Hi Everyone!! This article will share A Ballad of Sir Pertab Singh Questions & Answers.
This poem is written by Sir Henry Newbolt. In my previous posts, I have shared the questions and answers of Some Glimpses of Ancient Indian Thoughts and Practices, A Gift For Christmas and Death The Leveller so, you can check these posts as well.
A Ballad of Sir Pertab Singh Questions & Answers
Question 1: Choose the correct option:
1. Who was Sir Pertab Singh?
(a) King of Jodhpore
(b) King of lodhipur
(c) King of Udaipur
(d) King of Jaipur
2. Sir Pertab Singh lived in _____ House.
(a) Red-rose
(b) Black-rose
(c) Rose-red
(d) Rose-blood
3. Sir Pertab Singh’s friend was _______ soldier.
(a) an Indian
(b) a Chinese
(c) an English
(d) a Pakistani
4. The Rose-red House was located in ________.
(a) Jaipur
(b) Jodhpore
(c) Mewar
(d) Delhi
5. The poem attacks the__________.
(a) economic status
(b) social Justice
(c) tyranny of the caste system
(d) love of two good friends
6. The Maharaja believed in the__________.
(a) brotherhood of soldiers
(b) casteism
(c) social differences
(d) none
7. What does ‘narrow chest’ mean in the poem.
(a) cover
(b) lid
(c) coffin
(d) a deathly silence
8. The English Men requested the King to send__________.
(a) a soldier
(b) a sweeper
(c) a brahmin
(d) any man
9. The poem asserts that a man’s caste is determined by__________.
(a) his birth
(b) his actions
(c) his society
(d) his good friends
10. Who comes forward to carry the dead?
(a) Partap Singh
(b) Brahmin
(c) Sweeper
(d) Pertab Singh
11. Whose bier was it?
(a) A king
(b) A lower caste man
(c) An English soldier
(d) A common man
12. Who said that Pertab Singh had lost his caste?
(a) All people
(b) The soldiers
(c) The Brahmins
(d) English Men
13. Write True or False:
According to the priests, Pertab Singh lost his caste forever – True
Question 2: Write the summary of the poem ‘A Ballad of Sir Pertab Singh’.
Answer: The poem highlights the futility of caste system. It is about Sir Pertab Singh, who was the king of Jodhpore. He meets an English soldier who visited his palace during the first year of his rule. Both of them become very good friends. They ride together and exchange tales of love, war and soldiers. But one day, the English soldier suddenly dies. There are only three men around who belong to the caste and creed of the dead English soldier. But to carry the bier, four men were needed. Sir Pertab Singh gives his shoulder to the bier ignoring the warnings of the priests that he would lose his caste by doing so. The next day, the priest and the Brahmins approach Pertab Singh and tell him that he had lost his caste by his act. Sir Pertab Singh admonishes them telling them that the caste of humanity and nobility is far above all other man made castes.
A Ballad of Sir Pertab Singh Questions & Answers
Question 3: What is the central idea of the poem ‘A Ballad of Sir Pertab Singh’?
Answer: The poem highlights the folly of the caste system. It condemns the brutality of the caste system in Hindu society. It establishes the noble concept of humanism and shatters the myth of superiority associated with the so-called high castes. It emphasizes that it is the person’s actions and not his birth that determines his caste. The poem says that through a common bond of bravery and brotherhood, a true soldier is connected to all soldiers of the world.
Question 4: Who was Sir Pertab Singh?
Answer: Sir Pertab Singh was the king of Jodhpore. He was a noble king who did not believe in caste system. He considered the caste of humanity and nobility far above all other man made castes. He was a true friend as well.
Question 5: Why did he immediately like the English soldier?
Answer: Sir Pertab Singh immediately liked the English soldier because he looked every inch a soldier. Pertab Singh himself was a true soldier. Both of them shared common feelings and interests. Moreover, for Pertab Singh caste of a soldier was the only true caste.
Question 6: How did the two comrades spend their days?
Answer: The two comrades spent their days riding in the morning and in the evening. They would exchange stories of love, war and soldiers. Thus, they spent their days happily.
Question 7: Why was Pertab Singh asked to send a sweeper when the English soldier died?
Answer: As per the custom, it was believed that if a person belonging to a higher caste carried the bier of someone belonging to another caste, he would lose his caste. There were only three men around who belonged to the caste of the dead English soldier. But to carry the bier, four men were needed. Pertab Singh was asked to send a so-called low-caste sweeper because it was believed that a sweeper had no risk of losing his caste.
Question 8: What was the problem that arose when the Englishman died?
Answer: When the English soldier died, there were only three men around who belonged to his caste and creed. As per the custom, only people belonging to the same caste as the deceased, could carry the bier. The problem that arose was to find the fourth person who could give shoulder to the bier.
Question 9: What according to the priests, had Pertab Singh lost? Why?
Answer: According to the priests, Pertab Singh had lost his precious caste because he had carried the bier of a person belonging to a different caste without paying any heed to the warning of priests.
Question 10: What is the friendship of Sir Pertab Singh and the Englishman compared with?
Answer: Sir Pertab Singh and the Englishman got along so well that the sparks of their friendship flew. Their rapport is compared with the fire produced when steel strikes steel.
So, these were A Ballad of Sir Pertab Singh Questions & Answers.