Ch-The Beggar
1-Lodging = accommodation, stay (ठहरने की जगह),
2. Intrigues = plots, schemes (साजिशें), 3.Calumny = slander, defamation (झूठा आरोप),
3. Mendicant = beggar, pauper (भिक्षुक), 4.Overshoes = shoe covers, galoshes (जूतों के ऊपर पहनने वाला आवरण),
5.Expelled = ousted, removed (निकाल दिया गया),
6.Mumbled = murmured, whispered (मुँह में गुनगुनाया),
7.Flushed = reddened, blushed (लाल हो जाना),
8. Advocate = lawyer, attorney (वकील), 9.Suppliant = pleader (याचक),
10. Ragged = tattered, worn-out (फटे हुए),
11.Province = region, territory (प्रदेश),
12.Ashamed = embarrassed, guilty (शरमिंदा),
13. Lying = untruthful, deceitful (झूठ बोलना),
14. Disgust = revulsion, aversion (घृणा)
15. Swindling = cheating, fraud (धोखा), 16.Fiction = made-up, falsehood (कल्पना),
17.Choir = singing group, (गायन दल), 18.Drunkenness = intoxication (नशा), 19.Chop = cut, hew (काटना),
20.Scarecrow = thin, ragged person (भूसा डराने वाला पुतला),
21.Perplexity = confusion, (उलझन), 22.Irresolutely = uncertainly, hesitantly (अनिश्चितता से),
23.Undermined = weakened, damaged (कमजोर किया हुआ),
24.Vodka = alcoholic drink, spirit (शराब),
25. Toil = hard work, (मेहनत),
26. Wrathfully = angrily, furiously (क्रोध से),
27.Shed = storage, outhouse (शेड)
28.Pseudo-teacher = fake teacher, imposter (नकली शिक्षक),
29. Scold = chastise, reprove (फटकारना),
30. Irresolutely = hesitantly, doubtfully (अनिश्चितता से),
31. Billet = log, timber (लकड़ी की छड़ी),
32.Freezing = icy, cold (बहुत ठंडा), 33.Menial = basic, lowly (नीच),
34. Waif = stray, outcast (अवारा),
35. Rouble = currency, money (रूबल)
36.Shovel = dig, (फावड़ा से खोदना),
37. Rugs = carpets, (कालीन),
38. Wagons = carts, vehicles (गाड़ी), 39.Feebleness = weakness, frailty (दुर्बलता) ,
40.Gloomy = sad, depressed (उदास), 41.Tattered = torn, worn out (फटा हुआ), 42.Gallery = upper seating, balcony section (उच्च स्थान),
43.Notary = legal official, scribe (नोटरी)
44.Delighted = pleased, overjoyed (प्रसन्न),
45.Godson = spiritual son, baptized male child (धार्मिक पुत्र),
46.Roasting = severe criticism, (डाँटना), 47.Indebted = obliged, owing gratitude (ऋणी),
48. Sot = drunkard, alcoholic (शराबी), 49.Strain = tone, manner (धुन),
50. Dragged = pulled, hauled (खींचा),
51-Hauling: transporting
52..Copecks: Russian coin equal to one hundredth of a rouble
53.Gait: walk
54.Notary: a person authorized to perform certain legal formalities,
The Beggar NCERT-Solutions
1. Has Lushkoff become a beggar by circumstance or by choice?
Ans. Lushkoff became a beggar due to his circumstances. He had been a singer in the choir but was removed due to his drunkenness. Left with no other option, he started begging to fend for himself.
2. What reasons does he give to Sergei for his telling lies?
Ans. Lushkoff told Sergei that he was fired because he was a drunkard. If he told the truth, people would not give him alms. Thus, he was forced to lie.
3. Is Lushkoff a willing worker? Why, then, does he agree to chop wood for Sergei?
Ans. Lushkoff was not willing to work because he was not fit. He was hungry, felt cold and was under the influence of alcohol. He agreed to chop wood for Sergei because of his pride and shame. He was trapped in his own words.
4. Sergei says, “I am happy that my words have taken effect.” Why does he say so? Is he right in saying this?
Ans. When Sergei met Lushkoff for the first time, he was reluctant to work. Gradually, he took to work and reformed. Sergei felt that his words and deeds had changed Lushkoff. He is right in saying so because if he had not offered him work, Lushkoff would still be begging in the streets.
5. Lushkoff is earning thirty five roubles a month. How is he obliged to Sergei for this?
Ans. Lushkoff is obliged to Sergei for earning 35 roubles a month as a notary. When Sergei noticed that Lushkoff had given upo drinking, he offered him a better job due to which Lushkoff became a notary one day.
6. During their conversation Lushkoff reveals that Sergei’s cook, Olga, is responsible for the positive change in him. How has Olga saved Lushkoff?
Ans. Olga hated the beggar. She scolded him, felt pity for him and even chopped the wood for him. She would cry to see his pathetic condition. All this had an affect on Lushkoff and changed him.
Extra Question And answer
Q1. How did Sergei recognize the beggar?
Ans. Sergei turned to face the beggar. His face appeared to be familiar. He attempted to recall where he had seen him. His gaze was drawn to the beggar’s shoes. One shoe was too high, while the other was too low. He knew exactly where he had seen the beggar before. He had noticed the beggar on Sadovaya Street.
Q2. Where did Sergei send Lushkoff? What advice did he give him?
Ans. Sergei discovered that Lushkoff was unfit for physical labor. He decided to give him a simpler and cleaner job. He assigned him to an office where he would copy documents. He advised him to work hard and refrain from drinking.
Q3. The beggar was a liar. What two lies did he tell Sergei?
Ans. When the beggar first met Sergei, he told him he was a student who had been expelled from college. When he saw Sergei for the second time, he told him that he had been offered a job in Kaluga but that he didn’t have enough money to get there.
Q4. What kind of work was given to Lushkoff initially? Why did he agree to do it?
Ans. Sergei refused to give alms to the beggar, Lushkolf. He was offered work by lie. He took him home and assigned him to chop wood. Lushkoff agreed to do this work not because he was hungry or needed the money. He agreed to do it out of pride and shame, as well as being trapped by his own words.
Q5. Where did Sergei see Lushkoff after two years? What work was he doing then?
Ans. Sergei met Lushkoff in a theater two years later. Sergei discovered him to be well-dressed and in a good mood. He was a notary public at the time. Every month, he earned thirty-five roubles.
Q6. How did Olga save Lushkoff?
Ans. Lushkoff was in poor health. He was too exhausted to work. He couldn’t cut wood. Olga took pity on him and took his place. Olga assisted him in saving his job and earning money in this manner.
Q7. Was Lushkoff not good at chopping wood?
Ans. No, Lushkoff was not a skilled woodcutter. He drew a piece of wood towards himself. He tucked it between his thighs. With the axe, the drunk man struck the wood feebly. The piece of wood became unstable and collapsed. He pulled it again and struck it. The piece of wood fell down once more. This demonstrated that Lushkoff had no idea how to chop wood.
Q8. Write a brief character-sketch of Olga.
Ans. Sergei’s maidservant was Olga. She was staring at the beggar but she had a good heart. She chastised Lushkoff. But she felt sorry for him because he was weak and hungry. Lushkoff was hired by Sergei to do the chopping of the wood but as he was weak, she did it for him. Lushkoff was moved by Olga’s kindness. He stopped drinking and began to be more interested in his work. As a result, Olga’s kindness saved Lushkoff’s life.
Q9. What was Lushkoff in reality?
Ans. In reality, Lushkoff was a member of a Russian choir. He was fired from that job due to his drinking problem. To earn money by begging, he pretended to be a school teacher or a student.
Q10. Why did Sergei call Lushkoff his ‘Godson’?
Ans. Sergei assisted Lushkoff in making amends. Lushkoff was no longer a beggar. He was a notary public who made a good living. Sergei was pleased with himself for elevating Lushkoff’s status. As a result, he referred to him as his Godson.
Extract Based
A. Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow:
KIND sir, have pity; turn your attention to a poor, hungry man! For three days I have had nothing to eat; I haven’t five copecks for a lodging, I swear it before God. For eight years I was a village schoolteacher and then I lost my place through intrigues. I fell a victim to calumny. It is a year now since I have had anything to do.”
Q1. Who is “I” in this extract? To whom is he telling about himself?
Ans. “I” here refers to the beggar, Lushkoff. He is telling advocate Sergei about himself.
Q2. What was his occupation and why did he lose it?
Ans. According to Lushkoff, he was a village schoolteacher and he lost his occupation because of scheming and lies against him.
Q3. What does he do now?
Ans. He hasn’t had anything to do for a year now. However, he begs in order to survive.
Q4. What does the speaker expect from the listener?
Ans. The speaker appeals to the listener’s kindness and sympathy in order to get words of kindness and monetary help.
B. Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow:
“This is dishonesty, my dear sir!” he cried angrily. “This is swindling — I shall send the police for you, damn you!”
“Sir!” he said, laying his hand on his heart, “the fact is I was lying! I am neither a student nor a schoolteacher. All that was fiction. Formerly I sang in a Russian choir and was sent away for drunkenness. But what else can I do? I can’t get along without lying. No one will give me anything when I tell the truth, what can I do?”
Q1. Who speaks the initial lines to whom?
Ans. Sergei, an affluent advocate, says these words to Lushkoff, an alcoholic beggar.
Q2. Why was the first speaker angry?
Ans. The speaker, Sergei, was angry because Lushkoff was being dishonest and had been cheating people in order to get money as alms.
Q3. What, according to the first speaker, was ‘dishonesty’ and ‘swindling’?
Ans. According to the speaker, Sergei, concealing real identity and telling lies by Lushkoff was dishonesty and swindling.
Q4. Why did the second speaker lay a hand on his heart?
Ans. The second speaker, Lushkoff placed a hand on his heart to indicate that he was speaking the truth.
C. Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow:
Sergei hurried into the dining-room. From its windows one could see the wood-shed and everything that went on in the yard. Standing at the window, Sergei saw the cook and the beggar come out into the yard by the back door and make their way across the dirty snow to the shed. Olga glared wrathfully at her companion, shoved him aside with her elbow, unlocked the shed, and angrily banged the door.
Q1. Who was Olga and who was her companion?
Ans. Olga was the cook of advocate Sergei and her companion was Lushkoff, the beggar.
Q2. Find a synonym of ‘pushed’ from the given extract.
Ans. Shoved
Q3. Why did Olga unlock the shed?
Ans. Olga unlocked the shed to take out the wood and give it to Lushkoff for chopping as instructed by her master, advocate Sergei
Q4. Why did Sergei stand at the window?
Ans. To watch Olga and the beggar, Lushkoff chop woods in the shed.
D. Read the following extract and answer the questions that follow:
“Thank you for your kind words and deeds. I am very grateful to you and to your cook. God bless that good and noble woman! You spoke finely then, and I shall be indebted to you to my dying day; but, strictly speaking, it was your cook, Olga, who saved me.”
“How is that?”
“When I used to come to your house to chop wood she used to begin: ‘Oh, you sot, you! Oh, you miserable creature! There’s nothing for you but ruin.’ And then she would sit down opposite me and grow sad, look into my face and weep.
Q1. Who is “I”? Whom is he talking to and where?
Ans. “I” here is the reformed Lushkoff and he is talking to advocate Sergei, his former employer and mentor. Both of them were at the ticket window of the theater at the time of this conversation.
Q2. Why will the speaker be indebted to the listener?
Ans. Lushkoff shall be indebted forever to Sergei because the latter had spoken finely to him when he was passing through a rough phase of life as a beggar.
Q3. How had Olga saved the speaker?
Ans. Olga, the cook, had saved Lushkoff by her words and her noble deeds. She would grow sad at his plight and reprimand him for his waywardness, but cut wood on his behalf, suffer misery and shed tears for his sake.
Q4. What opinion do you form from this statement?
Ans. This statement reveals that the speaker, Lushkoff, had become a sensitive, humble and grateful soul to acknowledge the good deeds of his benefactor. He was polite but straightforward and honest in his demeanor.
