents towards their children and a new perspective about the responsibility of parents.

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