Class 12 3rd Semester WBCHSE Model Set-Solved Answers :Our Casuarina Tree

Class 12 3rd Semester WBCHSE Model Set-Solved Answers :Our Casuarina Tree 

ENGLISH — TOPIC-WISE QUESTION BANK
OUR CASUARINA TREE 
Fully Solved Question Paper 

OUR CASUARINA TREE — TORU DUTT (Q1 – Q20)

1. "Dear is the Casuarina to my soul." This expresses:

A. Patriotism

B. Personal attachment

C. Fear

D. Humour

Answer: B. Personal attachment

Explanation: The tree is dear to the poet's soul not just for its visual majesty, but because of intense personal, nostalgic memories of her childhood spent under it with her beloved siblings.

2. The poet's siblings are:

A. Living abroad

B. Dead

C. Unknown

D. Neighbours

Answer: B. Dead

Explanation: Toru Dutt's brother Abju and sister Aru passed away young, as alluded to in 'Who now in blessed sleep, for aye, repose'.

3. The Casuarina tree stands beside a __________

A. River

B. Tank

C. Temple

D. Bridge

Answer: B. Tank

Explanation: The poem explicitly describes: 'And in the shadow, on the broad tank cast / By that hoar tree, so beautiful and vast...'

4. The tone of the poem is:

A. Comic

B. Nostalgic and affectionate

C. Satirical

D. Angry

Answer: B. Nostalgic and affectionate

Explanation: Toru Dutt blends warm childhood reminiscence, love for her lost companions, and profound melancholy, creating an affectionate, elegiac tone.

5. The Casuarina tree is described as "rugged." What does this suggest?

A. Smooth and delicate

B. Strong and rough

C. Dry and lifeless

D. Weak and thin

Answer: B. Strong and rough

Explanation: 'Rugged' highlights its aged, gnarled, weathered bark marked deeply with scars yet standing resolute like a giant.

6. Assertion (A): The Casuarina tree becomes a symbol of permanence.

Reason (R): Human life is temporary, but memories endure through art.

A. Both A and R are true, and R explains A.

B. Both are true, but R does not explain A.

C. A is true, R is false.

D. A is false, R is true.

Answer: A. Both A and R are true, and R explains A.

Explanation: While mortals pass away, the tree and the memories tied to it achieve immortality through the poet's verse ('May Love defend thee from Oblivion's curse').

7. The imagery of the poem is predominantly:

A. Visual and auditory

B. Gustatory only

C. Tactile only

D. Humorous

Answer: A. Visual and auditory

Explanation: The poem is rich in visual sights (crimson clusters, gray baboon, water-lilies like snow) and auditory sounds (bird and bee songs, kokilas hailing the day, the tree's dirge-like lament).

8. The poet's memories are mainly:

A. Painful only

B. Sweet yet tinged with sadness

C. Entirely joyful

D. Unimportant

Answer: B. Sweet yet tinged with sadness

Explanation: The memories recall sweet childhood games with her siblings, but induce sorrow and hot tears because those companions are no more.

9. "A gray baboon sits statue-like alone." The phrase "statue-like" suggests that the baboon is:

A. Noisy

B. Motionless

C. Angry

D. Sleeping

Answer: B. Motionless

Explanation: 'Statue-like' signifies complete stillness as the baboon calmly sits alone watching the sunrise.

10. "May Love defend thee from Oblivion's curse." The word "Oblivion" means:

A. Fame

B. Forgetfulness

C. Happiness

D. Success

Answer: B. Forgetfulness

Explanation: Oblivion denotes the state of being completely forgotten or lost to time and memory.

11. Which one is true about the Kokila?

A. It sings only at night

B. It welcomes the dawn with its song

C. It builds its nest on the ground

D. It frightens the other birds

Answer: B. It welcomes the dawn with its song

Explanation: As stated in line 18: 'And far and near kokilas hail the day'.

12. "Spectral" means:

A. Colourful

B. Ghostly

C. Bright

D. Warm

Answer: B. Ghostly

Explanation: Spectral pertains to a specter or phantom, meaning ghostly, unearthly, or shadow-like.

13. Which is true?

   1. The poet hears the tree's lament and feels a deep emotional connection

   2. Nature hides her memories.

   3. Poetry detaches memories of childhood

   4. The poet limited in her thoughts when she lives in a foreign land

A. 1 and 2

B. 1 Only

C. Only

D. 1 and 3

Answer: B. 1 Only

Explanation: Statement 1 is strictly true; the poet clearly hears the tree's lament across oceans in France and Italy and shares a soul-deep emotional connection with it.

14. Why does the poet hear a "lament" in the tree?

A. Because the tree is dying.

B. Because its sound reminds her of grief and memories.

C. Because birds are crying loudly.

D. Because of a storm.

Answer: B. Because its sound reminds her of grief and memories.

Explanation: The whispering wind through the branches evokes an eerie, dirge-like lament that resonates with her internal grief for her deceased brother and sister.

15. The creeper symbolizes:

A. Destruction

B. Strong attachment

C. Poverty

D. Fear

Answer: B. Strong attachment

Explanation: The creeper winds round and round in tight, passionate embraces like a scarf, embodying deep, clinging, affectionate attachment.

16. "Crest" refers to the:

A. Root

B. Highest point

C. Trunk

D. Flower

Answer: B. Highest point

Explanation: 'Crest' signifies the top or summit of the tree where the baboon sits.

17. The Casuarina tree stands beside a __________

A. river

B. lake

C. tank

D. canal

Answer: C. tank

Explanation: The poem explicitly mentions the shadow cast 'on the broad tank'.

18. The expression "Oblivion's curse" is an example of:

A. Personification

B. Simile

C. Pun

D. Alliteration

Answer: A. Personification

Explanation: Oblivion is personified as an active, hostile entity having the power to cast a curse.

19. What is the effect of the giant creeper winding around the tree?

A. It makes the tree appear weak.

B. It makes the tree resemble a giant wearing a python.

C. It damages the tree completely.

D. It hides the tree from view.

Answer: B. It makes the tree resemble a giant wearing a python.

Explanation: The opening lines illustrate: 'Like a huge Python, winding round and round... But gallantly / The giant wears the scarf'.

20. Why does the poet mention Borrowdale?

A. To compare it with her homeland in India.

B. To describe a historical event.

C. To narrate her journey to England.

D. To discuss British culture.

Answer: A. To compare it with her homeland in India.

Explanation: Toru Dutt invokes Wordsworth's 'Yew-trees of Borrowdale' to place her beloved native Indian Casuarina tree among the deathless, immortal trees of world literature.