NCERT Class 8 English Chapter 5 The Summit Within Solutions to each chapter is provided in the list so that you can easily browse through different chapters NCERT Class 8 English Chapter 5 The Summit Within and select need one. NCERT Class 8 English Chapter 4 Bepin Choudhury’s Lapse of Memory and After Question Answers Download PDF. NCERT English Class 8 Solutions.
NCERT Class 8 English Chapter 5 The Summit Within
Also, you can read the NCERT book online in these sections Solutions by Expert Teachers as per Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Book guidelines. CBSE Class 8 English Solutions are part of All Subject Solutions. Here we have given NCERT Class 8 English Chapter 4 Bepin Choudhury’s Lapse of Memory and After, NCERT Class 8 English Textbook of Honeydew and It So Happen. for All Chapters, You can practice these here.
The Summit Within
Chapter: 5
HONEYDEW
COMPREHENSION CHECK
Page No – 76
1. Standing on Everest, the writer was:
(i) Overjoyed.
(ii) Very sad.
(iii) Jubilant and sad.
Choose the right item.
Ans: (iii) Jubilant and sad.
2. The emotion that gripped him was one of:
(i) Victory over hurdles.
(ii) Humility and a sense of smallness.
(iii) Greatness and self importance.
(iv) Joy of discovery.
Choose the right item.
Ans: (ii) Humility and a sense of smallness.
3. “The summit of the mind” refers to:
(i) Great intellectual achievements.
(ii) The process of maturing mentally and spiritually.
(iii) Overcoming personal ambition for common welfare.
(iv) Living in the world of thought and imagination.
(v) The triumph of mind over worldly pleasures for a noble cause.
(vi) A fuller knowledge of oneself.
Mark the item(s) not relevant.
Ans: (i), (iii), (iv) and (v) are not relevant.
WORKING WITH THE TEXT |
1. Answer the following questions.
(i) What are the three qualities that played a major role in the author’s climb?
Ans: Endurance, persistence and will power are the three qualities that played a major role in the author’s climb.
(ii) Why is adventure, which is risky, also pleasurable?
Ans: Adventure is risky but enjoyable, as overcoming challenges brings great joy. Climbing Everest, the highest peak, gives a sense of victory and exhilaration. The achievement is not just physical but also brings emotional and spiritual fulfillment.
(iii) What was it about Mount Everest that the author found irresistible?
Ans: Everest is one of the highest and mightiest mountains drew him towards itself by its beauty, aloofness, ruggedness and the difficulties encountered on the way. Climbing it would need every ounce of one’s energy due to the harsh struggle with rock and ice. Once taken up, it cannot be given up half way even when ones life is at stake. The passage back is as difficult as the passage onwards. Once the summit is reached, there is a sensation of exhilaration, the joy of having accomplished something. The sense of a war fought and won, a sense of victory and happiness. All of these factors contributed to his inability to reject it.
(iv) One does not do it (climb a high peak) for fame alone. What does one do it for, really?
Ans: Climbing a peak means endurance, persistence, and will power. The demonstration of these physical qualities is exhilarating for a climber. The experience, apart from being merely physical, is also emotional and spiritual. It surely presents great difficulties. However, a man takes delight in overcoming obstacles. Therefore, it is not for fame alone that one climbs a mountain. It is actually for the feelings of exhilaration and satisfaction.
(v) “He becomes conscious in a special manner of his own smallness in this large universe.” This awareness defines an emotion mentioned in the first paragraph. Which is the emotion?
Ans: “He becomes conscious in a special manner of his own smallness in this large universe.” This awareness defines the emotion of humility.
(vi) What were the “symbols of reverence” left by members of the team on Everest?
Ans: The symbols of reverence left on the Everest by the members were a picture of Guru Nanak left by the author; a picture of Goddess Durga left by Rawat, a relic of the Buddha left by Phu Dorji and the cross that had been buried by Edmund Hillary.
(vii) What, according to the writer, did his experience as an Everester teach him?
Ans: According to the writer, his experience as an Everester provided him with the inspiration to face life’s ordeals determinedly. It taught him that the conquest of the internal summit is as worthwhile as climbing the mountain. He also concluded that perhaps the internal summits are higher than Everest.
2. Write a sentence against each of the following statements. Your sentence should explain the statement. You can pick out sentences from the text and rewrite them. The first one has been done for you.
(i) The experience changes you completely.
One who has been to the mountains is never the same again.
(ii) Man takes delight in overcoming obstacles _______________.
Ans: Man takes delight in overcoming obstacles. The demonstration of endurance, persistence and will power in overcoming great difficulties is delightful.
(iii) Mountains are nature at its best _______________.
Ans: Mountains are nature at its best. The beauty and majesty of the mountains pose a great challenge for a climber and they are a means of communion with God.
(iv) The going was difficult but the after-effects were satisfying _______________.
Ans: The going was difficult but the after-effects were satisfying. Climbing the mountains was difficult, but reaching the summit gives one a feeling of satisfaction and deep fulfillment.
(v) The physical conquest of a mountain is really a spiritual experience _______________.
Ans: The physical conquest of a mountain is really a spiritual experience. The physical act of climbing to the summit of a mountain is similar to the act of climbing the mountain within yourselves which is a spiritual and deeply satisfying experience and either climb will certainly change you giving you a sense of being in communion with God.
WORKING WITH LANGUAGE |
1. Look at the italicised phrases and their meanings given in brackets.
Mountains are nature at its best. Your life is at risk. | (nature’s best form and appearance) |
Your life is at risk. | (in danger; you run the risk of losing your life.) |
He was at his best/worst in the last meeting. | (it was his best/worst performance.) |
Fill in the blanks in the following dialogues choosing suitable phrases from those given in the box.
At hand | At once | At all | At a low ebb | At first sight |
(i) Teacher: You were away from school without permission. Go to the principal _____________ and submit your explanation.
Pupil: Yes, Madam. But would you help me write it first?
Ans: Teacher: You were away from school without permission. Go to the principal at once and submit your explanation.
Pupil: Yes, Madam. But would you help me write it first?
(ii) Arun: Are you unwell?
Ila: No, not ______________ Why do you ask?
Arun: If you were unwell, I would send you to my uncle.
He is a doctor
Ans: Arun: Are you unwell?
Ila: No, not at all. Why do you ask?
Arun: If you were unwell, I would send you to my uncle. He is a doctor.
(iii) Mary: Almost every Indian film has an episode of love ___________.
David: Is that what makes them so popular in foreign countries?
Ans: Mary: Almost every Indian film has an episode of love at first sight.
David: Is that what makes them so popular in foreign countries?
(iv) Asif: You look depressed. Why are your spirits ___________ today? (Use such in the phrase)
Ashok: I have to write ten sentences using words that I never heard before.
Ans: Asif: You look depressed. Why are your spirits at such a low ebb today? (Use such in the phrase)
Ashok: I have to write ten sentences using words that I never heard before.
(v) Shieba: Your big moment is close ____________.
Jyoti: How should I welcome it?
Shieba: Get up and receive the trophy.
Ans: Shieba: Your big moment is close at hand.
Jyoti: How should I welcome it?
Shieba: Get up and receive the trophy.
2. Write the noun forms of the following words adding-ance or -ence to each.
(i) Endure _____________.
Ans: Endurance.
(ii) Persist _____________.
Ans: Persistence.
(iii) Signify _____________.
Ans: Significance.
(iv) Confide ____________.
Ans: Confidence.
(v) Maintain _____________.
Ans: Maintenance.
(vi) Abhor ______________.
Ans: Abhorrence.
3. (i) Match words under A with their meanings under B.
A | B |
Remote | Difficult to overcome |
Means | Most prominent |
Dominant | Be overcome/overpowered |
Formidable | Method(s) |
Overwhelmed | Far away from |
Ans:
A | B |
Remote | Far away from |
Means | Method(s) |
Dominant | Most prominent |
Formidable | Difficult to overcome |
Overwhelmed | Be overcome/overpowered |
(ii) Fill in the blanks in the sentences below with appropriate words from under A.
(a) There were ____________ obstacles on the way, but we reached our destination safely.
Ans: There were formidable obstacles on the way, but we reached our destination safely.
(b) We have no ____________ of finding out what happened there.
Ans: We have no means of finding out what happened there.
(c) Why he lives in a house ____________ from any town or village is more than I can tell.
Ans: Why he lives in a house remote from any town or village is more than I can tell.
(d) ___________ by gratitude, we bowed to the speaker for his valuable advice.
Ans: Overwhelmed by gratitude, we bowed to the speaker for his valuable advice.
(e) The old castle stands in a ____________ position above the sleepy town.
Ans: The old castle stands in a dominant position above the sleepy town.
SPEAKING AND WRITING |
Write a composition describing a visit to the hills, or any place which you found beautiful and inspiring.
Before writing, work in small groups. Discuss the points given below and decide if you want to use some of these points in your composition.
Consider this sentence
Mountains are a means of communion with God.
Think of the act of worship or prayer. You believe yourself to be in the presence of the divine power. In a way, you are in communion with that power.
Imagine the climber on top of the summit—the height attained; limitless sky above; the climber’s last ounce of energy spent; feelings of gratitude, humility and peace.
The majesty of the mountains does bring you close to nature and the spirit and joy that lives there, if you have the ability to feel it.
Some composition may be read aloud to the entire class afterwards.
Ans: Students, do it yourself.
The last Bargain
WORKING WITH THE POEM |
1. Find three or four words/phrases in stanza 1 that reflect the child’s happiness and joy.
Ans: The phrases that reflect the child’s joy and happiness are ‘love to rise in a summer morn’, ‘birds sing on every tree’, ‘the skylark sings with me’, and ‘sweet company’.
2. In stanza 2, the mood changes. Which words/phrases reflect the changed mood?
Ans: The phrases that reflect the changed mood are ‘it drives all joy away’ and ‘spend the day in sighing and dismay’.
3. ‘A cruel eye outworn’ (stanza 2) refers to:
(i) The classroom which is shabby/noisy.
(ii) The lessons which are difficult/uninteresting.
(iii) The dull/uninspiring life at school with lots of work and no play.
Mark the answer that you consider right.
Ans: (iii) The dull/uninspiring life at school with lots of work and no play.
4. ‘Nor sit in learning’s bower
worn thro’ with the dreary shower’
Which of the following is a close paraphrase of the lines above?
(i) Nor can I sit in a roofless classroom when it is raining.
(ii) Nor can I learn anything at school though teachers go on lecturing and explaining.
(iii) Nor can I sit in the school garden for fear of getting wet in the rain.
Ans: (ii) Nor can I learn anything at school though teachers go on lecturing and explaining.

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