Madhya Pradesh Rajya Shiksha Kendra Bhopal

The Rainbow
Textbook
(Special English)
Class-IX
Madhya Pradesh Rajya Shiksha Kendra
Bhopal
Year 2012 Price Rs.

Publication Year 2007
Revised Edition 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012
© Madhya Pradesh Rajya Shiksha Kendra
B-Wing, Arera Hills, Pustak Bhavan, Bhopal-462 011
◆ Direction : M. K. Singh, I.A.S.
Commissioner,
M. P. Rajya Shiksha Kendra, Bhopal
◆ Coordination : Shakuntala Shrivastava
Coordinator-Curriculum, Textbook and TLM
M. P. Rajya Shiksha Kendra, Bhopal
◆ Subject-Coordinators : Rajendra Kumar Pandey
ELTI, M. P. Rajya Shiksha Kendra, Bhopal
ii
Amit Saxena
ELTI, M. P. Rajya Shiksha Kendra, Bhopal
◆ Writers : N. P. Tiwari, Retd. Principal, Bhopal
Preeti Shrivastav, Govt. KRG College, Gwalior
Yogesh Dwivedi, BRCC, BAC, Datia
Y. K. Dubey, Principal, Shree Sanskar Academy, Agar (Malwa) M.P.
◆ Moderators : Dr. R. P. Saxena, Retd. Reader, NCERT
Anil Chaturvedi, Senior Lecturer, DIET Bijalpur, Indore
R. S. Negi, Retd. Principal, Indore
◆ Editors : N. P. Tiwari, Retd, Principal, Bhopal
Preeti Shrivastav, Govt. KRG College, Gwalior
Yogesh Dwivedi, BRCC, BAC, Datia
◆ Cover Page Design : Vikas Malviya, M. P. Rajya Shiksha Kendra, Bhopal
◆ Typesetting : Sanket Graphics, M.P. Nagar, Bhopal
Textbook

Textbook
Approved by
Madhya Pradesh Textbook Standing Committee
S.No. Name and Address Designation
01. Dr. Govind Sharma Chairman
Former Additional Director, Higher Education, Govt of M.P.
Gwalior
02. Dr. Umrao Singh Choudhary Member
Former Vice Chancellor, Devi Ahilya University, Indore
03. Prof. Udai Jain Member
Former Principal, Shri Vaishnav College, Indore
04. Dr. Subhash Gupta Member
Former Dean, Student Welfare, Devi Ahilya University, Indore
05. Dr. (Smt.) Binay Rajaram Member
Professor and Head of the Department-Hindi,
Shri Satya Sai Women's College, Bhopal
06. Prof. Sureshwar Sharma Member
Former Vice Chancellor,
Rani Durgawati Vishwavidyalaya, Jabalpur
07. Dr. Prakash Bartunia Member
Assistant General Manager, IDBI, Bhopal
08. Dr. Manmohan Upadhyaya Member
Educationist and Former Deputy Chairman,
M.P. Sanskrit Board, Bhopal
09. Shri Bhagirath Kumrawat Member
Educationist, Bhopal
10. Commissioner Member
Rajya Shiksha Kendra, Bhopal Secretary
11. Commissioner Member
Public Instruction, M.P., Bhopal
12. Secretary Member
Board of Secondary Education, M.P., Bhopal
13. Managing Director Member
M.P. Textbook Corporation, Bhopal
14. Representative - NCERT Member
15. Representative - Navodaya Vidyalaya Sangthan Member
16. Dr. Prem Bharati Guest
Educationist and Member, Member
State Level General Body and Working Committee,
Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Madhya Pradesh
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Foreword
The Rainbow is an English elective course book intended for students of Class-IX of Madhya
Pradesh Secondary Board. Through this book we intend to give students exposure to English
literature. The book includes –
* Prose (essays and short stories)
* Poetry
* One act plays
We recognize that :
* English skills are necessary for students as they grow up and enter the job market or work
on their own.
* Students must be exposed to texts that they can understand and appreciate in terms of
content, including cultural content and meaning.
* Text-based vocabulary must be taught to students to enhance their linguistic competence.
* Grammatical items must be so chosen that they could be integrated with the lessons.
* The text should help in enhancing the thinking skills of students.
* The textbook should also equip students to reach out and read material that is relevant for
them but which could not be included here.
With these aims in view the material contained here has been chosen and graded according
to reader appeal. Our emphasis is on the ability of learners to learn the language through a
focus on meaning. If students are asked to spend most of their time in consulting a dictionary or
looking up for difficult words, they are not left with much time to learn the linguistic skills. The
choice of lessons-poems, essays, short stories and one act plays ensures exposure to classic
as well as to modern, living authors, British and American as well as Indian. Moreover, most of
the extracts given here are from representative and well-known authors and poets, though care
has been taken not to include material that is oft repeated. The wide variety of selection - from
Shakespeare to Ruskin Bond would, it is hoped, certainly appeal to our learners. An attempt has
been made to acquaint learners with the changing moods and styles in literature.
The activities and exercises in each lesson will help in developing reading comprehension,
vocabulary, grammar and other language skills. The exercise given after each lesson would
provide sufficient practice to learners.
Vocabulary exercises are set to develop related skills like spelling, formation of words,
understanding of synonyms and antonyms and the like. Activities for speaking and writing have
also been provided for the overall enhancement of the vocabulary of learners.
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Abstract explanations have been kept to the minimum. Where the lesson demands literary
features of that work have been explained and exercies have also been given to ensure the
understanding of the literary features.
As we are living in the age of globalization, we need citizens who can use English in different
ways in varied situations, so the learners are required to be equipped with essential language
skills and to have confidence to use it in daily life. With this shift of emphasis from learning for
learning sake to learning for using the language we have developed the following materials :
i. A main course book
ii. A workbook-containing listening, speaking, reading, writing and grammar activities for more
practice
Charateristic features of the textbook -
* It provides enough material for practising all the four skills.
* Since exercises for listening and speaking have been given with the text, their technical
aspects like English sounds and stress are being provided in the workbook to help both
learners as well as teachers.
* There is a careful balance between structure (the way language is organised) and function
(the way language is used).
* Possible Grammatical explanations have been provided.
* Unseen passages and poems for comprehension have also been given.
* Writing has been given due importance by providing exercises for writing reports, description,
paragraph, letter, essay etc.
We hope that the learner friendly material provided here would enable the teachers
also to develop the needed skills in the learners. Teachers with ingenuity and imagination would
be able to interest learners in the task of making learning fun.
Textbook
Commissioner
Rajya Shiksha Kendra
Bhopal
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Acknowledgments
We are thankful to all those individuals and
institutions who have been helpful, directly and indirectly,
in the development of this book. We have picked up some
poems and stories from different publications and
gratefully acknowledge all those who are their writers.
We are grateful to Rupa & Co., Shrijee's Book
International, Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., National
Book Trust, India, Oxford University Press, Sahitya
Akademi, University Press (India) Private Limited,
Children's Book Trust and USB Publishers' Distributors
Ltd., for some stories and poems which we have adapted
from their publications.
Suggestions given by the Textbook Standing
Committee have been incorporated in the book.
Wherever possible, the publishers have been applied
for copyright permission. We would appreciate
information about the pieces we have not been able to
trace. Appropriate acknowledgments will be made in
future editions of the book.
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CONTENTS
S. No. Lesson Page No.
1. Bharat our Land 1
2 The Victory 7
3. Little girls wiser than men 15
4. Past and Present 23
5. Dead Man's Riddle 29
6. Arise, Awake! 35
7. The World is too much with us 42
8. The Goal not Scored 45
9. The Mission-Agni 54
10. Polonious Advice 65
11. Grandpa fights an Ostrich 71
12. The Poet and the Pauper 79
13. Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening 87
14. Old Blockhead repairs his House 93
15. How it all began 100
16. Where the Mind is without Fear 108
17. On Saying Please 112
18. The Never-Never Nest 123
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Pure vowels
/i:/ as in seat /si:t/
/I/ as in sit /sIt/
/i/ as in happy /'h&pi/
/e/ as in set /set/
/&/ as in sat /s&t/
/A:/ as m farm /fA:m/
/Q/ as in shot /shQt/
/O:/ as in sort /sO:t/
/U/ as in foot /fUt/
/u:/ as in shoot /SU;t/
Key to Phonetic Symbols
/u/ as in actual /'&ktSuJ
/V/ as in shut /SVt/
/3:/ as in shirt /S3;t/
/J/ as in upon /J'pQn/
Diphthongs
/eI/ as in say /seI/
/aI/ as in fly /flaI/
/OI/ as in boy /bOI/
/aU/ as in how /haU/
/oU/ as in no /noU/
/IJ/ as in here /hIJ(r)/
/eJ/ as in hair /heJ(r)/
/UJ/ as in poor /pUJ(r)/
Consonants
/b/ as in bed rub
/d/ as in dog bad
/f/ as in fan half
/g/ as in get dog
/h/ as in hat hat
/k/ as in king walk
/l/ as in lamp girl
/m/ as in man seem
/n/ as in not man
/p/ as in pen top
/r/ as in run fairy
/s/ as in sit bus
/t/ as in time hat
/v/ as in very love
/w/ as in wet -
/z/ as in zoo -
/S/ as in sheep wash
/tS/ as in church catch
/dZ/ as in judge germ
/N/ as in sing having
/T/ as is thick path
/D/ as is this bathe
/j/ as is yet year
/Z/ as is pleasure usual
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The mighty Himvant is ours -
there’s no equal anywhere on earth.
The generous Ganga is ours -
which other river can match her grace ?
The sacred Upanishads are ours -
what scriptures else to name with them ?
This sunny golden land is ours -
she’s peerless, let’s praise her !
Gallant warriors have lived here,
many a sage has sanctified this land.
The divinest music has been heard here,
and here all auspicious things are found.
Here Brahma-knowledge has taken root,
and the Buddha preached his dhamma here.
Of hoary antiquity is Bharat,
she’s peerless, let’s praise her !
Danger shall not scare us any longer,
and poverty shall not sear our souls.
Self-interest shan’t drive us to meanness,
and cowardly indiff'rence shall cease for ever.
Here our land o’erflows with milk and honey,
and perennial is the supply of fruit and corn.
Ours is the famed Aryan land of Bharat :
she’s peerless, let’s praise her !
- Subramania Bharati
Brahma-knowledge : Knowledge or experience of Brahma, the supreme,
reality according to Hindu philosophy.
1
Bharat our Land
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Glossary
generous /'dZenJrJs/ kind
scriptures /'skrIptSJz/ the holy books of a particular religion
peerless /'pIJlJs/ better than all others of its kind
gallant /'g&lJnt/ brave
sanctify /'s&NktIfaI/ to make something holy
divinest /dI'vaInist/ wonderful, beautiful
auspicious /O:'spISJs/ promising good fortune
hoary /'hO:ri/ very old and well-known
antiquity /&n'tIkwiti/ the ancient past
sear /sIJ(r)/ burn
perennial /pJ'reniJl/ continuing for a very long time
Vocabulary
A. Match the following.
2
Exercises
gallant Upanishads
cowardly antiquity
golden warriors
sacred land
hoary indifference
B. Find out from the poem the words which mean -
- equal to or better than another in strength
- having bright sunlight
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- to speak of with admiration and approval
- showing a dishonourable lack of courage
- the state of being poor
C. Notice how the letter ‘s’ is pronounced /s/or/z/ in the following words.
cups
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dogs
Now pronounce the following words carefully :
scriptures
Upanishads
ours
warriors
things
souls
overflows
praise
Comprehension
A. Read the first stanza of the poem and answer the questions.
1. The sunny golden land of India makes it unique. Name two such things
that make India unique.
2. The poet describes the Ganga as ‘generous.’ Suggest two more adjectives
that can be used with the Ganga.
3. Name atleast two other holy scriptures of India.
B. Read the second stanza of the poem and answer the questions.
1. What is the contribution of the brave and the sages to this country ?
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2. What is the root of Indian philosophy and culture ?
C. Read the third stanza of the poem and answer the questions.
1. Find out the lines that express the idea of abundance of milk, honey,
fruits and grain.
2. What negative qualities have we removed from us ?
3. Name two specialities which made Bharat unique and famous.
Speaking Activity
A. Work in pairs. One of the two students will say the following words
from the poem and the other will repeat the same along with the
additional words as given in the text :
Himvant the mighty Himvant
Ganga
Upanishads
land
warriors
music
B. Make two groups in the class. Group one will ask questions by
rearranging the words given in column A and group two will respond as
the example given.
A B
Example -
the/is / what /Himvant / ? / mighty
What is the mighty Himvant ? The mighty Himvant is the Himalaya.
where / the/ Ganga/is/? ___________________________
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the/Upanishads/?/are/what ___________________________
music/here/what/heard/has been/ ? ___________________________
lived/who/here/? ___________________________
C. We are proud of our motherland. Say a few sentences in praise of Bharat.
Some of the clues are given below.
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vast land
from Kashmir to Kanyakumari
beautiful land
culture and civilization
unity in diversity
great rivers and mountains
great personalities
scientific achievements
Writing Activity
A. Write a letter to your pen friend, living in another country, describing the
Indian culture. (50 words)
B. Write a short speech to be delivered on the Independence Day. You may make
use of the clues given below :
Mahatma Gandhi, 1947, freedom fighters, nationalism, sacrifice, non-violence,
unity, brotherhood, education
(150 words)
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Think it over
A. India is the country of diversity in natural riches. There are lofty mountains,
lush green forests, dry hot desert, vast plains, plateaus and deep seas. What
are the other diversities ?
6
Think over them. You can think of languages, dances, festivals, food habits
etc.
B. We are Indians, our love and dedication should be reflected not only in words
but also in our deeds. What should guide our actions ?
Things to do
Go to your library and collect some poems of similar theme and write them in
your diary.
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The The V VVictor
V ictor ictory ictor
Alexander the Great had won many battles. His desire was to conquer the
world.
“Proceed to the Golden Bird,” he ordered his brave generals.India was
known as the Golden Bird in the world at that time. With Alexander’s command,
the generals consulted the map and the army turned towards India. It crossed the
mighty Himalayas through the long terrain in the cold, entered the country and
reached the River Sindhu. There was a battle between Alexander’s army and the
army of King Puru of India. King Puru was defeated, and was made captive.
With the first victory in India, Alexander was very happy.
After the days’ battle when Alexander’s army was resting, he mounted his
horse Bucephalus and quietly slipped out of the tent to see more of the Indian
countryside. Alexander moved on the streets and drove his horse on and on. The
houses remained dark, without lights. The women were wailing, children were
crying. Alexander felt no pity. Instead he felt proud of his own victory.
Soon he turned his horse on the other side, towards the jungle. As he
moved further, he noticed a bonfire at a distance. He went closer and found
some Indian Saints performing the yagya (religious ritual) on the bank of the
Sindhu. He stood quietly behind the thick trunk of a tree.
It was winter time. The wind was blowing and it was extremely cold. The
saints wore no clothing on the upper parts of their bodies. Alexander said to himself,
‘Oh, they are poor and they do not have anything to cover their bodies.’ He
felt sorry for the saints, ‘l must do something for these naked fakirs.’ It was night
already. He went back to his tent, woke up his chief general and said, “Bring thick
woollen blankets and woollen clothes immediately. I need them urgently.”
Heaps of thick blankets and woollen clothes were brought. In no time they
were loaded on horses and Alexander himself led them, riding back to the jungle.
The caravan stopped where the saints were performing the yagya. Alexander
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found the saints were still busy chanting hymns. He moved his horse closer but the
saints took no notice of the presence of Alexander and his caravan. In order to get
their attention, Alexander patted his horse, and coughed. Still no one paid any attention.
Alexander got irritated now. He dismounted and proceeded towards the
oldest saint. The saint did not notice and Alexander felt totally ignored. Then he
approached one of the saints and called, “Fakir, listen, I am the famous Alexander
the Great.”
The saint looked up and asked coolly and very sweetly, “What do you want,
young man? What can I do for you?”
Alexander was taken aback with the question. He paused. “Well...well, I
don’t want anything from you. I am Alexander the Great, I have conquered your
Hindustan.” Alexander announced proudly. He continued, “When I saw you
people naked in this cold weather, I brought woollen blankets and clothes for all of
you.”
The saint threw a sharp glance at Alexander. He came closer and put his
hand on Alexander’s shoulder.
“Young man, so you are the famous Alexander, who conquers the countries
by robbing them?” The saint gave a loud laugh and asked, “Tell me, my child,
how can a robber be a conqueror and a giver?” And the saint looked deep into
Alexander’s eyes.
Alexander turned pale, not knowing what to say. He stood still like a
statue. The saint continued, “Well, my child if you really want to conquer the
world, first win the hearts of the countrymen with love. As for us, we have
renounced the world and we do not need anything. Whatever is left with us now,
we can give that too. Now tell me, what do you want?”
Alexander could not believe his ears. He had never seen or heard things
like this. The feeling of guilt made him sad suddenly. He saluted the saint.
Without saying a word, he mounted his horse and went back to his camp. The
caravan followed the master.
It was dawn and Alexander could hear the chattering of birds. He had
come to his decision, and, he stopped his forward march. He released King Puru
and put off his future plans to conquer other parts of India.
- Deepawali Debroy
8
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Glossary
victory /'vIktJri/ success
terrain /tJ'reIn/ piece of land, considered especially as a place
for a battle
wail /weIl/ cry out with grief
caravan /'k&rJv&n/ company of travellers across the desert
pat /p&t/ touch lightly with the flat hand
renounce /rI'naUns/ to give up
Vocabulary
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Exercises
A. Find words in the lesson which have the meanings given below :
1 large fire made out of doors for pleasure or to burn dead leaves in a
garden
2 got down from a horse
3 part of the body between the neck and the top of the arm
4 success in battle or in a game
5 cloth shelter as used by soldiers
B Refer to a dictionary and find out the meanings of the following. Use
them in sentences. You can use the sentences given in the dictionary as
models.
countryside, winter, chanting, taken aback, dawn
C Notice the past tense of verbs ending with ‘-ed’ are pronounced in three
different ways /t/, /d/ and /id/.
Examples : asked /A:skt/
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charged /tSA:dZd/
counted /kaUntid/
Now pay attention to the pronunciation of the past tense forms of the following
words and pronounce them in the class.
ordered, consulted, entered, turned, stopped
D. Listen and put the following verbs in the correct columns.
lived, died, loved, stayed, finished, started, looked, liked, conquered,
announced, coughed, laughed, wanted
Comprehension
/t/ /d/ /id/
looked loved started
____________ ____________ ____________
____________ ____________ ____________
____________ ____________ ____________
____________ ____________ ____________
____________ ____________ ____________
A Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. Why did Alexander want to conquer India ?
2. What did Alexander see while moving around the countryside ?
3. Why did Alexander release King Puru and went back without winning
the rest of India ?
4. Who do you think was the real conqueror ?
5. What made India famous as 'the Golden Bird' ?
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B Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. Describe the incident of Alexander’s encounter with the saint.
2. Describe the last conversation between the saint and Alexander. What
was the effect of this conversation on Alexander ?
Grammar
A. Study the following sentences.
1. His desire was to conquer the world .
2. He ordered his brave generals.
3. It crossed the mighty Himalayas.
4. There was a battle.
5. Alexander moved on the streets and drove his horse on and on.
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The underlined verbs are in simple past tense.
Now, put the verbs given in brackets into the simple past tense.
Alexander (mount) his horse and quietly (slip) out of the tent to see more of
the Indian countryside. He (feel) no pity instead he (feel) proud of his own
victory. Soon he (turn) his horse on the other side, towards the jungle.
B. Study these sentences.
1. The women were wailing.
2. The children were crying.
3. The wind was blowing.
The underlined verb phrases are in past continuous tense.
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Now, put the verbs in brackets into the past continuous or simple past.
He (notice) a bonfire at a distance. He (go) closer and (find) some Indian
saints. They (perform) the yagya on the bank of the Sindhu. He (stand) quietly
behind the thick trunk of a tree. Alexander (not know) what to say. He
(dismount) and (proceed) towards the oldest saint.
Speaking Activity
A Complete the following conversation orally. Clue words are given there
for your help.
Alexander to the
Chief General : Bring ———————————— and —————
Alexander to
————immediately. ———them————
One of the saints : ————,————— I am —————————
The saint to
—————— the great.
Alexander : ______do______ want, ________?
What _________________ for __________?
Alexander to : Well........well, ____________________________
the saint I am ——————, I have —————————
The saint to : _________, so you are ———————————
Alexander conquers___________________?
Tell me ——————— how —————————
and a ——————— ?
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B. Enact the above scene delivering the dialogues properly.
C. Give your opinion about :
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Alexander's invading India
Alexander's desire to conquer the world
The teachings of the Indian saints
You can start expressing your opinion like this :
I agree / I disagree ————
I feel that ————————————
I am of the opinion that ————————
Friends, this is true that ———————
Well, let’s examine/think about ————
Writing Activity
A. Imagine that you are Alexander. Write the changes that took place in you after
meeting the Indian saints. (50 words)
B. Write a short note on the consequences of war. (150 Words)
Think it over
A. India was known as the golden bird in the olden days. It was because the trade
and commerce supported by agriculture flourished here. The handicraft was
fine and the craftsmen skilled. Think about the present India.
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B. When Alexander was coming to invade India his teacher told him to take
blessings of Indian sages. Why ?
C. How can one win people's heart ?
Things to do
14
Convert the story into a one-act-play and try to enact it on the stage in the
annual function. Take the help of your teacher and friends.
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Little girls wiser than men
It was an early Easter. Sledging was only just over; snow still lay in the
yards and water ran in streams down the village street.
Two little girls from different houses happened to meet in a lane between
two homesteads, where the dirty water after running through the farm-yards had
formed a large puddle. One girl was very small, the other a little bigger. Their
mothers had dressed them both in new frocks. The little one wore a blue frock
the other a yellow print, and both had red kerchiefs on their heads. They had
just come from church when they met, and first they showed each other their
finery, and then they began to play. Soon the fancy took them to splash about
in the water, and the smaller one was going to step into the puddle, shoes and
all, when the elder checked her :
‘Don’t go in so, Malasha’, said she, ‘your mother will scold you. I will
take off my shoes and stockings, and you take off yours.’
They did so, and then, picking up their skirts, began walking towards each
other through the puddle. The water came up to Malasha’s ankles, and she said:
‘It is deep, Akoulya, I’m afraid !’
‘Come on,’ replied the other. ‘Don’t be frightened. It won’t get any
deeper.’
When they got near one another, Akoulya said : ‘Mind, Malasha, don’t
splash. Walk carefully!’
She had hardly said this, when Malasha plumped down her foot so that
the water splashed right on to Akoulya’s frock. The frock was splashed, and so
were Akoulya’s eyes and nose. When she saw the stains on her frock, she was
angry and ran after Malasha to strike her.
Malasha was frightened, and seeing that she had got herself into trouble,
she scrambled out of the puddle, and prepared to run home. Just then Akoulya’s
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mother happened to be passing, and seeing that her daughter’s skirt was splashed,
and her sleeves dirty, she said :
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‘You naughty, dirty girl, what have you been doing?’
‘Malasha did it on purpose’, replied the girl. At this Akoulya’s mother
seized Malasha, and struck her on the back of her neck. Malasha began to howl
so that she could be heard all down the street. Her mother came out.
‘What are you beating my girl for?’ said she; and began scoldidng her
neighbour. One word led to another and they had an angry quarrel. The men
came out and a crowd collected in the street, every one shouting and no one
listening. They all went on quarrelling, till one gave another a push, and the
affair had very nearly come to blows, when Akoulya’s old grandmother, stepping
in among them, tried to calm them.
‘What are you thinking of, friends ? Is it right to behave so ? On a day
like this, too! It is a time for rejoicing, and not for such folly as this.’
They would not listen to the old woman and nearly knocked her off her
feet. And she would not have been able to quiet the crowd, if it had not been
for Akoulya and Malasha themselves. While the women were abusing each
other, Akoulya had wiped the mud off her frock, and gone back to the puddle.
She took a stone and began scraping away the earth in front of the puddle to
make a channel through which the water could run out into the street. Presently
Malasha joined her, and with a chip of wood helped her dig the channel. Just
as the men were beginning to fight, the water from the little girls’ channel ran
streaming into the street towards the very place where the old woman was trying
to pacify the men. The girls followed it; one running each side of the little
stream.
‘Catch it, Malasha ! Catch it!’ shouted Akoulya ; while Malasha could not
speak for laughing.
Highly delighted, and watching the chip float along on their stream, the
little girls ran straight into the group of men; and the old woman, seeing them,
said to the men:
‘Are you not ashamed of yourselves ? To go fighting on account of these
lassies, when they themselves have forgotten all about it, and are playing happily
together. Dear little souls! They are wiser than you!’
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The men looked at the little girls, and were ashamed, and, laughing at
themselves, went back each to his own home.
‘Except ye turn, and become as little children, ye shall in no wise enter
into the kingdom of heaven.’
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- Leo Tolstoy
Glossary
easter /'i:stJ(r)/ feast day in memory of Christ’s rising from
the dead
sledging /'sledZiN/ to go or race down slopes on a sledge
homesteads /'hJUmstedz/ farms or homes with the land round them
puddle /'pVdl/ small quantity of water lying in a hollow,
e.g. in the road
finery /'faInJri/ beautiful clothes and ornaments
scold /skJUld/ to blame, find fault with
plumped /plVmpt/ fell suddenly
stains /steInz/ coloured marks
scrambled /'skr&mbld/ to climb using the hands and knees
howl /haUl/ (of a dog, wolf etc) to make a long, loud
cry when you are in pain, angry, amused
etc.
abusing /J'bju:ziN/ speaking rudely (to a person)
lassies /l&siz/ girls
ye /ji:/ you
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Vocabulary
18
Exercises
A. Match the words given under ‘A’ with the meanings given under ‘B’.
A B
stream - to speak angrily to somebody
catch - to come or go after or behind somebody
heads - to stop and hold a moving object
especially in your hands
scold - a small narrow river
follow - the front side of a coin, which often
has the head of a king, queen,
president etc on it
B. Use the following words in sentences of your own.
watch, look, except, folly, stains
C. Find single words in the lesson which have the meanings given below.
1. a way, course, or passage for liquids
2. a Christian holy day in March or April when Christians remember the
death of Christ and his return to life
3. only just
4. not obeying a parent, teacher, set of rules etc.
5. close fitting nylon garments covering the foot and leg, worn especially
by women
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D. If the word ‘NEVER’ occurs before a pause or before a word beginning with
a consonant (as in ‘never better’) then it is pronounced with no /r/ sound. If
the immediately following word begins with a vowel, then /r/ is pronounced.
Now say -
better off, here it is, four or five, dark cloud, Easter
Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. Describe the place where the two girls were playing.
2. Who is younger, Malasha or Akoulya ? How do you know ?
3. Why did Akoulya run after Malasha ?
4. Why did the girls dig the channel ?
5. What made men laugh at themselves ?
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. Do you agree with the author that girls are wiser than men ? Elaborate.
2. What made men forget their quarrel and calm down ?
Grammar
A. Study the following sentences.
Textbook
They had just come from church when they met.
She had hardly said this, when Malasha plumped down her foot so that
the water splashed right on to Akoulya’s frock.
The underlined clauses are in past perfect.
Now read the following examples and underline the past perfect clauses in the
given sentences.
1. The meeting had ended when we arrived.
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20
2. He had just gone out when his friend called.
3. Long after, he confessed that he had made a fool of himself.
4. When I had read the book I was much wiser.
5. Mary, who had disappeared on her own business, soon rejoined them.
Speaking Activity
A. Here are the dialogues from the lesson. Divide yourself in a group of
five each. Assuming yourselves Malasha, Akoulya, Malasha's mother,
Akoulya’s mother and the old lady. Now repeat the related dialogues in
proper sequence.
Your mother will scold you. I will take off my shoes and stockings and
you take off yours.
It is deep, Akoulya, I'm afraid !
Come, don’t be frightened.
Mind, don’t splash. Walk carefully.
You naughty, dirty girl.
What are you beating my girl for ?
Is it right to behave so ?
Are you not ashamed of yourselves ?
B. You are passing with your friend through a forest. You come across a stream.
Discuss how you will cross it.
Writing Activity
A. Write a letter to your friend describing the memorable event you and your
grandparents shared. (50 words)
B. Write on ‘Innocence is bliss’. (150 words)
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Think it over
A. Children play in small groups. They are emotionally attached to one another
yet they sometimes quarrel. Try to remember an incident in which you were
involved.
B. Many a time the policy of ‘forget and forgive’ helps us. Think.
Things to do
There are five situations given in the chart below. Each situation calls for
an action by the people. Write in the blank space what actually happens
and what should happen. One is done for you.
Situation What generally What should
happens happen
1. There is a road People avoid him People should help
accident at a lonely and go away the injured person.
place. A person is
badly injured. He is
lying on the road.
2. The children of a
colony want to play
a badminton match.
But they do not
have money to buy
shuttlecocks.
3. A little boy works in
a tea shop. He wants
to study. He is
compelled to work
due to poverty. He
begs for help.
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22
Situation What generally What should
happens happen
4. A small puppy has
fallen into a shallow
pit. It is unable to
climb out. It howls
in anxiety.
5. You have not
completed your
homework. You
have just started
doing it. Your
friends call you for
a friendly match.
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Textbook
I remember, I remember
The house where I was born,
The little window where the sun
Came peeping in at morn;
He never came a wink too soon
Nor brought too long a day;
But now, I often wish the night
Had borne my breath away.
I remember, I remember
The roses, red and white,
The violets, and the lily-cups
Those flowers made of light !
The lilacs where the robin built,
And where my brother set
The laburnum on his birth-day,
The tree is living yet !
I remember, I remember
Where I was used to swing,
And thought the air must rush as fresh
To swallows on the wing;
My spirit flew in feathers then
That is so heavy now,
4
Past and Present
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24
And summer pools could hardly cool
The fever on my brow.
I remember, I remember
The fir trees dark and high;
I used to think their slender tops
Were close against the sky :
It was a childish ignorance,
But now 'tis little joy
To know I'm farther off from Heaven
Than when I was a boy.
Glossary
peeping /pi:piN/ look at secretly and for a moment
morn /mO:n/ morning
- Thomas Hood
wink /wINk/ shine with a light that flickers or flashes quickly
on and off
borne /bO:n/ carried
laburnum /lJ'b3:nJm/ tree with yellow flowers
swallows /'swQlJUz/ to take something in or completely cover;
small birds with long pointed wings and tail
with two points.
spirit /'spIrIt/ soul
slender /'slendJ(r)/ long and thin
ignorance /'IgnJrJns/ no knowledge
joy /dZOI/ gladness
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Vocabulary
Textbook
Exercises
A. Infer the meanings of the following words from the context.
remember, peeping, light, spirit, heavy
B. Make a list of words where ‘re’ is not used as a prefix.
Example : record.
C. Distinguish between the following words.
house - home
little - small
too - very
heavy - light
hard - hardly
D. Pronounce the following words.
living - leaving where - were
pulls - pools farther - father
born - barn - borne
Comprehension
A. Read the first stanza and answer the questions.
1. Why does the poet remember ‘the house’ ?
2. What does ‘too soon’ and ‘too long’ refer to ?
3. What does the poet desire ?
4. Find out the lines which express the beauty of the sun-shine.
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B. Read the second stanza and answer the questions.
26
1. Describe the beauty of flowers as depicted by the poet.
2. What objects of nature attract the poet most ?
3. Find out the rhyming words in the second stanza.
C. Read the third stanza and answer the questions.
1. How did the poet enjoy the freshness of air ?
2. Highlight the difference between past and present spirit of the poet.
3. What made the past pleasant ?
4. Why is the present heavy for the poet ?
D. Read the last stanza and answer the questions.
1. Which lines tell about the height of thin fir trees ?
2. How does the poet compare childhood with manhood ?
Speaking Activity
A. Say the correct responses.
1. The poet remembers :
the car he travelled in
the house he was born in
the morning he spent
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2. The poet’s brother set the laburnum :
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on his birthday
on Good Friday
on Christmas
3. Thomas Hood says :
the air must stop
the air must blow
the air must rush
4. It was little joy for the poet to think that :
the fir trees were dark and high
the tops of the trees were close against the sky
he was farther off from heaven than when he was a boy
B. Narrate your own past experiences of an event which you have not
forgotten even today. You can begin as :
When I was ........................... years old.
or
When I was living with my ..................... at ..................... .
or
It was the month of .......................... .
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Writing Activity
A. We owe a lot to nature. Write about the things you observe in the company of
nature. (50 words)
B. Describe the activities you used to do as a little child. (150 words)
Think it over
28
(i) It is a general notion that childhood is the most memorable period of
one’s life. Why is it so ? Is it the carefree sporting or the love and care
one receives or something else ?
(ii) What lessons can we learn in the lap of nature ?
Things to do
Observe your natural surroundings. Make an entry of your observations in
your diary. For example :
July 07, 2007
Yesterday when I went to a garden, I saw a butterfly, sitting on a flower. It
kept on opening and closing its wings as if it was a book and the flower was
reading it. ............................................
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Textbook
Dead Man's Riddle
Often, when there are two or more brothers in a family, they want to divide
their parents’ property between them and get into arguments and court cases over
this.
In the villages, the panchayat decides how the property should be divided.
In my childhood, I used to attend meetings of the panchayat with my grandfather
where the division of some villager’s property would be discussed. The elders
would assemble and call the brothers who were fighting for the property. If there
were three brothers, they would make three divisions of the property, each of
approximately the same value. For example, each part would contain a little bit
of gold, some silver and vessels. The values of all the articles in each group
would be approximately fixed by the elders of the villages. It was difficult always
to make the value of each part equal to the others. In such a situation, the
youngest brother would get to choose his part first. The logic behind it was that
he had stayed the least number of days with his parents. In those days, in villages,
staying with parents was also considered an asset.
The village elders were all well-respected and everyone knew they were
impartial. Their decisions were final and no one went to court against them.
Going to court for such matters was considered a waste of time and energy.
There is a saying in the village that if two feuding parties approach the court,
both parties lose money, only the advocate becomes rich.
Once, there was such a disagreement in the division of property of a
certain family. The Sarpanch tried his best to make the brothers agree to a
certain division but they just would not accept the decision. Finally, Sarpanch
Som Gowda told a story which everyone listened to carefully.
It seems, a long time back, in our village itself, there lived a rich man. He
had three sons who never agreed with their father about anything. The rich man
had a friend called Sumanth, who was well educated and very wise. He would
say, time will teach them everything, don’t be in a hurry.
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One day, the old man died. He left seventeen horses, lots of gold and land
for his sons. He wrote a will which was very strange. He divided the land and
gold into three parts but for the division of horses there was a riddle. Nobody
could understand the riddle. It said, ‘The half of the total horses should be given
to the elder son, in the remaining half two-third should be given to the second
son and what remains out of that two-third should be given to the third son.’
Seventeen was the total number of horses. Half of it meant eight and a half
horse to the elder son. That meant one had to kill a horse to divide it. Subsequently,
two-third of eight would mean one more horse had to be killed. The old man
loved his horses immensely and would never have wanted any of them killed. So
what did he mean ? The brothers scratched their heads for a few days over the
will. When they could not come up with a solution, they showed the will to their
father’s friend. Sumanth read it and smiled.
He replied, ‘It is very easy. Tomorrow morning I will come and divide the
horses.’
The next day, everybody assembled in the ground. All seventeen horses
were standing in a row. Sumanth came on his own horse. He made his horse
stand along with the other horses.
He said, ‘Now there are eighteen horses. I am as good as your father. Let
us divide the horses as per the will.’
But the sons objected. ‘You have added your horse to our horses, that was
not our father’s wish.’
Sumanth said, ‘Don’t worry, wait until the division is over. I will take my
horse back. Out of these eighteen horses as per the will, half will go the elder
son. Half of eighteen is nine, so the elder one gets nine horses. Now there are
nine remaining, out of nine two-third means six horses will go the second son.
Now there are three remaining. Two-third of three means two horses out of
three, will go the third son. One horse is left, which was anyway not yours. It
is mine and I am taking it and going home.’
All the people who had assembled were puzzled. The three sons did not
know how the division took place without killing a horse. They went to Sumanth
and asked, ‘Uncle, how did you manage without killing any horse ?’
30
Sumanth smiled and said, ‘Experience has taught me many things in life.
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Your father also knew it. Many a time a work may look impossible. But if
someone gives the smallest suggestion, you can work on it. That is the reason
your father wrote his will in such a way that you were forced to take somebody’s
advice. You may think you know everything, but please remember you are still
a student. Life is an eternal teacher, provided you have an open mind.’
Som Gowda concluded, ‘That’s the way elders have taught us lessons.
Experience is the best teacher in life. Elders have seen many ups and downs in
their lives and interacted with many people. During the process they have acquired
knowledge which can’t be taught in a school or college. It has to be learnt over
a period of time. Now it is left to you people to make the decision.’
The three brothers, after listening to the story, agreed to the panchayat’s
division of their property.
Glossary
riddle /'rIdl/ difficult or amusing question
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- Sudha Murty
fighting /faItiN/ to try to get what you want in a court of
law
approximately /J'prQksImJtli/ nearly, not exactly but almost
asset /'&set/ help
impartial /Im'pA:Sl/ just; not favouring one side
court /kO:t/ the place where legal trials take place and
where crimes etc are judged
feud /fju:d/ long continued quarrel between persons,
families or groups
will /wIl/ paper showing to whom a man’s
possessions are to be given after his death
immensely /I'mensli/ very much
interact /%IntJr'&kt/ to communicate with somebody, especially
while you work, play or spend time with
them
31

Vocabulary
32
Exercises
A. Use the following words in your own sentences.
problem, mystery, puzzle, riddle
B. The word ‘WILL’ has different meanings. Find a few of them and write
them down in your notebook.
C. The word ‘disagreement’ has a prefix and a suffix. Write some words which
have a prefix as well as a suffix.
D. Write expressions like ‘two-third’, ‘the half’ etc. with their meanings.
E. The mark (’) apostrophe is used to show that one or more letters or numbers
have been left out as in don't and '86 for do not and 1986. Write other uses of
the apostrophe with examples and practise them.
Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. What happens when there are two or more brothers in a family?
2. What did the villagers think about going to the court ?
3. Why was the younger brother given priority in choosing his part ?
4. What was the will of the dead man ?
B. Answer each the following questions in about 50 words.
1. How did Sumanth divide the property ?
2. ‘Experience is the best teacher in life.’ Why ?
3. What lesson do you learn from the story ?
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Grammar
A. Study these sentences.
Textbook
The youngest brother would get to choose his part first .
The village elders were all well respected.
The half of the total horses should be given to the elder son.
The rich man had a friend.
There are three degrees of comparison :
Positive : young rich old
Comparative : younger richer elder, older
Superlative : youngest richest eldest, oldest
Now, write the degrees of comparison used in the sentences given below.
1. We are three brothers. My eldest brother is a doctor.
2. My school building is bigger than my house.
3. Riding is the best kind of exercise.
4. I work harder than you.
5. All the teachers are wise.
Speaking Activity
A. Narrate the story told by the Sarpanch Som Gowda in your own words.
B. Enact the story in the class with the following characters -
Three sons
the reader of the will
Sumanth, their father’s friend
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C. What has been said in the story about court cases ? Quote it
D. Play the role of Sumanth and distribute the horses among the three brothers.
34
Begin like this : Come on boys, I am your father’s close friend, just like
your father. I will help you to get your proper share ....................... .
Writing Activity
A. Narrate, how you were benefited with the elder’s advice to be regular in
studies. (50 words)
B. ‘Life is an eternal teacher.’ Express your views. (150 words)
Think it over
A. There are certain things which are not taught at schools or colleges. Think
about such things.
B. Sometimes things look impossible but they can be made possible by a little
effort. Is it so?
Things to do
There are three jars.The first contains gold coins, the second silver coins and
the third silver and gold coins mixed. The lables are wrongly put on the jars.
Now you are permitted to take out a single coin from any one of the jars and
tell using logic or wit what is contained in each jar.
Find the answer and write it in your project book.
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Textbook
Arise, Awake !
Strength, strength is what the Upanishads speak to me from every page.
This is the one great thing to remember, it has been the one great lesson. I have
been taught in my life, strength, it says, strength. O man, be not weak. Stand up
and be strong. Ay, it is the only literature in the world where you find the word
‘Abhih’, fearless, used again and again; in other scriptures in the world is the
adjective either to God or to man. Abhih, fearless ! strength, strength for us.
What we need is strength, who will give us strength ? Therefore, my friends as
one of your blood, as one that lives and dies with you, let me tell you that we
want strength, strength, and every time strength. And the Upanishads are the
great mine of strength.
Arise, awake and stop not till the desired end is reached. Be bold and fear
not. Arise, awake, for your country needs this tremendous sacrifice. It is the
young men that will do it “the young, the energetic, the strong, the well-built,
the intellectual.” Arise, awake the world is calling upon you. Think not that you
are poor, that you have no friends. The moment you fear you are nobody. It is
fear that is the great cause of misery in the world. It is fear that is the greatest
of all superstitions. It is fear that is the cause of our woes, and it is fearlessness
that brings heaven even in a moment.
Therefore, Arise! Awake! Come, the youth of my country, stand by me.
Help me. Go out in the world, to the villages, go across the country and spread
this message of courage ; Arise! Awake! Spread this message to the humblest
and to the mightiest. Talk to the people, plead with the people, inspire the
people, tell them that there is no end to their strength. Tell them that they are
the inheritors of the earth–unleash their creative energies. Let them gird up their
loins and plunge into the battle of life. Let them be man enough. Let them know
6
35

that they are the shapers of their destiny. Let them be self-reliant. Let them have
faith. Let them know that it was out of indomitable faith that all great things are
born. Forward, O, the youth of my country ! He who has no love in his heart
is dead. Do not aspire to be a leader, but aspire that you may serve. If you want
to be a master, first be a servant. I am a humble servant of man. I am not a
politician, not am I a social reformer.
Educate and raise the masses and thus alone a nation is possible. But what
is education ? Is it book-learning ? No. Is it diverse knowledge ? Not even that.
Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man. Is that education
which is slowly making man a machine ? It is more blessed, in my opinion, even
to go wrong, impelled by one’s free will and intelligence, than to be good as an
automation ..... Take your universities. What have they done during the fifty
years of their existence ? They have not produced one original man. They are
merely examining bodies....... Education is not the amount of information that
is put into your brain–remains undigested all your life. We must have service to
man, life-building, man-making, character making, assimilation of ideas. If you
have assimilated five ideas and made them your life and character, you have
more education than any man who has got by heart a whole library.
Let each one of us pray day and night for the down-trodden millions in
India who are held fast by poverty, priestcraft, at tyranny..... pray day and night
for them.. I am no philosopher, nay, no saint, I am poor, I love the poor .. Who
feels in India for the two hundred millions of men and women sunken forever
in poverty and ignorance ? Where is the way out ? Who will bring light to them?
So long as the millions live in hunger and ignorance, I hold every man a traitor
who, having been educated at their expense, pays not the least heed to them. The
poor is our God, the illiterate is our Master. Do not search for God in obscure
places, for God is there in front of you in million forms. He who loves creation
is serving God ..... Throw away the paraphernalia of worship ! Go out and
worship man, for God has appeared in the form of man and to worship man is
to serve man, so serve is to toil and labour.
36
- Swami Vivekanand
(adapted)
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Glossary
arise /J'raIz/ come up
tremendous /trJ'mendJs/ very large, very great
misery /'mIzJri/ great suffering of the mind or body
inheritors /In'herItJz/ persons who are affected by the
work, ideas of people who lived
before them
unleash /Vn'li:S/ to suddenly let a strong force,
emotion etc. be felt or have an effect
gird up their loins /g3:d Vp DeJ(r) lOInz/ (idiom) to get ready to do something
difficult
indomitable /In'dQmItJbl/ unyieldingly courageous
aspire /J'spaIJ(r)/ desire eagerly to seek some high aim
manifestation /%m&nIfe'steISJn/ expression
impelled /Im'peld/ urged
assimilation /J%sImJ'leISn/ absorption
down-trodden /'daUntrQdn/ pushed down by a strong power
sunken /'sVNkJn/ become worse or weaker
traitor /'treItJ(r)/ one who does harm to his own king
or country by helping an enemy
obscure /Jb'skjUJ(r)/ dark, not well known
paraphernalia /%p&rJfJ'neIliJ/ many and various things belonging
to a person or used in some work
Textbook
37

Vocabulary
A. Match the following.
38
Exercises
tat - a very small child
taught - something of very low quality
taut - to carry especially with difficulty
tot - showing signs of worry or anxiety
tote - pass on knowledge or skill
tut - care or responsibility
trust - used for expressing slight disapproval or annoyance
B. Write 'in' or 'un' before the following words.
____ domitable ____ bearable
____ complete ____ audible
____ able ____ auspicious
____ avoidable ____ correct
____ eligible ____ sincere
____ leash ____ polite
C. Choose the correct word and fill in the blanks.
(i) Children in school are expected to ———(collect/assimilate/take) what
they have been taught.
(ii) Do not search for God in ——— (vague, clear, obscure ) places.
(iii) This latest outbreak of violence is a clear ——— (manifestation,
feeling, belief) of the growing discontent in the area.
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Textbook
(iv) Do not____ (aspire, expire, ceasefire) to have wanted things
in your life.
(v) Our country needs ———— (wide, large, tremendous) sacrifice.
D. In words like ‘arise’ and ‘awake’ stress is not on the first syllable. Give some
more examples of the words begining with 'a' ————— and having stress
on the second syllable.
Example : again
Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. What does Swami Vivekanand say about the importance of strength ?
2. What is the biggest enemy of strength ? Why ?
3. What good qualities should the youth of our country acquire ?
4. What is real worship ?
5. How can we make our nation prosper ?
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. What according to Swami Vivekanand is real education ?
2. Why do you agree that the ideas of the author are universal ?
3. Discuss the need and importance of mass education.
Grammar
A. Study these sentences.
Upanishads speak to me from every page–stand up and be strong.
What we need is strength, who will give us strength.
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40
Arise, awake and stop not till the desired end is reached.
Help me. Go out in the world, to the villages.
Spread this message to the humblest and to the mightiest.
There is no obvious future tense in English corresponding to the time/tense
relation for present and past. Instead there are several possibilities for denoting
future time.
Pick out the sentences from the text showing Future Time references.
Speaking Activity
A. Following are the excerpts from the speech of Swami Vivekanand. Learn
a few of them and speak them in the manner Swamiji might have spoken.
Strength, strength what the Upanishads speak to me from every page.
O man, be not weak. Stand up and be strong.
Arise, awake and stop not till the desired end is reached.
Be bold and fear not. Arise ! Awake for your country needs this tremendous
sacrifice.
Think not that you are poor, that you have no friends. The moment you
fear you are nobody. It is fear that is the great cause of misery in the
world. It is fear that is the cause of our woes and it is fearlessness that
brings heaven even in a moment.
B. Quote orally some sayings of the other Indian philosophers and social reformers
like Mahatma Gandhi, Maharishi Aurobindo, Dr. Radhakrishnan,
Swami Dayanand and others.
Writing Activity
A. What qualities would you like to imbibe after reading the speech. Write to
your younger brother about them. (50 words)
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B. If you were a reporter of a newspaper present at the time of Swami Vivekanand’s
speech given in the text, what report along with a headline you would have
written. (150 words)
Think it over
A. To be a citizen of a strong nation is a great feeling. What are the things that
make a nation strong ? Is it only army that makes a nation strong or is it only
national character that makes a nation strong ? Why ?
B. Fear is the greatest of all superstitions because fear is often based on false
ideas. One should always be fearless to venture into unknown. Is it true ?
C. Education is the continual refinement of human instincts and behaviour.
Education builds national character. The national character decides the direction
in which the nation progresses. How important is character in your view?
D. Service to mankind means service to God. The poor is our God in million
forms. What is your opinion ?
Things to do
Visit your library and collect information regarding the life of Swami
Vivekanand on the following points -
Textbook
birth
childhood
education
fame
message to the Indian youth
41

Glossary
42
The World is too much with us
The World is too much with us ; late and soon,
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon.
This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon,
The winds that will be howling at all hours
And are up-gather'd now like sleeping flowers,
For this, for everything, we are out of tune;
It moves us not–Great God I’d rather be
A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn,
So might, I, standing on this pleasant lea,
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;
Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;
Or hear old Triton blow his wreathed horn.
sordid /'sO:dId/ unpleasant
forlorn /fJ'lO:n/ lonely and unhappy
7
- William Wordsworth
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Vocabulary
Textbook
Exercises
A. ‘late and soon’, ‘Getting and spending’ are the expressions used in the poem.
Write some more expressions of this type.
Example ‘coming and going’
B. Use the words ‘heart’ and ‘hearts’ in some sentences. The words used in
sentences should have different meanings.
C. Find out the odd one : boon, soon, noon, horn, moon
Comprehension
A. Read the first four lines of the poem and answer the following questions.
1. Find out the lines expressing the following idea : we waste our energy in
worldly affairs without realising that Nature belongs to us.
2. What is the effect of materialism as shown in the first stanza ?
B. Read the next five lines of the poem and answer the following questions.
1. What makes the poet unhappy ?
2. What do you understand by the following :
a ‘This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon’
b ‘A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn’
C. Read the next five lines of the poem and answer the following questions.
1. Why does the poet say that we have become out of tune ?
2. What does the poet mean by ‘sleeping flowers’ ?
3. Describe the feelings of the poet after looking at 'Proteus rising from the
sea'.
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Speaking Activity
A. Talk in pairs about two persons : one who lives in a city and the other who
lives in a village, in the lap of nature.
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Talk about their life styles, availability of fresh air, vehicles, pomp and show
in life, simplicity, crowd, peace, hustle and bustle, size of the houses, gardens
and parks, fields and farms etc.
B. Discuss the title of the poem among the members of your group. Justify the
title mentioning your own personal experiences.
Writing Activity
A. Write your friend about your attitude towards the nature. (50 words)
B. Compare the creations of God and man-made things. Write your observations.
(150 words)
Think it over
A. How can you see a thing with your eyes and mind both ?
B. Why do you feel happy in the company of nature ?
Things to do
Collect some pictures which show that the things of the nature are beautiful.
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8
The The Goal Goal not not Scored
Scored
Arif rubbed his knees gingerly. He knew that he had to be fit for the next
day’s match. The inter- house matches were going on and he was going to make
sure that he played well in the next match. They were going to meet the Red
House in the next match and the Reds had been claiming that they had never
lost to the Blues. Arif was sure that there was always going to be a first time.
The match was also important because his team, the Blue House, needed a win
to get the two points necessary for them to get into the finals. He was their star
player and could not afford to be injured for such an important match.
The amount of practice he and his teammates had put in before the match
also had been phenomenal. Arif was having the feeling that they were playing
some very important tournament, when it was actually only a small match between
the different houses in the same school.
“This is going to be our most important match’’, said Vikas the captain of
the Blues, trying to lift the morale of his team before the match. “Give
everything.’’ he said. “We want a victory at any cost. I repeat, we want a victory
at any cost.’’
They had practised till all of them had been completely tired. Their game
plan was almost final and they were beginning to play as a team. They had
plenty of coordination too.
‘‘There is no reason why we should not win this match,’’ said Santosh,
their goalkeeper.
‘‘We won’t lose unless you concede a goal.’’ said Vikas.
‘‘I won’t let the ball get past me’’, “said Santosh with determination. ‘‘The
Reds are going to lose this time !”
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They still remembered, with anger, the last match they had played with the
Reds in the previous year’s finals. They had been leading by a goal till half-time,
after which the Reds had turned violent. The blues had become slightly subdued
by the violent tactics and the Reds had used the resultant confusion to strike two
quick goals towards the end of the game. This time, the Blues had decided that
they would not allow the Reds to get away with their rough tactics.
The team went to the ground with determination. The Reds were already
on the ground. They too looked confident. Among other things, the main strength
of the Reds was their goalkeeper, Praveen. Everyone believed that it would be
very difficult to get the ball past him. Their players also looked smart in their
red-coloured T-shirts and shorts. The supporters of the two teams were lined
up on both sides of the playground. As the match was expected to create a lot
of tension and excitement, they had taken no chances with the refereeing. They
had convinced their sports teacher. Mr, Sahu, to stand in as the referee for the
match. Mr Sahu gave the whistle and the match got underway.
With the kick-off the match started. It was tougher than what Arif had
imagined. The Reds obviously had the impression that Arif was the star player
of the Blues and had decided to target him from the beginning. Even as Arif
would be thinking of getting to the ball, he would find that a Red House player
would come out of nowhere and stop him by force. These attacks did fetch their
team a couple of free kicks, but Arif was beginning to feel the pressure of the
game, every time he was pushed on to the ground. For a while, he tried to stay
away from the ball. He noticed that the player of the Reds, who was marking
him was paying no attention to the ball and was trying to keep a close watch
on Arif.
The game had begun to get rough. Arif felt that the Reds were adopting
their usual strategy. However, this time the Blues had responded well. The
players of both sides were seen falling on the ground or nursing their injuries.
Soon neither of the teams was able to make much headway and the game was
being played in the midfield only.
Arif knew that the Blues had to score in order to get the two points. He
had to run fast enough and also introduce an element of surprise in order to get
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id of the player who was marking him. He ran towards the ball and with a
sudden action he stopped. Then he turned and ran back. The player who was
marking him was caught off guard. Arif was fairly deep into the rival territory
by now and the other players of his team had realized his position. Vikas
managed to move along the flanks and sought out Arif who was free of the player
who had been marking him. Arif got a beautiful through pass and he dribbled
the ball close to the opponent’s goal post. There was total confusion at the
goalpost of the Reds. There were also a couple of Blue players who were adding
to the confusion. They seemed to be pushing against each other and Arif tried
to dribble through the confusion. Now he was very close to the goalpost and
his primary task was to put the ball past the goalkeeper who had valiantly foiled
their earlier attempts.
As he jumped over a player who had fallen over the ground. Arif realized
that it was the goalkeeper and he seemed to be badly injured. For a moment,
Arif had a vision of the vacant and unprotected goalpost where he could push
the ball through and claim his team’s rightful victory. Then he realized that the
referee had not noticed the fallen goalkeeper. Arif stopped by the ball and did
not shoot. There were cries of ‘‘shoot’’ from his team-mates, but Arif did not.
He was signalling to the referee showing him the injured player. The referee
noticed the injured player and decided to stop the game.
The goalkeeper, Praveen seemed to be injured seriously. He was not able
to walk by himself and had to be carried off the ground unconscious. They had
to complete the match in his absence. Another of the Reds took Praveen’s place
at the goalpost and the play was resumed. There were only five minutes left in
the game and both the teams tried their best to score. However, the game got
even more rough and during much of this short period, the game took place in
the midfield and neither of the teams could do any scoring. They had to console
themselves with a draw and split with one point each from the game. The Blues
went back disappointed-they had missed the chance to go up in the tournament.
“What were you doing there with the ball?’’ asked Vikas, the captain of
the Blues, unable to hide his anger and frustration. “There, at that moment, you
had the goalpost undefended before you and, of all things you had to call up the
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eferee. It seemed as if you did not want the Blues to win.”
“No, what he did was right,” protested Santosh, their goalkeeper. “Winning
is not that important. Even if Arif had kicked the ball over the unconscious
goalkeeper, the victory would have been meaningless. And if the referee had
noticed the injury earlier, he would anyway have stopped the play.’’
view.
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“Yes,” agreed the rest of the team and Vikas also had to accept the general
Arif's action seemed to have touched a chord with the Reds who were
known to be the most aggressive of the lot. In the remaining matches and in the
next few years they were much more polite and softer in their approach to the
game. Arif’s gesture seemed to make them also realize that there was something
in the game, which was more than merely winning it.
Glossary
- Manoj T. Thomas
gingerly /'dZIndZJli/ carefully for fear of a mistake or of
getting hurt
phenomenal /fJ'nQmInl/ strange and unusual
tournament /'tUJnJmJnt/ number of games played between different
players
morale /mJ'rA:l/ level of confidence
at any cost /Jt 'eni kQst/ extremely important
coordination /kJU%O:dI'neISn/ working together
concede /kJn'si:d/ give away, yield after disagreeing
determination /dI%t3:mI'neISn/ strong will to succeed
violent /'vaIJlJnt/ fierce and usally dangerous
subdued /sJb'dju:d/ quiet, controlled
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tactics /'t&ktIks/ clever plans
resultant /rI'zVltJnt/ caused by the thing that has just
been mentioned
shorts /SO:ts/ short trousers
excitement /Ik'saItmJnt/ happiness and enthusiasm
underway /%VndJ'weI/ having started
free kicks /fri: kIks/ to kick the ball without any opposition
to get rough /tJ get rVf/ difficult to hit the ball
strategy /'str&tJdZi/ tactics
to make headway /tJ meIk 'hedwJI/ to forward
off guard /Qf gA:d/ away from guard
flanks /fl&Nks/ left or right side of a game
dribbled /'drIbld/ to move the ball along with several
short kicks, hits or bounces
valiantly /'v&liJntli/ bravely
shoot /Su:t/ to hit or throw the ball into a goal
console /kJn'sJUl/ to give comfort or sympathy
disappoint /%dIsJ'pOInt/ cause sorrow because of failing to do
what is expected
frustration /frV'streISn/ feeling annoyed and impatient
because you cannot achieve
what you want
touched a chord /tVtSt J kO;d/ feel sympathy or enthusiam
aggressive /J'gresIv/ quick to attack, threatening
gesture /'dZestSJ(r)/ a particular feeling or intention
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Vocabulary
50
Exercises
A. Make adverbs from the following words.
(1) ginger (2) complete (3) obvious (4) fast (5) well
B. Write the difference between the following.
(i) match and tournament
(ii) practice and practise
(iii) captain and caption
(iv) plenty and surplus
(v) through and thorough
(vi) moment and movement
C. What are the different meanings of ‘shoot’ in the following sentences?
(1) I’m coming out with my hands up : don’t shoot.
(2) We’ll be ready to shoot as soon as all the cameras are loaded.
(3) Let’s shoot a game of pool.
(4) He invited us to his country estate for a week-end shoot.
(5) Rose bushes shoot again after being cut back.
(6) Can you shoot a goal from twenty yards out ?
(7) You want to tell me something ? Well, shoot !
D. Pronounce the following words.
gingerly, game, gem, guard, goal, ground, gesture, general
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Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. Explain the importance of winning the match to the Blues.
2. Why were the Blues angry on their defeat in the last match ?
3. How did the Red prevent Blues from attacking ?
4. How did Arif change the attitude of the Reds in the coming matches ?
5. What is more important than victory ?
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. Describe, how Arif succeeded in taking the ball to the goal post of the
Reds.
2. Why did Arif not hit the ball into the goal even though he was sure to
score a goal ?
3. What qualities of a good player do you notice in Arif ?
Grammar
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Study these sentences.
A. The inter-house matches were going on.
Arif was having the feeling that they were playing some very important
tournament.
The players were adding to confusion.
B. They were going to meet the Red house. They were beginning to play
well as a team.
The sentences given under 'A' show past continuous tense.
The sentences given under 'B' have ‘going to’ form. This form always
implies a premeditated intention. The intention is accompanied by a plan.
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Now, put the verbs in brackets into simple past or past continuous.
I (walk) along the streets in Mumbai when I (realize) that a man with a
ginger bread, whom I had seen three times already that afternoon (follow)
me. To make quite sure, I (walk) on quickly, (turn) right then left and
(stop) suddenly at a shop window. I (go) on. Whenever I (stop he (stop)
and whenever I (look) round he (be) still there. He (look) a very respectable
type and (wear) very conventional clothes and I (wonder) if he was a
policeman or a private detective.
Speaking Activity
A. Consider yourself a commentator, make a live commentary of the match
played between the Red House and the Blue House.
B. Ask questions about the match described in the lesson. Use the following
words:
1. between/whom
Between whom was the match played ?
2. What/ Arif/ feeling
3. How/the team/enter
4. The blues/why/disappointed
C. What are the do's and don'ts of the winners and losers ? Discuss with your
friends.
For example,
Winners should not laugh at the losers.
Losers should not be discouraged.
Writing Activity
A. Give a pen-portrait of Arif to be published in the school magazine. You may
write about Arif’s exemplary action. (50 words)
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B. Write the highlights of any memorable match you have watched recently.
(150 words)
Think it over
A. All the sports and games are played according to the rules. The rules are
enforced by a referee or an umpire. Who knows the rules better, the player or
the referee?
B. Think of two arguments supporting the Arif’s viewpoint.
C. Suppose there is a wrong judgement in the field. How should the players
react to it.
Things to do
Make a list of the fouls in a game of your choice.
Name of the game ............................................
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S.l. No. Fouls
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
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54
The Mission-Agni
Indian core competence in rocketry has been firmly established again,
beyond any doubt. The robust civilian space industry and viable missile-based
defences has brought India into the select club of nations that call themselves
superpowers. Always encouraged to follow Buddha’s or Gandhi’s teachings,
how and why did India become a missile power is a question that needs to be
answered for future generations.
Two centuries of subjugation, oppression and denial have failed to kill the
creativity and capability of the Indian people. Within Just a decade of gaining
independence and achieving sovereignty, Indian Space and Atomic Energy
Programmes were launched with a perfect orientation towards peaceful
applications. There were neither funds for investing in missile development nor
any established requirement from the Armed Forces. The bitter experiences of
1962 forced us to take the basic first steps towards missile development.
Would a Prithvi suffice ? Would the indigenous development of four or
five missile systems make us sufficiently strong ? Or would having nuclear
weapons make us stronger ? Missiles and atomic weapons are merely parts of
greater whole. As I saw it, the development of Prithvi represented the selfreliance
of our country in the field of advanced technology. High technology is
synonymous with huge amounts of money and massive infrastructure. Neither of
these was available, unfortunately, in adequate measure. So what could we do?
Perhaps the Agni missile being developed as a technology demonstrator project,
pooling all the resources available in the country, could provide an answer ?
I was very sure, even when we discussed REX in ISRO about a decade
ago, that Indian scientist and technologists working together had the capability
to achieve this technological breakthrough. India can most certainly achieve
state of-the-art technology through a combined effort of the scientific laboratories
and the academic institutions. If one can liberate Indian Industry from the self-
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created Image of being mere fabricating factories, they can implement Indigenously
developed technology and attain excellent results. To do this, we adopted a threefold-strategy
multi institutional participation, the consortium approach, and the
empowering technology. These were the stones rubbed together to create Agni.
The Agni team was comprised of more than 500 scientists. Many
organizations were networked to undertake this huge effort of launching Agni.
The Agni mission had two basic orientations work and workers. Each member
was dependent on the others in his team to accomplish his target. Contradiction
and confusion are the two things most likely to occur in such situations. Different
leaders accommodate concern for workers while getting work done, in their own
personal ways. Some shed all concern for workers in order to get results. They
use people merely as instruments to reach goals. Some give less importance to
the work, and make an effort to gain the warmth and approval of people working
with them. But what this team achieved was the highest possible integration in
terms of both the quality of work and human relationships.
Involvement, participation and commitment were the key words to
functioning. Each of the team members appeared to be performing by choice.
The launching of Agni was the common stake not only for our scientists, but for
their families too. VR Nagaraj was the leader of the electrical Integration team.
Dedicated technologist that he is, Nagaraj would forget basic requirements like
food and sleep while on the Integration gig. His brother-in-law passed away
while he was at ITR. His family kept this information from Nagaraj so that there
would be no interruption in his work towards the launching of Agni.
The Agni launch had been scheduled for 20 April 1989. This was going
to be an unprecedented exercise. Unlike space launch vehicles, a missile launch
involves wide-ranging safety hazards. Two radars, three telemetry stations, one
telecommand station and four electro-optical tracking instruments to monitor the
missile trajectory had been deployed. In addition, the telemetry station at Car
Nicobar (ISTRAC) and the SHAR radars were also commissioned to track the
vehicle. Dynamic surveillance was employed to cover the electrical power that
flows from the missile batteries within the vehicle and to control system pressures.
Should any deviation be noticed either in voltage or in pressure the specially
designed automatic checkout system would signal “Hold”. The flight operations
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would then be sequenced only if the defect was rectified. The countdown for
the launch started at T-36 hours. The countdown from T-7.5 minutes was to be
computer controlled.
All activities preparatory to the launch went according to schedule. We had
decided to move the people living in nearby villages to safety at the time of the
launch. This attracted media attention, and led to much controversy. By the time
20 April 1989 arrived, the whole nation was watching us. Foreign pressure was
exerted through diplomatic channels to abort the flight trial, but the Indian
Government stood behind us like a rock and staved off any distraction to our
work. We were at T -14 seconds when the computer signalled “Hold”, indicating
that one of the instruments was functioning erratically. This was immediately
rectified. Meanwhile, the down range station asked for a “Hold”. In another few
seconds, multiple Holds were necessiated, resulting in irreversible internal power
consumption. We had to abort the launch. The missile had to be opened up to
replace the on board power supplies. A weeping Nagaraj, by now informed about
the tragedy in his family, met me and promised that he would be back within three
days. The profiles of these courageous people will never be written about in any
history book, but it is such silent people on whose hard work generations thrive
and nations progress. Sending Nagaraj off, I met my team members who were
in a state of shock and sorrow. I shared my SLV-3 experience with them. “I lost
my launch vehicle in the sea but recovered successfully. Your missile is in front
of you. In fact you have lost nothing but a few weeks of rework. This shook
them out of their immobility and the entire team went back to retrieve the
subsystems and re-charge them.
Finally, the launch was scheduled for 22 may 1989. The previous night,
Dr Arunachalam, Gen. KN Singh and I were walking together with the Defence
Minister KC Pant who had come to ITR to witness the launch. It was a fullmoon
night, it was high tide and the waves crashed and roared, as if singing of
His glory and power. Would we succeed with the Agni launch tomorrow ? This
question was foremost in all our minds, but none of us was willing to break the
spell cast by the beautiful moonlit night. Breaking a long silence, the Defence
Minister finally asked me, “Kalam ! what would you like me to do to celebrate
the Agni success tomorrow ?” It was a simple question, to which I could not
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think of an answer immediately. What did I want ? What was it that I did not
have ? What could make me happier ? And then I found the answer. “We need
100,000 saplings to plant at RCI,” I said. His face lit up with a friendly glow.
“You are buying the blessings of Mother Earth for Agni.” Defence Minister KC
Pant quipped. “We will succeed tomorrow”, he predicted.
The next day Agni took off at 0710 hrs. It was a perfect launch. The
missile followed a textbook trajectory. All flight parameters were met. It was
like waking up to a beautiful morning from a nightmarish sleep. We had reached
the launch pad after five years of continuous work at multiple work centres. We
had lived through the ordeal of a series of snags in the last five weeks. We had
survived pressure from everywhere to stop the whole thing. But we did it at last.
It was one of the greatest moments of my life. A mere 600 seconds of elegant
flight washed off our entire fatigue in an instant. What a wonderful culmination
of our years of labour.
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Do not look at Agni
as an entity directed upward
to deter the ominous
or exhibit your might.
It is fire
in the heart of an Indian.
Do not even give it
the form of a missile
as it clings to the
burning pride of this nation
and thus is bright.
- A.P.J. Abdul Kalam
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Glossary
core /kO;(r)/ the most important
competence /'kQmpItJns/ skill
rocketry /'rQkItri/ the art of making missiles
robust /rJU'bVst/ strong
subjugation /%sVbdZu'geISn/ under control
oppression /J'preSn/ cruel and unfair treatment
decade /'dekeId/ a period of ten years
sovereignty /'sQvrJnti/ full power to rule or govern a country
indigenous /In'dIdZJnJs/ produced in the country
synonymous /sI'nQnImJs/ word which has almost the same
meaning as another word
massive /'m&sIv/ having great size and weight
infrastructure /'InfrJstrVktSJ(r)/ the basic systems and services that
are necessary for a country or an
organization
pooling /pu;liN/ collecting
break-through /breIk Tru;/ to make new and important
discoveries
consortium /kJn'sO;tiJm/ a group of people/companies
working together on a particular
project
empowering /Im'paUJriN/ to give power or authority to do
something
orientations /%O;riJn'teISnz/ training or information
accomplish /J'kVmplIS/ achieve
contradiction /%kQntrJ'dIkSn/ a lack of agreement between facts,
opinions, actions etc.
commitment /kJ'mItmJnt/ promise to do something
stake /steIk/ risk on an event
gig /gIg/ a small light carriage with two wheels
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interruption /%IntJ'rVpSn/ something that temporarily stops an
activity or a situation
launching /lO;ntSiN/ starting an activity, especially an
organized one
scheduled /'Sedju;ld/ at the planned time
unprecedented /Vn'presIdentId/ that has never happened
hazards /'h&zJdz/ risks
trajectory /trJ'dZektJri/ the curved path of something that has
been fired, hit or thrown into the air
deviation /%di;vi'eISn/ move away from the straight or
correct path
to abort /tJ J'bO;t/ to end before it has been completed
staved off /steIvd Qf/ prevent
distraction /dI'str&kSn/ a thing that takes your attention away
from what you are doing or thinking
about
erratically /I'r&tIkAli/ not following any plan or regular
pattern
irreversible /%IrI'v3;sJbl/ that cannot be changed back to what
it was before
profiles /'prJUfaIls/ description that gives the most
important information
thrive /TraIv/ be successful
retrieve /rI'tri;v/ get back something lost
parameters /pJ'r&mItJz/ something that decides or limits the
way in which one thing can be done
nightmarish /'naItmeJrIS/ very frightening or unpleasant
entity /'entiti/ something that exits separately from
other things and has its own identity
ominous /'QmInJs/ suggesting that something bad is
going to happen in the future
clings /klINz/ holds firmly to
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Vocabulary
60
Exercises
A. What is meant by the following expressions?
1. series of snags
2. washed off
3. safety hazards
4. pooling all the resources
5. peaceful applications
B. Use the following in sentences of your own :
launch, bitter, suffice, indigenously, accomplish, commitment, interruption,
automatic, rectified, parameters
C. Rewrite the following sentences using a word from the lesson in place of
the underlined word or words.
1. We will be able to do what we have tried or wanted to do.
2. The discovery was the last and highest point of our years of labour.
3. The act of counting backwards in seconds to zero for the launch started.
4. Contradiction and the state of being mistaken are the two things most
likely to occur in such situations.
5. The programmes were launched with a perfect position or direction towards
peaceful applications.
D. The following words have more than three letters. How many sounds are
there in each word ?
doubt, club, call, always, power
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E. Say the words ‘GATE’ WAIT ‘LATE’ Do the sounds underlined remain the
same from start to finish ? Now, find some more examples.
Comprehension
A Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. What is India’s policy about Space and Atomic energy development pro
gramme ?
2. Why was the development of 'Agni' treated as a technology
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demonstrator project ?
3. How can you say that the families of the scientists were also associated
with the mission ?
4. How did the safety device stop the launch of 'Agni' on 20 April 1989 ?
5. What do the following lines convey ?
‘Your missile is in front of you. Infact you have lost nothing but a few
weeks of rework.
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. Why was it necessary to start missile development mission ?
2. Discuss the importance of ‘Prithvi’ in making India self-reliant.
3. What qualities of the team led the mission to success ?
Grammar
A. Study the following sentences.
The Agni team was comprised of more than 500 scientists.
Many organizations were networked to undertake this huge effort of
launching Agni.
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62
The SHAR radars were also commissioned to track the vehicle.
Dynamic surveillance was employed to cover electrical power.
Foreign pressure was exerted through diplomatic channels.
The above sentences are in passive form of simple past.
Now put the verbs in brackets into the passive form of simple past : The
first one is done for you.
1. Puru (defeat) by Alexander / Puru was depeated by Alexander.
2. The map (consult) by the generals
3. No clothing (wear) on the upper parts of their bodies
4. The country (attack) and the soldiers (catch)
5. The students and the countrymen (ask) to go to their respective places
Speaking Activity
A. Converse in pairs. One of you will ask the given questions and the other will
answer them and vice-versa.
Q. What’s this lesson about ?
A. This lesson is about the launching of the missile ‘Agni’.
Q. What was the bitter experience of 1962 ?
A. _______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________.
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Q. What did the development of ‘Prithvi’ represent ?
A.
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_______________________________________________________.
_______________________________________________________.
Q. What strategy was adopted to create Agni ?
A. _______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________.
Q What were the key words behind the functioning of the mission ?
A. _______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________.
Q. How did Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam want to celebrate the success of Agni,
the next day ?
A. _______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________.
B. Assuming yourself a scientist in the mission narrate the preparations of the
launch of the missile in proper sequence .
Writing Activity
A. Plantation of one lac saplings was to maintain the ecological balance. Think
and write some other such measures to maintain ecological balance.
(50 words)
B. Write your views on ‘Joy of work’. (150 words)
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Think it over
A. Rocket can be used as a vehicle for carrying men and material to the space. It
can carry weapons too. Can you think of some other peaceful applications of
rockets?
B. Hard work and dedication to duty is a key to success. Our scientists have
achieved technological edge after years of saintly dedication. Think of their
great achievements.
Things to do
64
Indian scientists have developed different missiles which are either land
to land or land to air or air to air or air to land. Explore your various
resources to collect information about them and fill it in the grid.
S.l. No. Name of missile Type of missile
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
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Polonious. Yet here, Laertes! Aboard, aboard for shame !
Textbook
The wind sits in the shoulder of your sail,
Polonious Advice
And you are stay'd for. There - my blessing with thee !
And these few precepts in the memory
Look thou character. Give thy thoughts no tongue,
Nor any unproportion'd thought his act.
Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar.
The friends thou hast, and their adoption tried,
Grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel;
But do not dull thy palm with entertainment
Of each new-hatch'd unfledg'd courage. Beware
Of entrance to a quarrel ; but, being in,
Bear't that the opposed may beware of thee.
Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice ;
Take each man's censure, but reserve thy judgment.
Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy,
But not express'd in fancy ; rich, not gaudy ;
For the apparel oft proclaims the man ;
10
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Glossary
66
And they in France of the best rank and station
Are of a most select and generous choice in that.
Neither a borrower nor a lender be ;
For loan oft loses both itself and friend,
And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.
This above all–to thine own self be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.
Farewell; my blessing season this in thee !
precepts /'pri:septs/ rules of behaviour
vulgar /'vVlgJ(r)/ not polite
grapple /'gr&pl/ seize and hold
unfledg'd /'Vn'fledZd/ untiring
censure /'senSJ(r)/ opinion
habit /'h&bIt/ clothes, dress
fancy /'f&nsi/ fanciful
gaudy /'gO:di/ worthless and showy
husbandry /'hVzbJndri/ careful use of money
- William Shakespeare
Textbook

Vocabulary
A. Match the following.
Textbook
Exercises
beware credit
generous rules of behaviour
precepts careful
loan showy
gaudy willing to give freely
B. Explain the meaning of the following words in the poem.
oft, thee, thou, thy
C. Pronounce the following words.
here hear
shame same
sail sale
steel still
day they
Comprehension
A. Read the lines from 'Give thy thoughts ----- may beware of thee' and
answer the following questions.
1. What advice has been given about a friend ?
2. What should the young men do before materialising the thoughts ?
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B. Read the poem from 'beware ------ generous choice in that' and answer
the following questions.
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1. What is the poet's advice about showing courage ?
2. What is the poet's suggestion regarding listening and speaking ?
3. How should one take judgement ?
C. Read the last 8 lines and answer the following questions.
1. What does the poet say about the dress ?
2. Discuss the disadvantages of borrowing and lending.
3. What has been said about night and day ?
Speaking Activity
A. Following are the two columns. In column 'A' we have what Polonious
suggested to Laertes and in column 'B' the meanings of the suggestions
which are not in order, you have to speak the original version loudly
matching it with its proper meaning :
A B
The wind sits in the shoulder Don't be too vocal to disclose
of your sail. your secrets.
Give thy thoughts no tongue. Let familiarity not breed contempt.
The friends thou hast and their Don't be extravagant.
adoption tried, grapple them to
thy soul with hoops of steel;
Give every man thy ear, You have favourable environment.
but few thy voice.
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Textbook
Costly thy habits as thy Money transaction affects
purse can buy; friendship.
l rich not gaudy; For the Test the men to whom you
apparel oft proclaims the man; are going to keep friendship.
Once they are tested keep them
close to you for ever.
Neither a borrower nor a Listen more speak less.
lender be ;
For loan oft
looses both itself and friend,
be thou familiar but by no Be properly dressed, a man is
means vulgar. judged by his dress.
Writing Activity
A. Suppose your father had given you the similar piece of advice as given in the
text. Convey it in the form of a letter to your friend. (50 words)
B. Write a letter to your younger brother who is going abroad, suggesting him
some precepts. (150 words)
Think it over
A. The elders advise youngsters so that they can minimize their mistakes. Think
about the importance of their advice.
B. One who learns from his own experiences is definitely prudent, but one who
learns from others’ experiences is always wiser. How far do you agree ?
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Things to do
70
Make a list of advice you receive at home, in school and on the playground.
S.l. No. Place Advice
1. home _______________________
_______________________
_______________________
2. school _______________________
_______________________
_______________________
3. playground _______________________
_______________________
_______________________
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Textbook
11
Grandpa fights an Ostrich
Before my grandfather joined the Indian Railways, he worked for a few years
on the East African Railways, and it was during that period that he had his now
famous encounter with the ostrich. My childhood was frequently enlivened by this
oft told tale of his, and I give it here in his own words–or as well as I can remember
them !
While engaged in the laying of a new railway line, I had a miraculous escape
from an awful death. I lived in a small township, but my work lay some twelve
miles away, and I had to go to the work-site and back on horseback.
One day, my horse had a slight accident, so I decided to do the journey on
foot, being a great walker in these days. I also knew of a short-cut through the
hills that would save me about six miles.
This short-cut went through an ostrich farm or ‘‘camp’’, as it was called.
It was the breeding season. I was fairly familiar with the ways of ostriches, and
knew that male birds were very aggressive in breeding season, ready to attack on
the slightest provocation, but I also knew that my dog would scare away any bird
that might try to attack me. Strange though it may seem even the biggest ostrich
(and some of them grow to a height of nine feet) will run faster than a racehorse
at the sight of even a small dog. So, I felt quite safe in the company of my dog,
a mongrel who had adopted me some two months previously.
On arrival at the ’’camp’’, I climbed through the wire fencing and, keeping
a good look-out, dodged across the open spaces between the thorn bushes. Now
and then I caught a glimpse of the birds feeding some distance away.
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I had gone about half a mile from the fencing when up started a hare. In an
instant my dog gave chase. I tried calling him back even though I knew it was
hopeless. Chasing hares was that dog's passion.
I don't know whether it was the dog's bark or my own shouting, but what
I was most anxious to avoid immediately happened. The ostriches were startled
and began darting to and fro. Suddenly, I saw a big male bird emerge from a
thicket about a hundred yards away. He stood still and stared at me for a few
moments. I stared back. Then, expanding his short wings and with his tail erect,
he came bounding towards me.
As I had nothing, not even a stick, with which to defend myself, I turned
and ran towards the fence. But it was an unequal race. What were my steps of two
or three feet against the creature's great strides of sixteen to twenty feet ? There
was only one hope : to get behind a large bush and try to elude the bird until help
came. A dodging game was my only chance.
And so, I rushed for the nearest clump of thorn bushes and waited for my
pursuer. The great bird wasted no time-he was immediately upon me.
Then the strangest encounter took place. I dodged this way and that, taking
great care not to get directly in front of the ostrich's deadly kick. Ostriches kick
forward, and with such terrific force that, if you were struck, their huge chisellike
nails would cause you much damage.
I was breathless, and really quite helpless, calling wildly for help as I
circled the thorn bush. My strength was ebbing. How much longer could I keep
going ? I was ready to drop from exhaustion.
As if aware of my condition, the infuriated bird suddenly doubled back on
his course and charged straight at me. With a desperate effort I managed to step
to one side. I don't know how, but I found myself holding on to one of the
creature's wings, quite close to its body.
It was now the ostrich's turn to be frightened. He began to turn, or rather
waltz, moving round and round so quickly that my feet were soon swinging out
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from his body, almost horizontally ! All the while the ostrich kept opening and
shutting his beak with loud snaps.
Imagine my situation as I clung desperately to the wing of the enraged bird.
He was whirling me round and round as though he were a discus-thrower-and I
the discus! My arms soon began to ache with the strain, and the swift and
continuous circling was making me dizzy. But I knew that if I relaxed my hold,
even for a second, a terrible fate awaited me.
Round and round we went in a great circle. It seemed as if that spiteful bird
would never tire. And, I knew I could not hold on much longer. Suddenly the
ostrich went into reverse ! This unexpected move made me lose my hold and sent
me sprawling to the ground. I landed in a heap near the thorn bush and in an
instant, before I even had time to realise what had happened, the big bird was
upon me. I thought the end had come. Instinctively I raised my hands to protect
my face. But the ostrich did not strike.
I moved my hands from my face and there stood the creature with one foot
raised, ready to deliver a deadly kick ! I couldn't move. Was the bird going to play
cat-and mouse with me, and prolong the agony ?
As I watched, frightened and fascinated, the ostrich turned his head sharply
to the left. A second later he jumped back turned, and made off as fast as he could
go. Dazed, I wondered what had happened to make him beat so unexpected a
retreat.
I soon found out. To my great joy, I heard the bark of my truant dog, and
the next moment he was jumping around me, licking my face and hands. Needless
to say, I returned his caresses most affectionately ! And, I took good care to see
that he did not leave my side until we were well clear of that ostrich ’’camp’’.
Textbook
- Ruskin Bond
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Glossary
ostrich /'QstrItS/ a very large African bird with beautiful
feathers, which runs very quickly but
cannot fly
encounter /In'kaUntJ(r)/ meet with, e.g. an enemy or a great
difficulty
enliven /In'laIvn/ bright and full of action
miraculous /mI'r&kjJlJs/ a wonderful unexpected event
mongrel /'mVNgrJl/ dog of mixed birth
startled /'stA:tld/ surprised and frightened
dart /dA:t/ run quickly
thicket /'TIkIt/ place where there are many trees and
bushes
ebbing /ebiN/ become gradually lower and weaker
exhaustion /Ig'zO;stSJn/ the state of being completely tired
infuriated /In'fjUJrieItd/ to make (some one) extremely angry
waltz /wO:ls/ dance made up of six steps, for two
persons dancing together
swing /swIN/ to (cause to) move backwards and
forwards or round and round from a
fixed point above
discus /'dIskJs/ flat round object used for throwing
spiteful /'spaItfl/ showing spite
instinctively /In'stINktIvli/ natural ability
wonder /'wVndJ(r)/ surprise and admiration
retreat /rI'tri:t/ act of going back e.g. from an enemy
truant /'tru:Jnt/ purposely staying away without
permission
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Vacabulary
Textbook
Exercises
A. Refer to the dictionary and find out the meanings of the following. Use them
in sentences. You can use the sentences given in the dictionary as models.
strange, instant, passion, emerge, unequal, strides, elude, dodging, terrific,
desperate
B. Use the following expressions in your own words.
needless to say .........................................
strange though it may seem ....................
a glimpse of .............................................
in an instant .............................................
suddenly ................................................
C. Pick out from this lesson some words that suggest.
1. movement
2. surprise
3. anger
D. Choose the correct word and fill in the blanks.
1. I was ------------- by the maddening behaviour of the clerk at the post
office. (infuriated, delighted, admired)
2. She's made a ------------ recovery. (strange, miraculous, shocking)
3. I had to go to the ------------. (work-site, work-sight, work-cite)
4. The dog was jumping around me, ------my face and hands. (licking, liking,
leaking)
5. My horse had a ---------------- accident. (feeble, small, slight)
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Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
76
1. Why did Grandpa decide to go through the ostrich camp ?
2. Why did he feel quite safe in such a dangerous situation ?
3. What was the only chance to keep him safe during the chase ?
4. Why was the huge bird frightened ?
5. Describe the unexpected withdrawl of the ostrich.
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. Why did Grandpa dare to cross the ostrich farm ?
2. Describe the nature and behaviour of ostriches as known to Grandpa.
3. There was an unequal race between Grandpa and the ostrich. Describe
it.
4. What traits of character do you notice in Grandpa ?
Grammar
A. Study these sentences.
Now and then I caught a glimpse of birds.
He began to turn or rather waltz.
All the while the ostrich kept opening and shutting his beak with loud
snaps.
I don't know whether it was the dog's bark or my own shouting but what
I was most anxious to avoid immediately happened.
The underlined words are connectors. In the first sentence 'and' connects
words, in the second sentence 'or' connects phrases in the third sentence
'and' connects clauses and in the fourth sentence 'or' connects phrases, 'but'
and ‘whether’ connects clauses.
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B. Fill in the blanks with appropriate connetors given in brackets.
1. He roamed the whole world over to find a real princess________ there
was always something wrong. (and, but)
2. He may offer either Mathematics ________Physics. (nor, or)
3. The frock was splashed ________so were Akoulya's eyes ________
nose. (nor, and, but, or )
4. Some patients had died ________the doctor arrived. (before, after)
5. Their game plan was almost final ________ they were beginning to play
well as a team. (but, and)
Speaking Activity
A. Discuss with your friends in the class and find out main characteristics of
ostriches.
Writing Activity
A. How will you save yourself if you are chased by a dog ? (50 words)
B. Make an entry in your diary of the day when you missed your school bus.
(150 words)
Think it over
A. An ostrich is a large bird. There is a proverb on the habit of this bird. Why
shouldn't we adopt 'ostrich policy'? Think.
B. When a person encounters a dangerous situation, he prepares himself to face
it. Experience helps him ? How?
Textbook
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Things to do
78
We read about 'disaster management.' Collect information about the situation
described below :
Disaster What should be done
1. Fire breaks out in the school.
2. There is an earthquake, the students
are in the classes.
3. There is a bus accident.
4. A building collapses in your
neighbourhood.
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Textbook
The Poet and the Pauper
[Enter Kunjabihari Babu, the celebrated poet, and Bashambad Babu.]
Kunja : What brings you here, my good man ?
Bashambad : Sir, I a'm starving. You'd talked about a job...
Kunja : (interrupting hurriedly) A job ? Work ? Who thinks of work
in this sweet autumn weather ?
Bashambad : No one does so of choice, sir it's this hunger that —
12
Kunja : Hunger? Fie, fie, what a mean, paltry word! Pray do not
repeat it before me!
Bashambad : Very good sir, I won't. But I can't help thinking about it all
the time.
Kunja : Really, Bashambad Babu! All the time ? Even on a serene
tranquil, beautiful evening such as this ?
Bashambad : Yes indeed. I'm thinking even more about it now than I usually
do. I had a little rice at half past ten before I set out job
hunting, and I haven't had a bite since then.
Kunja : Does it matter ? Must you can (Bashambad scratches his head
in silence.) Doesn't one wish, sitting in this autumn moonlight,
that a man might live without gorging himself like a beast ?
That these moonbeams, the nectar of flowers and the spring
breeze might suffice for all his needs ?
Bashambad : (terrified, softly) Sir, that would hardly suffice to hold body
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80
and soul together–one needs something more substantial to
eat.
Kunja : (heatedly) Then go away and eat! Go stuff yourself with
gobbets of rice and dal and curry! This is no place for you–
you're trespassing.
Bashambad : I'll go at once, sir. Just tell me where I might find that rice and
dal and curry! (Seeing that Kunja Babu looks very angry) No,
Kunja Babu, you're quite right: the breeze from your garden
is enough to fill one's belly, one doesn't really need anything
else.
Kunja : I'm glad to hear you say so–spoken like a man! Well, let's go
outside then. Why stay indoors when there's such a lovely
garden to walk in ?
Bashambad : Yes, let's. (Softly, to himself) There's a chill in the air, and I
don't even have a wrap...
Kunja : Wonderful ! How charming autumn is!
Bashambad : That's right–but a little cold, don't you think?
Kunja : (Wrapping his shawl closely around himself) Cold? Not at
all.
Bashambad : No, no, not at all! (His teeth chatter)
Kunja : (looking up at the sky) What a sight to gladden the eye! Fleecy
puffs of cold sailing like proud swans in the azure lake, and
amidst them the moon like –
Bashambad : (has a violent fit of coughing) Ahem, ahem, ahem!
Kunja : .... the moon, like –
Bashambad : Cough, cough–ahem!
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Kunja : (nudging him roughly) Do you hear me, Bashambad Babu ?
The moon, like –
Bashambad : Wait a minute – ah, ah, ahem, cough, cough !
Kunja : (losing his temper) What sort of philistine are you, sir ? If
you must go on wheezing like this, you should wrap yourself
in a blanket and huddle in a corner of your room. In such a
garden...
Bashambad : (frightened, desperately suppressing another cough) But I
have nothing -(aside) neither a blanket nor a wrap !
Kunja : This delightful ambience reminds me of a song. Let me sing
it.
Textbook
This bea-oo-tiful gro-o-ve, these bloo-oo ming trees,
The winsome bakul –
Bashambad : (sneezes thunderously) Ah - h - choo !
Kunja : The winsome bakul –
Bashambad : Ahchoo ! Ahchoo!
Kunja : D' you hear ? The winsome bakul –
Bashambad : Ahchoo! Ahchoo!
Kunja : Get out. Get out of my garden!
Bashambad : Just a minute–ahchoo!
Kunja : Get out at once, you....
Bashambad : I'm going, I'm going as I don't want to stay here a moment
longer. If I don't leave at once my life will take leave of me
ahchoo! The liquid sweetness of autumn is overflowing
through my nose and eyes – I'll sneeze my life out in a
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Servant : Dinner is served.
82
moment-ahchoo! ahchoo! Cough, cough, cough.... But Kunja
Babu, about that job-ahchoo! (Exit)
[Kunja Babu draws his shawl closer and gazes silently at the
moon. Enter Servant.]
Kunja : Why so late ? Does it take two hours to get the food ready?
(Hurries out)
Glossary
(Curtain)
celebrated /'selIbreItId/ famous
starving /stA;ving/ be without food
fie /faI/ shame
paltry /'pO;ltri/ worthless
serene /sJ'ri;n/ calm and peaceful
tranquil /'tr&NkwIl/ calm
- Rabindranath Tagore
gorging /gO;dZiN/ eat too quickly and more than is
necessary
substantial /sJb'st&nSl/ solid, real
gobbets /'gQbIts/ lumps
trespassing /'trespJsing/ go unlawfully on to another's land
belly /'beli/ stomach
chatter /'tS&tJ(r)/ make a noise with the teeth when
cold
golden /'gJUldJn/ to make glad or happy
Textbook

fleecy /'fli;si/ woolly like a fleece
azure /'&ZJ(r)/ bright blue colour
philistine /'fIlIstaIn/ one who does not understand and
actively dislikes art, literature music
wheezing /wi;zing/ rough whistling sound
frightened /'fraItnd/ afraid
desperately /'despJrJtli/ ready for any wild act because of
loss of hope
ambience /'&mbiJns/ atmosphere
gazes /geIziz/ looks steadily for a long time
Vocabulary
Textbook
Exercises
A. What is meant by the following expressions ?
fie, not at all, sir, wonderful, that's right, aside, bea -oo-tiful, ah - h - choo
B. Use the following words in your own sentences :
job, work, trade, employment, profession
C. ‘Sweet’ and ‘charming’ adjectives are being used for ‘autumn,’ what other
adjectives can be used for ‘autumn’.
D. Before the word 'evening' serene, tranquil and beautiful these adjectives have
been used. Write other appropriate adjectives.
E. Match the words given under A with the meanings given under B, list B
has some extra items.
A B
gaze feeling which one has when in danger
stare a person or things that looks silly or unattractive
gape something which causes long lasting fear
afraid look steadily at with wide open eyes
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84
fear look at, usually for a longtime with wonder or
desire
fright an attitude or opinion
look at in a foolish way without understanding
F. Identify the theme of the lesson and list some more vocabulary items pertaining
to the theme.
G. Listen and repeat : really, haven't, belly, azure, minute, moment, hours,
ours, sneeze
Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. Compare the needs of the poet and the pauper.
2. Why did Bashambad need a job ?
3. Why does Bashambad say that breeze was enough to satisfy one's belly
and nothing else was needed.
4. What class of people do Kunja Babu and Bashambad represent ?
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words :
1. "Why so late ? Does it take too hours to get the food ready" ? Characterise
Kunja Babu in the light of his above statement.
2. Describe in brief the condition of the pauper.
Grammar
A. Study these sentences occurring in a dialogue.
Kunja : This is no place for you–you are trespassing.
Bashambad : I'll go at once.
Kunja : I'm glad to hear you say so.
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Textbook
Bashambad : There's a chill in the air.
The above are the speakers' exact words : Direct speech is found in conversations
in books, in plays, and quotations. In indirect speech we give the exact
meaning of a remark or speech, without necessarily using the speakers' words.
Examples : Thus we can write the aforesaid dialogue.
Kunja said that was no place for him. He was trespassing.
Bashambad said that he would go at once.
Kunja said that he was glad to hear him say so.
Bashambad said that there was a chill in the air.
Put the following statements into indirect speech.
1. Bashambad : I'm thinking even more about it now than I usually do. I
had a little rice at half-past ten before I set out job hunting, and I haven't
had a bite since then.
2. Kunja : If you must go on wheezing like this, you should wrap yourself
in a blanket and huddle in a corner of your room.
Speaking Activity
A. You have gone through the one-act-play. Now, sit in pairs and deliver
the following dialogues with proper intonation.
Kunjabihari : What brings you here, my good man ?
Bashambad : Sir, I'm starving. You'd talked about a job ---
Kunjabihari : A job ! work ! Who thinks of work in this
sweet autumn weather?
Bashambad : No one does so of choice, sir, it's this hunger
that ----
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86
Kunjabihari : Hunger ? Fie, fie, what a mean, paltry word !
Pray, do not repeat it before me !
B. What is the message conveyed to us by the one-act-play ? You start like this:
In my opinion the play conveys a very important message ----
Writing Activity
A. Suppose you are Bashambad Babu, who has always been subdued, express
how you feel at last.
(50 words)
B. Discuss how the differences in stature of the poet and the poor man are
depicted. Whom do you admire more and why ?
Think it over
(150 words)
A. If a man is hungry his mind will be preoccupied with the thought of food. It
would be difficult for him to talk about poetic expressions. But often poets
and writers had gone through these unfulfilled basic demands and created
masterpieces. How ?
B. Humour is the brighter part of life. Finding humour in day to day life generates
optimistic view. Do you feel so ?
Things to do
Stage the one act play.
Take help of your teacher and your friends.
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Textbook
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though ;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
13
- Robert Frost
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Glossary
woods /wUdz/ a place where trees grow thickly,
smaller than a forest
queer /kwIJ(r)/ strange
frozen /'frJUzn/ covered with ice
harness /'hA:nIs/ an apparatus for controlling a horse
sweep /swi:p/ to remove or move with a brushing
or swinging movement
flake /fleIk/ a light leaf like little bit (of
something soft)
Vocabulary
88
Exercises
A. Distinguish between the following words given in pair.
1) house and home
2) woods and forests
3) snow and ice
4) watch and see
5) say and ask
B. Add two more opposites to the given list.
1) known : strange, alien, unknown, ________,______
2) village : city, town, ________,______
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3) easy : difficult, complex, hard, ________,______
4) dark : light, pale, bright, ________,______
5) deep : shallow, thin, ________,______
C. Write some more synonyms for each of the following words.
1) sleep - slumber, ______, ______, ______, ______
2) house - abode, ______, ______, ______, ______
3) ask - demand, ______, ______, ______, ______
4) mistake - error, ______, ______, ______, ______
5) lovely - appealing, ______, ______, ______, ______
D. Say the following sentences and notice the difference in the pronunciation
of the words ‘and’ and ‘but’.
1) I need some bread and butter.
2) And miles to go before I sleep.
3) But I have promises to keep.
4) But she is at home.
5) They are poor but proud.
E. Say the following words and notice the difference in the vowel sounds :
wood - food
full - fool
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this - these
is - ease
dip - deep
slip - sleep
will - well
bill - bell
dark - dock
farm - form
Comprehension
A. Read the first two stanzas of the poem and answer the following
questions.
1. Who do you think is the real owner of the woods ?
2. Find out the lines that convey the following meaning :
The poet stopped there to enjoy the beauty of the woods covered with
snow.
3. What is strange about the poet's stopping by woods ?
B. Read the third and fourth stanzas and answer the following questions.
1. Why does the horse give his harness bells a shake ?
2. Why does the horse think it to be a mistake ?
3. What other sounds are heard by the poet ?
4. What do you understand by 'downy flake' ?
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5. Why does the poet think of the 'promises to keep' ?
6. What message do the last two lines of the poem convey ?
Speaking Activity
A. Practise the following rhyming words.
know here lake sweep
though queer shake deep
B. The poet says about the woods :
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
Now, use the words given in brackets and say about the following :
(beautiful, green, sandy, spacious, shallow, high, steep, full of water, airy)
The hills are _________, _________ and ______________.
The rivers are _________, _________and ______________.
The house is_________, _________ and ______________.
Writing Activity
A. Have you ever been enchanted with a beautiful scene. Describe the scene and
your feelings. (50 words)
B. Compare the life in a city with the life in a village. (150 words)
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Think it over
A. 'Wood' is a place where nature is in its most beautiful form. The sounds that
we hear in the woods have a musical effect.
B. What different sounds do we hear in a wood in different seasons ?
C. A frozen lake is like a playground. What games can be played there ?
Things to do
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Collect wild flowers growing in your surroundings. Dry them with the help
of a blotting paper and stick them in your project book. Write a few lines
about the activity you have done.
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Old Blockhead repairs his House
In a little village, there lived a man and his wife. The man was called Old
Blockhead, and his wife was called Ma Blockhead.
They lived happily in a little wooden house far away from other people.
The roof of their house was full of holes and the walls were rotten. Ma Blockhead
planned to repair the house.
One day, Ma Blockhead said to Old Blockhead, ‘‘Let us repair this house.
Look at the roof. It leaks. And the walls they've got holes in them.’’
‘‘A good idea,’’ said Old Blockhead readily.
‘‘My dear husband,’’ said Ma Blockhead sweetly, ‘‘I think you should
repair this house.’’
‘‘Me ? Did you say .. me ?’’ asked Old Blockhead. He was shocked.
Old Blockhead did not want to repair the house, so he made all kinds of
excuses. First he told Ma Blockhead that he had a lot of work to do. Then he
told her that he was tired. And finally he told her he was sick.
it.’’
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Ma Blockhead replied, ‘‘This is our house, isn't it ? Then we should repair
‘‘Actually,’’ said Old Blockhead, ‘‘I don't want to do it. And I don't know
how to do it.’’
Ma Blockhead shook her head. She thought, ‘‘How can I persuade Old
Blockhead to repair the house ? If he does, we can save some money.’’
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Suddenly, she had an idea. She dug a winding road which started from their
garden and, passing through bushes and undergrowth, led back to their garden.
A few days later, Ma Blockhead said to Old Blockhead, ‘‘My dear husband,
we have very little food left. I think it will be a good idea if you go out and look
for work. If you work, we shall have money. When we have money, we can buy
the things we need.’’
Old Blockhead asked Ma Blockhead if she knew where he could get a job.
She replied, ‘‘I've heard that the owner of the house at the end of this road is
looking for someone to work there. Why don't you try there ? If you are lucky,
you might get the job.’’
Old Blockhead then set out to look for the house at the end of the road. He
followed the winding path through the bushes and undergrowth. After walking
for some time, he finally reached the end of the road. Old Blockhead saw a little
wooden house.
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‘‘Is anybody home ?’’ he asked.
A woman came out.
‘‘Yes. What is it you want ?’’
Old Blockhead could not believe his eyes. He thought to himself. ‘‘This
woman looks a lot like my wife. Even the house looks like my house. Ah, no,’’
he told himself, ‘‘I must be mistaken.’’
The woman asked him what he wanted. Old Blockhead told her that he was
looking for a job. The woman asked Old Blockhead to repair her house. ‘‘The
roof must be replaced.’’ she said. ‘‘The walls too. All the materials will be
provided by the owner of the house. You will be the carpenter.’’
Old Blockhead agreed to work at the house that looked exactly like his.
The next day, he started repairing the house. He pulled down the rotten walls.
He also brought down the leaky roof. Both the roof and the walls were to be
replaced. While he worked, Old Blockhead was well looked after. His food and
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drink were taken care of by the woman who looked like his wife. In the evening,
Old Blockhead went home. This happened everyday. At the end of the week,
Old Blockhead had finished his work. He had repaired the woman's house who
lived at the end of the road. He had replaced the old roof, and had replaced the
rotten walls. The woman paid him well for the job.
Old Blockhead then went home with the money. He was very happy. He
sang softly as he walked along the winding road through the bushes and undergrowth.
He stopped short when he reached his house.
her.
‘‘Ma ! Ma !’’ he shouted as loudly as he could.
Ma Blockhead came out, beaming. She took the money her husband gave
‘‘Thank you, my dear husband. Now we can buy lots of delicious food,’’
she said happily.
But Old Blockhead was still bewildered. He stared at his house without
blinking.
‘‘Our house has been repaired, Ma ?’’ asked Old Blockhead, surprised.
‘‘Oh yes,’’ replied Ma Blockhead smiling.
Old Blockhead asked again, ‘‘Who did it ?’’
‘‘Oh ,..... Let's see... His name is Old Blockhead,’’ replied his wife, shaking
with laughter.
‘‘No, no. That cannot be true. I repaired the house at the end of this road,’’
said Old Blockhead.
Ma Blockhead told him the real story.
‘‘So, all this while, I was repairing my own house !’’ exclaimed Old Blockhead,
scratching his head.
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(a folk tale of Malaysia)
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Glossary
persuade /pJ'sweId/ to make someone willing to do
something
undergrowth /'VndJgrJUT/ bushes small trees and other plants
growing around and under trees
set out /set aUt/ start on a journey
mistaken /mI'steIkJn/ wrong
winding /'waIndIN/ having a twisting turning shape
blinking /'blINkIN/ open and close the eyes quickly
scratching /skr&tSiN/ an act of rubbing a part of the body
with your nails
blockhead /'blQkhed/ a very stupid person
Vocabulary
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Exercises
A. Use the following in your sentences :
far away, let, suddenly, a few, looking for set out, a lot, pull down, look after,
take care of, at the end
B. Give the meanings of :
look, look into, look ahead, look at, look down, look for, look in, look
upon, look up, look here
C. Match the words given under 'A' with their meanings given under 'B'.
A B
owner suffering from decay
mistaken smile radiantly
rotten one who owns something
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beaming very pleasant to the taste
delicious wrong in one's opinion or judgement
D. Write different meanings of the following words and use them in your
own sentences.
call, idea, save, like, short
E. What is common in the pronunciation of the following words :
man, back, sad, have, thank
Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. Describe the condition of the house as narrated by Ma Blockhead.
2. Why was the repair of the house urgent ?
3. Why did Ma Blockhead dig the road ?
4. After walking the dug road, where did old Blockhead reach ?
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. How was old Blockhead persuaded to work ?
2. What excuses did old Blockhead make ?
3. Describe the reaction of old Blockhead when he came to know that he
had repaired his own house.
Grammar
A. Read the following extracts of conversation :
‘‘My dear husband’’ said Ma Blockhead sweetly, ‘‘I think you should
repair this house.’’
‘‘Me ? Did you say --- me ? ’’ asked old Blockhead.
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‘‘Actually’’ said old Blockhead, ‘‘I don't want to do it. And I don't
know how to do it.’’
The above sentences are in Direct Speach.
We can give the exact meaning without using the speaker's words.
Ma Blockhead told her husband politely that she thought he should repair
that house.
Old Blockhead asked if she had said ..... him.
Old Blockhead said that actually he did not want to do that. And he did
not know how to do that
The above sentences are in Indirect Speech.
Now, convert the following into indirect speech :
1. Ma Blockhead replied, ‘‘This is our house, isn't it ? Then we should repair
it.’’
2. A few days later, Ma Blockhead said to old Blockhead, ‘‘My dear husband,
we had very little food left. I think it will be a good idea if you go out and
look for work. If you work, we shall have money. When we have money, we
can buy the things we need .’’
Old Blockhead asked Ma Blockhead if she knew where he could get a job.
She replied, ‘‘ I've heard that the owner of the house at the end of this road is
looking for someone to work there. Why don't you try there ? If you are
lucky, you might get the job.’’
Speaking Activity
A. Following are the events from the story. Discuss the order of the events
among yourselves, rearrange them and narrate it :
Old Blockhead had finished his work.
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She dug a winding road.
No, no I repaired the house at the end of this road.
The roof of their house is at the end of this road.
Old Blockhead agreed to work at the house.
She took the money from her husband.
If you are lucky, you might get the job.
This is our house, isn't it ? Then we should repair it.
Writing Activity
A. How can an idle person be motivated to work hard? Elaborate. (50 words)
B. ‘A stitch in time saves nine’ justify the statement. (150 words)
Think it over
A. A man, who is in the habit of postponing his work, is not liked by people.
Why ?
B. Ma Blockhead managed to draw the best out of Old Blockhead. Putting such
people into work is a witty idea. Think of some other ideas like this.
Things to do
Arrange your study room systematically everyday.
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15
How it all began
MANY YEARS ago when I was a young man, I happened to spend a
summer with my friends, the Wints, in Oxford. Guy Wint was on the staff of
The Observer and was away in London most of the day. His wife, Freda, had
converted to Buddhism and was also out most of the time meeting fellow
Buddhists. Their son, Ben, was at a boarding school. For company, I had the
Wints' three-year-old daughter, Allegra. In the mornings I worked in my room.
When Allegra returned from her nursery school, I gave her a sandwich and a
glass of milk before we went out for a walk. Since she knew the neighbourhood,
she led the way along paths running through woods of oak, beech and rhododendron
to the University cricket grounds. I would watch the game for a while
– the nawab of Pataudi often played there–buy her an ice-cream and then follow
her back homewards.
Allegra, or Leggie as we called her, was a great chatterbox as well as an
avid collector of wild flowers. Our return journey always took much longer as
I had to pick whatever flower she wanted. She would point in some direction
and order: ‘I want those snow-drops behind that bush.’ Or shout, ‘Goody ! I
want them bluebells ! I want lots of them for Mummy !’ Then there were
periwinkles and lilies-of-the-valley, and many others. By the time we had our
hands full of flowers, Leggie was too tired to leg it home. I had to go down on
my knees for her to climb up on my shoulders. She had her legs round my neck
and her chin resting on my head. A game she enjoyed was to stick flowers in
my turban and beard. By the time we got home, I looked like a wild man of the
woods. It was from little Allegra Wint that I learnt the names of many English
wild flowers.
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On weekends when the Wint family was at home we spent most of the day
sunning ourselves in the garden. Since the Wints had a few cherry and apple
trees, there were lots of birds in their garden. The dawn chorus was opened by
thrushes and blackbirds. They sang through the day till late into the twilight.
Both birds sounded exactly alike to me. Freda would quote Robert Browning to
explain the difference:
That's the wise thrush; he sings each song twice over,
Lest you should think he never could recapture
The first fine careless rapture.
The wise thrushes of Oxford had not read Browning and rarely repeated
their notes. Or perhaps the blackbirds deliberately went over theirs again to
confuse people like me. Then there were chaffinches, buntings, white throats,
and many other varieties of birds whose songs became familiar to me. That
summer, I heard nightingales on the Italian lakes and in the forest of
Fontainebleau. (Contrary to the popular notion, nightingales sing at all hours of
the day and night).
Back home in Delhi I felt as if I was on alien territory as far as the fauna
and the flora were concerned. Before I had gone abroad, I had taken no interest
in nature. When I returned I felt acutely conscious of this lacuna in my information
as I could not identify more than a couple of dozen birds or trees.
Getting to know about them was tedious but immensely rewarding. I acquired
books on trees, birds and insects and spent my spare time identifying those I did
not know. I sought the company of bird-watchers and horticulturists. Gradually
my fund of information increased and I dared to give talks on Delhi's natural
phenomena on All India Radio and Doordarshan.
For the last many years I have maintained a record of the natural phenomena
I encounter every day. However, my nature watching is done in a very
restricted landscape, most of it in my private back garden. It is a small rectangular
plot of green enclosed on two adjacent sides by a barbed wire fence
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covered over by bougainvillaea creepers of different hues. The other two sides
are formed by my neighbour's and my own apartments. He has fenced himself
off by a wall of hibiscus; I have four ten-year-old avocado trees (perhaps the
only ones in Delhi) which between them yield no more than a dozen pears every
monsoon season; and a tall eucalyptus smothered by a purple bougainvillaea.
There is a small patch of grass with some limes, oranges, grapefruits and a
pomegranate. I do not grow many flowers; a bush of gardenia, a couple of
jasmines and a queen of the night (raat ki rani). Since my wife has strictly
utilitarian views on gardening, most of what we have is reserved for growing
vegetables. At the further end of this little garden. I have placed a bird-bath
which is shared by sparrows, crows, mynahs, kites, pigeons, babblers and a
dozen stray cats which have made my home theirs. Facing my apartment on the
front side is a squarish lawn shared by other residents of Sujan Singh Park. It
has several large trees of the ficus family, a young choryzzia and an old mulberry.
I have a view of this lawn from my sitting-room window framed by a
madhumalati creeper and a hedge of hibiscus. What perhaps acounts for the
profusion of bird life in our locality are several nurseries in the vicinity, the
foliage of many old papari (Pongamia glabra) trees and bushes of cannabis
sativa (bhang) which grow wild. I have not kept a count of the variety of birds
that frequent my garden but there is never a time when there are none. Also,
there are lots of butterflies, beetles, wasps, ants, bees and bugs of different
kinds.
There was a time when I spent Sunday mornings in winter in the countryside
armed with a pair of binoculars and Salim Ali's or Whistler's books on
Indian birds. My favourite haunts were the banks of the Jamuna behind Tilpat
village ; Surajkund, the dam which supplies water to its pool; and the ruins of
Tughlaqabad Fort with its troops of rhesus monkeys. I still manage to visit these
places at least once a year to renew acquaintance with water fowl, skylarks,
weaver birds and a variety of wild plants like akk, dehla, vasicka, mesquite,
Mexican poppy and lantana which grow in profusion all round Delhi.
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- Khushwant Singh
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Glossary
rhododendron /%rJUdJ'dendrJn/ a large bush which has large bright
flowers and which keeps its
leaves in winter
chatterbox /'tS&tJbQks/ a person who talks a lot
avid /'&vId/ extremely eager, keen
rapture /'r&ptSJ(r)/ great joy and delight
alien /'eIliJn/ foreign
fauna and flora /'fO:nJ Jnd 'flO:rJ/ animals and plants
lacuna /lJ'kju:nJ/ gap
tedious /'ti:diJs/ long and unintersting
horticulturists /'hO:tIkVltSJrist/ one who practises science of
growing fruit, flowers and
vegetables
phenomena /fi'nQmInA/ unusual and/or at scientific interest
landscape /'l&ndskeIp/ beautiful natural scene
hibiscus /hI'bIskJs/ a tropical plant with large bright
flowers
avocado /%&vJ'kA:dJU/ a green or purple tropical fruit with
a large stone and smooth oily flesh
smothered /'smVDJrd/ covered heavily
nurseries /'n3:sJriz/ where plants and trees are grown to
be sold or planted in other places
vicinity /vJ'sInJti/ neighbourhood
foliage /'fJUlidZ/ the leaves of a plant or plants
countryside /'kVntrisaId/ land outside the cities and towns
used for farming or left unused
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skylark /'skaIlA:k/ a small bird (lark) that sings while
flying upwards
weaver bird /'wi:vJ(r) b3:d/ tropical bird that makes its nest by
tightly weaving together leaves,
gross, twigs, etc.
Vocabulary
104
Exercises
A. What are the different meanings of the following words.
nursery, glass, cricket, watch, collector, interest, couple, record, encounter,
country, bank
B. Use the following expressions in your own words.
large as life, at large, by and large
C. Pronounce the following words given in pair and write their meanings
also, You can consult a dictionary.
place - palace
lake - lack
none - nun
years - ears
son - sun
people - pupil
shout - shoot
poppy - puppy
fort - forte
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D. Pronounce the following.
Wints, Oxford, The Observer, Ben, Allegra, Rhododendron, Leggie,
Fontainebleau, Salim Ali, Whistler, Tughlaquabad
Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. What did the author do at the cricket ground ?
2. Why was the homeward journey longer ?
3. How did the author increase his information about birds and trees ?
4. Where did the author learn the names of English wild flowers from ?
5. How did the author spend his weekends with the little child ?
6. How was the author motivated to know more about trees and birds ?
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. What were the qualities of Allegra or Leggie ?
2. Describe the private back garden of the author.
3. Justify the author's visit to countryside on Sundays.
Grammar
A. Study the following sentences.
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Their son, Ben, was at a boarding school.
In the mornings I worked in my room.
His wife had converted to Buddhism.
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I gave her a glass of milk.
The other two sides are formed by my neighbour's and my own apartments.
The underlined words are prepositions. A prepositon is a word
that relates nouns, pronouns and noun clauses (small sentences
inside a bigger one, working as nouns) in space, time, order and
direction.
Now, pick out prepositions from the following sentences.
1. I spend Sunday mornings in my garden.
2. Surajkund supplies water to its pools.
3. There was a variety of wild plants.
4. I could'nt identify more than a couple of dozen birds.
5. For the last many years I have maintained a record of the natural phenomena.
6. He always writes letters to his friends in ink.
7. What's the time by your watch ?
Speaking Activity
A. Present an oral report of the natural phenomena around you. You can base
your report on the details given in the lesson.
B. Below are given some natural phenomena, visualise them and express your
ideas orally
sunrise, sunset, rainbow
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Writing Activity
A. Prepare a short introductory radio talk on 'bird watching'.
B. Make entries in your diary of the flora and fauna of your area.
Think it over
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(50 words)
(150 words)
A. Just ponder over the inter-relations and interdependence among man, animals
and plants.
Things to do
Prepare a list of flowering plants and birds found in your surroundings; also
note down their distinctive features.
Name of flowering Distinctive Name of birds Distinctive
plants features features
Morning glory bell shaped parrot red beak,
violet flower green
feathers
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108
Where the Mind is without Fear
WHERE the mind is without fear and the
head is held high;
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
by narrow domestic walls;
Where words come out from the depth of truth,
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason
has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by Thee
into ever-widening thought and action
Into that Heaven of freedom
My Father, let my country awake.
- Rabindranath Tagore
Glossary
striving /straIviN/ to try very hard to achieve something or to
defeat something
dreary /'drIJri/ that makes you feel sad
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Vocabulary
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Exercises
A. The following words have special meanings in the poem.Write them.
high, free, walls, stream, awake, head, desert
B. Match the words given in column A with their meanings given in
column B.
A B
fear you
knowledge large sandy piece of land where nothing
grows because there is no rain
thee not having
desert feeling which one has when in danger
without things known
C. Write the meanings of the following expressions :
in fear and trembling
for fear of / that
No fear !
without fear or favour
I fear
D. Pronounce the following words :
when van
worse verse
wary very
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110
wine vine
while vile
Comprehension
A. Read the first four lines of the poem and answer the questions.
1. What does the poet mean by ‘the head is held high’ ?
2. Explain what does the poet mean by ‘Where knowldge is free’ ?
3. What are narrow domestic walls ?
B. Read the next four lines and answer the following questions.
1. Find out the line expressing, ‘Endless efforts are made to achieve the
best quality.’
2. What do you understand by ‘clear stream of reason’?
3. What is the ‘dead habit' according to the poet ?
C. Read the last four lines and answer the following questions.
1. What does the poet mean by ‘ever widening thought and action’ ?
2. Describe any two traits of character the poet wants to inculcate in his
countrymen.
3. What does the poet mean by ‘let my country awake’ ?
4. What is ‘Heaven of freedom’ according to the poet ?
Speaking Activity
A. Form four groups in the class. Each group will be assigned some lines of the
poem. Discuss the particular lines in your group and express your opinion
about the poet's view.
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Writing Activity
A. Write a letter to your friend describing the contribution of a freedom fighter.
(50 words)
B. How can we get rid of narrow domestic walls ? Express your views.
(150 words)
Think it over
A. All human beings are one. Caste, creed and colour divide people in small
groups. Such divisions go on till we are left alone. Still there are such narrow
domestic walls. Why ?
B. Superstitions and prejudices hinder our progress. How ?
C. How far has the idea of 'Heaven of freedom' been materialized in the modern
world ?
Things to do
Go to the library and read the fundamental rights as described in the
Constitution of India. Write them in your diary also.
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17
On Saying Please
The young lift-man in a City office who threw a passenger out of his lift the
other morning and was fined for the offence was undoubtedly in the wrong. It
was a question of 'Please'. The complainant entering the lift, said, 'Top'. The liftman
demanded 'Top-please' and this concession being refused he not only
declined to comply with the instruction, but hurled the passenger out of the lift.
This, of course was carrying a comment on manner too far. Discourtesy is not
a legal offence, and it does not excuse assault and battery. If a burglar breaks
into my house and I knock him down, the law will acquit me, and if I am
physically assaulted, it will permit me to retaliate with reasonable violence. It
does this because the burglar and my assailant have broken quite definite commands
of the law, but no legal system could attempt to legislate against bad
manners, or could sanction the use of violence against something which it does
not itself recognize as a legally punishable offence. And whatever our sympathy
with the lift-man, we must admit that the law is reasonable. It would never do
if we were at liberty to box people's ears because we did not like their behaviour,
or the tone of their voices, or the scowl on their faces. Our fists would
never be idle, and the gutters of the City would run with blood all day.
I may be as uncivil as I may please and the law will protect me aganist
violent retaliation. I may be haughty or boorish and there is no penalty to pay
except the penalty of being written down an ill-mannered fellow. The law does
not compel me to say 'please' or to attune my voice to other people's sensibilities
any more than it says that I shall not wax my moustache or dye my hair or wear
ringlets down my back. It does not recognize the laceration of our feelings as
a case for compensation. There is no allowance for moral and intellectual damages
in these matters.
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This does not mean that the damages are negligible. It is probable that the
lift-man was much more acutely hurt by what he regarded as a slur upon his
social standing than he would have been if he had a kick on the shins, for which
he could have got a legal redress. The pain of a kick on the shins soon passes
away but the pain of a wound to our self-respect or our vanity may poison a
whole day. I can imagine that lift-man, denied the relief of throwing the author
of his wound out of the lift, brooding over the insult by the hour, and visiting
it on his wife in the evening as the only way of restoring his equilibrium. For
there are few things more catching than bad temper and bad manners. When Sir
Anthony Absolute bullied Captain Absolute, the latter went out and bullied his
man, Fag, whereupon Fag went out downstairs and kicked the page-boy. Probably
the man who said ‘Top’ to the lift man was really only getting back on his
employer who had not said ‘Good morning’ to him because he himself had been
henpecked at breakfast by his wife, to whom the cook had been insolent because
the housemaid had ‘answered her back’. We infect the world with our ill humours.
Bad manners probably do more to poison the stream of the general life
than all the crimes in the calendar. For one wife who gets a black eye from an
otherwise good natured husband there are a hundred who live a life of martyrdom
under the shadow of a morose temper. But all the same the law cannot
become the guardian of our private manners. No Decalogue could cover the vast
area of offences and no court could administer a law which governed our social
civilities, our speech, the tilt of our eyebrows and all our moods and manners.
But though we are bound to endorse the verdict against the lift-man most
people will have a certain sympathy with him. While it is true that there is no
law that compels us to say ‘Please’, there is a social practice much older and
much more sacred than any law which enjoins us to be civil. And the first
requirement of civility is that we should acknowledge a service. ‘Please’ and
‘Thank you’ are the small change with which we pay our way as social beings.
They are the little courtesies by which we keep the machine of life oiled and
running sweetly. They put our intercourse upon the basis of a friendly co operation
an easy give and take, instead of on the basis of superiors dictating to
inferiors. It is a very vulgar mind that would wish to command where he can
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have the service for asking, and have it with willingness and good feeling instead
of resentment.
I should like to 'feature' in this connection my friend, the polite conductor.
By this discriminating title, I do not intend to suggest a rebuke to conductors
generally. On the contrary, I am disposed to think that there are few classes of
men who come through the ordeal of a very trying calling better than bus
conductors do. Here and there you will meet an unpleasant specimen who regards
the passengers as his natural enemies - as creatures whose chief purpose
on the bus is to cheat him, and who can only be kept reasonably honest by a
loud voice and an aggressive manner. But this type is rare - rarer than it used
to be. I fancy the public owes much to the Underground Railway Company,
which also runs the buses, for insisting on a certain standard of civility in its
servants and taking care that that standard is observed. In doing this it not only
makes things pleasant for the travelling public, but performs an important social
service.
It is not, therefore, with any feeling of unfriendliness to conductors as a
class that I pay a tribute to a particular member of that class. I first became
conscious of his existence one day when I jumped on to a bus and found that
I had left home without any money in my pocket. Everyone has had the experience
and knows the feeling, the mixed feeling, which the discovery arouses.
You are annoyed because you look like a fool at the best and like a knave at the
worst. You would not be at all surprised if the conductor eyed you coldly as
much as to say, ‘Yes I know that stale old trick. Now then, off you get.’ And
even if the conductor is a good fellow and lets you down easily, you are faced
with the necessity of going back and the inconvenience, perhaps, of missing your
train or your engagement.
Having searched my pockets in vain for stray coppers, and having found
I was utterly penniless, I told the conductor with as honest a face as I could
assume that I couldn't pay the fare, and must go back for money. ‘Oh, you
needn't get off: that's all right’, said he. ‘All right’, said I, ‘but I haven't a copper
on me.’ ‘Oh I'll book you through, he replied. ‘Where d'ye want to go ?’ and
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he handled his bundle of tickets with the air of a man who was prepared to give
me a ticket for anywhere from the Bank to Hong Kong. I said it was very kind
of him, and told him where I wanted to go, and as he gave me the ticket I said,
‘But where shall I send the fare?’ ‘Oh, you'll see me some day all right’, he said
cheerfully, as he turned to go. And then, luckily, my fingers, still wandering in
the corners of my pockets lighted on a shilling and the account was squared. But
that fact did not lessen the glow of pleasure which so good-natured an action
had given me.
A few days after, my most sensitive toe was trampled on rather heavily as
I sat reading on the top of a bus. I looked up with some anger and more agony,
and saw my friend of the cheerful countenance. ‘Sorry, sir’, he said. ‘I know
these are heavy boots. Got'em because my own feet get trod on so much, and
now I'm treading on other people's. Hope I din't hurt you, sir,’ He had hurt me
but he was so nice about it that I assured him he hadn't. After this I began to
observe him whenever I boarded his bus, and found a curious pleasure in the
constant good nature of his bearing. He seemed to have an inexhaustible fund
of patience and a gift for making his passengers comfortable. I noticed that if
it was raining he would run up the stairs to give some one the tip that there was
‘room inside’. With old people he was as considerate as a son, and with children
as solicitous as a father. He had evidently a peculiarly warm place in his heart
for young people, and always indulged in some merry jest with them. If he had
a blind man on board it was'nt enough to set him down safely on the pavement.
He would call to Bill in front to wait while he took him across the road or round
the corner, or otherwise safely on his way. In short, I found that he irradiated
such an atmosphere of good temper and kindliness that a journey with him was
a lesson in natural courtesy and good manners.
What struck me particularly was the ease with which he got through his
work. If bad manners are infectious, so also are good manners. If we encounter
incivility most of us are apt to become uncivil, but it is an unusually uncouth
person who can be disagreeable with sunny people. It is with manners as with
the weather. ‘Nothing clears up my spirits like a fine day’, said Keats, and a
cheerful person descends on even the gloomiest of us with something of the
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enediction of a fine day. And so it was always fine weather on the polite
conductor's bus, and his own civility, his conciliatory address and good humoured
bearing infected his passengers. In lightening their spirits he lightened
his own task. His gaiety was not a wasteful luxury, but a sound investment.
I have missed him from my bus route of late; but I hope that only means
that he has carried his sunshine on to another road. It cannot be too widely
diffused in a rather drab world. And I make no apologies for writing a panegyric
on an unknown bus conductor. If Wordsworth could gather lessons of wisdom
from the poor leechgatherer ‘on the lonely moor,’ I see no reason why lesser
people should not take lessons in conduct from one who shows how a very
modest calling may be dignified by good temper and kindly feeling.
It is a matter of general agreement that the war has had a chilling effect
upon those little every day civilities of behaviour that sweeten the general air.
We must get those civilities back if we are to make life kindly and tolerable for
each other. We cannot get them back by invoking the law. The policeman is a
necessary symbol and the law is a necessary institution for a society that is still
somewhat lower than the angels.But the law can only protect us against material
attack. Nor will the lift man's way of meeting moral affront by physical violence
help us to restore the civilities. I suggest to him, that he would have had a more
subtle and effective revenge if he had treated the gentleman who would not say
'Please' with elaborate politeness. He would have had the victory, not only over
the boor, but over himself, and that is the victory that counts. The polite man
may lose the material advantage, but he always has the spiritual victory. I commend
to the lift-man a story of Chesterfield. In his time the London streets were
without the pavements of today and the man who 'took the wall' had the driest
footing. ‘I never give the wall to a scoundrel,’ said a man who met Chesterfield
one day in the street. ‘I always do’, said Chesterfield, stepping with a bow into
the road. I hope the lift man will agree that his revenge was much more sweet
than if he had flung the fellow into the mud.
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- A.G. Gardiner
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Glossary
undoubtedly /Vn'daUtIdli/ known for certain to be so
discourtesy /dIs'k3:tJsi/ not polite
assault and /J'sO:lt Jnd 'b&tri/ an attack which includes not only
battery threats but the actual use of violence
burglar /'b3;glJ(r)/ thief who breaks into houses shops
etc with the intention of stealing
retaliate /rI't&lieIt/ to do something bad to someone
who has done something bad to you
assailant /J'seIlJnt/ an attacker
legislate /'ledZIsleIt/ to make a law or laws
violence /'vaIJlJns/ action or feeling that causes
damage, unrest etc
to box /tJ bQks/ to fight with the fists (closed hands)
haughty /'hO:ti/ having a high opinion of oneself and
often a low opinion of others
laceration /%l&sJ'reISn/ hurt feelings
slur /sl3:(r)/ a cause of blame
brooding over /'bru:dIN 'JUvJ(r)/ spend time thinking anxiously or
sadly about something
equilibrium /%i:kwI'lIbriJm/ balance of the mind, emotions
insolent /'InsJlJnt/ very rude
martyrdom /'mA:tJdJm/ the death or suffering of a martyr
morose /mJ'rJUs/ very sad and ill tempered
Decalogue /'dekJlOg/ the Ten Commandments
intercourse /'IntJkO:s/ dealings with
resentment /rI'zentmJnt/ anger
ordeal /O:'di:l/ difficult or painful experience
cheerfully /'tSIJfli/ happily
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squared /skweJd/ having no doubt, settled
inexhaulstible /%InIg'zO;stJbl/ can never be finished
solicitous /sJ'lIsItJs/ giving helpful care
uncouth /Vn'ku;T/ not having good manners
benediction /%benI'dIkSn/ a blessing
conciliatory /kJn'sIliJtJri/ trying to win friendly feelings
panegyric /%p&nJ'dZIrIk/ a speech or piece of writing praising
someone highly
boor /bUJ(r)/ a rude insensitive person
Vocabulary
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Exercises
A. Consult a dictionary and find out the subtle distinction in the meanings
of the following words.
rob, steal, burgle, poach
B. Find out the words with prefix 'un' and 'in' in the lesson.
C. Write some adjectives which can be used for a person not having good manners
and for a person having good manners.
D. Mark the stress in the following words.
policeman, gentleman, lift-man, house-maid, henpecked, breakfast, specimen,
everyone, alright, good humoured
Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. Distinguish between a legal and a moral offence.
2. Give some examples of bad behaviour that are not punishable under law.
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3. Discuss the importance and effect of good manners.
4. Discuss the impact of good temper and kindliness on the society in the
light of the two good-mannered conductors.
5. What is natural courtesy ? How does it affect the society?
6. How could the liftman take a polite and effective revenge ?
B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. Suggest some ways to encourage people to adopt good moral behaviour.
2. How does the stream of general life get polluted by one's behaviour ?
3. Discuss the necessity of the police and law in the society.
4. What are the ill effects of war on our everyday civilities ?
Grammar
A. Study these sentences.
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We must admit that the law is reasonable.
The law does not compel me to say that I shall not wax my moustache or
dye my hair or wear ringlets down my back.
The underlined clauses do the work of nouns in relation to some
other clauses.
Now, point out the Noun Clauses in each of the following sentences.
1. Duty requires that we should help the wretched.
2. We do not know whether they enjoyed their work
3. That a man is virtuous is commendable.
4. The rumour that he is ill is baseless.
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5. You must never forget this, that honesty is the best policy.
6. The report that the thief had broken into the house has not reached me.
7. Listen to what the teacher says.
B. Study these sentences
The young lift-man in a city office who threw a passenger out of his lift and
was fined for the offence was undoubtedly in the wrong.
There are few classes of men who came through the ordeal of a very trying
calling better than bus cunductors do.
The underlined clauses do the work of an adjective in relation to some
word in some other clause. Relative clauses are intoduced by relative
pronouns or relative adverbs.
Now, point out the Relative Clauses in the following sentences.
1. He who hesitates is lost.
2. He laughs best who laughs last.
3. The speech he made last night was not his best.
4. The man who appeared to be gentleman was charged with disturbing the
peace.
5. There are times when everyone feels the vanity of human wishes.
6. The man that hath no music in his soul is fit for treason.
7. He who increases his riches increases his cares.
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Speaking Activity
A. Imagine you are a user of a lift. The liftman misbehaves with you. You
want to lodge a complaint against him on telephone.
Now, ask your friend to be the caretaker of the lift. Begin your conversation
like this.
User : Hello, May I speak to, Mr. Kapoor the caretaker ?
Mr. Kapoor Yes please.
User : I am .... (name), a user of the lift of your office.
Mr. Kapoor What can I do for you sir ?
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Writing Activity
A. Write to your mother about the courteous behaviour of a bus conductor you
have come across recently.
(50 words)
B. Prepare a speech to be delivered in the morning assembly on 'Good manners
are infectious’.
(150 words)
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Think it over
A. Everyday civilities of behaviour have a great importance in life. Bitter problems
can be solved by sweet words. Great wars could have been avoided by a little
courtesy. Sweet words spoken at the right time sweeten our life. So, why to
miss an opportunity to get a lot of happiness at no cost ?
B. Observance of etiquette in a normal situation is important but more important
is their observance when situation is adverse. Isn't it ?
Things to do
122
Cultivate the habit of saying ‘please’, ‘thank you’ ‘sorry’ etc. Observe its
effect on the people and make its entry in your diary.
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Character
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JACK,
Jill, his wife
Aunt Jane
Nurse
The Never-Never Nest
Scene: The lounge of JACK and JILL'S Villa at New Hampstead The essential
furniture consists of a table on which are writing materials, and two
chairs. As the curtain rises the lounge is empty, but JACK and JILL come
immediately, followed by AUNT JANE.
JILL : And this is the lounge.
18
AUNT JANE : Charming! Charming! Such a cosy little room! and such pretty
furniture.
JACK (modestly) : We like it, you know, handy place to sit in and listen to the
radiogram.
AUNT JANE : Oh, have you got a radiogram as well as a car and a piano?
JACK : Why, of course, Aunt Jane. You simply must have a radio set
nowadays.
JILL : And it’s so nice for me when Jack’s away at business. I even
make him move it into the kitchen, so that I can listen to it
while I cook.
JACK : Sit down, Aunt Jane, You must be tired—and we’ve shown
you everything now.
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JILL : What do you think of our little nest, Aunt Jane?
AUNT JANE : I think it’s wonderful, my dears. The furniture—and the car—
and the piano—and the refrigerator and the radio-what’s it—
it’s wonderful, really wonderful!
JACK : And we owe it all to you.
AUNT JANE : Yes, Jack, that’s what’s worrying me.
JACK : Worrying you, Aunt Jane?
AUNT JANE : Yes. That cheque I gave you for your wedding present—it
was only two hundred pounds, wasn’t it? I— didn’t put two
thousand by mistake?
JILL : Why no, Aunt Jane. What on earth made you think that?
AUNT JANE (relieved): Well, that’s all right. But I still don’t altogether understand.
This house—it’s very lovely—but doesn’t it cost a great deal
for rent?
JACK : Rent? Oh, no, we don’t pay rent.
AUNT JANE : But, Jack, if you don’t pay rent, you’ll get turned out—into
the street. And that would never do. You’ve Jill and the baby
to think of now, you know.
JACK : No, no, Aunt Jane. You misunderstood me. We don’t pay
AUNT JANE : YOURS?
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rent because the house is ours.
JILL : Why, yes; you just pay ten pounds and it’s yours.
JACK : You see, Aunt Jane, we realized how uneconomic it is to go
on paying rent year after year, when you can buy and enjoy a
home of your own for ten pounds—and a few quarterly payments,
of course. Why be Mr Tenant when you can be Mr
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Owner?
AUNT JANE : I see. Yes, there’s something in that. Even so, you must be
getting on very well to keep up a place like this.
JILL : Oh, he is, Aunt Jane. Why, only last year he had a five shilling
rise—didn’t you, Jack?
JACK (modestly): Of course that was nothing, really. I’m expecting ten this Christmas.
AUNT JANE (suddenly): Jack ! I’ve just thought of something. That car—is it yours?
JILL : Of course it’s ours.
AUNT JANE : All yours?
JACK : Well, no. Not exactly all.
AUNT JANE : How much of it?
JILL : Oh, I should say the steering wheel—and one of the tyres -and
about two of the cylinders. But don’t you see, that's the
wonderful thing about it.
AUNT JANE : I don’t see anything wonderful about it.
JILL : But there is, Aunt Jane. You see, although we could never buy
a car outright, we can enjoy all the pleasures of motoring for a
mere five pounds down.
AUNT JANE : And the rest by easy instalments, I suppose.
JILL : Exactly.
AUNT JANE : Exactly. And what about the radio-what’s it?
JACK : Well, that’s the—
AUNT JANE : And the piano?
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JILL : Well, of course—
AUNT JANE : And the furniture?
JACK : I—I’m afraid so—
AUNT JANE : I suppose all you own is this leg. (She points to one)
JILL : Well, no, as a matter of fact, it’s that one. (She points to another.)
AUNT JANE : And the rest belongs to Mr Sage, I suppose?
JILL : Er—Yes.
AUNT JANE : Well. I’m not going to sit on—Mr Sage’s part for any one.
(She stands up.) Now, tell me, how much do all these
instalments come to?
JACK : Well, actually—(He takes out his pocket-book and consults
it.)—actually to seven pounds eight and eight pence a week.
AUNT JANE : Good heavens! And how much do you earn?
JACK : As a matter of fact—er—that is—six pounds.
AUNT JANE : But that’s absurd! How can you pay seven pounds eight and
eight pence out of six pounds?
JACK : Oh, that’s easy. You see, all you have to do is to borrow the
rest of the money for the payments from the Thrift and Providence
Trust Corporation.
JILL : They’re only too glad to loan you any amount you like, on
note of hand alone.
AUNT JANE : And how do you propose to pay that back?
JACK : Oh, that’s easy, too. You just pay it back in instalments.
AUNT JANE : Instalments! (She claps her hand to her forehead and sinks
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back weakly into the chair. Then realizes that she is sitting on
Mr. Sage’s piece and leaps to her feet again with a little
shriek.)
JACK : Aunt Jane! Is anything the matter? Would you like to lie down?
AUNT JANE : Lie down? Do you suppose I’m going to trust myself in a bed
that belongs to Mr Sage, or Marks and Spencer, or somebody?
No, I am going home.
JILL : Oh, must you really go?
AUNT JANE : I think I’d better.
JACK : I’ll drive you to the station.
AUNT JANE : What! Travel in a car that has only one tyre and two
thingummies! No thank you—I’ll take the bus.
JACK : Well, of course, if you feel like that about it....
AUNT JANE (relenting a little): Now, I’m sorry if I sounded rude, but really I’m
shocked to find the way you’re living. I’ve never owed a penny
in my life—cash down, that’s my motto and I want you to do
the same. (She opens her handbag.) Now look, here’s a little
cheque I was meaning to give you, anyway. (She hands it to
JILL.) Suppose you take it and pay off just one of your bills—
so that you can say one thing at least really belongs to you.
JILL (awkwardly): Er—thank you. Aunt Jane. It’s very nice of you.
AUNT JANE (patting her arm): There! Now I must be going.
JACK : I’ll see you to the bus. anyway.
JILL : Good-bye, Aunt Jane—and thanks so much for the present.
AUNT JANE (kissing her): Good-bye, my dear. (She and JACK go out. JILL looks at
the cheque and exclaims ‘Ten pounds!’ Then she hurries to
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the table, addresses an envelope, endorses the cheque and
slips it inside with a bill which she takes from the bag and
seals the envelope. Then she rings the bell. In a moment the
NURSE comes in with the baby in her arms.)
JILL : Oh, nurse. I want you to run and post this for me. I'll look after
baby while you’re gone.
NURSE : Certainly, madam. (She hands the baby to JILL, takes the
letter, and goes.)
(A second later JACK comes in again.)
JACK : Well, she’s gone! What a tartar! Still, she did leave us a bit on
account—how much was it?
JILL : Ten pounds.
JACK (with a whistle): Phew! That’s great! We can pay off the next two months on
the car with that.
JILL : I—I’m afraid we can’t—
JACK : Why ever not?
JILL : You see, I—I’ve already sent it off for something else. Nurse
has just gone to post it.
JACK : Well that’s all right. Who have you sent it to?
JILL : Dr. Martin.
JACK : Dr Martin! What on earth possessed you to do that?
JILL (nearly in tears): There! Now you’re going to be angry with me.
JACK : I’m not angry! But why waste good money on the doctor?
Doctors don’t expect to get paid anyway.
JILL (sobbing a little): Bu—but 'you don’t understand —
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JACK : Understand what?
JILL : Why; just one more instalment and BABY’S REALLY OURS!
Glossary
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(She is holding out the infant, a little pathetically, as we
black out.)
- Cedric Mount
villa /'vIlJ/ small house standing in its own garden
cosy /'kJUzi/ warm and comfortable
absurd /Jb's3:d/ very foolish, unreasonable
shriek /Sri:k/ give a high loud cry
exclaims /Ik'skleImz/ speak with strong feelings
tartar /'tA:tJ(r)/ an irritable, hard to cope with person
phew /fju:/ expresing tiredness, shock or relief
Vocabulary
Exercises
A Supply a context of your own in which the following expressions take
place naturally :
1. I think it's wonderful.
2. But that's absurd !
3. I'm afraid we can't .....
4. Oh, that' easy
5. It's very nice of you.
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B. Rewrite the following sentences using a word, from the text in place of
the word or words in bold type :
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1. I had to spend Rs. 5000 on the purchase of cots, tables, chairs and cupboards.
2. One must learn the habit of careful spending and save some money every
month.
3. Aunt Jane never owed any money to any one in her life, her principle
was 'cash down.'
4. You have a warm and comfortable place, though it is expensive.
5. He looks at the cheque and speaks loudly and suddenly, because of surprise,
Ten Pounds!
C. Write synonyms of the following words :
villa, nice, angry, expect, infant
D. Pronounce the following words carefully and notice the difference in,
their pronunciation.
Bye, Boy, By, Bay, Buy, Bye-Byes, Byre
Comprehension
A. Answer each of the following questions in about 25 words.
1. Describe Jill's house and the things that charmed Aunt Jane.
2. What made Aunt Jane worried about her gift cheque ?
3. What arguments did Jack give in support of purchasing the house and
other things on instalment basis.
4. Why did Aunt Jane finally refuse to sit on the furniture ?
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B. Answer each of the following questions in about 50 words.
1. What easy sources did Jack speak about to Aunt Jane to repay instalments
?
2. Discuss the disadvantages of purchase on instalments.
3. Who is the real owner of the house and other things till the payment of all
the instalments? Why do you think so?
Grammar
A. Study the following sentences from a conversation.
JILL : What do you think of our little nest, Aunt Jane ?
AUNT JANE : It's wonderful, really wonderful !
JILL : What on earth made you think of that ?
AUNT JANE : Doesn’t it cost a great deal for rent ?
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We can give the exact meaning without using the speaker's words.
Jill asked Aunt Jane what she thought of their little nest.
A UNT JANE exclaimed that it was really very wonderful.
J ILL asked what on earth had made her think of that.
A UNT JANE asked if it did not cost a great deal for that.
Now, give the exact meaning of the following without using the speaker's
words.
1. Aunt Jane : How can you pay seven pounds eight and eight pence out of six
pounds?
2. Jack : Aunt Jane ! Is anything the matter ?
3. Jack : We can pay off the next two months on the car with that.
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4. Jill : There ! You are going to be angry with me.
5. Aunt Jane : How do you propose to pay that back ?
6. Jill : Oh, must you really go ?
7. Jack : Why waste good money on the doctor ?
Speaking Activity
A. Enact a scene where two persons are planning to negotiate a loan for purchasing
house.
B. Enact a scene showing facilities and furniture provided in your newly
constructed house to your friends.
C. Express your own views on borrowing books from friends.
D. If you get a chance to go abroad for higher studies and you take a loan. How
will you repay it ?
Writing Activity
A. Write a letter to your cousin telling him/her the consequences of pretence.
(50 words)
B. Elaborate 'cut your coat according to your cloth'. (150 words)
Think it over
A. What difficulties arise when a man spends more than what he earns ?
B. Borrowing is easier than paying. Ponder.
Things to do
132
Go to different banks and enquire about the facilities provided there.
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