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प्रश्न
'All right!' you 'll cry.'All right!' you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children?Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?
'How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
We'll say it very loud and slow:
THEY ... USED ... TO ... READ! They'd READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more. Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Read the lines given above and answer the question given below.
Explain with reference to context.
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उत्तर
These lines are taken from the poem TELEVISION, written by Roald Dahl, a British novelist, short story writer and a poet. It is taken from his collection ‘Revolting Rhymes’. It is a stinging satire on Television. In this poem Roald Dahl expresses concern over what the modem invention the television set has done to children. He points out that watching TV has become a craze in modem time. Children of today spend hours together in front of the ‘idiot box’. Roald Dahl is addressing all British parents and telling them that the most important thing one must learn while raising children is to keep them away from the television set. He also says that it is possible to come to a better solution to the problem by not installing a television set in their homes in the first place.
In these lines, Dahl anticipates what the parents’ next question would be. They might agree to take away the television set from their children but will ask how they are supposed to now keep their children entertained and occupied.
In these lines, Dahl tells parents that they cannot have forgotten how children kept themselves entertained before the recent invention of the television.
In these lines, Dahl says that before the coming of television children would read and it is a shame that now they don’t.
In these lines, Dahl creates the alternate landscape that has been mentioned in the section on the poem’s setting. In this landscape, children’s rooms are filled to the brim with books.
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संबंधित प्रश्न
What does the swallow see when it flies over the city?
The next man looking 'cross the way
Saw one not of his church
And Couldn't bring himself to give
The fire his stick of birch.
The third one sat in tattered clothes.
He gave his coat a hitch.
Why should his log be put to use
To warm the idle rich?
The rich man just sat back and thought
of the wealth he had in store
And how to keep what he had earned
From the lazy shiftless poor.
Read the lines given above and answer the question that follow.
In stanza 3, why did the man refuse to use his stick of wood?
But even as he approached the boy, Mr. Oliver sensed that something was wrong. The boy appeared to be crying. His head hung down, he held his face in his hands, and his body shook convulsively. It was a strange, soundless weeping, and Mr. Oliver felt distinctly uneasy.
Well, what’s the matter, he asked, his anger giving way to concern. What are you crying for? The boy would not answer or look up. His body continued to be wracked with silent sobbing.
Oh, come on, boy. You shouldn’t be out here at this hour. Tell me the trouble. Look up.
Read the extract given below and answer the question that follow.
Describe the posture of the boy.
Discuss the following topic in groups.
What problems are you likely to face if you keep ants as pets?
To what use a mother puts the trees?
Write ‘True’ or ‘False’ against each of the following sentences.
Gopal was a madman. ________
Encircle the correct article.
Take (a/an/the) red one in (a/an/the) fruit bowl. You may take (a/an/the) orange also, if you like.
Each of the following words contains the sound ‘sh’ (as in shine) in the beginning or in the middle or at the end. First speak out all the words clearly. Then arrange the words in three groups in the table below
sheep trash marsh fashion
anxious shriek shore fish
portion ashes sure nation
shoe pushing polish moustache
| initial | medial | final |
Read the following extract from Maya Angelou's poem, 'I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings' and answer the questions that follow:
|
But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams |
- How does Angelou describe the state of the free bird in the opening lines of the poem? [3]
- Give a brief description of the caged bird's physical and mental condition. [3]
- Explain the phrase, 'grave of dreams' in your own words.
What does the caged bird sing about? [3] - The 'free bird' and the 'caged bird' in the poem represent different groups of people. Name them.
Name any one group of people that you would call 'caged birds' in today's world. [3] - What does the title of the poem, 'I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings', tell us about Maya Angelou's life?
Mention two ways in which the world of the caged bird differs from that of the free bird. [4]
Complete the following sentence by providing a reason.
In Act III Scene iv of the play Macbeth, Lady Macbeth dismissed the guests at the banquet without standing on any ceremony because ______.
