Important Questions Class 11 English Woven Words Chapter 10 Poem Felling of the Banyan Tree 2026–27

Felling of the Banyan Tree by Dilip Chitre presents the cutting of an old banyan tree as violence against nature, memory and tradition.
In Class 11 English Woven Words Chapter 10 Poem, the tree becomes a symbol of ecological destruction and uprootedness.

Felling of the Banyan Tree by Dilip Chitre is a poem from the Woven Words poetry section. It recalls the poet’s move from Baroda to Bombay after the houses around his family home were demolished and the trees were cut down. The poem treats the banyan tree as more than a tree because it carries age, memory, sacredness and a deep connection with place.

Use these Important Questions Class 11 English Woven Words Chapter 10 Poem to revise the poem for the 2026–27 exams. Start with direct details, then practise the grandmother’s belief that trees are sacred, the father’s attitude, raw mythology, scraggy aerial roots, terror and fascination, slaughter and the final image of the tree that grows and seethes in dreams.

Key Takeaways

• Banyan tree: It symbolises memory, heritage, sacredness and rootedness.
• Grandmother: Her words show traditional respect for trees and nature.
• Father: His actions show practical authority and emotional distance from nature.
• Dream image: The tree survives in the poet’s mind after the family moves to Bombay.

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Very Short Answer Questions for Class 11 English Woven Words Chapter 10 Poem

These direct questions help revise the poet, place, tree details and important facts from Felling of the Banyan Tree.

Q1. Who is the poet of “Felling of the Banyan Tree”?

Dilip Chitre is the poet of Felling of the Banyan Tree.

The poem appears in the Class 11 Woven Words poetry section.

Q2. Where was Dilip Chitre born?

Dilip Chitre was born in Baroda.

The poem also refers to the family’s move from Baroda to Bombay.

Q3. Where did the poet’s family move after the banyan tree was cut?

The poet’s family moved to Bombay after the banyan tree was cut.

The move adds the feeling of uprootedness to the poem.

Q4. Which trees were cut down before the banyan tree?

The sheoga, oudumber and neem trees were cut down before the banyan tree.

These trees were removed before the old banyan became the central problem.

Q5. What did the poet’s grandmother say about trees?

The poet’s grandmother said that trees are sacred and felling them is a crime.

Her belief shows reverence for nature and contrasts with the father’s practical attitude.

Q6. How tall was the banyan tree?

The banyan tree was three times as tall as the poet’s house.

This detail shows its huge physical presence.

Q7. What was the circumference of the banyan tree’s trunk?

The banyan tree’s trunk had a circumference of fifty feet.

The measurement shows the tree’s great size and age.

Q8. How old was the banyan tree?

The rings of the banyan tree revealed that it was two hundred years old.

Its age makes the felling feel like the destruction of history.

Short Answer Questions from Chapter 10 Poem Class 11 English Woven Words Important Questions

These answers focus on images, character contrast and line meanings. Use poem-based terms such as raw mythology, scraggy aerial roots and slaughter where relevant.

Q9. Why did the banyan tree stand “like a problem”?

The banyan tree stood “like a problem” because it was huge, old and deeply rooted.

Other trees were cut down more easily, but the banyan was much larger and stronger. Its roots lay deeper than human lives, so removing it required force and time.

Q10. What words reveal the nature of the poet’s father?

Words such as “told,” “demolished,” “massacred,” “ordered” and “removed” reveal the father’s nature.

These words show that he was practical, commanding and action-oriented. He treated the trees as obstacles rather than sacred living presences.

Q11. What does the line “Trees are sacred my grandmother used to say” imply?

The line shows the grandmother’s deep respect for trees.

She believed that trees had sacred value and that cutting them was morally wrong. The line contrasts her reverence for nature with the father’s order to remove the trees.

Q12. What happened to insects and birds when the banyan tree was cut?

Insects and birds left the banyan tree when its branches were cut.

This shows that the tree was also a home for living creatures. Its destruction disturbed an entire natural world.

Q13. Why did the poet watch the felling in “terror and fascination”?

The poet watched in “terror and fascination” because the scene was both horrifying and powerful.

He was terrified by the violence done to the tree. He was also fascinated by the tree’s size, age and hidden history.

Q14. What does the phrase “roots lay deeper than all our lives” suggest?

The phrase suggests that the banyan tree had existed longer than the people around it.

Its roots were physically deep and symbolically connected to history, memory and place. The line shows how human plans can destroy something older than human life.

Q15. Why does the poet use the word “slaughter”?

The poet uses “slaughter” to make the felling sound like violent killing.

The word shows that the tree is not treated as a lifeless object. It reveals the poet’s pain and criticism of ecological destruction.

Q16. Why does the poet say there are no trees in Bombay except one in dreams?

Bombay represents an urban space where the poet feels the absence of trees.

After leaving Baroda, the living presence of nature disappears from his surroundings. The banyan tree remains only in dreams, where it continues to grow and seethe as a memory of loss.

Extract-Based and Vocabulary Questions on Felling of the Banyan Tree

These questions explain important words, phrases and images from English Woven Words Class 11 Chapter 10 Poem important questions.

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

“Scraggy” means rough, thin, uneven or bony-looking.

In the poem, it describes the banyan tree’s aerial roots.

Q18. What are aerial roots?

Aerial roots are roots that grow above the ground and hang down from the tree.

The banyan tree’s scraggy aerial roots fell from thirty feet or more.

Q19. What does “massacred” suggest in the poem?

“Massacred” suggests cruel, violent and large-scale destruction.

The poet uses it to show that the trees were brutally destroyed, not simply cut.

Q20. What does “seethes” suggest in the last lines?

“Seethes” suggests suppressed anger, pain or unrest.

In the last lines, it shows that the memory of the banyan tree is alive and disturbed in the poet’s dreams.

Q21. Explain the line “Felling them is a crime.”

The line reflects the grandmother’s belief that trees are sacred living presences.

For her, cutting trees is a moral wrong. It shows a traditional attitude of respect towards nature.

Q22. Explain “the great tree revealed its rings of two hundred years.”

The line means that the tree’s age became visible when its massive trunk was cut.

The rings revealed that the banyan tree was two hundred years old. This detail shows the history hidden inside the tree.

Q23. What does “raw mythology” imply?

“Raw mythology” suggests the ancient, sacred and mysterious life of the banyan tree.

When the tree is cut open, its age and hidden power are exposed. The phrase makes the banyan seem larger than ordinary life.

Q24. Explain “aerial roots looking for the ground to strike.”

This line appears in the dream image at the end of the poem.

The banyan has been cut down, yet in the poet’s dreams its aerial roots still search for ground. This suggests memory, longing, uprootedness and the desire to belong somewhere.

Long Answer Questions on Felling of the Banyan Tree

These Class 11 English Woven Words Chapter 10 Poem important questions cover tone, symbolism, ecological destruction and the final dream image.

Q25. Identify the lines that reveal the critical tone of the poet towards the felling of the tree.

The poet’s critical tone is visible in several words and lines.

The line “Felling them is a crime” presents the grandmother’s view, which the poem treats seriously. The phrase “he massacred them all” strongly criticises the destruction of the trees.

The lines “Fifty men with axes chopped and chopped” and “We watched in terror and fascination this slaughter” also reveal horror and pain. Words such as massacred, chopped and slaughter make the felling sound violent and cruel. They show that the poet sees the act as the destruction of a living presence.

Q26. How does the banyan tree stand out as different from other trees?

The banyan tree stands out because of its great size, age and depth of roots.

The sheoga, oudumber and neem trees are cut down first, but the banyan remains because it is harder to remove. It is three times as tall as the poet’s house, and its trunk has a circumference of fifty feet.

The tree also has scraggy aerial roots falling from thirty feet or more. It takes seven days to cut off its branches, and fifty men with axes are needed to chop its massive trunk. The rings reveal that it is two hundred years old, which makes it a symbol of age, strength and heritage.

Q27. What does the reference to “raw mythology” imply?

The reference to “raw mythology” implies that the banyan tree carries an ancient and sacred presence.

The tree is not described merely as wood or vegetation. Its age, roots and massive trunk connect it to something deeper than ordinary human life.

When the tree is cut, its rings of two hundred years are revealed. This moment exposes the hidden history of the tree. The phrase suggests that the felling uncovers a powerful, ancient and almost sacred truth inside the tree.

Q28. Comment on the contemporary concern that the poem echoes.

The poem echoes the contemporary concern of ecological destruction.

It shows how trees are cut down to make way for human plans, buildings and urban movement. The destruction of the banyan tree also points to the loss of green spaces in cities.

The move from Baroda to Bombay deepens this concern. In Bombay, the poet says there are no trees except the one that grows in dreams. This suggests that urbanisation can lead to the loss of nature, memory and emotional connection with place.

Q29. Compare the father’s attitude with the poet’s attitude towards trees.

The father’s attitude is practical and commanding.

He tells the tenants to leave, has the surrounding structures demolished and orders the trees to be removed. The words linked with him suggest control and action. He sees the trees as obstacles in the way of his plans.

The poet’s attitude is very different. He responds emotionally to the felling and remembers the grandmother’s belief that trees are sacred. He describes the cutting of the banyan as a slaughter, which shows his pain at the loss of nature and memory.

Q30. Explain the significance of the last lines of the poem.

The last lines show that the banyan tree continues to live in the poet’s inner world after its physical destruction.

After the family moves from Baroda to Bombay, the poet says there are no trees except the one that grows and seethes in dreams.

The image of aerial roots looking for ground suggests longing and uprootedness. The tree, like the poet, has lost its place. These lines make the poem about displacement, ecological destruction and the lasting emotional effect of losing one’s roots.

Class 11 English Woven Words Poems Chapter Wise Important Questions