History

Novels, Society and History

Question:

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

Answer:

Charles Dickens was the foremost English novelist of the Victorian era. He wrote about the terrible effects of industrialisation on people's lives and characters. His novels Hard Times and Oliver Twist became world famous,
(i) Hard Times : His novel Hard Times (1854) describes Coketown, a fictitious industrial town, as a grim place full of machinery, smoking chimneys, rivers polluted purple and buildings that all looked the same. Here workers are known as ‘hands', as if they had no identity other than as operators of machines. Dickens criticised not just the greed for profits but also the ideas that reduced human beings into simple instruments of production.
(ii) Oliver Twist : In other novels too, Dickens focused on the terrible conditions of urban . life under industrial capitalism. His Oliver Twist (1838) is the tale of a poor orphan who lived in a world of petty criminals and beggars. Brought up in a cruel workhouse, Oliver was finally adopted by a wealthy man and lived happily ever after.

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Novels, Society and History

Q 1.

Name any two novels written by Munshi Premchand. [CBSE 2014]

Q 2.

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

Q 3.

How had the different novelists of the colonial period taken up the task of modernisation of the Indians ? Explain

Q 4.

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 5.

How did Charles Dickens focus on the life of the industrial workers and the terrible conditions of urban life in his novels ? Explain with examples. [CBSE 2008 (O)]
Or
Explain the themes and issues of the . novels of Charles Dickens with examples. [CBSE Sept. 2010]
Elaborate upon the contribution of Charles Dickens in the field of novel writing.  [CBSE-2012]
Or
Novels of Charles Dickens deal with which changes of the 19th century Britain ? Mention any three such changes. [CBSE-2013]
Or
Which type of problems were highlighted by the novelist, Charles Dickens through his novel? Explain from any of his two novels. [CBSE-2013]
Or
Explain any three aspects highlighted by Charles Dickens in his novel "Hard Times". [CBSE-2012]

Q 6.

What did the novels in the nineteenth- century India mean to :
(a) Women
(b) Children
Or
What was the attitude of people in India in the 19th century towards women reading ? How did women responded to this ? [CBSE Sept. 2010, 2011]

Q 7.

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 8.

Which novel supplied the adventurous text for the young English population ? [CBSE 2014]

Q 9.

Which was the first novel of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay ?

Q 10.

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

Q 11.

What is a satire?

Q 12.

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

Q 13.

Who wrote Saraswativijayam ? [CBSE 2014]

Q 14.

Write a short note on novels for the young.

Q 15.

How did novel become a popular medium of entertainment among the middle class in India? Explain. [CBSE 2012]

Q 16.

Who was the author of Mayor of Casterbridge ?

Q 17.

Who were the author's of the following  novels  ?

Q 18.

What was the theme of Saraswativijayam ?

Q 19.

Who wrote Anandmath ? [CBSE 2014]

Q 20.

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

Q 21.

Describe the earliest novels written in Bengali and Marathi. [CBSE 2013]

Q 22.

Mention some important reasons for the popularity of the novels. [CBSE Sept. 2010, 2011]
Or
Explain, how did novels become a popular medium of entertainment among the middle class during the late nineteenth century in India. [CBSE 2010 (D), Sept. 2013]
Or
Why were the novels widely read and become popular very quickly ? [CBSE Sept. 2011, 2012]
Or
How did novels become popular among masses ? (CBSE 2013)
Or
Assess the reasons for the popularity of the novel in Europe ? [CBSE 2012]

Q 23.

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

Q 24.

Mention some important characteristics of novels which increased their popularity among the readers.

Q 25.

Explain the contribution of Devaki Nandan Khatri in Hindi novels. [CBSE 2014]
Or
Name the first Hindi modem novel which became a best seller. Who was its writer ? Why was it so popular ? [CBSE Sept. 2010]

Q 26.

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

Q 27.

Who was Leo Tolstoy?

Q 28.

What was the theme of the novel Jane Eyre written by Charlotte Bronte?

Q 29.

Who was the author of Pariksha Guru ?

Q 30.

The Novel is about an epic about the Mallas, a community of fisherfolk who live off fishing in the river Titash. Identify the novel and the author.

Q 31.

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 32.

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

Q 33.

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

Q 34.

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

Q 35.

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

Q 36.

What is Epistolary?

Q 37.

Differentiate between the novels written by Charlotte Bronte and the novels written by Jane Austen ? [CBSE 2013]

Q 38.

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 39.

Explain the history of growth of novels in India. [CBSE 2014]
Or
Explain briefly the history of Hindi novel from starting to excellence. [CBSE 2011 ]

Q 40.

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

Q 41.

Why were children prevented from reading novels ? Explain. (CBSE-2012)

Q 42.

Describe the ways in which the novels in India attempted to create a sense of pan- Indian belonging. [CBSE Sept. 2011, 2014]
Or
"Leading Indian novelists of the 19th century wrote for a National cause". Do you agree with the statement ? Justify your answer. [CBSE Sept. 2010, 2011]
Or
How did novels fulfill the task of nation building in India ? Explain. [CBSE 2012] Or
How did the novels in India encourage nationalism ? Explain any three points. [CBSE 2010]

Q 43.

What are the main features of novel Sewasadan' written by Munshi Premchand? Mention any three. [CBSE 2012]

Q 44.

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

Q 45.

How most of the novels of the 19th century represented the true picture of the community and the society ?

Q 46.

What did G.A. Henty write about in his novel ? [CBSE Sept. 2010]
Or
How did the novels for the young boys idealise a new type of man ? Explain. [CBSE Sept. 2010, 2011]

Q 47.

"Social changes in Britain led to an increase in women readers". Explain.
Or
Explain the factors that led to women writing novels in Europe. [CBSE 2012]

Q 48.

Explain the role of novelists in the field of social reforms in India with the help of any three examples. [CBSE Sept. 2010]

Q 49.

What is a novel ?

Q 50.

Who was another of Pamela a novel based on exchange of letters between two lovers.