BALGOVIND'S EDUCATIONAL TOUR

The Last Leaf Think about it Question 1. What is Johnsy’s illness? What can cure her, the medicine or the willingness to live? Answer: Johnsy suffers from pneumonia. Her willingness to live can cure her. The doctor says that it seems as if she has made up her mind that she is not going to get well; and that if she does not want to live, medicines will not help her. Question 2. Do you think the feeling of depression Johnsy has is common among teenagers? Answer: Yes, I think the feeling of depression Johnsy has is common among teenagers these days. Teenagers are nowadays under constant pressure from their busy schedule and tough competition. They want to do their best; they even ignore their daily routine and hence damage their health; and they don’t keep patience, which leads them to depression. Question 3. Behrman has a dream. What is it? Does it come true? Answer: Behrman has a dream to paint a masterpiece, but his dream remains unfulfilled. It comes true with his death when he pain...

  If I Were You Thinking about the Text I. Answer these questions. Question 1. “At last, a sympathetic audience.” (i) Who says this? (ii) Why does he say it? (iii) Is he sarcastic or serious? Answer: (i) Gerrard says this. (ii) He says it when the intruder tells him that they shall have a nice talk about himself. (iii) He is sarcastic. Question 2. Why does the intruder choose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take on? Answer: The intruder chooses Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take on because he finds himself similar in build to Gerrard. In addition to this, he also likes the way Gerrard does his work like ordering things on the phone and sometimes going away suddenly and comes back just the same. Question 3. “I said it with bullets.” (i) Who says this? (ii) What does it mean? (iii) Is it the truth? What is the speaker’s reason for saying this? Answer: (i) Gerrard says this. (ii) It means that when he was in trouble, he shot someone with his gun and ran ...

A Slumber Did My Spirit Seal Thinking about the Poem Question 1. “A slumber did my spirit seal,” says the poet. That is, a deep sleep ‘closed off’ his soul (or mind). How does the poet react to his loved one’s death? Does he feel bitter grief? Or does he feel a great peace? Answer: It is not clear from the poem whether the poet feels bitter grief or a great peace. He says like that because he remains in a state of ignorance, which seals his soul that he does not have any human fears. He thinks that his beloved will not be affected with the passage of time. Question 2. The passing of time will no longer affect her, says the poet. Which lines of the poem say this? Answer: The lines of the poem that say this are: “She seemed a thing that could not feel The touch of earthly years.” Question 3. How does the poet imagine her to be, after death? Does he think of her as a person living in a very happy state (a ‘heaven’)? Or does he see her now as a part of nature? In which lines of the poem do...

Kathmandu I. Answer these questions in one or two words or in short phrases. Question 1. Name the two temples the author visited in Kathmandu. Answer: The two temples that the author visited in Kathmandu are Pashupatinath temple and Baudhnath temple. Question 2. The writer says, “All this I wash down with Coca-Cola.” What does ‘all this’ refer to? Answer: All this refers to a bar of marzipan; a roasted corn on- the-cob garnished with salt, chilli and lemon, some comics containing love story; and a Reader’s Digest. Question 3. What does Vikram Seth compare to the quills of a porcupine? Answer: Vikram Seth compares the flutes protruding in all directions from the top of the bamboo to the quills of a porcupine. Question 4. Name five kinds of flutes. Answer: Five kinds of flutes are the reed neh, the Japanese shakuhachi, the deep bansuri, the breathy flutes of South America, and high-pitched Chinese flutes. II. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph Question 1. What differen...