The Terrorist, He’s Watching  Wislawa Szymborska

Comprehension Questions

1. Where is the bomb placed? Why is this significant?
2. The time the bomb will explode is 1320. The time given at the beginning of the poem is 1316. What is the effect created by this information?
3. Where is the terrorist? Why?
4. What is the simile used in the second paragraph?
5. List down the people mentioned in stanza 3, with details of their movement.
6. Who are the characters mentioned in the fourth stanza and what details are given about them?
7. What words or phrases suggest that the persona in the poem is ruthless or insensitive about the devastation at hand? Explain the quotations.

Questions

1. How does the writer of the poem ‘The Terrorist, He’s Watching’ create tension in the poem?
   • 2017 Paper – ‘In The Terrorist He’s Watching,’ Wislawa Szymborska dramatically presents the tension of a terrorist.’ Do you agree? Give reasons for your answer.
2. How does the writer characterize the speaker in the poem? Explain with reference to the text.
3. Through the poem The Terrorist He’s Watching, the poet shows how the mind of an individual can sink to moral depravity. Comment with reference to the text.