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Question
Within a few pages, the author has packed the important events in the lives of John Ipe and his wife. Discuss how conciseness and economy of expression can achieve an effective portrayal of entire lives.
Solution
There are two ways of narrating a story, one style is the elongated narration with the detailing of each and every emotion and situation giving length to the story. The other style is a crisp one that keeps the story short yet highlighting the important events and emotions. Roy has narrated using the second style. She has kept the story short, yet she did not miss out on anything. She has described the relation of a husband and a wife with all the necessary details, though she did not ponder over the sentiments for long. She explained the face of the society we live in. Jean Genet was so correct when he said that society dwells on images and this is what Roy has tried to emphasise in her story. John had lost the chance to gain the recognition, he could have, felt the loss of identity along with it. Roy is economical when she describes the emotions and makes sure that nothing worthless is portrayed. All that she has spent in the short tale is worth the while. The narration is simple enough and achieves effectively the portrayal of the entire lives of the characters. The disturbance in the marriage, the physical violence, the emotional loss, the intervention of the young child, and its impact on the father. All have been portrayed wisely not wasting any time or making the reader wait for the following happenings.
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RELATED QUESTIONS
Have you are wondered why soldiers are always clad in green? This is to enable them to camouflage themselves during wartime. Hiding in the jungles, their green attire blends into the surrounding trees and shrubs, making it difficult for the enemies to spot them.
Long before man-made use of camouflaging, insects have already adopted the tactic of disguise to escape from the clutches of their predators. By having body colour close to those of the rocks and dried leaves, they can escape from being pursued by the predators.
Butterflies and moths have developed a variety of camouflage strategies since they are quite defenceless and their predators are abundant. Possessing wings which resemble dried leaves help certain butterflies and moths to hide among heaps of dried leaves when predators are around.
Fortunately, not all insects choose the art of disguise to escape from their predators; otherwise, the world would be so dull and colourless. There are insects which assimilate the bright body colours of bees and wasps to escape from being pursued by their predator. Long ago, birds have already learnt to avoid brilliantly coloured wasps and bees in fear of their painful stings. Hence, over millions of years, many harmless insects have assimilated the bees and wasps by imitating. their bright body colours and shapes. In this way, they appear dangerous and hence ward them off.
The beefy, not only appears like the bumblebee in terms of body colour, even its hums sound similar too. The only difference is that the beefy does not have a stirring and is hence harmless. The hoverfly is another insect which imitates. the body colours of the wasps. Their bodies are striped yellow and black. The only deviations are that hoverflies do not have stings, and they have only one pair of wings each while wasps have two pairs each. These variations are hardly noticed by the predators and hence help them to escape.
A1. Complete the table with the information from the passage : (2)
| Insects | Similarity | Difference |
| Bumblebee - Beefy | ||
| Wasp - Hoverfly |
A2. Complete the tree diagram : (2)
A3. Find out : (2)
‘Nature has given a self-protection mechanism to insects’.
Find out at least two examples from the passage to prove this statement.
A4. Vocabulary - (2)
Find the words from the passage for :
(i) animal or bird that hunts other for food
(ii) to get free from danger
(iii) to prevent something from harming
(iv) to make a copy
A5. Personal response - (2)
‘Soldiers disguise themselves to prevent enemies to spot them’.
Give two more examples when the disguising technique is used by humans.
A6. Grammar - (2)
Rewrite the following sentences in the ways instructed :
(i) They have only one pair of wings.
(Make it negative without changing the meaning)
(ii) Insects have already adopted the tactic of disguise to escape from the clutches of their predators.
(Replace infinitive with gerund and rewrite)
(B) Summary : (3)
Summarise the above extract with the help of the points given and suggest a suitable title.
Camouflage of soldiers and insects - reason and ways for disguising - assimilation of insects - need of imitation.
What social and ecological benefits of planting a tree does the poet refer to?
Pick out aparadox from the poem.
Why does the poet refer simultaneously to bridal laughter and bridal tear?
Discuss theme of kindness and compassion in “Hearts and Hands” by O. Henry?
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Dreams
Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:
For some time Mother had greatly envied us our swimming, both in the daytime and at night, but as she pointed out when we suggested she join us, she was far too old for that sort of thing. Eventually, however, under constant pressure from us, Mother paid a visit into town and returned to the villa coyly bearing a mysterious parcel. Opening this she astonished us all by holding up an extraordinary shapeless garment of black cloth, covered from top to bottom with hundreds of frills and pleats and tucks.
‘Well, what do you think of it?’ Mother asked.
We stared at the odd garment and wondered what it was for.
‘What is it?’ asked Larry at length.
‘It’s a bathing-costume, of course,’ said Mother. “What on earth did you think it was?’ ‘It looks to me like a badly-skinned whale,’ said Larry, peering at it closely.
You can’t possibly wear that, Mother,’ said Margo, horrified, Shy, it looks as though it was made in nineteen-twenty.’
‘What are all those frills and things for?’ asked Larry with interest.
‘Decoration, of course,’ said Mother indignantly.
‘What a jolly idea! Don’t forget to shake the fish out of them when you come out of the water.’
‘Well, I like it, anyway,’ Mother said firmly, wrapping the monstrosity up again, ‘and I’m going to wear it.’
‘You’ll have to be careful you don’t get waterlogged, with all that cloth around you,’ said Leslie seriously.
‘Mother, it’s awful; you can’t wear it,’ said Margo. ‘Why on earth didn’t you get something more up to date?’
‘ When you get to my age, dear, you can’t go around in a two-piece bathing suit… you don’t have the figure for it.’
‘I’d love to know what sort of figure that was designed for,’ remarked Larry.
‘You really are hopeless, Mother,’ said Margo despairingly.
‘But I like it… and I’m not asking you to wear it,’ Mother pointed out angrily.
‘That’s right, you do what you want to do,’ agreed Larry; ‘don’t be put off. It’ll probably suit you very well if you can grow another three or four legs to go with it.’
Mother snorted indignantly and swept upstairs to try on her costume. Presently she called to us to come and see the effect, and we all trooped up to the bedroom. Roger the dog, was the first to enter, and on being greeted by this strange apparition clad in its voluminous black costume rippling with frills, he retreated hurriedly through the door, backward, barking ferociously. It was some time before we could persuade him that it really was Mother, and even then he kept giving her vaguely uncertain looks from the corner of his eye. However, in spite of all opposition, Mother stuck to her tent-like bathing- suit, and in the end we gave up.
In order to celebrate her first entry into the sea we decided to have a moonlight picnic down at the bay, and sent an invitation to Theodore, who was the only stranger that Mother would tolerate on such a great occasion. The day for the great immersion arrived, food and wine were prepared, the boat was cleaned out and filled with cushions and everything was ready when Theodore turned up.
One word answers or short phrases will be accepted.
- peering
- ferociously
- immersion
(b) Answer the following questions briefly in your own words.
- Why did mother not join the swimming in the beginning?
- Briefly describe her swimming costume.
- What did Larry think it was?
- Which sentence tells you that Margo thought it was old fashioned?
- What was Leslie’s concern?
- Why did mother think it was suitable?
(c)
(i) In not more than 60 words describe what happened after mother went upstairs to try on her costume.
(ii) Give a title to your summary in 3 (c) (i). Give a reason to justify your choice.
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The old woman could not get ……… the shock.
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Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
And miles to go before I sleep.
(Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening: Robert Frosty)
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(iii) What are the three sounds heard?
(iv) What has been said earlier by the poet about the owner of the woods?
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| airship | flagship | lightship |
Multiple Choice Question:
Which phrase means the same as to ‘quarrel’?
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(Use an email format.)
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The reason was -
- _________________________
- _________________________
- _________________________
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Collect some more quotes on education by famous thinkers.
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| 1. Family | ______ | ______ |
| 2. Friends | ______ | ______ |
| 3. Neighbours | ______ | ______ |
| 4. Classmates | ______ | ______ |
The poem describes the sad demise of the Captain. How would you console the son of the Captain? Write a short paragraph using the points given below.
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Imagine that you and your friend get a chance to visit another planet. There, you befriend an alien who takes you around the planet. After reaching the earth, write a letter thanking him for all the help he did.
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| respect | |
| able | |
| efficient | |
| own | |
| capable | |
| secure |
When and how did Bob realise that the tall man was not his friend?
What are the strengths and weaknesses of Jimmy Wells from Bob’s point of view?
Based on your understanding of the play, complete the Graphic Organiser (GO) suitably.
How did the author react on seeing his photograph?
Suppose a foreigner comes to visit your place and you have to accompany him for sightseeing. Prepare a dialogue between you and the foreigner.
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