Practice Sheet English

 Answer key of Practice Sheet - Iswaran The Storyteller.

Q1	Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow.
(a)	It has something to do with a Japanese art, I think, sir. Karate or ju-jitsu it is called. I had read about it somewhere. It temporarily paralyses the nervous system, you see.”
i.	Who speaks these lines and to whom? lswaran, the cook, talks to his master, Mahendra, in these lines.
ii.	What is the topic of discussion? The topic of discussion is the explanation offered by Iswaran about how he tackled the mad elephant.
iii.	What explanation does Iswaran offer about the efficacy of the Japanese art? Iswaran explains that the Japanese art was efficient as it temporarily paralyzed the nervous system and helped to overpower the opponent.
iv.	Where did Iswaran learn that art? Iswaran learnt that art by reading about it somewhere.
(b)	“Can I make something special for dinner tonight, sir? After all today is an auspicious day.”
i.	Who is ‘I’ and who is he addressing?  ‘I’ here is Iswaran, the storyteller, and he is addressing his master, Mahendra, the junior supervisor.
ii.	What permission is the speaker seeking here? Iswaran is seeking permission to prepare something special for dinner that night.
iii.	Why was the day auspicious? The day was auspicious as it was devoted to the memory of ancestors.
iv.	What tradition was followed on this day? The tradition of preparing various delicacies to feed the spirits of ancestors was followed on this day.

Q 2	Answer the following questions in 30-40 words each.
i.	What did Iswaran tell Mahendra about the factory area where they lived? Iswaran told Mahendra that the entire factory area where they lived was once a burial ground. He added that he had seen a number of bones and human skulls lying on the path. He claimed to have seen a female ghost as well.
ii.	Describe Iswaran’s amazing capacity to cook.  Mahendra had a cook named Iswaran. He was quite attached to Mahendra and went wherever Mahendra was transferred. Iswaran was a good cook. He had an amazing capacity to produce vegetables from nowhere and cook them. Even at a place where there were no shops visible for miles, he was able to conjure up delicious dishes made with fresh vegetables within an hour of reaching that place.
iii.	What did Iswaran do after Mahendra had left for office? When Mahendra left for office, Iswaran would do his work and take a leisurely bath. While taking bath, he kept muttering a prayer. After lunchtime, he would read for a while before going to sleep. He read popular Tamil thrillers. The stories that he narrated were greatly influenced by these novels.
iv.	Do you think the ghost seen by Mahendra was only a trick played by his cook, Iswaran? Give reasons. First, Iswaran created the background by telling Mahendra that the place used to be a burial ground. Then he told the story of a ghost. One night, Mahendra saw a figure outside his window. The figure looked like the ghost described by Iswaran. The next morning, lswaran told Mahendra that he had seen Mahendra looking out of the window at the ghost. This shows that it was only a trick played by Iswaran.
Q3	Answer the following questions in 100-150 words each
	Iswaran was a master storyteller. Describe his amazing capacity of narrating stories and anecdotes.
(a)	lswaran was a master storyteller. He was fond of reading popular Tamil thrillers. The stories that he narrated were greatly influenced by these novels. He narrated even the smallest of incidents by creating a lot of suspense. For example, if he had to describe a fallen tree, he would not simply say that he saw an up-rooted tree on the highway. He would say, “The road was deserted and I was all alone. Suddenly I spotted something that looked like an enormous beast. But as I came closer I saw that it was only a fallen tree.” In order to make stories interesting, lswaran added dramatic gestures to it. He would give the stories a surprise ending. Sometimes he would not end the story in order to heighten his master’s curiosity. Often he would jump and stamp his feet in excitement while telling a story.
(b)	Describe Mahendra’s experience with the ‘ghost’ one night. What did he resolve to do?
	lswaran told Mahendra that the entire factory area where he worked was once a burial ground. lswaran told Mahendra that he often saw ghosts at night. Sometimes, there appeared a horrible ghost of a woman. She held a foetus in her arms. Hearing this tale, Mahendra shivered. But he told lswaran that there were no ghosts in reality. From that time, Mahendra felt somewhat uneasy at night. One night, Mahendra was awakened from sleep by a moan. The moan became louder. He looked out of the window. He saw a dark cloudy form of a woman, not very far away from window. She was carrying a bundle in her arms. Mahendra began to sweat with fear. The next morning, Iswaran told Mahendra that he had also heard the moan at night. He had come to his room. He had seen that Mahendra was looking out of the window at the ghost of the woman. Mahendra was cold with fear. As soon as he reached office, he handed in his papers for transfer from that place.