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Question
Why are photographs taken?
| e.g. to freeze our favourite moments | |
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Solution
| e.g. to freeze our favourite moments | to cherish memorable moments |
| To record the best things | to freeze beauty |
| To document function | to lodge complaints with evidence |
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RELATED QUESTIONS
Read the passage given below and answer the questions (a), (b) and (c) that follow :
(1) At the Literary Society’s meeting, Isola read out the letters written to her Granny Pheen, when she was but a little girl. They were from a very kind man – a complete stranger. Isola told us how these letters came to be written.
(2) When Granny Pheen was nine years old, her cat died. Heartbroken, sitting in the middle of the road, she was sobbing her heart out.
(3) A carriage, driving far too fast, came within a whisker of running her down. A very big man in a dark coat with a fur collar, jumped out, leaned over Pheen, and asked if he could help her. Granny Pheen said she was beyond help. Muffin, her cat, was dead.
(4) The man said, ‘Of course, Muffin’s not dead. You do know cats have nine lives, don’t you?’ When Pheen said yes, the man said, ‘Well, I happen to know your Muffin was only on her third life, so she has six lives left.’ Pheen asked how he knew. He said he always knew - cats would often appear in his mind and chat with him. Well, not in words, of course, but in pictures.
(5) He sat down on the road beside her and told her to keep still – very still. He would see if Muffin wanted to visit him. They sat in silence for several minutes, when suddenly the man grabbed Pheen’s hand.
(6) ‘Ah – yes! There she is! She’s being born this minute! In a mansion – in France. There’s a little boy petting her, he’s going to call her Solange. This Solange has great spirit, great verve – I can tell already! She is going to have a long, venturesome life.’
(7) Granny Pheen was so rapt by Muffin’s new fate that she stopped crying. The man said he would visit Solange every so often and find out how she was faring.
(8) He asked for Granny Pheen’s name and the name of the farm where she lived, got back into the carriage, and left.
(9) Absurd as all this sounds, Granny Pheen did receive eight long letters. Isola then read them out. They were all about Muffin’s life as the French cat − Solange. She was, apparently, something of a feline musketeer. She was no idle cat, lolling about on cushions, lapping up cream – she lived through one wild adventure after another – the only cat ever to be awarded the red rosette of the Legion of Honour.
(10) What a story this man had made up for Pheen – lively, witty, full of drama and suspense. We were enchanted, speechless at the reading. When it was over (and much applauded), I asked Isola if I could see the letters, and she handed them to me.
(11) The writer had signed his letters with a grand flourish :
VERY TRULY YOURS,
O.F. O’F. W.W.
It was highly possible that Isola had inherited eight letters written by Oscar Wilde, for who else could have had such a preposterous name as Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Willis Wilde.
Adapted from : The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society – By Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows
(a) (i) Given below are four words and phrases. Find the words which have a similar meaning in the passage :[4]
(1) adventurous
(2) cat-like
(3) appreciated
(4) received something on someone’s death
(ii) For each of the words given below, write a sentence of at least ten words using the same word unchanged in form, but with a different meaning from that which it carries in the passage :[4]
(1) kind (line 2)
(2) mind (line 13)
(3) still (line 15)
(4) sounds (line 26)
(b) Answer the following questions in your own words as briefly as possible:
(i) Where did Isola get the letters from to read at the Literary Society’s meeting?[2]
(ii) Who consoled Granny Pheen when she was heart-broken? What did he say about Muffin’s lives?[2]
(iii) What did the man say when Granny Pheen asked him how he knew about cats’ lives?[2]
(iv) According to the man, what was Muffin’s new fate?[3]
(c) In not more than 100 words, summarise why the eight letters were a treasure to Granny Pheen. (Paragraphs 2 to 10). Failure to keep within the word limit will be penalised. You will be required to write the summary in the form of a connected passage in about 100 words.[8]
What rhyme scheme is followed in the poem?
What is the implied meaning of “his bars of rage” in the poem “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”?
Why was Margot unhappy on Venus in “All Summer in a Day”?
Write a composition (350 - 400 words) on the following:
Study the picture given below. Write a story or a description or an account of what it suggests to you. Your composition may be about the subject of the picture or you may take suggestions from it; however, there must be a clear connection between the picture and your composition.

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
But mercy is above this sceptred sway;
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings,
It is an attribute to God himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God’s
When mercy seasons justice.
(i) Name the speaker. Why did the speaker appeal to the Jew for mercy? Earlier who else in the play appealed for mercy?
(ii) What are the three qualities of mercy which the speaker has stated just before the extract?
(iii) Give the meaning of‘But mercy is above this sceptred sway’. How does Shylock turn down Portia’s plea for mercy? What does he insist on?
(iv) What is Bassanio ready to do for Antonio in the court? Why is Bassanio snubbed immediately by the disguised Portia?
(v) Mention two prominent character traits of Shylock as highlighted through the scene from which the extract has been taken. Substantiate your answer with examples from the text.
Which courtesies did Braithwaite ask his class to observe and how did the students react to these ‘new rules’? Describe the incident that brought about a change in Denham’s hostile attitude towards Braithwaite
Give reasons for the following.
Howard Carter’s investigation was resented.
Discuss the following in groups of two pairs, each pair in a group taking opposite points of view.
Advanced technology gives us conclusive evidence of past events.
The cleverest of criminals leave behind clues to their crime.
Examine the subtle humour in the narration of the story that lightens the gravity of the subject matter.
Use the phrase in a sentence of your own, after finding out its meaning.
on board
Re-word the line from the story:
I went to the window which overlooked a large garden.
'Even small things in nature play a big role. So protect nature!'
Draft a short speech on the above topic, which you could give at your school assembly.
Use the following steps while drafting.
- Greeting
- Salutation
- Self - Introduction
- Introduction of the topic
- Body of the Speech
- Conclusion
- Expression of gratitude to audience
You have just returned after your first experience of the kite - festival in Gujarat/Ahmedabad. You were thrilled with the festivities.
Write a short report about the kite - festival for your local newspaper. Give an attractive headline, a dateline, and an account of the kite - festive. Write the report in the third person with more use of Passive voice.
Write the story of Sage Dadhichi’s sacrifice in your own words.
Write what you think about the following thoughts and actions of Mathilde :
Mathilde and her husband decided to replace the necklace.
Form groups of 5-8. Prepare short autobiographical speeches for each of these animals (10-15 lines). Use the following points :
- How the animal lives - It’s the only way he/she can.
- How he interacts with nature and other animals.
- How humans interact with that species - whether it is fair, necessary, or desirable, etc.
- The possible ill effects of the way human beings treat the animals, for the whole living world.
- The animal getting ready to bid farewell to this world.

Think and write in your own words.
Why did the traveller choose the road less travelled? What attribute of the traveller does it bring out?
Write in your own words:
What does the listener do when the poet asks him to just listen? Give 3 points.
Say ‘WHY’?
The writer claims that all false beliefs need not be replaced by cold science.
Draft Letter for the following.
You are Sadasivam. You recently visited your native town in Vellore. You happened to accompany your grandmother to your family temple. You were shocked to notice the poor condition and maintenance of the temple. Write a letter to the Editor of the local newspaper highlighting the poor condition of the temple. Also, give some suggestions and request the HRC to take steps to improve the situation.
Find one word from the story that means
to be inquisitive c ______.
Now complete the following sentence, choosing the right word.
The sum was ______ difficult for the class to solve. Only ______ students could do it.
(two, too)
Sit in groups of five. Now, each student will tell a story. Decide which story was the best and declare a or of the group.
The ______of robbers escaped.
What did Bob share with the cop about their friendship?
Why did she call herself ‘lucky’?
Imagine someone has invited your family to a programme and you were the only person at home when the invitation was given orally.
Write a note (4-5 lines) to pass on the message to the other people in your family. Or, Write an imaginary conversation in which you pass on the message to your parents.
One cannot always get what one wants and sometimes it is for the best. Present your reflections on this statement.
