Gujarat Board GSEB Class 10 English Textbook Solutions First Flight Poem 6 Amanda Textbook Exercise Important Questions and Answers, Notes Pdf.

Gujarat Board Textbook Solutions Class 10 English First Flight Poem 6 Amanda

GSEB Class 10 English Amanda Text Book Questions and Answers

Thinking about the Poem

Question 1.
How old do you think Amanda is ? How do you know this?
Answer:
Amanda appears to be a teenager. Terms; like ‘Acne’ and ‘Sulking’; indicate towards Amanda being a teenager.

Question 2.
Who do you think is speaking to her ?
Answer:
It is probably her mother or a guardian.

Question 3.
Why are Stanzas 2, 4 and 6 given in parenthesis ?
Answer:
These stanzas tell the inner thoughts of Amanda. These are given in parenthesis to give a visual contrast so that readers can easily understand.

Question 4.
Who is the speaker in Stanzas 2, 4 and 6 ? Do you think this speaker is listening to the speaker in Stanzas 1, 3, 5, and 7?
Answer:
Amanda is the speaker in Stanzas 2, 4 and 6. She is not listening to the speaker in Stanzas 1, 3, 5 and 7.

Question 5.
What could Amanda do if she were a mermaid ? (August 20)
Answer:
As a mermaid; Amanda could drift blissfully in the sea. Drifting is different from swimming. While swimming amounts to controlled strokes, drifting is more careless. Swimming can be extraneous but drifting can be more pleasant.

Question 6.
Is Amanda an orphan ? Why does she say so ?
Answer:
The way Amanda is being told about Dos and Don’ts, she cannot be an orphan. In this poem, the word ‘orphan’ has been used as a metaphor. We can compare it with street urchins who have all the time to enjoy their childhood.

Question 7.
Do you know the story of Rapunzel ? Why does she want to be Rapunzel ?
Answer:
Rapunzel was a princess with long golden hair. Her hair was so strong that she used to drop her hair from the tower she was living in and her prince charming used to climb by using her hair.

But Amanda wants to enjoy the tranquillity of her tower and doesn’t want to let down her hair. She doesn’t want any prince to disturb her peace.

Question 8.
What does the girl yearn for? What does this poem tell you about Amanda ?
Answer:
Amanda yearns for some freedom so that she could enjoy her growing years. Amanda is like most of the teenagers who want t6 have their own private spaces. It is true that some social conditioning and tutoring is necessary to develop people as better persons, but it is equally true that everyone should get some time to enjoy the bliss of freedom.

Question 9.
Read the last stanza. Do you think Amanda is sulking and is moody ?
Answer:
Since Amanda had been scolded so she appears to be sulky and moody. But her inner thoughts of being a mermaid, of being a careless child, of being a princess on a solitary tower, show that she is a normal adolescent who has her own dreams and desires.

GSEB Class 10 English Amanda Additional Important Questions and Answers

Read the following stanzas carefully and answer the questions given below them:

Question 1.
Don’t bite your nails, Amanda !
Don’t hunch your shoulders, Amanda!
Stop that slouching and sit up straight, Amanda!
(There is a languid, emerald sea,
where the sole inhabitant is me –
a mermaid, drifting blissfully.)

Questions:
(1) %Vhat does the speaker in the first stanza instruct Amanda ?
(2) ‘there is a ……. blissfully’ Why are these lines given within brackets ?
(3) What is the role of mermaid here ?
Answer:
(1) The speaker in the first stanza instructs Amanda not to bite her nails and not to sit lazily with her shoulders bent.

(2) These lines are given within brackets because they reveal the inner thoughts of Amanda. Brackets are used for visual contrast between what Amanda is thinking and what her mother is instructing.

(3) Mermaid’ is a part of Amanda’s fantasy in, her own created world. As mermaid sails in a sea carelessly and effortlessly, similarly Amanda longs to do so in a place where she is all by herself.

Question 2.
Did you finish your homework, Amanda ?
Did you tidy your room, Amanda?
I thought I told you to clean your shoes, Amanda!
(I am an orphan, roaming the street,
I pattern soft dust with my hushed, bare feet.
The silence is golden, the freedom is sweet.)

Questions:
(1) What, do you think, is irritating for Amanda in the first stanza?
(2) Here silence is golden. How come ?
(3) What poetic device is used in this stanza?
Answer:
(1) Every now and then Amanda is being instructed to do one thing or the other, which is very irritating for her.
(2) By making silence golden, the poet is estimating the worth of silence. Amanda seeks peace and calmness, which is absent in her reality.
(3) The poet uses metaphors such as, ‘orphan’, ‘silence is golden’ and ‘freedom is sweet’.

Question 3.
Don’t eat that chocolate, Amanda !
Remember your acne, Amanda!
Will you please look at me
when I’m speaking to you, Amanda!
(I am Rapunzel, I have not a care;
life in a tower is tranquil and rare;
I’ll certainly never let down my bright hair)

Questions:
(1 )Why does mother ask Amanda not to eat that chocolate?
(2) Why will Amanda’ not let down her bright hair?
(3) What is the underlying poetic device used in this stanza?
Answer:
(1)The mother cares much for the physical well-being of her child. Amanda is being prepared for the unforeseen future. Natural experience such as acne is also taken care of at any cost, according to the mother.

(2) Amanda is aware about the story of Rapunzel. In the story of Rapunzel all the mishappening and misfortunes are brought to her by letting down the hair from the tower. Amanda also wishes to live alone and carefree, without any disturbance.

(3) The poet uses ‘Allusion’ as the underlying poetic device in this stanza.

Question 4.
Stop that sulking at once, Amanda !
You’re always so moody, Amanda!
Anyone would think that I nagged at you, Amanda!

Questions:
(1) Is Amanda really sulking ?
(2) Why does the speaker care for others ?
(3) What poetic device has been used in the first line of this stanza ?
Answer:
(1) Amanda is not sulking. She just doesn’t care about instructions given to her as she is lost in a world of her own.

(2) The whole poem revolves around the aspect that how one is presented in a society, The speaker doesn’t wish to be regarded as a nagging parent in the society, so Amanda is expected to put up a happy face all the time.

(3 ) ‘Alliteration’ has been used in the first line words ‘stop’ and ‘sulking’ start with the same sound.

Choose the correct figures of speech used in the following lines:

Question 1.
‘Stop that slouching and sit up straight’.
A. Personification
B. Apostrophe
C. Alliteration
D. Oxymoron
Answer:
C. Alliteration

Question 2.
‘…………… a mermaid, drifting blissfully’.
A. Internal Rhyme
B. Metaphor
C. Synecdoche
D. Metonymy
Answer:
B. Metaphor

Question 3.
‘Did you tidy your room, Amanda ?’
A. Apostrophe
B. Interrogation
C. Alliteration
D. Oxymoron
Answer:
B. Interrogation

Question 4.
‘I am an orphan, roaming the street’.
A. Metaphor
B. Personification
C. Internal Rhyme
D. Apostrophe
Answer:
A. Metaphor

Question 5.
‘I am Rapunzel, I have not a care’.
A. Oxymoron
B. Synecdoche
C. Metaphor
D. Metonymy
Answer:
C. Metaphor

Question 6.
‘Stop that sulking at once, Amanda’!
A. Apostrophe
B. Interrogation
C. Alliteration
D. Oxymoron
Answer:
B. Interrogation

Answer the following questions in Three to four sentences each:

Question 1.
Write about the significance of the title of the poem ‘Amanda’.
Answer:
The title of the poem is Amanda. It revolves around the upbringing of a little girl named Amanda. Her life is full of struggles, where she is denied freedom and expression. Amanda is so much irate that she escapes reality by living in her imaginative world. Through this gateway she experiences calmness, away from her nagging parents.

Question 2.
Why is Amanda getting scolded for having chocolate ?
Answer:
Amanda is getting scolded for having chocolate as previously it had caused her acne, Amanda’s mother is very particular about such things. Amanda is made conscious about her physical appearance. It is very sad that at such a young age Amanda is made to worry about natural experiences.

Question 3.
Why does Amanda wish to live in a tower ?
Answer:
Life in a tower for Amanda would be very different from her reality. Just like Rapunzel, Amanda desires to live in a tower, away from everyday chaos. Amanda suffers due to the constant nagging from her parents. She seeks a place full of peace and serenity, where there is no one to disturb her. Hence, she wishes to live in a tower.

Question 4.
Why does Amanda seem moody most ‘ of the time ?
Answer:
Amanda seems moody most of the time because she is trying to make an escape from her sorry reality where she is nagged most of the time. It is indeed a sorry state for a small child like Amanda to bear. Here the only defence against such reality is her imagination where she often escapes to. Hence, it makes her look moody and uninterested.

Question 5.
Why does Amanda wish to be a mermaid, an orphan, or Rapunzel ?
Answer:
Amanda wishes to be a mermaid, so that she could drift alone blissfully in languid, emerald sea. She yearns to be an orphan so that she is able to roam the sea and make patterns using her bare feet. Being Rapunzel for her means living carefree in a high tower. Amanda wishes to be these so that she could avoid her suffocating reality.

Question 6.
Do you consider Amanda’s mother to be a nagging mother?
Answer:
Amanda’s mother is indeed a nagging mother. She is all about instructions and finding faults. No doubt it is her responsibility to instil good values into her daughter, but-not at the cost of her child’s happiness. One should know how to strike a balance between maintaining responsibilities and taking good care.

Question 7.
What is the central theme of the poem Amanda ?
Answer:
The poem Amanda by Robin Klein highlights the importance of upbringing of a child. It points out that upbringing doesn’t involve making a child responsible and fit for the society only. It is important to note that upbringing involves understanding from both the sides. One cannot just force a child to be civilised and good mannered. “Love and proper care is required in nurturing of a child”.

Amanda Summary in English

Amanda Introduction:
Robin McMaugh Klein is an Australian author of books for children. She was born on February 28, 1936, in Kempsey, New South Wales and now resides near Melbourne, Australia.

Amanda Summary:
This poem depicts the state of a little girl’s mind who is constantly instructed about do’s and don’ts by her elders. She is told not to hunch her shoulders and to sit up straight. She is told to finish her homework and tidy her room. She is forbidden from eating a chocolate that she has. But all the time, the little girl Amanda keeps dreaming of a life of freedom in the open. She dreams of mermaids in the sea of roaming barefoot in the dusty street and of the golden haired Rapunzel who lived alone in a high tower. She takes no note of what is being said to her. Then she is rebuked for being moody and sulking all the time.