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Question
This play, written in the 1950s, is a humorous and satirical depiction of the status of the mother in the family.
Do you think it caricatures these issues or do you think that the problems it raises are genuine? How does the play resolve the issues? Do you agree with the resolution?
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Solution
A model answer has been provided for students' reference.
It is strongly recommended that students prepare the answer on their own.
The issues that the story raises are genuine and we must heed them. In the story the major complaint of Mrs. Pearson is that her family does not spend time with her. The author has tried to highlight the fact that how lonely can a woman feel when all the members of her family leave early morning to work and then return in the evening just to get the supper and then leave again to socialise outside home. They pay her no time or attention. She selflessly makes the home and asks nothing in return. However, little do we realise that they also yearn for company and wish to spend time with their loved ones.
In the play, Mrs. Fitzgerald, a determined lady who lives in the neighbourhood and a fortune teller, helped Mrs. Pearson by exchanging body with her and dealt with Mrs. Pearson's family. She made the Pearsons understand that Mrs. Pearson is a human after all and that even after working 24x7 she receives no acknowledgement and appreciation from her family members. She did not prepare the supper and did not iron the clothes and made George, Doris and Cyril realise that how dependent they are actually on Mrs. Pearson. She is the sole pillar who keeps their lives in place and keeps everything ready for them before even they have asked for it. Finally when the three receive such harsh treatment and see Annie sitting back and not doing household chores, they feel helpless and find it all difficult to manage on their own. They realise that their lives are absolutely incomplete without Mrs. Pearson.
The resolution was perfect and very well decided. The Pearsons needed the harsh treatment after all else they would have never realised the blunder they were going on committing. After what all happened and when Mrs. Fitzgerald and Mrs. Pearson exchanged the bodies back to the original ones, Annie tells George, Doris and Cyril to stay back and play cards with her and proposed that kids would do cooking while she could sit back and relax while talking to her husband, to which the three approved merrily.
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| Time of the day | Location | Poet’s Activity | Hawker’s Activities | Gardener’s Activities | Watchman’s Activities |
| Morning | __________ | __________ | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Afternoon | __________ | __________ | __________ | __________ | __________ |
| Night | __________ | __________ | __________ | __________ | __________ |
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|
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A Bad workman blames his tools.
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Where there is a will, there is a way.
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BUNGEE-JUMPING
Bungee jumping is an activity that involves jumping from a tall structure while connected to a long elastic cord. The tall structure is usually a fixed object, such as a building, bridge or crane; but it is also possible to jump from a movable object, such as a hot-air-balloon or helicopter, that has the ability to hover above the ground. The thrill comes from the freefalling and the rebound. When the person jumps, the cord stretches, and the jumper flies upwards again as the cord recoils and continues to oscillate up and down until all the kinetic energy is dissipated.
Jumping Heights, located in Mohan Chatti village, in Rishikesh has been rated as one of the most preferred bungee jumping destinations in India at a height of 83 meters. It is the only place in India where bungee jumping can be done from a fixed platform. This is also India’s only fixed platform Bungee- performed from a professional cantilever, to separate it from entertainment parks, and create instead, an extreme adventure zone. The Bungee has been designed by David Allardice of New Zealand.
The Cantilever platform is built over a rocky cliff over-looking the river Hall, a tributary of River Ganges. Bungee-ing amidst the vastness of nature lends the experience an absolutely breathtaking quality. Jumping heights is well known for its safety measures and experienced staff. It costs around Rs 2500 per jump, a bit expensive, but totally worth the experience. The Bungee jumping experience has been set amidst the astoundingly stunning landscape of Rishikesh. To Bungee jump, one must be at least 12 years and should weigh between 40-110 kg.
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one did gain considerable applause.
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Torch
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The Stationmaster’s Supreme Sacrifice by Sanchari Pal (Adapted)
- Thirty-three years ago, on the night of December 2, 1984, Bhopal was hit by a catastrophe that had no parallel in the world’s industrial history. An accident at the Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal had released almost 30 tons of a highly toxic gas called methyl isocyanate, turning the city into a vast gas chamber. The result was a nightmare; more than 600,000 people were exposed to the deadly gas cloud that left thousands dead and many more breathless, blind and in agonizing pain. Few people know that during the Bhopal gas tragedy a heroic stationmaster risked his own life to save others.
- On the evening of December 3, 1984, Ghulam Dastagir was settling down in his office to complete some pending paperwork. This work kept him in his office till 1am in the night, when he emerged to check the arrival of the Gorakhpur Mumbai Express. As he stepped on to the platform, the deputy stationmaster felt his eyes burn and a queer itching sensation in his throat. He did not know that poisonous fumes leaking from Union Carbide’s pesticide factory were stealthily enveloping the railway station.
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- Ghulam Dastagir’s devotion to duty saved the lives of hundreds of people. However, the catastrophe didn’t leave him unscathed. One of his sons died on the night of the tragedy and another developed a lifelong skin infection. Dastagir himself spent his last 19 years shuttling in and out of hospitals; he developed a painful growth in the throat due to prolonged exposure to toxic fumes. When he passed away in 2003, his death certificate mentioned that he was suffering from diseases caused as a direct result of exposure to MIC (Methyl Isocyanate) gas. A memorial has been built at platform No.1 to pay tribute to those who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty on the fateful night of December 3, 1984. However, Ghulam Dastagir, who died later, is not one of them. A forgotten hero whose sense of duty and commitment saved countless lives, Dastagir’s story deserves to be recognized and remembered by our fellow countrymen.
- Why was the accident at Union Carbide unparalleled in the world’s industrial history?
- How was Dastagir affected by the poisonous gas?
- What was the action taken by the station superintendent?
- How did Dastagir and his staff break rules?
- What was the cause of Dastagir’s death?
- Find words from the passage which mean the opposite of the following.
- safeguard (para 1)
- common or familiar (para 2)
- prompt (para 4)
- cause (para 6)
