1. Read the poem given below and answer the questions;
Wind
Subramania Bharati
Wind, come softly.
Don’t break the shutters of the windows.
Don’tscatter the papers.
Don’t throw down the books on the shelf.
There, look what you did —you threw them all down.
You tore the pages of the books.
You brought rain again.
You’re very clever at poking fun at weaklings.
Frail crumbling houses, crumbling doors, crumbling rafters,
crumbling wood, crumbling bodies, crumbling lives,
crumbling hearts –
the wind god winnows and crushes them all.
He won’t do what you tell him.
So, come, let’s build strong homes,
Let’s join the doors firmly.
Practise to firm the body.
Make the heart steadfast.
Do this, and the wind will be friends with us.
The wind blows out weak fires.
He makes strong fires roar and flourish.
His friendship is good.
We praise him every day.
Wind, come softly.
Given below is the summary of the poem. Fill in the blanks with suitable words to complete the summary. Use only one word for each blank.
The poet begins by a) ___________to the wind to blow softly and not cause havoc by breaking window shutters, scattering paper or throwing books on the shelf. The poet b) ___________against the wind since it has torn the pages of the books and has brought rain again. The poet feels that the wind is extremely clever as it c) ____________fun of those who are weak. It does not like anything weak. Everything that d) _______easily be it houses, doors, wood or rafters, is e) _____________mercilessly by wind. Besides, it also crushes weak bodies, lives and hearts. The poet f) __________wind to a God who doesn’t do what people tell him to .The poet offers a g) ____________to help humanity. He appeals to people to be firm, positive and strong both physically as well as mentally. They must have a h) _____________heart if they want to be friends with wind. If we are strong then wind will not only i) _____________ us but also aid us in achieving success and in flourishing. It is j) __________to be friends with wind.
Answers
Answer :
The main objective of 'fill in the blanks' question is to assess the students' ability to use the knowledge that they have acquired.
The correct passage, with the blanks duly filled in, is as follows :
The poet begins by a) appealing to the wind to blow softly and not cause havoc by breaking window shutters, scattering paper or throwing books on the shelf. The poet b) complains against the wind since it has torn the pages of the books and has brought rain again. The poet feels that the wind is extremely clever as it c) makes fun of those who are weak. It does not like anything weak. Everything that d) breaks easily be it houses, doors, wood or rafters, is e) destroyed mercilessly by wind. Besides, it also crushes weak bodies, lives and hearts. The poet f) compares wind to a God who doesn’t do what people tell him to .The poet offers a g) solution to help humanity. He appeals to people to be firm, positive and strong both physically as well as mentally. They must have a h) strong heart if they want to be friends with wind. If we are strong then wind will not only i) befriend us but also aid us in achieving success and in flourishing. It is j) advisable to be friends with wind.