Class 10th English First Flight Chapter 9 Madam Rides the Bus Questions and Answers Gujarat Board

Oral Comprehension Check (Textbook Page No. 119)
Question 1. What was Valli’s favourite pastime ?
Answer:
Valli’s favourite pastime was standing in the front doorway of her house and watching what was happening in the street outside.

Question 2. What was a source of unending joy for Valli ? What was her strongest desire ?
Answer:
The sight of the bus that travelled betwee^ her village and the nearest town, filled each time with a new set of passengers, was a source of unending joy for Valli. Her strongest desire was to ride the bus.

Question 3. What did Valli find out about the bus journey ? How did she find out these details ?
Answer:
Valli found out that the bus journey to the town took forty-five minutes and the one-way fare costed thirty paise. She listened carefully to the conversations between her neighbours and people who regularly used the bus and asked a few discreet questions here and there. This way she picked up various small details about the bus journey.

Question 4. What do you think Valli was planning to do ?
Answer:
Valli was planning to go to the town and then return back by the same bus. The fare was thirty paise one-way and the ride took forty-five minutes. In this way, she planned that she would be back by 2:45 pm if she took the bus at 1:00 pm.

(Textbook Page No. 122)
Question 5. Why does the conductor call Valli ‘madam’? (August 20)
Answer:
The conductor called Valli ‘madam’ because she was trying to behave sophisticated and more mature than her age. She behaved like a woman. She was trying to look over¬confident and smart. She declined his help and was very quick in her answers to the conductor’s questions. This made the conductor want to tease her calling her madam.

Question 6. Why does Valli stand up on the seat ? What does she see now?
Answer:
Valli wanted to look outside the bus. She found her view blocked by the canvas blind that covered the lower part of the window. In order to have a better view she stood up on the seat and peered over the blind. She saw a canal, palm trees, grassland, mountains, green fields and the sky.

Question 7. What does Valli tell the elderly man when he calls her a child ?
Answer:
Valli replied that there was nobody in the bus who was a child. She told him that she had paid her fare of thirty paise like everyone else.

Question 8. Why didn’t Valli want to make friends with the elderly woman ?
Answer:
Valli did not want to make friends with the elderly woman because she looked quite repulsive. She had big earholes and was wearing ugly earrings. Apart from this, she was chewing betel and her mouth was also filled with betel juice.

(Textbook Page No. 125)
Question 9. How did Valli save up money for her first journey? Was it easy for her?
Answer:
Valli had very painstakingly saved every stray coins that came her way by resisting every temptation to buy peppermints, toys, balloons, etc. It had been very difficult for her. Even at the village fair she resisted the temptation to be on the merry-go-round. Thus, she had been able to save sixty paise for her first bus journey.

Question 10. What did Valli see on her way that made her laugh?
Answer:
Valli saw a young cow, tail high in the air running very fast right in the middle of the road in front of the bus. The driver sounded his horn again and again so that the cow moves away. But the more he honked, the more frightened the animal became and faster it galloped. This all seemed very funny to Valli and she laughed and laughed till there were tears in her eyes.

Question 11. Why didn’t she get off the bus at the bus station ?
Answer:
Valli had planned that she only wanted to ride on the bus. She would spend thirty paise on her fare, go to the town. and then come back by the same bus before her mother woke up. She didn’t have time or money to go to see the town.

Question 12. Why didn’t Valli want to go to the stall and have a drink ? What does this tell you .about her ?
Answer:
Valli had saved only sixty paise for the trip. She didn’t want to waste any money on that as she had to come back by the same bus at any cost. So, when the conductor suggested her to get down and have a drink she refused. He offered to bring one for her but she still refused. This tells us that she was a well-mannered girl.

Thinking about the Text 
Question 1. What was Valli’s deepest desire ?
Find the words and phrases in the story that tell you this.
Answer:
Valli’s deepest desire was to go on a bus ride. The words and phrases in the story that tell this are ‘source of unending joy’, ‘stare s wistfully’, and ‘kindle in her longings, dreams and hopes’.

Question 2. How did Valli plan her bus ride? What did she find out about the bus, and ’ how did she save up the fare?
Answer:
Over many days and months, Valli listened carefully to conversations between her neighbours and people who regularly used the bus and asked a few discreet questions here and there. She came to know that the town was six miles from her village, the bus fare was thirty paise and the bus trip took forty-five minutes. She also thought that if she stayed in the bus and came back by the same bus it would only cost her sixty paise. She painstakingly saved each and every penny she got, resisting all temptation to buy peppermints, toys, etc. and even a ride on the merry-go-round at the village annual fair so as to save sixty paise. It was a secret trip which she had planned without the knowledge of her parents.

Question 3. What kind of person is Valli ? To answer this question, pick out the following sentences from the text and fill in the blanks. The words you fill in are the clues to your answer:
(1) “Stop the bus! Stop the bus!” And a tiny hand was raised ……………… .
(2) “Yes, I ………………………… go to town,” said Valli, still standing outside the bus.
(3) “There’s nobody here ……………….,” she said haughtily. “I’ve paid my thirty paise like everyone else.”
(4) “Never mind,” she said, “I can ………………………………….You don’t have to help me.” “I’m not a child, I tell you,” she said
(5) “You needn’t bother about me. I …………………………,” Valli said, turning her face toward the window and staring out.
(6) Then she turned to the conductor and said, “Well, sir, I hope …………………,”
Answer:
(1) “Stop the bus ! Stop the bus !” And a tiny hand was raised commandingly.
(2) “Yes, I simply have to go to town,” said Valli, still standing outside the bus.
(3) “There’s nobody here who’s a child,” she said haughtily. “I’ve paid my thirty paise like everyone else.”
(4) “Never mind,” she said, “I can get on by myself. You don’t have to help me.” “I’m not child, I tell you,” she said, irritably.
(5) “You needn’t bother about me. I can take care of myself,” Valli said, turning her face toward the window and staring out.
(6) Then she turned to the conductor and said, “Well, sir, I hope to see you again.”

Valli appears to be a confident child. She does not like people making a fun of her or feeling pity for her because she is a child. She is very careful not to talk to strangers during her journey. She must have enjoyed her bus ride and may be planning ‘ for her next sojourn when her budget and time permit.

Question 4. Why does the conductor refer to Valli as ‘Madam’ ?
Answer:
The conductor referred to Valli ‘Madam’ as she behaved like a grown up and did not think that she was a child. She also refused his help and told him that she can manage on her own.

Question 5. Find the lines in the text which tell you that Valli was enjoying her ride on the bus.
Answer:
The following lines in the text show that Valli was enjoying her ride on the bus:

1. “Valli devoured everything with her eyes.”
2. “On the one side there was the canal and, beyond it, palm trees, grassland, distant mountains, and the blue, blue sky. On the other side was a deep ditch and then acres and acres of green fields – green, green, green, as far as the eye could see. Oh, it was all so wonderful!”
3. “Everyone laughed, and gradually Valli too joined in the laughter. Suddenly, Valli clapped her hands with glee.”
4. “Somehow this was very funny to Valli. She laughed and laughed until there were tears in her eyes.”
5. “Valli wasn’t bored to the slightest and greeted everything, with the same excitement she’d felt the first time.”

Question 6. Why does Valli refuse to look out of the window on her way back ?
Answer:
Valli refused to look out of the window on her way back because she saw a young cow lying dead by the roadside, just where it had been struck by some fast-moving vehicle. It was the same cow that was running in front of their bus, during their trip to the town. She was overcome with sadness. The memory of the dead cow haunted her and therefore, she refused to look out of the window.

Question 7. What does Valli mean when she says “I was just agreeing with what you said about things happening without our knowledge”.
Answer:
Valli’s mother said that many things happen around us, but we are usually unaware of them. Valli had gone on a bus ride to town, all alone, and had come back without any harm. She did all this without the knowledge of her mother. Hence, she agreed with what her mother said.

Question 8. The author describes the things that Valli sees from an eight-years-old’s point of ; view. Can you find evidence from the text ! for his statement ?
Answer:
The author has described the things ! that Valli saw from an eight-year-old’s point of view. She was fascinated by a bus. Watching the bus filled with a new set of people each time was a source of unending joy for her. Her strongest desire was to ride the bus. She saved money by cutting on peppermints, toys and balloons, and even resisting the temptation to ride the merry-go-round at the fair. When the author describes the bus, the points he  stresses on are the colour and look of the bus.

It was a ‘new bus’, painted a ‘gleaming white’, The overhead bars ‘shone like silver’. The seats were ‘soft and luxurious’.

The descriptions that the author gives when Valli looked outside are also typical for an eight-year-old. The ‘blue, blue sky’ and the ‘acres and acres of green fields – green, green, s green’ show the enthusiasm of a kid on looking at different colours. Valli clapped her hands in glee on watching a cow run right in front of the bus. She found it so funny that tears came into her eyes. On the other hand, she was overcome with sadness on her way back when she saw the same cow lying dead. It had S been a ‘lovable, beautiful creature’ and later it ? ‘looked so horrible’. The memory of the dead cow haunted her so much that she refused to look outside the window. These are the typical reactions of a young child.







Class 10th English First Flight Poem Chapter 10 The Tale of Custard the Dragon Questions and Answers Gujarat Board

Thinking about the Poem
Question 1. Who are the characters in this poem ? List them with their pet names.
Answer:
The characters in this poem are Belinda, a little black kitten, a little grey mouse, a little yellow dog, a little pet dragon and a pirate. The kitten being black is known as s Ink, the mouse being tiny as Blink, the dog being yellow as Mustard, and the dragon being cowardly, as Custard. Custard was a full-grown dragon and could easily defend himself.

Question 2. Why did Custard cry for a nice, safe cage ? Why is the dragon called a ‘cowardly dragon’? (August 20)
Answer:
Custard cried for a nice, safe cage because it was a coward. It is called a ‘cowardly dragon’ because everybody else in the house was brave. Belinda was as brave as a barrel of bears. Ink and Blink sire described as so s brave that they could chase lions down the ? stairs and Mustard was as brave as a tiger in rage. Compared to them, Custard cried asking for a nice and safe cage, which is why it is called a coward.

Question 3. ‘Belinda tickled him, she tickled him unmerciful………..’ Why?
Answer:
Belinda tickled the dragon unmercifully because it was very scared and cried for a safe cage. They all laughed at it as it was a coward.

Question 4. The poet has employed many poetic devices in the poem. For example, “Clashed his tail like irons in a dungeon”- the poetic device here is a simile. Can you, with your partner, list some more such poetic devices used in the poem ?
Answer:
In the entire poem, the poet has made extensive use of similes. Apart from simile, another poetic device that has been used is repetition. For example, the repetitive use of the word ‘little’ in the first stanza to emphasise how everything from the house to Belinda to her pets were all little. Also, in the seventh stanza, the poet has made use of incorrect s spelling as a poetic device to maintain the rhyme scheme of the poem.

He has chosen to write ‘winda’ instead of ‘window’ as ‘winda’ s rhymes with ‘Belinda’, whereas ‘window’ does not. He has also used alliteration in the poem. For example, in the tenth stanza, ‘Custard’ has ‘clashed’ his tail with a ‘clatter’ and a ‘clank’. Similarly, in stanza eleven, the pirate ‘gaped’ at the dragon and ‘gulped’ some ‘grog’.

Question 5. Read stanza three again to know ? how the poet describes the appearance of Custard the dragon.
Answer:
Custard was a full-grown dragon and s could easily defend himself against any danger. He could do so as he had sharp teeth, spikes on his back, scales Beneath his belly and daggerlike toes. He could also breathe fire.

Question 6. Can you find out the rhyme scheme of two or three stanzas of the poem ?
Answer:
The rhyme scheme of each stanza of S this poem is aabb.

Question 7. Writers use words to give us a picture or image without actually saying what they mean. Can you trace some images used in the poem?
Answer:
Some such images used in the poem are ‘mouth like a fireplace’, ‘chimney for a nose’, ‘brave as a barrel full of bears’, ‘brave as a tiger in a rage’, ‘went at the pirate like a robin at a worm’, etc.

Question 8. Do you find The Tale of Custard the Dragon’ to be a serious or a light-hearted poem ? Give reasons to support your answer,
OR
Comment on humour in the poem, ‘The lTale of Custard the Dragon’. (August 20)
Answer:
The Tale of Custard the Dragon is a light-hearted poem. It is almost a parody. The names of the pets of Belinda are all rhyming and funny. Belinda has been compared to a barrel full of bears. The kitten and mouse, both s little, could chase lions down the stairs. The little yellow dog was as brave as a tiger, while the dragon was a coward and they all teased him. However, when the pirate came to their little house, all of them were engulfed in fear and had hid themselves. Ironically, the ‘cowardly’ dragon came to their rescue and jumped snorting like an engine.

It clashed its tail and charged at the pirate like a robin at a worm and ate him up. Even as everybody became happy to see the bravery of the dragon, they again came back to glorifying themselves that they could have been twice or thrice braver than the dragon. Finally, at the end of the poem, the situation again came back to the other pets being brave and the dragon being the coward.

Question 9. This poem, in ballad form, tells a story. Have you come across any such modern song or lyric that tells a story ? If you know one, tell it to the class. Collect such songs as a project.
Answer:
This is another humorous, light-hearted poem by Ogden Nash that tells a story.

Adventures of Isabel

Isabel met an enormous bear, Isabel, Isabel, didn’t care; The bear was hungry, the bear was ravenous, The bear’s big mouth was cruel and cavernous. The bear said, Isabel, glad to meet you, How do, Isabel, now I’ll eat you! Isabel, Isabel, didn’t worry. Isabel didn’t scream or scurry. She washed her hands and she straightened her hair up, Then Isabel quietly ate the bear up. Once in a night as black as pitch Isabel met a wicked old witch.

The witch’s face was cross and wrinkled, The witch’s gums with teeth were sprinkled. Ho, ho, Isabel! The old witch crowed, I’ll turn you into an ugly toad! Isabel, Isabel, didn’t worry, Isabel didn’t scream or scurry, She showed no rage and she showed no rancour, But she turned the witch into milk and drank her. Isabel met a hideous giant, Isabel continued self-reliant. The giant was hairy, the giant was horrid, He had one eye in the middle of his forehead. Good morning, Isabel, the giant said, I’ll grind your bones to make my bread.

Isabel, Isabel, didn’t worry, Isabel didn’t scream or scurry. She nibbled the zwieback that she always fed off, and when it was gone, she cut the giant’s head off. Isabel met a troublesome doctor, he punched and he poked till he really shocked her. The doctor’s talk was of coughs and chills And the doctor’s satchel bulged with pills. The doctor said unto Isabel, Swallow this, it will make you well. Isabel, Isabel, didn’t worry, Isabel didn’t scream or scurry. She took those pills from the pill concocter, and Isabel calmly cured the doctor.
Here is another ballad with a sombre undertone. It is writer by Sir William Watson.

The Ballad of Semmerwater

Deep asleep, deep asleep,
Deep asleep it lies,
The still lake of Semmerwater
Under the still skies.

And many a fathom, many a fathom,
Many a fathom below,
Ih a king’s tower and a queen’s bower
The fishes come and go.

Once there stood by Semmerwater
A mickle town and tall;
King’s tower and queen’s bower
And the wakeman on the wall.

Came a beggar halt and sore :
“I faint for lack of bread!”
King’s tower and queen’s bower
Cast him forth unfed.

He knock’d at the door of the eUer’s cot,
The eller’s cot in the dale.
They gave him of their oatcake,
They gave him of their ale.

He has cursed aloud that city proud,
He has cursed it in its pride;
He has cursed it into Semmerwater
Down the brant hillside;
He has cursed it into Semmerwater
There to bide.

King’s tower and queen’s bower,
And a mickle town and tall;
By glimmer of scale and gleam of fin,
Folk have seen them all.

King’s tower and queen’s bower,
And weed and reed in the gloom;
And a lost city in Semmerweater,
Deep asleep till Doom.