Glimpses of India - Questions and Answers
Before You Read & Activities
A Baker from Goa
Coorg
Tea from Assam
The Trees Poem
Before You Read - Activity
Discuss in class
- What images — of people and of places — come to your mind, when you think of our country?
- What parts of India have you lived in, or visited? Can you name some popular tourist destinations?
- You may know that apart from the British, the Dutch and the French, the Portuguese have also played a part in the history of our country. Can you say which parts of India show French and Portuguese influences?
- Can you say which parts of India grow (i) tea, (ii) coffee?
A Baker from Goa
Oral Comprehension Check
1. What are the elders in Goa nostalgic about?
The elders in Goa are nostalgic about those good old Portuguese days, the Portuguese and their famous loaves of bread.
2. Is bread-making still popular in Goa? How do you know?
Yes, bread-making is still popular in Goa. The makers are still there. We still have amongst us the mixers, the moulders and those who bake the loaves. Those age-old, time-tested furnaces still exist.
3. What is the baker called?
The baker is called pader in Goa.
4. When would the baker come everyday? Why did the children run to meet him?
The baker used to come at least twice a day. Once, when he set out in the morning on his selling round, and then again, when he returned after emptying his huge basket. The children ran to meet him for those bread-bangles which they chose carefully. Sometimes it was sweet bread of special make.
Oral Comprehension Check
1. Match the following. What is a must
| (i) as marriage gifts? | – sweet bread called bol |
| (ii) for a party or a feast? | – bread |
| (iii) for a daughter’s engagement? | – sandwiches |
| (iv) for Christmas? | – cakes and bolinhas |
2. What did the bakers wear: (i) in the Portuguese days? (ii) when the author was young?
(i) In the Portuguese days, the baker or bread-seller had a peculiar dress known as the kabai. It was a single-piece long frock reaching down to the knees. (ii) When the author was young, bakers wore a shirt and trousers which were shorter than full-length ones and longer than half pants.
3. Who invites the comment — “he is dressed like a pader”? Why?
Anyone who wears a half pant which reaches just below the knees invites the comment that he is dressed like a pader. Even today, this invites the comment because of the traditional association with bakers.
4. Where were the monthly accounts of the baker recorded?
Monthly accounts used to be recorded on some wall in pencil.
5. What does a ‘jackfruit -like appearance’ mean?
It means a plump physique like a jackfruit. Their plump physique was an open testimony to their prosperity.
Thinking about the Text
1. Which of these statements are correct?
- (i) The pader was an important person in the village in old times. – Correct
- (ii) Paders still exist in Goan villages. – Correct
- (iii) The paders went away with the Portuguese. – Incorrect
- (iv) The paders continue to wear a single-piece long frock. – Incorrect
- (v) Bread and cakes were an integral part of Goan life in the old days. – Correct
- (vi) Traditional bread-baking is still a very profitable business. – Correct
- (vii) Paders and their families starve in the present times. – Incorrect
2. Is bread an important part of Goan life? How do you know this?
Yes, bread is an important part of Goan life. Marriage gifts are meaningless without the sweet bread known as the bol, just as a party or a feast loses its charm without bread. Cakes and bolinhas are a must for Christmas as well as other festivals.
3. Tick the right answer. What is the tone of the author when he says the following?
- (i) The thud and the jingle of the traditional baker’s bamboo can still be heard in some places. (nostalgic, hopeful, sad) – nostalgic
- (ii) Maybe the father is not alive but the son still carries on the family profession. (nostalgic, hopeful, sad) – hopeful
- (iii) I still recall the typical fragrance of those loaves. (nostalgic, hopeful, naughty) – nostalgic
- (iv) The tiger never brushed his teeth. Hot tea could wash and clean up everything so nicely, after all. (naughty, angry, funny) – naughty
- (v) Cakes and bolinhas are a must for Christmas as well as other festivals. (sad, hopeful, matter-of-fact) – matter-of-fact
- (vi) The baker and his family never starved. They always looked happy and prosperous. (matter-of-fact, hopeful, sad) – matter-of-fact
Writing
I. In this extract, the author talks about traditional bread-baking during his childhood days. Complete the following table with the help of the clues on the left. Then write a paragraph about the author's childhood days.
| Clues | Author’s childhood days |
|---|
| the way bread was baked | Those age-old, time-tested furnaces still exist. The fire in the furnaces has not yet been extinguished. |
| the way the pader sold bread | The baker made his musical entry on the scene with the ‘jhang, jhang’ sound of his specially made bamboo staff. One hand supported the basket on his head and the other banged the bamboo on the ground. |
| what the pader wore | The baker or bread-seller of those days had a peculiar dress known as the kabai. It was a single-piece long frock reaching down to the knees. |
| when the pader was paid | The baker usually collected his bills at the end of the month. Monthly accounts used to be recorded on some wall in pencil. |
| how the pader looked | Their plump physique was an open testimony to this. |
II. 1. Compare the piece from the text (on the left below) with the other piece on Goan bakers (on the right). What makes the two texts so different? Are the facts the same? Do both writers give you a picture of the baker?
The two texts are different in tone: the left is nostalgic and personal, the right is factual. Facts are similar, both give a picture of the baker.
2. Now find a travel brochure about a place you have visited. Look at the description in the brochure. Then write your own account, adding details from your own experience, to give the reader a picture of the place, rather than an impersonal, factual description.
[Activity for students]
Group Discussion
1. In groups, collect information on how bakeries bake bread now and how the process has changed over time.
[Group activity]
2. There are a number of craft-based professions which are dying out. Pick one of the crafts below. Make a group presentation to the class about the skills required, and the possible reasons for the decline of the craft. Can you think of ways to revive these crafts?
(i) Pottery (v) Carpentry (ii) Batik work (vi) Bamboo weaving (iii) Dhurri (rug) weaving (vii) Making jute products (iv) Embroidery (viii) Handloom
Coorg
Thinking about the Text
1. Where is Coorg?
Midway between Mysore and the coastal town of Mangalore.
2. What is the story about the Kodavu people’s descent?
The fiercely independent people of Coorg are possibly of Greek or Arabic descent. As one story goes, a part of Alexander’s army moved south along the coast and settled here when return became impractical. The theory of Arab origin draws support from the long, black coat with an embroidered waist-belt worn by the Kodavus.
3. What are some of the things you now know about
(i) the people of Coorg? – Proud race of martial men, beautiful women. Fiercely independent. Tradition of hospitality. Tales of valour.
(ii) the main crop of Coorg? – Coffee
(iii) the sports it offers to tourists? – River rafting, canoeing, rappelling, rock climbing and mountain biking.
(iv) the animals you are likely to see in Coorg? – Birds, bees, butterflies, Macaques, Malabar squirrels, langurs, slender loris, wild elephants.
(v) its distance from Bangalore, and how to get there? – Around 250-260 km. By air: Mangalore (135 km) or Bangalore (260 km). By rail: Mysore, Mangalore, Hassan. By road: via Mysore or via Neelamangal.
4. Here are six sentences with some words in italics. Find phrases from the text that have the same meaning.
(i) During monsoons it rains so heavily that tourists do not visit Coorg. – it pours enough to keep many visitors away
(ii) Some people say that Alexander’s army moved south along the coast and settled there. – As one story goes
(iii) The Coorg people are always ready to tell stories of their sons’ and fathers’ valour. – more than willing to recount numerous tales of valour
(iv) Even people who normally lead an easy and slow life get smitten by the high-energy adventure sports of Coorg. – The most laidback individuals become converts to the life of high-energy adventure
(v) The theory of the Arab origin is supported by the long coat with embroidered waist-belt they wear. – draws support from
(vi) Macaques, Malabar squirrels observe you carefully from the tree canopy. – keep a watchful eye
Thinking about Language
Collocations
1. Here are some nouns from the text. Work with a partner and discuss which of the nouns can collocate with which of the adjectives given below.
(i) culture: unique culture, ancient culture
(ii) monks: serious monks
(iii) surprise: unforgettable surprise, sudden surprise
(iv) experience: unforgettable experience, terrible experience
(v) weather: terrible weather
(vi) tradition: ancient tradition
2. Complete the following phrases from the text. For each phrase, can you find at least one other word that would fit into the blank?
(i) tales of valour
(ii) coastal town
(iii) a piece of heaven
(iv) evergreen rainforests
(v) coffee plantations
(vi) rope bridge
(vii) wild elephants
Tea from Assam
Thinking about Language
I. 1. Look at these words: upkeep, downpour, undergo, dropout, walk-in. Use these words appropriately in the sentences below.
(i) A heavy downpour has been forecast due to low pressure in the Bay of Bengal.
(ii) Rakesh will undergo major surgery tomorrow morning.
(iii) My brother is responsible for the upkeep of our family property.
(iv) The dropout rate for this accountancy course is very high.
(v) She went to the Enterprise Company to attend a walk-in interview.
2. Now fill in the blanks in the sentences given below by combining the verb given in brackets with one of the words from the box as appropriate.
(i) The Army attempted unsuccessfully to overthrow the Government. (throw)
(ii) Scientists are on the brink of a major breakthrough in cancer research. (break)
(iii) The State Government plans to build a bypass for Bhubaneswar to speed up traffic on the main highway. (pass)
(iv) Gautama’s outlook on life changed when he realised that the world is full of sorrow. (look)
(v) Rakesh seemed unusually downcast after the game. (cast)
II. Notice how these -ing and -ed adjectives are used.
1. Think of suitable -ing or -ed adjectives to answer the following questions.
(i) a good detective serial on television? – interesting
(ii) a debate on your favourite topic ‘Homework Should Be Banned’? – exciting
(iii) how you feel when you stay indoors due to incessant rain? – bored
(iv) how you feel when you open a present? – excited
(v) how you feel when you watch your favourite programme on television? – interested
(vi) the look on your mother’s face as you waited in a queue? – tired
(vii) how you feel when tracking a tiger in a tiger reserve forest? – thrilled
(viii) the story you have recently read, or a film you have seen? – boring
2. Now use the adjectives in the exercise above, as appropriate, to write a paragraph about Coorg.
[Activity for students]
Speaking and Writing
1. Read the following passage about tea. Collect information about tea, e.g. its evolution as a drink, its beneficial qualities. You can consult an encyclopedia or visit Internet websites. Then form groups of five and play the following roles...
[Role play activity]
2. You are the sales executive of a famous tea company and you have been asked to draft an advertisement for the product. Draft the advertisement using the information you collected for the role play.
[Activity for students]
Poem - The Trees by Adrienne Rich
The trees inside are moving out into the forest,
the forest that was empty all these days
where no bird could sit
no insect hide
no sun bury its feet in shadow
the forest that was empty all these nights
will be full of trees by morning.
All night the roots work
to disengage themselves from the cracks
in the veranda floor.
The leaves strain toward the glass
small twigs stiff with exertion
long-cramped boughs shuffling under the roof
like newly discharged patients
half-dazed, moving
to the clinic doors.
I sit inside, doors open to the veranda
writing long letters
in which I scarcely mention the departure
of the forest from the house.
The night is fresh, the whole moon shines
in a sky still open
the smell of leaves and lichen
still reaches like a voice into the rooms.
My head is full of whispers
which tomorrow will be silent.
Listen. The glass is breaking.
The trees are stumbling forward
into the night. Winds rush to meet them.
The moon is broken like a mirror,
its pieces flash now in the crown
of the tallest oak.
to disengage themselves: to separate themselves
strain: make efforts to move
bough: branch
shuffling: moving repeatedly from one position to another
lichen: crusty patches or bushy growth on tree trunks/bare ground formed by association of fungus and alga.
1. (i) Find, in the first stanza, three things that cannot happen in a treeless forest.
No bird could sit, no insect hide, no sun bury its feet in shadow.
(ii) What picture do these words create in your mind: “… sun bury its feet in shadow…”? What could the poet mean by the sun’s ‘feet’?
The picture is of sunlight unable to penetrate due to lack of shade. The sun’s ‘feet’ means rays of light.
2. (i) Where are the trees in the poem? What do their roots, their leaves, and their twigs do?
The trees are inside the house. Roots work to disengage from cracks, leaves strain toward glass, twigs stiff with exertion.
(ii) What does the poet compare their branches to?
Long-cramped boughs shuffling under the roof like newly discharged patients half-dazed, moving to the clinic doors.
3. (i) How does the poet describe the moon: (a) at the beginning of the third stanza, and (b) at its end? What causes this change?
(a) The whole moon shines in a sky still open. (b) The moon is broken like a mirror. The trees stumbling forward cause this change.
(ii) What happens to the house when the trees move out of it?
The glass is breaking.
(iii) Why do you think the poet does not mention “the departure of the forest from the house” in her letters?
The poet scarcely mentions it, perhaps because it is unexpected or embarrassing.
4. Now that you have read the poem in detail, we can begin to ask what the poem might mean. Here are two suggestions. Can you think of others?
(i) Does the poem present a conflict between man and nature? Compare it with A Tiger in the Zoo. Is the poet suggesting that plants and trees, used for ‘interior decoration’ in cities while forests are cut down, are ‘imprisoned’, and need to ‘break out’?
(ii) On the other hand, Adrienne Rich has been known to use trees as a metaphor for human beings; this is a recurrent image in her poetry. What new meanings emerge from the poem if you take its trees to be symbolic of this particular meaning?
5. You may read the poem ‘On Killing a Tree’ by Gieve Patel (Beehive – Textbook in English for Class IX, NCERT). Compare and contrast it with the poem you have just read.
[Activity for students]
Homophones
Can you find the words below that are spelt similarly, and sometimes even pronounced similarly, but have very different meanings? Check their pronunciation and meaning in a dictionary.
• The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
• When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
• The insurance was invalid for the invalid.