CBSE Class 12 English HOTs Poets And Pancakes Set 05

Read the extract given below and choose the correct option. “It is for the patient, persistent, persevering drudge with a heart so shrunken that nothing can break it; rejection slips don’t mean a thing to him; he at once sets about making a fresh copy of the long prose piece and sends it on to another editor enclosing postage for the return of the manuscript.”

Question. Who is being referred to in these lines?
(a) A poet
(b) A prose writer
(c) A makeup man
(d) An office boy
Answer: (b) A prose writer

Question. Why this drudge's heart never be broken?
(a) The person takes everything in a positive manner.
(b) The person is not afraid of rejection of his prose pieces
(c) The person is very mature and successful
(d) None of the options
Answer: (b) The person is not afraid of rejection of his prose pieces

Question. Why does the writer have to enclose return postage?
(a) People ask for it
(b) To ensure that original manuscript is returned to him
(c) To show his sincerity
(d) All of the options
Answer: (b) To ensure that original manuscript is returned to him

Question. What does the word 'Drudge' mean here?
(a) A rejected person
(b) A writer
(c) A person doing routine work
(d) A person who is sitting idle the whole day
Answer: (c) A person doing routine work

Read the extract given below and choose the correct option. “I felt that he too would be singing the same song at the same time - long lost brothers of Indian films discover each other by singing the same song in the first reel and in the final reel of the film.”

Question. Why did the writer want to read the periodical 'The Encounter'?
(a) It was recommended by the visitor
(b) His boss has asked him to go through it
(c) To have an idea before entering in a contest (short story) organised by this periodical
(d) The writer wanted to read it on his own without any reason
Answer: (c) To have an idea before entering in a contest (short story) organised by this periodical

Question. Who was the editor of this periodical 'The Encounter?
(a) Mr. Subbu
(b) The boss himself
(c) The visitor, Mr Stephen Spender
(d) None of the options
Answer: (c) The visitor, Mr Stephen Spender

Question. What does narrator's singing a song signify here?
(a) He was overjoyed
(b) Was excited
(c) Was able to solve the mystery of visitor's visit to Gemini Studios
(d) He was sad
Answer: (c) Was able to solve the mystery of visitor's visit to Gemini Studios

Question. What has been described as a favourite plot of Indian films?
(a) Hero rich - heroine poor
(b) Hero is an orphan
(c) Story of two brother who were lost and get united in the end
(d) Widowed mother taking care of the whole family
Answer: (c) Story of two brother who were lost and get united in the end

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Question. Through the mention of Robert Clive's activities, how does the narrator bring out the spectacle of those in power?
Answer: The make-up department of Gemini studios was in a building that was believed to have been Robert Clive's stable. So the place which was good to become a make-up room in a film studio had been misused by the Britishers. The spectacle of the Britishers has also been brought out when the author mentions that Robert Clive used to own several buildings.

Question. Describe the make-up room of the Gemini Studios as described by the author.
Answer: The make-up room of the Gemini Studios looked like a hair cutting salon, with incandescent lights that made the room very hot, placed at all angles around half a dozen mirrors. It was so hot there that the people whose make-up was done there were subjected to a 'fiery misery'.

Question. "A strict hierarchy was maintained in the make-up department." Explain this statement.
Answer: Strict hierarchy was maintained in the make-up department so that each make-up man was allotted his task according to his designation. The chief make-up man attended the chief actors and actresses, his senior assistant attended the second hero and heroine, the junior assistant attended the main comedian and the office boy in the department did the make up of the actors who played the crowd.

Question. Why did the office boy often come to the author? Why did the author then start praying for crowd shooting?
Answer: As the author was wrongly believed to have no work to do, the office boy often came to his cubicle to give vent to his frustration and impress upon him that the office boy's great talent remained untapped and was being wasted. As the author was bored with the office boy's never ending tirade, he prayed for crowd shooting so that the boy would be busy in doing the make-up of the crowd and would not pester him.

Question. What advantage did the office boy think Subbu had?
Answer: The office boy thought that Subbu was in no way superior to him in talent or education. It was due to Subbu's birth in a Brahmin family that he had got a lead over him, as it helped him get better openings, opportunities and exposure. Thus he had an advantage over the office boy.

Question. Subbu was charitable and improvident, yet he had enemies. Why?
Answer: Subbu's good qualities were overlooked as his desire to please the boss, the key to his success, made him seem like a sycophant. His non-critical attitude was misconstrued as cleverness. So he had enemies such as the office boy, all of whom blamed him for their failure in life.

Question. What made the lawyer lose his job? What was funny about it?
or What made the lawyer lose his job? What does the writer find so funny about the situation? Delhi 2012
Answer: The closing down of the Story Department by the Boss made the lawyer lose his job. The writer found this situation funny because he thought that this was perhaps the only instance in all human history where a lawyer lost his job because the poets were asked to go home.

Question. What was the opinion of the khadi clad poets of Gemini Studios about Communism?
Answer: The khadi clad poets of Gemini Studios were against Communism as that was the prevailing political notion in South India. A Communist to them was a godless man, had no filial or conjugal love, could unhesitatingly kill his parents or children and was always out to cause and spread violence and unrest.

Question. Why did Stephen Spender visit Gemini Studios?
Answer: Stephen Spender was an anti-Communist, similar to the people at Gemini Studios. He had been invited by the Boss to talk about his journey into Communism and his return after being disillusioned with Communism.

Question. What role did the canteen play at the Gemini studios?
Answer: The canteen at the Gemini studios played the role of giving leisure and entertainment to the employees, as it supplied good coffee at all times of the day and for most part of the night. As Prohibition had been imposed by the government in Madras, meeting over a cup of coffee was rather a satisfying entertainment.

Question. What shows that the Boss knew very little about the poet who was visiting Gemini Studios?
Answer: It was obvious that the Boss knew very little about the poet who was visiting Gemini studios because the Boss' speech was in the most general terms, although here and there it was peppered with words such as 'freedom' and 'democracy'.

Question. The Boss of Gemini Studios had nothing to do with Spender's poetry but not with his 'God that failed'. Bring out the significance of this line.
Answer: This line is significant as the Boss had only invited Stephen Spender to Gemini Studios because he was a contributing author to the book 'The God that failed', which detailed the failures of Communism. He did not have any knowledge of Spender's background: that is why he spoke about Spender only in general terms while introducing him to the employees of Gemini Studios.

LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Question. Humour enlivens the drudgery of life. Variety is the spice of life and the varied account of events and personalities in the Gemini studios serves to make the reading interesting and also add to the humour quotient in one's life. Taking the cue from the lesson, discuss how calmness of the mind can be achieved through light-hearted banter / humour.
Answer: 'Laughter is the best medicine' is a well-known saying. Thus, humour in a conversation endears a person to others so that the person is able to strike up a conversation. Laughing at oneself also helps in controlling stress and relieving tension. It promotes friendship and makes us less impulsive, thus achieving calmness of the mind. This is illustrated in the lesson 'Poets and Pancakes' at various places by the narrator. For instance, applying make-up on the actors is described as “Slapping make-up to make the actors look ugly so that they look presentable on screen", which is satire at its best, as the word 'ugly' is used in a humorous manner to mean 'good'. Characters of the office boy, Subbu and the legal adviser have many subtle touches of humour. The baffled reaction of the staff of Gemini studios to Stephen Spender's visit and his incomprehensible speech arouses humour. Similar light-hearted banter is used throughout the text to give calmness of the mind to the reader.

Question. The 'office boy' in the Gemini studios attributes his inability to rise up the ladder in work to Subbu and the strict hierarchy followed in the film company of SS Vasan. However strict the hierarchy, our 'Action should speak more than words'. Hard work, honesty and sincerity of purpose should be the mantra to success. Explain this.
Answer: It is agreed that there is no shortcut to success. Only hard work, honesty and sincerity of purpose should be the key to success. However, instead of blaming others for our misfortunes, as the office boy was doing, we should face challenges head on. We should try to find solutions to our problems, instead of evading them or brooding over our failures. In the story, 'Poets and Pancakes', the office boy was not ready to accept his flaws, or find out how to overcome hurdles in his path to success. He should have had passion for his job, whatever it may be. Work should be worship and we should not be deterred by division of labour. Instead, we must have the tenacity and determination to prove oneself, just as Subbu has achieved over the years. He has developed the qualities required for success, due to which, over the years, he has risen to the position of No 2 at Gemini Studios.

Question. There was a great deal of National Integration in the Gemini studios with the make-up department being headed by people from all parts of India in succession. The need of the hour in India is an idealistic situation where people are more tolerant towards each other to realise the dreams our founding fathers had dreamt of at the time of Independence. What role could the Youth of India play in this regard?
Answer: The Youth of India can play an important role in this regard. For this, they need to become secular in spirit and more tolerant towards people pursuing other religions or faiths. They should be more spiritual than religious, meaning that they should just not blindly follow the rituals of the religion they profess but also understand the principles underlying the rituals. If the Youth of India work together in social causes by rising above the pettiness of their minds, they can succeed in building the nation that our founding fathers had dreamt of at the time of Independence. All the Youth must be literate so as to become more tolerant and understanding. They can promote the values of compassion and love through street plays, music and dance (fine arts). For this, schools should promote national integration and patriotism in developing life skills. Then only will we produce the India that is personified by the make-up department at Gemini Studios, whose successive heads were from all parts of the country.

SELF ASSESSMENT

EXTRACT BASED QUESTIONS

Read the extract given below and choose the correct option. Such a charitable and improvident man, and yet he had enemies! was it because the seemed so close and intimate with the boss? Or was it his general demeanour that resembled a sycophant’s?

Question. Who is 'he' referred to here?
(a) The narrator
(b) The legal advisor
(c) The No.2 boss Subbu
(d) The owner of Studios S. Vasan
Answer: (c) The No.2 boss Subbu

Question. Why the narrator calls Subbu a very charitable and improvident man?
(a) Subbu was of very loving nature
(b) Spent a lot of in helping many people every day
(c) Dozens of his acquaintances will eat at his place
(d) All of the options
Answer: (d) All of the options

Question. Which word in the extract, will mean the same as 'spend thrift’?
(a) Charitable
(b) Happy
(c) Improvident
(d) Intimate
Answer: (c) Improvident

Question. Who did not like Kothamanglam Subbu in his office?
(a) The legal advisor
(b) The narrator
(c) The office boy
(d) the story writer
Answer: (c) The office boy

Read the extract given below and choose the correct option. Some one called the group an international circus. They weren’t very good on the trapeze and their acquaintance with animals was only at the dinner table, but they presented two plays in a most professional manner.

Question. Which 'group' is mentioned here?
(a) Some staff of Gemini Studios
(b) Moral Re-Armament Army of Frank Buchman
(c) Stephen Spender and his colleagues
(d) Group of writers at Gemini Studio
Answer: (b) Moral Re-Armament Army of Frank Buchman

Question. How did Gemini Studio welcome this group?
(a) Very warmly
(b) Very angrily
(c) Very indifferently
(d) None of the options
Answer: (a) Very warmly

Question. What did this group present in Gemini Studios?
(a) Dance drama
(b) Two plays
(c) An exhibition
(d) A road show
Answer: (b) Two plays

Question. What word will mean the antonym of the word 'stranger' in this extract?
(a) Warmer
(b) Acquaintance
(c) Professional
(d) Group
Answer: (b) Acquaintance

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Question. What two activities of Robert Clive in Madras are mentioned in the chapter?
Answer: Robert Clive is mentioned to have lived in a number of residences in Madras. He fought battles and even got married there during his stay.

Question. How was the make-up department nationally integrated?
Answer: It was headed by a Bengali, succeeded by a Maharashtrian assisted by a Dharwar Kannadiga, an Andhraite, a Madras Indian Christian, an Anglo-Burmese and usual local Tamils.

Question. How was film-making easy with Subbu around?
Answer: Subbu was highly resourceful and could offer countless solutions to problems. If one way failed, he would instantly come up with multiple alternatives for the producer.

Question. Outline briefly the character of the young actress who 'blew over' on the sets.
Answer: She was talented but temperamental. She once had an outburst against a producer, which the legal advisor recorded and played back, humiliating her and ending her career.

Question. Why were the poets averse to Communism?
Answer: To them, a Communist was a godless man with no filial or conjugal love, capable of killing his own family and spreading violence and unrest.

Question. Why does the author say about the Moral Rearmament Army that the Boss 'played into their hands'?
Answer: Because the Boss, Mr Vasan, shared their aversion to Communism, he hosted them at the studios to counter the spread of international Communism through their plays.

LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Question. Describe the Moral Re-Armament Army's visit to Gemini Studios.
Answer: The Moral Re-Armament Army (MRA), a counter-movement to international Communism, visited Madras in 1952. Led by Frank Buchman, the group consisted of 200 people from at least twenty nationalities. They were welcomed warmly at Gemini Studios. Although they were nicknamed an "international circus" because of their diverse composition, they were most professional in their stagecraft. They presented two plays, ‘Jotham Valley’ and ‘The Forgotten Factor’, which had a huge impact. The plays had simple moral messages, but their sets and costumes were magnificent. The Gemini family of 600 members saw these plays repeatedly. The influence was so strong that the sunrise and sunset scenes from ‘Jotham Valley’ were imitated in Tamil drama for years. The visit was significant as it offered a break from the routine and aligned with the political sentiments of the studio bosses who were anti-Communist.

Question. Asokamitran has used humour and satire effectively in 'Poets and Pancakes'. Discuss.
Answer: Asokamitran employs gentle humour and sharp satire to bring out the eccentricities of the characters and the workings of the film industry. He satirises the make-up department's ability to turn any person "ugly" for the screen. The "office boy," who is actually in his forties and thinks he is a wasted literary genius, is a source of amusement. The portrayal of Kothamangalam Subbu as a "many-sided genius" who is actually a clever sycophant is masterfully satirical. The narrator's own job—cutting newspaper clippings—which everyone else thinks is no work at all, is presented humorously. Satire is at its peak when describing the legal advisor, who is called the "illegal advisor" for ending an actress's career. The "mystery" of Stephen Spender's visit, where neither the guest nor the audience understood each other, is a hilarious highlight of the chapter. Through these instances, Asokamitran makes a potentially dull account of studio life lively and engaging.