A LONG WALK TO FREEDOM

Short Answer Type Questions

1.What promise does Mandela make in the beginning of opening of his
oath-taking speech?
Answer: Mandela thanks all the international leaders and guests as he calls
it an occasion of joy and victory for Justice. He promises that the country
shall not again experience the oppression of one by another.
2.What freedom meant to Mandela in childhood? [CBSE 2015]
Answer: During childhood the meaning of freedom for Mandela was quite
limited he considered it to be free to run in the fields, to swim in the clear
stream, free to roast mealies and ride the broad backs of slow-moving bulls.
3. Why did inauguration ceremony take place in the amphitheatre formed
by the Union Building in Pretoria?
Answer: It was the first democratic, non-racial government taking oath in
South Africa. The ceremony was attended by dignitaries from more than
140 countries around the world and thousands of the people of South Africa
of all the races to make the day memorable. So, it took place in, the
amphitheatre formed by the Union Building in Pretoria.
4.What are the ideals which Mandela set for the future of South Africa in
his swearing- in ceremony?
Answer: Mandela emphasised to liberate all the people from poverty,
deprivation,suffering, gender and other discriminations in his swearing-in
ceremony.
5.What did Mandela think for oppressor and oppressed? [CBSE 2011]
Answer: Mandela always thought that both oppressor and oppressed are
deprived of their humanity. Oppressor is a prisoner of hatred while
oppressed has no confidence in humanity so both of them need to be
liberated.
6.What do you understand by Apartheid’?
‘Apartheid’ is a political system that divides people according to their
race. In this system black-coloured people in South Africa were not free
even to discharge their personal and social obligations of being parents,
sons and husbands, etc.
7.Describe the effect of the policy of apartheid on the people of South
Africa.
The policy of apartheid could not be considered fortunate for the people
of South Africa. It created distance and a deep wound in the country and
the people. Many great men like Oliver Tambo, Walttr Sisulu, Yusuf
Dadoo, Bram Fischer, etc were produced due to the brutality and
oppression. They were men of great character.
8.How is courage related to the brave man according to the author of the
lesson?
The author believes that courage is not the absence of fear, but it is the
triumph over it. The brave man is not the one who does not feel fear of
any kind but he is the one who has the courage to conquer it.
9.Could everyone fulfil the obligations personal or social in South Africa?
No, everyone was not free to fulfil their obligations because of colour of
the skin. If a persoti tried to fulfil their obligations, they were punished
and isolated for being a rebellion.
10. What did Mandela realise about his brothers and sisters? [CBSE 2012]
Mandela realised that his brothers and sisters were not free in their own
country due to their colour. The freedom of everyone in his society was
curtailed. He joined the African National Congress and fought for the
freedom.
11.Why was Nelson Mandela changed into a bold man?
Nelson Mandela was changed into a bold man due to his . desire of the
freedom for his country and his countrymen. He wanted to live a life with
dignity as he could not enjoy the limited freedom.
Long Answer (Value Based) Type Questions
1.What does Nelson Mandela refer to as “an extraordinary human
disaster”?
Answer:
Nelson Mandela refers to the apartheid policy of the white race against
the black people as “an extraordinary human disaster”. White people
snatched freedom from the coloured people of South Africa to whom the
country belonged. The black people were subjected to oppression for
long. They were not even allowed to discharge their obligations to their
own families, community and their country. White people had no
compassion for them and oppressed their own people and put them in
prison. If they had some freedom, it was curtailed. The black people lived
the life of a slave.
2.Describe the views of Mandela for the black people who fought and
sacrificed their likes for the country’s political independence?
Answer:
Mandela always said that the political freedom was the result of sacrifices
of thousands of the black people who fought for that. He said that it could
not be repaid. He thought himself as the sum of all of those African
patriots. He regretted that he could not thank them. He cursed the policy
of apartheid that wounded the people of his country, which would take
centuries to heal. He also said that the oppression and brutality of the white
people produced great freedom fighters like Oliver Tambo, Walter Sisulu,
Luthuli, Dadoo, Fischer, Sobukwe and many more. They were the men of
courage, wisdom and large heartedness. They really suffered a lot for the
political freedom of the country.
3. What does Mandela mean to say that the oppressor and the oppressed
alike are robbed of their humanity?
Mandela is right in saying that the oppressor and the oppressed alike are
robbed of their humanity. Both of them are actually the victim of hatred.
Everyone is obliged to discharge their duties whether personal or social
but without freedom a man cannot do so. The person who snatches this
freedom of a man is really an oppressor and a prisoner of hatred. He has
lack of humanity. But this is the same with a person who is oppressed by
other.
4.Describe the obligations which the author is talking about and also
describe his feelings for them?
In the chapter the author has talked about two obligation for every man.
The first obligation is towards his family, parents, his wife and children.
The second is towards his community and his country. Being a social
person one has to fulfil these obligations.
But being a black coloured person in South Africa, a man was not free to
perform his obligations and got punished if he tried to do that.
Being a child the author never thought of such obligations but after he did
so, he fought for the people and the country to be free and enjoy their
freedom of performing their duties personal and social.
5.Describe the value of freedom for the human beings and how it is
important for the growth of civilisation and humanism as described in the
lesson ‘Nelson Mandela : Long Walk to Freedom’. [CBSE2014]
Everybody whether human or other creatures wants to live free as
freedom is natural to all living beings. The value of freedom is better
known to that human being who has not tasted it till he gets it. A person
who is chained with the limits and not allowed to perform his duties
freely, values freedom more than anyone else. For instance the value of
freedom is known better to Mandela who remained behind the bars most
of his life. Think about a bird or animal which is caged as they have the
habit of living with full freedom but in the cage they are not free and their
conditions are very pitiable. Similarly, life becomes a hell if we are
deprived of freedom. There is no growth of civilisation as it grows only
when one has freedom. Similarly, humanism grows in the atmosphere of
freedom.
 A Tiger in the Zoo
Short Answer Type Questions
Question 1. How does a tiger create terror for the villagers?
Answer: The tiger creates terror for the villagers by snarling around their houses
as they are situated near the jungle. He frightens them by showing his white
fangs and claws.
Question 2. Leslie Norris has described some of the activities of a tiger behind
the bars of its cage. Write them.
Answer: Some of the activities of the tiger behind the bars of its cage includes
stalking along the length of the cage, ignoring visitors, hearing patrolling cars
and staring at the brilliant stars shining in the sky.
Question 3. Describe the tiger in the cage.
Answer: The tiger in the cage is just a diminished form of his original self. He
paces up and down in the cage restlessly. He is confined in the narrow cell and
keeps staring the stars as if longing for freedom. He is helpless and draws pity
for his condition.
Question 4. Describe the tiger in the wild.
Answer: The tiger in the wild is majestic. He is free and lies under the shades
and hunts for prey. He moves near the water because food is in plenty there.
Sometimes he growls and terrorises the villagers.
Question 5. Why does the tiger express his rage quietly?
Answer: The tiger expresses his rage quietly because there is nothing he can do
from behind the bars of his cage. He is helpless as his strength now lies inside
the cage. He is no longer free as he was in the jungle.
Question 6. Where should the tiger have been according to the poet? [CBSE
2014]
Answer: The poet thinks that the tiger should have been in the jungle, lurking
in the shadow of long grass to prey on the deer near the water hole. He should
also be on the outskirts of the jungle snarling around houses and terrifying
villagers.
Question 7. How does the tiger make his presence felt in the village? [CBSE
2015]
Answer: The tiger makes his presence felt by snarling around houses at the
jungle’s edge and by showing his white fangs and claws.
Question 8. What does the tiger do in his cage?
Answer: The tiger is locked in a concrete cell where he can hardly take a few
steps along the length of the cage. He doesn’t take any notice of the visitors who
come there. With his shining eyes, he keeps staring at the bright stars in the sky.
Question 9. Why should the tiger snarl around houses at the edge of the forest?’.
[CBSE 2012]
Answer: The tiger should snarl around houses at the edge of the forest because
of the following reasons. Firstly the villagers will not disturb the peace of the
forest. Secondly, they will not kill the animals for money or just for fun.
Question 10. What is the tiger doing? Why is he ignoring the visitors?
Answer: The tiger is slowly and quietly moving along the length of the cage in
a threatening manner. He is ignoring the visitors because he considers them
devoid of any feelings. None of them thinks of releasing him from his prison.
Thus, he stops taking any notice of them.
Question 11. Why do you think the tiger looks at the stars?
Answer: The tiger feels very helpless in the cage. He stares with hope at the
brilliant stars shining in the sky. He hopes for the day when he would be able to
run free in the wild. The brilliant stars, thus, provides him with some sort of
comfort.
Question 12. What does the poet convey through the poem?
Answer: The poet tries to expose the miserable life led by the animals in the
zoo. He compares the life of the tiger in the zoo with its life at a natural habitat.
The animals have the right to freedom and should not be caged. They should be
allowed to run free in the wild.
Long Answer Type Questions
Question 1. Love for freedom is the natural instinct of every living being.
Comment. [CBSE 2014]
Answer: It is rightly said that love for freedom is the natural instinct of every
living being. Everyone loves freedom and does not want to live in confinement.
Similarly, the tiger also longed for freedom. He was so fed up being caged that
he even ignored the visitors. He took to and fro steps in the cage as if trying to
while away the time. The tiger wanted to escape this captivity. God has made
all living beings equally and thus, the animals too have the right to freedom.
They should not be caged. It is their right to enjoy their natural habitat i.e. the
forest and run freely in the wild. We should, thus, respect their freedom and
should not put them in the zoo.
Question 2. Is it right to confine wild animals into cages? Why or why not?
Answer: Wild animals are meant to live in the wild. They are not meant to be
caged and displayed in the zoos. We all know that the majestic species of tiger
is on the verge of extinction. There used to be a time when they used to roam
proudly and freely in the jungle. They are not meant to live a life in confinement.
They also have the right to freedom like all other living beings. Confinement
leads to depression and misery. Moreover, their offsprings lose the hunting
capabilities as they are not trained to hunt in the wild. As a result, they would
not be able to feed themselves. Furthermore confining wild animals disturbs the
whole ecological balance. We should, thus, let the animals run free in the wild.
They belong to the forest and not to the cage.
The Thief’s Story

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS:

Q 1: Give a brief description of the chapter “The Thief Story.”
Ans: A young boy becomes friends with Anil. Anil trusts him completely
and employs him.
Does the boy break the faith that he had on him?
The story is about a 15-year-old boy Hari, the thief who changes his name
every month to stay away from the police and his old employers. This time
he kept his name as Hari Singh.The other character in the story is a 25-
year-old writer named Anil. The thief Hari meets Anil and asks him if he
could work for him. The story reveals how the thief tricks Anil by
committing theft but revokes later on.
Q.2 Who is the author of this story?
Ans: Ruskin Bond is the author of this story. He was born on 19 May 1934
and he is an Indian author of British origin. He resides with his adopted
family in Landour, Mussoorie, India. The Indian Council for Child
Education has appreciated his role in the growth of hildren's literature
in India. He was awarded the Sahitya Academy Award in the year 1992 for
the novel, Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra, which is in English. He was also
awarded the Padma Shri in the year 1999 and the PadmaBhushan in the
year 2014
Q.3Hari Singh did not catch the train deliberately while he could catch it
easily.
ANS: Hari Singh did not catch the train deliberately because his inner
conscience held him back. He thought that Anil would feel sad not for loss
of money but for the loss of trust he had reposed in him. Moreover, he did
not want to lose the chance of learning. His inner self was transformed.
Q.4. Why did Anil employ Hari as a cook, although he could not afford to
pay?
Ans: Anil needed someone to look after his house, thus he agreed to employ
Hari as a cook. If he could prepare meals for both of them. Anil felt sorry
for him because Hari only wanted to be fed.
Q.5. Why didn’t Anil hand over Hari to the police? What effect would it
have on Hari?
Ans: Anil had a trust on Hari and when he saw that instead of running away
after taking the money, he came back kept the money as it was earlier. The
trust increased and Anil gave the chance to improve him.
Q.6. Why was it difficult for Hari Singh to rob Anil?
Ans: It was difficult to rob Anil because he was the most trusting person
Hari Singh had ever met. According to Hari Singh it is easy to rob a greedy
man because he can afford to be robbed but it’s difficult to rob a careless
man because he doesn’t even notice that he has been robbed and that takes
all the pleasure out of the work.
7. How does the thief think Anil will react to the theft?
Ans: The thief thought that on discovering the theft, Anil’s face would
show a touch of sadness. The sadness would not be for the loss of money,
but for the loss of trust.
8.What does he say about the different reactions of people when they are
robbed?
Ans: In his short career as a thief, he had made a study of men’s faces when
they lost their goods. He said that the greedy men showed fear; the rich
men showed anger and the poor men showed acceptance.
Long Answer Type Questions –to be answered in about 100-150 words.
Q1. Love,human values and education can transform even a thief. Discuss.

Ans. The lesson brings out the conclusion that man is a product of
circumstances and environment. Hari Singh was just a boy of fifteen but
was an experienced and fairly a successful hand. Circumstances made him
a thief. In spite of being no use to Anil, he was retained to work for him.
They say old habits die hard. After all, a thief couldn’t leave stealing and
cheating. He made a rupee every day from the buying of the day’s supplies.
However, Anil was not a fool. He knew everything and also all about the
theft. But he was kind, large-hearted and full of human sympathy. He
taught the unfortunate boy to write his name. He also promised him to teach
him how to write sentences and add numbers. This left a deep impression
on the boy-thief. He started realizing that education could bring him respect
and money. Though Hari Singh breached Anil’s trust but Anil was all
forgiving and compassionate. In the heat and excitement of theft, Hari
Singh forgot about education. Then came the true realization and
transformation. The boy –thief realized that the only man who could help
him was the man he had robbed a few hours ago. Then he realized the value
of education that could give him respect and more money than he could get
by stealing. He realized where he should go. Large-hearted Anil not only
forgave him but also gave him a fifty-rupee note, and promised to pay him
regularly.
Q2. Appraise the chief characteristics of Anil in about 100-150 words.
Ans: Anil is a generous, large-hearted and understanding man who is
twenty-five years old and unmarried. He doesn’t have a regular income. He
writes for magazines. Whenever receives a cheque, he goes out and
celebrates with his friends. Anil is a simple man who is ever-ready to help
even a worthless boy like Hari Singh. He knows that Hari Singh lied that
he knew how to cook. Still, he allows him to work for him. Anil is a
progressive young man. Being a writer himself, he knows the value of
education. He teaches Hari Singh to write his name. He promises to teach
him to write whole sentences and to add numbers. Anil knew all about the
theft. He knew how and when Hari had stolen the money and put it back
under the mattress. Neither his lips nor his eyes showed anything about it.
He didn’t want to hand Hari Singh over to the police. It would have mined
him. The thief had no option but to return to such a generous and large-
hearted person. The reformer, Anil rewarded the boy-thief by giving him a
fifty rupee note. He also promised to pay him regularly. Thus, we can say
that Anil was a thorough Gentleman.
Q3. Write a brief character-sketch of Hari Singh in the light of his honesty.
Express your opinion also.
Ans: Hari Singh, a boy of fifteen, was an experienced and successful thief.
He was successful because of his cleverness and intelligence. He planned
everything meticulously before choosing his victims. He went to places
where he would meet an unsuspecting victim. He would then win his
confidence to get a job. After sometime he used to run away after stealing
money from there. Then he used to change his name to befool the police
and his former employers. He was a liar. He got a job as a cook, though he
could not cook well. He was a greedy boy. He was cruel enough to rob a
simple and trusting man like Anil. He was able to steal six hundred rupees
from his house. But, there is transformation in the end of the story, when
he decides to come back to Anil and keep his trust alive. This shows that
there is goodness concealed in even the worst of men.
Q.4. What was Hari Singh reactions to the prospects of receiving an
education?
Ans: Hari Singh thinks that the possibility of obtaining an education would
help him in his declaration which is stealing (by hiring fake documents
etc.) and he would grow as a rich man. Once he acquired a scholarship,
there would be no limits to what he could achieve in this job of being a
robber and conning and tricking people. But after stealing Anil’s property
he looks at getting educated in new enlightenment. In the exercise of the
theft, he had ignored about learning to write complete sentences. He now
understood that it was an easy matter to steal and sometimes quite as simple
to be found. But to be a really big man, a talented and respected man, he
required to be an educated person for then he would be able to gain far
more money than the few thousand rupees he stole that night. He came
back to Anil because it was raining and he had no spot to go. He also
understood that the only person whom he could trust and depend upon to
make him into a respectable man.
Q5. Why does not Anil hand the thief over to the police? Do you think most
people would have done so? In what way is Anil different from such
employers?
Ans. Anil did not hand over the thief to the police maybe because he knew
that Hari Singh had realized his mistake. He was feeling guilty for what he
had done and wanted to mend his ways. This was the reason why he had
come back and put the money back to its place. Anil wanted to give him a
chance to become a better person. No, I don't think that anybody in
today’s world would have done so because to do so, a person needs to have
a lot of patience and compassion which is missing in most of the people
today. In today's world a thief is considered a criminal even if he
realizes his mistake. It takes a lot of courage to trust someone who has
broken your trust once. Although i feel that if a person realizes his mistake
he must be given another chance to win back your trust.
Q6. Money can’t make a man as much as education can. Elucidate the
statement.
Ans:The statement stands true in almost all the aspects of life. Money may
buy us all the luxuries and fulfil our needs but it cannot buy us knowledge,
civilized thinking, skills and abilities to achieve our dreams. Education lays
the platform for all to act upon our goals according to our abilities.
Education enables us to keep up with the fast moving world. It opens the
door to opportunities we do not know even exist. Money, on the other hand,
can assist us to a certain level. It can buy us a plan but education gives us
the knowledge of its execution. Just as in the story ‘A Thief s Story’, Hari
Singh prioritized the chance of being literate over a few hundred rupees,
we must understand that education can help us to achieve whatever we
desire.
 Q.7.Hari Singh didn’t board the express and returned to Anil. Why did he
return? On what values does this incidence put light on?
Ans:Hari Singh was a thief and he had stolen Anil’s money. After the theft,
he realized that he had robbed not only Anil but also himself of the chance
of being literate and having a bright future. His conscience pricked him to
think what all he could have got had he not done this. It was difficult for
him to rob Anil but it was tougher for him not to go back. He realized that
he could not make tea, buy daily supplies and learn how to read and write
then. His inner self did not agree to bypass this and forced him to return.
Hari’s return to Anil shows that despite indulging in criminal acts, he still
had a practical and positive attitude towards life. It is the awakening of
Hari’s conscience and Anil’s love and care that reformed Hari’s character.
It teaches us that love alone can change a person. Anil’s understanding
nature and care changed Hari’s thinking to mend his ways for good.
Q8.’The Thief’s Story ‘is an in-depth study of the human mind. Discuss.
Ans.The human mind is a very complex thing. It is a mixture of opposite
opinions.Sometimes a man fails to understand his own mind. In this story
the same thing has been presented by Ruskin Bond through the character of a
thief boy HariSingh. The boy starts working for Anil. His primary aim was to rob
him. Anil’s carelessness wins his heart. But the boy’s bad mind provokes him to
rob Anil of his money. One day he robs his six hundred rupees in fifties and runs
away to the station. But his good mind stops him boarding the train. He decides
to come back to Anil and return his money. So this story is an in-depth study of
the human mind.
COMPETENCY LEVEL QUESTIONS:
1.The story reflects a change of a person from darkness to light.”-Discuss.
Ans. The story “The Thief’s story” by Ruskin Bond reflects the change of
a person from darkness to light. The narrator was a thief and was quite
experienced. He was a boy of fifteen years old. He used to change his name
every month in order to stay away from the police and the other employees.
He came to Anil for the same purpose. But Anil’s behaviour towards the
narrator changed him. The narrator flattered that Anil looked like a
wrestler. He even lied to him that he could cook. But Anil found that he
couldn’t cook, so he promised to teach him cooking. He taught him to write
his name and even told that he would teach him to write whole sentences
and numbers. One day, Anil brought a small bundle of notes and showed it
to the narrator. But he couldn’t stop himself from stealing. He escaped from
there and tried to catch the train. But then he found himself to be guilty. He
realised that he had made a mistake. He wanted to become educated. So,
he went back to Anil and the next morning Anil declared that he will be
paid from the next day. Moreover, he will also teach him to write full
sentences.
2. Hari Singh suffered dualities of mind and at last, decided the good one”-
Discuss the statement.
Ans. In the story “The Thief’s story” by Ruskin Bond, Hari Singh, the thief,
suffered dualities of mind and at last decided the good one. At the age of
only fifteen years, he became an experienced one. He kept changing his
names in order to escape from the police and the other employees. Later,
he started living with Anil and learnt to write his name. Later, he tried to
rob Anil and escaped from there. He found that robbing a man like Anil
was quite difficult. He tried to escape by train but couldn’t go. He returned
back to Anil as he wanted to be educated. He wanted to learn whole
sentences and become a respected person in the society. That’s why he
returned the bundle of notes and the next day Anil promised to pay him
regularly from them.
3. The story is an embodiment of didactic lesson where a human must learn
what should be their course of action in life.”-Evaluate the statement.
Ans. The story “The Thief’s story” by Ruskin Bond is truly an embodiment
of didactic lesson. The thief, who was very skilled in stealing, had a wish
to become educated and become a respected person in the society. Anil was
so simple that he provided shelter to a stranger who was actually a thief.
He was like his teacher. He taught him to write his name and told that he
would also teach him to write full sentences. Not only that, but his attitude
also changed a thief and made him a good person. The narrator wanted to
become educated and was quite interested in learning. He realised his
mistake and returned the money to its owner. Anil got to know the matter,
and he might have punished the narrator but instead, he forgave him and
even announced that he would be paying him regularly from the next day.
Moreover, he also told that he would teach him to write whole sentences
from then. This would make the child thief an educated one.