CBSE Class 11

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

Ranga’s Marriage NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Snapshots Chapter 3

Ranga’s Marriage NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers

Ranga’s Marriage About the Author

Masti Venkatesha Iyengar (6 June 1891 – 6 June 1986) was a well-known writer in Kannada language. He was the fourth among Kannada writers to be honoured with the Jnanpith Award, the highest literary honour conferred in India. He was popularly referred to as Maasti Kannadada Aasti which means “Maasti, Kannada’s Treasure”.

He is most renowned for his short stories. He wrote under the pen name Srinivasa. He was honoured with the title Rajasevasakta by the then Maharaja of Mysore Nalvadi Krishnaraja Wadeyar. A prolific writer, he wrote more than 123 books in Kannada and 17 in English, for over seventy years. He won the Jnanpith Award in 1983 for his novel Chikavira Rajendra. The story was about the last Raja of Kodagu. He died on his 95th birthday in 1986. Since 1993, an award in his name, “Masti Venkatesha Iyangar Award” is awarded to well-known writers of Karnataka.

Ranga’s Marriage Main Theme

‘Ranga’s Marriage’ is a delightful story set in Hosahalli Village near Mysore. The narrator is an elderly person who is very proud of his village and generally likes to be involved in the lives of the fellow villagers.

Ranga was the son of an accountant who had been sent to Bangalore for higher studies. When he came back’ the narrator decided to have him married even though Ranga had many new fangled ideas about marriage.

The narrator arranged that Ranga saw Ratna, the daughter of Rama Rao. Ranga liked her instantly, but the narrator told him that she was married. Then Shyama, the narrator, met an astrologer and told him what to say when he brought Ranga to him. Next he took Ranga to the astrologer who told him that he was thinking about a girl and if they approach the family for marriage, they would be successful. Ranga was delighted to discover that Ratna was not married. Ranga and Ratna were married.

Ranga’s Marriage Reading with Insight

Question 1.
Comment on the influence of English—the language and the way of life—on Indian life as reflected in the story. What is the narrator’s attitude to English? ‘
Answer:
The narrator of the story Shyama lived in a remote village in Karnataka. He has written of the time when English language was not used in the village. Not many knew English or used English words in their speech. Therefore when the accountant sent his son Ranga to Bangalore to study, it was a revolutionary step.

When Ranga returned to his village everyone came out to see if he had changed due to the influence of his education. Ranga showed the influence of English on his thinking when he named his child after Shyama who had brought about his marriage. The narrator does not know English. He is sarcastic too and resentful of English language.

Question 2.
Astrologers’ perceptions are based more on hearsay and conjecture than what they learn from the study of the stars. Comment with reference to the story.
Answer:
The astrologer plays an important part in the story ‘Ranga’s Marriage’. Shyama, the narrator, wanted to bring about the marriage of Ratna with Ranga. Shyama met an astrologer and gave him certain instructions. Then he took Ranga to meet him. The astrologer told him that the girl he was thinking about could be his if he approached the family. Ranga was able to marry Ratna because of what the astrologer said. Astrologers do not always say what the stars tell.

Question 3.
Indian society has moved a long way from the way the marriage is arranged in the story. Discuss.
Answer:
In the past, marriages in India were usually arranged by parents or relatives. The story ‘Ranga’s Marriage’ shows how the narrator arranged Ranga’s marriage with the help of an astrologer. But now the Indian society has moved a long way from the manner marriage is arranged in the story. After independence, certain changes have come in the Indian society.

Women empowerment and women education have changed the attitude of grooms towards them. Now the consent of the bridegroom as well as bride is seriously considered. Earlier opposition to love marriages has now weakened. Though dowry is a demon, troubling the girl’s party, the girl’s opinion about the boy or his family does carry some weight. Inter-caste marriages which were a strict no-no in the earlier limes, now find some acceptance, especially, among the educated and employed youth.

Question 4.
What kind of a person do you think the narrator is?
Answer:
The narrator is a talkative person who rambles from topic to topic in the course of his conversation. He is an elderly gentleman. He is a keen observer of human behaviour, has a sense of humour. He neither likes English nor its influence. He is proud of his village. He takes interest in the lives of villagers.

He not only understands human nature and behaves accordingly by but is also a good strategist. He cleverly arranges a meeting between Ratna and Ranga. He introduces Ratna to Ranga indirectly so that his interest is aroused, later he fixes up a meeting with the astrologer. He was a perfect match-maker between Ranga and Ratna. He is respected and liked by the villagers. Ranga names his child after him.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

The Address NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Snapshots Chapter 2

The Address NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers

The Address About the Author

Marga Minco (pseudonym of Sara Menco, born 31 March 1920) is a Dutch journalist and writer. Born in Ginneken to an Orthodox Jewish family, Minco began work as a trainee journalist. In the early part of World War II Minco lived in Breda, Amersfoort, and Amsterdam. She contracted a mild form of tuberculosis and ended up being treated in hospitals in Utrecht and Amersfoort. In the autumn of 1942 she returned to Amsterdam and her parents, who were forced by the German occupiers to move into the city’s Jewish Quarter. Later in the war, Minco’s parents, her brother, and her sister were all deported, but having escaped arrest herself she spent the rest of the war in hiding and was the family’s only survivor.

The Address Main Theme

The story is set against the background of World War II. The narrator was the daughter of Mrs S. They were Jews living in Germany and in perpetual danger of being imprisoned and persecuted. Most Jews were leaving their homes and going away to safer places. Mrs Dorling, a neighbour of Mrs S, used to visit them often. She suggested that Mrs S should leave her antiques and precious possessions in her care because she might have to leave in a hurry. Mrs Dorling carried away suitcases and bags full of antiques, crockery and cutlery of Mrs S’s family.

After the war, the narrator came back to the town, but did not feel like visiting Mrs Dorling immediately. After some time, she decided to go to the address 46, Marconi Street. Mrs Dorling met her, recognised her, but did not allow her inside the house because she was afraid that the visitor would claim her mother’s I possessions.

The narrator visited the family a second time and was greeted by the fifteen-year-old daughter of Mrs Dorling. She saw her family possessions all around the room. The girl told her they had eaten in those antique plates. The woollen table cloth had remained unrepaired even after many years. Seeing her family’s precious possessions in unfamiliar environment, the narrator suddenly did not desire to have them back.She left without waiting for Mrs Dorling. She felt it would be easy to forget the address 46, Marconi Street.

The Address Reading with Insight

Question 1.
“Have you come back?” said the woman. “I thought that no one had come back.” Does this statement give some clue about the story? If yes, what is it?
Answer:
Yes, the statement gives us several clues about the story ‘I thought that no one had come back’ suggests that the family had perished in war. This prepares the reader for the background of war. The return of the narrator is not pleasant to the speaker as she showed no sign of recognition. The war was just over and she had not expected the narrator to return. She had recognized the girl (narrator) otherwise why should she say, “Have you come back?” Besides, the reader gets a clue that narrator and her mother left the town during the war.

Question 2.
The story “The Address” is divided into pre-war and post-war times. What hardships do you think the girl underwent during these times?
Answer:
The story ‘The Address’ deals with pre-war and post-war times. Total chaos and disharmony prevailed in pre-war times. Before that war the narrator’s mother had many valuable possessions, such as silver crockery, valuable paintings, antique plates, etc. It was war time when the family lived under the tension of losing their lives and belongings. The threat of war made them leave their hometown and go away. They left their valuables in Mrs. Dorling’s custody who trusted them to return their valuables after the war ended.

They suffered during the war and the post-war period. The narrator came back alone without her family. Her earlier wealth and luxurious lifestyle had vanished. Now she lived in a small room and had no place to keep her mother’s possessions. She thought of going to Mrs-. Dorling’s house when normalcy returned. But when she went to Mrs. Dorling’s house, she refused to recognize her and expressed surprise at her being alive. She did not have enough bread to eat. The memories and associations of earlier life were too painful to recall.

Question 3.
Why did the narrator finally decide to forget the address?
Answer:
The narrator wanted to forget the address because she did not want to take back her family’s precious possessions—the antiques, silver, paintings, etc. from Mrs Dorling. Initially, she had gone to 46, Marconi Street to take back her belongings, but when she saw them in a different setting, used carelessly and crudely she no longer felt the attachment and desire to have them back as she had felt earlier. In fact, she was so repelled by her experience that she did not even wait for Mrs Dorling and came away. She felt it would be easy to forget that address.

Question 4.
The Address’ is a story of human predicament that follows war. Comment.
Answer:
‘The Address’ states indirectly the human predicament that follows war. The narrator’s family had enjoyed luxury and comfort before the war. During the war they lived under constant threat and were displaced eventually. They moved from place to place. After the war, the narrator, Mrs S’s daughter, returned alone. The family was probably lost. Instead of her big house she lived in a small room. The experiences of war so troubled her that she could not feel secure for a long time.It is the ordinary human being who suffers the most during war.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Snapshots Chapter 1

The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers

The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse About the Author

William Saroyan (13 August 1908 – 18 May 1981) was an Armenian-American novelist, playwright and short story writer. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1940, and in 1943 won the Academy Award for Best Story for the film adaptation of The Human Comedy.Saroyan wrote extensively about the Armenian immigrant life in California. Many of his stories and plays are set in his native Fresno. Some of his best-known works are ‘The Time of Your Life’, ‘My Name Is Aram’ and ‘My Heart’s in the Highlands’.

The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse Main Theme

This story is about two Armenian boys and a white horse in a village in San Joaquin Valley, California one summer. Aram is nine years old and Mourad is thirteen years old. They belong to the Garoghlanian tribe which is known for its honesty. The two boys are extremely fond of riding, but they and their tribe are very poor. One day Mourad comes to Aram’s house on a white horse and invites him to ride. Aram knows that the horse is stolen, but cannot resist the chance to ride. Mourad keeps the horse in a deserted barn and takes good care of it. He is able to discipline the horse because he has a way with horses.

A month passes. Then John Byro, the owner of the horse, visits the family and speaks about the loss of his horse. The boys decide to keep the horse with them for some more time.

After two weeks, John Byro meets the boys walking with the horse. He says it is exactly like his own horse. He also says if their family did not have such a formidable reputation for honesty, he would think it was his horse. He does not accuse the boys of stealing his horse.The next morning the boys take the horse to John Byro’s vineyard and leave it in his barn.

The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse Reading with Insight

Question 1.
You will probably agree that this story does not have breathless adventure and exciting action. Then what in your opinion makes it interesting?
Answer:
In spite of not containing breathless adventure and exciting action, the story is interesting because of the ‘craziness’ of Mourad and uncle Khosrove, the decency of John Byro and the charming innocence of the narrator. Aram and Mourad, whose tribe was widely known for its honesty got engaged in stealing a horse for their desire of riding. The reader is interested in knowing whether they will return the horse to its rightful owner. The story has charming vivid ,and pictorial description with simple and touching language.

Question 2.
Did the boys return the horse because they were conscience-stricken or because they were afraid?
Answer:
The children returned the horse to John Byro because their conscience instructed them to do so. Their intention was to keep the horse for at least six more months but the meeting with John Byro changed Mourad’s heart. Byro did not claim the horse. He only spoke about the honesty of their family which prompted Mourad to return the horse to its rightful honour.

Question 3.
“One day back there in the good old days when I was nine and the world was full of every imaginable kind of magnificence, and life was still a delightful and mysterious dream…” The story begins in a mood of nostalgia. Can you narrate some incident from your childhood that might make an interesting story? What in your opinion makes it interesting?
Answer:
The craze for a bike landed me in a pool of problems when I had just turned fourteen. My neighbours had bought a new ‘Hero Honda’. I was fascinated by the Blue Beauty. Day and night I planned to ride it. Once when my neighbours had parked it outside I sneaked out of my house and dragged it to a nearby park where my friends had gathered to enjoy the ride.

Ravi, my closest friend, got the privilege to ride it first. He was allowed to return in ten minutes. Next was my turn. I was delighted. I drove at high speed and did not bother to stop even at the red light. Life seemed to be a mysterious dream. The police tried to stop me but I escaped. Very soon we were spotted by our neighbour who had been looking for his lost bike.

I was baffled and did not know what to do. I stepped forward to confess as telling a lie might have proved disastrous. I was very poor at telling lies. He was angry but finally he appreciated us for speaking the truth. Later on my father scolded me for doing such a thing at that young age. (Students may narrate other experiences too.)

Question 4.
The story revolves around characters who belong to a tribe in Armenia. Mourad and Aram are members of the Garoghlanian family. Now locate Armenia and Assyria on the atlas and prepare a write-up on the Garoghlanian tribes. You may write about people, their names, traits and geographical and economic features as suggested in the story.
Answer:
Garoghlanian tribe—find out from the Net.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

Father to Son NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Poem 5

Father to Son NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers

Father to Son About the poet

Elizabeth Jennings (18 July 1926 – 26 October 2001) was an English poet. Jennings was born in Boston, Lincolnshire. She later attended St Anne’s College at Oxford. After graduation, she became a writer. Jennings’ early poetry was published in journals such as Oxford Poetry, New English Weekly, The Spectator, Outposts:and Poetry Review. Jennings is known for her lyric poetry and mastery of form. Her work displays a simplicity of metre and rhyme.

Father to Son Main Theme

This poem expresses a father’s anguish at the relationship of silence that exists between him and his son. He feels he does not know his child. He and his son are like strangers who do not understand each other.He wants his son to come back rather than move into a world of his own. He finds his grief turning to anger. Though both wish to improve the relationship by forgiving each other, they achieve nothing.

Father to Son Think it out

Question 1.
Does the poem talk of an exclusively personal experience or is it fairly universal?
Answer:
The experience is personal but not exclusive. It is fairly universal. A situation like this is called ‘the generation gap’.

Question 2.
How is the father’s helplessness brought out in the poem?
Answer:
The father’s helplessness is brought out in the poem by repeating his problem of not understanding his son several times.

Question 3.
Identify the phrases and lines that indicate distance between father and son.
Answer:
I do not understand this child
We speak like strangers, there is no sign
understanding in the air.
…. Yet what he loves I cannot share.
Silence surrounds us.

Question 4.
Does the poem have a consistent rhyme scheme?
Answer:
No. The poem does not have a consistent rhyme scheme. The first two stanzas have ‘abb aba’ but the third and the fourth do not follow this.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

Childhood NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Poem 4

Childhood NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers

Childhood About the poet

Markus Natten was a Norwegian poet. In this poem he tries to find out when he lost his childhood. Through his poem he wrote that people do not live the lives that they preach. In the last stanza of his poem “Childhood” the poet changes the question from “when” to “where” and answers it has gone into hiding.

Childhood Main Theme

This is a delightful poem where the poet wonders when his childhood came to an end. He wonders if it happened when he could distinguish between factual knowledge and concepts. He then moves on to the ideas children have about grown-ups. They notice that though adults speak of love, they do not behave lovingly. The poet wonders if his childhood got over when he started thinking independently.

Childhood Think it out

Question 1.
Identify the stanza that talks of each of the following:
individuality rationalism hypocrisy
Answer:
individuality—stanza 3.
rationalism—stanza 1.
hypocrisy—stanza 2.

Question 2.
What, according to the poem, is involved in the process of growing up?
Answer:
The poet feels that.growing up means the development of the mind as well as a sense of self. The mind learns to rationalise and see beyond appearances. When the child acquires the ability to think for himself, he takes a giant step towards growing up.

Question 3.
What is the poet’s feeling towards childhood?
Answer:
The poet does not feel a sense of loss that his childhood has gone. He feels he can witness childhood in other infants and children.

Question 4.
Which, do you think, are the most poetic lines? Why?
Answer:
The last stanza is the most poetic. In the first three, the tone is quite rational as the poet speaks of aspects of growing up. In the last stanza, he mentions where childhood can be found. The thought is gentle and sweet.

NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English

The Voice of the Rain NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Hornbill Poem 3

The Voice of the Rain NCERT Text Book Questions and Answers

The Voice of the Rain About the poet

Walter “Walt” Whitman (31 May 1819 – 26 March 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist. A humanist, he was part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among the most influential poets in the American canon, often called the father of free verse. His work was very controversial in its time, particularly his poetry collection ‘Leaves of Grass’.

Born in Huntington on Long Island, Whitman worked as a journalist, a teacher, a government clerk, and—in addition to publishing his poetry—was a volunteer nurse during the American Civil War. Early in his career, he also produced a temperance novel ‘Franklin Evans’. Whitman’s major work, ‘Leaves of Grass’, was first published in 1855 with his own money. The work was an attempt at reaching out to the common people with an American epic. He continued expanding and revising it until his death in 1892.

The Voice of the Rain Main Theme

The poem is in the form of the answer to a question that the poet puts to the rain, “Who are you”? The rain says that it is the poem of the earth. It rises out of land and sea and comes down to give life to the earth. It makes the earth pure and more beautiful just as a song does when it comes back to the singer.

The Voice of the Rain Think it out
I.
Question 1.
There are two voices in the poem. Who do they belong to? Which lines indicate this?
Answer:
The two voices belong to the poet and rain.
And who art thou? said I to the soft-falling shower,
Which, strange to tell, gave me an answer, as here translated:
I am the Poem of Earth, said the voice of the rain,

Question 2.
What does the phrase ‘strange to tell’ mean?
Answer:
The phrase ‘strange to tell’ here refers to the rain that answered the poet’s questions. What the poet found strange was that the rain was speaking. It has been portrayed here as a living being.

Question 3.
There is a parallel drawn between rain and music. Which words indicate this? Explain the similarity between the two.
Answer:
Rain and music are similar because they return to the place of their origin and spread happiness all round. Rain returns to the earth and brings new life and happiness. The pleasure created by a song enriches the singer with love and admiration of the listeners.

Question 4.
How is the cyclic movement of rain brought out in the poem? Compare it with what you have learnt in science.
Answer:
The poet has brought out the cyclic movement of the rain. The rain evaporates from land and sea ‘ and forms clouds. These clouds then again descend on the earth in the form of rain only to go back into the atmosphere as vapours. In science too, the cyclic movements of rain are described as accurately as they have been done in the poem.

Question 5.
Why are the last two lines put within brackets?
Answer:

• These lines are not part of the rain’s answer.
• They are additional comments by the poet to show the similarity between rain and song.

Question 6.
List the pairs of opposites found in the poem.
Answer:
Changed – same – line 7.
I rise – I descend – lines 4 & 6.
Day and night – line 12.
Reck’d or unreck’d – line 15.

II. Notice the following sentence patterns:
1. And who art thou? said I to the soft-falling shower.
2. I am the Poem of Earth, said the voice of the rain.
3. Eternal I rise
4. For song … duly with love returns Rewrite the above sentences in prose.
Answer:
1. I asked the shower,‘Who are you’?
2. The voice of the rain said, ‘I am the poem of Earth!
3. I rise eternal.
4. For song duly returns with love.

III. Look for some more poems on the rain and see how this one is different from them.
Answer:
To be done by the student.