CBSE Class 10 · English · board exam 2027
Chapter 7: The Trees — notes
The chapter’s 4 parts in the book’s order — the first idea of each and the points Medha Ma’am writes on the board — and the summary at the end. The full lesson and a check question for each part are in the app.
1. What the poem imagines
Okay, so this poem is about trees.
- • Forest was empty: no bird could sit
- • No insect could hide
- • No sun could bury its feet in shadow
- • By morning: forest full of trees
2. The roots, leaves and twigs at work
Now you learn exactly where these trees are and what they are doing.
- • Roots: work all night to disengage from veranda cracks
- • Leaves: strain toward the glass
- • Twigs: stiff with exertion
- • Boughs: long-cramped, shuffling under the roof
- • Compared to: newly discharged patients, half-dazed, moving to clinic doors
3. The poet inside, writing letters
Okay, so, look at the board.
- • Poet sits inside, writing long letters
- • Scarcely mentions: departure of forest from house
- • Night fresh; whole moon shines in open sky
- • Smell of leaves and lichen reaches like a voice
- • Head full of whispers; tomorrow will be silent
4. The glass breaks and the trees move out
Okay, so now the poem reaches its final, dramatic moment.
- • Glass is breaking
- • Trees stumbling forward into the night
- • Winds rush to meet them
- • Moon earlier: whole, shining in open sky
- • Moon now: broken like a mirror
- • Its pieces flash in the crown of the tallest oak
Summary
Okay, so let's go back over the poem one more time. It begins with a question — can there be a forest without trees? Then it tells us the trees inside the house are moving out, to fill that empty forest. All night, the roots work to pull free from the veranda floor. The leaves strain toward the glass. The boughs, cramped for so long, shuffle out — like patients, newly discharged, moving toward the clinic doors. Now, where's the poet while all this is happening? She's sitting inside, writing long letters, hardly even noticing this departure. Around her, there's the fresh night, the whole moon, and the smell of leaves and lichen. Then, finally, the glass breaks. The trees stumble forward, into the night. The winds rush to meet them. And that whole moon we spoke of — it's now broken, like a mirror, its pieces flashing in the crown of the tallest oak. What does that image show us? That the forest is becoming full of trees again. So, tell me — why do you think the poet imagines the trees leaving the house, instead of just describing trees in a forest?
Ask Medha · Medha Ma’am — CBSE Class 10 English, Chapter 7. Written from the textbook, checked twice.
Questions parents and students ask
- How do I get the "The Trees" notes as a PDF?
- Press "Save as PDF" — the phone’s print sheet opens; choose "Save as PDF" there. The PDF holds the notes only.
- Where are these notes written from?
- From the chapter’s own textbook text, part by part, in the book’s own terms; a second, independent model then checked every part against the book. The full lesson, a check question for each part and the practice are in the Ask Medha app.
The same preparation, with Medha Ma’am — on your phone
Every question of every chapter with its model answer, practice questions in the board’s own shapes, 45 minutes of class a day, written answers marked, a test every Sunday and a WhatsApp report to parents.
Medha Ma’am is an AI teacher, not a live tutor. Every answer is checked twice; a person takes responsibility.