Question

She has not enjoyed even one full meal in her entire lifetime -that’s what she has reaped! Her husband, an old man with a flowing beard, says, “I know nothing except bangles. All I have done is make a house for the family to live in.” Hearing him, one wonders if he has achieved what many have failed in their lifetime. He has a roof over his head! The cry of not having money to do anything except carry on the business of making bangles, not even enough to eat, rings in every home. The young men echo the lament of their elders. Little has moved with time, it seems, in Firozabad. Years of mind-numbing toil have killed all initiative and the ability to dream. (i) The phrase ‘ mind-numbing toil’ refers to toil that is (a) very interesting and inspiring (b) extremely boring and tedious (c) very easy and convenient (d) extremely annoying and worrying (ii) The sentence “ I know nothing except bangles.” conveys the speaker’s (a) pride in bangle making (b) optimism in bangle making (c) helplessness that he knows nothing else except bangle making (d) confidence in his art of bangle making (iii) Choose the word which best matches the statement “All I have done is make a house for the family to live in.” (a) food (b) clothing (c) comfort (d) shelter (iv) What does ‘echo the lament of their elders’ mean? (a) express the same grief as their elders (b) imitate the cry of their elders (c) weep like their elders (d) blame their situation on their elders​

Answer 1

Explanation:

1.The phrase ‘ mind-numbing toil’ refers to toil that is extremely annoying and worrying

2.The sentence “ I know nothing except bangles.” conveys the speaker’s (c) helplessness that he knows nothing else except bangle making) 3.Choose the word which best matches the statement “All I have done is make a house for the family to live .shelter (iv) What does ‘echo the lament of elders mean . blame their situation on their elders