The Adventure
Understanding the text
I. Tick the statements that are true.
1. The story is an account of real events.
Answer:
False
2. The story hinges on a particular historical event.
Answer:
True
3. Rajendra Deshpande was a historian.
Answer:
False
4. The places mentioned in the story are all imaginary.
Answer:
False
5. The story tries to relate history to science.
Answer:
True
II. Briefly explain the following statements from the text.
1. “You neither travelled to the past nor the future. You were in the present experiencing a different world.”
Answer:
“You did not travel to the past or the future. You were in the present, but you were in a different world.” These words were spoken by Rajendra Deshpande while attempting to explain his strange experience to Professor Gaitonde. When the professor was involved in an accident, he began to reflect on the Battle of Panipat and the consequences that occurred in his life. His thoughts wandered between what we know about history and what might have been. The professor was experiencing two worlds at the same time by thinking. According to the same theory, there must be many more different worlds emerging from unrealistic thoughts.
2. “You have passed through a fantastic experience: or more correctly, a catastrophic experience.”
Answer:
“You’ve had a fantastic experience, or, more accurately, a catastrophic experience.” Professor Gaitonde was told by Rajendra Deshpande that he had an exciting experience. He claimed that we lived in a one-of-a-kind world with a one-of-a-kind history. Gangadhar Pant’s mind jumped to another world as a result of the accident, which was unrealistic. History took a different turn in that world after the Marathas won the Battle of Panipat. Rajendra explained this using the catastrophic theory, which holds that reality is full of misinterpretations.
3. Gangadharpant could not help comparing the country he knew with what he was witnessing around him.
Answer:
“Gangadhar Pant couldn’t help but compare his home country to what he was seeing around him.” Gangadhar Pant witnessed two different perspectives of the same reality, albeit one at a time, during his extraordinary experience. The India he knew was described in history books as the result of the 1761 Battle of Panipat, in which the Marathas were defeated. The other India he saw was the result of the Marathas’ victory in the battle. In this version, he saw India as a prosperous country that could meet its own needs.
4. “The lack of determinism in quantum theory!”
Answer:
It talks about quantum theory’s lack of determinism. If a bullet is fired from a gun in a specific direction at a specific speed, one can predict where it will end up, but the same cannot be said for an electron. When an electron is emitted by a source, it can come from anywhere. This is due to quantum theory’s lack of determinism. According to this theory, reality is never one-sided. At the same time, alternate worlds may exist.
5. “You need some interaction to cause a transition.”
Answer:
To cause a transition, some interaction is required. According to Rajendra Deshpande, Professor Gaintonde made a change as a result of the interaction that occurred in the professor’s mind at the time of the collision. The professor was thinking about catastrophic theory and its role in wars at the time of the collision. He was thinking about the Battle of Panipat and its aftermath. The transition was caused by the interaction in his brain.
Thinking about language
1. In which language do you think Gangadharpant and Khan Sahib talked to each other? Which language did Gangadharpant use to talk to the English receptionist?
Answer:
Gangadharpant and Khan Sahib communicated in Marathi, and they used a translator to communicate with the English-speaking receptionist.
2. In which language do you think Bhausahebanchi Bakhar was written?
Answer:
Bhausahebanchi Bakhar was written in Maratha language.
3. There is mention of three communities in the story: the Marathas, the Mughals, the Anglo-Indians. Which language do you think they used within their communities and while speaking to the other groups?
Answer:
When they spoke to each other, they used their traditional slang, but when they spoke to other groups, they used the language that was understood by people from all three communities.
4. Do you think that the ruled always adopt the language of the ruler?
Answer:
Write your answer.
Working with words
I. Tick the item that is closest in meaning to the following phrases.
1. to take issue with
(i) to accept
(ii) to discuss
(iii) to disagree
(iv) to add
Answer:
(iii) to disagree
2. to give vent to
(i) to express
(ii) to emphasise
(iii) suppress
(iv) dismiss
Answer:
(i) to express
3. to stand on one’s feet
(i) to be physically strong
(ii) to be independent
(iii) to stand erect
(iv) to be successful
Answer:
(ii) to be independent
4. to be wound up
(i) to become active
(ii) to stop operating
(iii) to be transformed
(iv) to be destroyed
Answer:
(ii) to stop operating
5. to meet one’s match
(i) to meet a partner who has similar tastes
(ii) to meet an opponent
(iii) to meet someone who is equally able as oneself
(iv) to meet defeat
Answer:
(iii) to meet someone who is equally able as oneself
II. Distinguish between the following pairs of sentences.
1. (i) He was visibly moved.
(ii) He was visually impaired.
Answer:
i. In a way that can be noticed.
ii. Related to one’s seeing or appearance
2. (i) Green and black stripes were used alternately.
(ii) Green stripes could be used or alternatively black ones.
Answer:
i. Occur in turn repeatedly
ii. As an option or possibility
3. (i) The team played the two matches successfully.
(ii) The team played two matches successively.
Answer:
i. Achieving aim or result
ii. Immediately, one after another
4. (i) The librarian spoke respectfully to the learned scholar.
(ii) You will find the historian and the scientist in the archaeology and natural science sections of the museum respectively.
Answer:
i. With deference and respect
ii. Separately or individually and in the order already mentioned.