Advertisements
Advertisements
Question
Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
Portia: To these injunctions every one doth s'vear
That comes to hazard for my worthless self.
Arragon: And so have I address'd me. Fortune now
To my heart's hope! - Gold, silver and base lead.
(i) Who had tried his luck in trying to choose the correct casket before the prince of Arragon? Which casket had that suitor chosen ? What did he find inside the casket?
(ii) What are the three things Arragon was obliged by the oath to obey?
(iii) What was the inscription on the golden casket? How do the actions of the martlet illustrate this inscription?
(iv) Which casket does Arragon finally choose? Whose portrait does he find inside? Which casket actually contains Portia's portrait?
(v) Who enters soon after? What does he say about the young Venetian who has just arrived? What gifts has the Venetian brought with him?
Advertisements
Solution
(i) The Prince of Morocco tried his luck in choosing the golden casket before the Prince of Arragon.
He finds an empty human skull with a scroll in its hollow eye in which it is written that those who are attracted by the glittering outside of things are always deceived.
(ii) He promises Portia that he will abide by her father's rules, that He must never tell anyone which casket he had chosen. If he fails to choose the right casket, He will never court another woman; and he will leave Belmont immediately.
(iii) The inscription on the golden casket was, "Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire". The martlet is like the many men who choose by outward show or appearance; they do not see the inner worth of things.
(iv) Arragon chooses the Silver Casket. He finds the portrait of .a blinking idiot - a picture of a fool's head. The lead casket contains Portia's portrait.
(v) After the departure of the Prince of Arragon, the servant announces that a young Venetian named Gratiana has arrived in order to announce the approach of his master Bassanio who has sent warm greetings and rich presents ·to Portia
APPEARS IN
RELATED QUESTIONS
Thinking about the poem
Is there any difference between the two roads as the poet describes them
(i) in stanzas two and three?
(ii) in the last two lines of the poem?
Thinking about the Poem
The poet finds the snake beautiful. Find the words he uses to convey its beauty.
Read the newspaper clipping.
Listen to an interview between the police inspector in charge of the case, the housekeeper, Ms. Lakshmi and the watchman, Ram Singh. As you listen, note down the details of the burglar.
Inspector: Hello, madam. I am Inspector Maan Singh. I am in charge of the burglary
case which occurred in the flat of your employer, Mr. Ravikant. It must have
been a harrowing experience for you.
Lakshmi: Yes, it was a terrible experience. People like that should be locked up in a
prison.
Inspector: If you will cooperate with us, we will catch them in no time. Were you alone
in the apartment at that time?
Lakshmi: Yes, it was 11 :30 in the night and I was alone as my master and his wife had
left for Shimla.
Inspector: How do you think the burglar gained entry into the house?
Lakshmi: He might have come through the balcony and entered my room.
Inspector: Now tell me something about his physique. What about his build? How tall
was he?
Lakshmi: He was about 6 ft tall.
Inspector: What about his physique?
Lakshmi: He was not thin. He was well-built and rather plump.
Inspector: What about his dress? What was he wearing?
Lakshmi: I think his clothes were rather old and faded. He was wearing a black shirt
which was faded.
Inspector: Do you remember the colour of his trousers?
Lakshmi: They were of a dark shade -either black or blue.
Inspector: Can you tell me something about his face?
Lakshmi: Unfortunately no. When he entered my room I panicked. But then I
gathered courage and screamed and tried to run away. But I was a bit late.
He struck me with a staff and I really don't remember anything after that.
May be I was knocked out.
Later on, I came to know that he broke into the bedroom and ran off with the
jewellery. But Ram Singh, the watchman, who tried to catch him may be
able to describe him better.
Inspector: OK Lakshmi, thank you! If I need your help I will come again. You may have
to identify the burglar. Now, I will speak to Ram Singh.
Inspector to Ram Singh:
Ram Singh you were on duty and you tried to catch the burglar. You may be
able to give a good description of him. First, tell me about his hair.
Ram Singh: He had straight black hair.
Inspector: What about the shape of his face and his complexion?
Ram Singh: He had an oval face with grey eyes and I think he was dark complexioned.
Inspector: Did he wear spectacles?
Ram Singh: Yes, with a plastic frame and his nose was rather sharp.
Inspector: What else can you remember about him? What about his teeth and lips?
Ram Singh: His lips were quite thick.
Inspector: Is there anything else that you remember about him?
Ram Singh: When I heard some noise from inside, I ran in. I tried to stop the burglar and
we had a scuffie. During the struggle I noticed that he had six fingers on his
right hand. But he managed to run away and made good his escape on a
motorbike.
Inspector: Thank you Ram Singh. We will make sketches on the basis of your
description and nab him.
| DESCRIPTION | |
| Built | |
| Height | |
| Clothes | |
| Shape of the face | |
| Complexion | |
| Eyes | |
| Hair | |
| Nose | |
| Lips | |
| Teeths | |
| Special Features |
Old Kaspar took it from the boy,
Who stood expectant by;
And then the old man shook his head,
And,with a natural sigh,
"Tis some poor fellow's skull," said he,
"Who fell in the great victory.
"I find them in the garden,
For there's many here about;
And often when I go to plough,
The ploughshare turns them out!
For many thousand men,"said he,
"Were slain in that great victory."
Read the lines given above and answer the question that follow.
What did Old Kasper do when Peterkin came to him with the object?
An old man with steel rimmed spectacles and very dusty clothes sat by the side of the road. There was a pontoon bridge across the river and carts, trucks, and men, women and children were crossing it. The mule-drawn carts staggered up the steep bank from the bridge with soldiers helping push against the spokes of the wheels. The trucks ground up and away heading out of it all and the peasants plodded along in the ankle deep dust. But the old man sat there without moving. He was too tired to go any farther.
Read the extract given below and answer the question that follow.
Why were the soldiers “helping to push against the spokes of the wheels”?
“You haven’t brought home that sick brat!” Anger and astonishment were in the tones of Mrs. Joe Thompson; her face was in a flame.
“I think women’s hearts are sometimes very hard,” said Joe. Usually Joe Thompson got out of his wife’s way, or kept rigidly silent and non-combative when she fired up on any subject; it was with some surprise, therefore, that she now encountered a firmly-set countenance and a resolute pair of eyes.
“Women’s hearts are not half so hard as men’s!”
Joe saw, by a quick intuition, that his resolute bearing h«d impressed his wife and he answered quickly, and with real indignation, “Be that as it may, every woman at the funeral turned her eyes steadily from the sick child’s face, and when the cart went off with her dead mother, hurried away, and left her alone in that old hut, with the sun not an hour in the sky.”
“Where were John and Kate?” asked Mrs. Thompson.
“Farmer Jones tossed John into his wagon, and drove off. Katie went home with Mrs. Ellis; but nobody wanted the poor sick one. ‘Send her to the poorhouse,’ was the cry.”
“Why didn’t you let her go, then. What did you bring her here for?”
“She can’t walk to the poorhouse,” said Joe; “somebody’s arms must carry her, and mine are strong enough for that task.”
Read the extract given below and answer the question that follow.
What does Mr Thompson feel about the other women who had left Maggie alone and gone away?
From the day, perhaps a hundred years ago when he sun had hatched him in a sandbank, and he had broken his shell, and got his head out and looked around, ready to snap at anything, before he was even fully hatched-from that day, when he had at once made for the water, ready to fend for himself immediately, he had lived by his brainless craft and ferocity. Escaping the birds of prey and the great carnivorous fishes that eat baby crocodiles, he has prospered, catching all the food he needed, and storing it till putrid in holes in the bank. Tepid water to live in and plenty of rotted food grew him to his great length. Now nothing could pierce the inch-?thick armoured hide. Not even rifle bullets,
which would bounce off. Only the eyes and the soft underarms offered a place. He lived well in the river, sunning himself sometimes with other crocodiles-muggers, as well as the long-? snouted fish-?eating gharials-on warm rocks and sandbanks where the sun dried the clay on them quite white, and where they could plop off into the water in a moment if alarmed. The big crocodile fed mostly on fish, but also on deer and monkeys come to drink, perhaps a duck or two.
Read the extract given below and answer the question that follow.
What posed a danger to him when he was young?
Answer the following questions with reference to Ray Douglas Bradbury's short story, 'All Summer in a Day'.
(i) Name the planet on which this story is set. Describe everyday life on this planet.
(ii) Why was there so much excitement in the schoolroom that morning? What sets Margot apart from the other children?
(iii) Describe how the planet was transformed when the sun came out and shone briefly over it.
Why was Margot not able to witness this phenomenon?
What emotion of you supposes the children experienced when Margot emerged at the end of the story?
Complete the following sentence.
The beggar said that the kind ladies of the household___________________________________.
Who have tea parties under the shade of the trees?
