1.2 On to the Summit: We Reach the Top- Brainstorming
1.2 On to the Summit: We Reach the Top
Textbook Questions-
ANSWER THE
FOLLOWING QUESTIONS
Q. Discuss with
your partner the various hazards and risks that a mountaineer/ trekker has to
face in an expedition:
Ans. Mountaineering
is something very adventurous and is not meant for weak-hearted people. It
involves various risks and dangers as well like heavy rain storms, and avalanches,
if a mountaineer loses focus he/ she may fall down from a height, lack oxygen, become
extremely tiredness, feel dizzy, and a lot of other kind of trouble
mountaineers might face.
Q. Give reasons for
the ‘rope’ being called a symbol:
Ans. The rope was
considered a symbol as it tied Tenzing and Hillary together. One could not move
without the other. They were not two individuals, but a team.
Q. List the ways in
which Tenzing Norgay celebrates reaching the top.
Ans. On reaching
the summit-
a) His first
thought on reaching the top was a sense of gratitude to God, he had blessed
Tenzing with the fulfillment of this desire which he had held for so long.
b) Tenzing and
Hillary embraced each other overjoyed at their success, and then he took a photograph
of Tenzing holding aloft the flags of Great Britain, Nepal, the United Nations,
and India.
c) He then placed
on the summit the offerings to God that he had carried with him. This is in
accord with Tezing’s Buddhist religion. The offerings were biscuits, candy, and
a little blue pencil that his youngest daughter Nima had given to him before he
left home.
BRAINSTORMING
A(1) Summarise to
the class in your own words the highly risky and dangerous journey of Tenzing
and Hillary from the base to the top of Mt. Everest.
Ans. This time
Tenzing thought he would surely conquer the peak even at any cost. Before this, he tried to climb the Everest and failed six times. Both Hillary and Tenzing
were well-coordinated with each other and had a good understanding. They took
turns to take the lead and the other was walking behind, which was rather a
difficult job. Tenzing carried the flags of four countries, including India so
that he could put them onto the summit. After an hour of steady going, they had
to cut across the south face and started up to the west side where they had to
cross a steep line of rocks. That was quite difficult, thus slow. However, once
they had cleared these, there was nothing barring their way, just a
snow-covered incline. This was eventually becoming easier as the steep incline
decreased as they neared the top. Although the last sixty or seventy feet up
the top were not very dangerous, they maintained the same steady pace and
reached the small, flattened summit almost together. During the last fifty feet
from the peak, Hillary and Tenzing were moving about twenty feet apart. They
were tied together with a rope. This rope was a symbol as it proved that they
were not two individuals, but a team.
(A2) (i) Complete
the web highlighting the feelings/emotions of Tenzing after reaching the
summit:
Ans. Tenzing’s
feelings/ emotions after reaching the summit-
a) Feeling of
gratitude.
b) Exhilaration
c) A sense of
satisfaction and clarity.
d) Feeling of
nostalgia.
(ii) Glance through
the text again and explain the qualities of Tenzing Norgay. Pick lines that
show his unique qualities. One is done for you:
Ans.
|
Sr. |
Qualities |
Lines |
|
1 |
Patriotic |
I told Colonel Hunt that I was
carrying the Indian flag with me and I would like it to be on the top with other
flags. |
|
2 |
Spiritual |
My first thought on reaching the
top was a sense of gratitude to God. He had blessed me with fulfillment of
this desire I had held for so long. |
|
3 |
Nostalgic and emotional |
I was wearing a red scarf which my
great friend Lambert (leader of the 1952 Swiss expedition) had given me last
year. It was just a year ago, on May 28th, when we were standing at 28,215
feet, that he gave me the scarf. |
|
4 |
Simplicity and love for his family |
My youngest daughter, Nima, had
given me the pencil before I left home. She asked me to put it on the top of
the mountain as her offering. |
(iii) Write down
the significance of the following in the context of ‘On to the Summit’:
(i) Red Scarf (ii)
husair (iii) Kerosene flavored
tea (iv) Ice axe (v) Anchor
Ans. (a)
Red Scarf: The red scarf was a gift to Tenzing by his good friend Lambert
who was the leader of the Swiss Expedition of 1952. It was just a year ago, on
May 28th, when they were standing at 28,215 feet, that he gave Tenzing the scarf
and now he was all nostalgic reminiscing about his friend. This scarf reminded
Tenzing of their successful mission and it also shows a great sense of
companionship.
(b) Husiar:
Using a different language term in English is called code-mixing. Here, in the
chapter, it shows that Tenzing’s knowledge about mountaineering was very clear
and apt. Both Tenzing and Hillary were very cautious while climbing down.
After successful completion, they remained humble were fully aware of the
technique, and remained calm and cautious throughout their way down.
(c) Kerosene
Flavored Tea: This tea was brought by C.W.F. Noyce for Tenzing and Hillary from camp
eight. A little bit of Kerosene got mixed with the tea as it was made in a
hurry by Noyce. It was a kind gesture and a sense of happiness for both of them
so Tenzing didn’t say anything to Noyce and drank the tea. Both the
mountaineers were grateful as they got hot tea at a time when they needed it
the most. The gentleman had taken so much trouble to serve them tea and they
were not bothered about the smell or what so ever.
(d) Ice Axe: Tenzing got
out the flags which he had on piece of string about four feet long. HE fastened
one end to his ice axe and Hillary took pictures as he held it up. As he had to
bring his ice axe down with him, he buried one end of the string in the ice on
the top, and the other in snow on the slope down below. When they left, the
flags were lying flat against the summit.
(e) Anchor: An anchor can be
a person who provides stability or confidence in an otherwise uncertain
situation. In mountaineering, the man who follows behind while climbing up as
well as down has a difficult job. Tenzing and Hillary decided to alternate this
job of anchoring so that the person leading feels safer. This showed that they
had a great team-work and companionship where both shared the responsibility of
being the anchor so that it becomes a successful mission.
(A3) (i) Add suitable suffixes (-tion,-ly, -ment, -ous) and prefixes (un, il, im) to the words given below. One is done for you:
Ans.
|
Sr. |
Word |
Prefix |
Suffix |
|
1 |
absolute |
X |
Absolutely |
|
2 |
fulfill |
Unfulfilled |
Fulfillment |
|
3 |
determine |
Undetermined |
Determination |
|
4 |
danger |
X |
Dangerous |
|
5 |
tight |
Untighten |
tightly, tighten |
|
6 |
clear |
Unclear |
Clearly |
|
7 |
sure |
Unsure |
Surely |
|
8 |
legal |
Illegal |
Legally |
|
9 |
legitimate |
Illegitimate |
Legitimately |
|
10 |
possible |
Impossible |
Possibility |
(ii) By filling in appropriate letters in the blank spaces, you will get a past participle from
it. Use the word as an adjective in your own sentence. One is done for you.
(a) s _ _ n _ d
Word- signed. The advocate took all the signed documents to the court.
(b) p_ _ z _ d
(c) f_
_ t_ e n e_ (d) b _ i _ e_
Ans. b)
Prized – This wristwatch, my dad’s last gift to me, is my prized
possession.
c) Flattened –
A plateau is a tabular landform, with a flattened top.
d) Boiled –
I love to eat boiled eggs.
(iii) Spot the
error. One is done for you.
I was not afraid
to die that day.
Correct Sentence- I
was not afraid to die that day.
(a) Tenzing and
Hillary made an pact at the office of P M of Nepal.
Ans. Tenzing and
Hillary made a pact at the office of P M of Nepal.
(b) I has to bring
my ice axe down with me.
Ans. I have/
had to bring my ice axe down with me.
(c) Tenzinghave
spent a night with Camp Eight.
Ans. Tenzing had spent
a night with Camp Eight.
(d) The pact was signed
from Tenzing and Hillary.
Ans. Pact was
signed by Tenzing and Hillary.
(e) I and Hillary
were in no mood of talking.
Ans. Hillary
and I were in no mood for any talking.
(A4) When Tenzing
and Hillary reached the summit, Tenzing in utter joy said, “We have done it.”
In this sentence, the subject (we) is the doer of the action while it (achieving
the feat) is the subject. The verb of passive voice is formed by using the
correct form of the verb ‘to be’ + past participle of the main verb. Construct
the sentences accordingly.
Now carefully
go through the changes in both the sentences and make the changes accordingly in
the remaining sentences.
· We have done it.
Ans. It has been
done by us.
(a) We made a pact.
Passive- A pact was
made by us.
(b) I offered
silent prayer in my heart.
Passive– A silent prayer
was offered by me in my heart.
(c) Colonel Hunt
gave me three flags.
Passive- Three flags
were given to me by Colonel Hunt.
(d) I was carrying
the Indian flag.
Passive– The Indian flag
was being carried by me.
(e) I took
photographs of Tenzing holding aloft the flags.
Passive– Photographs of
Tenzing holding aloft the flags were taken by me.
(f) I remembered
him.
Passive- He was
remembered by me.
(g) We spent the
night at Camp Eight.
Passive- The night was
spent at Camp Eight by us.
You
are the college representative and your Principal has assigned you the task of
writing a letter to the Divisional Officer, Satpuda Mountain Ranges, Nagpur,
seeking permission for the mountaineering expedition to be organized by your
college.
Solution
Bhavan's College,
Kothrud,
Pune – 38
15th June 2019
The Divisional Officer,
Satpuda Mountain Ranges,
Nagpur
Subject: Seeking permission for organizing a
mountaineering expedition in the Satpuda Mountain Ranges
Respected Sir,
I, Rahul Sharma, am writing to you in my
capacity as the college representative of Bhavan's College to seek your
permission to organize a mountaineering expedition in the Satpuda Ranges.
The Student Council Committee has chalked out
a 3-day expedition from 10th July to 12th July.The enrolment is open to senior students only and the aim
is to give the students an opportunity to witness the beauty of nature while
giving them a taste of adventure. A total of 20 students accompanied by the
faculty head of the Sports Department and the Assistant-In-Charge for Sports
will be part of this expedition. We also intend to visit the Melghat Tiger
Reserve and the Narnala Fort situated in the vicinity. In addition, we wish to
survey the local flora and fauna of the area and interact with the local
inhabitants.
We are committed to making this a learning
experience and welcome any suggestions that you might have. I hope that you
will grant us permission to explore the beauty of the Satpuda ranges.
Yours sincerely,
Rahul Sharma
(College Representative, Bhavan's College)
Tenzing and
Hillary created history by reaching the summit of Mt. Everest. There are many
mountains in Maharashtra where one can fancy his or her chances of climbing
them. Imagine that you have climbed a mountain and are immensely thrilled and
excited. Write a letter to your friend about it.
Solution
A/9,501,
Srushty Apartments,
Andheri (W).
15th July 2019
Dear Vedant,
I hope this letter finds you in the pink of health. I apologize
for not having written to you for so long.
I recently had the pleasure of undertaking
the Kalsubai Trek and I am very excited to tell you about my experience.
Kalsubai, at an elevation of 1646 meters, is the highest point in Maharashtra.
We chose to take the train since railway
tickets proved to be cost-effective. We set out on our journey on Saturday
morning and reached Kasara Railway station by 7 a.m. Local taxis ferrying
trekkers to the base village, Bari, were readily available. The trekking trail
was about 6.4 km long and popular among trekkers. Iron ladders were built along
the vertical hill slopes for a safe ascent. Owing to the monsoon showers, the
path got trickier as we climbed since the rocks were slippery and visibility
was limited.
However, the sheer joy of trekking and
experiencing nature in all its glory was worth every minute of the experience.
The lush green paddy fields, the view of the water-falls, and the sight of the
Bhandardhara Dam left us mesmerized.
We reached a peak after 4 hours of trekking
and were spellbound by the magnificent view from the top. It felt like we were
at the top of the world! The light drizzle and the cold winds added to the joy
of the experience.
Knowing your love for adventure, I am sure
you would enjoy such an experience. Hopefully, we can plan something together
soon.
Yours faithfully,
Rahul