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प्रश्न
Narrate 'The Tale of Melon City' in your own words.
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उत्तर
A model answer has been provided for students' reference.
It is strongly recommended that students prepare the answer on their own.
The Tale of Melon city is a narrative poem by Vikram Seth written in the couplet form. The poem is an account of an incident involving the monarch and citizens that took place in a city long ago. The tale is humorous with a very sharp focus on the thematic aspect. Structurally, the story has three parts-the first part mentions about a king's wish to build an arch. The second part relates his complaints regarding the faulty construction of the arch and the last part narrates how his decree ultimately falls on him leading to his hanging. The poem in a high tone of humour narrates the transition of power from the king to a melon which became a symbolic head.
In the beginning the poet narrates that there was a king in a city long ago. One day the king expressed his desire to construct an arch spanning the main thoroughfare to improve the onlookers morally and mentally. The king was just and peace loving. The construction work was soon undertaken by employing large number of labourers.
After the completion of the arch, the king went to inspect the newly constructed arch. The arch was very low. His crown struck against the arch and fell off. Feeling dishonoured, the king decided to hang the chief of builders. All arrangements were made for the hanging. The Chief of builders defended himself by shifting the responsibility to the labourers. Convinced by the argument, the king then ordered to hang all the labourers. The labourers shifted the responsibility to the size of the bricks. The king accordingly ordered the hanging of the masons. The masons in turn defended themselves and put all blame on the architect. The king ordered to hang the architect. The architect reminded the king that he (King) had made some amendments to the plan when it was shown to him. The architect indirectly put the blame on the king. The king was confused to hear the architect's argument. The king solicited the advice of the wisest man in his kingdom. Accordingly, the wisest man was found and brought to the court. He was so old that he could neither walk nor see. He gave the verdict that the arch was the real culprit. It was the arch that hit the crown violently and it fell off. So, the arch must be hanged. Accordingly, the arch was led to the scaffold. In the meantime, a councillor pointed out that it would be very shameful act to hang the arch that touched the king's crown.
The crowd which gathered there to witness the hanging of the culprit was getting restless. Sensing their mood, the king said that someone must be hanged since the nation wanted a hanging. The noose was set up. It was somewhat high. Each man was measured turn by turn. But there was only one man who was tall enough to fit in the noose, and it was the King. Interestingly, the king was hanged.
The poet then narrates the third part of the poem. In the concluding part the ministers heaved a sigh of relief that they were able to find someone, otherwise, the unruly crowd might have risen in revolt. After the death of the King, it was required to choose another king. As per the convention, the ministers sent out the herald to proclaim that the next to pass the City Gate would choose a king. An idiot happened to pass the City Gate. The guards asked him who was to be the King. The idiot answered that a melon should be chosen to be the next king. Actually that was his pet answer to all questions as he liked melons. The ministers crowned a melon and placed their Melon King reverently at the throne.
The poet narrates that the citizens were least bothered about their symbolic head. They enjoyed the principles of Laissez faire. They were very respectful to their new monarch as the new monarch did not interfere in their lives.
APPEARS IN
संबंधित प्रश्न
Answer any four of the following in 30-40 words each:
(a) Why was the peddler amused at the idea of the world being a rattrap?
(b) Why did Gandhiji agree to a settlement of mere 25 percent?
(c) Aunt Jennifer's efforts to get rid of her fear proved to be futile. Comment.
(d) What does Stephen Spender want to be done for the children of the school in a slum?
(e) How did the ten-day-old baby (the future Tiger King) react to the prediction about his future made by the astrologers?
(f) Why was Dr. Sadao not sent abroad along with the troops?
Answer any four of the following in 30 − 40 words each :
(a) What does Saheb look for in the garbage dumps?
(b) How was Gandhi treated at Rajendra Prasad's house?
(c) Why does one feel 'a sudden strangeness' on counting to twelve and keeping quiet?
(d) Mention any two things which cause pain and suffering. (A Thing of Beauty)
(e) When was the Tiger King in danger of losing his throne?
(f) What role did the American professor play in bringing Hana and Sadao together?
A1 Web :
Complete the following web with the help of the passage :
My dictionary tells me that personality is the “Personal or individual quality that makes one person be different and act differently from another.” Personality is, “the total physical, intellectual and emotional structure of an individual, including abilities, interests, and attitudes.”
There are many benefits to having a pleasant personality. There is only one opportunity to make a first impression, and all of us instinctively make decisions or judgments about an individual within the first few seconds of crossing paths. With that in mind, I believe when we teach our kids to smile, to be pleasant and cheerful, to be courteous and respectful of others, to pleasantly respond to requests or questions, we are helping them develop a personality that will open many doors for them. Once the doors are opened, the character will keep them open; but personality, not character, is on display in the first few seconds. Therefore, it’s important to develop a pleasant personality and use it for life.
A2 Personality :
Personality of an individual is recognized by :
(i) _______ (ii) _______
(iii) _______ (iv) _______
A3 Vocabulary :
Find out words for the following from the passage and write:
(i) polite =
(ii) relating to feelings =
(iii) to do anything naturally without thinking =
(iv) a chance to do something =
A4 Complete the following table :
| Noun | Adjective | Adverb |
| – | different | differently |
| Instinct | – | instinctively |
Select any word from the table and use it meaningfully in a sentence of your own.
A5 Personal Response :
Why do you thing, personality development is necessary?
Does the poem have a consistent rhyme scheme?
What kind of a person do you think the narrator is?
Explain the associations that the colour 'white' has in the story.
Comment on the way in which the theme of the story has been introduced.
What was the importance of the watch to the author?
What do you infer from Darwin's comment on his indifference to literature as he advanced in years?
'Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world'.
The quill is the central element of the poem – what does it symbolise?
'Now I hold Creation in my foot' – explain the centrality of this assertion in the poem. What makes the hawk's assertion of its invincibility so categorical?
How does the poet juxtapose the human condition with the behaviour of the political class?
Read the extract 'Being Neighborly' and complete the following statement:
Jo entered the old stone house carrying _______________.
Fill in the blank.
The author wanted to grow ______________.
Name the world-famous personality who reached great heights despite of humble circumstances.
Answer in your own words.
How did the plants react to the fast rhythmic music?
Read the story and choose the appropriate meaning.
Struggling artists ____________
Read aloud the account of how Flying Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon sacrificed his life to defend our country.
Wash your handkerchief clean. Hang it with a peg to dry in the wind. Watch how it flutters.
What is implied in the following phrases or lines?
- A silver house in the lovely sky
- It takes two weeks to build it up
- And two to pull it down.
Explain the following statement with reference to the context.
And it's by no means the small sacrifice the town will have to make.
Discuss the following question after you have seen a presentation of the ‘ad’.
What would happen if you never ate fruits and vegetables?
Bassanio borrowed money from Shylock in Antonio’s name.
Relate the themes of the Fair to your science textbook by writing the relevant chapter numbers under each theme.
Write about one occasion when you have behaved like -
Mr. Nobody
Read the following.
- I mean what I say. I say what I mean.
- I see what I eat. I eat what I see.
Use your imagination to write a funny sentence on this pattern.
Write a review of your favorite book. Use the following points:
- Title of the book
- Author/Authors
- The central idea or story
- The important characters
- Some special features of the book
- Why it is your favourite book.
Prepare similar word chains using the following ideas.
size - small _______________.
Pick out words from the poem that describe the following. List them in Column ‘A’. Substitute each of those describing words with another word/phrase of the same meaning.
| A (Poetic words) | B (Your own words) | |
| the ‘Autumn’ | a maiden fair | |
| stars | ||
| moonlight | ||
| cooing of birds |
Find one example of the following given below from the poem: Metaphor
Answer in your own words.
What did Neel realise from his encounter with his ancestors?
Read: ‘The Psalm of Life’- a poem by H. W. Longfellow.
Correct the following sentence and rewrite it.
Papa Panov saw the sweeper, the young mother, and the beggars he had helped only once in the morning.
What did the important-looking man tell Gulliver?
What prompted the young seagull to fly finally?
Few articles are missing in the given passage. Edit the passage given below by adding suitable articles where ever necessary.
My neighbourhood is very interesting place. My house is located in apartment building downtown near many stores and offices. There is small supermarket across street, where my family likes to go shopping. There is also post office and bank near our home. In our neighbourhood there is small, Green Park where my friends and I like to play on weekends and holidays. There is small pond near park and there are many ducks in park. We always have great time. In addition there is elementary school close to our home where my little brother studies in third grade. There are so many things to see and do in my neighbourhood that’s why I like it. It’s really great place.
Read the story again and write how these character reacted in these situation:
Just wait till zigzag settles down in this new home. Visu………….................………………
Aravind and Maya…….……………….
Read the lines and answer the questions.
Deep inside the mountain
the adventures hide themselves.
Where do adventures hide?
Activity
It’s fun to help out in the kitchen. You can even practice reading aloud when reading the recipe. And you can learn a little math by figuring out how to measure. Here are a few fun items to make that are “Alice” themed.
When the author returned from England to Dehradun, he found Grandfather's dream had come true because the______.
Who is Muthu?
The wild boar got up from its daybed because it was disturbed by another boar.
The wild boar settled down scraping the hole into a ______ to have a good sleep.
The poor farmer’s crop was______.
Who shattered the windows?
Who is the wisest of all? Why?
Complete the following sentence using the prepositions from the option.
The summer vacation ends _____ Monday.
Read scene I of the play carefully and answer the question below.
Match the following.
| Sr.No. | CHARACTER | TRAIT |
| a. | Father Wolf | with a grey nose…feeds her four cubs |
| b. | Tabaqui | the big one from Waingunga River with a lame foot |
| c. | Mother Wolf | the chief of the Wolves |
| d. | Shere Khan | begs for meat and thanks for the meal/warns the wolves about the arrival of Shere Khan |
Anitha shares her experience about______.
Choose the correct option from the given homophones.
You should never ______ to your parents.
Some words sound the same but their spelling and meaning are different. Such words are called homophones. There are many homophones.
Write the rhyming word.
away
Where is Keeraikuppam located?
Moles trap worms and store them.
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What will you do if you have a gold plate?
What is the one thing you will try and improve after reading the story? How?
Does the child in the poem like her nose? Why do you think so?
Are these sentence TRUE or FALSE
The poet tells the child to think of friends after it is dark.
