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The Portrait of a Lady Important Extra

Questions and Answers Class 11 English
Hornbill
The Portrait of a Lady Extra Questions and Answers Short
Answer Type

Question 1.
Why was it hard for the author to believe that the grandmother
was once young and pretty?
Answer:
It was difficult for the author to believe that his grandmother was
once young and pretty. In fact, the thought was almost revolting.
He had seen her old for the last twenty years. He felt she could age
no further. The very thought of her playing games as a child
seemed quite absurd and undignified.

Question 2.
The grandmother has been portrayed as a very religious lady. What
details in the story create this impression?
Answer:
The author recalls his grandmother as a very religious woman. He
remembers her hobbling about the house, telling the beads of her
rosary. He recalls her morning prayers and her reading scriptures
inside the temple. The author recounts how, during the last few
days, she spent all her time praying.

Question 3.
The grandmother had a divine beauty. How does the author bring
it out?
Answer:
The grandmother was not pretty but had a divine beauty. She
dressed in spotless white. Her silver locks were scattered untidily
over her pale, puckered face, and her lips constantly moved in an

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inaudible prayer. The author describes her “like the winter

landscape in the mountains”a personification of “serenity,
breathing peace and contentment.”

Question 4.
What proofs do you find of friendship between the grandmother
and grandson in the story?
Answer:
The grandmother and grandson were good friends. She got him
ready and walked him to and back from school. In the city, they
shared a common bedroom. The author’s grandmother saw him off,
silently, but kissing him on his forehead, when he went abroad and
celebrated his return five years later.

Question 5.
The grandmother was a kind-hearted woman. Give examples in
support of your answer.
Answer:
The grandmother was a kind-hearted woman. On her way back
from school, she would feed the village dogs with stale chapattis. In
the city, when she could not move out, she took to feeding
sparrows that came and perched on her legs, shoulders, and head.

Question 6.
“This was the turning point in our friendship.” What was the
turning point?
Answer:
The turning point in the friendship arrived when they shifted to
the city. They saw less of each other as she could neither
accompany him to school, nor understand English. She did not
believe in science. She could not keep pace with the author’s
modem education that he received in the city school.

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Question 7.
Draw a comparison between the author’s village school education
and city school education.
Answer:
The village school was attached to a temple and the students were
taught the alphabet and morning prayers. The author and his
grandmother walked to the school in the village. However, in the
city he went by the school bus. He was taught science and English
but not taught about god. He was also taught music.

Question 8.
What was the happiest moment of the day for the grandmother?
Answer:
The happiest moment of the day for the grandmother in the city
was when she was feeding the sparrows. They perched on her legs,
shoulders, and head but she never shooed them away.

Question 9.
What was ‘the last sign’ of physical contact between the author and
the grandmother? Why did the author think that to be the last
physical contact?
Answer:
The author was going abroad for five years. His grandmother kissed
his forehead. He presumed this as the last sign of physical contact
between them. He feared that she would not survive till he
returned since he was going away for five years.

Question 10.
Everybody including the sparrows mourned the grandmother’s
death. Elaborate.
Answer:
When the grandmother died, thousands of sparrows collected and
sat in the courtyard. There was no chirruping. When the author’s

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mother threw some breadcrumbs for them, they took no notice of

the breadcrumbs. They were full of grief at her death and flew
away quietly after the cremation.

Question 11.
Describe the author’s grandfather as he looked in his portrait.
Answer:
In the portrait, the grandfather was dressed in a big turban and
loose-fitting clothes. His long white beard covered the best part of
his chest and he looked at least a hundred years old. He looked
grandfatherly to the author; someone who could never have been
young.

Question 12.
How does the author describe his grandmother?
Answer:
The author describes his grandmother as short, old, fat and slightly
bent. To him, she looked the same for twenty years. It was difficult
for him to imagine her young and pretty. But he found a beauty in
her old age, like the serene winter landscape.

Question 13.
How does the author react to the idea of the grandmother being
young at a point of time and playing games?
Answer:
The author could not conceive his grandmother as young and
pretty, and playing games as a little girl. To him, it was like one of
the myths and fables she told him.

Question 14.
How did the grandmother prepare the author for going to school?
Answer:
The grandmother woke him up each morning, bathed him, dressed

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him and got him ready for school. There after, she plastered his
wooden slate, gave him breakfast and walked him to school. While
the author sat in the veranda learning the alphabet and morning
prayers, the grandmother sat inside the temple reading scriptures.

Question 15.
Why was the grandmother distressed by the education imparted in
the city school?
Answer:
The grandmother disapproved of the author’s education in the
English school; they were taught science. She could not understand
English and did not believe in science. It made her unhappy that
they were not taught about god. The music lessons in school made
her unhappier as she felt it was not meant for the gentle folk.

Question 16.
How did the grandmother react to the fact that the author was
being given music lessons? Why?
Answer:
The grandson’s learning music in school made her unhappy as she
felt it was not meant for the gentle folk. For her, music had
associations with beggars and harlots. She almost stopped speaking
to the author.

Question 17.
The grandmother’s reception and send off of her grandson were
very touching. Comment.
Answer:
When the writer went abroad, the grandmother saw him off at the
railway station, silently praying and telling her beads, and she
kissed his forehead. When he returned, she expressed her joy by
collecting women from the neighbourhood, beating the drum and

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singing for hours of the homecoming of warriors. For the first time
she missed her prayers.

Question 18.
When the grandmother was taken ill, how were her views different
from the doctor’s?
Answer:
When the grandmother was taken ill, the doctor felt it was mild
fever and would go. But the grandmother thought differently. She
felt her end was near. She refused to waste any more time talking
instead of spending it in prayers as she sensed that only a few
hours remained before her life came to an end.

Question 19.
When people are pious and good, even nature mourns their death.
Justify.
Answer:
When the grandmother died, the sparrows, along with the writer’s
family, mourned her death. Thousands of sparrows came and sat
quietly all around her dead body. The writer’s mother threw
breadcrumbs but the sparrows took no notice of them. After her
cremation they flew without touching the crumbs.

Question 20.
How did the grandmother spend her day in the city?
Answer:
The grandmother spent her day from sunrise to sunset at her
spinning wheel. She sat spinning and reciting her prayers. It was
only in the afternoon that she relaxed for a while to feed the
sparrows.

The Portrait of a Lady Extra Questions and Answers Long

Answer Type

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Question 1.
Elaborate on the beautiful bond of love and friendship between the
author and his grandmother.
Answer:
When the author was still young, his parents left for the city
leaving him to the care of his grandmother. They were good friends.
She woke him up each morning, bathed him, dressed him,
plastered his wooden slate, gave him breakfast and walked him to
school. While he sat in the veranda learning, the grandmother sat
inside the temple reading scriptures.

When they settled in the city, they shared a common bedroom.

When the writer was going abroad, she went to the railway station
to see him off but did not speak a word, only kissed his forehead.
The writer cherished this as their last physical contact as he was
going away for five years. But his grandmother was there to
receive him back. In the evening, she collected women from the
neighbourhood and beat the drum and sang for hours of the
homecoming of the warriors. For the first time she missed her
prayers.

Question 2.
The grandmother was not pretty but beautiful. How?
Answer:
The grandmother was short, old, fat and slightly bent. For the last
twenty years she looked the same and to the author she seemed
too old to age further. It was difficult for him to imagine that she
could have been young and pretty. But to him, she was beautiful in
a pristine and peaceful way. He remembered her telling the beads
of her rosary, untiringly.

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Her silver locks lay scattered untidily over her pale, puckered face,
and her lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer. She was like
the winter landscape in the mountains, serene and content.

Question 3.
Discuss the relevance of the title ‘The Portrait of a Lady’.
Answer:
Khushwant Singh draws a heart-warming pen-portrait of his
grandmother whom he loved and admired. Though not pretty, she
was beautiful to the author’s perception. Telling the beads of her
rosary while her lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer, she
was like the winter landscape in the mountains serene and content.
She shared a special relationship with the author.

She got him ready and walked him to and from school. White he
sat in the veranda learning, his grandmother sat inside the temple
reading scriptures. The writer recounts his memories of his
grandmother when he went abroad and how on his return she
collected women from the neighbourhood and beat the drum and
sang for hours of the homecoming of the warriors.

For the first time, she missed her prayers. She was a pious soul,
who cared for the family, and even dogs and sparrows; her death
was mourned by all including the sparrows. The writer, through his
portrayal, makes the old lady endearing and unforgettable.

Question 4.
From a foster mother in the village to a lonely old lady in the city
describe the grandmother’s journey through the later part of her
life.
Answer:
When Khushwant Singh was still young, his parents left for the city
leaving him to the care of his grandmother. They were good friends.

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His grandmother tended to him, got him ready and walked him
to . school. While Khushwant Singh and the other children sat in
the school’s veranda, learning, his grandmother sat inside the
attached temple, reading scriptures.

In the city, their friendship underwent a change. The only thing

that remained unchanged was their common bedroom. She could
not accompany him to school as he went by the school bus. His
grandmother did not understand or approve of his ‘city education’
and their communication deteriorated further. Later, when he
went to the university, he got a separate room and this severed
their bond further. She then spent her day from sunrise to sunset
at her spinning wheel. She sat spinning and reciting her prayers. It
was only in the afternoon that she relaxed for a while to feed the
sparrows.

Question 5.
Write a character sketch of the author’s grandmother using the
following words: affectionate, caring, kind and benevolent, religious,
a strong woman.
Answer:
The author’s grandmother was not pretty but to the author she
was a beautiful woman an embodiment of serenity and
contentment. She was a pious and a religious lady who was always
telling beads of her rosary and her lips constantly moved in
inaudible prayer. She was an affectionate and a caring woman. She
shared a special relationship with the author.

She woke him up each morning, bathed him, dressed him,

plastered his wooden slate, gave him breakfast and walked him to
school. Her kindness and benevolence extended to the dogs and
sparrows as well, whom she fed dutifully. She was a strong woman,
who did not show any emotion when the author was going abroad

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but when he returned, she collected women from the

neighbourhood and beat the drum and sang for hours of the
homecoming of warriors.

Question 6.
The grandmother herself was not formally educated but was
serious about the author’s education. How does the text support
this?
Answer:
The grandmother was not formally educated but was serious about
the author’s education. She could read the scriptures. She realized
the value of education and did not let the author miss school. She
woke him up each morning, bathed him, dressed him, plastered his
wooden slate, gave him breakfast and walked him to school where
he was taught the alphabet and morning prayers. While he sat in
the veranda learning, the grandmother read her scriptures.

In the city, she could not accompany him to school as he went by

the school bus. He was now in an English school, where they taught
science. She could not understand English and did not believe in
science. The fact that they were not taught about god made her
unhappy. Khushwant Singh’s music lessons in school upset her over
its lewd associations. She took an interest in the author’s education.

Question 7.
Gradually the author and the grandmother saw less of each other
and their friendship was broken. Was the distancing deliberate or
due to
the demands of the situation?
Answer:
When the author was a young boy, his parents shifted to the city
leaving him with his grandmother. They were good friends. She was

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with him through the day and even accompanied him to and from
school.

But when his parents had settled in the city, they sent for them.
This proved to be a turning point in their friendship. The only thing
that remained unchanged was their common bedroom. She could
not accompany him to school as he went by the school bus. He was
now in an English school, where they taught science.

She could not understand English and did not believe in science.
The fact that they were not taught about god made her unhappy.
His music lessons in school made her feel worse. But it was when he
went to the university and got a separate room and that their ties
were severed further. This was not deliberate, but the situations
adversely affected their relationship.

We’re Not Afraid to Die… If We Can All Be

Together Important Extra Questions and
Answers Class 11 English Hornbill
We’re Not Afraid to Die… If We Can All Be Together Extra
Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Who was the narrator? What adventurous task did he take on?
Answer:
The narrator was a thirty-seven-year-old businessman, who along
with his family, set from Plymouth, England, on a round-the-
world voyage like Captain James Cook had done 200 years earlier
in a 30-ton wooden-hulled boat.

Question 2.
How did they prepare for this onerous task?
Answer:

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For sixteen years, they spent all their leisure time improving their
seafaring skills in British waters. They bought a boat, Wavewalker,
a 23-metre, 30-ton wooden-hulled vessel that had been
professionally built. They spent months fitting it out and testing it
in the roughest weather that they could find.

Question 3.
How many people were there in the boat?
Answer:
The four of them the narrator, his wife Mary, son Jonathan, and
daughter Suzanne sailed for 105,000 kilometres to the west coast
of Africa to Cape Town. They took on two crewmen with them an
American, Larry Vigil, and a Swiss, Herb Seigler, before settling sail
on the southern Indian Ocean.

Question 4.
What was the first indicator of rough weather?
Answer:
On their second day out of Cape Town, they encountered strong
winds. For the next few weeks, the gales blew continuously. The
gales did not worry the narrator but the sizes of the waves were
disturbing.

Question 5.
What ordeal awaited them on 2 January?
Answer:
After they celebrated Christmas, the weather changed for the
worse. On the early morning of 2 January, the waves became huge.
As the ship rose to the top of each wave, they could see the vast
sea rolling towards them. The wind seemed to be howling.

Question 6.
What measures did they take to counter this ordeal?

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Answer:
They dropped the storm jib and lashed a heavy mooring rope in a
loop across the stem to slow the boat, and then double-lashed
everything, went through their life-raft drill, attached lifelines, put
on oilskins and life jackets.

Question 7.
What happened on the evening of 2 January?
Answer:
On the evening of 2 January there was a lull before the storm. As
the sky grew dark, they heard a growing roar, and saw a massive
cloud rising at the rear of the ship. To their dismay, it was a huge
wave, almost twice the height of other waves, with a fearsome
breaking top.

Question 8.
What happened when they tried to ride over the wave?
Answer:
When they tried to ride over the wave, there was a loud blast that
shook the deck. Water gushed over the ship, the narrator’s head hit
the wheel and he was thrown overboard into the water. He
accepted his impending death, and while he was losing
consciousness, he felt peaceful.

Question 9.
How did the narrator get back to the ship after having been
thrown into the sea?
Answer:
After the narrator felt he was losing consciousness, his head
suddenly popped out of the water. A few metres away, he saw
Wavewalker, nearly overturned. Then, a wave threw it upright. He
grabbed the guardrails and sailed through the air into

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Wavewalker’s main boom. The waves tossed him onto the deck like
a rag doll.

Question 10.
How did they manage to throw out water from the ship?
Answer:
With the narrator’s wife, Mary, at the wheel, the narrator half-
swam, half-crawled into the children’s cabin, where he found a
hammer, screws and canvas, and struggled back on deck. He
secured waterproof hatch covers across the wide-open holes. With
Herb and Larry’s assistance, he managed to throw out the water.

Question 11.
What were the difficulties that they faced that night?
Answer:
The night was bitterly cold, and they were pumping water out of
the ship, steering the ship and working the radio. Moreover, they
were getting no replies to their calls for help, as they were in a
remote comer of the world.

Question 12.
What injuries did Sue sustain? What does it reveal about her?
Answer:
Sue had bumped her head and there was a big bump above her
eyes. She had two black eyes, and a deep cut on her arm. She
showed remarkable maturity for a seven-year-old when she said
that she didn’t want to worry them when her father was trying to
save all of them.

Question 13.
After the water level receded, what was their next concern? What
did they decide to do?
Answer:

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Having survived fifteen hours since the wave hit, the narrator
checked the charts and calculated that there were two small
islands a few hundred kilometres to the east. One of them was lie
Amsterdam. Knowing Wavewalker would not hold for much longer,
they aimed to reach the island.

Question 14.
“But our respite was short-lived.” Why does the narrator say so?
Answer:
By 4 January, they ate their first meal in almost two days after
pumping out most of the water. But their breather was short-lived.
Soon after, black clouds gathered and the wind rose to 40 knots;
the sea kept getting higher. The weather deteriorated and by dawn
on 5 January, the situation turned hopeless, again.

Question 15.
What did Jon say that left the narrator speechless?
Answer:
When the narrator tried to comfort and reassure the children, Jon
said that they were not afraid of dying if all four of them could be
together. The narrator could find no words to respond, but he left
the children’s cabin determined to fight the sea with everything he
had.

Question 16.
What action did the narrator take, after having decided to fight
the sea?
Answer:
To protect the weakened starboard side, he decided to heave to
with the undamaged port hull facing the oncoming waves, using an
improvised sea anchor of heavy nylon rope and two 22-litre plastic
barrels of paraffin.

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Question 17.
How did the narrator make his calculations to find out their
position on 6 January?
Answer:
The Wavewalker rode out the storm and by the morning of 6
January, the narrator worked on wind speeds, changes of course,
drift and current in an effort to calculate their position.

Question 18.
What instruction did the narrator give Larry? What did he expect?
Answer:
At about 2 p.m., the narrator asked Larry to steer a course of 185
degrees and said that if they were lucky, they would see the island
at about 5 p.m. He was not optimistic himself so he went below,
climbed on his bunk and slept off.

Question 19.
Why did the narrator feel that he was not the best captain? What
was the surprise in store for him?
Answer:
When Jon called him the best daddy in the whole world and the
best captain, the narrator was dejected for not being able to locate
the island, so he refuted the statement. The truth was that the
island was just in front of them.

Question 20.
Why did the narrator feel that it was the most beautiful island?
Answer:
The narrator saw lie Amsterdam. It was an unwelcoming piece of
volcanic rock, with little vegetation, but to them it was the most
beautiful island in the world because it held for them the hope of
their survival.

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We’re Not Afraid to Die… If We Can All Be Together Extra

Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
The narrator and his wife had longed to sail. What did they do to
accomplish their dream?
Answer:
The narrator and his wife had always dreamt of sailing. They
wanted to do a round-the-world voyage like Captain James Cook
had done 200 years earlier. For sixteen years they spent all their
leisure time improving their seafaring skills in the British waters.
They took a boat, Wavewalker, that was 23 metres, and weighed
30 ton. It had been professionally built and they spent months
fitting it out and testing it in the roughest weather that they could
find. Finally, in July 1976, the family set out to sail from
Plymouth, England.

Question 2.
What were the troubles that they faced on the morning of 2
January? How did they counter nature’s wrath?
Answer:
When they reached the southern Indian Ocean, one of the world’s
roughest seas, they began to encounter strong winds. Apart from
the gales, the size of the waves was alarming. It was as high as the
main mast. Things became worse on 2 January when the waves
became huge. The ship rose to the top of each wave and they could
see endless waves approaching them, and the screaming of the
wind seemed horrifying to them. To slow the boat down, they
dropped the storm jib and lashed a heavy mooring rope in a loop
across the stem. Then they double-lashed everything, went through
their life-raft drill, attached lifelines, donned oilskins and life
jackets.

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Question 3.
“The first indication of impending disaster came at about 6 p.m.”
What was the warning? What was the disaster that followed?
Answer:
The first warning of the approaching disaster was the threatening
stillness. The wind dropped, and the sky grew dark. Then with a
roar, an enormous cloud seemed to come after the ship. It turned
out to be a vertical wave, almost twice the height of the other
waves, and had fearsome breaking crests. When they tried to move
over it, a monstrous explosion shook the deck. Water broke over the
ship, and the narrator’s head hit against the wheel and he was
thrown into the sea. The narrator accepted his impending death,
and felt he was losing consciousness. But soon, he was tossed back
into the ship like a ‘rag doll’.

Question 4.
How did they deal with the water that had gushed into the ship?
Answer:
As Mary took control of the wheel, the narrator made his way
towards the hatch. Larry and Herb were pumping out water
frantically. He saw broken timbers hanging, the starboard side
bulged inwards; clothes, crockery, charts, tin and toys sloshed
about in deep water. So he struggled into the children’s cabin,
found a hammer, screws and canvas, and laboured back on deck.
He managed to stretch the canvas and secure waterproof hatch
covers across the gaping holes.

Some water continued to stream below, but most of it was now

being deflected over the side. The problems cropped up when the
hand pumps started to block up with the fragments floating
around the cabins and the electric pump short-circuited. The water
level rose ominously. On the deck he missed the two spare hand
pumps, forestay sail, jib, dinghies and the main anchor, which were

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pitched overboard. He found another electric pump and connected

it to an out-pipe, and this worked.

Question 5.
Why were they desperate to look for an island? How did they
manage?
Answer:
After having survived for fifteen hours since the wave hit, they
knew that Wavewalker could not hold together long enough for
them to reach Australia. The narrator checked the charts and
calculated that there were two small islands a few hundred
kilometres to the east. One of them, lie Amsterdam, was a French
scientific base. But the waves had put the auxiliary engine out of
action. To make matters worse, the weather continued to worsen.
The wind finally eased, and the ship rode out the storm by the
morning of 6 January.

The narrator deliberated on wind speeds, changes of course, drift

and current in an effort to calculate their position. What he could
determine was that they were somewhere in 150,000 kilometres
of ocean looking for a 65 kilometre-wide island. About 2 p.m., he
asked Larry to steer a course of 185 degrees. He expected to see
the island at about 5 p.m., and eventually reached it by 6 p.m.

Question 6.
The children braved the situation more maturely than their years.
Discuss.
Answer:
The children, certainly braved the situation more maturely than
their years. Sue had her head hit and swollen, worryingly. She had
two huge black eyes, and a deep cut on her arm. She did not make
much of her injuries because she did not want to worry her father
when he was trying to save them. Jon, the narrator’s six-year- old

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son, assured him that they were not afraid of dying if the family
could all be together.

When Sue’s head injury worsened with her blackened eyes

narrowed to slits, she held on to her spirit and gave the narrator a
card with drawn caricatures of Mary and him with the words:
‘Here are some funny people. Did they make you laugh? I laughed a
lot as well. ’ The underlying message of love and positive hope
overwhelmed the narrator. He was touched with the thoughtfulness
of a seven-year-old girl, who did not want her parents to worry
about a head injury, and that of the boy who was not afraid to die.

Discovering Tut: The Saga

Continues Important Extra
Questions and Answers Class 11
English Hornbill
Question 1.
What generated the interest of the world in King Tut?
Answer:
King Tut was just a teenager when he died. He was the last heir of
a powerful family that had ruled Egypt and its empire for
centuries. Since the discovery of his tomb in 1922, the modem
world wondered about what happened to him and wondered if he
could have been murdered.

Question 2.
How did nature seem to echo the unnatural happening?
Answer:
As King Tut was taken from his resting place in the ancient
Egyptian cemetery, dark-bellied clouds that had scudded across the

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desert sky all day, veiled the stars in grey. It seemed that the wind
was angry and had roused the dust devils.

Question 3.
Why did the tourists throng to see Tut’s tomb? What was their
reaction?
Answer:
The tourists came to pay their respects to King Tut. They admired
the murals and Tut’s gilded face on his mummy-shaped outer
coffin. They read from the guidebooks in whisper, or stood silently,
pondering over Tut’s untimely death, dreading, lest the pharaoh’s
curse befall those who disturbed him.

Question 4.
Who was Howard Carter? What did he find?
Answer:
Howard Carter was the British archaeologist who in 1922
discovered Tut’s tomb after years of unsuccessful search. He
discovered the richest royal collection ever found that included
stunning artifacts in gold that caused a sensation.

Question 5.
Tut was buried in March-April. How did Carter conclude this?
Answer:
On opening a coffin, Carter found a shroud decorated with
garlands of willow and olive leaves, wild celery, lotus petals and
cornflowers. Since these flowers grow in March or April, Carter
concluded that the burial was in these months.

Question 6.
“When he finally reached the mummy, though, he ran into trouble.”
Why was it so?
Answer:

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When Carter tried to raise the mummy out of the coffin, he could
not. The ritual resins had hardened, cementing Tut’s body to the
bottom of his solid gold coffin. No amount of force could pull it out.

Question 7.
How did he decide to detach the mummy? Why?
Answer:
First Carter tried to loosen the resins with the heat of the sun. For
several hours, he put the mummy outside in blazing sunshine that
heated it to 149 degrees Fahrenheit but it was in vain. Then he
decided to carve it out from beneath the limbs and trunk as there
was no other way of raising the king’s remains.

Question 8.
What were the treasures found in the coffin? Why were they put
there?
Answer:
King Tut’s coffin contained precious collars, inlaid necklaces and
bracelets, rings, amulets, a ceremonial apron, sandals, sheaths for
his fingers and toes, and his inner coffin and mask, all of which
were made of pure gold. The royals, in King Tut’s time, hoped to
take their riches along with them for their next life.

Question 9.
How has the viewpoint of archaeologists changed with the passage
of time?
Answer:
The archaeologists, earlier, focussed on the treasures that the tomb
would yield. The centre of attention, now, is more on the
fascinating details of life and intriguing mysteries of death.
Moreover, now they use more sophisticated tools, including medical
technology.

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

23

Question 10.
What was the interesting fact about Tut that was brought to light
in the late sixties?
Answer:
In 1968, more than forty years after Carter’s discovery, an
anatomy professor X-rayed the mummy and revealed a startling
fact: beneath the resin that caked his chest, his breast-bone and
front ribs were missing.

Question 11.
Why was King Tut’s death a big event?
Answer:
King Tut’s demise was a big event as he was the last of his lineage
and his funeral sounded the death rattle of a dynasty. Moreover, he
died at the very young age of about eighteen.

Question 12.
What is known about Tut’s predecessor Amenhotep IV?
Answer:
Amenhotep IV, during his reign, promoted the worship of the Aten,
the sun disk, and changed his own name to Akhenaten, or ‘servant
of the Aten’, and moved the religious capital to the new city of
Akhetaten. He outraged the country by attacking Amun, a major
god, smashing his images and closing his temples.

Question 13.
What made a guard remark, ‘curse of the pharaoh’?
Answer:
When Tut’s body was taken out to be scanned and the million-
dollar scanner had stopped functioning because of sand in a cooler
fan, the guard jokingly remarked that the king had expressed his
annoyance at being disturbed.

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

24

Question 14.
With King Tut was being finally laid to rest, nature was at rest too.
Explain.
Answer:
When King Tut was finally laid to rest, the wind stopped blowing
and was still, like death itself. Orion, the constellation that the
ancient Egyptians knew as the soul of Osiris, the god of the afterlife,
was sparkling. It seemed to be watching over the boy king.

Discovering Tut: The Saga Continues Extra Questions and

Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
Nature echoed the unnatural happenings with King Tut’s body.
Comment.
Answer:
To set to rest the modem world’s speculation about King Tut, the
body was taken out of its resting place some 3,300 years later. He
was required to undergo a CT scan to generate precise data for an
accurate forensic reconstruction. As the body was taken out, raging
wind began to blow which seemed to arouse the eerie devils of dust.
Dark clouds gathered and appeared to shroud the stars in a grey-
coloured coffin. When the body was put down for scan, the million-
dollar scanner seemed to keep from functioning.

There was sand in a cooler fan. It was when he was finally laid to
rest, that the winter air lay cold and still, like death itself, in this
valley of the departed. Just above the entrance to Tut’s tomb stood
Orion the constellation that the ancient Egyptians knew as the soul
of Osiris, the god of the afterlife, supervising the young pharaoh
returning to his rightful place.

Question 2.
“The mummy is in a very bad condition because of what Carter did

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25

in the 1920s.” What did Carter do and why?

Answer:
Howard Carter was the British archaeologist who in 1922
discovered Tut’s tomb. He searched its contents in haste. The tomb,
which had stunning artefacts in gold, caused a sensation at the
time of the discovery.

After months of carefully recording the treasures in the pharaoh’s

coffin, Carter began investigating the three nested coffins. When he
finally reached the mummy, he found that the ritual resins had
hardened. Thus, Tut’s body was cemented to the bottom of his solid
gold coffin. Carter set the mummy outside in blazing sun that
heated it up to 149 degrees Fahrenheit, to no avail.

To prevent the thieves from ransacking, he chiselled the body free.

To separate Tut from his embellishments, Carter’s men removed
the mummy’s head and severed nearly every major joint.

Question 3.
Describe the changing attitudes of the archaeologists over a span of
time.
Answer:
Archaeology has changed substantially in the intervening decades. It
now focusses less on treasure and more on the interesting details of
life and the intriguing mysteries of death. It also uses more
sophisticated tools, including medical technology. In 1968, more
than forty years after Carter’s discovery, an anatomy professor X-
rayed the mummy and revealed a startling fact: beneath the resin
that cakes King Titu’s chest, his breast bone and front ribs were
missing.

Today, diagnostic imaging can be done with computed tomography,

or CT, by which hundreds of X-rays in cross section are put

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

26

together like slices of bread to create a three dimensional virtual

body. It can even answer questions such as how a person died, and
how old he was at the time of his death.

Question 4.
What are the facts that are known about King Tut’s lineage?
Answer:
Amenhotep III, Tut’s father or grandfather, was a powerful
pharaoh who ruled for almost four decades at the height of the
eighteenth dynasty’s golden age. His son Amenhotep IV succeeded
him and initiated one of the strangest periods in the history of
ancient Egypt. The new pharaoh promoted the worship of the Aten,
the sun disk, changed his name to Akhenaten, or ‘servant of the
Aten’, and moved the religious capital

from the old city of Thebes to the new city of Akhetaten, now
known as Amama. He further shocked the country by attacking
Amun, a major god, smashing his images and closing his temples.
After Akhenaten’s death, a mysterious ruler named Smenkhkare
appeared briefly and exited with hardly a trace. A very young
Tutankhaten took the throne as the king, thereafter.

Landscape of the Soul Important Extra

Questions and Answers Class 11 English
Hornbill
Landscape of the Soul Extra Questions and Answers Short
Answer Type

Question 1.
Briefly narrate the story of the Emperor and the Chinese artist.
Answer:
A painter Wu Daozi, who lived in the eighth century was asked to
paint a landscape by the Tang Emperor Xuanzong, to decorate a

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

27

palace wall. The artist concealed his work behind a screen, so that
only the Emperor would see it. For a long time, the Emperor
admired the wonderful scene.

One day the painter showed him a cave at the foot of the
mountain, and said that a spirit dwelt there. The painter clapped
his hands, and the entrance to the cave opened. He then entered
the cave and the entrance closed behind him. Since then nothing is
known of the artist or the painting as the painting vanished off the
wall.

Question 2.
How did stories such as the one about Wu Daozi play an important
role in China’s classical education?
Answer:
Such stories played a significant part in China’s classical education.
They helped the master to guide his pupil in the right direction.
They were not merely tales, but were deeply illuminating of the
essence of art. The books of Confucius and Zhuangzi are full of such
stories. They reveal that art was considered the essence of inner life
and spirit in Asia.

Question 3.
Why did the artist agree to get his daughter married to the
blacksmith?
Answer:
Initially the artist was against the blacksmith, Quinten Metsys,
marrying his daughter. However, one day Quinten slyly sneaked
into the painter’s studio and painted a fly on his latest panel, that
was so realistic that the master tried to swat it away. The artist
was so impressed that he admitted Quinten as an apprentice into
his studio and let him marry his beloved.

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28

Question 4.
What is the difference between the Chinese and European art?
Answer:
The Chinese and European art are different as the European art is
trying to achieve a perfect, illusionistic likeness in Europe, and the
Chinese the essence of inner life and spirit in Asia. While the
European wants you to look at the landscape through his eyes, the
Chinese painter wants you to enter it from any point, then travel
in it. He creates a path for your eyes to travel up and down, then
back again, in a leisurely movement.

Question 5.
How does shanshui express the Daoist view of the universe?
Answer:
Shanshui means ‘mountainwater.’ It expresses the Daoist view. The
mountain is Yang and it stretches vertically towards Heaven. It is
stable, warm, and dry in the sun, while the water is Yin. It is
horizontal and resting on the earth, fluid, moist and cool. The
interaction of Yin, the receiver, feminine aspect of universal energy,
and Yang, active and masculine, is the fundamental belief of
Daoism.

Question 6.
What is lacking in Shanshui?
Answer:
The third element, the Middle Void where their interaction takes
place, is lacking in Shanshui. The Middle Void is indispensable.
Hence nothing can happen without it. This is the reason why the
white, unpainted space in Chinese landscape is important. This is
also where Man finds a fundamental role, in that space between
Heaven and Earth, he becomes the medium of communication
between both poles of the universe.

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

29

Question 7.
How is the pranayama compared to the Middle void?
Answer:
The Middle Void is vital as nothing can happen without it. This is
the reason why the white, unpainted space in Chinese landscape is
imperative. This is also where Man finds a fundamental role, in the
yogic practice of pranayama we breathe in, retain and breathe out.
The suspension of breath is the Void where meditation occurs.

Question 8.
How did the theory of ‘brut art’ put forward by Jean Dubuffet get
credence?
Answer:
French painter Jean Dubuffet challenged the concept of ‘art brut’
in the 1940s. Before that the art of the untrained visionary was of
minor interest. At about the same time ‘an untutored genius was
creating paradise’. This was none other than Nek Chand, who
cleared a little patch of jungle to make himself a garden sculpted
with stone and recycled material known to the world today as the
Rock Garden, at Chandigarh.

Landscape of the Soul Extra Questions and Answers Long

Answer Type

Question 1.
Narrate the tale of the Chinese Emperor and the artist. What
message does the story convey?
Answer:
Tang Emperor Xuanzong asked the painter Wu Daozi, to make a
landscape to decorate a palace wall. The artist had hidden his work
behind a screen, so only the Emperor would see it. The Emperor,
for a long time, admired the wonderful scene, discovering forests,
high mountains, waterfalls, clouds floating in an immense sky, men

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

30

on hilly paths, birds in flight. One day the painter showed him a
cave, at the foot of the mountain.

He said that a spirit lived there. Just then, the painter clapped his
hands, and the entrance to the cave opened. The artist said that it
was infinitely beautiful inside and he entered the cave. The
entrance closed behind him. Since then nothing has been known of
Wu Daozi.

The story underlines the message that the Emperor was only
interested appreciating the outer appearance of the painting but
the artist makes known to him the true meaning of his work. The
Emperor admires the territory while the artist is filled with the
‘spirit’ within.

Question 2.
Narrate the anecdote that brings out that Europeans endeavoured
to achieve ‘a perfect, illusionistic likeness’.
Answer:
In fifteenth century lived a blacksmith named Quinten Metsys who
fell in love with a painter’s daughter. The father, being an artist,
would not accept a son-in-law who was a blacksmith. So Quinten
crept into the painter’s studio and painted a fly on his latest board.
It seemed so real that even the artist thought it was real and tried
to swat it away.

It was then he realised what had happened. He immediately took

Quinten as a trainee into his studio. Quinten then married his
beloved and went on to become one of the most famous painters of
his age.This story exemplifies what European form of art was trying
to achieve. They wanted a perfect, illusionistic likeness.

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31

Question 3.
How do the Chinese expect the people to view the horizontal scroll?
Why?
Answer:
Unlike European art, Chinese art is meant to be metaphorical. An
artist in China would not like the onlooker to look at a particular
landscape from a specific angle. The Chinese painter does not
choose a specific viewpoint. One can enter his landscape from any
point, and then travel in it. The artist creates a course for your
eyes to journey up and down, then back again, at an unhurried
pace.

This is even truer of the horizontal scroll. The action of slowly

opening one section of the painting, then rolling it up to move on
to the other, adds a dimension of time which is unknown in any
other form of painting. It necessitates the active contribution of the
viewer. It is the viewer who decides at what speed he will travel
through the painting. The interaction is physical as well as mental.
The Chinese painter wants you to enter his mind. The landscape is
an inner one, a spiritual and abstract.

Question 4.
What was the revolutionary idea in art that was put forward by
Jean Dubuffet? How did an Indian artist support his theory?
Answer:
Before the French painter Jean Dubuffet, challenged the concept of
‘art brut’ in the 1940s, people were not interested in the art of
the untutored creative thinkers. It was he who defied this concept.
As a consequence this ‘outsider art’ has steadily become the fastest
growing area of interest in modem art worldwide. He felt that
there are artists who have received no formal training, yet show
talent and artistic insight. Their works are a motivating contrast to
a lot of conventional ones.

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

32

At the time Dubuffet was advocating his theory, in India ‘an

untutored genius was creating paradise’. Nek Chand made one of
the biggest contributions by clearing a little patch of jungle to make
himself a garden sculpted with stone and recycled material. This
garden is known to the world today as the Rock Garden at
Chandigarh.

Question 5.
Nek Chand’s work is acclaimed as the work of a genius and is
appreciated world over. Justify.
Answer:
Nek Chand’s work is acknowledged as India’s biggest contribution to
outsider art. The fiftieth issue of Raw Vision, a UK-based magazine
that initiated the outsider art publications, featured Nek Chand,
and his Rock Garden sculpture ‘Women by the Waterfall’ on its
anniversary issue’s cover. It reported how Nek Chand had used
every thing from a tin to a sink to a broken down car to create a
work of art that took him to the pinnacles of glory.

The Swiss Commission for UNESCO applauded his art as ‘an

outstanding testimony of the difference a single man can make
when he lives his dream’, and decided to honour him. They decided
to put up an exhibition of his works. The five-month interactive
show, ‘Realm of Nek Chand’, is to begin in October. It is to be held
at leading museums in Switzerland, Belgium, France and Italy.
However, the greatest honour for him is seeing people enjoy the
creation.

The Ailing Planet: the Green Movement’s Role

Important Extra Questions and Answers Class 11
English Hornbill
The Ailing Planet: the Green Movement’s Role Extra Questions
and Answers Short Answer Type’

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

33

Question 1.
What awareness according to Nani Palkhivala is growing worldwide?
Why?
Answer:
The movement, which has gripped the imagination of the entire
human race, is the worldwide consciousness that the earth itself is
a living organism of which we are parts. It has its own metabolic
needs and vital processes that need attention because the earth’s
vital signs reveal its declining health.

Question 2.
What is propagated by the concept of sustainable expansion?
Answer:
The World Commission on Environment and Development
popularized the concept of sustainable development in 1987. It
stressed the idea of development that meets the needs of the
present, without compromising the ability of future generations to
meet their needs, i.e., without stripping the natural world of
resources future generations would need.

Question 3.
What is the global concern raised by Mr Lester R. Brown that
threatens the very existence of man?
Answer:
Mr Lester R. Brown has noted the earth’s principal biological
systems as fisheries, forests, grasslands, and croplands the
foundation of the global economic system. They provide us with our
food and virtually all the raw materials for industries. However,
human claims are exhausting these resources leading to the collapse
and disappearance of fisheries and grasslands.

Question 4.
What are the reasons that are leading to depletion of our natural

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

34

resources?
Answer:
In a protein-conscious and protein-hungry world, over-fishing is
common. In poor countries, local forests are being destroyed in
order to procure firewood for cooking. As a consequence, in some
places, firewood has become so expensive that fuel costs more than
the food.

Question 5.
What steps has the Indian government taken to ensure the
protection of the environment? What is the impact?
Answer:
The Indian government through Article 48A of the Constitution of
India provides that the State shall try to protect and improve the
environment and safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country.
But the law has not had the due impact as laws are neither valued
nor enforced in India.

Question 6.
The population in the world is growing at an alarming rate.
Comment.
Answer:
The growing world population is deforming the future of human
society. Human population reached its first billion around the year
1800. By the year 1900, a second billion was added, and another
3.7 billion in the twentieth century. Presently, the world
population is estimated at 5.7 billion. Every day the world
population increases by one million.

Question 7.
Why is the growing population detrimental to the world’s progress?
Answer:
Development will not be possible if the present increase in numbers

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

35

continues. The rich get richer and the poor produce more children,
hampering their economic growth. More children do not mean
more workers, merely more people without work. Excessive
population perpetuates poverty. People would die of hunger unless
population growth is controlled.

Question 8.
Why is our age the ‘Era of Responsibility’?
Answer:
A growing anxiety about the survival of our planet has surfaced for
the first time in human history. The emerging new world vision a
holistic view of the source of our survival has steered in the Era of
Responsibility; an ecological view of the world as a complete whole
and not a disconnected collection of parts.

The Ailing Planet: the Green Movement’s Role Extra Questions

and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
“The earth’s vital signs reveal a patient in declining health.” What
are these ‘vital signs’?
Answer:
A three-year study using satellites and aerial photography
conducted by the United Nations, warns that the environment has
worsened so badly that it is ‘critical’ in many of the eighty-eight
countries investigated.

A recent report of our Parliament’s Estimates Committee has

highlighted the near disastrous exhaustion of India’s forests over the
last four decades. India, according to reliable data, is losing its
forests at the rate of 3.7 million acres a year. Large areas, officially
designated as forestland, “are already virtually treeless”.

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

36

The actual loss of forests is estimated to be about eight times the

rate indicated by government statistics.
The world’s ancient patrimony of tropical forests is now eroding at
the rate of forty to fifty million acres a year, and the growing use
of dung for burning deprives the soil of an important natural
fertilizer. The World Bank estimates that a five-fold increase in the
rate of forest planting is needed to cope with the expected fuel
wood demand.

Question 2.
Various visionaries and academicians have warned against
hazardous consequences if we do not wake up to our responsibilities
towards the environment. Elaborate.
Answer:
Mr L.K. Jha, a member of an international commission which dealt
with the question of ecology and environment, raised the question
of whether we would leave our successors a parched planet with
increasing deserts, impoverished landscapes and ailing environment.
Mr Lester R. Brown in his thought-provoking book, The Global
Economic Prospect, points out that the earth’s principal biological
systems, i.e., fisheries, forests, grasslands, and croplands form the
foundation of the global economic system.

In large areas of the world, human claims on these systems are

reaching an unsustainable level, a point where their productivity is
being impaired. Dr Myers warns against the depletion of forests as
a result of which several species face extinction. James Speth, the
President of the World Resources Institute, said that we are losing
the forests at an acre-and-a-half to a second.

Question 3.
What are the four systems that sustain life on earth? What threats
are they facing?

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

37

Answer:
Mr Lester R. Brown in his thought-provoking book, The Global
Economic Prospect, points out that the earth’s principal biological
systems, i.e., fisheries, forests, grasslands, and croplands form the
foundation of the global economic system. In addition to supplying
our food, these four systems provide almost all the raw materials
for industry except minerals and petroleum-derived synthetics. It is
because of this that fisheries collapse, forests disappear, grasslands
are converted into barren wastelands and croplands deteriorate. In
a protein-conscious and protein-hungry world, over-fishing is
common. In poor countries, local forests are being demolished in
order to procure firewood for cooking. Since tropical forests house
various species of life, they face extinction as a result of its
destruction.

Question 4.
“Fertility falls as incomes rise, education spreads, and health
improves.” Justify.
Answer:
Undoubtedly, the growth of world population is one of the
strongest factors disfiguring the future of human society. The
present world population is estimated at 5.7 billion. Every four
days the world population increases by one million. Development is
not possible if the present increase in numbers continue. The rich
get richer and the poor beget more children, which in turn makes
them poorer. More children do not mean more workers, merely
more people without work.

The choice is really between control of population and perpetuation

of poverty. The population of India has crossed 1.3 billion today.
This leaves little doubt that hordes of people would die in their
hungry hutments unless population control is given topmost
priority.Compulsory sterilization is not the solution. Masses should

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

38

be educated so that they volunteer for family planning without

introducing an element of compulsion. It ought to be understood
that the choice is between control of population and continuation
of poverty.

The Browning Version Important Extra

Questions and Answers Class 11 English
Hornbill
The Browning Version Extra Questions and Answers Short
Answer Type

Question 1.
Where does Taplow meet Frank? What does Taplow feel about
being there?
Answer:
Taplow meets Frank at Mr Crocker-Harris’s office, at school.
Taplow had been given extra work to do as he had missed a day of
school the previous week when he was ill. It was the last day of
school and he wished to play golf instead.

Question 2.
What subjects does Taplow want to opt for and why?
Answer:
Taplow wishes to opt for science if he manages good grades. He
claims to be really interested in science and feels it is more
interesting than studying classics such as ‘The Agamemnon’, which
he calls “muck” it had a lot of Greek words, and Mr Crocker-
Harris punished them for not getting them right.

Question 3.
Why does Taplow feel that Mr Harris is “hardly human”?
Answer:
Taplow feels that putting in extra work would make no difference

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

39

to Mr Harris. He had told Taplow that he had got what he

deserved. Taplow suspects he might be awarded with fewer marks
to make him do extra work. He feels Mr Harris is unfeeling worse
than a sadist, and thus calls him “hardly human”.

Question 4.
What does Frank suggest to Taplow about waiting for Mr Harris?
Answer:
When Taplow tells Frank that he was supposed to meet Mr
Crocker-Harris at six-thirty, Frank tells Taplow that Mr Crocker-
Harris was already ten minutes late. He suggests that Taplow could
go and play golf. But Taplow is shocked and expresses his
apprehension if Mr Crocker-Harris should know. He was certain
that nobody had ever done that with Mr Crocker-Harris.

Question 5.
Why does Taplow feel that Mr Harris has no feelings?
Answer:
Taplow calls Mr Harris worse than a sadist. One is required to
admit to feelings if considered a sadist. Mr Harris’s inside, feels
Taplow, is like a nut and he seems to hate people liking him. He did
not appreciate Taplow appreciating his jokes and embarrassed him
in return.

Question 6.
How did Taplow try to express his liking for Mr Harris? What was
the outcome?
Answer:
Taplow admits to liking Mr Harris and realized he felt
uncomfortable about people liking him. He recalls an episode, in
class, where Mr Crocker-Harris made one of his jokes to which
nobody laughed. Taplow knew that it was meant to be funny, and

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

40

laughed. To which, Mr Crocker-Harris teased Taplow about his

knowledge of Latin and asked him to explain the joke to the class.

Question 7.
Who was Millie Crocker-Harris? What was she like?
Answer:
Millie Crocker-Harris was the young wife of Mr Crocker-Harris. She
was a thin woman in her late thirties, and was more smartly
dressed than the other schoolmasters’ wives.

Question 8.
How does Millie Crocker-Harris send Taplow away?
Answer:
Millie learns from Taplow that he was waiting for her husband and
suggests he leaves for quarter of an hour since Mr Harris might be
a while. Taplow is hesitant; Millie assures him she would take on
the blame if Mr Harris arrives before that. She finally sends Taplow
off to the chemist.

The Browning Version Extra Questions and Answers Long

Answer Type

Question 1.
Write a brief character sketch of Frank Hunter.
Answer:
Frank Hunter was the popular, young science teacher. He is liked by
the students who feel he can understand them better than Mr
Crocker-Harris. He is also popular because he teaches science which
the students find easier to comprehend than Classics which they
think is “muck”. He, however, feels students who take up science
are slackers and don’t take much interest in the subject.

He is easy to talk to and approachable. His attitude puts them at

their ease. Taplow finds he can confide his troubles to him. In fact,

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

41

he forgets himself enough to refer to his teacher Mr Crocker-Harris

as “the Crock”.

However, he encourages students to talk ill of other teachers. He

probes the details of the relationship between Mr Crocker-Harris
and Taplow. He also encourages Taplow to disobey the teacher’s
orders and go off before meeting Mr Crocker-Harris.

Question 2.
What idea do you form of Taplow after reading the play ‘The
Browning Version’?
Answer:
Taplow is a young boy of seventeen, studying in the lower fifth
grade. He is an obedient and hard-working student. He has great
liking for science. He was summoned for extra work by Mr
Crocker-Ha Types 11 and 13 Questions rris for missing school for
a day. the week before. Though he wishes to play golf on the last
day before school closes, he obediently turns up to wait .for his
teacher. He is devoted to Mr Crocker-Harris.

When Taplow comes across Mr Frank, the science teacher, Mr

Frank, gets Taplow to discuss Mr Crocker- Harris and also
encourages him to leave. Taplow replies that he cannot “cut” as Mr
Harris would probably follow him home.

When Mr Frank insinuates that his teacher might award him with
a fine result for doing extra work, Taplow refutes it calling Mr
Harris a man of principles. He reiterates that Mr Crocker-Harris
had told him that he had given him exactly what he deserved.
Taplow is a sincere student who respected his teachers.

The Adventure Important Extra Questions and

Answers Class 11 English Hornbill

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

42

The Adventure Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
‘That is, assuming that in this world there existed someone called
Rajendra Deshpande!’ Why does Professor Gaitonde feel so?
Answer:
Professor Gaitonde had gone through a strange and a harrowing
experience. He had been literally transported into an alternative
universe. In the alternative world the reality was very different.
History had altered its course. Now back into the real world
Professor Gaitonde, as a historian felt he would go to a big library
and browse through history books and would return to Pune and
have a long talk with Rajendra Deshpande, to help him understand
what had happened. After the queer happening, he was unsure
about the reality and wondered if Rajendra Deshpande existed.

Question 2.
What were the things that Professor Gaitonde noticed as the train
entered the British Raj territory?
Answer:
As the train touched Sarhad, from where the British Raj began, an
Anglo-Indian in uniform went through the train checking permits.
The blue carriages of the train carried the letters GBMR on the side
an acronym for ‘Greater Bombay Metropolitan Railway’. There was
the tiny Union Jack painted on each carriage as a . reminder that
they were in British territory. As the train stopped at its
destination, Victoria Terminus, the station looked remarkably neat
and clean. The staff was mostly made up of Anglo-Indians and
Parsees along with a handful of British officers.

Question 3.
Where was Khan Sahib going? How did he intend to reach there?
Answer:

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43

Khan Sahib was going to Peshawar. After the train reached

Victoria Terminus he would take the Frontier Mail out of Central,-
the same night. From Bombay he would go to Delhi, then to Lahore
and then Peshawar. It would be a long journey and he would reach
Peshawar two days later.

Question 4.
What was the strange reality that Professor Gaitonde saw as he
stepped out of the station?
Answer:
As Professor Gaitonde came out of the station, he saw an
impressive building. The letters on it revealed that it was the East
India headquarters of the East India Company. He was shocked as
it was supposed to have had stopped operating soon after the
events of 1857 but here it was flourishing.

Question 5.
What came as the biggest blow to Professor Gaitonde?
Answer:
Professor Gaitonde was shocked to see the East India Company
flourishing, a different set of shops and office buildings at Hornby
Road. But when he turned right along Home Street and entered
Forbes building, a greater shock awaited him. He asked for his son
Mr Vinay Gaitonde but the English receptionist, looked through the
telephone list, the staff list and then through the directory of
employees of all the branches of the firm but could not find anyone
of that name.

Question 6.
What did Professor Gaitonde decide to do when the reality that he
was living seemed very strange?
Answer:
When Professor Gaitoride saw unfamiliar sights and felt that he

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was reliving history he was very surprised but not finding his son as
an employee in Forbes baffled him completely. He decided to go to
the library of the Asiatic Society to solve the riddle of history. So he
made his way to the Town Hall.

Question 7.
What books did he browse through in the library? What did he
discover?
Answer:
In the Town Hall library, he asked for a list of history books
including his own. When he got the five volumes, he started looking
through them from the beginning. Volume one dealt with the
history up to the period of Ashoka, volume two up to
Samudragupta, volume three up to Mohammad Ghori, and volume
four up to the death of Aurangzeb. This was history as he had
known. However in the last (fifth) volume, history had taken a
different turn during the Battle of Panipat. The book mentioned
that the Marathas won it handsomely and Abdali was chased back
to Kabul by the triumphant Maratha army led by Sadashivrao
Bhau and his nephew, the young Vishwasrao.

Question 8.
How did the victory of the Peshwas in the Battle of Panipat help
them?
Answer:
The victory in the battle was not only successful in building their
confidence tremendously but it also established the supremacy of
the Marathas in northern India. The East India Company, watching
these events temporarily deferred its plan to spread out further.
For the Peshwas the immediate result was that the influence of
Bhausaheb and Vishwasrao increased and Vishwarao succeeded his
father in 1780 A.D. The rabble-rouser, Dadasaheb, had to retire
from state politics.

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Question 9.
What was the effect of the victory of the Peshwas on the East India
Company?
Answer:
The East India Company was alarmed when the new Maratha ruler,
Vishwasrao, and his brother, Madhavrao, expanded their influence
all over India. The Company was limited to pockets of influence
near Bombay, Calcutta and Madras. However, in the nineteenth
century the Marathas were aware of the importance of the
technological age starting in Europe. Hence when they set up their
own centres for science and technology, the East India Company
saw another chance to extend its influence, it offered support and
experts. But they were accepted only to make the local centres
self-sufficient.

Question 10.
What was the final outcome of the Peshwas?
Answer:
During the twentieth century, inspired by the West, India moved
towards a democracy. By then, the Peshwas had lost their
enterprise and democratically elected bodies slowly but surely
replaced them. The Sultanate at Delhi survived even this change
because it exerted no real influence. The Shahenshah of Delhi was a
nominal head to rubber-stamp the ‘recommendations’ made by the
central parliament.

Question 11.
Gangadharpant began to appreciate the India he had seen. Why
was it so?
Answer:
After reading this new history, Gangadharpant was pleased at the
India he had seen, it was a country that had not been subjected to
slavery of the white man; it had leamt to stand on its feet and

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knew what self-respect was. From a position of strength and for

purely commercial reasons, it had allowed the British to retain
Bombay as the sole outpost on the subcontinent.

Question 12.
How had the Marathas won the battle?
Answer:
After reading about the consequences of the battle Gangadharpant
felt that his investigations were incomplete. To find the answer he
went through the books and journals before him. At last, among
the books he found one that gave him the clue. It was
‘Bhausahebanchi Bakhar’. He found a three-line account of how
close Vishwasrao had come to being killed. However God had been
merciful. The bullet brushed past his ear and he was saved by
inches.

Question 13.
What did he take with him absentmindedly from the library? How
did it help him?
Answer:
At eight o’clock the librarian politely reminded the Professor that
the library was closing for the day. Before Gangadharpant left he
shoved some notes into his right pocket. Absentmindedly, he also
shoved the ‘Bakhar’ into his left pocket. It helped the Professor
convince Rajendra that the story was not a figment of his
imagination. He produced this as a very important piece of
evidence.

Question 14.
What happened did Professor Gaitonde see in the Azad Maidan?
Answer:
In the Azad Maidan, the Professor found a multitude of people
moving towards a pandal to listen to a lecture. As the lecture was

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47

in progress, people kept coming and going. But Professor Gaitonde

stared at the platform, he noticed that the presidential chair was
empty. Like a piece of iron attracted to a magnet, he swiftly
moved towards the chair.

Question 15.
What happened when Professor Gaitonde went ahead to occupy the
chair on the dais?
Answer:
When Professor Gaitonde went ahead to occupy the chair on the
dais, the audience protested vehemently. Professor Gaitonde went
to the mike to give his views but the audience was in no mood to
listen. However, he kept on talking and soon became a target for a
shower of tomatoes, eggs and other objects. Finally, the audience
rushed to throw him out bodily but he was nowhere to be seen.

Question 16.
‘… facts can be stranger than fantasies, as I am beginning to realise.’
Why did Rajendra say this?
Answer:
Rajendra had thought that Professor’s mind was playing tricks on
him till Gangadharpant produced his own copy of ‘Bhausahebanchi
Bakhar’, where the account of the war stated that Vishwasrao was
hit by the bullet. He then produced the other evidence in the form
of a document that he had inadvertently picked up from the
Professor Gaitonde’s library.

Rajendra was confused when he saw this material evidence. He

then admitted that his experience had not been just a fantasy. He
realized that facts could be stranger than fiction.

Question 17.
How did Rajendra explain ‘reality’?

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Answer:
Rajendra said that reality was what we experience directly with
our senses or indirectly via instruments. It may not be unique as
has been found from experiments on atoms and their constituent
particles. Physicists discovered that the behaviour of these systems
couldn’t be predicted definitively even if all the physical laws
governing those systems are known.

Question 18.
How did Rajendra relate the lack of determinism in quantum
theory to the Professor’s experience?
Answer:
Rajendra said that the path of an electron fired from a source
cannot be determined as in one world the electron is found here, in
another it is over there. Once the observer finds where it is, we
know which world we are talking about. But all those alternative
worlds could exist just the same. Similarly, catastrophic situations
offer radically different alternatives for the world to proceed. It
seems that so far as reality is concerned all alternatives are viable
but the observer can experience only one of them at a time.

Question 19.
How did Professor Gaitonde make the transition from one reality
to the other?
Answer:
Rajendra admitted that there are many unsolved questions in
science and this Professor Gaitonde’s transition was one of them.
But he guessed that since one needs some interaction to cause a
transition, at the time of the collision he must have been thinking
about the catastrophe theory and its role in wars. Perhaps he was
wondering about the Battle of Panipat and the neurons in his brain
acted as a trigger.

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The Adventure Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
Describe the observations made by the Professor as he entered the
alternative universe.
Answer:
Professor Gaitonde was shocked when the train stopped beyond the
long tunnel at a small station called Sarhad. An Anglo-Indian in
uniform was checking the train permits.

Then the train passed through the suburban rail traffic. The blue
carriages carried the letters, GBMR, on the side that stood for
‘Greater Bombay Metropolitan Railway’. There was a tiny Union
Jack painted on each carriage as a gentle reminder that they were
in British territory. The station at Victoria Terminus looked
impeccably neat and clean. The staff comprised mostly of Anglo-
Indians and Parsees along with a handful of British officers.

Coming out of the station, he found himself facing an imposing

building. It was the office of the East India Company. As he walked
along Homby Road, as it was called, he found a different set of
shops and office buildings. There was no Handloom House building.
Instead, there were Boots and Woolworth departmental stores,
imposing offices of Lloyds, Barclays and other British banks, as in a
typical high street of a town in England.

The greatest shock that awaited was when he entered Forbes

building and wished to meet his son, Mr Vinay Gaitonde. The
receptionist searched through the telephone list, the staff list and
then through the directory of employees of all the branches of the
firm and finally shook her head and said, that nobody of that
name was either there or any of their branches.

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50

Question 2.
Write a detailed account of the different history that Professor
Gaitonde read in the fifth volume of the book in the library.
Answer:
The book mentioned that the Marathas won Battle of Panipat.
Abdali was chased back to Kabul by the victorious .Maratha army
led by Sadashivrao Bhau and his nephew, the young Vishwasrao. As
a consequence the Marathas gained a great deal of confidence and
established their supremacy in northern India. The East India
Company, watching these developments, temporarily postponed its
expansionist programme. This increased the influence of Bhausaheb
and Vishwasrao who succeeded his father to the throne in 1780
A.D.

The troublemaker, Dadasaheb, was pushed to the background and

he ultimately left state politics. Vishwasrao and his brother,
Madhavrao, combined political insight with courage and expanded
their influence all over India. The Company’s influence was limited
only to areas near Bombay, Calcutta and Madras. For political
reasons, the Peshwas kept the puppet Mughal regime alive in Delhi.

In the nineteenth century the Peshwas realized the importance of

the technological age and set up their own centres for science and
technology. They accepted East India Company’s help only to make
the local centres self-sufficient. In the twentieth century India
moved towards a democracy. The Peshwas had lost their enterprise
and democratically elected bodies gradually replaced them. The
Sultanate at Delhi was just a nominal head to rubberstamp
recommendations made by the central parliament.

Question 3.
What was the difference in the actual events of the Battle of
Panipat and the ones reported in the alternative universe?

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Answer:
Professor Gaitonde wanted to look for accounts of the battle itself,
so he went through the books and journals before him. At last, he
found ‘Bhausahebanchi Bakhar’. There he found account of how
close Vishwasrao had come to being killed but the ‘merciful’ God
had saved him. A shot had brushed past his ear and he had missed
death by inches. However, in this world in which Gaitonde had
written his volumes of history, ‘Bhausahebanchi Bakhar’ reported
that Vishwasrao had died fighting. God had ‘expressed His
displeasure. He was hit by the bullet’. The entire history seemed to
have changed radically.

Question 4.
What was the outcome of the Battle of Panipat in the alternative
universe?
Answer:
Their victory increased the morale of the Marathas. The East India
Company temporarily shelved its expansionist programme. The
Peshwas expanded their influence all over India. The Company was
reduced to pockets of influence near Bombay, Calcutta and Madras.
The Peshwas kept the puppet Mughal regime alive in Delhi. With
the dawn of the technological age in Europe, they set up their own
centres for science and technology.

The East India Company saw another opportunity to extend its

influence but its aid and experts were accepted only to make the
local centres self-sufficient. The twentieth century brought about
further changes inspired by the West, India moved towards a
democracy and democratically elected bodies replaced the Peshwas.
After reading this, Professor Gaitonde began to appreciate that
India because it had not been subjected to slavery of the white man;
it had learnt to stand on its feet and knew what self-respect was.

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From a position of strength and for purely commercial reasons, it

had allowed the British to remain.

Question 5.
Describe the scene that transported Professor Gaitonde to the
alternative universe.
Answer:
Professor Gaitonde, after a frugal meal, set out for a stroll towards
the Azad Maidan. There he saw a pandal where a lecture was to
take place. Professor Gaitonde walked towards the pandal and
noticed that on the platform the presidential chair was unoccupied.
Drawn to the stage like a magnet, he quickly moved towards the
chair.

The speaker stopped in mid-sentence, too shocked to continue. But

the audience shouted at him. When he insisted on talking he
became a target for a shower of tomatoes, eggs and other objects.
But he kept on trying bravely to correct this blasphemy. Finally,
the audience crowded on the stage to throw him out. And, in the
crowd Gangadharpant was nowhere to be seen.

Question 6.
‘But we live in a unique world which has a unique history.’ Why did
the Professor say so?
Answer:
Rajendra tried to rationalize Professor Gaitonde’s experience on the
basis of two scientific theories known today. He had passed through
a catastrophic experience. He applied it to the Battle of Panipat.
The Maratha army was facing Abdali’s troops on the field of
Panipat. There was no great disparity between the latter’s troops
and the opposing forces. So, a lot depended on the leadership and
the morale of the troops.

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In the history known to us Vishwasrao, the son of and heir to the

Peshwa, was killed.

This proved to be the turning pointing in the battle. Whether

Bhausaheb was killed in battle or survived is not known. The
soldiers lost their morale and fighting spirit and were defeated.
However, in the alternative universe the bullet missed Vishwasrao,
and it boosted the morale of the army and provided just that extra
force that made all the difference. Professor Gaitonde felt
comparable statements are made about the Battle of Waterloo,
which Napoleon could have won. But all this is assumption. We live
in a inimitable world which has a distinctive history. This idea of ‘it
might have been’ is not acceptable for reality.

Question 7.
How did Rajendra explain Professor Gaitonde’s experience by
linking it to ‘the lack of determinism in quantum theory’?
Answer:
Rajendra felt that reality might not be unique as has been found
from experiments on atoms and their constituent particles. The
behaviour of these systems cannot be predicted definitively even if
all the physical. laws governing those systems are known. The
course taken by an electron fired from a source cannot be asserted.
This is the theory of the lack of determinism in the quantum
theory. Similarly, in one world the electron is found here, in
another it is over there.

In yet another world it could be in a completely different location.

Once the observer finds where it is, we know which world we are
talking about. But all those alternative worlds could exist just the
same. The electron could be orbiting in any of a large number of
specified states. These states may be used to identify the world. In
state no. 1 we have the electron in a state of higher energy.

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54

Instate no. 2 it is in a state of lower energy. It could make a jump

from high to low energy and send out a pulse of radiation. Or a
pulse of radiation could knock it out of state no. 2 into state no. 1.
Such transitions are common in microscopic systems. If it happened
on a macroscopic level people could make a transition from one
world to another and back again.

Silk Road Important Extra Questions and

Answers Class 11 English Hornbill
Silk Road Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
when they set out on their journey.
Answer:
The narrator was moving towards Mount Kailash to complete the
kora. He recalls the day, when they set out from Ravu, with
nostalgia. It was a ‘perfect’ early morning to start a journey. The
clouds looked like long French loaves glimmering pink as the rising
sun shone on them. The far-away mountain peaks glowed with a
rose-tinted colour. Lhamo presented him with one of the long-
sleeved sheepskin coats that all the men there wore, for protection
against cold.

Question 2.
Describe the initial phase of their journey.
Answer:
As they set out, they took a shorter route to get off the Changtang.
It was a road that would take them south¬west, almost directly
towards Mount Kailash. It required crossing several quite high
mountain passes. Tsetan was confident that if there was no snow
they would have a comfortable journey but that they would not
know till they got there.

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55

From the gently sloping hills of Ravu, the short cut took them
across vast open plains with nothing in them except a few
antelopes grazing in the arid pastures. As they moved ahead, the
plains became more stony than grassy. There, the antelopes were
replaced by herds of wild ass.

Question 3.
What did the narrator notice about the ‘drokbas’?
Answer:
As the narrator went further up the hills from the rocky wasteland,
he noticed the solitary drokbas tending their flocks. Sometimes
these well-wrapped figures would halt briefly and stare at their car.
They seldom waved as they crossed. When the road took them close
to the sheep, the animals would swerve away from the speeding
car.

Question 4.
The narrator was fascinated by the awesome mastiffs. Why?
Answer:
Crossing the nomads’ dark tents pitched in remoteness, the
narrator noticed that a huge black dog, a Tibetan mastiffs,
guarded most of the tents. These monstrous creatures would tilt
their great big heads when someone moved towards them. As they
drew closer, these dogs would race straight towards them, like a
bullet from a gun. These dogs were pitch black and usually wore
bright red collars.

They barked furiously with their gigantic jaws and were so fearless
that they ran straight into the path of their vehicle. They would
chase them for about a hundred metres. The narrator could
understand why Tibetan mastiffs became popular in China’s
imperial courts as hunting dogs.

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56

Question 5.
How did Tsetan manoeuvre across the first patch of snow that they
came across?
Answer:
Tsetan stopped at a tight bend and got out because the snow had
covered the path in front of them. This unexpected-depository was
too steep for their vehicle to mount. Tsetan stepped on to the
covered snow, and stamped his foot to determine how sturdy it
was. The snow was not deep but the car could turn over. Tsetan
took handfuls of dirt and threw them across the frozen surface.
Daniel and the narrator, too, joined in. When the snow was spread
with soil, Tsetan backed up the vehicle and drove towards the dirty
snow. The car moved across the icy surface without noticeable
difficulty.

Question 6.
When did the narrator feel unwell or the first time? What did he
do?
Answer:
When they went further up the trail and were 5,400 metres above
the sea level, the narrator got an awful headache. He took gulps
from his water bottle, which is supposed to help during a speedy
uphill journey. His headache soon cleared as they went down the
other side of the pass.

Question 7.
What was the sight on the plateau ruins of the Tethys Ocean?
Answer:
The narrator and his friends stopped for lunch in a long canvas
tent, part of a work camp erected beside a dry salt lake. The
plateau was covered with salty desert area and salty lakes that
were remnants of the Tethys Ocean. This place was bustling with
activity. Men with pickaxes and shovels were moving back and

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57

forth in their long sheepskin coats and salt-covered boots. All wore
sunglasses as protection against the dazzling light of blue trucks
that energed from the lake with piles of salt.

Question 8.
Why was the narrator sorry to see the miserable plight of Hor?
Answer:
Hor was a dismal place with no vegetation. It only had dust and
rocks coupled with years of accumulated refuse. He found this
unfortunate because this town was on the banks of Lake
Manasarovar, Tibet’s most venerated stretch of water.

Question 9.
What is the belief about Lake Manasarovar? What is the fact?
Answer:
According to ancient Hindu and Buddhist cosmology Manasarovar
is the source of four great Indian rivers: the Indus, the Ganges, the
Sutlej and the Brahmaputra. In actuality only the Sutlej flows from
the lake, but the headwaters of the all others rise nearby on the
flanks of Mount Kailash.

Question 10.
The narrator ‘slept very soundly. Like a log, not a dead man’.
Explain.
Answer:
After going to the Tibetan doctor the narrator soon recovered.
Unpalatable as it seemed, the medicine led him to a quick recovery.
Hence the narrator had a healthy and sound sleep unlike when he
was ailing and restless. He slept undisturbed. He was not tossing
and turning because he was sound a sleep, not because he felt
lifeless.

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58

Question 11.
‘Darchen didn’t look so horrible after a good night’s sleep.’ Justify
Answer:
The narrator had a very uncomfortable night at Darchen. After he
rested, although Darchen was dusty, with heaps of rubble and
refuse, the bright sun in a clear blue sky gave the narrator a view
of the Himalayas. He also noticed the huge, snow-capped mountain,
Gurla Mandhata, with just a tuft of cloud suspended over its peak.

Question 12.
‘I hadn’t made much progress with my self-help programme on
positive thinking.’ Why does the narrator feel so?
Answer:
The narrator was very disappointed with Darchen. It was dusty,
with heaps of rubble and refuse. But he was even more
disappointed as there were no pilgrims. As his mind went over the
drawbacks of the place he concluded that he hadn’t made much
progress with his self-help programme on positive thinking. In that
case he would have been more accepting and optimistic.

Question 13.
Who was Norbu? How could he be a help to the narrator?
Answer:
The narrator met Norbu in a cafe. He was Tibetan, and worked in
Beijing at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in the Institute
of Ethnic Literature. He had come to do the kora. Norbu had been
writing academic papers about the Kailash kora and its importance
in various works of Buddhist literature for many years but .he had
never actually done it himself. The narrator was relieved to team
up with him. He would not be alone then.

Question 14.
‘He suggested we hire some yaks to carry our luggage, which I

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59

interpreted as a good sign’. Why does the narrator feel so?

Answer:
The narrator was relieved at meeting Norbu. He kept telling the
narrator how fat he was and how hard it was going to be for him
to climb. He wasn’t really a practising Buddhist, but he was
enthusiastic and was a Tibetan. Making the trek in the company of
devout believers would not be easy as they would go prostrating all
round the mountain. But Norbu suggested that they hire some yaks
to carry our luggage. This to the narrator came as a relief.

Silk Road Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
The narrator on his way to Mount Kailash came across a lot of
topographic variation. Comment.
Answer:
The narrator and his companions took a short cut to get off the
Changtang. Tsetan knew a route that would take them southwest,
almost directly towards Mount Kailash. It involved crossing several
fairly high mountain passes. From the gently rising and failing hills
of Ravu, the short cut took them across vast open plains with
nothing in them except a few gazelles that were grazing in the arid
pastures. Further ahead,
the plains became more stony than grassy, and there a great herd
of wild ass came into view.

Still ahead hills became steeper wh^re solitary drokbas were

tending their flocks. This led them to the snow-capped mountains
and then to the valley where the river was wide and by and large
clogged with ice. At a height of 5,515 metres, piles of stones
marked the landscape. Next was the plateau which was covered
with salty desert area and salty lakes that were remnants of the
Tethys Ocean. Hor was next in line. It was a wretched place with

Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel

60

no vegetation just dust and rocks, liberally scattered with years of

accumulated refuse.

Question 2.
The narrator realized that the snow was both dangerous as well as
beautiful. Justify.
Answer:
Tsetan on his way surveyed the snow on the path by stamping on
it. It was not deep. But in case they slipped the car could turn over.
Hence to cover the risk, they flung handfuls of dirt across the
frozen surface. When the snow was spread with soil, they drove
without difficulty. Ten minutes later, they stopped at another
blockage. This time they decided to drive round the snow.

However, the risks did not undermine the scenic beauty of the
place. In the valley, they saw snow-capped mountains and the river
was wide but mostly blocked with ice that was sparkling in the
sunshine. As they moved ahead, on their upward track, the turns
became sharper and the ride bumpier. The rocks around were
covered with patches of bright orange lichen. Under the rocks,
seemed unending shade.

Question 3.
Enumerate the difficulties that the group faced in Hor.
Answer:
The group reached the small town of Hor by late afternoon. Daniel,
who was returning to Lhasa, found a ride in a truck and left. They
had suffered two punctures in quick succession on the drive down
from the salt lake and they got them replaced. Hor was a gloomy
place devoid of vegetation. It only had dust and rocks, liberally
scattered with years of accumulated refuse.

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61

Hor’s only cafe which, like all the other buildings in town, was
constructed from badly painted concrete and had three broken
windows. The good view of the lake through one of them helped to
compensate for the draught. The narrator was served by a Chinese
youth in military uniform who spread the grease around on his
table with a filthy rag before bringing him a glass and a thermos of
tea.

Question 4.
Describe in detail the narrator’s miserable night in Darchen.
Answer:
The narrator reached the Darchen guesthouse after 10.30 p.m.
This was just the beginning of a troubled night. The open-air
rubbish dump in Hor had set off his cold once more. One of his
nostrils was blocked again and he was tired and hungry. He started
breathing through his mouth. After a while, he woke up abruptly.
His chest felt strangely heavy but when he sat up, his nasal
passages cleared almost instantly and relieved the feeling in his
chest. He lay down again. Just as he was about to doze something
told him not to.

He was not gasping for breath, but could not go to sleep. He sat up
but as soon as he lay down, his sinuses filled and his chest felt
strange. He tried supporting himself against the wall, but could not
manage to relax enough to sleep. He did not know what was wrong
but had a feeling that if he slept he would not wake up again. So
he stayed awake all night.

Question 5.
Narrate the narrator’s meeting with the Tibetan doctor.
Answer:
After an awfully uncomfortable and breathless night, Tsetan took
the narrator to the Darchen Medical College. The college was new

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62

and looked like a monastery from the outside with a very solid
door that led into a large courtyard. The consulting room was dark
and cold and occupied by a Tibetan doctor who did not have any
kit that the narrator had been expecting.

He wore a thick pullover and a woolly hat. The narrator explained

the symptoms and the doctor shot him a few questions while
feeling the veins in his wrist. Finally he said, it was the cold and the
effects of altitude. He said that the narrator would be well enough
to do the kora. He gave him a brown envelope stuffed with fifteen
screws of paper. Each package had a brown powder that had to
taken with hot water. It tasted just like cinnamon. The contents of
the lunchtime and bedtime packages were less obviously identifiable.
Both contained small, spherical brown pellets. Though the medicine
looked like sheep dung, it helped him recover quickly.

Question 6.
Meeting Norbu came as an immense relief to the narrator. Why?
Answer:
The narrator was not only disappointed with the filth in Darchen
but also because of the lack of pilgrims. Moreover, since Tsetan had
left, he had not come across anyone in Darchen with enough
English to answer even this most basic question. It was then that he
met Norbu in a cafe. He was Tibetan, he told him, but worked in
Beijing at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in the Institute
of Ethnic Literature.

He had also come to do the kora. Norbu had been writing academic
papers about the Kailash kora and its importance in various works
of Buddhist literature for many years, but he had never actually
done it himself. He was relieved to form a team with another
academician. This apart, Norbu, wasn’t really a practising Buddhist,
though he was a Tibetan. He suggested that they hire some yaks to

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carry their luggage, as he had no intention of prostrating himself

all round the mountain.

A Photograph Important Extra Questions and

Answers Class 11 English Hornbill
A Photograph Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
The poet talks about a particular cardboard. How is it special to
her?
Answer:
The poet talks about a particular cardboard to which is pasted her
mother’s photograph taken at the sea beach. The mother seems to
have been enjoying her sea holiday. The photograph is special as she
has lost her mother sometime back and looking at the photograph
makes her happy as well as sad.

Question 2.
What can you say about the childhood of the poet’s mother?
Answer:
The childhood of the poet’s mother must have been filled with fun
and happiness. This is clear from the snapshot of the sea holiday.
They are enjoying their holiday.

The mother of the poet laughs when looking at the snapshot even
after many years have passed since the sea holiday. All this shows
us that it was a very pleasant childhood.

Question 3.
What moment does the photograph depict?
Answer:
The photograph clicked by. the uncle of the poet’s mother depicts a
sea-holiday being enjoyed by the poet’s mother and her two cousins

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Dolly and Betty. They are full of smiles in their beach dresses, not
worrying about their flying hair.

Question 4.
Were the three cousins camera friendly? Who was taking their
photograph?
Answer:
The three cousins appear to be camera-friendly as they stood at
the sea beach without moving when the uncle took the photograph.

Question 5.
The poet’s mother would laugh looking at the photograph. Why?
Answer:
The poet’s mother was in middle age when she looked at that
photograph and used to laugh remembering those golden days of
her childhood, enjoying a sea holiday. She would also laugh at the
beach dresses which looked weird after many years.

Question 6.
What impression do you form about the poet’s mother?
Answer:
The poet’s mother was very pretty at the age of twelve. She
enjoyed the sea holiday. This is indicated by the happiness that she
gets in middle age after looking at her childhood photograph.

Question 7.
The sea ‘appears to have changed less’ in comparison to the three
girls who enjoyed the sea holiday. Comment.
Answer:
The poet compares the mortal nature of human beings with the
eternal nature of the sea or natural objects. With the passage of
time, the poet’s mother died but the vast sea has remained as it
was since the photograph was taken.

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Question 8.
Why does the poet feel nostalgic?
Answer:
The poet sees an old photograph of her mother in which she was
standing on the beach with her two cousins — Dolly and Betty.
They were enjoying themselves. The photograph captured her
mother’s sweet and smiling face. At that time, she was around
twelve years old. The poet remembers how her mother used to
laugh whenever she looked at that old photograph. But time has
passed and now the poet has been left only with the memories of
her mother. Thus, she feels nostalgic

Question 9.
What does the poet say about her mother’s face?
Answer:
The poet remarks that her mother had a sweet face, smiling and
caring for her cousins who were younger to her. The poet also says
that her mother used to enjoy these sea holidays, and would laugh
heartily, later on when she saw the photograph.

Question 10.
How does the poet react to her past? Why has she not mentioned
anything about her mother’s death?
Answer:
The poet remembers with sadness her mother’s laughter which she
cannot hear any more. The poet is full of a sense of loss and does
not mention about her mother’s death, as it may bring more gloom
to her and make her speechless.

Question 11.
Does the poet appear to be grieving?
Answer:
The poet is certainly filled with a sense of loss. Her mother is long

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dead and though the poet has adjusted to her absence, she is not
able to completely overcome her loss.

She remembers how it used to be when her mother was still with
her. The last line is an apt depiction of her state of mind. The loss
has filled her life with silence.

Question 12.
Comment on the tone of the poem.
Answer:
The tone of the poem is that of sadness. Shirley Toulson looks at an
old photograph of her mother and is sadly reminded of her mother
who is no more. She mentions about death of her mother indirectly
only but this photograph has made her speechless and silent.

A Photograph Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
The poet has paid a tribute to her mother. Similar instances can be
seen in ‘The Portrait of a Lady’. This made you think that writing
about a loved one is much better than building their statues or
drawing their portraits. Comment.
Answer:
Many writers have paid tributes to their loved ones through
beautiful writing. Khushwant Singh gave an adorable description
about his grandmother through his story. Shirley Toulson
remembered her mother through her heart-touching poem.

In my opinion, writing about a loved one is much better than

building their statues or drawing their portraits. One can never tell
the true personality of a person just by looking at their sculptures
or portraits. One can never know about the amazing time someone
has spent with them. That magic can only be created by words.

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Words stand the passage of time, whereas sculptures or portraits

may get damaged by it. Hence, words are the best way by which
anyone can pay a tribute to one’s loved ones.

Question 2.
“Its silence silences,” writes Shirley Toulson. The loss of her mother
has silenced her. Do you think that this attitude of the poet is the
right attitude to live life? Why/ why not?
Answer:
There is no doubt that Shirley Toulson has given a very touching
tribute to her mother by remembering her through her verses. It is
apparent that she is very much nostalgic and is grieving at the loss
of her mother. Though she says that over the years she has
adjusted to her mother’s absence, but circumstances have surely
filled her with silence and a deep void.

We cannot deny that it hurts very much to lose someone, but the
attitude shown by the poet at the end is not the right way to live
your life. Life will keep going on even if we stop to lament our loss.

Loss is universal. It is the law of nature. We cannot let ourselves get

depressed just because of this. It is also understandable that we will
grieve. However, grieving to the point of hampering the normal
functioning of our lives is not acceptable.

Question 3.
Happy moments are short-lived but provide a lifetime memory.
They provide a cushion to bear the difficulties which the future has
in store for you. Comment in the light of the poem ‘A Photograph’
by Shirley Toulson.
Answer:
Our life is a mixture of happy as well as adverse times. We must
learn to move on with the help of those happy memories which

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provided us with so much enjoyment and happiness. As life is not a

bed of roses, everyone at one stage or another is likely to face
difficulties.

At the time of difficulties, happy moments can give us solace and

fill us with positivity which is required during difficult times. Happy
moments will certainly provide us with a hope that, as happy
moments are short-lived, so are difficult times. One must learn to
cope with the situation. The memories of happy times can provide
us a cushion to bear difficulties with patience and peace.

Question 4.
‘Both wry with the laboured ease of loss.’ The poet is missing her
mother. What is the role of the mother in forming the personality
of a child?
Answer:
A mother’s role in shaping the personality of a child is of
paramount importance. The child watches his/ her mother intently
and learns about the world and how to react to it at the initial
stages. The mother can

play an important role by making the child to deal constructively

with mistakes, forgive others, handle frustration, show kindness
and share love.
When a mother is nurturing and caring the child, it will develop a
healthy bond with not only the mother but will be willing to form
new relationships with others.

Children and adults both want a sense of independence and

autonomy. It is very important on a mother’s part to offer choices
to the child. This makes the child feel that he/she is smart enough
to make choices.

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The mother’s thoughts nourish a child’s mind and soul as her

personal attention nourishes a child’s body. She is a child’s first
teacher. She tries to imbibe such values that may help a child
lifelong.

A Photograph Extract based Questions and Answers

I. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

“The cardboard shows me how it was When the two girl cousins
went paddling, Each one
holding one of my mother’s hands,
And she the big girl – some twelve years or so.”

Question 1.
What does the cardboard here refer to?
(a) A thick paper on which the poet’s photograph was pasted
(b) A thick envelope
(c) A thick paper on which the poet’s mother’s photograph was
pasted
(d) A paper boat
Answer:
(c) A thick paper on which the poet’s mother’s photograph was
pasted

Question 2.
What does the cardboard depict?
(a) It depicts a scenery
(b) It depicts the picture of a house
(c) It depicts the picture of a school
(d) It depicts the picture of three girls

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Answer:
(d) It depicts the picture of three girls

Question 3.
Who is the ‘big girl’ mentioned here?
(a) The big girl is the poet herself
(b) The big girl is the poet’s mother
(c) The big girl is the poet’s relative
(d) The big girl is the poet’s friend
Answer:
(b) The big girl is the poet’s mother

II. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

“All three stood still to smile through their hair At the uncle with
the camera. 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.”

Question 1.
What does the poet mean by ‘smile through their hair’?
(a) It means that a smile was painted on the hair of the
photographed girls
(b) It means that the photographed girls were wearing a mask
(c) It means that the hair of the photographed girls were covering
their face when they were smiling
(d) It means that the hair of the girls in the photograph was
smiling too
Answer:
(c) It means that the hair of the photographed girls were covering
their face when they were smiling

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Question 2.
What has not changed over a period of time?
(a) The photo
(b) The cardboard
(c) The girls
(d) The sea
Answer:
(d) The sea

Question 3.
Find a word from the extract which means “lasting only for a
short time”?
(a) Still
(b) Transient
(c) Changed
(d) Less
Answer:
(b) Transient

III. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

“Some twenty-thirty – years later She’d laugh at the snapshot.

“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.”

Question 1.
Why did ‘she’ laugh?
(a) Because of the funny dresses that they were wearing at the sea
holiday
(b) Because one of them cracked a joke

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(c) Because of the funny dresses they were wearing at the party
(d) Because of the funny man they saw at the sea holiday
Answer:
(a) Because of the funny dresses that they were wearing at the sea
holiday

Question 2.
Who are Betty and Dolly?
(a) They are poet’s cousins
(b) They are poet’s friends
(c) They are poet’s mother’s friends
(d) They are poet’s mother’s cousins
Answer:
(d) They are poet’s mother’s cousins

Question 3.
…………. in the extract is the synonym of ‘photograph’.
(a) Snapshot
(b) Picture
(c) Mine
(d) Laboured
Answer:
(a) Snapshot

IV. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

“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.”

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Question 1.
Who does ‘she’ refer to?
(a) The poet’s dead aunt
(b) The poet’s dead mother
(c) The poet’s dead cousin
(d) The poet’s sister
Answer:
(b) The poet’s dead mother

Question 2.
Why is there nothing to say about the death of the poet’s mother?
(a) Because the poet is confused
(b) Because the poet was not in her senses when her mother
expired
(c) Because the death of the poet’s mother has left a deep void in
the poet’s heart
(d) Because the poet did not have a good relationship with her
mother
Answer:
(c) Because the death of the poet’s mother has left

Question 3.
Which word in the extract means the same as “events that change
your life, over which you have no control”?
(a) Silences
(b) Circumstances
(c) Situation
(d) Circumstance
Answer:
(d) Circumstance

The Laburnum Top Important Extra Questions

and Answers Class 11 English Hornbill

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74

The Laburnum Top Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer

Type

Question 1.
Why is the poem named ‘The Laburnum Top’?
Answer:
The poem has been named ‘The Laburnum Top’ because the top of
the Laburnum tree has been described in detail in the poem. It is
on the top of the Laburnum tree that the nest of the goldfinch is
located and where all the activity takes place when the goldfinch
visits the nest.

Question 2.
What is the significance of ‘yellow’ in the poem?
Answer:
The flowers of the Laburnum tree and its leaves (in autumn) both
are yellow in colour. Apart from this, the goldfinch’s feathers are
also yellow in colour. The poem highlights the high security that the
mother bird (goldfinch) ensures for her babies and the colour yellow
helps in camouflaging the babies. Hence they escape being noticed
by any predator.

Question 3.
How is the tree transformed during the bird’s visit?
Answer:
After the goldfinch arrives on the tree, the silent and still
Laburnum tree suddenly starts trembling and moving. The whole
tree comes to life as the chicks of the goldfinch make a lot of noise
as they chitter and trill on seeing their mother.

Question 4.
To what is the movement of the goldfinch compared? What is the
basis for the comparison?
Answer:

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The movement of the goldfinch is compared to that of a lizard. The

basis of the comparison is the sleek, alert and sudden movements of
a lizard. The goldfinch makes similar kind of movements when it
arrives on the Laburnum tree to avoid being noticed by any
predator.

Question 5.
‘Then sleek as a lizard and alert and abrupt, She enters the
thickness’. Explain the given line.
Answer:
The lizard is a quick moving animal. It is also very alert and its
movements are sudden. In the given line, the arrival of the
goldfinch on the Laburnum tree is described. The poet describes its
movements as alert and sudden just like that of a lizard. This is
done to avoid getting the attention of the predators.

Question 6.
What is the engine of the machine? What is its fuel?
Answer:
The goldfinch has been called the engine of her family. Just as the
engine starts up the machine, the goldfinch’s arrival in the nest has
suddenly started the machine i.e. the young ones in the nest have
started making noise. The fuel of the engine is the food that the
goldfinch brings for her chicks.

Question 7.
How does the Laburnum ensure security for the nestlings?
Answer:
According to popular belief, the bark and the seeds of the
Laburnum tree are poisonous. So, predators normally do not come
near the tree. Apart from this, its yellow flowers and yellowing
leaves in the autumn season complemented by the yellow coloured

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feathers of the goldfinch help in camouflaging the nestlings from

the predators.

Question 8.
Explain the line, ‘And the Laburnum subsides to empty’.
Answer:
This is the last line of the poem. It describes that with the
departure of the goldfinch from the Laburnum tree, it falls silent.
The tree was noisy and lively when the goldfinch came to feed its
chicks, but it reverts to its earlier self after its departure from the
tree.

The Laburnum Top Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer

Type

Question 1.
The arrival of the goldfinch on the Laburnum top brings about a
change in the poem. How do you interpret this change? Is change
good or bad in life?
Answer:
At the start of the poem, the top of the Laburnum tree in the
poem is silent and still. There is hardly any activity on it as the
sunlight falls on it on a September afternoon. However, with the
arrival of the goldfinch, it suddenly becomes a place of feverish
activity. The silence of the place is broken by the twittering and
chirruping of the chicks and the goldfinch.

I think that the change brought about by the arrival of the

goldfinch on the Laburnum top is good, as it breaks the monotony.
The tree becomes alive and lively with the movement of the
goldfinch and the twitterings and chirrupings of the chicks.

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Change can be good or bad in life depending on a situation.

However, the fact is that change is the only constant in life. So,
even if a change is bad, we have to accept it and move on in life.

Question 2.
What values do you learn from the goldfinch in the poem ‘The
‘Laburnum Top?
Answer:
The goldfinch has its nest on the top of the Laburnum tree in the
poem, ‘The Laburnum Top’. Her chicks stay in the nest while she
(the mother goldfinch) keeps going out at regular intervals to get
food to feed her chicks. This shows her caring nature and highlights
the values of motherly care and affection of a mother towards her
offspring.

The other aspect of the goldfinch that is captured in the poem is its
movement. She arrives at the Laburnum top in a sudden manner
and is very much alert to her surroundings. The poet has compared
her movement with the sleek movement of a lizard. However, there
is a reason for her moving like this (in an alert and sudden
manner). She is moving in this manner so as to avoid getting
noticed by any predator. She does not want any predator to know
that her chicks are resting in her nest on the Laburnum top as
then the predators may kill them or harm them. The values of
safety and security for her offspring is highlighted in this act of the
goldfinch.

The Laburnum Top Extract based Questions and Answers

I. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

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78

The Laburnum top is silent, quite still In the afternoon yellow

September sunlight,
A few leaves yellowing, all its seeds fallen.

Question 1.
What does ‘Laburnum top’ mean here?
(a) It means the top part of any tree
(b) It means the top part of the Laburnum tree
(c) It means the top part of a fictional tree
(d) It does not mean anything
Answer:
(b) It means the top part of the Laburnum tree

Question 2.
What has happened to the tree?
(a) The tree is being worshipped
(b) The tree has been cut down
(c) The leaves of the tree have turned purple and are falling down
(d) The leaves of the tree have turned yellow and its seeds falling
down
Answer:
(d) The leaves of the tree have turned yellow and its seeds are
falling down

Question 3.
Find a word from the extract which is the antonym of ‘noisy’.
(a) Quiet
(b) Quite
(c) Hush
(d) Silent
Answer:
(d) Silent

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II. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

Then sleek as a lizard, and alert, and abrupt,

She enters the thickness, and a machine starts up
Of chitterings and a tremor of wings, and trilling
The whole tree trembles and thrills.

Question 1.
Who is ‘she’ in the second line ? Where does she enter?
(a) She is the baby goldfinch who enters the thickness of the
Laburnum tree
(b) ‘She’ is a squirrel who enters the thickness of the Laburnum tree
(c) ‘She’ is a lizard who enters the thickness of the Laburnum tree
(d) ‘She’ is the mother goldfinch who enters the thickenss of the
Laburnum tree
Answer:
(d) ‘She’ is the mother goldfinch who enters the thickenss of the
Laburnum tree

Question 2.
What does ‘machine’ refer to in the extract?
(a) If refers to the machine used to drill a hole in the tree
(b) It refers to the machine used to cut the tree
(c) It refers to the nest of the goldfinch where its young ones are
staying
(d) It refers to the nest of the squirrel
Answer:
(c) It refers to the nest of the goldfinch where its young ones are
staying

Question 3.
Find a word from the extract which is the synonym of ‘entire’.

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80

(a) Abrupt
(b) Hole
(c) Whole
(d) Tremor
Answer:
(c) Whole

III. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

Then with eerie delicate whistle-chirrup whisperings She launches

away, towards the infinite
And the Laburnum subsides to empty.

Question 1.
What does ‘launches’mean in the extract?
(a) It means sleeping
(b) It means flying
(c) It means diving
(d) It means fluttering
Answer:
(b) It means flying

Question 2.
What effect does the last line create?
(a) It creates the contrast between the liveliness of the tree and its
silence
(b) It creates the contrast between the change of seasons
(c) It creates an opportunity to plant more Laburnum trees
(d) It creates the scene for the arrival of new bird species on the
tree
Answer:

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(a) It creates the contrast between the liveliness of the tree and its
silence

Question 3.
……….from the extract means the same as ‘strange’ and ‘mysterious’.
(a) Delicate
(b) Odd
(c) Infinite
(d) Eerie
Answer:
(d) Eerie

The Voice of the Rain Important Extra Questions

and Answers Class 11 English Hornbill
The Voice of the Rain Extra Questions and Answers Short
Answer Type

Question 1.
Why does the poet get surprised when he gets an answer from the
rain?
Answer:
The poet gets surprised when he gets an answer from the rain, as
it is inanimate and cannot speak. In this poem, to the poet’s and
reader’s amazement, the rain gives a reply which has been
translated by the poet for the readers.

Question 2.
What answer does the rain give back to the poet?
Answer:
The rain answers to the poet’s question by telling him that it is the
Poem of Earth and is involved in a continuing process of going up
and coming down.

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Question 3.
How does the rain justify its claim ‘I am the Poem of Earth’?
Answer:
The rain calls itself the Poem of the Earth because the poem
rendered by the poet has the task of bringing joy, happiness, life to
its readers. Similarly when the rain falls down over Earth, a
rhythm or music is created. That’s why the rain calls itself the
Poem of Earth.

Question 4.
Describe the never ending cycle of rain.
Answer:
Water rises unperceived in the form of vapour from land and
water bodies on the Earth. It goes up, takes the form of a cloud,
changes its shape and falls down on Earth in the form .of water
drops to bathe the small dust particles, land and sea. The water
returns through rivers to oceans and seas after it rains on Earth.

Question 5.
Why does the rain call itself ‘impalpable’?
Answer:
Impalpable means something that cannot be felt by touching or
seeing. When water takes the form of vapour, it is not visible to the
human eye and nor can we feel its touch.

The vapour rises to the sky, condenses and forms clouds which
cause rain. Though we are aware of its presence, the process
remains invisible to us. Hence, the rain has rightly called itself
‘impalpable’.

Question 6.
What happens when it rains after a long hot spell?
Answer:

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After a long hot spell, everything is dried up on Earth. When it

rains, all the dust that has accumulated on Earth gets washed
away, giving a new fresh look to nature. Moreover the seeds which
were lying latent till now, get germinated with the help of rain
and new trees and plants start growing.

Question 7.
Latent seeds get a life by rain. Explain.
Answer:
The seeds lying on Earth require water to germinate and take
shape. When it rains, the seeds start germinating and change into
the form of saplings. In this way, the seeds which would have dried
up or get wasted get a new lease of life by rain.

Question 8.
Why is rain essential for Earth?
Answer:
If it doesn’t rain then Earth will remain parched, droughts will
follow and the dust-layers will not be washed away. There will be
nothing to quench the thirst of the plants and trees and their seeds
will die.

Question 9.
How does the rain become the voice of Earth?
Answer:
In the poem, ‘The Voice of the Rain’, the poet describes how the
rain falls on Earth. He also asks a question to the rain’about it. He
calls the showers of the rain as ‘Poem of Earth’ as the rain gives a
new lease of life to ‘ the scorched and parched Earth and falls on
Earth in a rhythmic manner.

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Actually, it is the voice of Earth as the slowly falling showers

produce a very soft music and Earth finds its expression only
through the showers falling on it.

Question 10.
Why do you think the poet says the phrase ‘reck’d or unreck’d’?
Answer:
The words have been poetically drafted. Reck’d and unreck’d stand
for reckoned and unreckoned. The words literally mean cared and
uncared for respectively. The poet says these words to emphasise
the fact that when it falls on the Earth, we sometimes take notice
of it or sometimes completely ignore it. But even if it is left
uncared for, it completes its destiny and returns to absorbed where
it started from.

Question 11.
Justify the title ‘The Voice of the Rain’.
Answer:
The whole poem is about the eternal process of rain and its benefits.
Through the words of the rain, the poet has tried to bring out the
importance of rain for Earth, for plants and for man. As the poet
is translating what the rain is speaking through its own language
(the sounds it makes when it falls), the whole poem is about the
rain talking to the poet. Thus, the title is justified.

Question 12.
The poem has a conversational tone throughout. Who are the two
participants? Is there any advantage of this method?
Answer:
The two participants are the poet and the voice of the rain which
answers the poet’s questions. The advantage of this method is to
maintain continuity of thoughts and ideas expressed by the poet
and to bring about clarity in what he wants to express.

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The Voice Of The Rain Extra Questions and Answers Long

Answer Type

Question 1.
The poem ‘The Voice of the Rain’ gives a hidden message that rain
is essential for this Earth. Write an article in 120-150 words
describing the importance of rain.
Answer:

Importance of Rain
by Ali Jawed

As we all know, the three essentials for survival are water, food
and air. The most important element of weather is water. We get
water in different forms of precipitation but rain is the most
beneficial of all types of precipitation.

Rain helps in harvesting our crops that give us food to eat. Without
rain, no crops would grow and we would perish. Also, falling
showers remove the dust in air, making our air clean, because we
need clean air to breathe.

Rain water plays a key role in creating the climate of certain areas.
Its presence in the atmosphere provides replenishment of the
moisture in cloud systems.

The most well-known and most important effect of rain water is

to provide us with water to drink. Without rain, there would be no
life.

Question 2.
Rain is an eternal process benefiting mankind. Contrast it with
human life which is short lived on this Earth. Should we disturb
these eternal elements of nature?

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Answer:
The poem ‘The Voice of the Rain’ beautifully shows the continued
process of rain which sounds like music to human ears, as it fulfills
our needs.

It is an ever going process which sustains human life and provides

us with food, pure air and green cover. On the other hand, human
lives are mortal. We come on this Earth for a short period and
then depart without leaving any mark on this planet. Moreover
human beings, for their greed and selfish motives, indulge in
destructive activities which may disturb these eternal processes of
nature.

We must learn a lesson from nature. If we want peaceful co-

existence, we need not disturb the balance of nature, otherwise the
whole of humanity will be in danger. We must learn a lesson from
such eternal processes and do something good for humanity at
large.

Question 3.
Natural elements such as air and rain make no discrimination and
bless everyone equally. Comment on class distinction and inequality,
which is a totally human creation.
Answer:
Man’s existence on this Earth is short-lived but even in this short
span, he has been responsible for many wrong doings against other
human beings. God has created everyone as equal. But it is very
unfortunate that man has divided this society on the basis of class,
caste and other factors.

Man must learn from elements of nature which provide us fresh air,
heat or water, without making any distinction. But in human
society class distinctions and caste distinctions both exist and

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inequalities prevail in large numbers. It is high time that man must

learn lessons from nature and adopt universal brotherhood for the
betterment of our society.

The Voice Of The Rain Extract based Questions and Answers

I. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

And who art thou? said I to the soft-falling shower,

Which, strange to tell, gave me an answer, as here translated:
I am the Poem of Earth, said the voice of the rain,

Question 1.
Who is T in the first line?
(a) The poet
(b) The land
(c) The sea
(d) The raindrops
Answer:
(a) The poet

Question 2.
What does the rain call itself? Why?
(a) The poet of the Earth
(b) The poem of the Earth
(c) The poem of the Sea
(d) The poet of the Sea
Answer:
The poem of the Earth

Question 3.
The word ‘thou’ in the extract is a ………. .
(a) noun

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(b) verb
(c) preposition
(d) pronoun
Answer:
(d) pronoun

II. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

Eternal I rise impalpable out of the land and the bottomless sea,
Upward to heaven, whence, vaguely form’d, altogether changed,
and yet the same,

Question 1.
What does the use of word ‘eternal’ indicate here?
(a) It indicates the continual process of rain
(b) It indicates the continual process of nature
(c) It indicates the discontinuous process of rain
(d) It indicates the discontinuous process of nature
Answer:
(a) It indicates the continual process of rain

Question 2.
From where does ‘I’ rise and where does it go?
(a) It rises in the form of droplets and goes to the sea
(b) It rises in the form of clouds and goes to the sky
(c) It rises in the form of water vapour and goes to the land
(d) It rises in the form of water vapour and goes to the sky
Answer:
(d) It rises in the form of water vapour and goes to the sky

Question 3.
Which word in the extract means the same as “in a way that is

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uncertain, indefinite or unclear”?

(a) Eternal
(b) Impalpable
(c) Vaguely
(d) Bottomless
Answer:
(c) Vaguely

III. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

I descend to lave the droughts, atomies, dust-layers of the globe,

And all that in them without me were seeds only, latent, unborn;

Question 1.
With what purpose does the rain descend from the sky?
(a) To trouble the creatures of the Earth
(b) To give life to the drought affected areas and plants
(c) To wash the dust layers enveloping the Earth
(d) Both (b) and (c)
Answer:
(d) Both (b) and (c)

Question 2.
What will happen if T was not there?
(a) It would result in happiness on the Earth
(b) It would not matter to the residents of the Earth
(c) The seeds will remain as seeds and plants will not grow
(d) It would result in the rise of temperature on Earth
Answer:
(c) The seeds will remain as seeds and plants will not grow

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Question 3.
……….. is the opposite of ‘latent’.
(a) Inactive
(b) Manifest
(c) Dormant
(d) Resolute
Answer:
(b) Manifest

IV. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

And forever, by day and night, I give back life to my own origin,
And make pure and beautify it;

Question 1.
In what way does the rain help its place of origin?
(a) By causing floods
(b) By providing water to the drought stricken areas
(c) By washing away impurities from the Earth
(d) Both (b) and (c)
Answer:
(d) Both (b) and (c)

Question 2.
What is the importance of the word ‘forever’?
(a) It points to the everlasting features of artificial elements
(b) It points to the everlasting features of natural elements
(c) It points to the temporary features of natural elements
(d) It points to the temporary features of artificial elements
Answer:
(b) It points to the everlasting features of natural elements

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Question 3.
……….. in the extract is the opposite of ‘ending’.
(a) By
(b) Back
(c) Origin
(d) Beginning
Answer:
(c) Origin

V. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

(For song, issuing from its birth-place, after fulfilment, wandering

Reck’d or unreck’d, duly with love returns.)

Question 1.
What is the similarity between a song and the rain?
(a) They return to their place of origin
(b) They are never ending
(c) They do not have any origin
(d) They are liked by one and all
Answer:
(a) They return to their place of origin

Question 2.
How has the poet been able to put his own reflections?
(a) By using quotation marks
(b) By using parenthesis or brackets
(c) By making notes in his diary
(d) By telling his friends about his experiences
Answer:
(b) By using parenthesis or brackets

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Question 3.
For what purpose has the phrase ‘reck’d’ or ‘unreck’d’ used in the
passage?
(a) For highlighting the author’s comments
(b) To indicate that rain or a song keep completing their life-cycle
(c) To indicate that rain or a song do not complete their life-cycle
(d) For making the poem interesting
Answer:
(b) To indicate that rain or a song keep completing their life-cycle

Childhood Important Extra Questions and

Answers Class 11 English Hornbill
Childhood Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What question does the poet ask again and again in this poem?
Answer:
In this poem the poet is really confused. He asks the question again
and again ‘when did my childhood go?’

Question 2.
The poet has discussed two stages of life – childhood and adulthood.
How do we differentiate one from another?
Answer:
Childhood has been considered by the poet as a blissful period in
one’s life, where a child trusts everyone.
Adulthood is marked by rational and creative thoughts, ability to
perceive and differentiate and learn new things. In this stage of life
one also learns to be double faced and crafty.

Question 3.
What did the poet realise when he crossed the age of eleven years?
Answer:

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When the poet crossed the age of eleven years, he realised that he
had lost his childhood and had developed a mind of his own. He
also found out the non-existence of Hell and Heaven.

Question 4.
How did the poet conclude that Hell and Heaven were imaginary
places?
Answer:
The poet concluded that Hell and Heaven were imaginary places
because Geography books contain names of places, but there is no
mention of places like Hell or Heaven in these books.

Question 5.
How did adults seem to the poet when he was a child?
Answer:
As a child, the poet considered all the adults as an epitome of love
and sincerity. He believed that their love was true and they were
ready to do anything for , their loved ones.

Question 6.
Bring out the hypocrisy that the adults exhibit with regard to love.
Answer:
As the poet grew up, he could make out the double standards
followed by adults. He realised that though adults preached of love
and talked of love, their behaviour was totally different and full of
manipulation. They were all hypocrites who behaved differently
from the way they talked.

Question 7.
What did the poet notice about independent thinking? How
important was this discovery?
Answer:
The poet discovered that he was different from others and could

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think independently. He could have his own opinions without

getting influenced by anyone else. This discovery was very
important to him as it revealed to him his abilities for independent
thinking and decision taking.

Question 8.
What is the poet trying to convey when he says that childhood is
hidden in an infant’s face?
Answer:
The poet says an infant is really innocent as he trusts everyone and
does not try to fool others. The poet brings out this fact by
contrasting it with the behaviour of adults, who become
manipulative and are hypocrites. As a person develops rational
thoughts, his childlike innocence fades away.

Question 9.
According to Markus Natten, when does the child become an adult?
Answer:
Becoming an adult is a complex process which is associated with
physical, mental and social development. A child becomes an adult
when he is able to live his own life and take care of his
responsibilities individually. He also develops his own thought
process, using which he can form his own beliefs and opinions.

Question 10.
What is the poet’s feeling towards his childhood?
Answer:
The poet regards childhood as a period of innocence. A child
sincerely feels that he is free from all evils and that there is really a
Hell and a Heaven. A child knows no hypocrisy. There is no
difference between his thoughts and actions. In short, childhood is a
state of innocence and purity of heart.

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Question 11.
How does the poem expose man and present him in true colours?
Answer:
According to the poet, childhood symbolises innocence, purity,
softness and love. As a child grows up, these qualities start receding.
Man adheres to lying, shrewdness, cunningness and hypocrisy.

Adults preach about truth and honesty but themselves practise

hatred and lying. The simplicity and honesty of childhood
evaporates the moment man crosses the threshold of innocent
childhood.

Childhood Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
Write an article in about 150 words about childhood and the
process of growing up.
Answer:

Childhood
by Manav Singh

When I was a child the world seemed to be a place of joy and

happiness to me. There was nothing worth worrying about.
Whenever I cried, somebody consoled me. When I did not like to sit
alone, I was always in somebody’s arms. My mother always looked
after me. These are my most cherished memories and I believe that
looking at a child playing and enjoying childhood makes me
somewhat nostalgic.

Childhood is free from cares. There are no duties or responsibilities

on the shoulders of a child. A child only eats, drinks, sleeps and
plays. Thus, a child lives in the bliss of ignorance and innocence. As
we grow in age, worries about studies, choice of profession,

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shouldering responsibilities etc keep haunting us. Tensions, stress

and worries become a part of adult life and the individual forgets
to live a carefree life.

Question 2.
Is independent thinking a step towards adulthood? If yes, then how?
Explain with reference to the poem ‘Childhood’.
or
Markus Natten, though showing disapproval regarding the
behaviour of adults, also raises a very important point, that of
independent thinking and individuality. Do you agree that
independent thinking and individuality make us what we are?
Elaborate in the context of the poem ‘Childhood’.
Answer:
Of course, independent thinking is a step towards adulthood. As a
child, one is not able to make one’s own decisions and one’s
thinking is always influenced and directed by adults. A child is so
innocent that it is not able to distinguish between truth and
imagination.

As a child’s thinking is influenced by others, it has no individuality.

Moreover, it is prone to manipulations which lead to fickle-
mindedness. Independent thinking makes us what we are. It shapes
our personality and we are known among people through what our
mind thinks and what decisions we take.

If we want to stay away from evil people who try to influence our
thoughts for their selfish purposes, then only independent thinking
can help us. We cannot claim to be an individual if we cannot take
decisions ourselves.

I. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

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When did my childhood go?

Was it the day I ceased to be eleven,
Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven,
Could not be found in Geography,
And therefore could not be,
Was that the day!

Question 1.
At what age does the poet think he lost his childhood ?
(a) After he crossed the age of eleven
(b) After he crossed the age of twelve
(c) After he crossed the age of ten
(d) After he crossed the age of nine
Answer:
(a) After he crossed the age of eleven

Question 2.
What did the poet realise?
(a) That hell and heaven are geographical places
(b) That hell and heaven are one and the same thing
(c) That hell and heaven are not any geographical places
(d) That hell and heaven are located on the Earth itself
Answer:
(c) That hell and heaven are not any geographical places

Question 3.
………. in the extract means the same as discontinued
(a) Realised
(b) Therefore
(c) Ceased
(d) Stopped
Answer:
(c) Ceased

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II. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

When did my childhood go?

Was it the time I realised that adults were not all they seemed to
be,
They talked of love and preached of love,
But did not act so lovingly,
Was that the day!

Question 1.
Who is ‘my’ in the above lines?
(a) ‘my’ refers to the poet, Markus Natten
(b) ‘my’ refers to the poet’s childhood
(c) ‘my’ refers to the poet’s friend
(d) ‘my’ refers to the poet’s father
Answer:
(a) ‘my’ refers to the poet, Markus Natten

Question 2.
Why is ‘I’ confused?
(a) Because ‘I’ do not seem to understand when he lost his
childhood
(b) Because ‘I’ could not search heaven and hell in geography .
(c) Because T is getting a lot of negative thoughts
(d) Because T has lost his mind
Answer:
(a) Because ‘I’ do not seem to understand when he lost his
childhood

Question 3.
Explain “But did not act so lovingly”.
(a) It means that children talk about love but their actions are not

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loving
(b) It means that adults talk about love but their actions are not
loving
(c) It means that adults talk about love and their actions reflect the
same
(d) It means that children talk about love and their actions reflect
the same
Answer:
(b) It means that adults talk about love but their actions are not
loving

III. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

When did my childhood go?

Was it when I found my mind was really mine, To use whichever
way I choose,
Producing thoughts that were not those of .
other people, But my own, and mine alone Was that the day!”

Question 1.
Explain “my mind was really mine”.
(a) It means that his mind was influenced by others
(b) It means that his mind was not influenced by others
(c) It means that his mind was influenced by his parents
(d) It means that he was not confused
Answer:
(b) It means that his mind was not influenced by others

Question 2.
What did the poet realise?
(a) He realised that his mind belonged to his parents
(b) He realised that his mind was controlled by his friends

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(c) He realised that his mind was controlled by his teachers

(d) He realised that his mind was his, and he had his own
individuality
Answer:
(d) He realised that his mind was his and he had his own
individuality

Question 3.
The poet ……….. find an answer to his question.
(a) did
(b) did not
(c) can
(d) may
Answer:
(a) did

IV. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

Where did my childhood go?

It went to some forgotten place,
That’s hidden in an infant’s face,
That’s all I know.

Question 1.
Where did the poet’s childhood go?
(a) It went to an unknown place
(b) It went to some forgotten or unknown place
(c) It went to a known place
(d) It went to the poet’s native place
Answer:
(b) It went to some forgotten or unknown place

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Question 2.
Where does the poet think that his childhood is hidden?
(a) He thinks that it is hidden in a cat’s face
(b) He thinks that it is hidden in a boy’s face
(c) He thinks that it is hidden in an infant’s face
(d) He thinks that it is hidden beneath his face
Answer:
(c) He thinks that it is hidden in an infant’s face

Question 3.
The present tense of‘forgotton’is ………
(a) forgot
(b) forgets
(c) forget
(d) forgets
Answer:
(c) forget

Father to Son Important Extra Questions and

Answers Class 11 English Hornbill
Father to Son Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Why doesn’t the father know anything about his son though they
have lived in the same house?
Answer:
The father-son relationship is actually non-functional. The father
doesn’t understand the aspirations, longings arid cravings of the
son. They do not communicate with each other and behave like
strangers. Therefore, the father doesn’t know anything about his
son.

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Question 2.
Is the father responsible for the present situation? What are your
views?
Answer:
Yes, I think the father is responsible for the present situation. We
do not get to hear the son’s version about his relationship with the
father here. But the father is guilty of allowing continued silence or
non-communication between them and also not understanding the
son’s aspirations and feelings.

Question 3.
Father and the son behave like strangers to each other. What can
be the possible reason with for this?
Answer:
They both act and behave like strangers due to lack of
understanding with each other. A growing son has his own
ambitions and aspirations. Elders must try to act like friends
rather than command their children to behave according to their
orders.

Question 4.
What does the poet mean by ‘Silence surrounds us?’
Answer:
The father feels helpless as he has no dialogue with his son. They
don’t understand each other and they are living like strangers to
each other in spite of their living under the same roof for years.
Their outlook and temperament are so different that they remain
separated from each other. They have a communication gap along
with the generation gap, which causes the silence.

Question 5.
How does the father feel when his relationship with his son comes
under strain?

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Answer:
Father feels very helpless at this situation when both father and son
do not understand each other. It saddens him to understand that
he has never tried to understand his son’s perspective and his son
has distanced himself from him from long.

Question 6.
What is the father’s attitude towards his son in the third stanza?
Answer:
The father wants to rectify the situation in the third stanza. The
father wants his son return to the home that he has left. The
father is willing to forgive his son and restart their relationship.

Question 7.
What does the father wish for?
Answer:
The father is unhappy and helpless. He wants to maintain a healthy
relationship with his son. The father wants that his prodigal son
may return to his home and start living under the same roof with
him.
He doesn’t want that he should create and live in a world of his
own.

Question 8.
The father is ready to have his prodigal son return. What inference
can you draw from this?
Answer:
Prodigal means wastefully extravagant. Here the reference is to the
story in the Bible in which a father gives his inheritance to his sons.
The younger brother leaves, wastes his fortune and returns to his
father’s home. Still the father is ready to take him back and forgive
him. In the poem, the father also wants to forgive him so that they
live peacefully together again.

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Question 9.
The root cause of the generation gap presented in the poem lies in
the fact that it is only the father talking to his son rather than
hearing or understanding him. Explain.
Answer:
One of the reasons of the generation gap is absence of
understanding and communication. Here in this poem we hear only
the father’s point of view. We do not hear anything from the son’s
side. The root cause of the generation gap has been lack of sharing
of interests or not paying attention to the childs, emotional needs,
when he is growing up. The child should be allowed to express his
opinions freely and adults should not behave like dictators.

Question 10.
What do the words ‘an empty hand’ signify?
Answer:
The words ‘empty hand’ signify that both the father arid the son
want to forgive each other and extend a hand of friendship to each
other, but neither of them is willing to be the first one to do so.
This means that although they are longing to forgive each other,
their egos are coming in the way so that none of them wants to be
the first one to do so.

Father To Son Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
The poem talks about the universal problem of generation gap. Why
does such a situation exist? How can someone avoid such
confrontations? Express your views in 120-150 words.
Answer:
Generation gap is a psychological and emotional gap between
parents or elder people and the younger ones. This creates
misunderstanding and lack of attachment between parents and

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children. The success of parenting lies in how effectively they avoid

the generation gap or ignore differences with their children.

Generation gap is the result of the fast paced development of

society. In earlier times, two or three generations lived in the same
lifestyle and environment, as development was slow. Today,
parents do not even know many of the modem technologies and
equipment children use.

Being up-to-date is the only way to cope .with the generation gap.
Moreover, generation gap occurs when there are differences of
opinion. One should be flexible in approach and must try to
understand the reason of a particular behaviour.

Question 2.
In the fast moving materialistic world, parents are busy in earning
while their children grow without them giving enough time to
them. This is a major factor in creating a generation gap. There
should be a balancing act on the part of parents. Discuss.
Answer:
In today’s materialistic world parents, specially fathers, are busy
with their careers, finding very little time for their children.

Childhood is a tender age and the child needs his/ her parents at
every stage of his growing up. In the pursuit of money or career,
children are left at the mercy of caretakers or maids who may
provide or fulfil child’s basic need but their emotional and
intellectual needs are left unfulfilled. Bonding between parents and
children keeps on diminishing until it reaches an alarming level.

Parents need to understand that between career and children, a

balancing act has to be practised. Children need their parents to

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guide them, to share their likes and dislikes, to spend quality time
with them.

No parent should allow such a situation where they may not

understand their children or there may be no communication at all
between them. Emotional bonding is a must for a family to stay
together.

Father To Son Extract based Questions and Answers.

I. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

I do not understand this child

Though we have lived together now
In the same house for years. I know
Nothing of him, so try to build
Up a relationship from how
He was when small.

Question 1.
Who are T and ‘this child’ in the above lines?
(a) ‘I’ is the mother and ‘this child’ is the mother’s son
(b) T is the brother and ‘this child’ is his younger brother
(c) ‘I’ is the father and ‘this child’ is his son
(d) ‘I’ is the uncle and ‘this child’ is his nephew
Answer:
(c) ‘I’ is the father and ‘this child’ is his son

Question 2.
What does the speaker complain about?
(a) The speaker complains that he knows nothing about his son
(b) The speaker complains that he knows a few bad things about his
son

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(c) The speaker complains that his son does not take care of him
(d) The speaker complains that his son is a drunkard
Answer:
(a) The speaker complains that he knows nothing about his son

Question 3.
What does the speaker want?
(a) The speaker wants to end his relationship with his son
(b) The speaker wants to make his son realise his mistakes ‘
(c) The speaker wants to live with his son
(d) The speaker wants to start a new relationship with his son
Answer:
(d) The speaker wants to start a new relationship with his son

II. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

Yet have I killed

The seed I spent or sown it where
The land is his and none of mine?
We speak like strangers, there’s no sign
Of understanding in the air.
This child is built to my design
Yet what he loves I cannot share.

Question 1.
Why does the father feel that the seed was sown in the land that
was not his?
(a) Because the son does not share any of the physical features of
his father
(b) Because the son shares the physical features of his father
(c) Because the son does not share any of the behavioural
characteristics of his father

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(d) Because the son shares some of the behavioural characteristics

of his father
Answer:
(c) Because the son does not share any of the behavioural
characteristics of his father

Question 2.
What is wrong between father and son?
(a) Father and son do no| resemble each other
(b) Father and son have a dispute related to their property
(c) Father likes his son but the son likes his mother
(d) Father and son behave like strangers and do not share any
common likes or dislikes
Answer:
(d) Father and son behave like strangers and do not share any
common likes or dislikes

Question 3.
“Built to my design” means
(a) that his son does not look like him
(b) that his son looks like him as far as physical features are
concerned
(c) that his son wears the same brand of clothes that he does
(d) that his son wears clothes designed by him
Answer:
(b) that his son looks like him as far as physical features are
concerned

III. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

Silence surrounds us. I would have

Him prodigal, returning to

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His father’s house, the home he knew,

Rather than see him make and move.
His world. I would forgive him too,
Shaping from sorrow a new love.

Question 1.
What does ‘silence surrounds us’ mean here?
(a) It means the silence of the night .
(b) It means the silence in the house due to the switching off
electrical appliances
(c) It means the silence in the house due to the demise of a loved
one
(d) It means the silence due to no conversation happening between
the father and the son
Answer:
(d) It means the silence due to no conversation happening between
the father and the son

Question 2.
What does T want?
(a) ‘I’ wants his son to study hard
(b) T wants his son to not follow his wishes
(c) T wants his son to be realistic
(d) T wants his son to reciprocate forgiveness and mend the
relationship
Answer:
(d) T wants his son to reciprocate forgiveness and mend the
relationship

Question 3.
Find a word from the extract which means a person who spends
money or uses resources freely and recklessly.
(a) Returning

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(b) Prodigal
(c) Prodigy
(d) Shaping
Answer:
(b) Prodigal

IV. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the
questions that follow.

Father and son, we both must live

On the same globe and the same land,
He speaks: I cannot understand
Myself, why anger grows from grief.
We each put out on empty hand,
Longing for something to forgive.

Question 1.
Who are ‘we’ in the extract?
(a) The father and his two sons
(b) The father and his friend’s son
(c) The father and his son
(d) The uncle and his son
Answer:
(c) The father and his son

Question 2.
Why must father and son live on the same globe and the same land?
(a) To take care of each other
(b) To not let others to take disadvantage of them staying apart
(c) To make their life easy
(d) To rebuild their relationship
Answer:
(d) To rebuild their relationship

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Question 3.
What does ‘empty hand’ signify?
(a) It signifies the poverty of the father
(b) It signifies the failure of the father and the son to understand
each other
(c) It signifies the poverty of the son
(d) It signifies the bad behaviour of the son
Answer:
(b) It signifies the failure of the father and the son to understand
each other

The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse

Important Extra Questions and Answers Class 11
English Snapshots
The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse Extra Questions and
Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What does the writer suggest by beginning the story with the
following words, “One day back there in the good old days…”?
Answer:
The beginning of the story is suggestive of the fact that the episode
that is going to be narrated is not one from the recent past. On
the contrary, it is something that happened years back. The words
‘good old days’, suggest that the times in the past were better than
what they are at present.

Question 2.
What does the writer say about the ‘good old days’?
Answer:
The ‘good old days’ refer to a time when the narrator was about
nine years old. Then, to him, the world was full of all possible kinds

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of splendour. Life then seemed charming and was as alluring as a

mystifying dream.

Question 3.
What was the narrator’s first reaction to the horse?
Answer:
When the narrator’s cousin, Mourad, came to his house at four in
the morning and woke him up, Aram couldn’t believe what he saw.
Mourad was riding a beautiful white horse. He stuck his head out of
the window and rubbed his eyes to make sure that he wasn’t
dreaming.

Question 4.
What did the narrator think of Mourad?
Answer:
Unlike the rest of the world, it was only Aram who did not feel
that Mourad was ‘crazy’. Aram knew that Mourad enjoyed being
alive more than anybody else, and ‘who had ever fallen into the
world by mistake’.

Question 5.
What were the chief traits of the members of his family that the
narrator could recall?
Answer:
The narrator felt that although the people of his clan were poverty
stricken, yet they were honest. They were proud, honest, and they
believed in right and wrong. None of them would take advantage of
anybody in the world, let alone steal.

Question 6.
Why was the narrator both delighted and frightened at the same
time?
Answer:

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The narrator was delighted at the magnificence of the horse. He

could smell it, hear it breathing, which excited him but what
frightened him was that Mourad could not have bought the horse.
The narrator realized, if he had not bought it, he must have stolen
it.

Question 7.
How did the narrator establish that Mourad had stolen the horse?
Answer:
When the initial fascination and surprise wore out, Aram asked
Mourad where he had stolen the horse from. Aram was certain
that no one in their family could afford one. When Mourad did not
deny having stolen the horse, and evaded that question, Aram was
sure that he had stolen the horse.

Question 8.
How did Aram justify the act of stealing the horse?
Answer:
Aram felt that stealing a horse for a ride was not the same thing
as stealing something else, such as money. Perhaps, it was not
stealing at all because they were crazy about horses. He felt it
would not be called stealing until they offered to sell the horse,
which they would never do.

Question 9.
What did Aram feel about Mourad’s temperament?
Answer:
According to Aram, Mourad had a crazy streak. That made him
the natural descendant of Uncle Khosrove who had a crazy element
in him. This crazy streak was common in their tribe and need not
be passed on from a father to the son. The people of the tribe had
been, from the beginning, unpredictable and unrestrained.

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Question 10.
What happened when Aram tried to ride the horse?
Answer:
When Aram kicked into the muscles of the horse, it reared and
snorted. Then it began to run. It ran down the . road to the
vineyard of Dikran Halabian where it began to leap over vines. The
horse leaped over seven vines and Aram fell off but the horse
continued running.

Question 11.
What was the problem the children faced after getting the horse
back?
Answer:
After Aram had been thrown off, it took Mourad half an hour to
find the horse and bring him back. The next concern was that they
did not know where to hide the horse till the next day, and by
then the people had woken up.

Question 12.
Where did the boys hide the horse for the night?
Answer:
The boys walked the horse quietly to the bam of a deserted
vineyard, which at one time had been the pride of the farmer
named Fetvajian. There were some oats and dry alfalfa in the bam.
It was there that they kept the horse.

Question 13.
Who was John Byro? What concern did he express at Aram’s place?
Answer:
John Byro was an Assyrian farmer who, out of loneliness, had
learned to speak Armenian. He was sad because his white horse,
which was stolen a month back, was still not found. Byro had a

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surrey a four-wheeled horse-drawn pleasure carriage having two

or four seats which was of no use without a horse.

Question 14.
Mourad showed a special concern for animals. Justify.
Answer:
Mourad not only had a special understanding with the horse but
Aram saw Mourad, trying to nurse the hurt wing of a young robin
which could not fly. He healed the bird and it took flight. The dogs,
too, in John’s farm, did not bark when he went there to put back
the horse.

Question 15.
What did John Byro mean when he said, “A suspicious man would
believe his eyes instead of his heart”?
Answer:
John Byro scrutinized the horse; it was an exact replica of the one
he owned. He refused to believe that the two boys had taken his
horse, as he knew their family was famed for honesty. So, even
when his rational mind said that it was his horse, his heart refused
to believe it.

Question 16.
What did John Byro perceive about the horse after it was returned?
Why?
Answer:
After the horse was returned, John Byro said that the horse was
stronger than ever and also better tempered. It was so because the
children loved the horse and had taken good care of it. Moreover, it
had exercised without the weight of the surrey.

The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse Extra Questions and

Answers Long Answer Type

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116

Answer the following in 120-150 words each.

Question 1.
Write a brief note on the Garoghlanian family as perceived by the
narrator.
Answer:
The Garoghlanian family was poor. In fact, the whole tribe was
poverty-stricken. But the family was living in the most amazing
and comical poverty in the world. Nobody could understand where
they ever got money enough to feed them, not even the old men of
the family. Most importantly, they had been famous for their
honesty for around eleven centuries, even when they had been one
of the wealthiest families in the world.

They were proud, honest, and believed in values such as right and
wrong. None of them would take advantage of anybody in the
world, let alone steal. The streak of ‘madness’ shared by the
narrator’s Uncle Khusrove and cousin Mourad had been there in
their tribe, from the beginning, unpredictable and unrestrained.

Question 2.
What did Aram feel about the ‘crazy streak’ in the family?
Answer:
Aram felt that every family has a crazy element somewhere, and
Mourad seemed to have inherited it from their Uncle Khosrove, a
man so furious in temper, so irritable, so impatient that he stopped
anyone from talking by roaring, “It is no harm; pay no attention
to it.” That was all he said no matter what anybody happened to
be talking about. Even when his own son Arak came running to the
barber’s shop where he was having his moustache trimmed to tell
him their house was on fire, Khosrove roared exactly the same
thing. The barber repeated what the boy had said but Khosrove
roared, “Enough, it is no harm, I say.” Mourad, though he was the

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son of Zorab, was the one who had inherited the streak of madness
from Khusrove.

Question 3.
Describe the ride of Aram and Mourad when they went out
together for the first time.
Answer:
Mourad called out to the narrator who leaped onto the horse
behind his cousin Mourad. On Olive Avenue, they let the horse run
for as long as it felt like running. Mourad, then, went for a ride
alone; he kicked his heels into the horse and shouted, “Vazire, run.”
The horse stood on its hind legs, snorted, and burst into a fury of
speed. Mourad raced the horse across a field of dry grass, across
the irrigation ditch and five minutes later returned, dripping wet.

When Aram leaped onto the horse for a ride, the horse did not
move at first. Mourad told him to kick into his muscles. When
Aram did so, the horse once again reared and snorted and began
to run. But instead of running across the field to the irrigation
ditch, the horse ran down the road to the vineyard of Dikran
Halabian where it began to leap over vines. The horse leaped over
seven vines and then Aram fell off.

Question 4.
Bring out the humour in Uncle Khosrove’s and John Byro’s meeting.
Answer:
Uncle Khosrove came to Aram’s house for coffee and cigarettes.
Soon another visitor arrived, a farmer named John Byro. The
farmer, having his coffee and a cigarette, said with a sigh that his
white horse which had been stolen the previous month, was still
untraceable. Uncle Khosrove became very annoyed and shouted
that it was no harm since they had all lost their homeland. Hence,
it was no use crying over a horse.

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John Byro said that without a horse his carriage could not be put
to use. “Pay no attention to it,” roared Uncle Khosrove. When John
said that he had walked ten miles to get there, Uncle Khosrove
shouted that he had legs. The farmer said that his left leg pained
but Uncle Khosrove roared again, “Pay no attention to it.” The
farmer said that the horse cost him sixty dollars. Uncle Khosrove
said, “I spit on money” and walked out of the house, slamming the
door.

Question 5.
Describe John Byro’s meeting with his horse and the two boys.
What impact did it have on him?
Answer:
One morning, on the way to Fetvajian’s deserted vineyard, where
they would hide the white horse during the day, the boys met John
Byro who was on his way to town. They wished each other and the
farmer studied the horse eagerly. He asked the boys the name of
the horse. Mourad said it was called ‘My Heart’ in Armenian. John
Byro said that he could swear it was his horse that was stolen
many weeks ago.

The farmer then looked into the mouth of the horse. He was even
more certain that the horse was a replica of his. He said, had he
not known their family’s fame for honesty, he would have claimed
the horse to be his. He believed Mourad when he suggested that the
horse was the twin of John Byro’s horse. The next morning, the
boys took the horse to John Byro’s vineyard and put it in the bam.

The Address Important Extra Questions and

Answers Class 11 English Snapshots
The Address Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

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119

Question 1.
Where had the narrator come? Why was she back?
Answer:
The narrator is a Dutch Jew, who had to leave Holland during the
Second World War. She had left along with her mother for safety.
Now she was back to where her past ‘things’ lay. She wanted to see
and touch her belongings in order to relive those memories.

Question 2.
Whom did the narrator desire to meet in Holland? Why?
Answer:
The narrator was told by her mother to remember ‘Number 46
Marconi Street’, where Mrs Dorling lived; she had insisted on
keeping their things safely till the war was over. After the war, the
narrator was curious about their possessions that were still at that
address and she went to meet Mrs Dorling.

Question 3.
What kind of a welcome did the narrator get from Mrs Dorling?
Answer:
Mrs Dorling was cold and indifferent and evidently displeased to
see the author. In fact, she tried to prevent her from entering by
blocking her entrance. Later, she said it was not convenient for her
to talk to the narrator at that point of time and refused to meet
her.

Question 4.
When did the narrator first learn about the existence of Mrs
Dorling?
Answer:
The narrator recalled the time when she was home during the first
half of the War. She had noticed that various things were missing.
Her mother then told her about Mrs Dorling, an old acquaintance

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who renewed their contact, and came regularly, each time,

carrying away some of their things.

Question 5.
What was the narrator’s mother’s opinion about Mrs Dorling?
Answer:
The narrator’s mother considered Mrs Dorling a very benevolent
lady, who strived to ‘save’ their ‘nice things’ by carrying some of
them away, each time she visited. The narrator’s mother was
unable to see through the lady who wished to cheat her out of her
valuables, instead she felt grateful to Mrs Dorling.

Question 6.
What did the narrator recall about her first meeting with Mrs
Dorling?
Answer:
The narrator saw Mrs Dorling for the first time on the morning
after the day she came to know about her. Coming downstairs, the
narrator saw her mother about to see someone out. It was a
woman, dressed in a brown coat and a shapeless hat, with a broad
back; she nodded and picked up the suitcase.

Question 7.
Why did the narrator return to Marconi Street after a long time?
Answer:
The narrator returned to Marconi Street after a long time because
in the beginning, after the Liberation, she was not interested in all
that stored stuff. She had lost her mother and was also afraid of
being confronted with things that remained as a painful reminder
to their past.

Question 8.
How did the narrator decide to go back to the ‘things’?

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Answer:
Gradually, when everything became normal again the bread was of
a lighter colour and she had a bed to sleep in, securely, and the
surroundings became familiar again the narrator was curious about
all the possessions that must still be at that address that her
mother had talked about and went there to relive her memories.

Question 9.
Explain: “I stopped, horrified. I was in a room I knew and did not
know.”
Answer:
When the narrator went to Mrs Dorling’s house the second time, a
girl of about fifteen let her in. She saw familiar things but arranged
differently that lent unfamiliarity to the surroundings. She found
herself surrounded by things that she had wanted to see again but
which really oppressed her in that strange atmosphere.

Question 10.
Why did the narrator not want to remember the place?
Answer:
The narrator had primarily returned for the sake of memories that
were linked to the things that had once belonged to her mother.
However, she realized, the objects linked in her memory with the
familiar life that she had once lived lost their value as they had
been removed and put in strange surroundings.

The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse Extra Questions and

Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
Describe the narrator’s first post-War meeting with Mrs Dorling.
Answer:
When the narrator knocked at Mrs Dorling’s door and introduced
herself as Mrs S’s daughter, Mrs Dorling showed no sign of

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recognition. She held the door in a way making clear that the
narrator was not welcome. For sometime, she stared quietly at the
narrator at which she felt that it was not the person that she had
been looking for. When Mrs Dorling let her in, the narrator noticed
her wearing her mother’s green knitted cardigan.

The lady saw her looking at the cardigan and hid herself partially
behind the door. When the narrator mentioned her mother, she
said that she had thought that none of the people who had left had
come back. The lady expressed regret at her inability to do
anything for her but the narrator insisted on talking to her having
come all the way for it. However, the lady refused to talk to her,
claiming it was not a convenient time; the narrator had no option
but to leave.

Question 2.
Contrast the character of the narrator’s mother and Mrs Dorling.
Answer:
The narrator’s mother was a trusting woman. She told her
daughter about Mrs Dorling, an old acquaintance, who had
suddenly turned up and renewed their contact and since then had
been a regular visitor. The mother did not doubt her kindness and
was obliged that she insisted on taking all her nice things with her
to save them. The mother was worried about Mrs Dorling getting a
crick in her back from carrying the crockery and lugging the large
vases. When the narrator showed her scepticism, she was annoyed.

On the other hand, Mrs Dorling was an opportunist. She renewed

her contact primarily to take the antique things the narrator’s
mother owned. When the narrator came back after years, she
made her feel unwelcome as she did not wish to part with the
things that had belonged to the narrator’s mother. She was rude

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and brusque with the narrator and did not allow her to enter the
house.

Question 3.
Describe the narrator’s second visit to Mrs Dorling’s place.
Answer:
On her second visit, a girl of about fifteen led the narrator in and
she noticed an old-fashioned iron Hanukkah candle-holder that
belonged to them. In the living room, the sight was dismal. The
room had a strange, stressful effect the atmosphere, the tasteless
way everything was arranged, the ugly furniture or the muggy
smell that hung there. She noticed the woollen tablecloth and
recalled the bum mark on it that had never been repaired.

When the girl put cups on the tea table and poured tea from a
white pot with a gold border on the lid and the pewter plate these
things clouded her mind with strange emotions. The narrator
noticed various things that brought back memories of the past. The
narrator rushed out for her train as the girl went to get their
cutlery. As the narrator walked out, she heard jingling of spoons
and forks.

Ranga’s Marriage Important Extra Questions

and Answers Class 11 English Snapshots
Ranga’s Marriage Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer
Type

Question 1.
What does the narrator feel he could call his narration instead of
‘Ranga’s Marriage’?
Answer:
The narrator feels that the title could have been something like
‘Ranganatha Vivaha’ or ‘Ranganatha Vijaya’ because it is about one

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of the local lads of the village Rangappa called Ranga. The word
‘marriage’ is reminiscent of the western influence on this country
boy, who had gone to Bangalore to study.

Question 2.
What does the writer say about the Indians aping the West?
Answer:
The writer feels that Indians blindly follow the sahibs in England.
Like a flock of sheep, they follow a single . one into the pit. He
quotes the example of his village, Hosahalli, not finding a mention
anywhere. He says when the English writers did not mention it,
Indian geographers, too, did not ever refer to it.

Question 3.
Why were the people of the village curious to see Ranga?
Answer:
The people of the village were curious to see Ranga because not
many villagers were learned in English back then when the story
takes place. Ranga was the first one to go to Bangalore for his
education and his homecoming was celebrated and people flocked
to witness the change, ten years of Bangalore, wrought in him.

Question 4.
What example does the writer give in order to prove that English
words have become a part of our everyday vocabulary?
Answer:
The narrator brings out how English became a part of everyday
vocabulary through this example. When an old woman brought a
bundle of firewood to Rama Rao’s house, her son told her he did
not have any ‘change’, and promised to pay later. The poor woman
did not understand the English word ‘change’ and went away,
puzzled.

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Question 5.
What about Ranga impressed the narrator in the first meeting?
Answer:
Ranga noticed the narrator when the crowd had melted away. He
came to the narrator and did a namaskara respectfully, saying, “I
am all right, with your blessings.” His namaskara was traditional
and respectful, unlike the modem practice. He bent low to touch
the narrator’s feet.

Question 6.
What kind of a bride was Ranga looking for? Why?
Answer:
Ranga wanted to marry a mature girl who would be able to talk
lovingly. A very young girl was unlikely to understand him and
could misconstrue his words, spoken in love. He cited the example
of Dushayantha who had fallen in love with the mature Shakuntala.
He felt, he could only marry a girl he admired.

Question 7.
Who was Ratna? Why was the narrator keen on getting her
married to Ranga?
Answer:
Ratna was Rama Rao’s niece who had come to stay with him as
her parents had died. She was from a big town, knew how to play
the veena and the harmonium, and had a sweet voice. The writer
considered her a . suitable match for Ranga.

Question 8.
How did the narrator arrange a meeting between Ratna and
Ranga?
Answer:
The writer went to Rama Rao’s house and asked his wife to send
Ratna to fetch the buttermilk that the narrator promised to send.

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When Ratna came, he told her to sit and requested her to sing a
song. He then sent for Ranga. While she was singing, Ranga reached
the door.

Question 9.
What was Ranga’s reaction? How did Ratna react to him?
Answer:
Ranga was taken in by the singing. He stopped at the threshold as
he did not want the singing to stop, but was curious to see the
singer. Carefully, he peeped in. The light coming into the room was
blocked. Ratna looked up and seeing a stranger there suddenly
stopped singing.

Question 10.
Explain: “The fellow said he would leave but did not make a move.”
Answer:
When Ratna stopped singing abruptly, Ranga said that it was his
coming in that had stopped the singing. He expressed a desire to
leave. He merely said it for the sake of saying, and he had no
intention of going away. He was enamoured of the young girl.

Question 11.
What information did the narrator give Ranga that disappointed
him? Why do you think he did that?
Answer:
The narrator told Ranga that Ratna was married a year ago. He
did this to help him realize his own feelings for the girl and not get
carried away by Western ideas. The writer got the desired result.

Question 12.
What was the narrator’s need to rope in the Shastri into his plan?
Answer:
Ranga was not going to admit the truth that he had fallen in love

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with Ratna had it not been for the Shastri. Ranga was made to feel
that the Shastri was a genuine astrologer who had gauged the
truth through his calculations. Hence, he admitted his true feelings.

Question 13.
Explain: “There’s greater truth in that shastra than we imagine.”
Answer:
The Shastri said that the miserable plight of Ranga was on account
of a girl, whose name was something found in the ocean such as
Kamala, Pachchi or Ratna, forcing Ranga to admit to the truth.
Ranga believed that the Shastri had calculated accurately, trusting
the shastra to hold deeper truths.

Question 14.
What made the Shastri unhappy?
Answer:
When the narrator met the Shastri, he teased him for having
repeated everything that was taught to him without giving rise to
any suspicion. The Shastri did not like being teased. He said that
what was told could have been found out from the shastras, and
claimed to have developed on the provided hints.

Question 15.
Ranga and Ratna were very fond of the narrator. Justify.
Answer:
Rangappa and Ratna had named their son Shyama after the
narrator. They followed the English custom of naming the child
after someone the parents were fond of.

Ranga’s Marriage Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer

Type

Question 1.
The narrator pays a glowing tribute to his village, Hosahalli. What

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does he say?
Answer:
The narrator says it is a ‘pity’ if one has not heard of his village
Hosahalli. He reasons that, there is no mention of it in any
geography book because the sahibs in England, writing in English,
did not know that such a place existed. He says the state of Mysore
is to Bharatavarsha, what the sweet karigadabu is to a festive meal,
then Hosahalli is to Mysore state what the filling is to the
karigadabu.

He says that he is not the only one who speaks glowingly of

Hosahalli but even the widely travelled doctor, Dr Gundabhatta
agrees with him. He feels that some mango trees in their village
have an extreme potency of sourness just as the leaves of the
creeper make an excellent plate to serve the afternoon meal.

Question 2.
Discuss the reaction of the people towards Ranga.
Answer:
Ranga, the accountant’s son, was the first person from the village
to be sent to Bangalore to study. Many people did not know
English then. That was why Ranga’s homecoming was a great event.
People rushed to his doorstep announcing that the accountant’s son
had come. They wanted to go and have a look at Ranga. The crowd
went and stood in the courtyard.

They were surprised to see that Ranga was the same as he had
been six months ago when he had first left the village. An old lady,
who was near him, ran her hand over his chest, looked into his
eyes and said, since he still wore the sacred thread, it meant that
he had not lost his caste. Once they realized that Ranga still had
the same hands, legs, eyes and nose, they went away.

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Question 3.
Describe the narrator’s ploy to get Ranga married.
Answer:
The narrator was determined to get Ranga married. He thought of
Rama Rao’s niece, Ratna, would be the perfect bride for him. Next
morning, he called Ratna to his place and requested her to sing. He
also sent for Ranga, who became enamoured of her when he heard
her sing. The narrator noticed Ranga’s interest but told him that
Ratna had been married a year back. Ranga was visibly
disappointed to hear this.

The next morning the narrator went to their Shastri and told him
to keep everything ready to read the stars and also tutored him
what to say. As planned, the Shastri pretended to make certain
calculations and said that Ranga’s problem had something to do
with a girl, whose name was something found in the ocean Kamala,
Pachchi or Ratna. The narrator made Ranga admit his love for
Ratna before he told him that she was not married.

Question 4.
Describe Ranga’s meeting with the Shastri.
Answer:
The narrator had tutored the Shastri as to what he should say. He,
then, told Ranga to accompany him to see Shastri. As planned, the
Shastri pretended to make certain calculations and said that
Ranga’s problem had something to do with a girl. He added that
the name of the girl was something found in the ocean such as
Kamala (the lotus), Pachchi (the moss), or Ratna (the precious
stone).

The narrator said that the girl in Rama Rao’s house was Ratna. He
asked if there was any chance of their discussions bearing fruit. The
Shastri was very positive and Ranga’s face revealed surprise and

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some happiness. The narrator said that the girl was married but
there was a possibility of another suitable girl. Hearing this, Ranga
was disappointed.

Albert Einstein at School Important Extra

Questions and Answers Class 11 English
Snapshots
Albert Einstein at School Extra Questions and Answers Short
Answer Type

Question 1.
“I think it’s not facts that matter, but ideas.” To whom did
Einstein say this and why?
Answer:
Einstein said it to Mr Braun, the history teacher, in his Munich
school. He hated learning dates and facts by heart. He argued that
ideas were more important than rote learning. He was not
interested in knowing when the battles were fought but why they
were fought.

Question 2.
Do you think Albert is being impolite while answering the history
teacher’s questions? Give your reasons.
Answer:
Though Albert addresses his history teacher politely, he is being
impudent. If he did have a problem, he should have spoken to the
teacher separately. Questioning the teacher’s views on education in
a class was impolite and rude.
OR
Albert addresses his history teacher politely. His answers are
straightforward and blunt but his opinions are strong. A firm
conviction cannot be termed as rudeness.

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Question 3.
What characteristic of Einstein’s nature is highlighted by the
exchanges between him and the teacher?
Answer:
The exchanges between Einstein and the teacher show him to be a
person with firm convictions; he is frank and straightforward. Even
at the cost of punishment he is not willing to compromise on his
views. He comes across as one who will chart his own course rather
than follow the beaten track.

Question 4.
Why did Albert see no point in learning dates and facts?
Answer:
Einstein told Mr Braun, the history teacher, “I think it’s not facts
that matter, but ideas.” He hated learning dates and facts by heart.
He argued that ideas were more important than learning by rote.
He was not interested in knowing when the battles were fought but
why they were fought.

Question 5.
What was Einstein’s reaction to the history teacher’s sarcasm?
Answer:
Mr Braun, his history teacher, was unhappy with Albert unwilling
to leam facts or dates. When he admitted that he did not see any
point in learning dates, the teacher taunted him by calling his
views the ‘Einstein theory of education’. Albert argued that it was
ideas that were important but nevertheless, felt miserable.

Question 6.
Why did Albert feel miserable when he left school that day?
Answer:
When he left school that day, Albert felt miserable because his day
at school, like most other days, had been bad and he had gotten

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into an argument with his teacher for which he had been punished.
Secondly, he had to go back to the same school the next day.
Moreover, the idea of going back to his lodgings with the
atmosphere of domestic violence did not cheer him up.

Question 7.
Why and what did his history teacher report to the head teacher?
Answer:
Mr Braun was shocked and furious with Albert’s candid reply. He
believed that Albert had no desire to learn and was wasting his
father’s money. He punished Albert by detaining him after school.
He also reported to the head teacher that his work was horrible; he
was a rebel and hindered teaching work in class.

Question 8.
Albert was equally unhappy at his lodging. Why?
Answer:
Albert was miserable at his lodging. His father was a man of
modest means, had got him a room in an ugly area. Albert.had no
comfort and did not like the food there. The atmosphere was bad
as his landlady kept beating her children and her husband came
drunk and beat her.

Question 9.
What did Yuri say to him about violence in the hostel?
Answer:
Yuri told Einstein that he was fortunate to have an accommodation
to himself. The people around him were poor but not uncivilized
like the ones with whom he shared his accommodation. Yuri also
told him about the uncivilized students, sharing his accommodation,
who fought. The authorities did not take action but merely told
them not to do so.

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Question 10.
Who was Elsa? What was her advice to Albert?
Answer:
Elsa was Einstein’s cousin who lived in Berlin. She visited him of
and on. She encouraged him in his studies and tried to assure him
that it was not difficult to pass his examination. All he had to do
was learn like a parrot, like the stupid boys who did that and
passed.

Question 11.
What book did Elsa see Albert carrying under his arm? What did
she say about it? What does it reveal about him?
Answer:
Albert was interested in reading books on science. Elsa saw him
with a geology book, a subject that was not taught in school. She
pointed out to him that it would not help him pass his diploma. It
however, showed that he was a learner and he liked reading what
actually interested him.

Question 12.
Why does the biographer refer to Albert’s interest in music as a
comfort?
Answer:
Albert was having a bad time at school where he was supposed to
cram facts in which he had no interest. The teachers would taunt
him and punish him. Even at his lodging, he had no comfort. All
this made him miserable. He turned to music as his only solace.

Question 13.
Why did the landlady ask Albert to stop playing music? How did he
feel?
Answer:
Albert was miserable both in school and in his lodgings. He found

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comfort only in music. He liked playing the violin and played it till
the landlady stopped him. She had no ear for music, and the
wailing and howling of the children coupled with the sound of the
music got on her nerves.

Question 14.
What kind of a certificate was Albert looking for? Why?
Answer:
Albert told Yuri that he wanted to discontinue with school. If,
however, he went back to Milan he would be sent back by his
father. He had a plan. If a doctor certified that he had a nervous
breakdown and it would be bad for him to go to school, he could
escape school.

Question 15.
Yuri calls Albert ‘the world’s worst liar’. Do you think this is an
insult or a compliment?
Answer:
Yuri called Albert ‘the world’s worst liar’ and meant it as a
compliment to him. Yuri implied that Albert was so honest and
straightforward that he could not tell lies successfully. His voice or
manner betrayed him when he lied.

Question 16.
How did Yuri help him in his plan?
Answer:
Yuri knew that Albert was miserable and wanted to help him. He
knew of no doctors but referred him to his friend, a medical
student, Ernst Weil. This young doctor had a license to practise and
Yuri felt he could be of help.

Question 17.
Why was Albert nervous when he met the doctor? What does this

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nervousness indicate about his nature?

Answer:
The whole day Albert had been wondering what to tell the doctor
from whom he needed a certificate saying that he had had a
nervous breakdown. He was in a nervous state, worrying about it,
by the time he went to see the doctor. This showed his inherent
truthfulness and honesty.

Question 18.
How did Albert hope to get admission to an Italian college without
a diploma from the German school?
Answer:
Albert went to Mr Koch, his teacher of mathematics, to get a
recommendation. Mr Koch admired Albert and acknowledged
Einstein’s superiority of merit, over his own. He got a
recommendation from Mr Koch that said that he was fit to join an
institute for higher education in mathematics.

Question 19.
What reason did the head teacher give for expelling Albert from
school?
Answer:
The head teacher expelled Albert from school because his work was
‘terrible’. Albert’s presence in the classroom also made it impossible
for the teacher to teach and for other pupils to learn. He accused
Albert of hindering serious work because he refused to learn and
was in constant rebellion.

Question 20.
Describe Albert’s meeting with Ernst Weil.
Answer:
Albert related his problem honestly to Ernst Weil though Yuri had
informed the doctor of everything beforehand. The doctor, a

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student till recently, understood his problem. He judged, had Albert

not been close to a nervous breakdown, he would not have gone to
a doctor, thereby certifying that he keep away from school for six
months.

Albert Einstein at School Extra Questions and Answers Long

Answer Type

Question 1.
Were the teachers interested in understanding Albert and bringing
out his potential?
Answer:
The given extract mentions only three of the teachers—the history
teacher, Mr Braun, the mathematics . teacher, Mr Koch, and the
head teacher. The history teacher was not at all interested in
bringing out Albert’s potential. He followed the traditional method
of teaching history and laid more emphasis on the acquisition of
knowledge, by rote learning, rather than the understanding of
ideas. He also had a sarcastic attitude and mocked Albert for his
views. He did not help the talented boy achieve his potential, rather
he complained to the head teacher and got him expelled.

The mathematics teacher, Mr Koch, on the other hand, was very

encouraging. He confessed that he could not teach Albert anymore;
rather Albert would soon be able to teach him. The head teacher
humiliated Albert and expelled him from the institution for being
rebellious and for not allowing the class work to go on. Neither the
history teacher nor the head teacher acknowledged Albert’s
mathematical genius.

Question 2.
Why was Albert miserable in school? How did he plan to move out
of it?
Answer:

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Albert Einstein was bom in a modest family and was sent to

Munich to study at school for his diploma. He was an intelligent
student but not good at rote learning dates and facts in history.
Albert was miserable in school, where his teacher detested him for
not adopting the conventional method of rote learning, and at the
place where he lived. To escape the torture at school, he had a plan.
He wanted to get a doctor’s certificate that declared he had had a
nervous breakdown and was unfit to go to school.

Question 3.
Why was Albert miserable in Munich?
Answer:
Albert Einstein was studying for his diploma in school, in Munich,
which had a very conservative approach to education. Albert had
an analytical and rational mind. He hated rote learning. This
outraged Mr Braun, his history teacher. The teacher taunted him
by calling his views the ‘Einstein theory of education’. The
authorities believed that Albert had no desire to leam and was
wasting his father’s money. The teacher punished Albert by
detaining him for an extra period in school.

Albert was miserable as he returned to his lodging. He had got a

room in an area that was ugly. Albert had no comfort, nor did he
like the food there. The atmosphere was bad as his landlady kept
beating her children and her husband came drunk and beat her.
She even forbade him to play the violin. All this made him
miserable. Expulsion from his school was a welcome relief to him.

Question 4.
Comment on the role of Yuri as described in the extract.
Answer:
During that traumatic period in the school at Germany, Einstein’s
only saviour was his friend Yuri. He lived in a hostel with some

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other students and often encouraged Albert when he was upset.

Yuri was Albert’s friend, philosopher, and guide. Yuri helped Albert
obtain a certificate to say that he had had a nervous breakdown by
referring him to his friend, a medical student, Ernst Weil.

Yuri advised Albert into taking a certificate of recommendation

from the mathematics teacher before seeing the head teacher.
Albert got a recommendation from him stating that he was fit to
join an institute for higher ‘ education in mathematics. It was this
certificate that helped him join a college in Italy.
Yuri understood his friend and admired his honesty, calling him,
‘the world’s worst liar’. Albert met with Yuri before leaving Munich.
Yuri bade him a good bye and wished him the best for his future.

Question 5.
Keeping the whole passage in mind, briefly discuss Einstein’s
character as it is revealed here.
Answer:
Albert Einstein was one of the greatest scientists of all times. As a
young student, Einstein showed the sparks of his genius. His
mathematics teacher had great respect for his ability and went so
far as to say, “I can’t teach you more, and probably you’ll soon be
able to teach me.”

Einstein was not interested in knowing factual details of historical

events but their causes and effects, which infuriated his history
teacher. The exchange between Einstein and the teacher show him
as someone who is unwilling to compromise on his views, risking
punishment. He is noted for his straightforwardness. He comes
across as one who will chart his own course rather than follow the
beaten track.

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Yuri paid Albert’s virtue of honesty a compliment by calling him

‘the world’s worst liar’. Albert Einstein also loved music. He played
the violin for his joy and comfort.
Albert abhorred violence and was unhappy in his lodgings because
of his abhorrence for domestic violence.

Question 6.
Express your views on the educational system in Germany.
Answer:
The educational systerp in Germany was organized along
traditional lines. Albert Einstein’s miserable five years in the school
at Munich are a telling comment on the system. It had no room for
individual brilliance, aptitude and aspirations. Students were
required to study a regular number of subjects. Stress was laid on
the learning of facts rather than its cause and effects.

Elsa assured Einstein, it was easy to pass an examination by

learning by rote, like a parrot. The system discouraged genius and
creativity. No effort was made to understand the students their
problems or emotions. Mr Braun, the history teacher, was
completely insensitive to Albert’s feelings and taunted him about his
ideas by calling them the ‘Einstein theory of education’.

Teachers and authorities insisted on discipline and conformity. The

head teacher expelled Albert Einstein from school for arguing his
point of view with the teacher.
The educational system in Germany was rigid and laid more
emphasis on mindless cramming of facts than on understanding or
creativity.

Question 7.
Who were Yuri and Elsa? What role did they play in Einstein’s life?
Answer:

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Albert Einstein was studying for his diploma in a school in Munich,

where he was unhappy. He hated learning dates and facts by heart
and candidly confessed his apathy of learning dates and dry facts;
he believed in ideas. He was equally miserable when he went to his
lodging because of the violence around him there.

The only people he could depend on were Elsa and Yuri. Elsa was
his cousin who lived in Berlin. She encouraged him in his studies
and tried to assure him that it was not difficult to pass his
examination. All he had to do was learn like a parrot like other
stupid boys who did that and passed. Yuri, his friend, too gave him
a lot of support, and introduced him to Ernst Weil, helping him get
out of his miserable existence in Munich.

Question 8.
Why did Albert feel the ‘certificate burning a hole in his pocket’?
Answer:
The doctor, Ernst Weil, referred by Yuri, falsely certified that
Albert had had a nervous breakdown and should be kept away
from school for six months. However, before he could go to the
head teacher, Albert was summoned and expelled from school. The
reason given was that he neither wanted to study nor was his
presence conducive for others eager to learn. He knew that was not
true. He wanted to show him the certificate to prove that he was
equally miserable and wanted to get rid of the school as he was not
in agreement with the methods of teaching there.

Mother’s Day Important Extra Questions and

Answers Class 11 English Snapshots
Mother’s Day Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Who is Mrs Fitzgerald? What does she advise Mrs Pearson?

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141

Answer:
Mrs Fitzgerald is Mrs Pearson’s neighbour and friend. A fortune
teller, who had learnt the art from the East, she tells Mrs Pearson
that her fortune could turn either way. With effort and counsel,
the situation would swing in her favour. She advised her to assert
herself as the boss of the house.

Question 2.
What was Mrs Pearson’s reaction to Mrs Fitzgerald’s advice?
Answer:
Mrs Pearson said that it would not be easy to put her family
members in place as she was very fond of them. She knew that
they were thoughtless and selfish but felt, perhaps, they did not
mean to be so.

Question 3.
What was Mrs Fitzgerald’s opinion of Mrs Pearson’s attitude?
Answer:
Mrs Fitzgerald said that Mrs Pearson’s family was undoubtedly
spoilt. She felt that it was Mrs Pearson’s attitude that did them no
good, tending to their needs, taking their orders, and staying at
home every night while they went out enjoying themselves.

Question 4.
What does Mrs Fitzgerald offer to do for her?
Answer:
Mrs Fitzgerald sensed that Mrs Pearson was far too gentle,
submissive and generous to tackle her family. Mrs Fitzgerald offered
to make them realize the error of their ways not as Mrs Fitzgerald
but as Mrs Pearson. She offered to change their bodies and change
back again.”

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Question 5.
How did the two women react after their bodies were changed?
Answer:
When Mrs Pearson looked down at herself in Mrs Fitzgerald’s body,
she gave a scream of fright. On the other hand, Mrs Fitzgerald is
rather pleased and feels that the transition was so neat that she
did not even know that she had it in her.

Question 6.
What is Doris’s first reaction on seeing her mother? Why?
Answer:
Doris was taken aback to see her mother smoking and playing
cards. When Doris asks her what she was doing, she is startled to
get her answer—‘whitewashing the ceiling.’ Moreover, her conduct
was not nervous and apologetic but cool and incisive.

Question 7.
What did Doris want her mother to do? How did the mother react?
Answer:
Doris wanted her to iron her yellow silk dress that she ‘must wear’
that night. She also wanted her mother to make tea for her. She
refused to get her tea and iron her dress, telling her that she put
in twice the hours Doris did but got neither wages, nor thanks for
it.

Question 8.
What does Mrs Pearson say to Doris that really bothered her?
Answer:
Mrs Pearson asked where Doris would wear her yellow silk dress.
She said that she planned to go out with Charlie Spence. Mrs
Pearson told her to find somebody better, and insulted Charlie
Spence by calling her buck-toothed and was half-witted.

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Question 9.
What does Mrs Pearson have to say to Cyril that shocks him?
Answer:
When Cyril walk in and insists on her getting the tea and his
clothes ready, he is stunned to hear that she doesn’t ‘like mending’.
She goes on to tell him that when he does not want to do
something, he does not do it. She planned to do the same. Cyril
could not believe his ears.

Question 10.
What do Doris and Cyril feel about Mrs Pearson’s changed
behaviour?
Answer:
Doris and Cyril discuss that there is something wrong with their
mother as she is not behaving in character. They discuss how Mrs
Pearson behaved oddly with each of them. They try to fathom if
she had gone crazy or had a concussion.

Question 11.
What is Mrs Pearson’s reaction to see her children giggling when
she returns to the room?
Answer:
Mrs Pearson asks them the reason for their amusement. Doris
answers that she had never understood their jokes. To which Mrs
Pearson retorts, rudely, that she was bored at their jokes even
before they were bom. Doris is tearful and Mrs Pearson blames
them for being selfish about their needs.

Question 12.
What reason does she give Cyril for not making the tea?
Answer:
When Cyril again asks for tea as he had been working for an eight-
hour day, Mrs Pearson replies that she had done her eight hours

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and henceforth she would work only for forty hours a week. She
declared that she would have her two days off on the weekend.

Question 13.
What, according to Mrs Pearson, were her plans for the weekends?
Answer:
Mrs Pearson tells her children that at the weekend she would have
her two days off. She agreed to make beds and cook a little as a
favour, conditional to how she was treated. Mrs Pearson tells her
children that in case they did not like the arrangement, she would
go elsewhere for the weekend.

Question 14.
Why was George Pearson surprised when he came home? What was
the answer that he got?
Answer:
Mr George Pearson was surprised to see Doris crying and was
shocked to see Mrs Pearson sipping beer. He said that it did not
look right. Mrs Pearson replied that it was ‘a nice change’ and it
had been quite some time since he was surprised at her.

Question 15.
What did Mrs Pearson say to her husband when he was angry with
her for not making tea?
Answer:
Mr Pearson informed Mrs Pearson that he did not want tea but
grew angry at being told that tea was not ready. She taunted him
that if he went up to the bar at the club and refused a glass of
beer and showed irritation because they had not served it earlier,
he would invite ridicule.

Question 16.
What was the truth about Mr George Pearson that hurt him the

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most?
Answer:
Mrs Pearson told George that that he was one of the standing jokes
in the club. He was called ‘Pompy-ompy Pearson’ because they
thought that he was slow and pompous. She was surprised that he
spent so much time at a place where people always ridiculed him,
leaving his wife at home.

Question 17.
What was Mrs Fitzgerald’s reaction to Mrs Pearson shouting at
Cyril? Why?
Answer:
Mrs Fitzgerald was in reality Mrs Pearson, so when she saw Mrs
Pearson (the real Mrs Fitzgerald) shouting at Cyril, she protested as
she was actually Cyril’s mother. But Mrs Pearson told her not to
interfere.

Question 18.
What were the two slips that could have let out the real identity of
Mrs Fitzgerald?
Answer:
Mrs Fitzgerald, in her nervousness, addresses Mr Pearson, as
George. Mr Pearson is surprised to be called thus, but Mrs Pearson
covers up for Mrs Fitzgerald. Later, when Mrs Fitzgerald attempts
to slap George, following an argument, the real Mrs Pearson
exclaims and calls out to her, ‘Mrs Fitzgerald’, which confuses
George.

Question 19.
How was the experience for the two women after the change of
bodies?
Answer:
The real Mrs Pearson (now Mrs Fitzgerald) had not enjoyed the

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experience as she had seen her family being treated roughly and
rudely by Mrs Fitzgerald. On the other hand, Mrs Fitzgerald had
enjoyed the experience, as she had been able to teach Doris,Cyril
and George Pearson a lesson to value Mrs Pearson.

Question 20.
What was Mrs Fitzgerald’s advice to Mrs Pearson after she had put
back the family members in their proper place?
Answer:
Mrs Fitzgerald advised Mrs Pearson not to be soft and waste all the
effort she had put in to change the attitude of her family for the
better. Mrs Pearson is unsure how she would explain her behaviour.
But Mrs Fitzgerald warns her not to yield.

Question 21.
What was the change that came over the Pearson family in the end?
Answer:
When Mrs Fitzgerald left, Mrs Pearson’s family was relieved to see
her smile. Mrs Pearson decides to stay home for a family game of
rummy, and have the children prepare dinner. They readily agree
and gather around Mrs Pearson as the play ends.

Mother’s Day Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
Write in your words the conversation between Mrs Pearson and
Mrs Fitzgerald in the beginning of the play. What is the outcome of
the meeting?
Answer:
Mrs Fitzgerald predicts her friend Mrs Pearson’s fate and tells her
that it was high time she asserted herself as the head of the family.
Mrs Pearson says that it was not easy because she loves her family
although they are very thoughtless and selfish. But Mrs Fitzgerald

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147

insists that they ought to learn to appreciate her and treat her
appropriately. She tells her not to run after them and oblige. Mrs
Pearson agrees with Mrs Fitzgerald, but wonders if anything would
affect them.

She is afraid of creating unpleasantness in the family. As Mrs

Pearson is about to rush off to prepare dinner for her family, Mrs
Fitzgerald comes up with an idea. She tells . Mrs Pearson that they
could exchange their bodies. She then holds her hand and asks her
to keep quiet for a minute. They stare at each other and Mrs
Fitzgerald mumbles ‘Arshtatta dum—arshtatta lam—arshtatta
lamdumbona…’ and they assume each other’s personality.

Question 2.
What does Mrs Pearson have to say to Doris that disturbs her?
Answer:
When Mrs Pearson’s daughter Doris returns and tells Mrs Fitzgerald,
in the body of Mrs Pearson, to iron her yellow silk dress as she
would like to wear it that night, her mother continues playing
patience. Doris asks her what she is doing and she answers her
smugly that she was not whitewashing the ceiling. She also says
that there is no law against smoking. She informs Doris that she
had already had her tea but had not made tea for the others.

She had not cooked dinner either and would have her meal at the
Clarendon. She tells Doris that she worked twice as hard as the
others and got no wages or thanks for it. She then inquired from
Doris where she wanted to wear her yellow dress. Doris tells her
that she was going out with Charlie Spence. Mrs Pearson tells her
to find someone better than the buck-toothed and half-witted
man. Doris is offended and runs out.

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Question 3.
Describe Mrs Pearson’s conversation with Cyril when he walks in
and his reaction.
Answer:
Mrs Pearson’s son Cyril walks in and insists on Mrs Pearson getting
the tea and his clothes ready. He reminds her of the promise she
made the same morning, to mend his clothes. He is surprised to
hear that she does not Tike mending’ and that she would not do
anything that she did not want to do. Cyril could not believe his
ears. Cyril again asks for tea, telling her that he had been working
for an eight-hour day, to which Mrs Pearson says that she had
done her eight hours and henceforth she would work for only forty
hours a week. On weekends, she would have her two days off.

She might make a bed or two and do a bit of cooking as a favour

but that would be conditional to the fact that they asked her very
nicely and thanked her for everything and generally made a fuss of
her. Cyril and Doris are surprised and wait for their father to
arrive.

Question 4.
“Sometimes it does people good to have their feelings hurt.” Who
says this and what does she say to hurt Mr Pearson?
Answer:
When Mr Pearson announces that he did not wish to drink tea,
after he returned from work, the real Mrs Fitzgerald informs him
that his tea was not ready. He is angry and she reminds him that
he was annoyed because he did not get the tea that he did not
want in the first place. She adds that if he did that at bar—went
up to the bar at the club and told them he did not want a glass of
beer but got irritated because they had not already poured it out
for him, they would laugh at him even more than they did already.

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George was indignant and she added that he was one of their
standing jokes and was called ‘Pompy-ompy Pearson’ because they
thought that he was slow and pompous.
George checks with Cyril on the truth of the matter, and Cyril
accuses his mother of not being fair and sensitive. To which, she
replies that sometimes it does people good to have their feelings
hurt.

Question 5.
Pick out the instances that bring out the element of humour in the
play.
Answer:
The play is a light-hearted comedy. A mother accomplishes
changing the attitude of her family by exchanging her body with
her friend, Mrs Fitzgerald, a bold and assertive woman, thus,
introducing humour in the play. The moment the spirits change,
Mrs Pearson notices the cigarette, snatches it off Mrs Fitzgerald,
while she looks down at her changed body and screams out of
fright.

Mrs Pearson answers to her daughter’s query, sarcastically, that

she was not whitewashing the ceiling. Mrs Pearson insults Doris’
date, comically, calling him ‘buck-toothed and half-witted’. Cyril is
told that she does not ‘like mending’ his clothes, stunning him to
silence. When Mrs Pearson walks out, Doris and Cyril laugh at the
idea of her having gone crazy and decide to wait till the father
comes. She tells Mr Pearson how he was a standing joke in the club
and was called ‘Pompy-ompy Pearson’ because they thought that
he was slow and pompous. She also tells him that he was George,
and not the Duke of Edinburgh.

Question 6.
Mrs Fitzgerald’s effort does not go in vain, as the family changes

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for the better. Justify.

Answer:
Mrs Pearson has a selfish and a thoughtless family, who is
insensitive to the feelings of the mother. But after the staged trick,
and when Mrs Fitzgerald leaves, the three—George, Doris, and
Cyril look anxiously at Mrs Pearson, who smiles. They are much
relieved, and smile back at her. Mrs Pearson tells them that since
they have decided to stay at home, they would have a nice family
game of rummy and then the children could get the supper ready
while she talked with their father. All of them agree. Mrs Pearson
wishes Mrs Fitzgerald goodbye and the family surrounds Mrs
Pearson, implying a happy ending. It looks as if Mrs Fitzgerald’s
effort is rewarded and they seem eager to appease the real Mrs
Pearson.

The Ghat of the Only World Important Extra

Questions and Answers Class 11 English
Snapshots
The Ghat of the Only World Extra Questions and Answers Short
Answer Type

Question 1.
When and why did Shahid mention his death to the writer?
Answer:
The first time that Shahid mentioned his approaching death was
on 25 April 2001 although he had been under treatment for
malignant brain tumour for about fourteen months. He was going
through his engagement book when suddenly he said that he
couldn’t see anything. Then after a pause he added that he hoped
this didn’t mean that he was dying.

Question 2.
What was the strange request that Shahid made to the writer?

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151

Answer:
After Shahid broached the subject of death for the first time with
the writer, he did not know how to respond.The writer tried to
reassure him that he would be well but Shahid interrupted him
and in an inquiring tone said that he hoped after his death, he
would write something about him.

Question 3.
How did the writer realize that Shahid was serious about him
writing about his death?
Answer:
When the writer tried reassuring him, Shahid ignored his
reassurances. When he began to laugh the writer realised that he
was very serious about what he had said. He wanted the writer to
remember him not through the spoken words of memory and
friendship, but through the written word.

Question 4.
Why did he want the writer to write something?
Answer:
Perhaps, Shahid knew all too well that for those writers for whom
things become real only in the process of writing, there is an
inherent struggle to deal with loss and sorrow. He knew that the
writer’s nature would have led him to search for reasons to avoid
writing about his death.

Question 5.
Where was Shahid staying during his illness?
Answer:
Earlier Shahid was staying a few miles away, in Manhattan. But
after the tests revealed that he had a malignant brain tumour, he
decided to move to Brooklyn, to be close to his youngest sister,

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Sameetah, who was teaching at the Pratt Institute, a few blocks

away from the street where the writer lived.

Question 6.
‘Shahid, I will: I’ll do the best I can.’ What best did the writer want
to do?
Answer:
The writer would have had various excuses for not writing about
Shahid. He would have said that he was not a poet, their friendship
was recent or that there were many others who knew him much
better and would be writing from greater understanding and
knowledge. Shahid seemed to have guessed this and insisted . that
he wrote about him. The writer promised to try his best in doing
justice to the memory of Shahid in his piece of writing.

Question 7.
What did the writer do in order to fulfill his promise to Shahid?
Answer:
The writer, from the day he was committed to writing an article,
picked up his pen, noted the date, and wrote down everything he
remembered of each conversation after that day. This he continued
to do for the next few months. This record made it possible for him
to fulfill the pledge he made that day.

Question 8.
What did Amitav Ghosh think of Shahid, the poet?
Answer:
Amitav Ghosh was introduced to Shahid’s work long before he met
him. His 1997 collection, The Country Without a Post Office, had
made a powerful impression on him. His voice was like none that
had ever heard before. It was at once lyrical and fiercely disciplined,
engaged and yet deeply inward. He knew of no one else who would
even conceive of publishing a line like.- ‘Mad heart, be brave.’

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Question 9.
‘….his illness did not impede the progress of our friendship.’ Why
does the writer feel so?
Answer:
The writer got to know Shahid only after he moved to Brooklyn
the next year, as he, too, lived in the same neighbourhood. Then
they began to meet sometimes for meals and quickly discovered
that they had a great deal in common. By this time of course
Shahid’s condition was already serious, but despite that their
friendship grew rapidly.

Question 10.
What were the interests that Shahid and Amitav shared?
Answer:
They had many a common friends, in India, America, and
elsewhere, they shared a love for roganjosh, Roshanara Begum and
Kishore Kumar; a mutual indifference to cricket and an equal
attachment to old Bombay films.

Question 11.
How did Shahid occupy himself, when he was not writing?
Answer:
Shahid was a very sociable person. There was never an evening
when there wasn’t a party in his living room. He loved having
many people around in his apartment. He loved serving them good
food. He loved the spirit of festivity. This he said, meant he didn’t
‘have time to be depressed’.

Question 12.
Shahid was legendary for his prowess in the kitchen. Justify.
Answer:
Shahid was never so preoccupied to overlook the progress of the
evening’s meal. Even the number of guests didn’t matter. He would

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cut short his conversation to shout directions to whoever was in the

kitchen. Even when his eyesight was failing, he could tell from the
smell alone, exactly which stage the roganjosh had reached. And
when things went exactly as they should, he would sniff the air and
appreciate. He would spend days over the planning and
preparation of a dinner party.

Question 13.
What was the impact of James Merrill on Shahid’s poetry?
Answer:
James Merrill, the poet, completely changed the direction of
Shahid’s poetry. After coming in contact with him, Shahid began to
try out strict, metrical patterns and verse forms. No one had a
greater influence on Shahid’s poetry than James Merrill. In the
poem in which he most openly anticipated his own death, ‘I •
Dream I Am At the Ghat of the Only World,’ he awarded the
envoy to Merrill.

Question 14.
How did Shahid justify his passion for the food of his region?
Answer:
Shahid had a special passion for the food of his region, particularly
‘Kashmiri food in the Pandit style’.This was very important to him
because of a persistent dream, in which all the Pandits had
vanished from the valley of Kashmir and their food had become
extinct. This was a nightmare that haunted him in his conversation
and his poetry.

Question 15.
What did he admire in Begum Akhtar? What merit did he have in
common with her?
Answer:
Apart from her music, Shahid admired her sharpness in repartee.

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He, too, was a witty man. On one occasion, at Barcelona airport he

was asked what he did for a living. He said he was a poet. The
guard, a woman, asked him again what he was doing in Spain.
Writing poetry, he replied. Finally, the frustrated woman asked if
he was carrying anything that could be dangerous to the other
passengers. To this Shahid said: ‘Only my heart’.

Question 16.
Comment on Shahid as a teacher.
Answer:
Shahid was teaching at Manhattan’s Baruch College. The narrator
had the privilege to watch him perform in a classroom. It was
evident from the moment they walked in that the students adored
him. They had printed a magazine and dedicated the issue to him.
Shahid for his part was not in the least subdued by the sadness of
the occasion. From beginning to end, he was a sparkling diva.

Question 17.
How did Shahid’s upbringing help him imbibe ecumenical outlook?
Answer:
Shahid’s vision was always inclined towards the broader and
universal outlook. He credited this to his parents. In his childhood
he had the desire to create a small Hindu temple in his room in
Srinagar. Initially he was hesitant to tell his parents, but when he
did they responded with an enthusiasm equal to his own. His
mother bought him murtis and other accessories and he was
diligently did pujas at this shrine.

Question 18.
What was Shahid’s last wish? Why?
Answer:
On May 4, Shahid had gone to the hospital for a scan. Shahid told
the writer that the doctors had given him a year or less. He said

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that he would like to go back to Kashmir to die. He wanted to go

to Kashmir because of the feudal system existing there, which
would be a lot of support. Moreover his father was there too. He
didn’t want his siblings to have to make the journey afterwards,
like they had to with his mother.

Question 19.
What does Amitav Ghosh say about his end?
Answer:
The last time the writer saw Shahid was on 27 October, at his
brother’s house in Amherst. He was able to converse only
intermittently and there were moments when they talked as they
had in the past. He had made his peace with his approaching death.
There was no trace of any anguish or conflict and he was
surrounded by the love of his family and friends, he was calm,
contented, and at peace. He loved the idea of meeting his mother
in the afterlife.

The Ghat of the Only World Extra Questions and Answers Long
Answer Type

Question 1.
Describe in detail Agha Shahid Ali’s attitude towards his
approaching death.
Answer:
The first time Shahid spoke to the narrator about his approaching
death was on 25 April 2001. It was during a routine telephonic
conversation that the writer heard him flipping through his
engagement book and then suddenly he said that he could not see
a thing. After a brief pause he added that he hoped that this didn’t
mean that he was dying. He had been under treatment for cancer
for some fourteen months, but was active and perfectly logical,
except for intermittent lapses of memory.

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He had never before touched the subject of death. His voice sounded
joyous but the subject of conversation was grim. When the writer
tried to tell him that he would be fine, he interrupted him and
told him that he hoped Amitav would write something about him
after his death.

Later, when the doctors lost hope, Shahid said that he would like
to go back to Kashmir to die. He wanted to go to Kashmir because
of the feudal system existing there, as there would be a lot of
support. Moreover his father was there too. He didn’t want his
siblings to have to make the journey afterwards, like they had to
with his mother. A day before his death, there was no trace of
anguish or conflict and he was surrounded by the love of his family
and friends, he was calm, contented, and at peace.

Question 2.
How did the writer decide to write a piece on Shahid after his
death?
Answer:
When for the first time Shahid expressed his desire that Amitav
write something about him after his death, Amitav was shocked
into silence and a long moment passed before he could bring
himself to try to reassure him.But Shahid ignored his reassurances.
He began to laugh and it was then that the writer realized that he
was very serious. He understood that Shahid was trusting him with
a specific responsibility.

Shahid knew all too well that for writers things become real only in
the process of writing, but there is a natural battle in dealing with
death. He knew that Amitav’s instincts would lead him to search
for reasons to avoid writing about his death, so he repeated ‘You
must write about me.’ The writer could think of nothing to say so
he promised to put in his best efforts.

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Question 3.
How did the bond of friendship grow between the writer and
Shahid?
Answer:
The writer, in 1998, quoted a line from Shahid’s ‘The Country
Without a Post Office in an article that mentioned Kashmir. Then
the only fact that the writer knew about him was that he was
from Srinagar and had studied in Delhi. The writer had been at
Delhi University at about the same time but they had never met.
Later, some common friend introduced them. In 1998 and 1999
they had several conversations on the phone and even met a couple
of times.

But they barely knew each other until he moved to Brooklyn the
next . year. Then, being in the same neighbourhood, they met for
occasional meals and discovered that they had a great deal in
common. By this time Shahid’s condition was already serious, yet
their friendship flourished. They had common friends, shared a love
of rogan josh, Roshanara Begum and Kishore Kumar, had a mutual
indifference to cricket and an equal attachment to old Bombay
films.

Question 4.
Why does the writer feel that ‘Shahid had a sorcerer’s ability to
transmute the mundane into the magical’?
Answer:
The writer quotes an episode when Shahid was to be got back from
the hospital after a surgical procedure that was meant to ease the
pressure on his brain. His head was shaved and the shape of the
tumour was visible upon his bare scalp, its edges outlined by metal
sutures. When it was time to leave the ward a blue- uniformed
hospital escort arrived with a wheelchair. Shahid said that he was
strong enough to walk out of the hospital.

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But he was weak and dizzy and could take no more than a few
steps. Iqbal got back the wheelchair while the rest of them held him
upright. At that moment, leaning against the depressing hospital
wall, a kind of delight flooded Shahid. When the hospital orderly
retuned with the wheelchair Shahid gave him a broad smile and
asked where he was from. The man said he was from Ecuador.
Shahid clapped his hands gleefully together and said loudly ‘I
always wanted to learn Spanish. Just to read Lorca.’ Shahid had an
ability to metamorphose a dull moment into a delightful one.

Question 5.
Shahid placed great store on authenticity and exactitude in cooking.
Comment.
Answer:
Shahid placed great store on authenticity and exactitude in cooking
and did not like variation from conventional methods and recipes.
He pitied people who took short cuts. The aroma of roganjosh and
haale would invade even the elevator. No matter how many people
there were, Shahid was never so preoccupied as to lose track of the
progress of the evening’s meal. From time to time he would
interrupt himself to shout directions to whoever was in the kitchen.

Even when his eyesight was failing, he could tell from the smell
alone, exactly which stage the roganjosh had reached. And when
things went exactly as they should, he would sniff the air and
appreciate the cooking. He had a special passion for ‘Kashmiri food
in the Pandit style’ because of a recurrent dream, in which all the
Pandits had vanished from the valley of Kashmir and their food
had become extinct. He also loved Bengali food.

Question 6.
The steady deterioration of the political situation in Kashmir the
violence and counter-violence had a powerful effect on Shahid.

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Comment.
Answer:
Shahid traveled frequently between the United States and India
and hence was an irregular but first-hand witness to the growing
violence that gripped the region from the late 1980s onwards. The
continuous decline of the political situation in Kashmir had a great
effect on him. It became one of the fundamental subjects of his
work and it was in writing of Kashmir that he created his finest
work.

Distressed about Kashmir’s destiny, Shahid firmly refused to accept

the role of victim. In fact this would also have given him a great
deal of popularity but Shahid never had any doubt about his
mission. Although respectful of religion, he believed in the
separation of politics and religious practice.

Birth Important Extra Questions and Answers

Class 11 English Snapshots
Birth Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1.
Why was Joe Morgan waiting for Andrew?
Answer:
Joe Morgan and his wife had been married nearly twenty years
and were expecting their first child. At nearly midnight, Joe was
worried and walked up and down, waiting for Andrew to reach
Bryngower.

Question 2.
“Andrew now felt dull and listless.” Give two reasons.
Answer:
On Joe Morgan’s call, Andrew, along with Joe, set out for Joe’s
house. The night air was cool and deep with quiet mystery but

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Andrew felt dull and listless because it was past midnight and he
was reflecting about his own relationship with Christine, the girl he
loved.

Question 3.
What did Andrew notice as he entered Joe’s house?
Answer:
As Andrew entered the door of Number 12, he saw a narrow stair
which led up to a small bedroom, clean but poorly furnished, and
lit only by an oil lamp. Here, Mrs Morgan’s mother, a tall, grey-
haired woman of nearly seventy, and a stout, elderly midwife
waited beside the patient.

Question 4.
What was the old woman’s fear? How did Andrew reassure her?
Answer:
When the old woman returned with a cup of tea, Andrew smiled
faintly. He noticed the old woman, her wisdom in experience, and
realized that there had been a period of waiting. She was afraid he
would leave the case, saying he would return later. But he assured
her that he would not run away.

Question 5.
What were the only sounds that Andrew heard in the thick of the
night?
Answer:
As Andrew sat by the kitchen fire, he noticed that it was a still
night. The only sound that he could hear was the crackle of embers
in the fireplace, the slow tick-tock of the wall clock and Morgan’s
footsteps as he moved to and fro in the street outside.

Question 6.
What was weighing on Andrew’s mind as he waited with the

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patient?
Answer:
Andrew’s thoughts were heavy and muddled. The episode he had
witnessed at Cardiff station still gripped him and made him
gloomy. He thought of Bramwell, foolishly loyal to a woman who
deceived him. He thought of Edward Page, tied to the shrewish
Blodwen and of Denny, living unhappily, apart from his wife.

Question 7.
Why does the writer say that the old woman’s ‘meditation had
pursued a different course’?
Answer:
While Andrew was thinking about the futility of marriage and
relationships, the old woman was thinking about her daughter. She
was concerned about both the mother and the child. She said that
her daughter,Susan, did not want chloroform if it would harm the
baby. She really looked forward to having the child.

Question 8.
What dilemma was Andrew caught in? How did he resolve it?
Answer:
After an hour-long struggle, the child was bom lifeless and the
mother was in a critical state. Andrew was tom between his desire
to attempt to save the child, and his obligation towards the mother.
He overcame the dilemma, instinctively; he gave the child to the
nurse and turned his attention to Susan Morgan.

Question 9.
How did he revive the mother?
Answer:
To revive Susan Morgan, who lay collapsed and almost pulse-less,
Andrew smashed a glass ampule, instantly, and injected the
medicine. Then he flung down the hypodermic syringe and worked,

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ceaselessly, to revive the almost lifeless woman. After a few minutes

of intense effort, her heart strengthened and she was safe.

Question 10.
What did Andrew think was wrong with the child? What did he do?
Answer:
Andrew saw the child was a perfectly formed boy. The head lolled
on a thin neck and the limbs seemed boneless. He knew that the
whiteness meant asphyxia pallida. He thought of the treatment, he
remembered being used at the Samaritan. He applied the same to
the stillborn child.

Question 11.
What was the treatment given to the child?
Answer:
Andrew hurried the child from one basin, filled with cold water to
the one with warm water. He continued his efforts for half an hour,
to no avail. Lastly, he rubbed the child with a rough towel, crushing
and releasing the little chest with both his hands, till the child
finally gave a cry.

Birth Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1.
“He had no premonition that this night call would prove unusual,
still less that it would influence his whole future in Blaenelly.” What
was the unusual event in store for him?
Answer:
At nearly midnight, when Andrew reached Bryngower, he found
Joe Morgan waiting for him. Joe and his wife had been married
nearly twenty years, and were expecting their first child. He
accompanied Joe to his place where after an hour-long, harsh
struggle, the child was born lifeless and the mother was in a critical

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164

state. Andrew was tom between his desire to save the child, and his
obligation towards the mother.

After he revived Susan Morgan, he turned his attention to the child.

It was a perfectly formed boy, asphyxiated. He struggled to save
the child and finally succeeded. Having saved two lives in the course
of the night, his future in Blaenelly seemed to hold promise.

Question 2.
His reason told him that all these marriages were dismal failures.
What are the reasons that make him reach this conclusion?
Answer:
Andrew was skeptical about relationships because of what he had
closely observed. His thoughts were serious and confused. The
episode, he had witnessed at Cardiff station, still obsessed him. He
thought of Bramwell, unwisely devoted to a woman who betrayed
him; he thought of Edward Page committed to the quarrelsome
Blodwen.

His thoughts turned to Denny, living unhappily, away from his wife.
His reason told him that all these marriages were dismal failures. It
was a conclusion, which made him cringe in his present state. He
wished to consider marriage as a peaceful state. The conflict
between his cynical mind and his ’ heart, eager to love, left him
bitter and confused.

Question 3.
Andrew’s visit to the Morgan’s gave him pleasure and satisfaction
that he had not achieved earlier. Justify.
Answer:
At half past three, after an hour’s difficult struggle, the child was
born lifeless. Andrew attempted to revive the mother who lay
collapsed and almost pulse-less. He injected the medicine and

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struggled to restore the lifeless Susan Morgan, and after a few

minutes of intense effort, her heartbeat became steady.

Andrew then turned his attention to the lifeless baby. He inferred

the condition was caused by lack of oxygen in the baby’s blood. He
initiated the artificially induced method of respiration. Pouring cold
water into one basin and warm, into the other, he rushed the child,
from one basin to the next, for fifteen minutes.

As his last resort, he rubbed the child with a rough towel, crushing
and releasing the little chest with both his hands, trying to get
breath into that limp body.Then miraculously, the tiny chest began
heaving and they heard the child’s cry. He had saved two lives and
was eternally relieved at having ‘done something real at last.’

The Tale of Melon City Important Extra

Questions and Answers Class 11 English
Snapshots
The Tale of Melon City Extra Questions and Answers Short
Answer Type

Question 1.
What do the words ‘just and placid’ imply?
Answer
The phrase implied that the king was fair and mild. The king, ‘a
great believer injustice’ ensured justice was meted out to his
subjects. He was also mild mannered and rarely showed any
displeasure and even if he did frown, he quickly wiped the frown
off his face.

Question 2.
Where did the king want the arch constructed? Why?
Answer

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The king wanted an arch to be erected which extended over the

major main road. He felt, the road would edify the spectators it
would improve the morals and knowledge of the onlookers there.

Question 3.
What happened to the king as he rode down the road?
Answer
After the arch was built, the king rode through the street. He
wanted to edify the spectators there. But as he was crossing below
the arch, his crown fell off as the arch was built too low. This
angered the king.

Question 4.
What order did the king give when his crown was knocked off his
head?
Answer
The king was angry because his crown was knocked off his head as
he tried to ride under the arch. He ordered the chief of the builders,
responsible for building the arch, to be hanged.

Question 5.
How did the chief of the builders escape hanging?
Answer
When the chief of the builders was led away to be hanged, he
pleaded innocence. He claimed that it was the fault of the workers
that the arch was built so low. He escaped hanging as the ‘just and
placid’ king could not bear to punish an innocent man.

Question 6.
Why were the workmen to be hanged? How did they escape
hanging?
Answer
The king ordered the workmen to be put to death as they were

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painted responsible, for building the low arch, by the chief of the
builders. The workmen protested that they were not the ones at
fault and blamed the masons who had made bricks of the wrong
size. They, too, escaped death by hanging.

Question 7.
Whom did the architect lay the blame on?
Answer
The masons blamed the architect for the poor design of the arch.
The architect, in turn, passed on the blame to the king who had
made certain changes in the architectural plans of the arch.

Question 8.
How did the king react to the architect’s accusation? Why did he
react that way?
Answer
When the king heard the architect’s accusation, he was so angry
that he almost lost his ability to reason. Since, he was righteous
and tolerant, he admitted that this was a difficult situation. The
king solicited advice and called for the wisest man in the country
for counsel.

Question 9.
How was the wise man brought to court? What advice did he offer?
Answer
The wisest man was found and carried to the royal court, as he
could neither walk nor see. He was an old and experienced man. He
said in a trembling, feeble voice that the offender must be
penalized. He condemned the arch, guilty, for throwing the crown
off the king’s head.

Question 10.
The arch was not punished in the end. Why?

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Answer
The wise man declared that it was the arch that had thrown the
crown off, and it must be hanged. A councillor objected to the arch
being hanged; he called it a disgrace to hang something that had
touched the honourable head of the king. The king agreed with the
councillor and the arch was spared.

Question 11.
What circumstances led to the execution of the king?
Answer
The crowd grew restless, tired to see the offenders escape death, by
hanging. The king grew fearful of their agitation and decided that
someone must be hanged. All the people were measured, one by
one, along the noose, to see who fit it. They found that only the
king reached the noose, leading to his execution.

Question 12.
What was the result of the king’s execution? How was the problem
resolved?
Answer
After the king’s execution, the ministers realized they had to find a
new king. They perplexed over the problem and sent out
messengers to make known that the next person to cross the city
gate would decide the ruler of the kingdom.

Question 13.
How did the melon become king?
Answer
The next man who crossed the city gate, entrusted to choose a
ruler for the kingdom, was a fool. He liked melons and named a
melon as the king. The ministers crowned a melon and accepted it
as their king. They carried the melon to the throne and respectfully
placed it on it.

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Question 14.
How did the people of the kingdom react to their melon king?
Answer
The people of the kingdom were content with their melon king.
They found no reason to criticize him as long as he left them in
‘Peace and Liberty’. In that kingdom, the philosophy of Taissez faire’
(refusal to interfere) . seemed to be well established.

The Tale of Melon City Extra Questions and Answers Long

Answer Type

Question 1.
How did the ‘just and placid king’ get executed?
Answer
The arch, commissioned by the king, was built low that knocked off
the king’s crown as he was crossing below the arch. He sentenced
the chief of builders to death for causing him the dishonour, who
passed on the blame to the workers. The workmen blamed the
masons and the masons, in turn, blamed the architect. The
architect reminded the king that he had made certain changes in
the plans himself when they were shown to him.

The king was infuriated to hear that. Being righteous and tolerant,
he called for the wisest man in the country, for counsel, who
advised the king to hang the arch as it was the real offender who
had thrown the crown off. A councillor objected to this ruling and
declared it a disgrace to hang something that touched the
honourable head.
The crowd, gathered for the hanging, became restless. The king
apprehended their mood and ruled for someone to be hanged
immediately. The noose, hung high, fitted the king alone and he
was hung as per the royal ruling.

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Important Questions by “Behan ki Padhaii” YouTube Channel