We have tried to provide NCERT Solutions for Class 11 Hornbill English Chapter 1 Portrait of a Lady covering each & every question of the textbook. Students will improve their answer writing skills by referring to the following NCERT Solutions for Class 11 Hornbill English.
The following NCERT Solutions will help students in being set for their exams by providing a clear picture of how to come up with proper solutions to the questions. The NCERT Solutions for Class 11 have been designed by our subject-matter experts to give the best solutions to all the questions of the book. The questions in the textbook are answered in a way to improve one’s command over language, grammar & score.
NCERT Solution for Hornbill English Class 11 Chapter 1
NCERT Solution for Hornbill English Class 11 Chapter 1 The Portrait of a Lady
Understanding The Text
Mention
Que 1. The three phases of the author’s relationship with his grandmother before he left the country to study abroad.
Answer-
The three phases of the relationship between the author & his grandmother before leaving the country to study abroad are:
- Early childhood – His grandmother would help him to get ready & went with him to the village school.
- Boyhood – When he studied at the city school, He used to share a room with his grandmother. She was of no help to him in his studies.
- Early youth – At the university, when he got a separate room, their friendship snapped.
Que 2. Three reasons why the author’s grandmother was disturbed when he started going to the city school.
Answer-
The author’s grandmother was disturbed when he went to the city school because of three reasons:
- She disliked Western learning & Science.
- She disliked his school when she came to know that nothing was taught about scriptures & teachings.
- She disliked music & was felt that it was not meant for gentlefolk & decent people. She felt it was the monopoly of beggars & prostitutes.
Que 3. Three ways in which the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up.
Answer-
Three ways how the author’s grandmother spent her days after he grew up are:
- She accepted the loneliness & lived without any company in the room.
- While sitting at the spinning wheel, she would recite prayers.
- She would for half an hour, every afternoon feed the sparrows.
Que 4. The odd way in which the author’s grandmother behaved just before she died.
Answer-
Before she died, the author’s grandmother did not speak to them. The night before her passing away, she did not pray but was singing homecoming songs & beating the drum, as she didn’t want to waste her time. She lay peacefully in bed praying, telling beads & didn’t listen to her family members.
Que 5. The way in which sparrows expressed their sorrow when the author’s grandmother died.
Answer-
Thousands of sparrows sat silently without any chirrup, surrounding the author’s grandmother’s corpse. They took no notice when the author’s mother threw some crumbs of bread for them. They quietly flew away, when the grandmother’s corpse was carried off. This is how the sparrows expressed their sorrow for her death.
Talking About The Text
Talk to your partner about the following.
Que 1. The author’s grandmother was a religious person. What are the different ways in which we come to know this?
Answer-
The author’s grandmother was a very religious person. This can be seen from her demeanor. Every morning, she would visit the temple & read the scriptures. At home, she would always mumble inaudible prayers & kept telling the rosary beads. While helping the author get ready for school, she would repeat prayers constantly like a song. She wanted the author to learn it by heart. She disliked the English school as nothing was taught about the scriptures & God.
While spinning in her spinning wheel, she would recite prayers. Once, she forgot to say her prayers. Prior to her passing away, she felt overwhelmed in the evening by celebrating her grandson’s homecoming by beating drums & sang songs. She continued telling beads of rosary & prayed till her last breath.
Que 2. Describe the changing relationship between the author and his grandmother. Did their feelings for each other change?
Answer-
The author as a young boy, was completely dependent on his grandmother who was an essential part of his life. However, their friendship came to a new turn when they moved to the city. As he went to school by bus, she was unable to accompany him. Despite sharing the same room, she was of no help to him in his studies. She would ask him what he was taught by his teachers. She was not happy about his new school’s teaching style. She disliked the fact that he was not being taught about the scriptures & God.
She felt offended & silently expressed her disapproval of knowing that he was being taught music. She didn’t speak to the author much, after this. At the University, when he was given a separate room, the link of their friendship snapped. Despite all this, they still had a deep love for each other.
When he left the country for higher studies & moved abroad for higher studies, she went to the railway station to send him off. She quietly kissed his forehead without any emotion. This was seen by the author as he felt it was the last sign of physical interaction between them. After five years, when he returned, she received him at the station. She hugged the author tightly in the evening & began beating an old drum & sang songs to celebrate his homecoming.
Que 3. Would you agree that the author’s grandmother was a person strong in character? If yes, give instances that show this.
Answer-
Yes, I agree that the author’s grandmother had a strong character. She was a woman with strong beliefs. Despite having no formal education, she was serious about the author’s education. She was unable to adjust to the Western lifestyle, English & Science education. She disliked music and what he was being taught in his school.
She was a religious woman whose lips were always moving in a silent prayer & was telling the rosary beads. She would visit the temple daily & read the scriptures. She was upset knowing, that nothing was being taught about scriptures & God at Khushwant’s new English school, she was upset.
She was a kind woman who would feed the dogs in the village. She would also feed sparrows in the city. Even though she was old & physically weak, she had a strong mind. Before her death, she refused to talk to her family members as she didn’t want to waste her time. She had not prayed the previous evening, hence she wanted to make up for that time. She lay peacefully in her bed, telling the rosary beads of rosary & prayed until her last breath.
Que 4. Have you known someone like the author’s grandmother? Do you feel the same sense of loss with regard to someone whom you have loved and lost?
Answer-
Yes, my maternal grandparents do look after me & love me the most as I am their eldest grandchild. As a child & even now whenever I visit them, they always take a keen interest in my education & my life. They inspire me a lot as they are so active & peaceful even at such an old age. They have inculcated good values in me & they are the reason why I believe in God. Watching them praying & meditating in front of God, made me do the same whenever I felt low. They have always been very gentle & kind-hearted. During Covid, I was very concerned about their health & their being alone. But they are in good health & continue to be my biggest cheerleaders. I love them the most & can’t imagine my life without them.
Thinking About Language
Que 1. Which language do you think the author & his grandmother used while talking to each other?
Answer-
The author’s grandmother was uneducated. I think he & his grandmother would talk to each other in their mother tongue, Punjabi.
Que 2. Which language do you use to talk to elderly relatives in your family?
Answer-
The elderly relatives in my family are well-versed in Odiya, Hindi & English. I greet & converse with them in Odiya.
Que 3. How would you say ‘a dilapidated drum’ in your language?
Answer-
‘ Jarjara dholak ’ is the expression used to say ‘a dilapidated drum’ in my language.
Que 4. Can you think of a song or a poem in your language that talks of homecoming?
Answer-
Numerous poems & folk songs sing about the bravery of the warriors & mention the homecoming of these warriors after winning a war.
Working With Words
I. Notice the following uses of the word ‘tell’ in the text.
1. Her fingers were busy telling the beads of her rosary.
2. I would tell her English words & little things about Western science & learning.
3. At her age one could never tell.
4. She told us that her end was near.
Given below are four different senses of the word ‘tell’. Match the meanings to the uses listed above.
1. make something known to someone in spoken or written words
2. count while reciting
3. be sure
4. give information to somebody
Answer-
| Phrases |
Meaning |
| telling the beads |
count while reciting |
| tell her |
give information to somebody |
| one could never tell |
be sure |
| told us |
make something known to someone in spoken words |
II. Notice the different senses of the word ‘take’.
1. to take to something: to begin to do something as a habit
2. to take ill: to suddenly become ill
Locate these phrases in the text and notice the way they are used.
Answer-
The following phrases are used in the text as follows:
1. to take to: She took to feeding sparrows in the courtyard of our city house.
2. take ill: The next morning she was taken ill.
III. The word ‘hobble’ means to walk with difficulty because the legs and feet are in bad condition.
Highlight the words given below that also refer to a manner of walking.
| haggle |
shuffle |
stride |
ride |
waddle |
| wriggle |
paddle |
swagger |
trudge |
slog |
Answer-
Other words from the box that refer to walking:
shuffle, stride, swagger, waddle, trudge
Noticing Form
Notice the form of the verbs italicized in these sentences.
- My grandmother was an old woman. She had been old & wrinkled for the twenty years that I had known her. People said that she had once been young & pretty & had even had a husband, but that was hard to believe.
- When we both had finished we would walk back together.
- When I came back she would ask me what the teacher had taught me.
- It was the first time since I had known her that she did not pray.
- The sun was setting & had lit her room & verandah with a golden light.
These are examples of past perfect forms of verbs. When we recount things in the distant past we use this form.
Answer-
Let’s see in the sentences, the form of verbs highlighted below:
- She had already reached home when it started raining.
- Before they left the firm, they had worked together for a year on this plan.
- The boss had explained the project twice so that the employees could understand it well.
- Since my parents had lived there it was the first time it began to rain.
- The rocks had scattered everywhere.
Things to do
Talk with your family members about elderly people who you have been intimately connected with & who are not there with you now. Write a short description of someone you liked a lot.
Answer-
My paternal aunt
I was eleven years old when I lost my paternal aunt, but I remember her vividly. I liked her a lot & she adored me. She was a wise woman who was a professor. During my visits to her home, she would always treat me to various delicacies & gave me books to read. I miss the stories she would tell me, which included deeds of adventure & kindness. I would at times, accompany her when she was going to the temple, bookstore & shopping. Even if I was not with her, she would always buy meaningful gifts or write something for me. She was also careful about my health & studies. She helped me improve my writing & reading skills. Whenever I achieved something, she would always congratulate & bless me. I really miss her a lot at times.
FAQs on NCERT Solution for Hornbill English Class 11 Chapter 1
Q 1. Why was the grandmother of the author upset when he began to go to a school in the city in the NCERT Solutions for Class 11 Hornbill English Reading Skills Chapter 1?
Answer-
The author’s grandmother was upset when he began to go to the school in the city. Firstly, she did not like the teaching & learning style of these Western schools. She was also upset that nothing was taught about the teachings of the scriptures & God. Class 11 Hornbill English Reading Skills Chapter 1 is available on the GeeksforGeeks website, which can be easily accessed.
Q 2. How did the grandmother of the author spend her days after the author grew up in Chapter 1 of NCERT Solutions for Class 11 Hornbill English Reading Skills?
Answer-
She led her life alone & without any complaints, accepted loneliness. While sitting on her spinning wheel, she would recite prayers. In the afternoon, she fed the sparrows & tried to engage in various activities to pass the time. From Class 11 Hornbill English NCERT Book Ch-1 Reading Skills, students will get a clear idea about the important topics. It will improve the linguistic & grammatical skills among students, which is important for them to score well in the Class 11 exams.
Q 3. Is GeeksforGeeks NCERT Solutions for Class 11 Hornbill English Reading Skills Chapter 1 accurate?
Answer-
Class 11 English Hornbill NCERT Solutions is available for free on the GeeksforGeeks website. By referring to these solutions, students will be able to answer the textbook questions easily. It will help them understand the chapter & improve their answer writing skills for the questions that may be asked in the Class 11 exams. It will also enhance their time management skills & help them score well.
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