On Libraries Exercise
Oliver Sacks Essay, On Libraries Exercise: Questions Answers Solution note for Class 12 English.
Understanding the Text.
Answer the following questions.
a. Where could the author be found when he was late for lunch or dinner?
Answer➡ The author could be found in the library, completely absorbed by a book when he was late for lunch or dinner.
b. What are his first memories?
Answer➡ When author was a child, he was introduced to books and library since his parents were fond of books, specially his mother. So, we can say that books and libraries are the first memories of the author.
c. Why did he dislike school?
Answer➡ The author didn’t like school because he had to listen to the teachers passively obeying their instructions. The author liked to learn himself in libraries being free to choose books of his own choice.
d.What did he feel about at the library?
Answer➡ Author felt free to read his choice and enjoyed that moment with other readers like him in the same quest at the library.
e. Why was he so biased about sciences especially astronomy and chemistry?
Answer➡ He was so biased about sciences especially astronomy and chemistry because of his growing interest in science.
f. Why did he become so fascinated by Hook?
Answer➡ The writer became so fascinated by Theodore Hook because he was greatly admired in the 19th century for his wit and his genius for theatrical and musical improvisation. He was said to have composed more than 500 operas on the spot.
g. Describe library at the Queen’s College.
Answer➡ The Queen’s College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. It has the magnificent building designed in a form of palace by Christopher Wren, who was a great architect. Beneath the college, there were underground large rooms which was the library. There were number of book shelves. There were heating pipes attached to the walls and corners. The design of the library was classical. The books of original prints and editions from Gesner to Darwin were available.
h. Why did the students ignore the bookshelves in the 1990s?
Answer➡ Along with the rise of internet and computers, students could access the books with the help of computers. As a result, they ignored the bookshelves in the 1990s.
i. Why was he horrified when he visited the library a couple of months ago?
Answer➡ He was horrified when he visited the library a couple of months ago because various books of the library were thrown out of the shelves. The books of libraries were gone one by one because of the presence of digital books so he was very sad as well as horrified.
Reference to the context.
a. The author says, "I was not a good pupil, but I was a good listener." Justify it with the textual evidences.
Answer➡
The author says, “I was not a good pupil, but I was a good listener." In the text, we find the author's dislike towards his school or sitting in class, receiving instruction and information from the teachers. For him, teachers' instructions in the class seemed to go in his one ear and out by the other. He was not a good pupil in the sense that he didn't pay attention to the information conveyed by his teachers but he listened without making noise so he was a good listener. To be active, he tried his best to read different books at libraries. At the library, he felt free to look at the thousands of books. He got the opportunity to roam and to enjoy the free and special atmosphere. He also got a company of other readers like him on missions of their own.
b. A proverb says, "Nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library." Does this proverb apply in the essay? Explain.
Answer➡
The proverb “Nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library” is suitable for the essay. In this essay the essayist has dealt about the significance of exploring the library. When he was a child, his favorite room was the the library of his house. Books and his library are among his first memories. Nothing gave much satisfaction than reading the books in the library for the essayist. He disliked school. He didn’t like sitting in the classroom, receiving instruction and information from the teachers and obeying them. He gave a deaf ear to learning in the classroom. He enjoyed the environment of the libraries and companionship with other readers in the library. He talked about the charms of reading books in the library. Thus, the proverb 'nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library, applies in the essay.
c. Are there any other services that you would like to see added to the library?
Answer➡
When we hear the term “Library”, an image that comes to our mind is a room filled with several stocks of bookshelves and book lovers reading there. In the past, the shelves were full of paper-based books. I would like to see libraries offering an abundance of additional services which we can enjoy. I like to have access to audiobooks, Ebooks, large print and braille materials, CDs, DVDs, Internet access, community clubs, manuscripts and so on. They could provide access to reading to different readers. Even blind people can read books in a library if they provide braille materials. Internet users can read EBooks there.
Reference beyond the Context.
a. Write an essay on Libraries and its uses for students.
Answer➡
Libraries and its uses
A library is a place where books and sources of information are stored. They make it easier for people to get access to them for various purposes. Libraries are very helpful and economical too. They include books, magazines, newspapers, DVDs, manuscripts and more. In other words, they are an all-encompassing source of information. A public library is open to everyone for fulfilling the need for information. They are run by the government, schools, colleges, and universities. The members of the society or community can visit these libraries to enhance their knowledge and complete their research.
Libraries play a vital role in providing people with reliable content. They encourage and promote the process of learning and grasping knowledge. The book worms can get loads of books to read from and enhance their knowledge. Moreover, the variety is so wide-ranging that one mostly gets what they are looking for. Furthermore, they help the people to get their hands on great educational material which they might not find otherwise in the market. When we read more, our social skills and academic performance improves. Most importantly, libraries are a great platform for making progress. When we get homework in class, the libraries help us with the reference material. This, in turn, progresses our learning capabilities and knowledge. It is also helpful in our overall development.
b. Do you have any public library in your locality? If so, do the people in your community use it? Give a couple of examples.
Answer➡
Yes, we have a public library in our locality. It's called Community Library for All. People in my community are interested in reading. Most people in my community are educated. They prefer to pass their leisure time in the community library. The library of our community was established 10 years ago with the help of community people. In the present time, there is a fine facility for all. There are more than twenty thousand books including all the essential materials needed for a fine library. People of all ages visit our library each day. The building of our library has five different rooms. Among five rooms, four rooms are occupied for reading purposes whereas one is for administrative purposes. All these rooms are quite huge. There are altogether five different sections in the building. Apart from the administrative section, there are four different sections as Daily Newspaper section, the Books Section, the E-library section, Student's section.
Yes, people in my community use our library. Most people, especially youths and elderly people visit this library every single day to read daily newspapers. The Daily Newspaper section seems to be packed every day. Most people enjoy reading newspapers in the silent environment of the library. Those who have knowledge of the internet try their best to achieve knowledge through the use of computers.
Next, most students are seen in our library. Due to E-library, students enjoy spending their time in the library. Most students spend their time doing their school assignments in the library. They have very good knowledge of the internet and computer so they handle the computers for their research-based project works. Students feel so happy to have high-speed internet access.
This library has provided fine facilities to all the people of our community. The management committee of the library has recently announced to add more facilities for all the readers. Our library is still running on donations. We get donations from community people as well as other institutions. This library has aroused people's interest in reading.
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