KSEEB Solutions for Class 8 English Prose Chapter 3 Jamaican Fragment

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Karnataka State Syllabus Class 8 English Prose Chapter 3 Jamaican Fragment

Jamaican Fragment Questions and Answers, Summary, Notes

Universal brotherhood

(Listening passage L-3)

ILA – Your teacher reads a passage. Listen to it. Then answer the question.

Question 1.
Why do you think Gandhiji was pulled out of the train? Have a discussion in the class.
Answer:
a) It was a different country. The people did not like an Indian.
b) They were white people. Gandhiji was dark brown.
c) There was racial discrimination in Africa.

IRA – Look at the map and the information (refer to the text). Then, answer the questions that follow.
e.g.
Question.
‘Which is the capital of Jamaica?
Answer:
The capital of Jamaica is Kingston.

Question 1.
What is the area of Jamaica?
Answer:
The area of Jamaica is 10957 sq. kms.

Question 2.
Which are the major towns and cities in Jamaica?
Answer:
The major towns and cities in Jamaica are Montero Bay, Spanish Town, St. Andre, Portmore.

Question 3.
Name at least two political parties of Jamaica.
Answer:
Two political parties of Jamaica are Jamaica Labour Party and People’s National Party.

Question 4.
What is the population of Jamaica?
Answer:
The population of Jamaica is 24,47,000.

Question 5.
When was slavery abolished in Jamaica?
Answer:
Slavery was abolished in 1838 in Jamaica.

Textbook Questions and Answers

C1. Answer the following questions and share your responses with your partner.

Question1.
Why was the morning walk pleasant to Mr. A.L. Hendricks?
Answer:
The red and green-roofed bungalows, green lawns and gardens on either side of his walking lane makes him happy. The scenery is beautiful. So he felt it was pleasant.

Question 2.
“The exercise is good for me”, says the narrator. What was that exercise?
Answer:
The narrator walked from his home to the rail track lines every morning. He returned home every evening on foot. The exercise was good for his mind and body.

Question 3.
What did the narrator notice one morning?
Answer:
One morning the narrator noticed two boys playing in the garden of a cottage.

Question 4.
How did the smaller boy behave while playing with the bigger boy?
Answer:
The smaller white boy behaved like a master. He walked majestically up and down, commanding the black boy.

C2. Answer the following questions and share your responses with your partner.

Question 1.
What sight surprised the narrator the next day?
Answer:
The next day when the narrator observed the boys, to his surprise the black boy was commanding and little white boy did everything.

Question 2.
What were the two commands given by the black boy to the white boy?
Answer:
The two commands given by the black boy to the white boy were

1. Get me a banana? and
2. Peel it for me

Question 3.
Why was the white man surprised at the narrator’s outburst?
Answer:
The white man was surprised at the narrator’s outburst because the narrator misinterprets the children’s play and with prejudice, he thought too extremely and suffered a lot within himself. All these are said in one stretch.

Question 4.
Why do you think the narrator smiled in the end?
Answer:
The narrator smiled at the end because the white man’s wife was brown and his two sons were the same as their parents, just contrast of color.

C3. Some statements are given below. Some are true and some are false. Write ‘T’ or ‘F’ in the box provided against each sentence accordingly.

Question 1.
The bigger boy was black. [ ]
Answer:
True

Question 2.
The black boy ordered the white boy to pick up that stick. [ ]
Answer:
False

Question 3.
The white boy sat down on the lawn. [ ]
Answer:
True

Question 4.
The two boys were not dressed alike. [ ]
Answer:
False

Question 5.
The little boys were playing when the narrator passed by in the afternoon. [ ]
Answer:
False

Question 6.
The next day, a man was playing with the boys. [ ]
Answer:
False

Question 7.
The game that the two boys played was the same game the author had played during his childhood. [ ]
Answer:
True

Question 8.
“I know what you are thinking”, said the man standing at the gate to the narrator. [ ]
Answer:
False

Question 9.
The father of the boys was white and the mother brown. [ ]
Answer:
True

Question 10.
92% of Jamaica is inhabited by blacks. [ ]
Answer:
True

C4. For each of the statements, four alternatives are given as the answers. Choose the best alternative.

Question 1.
The two boys in the story are
a) good friends
b) brothers
c) neighbors
d) classmates.
Answer:
b) Brothers.

Question 2.
The commands that the white boy gave the black boy were-
a) five in number
b) four in number
c) three in number
d) two in number.
Answer:
c) Three in number

Question 3.
The black boy had a mat of coarse hair on his head. Coarse means
a) rough
b) beautiful
c) nice
d) long.
Answer:
a) Rough.

Question 4.
“Only we grown-ups are silly”. The question tag to this statement is
a) aren’t we?
b) isn’t it?
c) are we?
d) is it?
Answer:
a) aren’t we?

Question 5.
The white boy had hazel eyes, ‘hazel’ means
a) reddish-brown
b) pale brown
c) yellowish-brown
d) bluish brown.
Answer:
a) Reddish-brown.

Read and Write:

C5 Read and discuss your responses with your partner. Then write.

Question 1.
What similarities and differences can you make out between the two boys?
Answer:
The narrator finds both similarities and differences in the two boys. Both were small, around four and five years of age, and were dressed in blue shirts and khaki pants. Both had bare, muddy feet. But, there were marked differences too. The bigger boy was very dark and sturdy with coarse hair and coal-black eyes appearing to be a Jamaican. The smaller boy was also sturdy, but he was white with hazel eyes and light brown hair.

Question 2. (a)
What two commands did the big boy give the small boy?
Answer:
The big boy ordered the small boy to get him a banana. When the white boy brought him a banana, he asked him to feel it for him.

Question 2. (b)
What three commands did the small boy give the big boy?
Answer:
The smalt boy first ordered the big boy to pick up a stick, then to jump into the flowers and finally to get him some water.

Question 3.
The author could find no answer to some questions. Which are those questions?
Answer:
The author could not find an answer to these questions:

• If the boy had sensed that he would be a servant of the white man in his own country.
• If he could make a difference between himself and the white boy.
• If the white boy was going to boss over the black boy.

Question 4.
Why was the narrator surprised the next morning?
Answer:
The next morning the narrator was surprised to see that the scene is completely changed. The Previous day the white boy was boss and commanding but now was walked obediently behind the black boy. Similarly, the black boy who was obediently following the commands was now commanding the white boy.

Question 5.
How did the two boys behave while playing?
Answer:
The two boys took the Boss and slave role alternatively. According to their role they performed well. That is, in Boss role they Commanded and in Slave role they submitted themselves and did the commands obediently. Thus they behave like this while playing.

Question 6.
What made the narrator think that the black boy could be the son of a servant or a classmate of the white boy?
Answer:
The big boy obeyed the orders of the white boy without any complaint. This made the narrator think that he was the son of a house servant. But, when he saw that both the boys were dressed in blue shirts and khaki pants, he presumed that they could be classmates.

Question 7.
What were the two points that the narrator wanted to clarify to the white man?
Answer:
The two points that the narrator wanted to clarify to the white man, are

1. One day or the other, the blacks will rule over the whites and
2. That’s only a game.

Question 8.
The two boys, though brothers, differed in their colour. What might be the reason?
Answer:
Their parents belonged to different races. Their father was a white man and his mother was dark.

Question 9.
If you were the white man, how would you react to the narrator’s comment?
Answer:
If I were the white man, I would have also behaved like the white man.

Comprehension:

Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow:

Question 1.
I will save him this puzzle.
a) Who is the T?
b) Who is ‘him’?
c) What does the author want to tell the white man?
Answer:
a) The author, A.L. Hendricks.
b) The white man.
c) The author wants to tell the white man that the two boys were only playing a game.

Question 2.
“I smiled. My spirit laughed at me.”
a) Who smiled?
b) To whom does‘me’ refer?
c) Why is the author happy?
Answer:
a) The author.
b) The author.
c) The author is happy because the whites and blacks were living together happily in Jamaica.

Vocabulary:

V1. Column ‘A’ has the names of countries. Choose the correct nationality from the list given below and write in Column ‘B’.

(Dutch, Swiss, Greek, Israelite, British, French, Thai, Portuguese, Swedish, Nepalese.)
Answer:

V2. Guess and write the meanings of the words underlined, in the table given below:

1. The stipulated period of twelve years was coming to a close.
2. How can I perform the fire sacrifice?
3. Pandavas wanted to quench their thirst. They went in search of water.
4. After seeing all brothers lying dead, Yudhisthira was drowned in sorrow.
5. Yaksha was pleased with the answers given by Yudhisthira.

Now check the meanings you have written with the help of a dictionary.
Answer:

V3. Read the following conversation and use the appropriate word from the ones given in brackets.

• Patient: Doctor, the wound in my pains me a lot. (heel, heal)
• Doctor: Don’t worry, it will up after treatment. (heel, heal)
  You are diabetic and so it may take one (weak, week) (fair, fare)
  I’m sorry doctor. I forgot to tell you that week I your prescription, (last, lost)
• Doctor: Ok. No problem. I’ll give you both.

Answer:

• Patient: Doctor, the wound in my heel pains me a lot.
• Doctor: Don’t worry, it will heal up after treatment.
  You are diabetic and weak, so it may take one s week.
• Patient: Excuse me, a word with your doctor. I don’t know whether it is fair to ask you this question.
• Doctor: Oh! Don’t worry. Tell me what it is.
• Patient: I have no money to pay the bus fare.
  I’m sorry doctor. I forgot to tell you that last week I lost your prescription.
• Doctor: Ok. No problem. I’ll give you both.

V4. Fill in the blanks with words that have similar pronunciation as the words underlined.

1. Papanna and Somanna are good friends. The former is a _________ and the latter is a businessman.
2. The thief wanted to steal. But the doors were locked. He broke open the lock with a ________ rod.
3. ‘Come here’, said the teacher. But the student did not _________.
4. “Mandanna, your answer is quite right. But, for a moment will you keep _________?”
5. Rashmi gave birth to a male child in Bangalore. Her husband who was in Mysore came to Bangalore by the _______train.

Answer:

1. farmer
2. steel
3. hear
4. quiet
5. mail.

V5. We can form opposites by adding prefixes to words.

E.g.: Important x unimportant
Similarly, add prefixes to the underlined words to get their opposites.

1. Sunitha is regular to the class, but Sushma is _______.
2. Rama Murthy’s answer is correct, but Narayan’s is ______.
3. Sita’s way of expressing facts is proper, but Lakshmi’s is ______.
4. All should respect the National Flag. No one should ________ it.
5. The competition was very tough. It was Rahul’s fortune that he won, but it was Sanjays ________ that he lost.

Answer:

1. irregular
2. incorrect
3. improper
4. disrespect
5. misfortune.

A. Listen and Speak:

Vowel /a:/
Task 2. The teacher says these sentences and writes them on the board. Listen, and write them in your book and underline the words that have /a:/ sound.
He is my father. He works in an art gallery. His master is an old man, past seventy. All the workers there are smart and sincere.
Note: The word ‘all’ does not have the vowel sound /a:/.
Answer:
Father, art, master, past, are, smart.

C. Reading:

Skimming:

Task: Different texts are given below. Read them as fast as you can. Then, answer the questions given below them.
Text A: Above the quiet dock in midnight
Tangled in the tall mast’s corded height
Hangs the moon. What seemed so far away
Is but a child’s balloon, forgotten after play.

Text B: INDIA 330 FOR 5 WICKETS

V. Sehwag C & B Murali – 31
R. Dravid batting – 102
S. Tendulkar C Sangakkara B Vaas – 75
WS Laxman C & B Murali 05 ‘
M. Dhoni C Sangakkara B Murali – 103
S. Raina C Jayasurya B Vaas – 14
Zaheer Khan batting – 00

Text C: November 26 :1 woke up at 5-30. Read few pages ________ lost interest ________ spent time making paper boats _______ Mom was angry nowadays she has become irritating _______ feel sorry for her. Whole day I spent playing cricket ________went to bed early.

Text D: Once upon a time there lived a lion in the forest. It was ferocious. It killed many animals __________
Text E: South Eastern Railway – Davangere

Text F: Biologica pest control uses a natural enemy of the pest to keep its members down. A good example occurred in Australia in the 1920s and 1930s.

Text G: Ram: Hello Shyam! How are you?
Shyam: I am fine, thanks. What a pleasant surprise!
Ram: It’s a long time since we met.

Text H: Express News Service Gulbarga: October 29, “HRD Ministry will consult all states to frame a common curriculum for high school and plus 2 students so that they can take any course after the 12th std.” said Union Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal.

Question: Now match the topics with the texts. Two examples are given.
E.g.,

Answer:

D. Grammar:

The Past Tense:

Sheela narrates a scene of action to her mother after reaching home.
Sheela: Mom, you see it all happened very quickly. The car _ came straight on the wrong side in front of the school. It rammed into the back of the school van. The van driver didn’t have any chance to avoid it. It was the car driver’s fault.
Task 1: Study the words underlined above. They are in the past form. They can be changed from past to present. One example is given. Write to the others.
e.g. past form – present form
happened – happen
Answer:
Came – come
Rammed – ram
Didn’t – doesn’t
Was – is

Task 2. Fill in the blanks with the Past Tense form of the verbs choosing from the ones given in brackets.
(think, take, be, return, inspire)
Gandhiji _______ to India in 1914. The great World War Il had just begun. There ______ widespread agitations for freedom all over the country. Most of the leaders ______ it the right time to strike. Gandhiji’s presence ________ them a lot. So the freedom struggle ______ a definite shape in that year.
Answer:
returned, were, thought, inspired, took.

Use of the perfect form of the verb:

Task 1. Read the following sentences. Compare the sentence in the box with the sentences in the bubbles. Find out the difference. Underline the different parts.

Now frame a similar sentence using the sentence in the box below.

Answer:

The Past Perfect:
Task. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate forms of the verbs given in brackets. Follow the example.
e.g., I reached the bus station after the bus _______ (leave)
reached the bus station after the bus had left.
Follow the example to complete the exercise given below.

1. The doctor arrived after the patient _____ (die)
2. When the guest came to the school, the programme ________ (already begin)
3. After he ________ (walk) 5 kms, he complained of a sore foot.
4. toy friend came to meet me yesterday, but I _______ (be) toShivamogga, so we could not meet.
5. When the officials came out of the office, the rain _____ (not stop yet).

Answer:

1. had died
2. had already begun
3. had walked
4. had been
5. had not stopped yet.

E. Writing:

Task 1. Match the traffic signs in column B with the rules in column A.

Answer:
1 – c, 2 – e, 3 – d, 4 – a.

Task 2. Look at the following advertisement carefully and answer the questions below.

a) Write the name of the dealing company.
b) What is the free offer?
c) Write the names of dresses on the sale.
d) How does the dealer try to attract customers with this (advertisement)? Mention one point.
Answer:
a) Mega Garments
b) A T. Shirt worth Rs. 200 free on a purchase worth Rs. 1000.
c) Shirts, trousers, jackets, and jeans.
d) With an attractive offer.

Jamaican Fragment Additional Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Why did the game in the morning amaze the narrator?
OR
‘I puzzled within myself says the narrator. What conclusion did he come to after this puzzling thought?
OR
What conclusions did the narrator reach, looking at the two boys playing the game?
Answer:
The game in the morning both amazed and upset the narrator. Although it seemed to be a simple game of master and servant, the narrator was surprised that the dark boy, in spite of being older and stronger, was playing the servant. This was in spite of their evidently equal social status. This makes the narrator wonder whether the Jamaicans considered themselves inferior and accepted the superiority of the whites even as children.

Question 2.
The second day, the narrator smiled as he remembered something. What made him laugh again?
Answer:
After the second day’s experience the author is aware that the boys are only playing a game without any racial implications. He smiles as he remembers that he too, as a small boy, used to play such games. When he looks at the white man watching the game, he presumes that the white man too would be making the same mistake as that of the author, wondering whether the black race is superior to the white. This makes him laugh.

Question 3.
What, according to the author A.L. Hendricks, did the little boy sense in the game?
Answer:
The author A.L. Hendricks watches the game of a black boy and a white boy and notices that the black boy is taking orders from the white boy. The author then wonders whether the black boy, even before growing up, has accepted the superiority of the whites and is prepared to follow their orders even when he is in his own country.

Question 4.
“Could he, at his age, divine a difference between himself and the white boy?” What are the differences that are referred to by the author?
Answer:
The differences the black boy perhaps felt even as a child were the inferiority of the blacks when compared to the superiority of the whites and their acceptance of the domination of the whites over them in their own country.

Question 5.
will save him this puzzle’. What did the narrator think the man would puzzle all day? Was the narrator right?
Answer:
The narrator thinks that the white man watching the two boys play would make the same mistake that he himself had made the previous day. On the second day, since the white boy was playing the role of a servant, the author thinks that the white man would puzzle over the possible superiority of the blacks over the whites. He is wrong in his assumption because the white man is the father of the two boys and knows fully well that the boys are only playing a game.

Question 6.
Why does the author say that the game the children played on the first morning puzzled him?
Answer:
The game the children played on the first morning puzzled the narrator. He saw two boys – one dark and one white – playing the game of giving and taking orders. Their clothes indicated that they belonged to the same social order. Yet, surprisingly, the older of the two was playing the role of a servant. Since the older boy happened to be a Jamaican, the author wondered why he had accepted the inferior role despite the fact that he was older and physically stronger.

The author was disheartened by the doubt that the dark boy would have accepted the role of a servant because of the feeling of being inferior, in the presence of the white. This feeling of inferiority might have made him accept orders from the white in his own country. This possible psychological domination of the whites over the blacks and the possibility of this power game influencing even small children both puzzled and upset the author.

Question 7.
With what thoughts did the author go to the white man?
Answer:
The author went to the white man with the thought of setting his wrong ideas right. He knows that he was wrong in jumping to conclusions about the game of the little children. He doesn’t want another adult to make the same mistake. If he was worried over the black boy’s acceptance of his inferiority so young in life, the previous day, the author thinks, the white man would be worried over the white boy’s inferior role the next day. The author wants to clear this misconception because by now he knows that only adults are guilty of such thoughts and not children.

Multiple Choice Questions

Four alternatives are given for each of the following questions/ incomplete statements. Choose the most appropriate one.

Question 1.
The storyteller/narrator is a native of
A) Britain
B) Jamaica
C) Australia
D) Africa.
Answer:
B) Jamaica

Question 2.
The two boys were the sons of
A) a Jamaican father and a white mother.
B) a white father and a brown mother.
C) a Jamaican father and a Jamaican mother.
D) an African mother and a British father.
Answer:
B) a white father and a brown mother.

Question 3.
The road the author of ‘Jamaican Fragment’ took every morning was flanked on either side by
A) tall buildings, offices, and lawns.
B) lawns, bungalows, and gardens.
C) gardens, playgrounds, and offices.
D) bungalows, lawns, and playgrounds.
Answer:
B) lawns, bungalows, and gardens.

Question 4.
The first thought that crossed the mind of the author of ‘Jamaican Fragment’ after seeing the game was that
A) the boys were playmates.
B) the little boy was the son of a servant in that home.
C) the boys were classmates.
D) the boys were brothers.
Answer:
B) the little boy was the son of a servant in that home.

Question 5.
The next morning, the author was astonished when he saw the boys playing because
A) a white man was watching them.
B) a brown woman was playing with them.
C) the white boy was again ordering the black boy to do some tasks.
D) the black boy was ordering the white boy to get him a banana.
Answer:
D) the black boy was ordering the white boy to get him a banana.

Question 6.
The white man was at first surprised at the narrator’s outburst and eventually, he also smiled because:
A) the narrator was his friend. ,
B) the narrator was explaining without introducing himself.
C) both the little boys were his sons.
D) he was puzzled at the narrator’s foolishness.
Answer:
C) both the little boys were his sons.

Question 7.
At the end of the lesson, the author of ‘Jamaican. Fragment’ feels proud of being a
A) human being.
B) black.
C) Jamaican.
D) world citizen.
Answer:
C) Jamaican.

Question 8.
The moral of the story ‘Jamaican Fragment’ is that we should not:
A) underestimate others.
B) quarrel with others.
C) jump to conclusions.
D) divide ourselves into classes and races.
Answer:
C) jump to conclusions.

Question 9.
The morning walk was pleasant to the author as
A) he could learn something from little incidents
B) the road on either side was full of greeneries
C) he could spend some time outside
D) he was a lover of nature.
Answer:
D) he was a lover of nature.

Question 10.
The truth that can be brought out from the lesson ‘Jamaican Fragment’is
A) our opinions are not always based on real facts
B) we always mistake one thing for another
C) we are always hasty in our thinking
D) we always act overconfidently.
Answer:
C) we are always hasty in our thinking

Question 11.
My spirit laughed at me. Here ‘me’ refers to
A) the Jamaican
B) the father of the boys
C) the brown woman
D) the author.
Answer:
D) the author.

Question 12.
The two little boys were dressed alike in
A) blue and khaki pants
B) blue shirts and khaki pants
C) khaki pants and white shirts
D) khaki and blue.
Answer:
B) blue shirts and khaki pants

Question 13.
The author of the lesson “Jamaican Fragment” is
A) Leo Tolstoy
B) C.E.M. Joad
C) A.L. Hendricks
D) Butler Leacock.
Answer:
C) A.L. Hendricks

Question 14.
The author thought that the white man was puzzled because
A) the blacks were superior to the whites
B) the blacks would eventually rise and rule the world
C) the boys played the game of the boss and the slave.
D) the boys have dressed alike.
Answer:
B) the blacks would eventually rise and rule the world

Question 15.
The author A.L. Hendricks describes the two boys as
A) weak
B) bright
C) strong
D) sturdy.
Answer:
D) sturdy.

Jamaican Fragment by A.L. Hendricks About the Author:

Arthur Lemiere Hendricks was born in 1922 at Kingston, Jamaica. He is a West Indian poet and short story writer. He worked as a Broadcasting Director. In all his writings we can find the taste of Caribbean Literature. In the story ‘Jamaican Fragment’, he tells us how people in his country had preconceived ideas of superiority and inferiority with regard to colour, race and class.

Jamaican Fragment Summary in English

The author used to walk a half-mile every morning from his home to the rail track lines, and from the rail track lines back to his house every evening. It used to be a pleasant walk because he could enjoy the scenery. It was a good exercise also. Sometimes, the walk would be educative. He would learn new things from incidents that happened around him.

One morning, on his way to the rail track lines, he saw two boys playing in the garden pf a small house. Both of them were very little boys. One was four years old and the other about five years. The bigger of the two boys was strong, very dark with coal-black eyes and coarse black hair.

The small boy was also sturdy. He was white with hazel eyes and light brown hair. Both were wearing blue shirts and khaki pants. They did not wear shoes. Their feet were muddy as they were playing in the mud.

They were unaware of the author watching them. The small white boy walked up and down majestically. The bigger brown boy followed him and did what he was told to do. The white boy told the dark boy to pick up a stick. The dark boy picked it up. Then the white boy asked him to jump into the flowers, and he did so. Again, the white boy ordered the dark boy to fetch him some water. The dark boy ran into the house to bring water.

The author was surprised to see the white boy imposing his will on the black boy. He was almost commanding the black boy, and the black boy meekly submitted himself. The author thought that the black boy must be the son of a house servant. Since both of them were dressed in the same kind of clothes, he again thought that they must be neighbours. He wondered why the dark boy faithfully obeyed the white boy’s orders. The author, himself being a Jamaican, was sad that the Jamaican boy had accepted the supremacy of the whites even in his own country.

The next morning the narrator saw the boys again. A man was watching them play. He was surprised to see that the black boy was commanding and the little white boy was carrying out his orders. The dark boy walked imperiously up and down and the white boy followed him obediently. The dark boy asked the white boy to get him a banana. Tf\e white boy ran inside and came out with a banana. The little black fellow ordered the white boy to peel it for him and the white boy did so and gave it to his dark master.

The narrator then realized that they were playing a game, which he had also played in his childhood. He looked at the man standing beside the gate. He was a white man. The narrator thought that the white man would be thinking on the same lines as he had, the previous day. He went to the white man and tried to drive away his doubts by telling him that the children were only playing. The narrator told the white man that only the grown-up people were silly to think in terms of racial discrimination.

The white man smiled. He told the narrator that he knew all about the children’s game. He said that the boys were his sons and they were brothers. He pointed to the fair brown woman on the verandah and said that she was his wife. The narrator felt very happy and proud that his Jamaica brought people from different communities and cultures together. The white man smiled and said if they did not hurry they would miss the train and went away.

Jamaican Fragment Summary in Kannada