CBSE Class 12 English Deep Water VBQs Set 03

Question. Douglas had to repeat exhaling and inhaling exercises.
(a) hundred times
(b) forty times
(c) fifty times
(d) ten times
Answer: (a) hundred times

Question. Where is Metolius located?
(a) New Zealand
(b) California
(c) Oregon
(d) Japan
Answer: (c) Oregon

Question. How much distance did Douglas cover while swimming across the lake Wentworth?
(a) 4 miles
(b) 3 miles
(c) 5 miles
(d) 2 miles
Answer: (d) 2 miles

Question. Where is the lake Wentworth?
(a) New Hampshire
(b) Washington
(c) California
(d) Washington D.C
Answer: (a) New Hampshire

Question. Whenever terror struck again, Douglas would start.
(a) shouting
(b) laughing
(c) crying
(d) talking to terror
Answer: (d) talking to terror

Question. ‘What do you think you can do to me’? These words were spoken by Douglas to:
(a) a shark
(b) to his instructor
(c) to his friend
(d) to terror
Answer: (d) to terror

Question. All we have to fear is fear itself. Who said these words?
(a) Douglas
(b) his instructor
(c) his father
(d) President Roosevelt
Answer: (d) President Roosevelt

Question. The writer decided to learn to swim when he was about ______ years old.
(a) ten or eleven years old
(b) fifteen or sixteen years old
(c) twenty years old
(d) eighteen years old
Answer: (a) ten or eleven years old

Question. He practised in the pool _________days a week.
(a) three
(b) five
(c) two
(d) four
Answer: (b) five

Question. The pool’s depth at the deep end was _______.
(a) twenty feet
(b) nine feet
(c) six feet
(d) eight feet
Answer: (b) nine feet

Question. The nine feet seemed to Douglas like ________.
(a) hundred feet
(b) ninety feet
(c) fifty feet
(d) twenty-five feet
Answer: (b) ninety feet

Question. The water in the pool had a __________ colour.
(a) dirty yellow tinge
(b) a blue reflection
(c) green colour
(d) no colour
Answer: (a) dirty yellow tinge

Question. Find the correct statement in the following:
(i) From the beginning — I had a fascination towards water.
(ii) My introduction to the Y.M.C.A. swimming pool revived — pleasant memories.
(iii) I flailed at the surface of the water, — swallowed and choked.
(iv) This handicap stayed with me — as the days rolled by.
Answer: (iv) This handicap stayed with me — as the days rolled by.

Question. Rearrange the sentences in the correct sequence and choose the correct option:
(i) I was frightened, but not frightened out of my wits.
(ii) My lungs ached, my head throbbed.
(iii) The water was still, and the tiled bottom was as white and clean as a bathtub.
(iv) The next I remember I was lying on my stomach beside the pool, vomiting.
Options:
(a) (ii)-(iv)-(i)-(iii)
(b) (iii)-(i)-(ii)-(iv)
(c) (iv)-(ii)-(i)-(iii)
(d) (ii)-(i)-(iv)-(iii)
Answer: (b) (iii)-(i)-(ii)-(iv)

Question. Rearrange the sentences in the correct sequence and choose the correct option:
(i) With that he picked me up and tossed me into the deep end.
(ii) For days a haunting fear was in my heart.
(iii) Tiny vestiges of the old terror would return.
(iv) I imagined I would bob to the surface like a cork
Options:
(a) (i)-(iv)-(ii)-(iii)
(b) (iii)-(i)-(ii)-(iv)
(c) (iv)-(ii)-(i)-(iii)
(d) (ii)-(i)-(iv)-(iii)
Answer: (a) (i)-(iv)-(ii)-(iii)

Question. Assertion: Douglas’ mother kept warning him about the Yakima River.
Reason: There were many drowning incidents in the river.
(a) Both assertion and reason are correct and reason is the correct explanation of assertion.
(b) Both assertion and reason are correct but reason is not the correct explanation of assertion.
(c) Assertion is true and reason is false.
(d) Assertion is false and reason is true.
Answer: (a) Both assertion and reason are correct and reason is the correct explanation of assertion.

Question. Assertion: Douglas had a liking for the water from the beginning.
Reason: The waves had knocked him down when he was very young.
(a) Both assertion and reason are correct and reason is the correct explanation of assertion.
(b) Both assertion and reason are correct but reason is not the correct explanation of assertion.
(c) Assertion is true and reason is false.
(d) Assertion is false and reason is true.
Answer: (d) Assertion is false and reason is true.

Question. Assertion: Douglas’ introduction to the YMCA pool revived unpleasant memories of his childhood.
Reason: He went into the pool when many people were there to help him.
(a) Both assertion and reason are correct and reason is the correct explanation of assertion.
(b) Both assertion and reason are correct but reason is not the correct explanation of assertion.
(c) Assertion is true and reason is false.
(d) Assertion is false and reason is true.
Answer: (c) Assertion is true and reason is false.

Question. Assertion: A big tough eighteen year old boy tossed Douglas in the pool.
Reason: Douglas landed in a sitting position and was out of his wits.
(a) Both assertion and reason are correct and reason is the correct explanation of assertion.
(b) Both assertion and reason are correct but reason is not the correct explanation of assertion.
(c) Assertion is true and reason is false.
(d) Assertion is false and reason is true.
Answer: (b) Both assertion and reason are correct but reason is not the correct explanation of assertion.

Question. Assertion: The swimming instructor made Douglas worse than before.
Reason: Douglas swam across the Warm Lake to the other shore and back.
(a) Both assertion and reason are correct and reason is the correct explanation of assertion.
(b) Both assertion and reason are correct but reason is not the correct explanation of assertion.
(c) Assertion is true and reason is false.
(d) Assertion is false and reason is true.
Answer: (d) Assertion is false and reason is true.

Short answer type questions

Question. Which incident in the life of William Douglas before he was ten year old created an aversion in his mind to water?
Answer: When Douglas was three or four years old, he went to the California beach with his father. There a wave knocked him down. He could not breathe. The incident created an aversion to water in his mind.

Question. What is the ‘Misadventure’ that William Douglas speaks about? (Experience at YMCA pool).
Answer: When Douglas was around eleven years old he started to learn swimming. One day a big boy, who was a bully threw him into the swimming pool. Douglas could not get out of the pool. He fainted.

Question. What did Douglas feel and do when he was pushed into the swimming pool?
Answer: Douglas felt scared when he was pushed into the swimming pool. He made a plan to come out of the pool. His plan was to jump up after his feet touched the bottom, come to the surface and swim out of the pool. He struggled a lot but his plan failed.

Question. How did Dougla’s experience at the YMCA pool affect him?
Answer: Douglas started fearing water. He could not enjoy water sports like boating, fishing and swimming. It ruined his holidays.

Question. Why was Douglas determined to get over his fear of water?
Answer: The fear of water had kept him away from water sports like boating, fishing and swimming. As he wanted to enjoy them, He got determined to get over his fear of water.

Question. How did Douglas make sure that he conquered the old terror (Fear of water)?
Answer: Douglas swam alone in the swimming pool. He felt a kind of terror there when he was alone. He decided to challenge the fear and overcome it. He went to Lake Wentworth and swam in it. He also swam across Warm lake, which helped him to conquer his old fear.

Question. What larger meaning did Douglas draw from his childhood experience of terror and his conquering of it?
Answer: Having gone through the near death experience and the terror of it his will to live grew intense. He learnt the lesson that “All we have to fear is fear itself”. He believed that ‘there is terror only in the fear of death”.

Question. How did the instructor build a swimmer out of Douglas?
Answer: The instructor tied a belt around Douglas which he controlled with rope andpulley. He trained him to inhale and exhale while swimming. He helped him to practice five days a week in the pool. He helped Douglas to shed his fear. He built a swimmer out of Douglas piece by piece.

Question. Why did Douglas’ mother not allow him to learn to swim in Yakima River?
Answer: Yakima river was dangerous. Mother feared for his safety. She kept him updated about the details of each drowning in the river.

Question. Why did mother allow Douglas to learn to swim at YMCA pool?
Answer: The YMCA pool was safe. It was nine feet deep in the middle. Its drop was gradual.

LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Question. Fear is something that we must learn to overcome, if we want to succeed in life. How did Douglas get over his fear of Water?
Answer: Fear of any kind can create hindrance in our day to day life. Positive attitude, determination and constant efforts can help a person to overcome the fear. William Douglas was pushed into a swimming pool when he was around eleven years old. He could not come out of it and fainted. He got the fear of water after this misadventure.

He did not want this fear to ruin his life. He hired a coach to overcome his fear and learn to swim. He practiced five days a week for seven months. Piece by piece he learnt to fight his fear. He decided to swim alone in the pool and become sure of his victory over fear. He swam in Lake Wentworth and Warm lake also. He was able get over his fear of water.

Question. Douglas had a near death experience in his childhood which had a negative as well as a positive outcome. Justify the statement with evidence from the text.
Answer: The negative outcome of the near death experience was that Douglas got the fear of water. He stayed away from water bodies. Thus he could not enjoy any water sports like swimming, boating and fishing. His social life was fully destroyed.

The positive outcome of the experience was that he learnt that he had the will power to overcome his fear. He hired a coach to learn to swim in a pool. He did intense practice five days a week for seven months. He noticed that after the experience the will to live had become stronger. He started believing that there is fear only in the fear of death.