CLASS X ENGLISH SOLUTIONS

CHAPTER: ANIMALS

Q: Notice the use of the word ‘turn’ in the first line, “I think I could turn and live with animals…” What is the poet turning from?

Answer: The poet is turning away from living in the world of people. He discovers animals more placid and independent and therefore, he wants to live with them.

Q: Mention three things that humans do and animals don’t?

Answer: The three things that humans do and animals don't are as the following: 

Humans complain and cry about the tragedies and distresses they face. 

Humans lie awake in the night thinking about their wrongdoings. 

Humans likewise continue enlightening others regarding their religiousness and obligations towards God.

Q: Do humans kneel to other humans who lived thousands of years ago? Discuss this in groups?

Answer: Truly humans kneel to other humans who lived thousands of years ago. They could be a few ancestors, holy people or the preachers whom they follow religiously. They worship them and follow their preaching. 

Q: What are the ‘tokens’ that the poet says he may have dropped long ago, and which the animals have kept for him? Discuss this in class. (Hint: Whitman belongs to the Romantic tradition that includes Rousseau and Wordsworth, which holds that civilisation has made humans false to their own true nature. What could be the basic aspects of our nature as living beings that humans choose to ignore or deny?)

Answer: The word tokens as indicated by the poet is the great qualities in human beings. The poet feels that nowdays good qualities do not exist in humans. They have lost them for sake of worldly things which they need to achieve at any cost.

MEANING OF THE IMPORTANT WORDS 

Placid: calm, peaceful
Contained: keep up control
Whine: cry
Sins: wrongdoing
Demented: mad, disturbed
Kneels: bow down
Evince: show, reveal
Possession: ownership of something
Tokens: here, the qualities
Negligently: Carelessly

CHAPTER: COORG

Q: Where is Coorg? 
Answer: Coorg is the smallest district of Karnataka and is located somewhere between Mysore and the coastal city of Mangalore.

Q: What is the story about the Kodavu people’s descent?
Answer: It is said that the Kodavus are of either Greek or Arabic descent. According to one story, a part of Alexander’s army could not return to its homeland and so, settled there. As the traditional dress of the Kodavus, Kuppia is similar to the dress of the Arabs and Kurds, the Kuffia, it is said that probably the Kodavus are descendants of the Arabs.

Q: What are some of the things you now know about
I. The people of Coorg?
Answer: People of Coorg are known to be descendents of the Greeks or the Arabs. This is because of their dressing style. They are independent and ferocious. They are the bravest soldiers in the Indian Army. At the same time, they are welcoming and are known for their hospitality. They have married amongst their locals and their culture is very different from what is seen in mainstream Hindus.

II. The main crop of Coorg?

Answer: Coffee is the main crop of Coorg. During the monsoon season, when the weather is pleasant and the wind is blowing, it carries with it the strong fragrance of coffee. Coffee estates with colonial bungalows are abundant and even provide homestays for visitors to experience the Coorgi way of life.

III. The sports it offers to tourists?

Answer: A variety of high-energy adventure activities are offered to tourists like river rafting, canoeing, rappelling, rock climbing and mountain biking. Trekking is also one of the famous activities.


IV. The animals you are likely to see in Coorg?
Answer: Fish like Mahaseer are found in the waters of the river Kaveri. Birds like Kingfisher and other animals like squirrels, langurs, butterflies, bees accompany you in this area while wild elephants can be seen enjoying bathing in the rivers. If you are on a trek, Macaques, Malabar squirrels, langurs and slender loris can be spotted on the trees.


V. Its distance from Bangalore, and how to get there?
Answer: Coorg is at a distance of 260 kms from Bangalore. The nearest airports are Mangalore (135 km) and Bangalore (260 km). There are flights to Mangalore from Mumbai, and to Bangalore from Ahmedabad, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune. The nearest railheads are at Mysore, Mangalore and Hassan. There are two routes to Coorg from Bangalore. Both are almost the same distance (around 250-260 km). The route via Mysore is the most frequented one. The other route is via Neelamangal, Kunigal, Chanrayanapatna.


Q: Here are six sentences with some words in italics. Find phrases from the text that have the same meaning. (Look in the paragraphs indicated)
I. During monsoons it rains so heavily that tourists do not visit Coorg. (para 2)
II. Some people say that Alexander’s army moved south along the coast and settled there. (para 3)
III. The Coorg people are always ready to tell stories of their sons’ and fathers’ valour. (para 4)
IV. Even people who normally lead an easy and slow life get smitten by the high-energy adventure sports of Coorg. (para 6)
V. The theory of the Arab origin is supported by the long coat with embroidered waist-belt they wear. (para 3)
VI. Macaques, Malabar squirrels observe you carefully from the tree canopy. (para 7)

Answer: (i) Keep many visitors away 

(ii)As one story goes
(iii) Are more than willing to recount
(iv) The most laidback individuals become converts to
(v) Draws support from
(vi) Keep a watchful eye.

Grammar Exercises

1. Here are some nouns from the text.

Culture, monks, surprise, experience, weather, tradition 
Work with a partner and discuss which of the nouns can collocate with which of the adjectives given below. The first one has been done for you. 
Unique, terrible, unforgettable, serious, ancient, wide, sudden

I. culture: unique culture, ancient culture

II. monks:

III. surprise:

IV. experience:

V. weather:

VI. tradition:

Answers: 

1. culture: unique culture, ancient culture
2. monks:  ancient monks
3. surprise: Unique surprise, terrible surprise, unforgettable surprise
4. experience: Unique experience, terrible experience, unforgettable experience, sudden experience
5. weather: terrible weather, sudden weather
6. tradition: unique tradition, ancient tradition

2. Complete the following phrases from the text. For each phrase, can you find at least one other word that would fit into the blank?

I. tales of ________

II. coastal ________

III. a piece of ________

IV. evergreen ________

V. ________ plantations

VI. ________ bridge

VII. wild ________

You may add your own examples to this list.

Answers: 

1. tales of valour
2. coastal town
3. a piece of heaven
4. evergreen rainforests
5. Coffee plantations
6. Rope bridge
7. wild animals

CHAPTER:A LETTER TO GOD 

Q. What did Lencho hope for?

Answer: Lencho hoped for rain or downpour as the only thing that his field of ripe corn needed was a shower.

Q: Why did Lencho say the raindrops were like ‘new coins’?

Answer: Lencho’s crops were ready for harvest. However, they required a good downpour before harvesting. After a downpour, he could sell the harvest and get money. That is why he compared the raindrops to ‘new coins’.

Q. How did the rain change? What happened to Lencho’s fields?

Answer: The rain was pouring down. But all of a sudden, a strong wind began to blow and very large hailstones began to fall along with the rain. The hail rained on the valley for an hour, as a result of which of Lencho’s fields were destroyed. There was not a single leaf left on the trees and the flowers were gone from the plants. The corn was completely destroyed.

Q: What were Lencho’s feelings when the hail stopped?
Answer: When the hail stopped, Lencho’s soul was filled with sadness. He looked around at his fields and said that even a plague of locusts would have left more than what was left after the hailstorm. He said that they would have no corn that year and they would go hungry. He was full of sorrow.

Q: Who or what did Lencho have faith in? What did he do?
Answer: Lencho had confidence in God. He had been told that God's eyes see everything, even what is deep in one's heart. Therefore, he wrote a letter to God expressing his requirement for a hundred pesos so that he could sow his field again and live until the harvest developed once more.

Q. Who read the letter?

Answer: When the postman saw that the letter was addressed to God, he laughed and took the letter to the postmaster, who then read it.

Q. What did the postmaster do then?

Answer: In order to keep the writer’s faith in God alive, the postmaster chose to answer the letter. When he read that Lencho required hundred pesos, he asked for money from his employees. He himself gave a part of his salary. He could not accumulate the entire amount, but managed to send Lencho a little more than half the amount. He put the money in an envelope addressed to Lencho and signed it ‘God’.

Q. Who does Lencho have complete faith in? Which sentences in the story tell you this?

Answer: Lencho had complete faith in God. The sentences in the story that show this are as follows:

(i) But in the hearts of all who lived in that solitary house in the middle of the valley, there was a single hope: help from God.

(ii) All through the night, Lencho thought only of his one hope: the help of God, whose eyes, as he had been instructed, see everything, even what is deep in one’s conscience.

(iii) “God,” he wrote, “if you don’t help me, my family and I will go hungry this year.”

(iv) He wrote ‘To God’ on the envelope, put the letter inside and, still troubled, went to town.

(v) God could not have made a mistake, nor could he have denied Lencho what he had requested.

(vi) It said: “God: of the money that I asked for, only seventy pesos reached me. Send me the rest, since I need it very much.”

Q. Why does the postmaster send money to Lencho? Why does he sign the letter ‘God’?Answer: The postmaster sent money to Lencho in order to keep Lencho’s faith in God alive. He turned serious when he read Lencho’s letter and wished he had the same faith in God. Even after he saw that Lencho had requested for money, he stuck to his resolution of answering the letter. He gathered as much money as he could and sent it to Lencho. He signed it ‘God’ so that Lencho’s faith would not get shaken.

Q. Did Lencho try to find out who had sent the money to him? Why/Why not?

Answer: No, Lencho does not try to find out who had sent the money to him. This is because he never suspected that it could be anybody else other than God who would send him the money. His faith in God was so strong that he believed that God had sent him the money.

Q. Who does Lencho think has taken the rest of the money? What is the irony in the situation? [Remember that the irony of a situation is an unexpected aspect of it. An ironic situation is strange or amusing because it is the opposite of what is expected.]

Answer: Lencho thought that the post office employees had taken the rest of the money. The irony of the situation was that the employees whom he called a “bunch of crooks” and suspected of taking some of the money were the same people who had contributed and sent him the money in the first place.

Q. Was Lencho surprised to find a letter for him with money in it?

Answer: No. Lencho was not at all surprised to see the letter from God with money inside it. His confidence and faith in God was such that he had expected that reply from God.

Q. What made him angry?

Answer: He got angry when he counted the money. There were only seventy pesos in the envelope. He was confident that God could neither make a mistake nor deny him what he had requested. Therefore, he concluded that the post office employees must have taken the remaining thirty pesos.

Q. Are there people like Lencho in the real world? What kind of a person would you say he is? You may select appropriate words from the box to answer the question.

Greedy	Naive	stupid	ungrateful
selfish	comical	unquestioning

Answer: There might be a few people like Lencho in the real world. He is an unquestioning, naive kind of a person.

Q. There are two kinds of conflict in the story: between humans and nature, and between humans themselves. How are these conflicts illustrated?

Answer: The conflict between humans and nature is illustrated by the destruction of Lencho’s crops by the hailstorm. Lencho had worked really hard on his fields and the harvest was really important for him. He required the money to feed his family. However, the nature turned violent. The rains were accompanied by a hailstorm, which destroyed the crops. The story also illustrates another conflict, between humans themselves. The postmaster, along with the help of the other post office employees, sent Lencho the money that they could manage to collect. They were not related to Lencho in any manner. It was an act of kindness and selflessness on their part. Even though they did a good deed, Lencho blamed them for taking away some amount of money. He called them “a bunch of crooks”. This shows that man does not have faith in his fellow humans, thereby giving rise to this conflict.

Q. There are different names in different parts of the world for storms, depending on their nature. Can you match the names in the box with their descriptions below, and fill in the blanks? You may use a dictionary to help you.

gale,	whirlwind,	cyclone,
hurricane,	tornado,	typhoon

1. A violent tropical storm in which strong winds move in a circle:

__ __ c __ __ __ __

2. An extremely strong wind: __ a __ __

3. A violent tropical storm with very strong winds: __ __ p __ __ __ __

4. A violent storm whose centre is a cloud in the shape of a funnel:

__ __ __ n __ __ __

5. A violent storm with very strong winds, especially in the western Atlantic ocean: __ __ r __ __ __ __ __ __

6. A very strong wind that moves very fast in a spinning movement and causes a lot of damage: __ __ __ __ l __ __ __ __

Answer:

1. Cyclone

2. Gale

3. Typhoon

4. Tornado

5. Hurricane

6. Whirlwind

Q. Relative Clauses

Join the sentences given below using who, whom, whose, which as suggested. 1. I often go to Mumbai. Mumbai is the commercial capital of India. (which)

2. My mother is going to host a TV show on cooking. She cooks very well. (who)

3. These sportspersons are going to meet the President. Their performance has been excellent. (whose)

4. Lencho prayed to God. His eyes see into our minds. (whose)

5. This man cheated me. I trusted him. (whom)

Answer:

1. I often go to Mumbai, which is the commercial capital of India.

2. My mother, who cooks very well, is going to host a TV show on cooking.

3. These sportspersons, whose performance has been excellent, are going to meet the President.

4. Lencho prayed to God, whose eyes see into our minds.

5. This man, whom I trusted, cheated me.

Find sentences in the story with negative words, which express the following ideas emphatically.

1. The trees lost all their leaves.

_______________________________________________________________

2. The letter was addressed to God himself.

_______________________________________________________________

3. The postman saw this address for the first time in his career.

_______________________________________________________________

Answer:

1. The trees lost all their leaves.

Not a leaf remained on the trees.

2. The letter was addressed to God himself.

It was nothing less than a letter to God.

3. The postman saw this address for the first time in his career.

Never in his career as a postman had he known that address.

CHAPTER:MADAM RIDES BUS 

Q: What was Valli’s favourite pastime?
Answer: Valli’s favourite pastime was to stand in the front doorway of her house and watch what was occurring in the road outside.

Q: What was a source of unending joy for Valli? What was her strongest desire?
Answer: A source of unending joy for Valli was the sight of the bus that travelled between her village and the nearest town, loaded up with a new set of travelers each time it went through her road. Her strongest desire was to ride on that bus.

Q: What did Valli find out about the bus journey? How did she find out these details?

Answer: Valli discovered that the town was six miles from her town. The fare was thirty paise one way. The trip to the town took forty-five minutes. On arriving at the town, if she remained in her seat and paid another thirty paise, she could return home on the same bus. She discovered these details by listening cautiously to the discussions between her neighbors and the individuals who consistently used the bus. She likewise picked up data by asking them a a few questions.

Q: What do you think Valli was planning to do?

Answer: Valli was planning to travel on the bus that travelled between her village and the nearest town.

Q: Why does the conductor call Valli ‘madam’?

Answer: When the conductor stretched out his hand to help her get on the bus, Valli said commandingly that she could get on by herself, and that she did not require his help. She did not act like a child, but as a grown-up girl and therefore, the conductor called her ‘madam’.

Q: Why does Valli stand up on the seat? What does she see now?

Answer: Valli stood up on her seat since her view was cut off by a canvas blind that covered the lower part of her window. She stood up to look over the blind. She saw that the road was exceptionally narrow, on one side of which there was the canal and beyond it were palm trees, grassland, distant mountains, and the blue sky. On the other side, there was a deep ditch and many acres of green fields.

Q: What does Valli tell the elderly man when he calls her a child?

Answer: When the old man called her a child, Valli told him that there was nobody on the bus who was a child. She had paid her fare of thirty paise like like every other person.

Q: Why didn’t Valli want to make friends with the elderly woman?

Answer: Valli did not want to befriend the elderly woman since she found her absolutely repulsive. She saw that the woman had big holes in her ear lobes and very ugly earrings in them. She could smell the betel nut the woman was chewing, and could see the betel juice that was almost about to overflow her lips. That is why she did not want to be sociable with her.

Q: How did Valli save up money for her first journey? Was it easy for her?
Answer: Valli had carefully saved whatever stray coins came her way, resisting every temptation to buy peppermints, toys, balloons, and the like. Finally, she had saved sixty paise.

No, it was not easy for her, particularly at the village fair where she was enticed to ride the merry-go-round as she had the money. However, she suppressed her strong desire and saved the money for the bus ride.

Q: What did Valli see on her way that made her laugh?
Answer: Valli saw a young cow, whose tail was high in the air, running right in front of the bus in the middle of the road. The bus eased back and the driver sounded his horn uproariously. However, the more he honked, the more frightened the cow became and it kept running faster and faster, right in front of the bus. Valli, finding it so interesting, laughed so much that she had tears in her eyes. At last, the cow moved off the road.

Q: Why didn’t she get off the bus at the bus station?
Answer: She did not get off the bus at the bus stop since she wanted to go back on that same bus. She took out another thirty paise from her pocket and gave the coins to the conductor. She simply wanted to ride on the bus.

Q: Why didn’t Valli want to go to the stall and have a drink? What does this tell you about her?
Answer: Valli would not like to go to the stall and have a drink since she didn't have any money for that. Even when the conductor offered her a cold drink for nothing out of pocket, she refused firmly and said that she just wanted her ticket. This shows Valli had a great deal of self will and pride. Perhaps, she would not like to take anything for free, especially from an stranger.

Q: What was Valli’s deepest desire? Find the words and phrases in the story that tell you this.
Answer: Valli's strongest desire was to ride on the bus she saw everyday. The sentences in the story which depict this are: 

“Day after day she watched the bus, and gradually a tiny wish crept into her head and grew there: she wanted to ride on that bus, even if just once. This wish became stronger and stronger, until it was an overwhelming desire.”

Q: How did Valli plan her bus ride? What did she find out about the bus, and how did she save up the fare?
Answer: Valli planned that she would take the one o’clock afternoon bus, reach the town at one forty-five, and be back home by about two forty-five. She found out that the town was six miles from her village. The fare was thirty paise one way. The trip to the town took forty-five minutes. On reaching the town, if she stayed in her seat and paid another thirty paise, she could return home on the same bus. She had carefully saved whatever stray coins came her way, resisting every temptation to buy peppermints, toys, balloons, and the like, and finally she had saved sixty paise.