8

Question I:

Answer these questions in one or two sentences each. (The paragraph numbers within brackets provide clues to the answers.)

1.                 Why was the 'holy man' who gave Santosh's mother his blessings surprised? (1)

2.                 Give an example to show that even as a young girl Santosh was not ready to accept anything unreasonable. (2)

3.                 Why was Santosh sent to the local school? (3)

4.                 When did she leave home for Delhi, and why? (4)

5.                 Why did Santosh's parents agree to pay for her schooling in Delhi? What mental qualities of Santosh are brought into light by this incident t? (4)

Answer I:

1.                 The 'holy man' was surprised because he had assumed that Santosh's mother wanted a son but the grandmother told him that they were not curious to have a son.

2.                 Santosh, from the very beginning, lived life according to her wish. She was not restricted with the traditional way of life and was not ready to accept anything unreasonable. Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts.

3.                 Due to the prevailing custom in the family Santosh was sent to the local village school even though Santosh's parents could afford to send their children to the best schools.

4.                 When she turned sixteen and was under pressure re to get married, Santosh threatened her parents that she would never marry without getting proper education. Therefore, she left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi.

5.                 When Santosh's parents refused to pay for her education, she politely informed them of her plans to earn money on her own by working part time so that she could pay her school fees. Then, her parents agreed to pay for her schooling in Delhi. This shows that Santosh was a mentally-strong girl and was determined to work very hard towards getting herself properly educated before being married like any other girl in the village.

Question II:

Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).

1.     How did Santosh begin to climb mountains?

2.     What incidents during the Everest expedition show Santosh's concern for her team-mates?

3.     What shows her concern for the environment?

4.     How does she describe her feelings at the summit of the Everest?

5.     Santosh Yadav got into the record books both times she scaled Mt Everest. What were the reasons for this?

Answer II:

1.                 Santosh watched people from her room in Kasturba Hostel, going up the Aravalli H ills and disappearing soon after. On investigating, she found a few mountaineers, and asked I f she could join n them. They showed consent and agreed and even motivated her to take to climbing. She later accompanied them on their climbing adventure. This was how she began climbing mountains.

2.                 During the Everest mission, Santosh showed great concern for her fellow climbers. Though she was unable to save the life of one of them, she somehow managed to save the life another climber through artificial respiting.

3.                 Santosh was a passionate environmentalist. Her concern for the environment is evident from the fact that she made an effort to collect and bring down 500 kilograms of garbage from the Himalayas.

4.                 Santosh asserted that her feeling at the summit of the Everest was "indescribable". Unfurling the Indian flag on the top of the world was a spiritual moment for her and she felt proud as an Indian.

5.                 When Santosh Yadav first scaled Mt Everest, she became the youngest woma n in the world to achieve the feat. When she scaled the Everest for the second time, she became the only woman in the history to have scaled it twice.

Question III:

Complete the following statements.

1.                 1.  From her room in Kasturba Hostel, Santosh used to         _

2.                 2.  When she finished college, Santosh had to write a letter of apology to her father because     _

3.                 3.  During the Everest expedition, her seniors in the team admired her      while        _ endeared her to fellow climbers.

Answer III:

1.                 From her room in Kasturba Hostel, Santosh used to watch villagers going up the hill and suddenly vanish after a while.

2.                 When she finished college, Santosh had to write a letter of apology to her father because she had got herself enrolled at Uttarkashi's Nehru Institute of Mountaineering without his permission.

3.                 During the Everest expedition, her seniors in the team admired  her climbing skills, physical fitness and mental strength while climbing with her.

Question IV:

Pick out words from the text that mean the same as the following words or expressions. (Look in the paragraphs indicated.)

1.                 took to be true without proof (1):   _

2.                 based on reason; sensible; reasonable (2): _

3.                 the usual way of doing things (3):  _

4.                 a strong desire arising from within (5):    _

5.                 the power to endure, without falling ill (7):        _

Answer IV:

1.                 took to be true without proof: Assumed

2.                 based on reason; sensible; reasonable: Rational

3.                 the usual way of doing things: Custom

4.                 a strong desire arising from within: Urge

5.                 the power to endure, without falling ill: Resistance

Maria Sharapova

Question: I

Working in small groups of 4-5 students, go back over the two passages on Santosh Yadav and Maria Sharapova and complete the table given below with relevan t phrases or sentences.

Points of Comparison/ Contrast Santosh Yadav      Maria Sharapova

1.                 Their humble beginning

2.                 Their parents' approach

3.                 Their will power and strong desire to succeed

4.                 Evidence of their mental toughness

5.                 Their patriotism

Answer: I

Points of Compar ison/ Contrast

Ø Their humble begin ning

Santosh Yadav                                           Maria Sharapova

1.                 -"She      was born in the small village        the Siberian born of Joniyawas teenager    

of Rewari District in Haryana.

2.                 Their parents' approach Traditional.        As much as positive, co­ operative and    

helpful.

3.                 Their will power and strong Strong determination. desire to succeed Strong will power.

4.                 Evidence of their mental toughness

5.                 Their patriotism Proceed to. Take care of

Conquering      the     Mt.    Everest       To play Olympics for Russia. twice.