CLASS XI ENGLISH ASSIGNMENTS 9

GIST OF THE LESSON

DISCOVERING TUT (DAY 1)

 The weather has been stormy all through the day.

 It is 5th January, 2005 and the time is six in the evening.
 The author talks about the countless tourists who visited Tut’s tomb that day.
 Those who talked or read out from guide books, spoke in a whisper. When it comes to the
tomb of Tutankhamun, respect and fear interplay in the minds of the people.
 All were probably thinking about ‘the curse of the pharaoh’.
 Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities was worried.
 The reason was the damage that had been caused to the mummy of Tutankhamun by
Howard Carter and his team.
 Carter had successfully discovered Tut’s tomb in 1922.
 Tut’s tomb is considered to be the richest because of the enormous amount of gold items
found there. Items of everyday use were also found.
 Carter’s problem was that the ritual resins had solidified.
 So, Tut was cemented to the bottom of his gold coffin.
 So he decided to chisel away the consolidated material from beneath the limbs and trunk of
the mummy.
 Head was removed. Every major joint was sliced off. Then all the parts were rearranged on a
bed of sand.
 Gold jewellery as well as everyday items made of gold were found in the tomb.

ANSWER KEY
ASSIGNMENTS 8

A. THE LABURNUM TOP

1. Answer the following:

a) “Till the goldfinch comes, with a twitching chirrup”

i) Where does the goldfinch come?
To the laburnum tree—sits on one end of a top branch.
ii) What was the situation like before the arrival of the goldfinch?
Quiet autumn afternoon—tree silent—leaves yellow—pods fallen-no movement
iii) Pick out a figure of speech from the sentence and identify it.
“chirrup”—Onomatopoeia.
b) “The whole tree trembles and thrills.
It is the engine of her family.”
i) What makes the tree tremble?
Busy movements—chirruping--fledglings and mother finch—trilling—vibration
created by fluttering wings
ii) Whose family is referred to here and where can it be found?
Goldfinch—in the thick foliage of the tree
iii) What is referred to as engine and why?
 Nest with nestlings—nestlings fed—engine stoked—fuelled—engine activates machine—
nestlings move—chirrup--tree brought alive
2. Answer the following in about 30-40 words:
a) Why is the face of the goldfinch described as “barred face identity mask”?
Red, white and black markings on face—concentric bands-- layers of colours—as if finch
wearing mask--“barred”=marked with bands of colour.

b) Metaphorically speaking, what does the arrival and departure of the goldfinch signify?
Discuss any one.
Option 1—separation of body and soul—beginning and end—union in between and the marvellous
outcome.
Option 2—peace and quiet in the beginning –arrival of industrial revolution—excitement--leaving
England empty once phased out
Option 3—Sylvia Plath’s death—lonely life—spiritually empty

c) Why has the goldfinch been compared to a lizard?

Entering foliage smoothly—alert—abrupt movement

B. GRAMMAR

Rewrite the following sentences as directed:

1. Professional historians will, I hope, forgive this intrusion into their domain by a mere story-
teller. ( Rewrite using “hope to be forgiven”)
I hope this intrusion into their domain by a mere story-teller to be forgiven by the historians.

2. Whatever else they may have been, these adventurers were individualists. (Rewrite using
“despite being”)
Despite being something else too, these adventurers were individualists.
3. Most of these books are rare and out of print, and I found many of them not in public
libraries, but during diligent searching in secondhand bookshops and private libraries in
India. (Rewrite using only one finite verb)
Most of these books being rare and out of print, I found many of them not in public libraries,
but during diligent searching in secondhand bookshops and private libraries in India.
4. History is best enjoyed in this way, by visiting the scene of actual events, and allowing one’s
imagination to roam backwards and forwards in time. ( Rewrite using “when”)
History is best enjoyed when one visits the scene of actual events, and allows one’s
imagination to roam backwards and forwards in time.
5. Duels among British officers serving in India were fairly common in the early part of the
nineteenth century. (Begin with “It was fairly common…”)
It was fairly common among the British officers serving in India in the early part of the
nineteenth century to have duels/ to engage in duels.
6. As soon as she raised the veil from the countenance of the bride, she beheld the bright eyes
that had once bewildered her brother. (Begin with “No sooner…”)
No sooner had she raised the veil from the countenance of the bride than she beheld the
bright eyes that had once bewildered her brother.
7. But before retiring into the life of the country gentleman on his Khasganj estate, Gardner
was to prove more than useful to the British. (Begin with “Only after…”)
Only after he proved himself to be more than useful to the British, could Gardner retire into
the life of the country gentleman on his Khasganj estate.
 8. His conquest of Almora also gave India the first of her hill stations, where convalescent
troops were sent, and civilians retreated to escape the heat of the plains. (Rewrite using
“convalescent troops to recuperate and civilians to escape the heat of the plains”)

ASSIGNMENTS 9

A. COMPREHENSION

This is an assignment for practice. Work it out at home but DO NOT SUBMIT THE ANSWERS.
Answer key will be sent with the next set of assignments for SELF-CORRECTION.

In spite of all the honours that we heaped upon him, Pasteur, as has been said, remained simple at
heart. Perhaps the imagery of his boyhood days, when he drew the familiar scenes of his birthplace,
and the longing to be a great artist, never wholly left him. In truth he did become a great artist,
though after his sixteenth year he abandoned the brush forever. Like every artist of worth, he put his
whole soul and energy into his work, and it was this very energy that in the end wore him out. For to
him, each sufferer was more than just a case that was to be cured.

He looked upon the fight against hydrophobia as a battle and he was absorbed in his determination
to win. The sight of injured children, particularly, moved him to an indescribable extent. He suffered
with his patients, and yet he would not deny himself a share in that suffering.

His greatest grief was when sheer physical exhaustion made him give up his active work. He retired
to the estate at Villeneuve Etang, where he had his kennels for the study of rabies, and there he
passed his last summer, as his great biographer, Vallery Radot, has said, “practising the Gospel
virtues”.

“He revered the faith of his fathers,” says the same writer, “and wished without ostentation or
mystery to receive its aid during his last period.”

The attitude of this man to the science he had done so much to perfect can be best summed up in a
sentence that he is reputed once to have uttered, concerning the materialism of many of his
contemporaries in similar branches of learning to his own: “The more I contemplate the mysteries of
Nature, the more my faith becomes like that of a peasant.”

But even then, on retirement he loved to see his former pupils, and it was then that he would
reiterate his life principles: “Work,” he would say, “never cease to work.” So well had he kept this
precept that he began to sink rapidly from exhaustion.

Finally, on September 27, 1895, when someone leant over his bed to offer him a cup of milk, he said
sadly: “I cannot,” and with a look of perfect resignation and peace, seemed to fall asleep. He never
again opened his eyes to the cares and sufferings of a world, which he had done so much to relieve
and to conquer. He was within three months of his seventy-third birthday.

Thus passed, as simply as a child, the man whom the French people were to vote at a plebiscite as
the greatest man that France had ever produced. Napoleon, who has always been considered the
idol of France, was placed fifth.
No greater tribute could have been paid to Louis Pasteur, the tanner’s son, the scientist, the man of
peace and the patient worker for humanity.

1.Answer the following questions briefly:

a) Why did accolades and honours fail to change Pasteur?

b) For Pasteur each sufferer was more than just a case. What, in your opinion, does the author mean
to say here?
c) How did Pasteur engage himself in the estate?
d) What advice did he always give his pupils? What, according to you, did he mean by it?
e)How did France, the country of his birth, acknowledge the contribution this great scientist?

2. Find words from the passage which mean the same as:
a) gave up (Paragraph 1)
b)people belonging to the same period (Paragraph 5)
c) vote by the people of the country to decide a matter of national importance (Paragraph 8)

3. Choose the correct option:

a)The author says “he did become a great artist” because like a true artist

1)he had an eye for details.

2)he was dedicated to his work.
3)he believed that nature was the best teacher.
4)he drew familiar scenes of his birthplace.

b)Pasteur demonstrated through his life that

1)a good scientist does not necessarily have to be a good human being.
2) a good scientist is also a good human being.
3)a scientist’s sole purpose of life is to amass data based on case studies.
4)a scientist should divide his life between work and no work.

c)“The more I contemplate the mysteries of Nature, the more my faith becomes like that of a
peasant.”—Pasteur means to say that

1)he became an agnostic

2)he started believing that nature is God.
3) his attitude to God became one of unquestioning faith.
4)he began to consider every peasant God.

d)Gospel virtues refer to

1)working for humanity.

2)playing the role of a selfless doctor.
3)the good attributes expected to be possessed by common people.
4)contemplating how to fight rabies.

B. DISCOVERING TUT (DAY 1)

This is an assignment for practice. Work it out at home but DO NOT SUBMIT THE ANSWERS.
Answer key will be sent with the next set of assignments for SELF-CORRECTION.

Answer the following in about 30-40 words each:

a) How has the author introduced the readers to the mysterious saga of Tutankhamun?
b) Very briefly explain ‘the curse of the pharaoh’.
c) Why was it difficult for Howard Carter to examine the pharaoh’s mummy?
d) What was the most striking feature of Tutankhamun’s tomb?
e) What did Howard Carter do to be able to examine the pharaoh’s mummy?
f) What did the contents of the tomb reveal about Egyptian philosophy?

C. DRAFTING AN ADVERTISEMENT (INSERTION)

Look at the following advertisements.

SITUATIONS VACANT

Applications invited by LIC of India from young and enterprising candidates, preferably graduates, to
join the house as insurance agents. Gender no bar. Should have good communication skills. Could
join as a part-timer or a whole-timer. No investment required. Attractive commission and bonus
offered. Office near Chandni Chowk Metro, Kolkata 700072.Contact: 8010818010

PROPERTY

Available for sale plain land, 30,000 sq. ft. area on Bombay Road, near Kona crossing, Chamrail. 4
plots together. To be used for industrial and commercial purposes. Factories under construction in
the surrounding area. A future industrial hub. Well-connected to nearby cities and towns. Price
negotiable. Contact: A.C. Baral 8010818010

When you analyse the two advertisements some common features can be discerned. So, while
drafting an advertisement keep in mind the following instructions under POINTS TO REMEMBER.

POINTS TO REMEMBER

 Both are CLASSIFIED ADVERTISEMENTS. So, first decide which specific classified column
should have the advertisement.
 Should be in a box.
 Heading (name of the column) should be at the top centre, written in capital letters and
underlined.
 A line should be left after that. The advertisement must be written in one paragraph. No
indentation.
 Complete sentences cannot be used. If used, then marks will be deducted from Expression.
 The name and contact number must be provided. If required, the address should also be
provided.
 If you do not wish to reveal your identity initially, then mention Box no.
 What is a Box no.?
a) It is the number of a box among many boxes that are kept in the advertisement cell/
section of a newspaper.
b) Against payment of a certain sum of money you can avail of the privilege of using the
box for a stipulated period of time.
c) All the letters from your prospective client/ clients (who have read your advertisement
and wish to collaborate) will be kept there for you to collect.
 Word limit must be maintained. Remember, for every word that you use you have to pay the
newspaper. So, economy of expression is very important.
 Also remember that according to the specifications provided by the Board, the
advertisement should be written within 50 words. So, if your advertisement is drafted in 25
words then you could be discredited for inadequate content.
 To help you a few classified columns are mentioned below that may be useful.

SITUATION/S WANTED [When you need a job and you talk about your qualifications and the
kind of job you want to do]
SITUATION/S VACANT [When an institution / corporate house has a vacancy and they are
looking for a duly qualified candidate.
EDUCATIONAL [Jobs related to education—the applicant and employer, both can use the
column]
ANNOUNCEMENTS [of a wedding, death, engagement, birth, book release, inauguration of a
shop/ an exhibition and the like]
HOTELS AND RESTAURANTS [Either opening or a popular eatery is announcing a new
feature/ a new branch]
TOURS AND TRAVELS [Mostly advertisements from travelling agencies]
SHOPS AND GODOWNS [If you want to buy/ sell or offer on rent a large space/ shed for such
purposes]
TO LET [When you are offering your apartment/ house on rent]
ACCOMMODATION [temporary accommodation for students from other states or for
medical tourists—you may offer or look for]
PAYING GUEST/ P. G. ACCOMMODATION [same as above but facilities you offer the paying
guest / facilities you are looking for as a paying guest must be mentioned
PROPERTY/ PROPERTIES/ REAL ESTATE [When you want to buy/ sell land, apartment or
house]
BUSINESS [when you have a business proposal or a business offer to make]
KENNEL AND LIVESTOCK [Pets and domestic animals]
LOST AND FOUND [Any item that you have lost/ found—advertise, so that you may get it
back/ return after proper evidence is presented]
CARS AND ACCESSORIES [For buying and selling items under the category mentioned]
FOR SALE [Anything—property, shop space, car]
HOBBIES [Stamps, rare books, coins, records and other hobby items—selling and buying]
MISCELLANEOUS [When the advertisement does not suit any one of the above columns]

Questions
 a) You own a warehouse in Sankrail Industrial Park, Dhulagarh, Howrah. You want to rent it
out. In about 50 words, draft an insertion to published in an English daily. Mention terms
and conditions along with contact details.

b) You are an entrepreneur. Your concern is going to launch new brands of tea, detergent
powder and mustard oil. You are looking for a manufacturing unit and a packaging unit. In
about 50 words, draft an insertion to published in an English daily. Mention Box no.

NOTE: For evaluation of the assignments, pupils are requested to complete their work and submit
through SKOLARO ONLY. Assignments must be submitted within the due date.

Date of assignments set: 6.7.2020

Due date of submission: 16.7.2020