NCERT Solutions for Class 11 English Chapter 5: The Adventure (Hornbill)

1. Notice these expressions in the text. Infer their meanings from the context.

Blow-by-blow account

De facto

Morale booster

Astute

Relegated to

Doctored accounts

Political acumen

Gave vent to

Ans: 

A blow-by-blow account means a detailed account. In the text, this expression is used when Prof. Gangadharpant tries to understand the consequence of the Battle of Panipat by reading the book on this topic.

De facto refers to the existence of something, whether with lawful authority or not. In the text, Peshwas is referred to as the de facto ruler because the Mughal regime in Delhi was kept alive by them.

A morale booster indicates anything that increases confidence or morale. In the text, this expression occurs when it is told that the Battle of Panipat was won by the Marathas due to which their morale increased and gave them the confidence to exert their supremacy all over the country.

Astute means practical hard-headed intelligence. This word is used in the text to show the intelligence of Peshwas for recognizing the importance of the technological age arising in Europe.

'Relegated to' refers to when someone is assigned to a lower position or rank. In the text, it is shown that after the Battle of Panipat, Dadasaheb who was a Maratha chieftain, was assigned to a lower position.

Doctored accounts mean manipulating the accounts. The expression in the text is used to convey that the Bakhars were providing the manipulated accounts of history and not the original historical facts.

Political acumen means political shrewdness with sharp insight. In the text, it is used to show how Madhavrao and Vishwasrao spread their influence all over the country with their shrewdness.

Give vent to means to express one’s ideas or feelings. In the text, Professor Gaitonde expresses his ideas on the Battle of Panipat in the public lecture.

Understanding the Text

Tick the statements that are true.

(i) The story is an account of real events.

(ii) The story hinges on a particular historical event.

(iii) Rajendra Deshpande was a historian.

(iv) The places mentioned in the story are all imaginary.

(v) The story tries to relate history to science.

Ans:

(i) False

(ii) True

(iii) False

(iv) False 

(v) True

Briefly explain the following statements from the text.

1. “You neither traveled to the past nor the future. You were in the present experiencing a different world.”

Ans: Rajendra says this to Professor Gaitonde. He makes a transition from one world to the other and then back again. He is able to experience different worlds, although one at a time, through a transition. He does not travel to the past or even to the future. He is in the present but experiences a different world. 

2. “You have passed through a fantastic experience: or more correctly, a catastrophic experience.”

Ans: Rajendra makes this statement to Professor Gaitonde in the text. Gangadhar has gone through a  weird experience. He experiences living in two worlds – the one where he lives now and the other where he spent two days. 

3. Gangadharpant could not help comparing the country he knew with what he was witnessing around him.

Ans: Gangadhar compares two Indias that he saw. He knew about an India which saw the fall of the Peshwas and was under British slavery. Then he talks about India which he saw in two days. It was completely different. It was not a slave of the British. It was independent and had self-respect. He was comparing both these countries – the one he already knew and the one he was seeing around him. Both these countries had very different histories.

4. “The lack of determinism in quantum theory!”

Ans: Professor Gaitonde thinks about going to a big library in Bombay and looking through some history books to find out what has led to the present state of affairs. He has a long conversation with Rajendra Deshpande, on his return to Pune. He hopes to get some help from Rajendra to comprehend what happened.

5. “You need some interaction to cause a transition.”

Ans: The British Raj controlled Bombay. An Anglo Indian wearing a uniform checked the permits. The tiny Union Jack was painted on each of the blue carriages of GBMR. The Victoria terminus was very neat and clean. The staff mostly had Anglo Indians and Parsee and a few British officers.

Talking with the text

Discuss the following statements in groups of two pairs, each pair in a group taking opposite points of view.

1. A single event may change the course of the history of a nation.

Ans: 

For- 

A single event may change the course of the history of a nation. For example, The Battle of Panipat is considered to be the turning point in the history of India. The Marathas lost it to the forces of Ahmed Shah Abdali. The history of India changed after this event. The foreign forces took over the country eventually. In the text, it is shown that in the beginning, Professor Gaitonde was preparing to give a speech on how history would have turned out if the Marathas had won the Battle of Panipat. This tells us how important an event could be in the history of a country. 

Against- 

The statement that “A single event may change the course of the history of a nation” is based on perspective only. It is a relative truth. We cannot just claim that anyone course of events is a reality because there could be alternative outcomes of a single event in history. Since there could be alternative outcomes, it is not fruitful to the debate over a single course. In the text, a different version of the Battle of Panipat has been revealed to Professor Gaitonde in which the Marathas won it. After that, the Marathas expand their influence all over the country and India never succumbs to the foreign forces. So it is not tenable to argue that a single course of events may change the course of history. There could be alternative outcomes following the event as well.

2. Reality is what is directly experienced through the senses.

Ans: 

For – 

For us, our different senses – a sense of touch, taste, sight, smell and hear, provide the base or facts about the world we are surrounded by. Every experience comes through these senses and serves as a source of knowledge to us. Only what is experienced by the senses is considered reality. Anything which is not revealed to the senses is unreal and does not exist.

Against – 

Reality is not always experienced by the senses. There are so many things that our senses cannot feel. Like atoms and molecules, but they are real and they do exist. Because we cannot sense them, we cannot accurately understand the behavior of these entities. In the text, Rajendra moots this point by telling about the discoveries made by the scientists about the behavior of atoms. A prediction can be made regarding the position of a bullet fired in a particular direction but the direction of an electron fired from a source cannot be predicted. This shows that there could be alternative realities existing as well and it is not just restricted to what is revealed to the senses.

3. The methods of inquiry of history, science, and philosophy are similar.

Ans:

For – 

In the text, we can see that the perspectives of History, Science, and Philosophy converge towards the same point of focus. In history, the course of past events is understood by the methods of observation, analysis, and rationalism. The methods involved in science are – observation, experimentation, and analysis. The most fundamental principle in science is Rationalism. Philosophy follows a methodology based on thorough criticism.

Philosophy includes examining everything like methodology and assumptions of science and other disciplines like history. In the text, we can see History, Philosophy, and Science converging as Professor Gaitonde experiences a completely different consequence of the Battle of Panipat where the Marathas come out as victorious, which is completely contradictory to the version given in History textbooks where the Marathas lose. Prof. Gaitonde failed to understand the rationality of all this. Later, Rajendra interceded and tried to explain this with the help of the catastrophic theory. This theory is used by scientists to understand the behavior of atoms. Here, we can see Science and History are converging. Philosophy follows the same viewpoint where reality is not absolute but relative. This shows that the methods of inquiry employed in History, Science, and Philosophy are rather similar.

Against – 

When Rajendra uses the Catastrophic theory to describe Gaitonde's experience in the text, it convinces Gaitonde. Nevertheless, it falls short of our expectations. The physical world's phenomena might be described by the Catastrophe theory, but history is about the behavioural world, depicting people and society's behaviours. As a result, the manner of investigation differs from person to person. Philosophy employs a speculative technique of investigation that even calls rationalism into question. Science and history do not share the same methodologies as philosophy. They are not similar. This text “The Adventure'' is basically trying to show the convergence of Science, History, and Philosophy. However, in reality, all of these disciplines employ different methods of inquiry according to the matter of the subject.

4. Why do you think Prof. Gaitonde decides never to preside over meetings again?

Ans:

Prof. Gaitonde experiences a completely different consequence of the Battle of Panipat where the Marathas emerge victoriously and then they extend their influence all over the country. His mind witnesses a different version of a historical event. However, he also experiences an event that does not conform to the conventions. The event is actually a lecture session on the outcome of the Battle of Panipat. Prof. Gaitonde observes that the President’s chair was vacant which was contrary to the conventions and he rushed to occupy the chair. He then starts to explain why there is a need for a President in a lecture session like this one. The public gets mad and starts throwing things at him. He has a horrible experience and thus decides not to preside over meetings again.

Thinking About Language

1. In which language do you think Gangadharpant and Khan Sahib talked to each other? Which language did Gangadharpant use to talk to the English receptionist?

Ans: Gangadharpant and Khan Sahib spoke to each other in Hindi. Gangadharpant talked to the receptionist in English.

2. In which language do you think Bhausahebanchi Bakhar was written?

Ans: Bhausahebanchi Bakhar was written in the Marathi language.

3. There is mention of three communities in the story: the Marathas, the Mughals, and the Anglo-Indians. Which language do you think they used within their communities and while speaking to the other groups?

Ans: The communities used local languages such as Marathi, Hindi, or Sindhi to communicate among themselves. However, they would all use English when communicating with each other.

4. Do you think the ruled always adopted the language of the ruler?

Ans: In most instances that we have seen in history, the ruled usually communicates in the language of the ruler due to factors such as trust in leadership, the culture of the ruling family, regional history linked with the family, and so on. However, in a diverse country such as India, there have been instances where this hasn't always been true. Even when looking at India as a whole, We can see that various parts of the present-day state of Maharashtra speak an array of languages despite there only being one or two ruling parties across the region.

Working with Words

I. Tick the item that is closest in meaning to the following phrases.

1. to take issue with

(i) to accept

(ii) to discuss

(iii) to disagree

(iv) to add

Ans: (iii) to disagree

2. to give vent to

(i) to express

(ii) to emphasise

(iii) suppress

(iv) dismiss

Ans: (i) to express

3. to stand on one’s feet

(i) to be physically strong

(ii) to be independent

(iii) to stand erect

(iv) to be successful

Ans: (ii) to be independent

4. to be wound up

(i) to become active

(ii) to stop operating

(iii) to be transformed

(iv) to be destroyed

Ans: (ii) to stop operating

5. to meet one’s match

(i) to meet a partner who has similar tastes

(ii) to meet an opponent

(iii) to meet someone who is equally able as oneself

(iv) to meet defeat

Ans: (iii) to meet someone who is equally able as oneself

II. Distinguish between the following pairs of sentences.

1. (i) He was visibly moved.

(ii) He was visually impaired.

Ans:i. In a way that can be noticed.

ii. Related to one’s seeing or appearance

2. (i) Green and black stripes were used alternately.

(ii) Green stripes could be used or alternatively black ones.

Ans: i. Occur in turn repeatedly

ii. As an option or possibility

3. (i) The team played the two matches successfully.

(ii) The team played two matches successively.

Ans: i. Achieving aim or result

ii. Immediately, one after another

4. (i) The librarian spoke respectfully to the learned scholar.

(ii) You will find the historian and the scientist in the archaeology and natural science sections of the museum respectively.

Ans: i. With deference and respect

ii. Separately or individually and in the order already mentioned.

Benefits of NCERT Solutions Class 11 Questions and Answers: Chapter 5 The Adventure

• NCERT Solutions for The Adventure Class 11 Questions and Answer detailed explanations of each concept to ensure a thorough understanding of the historical events and theories presented in the chapter, making complex ideas more accessible.

• NCERT Solutions to The Adventure Class 11 Question Answers encourage students to engage in critical thinking, fostering a deeper level of intellectual engagement.

• Chapter 5 The Adventure Question Answers Provides well-structured solutions to potential exam questions, helping students prepare effectively for their exams with confidence and clarity.

• The Adventure Class 11 Questions and Answers clarifies complex theories such as the catastrophe theory and its application to historical events, making it easier for students to grasp these advanced concepts and apply them.

• The Adventure Class 11 NCERT Solutions are designed to help students manage their study time efficiently by focusing on key points and important events in the chapter, aiding in effective revision.

• The Adventure NCERT Solutions encourages students to discuss and debate different historical outcomes, fostering an interactive and engaging learning environment that stimulates curiosity.

• Solutions to The Adventure Class 11 Questions and Answers act as reliable reference material for revisiting important points and theories, ensuring students have a handy guide for revision and deeper understanding.

• Solutions provided for Class 11 English Chapter 5 Question Answers are ideal for self-study, allowing students to learn at their own pace and revisit concepts as needed without external assistance, promoting independent learning.

CBSE Class 11 English Hornbill Chapter 5 (Prose) Other Study Materials

Conclusion

The Adventure is a mind-boggling tale that includes values and genres such as problem-solving, space-time dilation, alternate reality, and quantum physics as well as contrasting themes such as Indian history, war, and personalities and blends them smoothly and well together that indeed takes the readers on the journey. Vedantu offers comprehensive NCERT Solutions for The Adventure Class 11 Questions and Answers. These solutions are compiled by master teachers and subject matter experts thus ensuring their accuracy and relevance.

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