Prasanna

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Evans Tries An O-Level Summary in English by Colin Dexter

Evans Tries An O-Level by Colin Dexter About the Author

Colin Dexter (29 September 1930 – 21 March 2017) is a British crime writer who is known for ‘Inspector Endeavour Morse’ who appears in detective novels authored by him. These novels written between 1975 and 1999 were adopted as a television series from 1987 to 2000. Dexter has received many awards and accolades, including two Silver Draggers, two ‘Gold Draggers’ and a ‘Cartier Diamond Dragger’ for lifetime achievement in 1997. He was conferred with the 1996 Macavity Award for his story ‘Evans Tries an O-level’. In the year 2000, he was appointed an ‘Officer of the Order of British Empire’ for his services to literature.

Evans Tries An O-Level Introduction to the Chapter

The story, “Evans Tries An 0-Level”, written by Colin Dexter is an interesting story depicting how a prisoner called James Evans befools all the officers of the prison to escape under a well-laid out plan. Despite the best efforts of the prison authorities, Evans is able to escape. In this battle of wits between him and the prison authorities, he has the last laugh.

Evans Tries An O-Level Theme

This story talks about a criminal Evans who is known as a prison-breaker. The prison officials make huge efforts to keep Evans in prison, but he eventually escapes successfully. Though he outwits the officials, they marvel at his ingenuity and wisdom.

Evans Tries An O-Level Summary in English

Evans is a prison-breaker who is used to having the last laugh. After breaking out of prison thrice, he is in prison for the fourth time. He decides to break away and is again successful. He did so by desiring to have some sort of academic qualification while serving his imprisonment. For this, he wanted to take the O-level examination in German. A German teacher would come to teach him for ten months in the prison. After that, the examination is arranged in his cell itself. A person called McLeery is called to invigilate for the exam. The Governor himself supervises all security arrangements lest the prisoner might escape during the exam. Two prison officers were deputed to keep an eye on him. The person left with all the papers after the exam got over.

However, later it was discovered that Evans had escaped in the guise of the parson. Evans had badly wounded the parson behind the prison cell. The parson tells that he knew where Evans might be found. At once, he was sent in a police van to catch the prisoner. Since the parson was bleeding profusely, he was taken to a hospital on the way. Later, it was found that no wounded parson had ever come to the hospital. Now, it was known and realised that Evans had not escaped in the guise of the parson McLeery. He had stayed in and befooled the entire prison staff.

The blood flowing from his head had not been his own blood. It was rather pig’s blood that McLeery had cleverly managed to bring in. Similarly, McLeery was not the parson. The real parson McLeery was tied by some men in his room since morning. Towards the end of the story, the Governor got hold of Evans in a hotel room. Handcuffed, Evans was sent away with a prison officer in the prison van.

Once again, Evans got the better of the Governor. Both the prison officer and the prison van had been part of the plan mastered by Evans’ friends. Evans had been able to escape from prison three times earlier also. Once again, he became a free bird. Due to this reason, the prison officers used to call him ‘Evans the Break’.

Evans Tries An O-Level Main Characters in the Chapter

Evans

He is a pleasant young man. He has not done any violence. He is good at imitation and had been part of Christmas concerts. He is a kleptomaniac. He is called a prison-breaker, since he had escaped prison thrice with the help of his couple of friends. He is sharp-witted.

The Governor

An officer of average intelligence but over-confident. Poor judge of character.

Jackson

Senior prison officer. Kind-hearted man. Not an intelligent person and is gullible. Poor judge of character. Takes delight in ordering people around.

Stephens

New recruit. Takes orders without thinking.

Reverend Me Leery

Supposed to supervise Evans German O-Level Exam.

Evans Tries An O-Level Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
How did McLeery explain the semi-inflated rubber ring in his suitcase? How was the ring ultimately used?
Answer:
McLeery carried a brown suitcase with him into the examination room which consisted of all. that he would need for his examination duties. However, when asked to explain what the semi-inflated rubber ring was for, he told the authorities that he suffered from Haemorrhoids and therefore, needed the ring to sit on as he was not comfortable sitting for long period.

Question 2.
Who do you think has outwitted the other—Evans or the Governor? How?
Answer:
Undoubtedly, Evans outwitted the Governor in the end. The Governor after decoding the numbers given in the question paper was able to recapture Evans, but the latter was again able to give a slip to the prison officials.

Question 3.
What clues did the answer sheet of Evans provide to the Governor?
Answer:
The clues left on the question paper were actually part of a well-laid outplan. It was meant to mislead the police and kind of mock at them. The clue pointed out that Evans had hit McLeery though it was Evans who was impersonating McLeery. This also made the police look for Evans in Newburry, when he was in fact at Hotel Golden Lion in Chipping Norton.

Question 4.
How did the Governor react to the two phone calls he received in quick succession?
Answer:
The Governor reacted sharply but in a positive way. He was informed by the secretary for modern languages that there was a correction slip to be informed to the candidate. He allows and the correction is explained to Evans. He does not doubt anything.

Question 5.
Who was Carter? What did the Governor ask him to do?
Answer:
Carter was the detective superintendent. The Governor told him to take McLeery along with him. He took McLeery with him to look for the absconder. The Governor then asked who had seen Evans out at the prison gate. Mr Stephen told him that it was he who had taken him out.

Question 6.
What were the contents of the small brown suitcase that McLeery carried?
Answer:
The contents of the small brown suitcase that McLeery carried were a sealed question paper envelope, a yellow invigilation form, a special ‘authentication’ card from the Examination Board, a paper knife, a Bible, a copy of ‘The Church Times’ and a small semi-inflated rubber ring.

Question 7.
What did the Detective Superintendent inform the Governor about Evans?
Answer:
McLeery had spotted Evans drive off along Elsfield Way. They had got the number of the car and had given chase immediately. But they had lost track and assumed that Evans must have come back into the city.

Question 8.
Who do you think made the call to announce a correction in the question paper? What was its purpose?
Answer:
One of Evans’ accomplices would have called impersonating as the Assistant Secretary from the examination board. The real purpose was to include information about the escape plan.

Question 9.
What could the Governor have done to securely bring Evans back to the prison from the ‘Golden Lion’?
Answer:
The Governor could have brought the police force with him. Another thing that he could have done was to travel in the van that was taking Evans back to the prison. He should have also checked the credentials of the officials escorting him to the prison.

Question 10.
How does Evans escape from the jail?
Answer:
Evans decided to appear for O-level Examination in German. For the same, the Governor sought permission from the Board. McLeery the parson from St. Mary Mags came to invigilate. In reality, he was an accomplice of Evans and had imprisoned the real parson. In the cell, the two exchange places. This was made possible because Evans had covered himself in a blanket. At the end of the exam, Evans walks out a free man disguised as the parson.

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On The Face of It Summary in English by Susan Hill

On The Face of It by Susan Hill About the Author

Susan Hill (born on 5 February 1942-) is an English author of fiction and non-fiction works. Her novels include The Woman in Black, The Mist in the Mirror and I’m the King of the Castle. She received the Somerset Maugham Award in 1971 for her novel I’m the King of the Castle. She was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2012 Birthday Honours for her services to literature. She is known to explore the inner fears and loneliness. Her works reflect honest suffering and optimism.

On The Face of It Introduction to the Chapter

The play is about the friendship between an old man and a young boy who is withdrawn and defiant. Both of them had some physical impairment, but the outlook of each of them towards life in general and people in particular was very different. The old man had a positive outlook towards life, whereas the young boy with the scarred face had become withdrawn and pessimistic.

On The Face of It Theme

The play, “On the Face of It” brings out the idea that the people who have any handicap/ physical impairment of some kind, generally suffer from a sense of loneliness and mental pain. It also talks about how appearances are deceptive and most often, we go on dealing with impressions and prejudices about others without caring to know about them actually.

On The Face of It Summary in English

The play entitled, “On the Face of It” written by Susan Hill deals with the issue of the disabled people. It does not deal with actual pain or inconvenience due to a physical impairment which distresses a disabled person. It rather deals with the behaviour of the people all around him. People discard the disabled person as a useless limb and refuse to accept him as a part and parcel of society. It makes him feel alienated from the human society and he wants to live in seclusion.

The play has two disabled persons, Derry, a young lad of fourteen who bears a burnt face, and Mr Lamb, an old man with a tin leg. Derry is quite withdrawn and defiant. He, by chance meets Mr Lamb in his garden. The old man devises ways and means to overcome his feelings

of isolation and disappointment. He even helps the boy to come out of his seclusion and infuses in him the courage and determination to live on successfully in this world without bothering about what others say or feel about him.

On The Face of It Main Characters in the Chapter

Derry

Withdrawn and defiant; bitter towards the world; lonely and pessimistic; cares too much about his disability and hates it when people stare or pity him.

Mr Lamb

Optimistic; lonely but happy; does not care too much about his disability and has learnt to accept it.

On The Face of It Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
How does Mr Lamb keep himself busy when it is a bit cool?
Answer:
Mr Lamb collects crab apples and makes jelly out of them, when it is cooler. He leaves his gates open to welcome whoever wishes to come into the garden.

Question 2.
Why does Derry tell Mr Lamb that he is afraid of seeing himself in the mirror in the story, ‘On the Face of It’?
Answer:
Derry’s face had become scarred due to acid burns. This terrified him and brought in bad memories of the incident. In order to avoid them, he avoided seeing himself in the mirror.

Question 3.
Mr Lamb’s advice to Derry was the product of his goodness of heart or to befriend him to overcome his loneliness. Give reason.
Answer:
Mr Lamb genuinely liked Derry and wanted him to overcome his inhibitions towards life. He did not want the boy to suffer and have a poor self-esteem because he had a burnt face. He gave his example only for him to understand what can be done to overcome loneliness and to make him understand that a disability should not stop one from enjoying life.

Question 4.
People are insensitive to those who have disabilities. Give instances from the story, ‘On the Face of It’.
Answer:
People generally pity the handicapped or react with disgust when they see them. For instance, people would stare at the burnt face of Derry and comment on it. He even heard two women commenting, looking at his face that only a mother could love a person with such a face. Even his own family was worried about his future. Similarly, Mr Lamb was also stared at by people, and children even called him Lamey-Lamb.

Question 5.
How does Mr Lamb try to remove the baseless fears of Derry?
Answer:
Mr Lamb gave confidence and courage to Derry. He suggested that Derry should get over his physical impairment instead of brooding over his burnt face. He told Derry that he still has two hands, legs, eyes, a tongue and a brain, and if he puts them to right use by setting his mind to it, he can get on better than all the rest.

Question 6.
What did Derry’s mother think of Mr Lamb?
Answer:
Derry’s mother did not have a good impression of Mr Lamb. She thought he was not a good man. She did not want Derry to associate with him in any way.

Question 7.
What consolation did people give when they saw his acid burnt face?
Answer:
Derry’s face was burnt by acid on one side. When people looked at his face, they drew back in horror. They pretended to show sympathy as if he was an object.

Question 8.
Mr Lamb told Derry the story of a man who hid himself in his room. Why did the man do so and with what result?
Answer:
The man was afraid of everything. He felt that he would die if he went out and so he hid himself in a room. In the end, a picture fell off the wall on his head and killed him.

Question 9.
Why does Mr Lamb leave his gate always open?
Answer:
Mr Lamb leaves his gate always open to welcome children. He did not have his own children. He has an apple orchard. He offered them apples and its jelly.

Question 10.
What peculiar things does Derry notice about the old man, Lamb?
Answer:
Unlike the other people, who were horrified on looking at Derry, Mr Lamb did not show any dislike or horror at the way Derry looked. This surprised him. He also found it strange that even though the man himself was handicapped, he lived happily. He had a zest for life and encouraged him in ways no one had. He made him aware of his strengths and the importance of not pitying oneself.

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Should Wizard Hit Mommy Summary in English by John Updike

Should Wizard Hit Mommy by John Updike About the Author

John Hoyer Updike (18 March 1932 – 27 January 2009) was an American novelist, poet, short story writer and art and literary critic. His most famous work is his ‘Rabbit Series’. His fiction is focused on the concerns, passions and sufferings of the average American.

He is considered as one of the greatest American writers of his time. Updike had a style which is rich and unusual and sometimes arcane vocabulary is conveyed through the eyes of “a wry intelligent authorial voice”. He described the physical world in a realist tradition.

Should Wizard Hit Mommy Introduction to the Chapter

This story deals with a child’s view of the world and the difficult moral questions she raises during f the story session with her father. Jack (Joanne’s father) had become accustomed to, or putting it J more precisely, obligated to telling stories out of his head to his daughter Joanne during the evenings and Saturday afternoons! This tradition itself was now two years old and Joanne had been two when it started.

These stories were almost the same except for some slight variations. It started with a creature usually named Roger (Roger fish, Roger squirrel, Roger chipmunk), who had some problem and went with it to the wise owl. The owl directed him to go to the wizard, who would solve his problem i in exchange for a few pennies more than the creature had and in the same breath would direct the f creature to go to a place where he could find it. Then, the Roger creature would be happy and would l return home just in time to hear the train whistle that brought his daddy home from Boston.

Should Wizard Hit Mommy Theme

The main theme of this story is the relation of children with their parents. Children’s fantasies and the messages of stories they bring with them affect children and sometimes, make them critical.

Should Wizard Hit Mommy Summary in English

The story, “Should Wizard Hit Mommy?” written by John Updike, revolves around the conflicting views of a child and a parent on the child’s future. Parents express their own expectations. They desire that their children should grow up as per their expectations. However, children have their own ambitions and aspirations.

Jack used to tell his little daughter Jo bedtime stories. When she grew a little older, she began to ask a number of questions. For some time, Jack was not able to invent new stories. Thus, the basic story was the same but its hero changed. The hero, a small animal known as Roger meets an owl with its problem. The owl directs Roger to the wizard. The wizard solved the problem with his magic wand. Roger felt good. He played along with animals of the woodland. But when his father used to come back, he went back home to eat supper with him. Jo feels happy with this ending.

Later, her father told the story of a little animal called Roger Skunk. Just like other heroes of his stories, even Skunk has a problem. He used to smell awfully bad. The wizard made him smell like roses, and little animals liked him and played with him. Jo was again happy. However, Skunk’s mother wanted Skunk to get back his original smell. She took him back to the wizard. The wizard again made Skunk smell as awful as ever. Skunk’s mother was happy. However, Jo was not happy. She desired that the wizard should hit the stupid mother. However, Jack defended the mother’s action.

Should Wizard Hit Mommy Main Characters in the Chapter

Jack

He is the protagonist of the story. He is a married man. His wife, Clare is pregnant and they have a four-year-old daughter, Jo and a two-year-old son, Bobby.

Jo

She is Jack and Clare’s four-year-old daughter. She is a growing girl. As she is growing, she has begun to contradict things.

Roger Skunk

Roger Skunk is the protagonist of the story that Jack narrates to Jo. He is bullied for his foul Skunk smell. He wants nothing more than to play with the other animals.

Should Wizard Hit Mommy Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Why did Roger Skunk go in search of the wizard?
OR
Why did Roger Skunk go to the wizard?
Answer:
Roger Skunk had no friends to play with, since he smelled very bad. Everybody made fun of him. This upset him. He went to the owl to ask for help, who directed him to the wizard.

Question 2.
How did the Skunk’s mother get Roger Skunk’s old smell back?
Answer:
Roger Skunk’s mother went to the wizard and hit him on his head and asked him to give back Roger Skunk’s smell. The wizard obliged and gave the baby skunk’s smell back.

Question 3.
What help did Roger Skunk get from the wizard?
Answer:
The wizard helped Roger Skunk by casting a spell on him, which made him smell like roses. This helped Roger Skunk get friends to play with and made him happy.

Question 4.
Why did Jo disapprove of Jack’s ending of the story of Roger Skunk? How did she want it to end?
Answer:
In Jack’s story, the protagonist, Roger Skunk, is shown as an obedient child. He meekly goes with his mother to get his previous smell back. This was against his wishes and he would have rather wished the smell of roses, since it would have enabled him to have friends to play with. Jo is a child and from a child’s perspective, playing with friends is very important. Therefore, she wanted it to end it with Roger Skunk smelling like roses and being able to play with his friends. She also wanted the wizard to hit the mother.

Question 5.
What impression do you form of Jack as a father in the story, ‘Should Wizard Hit Mommy?
Answer:
Jack is portrayed as a loving father, who loves telling stories to his four-year-old daughter, Jo. He brings in the dramatic element in his otherwise lame and boring story by using a lot of gestures and dramatic voices. This thrills his daughter, which eventually thrills him. Everything is fine till one day his daughter starts questioning his stories. She views each statement that her father makes with a critical eye and has a lot of questions. Instead of pacifying her by answering her questions, Jack tried to enforce his views on her. Therefore, we can say that Jack is loving and responsible but slightly an immature father.

Question 6.
Why did Jo think Roger Skunk was better off with the new smell?
Answer:
Jo thought about Roger Skunk and his wish to smell better in order to play with his friends from a child’s perspective. For her, it was important that wishes are fulfilled, and a wish of being able to play was foremost.

Question 7.
Why was Roger Skunk’s mummy angry with him? What did she finally tell him?
Answer:
Roger Skunk’s mother was angry with him since he no longer smelled the way all skunks smelled. Though the other animals felt it to be a stink, for her it was an identity. Finally, she asked Roger Skunk to go along with her to the wizard to revoke the spell.

Question 8.
How did Roger Skunk pay the wizard?
Answer:
Roger Skunk only had four shillings to pay the wizard. The wizard wanted seven shillings. On seeing Roger Skunk’s sad face, the wizard takes pity on him and directs him for the remaining three shillings. Roger Skunk goes in search of them and eventually pays the wizard the money.

Question 9.
What did Jo want Roger Skunk’s mother to be punished for?
Answer:
Jo believed that the mother was insensitive, cruel and unfair. Roger Skunk’s mother didn’t let him retain the smell of roses which he had got from the wizard. It would have helped him make friends.

Question 10.
Which do you think is a better ending of Roger Skunk’s story, Jo’s or her father’s? Why?
Answer:
A better ending of Roger Skunk’s story would have been Jo’s—for Roger Skunk to smell like roses forever. The mother need not have interfered in the matter. Roger Skunk would have, over a period of time, understood himself whether it was right or wrong. I believe that Jo’s idea of the wizard hitting the mother is wrong, just like it was wrong on the part of the mother to hit the wizard.

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The Enemy Summary in English by Pearl S. Buck

The Enemy by Pearl S. Buck About the Author

Pearl S. Buck (26 June 1892 – 6 March 1973) was an American writer and novelist. She is also known by her Chinese name Sai Zhenzhu. In 1932, she won Pulitzer Prize for her novel ‘The Good Earth’. She was the first American woman to win the Nobel Prize in literature (1938) for her rich and truly epic description of peasants’ life in China and for her biographical masterpieces. She was a prominent advocate of the rights of women and the minority groups.

The Enemy Introduction to the Chapter

“The Enemy”, written by Pearl S. Buck is a heart-rending portrayal of the conflict between a man’s heart and mind. It tells us about how people can help enemies on human grounds. To hate our enemy is natural and justifiable, especially during wartime. This story beautifully depicts how a human being rises above : his prejudices to help a wounded enemy.

The Enemy Theme

In the chapter ‘The Enemy , the author stresses on the fact that humanity requires one to overcome prejudices and hatred especially against one’s enemies. Through this chapter, the author conveys the message that t nanism transcends all man-made prejudices and barriers.

The Enemy Summary in English

Dr Sadao and his wife, Hana stood outside their house. A man suddenly appears out of the ocean. They ran towards him. To their shock, he was an American prisoner of war, who was badly wounded and had become unconscious. Sadao is torn between his duty as a doctor and his loyalty towards Japan. As citizens having a sense of national loyalty, they felt it their duty to put the man back into the sea.

However, soon they rose above narrow prejudices and brought the man into their house. Even though they faced open defiance from their domestic staff, they looked after the man. They realised the risk inherent in harbouring an enemy. But Dr Sadao knew that he would not be arrested and condemned by the ruthless General as he himself might need his services any time for an operation. Sadao informed the ailing general about the enemy in his house. The latter plans to get rid of the American, and promises to send people to do the needful. However, the General forgot to do so. After a while, as the American got better, Sadao made arrangements for him to go to an island nearby, from where he could try to get off enemy boundaries.

The Enemy Main Characters in the Chapter

Dr Sadao

A Japanese doctor trained by Americans. Dedicated surgeon and doctor; kind; prejudiced against the white man.

Hana

She is the wife of Dr Sadao. They met in America, became friends and got married in Japan. Balanced woman; stands with her husband; responsible; dignified and graceful.

Tom

He is an American prisoner of war. Strong will-power.

General Takima

He is a famed Japanese war hero. He is selfish and careless.

Yumi

The servant who looked after Dr Sadao and Hana’s children. Loves children, loyal to the country, prejudiced against white men.

Domestic servants

Loyal to the country and prejudiced against white men.

The Enemy Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Why didn’t Sadao want to know anything about the white man?
Answer:
He didn’t want to know any details about the white man because he didn’t want to become emotionally involved with him. The less he knew about the white man, the better it would have been for both, him and the white man.

Question 2.
How is Hana’s perspective about the white man different from Yumi’s perspective?
Answer:
Hana sees the white man as a person who is in need of help and not as a nameless enemy who should be killed, as per Yumi. This point is central to the story because it talks about how all people are similar and that they should all be treated in a humane and respectful way.

Question 3.
The theme of racism is reflected in the story. Give examples.
Answer:
The theme of racism is reflected in the story in several ways:
Because of the stress of Sadao’s father on ‘purity of race’ and traditionalism, Sadao didn’t start a relationship with Hana until he was sure that she “had been pure in her race”.

Yumi refused to touch the American or wash him before the operation. Moreover, when he left, she “cleaned the guest room thoroughly … to get the white man’s smell out of it.” Sadao has strong feelings against white people. Both Sadao and Hana felt that Americans were racists.

Question 4.
What did Dr Sadao do to help Tom escape to freedom?
Answer:
Dr Sadao knew that the wounded American sailor, Tom could be arrested any time. So he decided to help him in escaping. He decided to give his private boat with food and clothes in it. He could row it to a little island not far from the coast. Nobody lived there. In this way, he could escape to freedom.

Question 5.
Why did Dr Sadao help in the escape of the American soldier? Was it an act of treachery? Can you justify his action?
Answer:
Dr Sadao had given the information about the wounded American to the General. In turn, the General had promised to send assassins to kill him and get rid of the body. Sadao did wait for the General’s people to arrive. In the back of his mind, he knew he was a doctor whose job was to save people. Therefore, when the authority failed, Sadao decided to help the American escape. It cannot be called an act of treachery because he had been an absolute doctor and a citizen, and more importantly, a good human being. He did not want the person, he had served, to be killed.

Question 6.
Why did the messenger come to Dr Sadao? What did Hana think about it?
Answer:
Dr Sadao had been summoned to the palace to treat the ailing General. This relieved Hana, since she expected it to be a punishment for helping and providing refuge to an enemy. As the General was ill, he could require an operation any moment. Hana got very anxious to think about the consequences her family might have to face for harbouring an enemy soldier. When an official in uniform knocked her door, she thought that he might have come to apprehend her husband.

Question 7.
In what context does Hana remember General Takima? What does she infer?
Answer:
While applying medicine to the young soldier, as Sadao operated on him, Hana wondered if the stories of torture of POWs were true. She then remembered how General Takima ruthlessly beat his wife. Hana deduced that if General Takima could be so cruel to his wife, he could as well be extremely cruel to a prisoner. The deep red scars on the white man’s neck, confirmed her apprehension.

Question 8.
How did Dr Sadao ensure that the American soldier left his house but he himself remained safe and secure?
Answer:
Dr Sadao was a Japanese surgeon. After treating the American war prisoner, he informed the General as a true Japanese about the soldier. But as a doctor, he saved his life by providing him right treatment and helped him escape in the darkness of the night.

Question 9.
Why did Hana wash the wounded soldier herself?
Answer:
Hana, wife of Dr Sadao, washed the wounds of the American prisoner of war herself because the domestic servants refused to do it as he was from an enemy country. They all left the doctor’s house.

Question 10.
How does the writer indicate that Dr Sadao’s father was a very traditional and conventional man?
Answer:
Dr Sadao’s father was a very traditional and conventional man. He believed that the islands in the distance were the stepping stones to Japan’s future. He was a quiet man. He never joked or played with his son. His father was stern but cared a lot for his future. He believed in traditional and arranged marriages. He was proud of his nation and never used foreign goods. Everything in his room was made in Japan. He did not sit on a chair or sleep on a bed and rather slept on a mat.

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Journey to The End of The Earth Summary in English by Tishani Doshi

Journey to The End of The Earth by Tishani Doshi About the Author

Tishani Doshi (9 December 1975) is an Indian poet, journalist and a dancer based in Chennai. Born in Madras, India, to a Welsh mother and Gujarati father, she graduated with a Master’s degree in Creative Writing from the Johns Hopkins University. She received Eric Gregory Award in 2001. Her first poetry collection Countries of the Body won the 2006 Forward Poetry Prize for the best first collection.

Her First novel The Pleasure Seekers was published by Bloomsbury in 2010 and was long-listed for the Orange Prize in 2011 and shortlisted for The Hindu Best Fiction Award in 2010. She works as a freelance writer and worked with choreographer Chandralekha. Her poetry collection Everything Begins Elsewhere was published by Copper Canyon Press in 2013. Her most recent book of poetry, Girls Are Coming Out Of the Woods, was published by HarperCollins India in 2017. She writes a blog titled ‘Hit or Miss’ on Cricinfo, a cricket related website.

Journey to The End of The Earth Introduction to the Chapter

Before human evolution, Antarctica was part of a huge tropical landmass called the Gondwana land which flourished 500 million years ago. Geological, geographical and biological changes occurred and Antarctica separated and moved away, evolving into what it is today.

A visit to Antarctica gave Tishani Doshi a deeper understanding of the earth’s history, ecology and environment.

Journey to The End of The Earth Theme

Tishani Doshi’s visit to Antarctica, the coldest, driest and windiest continent in the world, aboard the Russian research vessel Akademik Shokalskiy, gave her a deeper understanding and a better perspective to the damage caused by human impact on earth. Antarctica, though unpopulated, has been affected and there is a growing concern for its half a million year old carbon records trapped under its ice sheets.

The ‘Students on Ice’ programme takes high school students to Antarctica to create awareness in them, the future policy makers, and helps students realise that the threat of global warming is very real.

Journey to The End of The Earth Summary in English

Humans, who have existed a mere 12,000 years, have caused tremendous damage and played havoc with nature. Population explosion, strain on available resources, carbon emissions, fossil fuels and global warming have all resulted in climatic and ecological imbalances that have affected Antarctica too.

The ‘Students on Ice’ programme, an initiative of Canadian educator, Geoff Green, takes students—the future policy makers—to Antarctica, to create awareness in them. A stark proof of global warming and environmental threats helps students attain a greater understanding of the earth’s ecosystems and biodiversity.

Journey to The End of The Earth Summary Questions and Answers

Question 1.
What was Akademic Shokalskiy? Where was it headed and why?
Answer:
Akademic Shokalskiy was a Russian research vessel which was heading towards Antarctica, the coldest, driest, windiest continent in the world to become a part of Geoff Green’s ‘Students on Ice’ programme.

Question 2.
Describe the author’s emotions when she first set foot on Antarctica.
Answer:
Tishani Doshi’s initial reaction was relief as she had travelled for over hundred hours. This was followed by wonder at Antarctica’s white landscape and uninterrupted blue horizon, its immensity, isolation and at how there could have been a time when India and Antarctica could have been a part of the same landmass.

Question 3.
How is present day Antarctica different from Gondwana?
Answer:
Gondwana was a giant amalgamated southern supercontinent. The climate was much warmer, hosting a huge variety of flora and fauna. Gondwana thrived for about 500 million years. Subsequently, when dinosaurs were wiped out and the age of mammals happened, the landmass separated into countries, shaping the globe as we know it today.

Question 4.
Why does the author say that to visit Antarctica is to be a part of history?
Answer:
It is only when you visit Antarctica that you realise all that can happen in a million years, where we have come from and where we could possibly be heading. We understand the significance of Cordilleran folds, pre-Cambrian granite shields, ozone and carbon, evolution and extinction.

Question 5.
Why does Tishani Doshi describe her two weeks’ stay in Antarctica ‘a chilling prospect’?
Answer:
Accustomed to the warm climate of South India, being in a place where ninety per cent of the earth’s total ice is stored was a chilling prospect—literally and metaphorically. It affected her metabolic and circulatory systems as well as her imagination.

Question 6.
Why does one lose all earthly perspective in Antarctica?
Answer:
The author compares it to walking into a giant ping-pong ball, devoid of any human markers. There are no trees, billboards, or buildings. The visual ranges from the microscopic to the mighty, from midges and mites to blue whales and icebergs.

Question 7.
Describe the brightness and silence that prevail in Antarctica during summer.
Answer:
Days go on and on in surreal twenty-four hour austral summer light, and an ubiquitous silence prevails, interrupted only by the occasional avalanche or calving ice-sheet.

Question 8.
Explain: ‘And for humans, the prognosis isn’t good’.
Answer:
The human civilisation has been around for a mere 12,000 years—barely a few seconds on the biological clock. Yet we have managed to etch our dominance over nature with concretisation, battling for limited resources, and unmitigated burning of fossil fuel. This has created a blanket of carbon dioxide around the world, which is increasing average global temperature.

Question 9.
Why is Antarctica a crucial element in all debates on climate change?
Answer:
Antarctica is the only place in the world that has never sustained a human population and is therefore, relatively ‘pristine’. More importantly, it holds in its ice cores half-million-year-old carbon records trapped in its layers of ice.

Question 10.
What was the objective of the ‘Students on Ice’ programme?
Answer:
The ‘Students on Ice’ programme aims to take high school students to the ends of the world. It provides them with inspiring educational opportunities which fosters in them a new understanding and respect for our planet. It offers the future generation of policy makers a life-changing experience at an age when they are ready to absorb, learn and act.