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प्रश्न
‘Face is the index of the mind.’ Does this adage concur with the views of the poet?
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उत्तर
Unlike the people of the past, people in modem times “laugh only with their teeth” while their ice-block cold eyes search for something. Now, people shake hands without hearts. There is no human warmth in social relations. While they shake hands, they look for. evidence to judge the financial status of a person. People say ‘feel at home and ‘come again’.
But if a person visits a third time he is not welcomed. They all have cocktail faces ready for all occasions. Their conforming smiles are like fixed portrait smiles. They wear a standard, deceitful, artificial smile for all occasions. They have faces like masks. The poet has learned from them how to use faces like dresses, home face, office face, street face, host face, etc. Their faces, like the teeth of the elephant, show only what is accepted. The ugly side of their personality is cleverly hidden behind their deceitful smiles and polite words. So, the poet’s views do not concur with the adage “Face is the index of the mind”.
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संबंधित प्रश्न
Guess what friendly words these two gentlemen exchange when shaking hands.

How does the poet compare his face with dresses?
Interpret each of the following expression used in the poem, in one or two line.
hands search my empty pockets
Interpret each of the following expression used in the poem, in one or two line.
to unlearn all these muting things
Do you think the narrator is heroic? Why?
The poet is satisfied just watching the heroic deeds of others. What could be the reason?
Why would the referee ask whether there was a doctor in the stands? What stands is he referring to?
Read the poem again and complete the summary using the words given in the box.
In the poem ‘Confessions of a Born Spectator,’ Ogden Nash talks about how people choose different sports in their lives or decide to become athletes. While admiring the talents of athletes and sportsmen, the poet (i)______he is glad that he is neither a sportsman nor an athlete. Children have different (ii)______and wish to play various games. Each child has in mind something in particular, but the narrator is (iii)______he is not one of the players. Though the narrator (iv) ______the talents of all athletes, he derives satisfaction from watching them, but does not wish to (v) ______places with them. He also sometimes regrets that (vi)______athletes play rough games without caring for the feelings of their sporting rivals. He feels that good sense and caution win over ego. The narrator wholeheartedly offers (vii) ______the modest (viii) ______of athletes. Ultimately the narrator is (ix)______that he himself is not an athlete.
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thanksgiving exchange glad confesses physiques zealous satisfied aims admires |
You are the School Pupil Leader. Mention some qualities that can be drawn from the field of sports to improve your leadership skills.
Read the following line and identify the figure of speech used in each extract.
To her fair works did Nature link
The human soul that through me ran.
‘Nature can nurture’. Describe how this process happens.
When humanity fails to live in harmony with Nature, its effects are felt around the world. Why and how?
A French proverb goes thus: ‘The dog may be wonderful prose, but only the cat is poetry.’ You may have observed that all animals possess a number of unique qualities. Fill in the columns with words and phrases associated with each of the following animals.
| DOG | CAT | WOLF | ELEPHANT |
Why is the Flying Squad frustrated?
Describe Macavity’s appearance.
Why does the poet say Macavity is ‘outwardly’ respectable?
Mention any two qualities of Macavity.
Read the poem once again and complete the summary using the words given in the box.
‘Macavity – The Mystery Cat’ is a humorous poem, where the poet T.S. Eliot describes the mysterious (a) _______of a shrewd vile cat. He commits a crime at every possible opportunity. He is an elusive master (b)______who leaves no evidence after he commits a crime. Even the Scotland Yard, the London (c) ______ agency is unable to arrest him. The Flying Squad is (d) ______ because every time they rush to the crime spot to seize Macavity, he is not there. He breaks the human law as well as the law of (e) ______. He baffles even a (f) ______ with his powers of levitation. Macavity appears tall and thin with (g)______ eyes. He is always preoccupied with some serious (h) ______. His coat is dusty and his (i)______are unkempt. Macavity is a (j) ______in the guise of a cat. He appears to be outwardly (k) ______ but his actions disprove it. Macavity loots the (l)______, ransacks the jewel-case, and breaks the (m)______glass but wonder of wonders he is not to be found anywhere there. He is always a mile away from the scene of crime, happily relaxing or doing difficult (n) ______ sums. He is clever at making up an (o) ______every time he plots a crime. All the notorious cats are nothing but the (p) ______Macavity, the Napoleon of Crime.
| larder | whiskers |
| respectable | criminal |
| devil | thought |
| sunken | division |
| agents | detective |
| alibi | desperate |
| fakir | qualities |
| gravity | greenhouse |
Read the given lines and answer the question that follow.
He sways his head from side to
side, with movements like a snake;
And when you think he’s half asleep,
he’s always wide awake…
- Explain the comparison made here.
- What does he pretend to do?
Read the given lines and answer the question that follow.
For he’s a fiend in feline shape, a monster of depravity
- How is the cat described in this line?
- Explain the phrase ‘monster of depravity’.
Which line is repeated in the poem? What is the effect created by this repetition?
What does the ladder symbolize?
Read the given line and answer the question that follow.
We are proud of the position we hold; humble as we are
- What is the speaker proud of?
- How is the speaker both humble and proud?
- Pick out the alliteration in these lines.
Discuss the following topics in groups of five and choose a representative to sum up the views and share them with the class.
To succeed in life, one must have a single-minded devotion to duty.
Discuss the following topic in groups of five and choose a representative to sum up the view and share them with the class.
‘Success is not final, failure is not fatal.’ It is the courage and perseverance that counts.
Fill in the blanks using the words given in the box to complete the summary of the poem:
King Richard the Second, had surrendered to his (a)______cousin, Bollingbroke. He experienced deep distress at the horror of his circumstances. In that desperate situation, he speaks of (b)______, (c)______, (d)______and other things connected with death. He spoke of how people leave nothing behind and can call nothing their own, except for the small patch of (e)______, where they will be buried. King Richard yielded to dejection and talked of all the different ways in which defeated kings suffer how some had been deposed, (f)______in war, (g)______by their wives and so forth. He attributed this loss of lives to (h)______, who he personified as the jester who watches over the shoulder of every ruler, who mocks kings by allowing them to think their human flesh, was like (i)______brass. However, Death penetrates through the castle walls, silently and unnoticed like a sharp (j)______, thus bidding (k)______to him and all his pride forever. Finally, Richard appealed to his soldiers not to mock his mere flesh and blood by showing (l) ______and respect to him. He added that he too needed bread to live, felt want, tasted (m)______and needed (n)______. He concluded thus, urging his men not to call him a (o)______as he was only human, just like the rest of them.
| barren-earth | friends | graves | slain |
| rebellious | poisoned | worms | grief |
| impregnable | epitaphs | death | farewell |
| reverence | king | pin |
Are all deposed kings slain by the deposer?
Working with your partner, discuss the following adages and share your views with the class. You may need to give your ideas and justify your point of view. Remember to take turns while making your presentation/short speech.
Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown
