Who does Lencho have complete faith in? Which sentences in the story tell you this?
Lencho had full faith in God. This is shown in some of the following sentences : “God,” he wrote, “if you don't help me, my family and I will go hungry this year.” He wrote 'To God' on the envelope, put the letter inside and, still troubled, went to town. Lencho has full and complete faith in God as he said that God knows everything and helps us in the problems. There few sentences showing this:
1)But in the hearts of all who lived in that solitary house in the middle of the valley, the help from God was a single hope for Lencho.
2)All through the night, Lencho thought only of his one hope: the help of God, whose eyes, as he had been instructed, see everything, even what is deep in one’s conscience.
3)“God”, he wrote, “if you don’t help me, my family and I will go hungry this year”.
4) He wrote ‘To God’ on the envelope, put the letter inside and, still troubled, went to town.
5) God couldn't have made a mistake, nor could he have denied Lencho what he had requested.
What made Mr Keesing allow Anne to talk in class?
Chubukov says of Natalya: “... as if she won’t consent! She’s in love; egad, she’s like a lovesick cat...” Would you agree? Find reasons for your answer.
Are there people like Lencho in the real world? What kind of a person would you say he is? You may select appropriate words from the box to answer the question.
greedy naive stupid ungrateful
selfish comical unquestioning
Why didn’t Valli want to make friends with the elderly woman?
Did Lencho try to find out who had sent the money to him? Why/Why not?
What ideals does Nelson Mandela set for the future of South Africa?
Anne says teachers are most unpredictable. Is Mr Keesing unpredictable? How?
How does Mandela describe the systems of government in his country
(i) in the first decade, and
(ii) in the final decade of the twentieth century?
Was Lencho surprised to find a letter for him with money in it?
Do you think Mr Keesing was a strict teacher?
Match the words on the left with a word on the right. Some words on the left can go with more than one word on the right.
(i) a portion of – blood
(ii) a pool of – cotton
(iii) flakes of – stones
(iv) a huge heap of – gold
(v) a gust of – fried fish
(vi) little drops of – snow
(vii) a piece of – water
(viii) a pot of – wind
Did Lencho try to find out who had sent the money to him? Why/Why not?
Here are some more examples of ‘the’ used with proper names. Try to say what these sentences mean. (You may consult a dictionary if you wish. Look at the entry for ‘the’)
(i) Mr Singh regularly invites the Amitabh Bachchans and the Shah Rukh Khans to his parties.
(ii) Many people think that Madhuri Dixit is the Madhubala of our times.
(iii) History is not only the story of the Alexanders, the Napoleons and the Hitlers, but of ordinary people as well.
1. This is the bus (what kind of bus?). It goes to Agra. (use which or that)
2. I would like to buy (a) shirt (which shirt?). (The) shirt is in the shop window. (use which or that)
3. You must break your fast at a particular time (when?). You see the moon in the sky. (use when)
4. Find a word (what kind of word?). It begins with the letter Z. (use which or that)
5. Now find a person (what kind of person). His or her name begins with the letter Z. (use whose)
6. Then go to a place (what place?). There are no people whose name begins with Z in that place. (use where)
What does Valli mean when she says, “I was just agreeing with what you said about things happening without our knowledge.”
What did Valli find out about the bus journey? How did she find out these details?
How did Mandela’s understanding of freedom change with age and experience?
Find the lines in the text which tell you that Valli was enjoying her ride on the bus.
What does Chubukov at first suspect that Lomov has come for? Is he sincere when he later says “And I’ve always loved you, my angel, as if you were my own son”? Find reasons for your answer from the play.
What made him angry?