Q7 of 24 Page 1

Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:

... On their slag heap, these children


Wear skins peeped through by bones and spectacles of steel


With mended glass, like bottle bits on stones.


All of their time and space are foggy slum.


So blot their maps with slums as big as doom.


a. Name the poem and the poet.


b. Which image is used to describe the poverty of these children?


c. What sort of life do these children lead?


d. Identify and name the figure of speech used in line 3.


OR


but soon


put that thought away, and


looked out at young,


trees sprinting, the merry children spilling


out of their homes.


a. Name the poem and the poet.


b. What thought did the poet put away?


c. Why are the young trees described as sprinting?


d. How do you know that the joyful scene did not help her drive away ‘that thought’ from her mind?


a. The poem is ‘An Elementary School Classroom in a slum’. The poet’s name is Stephen Sender.


b. The image that is used to describe the poverty of these children is that of the ‘slag heap’ on which the children stay. Their thin bodies are described as skins peeping through by bones. Their surroundings are so dirty that the poet uses the words ‘foggy slum’ and ‘bottle bits on stones’.


c. The children lead a very difficult life in the unhygienic situation of the slums. Their life is pathetic as they are forced to live amidst the ‘foggy slum’, without basic amenities, hygiene and any facilities for living a regular life.


d. The figure of speech used in line 3 is ‘like bottle bits on stones.’ It is called a simile.


OR


a. The name of the poem is My Mother at Sixty-Six. The name of the poet is Kamala Das.


b. The poet put away the thought of her mother getting older by the day and approaching her last days.


c. The poet tries hard to put the thought away from her mind and tries focusing on the sights outside, where she sees young men sprinting and old men spilling. The sprinting trees signify how time flies past and how her mother’s growing old was inevitable. Besides, it also shows that putting the thought away from her mind was impractical, for it was the truth, and no matter how hard she tried to deviate her mind to other thoughts, they would simply sprint away.


d. It is evident that the joyful scene outside did not help her drive away ‘that thought’ from her mind because she finds the young trees that she sees sprinting away from her sight. Besides, what she sees and makes out of the scene is ‘old men’ and ‘merry children’, which signifies how the contrast between the youth and old age was still going on in her mind.


More from this chapter

All 24 →
5

The recent killing of Avni, the tigress which had two 10-month-old cubs has disturbed you. You realize that human encroachment and the greed of land grabbing companies are the cause of this. Write an article in 150 – 200 words to be published in ‘The National Times’ about your concern and the need to take urgent action to stop the decline in the number of tigers in India. You are Amit/Ambika Shukla.

OR


You are Veer/Priti. You are a resident of Chandigarh. You are very concerned about the deteriorating air quality in the northern part of India.


You realize that the rising amount of construction work, burning of leaves and garbage, and the lack of both wind and rain are major causes of this state. Write a speech in 150 – 200 words which you will deliver at the school assembly on the occasion of Diwali, in which you voice your concern about the situation.


 6

The eminent psychologist, Dr. Madhumita was invited by your school authorities to speak to the students on the topic, ‘How to maintain robust mental health’. She delivered a lively speech without using any medical technical terms. After the lecture the students asked many questions especially about how to cope with stress during examinations. Dr. Madhumita addressed their concerns very patiently and gave them some very useful tips. Write a report in 150 – 200 words for your school magazine describing the session with the psychologist. You are Noor/Hilal Head-girl/Head-boy, National School, Sonepat.

OR


The Nilgiris Senior Secondary School is holding an interschool debate on the topic, ‘School bullies are a menace; they should be expelled’. You will be participating from your school in the debate. Write your debate in 150 – 200 words choosing a stand for or against the motion.


 8

Answer any four of the following questions in 30 – 40 words each:

(a) Sophie flits from one dream to another. What trait of her character is brought out by this action?


(b) How and why was M. Hamel dressed differently that day?


(c) Why did Zitkala-Sa resist the cutting of her hair?


(d) Why does Aunt Jennifer create animals that are so different from her own character?


(e) What kind of person was Evans?


(f) Who actually killed the hundredth tiger in ‘The Tiger King’? Why?


 9

Answer any one of the following questions in 120 – 150 words:

(a) Gandhiji said, ‘‘Freedom from fear is more important than legal justice for the poor.’’ How does it become clear from the lesson ‘Indigo’ that freedom from fear is an essential condition for justice?


(b) Give instances from the chapter, ‘The Rattrap’ to show that most of its characters are victims of loneliness.


(c) Douglas has a near-death experience in his childhood which has a negative as well as a positive outcome. Justify the statement with evidences from the text.