Class 9 English Whole

 

1.1 The Road Not Taken

ROBERT FROST

 

This well-known poem is about making choices, and the choices that shape us. Robert Frost is an American poet who writes simply, but insightfully, about common, ordinary experiences.

                                                                   

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the underground;

Questions:

01.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

02.    Name the poem and the poet.

03.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

04.    How many diverging roads were there?

05.    What was poet sorry about?

06.    What did he keep looking at?

07.    Where did the two roads diverge?

08.    Why had the poet to choose one road?

09.    How far could he see?

10.    Explain ‘yellow wood’

 

Then took the other, just as fair, a

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear,

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same.

Questions:

01.    Which road did the poet take?

02.    What similarity did the pot notice between the two or them?

03.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

04.    Name the poem and the poet.

05.    What was difference between the roads?

06.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

07.    Which of the two road did the pot take?

08.    Which road, according to the poet, batter claim and why?

09.    Why did this road have ‘the better claim’?

10.    Do you think the grassy road had never been used before?

11.    What do you understand by ‘wanted wear’?

 

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black,

On, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

Questions;

01.    What was common between the roads that morning?

02.    What were the two roads were covered with?

03.    Why did the poet not take the first road?

04.    What did the pot doubt and why?

05.    Was he sure that he would ever come back and travel on the first road?

06.    What did the poet keep for another day?

07.    Explain ‘trodden black’.

08.    What do you understand by ‘way leads on to way’?

09.    What is the doubt of author?

10.    What showed that neither of the two roads had been used that morning?

11.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

12.    Name the poem and the poet.

13.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

 I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence;

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

Questions:

01.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

02.    What would the poet be telling with a sigh?

03.    Name the poem and the poet.

04.    What had made all the difference?

05.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

06.    Which road did the poet take?

07.    Which road did the poet take?

08.    How did it affect his life?

09.    Where did the two roads diverge?

10.    What do ‘the roads’ stands for?

11.    What is the poet’s mood in these lines?

12.    What made all the difference?

 

GLOSSARY

diverged: separated and took a different direction

undergrowth: dense growth of plants and bushes

wanted wear: had not been used

Thinking about the poem

 
I. 1. Where does the traveller find himself? What problem does he face?

Ans.The traveller finds himself in the yellow woods at a point where the road divides into two ways. 

The problem that he faces is that he cannot travel both of roads at the same time to continue his journey.

 
2. Discuss what these phrases mean to you.

(i) a yellow wood

(ii) it was grassy and wanted wear

(iii) the passing there

(iv) leaves no step had trodden black

(v) how way leads on to way

Ans. i) Yellow wood symbolises the autumn season. Where the trodden leaves are fallen on the road and turned yellow. The poet corresponds it with old age. Ans. ii) It conveys that the road was full of grass and nobody has used that road because It was still smooth and had not worn out.  Ans. iii) The use of the path by passersby. Ans. iv) The leaves had not changed their colour and turned black because of less people stepping on them. It represent a path on which one may have never / seldom travel in life for the fear of uncertainty.  Ans. v) This phrase means how certain decisions one makes in his life could change the way for many other decisions.

 
3. Is there any difference between the two roads as the poet describes them

(i) in stanzas two and three?

(ii) in the last two lines of the poem?

Ans. i) In stanza two the poet explains that the only difference between the two roads was that the road he took had the right to be chosen (the better claim) because it was covered with grass and looked as if it had not been used too much. Besides this difference, both roads had been equally worn down by passersby travelling on them.                 In stanza three the poet says that both the roads were equally covered with leaves and that no person had stepped on. Ans. ii) In the last two lines of the poem the poet says that there is a difference between the two roads because he took the road that was less travelled by other people and that made all the difference to his journey.

4. What do you think the last two lines of the poem mean? (Looking back, doesthe poet regret his choice or accept it?)

Ans. The last two lines of the poem mean the acceptance of reality. The poet made a choice and accepted the challenging path. He took and unexplored path in his life. He wanted to do something different in his life so he chooses the less travelled road. No he does not regret his choice.

 

II. 
1. Have you ever had to make a difficult choice (or do you think you will have difficult choices to make)? How will you make the choice (for what reasons)?

Ans.  No, till now I have never been in a situation in which I had to make a difficult choice. Perhaps I am still too young to make an independent choice. Yes, I think later or sooner I will have difficult choices to make. After completing my general education, I will have to make choice of profession whether I should become and engineer or doctor or something else. I will have hundreds of option before me. Then it will be difficult to make a choice in between them. I will make choice according to my capabilities and strong points at that time. I will choose a path that gives me satisfaction and mental peace. I will not join the rat race for money. Like the poet in poem, I will choose a challenging and unexplored path in my life.

 

2. After you have made a choice do you always think about what might have been, or do you accept the reality? 

Ans. Taking a decision sometime make or mars our future. Having made a choice, I accept the reality. Reconsidering a decision or contemplating over it is not a positive approach towards life. Such thoughts never allow us to be happy with what we have gained from our decision. Therefore, I believe in sticking to my decisions.

 

Time is not measured by the passing of years but by what one does, what one feels, and what one achieves.                                                                                                                                  JAWAHARLAL NEHRU False science creates atheists; true science prostrates Man before divinity.                                                                                                                                               VOLTAIRE

 

 

Q.1 Why was the poet called the wood yellow? Ans. The ground under the trees looks yellow because the ground was the covered with the fallen leaves that looks like the yellow collours.   Q.2 Why was the traveler standing? What problem does he face? Ans. The traveler was standing two roads diverged in the wood. He was in a problem which road he should follow. Ultimately he chooses the less (other) traveled road.   Q.3 What was the condition of the road? What did it wanted? Ans. The road was less traveled and covered with yellow leaves. It was wanted to use by the travelers.   Q.4 Which road was chosen by the travelers and what change it brought in his life? Ans. He chooses the less (other) traveled road. This choice brought a change in her life. In this poem we feels the poet feel regret over his choice.   Q.5 Why did the poet leave the first road? Was he sure to come back on the first road? Ans. The poet did not take first road because he thought to travel on its some other day. He knows that he would not be able to come back on travel it.    Q.6 What did the poet feel after using the first road? Ans. The traveling on other road influence all his life so he feels the poet feel regret why he did not take the other road.   Q.7 Write the Central Idea of the poem. Ans. The poem ‘The Road Not Taken’ specifies that in our life are often forced to choose one of the two things and to reject the other. Later in life, we ponder on our choice and think of the difference that our choice has made to our life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DEBORAH COWLEY

 

BEFORE YOU READ

• “God may have taken her hearing but he has given her back something extraordinary. What we hear, she feels — far more deeply than any of us. That is why she expresses music so beautifully.”

 

• Read the following account of a person who fought against a physical disability and made her life a success story.

 

1.             RUSH hour crowds jostle for position on the underground train platform. A slight girl, looking younger than her seventeen years, was nervous yet excited as she felt the vibrations of the approaching train. It was her first day at the prestigious Royal Academy of Music in London and daunting enough for any teenager fresh from a Scottish farm. But this aspiring musician faced a bigger challenge than most: she was profoundly deaf.

 

2.             Evelyn Glennie’s loss of hearing had been gradual. Her mother remembers noticing something was wrong when the eight-year-old Evelyn was waiting to play the piano. “They called her name and she didn’t move. I suddenly realised she hadn’t heard,” says Isabel Glennie. For quite a while Evelyn managed to conceal her growing deafness from friends and teachers. But by the time she was eleven her marks had deteriorated and her headmistress urged her parents to take her to a specialist. It was then discovered that her hearing was severely impaired as a result of gradual nerve damage. They were advised that she should be fitted with hearing aids and sent to a school for the deaf. “Everything suddenly looked black,” says Evelyn.

 

3.             But Evelyn was not going to give up. She was determined to lead a normal life and pursue her interest in music. One day she noticed a girl playing a xylophone and decided that she wanted to play it too. Most of the teachers discouraged her but percussionist Ron Forbes spotted her potential. He began by tuning two large drums to different notes.“Don’t listen through your ears,” he would say, “try to sense it some other way.” Says Evelyn, “Suddenly I realised I could feel the higher drum from the waist up and the lower one from the waist down.”

Forbes repeated the exercise, and soon Evelyn discovered that she could sense certain notes in different parts of her body. “I had learnt to open my mind and body to sounds and vibrations.” The rest was sheer determination and hard work.

 

4.             She never looked back from that point onwards. She toured the United Kingdom with a youth orchestra and by the time she was sixteen, she had decided to make music her life. She auditioned for the Royal Academy of Music and scored one of the highest marks in the history of the academy. She gradually moved from orchestral work to solo performances. At the end of her three-year course, she had captured most of the top awards.

 

5.             And for all this, Evelyn won’t accept any hint of heroic achievement. “If you work hard and know where you are going, you’ll get there.” And she got right to the top, the world’s most sought-after multi percussionist with a mastery of some thousand instruments, and hectic international schedule.

 

6.             It is intriguing to watch Evelyn function so effortlessly without hearing. In our two-hour discussion she never missed a word. “Men with bushy beards give me trouble,” she laughed. “It is not just watching the lips, it’s the whole face, especially the eyes.” She speaks flawlessly with a Scottish lilt. “My speech is clear because I could hear till I was eleven,” she says. But that doesn’t

explain how she managed to learn French and master basic Japanese.

 

7.             As for music, she explains, “It pours in through every part of my body. It tingles in the skin, my cheekbones and even in my hair.” When she plays the xylophone, she can sense the sound passing up the stick into her fingertips. By leaning against the drums, she can feel the resonances flowing into her body. On a wooden platform she removes her shoes so that the vibrations pass through her bare feet and up her legs.

 

8.             Not surprisingly, Evelyn delights her audiences. In 1991 she was presented with the Royal Philharmonic Society’s prestigious Soloist of the Year Award. Says master percussionist James Blades, “God may have taken her hearing but he has given her back something extraordinary. What we hear, she feels — far more deeply than any of us. That is why she expresses music so beautifully.”

 

9.             Evelyn confesses that she is something of a workaholic. “I’ve just got to work . . . often harder than classical musicians. But the rewards are enormous.” Apart from the regular concerts, Evelyn also gives free concerts in prisons and hospitals. She also gives high priority to classes for young musicians. Ann Richlin of the Beethoven Fund for Deaf Children says, “She is a shining inspiration for deaf children. They see that there is nowhere that they cannot go.”

 

10. Evelyn Glennie has already accomplished more than most people twice her age. She has brought percussion to the front of the orchestra, and demonstrated that it can be very moving. She has given inspiration to those who are handicapped, people who look to her and say, ‘If she can do it, I can.’ And, not the least, she has given enormous pleasure to millions.

 

jostle: push roughly slight: small and thin daunting: frightening aspiring musician: a person who wants to be a musician impaired: weakened xylophone: a musical instrument with a row of wooden bars of different lengths percussionist: a person who plays the drum, the tabla, etc. potential: quality or ability that can be  developed auditioned: gave a short performance so that the director could decide whether she was good enough workaholic (informal): a person who finds it difficult to stop working priority: great importance

 

Thinking about the text

 I. Answer these questions in a few words or a couple of sentences each.

Q. 1. How old was Evelyn when she went to the Royal Academy of Music?

Q. 2. When was her deafness first noticed? When was it confirmed?

Ans. 1. Evelyn was seventeen years old when she went to the Royal Academy of Music in London. Ans. 2. Her deafness was first noticed when she was eight years old and it was confirmed when she was eleven.

II. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (30–40 words).

Q. 1. Who helped her to continue with music? What did he do and say?

Q. 2. Name the various places and causes for which Evelyn performs.

Ans. 1. Percussionist Ron Forbes helped Evelyn to continue with music. He began by tuning two large drums to different notes. He asked her not to listen to them through her ears but to try and sense the sound in some other manner. Ans. 2. Evelyn, with a hectic international schedule, gives solo performances at regular concerts. Apart from these, she gives free concerts in prisons and hospitals. She also accords high priority to classes for young musicians.

III. Answer the question in two or three paragraphs (100–150 words).

Q. 1. How does Evelyn hear music?

Ans.  Evelyn heard music by sensing the notes in different parts of her body. When Ron Forbes tuned two drums to different notes and asked her to sense the sound without using her ears, she realized that she could feel the higher drum from the waist up and the lower drum from the waist down. She learnt how to open her mind and body to sounds and vibrations. It was sheer determination and hard work. When she played the xylophone, she could sense the sound passing up the stick into her fingertips. By leaning against the drums, she could feel the resonances flowing into her body. On a wooden platform, she removed her shoes so that the vibrations could pass through her bare feet and up her legs. She herself said that music poured in through every part of her body. It tingled in the skin, her cheekbones and even in her hair.

 

Q. Write the character sketch of Evelyn Glennie. Ans. Evelyn Glennie was a Scottish girl. In the age of eleven she becomes deaf yet she was greatest t percussionists of the world. She could not hear but feel with different parts of the body. In the age of eight her mother noticed something special about the girl. She was waiting for turn to play piano. They called here but she did not hear her. This was first indication that she is deaf. She started canceling her deafness from her friends and teachers. Her performance was very low in eleven. The doctor found her hearing damaged. She was scented to the school of deaf and dumb where she feel all things black. She started to take interest in music. Most of the teacher discouraged her. But famous musician Ron Forbes spotted her potential. Forbes gives her education and repeated exercise to her. She had learnt with open mind and body. She feels to sounds and vibrations form that point onwards with hard determination. She joined the Royal Academy of Music in London. She can play about 1000 percussion instruments with great mastery which was wonder for any deaf. She reached on the top of the musicians. Reason of learning of music was that she can feel the resonances flowing into her body on a wooden platform. She rejoices her shoes so that the vibrations pass through her bare feet and up her legs. What were she feels for more deeply that any of us. She calls herself a workaholic. She gives free performance to hospitals and prison. She becomes he shining inspiration to the deaf. She broth percussion to the forefront of the orchestra, and she has show that it can be very moving.

 

 

 

BEFORE YOU READ

• Do you know these people? What instruments do they play?

 

                   

 

• Think of the shehnai and the first thing you’ll probably imagine is a wedding or a similar occasion or function. The next would probably be Ustad Bismillah Khan, the shehnai maestro, playing this instrument.

 

1.             EMPEROR Aurangzeb banned the playing of a musical instrument called pungi in the royal residence for it had a shrill unpleasant sound. Pungi became the generic name for reeded noisemakers. Few had thought that it would one day be revived. A barber of a family of professional musicians, who had access to the royal palace, decided to improve the tonal quality of the pungi. He chose a pipe with a natural hollow stem that was longer and broader than the pungi, and made seven holes on the body of the pipe. When he played on it, closing and opening some of these holes, soft and melodious sounds were produced. He played the instrument before royalty and everyone was impressed. The instrument so different from the pungi had to be given a new name. As the story goes, since it was first played in the Shah’s chambers and was played by a nai (barber), the instrument was named the ‘shehnai’.

         

               

2.             The sound of the shehnai began to be considered auspicious. And for this reason it is still played in temples and is an indispensable component of any North Indian wedding. In the past, the shehnai was part of the naubat or traditional ensemble of nine instruments found at royal courts. Till recently it was used only in temples and weddings. The credit for bringing this instrument onto the classical stage goes to Ustad Bismillah Khan.

3.             As a five-year old, Bismillah Khan played gillidanda near a pond in the ancient estate of Dumraon in Bihar. He would regularly go to the nearby Bihariji temple to sing the Bhojpuri ‘Chaita’, at the end of which he would earn a big laddu weighing 1.25 kg, a prize given by the local Maharaja. This happened 80 years ago, and the little boy has travelled far to earn the highest civilian award in India — the Bharat Ratna.

 

4.             Born on 21 March 1916, Bismillah belongs to a well-known family of musicians from Bihar. His grandfather, Rasool Bux Khan, was the shehnainawaz of the Bhojpur king’s court. His father, Paigambar Bux, and other paternal ancestors were also great shehnai players.

 

5.             The young boy took to music early in life. At the age of three when his mother took him to his maternal uncle’s house in Benaras (now Varanasi), Bismillah was fascinated watching his uncles practise the shehnai. Soon Bismillah started accompanying his uncle, Ali Bux, to the Vishnu temple of Benaras where Bux was employed to play the shehnai. Ali Bux would play the shehnai and Bismillah would sit captivated for hours on end. Slowly, he started getting lessons in playing the instrument and would sit practicing throughout the day. For years to come the temple of Balaji and Mangala Maiya and the banks of the Ganga became the young apprentice’s favourite haunts where he could practise in solitude. The flowing waters of the Ganga inspired him to improvise and invent ragas that were earlier considered to be beyond the range of the shehnai.

 

6.             At the age of 14, Bismillah accompanied his uncle to the Allahabad Music Conference. At the end of his recital, Ustad Faiyaz Khan patted the young boy’s back and said, “Work hard and you shall make it.” With the opening of the All India Radio in Lucknow in 1938 came Bismillah’s big break. He soon became an often-heard shehnai player on radio.

 

7.             When India gained independence on 15 August 1947, Bismillah Khan became the first Indian to greet the nation with his shehnai. He poured his heart out into Raag Kafi from the Red Fort to an audience which included Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, who later gave his famous ‘Tryst with Destiny’ speech.

 

8.             Bismillah Khan has given many memorable performances both in India and abroad. His first trip abroad was to Afghanistan where King Zahir Shah was so taken in by the maestro that he gifted him priceless Persian carpets and other souvenirs.The King of Afghanistan was not the only one to be fascinated with Bismillah’s music. Film director Vijay Bhatt was so impressed after hearing Bismillah play at a festival that he named a film after the instrument called Gunj Uthi Shehnai. The film was a hit, and one of Bismillah Khan’s compositions, “Dil ka khilona hai toot gaya ...,” turned out to be a nationwide chartbuster! Despite this huge success in the celluloid world, Bismillah Khan’s ventures in film music were limited to two: Vijay Bhatt’s Gunj Uthi Shehnai and Vikram Srinivas’s Kannada venture, Sanadhi Apanna. “I just can’t come to terms with the artificiality and glamour of the film world,” he says with emphasis.

 

9.             Awards and recognition came thick and fast. Bismillah Khan became the first Indian to be invited to perform at the prestigious Lincoln Centre Hall in the United States of America. He also took part in the World Exposition in Montreal, in the Cannes Art Festival and in the Osaka Trade Fair. So well known did he become internationally that an auditorium in Teheran was named after him — Tahar Mosiquee Ustaad Bismillah Khan.

 

10.          National awards like the Padmashri, the Padma Bhushan and the Padma Vibhushan were conferred on him.

 

11.          In 2001, Ustad Bismillah Khan was awarded India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna. With the coveted award resting on his chest and his eyes glinting with rare happiness he said, “All I would like to say is: Teach your children music, this is Hindustan’s richest tradition; even the West is now coming to learn our music.’’

 

12.          In spite of having travelled all over the world — Khansaab as he is fondly called — is exceedingly fond of Benaras and Dumraon and they remain for him the most wonderful towns of the world. A student of his once wanted him to head a shehnai school in the U.S.A., and the student promised to recreate the atmosphere of Benaras by replicating the temples there. But Khansaab asked him if he would be able to transport River Ganga as well. Later he is remembered to have said, “That is why whenever I am in a foreign country, I keep yearning to see Hindustan. While in Mumbai, I think of only Benaras and the holy Ganga. And while in Benaras, I miss the unique mattha of Dumraon.”

 

13.          Ustad Bismillah Khan’s life is a perfect example of the rich, cultural heritage of India, one that effortlessly accepts that a devout Muslim like him can very naturally play the shehnai every morning at the Kashi Vishwanath temple.

SHEKHAR GUPTA: When Partition happened, didn’t you and your family think of moving to Pakistan? BISMILLAH KHAN: God forbid! Me, leave Benaras? Never! I went to Pakistan once—I crossed the border just to say I have been to Pakistan. I was there for about an hour. I said namaskar to the Pakistanis and salaam alaikum to the Indians! I had a good laugh. (Readers’ Digest, October 2005)

 

Meanings:

generic name: a name given to a class or group as a whole reeded: wind instruments which have reeds like the flute, the clarinet, etc. auspicious: promising to bring good fortune indispensable: without which a piece of work cannot be done ensembles (pronounced ‘onsomble’): things (here, instruments) considered as a group paternal ancestors: ancestors of the father on end: for a very long time without stopping taken in by: attracted or charmed by souvenirs: things given in memory of a place, person or event chartbuster: record breaker celluloid: old fashioned way of referring to films ventures: projects that often involve risk conferred: given, usually an award or a degree coveted: much desired devout: believing strongly in a religion and obeying its laws and following its practices

 

 

Q. Write the character sketch of Bismillah Khan. Ans. Ustad Bismillah Khan was a greatest shehnai player of India. He was born at Dumraon in Bihar in 21st march 1916. He belongs from a professional musician family. He used to play gilli-danda with other boys. In his childhood. After it he used to go nearby temple. Where he used to sing Chaita song. The local Maharaja felt pleased to hear him. He was regularly rewarded with a big Laddu Weighed 1.25 kg at the age of six he went to Banaras to learn shehnai by his uncle. He practices for house in the temple of Balaji and Mangla Maya and also on the bank of river Ganga lonely.  He has won many awards. He got his first big award at the age of 14 from all India Music conference of Allahabad. He was the awarded the Bharat Ratna the highest civilian award of India in 2001. He died with a long sickness in 21 Aug. 2006. A great musician apart from us for always

 

Thinking about the Text

 

 I. Tick the right answer.

Q. 1. The (shehnai, pungi) was a ‘reeded noisemaker.’

Q. 2. (Bismillah Khan, A barber, Ali Bux) transformed the pungi into a shehnai.

Q. 3. Bismillah Khan’s paternal ancestors were (barbers, professional musicians).

Q. 4. Bismillah Khan learnt to play the shehnai from (Ali Bux, Paigambar Bux, Ustad Faiyaaz Khan).

Q. 5. Bismillah Khan’s first trip abroad was to (Afghanistan, U.S.A., Canada).

Ans. 1. The pungi was a ‘reeded noisemaker.’ Ans. 2. A barber transformed the pungi into a shehnai. Ans. 3. Bismillah Khan’s paternal ancestors were professional musicians. Ans. 4. Bismillah Khan learnt to play the shehnai from Ali Bux. Ans. 5. Bismillah Khan’s first trip abroad was to Afghanistan.

II. Find the words in the text which show Ustad Bismillah Khan’s feelings about the items listed below. Then mark a tick (✔ ✔) in the correct column. Discuss your answers in class.

 

Bismillah Khan’s feelings about	Positive	Negative	Neutral
1. teaching children music
2. the film world
3. migrating to the U.S.A.
4. playing at temples
5. getting the Bharat Ratna
6. the banks of the Ganga
7. leaving Benaras and Dumraon

  Answer 

 
III. Answer these questions in 30–40 words.Q. 1. Why did Aurangzeb ban the playing of the pungi?

Ans.  Aurangzeb banned the playing of musical instrument pungi because it had a shrill, unpleasant sound.

 
Q. 2. How is a shehnai different from a pungi?

Ans. Shehnai has a better tonal quality than pungi. It is a natural hollow stem pipe with holes on its body and is longer and broader than the pungi. Shehnai is, in a way, an improvement upon the pungi.

 
Q. 3. Where was the shehnai played traditionally? How did Bismillah Khan change this?

Ans. The shehnai was traditionally played in royal courts, temples and weddings. Ustaad Bismillah khan, an undisputed monarch of shehnai brought this instrument onto the classical stage. 

 Q. 4. When and how did Bismillah Khan get his big break?

Ans. Bismillah khan got his big break in 1938. The All India Radio opened in Lucknow and Bismillah khan played shehnai on radio. He soon became an often heard player on radio. He became the first Indian to greet the nation with his shehnai from the Red Fort on 15 August, 1947.

 Q. 5. Where did Bismillah Khan play the shehnai on 15 August 1947? Why was the event historic?

Ans. On 15 August 1947, Bismillah Khan played the Raag Kaafi on his shehnai from the Red Fort. The event was historical because it was on the occasion of India's Independence from British Rule.

 
Q. 6. Why did Bismillah Khan refuse to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A.?

Ans. Bismillah Khan refused one of his student's request to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A. because he would not live away from Hindustan, specifically, from Benaras, the River Ganga and Dumraon.

 
Q. 7. Find at least two instances in the text which tell you that Bismillah Khan loves India and Benaras.

Ans. The first instance is when he turned down his student’s offer to start a shehnai school in U.S.A. The second instance is when Khansaab was asked by Shekhar Gupta about moving to Pakistan during the partition, he said that he would never leave Benaras.

Thinking about language

 I. Complete the following sentences. Beginning with a to-verb, try to answer the questions in brackets.

Q. 1. The school sports team hopes (What does it hope to do?)

Q. 2. We all want  (What do we all want to do?)

Q. 3. They advised the hearing-impaired child’s mother (What did they advise her to do?)

Q. 4. The authorities permitted us to (What did the authorities  permit us to do?)

Q. 5. A musician decided to (What did the musician decide to do?)

Ans. 1. The school sports team hopes to win the match. Ans. 2. We all want to go to succeed in our life. Ans. 3. They advised the hearing-impaired child’s mother to consult a doctor. Ans. 4. The authorities permitted us to construct the building. Ans. 5. A musician decided to open a school for children.

 
II. From the text on Bismillah Khan, find the words and phrases that match these definitions and write them down. The number of the paragraph where you will find the words/phrases has been given for you in brackets.

1. the home of royal people (1) ______________ .

2. the state of being alone (5) ______________ .

3. a part which is absolutely necessary (2)_________________ .

4. to do something not done before (5) ________________ .

5. without much effort (13) ____________ .

6. quickly and in large quantities (9) _____________ and ______________ .

 

Ans.  1. the royal residence, 2. solitude, 3. indispensable, 4. invent, 5. effortlessly, 6. thick and fast

III. Tick the right answer.

Q. 1. When something is revived, it (remains dead/lives again).

Q. 2. When a government bans something, it wants it (stopped/started).

Q. 3. When something is considered auspicious, (welcome it/avoid it).

Q. 4. When we take to something, we find it (boring/interesting).

Q. 5. When you appreciate something, you (find it good and useful/find it of no use).

Q. 6. When you replicate something, you do it (for the first time/for the second time).

Q. 7. When we come to terms with something, it is (still upsetting/no longer upsetting).

 

Ans. 1. When something is revived, it lives again. Ans. 2. When a government bans something, it wants it stopped. Ans. 3. When something is considered auspicious, welcome it. Ans. 4. When we take to something, we find it interesting. Ans. 5. When you appreciate something, you find it good and useful. Ans. 6. When you replicate something, you do it for the second time. Ans. 7. When we come to terms with something, it is no longer upsetting.

 

Consult your dictionary and complete the following table. The first one has been done for you.

Answer
   
Use these words in phrases or sentences of your own.
 Some sentences using these adjectives are:
1. She is indispensable for the successful completion of the project.
2. Sunita was impressed by my singing.
3. He is afraid of the dark.
4. I enjoy the company of my paternal uncle.
5. Gennie was showered with countless gifts.
6. My grandmother gave me a priceless piece of advice. 

 

IV. Dictionary work

• The sound of the shehnai is auspicious.

• The auspicious sound of the shehnai is usually heard at marriages.

The adjective auspicious can occur after the verb be as in the first sentence, or before a noun as in the second. But there are some adjectives which can be used after the verb be and not before a noun. For example:

• Ustad Faiyaz Khan was overjoyed.

We cannot say: *the overjoyed man.

Look at these entries from the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2005).

elder adj., noun adjective 1 [only before noun] (of people, especially two members of the same family) older: my elder brother • his elder sister 2 (the elder) used without a noun immediately after it to show who is the older of two people: the elder of their two sons 3 (the elder) (formal) used before or after sb’s name to show that they are the older of two people who have the same name: the elder Pitt • Pitt, the elder.

awake adj., verb adjective [not before noun] not asleep (especially immediately before or after sleeping): to be half/fully awake; to be wide awake. I was still awake when he came to bed.

 

Use these words in phrases or sentences of your own.

Speaking

I. Imagine the famous singer Kishori Amonkar is going to visit your school. You have been asked to introduce her to the audience before her performance. How would you introduce her?

Here is some information about Kishori Amonkar you can find on the Internet.

 

Read the passage and make notes of the main points about:

• her parentage

• the school of music she belongs to

• her achievements

• her inspiration

 

• awards

Padma Bhushan Kishori Amonkar, widely considered the finest female vocalist of her generation, was born in 1931, daughter of another great artist, Smt. Mogubai Kurdikar. In her early years she absorbed the approach and repertoire of her distinguished mother’s teacher Ustad Alladiya Khan. As her own style developed, however, she moved away from Alladiya Khan’s ‘Jaipur- Atrauli gharana’ style in some respects, and as a mature artist her approach is usually regarded as an individual, if not unique, variant of the Jaipur model.

Kishori Amonkar is a thinker, besotted by what she calls the mysterious world of her raagas. She dissects them with the precision of a perfectionist, almost like a scientist, until the most subtle of shades and emotions emerge and re-emerge.

She is very much inspired by the teachings of the ancient Vedic sages, written at a time when vocal music was highly devotional in character. This soul searching quality of her music, coupled with a very intellectual approach to raaga performance has gained her quite a following in India and has helped to revive the study of khayal.

Significant awards bestowed on this artist include the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1985), the Padma Bhushan (1987), and the highly coveted Sangeet Samradhini Award (considered one of the most prestigious awards in Indian Classical Music) in 1997.

 

II. Use your notes on Kishori Amonkar to introduce her to an imaginary audience. You may use one of the following phrases to introduce a guest:

 

I am honoured to introduce.../I feel privileged to introduce.../We welcome you...

Writing

“If you work hard and know where you’re going, you’ll get there,” says Evelyn Glennie.

You have now read about two musicians, Evelyn Glennie and Ustad Bismillah Khan. Do you think that they both worked hard? Where did they want to ‘go’ ?

Answer these questions in two paragraphs, one on each of the two musicians.

 

Whenever you see darkness, there is extraordinary opportunity for the light to burn brighter. – BONO

 

 

 

 

SUBRAMANIA BHARATI

 

The wind blows strongly and causes a lot of destruction. How can we make friends with it? [translated from the Tamil by A.K. Ramanujan]

Wind, come softly,

Don’t break the shutters of the windows.

Don’t scatter the papers.

Don’t throw down the books on the shelf.

There, look what you did – you threw them all down.

You tore the pages of the books.

You brought rain again.

Questions;

01.    How does the poet want the wind to blow?

02.    How does the wind blow as shown in theses lines?

03.    Does the wind listen to the poet?

04.    What does the poet want the wind not to break?

05.    What is the name of the author?

06.    What does the poet want the wind not to scatter?

07.    What has the wind brought again?

08.    What does the poet want the wind not to throw down?

09.    What does the poet want the wind not to do?

10.    What has the wind done to the books?

11.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

12.    Name the poem and the poet.

13.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

14.    What has the wind done to the books?

15.    What has the wind bought?

16.    Who does you stands for in 6^th and 7^th line?

17.    What are three things the poet does not want the wind to do?

 

You‘re very clever at poking fun at weaklings.

Frail crumbling houses, crumbling doors, crumbling rafters, crumbling wood, crumbling bodies, crumbling lives crumbling hearts- the wind god winnows and crushes them all.

Questions:

01.    Name the poem from which these lines are taken?

02.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

03.    Name the poem and the poet.

04.    What is the wind clever at?

05.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

06.    Which word has been repeated seven times?

07.    Who does the wind winnow and crush?

08.    Who does the wind make fun of?

09.    What is the name of the pet?

10.    How many times the word-crumbling bee repeated?

11.    What does the wind god do?

12.    For which words adjective crumbling is used with?

13.    What do you understand by crumbling hearts?

14.    What do the wind god does to the weak?

 

He won’t do what you tell him.

So, come let’s build strong homes.

Let’s joint the doors firmly.

Practices to firm the body.

Make the heart steadfast.

 Do this and the wind will be friends with us.

The wind blows out weak fires.

He makes strong firers roar and flourish.

His friendship is good.

We praise him every day.

Questions:

01.    Who does “He” refer for in the first lie?

02.    Does he listen to us?

03.    What is the name of the poem?

04.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

05.    Name the poem and the poet.

06.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

07.    What should we do?]

08.    What kinds of house does the poet want us to build?

09.    What is the effect of the wind on fire?

10.    What does the wind do to strong fires?

11.    What does the want us to do with the doors?

12.    What doe the wind do with weak fires?

13.    What dos the want us to do with our body?

14.    When can we look upon the wind as a friend?

15.    What kinds of heart should we have?

16.    How will the wind be our friend?

17.    Why we pray the wind every day?

18.    What does the wind symbolize?

19.    What is the name of the poet?

20.    Pick out the lines, which mean strong body and mind?

 

Important Questions and answers:

Q.1         What did the poet ask the wind not to do?

                                                OR

How does the poet want the wind to blow?

Ans.        The poet asks the wind to came gently. He also asks not to break shutters of window, scatter the papers, throwing the books and tearing the pages of book. And not to bring the rain. After dong it you bring the rain.

 

Q.2         What did the wind do with weak person and things?

                                OR

Whom did the wind god winnows?

                OR

Who does the wind make fun of? What does the wind god do to them?

Ans.        The wind makes fun of weak persons and things all weak things as weak houses, weak doors, weak rafters, weak wood, weak bodies add weak hearts all are chosen and crushed by the wind god.

 

Q.3         The wind does not listen to us what should we do?

                                OR

What advise poet want to give us to make friend to the wind?

Ans.        The winds don’t do, as we want so we should build strong houses, doors, body, and our hearts. By this wind become our fried because we are also strong as the wind itself.

 

Q.4         Why should we pray to wind?

                                OR

What is the role of wind against the fire?

Ans.        The wind blows out the weak fires and he makes strong the fires roar and flourish. His friendship is very good.  We should praise him daily.

 

Q. What is the significance of the wind in this poem?

                                OR

What did the poet want to say about the difficulties and challenges?

Ans.        In this poem the wind is symbol of difficulties and challenges. Difficulties and challenges fear us. If we are weak. As we face it boldly and see into their eyes it becomes our friend and disappear.

 

Q.6 Write the Central Idea of the poem.

Ans. The poet advised us to be the strong in mind and body it makes us the friend of the wind. Otherwise it can destroy us. Challenges have to be encountered boldly.

 

Subramania Bharati (1882–1921) is a great Tamil poet, famous for his patriotism in the pre-Independence era.

A.K. Ramanujan is a Kannada and English poet, well known for his translation of classical and modern poetry.

 

GLOSSARY

poking fun: making fun of

rafters: sloping beams supporting a roof

winnow: blow grain free of chaff; separate grain from husk by blowing on it

 

Thinking about the Poem

I.
1. What are the things the wind does in the first stanza?

Ans. In the first stanza, the wind shutters breaks the shutters of the windows, scatters the papers, throws down the books from the shelf, tears the pages of the books and brings showers of rain.

 

2. Have you seen anybody winnow grain at home or in a paddy field? What is the word in your language for winnowing? What do people use for winnowing? (Give the words in your language, if you know them.)

Ans. Yes, I have seen many women winnowing grain in villages. Pachhorana is the word in my language for winnowing. People use chaaj or winnowing fan for winnowing purpose.

3. What does the poet say the wind god winnows? 

Ans. The poet says that the wind god winnows the weak crumbling houses, doors, rafters, wood, bodies, lives and hearts, and then crushes them all.

4. What should we do to make friends with the wind? 

Ans. To make friends with wind we need to build strong homes with firm doors. We should also make ourselves physically and mentally strong by building strong, firm bodies and having steadfast hearts.

5. What do the last four lines of the poem mean to you?

Ans. In the last four lines, the poet inspires us to face the wind, which symbolises the hardships of our lives, courageously. He tells us that the wind can only extinguish the weak fires; it intensifies the stronger ones. Similarly, adversities deter the weak-hearted but make stronger those who have unfaltering will. In such a case, befriending the wind or the hardships of life makes it easier for us to face them.

6. How does the poet speak to the wind — in anger or with humour? You must also have seen or heard of the wind “crumbling lives”. What is your response to this? Is it like the poet’s?

Ans.  The poet speaks to the wind with anger.

Yes, strong winds are known to cause plenty of damage and destruction to both life and property.

Storms, cyclones, gales and strong winds cause havoc on land. They uproot trees, bring down houses, tear down electric posts and claim lives.

They also cause damage to boats and frighten the poor sailors and fishermen out at sea.

Yet, I do not agree with the poet that the wind only 'crumbles lives'. The wind is responsible for bringing rain; it cools the land and makes the climate pleasant.

Today, wind energy is harnessed for several useful purposes including turning windmills, wind turbines and generating electricity.

 

II. The poem you have just read is originally in the Tamil. Do you know any such poems in your language?

Ans. Yes, I have read another poem on wind. It is titled 'Toofan' and was originally written in Hindi by Naresh Aggarwal.

 

The tree on the mountain takes whatever the weather brings. If it has any choice at all, it is in putting down roots as deeply as possible. - CORRIE TEN BOOM 

 

 

 

 

 

KATHERINE MANSFIELD

 

BEFORE YOU READ

• Do you feel you know your parents better now, than when you were much younger? Perhaps you now understand the reasons for some of their actions that used to upset you earlier.

• This story about a little girl whose feelings for her father change from fear to understanding will probably find an echo in every home.

 

1.             TO the little girl he was a figure to be feared and avoided. Every morning before going to work he came into her room and gave her a casual kiss, to which she responded with “Goodbye, Father”. And oh, there was a glad sense of relief when she heard the noise of the carriage growing fainter and fainter down the long road!

In the evening when he came home she stood near the staircase and heard his loud voice in the hall. “Bring my tea into the drawing-room... Hasn’t the paper come yet? Mother, go and see if my paper’s out there — and bring me my slippers.”

 

2. “Kezia,” Mother would call to her, “if you’re a good girl you can come down and take off father’s boots.” Slowly the girl would slip down the stairs, more slowly still across the hall, and push open the drawing-room door.

By that time he had his spectacles on and looked at her over them in a way that was terrifying to the little girl.

“Well, Kezia, hurry up and pull off these boots and take them outside. Have you been a good girl today?”

“I d-d-don’t know, Father.”

“You d-d-don’t know? If you stutter like that Mother will have to take you to the doctor.”

 

3. She never stuttered with other people — had quite given it up — but only with Father, because

then she was trying so hard to say the words properly.

“What’s the matter? What are you looking so wretched about? Mother, I wish you taught this child not to appear on the brink of suicide... Here, Kezia, carry my teacup back to the table carefully.”

He was so big — his hands and his neck, especially his mouth when he yawned. Thinking about him alone was like thinking about a giant.

 

4. On Sunday afternoons Grandmother sent her down to the drawing-room to have a “nice talk with Father and Mother”. But the little girl always found

Mother reading and Father stretched out on the sofa, his handkerchief on his face, his feet on one of the best cushions, sleeping soundly and snoring.

She sat on a stool, gravely watched him until he woke and stretched, and asked the time — then looked at her.

“Don’t stare so, Kezia. You look like a little brown owl.”

One day, when she was kept indoors with a cold, her grandmother told her that father’s birthday was next week, and suggested she should make him a pin-cushion for a gift out of a beautiful piece of yellow silk.

 

5. Laboriously, with a double cotton, the little girl stitched three sides. But what to fill it with? That was the question. The grandmother was out in the garden, and she wandered into Mother’s bedroom to look for scraps. On the bed-table she discovered a great many sheets of fine paper, gathered them up, tore them into tiny pieces, and stuffed her case, then sewed up the fourth side.

That night there was a hue and cry in the house. Father’s great speech for the Port Authority had been lost. Rooms were searched; servants questioned. Finally Mother came into Kezia’s room.

“Kezia, I suppose you didn’t see some papers on a table in our room?”

“Oh yes,” she said, “I tore them up for my surprise.”

“What!” screamed Mother. “Come straight down to the dining-room this instant.”

 

6. And she was dragged down to where Father was pacing to and fro, hands behind his back.

“Well?” he said sharply.

Mother explained.

He stopped and stared at the child.

“Did you do that?”

“N-n-no”, she whispered.

“Mother, go up to her room and fetch down the damned thing — see that the child’s put to bed this instant.”

 

7. Crying too much to explain, she lay in the shadowed room watching the evening light make a sad little pattern on the floor.

Then Father came into the room with a ruler in his hands.

“I am going to beat you for this,” he said.

“Oh, no, no”, she screamed, hiding under the bedclothes.

He pulled them aside. “Sit up,” he ordered, “and hold out your hands.

You must be taught once and for all not to touch what does not belong to you.”

“But it was for your b-b-birthday.”

Down came the ruler on her little, pink palms.

 

8. Hours later, when Grandmother had wrapped her in a shawl and rocked her in the rocking-chair, the child clung to her soft body.

“What did God make fathers for?” she sobbed.

“Here’s a clean hanky, darling. Blow your nose.

Go to sleep, pet; you’ll forget all about it in the morning. I tried to explain to Father but he was too upset to listen tonight.”

But the child never forgot. Next time she saw him she quickly put both hands behind her back and a red colour flew into her cheeks.

 

9. The Macdonalds lived next door. They had five children. Looking through a gap in the fence the little girl saw them playing ‘tag’ in the evening. The father with the baby, Mao, on his shoulders, two little girls hanging on to his coat pockets ran round and round the flower-beds, shaking with laughter. Once she saw the boys turn the hose on him—and he tried to catch them laughing all the time.

Then it was she decided there were different sorts of fathers.

Suddenly, one day, Mother became ill, and she and Grandmother went to hospital.

The little girl was left alone in the house with Alice, the cook. That was all right in the daytime, but while Alice was putting her to bed she grew suddenly afraid.

 

10.          What’ll I do if I have a nightmare?” she asked.

“I often have nightmares and then Grannie takes me into her bed—I can’t stay in the dark—it all gets ‘whispery’…”

“You just go to sleep, child,” said Alice, pulling off her socks, “and don’t you scream and wake your poor Pa.”

But the same old nightmare came — the butcher with a knife and a rope, who came nearer and nearer, smiling that dreadful smile, while she could not move, could only stand still, crying out, “Grandma! Grandma!” She woke shivering to see.

Father beside her bed, a candle in his hand.

“What’s the matter?” he said.

11.          “Oh, a butcher — a knife — I want Grannie.” He blew out the candle, bent down and caught up the child in his arms, carrying her along the passage to the big bedroom. A newspaper was on the bed — a half-smoked cigar was near his readinglamp. He put away the paper, threw the cigar into the fireplace, then carefully tucked up the child. He lay down beside her. Half asleep still, still with the butcher’s smile all about her it seemed, she crept close to him, snuggled her head under his arm, held tightly to his shirt.

Then the dark did not matter; she lay still.

“Here, rub your feet against my legs and get them warm,” said Father.

 

12. Tired out, he slept before the little girl. A funny feeling came over her. Poor Father, not so big, after all — and with no one to look after him. He was harder than Grandmother, but it was a nice hardness. And every day he had to work and was too tired to be a Mr Macdonald… She had torn up all his beautiful writing… She stirred suddenly, and sighed.

“What’s the matter?” asked her father. “Another dream?”

“Oh,” said the little girl, “my head’s on your heart. I can hear it going. What a big heart you’ve got, Father dear.”

                     

Q. Who was Kezia? Was her father right to punish her? Ans. Kezia was a sweet little girl. She loved her father and afraid from him. His behevioour was like a stick person. So she looks like a demon. On his fathers birthday. She wanted to present him a nice gift. She decided to present a pin cushion to the father. She took a beautiful yellow silk and stitched it on three sides. She filled the father’s useful papers after tearing into the pin cushion. In evening her father came to house and asked about the papers. She did not answer. He picked up at he ruler and beat he. She was very upset. Obviously he was not right to punish her. He did not know that his child was innocent. she did not understand her beating. So father was wrong to punish her.

 

                                                                       

a figure to be feared: a person to be feared slip down: come down quietly and unwillingly given it up: stopped doing it wretched: unhappy on the brink of suicide: about to commit suicide laboriously: with a lot of effort or difficulty wandered into: went into, by chance scraps: small pieces of cloth or paper, etc. that are not needed hue and cry: angry protest tag: a children’s game of catching one another nightmare: a bad dream tucked up: covered up nicely in bed snuggled: moved into a warm, comfortable position, close to another person

 

Thinking about the Text

I. Given below are some emotions that Kezia felt. Match the emotions in Column A with the items in Column B.

A                                                                             B

1. fear or terror                                     (i) father comes into her room to give her a goodbye kiss

2. glad sense of relief                          (ii) noise of the carriage grows fainter

3. a “funny” feeling, perhaps            (iii) father comes home of understanding                                                       (iv) speaking to father

(v) going to bed when alone at home

(vi) father comforts her and falls asleep

(vii) father stretched out on the sofa, snoring

 

II. Answer the following questions in one or two sentences.

1. Why was Kezia afraid of her father?

2. Who were the people in Kezia’s family?

3. What was Kezia’s father’s routine

(i) before going to his office?

(ii) after coming back from his office?

(iii) on Sundays?

4. In what ways did Kezia’s grandmother encourage her to get to know her father better?

Ans. 1. Kezia was afraid of her father because he was very strict who always used to give commands to everybody else in the house. He never played with her. He had big hands and heavy face especially his mouth when he yawned were big and she was especially terrified with the manner in which he looked at her over his spectacles. Ans. 2. Kezia’s family consisted of her mother, father, grandmother and herself. Ans. 3. (i) Before going to his office, Kezia’s father usually went into her room to give her a casual kiss. (ii) After coming back from his office, he ordered for tea to brought into the drawing room. He also asked his mother to bring him the newspaper and his slippers, and Kezia to pull off his boots. (iii) On Sunday, Kezia's father would stretch out on the sofa. He would cover his face with his handkerchief, put his feet on one of the cushions and sleep soundly.  Ans. 4. Kezia’s grandmother encouraged her to get to know her father better by sending her to the drawing room to talk to her parents on Sundays. She also suggested Kezia to make a pin cushion out of a beautiful piece of yellow silk as a gift for her father’s birthday.

 

III. Discuss these questions in class with your teacher and then write down your answers in two or three paragraphs each.

Q. 1. Kezia’s efforts to please her father resulted in displeasing him very much. How did this happen? Ans. Kezia efforts to please her father resulted in displeasing him. On every Sunday, her grandmother sent her down to the drawing room to have nice talk with father and mother. But her presence always irritated the father. He used to call her 'little brown owl'. One day her grandmother told her that her father's birthday would be next week and suggested that she should make him a pin-cushion for beautiful gift. After stitching three sides of the cushion with double cotton with great care and effort, Kezia was stuck as to what to fill the cushion with. Since her grandmother was busy in the garden, she searched her Mother's bedroom for scraps. Finally, she discovered sheets of paper on the bed table. She gathered these, tore them up and filled the cushion with the torn pieces.  Unfortunately, her efforts to please her father not only went in vain but also had an unanticipated consequence. This was because the sheets she had torn were her father’s speech for the Port Authority. Her father scolded her for touching things that did not belong to her and punished her by hitting her palm with a ruler. Q. 2. Kezia decides that there are “different kinds of fathers”. What kind of father was Mr Macdonald, and how was he different from Kezia’s father?  Ans. Kezia compared her father with Mr. Macdonald, her next door neighbour. He was a loving, gentle and forgiving father. He was always smiling and playing with his children. He treated his children in a friendly manner. He was just opposite to the Kezia's father. Unlike Kezia's father he never punished his children. He played with them whenever he was free. Kezia's father was very harsh and a strict disciplinarian. Q. 3. How does Kezia begin to see her father as a human being who needs her sympathy? Ans. With her mother and grandmother at the hospital, Kezia is left at home in the care of Alice, the cook. At night, after she is put to bed by the cook, she has a nightmare.  She calls for her grandmother but, to her surprise, she finds her father standing near her bed. He takes her in his arms and makes her sleep next to him. Half asleep, she creeps close to him, snuggles her head under his arm, and holds tightly to his shirt. Her father asks her to rub her feet against his legs for warmth. Her father goes off to sleep before her. This makes her understand that he has to work hard every day and this leaves him too tired to be like Mr Macdonald. She expresses her altered feelings for her father by telling him that he has a 'big heart'.

 

Thinking about Language

I. Look at the following sentence.

There was a glad sense of relief when she heard the noise of the carriage growing

fainter...

Here, glad means happy about something.

Glad, happy, pleased, delighted, thrilled and overjoyed are synonyms (words or expressions that have the same or nearly the same meaning.) However, they express happiness in certain ways.

 

Read the sentences below.

• She was glad when the meeting was over.

• The chief guest was pleased to announce the name of the winner.

1. Use an appropriate word from the synonyms given above in the following sentences. Clues are given in brackets.

(i) She was by the news of her brother’s wedding. (very pleased)

(ii) I was to be invited to the party. (extremely pleased and excited about)

(iii) She was at the birth of her granddaughter. (extremely happy)

(iv) The coach was with his performance. (satisfied about)

(v) She was very with her results. (happy about something that has happened)

Answer  (i)  She was thrilled by the news of her brother’s wedding. (ii)  I was delighted to be invited to the party. (iii)  She was overjoyed at the birth of her granddaughter. (iv)  The coach was pleased with his performance. (v)  She was very happy with her results.

 

2. Study the use of the word big in the following sentence.

He was so big — his hands and his neck, especially his mouth…

Here, big means large in size.

 

Now, consult a dictionary and find out the meaning of big in the following sentences. The first one has been done for you.

(i) You are a big girl now. older

(ii) Today you are going to take the biggest decision of your career.

(iii) Their project is full of big ideas.

(iv) Cricket is a big game in our country.

(v) I am a big fan of Lata Mangeskar.

(vi) You have to cook a bit more as my friend is a big eater.

(vii) What a big heart you’ve got, Father dear.

Ans. (i) Older (ii) most important (iii) innovation (iv) popular (v) great  (vi) gourmand (vii) generous

 

II. Verbs of Reporting

Study the following sentences.

• “What!” screamed Mother.

• “N-n-no”, she whispered.

• “Sit up,” he ordered.

The italicised words are verbs of reporting. We quote or report what someone has said or thought by using a reporting verb. Every reporting clause contains a reporting verb. For example:

• He promised to help in my project.

• “How are you doing?” Seema asked.

 

We use verbs of reporting to advise, order, report statements, thoughts, intentions, questions, requests, apologies, manner of speaking and so on.

 

1. Underline the verbs of reporting in the following sentences.

(i) He says he will enjoy the ride.

(ii) Father mentioned that he was going on a holiday.

(iii) No one told us that the shop was closed.

(iv) He answered that the price would go up.

(v) I wondered why he was screaming.

(vi) Ben told her to wake him up.

(vii) Ratan apologised for coming late to the party.

Answer (i) He says he will enjoy the ride.  (ii) Father mentioned that he was going on a holiday. (iii) No one told us that the shop was closed. (iv) He answered that the price would go up. (v) I wondered why he was screaming. (vi) Ben told her to wake him up. (vii) Ratan apologized for coming late to the party.

 

2. Some verbs of reporting are given in the box. Choose the appropriate verbs and fill in the blanks in the following sentences. were complaining shouted replied remarked ordered suggested

(i) “I am not afraid,” the woman.

(ii) “Leave me alone,” my mother .

(iii) The children that the roads were crowded and noisy.

(iv) “Perhaps he isn’t a bad sort of a chap after all,” the master.

(v) “Let’s go and look at the school ground,” the sports teacher.

(vi) The traffic police all the passers-by to keep off the road.

Answer  (i) “I am not afraid,” replied the woman.  (ii) “Leave me alone,” my mother shouted. (iii) The children were complaining that the roads were crowded and noisy. (iv) “Perhaps he isn’t a bad sort of a chap after all,” remarked the man. (v) “Let’s go and look at the school ground,” suggested the sports teacher. (vi) The traffic police ordered all the passers-by to keep off the road.

 

Speaking

Form pairs or groups and discuss the following questions.

1. This story is not an Indian story. But do you think there are fathers, mothers and grandmothers like the ones portrayed in the story in our own country?

2. Was Kezia’s father right to punish her? What kind of a person was he? You might find some of these words useful in describing him:

undemonstrative loving strict hard-working

responsible unkind disciplinarian short-tempered

affectionate caring indifferent

 

Writing

Has your life been different from or similar to that of Kezia when you were a child? Has your perception about your parents changed now? Do you find any change in your parents’ behaviour vis-à-vis yours? Who has become more understanding? What steps would you like to take to build a relationship based on understanding? Write three or four paragraphs (150–200 words) discussing these issues from your own experience.

OATES KINNEY

 

When the sky is covered with dark clouds and it starts raining, have you ever listened to the patter of soft rain on the roof ? What thoughts flashed through your mind as you heard this melody of nature? Read the poem to find out what the poet dreamed of while listening to the rain.

 

When the humid shadows hover

Over all the starry spheres

And the melancholy darkness

Gently weeps in rainy tear,

What a bliss to press the pillow

Of a cottage chamber bed

And lied listening to the patter

Of the soft rain overhead!

Questions:

01.     Is the name of the poet?

02.    What is the name of the poem?

03.    Name the poem from which these lines are taken?

04.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

05.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

06.    How does the poet describe the falling of rain?

07.    What does he do while lying in bed?

08.    How does he feel about the rain?

09.    What are the stray spheres?

10.    How does the he describe the falling of rain?

11.    What doe the poet do when it starts raining?

12.    In what way darkness shows its darkness?

13.    What happened to the starry sky?

14.    Which tow activities provide bliss to the poet?

 

 

Every tinkle on the shingles

Has an echo in the heart;

And a thousands dreamy fancies

Into busy being start,

And a thousands recollections

Wave their air threads into woof

As I listen to the patter

Of the rain upon the roof.

Questions:

01.     Is the name of the poet?

02.    What is the name of the poem?

03.    Name the poem from which these lines are taken?

04.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

05.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

06.    What does the rain do in the heart?

07.    What tinkle does the poet refer to?

08.    What is the pot doing while it is raining?

09.    What does the poet feels in his heart?

10.    What patter does the poet listen to?

11.    What happens when the poet hears the tinkle?

12.    In what way does the mind become busy?

13.    What do the recollections do?

14.    How does the pot describe his recollections?

15.    What does the poet react during the rain?

 

Now in memory comes my mother,

As she used in years agone.

To regards the darling dreams

Ere she left them till the dawn:

O! I feel her found look on me

As I list to this refrain

Which is played upon the shingles

By the patter of the rain.

Questions:

01.    What is the name of the poet?

02.    What is the name of the poem?

03.    Name the poem from which these lines are taken?

04.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

05.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

06.    Where is the poet now?

07.    What is he doing?

08.    Where is the pot sitting or lying?

09.    Whose memory comes to him?

10.    How does the poet describe the falling of rain?

11.    How does you say that mother love her children?

12.    What is the poet listing to?

13.    During the rain who comes before the poet?

14.    Who are the darling dreamers here?

15.    How does the poet’s mother showers her begin?

16.    Where does the patter of the rain play?

 

 

Important Questions and answers:

Q.1 why the darkness is compared with sadness?

Ans.  Nature has it own strange way to show his moods. In the poem when the stars in the sky is covered with the dark clouds. The stars feel fear and starts weeping in the form of rain. She the poet compared the darkness with sadness.

 

Q.2 described the how the poet the nature in first lines?

Ans. the poet shows when the clouds float in the air, they over the stars of the universe. Darkness turns into the sadness. Due to the sadness the rain emits out gently. 

 

Q.3 What is poet doing in his cottage?

Ans. The poet is pressing the pillow lying in his bed of the cottage. He is hearing the pattering of the rains on the singles. 

 

Q.4 What did the poet feel in rain? 

Ans. Falling of the rain drops on the singles echoes in the heart of the poet.  His mind becomes busy with thousands dreamy imaginations. These thousand of memories go on recalling into the mind like preparing of cloth from threads on loom. 

 

Q.5 Described the poet mother in his dream.

Ans. The poet has single major memory of his mother in his mind, which still comes to see him after dying of years. In the rain the poet lost in dreams. At that time he remembers his mother. His mother comes in his memory and loved him. She returned before the sunrise.

 

Q.6 Write the central idea or theme of the poem.

Ans. The poet shows that the rain provides him maximum happiness. He lost in his dreaming. So many fancies revolve and appear in his mind, he loves the pattering of the soft rain like his mother.

 

GLOSSARY

tinkle: short, light ringing sounds

shingles: rectangular wooden tiles used on roofs

woof: weft, i.e. the threads woven across the loom

ere: old poetic word for ‘before’

refrain: a repeated part of a song or a poem; here, the sound of the rain

list: old poetic word for ‘listen’

 

Thinking about the Poem

I. 1. What do the following phrases mean to you? Discuss in class.

(i) humid shadows

(ii) starry spheres

(iii) what a bliss

(iv) a thousand dreamy fancies into busy being start

(v) a thousand recollections weave their air-threads into woof

2. What does the poet like to do when it rains?

3. What is the single major memory that comes to the poet? Who are the “darling dreamers” he refers to?

4. Is the poet now a child? Is his mother still alive?

1. Ans. (i) “Humid shadows” refer to the dark clouds that produce rain. Ans. (ii) “Starry spheres” refer to the night sky abounding in stars. Ans. (iii)"What a bliss" refers to the happiness of the poet. When it rains poet gets into his cottage and enjoy the patter of rain upon the roof. Ans. (iv)This refers to the various imaginary thoughts and fantasies that are aroused in the poet’s mind. Ans. (v) This phrase means that numerous memories intermingle to form a beautiful picture that the poet recollects. Ans. 2. When it rains, the poet feels delighted to lie with his head pressed against the pillow of his cottage chamber bed and listen to the patter of the soft rain.  Ans. 3. The single major memory that comes to the poet is that of his mother and her fond look.  The “darling dreamers” are the poet and his siblings in their childhood when they were lovingly put to sleep by their mother.  Ans. 4. No, the poet is not a child now.He is a grown up man. He remembers her when he is inside his cosy cottage and enjoy the pattern of rain on the roof.

 

II. 1. When you were a young child, did your mother tuck you in, as the poet’s did?

2. Do you like rain? What do you do when it rains steadily or heavily as described in the poem?

3. Does everybody have a cosy bed to lie in when it rains? Look around you and describe how different kinds of people or animals spend time, seek shelter etc. during rain.

Ans. 1. Yes, my mother used to tuck me in when I was a young child, just like the poet’s mother did. (Self-experience question) Ans. 2. Yes, I like the rain. When it rains steadily I get into my house and enjoy the weather with family. We enjoy tea. It is wonderful experience (self-experience question) Ans. 3. No, everybody is not fortunate enough to have a cosy bed to lie in when it rains. Not everybody gets to enjoy the comfort of cosy homes during rain. I have seen animals seeking shelter under trees and under the tin roofs of the small roadside tea stalls. The people passing by shoo away these animals and try to shrink themselves under the limited space of these shops. The poor animals are left shivering and drenching on the roads. The shopkeepers of such stalls are delighted as the people waiting for the rain to subside often end up buying tea and snacks.

 

All that I am or ever hope it be, I owe to my angel Mother. - ABRAHAM LINCOLN 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BEFORE YOU READ

• Who do you think of, when you hear the word ‘genius’? Who is a genius — what qualities do you think a genius has?

 

• We shall now read about a young German civil servant who took the world by storm about a hundred years ago. In the summer of 1905, the 26-year-old published in quick succession four ground-breaking papers: about light, the motion of particles, the electrodynamics of moving bodies, and energy.

His work took up only a few pages in scientific journals, but changed forever our understanding of space, time and the entire cosmos — and transformed the name ‘Einstein’ into a synonym for genius.

 

• Fifty years after his death, Albert Einstein’s genius still reigns.

 

1.             ALBERT Einstein was born on 14 March 1879 in the German city of Ulm, without any indication that he was destined for greatness. On the contrary, his mother thought Albert was a freak. To her, his head seemed much too large.

 

2. At the age of two-and-a-half, Einstein still wasn’t talking. When he finally did learn to speak, he uttered everything twice. Einstein did not know what to do with other children, and his playmates called him “Brother Boring.” So the youngster played by himself much of the time. He especially loved mechanical toys. Looking at his newborn sister, Maja, he is said to have said: “Fine, but where are her wheels?”

 

3. A headmaster once told his father that what Einstein chose as a profession wouldn’t matter, because “he’ll never make a success at anything.” Einstein began learning to play the violin at the

age of six, because his mother wanted him to; he later became a gifted amateur violinist, maintaining this skill throughout his life.

 

4. But Albert Einstein was not a bad pupil. He went to high school in Munich, where Einstein’s family had moved when he was 15 months old, and scored good marks in almost every subject. Einstein hated the school’s regimentation, and often clashed with his teachers. At the age of 15, Einstein felt so stifled there that he left the school for good.

 

5. The previous year, Albert’s parents had moved to Milan, and left their son with relatives. After prolonged discussion, Einstein got his wish to continue his education in German-speaking Switzerland, in a city which was more liberal than Munich.

 

6. Einstein was highly gifted in mathematics and interested in physics, and after finishing school, he decided to study at a university in Zurich. But science wasn’t the only thing that appealed to the dashing young man with the walrus moustache.

 

7. He also felt a special interest in a fellow student, Mileva Maric, whom he found to be a “clever creature.” This young Serb had come to Switzerland because the University in Zurich was one of the few in Europe where women could get degrees. Einstein saw in her an ally against the “philistines”— those people in his family and at the university with whom he was constantly at odds. The couple fell in love. Letters survive in which they put their affection into words, mixing science with tenderness. Wrote Einstein: “How happy and proud I shall be when we both have brought our work on relativity to a victorious conclusion.”

 

8. In 1900, at the age of 21, Albert Einstein was a university graduate and unemployed. He worked as a teaching assistant, gave private lessons and finally secured a job in 1902 as a technical expert in the patent office in Bern. While he was supposed to be assessing other people’s inventions, Einstein was actually developing his own ideas in secret. He is said to have jokingly called his desk drawer atwork the “bureau of theoretical physics.”

 

9. One of the famous papers of 1905 was Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity, according to which time and distance are not absolute. Indeed, two perfectly accurate clocks will not continue to show the same time if they come together again after a journey if one of them has been moving very fast relative to the other. From this followed the world’s most famous formula which describes the relationship between mass and energy:

E = mc2

 (In this mathematical equation, E stands for energy, m for mass and c for the speed of the light in a vacuum (about 300,000 km/s).

 

Neugebauer, the historian of ancient mathematics, told a story about the boy Einstein that he characterises as a “legend”, but that seems fairly authentic. As he was a late talker, his parents were worried. At last, at the supper table one night, he broke his silence to say, “The soup is too hot.” Greatly relieved, his parents asked why he had never said a word before. Albert replied, “Because up to now everything was in order.” * * * When you sit with a nice girl for two hours, it seems like two minutes. When you sit on a hot stove for two minutes, it seems like two hours—that’s relativity. – ALBERT EINSTEIN

 

10. While Einstein was solving the most difficult problems in physics, his private life was unravelling. Albert had wanted to marry Mileva right after finishing his studies, but his mother was against it. She thought Mileva, who was three years older than her son, was too old for him. She was also bothered by Mileva’s intelligence. “She is a book like you,” his mother said. Einstein put the wedding off.

 

11. The pair finally married in January 1903, and had two sons. But a few years later, the marriage faltered. Mileva, meanwhile, was losing her intellectual ambition and becoming an unhappy housewife. After years of constant fighting, the couple finally divorced in 1919. Einstein married his cousin Elsa the same year.

* * *

 

12. Einstein’s new personal chapter coincided with his rise to world fame. In 1915, he had published his General Theory of Relativity, which provided a new interpretation of gravity. An eclipse of the sun in 1919 brought proof that it was accurate. Einstein had correctly calculated in advance the extent to which the light from fixed stars would be deflected through the sun’s gravitational field. The newspapers proclaimed his work as “a scientific revolution.”

 

13. Einstein received the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1921. He was showered with honours and invitations from all over the world, and lauded by the press.

* * *

 

14. When the Nazis came to power in Germany in 1933, Einstein emigrated to the United States. Five years later, the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin had American physicists in an uproar. Many of them had fled from Fascism, just as Einstein had, and now they were afraid the Nazis could build and use an atomic bomb.

 

15. At the urging of a colleague, Einstein wrote a letter to the American President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, on 2 August 1939, in which he warned:“A single bomb of this type . . . exploded in a port, might very well destroy the whole port together with some of the surrounding territory.” His words did not fail to have an effect. The Americans developed the atomic bomb in a secret project of their own, and dropped it on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945.

 

16. Einstein was deeply shaken by the extent of the destruction. This time he wrote a public missive to the United Nations. In it he proposed the formation of a world government. Unlike the letter to Roosevelt, this one made no impact. But over the next decade, Einstein got ever more involved in politics — agitating for an end to the arms buildup and using his popularity to campaign for peace and democracy.

 

17. When Einstein died in 1955 at the age of 76, he was celebrated as a visionary and world citizen as much as a scientific genius.

 

Thinking about the Text

1. Here are some headings for paragraphs in the text. Write the number(s) of the paragraph(s) for each title against the heading. The first one is done for you.

 

(i)	Einstein’s equation
(ii)	Einstein meets his future wife
(iii)	The making of a violinist
(iv)	Mileva and Einstein’s mother
(v)	A letter that launched the arms race
(vi)	A desk drawer full of ideas
(vii)	Marriage and divorce

  

Ans. (i) 9 (ii)          7 (iii)       3 (iv)       10 (v)    15 (vi)   8 (vii)     11

 

2. Who had these opinions about Einstein?

(i) He was boring.

(ii) He was stupid and would never succeed in life.

(iii) He was a freak.

Ans. (i) Einstein’s playmates thought that he was boring. Ans. (ii) Einstein’s headmaster thought that he was stupid and would never succeed at anything in life. Ans. (iii) Einstein’s mother thought that he was a freak.

 

3. Explain what the reasons for the following are.

(i) Einstein leaving the school in Munich for good.

(ii) Einstein wanting to study in Switzerland rather than in Munich.

(iii) Einstein seeing in Mileva an ally.

(iv) What do these tell you about Einstein?

Ans. (i) Einstein left the school in Munich for good because he hated the school’s regimentation. Ans. (ii) Einstein wanted to study in Switzerland rather than in Munich because it was a more liberal city. Ans. (iii) Einstein found in Mileva an ally because she, like him, disapproved of the “philistines” or the people who did not like art, literature or music. Ans. (iv) These told about Einstein that he loved freedom. He was liberal and cultured person.

 

4. What did Einstein call his desk drawer at the patent office? Why?

5. Why did Einstein write a letter to Franklin Roosevelt?

6. How did Einstein react to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?

7. Why does the world remember Einstein as a “world citizen”?

Ans. 4. Einstein called his desk drawer at the patent office the “bureau of theoretical physics”. This was because the drawer was where he used to store his secretly developed ideas. Ans. 5. Einstein wrote a letter to Franklin Roosevelt to warn about bomb effect and also wanted to encourage them to make a bomb to utilize its destruction potential. Ans. 6. Einstein was deeply shaken by the disaster in the Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He wrote a public missive to the United. He proposed the formation of a world government to stop the nuclear weapons. Ans. 7. Einstein is remembered as a “world citizen” as much as a genius scientist because of his efforts towards world peace and democracy, and for his crusade against the use of arms.

 

8. Here are some facts from Einstein’s life. Arrange them in chronological order.

[ ] Einstein publishes his special theory of relativity.

[ ] He is awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics.

[ ] Einstein writes a letter to U.S. President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and warns against Germany’s building of an atomic bomb.

[ ] Einstein attends a high school in Munich.

[ ] Einstein’s family moves to Milan.

[ ] Einstein is born in the German city of Ulm.

[ ] Einstein joins a university in Zurich, where he meets Mileva.

[ ] Einstein dies.

[ ] He provides a new interpretation of gravity.

[ ] Tired of the school’s regimentation, Einstein withdraws from school.

[ ] He works in a patent office as a technical expert.

[ ] When Hitler comes to power, Einstein leaves Germany for the United States.

Ans. [1] Einstein is born in the German city of Ulm. [2] Einstein attends a high school in Munich. [3] Einstein’s family moves to Milan. [4] Tired of the school’s regimentation, Einstein withdraws from school. [5] Einstein joins a university in Zurich, where he meets Mileva. [6] He works in a patent office as a technical expert. [7] Einstein publishes his special theory of relativity. [8] He provides a new interpretation of gravity. [9] He is awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics. [10] When Hitler comes to power, Einstein leaves Germany for the United States. [11] Einstein writes a letter to U.S. President, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and warns against Germany’s  building of an atomic bomb. [12] Einstein dies.

 

Thinking about Language

I. Here are some sentences from the story. Choose the word from the brackets which can be substituted for the italicised words in the sentences.

1. A few years later, the marriage faltered. (failed, broke, became weak).

2. Einstein was constantly at odds with people at the university. (on bad terms, in disagreement, unhappy)

3. The newspapers proclaimed his work as “a scientific revolution.” (declared, praised, showed)

4. Einstein got ever more involved in politics, agitating for an end to the arms buildup. (campaigning, fighting, supporting)

5. At the age of 15, Einstein felt so stifled that he left the school for good. (permanently, for his benefit, for a short time)

6. Five years later, the discovery of nuclear fission in Berlin had American physicists in an uproar. (in a state of commotion, full of criticism, in a desperate state)

7. Science wasn’t the only thing that appealed to the dashing young man with the walrus moustache. (interested, challenged, worried)

Ans. 1. became weak 2. in disagreement 3. declared 4. campaigning 5. permanently 6. in a state of commotion 7. interested

 

II. Study the following sentences.

• Einstein became a gifted amateur violinist, maintaining this skill throughout his life.

• Letters survive in which they put their affection into words, mixing science with tenderness.

The parts in italics in the above sentences begin with –ing verbs, and are called participial phrases. Participial phrases say something more about the person or thing talked about or the idea expressed by the sentence as a whole. For example:

– Einstein became a gifted amateur violinist. He maintained this skill throughout his life.

Complete the sentences below by filling in the blanks with suitable participial clauses. The information that has to be used in the phrases is provided as a sentence in brackets.

1. , the firefighters finally put out the fire. (They worked round the clock.)

2. She watched the sunset above the mountain, (She noticed the colours blending softly into one another.)

3. The excited horse pawed the ground rapidly, (While it neighed continually.)

4. , I found myself in Bangalore, instead of Benaras. (I had taken the wrong train.)

5. , I was desperate to get to the bathroom. (I had not bathed for two days)

6. The stone steps, needed to be replaced. (They were worn down).

7. The actor received hundreds of letters from his fans, (They asked him to send them his photograph.)

Ans. 1. Working round the clock, the fire fighters finally put out the fire. 2. She watched the sunset above the mountain, noticing the colours blending softly into one another. 3. The excited horse pawed the ground rapidly, neighing continually. 4. Having taken the wrong train, I found myself in Bangalore, instead of Benaras. 5. Having not bathed for two days, I was desperate to get to the bathroom. 6. The stone steps, being worn down, needed to be replaced. 7. The actor received hundreds of letters from his fans, asking him to send them his photograph.

 

Writing Newspaper Reports

Here are some notes which you could use to write a report.

21 August 2005 — original handwritten manuscript of Albert Einstein unearthed — by student Rowdy Boeynik in the University of the Netherlands — Boeynik researching papers — papers belonging to an old friend of Einstein — fingerprints of Einstein on these papers — 16-page document dated 1924 — Einstein’s work on this last theory — behaviour of atoms at low temperature — now known as the Bose-Einstein condensation — the manuscript to be kept at Leyden University where Einstein got the Nobel Prize.

 

Write a report which has four paragraphs, one each on:

• What was unearthed.

• Who unearthed it and when.

• What the document contained.

• Where it will be kept.

Your report could begin like this:

 

Student Unearths Einstein Manuscript

21 AUGUST 2005. An original handwritten Albert Einstein manuscript has been unearthed at a university in the Netherlands ...

 

Dictation

Your teacher will dictate these paragraphs to you. Write down the paragraphs with correct punctuation marks.

In 1931 Charlie Chaplin invited Albert Einstein, who was visiting Hollywood, to a private screening of his new film, City Lights. As the two men drove into town together, passersby waved and cheered. Chaplin turned to his guest and explained: “The people are applauding you because none of them understands you and applauding me because everybody understands me.”

One of Einstein’s colleagues asked him for his telephone number one day. Einstein reached for a telephone directory and looked it up. “You don’t remember your own number?” the man asked, startled. “No,” Einstein answered. “Why should I memorise something I can so easily get from a book?” (In fact, Einstein claimed never to memorise anything which could be looked up in less than two minutes.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS

 

This well known poem explores the poet’s longing for the peace and tranquillity of Innisfree, a place where he spent a lot of time as a boy. This poem is a lyric.

 

I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,

And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:

Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honeybee,

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.

Questions:

01.    What is the name of the poet?

02.    What is the name of the poem?

03.    Name the poem from which these lines are taken?

04.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

05.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

06.    Where does the poet want to go and why?

07.    Where does the poet want to go?

08.    Where will he stay there?

09.    What king of music will the poet get to hear?

10.    What will he grow around his cottage?

11.    How will he build the cottage?

12.    Does he want to have anybody else also with him?

13.    What two things the poet wants to do?

14.    The poets that he will live there alone. What does this signify?

15.    Who will arise and where did he go?

16.    What will be there? Where the poet is going?

 

And I shall have some peace there; for peace comes dropping slow

Dropping from the veils of morning to where the cricket sings;

There midnight’s all a glimmer, a noon a purple glow,

And evenings full of the linnet’s wings.

 

Questions:

01.    What is the name of the poet?

02.    What is the name of the poem?

03.    Name the poem from which these lines are taken?

04.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

05.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

06.    According to the poet in what way the peace comes?

07.    Described morning scene in the above stanza.

08.    How is the morning scene presented above?

09.    What place the poet is referring to?

10.    How will he enjoy his evenings?

11.    What glimmer will be there at midnight?

12.    What doe he hope to get there?

13.    What doe the poet say about noon?

14.    What atmospheric conditions are presented into the stanza?

15.    What song will the hear in the morning?

 

I will arise and go now, for always night and day

I hear the lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;

While I stand on the roadway, or non the pavements gray,

I hear it in the deep heart’s core.

Questions:

01.    What is the name of the poet?

02.    What is the name of the poem?

03.    Name the poem from which these lines are taken?

04.    What is the name of the poet and the poem?

05.    From which poem these lines have been taken?

06.    What is the mood of the poet in the first line?

07.    Where is he at this time?

08.    Where does he want to go?

09.    What doe she hear in the deep core of his heart?

10.    Name the place where the poet listens to the water?

11.    How do the natures work in the second line?

12.    What does he hear night and day?

13.    How does the poet feel about the place where he wants to go?

14.    What effect does the lake water produce on the poet?

15.    How does he feel about the place where he is?

 

Q. What is the central them of the Poem?

Ans.  The poet deeply wants to live in the peace in the natural surrounding. He desires to stay there round the clock to see the nature at work he wants to hare the sound of the water playing in the lake as it toughed his heart deeply. This will provide peace in the mind of the poet.

 

Q.  What is Innisfree? What types of a place is Innisfree?

Ans. . Innisfree is a lake island. It is simple free, beautiful and peaceful place.

Q. Where will the poet want to go? And Why?

Ans. The poet wants to go Innisfree Island to get piece. He spends there a lot of time in childhood so he wants to go live alone there.

 

Q. What are two things that poet will like to do these?

Ans. The poet wants to make a small cabin of clay and wattles. He wants to make nine beans rows.

 

Q. The poet speaks that he will live there alone. What dose these signify?

Ans. This shows that the pot does not want any types of disturbance. He wants only piece.

 

Q. How the nature does works in the Innisfree? What effect does the lake water produce on the poet?

Ans. the nature works constantly. The lake water flows towards the shore and it creates low sounds. This sound deeply touched the heart of the poet. He hears it contently.

 

Q. What is the idea about the peace?

Ans. according to the poet peace is a heavenly bliss. It comes slowly like the drops of the rain. It is like the nature that completes its journey in different phase and at regular intervals.

 

GLOSSARY

wattles: twisted sticks for making fences, walls  glade: clearing; open space

linnet: a small brown and grey bird with a short beak

 

Thinking about the Poem

I. 1. What kind of place is Innisfree? Think about:

(i) the three things the poet wants to do when he goes back there (stanza I);

(ii) what he hears and sees there and its effect on him (stanza II);

(iii) what he hears in his “heart’s core” even when he is far away from Innisfree (stanza III).

Ans. 1. (i) (a) The poet wants to build a small cabin of clay and wattles. (b) He wants to plant nine rows of beans. (c) He wants to keep honey bees hive. (ii) (a) He hears the cricket’s song. (b) He holds linnets flying in the sky. (c) He sees glimmering midnight and glowing rooms. (iii) When the poet is far away from Innisfree he hears the sound of the lake water washing the shore in his “heart's core”.

 

2. By now you may have concluded that Innisfree is a simple, natural place, full of beauty and peace. How does the poet contrast it with where he now stands? (Read stanza III.)

Ans. The poet contrasts the clay and wattle made cabin, bee loud glade, morning with dews and crickets songs, midnight with glimmer, noon with purple glow, evenings with linnet’s songs lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore etc.

 

3. Do you think Innisfree is only a place, or a state of mind? Does the poet actually miss the place of his boyhood days?

Ans. Although Innisfree is the poet’s boyhood haunt, it also represents his state of mind. The poet wishes to escape to Innisfree as it is more peaceful than where he is now−the city. Innisfree is representative of what the poet considers an ideal place to live, which is devoid of the restless humdrum of his life. 
Yes, the poet actually misses the place of his boyhood days. Even when he is away from Innisfree , he recalls the sound of the lake water washing the shore. 

 

II. 1. Look at the words the poet uses to describe what he sees and hears at Innisfree

(i) bee-loud glade

(ii) evenings full of the linnet’s wings

(iii) lake water lapping with low sounds

What pictures do these words create in your mind?

Ans . (i) These words bring to our minds the image of buzzing bees.  Ans . (ii) These words bring up the image of linnets flying across an evening sky. Ans . (iii) These words evoke not only the image but also the soft sound of a lake's water washing the shore.

 

2. Look at these words;

... peace comes dropping slow

Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings

What do these words mean to you? What do you think “comes dropping slow...from the veils of the morning”? What does “to where the cricket sings” mean?

Ans. The given lines indicate that peace of mind can be slowly acquired from the natural surroundings. It is peace that “comes dropping slow...from the veils of the morning”. The phrase “to where the cricket sings” indicates a peaceful place where one can hear the vibrant sounds of nature− sounds such as the songs of the crickets at the time of dawn.

Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship. - GAUTAMA BUDDHA

VAIKOM MUHAMMAD BASHEER

 

BEFORE YOU READ

• Do you like to look at yourself in the mirror? What do you think about at such times? Have you ever seen a dog, a cat or a bird look into a mirror? What do you think it sees?

 

• Now read this humorous story about a doctor, a snake, and a mirror.

 

1. “HAS a snake ever coiled itself round any part of your body? A full-blooded cobra?” All of us fell silent. The question came from the homeopath. The topic came up when we were discussing snakes. We listened attentively as the doctor continued with his tale.

It was a hot summer night; about ten o’clock. I had my meal at the restaurant and returned to my room. I heard a noise from above as I opened the door. The sound was a familiar one. One could say that the rats and I shared the room. I took out my box of matches and lighted the kerosene lamp on the table.

 

2. The house was not electrified; it was a small rented room. I had just set up medical practice and

my earnings were meagre. I had about sixty rupees in my suitcase. Along with some shirts and dhotis, I also possessed one solitary black coat which I was then wearing.

 

3. I took off my black coat, white shirt and not-sowhite vest and hung them up. I opened the two windows in the room. It was an outer room with one wall facing the open yard. It had a tiled roof with long supporting gables that rested on the beam over the wall. There was no ceiling. There was a regular traffic of rats to and from the beam. I made my bed and pulled it close to the wall. I lay down but I could not sleep. I got up and went out to the veranda for a little air, but the wind god seemed to have taken time off.

 

4. I went back into the room and sat down on the chair. I opened the box beneath the table and took out a book, the Materia Medica. I opened it at the table on which stood the lamp and a large mirror; a small comb lay beside the mirror. One feels tempted to look into a mirror when it is near one. I took a look. In those days I was a great admirer of beauty and I believed in making myself look handsome. I was unmarried and I was a doctor.  I felt I had to make my presence felt. I picked up the comb and ran it through my hair and adjusted the parting so that it looked straight and neat. Again I heard that sound from above.

 

5. I took a close look at my face in the mirror. I made an important decision — I would shave daily and grow a thin moustache to look more handsome. I was after all a bachelor, and a doctor!

I looked into the mirror and smiled. It was an attractive smile. I made another earth-shaking decision. I would always keep that attractive smile on my face ... to look more handsome. I was after all a bachelor, and a doctor too on top of it! Again came that noise from above.

 

6. I got up, lit a beedi and paced up and down the room. Then another lovely thought struck me. I would marry. I would get married to a woman doctor who had plenty of money and a good medical practice. She had to be fat; for a valid reason. If I made some silly mistake and needed to run away she should not be able to run after me and catch me! With such thoughts in my mind I resumed my seat in the chair in front of the table. There were no more sounds from above. Suddenly there came a dull thud as if a rubber tube had fallen to the ground ... surely nothing to worry about. Even so I thought I would turn around and take a look. No sooner had I turned than a fat snake wriggled over the back of the chair and landed on my shoulder. The snake’s landing on me and my turning were simultaneous.

 

7. I didn’t jump. I didn’t tremble. I didn’t cry out. There was no time to do any such thing. The snake slithered along my shoulder and coiled around my left arm above the elbow. The hood was spread out and its head was hardly three or four inches from my face! It would not be correct to say merely that I sat there holding my breath. I was turned to stone. But my mind was very active. The door opened into darkness. The room was surrounded by darkness. In the light of the lamp I sat there like a stone image in the flesh.

 

8. I felt then the great presence of the creator of this world and this universe. God was there. Suppose I said something and he did not like it .. . I tried in my imagination to write in bright letters outside my little heart the words, ‘O God’. There was some pain in my left arm. It was as if a thick leaden rod — no, a rod made of molten fire — was slowly but powerfully crushing my arm. The arm was beginning to be drained of all strength. What could I do?

 

9. At my slightest movement the snake would strike me! Death lurked four inches away. Suppose it struck, what was the medicine I had to take? There were no medicines in the room. I was but a poor, foolish and stupid doctor. I forgot my danger and smiled feebly at myself. It seemed as if God appreciated that. The snake turned its head. It looked into the mirror and saw its reflection. I do not claim that it was the first snake that had ever looked into a mirror. But it was certain that the snake was looking into the mirror. Was it admiring its own beauty? Was it trying to make an important decision about growing a moustache or using eye shadow and mascara or wearing a vermilion spot on its forehead?

 

10. I did not know anything for certain. What sex was this snake, was it male or female? I will never know; for the snake unwound itself from my arm and slowly slithered into my lap. From there it crept onto the table and moved towards the mirror. Perhaps it wanted to enjoy its reflection at closer quarters. I was no mere image cut in granite. I was suddenly a man of flesh and blood. Still holding my breath I got up from the chair. I quietly went out through the door into the veranda. From there I leapt into the yard and ran for all I was worth.

“Phew !” Each of us heaved a sigh of relief. All of us lit beedis. Somebody asked, “Doctor, is your wife very fat?”

 

11.          “No,” the doctor said. “God willed otherwise. My life companion is a thin reedy person with the gift of a sprinter.”

Someone else asked, “Doctor, when you ran did the snake follow you?”

The doctor replied, “I ran and ran till I reached a friend’s house. Immediately I smeared oil all over myself and took a bath. I changed into fresh clothes. The next morning at about eight-thirty I took my friend and one or two others to my room to move my things from there. But we found we had little to carry. Some thief had removed most of my things. The room had been cleaned out! But not really, the thief had left behind one thing as a final insult!’

 

12. “What was that?” I asked. The doctor said, “My vest, the dirty one. The fellow had such a sense of cleanliness...! The rascal could have taken it and used it after washing it with soap and water.”

“Did you see the snake the next day, doctor?”

The doctor laughed, “I’ve never seen it since. It was a snake which was taken with its own beauty!”

 [translated from the Malayalam by V. Abdulla]

 

Thinking about the Text

I. Discuss in pairs and answer each question below in a short paragraph (30–40 words).

1. “The sound was a familiar one.” What sound did the doctor hear? What did he think it was? How many times did he hear it? (Find the places in the text.) When and why did the sounds stop?

2. What two “important” and “earth-shaking” decisions did the doctor take while he was looking into the mirror?

3. “I looked into the mirror and smiled,” says the doctor. A little later he says, “I forgot my danger and smiled feebly at myself.” What is the doctor’s opinion about himself when: (i) he first smiles, and (ii) he smiles again? In what way do his thoughts change in between, and why?

Ans. 1. The doctor lived in a room which was full of rats. He heard the sounds of the rats. There was a regular traffic of rats to and from the beam. He heard the sound thrice. The sound stopped suddenly as rats had seen a snake. Ans. 2. The doctor took two "important" and "earth-shaking" while he was looking into the mirror First, he decided to shave daily and grow a thin moustache. Second, always to keep an attractive smile on his face. Ans. 3. (i) When the doctor first smiles, he has an inflated opinion of himself, admiring his looks and profession.  (ii) In the second instance, the doctor smiles at his foolishness and helplessness. His thoughts change after his encounter with the snake—from being a proud doctor he moves on to accept his stupidity.

 

II. This story about a frightening incident is narrated in a humorous way. What makes it humorous? (Think of the contrasts it presents between dreams and reality. Some of them are listed below.)

1.             (i) The kind of person the doctor is (money, possessions)

(ii) The kind of person he wants to be (appearance, ambition)

2.             (i) The person he wants to marry

(ii) The person he actually marries

3.             (i) His thoughts when he looks into the mirror

(ii) His thoughts when the snake is coiled around his arm

Write short paragraphs on each of these to get your answer.

Ans. 1. (i) The doctor is a poor person. He has hardly any money. he lives in an unelectrified house. It is small rented room with plenty of rats living in it. He has just started his medical practice. So he is not a man of possessions or money. (ii) The Person wants to be rich. he also would like to have good appearance. That's why he decides to grow a thin moustache.   2. (i) The doctor wants to marry a woman doctor with good medical practice and a lot of money. She would be fat as not to run after him and catch him. (ii) He marries a thin reedy woman who has a gift of sprinter. 3. (i) His thoughts are full of joy and satisfaction. He decides to grow thin moustache and keep smiling always. He finds his smile attractive  (ii) He turned to stone. He sat like stone image in the flesh. However, his mind was very active. He felt the great presence of creator. He decides to write the words 'O God' outside his little heart.

 

Thinking about Language

I. Here are some sentences from the text. Say which of them tell you, that the author: (a) was afraid of the snake, (b) was proud of his appearance, (c) had a sense of humour, (d) was no longer afraid of the snake.

1. I was turned to stone.

2. I was no mere image cut in granite.

3. The arm was beginning to be drained of strength.

4. I tried in my imagination to write in bright letters outside my little heart the words, ‘O God’.

5. I didn’t tremble. I didn’t cry out.

6. I looked into the mirror and smiled. It was an attractive smile.

7. I was suddenly a man of flesh and blood.

8. I was after all a bachelor, and a doctor too on top of it!

9. The fellow had such a sense of cleanliness...! The rascal could have taken it and used it after washing it with soap and water.

10. Was it trying to make an important decision about growing a moustache or using eye shadow and mascara or wearing a vermilion spot on its forehead.

	(a) was afraid of the snake	(b) was proud of his appearance	(c) had a sense of humour	(d) was no longer afraid of the snake
1.	(a) I was turned to stone.
2.	(d) I was no mere image cut in granite.
3.	(a) The arm was beginning to be drained of strength.
4.	(a) I tried in my imagination to write in bright letters outside my little heart the words, 'O God'. (c) I tried in my imagination to write in bright letters outside my little heart the words, 'O God'.
5.	(a) I didn’t tremble. I didn’t cry out.
6.	(b) I looked into the mirror and smiled. It was an attractive smile.
7.	(d) I was suddenly a man of flesh and blood.
8.	(b) I was after all a bachelor, and a doctor too on top of it!
9.	(c) The fellow had such a sense of cleanliness...! The rascal could have taken it and used it after washing it with soap and water.
10.	(c) Was it trying to make an important decision about growing a moustache or using eye shadow and mascara or wearing a vermilion spot on its forehead.

 

II. Expressions used to show fear

Can you find the expressions in the story that tell you that the author was frightened? Read the story and complete the following sentences.

1. I was turned .

2. I sat there holding .

3. In the light of the lamp I sat there like .

Ans. 1. I was turned to stone. 2. I sat there holding my breath. 3. In the light of the lamp I sat there like a stone image in the flesh.

 

III. In the sentences given below some words and expressions are italicised. They are variously mean that one

• is very frightened.

• is too scared to move.

• is frightened by something that happens suddenly.

• makes another feel frightened.

 

Match the meanings with the words/expressions in italics, and write the appropriate meaning next to the sentence. The first one has been done for you.

1. I knew a man was following me, I was scared out of my wits. (very frightened)

2. I got a fright when I realised how close I was to the cliff edge.

3. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the bull coming towards him.

4. You really gave me a fright when you crept up behind me like that.

5. Wait until I tell his story — it will make your hair stand on end.

6. Paralysed with fear, the boy faced his abductors.

7. The boy hid behind the door, not moving a muscle.

Ans. 1. I knew a man was following me, I was scared out of my wits. (very frightened) 2. I got a fright when I realised how close I was to the cliff edge. (frightened by something that happens suddenly) 3. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the bull coming towards him. (very frightened) 4. You really gave me a fright when you crept up behind me like that. (frightened by something that happens suddenly) 5. Wait until I tell his story — it will make your hair stand on end. (makes another feel frightened) 6. Paralysed with fear, the boy faced his abductors. (too scared to move) 7. The boy hid behind the door, not moving a muscle. (too scared to move)

 

IV. Reported questions

Study these sentences:

• His friend asked, “Did you see the snake the next day, doctor?”

His friend asked the doctor whether/if he had seen the snake the next day.

• The little girl wondered, “Will I be home before the TV show begins?”

The little girl wondered if/whether she would be home before the TV show began.

• Someone asked, “Why has the thief left the vest behind?”

Someone asked why the thief had left the vest behind.

The words if/whether are used to report questions which begin with: do, will, can, have, are etc. These questions can be answered ‘yes’ or ‘no’.

Questions beginning with why/when/where/how/which/what are reported using these same words.

The reporting verbs we use in questions with if/whether/why/when etc.

are: ask, inquire and wonder.

Remember that in reported speech,

• the present tense changes to past tense

• here, today, tomorrow, yesterday etc. change to there, that day, the next day, the day before, etc.

• I/you change to me/him/he, etc., as necessary.

Example: • He said to me, “I don’t believe you.”

He said he did not believe me.

• She said to him, ‘I don’t believe you.’

She told him that she did not believe him.

Report these questions using if/whether or why/when/where/how/which/what.

Remember the italicised verbs change into the past tense.

1. Meena asked her friend, “Do you think your teacher will come today?”

2. David asked his colleague, “Where will you go this summer?”

3. He asked the little boy, “Why are you studying English?”

4. She asked me, “When are we going to leave?”

5. Pran asked me, “Have you finished reading the newspaper?”

6. Seema asked her, “How long have you lived here?”

7. Sheila asked the children, “Are you ready to do the work?”

Ans. 1. Meena asked her friend if she thought her teacher would come that day. 2. David asked his colleague where he would go that summer. 3. He asked the little boy why he was studying English. 4. She asked me when we were going to leave. 5. Pran asked me if I had finished reading the newspaper. 6. Seema asked her how long she had lived there. 7. Sheila asked the children if they were ready to do the work.

 

Speaking

Using some of the expressions given above in exercise III, talk about an incident when you were very scared. You may have a competition to decide whose story was the most frightening.

Dictation

The following paragraph is about the Indian cobra. Read it twice and close your book. Your teacher will then dictate the paragraph to you. Write it down with appropriate punctuation marks.

The Indian cobra is the common name for members of the family of venomous snakes, known for their intimidating looks and deadly bite. Cobras are recognised by the hoods that they flare when angry or disturbed; the hoods are created by the extension of the ribs behind the cobras’ heads. Obviously the best prevention is to avoid getting bitten. This is facilitated by the fact that humans are not the natural prey of any venomous snake. We are a bit large for them to swallow whole and they have no means of chopping us up into bite-size pieces. Nearly all snakebites in humans are the result of a snake defending itself when it feels threatened. In general snakes are shy and will simply leave if you give them a chance.

 

Writing

1. Try to rewrite the story without its humour, merely as a frightening incident. What details or parts of the story would you leave out?

2. Read the description given alongside this sketch from a photograph in a newspaper (Times of India, 4 September 1999). Make up a story about what the monkey is thinking, or why it is looking into a mirror. Write a paragraph about it.

 

THE FAIREST OF THEM ALL A monkey preens itself using a piece of mirror, in the Delhi ridge.

(‘To preen oneself’ means to spend a lot of time making oneself look attractive, and then admiring one’s appearance. The word is used in disapproval.)

 

Translation

The text you read is a translation of a story by a well-known Malayalam writer, Vaikom Muhammad Basheer. In translating a story from one language to another, a translator must keep the content intact. However, the language and the style differ in different translations of the same text.

Here are two translations of the opening paragraphs of a novel by the Japanese writer, Haruki Murakami. Read them and answer the questions given below.

A

B

When the phone rang I was in the kitchen, boiling a potful of spaghetti and whistling along with an FM broadcast of the overture to Rossini’s The Thieving Magpie, which has to be the perfect music for cooking pasta.         I wanted to ignore the phone, not only because the spaghetti was nearly done, but because Claudio Abbado was bringing the London Symphony to its musical climax.

I’m in the kitchen cooking spaghetti when the woman calls. Another moment until the spaghetti is done; there I am, whistling the prelude to Rossini’s La Gazza Ladra along with the FM radio. Perfect spaghetti-cooking music! I hear the telephone ring but tell myself, Ignore it. Let the spaghetti finish cooking. It’s almost done, and besides, Claudio Abbado and the London Symphony Orchestra are coming to a crescendo.

 

Compare the two translations on the basis of the following points.

• the tense of narration (past and present tense)

• short, incomplete sentences

• sentence length

Which of these translations do you like? Give reasons for your choice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

PHOEBE CARY

 

This poem is a legend of an old lady who angered Saint Peter because of her greed.

Away, away in the Northland, Where the hours of the day are few, And the nights are so long in winter That they cannot sleep them through; Where they harness the swift reindeer]  To the sledges, when it snow; And the children look like bear’s cubs In their funny, furry clothes: Questions: 01.    What is the name of the poet? 02.    What is the name of the poem? 03.    Who does ‘they’ refer to? 04.    What is told about the days and nights in Northland? 05.    Which land has been referring to in theses lines? 06.    What is the specialty of the day and night of Northland? 07.    What types of days are there? 08.    What is the property of the day? 09.    How do the children look? 10.    What do the children wear in snow? 11.    What do you harness to their sledges? 12.    Name the vehicle, which is used there in winter. Which animal derives this vehicle? 13.    What did the reindeer swifts? 14.    What are the children compared to, and why? 15.    What did the children look like and why?    They tell them a curious story- I don’t believe ‘tis true; And ye you may learn a lesson If I tell the tale to you. Once, when the good Saint Peter Lived in the world below And walked about it, preaching, Just as he did, you know, Questions: 01.    What is the name of the poet? 02.    What is the name of the poem? 03.    Who does ‘they’ refer to? 04.    What do they tell them? 05.    Who is telling the story now? 06.    Is the story true? 07.    What would Saint Peter do during his traveling?   He came to the door of a cottage, In traveling round the earth, Where a little woman was making cakes, And baking them on the hearth And being faint with fasting For the day was almost done,  He asked her, from her store of cakes, To give him a single one. 01.    Where did he come? 02.    What did he ask the woman for? 03.    Who does ‘he’ refer in the poem? 04.    What was the little woman was doing? 05.    How was he felling and why? 06.    What time of the day it was? 07.    Who was traveling and why? 08.    Who is baking the cakes? 09.    What did he asked the woman?   So she made a very little cake, But as it baking lay, She looked at it, and thought it seemed Too large to give away, Therefore she kneaded another, And still a smaller one; But it looked, when she turned over, As large as the first had done.     Then she took a tiny scarp of dough And rolled and rolled it flat; And baked it thin as a wafer- Bt she couldn’t art with that. For she said, ‘my cakes that seem to small When I eat of them myself; Are yet too large to give away.’ So she put them on the shelf     Then good Saint Peter grew angry, For the was thought and faint; And surely such a woman Was enough to provoke a saint? And he say, ‘ you are far too selfish To dwell in a human form. To have both food and shelter,  And fire to keep you warm.’   Now you shall builds the birds do, And shall get your scanty food By boring, and boring, and boring,  All day in the hard, dry wood,’ Then up she went through the chimney, Never speaking a word, And out of the top flew a wood pecker, For she was changed to bird,   She had a scarlet cap on her head, And that was left the same; But all the rest of her clothe were burned Black as a coal in the flame. And every country schoolboy He has seen her in the wood Where she lived in the trees till this very day, Boring and boring for food.   Q.1 What is tall about ‘days’ and ‘nights’ in Northland? OR Why did the people of Northland cannot sleep through the night? Ans. In Northland days are short and nights are very long so they cannot sleep through the night.   Q.2 What vehicle is use in Northland in winter? Which animal drives this vehicle? Ans. Sledge is used in Northland in winter ? A reindeer drives a sledge.   Q.3 What types of children look like in the Northland? OR What are the children compared to and why? Ans. The children look like a young one of bear in their furry clothes.   Q.4 What is the Legend of the Northland ? What about is the poem? Ans. This poem is of about the wood picker. it is the famous legend of North land where the saint Peter changed a lady into a wood picker because of her greed and selfishness.   Q. 5  Who are the Saint Peter? What did he do during his traveling? Ans. Saint Peter was a saint who preached among the people during his traveling.   Q.6 Where did he came to? What did he ask for and why? Ans. He came to the door of a cottage where a woman was making and baking the cakes. He asked for a cake because he was feeling weak with fasting.   Q.7 What do you know about the lady? What did she do to give the cake? OR What type of lady was? What did she so before giving the cake? Ans. The lady was greedy and selfish. When she saw the cake to give it seems to large to give away. She baked smaller and then other like the wafer. She put the cake on the self. She did not give anything to the Saint Peter.   Q.8 What did the old lady think before give the cake? Ans. The lady think before giving the cake that my cakes that seems too small when I eat myself and to large to give away.   Q.9 Why did Saint Pete grow anger told lady? How he punished her? OR What conditi9on of bird is referred here? Ans. Saint Pete grow anger to old lady because of her greed and selfishness. He punished her by changing into a woodpecker. She flew away through the chimney. Her whole body burnt black but her scarlet cape left the same.   Q.10 What did the Saint Peter said to the old lady and why? Ans. The Peter asked the old lady angrily and said that she did not deserve to live in human form and  have both food and shelter and fir deep warm herself . He changed her into a woodpecker so that she might live meager food in the tree and bore the hared dry wood to get food.   Q.11What is a ballad? Ans. Ballad is a song and part of the folk culture and are passed an orally from generation to the next.   Q.12 What is a Legend? Is this legend true or what about it? Ans. A legend is an old traditional story. This poem is the legend of Northland .This is not true story but last part of the story the punishment to old lady is most important part of this legend.

 

A ballad is a song narrating a story in short stanzas. Ballads are a part of folk culture or popular culture and are passed on orally from one generation to the next. ‘A Legend of the Northland’ is a ballad.

GLOSSARY

legend: old traditional story

Saint Peter: an apostle of Christ

provoke: make angry

 

Thinking about the Poem

I.  1. Which country or countries do you think “the Northland” refers to?

2. What did Saint Peter ask the old lady for? What was the lady’s reaction?

3. How did he punish her?

4. How does the woodpecker get her food?

5. Do you think that the old lady would have been so ungenerous if she had known who Saint Peter really was? What would she have done then?

6. Is this a true story? Which part of this poem do you feel is the most important?

7. What is a legend? Why is this poem called a legend?

8. Write the story of ‘A Legend of the Northland’ in about ten sentences.

Ans. 1. “The Northland” could refer to any extremely cold country in the Earth's north polar region, such as Greenland, the northern regions of Russia, Canada, Norway etc. Ans. 2. Saint Peter asked the old lady for one of her baked cakes to satisfy his hunger. The lady tried to bake a small cake for the saint. Ans. 3. He punished the lady by changing her into a woodpecker that built “as birds do” and gathered scanty food by boring in the “hard, dry wood” all day long. Ans. 4. The woodpecker gets her food by boring holes into trees. Ans. 5. No, the old lady would not have been so ungenerous if she had known who Saint Peter really was. Instead, she would have tried to please him with her cakes for the fulfilment of her greedy desires. Ans. 6. No, this not a true story; it is a legend. I feel that the point in the story where the old lady is changed into a woodpecker is the most important. This is because the punishment meted out to the lady teaches us the value of generosity and charity.   Ans. 7. 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.   Ans. 8. Once Saint Peter stopped by an old lady's cottage because he was feeling hungry and weak after the day's fasting. The lady was baking cakes on the hearth. 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.

 

II. 1. Let’s look at the words at the end of the second and fourth lines, viz., ‘snows’ and ‘clothes’, ‘true’ and ‘you’, ‘below’ and ‘know.’ We find that ‘snows’ rhymes with ‘clothes’, ‘true’ rhymes with ‘you’ and ‘below’ rhymes with ‘know’.

Find more such rhyming words.

Ans. 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'

 

2. Go to the local library or talk to older persons in your locality and find legends in your own language. Tell the class these legends.

Ans. Echo was a nymph who talked too much. She was very fond of having the last word. One day she spoke rudely to the great Juno, who said that for this offence Echo should never use her voice again, unless to repeat what she had just heard, but since she was so very fond of last words, she might repeat the last words of others.  This was almost as bad as if Juno had changed her into a parrot. Echo was very much ashamed, and hid herself in the forest.  Narcissus, a young man who had hair as yellow as gold and eyes as blue as the sky, - a very rare thing in Greece, where most people were very dark, - used to hunt in the forest where Echo was hiding. As she was peeping out shyly from some cave or from behind a great tree, Echo often saw Narcissus, and she admired him very much.  One day Narcissus became separated from his friends, and hearing something rustle among the leaves, he called out, "Who's here?"  "Here," answered Echo.  "Here I am. Come!" said Narcissus.  "I am come," said Echo; and, as she spoke, she came out from among the trees.  When Narcissus saw a stranger, instead of one of his friends as he had expected, he looked surprised and walked quickly away.  After this, Echo never came out and allowed herself to be seen again, and in time she faded away till she became only a voice.  This voice was heard for many, many years in forests and among mountains, particularly in caves. In their solitary walks, hunters often heard it. Sometimes it mocked the barking of their dogs; sometimes it repeated their own last words. It always had a weird and mournful sound, and seemed to make lonely places more lonely still.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MULK RAJ ANAND

 

A child goes to a fair with his parents. He is happy and excited and wants the sweets and toys displayed there. But his parents don’t buy them for him. Why then does he refuse when someone else offers them to him?

 

 “Come, child, come,” called his parents, as he lagged behind, fascinated by the toys in the shops that lined the way. He hurried towards his parents, his feet obedient to their call, his eyes still lingering on the receding toys. As he came to where they had stopped to wait for him, he could not suppress the desire of his heart, even though he well knew the old, cold stare of refusal in their eyes.

“I want that toy,” he pleaded.

His father looked at him red-eyed, in his familiar tyrant’s way. His mother, melted by the free spirit of the day was tender and, giving him her finger to hold, said, “Look, child, what is before you!”

It was a flowering mustard-field, pale like melting gold as it swept across miles and miles of even land.

A group of dragon-flies were bustling about on their gaudy purple wings, intercepting the flight of a lone black bee or butterfly in search of sweetness from the flowers. The child followed them in the air with his gaze, till one of them would still its wings and rest, and he would try to catch it. But it would go fluttering, flapping, up into the air, when he had almost caught it in his hands. Then his mother gave a cautionary call: “Come, child, come, come on to the footpath.”

He ran towards his parents gaily and walked abreast of them for a while, being, however, soon left behind, attracted by the little insects and worms along the footpath that were teeming out from their hiding places to enjoy the sunshine.

“Come, child, come!” his parents called from the shade of a grove where they had seated themselves on the edge of a well. He ran towards them.

A shower of young flowers fell upon the child as he entered the grove, and, forgetting his parents, he began to gather the raining petals in his hands. But lo! he heard the cooing of doves and ran towards his parents, shouting, “The dove! The dove!” The raining petals dropped from his forgotten hands.

“Come, child, come!” they called to the child, who had now gone running in wild capers round the banyan tree, and gathering him up they took the narrow, winding footpath which led to the fair through the mustard fields.

As they neared the village the child could see many other footpaths full of throngs, converging to the whirlpool of the fair, and felt at once repelled and fascinated by the confusion of the world he was entering.

A sweetmeat seller hawked, “gulab-jaman, rasagulla, burfi, jalebi,” at the corner of the entrance and a crowd pressed round his  counter at the foot of an architecture of many coloured sweets, decorated with leaves of silver and gold. The child stared openeyed and his mouth watered for the burfi that was his favourite sweet. “I want that burfi,” he slowly murmured. But he half knew as he begged that his plea would not be heeded because his parents would say he was greedy. So without waiting for an answer he moved on.

A flower-seller hawked, “A garland of gulmohur, a garland of

gulmohur!” The child seemed irresistibly drawn. He went towards the basket where the flowers lay heaped and half murmured, “I want that garland.” But he well knew his parents would refuse to buy him those flowers because they would say that they were cheap. So, without waiting for an answer, he moved on.

A man stood holding a pole with yellow, red, green and purple balloons flying from it. The child was simply carried away by the rainbow glory of their silken colours and he was filled with an overwhelming desire to possess them all. But he well knew his parents would never buy him the balloons because they would say he was too old to play with such toys. So he walked on farther.

A snake-charmer stood playing a flute to a snake which coiled itself in a basket, its head raised in a graceful bend like the neck of a swan, while the music stole into its invisible ears like the gentle rippling of an invisible waterfall. The child went towards the snake-charmer. But, knowing his parents had forbidden him to hear such coarse music as the snake-charmer played, he proceeded farther.

There was a roundabout in full swing. Men, women and children, carried away in a whirling motion, shrieked and cried with dizzy laughter. The child watched them intently and then he made a bold request: “I want to go on the roundabout, please, Father, Mother.”

There was no reply. He turned to look at his parents. They were not there, ahead of him. He turned to look on either side. They were not there. He looked behind. There was no sign of them.

A full, deep cry rose within his dry throat and with a sudden jerk of his body he ran from where he stood, crying in real fear, “Mother, Father.” Tears rolled down from his eyes, hot and fierce; his flushed face was convulsed with fear. Panic-stricken, he ran to one side first, then to the other, hither and thither in all directions, knowing not where to go. “Mother, Father,” he wailed. His yellow turban came untied and his clothes became muddy.

Having run to and fro in a rage of running for a while, he stood defeated, his cries suppressed into sobs. At little distances on the green grass he could see, through his filmy eyes, men and women talking. He tried to look intently among the patches of bright yellow clothes, but there was no sign of his father and mother among these people, who seemed to laugh and talk just for the sake of laughing and talking.

He ran quickly again, this time to a shrine to which people seemed to be crowding. Every little inch of space here was congested with men, but he ran through people’s legs, his little sob lingering: “Mother, Father!” Near the entrance to the temple, however, the crowd became very thick: men jostled each other, heavy men, with flashing, murderous eyes and hefty shoulders.

The poor child struggled to thrust a way between their feet but, knocked to and fro by their brutal movements, he might have been trampled underfoot, had he not shrieked at the highest pitch of his voice, “Father, Mother!” A man in the surging crowd heard his cry and, stooping with great difficulty, lifted him up in his arms.

“How did you get here, child? Whose baby are you?” the man asked as he steered clear of the mass. The child wept more bitterly than ever now and only cried, “I want my mother, I want my father!”

The man tried to soothe him by taking him to the roundabout.

“Will you have a ride on the horse?” he gently asked as he approached the ring. The child’s throat tore into a thousand shrill sobs and he only shouted, “I want my mother, I want my father!”

The man headed towards the place where the snake-charmer still played on the flute to the swaying cobra. “Listen to that nice music, child!” he pleaded. But the child shut his ears with his fingers and shouted his double-pitched strain: “I want my mother, I want my father!” The man took him near the balloons, thinking the bright colours of the balloons would distract the child’s attention and quieten him. “Would you like a rainbowcoloured balloon?” he persuasively asked. The child turned his eyes from the flying balloons and just sobbed, “I want my mother, I want my father!”

The man, still trying to make the child happy, bore him to the gate where the flower-seller sat. “Look! Can you smell those nice flowers, child! Would you like a garland to put round your neck?” The child turned his nose away from the basket and reiterated his sob, “I want my mother, I want my father!”

Thinking to humour his disconsolate charge by a gift of sweets, the man took him to the counter of the sweet shop. “What sweets would you like, child?” he asked. The child turned his face from the sweet shop and only sobbed, “I want my mother, I want my father!”

MULK RAJ ANAND

 

Think About It

 

1. What are the things the child sees on his way to the fair? Why does he lag behind?

Ans. The child sees a number of things which fascinate him on his way to the fair 

► Firstly, he saw toys at a shop.  

► Then he saw a flowering mustard field. 

► In the fields, the child also saw dragon flies,butterflies fluttering their wings 

► Then while walking on the footpath he was amazed by the insects and worms 

► When he entered the grove he saw doves which were cooing 

►As he neared the village with his parents, he saw huge crowds of people going to the fair

► The child also came across sweetmeat seller selling sweets like burfi and gulabjamun and a little further he came across a flower seller who was selling a garland of gulmohar 

► Walking ahead, he saw a man selling rainbow colour balloons 

► He also saw a snake charmer who stood playing a flute to a snake 

► Finally, before losing track of his parents he saw a roundabout swing 

 

The child keeps lagging behind his parents on the way and his mother and father have to  constantly call him so that he doesn’t lag behind. This is because the child is fascinated  by all the things he sees on his way. At times, he stops to be able to buy toys and at  other times he stops to admire the beauty of the nature – collecting flowers, catching  butterflies. 

2. In the fair he wants many things. What are they? Why does he move on without waiting for an answer?

Ans. The child many things in fair. They are

► Toys and Balloons

► Sweets from the sweetmeat seller

► Garland of gulmohar

► Watching the snake charmer play flute to a snake

► A ride in the roundabout

The boy moved on without waiting for an answer because he knew that his request would be denied at each step

3. When does he realize that he has lost his way? How have his anxiety and insecurity been described?

Ans. He realises that he has lost his way when on reaching the roundabout; he stopped to observe it moving in full swing, with men, women and children enjoying themselves on it. Watching them intently he turned to his parents to ask for permission to go on the rounds but there was no reply from them. He turned to look for them but they were not there. He looked all around but there was no sign of them. A full, deep cry rose within his dry throat and with a sudden jerk of his body he ran from where he stood, crying out in real fear “Mother, Father.” Tears rolled down from his eyes, his flushed face was convulsed with fear. Panic-stricken, he ran from one side to the other, in all directions, knowing not where to go. His yellow turban came untied and his clothes became muddy.

4. Why does the lost child lose interest in the things that he had wanted earlier?

Ans. The lost child loses interest in the things that he had wanted earlier because he was panic stricken on being separated from his parents. All he wanted was to be united with them. All the things that attracted him in the fair no longer appeal to him and now the only thing that matters is finding his parents.

5. What do you think happens in the end? Does the child find his parents?

Ans. In the end the parents, who continuously kept checking to see that he was with them right from the beginning of their journey may have suddenly realized that he was missing and come looking for the lost child. The kind and understanding man who tried to console the little boy by offering him various things at the fair may have also asked him for some description of his parents and helped him to be reunited with them.

 

Q1) Why would the parents, as the boy thought, turn down his request?

Ans1) The boy was going to fair with his parents. Place was full of his favorite things. But he did not make a request to his parents for purchasing any of them. Because he knew that his parents’ reactions would be negative. They would have one or the other reason to refuse. If he ashed for ‘burfi’, they would have said that he was being greedy. For Gulmohur they would say it was cheap. They would refuse balloons also by saying that he was older to play with balloons. According to his parents the music of the snake-charmer’s flute was rough.

 

Q2) Compare the attitude of the child before and after his separation from the parents.

Ans2) In the beginning the child was with his parents. He was very happy and excited. He wanted to buy many things like Burfi, toys, garland, balloon etc. But he knew that his parents would refuse all his demands. Then he saw a snake charmer and liked the music of his flute. He wanted to enjoy the ride of roundabout. He was so absorbed in watching the roundabout that he got separated from his parents.

Now, his mood changed completely. He started crying. He rushed towards a crowed temple. He tried to enter the shrine but stuck at the gate. A kind hearted person picked him up. He offered him many things but the child had lost interest in them.

 

Q. How was the child separated from his parents? Who find him and what did he do to consol the boy.                                  OR What did the child wanted earlier and why did he lose his interest in the things that he wanted earlier? Ans. A child was going to a festival of spring with his parents. In the fair the toys, sweets, garland of gulmohour, coloured balloons etc attracted him. He makes no demand knowing his parents would not accept his request. He saw a snake charmer. He liked charming tune but his mother asked him to move faster. His legs stoop near a marry go round in which he wanted to enjoy the ride. He called his parents but there was no reply. His parents had gone very far. Time and his voice stopped for him. His all desires ended. There was only one desire ‘My mother, My father’. He cried bitterly for them. A good man tried to console him bit failed. He took him to the round about the fair, the snake charmer, the balloon seller, the flower seller, sweet seller and at the end the toy seller. He offered all the things for boy. The boy refused all the things. He went on sobbing and calling for his parents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RUSKIN BOND

Have you ever had a baby monkey as a pet? Toto is a baby monkey. Let’s find out whether he is mischievous or docile.

 

GRANDFATHER bought Toto from a tonga-driver for the sum of five rupees. The tonga-driver used to keep the little red monkey tied to a feeding-trough, and the monkey looked so out of place there that Grandfather decided he would add the little fellow to his private zoo.

Toto was a pretty monkey. His bright eyes sparkled with mischief beneath deep-set eyebrows, and his teeth, which were a pearly white, were very often displayed in a smile that frightened the life out of elderly Anglo-lndian ladies. But his hands looked dried-up as though they had been pickled in the sun for many years. Yet his fingers were quick and wicked; and his tail, while adding to his good looks (Grandfather believed a tail would add to anyone’s good looks), also served as a third hand. He could use it to hang from a branch; and it was capable of scooping up any delicacy that might be out of reach of his hands.

Grandmother always fussed when Grandfather brought home some new bird or animal. So it was decided that Toto’s presence should be kept a secret from her until she was in a particularly good mood. Grandfather and I put him away in a little closet opening into my bedroom wall, where he was tied securely — or so we thought — to a peg fastened into the wall.

A few hours later, when Grandfather and I came back to release Toto, we found that the walls, which had been covered with some ornamental paper chosen by Grandfather, now stood out as naked brick and plaster. The peg in the wall had been wrenched from its socket, and my school blazer, which had been hanging there, was in shreds. I wondered what Grandmother would say. But Grandfather didn’t worry; he seemed pleased with Toto’s performance.

“He’s clever,” said Grandfather. “Given time, I’m sure he could have tied the torn pieces of your blazer into a rope, and made his escape from the window!”

His presence in the house still a secret, Toto was now transferred to a big cage in the servants’ quarters where a number of Grandfather’s pets lived very sociably together — a tortoise, a pair of rabbits, a tame squirrel and, for a while, my pet goat. But the monkey wouldn’t allow any of his companions to sleep at night; so Grandfather, who had to leave Dehra Dun next day to collect his pension in Saharanpur, decided to take him along.

Unfortunately I could not accompany Grandfather on that trip, but he told me about it afterwards. A big black canvas kit-bag was provided for Toto. This, with some straw at the bottom, became his new abode. When the bag was closed, there was no escape.

Toto could not get his hands through the opening, and the canvas was too strong for him to bite his way through. His efforts to get out only had the effect of making the bag roll about on the floor or occasionally jump into the air — an exhibition that attracted a curious crowd of onlookers on the Dehra Dun railway platform. Toto remained in the bag as far as Saharanpur, but while Grandfather was producing his ticket at the railway turnstile, Toto suddenly poked his head out of the bag and gave the ticketcollector a wide grin.

The poor man was taken aback; but, with great presence of mind and much to Grandfather’s annoyance, he said, “Sir, you have a dog with you. You’ll have to pay for it accordingly.”

In vain did Grandfather take Toto out of the bag; in vain did he try to prove that a monkey did not qualify as a dog, or even as a quadruped. Toto was classified a dog by the ticket-collector; and three rupees was the sum handed over as his fare.

Then Grandfather, just to get his own back, took from his pocket our pet tortoise, and said, “What must I pay for this, since you charge for all animals?”

The ticket-collector looked closely at the tortoise, prodded it with his forefinger, gave Grandfather a pleased and triumphant look, and said, “No charge. It is not a dog.” When Toto was finally accepted by Grandmother he was given a comfortable home in the stable, where he had for a companion the family donkey, Nana. On Toto’s first night in the stable, Grandfather paid him a visit to see if he was comfortable. To his surprise he found Nana, without apparent cause, pulling at her halter and trying to keep her head as far as possible from a bundle of hay.

Grandfather gave Nana a slap across her haunches, and she jerked back, dragging Toto with her. He had fastened on to her long ears with his sharp little teeth.

Toto and Nana never became friends.

A great treat for Toto during cold winter evenings was the large bowl of warm water given him by Grandmother for his bath. He would cunningly test the temperature with his hand, then gradually step into the bath, first one foot, then the other (as he had seen me doing), until he was into the water up to his neck.

Once comfortable, he would take the soap in his hands or feet, and rub himself all over. When the water became cold, he would get out and run as quickly as he could to the kitchen-fire in order to dry himself. If anyone laughed at him during this performance, Toto’s feelings would be hurt and he would refuse to go on with his bath. One day Toto nearly succeeded in boiling himself alive.

A large kitchen kettle had been left on the fire to boil for tea and Toto, finding himself with nothing better to do, decided to remove the lid. Finding the water just warm enough for a bath, he got in, with his head sticking out from the open kettle. This was just fine for a while, until the water began to boil. Toto then raised himself a little; but, finding it cold outside, sat down again. He continued hopping up and down for some time, until Grandmother arrived and hauled him, half-boiled, out of the kettle.

If there is a part of the brain especially devoted to mischief, that part was largely developed in Toto. He was always tearing things to pieces. Whenever one of my aunts came near him, he made every effort to get hold of her dress and tear a hole in it.

One day, at lunch-time, a large dish of pullao stood in the centre of the dining-table. We entered the room to find Toto stuffing himself with rice. My grandmother screamed — and Toto threw a plate at her. One of my aunts rushed forward — and received a glass of water in the face. When Grandfather arrived, Toto picked up the dish of pullao and made his exit through a window. We found him in the branches of the jackfruit tree, the dish still in his arms. He remained there all afternoon, eating slowly through the rice, determined on finishing every grain. And then, in order to spite Grandmother, who had screamed at him, he threw the dish down from the tree, and chattered with delight when it broke into a hundred pieces.

Obviously Toto was not the sort of pet we could keep for long. Even Grandfather realised that. We were not well-to-do, and could not afford the frequent loss of dishes, clothes, curtains and wallpaper. So Grandfather found the tonga-driver, and sold Toto back to him — for only three rupees.

 

Glossary

turnstile: a mechanical gate consisting of revolving horizontal arms fixed to a vertical post, allowing only one person at a time to pass through

halter: a rope or strap placed around the head of a horse or other animal, used for leading or tethering it

 

Questions:

Think About It 

 

1. How does Toto come to grandfather’s private zoo?

Ans. Toto was in the captivity of a tonga owner. The grandfather gets sympathetic with the monkey and thinks that his private zoo would be a better place for Toto. So he purchased Toto from the tongawallah for five rupees. 

 

2. “Toto was a pretty monkey.” In what sense is Toto pretty?

Ans. Toto was a pretty monkey. His bright eyes sparkled with mischief beneath the deep-set eyebrows, and his teeth, which were a pearly white, were very often displayed in a smile that frightened the life out of elderly Anglo-Indian ladies. But his hands looked dried-up as though they had been pickled in the sun for many years. Yet his fingers were quick and wicked and his tail, while adding to his good looks served as a third hand. He could use it to hang from a branch and it was capable of scooping up any delicacy that might be out of reach of his hands. 

 

3. Why does grandfather take Toto to Saharanpur and how? Why does the ticket collector insist on calling Toto a dog? 

Ans. Toto was a real menace for every living soul in the household. Other animals in grandfather’s zoo were at Toto’s mercy even during night. So, grandfather decided to provide some relief to other animals in the zoo and thought of taking Toto to Shaharanpur. 

The ticket collector was following his rulebooks. As there seems to be no rule for fixing a monkey’s fare so he equated Toto with dog. Ticket collector’s ingenuity tried to categorize all pets of a certain size as dogs.  

 

4. How does Toto take a bath? Where has he learnt to do this? How does Toto almost boil himself alive?

Ans. Toto takes bath in a tub of warm water. It puts its legs in the water one by one and applies soap as well. As monkeys are good at aping others, so Toto has learnt proper steps of bathing while watching the narrator doing same. 

Toto is fond of bathing with warm water. So once having tested the warmth of water in the kettle Toto sits in the kettle. Probably he is not intelligent enough to understand the risk boiling water so he pops his head up and down in the kettle. 

 

5. Why does the author say, “Toto was not the sort of pet we could keep for long”?

Ans. Though Toto was pretty and clever, he was very mischievous. He brought a lot of damage to the house by breaking dishes, tearing clothes and curtains. He also scared the visiotrs by tearing holes in their dresses. Furthermore, he didn’t get along well with other animals in the house too. One day Toto crossed the limits by picking up a dish of pullao and running on a branch to eat it. When scolded he threw off the plate and broke it. That’s when grandfather decided he had had enough of Toto because he couldn’t bear the losses that he incurred because of Toto’s mischief. 

 

Q1) ‘If there is a part of the brain especially devoted to mischief, that part was largely developed in ‘Toto’ Do you agree? Suggest your answer.

Ans1) Toto’s brain was specially developed for mischief. Firstly he was kept in a little closet opening of the bedroom wall. a closet His favorite past time was to make hole in the cloth. He had torn the curtains of the house in pieces. He removed the ornamental paper, wrenched the peg from its socket and torn the school blazer. His favorite pastime was to make holes in the clothes. He never let his fellow pets sleep at night. Once he ate up a full dish of pullao and when Grandmother shouted, he threw the plate, tore off curtains and clothes. One day when there was no one in the kitchen, he jumped into the kettle of water and later taken out by grandmother nearby half boiled. When he was placed in the stable, with Nana, the donkey, he held the donkey’s ears with his teeth.

 

 

Q. Who was Toto? How the grandfather of author got it? OR What were the undesirable activities of Toto? Ans. Toto is the name of a monkey which was bought by grandfather from a Tonga driver for give Rs. it was pretty with dangerous and mischief mind. Toto was disliked by grandmother but he was put in a little closet. Toto was tied to the wall peg. He uprooted it and tore off the blazer and also broke off the wall plaster. He frightened to Anglo India lady. He teases the animals of seventh quarter.  He did not let the other pets sleep at night. At the way of Sharanpur, he pokes his nose out of canvas kit. And grind at T.T. He was put with a donkey Nana. Toto held Nana’s ears with sharp little teeth. He jumped into the pod of boiling wate when it starting hot he jumped upadn down. Now he tested the warmth f water before bate. He also jubnped n\into the kettle in which wate had been kept boiling. And grand mother save him. The brain of Toto was stuffed with numberless mischiefs. He broke plat. Utensils and did much more. Once he entered into the dinner room and ate up a full dish of pullaw, when grand mother cried on him. He throws the plate on her. He tore the curtains clothe andwll paper all tease points show the Toto’s unsuitable active its. In frustration theg grand father sold back to the Tonga driver and have sigh of relief.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

R.K. LAXMAN

One night Mahendra woke up from his sleep and saw “a dark cloudy form”. He broke out into a cold sweat. Was it a ghost?

 

THE story was narrated to Ganesh by a young man, Mahendra by name. He was a junior supervisor in a firm which offered on hire supervisors at various types of construction sites: factories, bridges, dams, and so on. Mahendra’s job was to keep an eye on the activities at the work site. He had to keep moving from place to place every now and then as ordered by his head office: from a coal mining area to a railway bridge construction site, from there after a few months to a chemical plant which was coming up somewhere.

He was a bachelor. His needs were simple and he was able to adjust himself to all kinds of odd conditions, whether it was an ill-equipped circuit house or a makeshift canvas tent in the middle of a stone quarry. But one asset he had was his cook, Iswaran. The cook was quite attached to Mahendra and followed him uncomplainingly wherever he was posted. He cooked for Mahendra, washed his clothes and chatted away with his master at night. He could weave out endless stories and anecdotes on varied subjects.

Iswaran also had an amazing capacity to produce vegetables and cooking ingredients, seemingly out of nowhere, in the middle of a desolate landscape with no shops visible for miles around. He would miraculously conjure up the most delicious dishes made with fresh vegetables within an hour of arriving at the zinc-sheet shelter at the new workplace.

Mahendra would be up early in the morning and leave for work after breakfast, carrying some prepared food with him. Meanwhile Iswaran would tidy up the shed, wash the clothes, and have a leisurely bath, pouring several buckets of water over his head, muttering a prayer all the while. It would be lunchtime by then. After eating, he would read for a while before dozing off. The book was usually some popular Tamil thriller running to hundreds of pages. Its imaginative descriptions and narrative flourishes would hold Iswaran in thrall.

His own descriptions were greatly influenced by the Tamil authors that he read. When he was narrating even the smallest of incidents, he would try to work in suspense and a surprise ending into the account. For example, instead of saying that he had come across an uprooted tree on the highway, he would say, with eyebrows suitably arched and hands held out in a dramatic gesture, “The road was deserted and I was all alone. Suddenly I spotted something that looked like an enormous bushy beast lying sprawled across the road. I was half inclined to turn and go back. But as I came closer I saw that it was a fallen tree, with its dry branches spread out.” Mahendra would stretch himself back in his canvas chair and listen to Iswaran’s

tales uncritically.

 “The place I come from is famous for timber,” Iswaran would begin. “There is a richly wooded forest all around. The logs are hauled on to the lorries by elephants. They are huge well-fed beasts. When they turn wild even the most experienced mahout is not able to control them.” After this prologue Iswaran would launch into an elaborate anecdote involving an elephant.

“One day a tusker escaped from the timber yard and began to roam about, stamping on bushes, tearing up wild creepers and breaking branches at will. You know, sir, how an elephant behaves when it goes mad.” Iswaran would get so caught up in the excitement of his own story that he would get up from the floor and jump about, stamping his feet in emulation of the mad elephant.

“The elephant reached the outskirts of our town; breaking the fences down like matchsticks,” he would continue. “It came into the main road and smashed all the stalls selling fruits, mud pots and clothes. People ran helter-skelter in panic! The elephant now entered a school ground where children were playing, breaking through the brick wall. All the boys ran into the classrooms and shut the doors tight. The beast grunted and wandered about, pulling out the football goal-post, tearing down the volleyball net, kicking and flattening the drum kept for water, and uprooting the shrubs. Meanwhile all the teachers had climbed up to the terrace of the school building; from there they helplessly watched the depredations of the elephant. There was not a soul below on the ground. The streets were empty as if the inhabitants of the entire town had suddenly disappeared.

“I was studying in the junior class at that time, and was watching the whole drama from the rooftop. I don’t know what came over me suddenly. I grabbed a cane from the hands of one of the teachers and ran down the stairs and into the open. The elephant grunted and menacingly swung a branch of a tree which it held in its trunk. It stamped its feet, kicking up a lot of mud and dust. It looked frightening. But I moved slowly towards it, stick in hand. People were watching the scene hypnotised from nearby housetops. The elephant looked at me red-eyed, ready to rush towards me. It lifted its trunk and trumpeted loudly. At that moment I moved forward and, mustering all my force, whacked its third toenail on the quick. The beast looked stunned for a moment; then it shivered from head to foot — and collapsed.”

At this point Iswaran would leave the story unfinished, and get up mumbling, “I will be back after lighting the gas and warming up the dinner.” Mahendra who had been listening with rapt attention would be left hanging. When he returned, Iswaran would not pick up the thread of the story right away. Mahendra would have to remind him that the conclusion was pending. “Well, a veterinary doctor was summoned to revive the animal,” Iswaran would shrug casually. “Two days later it was led away by its mahout to the jungle.”

“Well, how did you manage to do it, Iswaran — how did you bring down the beast?” “It has something to do with a Japanese art, I think, sir. Karate or ju-jitsu it is called. I had read about it somewhere. It temporarily paralyses the nervous system, you see.”

Not a day passed without Iswaran recounting some story packed with adventure, horror and suspense. Whether the story was credible or not, Mahendra enjoyed listening to it because of the inimitable way in which it was told. Iswaran seemed to more than make up for the absence of a TV in Mahendra’s living quarters.

One morning when Mahendra was having breakfast Iswaran asked, “Can I make something special for dinner tonight, sir? After all today is an auspicious day — according to tradition we prepare various delicacies to feed the spirits of our ancestors today, sir.”

That night Mahendra enjoyed the most delicious dinner and complimented Iswaran on his culinary skills. He seemed very pleased but, unexpectedly, launched into a most garish account involving the supernatural.

“You know, sir, this entire factory area we are occupying was once a burial ground,” he started. Mahendra was jerked out of the pleasant reverie he had drifted into after the satisfying meal.

“I knew on the first day itself when I saw a human skull lying on the path. Even now I come across a number of skulls and bones,” Iswaran continued.

He went on to narrate how he sometimes saw ghosts at night. “I am not easily frightened by these things, sir. I am a brave fellow. But one horrible ghost of a woman which appears off and on at midnight during the full moon... It is an ugly creature with matted hair and a shrivelled face, like a skeleton holding a foetus in its arms.”

Mahendra shivered at the description and interrupted rather sharply, “You are crazy, Iswaran. There are no such things as ghosts or spirits. It is all a figment of your imagination. Get your digestive system examined — and maybe your head as well. You are talking nonsense.”

He left the room and retired for the night, expecting Iswaran to sulk for a couple of days. But the next morning he was surprised to find the cook as cheerful and talkative as ever.

From that day on Mahendra, for all his brave talk, went to bed with a certain unease. Every night he peered into the darkness outside through the window next to his bed, trying to make sure that there was no movement of dark shapes in the vicinity. But he could only see a sea of darkness with the twinkling lights of the factory miles away.

He had always liked to admire the milk-white landscape on full-moon nights. But after hearing Iswaran’s story of the female ghost he avoided looking out of his window altogether when the moon was full.

One night, Mahendra was woken up from his sleep by a low moan close to his window. At first he put it down to a cat prowling around for mice. But the sound was too guttural for a cat. He resisted the curiosity to look out lest he should behold a sight which would stop his heart. But the wailing became louder and less feline. He could not resist the temptation any more. Lowering himself to the level of the windowsill he looked out at the white sheet of moonlight outside. There, not too far away, was a dark cloudy form clutching a bundle. Mahendra broke into a cold sweat and fell back on the pillow, panting. As he gradually recovered from the ghastly experience he began to reason with himself, and finally concluded that it must have been some sort of auto suggestion, some trick that his subconscious had played on him.

By the time he had got up in the morning, had a bath and come out to have his breakfast, the horror of the previous night had faded from his memory. Iswaran greeted him at the door with his lunch packet and his bag. Just as Mahendra was stepping out Iswaran grinned and said, “Sir, remember the other day when I was telling you about the female ghost with a foetus in its arms, you were so angry with me for imagining things? Well, you saw her yourself last night. I came running hearing the sound of moaning that was coming from your room...”

A chill went down Mahendra’s spine. He did not wait for Iswaran to complete his sentence. He hurried away to his office and handed in his papers, resolving to leave the haunted place the very next day!

 

Glossary

in thrall: the state of being in someone’s power

depredations: attacks which are made to destroy something

guttural sound: sound produced in the throat; harsh-sounding

feline: relating to cats or other members of the cat family

 

Questions:

Think About It  

 

1. In what way is Iswaran an asset to Mahendra?

Ans. Iswaran was a good domestic assistant for Mahendra. Apart from cooking and doing household chores he was a great entertainer for his master. He was good at managing resources as he could find vegetables out of nowhere also never had complain while accompanying his master. 

 

2. How does Iswaran describe the uprooted tree on the highway? What effect does he want to create in his listeners?

Ans. Iswaran describes the uprooted tree on the highway with eyebrows suitably arched and hands held out in a dramatic way. He would begin by saying that the road was deserted and he was all alone. Suddenly he spotted something that looked like an enormous bushy beast lying sprawled across the road. He was half inclined to turn and go back. But as he came closer he saw that it was a fallen tree, with its dry branches spread out.

The effect he wants to create is suspense and a surprise ending to every small incident that he narrates to his readers.

 

3. How does he narrate the story of the tusker? Does it appear to be plausible?

Ans.  He started the story of the elephant by giving a prologue in which he called elephants ‘huge well-fed beasts.’ He said that after escaping from the timber yard, the elephant started roaming about, stamped on bushes and tore up wild creepers. It then came to the main road of the town and smashed all the stalls selling fruits, mud pots, and clothes. It then entered a school ground where the children were playing. It pulled out the football goal-post, tore down the volleyball net, flattened the drum kept for water and uprooted the shrubs. All the teachers and students were so afraid that they climbed up to the terrace of the school building. According to Iswaran, he was studying in the junior class at that time. He grabbed a cane from the hands of one of the teachers and ran into the open. The elephant continued grunting and stamping its feet. It looked frightening. However, he moved slowly towards it. When the elephant was ready to rush towards him, he moved forward and whacked its third toe nail. It looked stunned and then collapsed. This story does not appear to be plausible.

4. Why does the author say that Iswaran seemed to more than make up for the absence of a TV in Mahendra’s living quarters?

Ans. The author says so because Iswaran provided a great company to Mahendra. He would chat with Mahendra at night when he returned from his work. Iswaran would also entertain Mahendra by telling stories. Thus, with Iswaran around Mahendra never felt bored and never felt the necessity of having a TV for entertainment. 

5. Mahendra calls ghosts or spirits a figment of the imagination. What happens to him on a full-moon night?

Ans.  Mahendra calls ghosts or spirits a figment of the imagination because Iswaran informed him that they were living on a burial site and kept narrating to him stories of various ghosts he himself had encountered.

On one full moon night, Mahendra was woken up from his sleep by a low moan close to his window. At first he thought that it was a cat prowling around for mice. But the sound was too deep and guttural for a cat. He resisted looking outside as he did not want to witness a sight that might stop his heart beat. But the crying became louder and less subtle. He could not resist the temptation any more. Lowering himself to the level of the windowsill he looked out at the white sheet of moonlight outside. There, not too far away, was a dark cloudy form clutching a bundle. He broke into a cold sweat and fell back on the pillow, panting.

 

6.  Can you think of some other ending for the story?

Ans. The story could have ended on a more positive note. Instead of resigning from his job, Mahendra could have been shown as a real courageous man and proving the ghost theory wrong. 

Another ending can be of both Mahendra and Iswaran leaving the place together and in turn continuing their bond which is depicted earlier in the story. Iswaran has been explained as a man of all seasons for Mahendra.

 

Q1) What two amazing qualities did Ishwaran have as a cook and storyteller?

Ans1) Ishwaran was cook of Mahendra. Mahendra always carried him on his supervising projects and considered him an valuable asset. Ishwaran could procure fresh vegetable even in desert. He could make very tasty dishes in no time. He had one another skill also. He was a wonderful narrator also. He could cook interesting stories out of simple incidents. He added horror, adventure and suspense to his stories to make them engaging. Many times he left   the story at a crucial point, and told about it only when asked. His narration style was influenced by Tamil thrillers.

 

Q2) Write the character–sketch of Mahendra?

Ans2) Mahendra worked for a construction firms. His work included supervising project sites. He had to travel place to place as company sent him to keep  an eye on the activities of the projects like dams, bridges, roads and buildings . He had an experienced cook, Ishwaran. Ishwaran was an asset for Mahendra. He was a man simple need. He was able to adjust in every difficult situation. He was an educated person and did not believe in ghosts and other supper natural powers. But He lacks courage. One day Iswaran told him a story of female ghost. It made Mahendra uneasy.  He could not sleep the whole night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is believed that fools are so dangerous that only very wise people can manage them. Who are the fools in this story? What happens to them?

 

IN the Kingdom of Fools, both the king and the minister were idiots. They didn’t want to run things like other kings, so they decided to change night into day and day into night. They ordered that everyone should be awake at night, till their fields and run their businesses only after dark, and go to bed as soon as the sun came up. Anyone who disobeyed would be punished with death. The people did as they were told for fear of death. The king and the minister were delighted at the success of their project. One day a guru and his disciple arrived in the city. It was a beautiful city, it was broad daylight, but there was no one about. Everyone was asleep, not a mouse stirring. Even the cattle had been taught to sleep by day. The two strangers were amazed by what they saw around them and wandered around town till evening, when suddenly the whole town woke up and went about its nightly business.

The two men were hungry. Now that the shops were open, they went to buy some groceries. To their astonishment, they found that everything cost the same, a single duddu — whether they bought a measure of rice or a bunch of bananas, it cost a duddu. The guru and his disciple were delighted. They had never heard of anything like this. They could buy all the food they wanted for a rupee.

When they had cooked and eaten, the guru realised that this was a kingdom of fools and it wouldn’t be a good idea for them to stay there. “This is no place for us. Let’s go,” he said to his disciple. But the disciple didn’t want to leave the place. Everything was cheap here. All he wanted was good, cheap food. The guru said,  “They are all fools. This won’t last very long, and you can’t tell what they’ll do to you next.”

But the disciple wouldn’t listen to the guru’s wisdom. He wanted to stay. The guru finally gave up and said, “Do what you want. I’m going,” and left. The disciple stayed on, ate his fill every day — bananas and ghee and rice and wheat, and grew fat like a street-side sacred bull.

One bright day, a thief broke into a rich merchant’s house. He had made a hole in the wall and sneaked in, and as he was carrying out his loot, the wall of the old house collapsed on his head and killed him on the spot. His brother ran to the king and complained,“Your Highness, when my brother was pursuing his ancient trade, a wall fell on him and killed him. This merchant is to blame. He should have built a good, strong wall. You must punish the wrongdoer and compensate the family for this injustice.”

The king said, “Justice will be done. Don’t worry,” and at once summoned the owner of the house.

When the merchant arrived, the king questioned him. “What’s your name?”

“Such and Such, Your Highness.”

“Were you at home when the dead man burgled your house?”

“Yes, My Lord. He broke in and the wall was weak. It fell on him.”

“The accused pleads guilty. Your wall killed this man’s brother.

You have murdered a man. We have to punish you.”

“Lord,” said the helpless merchant, “I didn’t put up the wall. It’s really the fault of the man who built the wall. He didn’t build it right. You should punish him.”

“Who is that?”

“My Lord, this wall was built in my father’s time. I know the man. He’s an old man now. He lives nearby.” The king sent out messengers to bring in the bricklayer who had built the wall. They brought him, tied hand and foot.

“You there, did you build this man’s wall in his father’s time?”

“Yes, My Lord, I did.”

“What kind of a wall is this that you built? It has fallen on a poor man and killed him. You’ve murdered him. We have to punish you by death.”

Before the king could order the execution, the poor bricklayer pleaded, “Please listen to me before you give your orders. It’s true I built this wall and it was no good. But that was because my mind was not on it. I remember very well a dancing girl who was going up and down that street all day with her anklets jingling, and I couldn’t keep my eyes or my mind on the wall I was building. You must get that dancing girl. I know where she lives.”

“You’re right. The case deepens. We must look into it. It is not easy to judge such complicated cases. Let’s get that dancer, wherever she is.”

The dancing girl, now an old woman, came trembling to the court.

“Did you walk up and down that street many years ago, while this poor man was building a wall? Did you see him?”

“Yes, My Lord, I remember it very well.”

“So you did walk up and down, with your anklets jingling.

You were young and you distracted him, so he built a bad wall. It has fallen on a poor burglar and killed him. You’ve killed an innocent man. You’ll have to be punished.”

She thought for a minute and said, “My Lord, wait. I know now why I was walking up and down that street. I had given some gold to the goldsmith to make some jewellery for me. He was a lazy scoundrel. He made so many excuses, said he would give it now and he would give it then and so on all day. He made me walk up and down to his house a dozen times.

That was when this bricklayer saw me. It’s not my fault, My Lord, it’s the damned goldsmith’s fault.”

“Poor thing, she’s absolutely right,” thought the king, weighing the evidence. “We’ve got the real culprit at last. Get the goldsmith, wherever he is hiding. At once!”

The king’s bailiffs searched for the goldsmith, who was hiding in a corner of his shop. When he heard the accusation against him, he had his own story to tell.

“My Lord,” he said, “I’m a poor goldsmith. It’s true I made this dancer come many times to my door. I gave her excuses because I couldn’t finish making her jewellery before I finished the rich merchant’s orders. They had a wedding coming, and they wouldn’t wait. You know how impatient rich men are!”

“Who is this rich merchant who kept you from finishing this poor woman’s jewellery, made her walk up and down, which distracted this bricklayer, which made a mess of his wall, which has now  fallen on an innocent man and killed him? Can you name him?”

The goldsmith named the merchant, and he was none other than the original owner of the house whose wall had fallen. Now justice had come full circle, thought the king, back to the merchant. When he was rudely summoned back to the court, he arrived crying, “It wasn’t me but my father who ordered the jewellery! He’s dead! I’m innocent!”

But the king consulted his minister and ruled decisively: “It’s true your father is the true murderer. He’s dead, but somebody must be punished in his place. You’ve inherited everything from that criminal father of yours, his riches as well as his sins. I knew at once, even when I first set eyes on you, that you were at the root of this horrible crime. You must die.”

And he ordered a new stake to be made ready for the execution. As the servants sharpened the stake and got it ready for the final impaling of the criminal, it occurred to  the minister that the rich merchant was somehow too thin to be properly executed on the stake. He appealed to the king’s common sense. The king too worried about it.

“What shall we do?” he said, when suddenly it struck him that all they needed to do was to find a man fat enough to fit the stake. The servants were immediately sent all over the town looking for a man who would fit the stake, and their eyes fell on the disciple who had fattened himself for months on bananas and rice and wheat and ghee.

“What have I done wrong? I’m innocent. I’m a sanyasi!” he cried.

“That may be true. But it’s the royal decree that we should find a man fat enough to fit the stake,” they said, and carried him to the place of execution. He remembered his wise guru’s words: “This is a city of fools. You don’t know what they will do next.” While he was waiting for death, he prayed to his guru in his heart, asking him to hear his cry wherever he was. The guru saw everything in a vision; he had magic powers, he could see far, and he could see the future as he could see the present and the past. He arrived at once to save his disciple, who had got himself into such a scrape through love of food.

As soon as he arrived, he scolded the disciple and told him something in a whisper. Then he went to the king and addressed him, “O wisest of kings, who is greater? The guru or the disciple?”

“Of course, the guru. No doubt about it. Why do you ask?”

“Then put me to the stake first. Put my disciple to death after me.”

When the disciple heard this, he understood and began to clamour, “Me first! You brought me here first! Put me to death first, not him!”

The guru and the disciple now got into a fight about who should go first. The king was puzzled by this behaviour. He asked the guru, “Why do you want to die? We chose him because we needed a fat man for the stake.”

“You shouldn’t ask me such questions. Put me to death first,” replied the guru.

“Why? There’s some mystery here. As a wise man you must make me understand.”

“Will you promise to put me to death if I tell you?” asked the guru. The king gave him his solemn word. The guru took him aside, out of the servants’ earshot, and whispered to him, “Do you know why we want to die right now, the two of us? We’ve been all over the world but we’ve never found a city like this or a king like you. That stake is the stake of the god of justice. It’s new, it has never had a criminal on it. Whoever dies on it first will be reborn as the king of this country. And whoever goes next will be the future minister of this country. We’re sick of our ascetic life. It would be nice to enjoy ourselves as king and minister for a while. Now keep your word, My Lord, and put us to death. Me first, remember?”

The king was now thrown into deep thought. He didn’t want to lose the kingdom to someone else in the next round of life. He needed time. So he ordered the execution postponed to the next day and talked in secret with his minister. “It’s not right for us to give over the kingdom to others in the next life. Let’s go on the stake ourselves and we’ll be reborn as king and minister again. Holy men do not tell lies,” he said, and the minister agreed.

So he told the executioners, “We’ll send the criminals tonight. When the first man comes to you, put him to death first. Then do the same to the second man. Those are my orders. Don’t make any mistake.”

That night, the king and his minister went secretly to the prison, released the guru and the disciple, disguised themselves as the two, and as arranged beforehand with loyal servants, were taken to the stake and promptly executed.

When the bodies were taken down to be thrown to crows and vultures the people panicked. They saw before them the dead bodies of the king and the minister. The city was in confusion.

All night they mourned and discussed the future of the kingdom. Some people suddenly thought of the guru and the disciple and caught up with them as they were preparing to leave town unnoticed. “We people need a king and a minister,” said someone. Others agreed. They begged the guru and the disciple to be their king and their minister. It didn’t take many arguments to persuade the disciple, but it took longer to persuade the guru. They finally agreed to rule the kingdom of the foolish king and the silly minister, on the condition that they could change all the old laws. From then on, night would again be night and day would again be day, and you could get nothing for a duddu. It became like any other place.

[A Kannada folktale from A.K. Ramanujan’s Folk Tales from India]

Glossary

bailiff: a law officer who makes sure that the decisions of a court are obeyed

scrape: a difficult situation that one has got into

 

Questions:

1. What are the two strange things the guru and his disciple find in the Kingdom of Fools?

Ans. The two strange things that the guru and his disciple observe in the kingdom of fools are:

► Every sleeps during the day and carry out their work at night 

► The cost to purchase anything from the market was the same, one duddu (one rupee). Whether it was a measure of rice or a bunch of banana it cost the same  

2. Why does the disciple’s decide to stay in the Kingdom of Fools? Is it a good idea?

Ans. The disciple decided to stay in the Kingdom of Fools because he was delighted that everything cost a single duddu and everything was very cheap. All that he wanted was good and very cheap food. According to the Guru, staying there was not a good idea as they were all fools and so he felt this situation would not last long and was not sure about what they would do in the future.

3. Name all the people who are tried in the king’s court, and give the reasons for their trial.

Ans. Following people were tried in the king’s court: 

► The merchant whose house was burgled: Because his house’s wall was weak and it fell  upon the burgular and killed him 

► The bricklayer who built the wall: Because he built a wall which was weak and which  collapsed killing the burglar 

► The dancing girl: Because she distracted the bricklayer with her jingling anklets by  walking up and down the road where bricklayer was laying the wall

► The goldsmith: Because he didn’t complete the dancing girl’s order on time and so she  had to go to the goldsmith a dozen times.

 ► The merchant whose house was burgled (second time): because his father persuaded the  goldsmith to finish his order first thereby delaying the dancing girl’s order. Since the  merchant’s father died, the merchant had to be executed in his father’s place 

► The disciple: Because the merchant was too thin to be executed by the newly made stake  and a fat man was required to fit the stake. The disciple was very fat, hence he was  caught 

4. Who is the real culprit according to the king? Why does he escape punishment?

Ans. The real culprit according to the king is the merchant because although his old father was the real murderer he was dead and someone had to be punishment in his place. He escapes the punishment because he is too thin to be properly executed on the stake.

5. What are the Guru’s words of wisdom? When does the disciple remember them?'

Ans. The guru’s words of wisdom were that it was the city of fools. He advised the disciple to leave the city because he would not know what they would do next. The disciple remembers this when he was going to be executed.

 

6. How does the guru mange to save his disciple’s life?

Ans. The guru tries to confuse the king by expressing his desire to be killed first. Then to further confuse the king he tells the story of becoming the king in the next incarnation. Apparently it may sound like a case of pure lie to save your dear one’s life. But if we go deeper consciously or unconsciously the sage is trying to save everybody’s life in the kingdom. Ultimately he is able to pull everybody out of the misery of living in the kingdom of fools.

 

Q1) What did the guru and the disciple find in the city of fools?

Ans1) The guru and his disciple reached a peculiar city. Here every thing was opposite to normal. When they arrived in the city it was broad daylight but everyone was sleeping. Even the cattle had been taught to sleep by day. The whole town was deserted. The shops were closed. They could not see even a single person. But suddenly the whole town woke up in the evening and normal business started in the night. Guru and disciple were very hungry and they went to buy some eatables from a shop. They were surprised and happy to find that everything cost the same a single duddu, the local currency.

 

 

 

 

 

 

OSCAR WILDE

The Happy Prince was a beautiful statue. He was covered with gold, he had sapphires for eyes, and a ruby in his sword. Why did he want to part with all the gold that he had, and his precious stones?

HIGH above the city, on a tall column, stood the statue of the Happy Prince. He was gilded all over with thin leaves of fine gold, for eyes he had two bright sapphires, and a large red ruby glowed on his sword hilt.

One night there flew over the city a little swallow. His friends had gone away to Egypt six weeks before, but he had stayed behind; then he decided to go to Egypt too.

All day long he flew, and at night time he arrived at the city.

“Where shall I put up?” he said. “I hope the town has made preparations.” Then he saw the statue on the tall column.

“I will put up there,” he cried. “It is a fine position with plenty of fresh air.” So he alighted just between the feet of the Happy Prince.

“I have a golden bed-room,” he said softly to himself as he looked round, and he prepared to go to sleep; but just as he was putting his head under his wing a large drop of water fell on him. “What a curious thing!” he cried. “There is not a single cloud in the sky, the stars are quite clear and bright, and yet it is raining.”

Then another drop fell.

“What is the use of a statue if it cannot keep the rain off ?” he said.

“I must look for a good chimney pot,” and he determined to fly away. But before he had opened his wings, a third drop fell, and he looked up, and saw — Ah! What did he see?

The eyes of the Happy Prince were filled with tears, and tears were running down his golden cheeks. His face was so beautiful in the moonlight that the little swallow was filled with pity.

“Who are you?” he said.

“I am the Happy Prince.”

“Why are you weeping then?” asked the swallow. “You have quite drenched me.”

“When I was alive and had a human heart,” answered the statue, “I did not know what tears were, for I lived in the Palace, here sorrow is not allowed to enter. My courtiers called me the Happy Prince, and happy indeed I was. So I lived, and so I died. And now that I am dead they have set me up here so high that I can see the ugliness and all the misery of my city, and though my heart is made of lead yet I cannot choose but weep.”

‘What! Is he not solid gold?’ said the swallow to himself. He was too polite to make any personal remarks.

“Far away,” continued the statue in a low musical voice, “far away in a little street there is a poor house. One of the windows is open, and through it I can see a woman seated at a table. Her face is thin and worn, and she has coarse, red hands, all pricked by the needle, for she is a seamstress. She is embroidering flowers on a satin gown for the loveliest of the Queen’s maids of honour, to wear at the next Court ball. In a bed in the corner of the room her little boy is lying ill. He has a fever, and is asking his mother to give him oranges. His mother has nothing to give him but river water, so he is crying. Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow, will you not bring her the ruby out of my sword hilt? My feet are fastened to this pedestal and I cannot move.”

 “I am waited for in Egypt,” said the swallow. “My friends are flying up and down the Nile, and talking to the large lotus flowers. Soon they will go to sleep.”

The Prince asked the swallow to stay with him for one night and be his messenger. “The boy is so thirsty, and the mother so sad,” he said.

“I don’t think I like boys,” answered the swallow. “I want to go to Egypt.”

But the Happy Prince looked so sad that the little swallow was sorry. “It is very cold here,” he said. But he agreed to stay with him for one night and be his messenger.

“Thank you, little Swallow,” said the Prince.

The swallow picked out the great ruby from the Prince’s sword, and flew away with it in his beak over the roofs of the town.

He passed by the cathedral tower, where the white marble angels were sculptured. He passed by the palace and heard the sound of dancing. A beautiful girl came out on the balcony with her lover.

“I hope my dress will be ready in time for the State ball,” she said. “I have ordered flowers to be embroidered on it, but the seamstresses are so lazy.”

He passed over the river, and saw the lanterns hanging on the masts of the ships. At last he came to the poor woman’s house and looked in. The boy was tossing feverishly on his bed, and the mother had fallen asleep, she was so tired. In he hopped, and laid the great ruby on the table beside the woman’s thimble. Then he flew gently round the bed, fanning the boy’s forehead with his wings. “How cool I feel!” said the boy, “I must be getting better;” and he sank into a delicious slumber.

Then the swallow flew back to the Happy Prince, and told him what he had done. “It is curious,” he remarked, “but I feel quite warm now, although it is so cold.”

“That is because you have done a good action,” said the Prince. And the little swallow began to think, and then fell asleep. Thinking always made him sleepy.

When day broke he flew down to the river and had a bath. “Tonight I go to Egypt,” said the swallow, and he was in high spirits at the prospect. He visited all the monuments and sat a long time on top of the church steeple.

When the moon rose he flew back to the Happy Prince.

“Have you any commissions for Egypt?” he cried. “I am just starting.”

“Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow,” said the Prince, “will you stay with me one night longer?”

“I am waited for in Egypt,” answered the swallow.

“Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow,” said the Prince, “far away across the city I see a young man in a garret. He is leaning over a desk covered with papers, and in the glass by his side there is a bunch of withered violets. His hair is brown and crisp, and his lips are red as a pomegranate, and he has large and dreamy eyes. He is trying to finish a play for the Director of the Theatre, but he is too cold to write any more. There is no fire in the grate, and hunger has made him faint.”

“I will wait with you one night longer,” said the swallow, who really had a good heart. He asked if he should take another ruby to the young playwright.

“Alas! I have no ruby now,” said the Prince. “My eyes are all that I have left. They are made of rare sapphires, which were brought out of India a thousand years ago.” He ordered the swallow to pluck out one of them and take it to the playwright. “He will sell it to the jeweller, and buy firewood, and finish his play,” he said.

“Dear Prince,” said the swallow, “I cannot do that,” and he began to weep.

“Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow,” said the Prince, “do as I command you.”

So the swallow plucked out the Prince’s eye, and flew away to the young man’s garret. It  was easy enough to get in, as there was a hole in the roof. Through this he darted, and came into the room. The young man had his head buried in his hands, so he did not hear the flutter of the bird’s wings, and when he looked up he found the beautiful sapphire lying on the withered violets.

“I am beginning to be appreciated,” he cried. “This is from some great admirer. Now I can finish my play,” and he looked quite happy.

The next day the swallow flew down to the harbour. He sat on the mast of a large vessel and watched the sailors working. “I am going to Egypt,” cried the swallow, but nobody minded, and when the moon rose he flew back to the Happy Prince.

“I have come to bid you goodbye,” he cried.

“Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow,” said the Prince, “will you not stay with me one night longer?”

“It is winter,” answered the swallow, “and the snow will soon be here. In Egypt the sun is warm on the green palm trees, and the crocodiles lie in the mud and look lazily about them.”

“In the square below,” said the Happy Prince, “there stands a little matchgirl. She has let her matches fall in the gutter, and they are all spoiled. Her father will beat her if she does not bring home some money, and she is crying. She has no shoes or stockings, and her little head is bare. Pluck out my other eye, and give it to her, and her father will not beat her.”

“I will stay with you one night longer,” said the swallow, “but I cannot pluck out your eye. You would be quite blind then.”

“Swallow, Swallow, little Swallow,” said the Prince, “do as I command you.”

So he plucked out the Prince’s other eye, and darted down with it. He swooped past the matchgirl, and slipped the jewel into the palm of her hand.

“What a lovely bit of glass!” cried the little girl; and she ran home, laughing.

Then the swallow came back to the Prince. “You are blind now,” he said, “so I will stay with you always.”

“No, little Swallow,” said the poor Prince, “you must go away to Egypt.”

“No, I will stay with you always,” said the swallow, and he slept at the Prince’s feet.

All the next day he sat on the Prince’s shoulder, and told him stories of what he had seen in strange lands.

“Dear little Swallow,” said the Prince, “you tell me of marvelous things, but more marvellous than anything is the suffering of men and women. There is no Mystery so great as Misery. Fly over my city, little Swallow, and tell me what you see there.”

So the swallow flew over the great city, and saw the rich making merry in their beautiful houses, while the beggars were sitting at the gates. He flew into dark lanes, and saw the white faces of starving children looking out listlessly at the black streets. Under the archway of a bridge two little boys were lying in each other’s arms to try and keep themselves warm. “How hungry we are!” they said. “You must not lie here,” shouted the watchman, and they wandered out into the rain.

Then he flew back and told the Prince what he had seen. “I am covered with fine gold,” said the Prince. “You must take it off, leaf by leaf, and give it to the poor; the living always think that gold can make them happy.”

Leaf after leaf of the fine gold the swallow picked off, till the Happy Prince looked quite dull and grey. Leaf after leaf of the fine gold he brought to the poor, and the children’s faces grew rosier, and they laughed and played in the street. “We have bread now!” they cried.

Then the snow came, and after the snow came the frost. The streets looked as if they were made of silver. Everybody went about in furs, and the little boys wore scarlet caps and skated on the ice. The poor little swallow grew colder and colder, but he would not leave the Prince, he loved him too well. He picked up crumbs outside the baker’s door when the baker was not looking, and tried to keep himself warm by flapping his wings.

But at last he knew that he was going to die. He had just enough strength to fly up to the Prince’s shoulder once more. “Goodbye, dear Prince!” he murmured. “Will you let me kiss your hand?

“I am glad that you are going to Egypt at last, little Swallow,” said the Prince. “You have stayed too long here but you must kiss me on the lips, for I love you.”

“It is not to Egypt that I am going,” said the swallow. “I am going to the House of Death. Death is the brother of Sleep, is he not?”

And he kissed the Happy Prince on the lips, and fell down dead at his feet.

At that moment a curious crack sounded inside the statue, as if something had broken. The fact is that the leaden heart had snapped right in two. It certainly was a dreadfully hard frost.

Early the next morning the Mayor was walking in the square below in company with the Town Councillors. As they passed the column he looked up at the statue. “Dear me! How shabby the Happy Prince looks!” he said.

“How shabby, indeed!” cried the Town Councillors, who always agreed with the Mayor and they went up to look at it.

“The ruby has fallen out of his sword, his eyes are gone, and he is golden no longer,” said the Mayor. “In fact, he is little better than a beggar!”

“Little better than a beggar,” said the Town Councillors.

“And here is actually a dead bird at his feet!” continued the Mayor. “We must really issue a proclamation that birds are not to be allowed to die here.” And the Town Clerk made a note of the suggestion.

So they pulled down the statue of the Happy Prince. “As he is no longer beautiful he is no longer useful,” said the Art Professor at the University.

Then they melted the statue in a furnace. “What a strange thing!” said the overseer of the workmen at the foundry. “This broken lead heart will not melt in the furnace. We must throw it away.” So they threw it on a dust heap where the dead swallow was also lying.

“Bring me the two most precious things in the city,” said God to one of His Angels; and the Angel brought Him the leaden heart and the dead bird.

“You have rightly chosen,” said God, “for in my garden of Paradise this little bird shall sing for ever more and in my city of gold the Happy Prince shall praise me.”

Glossary

seamstress: a woman who makes a living by sewing

thimble: a metal or plastic cap with a closed end, worn to protect the finger and push the needle in sewing

garret: small dark room at the top of the house

 

Questions:

1. Why do the courtiers call the prince ‘the Happy Prince’? Is he really happy? What does he see all around him?

Ans. The courtiers called the prince ‘the Happy Prince’ because he was always happy. When he was alive, he did not know what tears were for he lived in a palace where sorrow was not allowed to enter. However, when he died and was made into a statue, he was not happy and tears flowed down his eyes on seeing the state of his city. He could see all the misery and ugliness of the city around him.

2. Why does the Happy Prince send a ruby for the seamstress? What does the swallow do in the seamstress’ house?

Ans. The Happy Prince sent a ruby for the seamstress as she was extremely poor and could not feed her child who was suffering from fever.

The swallow, on being persuaded by the prince, went to the seamstress’s house. She had fallen asleep so the swallow kept the ruby on the table where the woman worked. He then flew round the bed fanning the boy’s forehead with his wings. This made the boy feel relaxed and he went to sleep.

3. For whom does the prince send the sapphires and why?

Ans. The Happy Prince sent the sapphires for two people: the young writer across the city and the matchgirl. The young writer was trying to finish a play for the Director of the Theatre. However, he was too cold to write anymore, there was no fire in the grate and hunger had made him faint. He sent the sapphire to the young playwright so that he could sell it to the jeweller, buy firewood, and finish his play. On seeing the sapphire, the young man felt appreciated and believed that he could finish his play. The Happy Prince then saw a little matchgirl who was standing in the square just below him. She had let her matches fall in the gutter because of which they were all spoiled. The prince knew that her father would beat her if she did not bring home some money. When the swallow slipped the jewel into the palm of the little girl’s hand, she ran home happy and laughing.

4. What does the swallow see when it flies over the city?

Ans.  When the swallow flew over the city it saw the stark contrast of plenty and poverty. It saw rich men making merry oblivious to the plight of the poor down the lane. It saw the nadir of condition of poor when they are denied even a sound sleep by police patrolling the street.

5. Why did the swallow not leave the prince and go to Egypt?

Ans. Since the price had given away the two sapphires of his eyes, he had become blind. Therefore, the swallow decided to stay with the prince always. It can be inferred that the swallow was so touched by prince’s kindness that he decided to stay back rather than flying to Egypt and be with his friends. What this suggests is that kind hearted people always attract friends who will stay with them forever.

6. What are the precious things mentioned in the story? Why are they precious? 

Ans. The precious things mentioned in the story are the leaden heart of the happy prince and the dead bird. They are precious because both the happy prince and the swallow were very kind, generous and selfless. The prince could not bear to see the ugliness, misery and suffering in his city and so gave away all his precious stones and gold to make his people happy.

Similarly the swallow sacrificed his trip to Egypt and acted as the prince’s messenger carrying the precious stones and gold to the needy spreading happiness around. When the prince was blind he still loved him so much that he never left him even though it kept getting colder and colder with winter approaching. Finally when he could no longer bear the cold he died at the feet of the statue and the statue loved him so much that its leaden heart broke into two.

That is why when God asked one of the angels to bring him the two precious things in the garden the angel took the leaden heart and the dead bird and God said that in his garden of Paradise the little bird shall sing for ever more and in the city of gold the Happy Prince shall praise God.

 

Q1) Give a brief character sketch of the happy prince?

Ans1) The prince always remain happy when he was alive; hence his courtiers called him ‘happy prince’. After his death a statue of him was erected at a central place. Statue was ornamented with gold and precious stones. His eyes were studded with sapphire. The statue could see the whole city and its misery. Rich people were enjoying lavish life. On the other hand poor people were suffering and starving. He was moved by seeing the pity condition of his subjects. With the help of a swallow he tried to help the people. He gave all his gold and precious stones to needy people. He sacrificed his eyes to help playwright and a match girl.  He was a kind hearted and loving prince.

 

Q2) Compare similarities between the swallow and the prince.

Ans2) The swallow and the prince both were kind hearted. They were moved deeply by the suffering of people. The prince wept to see the misery of the people. His tears fell on the swallow that was also moved to pity to see all this. He decided to help poor and part with his jewel, sapphires and gold. Swallow helped the prince by carrying all these things to needy people. Both found pleasure in helping others. Both did not hesitate in even sacrificing. Prince became blind in the effort of helping others. The swallow bears the cold and lives on crumbs.

 

Q. Write the character sketch of Happy Prince. Ans. Happy Price is the story of a prince who lived in a happy palace. Any type of woe did not come to him. After his death his golden statue was situated in the middle of the city on a high place. He was gold plated his eyes were mode up of two sapphires and a ruby was fitted in his sword hilt. Once a swallow stay in his feet. Swallow saw that the prince was weeping. Swallow wanted to fly away to Egypt. But she stays there on the request of prince. He gave his ruby to an old seamstress to fulfill the wishes his ill son. He gave sapphires to the play Wright to complete his play. He also gives his 2nd eye to the girl who was selling the matchsticks. At the end he distributed his all the gold foils among poor. That night both of them died. The mayor of the town ordered for demolition of bad statue and the died swallow ware thrown into the dust. The statue was melted but his heart remain same it neither melt nor broke. The angles of the God consider two most precious things of the world they were the heart of Happy Prince and the swallow.   Q. Write the Character Sketch of Happy Price? Ans. Happy Price is the story of a prince who lived in a happy palace in which did not know about the sadness. After his death his golden statue was situated in the middle of the city on a high place. He was gold plated. His eyes were made up of two bright sapphires. A ruby was fit in his sword hilt. Once a swallow stay in his feet, swallow saw the prince was weeping. Swallow wanted to fly away to Egypt but he stay there on the request of the Happy Prince. He gave his ruby to an old seamstress to fulfill the wishes of his ill son. He gave one sapphire to the play write to complete his play and he also give his second eye to the poor girl who was selling the match sticks. At the end he distributed his all the gold among the poor. Both of them died that night. The mayor of the town ordered to demolition to bad statue and to throw died swallow into the dust. The statue was melted but his heart remained same it neither melt not broke. His heart was also thrown into the dust also. The angels of the god consider the two of most precious things on the world. They were the heart of the Happy Price and the Swallow.