English Class 12 Chapter 7 - The Interview NCERT Solutions

1. What are some of the positive views on interviews?

Ans:  Interviews are useful means of communication. Almost everybody who is literate reads an interview once in their life. It is a source of truth.  In practice, it is an art and varies in its function, methods and merits.

2. Why do most celebrity writers despise being interviewed?

Ans: Most of the celebrity writers despise the interview as an unwarranted intrusion into their lives or feel that it somehow diminishes them. They consider themselves as a victim of an interview.

3. What is the belief in some primitive cultures about being photographed?

Ans: In many primitive cultures, being photographed is thought to be equivalent to stealing his/her soul and leaving his/her existence incomplete.

4. What do you understand by the expression “thumbprints on his windpipe”?

Ans: Celebrity writer Saul Bellow who was interviewed on several occasions expressed it as ‘Thumbprints on his windpipe’ which means having been muffled. He considers it as an assault on his personality because it creates too much tension.

5. Who, in today’s world, is our chief source of information about personalities?

Ans: In today’s world, the interview has become commonplace in journalism. It is seen as a highly advantageous means of communication. Several thousand celebrities have been interviewed. Through the interview, we got complete and true information. By interacting with other people, we got to know about their experiences, views and feelings.

Understanding The Text

1. Do you think Umberto Eco likes being interviewed? Give reasons for your opinion.

Ans: Yes, Umberto Eco likes being interviewed. The reasons for my answer are:

• He answered all the questions fully and patiently without showing any hurry or nervousness. 

• He considers his achievement very modest. He expresses his philosophical interest clearly.

• He tells the secret about his work.

• He elaborated his approach which was unique.

• He does not show any sort of dislike for being interviewed.

2. How does Eco find the time to write so much?

Ans:  Eco said in life every person has empty spaces and periods with no important jobs. He said that he did most of his writing in his free interests. He explained his working style. He said when he waits for someone to come from the first floor to the second, he does not sit idle, rather he works and writes. 

3. What was distinctive about Eco’s academic writing style?

Ans: Eco's academic writing style was quite distinctive. His non-fictional writing, scholarly work had a certain playful and personal quality about them. It was a marked departure from a regular academic style which generally is invariably depersonalized and often dry and boring.

4. Did Umberto Eco consider himself a novelist first or an academic scholar?

Ans: Umberto Eco saw himself as an academic first and a novelist second. He said he considers himself a university professor who writes novels on Sundays. On weekdays he attends academic conferences and does not meet writers or Pen club.

5. What is the reason for the huge success of the novel, The Name of the Rose?

Ans: 'The Name of the Rose' is a very unique novel with a mystery plot but it also dips its toe into metaphysics, theology, as well as medieval history. It is popular among a large group of readers. Though the actual reason behind its success is still not revealed.

Talking about the Text

1. Discuss in pairs or small groups:

(i) Talk about any interview that you have watched on television or read in a newspaper. How did it add to your understanding of the celebrity, the interviewer and the field of the celebrity?

Ans: I recently watched the exclusive interview of Neeraj Chopra, the sole gold medalist in Javelin throw from India in Tokyo, 2020 Olympics on a popular news channel. In the interview, he expressed his happiness over the win. His expressions and words told the joy of winning a gold medal in the largest sports event in the world. He expressed his gratitude towards the coaches and the training programmes he attended for his preparations. He humbly expressed his gratitude to all Indians and his peers whose hard work was his motivation. 

The interviewer asked questions related to his preparations for the big stage and about his future goals.

The interview summed up to me as presenting a highly achieved athlete also as a hardworking humble human who brought so much joy to his fellow countrymen. The interview especially gives future Indian athletes the confidence to achieve heights.

(ii) The medium you like best for an interview, print, radio, or television.

The medium I like best for an interview is television. The reasons behind such choice are:

• It is both audio-visual mediums.

• It shows whole functions, methods, and merits.

• The visual effects and sound effects are soothing to the eyes and ears.

• The way questions are put in front of celebrities and the way they try to give a positive response in every possible way is interesting.

• Most of the celebrities criticize the interviews saying the interviewers misinterpret their words but on television, it is not possible as what they are saying is understandable.

(iii) Every famous person has a right to his or her privacy. Interviewers sometimes embarrass celebrities with very personal questions.

Ans: Sometimes, interviews try to expose private aspects of the lives of famous people they are interviewing as exclusive news. The purpose was to get to such news first and spread it through their media as quickly as possible. The celebrities remain under tremendous scrutiny by them and often get interrogated in the interview.

Often interviewers' questions can open their personal and/or professional life towards disastrous notions. Sometimes providing a response to offensive questions label them as rebels or while not giving any response signifies as arrogant or guilty. In my opinion, no matter if the person is a celebrity or a commoner, privacy should be respected.

Writing

1. If the interviewer Mukund Padmanabhan had not got the space in the newspaper to reproduce the interview verbatim, he may have been asked to produce a short report of the interview with the salient points. Write this report for him. (The teacher should be able to help the pupils in what to include and what can be omitted. We could also provide a short report of an interview as a sample.)

Ans: Umberto Eco, A Scholarly novelist

(By Mukund Padmanabhan, Interviewer)

I was fortunate enough to interview Umberto Eco, an accomplished novelist and a professor at the University of Bologna, Italy. He was well known for his scholarly works on Semiotics, literary analysis and medieval aesthetics. His literary works include fictional stories, academic articles, essays, newspaper articles and children’s stories.

A depersonalized and mere casual approach in his writing marks his work different from others. This makes his writing style engaging and more appealing. His writings depict the stories of his research instead of being formal and monotonous.

He explained to me how he is able to consume his idle time into writing. The time we generally waste in idleness, he calls them ‘interstices’, He uses such time to complete his works.

Despite his literary fame, Umberto Eco continues to refer to himself as a "university professor who writes novels on Sundays." He generously said that he has published over 40 scholarly articles and attended numerous academic conferences.

When I asked him about the cause of the success of the novel ‘The Name of the Rose’, he said that it is still a puzzle to him. Neither he nor his publishers were able to predict its success.

His demeanour was lively and he enthusiastically answered all my questions. He even revealed his private schedules and working process.

Things To Do

1. Interview a person whom you admire either in school or your neighbourhood and record it in writing.

Ans: I admire my English teacher, Mrs Desai very much and an interview with her is recorded below in the written form.

Interviewer: Hello, ma’am.

Mrs Desai: Hello, dear. 

Interviewer: I have first taken your class in  8th standard and till today I remember your first introduction to English as a subject. Until then I used to be very much afraid of it. Yet, your kind assistance and encouragement have helped me improve immensely. 

Mrs Desai: Thank you, dear. Whenever I see a student benefiting from my teaching I not only become happy but also feel blessed as a teacher. 

Interviewer: Ma’am can you tell me a little about yourself.

Mrs Desai: Sure! I was born in Delhi to an office clerk father and a housewife mother. I am the elder of two sisters. I studied English at both graduation and master level and got a B.Ed. degree. I joined this school soon after the completion of my studies and even after 15 years of teaching I can say I am still learning.

Interviewer: Can you tell me why you chose to study English and later to teach it?

Mrs Desai: I fell in love with English literature when my father bought me Treasure Island by R L Stevenson. I was only 15 at that time. I loved the story and also the writing. We were not very rich so my father took me to a local library and got me a library card. Fortunately, that library had a good collection of classics in the English language. From there my love for this subject grew and when the time came, I chose to study the language. 

Interviewer: I have never seen you using notes in class. It seems you memorise all the poems and prose and describe them to us in a new way every time. What is your secret?

Mrs Desai: When you love to do something it embeds into your mind and soul. I love the process of teaching and I love the subject. When I see the children’s mind-opening and absorbing knowledge, it gives me satisfaction that I am able to help them learn new things.

Interviewer: Too many of us English is not an easy subject. What advice do you have for us to succeed?

Mrs Desai: English is not a very difficult language, but rather an interesting one. I often see students struggling to write in their own words as they have no idea how to express their words. For this, you must read books, articles, newspapers etc in English where you are exposed to new words.  

Interviewer: I myself struggle to speak in English in a fluent manner. What advice do you have for me?

Mrs Desai: Listening to spoken versions such as English news or a movie can help you learn how to use newly learned words in English. Also talking among friends in English can help you to practise speaking. Do not be afraid to fail because we can only learn through failures. 

Interviewer: Thank you ma’am for your suggestions. It was really pleasant to be able to talk to you. 

Mrs Desai: Dear, it is my pleasure to be able to see such enthusiasm in one of my students. I wish you well in your studies.

NCERT Solution Class 12 English Flamingo Chapter 7 The Interview - Free PDF Download

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Class 12 English Flamingo The Interview Short Summary

Class 12 English chapter The Interview is written by Christopher Silvester. The chapter talks about the advantages and disadvantages of the interview process and its ability to leave a lasting impact. It aims to help students to understand whether an interview can be seen as a reliable source of fact, or it is just an intervention or an argument. Some think that it is a powerful tool, whereas some dislike it.

The author tells us about how an interview is used as a technique for questioning and its importance in the field of journalism. He also discussed how interviews have become a vital part of people's lives irrespective of their class or education. In this chapter, we have also observed how celebrities view interviews, thus defining their merits. The chapter also includes an excerpt from writer Umberto Eco's interview telling us about his literary methods.

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Conclusion

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