NCERT Solutions for Class 8 English Honeydew Chapter 5 The Summit Within | The School Boy

Standing on Everest, the writer was

• overjoyed

• very sad

• jubilant and sad

The emotion that gripped him was one of 

• victory over hurdles.

• humility and a sense of smallness.

• greatness and self importance.

• joy of discovery.

“The summit of the mind” refers to,

Mark the item (yes) not relevant.

• great intellectual achievements.

• the process of maturing mentally and spiritually.

• overcoming personal ambition for common welfare.

• living in the world of thought and imagination.

• living in the world of thought and imagination.

• a fuller knowledge of oneself

What are the three qualities that played a major role in the author’s climb?

Why is the adventure, which is risky, also pleasurable?

What was it about Mount Everest that the author found irresistible?

One does not do it (climb a high peak) for fame alone. What does one do it for, really?

“He becomes conscious in a special manner of his own smallness in this large universe.” This awareness defines an emotion mentioned in the first paragraph. Which is the emotion?

What were the “symbols of reverence” left by members of the team on Everest?

What, according to the writer, did his experience as an Everester teach him?

Write a sentence against each of the following statements. Your sentence should explain the statement. You can pick out sentences from the text and rewrite them. The first one has been done for you.

(i) The experience changes you completely.
One who has been to the mountains is never the same again.

(ii) Man takes delight in overcoming obstacles. _________________________________________

(iii) Mountains are nature at its best. _________________________________________

(iv) The going was difficult but the after-effects were satisfying. _________________________________________

(v) The physical conquest of a mountain is really a spiritual experience. ____________________________

Look at the italicised phrases and their meanings given in brackets.

Mountains are nature (nature’s best form and appearance) at its best. Your life is at risk. (in danger; you run the risk of losing your life.)

He was at his (it was his best/worst performance.) best/worst in the last meeting.

Fill in the blanks in the following dialogues choosing suitable phrases from those given in the box.

Write the noun forms of the following words adding -ance or -ence to each.

(i) endure ________________
(ii) persist ________________
(iii) signify ________________
(iv) confide ________________
(v) maintain ________________
(vi) abhor ________________

Match words under A with their meanings under B.

Fill in the blanks in the sentences below with appropriate words from Box.

Find three or four words/phrases in stanza 1 that reflect the child's happiness and joy.

In stanza 2, the mood changes. Which words/phrases reflect the changed mood?

'A cruel eye outworn' (Stanza 2), refers to

Mark the answer that you consider right.

• the classroom which is shabby/noisy.

• the lessons which are difficult/uninteresting.

• the dull/uninspiring life at school with lots of work and no play.

‘Nor sit in learning’s bower worn thro’ with the dreary shower’ Which of the following is a close paraphrase of the lines above?

(i) Nor can I sit in a roofless classroom when it is raining.
(ii) Nor can I learn anything at school though teachers go on lecturing and explaining.
(iii) Nor can I sit in the school garden for fear of getting wet in the rain.