KERALA READER
ENGLISH - PART I
UNIT - 1
Nature’s Plenty
Chapter 1
How Far is the River?
Summary:
Ruskin
Bond’s short story “How far is the
River” is taken from a volume of his collection. The short story
reflects the writer’s understanding of the psychology of a 12-year-old boy who
longs to go out and explore Nature. Between the boy and the river stood a
mountain. The boy was young and the river was small but the mountain was high.
The mountain concealed the river and so the boy had never seen the river but
had heard a great deal about it, of the fish in its waters, of its rocks and
currents and waterfalls. The boy felt a great desire to touch the water of the
river and ‘know it personally’. This short story deals with an unnamed
twelve-year-old boy, a sturdy boy with untidy black hair and shining eyes,
sharp features and a clear brown skin. How he undertakes a long and arduous
walk to locate the river in the absence of his parents in the house that day
forms the plot of the short story. As he walks towards the river, he meets woodcutters,
milkman and mule drivers. Unfortunately, the boy is not able to get clear directions
about the river and its exact location. But he still continues to walk,
suddenly he encounters a village boy who smiled in a friendly way and told him
that the river was not very far away. They have lunch together, and then walk
for some time. Soon his companions had to diverge along another path and the
boy was again on his own. He felt tired, lonely, miserable and hungry and
tempted to return to his house. But if he failed he would always be ashamed of
the experience. Finally, to his great delight the boy heard a sudden roaring
sound, the sound of the river. It tumbled over rocks and the boy gasped and ran
towards it. Although he slipped and tumbled, he still ran forward. Then he was ankle
deep in the bitter cold mountain water which was blue and white and wonderful. At
last the boy fulfilled his dream. The conclusion is abrupt and leaves the
reader to draw
his /her own conclusion.
AUTHOR
ACTIVITY 1
Here
are the thoughts of a boy after his nature-walk. Help him fill up the gaps of
his thoughts with suitable words.
Recently, I visited a …………, the magnificent Munnar.
It is famous for its …………… estates, exotic lush greenery
and craggy peaks. And it is …………. in the Western Ghats,
in the state of …………. For
a moment, I wondered whether
I was in heaven. Really, Munnar is a land of paradise.
ACTIVITY 2
You have read the story,
“How Far is the River?”, haven’t you? Now, try to remember the story and
complete the given word-puzzle with the words from the story using the clues
given below.
B
|
|
R
|
|
F
|
|
|
T
|
|
|
|
|
|
D
|
|
|
T
|
|
|
R
|
H
|
|
S
|
|
T
|
|
|
|
O
|
|
|
O
|
|
|
L
|
|
|
|
S
|
S
|
CLUES
Row 1: Wearing nothing on the feet.
Row 2: Person who cuts down trees.
Row 3: Doubt or reluctance.
Row 4: Isolation or lack of friends.
ACTIVITY 3
In association with World
Nature Conservation Day (July 28), your school Nature Club plans to conduct a
rally. For the rally you have to make some placards. So pick out suitable
slogans from table given below and prepare a few placards.
BOX OF SLOGANS
Do not cut
trees.
|
Do not litter.
|
Do not waste
water.
|
Save animals.
|
ACTIVITY 4
Read the description about the path in the story, “How
far is the river?”.
The path was steep, and the boy had to
run most of the time. It was a dizzy, winding path, and he slipped once or
twice. The hill was covered with lush green ferns, the trees were wound in
creepers, and a great wild dahlia suddenly reared its golden head from the
leaves and ferns.
|
|
Write down the words used
to describe the path?
1) ………………………………………….
2) ………………………………………….
3) …………………………………………
