THE INDIAN COMMENTATOR

For any student of the tenth standard, the skill to write independently matters a lot.  In many cases, this skill weighs more importantly upon the tenth standard student than the student of any other class, which includes students doing their higher education, up to Post Graduation. The second more important occasion that turns up demanding more from the student in terms of one’s writing skill is Post Graduation. The graduation and the earlier phase, the higher secondary, are just building stages where the student must build one’s skill to write like a breeze the idea that rises to the brim of his or her conscious mind. The tenth standard is crucial because it is the gateway to higher education, in all disciplines.  The term story means any write-up. It could mean an article or an essay. It could also mean the classic definition- a piece of creative writing, in a short length, a fictional story or a non-fiction story. "Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man, and wr...

  ബിരുദാനന്തര ബിരുദ മേഴ്സി ചാൻസ് പരീക്ഷകൾ 19.04.2021 മുതൽ നടത്താനിരുന്ന 2013 ഉം അതിന് മുൻപുമുള്ള അഡ്മിഷൻ ബിരുദാനനര ബിരുദ (സപ്ലിമെന്ററി - മേഴ്സി ചാൻസ്) പരീക്ഷകൾ 15.06.2021 മുതൽ സർവകലാശാലയുടെ താവക്കര ക്യാംപസിൽ വച്ച് നടത്തും. പ്രൊജക്റ്റ് മൂല്യനിർണയം / വാചാ പരീക്ഷ ആറാം സെമസ്റ്റർ ബി. എ. സംസ്കൃതം പ്രൊജക്റ്റ് മൂല്യനിർണയം / വാചാ പരീക്ഷ 08.06.2021 ന് ഓൺലൈനായി നടക്കും. രജിസ്റ്റർ ചെയ്ത വിദ്യാർഥികൾ പരീക്ഷാകേന്ദ്രവുമായി ബന്ധപ്പെടുക. for more details:  https://www.kannuruniversity.ac.in/en/

ERI by Pradeepan Pampirikkunnu  Readings on Kerala Readings on Kerala (1A02ENG) I Semester UG Common Course Comprehension Questions: Who is Eri? Eri, the character represents the historically downtrodden people in the Parayan community in Kerala. Eri has an inter-caste identity. He is born to a Parayan father and a Malayan mother.  Who is the narrator of the novel? The narrator of the story is a research scholar who belongs to the Malaya caste.  Why is the character Eri important for the narrator?  The recovery of the history of Eri is important to the narrator because he was impressed as a subaltern linguist by the legend of Eri. The narrator had heard stories of Eri from his father.  How did Eri help Raman to find his way home? Eri applied a medicine from his duppi in his kurya to Raman’s eyes and he was able to see in the dark.  Did Rama Panikar have a good collection of books in his home library as he claimed? Why?   Rama Panikar had claimed t...

Curing Caste by Sahodaran Ayyappan_ Comprehension Questions Readings on Kerala Readings on Kerala (1A02ENG) I Semester UG Common Course   Comprehension Questions: What, according to the author, are the two types of cures for the caste disease? Sahodaran Ayyappan suggests two cures for the caste disease: one is applied from the outside and the other is from the inside.  Why are external ointments not effective for the caste disease?  The cures that are only applied externally leave the real causes of the caste problem unsolved. External ointments or solutions applied outside are short-lived.  What are the symptoms of caste disease according to sages?  According to sages, hate, gossip, and nationalist rhetoric are symptoms of inwardly drawn caste disease. These symptoms exist dormant in the collective psyche of society.  Explain the phrase “hate rhetoric”.  Hate rhetoric is hate speech. Individuals who nurture caste- bias are prone to become successful a...

  Definition: Syllable Structure Based on the number of syllables in a word, they can be divided into monosyllabic, disyllabic, and trisyllabic words, etc.  Word Stress A very important feature of spoken English. If a word has more than one syllable, all the syllables are not equally prominent, one of the syllables is more prominent than the others. That syllable is said to receive stress.  

  Sesquipedalian words in the English language are often difficult to pronounce neutrally, without the influence of the mother tongue. This is the real challenge, to make one’s speech of presentation attractive, long words and sentences are to be used in speech. This usage of long English words become efficient with proper neutrality in one’s accent. This can be achieved by practice. An easy way is to listen to the pronunciation of these words spoken by others with either a native English accent, especially a BBC or Oxford accent, or a neutral accent by someone who is well versed in English as a second language. The latter would be your surest path to achieving a neutral accent in the conditions you face in India, where English is a second language. The following are the symbols used as the phonetic alphabet of the English language. These are known as the International Phonetic Alphabet. The reason why the English language has a phonetic alphabet and another alphabet for writing pu...

The two primordial urges of man are to hunt for food and to show himself or herself to attract mates. These two urges are used by the modern man to find success and win elected contests in the new world. It is Sigmund Freud might say, a drive substantiates all our efforts to shine brighter than others in our field of activity. It could be the proverbial “pleasure principle”. It could also be the drive to influence others (mates, in the primordial context).  If you are a regular visitor to my blog, you must have come across my previous article. In the article, I discuss the vocabulary and pronunciation of the English language. The discussion stems from a question: Which is the best way to develop vocabulary? The answer was that it is important not just to build a vocabulary or to learn the meaning of new words, but also to learn how to pronounce these new words. In this article, we will discuss how to master your spoken English language skills.  The spoken language requires an ...

  Floccinaucinihilipilification means “the action or habit of estimating something as worthless”, according to the Oxford Dictionary. Turning a page in a dictionary might usually get you the meaning of the desired word. This is even easier in the digital environment where you just type a word and search or speak a word and search.  Meaning of the semantic identity of a word is essential in grasping the particular identity of the lexical item. To retain a word in memory, it is always good to learn the meaning in different contexts. Note the plural “contexts”. Just by referring to a dictionary, one may not be able to retain the word in memory. The memory of human beings works best when remembering narratives. This is especially true, as I had personally experienced when we prepare for examinations. However, in life so demanding, where good communication skill is essentially the quality of language we articulate, would a basket full of words suffice to our success? The answer to ...

  Seagull= a popular name for a gull. Gull= a long-winged web-footed seabird with a raucous call, typically having white plumage with a grey or black mantle. Plumage=a bird's feathers collectively. Ledge: a narrow horizontal surface projecting from a wall, cliff, or other surface. Flap= (of a bird) move (its wings) up and down when flying or preparing to fly. plateau (N)- an area of flat land that is higher than the land around it. scold (v)- to speak angrily to somebody, especially a child, because they have done something wrong ascending (adj) - increasing in size or importance. gnaw (v)- bite at or nibble something persistently.  persistently (adv)- continuously trot (v) : run at a moderate pace daintily(adverb): in a careful way that suggests good manners Means (N): a way of achieving or doing something precipice (n) : very steep rock face/cliff  beneath (Preposition): under somebody / something Brink (N): the extreme edge of land Doze (V): ​to sleep lightly for a...

    Answer the following questions: Why was the young seagull afraid to fly? The seagull was afraid to fly because below him was the vast sea and he thought his wings would never support him and he would fall into the sea and die. What did the parents do to motivate the young bird when it failed to muster up enough courage to fly? They came around calling to him in a loud voice, scolding him, threatening to let him starve on his ledge unless he flew away.  3. How did the parents support and encourage the young seagull’s brothers and sister? They flew about with them, trying to perfect them in the art of flight. They taught them how to skim the waves and how to dive for fish. When his older brother caught his first herring and devoured it, his parents circled around raising a proud cackle. 4. Cite an instance which shows the pathetic condition of the young bird. When the sun was shining hot, the young bird felt the heat all the more because he had not eaten anything since ...