Answer any four of the following Questions in 30-40 words each.

i. Although Calpurnia revealed her fear after nightmare yet Caesar decided to go to senate house. Why?

ii.“Pen is mightier than sword”. Elucidate with reference to the poem “Not Marble Nor Gilded Monuments.”

iii. Why was the, “Writer’s inspiration Bureau” formed?

iv. What message is conveyed by Vikram Seth through the poem “The Frog and the Nightingale”?

v. How does the story “Two Gentlemen of Verona” give hope to the society?

(i) Calpurnia wishes that Caeser stay at home after seeing horrible dreams but Brutus being a great flatterer is successful in persuading Caeser because his arguments appeal to Caeser’s pride. According to him Calpurnia’s dream signified Caeser’s power and influence. Caeser totally got carried away by his words and decided to go to the Capitol.

(ii) The phrase “Pen is mightier than sword” throws light on the permanence of poetic art and immortality of verse. It talks about the limitations of worldly glory and grandeur of the great monuments, memorials and statues erected by rulers to perpetuate their memory are subject to decay, destruction and deterioration. Only the powerful rhyme of the poet and great poetry will survive the ravages of time.

(iii) The “Writer’s inspiration Bureau” was formed by Helen and other co-ghosts in their afterlife to help out writers who lack new ideas for writing stories. Helen used to help the narrator to write ghost stories as he would often call on heaven and earth to help him for ideas.

(iv) The poem “The Frog and the Nightingale” portrays the truth where the evil in the society has an upper hand over the innocent ones. The end of the poem is pitiful it shows how the ‘innocence’ of the nightingale is killed by the ‘cruel and crafty designs’ of evil symbolised by the frog.

(v) The story “Two Gentlemen of Verona” revolves around the life of two boys who had lost their home and their father in the war. The war had led them to the streets, exposed them to bitter cold and driven them to extreme starvation. They found their sister suffering from tuberculosis of the spine, got her admitted to a hospital and worked very hard to pay for her treatment. The boys’ sacrifice, their devotion and the maturity they displayed at such a young age promises a new hope for the society.