The Sunny Morning

Question 1.Do you think Laura was a regular visitor to the park? What makes you think
so?

Answer:Yes. Laura was a regular visitor to the park. This is clear from her questions to her
maid Petra. She wonders whether somebody would have occupied her seat and whether the
pigeons know when to expect her and eagerly come over to feed on the bread crumbs, which
means that she comes daily to the park.

Question 2.Why are Don Gonzalo and Laura annoyed with each other?

Answer: Don Gonzalo was annoyed with Laura as she questioned why he had used his
handkerchief to brush his shoes and numerically asked whether he would use a shoe brush as a
kerchief. Moreover, when he wished her she did not wish him back. Laura was annoyed with
Gonzalo because he had scared the pigeons fly away.

Question 3.Dona Laura reads without her glasses as

a. she has keen eyesight. b. she wants to impress Gonzalo. c. she knows every word by heart.

Answer:(c) she knows every word by heart.

Question 4. Gonzalo and Laura keep up a humorous conversation because they;

a. have nothing else to do. b. enjoy being with each other. c. have the same temperament.

Answer:(c) have the same temperament.

Question 5.Laura and Gonzalo's friendly conversation begins with

a. Gonzalo reading the poems. b. Laura's witty remarks c. a pinch of snuff.

Answer:(c) a pinch of snuff.

Question 6. Do you think Laura is an effective narrator?

Answer:Yes. I think Dona Laura is an effective narrator because when Don Gonzalo asks her
what she wishes to tell him Dona Laura tells him clearly that he had scared away the birds
which were feeding on her crumbs.

Question 7. Gonzalo does not reveal his identity because:

a. he no longer loves her. b. his appearance has changed. c. he looks grotesque and old.

Answer:(c) he looks grotesque and old.

A Sunny Morning Comprehension II

Question 1.Describe the situations wherein Don Gonzalo and Dona Laura recognize each
other as 'the silver maiden' and 'the gallant young man'.

Answer:Both Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo become friends soon after enjoying a pinch of
snuff offered by Don Gonzalo. While Don Gonzalo is reading aloud, he comes across a famous
quotation. Incidentally, he tells Dona that it is from Campoamor. Then Dona Laura expresses
her sympathy for him for reading with all those glasses. This prompts Don to boast about his
talent to compose verses. Then, he tells her about Espronceda, Zorrilla, and Becquer. Dona
makes fun of him saying that he must have gone with Columbus on one of his explorations.

Campoamor and he had met him in Valencia. Then he adds that he was a native of Valencia.
Dona Laura tells him that she had spent several seasons in a villa called Maricela, which was
not far from Valencia. The name Maricela startles Don Gonzalo and he goes on to tell her that
he had seen the most beautiful woman there and her name was Laura Llorente. Laura is startled
to hear her name mentioned and they look at each other intently. It is precisely at this moment
that they begin to recognize each other.

Question 2. What were the circumstances that led Gonzalo to flee Valencia? OR

What circumstances, according to Gonzalo, made his cousin flee Valencia?

Answer: The young Laura Llorente and young Gonzalo loved each other very dearly. Every day
while passing by on horseback down the rose path under the window of Laura, Gonzalo used to
toss up to her balcony a bouquet of flowers. Later in the afternoon, while the gallant young man
was returning by the same path, he would catch the bouquet of flowers she would toss him. As
days rolled by, Laura's parents thought of marrying her to a well known merchant in their
locality. One night, while Gonzalo was waiting under her window to hear her sing, the merchant
came there unexpectedly and insulted him.This led to a quarrel and later a duel. The duel went
on the whole night and at sunrise the next morning the merchant got badly wounded in the duel.
The merchant was a well-known gentleman in Valencia. Since he had been badly wounded in
the duel, Gonzalo became apprehensive of fearful consequences and so fled Valencia and went
to Seville and then to Madrid.

Question 3.Did Laura and Gonzalo pine for each other after they were separated by
circumstances? Who is more passionate? How do they react to each other now? OR

How do Laura and Gonzalo claim to have pined for each other after their separation?
Answer: Soon after they were separated by circumstances the young lovers Laura and Gonzalo
pined for each other. After listening to Gonzalo's account of how he had fled Aravaca, then
joined the army in Africa and had met a glorious death in the war, Laura mutters to herself that
it is an atrocious lie. Then Dona pretends to sympathise with him saying he must have been
distressed by the calamity. Taking it as a strong point, Gonzalo pretends to say that it was
indeed a calamity, but also tries to express his resentment complaining that on the contrary
Laura had soon forgotten Gonzalo and was chasing butterflies in the garden without any regret.
Dona Laura protests saying 'no' loudly and Gonzalo comments that it is a woman's way. Dona
Laura, so as not to be found fault with that way, offers her version of the story.

She tells him that the silver maiden awaited the news of Gonzalo for a year. As she did not
receive any letters from him, went to the sea after sunset, wrote his name on the sand, sat on a
rock and was finally swept out to the sea by the rising tide. Don Gonzalo mutters to himself that
she was a worse liar than he was. Both of them openly express their sympathies for each other.
Dona mutters to herself that she will not tell him that she got married two years later. Don
Gonzalo mutters to himself that he ran off with a ballet dancer to Paris in three months. From
their conversation and from their reactions to each other's partially concocted story, we can
conclude that Laura is more passionate.

Question 4. What makes Dona Laura assume that Don Gonzalo is an ill-natured man?

Answer: Soon after entering the park, Don Gonzalo looks for a vacant bench. When he finds
that the bench on which he used to sit is occupied by three priests, Don Gonzalo gets irritated
and he expresses his annoyance remarking that the priests were idling their time away instead of
saying Mass in the chur Then Juanito suggests that he could sit on the bench on which Dona
Laura was sitting. But Don Gonzalo tells him that he wants a bench to himself. Then after
expressing his anger against the three priests, he walks towards the birds near Dona Laura's
bench, when she angrily asks him to a lookout. On hearing her warning cry, Don Gonzalo asks
her whether she intended to speak to him.

Next, when Dona tells him that he had scared the birds away, he retorts telling her that he does
not care about the birds.Then she tells him that she cared about the birds very much and hence
she was complaining about his behaviour. Don Gonzalo tries to snub her saying that it was a
public park. Intending to argue with him, Dona asks him why then he was complaining about
the priests taking his bench. Instead of giving her a suitable, polite reply, he dismisses her
rudely telling her that they had not met before and he can't imagine why she was taking the
liberty of addressing him. Naturally, Dona who had listened to his comments about the priests
and his replies to her queries assumes that he was an ill natured man.
Question 5.Laura and Gonzalo build stories about themselves so that they can:

a. fool each other. b. forget the past c. conceal their emotions.

Answer: (a) fool each other.

A Sunny Morning Comprehension III

Question 1. Trace how the irony is built in the play. Did you guess the character's past
even before they did so?

Answer:(a) The term 'irony' means 'hiding' or dissembling what actually is the case, not in order
to deceive but to achieve special rhetorical or artistic effects.In the one-act play, 'A Sunny
Morning irony is cleverly built into the play After settling in her bench, Dona Laura sends away
Petra, her maidservant, to chat with the guard. Soon after that, she glances towards the trees at
right and says "Here they come; they know just when to expect me". Though the old lady is
referring to the arrival of the birds, it also hints at the entry of Don Gonzalo and Juanito, who
are needed for the action to move forward. Dona Laura throws three handfuls of crumbs for the
pigeons to eat and soon after that we see Don Gonzalo and Juanito entering the scene.

We come across the next instance of irony when Don Gonzalo starts reading aloud statements
supposedly from Campoamor's work.

Don Gonzalo reads aloud the following:

• "All love is sad but sad as it is, it is the best thing that we know".

• "Twenty years pass. He returns. And each, beholding the other, exclaims can it be that this is
he? Heavens, is it she?"

These lines can be taken as examples of 'Dramatic irony'.

(c) There are two more instances of irony in the play. They are:

1. When Dona Laura tells Don Gonzalo that Laura Llorente was called 'The Silver Maiden' in
»> that locality, he tells her "I seem to see her as if she were before me now, at that window
with the red roses".

2. He starts giving a description of her beauty, "She was ideal, fair as a lily, jet black hair and
black eyes..." and finally says "what forms of sovereign beauty God models in human clay! She
was a dream". On hearing Don Gonzalo say so, Dona Laura mutters to herself "if you but knew
that dream was now by your side, you would realize what dreams come to".
3. "Here are you and I, complete strangers, met by chance, discussing the romance of old
friends of long ago! We have been conversing as if we were old friends", Dona Laura tells Don
Gonzalo after both of them have told their made up stories.

A careful reading of the play reveals that there is a relationship between the old lady and the old
gentleman. When I read the play a second time paying attention to the story and the instances of
irony highlighted here, I was able to guess the characters' past.

Question 2.Why do Dona Laura and Don Gonzalo spin fictitious stories about themselves?
OR

Dona and Don Gonzalo spin fictitious stories about themselves to cover their tracks. Discuss
with reference to 'A Sunny Morning'. Answer: Once Don Gonzalo and Dona Laura realize that
they are the same old, young lovers of Maricela who were separated in life by fate, they decide
not to reveal their identity because they learn from each other in what high esteem they held
each other before they departed, they also come to know that both of them had given up the
other as lost forever. While Dona Laura tells herself that she had married someone else after
waiting for him for one year, Don Gonzalo tells himself that after fleeing from Valencia, then
Seville and Madrid, he had run off to Paris with a ballet dancer in about three months.

Therefore, they concoct fictitious stories so as to conceal their identities completely and to
make the other believe that he or she was dead. Later, when they realize that they are alive, they
do not want to shatter their mutual images in the eyes of the other. Therefore, Don Gonzalo tells
himself that he will not reveal himself because he is grotesque. He wishes that she had better
recall the gallant horseman who passed daily beneath her window tossing flowers. Similarly,
Dona Laura tells herself that "I am too sadly changed. It is better he should remember me as the
black-eyed girl tossing flowers as he passed among the roses in the garden."

Question 3. Bring out the feelings of Laura and Gonzalo as they leave the park. Is it
different from what they felt about each other at the beginning of the play?

Answer:When the scene opens, we find Dona Laura entering the park, leaning upon the arm of
her maid Petra. Soon, the old lady settles in her usual seat in the park. Then the old lady sends
away Petra to meet her boyfriend, the guard. Later, when the pigeons arrive, Dona Laura throws
three handfuls of bread crumbs. Next, we see Don Gonzalo coming in dragging his feet and
leaning upon Juanito's arm. Don Gonzalo and Dona Laura have not seen each other before and
hence we cannot know about each other's feelings until they meet.
However, their feelings towards each other become evident only when Don Gonzalo walks
towards Dona Laura's bench, despite her warning call 'Lookout'. Therefore, when she finds her
pigeons being scared away, she is upset and tells him in a complaining tone that he has scared
away the birds who were feeding on her crumbs. In reply, Don gives an arrogant reply which
provokes her to make a personal comment, 'Why do you complain that the priests have taken
your bench?' Once again, Don Gonzalo's rude snubbing reply provokes Dona Laura to say that
he is an ill-natured old man and comments that when people reach a certain age they should not
become so fussy and cross. Later, Don comes and sits at the extreme end of Dona Laura's bench
and looks at her indignantly. After a few heated exchanges between them, Don Gonzalo mutters
to himself 'Senile old lady! She ought to be at home knitting and counting her beads'.

But, by the end of the play, we find a total change in their attitude towards each other. In the
course of their conversation, they discover that they were 'lovers' once in their youthful days.
But neither of them is ready to disclose their identity. However, the animosity that we witness at
the beginning of the play is no longer there when they are ready to depart. Before taking leave
of each other, they formally thank each other for having met. Both of them ensure that they are
coming to the park the next day. Laura sees Don picking up the lilies dropped by her. Both of
them wave farewell. They leave the place as friends.

Question 4. What do you think would have happened if they had revealed their identity?
Do you think they know who they are towards the end of the play?

Answer:Once Don Gonzalo and Dona Laura realize that they are the same old young lovers of
Maricela who were separated in life by fate, they make up fictitious stories and conceal their
identity.If they had revealed their identity, both of them would have been utterly shocked and
would have accused each other of deceiving the other. They know that both of them had held
the other in high esteem and both of them had fallen deeply in love.

That is why, when they realize that they are the same old lovers of Maricela, they are shocked to
realize how much both of them had changed. Dona Laura after listening to Don Gonzalo's
praise of her beauty as The Silver Maiden' now feels ashamed to confess that she is the old
silver maiden of Maricela because she too is sadly changed.Similarly, Don Gonzalo knows that
he is grotesque and so wishes her to keep his image as a gallant horseman who tossed flowers to
her every day.

Question 5.How is the title of the play A Sunny Morning'justifiable? Discuss.

OR Bring out the instances from the play A Sunny Morning' to justify it as a blend of
romance and comedy.

Answer:'A Sunny Morning' is a refreshingly new romantic comedy. It tells the story of Don
Gonzalo^and Dona Laura who was ardent lovers in their youth but was torn apart in life by fate.
However, the two lovers meet again when they are in their 70s, not as lovers but as total
strangers unexpectedly, in a park in Madrid. After a few initial heated exchanges and repartees,
they settle down, occupy the same bench in the park, spend a good time together and depart as
friends. By the time they are ready to leave for the day, they recognize each other's identity.
They do not disclose it but tell atrocious lies to conceal it. There are quite a few lively moments
of humor, sarcasm, and irony which entertain the readers and audience. The title A Sunny
Morning' is quite appropriate and aptly captures the spirit of the play. The play can be justifiably
called a romantic comedy because there are elements of both romance and comedy in the play.

In its most general sense the word 'romance' suggests elements of gallant love, chivalry, and
adventure. The phrase 'romantic comedy' denotes a form of drama in which love is the main
theme and love leads to a happy ending. A love affair is one of the major themes of a comedy.
Keeping in view these points, 'A Sunny Morning' is a romantic comedy in all respects. It tells
the story of two young lovers Laura Llorente and Don Gonzalo of Maricela in Valencia.

Laura Liorente was known in her locality as 'The Silver Maiden'. She was in love with Gonzalo,
a gallant lover. He used to pass by her house on horseback every morning through the rose
garden and toss up a bouquet of flowers to her balcony which she caught. On his way back in
the afternoon she would toss the flowers back to him. But Laura's parents wanted to marry her
off to a merchant whom she disliked.

One day there ensued a quarrel, leading to a duel between Gonzalo and the merchant, her suitor.
The merchant was seriously injured. Fearing serious consequences, Gonzalo fled from his house
in the town to Seville and then to Madrid. Even though he tried to communicate with Laura
through letters, his attempts failed and he gave her up as lost forever and ran off to Paris with a
ballet dancer. Meanwhile, Laura waited for the news of Gonzalo, for one year and finally got
married.

These two lovers meet unexpectedly, in a park. They are now in their 70s. Both of them have
changed a lot physically but they still cherish the memories of their youth. However, when they
meet in the park, they appear to be cynical, fussy, and ill-natured. The way they repartee and
express their resentment towards each other creates opportunities for humour in the play.
Finally, they become friends after sharing a pinch of snuff. They gradually come to realize that
they are the very same lovers of yesteryears.

The title A Sunny Morning' suggests a warm and bright sunny day. Similarly, the play is also
fresh in spirit, devoid of all cliches and stereotypes of earlier, traditional courtly comedies
because both the characters and the situations are drawn from contemporary society.
 When you are old

Question 1.The speaker is addressing

a. a young woman he has loved b. an old woman that he has met now c. the woman that he
has admired in his life.

Answer:(a) a young woman he has loved.

2 question.Inline two, the word 'book' refers to d. diary.

a. memories b. book of poems c. an album

Answer:(a) memories.

Question 3. The words 'glad grace' suggest

a. her physical beauty b. her inner beauty c. her goodness.

Answer:her physical beauty

Question 4.'Pilgrim soul' means the soul

a. which is immortal b. that has gone on a pilgrimage c. which is questing for true love.

Answer:(c) which is questing for true love.

Qestion 5. What does the phrase 'your changing face' suggest?

Answer:It suggests that her youth and beauty will fade away. When she grows old her face will
get shrunk and will look different.

Question 6. 'Love fled' connotes

a. the death of the man who loved her b. the fleeing of her lover to the mountains c. the loss
endured by her.

Answer:(b) the fleeing of her lover to the mountains.

When You Are Old Comprehension II

Question 1.How is the 'one-man' different from the many others who loved the lady?
OR How does the speaker distinguish/contrast his love from/with that of the others?

Answer: The narrator/speaker asks his lady love to presume that she has grown old and grey
and is sitting by the fire nodding. Then he asks her to read from her book of memories and
reminisce her past when she was in her prime youth. While she is thus engaged in recalling her
past, the poet reminds her that though she undoubtedly had a great many suitors who admired
her beauty and elegance and professed 'love' which may be true or false be alone loved her
unconditionally.

He says that he loved her inner beauty and even the fading away of her youth and beauty. The
phrase 'how many' in the first line (second stanza) stands in contrast to 'But one man', in the
third line (second stanza). While many suitors loved her beauty and elegance, he alone loved
her pilgrim soul as well as the sorrows of her changing face.

Question 2.How does the poem bring out the transient nature of beauty as against the
permanence of love?

Answer:Yes. The poem, while making an attempt to persuade the young lady not to ignore him
or his love, also incidentally highlights the transient nature of beauty as against the permanence
of love. In fact, the speaker's argument is that, whereas all her suitors are merely attracted by
her youthful beauty and elegance, he is attracted by her pilgrim soul. Furthermore, he claims
that the love exhibited by her many suitors may not last long and might change as she grows
old.

On the contrary, his love will remain constant and unconditional. He would love her 'pilgrim
soul as well as the changes in her face which appear as one grows old. Thus, the poet, using the
phrase 'your moments of glad grace' in the first line of the second stanza in contrast with the
phrase 'sorrows of your changing face' in the fourth line suggests that 'beauty' is transient in
nature whereas 'love' is permanent.

When You Are Old Comprehension III

Question 1.Comment on the usage of the time frame by the poet in 'When You Are Old'.

OR

The speaker addresses a young lady in her old age'. Comment on the time sequence used
by the poet. OR

The speaker in 'When You Are Old' is not addressing an old lady Explain.
Answer: 'When You Are Old' is a short love poem in which the poet uses a time frame in which
the speaker addresses his lady love in the present, takes her to an unreal condition in the future,
and asks her to recall her past memories. He does so, in order to persuade her or warn her not to
ignore him and make a wrong decision.

The poet's point of view is the most compelling point of the poem. The narrator is calling upon
a woman that is not yet through with youth to, once past her prime, recall the days he was in her
life and very much in love with her. Obviously, he wants her to remember him for his unique
and unconditional love for her, and how she is choosing to ignore it in the present. By writing
this poem in this fashion, the woman, when the poet hopes that she grows old, will remember
the days when she was young with happiness but will grow regretful that she did not take
advantage of his love.

Alternatively, the woman, in the present will see what an opportunity she is missing by ignoring
his love for her and leaving him to fade into the past. The speaker fears that his lady love will
not act upon his love for her and that she will only remember him in the book of memories. He
hopes that if, once old, she puts down the book of memories, she will grow chilly and sorrowful
that she did not foresee how steadfast his love was but how foolish she was for taking no notice
of it. He is already fearful that she will grow old without him, and this can be seen as he
requests that she remember him a 'little sadly' and as a missed chance to have a happy future.

It is the time frame that the poet has used in this poem that facilitates the poet to write this sad
and reminiscent poem which is not designed primarily to make an old woman regretful, but to
keep a young woman from ignoring the narrator and making the wrong decision.

Question 2.'When You Are Old' is a poem of contrasts. What purpose do they serve?
Answer:When You Are Old' was written to show the true and unforgettable love from the
writer. The theme is a painful one of unrequited love, which the poet manipulates in an
interesting manner. Instead of focusing upon the present or the past, Yeats looks to the future, a
future in which the two people in the poem are destined to be forever apart. The poet visualizes
an unreal condition that the woman he loved became old and felt regret for refusing his true
love.

To depict such a theme, the poet deploys elegant and quiet words and builds pictures of
contrasts: In the first stanza, there is a contrast between her elegant youth and her depressing
old age. In the second stanza, there is a contrast between her many suitors who professed
superficial love and the speaker or the lover who promises true love for her. In the third stanza,
there is a contrast between the fleeting or transient love represented by her many suitors and the
personified love of the poet.
There is a contrast between 'the sorrows of your changing face' in the second stanza and
'murmur a little sadly' of the third stanza. 'The sorrows' indicate passion or strong emotion is
seen in young people and 'little sadly' reflects the listlessness of old people. There is a contrast
between the beauty and elegance' sans her soul sought after by the suitors and the 'pilgrim soul'
in the same lady cherished by the speaker. The many suitors who wanted to court her were
attracted by her superficial beauty whereas this lover/speaker was attracted by her pilgrim soul,
which symbolizes her inner self. These contrasts serve to build a strong argument to persuade
the young lady not to ignore him now and regret later.

The Gardener

Question 1.What qualities of the old man impressed the narrator?

Answer: The old man impressed the narrator by his eyes suffused with strange memories and
native intelligence. He had strong muscular arms, grey hairs and a beak-like nose. He had a
newspaper tucked under his arm and a spade in his hands. The narrator felt the old man was a
labourer, overseer and philosopher all rolled into one - a multi-dimensional personality.

Question 2. Is it a significant factor that the old man came to the garden after walking
hundreds of miles?

Answer:Yes. The narrator learns from the old man that he had come to that garden after he had
walked hundreds of miles. This fact becomes significant because, when he left his place, his
intention was to die but once he came there the coconut grove and the place probably convinced
him that he could live there comfortably. Moreover, before reaching this place he may have
received the news of Basavaiah's death and must have realized that life or death had no meaning
for him. This transformation in his mindset may have prompted him to settle there.

Question 3.The owner of the garden became lethargic because

a. the income of the garden improveddramatically. b. he had become dependent upon the
gardener. c. there was nothing much left for the owner to do.

Answer:(c) there was nothing much left for the owner to do.

Question 4.Why did the owner's wife start worrying about the strange ways of her
husband?
Answer:The owner of the coconut plantation was quite normal. He was working hard to bring
about improvement in his earnings. Probably he had little expertise in managing agricultural
workers. Therefore, he was looking for someone who would help him. That is why, the moment
he spoke to the old man (Tamanna) he felt that he had got the kind of man he wanted. His
expectations proved right and the old man helped him in every way and solved all his problems,
which eventually resulted in increase in his income.

Once his worries disappeared and he had hardly any work to engage himself in, his personal
attention went towards acquiring property and social prestige. It is quite natural that with social
prestige also follow certain vices among which adultery was one. Adultery affects any woman.
All along, her husband had been faithful to her and once his wife came to know that he was
spending his money and time with other women, she got seriously worried. She found it hard to
decide whether the arrival of the old man had done good or bad to her husband.

Question 5.When did the old man decide to narrate his story?

Answer:The old man, who had settled there in the coconut plantation for good, had watched the
activities of the owner. Initially, the owner used to show interest in improving his plantation.
Once the old man had solved all the problems, the owner had plenty of leisure and he became
lazy. Secondly, he had more money which led him to expand his plantation. Then he had turned
his gaze towards acquiring property and social prestige. Then he cultivated certain vices among
which adultery was one

One day, he saw the owner's wife in the plantation. He saw her looking worried. He guessed
that her husband's activities had given her the worries. Therefore, when he saw her in the
plantation he thought he should narrate his own story and try to caution her about her husband.
He had understood the way we face ups and downs in our life. By doing so, he probably
believed that she might be able to convince her husband about his mistakes and set his life right.

Question 6.Tammanna considers his rival, Sangoji/Basavaiah, an importantpossession

because

a. competition helps in the development of an individual. b. Sangoji/Basavaiah leads a more

colourful life.

c. rivalry offers new possibilities of life for him.

Answer:(c) rivalry offers new possibilities of life for him.

Question 7."No, his name was not Sangoji, but Basavaiah," said the old man because
a. he had really forgotten the name. b. he wanted to keep the identity of his rival a secret c. he
was fictionalizing his past.

Answer:(c) he was fictionalizing his past.

Question 8.What unique strategy did Tammanna conceive to annihilate Basavaiah?

Answer:When Tammanna came to know that Basavaiah had forcibly acquired two hundred
acres of his land, he could not tolerate this invasion. Though his supporters explained to him all
the means available to him, he was not satisfied with them because he knew that sooner or later
Basavaiah would again try to outdo him by hook or by crook. Tammanna did not want
Basavaiah to trouble him again. So, he hit on a unique plan. He took recourse to singing ballads
and telling the people through them about the cruelty and the meanness of Basavaiah. This way
he thought he could annihilate him completely.

Question 9.Why does Basavaiah start inviting scholars and musicians to his place? How
did Basavaiah try to overcome his humiliation?

Answer:Once Tammanna started making mention of Basavaiah's cruelty and meanness in his
songs, Tammanna became very popular among scholars of folklore and critics. Basavaiah
watched all this in humiliation. Basavaiah tried to redress his humiliation by acquiring material
wealth. He bedecked himself with gold, diamonds and other precious stones, and started living
in a palatial mansion But the visitors to his house told him that his house looked dull and empty
because Tammanna's books were not there. Basavaiah thought of investing his home with
meaning by inviting scholars, poets and musicians to his place.

Question 10.What was Basavaiah's ray of hope in his attempts to outwit Tammanna?

Answer: When Basavaiah failed in all his attempts to outwit Tammanna, he came to know that
Tammanna had fallen ill. This news cheered up Basavaiah's spirits. This gave him a ray of hope
that by keeping himself healthy he could outwit Tammanna who was ill. Tammanna's disease
became Basavaiah's health.

Question 11. Tammanna decides to give up everything and leave the place because of

a. he sees no purpose in living there. b. he wants to create an impression that he is dead. c. he

wants to put an end to the rivalry

Answer:(b) he wants to create an impression that he is dead.

Question 12.Tammanna forgets his songs and ballads because

a. he finds them futile. b. he doesn't need them anymore. c. he avenges himself.

Answer:(b) he doesn't need them anymore.

The Gardener Comprehension II

Question 1. How did the owner's lifestyle change after the arrival of the old man? "The
old man's stay on the farm led to many changes in the owner's lifestyle." to support this
statement. Illustrate with details from the short story

Answer:The owner had been working hard to improve his plantation, but there were many
problems which he had not been able to solve. However, when the old man met him he came to
know that the old man was well-versed in agriculture and had native intelligence. Therefore he
appointed him immediately. His expectations proved right. The old man proved his worth in
solving all the problems. Consequently, the income from the garden improved dramatically.
This caused a perceptible change in the lifestyle of the owner. He expanded his plantation.

However, he became lethargic and shied away from hard work. His wealth and social prestige
also increased. He acquired a number of friends in the next town as well as in his own village.
Even though he had precious little to do, his life became crowded with colourful events. He
cultivated umpteen vices including adultery.

Question 2. What advice did the supporters of Tammanna give for getting back his land?
Answer: When Basavaiah acquired Tammanna's two hundred acres forcibly, Tammanna could
not tolerate this invasion. Tammanna's supporters advised him about the various methods
available for getting back his land. They told him that he could go to the court of law. He could
also take recourse to the police. If he did not want to do either, there were any number of
persons ready to attack Basavaiah and using force and violence to wrest his land from him.

Question 3.How did Tammanna react to Basavaiah's. encroachment of his land?

Answer:When Tammanna-came to know that Basavaiah had forcibly taken away two hundred
acres of his land, he could not tolerate this invasion. When his supporters advised him to either
go to the court or seek the help of the police or ask some persons to attack Basavaiah and take
back his land forcibly, Tammanna hit on a unique idea, of annihilating Basavaiah. He thought of
getting all his experiences composed in the form of ballads and telling the people through them
about the cruelty and the meanness of Basavaiah.

Question 4.How did Basavaiah try to overcome his humiliation?

Answer: When Tammanna started singing ballads through which he told the people about
Basavaiah's cruelty and his meanness, he became very popular. Many scholars of folklore and
literary critics translated his songs and earned their share of the fame. All this made Basavaiah
shrink in humiliation. However, he tried to redress his humiliation by acquiring more material
wealth and luxuries. He got a palatial mansion built for himself. He appointed a number of
persons just to praise him. He bedecked himself with gold, diamonds, and other precious stones.
He even started inviting scholars, poets and musicians to his place with the intention of
investing his home with meaning.

The Gardener Comprehension III

Question 1.The rivalry between Tammanna and Basavaiah keeps moving from the visible
domain to the invisible. Comment.

Answer: In the beginning, there appeared to be a healthy competition between Tammanna and
Basavaiah. Tammanna did not take Basavaiah as his rival at all. Therefore, when Basavaiah
acquired fifteen admirers to outdo Tammanna's ten friends, it did not come to Tammanna's
notice at all. Tammanna did whatever he wanted without bothering about Basavaiah. But
Basavaiah did not keep quiet. When he came to know that Tammanna possessed one thousand
acres of land, and he had only eight hundred, he could not tolerate this. He sent word to
Tammanna asking him to sell two hundred acres to him. Tammanna did not agree. On the
contrary, he offered to buy all the land that belonged to Basavaiah. Therefore, Basavaiah went
along with his people and acquired two hundred acres of Tammanna's land forcibly and got a
fence built around it. Tammanna could not tolerate this invasion. Later, when his supporters
suggested to him that he could go to the court of law or the police or use his own people to
attack him and forcibly wrest his land from him, Tammanna did not accept their suggestion.
Tammanna probably thought that competing with Basavaiah by physical means has no end to it
because it depends on who is able to muster more muscle power. Muscle power has its own
limitations. Secondly, muscle power needs the involvement of many more people apart from
Tammanna.

Moreover, as long as both of them were fighting by visible means people will not know who
was trying to compete with whom. Until then, Basavaiah was the first one to show to the people
he had more land, more friends, more wealth, etc. Tammanna never did anything to spite
Basavaiah. Whatever Tammanna did, was on his natural inclination and not to spite Basavaiah.
Therefore, Tammanna realized the limitations of competing with Basavaiah by physical means.
That is why he thought of putting an end to the unhealthy rivalry of Basavaiah by taking
recourse to something invisible. He took recourse to singing ballads and telling the people
through them about the cruelty and the meanness of Basavaiah.

Question 2.How does Tammanna adopt a counter strategy to challenge the material wealth
of Basavaiah?

Answer:When Tammanna came to know that the rivalry between him and Basavaiah had
reached a peak and that two hundred acres of his land had been forcibly taken away from him
and had been even fenced up, Tammanna hit on a plan of annihilating Basavaiah completely. He
got all his bitter experiences with Basavaiah composed in the form of ballads and started
singing them before the people, announcing to everyone Basavaiah's cruelty and his meanness.
This way his reputation as an artist started spreading fast and critics and scholars of folklore
thronged him and translated his songs.

Question 3.Tammanna turns reflective in the course of his life. What does this tell us about
human nature?

Answer: 'The Gardener' is the story of Tammanna, an old man, now employed in a coconut
plantation. Though the story is initially narrated by the author, Tammanna himself becomes the
narrator later. Tammanna is the protagonist in the story and he tells the story of the rivalry
between two farmers Tammanna and Basavaiah. Though Tammanna is one of the characters in
the story, the narrator does not disclose his identity till the end. The second narrator tells us that
Tammanna was a farmer, had ten acres of land, a comfortable house and people too ready to
carry out his orders. Then he tells us about his rival Basavaiah.

We learn from the narrator that Tammanna did not perceive Basavaiah as his rival initially.
Tammanna led a normal life and became prosperous gradually and came to possess 1000 acres
of land. Until some point whatever Basavaiah did to keep himself on par with Tammanna was
seen as healthy competition.But, one day, Basavaiah asks Tammanna to sell him his two
hundred acres of land and Tammanna refuses. Basavaiah takes the land forcibly. Though there
were various options available for getting his land back, Tammanna searches for a method that
could annihilate Basavaiah completely. Instead of proving might is right or seeking justice from
the court of law, Tammanna uses a different strategy. He composes and sings ballads about
Basavaiah's meanness and cruelty. Very soon Tammanna becomes very popular and Basavaiah
has no answer to his brainy ideas.

Secondly, Tammanna having found meaningful engagement in 'art' forgets Basavaiah's bad
deeds. Just when Basavaiah is contemplating what to do next to spite Tammanna, he comes to
know that Tammanna is ill. Basavaiah is pleased with the news. But their rivalry does not end
there. Tammanna decides to outbeat him by manipulating the situation itself. He gives up
everything and goes away to Chennarayapatna so as to spread the news that Tammanna is dead.
Later Basavaiah dies a natural death. When Tammanna comes to know about his death, he
becomes reflective. Though there is no cause-effect relationship between the rumour of
Tammanna's death and Basavaiah's real death, Tammanna is shaken out of his senses.

Until then both Basavaiah and Tammanna indulged in rivalry to satisfy their ego. With the death
of Basavaiah, Tammanna loses his identity and he becomes a non-entity. This makes Tammanna
reflect over human nature and comes to the conclusion that man needs some issue to fight for or
cling on to. In this game, when the loser dies it is natural for the winner to feel guilty. He suffers
from a sense of guilt that he was responsible for Basavaiah's death.
Naturally, when Tammanna is accused by his own conscience, he becomes reflective. When one
becomes reflective, one tends to review one's own actions objectively. We do not normally
attach emotions to our thinking and then we discover what went wrong and where. Here, both
Tammanna and Basavaiah have not done anything 'bad' intentionally. They only fought
imaginary battles and lived in a dream world of their own.

Man is mortal and all the glory that man believes to enjoy is created by our mind. Man is a
dreamer and lives in a dream world of his own. Since man's life has its own limitations, man's
dream and reality rarely go in unison. When reality overtakes man, the man comes to realize
that he is only a puppet in the scheme of things and man is in reality 'nothing', but builds up his
own image to boost his confidence so that life becomes meaningful as long as he is alive.

Question 4.How does the reference to Russia and America provide another dimension to
the story?

Answer:The Gardener' presents the story of two farmers who get actively involved in rivalry
and each one tries to overtake the other in earnings, wealth and social prestige. But, at one
point, Basavaiah takes recourse to force and forcibly occupies a part of Tammanna's
landholdings. Until now both of them had tried to upstage the other using tangible means. But
now Tammanna realizes the limitations of muscle power and so uses his 'intellect' to unleash a
strategy by which he wishes to annihilate Basavaiah completely. He gets all his bitter
experiences with Basavaiah composed in the form of ballads and songs and sings them in
public.

Thus, Tammanna tries to give a fitting reply to Basavaiah's use of physical force and so their
fight takes a psychological dimension. Basavaiah fails to match up to the manipulatory tactics
of Tammanna and shrinks in humiliation. However, he tries to console his wounded pride by
indulging in luxurious living. No matter what he does, he does not succeed in upstaging
Tammanna. It is at this stage higher forces play their own role. Tammanna falls ill and
Basavaiah enjoys psychologically telling himself that Tammanna's disease is Basavaiah's health.
This way, Basavaiah gets the satisfaction of finding a reason to keep himself happy. So, here the
story has now passed from the physical dimension to the psychological dimension.

At this stage, Tammanna comes out with another plan. He plans to use something beyond man's
life. Tammanna thinks that as long as Basavaiah knows that he is alive, Basavaiah will continue
to take him as his rival. So Tammanna hits on an idea which works at a level higher than the
physical and psychological level. His plan is to beat Basavaiah on another plane, which is
beyond man's limits. He knows for sure that if Basavaiah comes to think that Tammanna is
dead, Basavaiah will stop treating him as his rival. Tammanna goes away to Chennarayapatna
and spreads the news that Tammanna is dead. It is sheer coincidence that Basavaiah dies a
natural death. But Tammanna comes to feel guilty that he was the cause of his death. This
incident brings him back to his senses and he reflects over his life.

Now, after the death of Basavaiah, Tammanna has become a non-entity.When he reflects over
their mutual game plans, Tammanna realizes that man invents several reasons to make his life
meaningful. He also realizes that man can go on indulging in whims and fancies until a certain
age only. Later, when the man comes to confront reality, he comes to see the truth. Then he
becomes spiritual. That is when a man realizes his limitations. Thus we see the plot taking
several dimensions from physical to psychological and then to spiritual.

But, this story also takes another dimension. Earlier, stories that used to focus on man's vices
like cruelty, meanness, greed, jealousy, rivalry, etc., used to be portrayed on a smaller canvas
and the stories used to be confined to people living in towns, cities and kingdoms. We are now
in the post modern society and the common man is now being influenced by global forces. In
traditional societies, solutions to man's mundane, existential problems used to be found locally.
A king or a Lord or a chieftain or a zamindar used to dispense justice. But this story is situated
in a post modern society.

When Basavaiah acquires Tammanna's land forcibly, Tammanna's followers offer three
solutions - seek the help of the police; seek a legal solution; or take recourse to use muscle
power. The three strategies suggested by Tammanna's followers saturate this story in the post
modern scenario. Their thinking exhibits a modern world where police, law court and mafia
exist. Even at the national and international levels, big countries like Russia and America follow
such strategies.

The fact that Tammanna makes a reference to Russia and America, is only a hint by the author
that the problems of 'man' in the modern society cannot be confined to the war between 'virtues
and vices' of the yesteryears but man's problems are complex and are reflected at the global
level also. Similarly, when Tammanna makes a reference to Russia's declaration to America that
America is not their enemy and she will not wage a war against America, it is only a strategy by
the writer to suggest that Tammanna and Basavaiah belong to post-modern society. One can
also infer that a literary artist in the modern world cannot be blind to man's problems in general
and try to suggest solutions at the local level. Man's problems are deep-rooted and have
implications at different levels. Man's problems go beyond a nation and though problems of
human society are the same,they assume different dimensions as human society becomes more
and more complex every day.

Question 5. Observe how the story employs multiple narratives. How does this technique
unveil the mystery of human relationships?
Answer: In the short story 'The Gardener' by P. Lankesh, there is a story within a story and there
are two narrators. In the first story, the author in the persona of the first-person narrator
introduces the protagonist Tammanna and the story of the owner of the coconut plantation.
Then, the first narrator makes way for the second narrator to take over. Interestingly, in the
story, the narrator is the protagonist and tells his own story to the second owner's wife.
However, the narrator employs the third-person narrative style and distances himself from the
story. Thus 'The Gardener' is an example of the use of multiple narratives.

Multiple narratives describe a type of story that follows several protagonists rather than
focusing on one main character. In some cases, writers choose this structure to show the
individual perspectives of characters in a larger 'macro story' and how they relate to each other.
The Gardener' is an example of the second type. Tammanna is the protagonist in both stories.

In the first story, we learn how Tammanna uses his own biography to indirectly give a message
to the owner's wife. He gives to the lady his own perspective of human life and experience. The
author has used this technique of multiple narratives to reveal the mystery of human
relationships.

In his own life, Tammanna has learnt lessons of being proactive in a rivalry with Basavaiah. He
plays his game with Basavaiah, only until he dies. Basavaiah's death comes as a revelation to
him about human nature. Only then does he theorise saying 'man does not live with the
intention of acquiring wealth, or education or art but for some kind of unbearable vengefulness'.
Until then, both Basavaiah and Tammanna showed a keen interest in fighting and a zest for life.
But once Basavaiah dies, Tammanna loses all enthusiasm for life. He says he is a non-entity
now.

Now he has become philosophical. Therefore, when he finds the owner of the coconut
plantation cultivating all kinds of vices and the lady getting desperate about her husband, the
'guilt' about Basavaiah's death that was pricking his conscience gets transformed into a virtue or
a positive force and that motivates him to tell his own story objectively to the owner's wife.

Had not the author used multiple narrative structures, Tammanna's story could not have come
out as a story to educate the owner's wife. Thus, multiple narrative structures is able to unveil
the mystery of human relati

To the foot from it's child

Question 1. What would the foot like to be?

Answer: The foot would like to be a butterfly or an apple.

Question 2.'The child's foot is not yet aware it's a foot' (line 1 of the poem) conveys
a. the immense possibilities of life b. the unrestricted nature of a child's imagination c. the
child's ignorance of harsh realities.

Answer:(b) and (c) the unrestricted nature of a child's imagination/the child's ignorance of
harsh realities.

Question 3.What does time teach the child?

Answer:Time teaches the foot that it cannot fly and also cannot be a fruit on the branch of a
tree.

Question 4.The line 'stones and bits of glass, streets, ladders and the paths in the rough
earth'

a. indicates hardships one has to face in life. b. provides a mere description of a road. c.
suggests the good and bad

Answer:(a) indicates hardships one has to face in life.

Question 5.Why does the child's foot feel defeated?

Answer:The child's foot feels defeated because it has to live like a prisoner, condemned to live
in a shoe, and it can never be free to escape from the difficulties of life.

Question 6.Mention the words that convey the real experiences of the foot.

Answer:The words 'stones and bits of glass, streets, ladders, and the paths in the rough earth'
convey the real experiences of the child's foot.

Question 7.Identify the lines in the poem that suggest the transformation of the foot.

Answer:Lines 17 - 28 suggest the transformation of the foot. "These soft nails of quartz

a coarsening hard to accept."

Question 8."..... condemned to live in a shoe" suggests that the foot is

(a) a prisoner (b) a criminal (c) forced to give up its dreams.

Answer:(a) and (c) a criminal/forced to give up its dreams.

Question 9.What does the line 'until the whole man chooses to stop' mean? ORWhen does
the foot stop to walk in Neruda's poem?

Answer:The line, 'until the whole man chooses to stop' means until the person dies.
Question 1.We think of a foot as a part of the human body, but Neruda says 'To the Foot
From its Child'. Why?

Answer:We think of a foot physically as belonging to a person but Neruda sees in a

philosophical way and says "To The Foot From Its Child". Though it belongs to a person
physically, philosophically like the child who is f the symbol of innocence, the foot also does
know about its future. But in adulthood, it faces many challenges of life and gets an overall
experience and leads a meaningful life until the end. Finally, it is attacked by diseases and
surrendered to death.

Question 2.Pick out the expressions that suggest the child's imagination is fertile.

Answer:The expressions, 'to be a butterfly',or 'an apple', 'can not fly', 'cannot be a fruit bulging
on the branch' suggest that the child's imagination is fertile.

Question 3.What contrasting descriptions of the foot does the poem offer? Why?

Answer:The poet Pablo Neruda presents a contrasting description of a child's f foot and an
adult's foot so as to delineate the changes that are seen in a person's life as he or she changes
from an infant into an adult, until his death. Initially, the child or the infant's foot has soft nails
of quartz and its toes are tiny, soft, and rounded at the tips like the petals of some flowers. As
the child learns to walk and starts

walking on stones, bits of glass,

streets, ladders and the rough

surface of the earth, the child's foot

becomes aware of its role. It learns

that it is a foot and cannot become a

butterfly or a bulging fruit on a tree.

Once it realizes that it is a foot, it is defeated in realizing its aspirations and gets imprisoned in a
shoe. Inside the shoe, it tries to understand the world in its own way, alone, like a blind man
groping in the dark. During this period its soft nails of quartz become opaque, are bunched
together, and look like eyeless reptiles with triangular heads, grow callused, and are covered
with faint volcanoes of death.

These changes happen because, once the child's foot becomes an adult's foot, it walks as the
foot of a man or woman and keeps walking in the mines or as a church minister or a
government worker, until its death. Thus, the foot experiences the hardships of life and loses its
'soft' and flowery petal-like form.
Question 4.The poem begins with the idea that a child's foot is not yet aware that it is fafoot; at
the end, the foot is unaware that it had ceased to be afoot. What is the poet trying to convey
through these statements? OR

Explain the similarity between the foot's early life and its end as depicted in 'To the Foot From
its Child'.

Answer: In this poem, 'foot' is a metaphor for 'life'. The poet Neruda using the foot as a
metaphor to explore 'life' through its various stages from infancy through childhood until death.

When the poem begins, the 'foot' is the infant's foot which suggests man's 'childhood'. The
child's foot does not know that it is a foot. This state refers to the innocence of childhood where
'Man' has many dreams and aspirations. The child's wish to become a butterfly or an apple
stands for man's aspirations and dreams. Once the child's foot enters the real world, it starts
walking over stones, bits of glass, streets, ladders, and the rough surface of the earth.

Thus, as the child grows over a period of time, the child's foot realizes that it is only a 'foot' and
cannot become fruit or a butterfly. Then, since it has to serve its role as afoot, it is imprisoned in
a shoe. Inside the shoe, it tries to understand the world alone, in isolation. The child's foot, as it
grows old, serves as the foot of a man or a woman working in the fields, or market or mines or
ministries and toils hard day and night until it dies. When it dies, the foot loses its human
awareness and that is why when it is buried the foot again gets its child-like innocence. It again
dreams of becoming an apple or a butterfly. It is this journey from f childhood through
adulthood and the final death that the poem focuses on.

Pablo Neruda is saying that life and death are part of a continuous cycle. Secondly, the poet
wishes to say that the freedom of childhood is lost when a person becomes an adult and faces a
life of constant work and struggle. Thus, life takes away people's free spirits until they are freed
again by death.

Question 5.How does Neruda describe the busy life of the individual as represented by the
foot?

Answer:The 'foot' is used as a metaphor for life and the foot refers to the foot of Dan individual.
Once the child develops into an adult, the adult keeps on walking without respite either as a
man or as a woman. The individual spends his life working either as a farmer in a field, or as a
miner in mines, or as a salesperson in the market or as a government servant or as a church
minister. This way the individual toils hard in society until his death.

Question 6.What does the last stanza of the poem mean? Can you think of parallels in
nature?
Answer:In this poem, 'foot' is used as a metaphor for 'life'. Life refers to the life of a human
being as seen from his infancy until his death. Pablo Neruda gives his view of 'life' and 'death'
in this poem. The poem does not begin with the beginning of life in the womb of its mother but
from the time after it has taken birth on the earth. The poem covers the period of its infancy to
death and fbeyond. The 'foot' as portrayed in the poem refers to the child's foot. Since a child is
not aware of its limitations and lives in a dream world of imagination, the child's foot wishes to
fly like a butterfly or become a bulging apple on the branch of a tree. Over a period of time, it
realizes that it is only a foot and its role is only to serve as a foot.

The poet then refers to the 'adult foot' after the death of an individual after death. Once a human
being dies, he or she is normally buried. It is this burial of the dead body of the individual that is
expressed in the line "it descended underground unaware, for there, everything was dark". Once
the 'foot' or the individual dies, it loses its human awareness and goes back to its child- like
innocence. This is expressed in the sentence 'It never knew it had fceased to be a foot'. That is
why, like a child's foot which is not aware that it is only a 'foot', it aspires to become a butterfly
and fly or become an apple.

One can find several parallels in nature. All living beings born on the earth pass through the
cycle of birth and death. A seed germinates to give a seedling. The seedling grows into an adult
plant, may become a tree or a shrub, and die. Its seeds bring a similar plant to life again.
Similarly,similar plant to life again. Similarly, the eggs of animals hatch and bring forth their
young ones which grow, mature, lay eggs and later die. Their eggs bring back similar animals to
life again.

To the Foot from its Child Comprehension III

Question 1.Examine how Neruda's poem works out the contrast between colourful dreams
and the humdrum reality of life.The poem 'To the Foot From its Child' represents the
conflict between illusion and reality. Elaborate.

Answer:The poem, 'To the Foot from its Child', presents a contrast between colourful dreams
and the humdrum reality of life. The poet conveys his view of life through his description of a
foot. The foot is a metaphor for expressing the crushing of a child's expressing the crushing of a
child's spirit through the challenges and restrictions that life places upon him. One can
undoubtedly infer that the poem is basically a criticism of how people force children to grow in
society and forget all their dreams and imaginations.

With a view to delineating the forces that capture the child's freedom and faspirations, the poet
begins the poem making a statement directly that the child's foot, which is not aware that it is a
foot, would like to be a butterfly or an apple. From this one can infer that man's spirit dreams of
enjoying unlimited freedom in this world but it comes to know that it cannot enjoy unlimited
freedom and has to pass through several obstacles before it matures into an adult.But, in time,
stones and bits of glass, streets, ladders, paths in the rough earth go on teaching the foot that it
cannot fly. As the infant is growing and developing into a mature adult, he is exposed to the
harsh realities of life which are metaphorically expressed as stones, bits of glass, ladder, street,
etc. These are the problems and obstacles an individual has to face. Thus, once the child
becomes a boy, an adolescent, and an adult, the problems of life teach the individual that he is a
f'mortal' and his powers are limited and can only serve the society as a member like other
human beings. This sense is expressed in the line 'that it cannot fly, cannot become a fruit and is
defeated, falls in the battle, is a prisoner condemned to live in a shoe'. Here, the 'shoe' can be
taken to mean the human society that regulates his mind and activities.

Wearing the shoe refers to the infant becoming a mature adult. Soon after entering adulthood,
the individual explores 'life' within the shoe.This again means that a lot of restrictions are
imposed on the individual. Now that he is an adult he keeps on walking without respite through
the fields, mines, markets, and ministries. The line 'this foot toils in its shoe, scarcely taking
time to bare itself in love or sleep' expresses the fact that once he realizes that he is a man
destined to live in a society, he learns to face the humdrum realities of life. He has no time to let
his human spirit indulge in 'love' and 'sleep'. He is a prisoner and keeps on working until he
dies. Once he dies his spirit loses its human awareness and is once again as free as the children.

Question 2.Neruda's poem is a salute to the ordinary human being, who continues with life
braving all odds.

Do you agree? Give reasons.

Answer:Yes. In this poem, Neruda tries to delineate the journey of human 'life' from its infancy
to death and beyond. With a view to expressing the changes that the 'life spirit' undergoes
through its journey from an infant to an adult and beyond death, Neruda uses 'foot' as a f
metaphor. That is why he calls 'life' during infancy as the infant foot and the life spirit of an
adult as the adult foot.

The whole poem can be summed up as the 'surrender' of life force to societal pressures. During
infancy, the child's spirit dreams of infinite possibilities and hence dreams of becoming a fruit
or a butterfly. Once it starts growing in society the harsh realities of life expressed as 'stones,
bits of glass, ladder, and rough surface of the earth', teach the infant spirit that it is a 'foot' which
means 'you have a role' to play in the society and 'you are an individual subservient to the
whims and fancies of the society'. Once the infant spirit gradually accepts its defeat and tries to
live in conformity with the norms of the society, it becomes an adult. This is expressed
metaphorically as the 'foot being imprisoned in a shoe'.
Once you become a member of the society you learn to live like others, giving up your
pleasures and gradually you get to know the realities of life. You go on slogging throughout
your life without indulging in 'love and sleep' which symbolically represent your rights on this
earth. You forego your rights and live like an adult and serve the society until you die and you
get your freedom after your death. As long as your life spirit is in your body you have human
awareness and you are aware of your limitations. Once you die you lose human awareness and
your spirit is free to enjoy its freedom.

In the poem, Neruda does not speak of the possibilities of the human spirit 'rebelling'. Nor does
he say that human spirit is being crushed by oppressive forces; the human spirit does not
commit suicide. On the f contrary, he describes the journey of the human spirit as an infant's
foot until it becomes an adult foot and after its death how it becomes free again. From this, it
can be argued that Neruda's poem is a salute to the human spirit for braving all odds and
completing one's cycle of life and death peacefully, and not rebelliously.

Question 3.Is Neruda criticizing how society crushes childhood dreams and forces people
into rigid moulds?

Yes, to some extent. In this narrative- descriptive poem, Neruda has Dattempted to delineate the
predicament of man as a prisoner enslaved by society. Using 'foot' as a f metaphor for 'life', he
narrates the journey of life from that of an 'infant foot' to an 'adult foot' until its death and after.
In the first two lines itself, the poet declares the wish of childhood. The infant's foot is not
aware that it is a 'foot' and hence would like to be a butterfly or an apple. These two objects -
'butterfly' and 'apple' - together suggest that the infant's foot thinks of complete freedom to
become whatever it wants. Being born a human being it cannot aspire to become a butterfly or
an apple.From this, we can infer that there is some restriction imposed on us by birth itself. This
is expressed in the line 'it is not aware that it is afoot'. The infant food, once it starts growing, is
exposed to the ways and means of the world. We live in human society and nature, the words
'stones, bits of glass, streets, ladders, and the paths in the rough earth' refer to man's ways of
living.

This exposure to man's style of living brings awareness in the child that it is a foot. The poet
suggests that the infant's foot is engaged in a battle with the society and 'adults' crush the child's
playful spirit and imprison it in a shoe. This stage refers to the way the child gets acclimatized
to living in human society. Once it wears the 'shoe', which means, it accepts its identity as 'man',
a member of the human society, he starts exploring the human world alone, groping in From
this, we can infer that there is some restriction imposed on us by birth itself. This is expressed in
the line 'it is not aware that it is afoot'. The infant food, once it starts growing, is exposed to the
ways and means of the world. We live in human society and nature, the words 'stones, bits of
glass, streets, ladders, and the paths in the rough earth' refer to man's ways of living.
Question 4.'Foot' is a keyword in the poem. Comment on Neruda's skillful use of the word
and its associations in terms of imagery to convey his ideas. OR Highlight the imagery
used to bring out life's hardships that deform the child's foot.

Answer: In this poem, as the title 'To the Foot from its Child' suggests, 'foot' is the keyword in
the poem. The poet uses 'foot' as a metaphor for his view of 'life'. The poet personifies the 'foot'
and focuses his attention on the 'life' of man, using the 'foot' as the protagonist. 'Life' begins in
infancy and so even in the poem, 'life' begins as an infant's foot.It is natural that children, who
are naive and innocent, do not know that their foot is meant for walking and it has a function to
discharge. Through the use of the 'foot' as a metaphor, the poet cleverly brings out the battle
between harsh realities of life symbolically expressed as stones, streets, ladder, bits of glass, etc.
The child dreams of f becoming a butterfly or an apple. So naturally, the metaphor of foot helps
the poet to convey his meaning through an imaginary battle fought between the child's foot and
the surfaces on which the child is likely to walk.

The child's foot is sure to be hurt when it walks on a street laden with stones and bits of glass
and paths in the rough earth and when it climbs the ladder pressing his soft foot on the pointed
edges of the rungs of the ladder. Then it realizes that it is a 'foot' Here the poet wants the It is
natural that children, who are naive and innocent, do not know that their foot is meant for
walking and it has a function to discharge. Through the use of the 'foot' as a metaphor, the poet
cleverly brings out the battle between harsh realities of life symbolically expressed as stones,
streets, ladder, bits of glass, etc. The child dreams of f becoming a butterfly or an apple. So
naturally, the metaphor of foot helps the poet to convey his meaning through an imaginary
battle fought between the child's foot and the surfaces on which the child is likely to walk.

The blind adult foot now walks and works without respite until he dies. The different
professions of men are mentioned. The adult foot may be a man's foot or a woman's foot and
keeps walking through fields, markets, mines, and ministries, and finally toils hard scarcely
finding time to enjoy 'love' and 'sleep'. Here also the metaphor of the 'foot' facilitates the
expression in the line 'scarcely f taking time to bare itself in love or sleep'. Finally, it ceases to
be a 'foot' when a man chooses to stop working. Thus, the 'foot' as a metaphor has been
skillfully used by the poet to evoke the right imagery to suit his meaning.

I believe that books will never disappear

Question 1.'I was educated more by my father's library' says Borges. He means

a. school or the university did not educat him. b. he was educated in his father's library too.

c. he learnt through private tuitions held in his father's library.

Answer:(b) he was educated in his father's library too.

Question 2.Why did Borges feel guilty about his mother?

Answer:His mother's dedication to nurturing him was immense. He had misused her love as he
had taken her for granted and never gave her his love and affection in return.

Question 3.According to Borges, blindness is

a. just a physical handicap b. not a misfortune c. actually a resource

. Answer: (c) actually a resource.

Question 4.Why does Borges prefer to believe that he is not blind?

Answer:He believes in optimism than pessimism. If he were to believe that he was blind, it
would affect his future but if he takes it positively and uses it as raw material, it helps his future.
Hence he believes in optimism.

Question 5.Borges feels that when we read a book what matters is not the author's
intention, but what sense we get out of it. (True/False.)

Answer:True.

Question 6.How, according to Borges, does the book go beyond the author's intention?

Answer:According to Borges, in every book, there is a need for something more, which is
always mysterious. A book can be full of errors; we can reject its author's opinions; disagree
with him or her, but the book always retains something sacred, something mortal, and
something magical which brings happiness. Thus, the book goes beyond the author's intention.

Question 7.When does the poetic act happen, according to Borges?

Answer:According to Borges, the poetic act happens when the poet writes it and the reader
reads it.

Question 8.What cannot be defined without oversimplifying it?

Answer: Poetry is something so intimate and essential that it cannot be defined without
oversimplifying it.

Question 9.Which is the most astounding invention of man?

Answer: 'Book' is undoubtedly the most astounding invention of man.

I Believe that Books will Never Disappear Comprehension II

Question 1.Why does Borges feel remorseful after his mother's death regarding his
relationship with her? Can this experience be generalized?How does Borges describe his
mother and his feelings for her in his interview?interview

Answer:During the course of his interview with Alifano, Borges tells him that his mother was
an extraordinary person who showed him a great deal of kindness in his life. Then he confesses
in a remorseful tone that he could not make his mother happy because he himself was not a
happy man. He also confesses that he should have shown a better understanding of his mother.

This experience can be generalized because what Borges says is true of all children. It is not
surprising to know, when their mothers die, most children express that they had taken their
mother for granted while they were alive like they do with the moon or the sun or the seasons
and are guilty that they had abused their mothers.

Question 2.How does Borges elaborate on Goethe's words, 'ail that is near becomes far'?

Answer:While giving his observations about 'blindness', Borges recalls an idea he had
expressed in one of his poems. He had said that humiliation, misfortune, and discord were given
to us so that we may transmute them, and make from the miserable circumstance of our life
'eternal works'. At this juncture, Borges recalls to mind a statement made by Goethe. It says,
"All that is near becomes far". In this statement, Goethe refers not only to the sunset but also to
life. Borges says that in his case, the visible world has moved away from his eyes forever. He
feels that it is his duty to accept his misfortune and as far as possible enjoy those things.

Question 3.What, according to Borges, should one think of humiliations and misfortunes?
Answer: Borges says that all persons must think that whatever happens to him or her is a
resource. He adds that all things have been given to us for a purpose, and therefore we should
think of our humiliations, misfortunes and embarrassments as raw material like clay so that we
may shape our art. He says that humiliation, misfortune and discord were given to us so that we
may transmute them, so that we may make from the miserable circumstance of our life eternal
works or works that aspire to be so.

Question 4.What are Borges'views on poetry and poem?

Answer:Borges believes that poetry is something so intimate and so essential that it cannot be
defined without oversimplifying it.

Then he says that poetry is not the poem and opines that a poem may be nothing more than a
series of symbols. Borges opines that poetry is the aesthetic act that takes place when the poet
writes it and when the reader reads it. He believes that poetry is a magical, mysterious and
unexplainable - although not an incomprehensible - event. He believes that one should feel the
poetic event upon reading it otherwise the poet should be deemed to have failed.

Question 5.Why is it important for poetry to use language precisely? With what example
does Borges demonstrate this aspect of poetic language?

Finding precise words is important in the art of poetry. How does Borges justify this in his
interview?' OR

To what extent is finding the precise words important in the art of poetry, according to Borges?
Answer Borges feels that poetry needs to use language precisely. He opines that only precise
words elicit the emotion. In order to prove his point, he quotes a line from Emily Dickinson,
This quiet dust was gentlemen and ladies'. He argues that though the idea is banal the poet is
referring to a place which had been visited by men and women in 'summer'. These people are
now dead and the dust she refers to is the dust of death. Instead of saying This quiet dust was
gentlemen and ladies' if the poet had used 'men and women', the poem would have failed as
poetry. It would have sounded trivial.

Question 6.In spite of modern modes of communication, Borges believes that books will
not disappear. Illustrate. OR Why does Borges say that books will never disappear?The
modem developments in communications will not replace books.' Explain with reference
to Jorge Luis Borges' thoughts on this.

Answer:According to Borges, among the many inventions of man, the book is undoubtedly the
most astounding of all. All others are extensions of our bodies. The telephone is the extension of
our voice, the telescope and the microscope are extensions of our sight and the sword and the
plough are extensions of our arms. Only the book is an extension of our imagination and
memory. Modern modes in communications have not developed anything to work as a
substitute for our imagination and memory.

I Believe that Books will Never Disappear Comprehension III

Question 1.'Poetry is magical, mysterious, and unexplainable'. How does Borges explain
the strange aspect of poetry? OR What are Borges's views on poetry?

Answer: According to Borges, poetry is an aesthetic act; and poetry is not the poem. The poetic
act takes place when the poet writes it and the reader reads it and it always happens in a slightly
different manner. When the poetic act takes place, Borges believes that we become aware of it.
That is why he calls poetry as a magical, mysterious, and unexplainable event. If one does not
feel the poetic event upon reading it, Borges opines that we need to conclude that the poet has
failed.

Question 2.How does Borges value literature? Why is it important for the future of
mankind?

Answer:According to Borges, a book is only an extension of our imagination and memory. We

get access to literature through books. Literature is a dream, a controlled dream. Borges believes
that we owe literature almost everything we are, what we have been, and what we will be. Our
past is nothing but a sequence of dreams. He believes that there is no difference between
dreaming and remembering the past. It is books that serve as the repositories of great memories
of all centuries and nothing else can replace books. Therefore, if books disappear, surely history
would disappear and along with history man would also disappear. Therefore,difference
between dreaming and remembering the past. It is books that serve as the repositories of great
memories of all centuries and nothing else can replace books. Therefore, if books disappear,
surely history would disappear and along with history man would also disappear. Therefore,
literature is very important for preserving the future of mankind.

Heaven if you are not earth

Question 1.According to the poet, 'heaven' is

(a) on earth (b) within us (c) elsewhere.

Answer:(a) on earth.

Question 2.The poet finds god in

(a) nature (b) earth (c) temple.

Answer:(a) nature.

Question 3.What does the line 'Heaven lies all over' suggest?

Answer:Heaven is not elsewhere but within us and is all over the world. If we are good, then
that is heaven and if we are bad that is hell. Nature is also a heaven as we can find heaven in
objects like trees, moon, sands of grains etc.

Question 4. Who creates'heaven on earth'?

Where does the poet create heaven?

Answer: The poet creates heaven on earth.

Heaven, If you are not here on Earth Comprehension II

Question 1.Describe the beauty in nature that makes the earth a heavenly place .How has
the poet glorified heaven on earth?

Answer:The poet Kuvempu argues that we do not need to seek heaven after death. We can enjoy
the heavenly bliss in looking at Nature on this earth itself. The poet presents a beautiful
description of nature's beauty. The poet emphatically states that the bliss that one experiences
while looking at the streams that are leaping down, roaring from the top of the hills, the waves
that come rolling across the seas carrying surf at their edges, the tender rays of sunlight falling
on the sprawling green forests and the gentle sun warming up the earth make this earth a
heavenly place.

Question 2.Why does the poet feel that earth is more beautiful than heaven?

Answer:According to Kuvempu, there is no heaven in reality. Entities like 'God', 'Heaven', and
the nymphs are merely figments of man's imagination. All the different forms of nature like the
green forests, the streams that leap down the hills, the waves that roll across the seas, the
moonlit night, and the splendour of harvest appear more beautiful than the imaginary
descriptions of the man.

Heaven, If you are not here on Earth Comprehension III

Question 1.How does the poet explain the illusion of heaven in the poem? OR

How does the poem 'Heaven, if you are not here on Earth' visualise heaven?

Answer:Kuvempu considers concepts like 'God', 'nymphs' and 'heaven' as myths created by
man. He opines that if at all 'heaven' exists it exists only on this earth and nowhere else. In order
to break the illusion of heaven in man's mind, he presents before us charming sights of nature
and argues that nothing can be more heavenly than these forms of nature.

He makes a direct address to nature and declares that if heaven does not exist on makes a direct
address to nature and declares that if heaven does not exist on the earth where else can it be. He
justifies his statement referring to the streams, the waves, and the sunlight. He says that the
streams that leap down roaring from the top of the hills, the rolling surf at the edge of the
waves, the tender rays of sunlight falling on the green forests, the gentle sun warming the earth
all these make the earth heaven.

Question 2.How does the poem celebrate the power of the poet?
Answer:Having argued categorically that if at all there exists an entity called heaven, it exists
only on this earth, the poet Kuvempu presents before the readers' beautiful sights of nature. In
the last stanza, the poet states that one sees chunks of heaven lying all over in the splendour of
harvest and of moonlight.He concludes the poem celebrating poetic talent. He says that the poet
enjoys looking at Nature, imbibes the beauty of nature and spills the nectar of heaven, on the
earth, through his poetry.

Japan and Brazil through a travellers eye

Question 1.'Exquisitely well-mannered people' refers to

a. Indians b. Japanese c. Americans.

Answer:(b) Japanese.

Question 2.What behaviour substitutes privacy in Japan?

Answer:The respect for one another's privacy and showing courtesy are the substitutes for
privacy in Japan.

Question 3.The reference to public telephone suggests:

a. how overcrowded Japan is b. how the Japanese respect privacy c. how busy the Japanese
are.

Answer: (b) how the Japanese respect privacy.

Question 4.Hierarchy in bowing demands

a. youngsters bow to their elders. b. wife bow to her husband . c. sisters bow to their brothers.

Answer:(b) and (c) wife bow to her husband/ sisters bow to their brothers.

Question 5.How does one show appreciation while eating soup in Japan? Why do the
Japanese make a fearful noise while eating soup?

Answer:When a person is eating soup offered by a host or hostess, he must make a fearful noise
so as to show his sign of appreciation; otherwise, the host or hostess will think that the guest is
ill mannered.

Question 6.How are the pavements in Brazil decorated? What does it tell us about the
people there? Why do Brazilians decorate the pavements they walk on?
 Answer:The grey pavements in Brazil are often decorated with beautiful black mosaics, a
unique type of decoration. From this, we can infer that these people are alive to beauty in their
surroundings. Secondly, they walk very slowly and meditatively and have a lot of time for
contemplation.

Question 7.What happens when leisurely people in Brazil get a steering wheel in their
hands?

Answer:wnen leisurely people get a steering wheel in their hands, they drive their vehicles so
fast that you would be inclined to believe that gaining a tenth of a second is a matter of grave
importance for them all the time.

Question 8.Who do the Brazilian drivers look out for when they are driving? Why?

Answer:The drivers are supposed to look out for pedestrians. But in Brazil, they do not care for
people walking on the roads or people trying to cross the roads. The deliberately accelerate and
laugh at pedestrians who run to survive. The drivers in Brazil treat pedestrians as fair prey to
hunt and mow down.

Question 9.What remarkable attitude is seen in the war between drivers?

Answer:The war between the drivers is murderous but good-tempered. They cut in, overtake on
both sides and force the other person to break violently and commit all the most heinous crimes.
But they smile at the other person without any anger, hostility, or mad hooting.

Japan and Brazil through a Traveller's Eye Comprehension II

Question 1.Why is bowing in Japan a complicated process?

Answer:'Bowing' in Japan is complicated because ✓wing' in Japan is complicated because they

follow a complicated hierarchy in bowing which they have to follow as sacrosanct. The
Japanese know very clearly who should bow to whom, how deeply, and for how long. For
example, they follow certain basic rules inside the family. They are: "the wife bows to her
husband, the child bows to his father, younger brothers to elder brothers, and the sister bows to
all brothers". The Japanese reflect the smallest difference in rank, standing, age, social position
in their bowing style in that split second.

Question 2.Why does bowing, a natural practice in Japanese culture, look so quaint' and
puzzling to the author?

Answer:'Bowing', a natural practice in Japanese wing' in Japan is complicated because they

follow a complicated hierarchy in bowing which they have to follow as sacrosanct. The
Japanese know very clearly who should bow to whom, how deeply, and for how long. For
example, they follow certain basic rules inside the family. They are: "the wife bows to her
husband, the child bows to his father, younger brothers to elder brothers, and the sister bows to
all brothers". The Japanese reflect the smallest difference in rank, standing, age, social position
in their bowing style in that split second.

Question 2.Why does bowing, a natural practice in Japanese culture, look so quaint' and
puzzling to the author?

Answer:'Bowing', a natural practice in Japanese Bowing', a natural practice in Japanese culture,

looks so 'quaint' and puzzling to the author because when the Japanese bow, they bow neither
too deeply nor not deeply enough and bow to the right person at the right time. They know who
should bow to whom, how deeply, and for how long. They manage it without difficulty and
subtly reflect even the smallest difference in rank, standing, age, and social position. Secondly,
they bow with the ceremonious serenity of a courtier yet with a great deal of natural and
inimitable grace.

Question 3.Do you think the author is finding fault with/making fun of the culture of
bowing in Japanese and speeding cars in Brazil?

Answer:No. This article is a piece of travel writing. Travel writing is no longer viewed as a
product of some innocent curiosity. It is also not an attempt to understand an alien culture
objectively. Rather, this narrative should be read as the author's perspective on Japanese culture.
The author is certainly not finding fault with the Japanese way of eating soup or their habit of
bowing.

The author is only expressing his surprise when he looks at their cultural habits as an outsider.
The language might sometimes appear to be used for a humorous effect. But, in a piece of
creative writing, such liberties in their style must be accepted as natural. If the writer simply
described objectively whatever he saw, the article will lose its human interest.

Similarly, the author is expressing his surprise at the way the drivers of four wheelers move on
the road in Brazil and the size of the fast-moving traffic. The author is also expressing his
appreciation for the beautiful black mosaics seen on the pavements. He is also expressing his
annoyance for the sluggishness of the leisurely walking pedestrians.

Similarly, the author is expressing his surprise at the way the drivers of four wheelers move on
the road in Brazil and the size of the fast-moving traffic. The author is also expressing his
appreciation for the beautiful black mosaics seen on the pavements. He is also expressing his
annoyance for the sluggishness of the leisurely walking pedestrians.

Comprehension |||
Question 1.'Bowing in Japan is quainter; more formal, more oriental.' Do you agree? How
does George Mikes describe bowing to be a quainter and infectious trait of Japanese
people?

Answer:Yes. In this article, the author introduces the reader to one of the most fascinating and
conspicuous cultural habits of the Japanese people. He tells the reader that as soon as you land
in Japan, you perceive immediately that the Japanese are exquisitely well-mannered. Very soon,
you will also discover that the Japanese are very courteous and ensure that they do not violate a
speaker's privacy while talking to someone over the phone. Then you come to be a witness to
people bowing to each other almost everywhere as if it is an obsession with them.

However, the author records his appreciation for their skill and style of bowing. He says that
people bow to each other with the ceremonious solemnity of a courtier and yet with a great deal
of natural and inimitable grace. Then he remarks that bowing is neither less nor more silly than
shaking hands or kissing the cheek, but it is quainter, more formal, more oriental, and also
infectious.

He says so because, while anyone can learn the art of shaking hands or kissing the cheek
perfectly well, it is extremely difficult for a European to learn to do 'bowing' the way Japanese
do because, in a split second, the Japanese manage to subtly reflect all the nuances one needs to
follow while bowing. They successfully exhibit the smallest difference in rank, standing, age,
and social position. On the other hand, if European attempts to bow to someone, he or she will
bow too deeply or not deeply enough; they bow to the wrong man at the wrong time or they do
not clasp their hands in front of them which is bad or they do in a wrong way which is
considered even worse.

Question 2.Describe how traffic in Brazil leads to humorous observationsobservations.

Give an account of the crawling traffic in Brazil as mentioned by George Mikes. Write a
note on traffic in Brazil.

Answer: George Mikes makes humorous comments on the 'traffic' in Copacabana and Avenida
Presidente Vargas in particular and Brazil in general. He opines that Brazilians are easy-going
and leisurely characters. But the very same people, the moment they get a steering wheel in
their hands, no speed is fast for them. They drive with such speed that one would be inclined to
believe that gaining a tenth of a second is a matter of grave importance for all of them, all the
time. The writer talks about the increasing number of vehicles in Brazil and says that the
increase in the number of vehicles is making the pedestrian's life more hazardous every day. He
then narrates an interesting anecdote to give a clear idea of the number of vehicles moving on
the road at any given time in Avenida Presidente Vargas.
He asks the reader to imagine that he is standing on one side of the road trying to cross the road.
He will spend hours on end contemplating a fascinating problem: How can crawling traffic
proceed at such a terrifying speed? He strengthens the same idea by another example. He asks
the reader to imagine that a man on his side of the road suddenly catches sight of a friend of his
on the other side of the road and starts waving to him. Then he shouts at him asking "How on
earth did you get over there?" The other person will yell back at him, "How? I was born on this
side!" The author leaves it to the readers to draw their own inferences.

Question 3. What aspects of our social life, do you think, would appear quaint and odd to
a foreign tourist?

Answer:India is a multi-ethnic, pluricultural, and multilingual country. People of different

cultural practices, customs, and traditions are spread throughout the length and breadth of the
country, thus making the population heterogeneous in character. But, foreign tourists who visit
India, most often come from countries where the population is homogeneous in character.
Naturally, the foreign tourists find quite a few aspects of our social life, quaint and odd.

One of the commonest habits that might appear quaint to them is the way our womenfolk create
patterns on the floor in front of their houses or gates, with chalk piece, coloured powder, or
flower petals, called Rangoli.Similarly, the buntings of mango leaves and plantain tree stem that
we decorate our houses with special pooja days, auspicious occasions and festivals, and lighting
lamps during Deepavali appear odd to them. Secondly, Indians' love and respect for the holy
cow and monkeys as a symbol of god also appear quaint to them.

Another aspect that may appear quaint is the ritual of worshipping vehicles which are
commonly seen during Ayudha Pooja. Apart from these, there are several habits which might
make us bow our heads in shame. They are urinating in public, spitting chewed betel nut
residues on the walls and roads, sneaking loudly over mobile phones in public places, jumping
at railway and bus ticket counters and at bus stops, crossing roads where there are no pedestrian
crossings, honking unnecessarily, parking vehicles on the footpath, disobeying signal lights,
men staring at women walking on the street till she moves out of sight, putting up pandals for
private functions on the road and blocking it for pedestrians and motorists, shoving garbage on
the road, pedestrians jaywalking on the road, etc. Talking to strangers on trains and buses,
enquiring them about their jobs and salaries, etc., are also some of the social aspects of Indians
which appear quaint to foreigners.

The Voter
Question 1.The roof was a popular young man because of he

a. had not abandoned his village. b. wanted to guide his people. c. was forced to return to his
village.

Answer:(a) had not abandoned his village.

Question 2.Why was Marcus considered rich and powerful?

Answer:Marcus had two long cars and had just built himself the biggest house anyone had seen
in these parts. He had entertained his people slaughtering five bulls and countless goats to feed
the people. Though the village had no electricity, he had installed a private plant to supply
electricity to his new home. Secondly, his house was opened by the Archbishop. Thirdly, he had
been made a minister after he won the election. That is why he was considered rich and
powerful.

Question 3.Marcus Ibe had earlier been

a. doctor b. schoolteacher c. politician.

Answer:(b) school teacher.

Question 4.The fact that Marcus Ibe left the good things of the capital and returned to his
village whenever he could, shows

a. his devotion to his people and love for the place b. he enjoyed all the comforts of the city
in his village.

c. he wanted to improve the amenities in his village.

Answer:(b) he enjoyed all the comforts of the city in his village.

Question 5.After the feasting, the villagers

a. praised Marcus's faithfulness and generosity b. intended to demand more for theirvotes c.
realized Marcus's wealth.

Answer:(c) realized Marcus's wealth.

Questiono.The 'whispering campaign' is

a. secret campaigning at night b. bargaining for votes. c. clandestine distribution of money.

Answer:(c) clandestine distribution of money.

Question 7.The village eider Ezenwa tilted the lamp a little because

a. he could not see properly b. the place was too dark. c. he wanted to confirm the amount
paidto each.

Answer:(c) he wanted to confirm the amount paid to each.

Question 8.'Firewood' refers to

a. Roof taking advantage of the situation. b. the advantages of being a voter. c. the benefits
the elders received.

Answer:(c) the benefits the elders received.

Question 9.Roof and the leader of the POP campaign team were

a. friends. b. strangers. c. acquaintances.

Answer:(a, c) friends/acquaintances.

Question 10.The roof was mesmerized by

a. the red notes on the floor. c. the POP campaign leader. b. the picture of the cocoa farmer.

Answer:(a) the red notes on the floor.

Question 11.Roof's act of inserting the torn ballot papers in two boxes signifies

a. keeping his promise. b. appeasing lyi c. absolving himself of his guilt

Answer: (c) absolving himself of his guilt.

The Voter Comprehension II

Question 1.Trace the change in the attitude of the villagers before the second election. Give
reasons. Why did the people decide not to cast their vote for free in the forthcoming
election? Explain the change that had come into the thinking of muofis in 'The Voter'

the thinking of Umuofia in 'The Voter'. Trace the reasons behind the 'radical change' that
had come into the thinking of Umuofia in The Voter'.

Answer:In this short story, Chinua Achebe makes an attempt to present before the reader how
'elections' lose their sanctity and are misused by greedy politicians for self aggrandizement
instead of bringing about improvement in the life of the people.

The people of Umuofia vote en masse in favor of the People's Alliance Party and elect Marcus
Ibe, a local teacher, as their leader. Once getting elected, people see a great many changes in
Marcus' life. Their elected representative becomes wealthy, is awarded chieftaincy titles and
doctorate degrees, besides many other honours He also builds a huge mansion in his native
village and names it 'Umuofia Mansions'. He spends most of his time in the capital and comes
back to stay in his village mansion sometimes.

The villagers do not have running water and electricity, but he gets a private plant installed in
his village to supply electricity to his new house. To top it all, his new house is opened by the
Archbishop. On the day the new house is opened, he hosts a grand dinner to all the people of his
village, slaughtering five bulls and countless goats. The common people realize that winning an
election can change an ordinary mission school teacher into a wealthy and powerful man.

They also know that it is their ballot which has given him all those benefits. They recall that
they had given their votes free of charge five years ago. They realize that they had underrated
the power of the ballot paper and should not do so again. That is why, in the second election,
they demand money for their votes.

Question 2.What was the justification for the formation of the POP? OR What reasons
are given for the formation of the POP?

Answer: POP stands for Progressive Organisation Party. This party is formed by the tribes down
the coast to save themselves from 'totally political, cultural, social and religious annihilation'.
The POP was a complete non-entity in the first election. Once the organizers come to know that
there is no opposition party, some rich members of the tribes down the coast, form this party.
They want the people to know that they will be paid pounds and not shillings if they listen to
them and vote for them. In the story, we do not get any hint about the objectives of the PAP, but
the organizers of the POP claim that they want to save the people from political, religious,
cultural annihilation, though they appear to be no better.

From the situation described in the story, we can infer that the writer intends to tell the reader
that no political party is seriously interested in improving the welfare of the people. They seem
to know for sure that by winning an election, they can take the government in their hands and
become rich. They seem to be unaware of their duties and responsibilities.

Question 3.The roof is an intelligent manipulator. Justify with reference to the story, OR
What is the role played by Roof in 'The Voter'?

Answer:Roof Okeke is an energetic young man and has come back to his own village Umuofia,
after working as a bicycle repairer's apprentice for two years in Port Harcourt. It is true that he
would have enjoyed a rich life if he had stayed on in his job. But he comes back to the village
and tells the people that he wants to guide them in difficult times. Later he becomes an 'election
campaign manager' for Marcus Ibe and over a period of five years becomes an expert in election
campaigning at all levels.In the story, we get to know more about Roof when he is on the job,
engaged in one of his whispering campaigns. He tells the elders that Marcus Ibe, being a 'son'
from their village, has been made a minister and it should be considered a great honour. Then he
tries to use his rationalistic thinking with the people. He asks them, "Do you ever stop to ask
yourselves why we should be singled out for this honour?" He himself answers his question. He
tells them that they are favoured by the PAP leaders. Here we see Roof as a manipulator at
work. He knows for sure that Marcus was perhaps the only man with some education.

Secondly, there was no opposition party. Basically, the village folk were innocent and naive and
hardly realized the meaning of an election and the value of their mandate. Roof exploits this
situation to his advantage.

Moreover, when he comes to learn that people had understood the benefits of entering politics
and winning an election as seen in the case of Marcus Ibe and are now planning not to give their
vote free of charge, he immediately informs Marcus and keeps him prepared to pay some
money to the people in exchange for their votes.

Finally, we get a clear picture of Roof as a manipulator when he accepts five pounds from the
election manager of POR He makes sure that they will not disclose the news of his accepting
the money. He also tries to keep his conscience clear by telling them that he works for Marcus;
while putting his ballot paper into the box, he cleverly manages to cast his vote for both Marcus
and Maduka, without attracting the wrath of 'iyi'.

The Voter Comprehension III

Question 1.The POP campaign leader's meeting with Roof shows the misuse of
transparency in a democratic setup. Discuss.

Answer: In this story, Achebe satirizes 'politicians' and makes an attempt to show how even in a
democratic setup election can become farcical.Unlike in dictatorship or monarchy, in a
democratic setup, people have the freedom to elect a 'person' to work as their representative in
the government and work for their upliftment. One of the hallmarks of democracy is its
insistence on transparency. Every person is subject to scrutiny by the public in the election
process. A person is free to vote for a person of his choice from among the contestants.
Transparency' in this refers to Roof's informing the POP campaign leader that he is working for
Marcus.

Secondly, whether Roof informs him or not, it is well known to everyone that Roof is Marcus'
election campaign manager. The candidates are permitted by law to make known to the people
all such appointments and maintain transparency in their dealings. However, no candidate can
strike a deal with the people and buy their votes. But this is done clandestinely. The POP
campaign leader knows that Roof is working for Marcus. Therefore, they want to buy Roof's
vote first so that they will let him know that the POP leaders will pay in pounds and not in
shillings. This is the message they want to put across to the people through Roof. Probably, next
time, Roof who has made a name as an efficient election campaign manager for Marcus, will be
bold enough to demand 'pounds' instead of shillings from Marcus and if he refuses to pay in
pounds, he might go and work for the POP leader. That way he will be able to motivate his
people to vote for POP instead of the circus. Thus, the POP campaign managers' meeting with
Roof is daring misuse of transparency in a democratic setup.

Question 2.To every human comes a time of reckoning. How does Roof's dilemma on the
day of the election reflect this?

Why did Roof face a dilemma while he was inside the voting booth? How did he resolve it?
"There comes a time in every man's life to decide". Explain with reference to 'The Voter'.

Answer:In The Voter Roof is an energetic young man who has the reputation of sacrificing a
bright future for the sake of the people of his village. The roof has worked in a city for two
years and has experience in dealing with both literates and illiterates. Based on this knowledge
of general human behaviour, Roof builds for himself a career as an election campaign manager
for Marcus Ibe.

When the story opens, we learn that Marcus Ibe is Chief the Honourable Minister of Culture in
the outgoing government and is seeking people's mandate for a second term. We also learn that
Marcus considers Roof a real expert in election campaigning at all levels. Roof knows how
politicians make money. He also knows that the people of Umuofia have now decided to vote
for Marcus for a price. Roof conveys this news to Marcus and prepares him beforehand.

Like an efficient manager, he tries to highlight the strong points of PAP and finally strike a
bargain with the voters paying them four shillings per vote. Everything is now going according
to his plan and is happy.But, one evening, the leader of the POP campaign team comes to his
house to meet him. He tempts Roof to vote for Maduka paying him five pounds. Roof's greed
tempts him to accept the offer. But, he also gets trapped. The leader asks him to swear on the
'lyi', that he would vote for Maduka.The roof cannot go back on his promise.

So he swears to vote for Maduka. Finally, on the day of the voting, Marcus wants to make sure
that every one of his people casts his vote without fail. Therefore, Roof being his election
manager, Marcus sends him to the booth first to vote. Now, Roof is caught in a moral dilemma.
All along he has worked for Marcus and his conscience does not permit him to cheat Marcus.
Now, when Marcus asks him to cast his vote he is in two minds. He feels that he cannot betray
Marcus. For a moment, his mind tells him that he should vote for Marcus and go back and
return the money he had received from the POP election manager.
Secondly, he remembers that he had sworn on that 'lyi'. In a few seconds, his mind hits on a new
idea. He folds the ballot paper in the middle and tears it into two halves at the crease. He drops
the first half into the box meant for Maduka and confirms his vote saying that he votes for
Maduka. Since he has not taken an oath to vote for Marcus, there is no fear of 'lyi' in him but
only his guilt. Since he has worked as his manager for money and rewards, he drops the other
half into the box meant for Marcus. Thus, he ensures that he does not cheat either. By tearing
the ballot paper and casting his vote for both of them he overcomes his moral dilemma.

Question 3.What comment does the story offer on the electoral system? Is it relevant?

Question 4.'Democracy is more than holding elections regularly. Do you think the story
supports this statement?

Answer:In 'The Voter', Achebe tries to present a true picture of the drama that is witnessed
during an election held in a small town in Nigeria. There are two main characters and two
political parties in the story and the voters are the villagers of Umuofia. The roof is an energetic
young man, who is now working as the election campaign manager for Marcus Ibe, who was
once a local mission school teacher and was on the verge of dismissal from service on the basis
of a female teacher's complaint.

Marcus Ibe joins the People's Alliance Party, contests the election, and gets elected. He becomes
a minister and his government completes a five-year term and he is now seeking re-election.
During his term as a minister, he amasses a lot of wealth, comes to own two big cars, builds a
huge mansion in his native village, and wins several chieftaincy titles and doctorate degrees.But
his people remain the same - poor illiterate, ignorant, and naive. The situation in his village also
does not show any improvement. The same old problems of lack of running water and
electricity continue to plague the people and prevent them from improving economically and
politically. When the story opens, we learn that Marcus Ibe is seeking a second term and
everyone is sure that he is going to get a landslide victory because there is no opposition party
worth taking into consideration.

But there is a change in the perception of the people. After feasting in Marcus' new house and
noticing his wealth and power, the poor people of Umuofia realize that 'elections' do have a
meaning and their votes which they had underrated before, are of high value. Therefore, they
demand some value for their votes and Roof manages to convince them that they should vote
for Marcus again by giving four shillings each.

Some tribes down the coast had set up a new political party called POP with the objective of
saving the people from 'totally political, cultural, social and religious annihilation'. Their
campaign leader comes to Roof's house and offers to buy his vote for five pounds. Roof initially
is enamoured of the five-pound notes and agrees to vote.
But the POP leader cleverly gets him to swear on the 'iyi' that he will vote for Maduka. Finally,
on election day, his conscience pricks him to a little extent and Roof feels like voting loyally for
Marcus and returning the money to the POP election manager. But the oath he has taken before
'iyi' does not allow him to do so and there is a moral dilemma. However, Roof cuts his ballot
paper in two, drops one half into the box meant for Maduka and drops the other half into the
box meant for Marcus, and saves his conscience and his life too. This is the story in a nutshell.

There are lessons to learn from this story. We must note that merely naming our government as
'democracy' and setting up all the things needed for holding elections do not guarantee that
people will be able to exercise their true mandate and will elect competent members to the
government which will strive for the upliftment of the people socially, educationally,
economically and culturally. We cannot guarantee democratic governance by merely holding
elections regularly. elections regularly. First, we must educate the people about their rights,
duties, and responsibilities in any election.

Secondly, we must ensure that people have the right to recall their representatives if they do not
strive to improve a lot of people. Thirdly, elected representatives must be forced to account for
their earnings after joining the government. Finally, there should be an authority which should
oversee that sanctity of election procedures is not tampered with.

Also, those who get elected are self centered and exploit the people and the situation to their
benefit. On the whole, one can argue that by merely holding elections regularly we cannot
ensure that a democratic government will come into place.

Secondly, the electoral system that is now in place in the story is not foolproof. As regards the
relevance of the story to our own situation, one can argue that it is highly relevant even today.
Even after nearly seven decades of independence, we have not been able to ensure free and fair
elections, the main reason being the lack of education and moral values. We are witness to every
type of corrupt practice in elections.

Where There is a Wheel

question1.What does cycling as a symbol of social mobility mean?

Answer:Cycling through the word evokes minute meaning, it is broader when it comes to
society. Social mobility has two meanings literally. It moves society from one place to another,
which means the transportation of people, and it also connotes the progress of society. When
women want to go for a market they do not want to wait for men they could go on themselves.
Question 2.When Jameela Bibi says, "It is my right. We can go anywhere", she is

b. suggesting mobility leading to liberation. c. expressing her indifference to dirty remarks.

a. asserting her right to move freely.

d. boasting about her cycling skill

. Answer: (a) asserting her right to move freely.

Question 3.What does bicycle represent for the rural women? OR Mention any one of the
symbols which bicycling represents for the women.

Answer: For the rural women bicycle represents 'freedom'.

Question 4.What is common between neo-literates and neo-cyclists?

Answer:Cycling as a social movement was first popularized by the neo-literates. These neo-
literates are the ones who became neo-cyclists.

Question 5. 'Enforced routine' and 'male imposed barrier refer to

a. confining women to the kitchen. b. subiecting women to drudgerv. c. status of women in a

patriarchal society. d. lack of freedom of movement

Answer: (c)status of women in a patriarchalsociety.

Question 6.How did the men react to women taking to cycling?

Answer:Initially, women had to put up with vicious attacks on their character. Some of the men
made filthy remarks. But later, once it got social sanction from the Arivoli organization, some
menfolk became less hostile and some of them even encouraged the women to learn cycling.

Question 7.What do the phrases 'flags on the handlebar' and 'bells ringing' suggest?

Answer:The phrases 'flags on the handlebar' and 'bells ringing' refer to the women's cycle rally
organized on International Women's Day in 1992 in which 1500 female cyclists took
Pudukkottai by storm.

Question 8.Why did UNICEF sanction mopeds to Arivoli women activists?

Answer:The UNICEF sanctioned fifty mopeds to Arivoli women activists in appreciation of

their work of initiating more than 70000 women to display their cycling skills at the public
'exhibition-cum-contests' in a single week in 1992.

Question 9.Why is the cycle called 'the humble vehicle'?

Answer:The word 'humble' means 'poor the The word 'humble' means 'poor', the lowest in rank.
The writer calls the cycle a humble vehicle because it is the most common and ubiquitous
vehicle seen even in the most remote of places, a common man's vehicle.

Where there is a Wheel Comprehension II

Question 1.What is the role of Arivoli Iyakkam in liberating women?

Answer:In Pudukkottai district there is an organization called Arivoli Iyakkam (Light of

Knowledge Movement) which spearheaded the district's vigorous literacy drive. N. Kannammal
is the central coordinator of Arivoli. This literacy organization conducted literacy campaigns
among rural women and created a good number of neo-literates. Later, the Arivoli literacy
activists, led by N.Kannammal pioneered the cycling learning movement and thus gave cycling
a social sanction. Later, at Kilakuruchi village, the Arivoli activists conducted a cycling training
camp for their neo literates as well as other women enthusiasts. A large number of those who
learnt cycling come to train new learners, as master trainers, and this way they helped nearly
70000 rural women to learn cycling. Thus, by teaching them to read and write along with
'cycling', the Arivoli organization liberated a vast majority of the rural women in the
Pudukkottai District.

Question 2.In what different ways has the cycle empowered rural women? OR Discuss
how the cycling movement has empowered the rural women of empowered the rural
women of Pudukkottai.

Answer:'Cycling' empowers women in many ways. It gives them 'confidence' which results
from being self-dependent and free to carry out their duties and responsibilities without
depending on the menfolk. For example, womenfolk can fetch water from even the remotest
source and cart provisions on their own. In this way, cycling emancipates womenfolk
psychologically. Cycling also empowers women economically and politically. Cycling boosts
their income. Some of the women who sell agricultural or other products within a group of
villages can save a great deal of time by going to such places on their bicycles.

Secondly, it gives them much more time to focus on selling their produce. Thirdly, it enlarges
the area they can hope to cover. Finally, if they choose to enjoy their leisure, cycling gives them
a lot of leisure also. These women besides performing these jobs, can also perform other chores.
Finally, to top it all, it gives them self-respect. They can also participate in political work.

Question 3.Why does the author describe the Arivoli 'cycling training camp's unusual
experience?

Answer:One of the pioneers in encouraging 'cycling' and giving it a social sanction was the
Arivoli activists. These activists conducted a 'cycling training camp' in Kilakuruchi village. The
writer, who visited the camp, calls it an unusual experience because, on that Sunday, all the
prospective learners had turned out in their Sunday best. The author remarks that one could not
help being struck by the sheer passion of the pro-cycling movement. The learners exuded so
much enthusiasm and passion for learning cycling.

Question 4.Do you think neo-literate women taking to cycling contributes to the literacy
movement?

Answer:Yes. Women taking up cycling is as significant as their taking up literacy because

cycling gives them mobility, freedom, and independence which together give the women
confidence to stand on their own legs. Initially, Sheela Rani Chunkath, a district collector, in
1991 intended to train female literacy activists so as to enable them to spread literacy among
women in the interior. Therefore, she included mobility as a part of the literacy drive.

However, cycling played a much more significant role than literacy in the lives of the
womenfolk. It gave them confidence, freedom, and independence to eke out an independent
existence. Cycling helped them stay attached to their children and family and yet be financially
independent. It also helped the women to share family responsibilities with the menfolk.

Question 5.How does Sheela Rani Chunkath, the district collector, promote the
empowerment of women? OR Bring out the role of Sheela Rani Chunkath in the
empowerment of women in Pudukkottai.

Answer:In 1991, Sheela Rani Chunkath was the district collector of Pudukkottai. As a part of
the female literacy drive, she wanted to train female literacy activists so that literacy would
reach women in the interior. She had realized that the lack of mobility among women played a
big role in undermining their confidence. Therefore, she included 'mobility' as a part of the
literacy drive. Naturally, literacy activists learned cycling first. This inspired the neo-literates
also to learn cycling. This, in turn, inspired every woman in the village to learn cycling.

The literates, having become neo-cyclists, encouraged every woman in the district to learn
cycling, by organizing 'cycle training camps'. Thus, Sheela Rani Chunkath became instrumental
in 'cycling' becoming a social movement in the Pudukkottai district. This way Sheela Rani
Chunkath should be commended for promoting 'freedom' of women by including 'cycling' in
her literacy project.

Question 6.How did the women react to the shortage of ladies' cycle?

Answer:Once 'cycling' as a symbol of women's liberation caught the imagination of the

womenfolk in the Pudukkottai district, every woman in the district volunteered to learn cycling.
Not surprisingly, this led to a shortage of ladies' cycles. These women enthusiasts did not
hesitate. They volunteered to buy even 'gents' cycles and learned cycling. Later on, many
women started preferring the 'gents' cycle because it has an additional bar from the seat to the
handle and that way it enabled them to go out along with a child also. Even to this day
thousands of women in Pudukkottai district ride 'gents' cycles.'

Where there is a Wheel Comprehension !!!

Question 1.How does P. Sainath show that cycling brings about changes beyond economic
gains?

Answer:P. Sainath presents an eye-witness report of 'cycling' becoming a social movement. He

tells us how tens of thousands of women in the Pudukkottai district of Tamil Nadu got initiated
to learn cycling.

The Arivoli activists led by N. Kannammal pioneered the 'cycling' movement. As a part of their
vigorous literacy drive, these activists learned cycling. Later, they organized 'cycling training
camps' for other women. Thus, it got social sanction. Once the movement became a big force,
every woman in Pudukkottai volunteered to learn cycling. Towards the end of the article,
Sainath says, besides giving women freedom, mobility, and independence, it also has definite
economic implications.

It boosts their family income. Sainath reports that a section of the women sells agricultural or
other products within a group of villages. For them, cycling cuts down on time wasted in
waiting for buses. Secondly, it gives them much more time to focus on selling their produce.
Thirdly, it enlarges the area they wish to cover. Lastly, it can increase their leisure time. In
conclusion, he says, cycling brings about changes beyond economic gains also. 'Cycling' gives
them a sense of self respect which is vital to their sense of well-being. Thus, Sainath says that
this humble vehicle has become a metaphor for freedom for these women.

Question 2.'O sister come learn cycling, move with the wheel of time...' How does the song
suggest that the cycle could be an instrument of social change and progress?

Answer:In the article titled 'Where There is a Wheel', Sainath, the writer, reports an important
social movement that took place during 1992-94 that stunned the people of the Pudukkottai
district in Tamil Nadu.

There was an organization named 'Arivoli Iyakkam' which led the female literacy movement in
Pudukkottai. These Arivoli activists learned 'cycling' so as to enable themselves to spread the
message of literacy among rural women in the interior. Once the activists learned cycling, they,
in turn, taught their neo literates cycling. These neo-literates, neo cyclists trained women in
cycling, all over the district. During this period Muthu Bhaskaran, an Arivoli activist, wrote a
famous song to encourage rural women to learn cycling. The song is intended to call upon the
womenfolk to learn cycling.The song conveys a simple message and when it is sung in Tamil,
the mother tongue of these rural women, its meaning is easily understood. It only calls upon the
woman to set in motion her own wheel of life. Until then, the woman could not move out of the
house, because her 'mobility' depended on her being able to find money to go by bus. Going by
bus also depended on the permission of the menfolk. The woman needed the help of her
menfolk even to sell the agricultural produce which grew on her land. This way the woman
could not break the male imposed barriers. Once she learned cycling she got the freedom to
move to any place she wanted and the freedom to do any work she wished to.

This song invites the woman to learn cycling and set in motion the wheel of her life. Here, the
'wheel' refers to 'progress'. So, it tells the woman to learn cycling and be responsible for her
own progress.

Water

Question 1.The expression 'generations-old strife' suggests

a. the bane of the caste system. b. politics of revenge. c. differences among humans.

Answer:(a) the bane of the caste system.

Question 2."It also knows the sub-caste difference between leather and spool." 'leather
and spool' stands for

a. pure and impure. b. higher and lower. c. cobbler and weaver.

Answer:c) cobbler and weaver.

Question 3.How is water a witness to the humiliation caused to the Dalits?

Answer:In earlier times, when the varna system was in practice, the 'panchamas' or the
untouchables were not allowed to touch or fill their pots with water. Whenever a Wada girl went
to collect water from a pond or a tank, the people of other varnas used to pour water from a
higher level at a distance, into the pot of the Wada girl. Naturally, on such occasions, some
water would invariably fall on the body of the girl. This would cause a lot of humiliation to the
girl.

Question 4.What does the speaker remember when she sees water?

Answer:When the speaker sees water she would remember how people in her Wada would thirst
all day for a glass of water. Secondly, when she sees water she is also reminded of how they
would eagerly welcome their weekly bath days as if it was a wondrous festival and also
remember how the entire village bathed luxuriously twice a day.
The speaker also would recall her childhood when she would walk miles on end to go to the big
canal and carry back heavy pots with the muscles and veins on her neck straining and bursting.
Finally, the sight of water would also make her recall how thatched roofs in Malapalle were
burnt to ashes for want of a pot of water to douse the fire.

Question 5.'circus feat' refers to

a. hardship to fetch water. b. balancing the water pots on the c. 'efforts to secure basic needs.
d. struggle surrounding water.

Answer:b) balancing the water pots on the head.

Question 6.'Water' is a

a. a liquid called water. b. a catalyst for a movement c. witness to strife. d. life-giver and
destroyer, e. mean to practice untouchability f. profit-making commodity.

Answer:(c), (d), (e) and (f).

Water Comprehension II

Question 1.Discuss the travails suffered by the Wada people to get water.

Answer:In the poem 'Water', the speaker recalls the 'role' played by water as an agent of social
change. Incidentally, she uses the context of the poem to highlight the travails and tribulations
suffered by the people in wadas, with particular reference to the practice of untouchability in
Andhra Pradesh in the pre- and post-independence periods.

It is an age-old practice that the Dalits or the untouchables live in separate colonies situated
farther away from other communities and are called 'wadas'. Whenever the Dalits needed water
they used to wait near the pond or tank until a shudra came there and gave them some water.
This caused a great deal of humiliation, pain, suffering and anguish to the Dalits.

The speaker describes how an upper caste person poured water from a distance at a higher level
into the pot of a wada girl at a lower level and how some water would fall on her body making
her feel humiliated.

The writer also narrates a heinous incident that happened in Madigapalle in Karamchedu. It so
happened that a Dalit boy tried to prevent two upper castes (Kamma) youths from washing their
dirty buckets in their drinking water pond. The two upper caste youths tried to attack the boy
but a Dalit woman by name Suvartamma came to the boy's defence lifting her vessel to ward off
their attack. Enraged by this protest by a Dalit woman, the Kamma landlords attacked the Dalit
colony.
The speaker recalls how her wada people would thirst all day for a glass of water and narrates
how people in wadas eagerly look forward to their weekly bathing day as if it was a wondrous
festival while the people in the entire village bathed luxuriously twice a day. She also recalls
painfully, how in her childhood she used to walk miles and miles to collect water from the big
canal and carry back home heavy pots balanced on her head, with the muscles and veins on her
necks straining and bursting. Finally, the speaker mentions how several thatched huts in
Malapalle (a Dalit colony) were reduced to ashes for want of a pot of water to douse the fire.

Question 2.'For us, water is not simply H₂O', suggests

a. it's chemical significance. b.it is a common resource available for all. c.it is a symbol of
struggle against discrimination

. Answer. (c) it is a symbol of struggle against discrimination.

Question 3.What does the contrast 'some taking bath once a week and others twice a day'
connote?

Answer:'Some taking bath once a week and others twice a day' connotes that the Dalits were
able to take a bath only once in a week because they had no free access to public water and only
when they had stored enough water for all of them to take a bath, would they take a bath on that
day. On the other hand, the village people had free access to water and so they would take a
bath twice a day.

Question 4.Why does water become a matter of dispute?

Answer:The available quality of water differs from area to area so it becomes a matter of
dispute, Some people get excess of water and some people do not get water even to drink. Water
is a necessity for all the basic needs and for irrigation, for electricity, and for Industries. When
the required quantity of water is not available, people will have to get it from elsewhere; When
they go to other areas, the people from that area protest and agitate, so wars happen. A similar
fight occurred between Karnataka and Tamilnadu. People of both states destroyed each other's
property and destroyed and damaged buses just over the question of sharing water. In this way,
many quarrels have happened for the sake of water.

Question 5.Look at the expressions 'many a circus feat' and 'dances its way into the Pepsi
man's bottle.' What contrast do you notice between the two?

Answer:The phrase 'many a circus feat' refers to the Wada women walking with heavy pots of
water on their heads, miles, and miles, from a big canal. This indicates the strain, the anguish,
and the humiliation suffered by Dalits to fetch water for their daily needs. On the contrary, the
phrase, 'dances its way into the Pepsi man's bottle' refers to water being sold as a multinational
market commodity. Here the phrase 'dances its way' shows the ease and the surreptitious ways
in which 'water' is sold for a price when it is known all over the country that tens of thousands
of poor people and Dalits even today, walk miles to fetch drinking water. For the Dalits and the
poor, water is a necessity and 'Pepsi' is an item of luxury. This reflects how the poor become
victims of discrimination.

Comprehension 3

Question 1.How does the poem 'Water' demonstrate the disparity and discrimination in
our society using water as a symbol?

'Water is a witness to centuries of social injustice.' Explain with reference to the poem
'Water'.

Answer:In the poem 'Water', the speaker recalls several instances taken from the life of the
Dalits to highlight the disparity between the Dalits and the upper caste people in their lifestyles.

The speaker states that water is witness to the Panchama's plight when he goes to the pond or
tank to collect water. Since he does not have the right to draw a pot of water directly from a
well, he waits all day near the well until a shudra arrives there and fills his pot. Next, the
speaker mentions the humiliation of the Wada girl, when she receives water poured from a
distance. Some waterfalls on her body and she felt humiliated.

Later, the speaker articulates the righteous indignation shown by Karamchedu Suvartamma,
when she raised her vessel to ward off an attack by the Kamma youths against the Dalit boy
who asked them not to pollute their drinking water. These instances illustrate how the Dalits
were discriminated against using water from a public well.

The speaker recalls how people in the Wada would thirst all day for a glass of water while the
villagers had a lot of water to drink and bathe as and when they wanted. On the other hand, the
people in the village enjoyed the bath twice a day, because they had plenty of water, and the
Dalits were made to forego water on the pretext of untouchability. Next, the speaker narrates
how in her childhood they walked miles and miles to collect water from the big canal and
walked back carrying heavy pots of water on their heads, with the veins in their neck straining
and bursting. Finally, the speaker recalls how several thatched huts in Malapalle were reduced
to ashes for want of a pot of water to douse the fire.

Question 2.How are the poor affected by

a. lack of water. b. denial of water. c. the fury of nature?

Answer:In the poem 'Water' the speaker highlights how 'water' becomes a symbol of
discrimination against the Dalits.
(a) Since the Dalits do not have free access to water, they cannot take a bath as and when they
like. They can take a bath only after they have stored up adequate water for all the members of
the family. Normally, this used to happen only once a week in those, days.

(b) The Dalits were prohibited from fetching water from a pond or tank in a village. Naturally,
when they needed water they had to go to the pond with their pot and wait until a shudra arrived
and gave them water. Secondly, when the village people gave them water, they used to pour
water from a distance into the pots carried by the Dalits and some water would fall on their
bodies. This caused a lot of anguish and humiliation to the Dalits.

(c) The speaker speaks about 'water' as a natural social agent. Water is essential for life. It can
give life but also can devour lives. The water that refused to quench parched throats became the
killer tsunami wave and swallowed village after village. This way 'water' worked as a symbol of
Nature and showed its fury against people who discriminated against the Dalits.

Question 3.Trace the journey of water from ancient times as a symbol of purity to the age of the
multinational market where it is a commodity. OR Water that ignites struggles and strife can
also be a market commodity. Examine the statement in light of 'Water'.

Answer:The Dalits' age-old struggle for water has its origin in the people's perception of 'water'
as a source of purity and the 'Dalits' as 'untouchables'. Though all living creatures have a right to
share it, the upper caste society denies it to the Dalits for the only reason that they are Dalits.

The poet makes an attempt to trace the journey of water which begins as a symbol of purity in
the life of the people and eventually ends up becoming a multinational market commodity. It
also questions the wisdom of the people who deprived free access to water, an elixir of life, to
the Dalits biasedly and eventually made it a multinational commodity and robbed them of their
natural resources.

She presents a conflicting situation where Jesus, a Jew, asks for water from a Samaria woman,
who is considered a lower caste woman. She also presents the instance of the Panchama, who is
forced to wait with his pot all day near the well until a shudra comes to serve him. She then
presents the case of the Dalit girl, who gets humiliated by receiving water poured from above
and getting her clothes drenched in water.

Next, she expresses the rage of the Dalit woman Munnangi Suvartamma, who goes to the
rescue of the Dalit boy who objects to the Kamma youths washing their dirty buckets in their
drinking water in Malapalle. We learn how the Dalits crave a glass of water to quench their
thirst. We also learn that the Dalits used to have a bath only once a week whereas the other
people in the village enjoyed bathing luxuriously twice a day. We then learn how the Dalits had
to walk miles and miles to fetch water from the big canal and carried back home heavy pots
balanced on their heads with the muscles and veins in their neck straining and bursting.She then
says that quite a few thatched huts caught fire in Malapalle and were reduced to ashes, the only
reason being the absence of a pot of water to douse the fire. Then we learn how people in
Mahad municipality in Mumbai, asserted their right to public water under the leadership of Dr
Ambedkar. All these instances are given to trace the journey of water from that of being a
symbol to that of getting asserted as a fundamental right.

The poem also narrates the journey of 'water' in the life of the people in the last two decades.
'Water', which can save 'lives', can also devour lives in the form of a tsunami. It can also turn
villages into dry deserts and inflict a lot of suffering on the people. At the same time, in some
places water can take a toll on the lives of people in many villages in the form of floods.

In the last part of the poem, the speaker attempts attempts to trace the journey of water into
bisleri bottles as 'mineral water', becoming a multinational market commodity. Here again, such
activity depletes the groundwater and affects the poor Dalits.