NCERT Solutions

Class 11 English Chapter 4 Poem NCERT Solutions The Voice Of The Rain Free PDF Download

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

I. Think it Out
Question 1.
There are two voices in the poem. Who do they belong to? Which lines indicate this?
Answer:
The poem, ‘The Voice of the Rain’, presents a dialogue between the poet and the rain itself. In this poem, the poet asks rain who it is. The poet gets an answer as the rain itself gives its introduction.

Hence, the two voices in the poem are those of rain and the poet. These are
(i) In the poet’s voice And who art thou? said I to the soft-falling shower.
(ii) In the voice of the rain And I am the Poem of the Earth, said the voice of the rain.

Question 2.
What does the phrase ‘strange to tell’ mean?
Answer:
The phrase expresses the poet’s surprise at the rain’s ability to reply and use words. The belief is that rain cannot speak like living beings. The poet believes that the readers will also find it surprising and weird . that the rain should speak and answer the poet’s question.

Question 3.
There is a parallel drawn between rain and music. Which words indicate this? Explain the similarity between the two.
Answer:
The last two lines of the poem (in brackets) indicate the parallel drawn between rain and music (here it is called ‘song’, as a song always has music associated with it). In these lines, the poet observes that the life-cycle of rain and a song are alike. The song issues from the singer and travels to reach others. It wanders and, whether heard and enjoyed or not, eventually returns to its creator with all due love. Similarly, rain originates from Earth, and after fulfilling its role of spreading beauty and purity, returns to its origin.

Both are perpetual in nature. Moreover, the sound of the soft-falling rain is in itself a kind of music.

Question 4.
How is the cyclic movement of rain brought out in the poem? Compare it with what you have learnt in science.
Answer:
In the poem, water rises from the ‘land and the bottomless sea’ to reach the sky. There, it transforms itself into vague formations of clouds, different in their structure than the water from which they originated. After wandering, these clouds descend to Earth in the form of rain to provide relief to the drought-ridden areas and infuse life into unborn and latent seeds. The rain gives Earth beauty and purity.

In science, we learn the cyclical process of rain using terms like evaporation, condensation, precipitation, flowing rivers, ground water, ocean water etc, while in the poem the same process becomes interesting and unusual. The rain speaks itself to describe its course. Thus, both what is given in the poem and what we learn in science are similar.

Question 5.
Why are the last two lines put within brackets?
Answer:
The last two lines of the poem have been put within brackets as they do not form a part of the conversation between the poet and the rain. The lines in the brackets indicate the reflections, observations and thoughts of the poet. He makes observations about the life course of a song and draws similarities between the life cycle of a song and the rain.

Question 6.
List the pairs of opposites found in the poem.
Answer:
The pairs of opposites are rise-descend; day-night; reck’d-unreck’d

II. Notice the following sentence patterns
(a) And who art thou? said I to the soft-falling shower.
(b) I am the Poem of Earth, said the voice of the rain.
(c) Eternal I rise.
(d) For song duly with love returns.
Rewrite the above sentences in prose.
Answer:
(a) I enquired the soft-falling shower about its identity.
(b) The voice of the rain answered, saying that it was the Poem of Earth.
(c) The voice of the rain explained its upward movement towards the sky as eternal.
(d) The poet says that, similar to the rain, a song starts from the heart of the singer, travels to reach others and, after fulfilling it purpose (whether cared for or not) returns to the singer with all due love.

III. Look for some more poems on the rain and see how this one is different from them
Answer:
Do it yourself.

The Voice Of The Rain Extract based Questions and Answers (2 Marks)

I. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
And who art thou? said I to the soft-falling shower,
Which, strange to tell, gave me an answer, as here translated:
I am the Poem of Earth, said the voice of the rain,
Question 1.
Who is T in the first line?
(a) The poet
(b) The land
(c) The sea
(d) The raindrops
Answer:
(a) The poet

Question 2.
What does the rain call itself? Why?
(a) The poet of the Earth
(b) The poem of the Earth
(c) The poem of the Sea
(d) The poet of the Sea
Answer:
The poem of the Earth

Question 3.
The word ‘thou’ in the extract is a ………. .
(a) noun
(b) verb
(c) preposition
(d) pronoun
Answer:
(d) pronoun

II. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
Eternal I rise impalpable out of the land and the bottomless sea,
Upward to heaven, whence, vaguely form’d, altogether changed, and yet the same,
Question 1.
What does the use of word ‘eternal’ indicate here?
(a) It indicates the continual process of rain
(b) It indicates the continual process of nature
(c) It indicates the discontinuous process of rain
(d) It indicates the discontinuous process of nature
Answer:
(a) It indicates the continual process of rain

Question 2.
From where does ‘I’ rise and where does it go?
(a) It rises in the form of droplets and goes to the sea
(b) It rises in the form of clouds and goes to the sky
(c) It rises in the form of water vapour and goes to the land
(d) It rises in the form of water vapour and goes to the sky
Answer:
(d) It rises in the form of water vapour and goes to the sky

Question 3.
Which word in the extract means the same as “in a way that is uncertain, indefinite or unclear”?
(a) Eternal
(b) Impalpable
(c) Vaguely
(d) Bottomless
Answer:
(c) Vaguely

III. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
I descend to lave the droughts, atomies, dust-layers of the globe,
And all that in them without me were seeds only, latent, unborn;
Question 1.
With what purpose does the rain descend from the sky?
(a) To trouble the creatures of the Earth
(b) To give life to the drought affected areas and plants
(c) To wash the dust layers enveloping the Earth
(d) Both (b) and (c)
Answer:
(d) Both (b) and (c)

Question 2.
What will happen if T was not there?
(a) It would result in happiness on the Earth
(b) It would not matter to the residents of the Earth
(c) The seeds will remain as seeds and plants will not grow
(d) It would result in the rise of temperature on Earth
Answer:
(c) The seeds will remain as seeds and plants will not grow

Question 3.
……….. is the opposite of ‘latent’.
(a) Inactive
(b) Manifest
(c) Dormant
(d) Resolute
Answer:
(b) Manifest

IV. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
And forever, by day and night, I give back life to my own origin,
And make pure and beautify it;
Question 1.
In what way does the rain help its place of origin?
(a) By causing floods
(b) By providing water to the drought stricken areas
(c) By washing away impurities from the Earth
(d) Both (b) and (c)
Answer:
(d) Both (b) and (c)

Question 2.
What is the importance of the word ‘forever’?
(a) It points to the everlasting features of artificial elements
(b) It points to the everlasting features of natural elements
(c) It points to the temporary features of natural elements
(d) It points to the temporary features of artificial elements
Answer:
(b) It points to the everlasting features of natural elements

Question 3.
……….. in the extract is the opposite of ‘ending’.
(a) By
(b) Back
(c) Origin
(d) Beginning
Answer:
(c) Origin

V. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
(For song, issuing from its birth-place, after fulfilment, wandering Reck’d or unreck’d, duly with love returns.)
Question 1.
What is the similarity between a song and the rain?
(a) They return to their place of origin
(b) They are never ending
(c) They do not have any origin
(d) They are liked by one and all
Answer:
(a) They return to their place of origin

Question 2.
How has the poet been able to put his own reflections?
(a) By using quotation marks
(b) By using parenthesis or brackets
(c) By making notes in his diary
(d) By telling his friends about his experiences
Answer:
(b) By using parenthesis or brackets

Question 3.
For what purpose has the phrase ‘reck’d’ or ‘unreck’d’ used in the passage?
(a) For highlighting the author’s comments
(b) To indicate that rain or a song keep completing their life-cycle
(c) To indicate that rain or a song do not complete their life-cycle
(d) For making the poem interesting
Answer:
(b) To indicate that rain or a song keep completing their life-cycle

The Voice Of The Rain Short Questions and Answers (2 Marks)

Question 1.
Why does the poet get surprised when he gets an answer from the rain?
Answer:
The poet gets surprised when he gets an answer from the rain, as it is inanimate and cannot speak. In this poem, to the poet’s and reader’s amazement, the rain gives a reply which has been translated by the poet for the readers.

Question 2.
What answer does the rain give back to the poet?
Answer:
The rain answers to the poet’s question by telling him that it is the Poem of Earth and is involved in a continuing process of going up and coming down.

Question 3.
How does the rain justify its claim ‘I am the Poem of Earth’?
Answer:
The rain calls itself the Poem of the Earth because the poem rendered by the poet has the task of bringing joy, happiness, life to its readers.

Similarly when the rain falls down over Earth, a rhythm or music is created. That’s why the rain calls itself the Poem of Earth.

Question 4.
Describe the never ending cycle of rain.
Answer:
Water rises unperceived in the form of vapour from land and water bodies on the Earth. It goes up, takes the form of a cloud, changes its shape and falls down on Earth in the form .of water drops to bathe the small dust particles, land and sea. The water returns through rivers to oceans and seas after it rains on Earth.

Question 5.
Why does the rain call itself ‘impalpable’?
Answer:
Impalpable means something that cannot be felt by touching or seeing. When water takes the form of vapour, it is not visible to the human eye and nor can we feel its touch.

The vapour rises to the sky, condenses and forms clouds which cause rain. Though we are aware of its presence, the process remains invisible to us. Hence, the rain has rightly called itself ‘impalpable’.

Question 6.
What happens when it rains after a long hot spell?
Answer:
After a long hot spell, everything is dried up on Earth. When it rains, all the dust that has accumulated on Earth gets washed away, giving a new fresh look to nature.

Moreover the seeds which were lying latent till now, get germinated with the help of rain and new trees and plants start growing.

Question 7.
Latent seeds get a life by rain. Explain.
Answer:
The seeds lying on Earth require water to germinate and take shape. When it rains, the seeds start germinating and change into the form of saplings.

In this way, the seeds which would have dried up or get wasted get a new lease of life by rain.

Question 8.
Why is rain essential for Earth?
Answer:
If it doesn’t rain then Earth will remain parched, droughts will follow and the dust-layers will not be washed away. There will be nothing to quench the thirst of the plants and trees and their seeds will die.

Question 9.
How does the rain become the voice of Earth?
Answer:
In the poem, ‘The Voice of the Rain’, the poet describes how the rain falls on Earth. He also asks a question to the rain’about it. He calls the showers of the rain as ‘Poem of Earth’ as the rain gives a new lease of life to ‘ the scorched and parched Earth and falls on Earth in a rhythmic manner.

Actually, it is the voice of Earth as the slowly falling showers produce a very soft music and Earth finds its expression only through the showers falling on it.

Question 10.
Why do you think the poet says the phrase ‘reck’d or unreck’d’?
Answer:
The words have been poetically drafted. Reck’d and unreck’d stand for reckoned and unreckoned. The words literally mean cared and uncared for respectively. The poet says these words to emphasise the fact that when it falls on the Earth, we sometimes take notice of it or sometimes completely ignore it. But even if it is left uncared for, it completes its destiny and returns to absorbed where it started from.

Question 11.
Justify the title ‘The Voice of the Rain’.
Answer:
The whole poem is about the eternal process of rain and its benefits. Through the words of the rain, the poet has tried to bring out the importance of rain for Earth, for plants and for man. As the poet is translating what the rain is speaking through its own language (the sounds it makes when it falls), the whole poem is about the rain talking to the poet. Thus, the title is justified.

Question 12.
The poem has a conversational tone throughout. Who are the two participants? Is there any advantage of this method?
Answer:
The two participants are the poet and the voice of the rain which answers the poet’s questions. The advantage of this method is to maintain continuity of thoughts and ideas expressed by the poet and to bring about clarity in what he wants to express.

The Voice Of The Rain Long Questions and Answers (6 Marks)

Question 1.
The poem ‘The Voice of the Rain’ gives a hidden message that rain is essential for this Earth. Write an article in 120-150 words describing the importance of rain.
Answer:

Importance of Rain
by Ali Jawed

As we all know, the three essentials for survival are water, food and air. The most important element of weather is water. We get water in different forms of precipitation but rain is the most beneficial of all types of precipitation.

Rain helps in harvesting our crops that give us food to eat. Without rain, no crops would grow and we would perish. Also, falling showers remove the dust in air, making our air clean, because we need clean air to breathe.

Rain water plays a key role in creating the climate of certain areas. Its presence in the atmosphere provides replenishment of the moisture in cloud systems.

The most well-known and most important effect of rain water is to provide us with water to drink. Without rain, there would be no life.

Question 2.
Rain is an eternal process benefiting mankind. Contrast it with human life which is short lived on this Earth. Should we disturb these eternal elements of nature?
Answer:
The poem ‘The Voice of the Rain’ beautifully shows the continued process of rain which sounds like music to human ears, as it fulfils our needs.

It is an ever going process which sustains human life and provides us with food, pure air and green cover. On the other hand, human lives are mortal.

We come on this Earth for a short period and then depart without leaving any mark on this planet.

Moreover human beings, for their greed and selfish motives, indulge in destructive activities which may disturb these eternal processes of nature.

We must learn a lesson from nature. If we want peaceful co-existence, we need not disturb the balance of nature, otherwise the whole of humanity will be in danger.

We must learn a lesson from such eternal processes and do something good for humanity at large.

Question 3.
Natural elements such as air and rain make no discrimination and bless everyone equally. Comment on class distinction and inequality, which is a totally human creation.
Answer:
Man’s existence on this Earth is short-lived but even in this short span, he has been responsible for many wrong doings against other human beings. God has created everyone as equal. But it is very unfortunate that man has divided this society on the basis of class, caste and other factors.

Man must learn from elements of nature which provide us fresh air, heat or water, without making any distinction.

But in human society class distinctions and caste distinctions both exist and inequalities prevail in large numbers.

It is high time that man must learn lessons from nature and adopt universal brotherhood for the betterment of our society.

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Class 11 English Chapter 8 NCERT Solutions Silk Road Free PDF Download

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

Silk Road Understanding The Text

I. Give reasons for the following statements.
Question 1.
The article has been titled ‘Silk Road.’
Answer:
The ‘Silk Road’ refers to a network of overland routes linking Europe with Asia. This had been the trade route followed by the Europeans since ancient times who had a passion for silk, horses and exotic fauna and flora of the East. It is a thread that links East and West, a network of veins that pumped new lifeblood into mighty empires, a fabled route trodden by innumerable adventurers through the ages.

The author Nick Middleton, in his travelogue, follows the footsteps of Alexander the Great and Marco Polo overland from China to the edge of Europe. Hence, it is titled as ‘Silk Road’. The reader finds it refreshing to traverse such vast tracts of the natural world that remain largely untamed.

Question 2.
Tibetan mastiffs were popular in China’s imperial courts.
Answer:
Tibetan mastiffs were popular in China’s imperial courts as hunting dogs. They were brought along the Silk Road in ancient times as payment of tax from Tibet. They were huge black dogs also used as watchdogs. They exploded into action like bullets when roused. They were furious and fearless.

Question 3.
The author’s experience at Hor was in stark contrast to earlier accounts of the place.
Answer:
According to the earlier accounts, the town, on the shore of Lake Manasarovar, abounded in natural beauty. A Japanese monk who had arrived there in 1900 was so moved by the sanctity of the lake that he burst into tears. A couple of years later, the hallowed waters had a similar effect on another traveller. However, now it was a grim and miserable place. There was no vegetation whatsoever, but only dust and rocks liberally scattered with years of accumulated rubbish left by tourists.

Question 4.
The author was disappointed with Darchen.
Answer:
The high altitude was giving the author health problems. He had a bad cold and was not able to sleep at night. Since he was one of the early arrivals in the pilgrimage season, there weren’t any pilgrims in the place. The place was dusty, partially derelict and punctuated by heaps of rubble and rubbish left behind by tourists.

Question 5.
The author thought that his positive thinking strategy worked well after all.
Answer:
The author was disappointed with Darchen. He also complained of bad health. Tsetan had left for Lhasa. He was feeling rather lonely with no pilgrims around. It was then that he met Norbu, a Tibetan who also wanted to visit Kailash. They would make a good team as both of them were ‘academicians who had escaped from the library’. The author started thinking positively and it gave him some delight and a new enthusiasm.

II. Briefly comment on

Question 1.
The purpose of the author’s journey to Mount Kailash.
Answer:
Nick Middleton is an Oxford Professor as well as an adventurer. He follows the most difficult terrain through the Silk Road and reaches the foot of Mount Kailash. The purpose of the author’s journey to Mount Kailash was to complete the kora, which was a sacred religious ritual according to Hindu and Buddhist tradition.

Question 2.
The author’s physical condition in Darchen.
Answer:
The author was not physically well when he reached Darchen. His sinuses were blocked due to the cold wind at Hor and-he was not able to sleep well at night. The next day Tsetan took him to the Darchen Medical College and the doctor there gave him some medicine that gave him some relief.

Question 3.
The author’s meeting with Norbu.
Answer:
The author was feeling rather lonely without Tsetan, who had gone back with the car to Lhasa. There weren’t any pilgrims at Darchen as he had reached the place too early in the pilgrimage season. The author was sitting in the only cafe in Darchen when he met Norbu. The author was delighted to meet Norbu since he was also planning to do the kora. Norbu, who worked in Beijing at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, had written papers on Kailash kora. So they decided to do it together.

Question 4.
Tsetan’s support to the author during the journey.
Answer:
Tsetan was a good and efficient driver. He drove the car very carefully. During the journey, he spoke to the author giving information about the places they were visiting. He was very caring. At Darchen when he found that the author was not well, Tsetan took him to the medical college and got medicine for him. He was also a good Buddhist.

Question 5.
“As a Buddhist, he told me, he knew that it didn’t really matter if I passed away, but he thought it would be bad for business.”
Answer:
These were Tsetan’s words spoken to the author. After the author’s sickness was cured, Tsetan wanted to go back to Lhasa. By saying these words, he showed his caring attitude towards the author and at the same time, he firmly stated that he was a Buddhist, who believed that physical death was not death in the real sense. However, he thought that the death of a tourist could affect his business as his credibility will be at stake in looking after the tourists, due to which he may not get any more customers.

Silk Road Talking About The Text

Discuss in groups of four.

Question 1.
The sensitive behaviour of hill-folk.
Answer:
The hill-folk are quite unsophisticated and innocent. People like Tsetan are very religious and God-fearing. They are very much hospitable and take care of the visitors from outside.

Question 2.
The reasons why people willingly undergo the travails of difficult journeys.
Answer:
The author was an academician; hence, he undertook the journey for the purpose of education. For him it was a learning experience. Secondly, people undertake such journeys because of the spirit of adventure. The areas covered by the author are some of the most difficult terrains in the world. The third can be a religious reason. People visit places like Mount Kailash as part of their pilgrimage.

Question 3.
The accounts of exotic places in legends and the reality.
Answer:
There are many accounts of exotic places in legends and the reality. Places like Mount Kailash and Manasarovar occupy a prominent place in legends. There are many articles written about these places.

Silk Road Thinking About Language

Question 1.
Notice the kind of English Tsetan uses while talking to the author. How do you think he picked it up?
Answer:
He must have picked up English through his interactions with tourists.

Question 2.
What do the following utterances indicate?
(i) “I told her, through Daniel……”
Answer:
She was not able to follow English but Daniel
translated what he told in English into the Tibetan language for her.

(ii) “It’s a cold,” he said finally through Tsetan.
Answer:
The doctor spoke in Tibetan language, which Tsetan translated into English for the author.

Question 3.
Guess the meaning of the following words. In which language are these words found?
kora drokba kyang
Answer:
Kora means pilgrimage.
Drokba means nomads.
Kyang means wild ass.
These words are found in the Tibetan language.

Silk Road Working With Words

Question 1.
The narrative has many phrases to describe the scenic beauty of the mountainside like:
A flawless half-moon floated in a perfect blue sky.
Scan the text to locate other such picturesque phrases.
Answer:.
(i) …………. the river was wide and mostly clogged with ice, brilliant white and glinting in the sunshine.
(ii) It was marked by a large cairn of rocks festooned with Silk scarves and ragged prayer flags.

Question 2.
Explain the use of the adjectives in the following phrases.
(i) shaggy monsters
(ii) brackish lakes
(iii) rickety table
(iv) hairpin bend
(v) rudimentary general stores
Answer:
(i) Shaggy means hairy and unkempt.
(ii) Brackish means slightly salty.
(iii) Rickety means wobbly or shaky.
(iv) Hairpin means very sharp; shaped like a hairpin.
(v) Rudimentary means simple or basic.

Silk Road Noticing Form

Question 1.
The account has only a few passive voice sentences. Locate them. In what way does the use of active voice contribute to the style of the narrative?
Answer:
Some passive voice sentences are

1. The slope was steep and studded with major rocks…
2. It was marked by a large cairn of rocks.
3. The plateau is pockmarked with….

Passive voice is used only when the object is to be stressed. Passive voice is mainly used in reporting events. Active voice is more realistic and direct, thus contributing a more lively style to the narrative.

Question 2.
Notice this construction: Tsetan was eager to have them fixed. Write five sentences with a similar structure.
Answer:
The sentences are:

1. Savita was keen to get her cycle repaired.
2. Ravi was impatient to visit the exhibition.
3. Jagdish was itching to get started on his journey.
4. Malati was anxious to have her way in the argument.
5. Beena was fervently wishing to clear her exams.

Silk Road Things To Do

“The Plateau is pockmarked with salt flats and brackish lakes, vestiges of the Tethys Ocean which bordered Tibet before the continental collision that lifted it skyward.”

Given below is an extract from an account of the Tethys Ocean downloaded from the Internet. Go online, key in Tethys Ocean in Google search and you will find exhaustive information on this geological event.
You can also consult an encyclopaedia.

Today, India, Indonesia and the Indian Ocean cover the area once occupied by the Tethys Ocean. Turkey, Iraq, and Tibet sit on the land once known as Cimmeria. Most of the floor of the Tethys Ocean disappeared under Cimmeria and Laurasia. We only know that Tethys existed because geologists like Suess have found fossils of ocean creatures in rocks in the Himalayas. So, we know those rocks were underwater, before the Indian continental shelf began pushing upward as it smashed into Cimmeria. We can see similar geologic evidence in Europe, where the movement of Africa raised the Alps.
Answer:

Silk Road Short Questions and Answers (2 Marks)

Question 1.
What was the farewell present given by Lhamo to the author when he told her that he was going to Mount Kailash?
Answer:
The farewell present given by Lhamo to the author when he told her that he was going to Mount Kailash was a long-sleeved sheepskin coat that normally shepherds wore. She felt that the coat would protect him from the cold weather on the mountain.

Question 2.
What did Tsetan say would be the only hurdle while they were on their way to Mount Kailash?
Answer:
Tsetan said that their journey to Mount Kailash would involve crossing several high mountain passes. He knew the way very well, but the only hurdle would be snow on the way. He could not say anything for sure until they reached there.

Question 3.
While crossing the rocky wilderness, who did they see and what was their reaction?
Answer:
While crossing the rocky wilderness, they saw solitary drokbas (shepherds) – both men and women, well wrapped in sheepskin coats – who were tending their flocks. They would pause and stare at their car, sometimes waving as they passed.

Question 4.
How did the Tibetan mastiffs react when they approached?
Answer:
The dogs would cock their great big heads when they became aware of their approach and would fix them in their sights. As they drew nearer, they would explode into action, speeding directly towards them, like a bullet from a gun and nearly as fast.

Question 5.
How did the river appear as they entered the valley?
Answer:
As they entered the valley, the river became wide and mostly clogged with ice. It appeared brilliant white and glinting in the sunshine.

Question 6.
How could the author tell the height they were at by looking at his wristwatch?
Answer:
The author could tell the height they were at by looking at his wristwatch because he was wearing an altimeter wristwatch. This kind of watch gives a digital height reading besides telling the time.

Question 7.
How did the author feel when they were at about 5400 metres above sea level?
Answer:
When they were at about 5400 metres above the sea level, the road was covered with snow and the author felt his head throbbing horribly. He took some water from the bottle, which was to help a rapid ascent.

Question 8.
Why is it that on the top of the mountain there is a plateau pockmarked with salt flats?
Answer:
These salt flats are the remains of the Tethys Ocean, which bordered Tibet before the great continental collision that lifted the whole Tibetan plateau skyward millions of years ago.

Question 9.
What activity was going on in the area where there were flats of salt?
Answer:
This place was a hive of activity. Men were working with pickaxes and shovels, walking back and forth in their long sheepskin coats and salt-encrusted boots, carrying loads of salt mined from the flats.

Question 10.
Describe the appearance of Hor.
Answer:
Hor was a miserable place, as there was no sanitation. There was no vegetation whatsoever; only dust and rocks, liberally scattered with years of accumulated rubbish left by tourists.

Question 11.
What troubled the author at Darchen?
Answer:
A bad cold troubled the author at Darchen. He was unable to go to sleep at night as his nostrils were blocked. When he was just’ dozing off, he woke up suddenly. He felt his chest becoming very heavy, as he was not able to breathe in enough oxygen.

Question 12.
How did the Darchen Medical College appear?
Answer:
The Darchen Medical College was new and looked like a monastery from the outside with a very solid door that led into a large courtyard. The consulting room was dark and cold.

Question 13.
What, according to the doctor, was the problem the author suffered from?
Answer:
According to the doctor, the author suffered from a bad cold as well as the effects of the altitude. His sinuses were blocked and he was not able to sleep at night.

Question 14.
What did the author notice in Darchen?
Answer:
In Darchen, the author noticed that the people were very relaxed and unhurried, but there was a significant drawback. There were no pilgrims in Darchen.

Question 15.
Who was Norbu?
Answer:
Norbu was a Tibetan but worked in Beijing at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in the Institute of Ethnic Literature. He had come to Darchen to do the kora of Mount Kailash, just like the author.

Question 16.
Why had Norbu come to Kailash?
Answer:
Norbu had been writing academic papers about the Kailash kora and its importance in various works of Buddhist literature for many years, but he had actually never done it himself. Hence, he also was there to do kora.

Question 17.
How did Norbu become an ideal companion for the author?
Answer:
Norbu was an ideal companion for the author as both were academics who had come away from their academic work. Both were not devout believers and they did not intend to prostrate themselves all round the mountain like other pilgrims.

Silk Road Long Questions and Answers (6 Marks)

Question 1.
Describe the author’s experiences at Darchen.
Answer:
Both the author and Tsetan reached Darchen during the late night. They found a guesthouse to stay in. However, the author had serious sleep problems at night as he was suffering from the’effects if the high altitude as well as a blocked nose. The next day, Tsetan took him to the Darchen Medical College for getting him treated. The doctor there told them that it was a common problem in this area and gave some medicine for him.

Then Tsetan left him to return to Lhasa as, from here onwards, the author would have to go on foot. At Darchen, he found people very relaxed and unhurried, but he could not find pilgrims there as he had reached there very early in the pilgrim season. Then he met Norbu, who was a Tibetan working in Beijing. He also had come for kora. They decided to climb Kailash together, as both were not devout pilgrims and had no desire to prostrate themselves all round the mountain.

Question 2.
How was his experience of Hor a stark contrast to the accounts he had read of the earlier travellers?
Answer:
Hor was a small town placed in the back on the main East-West highway that followed the old trade route from Lhasa to Kashmir. The author found the place very grim and miserable. There was no vegetation whatsoever, just dust and rocks, liberally scattered with years of accumulated rubbish left behind by tourists. The town sat on the shore of lake Manasarovar, Tibet’s holiest stretch of water. Ancient Hindu and Buddhist scriptures tell that Lake Manasarovar was the source of four great Indian rivers: Indus, Ganges, Sutlej and Brahmaputra. Actually only the Sutlej flows from the lake, but the headwaters of the others all rise nearby on the slopes of Mount Kailash.

His experience in Hor came as a stark contrast to accounts he had read of earlier travellers’ first encounters with Lake Manasarovar. Ekai Kawaguchi, a Japanese monk who had arrived there in 1900, was so moved by the sanctity of the lake that he burst into tears. Similarly, in 1902,

Sven Hedin from Sweden was also moved by the vision of the lake. However, now you could only find open-air dumps of rubbish in the town.

Question 3.
Justify the title ‘Silk Road’.
Answer:
The ‘Silk Road’ is not single highway, but a network of overland routes linking Europe with Asia, making trade possible between those with a passion for silk, horses and exotic fauna and flora. Just about every transaction imaginable has occurred along its many trails over the centuries. It’s a thread that links East and West, a network of veins that pumped new lifeblood into mighty empires, a fabled route trodden by innumerable adventurers through the ages.

Yet, underlying this romantic trail is one of the most extraordinary tracts of land on this planet, a vast region separating China from the Mediterranean world that rates as one of the least hospitable areas on Earth. It was the difficulty of crossing such unforgiving territory that kept East and West apart for so long, allowing them to develop in their own distinct ways.

The author records the challenges and hardships he faced in the Silk Road regions as they are now. The reader finds it refreshing to traverse such vast tracts of the natural world that remain largely unchanged from earlier days.

Question 4.
“He’s an adventurer, but at heart more a meticulous academic than a daredevil”. Explain the truth of the statement about the author based on your reading of the travelogue ‘Silk Road’ by Nick Middleton.
Answer:
Oxford professor and travel writer, Nick Middleton is truly an adventurer, but at heart more a meticulous academic than a daredevil adventurer. He is an environmental consultant who has written many articles in journals, magazines and newspapers-as well as 16 books. Nick Middleton teaches geography at Oxford University and is a fellow of St Anne’s College. His main research interest is in the nature and human use of deserts and their margins.

After reaching Hor, what he was struck by was not the natural beauty of the place but the litter all around the area left by tourists. He was disappointed to see how man was ruining the environment. Being an environmental consultant, he was much disturbed at how the environment is slowly deteriorating due to human activity.

He gives a graphic detail of the mountain terrain, the snow covered mountains and the calm and relaxed people he met there. He strongly believes that travel broadens our mind.

Reaching the Unreached Question and Answers

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Prose

• The Portrait of a Lady Question Answer
• We’re Not Afraid to Die… If We Can All Be Together Question Answer
• Discovering Tut: The Saga Continues Question Answer
• Landscape of the Soul Question Answer
• The Ailing Planet: the Green Movement’s Role Question Answer
• The Browning Version Question Answer
• The Adventure Question Answer
• Silk Road Question Answer

Class 11 English Chapter 2 NCERT Solutions We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together Free PDF Download

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

Question 1.
I honing our seafaring skills
Answer:
It refers to the efforts made by the narrator and his wife to perfect or sharpen their knowledge of navigation, handling of the boat and equipment and other sea skills.

Question 2.
ominous silence
Answer:
It refers to the silence just before an impending danger. The peace and quiet suggests that something bad is going to happen.

Question 3.
Mayday calls
Answer:
They are radio-telephonic calls which are given by aircraft or ships stuck in a disastrous situation. They are distress calls made to secure help from other ships nearby.

Question 4.
pinpricks in the vast ocean
Answer:
This phrase refers to tiny islands in the vast ocean.
They are so small that they appear like tiny pinheads on a map of the vast ocean.

Question 5.
a tousled head
Answer:
It refers to hair in disarray or the disarranged hair of the author’s son. His hair was all messed up and uncombed.

We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together Understanding The Text

Question 1.
List the steps taken by the captain
(i) to protect the ship when rough weather began.
(ii) to check the flooding of water in the ship.
Answer:
(i) In order to protect the ship from rough weather, the captain decided to slow it down. So he dropped the storm jib and lashed a heavy mooring rope in a loop across the stern. Then they double-fastened everything and went through their life-raft drill, attached lifelines and donned oilskins and life jackets.

(ii) To check the flooding of water in the ship, the captain made some repairs and stretched waterproof oilskins in the openings. He secured waterproof hatch covers across the gaping holes which diverted the water to the side. When the two handpumps were lost overboard and the electric pump short-circuited, he found another electric pump and connected it to an out-pipe and managed to pump out the water.

Question 2.
Describe the mental condition of the voyagers on 4th and 5th January.
Answer:
On 4th January, the mental condition of the voyagers was vacillating between hope and despair. After 36 hours of continuous pumping they could pump much of the water out. But they had to keep pace with the water still coming in. However, their respite was only short-lived. The storm started building up and the situation again became worse.

The narrator went to comfort the children. Jon asked innocently if they were ‘going to die’ but added that he did not mind dying as long as all the family members were together. This statement of the narrator’s child boosted his morale. He became resolute to fight the sea. Those were critical moments for all of them. Mary and the narrator sat together holding each other’s hands. They were scared and felt that their end was very near.

Question 3.
Describe the shifts in the narration of the events as indicated in the three sections of the text. Give a subtitle to each section.
Answer:
The text has been divided into three sections
Section 1:
Disaster Strikes This part describes the narrator’s desire to go sailing around the world, the preparations they made and the start of their journey and the coming storm. The family celebrates a wonderful Christmas. However, by the New Year the sea becomes rough and the next evening an enormous wave wrecks the ship and injures the narrator and his family members.

Section 2:
Survival Attempts and Searching for Land
This section describes the frantic efforts to save the boat from flooding and the display of heroism by all in the face of disaster. Near the end of this section, the efforts of the narrator to navigate to some nearby islands for safety is mentioned, which the narrator terms as ‘pinpricks in the vast ocean’.

Section 3:
Triumph of the Spirit This part describes the triumph of the spirit and seamanship of the narrator as they reach an island safely. Fittingly, the narrator is given the title of ‘The best daddy and the best captain’ by his son.

We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together Talking About The Text

Discuss the following questions with your partner.

Question 1.
What difference did you notice between the reaction of the children and the adults when faced with danger?
Answer:
There was not much difference between the reaction of the children and the adults when faced with danger. However, it was not on the expected lines, as the children were only 6 and 7 years old.

When the adults faced the danger, they were anxious and found ways of battling it. Later, when the motion of the boat brought more and more water in, both Mary and the narrator sat holding hands as they felt the end was very near.

On the other hand, the children showed great courage and did not get lose hope. When Sue hurt herself, she did not worry others about her injury. When the narrator went in to comfort them, Jon said, that they weren’t afraid to die if they could all be together. Sue also gave a card to the narrator that she made with the message of hope.

Thus, the children showed greater positivity than their parents. Hence, we can say that the children were more optimistic than the adults.

Question 2.
How does the story suggest that optimism helps to endure “the direst stress”?
Answer:
The voyagers did not even once lose their hope or show any weakness.

When the waves were high, the hopeful crew slowed the ship down, fastened everything with a mooring rope and went through the life-raft drill. When the storm struck their ship, the captain was almost killed and the ship was nearly a wreck. However, he held onto the wheel. Water was getting into the ship, but Larry and Herb kept pumping like madmen. This shows that they were not willing to give in to danger and were ready to fight it.

They didn’t lose hope. Even the little girl was so brave that she didn’t inform her parents about her injuries. The little boy, an epitome of courage, said that he was not afraid of dying. All this gave the captain a new hope and a will to fight.

The narrator checked and calculated that their only chance of survival was a 65 kilometre wide island in 150000 square kilometre of ocean. Still they set sail towards it. They were optimistic about finding the small island in the vast ocean. Finally, they set foot on land and survived. Their optimism paid off. All this shows that optimism was the key to their survival. It helped them endure the direst stress.

Question 3.
What lessons do we learn from such hazardous experiences when we are face-to-face with death?
Answer:
Such experiences teach us that courage, perseverance and tolerance can achieve what seem to be insurmountable odds. They teach us how to react in the most difficult situations. They make us learn to never lose hope and find reasons to stay positive and optimistic in the face of adversity. We learn to try our best to stay calm and composed. We also understand the importance of unity and teamwork and how to utilise our common sense, skill and efforts to avert any catastrophe. Further, we learn to be very careful and cautious in our actions when facing such hazardous experiences.

Question 4.
Why do you think people undertake such adventurous expeditions in spite of the risks involved?
Answer:
The world is full of all sorts of people. Most of them like to lead a risk-free and peaceful life, but there are a few among us who believe that if we want to live life to the fullest, we have to go beyond the day-to-day routine. They don’t hesitate even to undertake dangerous expeditions. If that were not the case, a lot of mysteries, places and events would not be known to the world.

Such expeditions are risky. But still people go on them without caring for even death or disaster. They are very daring. It takes much courage to perform such tasks. For them life is a battle which can be won only after fighting for it, rather than sitting relar.^U and carefree. The history of mankind shows that our progress owes much to such brave and fearless people.

We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together Thinking About Language

Question 1.
We have come across words like ‘gale’ and ‘storm’ in the account. Here are two more words for ‘storm’: typhoon, cyclone. How many words does your language have for ‘storm’?
Answer:
In Hindi, ‘storm’ is known as ‘aandhi’, ‘toofan’, ‘jhanjavat’ and ‘chakravat’.

Question 2.
Here are the terms for different kinds of vessels: yatch, boat, canoe, ship, steamer, schooner. Think of similar terms in your language.
Answer:
‘Naav’, ‘Nauka’, ‘Pot’, ‘Jahaaz’ and ‘Kishti’ are some of the words used in Hindi for the word ‘boat’.

Question 3.
‘Catamaran’ is a kind of a boat. Do you know which Indian language this word is derived from? Check the dictionary.
Answer:
The word ‘Catamaran’ is derived from the Tamil word ‘Kattumaram’, that means ‘tied wood’. Catamaran is a name applied to any craft having twin hulls. Originally, it denoted a form of sailing and paddling raft employed on the coasts of India.

Question 4.
” Have you heard any boatmen’s songs? What kind of emotions do these songs usually express?
Answer:
Yes, we have heard boatmen’s songs. They usually express love and nostalgia. They revolve around the longing to meet a loved one or express their love for the sea.

We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together Working With Words

Question 1.
The following words used in the text as ship terminology are also commonly used in another sense. In what contexts would you use the other meaning?

knot

stem

boom

hatch

anchor

Answer:
(a) knot
(i) in a rope / string / ribbon: a joint made by tying together two pieces of rope / string / ribbon etc.
e.g. Tying a knot while wearing a tie
(ii) (verb) way of tying two ropes / strings,
e.g. knot together two ropes
(iii) a tangled mass.
e.g. many ropes / strings jumbled together which . are hard to separate
(iv) a tight group of people.
e.g. A knot of people surrounded the politician.
(v) tight feeling or tenseness.
e.g. I could feel a knot of fear in my throat.
(vi) a lump in a tree trunk.
e.g. The old tree had many knots on its trunk.
(vii) a dark round patch in a plank of wood.
e.g. The wooden plank was of poor quality due to having too many knots.
(viii) lump in the outer surface of the body.
e.g. The old man had many knots on his face and back.

(b) Stern
(i) serious and usually disapproving.
e.g. The teacher gave the student a stem look.
(ii) strict.
e.g. The father gave a stem warning to his son.
(iii) serious and difficult.
e.g. The government faced stem opposition to the new law.

(c) boom
(i) (noun) sudden increase in trade and economic activity.
e.g. A boom occurred before 2008.
(ii) (noun) increase in popularity.
e.g. The boom in cricket tournaments is giving much money to players and sponsors.
(iii) (noun) a large increase in quantity.
e.g. A population boom occurred after the war ended.
(iv) (noun) a deep loud sound.
e.g. the boom of the cannons could be heard far away.
(v) (noun/adjective) long pole for a microphone / the microphone fixed on a long pole.
e.g. The boom mike could be stretched right across the stage.
(vi) (verb) making a loud sound.
e.g. A voice suddenly boomed out of the darkness.

(d) hatch
(i) (verb) to come out of an egg.
e.g. The chicken takes many days to hatch from an egg.
(ii) (verb) to create a plan.
e.g. The thieves took a long time to hatch a plan for robbing the bank.
(iii) (noun) opening in a wall between two rooms.
e.g. The kitchen had a serving hatch to the dining room

(e) anchor
(i) (noun) person or thing giving a feeling of safety,
e.g. The grandfather was the anchor of the family in all the crises they faced.
(ii) (noun) co-ordinator of a programme.
e.g. Satish is the anchor of this popular TV programme.
(iii) (verb) fix firmly in position.
e.g. The athlete anchored his foot on the starting block.
(iv) (verb) base on some subject.
e.g. Premchand’s stories are anchored in real life.

Question 2.
The following three compound words end in ship. What does each of them mean?

airship

flagship

lightship

Answer:
(a) airship A large aircraft without wings, filled in its balloon with a gas which is lighter than air. It is driven by an engine.

(b) flagship
(i) (noun) The main ship in a fleet which also carries the navy’s flag.
e.g. The flagship carried the tricolour.
(ii) (adjective) The most important product / service / programme that an organisation owns or produces.
e.g. The flagship programme of BBC TV is its . World News.

(c) lightship A small ship with a powerful fight that stays at a fixed point at sea to warn other ships to stay away because of some danger.

Question 3.
The following are the meanings listed in the dictionary against the phrase ‘take on’. In which meaning is it used in the third paragraph of the account:
take on sth: to begin to have a particular quality or appearance; to assume sth take sb on: to employ sb; to engage sb; to accept sb as one’s opponent in a game, contest or conflict
take sb/sth on: to decide to do sth; to allow sth/sb to enter e.g. a bus, plane or ship; to take sth/sb on board
Answer:
In the third paragraph, in the lines “…….. we took on two crewmen to help us tackle …….. roughest seas ……..”, the phrase ‘take on’ means ‘to employ’ or ‘to engage’.

We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together Things To Do

Question 1.
Given is a picture of a yacht. Label the parts of the yacht using the terms given in the box.

bow	cabin	rudder	cockpit
stem	boom	mainsail	mast

Answer:

Question 2.
Here is some information downloaded from the Internet on lie Amsterdam. You can view images of the isle if you go online.

Location	South Indian Ocean, between southernmost parts of Australia and South Africa
Latitude and longitude	37 92 S, 77 67 E
Sovereignty	France
Political status notes	Part of French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Population	35
Census notes Land area in square kilometres	Meteorological station staff 86

Answer:

Question 3.
Locate Ile Amsterdam on the world map.
Answer:

We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together Short Questions and Answers (2 Marks)

Question 1.
Where did the narrator want to go? Why?
Answer:
The narrator and his family loved adventures. The narrator wanted to duplicate the ‘round-the-world’ voyage made by the famous explorer Captain James Cook 200 years ago. So, he set sail in Wavewalker, a boat specially designed and made for the purpose. Perhaps the dangers and adventure involved in the voyage and their desire to accomplish something unique beckoned them to undertake the journey.

Question 2.
What preparations did the narrator and his wife make for their round-the-world sea voyage?
Answer:
The narrator and his wife wanted to ‘duplicate’ the round-the-world voyage made 200 years ago by Captain James Cook. They had been making formidable preparations for the last 16 years. First of all they got a boat especially designed and professionally built for this purpose. They tested it for months in the roughest weather. They spent all their leisure time in strengthening their seafaring skills in British waters. They were both mentally and physically prepared to undertake their exceptionally long and challenging sea voyage.

Question 3.
Describe the boat Wavewalker.
Answer:
The narrator wanted to duplicate the round-the-world voyage made by Captain James Cook 200 years ago. In order to undertake this journey they got a boat built professionally. The boat, named Wavewalker, was a 23 metre, 30 ton wooden-hulled sailboat. They had spent months fitting it out and testing it in the roughest weather they could find.

Question 4.
Why did they take on two crewmen with them at Cape Town?
Answer:
Before heading East from Cape Town, they took on two crewmen who were experienced seamen. They were Larry Vigil, an American and Herb Seigler, a Swiss. The narrator took this step because he knew that they would require help to tackle one of the world’s roughest seas – the southern Indian Ocean.

Question 5.
What troubles did they face after completing the first leg of their journey?
Answer:
The first leg of their journey passed pleasantly as they sailed down the West Coast of Africa to Cape Town. But the trouble started when they left Cape Town.

On the second day out of Cape Town, they began to encounter strong gales. Gales didn’t worry the narrator but the size of the waves was alarming. They rose as high as the main mast. The howling of the wind and the spray was painful to the ears.

Question 6.
How did the voyagers celebrate their Christmas and where?
Answer:
On Christmas Day, the voyagers were 3500 kms East of Cape Town in the southern Indian Ocean. Though the sea was rough, they enjoyed a wonderful holiday. They celebrated Christmas singing carols complete with a Christmas tree with them. They expected the weather to improve but it didn’t.

Question 7.
How was the weather on the morning of 2nd January?
Answer:
On New Year’s Day, the weather saw no improvement and was bad. On 2nd January, it got even worse. The waves were gigantic. They were sailing with only a small storm jib but still were going pretty fast. As the ship rose to the top of each wave they could see the endless, enormous sea rolling towards them. The wind seemed to be howling.

Question 8.
What attempts did the narrator make to protect himself and his family from the huge waves?
Answer:
The waves were gigantic on 2nd January. In order to protect themselves, they decided to slow down the boat. They dropped the storm jib and lashed a heavy mooring rope in a loop across the stem. Then they double-lashed everything, went through their life-raft drill, attached lifelines, donned oilskins and life jackets and prepared themselves for the worst case scenario.

Question 9.
What were the first indications of the ‘impending disaster’that ultimately struck them on January 2?
Answer:
The first indication of the impending disaster came at about 6 pm on January 2. An ominous silence prevailed all around. The wind dropped. The sky immediately grew dark. Then came a growing roar. A huge vertical wave, almost twice the height of the other waves, came roaring towards the ship. These were the indications of the coming disaster.

Question 10.
What happened after the ‘ominous silence’?
Answer:
The ominous silence was the first indication of impending disaster. The wind dropped and the sky immediately grew dark. The narrator saw what he thought as an enormous cloud coming towards the ship. With horror he realised that it was not a cloud but a wave like no other he had ever seen. It was almost twice the height of other waves.

The wave hit the boat and wrecked it completely. Water gushed from all sides and the boat started filling with water.

Question 11.
What was the result of the ‘tremendous explosion’?
Answer:
The gigantic wave hit the boat and a tremendous explosion shook the deck. A torrent of green and white water broke over the ship.

The narrator’s head smashed against the wheel and he was flung overboard. He was almost dead and the whole ship was reduced to a wreck.

Others were also hurt in the process. Then the frantic efforts to save the boat and everybody’s life began.

Question 12.
How did the narrator accept his ‘approaching death’ and why was he still peaceful?
Answer:
The narrator saw a torrent of green and white water breaking over the ship. His head had smashed into the wheel. He felt himself flying overboard and sinking below the waves.

He was losing consciousness. He accepted his approaching death without murmuring. He felt quite peaceful even when death was approaching and Wavewalker was near capsizing.

Question 13.
How did the narrator hurt himself on January 2?
Answer:
The narrator hurt himself very badly on January 2 when a tremendously high wave hit their boat and he was initially thrown overboard before being tossed back by the wave to hit the boom of the boat. Subsequent waves tossed him around the deck like a rag doll, cracking his left ribs and breaking his teeth.

Question 14.
“I had no time to worry about bumped heads”, says the narrator. What problem do you think deserved his immediate attention?
Answer:
The problem that deserved immediate attention was the repair of the starboard side, which had bashed open; with every wave, it was letting water enter the boat. If he did not make some repairs, the boat would have surely sunk and they would have drowned.

Question 15.
What are Mayday calls? Why was the ship getting no replies to its Mayday calls?
Answer:
Mayday calls are distress signals sent through the radio by ships facing trouble in the sea. They are made to get help from other ships passing nearby.

The boat Wavewalker was not getting replies to its Mayday calls because the boat had reached a remote part of the sea where other ships did not go.

Question 16.
What did Sue say when she was asked by her father about why she had not complained about her grave injuries?
Answer:
Sue had been injured badly when the wave had hit the ship. Her head had swollen alarmingly. She had two black eyes and she had also showed to her parents a deep cut on her arm. When asked why she had not complained about her injuries earlier, she replied that she had not wanted to worry her parents when they were trying to save them all.

Question 17.
“I didn’t want to worry you when you were trying to save us all.” What does this show about the speaker?
Answer:
This shows that she was very courageous. The speaker of these lines is the little girl, Sue. She is just 7 years old. After the gigantic wave hit the ship, she was also hurt. Her head was swollen when the narrator saw her in the cabin. However, she never mentioned the deep cut in her arm because she didn’t want her father to worry about her when he was trying to save everybody else.

Question 18.
What happened on the morning of 3rd January?
Answer:
By the morning of 3rd January, they had managed to pump out the water out of the boat to a reasonable level and the situation was under control but, they suspected a huge leak somewhere and found that nearly all the boat’s main rib frames were damaged down to its bottom. The narrator knew that Wavewalker will not be able to hold together long enough to reach Australia. So the narrator made some calculations and found two small islands a few hundred kilometres to the East. They hoped to reach one of them.

Question 19.
What were the chances of the voyagers’ survival after the big wave hit them?
Answer:
The chances of the survival of the Wavewalker’s crew were very bleak. They somehow survived for 15 hours after the wave hit the boat. But the
narrator knew that the Wavewalker was not going to hold on much longer. He checked his charts and calculated that there were two small islands a few hundred kilometres to the East. Their only hope of survival was to reach these islands in the vast ocean.

Question 20.
Why did the narrator and his wife Mary feel that ‘the end was very near’? What situation made them feel so?
Answer:
The situation which made them feel that “the end was very near” that at 4 PM on January 4, black clouds began building up behind their boat, within an hour the wind increased to 40 knots and the waves were getting higher. The weather continued to deteriorate throughout the night, and by dawn on January 5, the motion of the boat brought more and more water in through the broken planks. Thus, they felt that the boat would sink and they would all die.

Question 21.
How and when did Wavewalker ride out the storm? How did the narrator feel at that time?
Answer:
The Wavewalker rode out the storm on the morning of January 6 when the wind eased. He was able to calculate the boat’s position using the sextant and accordingly he asked Larry to steer the boat towards lie Amsterdam, as he was very tired. The narrator felt that they had to survive, seeing the optimism of his two children. But he was still having doubts about it and so felt heavy-hearted. But his calculations proved correct and they reached lie Amsterdam by evening.

Question 22.
Justify the title of the story: “We’re Not Afraid to Die…”
Answer:
“We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together” is the story of rare courage and perseverance that was shown by the narrator, his crewmen, his wife and children. Everybody confronted the disaster with patience, courage and determination. Even the children showed courage. They did not give up hope even till the last moment. The narrator made all possible attempts to save their lives. Like his father, Jon reacted very bravely that they were not afraid to die, but it would be better if they died together. Hence, the title is apt and logically justified.

Question 23.
Why did Jonathan call the narrator, the best daddy and best captain in the world?
Answer:
Jonathan called the narrator the best daddy and the best captain in the world because they had reached the island lie Amsterdam. His son was expressing his relief and gratitude towards his father due to the narrator’s devotion to save them all from death as well as his seafaring skills. He was the “best daddy” because his devotion to them helped them survive the storm with his efforts to keep the boat afloat. He was the “best captain” because he had correctly enabled them to steer to the island so that they survived.

Question 24.
Why did the narrator call lie Amsterdam the most beautiful island in the world?
Answer:
lie Amsterdam was the only hope of survival for the voyagers and so, when they reached there, it looked the most beautiful island in the world to the narrator. He was successful in saving his family and crewmen by reaching it. He had won the fight for survival. If they had not reached the island, they surely would have sunk.

Question 25.
Describe lie Amsterdam. How did its inhabitants behave with the newcomers?
Answer:
lie Amsterdam was a French scientific base. It was ‘a bleak piece of volcanic rock’. It had little vegetation but still it appeared to be ‘the most beautiful island in the world’. The boat anchored offshore for the night. The next morning all 28 inhabitants of the island cheered them and helped them ashore.

Question 26.
What did the narrator think of on landing at He Amsterdam? Why?
Answer:
On landing at lie Amsterdam, the narrator’s thoughts were fuH of Larry and Herb, his crew members who remained cheerful and optimistic throughout the hardships they had faced. He thought of his wife also who stayed at the wheel for aH those crucial hours. He also thought of his daughter, who had been so brave aU through the ordeaL and had not bothered about her head injury.

We’re Not Afraid to Die…if We Can All Be Together Long Questions and Answers (6 Marks)

Question 1.
Highlight the tremendous courage and forbearance shown by the two children during the struggle to keep the boat from sinking. What values do you learn from them?
Answer:
The two children, Suzanne and Jonathan, showed tremendous courage and forbearance during the epic struggle put up by their parents and the crewmen to keep the boat from sinking. Sue had been injured badly when the big wave hit the boat. Her head had swollen alarmingly and both her eyes were hind. She also had a deep cut on her arm. But she did not complain about her injuries as she did not want to worry her parents when they were trying to save them aU. When the author went to comfort the children, his son Jonathan, asked him if they were going to die. When he was assured that they would aU survive, he told his father that they were not afraid of dying if they could aU be together. Moreover, Sue had patience and power enough to even draw the caricatures of her parents with a message of hope and gratitude to her parents. The children, thus, exhibit extraordinary patience, courage and tolerance.

Question 2.
“We’re Not Afraid to Die” is a saga of patience and bravery. Comment.
Answer:
The story ‘We’re Not Afraid to Die’ is a story of the rare courage and perseverance of the narrator’s family. The narrator’s undertaking to replicate Captain James Cook’s voyage was a challenging task, as they had to sail in some of the roughest seas. However, the voyagers kept their spirits high and made aH efforts to save the boat and their lives. Even in the worst of circumstances, the captain did not give up hope and tried his best to protect the ship from flooding. AU the dangers and disasters were confronted with patience, courage and determination.
Even the children showed exemplary courage. They were not afraid to die if they were all together. The two crewmen continuously pumped out water and never complained. They trusted their captain and
worked as a team. Luckily the voyagers were able to come out of a near death experience due to their never-say-die attitude. Thus, the story proves to be a saga of patience and bravery.

Question 3.
The hurdles of life can be challenged if we have confidence to make optimum use of our potential. Elaborate.
Answer:
The statement holds true in the light of the story ‘We’re Not Afraid to Die…….’. The narrator along with his wife, children, and two crewmen overcame the worst situations and defeated death by fighting the adverse situations which cropped up during their voyage. When the big wave hit the boat, it was severely damaged and the narrator was badly injured. However, he did not pay attention to it and held on to the wheel. Both Larry and Herb kept pumping out water and did not stop.

Moreover, when the handpumps stopped working and the electric pump short-circuited, he did not lose confidence and used electric pump to drive out water from the boat. Even the children had confidence in their father and they hoped to survive. They also : showed great courage. Jon said that they were not afraid to die if they are all together. Sue made a card to thank her parents. It was a great example of unity and trust that they had on each other,

Thus, it can be concluded that by staying optimistic like the children and making the best use of your potential like the narrator, one can fight adversities and be a winner.

Question 4.
The reaction of the crew and children gives us an insight into the human mind and how it can help us to survive any disaster. Discuss.
Answer:
The reaction of the crew and children gives us an insight into the human mind. The crew reacted to the danger with a fighting spirit and optimism. Their undaunted efforts helped them to survive the disaster. On the other hand, the children showed amazing maturity and resilience in the face of disaster. They remained strong and composed.

Despite serious injuries, both the children displayed courage and patience.

Adopting a courageous attitude in times of difficulties motivates one to face the upheavals of life courageously. It is rightly said “Cowards die many times before their death; the valiant face death only once”, and when the valiant do die, they die a heroes’ death. The story inspires us to maintain our calm in a crisis. Stress and panic only worsen the situation. If we accept difficulties as a way of life and face them with a brave front, they soon fade away. By being positive and not losing faith in ourselves can help us to survive any disaster.

Maestro with a Mission Question and Answers

A Red Red Rose Summary in English

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Prose

• The Portrait of a Lady Question Answer
• We’re Not Afraid to Die… If We Can All Be Together Question Answer
• Discovering Tut: The Saga Continues Question Answer
• Landscape of the Soul Question Answer
• The Ailing Planet: the Green Movement’s Role Question Answer
• The Browning Version Question Answer
• The Adventure Question Answer
• Silk Road Question Answer

Class 11 English Chapter 8 Poem NCERT Solutions Father To Son Free PDF Download

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

Father To Son Think it Out
Question 1.
Does the poem talk of an exclusively personal experience or is it fairly universal?
Answer:
The poem ‘Father to Son’ describes the relationship between a father and son. However, its appeal is fairly universal. What happens in the poem, happens to most, fathers and sons. It is very common in every family all over the world. The generation gap has remained as it is. Moreover, the structure of society is such that a father expects his son to follow his wishes, leading to individuality clashes. Through one personal experience, the poet wants to throw light on a common and universal problem i.e. generation gap.

Question 2.
How is the father’s helplessness brought out in the poem?
Answer:
In the poem both the father and the son are poles apart. Though both of them have lived under the same roof for years, still the father is unhappy and can’t understand his own child. He wants to build up a relationship with his son, but there is a generation gap between them; they lack of understanding and no communication takes place between the father and the son. The father feels helpless and thinks that giving birth to such a son is like sowing a seed in land that was not his own. He knows nothing about his son’s desires and likes. He wishes his prodigal son would come back home.

Question 3.
Identify the phrases and lines that indicate distance between father and son.
Answer:
The following phrases and lines bring out the deep differences that separate both of them
(i) I do not understand this child
(ii) I know nothing of him
(iii) We speak like strangers
(iv) What he loves I cannot share
(v) Silence surrounds us
(vi) There’s no sign of understanding in the air
(vii) He speaks: I cannot understand

Question 4.
Does the poem have a consistent rhyme scheme?
Answer:
No, the.poem doesn’t follow a consistent rhyme scheme.
The poem is divided into four stanzas of six lines each.
The first three stanzas follow abb ab a scheme. The fourth stanza has abb cb a scheme.

Father To Son Extract based Questions and Answers (2 Marks)

I. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
I do not understand this child
Though we have lived together now
In the same house for years. I know
Nothing of him, so try to build
Up a relationship from how
He was when small.
Question 1.
Who are T and ‘this child’ in the above lines?
(a) ‘I’ is the mother and ‘this child’ is the mother’s son
(b) T is the brother and ‘this child’ is his younger brother
(c) ‘I’ is the father and ‘this child’ is his son
(d) ‘I’ is the uncle and ‘this child’ is his nephew
Answer:
(c) ‘I’ is the father and ‘this child’ is his son

Question 2.
What does the speaker complain about?
(a) The speaker complains that he knows nothing about his son
(b) The speaker complains that he knows a few bad things about his son
(c) The speaker complains that his son does not take care of him
(d) The speaker complains that his son is a drunkard
Answer:
(a) The speaker complains that he knows nothing about his son

Question 3.
What does the speaker want?
(a) The speaker wants to end his relationship with his son
(b) The speaker wants to make his son realise his mistakes ‘
(c) The speaker wants to live with his son
(d) The speaker wants to start a new relationship with his son
Answer:
(d) The speaker wants to start a new relationship with his son

II. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
Yet have I killed
The seed I spent or sown it where
The land is his and none of mine?
We speak like strangers, there’s no sign
Of understanding in the air.
This child is built to my design
Yet what he loves I cannot share.
Question 1.
Why does the father feel that the seed was sown in the land that was not his?
(a) Because the son does not share any of the physical features of his father
(b) Because the son shares the physical features of his father
(c) Because the son does not share any of the behavioural characteristics of his father
(d) Because the son shares some of the behavioural characteristics of his father
Answer:
(c) Because the son does not share any of the behavioural characteristics of his father

Question 2.
What is wrong between father and son?
(a) Father and son do no| resemble each other
(b) Father and son have a dispute related to their property
(c) Father likes his son but the son likes his mother
(d) Father and son behave like strangers and do not share any common likes or dislikes
Answer:
(d) Father and son behave like strangers and do not share any common likes or dislikes

Question 3.
“Built to my design” means
(a) that his son does not look like him
(b) that his son looks like him as far as physical features are concerned
(c) that his son wears the same brand of clothes that he does
(d) that his son wears clothes designed by him
Answer:
(b) that his son looks like him as far as physical features are concerned

III. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
Silence surrounds us. I would have
Him prodigal, returning to
His father’s house, the home he knew,
Rather than see him make and move.
His world. I would forgive him too,
Shaping from sorrow a new love.
Question 1.
What does ‘silence surrounds us’ mean here?
(a) It means the silence of the night .
(b) It means the silence in the house due to the switching off electrical appliances
(c) It means the silence in the house due to the demise of a loved one
(d) It means the silence due to no conversation happening between the father and the son
Answer:
(d) It means the silence due to no conversation happening between the father and the son

Question 2.
What does T want?
(a) ‘I’ wants his son to study hard
(b) T wants his son to not follow his wishes
(c) T wants his son to be realistic
(d) T wants his son to reciprocate forgiveness and mend the relationship
Answer:
(d) T wants his son to reciprocate forgiveness and mend the relationship

Question 3.
Find a word from the extract which means a person who spends money or uses resources freely and recklessly.
(a) Returning
(b) Prodigal
(c) Prodigy
(d) Shaping
Answer:
(b) Prodigal

IV. Read the extract given below and answer any two of the questions that follow.
Father and son, we both must live
On the same globe and the same land,
He speaks: I cannot understand
Myself, why anger grows from grief.
We each put out on empty hand,
Longing for something to forgive.
Question 1.
Who are ‘we’ in the extract?
(a) The father and his two sons
(b) The father and his friend’s son
(c) The father and his son
(d) The uncle and his son
Answer:
(c) The father and his son

Question 2.
Why must father and son live on the same globe and the same land?
(a) To take care of each other
(b) To not let others to take disadvantage of them staying apart
(c) To make their life easy
(d) To rebuild their relationship
Answer:
(d) To rebuild their relationship

Question 3.
What does ‘empty hand’ signify?
(a) It signifies the poverty of the father
(b) It signifies the failure of the father and the son to understand each other
(c) It signifies the poverty of the son
(d) It signifies the bad behaviour of the son
Answer:
(b) It signifies the failure of the father and the son to understand each other

Father To Son Short Questions and Answers (2 Marks)

Question 1.
Why doesn’t the father know anything about his son though they have lived in the same house?
Answer:
The father-son relationship is actually non-functional. The father doesn’t understand the aspirations, longings arid cravings of the son. They do not communicate with each other and behave like strangers. Therefore, the father doesn’t know anything about his son.

Question 2.
Is the father responsible for the present situation? What are your views?
Answer:
Yes, I think the father is responsible for the present situation. We do not get to hear the son’s version about his relationship with the father here. But the father is guilty of allowing continued silence or non-communication between them and also not understanding the son’s aspirations and feelings.

Question 3.
Father and the son behave like strangers to each other. What can be the possible reason with for this?
Answer:
They both act and behave like strangers due to lack of understanding with each other. A growing son has his own ambitions and aspirations. Elders must try to act like friends rather than command their children to behave according to their orders.

Question 4.
What does the poet mean by ‘Silence surrounds us?’
Answer:
The father feels helpless as he has no dialogue with his son. They don’t understand each other and they are living like strangers to each other in spite of their living under the same roof for years. Their outlook and temperament are so different that they remain separated from each other. They have a communication gap along with the generation gap, which causes the silence.

Question 5.
How does the father feel when his relationship with his son comes under strain?
Answer:
Father feels very helpless at this situation when both father and son do not understand each other. It saddens him to understand that he has never tried to understand his son’s perspective and his son has distanced himself from him from long.

Question 6.
What is the father’s attitude towards his son in the third stanza?
Answer:
The father wants to rectify the situation in the third stanza. The father wants his son return to the home that he has left. The father is willing to forgive his son and restart their relationship.

Question 7.
What does the father wish for?
Answer:
The father is unhappy and helpless. He wants to maintain a healthy relationship with his son. The father wants that his prodigal son may return to his home and start living under the same roof with him.
He doesn’t want that he should create and live in a world of his own.

Question 8.
The father is ready to have his prodigal son return. What inference can you draw from this?
Answer:
Prodigal means wastefully extravagant. Here the reference is to the story in the Bible in which a father gives his inheritance to his sons. The younger brother leaves, wastes his fortune and returns to his father’s home. Still the father is ready to take him back and forgive him. In the poem, the father also wants to forgive him so that they live peacefully together again.

Question 9.
The root cause of the generation gap presented in the poem lies in the fact that it is only the father talking to his son rather than hearing or understanding him. Explain.
Answer:
One of the reasons of the generation gap is absence of understanding and communication. Here in this poem we hear only the father’s point of view. We do not hear anything from the son’s side. The root cause of the generation gap has been lack of sharing of interests or not paying attention to the childs, emotional needs, when he is growing up. The child should be allowed to express his opinions freely and adults should not behave like dictators.

Question 10.
What do the words ‘an empty hand’ signify?
Answer:
The words ‘empty hand’ signify that both the father arid the son want to forgive each other and extend a hand of friendship to each other, but neither of them is willing to be the first one to do so. This means that although they are longing to forgive each other, their egos are coming in the way so that none of them wants to be the first one to do so.

Father To Son Long Questions and Answers (6 Marks)

Question 1.
The poem talks about the universal problem of generation gap. Why does such a situation exist? How can someone avoid such confrontations? Express your views in 120-150 words.
Answer:
Generation gap is a psychological and emotional gap between parents or elder people and the younger ones. This creates misunderstanding and lack of attachment between parents and children. The success of parenting lies in how effectively they avoid the generation gap or ignore differences with their children.

Generation gap is the result of the fast paced development of society. In earlier times, two or three generations lived in the same lifestyle and environment, as development was slow. Today, parents do not even know many of the modem technologies and equipment children use.

Being up-to-date is the only way to cope .with the generation gap. Moreover, generation gap occurs when there are differences of opinion. One should be flexible in approach and must try to understand the reason of a particular behaviour.

Question 2.
In the fast moving materialistic world, parents are busy in earning while their children grow without them giving enough time to them. This is a major factor in creating a generation gap. There should be a balancing act on the part of parents. Discuss.
Answer:
In today’s materialistic world parents, specially fathers, are busy with their careers, finding very little time for their children.

Childhood is a tender age and the child needs his/ her parents at every stage of his growing up. In the pursuit of money or career, children are left at the mercy of caretakers or maids who may provide or fulfil child’s basic need but their emotional and intellectual needs are left unfulfilled. Bonding between parents and children keeps on diminishing until it reaches an alarming level.

Parents need to understand that between career and children, a balancing act has to be practised. Children need their parents to guide them, to share their likes and dislikes, to spend quality time with them.

No parent should allow such a situation where they may not understand their children or there may be no communication at all between them. Emotional bonding is a must for a family to stay together.

Gurajada – The Legend Question and Answers

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Poem

•  A Photograph Question Answer
• The Laburnum Top Question Answer
• The Voice of the Rain Question Answer
• Childhood Question Answer
• Father to Son Question Answer

Class 11 English Chapter 1 NCERT Solutions The Portrait of a Lady Free PDF Download

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

Class 11 English Chapter 1 Question 1.
the thought was almost revolting
Answer:
The thought that the author’s grandmother was once young and pretty raises a doubt in the mind of the author. He finds it too hard to believe, as he had always seen her in the same old and wrinkled physical condition for the last twenty years.

Question 2.
an expanse of pure white serenity
Answer:
It refers to the calm, peaceful and serene character and conduct of the author’s grandmother. She is compared to the peaceful winter landscape in the mountains. She was always attired in spotless white clothes and had silver hair. She, thus, presented a picture of pure white serenity.

Question 3.
a turning-point
Answer:
It refers to the point where the author’s relationship with his grandmother changes drastically after they move to the city-house. The grandmother is unable to accompany the author to school as he travels by motor bus. Neither is she able to help him in his lessons. Although they share the same room, a sort of distancing occurred in the relationship.

Question 4.
accepted her seclusion with resignation
Answer:
This shows the author’s grandmother’s passive submission to her secluded life after she gradually loses touch with her grandson. When the author was given a room of his own, the common link of friendship between the two was snapped. However, the grandmother accepted her fate without complaint. She rarely talked to anyone in the house and was busy spinning the wheel and reciting her prayers. Even when she relaxed, it was to feed the sparrows.

Question 5.
a veritable bedlam of chirpings
Answer:
It refers to the noise, confusion and chaos caused by the chirping of the sparrows that scattered and perched around the author’s grandmother. The grandmother sat in the verandah and broke the bread into little bits and threw it to the sparrows. Hundreds of sparrows collected around her and created a noise by their continuous chirping.

Question 6.
frivolous rebukes
Answer:
It refers to the casual and light-hearted rebukes of the grandmother to the sparrows. That day she realised that she would die and so was having some fun with the sparrows by scolding them for small mistakes. The grandmother had developed a special bond with the sparrows. The sparrows came in huge numbers and the grandmother fed them with little bits of bread. Sometimes she also used to scold them. The sparrows perched on her legs, shoulders and even sat on her head but she smiled and never shooed them away.

Question 7.
the sagging skins of the dilapidated drum
Answer:
It points to the shabby and deteriorated condition of the drum. The grandmother celebrated the homecoming of the author by collecting the women of the neighbourhood and getting an old drum. For several hours she beat the worn out drum and sang the songs related to the homecoming of warriors.

The Portrait of a Lady Understanding The Text

Question 1.
Mention the three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.
Answer:
The first phase of the author’s relationship with his grandmother was when the author’s parents went to live in the city and left him with his grandmother. She took utmost care of him right from waking him up in the morning to getting him ready for school. They were always together and enjoyed an easy companionship.

The second phase was when the author’s parents asked them to come to the city. This was the time when Khushwant Singh’s relationship with his grandmother changed. The author went to an English school. She could no longer accompany him nor could she help him in his studies. She continued getting him ready for school and asking him about his studies, as they shared the same room. However, she rarely talked to him after learning that he was learning music at school. Slowly the friendship between them weakened.

The third phase came when the common link of friendship, the room they shared, snapped when the author moved to the University and was given a room of his own. His grandmother accepted her seclusion with resignation.

Question 2.
Mention three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school.
Answer:
The author’s grandmother -was disturbed -when he started going to the city school because
(i) She could not go with him to leave him to school, as he went in the school bus. This broke her connection with the author and disturbed her.
(ii) In the English school, she could not help him with his lessons in English and Science because she neither knew English nor Science. Thus she had no faith in what was being taught there, and thus she was disturbed.
(iii) She was unhappy that there was no teaching about God and the scriptures in the school. Instead, music was being taught which, to her, had indecent associations. This disturbed her the most.

Question 3.
Mention three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up.
Answer:
The three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up were

1. She now spent most of her time at her spinning wheel, spinning thread.
2. While spinning, she continued reciting her prayers, rarely leaving her spinning to talk to anyone.
3. During the afternoons she relaxed for a while to feed the sparrows. While she sat in the verandah breaking the bread into little bits, hundreds of little birds collected round her. It used to be the happiest half-hour of the day for her.

Question 4.
Mention the odd way in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died.
Answer:
Just before the day the grandmother died, a change came over her. She did not pray. She collected the women of the neighbourhood, took an old drum and started singing. Next, morning, she was taken ill due to overstraining. The doctor said it was a mild fever and will go away, but the grandmother thought differently.
She told everyone that her end was near and she would spend the last few living moments in prayer and would not waste her time in talking to anyone. She lay peacefully in bed praying and before anyone could suspect, her lips stopped moving. She passed away peacefully.

Question 5.
Mention the way in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died.
Answer:
In the evening, when the author and his family members went to grandmother’s room to take her for the last rites, they saw thousands of sparrows sitting scattered on the floor near her. They were silent. There was no chirping. The author’s mother offered them some bread but the sparrows took no notice. After the grandmother’s body was taken away, the sparrows flew away quietly. Thus, the sparrows mourned her death and paid their silent tribute to the grandmother in a unique manner.

The Portrait of a Lady Talking About The Text

Question 1.
The author’s grandmother was a religious person. What are the different ways in which we come to know this?
Answer:
The author’s grandmother was a truly religious lady. She hobbled about the house in her spotless white clothes, always counting the beads of her rosary and reciting prayers. When the author was in the village with her, he would always find her saying morning prayers while she bathed him and dressed him in the hope that her grandson would learn them by heart. The grandmother would always go to the village school with her grandson because the school was attached to the temple.

While the children were taught, the grandmother would sit inside the temple and read scriptures.

When they moved to the city and the author got busy in his education, she started devoting her time to prayers. He always found her lips moving in silent prayer and her hands counting the beads of her rosary. She was doing the same when she went to receive him at the station when he came back from studying abroad. The last moments of her life were spent in praying rather than talking to her family members. All these instances show that the grandmother was a religious person.

Question 2.
Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for each other change?
Answer:
Changing circumstances affected the relationship between the author and his grandmother. In the village, the author and his grandmother spent most of their time together. She used to get him ready for school, accompany him to the school and help him in his studies. But moving to the city proved to be a turning point in their friendship. They still shared the same room but the grandmother could no longer accompany him to school or help him in his studies. The grandmother did not like the kind of education being given to the author at the English school. She became disturbed and rarely talked. She reconciled herself with spinning and feeding the sparrows.

The gap in their friendship was further widened when the author went to the University and was given a room of his own. She accepted her loneliness and gave more time to praying.

However, their feelings for each other never changed. The author still respected her and she kept on loving her grandson. She went to the station to see him off when he was going abroad for higher studies. Further, when he returned from abroad after five years, she celebrated his homecoming by singing songs and beating the drum.

Question 3.
Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character? If yes, give instances to show this.
Answer:
Yes, it is true that the author’s grandmother was a very strong personality. She was a highly religious . and conservative lady who hated modern views and ways. She had very strong personal likes and dislikes. Being a religious lady and a widow, she could be seen hobbling about the house in a spotless white dress, counting and reciting the beads of her rosary.

She had certain rigid ideas about life. She liked the village school as it was attached to the temple and children were taught prayers and about God. She hated the English school in the city for various reasons. When she came to know about the music lessons there, she rarely talked to the author. Moreover, when the author was leaving for abroad, she showed no emotion and was not even sentimental.

She was a strong and determined character, as she led her own kind of life and never compromised with her principles. She loved the narrator deeply but never showed her sentiments or emotions.

Even when she knew that she was dying, her strength of character did not allow her to show any sorrow or regret. All this shows that she was strong in character.

Question 4.
Have you known someone like the author’s grandmother? Do you feel the same sense of loss with regard to someone whom you have loved and lost?
Answer:
Yes, I have known someone like the author’s grandmother. She was none other than my own grandmother. She was old, but not as old as the author’s grandmother. Neither- did she wear white. She was also fat and hobbled around the house. But she had a very strong voice. She was very religious and fasted a lot.
I was very close to her and we shared a very strong bond. Since the time I can remember, I had seen her taking care of my small needs. She loved me unconditionally.

She was one of my closest friends and we also had secrets. If someone scolded me, I would run straight to her and she would hug me. The sweetest gesture of her was hiding foodstuffs from others so that I could eat them.

After she died, her death left a void in my life which I have been unable to fill. Even while writing about her, I have tears in my eyes. I miss her presence a lot. I will always cherish the moments that I shared with her.

The Portrait of a Lady Thinking About Language

Question 1.
Which language do you think the author and his grandmother used while talking to each other?
Answer:
The author and his grandmother used to live in a village and belonged to a Punjabi Sikh family. Therefore, they must have used their mother tongue, Punjabi, to converse with each other.

Question 2.
Which language do you use to talk to elderly relatives in your family?
Answer:
My elderly relatives are well versed in English and Hindi. I feel at home greeting them in English but like to converse with them freely in Hindi.

Question 3.
How would you say ‘a dilapidated drum’ in your language?
Answer:
The expression used in our language for a ‘dilapidated drum’ is ‘phata-purana dhol.’

Question 4.
Can you think of a song or a poem in your language that talks of homecoming?
Answer:
There are many folk songs and poems singing of the exploits of brave warriors. All these talk of their homecoming after winning a battle.

The Portrait of a Lady Working With Words

I. Notice the following uses of the word ‘tell’ in the text

1. Her fingers were busy telling the beads of her rosary.
2. I would tell her English words and little things of Western Science and learning.
3. At her age one could never tell.
4. She told us that her end was near.

Given below are four different senses of the word ‘tell’. Match the meanings to the uses listed above.

1. make something known to someone in spoken or written words
2. count while reciting
3. be sure
4. give information to somebody

II. Notice the different senses of the word ‘take’.
1. to take to something: to begin to do something as a habit
2. to take ill: to suddenly become ill

Locate these phrases in the text and notice the way they are used.

III. The word ‘hobble’ means to walk with difficulty because the legs and feet are in bad condition.

Tick the words in the box below that also refer to a manner of walking.

Answers
I. 1. Her fingers were busy telling the beads of her rosary — count while reciting
2. I would tell her English words and little things of Western Science and learning — give information to somebody
3. At her age one could never tell — be sure
4. She told us that her end was near — make something known to someone in spoken or written words

II. The instances where these phrases have been used in the story are given below
1. “She took to feeding sparrows in the courtyard of our city house” — The grandmother began to feed the sparrows as a habit when they shifted to the city.
2. “The next morning she was taken ill” — It refers to the author’s grandmother’s sudden illness.

III. The words that also refer to a manner of walking are shuffle stride. waddle swagger trudge slog

haggle	shuffle	stride	ride	waddle
wriggle	paddle	swagger	trudge	slog

The Portrait of a Lady Thing To Do

Talk with your family members about elderly people who you have been intimately connected with and who are not there with you now. Write a short description of someone you liked a lot.
Answer:

My Grandmother

I lost my grandmother when I was twelve, but I still recollect her. She loved me affectionately and I liked her a great deal. She was quite old then, but she could move about with ease. I was her constant companion during her visits to temple, market, garden or to the houses of friends and relatives. Other members of the family would taunt me as granny’s watch dog. She was my shield. I ran to her arms when my father or mother would get angry or thrash me. I miss the bedtime stories she used to tell me. Those highly fanciful stories were full of deeds of bravery or adventure and end on a note a success. They inspired me to do noble deeds in fife. She was equally careful about my health and studies. She would make me drink milk and eat fruit to maintain a sound physique. She was good at drawing and helped me in writing alphabets. She also gave ready-made solutions to all my problems. She would bless me whenever I got success in any field—studies, sports, song, poetic recitation, poster making or fancy dress competition. Sometimes I miss her a lot.

The Portrait of a Lady Short Questions and Answers (2 Marks)

Question 1.
Why was it hard for the author to believe that his grandmother was once young and pretty?
Answer:
The author had always seen his grandmother as a very old woman. For the past twenty years he had seen her as an old lady with white hair and countless lines running across her face. Because his first impression about his grandmother was one of being aged, it was hard for the author to believe that his grandmother was once young and pretty.

Question 2.
How does the author describe his grandfather?
Answer:
The portrait of Khushwant Singh’s grandfather was hung above the mantelpiece. He wore a big turban and loose-fitting clothes. His long white beard covered the major part of his chest. He looked a hundred years old. To the author, he did not look the sort of person who would have a wife or children; he looked as if he could only have lots and lots of grandchildren.

Question 3.
What stories of the grandmother did the author treat as ‘Fables of the Prophets’? Why?
Answer:
The author treated his grandmother’s stories about her childhood and the games she used to play to be as old as the ‘Fables of the Prophets’. He had always seen his grandmother as an old, wrinkled, stooped woman and could not imagine her as a young child. Thus, he considered her stories about her childhood to be a fantasy and a myth.

Question 4.
Describe the author’s grandmother. Was she young and pretty once?
Answer:
The author’s grandmother was short, fat and slightly bent in stature. Her silvery white hair was scattered over her wrinkled face.
Khushwant Singh remembers her hobbling around the house in spotless white clothes with one hand resting on her waist to balance her stoop and the other busy in counting her beads.

It was difficult for the author to believe that once she too was young and pretty as he had always known her as an old woman. She had been the same for the last twenty years. To the author, she was beautiful but not young and pretty.

Question 5.
Elucidate the phrase ‘not pretty but beautiful’ with reference to the chapter.
Answer:
To the author, the grandmother was not pretty but beautiful. She was beautiful in a peaceful way. He remembered her counting the beads of her rosary untiringly. Her silver locks lay scattered untidily over her pale, puckered face and her lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer. She was like the winter landscape in the mountains, serene and content.

Question 6.
Why could the grandmother not walk straight? How did she move around the house?
Answer:
The grandmother was short, fat and her body was bent due to her age. She was forced to put a hand to her waist to support the stoop so that she could not walk straight. So she hobbled around the house while she was moving around, just like a lame person.

Question 7.
Grandmother appeared like the ‘winter landscape in the mountains’. Discuss.
Answer:
The author brings out the inner beauty of the grandmother by comparing her to the winter landscape in the mountains. This comparison shows her calmness and serenity. Moreover, like the winter, the grandmother too was going through the last stage of her life. Just as the mountains are covered with snow and appear white, the old lady was altogether white with her white clothes, white hair and pale skin. Through the comparison, the author brings out the serenity and peacefulness of the grandmother.

Question 8.
What kind of bond did the author and the grandmother share in the village?
Answer:
In the village, the grandmother woke him up every morning and got him ready for school. She would bathe and dress him. She gave him breakfast, got him his slate and inkpot and then accompanied him to school. While he studied at school, grandmother used to read the scriptures in the temple. When the school was over, they would walk back home together and feed the village dogs on the way. Thus, they shared a very strong bond in the village.

Question 9.
What was the daily routine of the grandmother in the village?
Answer:
The grandmother would wake up the narrator in the morning, bathe him and dress him for school before giving him breakfast. Then she would get his writing implements (slate with chalk, reed pen and an inkpot) ready and give them to him. Then she would accompany him to school. While he was in the school, she used to read the scriptures in the temple next door to the school. Then she would accompany the narrator back home and spend the rest of the day with him.

Question 10.
Was the grandmother educated? How can you tell?
Answer:
The grandmother was definitely educated. We can tell this by the fact that when the narrator was studying in the village school, the grandmother used to read the scriptures in the temple while the narrator attended his classes. As she could read the scriptures, possibly understanding them also, we can say that she was educated.

Question 11.
The author and his grandmother were intimate friends. How?
Answer:
The author and his grandmother were very close to each other. His parents had left him with her in the village. So, they spent most of their time together. She used to wake him up early in the morning. She got him ready for school.
She even accompanied him to the school. While returning from the school they enjoyed feeding the dogs. Hence, they were perhaps very intimate friends.

Question 12.
“That was the turning point in our friendship.” What was the turning point?
Answer:
The author used to live with his grandmother in the village, where they were always together. The turning point in their friendship came when the author’s parents called them to the city. They shared the same room in the city but the grandmother could no longer accompany him to school or help him in his studies. Gradually they saw less of each other.

Question 13.
What was the grandmother’s reaction towards education in the English school?
Answer:
The author’s grandmother was unhappy as she could no longer help the narrator in his lessons. She didn’t know English words or about Western Science. She was hurt to know that there was no teaching of God and scriptures in the English school. She didn’t believe in the things that were taught at the English school.

Question 14.
Bring out the contrast between the school education in the village and in the city.
Answer:
The education in the village school was vastly different from the education in the city school. In the village, the school was next to the temple and the priest himself was the teacher. He taught them the alphabet and the morning prayer. But in the city school, there was no teaching of God or the scriptures. English and science along with music were taught in the city school.

Question 15.
Why was the grandmother disturbed when she came to know that music lessons were being given in school?
Answer:
The grandmother thought that music was associated with indecent professions like prostitution. She thought that it should not be taught to decent and gentle persons like her grandson. That is why she was disturbed when she came to know that the narrator was being taught music in the English school in the city.

Question 16.
Which moment of the day used to be the happiest for the grandmother in the city?
Answer:
After the author and the grandmother moved to the city, she felt lonely. Her grandson became engrossed in his studies and she could no longer help him. She spent most of her time spinning the wheel.

She only rested for a while in the afternoon when she fed the sparrows. This used to be the happiest moment of the day for her. The birds came and perched on her legs and shoulders and some even sat on her head. She smiled but never shooed them away.

Question 17.
Describe how the grandmother spent some time with the sparrows every day in the city house. How did she feel at that time?
Answer:
The grandmother usually fed the sparrows in the afternoon by sitting in the verandah and breaking the bread into small pieces before throwing it to them. Hundreds of sparrows gathered there, chirping noisily. Some even perched on her legs, shoulders and head. She felt very happy at this time. It was the happiest time of the day for her.

Question 18.
“i was sure my grandmother would be upset.” What was the author sure about? Was he right?
Answer:
When the author decided to go to abroad for further studies, he was sure that his grandmother would be upset. But she was not even sentimental. She went to bid him goodbye at the railway station. However, she didn’t talk or show any emotion. She was lost in prayer and her hands kept counting her beads.

Question 19.
How can you say that the grandmother was a kind-hearted woman?
Answer:
When she lived in the village, the grandmother used to feed the street dogs with stale chapattis. When she moved to the city, as there were no dogs in the streets, she started feeding sparrows in the house courtyard. She used to break the bread into little crumbs and throw the crumbs to them. The sparrows perched on her legs, shoulders and even sat on her head but she never shooed them away. All these actions show that the grandmother was a kind-hearted woman, particularly for animals.

Question 20.
What was the last sign of physical contact between the author and his grandmother? Why did the author think so?
Answer:
When the author was going abroad for five years for higher studies, the grandmother went to leave him off at the railway station. He could tell that she was still reciting prayers. The grandmother then kissed his forehead lovingly. That kiss seemed to the author as the last sign of physical contact between them. He perhaps tnought that the grandmother, being old, might not survive for five years.

Question 21.
The grandmother’s farewell and reception of her grandson were very touching. Comment.
Answer:
When the author went abroad, the grandmother came to- the station to see him off. She was not sentimental and was silently praying and counting her beads. She kissed the forehead of her grandson as a goodbye gesture. When he returned after five years, she expressed her joy by collecting the women of the neighbourhood and singing for hours about the homecoming of warriors. For the first time, she missed her prayers.

Question 22.
How did the grandmother celebrate the homecoming of her grandson?
Answer:
After five years, the author was coming home. The grandmother went to the railway station to receive him. She hugged him and he could hear her reciting prayers. After reaching home, she gathered the women of the neighbourhood. She got an old drum and started singing songs about the homecoming of warriors. That was the first time since the author had known her that she did not pray.

Question 23.
What could have been the cause of grandmother’s falling ill?
Answer:
When the author came back from abroad after five years, grandmother collected the women from the neighbourhood. She kept singing and thumping a drum for several hours. This overstrained her body and this could have been the cause of her falling ill.

Question 24.
” Why did the grandmother stop talking before her death?
Answer:
The old lady fell ill. She had a mild fever. The doctor told her that she would be all right soon. But the grandmother declared that her end was near. She did not pray that evening. She was not going to waste any more time talking to them. That is why she stopped talking before her death.

Question 25.
“We protested but she ignored our protests.” Who protested and why?
Answer:
The day after the author arrived from abroad, his grandmother was taken ill. She had celebrated his homecoming and perhaps overstrained herself. The doctor said that it was a mild fever and would go away. But she said that her last hour had come.
The author and his family protested about her thinking like this. But she ignored their protests. Thus, she stopped talking to anybody in order to pray and counting the beads of her rosary.

Question 26.
The grandmother has been portrayed as a very religious lady. What details in the story create this impression?
Answer:
The grandmother was a very religious lady. Her lips always moved in inaudible prayer. Her one hand was always busy counting the beads of her rosary. She also read scriptures at the village temple. When she knew her end was near, she lay peacefully in bed praying and counting her beads till death.

Question 27.
How did the grandmother die?
Answer:
The grandmother realised that she was going to die soon. So she continued praying with her fingers busy in counting the beads of her rosary. She did not talk to anyone. After some time, her lips stopped moving. The rosary fell down from her fingers.
Thus, she died a peaceful death.

Question 28.
What role did the grandmother play in shaping the grandson’s personality?
Answer:
The grandmother played a key role in her
grandson’s life from his childhood. She is the one who took care of him from sunrise to sunset. She indirectly taught him how a person should live a religious life with God, scriptures and values as guides. That is why the grandson was more attached to his grandmother.

Question 29.
How did the sparrows pay their homage to the dead grandmother?
Answer:
The grandmother had died. Thousands of sparrows came and sat in the courtyard next to the grandmother’s body. They were totally silent. Even when the narrator’s mother threw some crumbs of bread to them, they did not eat them. When the grandmother’s body was carried off to be cremated, they flew away silently. Thus the sparrows paid a silent homage to the grandmother.

The Portrait of a Lady Long Questions and Answers (6 Marks)

Question 1.
Describe the author’s grandmother’s life in the village in contrast with the kind of the life she led in the city, highlighting her values.
Answer:
The author’s grandmother had been living in the village for a very long time. She was used to the life of the village. She had her fixed routine. She got up early in the morning. After that she used to wake up her grandson and get him ready for school. She accompanied him to the school. She sat in the temple reading the scriptures. Thus she practised all her-values of being pious and dutiful.
In contrast, the city life was just the opposite and its culture did not suit her. Now, she could no more accompany her grandson to his school. Neither could she help him in his lessons. Thus she could not practise properly the values of life which she believed in. When the author went to the university, he was given a room of his own. This made the grandmother even more lonely. But she accepted her loneliness and devoted her time in spinning the wheel, feeding the sparrows and praying, thus continuing to practise her values.

Question 2.
“All over the verandah and in her room right up to where she lay dead and stiff wrapped in the red shroud, thousands of sparrows sat scattered on the floor. There was no chirruping. The sparrows took no notice of the bread. When we carried my grandmother’s corpse off, they flew away quietly.”
Animals recognise and value a relationship established with human beings. Explain this, keeping in mind the relationship established by Khushwant Singh’s grandmother with animals.
Answer:
Animals are said to have no intelligence but they do have feelings and it is out of feeling, concern or love for a human being that they let themselves be. domesticated. They recognise relationships and bond well with humans. The relationship between Khushwant Singh’s grandmother and the dogs as well as the sparrows is just one of them.

The grandmother was a very kind-hearted lady. She loved feeding the animals. In the village she used to carry stale chapattis with her and, on her way back from school, feed the stray dogs. The dogs loved the grandmother and there developed a bond between them.

In the city, there were no street dogs, so the grandmother took to feeding sparrows. The sparrows gathered around her and she threw little crumbs of bread to them. These sparrows sat on her head, legs and shoulders. It was their way of showing affection to her. When grandmother died, they came in huge numbers to mourn her death.

This shows that animals recognise and value relationships established with human beings. It also shows that they are more compassionate, more affectionate and more dependable than most human beings.

Question 3.
A life of dedication and integrity can be lived even without college or university level education, as the grandmother demonstrates. Elaborate.
Answer:
Although the grandmother had no proper schooling and was not formally educated, she lived a life of dedication and integrity. She took utmost care of her grandson. She accompanied the author to the school and while he attended classes at the school, she sat inside the temple reading scriptures.

In the city, when she could not help the author in his lessons, she was upset, but never showed it.

When the author was given a separate room of his own, she accepted her loneliness without any complaint. Later, when the author decided to go abroad for further studies, she did not get sentimental and did not stand in the way of the author’s education. Throughout her life, she lived a life of dedication and integrity without going to college or university. She never compromised with her principles and was a determined lady. She had certain ideas about life and was dedicated to them.

Question 4.
Give a character sketch of the author’s grandmother, mentioning her values.
Answer:
Khushwant Singh presents his grandmother as a symbol of love, care, and affection, as well as a strong character with traditionally religious beliefs. She loved her grandson immensely. She was not physically attractive, but had an inwardly spiritual beauty. In the village, she was actively involved in her grandson’s life, but when they shifted to the city, the bond of friendship was first weakened and finally broken when he went abroad for higher studies. Yet, she always presented a picture of peace and contentment.

Her love for animals was reflected in the way she fed the dogs and sparrows. She did not like the English school but never interfered in the narrator’s education. She accepted every decision of her grandson regarding his life in a calm and composed manner. Even in death, she achieved peace and contentment.

Question 5.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the joint family system. What values do you think children learn from grandparents?
Answer:
‘The Portrait of a Lady’ gives us a picture of human
relationships in a joint family. It is a realistic account of how grandparents give all their time, attention and love to their grandchildren. Grandparents play an important role in inculcating good manners and values in the children. The children imitate their grandparents in a positive way and learn to be good individuals. They learn important human values such as love, compassion, and respect from them.
Grandparents also imbibe religious and spiritual values in children. Children, thus, learn to love and respect God and all its creations. They also learn about their customs and traditions from their grandparents. Many children can even sing religious songs and recite prayers. All this has a very positive role on their character development.

Grandparents share their life experiences with children in order to help them handle different situations. Children thus face adverse situations with a positive attitude and learn to take challenges in their stride. They also learn to be competitive in a positive light. Further, grandparents guide children from time to time to follow the right path in life and respect their parents. Thus, the children become not only good human beings but also good citizens.

Question 6.
The chapter ‘The Portrait of a Lady’ displays the sad reality of old age. Old people face loneliness and seclusion. It gets you thinking about the pain of old age. Write an article about ‘Pain of Old Age’.
Answer:
Pain of Old Age
by Harsh Sharma
Growing old is inevitable. One who is born will get old someday. The energy and exuberance of youth is replaced by the loneliness and sadness of old age. As one’s body gets old, the day-to-day tasks become tedious and tiresome. One starts to become dependent on others.

This leads to emotional insecurity. This finally gives mental trauma to the old as they feel unwanted. They develop the thought of being a burden on others and hence try to remain away from others.

It becomes the duty of their relatives to give them due respect. Our elders dedicate their whole lives in providing us a better life. We should take care of them at a time when they need us the most. However, such care has become a thing of the past. People now send their elderly relatives into old age homes where they live a life of loneliness.

What would have happened if they had treated us the same way? We cannot belittle their importance in our lives. It would be a shameful thing if we do not care for them in their old age.

Question 7.
Why do you think old age needs more attention and care? Does it need someone to be there to look after them? Discuss with reference to ‘The Portrait of a Lady.’
Answer:
Old age is the most sensitive stage of a person. The old are like infants. They are unable to do most of the daily work on their own. This makes them dependent on others physically as well as emotionally.

This is the age when they need full support. They need someone with whom they could share everything. But sometimes, it is the loneliness that kills them emotionally. It leaves them no other option but to accept this period of life silently.

This also happened with the author’s grandmother. They both were living together in the village and were very close to each other.

After some years, his parents brought them to the city. In the city they started to drift apart. But the old lady accepted her loneliness. She rarely talked to anyone.

This shows that the old need proper care and attention from their loved ones. They are emotionally vulnerable and want someone to be always close to them.

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