Text Book Question and Answers
The Toppers Guide
Introducing the author
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill (1874-1965) was the Prime Minister of England twice (1940-45 and 1951-55). A noted statesman and orator, Churchill was also an officer in the British Army, a historian, a writer, and an artist. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1953. "At Harrow" is an excerpt from Chapter II (HARROW) of Winston S. Churchill's autobiography, A Roving Commission My Early Life (1930).
Unit I
1. Does the writer like examinations? Quote the line in support of your answer?
Ans: The writer does not like examinations. The line which says it is "I entered the inhospitable regions of examination.These examinations were a great trial for me."
2. Mention the subjects that were dearest to the examiners?
Ans: The subjects that were dearest to the examiners were Latin and Mathematics. They set all questions out of these subjects.
3. Which subjects did the writer like the most?
Ans: The subjects the writer liked the most were history, poetry and writing essays.
4. What reason does the writer give for his not doing well in the examinations?
Ans: The examiners set questions on Latin and mathematics, the subjects the writer disliked most and so the latter did not do well in the examinations.
5. What did the writer write in the answer book for the Latin paper?
Ans: In the Latin paper, the writer wrote his name and the number of the question 'I'.
6. What a sad spectacle for him?
Ans: The writer shed tears in the examination hall. Teardrops fell on answer paper and created blots and smudges. This was a sad spectacle for him.
7. What was the writer's position in the merit list for admission?
Ans: In the merit list, the writer was placed in the third or lowest division of the Fourth or bottom Form.
8. Whom does he give the credit of his success in the Entrance Examination? Why?
Ans: Churchill gave the credit of his success to the headmaster Dr. Welldon. He was a man capable of looking beneath the surface of things. He passed out Churchill even though he had written nothing.
9. What do we mean by - "I gained no more advantage from the alphabet than from the wider sphere of letters."
Ans: The names of the new boys were printed in the school list alphabetical order. So Spencer Churchill appeared towards the end of list. The writer humorously says -1 gained no more advantage from the alphabet than from the wider sphere of letters.
10. How did he become the last boy in the class?
Ans: Churchill's name was at the third position from the bottom. As the last two left school due to illness or some other cause, his name came to the last.
11. What is the custom of calling the roll at Harrow?
Ans: The custom of calling the roll at Harrow was that when the roll is called, the student files past a master in the schoolyard and answers his presence.
12. What is the custom of calling the roll at Eton?
Ans: The custom of calling the roll at Eton is that the students stand in a group and lift their hats in response to their names.
13. "Why, he's last of all"- why did people say so?
Ans: Churchill's name was at the end of the school list. During the roll call, it comes last and he files past. So others comment why, he's last of all.
Unit II
1. What kind of students were taught Latin and Greek at Harrow?
Ans : The cleverer students were taught Latin and Greek at Harrow.
2. Which students were taught only English?
Ans: The dull students were taught English only.
3. Why does the writer rate English as a subject and Mr. Somervell as a teacher?
Ans: The writer rates English as a noble subject and Mr Somervell as a brilliant, the most innovative teacher of English.
4. What part of English grammar did he learn from Mr. Somervell?
Ans: Churchill learnt parsing from Mr. Somervell. It included identifying and using subject, object, verbs, clauses etc
5. How did he score over the clever school fellows in after years?
Ans: The clever students first studied Latin and Greek while Churchill studied English. When the clever students returned to English class, Churchill had already got much knowledge in English and scored over others.
6. Why was he biased in favour of boys learning the English language?
Ans: He was biased in favour of boys learning English. Language because English would give them job opportunities, and would earn them bread.
Unit III
1. How did the boys enjoy their time at the swimming bath?
Ans: Children used to repair for hours at a time and bask between dips eating enormous buns on the hot asphalt margin.
2. What kind of pranks did they enjoy at the bath?
Ans: They go in groups, play jokes on each other, come up behind naked friends, push them into water.
3. What did the writer do to the boy standing in a meditative posture?
Ans: The writer tip-toed behind and pushed the boy into the swimming pool when he had stood in a meditative posture on the very edge.
4. What was the reaction of the boy?
Ans: The boy emerged from the foam angrily, seized Churchill in a ferocious grip and hurled him into the deepest part of the pool.
5. What did the writer learn about Amery from the crowd of younger boys?
Ans: The writer learnt from the crowd of younger boys that Amery was in the Sixth Form and Head of his House, champion at Gym and an excellent football player. Besides, Amery earned fame and respect for his manifold achievements.
6. How did the writer apologize for his misconduct?
Ans: The writer came near Amery and said "I am very sorry. 1 mistook you for a fourth form boy. You are so small. My father, who is a great man, is also small."
7. Did he apologise out of fear of guilt or both?
Ans: He apologised out of guilt. To him, it was "with the guilt of sacrilege
8. Did the matter end happily for the writer?
Ans: Yes, the matter ended happily for the writer. In Unit-IV, he has given clarification.
Unit IV
1. "Three years" difference in age is not as important as it is at school- How does the writer prove it?
Ans: The writer proves his statement when he along with another three-year senior student became Cabinet colleagues in future.
2. How did the writer fare at school?
Ans: The writer remained in the lowest rank in the merit list at school. It pained him much yet he showed excellence in a few fields.
3. How did he win a prize at school?
Ans: Churchill once, recited to the headmaster twelve hundred lines of Macauley's "Lays of Ancient Rome" without making a mistake and got a prize.
2. How did the writer fare at school?
Ans: The writer remained in the lowest rank in the merit list at school. It pained him much yet he showed excellence in a few fields.
3. How did he win a prize at school?
Ans: Churchill once, recited to the headmaster twelve hundred lines of Macauley's "Lays of Ancient Rome" without making a mistake and got a prize.
4. What were the writer's noteworthy achievements at school?
Ans: The writer passed out the preliminary examination for the Army when many seniors failed, It was a rare achievement indeed.
5. How did the writer prepare himself for the preliminary examination for the Army?
Ans: The writer thought that there would be a question to draw the map of a country and that country might be Newzealand, He read it and got the same question. So he answered it well.
6. Why does he call his success an en 'plein'?
Ans: He calls his success an en 'plein because he focussed only on the geography of New Zealand and as a sort of bet the first question in the paper was to sketch a map of New Zealand.
