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The moods and movements of the snake changed in the changed circumstances. In the beginning he seems to be in a relaxed mood and his movements are also relaxed and leisurely. He sipped and ‘softly drank’ into his ‘slack long body silently’. But when the poet threw a log at him his moods and movements changed suddenly. He ‘convulsed in undignified haste’ and ‘writhed like lightning’. He disappeared all of a sudden into the horrid black hole. 

(a) drink water

(b) the snake went there to quench its thirst 1 

(c) he had come there after the snake so he must wait.

(d) The poet, D.H. Lawrence

20th March, 1935. 

London A snake came to my water-trough to drink water from there. I came down the steps with my pitcher. He was dragging his yellow-brown soft belly over the edge of the stone trough. Someone was before me at the water-trough, therefore, I decided to wait. He was conscious of my presence as he was drinking and looked at me vaguely as cattle do.

The encounter with the snake aroused the dual response in me. It was conflict between my civilized social education and natural human instincts. The voice of my education told that the yellow brown snake was poisonous and must be killed. But I must confess that I liked him. He was like a guest who had come silently to seek my hospitality. Was it my cowardice that I dared not kill him? He drank enough. Then he put his head into that dreadful hole and prepared to go. I felt a sort of horror, a sort of protest. I couldn’t bear his withdrawing into that horrid black hole. I couldn’t control myself. I picked up a clumsy log and threw it at him. It didn’t hit him. He moved violently in undignified haste and disappeared soon.

And immediately, I regretted it. I thought how worthless, vulgar and mean my act was. I despised myself and my accursed human education. He must be crowned again. And I realised that I had something to expiate. It was my pettiness.

(a) guest.

(b) it was a hot day when the snake came out. 

(c) the snake should go away on his own after satisfying his thirst.

(d) D. H. Lawrence.

(a) The snake had come as a guest.

(b) It departed peacefully, pacified and thankless.

(c) It would go into the burning bowels of the earth. 

(d) Simile.

(a) He is referring to a snake.

(b) The snake had come to drink water.

(c) It had taught him that golden snakes are poisonous.

(d) Admit.

There are many expressions in the poem which clearly show that the poet loved, admired and even respected the snake. First, ‘like a seconder’ he kept waiting for his turn as the snake had come before him at the trough. He ‘confessed’ how he ‘liked him’. He ‘had come like a guest’ to ‘seek’ his ‘hospitality’. He looked around ‘like a god’. The poet ‘immediately ... regretted’ his ‘vulgar’ and ‘mean act’ of throwing a log at the snake. The snake was like ‘a king in exile’ and needed ‘to be crowned again’. He had ‘something to expiate’—his ‘pettiness’.

Value Points :

• The graceful and dignified presence of the snake fascinated him and filled him with awe.

• treated him as guest

• Voice of education told him that the yellow brown snake were venomous and must be killed.

• Poet hit the harmless snake with a log.

• Snake slithered in panic for safety into the bowels of the earth.

• Poet filled with guilt and shame.

• repented his petty act

• wished the snake to reappear get a chance to expiate

Detailed Answer :

A snake came to the poet’s water trough to quench his thirst. The poet at first thought him to be a guest and had a natural instinct to respect him. But when the snake started moving towards the wall, he picked up a log and threw it at the snake as a response to the voice of education which said that golden snakes are venomous. The snake writhed like lightning and disappeared. The poet felt guilty as he realized that the snake had not tried to harm him and he should not have hit him with a log. His conscience pricked him. The poet was full of repentance and remorseful for his petty act. He wished that the shake should reappear so that he could get a chance to expiate. and illogically. He felt sad and regretted having missed the opportunity of knowing one of the lords of life.

(a) He felt honoured because the snake was a guest at his water trough.

(b) voices of education and conscience.

(c) courteous behaviour/politeness/humbleness.

(d) Snake.

(a) The poet is the speaker.

(b) because the snake chose to visit his trough. 

(c) The visitor came from the deep recesses of the earth.

(d) Snake

The voice of education told the poet that the snake must be killed because people in Sicily believe that black snakes are innocent but the golden snakes are poisonous and dangerous. So they must be killed. The inner voice of the poet said if he was brave and courageous as a man, he should take a stick and finish off the snake first then.

Repetition – The black, black snakes ..... .

The poet confessed that he liked the snake and was glad that he had come like a guest to drink water at his water-trough and would depart peacefully after getting satisfied, into the burning bottom of the earth.

Simile – ................... like a guest in quiet. 

Alliteration –

(a) And depart peaceful, pacified .............. . 

(b) Into the burning bowels of the earth.

The poet admitted that he was afraid but even then he felt honoured that the snake had come to seek his hospitality and had came out from the dark door of the earth. The snake drank enough water and lifted his head like a drunken man. Then he flickered his tongue as if to lick his lips. He looked around like a God unseeing as if he was not concerned by the presence of anyone. Then very slowly he turned his head and moved to draw his long body and climbed the broken bank of the wall-face again.

 Alliteration –

(a) Lick his lips.

(b) broken bank of my wall face.

(c) The dark door of the secret earth.

Simile – (a) around like a god

Repetition – And slowly, very slowly

The poet dared not kill the snake so he asked himself if it was cowardice on his part or he was being illogical in not killing the snake. He further asked himself whether it was humility to feel so honoured to have the snake as a guest. And still the inner voice were telling him that he should kill the snake if he was not afraid.