Class 9 NCERT Solutions English Chapter 5 - A Legend Of The Northland [Poem]

The Northland may refer to the countries located in the polar  in the north, like Greenland, Norway, or northern parts of Russia, Canada etc.

Since the lady was baking cakes and Saint Peter was very hungry, he asked her to give him one her store of cakes.

The lady made a small cake for him. As it was baking, she noticed that it seemed too big to give away, so she kneaded a smaller one. She found that this one is as big as the first one and so she took a really tiny piece of dough and rolled it thin as a wafer. Again, she couldn't part with it and so she put it on the shelf instead of giving it to Saint Peter.

Saint Peter was very hungry and was angered by the woman's behaviour. He told her that she was far too selfish to live in a human form and have luxuries such as food, shelter and fire to keep her warm. He punished her by changing her into a wood pecker that would have to build nests to live in and bore for food all day in the hard dry wood.

The woodpecker gets its food by boring into the wood of trees.

Had the old lady known that the man asking her for food was Saint Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, she would have been far more generous. She may have welcomed him into her house and baked him not one but several large cakes to eat and probably given him something to drink as well.

No, this is not a true story but a legend and it is told in the form of a ballad.

The most important part of the poem is Saint Peter's reaction to the lady's attitude. He told her she was far too selfish to dwell in as a human and to have food and shelter and fire to keep her warm, and turned her into a woodpecker that would have to struggle outside in extreme conditions to find a dwelling and some food.

This part makes us understand that we should be extremely grateful to be born humans and get all the comforts of food, clothing and shelter so easily unlike animals. We should appreciate what we have and not be selfish. Instead, we should be generous and helpful to others.

A 'legend' is a popular story from the past which is believed by many but one cannot prove whether it is true or not. It usually contains a message or a moral and is narrated to children.

The poet himself says that he doesn't believe this tale to be true. This poem is called a 'legend' because it preaches generosity towards fellow beings. 

A long time ago when Saint Peter moved around preaching, he came to a cottage of a little woman who was busy baking cakes. Since he was weak with fasting, he asked her for a cake from her store of cakes.

The selfish lady tried to bake small cakes but each time they seemed too big for her to give away. Finally, she baked one that was as thin as a wafer. Unable to part with it too, she put it on a shelf and did not give any cake to the Saint.

Saint Peter was very angry with her behaviour and said she was too selfish to live as a human and have food, shelter and a fire to keep her warm. He punished her by changing her into a woodpecker that would have to build a nest to live in, bore for food in the trunks of trees.  Her clothes were burned and she was left with her scarlet cap on her head as she flew out through the chimney.

Even today she still lives in the woods and is seen by all the country school boys.

The rhyming words are:

'Few' and 'through'

'Earth' and 'hearth'

'Done' and 'one'

'Lay' and 'away'

'One' and 'done'

'Flat' and 'that'

Myself and 'shelf'

'Faint' and 'saint'

'Form' and 'warm'

'Food' and 'wood'

'Word' and 'bird'

'Same' and 'flame'

'Wood' and 'food'

This is a model answer just for reference. Students are recommended to answer this question based on their research. 

The legend of Ancient Rome.

Romulus and Remus were twin brothers who were kidnapped by their mother's uncle as babies. They were put into a basket and were left to die in the River Tiber. The basket got stuck in some bushes and the babies were found by a she- wolf who nursed them for some time. They were eventually found by a shepherd who looked after them. When they became adults, they decided to build a city in the same place where the she -wolf had found them. However, the twins quarrelled over where the site should be and ultimately Remus was killed by his brother. Romulus then decided to form the new city and he gave it his own name -Rome.