If I Were You

 Answer these questions.
1. At last a sympathetic audience.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) Why does he say it?
(iii) Is he sarcastic or serious?

Ans: (i) The speaker of the given line is Gerrard.
(ii) He says it as he is asked by the intruder to speak about himself.
(iii) He speaks the given dialogue sarcastically.

2. Why does the intruder choose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take on?

Ans: Gerrard looks much like the intruder. The intruder is a murderer. The police is after him. He hopes he can easily impersonate Gerrard escape being caught.

3. I said it with bullets.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) What does it mean?
(iii) Is it the truth? What is the speaker’s reason for saying this?

Ans: (i) Gerrard says this.
(ii) It means that when things went wrong, he had used his gun to shoot someone for his escape.
(iii) No, it is not the truth. The speaker says this to save himself from getting shot by the intruder.

4. What is Gerrard’s profession? Quote the parts of the play that support your answer.

Ans: Gerrard is a playwright by profession. Several parts of the play that reflect this. Some of these are:
• This is all very melodramatic, not very original, perhaps, but…”
• At last a sympathetic audience!”
• In most melodramas the villain is foolish enough to delay his killing long enough to be frustrated”.
• I said, you were luckier than most melodramatic villains.”
• That’s a disguise outfit; false moustaches and what not”.
• Sorry I can’t let you have the props in time for rehearsal, I’ve had a spot of bother – quite amusing. I think I’ll put it in my next play.”

5. You’ll soon stop being smart.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?
(iii) What according to the speaker will stop Gerrard from being smart?

Ans: (i) The intruder says the line.
(ii) The speaker says it to frighten Gerrard.
(iii) According to the intruder, Gerrard would stop being smart once he knew what was going to happen to him. The intruder’s plan was to kill Gerard and take over his identity. He felt that when Gerrard would know this, he would stop being smart and start getting scared.

6. They can’t hang me twice.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?

Ans: (i) The intruder says the line.
(ii) The intruder had been telling Gerrard that he had murdered one man, and that he would not shy away from murdering him too. This is because the police could not hang him twice for two murders.

7. A mystery I propose to explain.” What is the mystery the speaker proposes to explain?

Ans: The mystery that Gerrard proposed to explain was the story he made up to dodge the intruder and save his own life.The story was that Gerrard himself was a criminal like the intruder. He asked the intruder why else would he not meet any trades people and be a bit of a mystery man here today and gone tomorrow. The game was up as things had suddenly gone wrong for him. He had committed a murder and got away. Unfortunately, one of his men had been arrested and certain things were found which his men should have burnt. He said that he was expecting some trouble that night and therefore, his bag was packed and he was ready to escape.

8. This is your big surprise.”
(i) Where has this been said in the play?
(ii) What is the surprise?

Ans: (i) This has  been said twice in the play. On the first occasion, it is spoken by the intruder  while revealing his plan to kill Gerrard. Secondly, it  is spoken by Gerrard before he reveals his fictitious identity to the intruder.
(ii) The intruder’s surprise is his plan to kill Gerrard and take on his identity to lead a secure and hassle-free life. Whereas, Gerrard’s surprise is his fictitious identity, his way of refraining the intruder from killing him.

Slumber Did My Spirit Seal

1. “A slumber did my spirit seal,” says the poet. That is, a deep sleep ‘closed off’ his soul (or mind). How does the poet react to his loved one’s death? Does he feel bitter grief? Or does he feel a great peace?

Ans: The poet’s reaction to his loved one’s death is not of bitter grief that he could shed out in the form of tears. On her death, he did not experience any human fears. He just looked at her and wondered how she looked and what she would experience later. He did not feel any fear. Therefore, it is difficult to say whether he is experiencing bitter grief or is in a peaceful state of mind.

2. The passing of time will no longer affect her, says the poet. Which lines of the poem say this?

Ans: The lines of the poem that show that the passing of time will no longer affect her are as follows:
“She seemed a thing that could not feel The touch of earthy years.”

3. How does the poet imagine her to be, after death? Does he think of her as a person living in a very happy state (a ‘heaven’)? Or does he see her now as a part of nature? In which lines of the poem do you find your answer?

Ans: The poet thinks that she is now a part of nature. After her death, he imagines her buried inside the earth with other rocks, stones, and trees and rolling around with the earth in its daily rotation. The following lines express this idea-Rolled round in earth’s diurnal course With rocks and stones and trees.

Kathmandu

Page No: 132

I.             Answer these questions in one or two words or in short phrases.

1. Name the two temples the author visited in Kathmandu.
2. The writer says, “All this I wash down with Coca Cola.” What does ‘all this’ refer to?
3. What does Vikram Seth compare to the quills of a porcupine?
4. Name five kinds of flutes.

Ans: 1. The two temples the author visited in Kathmandu were the Pashupatinath temple and the Baudhnath stupa.

2. ‘All this’ refers to eating a bar of marzipan, a corn-on-the-cob roasted in a charcoal stove (rubbed with salt, chilli powder and lemon), and reading a couple of love story comics and a Reader’s Digest.

3. Vikram Seth compares the fifty or sixty bansuris protruding in all directions from the pole of a flute seller to the quills of a porcupine.

4. The reed neh, the Japanese shakuhachi, the deep bansuri of Hindustani classical music, the clear or breathy flutes of South America, and the high-pitched Chinese flutes.

II. Answer each question in a short paragraph.
1. What difference does the author note between the flute seller and the other hawkers?
2. What is the belief at Pashupatinath about the end of Kaliyug?
3. The author has drawn powerful images and pictures. Pick out three examples each of
(i) the atmosphere of ‘febrile confusion’ outside the temple of Pashupatinath (for example: some people trying to get the priest’s attention are elbowed aside…)
(ii) the things he sees
(iii) the sounds he hears

Ans: 1. The author notes that while the other hawkers shouted out their wares, the flute seller did not. He simply played a flute, slowly and meditatively, without excessive display.

2. At Pashupatinath, there is a small shrine that protrudes from the stone platform on the river bank of Bagmati. It is believed that when the shrine will emerge fully, the goddess inside it will escape. The evil period of Kaliyug on earth will then end.

3. (i) The author has drawn powerful images and pictures of the atmosphere of ‘febrile confusion’ outside the temple of Pashupatinath. These include the following: a group of saffron-clad Westerners struggling to enter the main gate as only Hindus were allowed to enter the temple; a fight that breaks out between two monkeys; and a royal Nepalese princess for whom everyone makes way.

(ii) He saw that the Baudhnath Stupa had an immense white dome, which was ringed by a road. Small shops were there on the outer edge where felt bags, Tibetan prints and silver jewellerycould be bought. There were no crowds there. On the busiest streets of Kathmandu, he saw fruit sellers, flute sellers, hawkers of postcards, shops selling Western cosmetics, film rolls, chocolate, copper utensils and Nepalese antiques.
(iii) The sounds he heard were film songs that were blaring out from the radios, car horns, bicycle bells, vendors shouting out their wares. He also listened to flute music, calling it the most universal and most particular of sounds.

III. Answer the following questions in not more than 100 − 150 words each.

1. Compare and contrast the atmosphere in and around the Baudhnath shrine with the Pashupathinath temple.

Ans: The atmosphere at the Pashupatinath temple was noisy, and full of chaos and confusion. Worshippers were trying to get the priest’s attention; others were pushing their way to the front; saffron-clad Westerners were trying to enter the temple; monkeys were fighting and adding to the general noise; a corpse was being cremated on the banks of the river Bagmati; washerwomen were at their work, while children were bathing. In contrast, the Baudhnath stupa was “a haven of quietness in the busy streets around”. There was no crowd, which helped build the stillness and serenity at the Buddhist shrine.

2. How does the author describe Kathmandu’s busiest streets?

Ans: Along Kathmandu’s narrowest and busiest streets, there are small shrines and flower-adorned deities. Apart from these, there are fruit sellers, flute sellers, hawkers of postcards, shops selling Western cosmetics, film rolls, chocolate, those selling copper utensils and Nepalese antiques. The author hears film songs that were blaring out from the radios, sounds of car horns and bicycle bells, vendors shouting out their wares. He says that stray cows roam about on the roads. He also draws a vivid picture of a flute seller with many bansuris protruding from his pole. He describes how the serene music produced by the flute seller is heard clearly above all the other noise.

3. “To hear any flute is to be drawn into the commonality of all mankind.” Why does the author say this?

Ans: The author considers flute music to be “the most universal and most particular” of all music. This is a musical instrument that is common to all cultures. We have the reed neh, the recorder, the Japanese shakuhachi, the deep bansuri of Hindustani classical music, the clear or breathy flutes of South America, the high-pitched Chinese flutes, etc. Even though each of these has its specific fingering and compass yet, for the author, to hear any flute is “to be drawn into the commonality of all mankind”. This is because in spite of their differences, every flute produces music with the help of the human breath. Similarly, despite the differences in caste, culture, religion, region, all human beings are the same, with the same living breath running through all of them.

The Beggar

Page No: 67 Think About It
1. Has Lushkoff become a beggar by circumstance or by choice?

Ans: Lushkoff became a beggar by circumstance. Formerly, he sang in a Russian choir, but was sent away for drunkenness. This led him to beg.

2. What reasons does he give to Sergei for his telling lies?

Ans: Lushkoff said that since he was fired for being an alcoholic, he had to tell lies. And, if he told the truth no one would give him anything.

3. Is Lushkoff a willing worker? Why, then, does he agree to chop wood for Sergei?

Ans: No, Lushkoff is not a willing worker. He agrees to chop wood for Sergei not because he was hungry and wanted work but because of his pride and shame and since he had been trapped by his own words. His strength had  been undermined by drinking too much vodka and he was unhealthy and did not feel the slightest inclination to do any work.

4. Sergei says, “I am happy that my words have taken effect.” Why does he say so? Is he right in saying this?

Ans: When Sergei got Lushkoff to work for him the first time, he wasn’t a willing worker. But after chopping wood for Sergei and helping him move houses, Sergei noticed that Lushkoff had developed a willingness to work. On seeing this, Sergei felt content that his advice had brought Lushkoff on the right path and that he wouldn’t have to beg again for a living. If Sergei had not helped Lushkoff, he’s have lied on the streets begging.

5. Lushkoff is earning thirty five roubles a month. How is he obliged to Sergei for this?

Ans: Lushkoff was obliged to Sergei because if he had not come to Sergei, then he might still have been calling himself a teacher or a student. He would have been begging. By listening to Sergei, he had changed his ways. He was a notary and earned thirty  five roubles a month.