This page features a video of the poem “Geography Lesson”, prescribed under the Karnataka State Syllabus for 9th Standard English First Language. Along with its summary in three languages and transliterated songs. It serves as a valuable learning resource for students and parents, with each song accompanied by its respective lyrics for easy sing-along. The synchronized lyrics help learners follow and recite the song as it progresses, making memorization and learning by heart easier, more effective, and enjoyable.
Lyrics
English
When the jet sprang into the sky,
it was clear why the city
had developed the way it had,
seeing it scaled six inches to the mile.
There seemed an inevitability
about what on ground had looked haphazard,
unplanned and without style
when the jet sprang into the sky.
When the jet reached ten thousand feet,
it was clear why the country
had cities where rivers ran
and why the valleys were populated.
The logic of geography
that land and water attracted man
was clearly delineated
when the jet reached ten thousand feet.
When the jet rose six miles high,
it was clear that the earth was round
and that it had more sea than land.
But it was difficult to understand
that the men on earth found
causes to hate each other, to build
walls across cities and to kill.
From the height, it was not clear why.
it was clear why the city
had developed the way it had,
seeing it scaled six inches to the mile.
There seemed an inevitability
about what on ground had looked haphazard,
unplanned and without style
when the jet sprang into the sky.
When the jet reached ten thousand feet,
it was clear why the country
had cities where rivers ran
and why the valleys were populated.
The logic of geography
that land and water attracted man
was clearly delineated
when the jet reached ten thousand feet.
When the jet rose six miles high,
it was clear that the earth was round
and that it had more sea than land.
But it was difficult to understand
that the men on earth found
causes to hate each other, to build
walls across cities and to kill.
From the height, it was not clear why.
Summary
The poem describes how flying high above the earth gives the speaker a new understanding of cities, geography, and human life. From the sky, the apparently random arrangement of a city becomes understandable and orderly. At greater heights, the reasons for cities near rivers and settlements in valleys become clear through the logic of geography. From six miles above the earth, its round shape and the greater amount of sea become visible. Yet the speaker cannot understand why human beings hate one another, build walls between cities, and kill, showing the senselessness of human conflict.
Author