Memories of Childhood by Zitkala-Sa and Bama

                                          

Q1. What does Zitkala-Sa remember about her first day in the land of apples?

Ans : Zitkala-Sa remembers that it was cold. There was snow outside. There was a rigid discipline imposed on the children. The teachers were emotionless and rigid. The entire school worked in a monotonous mechanical way. She was forced to get her hair shingled. She resisted a lot but finally had to give up. So it was the most unpleasant day for her.

2.Which words of her brother made a deep impression on Bama?

Ans : Her brother Annan told Bama that it was only with the help of education, that people of their community could earn respect for themselves. He said “if we study and make progress, we can throw away those indignities. So study with care, learn all you can.” He suggested to Bama to be keen in her studies and said, “If you are always ahead in your lessons, people will come to you of their own accord. So work hard and learn”. These words left a deep impression on her.

Q3.  What is common between Zitkala-Sa and Bama?

Ans: Both Zitkala-Sa and Bama belonged to the oppressed community. As a result, they were treated in an inhumane and undignified manner. They both experienced humiliation in their childhood which left a deep impression on their minds.

Q4. Why was Zitkala-Sa in tears on the first day in the land of apples?

Ans: Zitkala-Sa faced a lot of humiliation on her first day at the Carlisle India School in the land of apples. Her long hair was forcibly cut. This was undignified for her because as per her culture and traditions only cowards or mourners had their hair shingled. Despite her resistance, the author was tied to chair and her hair was cut. This brought tears to her eyes and broke her spirit.

Q5. Who was Annan? How did he justify the behaviour of the elder?

Ans: Annan was Bama’s elder brother. He explained to Bama that it was obvious that the elderly man would carry the things in that manner because the people of their community were considered untouchables. They were not supposed to touch the things meant for the upper castes.

Q6. What were Zitkala-Sa’s objections to the cutting of hair?

Ans: Zitkala-Sa objected to the cutting of the hair because in her community cutting of hair was considered inauspicious and undignified. Only unskilled warriors, mourners or cowards had their hair shingled. So it was the greatest humiliation for anyone.

Q7. What details of the inhuman behaviour of the upper castes were given to Bama by her brother?

Ans: Annan, Bama’s elder brother, told her that they belonged to a lower class and were considered as untouchables. They were denied dignity, respect or honour in the society. They were exploited and degraded and were forced to do manual work.

Q8. ‘But this eating by formula was not the hardest trial in that first day.’ Says Zitkala-Sa. What does she mean by ‘eating by formula’?

Ans: In the Carlisle Indian School, the children moved like robots. They were herded together and tuned up to move when a bell sounded. The narrator was not aware of it and she felt amazed to see this. The children used to sit and start eating as per the ringing of the bell. Even the prayers were done with the ringing of the bell. The three bells were sounded, one after another and only then they could move and eat. Zitkala-Sa found it a crazy idea to do so.

Q9. Untouchability is not only a crime, it is inhuman too. Why and how did Bama decide to fight against it?

Ans: ‘We Too are Human Beings’ raises the issue of social discrimination. Bama learns the stigma of social untouchability that the lower caste people were a victim of at a very early stage in her life. She witnessed an elderly man walking in a street holding out a packet by its string, without touching it. At that time, she found the incident very funny, but later learnt that the upper caste people did not touch anything given by the untouchable community to which she and her brother belonged. She was furious at the treatment meted out by the upper caste people and felt hurt. Bama’s elder brother Annan advised her that if she studied and made progress, she would be able to throw away these indignities. To overcome all these issues, she needed to stay ahead in her studies. She studied hard and stood first in her class and later through her writings she was able to fight the injustice.

Q10. “We too are human beings,” highlights high caste-low caste discrimination in society. How do low caste people suffer on account of this? What advice is given to Bama to overcome this problem?

Ans : ‘We too are human beings’ highlights the prevailing discrimination in the society in the name of high caste and low caste. In her childhood, Bama realised that she belonged to the lower caste and was considered ‘untouchable’. She found that the people of her community were exploited and humiliated. She felt sad, let down and angry and hated the exploitation. She believed it to be a curse against society. She wanted to protest against this system. Her brother advised her that it was only through education, they could gain respect. He advised her to work hard and learn. Bama obeyed her brother, studied hard with great determination and topped the class. As a result, many people tried to befriend her.

Q11. “It is better to have tried and failed, then never to have tried at all”. Bring out the truth of the statement with reference to the story.

Ans : In ‘Memories of Childhood’, both Zitkala-Sa and Bama exemplify this statement clearly. They both tried to resist the oppression and discrimination. Both wanted to overcome the humiliation and indignities that they had to face in their childhood. Zitkala-Sa resisted the cutting of her long hair. Though she failed in that resistance at that moment, this incident gave her so much determination and strength that later on she was recognized as a champion fighter against the prejudices and humiliation against women of that time. Similarly, Bama also grew up with great confidence to eradicate the evil of untouchability through her writings. She wrote about the exploitation and humiliation that people face due to class and caste discrimination. Thus, both the women tried hard to work against oppression despite their failed attempts in the childhood.

Q12. The stories of Bama and Zitkala-Sa prove that to succeed in life one must be determined and hardworking. It involves grit, perseverance and enormous willpower. Write an article.

Ans: Success Demands Work, Work and Work

Hard work is the key to success. There is no doubt success demands strong willpower and determination to excel. To succeed in life one must be clear about one’s goals and be full of grit and determination to achieve that goal. Both Bama and Zitkala-Sa exemplify these qualities. They both faced humiliation, torture and discrimination in their childhood, but didn’t give up. They were determined to work for the oppressed and continued their efforts as they grew up. Zitkala-Sa led many social movements and became a social activist. Bama kept on raising the issue of untouchability through her writings.

Hard work with the strong willpower can achieve difficult targets. There is nothing impossible for those who believe in themselves and never give up.

Q13. What inspiration did you get from the stories of Bama and Zitkala-Sa? Write your feelings in your diary.

Ans:

Monday

7 March 20XX 8:30 p.m.

It was such a different kind of feeling that I was filled with when I read about the childhood experiences of Zitkala-Sa and Bama. Though they both belonged to different times and cultures, yet their experiences of oppression and humiliation are similar. They both represent the strength of a woman. They both were tortured in the name of race and caste but they didn’t give in. They made their humiliation and indignities as their strengths and with their grit and determination and strong willpower, they both emerged as the champions of the oppressed women.

Zitkala-Sa became a social activist and worked for the upliftment of native American women and Bama, through her writings evoked the spirit of equality and the need to eradicate untouchability and caste discrimination.

I am full of admiration for the two and wish that one day I would also be strong like them to raise my voice against injustice.

Mukesh

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The Interview by Christopher Silvester

                                                            

                                                      Short-Answer Questions ( 2 Marks)

1.Why did Lewis Carroll have a horror of the interviewer?

Ans: Lewis Carroll was said to have had a just horror of the interviewer. It was his horror of being lionized which made him thus repel would-be acquaintances, interviewers, and those seeking his autographs. So, he never consented to be interviewed.

Q2. How did Rudyard Kipling look at interviews?

Ans: Rudyard Kipling condemned interviews. His wife writes in her diary that Rudyard Kipling told the reporters that he called being interviewed as immoral and a crime like an offence against any person. It merited punishment. It was cowardly and vile.

Q3. How are interviews, despite their drawbacks, useful?

Ans: Despite their drawbacks, interviews are a supremely serviceable medium of communication. We get our most vivid impressions of our contemporaries through interviews. Denis Brain writes that almost everything of moment reaches us through interviews.

Q4. Umberto Eco tells Mukund that he has a secret. What is that?

Ans : Umberto Eco tells Mukund that he has a secret to reveal. He tells him that there are empty spaces in the universe, in all the atoms. If they are removed, the universe will shrink to the size of a fist. He calls these empty spaces interstices and he writes in these interstices.

Q5.   What did Umberto Eco learn at the age of 22 that he pursued in his novels?

Ans: At the age of 22, Umberto Eco understood that scholarly books should be written the way he had done, that is, they should be written by telling the story of the research. He means to say that they should have the narrative technique. That’s why he started writing novels so late—at the age of 50.

Q6. How did Eco start writing novels?

Ans: Eco states that he started writing novels by accident. One day, he had nothing to do, so he started writing. He felt that novels probably satisfied his taste for narration and he produced five novels, including the famous The Name of the Rose.

Q7. Did Umberto Eco consider himself a novelist first or an academic scholar? Discuss briefly.

Ans: Umberto Eco considered himself an academic scholar, a university professor who wrote novels on Sundays. If somebody said that he was a novelist, that bothered him. He participated in academic conferences and not the meetings of Pen Clubs and writers. He identified himself with academic community.

Q8. What is the reason for the huge success of the novel, The Name of the Rose?

Ans: The reason for the huge success of the novel, according to Eco, is a mystery. Nobody can predict it. He states that if he had written the novel ten years earlier or ten years later, it wouldn’t have been the same. So, the time component, its narrative technique, its aspects of metaphysics, theology and medieval history, made it a grand success.

Q9. Do you think Umberto Eco likes being interviewed? Give reasons for your opinion.

Ans: I think Eco likes being interviewed. His answers to Mukund’s questions are straightforward, precise and to the point. They are never wavering. He even mentions his preferences about TV shows. While answering he gets humorous and laughs. Nowhere does he say anything that may give us this sort of glimpse that he does not like being interviewed.

Q10. Why did Umberto take to writing novels?

Ans: Umberto took to writing novels to satisfy his taste for narration. He did not have even a single novel to his credit, till the age of 50. One day having nothing to do, he started writing a novel. Moreover, he thought that novels have more readership and he could reach a larger audience.

Q11.How did Umberto Eco become spectacularly famous?

Ans: Umberto Eco had earned a good reputation in the field of semiotics or the study of signs. His scholarly works were staggeringly large and wide ranging. But his spectacular fame came to him with his novel The Name of the Rose which stormed the world and sold more than 10 million copies.

                                                               6-Mark Questions

Q12. The Interview as a communication genre is here to stay. Discuss with reference to the interview with Umberto Eco.

Ans: The interview today is a communication genre that has come to stay. Its detractors—mostly celebrities— despise it as an intrusion into their lives. However, a good interview can be a source of truth, it is an excellent medium of communication and in the modern world our most vivid impressions of contemporaries are through interviews. It is through the interview that we learn about Eco’s diverse writings, his interest in the philosophy of non-violence and peace and his ability to put every spare moment to constructive use. At the interviewer’s prompting, he tells us why he writes scholarly works in an informal style and how he started writing novels. We realise that he is an academician at heart. He honestly talks of the success of his book as a mystery saying that it might not have sold so well in another time.

Q13. How do celebrity writers despise being interviewed as given in ‘The Interview’?

Ans: Since its invention a little over 130 years ago, the interview has become commonplace journalism. Over the years, opinions about its functions, methods and merits vary considerably. Some say it is a source of truth and in practice, an art. Others despise it being an unwarranted intrusion into their lives. They feel it diminishes them. They equate it to taking a photographic portrait of somebody which in some primitive cultures mean ‘stealing the person’s soul.’ Some people feel wounded by interviews and lose part of themselves. They call it immoral, a crime and an assault. To some it is cowardly and vile or an ordeal.

Q14. How does Mukund Padmanabhan comment on Eco’s academic writing style? What does Eco say about it?

Ans : Mukund  Padmanabhan states that Eco’s non-fictional writing, that is, his scholarly work has a certain playful and personal quality about it. It is a marked departure from a regular style. That regular style is invariably depersonalised and often dry and boring. To a question if he consciously adopted an informal style, he cited the comments of one of the professors who examined and evaluated his first doctoral dissertation. The professor said that scholars learned a lot of a certain subject, then they made a lot of false hypotheses, then they corrected and put conclusions at the end. But Eco told the story of his research, including his trials and errors. At the age of 22, Eco understood that scholarly books should be written by telling the story of the research. His essays, therefore, have a narrative aspect. That is why, he wrote novels to satisfy his taste for narrative.

Q15. How does the interview with Umberto Eco prove that the interview is the most commendable tool to elicit information about the interviewee?

Ans: Mukund  Padmanabhan from ‘The Hindu’ interviews Umberto Eco and proves that interview is the most commendable tool to elicit information about the interviewee. Through his interview he reveals that Eco is a prolific writer and yet a man who is most modest about his achievements. He very humbly spells the secret of his varied and staggeringly voluminous works produced by him. When Mukund asks him about David Lodge’s remark that how one man can do all the things that Eco does’, Eco very modestly says it is a fallacious impression, in fact he has always been doing the same thing by pursuing the same philosophical ideas. He views himself as an academic, rather than a novelist. He admits that he has started writing novels by accident and writes novels on Sundays.

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Journey to the End of the Earth by Tishani Doshi

                                                  Short Answer Questions ( 2 Marks) 

Q1 What emotions did the author experience when she reached Antarctica at last?

Ans : The author finally set foot on the Antarctica continent after travelling over 100 hours in combination of car, aeroplane and ship. Her first emotion on seeing the vast expansive white landscape and the blue horizon was of relief. She experienced the emotion of wonder at its immensity and isolation and its strange relationship with India.

Q2. In what respect, Tishani Doshni’s encounter with Antarctica is a chilling prospect?

Ans : The author remained there for two weeks. For a sun worshipper South Indian, being face to face with ninety per cent of earth’s total ice volume was a mind-boggling and chilling prospect. It was also a chilling experience for circulatory and metabolic functions and for imagination. It is like walking into a giant ping-pong ball with no human markers such as trees, billboards, and buildings.

Q3. How has Antarctica sustained itself and managed to remain pristine?

Ans: Antarctica, on account of being the coldest, windiest and driest continent in the world, has never sustained a human population and has thus managed to remain pristine. This has prevented man from being able to create ruckus in this part of the world by his thoughtless exploitation of the natural resources.

Q4. How is global temperature increasing? What are the immediate fears due to it?

Ans : Global temperature is increasing due to the increasing burning of fossil fuels. It has now created a blanket of carbon dioxide around the world. This has given birth to questions like: Will the West Antarctica ice sheet melt entirely? Will the Gulf Stream Ocean current be disrupted? Will it be the end of the world as we know of? It may be. It may not be.

Q5. How is Antarctica a crucial element in the debate of climate change?

Ans : Antarctica is a crucial element not because it has no human population but because it holds in its ice cores half a million year old carbon records. They are trapped in its layers of ice. It will open up areas of knowledge about the past, present and future of the earth.

Q6. What are the reasons for the success of the Students on Ice programme?

Ans: Sitting distant in the comfort zone of our houses, any talk about global warming looks so unreal and one can be unconcerned. But the visible experience of seeing glaciers retreating, ice caps melting and ice shelves collapsing makes one understand and realize what global warming is all about. The indications for the future of humankind become clear when one actually witnesses the geological phenomena.

Q7. What is that beauty of balance that a trip to Antarctica unfolded to the author?

Ans: The author was wonderstruck by the beauty of balance in play on our planet. Travelling across nine time zones, three bodies of water and as many ecospheres was an experience that unfolded a wide range of climate, geographical features, and flora and fauna. It was also a visible experience of the varied geographical phenomena.

Q8. What are phytoplanktons? What is their importance?

Ans: Phytoplanktons, the grasses of the sea, are single-celled organisms living in the southern ocean. They nourish and sustain the entire ocean’s food chin, being first link in the food chain of ocean. Using sun’s energy, they assimilate carbon and synthesize organic compounds.

The diminishing number of these organisms due to the depletion of ozone layers affects other organisms of the ocean, finally leading to the extinction of life on earth.

Q9. Why is it necessary to remain fully equipped while walking on ice?

Ans: While walking on ice, the troupe was fully kitted out in Gore-Tex (type of spiked boots that help in walking on ice) and glares. The spiked boots protect them from falling down on ice which might result in injury and the glares protect the eyes because the sunglasses can injure their eyes, particularly the ratina.

Q10. Does the study of the lesson give you a feeling that man is his own great enemy?

Ans: In his 12000-year-long stint on the earth so far man has caused untold harm to the planet, its environment and biodiversity. His activities in the name of development have spelt doom for the flora and fauna and his own existence is in danger. Man is to blame for all the havoc and ruckus created on earth. Thus it is quite right that man is his own great enemy.

                                                                        6-Mark Questions

Q11. What is the significance of the title ‘Journey to the End of the Earth’?

Ans : The title ‘Journey to the End of the Earth’, has more than one meaning. It describes an educational journey to Antarctica undertaken by a group of high school students. To learn more about the real impact of global warming and future of the earth 52 students went to the coldest, driest, windiest continent in the world called Antarctica in Russian research vessel, the Akademik Shokalskiy. The author calls it a journey to the end of the earth because it began 13:09 degrees North of Equator in Madras, involved crossing nine time zones, six checkpoints, three oceans and as many ecospheres. She travelled over 100 hours in combination of a car, an aeroplane and a ship. The journey being to the extreme south of the the earth, was really towards the end of it. Another meaning of this title is more significant as the warnings that Antarctica gives are shocking and much concerning the humanity and the millions of other species on the earth. The changes taking place in Antarctica are pointing a warning finger at the existence of of the earth; the earth is journeying to its end.

Q12. By whom and with what objective was Students on Ice programme started? How far has it achieved its goals?

Ans : The Students on Ice programme was started by Canadian Geoff Green. He felt students are the future generation of policy-makers. They should be provided an opportunity to have this lifechanging experience at a young age in order to foster a new understanding and respect for our planet. It would help them to absorb, learn and, more importantly, act for the benefit of the planet.

Geoff Green was tired of taking celebrities and retired rich curiosity seekers who could only give back in a limited way. It means Geoff wanted something in return from his passengers to solve the problems relating to climate changes due to environmental pollution. It is difficult to imagine or be affected by the polar ice caps melting while sitting in our living rooms and so this visible life changing expence is important. Hence, this programme made the children learn that to save big things, small things must be cared for.

Q13. What makes Antarctica an ideal subject of study?

Ans : Antarctica is the only place in the world which has never sustained a human population. It thus remains relatively pristine in this respect. But, more importantly, it holds in its ice core, half a millionyear- old carbon records trapped in its layers of life. Antarctica has a simple ecosystem and lack of biodiversity. It is, therefore, a perfect place to study how little changes in the environment can have big repercussions. Visiting Antarctica means knowing where we have come from and where we could possibly be heading. This place holds the key to know the geological evolution and it shall reveal the earth’s past, present and future.

Q14. The author states that her Antarctic experience was full of epiphanies, but the best occurred just short of the Antarctic Circle of 65–55 degrees south? Explain.

Ans: Epiphanies is a Christian festival that celebrates the revelation or enlightenment. Here epiphanies are used metaphorically to suggest moments when the author suddenly becomes conscious of something that is very important to her.

The author experienced the rare of the rarest experiences there in Antarctica both in relation to beauty, wonder and geological phenomena. Such masterly geological epiphany was experienced by her when the Akademik Shokalskiy got wedged into a thick white stretch of ice between the peninsula and Tadpole Island. The captain decided to turn around and asked the passengers to walk on the ocean. They kitted out in Gore-Tex and glares, walking on a white sheet of ice. Underneath their feet was a metre-thick ice pack. And underneath that, 180 metres of living breathing, salt water lay before them. In the periphery crabeater seals were stretching and sunning themselves on ice floes. They were doing so like stray clogs will do under the shade of a banyan tree. It was nothing short of revelation. The author saw in it that everything does, indeed connect. This really proved to be the most wonderful experience of all experiences of Antarctica.

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The Third Level by Jack Finney

                                                         

                                                         Short Answer Questions ( 2 Marks)

Q1.What does the narrator think of Grand Central? What does it symbolize?

Ans : The narrator thinks that Grand Central is growing like a tree. It pushes out new corridors and staircases like roots. There are long tunnels under the city on their ways to Times Square and to Central Park.

The Grand Central symbolizes the labyrinth that this world is with its intricate and tangled pathways. It has always been an exit, a way to escape.

Q2. What strange things did the narrator see when he reached the third level of Grand Central?

Ans : Charley noticed a difference in the way things looked at the third level of the Grand Central Station. It was smaller, with fewer ticket counters and had an old look of the 1890s with wooden booths, dim open-flame gaslights, brass spittoons and an old-style locomotive with a funnel shaped stack. Even the people’s attire was old fashioned and men had funny handle-bar mustaches and sideburns. The whole setting was in contrast to the modern times.

Q3. How did the man on the third level appear to the narrator?

Ans : The narrator saw a man pulling a gold watch from his vest pocket. He snapped open the cover, glanced at his watch and frowned. He wore a derby hat, a black four-button suit with tiny lapels and had a big, black handlebar moustache.

Q4. What did the narrator do to make sure that he was actually at the third level of Grand Central?

Ans : The narrator walked over to a news boy. He glanced at the stack of newspapers. It was The World and The World had not been published for years. The lead story was about President Cleveland. Later on, he confirmed from the public library files that the newspaper was dated 11th June 1894.

Q5. Why did the narrator turn towards the ticket windows? Why did he run back from there?

Ans : The narrator turned towards the ticket window to buy tickets to go to Galesburg, Illinois, in the year of 1894. When Charley produced money to pay for the two tickets, the clerk stared at him as the currency did not match with the currency of that time. He accused him of trying to cheat him and threatened to hand him over to the police. The narrator turned away thinking that there was nothing nice about jail even in 1894.

Q6. How does the narrator’s psychiatrist friend react to the narrator’s statement that the third level exists?

Ans : The narrator’s psychiatrist friend, Sam Weiner, says it is ‘a waking-dream-wish fulfilment’. He says that the narrator is unhappy and the modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war and worry. So, he wants to escape and has created an imaginary third level.

Q7. What happened to the narrator’s psychiatrist friend Sam Weiner? What do you deduce from it?

Ans:

One day the narrator’s psychiatrist friend Sam Weiner disappeared. He was a city boy. He always said that he liked Galesburg very much and its sound. From this I deduce that even Sam was affected by the stress of modern living and sought temporary refuge by travelling through time.

Q8. What is the evidence that Charley often sought escape through time travel?

Ans : Charley had often bumped into new doorways, archways and stairways at the Grand Central and got lost. Once he had got into a long tunnel, about a mile long, and another time had landed in an office building on the Forty-sixth street, three blocks away. This makes it evident that Charley, often sought escape through wishful dreaming and in nostalgic memories. He often lived in a world of fantasy.

                                                                          6-Mark Questions

Q9. Finney manages to not only capture the reader’s imagination, but also provides a clear example of time travel that does not confuse the reader. Discuss.

Ans : ‘The Third Level’ is a well-defined and convincing description of time travel. It can be divided into modern world and the world of the 1890s, the world of Grand Central Station of New York and the past world of Galesburg, Illinois. The narrator talks of the present world of 21st century through the references of New York Central, New York, New Haven, Hartford of Galesburg, Illinois of the 1890s in clearer terms. His visit to the third level of Grand Central and the physical description of this symbolize a flashback of the 19th century. So, the writer takes the reader in both the eras with care without confusing them. Thus, the third level is a beautiful interpretation of things through what, we call ‘the catastrophe theory’ as given in ‘The Adventure’ by Jayant Narlikar.

Q10. Do you think that the third level was a medium of escape for Charley? Why?

Ans : The torture of stress, sense of insecurity and fear have made man an escapist who wants to run away from reality. He looks for a temporary refuge and starts pursuing different hobbies to divert his attention temporarily and give himself some comfort. The fast pace life has made Charley uneasy and restless. He yearned for peace and tranquillity. He turned to philately but could not find much relief. His efforts for escape resulted in his flight to the third level—a level of existence which he associated with tranquillity. His psychiatrist friend Sam, diagnosed Charley’s claim as a wakingdream wish fulfilment. Hence, the third level undoubtedly is a medium of escape for Charley.

Q11. What do you infer from Sam’s letter to Charley?

Ans : Sam’s letter is a proof of his having reached the third level and of having been transported to Galesburg of 1894. The date 18th July 1894 and the content of the letter indicate that he too yearned for such an escape. Being equally insecure, he started believing in the existence of the third level and eventually found it. Galesburg always fascinated him with ample leisure and innocent happiness. He suggested to Charley and Louisa to keep on looking for it till they come across it. Sam’s letter also indicates the social life of Galesburg where people loved music, dance and socializing. But we are not sure that Sam’s letter is a mere figment of Charley’s imagination just like the third level or has he really transported to Galesburg of 1894. So, the whole idea of travel in time and multiple levels of reality is mind-boggling and so is Sam’s letter indeed.

Q12. The modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war, worry, tension and stress. What are the ways in which we attempt to overcome them?

Ans : There is no doubt that the modern world is full of insecurity, fear, war, worry, tension, stress, anxiety and what not. Strangely, there is no escape from these things, yet people devise, find and invest different ways to escape from them. Some like liquor, some tranquillizers, some sleeping pills, some consult saints or seers or psychiatrists. Some daydream or listen to music or visit night parties or browse the Internet and fall down to tiredness and sleep. They awake to another day of tension and anxiety. People like the narrator invent an imaginary world around them and get lost in it for the time being. But such a life is not for all the persons. It is for those who are a sensitive mind and look at life in a thoughtful manner, albeit, very seriously.

Q13. Did Sam really go to Galesburg or was it Charley’s figment of imagination?

Ans : The third level at the Grand Central symbolizes man’s yearning to attain an ideal level of existence which is free from wars, worries, insecurities, tensions and a level which exudes calm, peace and tranquillity. Charley imagined this world briefly but could never get back to that world. His craving for such a world forced him to imagine things. He imagined that his psychiatrist friend, Sam, had succeeded in reaching there. He even saw a letter from Sam in his first-day cover collection. It was dated July 18, 1894 and posted to his grandfather’s address in Galesburg, Illinois. After this he redoubled his efforts to search the third level.

If it is only the imagination of Charley, then how do you explain Sam’s exchanging of currency at the coin shop? The fact that Sam too lived in a world of fantasy makes us understand that time travel was one way of escape for the modern man.

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Keeping Quiet by Pablo Neruda

                                                                     

For Detailed Explanation of the poem, kindly visit my YouTube Channel, 'Learning with a Difference'.

                                                                              Extract Questions

Q1. Now we will count to twelve [All India 2016]

and we will all keep still.

For once on the face of the Earth

let’s not speak in any language,

let’s stop for one second,

and not move our arms so much.

Answer the following.

(a) The poet urges humanity to remain silent for the duration of twelve counts. (True/False)

(b) By keeping still, we can count till twelve, according to the poet. (True/False)

(c) The poet wants us not to ____________ in any language.

(d) We should not move our ____________ for one second.

Ans :

(a) True (b) False (c) speak (d) arms

Q2. It would be an exotic moment

without rush, without engines,

we would all be together

in a sudden strangeness.

Answer the following.

(a) It would be an exotic time because no engines would rush around. (True/False)

(b) The poet envisages an exotic moment of stillness which would be without ____________ .

(c) There would descend a sudden ____________ when we all get together.

(d) When there will be no engines or rush, what kind of moment would that make?

Ans :

(a) True (b) rush (c) strangeness (d) exotic

Q3.Those who prepare green wars,

wars with gas, wars with fire,

victory with no survivors,

would put on clean clothes

and walk about with their

brothers…

Answer the following.

(a) Fighting a green war leads to a victory with all survivors. (True/False)

(b) Wars using gas and fire as weapons, are wars with no survivors. (True/False)

(c) Who would wear clean clothes in case there was a silence on the war front?

(d) With whom would these ex-warriors walk?

Ans :

(a) False (b) True (c) fighters (d) brothers

Q4. ...perhaps a huge silence [Foreign 2016]

might interrupt this sadness

of never understanding ourselves

and of threatening ourselves with

death.

Answer the following.

(a) Silence will help us understand ourselves. (True/False)

(b) Human beings are currently threatening us with death. (True/False)

(c) What follows due to not understanding one another?

(d) In a noisy world we do not ____________ ourselves.

Ans :

(a) True (b) True (c) sadness (d) understand

Q5. Perhaps the Earth can teach us

as when everything seems dead

and later proves to be alive.

Now I’ll count up to twelve

and you keep quiet and I will go.

Answer the following.

(a) The poet is counting up to twelve, so that we can hide from him. (True/False)

(b) The Earth teaches us to be outwardly silent and inwardly productive. (True/False)

(c) By keeping quiet we may appear outwardly to be ____________ .

(d) The ____________ can teach us to be introspective

Ans : (a) False (b) True (c) dead (d) Earth

                                                         Short Answer Questions ( 2 Marks)

Q1. Which symbol from nature does the poet invoke that there can be life under apparent stillness?

Ans : The poet uses ‘Earth’ as a symbol to invoke that there can be life after apparent stillness. The Earth seems ‘still’ from outside but is alive and vibrant deep within. Similarly, our silence can help us to maintain a harmonious life on Earth and stop destruction.

Q2. How will keeping quiet protect our environment?

Ans : Keeping quiet refers to stopping all activities for a moment and introspect. This will help us to analyse the kind of deeds we are doing for our selfish purpose but which harm nature. This moment will make us understand the fact that harmony with nature is very essential for the survival of mankind.

Q3. What will possibly be the effect of ‘keeping quiet’?

Ans : Keeping quiet will result in a mutual understanding among all human beings and understanding ourselves. We will be able to understand the fact that the balance between nature and human beings is essential for our existence on the Earth.

Q4. Which is the exotic moment that the poet refers to in ‘Keeping Quiet’?

Ans : The poet refers to the exotic moment when everyone would be silent and still and there would be no noise or mad race. It will evoke an environment of peace and quietness with no conflicts, quarrels, agreements or wars. This moment will bring a sense of togetherness among all human beings.

Q5. Which images in the poem ‘Keeping Quiet’ show that the poet condemns violence?

Ans : Pablo Naruda gives the images of ‘green war’, ‘war with gas’ and ‘wars with fire’ and then associates these wars with ‘victory with no survivors’. This is to emphasise the fact that wars will bring an end to the entire human race. This shows that he condemns violence.

Q6.  What are the different types of wars mentioned in the poem? What is Neruda’s attitude towards them?

Ans : Pablo Neruda has mentioned ‘green wars’, ‘wars with fire’ and ‘wars with gas’. The poet does not appreciate the concept of war. He condemns it by saying that these wars will result in victory with no survivors. So instead of these wars and conflicts we must develop the concept of mutual understanding and co-existence.

Q7. How can suspension of activities help?

Ans : The suspension of activities will help us to introspect. It will provide an insight into the mad rush and selfish actions we indulge in. When we all are able to ponder and analyse our own actions and attitude, we will develop mutual understanding and realise the importance of co-existence.

 Q8. Do you think the poet advocates total inactivity and death? Why/Why not?

Ans : The poet does not advocate ‘total inactivity’ because he has a firm belief in life. He wants everyone to live a complete life, full of peace and contentment. He wants everyone to take a break from the hectic schedule and introspect for a while to improve the quality of life.

Q9. What will be the ultimate end of man if the present scenario of wars and conflicts continues?

Ans :If the present scenario of war and destruction continues, it will lead to total destruction of the humanity. We all will perish and nobody will be left to celebrate the victory.

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An Elementary School classroom in a Slum by Stephen Spender

         

Extract Questions

Q1. Far far from gusty waves these children’s faces. [Delhi 2017]

Like rootless weeds, the hair torn round their pallor;

The tall girl with her weighed-down head.

Answer the following.

(a) The pale faces of the children are in contrast to the gusty waves. (True/False)

(b) The children looked like rooted weeds. (True/False)

(c) A tall ____________ has a weighed-down head?

(d) What was the condition of the children’s hair?

Ans :

(a) True (b) False (c) girl (d) torn

Q2.The stunted, unlucky heir

Of twisted bones, reciting a father’s gnarled disease,

His lesson, from his desk. At back of the dim class

One unnoted, sweet and young. His eyes live in a dream,

Of squirrel’s game, in tree room, other than this.

Answer the following.

(a) The boy was an unlucky heir to the throne of his father. (True/False)

(b) The boy had inherited twisted bones from his father. (True/False)

(c) A sweet and young child sat ____________ at the back.

(d) The child was dreaming of a ____________ game.

Ans :

(a) False (b) True (c) unnoticed (d) squirrel’s

Q3. At back of the dim class [All India 2017]

One unnoted, sweet and young. His eyes live in a dream,

Of squirrel’s game, in tree room, other than this.

Answer the following.

(a) The class is enjoying a squirrel’s game. (True/False)

(b) The classroom not being well lit is ____________ .

(c) The boy was sitting at the back of the class ____________ .

(d) The hole where the squirrel was spotted is called a tree ____________ by the poet.

Ans :

(a) False (b) dim (c) unnoticed (d) room

Q4. On sour cream walls, donations. Shakespeare’s head, [Foreign 2017]

Cloudless at dawn, civilised dome riding all cities.

Belled, flowery, Tyrolese valley.

Answer the following.

(a) The walls of the classroom were made of sour cream. (True/False)

(b) On the classroom wall there is a head of ____________ .

(c) There are also pictures of the ____________ valley.

(d) At what time of the day is the shot of the Tyrolese Valley taken?

Ans :

(a) False (b) Shakespeare (c) Tyrolese (d) cloudless dawn

Q5.Open-handed map

Awarding the world its world. And yet, for these

Children, these windows, not this map, their world,

Where all their future’s painted with a fog,

A narrow street sealed in with a lead sky

Far far from rivers, capes, and stars of words.

Answer the following.

(a) For the children in the classroom the only world that they know of is outside their classroom windows.  (True/False)

(b) The map in the classroom is pinned to the window of the classroom. (True/False)

(c) The school is located in a ____________ street.

(d) The future of the children is dull and has been compared to a ____________ .

Ans :

(a) True (b) False (c) narrow (d) fog

Q6. Surely, Shakespeare is wicked, the map a bad example,

With ships and sun and love tempting them to steal—

For lives that slyly turn in their cramped holes

From fog to endless night? On their slag heap, these children

Wear skins peeped through by bones and spectacles of steel

With mended glass, like bottle bits on stones.

Answer the following.

(a) The map is a bad example for the children as it tempts hopes in the children. (True/False)

(b) After seeing ships and sunshine, the children’s minds are slyly turning in their cramped ____________ .

(c) The children’s living quarters are described as ____________ heaps.

(d) What metal is used to make the children’s spectacle frames?

Ans :

(a) True (b) holes (c) slag (d) steel

Q7. Unless, governor, inspector, visitor,

This map becomes their window and these windows

That shut upon their lives like catacombs.

Answer the following.

(a) The authorities associated with the school are the governor, the inspector and visitors.

(True/False)

(b) The poet urges the authorities to make the classroom map the children’s ____________ to the

outer world.

(c) The windows of the classroom have been compared to ____________ .

(d) ________________ in the classroom is an outlet to the world beyond.

Ans :

(a) True (b) window (c) catacombs (d) map

Q8. How is ‘Shakespeare wicked and the map a bad example’ for the children of the school in a slum?

Ans : The lives of slum children are far removed from what is displayed on the walls. Shakespeare represents literature and the map shows the foreign land with beautiful landscapes. This civilized world is meaningless for them and will tempt them to take a wrong path.

Q9. What message does Stephen Spender convey through his poem ‘An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum’?

Ans : Through this poem Stephen Spender wants to convey the idea of social injustice and class inequality. Expressing his concern at the plight of the slum children, he appeals to the governors, visitors and inspectors to provide equal opportunities for education to these children.

Q10. How does the poet describe the classroom walls? What do they symbolize?

Or

What do you think is the colour of ‘sour cream’? Why do you think the poet has used this expression to describe the classroom walls?

Ans : The classroom walls are painted in a dull creamy colour which symbolizes the bleak future of the slum children who study there. They are deprived of quality education.

Q11. What is the only hope for the slum children?

Ans :The only hope for these children lies in the hands of inspectors, visitors and governors. They should take immediate action to provide them with equal opportunities for education so that they can move out of their slums and be part of the real world.

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My Mother at Sixty-Six by Kamala Das

Extract Questions

Q1 Driving from my parent’s

home to Cochin last Friday

morning, I saw my mother,

beside me,

doze, open mouthed, her face

ashen like that

of a corpse and realised with pain

Answer the following.

(a) The poet was driving from her parents’ home to Cochin. (True/False)

(b) The poet was dozing beside her mother, open-mouthed. (True/False)

(c) On which day did the incident of the poem take place?

(d) What colour, according to the poet, describes the colour of a corpse?

Ans :

(a) True (b) False (c) Friday morning (d) ashen

Q2. ...I saw my mother,

beside me,

doze, open mouthed, her face

ashen like that

of a corpse and realised with pain…

Answer the following.

(a) The poet saw her mother sitting beside her, open mouthed. (True/False)

(b) Her mother’s face looked ashen, as her mother was a corpse. (True/False)

(c) The poet’s mother was sitting beside her and ____________ .

(d) Seeing her mother beside her, brought home to the poet a painful ____________ .

Ans :

(a) False (b) False (c) dozing (d) realisation

Q3. …I looked again at her, wan, pale

as a late winter’s moon and felt that old

familiar ache, my childhood’s fear.

Answer the following.

(a) When the poet looked at her mother she looked wan and pale. (True/False)

(b) What kind of ache rose in the poet’s mind due to a childish fear?

(c) The poet’s mother’s face looked pale as the ____________ moon.

(d) The reference to a fear is traced to the poet’s ____________ .

Ans :

(a) True (b) Childish (c) winter’s (d) childhood

Q4. What is the kind of pain and ache that the poet feels?

                                                            Or

What kind of pain does Kamala Das feel in ‘My Mother at Sixty-six’?

Ans : Whenever the poet looks at the colourless and pale face of her mother, her old familiar pain surfaces realising that her mother was ageing and would die soon.

Q5. Why are the young trees described as ‘sprinting’?

Ans : The young trees are described as “sprinting” because when we look at them from a moving car, they seem to be running fast in the opposite direction.

Q6. Why has the poet brought in the image of the merry children ‘spilling out of these home’?

Ans : The image of the merry children ‘spilling out of their home’ suggests the idea of youth and beauty in contrast to the ashen-like pale wan face of the ageing mother of the poet. This image emphasises the fact that the old mother has lost vitality, energy, charm, beauty and youth.

Q7. Why has the mother been compared to the late winter’s moon?

Or

Why does Kamala Das compare her mother to a pale winter’s moon?

Ans : The mother has been compared to the late winter’s moon as she is very old and her face is ashen, pale and withered. She looks very dull and lifeless like the late winter’s moon.

Q8. What do the parting words of the poet and her smile signify?

Ans : The parting words express the poet’s optimism. These words console the mother that she would soon visit her again. She smiles to conceal her fear and pain of separation from her mother and gives her ageing mother an assurance of survival.

Q9. What were the poet’s feelings at the airport? How did she hide them?

Ans : The poet was full of pain and fear of being separated from her ageing mother. The fear of losing her mother gripped her. But she bade her mother goodbye with a smile to give her hope of survival and meeting again.

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