Reach for the Top - Q&A
Thinking about the Text
I. Answer these questions in one or two sentences each.
1. Why was the 'holy man' who gave Santosh's mother his blessings surprised? (1)
The 'holy man' was surprised because Santosh's grandmother requested a blessing for a daughter, whereas he had assumed the family wanted a son, as was customary in their society.
2. Give an example to show that even as a young girl Santosh was not ready to accept anything unreasonable. (2)
While other girls in her village wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred to wear shorts, showing she was determined to live life on her own terms from the start.
3. Why was Santosh sent to the local school? (3)
Santosh was sent to the local village school because of the prevailing custom in her family, even though her affluent parents could afford to send her to a better school in Delhi.
4. When did she leave home for Delhi, and why? (4)
She left home for Delhi when she turned sixteen because she refused to get married at that age, which was common in her village, and instead insisted on getting a proper education.
5. Why did Santosh's parents agree to pay for her schooling in Delhi? What mental qualities of Santosh are brought into light by this incident? (4)
Her parents agreed to pay when she politely informed them of her plan to work part-time to pay for her fees. This incident highlights her determination, independence, and ability to handle difficult situations with reason and politeness.
II. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).
1. How did Santosh begin to climb mountains?
While studying at Maharani College in Jaipur, Santosh watched villagers go up the Aravalli Hills and vanish. Curious, she checked it out herself, met some mountaineers, and asked to join them. They encouraged her, marking the beginning of her climbing journey.
2. What incidents during the Everest expedition show Santosh's concern for her team-mates?
During the 1992 Everest mission, Santosh provided special care to a dying climber at the South Col, though she couldn't save him. However, she successfully saved another climber, Mohan Singh, by sharing her oxygen with him.
3. What shows her concern for the environment?
Santosh was a fervent environmentalist. During her Everest mission, she collected and brought down 500 kilograms of garbage from the Himalayas, showing her deep concern for keeping the mountains clean.
4. How does she describe her feelings at the summit of the Everest?
She describes the feeling as indescribable and a spiritual moment. She says it took some time for the enormity of the moment to sink in, but when she unfurled the Indian tricolour on the roof of the world, she felt proud as an Indian.
5. Santosh Yadav got into the record books both times she scaled Mt Everest. What were the reasons for this?
The first time she scaled Mt. Everest, she became the youngest woman in the world to achieve the feat. The second time, she set a record as the only woman to have scaled Everest twice.
III. Complete the following statements.
1. From her room in Kasturba Hostel, Santosh used to watch villagers going up the Aravalli Hills and suddenly vanishing after a while.
2. When she finished college, Santosh had to write a letter of apology to her father because she had enrolled herself at Uttarkashi's Nehru Institute of Mountaineering without his permission and was heading straight there for training.
3. During the Everest expedition, her seniors in the team admired her climbing skills, physical fitness, and mental strength while her concern for others and desire to work together with them endeared her to fellow climbers.
IV. Pick out words from the text that mean the same as the following words or expressions. (Look in the paragraphs indicated.)
1. took to be true without proof (1): assumed
2. based on reason; sensible; reasonable (2): rational
3. the usual way of doing things (3): custom
4. a strong desire arising from within (5): urge
5. the power to endure, without falling ill (7): resistance
Part II - Maria Sharapova
Match the following.
something disarming
something that makes you feel friendly, taking away your suspiciousness
at odds with
in contrast to; not agreeing with
glamorous attire
attractive and exciting clothes
in almost no time
quickly, almost immediately
poised beyond her years
more calm, confident and in control than people of her age usually are
packed off
sent off
launched
started
heart wrenching
causing strong feelings of sadness
Thinking about the Text
Working in small groups of 4-5 students, go back over the two passages on Santosh Yadav and Maria Sharapova and complete the table given below with relevant phrases or sentences.
| Points of Comparison/Contrast | Santosh Yadav | Maria Sharapova |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Their humble beginning | Born in the small village of Joniyawas of Rewari District in Haryana. | Born in Siberia, Russia; had to move to the US with little money or resources. |
| 2. Their parents' approach | Initially conservative (expected traditional life/marriage), but later supported her education when she stood her ground. | Supportive from the start; father worked hard to fund training, but mother was forced to stay behind due to visa restrictions. |
| 3. Their will power and strong desire to succeed | Had an iron will; defied customs to study and climb; enrolled in mountaineering institute without permission. | Unwavering desire; endured separation from mother and bullying by seniors to pursue her dream. |
| 4. Evidence of mental toughness | Amazing mental toughness repeatedly proven during arduous climbs; saved a fellow climber. | Stayed determined despite loneliness and humiliation; "I became more quietly determined and mentally tough." |
| 5. Their patriotism | Felt proud as an Indian while unfurling the tricolour on Everest; a "spiritual moment." | Proudly parades her Russian nationality; "My blood is totally Russian. I will play the Olympics for Russia." |
Thinking about Language
I. Identify the two parts in the sentences below by underlining the part that gives us the information in brackets, as shown above.
1. Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts. (Contrasts her dress with that of others)
Where other girls wore traditional Indian dresses, Santosh preferred shorts.
2. She left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi. (Tells us what happened after the first action.)
She left home and got herself enrolled in a school in Delhi.
3. She decided to fight the system when the right moment arrived. (Tells us when she was going to fight the system.)
She decided to fight the system when the right moment arrived.
4. Little Maria had not yet celebrated her tenth birthday when she was packed off to train in the United States. (Tells us when Maria was sent to the U.S.)
Little Maria had not yet celebrated her tenth birthday when she was packed off to train in the United States.
II. Now rewrite the pairs of sentences given below as one sentence.
1. Grandfather told me about the old days. All books were printed on paper then.
Grandfather told me about the old days when all books were printed on paper.
2. What do you do after you finish the book? Perhaps you just throw it away.
Perhaps you just throw the book away after you finish it.
3. He gave the little girl an apple. He took the computer apart.
After giving the little girl an apple, he took the computer apart.
4. You have nothing. That makes you very determined.
When you have nothing, it makes you very determined.
5. I never thought of quitting. I knew what I wanted.
I never thought of quitting because I knew what I wanted.
Writing II. Which of these words would you use to describe Santosh Yadav?
Find reasons in the text to support your choices, and write a couple of paragraphs describing Santosh's character.
contented, determined, resourceful, polite, adventurous, considerate, weak-willed, fearful, independent, pessimistic, patient, persevering
Describing Santosh Yadav
Santosh Yadav can be best described as determined, independent, adventurous, and considerate. From a young age, she was independent and determined to live life on her own terms, wearing shorts instead of traditional dresses and refusing early marriage to pursue education. She showed great resourcefulness and politeness when she convinced her parents to pay for her education in Delhi by planning to work part-time.
Her adventurous spirit is evident in how she spontaneously decided to join mountaineers in the Aravalli Hills. She is also incredibly persevering and possesses an "iron will," which helped her scale Mt. Everest twice. Despite her toughness, she is considerate and a fervent environmentalist, as seen when she shared oxygen to save a fellow climber's life and brought down 500 kgs of garbage from the Himalayas.