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Question
What does the bird in the poem announce? How is this related to the title, ‘Coming’?
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Solution
The poem 'Coming' by Philip Larkin is a celebration of the advent of the spring. To express the happiness the poet sets the plot of house fronts clothed in chilly and yellow light. Amidst all this, a thrush sings a welcoming song. It seems the whole nature is dancing with joy at the arrival of the new season. The thrush, sitting in a garden shrub, laurel”, in the deep bare garden, is humming repeatedly in” its fresh-peeled voice “that” it will be spring soon”. This joy-full singing of the thrush imparts an “astonishing” effect on the brickwork of the houses. The poet feels happy as well to see the beauty that nature encompasses. In fact, it is through the voice of the thrush that the poet has tried to express how overwhelmed he is on the “coming” of the spring.
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Maggu’s achievements are particularly noteworthy because – as is well known – academic institutions in India are less than sold on the idea of inclusive education. In fact, when Maggu lost her sight in class IV, her school (which she declines to name) expelled her while suggesting she attend a “blind school”. Though shocked, Maggu rejected the advice. “Attending a special school would have tarred me with a handicap forever, which was not how I saw my future. Therefore I did the rounds of other public schools with my father, a small – time merchant, explaining that my case was different Since I had vision till the age of ten,” she recalls.
Impressed by her persistence and ambition, Delhi’s Bluebells School not only admitted her but pulled out all the stops to support her in academics sporting events and also notched up a respectable 73 percent average in the class XII exam with the help of Braille, interactive textbooks and extra coaching.
The respectable average in her CBSE exam paved the way for admission into LSR where again she proved her mettle by winning medals in a slew of inter – collage events (100 200 and 400 metre sprints) high jump, long jump, javelin and discuss throw: resulting in her being declared ‘Athlete of the year’ 2003’ at a sports meet for 100 physically challenged athletes. And the cherry on the cake was the selection to the IBSA Games last year. “It was a tough regimen,” recalls Maggu. “I had to attend sports camps manage my studies and officiates as sports president. But I managed.”
Questions:
(1) What qualities of Maggu are highlighted in this passage?
(2) Why did Maggu refuse to attend a ‘blind school’?
(3) Quote the lines that show that Jyoti Maggu was good in academics as well as in sports.
(4) Use any two phrases in sentences of your own :
(a) To win laurels
(b) To pave the way
(c) To prove one’s mettle
(d) A tough regimen
(5)
(a) I did the rounds of other public schools with my father [Change the voice]
(b) though shocked Maggu rejected the advice [Rewrite as a simple sentence]
(6) Should the physically challenged be sent to special schools? Express your views.
Read the passage carefully and complete the activities given below :
A1 True or False
A2 Mention the two things that were found when the tall grass was hacked.
A3 The narrator prayed that Rex should not make any sudden movements meets. Explain giving reasons.
Tick the statement that is true.
The story tries to relate history to Science.
Read the play out in parts. Enact the play on a suitable occasion.
Comment on the way in which the theme of the story has been introduced.
'Luck is necessary for success in life'.
Explain the line:
'I seemed to detect in myself a sort of sneaking fellow-feeling for the mummy in the museum, and a desire to swap news with him.
Comment on the physical features of the hawk highlighted in the poem and their significance.
The poetic effect is achieved in the poem through understatement and asides. Discuss this with examples.
Complete the following sentence.
Sujoy reported about ___________________.
Read the story and choose the appropriate meaning.
Wielded the brush ____________.
Go through the poem and state whether the following statement is true or false.
Planners make their plans mathematically perfect, at the same time they calculate their profit.
Read the lesson and name the following.
The First successful Cardiac Surgeon ______
Form suitable groups and discuss the following.
You have heard/read stories of Akbar and Birbal, Tenali Raman, Mulla Nasruddin. Recollect and write down the names of those stories.
Pick out those aspects of a story that you find a common in all their stories.
- Humour
- Supernatural event
- Wisdom
- Suspense
- Magic
- Beauty of Nature
- Wit
- Play upon words
- Sadend
- Violence
Fill in the gap, choosing a word from the bracket to make an appropriate comparison.
(tall / quiet / humble / merry / busy / slippery / fast / sly / slow / big)
as ______ as an elephant
The description of the character is given below. Identify the character from the play. Find some sentences which support your choice.
He is smart as well as brave.
State whether the following statement is True or False:
Both Demetrius and Lysander fight for Hermia.
“A Midsummer-Night’s Dream” is one of the best examples of Shakespeare’s Comedy of Errors. Comment.
Look at the following words carefully for one minute. Now close your book and try to write down as many of the words as you can remember.
| crust, tremendous, lava, crater, volcanic, tsunami, island, extinct, disaster, dormant, eruption, plume, inland, molten, active, coast |
Divide the story into different sections to show the different events and time periods in it. Give a suitable title to each section.
Think carefully for a minute.
Jog your memory and recall all the things/objects on which you have seen wheels. Write them down
Write the conditions that Portia put down to warn Shylock.
Make a chart to show the important points to remember while making a graphic presentation.
Form groups. Discuss the first two paragraphs. Try to present their content in the form of a series of conversations among the volunteers and the villagers.
Read the passage and name the following.
She was the wife of King Menelaus.
Find three lines, that contain images of nature in the autumn season.
At night
- ______________________
- ______________________
- ______________________
Think of a play/skit which you have seen enacted on the stage and which has impressed you. Write the following details about it.
| Name of the play/skit: | ______________ |
| Important characters: | ______________ |
| Any famous actors/actresses: | ______________ |
| Theme: | ______________ |
| Climax: | ______________ |
| Ending: | ______________ |
| Use of lights and special effects if any: | ______________ |
| Use of background music and sound effects if any: | ______________ |
| Use of sets: | ______________ |
| The costumes, make up, etc. of the characters: | ______________ |
| How well the actors present the play and behave on the stage: | ______________ |
| Your own opinion about the play: | ______________ |
What was the businessman looking for? Why?
"That's one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind." Neil Armstrong - Discuss
Read the incident again and answer the following question.
What did Gilson want the writer to bring for him?
Read the incident again and answer the following question.
Why were the other passengers in the flight gazing at the writer?
Pick out the other examples for alliteration from the poem.
What made John Shepherd-Barron to come up with the idea of ATM?
Write the name of the toy against the picture.
What kind of learning brings joy to you?
In what ways are we doing injustice to nature?
What does the poet mean by ‘Festival of flowers’?
Identify the character/speaker.
Wake up. You've been sleeping for too long.
Female Olive Ridleys come ashore at night to lay eggs.
Find out the idiom that relates to ‘whatever the circumstances’, from the first paragraph.
How is water produced in Mars?
Read the events of the story. They are in the wrong order. Put them in the correct order.
| 1. And it charged straight at the cavalry officers on horseback. |
| 2. And so she flew onto the back of the cow. |
| 3. So everybody panicked and made a general rush to safety |
| 4. The startled cow charged off in fear |
| 5. She applied brakes, but was thrown off the cycle. |
| 6. Just then she saw a lone cow in the middle of the road. |
| 7. Finally the cow fell into a ditch and dislodged the girl. |
| 8. The girl cried out in delight as she overtook her brother on her cycle. |
Were the girl and her brother friendly with each other?
The blue lights seen through the window were aliens.
Try your own.
Choose the odd one out.
Write the rhyming word.
goat
Fill in the blank
He is rich ______ he looks simple.
Rani thought of herself as a _______ engineer.
Where did the tanker man take the water from the village?
Who lived in the old house?
Write the word with same meaning.
eraser- ______.
Does the child in the poem like her nose? Why do you think so?
How did the tree help the boy earn money?
Why is the play called ‘The Giving Tree’?
Say Aloud
| dash | bash | splash | cash | trash |
| steer | tear | clear | deer | dear |
| shower | power | tower | flower | mower |
| poked | croaked | soaked | stroked | joked |
| wept | kept | crept | leapt | slept |
Now, read the following biographical extract on Sujatha Rangarajan, a Sciencefiction writer, and answer the questions that follow.
- Sujatha is the allonym of the Tamil author S. Rangarajan and it is this name that is recognised at once by the Tamil SciFi reading community. You might have seen the Tamil movie ‘Endiran’ where the robot Chitti exhibits extraordinary talents in an incredible manner. The robot could excel a human being in any act, beyond one’s imagination. Jeeno, a robotic dog which appeared in Sujatha’s science fiction novel “En Iniya Iyandhira” (My Dear Robot) formed the basis of Chitti’s character. Like Chitti, Jeeno was an allrounder who could cook, clean and fight. High-tech computer technology terms are used in the story. Jeeno, a pet robot, plays an important role throughout the story. As the story proceeds, it behaves and starts to think on its own like a human and instructs Nila, a human being, on how to proceed further in her crises.
- In the preface of ‘En Iniya Iyandhira’, the writer states the reason for his attraction to the genre: “Science gives us the wonderful freedom to analyse thousands and thousands of alternative possibilities. While using it, and while playing with its new games, a writer needs to be cautious only about one thing. The story should draw some parallels or association from the emotions and desires of the present humankind. Only then it becomes interesting. Jeeno, the robot dog, was intelligent. But the character became popular only because of the robot’s frequently displayed human tendencies.” It is no wonder that all his works echo these words and will remain etched in the minds of the readers who enjoy reading his novels to have a wonderful lifetime experience.
- It was Sujatha, who set the trend for sci-fi stories. He had tracked the origin from Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein to his short stories. He has written 50 sci-fi short stories and these were published in various Tamil magazines. His stories have inspired many readers to extend their reading to English sci-fi writers like Isaac Asimov. The themes were bold, even if there was a dependence on a very well-established characterization of English fiction. Sujatha opened up a new world to us with his writings on holograms, computers and works like ‘En Iniya Iyanthira’ inspire many to study computer science.
- He has been one of the greatest writers for more than four decades. He combined reasoning and science in his writings. Being a multifaceted hi-fi and sci-fi humanistic author, he expressed his views distinctively. He was the one who took Tamil novels to the next level. As an MIT alumnus and an engineer at BHEL, he was very good at technology. He could narrate sci-fi stories impressively. His readers always enjoyed reading all his detective and sci-fi novels which featured the most famous duo ‘Ganesh’ and ‘Vasanth’.
- Sujatha has played a crucial role as a playwright for various Tamil movies which have fascinated movie lovers. Hence, it is fathomable that the writer’s perspective of future India enthuses every reader and paves a new way to reading sci-fi stories in English.
A. Answer the following questions in a sentence or two.
- How was Jeeno different from other robots?
- What precaution should one take while writing Science fiction stories?
- What inspired Sujatha’s themes?
- Why were Sujatha’s sci-fi stories impressive?
B. Find words from the passage which mean the same as the following.
- difficult to believe (para 1)
- a style or category of art, music or literature (para 2)
- having many sides (para 4)
- capable of being understood (para 5)
According to Tagore, when will India get the opportunity to win the gift of freedom?
Being a bachelor, the stranger had no patience with children.
