Class 12 English Unit 17: Train to Pakistan Langauge Development Section

 

Unit 17 Train to Pakistan ( page 140)

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FvqO28U1nc

Reflection of the novel ‘Train to Pakistan’ by Singh

The novel ‘Train to Pakistan’ was published in 1956, which is Khushwant Singh’s third and most famous work. The novel draws upon Singh’s own experiences during and after the Partition of India in 1947 and details the chaos and violence in the formation of Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan. The partition resulted in the displacement of approximately 14 million people and saw violent acts perpetrated by Hindus, Sikhs, and Muslims alike.

Rather than take a macro lens perspective of the conflict, Singh analyzes it with a microlens, from the view of a small village that is eventually torn apart by the partition. The novel is set in Mano Majra, a fictional village located in India but on the border of Pakistan, where the population is mostly Sikh and Muslim. At the beginning of the novel, most of the village’s inhabitants are unaware of the religious and nationalistic violence happening in India and Pakistan and live in peace across religious lines. This quickly changes when a train from Pakistan, full of murdered Sikhs, arrives in Mano Majra.

In addition to providing a deeply human and poignant portrayal of a key moment in the histories of modern-day India and Pakistan, Train to Pakistan is a critical piece of the literary canon. The novel was written in the aftermath of World War II, when countries such as England, Germany, and France were losing power gained via imperialism and colonialism. During this period, postcolonial literature that used the language of the colonizer to critique and denounce colonization was prevalent.

Works roughly contemporaneous with Train to Pakistan include Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, Black Skin, White Masks by Franz Fanon, and Waiting for the Mahatma by R.K. Narayan. Train to Pakistan’s historical fiction content and deeply personal approach make it similar to other works of postcolonial literature. However, Singh’s satirical humor in the face of violence and tragedy helps to set his work apart from other novels in the postcolonial canon.

The book was adapted into a movie of the same name and premiered in 1998 to some critical acclaim. In addition to its India release, it was also released in the United States, Sri Lanka, and the UK, and was shown in several international film festivals. Though ‘Train to Pakistan’ has not received any awards, Khushwant Singh is the recipient of many awards and honours, some for his service to India and some for his writing. The literary honors include the Punjab Rattan Award and the Sahitya Akademi, Fellowship. Today, Train to Pakistan remains a crucial exploration into the destructive power of religion, corruption, and nationalism.

Working with words

A.   What do the underlined words in the following sentences mean? Tick the best answer.

a.      The shouting and clamour would continue until long after the train had left the station. i. clapping      ii. music      iii. √a loud and confused noise iv. train whistle

b.     There were dozens outside perched precariously on footboards holding on the door handles.

i. √not securely         ii. carefully                  iii. joyfully            iv. prudently

c.      The book had gone round the compartment for scrutiny.

i. appreciation          ii. √examination iii. entertainment            iv. religious ritual

d.     But Jugga had run away, absconded.

i.       committed suicide                iii. killed a fellow friend

ii.     surrendered                         iv. √hid somewhere secretly

e.      His countrymen’s code of morals had always puzzled him, with his anglicized way of looking at things.

i.       characteristics of Indians               ii. √characteristics of English

ii.     characteristics of Pakistani   iv. characteristics of Aryans

f.       Iqbal felt a little silly for coming out with these platitudes.

i.       commonplace remarks                   ii. philosophical remarks

ii.     critical remarks                             iv. √doubtful remarks

B.    Many words have been borrowed in English from different languages. Find the meaning of the following words, which are borrowed from the Hindi language.

Veranda: balcony usually roofed and often partly enclosed

Khaki: a strong cloth of wool or cotton

Pashmina: a soft fabric made from the wool

Pyjamas: clothes for wearing to bed, usually a loose-fitting shirt and pants

Pukka: high quality

Pundit: a priest with knowledge of Sanskrit

Avatar: the incarnation of a deity

Bangle: a rigid bracelet

Cheetah: a distinctive member of the cat family

Guru: a Hindu or Sikh spiritual teacher

Jungle: forest

Karma: destiny or fate

Nirvana: enlightened experience

Shampoo:  a traditional Indian body massage with pouring warm water with herbs

Raita: a sauce in Southern cuisine

C.    Add the given suffixes to the following words to make new words. Notice whether ‘e’ is retained or dropped.

a.      change + -able / -ing / -ed / - less

changeable, changing, changed, changeless

b.     time + -ly / -ing / -ed / -less

timely, timing, timed, timeless

c.      notice + -able / -ing / -ed

noticeable, noticing, noticed

d.     praise + -worthy / -ing / -ed

praiseworthy, praising, praised

e.      home + -less / -ing / -ly

homely, homeless, homing

D.   Study a list of English vowels with their example words and write more example words with the help of a dictionary.

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYkITIqfZ6c

S.N.	Symbol	Example	Spelling	Remarks
1.	/ ə /	ago, alike, accept, doctor	a, or, ar, er, etc.	Monophthong
2.	/ʌ /	run, hut, mother, son	u, o, etc.	Monophthong
3.	/Ӡ: /	bird, fur, earth, etc.	ir, ear, ur etc.	Monophthong
4.	/ ɒ /	cot, hot, long etc.	o	Monophthong
5.	/ ɔ: /	all, call, saw, brought	all, aw, ou etc.	Monophthong
6.	/ æ /	cat, bag, crack	a	Monophthong
7.	/ e /	red, head, said	e, ea, ai, etc.	Monophthong
8.	/ i /	sit, city, economics	i, y, e etc.	Monophthong
9.	/ i: /	seat, thief, seen key, receive	ea, ee, ei, ey etc.	Monophthong
10.	/ ʊ /	put, should, book	u, ou, oo etc.	Monophthong
11.	/ u: /	shoe, juice, school	oo, ui, oe etc.	Monophthong
12.	/ a: /	arm, pass, calm	a	Monophthong
13.	/ eə /	there, chair, dare	ere, air, are etc.	Diphthong
14.	/ iə /	here, cheer, mere	ere, eer, etc.	Diphthong
15.	/ ʊə /	poor, sure, pure	ure, oor, etc.	Diphthong
16.	/ ei /	say, eight, pain, they	ay, ei, ai, ey etc.	Diphthong
17.	/ ai /	high, kind, sky	i, y etc.	Diphthong
18.	/ ɔi /	boy, soil, noise	oy, oi,etc.	Diphthong
19.	/ aʊ /	cow, how, now etc.	o, ow, ou etc.	Diphthong
20.	/ əʊ /	go, most, boat	o, oa, etc.	Diphthong

Comprehension

Answer the following questions.

a.      Why did Iqbal want to sleep in the afternoon?

He wanted to sleep in the afternoon because of spending the night sitting on his bedroll in a packed third-class cabin of a train.

b.     How did people react with each other in the train?

They were making a loud noise in the train, which was often crying at one another because the train was overcrowded.

c.      Why did the book Iqbal was reading bring commotion in the compartment?

The book Iqbal was reading brought commotion in the compartment because he was reading a book that was written in English. All the passengers thought that he was a wise man, as they did not know the English language.

d.     Why did Iqbal have to give clarification with his personal details?

He had to give clarification with his personal details in the compartment because of his reputation, since he was an intelligent and smart traveller who was the only one who understood the English language.

e.      Who was Meet Sing, and what did he report to Iqbal?

Meet Sing was the priest of Gurudwara. He told Iqbal that the murder of a fellow villager might have been committed by Jugga.

f.       How, according to Meet Singh, was Jugga Sing different from his forefathers?

According to Meet Sing, Jugga was different from his forefathers because his forefathers never stole or murdered members of their own village; instead, they used to keep villagers safe from others, but Jugga killed them to be safe from other dacoits.

g.     How does the author show contradiction in Meet Singh’s character?

The author shows two approaches to present Meet Singh’s personality contradictions. He showed his positive attitude by saying he was more concerned about a villager’s death than Jugga’s. On the other hand, he planned to swear on the holy Granth that Jugga was praying at the Gurudwara at the time of his murder to establish his innocence.

h.     Who was Hukum Chand, and how did he succeed in his career?

Hokum Chand was the Deputy Shahib who was also known as Nar Adami. He succeeded in his career because of his pleasing behaviour towards his Shahibs, so he was promoted regularly.  

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