CBSE FREAK

CREATIVE WRITING Creative writing can be described as a piece of writing that expresses one's thoughts and feelings in a creative and imaginative manner. Creative writing doesn’t follow the conventional techniques of writing. A creative writer may express his thoughts the way he wants, without following the constraining demands of a factual or probable development of an explanatory write up. Important aspects of creative writing: 1. Imagination:  Imagination is an important element of creative writing. Imagination of  a creative writer is well reflected in his view or perspective, his  choice of words, the comparisons he makes, the images and tone he uses  as well as the novelty of his ideas. 2. Novelty:  To say things in a new way is one of the most important aspect of  creative writing. It makes the writing pleasurable to the reader.  Novelty may reflect in the words, sentences, phrases used. 3. Exaggeration: It is one way in which a fact is ...

Letter-writing “Letter writing is an important channel of communication between people who are geographically distant from one another.” Letter writing was the only means of communication between people in the earlier times when technological advancement like telephone and email were not carried out. Letter is generally of two kinds: 1. Formal Letter: These are business or official letters. They are written to convey official information or to complain about something. These letters are written to public agencies in order to communicate about the requirements in civic life. A letter to request change in one’s address is an example of a formal letter. 2. Informal Letter: Informal letters refer to personal letters. They are written to communicate with friends and family. Formal letters Following are some of the steps in writing formal letters. They can, however, be modified according to the purpose and the person the letter is addressed. 1. (i) Introducing oneself if it is...

Essay Writing An essay is a piece of writing on a particular subject or topic consisting of more than one paragraph. The characteristics of a good essay are: Unity – The essay should deal with the main subject and all of its parts should be related to that subject. Coherence –  The ideas, sentences and paragraphs of the essay should be logically sequenced and connected. Relevance –  Irrelevant information should be avoided. Proportion –  While writing the essay, important ideas should be given more weightage and space. Essay writing involves a number of steps. These steps are as follows: Step 1: Prepare an outline or a diagram of all the ideas related to the topic. Step 2: Club similar ideas and expand them into sentences or even paragraphs. Step 3: The first paragraph introduces the subject and makes general statement about the topic. Step 4: In the next few paragraphs, discuss points stated in the introduction in detail. It may include the p...

1. Note-making: Note-making is a useful skill. It forms an important part of our academic as well as work life. It involves drawing important/main information out of large chunks of given information and transforming the information into points. Characteristics of good notes are: (a) Notes are written in a precise manner indicating the main points of the text. (b) Only short phrases are used. No sentences are to be used. (c)  Notes represent logically divided and sub-divided information. For example:  Main sections:        1, 2, 3, etc.  Sub-sections:          (i), (ii), (iii) or 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, etc.  Sub-sub sections:    (a), (b), (c) or 1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3, 1.2.1, 1.2.2, etc. (d) The information is listed in ‘note form’. (e) Abbreviations and symbols are freely used in note-making. Articles, conjunctions and prepositions must not be used. (f...

FATHER TO SON                                                                 –Elizabeth Jennings Father to son is a poem describing the troubled relationship between a father and his son, in the present times. The poem emphasises the generation-gap between the father and the son and expresses the father’s pain and helplessness in failing to ‘understand’ his child. The father realizes the distance between them and wishes to bridge the gap. The father remarks that though they have been living in the same house for years now, he does not understand his son. As he knows nothing about his son, he tries to build the same relationship that he enjoyed when his son was a small child. The father wonders if he is responsible for destroying the basic personality of his son or if his son now belongs to a world to which his father...

CHILDHOOD                                                     –Markus Natten The poem Childhood begins with the poet pondering over ‘when’ was it that he lost his childhood. He wonders if it was the time when he crossed the age of eleven or the time when he started realizing that there is no real existence of heaven and hell as they could not be geographically located in maps. He wonders if he lost his childhood the moment he realised that adults were not all they pretended to be or when he recognised that the adults, who spoke and preached of love, themselves ‘did not act so lovingly’. The poet asks if he lost his childhood when he realised that he has a mind of his own or that he can choose his own way, guided by his mind now capable of producing thoughts and opinions that are different from other people. The poet speculates as to ‘where’ his...

The Browning Version by Terence Rattigan The play presents a conversation between a lower fifth grade science student, Taplow and Frank, a teacher. A chance meeting between Taplow and Frank The scene of the play is set in a school. The play opens with a sixteen year old boy, Taplow who has come to do extra work for his teacher, Crocker-Harris. He is waiting for his teacher, who has not yet arrived. Another teacher, Frank, finds Taplow waiting in the room and strikes a conversation with him. Taplow awaiting his result From the conversation between Frank and Taplow, we are informed that Taplow is waiting for his result to be declared on the following day. He is keen to specialise in science provided he gets a favourable result. The uniqueness of Mr. Crocker-Harris is hinted as he does not tell the results like the other teachers do. He follows the rule of the headmaster declaring the results on the last day of the term. Taplow’s views on art and science Their conversation pr...

THE AILING PLANET: THE GREEN MOVEMENT’S ROLE By Nani Palkhivala The chapter comments on the deteriorating condition of our planet. It speaks of the problems faced by our planet, reasons for its poor condition and the changing view of the world for the planet. The Green Movement The author begins by commenting on the great attention received by the Green Movement that began some 25 years ago. The world’s first nationwide Green party was founded in New Zealand in the year 1972 and the movement has been a great success since then. A change in the human perception A revolutionary change has come in the perception of the human beings bringing in a “holistic and ecological” view of the world. There has been a shift from the understanding developed by Copernicus to the people’s belief that the earth is a living organism whose needs must be respected and preserved by us. According to the writer, our earth is like a “patient in declining health”. Thus, we have to realise our ethical...

THE VOICE OF THE RAIN –Walt Whitman The Voice of the Rain  is a poem that celebrates rain and its natural-cycle for the benefit of earth and the life it supports. The poem begins with the poet asking for the identity of the soft-falling rain shower. Much to the surprise of the poet, the rain replies to his question. And, the poet translates this ‘voice’ of the rain for his readers. The rain identifies itself as the ‘Poem of Earth’. It says that it rises from the land and the deep sea, in the form of the intangible water vapours, and goes up to the immeasurable sky. It then takes the form of clouds with various shapes. Although it changes in its form and shape, its core existence remains the same. It descends or falls on the surface of the earth to eliminate droughts, wash away the tiny particles and settle down the dust-layers. It reinvigorates the dry lands and gives life to the seeds that, otherwise, would have remained dormant and unborn. Thus, the rain drops r...

Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues by A.R. Williams The mummy of King Tut As the mummy of King Tut was glided for performing a CT scan, angry winds stirred and dark clouds covered the stars. His scan was being done to unearth the mysteries that had surrounded his death. Tourists had lined to pay their respects to the ‘mummy’ of the famous Egyptian king Tutankhamun and made speculations about his untimely death. “Funerary treasures” The mummy was in a very bad state, according to Zahi Hawass, Secretary General of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities. King Tut’s tomb was first discovered in 1922 by Howard Carter, a British archaeologist. Tut was found buried with numerous “funerary treasures” in a coffin made of pure gold. The treasures found included precious collars, inlaid necklaces and bracelets, rings, amulets, a ceremonial apron, sandals and sheaths for his fingers and toes. These treasures are till date the richest royal collections ever found. Some everyday items...

“WE'RE NOT AFRAID TO DIE...IF WE CAN ALL BE TOGETHER”                                                                           by Gordon Cook and Alan East A dream to duplicate the round-the-world voyage The narrator, a 37 year old businessman and his wife Mary have dreamt to voyage around the world like the famous Captain James Cook. For the voyage, they have been perfecting their seafaring skills for the past 16 years. They have got a professionally built, 23 metre and 30 ton wooden-hulled boat,  Wavewalker . The boat has been tested for months in the roughest of the weathers. The beginning of the voyage In July 1976, the narrator, together with his wife and kids (son Jonathan, 6 and daughter Suzanne, 7) sets sail from Plymouth, England. The initial period of the three-year journey (fr...

A PHOTOGRAPH                                                                – Shirley Toulson Nostalgically recollecting fond memories, the poet looks at a very old photograph of her mother who has been dead for nearly twelve years. The poet is consumed with grief but is left with no words to express the loss. The poem begins with the poet looking at a very old photograph of her mother at twelve years of age. The photograph, on a cardboard frame, shows the poet’s mother, with her two girl cousins each holding one of her hand. She was eldest of the three and had a ‘sweet face’. In the snapshot, all the three girls stand still, smiling with their hair falling on their faces, to get clicked by the camera of their uncle, on an occasion when they went paddling. The sea, which has apparently undergone no change, washed their...

THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY  by Khuswant Singh In this story, the author draws a pen portrait of his grandmother. He beautifully unfolds his relationship with her, while describing her appearance and daily activities. Appearance of the grandmother The author recalls his grandmother as a very old lady with a wrinkled face. She appeared so old that it was hard for him to believe that she had once been “young and pretty”. She was short, fat and a little stooped in appearance. The author remembers her moving about the house in “spotless white”, counting the beads of her rosary while her lips moved constantly in silent prayers. She was not “pretty” in the traditional sense, yet her serenity made her “beautiful”. Initial years of togetherness: Life in the village In the initial years of his life, the author lived with his grandmother in the village, sharing a good friendship. His grandmother used to wake him up in the morning and get him ready for the school. She would hand over ...