EnglishCBSE Class 9 · A Friend Found in Music

A Friend Found in Music (Kaveri Unit 6): The Metaphors and the Structure of the Poem

Updated 17 October 2026 · Fact-checked

In A Friend Found in Music, Bryanna T. Perkins describes music through four metaphors: an ocean, a rhythm, a therapy and a needed friend. Each says directly that music is something else, without using like or as. The poem has three four-line stanzas with the rhyme scheme ABCB, and the repeated word music keeps one idea in front of the reader.

Notice that each metaphor says music is something, with no like or as, and the poem has three four-line stanzas rhyming ABCB.

Illustration drawn for QuestionBuddy.

Understand A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built

What a metaphor does. A metaphor says one thing is another. "Music is the ocean" does not say music is like an ocean; it says music is one. This makes the claim stronger and more personal. To change a metaphor into a simile, add like or as: "Music is like an ocean that pulls me to the shore."

Metaphor 1: the ocean. An ocean is wide and powerful. It "pulls" the speaker to the shore, which suggests being drawn towards calm and safety. Music has a large pull on her feelings.

Metaphor 2: the rhythm. Rhythm moves a body in time. Music is the rhythm that moves her "to the core": it reaches her deepest feelings and not just her ears.

Metaphor 3: the therapy. Therapy heals. When she feels blue, that is sad, music lifts her spirits so that she pulls through. Here music is a cure for the mind.

Metaphor 4: the needed friend. A friend stays when others do not. Music is there in her happiest moments and when no one seems to care. This is the strongest metaphor because it turns an art form into a companion.

Structure. There are twelve lines in three stanzas. In each stanza lines 2 and 4 rhyme, so the scheme is ABCB. Every stanza begins with the claim "Music is", and this repetition makes the poem sound like a refrain in a song. The tone is warm and appreciative and the mood is comforting.

The progress of ideas. The first stanza says what music is like (ocean, rhythm). The second says what it does (heals). The third says what it means (a friend). The repeated word music shows that the speaker keeps returning to the one thing she values most.

Writing tip. When the question asks about a device, name it, quote the words, and explain the effect on the reader or the speaker in a separate sentence.

A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built: key facts

Four metaphors: Ocean pulls to the shore
Rhythm moves to the core
Therapy heals when blue
Friend stays when no one cares; Quote the line for each.
Metaphor to simile: Metaphor Music is the ocean
Simile Music is like the ocean
Difference like or as is added; For the textbook activity.
Form: Three stanzas
Four lines each
Rhyme scheme ABCB; Lines 2 and 4 rhyme.
Repetition: Music is
Music is
Music is; Fixes the focus on one idea.

Ocean	pulls to the shore
Rhythm	moves to the core
Therapy	heals when blue
Friend	stays when no one cares

Metaphor	Music is the ocean
Simile	Music is like the ocean
Difference	like or as is added

How to answer A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built questions

Use this for questions on devices in the poem.

1Name the device (metaphor or repetition).
2Quote the exact words.
3Explain what the comparison shows about music.
4State the effect on the reader or mood.
5Add the link to the central idea: music is a constant friend.

A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built in real life

The idea, met in an everyday situation. Answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.

Music as therapy

Suppose a student feels anxious the night before an exam and plays a calm tune while she revises. After ten minutes her breathing slows and she can study again.

Which metaphor of the poem does this match? Answer in 2 lines.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

The student is sad or tense, so music is the therapy.
It helps her pull through.

Answer: It matches the metaphor "Music is the therapy", because the music calms her and helps her get through a hard time.

Memory hook: Blue mood, music cure.

Tricks to remember A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built

Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.

O-R-T-F
Ocean, Rhythm, Therapy, Friend.
Use it when: The four metaphors in order.
Lines 2 and 4
In ABCB only the second and fourth lines rhyme.
Use it when: For the rhyme scheme.
Pull, move, lift, stay
What music does in each stanza.
Use it when: For the structure answer.

A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built: solved examples

Ordered from board level to HOTS. Try each one before you open the solution.

Example 1: Rhyme scheme · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

The rhyme scheme of each stanza of A Friend Found in Music is
(a) AABB (b) ABAB (c) ABCB (d) ABBA

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Only the second and fourth lines of each stanza rhyme.

Answer: (c) ABCB

Example 2: Type of device · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

"Music is the ocean" is an example of
(a) simile (b) metaphor (c) hyperbole (d) onomatopoeia

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

There is no like or as, and music is said to be an ocean.

Answer: (b) metaphor

Example 3: Metaphor to simile · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level

Rewrite "Music is the rhythm that moves me to the core" as a simile and say what the change does. Answer in 40-50 words.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Correct simile with like (1).
The comparison is now openly stated (1).
The metaphor is stronger (1).

Answer: Music is like a rhythm that moves me to the core. The simile openly says that music only resembles a rhythm, while the metaphor says music is one. The metaphor is therefore stronger and more personal, because it removes the distance between music and the speaker's deepest feelings.

Example 4: Why friend · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level

Why is "needed friend" the most powerful metaphor in the poem? Answer in 40-50 words.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

A friend stays in all moods (1).
Music is there in joy and loneliness (1).
It is a companion, not entertainment (1).

Answer: A friend stays with us in joy and in loneliness, and music does the same for the speaker. It is present in her happiest moments and when no one seems to care. By calling music a needed friend, the poet shows that it is a companion, not just entertainment.

Example 5: Repetition and mood · 6 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency

How does the repeated "Music is" help the poem sound like a song and show the speaker's feelings? Answer in 100-120 words.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution

Repetition as a refrain (2).
Focus on one idea (1).
Mood and effect (2).
Expression (1).

Answer: The phrase "Music is" begins each stanza, so it works like the refrain of a song. The reader expects it and feels a beat running through the poem. The repetition also keeps the speaker's attention on a single idea: music is her ocean, her rhythm, her therapy and her friend. Each time the phrase returns, a new claim follows, and so the feeling grows from wonder to comfort to gratitude. Because the lines are short and the rhyme is gentle, the poem itself becomes musical. The mood is warm, thankful and soothing, and the repeated word tells us how deeply the speaker depends on music.

Where students lose marks in A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built

The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.

Mistake: Calling the metaphors similes
No like or as appears in the lines.
Wrong working
"Music is the ocean" is a simile.
Right working
"Music is the ocean" is a metaphor.
Do this: Look for like or as before naming the device.
Usually costs: 1 mark
Mistake: Wrong rhyme scheme
Only lines 2 and 4 rhyme.
Wrong working
The scheme is AABB.
Right working
The scheme is ABCB.
Do this: Check each stanza's end words.
Usually costs: 1 mark
Mistake: Quoting without explaining
Marks are for the effect.
Wrong working
Writing only the phrase pulls me to the shore.
Right working
Quote, then explain that it shows being drawn to calm.
Do this: Always add a sentence on effect.
Usually costs: 1 to 2 marks
Mistake: Ignoring the repetition
The repeated word is a key device.
Wrong working
The poem has no special devices except metaphors.
Right working
The repetition of music keeps one idea in focus.
Do this: Mention it in every device answer.
Usually costs: 1 mark

Exam tips

Write ABCB with the words that rhyme in one stanza.
Convert a metaphor to a simile by adding like or as, not by changing the idea.
Quote the exact phrase and then explain the effect.
Mention the repeated word music as a device.
End with the central idea of music as a faithful friend.

Practice questions on A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built

Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.

Q1 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level
In the poem, which metaphor describes music as a cure when the speaker is sad?
(a) ocean (b) rhythm (c) therapy (d) friend
Hint
The word blue is used for sad.
Answer
(c) therapy
Q2 · 2 marks · Short answerHarder board level
What does "pulls me to the shore" suggest about the effect of music? Answer in 40-50 words.
Hint
Think of the nature of an ocean and a shore.
Answer
The ocean is wide and powerful, and a shore stands for safety and calm. If music pulls the speaker to the shore, it draws her away from trouble towards peace. The line suggests that music has a strong, soothing pull on her feelings.
Q3 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level
How do the three stanzas move from what music is to what music means? Answer in 40-50 words.
Hint
Look at the order: ocean and rhythm, therapy, friend.
Answer
The first stanza compares music to an ocean and a rhythm, so it says what music is like. The second shows what it does: it heals and lifts her spirits. The third gives its meaning: a needed friend who stays when no one cares.
Q4 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Is the mood of the poem sad, joyful or comforting? Support your answer in 40-50 words.
Hint
Look at the verbs: pulls, moves, lifts, stays.
Answer
The mood is comforting. Although the speaker mentions feeling blue and having no one who cares, the poem stresses what music does: it pulls, moves, lifts and stays. These actions give relief, so the reader leaves the poem with a warm, reassuring feeling.
Q5 · 6 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency
Suppose a friend says that music is only a form of entertainment. Answer him using the poem in 100-120 words.
Hint
Use therapy and friend.
Answer
I would tell my friend that the poem shows music to be much more than entertainment. The speaker calls it a therapy because it lifts her spirits when she feels blue and helps her to pull through. She calls it a needed friend because it is there in her happiest moments and also when no one seems to care. An ocean pulls her to the shore and a rhythm moves her to the core, so music touches her deepest feelings. A pastime is easily put aside, but this music supports her in joy and in loneliness, and that is the work of a true friend.

Test your recall

Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.

1.Who wrote A Friend Found in Music?Show answer
Bryanna T. Perkins.
2.In which unit is the poem?Show answer
Kaveri Unit 6.
3.What is the rhyme scheme?Show answer
ABCB.
4.How many stanzas does it have?Show answer
Three.
5.What does music do when the speaker feels blue?Show answer
It acts as a therapy and lifts her spirits.
6.Which play is in the same unit?Show answer
Twin Melodies.

A Friend Found in Music: The Four Metaphors and How the Poem Is Built: frequently asked questions

What are the metaphors for music in the poem?

Ocean, rhythm, therapy and needed friend.

Why is the word music repeated?

To keep one idea in focus and give the poem a song-like refrain.

How many lines does the poem have?

Twelve lines in three stanzas.

What is the central idea?

Music is a constant companion that comforts in sadness and adds to joy.