NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English First Flight

Mijbil and Otter

Updated For 2024-2025
Exams

 

1. What things does Mij do which tell you that he is an
intelligent, friendly and fun-loving animal who needs love?

• Mij shows intelligence by learning
  how to turn the taps in the bathroom and play with various objects such as
  a rubber ball, ping-pong balls, and marbles. He even invented his own
  games, like running to ambush the ball after rolling it down a suitcase.
• Mij shows friendliness by nuzzling
  Maxwell’s face and neck in the airplane and by following Maxwell without a
  lead.
• His fun-loving nature is evident
  in his playfulness in the water, where he plunges and rolls, splashing the
  water all around.
• Mij’s need for love is seen in how
  he comes to sleep on Maxwell’s bed and his affectionate actions like
  nuzzling.

2. What are some of the things we come to know about
otters from this text?

• Otters love water and enjoy
  playing in it, as demonstrated by Mij’s joy in the bathtub.
• They are playful creatures,
  engaging with objects like balls and marbles in creative ways.
• Otters are intelligent and curious,
  seen in Mij’s ability to manipulate taps and his inventiveness in games.
• Otters can develop strong bonds
  with humans, as Mij did with Maxwell, showing affection and loyalty.

3. Why is Mij’s species now known to the world as
Maxwell’s otter?

• Mij belonged to a previously
  unknown species of otter. Zoologists recognized this and named the species
  Lutrogale perspicillata maxwelli, or “Maxwell’s otter,”
  after Gavin Maxwell, the writer who discovered and cared for Mij.

Completing the Table:

What Mij Does	How Mij Feels or Thinks
Plunges, rolls in the water and makes the water splosh and splash	Mij feels joyous and excited, as otters naturally love water and enjoy splashing it around.
Screws the tap in the wrong way	Mij feels curious and determined, trying to figure out how things work but gets frustrated when it doesn’t go his way.
Nuzzles Maxwell’s face and neck in the airplane	Mij feels affectionate and seeks comfort, showing his bond and love for Maxwell.

5. Maxwell’s Description of Mij:

(i) Makes
Mij seem almost human, like a small boy:

• “He spent hours shuffling a rubber
  ball round the room like a four-footed soccer player.”

(ii) Shows
that he is often irritated with what Mij does:

• “He would sometimes screw it up
  still tighter, chittering with irritation and disappointment at the tap’s
  failure to cooperate.”

(iii) Shows
that he is often surprised by what Mij does:

• “I was amazed; in less than a
  minute he had turned the tap far enough to produce a trickle of water.”

(iv) Of
Mij’s antics is comical:

• “Mij discovered that if he placed
  the ball on the high end it would run down the length of the suitcase, and
  he would dash around to ambush its arrival.”

(v) Shows
that he observes the antics of Mij very carefully:

• “He would lie on his back rolling
  two or more marbles up and down his wide, flat belly without ever dropping
  one to the floor.”

(vi) Shows
that he thinks Mij is a very ordinary otter:

• This statement is not supported as
  Maxwell seems to view Mij as quite unique.

(vii) Shows
that he thinks the otter is very unusual:

• “Mijbil, as I called the otter,
  was, in fact, of a race previously unknown to science.”

 

I. Describing a Repeated Action in the
Past

To talk about
something that happened regularly in the past, but does not happen any longer,
we use would or used to. Both would and used to can
describe repeated actions in the past.

For example:

• (a) Mij would follow me
  without a lead and come to me when I called his name.
• (b) He would play for hours
  with a selection of toys.
• (c) On his way home, Mij would
  tug me to this wall.
• (d) When I was five years old, I used
  to follow my brother all over the place.
• (e) He used to tease me
  when Mother was not around.

Important Rule:

To describe
repeated states or situations in the past, we only use used to.
We cannot use would for states or situations. For example:

• (a) When we were young, we used
  to believe there were ghosts in school.
• (Here, believe shows a
  state of mind.)
• (b) Thirty years ago, more women used
  to be housewives than now.
• (Be here describes a
  situation.)

Exercise:

From the table
below, make as many correct sentences as you can using would and/or used
to, as appropriate.

Action or State	Verb
Emperor Akbar	be fond of musical evenings.
Every evening	would take long walks on the beach.
Fifty years ago, very few people	used to own cars.
Till the 1980s, Shanghai	used to have very dirty streets.
My uncle	would spend his holidays by the sea.

Add two or
three sentences of your own to this exercise. Here’s an example:

• I used to visit my
  grandparents every summer.
• She would always help me
  with my homework.

II. Noun Modifiers

To describe or
give more information about a noun (or to modify a noun), we use adjectives or
adjectival phrases.

Here are some
examples from the text:

• (a) An eminently suitable spot
• (b) His wide, flat belly
• (c) Symmetrical pointed scales
• (d) A ricocheting bullet

Nouns can also
be used as modifiers. Here are some examples:

• (a) The dinner party
• (b) A designer dress
• (c) The car keys

Exercise:

We can use more
than one noun as a modifier. Proper nouns can also be used. Here are some
examples:

• (a) The Christmas dinner party
• (b) A silk designer dress
• (c) The Maruti car keys

In the examples
below, there is an adjectival phrase in front of a noun modifier:

• (a) The lovely Christmas party
• (b) A trendy silk designer
  dress
• (c) The frightfully expensive
  golden Maruti car keys

III. Matching Noun Modifiers:

1. An otter fixation – Noun
2. The iron railings – Noun
3. The Tigris marshes – Proper noun
4. The London streets – Proper noun
5. Soft velvet fur – Adjective plus noun
6. A four-footed soccer player – Noun plus noun

Exercise:

Given below are
some nouns and a set of modifiers. Combine the nouns and modifiers to make
appropriate phrases.

Nouns	Modifiers
temple	rough
dresses	invigorous
gifts	first
landscape	panoramic
family	ordinary
flight	tremendous

You can make
combinations like:

• Rough landscape
• Panoramic view
• First gifts

III. Read this sentence:

“He shook
himself, and I half expected a cloud of dust.”

The author uses
“a cloud of dust” to give a picture of a large quantity of
dust. Phrases like this indicate a particular quantity of something that is not
usually countable.

For example:

• A bit of land
• A drop of blood
• A pinch of salt
• A piece of paper

Exercise 1:

Match the words
on the left with a word on the right. Some words on the left can go with more
than one word on the right.

Left Column	Right Column
a portion of	fried fish
a pool of	water
flakes of	snow
a huge heap of	stones
a gust of	wind
little drops of	blood
a piece of	cotton
a pot of	gold

Exercise 2:

Use a bit of,
a piece of, a bunch of, a cloud of, or a lump of
with the italicized nouns in the following sentences. The first has been done
for you as an example.

1. My teacher gave me some advice.
• My teacher gave me a bit of
  advice.
2. Can you give me some clay, please?
• Can you give me a lump of clay,
  please?
3. The information you gave was very
   useful.
• The information you gave was a
  piece of information.
4. Because of these factories, smoke
   hangs over the city.
• Because of these factories, a
  cloud of smoke hangs over the city.
5. Two stones rubbed together can
   produce sparks of fire.
• Two stones rubbed together can
  produce a bunch of sparks.
6. He gave me some flowers on my
   birthday.
• He gave me a bunch of flowers
  on my birthday.

IV. Writing Exercise

You have seen
how Maxwell describes Mij the otter’s feelings and thoughts by watching him.
Play the game of dumb charades: take turns to express a feeling or
thought silently, through gestures. Let your classmates guess the feelings or
thoughts you are trying to express.

Now, write a
description of a person or an animal (such as a pet) that you know very well
and love very much. Refer to Questions 4 and 5 in ‘Thinking about the
Text’ to guide your writing. Mention some things the person or animal does and
what you think they feel.

WHAT WE HAVE DONE

We have
narrated a story about an interesting and unusual pet.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

1. The events narrated in this text
   took place over half a century ago. Discuss with your class what changes
   have taken place over these years in:
• (i) What animals we can keep as
  pets (some species are protected under laws for wildlife preservation).
• (ii) The laws for exporting,
  importing, or trading animals.
• (iii) Rules for transporting
  goods, pets, etc., on aircraft.
2. Research examples of unusual pets
   or wild animals trained to work for or amuse humans (e.g., dancing bears,
   lions and tigers in circuses, elephants trained to work or take part in
   ceremonies). Discuss the ethics of keeping wild animals as pets:
• What difficulties might this
  entail?
• What do animals miss most when
  taken away from their natural habitat?
• Do you think it’s ‘cute’ to see
  Mij the otter on a leash?
• Look at the situation from all
  points of view.