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

(a) Childhood fears are deeply entrenched in our mind. Determination, hard work and right training are needed to get rid of them. Comment on the statement in the light of Douglas’ efforts to overcome his fear of water.

(b) When and why did the author say that civil disobedience had triumphed for the first time in modern India? (Indigo)

(c) How does the story, ‘The Rattrap’ show the redemptive power of love and compassion?

(a) In the story, ‘Deep Waters’, by William Douglas, he shares his traumatic experiences of hydrophobia from childhood and what it took for him to overcome that fear. The story throws light on the efforts he took, out of sheer determination and self-love, to get rid of a fear that had been stopping him from living his life confidently.

Childhood fears usually arise due to some traumatic incident and remain entrenched in the child’s mind even in adulthood. If, however, the necessary steps are taken at a suitable point of time itself, the outcome can be getting rid of them forever. In the story Douglas has a fear of deep waters after having nearly drowned on multiple occasions.

He makes the effort to learn swimming by undergoing rigorous training regularly. He fails but doesn’t stop attempting. It takes him time and effort to learn how to swim and overcome his fear, but he doesn’t give up. In the end he becomes a trained swimmer and no longer fears deep waters. It was because of his determination and hard work that he could do this.

(b) Civil disobedience was a form of protest against the government or any authority which Gandhi supported and considered a more suitable alternative to violence. After Gandhi was asked to appear for trial following a registered case against him for disobeying government orders, it is this mass civil disobedience that stuns the British. Thousands of peasants came together to demonstrate against the verdict by the oppressive government and to request the judges to postpone Gandhi’s trial.

The outcome was not just awe and surprise at the mass response, but the trial got postponed too. Gandhi was released without bail, and also received an official letter after a few days, stating that the case lodged against him had been dropped. This was indeed an achievement considering the decision came after the seemingly powerless people came together and protested. This is what makes the author, Mahatma Gandhi, call it the triumph of civil disobedience in modern India.

(c) The story, ‘The Rattrap’ by Selma Lagrlof, is a story about the kindness and compassion a young woman shows to a disillusioned peddler, and how this changes him for the better. The central theme of the story can be said to be the redemptive power of love and compassion.

What the story emphasizes on is human nature. There is an inherent virtue of kindness and humanity within every individual. It is just circumstances that lead him to curb this goodness at times. The peddler who sells rattrap wire is a vagabond who has no fixed place to retreat to and no family to be looked after by. When he lands at Edla’s house for shelter and food, under the guise of someone he is not, he is still welcomed warmly by her and treated well. The peddler had the horrible habit of stealing things even from those who offered him help, but the kindness and warmth shown to him by the young woman compels him not to do anything of that kind.

The power of Edla’s love and compassion changes him inside out, and this is the exact message the author wants her readers to grasp. Love has the power of melting even the sturdiest of rocks.