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Self reliant India, strong India
(आत्मनिर्भर भारत, मजबूत भारत।)
Boycott Chinese Products.
( चीनी वस्तुओं का बहिष्कार करें।)
THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY
By
(Khushwant Singh)
Textual Questions and Answers
Textual Questions and Answers
( Notes by Baljit Singh)
Q1. Mention three phases of the author's relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.
Ans. i). Author's first phase of relationship with his grandmother was very innocent and pure. His parents had shifted to city leaving him behind with his grandmother. She bathed him, prepared food for him and went to school with him. While he learnt alphabets in the school , she read scriptures in the temple. She also helped the writer to prepare his lessons.
ii) His second phase of relationship was not as innocent as his first one. The writer was called by his parents in the city. Now he went to school in a motor bus. So his grandmother did not go with him. The writer used to go in an English school. So she could not help him in his studies.
iii) His third phase of relationship started when the writer joined the University and got a separate room. The common link of friendship between them was snapped. The grand mother accepted her seclusion with resignation. Now she was always busy telling the beads of her rosary and saying prayer. She used to feed the sparrows in the courtyard of her city house.
Q2. Mention three reasons why the grand mother was disturbed when he started going to city school?
Ans The grandmother was much disturbed when the writer started going to city school because-
i) The city school provided modern education . He was taught English, science principles and Geography in which she could not help.
ii) There were lessons in music also in his school. The grandmother believed that music was the monopoly of beggars and harlots.
iii) There was no education of religion and God.
Q3. Mention three ways in which the author's grandmother spent her days after he grew up?
Ans. i) She spent her time spinning on her wheel and reciting prayer.
ii) She used to feed the sparrows in the city house.
iii)She was always busy telling the beads of her rosary. Her lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer.
Q4. Mention the odd ways in which the grandmother behaved just before she died?
Ans. When the writer returned home from abroad after five years, she behaved strangely.She did not speak to him. She was busy telling the beads of her rosary. In the evening a change came over her. She collected the women of her neighbourhood, got an old drum and started singing and dancing. They persuaded her to stop over-straining. But she would not listen to their request. It was first time she omitted prayer. She got ill due to over-straining and passed away.
Q5. Mention how the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the writer' grandmother died?
Ans. Sparrows had a great attachment with the grandmother because she used to feed them.When she died, thousands of them gathered round his corpse with no chirruping. They did not even notice the bread crumbs that the writer's mother had thrown to them. It seemed as if they had come there to pay tribute to their companion.
Q6. How can you say that the writer's grandmother was a religious lady?
Ans The writer' grandmother was a religious lady. There are many activities that prove that she was a religious lady.
i) She used to go to temple and read scriptures.
ii) Her lips moved constantly in an inaudible prayer.
iii) Her hands were busy telling the beads of her rosary.
iv) She used to feed the village dogs.
v) She used to feed sparrows in her city house.
vi) She was disturbed to know that there was no teaching of scriptures and god in the city school.
Writer' grand mother reading scriptures.
LESSON 2.
''We are not Afraid to Die -If We can All Die Together''
TEXTUAL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q1. What steps were taken by the captain to protect the ship from rough weather?
Ans:-The captain started his journey to go round the world with his family. He started from Plymouth, England in his boat named Wavewalker which had been professionally built to face the roughest weathers of the sea. The first leg of his voyage passed pleasantly as they sailed down the west coast of Africa to Cape Town. But before heading east, he hired two crewmen for help.
In order to face the enormous and dangerous waves of the Southern Indian Ocean, he dropped the storm jibs that slowed down the speed of the roaring waves. He also tied a heavy mooring rope across the front part of the boat and put on oilskins and life jackets. In this way he took precautions to protect his ship from storm.
Q2. What steps did he take to check flooding of water in the ship?
Ans. Suddenly, the boat struck with a rock breaking its base. The water started gushing in alarmingly. Both of the crewmen stated pumping water out of the boat madly. The captain put a canvas over the holes in the deck. The situation became very dangerous when the pumps started to block up with garbage. The electric pump also stopped working. Luckily there were spare pumps which worked. Thus the ship was saved from sinking.
Q3.- Describe the mental condition of the voyagers on 4 and 5 January.
Ans. The voyagers were in a horrible state. They had been continuously pumping water for 36 hours and were dead tired and hungry as they had eaten nothing for the last two days Still, they could not pump out the water as it was continuously gushing in.They could not set sail on the main mast as it could break the hull apart. So they hoisted the storm jib and headed for the nearby islands. But their respite was short lived .The weather deteriorated and by the dawn of January 5, their situation was again desperate. The captain's son Jon said," We are not afraid to die if we can all be together". These words aptly reflect their state of mind.
Q4. How does the story suggest that optimism helps to endure "the direst stress?" OR
What message does the story convey?
Ans. The story conveys a deep moral message that optimism helps to endure direst stress. One should face the difficulties of life with cheerful heart and determination. Optimism acts as a catalytic for the tired minds. An optimistic person never loses courage and hope. He sees a silver lining in dark clouds. The captain and his children show exemplary courage and optimism when their ship is near to sink in the deep sea and their end is very near. The ship was badly damaged but they did not lose hope and ultimately struggled to reach the' Isle Amsterdam'
Q5. What lessons do we learn from such hazardous experiences when we are face to face with death?
Ans-Our bitter experiences become our real asset if we take them optimistically. During difficulties our real character comes to light. We should not lose hope and face the challenges of life with cheerful heart and determination. Only weak and crippled minds bow before hardships while the bold and brave minds swallow the poison of obstacles happily and succeed in their mission.
Q6. Why do you think people take such adventurous expeditions in spite of the risks involved?
Ans. Adventurous loving people always play a risky game in hope to do something new and impossible. They climb on the Everest, swim across the seas or reach the poles. They know that in such expeditions, they may lose their life. But they are afire with high hopes and determination and believe in their own might. They are full of self-confidence and optimism.
POEM- A PHOTOGRAPH (ShIrley Toulson)
Comprehension-
Stanza 1.
The cardboard shows me, how it was
When the two girls cousins went paddling
Each one holding one of my mother's hands
And she the big girl- some twelve years or so
All three stood still to smile through their hair
At the uncle with the camera
Meanings-1 cardboard- here it means snapshot or photo
2 Paddling- walking through water making a noise of splashing
Qi) How many girls were there in the photograph? Who were they?
Ans- There were three girls in the photograph. They were-the poet's mother and her two cousins-Betty and Dolly.
ii) What does the word cardboard denote in the poem?
Ans- Cardboard here means/denotes the snapshot or the photo.
iii)Who was the biggest and how old was she?
Ans The poet's mother was the biggest. She was about twelve years old.
iv) What does 'some' suggest?
Ans- 'Some' here means nearly or about.
v) Why were they smiling?
Ans. They were smiling casually for a snapshot.
vi) Where do you think were they standing?
Ans They were standing on a beach.
vii) Which word in the stanza suggests that they were standing motionless?
Ans-'Still'
STANZA 2
A sweet face,
My mother's, that was before I was born.
And the sea, which appears to have changed less,
Washed their terribly transient feet.
Some twenty-thirty- years later
She'd laugh at the snapshot.
Word-Meanings-
transient- short lived
snapshot- picture/photo taken by camera.
she'd- she would
Q i) Whose face was sweet?
Ans- It was her mother's face.
ii) When was the snapshot taken?
Ans It was taken before the poetess was born.
iii) What has not changed over the years? What does it suggest to you?
Ans The sea has not changed over the years. It suggests the permanence of nature.
iv) What has been described as transient and why?
Ans The feet have been described as transient because human beings are mortal . Their life on this earth is very short.
v) Who would laugh at the snapshot? What does the laughter indicate?
Ans- The poet's mother would laugh at the snapshot to see how absurdly her parents dressed them for beach.
STANZA 3.
"See Betty
And Dolly,"she'd say,"and look how they
Dressed us for the beach." The sea holiday
was her past, mine is her laughter. Both wry
With the laboured ease of loss.
Word-meanings
beach- sea coast
wry- twisted and distorted with disappointment.
Qi) Who are Betty and Dolly?
Ans- They are cousin of the poet's mother.
ii) Explain-" The sea holiday was her past,mine her laughter"
Ans- The poet's mother is dead now. Her picnic for beach was her past now. And her laughter has become a thing of past for the poetess.
iii) What does the line " Both wry with the laboured ease of loss" mean?
Ans- The poetess has managed the loss of her mother with great difficulty.
iv) What poetic device has been used in the last line?
Ans- Oxymoron. Laboured and ease are two opposite words, still they explain the same thing -loss.
v) What does "both" refer to?
Ans "Both" refers to poet's mother remembering her past holiday on beach and the poet remembering her mother's laughter.
STANZA 4.
Now she's been dead nearly as many years
As that girl lived. And of this circumstance
There is nothing to say at all.
Its silence silences.
Qi) Who does that girl refer to?
Ans 'That girl' refer to the poetess' mother.
ii) How many years ago she died?
Ans She died nearly 12 years ago.
iii) What does 'this circumstance' mean?
Ans- It refers to the period after the mother's death.
iv) Explain-"Its silence silences".
Ans- The mother's death was a great loss for the poetess. Now she has nothing to say about the period after her death. The silence of the photograph silences the poetess.
SUMMARY OF THE POEM
The poem sums up the theme of permanence of nature and transience of human life. All the natural things seem to change less as compare to human beings. The life of living beings is very short whereas the things of nature or the things made by man have a permanent value. They keep their lustre for a long time. The poetess finds a photograph in which her mother was paddling on a sea-coast with her two cousins. All three were in a merry mood. This photograph was taken by her mother's uncle. All the three girls were smiling through their hair It was taken when the poetess was not born.This photograph makes the poetess sad and nostalgic. It reminds her of her mother who was no more in this world. Her death was a great loss for her. The silence of the photograph silences her. She says with sad and heavy heart that the sea that washed their feet seems to change less.
The Laburnum Top by Ted Hughes
Summary of the poem
It is a short and beautiful poem written by Ted Hughes. It is written in blank verse. There are three stages in this poem. These are- 1. before the gold finch enters the tree. 2. The time when she is inside the tree. 3. After she has launched away in the infinite. The laburnum top is quiet and still before the goldfinch comes. Its leaves are yellowing. But as the goldfinch enters its thickness ,the whole tree comes to life. It starts trembling with the chirruping of birds and rustling of leaves. The gold finch enters the tree as smooth and alert as a lizard. She feeds her young ones and comes out and sits on the end of a branch and then launches away in the sky and the tree becomes silent again. The poet says that the goldfinch is the engine of her family. She stokes it and a machine starts. Her movements are compared to a lizard. Poet has used imagery of engine to bring out his point.
Q1. What has the movement of the goldfinch compared to? What is the basis of this comparison?
Ans. The movement of the goldfinch has been compared to a lizard. Just as a lizard move carefully and then attacks it's victim suddenly, similarly a goldfinch enters the tree abruptly so that she may not be observed by some predator bird.
2 Why has the image of engine been evoked by the poet? What purpose does it serve?
Ans. Just as an engine is the source of energy for a machine, similarly, the goldfinch is the engine for her family . She feeds her youngones and protects them.
Q1. Mention three phases of the author's relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.
Ans. i). Author's first phase of relationship with his grandmother was very innocent and pure. His parents had shifted to city leaving him behind with his grandmother. She bathed him, prepared food for him and went to school with him. While he learnt alphabets in the school , she read scriptures in the temple. She also helped the writer to prepare his lessons.
ii) His second phase of relationship was not as innocent as his first one. The writer was called by his parents in the city. Now he went to school in a motor bus. So his grandmother did not go with him. The writer used to go in an English school. So she could not help him in his studies.
iii) His third phase of relationship started when the writer joined the University and got a separate room. The common link of friendship between them was snapped. The grand mother accepted her seclusion with resignation. Now she was always busy telling the beads of her rosary and saying prayer. She used to feed the sparrows in the courtyard of her city house.
Q2. Mention three reasons why the grand mother was disturbed when he started going to city school?
Ans The grandmother was much disturbed when the writer started going to city school because-
i) The city school provided modern education . He was taught English, science principles and Geography in which she could not help.
ii) There were lessons in music also in his school. The grandmother believed that music was the monopoly of beggars and harlots.
iii) There was no education of religion and God.
Q3. Mention three ways in which the author's grandmother spent her days after he grew up?
Ans. i) She spent her time spinning on her wheel and reciting prayer.
ii) She used to feed the sparrows in the city house.
iii)She was always busy telling the beads of her rosary. Her lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer.
Q4. Mention the odd ways in which the grandmother behaved just before she died?
Ans. When the writer returned home from abroad after five years, she behaved strangely.She did not speak to him. She was busy telling the beads of her rosary. In the evening a change came over her. She collected the women of her neighbourhood, got an old drum and started singing and dancing. They persuaded her to stop over-straining. But she would not listen to their request. It was first time she omitted prayer. She got ill due to over-straining and passed away.
Q5. Mention how the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the writer' grandmother died?
Ans. Sparrows had a great attachment with the grandmother because she used to feed them.When she died, thousands of them gathered round his corpse with no chirruping. They did not even notice the bread crumbs that the writer's mother had thrown to them. It seemed as if they had come there to pay tribute to their companion.
Q6. How can you say that the writer's grandmother was a religious lady?
Ans The writer' grandmother was a religious lady. There are many activities that prove that she was a religious lady.
i) She used to go to temple and read scriptures.
ii) Her lips moved constantly in an inaudible prayer.
iii) Her hands were busy telling the beads of her rosary.
iv) She used to feed the village dogs.
v) She used to feed sparrows in her city house.
vi) She was disturbed to know that there was no teaching of scriptures and god in the city school.
LESSON 2.
''We are not Afraid to Die -If We can All Die Together''
TEXTUAL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q1. What steps were taken by the captain to protect the ship from rough weather?
Ans:-The captain started his journey to go round the world with his family. He started from Plymouth, England in his boat named Wavewalker which had been professionally built to face the roughest weathers of the sea. The first leg of his voyage passed pleasantly as they sailed down the west coast of Africa to Cape Town. But before heading east, he hired two crewmen for help.
In order to face the enormous and dangerous waves of the Southern Indian Ocean, he dropped the storm jibs that slowed down the speed of the roaring waves. He also tied a heavy mooring rope across the front part of the boat and put on oilskins and life jackets. In this way he took precautions to protect his ship from storm.
Q2. What steps did he take to check flooding of water in the ship?
Ans. Suddenly, the boat struck with a rock breaking its base. The water started gushing in alarmingly. Both of the crewmen stated pumping water out of the boat madly. The captain put a canvas over the holes in the deck. The situation became very dangerous when the pumps started to block up with garbage. The electric pump also stopped working. Luckily there were spare pumps which worked. Thus the ship was saved from sinking.
Q3.- Describe the mental condition of the voyagers on 4 and 5 January.
Ans. The voyagers were in a horrible state. They had been continuously pumping water for 36 hours and were dead tired and hungry as they had eaten nothing for the last two days Still, they could not pump out the water as it was continuously gushing in.They could not set sail on the main mast as it could break the hull apart. So they hoisted the storm jib and headed for the nearby islands. But their respite was short lived .The weather deteriorated and by the dawn of January 5, their situation was again desperate. The captain's son Jon said," We are not afraid to die if we can all be together". These words aptly reflect their state of mind.
Q4. How does the story suggest that optimism helps to endure "the direst stress?" OR
What message does the story convey?
Ans. The story conveys a deep moral message that optimism helps to endure direst stress. One should face the difficulties of life with cheerful heart and determination. Optimism acts as a catalytic for the tired minds. An optimistic person never loses courage and hope. He sees a silver lining in dark clouds. The captain and his children show exemplary courage and optimism when their ship is near to sink in the deep sea and their end is very near. The ship was badly damaged but they did not lose hope and ultimately struggled to reach the' Isle Amsterdam'
Q5. What lessons do we learn from such hazardous experiences when we are face to face with death?
Ans-Our bitter experiences become our real asset if we take them optimistically. During difficulties our real character comes to light. We should not lose hope and face the challenges of life with cheerful heart and determination. Only weak and crippled minds bow before hardships while the bold and brave minds swallow the poison of obstacles happily and succeed in their mission.
Q6. Why do you think people take such adventurous expeditions in spite of the risks involved?
Ans. Adventurous loving people always play a risky game in hope to do something new and impossible. They climb on the Everest, swim across the seas or reach the poles. They know that in such expeditions, they may lose their life. But they are afire with high hopes and determination and believe in their own might. They are full of self-confidence and optimism.
POEM- A PHOTOGRAPH (ShIrley Toulson)
Comprehension-
Stanza 1.
The cardboard shows me, how it wasWhen the two girls cousins went paddling
Each one holding one of my mother's hands
And she the big girl- some twelve years or so
All three stood still to smile through their hair
At the uncle with the camera
Meanings-1 cardboard- here it means snapshot or photo
2 Paddling- walking through water making a noise of splashing
Qi) How many girls were there in the photograph? Who were they?
Ans- There were three girls in the photograph. They were-the poet's mother and her two cousins-Betty and Dolly.
ii) What does the word cardboard denote in the poem?
Ans- Cardboard here means/denotes the snapshot or the photo.
iii)Who was the biggest and how old was she?
Ans The poet's mother was the biggest. She was about twelve years old.
iv) What does 'some' suggest?
Ans- 'Some' here means nearly or about.
v) Why were they smiling?
Ans. They were smiling casually for a snapshot.
vi) Where do you think were they standing?
Ans They were standing on a beach.
vii) Which word in the stanza suggests that they were standing motionless?
Ans-'Still'
STANZA 2
A sweet face,
My mother's, that was before I was born.
And the sea, which appears to have changed less,
Washed their terribly transient feet.
Some twenty-thirty- years later
She'd laugh at the snapshot.
Word-Meanings-
transient- short lived
snapshot- picture/photo taken by camera.
she'd- she would
Q i) Whose face was sweet?
Ans- It was her mother's face.
ii) When was the snapshot taken?
Ans It was taken before the poetess was born.
iii) What has not changed over the years? What does it suggest to you?
Ans The sea has not changed over the years. It suggests the permanence of nature.
iv) What has been described as transient and why?
Ans The feet have been described as transient because human beings are mortal . Their life on this earth is very short.
v) Who would laugh at the snapshot? What does the laughter indicate?
Ans- The poet's mother would laugh at the snapshot to see how absurdly her parents dressed them for beach.
STANZA 3.
"See Betty
And Dolly,"she'd say,"and look how they
Dressed us for the beach." The sea holiday
was her past, mine is her laughter. Both wry
With the laboured ease of loss.
Word-meanings
beach- sea coast
wry- twisted and distorted with disappointment.
Qi) Who are Betty and Dolly?
Ans- They are cousin of the poet's mother.
ii) Explain-" The sea holiday was her past,mine her laughter"
Ans- The poet's mother is dead now. Her picnic for beach was her past now. And her laughter has become a thing of past for the poetess.
iii) What does the line " Both wry with the laboured ease of loss" mean?
Ans- The poetess has managed the loss of her mother with great difficulty.
iv) What poetic device has been used in the last line?
Ans- Oxymoron. Laboured and ease are two opposite words, still they explain the same thing -loss.
v) What does "both" refer to?
Ans "Both" refers to poet's mother remembering her past holiday on beach and the poet remembering her mother's laughter.
STANZA 4.
Now she's been dead nearly as many years
As that girl lived. And of this circumstance
There is nothing to say at all.
Its silence silences.
Qi) Who does that girl refer to?
Ans 'That girl' refer to the poetess' mother.
ii) How many years ago she died?
Ans She died nearly 12 years ago.
iii) What does 'this circumstance' mean?
Ans- It refers to the period after the mother's death.
iv) Explain-"Its silence silences".
Ans- The mother's death was a great loss for the poetess. Now she has nothing to say about the period after her death. The silence of the photograph silences the poetess.
SUMMARY OF THE POEM
The poem sums up the theme of permanence of nature and transience of human life. All the natural things seem to change less as compare to human beings. The life of living beings is very short whereas the things of nature or the things made by man have a permanent value. They keep their lustre for a long time. The poetess finds a photograph in which her mother was paddling on a sea-coast with her two cousins. All three were in a merry mood. This photograph was taken by her mother's uncle. All the three girls were smiling through their hair It was taken when the poetess was not born.This photograph makes the poetess sad and nostalgic. It reminds her of her mother who was no more in this world. Her death was a great loss for her. The silence of the photograph silences her. She says with sad and heavy heart that the sea that washed their feet seems to change less.
The Laburnum Top by Ted Hughes
Summary of the poem
It is a short and beautiful poem written by Ted Hughes. It is written in blank verse. There are three stages in this poem. These are- 1. before the gold finch enters the tree. 2. The time when she is inside the tree. 3. After she has launched away in the infinite. The laburnum top is quiet and still before the goldfinch comes. Its leaves are yellowing. But as the goldfinch enters its thickness ,the whole tree comes to life. It starts trembling with the chirruping of birds and rustling of leaves. The gold finch enters the tree as smooth and alert as a lizard. She feeds her young ones and comes out and sits on the end of a branch and then launches away in the sky and the tree becomes silent again. The poet says that the goldfinch is the engine of her family. She stokes it and a machine starts. Her movements are compared to a lizard. Poet has used imagery of engine to bring out his point.
Q1. What has the movement of the goldfinch compared to? What is the basis of this comparison?
Ans. The movement of the goldfinch has been compared to a lizard. Just as a lizard move carefully and then attacks it's victim suddenly, similarly a goldfinch enters the tree abruptly so that she may not be observed by some predator bird.
2 Why has the image of engine been evoked by the poet? What purpose does it serve?
Ans. Just as an engine is the source of energy for a machine, similarly, the goldfinch is the engine for her family . She feeds her youngones and protects them.
