Here are some sentences from the story. | Class 9 English - Beehive Chapter A Truly Beautiful Mind, A Truly Beautiful Mind NCERT Solutions

Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story? Give reasons for your answer.

II. This story about a frightening incident is narrated in a humorous way. What makes it humorous? (Think of the contrasts it presents between dreams and reality. Some of them are listed below.)
1. (i) The kind of person the doctor is (money, possessions)
    (ii) The kind of person he wants to be (appearance, ambition) 

2. (i) The person he wants to marry
   (ii) The person he actually marries

3. (i) His thoughts when he looks into the mirror
    (ii) His thoughts when the snake is coiled around his arm
Write short paragraphs on each of these to get your answer.

When and how did Bismillah Khan get his big break?

II. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).
1. How did Santosh begin to climb mountains?
2. What incidents during the Everest expedition show Santosh’s concern for her team-mates?
3. What shows her concern for the environment?
4. How does she describe her feelings at the summit of the Everest?
5. Santosh Yadav got into the record books both times she scaled Mt Everest. What were the reasons for this?

Why did Bismillah Khan refuse to start a shehnai school in the U.S.A.?
 

Why did Margie hate school? Why did she think the old kind of school must have been fun?

I. Discuss in pairs and answer each question below in a short paragraph (30– 40 words).
1. How many characters are there in the narrative? Name them. (Don’t forget the dog!).
2. Why did the narrator (Jerome) volunteer to do the packing?
3. How did George and Harris react to this? Did Jerome like their reaction?
4. What was Jerome’s real intention when he offered to pack?
5. What did Harris say after the bag was shut and strapped? Why do you think he waited till then to ask?
6. What “horrible idea” occurred to Jerome a little later?
7. Where did Jerome finally find the toothbrush?
8. Why did Jerome have to reopen the packed bag?
9. What did George and Harris offer to pack and why?
10. While packing the hamper, George and Harris do a number of foolish and funny things. Tick the statements that are true.
(i) They started with breaking a cup.
(ii) They also broke a plate.
(iii) They squashed a tomato.
(iv) They trod on the butter.
(v) They stepped on a banana.
(vi) They put things behind them, and couldn’t find them.
(vii) They stepped on things.
(viii) They packed the pictures at the bottom and put heavy things on top.
(ix) They upset almost everything.
(x) They were very good at packing.

Now use these adverbs to fill in the blanks in the sentences below.
(i) The report must be read so that performance can be improved.
(ii) At the interview, Sameer answered our questions , shrugging his shoulders.
(iii) We all behave when we are tired or hungry.
(iv) The teacher shook her head when Ravi lied to her.
(v) I forgot about it.
(vi) When I complimented Revathi on her success, she just smiled and turned away.

(vii) The President of the Company is busy and will not be able to meet you.
(viii) I finished my work so that I could go out to play.

I. 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?

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

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?

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

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?

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

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

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

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 Pashupatinath temple.
2. How does the author describe Kathmandu’s busiest streets?
3. “To hear any flute is to be drawn into the commonality of all mankind.” Why does the author say this?

II. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).
1. How did Santosh begin to climb mountains?
2. What incidents during the Everest expedition show Santosh’s concern for her team-mates?
3. What shows her concern for the environment?
4. How does she describe her feelings at the summit of the Everest?
5. Santosh Yadav got into the record books both times she scaled Mt Everest. What were the reasons for this?

II. This story about a frightening incident is narrated in a humorous way. What makes it humorous? (Think of the contrasts it presents between dreams and reality. Some of them are listed below.)
1. (i) The kind of person the doctor is (money, possessions)
    (ii) The kind of person he wants to be (appearance, ambition) 

2. (i) The person he wants to marry
   (ii) The person he actually marries

3. (i) His thoughts when he looks into the mirror
    (ii) His thoughts when the snake is coiled around his arm
Write short paragraphs on each of these to get your answer.

I. Answer these questions in one or two sentences each. (The paragraph numbers within brackets provide clues to the answers.)

1. Why was the ‘holy man’ who gave Santosh’s mother his blessings surprised? (1)

2. Give an example to show that even as a young girl Santosh was not ready to accept anything unreasonable. (2)

3. Why was Santosh sent to the local school? (3) top honours: highest awards the enormity of the moment: a very great moment sink in: be understood held it aloft: held it up high fervent: having strong and sincere feelings

4. When did she leave home for Delhi, and why? (4)

5. Why did Santosh’s parents agree to pay for her schooling in Delhi? What mental qualities of Santosh are brought into light by this incident? (4)

I. Consult your dictionary and choose the correct word from the pairs given in brackets.
1. The (site, cite) of the accident was (ghastly/ghostly).
2. Our college (principle/principal) is very strict.
3. I studied (continuously/continually) for eight hours.
4. The fog had an adverse (affect/effect) on the traffic.
5. Cezanne, the famous French painter, was a brilliant (artist/artiste).
6. The book that you gave me yesterday is an extraordinary (collage/college) of science fiction and mystery.
7. Our school will (host/hoist) an exhibition on cruelty to animals and wildlife conservation.
8. Screw the lid tightly onto the top of the bottle and (shake/shape) well before using the contents.

I. 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?

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

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?

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

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?

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

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

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

Irony is when we say one thing but mean another, usually the opposite of what we say. When someone makes a mistake and you say, “Oh! that was clever!”, that is irony. You’re saying ‘clever‘ to mean ‘not clever’.

Expressions we often use in an ironic fashion are:
• Oh, wasn’t that clever!/Oh that was clever!
• You have been a great help, I must say!
• You’ve got yourself into a lovely mess, haven’t you?
• Oh, very funny!/ How funny!
We use a slightly different tone of voice when we use these words ironically. Read the play carefully and find the words and expressions Gerrard uses in an ironic way. Then say what these expressions really mean. Two examples have been given below. Write down three more such expressions along with what they really mean.

What did he do?

What do you think a telebook is?

Study these sentences:
• My parents were regarded as an ideal couple.
• I was asked to go and sit on the back bench.
• Such problems have to be confronted.

The italicised verbs in these sentences are made up of a form of the verb be and a past participle. (For example: were + regarded, was + asked, be + confronted) These sentences focus on what happens, rather than who does what. Notice that the doer of the action is not included in the sentences. If necessary, we can mention the doer of the action in a by-phrase. For example:
• The tree was struck by lightning.
• The flag was unfurled by the Chief Guest.