FIRST PUC

ENGLISH NOTES

FREDERICK DOUGLASS

Question 1.
What prevented the slaves from knowing their birth days?
Answer:
They had not seen any authentic record containing it.
Question 2.
How would the master look at the enquiries about the slaves’
birthday?
Answer:
The large part of the slaves know as little of their ages as horses know
of theirs, and it is the wish of most masters to keep their slaves thus
ignorant.

The white children could tell their ages.

Question 3.
What was whispered about Douglass’ parentage?
Answer:
It was whispered that his master was his father.

Question 4.
When was Douglass separated from his mother?
Answer:
When he was an infant he was separated from his mother.

Question 5.
Douglass’ mother was able to meet him only at night.
Question 6.
What was the penalty to the field hand for not being in the field at
sunrise?
Answer:
Whipping is the penalty to the field hand for not being in the field at
sunrise.

Question 7.
How old was Douglass when he lost his mother?
Answer:
Douglass was seven years old when he lost his mother.

Question 8.
Name the person who was believed to be both Douglass’ father and
master.
Answer:
Anthony was the name of Douglass’ father and master.

Question 9.
What was Mr. Plummer?
Answer:
Mr. Plummer was a miserable drunkard, a profane swearer, and a
savage monster.

Frederick Douglass Comprehension II:

Question 1.
Why wasn’t Douglass affected much by his mother’s death?
Answer:
He never saw his mother, to know her as such; more than four or five
times in his life; and each of these times was very short in duration,
and at night. He did not recollect of ever seeing his mother by the
light of day. She was with him in the night.
She would lie down with him and get him to sleep, but long before he
woke she was gone. Very little communication ever took place
between them. He received the tidings of her death with much the
same emotions he should have probably felt at the death of a
stranger.

Frederick Douglass Comprehension III:

Question 1.
What kind of hardships did the slave suffer at the hands of the
slaveholder and his mistress?
Answer:
The slaveholder was a miserable drunkard, a profane swearer, and a
savage monster. He always went armed with a cow skin and a heavy
cudgel. The speaker had known him to cut and slash the women’s
head’s so horribly, that even master would be enraged at his cruelty,
and would threaten to whip him if he did not mind himself. He would
at times seem to take great pleasure in whipping a slave.
He had often been awakened at the dawn of day by the most heart-
rending shrieks of an own aunt of his, whom he used to tie up to a
joist and whip upon her naked back till she was literally covered with
blood.

No words, no tears, no prayers, from his gory victim, seemed to move

his iron heart from its bloody purpose. The louder she screamed, the
harder he whipped; and where the blood ran fastest, there he
whipped longest.

He would whip her to make her scream, and whip her to make her
hush; and not until overcome by fatigue, would he cease to swing the
blood-clotted cow skin.
Question 2.
How does the passage comment on the dreadful experience of
slavery?
Answer:
It is a miserable experience being a slave. The author was not seeing
his mother very often even he never saw his mother, more than four
or five times in his life. She lived about twelve miles from his home.
She was hired by Mr. Stewart.

She came to meet him very rarely; only in the night she made her
travel to see him on foot. She was a field hand, and whipping is the
penalty of not being in the field at sunrise, unless a slave has special
permission from his or her master to the contrary. She seldom gets
the permission. It is like a burning hell to live under slavery.

Question 3.
In spite of the hardships he suffered as a slave, why does the author
say, ‘slavery would not always be able to hold me within its foul
embrace’?
Answer:
‘Slavery would not always be able to hold me within its foul embrace’
this is the living word of faith and spirit of hope departed not from
him, but he remained like ministering angels to cheer him through the
gloom.

This truly led him to go out of his slavery and be a model for all the
slaves. He became the first one who was writing an autobiography.
His faith had transformed him into a leader and a model for others.

Through his power of words there were many changes taken place in
the country. When he was in slavery he used to think of the future
life. The burning desire had not quenched for long. He made it
possible. He often thought of the freedom of the slaves.
Vocabulary Phrasal Verbs:
Use the verbs in column A with the right prepositional particles in
column B to form as many phrasal verbs as possible? Find out the
meanings with the help of a dictionary and make your own sentences.
A B
Act, ask, break, bail, call,
drop, look, pick, lock, check,
keep, make, run, settle,
step, put, walk, turn, cany,
fall, let, hang, cut, come, In, on, out, off, down,
take up, through, around
Act — Act out
Ask — ask around
Break — breakdown
Bail — bailout
Call — call off
Drop — drop in
look — look around
pick — pick up
lock — lock out
check — check out
keep — keep in
make — make out
run — run around
settle — settle down
step — step down
put — put up
walk — walk through
turn — turn around
carry — carry on
fall — fall off
let — let down
hang — hang out
cut — cut off
come — come in
take — take up

Frederick Douglass Additional Question and Answer

Question 1.
Where was Douglass born?
Answer:
Douglass was born in slavery as Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey
near Easton in Talbot Country Maryland.

Question 2.
What is the exact year of his birth?
Answer:
It was 1817 or 1818.

Question 3.
Where did he learn to read and write, with whose help?
Answer:
At Baltimore he learned to read and write, with the assistance of his
master’s wife.

Question 4.
When did he escape from slavery? Where did he go?
Answer:
In 1838 he escaped from slavery and went to New York City.

Question 5.
Whom did he marry?
Answer:
He married Anna Murray, a free coloured woman whom he had met
in Baltimore.

Question 6.
What are the biographical works of Douglass?
Answer:
Narrative of the life of Frederick, My bondage and my freedom and
life and times of Frederick Douglass are the biographical works of
Douglass.

Question 7.
What motivated him to get rid of slavery from his life?
Answer:
‘Slavery would not always be able to hold me within its foul embrace’.
This living word of faith and spirit of hope helped him to become a
successful person. That is why he got freedom from the whites.

Fill in the blanks :

1. Douglass escaped in 1839 from the slavery.
2. He was born in Tuckahoe near Hillsborough.
3. Douglass addressed in a convention of the Massachusetts Anti-
Slavery Society in Nantucketts in 1841.
4. Frederick Douglass died in 1895.
5. Douglass’s first master’s name was Anthony.
Frederick Douglass Summary in English

AN OLD WOMAN
Question 1.
‘You’ in the poem refers to
(a) The speaker.
(b) The passerby
(c) The reader
(d) Anyone
Answer:
(c) The reader

Question  2.
What does the old woman offer to do?
Answer:
The old woman offers if we give fifty paise coin she would take to the horseshoe
shrine.

Question 3.
What does she expect for her services?
Answer:
She expected a fifty paise coin.

Question 4.
The lines, ‘You turn around and face her with an air of finality’ suggest that he
decided to
(a) Give her a fifty paisa coin and get rid of her.
(b) Allow’her to take him to the shrine.
(c) End the farce.
Answer:
(c) End the farce.

Question 5.
The old woman’s eyes are compared to ………………………..
Answer:
bullet holes.

Question 6.
‘You are reduced to so much small change in her hand. Here the speaker is
suggesting that
(a) One is reduced to an insignificant position.
(b) One feels that one is being cheated.
(c) One feels a change in one’s personality.
Answer:
(a) One is reduced to an insignificant position.

An Old Woman Comprehension II:

Question 1.
How is the plight of the old woman depicted in the poem?
Answer:
The old woman is not a beggar; she wants to live by doing work. Therefore she
does the job of taking the visitors to the horseshoe shrine. Though the visitor
has seen it already, she hobbles along anyway and tightens her grip on his shirt.
She is very adamant; she did not let him go away. She has no other ideas except
to guide the visitors to see them.
Question 2.
The old woman in the poem is a self appointed tourist guide, not a beggar. Do
you agree? Give reasons.
Answer:
The old woman is not a beggar, she is hard working. Though she is old still she
wants to earn money by working. She is a self appointed tourist guide. She is
well appreciated. She did not beg anyone. She is a model for others. Her
character is highly respectful.

Question 3.
How does the speaker’s attitude undergo a change?
Answer:
In the beginning of the poem the speaker did not like the old woman. Because
the speaker had not understood the woman properly. She did not allow him to
go to the horseshoe shrine. The speaker started observing the character of the
woman realized her true worth bold person.

An Old Woman Comprehension III :

Question 1.
‘The old woman reduces the self esteem of the speaker and makes him feel that
he is nothing more than “so much small change”. Comment.
Answer:
The old woman continuous to ask him to go with her so that she would get the
money to survive. The speaker does not change himself initially but slowly he
turns towards the words of the woman. In spite of his dignity, he came down to
hear the story of the old woman.

Question 2.
What is the speaker trying to convey through the lines ‘and the hills crack, and
the temples crack, and the sky falls’?
Answer:
The speaker is shocked, looking at her face. There are two deep sunken eyes
that look like bullet holes. Her skin is wrinkled and cracks begin to appear
around her eyes and spread beyond her skin. He feels that everything is falling
apart.

Everything is cracked and in ruins. The cracks spread beyond her skin to the hills
and the sky. There is a catastrophe. The hills crack, the temples crack and the
sky falls and shatters like a sheet of glass.

But the old woman stands there as a symbol of all round degradation. The
narrator feels ashamed. He is reduced to the small change in her hand. In a
moment of realization the narrator/tourist finds himself reduced in his self-
esteem. His awakening to the ‘real’ world makes him feel ‘small’.

Question 3.
How do you relate the ‘cracks around, her eyes’ to the hills and temples?
Answer:
The old woman’s eyes are just two gaping holes filled with empty air, with the
hills and the sky. Then the cracks begin around her eyes, spreading beyond her
skin and then the hills crack, the temples crack and the sky cracks and the sky
finally shatters and falls like plate-glass.

The old woman herself is shatter-proof and nothing happens to her .Only you
get instantly reduced to small change in her hand. It is you who shatter because
her eyes are already bullet-holes which are formed with cracks around the
holes.

An Old Woman Additional Question and Answer

I. Answer the following questions:

Question 1.
Where did the woman take the visitor to?
Answer:
The woman took the visitors to the horseshoe shrine.

Question 2.
Describe the appearance of the old woman?
Answer:
Her eyes are like bullet holes. There are cracks that begin around her eyes
spread beyond her skin.

Question 3.
Did the visitor give the paise finally?
Answer:
Yes, the visitor finally gave the paise she offered.

An Old Woman Summary in English

The poem begins with a commonplace experience, but ends in a revelation. The
old woman is not an ordinary woman. She is the representative of the
degradation of humanity. She has bullet holes for her eyes.

When the narrator looks at her, he is shocked by her pitiable condition. It

appears as if she is going to fall apart. The main theme is about keeping what is
important in perspective in this case, an old woman and her heritage the land
from which she comes.

A tourist visits a hill. There he comes across an old woman. She grabs his sleeve
and wants fifty paisa. She promises to take him to the horseshoe shrine. But the
tourist has already been there. He tells her to let him alone. She is persistent
and keeps pestering him. For a price, she will take what seems to be a sightseer
to the nearby shrine. The man is not interested: he has seen the shrine before.

However, the woman is insistent; the man wants to dismiss her because she is
an old woman. The poet uses a very simple common image a beggar, in this
case, an old woman, who is found begging outside the horseshoe shrine.
In India this is a common sight as common as our reaction to a beggar besieging
us pleading for alms. This sight is particularly common around holy places and
pilgrim spots. They can be extremely persistent driving one to the point of
irritation if not annoyance like a burr’. Such is the plight of the poet.

The poet turns to face her, about to end their association; ‘with an air of finality’
to ‘end the farce’. He conjures up an air of firmness to do so but her question
stops him in his track.

TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA

I. Answer the following questions in a word, a phrase or a sentence each:

Where does the narrator first meet the two boys?
Answer:
On the outskirts of Verona on the foothills of Alps.

Why doesn’t the driver approve of the narrator buying fruits from the two
boys? Does he succeed?
Answer:
Driver Luigi did not approve to buy fruits because of the dirty appearance of the
boys, but he did not succeed in his mission.

List the different things that the boys did to earn their living.
Answer:
Selling fruits, shining shoes, hawking news papers, working as guides and
running petty errands.

In spite of working hard and earning money, the two boys still looked poor
because
(a) they were saving money to go to America.
(b) they had other plans.
(c) they wanted to save money for medical expenses.
Answer:
(c) they wanted to save money for medical expenses.

What qualities in the two boys attracted the narrator?

Answer:
Their cheerful competence, unremitting willingness to work, their silent epic of
youthful devotion, and their selfless action attracted the narrator.

Nicola was not pleased when Jacopo asked the narrator to drive them to Poleta
as he
(a) did not want a stranger to become involved in their plans.
(b) preferred going to Poleta by train so that he could enjoy the scenery.
(c) did not want to ask anyone for favours.
(d) did not want to take help from someone he did not know well.
Answer:
(c) did not want to ask anyone for favours.

Why did the two boys go to Poleta and why did they want the narrator not to
follow them?
Answer:
They went to Poleta to look on their sister who was undergoing medical
treatment and also to make payment for her treatment. They did not want the
narrator to follow, because they did not want to disturb him and involve him in
their trouble.

The narrator did not follow the boys because,

(a) he was not invited to join them.
(b) he was not interested in knowing what the boys were up to.
(c) he wanted to respect their privacy.
Answer:
(c) he wanted to respect their privacy.

What had made the two boys and their sister homeless?
Answer:
Their father was killed in the war and a bomb had destroyed their home and
they became homeless.

What does the narrator learn from Lucia’s nurse?

Answer:
He learnt that the two boys had a wealthy background but they were in
financial trouble but also knew from Lucia that they were adventurous great
human beings and selfless who would do anything for their sister.

The author did not speak to the boys on their return journey because he
thought
(a) the boys Would prefer to keep their secret.
(b) the boys were ashamed of their sister’s condition.
(c) they wouldn’t tell him the truth.
(d) the boys might ask him for money for their sister’s treatment.
Answer:
(a) the boys would prefer to keep their secret.

Two Gentlemen of Verona Additional Question and Answer

How old was the sister of the boys?

Answer:
Twenty years old.
The boys’ sister got affected by ……………..
(a) tuberculosis
(b) cancer
(c) mental disorder
(d) fever
Answer:
(a) tuberculosis

Where did they go usually on every Sundays?

Answer:
They would visit their village Poleta.

How old are the boys?

Answer:
Nicola, the elder was thirteen and Jacopo was twelve.

Question 16.
Who asks the narrator to drop them at Poleta in his car?
Answer:
Jacopo.

Question 17.
What touched the narrator while driving them back?
Answer:
The silent epic of youthful devotion had touched him deeply.

II. Answer the following questions in a paragraph each:

Question 1.
In what different ways were the boys useful to the narrator?
Answer:
The boys were very useful for the narrator. When the narrator wanted a pack of
American cigarettes or seats for the opera, or the name of good restaurant, they
were always there in all these needs with cheerful competence. They had also
taken the author on a guided tour to the different places of interest at Verona
including Juliet’s tomb.

Question 2.
What do you understand about the boys’ character from their action and
behaviour?
Answer:
They boy’s character and behaviour prove that they were selfless, sentimental,
adventurous, hard working, do not involve others in their troubles, do not
expect sympathy of others, responsible for their sister, sharing work with each
other, never complained of their difficulties, optimistic and suitable for the title
of the lesson “Two Gentlemen of Verona”.
Question 3.
The boys are evasive in disclosing their plan to the narrator in the story because
(a) they thought he could never understand their plight.
(b) they did not want to share their problem with a stranger.
(c) they did not want to gain anybody’s sympathy.
Answer:
(c) they did not want to gain anybody’s sympathy.

III. Answer the following questions :

Question 1.
Do you think that the ending comes as a surprise to you? Why?
Ans.
The hard working of Jacopo and Nicola, would bring doubt to anybody who
observes them. Nobody would think that they work that hard for some serious
purpose at that tender age. Naturally, readers would be surprised by the end of
the story. Even the narrator is surprised and expressed his admiration for the
boys by saluting them in his mind.

Their hard working ways seem like that the boys were greedy, but the inner
truth reveals their grit and never say – die attitude. They were really
extraordinary’ human beings. The burden of responsibility to their sister and her
treatment heavily on their tiny shoulders never made them bend under its
weight or forsake it They were not even sharing their hardships and pain with
others. They were not of the kind to extract sympathy and help from others,
especially strangers. They were truly gentlemen. Their fortitude, sacrifice,
resilience and courage come as a pleasant surprise.

Question 2.
If you had been in the place of the narrator, would you have behaved
differently?
Answer:
Had I been in the place of the narrator. I would have definitely acted in a
different manner. The narrator wanted to respect their personal feelings and
did not intrude upon their privacy I would have felt like helping them in some
way or the other. I would have either asked them directly the reason why they
worked so hard and elicit the answers or I would have financially helped them
with whatever I could spare. Maybe, both the options might have resulted in
hurting their egos, but that is what my heart would have advised me and I
would have done, under the circumstances.

Question 3.
“Appearances are deceptive”. How does the story bring out this idea?
Answer:
The narrator had assumed that the boys were greedy based on his observation
of them working very hard. But nobody can really know or understand the
reality.

The narrator had erred in his judgment of the nature of the boys, by seeing the
extent of their hard work and thinking that they may be planning to save a lot of
money and go to the United States . When he questioned them about their
plans they were not hurt, but answered intelligently evading the issue.

Finally, after the visit to Poleta and knowing the truth, he realised their real
qualities. So, one should not get prejudiced by the outward appearance without
knowing the background facts. This experience of the narrator justifies the
quote “Appearances are deceptive”.

Question 4.
War may destroy one’s home but not one’s heart. Discuss the statement with
reference to the story of the two boys.
Answer:
War is the element of mass destruction and history has plenty of examples of
total annihilation of cities and populations. But, it can only destroy the physical
structures like houses, buildings and of course humans.

It can never crush the spirit of the survivors, as in the case of the boys, Jacopo
and Nicola. They had lost everything in the war including their father and their
house. But, their indomitable spirit toughens them to face the situation bravely,
do their might in the freedom struggle and later take care of their sister’s
treatment by the sheer quantum of their hard work and determination. They
stand out as shining examples for their courage in the face of adversities. War
has lost to them and they have emerged victorious.

Question 5.
Do you think the story is a telling comment on the true character of a
gentleman?
Answer:
The boys were truly ‘gentlemen’, very refined and sensitive in character. They
were devoted to their sister, and in order to earn money for her treatment
undertook all kinds of jobs available in Verona. They sold fruit, shined shoes,
ran errands and hawked newspapers and worked hard throughout the day. This
shows that they did not consider any job below their dignity. Though they were
not born to do such jobs, they leant them and performed them well. Their
eagerness to learn and perform varieties of jobs demonstrates a sacrificing,
loving nature which is ready to go to any extent to secure happiness of the
loved one. They were also selfless because, very earnestly they saved the
money they made to pay for their sister’s treatment but never on clothes or on
themselves. Both of them were proud boys.

They did not discuss their problems with anyone, and very few people knew
about their sister and her hospitalization. Even when the narrator took them to
the hospital, they went in by themselves and did not speak to him about their
sister. They, especially Nicola, did not like to ask for anyone’s help. They display
the real characters which exemplify a true gentleman.

The story begins with Luigi’s implication that the two boys might be thieves
selling fruits that they had stolen. What unfolds later proves how wrong his
suspicion was. The boys prove to be every inch gentlemen, and gain respect
from the narrator. They arouse feelings of love and respect in the nurse at the
hospital too.

DO NOT ASK OF ME, MY LOVE

Do not Ask of Me, My Love Comprehension I.
Question 1.
When does the speaker realize what he thought about love was not
true?
Answer:
The speaker saw the society there are other sorrows and finally
understood that the love is an illusion.
Question 2.
‘That’s the way I imagined it to be’. Suggests.
(a) That the speaker’s concept of love is naive.
(b) The speaker’s realization of realities.
(c) The speaker’s view of love was just a wishful thinking.
Answer:
(b) The speaker’s realization of realities.

Question 3.
‘for there are other sorrows in the world than love,’ here ‘sorrows’
refers to miseries.
(a) Generated by love.
(b) Caused by poverty and deprivation.
(c) Caused by jealousy and envy.
Answer:
(b) Caused by poverty and deprivation

Question 4.
‘You are beautiful still, my love’. Here the speaker is expressing his
(a) Fidelity to his love.
(b) Inability to pay the same undivided attention to his love.
(c) Preoccupations with other issues in life than his love.
Answer:
(a) Fidelity to his love.

Do not Ask of Me, My Love Comprehension II.

Question 1.
What does the line ‘those dark and brutal curses of countless
centuries’ suggest?
Answer:
The line ‘those dark and brutal curses of countless centuries’ suggests
that the colonialism of his country which had been there for more
than 4 centuries. The people who struggled to fulfill their needs were
not showing their love on others because the burden is still on their
shoulders.
The whites killed mercilessly even the women and children. People
went on starvation. They had not enough food. The cruel authority of
the colonial lords killed the innocent people. Those dead bodies
heaped like a mountain. There were numerous diseases like pus
dripping from their festering sores.

Question 2.
What harsh realities of life have drawn the speaker’s attention much
more than the beauty of his beloved?
Answer:
The speaker paid attention to the realities of life rather than the
beauty of his beloved. His own people struggled under the cruel
authorities of the powerful countries. Everywhere dead bodies are
seen. Market places are the places of dead bodies. It created a
cauldron diseases. The speaker’s eyes had seen all the sorrows of the
native people so he had to turn towards them.

Question 3.
What transformation in the perception of love do you see in the
poem?
Answer:
Love transformed his life into a bright and young, blooming man. At
that time that sorrow was much more than any other pain. Her
beauty gave the spring everlasting youth. There was a time he knew
neither love nor sorrow of the people. Later he transformed his love
into the universal love. Loyalty towards the nation made him a true
hero who always shows concern about the people.

Do not Ask of Me, My Love Comprehension III.

Question 1.
At the end of the poem we feel ‘the speaker does not love his beloved
less, but the suffering humanity more’. Do you agree?
Answer:
This statement ‘the speaker does not love his beloved less, but the
suffering humanity more is true. The second half of the poem the
speaker changed his mind towards the social things. The subject of
the country struggled without freedom.
He started his focus on the suffering people who had cruelly been
killed by the oppressed. The speaker advocated the cruel barbaric
attitude of the foreign countries.

Question 2.
Many critics have pointed out in this poem ‘the beloved’ means not
just a lover but country and nationalism. With this observation, does
the poem read differently?
Answer:
The speaker loved his country more than his love. His patriotism has
been spread throughout this poem. He cares for his people who
suffered in the hands of the foreigners. He had given more
importance to sorrows in the world rather than his personal love. He
supposed to a social activist who can feel the situation and find the
solution for it. He wished this country must turn towards freedom and
prosperity as such.

Do not Ask of Me, My Love Additional Question and Answer

I.
Question 1.
Read the word in the column A and try to find out the Antonym given
in the column B.
Match the following:-
A B
1.  bright a.     hate
2.   Pleasure

3.   Sorrow b.    dark c- joy

4.   Love d.    ugly

5.   beautiful e.     dissatisfaction

Answers ;1 – b, 2 – e, 3 – c, 4 – a, 5 – d

II.
Question 1.
What was the life the speaker lived in the past?
Answer:
There was a time when life was bright, and young and blooming, and
her sorrow was much more than any other pain. He did not care
about anything else but his love.
Question 2.
What was vain according to the poet?
Answer:
Her eyes were everything and other thing was vain.

Question 3.
Why is the poet helpless?
Answer:
The poet is helpless because there are other sorrows in the world
than love, and other pleasures too.

Question 4.
You’re beautiful still, my love. This line shows, he
(a) cares for his love still
(b) loves more than his country
(c) gives attention to other sorrows in the world than love.
Answer:
(c) gives attention to other sorrows in the world than love.