Creatures of the Dark
by Varsha Seshan (Roots)
The Poem :
"In the darkest of dark, on black moonless nights,
Far, far away from the bright city lights,
The strangest of beings emerge from their holes.
Not witches, not warlocks; not badgers, not moles.
Imagine the most fantastic of creatures,
Now make it weirder - add wild, crazy features.
Bright purple ears and sharp pointed horns,
Green-eyed monsters, covered in thorns!
Then walk through the jungle in the shadowy light,
You'll find tiny footprints, created at night.
Turn quickly, you'll see something dark in the trees,
Tread softly, you'll hear a small voice in the breeze.
The footprints, the darkness - a shiver down your spine,
The glimpse of a shadow, the echo of a whine,
That's all you will find, for creatures so small
Only come out if there are no lights at all.
Summary of the Poem :
This poem take the readers on a walk into the imaginary world of creatures that roam around in the darkness. The creatures come out of their dark hidden holes on the black moonless nights in the darkest of dark far away from the city lights. They are not the creatures like witches, warlocks, badgers or moles. They are the most fantastic creatures with wild and crazy features. They are the green-eyed monsters with bright purple ears and sharp pointed horns. their whole body is covered with thorns.
If we walk through the jungle in the shadowy light, we will find their tiny footprints which were created at night. We will see something dark in the trees by turning quickly. If we tread softly, we will hear a small voice in the breeze. The supernatural things like the footprints, the darkness, the glimpse of shadow, the echo of a whine, will shiver down our spine. These are the features the poet describes about the small creatures which come out only if there is no light at all.
Comprehension
1. Where do the strange creatures from the poem live?
a. in the city lights. [ ]
b. in holes in the shadowy lights of the jungle. [✓]
c. in deep rivers. [ ]
2. The fantastic creatures in the poem are ..............
a. green-eyed monsters. [✓]
b. warlocks. [ ]
c. badgers. [ ]
3. Which of these will you not find while looking for the creatures of the dark?
a. footprints. [ ]
b. a shadow. [ ]
c. a strange smell. [✓]
d. the echo of a whine. [ ]
4. The poet says that nobody will ever see these creatures properly. Use lines from the poem to justify this statement.
= The lines form the poem to justify this statement that the poet says that nobody will ever see these creatures properly are - "Imagine the most fantastic of creatures, Now make it weirder - add wild, crazy features." These two lines show that it is the mere imagination of the poet. There is no such creatures in reality. She tells us to imagine the most fantastic of creatures and make it weirder by adding wild, crazy features.
Another set of lines - "That's all you will find, for creatures so small/Only come out if there are no lights at all." Here the poet confirms that we can only find the shadow, footprints and the echo of the whine of those creatures. We can not see them.
5. Which words or phrases from the poem make you feel scared? Which words or phrases are funny? Make two lists.
= The words or phrases from the poem make me feel scared are - 'green-eyed monsters', 'tiny footprints', 'something dark in the trees', 'a small voice in the breeze', 'the glimpse of a shadow', and 'the echo of a whine'.
The words or phrases which are funny are - 'most fantastic of creatures', 'bright purple ears', 'creatures so small'.
6. "Not witches, not warlocks; not badgers, not moles." What does the poet mean by saying that the creatures she is talking about are not like any of these?
= The poet says that the creatures are not the creatures like witches, warlocks, badgers or moles. She tries to create an atmosphere of thrill and fear in the mind of the readers. She also makes the creatures most terrifying to us by saying that they are not like any of these.
About the Poet :
Varsha Seshan, based in Pune, India, is a children's author, classical dancer and trainer. She has been writing since the age of seven. Her notable works include two collections of short stories and a series of books on trains in India. Varsha also conducts reading and writing workshops for both children and adults.