In line nine, Emerson addresses the Rhodora. What question does he ask the flower? What is the response?

"The Rhodora"


On being asked, whence is the flower.





In May, when sea-winds pierced our solitudes,


I found the fresh Rhodora in the woods,


Spreading its leafless blooms in a damp nook,


To please the desert and the sluggish brook.


The purple petals fallen in the pool


Made the black water with their beauty gay;


Here might the red-bird come his plumes to cool,


And court the flower that cheapens his array.


Rhodora! if the sages ask thee why


This charm is wasted on the earth and sky,


Tell them, dear, that, if eyes were made for seeing,


Then beauty is its own excuse for Being;


Why thou wert there, O rival of the rose!


I never thought to ask; I never knew;


But in my simple ignorance suppose


The self-same power that brought me there, brought you.





K well anyways, poems from back in the day i just can't stand, cause I have no clue what there saying. Its so confusing and i wanna know if you can help me out with this question i have? By the way if you dont know than dont answer.

In line nine, Emerson addresses the Rhodora. What question does he ask the flower? What is the response?
He asks the flower why it is out here in the wilderness, where nobody will see and appreciate its beauty. "this charm is wasted on the earth and sky"





The response is that beauty does not have to been seen; just that it exists is enough.
Reply:Poem Summary





In the heading, "Whence" does not mean when, but from what place, or from what origin or source. Thus, the heading of the poem implies that someone asked the speaker where the flower came from. Which might be another way of asking, what is so special or important about this ordinary flowering shrub?





Lines 1 – 4





The speaker begins by noting the season and the general weather. It is May, when flowers are just beginning to bloom; an off-shore breeze has inspired him (and, noting the plural use of "solitudes," possibly a companion) to take a walk. He then describes coming upon the rhodora and its immediate surroundings, which seem to indicate that the plant is alone in an otherwise none too thrilling spot: it is a damp nook or corner; the brook is not babbling happily, but sluggishly. He even uses the word "desert," which seems oddly misplaced for this part of the world, especially given the description of the nook. However, the New England spring comes notoriously late, following several months of very muddy conditions, so perhaps it is the desert of mud — with no other blooms in sight — that Emerson is referring to. As line 3 reveals, the rhodora is a shrub that blooms before its leaves appear, meaning that the petals stand out in stark relief.





Lines 5 – 6





With the alliterative "P's" in line 5, Emerson uses the most musical line in the poem to describe the flower itself. Notice, though, that the petals have fallen into a pool of black water, which might mean that it is really more of a stagnant puddle, an image that is consistent with the sluggish brook of line 4. Perhaps the speaker was particularly struck by the purple blooms because they were in such an otherwise unattractive water, just as the water brought a special beauty to the otherwise simple petals.





Lines 7 – 8





Emerson continues to add colors, as "red-bird" joins the purple petals and black water. The bird's plumes will be outdone, says the speaker, by the flower's color. He also uses the word "court," which hints at the fertility of spring.





Lines 9 – 10





As the second half of the poem starts, the speaker shifts and addresses the flower, rather than the companion whose question inspired the poem. He even uses an exclamation point to add a celebratory verve to the line. The rest of this couplet, and the two lines that follow, have an implication of Emerson's impatience with those who would elevate Man above Nature. Readers might even hear a certain sarcasm for the so-called sages who fail to appreciate the flower's charm or beauty, as well as the majesty of the earth and sky.





Lines 11 – 12





The use of the affectionate term "dear" personalizes the flower even more. The speaker also cleverly plays off those who would ask, and have asked, "what's the purpose of this flower?" by pointedly remarking that the purpose of one's eyes is to appreciate beauty for its own sake, without asking the flower to justify its existence.





Lines 13 – 14





Continuing the thought of the previous lines, the speaker declares that it never even occurred to him to ask the simple rhodora what purpose it served. Furthermore, he considers it the rival of the rose, the most poetically celebrated flower of all.





Lines 15 – 16





The "simple ignorance" is probably written with a dash of irony since the rest of the poem seems to argue that the speaker's view is more knowledgeable, or at least more encompassing and tolerant, than that of those who question the flower's purpose. The last line openly suggests that since the rhodora was made by God as surely and as expertly as He made Man, the flower — and by extension all living things — should be granted a deserved respect and honor. The flower might just as easily have asked, and have a God-given right to ask, whence is this man? For Emerson, the answer to both questions might be that man and flower both came from the self-same Power — the Creator — and that power brought each of them to this meeting as equals.





To better understand this final point, it is helpful to consider what Emerson said of himself as a poet, in an 1862 entry in his journal: "I am a bard because I stand near them [flowers, rocks, trees, etc.], and apprehend all they utter, and with pure joy hear that which I also would say." In other words, Emerson and nature not only speak the same language, but they speak for each other.