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प्रश्न
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
| He gave her a shove. But she did not move, rather she let herself be moved only by him and nothing else. They edged away from her; they would not look at her. She felt them go away. |
- Who is ‘she’? On which planet is this story set? [2]
- Mention any two ways in which life on this planet differs from life on earth. [2]
- Who are ‘they’? Why did ‘they’ not come to her aid when William shoved her? [3]
- What do ‘they’ do to her at the end of the story? Why did they behave in this manner? [3]
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उत्तर
- 'She' in the extract is Margot, the protagonist of the story, "All Summer in a Day." She is a nine-year-old girl who moved from Ohio to planet Venus when she was four years old. Margot longs intensely for the sun, which she remembers vividly from her time on Earth.
The setting of the story is the planet Venus where it keeps on raining for years together. - Life on Venus is different from life on this earth. Here it rains for seven years continuously. Secondly, the sun shines for one day for only an hour after every seven years.
- 'They' are the other children. They did not come to her aid because they did not like her. They disliked her because she would not play with them. If they tagged her and ran, she stood blinking after them and did not follow. When the class sang songs about happiness and life and games her lips barely moved. Only when they sang about the sun and the summer did her lips move as she watched the drenched windows. And then, of course, the biggest crime of all was that she had come here only five years ago from Earth, and she remembered the sun and the way the sun was and the sky was when she was four in Ohio. And they had been on Venus all their lives, and they had been only two years old when last the sun came out and had long since forgotten the colour and heat of it and the way it really was. But Margot remembered.
- When the sun was about to come out for the first time in seven years, the kids locked Margot in a closet. When the sun came out, the children played in the illumination like wild animals. They played until it began to rain and then in a dawning-like realization, one of them remembered that they had left Margot in the closet. They walked slowly down the hall in the sound of cold rain. They turned through the doorway to the room in the sound of the storm and thunder, lightning on their faces, blue and terrible. They walked over to the closet door slowly and stood by it. Behind the closet door was only silence.
They unlocked the door, even more slowly, and let Margot out
The children behaved in such a manner at the end of the story because they realised their mistake and felt sorry for their misbehaviour.
APPEARS IN
संबंधित प्रश्न
Imagine that you are the poet, William Wordsworth. You continue on your walk,
and when you reach home you tell a friend what you saw and felt. Which of the
following best describes your experience? (Work in pairs, then have a class
discussion.
a) "I was walking past some fields when I saw a young girl, a farm worker, harvesting
grain by hand, with a sickle. She was so beautiful that I stood out of sight and
watched her for a long time. I have never seen anyone more gorgeous! In fact,
she reminded me of other beautiful experiences I've had - the song of the
nightingale or the cuckoo, for instance. I'd certainly like to see her again!"
b) "As I was standing on the hill top just now, I heard a very sad and plaintive song. I
looked down, and saw a young woman reaping grain, singing as she did so. She
seemed quite melancholy as she sang. But somehow her song brought great
comfort and joy to me. In fact, I found it a very emotional experience. As I
continued my walk along the hill top, I also heard a nightingale and a cuckoo. But
the young farm worker's song affected me most deeply, even though I couldn't
understand the words."
c) "Just now, as I was walking in the valley, I saw a young farm worker in the field.
She was singing to herself as she worked. I was so affected by her singing, that I
stopped and listened. She had a beautiful voice, which seemed to fill the whole
valley. The song was a sad one, and I couldn't understand the words. But its
plaintive tone and melancholy sound touched me greatly, and its beauty
reminded me of the song of a nightingale and a cuckoo. After some time, I walked
up the hill, carrying the memory of the young woman's hauntingly beautiful song
with me."
Read this article about the great Indian Rhinoceros. [You will find the information useful for your group discussion in 5.]
The Indian Rhinoceros or the Great One-Horned Rhinoceros or the Asian Onehorned Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicomis) is a large mammal primarily found in north-eastern India, Nepal and parts of Bhutan. It is confined to the tall grasslands and forests in the foothills of the Himalayas.
The Indian Rhinoceros once ranged throughout the entire stretch of the Indo Gangetic Plain but excessive hunting reduced their natural habitat drastically.
Today, about 3,000 Indian Rhinos live in the wild, 1,800 of which are found in Assam alone. In 2008, more than 400 Indian Rhinos were sighted in Nepal's Chitwan National Park.
In size it is equal to that of the White Rhino in Africa; together they are the largest of all rhino species. The Great One-Horned Rhinoceros has a single horn; this is present in both males and females, but not on newborn young. In most adults, the horn reachee a length of about 25 centimetres, but has been recorded up to 57 .2 centimetres in length. The nasal hom curves backwards from the nose. The horn is naturally black.
This prehistoric-looking rhinoceros bas thick, silver-brown skin which becomes pinkish near the large skin folds that cover its body. The male develops thick neckfolds. It has very little body hair aside from eyelashes, ear-fringes and tail-brush.
These rhinos live in tall grasslands and riverine forests, but due to the loss of habitat, they have been forced towards cultivated land. They are mostly solitary creatures, with the exception of mothers and calves and breeding pairs, although they sometimes, congregate at bathing areas.
The Indian Rhinoceros makes a wide variety of vocalizations. At least ten distinct vocalizations have been identified: snorting, honking, bleating, roaring, squeak panting, moo-grunting, shrieking, groaning, rumbling and humphing. In addition to noises, the rhino also uses olfactory communication.
In aggregation, Indian Rhinos are often friendly. They will often greet each other by waving or bobbing their heads, mounting flanks, nuzzling noses, or licking. Rhinos will playfully spar, run around, and play with twigs in their mouth. Adult males are the primary instigators of fights. Fights between dominant males are the most common cause of rhino mortality. Indian rhinos have few natural enemies, except for tigers. Tigers sometimes kill unguarded calves, but adult rhinos are less vulnerable due to their size. Humans are the only other animal threat, hunting the rhinoceros primarily for sport or for the use of its horn. Indian Rhinos have been somewhat tamed and trained in circuses, but they remain dangerous and unpredictable animals.
In the nineteenth and early twentieth century, the Indian Rhinoceros was hunted relentlessly. Reports from the middle of the nineteenth century claim that some military officers in Assam individually shot more than 200 rhinos. In the early 1900s, officials became concerned at the rhinos' plummeting numbers. By 1908 in Kaziranga, one of the Rhinos' main ranges, the population had fallen to around 12 individuals. In 1910, all rhino hunting in India became prohibited.
The rhino has been a major success in conservation. Only 100 remained in the early 1900s; a century later, their population has increased to about 2500 again, but even so, the species is still endangered. The Indian rhino is illegally poached for its horn. Some cultures in East Asia believe that the hair has healing and potency powers and therefore is used for traditional Chinese medicine and other Oriental medicines.
The Indian and Nepalese Governments have taken major steps towards Indian Rhinoceros conservation with the help of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The Kaziranga National Park and Manas National Park in Assam, Pobitora Reserve Forest in Assam {having the highest Indian rhino density in the world), Orang National Park of Assam, Laokhowa Reserve Forest of Assam (having a very small population) and Royal Chitwan National Park in Nepal are homes to this endangered animal.
Answer the following question.
Why did Kari push his friend into the stream?
What led the king of Iran to the cave of the shepherd?
Fans don’t talk, but it is possible to imagine that they do. What is it, then, that sounds like the fan’s chatter?
A summary of the story is given in the textbook.
Fill in the blanks to complete it taking appropriate phrases from the box.
This is the story of ______________, who used to be ___________. He decided to find a master ______________. First he found _____________, but the wolf was afraid of ________________. The dog thought that the bear was ______________. After some time the dog met _______________, who seemed the strongest. He stayed with the lion for a long time. One day he realised that the lion was ___________________ . To this day, the dog remains man’s best friend.
| a dog, stronger than anyone else, the strongest of all, a wolf, the bear, afraid of man, his own master, a lion |
How did Taro meet the demand of his father?
Read the lines given below and answer the following question:
| “But my darling, if you love me,” thought Miss Meadows, “I don’t Mind how much it is. Love me as little as you like.” |
Where was Miss Meadows as she thought these thoughts?
In the Masque in Act IV of the play The Tempest, how does Ceres know that Juno is coming?
Complete the following sentence by providing a reason:
In Act V of the play The Tempest, Prospero greets Gonzalo first because ______.
