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NIOS Class 12 English Chapter 7 After Twenty Years
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After Twenty Years
Chapter: 7
TEXTUAL QUESTION ANSWER |
INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.1
1. What is the setting of the story?
Ans: The setting of the story denotes a deserted nighttime streets of New York City in cold, windy,wet weather.
2. What does ‘beat’ mean in the story?
(a) tired and ready to drop.
(b) the territory that a police officer is assigned to patrol.
(c) sound or express especially by drumbeat.
(d) strike directly against forcefully and repeatedly.
Ans: (b) the territory that a police officer is assigned to patrol.
3. What is the policeman doing?
Ans: The policeman is on his regular patrol duty. He moves up the deserted street, trying doors as he goes, twirling his club and looking around cautiously as he checks everything is secure on his beat.
4. Why were the streets depopulated?
Ans: The streets depopulated because of the chilly wind and sudden bursts of rain.
5. What does club mean in the story?
(a) Stout stick that is larger at one end.
(b) A group of people who share an interest.
(c) A team of professional players who play and travel together.
(d) Golf equipment used by a golfer to hit a golf ball.
Ans: (a) Stout stick that is larger at one end.
6. The words that best describe the policeman are ____
(a) impressive (b) fierce (c) confident (d) scary
(e) aggressive (f) braggart (g) cautious
Quote lines from the story to justify your answer.
Ans: (a) impressive: “The policeman on the beat moved up the avenue impressively. The impressiveness was habitual and not for show.”
(c) confident: “The police officer walked with a slight swagger.”
(g) cautious: “he tried doors as he went… turning now and then to cast his watchful eye down the road.”
INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.2
1. What can be inferred about the personality of the man in the doorway based on the description of his appearance and actions?
(a) He is humble and modest.
(b) He is wealthy and confident.
(c) He is shy and reserved.
(d) He is careless and unkempt.
Ans: (b) He is wealthy and Confident.
2. How dis the man describe his friend, Jimmy Wells?
(a) As his worst enemy.
(b) As a cunning and clever person.
(c) As his best chum and the finest chap in the world.
(d) as a quiet and shy person.
Ans: (c) As his best chum and the finest chap in the world.
3. Why did the man travel to the west to make his fortune?
Ans:Because he believed the West offered better propects for achieving sucess and wealth.
4. Where did Jimmy Wells and the man in the doorway grow up?
Ans: Jimmy Wells and his friend grew up in New York City.
5. Who made a promise twenty years ago? What was the promise?
Ans: The stranger in the doorway Bob and his friend Jimmy Wells, made a promise to each other twenty years ago. They agreed to meet at a restaurant called ‘Big Joe’ Brady’s restaurant at 10 pm exactly twenty years later, regardless of thier circumtances.
6. Why did the friends part?
Ans: The friends parted when they decided to go their different ways to make their fortunes. The man in the doorway went West to make his fortune. Jimmy, on the other hand, decided to stay on in New York.
INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.3
1. How did the man to make his fortune?
Ans: The man had gone to the West to make his fortune. He has lived by his wits and has done well.
2. Why is the man confident that Jimmy will keep his promise?
Ans: Because Jimmy was always the truest, staunchest old chap.
3. What does the man think of his friend Jimmy Wells?
Ans: The man thinks Jimmy was the most loyal of friends and will turn up for the meeting. At the same time he feels Jimmy remains a blodder and has stayed on in his own familiar atmosphere.
4. What does the man show to indicate he has done well out west?
Ans: A handsome watch set with small diamonds.
5. How long did the man plan to wait for his friend? Why do you think the police officer asked him the question?
Ans: The man plan to wait for another half an hour for his friend.
6. What does the man imply about life the New York compared to life the West?
Ans: New York makes people dull, while the West sharpes them.
INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.4
1. How does the weather change as the story progresses?
Ans: It turns into a fine, cold drizzle with a steady wind.
2. What was the change that Bob noticed in ‘his friend, Jimmy’?
Ans: Bob noticed that Jimmy had become two or three inches taller.
3. How did Bob recognise that the tall man he was talking to was not Jimmy?
Ans: As the two men crossed a well-lit drug store, the two men turned to have a good look at each other. Bob at once noticed that the man who had claimed to be Jimmy Wells had a pug one, while Jimmy had a Roman nose.
4. What was the real identity of the tall man in the overcoat? Why had he gone there?
Ans: The tall man in the overcoat was a plain clothes man. Jimmy Wells had sent him to arrest Bob, a wanted criminal called Silky Bob.
5. Why did Bob’s hands begin to tremble as he almost finished reading the note?
Ans: Bob’s hands began to tremble as he almost finished reading the note as the events had taken an unexpected turn. He was expecting a happy meeting and not an arrest.
6. What would you have done in Jimmy Wells’ place?
Ans: Individual answer.
INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.5
Read each sentence below and identify whether it is a simple, complex, or compound sentence.
1. The policeman completed his rounds and confidently checked the locks of every door.
Ans: Simple.
2. She walked to the store and bought some groceries.
Ans: Simple.
3. After the rain stopped, the children went outside to play.
Ans: Complex.
4. Although it was late, he decided to finish his homework.
Ans: Complex.
5. Maria loves to read, but she doesn’t have much time.
Ans: Compound.
6. The cat slept peacefully on the windowsill.
Ans: Simple.
7. Whenever it rains, the streets get flooded.
Ans: Complex.
8. Sarah baked cookies, and her brother decorated them.
Ans: Compound.
9. Because he forgot his umbrella, Peter got soaked in the rain.
Ans: Complex.
10. Sam enjoys playing basketball, so he practices every day.
Ans: Compound.
11. The dog barked loudly when the doorbell rang.
Ans: Complex.
INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.6
Guess a word that could replace both the underlined phrases of a set of sentences:
1. (a) You have been at the computer all morning; you deserve a stop for a brief period.
(b) Thieves steal into a locked house in and steal everything.
Ans: Break.
2. (a) The proposal or plan to increase college fees was unanimously rejected.
(b) The slow movement of the bullock cart lulled him to sleep.
Ans: Motion.
3. (a) She was a leading person in the movement against child labour.
(b) Without looking at the accounts we cannot say whether the company is running at a loss.
Ans: Figure.
4. (a) The audience burst into uncontrolled, excited applause.
(b) Lions that have been living in natural conditions usually do not thrive in zoos.
Ans: Wild.
TERMINAL QUESTIONS |
1. Create character profiles for Bob and Jimmy. Describe their physical appearance, personality traits, motivations, and how they change over the course of the story.
Ans: Jimmy Wells is a loyal, duty-bound, and honest police officer, while “Silky” Bob is a wealthy, loyal-to-a-fault criminal with a smooth, outwardly respectable demeanor that masks his criminal life.
Bob (Silky Bob):
Appearance: Well-dressed, wears an overcoat, diamond scarf pin, has a scar near his eyebrow.
Personality: Confident, talkative, proud of his success, but also loyal to his friend.
Motivation: Came to meet his old friend Jimmy after 20 years, proud of his achievements.
Change: At first proud and hopeful, but in the end arrested for being a criminal—his past catches up with him.
Jimmy Wells (the policeman):
Appearance: Tall, strong, with a sharp and watchful eye.
Personality: Honest, responsible, loyal to duty, but also kind-hearted.
Motivation: Wants to uphold the law but also cares for his old friend.
Change: Faces a conflict between friendship and duty, chooses duty but avoids hurting Bob directly by sending another officer.
2. Write a note on the atmosphere of the story After Twenty Years. How does the writer create the atmosphere?
Ans: Henry’s After Twenty Years, the atmosphere is filled with mystery, suspense, and quiet tension. The story takes place on a dark, silent street late at night, which immediately creates a sense of curiosity and expectation. The calm conversation between Bob and the policeman adds to this mysterious mood, as the reader wonders what the outcome of their meeting will be. The writer builds suspense slowly and keeps the atmosphere tense until the surprise ending, when Bob discovers that his old friend Jimmy has recognized him as a criminal. This twist not only shocks the reader but also adds an emotional depth, as the atmosphere changes from hopeful reunion to betrayal and sadness.
3. In a short story, conflict provides crucial tension in any story and is used to drive the narrative forward. Conflict can be both external and internal. Comment on Jimmy’s internal conflict.
Ans: Jimmy’s internal conflict is a man vs. self struggle where his own opposing desires, beliefs, or emotions create tension and drive his character development.This struggle creates emotional tension for Jimmy, because he does not want to betray his friend, yet he cannot ignore his responsibility. In the end, he chooses duty over friendship, but his decision to send another officer to arrest Bob shows his inner pain and humanity.
4. Analyse the contents of the letter Bob shows to the police officer. Write the letter from Bob’s perspective, explaining his thoughts and feelings behind its creation.
Ans: The note reveals that Jimmy Wells, Bob’s old friend and the police officer on duty, recognized Bob as a wanted criminal and could not bring himself to arrest him directly. he could not arrest him himself. Out of loyalty and kindness, he sent another officer to do the job. From Bob’s perspective, the letter brings pain and disappointment—he had kept the promise with hope, but his criminal choices turned the reunion into sorrow.
5. Do you like the character of Bob? Provide textual evidence for what makes the character likable or unlikable.
Ans: Whether “Bob” is likable depends on perspective; he is presented as a determined criminal who is a loyal friend but morally questionable due to his illegal activities.A likable character is someone who has a set of values and beliefs that they stick to no matter what.

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