NCERT Solutions for From the Diary of Anne Frank Class 10 First Flight English
Book Solutions1
Do you keep a diary ? Given below under ‘A’ are some terms we use to describe a written record of personal experience. Can you match them with their descriptions under ‘B’ ? (You may look up the terms in a dictionary if you wish.)
|
A |
B |
|
|
(i) Journal |
- |
A book with a separate space or page for each day, in which you write down your thoughts and feelings or what has happened on that day |
|
(ii) Diary |
- |
A full record of a journey, a period of time, or an event, written every day. |
|
(iii) Log |
- |
A record of a person’s own life and experiences (usually, a famous person) |
|
(iv) Memoir(s) |
- |
A written record of events with times and dates, usually official |
Answer
|
A |
B |
|
|
(i) Journal |
- |
A full record of a journey, a period of time, or an event, written everyday |
|
(ii) Diary |
- |
A book with a separate space or page for each day, in which you write down your thoughts and feelings or what has happened on that day |
|
(iii) Log |
- |
A written record of events with times and dates, usually official |
|
(iv) Memoir(s) |
- |
A record of a person’s own life and experiences (usually, a famous person) |
2
Here are some entries from personal records. Use the definitions above to decide which of the entries might be from a diary, a journal, a log or a memoir.
(i) I woke up very late today and promptly got a scolding from Mum! I can’t help it − how can I miss the FIFA World Cup matches?
(ii) 10:30 a.m. Went to the office of the Director
01:00 p.m. Had lunch with Chairman
05:45 p.m. Received Rahul at the airport
09:30 p.m. Dinner at home
(iii) The ride to Ooty was uneventful. We rested for a while every 50 km or so, and used the time to capture the magnificent landscape with my Handy Cam. From Ooty we went on to Bangalore.
What a contrast! The noise and pollution of this once − beautiful city really broke my heart.
(iv) This is how Raj Kapoor found me − all wet and ragged outside R. K. Studios. He was then looking for just someone like this for a small role in Mera Naam Joker, and he cast me on the spot. The rest, as they say, is history?
Answer
(i) I woke up very late today and promptly got a scolding from Mum! I can’t help it − how can I miss the FIFA World Cup matches?
Answer
Diary
(ii) 10:30 a.m. Went to the office of the Director
01:00 p.m. Had lunch with Chairman
05:45 p.m. Received Rahul at the airport
09:30 p.m. Dinner at home
Answer
Log
(iii) The ride to Ooty was uneventful. We rested for a while every 50 km or so, and used the time to capture the magnificent landscape with my Handy Cam. From Ooty we went on to Bangalore.
What a contrast! The noise and pollution of this once − beautiful city really broke my heart.
Answer
Journal
(iv) This is how Raj Kapoor found me − all wet and ragged outside R. K. Studios. He was then looking for just someone like this for a small role in Mera Naam Joker, and he cast me on the spot. The rest, as they say, is history?
Answer
Memoir
1
What makes writing in a diary a strange experience for Anne Frank?
Answer
Writing in a diary was a strange experience for Anne Frank not only because she had never written anything before but also because she thought no one else would be interested in the musings of a thirteen year old girl. But still Anne shared all her secrets with her diary.
2
Why does Anne want to keep a diary ?
Answer
Anne wanted to a keep diary to share her feelings and thoughts as she did not have any true friend whom she could confide in. She wanted to get all kinds of things off her chest. She wanted to share her feelings and emotions with someone. She found a true friend in her diary.
3
Why did Anne think she could confide more in her diary than in people?
Answer
Anne thought that paper had more patience than people to hear and attend to the musings of a thirteen year old girl. So, it was easier for her to write all kinds of thoughts in it because she was sure of the fact that her diary would listen to her better than her friends and might not get bored with what she wanted to convey.
1
Why does Anne provide a brief sketch of her life ?
Answer
Anne wants to share everything with her diary. She considers diary to be her friend so just as we introduce ourselves and our family with our new friends, Anne shares brief sketch of her life. She wants to give an overview of her family, relatives and her age.
2
What tells you that Anne loved her grandmother ?
Answer
After the death of Anne's grandmother in January 1942, she missed her very much. She mentioned in her diary, 'No one knows how often I think of her and still love her'. This is because she lived with her grandmother for sometime while her parents were in Holland. During that period, she had developed a close connection with her grandmother.
1
Why was Mr Keesing annoyed with Anne? What did he ask her to do?
Answer
Mr. Keesing was annoyed with Anne because of her habit of talking too much in the class. In spite of being warned not to talk, she did not stop. To keep her quiet, he asked her to write an essay on the topic, 'A Chatterbox' as a punishment.
2
How did Anne justify her being a chatterbox in her essay?
Answer
Anne justified her being a chatterbox in her essay by providing a convincing argument in her three pages of essay. She argued that talking was a student's attribute and she had inherited that quality of talking from her mother as she also used to talk too much and she could not help about her inherited trait.
3
Do you think Mr Keesing was a strict teacher ?
Answer
Mr. Keesing was a strict teacher. However, he was not rigidly strict. He expected discipline and silence in his class while he was teaching, which is acceptable. He punished Anne by asking her to write an essay on ‘A Chatterbox’. When Anne wrote a convincing essay on it, he received it with a good laugh. However, when Anne continued with her talking, he punished her again by asking her to write another essay; this time the topic was ‘An Incorrigible Chatterbox’. Even after this when she kept talking, he asked her to write on the topic ‘Quack Quack Quack, said Mistress Chatterbox”. He was trying to play a joke on her. However, she came up with a brilliant poem, and he read this poem in the class, acknowledging its content. Therefore, in regard of these events, Mr. Keesing cannot be entirely labelled as a strict teacher. He was fun-loving too.
Or,
No, I did not find Mr. Keesing a strict teacher. If I had been there at Mr. Keesing's place, I, would have also reacted in the same manner because a teacher does everything for the betterment of his students. Any teacher can be annoyed if children keep on talking in the class.
4
What made Mr Keesing allow Anne to talk in class ?
Answer
As a punishment by Mr Keesing, Anne wrote her last essay on the topic, 'Quack, Quack, Quack' which was written with the help of her friend, Sanne in a verse. This showed Mr. Keesing the lighter side of a naughty child. The essay was about a father swan biting his three baby ducklings to death because they quacked too much. Since then, he allowed Anne to talk in the class.
1
Was Anne right when she said that the world would not be interested in the musings of a thirteen-year-old girl ?
Answer
No, Anne was not right when she said that the world would not be interested in the musings of a thirteen-year-old girl.
Or,
Yes, from the perspective of a thirteen year old girl, she was right when she said that the world would not be interested in the musings of a thirteen year old girl. However, Anne Frank was proved wrong later as the diary became very popular and was widely read. Anne Frank had become world famous catastrophic victim. Her diary was published after her death by her father and was translated into several other languages.
2
There are some examples of diary or journal entries in the ‘Before You Read’ section. Compare these with what Anne writes in her diary. What language was the diary originally written in? In what way is Anne’s dairy different ?
Answer
Anne's diary was completely different from the examples of diary or journal entries given before the lesson. Her diary is different in the sense that it is partly a diary and partly a memoir and something of a log also. It was originally written in Dutch but translated into many other languages.
3
Why does Anne need to give a brief sketch about her family? Does she treat ‘Kitty’ as an insider or an outsider?
Answer
By providing a brief sketch of her life, Anne wanted to give an overview of her family and relatives so that she develops a connection with the author. 'Kitty' was an outsider, gifted to her on her thirteenth birthday by her father. But she considered it as her best friend as she had hardly any friend whom she could confide in. So, she treated 'Kitty' as an insider.
4
How does Anne feel about her father, her grandmother, Mrs Kuperus and Mr Keesing ? What do these tell you about her ?
Answer
The way in which Anne describes her father, grandmother and teachers, shows that she is both sensible and sensitive. Anne respected and loved her family and friends. Anne's father was closest to her heart. She was very possessive about him. She was very fond of her grandmother also. She was shocked at her death. Tears rolled down her cheeks when she had to bid farewell to Mrs. Kuperus at the end of the session. She was also able to bring a change in Mr. Keesing's attitude towards her. This reveals that she was very good at understanding people.
5
What does Anne write in her first essay ?
Answer
Due to Anne's habit of talking too much, her Maths teacher Mr. Keesing asks her to write an essay on the topic, 'A Chatterbox' as a punishment. In her essay, she accepts the feature of her personality of being talkative but asserts that tqlfring is a student's trait. Moreover, she has inherited the habit of talking from her mother. So, she won't able to cure herself of it ever. Mr. Keesing grinned from ear to ear at this argument of her.
6
Anne says teachers are most unpredictable. Is Mr Keesing unpredictable? How?
Answer
Anne says that teachers are most unpredictable because they can be strict or lenient about awarding marks to students. Mr. Keesing was unpredictable as in the beginning he was strict and punished Anne for talking too much in the class and gave her extra homework of writing essays as a punishment. After the third essay, his behaviour towards Anne changed and he allowed her to talk.
7
What do these statements tell you about Anne Frank as a person?
(i) We don’t seem to be able to get any closer, and that’s the problem. Maybe it’s my fault that we don’t confide in each other.
(ii) I don’t want to jot down the facts in this diary the way most people would, but I want the diary to be my friend.
(iii) Margot went to Holland in December, and I followed in February, when I was plunked down on the table as a birthday present for Margot.
(iv) If you ask me, there are so many dummies that about a quarter of the class should be kept back, but teachers are the most unpredictable creatures on earth.
(v) Anyone could ramble on and leave big spaces between the words, but the trick was to come up with convincing arguments to prove the necessity of taking.
Answer
(i) Anne is reserved and accepts the drawbacks of her personality traits.I
Match the compound words under ‘A’ with their meanings under ‘B’. Use each in sentence.
|
A |
B |
|
1. Heartbreaking |
- obeying and respecting the law |
|
2. Homesick |
- think about pleasant things, forgetting about the present |
|
3. Blockhead |
- something produced by a person, machine or organisation |
|
4. Law-abiding |
- producing great sadness |
|
5. Overdo |
- an occasion when vehicles/machines stop working |
|
6. Daydream |
- an informal word which means a very stupid person |
|
7. Breakdown |
- missing home and family very much |
|
8. Output |
- do something to an excessive degree |
Answer
|
A |
B |
|
1. Heartbreaking |
- producing great sadness |
|
2. Homesick |
- missing home and family very much |
|
3. Blockhead |
- an informal word which means a very stupid person |
|
4. Law-abiding |
- obeying and respecting the law |
|
5. Overdo |
- do something to an excessive degree |
|
6. Daydream |
- think about pleasant things, forgetting about the present |
|
7. Breakdown |
- an occasion when vehicles/machines stop working |
|
8. Output |
- something produced by a person, machine or organisation |
II
Now find the sentences in the lesson that have the phrasal verbs given below. Match them with their meanings.
|
(i) |
plunge in |
- |
speak or write without focus |
|
(ii) |
kept back |
- |
stay indoors |
|
(iii) |
move up |
- |
make (them) remain quiet |
|
(iv) |
ramble on |
- |
have a good relationship with |
|
(v) |
get along with |
- |
give an assignment (home work) to a person authority (the teacher) |
|
(vi) |
calm down |
- |
compensate |
|
(vii) |
stay in |
- |
go straight to the topic |
|
(viii) |
make up for |
- |
go to the next grade |
|
(ix) |
hand in |
- |
not promoted |
Answer
(i) plunge in − go straight to the topic
Since no one would understand a word of my stories to Kitty if I were to plunge right in, I’d better provide a brief sketch of my life, much as I dislike doing so.
(ii) kept back − not promoted
The reason, of course, is the forthcoming meeting in which the teachers decide who’ll move up to the next form and who’ll be kept back.
(iii) move up − go to the next grade
The reason, of course, is the forthcoming meeting in which the teachers decide who’ll move up to the next form and who’ll be kept back.
(iv) ramble on − speak or write without focus
Anyone could ramble on and leave big spaces between the words, but the trick was to come up with convincing arguments to prove the necessity of talking.
(v) get along with − have a good relationship with
I get along pretty well with all my teachers.
(vi) calm down − make (them) remain quite
Even G.’s pleading advances and my angry outbursts can’t calm them down.
(vii) stay in − stay indoors
I thought of this saying on one of those days when I was feeling a little depressed and was sitting at home with my chin in my hands, bored and listless, wondering whether to stay in or go out.
(viii) make up for − compensate
This birthday celebration in 1942 was intended to make up for the other.
(ix) hand in − give an assignment (homework) to a person in authority (the teacher)
I handed it in, and Mr. Keesing had nothing to complain about for two whole lessons.
III
Here are a few sentences from the text which have idiomatic expressions. Can you say what each means? (You might want to consult a dictionary first.)
(i) Our entire class is quaking in its boots.
(ii) Until then, we keep telling each other not to lose heart.
(iii) Mr Keeping was annoyed with me for ages because I talked so much.
(iv)Mr Keeping was trying to play a joke on me with this ridiculous subject, but I’d make sure the joke was on him.
Answer
(i) Our entire class is quaking in its boots. Shaking with fear and nervousness
(ii) Until then, we keep telling each other not to lose heart. Not to lose hope
(iii) Mr. Keeping was annoyed with me for ages because I talked so much. Since a long time
(iv) Mr. Keeping was trying to play a joke on me with this ridiculous subject, but I’d make sure the joke was on him. He was outwitted by her
2
Here are a few more idiomatic expressions that occur in the text. Try to use them in sentences of your own.
(i) caught my eye ourselves silly
(ii) he’d had enough
(iii) laugh
(iv) can’t bring myself to
Answer
(i) caught my eye
An old beggar passing by caught my eye.
(ii) he’d had enough
He decided he'd had enough of the bad luck.
(iii) laugh ourselves silly
One girl said something funny, and we laughed ourselves silly.
(iii) can’t bring myself to
I can’t bring myself to eat anything but chocolates.
IV
You have read the expression ‘not to lose heart’ in this text. Now find out the meanings of the following expressions using the word ‘heart’. Use each of them in a sentence of your own.
1. break somebody’s heart
2. close/dear to heart
3. from the (bottom of your) heart
4. have a heart
5. have a heart of stone
6. your heart goes out to somebody
Answer
1. break somebody’s heart − to upset somebody deeply
It has unfortunately become very easy these days to break somebody’s heart.
2. close/dear to heart − something or someone who is near and close to you
The drawing given to me by my little daughter is very close to my heart.
3. from the (bottom of your) heart − genuinely meaning or feeling something
He loved his son from the bottom of his heart.
4. have a heart − to evoke the feeling to help someone in distress
The poor beggar asked the rich man to have a heart and give him something to eat.
5. have a heart of stone − to not feel anything or any sentiment
The cruel landlady has a heart of stone as she beats up her children.
6. your heart goes out to somebody − to sympathise with someone else and understand his feelings and distress
My heart goes out to the little girl who lost both her parents in a car accident.
V
1. Make a list of the contracted forms in the text. Rewrite them as full forms of two words.
For example: I’ve = I have
2. We have seen that some contracted forms can stand for two different full forms:
I’d = I had or I would
Find in the text the contracted forms that stand for two different full forms, and say what these are.
Answer
1. (i) I’ve − I have
(ii) Doesn’t − does not
(iii) Won’t − would not
(iv) I’m − I am
(v) Don’t − do not
(vi) Can’t − cannot
(vii) it’s − it is
(viii) That’s − that is
(ix) I’d − I would
(x) Didn’t − did not
(xi) Who’ll − who will
(xii) You’re − You are
(xiii) We’ll − We will
(xiv) There’s − there is
(xv) He’d − he had
(xvi) Who’s − who is
(xvii) Haven’t − have not
2. (i) I’d − I had or I would
(ii) He’d − He had or he would