Class XI Compulsory English

Magic of the Words (35)

 A collection of the summaries.

 The Recurring Dream

 A young unmarried girl of twenty five years named Kimberly Clark got bothered a lot due to a strange dream that occurred frequently. She lived in London and worked there in a company but she seemed worried and upset because of the mysterious dream. The dream was mysterious because it was always about unknown man and place which she had never seen in the real life. In the dream she always saw a lane with white fence and a hedge. At the end of the lane she saw a small white cottage with green shutter. She walked towards the house and entered into it. She found a little man with white beard and hair sleeping in one of the rooms. As she started talking with the man in the dream she woke up in her own compartment in London One day her roommate, Janet wanted to take her to his parent’s farm for few days so that she could forget the troublesome dream. As they left the sound and sight of the city in a car, Kim saw a lane with white fence and hedge on each side. The lane led to the top of the mountain as in her dream. She found a small white house with green shutter. There was written For Sale on the door of the house which she had never seen in the dream. She went close to the house and knocked the door. An old man with white beard and hair opened the door and immediately closed it. He said that the house was haunted by ghost and it was Kim herself to haunt as a ghost. He was so scared that he did not get out of the house.

 Answer the following questions.
1. What do you think is the reason some people have recurring dreams? Ans. If people think upon the same thing frequently, it may go into the deeper level of the brain and set there as if it can’t be removed from there. In the story Kim thinks upon the old man and the cottage so much that she has the dream of the same man and cottage. If she does not care about the things that she sees in the dream, she may not have the same dream frequently. So we may say that people have recurring dream if they think upon any particular thing frequently.

 2. Why does Janet want to take Kim to her parents’ farm for few days? Ans. Janet wants to take Kim to her parents’ farm for few days so that Kim can forget the mysterious and troublesome dream; and she can feel pleasant seeing the beautiful view of the country farm.

3. Why does the little old man close the door when he sees Kim? Ans. The old man closes the door when he sees Kim because he found the same girl in front of his eyes who used to bother him in the dream. Then he closes the door thinking that she is ghost.

 4. Write about your dream that you have seen recently.
Ans. Last Saturday I saw an amazing dream. It was about 12 when I slept. In the dream I went to 20000 Lake with my friend Binod Lamsal by bicycle. We got to the lake and enjoyed seeing the beautiful views. We had got a camera too. We took the photographs of every beautiful thing. We were moving through the thick forest around the lake so that we could take the photographs of wild animals. Suddenly we happened to encounter with a rhino. Our heart pounded with fear. Then we fled away not looking at back. My friend climbed up a tree. But I couldn’t run faster nor could I climb up the tree. There was a meter of distance between me and the rhino. I thought I would be killed. Then I woke up in my bed sweating feeling tired.

 5 Why do you think the cottage is for sale?
 Ans. I think the old man is also bothered a lot due to the strange dream of every night. To get rid of the dream he wants to sell the house. The Lost Doll Maria del Carmen was only one bright, kind, and loving child of Roberto and Rosa. She was called Carmen lovingly. She became sick from the day of her birth. When she was four, she died. Her death made everybody sad in the village. After her funeral procession, Rosa gave all her clothes and playing things to the priest of another village. But she did not find the little doll of Carmen so she couldn’t give it to the priest. In fact she did not want to keep all the things of Carmen because she was unable to give birth to another child. Though the doctor said they couldn’t have another child, Roberto believed in god that he would give them a child. One day they had a child like the previous child, Carmen. If there was any difference between them it was the difference of health. She was healthy. Her name was given as Evangelina meaning good news. Evangelina grew day by day and looked like Carmen. It seemed that it was the rebirth of Carmen being healthier as Evangelina. One day when Evangelina was four, she said that she was sick a long time ago. But her mother said that she was not sick. She insisted that she had been sick once but now she was well. She remembered the doll and told her aunt and mother that she had buried it under a big tree in the yard before she was taken by an unknown man. She added that when she was sleeping being weak, a priest came to her and prayed for her health, then after she was taken away holding her hand by a real nice man. Both Rosa and her sister heard all the things and got astonished.

Answer the following questions.
1. How were Carmen and Evangelina alike? Ans. It seemed that Evangelina was the rebirth of Carmen. Every activities and manners of Carmen could be seen in Evangelina. In fact there was no difference between them except the health condition. Carmen was sick but Evangelina was healthy.

 2. Why, do you think, Rosa gave Carmen’s things to someone from another village? Ans. I think Rosa gave Carmen’s things to someone from another village because she did not want to hurt her heart seeing the things over and again in her village. If she had got hope to give birth to another child, she would not have given them to other. In fact she had given all the child things as she could not be pregnant again. 3. Why did Roberto want to save Carmen’s things? Ans. Roberto wanted to save Carmen’s things because he would rather believe in god than in doctor. He hoped Rosa would be pregnant again and give birth to another child. So he wanted to keep the things of Carmen for another child.

 4. Do you think Evangelina was a good name for the new baby? Explain.
 Ans. As the meaning of Evangelina is good news, it was the good name for the baby because she came in the gloomy house of Rosa and Roberto with the good news of happiness and peace.

 5. Why, do you think, almost everyone in the village attended Carmen’s funeral? Ans. Almost everyone in the village attended Carmen’s funeral because she was one of the bright, loving and kind children in the village. The House Call Dr Emil Braun, who was famous as German surgeon, was sitting in his dinning room. He was alone and tired of the surgical operations of the day. As he was trying to write something on the table, the door bell was rung. It was a small girl of six or seven to ring the bell because her mother was seriously ill. The kind hearted doctor followed the small girl for the treatment of her mother though his wife suggested him to go in the morning. The girl was already a bit away form the doctor home’s so he tried to meet her and talk about the sickness of her mother. But he could not get to her because she was a bit faster than him. Finally she entered into an old tenement house. The doctor also followed her till he was at the end of the dark hallway. She showed the doctor her mother lying in the only bed in the small room. Then the door was closed and she was out of the sight. He recognized her because she used to work with him as a nurse in the same hospital. Her name was Elda. The doctor diagnosed that she was suffering from pneumonia and gave some medicines. As she said that she came to live in Berlin after her little child died, he was surprised. She added that it was three months she passed away. She showed him her shoes and shawl which were kept for her remembrance. He looked the shoes and shawl closely. They were wet; so he came to know that she was the dead little child who had gone to him to call in for the treatment of her mother. Then the doctor came back home thinking he was called by the spirit of the dead child.

 Answer the following questions
 1. What did the mother keep to remind her of her daughter?
Ans. The mother kept her shoes and shawl to remind her of her daughter. 2. Why did the little girl come to the doctor’s home? Ans. The little girl came to the doctor’s home to call him for the treatment of her mother. 3. Why do you think the little girl walked ahead of the doctor instead of walking with him? Ans. In fact the girl was dead three months ago and it was the spirit of the girl to walk ahead of the doctor. She never walked with him so that he could not find that it was the ghost (spirit) of the dead girl. 4. Write about an experience (yours or someone else’s) with someone who appeared after death. Ans. Though I do not have such experience, I have heard people talking about such experiences. Once my grandfather said that he saw his first wife appeared as a ghost in the kitchen after it was one years of her death. He also added that when he opened his mouth to talk with her she became out of sight.
 5. Write a paragraph explaining why you do or do not believe that people sometimes appear after death, like in this story.
Ans. I do not believe that people appear after death because there is no scientific proof behind it. It is all imaginary to think that the spirit of dead person goes to heaven or hell and comes sometimes on earth. Nobody been to heaven or hell has come back on earth. I think it is a kind of illusion to believe the appearance of people after their death. Fear Armando Gonzalez went to a large bank in Mexico to withdraw his 50,000 pesos. He kept all the money in his front pocket. He was so afraid of the people that he thought everybody stared at his pocket where he had kept the money. When his hat accidentally went backward, everybody noticed him twice. When a heavy man stared at him, he was almost unconscious. Even he forgot where he was. His heart was beating faster. His whole body was sweating. Fifty thousand pesos was really a great amount for him because it had taken twenty years for him and his wife, Eva to collect by running a small shoe shop. He wanted to buy a small beautiful house for his family with the money. The couple wanted to live happily in the house of theirs own. But he thought the money in his pocket would be robbed and his dream would not be fulfilled. When he was about to get into a bus he saw the heavy man again. He took the first seat behind the driver and the heavy man took the last seat. He thought he would be shot and robbed the money. He found everybody looking at him in the bus too. Then he began to make plan to get rid of the heavy man. When he looked at him, he saw three teenage boys talking with him. Armando suspected that they were his helpers. Then he got off the bus thinking he was the only one to get off. But the three boys also got off at the same time. Now there was nothing except the fear in his mind. They also followed him. He ran away and cried for the help. While running, his pants and shirt were torn. His arms and legs were cut. He fell to the ground as his feet tripped over some tangled wire. Meanwhile the three boys came there and intended to help him. He realized that they were not the robbers. In fact they were football players going to take part in the football tournament. All four of them walked together to the street. Now Armando straitened his hat in the right place. Answer the following questions. 1. What did Armando think was the reason they looked at him? Ans. Armando thought that because of the money he had kept in his front pocket everybody looked at him in the bank. 2. Why did Armando have the idea that everyone in the bank was watching him? What was the truth? Ans. He guessed everybody was looking at him in the bank due to the great amount of the money that he had kept in his front pocket but it was not the reality. Everybody was watching him because he was knowingly putting on the hat backward. 3. Do you think we sometimes make things worse rather than better when we get nervous? Explain. Ans. Definitely we sometimes make things worse rather than better when we get nervous. For example, in the exam hall when we become nervous we can’t solve the problem that we have done confidently at home. As we get out of exam hall all the problems seem easier. Similarly we can’t express the things in the class room even if we know well unless we have self confidence. 4. Write a paragraph about what a person can do to bring nervous tension under control. Ans. A person can bring nervous tension under control in various ways. For example one can think about the causes of tensions and try to seek the peaceful solution of them. Most important of all he or she should not lose heart even in the troublesome circumstance. It is good idea to have patience for the solution of any kind of problems. One should not forget that tension grows tension. The Loving mother Shoji Sakota was a pharmacist in the city of Sapporo in northern Japan. His wife was dead years ago He lived alone in a small apartment and worked in a pharmacy. One day when he was preparing the annual business report at night, somebody knocked on the door. Though he did not care at first, finally he went to see who was knocking the door. He saw a woman through the window that seemed to be quite nervous. He did not open the door at once thinking it might have been her trick to rob him. As he learnt that she came there for the sake of her baby, he let her enter in to the room. She looked a bit stranger as if she came from another world. She asked a kind of medicine (ame on a stick) for her baby. He gave medicine and she went out. Then he continued his work. But he could not complete the work because of the strange image of the visitor in his mind. Quite astonishing of all was that she came to ask the medicine at midnight for the next two nights. But she did not come at daytime. Actually he was unable to study about her appearance. He asked his photographer friend to take her photos. He took a lot of photos but there were merely the things of the room except the woman. Then both of them decided to follow her if she came again. She came next night too. As she went out of the room they followed her until she entered in to a dark, narrow hallway. They switched on the light. They saw an eight or nine months old baby that was licking the ame on the stick. The woman seemed to have already slept. They suspected she could not sleep so quickly; or she was just pretending of being asleep. They felt her body and came to know that she was dead for a number of days. Answer the following questions. 1. Do you think something like this could really happen? Explain. Ans. I don’t think the dead people gain the life again and complete their responsibility as the dead woman does in the story. In the story the woman goes every night to the pharmacist to ask for an ame on a stick for her living child though it has already been few days of her death. She tries to give life to her born baby even after her death which can’t experienced in the real life. 2. If you had been Mr. Sakota, do you think you would have been afraid to let this woman in at midnight? Ans. If I had been Mr. Sakota I would have been afraid to let this woman in at midnight. I would be afraid of her strange skin and eyes; however, I would give her the ame on a stick through the window. I would not forget to ask her to come at daytime rather than at midnight. 3. Why did Mr. Sakota want the pictures taken? Ans. He wanted to get his friend to take the photograph of the woman so that he could study her appearance minutely. And he was so afraid in front of the woman that he could not dare to ask anything so he wanted to learn about her by taking photograph. 5. Suppose you are Mr. Sakota. Write an entry in your diary for the night when the woman appeared. April 29,2008 Ans. Yesterday while I was preparing the annual business report I heard a knock on the door but I didn’t care about it at first. When I heard frequently I opened the door. A woman who looked abnormal entered the room. She asked an ame on the stick for her baby which made me amazed. She came at midnight not at daytime for the ame. I was so afraid of her that I didn’t dare to ask where she was from and why she did not come at daytime. So I asked one of my friends to take some photographs of her so that I could study her deeply. But strange of all was that she was not appeared in the photograph. Then we came to know that she was one who was already dead. She came to me just for the ame so that her living child could live. My Heart Leaps up When I Behold Q1 Write a short summary of the poem. When the poet sees the rainbow in the sky he becomes so happy that his heats leaps up with joy. He remembered when he used to play with the beauty of nature in childhood. But now he is a man. He can’t enjoy with the nature as he used to in the past. One day he will not be in this world but the beauty of nature never fades. It is still same and will be the same in future too as it was before. In the same way he wishes his days of past, present, and future would be ever green by the grace of natural piety (holiness). Q2. Explain the paradox, “Child is the father of Man”. In the poem, My heart leaps up when I behold William Wordsworth wants to get back to the world of childhood because it is the most pleasant and wonderful period of life span. He thinks the childhood is always more pleasant and greater in various angles. He tries to prove that a child is the father of man. In fact, a child born yesterday (past) becomes a man today (present) and will be an old man tomorrow. The past determines one’s present and future status so past is significant. Moreover one has to be a child before being a man and an old man so he says a child is the father of man. Poplar Field Q1. Write the summary of the poem. The poet, W. Cowper, does not see the poplar trees on the bank of the river Ouse. He does not feel the wind playing and singing in the leaves of poplars. The beautiful image of the poplars is not reflected on the river Ouse. It has been twelve years since they were cut down. Now he has nothing except the reminiscence (nostalgia) of the poplar field. Even the blackbirds are not there who used to sing for the poet. The poet says that he will lie like the poplar trees under the ground. He thinks another grove (tree) will grow over his dead body. He feels pain seeing the destruction of the human pleasures along with the destruction of the trees. He regrets because the life is shorter and the pleasure of life is much shorter due to the destruction of the trees. Q2. Write how the poet links up the idea of the cut down poplars with the end of human life and pleasure. Definitely there is a kind of unalienable relationship between the trees and human life. Human life without trees can’t be imagined. The trees protect human life from landslide, soil erosion, rain, sun and environmental pollution. Trees are the shelters for not only human beings but also for the other creatures of the world. Worst of all if they are cut down indiscriminately, the environment will not be worth living. In this way the cut down of the trees results in the destruction of human life and pleasure. If we don’t have the ever green trees, our every wish and desire will remain incomplete. In the given poem the poet remembers the beautiful and ever green poplar field which is no longer there. He thinks due to destruction of the poplar field, the wind does not blow, neither do birds sing nor the river Ouse has the reflection of its. He concludes that human life has been devastated along with many things with the destruction of poplar fields. Keeping Things Whole -By Mark Strand Q1. How does the poet view himself in the field, in the air, and in the backdrop?( Or interpret the poem as you like.) The poet believes that every living and non-living things in the universe are playing their role to make the things whole. They are in fragment individually but move to complete the system of the universe. Whether they are living or non- living things they always intend to seek the wholeness out of nothingness. Nothing is whole itself. Every thing needs to play its role with other to keep the things whole. For example the poet can’t be imagined standing in the field if there isn’t field. He feels himself absent in the field. When he moves parting the air, the space he made is reoccupied by the air. Thus the air also plays its role to keep the things whole. In the same way he interacts in the backdrop to give the wholeness out of nothingness. On the Vanity of Earthly Greatness By –Arthur Guiterman Q1. Summarize the poem in one paragraph. The poem has got ironical tone. It has been tried to prove that the vanity of earthly greatness is worthless. It is transient which will one day wither. For instance, the tusks of mastodons (large extinct mammals like the elephant) are billiard balls now which were used as dangerous weapons in the battle. Similarly the sword of king Charlemagne the Just is rusted now which used to have great honor. The powerful grizzly bear is nothing more than rug (blanket) now with which people used to be afraid once. Roman statesman and general Great Caesar’s only statue is there which makes the poet sad in the sense that all the Earthly greatness will not remain any longer. Concrete Cat By Dorthi Charies Q1.Interprete the poem as you like. The poem is an example of concrete poem. In the poem physical reality of the object (cat) is portrayed with help of few words rather than the powerful expression of feeling and emotion. In fact the way of presenting the things as they look is the perfect art. Here the cat is pictured for our eyes that create a kind of concreteness about the cat in our mind. The ears, eyes, mouth, whiskers, stomach, legs and tail are displayed in a funny way for our eyes. Our eyes see the poem and make a picture of cat in the mind. The appearance of the object is displayed as it is in the reality so we can regard such poem as a true art. Malini By Rabindranath Tagore Characters of the play Malini: Princess of the palace, follower of new creed (Buddhism) King and queen: father and mother of Malini, follower of Hinduism. Kemankar: one of the Brahmins who strongly opposed the new creed that Malini has followed. Supriya: another Brahmin friend of Kemankar, lover of Malini Brahmins: rebels against the Malini and her new creed. Q1 Write the summary of the play in a couple of paragraph. Malini is an uncommon young girl and princess in the palace. She is a follower of new creed, the Buddhism in the palace of Brahmins. She is pious, virtuous and righteous on the path of truth. But there are lots of hindrances on the way. They are Brahmins of the country. They demand her banishment from the palace. The king and queen try to convince her not to follow the new creed. But she stands firmly in her belief. Then all the Brahmins gather so as to drive her form the palace. Among them Kemankar is the chief to demand her banishment. His intimate friend Supriya does not want to see her banishment form the palace. So he is supposed to be treacherous in the name of friend. Then Malini wants her own banishment. She likes to live the sorrowful life with the common people. Some of the Brahmins including Supriya get fascinated at the ideas of Malini. They want to keep her in their heart. In fact Supriya loves her very much. But Kemankar is still against her new creed. Then he brings armies from another country to fight with armies of the king. He asks Supriya to help him in his plan. But he does not do so. Rather he informs the king all about his plan to defeat the king. As a result his armies are badly defeated by the armies by the king. He is arrested and going to be killed for his treason. But Supriaya requests the king not to kill him. When he is brought out of the custody, he kills his friend Supiaya with the chain that has tied his both hands. King becomes so angry that he brings a sword to cut him off. But Malili asks the king to forgive him. Q2 How Malini is the story of love and hatred? Malini is the story of love and hatred. Though the love and hatred emerged through the heart, it is supposed that love is pure, bright, and compassionate but hatred is impure, dark and unkind. The heart of Malini is full of love; therefore, she sees love everywhere. She requests the king not to kill Kemankar; however, he is the murderer of Supriaya and the betrayer of the king. On the other hand we can see hatred and selfishness in the heart of Kemankar. He wants to banish Malini. He does not want to see the influence of the new creed in the country. Supriaya is influenced of Malini so he is ready to betray his intimate friend, Kemankar for her love. Likewise king and prince want to banish her so as to protect the throne. They have hatred against others because they have a kind of greed. Thus Malini is a play of love and hatred. Q3 Write the character sketch of Malini. Malini is the main character of the play "Malini". She is a follower of the Buddhism in the kingdom of Hindus. Look at a Tea Cup By Patricia Hampl Q1 How does the writer in the essay ‘Look at the Tea Cup’, show the relationship among falling flowers and teacups, falling bodies and beds, and the falling of bombs onto women and falling countries? Also write Patricia Hampl’s view on marriage. The symbolic meaning of the things described in the essay: -1939 A.D. refers to the beginning of the Second World War. -The Tea Cup refers to the art - Falling flowers refer to the fall of culture. - Falling bodies refer to the dying people. -Beds refer to the battle field -Falling bombs refer to the fall of woman’s fate -Falling countries refer to the decline of humanity, fraternity, brotherhood, peace, prosperity and future. In 1939 Hampl’s mother married. In the same year her mother bought teacups that were fine and artistic. Later they were given to her as a gift which reminds her many things occurred in the Second World War and the consequences it brought. In fact the tea cup is a complete source of information to tell the events and consequences of the Second World War. The tea cup refers to the art of the contemporary society whereas the falling flowers symbolize the decline of then art and culture. In the year many people got married but they were deprived of warm beds. Instead there was a pile of dead bodies in the battle field. The falling bombs on women brought a question on the importance of family. Most of the people particularly women preferred to remain unmarried. They felt unsecured and frightened. The family life was under the canopy of black clouds of gun smoke and bombs. Likewise the falling bombs on the countries resulted in the degradation of humanity, fraternity, brotherhood, peace, and prosperity in those countries which involved in the war. Q2. In what significant ways are the mother and the daughter different from each other in “Look at a Teacup?” We can find the mother is different form her daughter in attitude to see the marriage and family life. Mother wants to enjoy the family life. She likes to live happily with husband and children even the bombs falls upon her head. She collects and buys many things for the future. But the daughter is quite against the marriage. She wants to remain unmarried because the future is dark. She feels the family life is a kind of unnecessary burden. She wants to get rid of such things. The Gardener By Rudyard Kipling Q1 Write the summary of the story ‘the gardener’. Miss Helen Turrel brought up her brother’s (George Turrel) son. His name was Michael. He resembled his dead father. He was taken to her Hampshire home so that he could be away from the connection of mother’s family. In fact his mother’s family was scandalous. When he was six, he asked Helen why he could not call her mummy. Then she suggested him to call her mummy only at bed time. Later he came to know the secrecy that he was born to unmarried parents and became angry with her as she did not tell him before. In fact Helen loved him very much though she was not fond of children. He also loved her as she did. Michael joined a battalion in the army. Helen got socked but he consoled her not to worry about him. It was the time of First World War. He was sent to defend the coast. Then he was sent to France. He sent a farewell telegram to Helen. Unfortunately he was killed there as a bomb fell upon him. Nobody knew where his dead body was lost. She got an official telegram in which it was mentioned that Michael was missing. She was shocked. She tried to search him but could not find him. Then she concluded that he was dead. Meanwhile she got another official letter in which it was said that Michael dead body was found; and it was buried in Hagenzeele Third Military Cemetery. In the letter the grave row and number were both mentioned. She got information about getting to the cemetery. Then she set out. When she was in a hotel, she met an English woman named Scarsworth who had visited the cemetery for eight times. She used to go to cemetery though she had not lost anybody. She liked to take the photographs of other’s graves. She also collected lots of information about the graves. Finally she revealed the reality for the first time to Helen that she was in search of her own whom she used to love before he died. She also said that it was her ninth visit to the cemetery. Next day they went to Hagenzeele Third Military Cemetery to search their own. Helen felt she was welcomed by the twenty one thousand graves. She saw the white graves. She guessed one out of many where she could not to see. At that time a gardener helped her find the grave of her nephew as if he knew her well. Q1 What is the real relation between Helen and Michael? In fact Michael is born to unmarried parents, George Turrel and a daughter of a retired non- commissioned army officer. After the death of his father he is brought up by her aunt, Helen. He does not see his parents. So Helen takes the responsibility of father and mother over Michael, however, she is his father’s sister. Actually the relation between them is of aunt and nephew but they seem to be mother and son in the outer world. Helen wants Michael call her mummy at bed time which proves that she wants to establish a relation of mother and son. Q2 How do you know who the gardener really is? I think the gardener is the spirit of Michael’s father who was dead falling off the horse before he was born. The spirit knows well that Helen loves Michael very much. She wants to call him son and he also regards her mother. When she gets the news of his death, she is terribly shocked. And it is her strong desire to see the grave of Michael. I think the spirit of George Turrel knows all the things well. So he comes at the gate to guide her up to the grave of Michael so that he can fulfill her desire. A Worn Path By Eudora Welty An old woman named Phoenix Jackson sets out for a hospital of Natchez in order to get some medicines for the sore throat of her grandson. She is old, small and courageous. She makes her way through the thick pinewoods with the help of cane. She moves forward even in the obstacle of wild animals and thorny plants. She climbs up the hill and walks down. She crosses the wooden bridge carefully. Then she comes to wire fence and enters in the cotton field by crawling safely. She walks along the field of the dead corn where she sees a scarecrow and thinks it is the ghost. When she reaches near it, she recognizes it. She comes to a motor road. She feels a bit easier to walk now. As she goes down the road she encounters with a black dog. She is knocked by the dog and falls down. She can’t get up from the ditch. Meanwhile a white man comes and helps her stand up. From the pocket of the man a nickle falls down on the ground. She keeps it happily. She does not give it to the man. The white man asks her to get back home because the town is far away from there. But she remains firm in her decision to move forward. She reaches the town. People in the town are busy celebrating Christmas. She heads towards her last destination the hospital. As she sees the document nailed on the wall of the hospital, she becomes sure that she is in the doctor’s office. The first nurse asks what’s wrong with her. She does not say anything. Then another nurse comes there. She knows Phoenix very well. She asks the condition of her grandson. Phoenix replies that it is same. She gives some soothing medicine for her grandson’s sore throat. She gives her a nickle too. Then she has got two nickles. Now she buys a doll (windmill) for her grandson so that he will be happy.

 Q1 What is the meaning of the episode in which Phoenix steals the nickle? Does the act offend our sense of honesty? Explain your answerer.

 She steals the nickle that has fallen on the ground from the pocket of the white man. She keeps it in her pocket secretly instead of giving it to the man. In my opinion she does so not for her sake but for her grandson. Actually she is living for her grandson and she loves him very much. Here she can’t feel that she steals the nickle because of extreme feeling of love towards him. Thus I do not think she has done serious mistake. Whatever she has done is right. Long Questions. 1. What do you think is the reason some people have recurring dreams? Ans. If people think upon the same thing frequently, it may go into the deeper level of the brain and set there as if it can’t be removed from there. In the story Kim thinks upon the old man and the cottage so much that she has the dream of the same man and cottage. If she does not care about the things that she sees in the dream, she may not have the same dream frequently. So we may say that people have recurring dream if they think upon any particular thing frequently 4. Write about your dream that you have seen recently. Ans. Last Saturday I saw an amazing dream. It was about 12 when I slept. In the dream I went to 20000 Lake with my friend Binod Lamsal by bicycle. We got to the lake and enjoyed seeing the beautiful views. We had got a camera too. We took the photographs of every beautiful thing. We were moving through the thick forest around the lake so that we could take the photographs of wild animals. Suddenly we happened to encounter with a rhino. Our heart pounded with fear. Then we fled away not looking at back. My friend climbed up a tree. But I couldn’t run faster nor could I climb up the tree. There was a meter of distance between me and the rhino. I thought I would be killed. Then I woke up in my bed sweating feeling tired. 1. Why does Phoenix keep talking to herself? What do her monologues add to the total portrait of her? Ans. On the way to the hospital of Natchez, Phoenix comes across with many obstacles such as wild animals, narrow wooden bridge, thorny plants and fence of wire. She moves ahead despite such obstacles and her loneliness. She talks to herself so that she does not feel loneliness on the way. Her journey is full of troubles and obstacles. She needs much courage and confidence to move ahead. She keeps talking to herself so that she can gain courage and confidence to complete her journey. Another reason of her talking to herself can be her old age because old people keep on talking to themselves when they are alone. The talking that she makes to herself portraits that she is confident and firm in her decision. She is fearless because she is not afraid of anything and anyone on the way. She does not hesitate even if she has got a pile of sufferings and obstacles 1. Write the writer’s attitude to plural children and a single child. Ans. In the essay “Speaking of Children” the essayist Barbara Holland talks about the disadvantages of having more than one child. She says that more than one child is unnecessary burden. They make the things out of order at home. They do not let the parents talk in privacy. In her point of view, husband and wife should talk at least half an hour in private room so that they can make better plan about running the family but they are often disturbed by them. Plural children outnumber the parents .They are uncontrollable. The parents can’t fulfill the demands of plural children. They can’t enjoy holidays in an expensive and nice place. Similarly they can’t send the children to an expensive and better school. In a word, more than one child is a cause of quarrel in a family. In the same way she has presented some advantages of having single child. Only one child is an extra thing for parents. They can take it wherever they want. They can make it whatever they want it to be. So, single child does not become burden for the parents. They can enjoy with it. They can get enough time to talk about their private life so that they can make better future plan to run the family. The demand of a child is not big enough for parents to fulfill. They can satisfy the child in everyway. The satisfied child can progress in his life. They are also happy at the satisfaction of their child. Thus, having a single child has much more advantages than having more children. 2. Discuss “The Three Day Blow” as a dramatic story. Ans. To be a play, a story must have the dramatic qualities such as characters and their direct speech dialogues, scenes and acts. A play is written to be acted on a stage. Here the story “The Three Day Blow” is not written to be acted; however, it has some dramatic qualities. It has got two characters Bill and Nick who are talking about many things in the story. There are seven scenes in the story. As in a play, the events are developed through preliminary action, climax and resolution. Nick goes to Bill’s so that he can get rid of the agony which he has got when he was separated from his beloved. His world of dream is scattered. He drinks so much that he can forget everything. He feels his plan and dream with his beloved fly away as the leave of a tree is blown by the wind. He is disheartened. But Bill consoles him to live happily because he is free from the marital trap and burden. Then he comes to the reality and try to understand the life. He wants to forget every pain and suffering that he has been undergoing. By the time the wind stops blowing outside, he feels relief. Then both get out from home for hunting. 3. According to the author, the fuel crisis of 1997 will have too many disadvantages and few advantages. What are they?( “The Nightmare Life Without Fuel”) Ans: The author, Asimov has imagined the U.S.A. of 1997 and guessed that there will be the crisis of fuel which can bring too many disadvantages and few advantages. He has warned the people that due the mismanaged use of the natural resources, the fuel is not only decreasing but also going to empty from the earth. The crisis of fuel will bring too many problems. Since there is the scarcity of petrol or diesel there won’t be any cars and buses. As a result, people can’t get to their work on right time. They can’t transport the goods form one place to another place. The fuel crisis will be a great problem in digging up the coal, too. If there is not coal, all the machines that run with coal will not work. There will be direct effect of fuel crisis on agriculture because all the modern farming tools like tractors and threshers do not run without fuel. The fuel crisis is a main factor to cause scarcity in hydroelectricity. As there will be the scarcity of electricity, T V, air conditioner, movies, production of books will be badly affected. The author has also presented some advantages of fuel crisis in an ironical way. As there is not means of transportation like bus, car, train etc, there won’t be pollution in the environment. The atmosphere will be clean. People go to work on foot so there will not be any road accidents nor will be any traffic jam. Since there will not be light at night, people needn’t to hold night duty. They can sleep or make love without disturbance. There will be the less probability of dangerous wars, because missile and rocket can’t be used in war. All the machines are replaced by human being. So there will the great probability of employment. Thus, there are few advantages of fuel crisis if we think it critically. 4. Explain the title of this essay and the author’s joy in discovering that he is Six Million Dollar Man. Ans: The title of the essay suggests that a human being is worth of Six Million Dollar. It is humorous in the sense that human fourteen-different chemical constituents (such as Hemoglobin, Human DNA, Purified trypsin etc) have got a certain value on the basis of their weight. The average value of a gram dry weight of human being is $ 245.57. And the average weight of human being is 24436 grams. Thus, if we multiply 24436 with $ 245.57, the answer will be $ 6000015.44. Therefore, he comes to the conclusion that every human being’s average chemical value is six million dollars. So he is excited in his discovering that human body is worth $60000015.44. In fact, he seeks the average value of human being because he was dissatisfied with the value of human being which was presented in the statement on the greeting card. On which the value of human body was estimated only 97 cents. But he denies accepting it. So he estimates an Q1 How does the writer in the essay ‘Look at the Tea Cup’, show the relationship among falling flowers and teacups, falling bodies and beds, and the falling of bombs onto women and falling countries? Also write Patricia Hampl’s view on marriage. (Look at the Teacup) In 1939 Hampl’s mother married. In the same year her mother bought teacups that were fine and artistic. Later they were given to her as a gift which reminds her many things occurred in the Second World War and the consequences it brought. In fact the tea cup is a complete source of information to tell the events and consequences of the Second World War. The tea cup refers to the art of the contemporary society whereas the falling flowers symbolize the decline of then art and culture. In the year many people got married but they were deprived of warm beds. Instead there was a pile of dead bodies in the battle field. The falling bombs on women brought a question on the importance of family. Most of the people particularly women preferred to remain unmarried. They felt unsecured and frightened. The family life was under the canopy of black clouds of gun smoke and bombs. Likewise the falling bombs on the countries resulted in the degradation of humanity, fraternity, brotherhood, peace, and prosperity in those countries which involved in the war. Q. Show the points of similarities and differences between the two supernatural stories "The House Call and The Loving Mother". Ans: The House Call and The Loving Mother both stories are supernatural stories. They are similar in the sense that a doctor is called for the treatment of a living person by the spirit of a dead person. In The House Call the ghost of a small daughter went to call a doctor for the treatment of her mother. But in The Loving Mother the ghost of a mother went to a Pharmacist to ask for a ame on a stick so that she could keep her baby alive.

 Short Questions

 Q2 What significance can you attach to the fact that the journey takes place at Christmas time? Christmas is the time of charity, love, affection and happiness. Everybody is delighted at Christmas. I think Phoenix makes a journey at the Christmas time because she wants to see her grandson well and happy on the occasion of Christmas. So she brings medicine and windmill in order to make him happy

 Q2. In what significant ways are the mother and the daughter different from each other in “Look at a Teacup?” We can find the mother is different form her daughter in attitude to see the marriage and family life. Mother wants to enjoy the family life. She likes to live happily with husband and children even the bombs falls upon her head. She collects and buys many things for the future. But the daughter is quite against the marriage. She wants to remain unmarried because the future is dark. She feels the family life is a kind of unnecessary burden. She wants to get rid of such things. 2. What did Nick and Bill talk about? Ans. Nick goes to Bill’s. They start talking on various subjects. At first they talk about the baseball game, players and World Series matches. Then they have a discussion on different books like “Richard Fevers” and “Forest Lovers”. They talk about their writers too. Their discussion turns in to on the old men, their fathers. While they are talking about many things, they are having wine. They talk about fishing. By this time they are heavily intoxicated. Meanwhile Bill starts talking about Nick’s love affair with his beloved Marjorie. In fact, Nick was about to marry her but was separated from her. So he is sad. He can’t think what to do in the days to come. Bill tries to console him not to get worried because he is out of the trap. He suggests him to start a new enthusiastic life.

 Q1 What is the real relation between Helen and Michael? In fact Michael is born to unmarried parents, George Turrel and a daughter of a retired non- commissioned army officer. After the death of his father he is brought up by her aunt, Helen. He does not see his parents. So Helen takes the responsibility of father and mother over Michael, however, she is his father’s sister. Actually the relation between them is of aunt and nephew but they seem to be mother and son in the outer world. Helen wants Michael call her mummy at bed time which proves that she wants to establish a relation of mother and son.

 Q2 How do you know who the gardener really is? I think the gardener is the spirit of Michael’s father who was dead falling off the horse before he was born. The spirit knows well that Helen loves Michael very much. She wants to call him son and he also regards her mother. When she gets the news of his death, she is terribly shocked. And it is her strong desire to see the grave of Michael. I think the spirit of George Turrel knows all the things well. So he comes at the gate to guide her up to the grave of Michael so that he can fulfill her desire. Answer the following questions. (The Loving Mother) 2. If you had been Mr. Sakota, do you think you would have been afraid to let this woman in at midnight? Ans. If I had been Mr. Sakota I would have been afraid to let this woman in at midnight. I would be afraid of her strange skin and eyes; however, I would give her the ame on a stick through the window. I would not forget to ask her to come at daytime rather than at midnight. 3. Why did Mr. Sakota want the pictures taken? Ans. He wanted to get his friend to take the photograph of the woman so that he could study her appearance minutely. And he was so afraid in front of the woman that he could not dare to ask anything so he wanted to learn about her by taking photograph.

 5. Describe the woman who visited Mr. Sakota’s pharmacy late at night. Ans. The woman was very thin and her skin was abnormally light. She looked as if she came from another planet. Her eyes were stranger. Her uncombed hair hung around her shoulder. She was in an old and torn Kimono Answer the following questions. (Fear) 1. What did Armando think was the reason they looked at him? Ans. Armando thought that because of the money he had kept in his front pocket everybody looked at him in the bank. 6. Why did Armando have the idea that everyone in the bank was watching him? What was the truth? Ans. He guessed everybody was looking at him in the bank due to the great amount of the money that he had kept in his front pocket but it was not the reality. Everybody was watching him because he was knowingly putting on the hat backward. Answer the following questions. (Recurring Dream) 2. Why does Janet want to take Kim to her parents’ farm for few days? Ans. Janet wants to take Kim to her parents’ farm for few days so that Kim can forget the mysterious and troublesome dream; and she can feel pleasant seeing the beautiful view of the country farm. 3. Why does the little old man close the door when he sees Kim? Ans. The old man closes the door when he sees Kim because he found the same girl in front of his eyes who used to bother him in the dream. Then he closes the door thinking that she is ghost. 5 Why do you think the cottage is for sale? Ans. I think the old man is also bothered a lot due to the strange dream of every night. To get rid of the dream he wants to sell the house. Answer the following questions. ( The Lost Doll) 6. How were Carmen and Evangelina alike? Ans. It seemed that Evangelina was the rebirth of Carmen. Every activities and manners of Carmen could be seen in Evangelina. In fact there was no difference between them except the health condition. Carmen was sick but Evangelina was healthy. 7. Why, do you think, Rosa gave Carmen’s things to someone from another village?
Ans. I think Rosa gave Carmen’s things to someone from another village because she did not want to hurt her heart seeing the things over and again in her village. If she had got hope to give birth to another child, she would not have given them to other. In fact she had given all the child things as she could not be pregnant again. 8. Why did Roberto want to save Carmen’s things? Ans. Roberto wanted to save Carmen’s things because he would rather believe in god than in doctor. He hoped Rosa would be pregnant again and give birth to another child. So he wanted to keep the things of Carmen for another child.
 9. Do you think Evangelina was a good name for the new baby? Explain.
 Ans. As the meaning of Evangelina is good news, it was the good name for the baby because she came in the gloomy house of Rosa and Roberto with the good news of happiness and peace. 10. Why, do you think, almost everyone in the village attended Carmen’s funeral? Ans. Almost everyone in the village attended Carmen’s funeral because she was one of the bright, loving and kind children in the village. 6. What did the mother keep to remind her of her daughter? Ans. The mother kept her shoes and shawl to remind her of her daughter. Answer the following questions ( The House Call) 7. Why do you think the little girl walked ahead of the doctor instead of walking with him? (The House Call) Ans. In fact the girl was dead three months ago and it was the spirit of the girl to walk ahead of the doctor. She never walked with him so that he could not find that it was the ghost (spirit) of the dead girl. 8. Why did the little girl come to the doctor’s home? (The House Call) Ans. The little girl came to the doctor’s home to call him for the treatment of her mother. 7. Why did the doctor have a look of surprise on his face when Elda told him that her little daughter died in September? Ans: The doctor was called by the same little daughter for the treatment of her mother who was already dead in September. That's why he had a look of surprise on his face when Elda told him that her little daughter died in September. Q1. Summarize the poem in one paragraph. (On the Vanity of Earthly Greatness) The poem has got ironical tone. It has been tried to prove that the vanity of earthly greatness is worthless. It is transient which will one day wither. For instance, the tusks of mastodons (large extinct mammals like the elephant) are billiard balls now which were used as dangerous weapons in the battle. Similarly the sword of king Charlemagne the Just is rusted now which used to have great honor. The powerful grizzly bear is nothing more than rug (blanket) now with which people used to be afraid once. Roman statesman and general Great Caesar’s only statue is there which makes the Q1 Write a short summary of the poem. ( My Heart Leaps up When I Behold) When the poet sees the rainbow in the sky he becomes so happy that his heats leaps up with joy. He remembered when he used to play with the beauty of nature in childhood. But now he is a man. He can’t enjoy with the nature as he used to in the past. One day he will not be in this world but the beauty of nature never fades. It is still same and will be the same in future too as it was before. In the same way he wishes his days of past, present, and future would be ever green by the grace of natural piety (holiness). Q2. Explain the paradox, “Child is the father of Man”. In the poem, My heart leaps up when I behold William Wordsworth wants to get back to the world of childhood because it is the most pleasant and wonderful period of life span. He thinks the childhood is always more pleasant and greater in various angles. He tries to prove that a child is the father of man. In fact, a child born yesterday (past) becomes a man today (present) and will be an old man tomorrow. The past determines one’s present and future status so past is significant. Moreover one has to be a child before being a man and an old man so he says a child is the father of man. Q1. Write the summary of the poem. The poet, W. Cowper, does not see the poplar trees on the bank of the river Ouse. He does not feel the wind playing and singing in the leaves of poplars. The beautiful image of the poplars is not reflected on the river Ouse. It has been twelve years since they were cut down. Now he has nothing except the reminiscence (nostalgia) of the poplar field. Even the blackbirds are not there who used to sing for the poet. The poet says that he will lie like the poplar trees under the ground. He thinks another grove (tree) will grow over his dead body. He feels pain seeing the destruction of the human pleasures along with the destruction of the trees. He regrets because the life is shorter and the pleasure of life is much shorter due to the destruction of the trees. Q2. Write how the poet links up the idea of the cut down poplars with the end of human life and pleasure. Definitely there is a kind of unalienable relationship between the trees and human life. Human life without trees can’t be imagined. The trees protect human life from landslide, soil erosion, rain, sun and environmental pollution. Trees are the shelters for not only human beings but also for the other creatures of the world. Worst of all if they are cut down indiscriminately, the environment will not be worth living. In this way the cut down of the trees results in the destruction of human life and pleasure. If we don’t have the ever green trees, our every wish and desire will remain incomplete. In the given poem the poet remembers the beautiful and ever green poplar field which is no longer there. He thinks due to destruction of the poplar field, the wind does not blow, neither do birds sing nor the river Ouse has the reflection of its. He concludes that human life has been devastated along with many things with the destruction of poplar fields. Tourism in Nepal: visit Nepal 2011 It is the matter of happiness for us that the government of Nepal has made plan to observe 2011 as a tourism year. It is the chief motto of the nation to fascinate thousands of foreigners to visit Nepal in 2011. For the purpose, the government of Nepal has launched many programs to encourage the people from different parts of the world to come and observe its natural, cultural, religious and traditional aspects. Nepal is one of the most beautiful countries in the world. Highest Himalayan ranges in the north, green mountain ranges in the middle, plane and cultivable lowland in the Terai and ever flowing glaciers and rivers from north to south are the real ornaments of Nepal. Evergreen dense forest and there living wild animals are also the attractions for tourists. National parks and wild life reserves are worth observing in Nepal. Doubtlessly the highest peak in the world, Mt. Everest is the pride of Nepal. Definitely it is the strong desire of the people of the world to see it. Moreover, Lumbini of Nepal is the birthplace of Lord Gautam Buddha. So, no one returns without visiting Lumbini. Likewise Nepal is a country of having various cultures, religions and traditions. Many temples and stupas are in the heritage of Nepal. They are the chief attractions for many foreigners. As a matter of fact, Nepal is a developing country. There are not great industries for the economic source in Nepal. So tourism can be regarded as one of the sources of national income. Many tourists come here for different purposes and spend money. The money they spend here help promote the life standard of the people. People get employments in different sectors like hotel and safari. And the beauty of Nepal spreads all over the world as foreign tourists come to visit here. Despite many pros, there are some cons of tourism like cultural pollution and drugs abuse. But we should be cautious to celebrate 2011 as a tourism year by minimizing such problems. It is the responsibility of all Nepali to make it successful. Pm. Sharma.