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 The poem "The Lamentation of the Old Pensioner" was composed by an Irish poet and dramatist W.B. Yeats. The speaker of the poem "The Lamentation of the Old Pensioner" is a retired old man who expresses his feeling of sadness and disappointment of having the beauty and youth robbed by the tyranny of time. This poem also contrasts the old and present age of the poet. The poet has felt that time is omnipotent and nobody can resist it. Everyone has to go through various stages of life. Old people are not a burden, rather they are the sources of experience, knowledge, and guidance. The speaker implies that we shouldn't regret as we grow old but celebrate old age. The speaker is sitting under a broken tree while taking shelter under a broken tree. He feels that he is like that broken tree. When the tree was young and beautiful, everybody came and sat under it, but now when it is broken, it's felt alone. In the first stanza, the speaker compares his energetic and ...

 “About Love” is a famous Russian story written by a famous story-writer, Anton Chekhov. In the story, Chekhov presents the difference between three love stories and tries to prove that “Love” like that is not bound by conjugal relations. He views that love is true and spiritual. Happiness, unhappiness, morality, sin, virtue, social status, class, prestige, etc. have nothing to do with love. Alyohin is the narrator in this story. He had been living as a poor farmer at Sofyino since he graduated from the university. The story begins when the narrator and his two guests-Bufkin and Ivan were having breakfast in a country house. Alyohin told about the violent love affair between his two servants Nikanor and Pelageya. According to the narrator, pelageya didn’t want to marry Nikanor but she was ready to live with him just so. On the other hand, Nikanor couldn’t stay with her before marriage for religious reasons. Alyohin says that love is a hindrance and a source of dissatisfaction and i...

Nostalgia is the main theme of the poem Grandmother. In this poem the poet remembers his dead grandmother and writes about her. He draws a picture of his grandmother- all loving and inspiring. This poem presents the poets deep sense of intimacy and closeness to his grandmother even after her death. He can not forget her. He could recognize her by all senses except taste. The poet uses different images to draw the picture of his grandmother. 'Purple scarf ' and 'plastic shopping bag' is related to eyes, while the touch of ‘warm and damp’ hands appeals to skin or touch. A 'voice coming from a rock' is related to the sense of hearing; and her hands like that of 'roots' appeal to the sense of smell. The poet says that he could recognize his grandmother If he could see her face from a distance, from a mile away. He would quickly know that it was his grandmother with the purple scarf and plastic shopping bag. If he could feel hands on his head, he would know...

Jump To Download The National Curriculum Framework (NCF) advocates the promotion of skill oriented, life skill-based, employment-driven and value-based school education. It envisions developing the human capital dedicated to nation, nationality, national integrity and Nepali specialty. The English textbook for Grade 12 has been prepared following the spirit of NCF 2076 and Secondary Level Curriculum 2076 (Grade 11 and Grade12). An attempt has been made to incorporate the emerging needs of learners. The book includes the contents to develop all four language skills blended in the tasks and activities with contextual grammar and related vocabulary. The book has two sections: language development and literature. The language development section includes a range of contemporary issue-based local and global thematic texts intended to develop intensive reading skills and foster competence in grammar, vocabulary, speech and writing. The literature section includes genre-based literary te...

Unchopping a tree *W. S. Marwin In this essay, W. S. Marwin gives instructions for repairing a tree that has been chopped down. It means unchopping is impossible. W. S. Marwin instructs us to beginning unchopping by joining leaves to their respective twigs to their respective branches. If the tree has a hollow trunk, the nests of birds, hives of bees and insects, and their hoards of nuts and food must be reassembled, spider webs must be weaved again. Any damage done to the neighbowring trees must also be repaired. Now the tree is ready on the ground. In the second step, the tree must be erected on its stump without grinding its base into the ground. While putting the tackle into the place, no damage to other trees should be corrected later. The tree trunk should be fixed up by using fabricated glues. Sawdust and small bits of broken wood should be put back into the respective places. After giving instructions, the essayist asks us, “Is beauty a natural thing or man-made?” The tree, whi...

The nightmare life without fuel By Isaac Asimov Theme: What will life be like when fuel has almost run out? This essay was written in1997 and the scene is “1997”. In other words, the scene is 20 years in the future. If the essay is read in 1999, then you can change 1997 to 2019. Summery #setting the scene The scene is the United States of America in the future, at a time when fuel is running out. People no longer drive cars, but ride bicycles instead, and old buildings are being torn down so their mater can be reused. #the advantage of having enough fuel There are advantages to the fuel shortage. The air is cleamer, fewer people have colds, there is less crime, and people have learnt to live without facilities such as electric lights, indoor heating and showers with water. #the problem caused by the shortage of fuel People who live in suburbs, at the edge of large cities, have many problems. They live a long distance from shops and find it difficult to buy and store enough food. Becaus...

The poplar field *by William Cowper This poem compares chopping down of trees to a man life and death. The poem is the result of the poet’s second visit to the same landscape, which he had visited twelve years before. It was the bank of River Ourse, which was filled with tall poplar trees. It provided shade to the poet and the pleasure of the reflection of the trees. There used to blow cool breeze and the melodious songs of blackbirds had charmed the poet. However, now the trees are cut down and lying on the ground. The poet feels the absence of shade, nature, songs of birds, reflection of trees and cool breeze. By observing the degraded situation of the same landscape, the poet becomes rather sad and disappointed. The poet thinks that the limited years of his life are passing away very quickly. Very soon, he will be dead and buried in a grave. But he regrets that he will not be able to see such poplar grow on the bank of river ouse again in his life. He not only regrets for himself bu...

Look at a teacup By Patricia Hampl “Look at a teacup” is an extraordinary piece of work by Hampl. The teacup is the symbol of art and culture and the witness of the Second World War. According to Hampl it is the representation of daughter-mother relation, the relation between past and presented many other events as well. The teacup was bought by the mother in 1939. It was the same year when she became a bride and married an American who had been born in Czechoslovakia. The country was invaded and destroyed by the armies of Adolf Hitler in the Second World War. This essay traces (searches) differences between the mother’s and daughter’s attitudes and life experiences. They disagree about many things. According to Hampl work is the most important thing in the world whereas, her mother accepts marriage and children in a very traditional role. Her mother wants Hampl to get married but she condemns marriage with bondage. Hampl makes unique connection between the past and the present. Sh...

The three day blow *Ernest Hemingway “The three day blow” is an analogy between Nick’s mental pressure and the blow of winter wind. Nick and Bill are main characters. When the rain stopped, Nick turned into the road, which went through the orchard. Because of the wind’s blow, the fruits had been fallen and base trees looked like skeletons. The road led Nick onto the top of the hill to a cottage with the porch from which smoke was coming out of the chimney. Bill came out to welcome Nick. They went inside and founds that Bill’s father was absent because he had gone hunting. They sat in front of the hearth (fire lace), started drinking Whisky, and continued it until they become intoxicated. When thy started their talks, it seemed as if they were conducting conversation in a high plane. In a funny mood, they talked about baseball and their favorite players. They also talked about books, novels and their favorite writers like Walpole and Chesterson. According to Bill’s father opening ne...

Unchopping a tree Unchopping a tree *W. S. Marwin In this essay, W. S. Marwin gives instructions for repairing a tree that has been chopped down. It means unchopping is impossible. W. S. Marwin instructs us to beginning unchopping by joining leaves to their respective twigs to their respective branches. If the tree has a hollow trunk, the nests of birds, hives of bees and insects, and their hoards of nuts and food must be reassembled, spider webs must be weaved again. Any damage done to the neighbowring trees must also be repaired. Now the tree is ready on the ground. In the second step, the tree must be erected on its stump without grinding its base into the ground. While putting the tackle into the place, no damage to other trees should be corrected later. The tree trunk should be fixed up by using fabricated glues. Sawdust and small bits of broken wood should be put back into the respective places. After giving instructions, the essayist asks us, “Is beauty a natural thi...

The loving mother The plot is set in Japan and the story is about a dead mother who would like to rescue her child. One stormy winter night, Shoji Sakota was preparing his annual business reports in his pharmacy. At around midnight, he heard a knock on the door. Disregarding the knock, he continued his work but when he heard two more knocks, he became conscious. Thinking that someone might be in emergency, he unlocked the door. To his surprise, a thin women appeared in front of him. The women had worn kimono, she had very strange eyes and her skin was abnormally light. When Sakota let her in, she asked for an ame (candy) for her baby and disappeared in the darkness. The next two nights the same women made regular trips at the same time for the same thing. Her strange appearance at night for an ordinary demand surprised Sakota. In order to make further inquiry about the mysterious women, Mr. Sakota invited his photographer friend to take photos of her. After developing the film, the...

Fear *A story from Mexico Armando Gonzalez visited a bank in Mexico City to take out 50,000 pesos. It had taken him 20years to save this money and he was going to buy a new house with it. In the bank Armando became very nervous. He was sure people wanted to rob him. He was so nervous that he put his hat on backwards. Armando caught a bus to go home. A man whom he had seen in the bank also got on the bus. Armando saw this man talking to three boys. Armando panicked. He stopped the bus and jumped out. The three boys also got off the bus. So, Armando began to run. He fell over and the boys came up to him. Armando was very frightened, but soon he found out that the three boys were students. They followed him to see if he needed any help. EXPLANATION OF THE STORY This is not a supernatural story because these are no ghosts or spirits in the story. It is a thriller based on the human fear of a nervous man.

The house call *A story from Germany This is another supernatural story of a spirit. The plot is set in Germany and the major characters in the story are Dr. Emil Braun and a little girl. On a Christmas evening, a small girl of six or seven appeared at the doctor’s door to make s house call. She told the doctor’s wife with courtesy that her mother was seriously sick and needed immediate medical treatment. In spite of being tired and hungry the doctor made up his mind to visit her mother on the late evening. The little girl walked ahead to show the way and the doctor followed her. The doctor had a desire to approach the girl to ask a few quotations about her mother but the girl walked faster and kept herself away from the doctor. Finally, the girl led the doctor to an old tall tenement house. They stood at the top of the building and the girl pointed at the dark doorway where her mother had been. The doctor had no idea when she disappeared. At the first glance the doctor recognized ...

 Meanings Into Words (Upper-Intermediate) STUDENT'S BOOK HSEB Class: XII SCIENCE | MANAGEMENT | EDUCATION | ARTS 15.5 HEARSAY Rules : 1. We should avoid the following words from each sentence: Apparently People say They say that I am told that I have heard that. 2. We have to use is/am/are after each subject. 3. We should put Supposed to in each sentence after the subject. 4. We should use V1 after supposed to as:    is = be Are = be Am = be V5 = V1 Has = have V2 = have + V3 Was = have been Were = have been Had = have had 5. We have to put object as it is given Q. Change the following remarks using supposed to.  Structure : [Sub + is/am/are + supposed to + V1 + object.] 1. Apparently elephants have very long memories.             Elephants are supposed to have very long memories 2. People say it is unlucky to walk under a ladder.             It is supposed to be unlucky to walk under a ladder. 3. They say th...

 Meanings Into Words (Upper-Intermediate) STUDENT'S BOOK HSEB Class: XII SCIENCE | MANAGEMENT | EDUCATION | ARTS 14.1 PREDICTION Q. Change the sentences below, using sure to, certain to, bound to, likely to and unlikely to: Rules: I’m sure = Sure to Will certainly, will definitely = bound to /certain to Will/will probably/ I I expect + will = likely to Probably won’t/ won’t, /I doubt if = unlikely to Structure :             Sub +is/am/are + (sure to/certain to/bound to/likely to/unlikely to) +V1 +Obj. 1. The price of bread will definitely go up within a few weeks.     The price of bread is bound to go up within a few weeks. 2. There will probably be more fighting in the capital.     There is likely to be more fighting in the capital. 3. He probably won’t arrive.     He is unlikely to arrive. 4. I expect there’ll be lots of people at the mee...

 Meanings Into Words (Upper-Intermediate) STUDENT'S BOOK HSEB Class: XII SCIENCE | MANAGEMENT | EDUCATION | ARTS 13.1 WHEN... Q. Join the following remarks using when. Rules : [When + you + V1 + Obj] , [you have to + V1 + obj] [When you have +V3 + obj] , [you + V1 + Obj] 1. arrive/border          -           show/passport             When you arrive at the border, you have to show your passport.             When you have shown your passport, you can go ahead. 2. water/boil                -           pour/teapot             When you boil the water, you have to pour it into the teapot.             When you have poured it into the teapot, you put some sugar in it. 3. turn off/light                  ...

 Meanings Into Words (Upper-Intermediate) STUDENT'S BOOK HSEB Class: XII SCIENCE | MANAGEMENT | EDUCATION | ARTS UNIT 12 COMPARISON 12.3 COMPARING PRICES Rules:  Sub + comparative + than + obj.             A is as +adj+ as +B.             B is not + as +adj + as +A. To show more than: twice/two times, three times. To show less than : about, a little, a bit, 1. Tinned Peas: 25 p               frozen peas: 48 p             Frozen peas are nearly twice as expensive as tinned peas.             Frozen peas cost about twice as much as tinned peas.             Tinned peas cost about a half the price of frozen peas. 2. Cotton sheets: £14              silk sheets: £150             Cotton sheets are about an eleventh as expensive as sil...

 Meanings Into Words (Upper-Intermediate) STUDENT'S BOOK HSEB Class: XII SCIENCE | MANAGEMENT | EDUCATION | ARTS 11.1 WHEN... Rules :             When is used with the past tense.             1. When + simple past, + simple past.                         When + [sub+V2 + obj], + [Sub +V2 + Obj] [if there is no gap between two events, or the second action is happened due to the reaction of the first event.]             2. When + simple past, + past perfect                         When + [sub +  had + V3 + obj], + [Sub + V2 + Obj] [If there is gap between two events, or the second event is happened when the first action is finished] 3. We should not write ‘and’ or ‘but’ between two clauses. We should put comma (,) between them. 4. If there is no subject in the second clause...

 Meanings Into Words (Upper-Intermediate) STUDENT'S BOOK HSEB Class: XII SCIENCE | MANAGEMENT | EDUCATION | ARTS 10.1 I WISH & IF ONLY 1. I wish/if only is used to express our desire. 2. Wish can be expressed in three ways: 1) Would   2) could           3)   past tense         a) Would                 To express hope for help from others, we can use “would.”                  [ I wish someone would + V1 + me + Obj.]          b) Could                 To express the self hope to do something, we can use “could”                 [ I wish I could + V1 + obj.]          c) Past tense                 To express the hope of the different situation than the present, we ...

 Meanings Into Words (Upper-Intermediate) STUDENT'S BOOK HSEB Class: XII SCIENCE | MANAGEMENT | EDUCATION | ARTS 9.1 INFORMATION QUESTIONS Rules : 1.  What = for things  What kind of …..? What size of….? What colour……?      How = for quantity     How many……..? How much……?      Which = for things      Which + object…………?     Whose = for relationship/ possession 2. We have to find out the “common name” of the three objects. 3. We should make the question on the same question in which it is given. 4. we should not put the part of answer. Structure :  [ Wh-word + common name + aux +sub + verb + obj?] 1. Are you having tomato/chicken/mushroom soup today?    What soup are we having today? 2. Was it raining/foggy/ cold when you were in London?    How was the weather when you were in London? 3. Are you planning to use your father’s car/Tony’s car/my car?   Whose car are you plannin...