Department of English (College)

BOOK II

MODERN PROSE AND HEROES

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 Lesson # 1

The Dying Sun

Q.1: How is it that a star seldom finds another star near it?

Ans: A star seldom finds another star near it because there is a distance of millions of miles
between them. Moreover, universe is immensely vast and each star is bound to travel in its own
orbit.

Q.2: What happened when, according to Sir James Jeans, a wandering star, wandering
through space came near the sun?

Ans: According to Sir James Jeans, a wandering star happened to come near the Sun; it must
have raised tides on the surface of the sun. An immense tidal wave must have travelled over the
surface of the sun, at last forming a mountain so high. As the wandering star came nearer and
nearer, the mountain would rise higher and higher.

Q.3: What are planets and how did they come into existence?

Ans: The wandering star began to move away again, its tidal pull had become so powerful that
the mountain was torn to pieces and threw off small parts of itself into space. These small pieces
have been going around the sun ever since. They are the planets, great and small, of which our
earth is one.

Q.4: Why is there no life on the stars?

Ans: There is no life on the stars because the stars are balls of fire and they have intense heat.
Life needs suitable physical conditions for its appearance, the most important of which is the
temperature at which a substance can exist in a liquid state.

Q.5: Write a note on the beginning of life on earth?

Ans: When the earth gradually became cooler. Life started in the form of simple organisms
which had the ability to reproduce themselves before dying. In the end, it produced the most
complicated organisms like the man who has feelings and ambitions.

Q.6: Why is the universe so frightening?

Ans: The universe is so frightening because of immense distances, our extreme loneliness in the
universe, and absence of life on other planets and because of the littleness of our home in space.

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Q.7: What should be the conditions necessary, for the kind of life we know to exist on other
heavenly bodies? Do such conditions generally exist?

Ans: Life can exist only in some suitable physical conditions like moderate temperature, air, and
water. Such conditions do not exist on other heavenly bodies except the earth.

Q.8: How do the stars travel in the universe?

Ans: The stars travel in the universe either in groups or mostly they travel alone. They travel at a
vast distance from one another.

Q.9: What are the temperature belts?

Ans The temperature belts are zones that surround each hot star at a certain distance. The
temperature there is neither too hot nor too cold. Life can exist in such temperature belts.

Q. 10: What is absolute zero?

Ans: Absolute zero is the lowest possible temperature.

Q. 11: What is the total number of stars in the world?

Ans: The writer says that the total number of stars in the universe is probably like the total number
of grains of sand on all sea shores of the world.

Q. 12: What is necessary for life to exist?

Ans: Life can exist only in a narrow belt where the temperature is moderate.

Q.13: What is the Milky Way?

Ans: The Milky Way is the galaxy that includes the Solar System, seen as the bright band in the sky.

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 Lesson # 2

Using the Scientific Method

Q.1: How has the scientific method helped us in our fight against disease?

Ans: The scientific method has helped us in knowing the causes of diseases and their prevention.
It has also enabled us to make life-saving drugs due to which a person can expect to live almost
seventy years.

Q.2: Write a note on the better sanitary conditions available in our cities today and
compare them with what they were like a hundred years ago?

Ans: Today, our city streets are paved and well-drained. They are cleaned regularly. Garbage and
sewage are disposed of properly. A hundred years ago, the streets were unpaved and poorly
drained. Household garbage and other refuse were thrown in the streets. So, today sanitary
conditions are far better than a hundred years ago.

Q.3: What are sanitary conditions like in our villages today and how would you improve
them?

Ans: Today, our villages are poorly drained. Outdoor toilets are common and streets are
unpaved. We can improve them by making the people aware of better sanitation and its positive
effect on their health.

Q.4: How has scientific method helped us in the production and preservation of foods?

Ans: We are now able to produce more food through the use of fertilizers, insecticides, and
pesticides. Moreover, modern methods of selecting, grading and processing have helped us a lot in
the preservation of food.

Q.5: We are less fearful than our ancestors. What were our ancestors afraid of?

Ans: We are less fearful than our ancestors because we have stopped believing in superstitions.
Our ancestors were afraid of black cats, broken mirrors, and the number 13.

Q.6: How has the scientific method enabled us to get over the old fears?

Ans: The Scientific method has made us rational. Now, we know there is a sound reason behind
every happening. In this way, the scientific method has enabled us to get over the old fears.

Q.7: What part did astrology play in the lives of men and women in the past? Give
examples?

Ans: In the past, astrology played an important part in the lives of men and women. People used
to consult astrologists before marriages and other important matters of life.

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Q.8: Describe some of the superstitions still current in our country. How do they affect the
lives of those who believe in them?

Ans: Some people still believe in black cats, broken mirrors, the number 13 and other
superstitions. These superstitions affect the attitude of people who believe in them.

Q.9: What were the survival chances two hundred years ago?

Ans: Two hundred years ago the survival chances of a new born baby were very rare. Seven out
of eight babies died before reaching their first birthday.

Q.10: What do we mean by the word attitude?

Ans: By attitude, we mean the way we feel and think towards an idea or an event.

Q.11: What is meant by superstitions?

Ans: Superstitions are the set of beliefs that certain events or things bring good or bad luck.
Black cats, broken mirrors, and the number 13 are some common superstitions.

Q.12: How did thrifty housewives\ past women of the past preserve food in the past?

Ans: Thrifty housewives \ past women preserved their home-grown vegetables and fruits by
canning, pickling, slating, drying, and freezing.

Q.13: How scientific method has improved our ways of life?

Ans: The scientific method has improved our ways of life by solving health problems,
increasing the production and preservation of food, upgrading the sanitary conditions,
improving manner of construction, modes of communication and transportation.

Q.14: Which canned foods do you like the most?

Ans: I like pineapple slices which are preserved in Cans.

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 Lesson # 3
Why Boys Fail in College

Q.1: According to the author there are some boys who fail because they do not try. Who
are they? Can we help them?

Ans: They are the ones who have nervous habits, mistaken ambition, and too receptive mind.
They should be motivated to take studies seriously.

Q.2: How do mistaken ambitions on the part of boys and their parents lead to the failure
of the boys?

Ans: The mistaken ambitions of the parents lead to failure because the students do not take
any interest in the subject chosen by their parents. They lose interest in studies. As a result,
they fail.

Q.3: There are some boys who have done well at school but fail to make their mark at
college. Who are they? Do you have such boys in college in your country?

Ans: These are the boys who are bright and intelligent but not hard-working. They suppose that
they can float through college with as little effort as they did through school. They become
overconfident and eventually fail in college. Such boys could be found in the colleges of every
country. Ours is no exception.

Q.4: How does financial pressure lead to the failure of students described in the lesson? Do
you have similar cases in your country?

Ans: Poor students have to do some jobs to meet their educational expenses. They are at job
from six in the evening till two in the morning, six days in a week to see boys undergoing
transfusion of blood to get money for their food and books is a heartrending spectacle. This dual
exertion affects both their health and studies and so they fail. We do have such cases in our
country.

Q.5: To what extent does the question of health lead to failure at college? How far can the
college authorities with their medical officers help students in such cases?

Ans: Both physical and mental health are very important factors for students. If a student is
suffering from any disease, he cannot concentrate on his studies. As a result, he fails. If proper
cooperation exists between the teaching staff and the office of the college doctor, a number of
students can be helped.

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 Q.6: What place would you accord to sportsmen in college?

Ans: The main purpose of college is to impart education. Sportsmen should be given respectable
positions in the college. But they should not be allowed to neglect their studies at any cost.

Q.7: There are some students who join the college for the fun of it. Should they be allowed to
stay?

Ans: The students, who join the college for fun, should not be allowed to stay because they can
spoil other students as well.

Q.8: Who are lazy bluffers? What should be done about them?

Ans: Lazy bluffers are students who join college without any purpose. They should be left to the
cold merciless world so they can find out by experience how much demand there is for boys like
them.

Q.9: What should be the role of college dean?

Ans: The college dean should be like a doctor. He should diagnose the causes of failure among
the students. In this way, he can save the boys from failure.

Q.10: Why is the proper cooperation needed between the teaching staff and the college
doctor?

Ans: It is necessary that the boys are clinically examined regularly to maintain their physical and
mental health. It also helps to avoid an immense number of failures.

Q.11: Can we help the student suffering from nervous habits?

Ans: We cannot help the students suffering from nervous habits. Nervous habits are not easy to
uproot, they cannot be eradicated by anyone but the boy.

Q.12: Which school uniforms do you like the most in your school days?

Ans: I like grey pants and white shirt in my uniform during my school days. In winter we used to
wear gray sweaters.

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 Lesson # 4

End of Term

Q.1: What was Daiches’s attitude towards the weekend as a school boy? Why did he long
for it?

Ans: He waited for the weekend to enjoy and take a rest. He felt like a prisoner who had just
been released from the prison. He wanted to get away from the daily grind of school, with its
abundant homework, its fierce competition and the sense of never being able to relax.

Q.2: What was his general view of school life?

Ans: Daiches was not an irritated and disheartened boy of his school but he certainly did not like
the overburdened routine of school life. School appeared to be something like a prison to him, he
did not get enough time to sleep, contests with the class fellows, and endless home assignments
made him tired.

Q.3: He liked holidays for their freedom-freedom from what?

Ans: Freedom from the daily grind of school, with its abundant homework, its fierce competition,
and the sense of never being able to relax.

Q.4: Why did Daiches not like his maid-servant?

Ans: The writer used to sleep in the attic with his brother and sister. He would hear the
footsteps of their maid early in the morning and then her call to get ready for school. This call to
him appeared like a call to hell.

Q.5: What were David Daiches’s feelings on a Friday morning, afternoon and at Night?

Ans: The writer felt happy on a Friday morning as the next two days were holidays. Friday
morning used to be rose-coloured for him, he felt like a prisoner coming out of jail on a Friday
afternoon. Friday night was the best time of the week for him.

Q.6: How did David Daiches feel on Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday night as
a school boy?

Ans: Friday night was the best for the writer as two full holidays were to come after it. The
Saturday night was slightly pleasant because Sunday was still left as a holiday. The Sunday night
used to be full of the threat of Monday morning.

Q.7: What were the periods of respite in school enjoyed by the writer?

Ans: A half-holiday to let students attend a football match which some unpredictable
circumstances had caused to be cancelled the preceding Saturday, or the sudden dismissal of
school an hour or two before the usual time because of some unexpected crisis or celebration.

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Q.8: Describe Christmas and the Easter holidays the writer enjoyed during his school life.

Ans: In the earlier school days of the writer, Christmas and the Easter holidays lasted three
weeks each. However, later they were reduced to a fortnight and then to ten days. It was a period
of real joy and fun for the writer.

Q.9: How did he spend his summer holidays?

Ans: The summer vacation gave him immense pleasure. On getting it, he walked home happily
across the meadows. He would go out of town and enjoy his time fully during the long vacation.

Q.10: Wishes don’t come true in this life, writes Daiches. What are the things he longed for
but could not have?

Ans: Daiches longed for a tricycle and later this wish was transferred to a bicycle. He also wanted
to eat sweets and ice cream but none of his wishes come true.

Q.11: What did he do with his pocket money?

Ans: Daiches got a few pence weekly as his pocket money. He put his pocket money in a
moneybox and saved it. He was not allowed to spend his pocket money in his early childhood.

Q.12: Which was the happiest night of the week for the writer in school days?

Ans: The happiest night of week for the writer was Friday night because of two holidays on
Saturday and Sunday.

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 Lesson # 5

On Destroying Books

Q.1: What sorts of books were presented by the British public to soldiers?

Ans: The books presented by the British public, mostly consisted of magazines, twenty years old
guides to the Lake District, and back number of Whitaker’s Almanac.

Q.2: Was it the interest of soldiers that promoted their action, or was it the wish to get rid of
useless books?

Ans: People wanted to get rid of their extra books and it was a fine chance to gift their useless
books.

Q.3: Why should bad books be destroyed?

Ans: The bad books should be destroyed because it makes more room for new books and saves
one’s heirs the trouble of sorting out the rubbish or storing it.

Q.4: What sort of books did the author accumulate in his flat?

Ans: The books of inferior and minor verse gradually accumulated in his flat.

Q.5: Why is it difficult to destroy books?

Ans: According to the author books may not have as many lives as a cat, but they certainly die
hard and it is sometimes difficult to find a scaffold for them.

Q.6: Why could not the author burn the unwanted books?

Ans: He did not have a kitchen range or gas cooker to execute his plans. It was an impossible task
to burn them leaf by leaf in his small study fire.

Q.7: How did he decide to get rid of them?

Ans: J.C Squire decided to get rid of his useless books by putting them in a sack and throwing them
into the river.

Q.8: How did the writer bring his books down and what was the weather like?

Ans: The writer arranged a sack, filled it with his useless books, put them on his shoulder, and
carried them down. It was nearly midnight. The weather was quite cold and the stars were
shining.

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 Q.9: Describe the author’s midnight venture to throw the books in the river and the
suspicions that his actions were likely to arouse.

Ans: He put his books in a sack at midnight and went out in the cold. He felt afraid of a
policeman who could catch him. He also feared that someone was following him. He was scared
that he could be accused of throwing a baby into the river.

Q.10: Why did the writer feel afraid of the policeman and how did his fear get reduced?

Ans: The writer felt that the policeman would think that he had stolen goods in the sack. Later he
felt happy that the policeman had excused him. So, he went on moving forward towards the river.

Q.11: What difficulty brought J.C. Squire within the shadow of the rope?

Ans: The difficulty of throwing books was that the writer was frightened that someone could
think he was throwing an unwanted baby into the river. This situation brought J.C. Squire within
the shadow of rope.

Q.12: How did he muster up courage at last to fling them into the river?

Ans: The writer motivated himself by considering himself a cowardly person not to throw the
books down. He was ashamed of himself, as he thought he only made a show of his boldness to
others. With the courage of despair, he threw the sack down into the water.

Q.13: Did he come to have a feeling for those books once he had got rid of them?

Ans: He felt very sorry for the books he had thrown into the river. He took pity on them. He
thought how mud would cover them and their fate was worse than they deserved.

Q.14: What do you do with your personal books?

Ans: I donate my personal books to book bank of my college. The students who cannot afford to
buy books, they can use those books.

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 Lesson # 6

The Man Who Was a Hospital

Q.1: How did Jerome K. Jerome come to suspect that his liver was out of order?

Ans: He suspected that his liver was out of order after reading a patent liver pill circular,
mentioning various symptoms by which a man could tell when his liver was not functioning
properly.

Q.2: Why did the writer, Jerome K. Jerome, go to the British Museum and what did he do
there?

Ans: The writer went to the British Museum to read about the treatment of hay fever. He got a
book and read about other diseases as well. He began thinking that he had most of them.

Q.3: What were the diseases he thought he was suffering from on reading a book on the
treatment of disease?

Ans: He discovered that he was suffering from typhoid fever, St. Vitus’s dance, bright disease,
cholera, diphtheria, gout, and zymosis except housemaid’s knee.

Q.4: What did Jerome discover about typhoid?

Ans: He discovered that he had typhoid fever, and must have had it for months without knowing
it.

Q.5: What was the disease he discovered he didn’t have?

Ans: He was not suffering from housemaid’s knee.

Q.6: Was he pleased to find he didn’t have it?

Ans: He felt rather hurt about it. He took it a matter of disgrace for him. But later on, he
overcame those feelings when he realized that he had every other known malady in the
pharmacology.

Q.7: Why should he be an acquisition to the medical class?

Ans: He believed students would not have to “walk the hospitals” if they had him. He was a
hospital in himself. All they need is to walk around him to get their diploma.

Q.8: Why did the writer examine (or feel) his pulse, heartbeat and tongue after reading the
book?

Ans: The writer felt that he was suffering from so many diseases but he wanted to live longer. He
tried to check his pulse, heartbeat, and tongue to ensure that his organs were working properly.
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Q.9: Describe his visit to the medical man.

Ans: The writer went to his medical man and told him how he had found that he had all the
diseases except the housemaid’s knee. The doctor looked down into his mouth and checked his
pulse. After that, he sat down to write out a prescription, and gave it to the writer.

Q.10: He thought he was doing the doctor good turn by going to him. Why?

Ans: The writer thought that the doctor would get a lot of knowledge and practice by getting
him as a patient. He would get more practice out of the writer than out of seventeen hundreds of
his ordinary, common place patients, with only one or two disease each.

Q.11: What was the prescription given to him by the doctor?

Ans: The prescription was “1 lb. beefsteak, every 6 hours. Ten-mile walk every morning, bed at
11 sharp every night. And don’t stuff your head with things you don’t understand.”

Q.12: Describe his visit to the chemist.

Ans: He handed over the prescription to the chemist. After reading the prescription he replied that
he was a chemist and did not have any store or hotel. So he could not provide him food and
comfort.

Q.13: What is the significance of the doctor’s advice: don’t stuff your head with things you
don’t understand? Or what is the theme or message of the story?

Ans: We should not try to become an authority on those matters about which we have no solid
knowledge. Diagnosis of diseases and their cure is the job of the medical men. An ordinary man
cannot diagnose a disease by just reading medical books. He should better leave it to the doctors
to handle.

Q.14: How did the prescription of the doctor affect the writer and why was it helpful?

Ans: The writer ate the healthy food suggested by the doctor, took exercise and did not worry
about his health. Then he never had any problems regarding his health.

Q.15: How did the writer know that he was sick?

Ans: The writer read a circular about a disease of liver. After, reading the symptoms, he realized
that he had this disease. He went to a library and read a book about diseases. After reading about all
diseases, he came to know that he was sick.

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 Lesson # 7

My Financial Career

Q.1: Why did Leacock go to the bank?

Ans: The writer went to the bank to deposit fifty-six dollars because his salary had been raised.

Q.2: What light do the following expressions throw on Leacock’s state of mind when he
entered the bank: “looked timidly round”, “shambled in?”/ Why did the writer get
confused in the bank?

Ans: It was Leacock’s first experience of bank so he was highly afraid and confused. He walked
in slowly as he did not know how he might be treated.

Q.3: Why did the manager come to think that Leacock had an awful secret to reveal?

Ans: Leacock entered the bank in a strange manner. Then he said that he wanted to see the
Manager “alone.” The manager began feeling that Leacock was an agent and had a secret to tell.

Q.4: Describe Stephen Leacock’s meeting with the bank manager.

Ans: The manager asked if he was from the secret service. Leacock told the manager that he
was not a detective and all he wanted was to open an account. The manager asked if it was a
large account. Leacock replied that he wanted to deposit fifty-six dollars.

Q.5: What kind of man the manager was?

Q.6: What was the attitude of the manager towards Leacock on learning that he only
wished to deposit 56 dollars in the bank?

Ans: The manager’s behavior towards Leacock completely changed. As he came to know that
Leacock only had 56 dollars to deposit. He was no more welcoming instead he became rude.

Q.7: Why did Leacock want to draw out some money?

Ans: Leacock wanted to withdraw some money for his present use. First, he wanted to draw out
six dollars, but he wrote fifty-six dollars in fear and confusion.

Q.8: What other blunders did Leacock commit after leaving the manager’s office?

Ans: Leacock walked into the bank safe. The manager asked him to come out and walk the other
way. He poked the ball of money at the accountant as if he was doing a conjuring trick. He
deposited his 56 dollars and soon wanted to withdraw 6 dollars but in confusion he wrote a 56
dollars cheque and took back all his money.
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Q.9: What did the writer do when he realized his blunder of writing the wrong amount on
the cheque?

Ans: He pretended that he was doing it as the result of some insult to him by a bank worker. He
behaved like a short-tempered person who had changed his mind because of humiliation.

Q.10: What was the reaction of the bank employees when Stephen Leacock left the bank?

Ans: When the author came out of the bank, he heard a roar of laughter, which was reaching up to
the ceiling of the bank.

Q.11: After this misadventure in the bank where did Leacock keep his money?

Ans: He kept his money in cash in his trousers pocket and his savings in silver dollars in a sock.

Q.12: Give as many examples as you can to show that Leacock was feeling completely lost
in the bank all the time he was there.

Ans: The writer walked in, unsure of what he had to do. He told the manager that he wanted to see
him alone. He walked into the safe. He poked the ball of money at accountant as if he was doing a
conjuring trick. He deposited 56 dollars but soon withdrew all of it.

Q.13: Why did the manager think that the writer was a detective?
Ans: The writer’s behavior was mysterious. He insisted to meet the manager alone. The manager
got alarmed. He thought that he was a detective and had some important secret to disclose.

Q. 14: how much money did the writer want to deposit in the bank?

Ans: He wanted to deposit Fifty Six dollars in the bank.

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 Lesson # 08

China’s Way to Progress

Q.1: Why has the world changed its attitude towards China?

Ans: The world has changed its attitude towards China due to the amazing progress China has
made in all walks of life.

Q.2: Discuss Chinese agricultural system.

Ans: The Chinese agricultural system has its basis in communes. These communes are further
divided into production brigades and teams. Agricultural mechanization is being introduced but
with a lot of caution so that it may not upset the balance between traditional and modern farming.

Q.3: How does China rely on its own resources?

Ans: China relies on its resources by using locally manufactured machinery and products. Native
products and machines are cheaper and take less time to prepare when needed.

Q.4: Describe a day in the life of a Chinese student.

Ans: Je Wen Siu gets up at 6 in the morning, does a few domestic chores, has breakfast, and
goes to school at 8. She finishes at 11 am and comes back home. She takes her lunch and goes
back to the school at 1:30 pm to 3pm. After 4 pm, she takes a rest, reads the newspaper, and
enjoys listening to the radio.

Q.5: Write a note on Chinese women.

Ans: Chinese women are hard-working. They enjoy many social security benefits. They also
enjoy an 8-hour working day, free hospitalization and medical care, nursery and infant school,
and 56 paid leaves before childbirth.

Q.6: What are the social security benefits provided to the Chinese workers?

Ans: Chinese workers enjoy many social security benefits. They get the medical treatment for
free while their family members pay fifty percent of the cost. Each plant, factory, or agricultural
commune has a health center and a first-aid station. All plants boast nurseries and kindergartens.
The Chinese regime has set up an assistance system guaranteeing a minimum subsistence level.

Q.7: “It is the people and not the things that are decisive.” Discuss.

Ans: It is a quote by Mao Zedong that reflects his implicit faith in the importance of people.
Unlike West, he emphasized on people instead of material gains.

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Q.8: “The heart of the matter is to root out selfishness.” Discuss

Ans: Selfishness needs to be uprooted for the welfare of people at large and to make people
consider it their happiness to serve their fellow beings.

Q.9: What will happen in China if war breaks out?

Ans: If war breaks out in China, every province in China can survive on its own; and those
invading the country would be drowned in the sea of people.

Q.10: What are the three fevers not found in Chinese people?

Ans: The three fevers of alcohol, money, and sex are not found in the Chinese people.

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 Lesson # 09

Hunger and Population Explosion

Q.1: What does hunger mean on a large scale as viewed by the author?

Ans: It means that one never gets enough to eat. It also means a situation where one is
wondering where the next meal is coming from or even if there will be a next meal

Q.2: Describe some great famines of the past.

Ans: 1) A famine hit Egypt for seven years during the time of Joseph.

2) One famine every five years hit Europe from the birth of Christ to about 1800.

3) The Russian famine in 1921-22 killed several million people.

4) One million people starved to death in Bombay in 1942 because of the failure of the rice crop.

Q.3: How do famines occur?

Ans: Famines may occur due to many reasons. It may be that there are just too many people for
the amount of food available. Failure of crops due to disease and lack of rain can also be
considered the main reasons behind the famine.

Q.4: What is the main reason for population increase today?

Ans: The main reason for population increase is the difference between birth-rate and death-rate.
It means that the number of people who are born in a year is greater than the number of people
who die the same year.

Q.5: What is meant by birth rate and death rate, and how do they affect the population of a
country?

Ans: Birth rate means the number of births per 1000 population whereas the death rate means the
number of deaths per 1000 population. The difference between birth and death rate causes the
population increase.

Q.6: What have public health measures to do with increase in population?

Ans: Public health measures have contributed significantly in the reduction of the death rate.
There is a cure for almost all diseases, that is why the death rate is low and the population is
increasing.

Q.7: Account for the high birth rate in underdeveloped countries.

Ans: People in underdeveloped countries are usually less informed about the birth control.
Moreover, they think that by giving birth to more children they are increasing the number of
earning hands that is why there is a high birth rate in underdeveloped countries.

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 Q.8: Why is birth rate not so high in the more advanced countries?

Ans: People in those countries are educated and socially advanced. They are educated about
birth control and financial crisis caused by high population rate. That is why the birth rate is not
so high in the developed countries.

Q.9: Give a brief account of the poor economic conditions prevailing in underdeveloped
countries.

Ans: The underdeveloped countries are marked by poverty in all means. Beggars in cities and
villages barely survive. It has a lack of its factories, insufficient power supply, poor roads and
railways. The hospitals, schools, and colleges are few and far away. Most of the older people
cannot read or write.

Q.10: According to the lesson, how many children does a woman have on average in the
USA?

Ans: A woman in the USA has only three children on average.

Q.11: In the author’s opinion, what is the most difficult thing to achieve?

Ans: In the author’s opinion, the most difficult thing is to achieve a desire among individuals to
limit the size of the family.

Q.12: What happens if the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer?

Ans: If the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer, it encourages the poor to
wage war against the rich.

Q. 13: What is the main reason for population increase?

Ans: The main reason for population increase is increase the birth rate and decrease in the death
rate due to an effective control on epidemics. Secondly we have controlled wars because in past
population was reduced due to wars. Ignorance among under developed countries is also another
cause of increase in population.

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 Lesson # 10

The Jewel of the World

Q.1: Give an account of the early career of Abd-al-Rahman I, his dramatic escape and his
adventures in Africa.

Ans: After the defeat of the Umayyad family in 750, once when he was in Bedouin camp, the
Abbasid soldiers came to kill him and his brother. He saved himself by diving into the river and
swam away. He narrowly escaped assassination in North Africa at the hands of the governor of
the province. His maternal uncles, who were Berbers from the district of North Africa, offered
him refuge.

Q.2: How did Abd-al-Rahman deal with the governor appointed by the Abbasid caliph to
contest his rule?

Ans: Abd-al-Rahman killed the governor, preserved his head in salt and camphor, wrapped a black
flag along with the letter of appointment, and sent it to the Abbasid caliph.

Q.3: What did the Abbasid caliph say on receiving the head of his governor?

Ans: On receiving the head of his governor, he said, “Thanks be to Allah for having placed the
sea between us and such a foe”.

Q.4: What did Abd-al-Rehman do to make himself strong and to beautify his capital?

Ans: Abd-al-Rahman made himself strong by developing a highly trained and well-disciplined
army of 40,000 or more Berbers. To beautify his capital, he introduced a system of pure-water
through an aqueduct and built a wall around it. He built a palace for himself and a garden. He
founded the great mosque of Cordova.

Q.5: Give an account of the all-round progress made by the Arabs under Abd-al-Rahman
III.

Ans: During his reign, weaving, leather making, silk, glassware, brass work and the art of other
metals flourished in Spain. Cordova became one of the most cultured cities. It had seventy
libraries, numerous bookshops, mosques, and palaces.

Q.6: What did Al-Hakam do to promote learning and scholarship in his kingdom?

Ans: Al-Hakam was a scholar himself and he patronized learning. He was generous to scholars
and established twenty-seven free schools. He enlarged the mosque which housed the
university, he was a lover of books and under him the capital housed a library of first
magnitude. The books thus gathered are said to have numbered 400,000. The distinguished
Dutch scholar Dozy went so far as to declare enthusiastically that “nearly every one could read
and write.”

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 Q.7: What plants did the Arabs introduce to the West?

Ans: Arabs introduced plants and fruits e.g., rice, apricots, peaches, pomegranates, oranges,
sugar-cane, cotton, and saffron.

Q.8: Briefly describe Al-Zahra, the royal palace.

Ans: Al-Zahra stood northwest of the town of Cordova. It had four hundred rooms and
apartments that housed thousands of slaves and guards. For its construction, marble was brought
from Numidia and Carthage. Ten thousand workmen with fifteen hundred beasts of burden
worked on it for a score of years.

Q.9: How did Abd-al-Rahman keep treason and brigandage in check?

Ans: Abd-al-Rahman kept a standing army of a hundred thousand men with their help he kept
treason and brigandage in check.

Q.10: Who overthrew the Umayyad dynasty in Damascus? When?

Ans: The Abbasid family overthrew the Umayyad dynasty in Damascus in the year 750.

Q.11: How many Berbers were recruited by Abd-al-Rahman?

Ans: 40000 or more Berbers were recruited by Abd-al-Rahman

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