Class 11 English Hornbill  Notes

Lesson-1

The Portrait of a Lady

Question 1:

The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.

Answer:

The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad are:

childhood – when he went to the village school and the grandmother helped him to get ready and went to school with him.

boyhood – when he went to the city school in a bus. He shared a room with grandmother but she could no longer help him in his studies.

early youth – when he went to the university and was given a his own room. Thus,The common link of friendship was snapped.

 Question 2:

Three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school.

Answer:

The three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school are:

1-She hated western Science and learning.

2-She was sad to know that there was no teaching of God and the scriptures.

3-She was allergic to music. She thought it was not meant for decent people and gentlefolk. It was the monopoly of prostitutes and beggars.

Question 3:

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 are:

1-She lived alone in her room as she had accepted her loneliness quietly.

2-She sat at her spinning wheel reciting prayers.

3-In the afternoon, she would feed the sparrows for half an hour.

 Question 4:

The odd ways in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died.

Answer:

Just before her death, the author’s grandmother refused to talk to them. Since she had omitted to pray the previous night while she was singing songs of homecoming and beating the drum, she was not going to waste any more time. She ignored their protests. She lay peacefully in bed praying and telling beads.

Question 5:

The way in which the sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died.

Answer:

Thousands of sparrows sat silently surrounding the dead body of the author’s grandmother. There was no chirruping. The author’s mother threw some bread crumbs to them. They didn't notice the bread crumbs. As soon as the grandmother’s corpse was carried off, they flew away quietly. Thus the sparrows expressed their sorrow.

Question 6:

How did the sparrows show that they had not come for the bread?

OR

How did the sparrows pay their last homage to the grandmother?

Answer: Same as Question. No. 5

Important Question and Answers

Short Questions (3 marks)

Q.1. How was the common link of friendship between the grandmother and the grandson snapped?

Or,

What was the common link of friendship between the narrator and his grandmother and when was it broken?

Ans. The common link between the old lady and her growing-up grandson was that they shared the same room in the city for several years. It was broken when he went to university and got a room of his own. She was left alone but she accepted her aloofness quietly.

Q.2. Explain. “As for my grandmother being young and pretty, the thought was almost revolting?”

Ans. The narrator’s grandmother was terribly old. She could not appear young and beautiful. Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkles. She was short, fat and slightly bent. The very idea of her being young and pretty did not appeal to the mind.

Q.3. What stories of the grandmother did the author treat as ‘Fables’ of the Prophets? Why?

Ans. The author treated the stories of grandmother’s youth and beauty as fables as he had always seen her old and he found it was hard to accept that she could once be pretty and young.

Q.4 How long had the narrator known his grandmother ‘old and wrinkled’? What did people say? How did the narrator react?

Ans. The narrator had known his grandmother to be old and wrinkled for the last twenty years. She was terribly old. Perhaps she could not become older. People said that she had once been young and pretty. They said that she even had a husband. The narrator found it hard to believe.

Q.5. Explain. “Old, so terribly old that she could not have grown older …… ”

Ans. The grandmother looked extremely old. She couldn’t have grown older anymore. She looked the same terribly old lady for the last twenty years.

Q.6.Why did the grandmother hate music?

Ans. The grandmother actually hated music. She thought that music was meant only for prostitutes and beggars. Music was not meant for school children from respectable families. It was not meant for gentle folk.

Q. 7.The narrator’s grandmother looked like ‘the winter landscape in the mountains’. Comment.

Ans. The grandmother always wore spotless white clothes. She had silvery hair.  She looked like an expanse of pure white serenity. The stretch of snow over the mountains looks equally white and peaceful.So her silvery locks and white dress made her look like the winter landscape in the mountains.

Q.8. The grandmother had a divine beauty. How does the author bring it out?

Ans. The grandmother’s silvery locks scattered untidily over her pale and wrinkled face. This made her look like an expanse of pure white serenity. She had a divine beauty. She looked like the winter landscape in the mountains.

Q.9. Give a pen picture of narrator’s grandfather as he appeared in the portrait?

Ans. The narrator’s grandfather looked like a hundred years old man in the portrait. He had a long white flowing beard. It came up to his chest. It looked as if he had lots and lots of grandchildren.

Q.10. “That was a turning point in our friendship.” 

What was the turning point?

Ans:

The turning point in their friendship came when they shifted to the city. Now the narrator went to an English school in a bus. Grandmother could no longer accompany him to school. Although they shared the same room, they saw less of each other.

Q.11. Draw a comparison between village school education and city school education.

Ans. Elementary education was given in the village school. The pupils were taught alphabets and multiplication tables. It was quite simple confined to reading, writing and arithmetic. In the city school, English, Science and Music were taught. Unlike the village school there was no teaching about God and the scriptures.

Q.12. What was the happiest moment of the day for the grandmother?

Answer:

The happiest half-hour of her day used to be the time when grandmother fed the sparrows. She would sit in the verandah breaking the bread into little bits. The sparrows would collect around her. They chirped noisily. Some perched on her legs and shoulders. Some even sat on her head. She relished this game. She never shooed them away.

Q.13.

What was the “last sign” of physical contact between the author and the grandmother? Why did the author think that to be the last physical contact?

Answer:

The grandmother, kissed Khushwant Singh on his forehead. The author thought that this was perhaps the last sign of physical contact between them. He was going away for five years. She was extremely old and at her age one could never tell whether she would be alive for long.

Long Questions and Answers

Q. 1.Draw a character sketch of Khushwant Singh’s grandmother as portrayed by him in the lesson ‘The Portrait of a Lady’.

Ans. The narrator’s grandmother was a true picture of love, affection and care. She had all those virtues which grandmother’s generally have for their grandsons. She was highly religious but a conservative lady. The grandmother presented a picture of peace and contentment. Her spotless white dress and her silver white hair gave her spiritual beauty. The grandmother was not physically very attractive. She had deep love and affection for her grandson. She got him ready for school. She accompanied him to his school and came back home with him. She was a very religious lady. She was always telling the beads of her rosary. She had compassion even for animals and birds. She fed the village dogs. She took to feeding the sparrows in the city. But the grandmother was a conservative lady. She didn’t like the English language and Science. She hated music. She associated music with prostitutes and beggars.

Multiple Choice Questions ‌(MCQs‌) with Answers

1. Who is the author of 'The Portrait of a Lady'?
A. Ruskin Bond
B. Kushwant Singh
C. Naipaul
D. Vikram Bhatt

 

2. Who is the main character of the chapter  'The Portrait of a Lady'?
A. Mother
B. Sister         
C. Grandmother         
D. Daughter

 

3. How did the grandfather in the portrait hung on the wall look like?
A. Old, long white beard, worn big turban
B. Old, skinny, wrinkly
C. Young, Handsome, Well-Built
D. Old, Well-Built

 

4. How did the grandmother look?
A. Old, Fat, Long
B. Long, Fat, Slightly Bent
C. Old, Short, Slightly Bent, Fat
D. Slightly Bent, Fat

 

5. When did the author's parents leave him with his grandmother?
A. When he was a kid
B. When he was an infant
C. When he became a teenager       
D. When he failed and became a teenager

 

6. Which animal did the grandmother used to feed in the village?
A .Dogs
B. Cows
C. Sparrows
D. Cats

 

7. What did the author eat for breakfast?
A. thick and stale chapatis with a little butter and sugar spread in it
B. thick bread with butter       
C. upma         
D. rice and curd         

 

8. Why would grandmother accompany the author to his school?
A. to keep an eye on him
B. to wait for him to take him back to home
C. because of the temple attached to school
D. she wanted to meet villagers

 

9.  Where were the parents of the author?
A. Abroad
B. City
C. Other Village
D. Other state

 

10. What would the grandmother do in the temple on a daily basis?
A. Meditation
B. Read Scriptures
C. Sing religious prayers
D. teach other kids religious prayers

 

11. What was the turning point of the friendship between grandmother and author?
A. When he became an adult
B. When his parents called them both to the city
C. When he left her to live in the city with his parents
D. When they stopped talking

 

12. Where did the author go to study in the city?
A. English School in motor bus
B. by walking down to nearby school
C. Hindi School
D. Nowhere

 

13. What made the grandmother unhappy about the author's new English School?
A. the fact that she could no longer help him with the lessons
B. Because they were in city
C. Because she didn't understand English
D. Because she didn't understand English and could no longer help him with the lessons  

 

14. Why didn't the grandmother like music?
A. It was the monopoly of harlots and beggars and not meant for gentlefolk
B. She liked only religious prayers
C. She liked the traditional folk music
D. She thought it would distract him from studies

 

15. How did the grandmother spend her time in the city?
A. feedings dogs
B. reading scriptures
C. spinning the wheel
D. talking to neighbours         

 

16. How did the grandmother spend her afternoon everyday?
A. by feeding hundred of sparrows
B. by taking a nap
C. by talking to author's mother
D. by going to temple 

 

17. What happened when the author moved abroad to study for five years?
A. grandmother bid goodbye by silently kissing his forehead
B. No one came to see him
C. Grandmother moved back to village
D. Parents moved with him

 

18. What change came in the grandmother's evening schedule?
A. She collected the women of the neighbourhood
B. She would go for a walk
C. She would sleep early
D. She would talk to his parents        

 

19. What happened when the grandmother didn't pray for the first time?
A. She fell ill the next day
B. She made this her routine
C. She took a break and went to the village
D. None of the above

 

20. How did the grandmother react to her illness?
A. She said her end was near
B. She ignored her health
C. She took care of her
D. She was admitted to the hospital  

 

21. What did the grandmother do in her final hours?
A. Talked to everyone in the house
B. worried about everyone
C. Silently praying and telling her beads
D. Went to temple      

 

22. How did the grandmother die?
A. during telling beads laying on the bed
B. In the hospital
C. While sleeping
D. None of the above

 

23. How did the sparrows express their sorrow at the death of their grandmother?
A. They didn't come that day
B. they came and sat silently in the verandah
C.They ate the bread crumbs
D. they chirruped a lot           

 

24. What happened when they took the grandmother's corpse away?
A. Neighbours visited them to pay condolences
B. they mourned her death in her room
C. birds flew away quietly
D. Nothing happened

 

25. How do you feel about the character of the grandmother in the chapter?
A. Emotional
B. Strong
C. Selfless
D. Loving

 

26. Where was the author's grandfather's portrait placed?
A. on a shelf
B. hung above the mantelpiece
C. put on the mantelpiece
D. on a table

 

27. Did the author bother to learn the morning prayers that his grandmother recited?
A. yes
B. he listened but did not bother to learn
C. he could not learn
D. no

 

28. When was their common link of friendship snapped?
A. when he went to college
B. When he went to the university, they were given seperate rooms
C. when he started working
D. When he went abroad

 

29. What was grandmother's reaction when the author was going abroad?  
A. Happy
B. sad 
C. not even sentimental         
D. Sentimental

 

30. What was her reaction when he came back after 5 years?
A. Overwhelmed
B. clasped the author in her arms and said prayers
C. happy        
D. sentimental

 

Answer key 

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	B	11	B	21	C
2	C	12	A	22	A
3	A	13	D	23	B
4	C	14	A	24	C
5	A	15	C	25	B
6	A	16	A	26	B
7	A	17	A	27	B
8	C	18	A	28	B
9	B	19	A	29	C
10	B	20	A	30	B

 

A Photograph

NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers

Question 1.

What does the word ‘cardboard’ denote in the poem? Why has this word been used?

Answer:

The word “cardboard” in the poem refers to the photograph. It is just a piece of paper a memory as the poet’s mother is dead and gone. It signifies the transience of life and what remains is an insignificant piece of paper.

Question 2.

What has the camera captured?

Answer:

The camera has captured the scene when the poet’s mother and her two female cousins, Betty and Dolly, went paddling. They were holding the poet’s mother’s hands. The elder of the three was about twelve years. The three of them stood smiling as the wind tousled their hair.

Question 3.

What has not changed over the years? Does this suggest something to you?

Or,

Q. Explain ‘Terribly transient feet’.

Answer:

The sea has not changed over the years. It remains the same through generations. On the contrary, life is transient. The mother has now been dead for years. Human life is transitory and this transience is contrasted with the permanence of nature.

Question 4.

The poet’s mother laughed at the snapshot. What did this laugh indicate?

Answer:

The mother laughed at the fleeting moments that had long passed. She relived the memories when they were dressed as children and taken out. She laughed as she recalled the happy memories.

Question 5.

What is the meaning of the line “Both wry with the laboured ease of loss.”

Answer:

The poet’s mother had been out on a beach holiday, years back and felt nostalgic about it, similar to what the poet felt when she relived the memories of her dead mother. The memories, in each case, were beautiful, but painful to recall as time slipped away, so easily.

Question 6.

What does “this circumstance” refer to?

Answer:

“This circumstance” is the death of the mother. This fact is as true and as real as the one that her mother had experienced, on the beach. Both the situations are now a memory of the past. The first is a memory of the mother’s past and the second of the poet’s past.

Question 7.

The three stanzas depict three different phases. What are they?

Answer:

The first stanza is the poet’s description of the photograph that had been captured from her mother’s childhood. The second stanza deals with recollections. The mother’s recollection of her childhood just as the poet recalls her mother who is now dead. The third stanza philosophises death and the transience of life.

Question 8. What do you learn about the poetess’ mother from ‘A Photograph’?

Ans. The poetess’s mother was a big girl at the age of twelve. She had a sweet face and enjoyed swimming as well as wading in sea water with her cousins. Years later she would have laughed at the clothes they had put on for the sea holiday.

Question 9. When was the photo taken? Whom does it show?

Ans. The photo was taken when the poet’s mother was simply a girl and was unmarried. She, with her cousins, went for a sea holiday. They stood together smiling at uncle when he took their photograph.

Question 10. How did the three girls face the camera?

Ans. They were in their beach clothes. The wind had blown their hair across their faces. They were grinning through their hair.

Question 11. How did the poet’s mother look then? How did the sea look?

Ans. The poet’s mother looked like a big girl then. She looked beautiful with a sweet face. It was before the poetess was born. The sea seemed to be washing their feet which are subject to death. However, the sea appears not to have changed.

Question 12.

 ‘And of the circumstance’ thus nothing to say at all. Its silence silences’ says the poetess in ‘A Photograph. ’ What is she referring to?

Ans. ‘The circumstance, refers to the situation that was captured in the photo years before when the poet’s mother stood for a photograph.

Question 13. Why do you think, does the poet’s say nothing about her mother’s death?

Ans. The poet’s has no words to express her reaction to this solemn and painful incident. Death silences everyone. The extensive quietness and prevailing gloom silences her.

MCQ

1. Who is the poet/poetess of the poem 'A Photograph'?
A. Shirley Toulson
B. Rudyard Kipling
C. Elizabeth Jennings
D. Markus Natten

 

2. What is the poem 'A Photograph' about?
A. About poet's childhood memories
B. tribute to the poet’s mother
C. Poet's photograph
D. Poet's father          

 

3. What was the age of the poet's mother when the photograph was taken?
A. eleven years old
B. thirteen years old
C. twelve years old
D. fourteen year old   

 

4. When did her mother die ?
A. two years ago
B. five years ago
C. thirteen years ago
D. twelve years ago

 

5. How many people were in the photograph?
A. two girls
B. three girls
C. two girls and one boy
D. only her mother

 

 

6. Which material was the frame of the photograph made of?
A. Cardboard
B. Wood
C. Steel
D. Plastic

 

7. Who are on both sides of her mother?
A. Cousins, Betty and Dolly
B. Parents
C. Cousins, Dolly and Adam
D. Friends

 

8. What are the three of them doing in the photograph?
A. playing
B. standing beside house
C. holding hands
D. holding hands and went for paddling

 

9. Who took the photograph of her mother with her cousin?   
A. Her grandfather
B. Her uncle
C. Her mother's friend
D. Her grandmother   

 

10. What does 'Terribly Transient Feet' mean in the poem?
A. her feet represent the mother, who changed with time while the sea remained the same          
B. temporary situation
C. age is temporary
D. None of the above

 

11. After how many years did her mother laugh on seeing the photograph?
A. twenty-one
B. twenty-three
C. twelve
D. twenty-five

 

12. What was the favourite memory of her mother?
A. beach holidays
B. school memories
C. vacations
D. None of the above

 

13. What was the favourite memory of the poet?
A. her mother's memories
B. her mother's laughter
C. her own vacation memories
D. her childhood memories   

 

14. What would the mother show to her daughter while showing her the photograph?
A. how her parents dressed her for the beach
B. her cousins
C. her own childhood photograph
D. the background

 

 

15. What is the meaning of the word 'wry'?
A. ironic
B. cry
C. sad
D. None of the above

 

16. What Oxymoron literary device was used in the poem?      
A. Terribly transient
B. Through their
C. Both wry
D. Laboured ease

 

17. What Epithet literary device was used in the poem?
A. Terribly transient
B. Through their
C. Both wry
D. Laboured ease

 

18. How many phases were depicted in the poem by the poet?
A. one
B. two
C. three
D. four

 

19. What was the last phase in the poem?
A. after her mother died
B. after she grown up
C. after her mother grown up
D. None of the above

 

20. What does she feel in the last phase?
A. pain and grief
B. happy and nostalgic
C. sad and nostalgic
D. pain and nostalgic

 

 Answer key 

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	A	11	B
2	B	12	A
3	C	13	B
4	D	14	A
5	B	15	A
6	A	16	D
7	A	17	A
8	D	18	C
9	B	19	A
10	A	20	A

 

 

Read the stanza carefully and answer the questions that follow :

The cardboard shows me how it was

When the two girl cousins went paddling,

Each one holding one of my mother’s hands

And she the big girl—some twelve years or so.

Questions

 (i)  What does the word ‘cardboard’ denote in the poem? Why has this word been used?

 (ii) Who were the three girls captured in the photograph?

 (iii) Where had they gone for outing/paddling?

Ans.

 (i)  The word ‘cardboard’ denotes the instant photo or snapshot that is pasted on cardboard in the photo frame.

 (ii)  The three girls captured in the photograph were the mother of the poetess who was not married then, and her two cousins—Betty and Dolly.

 (iii)  They had gone out for a sea holiday. They were photographed on the sea beach.

(2)

All three stood still to smile through their hair

At the uncle with the camera. A sweet face,

My mother’s, that was before I was born.

And the sea, which appears to have changed less,

Washed their terribly transient feet.

Questions

  (i)  What does ‘three’ refer to?

  (ii)  When and where was the photograph taken?

  (iii)  Bring out the comparison between the sea and the ‘feet’.

Ans.

   (i)  The ‘three’ are Betty, Dolly and the mother of the poetess.

   (ii)  The photograph was taken on the sea beach by the uncle.

 (iii)  The sea is unchanging while human feet being washed by the sea waves are fast changing.

(3)

Some twenty-thirty—years later

She’d laugh at the snapshot. “See Betty

And Dolly,” she’d say, “and look how they

 dressed us for the beach.”

Questions

  (i) The poetess’ mother laughed at the snapshot. Why? What did her laugh indicate?

  (ii) When was the snapshot taken?

  (iii) Who had dressed the speaker? What was funny about the dress?

Ans.

(i) The mother of the poetess was at that time some twelve years old. Now after 20-30 years, the mother cannot help laughing at her own picture in a casual, holiday costume.

(ii) The snapshot was taken on the sea beach by the poetess’ uncle some 20-30 years ago.

(iii) The poetess’ mother had been dressed for the holiday by her two cousins—Betty and Dolly. All the three were dressed in girlish beach dresses.

(4)

The sea holiday

Was her past, mine is her laughter. Both wry

With the laboured ease of loss.

Questions

(i) What is the significance of the ‘sea holiday’ here?

(ii) Explain: The sea holiday was her past, mine is her laughter.

(iii) Who does ‘both’ here refer to?

Ans.

(i)  The significance of the sea holiday is that the mother was also a girl once and it refers to a happy moment in her life on the sea beach.

(ii)  The mother had seen her photo, taken 20-30 years earlier when she was just twelve years old. So, that photograph denoted her own past. But the poetess who had heard her mother laugh is also bereaved. The mother has passed away, her laughter is also thing of the past for the poetess.

(iii) ‘Both’ here refers to the photograph and the mother’s laughter.

(5)

Now she’s been dead nearly as many years

as that girl lived. And of this circumstance

There is nothing to say at all.

Its silence silences.

Questions

(i) How many years ago had the poetess’s mother died?

(ii) What does ‘this circumstance’ refer to?

(iii) Explain Its silence silences.

Ans.

(i) It is some 12 years since the poetess’s mother passed away.

(ii) ‘This circumstance’ refers to the death of the mother.

(iii) The mother’s voice has been silenced forever. The photo cannot laugh. The poetess also feels depressed and speechless.

Very Short Answer Type Important Questions

1. What did the cardboard picture capture?

Ans.   The cardboard snapshot captured the happy faces of three cousins enjoying a sea-holiday.

2. What do you think made the poetess’s mother laugh?

Ans. He looks at the age of 12 and her pretty beach dress as captured in the photo made her laugh.

3. When and where were the three cousins photographed?

Ans.   The three girls were photographed by their uncle on the sea beach. They had gone there on a pleasure trip. They stood in the shallow water with sea waves washing their feet.

4. What does the poetess mean by ‘their terribly transient feet’?

Ans.   The dictionary meaning of the word transient is brief and fleeting. The three girls were at a growing age. They underwent notable changes as time passed. But the sea suffered no change over the years. The expression highlights the contrast between mortal man and timeless, ageless sea.

5. Explain: The sea holiday was her past, mine is her laughter.

 Ans. The determiner ‘her’ at both places refers to the poetess’s mother. The picture taken during the sea holiday 20-30 years ago made the mother laugh. Her sea holiday was her past. But twelve years after the mother’s death, her daughter has now become a thing of the past for the poetess.

6. Now she’s been dead nearly as many years as that girl lived. How many years have passed since the mother’s death?

Ans. Twelve years have passed since the mother’s death.

7. Explain Its silence silences.

Ans. The period of nearly twelve years since the poetess’s mother passed away, has been painful for the poet. She can not hear her laughter anymore. There is only silence now and the poet has to bear her loss in silence.

We are not afraid to die if we all can be together
MCQ

                                   
1.  From where did the ship sail for the voyage?
A. America
B. Mexico
C. Germany
D. Plymouth, England

 

2. Why did the author decide to go for a round-the-world voyage?
A.to duplicate the voyage made 200 years ago by Captain James Cook
B. to see the world
C. to settle down in different country
D. to show his children the world through ship

 

3. What was the occupation of the author?
A. Businessman
B. Sailor
C. Teacher
D. None of the above

 

4. What was the name of the ship of the author?
A. Amazon
B. Wavewalker
C. Waveship
D. Sailorship

 

5. What part of the journey was pleasant for them?
A. First leg - from England to Cape town
B. Last part of the journey
C. First few months
D. Never

 

6. What were the names of the two crewmen whom the author hired?
A. Shelly and Cabil
B. Larry Vigil and Herb Seigler
C. Herb Seigler and Shelly Cooper
D. Larry Vigil and Adam Moore

 

7. Why did the author hire the two crewmen?
A. to take rest from long the voyage
B. to help tackle one of the world’s roughest seas, the southern Indian Ocean
C. because he could no longer sail the ship
D. he wanted to spend some time with his family

 

8. When did the waves start getting gigantic?
A. December 25
B. January 2
C. November 30
D. December 31

 

9. What did they do to slow down the boat in the storm?
A. Stopped sailing
B. dropped the storm jib and lashed a heavy mooring rope
C. just dropped the storm jib
D. did nothing and waited for storm to calm down

 

10. What was the first indication of disaster?
A. around 6 pm when winds dropped and sky grew darker
B. next morning when the ship started creaking
C. when it started raining
D. when winds were strong

 

11. What happened after the first indication of the disaster?    
A. a wave appeared vertical and almost twice the height of other waves
B. it broke the ship from inside
C. the ship turned upside down
D. it didn't affect the ship

 

12. How did the explosion affect the ship?
A. A torrent of green and white water broke over the ship
B. the ship started sinking
C. the ship turned upside down
D. None of the above

 

13. Why did the author accept his approaching death?
A Pirates had attacked the ship
B because he was injured by the explosion
C he was thrown in the sea
D he was stabbed

 

14. What did the author see when his head popped out of the water?
A. the ship was sinking
B. the ship was nowhere to be seen
C. the ship was near capsizing, her masts almost horizontal
D. it was still standing

 

15. What happened to the author's body when he managed to reach the deck?
A. his head smashed again
B. his left ribs cracked;mouth filled with blood and broken teeth
C. he broke his leg
D. his broke his left hand

 

16. Who said, “We’re sinking!” ?
A. His crewmen 
B. Mary
C. His daughter
D. His son

 

17. What was the condition of the ship?
A. Broken timbers, starboard side bulged inwards; clothes, crockery, charts, tins and toys sloshed
B. There personal belongings were missing
C. water filled in every room and their clothes were missing
D. Can't say

 

18. What had happened to Sue when the author entered their room to check on them?
A. her head hurt as there was a bump
B. She was unconscious
C. her legs hurt
D. she was fine

 

19. What was the age of Suzanne and Jonathan?
A. 8 & 9 years old
B. 7 & 6 years old
C. 10 & 7 years old
D. 4 years & 6 years

 

20. How did the author manage to stretch the canvas?
A. by repairing the holes
B. by asking crewmen for help
C. it happened on its own
D. the problem got over as the storm had passed

 

21. What happened after the hand pumps started to block up with the debris floating around the cabins?
A. the author connected an electric-pump to an out-pipe
B. by taking out water with the help of bucket
C. by repairing hand pump
D. the author found another hand pump

 

22. Where did they decide to reach to save themselves and the ship?
A. Australia
B. Ile Amsterdam
C. Mumbai, India
D. Japan

 

23. What was their first meal in two days?
A. Meat loaves
B. bread and milk
C. noodles
D. corned beef and cracker biscuits

 

24. Who said, “we aren’t afraid of dying if we can all be together — you and Mummy, Sue and I.”?
A. Jon
B. Crewmen to each other
C. Suz
D. Mom

 

25. When did they reach lle Amsterdam?
A. around 6 pm in the evening
B. never reached there
C. at 11 in the next morning
D. they decided to take different route

 

26. What was the status of the ship on January 3?
A. "pumps had the water level sufficiently under control "
B. condition was getting worse
C. they were still struggling to control the pumps
D. everything was just right

 

27. How long did they take for the ship's testing and fitting?   
A. months
B. few days
C. 2 years
D. few weeks

 

28. Where had they reached on the 25th of December?
A.  3,500 kilometres east of Cape Town
B. they were suffering the waves away from Cape Town
C. 2500 km from Cape Town
D. reached capeTown

 

29. What happened when the author's head smashed into the wheel?
A. he was hurt but steady
B. he flew overboard sinking below the waves
C. he was not hurt
D. he gained control immediately

 

30. What does 'Mayday call' mean?
A Call made in the month of May
B Distress call for help
C Both A and B
D None of these

 Answer key 

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	D	11	A	21	A
2	A	12	A	22	B
3	A	13	A	23	D
4	B	14	C	24	A
5	A	15	B	25	A
6	B	16	B	26	A
7	B	17	A	27	A
8	B	18	A	28	A
9	B	19	B	29	B
10	A	20	A	30	B

The Laburnum Top

MCQ

1. How did the poet describe the top of the Laburnum tree in the poem 'The Laburnum Top'?
A. Still and Silent
B. Moving and Angry like
C. Silent and Motionless
D. None of the above

 

2. What happened to the leaves of the Laburnum tree?
A. they were green
B. turned yellow
C. fallen down
D. new leaves growing

 

3. How was the tree standing in the month of September?
A. still and death-like
B. alive
C. green and happy
D. still and green

 

4. When did the death-like tree become alive?
A. in the month of March
B. by the arrival monsoon season
C. by the arrival of the Goldfinch bird
D. by the arrival of sparrows

 

5. Why did the Goldfinch bird came towards the tree?
A. to feed her younger ones
B. to make a nest
C. to rest
D. None of the above

 

 

6. Where are the young ones of the Goldfinch bird?
A. On the thickness of the branch
B. On the top of the tree
C. on other tree
D. they were never there

 

7. What role does the tree play for the Goldfinch bird?
A. As a shelter
B. as a supporter        
C. as a means to feed her family
D. as a resting place

 

8. How did the bird move to the other side of the branch?
A. Like a lizard
B. Slowly
C. Smoothly
D. by flying     

 

9. How did the bird arrive at the other branch of the tree?
A. with a chirping sound
B. silently
C. never arrived at other branch
D. flew away and then arrived at the branch

 

10. What happened after she fed her young ones?
A. she flew away
B. she flew to the other side of the branch
C. she stayed there
D. she took some rest in the nest      

 

11. Why was Goldfinch's body barely visible?
A. due to her dark coloured yellow body
B. because she was small
C. because of the height of the tree
D. because she was brown in colour 

 

12. Where did the bird vanish after feeding her young ones?
A. to the other branch
B. to the top of the tree
C. to her nest
D. behind the yellow leaves

 

13. What happened to the bird in the end of the poem?
A. she flew away
B. she stayed at the tree
C. she went to other tree
D. she went to bring some food for her younger ones

 

14. How was the tree in the end when the bird flew away?
A. It was still alive
B. Nothing changed in the looks
C. it was death-like again

D. None of the above

 

 

15. What instance of Alliteration has been used in the poem 'The Laburnum Top' out of the following options?
A. engine of her family
B. her barred face
C. Sleek as a lizard
D. September sunlight

 

16. What Transferred Epithet was used in the poem  'The Laburnum Top'?  
A. her barred face identity mask
B. engine of her family
C. Sleek as a lizard
D. September sunlight

 

17. What does the phrase “her barred face identity mask” mean?
A. because she was brown in colour
B. due to her dark coloured yellow body
C. bird’s face became her identity and symbol of recognition
D. None of the above

 

18. What is the dominant colour used in the poem?
A. Red
B. Blue
C. Yellow
D. Green

 

19. What is described by the word 'sleek' in the poem?
A. Lizard
B. Bird
C. Branch
D. Top of the tree       

 

20. What is described as 'engine' in the poem?
A. Lizard
B. Machine
C. Laburnum Tree
D. None of the above

 

 

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	A	11	A
2	B	12	D
3	A	13	A
4	C	14	C
5	A	15	D
6	A	16	A
7	A	17	C
8	A	18	C
9	A	19	A
10	B	20	C

Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues” Multiple Choice Questions ‌(MCQs‌) 

1. Who was Tutankhamun?

A. A Geologist

B. A Scientist

C. An Egyptian king

D. A historian

 

2. When did Tut die?

A. When he was a teenager

B. When he was old

C. When he was in middle age

D. When he was a child

 

3. Who discovered Tut's tomb and when?

A. Adam Cooper in 1901

B. Howard Carter in 1922

C. Howard Carter in 1930

D. Sam Shaw in 1890

 

4. When was Tut's body taken for CT scan after being found?

A. After 1 year

B. After 80 years

C. After 50 years

D. After 30 years

 

5. For how many years did Amenhotep III rule Egypt?

A. 5 years

B. 20 years

C. 10 years

D. 40 years

 

 

6. Who  promoted the worship of Aten (the sun disk) ?

A. Tutankhamun

B. Amenhotep III

C. Amenhotep IV

D. None of the above

 

7. What name did Amenhotep IV change to?

A. Amarna

B. Atul

C. Akhenaten

D. Amenhotep III

 

8. For how many years did Tutankhamun rule Egypt?

A. Nine

B. Eleven

C. Two

D. Five

 

9. What was found with Tutankhamun's body?

A. Gold

B. Egyptian Gold Coin

C. Nothing as such

D. gold, wealth, bronze razor, games, clothes, cases of food and wine

 

10. How would you describe Tut's tomb?

A. gold-plated

B. rock-cut

C. wall paintings with gold-plate

D. rock-cut, 26 feet underground, which had wall paintings

 

11. What was in the first coffin?

A. garlands of olives, lotus petals, and cornflowers

B. flowers and coins

C. gold, wealth, bronze razor, games, clothes, cases of food and wine

D. It was empty

 

12. Why did the third coffin put Carter in trouble?

A. It was empty

B. The resins used to cement Tut to the bottom of the solid gold coffin which was hardened enough

C. The material found inside was already looted

D. None of the above

 

13. How did Carter remove the resins?

A. with the help of chisel and hammer

B. with the help of chemicals

C. with the help of machinery

D. with the help of man power

 

14. How did Carter cut the body of Tut?

A. First head and then every limb

B. first leg and then head

C. first legs, head and then limbs

D. limb, hand only

 

15. What did Carter and his men do after cutting down his body?

A. they sent it for X-Ray

B. they examined them carefully

C. they placed it on the layer of sand in a wooden box

D. they clicked photographs

 

16. When was the mummy examined in X-Ray by the anatomy professor?    

A. In 1945

B. In 1986

C. In 1968

D. Never

 

17.  What facts were revealed when the mummy was X-Rayed in 1968?

A. his several possessions were missing

B. his hip bone was missing

C. his breast bone and front ribs were missing

D. his feet bone was missing

 

18. When was Tut's body taken for CT Scan in the 21st century?

A. January 05 2005

B. January 10, 2007

C. June 09, 2001

D. February 12, 2009

 

19. What does CT scan stand for?

A. Computed Telegraphy

B. Computed Tomography Scan

C. Car Topology

D. Computer Technology

 

20. How did the workmen lift the body for the scan?

A. through the stairs

B. on a hydraulic trailer

C. through sliding

D. through lift

 

21. Why did the procedure stop in between?      

A. As spare fan stopped working

B. as the light went off

C. As the lift broken

D. none of the above

 

22. When was Tut's body taken back in his tomb after CT scan?

A. After a day

B. After 3 hours

C. After 12 hours

D. After 5 hours

 

23. What is the Cemetery of Tut called?

A. Valley of the Kings

B. Tut's Resting Place           

C. Resting Peace       

D. Valley of Flowers

 

24. How did Tut die?

A. It is a mystery

B. Due to heart attack

C. Due to Cancer

D. During a war

 

25. Who said “The mummy is in very bad condition because of what Carter did in the 1920s”?     A. Carter

B. Zahi Hawass

C. an anatomy professor

D. A Egypt Historian

 

26. "Tut was laid to rest, laden with .........."

A. platinum

B. aluminium

C. gold

D. silver

 

27. When did Tut die?         

A. 22000 years ago

B. more than 33000 years ago

C. 10000 years ago

D. 16000 years ago

 

28. What was Tut lavished with?

A. gold, silver, flowers

B. lots of jewels

C. "glittering goods: precious collars, inlaid necklaces and bracelets,

rings, amulets, a ceremonial apron, sandals, sheaths for his fingers

and toes all of pure gold"

D. expensive clothing

 

29. How has archeology changed through the decades ?

A. focusses more on treasure           

B. focusses more on physical findings

C. focusses on time factors more

D. focusing less on treasure and more on the fascinating details of life and mysteries of death

 

30. Who is Osiris?

A. god of nature

B. god of afterlife

C. god of seasons

D. god of universe

 

Answer key 

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	C	11	A	21	A
2	A	12	B	22	B
3	B	13	A	23	A
4	B	14	A	24	A
5	D	15	C	25	B
6	C	16	C	26	C
7	C	17	C	27	B
8	A	18	A	28	C
9	D	19	B	29	D
10	D	20	B	30	B

 

Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues Question and Answers

Understanding the Text
1. Give reasons for the following.
(i) King Tut’s body has been subjected to repeated scrutiny.

Ans: King Tut’s body has been subjected to repeated scrutiny because of his history, his treasures which he was buried with and to know the reason behind his death.

 

(ii) Howard Carter’s investigation was resented.

Ans: Howard Carter’s investigation was resented because of his unscientific methods to cut off his body from the tomb. He also focused more on Tut’s wealth and less on to solve the mystery of Tut’s life and death.

 

(iii) Carter had to chisel away the solidified resins to raise the king’s remains.

Ans: Carter had to chisel away the solidified resins to raise the king’s remains because the body was cemented to the bottom of the solid gold coffin as the resins had hardened. No force could move the body away and keeping the body in the sun, under 149 degrees Fahrenheit also did not help.

 

(iv) Tut’s body was buried along with gilded treasures.

Ans: Tut’s body was buried along with gilded treasures as the ancient Egyptian royals were extremely wealthy. They also believed that the royalty would take all the treasures with them in their afterlife.

 

(v) The boy king changed his name from Tutankhaten to Tutankhamun.

Ans: Tutankhamun means ‘Living image of Amun’. Amun was a major god of ancient Egypt. Amenhotep III smashed and closed his temples, later Tut restored his temples and beliefs back in his empire. That is why he changed his name from Tutankhaten to Tutankhamun to choose his belief in the god.

 

2. (i) List the deeds that led Ray Johnson to describe Akhenaten as “wacky”.

Ans: According to Ray Johnson, the Akhenaten was wacky because of the following reasons:

•         He smashed and closed Amun’s images.
•    He worshipped Aten, sun’s disk.
•    He moved the religious capital from the city of Thebes to the new city of Akhenaten, called Amarna.

•        He changed his name to Akhenaten.

 

(ii) What were the results of the CT scan?

Ans: The results of the CT scan were astonishing which was 1700 digital X-rays cross-sectioning each other to make a three-dimensional image. A grey head appeared and his vertebrae were shown. The images of the hand, ribcage, and skull were shown which were so clear.

 

(iii) List the advances in technology that have improved forensic analysis.

Ans: With the advancement in technology, it has been made possible for many scientific tests to be carried out in a more accurate way to determine the cause of a crime. X-Ray, CT scan, Post mortem, biopsy, and autopsy are now possible.

 

(iv) Explain the statement, “King Tut is one of the first mummies to be scanned — in death, as in life...”

Ans: Tut’s mummy was the first one to be X-rayed in 1968 and later, in 2005, the first to be scanned through Computing Tomography (CT). CT scan revealed new three dimensional images of his body which answered many questions.

Discovering Tut: The Saga Continues Important Extra Questions and Answers Class 11 English Hornbill

Question  1.

What generated the interest of the world in King Tut?

Answer:

King Tut was just a teenager when he died. He was the last heir of a powerful family that had ruled Egypt and its empire for centuries. Since the discovery of his tomb in 1922, the modem world wondered about what happened to him and wondered if he could have been murdered.

Question 2.

How did nature seem to echo the unnatural happening?

Answer:

As King Tut was taken from his resting place in the ancient Egyptian cemetery, dark-bellied clouds that had scudded across the desert sky all day, veiled the stars in grey. It seemed that the wind was angry and had roused the dust devils.

Question 3.

Why did the tourists throng to see Tut’s tomb? What was their reaction?

Answer:

The tourists came to pay their respects to King Tut. They admired the murals and Tut’s gilded face on his mummy-shaped outer coffin. They read from the guidebooks in whisper, or stood silently, pondering over Tut’s untimely death, dreading, lest the pharaoh’s curse befall those who disturbed him.

Question 4.

Who was Howard Carter? What did he find?

Answer:

Howard Carter was the British archaeologist who in 1922 discovered Tut’s tomb after years of unsuccessful search. He discovered the richest royal collection ever found that included stunning artifacts in gold that caused a sensation.

Question 5.

Tut was buried in March-April. How did Carter conclude this?

Answer:

On opening a coffin, Carter found a shroud decorated with garlands of willow and olive leaves, wild celery, lotus petals and cornflowers. Since these flowers grow in March or April, Carter concluded that the burial was in these months.

Question 6.

“When he finally reached the mummy, though, he ran into trouble.” Why was it so?

Answer:

When Carter tried to raise the mummy out of the coffin, he could not. The ritual resins had hardened, cementing Tut’s body to the bottom of his solid gold coffin. No amount of force could pull it out.

Question 7.

How did he decide to detach the mummy? Why?

Answer:

First Carter tried to loosen the resins with the heat of the sun. For several hours, he put the mummy outside in blazing sunshine that heated it to 149 degrees Fahrenheit but it was in vain. Then he decided to carve it out from beneath the limbs and trunk as there was no other way of raising the king’s remains.

Question 8.

What were the treasures found in the coffin? Why were they put there?

Answer:

King Tut’s coffin contained precious collars, inlaid necklaces and bracelets, rings, amulets, a ceremonial apron, sandals, sheaths for his fingers and toes, and his inner coffin and mask, all of which were made of pure gold. The royals, in King Tut’s time, hoped to take their riches along with them for their next life.

Question 9.

How has the viewpoint of archaeologists changed with the passage of time?

Answer:

The archaeologists, earlier, focussed on the treasures that the tomb would yield. The centre of attention, now, is more on the fascinating details of life and intriguing mysteries of death. Moreover, now they use more sophisticated tools, including medical technology.

Question 10.

What was the interesting fact about Tut that was brought to light in the late sixties?

Answer:

In 1968, more than forty years after Carter’s discovery, an anatomy professor X-rayed the mummy and revealed a startling fact: beneath the resin that caked his chest, his breast-bone and front ribs were missing.

Question 11.

 Why was King Tut’s death a big event?

Answer:

King Tut’s demise was a big event as he was the last of his lineage and his funeral sounded the death rattle of a dynasty. Moreover, he died at the very young age of about eighteen.

Question 12.

What is known about Tut’s predecessor Amenhotep IV?

Answer:

Amenhotep IV, during his reign, promoted the worship of the Aten, the sun disk, and changed his own name to Akhenaten, or ‘servant of the Aten’, and moved the religious capital to the new city of Akhetaten. He outraged the country by attacking Amun, a major god, smashing his images and closing his temples.

Question 13.

What made a guard remark, ‘curse of the pharaoh’?

Answer:

When Tut’s body was taken out to be scanned and the million-dollar scanner had stopped functioning because of sand in a cooler fan, the guard jokingly remarked that the king had expressed his annoyance at being disturbed.

Question 14.

With King Tut was being finally laid to rest, nature was at rest too. Explain.

Answer:

When King Tut was finally laid to rest, the wind stopped blowing and was still, like death itself. Orion, the constellation that the ancient Egyptians knew as the soul of Osiris, the god of the afterlife, was sparkling. It seemed to be watching over the boy king.

Long Answer Type

Question 1.

Nature echoed the unnatural happenings with King Tut’s body. Comment.

Answer:

To set to rest the modem world’s speculation about King Tut, the body was taken out of its resting place some 3,300 years later. He was required to undergo a CT scan to generate precise data for an accurate forensic reconstruction. As the body was taken out, raging wind began to blow which seemed to arouse the eerie devils of dust. Dark clouds gathered and appeared to shroud the stars in a grey-coloured coffin. When the body was put down for scan, the million-dollar scanner seemed to keep from functioning.

There was sand in a cooler fan. It was when he was finally laid to rest, that the winter air lay cold and still, like death itself, in this valley of the departed. Just above the entrance to Tut’s tomb stood Orion the constellation that the ancient Egyptians knew as the soul of Osiris, the god of the afterlife, supervising the young pharaoh returning to his rightful place.

Question 2.

“The mummy is in a very bad condition because of what Carter did in the 1920s.” What did Carter do and why?

Answer:

Howard Carter was the British archaeologist who in 1922 discovered Tut’s tomb. He searched its contents in haste. The tomb, which had stunning artefacts in gold, caused a sensation at the time of the discovery.

After months of carefully recording the treasures in the pharaoh’s coffin, Carter began investigating the three nested coffins. When he finally reached the mummy, he found that the ritual resins had hardened. Thus, Tut’s body was cemented to the bottom of his solid gold coffin. Carter set the mummy outside in blazing sun that heated it up to 149 degrees Fahrenheit, to no avail.

To prevent the thieves from ransacking, he chiselled the body free. To separate Tut from his embellishments, Carter’s men removed the mummy’s head and severed nearly every major joint.

Question 3.

What are the facts that are known about King Tut’s lineage?

Answer:

Amenhotep III, Tut’s father or grandfather, was a powerful pharaoh who ruled for almost four decades at the height of the eighteenth dynasty’s golden age. His son Amenhotep IV succeeded him and initiated one of the strangest periods in the history of ancient Egypt. The new pharaoh promoted the worship of the Aten, the sun disk, changed his name to Akhenaten, or ‘servant of the Aten’, and moved the religious capital

from the old city of Thebes to the new city of Akhetaten, now known as Amama. He further shocked the country by attacking Amun, a major god, smashing his images and closing his temples. After Akhenaten’s death, a mysterious ruler named Smenkhkare appeared briefly and exited with hardly a trace. A very young Tutankhaten took the throne as the king, thereafter.

The Voice of the Rain” Multiple Choice Questions ‌(MCQs‌) 

1. The poem 'The Voice of the Rain' is a conversation between ___?

A. poet and rain

B. poet and mountains

C. rain and trees

D. birds and rain

 

2. What does the poet ask to the soft - falling shower?

A. What do you do?

B. What is your name?

C. Who are you?

D. How are you doing?

3. What does the rain reply to the poet's question 'Who are you'?

A. she is rain

B. she is poem of earth

C. she is rain from mountains

D. she is poem of mountains

 

4. Why does the rain tell the poet that she cannot be touched?

A. because she is water

B. because she rises in the form of water vapour

C. because she is in the form of clouds

D. None of the above

 

5. From which two places does the rain rise in the form of water vapour?

A. land and bottomless sea

B. land and ocean

C. mountains and land

D. None of the above

 

 

6. What happens to the earth when the rain falls back on the surface of earth?

A. it provides water

B. it beautifies and purifies the earth

C. it helps in greenary

D. it provides water to flora and fauna

 

7. How does the rain help the seeds inside the earth?

A. provides water

B. provides life and helps them grow

C. provides life

D. None of the above

 

8. What does the rain do when she doesn’t care if anyone bothers about her deeds or not?

A. she talks to the land

B. she works harder

C. she completes her work and talk to the earth

D. she completes her work and comes back home

 

9. What does the poet compare the rain with?

A. Song

B. Heaven

C. Beauty

D. Flowers

 

10. Why does the poet compare the rain with a song?

A. because she beautifies the earth

B. because she provides life on earth

C. as they both share a common journey

D. None of the above

 

11. From where does the song of rain originate?

A. from heaven

B. from ocean

C. from the heart of the singer

D. from the soul of earth

 

12. If the poet has used a Metaphor in the poem, what is it?

A. I am the Poem of Earth

B. voice of the rain

C. Soft-falling shower

D. None of the above

 

13. What Hyperbole was used in the poem?

A. I am the Poem of Earth

B. Soft-falling shower

C. Bottomless sea

D. voice of the rain

 

14. What happens to the rain in the sky?

A. rain drops form

B. rain  it condenses

C. it forms clouds

D. None of the above

 

 

15. What does the word 'Descend' mean?

A. not clear

B. come down

C. to wash

D. hidden

 

16. Why does the rain descend to the earth?

A. to wash the drought and provide water

B. she provides life on earth

C. it beautify and purify the earth

D. it provides life

 

17. What does 'Reck’d or unreck’d' mean?

A. enrichment or no enrichment

B. cared for or not cared for

C. to purify or not

D. to wash or not to wash

 

18. Where does the song return in the poem?

A. to its originator, i.e. singer

B. to the poet

C. to earth

D. to ocean

 

19. What is the meaning of 'who art thou'?

A. Who are you?

B. What are you?

C. How are you?

D. Whose art is this?

 

20. Who is the poet of the poem 'The Voice of the Rain'?

A. Walt Whitman

B. Kushwant Singh

C. Naipul

D. Shirley Toulson

 

Answer key 

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	A	11	C
2	C	12	A
3	B	13	C
4	B	14	A
5	A	15	B
6	B	16	A
7	B	17	B
8	D	18	A
9	A	19	A
10	C	20	A

Chapter 5 “The Ailing Planet: the Green Movement’s Role” Multiple Choice Questions ‌(MCQs‌) with Answers

1. What was the issue raised by the author in the chapter 'The Ailing Planet'?

A. Global Warming

B. Save Water

C.  Save Electricity

D. deteriorating health of  the earth

 

2. When did the Green Movement help environmentalists to raise awareness about the harmful condition of the earth?

A. 1992

B. 1972

C. 1987

D. 1970

 

3. When was the Sustainable Development used by the World Commission on Environment and Development?          

A. 1987

B. 1992

C. 1990

D. 1986

 

4. What did the sign in the zoo in Alaska read?

A. Animal

B. Lion

C. ‘The World’s most dangerous animal’

D. Warning

 

5. Where was the message ‘The World’s most dangerous animal’ written in the zoo?

A. board

B. Mirror

C. wood

D. bark of the tree

 

6. "Who raised the question  “Are we to leave our successors a scorched planet of advancing deserts, impoverished landscapes and ailing environment?”

A. Brandt Commission

B. Brundtland Commission

C. UN World Commission

D. None of the above

 

7. What are the four principal biological systems that form the foundation of the global economic system?

A. water, air, sand, forests

B. ocean, forests, deserts, land

C. fisheries, grasslands, forests, and croplands

D. fisheries, grasslands, oceans, land

 

8. What will the grasslands turn into if systems become unsustainable?

A. turn into a barren wasteland

B. turn into desert

C. soil quality will deteriorate

D. Nothing as such

 

9. What happens to the forest in poor countries?

A. They are cut down for fuelwood

B. they cut down for furniture

C. they grow them into a large number

D. Nothing as such

 

10. What is leading to deforestation at an alarming rate?

A. sale of fuelwood

B. sale of vegetables

C. building up of houses

D. sale of wood for burning purpose

 

11. What is one of the reasons for the exploitation of the environment?

A. increasing population

B. global warming

C. animal extinctions

D. water

 

12. What is the best contraceptive for overpopulation?

A. Development

B. Education

C. By saving water

D. Reforestation

 

13. What is the meaning of holistic and ecological view?

A. the preservation of the environment

B. saving of the water resources

C. saving trees

D. rainwater harvest

 

14. At what rate is the world’s ancient patrimony of tropical forests eroding?

A. at the rate of forty to fifty million acres a year

B. at the rate of one million per year

C. at the rate of 90 million per year

D. none of the above

 

15. Which article of the Constitution of India provides that “the State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country”?

A. Article 48A

B. Article 51A

C. Article 48 A (1)

D. Article 52

 

16. At what rate are the forests in India depleting?

A. at the rate of 3.7 million acres a year

B. at the rate of 36.7 million acres a year

C. at the rate of 13.7 million acres a year

D. None of the above

 

17. What does the three-year study conducted by the United Nations state?

A. Environment has deteriorated that it is critical in eighty-eight countries

B. forests are being cut down at an alarming rate

C. there is not much of drinking water left

D. Fossil fuels are getting extinct at a fast rate

 

18. Complete this line from the chapter 'The rich get richer, and the poor beget children ___'       

A. to work harder

B. which condemns them to remain poor

C. to remain poorer

D. to get richer

 

19. What is the transcending concern?

A. the survival of the planet

B. the survival of forests

C. global warming

D. to save water

 

20. Who said,"No generation has a freehold on this earth. All we have is a life tenancy — with a full repairing lease”?

A. Mr Edgar S. Woolard

B. UN World Commission

C. Donald Trump

D. Margaret Thatcher

 

21. Who said, “We have not inherited this earth from our forefathers; we have borrowed it from our children.”?    

A. Margaret Thatcher

B. Mr Edgar S. Woolard

C. Mr. Lester Brown

D. Brandt Commission

 

22. When did the Green Movement start?

A. 35 years ago

B. 15 years ago

C. nearly 25 years ago

D. 20 years ago

 

23. Where was the first nationwide Green party founded?

A. USA

B. Australia

C. New Zealand

D. Canada

 

24. What is the concept of Sustainable Development?

A. Development of the future

B. Development for the present

C. "Development that meets the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations"

D. Environmental development

 

25. "Scientists have catalogued about .............. living species with which mankind shares the earth"

A. 1.4 million

B. 1.6 million

C. 1.8 million

D. 1.2 million

 

26. Who wrote the book 'The Global Economic Prospect" ?    

A. l k Jha

B. Lester R Brown

C. James Speth

D. Edgar S Woolard   

 

27. What forms the foundation of the global economic system according to Lester Brown?          

A. " fisheries, forests, grasslands, and croplands "

B. land and water

C. forests, fisheries, grasslands

D. fisheries and forests

 

28. Who said that tropical forests are “the powerhouse of evolution” ?

A. Edgar S Woolard

B. L K Jha

C. Dr Myres

D. James Speth

 

29. " Every four days the world population increases by ................."

A. 1.5 million

B. 1 million

C. 1.7 million

D. half a million          

 

30................ has a most crucial role to play in this new Era of Responsibility

A. Agriculture

B. Fishery

C. Industry

D. Aforestation

Answer key

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	D	11	A	21	C
2	B	12	A	22	C
3	A	13	A	23	C
4	C	14	A	24	C
5	B	15	A	25	A
6	A	16	A	26	B
7	C	17	A	27	A
8	A	18	B	28	C
9	A	19	A	29	B
10	A	20	D	30	C

Poem 4 “Childhood” Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) with Answers

1. What is the poem 'Childhood' about?
A. Poet's lost childhood
B. Childhood of every person
C. Childhood of poet's child
D. Poet's father’s childhood

 

2. After what age did the poet realise that he had lost his childhood?
A. Twelve
B. Eleven
C. Ten
D. Thirteen

 

3. What the poet could not find in the Geography book?
A. Hell and Heaven
B. End to sky
C. Island
D. Country

 

4. What did the poet find out about Hell and Heaven?
A. They could be found in Geography books
B. They were imaginary places
C. They were in America
D. They were in India

 

5. What did the poet realise about adults?
A. That they are mature
B. They have to earn money
C. They are not what they seem to be
D. They are cunning

 

6. Why are the adults not what they seem to be?
A. They talk and preach of love but do not act so
B. They are very shrewd
C. They are selfish
D. They are lazy

 

7. What did the poet realise about his mind when he lost his childhood?
A. That he can use it in whichever way he wants
B. That he is very intelligent
C. That he is dumb
D. That he cannot use it in whichever way he wants

 

8. What did the poet conclude about his lost childhood at the end of the poem?
A. It went to another dimension
B. It went to some forgotten place
C. It moved away with time
D. It shifted to his younger sibling

 

9. Where could he see his childhood now?
A. In an infant's face
B. Only in his memories
C. Nowhere
D. In his brother

 

10. What type of Rhyme Scheme is used in the poem 'Childhood'?
A. ABABAB
B. ABBABA
C. ABABCB
D. ABBCCD

 

11. Who is the poet of the poem 'Childhood'?
A. Shirley Toulson
B. Walt Whitman
C. Marcus Natten
D. Naipul

 

12. What is the meaning of the word 'ceased'?
A. Starting of something
B. Come to an end
C. In the middle
D. To chase something

 

13. What is the opposite of the word 'hidden'?
A. Open
B. Closed
C. Partial
D. Exposed

 

14. According to the poet, adults are _______
A. Hypocrites
B. Smart
C. Lovable
D. Intelligent and Cunning

 

15. What did the poet sense about himself when he realised he could use his own mind the way he wants?
A. He sensed that he is as intelligent as his friends
B. He sensed his own individuality and a separate personality
C. He sensed that he is very smart
D. He sensed that he could use his mind in creative work

 

16. What refrain literary device is used in the poem 'Childhood'?
A. When did my childhood go?
B. Hell and Heaven
C. Could not be found in Geography
D. That’s all I know

 

17. Antihesis is where two opposite words are used together in a sentence in a poem, where did the poet use it?
A. Infant’s face
B. Forgotten place
C. Hell and Heaven
D. Preached of love

 

18. Which of these is NOT one of the options where the poet thinks that his childhood has gone?
A. The time when he ceased to be twelve
B. The time when he realized that hell and heaven could not be found in Geography
C. The time when he realized that adults were hypocrites
D.None of the Above

 

19. Which poetic device has been used in the following line-
Was it when I found my mind was really mine.

A. Alliteration
B. Simile
C. Metaphor
D. Personification

 

20. What question does the poet put forth?
A. “When did my childhood go?”
B. “Where did my childhood go?”
C. Both A and B
D. None of these

 

Answer key 

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	A	11	C
2	B	12	B
3	A	13	D
4	B	14	A
5	C	15	B
6	A	16	A
7	A	17	C
8	B	18	A
9	A	19	A
10	D	20	C

 

The Browning Version

MCQ

1. Who has written 'The Browning Version'?
A. Terence Rattigan
B. Mr Edgar S. Woolard
C. Mr. Lester Brown
D. Kushwant Singh

 

2. Who are the three characters of the play 'The Browning Version'?
A. Taplow, Alice and Mr. Harrow
B. Taplow, Frank and Mrs. Harris
C. Taplow, Frank, and Mr. Crocker – Harris
D. Alice, Frank and Mr. Crocker - Harris

 

3. What is the age of Taplow?
A. Fourteen
B. Sixteen
C. Twenty
D. Five

 

4. What does Frank do?
A. Student
B. Teacher
C. Principal
D. Parent

 

5. Who is Mr. Crocker-Harris ?
A. Principal
B. School Teacher
C. middle-aged schoolmaster
D. Don't know

 

 

 

6. Where is the starting scene of the  play set ?
A. School Classroom
B. School Playground
C. Home
D. Road

 

7. What was Taplow doing on the last day of school?
A. Extra Work
B. Time pass
C. Can't say
D. completing homework

 

8. In which class does Taplow study in?
A. Lower fifth
B. seventh
C. ninth
D. lower tenth

 

9. Why does Taplow have to do extra work?
A. because he has missed his previous week due to illness
B. because he didn't perfomed well in his studies
C. because he was there to help his teacher
D. because he was called by his teacher

 

10. Why does Taplow want Science as a remove?
A. because he has no option
B. because he finds the subject extremely interesting
C. because he is confused
D. Cant say

 

11. Why did Taplow call Mr. Crocker - Harris 'Hardly Human'?
A. because he is a sadist
B. he is all shriveled up
C. He is very rude to everyone
D. he finds peace in failing students

 

12. What book was Taplow reading?
A. History textbook
B. The Agamemnon
B. Julius Caesar
D. Englsh Novel

 

13. At what time was Mr. Harris supposed to come to school?
A. Six-thirty
B. seven
C. eleven
D. twelve

 

14. Why was Frank jealous of Mr. Crocker - Harris?
A. because of the effect he has on students 
B. because of his fame          
C. because he was senior schoolmaster       
D. because he was paid well

 

15. What short name does Taplow call Mr. Crocker - Harris  in his absence?
A.Crock
B. Harris
C. Crocker
D. Teacher
 
16. How does Taplow react when Mr. Crocker - Harris cracked a joke in the class?
A. he laughed
B. he ignored it
C. he asked him what it meant
D. he did nothing

17. What is the name of Mr. Crocker - Harris's wife?
A. Millie Crocker – Harris
B. Miley Crocker – Harris
C. Haley Crocker – Harris
D. never noticed

18. When did Mrs. Crocker - Harris entered the classroom?     
A. When Taplow and Frank were discussing Mr. Harris
B. When no one was in the classroom
C.  with Mr. Crocker – Harris
D. when only Taplow was in the classroom

19. How would you describe Millie Crocker - Harris?
A. Thin Woman, late thirties, smartly dressed
B. fat woman, forties
C. thin woman, in her twenties
D. thin women, smartly dressed

20. Who said the lines, 'Come along, Taplow. Do not be so selfish as to keep a good joke to yourself.'?
A. Mr. Crocker – Harris
B. Millie
C. Frank
D. Principal

21. Why was Taplow worried that Mrs. Crocker - Harris might have heard what they were saying?
A. as she had been standing for a few minutes when they were busy talking
B. as she interrupted them talking about his husband
C. as she heard them talking about  Principal
D. Don’t know

22. What was Millie carrying when she entered the classroom?
A. basket
B. books
C. knits
D. flowers

23. Where was Mr. Crocker - Harris?        
A. At the Bursar's
B. At home
C. At market
D. At library

24. What did Millie suggest to Taplow in her husband's absence?
A. to go to chemist to get her prescription filled
B. to go to his home
C. to play golf
D. to wait

25. Does Taplow think that Mr. Crocker - Harris is baised?

1. Yes

B. no
C. May be
D. Can’t Say

26. How is Mr. Crocker - Harris different from other teachers?
A. as he is not biased
B. as he is strict
C. as he is old
D. as he is rude

27. How did Frank react upon the arrival of Mrs. Crocker - Harris?
A. he was happy
B. he was nervous
C. he was relieved
D. nothing as such

28. Who was Agamemnon?
A. he was American astrologer
B. he was an Egyptian king
C. he was the king of Mycenae in Greek mythology
D. Don’t know

29. What does 'Remove' mean in the chapter?
A. a division in British Schools
B. take away something
C. unfasten
D. get rid of

30. Does Mr. Crocker - Harris come to the school in the play?
A. Yes
B. No
C. Maybe
D. Can't say

ANSWER  Key

Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer	Q. No.	Answer
1	A	11	B	21	A
2	C	12	B	22	A
3	B	13	A	23	A
4	B	14	A	24	A
5	C	15	A	25	B
6	A	16	A	26	A
7	A	17	A	27	C
8	A	18	A	28	C
9	A	19	A	29	A
10	B	20	C	30	B