“The trees inside are moving out into the forest,

the forest that was empty all these days

where no bird could sit

no insect hide

no sun bury its feet in shadow

the forest that was empty all these nights

will be full of trees by morning.”

Explanation:

In this opening stanza, the poet describes a powerful and mysterious event —
trees that were kept inside are now moving out into the forest. The forest has
been lifeless for a long time, with no birds, insects, or even sunlight finding rest
there. But now, the trees are returning to where they belong, and by morning,
the forest will be full again.
This is not just about trees — it’s a symbol of freedom and renewal, showing
how something once confined can reclaim its natural place.

Stanza 2:

“All night the roots work

to disengage themselves from the cracks

in the veranda floor.

The leaves strain toward the glass,

small twigs stiff with exertion,

long-cramped boughs shuffling under the roof

like newly discharged patients

half-dazed, moving
to the clinic doors.”

Explanation:

Here, the poet gives us a vivid image of the trees struggling to free themselves
from inside the house. Their roots are breaking through the floor, and their
leaves are pushing towards the glass windows. The trees are no longer passive
— they are actively trying to escape.
The poet compares the trees to patients leaving a hospital, suggesting they
were trapped or unwell while confined indoors. Now they are slowly but surely
returning to health, freedom, and their natural environment.

Stanza 3:

“I sit inside, doors open to the verandah

writing long letters

in which I scarcely mention the departure

of the forest from the house.”

Explanation:

In this stanza, the speaker describes herself sitting quietly inside the house,
with the doors open. She is writing letters but barely mentions the important
event happening — the trees leaving the house.
This shows a sense of silence or detachment, but also perhaps quiet
acceptance or support. The poet may not speak loudly about the change, but
she observes and records it, which means she recognises its significance.

Stanza 4:

“The night is fresh, the whole moon shines

in a sky still open

the smell of leaves and lichen

still reaches like a voice into the rooms.

My head is full of whispers

which tomorrow will be silent.

Listen. The glass is breaking.”

Explanation:

The final stanza is full of senses and emotions. The night is fresh, the moon is
shining, and the smell of leaves and nature is entering the room. These details
show that nature is returning, and it’s powerful.

The speaker says her head is full of whispers, suggesting thoughts or messages
— perhaps the voices of those seeking freedom. But these whispers will be
gone tomorrow, meaning the moment of change is now.
The last line — “Listen. The glass is breaking.” — is powerful. It shows that the
barriers are being broken, literally and symbolically. The trees (or people) are
finally breaking free, and the silence is ending.

This stanza-wise breakdown shows how Adrienne Rich uses the movement of
trees as a metaphor for liberation, quiet resistance, and change. The poem
encourages readers to look beyond the surface and recognise the strength in
silent action.

Tone and Mood of the Poem

 Tone: Subtle, thoughtful, quietly assertive

 Mood: Reflective, mysterious, symbolic

The poem maintains a calm, reflective tone, but beneath the surface lies a
strong emotional current of resistance and change.
Message and Moral of the Poem
The poem sends a strong message that freedom is a natural right, and anything
that is confined will eventually seek to break free. Just like trees grow towards
the sunlight, people also strive for growth, expression, and identity.

Adrienne Rich encourages readers to look beyond what appears ‘normal’ and
recognise the silent struggles happening all around, especially among those
who have been marginalised or silenced.

Symbolic Role of the Trees

In the poem, trees are not just plants. They represent:

 People who have been confined (like women in patriarchal societies)

 The desire for freedom and identity
 A silent rebellion that grows slowly but surely
 Hope for change and new beginnings

Important Lines and Their Meanings

1. “The trees inside are moving out into the forest…”

– Symbolises a powerful but quiet movement towards freedom.
2. “The forest that was empty all these days…”
– Represents a return to nature, or to one’s true self.
3. “All night the roots work to disengage themselves…”
– Suggests the deep effort required to break free from old restrictions.
4. “The moon is broken like a mirror…”
– Symbolises broken illusions or reflections of self-identity.

Poetic devices of poem the trees by Adrienne Rich

1. Personification – Trees are given human qualities.

○ "The trees inside are moving out into the forest."
○ Trees are shown as if they can move, think, and struggle.
 2. Metaphor – A direct comparison without using "like" or "as".
○ "The forest that was empty all these days..."
○ The trees symbolize freedom and the desire to return to nature.
3. Simile – A comparison using "like" or "as".
○ "Like newly discharged patients..."
○ The leaves are compared to patients leaving a hospital.
4. Imagery – Creates vivid mental pictures.
○ "The moon is broken like a mirror."
○ Helps readers imagine the night scene.
5. Symbolism – Objects represent deeper ideas.
○ Trees symbolize freedom, growth, and nature.
○ House symbolizes human control or confinement.
6. Enjambment – A sentence continues to the next line without a pause.
○ Example:
The trees inside are moving out into the forest,
the forest that was empty all these days...
7. Alliteration – Repetition of the same consonant sound.
○ "long letters" (repetition of the l sound).

Class 10 English Poem The Trees NCERT Questions and

Answers

Thinking about the Poem

Question 1. (i) Find, in the first stanza, three things that cannot happen in a
treeless forest.

(ii) What picture do these words create in your mind: “… sun bury its feet in
shadow…”? What could the poet mean by the sun’s ‘feet’?

Answer: (i) The three things that cannot happen in a treeless forest are listed
below:

1. the sitting of a bird on trees,

2. the hiding of insects on the trees,
3. the sun burying its feet in the shadow of the forest.
(ii) The sun’s ‘feet’ refers to the rays of the sun that fall on the earth. When
there is no shadow on the ground, because there are no trees, the rays fall
directly on the ground. In a forest with trees, the shadow hides the sun rays
and it seems that the sun is burying its feet in the shadow that fall from the
trees.

Question 2. (i) Where are the trees in the poem? What do their roots, their
leaves, and their twigs do?
(ii) What does the poet compare their branches to?

Answer: (i) In the poem, the trees are confined within the limits of the poet’s
house. Their roots work all night to separate themselves from the cracks in the
veranda floor. The leaves make attempts to move towards the glass and exert
pressure to break it, while the small twigs get stiff and tight with exertion.

(ii) The poet compares the branches to newly discharged patients of a

hospital. The large branches of the trees become cramped due to the roof
above them, and when they get free they rush stumblingly to the outside
world. While doing so, they look half-shocked like the patients, who wait for a
long time to get out of the hospital.

Question 3. (i) How does the poet describe the moon: (a) at the beginning of
the third stanza, and (b) at its end? What causes this change?

(ii) What happens to the house when the trees move out of it?

(iii) Why do you think the poet does not mention “the departure of the forest
from the house” in her letters? (Could it be that we are often silent about
important happenings that are so unexpected that they embarrass us? Think
about this again when you answer the next set of questions.)

Answer: (i) At the beginning of the third stanza, the poet says that the full
moon is shining in the open sky in the fresh night. At the end of the stanza,
she describes that the moon breaks into pieces like a broken mirror and shines
on the heads of the tallest oak trees. As the trees move outside, they cover
some of the shine of the moon and it can be seen only in parts. This is why, it
seems that the moon has broken into pieces.

(ii) When the trees move out of the house, the glasses break and the smell of
leaves and lichen still reach the rooms of the house like a voice.

(iii) The poet hardly mentions about “the departure of the forest from the
house” in her letters because it is humans, who did not care for nature in the
first place. So, maybe, the poet now thinks that nobody would be interested in
knowing about the efforts that the trees are making in order to set themselves
free. If other men cared about the trees, they would not have destroyed them.
It seems that this whole beauty of trees moving back to forests can be seen
and felt only by the poet.

Question 4. Now that you have read the poem in detail, we can begin to ask
what the poem might mean. Here are two suggestions. Can you think of
others?

(i) Does the poem present a conflict between man and nature? Compare it
with A Tiger in the Zoo. Is the poet suggesting that plants and trees, used for
‘interior decoration’ in cities while forests are cut down, are ‘imprisoned1, and
need to ‘break out’?

(ii) On the other hand, Adrienne Rich has been known to use trees as a
metaphor for human beings: this is a recurrent image in her poetry. What new
meanings emerge from the poem if you take its trees to be symbolic of this
particular meaning?

Answer: Since a poem can have different meaning for different readers and
the poet can mean two different things using the same imagery, both these
meanings can be justified in . context of the poem:

(i) Yes, the poem presents a conflict between man and nature. While nature is
more free and unbounded, man prefers to live in bounded spaces and also
wants to curb nature. He uses plants for interior decoration of houses, cuts
trees to make a house for himself, kills animals for food or other purposes and
cages them in zoos. In all these ways, man curbs nature and denies plants and
animals the freedom in which they should live. The poem shows that trees and
plants are rebelling against man as they strive to work their way out into the
open. For instance, in the poem A Tiger in the Zoo, the poet presents the fact
that animals feel bounded by cages. They can only take a few steps inside the
cage, whereas they really want to run and leap into the open. This signifies the
fact that plants and animals feel caged by humans and want to break out from
the imprisonment at the hands of humans.

(ii) If trees are symbolic of human beings, then it could be said that humans
too want to break away from the shackles of the busy and selfish lives they
lead. They also want to go out into the nature and be free. They work all day
and sometimes all night to try and achieve something though they do not
have the time to enjoy it. They keep striving hard in their routines as they feel
cramped under the roofs of their homes and offices. Even they want to break
free and go out into the peaceful nature.

Competency based Questions

Q1. Both ‘Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom’ by Nelson Mandela and ‘The Trees’ by
Adrienne Rich explore themes of transformation, Liberation and the power to change.
Examine the commonality of themes in both the works. [100-120 words]
Ans. The themes of transformation, liberation and power to change can be seen in both these
compositions.
Nelson Mandela tells us how his involvement in the country’s freedom struggle transformed a
law-abiding attorney to become a criminal, that turned a family-loving husband into a man
without a home, that forced a life-loving man to live like a monk. In the poem also, we see a
transformation in the trees which are moving out of the house and are desperate to go out.
Liberation is the key theme in Mandela’s story. Their struggle was primarily to gain freedom and
equality for their countrymen. In the poem, the trees symbolically represent females who are
seeking freedom from the shackles of the patriarchal society. ‘Going out’ indicates their quest
for liberty. Both the compositions show that change can be brought about only through
perseverance and courage. Mandela sacrificed his family and his life for the cause that he
fought for. The trees also shuffled and stifled to finally break the windows, crack the walls and
move out of the walls.
Both the compositions highlight the required qualities for bringing a transformation. To gain
liberation from any type of binding, one has to undergo a lot of struggle.
Q 2 What message does Adrienne Rich want to convey through the poem, ‘The Trees’?
Ans. The poem “The Trees” by Adrienne Rich is a metaphor which compares the trees to
women. The poet is a feminist and highlights the desire of women to be free and go out in the
open. The trees want to free themselves from the floor of the house and go in the open forest.
They are cramped in the houses and their feelings can be felt and heard by the [Link] roots
are shuffling, branches are moving towards the window. The trees move into the open and are
greeted by the wind. The moon gets broken by the oak tree’s shadow which looks different and
highlights the power of the trees.

[Link] is the poet writing long letters? Why does she not mention the departure of the
trees? Ans. The poet is writing long letters probably to keep herself busy in some activity. She
does not mention the departure of the trees in her long letters because she doesn’t want anyone
to know that the trees inside her house are rebelling and fighting their way out to reach the
forest. The trees struggle silently at night to break free from their captivity when no one is
watching them. She wants the trees to be liberated and be one with nature where they belong.
Therefore, she feels that it is best not to say a word about it to anybody.