How is the lifeforce of the tree described in the poem ‘On Killing a Tree’?
Write after Gieve Patel a note on the power and strength of a tree to withstand man’s cruelty.
The poet shows how a tree is tortured for complete destruction. Killing a tree is a difficult task. It takes much time and effort. Neither a simple jab of the knife nor hacking and chopping can kill a tree. It is not so easy a task because the tree has grown slowly, consuming the earth and absorbing sunlight, air and water. It is firmly fixed with its roots anchored in the earth. After hacking and chopping, new twigs sprout and grow to former size. So, in order to kill a tree, it has to be uprooted. It has to be roped, tied and snapped out. It has to be pulled out entirely from the earth-cave. After uprooting, the root has to be exposed to sunlight and air so that it scorchers, chokes, browns, hardens, twists and finally withers. Thus man has to take up and more and more violent steps to complete the process of killing a tree.
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