Sec/Lit.

/WS/Dec/02

Name: ____________ Subject: English Literature Grade: X

Roll No: _____ Date:

Topic: All Summer in a Day

Extract 1

(i) What are the scientists expected to know? Who are questioning the scientists?

Ans. Scientists are expected to know about the appearance of the Sun on the planet Venus. The children are
questioning the scientists. Since they are 9 years old, they don’t have a clear memory of seeing the Sun.

(ii) The story opens with the question "Ready?" What are the characters getting ready for? Why?

Ans. The characters in the story, i.e., the school children are getting ready for the return of the Sun which
comes roughly every seven years of continuous rain. Most of the children are waiting for a chance to lash
out at Margot, a girl from Earth who remembers the Sun. They distrust both the predictions and Margot's
memory.

(iii) Why do you think the sun is hidden? When is it expected to come out?

Ans. The sun is hidden because it had been raining on the planet 'Venus' continuously for seven whole years,
which has different environmental conditions than Earth. Scientists predict that the sun will appear once
every seven years.

(iv) Why are the children peering out? Why had they not seen it before?

Ans. The children are peering out because they are waiting for the rain to slacken and sunlight to appear.
They had not seen it before, as the sun appears after every seven years, and the last time when the sun had
appeared on Venus these children were only two years old, so they can't recall the appearance of the sun and
its warmth.

(v) Compare the knowledge of the children in the extract about the sun, with that of Margot. Who is correct
and why?

Ans. The children in the extract think that the sun is like a gold or a yellow crayon and its warmth is like a
blushing in the face, in the body, in the arms and legs and trembling hands. But Margot knows that the sun is
round like a penny and its warmth is like a fire in the stoves. Margot is correct in her description of the sun
as she had been on Earth until she was four years old, whereas the other children had been on Venus for
their whole lives.

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Extract 2

(i) What kind of people are there on the Planet Venus?

Ans. The people who are there on the planet Venus have come from the Earth. They have come to Venus to
establish a civilization on this planet. They have journeyed in the rocket that's why they are referred to as
rocket men and women.

(ii) What does the phrase "rocket men and women" indicate?

Ans. The phrase "rocket men and women" indicates that people living on the planet Venus have journeyed
in rockets from Earth to Venus.

(iii) What is referred to as the "raining world"? Why?

Ans. 'Venus' and its environment is referred to as the "raining world." This is so because on Venus, it
continuously rains for seven years, and stops only for two hours, and then starts raining once again. There is
always a noise of thunder, falling of raindrops and gushing of water.

(iv) "It's stopping, It's stopping!" What is stopping? What does it tell us about the lives of the characters?

Ans. "Rain" is referred to as stopping here. It shows that these characters have been living in rain for seven
years. They have been deprived of sunlight. They get to see it for only two hours after every seven years.
Hence, they are eager to see the sun as they have always seen a world with rain.

(v) State how the story is based on science fiction. Give reasons to support your answer.

Ans. Sci-fi is the term that is used for science fiction which is based on imagined future scientific or
technological advancement. ‘All Summer In A Day’ is a story set in future on the planet Venus. The
characters are on Venus to "set up civilisation and live out their lives." There is a constant reference to
scientists and their predictions regarding the sun; the city set in Venus is underground and what is interesting
and fictional in this story is that Venus here is described as being completely opposite to the real Venus
which is very hot.

Extract 3

(i) Who all are nine years old? Why they could not recall the sun?

Ans. Nine years old are the children on Venus. They can not recall the sun because on Venus, the sun
appears once in seven years and the last time when it appeared they were just two years old so they could
not recall it now.

(ii) Who is referred to as ‘she’ in the above extract? How is she different from others?

Ans. Margot, a very frail girl is referred to as ‘she’ in the above extract. She is different from others because
she had come from Earth when she was four years old and seen and witnessed sunlight for a considerably
longer period of time. She can recall the shape, colour, and warmth of the sun.

(iii) Give the meaning of: "the endless shaking down of clear bead necklaces..."

Ans. It refers to the continuous pouring of rain. The raindrops appear like clear bead necklaces.

(iv) Describe the condition on Venus when it rains.

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Ans. It rains for seven continuous years on Venus. The days are filled with a concussion of storms so heavy

that they resembled tidal waves. Many forests have been crushed and regrow there. Rain used to flood all
roofs, gardens, forests and even their dreams.

(v) Whose dream vanish? How? What do they dream about?

Ans. The dreams of the school children about sunlight vanishes. They vanished with the heavy sound of
heavy rain which disturbed them. They dreamt of the golden coin which once shone on them, with which
they could purchase the whole world.

Extract 4

(i) Who should hurry? What will be missed in case she is late?

Ans. The teacher should hurry. In case she is late, the children will miss the phenomenon of the appearance
of the sun in the sky. As per the predictions of the scientists the sun will be out for only two hours.

(ii) What effect does incessant rain have on Margot?

Ans. The incessant rains on the planet had an adverse effect on Margot. It had washed out the blue colour
from her eyes, the yellow from her hair and the red from her mouth. She looked faded, pale and sick. She
was an old photograph dusted from an album, whitened away, and if she spoke at all her voice would be a
ghost.

(iii) Comment on the use of colour imagery in the extract.

Ans. The author uses colour imagery to describe the differences between the planets Earth and Venus. He
also uses it to give a vivid description of the land and the forests of Venus, with relentless rain devoid of
sunlight.

(iv)Explain the phrase: "the loud wet world beyond the huge glass."

Ans. The planet Venus with its booming thunder and torrential downpour which lay beyond the glass panels
of the underground city.

(v) Give an example of a metaphor from the extract. Explain the implied comparison in its use.

Ans. One example of a metaphor is "she was an old photograph dusted from an album." This refers to
Margot's pale-looking appearance. Margot, who once looked cheerful on Earth, has lost her charm on
Venus.

Extract 5

(i) What does Margot remember and others do not? Why?

Ans. Margot remembers the appearance of the Sun and others do not. Margot has seen and experienced the
sun. The other children were born on Venus and the last time they saw the sun, they were only two years old
so they do not remember it.

(ii) List different ways in which Margot describes the sun.

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Ans. Margot described the sun as a flower in her poem, a flower which blooms only for one hour. She also
describes the sun as a round penny, burning bright and yellow colour. She says that the sun is warm as fire
in the stove.

(iii) In What ways Margot was different from the other children in her class?

Ans. Margot was totally different from her classmates. As she belonged to the Earth she saw and
remembered the appearance of the sun and she was smarter than her classmates. She defined the sun
correctly like a sunflower, as a penny and its heat like fire in a stove. She could write a poem on it.

(iv) Why do you think Margot refused to take shower in the school one day?

Ans. The shower only serves to remind Margot of the endless rain, which she is thoroughly tired of. She
wants to be dry, not wet, basking in the sun, not under the tyranny of a constant downpour, and so rebels
against the shower. To her, the shower symbolizes the constant rain she hates.

(v) Why do the children say that Margot is lying? What does it tell about them?

Ans. Margot had the knowledge of Earth, a place where sun shines regularly, whereas these children did not
remember ever seeing the sun. They could not accept the fact that Margot had the experience of living under
the sun. So they were jealous of her. The children were jealous and cruel because they were unable to accept
Margot. This is because of their tendency of being intolerant towards anybody who is different from them.

Extract 6

(i) Which incident emphasises that Margot is different from the other children?

Ans. One day Margot refused to take shower in the school shower room. She clutched her ears and her head
in her hands and cried that water must not touch her hair. This incident made the other children realise that
Margot was different from the other children.

(ii) Why is it vital for Margot to go back to the Earth? What is seen as a hindrance to this proposal?

Ans. It is vital for Margot to go back to the Earth because she feels unfit in the atmosphere of Venus. She
does not like this rainy world. She wants to enjoy the beauty and warmth of the sun every day on the earth.

(iii) The children hate Margot for several reasons. List any three of them.

Ans. The children sensed that Margot was different from them. She hated the continuous rain while they
were used to it. She spoke only about the sun and they had no memory of it. They hated her pale snow face.
She spoke only about the sun and they had no memory of it. They hated her pale snow face, her waiting
silence, her thinness, and her possible future of going back to the Earth.

(iv) How does William, along with other children, behave with Margot out of hatred and jealousy?

Ans. William, along with other children, bullied her, pushed her and ran away. They spoke rudely to her and
laughed at her. He even tricked Margot by saying the prediction of the scientists were fake. The other
children became the partner of William in this crime and locked Margot in the closet.

(v) How does Margot react to the children locking her in the closet? Why does she react this way? How does
this story deal with the theme of bullying?

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Ans. When the children were locking her in the closet, Margot protested and pleaded. When they did not pay
any heed, she started to cry but they locked her. She was knocking on the door and was crying. She reacts in
such a way because she was tired of Venus’ raining atmosphere, and wanted to experience the appearance of
the sun once again. The theme of bullying is explored in the story through the behaviour of the students
living on the Planet Venus towards Margot. Children generally tend to become mean and insensitive when
they are confronted with someone different from themselves. It causes jealousy in them and they resort to
bullying to give vent to their feelings.

Extract 7

(i) What caused silence on the Planet Venus? Why was it immense and unbelievable?

Ans. When the rains finally stopped, it caused complete silence on the planet, Venus. It was immense and
unbelievable because for the last seven years it has been raining over there, as a result, it was a world full of
all sorts of noises.

(ii) Give the meaning and significance of the following line:

"The door slid back and the smell of the silent, waiting world came into them."

Ans. As the sun appeared, the door of the classroom got opened and the air of the outside world was
experienced by the children. It signifies their stay in the underground city where they could not experience
such kind of atmosphere.

(iii) How does the author describe nature, the sky, and the jungle when the sun came out?

Ans. When the sun came out it was the colour of flaming bronze and it was very large. The sky around it
was a blazing blue tile colour and the jungle burned with sunlight as the children, released from their spell,
rushed out yelling into the spring time.

(iv) Give a detailed description of children's activities as soon as the sun came out.

Ans. As soon as the sun came out, children rushed out. They turned their faces up to the sky to feel the sun
on their cheeks like a warm iron. They were taking off their jackets and letting the sun burn their arms. They
ran among the trees and played hide and seek and enjoyed themselves in a sea of silence.

(v) Where was Margot when the sun came out? Why was she there? There were many physical and
psychological changes in Margot due to the absence of sunlight. Discuss any two of them.

Ans. When the sun came out, Margot was in a closet in a room. She was there because her classmate had
locked her up. Due to the absence of sunlight, Margot looked like a dusted photograph in an old album; she
was physically very frail. She also remains sad and failed to get along with children of her age on the planet
Venus, and wanted to go back to the Earth.

Extract 8

(i)Where were the children? Why do you think the girl wailed?

Ans. The children were outside in the great jungle that covered Venus. As the girl saw a raindrop on her
palm, she knew it was going to rain for the next seven years and the sun was going to vanish. So she wailed.

(ii) What did the girl show to the others? What made her tremble?

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Ans. She showed the other children a big drop of rain in the cup of her hand. She understood that the sun
would now disappear and once again there would be rain, darkness and a deafening noise for seven years,
and this thought made her tremble.

(iii) Describe the change in the weather after the incident.

Ans. After the incident, the sun faded behind a stir of mist. A wind blew cold around them. A boom of
thunder startled them. The lightning struck and the sky darkened into midnight in a flash.

(iv) How did the children feel when it rained? What did they remember then?

Ans. The children glanced out at the world that was raining now and raining and raining steadily. They
could not meet each other's glances. They became sad. The smiles vanished from their faces. Their faces
were solemn and pale. They looked at their hands and feet, their faces down because they were guilty of
hurting Margot by not letting her see the Sun and locked her in the closet.

(v) The children by the end "could not meet each other's glances." Why? Has seeing the sun changed the
children in any way? How?

Ans. After the children see the sun, they “could not meet each other's glances”, when they think about what
they had done to Margot. Seeing the sun changed the children greatly in a variety of ways. It changed them
because they found out that Margot was completely right about the sun all along. Also, they learned that
they were the ones who were wrong and became more understanding. The children sympathize and
understand Margot better after seeing the sun.

They feel guilty and ashamed of themselves for having deprived Margot of the two hours of summer, the
only glimmer of hope in the dark and dingy world on Venus.

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