Read the passage given below carefully and answer the following questions, as far as possible, in
your own words:
As the rains receded, I got a strange job. Our neighbour, a rich merchant, decided to become a politician.
His major handicap was that he was illiterate and he offered me a job of accompanying him on trips into
the interior villages to read and write for him at wages of rupees six hundred a month. I made several
trips with Lala Munshiram as he was called, to outskirts of villages, sleeping under trees and eating
stomach full meals for once in my life.
In the villages I was astonished at the ignorance and poverty of the children I met. I had been pitying
myself for not having fashionable clothes and now I met children who could barely cover their bodies. I
looked learned and rich against their ignorance and poverty. Women would coax their children to come
and talk to me, but they would peep through the window, giggling hysterically. At night, seated on a
bench, I would write down the points dictated to me by Lala Munshiram, then read them to him so that
they would be fixed in his memory. Then I would read aloud to him his postcards, which either flattered
or abused him. Many nights, labourers would come to listen to his speeches, which promised them
prosperity. Many of the native village-men promised to vote for him in the hope that if he was elected,
they could get manifold favours.
Our trips were tiresome. Travelling by buses, rickshaw, bullock carts or on foot we went from house to
house and village to village. I just became a machine recording names and addresses of his supporters,
and the listening seemed to be endless. My job seemed to be monotonous, doing the same work, seeing
the same type of people, houses and farms. The only break I had from boredom was when Lala
Munshiram addressed the people in the marketplace. To a huge crowd, he would give a talk in the form
of a sermon, clapping his hands occasionally, spitting on the floor to mark off his paragraphs and
thumping his feet to punctuate his sentences, all of which captivated the simple villagers who, in their
turn, shouted slogans promising him their support.
I returned home in March with a pocketful of money that vanished into the needs of the family. My mother
was proud, and even aunt Sarla became friendly; grandmother thought I had performed a miracle and
my mischievous qualities had, by now, evaporated. But little did they know that Lala Munshiram had
lost the election and I, my job.
A. Give the meanings of the following words as used in the passage. One word answer or short
phrases will be accepted- (2)
1. captivated-
2. mischievous-
B. Find words from the passage that mean the following- (2)
1. lack of knowledge or information-
2. something that is dull, boring and repetitive-
C. Write the antonyms of the following words- (2)
1. interior-
2. vanished-
D. Make sentences with the following words so as to bring out their meanings- (3)
1. politician-
2. astonished-
3. fashionable-
E. Answer the following questions:
1. How did the author get his strange job? (3)
2. Describe any two things the author had to do to earn his salary. (2)
3. Why do you think the author felt that his work was monotonous? (2)
4. What techniques did Lala Munshiram use to win over the villagers? (3)
5. How did the author spend the money that he had collected? (1)
Answers
(D) make sentences with vanished is _ when I am calling her to do my homework suddenly she vanished.
Answer:
A. 1. captured
2. troublesome, playful
B. 1. ignorance
2. monotonous
C. 1. politicians have the best interest of the people in their heart
2. We were astonished when John won in the school athletic events
3. It's fashionable to own the latest of mobile phones
D. 1. An illiterate but rich merchant wished to become a politician and offered him a job of accompanying him on trips into the interior villages to read and write for him.
2. He would have write down the points dictated to him by Lala Munshiram, then read them back so that they would be fixed in his memory. also, he would read aloud to Lala's his postcards,
3. They were continuously ravelling by buses, rickshaw, bullock carts or on foot, going from house to house and village to village. He became a machine recording names and addresses of his supporters, and the listening seemed to be endless.
4. he would give a talk in the form of a sermon, clapping his hands occasionally, spitting on the floor to mark off his paragraphs and thumping his feet to punctuate his sentences,
5. he spent it on the needs of family.