Std 8 English chapters › Unit 3 · Question Answers ↓ · Take the lesson test ↓
In short: This review of A. J. Cronin's story tells how two young brothers secretly do many small jobs to pay for their sister's treatment for tuberculosis, and praises their noble spirit.
(ए. जे. क्रोनिन यांच्या कथेचे हे परीक्षण आहे. दोन लहान भाऊ आपल्या बहिणीच्या क्षयरोगाच्या उपचारासाठी गुपचूप अनेक छोटी कामे कशी करतात, हे सांगून त्यांच्या उदात्त वृत्तीचे कौतुक त्यात केले आहे.)
- Type: Book review
- Review of A. J. Cronin's story; characters: Nicola and Jacopo, and the narrator
- Unit: 3
Summary in English
The narrator, driving through the foothills of the Alps, meets two boys, Nicola and Jacopo, selling wild strawberries. Though his driver objects, he buys the biggest basket. Next day he finds them shining shoes in the town square, and later selling newspapers on a stormy night. They do all kinds of jobs and are serious, pleasant and earnest.
When the narrator offers help, they ask for a lift to the village of Poleta. They go into a building and ask him to wait. Curious, he follows them and finds that it is a hospital, where they are talking to a girl who looks like them.
The nurse tells him their story: their father was killed in the war, their home destroyed, and their sister is suffering from tuberculosis of the spine. The boys live in a shelter and almost starve so that they can pay for her treatment, and they keep it a secret. The reviewer calls them noble, gentle, great human beings and ends with the saying 'Where there is a will, there is a way.'
मराठीत सारांश (Summary in Marathi)
आल्प्स पर्वताच्या पायथ्याशी गाडीने जाताना निवेदकाला निकोला आणि जॅकोपो हे दोन मुलगे रानटी स्ट्रॉबेरी विकताना भेटतात. ड्रायव्हरने विरोध केला तरी तो सर्वात मोठी टोपली विकत घेतो. दुसऱ्या दिवशी ते त्याला चौकात बूट पॉलिश करताना आणि नंतर वादळी रात्री वर्तमानपत्रे विकताना दिसतात. ते सर्व प्रकारची कामे करतात आणि गंभीर, प्रसन्न आणि प्रामाणिक आहेत.
निवेदक मदत करू इच्छितो, तेव्हा ते पोलेटा गावापर्यंत लिफ्ट मागतात. ते एका इमारतीत जातात आणि त्याला थांबायला सांगतात. उत्सुकतेने तो त्यांच्या मागे जातो, तेव्हा ते रुग्णालय असल्याचे त्याला कळते; तिथे ते त्यांच्यासारख्याच दिसणाऱ्या एका मुलीशी बोलत असतात.
परिचारिका त्याला त्यांची कहाणी सांगते: त्यांचे वडील युद्धात मारले गेले, घर उद्ध्वस्त झाले आणि त्यांच्या बहिणीला मणक्याचा क्षयरोग झाला आहे. बहिणीच्या उपचारासाठी पैसे भरता यावेत म्हणून मुले एका आश्रयस्थानात राहतात, जवळजवळ उपाशी राहतात आणि हे गुपित ठेवतात. परीक्षणकार त्यांना उदात्त, सौम्य आणि थोर माणसे म्हणतो आणि 'इच्छा तेथे मार्ग' या म्हणीने शेवट करतो.
Theme and Message (मध्यवर्ती कल्पना)
Selfless love and determination can overcome great hardship: where there is a will, there is a way.
निःस्वार्थ प्रेम आणि दृढनिश्चय मोठ्या संकटांवरही मात करू शकतात: इच्छा तेथे मार्ग.
Useful Words (शब्दार्थ)
| Word | मराठी अर्थ | Use it in a sentence |
|---|---|---|
| encounter | अनपेक्षित भेट | I had a strange encounter on the train. |
| forbid | मनाई करणे | My parents forbid me to swim alone. |
| earnest | प्रामाणिक, मनापासून | He made an earnest effort to improve. |
| resemble | सारखे दिसणे | She resembles her mother. |
| intrude | (परवानगीशिवाय) मध्ये येणे | Please do not intrude on their privacy. |
| heart-rending | हृदयद्रावक | It was a heart-rending story. |
For the Exam (परीक्षेसाठी)
- A book review includes: title, writer, setting, main characters, central idea, style, strong points, drawbacks and conclusion. Practise writing one.
- Language study: main and subordinate clauses and subordinators (when, although, who, that).
3.4 The Two Gentlemen of Verona: English Workshop Question Answers
Every English Workshop activity for this lesson, plus Word Play, as games. Score points, earn stars and challenge a friend on WhatsApp! (खेळा, गुण मिळवा आणि मित्रांना आव्हान द्या!)
🎬 Put the story in order
Nicola and Jacopo
- The narrator buys wild strawberries from two boys.
- Next day he sees them shining shoes in the square.
- He finds them selling newspapers on a stormy night.
- The boys ask for a lift to the village of Poleta.
- He follows them to a hospital.
- The nurse tells him about their sister's illness.
🤔 Think as you read
Why did the boys do so many odd jobs?
Answer: Their sister had tuberculosis of the spine.
What does ‘Where there is a will, there’s a way’ mean here?
Answer: The boys never gave up, despite war and poverty.
Q1. Complete the sentences
👉 Tap the best ending.
(1) Cronin’s story focuses on ___.
Answer: The brothers sacrifice everything for their sister.
(2) The narrator ___ to encourage the two brothers.
Answer: Even though his driver told him not to.
(3) The narrator likes the brothers because they are ___.
Answer: He develops a soft corner for them.
(4) The boys wish to visit Poleta to ___.
Answer: They kept it a secret.
Q2. Word puzzle
🎯 Tap each clue and its word from the text.
Clue ↔ word
Q3. Answer in your own words
👉 Tap the best answer.
(1) What illness did the sister suffer from?
Answer: She was in hospital at Poleta.
(2) What surprised the narrator the second time he saw them?
Answer: Yesterday they sold fruit; today they polished shoes.
(5) Would the boys have accepted a large amount of cash as charity?
Answer: They worked hard and kept their troubles secret; they had self-respect.
(3) and (4) answers
(3) At the hospital he found that the boys visited their sister, who looked just like them.
(4) The nurse told him their father was killed in the war, their home was destroyed, and their sister had tuberculosis. The brothers lived in a shelter and nearly starved to pay for her treatment.
Q4. Noun forms
🎯 Tap a word and its noun form.
Word ↔ noun
Language Study: find the subordinator
👉 Tap the joining word (subordinator).
They pay for their sister’s treatment, who suffers from tuberculosis.
Answer: ‘who suffers from tuberculosis’ is the subordinate clause.
When he asks the nurse, she tells him their story.
Answer: Main clause: she tells him their story.
They have shown that war has not shaken their spirit.
Answer: Main clause: They have shown.
Although it doesn’t come in the narrator’s way, he takes them there.
Answer: Main clause: he takes them there.
🔄 Word Play: spoonerisms
🎯 First letters swapped! Tap the funny version and the real one.
Spoonerism ↔ correct
✍️ Acrostic: write one for H-O-M-E, then compare
Happy faces round the table
Open arms when I come in
Mother’s cooking, father’s stories
Every day, my safest place.
Spoonerisms to try: You missed my history lecture → You hissed my mystery lecture. Crushing blow → Blushing crow. Pardon me, madam → Mardon me, padam.
Think and Write (विचार करा, लिहा)
- Would the boys have accepted a large amount of cash from the narrator? Why?
- Write a short review of your favourite story or book.
- Explain the proverb 'Where there is a will, there is a way' with an example.
Online test · 15 questions
3.4 The Two Gentlemen of Verona: Lesson Test
Multiple choice · instant score with answers · certificate for 80% and above · free, no login
शिक्षकांसाठी: धडा शिकवून झाल्यावर ही test वर्गाला पाठवा. प्रत्येक विद्यार्थ्याचे गुण तुम्हाला आपोआप मिळतील.
These are original study notes by englishresources.in to help you revise. Read the lesson in your Balbharati textbook first: these notes do not replace it and do not reproduce its text.