The Rattrap Summary –

The Rattrap is a story about a rattrap seller who leads a very poor life as his
earnings are very low. He has to resort to thievery and begging to make both
ends meet. He is alone in this whole world and leads a miserable life. So he
starts knitting up various kinds of thoughts. One of these thoughts is of
supposing the whole world as a big rattrap. His views are that the world
offers us various types of baits in the form of comforts of life. This in return
traps us into the rattrap of the world and leads us to various types of
miseries.
Every night, the peddler had to search for shelter as he has no home. One
evening he was offered shelter by an old crofter. The next morning he stole
the crofter’s money which he had earned by selling his cow’s milk. To
safeguard himself, the peddler chose the path through the forest which was
secluded, but soon found himself trapped in the forest as he wasn’t able to
find the way out of the dense forest. Later on, he finds a way to a forge and
takes shelter there. Something unusual happens. The ironmaster mistakes
him as an old friend and invites him to his house. The poor peddler rejects
the offer due to the fear of being caught. Soon he is invited by the
ironmaster‘s daughter. The next morning he is somehow stopped by the
ironmaster’s daughter for Christmas Eve even after being caught that he was
a peddler and not Captain Stalhe.
The next day after Christmas, when the ironmaster and his daughter visit the
church, they come to know that the man is a thief who had stolen money
from the old crofter. The iron master and his daughter repent for sheltering a
thief and wonder at what all things he would have stolen by that time. Here
comes a twist as instead of stealing, the peddler gifts the ironmaster’s
daughter a rattrap. She finds a letter of thanks and the stolen money inside
the rattrap. The peddler thanks Edla for her kindness and requests her to
return the stolen money to the crofter. This story gives us the message that
goodness in a human being can be awakened at any time with your own
good deeds.

Indigo Summary class 12

– Louis Fischer met Gandhi in 1942 at his ashram in Sevagram. Gandhi told
him how he initiated the departure of the British from India. He recalled that
it in 1917 at the request of Rajkumar Shukla, a sharecropper from
Champaran, he visited the place. Gandhi had gone to Lucknow to attend the
annual meeting of the Indian National Congress in the year 1916. Shukla told
him that he had come from Champaran to seek his help in order to safeguard
the interests of the sharecroppers. Gandhi told him that he was busy so
Shukla accompanied him to various places till he consented to visit
Champaran. His firm decision impressed Gandhiji and he promised him that
he would visit Calcutta at a particular date and then Shukla could come and
take him along to Champaran. Shukla met him at Calcutta and they took a
train to Patna. Gandhi went to lawyer Rajendra Prasad’s house and they
waited for him. In order to grab complete knowledge of the situation, he
reached Muzzafarpur on 15th April 1917. He was welcomed by Prof. J.B
Kriplani and his students. Gandhi was surprised to see the immense support
for an advocate of home rule like him. He also met some lawyers who were
already handling cases of sharecroppers. As per the contract, 15 percent of
the peasant’s landholding was to be reserved for the cultivation of indigo,
the crop of which was given to the landlord as rent. This system was very
oppressive. Gandhi wanted to help the sharecroppers. So he visited the
British landlord association but he was not given any information because he
was an outsider. He then went to the commissioner of the Tirhut division
who threatened Gandhi and ask him to leave Tirhut. Instead of returning, he
went to Motihari. Here he started gathering complete information about the
indigo contract. He was accompanied by many lawyers. One day as he was on
his way to meet a peasant, who was maltreated by the indigo planters, he
was stopped by the police superintendent’s messenger who served him a
notice asking him to leave. Gandhi received the notice but disobeyed the
order. A case was filed against him. Many lawyers came to advise him but
when he stressed, they all joined his struggle and even consented to go to jail
in order to help the poor peasants. On the day of trial, a large crowd
gathered near the court. It became impossible to handle them. Gandhi
helped the officers to control the crowd. Gandhi gave his statement that he
was not a lawbreaker but he disobeyed so that he could help the peasants.
He was granted bail and later on, the case against him was dropped. Gandhi
and his associates started gathering all sorts of information related to the
indigo contract and its misuse. Later, a commission was set up to look into
the matter. After the inquiry was conducted, the planters were found guilty
and were asked to pay back to the peasants. Expecting refusal, they offered
to pay only 25 percent of the amount. Gandhi accepted this too because he
wanted to free the sharecroppers from the binding of the indigo contract. He
opened six schools in Champaran villages and volunteers like Mahadev Desai,
Narhari Parikh, and his son, Devdas taught them. Kasturbai, the wife of
Gandhi used to teach personal hygiene. Later on, with the help of a volunteer
doctor, he provided medical facilities to the natives of Champaran, thus
making their life a bit better. A peacemaker, Andrews wanted to volunteer at
Champaran ashram. But Gandhi refused as he wanted Indians to learn the
lesson of self-reliance so that they would not depend on others. Gandhi told
the writer that it was Champaran’s incident that made him think that he did
not need the Britisher’s advice while he was in his own country.

Poets and Pancakes Summary

In this lesson, Asokamitran talks about Gemini Studios and all that helps in
keeping it in the spotlight. He starts by making a mention about ‘Pancakes’,
the famous make-up brand which Gemini Studios ordered in truckloads. He
then talks about the plight of actors and actresses who have to bear too
many lights on their face while getting ready in the make-up room. The
make-up department, according to him, used heaps of make-up to turn them
into ugly-looking creatures. Shockingly, he talks about the office boy of the
make-up department whose task is to slap paint onto the faces of players at
the time of crowd-shooting. He was a poet and had joined the Studio in the
hope of becoming an actor, screenwriter, director or a lyricst. In those days,
the author used to work inside a cubicle and had the task of collecting
newspaper cuttings which, according to others was insignificant. Thus, office
boy would come in time again, to bother him with his complaints. He was
well-convinced that the reason behind his misery was Subbu. He thought
Subbu had an advantage because he was born a Brahmin. Subbu was a
resourceful man whose loyalty made him stand out. He was tailor-made for
films and it was difficult to imagine film-making without him. He was very
welcoming and was known for his hospitality. Just like many others at the
Gemini Studios, he also did poetry. He worked for the story department
which also consisted of a lawyer. People generally called him the opposite of
a legal practitioner. He was a logical and neutral man amidst a room full of
dreamers. Asokamitran then describes how Gemini Studios got a chance to
host a group of international performers called Moral Rearmament Army.
Though the plots and messages were not complex, their sets and costumes
were near to perfection so much so that for many years, Tamil plays
displayed sunset and sunrise in a way inherited from ‘Jotham Valley’. Then
another guest, Stephen Spender comes to visit Gemini Studios. People had
hardly heard of him and they couldn’t even connect with him due to
linguistic barriers. It was not until a few years later that Asokamitran saw his
name in a book and realised who he actually was.

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The Interview Summary

The lesson begins with the introduction to interview as a commonplace of

journalism since its invention, which was a little over 130 years ago.
According to the author, it is not very surprising that people have very
distinct opinions about the usage of interview. Some think of it in its highest
form whereas some people can’t stand being interviewed. An interview
leaves a lasting impression and according to an old saying, when perceptions
are made about a certain person, the original identity of his soul gets stolen.
Famous celebrities, writers and artists have been heard criticising interviews.
Rudyard Kipling’s wife wrote in her diary how their day in Boston was ruined
by two reporters. Kipling considers interviewing an assault, a crime that
should attract punishment. He believes that a respectable man would never
ask or give an interview.
There is an excerpt from the interview between Mukund (from The Hindu
newspaper) and Umberto Eco, a professor at the University of Bologna in
Italy who had already acquired a formidable reputation as a scholar for his
ideas on semiotics (the study of signs), literary interpretation, and medieval
aesthetics before he turned to writing fiction. The interview revolves around
the success of his novel, The Name of the Rose whose more than ten million
copies were sold in the market. The interviewer begins by asking him how
Umberto manages to do so many different things to which he replies by
saying that he is doing the same thing. He further justifies and mentions that
his books about children talk about peace and non-violence which in the end,
reflect his interest in philosophy. Umberto identifies himself as an academic
scholar who attends academic conferences during the week and writes
novels on Sundays. It doesn’t bother him that he is identified by others as a
novelist and not a scholar, because he knows that it is difficult to reach
millions of people with scholarly work. He believes there are empty spaces in
one’s life, just like there are empty spaces in atoms and the Universe. He calls
them interstices and most of his productive work is done during that time.
Talking about his novel, he mentions that it is not an easy-read. It has a
detective aspect to it along with metaphysics, theology and medieval history.
Also, he believes that had the novel been written ten years earlier or later, it
would have not seen such a huge success. Thus, the reason for its success still
remains a mystery.

Going Places Summary

Sophie and Jansie are two teenagers who are coming back from school. They
both work in a biscuit factory. Sophie is lost in her imagination of owning a
boutique shop and becoming famous like Mary Quaint, a fashion designer.
Jansie tells her not to dream big as it requires lots of money which they don’t
have. To this she replies that she will become an actress, earn a lot and then
own a boutique. Jansie being a realistic person does not support her
thoughts. On reaching home Sophie feels choked in that small house which is
full of the stove’s steam and looks untidy because of the dirty dishes. Her
father is eating and her mother is busy in the kitchen. She goes to meet her
elder brother Geoff, who is a trainee mechanic and is busy repairing some
motorcycle part. Geoff talks very less about his personal life which made her
imagine of his personal life which she considers very interesting and wants to
be part of it. She shares a secret with him that she met Danny Casey the
famous footballer in a boutique. Her brother and her father do not believe
her. But she tries to make them believe this. She also tells her brother about
her date with Casey. Her brother does not believe her but gives her a chance
to believe her story. On Saturday Sophie and her family go to watch a
football match as all of them are great fans of football. Their favorite team
wins due to a goal made by Casey. All of them feel so overjoyed. When
Sophie returns home with her little brother Derek, Jansie questions her about
the reality behind her meeting with Danny Casey. Sophie gets angry with her
brother because of letting her secret out but tries to handle the situation and
succeeds. She then visits a secret place near a canal to meet her hero Casey
who doesn’t show up. She knows that it was just her imagination but she was
so lost in his love that she doesn’t want to come out of this. In the end she
returns back to her home with sadness in her heart. But when she comes
across the Royce’s boutique, she again finds herself lost in her hero’s dreams.

The Enemy Summary

The Enemy is a story set in Japan during the second world war. In this story,
an injured American army man washes up on the beach near the home of a
Japanese surgeon, Dr. Sadao Hoki. Although he has lived in America and
follows a modern profession, Dr Sadao’s family lives a traditional Japanese
life.
Dr Sadao is in a dilemma to leave the American man to die, to throw him
back into the sea, to hand him over to the army or to save his life. He
reluctantly takes him home and decides to save his life. The presence of an
enemy disrupts his family life. His wife is against his idea of operating upon
and taking care of the soldier. The servants of the house oppose the idea and
leave their master. Yet, Dr Sadao shelters him, operates upon him, and saves
his life.
Out of the fear of being accused of sheltering an enemy, he narrates the
incident to a general in the Japanese military. The general helps Dr Sadao and
offers to get the man killed by hired killers. However, the killing doesn’t take
place, and after waiting for three nights, Dr. Sadao thinks of getting rid of the
American himself. He arranges a boat for the man to help him reach the
nearby island. He provides him necessities like food and clothing to survive
till he finds a Korean fishing boat which could rescue him. Dr. Sadao wonders
that why did he save the life of an enemy.

On the face of it Summary

On the Face of it Summary – The story begins with a teenage boy entering a
garden. His face is burnt on one side due to an accident when acid fell on half
of his face. He has gone there to hide as he is afraid of facing people. He fears
being teased by others for having such a face. But when he enters, he finds
someone already presents there. He tries to leave the place but he is stopped
by the old man, Mr. Lamb, the owner of the garden. Derry feels guilty for
entering the garden without permission. Mr. Lamb welcomes him and tells
him not to leave just because of his presence. Derry wants to leave as he
thinks people don’t like his face and moreover, they get afraid of his looks.
But Mr. Lamb insists he stay there. They enter into a conversation that how
Derry is not liked by anyone and how he hates people behaving like this with
him. Mr. Lamb tries to console him. He tells him that he has a tin leg and kids
make fun of him. Still, he is not depressed and enjoys his life. They both talk
about various things and this leads to the revelation of Derry’s fear,
depression, and hatred about his being in such a condition. But Mr. Lamb
keeps on telling him to think of the positive things. Soon they become friends
and Mr. Lamb asks him to help him in plucking the crab apples of his garden.
Derry tells him that he had come too far from his home and hadn’t told
anything about this to his mother. Mr. Lamb tells him to take permission
from his mother. Derry finds it difficult and this leads to a small quarrel
between both of them. At last, Derry tells him that he would come back after
taking his mother’s permission. His mother does not want him to go back but
he comes back again to fulfill his promise. Meanwhile, Mr. Lamb climbs the
ladder on his own to pluck the crab apples as he was sure that Derry would
not return. He was disabled and it was difficult for him to climb. Mr. Lamb
falls from his ladder and dies. Derry, on the other hand, returns to the garden
to help him. When he enters the garden, he sees Mr. Lamb lying on the
ground. Derry tries hard to make him move but did not get any response
from him. Finally, he comes to know that he is dead and starts crying.

Memories of childhood Summary

Part 1 The Cutting of My Long Hair
– The story begins with Zitkala’s first day in a boarding school Carlisle Indian
school. It is a school opened for native Indians where they are trained to
leave behind their own culture and become part of the American culture.
Zitkala describes that she really felt bad when a shawl is taken off her
shoulders by the school authorities before entering into the dining hall. She
also wonders about how the other Indian girls agreed to wear tight clothes
which were immodest according to her as their whole body shape could
easily be seen. Even their hair was cut short which according to the author
was not good. Her mother had told her only a coward’s or a mourner’s hair
should be shaved off. Later on Zitkala and other girls were taken to the dining
hall where she was keenly noticed by a pale faced woman for not following
the table manners. Judewin, another Indian girl tells her that the pale faced
woman has decided to cut her hair. Zitkala revolts back as she does not want
to look like a coward or a mourner. She hides herself under a bed in some
room upstairs. Everyone starts searching for her and finally she is caught. She
is tied up and her hair is cut down. She felt so depressed and humiliated with
this. She is reminded of her mother who would have comforted her during
this hard time. At the end she submits her to her herders like a tamed
animal.

Summary of We too are human beings

Memories of Childhood Part 2
The story is written by Bama who is one of the characters in this story. She is
a little cheerful girl who loves to observe things taking place in her street. She
says though it takes only ten minutes to reach home from her school but she
takes about thirty minutes to reach her home from the school. She then
explains the reason behind it. She says when she is on her way to home she
sees a monkey performing and a snake charmer doing some act with his
snake which was very interesting for her. Then there was a cyclist also who
was cycling from past three days. There was one famous temple which had a
big bell and a tribal man who sells clay beads, needles etc. She also comes
across various snack stalls and street acts. Then she explains about how
various political parties come to her street to give lectures. As she proceeds
further, she saw a landlord sitting and watching his workers work in the field.
She then saw an old man of her community handling a snack pack in a very
strange manner and then offering it to the landlord. She founds it so amusing
that she bursts out into a laugh. On reaching home she narrates it to her
elder brother and starts laughing. He then tells her a real truth about her
being from a low caste and that the upper caste people do not like their
presence or touch the low caste as it would make them impure. She finds it
so disgusting that she grows angry over the upper caste people. Some days
later her elder brother is questioned about his whereabouts to know his
caste. He then suggests her to study hard as only this could earn her respect.
She works as per his suggestions and become topper of her class. This not
only earns her respect but many friends too.

A Thing of Beauty Summary –

‘A Thing of Beauty– is a poem taken from the poem titled – “Endymion – a
poetic romance’ written by the famous poet John Keats. The poet says that
a beautiful thing is a source of endless joy. It has eternal beauty which never
fades away. A beautiful thing is like a shady shelter that gives us a sleep Full
of sweet dreams, good health, and relaxation.
Our attachments to the Earthly things are like a flowery wreath. They are
traps that bind us to materialistic things and keep us away from eternal
happiness. The Earth is full of hatred, greed, and negativity. According to the
poet, the gloom and sadness caused by this negativity fade away with the
positive vibes of the beautiful things that surround us.
The poet lists out some of the beautiful things that surround us. As the saying
goes -“Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. He says that the numerous
creations of God like the Sun which gives us energy, the moon’s beauty, the
trees which give us shade are the natural beauties around us. The various
animals like the sheep that surround us make our world lively. The pretty
flowers like daffodils make the world green and lively. The flowing streams of
water cool and refresh us in the hot summer season. The forests which are
full of the pretty musk rose flowers are a beautiful sight to the eye. All these
are the things of beauty. Also, the stories of the brave soldiers who laid their
lives to protect their people are beautiful and inspiring. These beautiful
things are like a fountain of immortality bestowed upon us by God. They
inspire us to live on and maintain our faith in goodness.
Journey to the end of the Earth Summary
For a south Indian man travelling to Antarctica from Madras, it takes nine
time zones, six checkpoints, three water bodies and just as many ecospheres
to reach there. Tishani Doshi travelled to the Southern end of the Earth along
with an expedition group named ‘Students on Ice’ that provides an
opportunity to the young minds to sensitise towards the realistic version of
climatic changes happening in the world. According to the founder of the
organisation, we are the young versions of future policymakers who can turn
the situation around. Antarctica is one of the coldest, driest and windiest
continents in the world.
As far as the eyes can see, it is completely white and its uninterrupted blue
horizon gives immense relief. It is shocking to believe that India and
Antarctica were part of the same supercontinent Gondwana, that got
segregated into countries giving rise to the globe we know today. Antarctica
had a warmer climate until then. Despite human civilisation around the
globe, it still remains in it pure form. Being a south Indian sun-worshipping
guy, it was unimaginable for the author to visit the place that constitutes
world’s 90 per cent of ice, a place so quiet that it is only interrupted by snow
avalanches. It is home to a lot of evidences that can give us a glimpse of the
past and at the same time, Antarctica helps us foresee the future. The place
gives an awakening to threatening alarm that global warming is actually real.
Who knows if Antarctica will be warm again and even if it does, will we be
alive to see it?