Question

4. Read the passage given and answer the following. (1x6=6)

Conversation is a fine art. It is the art of exchanging thought. It is an art which

anybody can cultivate or master. Not everybody can paint or play music, but

almost everyone can talk. Thus it affords the greatest pleasure to the

greatest number. ‘To talk”, says R.L. Sleversan, “is our chief business in the

world. And talk is by far the most accessible of pleasures. It costs nothing in

money, it is all profit. It completes our education, makes friends and can be

enjoyed at any age. Conversation is indeed the most teachable of all the arts.

All you need to do is to find a subject that interests you and your listeners.

Hobbies are for example, numberless hobbies to talk about. But the

important thing is that you must talk about the other fellow’s hobby rather

than your own. Therein lies the secret of your popularity. There is nothing

that pleases people so much as your interest in their interest.

It is just as important to know what subjects to avoid and what subjects to

select for good conversation. If you don’t want to be set down as a bore,

avoid certain unpleasant topics. Avoid talking about yourself unless you are

asked to do so. Sickness or death bores everybody. The only one who

willingly listens to such talk is, the doctor, but he gets paid for it. You must

also know not only what to say but also how to say it.

(a) How does the author define and explain the art of conversation?

(b) How is talking easier to learn than other fine arts?

(c) What are the subjects one can easily talk about?

(d) Which topics usually bore the listener?

(e) What should be avoided unless you are asked to do so?

(f) Find out word from the above passage similar in meaning: ‘make happy’.​

Answer 1

Answer:

1. Conversation is a fine art. It is the art of exchanging thought. It is an art which
3. anybody can cultivate or master. Not everybody can paint or play music, but
5. almost everyone can talk.

Not everybody can paint or play music, but

almost everyone can talk. Thus it affords the greatest pleasure to the

greatest number. ‘To talk”, says R.L. Sleversan, “is our chief business in the

world. And talk is by far the most accessible of pleasures. It costs nothing in

money, it is all profit. It completes our education, makes friends and can be

enjoyed at any age. Conversation is indeed the most teachable of all the arts.

3.

And talk is by far the most accessible of pleasures. It costs nothing in

money, it is all profit. It completes our education, makes friends and can be

enjoyed at any age. Conversation is indeed the most teachable of all the arts.

All you need to do is to find a subject that interests you and your listeners.