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ENGLISH YUVAKBHARATI

Standard - XII

BBIG

TV CH

22299954

The Coordination Committee formed by G.R. No. Abhyas - 2116/(Pra.Kra.43/16) SD - 4 Dated 25.4.2016 has given approval to prescribe this textbook in its meeting held on 30.01.2020 and it has been decided to implement it from the Academic Year 2020-21.

ENGLISH YUVAKBHARATI

Maharashtra State Bureau of Textbook Production and Curriculum Research, Pune.

Download DIKSHA App on your smartphone. If you scan the Q.R. Code on this page of your textbook, you will be able to access full text. If you scan the Q.R. Code provided, you will be able to access audio-visual study material relevant to each lesson, provided as teaching and learning aids.

(Compulsory English) Standard XII

First Edition : 2020 © Maharashtra State Bureau of Textbook Production and

Curriculum Research, Pune - 411 004.

The Maharashtra State Bureau of Textbook Production and Curriculum Research reserves all rights relating to the book. No part of this book should be reproduced without the written permission of the Director, Maharashtra State Bureau of Textbook Production and Curriculum Research, ‘Balbharati’, Senapati Bapat Marg, Pune 411004.

English Language Committee : Dr. Manjushree Sardeshpande, Chairperson Dr. Rohit Kawale, Member Dr. Muktaja Mathkari, Member

English Language Study Group : Dr. Shruti Chaudhary, Member Shri. Shridhar Nagargoje, Member Dr. Dipak Damodare, Member Smt. Raseshwari Chonkar, Member Dr. Sangita Ghodake, Member Dr. Ibrahim Nadaf, Member Smt. Arundhati Garud, Member Shri. Santosh Pawar,

Member-Secretary

Production : Sachchitanand Aphale Chief Production Officer

Rajendra Chindarkar Production Officer

Rajendra Pandloskar Assistant Production Officer

Paper : 70 GSM Creamwove

Smt. Jayashri Jangle

Shri. Pravin Mulay

Shri. Avinash Rade

Dr. Suhasini Jadhav

Dr. Dharmaji Kharat

Smt. Manjula Bheed

Smt. Ishita Sengupta

Dr. Shubhra Roy

Dr. Rajesh Pawde

Smt. Medha Shastri

Smt. Meghana Sidhaye

Smt. Madhavi Joshi

Shri. Nadeem Khan

Dr. Sanjay Sanap

Smt. Sanjyot Joshi

Smt. Dipali Salunkhe

Cover : Shri Vivekanand Patil Shri. Santosh Gaikwad Illustrations : Reshma Barve

Co-ordination : Santosh J. Pawar I/C Special Officer for English

Typesetting : DTP Section (Languages) Textbook Bureau, Pune.

Printer :

Print Order No. :

Publisher : Vivek Uttam Gosavi Controller Maharashtra State Textbook Bureau, Prabhadevi, Mumbai - 400 025.

The Constitution of India

Preamble

WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC and to secure to all its citizens:

JUSTICE, social, economic and political; LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship;

EQUALITY of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all

FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation;

IN OUR CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY this twenty-sixth day of November, 1949, do HEREBY ADOPT, ENACT AND GIVE TO OURSELVES THIS CONSTITUTION.

NATIONAL ANTHEM

Jana-gana-mana-adhināyaka jaya hē

Bhārata-bhāgya-vidhātā,

Panjāba-Sindhu-Gujarāta-Marāthā

Drāvida-Utkala-Banga

Vindhya-Himachala-Yamunā-Gangā

uchchala-jaladhi-taranga

Tava subha nāmē jāgē, tava subha āsisa māgē,

gāhē tava jaya-gāthā,

Jana-gana-mangala-dāyaka jaya hē

Bhārata-bhāgya-vidhātā,

Jaya hē, Jaya hē, Jaya hē,

Jaya jaya jaya, jaya hē.

PLEDGE

India is my country. All Indians are my brothers and sisters.

I love my country, and I am proud of its rich and varied heritage. I shall always strive to be worthy of it.

I shall give my parents, teachers and all elders respect, and treat everyone with courtesy.

To my country and my people, I pledge my devotion. In their well-being and prosperity alone lies my happiness.

Dear Students, Let me welcome you all to this very important and life transforming year of Standard XII. You will be embarking on your voyage to achieve your heart’s desired goal. In the vision and mission of your life English will definitely be playing a very significant role. It is a pleasure to hand over this textbook English Yuvakbharati for Standard XII which will be helpful in shaping the course of your life.

In this age of globalization, the world has become a small place. Borderless nations and cultural integration makes English language a very strong means of bonding and communication. 21st century is an era of innovation, industry and enterprise. With the revolution in ICT, there is inundation of information. A host of unbelievable career opportunities are available for you. You have been groomed with the basic knowledge of English till Std X. We have started imparting advanced knowledge of English language from Std XI and this year’s textbook is a step forward. This year we will be teaching you to use English for different purposes. Mind mapping, Statement of Purpose, Drafting Virtual Messages and Group discussions are the new additions. This textbook caters to the needs of this techno savvy generation. Along with the intellectual pursuits you would also require the life skills to negotiate through this complex world. The skills of English language learning would prove to be a catalyst in fast forwarding your career objectives.

The diligent selection of the prose and poems in the textbook would equip you with the 21st century skills like developing your critical thinking, working in collaboration, enhancing your communication, fostering creativity, inculcating values and life skills like flexibility, humility leadership, initiative, productivity and social skills. Each of our prose and poem is a lesson of life. While thinking with your heads, you should also be trained to think from your hearts. Literature is a mirror of life. This book has a beautiful combination of the classics and the contemporary. The philosophies therein mould one’s character. This year we have introduced the genre of Novels. You would get familiar with the technique of novel writing and different aspects of novels like story, plot, characters etc. Literature is a source of pleasure and entertainment. All the lessons and poems here will take you on a special journey of life and these experiences would prepare you to face the challenges you would encounter in future. They help in realizing the human potential.

The activities in the textbook would facilitate learning. The Q.R. Code is an additional help. Useful audio-video teaching-learning material given in the text will be available through the Q.R. Code. It will be definitely useful for your studies. Additional resources also have been suggested in the book which would gear you to learning to learn and seek information and gain knowledge.

Do share your views about the textbook. Happy learning! Wish you all the best in your studies!

Pune Date : 21 February, 2020

Indian Solar Year : Phalgun 2, 1941

Preface

(Vivek Gosavi) Director Maharashtra State Bureau of Textbook Production and Curriculum Research, Pune.

For Teachers -

On a voyage to the new realms

Hello Friends!

This year we would be on a voyage to different realms of imagination, understanding and perception. Uptil now this journey has been undertaken by many people like you and me but as the generation changes the same things appear in a different light. Our awareness, our education, our knowledge, our culture shapes our perception. Today’s students who belong to a very modern and techno savvy era need to be equipped thus to enable them to sail through smoothly in this complex and challenging world. The flood of information through internet has already set them riding high on waves but they need to be taught how to steer on and negotiate the tides of challenges.

Focusing on the holistic development of the students, ensuring that they will be taught ‘learning to learn.’ We have a big role to play. As far as our subject English is concerned we have to follow the skill based and constructivist approach wherein the first and foremost thing is we must not only teach the text but instill in the students the urge to seek information and gain knowledge on their own. Do not give them a fish to eat, teach them fishing so that they can fend for themselves throughout their life. Let them struggle with the text, analyse, interpret, reason out things. Do not give them readymade answers. You should guide them; motivate them so that they arrive at the answers. Answers again are not important, how they arrive at those answers is much more important.

Every child is different and hence his learning capacity would be different. It is our duty to see how we cater to the needs of different students. Some learn by listening, some by doing projects, some understand it learning through their peers hence our teaching and learning methodology includes, using audio-visual aids, working in pairs and groups, doing projects along with traditional mode of teaching. Our classes are interactive.

Listening Skill- You should provide as many listening opportunities as you can. The more the input of the English Language the more will be the output. Listening is the most neglected skill in many of our schools. Make judicial use of mother tongue to explain difficult concepts and switch over to English as soon as you can. You should be resourceful enough to provide varied learning experiences to the students. The prose and poems give ample scope for listening. Many of the prose and poems are available on the internet-you-tube. Make use of the ICT to make your lessons interesting.

Speaking Skill- Friends, we have seen that many of our students are able to write but when it comes to speaking, they lack confidence. Provide them opportunities to speak in the class. The textbook provides areas wherein discussions can be done in the class. You can make them speak in pairs and groups and also build in them confidence to express their views and opinions, through participating in a debate or delivering a speech. The text provides ample contexts to initiate discussions. Take help of A1 activities in brainstorming for Oral Examination.

Reading Skill- Along with the prose and poems, this year with the introduction of the genre of ‘Novels’ the students would be taken into the fantastic world of literature. Literature gives you life experiences. The students should be encouraged to read the text individually too. You should give a model reading of the lessons and poems, they should be taught the

correct pronunciation. The students should develop a love for reading.

Writing Skill- Students have already been taught email writing, report writing and blog writing. This year we have moved ahead and have taken up summarizing, note-making and note-taking in detail and have introduced Personal Statements, Mind mapping, Drafting Virtual Messages and Group Discussion. Though group discussion is a speaking skill it has been included in the writing skill too as students are expected to learn dialogue writing. In group discussions there would be views and counter views too hence it is an integrated written activity. The technique has been taught in the respective unit. After the Std XII exams students need to apply to various universities in India and abroad. Samples of Personal Statements, explaining how to tailor one’s achievements is given in the unit. Virtual messages teach expressions in brief.

Language Study- The grammar items are a revision of all that has been covered till standard XI. The text gives you the opportunity to teach new words and their usage. Different vocabulary techniques are given for your enrichment.

Prose Section- We inculcate values and life skills through the classics and masterpieces in literature. Writings of R.K.Narayan, A.G.Gardiner, Virginia Woolf, Pico Iyer, O’Henry have been included to teach wit and humour, astuteness and ingenuity, etiquettes, manners, social skills, self realization, love for nature, search for identity, self esteem, adaptability, perseverance, determination, broadening of outlook etc. There is an enriching combination of stories, essays, articles, travel writing, adventure writing, and inspiring biopic too. This being an age of ICT and internet a very useful informative text on Big Data has been included. This will give a larger perspective of the modern life to the students.

Poems Section- An interesting collection of poems are really soul stirring. Poems of Walt Whitman, Robert Southey, Dilip Chitre, Sarojini Naidu, W.H.Davies, Mamang Dai and Lord Byron would give you a taste of different cultures, different people, different philosophies which would mould the students’ perception of life. We should make the students realize that whether people are from the east or west they are human beings and human beings are humane and life is precious.

Novels- E.R Braithwaite novel ‘To Sir, With Love’ has a theme of student-teacher relationsip, prejudice and racism, Jules Verne’s novel ‘Around the world in Eighty Days’ is full of adventure and excitement and ‘The Sign of Four’ by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is a mindblowing detective novel. You just need to make the best use of this interesting text to teach English.

The Ice breakers introduce the text, the Brainstorming enables full comprehension of the text. Activity based questions foster critical thinking. The margin activities help in pondering over the questions which arise while doing the text. Q.R code has been provided in the textbook. Useful links and suggestions have been given after every lesson.

Lets gear up to go on board and navigate the sails to our advantage.

Bon Voyage!

***

Statements of Competencies - English Yuvakbharati (Compulsory English) Standard XII

Listening

Speaking

2 Use English fluently and correctly in day-to-day communication. 2 Recite poems with correct pronunciation, intonation and stress. 2 Speak with acceptable pace and pronunciation. 2 Speak coherently, fluently, confidently and intelligibly on a given topic for a reasonable period of time with appropriate gestures, body language and intonation. 2 Respond to questions orally. 2 Make oral presentations on a given topic. 2 Narrate and read aloud stories, events and experiences in standard English. 2 Compere programmes. 2 Use standard English according to formal and informal context. 2 Express effectively in group discussions, interviews, debates, elocutions and

extempore and speech competitions. 2 Use digital media (live chats, interviews, zoom meetings, video conferencing,

webinars, Skype) for communication. 2 Give instructions, make complaints, give suggestions, make enquiries, give

compliments orally or through IVRS. 2 Analyse critically the writer’s point of view and express it clearly.

Reading

2 Listen actively and attentively with comprehension and respond accordingly to lectures, talks, conversations, news-bulletins, interviews, debates and discussions. 2 Enjoy and critically appreciate a variety of literature as well as recorded lectures,

pod casts, songs, movies, skits and plays. 2 Get an exposure to a wide range of vocabulary through listening exercises. 2 Acquire global understanding of literary and non-literary audio texts. 2 Develop an ability to listen for specific purposes. 2 Develop a skill of note-taking while listening. 2 Understand different intentions like irony, sarcasm, wit and humour depending

on the tone of the speaker.

2 Read in order to find the intention and attitude of the writer. 2 Read aloud to understand the literary piece and appreciate it. 2 Adopt different reading strategies such as skimming scanning, predicting,

inferencing etc. depending on the type of texts and the purpose of reading. 2 Read for pleasure, information and knowledge. 2 Read to understand the obvious meaning of the lines of a poem and also the

subtle meaning between the lines. 2 Relate and evaluate the information based on one’s previous knowledge and

develop further insights. 2 Read comparative literature and get insights into other cultures and their value

systems. 2 Read to express effectively while making spoken and written communication.

Writing

2 Read different comprehensive passages in order to understand career path in various streams such as food, technology, medicine, paramedical, administration, design, fashion, engineering etc. 2 Develop the habit of reading periodicals, research journals, reference books and

web-graph for authentic information. 2 Read for complete comprehension in a specific time. 2 Read to prepare for career opportunities and higher studies. 2 Read to develop excellence in wide variety of diction, syntax and semantics. 2 Read to express analytical and critical responses. 2 Read extensively to develop interest in different forms of literature and variety of

writings from all over the world.

2 Write correctly, coherently, concisely, clearly and completely. 2 Write notes based on the given text in order to summarize and express his/her

own point of view. 2 Use of simple as well as complex expressions. 2 Make use of language study skills to write short and long dialogues, passages

etc. 2 Express one’s own thoughts, feelings, emotions and ideas by using appropriate

language with suitable examples. 2 Write an appreciation of a poem. 2 Compose and write a poem / lines independently. 2 Use quotations, idiomatic expressions etc appropriately in writing. 2 Write short reports on news, interviews, visits and functions. 2 Report an event by choosing an appropriate format. For example: news report

and journal writing. 2 Write scripts for advertisements for radio and TV broadcasts, You Tube and

online publishing and make use of ICT effectively. 2 Use functional grammar effectively in writing. 2 Comment on different genre of writing in his/ her own words. 2 Write a wide variety of code-mixing, word register etc. 2 Write figurative language in sentences. 2 Written presentation of spatial or visualised ideas containing vivid images and

expressions. 2 Writing running dictation, anecdotal notes etc. while listening to a speech,

commentary, documentary etc. 2 Write notes on various situations like introducing a speaker, giving vote of

thanks, farewell, expressing condolence. 2 Write formal letters, applications and emails. 2 Attempt creative writing in different forms-stories, poems, dialogues, jokes etc. 2 Attempt writing in different styles using different literary devices. 2 Review a book, film, a TV programme, plays etc. 2 Use different techniques to make writing more effective. 2 Write blogs to reach out to the maximum number of people. 2 Compare and contrast : one’s own experiences with those of others. 2 Review and correct his/her own work as a matter of habit.

Study Skills

Language Study

2 Develop self-motivation and concentration. 2 Develop planning and organization of material. 2 Planning the process of studying. 2 Increase active participation in learning process as well as classroom situations. 2 Enhance reading techniques and process in a comprehensive way. 2 Use mind mapping, finding relevant context and note-making. 2 Develop the concept of creating memories. 2 Develop a critical approach to writing. 2 Research through available resources. 2 Apply information communication technology in presentation of data / content. 2 Participation in ‘Activity Based Learning’ by-

● Analyzing ● Comparing/Contrasting ● Defining ● Describing

● Discussing ● Distinguishing ● Evaluating ● Examining ● Explaining

● Interpreting ● Justifying ● Stating ● Summarizing ● Questioning....etc 2 Analyze critically extracts from prose, poetry, short stories, films, plays, concerts etc. 2 Evaluate intra-personal and inter-personal skills. 2 Raise self-awareness levels of intra and inter-personal intelligences in order to be

involved in more collaborative activities while studying. 2 Interpretation of data, facts, information published in mass media. 2 Learn how to become an efficient individual and collaborative learner. 2 Use kinesthetic skills in preparing models, visuals, charts, diagrams etc.

Students at this stage need better sentence construction skills, vocabulary building and usage.

Language study forms the foundation of a language. Revision of the following points will enable students at + 2 stage in building self-confidence and achieving fluency in all the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Use of the thesaurus and etymology needs to be introduced. 1. Parts of Speech : Verbs (main/auxiliary/modal, transitive/intransitive) gerund, finite/infinite verbs, participles; time, tense, phrasal verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, determiners-articles 2. Sentence structure : Types of sentences – simple, compound, complex, statements (positive/negative), questions, imperative, exclamatory, transformation of sentences (framing questions, negatives, voice, reported speech, joining sentences) 3. Vocabulary and word building : Synonyms, antonyms, homonyms, word register, root word, prefix, suffix, connotation, denotation, collocation, derivatives, compound words, minor processes of word building : blends, introduction to thesaurus. 4. Speech: Pronunciation, syllables, stress, intonation, rhyme, rhythm, accent etc. 5. Figures of Speech and stylistic devices : Simile, metaphor, personification,

apostrophe, hyperbole, euphemism, antithesis, irony, pun, onomatopoeia, alliteration, consonance,synecdoche,metonymy and ambiguity. 6. Phrases, idioms, proverbs, maxims and their usage : 7. Functional grammar : Editing, omission, finding errors, common gaffes.

(errors)

SECTION ONE (Prose)

1.1 An Astrologer’s Day R. K. Narayan 1

1.2 On Saying “Please” Alfred George Gardiner 13

1.3 The Cop and the Anthem O’Henry 27

1.4 Big Data-Big Insights - 35

1.5 The New Dress Virginia Woolf 43

1.6 Into the Wild Kiran Purandare 55

1.7 Why we Travel Siddarth Pico Raghavan Iyer 65

1.8 Voyaging Towards Excellence Achyut Godbole 77

SECTION TWO (Poetry)

2.1 Song of the Open Road Walt Whitman 93

2.2 Indian Weavers Sarojini Naidu 99

2.3 The Inchcape Rock Robert Southey 103

2.4 Have you Earned your Tomorrow Edgar Guest 111

2.5 Father Returning Home Dilip Chitre 115

2.6 Money William H. Davies 121

2.7 She Walks in Beauty George Gordon Byron 125

2.8 Small Towns and Rivers Mamang Dai

SECTION THREE (Writing Skills)

3.1 Summary Writing - 135

3.2 Do Schools Really Kill Creativity? (Mind-Mapping) 141

3.3 Note–Making - 147

3.4 Statement of Purpose - 153

3.5 Drafting a Virtual Message - 159

3.6 Group Discussion - 166

SECTION FOUR (Genre-Drama)

4.1 History of Novel - 173

4.2 To Sir, with Love E. R. Braithwaite 178

4.3 Around the World in Eighty Days Jules Gabriel Verne 189

4.4 The Sign of Four Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle 204

- Contents -

129

SECTION ONE

1.1 An Astrologer’s Day

ICE BREAKERS

➢ Discuss with your partner and complete the activity.

What are your strengths ?

Strengths Why do you feel so? Dream career painting and drawing can visualise, express commercial artist, cartoonist

➢ The scene in a local market of a village/town/city is very attractive. People with different occupations sell their wares. Discuss with your partner the variety of activities at the local market.

1. selling flowers, selling grocery 2.

3. 4.

➢ In a village /town /city it is quite a common sight to see an astrologer sitting

by the roadside with his professional equipment. Discuss with your partner and list the requirements for his trade.

1. parrot, cards etc. 2.

3. 4.

➢ There are certain unreasonable beliefs among people living in our society.

Certain common events are linked with superstitions. List such events, discuss the superstitions linked with them and the means of their eradication.

1. A cat crossing your path 2.

3. 4.

R. K. Narayan (1906 to 2001) Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswami was one of the best known novelists among Indian English writers. He is the author of fourteen novels, five volumes of short stories, and a number of travelogues, and has a collection of non-fiction to his credit. He also wrote his memoir ‘My Days’ (1975). Narayan created the imaginary town of Malgudi, where realistic characters in a typically Indian setting lived amid unpredictable events. His stories are grounded in compassionate humanism and celebrated the humour and energy of ordinary life. His stories are characterized by a simple style and subtle humour.

Narayan was introduced to American readers in 1952 by the Michigan State University Press. These include, ‘Swami and Friends’, ‘The Bachelor of Arts’ (1937), ‘The Dark Room’ (1938), ‘An Astrologer’s Day and Other stories’(1947), ‘Mr Sampath ‘(1949), ‘The Financial Expert’ (1954), ‘Waiting for the Mahatma’ (1955), ‘The Guide’ (1958), and many other books.

His novel, ‘The Guide’, won him The Sahitya Akademi Award in 1961, the most coveted literary honour in India. His writing is distinguished by humour and unoffending irony, a unique Indianness and a simplicity which is utterly charming and authentic. Narayan typically portrays the peculiarities of human relationships and the ironies of Indian daily life. His style is graceful, marked by genial humour, elegance and simplicity.

cowrie : a sea animal obscure : difficult to understand mystic : Something that relates to supernatural powers and is not easily understood. palmyra: a kind of palm resplendent : bright, dazzling and impressive enhanced: increased

An Astrologer’s Day

Punctually at midday he opened his bag and spread out his professional equipment, which consisted of a dozen cowrie shells, a square piece of cloth with obscure mystic charts on it, a notebook, and a bundle of palmyra writing. His forehead was resplendent with sacred ash and vermilion, and his eyes sparkled with a sharp abnormal gleam which was really an outcome of a continual searching look for customers, but which his simple clients took to be a prophetic light and felt comforted. The power of his eyes was considerably enhanced by their position- placed as they were between the painted forehead and the dark whiskers which streamed down his cheeks : even a half-wit’s eyes would sparkle in such a setting. To crown the effect he wound a saffron-coloured turban around his head. This colour scheme never failed. People were attracted to him as bees are attracted to cosmos or dahlia stalks. He sat under the boughs of a spreading tamarind tree which flanked a path running through the Town Hall Park. It was a remarkable place in many ways. A surging

crowd was always moving up and down this narrow road from morning till night. A variety of trades and occupations was represented all along its way : medicine sellers, sellers of stolen hardware and junk, magicians, and above all, an auctioneer of cheap cloth, who created enough din all day to attract the whole town. Next to him in vociferousness came a vendor of fried groundnut, who gave his ware a fancy name each day, calling it “Bombay Ice Cream” one day and on the next “Delhi Almond,” and on the third “Raja’s Delicacy,” and so on and so forth, and people flocked to him. A considerable portion of this crowd dallied before the astrologer too. The astrologer transacted his business by the light of a flare which crackled and smoked up above the groundnut heap nearby. Half the enchantment of the place was due to the fact that it did not have the benefit of municipal lighting. The place was lit up by shop lights. One or two had hissing gaslights, some had naked flares stuck on poles, some were lit up by old cycle lamps, and one or two, like the astrologer, managed without lights of their own. It was a bewildering crisscross of light rays and moving shadows. This suited the astrologer very well, for the simple reason that he had not in the least intended to be an astrologer when he began life; and he knew no more of what was going to happen to others than he knew what was going to happen to himself next minute. He was as much a stranger to the stars as were his innocent customers. Yet he said things which pleased and astonished everyone : that was more a matter of study, practice, and shrewd guesswork. All the same, it was as much an honest man’s labour as any other, and he deserved the wages he carried home at the end of a day.

He had left his village without any previous thought or plan. If he had continued there he would have carried on the work of his forefathers - namely, tilling the land, living, marrying, and ripening in his cornfield and ancestral home. But that was not to be. He had to leave home without telling anyone, and he could not rest till he left it behind a couple of hundred miles. To a villager it is a great deal, as if an ocean flowed between.

He had a working analysis of mankind’s troubles: marriage, money, and the tangles of human ties. Long practice had sharpened his perception. Within five minutes he understood what was wrong. He charged three pies per

vociferousness : being loud and noisy

dallied : wasted time just hanging around

enchantment : magical effect or charm

bewildering : confusing, baffling

shrewd : good at judging people, clever

If the astrologer had stayed in the village then he would have carried on

The astrologer could understand the problem in five minutes. How?

Guess the meaning :

• pies

How could the astrologer tell the person about his life ?

impetuous : impulsive endeared : made likeable

paraphernalia : a large number of small articles used in a particular activity or personal possession

piqued : irritated, annoyed or resented

Guess the meaning :

• tilting

• bluffing

question, never opened his mouth till the other had spoken for at least ten minutes, which provided him enough stuff for a dozen answers and advices. When he told the person before him, gazing at his palm, “In many ways you are not getting the fullest results for your efforts,” nine out of ten were disposed to agree with him. Or he questioned “Is there any woman in your family, maybe even a distant relative who is not well disposed towards you?” Or he gave an analysis of character: “Most of your troubles are due to your nature. How can you be otherwise with Saturn where he is? You have an impetuous nature and a rough exterior.” This endeared him to their hearts immediately, for even the mildest of us loves to think that he has a forbidding exterior.

The nuts vendor blew out his flare and rose to go home. This was a signal for the astrologer to bundle up too, since it left him in darkness except for a little shaft of green light which strayed in from somewhere and touched the ground before him. He picked up his cowrie shells and paraphernalia and was putting them back into his bag when the green shaft of light was blotted out. He looked up and saw a man standing before him. He sensed a possible client and said: “You look so careworn. It will do you good to sit down for a while and chat with me.” The other grumbled some reply vaguely. The astrologer pressed his invitation; whereupon the other thrust his palm under his nose, saying: “You call yourself an astrologer?” The astrologer felt challenged and said, tilting the other’s palm towards the green shaft of light: “Yours is a nature...” “Oh, stop that, ” the other said. “Tell me something worthwhile...” Our friend felt piqued. I charge only three pies per question, and what you get ought to be good enough for your money...” At this the other withdrew his arm, took out an anna, and flung it out to him, saying “I have some questions to ask. If I prove you are bluffing, you must return that anna to me with interest.”

“If you find my answers satisfactory, will you give me five rupees?” “No.” “Or will you give me eight annas?” “All right, provided you give me twice as much if you are wrong,” said the stranger. This pact was accepted after a little further argument. The astrologer sent up a

prayer to heaven as the other lit a cheroot. The astrologer caught a glimpse of his face by the matchlight. There was a pause as cars hooted on the road, jutka drivers swore at their horses, and the babble of the crowd agitated the semidarkness of the park. The other sat down, sucking his cheroot, puffing out, sat there ruthlessly. The astrologer felt very uncomfortable. “Here, take your anna back. I am not used to such challenges. It is late for me today”... He made preparations to bundle up. The other held his wrist and said “You can’t get out of it now. You dragged me in while I was passing.” The astrologer shivered in his grip and his voice shook and became faint. “Leave me today. I will speak to you tomorrow.” The other thrust his palm in his face and said: “Challenge is challenge. Go on.” The astrologer proceeded with his throat drying up: “There is a woman...”

“Stop,” said the other. “I don’t want all that. Shall I succeed in my present search or not? Answer this and go. Otherwise I will not let you go till you disgorge all your coins.” The astrologer muttered a few incantations and replied: “All right. I will speak. But will you give me a rupee if what I say is convincing? Otherwise I will not open my mouth, and you may do what you like.” After a good deal of haggling, the other agreed. The astrologer said: “You were left for dead. Am I right?”

“Ah, tell me more.” “A knife has passed through you once?” said the astrologer.

“Good fellow!” He bared his chest to show the scar. “What else?”

cheroot : a cigar

Guess the meaning of :

• glimpse

jutka : horse-driven cart

disgorge : yield surrender under pressure incantations : supposedly magical words

haggling : bargaining

The man was left for dead because

Guess the meaning :

• passer-by

• peep

• overwhelmed

• groaned

gratified : pleased, satisfied

“And then you were pushed into a well nearby in the field. You were left for dead.”

“I should have been dead if some passer-by had not chanced to peep into the well,” exclaimed the other, over- whelmed by enthusiasm.

“When shall I get at him?” he asked, clenching his fist. “In the next world,” answered the astrologer. “He died four months ago in a far-off town. You will never see any more of him.” The other groaned on hearing it. The astrologer proceeded :

“Guru Nayak-” “You know my name!” the other said, taken aback. “As I know all other things. Guru Nayak, listen carefully to what I have to say. Your village is two days’ journey due north of this town. Take the next train and be gone. I see once again great danger to your life if you go from home.” He took out a pinch of sacred ash and held it to him. “Rub it on your forehead and go home. Never travel southward again, and you will live to be a hundred.” “Why should I leave home again?” the other said reflectively. “I was only going away now and then to look for him and to choke out his life if I met him.” He shook his head regretfully. “He has escaped my hands. I hope at least he died as he deserved.” “Yes,” said the astrologer. “He was crushed under a lorry.”The other looked gratified to hear it.

The place was deserted by the time the astrologer picked up his articles and put them into his bag. The green shaft was also gone, leaving the place in darkness and silence. The stranger had gone off into the night, after giving the astrologer a handful of coins.

It was nearly midnight when the astrologer reached home. His wife was waiting for him at the door and demanded an explanation. He flung the coins at her and said “Count them. One man gave all that.”

“Twelve and a half annas,” she said, counting. She was overjoyed. “I can buy some jaggery and coconut tomorrow. The child has been asking for sweets for so many days now. I will prepare some nice stuff for her.”

“The swine has cheated me! He promised me a rupee,” said the astrologer. She looked up at him. “You look worried. What is wrong?”

“Nothing.” After dinner, sitting on the pyol, he told her “Do you know a great load is gone from me today? I thought I had the blood of a man on my hands all these years. That was the reason why I ran away from home, settled here, and married you. He is alive.”

She gasped. “You tried to kill him!” “Yes, in our village, when I was a silly youngster. We drank, gambled, and quarreled badly one day - why think of it now? Time to sleep,” he said, yawning, and stretched himself on the pyol.

- R. K. Narayan

pyol : a string cot

What was the load on the astrologer’s mind?

BRAINSTORMING

(A1) (i) Given below are some descriptions. Discuss them with your partner and

find out one word for each of them. An example is given for you.

(a) The scientific study of the universe and the objects in it, including stars,

planets, nebulae and galaxies - Astronomy

(b) The study of the movements of the planets, Sun, Moon, and Stars in the belief that these movements can have an influence on people's lives

(d) Scientific discipline that studies mental states and processes and behaviour

in humans and other animals

(ii) In the story we are told that the Town Hall Park was a remarkable place in many ways for an astrologer to build his business. Discuss it in a group and list the exceptional qualities of the place.

A surging crowd

(iii) The astrologer never opened his mouth till the other had spoken for at

least ten minutes. Discuss the reasons behind his act.

(a) He is good at reading the people.

(b)

(c)

(d)

(A2) (i) The tactics used by the astrologer to earn his wages are...

The Tactics

analysis of human troubles

(ii) An astrologer's appearance helps to create an impression on his clients.

Complete the following.

(a) The turban on his head

(b)

(c)

(d)

(iii) Read the following sentences and choose the correct one.

(a) The astrologer says that if Nayak does not leave his village again, he

would -

(1) return the money

(2) face danger

(3) go back home and stop looking for the man who tried to kill him

(4) not find the killer.

(b) According to the narrator the astrologer's success in his profession is

primarily due to - (1) luck

(2) the bargains he drives

(3) his appearance

(4) his understanding of people.

people by - (1) promising them success and good fortune

(2) proving, as time passes, to have been true

(3) flattering them or supporting their own views

(4) helping them to learn to solve their own problems.

(d) Guru Nayak consults the astrologer because he wants to -

(1) understand the past

(2) find out who the astrologer is

(3) make some money through a bet

(4) get the answer to a specific question.

(e) Guru Nayak is looking for the man who tried to kill him -

(1) to take revenge

(2) to get an apology

(3) to demand an explanation (4) to prove that the man was unsuccessful.

(f) The astrologer's remark makes Guru Nayak feel all of the following

except-

(1) relieved

(2) suspicious

(3) impressed

(4) disappointed.

(g) Reactions of the astrologer's wife to his news suggest that she -

(1) was unaware of his past

(2) has been worried about his safety

(3) has known him since he was young (4) is concerned about her future with him.

(iv) Read the following sentences and find out True and False sentences. Correct

the False sentences.

(a) The astrologer gave a correct prediction to the client about his past that

he was stabbed, thrown into a well and left for dead.

(b) When the astrologer came to know that the man whom he killed is alive

he felt that he was relieved of his guilt.

past.

(d) The astrologer rescued himself from Guru Nayak's revenge.

(e) The moral of the story is that we must be responsible about what we

have done and should not run away from our mistakes.

(v) The astrologer has changed his appearance and his persona when he

arrived in the city. Give specific reasons.

(vi) 'The darkness load that was inside the astrologer has disappeared'. Through

this sentence, explain the significance of the title 'An Astrologer's Day'.

(vii) The astrologer feels relieved that Guru is not dead as it relieves a great

burden from him. Critically justify the statement and explain it.

(viii) The astrologer wins/gets the sympathy of criticism of the reader in the

end. Express your opinion with the support of the main story.

(ix) If we have to eradicate the superstitions and other ill practices from our

society, what steps would you like to suggest?

(x) In the story, astrologer has a great listening power. Listening helps in

developing good relations with people. Express your opinion.

(A3) (i) In the story, the following characters reveal their qualities through words and actions. Pick out the words that describe them from the box and write in the appropriate columns.

shrewd clever suspicious gullible arrogant demanding antagonistic quarrelsome overconfident manipulative skeptical mystical smart caring protective sharp rational mean intuitive aggressive worried cunning humanistic impetuous

Astrologer Guru Nayak Astrologer's wife (1) shrewd

(2)

(3)

(4)

manipulative caring

(ii) Match the suffixes with the words and make nouns. One is done for you.

Word suffix noun auction able auctioneer enchant ure

know ment prepare eer proceed ance appear ledge remark tion

(iii) 'An Astrologer's Day' has ironic elements where the astrologer pretends to have 'supernatural knowledge' that coincidently turns out to be the truth. Irony means a situation or statement characterized by a significant difference between what is expected and what actually happens, or between what is understood and what is meant. Find out the examples of irony from the story and write them down. One has been done for you.

(a) He knew no more of what was going to happen to others than he knew

what was going to happen to himself the next minute. (b)

(c)

(d)

(iv) In the story, many Indian words are used.

• 'Cowrie shells'. This is an example of code-mixing.

Find out other such words from the story and write them down.

(v) There are some phrases where the word crown is used with different shades of meaning. Use the following phrases to complete the sentences meaningfully. One is done for you.

crowning achievement, To crown the effect, crown of thorns, crowning glory, to crown it all

To crown the effect, he wound a saffron-coloured turban around his head.

(a) The works of Shakespeare are the of English drama.

(b) Amitabh has given us awesome movies throughout five decades. But his

is his performance in the movie 'Black'.

Her fame has become a real .

(d) They threw a wonderful party for me with costumes, games and

my favourite kind of ice cream.

(e) Medical science has great inventions, but organ transplantation is definitely

a for human beings.

(A4) (i) Word Usage

Use the words given in the brackets and rewrite the sentences.

(a) The power of his eyes was considerably enhanced. (enhancement)

(b) He had a working analysis of mankind’s troubles. (worked)

(d) If you find my answers satisfactory, will you give me five rupees?

(satisfaction)

(e) He shook his head regretfully. (regret)

(f) It was a bewildering crisscross of light rays. (bewildered)

(g) “I should have been dead if some passer-by had not chanced to peep into the well,” exclaimed the other, overwhelmed by enthusiasm. (enthusiastically)

(h) You tried to kill him. (killing)

(i) I will prepare some nice stuff for her. (preparation)

(j) The other groaned on hearing it. (heard)

(A5) (i) Prepare a speech on Science and Superstitions.

(ii) Read the following proverbs. Share your views and expand the ideas.

(a) Actions speak louder than words.

(b) The face is the index of the mind.

(d) Argument is the worst kind of communication.

(e) Attitudes are the real figures of speech.

(f) The wise man has long ears and a short tongue.

(A6) (i) Bill Naughton has written a collection of wonderful stories which you can read in his book ‘The Goal Keepers Revenge and Other Stories’. Read all the stories and discuss their theme/s with your partner.

(ii) Read R.K. Narayan’s humorous collections of short stories and novels. Here

are some titles you can read.

(a) ‘Under The Banyan Tree’

(b) ‘The Doctor’s Word’

(d) ‘A Horse and Two Goats’

(e) ‘Gateman’s Gift’

(A7) Surf the internet and find out the career opportunities in Astronomy.

❑❑❑

1.2 On Saying “Please”

ICE BREAKERS

➢ List the words of courtesy that we use in our daily life. Discuss them with

your partner and explain the purpose of using each.

Thank you

➢ Listed below are a few character traits of people. Some are positive traits,

while others are not. Tick ✓ the ones you feel are desirable.

Characteristic traits Characteristic traits Characteristic traits Conniving Insensitive SlyHumorous

➢十 Naive Benevolent

Boastful Humble Servile Territorial Patronising Generous

➢ Etiquette and manners are very important for a person to live in the society.

Read the following and put them in proper columns. 1. To receive phone calls while you are in a lecture or class. 2. To knock before you enter your Principal’s office. 3. To thank the person who offers you tea or coffee. 4. To be polite and courteous to others. 5. To leave the classroom without the teacher’s permission. 6. To occupy the seats reserved for ladies or physically challenged or elderly

people on a bus or a train.

Appropriate Inappropriate 1. 2. 3.

Aggressive Scheming Wise Egoistic Manipulative Rude

1. 2. 3.

Words of courtesy

Alfred George Gardiner (1865 to 1946) was born at Chelmsford in Essex in 1865. He started his literary career as a journalist. At the age of 37, he was appointed editor of the Daily News, London. Under the pseudonym (pen name) ‘Alpha of the Plough’, he made regular contributions to the Daily News, The Manchester Evening News etc. His essays are uniformly elegant, graceful and humorous. ‘The Pillars of Society’, ‘Pebbles on the Shore’, ‘Many Furrows and Leaves in the Wind’ are some of his best known writings. His uniqueness lies in his ability to teach the basic truths of life in an easy and amusing manner. He raised the question of morality in everyday life.

In, On Saying ‘‘Please’’, he points out the value of good manners in social life and emphasizes the importance of courtesy and politeness in daily behaviour. He shows how polite speech and manner sweeten the atmosphere around and how discourtesy and ill manners spoil or pollute it.

discourtesy : lack of courtesy, rudeness assault and battery: an attack which includes not only threats but also the actual use of violence retaliate : do something bad to someone who has done something bad to you assailant : an attacker legislate: make a law or laws violence : action or feeling that causes damage, unrest etc. to box : fight with the fists (closed hands)

haughty: having a high opinion of oneself and often a low opinion of others

On Saying “Please”

The young lift-man in a City office who threw a a lift-man is a person who

passenger out of his lift the other morning and was fined for the offence was undoubtedly in the wrong. It was a question of “Please.” The complainant entering the lift, said, “Top.” The lift-man demanded “Top-please,” and this concession being refused he not only declined to comply with the instruction, but hurled the passenger out of the lift. This, of course was carrying a comment on manner too far. Discourtesy is not a legal offence, and it does not excuse assault and battery. If a burglar breaks into my house and I knock him down, the law will acquit me, and if I am physically assaulted, it will permit me to retaliate with reasonable violence. It does this because the burglar and my assailant have broken quite definite commands of the law. But no legal system could attempt to legislate against bad manners, or could sanction the use of violence against something which it does not itself recognize as a legally punishable offence. And our sympathy with the lift- man, we must admit that the law is reasonable. It would never do if we were at liberty to box people’s ears because we did not like their behaviour, or the tone of their voices, or the scowl on their faces. Our fists would never be idle, and the gutters of the city would run with blood all day.

I may be as uncivil as I may please and the law will protect me against violent retaliation. I may be haughty

or boorish and there is no penalty to pay except the penalty of being written down an ill-mannered fellow. The law does not compel me to say “Please” or to attune my voice to other people’s sensibilities any more than it says that I shall not wax my moustache or dye my hair or wear ringlets down my back. It does not recognize the laceration of our feelings as a case for compensation. There is no allowance for moral and intellectual damages in these matters.

This does not mean that the damages are negligible. It is probable that the lift-man was much more acutely hurt by what he regarded as a slur upon his social standing than he would have been if he had a kick on the shins, for which he could have got a legal redress. The pain of a kick on the shins soon passes away but the pain of a wound to our self-respect or our vanity may poison a whole day. I can imagine that lift-man, denied the relief of throwing the author of his wound out of the lift, brooding over the insult by the hour, and visiting his wife in the evening as the only way of restoring his equilibrium. For there are few things more catching than bad temper and bad manners. When Sir Anthony Absolute bullied Captain Absolute, the latter went out and bullied his man, Fag, whereupon Fag went out downstairs and kicked the page- boy. Probably the man who said “Top” to the lift-man was really only getting back on his employer who had not said “Good morning” to him because he himself had been henpecked at breakfast by his wife, to whom the cook had been insolent because the housemaid had “answered her back”. We infect the world with our ill-humours. Bad manners probably do more to poison the stream of the general life than all the crimes in the calendar. For one wife who gets a black eye from an otherwise good- natured husband there are a hundred who live a life of martyrdom under the shadow of a morose temper. But all the same the law cannot become the guardian of our private manners. No Decalogue could cover the vast area of offences and no court could administer a law which governed our social civilities, our speech, the tilt of our eyebrows and all our moods and manners.

But though we are bound to endorse the verdict against the lift-man, most people will have a certain

boorish: rude, uncultured

laceration: (here) a cut or tear

Guess the meaning :

• redress Explain the sentence : The pain of a kick... poison a whole day.

vanity: pride

brooding over : thinking anxiously or sadly about something equilibrium: balance bullied: threatened Sir Anthony Absolute.... page boy : This amusing incident is described in Act III, Sc.1 of ‘The Rivals’ 1775, a comedy by Sheridan. Sir Anthony is Captain Jack Absolute’s father, and Fag is the son’s servant.

insolent: very rude

calendar: (here) a calendar of causes arranged for trial in court Guess the meanings :

• henpecked

• black eye

• endorse morose: unhappy Decalogue: The Ten Commandments Why is it not possible for the law to become the guardian of our private manners?

verdict: judgement

How can we keep the machine of life oiled and running sweetly?

intercourse: communication, conversation

resentment: anger

ordeal: difficult or painful experience

The public owes to the Underground Railway Company because

knave: a dishonest person According to the conductor, what are the stale old tricks ?

sympathy with him. While it is true that there is no law that compels us to say “Please”, there is a social practice much older and much more sacred than any law which enjoins us to be civil. And the first requirement of civility is that we should acknowledge a service. “Please” and “Thank you” are the small change with which we pay our ways as social beings. They are the little courtesies by which we keep the machine of life oiled and running sweetly. They put our intercourse upon the basis of a friendly co-operation, an easy give-and-take, instead of on the basis of superiors dictating to inferiors. It is a very vulgar mind that would wish to command where he can have the service for asking, and have it with willingness and good-feeling instead of resentment.

I should like to “feature” in this connection my friend, the polite conductor. By this discriminating title I do not intend to suggest a rebuke to conductors generally. On the contrary, I am disposed to think that there are few classes of men who come through the ordeal of a very trying calling better than bus conductors do. Here and there you will meet an unpleasant specimen who regards the passengers as his natural enemies - as creatures whose chief purpose on the bus is to cheat him, and who can only be kept reasonably honest by a loud voice and an aggressive manner. But this type is rare - rarer than it used to be. I fancy the public owes much to the Underground Railway Company, which also runs the buses, for insisting on a certain standard of civility in its servants and taking care that standard is observed. In doing this it not only makes things pleasant for the travelling public, but performs an important social service.

It is not, therefore, with any feeling of unfriendliness to conductors as a class that I pay a tribute to a particular member of that class. I first became conscious of his existence one day when I jumped on to a bus and found that I had left home without any money in my pocket. Everyone has had the experience and knows the feeling, the mixed feeling, which the discovery arouses. You are annoyed because you look like a fool at the best and like a knave at the worst. You would not be at all surprised if the conductor eyed you coldly as much as to say, “Yes, I know that stale old trick. Now then, off you get.’’ And

even if the conductor is a good fellow and lets you down easily, you are faced with the necessity of going back, and the inconvenience, perhaps, of missing your train or your engagement.

Having searched my pockets in vain for stray coppers, and having found I was utterly penniless, I told the conductor with as honest a face as I could assume that I couldn’t pay the fare, and must go back for money. “Oh you needn’t get off: that’s all right,” said he. “All right,” said I, “but I haven’t a copper on me.” “Oh, I’ll book you through,” he replied. “Where d’ye want to go?” and he handled his bundle of tickets with the air of a man who was prepared to give me a ticket for anywhere from the Bank to Hong Kong. I said it was very kind of him, and told him where I wanted to go, and as he gave me the ticket I said, “But where shall I send the fare?” “Oh, you’ll see me some day all right,” he said cheerfully, he turned to go. And then, luckily, my fingers, still wandering in the corner of my pockets lighted on a shilling and the account was squared. But that fact did not lessen the glow of pleasure which so good-natured an action had given me.

A few days after, my most sensitive toe was trampled on rather heavily as I sat reading on the top of a bus. I looked up with some anger and more agony, and saw my friend of the cheerful countenance. “Sorry, sir,” he said. “I know these are heavy boots. Got’ em because my own feet get trod on so much, and now I’m treading on other people’s. Hope I didn’t hurt you, sir.” He had hurt me but he was so nice about it that I assured him he hadn’t. After this I began to observe him whenever I boarded his bus, and found a curious pleasure in the constant good-nature of his bearing. He seemed to have an inexhaustible fund of patience and a gift for making his passengers comfortable. I noticed that if it was raining he would run up the stairs to give someone the tip that there was “room inside”. With old people he was as considerate as a son,and with children as solicitous as a father. He had evidently a peculiarly warm place in his heart for young people, and always indulged in some merry jest with them. If he had a blind man on board it was not enough to set him down safely on the pavement. He would call to Bill

coppers : coins of low value

cheerfully: happily

squared: settled

trampled on : crushed under feet

Guess the meanings :

• countenance

• treading

• assured

inexhaustible: unlimited

solicitous: caring or concerned Which particular experience made the writer comfortable in a bus?

irradiated : (here) spread or produced

uncouth: impolite, unrefined

benediction: a blessing

conciliatory: trying to win friendly feelings

panegyric: a speech or piece of writing to praise someone highly

the poor leech-gatherer: the subject of Wordsworth’s poem ‘Resolution and Independence’ or ‘The Leech Gatherer’

lower than the angels: from Psalm 8:5-- ‘Thou hast made him (man) a little lower than the angels, here, it means less than perfect

Guess the meaning :

• moral affront

in front to wait while he took him across the road or round the corner, or otherwise safely on his way. In short, I found that he irradiated such an atmosphere of good-temper and kindliness that a journey with him was a lesson in natural courtesy and good manners.

What struck me particularly was the ease with which he got through his work. If bad manners are infectious, so also are good manners. If we encounter incivility most of us are apt to become uncivil, but it is an unusually uncouth person who can be disagreeable with sunny people. It is with manners as with the weather. ‘‘Nothing clears up my spirits like a fine day,” said Keats, and a cheerful person descends on even the gloomiest of us with something of the benediction of a fine day. And so it was always fine weather on the polite conductor’s bus, and his own civility, his conciliatory address and good-humoured bearing, infected his passengers. In lightening their spirits he lightened his own task. His gaiety was not a wasteful luxury, but a sound investment.

I have missed him from my bus route of late; but I hope that only means that he has carried his sunshine on to another road. It cannot be too widely diffused in a rather drab world. And I make no apologies for writing a panegyric on an unknown bus conductor. If Wordsworth could gather lessons of wisdom from the poor leech- gatherer ‘on the lonely moor’, I see no reason why lesser people should not take lessons in conduct from one who shows how a very modest calling may be dignified by good-temper and kindly feeling.

It is a matter of general agreement that the war has had a chilling effect upon those little everyday civilities of behaviour that sweeten the general air. We must get those civilities back if we are to make life kindly and tolerable for each other. We cannot get them back by invoking the law. The policeman is a necessary symbol and the law is a necessary institution for a society that is still some- what lower than the angels. But the law can only protect us against material attack. Nor will the lift-man’s way of meeting moral affront by physical violence help us to restore the civilities. I suggest to him, that he would have had a more subtle and effective revenge if he had treated the gentleman who would not say “Please” with elaborate

politeness. He would have had the victory, not only over the boor, but over himself, and that is the victory that counts. The polite man may lose the material advantage, but he always has the spiritual victory. I commend to the lift-man a story of Chesterfield. In his time the London streets were without the pavements of today, and the man who “took the wall” had the driest footing. “I never give the wall to a scoundrel,” said a man who met Chesterfield one day in the street. “I always do,” said Chesterfield, stepping with a bow into the road. I hope the lift-man will agree that his revenge was much more sweet than if he had flung the fellow into the mud.

- Alfred George Gardiner

boor: a rude insensitive person

Chesterfield: Lord Chesterfield (1694-1773) English statesman, author and patron of letters.

BRAINSTORMING

(A1) (i) Form groups and explain the following words with examples. You can take

help of your teacher.

• Humility • Self-esteem • Gratitude

• Courtesy • Generosity • Sympathy

• Empathy

(ii) Have a Group Discussion on the topic ‘The need of soft skills at work

place’. Use the following points.

(a) Written and verbal communication

(b) Ways of interacting with others

(d) Emotional intelligence

(A2) (i) Read the text and state whether the following statements are True or False.

Correct the False statements.

(a) Bitter problems in day-to-day life can be solved by sweet words.

(b) Great wars could have been avoided by a little courtesy.

important is their observance when the situation is adverse.

(d) Words like 'please' and 'thank you' help us in making our passage through

life uneasy. (e) The law permits anybody to use violence, if another person is discourteous.

(ii) Select the most appropriate sentences which suggest the theme of the essay.

(a) The essay tells us about courtesy, civility, morality, responsibility and

control.

(b) The essay explores the difficulties that can be incurred by an individual

when dealing with the public.

the level of the perceived offender.

(d) People with low self-esteem are generally difficult to work with and they

look down upon others to get a feeling of superiority.

(iii) (a) Find the reasons for the lift-man's uncivilized behaviour.

(b) List the people and their behaviour that made the passenger rude and

ill-mannered.

Housemaid Wife

Lift-man

(iv) Good manners are required in our daily life for making our social contacts more cooperative and friendly. Illustrate the behaviour of the polite conductor with different people in various situations.

Situation Behaviour 1. The writer’s sensitive toe was

trampled on

The conductor said sorry with an apology and courtesy. 2. In the rainy season dealing with people 3. Dealing with old people 4. Dealing with children 5. Dealing with young people 6. Dealing with a blind man

(v) Discuss and write the impact of good temper and kindliness on the society

in the light of the good-mannered conductor.

(vi) 'A modest calling can be made dignified by good temper and kindly feeling'.

Explain the statement with examples.

(vii) The service of the police is necessary for the implementation of law in our society. Do you think you require this service for good social environment? Discuss.

(A3) (i) • He committed the crime in broad daylight (not bright daylight or narrow

darkness).

• I had a cup of strong tea (not rich tea).

• The fast train is coming (not quick train).

Such words or group of words which habitually occur together and thereby convey meaning by association are called collocations. A collocation is a combination of words in a language that often go together.

(a) Find out the words in column 'B' which collocate with the words in column 'A'.

A B regular meal mid day concept key food fast exercise try decorated richly hard free jam traffic time social animal wild justice

(b) Learning collocations is essential for making your English sound fluent and

natural. Make collocations and use in your own sentences.

mistake

surprise

Well

dressed

(ii) Sometimes while using a word in a sentence, we have to change its word

class. We can make several more words from the root word.

We can make several new words from the root word.

I asked Sumit to my pencil for me. (sharp).

Big

I asked Sumit to sharpen my pencil for me.

Now read the following sentences and use the words given in the brackets. Change the word class and rewrite the sentences.

(a) Leena was eating a very apple and obviously enjoying it. (crunch)

(b) This picture looks . (colour)

(d) I like my elder brother. He is very . (help)

Complete the following table. Put a cross if a word class does not exist.

Sr.No. Noun Verb Adjective Adverb

1. absence 2. alarm alarm alarming alarmingly 3. attraction 4. enable

5. admire 6. agree

7. applicable

8. avoidably 9. differ

(iii) Register often refers to the degree of formality of language, but in a more general sense it means the language used by a group of people who share similar work or interest, such as doctors or lawyers.

Imagine that your Principal or teacher is coming. When you meet him, you would never say,

'Hey, dude ! What's up?'

This is a formal situation, so you would say 'Good morning, Sir'.

In every situation, you use an appropriate expression according to the person. The language you use, when you meet someone depends on their age, position etc. There are formal and informal registers in spoken and written language.

Write appropriate expressions and words which you have to use while facing an interview.

(a) May I come in ?

(b)

(c)

(d)

(e)

You are writing a letter of complaint. List the proper expressions that you would like to write.

(a) I disagree.

(b)

(c)

(d)

(e)

(iv) Distinguish between a legal offence and a moral offence on the basis of

the given text.

Legal offence Moral offence Burglary Rude behaviour

(v) Find out the meanings of the following phrases. Use them in your own

sentences.

(a) give and take (b) a black eye

(vi) Find out the words with prefixes and suffixes from the text and write

them down.

Prefix Suffix uncivil requirement

(vii) Complete the table with polite expressions that we must use in our day-

to-day life.

Don'ts Dos

I want a cup of tea. I would like to have a cup of tea.

Send me the mail.

Go away or leave me alone. You are wrong.

That's a bad idea.

Your work isn't good.

(A4) (i) Edit the given paragraph using a/an/the wherever necessary.

Rakesh is a/an ideal son who remains devoted to his father as he grows professionally to become a/the famous doctor. As his father grows old, he takes care to spend time with his father, bringing him tea in a/the morning and taking him out for a/the walk in an/the evening.

(ii) Spot the errors in each of the following sentences and correct the incorrect

ones.

(a) Radha brought pens and distributed them between her five children.

(b) Jayshree and Sujata sat besides each other in complete silence.

(d) One could dare to encroach on his rights.

(e) She was taken with surprise when she saw the famous Taj Mahal.

(f) It is not possible to exchange the goods once the sale has been completed.

(g) Dr. Sengupta has been trying to master the craft for the last five years.

(h) The top-ranking candidates will be appointed in senior jobs in banks.

(i) She knows very well what is expected from her but she is unable to

perform.

(j) They will put on a note in this regard for your consideration.

(iii) Read the following sentence.

Santosh purchased a computer. He read the operating manual and followed the instructions.

(a) He linked the monitor, keyboard and printer.

(b) He plugged in the main cable .

(d) When the light appeared on the screen, he placed the Day Disk in Drive A.

(e) He pushed in the disk until the button clicked out.

(It took about 30 seconds for the computer to load the programme.)

(f) He pressed the Drive button and the disk shot out .

(g) He replaced the Day Disk with the Document Disk.

(h) He pressed function key 7.

Convert these sentences into passive voice by filling in the blanks. The first sentence has been done as an example.

Firstly the monitor, keyboard and printer were linked up. Then the ----

---- was ---- -----. The monitor ---- at the back. When the light appeared

on the screen, ---- ---- ---- ----- in Drive A. The disk ---- --- --- until -----

--- ---- ---. It took the computer 30 seconds to load the programme. The

drive button ---- ---- ---- and the disk shot out. The --- ---- --- ---with

Document Disk. Finally, the function key 7......................

The word processor was then ready to use.

(A5) (i) Write a speech on 'Courtesy is the light of life' with the help of the

following points.

(a) People have a good impression of you.

(b) You will be acknowledged and appreciated by all.

(ii) ‘Manners maketh man’ – Expand the idea in your own words with proper

examples.

(A6) (i) Read A. G. Gardiner's essay 'The Open Window' and compare its theme

with the essay ‘On Saying ‘‘Please.’’’

(ii) ‘Nothing clears up my spirits like a fine day’ - Keats. Collect the

information of the poet Keats and write it in your notebook.

(A7) (i) Soft skills are required in all walks of life including careers and industries. They are increasingly becoming the essential skills of today's work force.

Soft skills are an integral part of finding, attracting and retaining clients also. Highly developed presentation skills, networking abilities, and etiquette awareness can help you win new clients and gain more work.

The following are considered the most important soft skills.

Interpersonrela💭tio💭ns

Leadership al 💭 💭💭 💭💭Teamwork Worek thics

Flexibility adaptability or

(ii) Following are the institutions where you will get the courses related to soft

skills.

(a) Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, Gujarat

(b) Indian School of Business Management, Hyderabad

(d) Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, New Delhi

Jobs available at -

• Customer service centre

• Management schools

• Hotel industry

❑❑❑

Problem- solving

Soft Skills

Commu- nication

1.3 The Cop and the Anthem
ICE BREAKERS

➢ Suppose you have gone to a place where the winter season is very severe, discuss with your partner the ways in which you would protect yourself in the cold climate.

➢ When you see a cop approaching, you feel either ‘relieved’ or ‘scared’. Discuss

with your partner the situations when you feel ‘relieved’ or ‘scared’.

Relieved

You are riding a bike without a valid driving licence. (b) (c)

➢ Discuss some of the motivating things that can change a person's life. One is

given :

(a) Listening to an inspiring speech

(b)

(b) (c)

Scared

Ways to protect from cold climate

O’Henry (1862-1910) William Sydney Porter, an American writer is better known by his pen name O’Henry. He was a voracious reader since childhood. He started a humorous weekly, ‘The Rolling Stone’ and when the venture failed, he joined the ‘Houston Post’ as a reporter, columnist and occasional cartoonist.

The story, ‘The Cop and the Anthem’ is one of O’Henry’s well known stories. To describe his style of writing, people have often used the term ‘smile with tears’ which implies his twisted way of thoughts and endings in almost every story.

In this story the main character, Soapy, is a vagabond and a person with criminal background. He makes different plans to re-enter the prison as he has no shelter to protect himself from the severe winter. The story` ends in an unexpected way. O’Henry has depicted Soapy’s futile attempts to get arrested in a very humourous vein.

‘The Cop and the Anthem’ is about freedom and confinement. Initially Soapy feels that there is freedom (from miseries and worries) in confinement (prison). The notes of anthem transform him from within and he resolves to work hard. Soapy faces the irony of fate as the moment he realizes the real freedom lies in a virtuous life, he is taken into confinement.

The Cop and the Anthem

Soapy left his bench and strolled out of the square strolled : walked in a

and across the level sea of asphalt, where Broadway and leisurely way

Fifth Avenue flow together. Up Broadway he turned, and stopped at a luxurious cafe.

Soapy had confidence in himself from the lowest button of his vest upward. He was shaven, and his coat

Thanksgiving Day: The fourth Thursday of

was trim and his neat, black bow had been presented to him by a lady missionary on Thanksgiving Day. If only November marked by

he could reach a table in the restaurant unsuspected, religious observances and traditional meals

success would be his. The portion of him that would show above the table would raise no doubt in the waiter’s mind. A roasted mallard duck, thought Soapy, would be about the thing with a bottle of wine and then some cheese, a cup of coffee and a cigar. One dollar Guess the meaning of the expression in the context :

• winter island

• eye fell upon

for the cigar would be enough. The total would not be so high as to call forth any extreme of revenge from the cafe management; and yet the meat would leave him filled and happy for the journey to his winter island.

decadent : (here) old and

But as Soapy set foot inside the restaurant door, worn out

the head-waiter’s eye fell upon his tattered trousers and decadent shoes. Strong and ready hands turned

him about and conveyed him in silence and haste to the side-walk and averted the ignoble fate of the menaced mallard.

Soapy turned off Broadway. It seemed that his route to the coveted island was not to be an easy one. Some other way of entering the limbo must be devised.

At a corner of Sixth Avenue electric lights and cunningly displayed wares behind plateglass made a shop window attractive. Soapy took a stone and dashed it through the glass. People came running round the coner, a policeman in the lead. Soapy stood still with his hands in his pockets, and smiled at the sight of brass buttons.

“Where’s the man that done that?” inquired the officer agitatedly.

“Don’t you think that I might have had something to do with it?” said Soapy, with a friendly voice, as one greets good fortune.

The policeman refused to accept Soapy even as a clue. Men who smash windows do not remain to chat with the police. They take to their heels. The policeman saw a man half-way down the block running to catch a car. With drawn club he joined in the pursuit. Soapy, with disgust in his heart, drifted along, twice unsuccessful.

On the opposite side of the street was a restaurant of no great pretensions. It catered to large appetites and modest purses. Its crockery and atmosphere were thick; its soup and napery thin. Into this place Soapy betook himself without challenge. At a table he sat and consumed beefsteak, flapjacks, doughnuts and pie. And then he told the waiter the fact that the minutest coin and himself were total strangers.

“Now, get busy and call a cop”, said Soapy. “And don’t keep a gentleman waiting.”

“No cop for you,” said the waiter, with a voice like butter cakes and an eye like the cherry in the Manhattan cocktail. “Hey, Con!”

Neatly upon his left ear on the callous pavement two waiters pitched Soapy. He arose, joint by joint, as

ignoble : dishonourable

coveted : greatly desired limbo : border place between heaven and hell

Soapy took a stone because ........................................

agitatedly : in a troubled or nervous manner

Discuss the hidden meaning in the expression.

• It catered to large appetites and modest purses.

Guess the meaning :

• napery

• betook

callous : (here) very hard pitched : threw

elusive : difficult to find, catch or achieve

rendered : made

Discuss the meaning in the context : he caught at the immediate straw of ‘disorderly conduct’

twirled : turned something quickly round and round

disconsolate : very unhappy Arcadia : a mountainous district in the Peloponnese of Southern Greece. In poetic fantasy it represents a pastoral paradise.

sauntered : walked in a relaxed manner

sneered: gave a contemptuous or mocking smile, remark or tone larceny : theft of personal property

premonition : a strong feeling that something is about to happen, especially something unpleasant

a acarpenter’s rule opens, and dusted his clothes. Arrest seemed now but an elusive dream. The island seemed very far away. A policeman who stood before a drugstore two doors away laughed and walked down the street.

Soapy was seized with a sudden fear that some dreadful enchantment had rendered him immune to arrest. He was in a state of panic, and, when he came upon another policeman lounging grandly in front of a glittering theatre, he caught at the immediate straw of ‘disorderly conduct’.

On the sidewalk Soapy began to yell drunken gibberish at the top of his harsh voice. He danced, howled, raved and otherwise disturbed the skies.

The policeman merely twirled his club, turned his back to Soapy and remarked to a citizen :

“Tis one of them Yale lads celebratin the goose egg they give to the Hartford College. Noisy; but no harm. We’ve instructions to let them be.”

Disconsolate, Soapy stopped his unavailing racket. Would never a policeman lay hands on him? In his fancy, the island seemed an unattainable Arcadia. He buttoned his thin coat against the chilling wind.

In a cigar store he saw a well-dressed man lighting a cigar at the swinging light. He had set his silk umbrella by the door on entering. Soapy stepped inside, grabbed the umbrella and sauntered off with it slowly. The man at the cigar light followed hastily.

“My umbrella,” he said sternly.

“Oh, is it?” sneered Soapy, adding insult to petty larceny. “Well, why don’t you call a policeman? I took it. Your umbrella ! Why don’t you call a cop? There stands one on the corner.”

The umbrella owner slowed his steps. Soapy did likewise, with a premonition that luck would again run against him. The policeman eyed at the two curiously.

“Of course,” said the umbrella man “Well, you know how these mistakes occur if it’s your umbrella. I hope you’ll excuse me - I picked it up this morning in a restaurant if you recognize it as yours, why I hope you’ll”.

“Of course it’s mine,” said Soapy savagely.

The ex-umbrella man retreated. The policeman hurried to assist a tall blonde in an opera cloak across the street in front of a street car that was approaching two blocks away.

Soapy walked eastward through a street damaged by improvements. He hurled the umbrella angrily into an excavation. He muttered against the men who wear helmets and carry clubs. Because he wanted to fall into their clutches, they seemed to regard him as a king who could do nothing wrong.

At length Soapy reached one of the avenues to the east where the glitter and turmoil was but faint. He dragged himself toward Madison Square, for the homing instinct survives even when the home is a park bench.

But, on an unusually quiet corner, Soapy came to a standstill. Here was an old church, quaint and rambling and gabled. Through one violet-stained window a soft light glowed, where, no doubt, the organist loitered over the keys, making sure of his mastery of the coming Sabbath anthem. For there drifted out to Soapy’s ears sweet music that caught and held him transfixed against the convolutions of the iron fence. The moon was above, full and radiant; vehicles and pedestrians were few; sparrows twittered sleepily in the eaves or a little while the scene might have been a country churchyard. And the anthem that the organist played cemented Soapy to the iron fence, for he had known it well in the days when his life contained such things as mothers and roses and ambitions and friends and immaculate thoughts and collars.

The conjunction of Soapy’s receptive state of mind and the influences about the old church brought a sudden and wonderful change in his soul. He viewed with rising horror the pit into which he had tumbled, the degraded days, unworthy desires, dead hopes, wrecked faculties and base motives that made up his existence.

And also in a moment his heart responded thrillingly to this strange mood. A strong impulse moved him to

blonde : a person with pale yellow hair

Soapy was angry because .........................................

turmoil : a state of great disturbance

quaint : attractively unusual or old fashioned rambling : (here) spreading or winding irregularly in various directions. gabled : constructed with gables (the triangular upper part of a wall at the end of a ridged roof) Sabbath : a day of religious observance and abstinence from work kept by Jews and Christians convolutions : coils or twists

immaculate : perfectly clean and tidy

Describe the wonderful change in Soapy’s soul.

battle with his desperate fact. He would pull himself out of the mire and would make a man of himself again; he would conquer the evil that had enslaved him. There was time; he was young yet; he would resurrect his old eager ambitions and pursue them without faltering. Those solemn but sweet organ notes had set up a revolution in him. Tomorrow he would go into the roaring downtown district and find work. A fur importer had once offered him a place as driver. He would be somebody in the world. He would ----

Soapy felt a hand laid - on arm. He looked quickly around into the impassive face of a policeman.

“What are you doin’ here?” asked the officer.

“Nothin’,”said Soapy.

“Then come along,”said the policeman.

“Three months on the island,” said the Magistrate in the Police Court the next morning.

- O’Henry

mire : (here) a complicated or unpleasant situation from which it is difficult to free oneself resurrect : restore to life faltering : losing strength

Describe the end of the story in your own words.

BRAINSTORMING

(A1) (i) Discuss with your partner and find out the different ways in which Soapy

tried to get arrested. The first one is given.

(a) Tried to enter a luxurious cafe.

(b)

(c)

(d)

(ii) Describe the atmosphere when Soapy reached near the Church.

(a) A soft light glowed through the violet-stained window.

(b)

(c)

(d)

(A2) (i) Read the story and match the incidents given in Column A with the

consequences given in Column B.

Column A Column B (1) Soapy tried to enter a cafe. The cop ran after another man. (2) Soapy broke a glass window. Suddenly a wonderful change came in

his heart. (3) Two waiters pitched Soapy on

the callous pavement.

Dream of turning around in life was shattered. (4) Soapy heard the anthem being

played in the Church.

He stood up slowly beating the dust from his clothes. (5) Cop arrests Soapy for hanging

around.

Strong and ready hands of the head waiter turned him around.

(ii) Give reasons and complete the following :

(a) Soapy had confidence in himself because (b) The head waiter of the luxurious cafe did not allow Soapy to enter because

(d) The cop did not arrest Soapy for shouting and dancing because

(iii) Pick out the lines from the text which show that :

(a) Soapy wants to enter the cafe for two reasons.

(b) Soapy was afraid that he won't be able to enter the prison.

(d) Soapy actually did not want the umbrella.

(e) Listening to the anthem, Soapy remembered his good old days.

(iv) ‘He would make a man of himself again’ – The word ‘man’ in the sentence

means

(v) Soapy’s earlier life was much different from his present life. Complete the

table to show this contrast. One is done for you.

Earlier life Present life (a) Contained friends and roses (a) Unworthy desires (b) (b) (c) (c)

(vi) After listening to the sweet and solemn organ notes, Soapy decides to :

(a)

(b)

(vii) Write an incident in which you did something wrong and repented for it

later. Give reasons.

(A3) (i) O’Henry has used different words to indicate prison where Soapy wants

to reach. Make a list of those words.

(ii) Find out the words used for the 'degraded state of Soapy'.

(iii) The specific meaning of word 'anthem' in the content of the story is.......

(A4) (i) Convert the following sentences into negative without changing their

meanings.

(a) The policeman refused to accept Soapy even as a clue.

(b) Soapy drifted along twice unsuccessful.

(d) The island seemed very far away.

(e) The island seemed an unattainable Arcadia.

(ii) Convert the following sentences into affirmative without changing their

meanings.

(a) Men who smash windows do not remain to chat with the police.

(b) Why don’t you call a cop?

(d) Noisy; but no harm.

(e) They seemed to regard him as a King who could do no wrong.

(A5) (i) ‘Forgiveness is often better than punishment’. Write two paragraphs – one

for and another against this notion.

(ii) You are the class representative and you have been asked by the Principal to conduct an interview of a cop. Frame 8-10 questions with the help of the following points, give introduction and conclusion.

• reasons for joining the department

• special trainings

• developing the skill to identify and locate criminals

• dealing with criminals

• achievements and awards

(A6) (i) Make a list of jobs which would give you an opportunity to help the society or serve the country. Also mention the different ways in which they can be beneficial to the people and also the country.

(ii) Go to your school/college library and read some other stories by O’Henry like, ‘The Gift of the Magi’, ‘The Last Leaf’ and ‘After Twenty years’. Write the stories in short in your notebook.

❑❑❑

1.4 Big Data – Big Insights

ICE BREAKERS

➢ Give business suggestions to the respective industry/company for the following

situation. One is done for you.

You have received data that -

(a) Many passengers prefer morning flights between 7 am and 9 am from Mumbai

to Delhi.

Suggestion: Increase the number of flights between 7 am and 9 am.

(b) Many students are opting for UPSC/MPSC Exams.

Suggestion:

(d) Many people buy clothes from miracle.com an online shopping site.

Suggestion:

(e) The viewership on television is more between 8 pm and 10 pm.

Suggestion:

➢ People get information from various sources: Can you name a few?

Sources of information

Facebook

petabytes : units of information equal to one thousand million exabytes : units of information equal to one quintillion

Discuss how Big Data is increasing in volume, variation, velocity, veracity and value.

• How can you check the condition of the goods?

• How can you reduce risk in transport?

36Big Data – Big Insights What is Big Data?

There is a revolution in the life style of people which has been affected by Big Data. Our food habits, our health care, our travelling, our scientific pursuits, you name it and everything has changed 360 degrees. The massive data available with us can really work wonders. Friends, do you know what happens when we like a post on Facebook or share a post on WhatsApp, visit any website, make online purchases, or watch videos? Yes, whatever activity we do online is recorded, monitored and analysed. So a huge amount of data is collected. Let me give you an idea of how huge the data might be. Big Data can be petabytes or exabytes of data consisting of billions to trillions of records of millions of people- all from different sources, for example web, sales, customer contact centre, social media, mobile data and so on. The data available to industries and companies is enormously increasing in volume, variation, velocity, veracity and value. Such a Big Data is easy to obtain but so massive that it challenges the current computing technologies and hence Big Data analytics is used to give insights that were previously incomprehensible. Big Data analytics is the complex process of examining large and varied data sets or Big Data to uncover information- such as hidden patterns, unknown correlations, market trends and customer preferences. With such a huge data available with the industries they can have innumerable advantages hence all the industries are trying to reap the maximum benefit from it. Many industries have advanced by miles from their competitors. It’s not the amount of data that is important but what the organizations do with the data is what matters.

Uses of Big Data

1. Location Tracking : Big Data has been useful in identifying and tracking the exact location of a place. Your GPS and Google Maps make use of Big Data. With geographic positioning and radio frequency identification sensors we get the real-time data about traffic, congestion on a particular route, information if the route is closed or if it is a one-way route, understanding accident prone areas

etc. You can plan your own route according to the travel time and the transportation of goods. If you have ordered something online you can track the location of your goods in transit, you can also track the condition of the goods. This has immensely helped the logistics companies to reduce risks in transport, improve speed and reliability in delivery.

2. Understanding the Weather Patterns : There are weather sensors and satellites set-up all around the globe. Huge amount of data is continuously being received from them. They help us to understand the weather and help in weather forecasting. Weather patterns give us warnings of the impending natural calamities like floods, earthquakes, tsunami etc. Necessary preparations to combat them can be made well in advance. We can study global warming, predict availability of natural resources like water.

3. Health Care Industry : Today, we see that people have become health conscious. The smart watches, other wearable, health apps in our phone keep on collecting data. We can say that they are our own mini biomedical research devices. They detect our heart rate, monitor the patient’s sleep pattern, keep a record of his exercise, the distance walked etc. The analysis of this data collected can give new insights and provide a personalized, individual feedback to each and every person. Nowadays we have gadgets to monitor blood sugar, blood pressure etc. at home; 24 x 7 monitoring can be provided to patients in hospitals too. With the help of Big Data the doctors can now have better diagnosis of any ailment, the effect of any drug etc. Unnecessary guesswork can be significantly reduced. Past records of the patients can be maintained and better analysis of the health can be obtained. Big Data helps in monitoring the outbreaks of epidemics and diseases. Just when you post your message, ‘I’m down with flu’ on WhatsApp or Facebook it will be monitored and the areas affected by ‘flu’ can be easily located and necessary precautions can be taken. Pharmaceutical companies would pay huge amount to receive the health data of people to promote research in the particular area. With the help of the data gathered, individuals are often given suggestions and solutions for the problems they are encountering.

impending : about to happen calamities : great and often sudden damages or distresses

Do you think Big Data has improved the quality of life? How?

brute force attacks : a cyber attack that relies on guessing all possible combinations of a targeted password untill the right one is found mised-transactions: wrong transactions transaction : an exchange or transfer of funds

Can we understand the economy of the country by the data on Banking and Finance?

algorithm : a process of set of rules to be followed in calculations especially by a computer

4. Banking, Finance and Trading : With the Big Data analytics, the investment patterns of the people can be studied. New insights have enabled the banks and finance companies to come with suitable plans. Big Data has enabled smooth functioning of these agencies and institutions.

Banking and finance sector is using Big Data to predict and prevent cyber crimes, card fraud detection, archival of audit trails, etc. By analyzing the past data of their customers and the data on previous brute force attacks banks can predict future attempts. Big Data not only helps in predicting cyber crimes, but it also helps in handling issues related to mised-transactions and failures in net banking. It can even predict possible spikes on servers so that banks can manage transactions accordingly.

The Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) is using Big Data to monitor financial markets for possible illegal trades and suspicious activities. The SEC is using network analytics and natural language processors to identify possible frauds in the financial markets.

High-Frequency Trading (HFT) is an area where Big Data finds a lot of use today. Here, Big Data algorithms are used to make trading decisions. Today, the majority of equity trading now takes place via data algorithms that increasingly take into account signals from social media networks and news websites to make, buy and sell decisions in split seconds.

5. Sports : When watching a cricket match, we are shown so many permutations and combinations of statistical analysis. A gigantic data has been created over a period of time from the recording of matches, training sessions and workouts. The data enables a sportsperson to study his performance as well as of the other players worldwide. It has tremendously helped in improving individual as well as team performance. The sensors embedded in the sports equipment help us to understand our game from close quarters. The sensors help us to understand the field conditions, the weather, individual performance etc. Video analytics help us to see each and every performance minutely.

6. Advertising : Advertisers are one of the biggest players in Big Data. Be it Facebook, Google, Twitter or any other online giant, all keep a track of the user behaviour and transactions. These internet giants provide a great deal of data about people to the advertisers so that they can run targeted campaigns. Take Facebook, for example, here you can target people based on buying intent, website visits, interests, job roles, demographics and what not. All this data is collected by Facebook algorithms using Big Data analysis techniques. The same goes for Google, when you target people based on clicks you will get different results and when you create a campaign for leads then you will get different results. All this is made possible using Big Data.

7. Entertainment and Media : In the field of entertainment and media, Big Data focuses on targeting people with the right content at the right time. Based on your past views and your behaviour online you will be shown different recommendations. This technique is popularly used by Netflix and Youtube to increase engagement and drive more revenues.

Now, even television broadcasters are looking to segment their viewer’s database and show different advertisements and shows accordingly. This will allow better revenue from ads and will provide a more engaging user experience.

8. Education Industry : Big Data has inundated the education industry. It has transformed it in leaps and bounds. Now we have information about the students, their study patterns, and we can now prepare customized and dynamic learning programmes according to the need of an individual student. Every student’s comprehension level is different. The course material can now be designed catering to different requirements of the students. Big Data makes it convenient to understand their choices, their difficulties, information regarding various courses and their specialties; we also have an access to the results. From the results we can gauge the progress of the students, understand his strengths and weaknesses. This will also help in guiding the student regarding the best career for him based on his mental make-up and abilities. An in-

demographics: statistical data relating to the given population and particular groups within it

Do you think people click consciously on Facebook ? Discuss.

Do you think Big Data will help to bring improvement in students?

depth study of all this would definitely give new insights into the education industry and help in improving the operational effectiveness and working of educational

Discuss a solution provided by Big Data.

institutes. This would in general, enhance progress of all students. Big Data has provided a solution to one of the biggest pitfalls in the education industry, that is one – size- fits- all.

We have innumerable uses of Big Data. It is helpful in scientific researches, understanding geographical phenomena, helping in the smooth working of the government machinery etc. It is a genie in our hands. It lies in our hands to make the optimum use of it for the benefit of mankind.

***

BRAINSTORMING

(A1) Youtube has many videos on various things. Listen to the uses and health

benefits of 'Lemon' and share them with your friends.

(A2) (i) Make pointwise notes from the lesson regarding the uses of Big Data in

the following application. Do not write complete sentences.

(a) Location Tracking -

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(b) Health Care Industry -

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(ii) When you are asked for personal details on social media, what precautions

will you take? Discuss in pairs and write down.

(iii) Do you think all the data we receive is used for positive things? If 'No', make a list of the negative things which can be done with the help of Big Data.

(A3) Guess the meaning of the following idioms and phrases and use them in

sentences of your own. One is done for you.

One-size-fits-all – suitable for or used in all circumstances

The wrist watches have adjustable belts, so one- size- fits- all

(a) ‘Once in a blue moon’

(b) ‘One man army’

(d) ‘One up on’

(A4) (i) Do as directed.

(a) Advertisers are one of the biggest players in Big Data.

(1) Begin the sentence with ‘Very few .............’

(2) Use ‘bigger than’ and rewrite the sentence.

(b) No other diagnosis is as good as the diagnosis done with the help of Big

Data.

(1) Use ‘best’ and rewrite the sentence.

(2) Use ‘better than’ and rewrite the sentence.

(1) Begin the sentence with ‘No other........’

(2) Use ‘greater than’ and rewrite the sentence.

(ii) Read the sentence from the text.

New insights have enabled the banks and finance companies to come up with suitable plans.

This sentence can be rewritten as 'New insights have enabled the banks as well as finance companies to come up with suitable plans'.

Remember, 'as well as' serves the same purpose as that of co-ordinating the conjunction 'and' in the sentence. When one of them is inserted in the sentence, other should be removed.

Use 'as well as', 'either ...... or' in the following sentences.

(a) Whatever activity we do online is recorded, monitored and analysed.

(b) Big Data has been useful in identifying and tracking the exact

location of a place.

help in weather forecasting.

(d) Big Data helps in monitoring the outbreaks of epidemics and

diseases.

(e) New insights have enabled the banks and finance companies to come

up with suitable plans.

(A5) (i) Interview the students of your class regarding the career they would like to pursue and the reason for selecting that particular career. Collect the data of your class and analyse the information you have collected.

(ii) To listen well is as powerful a means of influence as to talk well and is essential to all true conversations. Form a group and have a group discussion on the topic.

(a) Social Media - Curse or Boon

(b) Women Empowerment and Equality

(A6) Find out job opportunities in the following areas and the skills required

for them.

(a) Clinical Data Management (d) Data Operations and Research

(b) Network Operations (e) Data Entry Operation

❑❑❑

1.5 The New Dress

ICE BREAKERS

➢ (i) Write in Column 'B' the description of the clothes you would choose to

wear for the occasions given in Column 'A'.

A B A birthday party A prize distribution ceremony at school A picnic An entertainment show

(ii) Discuss the criterion of the choice of your clothes with the help of the

following points:

(a) Occasion

(b) Society (people you may meet at the venue)

(d) Fashion

(e) Your wish/whim

(f) A suggestion or advice by someone (mother, sister, friend etc.).

(g) Any other than the above mentioned reasons

➢ (i) Divide the class into groups. Discuss the role of costumes in enhancing

your personality.

(ii) State whether you agree or disagree with the following statements and

discuss the reasons.

(a) A simple dress makes one's personality look dull.

(b) We should not judge ourselves from the comments we receive from others.

beautiful.

(d) We should choose a dress according to the fashion rather than our choice.

Virginia Woolf (1882 to 1941, London) was an English novelist and essayist. She is considered a modernist writer of the 20th century and pioneer of the ‘stream of consciousness’ as a narrative device. The glimpses of early modern feminism can easily be traced in her writing. ‘The Voyage Out’, ‘To the Lighthouse’, ‘Orlando’ and ‘Mrs. Dalloway’ are her remarkable novels. ‘A Haunted House’ is her famous short story collection from which the present story ‘The New Dress’ is adapted.

The present story is about a Mabel Waring, who is constantly thinking about her new yellow dress in negative terms. She herself has chosen the design, colour and pattern of the dress which she has decided to wear for a party at Mrs Dalloway. However, at that party she keeps thinking that the dress is old fashioned and everyone in the party is mocking at her dress. She thinks that she is a fly at the edge of the saucer, drowning deep and deep, as she comes seriously under the spell of her own negative mind and in a depression leaves the party. To show Mabel’s suppressed desires, unfulfilled ambitions and meagre financial conditions of her childhood, Virginia Woolf has employed the stream of consciousness technique very effectively.

RIGHT signifies ---------------------------------

misery : great physical and mental distress or discomfort

profound : deep or intense

relentlessly: oppressively constant

appalling : very bad or displeasing

The New Dress Mabel had her first serious suspicion that something was wrong as she took her cloak off and Mrs. Barnet, while handing her the mirror and touching the brushes and thus drawing her attention, perhaps rather markedly, to all the appliances for tidying and improving hair, complexion, clothes, which existed on the dressing table, confirmed the suspicion - that it was not right, not quite right, which growing stronger as she went upstairs and springing at her, with conviction as she greeted Clarissa Dalloway, she went straight to the far end of the room, to a shaded corner where a looking-glass hung and looked. No! It was not RIGHT. And at once the misery which she always tried to hide, the profound dissatisfaction - the sense she had had, ever since she was a child, of being inferior to other people - set upon her, relentlessly, remorselessly, with an intensity which she could not beat off, as she would when she woke at night at home, by reading Borrow or Scott; for oh these men, oh these women, all were thinking- “What’s Mabel wearing? What a fright she looks! What a hideous new dress!”- their eyelids flickering as they came up and then their lids shutting rather tight. It was her own appalling inadequacy; her cowardice; her mean, water-sprinkled blood that depressed her. And at once the

whole of the room where, for ever so many hours, she had planned with the little dressmaker how it was to go, seemed sordid, repulsive; and her own drawing-room so shabby, and herself, going out, puffed up with vanity as she touched the letters on the hall table and said: “How dull!” to show off - all this now seemed unutterably silly, paltry, and provincial. All this had been absolutely destroyed, shown up, exploded, the moment she came into Mrs. Dalloway’s drawing-room.

What she had thought that evening when, sitting over the teacups, Mrs. Dalloway’s invitation came, was that, of course, she could not be fashionable. It was absurd to pretend it even - fashion meant cut, meant style, meant thirty guineas at least - but why not be original? Why not be herself, anyhow? And, getting up, she had taken that old fashion book of her mother’s, a Paris fashion book of the time of the Empire, and had thought how much prettier, more dignified, and more womanly they were then, and so set herself - oh, it was foolish - trying to be like them, pluming herself in fact, upon being modest and old-fashioned, and very charming, giving herself up, no doubt about it, to an orgy of self-love, which deserved to be chastised, and so rigged herself out like this.

But she dared not look in the glass. She could not face the whole horror - the pale yellow, idiotically old- fashioned silk dress with its long skirt and its high sleeves and its waist and all the things that looked so charming in the fashion book, but not on her, not among all these ordinary people. She felt like a dressmaker’s dummy standing there, for young people to stick pins into.

“But, my dear, it’s perfectly charming!” Rose Shaw said, looking her up and down with that little satirical pucker of the lips which she expected - Rose herself being dressed in the height of the fashion, precisely like everybody else, always.

We are all like flies trying to crawl over the edge of the saucer, Mabel thought, and repeated the phrase as if she were crossing herself, as if she were trying to find some spell to annul this pain, to make this agony endurable. Tags of Shakespeare, lines from books she had read ages ago, suddenly came to her when she was in agony, and she repeated them over and over again. “Flies trying to crawl,”

sordid : unpleasant( in this context) repulsive : arousing intense distaste or disgust

vanity : excessive pride in or admiration of one’s own appearance or achievements

According to Mabel, fashion means ................................ ............................................

She was afraid of looking in mirror / glass because ......................................... .........................................

satirical: sarcastic, humorously critical pucker: a small fold

annul: reduce to nothing

What was Mabel’s imagination about flies?

dowdy : (especially of a woman) unfashionable and dull in appearance decrepit : elderly and infirm dingy : gloomy and drab

Miss Milan’s workroom was ...............................

Guess the meaning :

• suffused

• wrinkles

scrolloping : characterized by or possessing heavy, floral ornament (a word coined by Virginia Woolf)

she repeated. If she could say that over often enough and make herself see the flies, she would become numb, chill, frozen, dumb. Now she could see flies crawling slowly out of a saucer of milk with their wings stuck together; and she strained and strained (standing in front of the looking- glass, listening to Rose Shaw) to make herself see Rose Shaw and all the other people there as flies, trying to hoist themselves out of something, or into something, meagre, insignificant, toiling flies. But she could not see them like that, not other people. She saw herself like that - she was a fly, but the others were dragonflies, butterflies, beautiful insects, dancing, fluttering, skimming, while she alone dragged herself up out of the saucer. (Envy and spite, the most detestable of the vices, were her chief faults.)

“I feel like some dowdy, decrepit, horribly dingy old fly,” she said, making Robert Haydon stop just to hear her say that, just to reassure herself by furbishing up a poor weak-kneed phrase and so showing how detached she was, how witty, that she did not feel in the least out of anything. And, of course, Robert Haydon answered something, quite polite, quite insincere, which she saw through instantly, and said to herself, directly he went (again from some book), “Lies, lies, lies!” For a party makes things either much more real, or much less real, she thought; she saw in a flash to the bottom of Robert Haydon’s heart; she saw through everything. She saw the truth. This was true, this drawing-room, this self, and the other false. Miss Milan’s little workroom was really terribly hot, stuffy, sordid. It smelt of clothes and cabbage cooking; and yet, when Miss Milan put the glass in her hand, and she looked at herself with the dress on, finished, an extraordinary bliss shot through her heart. Suffused with light, she sprang into existence. Rid of cares and wrinkles, what she had dreamed of herself was there-a beautiful woman. Just for a second (she had not dared look longer, Miss Milan wanted to know about the length of the skirt), there looked at her, framed in the scrolloping mahogany, a grey-white, mysteriously smiling, charming girl, the core of herself, the soul of herself; and it was not vanity only, not only self-love that made her think it good, tender, and true. Miss Milan said that the skirt could not well be longer; if anything the skirt, said Miss Milan, puckering her forehead, considering with all her wits about her, must be shorter; and she felt, suddenly, honestly, full

of love for Miss Milan, much, much fonder of Miss Milan than of any one in the whole world, and could have cried for pity that she should be crawling on the floor with her mouth full of pins, and her face red and her eyes bulging- that one human being should be doing this for another, and she saw them all as human beings merely, and herself going off to her party, and Miss Milan pulling the cover over the canary’s cage, or letting him pick a hemp-seed from between her lips, and the thought of it, of this side of human nature and its patience and its endurance and its being content with such miserable, scanty, sordid, little pleasures filled her eyes with tears.

And now the whole thing had vanished. The dress, the room, the love, the pity, the scrolloping looking-glass, and the canary’s cage-all had vanished, and here she was in a corner of Mrs. Dalloway’s drawing-room, suffering tortures, woken wide awake to reality.

But it was all so paltry, weak-blooded, and petty- minded to care so much at her age with two children, to be still so utterly dependent on people’s opinions and not have principles or convictions, not to be able to say as other people did, “There’s Shakespeare! There’s death! We’re all weevils in a captain’s biscuit” - or whatever it was that people did say.

She faced herself straight in the glass; she pecked at her left shoulder; she issued out into the room, as if spears were thrown at her yellow dress from all sides. But instead of looking fierce or tragic, as Rose Shaw would have done-Rose would have looked like Boadicea-she looked foolish and self-conscious, and simpered like a schoolgirl and slouched across the room, positively slinking, as if she were a beaten mongrel, and looked at a picture, an engraving. As if one went to a party to look at a picture! Everybody knew why she did it - it was from shame, from humiliation.

“Now the fly’s in the saucer,” she said to herself, “right in the middle, and can’t get out, and the milk,” she thought, rigidly staring at the picture, “is sticking its wings together.”

“It’s so old-fashioned,” she said to Charles Burt, making him stop (which by itself he hated) on his way to talk to some one else.

Mabel’s eyes were filled with tears because ................... ...........................................

Discuss different pessimistic thoughts in Mabel’s mind.

weevils : small beetles / insects with an elongated snout

Boadicea : a queen of the British Celtic Iceni tribe who led an uprising against the occupying forces of the Roman empire in AD 60 or 61simpered: smiled in an affectedly coy or ingratiating manner

slouched : stood, moved or sat in a lazy, drooping way

slinking : moving quietly with gliding steps

Guess the meaning :

• shoved

• veneer

• ruffled

odious: extremely unpleasant

vacillating: wavering between different opinions or actions

Guess the meaning :

• scarlet fever

• self-loathing

She meant, or she tried to make herself think that she meant, that it was the picture and not her dress, that was old-fashioned. And one word of praise, one word of affection from Charles would have made all the difference to her at the moment. If he had only said, “Mabel, you’re looking charming tonight!” it would have changed her life. But then she ought to have been truthful and direct. Charles said nothing of the kind, of course. He was malice itself. He always saw through one, especially if one were feeling particularly mean, paltry, or feeble-minded.

“Mabel’s got a new dress!” he said, and the poor fly was absolutely shoved into the middle of the saucer. Really, he would like her to drown, she believed. He had no heart, no fundamental kindness, only a veneer of friendliness. Miss Milan was much more real, much kinder. If only one could feel that and stick to it, always. “Why,” she asked herself-replying to Charles much too pertly, letting him see that she was out of temper, or “ruffled” as he called it (“Rather ruffled?” he said and went on to laugh at her with some woman over there)-“Why,” she asked herself, “can’t I feel one thing always, feel quite sure that Miss Milan is right, and Charles wrong and stick to it, feel sure about the canary and pity and love and not be whipped all round in a second by coming into a room full of people?” It was her odious, weak, vacillating character again, always giving at the critical moment and not being seriously interested in conchology, etymology, botany, archeology, cutting up potatoes and watching them fructify like Mary Dennis, like Violet Searle.

Then Mrs. Holman, seeing her standing there, bore down upon her. Of course a thing like a dress was beneath Mrs. Holman’s notice, with her family always tumbling downstairs or having the scarlet fever. Could Mabel tell her if Elmthorpe was ever let for August and September? Oh, it was a conversation that bored her unutterably!— it made her furious to be treated like a house agent or a messenger boy, to be made use of. Not to have value, that was it, she thought, trying to grasp something hard, something real, while she tried to answer sensibly about the bathroom and the south aspect and the hot water to the top of the house; and all the time she could see little bits of her yellow dress in the round looking-glass which made them all the size of boot-buttons or tadpoles; and it was amazing to think how much humiliation and agony and

self-loathing and effort and passionate ups and downs of feeling were contained in a thing the size of a threepenny bit. And what was still odder, this thing, this Mabel Waring, was separate, quite disconnected; and though Mrs. Holman (the black button) was leaning forward and telling her how her eldest boy had strained his heart running, she could see her, too, quite detached in the looking-glass, and it was impossible that the black dot, leaning forward, gesticulating, should make the yellow dot, sitting solitary, self-centred, feel what the black dot was feeling, yet they pretended.

“So impossible to keep boys quiet”-that was the kind of thing one said.

And Mrs. Holman, who could never get enough sympathy and snatched what little there was greedily, as if it were her right (but she deserved much more for there was her little girl who had come down this morning with a swollen knee-joint), took this miserable offering and looked at it suspiciously, grudgingly, as if it were a halfpenny when it ought to have been a pound and put it away in her purse, must put up with it, mean and miserly though it was, times being hard, so very hard; and on she went, creaking, injured Mrs. Holman, about the girl with the swollen-joints. Ah, it was tragic, this greed, this clamour of human beings, like a row of cormorants, barking and flapping their wings for sympathy-it was tragic, could one have felt it and not merely pretended to feel it!But in her yellow dress to-night she could not wring out one drop more; she wanted it all, all for herself. She knew (she kept on looking into the glass, dipping into that dreadfully showing-up blue pool) that she was condemned, despised, left like this in a backwater, because of her being like this a feeble, vacillating creature; and it seemed to her that the yellow dress was a penance which she had deserved, and if she had been dressed like Rose Shaw, in lovely, clinging green with a ruffle of swansdown, she would have deserved that; and she thought that there was no escape for her-none what so ever. But it was not her fault altogether, after all. It was being one of a family of ten; never having money enough, always skimping and paring; and her mother carrying great cans, and the linoleum worn on the stair edges, and one sordid little

detached : aloof, having no interest or involvement gesticulating : using gestures, movement of parts of body, especially hand or head

grudgingly : in a reluctant or resentful manner creaking : making a harsh, high-pitched sound

cormorants: large diving seabirds

despised : scorned, hated

skimping: expending very little or less than necessary

catastrophic: involving or causing sudden great damage or suffering petered out: diminished or came to an end gradually

Sir Henry Lawrence: Brigadier-General Sir Henry Lawrence was a British military officer, surveyor, administrator and statesman in British India.

magpies : a very long tailed black and white bird

domestic tragedy after another-nothing catastrophic, the sheep farm failing, but not utterly; her eldest brother marrying beneath him but not very much - there was no romance, nothing extreme about them all. They petered out respectably in seaside resorts; every watering-place had one of her aunts even now asleep in some lodging with the front windows not quite facing the sea. That was so like them-they had to squint at things always. And she had done the same-she was just like her aunts. For all her dreams of living in India, married to some hero like Sir Henry Lawrence, some empire builder (still the sight of a native in a turban filled her with romance), she had failed utterly. She had married Hubert, with his safe, permanent underling’s job in the Law Courts, and they managed tolerably in a smallish house, without proper maids, and hash when she was alone or just bread and butter, but now and then Mrs Holman was off, thinking her the most dried-up, unsympathetic twig she had ever met, absurdly dressed, too, and would tell every one about Mabel’s fantastic appearance - now and then, thought Mabel Waring, left alone on the blue sofa, punching the cushion in order to look occupied, for she would not join Charles Burt and Rose Shaw, chattering like magpies and perhaps laughing at her by the fireplace - now and then, there did come to her delicious moments, reading

the other night in bed, for instance, or down by the sea on the sand in the sun, at Easter - let her recall it - a great tuft of pale sand-grass standing all twisted like a shock of spears against the sky, which was blue like a smooth china egg, so firm, so hard, and then the melody of the waves -“Hush, hush,” they said, and the children’s shouts paddling - yes, it was a divine moment, and there she lay, she felt, in the hand of the Goddess who was the world; rather a hard-hearted, but very beautiful Goddess, a little lamb laid on the altar (one did think these silly things, and it didn’t matter so long as one never said them). And also with Hubert sometimes she had quite unexpectedly - carving the mutton for Sunday lunch, for no reason, opening a letter, coming into a room - divine moments, when she said to herself (for she would never say this to anybody else), “This is it. This has happened. This is it!” And the other way about it was equally surprising - that is, when everything was arranged - music, weather, holidays, every reason for happiness was there - then nothing happened at all. One wasn’t happy. It was flat, just flat, that was all.

Her wretched self again, no doubt! She had always been a fretful, weak, unsatisfactory mother, a wobbly wife, lolling about in a kind of twilight existence with nothing very clear or very bold, or more one thing than another, like all her brothers and sisters, except perhaps Herbert - they were all the same poor water-veined creatures who did nothing. Then in the midst of this creeping, crawling life, suddenly she was on the crest of a wave. That wretched fly - where had she read the story that kept coming into her mind about the fly and the saucer? - struggled out. Yes, she had those moments. But now that she was forty, they might come more and more seldom. By degrees she would cease to struggle any more. But that was deplorable! That was not to be endured! That made her feel ashamed of herself!

She would go to the London Library tomorrow. She would find some wonderful, helpful, astonishing book, quite by chance, a book by a clergyman, by an American no one had ever heard of; or she would walk down the Strand and drop, accidentally, into a hall where a miner was telling about the life in the pit, and suddenly she would become a new person. She would be absolutely

Easter : the most important festival of the Christian Church celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ

Find the meaning :

• crest of a wave

• by degrees

London Library : an independent lending library in London established in 1841 by Thomas Carlyle.

Strand : narrow street at the edge of the sea, lake or large river

transformed. She would wear a uniform; she would be called Sister Somebody; she would never give a thought to clothes again. And for ever after she would be perfectly clear about Charles Burt and Miss Milan and this room and that room; and it would be always, day after day, as if she were lying in the sun or carving the mutton. It would be it!

So she got up from the blue sofa, and the yellow button in the looking-glass got up too, and she waved her hand to Charles and Rose to show them she did not depend on them one scrap, and the yellow button moved out of the looking-glass, and all the spears were gathered into her breast as she walked towards Mrs. Dalloway and said “Good night.”

“But it’s too early to go,” said Mrs. Dalloway, who

wobbly : unstedy, shaky

was always so charming.

“I’m afraid I must,” said Mabel Waring. “But,” she added in her weak, wobbly voice which only sounded

What does the last sentence suggest?

ridiculous when she tried to strengthen it, “I have enjoyed myself enormously.”

‘I have enjoyed myself,” she said to Mr. Dalloway, whom she met on the stairs.

“Lies, lies, lies!” she said to herself, going downstairs, and “Right in the saucer!” she said to herself as she thanked Mrs. Barnet for helping her and wrapped herself, round and round and round, in the Chinese cloak she had worn these twenty years.

- Virginia Woolf

BRAINSTORMING

(A1) (i) Narrate in your words the picture imagined by Mabel as she thinks herself

in the party as a fly at the edge of the saucer.

(ii) There are a few other characters mentioned in the story. Discuss the way

their reactions help us to understand the inferiority complex of Mabel.

(A2) (i) Pick out the sentences from the story which describe the ambience of the

party at Mrs. Dalloway’s place.

(ii) Mabel is thinking too much of her dress.

Propose five sentences supporting the above statement.

(iii) Critically analyze Mabel’s weak economic conditions in the past as one of

the reasons that led her to choose the old-fashioned dress.

(iv) The cause of Miss Mabel’s disappointment is not only her poor background

in the past but her too much bookishness also. Substantiate.

(v) Do you appreciate Mabel’s tendency of deciding her own value from the

comments given by others? Explain your views.

(A3) (i) Write the synonyms for the word ‘dress’ by filling appropriate letters in

the blanks. One is done for you.

(a) a t t i r e (b) _ _ r_ _

(e) _ _ t _ _ t (f) _ _ _ a _ _ l

(ii) Conchology means the scientific study or collection of mollusc shells.

Refer to the dictionary and find out the meanings of -

• Etymology • Archaeology

(A4) (i) Use the correct tense form of the verbs given in the brackets and rewrite

the sentences.

(a) She (take/takes/took/had taken) that old fashion book of

her mother a few months back.

(b) She (pecking/ pecks/ pecked) at her left shoulder for quite

some time.

always.

(d) All this (will be/ is / have been) destroyed in a few years.

(e) She (feels/felt/will be feeling) like a dressmaker’s dummy

standing there.

(ii) Do as directed.

(a) Lata will sing tonight. (Make it less certain.)

(b) You should wear your uniform. (Show ability.)

compulsory.)

(d) I can do it. (Make a sentence seeking permission.)

(iii) (a) Frame three rules for the students of your college.

(b) Frame three sentences giving advice to your younger brother.

(iv) Fill in the blanks with appropriate modal auxiliaries according to the

situation given in the following sentences.

(a) Take an umbrella. It rain later.

(b) People walk on the grass.

(d) The signal has turned red. You wait.

(e) I am going to the library. I find my friend there.

(A5) (i) Read the sentence ‘we are all like flies....’. The paragraph describes the dejected thoughts that Miss Mabel carries in her mind. All the earlier paragraphs are in a continuity of a story line. The next paragraph begins with, ‘I feel like....’ again resumes to a story. The author has moved in the mind of the character and out of it very smoothly without any intimation or change in the language or tense. Similarly, she has moved in the past years of Miss Mabel’s life. This is called ‘stream of consciousness’ technique.

(ii) Read the sentence from the text - What a hideous new dress!

This is an exclamation. It can be written as a simple sentence 'The new dress is very hideous'.

Find out few more exclamatory sentences from the story and transform them into assertive sentences.

(iii) Virginia Woolf has created many characters other than Miss Mabel with

great skill. Write a character sketch of any one of them.

(iv) 'Clothes mean nothing until someone lives in them.' Expand the idea in

your own words.

(A6) Go to library and read the following books:

(a) 'A Haunted House' by Virginia Woolf

(b) 'Mrs. Dalloway' by Virginia Woolf

(A7) Find out information about career opportunities in the following fields:

(a) Fashion designing

(b) Dress designing

(d) Garment industry

(e) Image consultancy

(f) Psychology and Psychiatry

❑❑❑

1.6 Into the Wild

ICE BREAKERS

➢ Narrate in your class any of the incidents of your life when you were extremely

terrified or awestruck. ➢ Complete the given table regarding the factors/situations/reasons - why you

sometimes get scared and the factors that add to it. Give possible solutions.

Sr. no Reasons Factors which add to it Solutions

1. While discussing about strange creatures

At midnight/In the absence of parents

Avoid such discussions/ stories as they are baseless 2.3. ➢ Given below are various activities which you can pursue as your hobby, passion,

or profession. Complete the table accordingly.

Sr. no.

Activities Hobby Passion Profession Reason /Challenge/Both

1. Painting ✓ ✓ ✓ (R) I can express myself well

through the strokes of brush 2. Travelling ✓ ✓ ✓ (R) In tourism, there is great demand for professional tourist guides. 3. Wild life

photography

environment 5. Bird-

Watching ➢ Match the following ‘Wild-Life Sanctuaries’ with their locations.

Wild Life Sanctuary Location

1. Bandipur National Park (a) Uttarakhand 2. Kaziranga National Park (b) Madhya Pradesh 3. Jim Corbet National Park (c) Karnataka

4. Ranthambore National Park (d) Assam 5. Kanha National Park (e) Rajasthan

Kiran Purandare (born 1961) After B.Com, he studied Environmental Studies at Jordanhill College of Education in Scotland. He is a recipient of the ‘Sahitya Puraskar’. Pune’s Bhai Madhav Bagal Award and Best Literature Award given by Cultural Department of Maharashtra State for his ‘Sakha Nagzira’. He spent 400 days inside Nagzira and nearby forest areas and wrote this award winning book. This excerpt has been taken from the same. He is a wild-life expert, a bird watcher, a writer and honorary wild life warden in Maharashtra. He is also the founder of Nisarg Wedh Organisation, which works for nature conservation and community work around Nagzira, Navegaon, a Tiger Reserve in Bhandara and Gondia districts. He also founded Kika’s Bird Club in order to spread bird farming which is very popular among school-going children of Maharashtra.

(Part I) As the name suggests, the excerpt is an amazing experience of the writer where Kiran Purandare, the solitary traveller, is completely lost in the jungles of Umbarzara. He narrates how he lost his way at the fall of the dusk and the terrifying turmoil he underwent thereafter. Shouting for help would literally mean ‘crying in the wilderness’. He also gives a detailed description of how he found his way towards the Pitezari.

(Part II) This part has been extracted from CN Traveller Magazine published by Land Rover India. It is about Shaaz Jung, known for his wild life photography. It briefs us about his entry into this world of wild life photography, the insight that he received during this journey regarding the loss of the habitat of those heroes of the jungle and the genuine efforts that he took by establishing BCRTI, for the conservation of forests by educating the local rural folks and providing them with a sound reliable source of income.

hide : a place built to look like its surrounding

avifauna : birds of a particular region, habitat or geological period

camouflaged : disguised by covering it to make it blend in with the surroundings

Explain: I was alone here like a fox.

Into the Wild (Part – I) Lost in the Jungle The eight-and-a-half-hour-long day inside the hide was as fruitful as the Jambha tree standing tall on the edge of Umbarzara. Before wrapping up my day at this natural waterhole, I took entries of the avifauna in my field notes. Since I was alone, I rushed to Pitezari village where I was stationed. I camouflaged the hide, took my essentials, came out of the hide and stretched out to my heart’s content. I lifted my camera bag and took the familiar trail to Pitezari. Negotiating the webbed leaves of Teakwood and Moha trees, trying to make minimal sound, I was treading cautiously among the woods. Walking alone in a jungle needs more alertness than walking with a companion. I was alone here like a fox. Following the trail silently, watching with wide-open eyes, my ears were grasping a variety of sounds just when a familiar sound stunned me...

‘Khyak! Khyak! KhyakoSS Khyak!’ It was a Langur alarm call. The leader of the gang of Langurs was sitting on the tall tree making alarm calls

out of fear for life. Rest of the Langur brigade continued raising the alarm calls. The network of alarm calls was expanding its range as the petrified Langurs speeded to the trees near and far and secured their places on treetops. All this upheaval was created by only one animal’s presence- a Leopard. Many animals make alarm calls when they see a predator- Tiger or Leopard nearby. The Langur is most reliable when it comes to finding clues about the presence of the apex predators in the jungle. The mighty elusive Leopard of Umbarzara was out of its lair. He was on the prowl. The stealthily moving figure in spotted gold-black cloak was spied by these Langurs. Even the small ones from the legion of Langurs were giving alarm calls.

‘Chyak! Chyak!’ I stayed put. Gauged the leader Langur’s target sight and scanned the area visually. Took some steps. Stopped again. A fresh scat was lying before me on the trail. The bluish-purple flies were hovering over it. I was sure that the Leopard was somewhere near. The distant alarm call of four-horned antelope was adding to the chaos. I barely walked around 15 metres and stopped. I had apparently entered in the sanctum sanctorum of a miracle called Leopard. But the big cat was not visible. It is an elusive animal. The surroundings were reminding me that I was all alone time and again. As I moved forward on the trail to Pitezari, the fading alarm calls were still heard in the background. I could tell instinctively that the Leopard had moved away.

Meanwhile, I saw a man standing at a distance with a stick in his hand. As I approached, he appeared spooked due to alarm calls of the Leopard. We greeted each other. He was Raju Iskape from Pitezari. He had come to collect logs but retreated due to the Leopard’s movement. Raju was amazed at my regular solitary visits to Umbarzara, the haven for Tigers, Leopards and Sloth Bears. We stopped under a Kusum tree to take a break. We both felt a bit relaxed. Now we were four eyes, four hands with a stick. Then we both resumed our walking tour.

There was one tiny track that broke out of the main trail. “I will take this route, you go straight,” said Raju and turned right. I kept walking straight until I climbed a familiar hillock. I crossed the cement pillar and stones stacked by Forest Development Corporation to mark the boundary of the forest compartment. Took another trail

petrified : very frightened Guess the meaning :

• upheaval

• predator apex : topmost lair : den, secret place

legion : a great number of people or things scat : here, it means animal droppings

Guess the meaning :

• hovering

• antelope

sanctum sanctorum : the holy of holies, a place, region where few are allowed as the secret / important work is done

instinctively : without conscious thought, by natural response

Choose the correct option. spooked : (1) frightened (2) happy (3) angry haven : a place of safety or refuge stacked : Find the contextual meaning from the dictionary

gorge : a narrow gully between hillocks deciduous : having trees that shed leaves in the dry season tropical : of the tropics

to one’s heart’s content: to the fullest level of satisfaction

frantic: hurried and excited

What is called ‘silver lining’ of the trail by the writer? Why?

Guess the meaning :

• In a jiffy

after climbing down. Walked across a beautiful Mahua tree loaded with reddish-brown leaves. The ground under the tree was cleaned very well. The thought instantly flashed in my mind- ‘I’d lost my way’. Next moment, I found another dusky trail. Hastily I took that trail which took me from a narrow gorge to an open field. The area was surrounded by hillocks of dry deciduous tropical forest. I turned back to spot the sun. Now, the geographical west was set. The dusky trail had vanished. Good Heavens! I was lost. Completely lost in this jungle, That too at a very dreadful time! The sun was melting down like a fleeting runner.

Soaked in my own sweat, I felt like shouting to my heart’s content. But there was no other soul to listen to my sound in this wilderness. I had two bags with me. The Shabnam bag having the camera and the other was a small colourful hand-made bag used in villages to carry tiffin. The tiffin still had some stuff, but I didn’t feel like having it. The blossoming Boxwood trees, the Bhoop Bhoop sound of Coucal bird, the song of Robin bird, all appeared alien to me.

It was more than an hour and I was still there searching for a suitable tree to climb and get secured. “Turn back to the trail you left,” my mind was telling me. But there were no signs of the trail. I had no other way to climb the hillock before me. There were more hillocks, and some more around the one I was standing. Near my feet were the dried- up droppings of Sloth Bear. “The Sloth Bear of Umbarzara must be out in open sniffing for food,” I cautioned myself. Thinking of averting all sorts of eventuality, I made a move. I ran down the hillock that I had climbed up at a frantic speed. The west was to my right-hand side now. The evening breeze flew through my wet curled hair. My stomach was aching. I kept walking in hope.

After around 50 steps I found a bright red soil trail. I found my silver lining on this trail. There were marks of bicycle wheel on this trail. That was a big consolation for me. “There must be a village nearby,” I reassured myself. More questions resurfaced, “How far is the village? And where? In which direction?”

I climbed one more hillock and tried to locate signs of human civilisation. My legs were trembling. As I reached the top of the hill, I jumped with joy. I heard the sounds of people talking in the loudspeaker. In a jiffy, I ran down

the hill, towards the sound with full vigour. I stumbled and fell down. Saw droppings of Blue Bulls nearby. Struggled, stood up and decided which direction to move on. The signs of civilisation were visible. The tiny sleepy village of Pitezari was visible through the green woods. The lantern of Rajiram Bhalavi’s farm, the loudspeaker installed for Keshav Bhalavi’s marriage, all were in clear sight. Turned left to spot the village lake and familiar hillock ‘Suihudaki’. The dog barked to welcome me to the village.

The first thing I did was to take a bath. The shaking of limbs had lessened a bit. The stomach ache started again. Ate to the full and then slumped onto the cot. Lying awake looking at the star-studded sky, I spoke to myself, “There still exists a jungle where we can get lost, isn’t this our good luck?”

Taken from ‘Sakha Nagzira’ - by Kiran Purandare (Part – II) Tracking the Panther of Nagarhole Shaaz Jung is a wildlife photographer, cinemato- grapher, big cat tracker, man-animal conflict resolution seeker and lodge owner– all rolled into one. When he’s away from the jungles of Nagarhole, officially called The Rajiv Gandhi National Park, he’s leading photography safaris in Africa or showcasing his work at Art Galleries in capital cities and speaking to those interested in conserving the planet’s riches.

Shaaz recalls with great clarity the incident that ultimately leads to his answering the call of the felines over a career dedicated to finance. “It was somewhere around sunset. We were at a junction. The deer were calling,” he says, “we went around a blind turn,” he continues, “and up ahead on the path was this old leopard. You could tell he was past his prime. The jungle had taken a toll on him. He only had three canines. His eyes were sagging. Close to this leopard was another very young, good looking male who was soon to come into his prime. It was like looking at the past and the present. It was clear that there was going to be a fight. Unfortunately, the sun was setting, and we had to leave. But the next morning, I went back to the spot. Sitting on a high rock was that young leopard. Blood was dripping from a gash across his face. He sat there like he was ‘king of the jungle’. I knew right then that he had taken over, that it was the beginning of a new journey for him. And for me.”

slumped : fell heavily

Guess the meaning :

• felines

sagging : drooping lags

gash : long, deep cut

Guess the meaning :

• chronicler

piece together : create something by joining the separate parts of it together

Shaaz named the leopards (1) (2) (3)

incursions: attacks

The visitors are welcomed because ............................ .......................................... ...Find : The Bison is ....................... ...........................................

Photographs of that leopard, the victor, Scarface, as Shaaz named him, not only made Shaaz famous among India’s wildlife community, but also led to Shaaz’s enviable reputation as a chronicler of the wild. “Through my journey of photographing Scarface, I have discovered other leopards, his mates and discovered his nemises– tigers. I also discovered the current protagonist of my work–Saya–while tracking Scarface. This is the world’s first black panther, the behaviour of which is being documented so intimately on camera, by tracking its movements. So far all the research on the animal has been done through camera traps.” Through many months of toil, Shaaz has managed to collect precious footage, including that of the animal mating, to piece together the incredible landscape of a black panther’s life.

Saya, Scarface and Pardus, the leopard that lost to Scarface, have also led Shaaz down a different path of discovery. Learning about them and the loss to their habitat has led Shaaz to create the Buffer Conflict Resolution Trust of India (BCRTI). It’s an agency that educates villagers who live on the fringe of the forest on the importance of conservation. “We are in the heart of the man-animal conflict zone,” explains Shaaz. “There is no specifc buffer zone here around Nagarhole. The core area of the forest ends where the fields begin. In dry season elephant and wild boar incursions into fields are very common. Older leopards, like Pardus, who have lost territory in the forest often carry away livestock from villages.” This creates resentment among locals towards the animals on occasions leading to unpleasant situations. Putting tourist currency to good use, under the BCRTI umbrella, Shaaz provides locals with vocational training, with the aim of educating locals on the merits of conservation and to help them benefit from tourist currency. The visitors at the resort are welcome to volunteer to teach a skills training class of their choice. The acquired skills enable locals to find employment with any of the numerous wildlife resorts in the region, if not in a faraway city.

Madegowda is one such local agriculturist who is trained at BCRTI and is now a certified naturalist employed by ‘The Bison’. “In the past, I’ve lost almost 80 percent of a season’s yield of sugarcane to such animal attacks. I used to hate them. But now I’ve learnt how

important these animals are and the value of protecting them,” he says. “I have known these jungles for 35 years. I know where the animals are and I realise I can guide visitors and get paid for it. In a way, the animals are paying me back.”

“The forests have taught me many things. For instance, listening is a sense far more important than sight. You have to switch off your vehicle, sit and listen, for the forest is constantly communicating– through the voices of birds and animals,” he explains. “Tracking an animal also teaches you life lessons. The black panther has taught me patience. But, above all, it has taught me to never stop discovering. There are just so many amazing experiences to learn and share with the world.”

- CN Traveller Magazine published by Land Rover India

BRAINSTORMING

(A1) (i) In pairs, discuss the professions and challenges one can take happily if

one is really passionate about the job.

(ii) In groups, organize a role play activity associated with ‘Wild Life Expert’/ ‘Wild Life Photographer’/‘Wild Life Conservator’, explaining the differences and similarities involved in their profession.

(A2) (i) Arrange the following incidents in a proper sequential order as they have

occurred in Part-I: (a) Writer realized that he was lost in the woods. (b) The Langurs saw the leopard.

way through the thicket.

(d) The author met a villager.

(ii) Correct the False statements. (Part-II)

(a) Earlier Shaaz was in the field of finance.

(b) BCRTI was founded out of the genuine urge to conserve the habitat of

the wild life.

(d) According to the local agriculturist seeing is more essential than listening.

Camouflaging the hide

(vii) Complete the table explaining the qualities that you would like to imbibe from Nature within yourself and provide the reasons for the same:

From Quality Reasons Trees Streams

(A3) (i) Choose appropriate phrases/expressions from the extract given in the brackets. (time and again, to one’s heart’s content, frantic speed, in a jiffy) (a) I was on diet for some days but today I am going to eat .

(b) Every mother scolds her children for the overuse of the

mobile phone.

(iii) Complete the given web (Part-I).

Signs of the vicinity of the village

(iv) Complete the following (Part-II).

1Responsibilities

2 handled by Shaaz

(v) Complete the flow-chart stating the reactions of the petrified Langurs due

to the presence of the Leopard.Khyak-alarm call

➢ ➢

➢

(vi) Complete the web, describing each step taken by the writer as a

solitary traveller while moving in the jungle with great precaution:

Precautions taken by the writer

Grasping various sounds

the funds given by an NGO. (d) Raj ran at a to catch the train. (A4) (i) Begin the following sentences with the words given in the brackets.

(a) I can guide visitors.

(Visitors) (b) Animals are paying me back.

(I) (c) The behaviour of the first black panther is being documented.

(They) (d) All the research on the animal has been done through camera traps.

(They) (e) Madegowda is employed by The Bison.

(The Bison) (f) The surroundings were reminding me.

(I) (g) Raju was amazed at my solitary visits to Umbarzara.

(My solitary) (h) I found a bright red soil trial.

(A) (i) Older leopards like Pardus carry away livestock from villages.

(Livestock) (j) I have lost almost 80 percent of a season’s yield of sugarcane.

(80 percent) (k) Tracking an animal also teaches you life lessons.

(Life lessons) (l) Many things have been taught to me by the forests.

(The forests) (m) Resentment among locals towards the animals is created by this.

(This) (ii) Rewrite the sentences by using ‘not only....but also’:

(a) The petrified Langurs speeded to the trees near and far and secured

their places on the tree tops.

(b) Umbarzara is the haven for Tigers, Leopards and Sloth Bears.

Development Corporation.

(A5) (i) Your college has decided to celebrate the World Environment Day Mr Kiran Purandare has been invited as the ‘Chief Guest’ for the event. Imagine you are the Secretary of the ‘Nature Club’ of your college and you have to conduct an interview of Mr Kiran Purandare. Frame 8/10 questions for the same.

(ii) Imagine you have visited the jungles of Nagarhole. Write a report,

to be published in your college magazine / in a local newspaper.

(iii) Shaaz has contributed towards conserving the wild animals and their habitat. Your college has decided to spread the message in the society and arrange a rally. Prepare an ‘Appeal’ to ensure maximum participation informing about the day, date and other relevant details. (iv) Nature Complete 💭 💭is the a great mind NATURE teacher map Importantly

Most

as TEACHES and instructed a guide.

💭 💭as per the titled concept: never to stop discovering

(A6) (i) Surf the net and obtain more information about the conservation work done by Shaaz. Prepare posters to inspire others and display them on your college noticeboard.

(ii) Find out the information about the qualification and eligibility

required in the professions related to wild life such as ...

• Forest officer / Ranger • Wildlife photographer

• Environmentalist • Geologist

• Tour Manager

❑❑❑

1.7 Why we Travel

ICE BREAKERS

➢ Share your views on how travelling can be a hobby.

➢ Discuss in the class the benefits of travelling and complete the web.

To To be prompt and quick

prepare / organize Travel Teaches You

To be careful and cautious

Make a list of your expectations when you travel to some new place:

(a) Food should be delicious and available whenever hungry.

(b) (c) (d)

➢ Discuss in the class the various types of travels. Add your own to ones given

below:

Solo travel

Culinary travel

Siddarth Pico Raghavan Iyer, (born 1957) at Oxford, England is known as Pico Iyer. He is a British –born American essayist and novelist and is best known for his travel writing. He was awarded the famous Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts in 2005 and has won the accolade of Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters by the Chapman University. He has authored several books including Video Night in Kathmandu(1988), The Lady and The Monk (1991), The Global Soul (2000) and The Man within My Head (2012). He is working as an essayist for Time since 1986. He also publishes regularly in The New York Review of Books and The New York Times and other renowned publications.

In his classic essay ‘Why we Travel’, Pico Iyer explores the reasons for his passion to travel and shares them with the readers. He quotes famous writers and puts forth his own observations while probing into his own instinct to travel. Enormously interesting, the extract is equally inspiring for the readers who are looking for the adventures in their lives.

Guess the meaning : riches are differently dispersed

George Santayana: George Agustin Nicolas Ruiz de Santayana y Borras (December 16, 1863 – September 26, 1952), was a Spanish philosopher, essayist, poet and novelist.

lapidary: relating to the engraving, cutting, or polishing of stones and gems (of language- elegant and concise.)

solitudes : a lonely or uninhabited place.

running some pure hazard: accepting a risk or danger

Guess the difference:

• travel and travail

Why we Travel

We travel, initially, to lose ourselves; and we travel, next, to find ourselves. We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate. We travel to bring what little we can, in our ignorance and knowledge, to those parts of the globe whose riches are differently dispersed. And we travel, in essence, to become young fools again-to slow time down and get taken in, and fall in love once more. The beauty of this whole process was best described, perhaps, before people even took to frequent flying, by George Santayana in his lapidary essay, “The Philosophy of Travel.” We “need sometimes,” the Harvard philosopher wrote, “to escape into open solitudes, into aimlessness, into the moral holiday of running some pure hazard, in order to sharpen the edge of life, to taste hardship, and to be compelled to work desperately for a moment at no matter what.”

Few of us ever forget the connection between “travel” and “travail,” Travel in that sense guides us toward a better balance of wisdom and compassion - of seeing the

world clearly, and yet feeling it truly. For seeing without feeling can obviously be uncaring; while feeling without seeing can be blind. Yet for me the first great joy of travelling is simply the luxury of leaving all my beliefs and certainties at home, and seeing everything I thought I knew in a different light, and from a crooked angle.

Though it’s fashionable nowadays to draw a distinction between the “tourist” and the “traveler,” perhaps the real distinction lies between those who leave their assumptions at home, and those who don’t. Among those who don’t, a tourist is just someone who complains, “Nothing here is the way it is at home,” while a traveler is one who grumbles, “Everything here is the same as it is in Cairo - or Cuzco or Kathmandu.” It’s all very much the same.

But for the rest of us, the sovereign freedom of travelling comes from the fact that it whirls you around and turns you upside down, and stands everything you took for granted on its head. If a diploma can famously be a passport (to a journey through hard realism), a passport can be a diploma (for a crash course in cultural relativism). And the first lesson we learn on the road, whether we like it or not, is how provisional and provincial are the things we imagine to be universal.

We travel, then, in part just to shake up our complacencies by seeing all the moral and political urgencies, the life-and-death dilemmas, that we seldom have to face at home. And we travel to fill in the gaps left by tomorrow’s headlines. When you drive down the streets of Port-au-Prince, for example, where there is almost no paving your notions of the Internet and a “one world order” grow usefully revised. Travel is the best way we have of rescuing the humanity of places, and saving them from abstraction and ideology.

And in the process, we also get saved from abstraction ourselves, and come to see how much we can bring to the places we visit, and how much we can become a kind of carrier pigeon - an anti-Federal Express, if you like - in transporting back and forth what every culture needs. I

Differentiate :

• tourist and traveller

sovereign : supreme and effective

Guess the difference :

• provisional and provincial

complacencies: satisfaction of one with oneself or one’s own achievements

abstraction: something that exists only as an idea

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Sunday, August 9, 2020

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