1. Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow. (a) "There seemed an inevitability about what on ground had looked haphazard, unplanned and without style When the jet sprang into the sky" (i) How did the city develop? (ii) Identify the name of the poet. (iii) What is the poet referring to as 'about what on ground had looked haphazard?' (b) "When the jet reached ten thousand feet, it was clear why the country had cities where the rivers ran and why the valleys were populated." (i) What is clear to the poet?
Answer (1)
(a) (i) The city developed in a manner that seemed chaotic and unplanned when observed from the ground. However, from a higher perspective, like that from a jet, a sense of inevitability and order in its development becomes apparent. This suggests that what might have appeared as a lack of planning on the ground actually had a pattern or purpose.
(ii) The poet who wrote these lines is Zulfikar Ghose. These lines are from the poem 'Geography Lesson.'
(iii) The poet is referring to the way the city looks from the ground level. On the ground, it seems to be arranged in a haphazard and unorganized manner, without any style or pattern. However, from a higher altitude, the development appears to have a sense of order and purpose, implying an underlying planning that is not visible from the ground.
(b) (i) When the jet reached ten thousand feet, it became clear to the poet why cities developed around rivers and valleys. The aerial view helped the poet understand that cities were situated in locations that had resources essential for human settlement, like water from the rivers and fertile land in the valleys. This understanding could not be easily grasped from the ground level and highlights how geography plays a crucial role in the establishment of human civilizations.
