(Question Nos. 13 – 19): Answer any 5 questions in about 80 words. Each carries 6 scores. (5 \u00d7 6 = 30)<\/span><\/p>\nQuestion 13.
\nRead the following lines from the poem \u2018Rice\u2019.
\n\u2018I\u2019ll reach home in good time, at last
\njust as my mother drains the well-cooked rice.\u2019
\nThis is better money – what good times!\u2019
\nHow is the expression \u2018good times\u2019 used in the above two contexts? Substantiate your answer.
\nAnswer:
\nThe expression \u201cgood time\/s\u201d is used with two different meanings in the poem. I\u2019ll reach home in good time means I will reach home soon or promptly or without much delay. The son, who is in North India, studying 15. for his doctorate, is tired of eating chappatis all the time and now he is dreaming of eating the well-cooked rice which his mother has drained. So he wants to reach home as quickly as he can. He hopes he will reach home in good time, that is very soon, to eat the rice. But in the second use \u2018what good times\u2019 the phrase good times refers to prosperity, the time when one has plenty of money. People of his village have abandoned rice cultivation and have started cultivating cash crops for good times and better money.<\/p>\n
Question 14.
\nYou have dreams of setting up a business of your own after studies. You are greatly inspired by Irfan Alam\u2019s views and ideas. Draft a letter of enquiry to Sammaan foundation asking for clarification of the doubts regarding financial investment of the organization, mode of operation, security of the members, etc.
\nAnswer:
\nJerry John
\n16\/IV, Azad Road
\nIrinjalakuda North P.O.
\nKerala
\nPIN 680125
\n3 July 2019<\/p>\n
Mr. Irfan Alam
\nCEO, SammaaN
\nKalina
\nMumbai-21<\/p>\n
Dear Sir,
\nSub : Information about SammaaN<\/p>\n
First of all let me congratulate you for founding such a useful organization like SammaaN which is helping thousands of auto-rickshaw workers to live better lives without getting into any kind of debt traps.<\/p>\n
Being inspired by your model, I also want to embark upon some such entrepreneurship after my +2 studies. The financial condition of my family does not permit me to go for higher education as my father is sick and my mother does not go for any outside work.<\/p>\n
I want to get some matters clarified by you as I also want to bean entrepreneur like you. What was your initial investment in the Organization? Did the banks or any government agency advance you some funds to start the operations?<\/p>\n
I also would want to know the modes of your operation. Do you give financial help to the members who join you? What are the security measures you have in place if a member runs into a loss or is disabled due to some disease or accident?<\/p>\n
Please find some time to send a reply to my letter. You can contact me on the phone. My phone number is 282 228450. My email address is jerry@amail.com.
\nThank you in advance,<\/p>\n
Yours sincerely,
\nJerry John.<\/p>\n
Question 15.
\nAfter the competition at Tompkin’s Square Park, the Amigo Brothers are interviewed.
\nReporter : Has the bout affected your friendship?
\nFelix : No, we both never take fighting into our hearts.
\nReporter : So then, who among you must have won the fight?
\nAntonio : We both are always winners. The question itself is unimportant.
\nHow would you report the above conversation ?
\nAnswer:
\nThe reporter asked the Amigo brothers if\/whether the bout had affected their friendship. Felix replied in the negative saying that they both never took fighting into their hearts. Then the reporter asked them who among them must have won the fight. Antonio replied saying that they both were always winners and that the question itself was unimportant.<\/p>\n
Question 16.
\nAs the secretary of the Anti-Narcotics Club in your school, you decide to write an article on the dangers of drug abuse to make aware of this growing menace among schoolmates. Prepare the article to be published in your school magazine.
\nAnswer:<\/p>\n
DANGERS OF DRUG ABUSE<\/p>\n
The problem of drug abuse has become a serious menace threatening the future and even the life of the youth, especially the school and college-going youth. This age group is more vulnerable to drug abuse because most of them are teenagers. Teenage is the time of stress and strain. To overcome their stress and strain, many youngsters abuse drugs. These drugs give them temporary pleasure, relieving them of their tensions for some time.<\/p>\n
There are many reasons for drug abuse among the youth. They get a lot of money from their parents. Since most families have only one child or two, the parents pamper them. Many parents do not find time to spend with their children. Another reason for drug abuse is peer influence. A third reason is the blind imitation of the so-called glamour boys and girls in films and sports who use drugs. A 4th reason is the easy availability of the drugs. Another reason is the moral laxity of the times. The law-enforcing agencies do not do their work sincerely. There is corruption everywhere and one can do anything if one has money.<\/p>\n
Sensual drugs play havoc with the body and mind of their users. The drug addict experiences sensory deprivation. He has a general feeling of physical discomfort and there are personality changes in him. The addict feels depressed. His mental disturbance can be like paranoia. The addict knows he has a problem. But he does not know its source. He looks at external objects with suspicion. Anything outside scares him and he withdraws further and further into himself.<\/p>\n
Drugs also affect the body adversely. Dirty needles and solutions can cause liver diseases, venereal diseases and infection of the kidney and brain. Sniffing cocaine and amphetamines can damage the tissue of the nose. Marijuana and tobacco smoking can cause lung diseases. Babies of women who are addicted to drugs are likely to be born with a lot of problems. A drug addict can easily get pneumonia, tuberculosis and have problems of malnutrition and weight loss. An overdose of any drug can cause respiratory or cardiac failure and death.<\/p>\n
The drug problems can be solved only through the concerted efforts of the parents, teachers, community leaders and the law-enforcing agencies. Awareness programmes should be conducted about the dangerous effects of drug abuse. The community leaders should help the youth to channel their energies in the right directions. The police must ensure that sensual drugs are not easily available.<\/p>\n
Drug abuse is a demon that should be exterminated from our midst with all the might we can muster.<\/p>\n
Question 17.
\nAhoregallu is essential in any journey. It is more so when people around us are too busy in their own worlds. You feel that it is necessary to post counsellors in schools so that students can reveal their fears and joys to them. Write a letter to the Minister of Education requesting him to take necessary steps in this regard.
\nAnswer:<\/p>\n
15\/XV Azad Road
\nIrinjalakuda, North P.O.
\n10, July 2019<\/p>\n
Prof. C. Ravindranath
\nEducation Minister of Kerala
\nThe Secretariat
\nTrivandrum – 001<\/p>\n
Honourable Education Minister,<\/p>\n
Sub.: Posting Counsellors in schools<\/p>\n
Every day we watch on the TV and read in the newspapers about cases of child abuse. It is strange that even parents, guardians, teachers and religious . leaders abuse children who are entrusted to their care. These people are supposed to work for the welfare of the children and lead them into the right paths to succeed in life and make their valuable contributions to humanity at large. But unfortunately the fact is that many children are abused in many ways, even sexually, by the very people who are supposed to protect them.<\/p>\n
The main reason for child abuse is the lack of \u2018horegallus\u2019. A horegallu is a stone bench where the weary traveller sits and talks to a sympathetic listener. Thus a horegallu is a patient and sympathetic listener. In the journey of life we all need horegallus. Children need them all the more. A child is afraid to -talk to others about the abuse he\/she is facing from one of his relatives, teachers, neighbours or religious leaders. So he\/she silently suffers the abuse which can even change his\/her personality and attitude towards life and other people.<\/p>\n
If there are counsellors in schools, they can listen to the problems of the children patiently and suggest appropriate solutions. By telling their problems to a sympathetic counsellor, the abused children feel relieved. The counsellors can initiate actions against the offenders and-th*is free the abused children from further abuses.<\/p>\n
I humbly request your honour to post Counsellors to all schools so that the children can have horegallus to whom they can reveal their hearts.<\/p>\n
Yours sincerely,
\nMehboob Saithu<\/p>\n
Question 18.
\nRobert Baldwin in \u2018The Hour of Truth’ stands as an epitome of honesty throughout the play. His decisions are never influenced by any financial offers. Prepare a character sketch of Robert Baldwin.
\nAnswer:
\nRobert Baldwin is the hero of the play \u201cThe Hour of Truth\u201d by Percival Wilde. Baldwin lives in a trim cottage with his wife Martha and their son John and daughter Evie. He is working as the governor of a bank owned by John Gresham. His salary is very low, 60 dollars a week. His son John earns only 30 dollars a week. With this limited income they live reasonably happily.<\/p>\n
Suddenly there is a problem in their lives. John Gresham has misappropriated bank money and he is in jail. The bank is closed and Baldwin will have no job. Only Baldwin is the witness for the misappropriation. If he gives his true testimony, John Gresham will definitely go to jail for a long period. Baldwin is honest and he has taught his family the importance of honesty.<\/p>\n
When Baldwin returns home after the arrest of John Gresham, his wife and children rush to him to know the latest news. Initially his wife and the children tell him that he should say the truth during the trial even if it means jail term for Gresham. But when they come to know that Gresham has offered him a bribe of 100,000 dollars just to say \u2018I don\u2019t remember\u2019 when some incriminating questions are asked in the court, they change their stance. Theytrytofind out all kinds of loopholes to make Baldwin accept the bribe. Martha, John and Evie do their best to make Baldwin change his mind. But he asserts that he wants to go to his grave clean.<\/p>\n
He does love Gresham. He even named his son after him. Even now he remembers how he worked with him for so long. They were boys together. They worked side by side. All this is true, but he is not willing to tell a lie to save his friend and employer even when he is offered a colossal sum of 100,000 dollars.<\/p>\n
Baldwin\u2019s honesty is repaid abundantly. Even Gresham is proud of him and he recommends him to Mr. Marshall, the President of the Third International. At the end of the play we see Marshall coming to the house of Baldwin and offering him a job at the Third International. We see Baldwin crying in the end. He must have been crying for two reasons – his friend Gresham has confessed his guilt and he will surely be punished. Secondly he is shedding tears of joy in gratitude to God who has amply repaid his honesty. Honesty, Baldwin proves, beyond an iota of doubt, is the best policy.<\/p>\n
Question 19.
\nThe story of Amigo Brothers is always heart, warming. You want to share your appreciation of the story with your friend in Bengaluru. Draft an e-mail conveying the essence of the story so as to inspire your friend to read it at the earliest.
\nAnswer:
\nashalatha@gmail.com
\nHi Asha, I got your mail. Good to know that you are planning to visit the Taj Mahal during the Onam Vacation.<\/p>\n
I am writing this email with a special purpose. I read a story titled \u201cAmigo Brothers\u201d written by Piri Thomas. The story impressed me greatly. It is about friendship. As you are my best friend, I want you to read this story. I\u2019m sure you will enjoy it.<\/p>\n
Antonio Cruz and Felix Vargas were both 17. They were so together in friendship that they felt like brothers. They had known each other from childhood. They grew up in the same building on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. They both had a dream – becoming a light-weight champion of the world.<\/p>\n
Whenever they got a chance they exercised. They would run everyday morning. They had a collection of fight magazines. They also kept the torn tickets of all the boxing matches they had gone to see. They also had some clippings of their own.<\/p>\n
After a series of elimination bouts, they were told that they were to meet each other in the division finals which would be 2 weeks away. The winner would represent the Boys\u2019 Club in the Golden Gloves Championship Tournament.<\/p>\n
They were in a big fix. They both wanted to win. But neither of them wanted to defeat the other. They decided to go into the ring as if they had never met. They have to fight it out.<\/p>\n
The fight was at Tompkins Square Park. The Park was full of people as the fight was well publicised. Antonio and Felix enter the ring. The crowd explodes into a roar. The referee whistles to start the fight. The fight is on. Punches fly back and forth but none is floored. Each punch is applauded thunderously by the crowd.<\/p>\n
It is now the 3rd round. Each contestant wants to win. They punch each other very hard. Nobody falls to the canvas. The final bell rings. But the fight continues. The bell rings again and again. But there is no stopping to the fighting. People start getting worried. It looks as if they are witnessing a do or die fight and not a mere contest. There is utter silence. Then the referee and the trainers separate the contestants.<\/p>\n
Now the contestants embrace. They have forgotten they were fighting like bulls up to a moment ago. The announcer makes an announcement. He is trying to name the winner. But Antonio and Felix had left like good old friends, arm in arm, declaring their bond of friendship.<\/p>\n
In my mind both are winners, aren\u2019t they Asha?
\nI am coming to Bengaluru next week. We will talk more about the story then! Bye for now!<\/p>\n
Love,
\nJohny<\/p>\n
(Question Nos. 20 – 22): Answer any 2 questions, each in about 140 words. Each carries 8 scores. (2 \u00d7 8 = 16)<\/span><\/p>\nQuestion 20.
\nGiven below is a poster displayed at the Assembly Hall in connection with the International Women\u2019s Day celebrations conducted by the Souhrida Club of your school. As the convenor of the programme, you are asked to give a detailed talk on \u2018EMPOWERING WOMEN – CHALLENGES AHEAD\u2019.Prepare the likely speech taking hints from the poster.
\n
\nAnswer:
\nRespected Principal and teachers and my dear friends,<\/p>\n
Today we are celebrating International Women\u2019s Day and I am asked to talk about \u201cEmpowering Women – Challenges Ahead\u201d. It is a great pity that Indians speak very highly of women, but they do not show much respect to them in their actions. They will say woman is the mother, Devi guru and the light of the home. They even name their daughters with names of goddesses and saintly persons. Even in our own school, we have so many Lakshmis and Saraswatis, Aishas and Khadeejas and Marys and Theresas. But do they receive the respect they deserve from the society? Even in the buses and roads they are troubled and teased. We hear of so many crimes against women every day. Rapes and murder of women have ceased to shock people as they have become everyday affairs.<\/p>\n
I say we are doing only lip-service to women. Even in Kerala which has more women than men, women are not given their rights. Look at the number of women candidates in the Lok Sabha elections for 2019. We have three coalitions in Kerala, UDF, LDF and NDA. Each of these groups is fielding 20 candidates for the 20 Lok Sabha seats. What percentage of women candidates do they field? Just 10%. No political party is free from this fault.<\/p>\n
Women don\u2019t get equal pay with men in non\u00acgovernmental services. A man gets Rs. 800 a day but a woman is given only Rs. 400 although she is doing similar or even harder work than the man. Women are refused opportunities for employment because employers feel that married women will take maternity leave.<\/p>\n
I strongly feel that the Parliament and State Assemblies should have equal number of men and women representatives. Men have no business keeping women under a patriarchal system. Let the women also feel they are persons with the dignity and freedom that men enjoy in our society.<\/p>\n
We have to change our mindset. Man and woman are created as equals and they should be treated equally by the society in all walks of life.<\/p>\n
As I urge all the women here to fight for their rights,
\nI wish them success in their endeavors.<\/p>\n
Jai Hind!<\/p>\n
Question 21.
\nRead the poem given below. Compare and contrast it with ‘Mending Wall\u2019 and attempt a critical appreciation.<\/p>\n
NEIGHBOUR<\/p>\n
Iain Crichton Smith<\/p>\n
Build me a bridge over the stream
\nto my neighbour\u2019s house
\nwhere he is standing in dungarees*
\nin the fresh morning.<\/p>\n
O ring of snowdrops
\nspread wherever you want
\nand you also blackbird
\nsing across the fences.<\/p>\n
My neighbour, if the rain fails on you,
\nlet it fall on me also
\nfrom the same black cloud
\nthat does not recognize gates.<\/p>\n
*dungarees: a garment consisting of trousers held up by straps over the shoulders.
\nAnswer:
\n\u201cMending Wall\u201d by Robert Frost is a delightful poem. He once said: \u201cA poem begins in delight and ends in wisdom.\u201d He starts the poem in a delightful way saying that there is something that does not like a wall. That something makes the ground under the wa|l swell which results in cracks in the wall. Gradually the stones that make the wall fall to either side.<\/p>\n
The fallen stones have lost their shapes. It is not easy to keep them back in their place. The gaps are so big that even two people can walk abreast through them. The poet strongly feels there is no need for a wall between him and his neighbour because he grows apple trees and the neighbour grows pine. Apple trees won\u2019t go and eat the pine and pines won\u2019t come to eat the apples. A wall was fine if they had cows as they could get mixed up without a wall. When the poet says there is no need for a wall between them, the neighbour tells him \u201cGood fences make good neighbours.\u201d Thus the poem ends in wisdom.<\/p>\n
In \u201cMending Wall\u201d, the poet has used many poetic devices such a metaphor, simile, personification and repetition. The language is simple and the imagery is exquisite. It gives a fine message, a priceless truth. \u201cNeighbour\u201d by lain Crichton Smith is a beautiful poem of just 12 lines. It gives a fine message. We see two neighbours here separated by a stream, ring of snowdrops, fences and gates. The poet can see his neighbour standing in his house wearing his trousers with shoulder straps. He wants a bridge to be built across the stream to connect the two neighbours. The blackbird sings across the fences and the rain falls on both the neighbour and himself. The rain which comes from the black cloud does not differentiate his neighbour from him. Nature is treating them equally and so the poet thinks that the neighbours should be linked by a bridge.<\/p>\n
The poem is highly melodious. The imagery is superb as we can visualize the stream, the ring of snowdrops, the blackbird singing, and the rain falling. We can see the neighbour standing in his house in his trousers held by shoulder straps. The message is loud and clear – There should be love between neighbours.<\/p>\n
Between the two poems, I prefer \u201cMending Wall\u201d, as it is more dramatic and action packed.<\/p>\n
Question 22.
\nIn the light of reading excerpts from the lives of Irfan Alam and Shaheen Mistri, you arrive at the conclusion that \u2018Entrepreneurs are not made, they are born.\u2019 Our nation benefits from such enterprises too. Write an essay on the topic highlighting the merits of promoting entrepreneurship among the youth.
\n(HINTS : youth made responsible – dignity of labour – self confident – self reliance – hard work and commitment – job satisfaction – financial stability – creating employment opportunities – initiatives like kudumbasree, mango cabs, ubereats, flipkart, etc.)
\nAnswer:<\/p>\n
ENTREPRENEURS ARE NOT MADE, THEY ARE BORN<\/p>\n
There is a wrong tendency in our society which makes the youth to look for government jobs. After getting their degrees, they go on writing PSC tests in the
\nhope of getting clerical jobs in government services. This is really bad for our country because the government can\u2019t provide jobs for all the people. Here comes the importance of entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n
Entrepreneurship makes us responsible and the success of the enterprise depends on our planning, vision and hard work. It also adds to the concept of dignity of labour\u2019. An entrepreneur is prepared to do any kind of work that is needed of him for the success of his enterprise. In the Government service employees are graded as Class I, II, III and IV. Class IV employees are usually sweepers, cleaners and peons. Class III consists of clerks. Class II is of the Supervisory staff and Class I is that of High Officers. But in a private enterprise, there is no such division.<\/p>\n
Entrepreneurship enhances self-confidence, self reliance and hard work. There is a lot of job satisfaction when we see our enterprises are succeeding. Entrepreneurs give jobs to others instead of being job hunters. It brings financial stability to ourselves and also the people whom we employ.<\/p>\n
There are so many private enterprises which are very popular today. We have the Kudumbasree, Mango Cabs, Uber Eats and Flipkart. They are all successful enterprises and they originated in the minds of ordinary people. With some thinking, willingness to work hard, determination and self-confidence we too can embark upon some project that will prove successful.<\/p>\n
Rome was not built in a day. Let us remember Dhirubhai Ambani, the father of the richest man in India today, Mukesh Ambani. Dhirubhai Ambani worked as a clerk in Yemen and returned to India and started a textile trading company in 1958. His initial capital was a mere Rs. 15,000. Let\u2019s remember, \u201cWhere there is a will there is a way.\u201d<\/p>\n