Sujata Bhatt: So Many Oaks

Standing among ancient trees, where timeless nature witnesses the stories of our world

• In this forest we stand among ancient trees.
• So many oaks. Holy. An evil witch would kill them.
• The windows of that house are so bright, so clean -
• Who lives there? A woman who lost five sons in the war.
• Birds have feathers but mammals have none.
• A pity because I would really like to fly.
• Human beings have eyes and ears
• but some are born blind or deaf.
• The flowers of a plum tree can be red or white.
• I have one of each in my garden.
• My hat is brown. My gloves are brown.
• A practical colour.

Summary

In Sujata Bhatt's "So Many Oaks," the speaker stands in a forest, observing the world's random and often contradictory nature. The poem contrasts the ancient, enduring beauty of oak trees with the sharp, specific pain of human tragedy, such as a woman who lost five sons in the war.

The speaker's thoughts jump between the freedom of birds, the reality of human disability, and the simple beauty of flowers. It all concludes with a quiet, grounding observation about the speaker's own brown hat and gloves, calling the color "practical." Ultimately, the poem is a reflection on how profound beauty and deep sorrow exist side-by-side, and how people often cope by focusing on simple, everyday realities.

Questions

1. What is the primary setting of the poem?
2. What specific type of tree is mentioned multiple times?
3. According to the speaker, who would want to kill the trees?
4. How many sons did the woman in the house lose?
5. What characteristic do birds have that mammals lack, which the speaker desires?
6. What colors can the flowers of a plum tree be?
7. What color are the speaker's hat and gloves?
8. What is the significance of the speaker describing the oaks as "Holy"?
9. The poem juxtaposes the "ancient trees" with a woman who lost her sons in a war. What is the effect of this contrast?
10. What might the "bright, so clean" windows of the house symbolize?
11. The poem consists of a series of seemingly disconnected observations. What underlying theme or feeling might connect these different thoughts?
12. How does the simple, declarative statement "A practical colour" at the end of the poem affect its overall tone?
13. What does the desire "to fly" suggest about the speaker's internal state?
14. The poem moves from a grand, ancient forest to personal items like a hat and gloves. What is the effect of this shift in scale?
15. How does the line "Human beings have eyes and ears / but some are born blind or deaf" contribute to the poem's exploration of life's randomness and imperfections?
16. How does Bhatt use juxtaposition to create meaning in the poem? (Provide at least two examples).
17. What is the effect of the poem's free verse structure, which lacks a regular rhyme scheme or meter?
18. Discuss the symbolism of the "ancient" oaks in the context of the poem's other images of loss and change.
19. Analyze the poem's tone. Does it remain consistent, or does it shift? Explain your answer.
20. How does the title, "So Many Oaks," relate to the poem's broader themes?
21. The poem balances images of natural beauty with human suffering. What message might the poet be conveying about the relationship between humanity and the natural world?
22. Is the ending of the poem hopeful, resigned, or something else entirely? Justify your interpretation.
23. How does the poem explore the themes of loss, endurance, and observation?
24. The speaker makes several straightforward, almost child-like statements ("Birds have feathers but mammals have none"). What role does this simple, observational voice play in the poem?
25. If you had to describe the central conflict or tension in this poem, what would it be?

Answers

1. The poem is set in a forest.
2. The poem mentions oak trees.
3. The speaker says an "evil witch" would kill the trees.
4. The woman in the house lost five sons in the war.
5. Birds have feathers, which the speaker implies would allow her to fly.
6. The flowers of a plum tree can be red or white.
7. The speaker's hat and gloves are brown.
8. Calling the oaks "Holy" suggests they are ancient, sacred, and possess an enduring spiritual quality that contrasts with human fragility.
9. The contrast highlights the indifference of timeless nature to specific, acute human suffering. The oaks stand long before and after the war.
10. The "bright, so clean" windows could symbolize a brave attempt to maintain normalcy and order in the face of unimaginable grief.
11. The connecting theme is the fragmented and random nature of existence, where profound beauty, deep tragedy, and mundane facts all coexist.
12. It brings the poem to a sudden, quiet, and resigned conclusion, suggesting a retreat from overwhelming emotion into the safety of the mundane.
13. The desire "to fly" expresses a yearning for freedom and escape from the limitations and sorrows of human life.
14. The shift from the vast forest to personal items grounds the poem in the individual's small reality, highlighting how one person navigates a world of big, impersonal forces.
15. It adds to the theme that life is inherently imperfect and arbitrary; suffering and limitations are presented as simple facts of existence, just like eye color or the color of flowers.
16. The primary juxtaposition is between the enduring, holy oaks and the tragic, transient life of the woman who lost her sons. Another is between the desire to fly and the practical, earthbound brown gloves.
17. The free verse structure mimics the natural, disjointed flow of human thought and observation, making the poem feel intimate and immediate.
18. The ancient oaks symbolize endurance, stability, and the continuity of the natural world, acting as silent witnesses to the fleeting tragedies of human history.
19. The tone shifts from awe ("Holy"), to pathos (the woman's loss), to wistfulness (desire to fly), and finally settles into a flat, pragmatic resignation ("A practical colour").
20. The title emphasizes the overwhelming, enduring presence of nature. Despite the poem's focus on human suffering and limitation, the oaks are the dominant, framing reality.
21. The poem suggests that humanity and nature exist on separate planes. Nature is a powerful, indifferent backdrop to the drama of human life, offering no answers to its suffering.
22. The ending is best described as resigned. The turn to practicality is not a solution or a sign of hope, but an acceptance of the need to ground oneself in simple reality to endure.
23. The poem explores loss through the dead sons and disabilities, endurance through the ancient oaks and the grieving mother, and uses observation as the method by which the speaker processes these conflicting realities.
24. The simple, almost child-like voice makes the poem's profound observations feel more direct and powerful. It presents the harsh realities of life as plain, undeniable facts.
25. The central conflict is between the human mind's search for meaning, beauty, and escape, and the stark, often painful or mundane reality it is forced to observe.