The Guitar Player & Svayamvara by Suniti Namjoshi/Question - Answer/ RBSE
Chapter
- 3
The Guitar Player Suniti Namjoshi
Short Question Answers
Q 1. What feelings arose in the heart of the passers-by after listening to the
music?
Ans. The passers-by fell in love with the girl after listening to the music. They went to the girl and expressed their love to her.
Q 2. According to the girl, did the passers-by give the right
answer?
Ans. No, according to the girl, the passers-by did not
give the correct answer. Each of them responded that he did not know the right answer and asked her for the right answer.
Q 3. How did the girl react to the reply of the passer-by?
Ans. When both the passers-by showed their unawareness about the answer and asked her the right answer, she said that she wouldn't tell them the right answer and went on playing her guitar.
Q 4. Why was the passer-by greatly perplexed?
Ans. The passersby were greatly perplexed because their answers were rejected by the girl. They did
not know the correct answers to the girl’s question but They wanted to know the
correct answer .
Q 5. What was the right answer according to the girl?
Ans. According to the girl if they loved her, they must love her altogether, just as she was, all her gifts, all her possessions, everything, she had been and everything she would be.
Long Question Answers
Q 6.what was the right answer according to the girl?
Ans. Once there was a girl who played on her guitar and it so happened that two men passing by listened to the music and fell in love with her. She asked them if it was her music they loved or her. The first one said that he didn't know the right answer. The second one also said the same and at last ventured to say that it was a beautiful instrument. The girl rejected their answers and went on playing. The two passers-by thought over it the whole night and the next day they approached the girl again. The first one said that he would love her even if she did not play a single note of music. The second one said that he would love her even if she didn't own a guitar. The girl said that she was a musician and if they did not care about her music, they couldn't love her. If they really loved her, they should love her altogether, as she was, all her gifts, all her possessions, everything she had been and she would be.
Q 7. Why did the girl choose to play a sad little tune and what
did the writer want to convey through this?
Ans. The girl was quite a talented musician. She played the guitar very well. Listening to her music the passers-by fall in love with her but when they were asked what they loved, her music or she herself, they discarded her music and said that they would love her even without her music. They forgot to recognize the music which was the reason for them to fall in love with her. They wanted to marry only her female self not her virtues. This made her sad and she chose to play a sad little tune.
The writer has tried to convey that women should be treated as human beings rather than objects. They too have desires and qualities which should be given due regard. They deserve a fair and equal treatment from their male counterparts.
Svaymvara
Short
Question Answers
Q 1. What is the meaning of the word ‘svayamvara’?
Ans. Svayamvara is a ritual in which the bride
chooses her husband for her marriage. A test is taken to choose the right
husband. The girl marries the one who passes in the examination.
Q 2. Why were the princess’s parents sad?
Ans. Her parents had asked her not to whistle. But she did not
listen to them. That’s why her parents were sad because no one would marry a whistling woman.
Q 3. On what basis was the princess finally able to
choose her husband?
Ans. The princess asked the suitors whether they were all ready
to accept that they had been beaten fairly. At this, everyone refused to accept except one. Princess chose him as her husband.
Q 4. Why did the parents tell the princess not to
whistle?
Ans. The princess’ parents forbade her to whistle. But
the princess did not stop whistling. They thought how a man could marry
a whistling girl. They thought that the princess would remain unmarried lifetime.
Q 5. Why was the king displeased when the princess beat
the suitors at the whistling?
Ans. The king had announced to marry his whistling daughter to a person who would defeat the princess at whistling. But the princess defeated all the suitors. Now the princess couldn’t be married to any suitor. So the king was displeased.
Q 6. Whom did the princess choose as her husband and why?
Ans. The princess chose the person as her husband, who had accepted his
defeat. There was only one person accepted that he was defeated fairly. She chose him because
he thought of the girl on equal terms.
Long Question Answers
Q 7. Most of the suitors did not accept the fact that
they were fairly beaten. Why? Explain how does it reflect the society?
Ans. Worried that nobody would marry the princess, the King organized a Whistling Competition. It was declared that whoever would defeat the princess in the competition would be given half of the kingdom and the princess in marriage. But nobody was able to defeat her as she was so much adept at that. The King was sunk in gloom. Seeing her father's condition, the daughter asked the suitors, if they accept that they were fairly defeated in the competition. But none of them agreed to it except one.
The story truly reflect the society as in this patriarchal society women have always played a second fiddle. Men have dominated and women have always been suppressed. It is considered unmanly and humiliating to be defeated by women even in today's educated world. It is believed that women should always be behind men following their footsteps and not leading them.
Q 8. Discuss the deeper meaning and significance of the
story.
Ans. The first paragraph taken from the above one.
The story suggests that being born a man doesn't guarantee the right to rule or humiliate women. Women also have talents and skills which should be recognized and given due respect. The whistling in the story is the princess' talent but that is not accepted by the vain and egocentric men. They couldn't think of their defeat by a woman. It was low and insulting to them. They believed that it was possible only through some magic or trick. The story signifies that women instead of being tortured and dominated should be given an equal status. Their role is as important as men in the society. A society should be built on the principles of gender equality and not on gender bias.
Chapter - 2 The Portrait of a Lady by Khushwant Singh/ Question-Answer/ Panorama
Chapter
- 2
The Portrait of a Lady
Kushwant Singh
Short Question Answers
Q 1. “That was a turning point in our friendship.” What
was the turning point?
Ans. The author’s parents were settled in the city properly. They asked the writer and grandmother also to come there. It was the turning point in their friendship.
Q 2. How did the grandmother help in the morning before
going to school?
Ans. Grandma used to wake up her grandchildren in the
morning. She got him ready for school. She bathed and dressed him. She would fetch his wooden slate already washed and plastered with yellow chalk, an earthen inkpot and a pen and tie them all in a bundle. Finally she would give him a breakfast of thick stale chapati with a little butter and sugar spread on it.Thus the
Grandmother helped him in the morning.
Q 3. What were the grandmother’s views about learning
music?
Ans. The grandmother thought that music was not meant for
gentlefolk. It has lewd associations. So it is the subject of harlots and beggars.
Q 4. Describe the grandmother’s association with the
sparrows.
Ans. The grandmother fed sparrows in the courtyard of the townhouse in the afternoon for half an hour. While she sat in the verandah breaking the bread into little bits, hundreds of little birds collected round her creating a veritable bedlam of chirpings. Some came and perched on her legs others on her shoulders. Some even sat on her head. She smiled but never shooed them away. It used to be the happiest half an hour of the day for her.
Q 5. What did the grandmother do on the eve of the author’s return from abroad?
Ans. On the eve of the author's return from abroad, she did not pray
Long Answer Type Question
Q 6. Write the character- sketch of the author’s
grandmother.
Ans. The author’s grandmother was an old woman. Her appearance had not changed for almost 20 years. She was a beautiful and strong woman who took care of all the matters of the author when his parents left him with her. She had always been short and fat and slightly bent. Her face was a criss-cross of wrinkle running from everywhere to everywhere. She was so terribly old that she could not have grown older. She was a God-fearing lady and would visit temple daily. Most of the time, at home, she would be busy telling the beads of a rosary in a spotless white sari. Her silver locks were always scattered untidily over her pale puckered face and her lips constantly moved in an inaudible prayer. She was like the winter landscape in the mountains, an expanse of pure white serenity breathing peace and contentment. She was quite kind and charitable. She fed the dogs in the village and in the city she took to feeding the sparrows when she could not find dogs.
Q 7. Everybody including the sparrows mourned the grandmother’s death. Discuss.
Ans. On the eve of the author's return from abroad, when the grandmother skipped her evening prayer, she had already realized that her end was near. She said that only a few hours were left with her to live. Her statement came true and
she died. All the members of the house mourned her death. Sparrows were very
dear to her grandmother. She had spent the happiest hours of her life with the
sparrow. On the day of her death when the sparrows came to her as part of their routine, her body was lying in the verandah; she was no more. Perhaps, the sparrows realized the fact and they too got involved in the mourning.
They sat scattered on the floor. There was no chirping. Feeling sorry for them, when the author's mother threw some bread-crumbs to them, they took no notice of them and flew away quietly when her body was taken away.
Q 8. Trace the various phases of the author’s
relationship with his grandmother.
Ans. The author and his grandmother were good friends. This friendship solidified when his parent left him with her in the village when they went to settle in the city. They lived together. Grandma would get him ready for school; she would bathe him; dress him; prepare his slate and other things; give him food and even would accompany him to school and back.
In the second phase, when the author came to city with his grandmother, there came a turning point in their
friendship. Grandma could not go to school because he went to school in a motor bus. She started feeding sparrows in the courtyard. She was unable to cope with the things taught in the English Medium school. She was very upset at the teaching of music at school.
In the third phase, when the writer went to university, the common thread between them i.e. the room they shared, also snapped,because he was given a separate room. She busied herself with prayer, spinning wheel and sparrows.
Finally when the author went abroad, she went to the railway
station to see him off but she was not at all emotional. When he returned from abroad, she went to receive him and celebrated the evening.
Q 9. What was the common link of friendship between the
author and his grandmother? How did the grandmother behave when their
friendship was snapped?
Ans. The author and grandmother were good friends. The
common link of friendship between them was the room they shared. But when he joined the university, he was given a separate room and thus the common link between them was snapped.
She accepted her seclusion with resignation. She would not care to talk to anyone. From sunrise to sunset, she sat by her wheel, spinning and reciting prayers. Only in the afternoon, she relaxed for a while to feed the sparrows. She would offer bread crumbs to them and they would come and create a veritable bedlam of chirpings. They would perch on her legs; others would be on her shoulders but she would never shoo them off. It would be happiest half an hour of the day for her.
Q 10. “She was like the winter landscape in the
mountains, an expanse of pure white serenity-breathing peace and contentment.”
How far do you agree with the author’s description of his grandmother as stated
above?
Ans. I fully agree with the author’s description of his
grandmother as stated above. She was really peaceful like the mountain landscape
in the winter season. As white color is a symbol of peace, she always lived
peacefully in a spotless saree. She was never angry. All the time, she would be busy telling the beads of rosary and praying. She never showed any anxiety or consternation for anything even if it was against her wishes. She accepted
every situation with great calm and changed herself according to the situation. She would accept everything with great calm and equanimity.She did not
like school teachings but she was never harsh or condemnatory about that.
Chapter- 1 The Tiger King by Kalki/ RBSE/ Question-answer/ Panorama
Chapter
– 1
The Tiger King Kalki
Short Question Answers
1. Who was the Tiger king? Why did he get that name?
Ans. The Maharaja of the Pratibandapuram was the tiger king.
At the time of his birth, a royal astrologer had predicted that his death would
be by a tiger. When he grew up, he hunted 99 tigers. He got this name for killing a lot of Tiger.
2. What miracle happened when the tiger king was just an
infant?
Ans. When Tiger king was ten days old, hearing the prophecy by the chief astrologer, the Tiger King addressed them all saying "O Wise Prophets!" He told them that everybody who was born had to die one day so there would be more sense if he could tell him the manner of his death.
3. How was prince Jung-Jung Bahadur brought up?
Ans. The prince Jung-Jung Bahadur became taller and stronger
day by day. He drank the milk of an English cow; was looked after by an English nanny; was tutored by an Englishman; and saw nothing but English movies. In this way, the Prince grew up.
4. “You may kill even a cow in self-defense.” What did this
old saying mean to the tiger king?
Ans. The cow is a holy animal which is worshipped by people and has sentimental association. Killiing or harming a cow is something sacrilegious. But according to the saying, even killing a cow is justifiable if it is for self-defense. Therefore, for the Tiger King it was an open permission to kill the tigers.
5. How did the tiger king feel when he killed his first
tiger? Why did he send for the royal astrologer?
Ans. When the king hit the first tiger, he was very happy.
He called the chief astrologer and showed him the body of the dead tiger. He wanted to tell the chief astrologer that his prediction was proved wrong.
6. Why was tiger hunting in Pratibandapuram banned?
Ans. Maharaja of Pratibandapuram wanted to hunt all tigers.
Because he was told by the royal astrologers that his death would be by the
tiger only. He wanted to prove them wrong.
7. What steps did the king take to complete the mission?
Ans. Tiger King had decided to kill 100 tigers. He banned the
hunting of tigers in his state except by him. It was announced that if anybody tried to fling so much as a stone at the tiger all his property and wealth would be confiscated..
8. Why did the tiger king decide to marry a girl of the
royal family of a state with a large tiger population?
Ans. Tiger King had killed seventy tigers and now 30 tigers were
left to be killed to match his tally of hundred. But now no Tiger was left in his kingdom.
Therefore, he wanted to marry a girl from the royal family of a state where there would be a large tiger population so that he could kill the remaining tigers.
Long Question Answers
9. How did the prediction of the royal astrologer about the
king of Pratibandapuram come true?
Ans. The royal astrologers had announced that the cause of the death of the king would be only a tiger.When Maharaja grew up, he killed the first tiger. The astrologers said that even if he killed 99 tigers,he should be careful with the hundredth tiger. King decided to kill the hundredth tiger. When he shot the hundredth tiger, the tiger fell down but did not die.
The king did not know this thing and he considered himself
safe. He bought a wooden toy tiger on his son’s third birthday. While playing with the tiger, one of the slivers on its rough surface pierced his
hand. He didn't pay much attention to that but in three-four days the infection flared in the arm. Some eminent surgeons were called from Madras. They operated the King but could not save him. Thus the words of the royal astrologer came true.
10. How did the tiger king come in danger of losing his
throne and how did he save his kingdom?
Ans. Once a high level British officer came to
Pratibandapuram. The officer liked tiger hunting just like the king. But the Maharaja would not allow anybody to hunt the tiger. The
officer sent a message through the Dewan that Durai wouln't kill the tiger, Maharaja could do the actual killing. He wanted just a photgraph of himself with the dead tiger. But Maharaja refused permission even to that. Therefore he stood in danger of losing his throne.
He discussed
this issue with the Dewan and as a result an order was sent to a British jeweller's firm in Calcutta to send samples of expensive diamond rings. Some fifty diamond rings arrived. Maharaja sent them all the Duraisani thinking she would make her choice and send the remaining back./But she kept all. Maharaja received a bill of 3 lakh rupees but he was happy that he could save his kingdom.
11. How was the hundredth tiger found and killed?
Ans. The king of Pratibandapuram ordered the Minister to
find a tiger at any cost. A tiger from the People’s Park of Madras was there in the Minister’s house. At midnight when the town was sleeping peacefully,
then Minister and his wife dragged the tiger to the car and put the tiger in
the car. Minister ran the car and took the tiger into the forest near the place,
where the king was hunting.
The next morning, the tiger was roaming in the presence of
the king. The Maharaja carefully fired at the tiger. The tiger fell to the
ground. The king was very happy. After the king’s departure, the hunters found
the tiger alive and decided to kill the tiger from a distance of one foot.
12. What was the rumor rife in Pratibandapuram?
Ans. The rumor rife in the Pratibandapuram was that the prince was born in the hour of bull. Bull and Tiger Both are enemies. Therefore the death would be from a tiger. When the prince was ten days. Then he heard this, he shouted loudly. Terrifying words emerged from his lips,"Let the tigers beware!"
The king had decided to kill the tigers. The King did not
want to take any risk of leaving the tigers alive. The king trusted the astrologer. . Soon this rumor spread throughout
Pratibandapuram.