History

Novels, Society and History

Question:

"Premchand's novels are filled with all kinds of powerful characters drawn from all levels of the society."Support the statement by giving suitable examples. [CBSE 2009 (D), Sept. 2012]
Or
Why is Godan considered an epic on Indian peasantry ? Explain. [CBSE Sept. 2010]
Or
Briefly explain the theme of the novel ˜Godan' written by Munshi Premchand. [CBSE Sept. 2010]
Or
Drawn from various strata of society, Prem Chand's characters create a community based on democratic value(s), substantiate the above statement with examples from any of his novels. [CBSE Sept. 2011]

Answer:

i) Sewasadan : In his novel Sewasadan, Munshi Premchand deals mainly with the poor condition of the Indian women in the society. He also exposes the double standards of the upper class of the era.
(ii) Rangbhoomi : His novel, Rangbhoomi centring around the exploitation of peasants of India during the British rule brings out the suffering of ordinary farmers and depicts the inhumanity of the colonial rule. The novel is not only valuable for its literary worth but also for the representation of the social and economic conditions of the underprivileged sections of the society. He has chosen Surdas, a visually impaired beggar from a so-called ‘untouchable' caste as his hero which is very significant. While dealing with the pain and agony of common people under foreign rule, it focuses attention on the powerful current of nationalism which eventually shook the foundation of the British empire and brought us our independence.
(iii) Godan : Godan (The gift of cow), published in 1936, is considered the greatest Hindi novel of modern Indian literature. The novel’s theme revolves around the socio-economic condition of the Indian peasantry. Landlords, moneylenders, priests and colonial bureaucrats – all those who hold power in society form a network of oppression to exploit the poor peasants. The protagonist, Hori, a poor peasant, desperately longs for a cow, a symbol of wealth and prestige in rural India. Hori gets a cow but pays with his life for it. After his death, the village priests demand a cow from his widow to bring his soul to peace.

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Novels, Society and History

Q 1.

Write a note on:
a) The Oriya novel
b) Jane Austen's portrayal of women
c) The picture of the new middle class which the novel Pariksha-Guru portrays.

Q 2.

Describe how the issue of caste was included in novels in India. By referring to any two novels, discuss the ways in which they tried to make readers think about existing social issues.

Q 3.

Write about the early Bengali novels.

Q 4.

Name a novel which is about a secret Hindu militia that fights Muslims to establish a Hindu Kingdom. It was a novel that inspired many kinds of freedom fighters. ‘

Q 5.

Write a short note on novels for the young.

Q 6.

Mention any three features of Pickwick Papers.

Q 7.

What was impact of serialisation of a novel ?

Q 8.

Who was the author of Pickwick Papers which was serialised in 1836 ? [CBSE 2014]

Q 9.

How did the vernacular novels help Britishers to expand their rule in India ?

Q 10.

The novel revolves around Surdas who is visually impaired and belongs to an untouchable caste. Identify the novel.

Q 11.

Which of the following novel was written by Potheri Kunjambu and deals with the caste oppression ? [CBSE. Sept. 2011,12]

Q 12.

Describe the ways in which the novels in India attempted to create a sense of pan- Indian belonging.

Q 13.

Write about Thomas Hardy's Mayor of Caster Bridge.

Q 14.

Who was Charlotte Bronte ? How has she presented the picture of a woman in her novels ?
Or
Describe the depiction of women in the novels of Charlotte Bronte. [CBSE 2013]
Or
In which way was women depicted in Charlotte Bronte's novel Jane Eyre'? [CBSE 2011]

Q 15.

In many novels written during the colonial period, the ideal person successfully deals with one of the central dilemmas faced by colonial subject'. What was the dilemma ?

Q 16.

Which social issues were included in the novels in India? Explain by giving examples. [CBSE 2014]
Or
Novels helped in creating a sense of social awareness in India.' Explain. [CBSE 2012]

Q 17.

What were the favourite themes to women novelists in India? Explain giving any three examples. [CBSE 2012]

Q 18.

Discuss some of the social changes in nineteenth-century Britain which Thomas Hardy and Charles Dickens wrote about.

Q 19.

What is a satire?

Q 20.

Name any three novels by Premchand.

Q 21.

What is meant by vernacular as a language?

Q 22.

Explain the meaning of Jatra', Kabirlarai and Bhadralok. [CBSE 2013]

Q 23.

Who was Jane Austen ? How do her novels give us a glimpse of the world of women in the general rural society in the early 19th century Britain ?
Or
How did Jane Austen portray the women of 19th century in her novel ? [CBSE Sept. 2010, 2012]

Q 24.

Who is the writer of the novel Germinal ? What was the theme of the novel ?

Q 25.

Who is the writer of the Novel Germinal ? What was the theme of the novel ?

Q 26.

Who is the author of the novel "Robinson Crusoe ?

Q 27.

What was the theme of Saraswativijayam ?

Q 28.

Summarise the concern in both nineteenth- century Europe and India about women reading novels. What does this suggest about how women were viewed ?

Q 29.

Write about Thomas Hardy's Mayor of Caster Bridge.

Q 30.

What is Epistolary?

Q 31.

"Novels were useful to different sectors of the society."Support your answer with suitable examples.
Or
Highlight any three contributions of novel to modern society. [CBSE 2014]

Q 32.

How were the modem Indian novels useful for the Indians in day to day life. [CBSE 2013]
Or
"Indian novelists used the novel as a powerful medium to criticize the defects of the society."Justify the statement with the suitable examples. [CBSE 2013]
Or
Explain any three reasons for making the novel popular in India. [CBSE 2014]

Q 33.

Explain briefly the history of Hindi novel. [CBSE. Sep 2010, 12]

Q 34.

What was the importance of novels ?
Or
In what ways was the novel in colonial India useful for both the colonisers as well as the nationalists ?  [CBSE 2009 (O), Sept. 2010, 2011, 2012]
Or
"Novels were useful for both the colonial administrators and Indians in colonial India."Support the statement with example. [CBSE 2010 (O)]
Or
What Were the various uses of novels from the Indian point of view ? [CBSE Sept. 2010]

Q 35.

Who is the author of novel "Titash Ekti Nadir Naam"? Why is it considered a special novel ? Explain any four reasons.  [CBSE 2013, 2014]
Or .
Who is the author of novel "Titash Ekti Nadir Naam"? Describe the theme of this novel. [CBSE 2012]

Q 36.

What Is a novel ? Mention any two features of novel.

Q 37.

Explain the themes and issues of the novels of Thomas Hardy. [CBSE 2011]

Q 38.

What do you mean by epistolary novel ? Give One example.
Or
State the meaning of epistolary novel. Give one example for this type of novel. [CBSE 2013]

Q 39.

Name the countries where the novel first took firm roots. [CBSE 2009 (o)]

Q 40.

Who formed the readership for the novels ?

Q 41.

Who was the author of Mayor of Casterbridge ?

Q 42.

Which was the first modern novel in Nalayalam ? [CBSE 2014]

Q 43.

Which was the first modem novel in Malayalam? When was it published ?

Q 44.

Name a novelist who wrote for lower- castes.

Q 45.

Why the novel Pariksha Guru could not win many readers ?

Q 46.

Who is the author of the novel ‘Robinson Crusoe' ? [CBSE. Sept.2011, 12]

Q 47.

Explain the role of novelists in the field of social reforms in India with the help of any three examples. [CBSE 2014]

Q 48.

In what ways was the novel In colonial India useful for both the colonisers as well as the nationalists?

Q 49.

Write a brief note on Rabindranath Tagore .

Q 50.

How were the stories and prose not new to India ? Give three examples. [CBSE Comp. (O) 2008]