Maharashtra State Board Class 9 English Kumarbharati Solutions Chapter 1.1 Life

English Kumarbharati 9th Solutions Chapter 1.1 Life Textbook Questions and Answers

Warming Up:

1. There are many popular lines like:
‘life Is a game – play ft well’.
‘life Is a Journey – keep going ahead’.
Discuss and write down a few such metaphorical lines about ‘life’. You can make them up yourselves.
1. …………………………….. .
2. …………………………….. .
3. …………………………….. .
4. …………………………….. .
5. …………………………….. .

Question 1.
Discuss and write down a few metaphorical lines about life, like the two lines given on page 2 of the textbook.
Answer:
(Some examples)

1. Life is a movie – enjoy it to the full.
2. Life is a short picnic – relish it.
3. Life is a see-saw – sometimes up, sometimes down.

2. Prepare as many ‘acrostics’ using the word LIFE, as you can. Two examples are given below.

You can turn it into a game, using a time – limit. Make sure your acrostics are related to ‘life’.

Question 1.
Prepare as many acrostics as you can, using the word ‘LIFE’.
Answer:
(Some examples)
1. Love
Inspiration
Friendship
Enjoyment

2. Lively
Interesting
Fascinating
Enchanting

3. Listen carefully and write the word in the appropriate column.

Teacher: hopeful, lonely, happy, jealous, surprised, shy, loving, proud, cheerful, anxious, nervous, excited, embarrassed, scared, silly, comfortable, peaceful, depressed, enthusiastic, motivated, inspired, threatened, crushed, angry Note that it is possible to feel both kinds of emotions at the same time. Have you experienced it? Try to describe the situation in short.

Question 1.
Listen carefully to the words spoken by the teacher and write them in the appropriate columns :
(The answer is given directly.)
Answer:

Positive Feelings	Negative Feelings
hopeful, excited, happy, surprised, loving, cheerful, comfortable, peaceful, enthusiastic, motivated, inspired.	lonely, jealous, shy,  proud, anxious, nervous, embarrassed, scared, silly, depressed, angry, threatened, crushed.

English Workshop :

1. Pick out from the extract two lines each that reflect an optimistic (positive) attitude and pessimistic (negative) attitude.

Optimism :
1. …………… .
2. ……………. .

Pessimism :
1. …………….. .
2. …………….. .

Question 1.
Pick out from the extract two lines each that reflect an optimistic (positive) attitude and pessimistic (negative) attitude.
Answer:
Optimism :

1. Foretells a pleasant day.
2. But these are transient all.

Pessimism :

1. Oft a little morning rain.
2. Sometimes there are clouds of gloom.

(Note: These lines cannot actually be called pessimistic. The poetess looks on problems as temporary and feels that any difficulties we face always foretell a happy future. There are no lines that are absolutely pessimistic.)

2. Give other ‘-ly’ adverbs of similar meaning for the following. Use a thesaurus if needed.

(a) rapidly → ……………… .
(b) merrily → ……………… .
(c) gratefully → ………………
(d) cheerily → ……………… .
(e) manfully → ……………… .
(f) fearlessly → ……………… .
(g) gloriously → ……………… .
(h) victoriously → ……………… .

Question 1.
Give other ‘-ly’ adverbs of similar meaning for the following. Use a thesaurus if needed :
(The answers are given directly.)
Answer:
(a) rapidly → swiftly
(b) merrily → cheerfully
(c) gratefully → thankfully
(d) cheerily → happily
(e) manfully → bravely
(f) fearlessly → courageously
(g) gloriously → wonderfully
(h) victoriously → triumphantly

3. Pick out three examples of interrogation (rhetorical questions) from the poem.
a. Explain in your own words the point that each one makes.

b. Explain the metaphor in the following lines :
1. Oft a little morning rain ………………………………….
Foretells a pleasant day ……………………………………
2. Sometimes there are clouds ………………………………….
3. … the shower will make the roses bloom ………………………………….
4. Life’s sunny hours flit by ………………………………….

c. Pick out four examples of personification. Write what is personified in each :
1. ………………………………….
2. ………………………………….
3. ………………………………….
4. ………………………………….

d. ‘And calls our Best away’ is a gentle way of expressing the unpleasant idea of a loved one dying. It is an example of euphemism. Think and write down 3 or 4 ways in which we can express the idea of ‘death’ in a tactful and gentle manner.
1. ………………………………….
2. ………………………………….
3. ………………………………….
4. ………………………………….

Question a.
Pick out two examples of interrogation (rhetorical questions) from the extract. Explain in your own words the point that each one makes.
Answer:

Interrogation	Explanation
1. What though death at times steps in, And calls our Best away?	If death, at times takes away the people we love most, we must accept it and hope for better times.
2. What though sorrow seems to win, O’er hope a heavy sway?	It does not matter if we are overcome by sorrow and hope seems to be far away.

Question b.
Explain the metaphor in the following lines :

1. Oft a little morning rain ………………….
Foretells a pleasant day …………….
2. SometImes there are clouds……………..
3. … the shower wifi make the roses bloom …………..
4. life’s sunny hours flit by ……………

Question 1.
Oft a little morning rain
Foretells a pleasant day.
Answer:
If we have difficulties at some stage, there will be joyous times following it. Difficulties are implicitly compared to rain and joyous times to a pleasant day.

Question 2.
Sometimes there are clouds.
Answer:
Sometimes there are problems. Problems are implicitly compared to clouds.

Question 3.
……. the shower will make the roses bloom.
Answer:
The problems we face will make for better times ahead. Problems are implicitly compared to the showers of rain and better times Eire implicitly compared to roses blooming.

Question 4.
Life’s sunny hours flit by.
Answer:
The happy times of our life go by very quickly. Here, the happy times are implicitly compared to sunny hours.

Question c.
Pick out four examples of personification from the extract. Write what is personified in each.
Answer:

1. ‘Death steps in.’ Death is personified.
2. ‘Sorrow seems to win.’ Sorrow is personified.
3. ‘Yet Hope again elastic springs, Unconquered though she fell.’ Hope is personified.
4. ‘Can courage quell despair!’ Courage is personified.

Question d.
‘And calls our Best away’ is a gentle way of expressing the unpleasant idea of a loved one dying. It is an example of euphemism. Think and write down 3 or 4 ways in which we can express the idea of ‘death’ in a tactful and gentle manner.
Answer:

1. The person has left for his heavenly abode.
2. He/She has gone to meet his/her Maker.
3. He/She has become the beloved of God.
4. He/She has completed his work on this earth.

4. ‘…………. and that’s how I realised that courage and hope can help me overcome any major mishap/problem in life.’ Write an episode/experience from your own life that leads to the above conclusion.

Question 1.
‘…… and that’s how I realized that courage and hope can help me overcome any major mishap/ problem in life.’ Write an episode/experience from your own life that leads to the above conclusion.
Answer:
I am a lover of sports. My favourite game is football. I wanted to play in my school team, and right from the age of eleven, I had been practising very sincerely.

Then one unfortunate day, when I was twelve, I fell down the stairs of my building and fractured my leg , badly. I was devastated. How could I play my favourite game? How could I make it to the team? Would my leg ever become completely alright again? Would I be I able to run around and kick the ball as before? I felt that my world had ended.

This was the time when my family gave me their full support. My grandparents helped me to while away the long hours; my parents made nutritious food for me and saw to the medical treatment. My sister, who is four years older than me, gave me sound advice and courage. She understood what I was going through.

She told me of various people who had suffered terrible disasters and had risen I above them. She brought me videos of umpteen cases where the mind had won over the body. She made me read biographies of achievers like Wilma Rudolph and Sudha Chandran. She made me do my exercises regularly and keep in touch with my sport. Slowly but surely, I regained courage and confidence.

Believe it or not, two years later I made it to my football team! My doctor and my family said that it was optimism and a positive attitude that had helped me recover completely. And that’s how I realized that courage and hope can help me (or anybody) overcome any major mishap/problem in life.

5. Read: ‘The Psalm of Life’ – a poem by H. W. Longfellow.

English Kumarbharati 9th Digest Chapter 1.1 Life Additional Important Questions and Answers

Warming Up:

Question 1.
It is possible to feel both kinds of emotions at the same time. Have you experienced it? Try to describe such a situation in short.
(An example is given below.)
Answer:
Yes, I have experienced it. Once, when I stood first in class and got excellent marks in Science and Maths, my parents gave a party. All my friends were also present. My father gave a speech praising me. At that time, I was happy as well as embarrassed.

Read the following extracts carefully and complete the activities :

Simple Factual Activity :

Question 1.
Say whether the following statements are True or False :
Answer:

1. The sages say that life is a dark dream. True
2. The clouds of gloom are permanent. False
3. We must enjoy the happy hours of our life. True
4. Life’s sunny hours flit by quickly. True

Complex Factual Activities :

Question 1.
What do the sages say?
Answer:
The sages say that life is a dark dream.

Question 2.
What does the rain often foretell?
Answer:
The rain often foretells a pleasant day.

Question 3.
What should we do during joyful times in life?
Answer:
We should enjoy the joyful times of our life gratefully and cheerfully.

Question 4.
Complete the following :
We should not be unhappy when we have difficulties because
Answer:
We should not be unhappy when we have difficulties because these difficulties are temporary. If we have difficulties at some stage in our lives, there will be joyous times following it later.

Activities based on Poetic Devices :

Question 1.
Pick out an example of interrogation (rhetorical question) from the extract. Explain j in your own words the point that it makes.
Answer:

Interrogation	Explanation
If the shower will make the roses bloom, Oh, why lament its fall?	If a little rain helps the roses to flower, we should not feel unhappy about it. This means that we must not express regret for the difficulties we face in life.

Simple Factual Activity :

Complete the following :
(The answers are given directly and underlined.)

1. One should bear the day of trial courageously and fearlessly.
2. The wings of hope are golden and buoyant, (strong, elastic)

Complex Factual Activity :

Question 1.
Does sorrow actually win over hope, according to the poet?
Answer:
No. Though hope is temporarily defeated, it springs up again and helps us to bear the days of trials.

Question 2.
Who does ‘Our Best’ refer to?
Answer:
‘Our Best’ refers to those whom we love and cherish the most.

Question 3.
Why are the wings of hope ‘golden’?
Answer:
Gold is the colour of optimism. The wings of hope are golden because hope helps us bear up with
our problems and suppress despair.

Activities based on Poetic Devices :

Question 1.
Write an appreciation of this poem. With the help of given points in paragraph format :
Note: The point format given for Appreciation of Poem is for easy understanding. However, it is to be written in I the form of a paragraph in the examination.
Answer:
Point Format
(for understanding)

• Title: Life
• Poet: Charlotte Bronte
• Rhyme Scheme: abeb in the first stanza, and abab in all the remaining stanzas.
• Figures of Speech: ‘What though death at times steps in’. The figure of speech is Personification, Death is given the human quality of ‘stepping in’.
• The other important figures of speech are Metaphor and Interrogation (Rhetorical Questions).
• Theme/Central idea: This is a motivating and optimistic poem. The poet says that the bad things of life are transient, and good things invariably follow them.
• Hope will rescue us and help us to bear our trials, even during times of great adversity. We must be optimistic, and have the courage to overcome any mishaps or problems.

Paragraph Format:

The poem ‘Life’ is by Charlotte Bronte. It is a motivating and optimistic poem. The Rhyme Scheme is abeb for the first stanza and abab in all remaining stanzas. There are many figures of speech e.g. Personification ‘What though death at times steps in’. Here, death is given the human quality of ‘stepping in’. The other important figures of speech are Metaphor and Interrogation (Rhetorical Questions).

The poetess says that the bad things of life are temporary. Good things invariably follow it. Even during times of great adversity, hope will rescue us and help us to bear our trials. We must look at the positive side of life, and have the courage to overcome any mishaps or problems. The poem makes one feel good and is easy to understand.