Bridges — Kumudini Lakhia | Class 11 Woven Words Summary, Q&A, MCQs

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Bridges — Kumudini Lakhia (Class 11, Woven Words)

Summary, Explanation, Difficult Words, Textbook Q&A, Extract-Based MCQs, 15 Practice MCQs, Extra Questions, SEO.

From NCERT Woven Words (Essays). Author: Kumudini Lakhia.

Table of Contents

• Summary of the Chapter
• Explanation of the Chapter
• Difficult Words and Meanings
• Textbook Questions & Answers
• Extract-Based MCQs (5 × 3)
• Practice MCQs (15 Challenging Questions)
• Extra Questions (Q&A)
• SEO (Title, Meta Description, Focus Keywords)

Summary of the Chapter

For quick revision

In this autobiographical essay, Kathak choreographer Kumudini Lakhia traces the links between her life and her art. As a child she was pushed into lessons by a determined mother, travelling across Bombay for classes with Guru Sunder Prasad. Schooling in Lahore, strict British discipline, and a personal loss at fourteen shaped her mind and body. Later, ideas turned into works like Duvidha (conflict within a middle-class woman), Atah Kim (“Where now?” after reaching a goal), and Panch Paras (the five senses). A stint with Ram Gopal’s company, global touring, marriage, and teaching refined her approach: master technique, then let it go and dance. She shows how home, politics, gender expectations, and stage practice connect like bridges, forming the base of her choreography.

Explanation of the Chapter

5–7 key ideas

1) “Born to dance” vs real beginnings

Lakhia questions claims of being “born to dance”. For her, discipline felt hard and progress slow. Yet her mother’s faith kept lessons going despite long commutes and an unwilling child. This sets up the theme: art grows through steady work, not destiny alone.

2) Early training, school life, and discipline

At Queen Mary’s School, Lahore, a dance tutor was arranged again. British-style routines taught order in daily life and thought. She craved reasons behind movements, hinting at a future choreographer who seeks clarity, not blind imitation.

3) Loss and inner hunger

Her mother’s sudden death brought confusion and a bodily memory of “dangling arms”. This physical image later shaped stage craft. The idea of different “hungers” became a driving motif in her pieces.

4) Works as mirrors of life — Duvidha, Atah Kim, Panch Paras

Duvidha shows a woman torn between convention and a new image of freedom. Atah Kim asks what follows success or power. Panch Paras celebrates the senses, separating sensitivity from sentimentality. Each work rises from lived episodes.

5) College, gender codes, and body dignity

Agriculture college placed her among boys and exposed social codes around dress and posture. She argues for dignity in movement and rejects shame taught to women about their bodies. This informs how dancers carry themselves.

6) Touring with Ram Gopal — technique and context

With Ram Gopal she learnt folk forms and Bharatanatyam lines with strict precision. His core lesson: perfect the craft, then “throw it overboard and dance”. Touring also showed how context changes perception—on stage as in life.

7) Home, family, and ensemble thinking

Marriage, children, and running a home demanded balance. She likens family life to ensemble performance where space, relations, and timing matter. These “bridges” guide her choreography and teaching.

Difficult Words and Meanings

Quick glossary

Word/Expression	Meaning (simple)
Incredulous	Unable to believe; doubtful
Dubious	Questionable; not fully reliable
Assertion	A strong statement or claim
Discipline	Training that brings order and control
Ante-room	Small waiting room before a main room
Matriculation	Final school exam of that time
Infraction	Breaking a rule
Demeanour	Outward manner and behaviour
Duvidha	“Conflict” (title of her piece)
Synergy	When parts work together to create extra force
Repertoire	Set of pieces a group can perform
Disciplinarian	One who insists on strict order
Fetish (for perfection)	Strong, fixed attention to a detail
Context	Surroundings or setting that change meaning
Emancipation	Becoming free from control or limits

Textbook Questions & Answers

From NCERT “Understanding the Text”

1) How did the author feel about her mother’s passion to make her a dancer?

Type: Very Short Answer (1–2 sentences)

Answer: As a child she felt unwilling and found classes tiring and slow. She saw dance as hard discipline pushed by her mother, not as a calling at first.

2) What were the lessons of life learnt in her younger days that Kumudini carried into her adult life?

Type: Short Answer (30–40 words)

Answer: British-style order, asking “why” behind actions, dignity in movement, inner strength after loss, and awareness of context. These ideas shaped her practice and later appeared in works like Duvidha and Panch Paras.

3) How did Kumudini react to her mother’s death?

Type: Short Answer (30–40 words)

Answer: She met a still, silent home and felt confused, empty, and hungry after days without food. The memory of her “dangling arms” and mixed hungers later informed her choreography and stage images.

4) What were the concepts that Kumudini Lakhia represent through Duvidha, Atah Kim and Panch Paras?

Type: Long Answer (60–70 words)

Answer: Duvidha portrays a middle-class woman divided between convention and a bold new image. Atah Kim asks where one goes after achieving power or a goal. Panch Paras honours the five senses and separates clear feeling from sentimentality. Each piece rises from lived moments—loss, curiosity, and discipline—showing life and art joined like bridges.

5) How does Kumudini Lakhia describe her guru Ramgopal’s influence on her?

Type: Short Answer (30–40 words)

Answer: She learnt precision, line, and range—from folk forms to Bharatanatyam. Ram Gopal insisted on mastery first, then freedom: once technique is secure, “throw it overboard and dance.” This became her teaching mantra.

Extract-Based MCQs (5 × 3)

Each extract followed by 3 MCQs

Extract Set 1

“To dance means to struggle—I believe it is the same in any discipline because discipline itself is a struggle.”

Q1. The line chiefly challenges which idea?

1. a) Talent makes effort unnecessary
2. b) Practice brings boredom
3. c) Struggle is only for beginners
4. d) Discipline blocks creativity

Answer: a) Talent makes effort unnecessary

Q2. Here, “discipline” is presented as:

1. a) A quick fix
2. b) A constant effort
3. c) A reward
4. d) A pastime

Answer: b) A constant effort

Q3. The tone best matches:

1. a) Boastful
2. b) Realistic
3. c) Mocking
4. d) Fearful

Answer: b) Realistic

Extract Set 2

“I was always a curious child and I wanted to know and understand what I was doing. Why was I gyrating in this way?”

Q1. The speaker’s question shows a need for:

1. a) Blind faith
2. b) Theoretical clarity
3. c) Stage fame
4. d) Approval from peers

Answer: b) Theoretical clarity

Q2. This trait later supports her role as:

1. a) Impromptu comic
2. b) Choreographer
3. c) Costume designer
4. d) Lighting director

Answer: b) Choreographer

Q3. The word “gyrating” most nearly means:

1. a) Turning or moving in circles
2. b) Standing still
3. c) Falling down
4. d) Jumping high

Answer: a) Turning or moving in circles

Extract Set 3

“Mother was already dead when I arrived… The dangling arms find expression in my choreography.”

Q1. The image of “dangling arms” becomes:

1. a) A costume idea
2. b) A lighting cue
3. c) A movement motif
4. d) A stage prop

Answer: c) A movement motif

Q2. The mood of the extract is chiefly:

1. a) Comic
2. b) Somber
3. c) Triumphant
4. d) Romantic

Answer: b) Somber

Q3. Which theme is reinforced?

1. a) Art from personal experience
2. b) Success without effort
3. c) Fame and wealth
4. d) Use of stage props

Answer: a) Art from personal experience

Extract Set 4

“However, in the end he would say, ‘You’ve perfected the technique, now throw it overboard and dance’.”

Q1. The advice suggests that creativity comes:

1. a) Before technique
2. b) After mastery
3. c) Without practice
4. d) Only on stage

Answer: b) After mastery

Q2. The speaker credited with this view is:

1. a) Sunder Prasad
2. b) Ram Gopal
3. c) Komlata Dutt
4. d) Liaquat Ali

Answer: b) Ram Gopal

Q3. “Throw it overboard” implies:

1. a) Abandon practice forever
2. b) Hide technique from the audience
3. c) Let technique support, not stiffen, the dance
4. d) Learn new folk forms only

Answer: c) Let technique support, not stiffen, the dance

Extract Set 5

“One changes the placement of a choreographic piece on stage and it looks quite different. I myself was a changed person when placed in different surroundings.”

Q1. The key idea is that meaning is shaped by:

1. a) Costume colour
2. b) Context and placement
3. c) Ticket price
4. d) Length of tour

Answer: b) Context and placement

Q2. The comparison links stage craft with:

1. a) Cooking
2. b) Travel visas
3. c) Life in new cultures
4. d) Accounts

Answer: c) Life in new cultures

Q3. Which term best captures this idea?

1. a) Repercussion
2. b) Context
3. c) Ornamentation
4. d) Improvisation

Answer: b) Context

Practice MCQs (15 Challenging Questions)

Conceptual & application-based

1. The essay’s title “Bridges” mainly points to:

1. a) River crossings in Bombay
2. b) Links between life and dance
3. c) A stage prop she used
4. d) A school in Lahore

Answer: b) Links between life and dance

2. Which event first set her on the dance path?

1. a) A Kathak workshop
2. b) A film dance by Mumtaz Ali
3. c) A school function
4. d) Meeting Ram Gopal

Answer: b) A film dance by Mumtaz Ali

3. The commute for early classes shows:

1. a) Ease and comfort
2. b) The mother’s resolve
3. c) Lakhia’s eagerness
4. d) The father’s strictness

Answer: b) The mother’s resolve

4. British-style schooling chiefly gave her:

1. a) Love for sport only
2. b) Order in routine and thought
3. c) Stage fright
4. d) Dislike for teachers

Answer: b) Order in routine and thought

5. Which work treats the question, “Where now?” after success?

1. a) Panch Paras
2. b) Duvidha
3. c) Atah Kim
4. d) Umrao Jaan

Answer: c) Atah Kim

6. The gardener episode near Liaquat Ali’s house taught her:

1. a) How to grow guavas
2. b) Tricks of politics
3. c) Train timings
4. d) Stage makeup

Answer: b) Tricks of politics

7. Her response to gender codes at agriculture college was to:

1. a) Accept shame
2. b) Avoid classes
3. c) Argue for body dignity
4. d) Quit cycling

Answer: c) Argue for body dignity

8. Who connected her to Ram Gopal’s company?

1. a) Miss Cox
2. b) Komlata Dutt
3. c) Rajanikant
4. d) Suresh

Answer: b) Komlata Dutt

9. Touring taught her that a changed placement on stage:

1. a) Lengthens a piece
2. b) Hides errors
3. c) Alters how it looks and feels
4. d) Makes costumes cheaper

Answer: c) Alters how it looks and feels

10. The line that best sums up her method is:

1. a) “Dance is born, not made.”
2. b) “Perfect the technique, then dance freely.”
3. c) “Touring is everything.”
4. d) “Costume over content.”

Answer: b) “Perfect the technique, then dance freely.”

11. Which piece celebrates the five senses?

1. a) Panch Paras
2. b) Duvidha
3. c) Atah Kim
4. d) Sur Sangam

Answer: a) Panch Paras

12. Her husband’s main gift to her was a love for:

1. a) Costuming
2. b) Music
3. c) Lighting
4. d) Set design

Answer: b) Music

13. The essay links family life to ensemble dance to stress:

1. a) Solo glory
2. b) Space, timing, relations
3. c) Audience noise
4. d) Ticket sales

Answer: b) Space, timing, relations

14. The film industry’s role appears when:

1. a) She worked as an actor
2. b) A film dance sparked her mother’s plan
3. c) She choreographed a musical in school
4. d) She bought cinema props

Answer: b) A film dance sparked her mother’s plan

15. Which pair is correctly matched?

1. a) Sunder Prasad — Bharatanatyam line
2. b) Ram Gopal — strict precision and freedom
3. c) Liaquat Ali — dance mentor
4. d) Miss Cox — film connection

Answer: b) Ram Gopal — strict precision and freedom

Extra Questions (Q&A)

25–35 words each

1. How does the title “Bridges” frame her story?
   It signals links between memory, body, training, and stage craft. Each episode connects to a later piece, showing life and art meeting across time.
2. Why is the questioning habit central to her growth?
   It moves her from imitation to understanding. Asking “why” helps her design movement vocabulary and turn personal events into stage motifs.
3. What does the Lahore school experience add?
   Orderly routines train her mind. A firm yet fair principal models leadership she later uses when teaching and directing groups.
4. In what way does grief reshape her art?
   Bodily memories of shock become images in choreography. The “dangling arms” and mixed hunger become movement themes that carry feeling without speech.
5. How do her pieces reflect lived questions?
   Duvidha asks about social limits, Atah Kim asks about direction after success, and Panch Paras celebrates sense-experience. Each grows from real dilemmas.
6. What stage lesson does touring teach?
   Placement changes meaning. A shift in space alters how a piece reads, just as countries and cultures altered how she saw herself.
7. How is dignity in movement linked to gender norms?
   She rejects shame taught to girls and argues for poised carriage. Dance should show grace and strength without hiding the body.
8. Why compare family life to ensemble work?
   Both need awareness of space, timing, and relations. You adjust to others and shape a larger picture rather than shine alone.
9. What is the role of teachers in her journey?
   From Sunder Prasad to Ram Gopal, teachers provide structure and standards. Their guidance becomes the base from which she finds her own voice.
10. How does context relate to audience response?
    The same movement can read differently in a new setting. Shifts in space, culture, or order change audience focus and feeling.

The Story by E.M. Forster – Summary, Explanation, Q&A, and MCQs (Class 11 Woven Words)

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Class 11 • Woven Words (NCERT) • Prose

The Story — E.M. Forster (Class 11, Woven Words)

Summary, Explanation, Difficult Words, Textbook Q&A, Extract-Based MCQs, 15 Practice MCQs, Extra Questions, SEO.

Table of Contents

• Summary of the Chapter
• Explanation of the Chapter
• Difficult Words and Meanings
• Textbook Questions & Answers
• Extract-Based MCQs (5 × 3)
• Practice MCQs (15 Challenging Questions)
• Extra Questions (Q&A)

Summary of the Chapter

Forster argues that the basic element of a novel is its story, the part that makes readers ask, “What happens next?” He dramatises three voices that answer the question “What does a novel do?” with varying attitudes, and then admits—reluctantly—that story is the common thread. He likens it to a backbone or even a tape-worm: primitive, old, and kept alive by suspense. The example of Scheherazade shows how suspense can even save a life. Yet life is not only time-sequence; we also live by “values”. Good novels, he says, pay a double allegiance—both to time and to value. However playful writers may be with clocks and chronology (Bronte, Sterne, Proust), a novel still needs the time-bound chain of events that forms a story.

Explanation of the Chapter

1) The three voices: three attitudes to the novel

Forster presents three speakers: the casual reader who vaguely thinks a novel “tells a story”, the blunt reader who wants only story, and Forster himself, regretfully conceding that story is essential. The scene sets up his measured defence of story without worshipping it.

2) Story as backbone (or tape-worm)

Calling story a “backbone” or even a “tape-worm”, he stresses that beginnings and endings are often arbitrary. The image is meant to be plain, even unlovely, so we see story as a simple structure that supports finer features like character, style, and truth-seeking.

3) Primitive roots and the power of suspense

From campfires of “shock-heads” to the legend of Scheherazade, listeners stayed awake because of suspense. She survives by stopping at dawn mid-sentence, keeping the king eager for the next event. Suspense is the one tool even “tyrants and savages” respond to.

4) The only merit and the only fault

As “qua story” (considered purely as story), it has just one merit—making us want to know what comes next—and one fault—failing to do so. This stark standard reminds us that story, by itself, is the lowest yet most common element of the novel.

5) Life in time and life by values

Daily life runs by time, yet our strongest moments are measured by intensity, not minutes. Good novels include both modes: they must move in time, but they also capture value, memory, and meaning beyond the clock.

6) The novelist’s clock (Bronte, Sterne, Proust)

Novelists may hide the clock (Emily Bronte), invert it (Sterne), or keep changing the hands (Proust). These tricks are legitimate, but none abolish time inside the novel; the story-thread must still be there to keep sense.

7) A note on tone: the Clark Lectures

The piece comes from Forster’s 1927 Clark Lectures. He keeps a conversational tone (“I”, “you”, “of course”), believing that the novel—often colloquial itself—may reveal more to a friendly talk than to solemn criticism.

Difficult Words and Meanings

Word / Phrase	Meaning (Short)
atavistic	Relating to ancient or primitive traits
shock-heads	Ruffled, shaggy-haired people (primitive listeners)
ingenious	Clever and inventive
tape-worm (metaphor)	Long, thin chain of events; story as bare time-thread
Neolithic / Palaeolithic	Very early prehistoric periods
tyrants	Harsh, absolute rulers
delineations	Descriptions or portrayals
interminable	Seemingly endless
allegiance	Loyalty or commitment
chronological	Arranged by time order
metaphysicians	Philosophers who study the nature of reality
auspices	Support or patronage
colloquial	Conversational; informal in style
vizier	High official or minister (in monarchies)
backwaters and shallows (metaphor)	Quiet, less formal places (here, of criticism)

Textbook Questions & Answers

UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT

Q1. What do you understand of the three voices in response to the question ‘What does a novel do’? Long Answer (60–70 words)

Forster stages three views. The first is mild and vague: a novel “tells a story”. The second is blunt and exclusive: only story matters. The third—Forster’s own—is regretful yet honest: story is fundamental though he wishes it were otherwise. These voices show a range from casual acceptance, through aggressive preference for plot, to a reflective critic who concedes story while looking beyond it.

Q2. What would you say are ‘the finer growths’ that the story supports in a novel? Short Answer (30–40 words)

They are features such as description, judgement, incident-craft, morality, character portrayal, and style—the richer elements a novel carries on its “backbone”. Story holds these up, even if it is itself plain and unlovely.

Q3. How does Forster trace the human interest in the story to primitive times? Short Answer (30–40 words)

He imagines prehistoric listeners round a campfire, kept awake by suspense. If they guessed “what happens next”, they slept—or killed the storyteller. The Scheherazade episode later shows suspense as a life-saving skill.

Q4. Discuss the importance of time in the narration of a story. Long Answer (60–70 words)

A story is a sequence of events in time—breakfast before dinner, Monday before Tuesday. Its single merit is creating the wish to know the next event. Though life also runs by “values”, the novelist cannot abolish time inside a novel. Even when writers play with clocks, the time-thread must remain, or the narrative becomes unintelligible.

TALKING ABOUT THE TEXT

Q5. What does a novel do? Very Short Answer (1–2 sentences)

At base, it tells a story—events in time that prompt the question, “What happens next?” A good novel also conveys value and meaning beyond the time-sequence.

Q6. ‘Our daily life reflects a double allegiance to “the life in time” and “the life by values”.’ Short Answer (30–40 words)

We live by clocks and calendars, yet our strongest moments are measured by intensity, not minutes. Forster suggests good novels capture both: temporal order and felt value.

Q7. The description of novels as organisms. Short Answer (30–40 words)

A novel is a complex organism with story as its simplest shared element. Around that core grow character, theme, voice, and design—the “finer growths” that make each novel feel living and whole.

APPRECIATION

Q8. How does Forster use the analogy of Scheherazade to establish his point? Short Answer (30–40 words)

Scheherazade survives by suspense—stopping mid-sentence at dawn. The image shows story’s raw power: keeping listeners eager for “what next” is the one tool that sways even a murderous king.

Q9. Taking off from Forster’s references to Emily Bronte, Sterne and Proust, discuss the treatment of time in some of the novels you have read. Short Answer (30–40 words)

Writers may hide, invert, or distort time, yet a readable thread remains. Even experimental narratives keep enough sequence to be followed; otherwise, meaning breaks down.

LANGUAGE WORK

Q10. ‘Qua story’: what does the word mean? Find other expressions using the word qua. Short Answer (30–40 words)

Qua means “in the capacity of” or “considered as”. Examples: “the judge qua citizen”, “art qua communication”. So “qua story” means “considered purely as story”.

Q11. Study the Note to Aspects of the Novel given at the end. Discuss the features that mark the piece as a talk as distinguished from a critical essay. Short Answer (30–40 words)

First-person address, direct appeals (“you”, “of course”), and conversational rhythm mark it as a talk. The tone is informal and flexible rather than heavily footnoted or strictly methodical.

Q12. Try rewriting the lecture as a formal essay and examine Forster’s statement: ‘…since the novel is itself often colloquial, it may possibly withhold some of its secrets from the graver and grander streams of criticism’. Long Answer (60–70 words)

In formal mode, topic sentences and tighter argument would replace anecdote. Yet Forster’s claim holds: a colloquial subject may disclose best in a colloquial manner. A stiff, “grand” method can miss live features—voice, play, readerly curiosity—that casual talk catches, especially when discussing story, suspense, and time as felt by ordinary readers.

Extract-Based MCQs (5 × 3)

Set 1

“Yes—oh dear yes—the novel tells a story. That is the fundamental aspect without which it could not exist.”

1. What tone does the speaker convey here?
   • Cheerful celebration
   • Reluctant acceptance
   • Angry rejection
   • Detached indifference

   Answer: b) Reluctant acceptance

2. In context, “fundamental” means:
   • Optional
   • Marginal
   • Basic and necessary
   • Decorative

   Answer: c) Basic and necessary

3. The line supports which claim?
   • Style outweighs plot
   • Story can be removed
   • Story is the shared core of novels
   • Novels are lyric poems

   Answer: c) Story is the shared core of novels

Set 2

“It runs like a backbone—or may I say a tape-worm—for its beginning and end are arbitrary.”

1. The comparison to a “tape-worm” suggests story is:
   • Short and self-contained
   • Endless and plain
   • Musical and lyrical
   • Logical and mathematical

   Answer: b) Endless and plain

2. “Arbitrary” in this sentence most nearly means:
   • Carefully chosen
   • Random rather than necessary
   • Historically fixed
   • Morally superior

   Answer: b) Random rather than necessary

3. The effect of the double image (backbone/tape-worm) is to:
   • Glorify plot as noble
   • Dismiss character completely
   • Show both support and drabness
   • Promote scientific realism

   Answer: c) Show both support and drabness

Set 3

“Scheherazade avoided her fate because she knew how to wield the weapon of suspense.”

1. Which device is emphasised here?
   • Satire
   • Suspense
   • Irony
   • Allusion

   Answer: b) Suspense

2. Calling suspense a “weapon” implies it is:
   • Decorative
   • Harmless
   • Powerful and practical
   • Purely theoretical

   Answer: c) Powerful and practical

3. The anecdote shows that story can:
   • Replace truth
   • Guarantee beauty
   • Compel attention for survival
   • Eliminate time

   Answer: c) Compel attention for survival

Set 4

“Daily life is also full of the time sense … yet there seems something else in life besides time, something which may conveniently be called ‘value’.”

1. Here “value” refers to:
   • Money and price
   • Intensity and meaning
   • Political power
   • Scientific proof

   Answer: b) Intensity and meaning

2. The contrast set up is between:
   • Plot and character
   • Form and content
   • Time order and felt worth
   • Author and reader

   Answer: c) Time order and felt worth

3. The phrase “double allegiance” summarises:
   • A conflict the novel must ignore
   • Two loyalties a good novel balances
   • Two styles of punctuation
   • Two historical periods

   Answer: b) Two loyalties a good novel balances

Set 5

“All these devices are legitimate but none of them contravene our thesis: the basis of a novel is a story and a story is a narrative of events in time sequence.”

1. “Devices” refers to the way authors:
   • Avoid character
   • Play with time
   • Use only plot twists
   • Compose poetry

   Answer: b) Play with time

2. The thesis being defended is that:
   • Story is optional
   • Time is unnecessary
   • Story is time-ordered events
   • Only style matters

   Answer: c) Story is time-ordered events

3. Which author is not named in this context?
   • Emily Brontë
   • Laurence Sterne
   • Marcel Proust
   • Virginia Woolf

   Answer: d) Virginia Woolf

Practice MCQs (15 Challenging Questions)

1. Forster calls story “the lowest and simplest of literary organisms” because it:
   • Lacks suspense
   • Has only one basic merit
   • Depends only on character
   • Rejects chronology

   Answer: b) Has only one basic merit

2. Which best paraphrases “qua story”?
   • As entertainment only
   • Considered purely as story
   • Judged by critics
   • Viewed historically

   Answer: b) Considered purely as story

3. The “primitive audience” example mainly serves to:
   • Celebrate violence
   • Show the danger of long sentences
   • Underline the age and force of suspense
   • Reject modern novels

   Answer: c) Underline the age and force of suspense

4. Which pairing matches author and time-play?
   • Bronte—changes the hands repeatedly
   • Sterne—turns the clock upside down
   • Proust—hides the clock entirely
   • All three—abolish time

   Answer: b) Sterne—turns the clock upside down

5. The line “I detest and fear the second” reveals Forster’s view of:
   • Those who ignore story
   • Those who want only story
   • Those who analyse form
   • Those who teach literature

   Answer: b) Those who want only story

6. According to Forster, a story’s single fault is:
   • Being too short
   • Not making us want the next event
   • Lacking characters
   • Using simple language

   Answer: b) Not making us want the next event

7. The metaphor “naked worm of time” suggests that story, when isolated, is:
   • Beautiful but weak
   • Strong and ornate
   • Plain and slightly unpleasant
   • Musical and rhythmic

   Answer: c) Plain and slightly unpleasant

8. “Double allegiance” in a good novel means loyalty to:
   • Author and reader
   • Plot and subplot
   • Time order and value/intensity
   • Past and future

   Answer: c) Time order and value/intensity

9. The function of the Clark Lectures note is to explain:
   • Biographical facts only
   • Why the tone remains conversational
   • The plot of a novel
   • Historical dates of all works

   Answer: b) Why the tone remains conversational

10. In Forster’s view, what keeps a novel intelligible?
    • Symbolism alone
    • The continuous time-thread
    • Frequent digressions
    • Poetic language

    Answer: b) The continuous time-thread

11. The example “I only saw her for five minutes, but it was worth it” illustrates:
    • Chronology defeating value
    • Value outweighing duration
    • Indifference to time and value
    • Scientific timekeeping

    Answer: b) Value outweighing duration

12. Forster’s attitude to pure plot-hunger is best described as:
    • Admiring
    • Fearful and disapproving
    • Neutral
    • Amused acceptance

    Answer: b) Fearful and disapproving

13. Which statement best matches Forster’s thesis?
    • Story is one optional ornament.
    • Story alone equals a masterpiece.
    • Story is essential but not sufficient.
    • Story should be avoided in art.

    Answer: c) Story is essential but not sufficient.

14. The “shock-heads” image mainly contributes to:
    • Humour and historic sweep
    • Scientific precision
    • Legal argument
    • Religious symbolism

    Answer: a) Humour and historic sweep

15. Which best describes the relationship between story and the “finer growths”?
    • Mutual exclusion
    • Support structure and adornments
    • Equal ornaments
    • Unrelated parts

    Answer: b) Support structure and adornments

Extra Questions (Q&A)

1. How do the three voices frame the debate on story?
   They set a spectrum—from vague acceptance to aggressive plot-hunger to reluctant concession—so readers weigh story’s place without ignoring other elements.
2. Why does Forster choose unflattering metaphors for story?
   To keep us realistic about plot: it is necessary, sturdy, and plain; the beauty lies in what grows upon it.
3. What is the lesson of Scheherazade for modern writers?
   Suspense sustains attention. However refined your craft, you must keep readers wanting the next event.
4. How does Forster relate lived time to novel time?
   Life has clock-time and value-time; a good novel honours both while moving intelligibly through sequence.
5. Do time-games threaten coherence?
   They can, but the narrative must still offer a followable order; play without thread leads to confusion.
6. What role does tone play in this chapter?
   The talky, friendly tone mirrors the form of the novel as lived experience rather than dry doctrine.
7. Why call story a “lowest” organism yet “highest factor”?
   It is simple in nature but common to all novels, hence the shared “highest factor”.
8. How might readers test if a plot is working?
   Ask: Do I care what comes next? If not, the story fails at its single essential task.
9. What balance should exam answers strike on this chapter?
   State the core thesis clearly, cite key images (tape-worm, Scheherazade), and show how time/value operate together.
10. How does the “Note” justify informality?
    It argues that a colloquial approach may reveal a novel’s secrets better than stiff, grand criticism.