LITERATURE COMPONENT - MID-YEAR EXAMINATION (JM 3)

POEM - THE DAY THE BULLDOZERS CAME

Poet: David Orme
Point of view: Omniscient narrator
STANZA POEM
1 The day the bulldozers came
Rooks were building
Crazy egg baskets in the oaks;
Green flies sizzled by the pond
And a cold-eyed toad
Waited for them.
2 The day the bulldozers came
Squirrels were scattering
Up tree trunks,
And leapt from branches
That were hardly there.
3 The fox
Stirred in his sleep
As the ground trembled.
‘Ha ha!’ he thought,
‘I’m quite safe,
Deep down in the Earth,
No one can get me here.’
Then the bulldozer came.
MEANING
 When the bulldozers came to the forest, the rooks were
making nests in oak trees.
 Green flies were buzzing around the pond while a toad
was waiting to eat them.
 Routine life in the natural world was rudely interrupted by
the arrival of the bulldozers.
 When the bulldozers came to the forest, squirrels were
scared and they were running up the trees.
 They tried to leap from branch to branch but the tree
branches were no longer there.
 The bulldozers had knocked them down.
 When the ground shook, the fox woke up from his nap.
 He thought he was safe in his den underground.
 However, he realised that he could no longer be safe
there because the bulldozer came to dig him out of the
soil!

Setting:
a) Place - A forest in Europe where oak trees grow and creatures like rooks
and foxes live.
b) Time - Any time during 20th or 21st century.
Vocabulary:
1. Rook: a bird looks
Themes:
like a crow.
1. Destruction of nature and wildlife
2. Harmful effects of deforestation, urbanisation or development.
2. Sizzled: the sound
3. Alertness
of food frying
Moral Values:
3. Cold - eyed: eyes
1. We must protect / preserve the flora and fauna and the only Earth we
which show no
have. emotions
2. We should understand that development projects can bring harm to
the nature. 4. Scattering: moving
3. We should be alert to any threats and changes around us. in different
directions
Language and Style:
1. 3 stanzas of varying lengths 5. Stirred: woke up
Fill in the blanks with the appropriate words given in the box below
2. no specific rhyme scheme
3. Usage of simple and interesting words 6. Trembled: shook
 helpless machines development habitats strong oxygen life deforestation
carbon dioxide bulldozers aware creatures toad forest ours
oak trees extinct birth sufficient trembled terrified den omniscient

1. In the poem : The Day the Bulldozers Came,” by David Orme, the _____________________ narrator first
describes how the __________________ go about doing their daily activities in the
______________________ peacefully. But when the _________________ come in full force to clear the
trees, the animals are _________________ and run helter - skelter to save themselves.
2. Man systematically clears the forest for __________________________ and timber.
3. In Stanza 1, the activities like the rooks laying eggs (____________________), the _____________ hunting
for food (growth) and the green flies dying (death) are all part of life. Now that the bulldozers have come,
they will destroy the cycle of ________________ in the forest.
4. Nature is simply __________________ against the mighty onslaught of the bulldozers. These powerful
_________________ can dig and destroy anything deep beneath the ground like the fox’s ___________.
5. The ground _____________________ under their heavy force and even the ____________, hardy
____________________ cannot withstand their offensive.
6. Deforestation causes irreparable damage to plants and animals when their natural _________________ are
destroyed. Many species of animals and plants have become __________________ and many more are
going to die out.
7. We face serious environmental problems with ________________ . Our forests are precious “green lungs”.
Trees absorb ________________________ and gives us ________________ to live. When they are
destroyed, it causes acid rain, thinning of the ozone layer and global warming.
8. We must become __________________ of the present crises we are in and preserve the forests and ensure
that our wildlife have _________________ natural habitats to survive. The decision is to let them live or
die is ______________.

Answer the following subjective questions.

1. Why did the bulldozers come to the forest?
2. What do the bulldozers symbolise?
3. Describe the situation before the bulldozers came.
4. If you were one of the squirrels in Stanza 2, how would you feel when you saw the bulldozers coming
towards
you? Give reason for your answer.
5. What problems will the animals face when the bulldozers leave?
6. What effects would the bulldozers leave behind?
7. Would you stop the bulldozers from doing their job? Give a reason for your answer.
8. In your opinion, would the fox or his den be safe from the bulldozers? Give a reason for your answer.