Important Questions Class 11 English Woven Words Chapter 1 Poem The Peacock 2026–27

The Peacock by Sujata Bhatt presents the bird as a sudden, colourful and elusive presence in nature.
In Class 11 English Woven Words Poem Chapter 1, the poem asks readers to notice sound, colour, movement and silence.

The Peacock by Sujata Bhatt is the first poem in the Woven Words poetry section for Class 11. It describes how a peacock is not always seen directly, but its presence can be sensed through its call, colour, movement and changes in the surroundings. The poem uses images such as a flash of turquoise, blue shadow, dark glowing eyes and violet fringed with golden amber.

Use these Important Questions Class 11 English Woven Words Chapter 1 Poem to revise The Peacock for the 2026–27 exams. Start with direct facts and meanings, then practise imagery, the elusive nature of the peacock, the tail-eye connection, nature cues and long-answer themes.

Key Takeaways

  • The Peacock: The poem presents the bird as beautiful, mysterious and difficult to observe.
  • Sound: The peacock is first noticed through its loud, sharp call.
  • Colour imagery: The poem uses turquoise, blue, violet and golden amber.
  • Tail pattern: The peacock’s tail is described through eye-like patterns that seem to blink.

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Very Short Answer Questions for Class 11 English Poem 1 The Peacock

These questions check direct understanding of the poet, poem, images and important details. Keep answers short and use exact poem references where useful.

Q1. Who is the poet of “The Peacock”?

Sujata Bhatt is the poet of The Peacock.

The poem is included in the Class 11 English Woven Words poetry section.

Q2. From which collection is “The Peacock” taken?

The poem The Peacock is taken from Sujata Bhatt’s collection Brunizem.

The poem presents the bird through sound, colour and sudden movement.

Q3. What does the peacock’s call sound like?

The peacock’s call is described as loud and sharp.

The call seems to come from nowhere because the bird is heard before it is seen.

Q4. Where is the “flash of turquoise” seen?

The “flash of turquoise” is seen in the pipal tree.

The phrase suggests a sudden glimpse of the peacock’s bluish-green colour.

Q5. What should one do to see the peacock?

One should sit in the veranda and read a favourite book with great concentration.

The poem suggests that the peacock appears when the reader is deeply absorbed.

Q6. What falls over the reader when the peacock comes near?

A blue shadow falls over the reader when the peacock comes near.

This image shows that the bird’s presence is sensed before it is fully seen.

Q7. What happens to the bees when the peacock appears?

The steady hum of the bees in the nearby bushes stops.

This silence becomes one of the natural signs of the peacock’s presence.

Q8. What are the peacock’s dark glowing eyes fringed with?

The peacock’s dark glowing eyes are violet fringed with golden amber.

These are the eye-like patterns on the peacock’s tail feathers.

Short Answer Questions from Chapter 1 Poem Class 11 English Woven Words Important Questions

These answers focus on images, movement, atmosphere and meaning. Use poem-based phrases such as flash of turquoise, blue shadow and tail that has to blink.

Q9. How does the poem create a colourful image of the peacock?

The poem creates a colourful image through phrases such as “a flash of turquoise,” “a blue shadow,” “dark glowing eyes” and “violet fringed with golden amber.”

These images help the reader visualise the peacock’s bright plumage. The colours also make the bird appear sudden, rich and mysterious.

Q10. What are the cues that signal the peacock’s presence?

The peacock’s presence is signalled by small changes in nature.

A blue shadow falls over the reader, the wind changes direction, the steady hum of bees stops, and the cat awakens and stretches. These details show that nature responds before the bird is clearly seen.

Q11. Why does the poet say the peacock’s call seems to come from nowhere?

The poet says this because the peacock is heard before it is seen.

Its loud, sharp call suddenly reaches the listener, but the bird itself is not immediately visible. This makes the peacock appear mysterious and elusive.

Q12. What happens when the peacock descends?

When the peacock descends, its slender neck is arched away from the viewer.

It darts away quickly, and the viewer gets only a glimpse of the very end of its tail. This movement adds to the elusive nature of the peacock.

Q13. How does the poem show the elusive nature of the peacock?

The poem shows the elusive nature of the peacock by making it appear suddenly and disappear quickly.

One may hear its call, see a flash of colour or sense a change in the surroundings. Yet the peacock turns away before it can be fully observed.

Q14. Why is concentration important in the poem?

Concentration is important because the reader is asked to sit quietly and become absorbed in a favourite book.

Only then does the peacock’s presence disturb that attention through subtle natural changes. The poem connects careful attention with the ability to notice beauty.

Q15. What is meant by “The moment you begin to live inside the book”?

This line means that the reader becomes deeply absorbed in reading.

The book feels so engaging that the reader forgets the surroundings. The peacock’s arrival then breaks this deep concentration.

Q16. What breaks the reader’s attention?

The reader’s attention is broken by signs of the peacock’s arrival.

A blue shadow falls, the wind changes direction, the bees stop humming, and the cat wakes up and stretches.

Extract-Based and Vocabulary Questions on The Peacock by Sujata Bhatt

These questions help explain important words, phrases and images from the poem. They are useful for English Woven Words Class 11 Chapter 1 Poem important questions.

Q17. What does “turquoise” mean in the poem?

“Turquoise” means bluish-green.

In the poem, it describes the bright colour seen when the peacock appears in the pipal tree.

Q18. What does “darts” mean in the poem?

“Darts” means moves suddenly and quickly.

The word shows how fast the peacock moves away before it can be seen fully.

Q19. What does “hum” mean?

“Hum” means a low, steady sound.

In the poem, it refers to the sound made by bees in the nearby bushes.

Q20. What does “fringed” mean?

“Fringed” means bordered or edged.

The poem says the dark glowing eyes on the peacock’s tail are violet fringed with golden amber.

Q21. Explain the phrase “a flash of turquoise”.

The phrase “a flash of turquoise” describes the sudden sight of the peacock’s bluish-green colour in the pipal tree.

The word “flash” suggests that the sight is quick and bright. It also shows that the peacock appears only for a moment.

Q22. Explain the line “A blue shadow will fall over you.”

This line means that the peacock’s presence is first felt as a soft blue shadow.

The image suggests that the bird is close, even before the reader fully sees it. It adds mystery to the scene.

Q23. What is meant by “the tail that has to blink”?

The peacock’s tail has eye-like patterns that seem to blink when the tail moves.

The poet imagines that the tail blinks for eyes that are always open. This gives movement and life to the tail feathers.

Q24. Why are the peacock’s eyes described as “always open”?

The eyes are not real eyes but eye-like patterns on the peacock’s tail feathers.

Since these patterns remain visible on the feathers, the poet describes them as eyes that are always open.

Long Answer Questions on The Peacock Poem Theme and Poetic Devices

These answers cover imagery, movement, symbolism and observation. Use specific poem details instead of general comments on nature.

Q25. Comment on the lines that make you visualise the colourful image of the peacock.

The poem uses several lines that help the reader visualise the peacock’s colours.

The phrase “a flash of turquoise” creates the image of a bright bluish-green bird suddenly appearing in the pipal tree. The “blue shadow” suggests the peacock’s presence before it is fully seen.

The most detailed colour image appears in the description of the tail: “dark glowing eyes” and “violet fringed with golden amber.” These lines show the rich colours of the peacock’s plumage. Together, turquoise, blue, violet and golden amber create a vivid picture of the bird’s beauty.

Q26. How does the connection drawn between the tail and the eyes add to the descriptive detail of the poem?

The poem compares the eye-like patterns on the peacock’s tail to real eyes.

These patterns are described as “dark glowing eyes” that are “violet fringed with golden amber.” This makes the tail appear alive and watchful.

The poet then says that it is “the tail that has to blink” for eyes that are always open. This means that when the peacock gathers or moves its tail, the eye-like patterns seem to blink. The connection adds beauty, movement and imagination to the description.

Q27. How does the poem capture the elusive nature of the peacock?

The poem captures the elusive nature of the peacock by showing that it is difficult to see directly.

Its loud, sharp call seems to come from nowhere. Then there is only a sudden flash of turquoise in the pipal tree.

Even when the bird descends, it quickly darts away, leaving only a glimpse of the end of its tail. Later, the reader must look up in time to see the peacock turning away. These details show that the peacock appears briefly and disappears before it can be fully observed.

Q28. How does the poem capture the various colours of the peacock’s plumage?

The poem captures the colours of the peacock through precise visual images.

The word “turquoise” suggests a bright bluish-green colour. The “blue shadow” adds another shade of blue to the poem’s imagery.

The tail is described through “dark glowing eyes” that are “violet fringed with golden amber.” These colours make the peacock’s plumage appear rich, shining and mysterious. The poem lets the colours appear through movement and brief glimpses.

Q29. Describe the role of nature in “The Peacock”.

Nature plays an important role in The Peacock.

The bird appears in the pipal tree, and its arrival is connected with changes in the natural world. The wind changes direction, the bees stop humming, and the cat awakens and stretches.

These details create a quiet and watchful atmosphere. Nature seems to respond to the peacock’s arrival. The poem shows that careful observation of nature helps us sense beauty before we fully see it.

Q30. Why is “The Peacock” a poem about attention and observation?

The Peacock is a poem about attention and observation because the peacock cannot be seen easily.

The reader is told to sit in the veranda and read with concentration. When the reader becomes absorbed in the book, small signs begin to appear.

A blue shadow falls, the wind changes, the bees stop humming, and the cat wakes up. These signs break the reader’s attention and point towards the peacock’s presence. The poem shows that beauty in nature is often brief and must be noticed carefully.

Class 11 English Woven Words Poems Chapter Wise Important Questions

Chapter Chapter Name
Chapter 2 Let Me Not to the Marriage of True Minds
Chapter 3 Coming
Chapter 4 Telephone Conversation
Chapter 5 The World is Too Much With Us
Chapter 6 Mother Tongue
Chapter 7 Hawk Roosting
Chapter 8 For Elkana
Chapter 9 Refugee Blues
Chapter 10 Felling of the Banyan Tree
Chapter 11 Ode to a Nightingale
Chapter 12 Ajamil and the Tigers

Q.1 How does the poet depict the vibrant colours present in the plumage of a peacock in the poem?

Ans

The poem captures the various colours of the peacock’s plumage by use of expressions like turquoise, blue shadow, dark glowing eyes and voliet fringed with golden amber. These expressions present the colours associated with peacocks very beautifully. Sujata Bhatt has detailed the tail of numerous colours with such finesse that it is not hard to visualise the blue and golden of the peacock.

Q.2 How does the poem capture the elusive nature of the peacock?

Ans

The poem captures the elusive nature of the peacock by describing its activities that signal its presence indirectly. In the opening line of the poem, we hear his loud sharp call, or we get a glimpse of the very end of its tail in the last line of the first stanza. But we never could find mention of the appearance of the peacock in the open. It is shown in glimpses.

If someone tries his best to get a glimpse of the elusive bird, he might see the peacock turning away as it gathers its tail. Such a description presents a very elusive nature of the magnificent bird.

Q.3 Comment on the lines that make you visualise the colourful image of the peacock.

Ans

Below are listed the lines that create a vivid image of the peacock in the mind of a reader.

  • The poet, when calls the peacock, “a flash of turquoise”, the mind of the reader is filled with colourful image of the peacock.
  • The phrase “the slender neck” portrays the sleek figure of the peacock and the grace with which it poses.
  • “A blue shadow” again casts a wonderful image of peacock.
  • The poet talks about the beautiful eyes of the peacock, “Those dark glowing eyes violet fringed with golden amber”.

Q.4 How does the connection drawn between the tail of the peacock and the eyes on his plumage add to the descriptive detail of the poem?

Ans

The pattern on the tail of a peacock looks like eyes, but these eyes cannot be linked. Rather, the tail when contracted appears to give an illusion of blinking of a lot of eyes together. This adds to the descriptive details of the poem.

Q.5 What cues signal the presence of a peacock in the vicinity?

Ans

A loud sharp call, a flash of turquoise, a disappearing tail end, a blue shadow, the wind changing its direction and the awakening of the cat are the signals that hint at the presence of a peacock in the surroundings.

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FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

The main theme of The Peacock is the mysterious and elusive beauty of nature. The poem shows that the peacock appears briefly and must be observed with attention. It also shows how sound, colour and silence reveal the bird’s presence.

The peacock is described through its loud, sharp call, flash of turquoise, slender neck, blue shadow, dark glowing eyes and violet-golden tail. These details make the bird appear colourful, graceful and difficult to observe fully.

The peacock is elusive because it appears suddenly, gives only a brief glimpse and disappears quickly. The viewer may hear its call or notice natural signs, but the bird turns away before it can be fully seen.

“A flash of turquoise” means the sudden sight of the peacock’s bluish-green colour in the pipal tree. The phrase shows both the brightness of the bird and the quickness of its appearance.

The Peacock uses imagery, symbolism and personification. Colour images create strong visual imagery, the peacock symbolises elusive natural beauty, and the tail is imagined as something that can blink.