Kishen

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 12 Summary

by

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 12 Summary, Notes and Question and Answers

The Story of My life- Novel for class 10- English CBSE By Helen Keller

Introduction of Chapter 12- the Story of My Life by Helen Keller

Once Helen went on a visit to a village in New England, the entire village was covered with snow. Then came a snowstorm and tiny flakes of ice were falling around. The loneliness that Helen and others felt was forgotten for a while when they were sitting around the fire. During the night the wind became furious. At last, when the sun appeared, Helen and others slid over snow, sitting in a toboggan.

 Conclusion/ Chapter in short/ Analysis of Chapter 12 /Understanding the Theme of Chapter 12

Helen describes a winter spent in a New England village and her first experiences of a snowstorm.

Short Summary of Chapter-12 The Story of My Life by Helen Keller in Simple Words-

This chapter describes a winter spent in a New England village and Helen’s first experiences of a snowstorm. New England’s frozen lakes and vast snowfields were a new experience for her and she describes her pleasure in entering the treasures of the snow. She describes the landscape following the snowstorm as a waste of snow with trees rising out of it. She spent days sitting around the great fire, along with her family members and shared merry tales. Helen describes how she felt the dazzling sunlight after three days of snow. She also describes the fun she had tobogganing and describes the experience as ‘divine’.

Extra Important Questions and Answers of Chapter 12

Question.1
What surprised Helen about the trees in winter?
Answer:
Helen was surprised to discover that the trees and branches were bare of leaves in winter: there were no birds on them and their nests were all empty.

Question.2
Why did Helen rush out of doors even though there were signs of an impending snowstorm?
Answer:
Helen rushed out to feel the tiny snowflakes as they fell from the sky, in spite of dangers of an impending snowstorm.

Question.3
How did the family spend their time during the snowstorm?
Answer:
During the snowstorm, Helen and her family sat around a fire and enjoyed themselves, sharing merry stories with one another.

Question.4
Why does Helen say that the pine trees outside had no smell?
Answer:
Helen described the pine trees Outside her home to be bereft of any smell because they were covered with snow.

Question.5
How was Helen able to feel the light in spite of her blindness?
Answer:
The sun rays on the snow-covered trees and branches shone dazzlingly bright, and blindness. everything sparkled like diamonds. Helen could feel the brightness in spite of her blindness.

Question.6
What does Helen mean when she says that she could not feel the earth under her feet?
Answer:
The snow was so thick, that Helen could not feel the ground beneath it.

Question.7
What did Helen enjoy about tobogganing?
Answer:
Helen enjoyed being shoved off a slope and plunging through drifts, swooping down upon the lake as if she were flying.

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 11 Summary

by

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 11 Summary, Notes and Question and Answers

The Story of My life- Novel for class 10- English CBSE By Helen Keller

Introduction of Chapter 11- the Story of My Life by Helen Keller

Helen spent the autumn months with her family on a mountain. Fern Quarry. about 14 miles from Tuscumbia. The mountain was thickly wooded. Many visitors came to Fern Quarry and related stories about wildlife. Helen considered them to be brave hunters who could frighten even ferocious animals. She enjoyed the ride on her pony which she had named Black Beauty because of its glossy black coat. One day Mildred. Miss. Sullivan and Helen lost their way in the woods. They narrowly escaped from being hurt by climbing onto the braces under the bridge on which the train passed.

Conclusion/ Chapter in short/ Analysis of Chapter 11/Understanding the Theme of Chapter 11

Helen describes several experiences in this chapter like her outing to the summer cottage in the mountains, campfire evening, hunting expeditions. She talks about her pony, Black Beauty.

 Short Summary of Chapter-11 The Story of My Life by Helen Keller in Simple Words

In this chapter, Helen describes the rich experience she had and how her mind blossomed upon reaching home. She describes the outing to Fern Quarry, the family cottage in the mountains. She elaborately describes the ferns, the great oaks and the splendid Evergreens that surrounded Fern Quarry. She also describes their pretty cottage situated on top of the mountain among the oaks and pines. She mentions the visitors at the campfire every evening, and the hunting expeditions the men went on. She talks of the barbecues and describes her pony, Black Beauty. Her happiest hours were spent on his back. She enjoyed gathering Persimmons and nuts and hearing the rail go by. She also recounts the adventure she had when she, Miss Sullivan and her little sister, Mildred got lost.

Extra Important Questions and Answers of Chapter 11

Question.1
Where did the family spend their autumn months?
Answer:
The family spent the autumn at their summer cottage on a mountain, fourteen miles from Tuscumbia, called Fern Quarry.

Question.2
How did the family spend the evenings?
Answer:
In the evenings, the family along with visitors sat by a campfire where the men played cards and spent time talking about their success at hunting.

Question.3
Why was there such excitement and movement in the mornings?
Answer:
In the mornings, all the visitors who had arrived much bed the night before got ready to go off on a hunting spree amidst great excitement preparation.

Question.4
What was ironic about these hunting expeditions?
Answer:
The irony was that though the men boasted about all the animals they had killed and made all kinds of preparation for the hunting expedition, they usually returned without any success.

Question.5
Who was Black Beauty? Why was it so named?
Answer:
Black Beauty was a pony that Helen rode sometimes. Helen had named it after the horse in the storybook Black Beauty, as it had the same glossy black coat with a white star on its forehead as described in the book.

Question.6
What made Helen gather the Persimmons?
Answer:
Though Helen did not eat the Persimmons, Helen loved their fragrance and enjoyed looking for them in the leaves and grass.

Question.7
What does Helen mean by the word ‘nutting‘?
Answer:
By ‘nutting’, Helen refers to looking for nuts like chestnuts, hickory nuts and walnuts.

Question.8
Why were Miss Sullivan and the girls forced to walk over the trestle?
Answer:
Since Miss Sullivan, Helen and her sister lost their way in the woods and had been wandering for hours, it was too late for them to take any other way and they had to cross over the trestle, as it was a short way home.

Question.9
Why did they find the cottage empty on their return?
Answer:
Miss Sullivan, along with the two girls found the cottage empty on the return because everyone was out looking for them.

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 10 Summary

by

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 10 Summary, Notes and Question and Answers

The Story of My life- Novel for class 10- English CBSE By Helen Keller

Introduction of Chapter 10- the Story of My Life by Helen Keller

The chance that Helen got to spend some days on Cape Cod with a dear friend, Mrs Hopkins, fulfilled her desire to touch and feel the mighty ocean. She was almost drowned in the sea, but the waves luckily threw her back on the shore. Helen took a horseshoe crab home as she wanted to keep it as her pct. But the crab disappeared,  leaving Helen disappointed. She learnt the lesson that it was not kind or wise to force a poor dumb creature out of its natural habitat.

Conclusion/ Chapter in short/ Analysis of Chapter 1/Understanding the Theme of Chapter 1

Helen talks about her vacation at Brewster and her first experiences of the sea. She also learnt a lesson that it was not kind to force creatures of nature to live away from their habitat.

Short Summary of Chapter-10 The Story of My Life by Helen Keller in Simple Words

This chapter describes Helen’s vacation at Brewster and her first experience of the sea. It talks about her excitement and terror of the sea. Her encounter with sea filled her with an exquisite and quivering joy. But when her foot struck against a rock, she was overcome by fright and frantically searched for something to support her till she was clasped in her teacher’s loving arms. The chapter also mentions her first encounter with the Horseshoe Crab, which she wanted to take home. However, the crab escaped, teaching her that it is not kind to force dumb creatures to live away from their habitat.

Extra Important Questions and Answers of Chapter 10

Question.1
Why was Helen so excited about her vacation?
Answer:
Helen’s vacation at Brewster was her first encounter with the sea. She had read about the ocean and had developed a deep desire to touch the sea and feel its roar. She was very excited when she learnt that they were going to the seaside.

Question.2
What terrified Helen about the sea?
Answer:
The rush of waves which tossed her from one place to another as they carried her away from the shore terrified Helen. For a moment she could not feel the earth under her feet and she became panic-stricken.

Question.3
What surprised Helen about the horseshoe crab?
Answer:
Helen had never seen or felt a creature like a crab and was surprised to learn that it carried its house on its back.

Question.4
What lesson did Helen learn after the crab disappeared?
Answer:
Helen learnt that it was unkind to force dumb creatures to live away from their habitat, it was best to let creatures be in their own element.

Ancient Indian History by R.S Sharma Chapter 1 The Importance of Ancient Indian History

by

Ancient Indian History by R.S Sharma Chapter 1 The Importance of Ancient Indian History

The study of ancient Indian history is important for several reasons. It tells us how, when and where people developed the earliest cultures in our country. It indicates how they started agriculture which made life secure and settled. It shows how the ancient Indians discovered and utilized natural resources, and how they created the means for their livelihood We come to know how they took to farming, spinning, weaving, metal-working, and so on; how they cleared forests, and how they founded villages, cities, and finally large kingdoms.

People are not considered civilized unless they know writing The different forms of writing prevalent in India today are all derived from the ancient scripts This is also true of the languages that we speak today The languages we use have roots in ancient times, and have developed through the ages.

Ancient Indian history is interesting because India proved to be a crucible of numerous races. The pre-Aryans, the Indo-Aryans, the Greeks, the Scythians, the Hunas, the Turks, etc., made India their home. Each ethnic group contributed its mite to the making of Indian culture All these peoples mixed up so inextricably with one another that at present none Pf them can be , identified in their original form

India has since ancient times been the land of several religions Ancient India witnessed the birth of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism, but all these cultures and religions intermingled and acted and reacted upon one another in such a manner that though people speak languages, practise different religic observe different social customs, the certain common styles of life through country. Our country shows a deep u unity m spite of great diversity.

The ancients strove for unity. The upon this vast subcontinent as one 1 name Bharatavarsha or the land ol was given to the whole country, after of an ancient tribe called the Bharata people were called Bharatasantati or tl dants of Bharata Our ancient poets, ph and writers viewed the country as an ml They spoke of the land stretching from alayas to the sea as the proper domain universal monarch The kings who triei-lish their authority from the Himala Cape Comorin and from the vallt Brahmaputra m the east to the land t Indus in the west were Universally pra were called chakravartins. This kind < unity was attained at least twice. In century B C Asoka extended his er the whole country, except for the extr Again, in the fourth century A.D. San carried his victorious arms from the borders of the Tamil Land. In t century the Chalukya king, Pulakesi Harshavardhana who was called tl the whole of north India. In spite political unity political formations a country assumed more or less the s

The idea that India constituted one single geographical unit persisted in the minds of the conquerors and cultural leaders. The unity of India was also recognized by foreigners. They first came into contact with the people living on the Sindhu or the Indus, and so they named the whole country after this river. The word Hind is derived from the Sanskrit term Sindhu, and m course of time the country came to be known as ‘India’ in Greek, and ‘Hind’ in Persian and Arabic languages.

We find continuous efforts for the linguistic and cultural unity of the country. In the third century B.C. Prakrit served as the lingua franca of the country. Throughout the major por­tion of India, Asoka’s inscriptions were written in the Prakrit language Later Sanskrit acquired the same position and served as the state language in the remotest parts of the country. The process became prominent in the Gupta period in the fourth century A.D. Although politically the country was divided into numerous small states in the post,-Gupta period, the official documents were written in Sanskrit.

Another notable fact is that the ancients epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, were studied with the’ same zeal and devotion ifi the land of the Tamils as m the intellectual circles of Banaras and Taxi-la. Originally composed in Sanskrit these epics came to be presented in different local languages. But whatever the form in which Indian cultural values and ideas were expressed, the substance remained the same throughout the country          –

Indian history deserves our attention because of a peculiar type of social system which developed in this country. In north India arose the varna/caste system which came to prevail almost all over the country. The foreigners who came to India’ iq ancient times were absorbed in one caste or the other The caste system affected even the Christians and the Muslims. The converts belonged to some caste, and even when they left Hinduism to join the new religion they continued to maintain some of their old caste practices.

Ancient Indian History by R.S Sharma Chapter 1 EXERCISES

  1. Point out the importance of ancient Indian history.
  2. In what ways does ancient Indian history show the basic unity of India ?

 

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 9 Summary

by

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 9 Summary, Notes and Question and Answers

The Story of My life- Novel for class 10- English CBSE By Helen Keller

Introduction of Chapter 9- the Story of My Life by Helen Keller

In May 1888 Helen visited Boston with Miss Sullivan and her big rag doll. During this train journey, she is calmer and eager to listen to Miss. Sullivan’s descriptions of the passing scenery and the people at the stations they pass. Unfortunately, the doll, Nancy, was reduced to a heap of cotton, when the laundress secretly tried to give it a bath. At the Perkins Institution, she made friends with the blind children. She was quite happy with her stay at  Bostori. She visited Bunker Hill, Plymouth and The Great rock. She made friends with Mr William Endicott and his daughter and was touched by their kindness. For her, Boston was ‘The City of Kind Hearts’ mainly due to the benevolent and kind Mr Endicott.

Conclusion/ Chapter in short/ Analysis of Chapter 9/Understanding the Theme of Chapter 9

Helen talks about her visit to Boston with her teacher and mother and how her doll Nancy got ruined. She talks about her visit to Perkins Institute for the Blind and how she was inspired by the positive attitude of the institution. She met Mr William Endicott and his daughter.

Short Summary of Chapter-9 The Story of My Life by Helen Keller in Simple Words

This chapter talks of Helen’s trip to Boston with her mother and teacher. It reveals the change in her behaviour from her previous journey by train. Better behaved as compared to her previous train ride, she preferred to sit quietly beside her teacher. Miss Sullivan described the world outside the train by writing on Helen’s hand. At Boston, Helen once again visited the Perkins Institution for the blind and met other blind children. Unfortunately, her doll Nancy was ruined over there as the laundress at the Perkins Institution had secretly given it a bath, hoping to clean her, but the doll lost its shape and became a ‘formless heap of cotton’. Helen was deeply influenced by the positive attitude at the Institution. She also went to Bunker Hall where she received her first lessons in history. Helen also talks of Mr William Endicott and his daughter, who took great care of her.

Extra Important Questions and Answers of Chapter 9

Question.1
How was Helen’s train journey with her teacher different from her earlier one?
Answer:
Helen was extremely well behaved and sat quietly by the side of her teacher, eagerly listening to her description of the world outside the train window. This was in contrast to her earlier journey when she had been undisciplined, restless and required constant attention.

Question.2
How did Nancy the doll change into a ‘formless heap of cotton’?
Answer:
The laundress at the Perkins Institution tried to give Nancy, Helen’s doll, a bath. It was reduced to a ‘formless heap of cotton’ after being laundered.

Question.3
What delighted Helen at the Institution?
Answer:
Helen was delighted to meet other children who could not see, and was deeply impressed by their positive spirit.

Question.4
Why was Helen taken to Bunker Hall?
Answer:
Helen received her first lessons in history at Bunker Hall. She was extremely excited to climb the monument, built in memory of the soldiers from the past, who had fought here.

Question.5
Why did Helen cry during the steamboat ride?
Answer:
Helen mistook the sound of the rumble of the steamboat to be thunder. She began to cry, worried that they would not be able to have their picnic outdoors if it rained.

Question.6
Who does Helen think of when she calls Boston the ‘city of kind hearts‘?
Answer:
Helen refers to Mr William Endicott, who along with his daughter, took great care of Helen when she stayed at their farm in Boston.

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 8 Summary

by

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller Chapter 8 Summary, Notes and Question and Answers

The Story of My life- Novel for class 10- English CBSE By Helen Keller

Introduction of Chapter 8- the Story of My Life by Helen Keller

Helen and Miss. Sullivan prepared for Christmas at the Tuscumbia House. Helen took part in the festivities and played a guessing game with her teacher. She was invited by the Tuscumbia school children on Christmas Eve. She handed over presents to the children and received a lot of gifts in return. Miss. Sullivan presented her with a canary. Now she had a little bird, Tim, to look after and Miss. Sullivan taught her how to care for her pet. But as ill-luck would have it, Tim was eaten up by a big cat a few days later, when the cage door was kept open by mistake.

Conclusion/ Chapter in short/ Analysis of Chapter 8/Understanding the Theme of Chapter 8

Helen talks about the Christmas day full of surprises and the highlight of the day was the time she spent with the school children. She describes how she took care of Little Tim, the canary and her sorrow after its death.

Short Summary of Chapter-8 The Story of My Life by Helen Keller in Simple Words-

This chapter describes how Helen enjoyed celebrating Christmas with her teacher. Helen had fun preparing surprises for everybody along with Miss Sullivan. The game of guessing which they played taught Helen more about the use of language. It was a day full of surprises, the highlight being the time spent with school children on Christmas Eve. Helen had been invited to the school by the Tuscumbia schoolchildren to celebrate Christmas with them. There was a gift for each child by the tree and Helen was allowed to distribute them. Helen was delighted to hand the presents to the children. On Christmas day, she found surprises not just in the stockings but all around the house. The chapter also talks of Helen’s joy at receiving a canary as a gift from her teacher, and how she took care of ‘Little Tim’, the canary bird. The chapter ends by describing her sorrow at its death.

Extra Important Questions and Answers of Chapter 8  

Question.1
What was the most exciting aspect of Christmas for Helen?
Answer:
With the help of her teacher, Helen had prepared surprises for her family members. This proved to be the most exciting part of celebrating Christmas. Also, she was excited about trying to guess what gifts the others were going to give her. Spending Christmas Eve with the Tuscumbia school children was another thrilling episode for her, especially as she was allowed to hand the gifts to all the children.

Question.2
Who or what was Little Tim?
Answer:
Little Tim was a pet canary gifted to Helen by her teacher Miss Sullivan.

Question.3
How did Helen take care of her pet?
Answer:
‘Helen would prepare its bath, clean its cage, fill its cups with fresh seed and water and hang a spray of chickweed in its swing.

Question.4
Why did the bird not respond to Helen when she opened its cage one morning?
Answer:
The canary was eaten by a cat when Helen had gone to fetch water for his bath and had left the cage open. Helen found out when the canary did not respond when Helen opened its cage.