CLASS VII   Friends and Flatterers

Read the extracts and answer the qs.:

Stanza 1

Every one that flatters thee
Is no friend in misery.
Words are easy, like the wind;
Faithful friends are hard to find:

Meaning

·         Flatter – Praise

·         Thee – You

·         Misery – Struggle; trouble; pain; difficulty

·         Faithful – Committed; loyal

Questions

1.   Name the poem and the poet.

     The poem is ‘Friends and Flatterers.’and the poet is William Shakespeare.

2.   Why shouldn’t we trust a flattering friend like a real friend?

We should not trust a flattering friend because they always leave us in our misery.These friends are only for good times.

3.   Why are words compared to wind?

Words are compared to wind as flattering friends use them quickly and easily.Their words

            meaningless and directionless   just like the wind.

4.   .What do you mean by ‘a friend in misery?’

A friend in misery is a real friend who will be with us in our good and bad times alike.

      5.   Name the poetic device in line-3.

 Simile.

Stanza 2

Every man will be thy friend
Whilst thou hast wherewith to spend;
But if store of crowns be scant,
No man will supply thy want.

Meaning

·         Thy – Your

·         Whilst – While

·         Hast – Has

·         Wherewith – Money

·         Store of crowns – Money

·         Scant – Low

·         Supply – Give

·         Thy want – Your need

1.   When do we find ourselves surrounded by friends?
We find ourselves surrounded by friends when we have wealth and money to spend for them.

2.   When do flattering friends abandon us?
Flattering friends abandon us when we have less money to spend on them.

Stanza 3

If that one be prodigal,
Bountiful they will him call,
And with such-like flattering,
‘Pity but he were a king;’

Meaning

·         Prodigal – Spendthrift; over-spending;

·         Bountiful – Abundant

·         Such-like – As if

·         Pity – Sympathy

·         But he were a king – As if he were a king

1.   What does prodigal mean? OR Who is a prodigal person?
Prodigal is one who wastes money without giving any thought to the future.

2.   Whose company do people generally like?
People generally like the company of those who are prodigal and generously on them.

3.   How do people flatter a prodigal friend?

People flatter their prodigal friends by saying that they are sorry he is not a king. They repeatedly say that such qualities as his could  only be found in kings.

Stanza 4

But if Fortune once do frown,
Then farewell his great renown
They that fawn’d on him before
Use his company no more.

Meaning

·         Fortune – Luck

·         Frown – Be angry

·         Farewell – Depart, lose

·         Renown – Fame

·         Fawn’d – Flattered

1.   What happens to your flatterers when your luck turns bad?
When luck turns bad, our flatterers will bid farewell to us. They will not stay with us any more.

2.   What does the frown of fortune indicate?
Frown of fortune means bad luck.

3.   What does farewell his great renown mean?
It means losing all fame due to bad fortune. Fame here signifies being famous for spending money lavishly.

4.   Why do they fawn on him before?
They fawn on him before because earlier he had sufficient money to spend on them.

Stanza 5

He that is thy friend indeed,
He will help thee in thy need:
If thou sorrow, he will weep;
If thou wake, he cannot sleep;

Meaning

·         Sorrow – Worry

·         Weep – Cry

1.   What are the qualities of real friends according to the stanza?
The real friend is the one who cannot watch his friend go through trouble. He shares his friend’s worries and suffers as if it is his own worry.

Stanza 6
Thus of every grief in heart
He with thee doth bear a part.
These are certain signs to know
Faithful friend from flattering foe.

Meaning

·         Grief – Sadness

·         Doth – Does

·         Bear – Suffer

·         Foe – Enemy

1.   What does ‘every grief in heart mean?’

It means that everylittle sadness that we may have in our heart.

2.   Who is ‘he’ in the above lines?

‘He’ in the above lines refers to a real friend.

3.   Explain  the  term ‘flattering foe’?

A ‘flattering foe ’means a person who flatters you for his selfish needs. Such a person is not a friend but an enemy.

4.   Who according the poet is a true friend?

A true friend is someone who helps you in your need. He will be sad if you are in sorrow. He will not be able to sleep when you are awake.A true friend will ba a part of your grief and sadness.

HOTS

II. In  the  III stanza,the poet says, ‘Pity but he were a king,’ if a person is a  king, why is he to be pitied ?

If a person is a king, , he is to be pitied because he oes not realise that he is not a king in real sense .but he is being addressed so by the flatterers for their selfish motives as he has surplus money to

spend on them. The moment he loses money ,they will also leave his company and disappear.

IV. Values

Ther is a marked difference between the sincere appreciation of a faithful friend and the artificial flattery of a flattering foe. Discuss.

A true friend is like a solitaire. It is not easy to find a true friend because in this world we come across many people who pretend to be nice to us .By flattering us , they  remain our friend till we have money and leave us as soon as our treasures are over. But a true friend is like a shadow of our own. He will be always with us through our thick and thin. He will be happy when we are happy and depressed when we are sad. He will share the pain but never flatter us. He will tell our mistake in a fearless but decent manner. He will always be with us in our times of need. These are the qualities of a true friend  which we should   remember while choosing a friend. We should treasure our true friends as they are hard to find.

CLASS-VIII

Chapter-7 Poem-The Children’s Song

by Joseph Rudyard Kipling

B.

Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow:

1.  Teach us to bear the yoke in youth,

With steadfastness and careful truth;

That, in our time, Thy Grace may give

The Truth whereby the Nations live.

a.  What yoke is the speaker referring to in the first line?

Ans. The speaker is referring to the yoke that children would strengthen the nation by firmly standing by the truth.

b.  What does the speaker mean by ‘careful truth’?

Ans.  ‘Careful truth’ means the truth which id unbiased, focused and builds a strong, prosperous and developed nation.

c.  What does the phrase ‘in our time’ in line 3 refer to?

Ans. The phrase ‘in our time’ refers to the time when children become grown ups and take the responsibility to serve their motherland.

d.  Explain: ‘The Truth whereby the Nations live’.

Ans. ‘The Truth whereby the Nations live’ means that children who are the future citizens of the country pray to God to make them honest, responsible and truthful. They also pray to give them the strength to always stand by the truth as it is a strong foundation of a country’s progress and prosperity.

2.  Land of our Birth, or faith, our pride,

For whose dear sake our fathers died;

Oh, Motherland, we pledge to thee

Head, heart and hand through the years to be!

a.  Why does the speaker call their motherland ‘Land of … …. faith, …pride’?

Ans. The speaker calls his motherland the land of faith….pride because it comprises of the customs, beliefs and traditions which he believes in and it has given him his identity and recognition. He is proud of his cultural heritage.

b.  How does the speaker wish to serve their motherland?

Ans. The poet wished to serve his motherland by being sincere, honest, hardworking, responsible and loving. He wishes to do good deeds and contribute to the betterment of human race. He is willing to make supreme sacrifices for his motherland.

c.  What do the words ‘head’, ‘heart’ and ‘hand’ refer to?

Ans. ‘Head’ refers to intelligence and knowledge. ‘heart’ refers to love and patriotism and ‘hand’ refers to hardwork. This reference has been made to signify that children should have intelligence, love and  sincerity towards their motherland.

d.  What purpose is served by the repetition of the word ‘our’ in line 1?

Ans. In line 1, the repetition of the word ‘our’ creates a sense of belongingness to the motherland. It gives a feeling that all the countrymen are equal for the motherland.

C. Explain the following.

1. …we pledge to thee

Our love and toil in the years to be.

Ans. The children pledge to serve their motherland woth sincerity and devotion when they grow up. They want to do their best possible for their country and make necessary sacrifices.

2.That we may bring, if need arise,

No maimed or worthless sacrifice.

Ans. The children wish to grow as disciplined and upright human beings capable of making sacrifices which are not half-hearted and worthless.

3.That we, with Thee, may walk uncowed

By fear or favour of the crowd.

Ans. The children pray to God to make them fearless and face any situation courageously and with faith in Him. They wish to be courageous so that they may be able to walk in any sphere of life without any fear, criticism or favour of the people around them.

4.Mirth that has no bitter springs.

Ans. The children pray to God to teach them to find happiness in small things of life and they should  not have any ill feelings against anyone. They should take life as it comes.

D. The repetition of a sound to create a musical effect in a poem is called ‘alliteration’. Find atleast four examples of alliteration in the poem.

Ans. The examples of alliteration in the poem are:

Head, heart and hand through the   a.  years to be

b.  That we, with Thee, may walk uncowed

c.  Controlled and cleanly night and day

d.  Forgiveness free of evil done

E. What is the rhyme scheme of the poem?

Ans. The rhyme scheme of the poem is ‘aabb’.

HOTS

Why is the poem titled ‘The Children’s Song’?

Ans. The poem deals with children’s wishes. They are making a prayer before God and the entire poem is in the form of a song offered to God. The poem is also very musical. Hence, it is titled ‘The Children’s Song’.

What is the theme of the poem 'The Children's Song '?

The poem deals with the children's wish to be the best  of the capabilities . Acquiring virtues like truth,fearlessness , compassion ,self control and selflessness they would like to leave behind an unpolluted heritage.They want to enjoy the innocent joys of life, heal the bleeding soul and have no malice in their heart.

Life Skills

A. ‘The Children’s Song’ has a definite message for the people of every country in every age. What is that message?

Ans.The poem conveys a patriotic message that the children will serve their motherland with all their strength and hardwork. For that, one needs to be a perfect human being of great virtues. Only an upright man with moral character can fulfil the responsibility of serving the motherland.

Class – VIII

Chapter-10 The Underserved Reward

                  by Premchand

B.

1. Why is the narrator a secret admirer of the district officer?

Ans. The narrator secretly admires the district officer as he is a man of learning. He has done considerable research in history and old coins. The narrator wonders how he finds time for it in the midst of his official duties. The narrator had read his works and is impressed by him.

2. What did the Indian officer do when his father-in-law insisted on prolonging his daughter’s stay at his house?

Ans. When the father-in-law insisted on prolonging his daughter’s stay at his house, the Indian officer became furious and issued summons for his father-in-law.

3. When the narrator was invited by the district officer to see him, his friends said that it was an insult to him. Why?

Ans. When the narrator was invited by the district officer to see him, his friends said that it was an insult to him because they thought that the district officer should have himself come to his house if he was so keen to meet him.

4. Why was the narrator happy that the district officer had not come to his house himself instead of calling him?

Ans. The narrator was happy that the district officer had not come to his house because it would have created a problem for him as there was not even a decent chair in his house. It would have been difficult for him to entertain the district officer for long even after spending a lot of money. If his wife also accompanied him, it would have made the matter worse as the narrator’s wife would have been able to entertain her.

5. ‘I considered this as downright mean and dishonest.’ What did the narrator consider to be mean and dishonest?

Ans. The narrator had acquaintance with the district officer and it was easy for him to convince people that through him they could get favour from the district officer. But he considered taking advantage of his friendship with the district officer as mean and dishonest.

6. How did the narrator and Baldev become friends in their childhood?

Ans. The narrator and Baldev had studied together about forty five years ago. Baldev was dull in studies and his teacher was fed up with him. So, he gave the narrator the task of giving extra lessons to Baldev. The narrator’s sympathetic approach yielded results. Baldev was soon well up in studies and they became friends.

7. Why had the police involved Baldev’s son in a false case of dacoity?

Ans. Baldev’s son quarreled with the police on a number of occasions and they had always been on the lookout for an opportunity to implicate him. When a dacoity took place in the village, they got their chance and during investigation roped him in.

C. Baldev presented many arguments before the narrator to convince him to speak to the district officer. State a few arguments and identify the one which you think to be the most convincing.

Ans. Baldev presented many arguments before the narrator to convince him to speak to the district officer. He told the narrator that he considered him as his elder brother and depended upon him to get his son out of trouble. He argued that if his son would be sentenced the whole family would be ruined. He told him that the boy’s mother was crying her heart out and his son’s wife had not eaten anything since his arrest. He told him that both the women will die if his son was sent to jail. He also reminded the narrator that he was his childhood friend and also his guru.

HOTS

‘I feel sorry at the mentality of my countrymen,’ says the narrator. Why does the narrator feel sorry for it? Explain.

Ans. The narrator feels sorry that his countrymen gave a lot of importance to the government officials. They try to flatter by inviting them to preside over public functions or naming the school or a hospital after them. This mentality of Indians makes the narrator feel sorry for them.

Life  skills

A.   ‘Every deserving action should be rewarded; likewise every reward should be well deserved.’ Does this statement always hold true in  real life? Substantiate your answer with examples.

T    The doing of some good work should result in a reward as the person who has done it gets a motivation from this reward.Even if hedoesnot demand,the deserving action should be rewarded for the spread of the good deed.For ex., if someone finds money on the road and then returns it to its owner, he should be rewarded as this will motivate him for doing such things in the future also.But reward should also be given to deserving ones.

A. 

  One should listen to all but take one’s own decision guided by both intellect and conscience.’ Discuss.

iiIntellect involves reasoning and understanding something before making a decision whereas conscience guides one in making decisions.If decisions are made out of conscience alone , the decision maker may not put into consideration the consequences of his or her decision. Therfore it is important to use intellect too, so that one is able to understand the feeling and do appropriate decision making by using both intellect and conscience.

II    

Writing Skills

A.   You are the narrator. You are overcome with a feeling of guilt after Baldev and his son leave his house. Write a letter to Baldev expressing your guilt over accepting the honour that you did not deserve.

Examination Hall
New Delhi.

date :.

 Dear Baldev

It is with a great sense of shame that I write this letter to make a confession. The other day, the honour that you gave me for getting your son acquitted was an undeserved one. When you brought all those gifts to express your gratitude, I should have told you about it. But I could not gather enough courage to tell you the truth. I must tell you that I did not talk to the district officer and I have no role in the release of your son. The case was decided on his own merit. Instead of thanking me, express your thankfulness to God for showering justice on your son. Hope you will forgive me.

Your friend

Premchand