Extra Questios

FLAMINGO THE LAST LESSON 1.What was tempting Franz to keep away from school on the day of last lesson? 2.What did M. Hamel tell the class about French language? What did he ask them to do and why? 3. What change did Franz notice in M. Hamel when he entered the class? 4. " The Last Lesson" is a story that dwells upon universal human nature. Comment. 5. What are the political conditions that form the background of the story ? 6. The course of the day transformed Franz, changing his perceptions about a variety of things. Elaborate 7. What unusual sight met Franz's eyes when he entered the classroom? What was the mood of the classroom? 8. How was the teacher dressed that day and why did it surprize Franz ? 9. Explain the statement " will they make them sing in German , even the pigeons?" 10. Whom does M . Hamel blame for not learning French language and why ? LOST SPRING 1. Explain the line "Seemapuri is on the periphery of Delhi , yet miles away from it metaphorically ." 2. "His dreams loom like a mirage ." Whose dreams are being referred to and why are they compared to a mirage ? 3. What was Saheb's full name ? Why was it ironical ? 4.Explain the significance of the title 'Lost Spring' 5. Why does the advice that Anees Jung offers to Saheb ring false even to her ? 6. Mention the hazards of working in the glass bangles industry . 7. What does the narrator mean when she says "Saheb is no longer his own master"? 8. Why does the narrator say that the bangle makers are caught in a vicious web ? 9. Why can't the bangle makers of Firozabad organise into a cooperative ? 10. 'Grabage to them is gold" W hy does the narrator say so about the ragpickers ? 11. What are the different connotations of the word 'garbage' to the children and adult ragpickers of Seemapuri ? DEEP WATER 1. Why did Douglas start avoiding the pool ? 2. Explain the implication of Roosevelt's remark, " all we have to fear is fear itself ." How did Douglas prove it to be true ? 3. "The instructor was finished ,but I was not finished." What does this refer to ? 4. Describe the series of emotions that Douglas experienced while engulfed in the mass of yellow water ? 5. How did the instructor 'build a swimmer' out of Douglas ? 6. How did Douglas get rid of all the residual fear that he had of water ? 7. What was the immediate effect of Douglas's experience of nearly drowning in the pool ? What was the long- term effect ? 8. "Often the test of courage is not to die but to live ." Comment with reference to the essay . 9. Why does Douglas refer to his fear of water as a 'handicap'? THE RATTRAP 1. What was the difference between the crofter and the peddler ? 2.Why did the peddler have to go into the forest ? Why was the situation ironical ? 3. How can you say that Edla Willmanson was more perceptive than her father ?

4. "The old man was just as generous with his confidences as he was with his porridge and tobacco." What does this mean and what was the outcome of this ? 5. Why was the peddler surprised when he knocked on the door of the cottage ? 6.What was the thought that took hold of his fancy ? What consolation did he derive from this thought ? 7. Who did the ironmaster mistake the peddler to be ? Why did the latter not reveal his identity ? How did his true identity come to light ? 8. What was the ironmaster's daughter's assessment of the peddler ? What rationale did her father give for the coarse ways of the peddler ? Was he proved right ? 9. Why did Edla want to keep the peddler in the house despite knowing his identity ? 10. Why was Edla happy to see the gift left by the peddler ? INDIGO 1. Why was Gandhiji served summons to appear in court ? What was his immediate reaction to this ? 2. What made the British realize that the Indians could challenge their might,hitherto unquestioned ? 3. Why did Gandhi protest against the delay in the trial ? What did his statement pleading guilty read ? 4. What were the conditions of the sharecroppers at the time when Gandhi arrived in Champaran ? POETS AND PANCAKES 1. Subbu was tailor made for films. Why ? 2. Which was the book at a roadside stand that caught the attention of the writer ? What was significant about it ? 3. The English poet who visited Gemini Studio was as baffled as the audience. Why was that ? 4. What was pancake and according to the writer did its application achieve ? 5. Why was the 'boy' in the make-up department disgruntled ? 6. How was the lawyer different from the others at the sudio ? 7. What was the opinion of most of the people at the studio regarding communism ? 8. What is the writer's opinion on prose writers ? Do you think that he considered himself a prose writer ? How do you know? 9. How did the lawyer bring to an end the acting career of an actress ? 10. What were the positive qualities of Subbu that the writer admired ?

PRACTICE QUESTIONS
FLAMINGO THE INTERVIEW 1. Why is Umberto Eco better known as a novelist ? 2. What are the conflicting views regarding interview as a form of journalism ? 3. What does Umberto Eco mean by 'empty spaces'? How did he make use of these ? 4. What sort of writing does Umberto Eco have to his credit ? 5. Why did Rudyard Kipling refuse to be interviewed? GOING PLACES 1. Jansie is the voice of reason in the story. Explain. 2. Why is Sophie jealous of her brother's silence ? 3. What were Sophie's thoughts as she waited by the canal ? 4. Describe Sophie's so - called meeting with Danny Casey. POETRY MY MOTHER AT SIXTY - SIX 1. What were the fears of the poet as a child ? Why do they surface at this stage ? 2. What images does the mother's face bring to the mind of the poet ? What is her reaction to it ? 3. Why did the poet avoid looking at her mother while sitting in the car ?

4. What is the emotional turmoil that Kamala Das goes through in the poem ? AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CLASSROOM IN A SLUM 1. How does the poet convey that the children of the slums are undernourished ? 2. How can education hope to be the savior of the slum children ? 3. "So blot their maps with slums as big as doom," says Stephen Spender what does the poet want to convey ? 4. What do the 'windows' and the 'map' symbolize in the poem? KEEPING QUIET 1. How according to the poet can peace be restored on the Earth ? 2. What according to the poet are people 'single minded' about? What does the poet advise ? 3. What does the fisherman not harming whalesnactually symbolize ? 4. What is the sadness that the poet refers to ? What does the poet recommend to overcome it ? 5. Why is the poet against 'total inactivity'? A THING OF BEAUTY 1. What is the poet's idea of beauty ? What do things of beauty achieve ? 2. How does the poet convey that death can also be 'grand and mighty' ? 3. What is the 'endless fountain' a reference to ? What are its effects ? A ROADSIDE STAND 1. Which things irritiated those passers- by who stopped at the Roadside Stand ? 2. Why are the vehicles that don't stop at the roadside stand referred to as 'selfish cars' ? Explain the figure of speech used in this phrase. AUNT JENNIFER'S TIGERS 1.What is the role played by the tigers in the poem to highlight the character of Aunt Jennifer ? 2. How does the poetess suggest that Aunt will always be haunted by the demands of her life or that she will never be able to forget it ? 3. Why did Aunt Jennifer choose to embroider tigers on the panel ? 4. Describe the tigers created by Aunt Jennifer ? posted by anjni raina at 8:37 pm

EXTRA QUESTIONS FOR PRACTICE

VISTAS THE THIRD LEVEL 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Why does Charley feel that it is very easy to get lost in the Grand Central ? How did Charley ascertain the fact that he had actually been transported back in time ? What is the surprising turn that the story takes at the end ? Why is it surprising ? Why is the fact that Sam has moved to the Third Level ironical ? What was Sam's reaction when Charley mentioned the discovery of the Third Level to him ? What did Charley notice at the Grand Level at the Grand Central ?

THE TIGER KING 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Why did the Tiger King embark upon the massive tiger hunt as soon as he came of age ? Why did the king marry ? Was it a valid reason for marriage ? "Fight fire with fire and you will end up with the ashes. "How has this been brought out in the story ? How was the king provided with the hundredth tiger ? What was its fate ? What was the Dewan's tiger like ? How did he take it into the forest ? How did the Tiger King celebrate his victory over the killing of the hundredth tiger ?

JOURNEY TO THE END OF THE EARTH 1.How did the split of the Gondwana affect the world climate and its geography ? 2. How has man managed to create such a 'ruckus' in the world ? 3."You lose all Earthly sense of time and perspective here." Describe the feelings and experiences of the narrator in the Antarctic ? 4. What was the Akademik Shokalskiy ? Where was it headed to and why ? 5. How did the narrator feel on reaching the Antarctic and why ? 6. Why does the narrator feel that being in the Antarctic is like being in a giant ping - pong ball ? THE ENEMY 1. Why did Dr. Sadao think that they should put the man who had got washed ashore into the sea ?Why did he change his mind ? 2. Why was it risky for Dr. Sadao to give medical aid to the soldier ? 3. What was the attitude of the servants to the presence of the soldier in Dr. Sadao's house ? 4. Was the General's plan successful ? Why ? Why not ?

5. How did Hana support her husband's efforts in saving the American soldier's life ? 6. What was the special benefit enjoyed by Dr. Sadao during the war time ?

PRACTICE QUESTIONS
EVANS TRIES AN O - LEVEL 1. What role did the act of covering himself with a blanket play in Evan's escape from tht prison ? 2.What precautions had the prison authorities taken to ensure that the exam was conducted smoothly ? 3. 'It had not been Evans impersonating Mclerry who had walked out. It had been Evans impersonating Mclerry who had stayed.' Explain 4. Who was supposed to invegiliate the exams ? Why ? What did he carry with him in order to fulfill his duty to satisfaction ? MEMORIES OF CHILDHOOD THE CUTTING OF MY LONG HAIR 1. What customs did Zitkala - sa find strange in her new school ? 2. Why did Zitkala - sa decide that she had to save her hair at any cost ? 3. How did she feel when she entered the dinning hall for the first time ? 4. What was the warning given to her by her friend ? 5. What does she mean by "eating by formula " ? 6. How did Zitkala - sa show her defiance in the boarding school ? 7. Who supported short hair in her culture ? WE TOO ARE HUMAN BEINGS 1. What made Bama shriek with laughter ? 2. What were the things that stopped Bama ( as a child ) while she walked from her school to her home ? 3. How did her brother advise her to fight out the indignities ? 4. How did Bama attain dignity and honour inspite of her 'low caste' ? 5. What is the thread of commonality that runs through the childhood experiences of Bama and Zitkala -sa ? 6. Explain Bama's first encounter with untouchability ? 7. Why did the landlord 's man ask Bama's brother, on which street he lived ? What was its significance ?