On the face of it;NCERT Solutions and Summary for Class 12

                           On the face of it

                                                 -Susan Hill

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Summary:

"On the face of it" by Susan Hill revolves around the story of a boy called Derry who had suffered from acid burns which had made his face ugly.He was always apprehensive about talking or meeting people.One fine day,he stumbled upon Mr.Lamb who gave his life the much-needed makeover.

The story starts with a teenage boy trying to enter a garden.His face is burnt on side because of an accident when acid fell on half of his face.He had entered the garden so that people don't see him.He wanted to hide his face badly because he was apprehensive of people making fun or getting disgusted of his burnt and disfigured face.

On his entry to the garden,he found a oldan sitting there in the garden.He tried to leave this place too but the old man stopped him.The old man was actually Mr.Lamb who was the owner of the garden Derry had just entered.Derry felt guilty to have entered the garden without anyone's permission but on the contrary Mr.Lamb welcomed him heartily and told him not to leave the garden because of his presence.

Derry was actually trying to leave because of the facial burn marks he had on his face.But,he stayed back as Mr.Lamb was almost insistent about Derry staying back.

Soon,both of them entered a conversation where they discussed about Derry not being liked by anyone because of his disfigured face.He also started to despise those people who had behaved with him in that way.Mr.Lamb consoled him.Coincidentally,Mr.Lamb was a disabled person too because one of his legs was of tin.He had a prosthetic leg because his other leg was lost in war.He gave an instance where kids made fun of him and his condition yet he is not at all depressed but lives life to the fullest.

All these revealations made Derry at home with Mr.Lamb as the old man could emphathize with him.They made conversation about various things and soon Derry revealed his fear and depression he was suffering because of his ugly face.But,Mr.Lamb kept telling him various positive things which would make him a little better mentally.He made his understand that he can even outperform any other normal with determination and hardwork.

Soon,they became friends and Mr.Lamb requested Derry to help him in plucking siem crab apples from the tree of his garden.Derry told him that he cannot help him then because he had come too far from his home without telling his mother. Mr.Lamb told him to come back after taking permission from his mother.Derry found it difficult and quarreled with Mr.Lamb but eventually agreed.

On reaching his home,he asked his mother for permission to go back to Mr.Lamb's garden.His mother denied him permission but he didn't obey her and went out as he had to fulfill his promise.

However,Mr.Lamb,in the meanwhile had already climbed the tree and started plucking the crab apples.He was pretty sure that the boy wouldn't turn up again.Unfortunately,as he was disabled,he fell of the ladder and died.On returning,Derry found Mr.Lamb lying on the ground and tried to make him move a lot but in vain.He simply didn't gave any sort of response.He realised that Mr.Lamb was already on the way to his heavenly abode.

The story teaches us that scars don't change a person.With his disfigured face,Derry had to suffer a lot because which had made him pessimistic.However,Mr.Lamb motivated him to lead a normal life again as everything depends upon a people's individual outlook.

Difficult Words:

i)Crab Apples:A small sour apple.

ii)Windfalls:Unexpected gains.

iii)Scrump:To steal from an orchard or garden.

iv)Daft:Silly or foolish.

v)Trespassing:Enter without permission.

vi)Swish:A hissing sound.

About Author:

Born on 5th Feb,1942 Dame Susan Hill is an English author of several fiction and non-fiction works.For her novels,she has also received the Somerset Maugham Award in 1971.In 1972,she also won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize for 'The Albatross'.

NCERT Questions:

A)Reading with Insight.

1)Derry was a teenage boy while Mr.Lamb was old but the commonality between them was that Derry had one side of his face disfigured by acid burns whereas Mr.Lamb had a tin leg because his real leg got blown off during a war.Both of them suffered from physical disabilities and this was what drew Derry towards Mr.Lamb.Moreover,apart from these physical disabilities,Derry found signs of loneliness and disappointment in Mr.Lamb's life.This was also common to Derry because he avoided socialising with others because of his ugly face Mr.Lamb was also very motivating and infused Derry with various things which made him look life in a more positive light.All these things made Derry feel at ease with Mr.Lamb.

2)In the middle part of the first scene,we observe that Mr.Lamb is lonely.He tells Derry that when it will be a bit more cooler,he will get a ladder and a stick and will fetch the crab apples.He makes jelly with those crab apples and Derry could help him in doing this work.He tells him how he is interested in anything God has created even too rubbish.He describes how he sits in the open Sun reading books.He even doesn't use curtains in his house because he wants to enjoy both sunlight and darkness.All these definitely shows how lonely he was but also the various ways by which he was overcoming those.

3)The story describes the world from the viewpoint of a specially-abled person.These people not only suffer from physical pain but also from indifferent and absurd behaviour of people around them.They are teased and disliked by others.The protagonists of the story Derry and Mr.Lamb are some of the striking examples of how these specially-abled people are suffering in our society even now.Derry has got a burnt face and people don't like being with him.They find him ugly and slowly he even stopped socialising with others.Mr.Lamb had lost a leg in a war and used a tin leg and kids teased nd called him several names such 'lamey lamb'.He is all alone in his big house and has no one in his life.These examples also show these people undergo continuous sufferings because of the alienation.They don't expect any kind of sympathy or help but just expect others to behave with them like normal people.

4)In my personal opinion,I think Derry will not get back to his old seclusion because Mr.Lamb completely changes his perspective about life.His worldview got a complete makeover when Mr.Lamb told him that hating people and living alone is certainly more dangerous than the acid burns he had sufferred.He told him to face people upfront as it was only his face which had been disfigured.He has his rest of the body functional which could definitely help him to do whatever he wished in life.And,with determination and hardwork,Derry can possibly achieve more than a normal person.All this motivation gave him the much-needed makeover he needed in his life.

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Should Wizard Hit Mommy;NCERT Solutions and Summary for Class 12

                  Should Wizard hit Mommy

                                                          -John Updike

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Summary:

The given story revolves around Jack who is a father of two kids.It is about the worldview of a little child and the difficult moral question she raises.Jack had keep his habit to tell his daughters a story every evening.Sometimes whenever they questioned he would be at a fix.

The story starts with daily routine that Jack had been following for almost 2 years now.His daughter,Jo,was two years old when the daily routine of story-telling began.Even then when she was already 4 years old,Jack had continued to tell her stories from his mind.This would take place everyday before going to sleep or also on Saturday afternoons during her nap.

The issue was that Jack had been telling stories for so long now that he had started to exhaust his ideas for a good story.Jo also didn't sleep anymore during the story sessions as they were becoming monotonous with every passing day.

The central character of the story would always remain the same of with his name as "Roger" in the narrations.Everyday a different animal would be called Roger.Whenever Rodger used to have any sort of trouble,he would approach the wise owl for help.The owl would always refer him to the wizard. The wizard would solve Roger's issue but would demand for more pennies that Roger possessed. But, the wizard would also provide him with the solution to fetch the pennies from a specific place. Roger would follow his orders and fetch the pennies,then Roger would continue to play with his friends.After happily playing with his friends Roger would go back before it got dark.He would wait for his father who would be back on his way from Boston.Then,Jack would describe what all Roger and his family had for supper.This had remained the climax of the story for a long time now.

One specific Saturday afternoon,Jack asked Jo about which creature did she want to hear a story.To this,Jo told that she wanted to hear a story about a "skunk".So,Jack started the story with Roger skunk who was a very stinky animal. None of his friends liked to play with Roger skunk. Like every story plot Jack had earlier described,Roger skunk went to the wizard and shared his problem. The wizard helped him solving his struggle and asked how he wanted to smell. Roger replied to this that he wanted to smell like roses and with the wizard's magic he started to smell as magnificent as a rose. When he went out in public, all the animals started gathering around him as he was starting to smell good.

However, later in the day when he went to his house, his mother asked him who made him smell like roses.Roger skunk describe the entire story to her mother. Her mother was not at all impressed and told him that is earlier smell was nice and good. She also said that she didn't care much if other animals didn't talk to him because of his foul smell. She went to the wizard along with Roger skunk. As soon as the wizard open the door, mother skunk give him a hard blow. The wizard reversed his spell which again returned the foul smell to Roger skunk.

While returning back, Rodger skunk had the sound of an incoming train. His father was returning on the train. The family had dinner together and well going to sleep, the mother skunk came to Roger and told him that she is totally comfortable with the way he smells. There is is no reason to change it smell and the story ended there.

Then,Jo asked her father Jack if the animals ran away from the skunk because of his smell to which Jack replied 'no'.This was because all the animals around him had totally adopted to the smell of the skunk.However,Jo could n't accept this narrative easily.She was not all convinced with idea of the mother skunk forcing her child to be as she liked.This not only made Roger skunk smell bad again but also was a potential barrier in socialising with others.She wanted her father to tell a story where the wizard would hit back the mother skunk and refuses to change the skunk's smell back.

To this,Jack replied her that he would think about it.Upon persistence,he told her that the primary point of the story was that loved his mother more than anyone else and obeyed her command.The mother skunk being more experienced what was correct for Roger skunk.The mother told her that she loved him the way he is and he needn't change for others.

With this Jack told Jo to sleep as her little brother was already asleep.He bid her goodnight and went downstairs.Here,his wife Clare was painting the chair rail.He wanted to help her but was too tired to help her.Upon hearing some footsteps,he immediately scolded Jo and the footsteps soon faded.Between,all this he was also preoccupied with the thoughts of his marriage as it was in a bad state.There was no solution to it.He also didn't feel like touching or helping Clare.

Parents are of the opinion feel that children should do or think exactly what they are told.They should believe whatever they are told by their parents.The daughter of Jack questions this attitude and even is the right attitude.The author has left it for the reader to decide about what should be done.

Difficult Words:

i)Rite:A social custom, practice and                                  conventional  act.

ii)Skunk:A cat-sized mammal of the weasel                         family with black and white fur.

iii)Crick:A painful stiff feeling in the neck or                        back.

iv)Woodwork:The wooden parts of a room or                                building.

v)Lacrosse:A team sport which involves a ball                          and catching it with a L-shaped stick.

vi)Molding:To give a shape to.

vii)Lima Beans:An edible flat whitish bean.

About Author:

John Hoyer Updike born on March,18,1932 was an American novelist,poet,short-story writer,art critic and literary critic.He is one of the only 4 writers to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction more than once.He has published more than 20 novels during his life along with a dozen of short story collections,poetry etc.

NCERT Questions:

A)Reading with Insight.

1)The story raises a very fundamental issue prevalent in our contemporary society.It is regarding the choices and decisions made by a child.Actually,the parents decide for their children.The story raises a moral question whether the parents should leave the children to decide for themselves or should the parents keep deciding for their children.Here,we need to understand that their is a stark contrast between the perspective of an adult and a child.When Jo questioned the decision of the mother skunk,Jack defended the behaviour of the mother skunk who actually restored the foul smell back to Roger skunk.He summed up his entire answer that the mother skunk knew what was correct for him.When asked why Roger agreed to his mother's decision,Jack told that Roger loved her more than any other animal and at that moment didn't care about other animals.This shows that parents being older feel that they know what is best for their children and their children should do as instructed.

2)Jack ended the story in a way where it was not easily acceptable by Jo.She simply couldn't accept the thing that the mother of the skunk beat the wizard to restore the foul smell to the skunk again.This is one of the few examples which shows that the decisions of the parents can sometimes be nightmarish for the children.

Jo was simply not at ease with the climax of tej story.This was because of the fact she was not all convinced with thing that how a mother can do anything which proves to be a hindrance for her own child.

3)Jack,being a parent,has the typical parental attitude where he is almost stubborn to reject the opinion that parents don't know what is best for their children.In order to keep his point relevant,he asserts the parental authority to quiten Jo and stifle all her amendments to the story.The entire narrative was made in such a way which defended the mother's behaviour of restoring back the foul smell back to the skunk.He mentioned in his story that the mother skunk told Roger that he is better off with his original smell rather the smell of the roses.He told Jo that as the skunk loved her mother more than anyone else,he obeyed her command unquestioningly.Jack was almost insistent on the ending that emphasize the concern of the parents for their children.

4)Jack felt that he was caught in a ugly middle position both physically and mentally.Jack was conscious of his duties as a father as well as a husband.His efforts to make Jo fall asleep was proving to be futile as she was constantly interrupting him and suggesting alternatives.He extended the story but it backfired as Jo now wanted him to change the ending of the story.Finally,when he went downstairs,Clare complainingly told that it was a long story.Jack who wanted to help his wife could n't do anything as he was utterly tired.

5)Of both the given endings to the story,I personally think that Jo's ending of the story was more convincing and relevant for me.Roger skunk was having various problems because of his foul and nasty smell.The wizard should have hit the mother skunk because this decision of the mother was not all good.Jack,being a parent,tried his level best to justify his point by the means of the story.

6)There is certainly a striking contrast between the outlook of an adult and that between of a child.This is because of the difference between their respective experiences and the varied exposure of both the persons.An adult being older in age has come across various sorts of persons and experiences in his life.On the other hand,a child is well-protected under the umbrella of his parents.The children living in the world of make-believe become lovers of romance,beauty and all the other pleasant things in nature.The adults are quite familiar with the harsh and tough realities of life are well-aware that every flashy is not beautiful.Adults,being familiar with the crests and troughs of life,take everything with a pinch of salt.

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Aunt Jennifer's Tiger; NCERT Solutions and Summary for Class 12

                       Aunt Jennifer's Tigers 

                                                      -Adrienne Rich

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Summary:

"Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" by Adrienne Rich is a poem which describes the inner desire of the female section of the society to gain liberty from the clutches of an abusive society which is also patriarchal.

Stanza-1:(Aunt Jennifer's....chivalric certainty.)

In the 1st stanza,the poet is describing a lady whom she addresses as Aunt Jennifer.She says that Aunt Jennifer is doing embroidery on a screen.With her embroidery,she has designed beautiful tigers on the piece of screen she has got.These tigers are sprinting forward fearlessly in the forest with the green forest in the background.She has tried to describe their beauty by comparing them with a precious yellow stone called as Topaz.These tigers are said to be fearless beasts.However,here there is an irony.Although the tigers were not affected by the presence of humans,their creator was not like them.Aunt Jennifer was afraid of his husband.

Stanza-2(Aunt Jennifer's fingers....Aunt Jennifer Hand.)

In the 2nd stanza,the poet has described the fear of Aunt Jennifer towards her husband.She says while even doing embroidery,her fingers are quivering with the fear which is inspired by her husband.Her husband doesn't approve of her hobby of embroidery.Because of the abusive nature of her husband,she trembles every moment and it becomes difficult for her to glide her needle on the screen properly.Then,Aunt Jennifer describes her wedding ring given by her husband.The ring which could have easily become a material object to cherish forever has now been a piece of burden on her and her mental self.So many difficulties in her married life has now forced her to imagine the ring to be a heavy band.The wedding ring has become a bad omen for Aunt Jennifer in the form of bad experiences.

Stanza-3:(When aunt is dead....prancing,proud and unafraid.)

In the 3rd stanza,the poet says that one can easily sense aunt's intense will to get liberty which is also kind of reflected in her designs.The poet thinks that it is not possible for her aunt to achieve freedom in this lifetime.Even after death,her hands with the wedding ring on will remain as a proof how she was tortured and dominated by her husband.On the other hand,the tigers she embroidered will remain as an eternal depiction of her desire to live a fearless life.

Rhyme Scheme:

aa bb

Difficult Words:

i)Prance:Walk or move around with high springy                 steps.

ii)Topaz:A bright yellow coloured stone.

iii)Denizens:Animals who live in dens.

iv)Chivalric:An act of a gentleman.

v)Ordeals:Extremely severe tests or experiences.

vi)Fluttering:To move in quick,irregular motions                          as if being agitated.

About Author:

Adrienne Cecile Rich was an American poet and feminist.She has been widely credited with bringing "the oppression of women and lesbians to the forefront of poetic disclosure".Born on May 16,1929 in Baltimore,she is one of the trailblazers of the feminist movements across the world.

Literary Devices:

i)Anaphora:Use of same word in two                                          consecutive lines( they don't.....they                        pace in.)

ii)Metaphor:Use of topaz to describe the yellow                       colour of the tigers.

iii)Alliteration:'f' sound is repeated in finger                                  fluttering.

NCERT Questions:

A)Think it Out.

1)The word 'denizens' means that these beasts live in dens and are proud of their home.Tbey feel safe,in their house,there is also a sense of belonging attached to it.

The word 'chivalric' is used to show that they have a majestic and worthy position like knights.

2)Aunt Jennifer's hands were trembling because she is very much apprehensive of her husband who could come anytime and reprimand her for sitting idle and wasting her time on embroidery which is unnecessary. While Jennifer had always cherished doing embroidery,her husband thought it to be of no use and absurd.Due to all the difficulties in her life,she is burdened and finds it even difficult to even pull the needle.

3)"Massive weight of Uncle's wedding band" suggests that this marriage has become extremely bad for her because of her abusive husband.The bond which was supposed to be full of love and to be cherished forever have become a relationship which has only given her stress and burden.

4)In the 3rd stanza,she is terrified of her husband who has abused her a lot.

5)Because of her husband,Aunt Jennifer is surrounded by various ordeals.Some of these are:obeying her husband's orders,fear of men and giving in to his dominance and commands.In the poem,"Ringed" means an entrapment.As a ring encircles a finger,her husband has completely encircled her life with all sorts of difficulties which has not only trapped her body but also her soul.She has kept struggling for freedom and fearlessness.

6)Aunt Jennifer hobby was to do embroidery.Aunt Jennifer's intense desire for freedom and fearlessness from her partner came out through her creativity.The probable reason for Aunt's embroidering animals different from her character is that she is not actually what she is portrayed as.Her circumstances have made her like a timid cat but she also has an intense will to live life with respect and pride.

7)There are various symbols in the poem:

•'Denizens of a world of green' refers to inhabitants of the forest.

•'Massive Weight of Uncle's Wedding band' refers to all the burdens she has been lifting because of her marital obligations.

•'Sits heavily upon Aunt' means has laid stress upon her.

•'Ringed with ordeals' means to get entrapped in hardships and sufferings.

8)Yes,I symphatize with Aunt Jennifer.The speaker is also sympathetic towards her and by tones,it is evident she despises dominating men.

📍📍📍

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No part of this publication may be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system of transmitted,in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,photocopying,recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.

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The Rattrap;NCERT Solutions and Summary for Class 12

                                The Rattrap

                                                -Selma Lagerlöf

Text:

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Summary:

"The Rattrap" by Selma Lagerlöf is a story of a rattrap seller who leads a very poverty-stricken life.His earnings were meagre too.As a consequence of all this,he had to resort to robbing and begging to make both ends meet.

He is all alone in this enormous world and leads a miserable life.As a result of his loneliness,he starts to knit various kinds of thoughts.One of the thoughts he had was thinking this world to be a big rattrap.He was of the opinion that the world offers us with various kinds of greeds in the form of comforts and luxuries of life.These comforts are however detrimental as getting trapped in these worldly indulgence,we eventually land up ourselves in various miseries.

As the peddler was homeless,he had to wander for shelter everyday.His life was difficult.One evening,he came across a crofter whom he requested for shelter for the night.As was his means of make his living,he robbed the crofter.The next morning,the crofter was very much in dismay and upset as the peddler had stolen his hard-earned money.To keep him ahead of the crofter,the peddler decided to chose the path to flee through the forest which was dense and deserted.However,the peddler was trapped in the forest itself.Sometime later,he was able to find his way and again takes shelter at a forge.

The ironmaster at the forge mistakes the shelter-seeking peddler as his old friend and invites him to his house.The poor peddler however rejects his offers because of the fear of getting caught.

However,he is soon invited by the ironmasters daughter.The next morning he is somehow stopped by the ironmaster's daughter again for Christmas Eve.By then,the ironmatser and his daughter had already realised that the person they had given shelter was actually a peddler and not his friend Captain Stalhe.

The next day after Christmas,the ironmaster and the daughter went to the church to offer their prayers.At the church,they discover that the peddler whom they had given shelter was actually the robber who had robbed the hard working crofter of his money.The ironmaster and his daughter started to fret about what all things,the thief would have stolen by then.They repented by giving shelter to a thief.

However,at this junction of time comes an amazing twist in the story.Instead of stealing,the peddler had actually gifted the ironmaster's daughter a gift in the form of a rattrap.The daughter found a letter of thanks and the stolen money inside the trap.The peddler by the means of the letter thanked Edla for her kindness and requests her to return the stolen money.

The given story presents us a with a very important lesson that goodness in a human being can never be reduced to nothingness.It can be awakened at any time with our own good deeds.Goodness around is can definitely induce a change in our lives.

 

Difficult Words:

i)Odd Moments:A short span of leisure time.

ii)Vagabond:Wanderer.

iii)Plods:Walks heavily.

iv)Bait:Food placed to a hook to trap a prey.

v)Dreary:Dull.

vii)Snare:To trap.

viii)Mjolis:A game played with playing cards.

ix)Crofter:A person who works on a rented form.

x)Creamery:A factory which produces cheese                           and cream.

xi)Kronor:Currency of Sweden.

xii)Peddler:Seller.

xiii)Thickets:A dense group of bushes.

xiv)Thumping:The sound of some heavy                                         objects thumping.

xv)Forge:A shop where metal is being heated                      and made into structures.

xvi)Scow:A flat-bottomed boat used for                                transporting cargo to and from ships in                  harbour.

xvii)Sifted:Descended lightly or sparsely as if                          sprinkled from a sieve.

xviii)Rolling Mill:Machine to roll metal into                                         sheets.

xix)Anvil:A heavy iron block with a flat top and 

               concave sides.

xx)Bellows:Air bag that emits a stream of air                            used for blowing.

xxi)Shoveled:Move.

xxii)Maw:Jaws.

xxiii)Clatter:Bang.

xxiv)Whipped:(Here)To hit something.

xxv)Tramp:Vagabond.

xxvi)Ragamuffin:A person in rags.

xxvii)Deigned:Do something that one considers                           to be beneath one's dignity.

xxviii)Undeceive:To tell someone that his belief                                  is mistaken.

xxix)Puckered:Wrinkle.

xxx)Dissimulate:Pretend.

xxxi)Interceded:Intervened.

xxxii)Parson:Churchman.

About Author:

Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf was a Swedish author and popular teacher.Born on 20th November,1858 in Marbacka,Spain;she is the first women to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1909.She passed away in 1940.

NCERT Questions:

A)Understanding the Text.

1)The peddler was actually a rattrap seller.As he was poor and had no shelter to rest under,he had resorted to robbery to make both ends meet.He had to wander to seek shelter at someone's place or the other.

Once he had to take shelter at a crofter's place.The crofter showed kindness towards the peddler by sharing his porridge and tobacco.However,the peddler betrayed him by robbing him of his hard earned money.After fleeing away,he had to again take shelter at some place.This time it was a forge and the ironmaster mistook him for his old mate Captain Von Stalhe.With utmost warmth,he welcomed him and let him stay at their residence.The peddler also didn't bother to clear the air of confusion as this would help him get some money.On the other hand,the daughter of the Ironmaster Edla Williamson was an exceptional host.She convinced her father to let her stay even after it was found that the peddler was not Captain Von Stalhe.

All these acts of kindness were interpreted differently by the peddler.He thinks that the kindness and generosity by Edla was completely selfless and also reformed him forever.For this transformation,the peddler also reciprocated by gifting her with a rattrap along with the crofter's money which he had earlier robbed.

2)In the above story,there are many notable examples of how the characters of the daughter and ironmaster were poles apart.They were totally different.

The ironmaster was a proud one.When he saw the peddler for the initial time,he mistook him for his old acquaintance Captain Von Stalhe.He was an old regimental comrade.He tried to provide him shelter in order to create a good impression in the Captain's mind.However,soon when it was revealed that the person he was hosting was not actually the Captain but a mere peddler,he called him dishonest.He even threatened him to leave him at the mercy of the village sheriff.

On the other hand,Edla,the ironmaster's daughter was a kind lady.After even the revealation that the peddler was not the person they supposed him to be,she convinced her father that the petty peddler meant no harm.She treated him with all the due respect he deserved which also proved to be instrumental in the transformation of the peddler.

3)The story has certainly various instances of unexpected reactions from the characters to other's behaviour.For instance,one evening when the peddler seeked shelter at the door of a little hut,he was rather accepted by the crofter rather than declining his request.Another such noted instance is that when the peddler was found that he was not actually Captain Von Stalhe.The owner of the forge,the ironmaster,was livid at this revealation.He called him dishonest as he thought him to be taking advantage of his mistaken identity but her Edla convinced his father to not to punish him by any means.Moreover,she let the peddler to live in their house till Christmas Eve.

4)The peddler by the end of the story had completely changed for the good.The kindness which came unexpected in his way from Edla Williamson reformed him forever.Her generosity was so huge that it killed the robber inside the peddler.He,who had resorted to robbery for his survival,now mended his ways.The peddler gifted her a rattrap along with three ten kronor notes which had been stolen from the crofter.He requested her to return the money to the crofter.Along with all this,he also a heartwarming letter to her for treating him well like a real Captain.

5)The world is full of various things which are tempting for humans.These include material pleasures,luxuries,joy,lust etc.The rattrap seller thinks that these things are like a bait which is planted to trap someone in the rattrap of the world.In the story,the peddler attracted by the three ten kronors of the crofter which he eventually stole from him.Later on,he found himself that he is now trapped by the forest while walking through the woods.He is of the opinion that this was a punishment for him for the sin he committed.

6)The peddler has a good sense of humour.All during the whole story,his sense of humour is quite notable.When his original identity is revealed,he made the ironmaster laugh with his metaphor of the world.His interactions with the other characters in the story also throws light on the subtle sense of humour.This not only lightens the seriousness of the story but also makes the readers emphatise with him.

B)Talking about the Text.

1)The peddler's way of describing himself as an underprivileged rattrap seller and how the world treats him helps him win the reader's sympathy.The sympathy is well justified considering the underdog narrative he created around him.

2)The story has 3 characters who suffer from loneliness.The characters are the rattrap seller,old crofter and the ironmaster suffer from loneliness.Had the peddler got company from the initial stage,he would have definitely not resorted to robbery and other vices.

3)A very notable story is about Hari Singh who is a character in the story 'A Thief's Story' by Ruskin Bond.Here,after his owner knew that Hari Singh had stolen his money,he didn't hand over him to the authorities.This reformed him forever to become a good person.

4)There are several instances such as mistaking the peddler for a Captain,the complete change in the attitude of the ironmaster when it was revealed that he is not a peddler.There is also a philosophical angle to it where the peddler thinks the world to be a rattrap.

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A Thing of Beauty;NCERT Solutions and Summary for Class 12

                         A Thing of Beauty

                                                  -John Keats

Text:

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Summary:

"A Thing of Beauty" by John Keats is a romantic poem.It is primarily based on Greek mythology about a shepherd named Endymion and his quest for his love Diana.However,during his quest he falls in with an Earthly maiden,who later turned out to be Diana.

Stanza-1:(A Thing of beauty....and quiet         breathing.)

In the above lines,the poet says that beauty is perennial and stays forever.Beauty never fades away and on the contrary it increases with every passing moment of time.It flourishes more than ever with every passing day and grows along time.For the poet,beauty is like a beautiful shady tree under whose shade all creatures can sleep peacefully and experience a life full of prosperity and good health.

Stanza-2:(Therefore,on every morrow...from our dark spirits.)

According to the poet,he thinks that everyday,it is beauty which fills us with the spirit to live life with zeal.Beauty has one of the sole reasons which gives to strength to live through sad moments and with several cruel people around us.Had there been no beauty,the Earth would be full of cruel and fake people.There would moments full of sadness and gloom.Keats is of the opinion that beauty is being created by God in order to remove sadness from our hearts.So,beauty becomes one of the reasons why humanity has still managed to flourish even with the rise of vices.

Stanza-3:(Such the moon....mid forest brake)

In the 3rd stanza,the poet describes the beautiful things which are present in Earth.These are the Sun,Moon,trees,flowers such as Daffodils and the rivers.The poet says that all these things are kind of a blessing bestowed upon all the creatures by Mother Earth so life can be beautiful.He futher goes on to describe how each of them add beauty to our lives.The trees provide us shade,flowers with beauty,rivers with their cool and clear water during hot summers.All of these are the beauties of nature which are like a favourite boon for all of us.

Stanza-4:(Rich with a....heaven's brink)

The poet further carries on with the description of the more beautiful things which are present on Earth.He gives various examples of what he thinks is/are beautiful.Some of these are the beautiful musk roses which have a great fragrance,the tales of warriors who laid their lives for their countries or humanity.He again repeats his point how these beautiful things are the gifts of God for all of us.They are like a nectar given by God to us and these beauties are immortal.These small yet beautiful things are one of the prime reasons why we can be happy despite having innumerable sorrows in our lives.

Difficult Words:

i)Bower:A shady place under the tree.

ii)Morrow:The following day.

iii)Wreathing:Surround or to encircle.

iv)Despondence:Depressed.

v)Gloomy:Sad.

vi)Boon:A blessing.

vii)Rills:A small stream.

viii)Brake:A process of slowing down.

ix)Grandeur:High rank or socially important.

x)Brink:Edge.

Rhyme Scheme:

aa bb cc dd

Literary Devices:

i)Metaphor:"Bower Quiet"- Calmness of the bower is compared to the calming effect of a beautiful thing.

ii)Anaphora:"Of noble nature—Of all the    unhealthy"

iii)Inversion:Normal order of words is reversed.

"Are we wreathing a flowery band."

iv)Antithesis:Opposite words placed together.

"Old and young"

v)Imagery:"Bushes full of musk roses."

About Author:

John Keats was born in London in the year 1795 and died in Rome in 1821 at the young age of 25 because of his illness.He is one of the most famous romantic poets ever.His poems are still considered as to be the benchmark of what is considered as absolute beauty.

NCERT Questions:

A)Think it Out.

1)There are various beautiful things mentioned in the poem.These include the Sun,Moon,shady trees, beautiful daffodil flowers,streams of clear water,dense green bushes of forest ferns where fragrant musk roses grow.The poet is also of the opinion that the tales of heroic men who sacrifice their lives are also very beautiful.

2)Along with the beautiful things,the poet has also made an attempt to list the things which cause suffering and pain.Some of these are the desire to offend others,hopelessness,lack of noble men,bad health,unhappiness,gloom and darkness.

3)The poet is a lover of beauty.By the means of his senses,he discovers beauty and establishes the fact that man is linked to nature eternally.The poet thinks that these things of beauty are like wreaths of beautiful flowers.With all the beautiful and enchanting things surrounding us,we seem to weave a flowery band everyday.All these keeps us attached to the beauties of the Earth.

4)Life can be challenging at various junctions of time.There are many situations which become so troublesome that they dampen our spirits.However,some form beauty or another brings love and cheerfulness in our lives in spite of everything against us.A thing of beauty has the ability to remove the pall of sadness and makes us fall in love with life again.

5)The "mighty dead" were very powerful and dominating persons during their own times.Their achievements made them 'mighty' and great.Their noble works are still praiseworthy.We imagine that such mighty dead forefathers will certainly attain grandeur on the doomsday.Hence,the poet has associated 'grandeur' with the 'mighty dead'.

6)Things of beauty make us feel happy by coming in contact with them.These things leave a lasting impression on us.And Keats makes it absolutely certain by his own statement-"A Thing of Beauty is a Joy Forever".Its beauty never diminshes or declines with the passage of time.Its loveliness goes on increasing with every moment.And being perrenial,it removes the pall of sadness that covers our spirits.

7)The poem uses a very enchanting image to describe the beautiful bounty of the Earth.The poet has referred to the endless fountain of immortal drink.According to the poet,it is constantly poured into our hearts blissfully from heaven.This is the reason why the poet calls the 'beautiful bounty of the Earth' as 'an endless fountain of immortal drink'.

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Disclaimer:

No part of this publication may be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system of transmitted,in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,photocopying,recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.

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Deep Water;NCERT Solutions and Summary for Class 12

                               Deep Water

                                             -William Douglas

Text:

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Summary:

'Deep Water' by William Orville Douglas is actually an extract from his book 'Of Men and Mountain'.In this brief extract,he tells about his fear of water and how he conquered it by determination and willpower.

The narrator had an aversion to water since he was a child.As a small boy,when he was 3 or 4 years old,he would visit the beaches in California with his father.The waves would knock him down and sweep over him.This scared him of the might of the huge waves.Eventually,this let the fear for water get instilled in his mind.

However,when he was ten or eleven years old,he again decided to learn to swim.There was a pool at YMCA(Young Men's Christian Association)

which gave him an opportunity to learn swimming again.However,very soon he was a victim of a misadventure.

One day,he went to the pool,when nobody was around.The place was silent and the narrator was a bit nervous regarding the water.He was sitting on the side of the pool when suddenly,somebody pushed him.He was already frightened by then but remembered not to be out of his wits.On his way down to the water,he decided that he would take a large leap which will make him come back to the surface.Then,he would paddle to the edge of the pool.However,those 9 feets seemed like an infinite distance.Before even touching the bottom of the pool,it seemed like his lungs would burst.However,he still managed to summon all his strength and made a great spring upwards.He thought that he would Bob to the surface like a cork but he came up slowly.

When he came to the surface of the water,all around him was water which had a dirty yellow tinge to it.He panicked and tried bringing his legs up but failed miserably.Again,he started to go down.He was again sinking into the pool.He was again planning to spring up to the surface of the pool but his body didn't allowed it.After around 3 such unsuccessful attempts,he felt tired and slowly closed his eyes.It felt as if the curtain of life fell.

Next,when his eyes opened,he was lying beside the pool.Several hours later,he walked home.For many days,a haunting fear was in his heart which made him wobbly in the knees and sick in his stomach.After this incident,he never went back to the pool and avoided water whenever he could.

A few years down the line,when he came to know about the water of Cascades,he wanted to get into them.However,the terror from the incident in the pool would revisit him.This fear also ruined his trips and deprived him from the fun of canoeing,boating and swimming.He even tried multiple times to overcome this fear but always in vain.

Finally,one October,he hired an instructor and asked him to teach him swimming.He went to a pool and started to practise swimming 5 days a week.By continuous practice and sheer determination,he shed his fear.Next,for weeks,the instructor would hold him near the side of a pool and had him kick with his legs.He also tried swimming in the pool and had him kick with his legs.He also tried swimming in the pool alone sometimes to check if his fear has finally vanished and found that some part of it would still return.All the way of two miles,he covered by swimming himself and all alone.He eventually conquered his fear.

The narrator learnt a very significant lesson from his hydrophobia.He faced his fear from water in a humorous manner by challenging the fear on his face.It was only a baseless fear which was instilled in his mind.He had experienced both terror and the feeling of overcoming it.During this wonderful journey of conquering his fear,he realised that death is actually peaceful but the fear associated with it is actually horrifying.At last,feeling of overcoming his fear made his mind free and relaxed.

Difficult Words:

1)Treacherous:(Here)Presenting hidden or                                      unpredictable dangers.

2)Hydrophobia:The fear from water.

3)Subdued:(Here)Restrained.

4)Aversion:Dislike.

5)Paddled:To move through water using legs.

6)Bob:A quick,short movement up and down.

7)Cork:A buoyant light brown substance.

8)Tinge:A trace of a colour.

9)Flailed:Moving, swinging or beating wildly.

10)Throbbed:Beat or sound with a strong                                      regular rhythm.

11)Limp:To walk with difficulty.

12)Oblivion:The state of being unaware of what                       is happening around one.

13)Wobbly:Tending to move unsteadily from                            side to side.

14)Slack:Not held tightly in position.

15)Vestiges:Trace or remnant of something.

16)Canoeing:The act of driving a canoe.

About Author:

William Orville Douglas was an American jurist and politician who served as associate justice of the Supreme Court of the USA.He was born on October 16,1898 and died on January 19,1980.He was known for his outspoken progressive views.He was also an ardent advocate of environmentalism.

NCERT Questions:

A) Understanding the Text.

1)Douglas has very illustratively described the sense of panic that gripped over him as he drowned.He has described the entire incident in such a vivid manner that one could actually visualize the whole thing.He describes how he landed in sitting position,swallowed water and went at once to the bottom.On his way down,he planned that when his feet would hit the floor of the pool,he would take a great leap which would make him bounce back to the pool's surface.He described fearfully how those nine feet felt more like nine feet.And instead of bouncing back to the water surface,he came up slowly.This incident left a lasting mark on his mind.

2)Douglas badly wanted to get rid of his fear of water.He was very determined to do so and thus he even hired an instructor for it.He went to the pool and started practicing swimming for 5 days a week.Everytime,he went to the pool and beneath it,he would experience some part of the terror he had experienced in his last unfortunate incident at the pool.

3)The narrator as an adult has recounted a childhood experience of terror as he wanted to convey to his readers how he faced the fears he had as a child.The narrator has learnt a very valuable experience from this fear of water.He has now learnt from this that it is not actually the fear of drowning buut the fear associated with it was more troubling.After this,his will to live grew intensely and he felt relaxed.

B)Talking about the Text.

1)Earlier,I used to be scared of spiders.I had read somewhere that they were dangerous and poisonous.A fear had got instilled in my mind that they can kill humans.However,with the passage of time,that fear has vanished.

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Disclaimer:

No part of this publication may be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system of transmitted,in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,photocopying,recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.

#Hey!This is an in-depth piece of genuine writing by EduRankers' team.There may be some inadvertent typing mistakes.Please report and we will definitely get back to you.Ask your queries in the comments section.Keep hustling!

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