12th English

Passage: Discursive and Factual passage

by DILEEP GAUTAM

 

Discursive and Factual passage

Passage

Discursive Passage

A passage where the writer rambles from topic to topic is called a discursive piece of writing. The adjective discursive is often used to describe a speech or writing that tends to stray from the main point, but the word can also have almost the opposite meaning.

A discursive passage includes argumentative, interpretative and persuasive text. such passages may include opinions or feedback. It allows students to arrive at a conclusion though reasoning and understanding rather than intuition. It presents a balanced and objective approach towards the subject being discussed.

Passages of this kind are analytical. Sometimes the author presents his views with great depth of reasoning or force of argument with the intention of convincing the reader to his point of view. Such texts have great persuasive power.

Discursive writing expresses opinions. It can be argumentative, i.e. may give reasons, explanations, or explore cause and effect relationship. Passages of this kind are analytical.

Sometimes the author presents his views with great depth of reasoning or force of argument with the intention of convincing the reader to his point of view. Such texts have great persuasive power.

 

Read the passage given below.

Sample – 1

  1. Roshni Bairwa remembers running all the way from her home in Tonk’s Mahmoodnagar Dhani village to the room where the ‘bal samooh’ (children’s group) met. “My grandparents are getting me married, you have to do something,” the then 12-year-old told the 20 or so children sitting there.
  2. The children, all aged between eight and 16, trooped up to Roshni’s house and urged her grandparents to stop the impending wedding. Others, including village elders and teachers, joined in. The wedding was stopped. She had discovered a way out of the quagmire with the help of a local NGO and the village children.
  3. When she was in class XII, the pressure to get married returned. This time her uncle found a match for her. When she resisted, she was taunted, and beaten. People would point to her as the girl who brought shame to her family and asked their children not to speak to her. “I was 16 years old and alone in the world. I walked to school with my eyes fixed to the ground. I would think sometimes, what have I done that is so terrible for everyone to hate me so much? to sleep,” recalls Roshni, who lost her father when she was two and had been abandoned by her mother shortly after. But even in those dark moments, Roshni didn’t give up, moving out of the village to Peeplu tehsil in Rajasthan where she rented a room and attended college.
  4. With education and independence came a sense of confidence. “I kept in touch with the children in the village. Every time there was a child marriage, they would call me and I would go to stop it. I realized I had already been thrown out of the village, the worst had already happened, what else could the villagers do? So I went and fought with everyone who was getting their child married,” she says with a laugh. So far she has stopped over a dozen marriages.
  5. Even without the support of the law, young girls have been crusading against the practice. Earlier this month, 19-year-old Sushila Bishnoi from Barmer succeeded in getting her marriage annulled, submitting photographs and congratulatory messages from her husband’s Facebook account to the court. The court accepted these as evidence that the union took place when oth bride and groom were 12 years old, and declared the marriage invalid.
  6. Seema Bairwal (name changed) was 15 when she was married to a man a few years older. Later when she started attending ‘bal samooh’ meetings with NGO Shiv Shiksha Samiti and Save the Children, it dawned on her that she had a choice. “I learnt that my life is mine. I have the power to say no to marriage.
  1. On the basis of your reading of the passage, answer the following questions by choosing the best of the given choices.
    1. The brides mentioned in the passage are rebels against ………………….
      1. the dowry system
      2. child marriage
      3. purdah system
      4. arranged marriages
    2. When Roshni was twelve years old, she succeeded in her mission with the help of

……………….

  1. 20 children aged between eight and sixteen
  2. her grandparents
  3. 20 children, her grandparents, village elders and teachers
  4. children and an NGO
  1. When she was sixteen the people of the village ………
    1. taunted her and beat her up
    2. boycotted her
    3. were angry with her
    4. were sympathetic and understanding
  2. Roshni moved out of the village in order to
    1. seek a job
    2. escape the villagers
    3. attend college
    4. marry a boy of her choice
  3. “Give up’ in para 3 means ………………
    1. stop attending classes
    2. stop doing something
    3. very eager
    4. voluntary help
  4. ‘Annulled in para 5 means …………….
    1. To state officially that something is not legally valid
    2. Help somebody
    3. impending doom
    4. social works
  1. Answer the following.
    1. The children, all aged between eight and 16, trapped to and urged her

grandparents to stop the impending wedding.

  1. Roshni lost her father when she was only years old.
  2. Education and independence made Roshni confident. [True/False]
  3. “Bal Samooh’ meetings with NGO Shiv Shiksha Samiti and ‘Save the Children’

encouraged child marriage. [True/False)

  1. Find words/expressions from the passage that have a meaning similar to the following.
    1. about to happen soon (paragraph 2)
    2. realised (paragraph 6)

Answer 1.1

  1. (ii) child marriage
  2. (ii) 20 children, her grandparents, village elders and teachers.
  3. (i) taunted her and beat her up
  4. (iii) attend college
  5. (ii) stop doing something
  6. (i) To state officially that something is not legally valid

1.2

  1. Roshni’s house
  2. two
  3. True
  4. False

1.3

  1. impending
  2. dawned upon her

Sample – 2

The problem of unemployment is a serious problem in our country. If millions of people are without any jobs, its effect is very bad. A man without any employment is a burden on others. If he has got to maintain a family, the situation is worse. Such unemployed persons are reduced to poverty. It demoralises them and they are forced to do undesirable things. They may commit crimes. They may create trouble and spread discontent. In fact, they are a source of danger to society and the state.

The causes of unemployment are mainly the rapid growth of population, the prevailing system and underdevelopment of industry and trade. The population of India is growing very rapidly. It is very difficult to get jobs for all who are in need of it. The British Government had introduced a system of education in this country for carrying on administration only. It is being continued in free India also with very slight changes. The system of education prepares most young men to be clerks. But neither the Government nor private firms can absorb all the educated unemployed persons in their offices for clerical work. Industry and trade have not yet properly developed.

Cottage industries in the villages have been ruined owing to the establishment of large mills and factories in towns. Consequently, many artisans have been thrown out of employment. There has been great pressure on agricultural land because of the growth of population; consequently, many cultivators have got no land for cultivation. All these are mainly responsible for this acute problem of unemployment.

The acute problem of unemployment is a cause of unrest in the country. So the Government is seriously thinking over the matter and trying to find out a remedy. The remedy is to find

work for the people. The Government had earlier undertaken five-year plans for the material prosperity of the country. For carrying out these plans many mills and factories had been set up both by the Government and by industrialists. Many new offices had been started. Many educated young men were absorbed in offices as clerks and in mills and factories as skilled workers. Uneducated and unskilled men were being absorbed in mills and factories as labourers. But these measures have been proved inadequate.

Our government is now encouraging the revival of cottage industries in the villages. This will help many villagers to earn a living. Our Government is also trying to develop agriculture. But as yet, it has not been able to cope with the situation fully. The number of unemployed persons is increasing. So our Government should allow establishment of a large number of large and small technical and vocational institutions in the country. Only a limited number of bright young men should try to get higher education in the universities. Most young men try to enter technical or vocational institutions. After coming out of these, they may find jobs in factories and commercial firms. For this, of course, more factories must be set up throughout the country. Unskilled labourers should be taught various traits in technical institutes. They may find jobs in factories as skilled labourers. They may also set up cottage industries in their villages. Government will have to help them with loans to start their work. It is heartening to find that our Government has already taken some steps in this direction. Nationalised banks are now giving lump sum loans to intending young persons under self employment schemes.

QUESTIONS

  1. On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it using headings and sub-headings. Use recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Supply an appropriate title to it.
  2. Write a summary of the above passage in 80-100 words.

Answer:

  1. Title Unemployment: A Serious Problem

Notes

  1. Consequence of Unemployment
    1. Poverty
    2. low morale
    3. high crime rate
    4. discontent
  2. Causes of Unemployment
    1. rapid growth of ppltn

b)

  1. plan
  2. prevailing system of edu
    • prepares young people to be clerks
  3. underdevelopment of industry & trade
  1. Remedy: Role of Government
    1. follow up 5-yr plans
      • set up many factories
      • create more job opportunities
    2. allow vocational & technical institutions to open
    3. help unskilled to become skilled
    4. revive cottage industries
    5. give loans for self-employment

Key to Abbreviations

 

Abbreviations Words
ppltn Population
edu Education
indty Industry
yr Year
& And
optnts Opportunities

 

  • Summary

The consequences of unemployment, a serious problem in India, are poverty, low morale, high crime rate and discontent in the population. The causes of unemployment are rapid

growth of population, the prevailing system of education which prepares young people to be clerks, and underdevelopment of industry and trade. The remedy is that the role of Government should change: it should follow up the 5-yr plans by setting up many factories to create more job opportunities. It should allow vocational and technical institutions to open to help the unskilled become skilled. Government should revive cottage industries by giving loans for self-employment.

Sample – 3

Depression is a common problem of modern times. Both the rich and poor suffer from it. According to the World Health Organisation, by the year 2020, depression will become the second leading cause of disease in the world. Many solutions have been prescribed for the problem of depression but most have proved to be ineffective as a complete cure. They may offer temporary relief but fail to resolve the problem permanently.

Meditation is often advised to treat this problem of depression. But meditation focuses on the heart and modern science has established that the heart is merely an organ that pumps blood, whereas many kinds of depression stem from the mind. It is the mind that controls the heart and not vice-versa. In many cases, depression is non-physical and the heart is physical. How can a physical organ resolve a non-physical problem?

We also often hear about physical techniques to counter depression. But the reach of physical techniques is confined to the body and does not extend to the mind.

Many kinds of depression are the result of non-acceptance of reality. The real solution to this problem is the acceptance of reality. While non-acceptance creates the problem, acceptance of reality will solve it.

Our world is one of freedom, competition, challenge and clash of interests. This nature of human life is bound to create problems. No one is exempt from this process. This being so, to de-stress, learn the art of stress management rather than trying to eliminate the stress.

A person may become sad upon facing a loss in business or feeling discriminated against at work. He may give in to anxiety and frustration if he suffers a loss in an election, his love marriage turns into a problem or if he is offended by criticism. In all such cases, a person becomes negative because of being unaware of the real cause. He attributes the cause to another person and holds this person responsible for his difficulties. He fails to realise that all these are due to the law of nature. If you attribute the cause of the problem to the divine law of nature, it will arouse no negativity, but when you attribute it to a person, it brings on negative thinking. This is because the law of nature is not your rival, whereas you see a person as your competitor. When you attribute the cause of your problem to a rival, it will invariably arouse negative thoughts and cause anger. But when you attribute the cause to the law of nature, because it is not your rival and is equal in its treatment of all, it will lead to

introspection.

When you follow nature-based thinking instead of man-based thinking, you will try to discover its wisdom and will realise that whatever has happened is for your betterment. It was to activate your mind and enhance its creativity. It was a means of developing a realistic approach, fostering incentive, making you realise your mistake and helping you to re-plan practically.

When this thought comes to you, your mind will automatically change from negative to positive. You will be grateful towards the law of nature for bestowing this blessing in disguise. This thought will eliminate your stress and you will be able to live normally. This is a good way to help de-stress the mind.

QUESTIONS:

  1. On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it using headings and sub-headings. Use recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Supply an appropriate title to it.
  2. Write a summary of the above passage in 80-100 words.

Answer:

  1. Title Depression: Accept It, Tackle It

Notes

  1. Depression
    1. common prblm of modern times
    2. acc to WHO, will soon become second leading disease
    3. prescribed soln
      • offer temporary relief
    4. no permanent cure
  2. Kinds of Depression and its Cure
    1. non-acceptance of reality
      • soln – acceptance of reality
    2. Clash of interests
      • soln – learn stress mgmt
  3. Causes of Stress / Depression

    1. atrbt to another person cause of prblm
    2. fail to realise law of nature
  4. Ways to De-Stress
    1. atrbt prblm to the divine law of nature
    2. don’t atrbt cause of problem to a person
    3. follow nature-based thinking
    4. this causes realisation that
      • whatever hpnd is for betterment
      • means of dvipg a realistic approach
      • fostering incentive
      • helping you to re-plan
      • understanding mistake
    5. realisation eliminates stress

Key to Abbreviations

 

Abbreviations Words
prblm Problem
Acc According
WHO World Health Organisation
Soln solution
Mgmt Management
Atrbt Attribute
Hpnd Happened
Dvlpg developing


  • Summary

According to the World Health Organisation, depression is expected to become the second leading cause of disease in the world. Prescribed solutions offer temporary relief but offer no permanent solution. The cause is non-acceptance of reality or clash of interests.

Solutions are acceptance of reality and learning to manage stress. Stress is caused by attributing problems to other persons instead of understanding the law of nature. One should realise that whatever has happened is for the betterment. This enables development of a realistic approach to the problem and helps in re-planning. This realisation eliminates stress.

passage

 

FACTUAL PASSAGE

Factual passages convey information in a straightforward and direct manner about a particular subject.

A factual passage provides clear clarification on the topic under discussion. The entire passage gives the reader a clear description of what’s being discussed.

It provides a detailed overview of the subject discussed by offering step-by – step explanation of the same

There is less complexity to a discursive section. The passage must spontaneously address different subjects that do not seem to be connected to one another. Tracking the shifts in subject also is a difficult task.

Usually, the language and the style are simple and clear. Factual passages may give instructions or descriptions or report of an event or a new finding.

Sample – 1

The work of the heart can never be interrupted. The reason is that the heart’s job is to keep oxygen rich blood flowing through the body. All the body’s cells need a constant supply of oxygen, especially those in the brain. The brain cells live only for four to five minutes after their oxygen is cut off, and then brain death occurs, leading to the entire body dying.

The heart is a specialized muscle that serves as a pump. This pump is divided into four chambers, two called atria and two called ventricles, connected by tiny doors called valves. The chambers work to keep the blood flowing round the body in a circle with a detour to the lungs to purify the blood by removing carbon dioxide from it and adding oxygen to it.

At the end of each circuit, veins carry the blood to the right atrium, the first of the four chambers. Two-fifths of the oxygen by then is used up and it is on its way back to the lungs to pick up a fresh supply and to give up the carbon dioxide it has accumulated. From the right atrium the blood flows through the tricuspid valve into the second chamber, the right ventricle. The right ventricle contracts when it is filled, pushing the blood through the pulmonary artery, which leads to the lungs. In the lungs the blood gives up its carbon dioxide and picks up fresh oxygen. Then it travels to the third chamber, the left atrium. When this chamber is filled, it forces the blood through the mitral valve to the left ventricle. From here it is pushed into a big blood vessel called aorta, the main artery, and sent round the body through the various arteries.

Heart disease can result from any damage to the heart muscle, the valves or the natural pacemaker’ of the heart. Electrical impulses from the heart muscle cause our heart to beat (contract). This electrical signal begins in the sino-atrial (SA) node, located at the top of the heart’s upper-right chamber (the right atrium). The SA node is sometimes called the heart’s ‘natural pacemaker’.

If the muscle is damaged, the heart is unable to pump properly. If the valves are damaged blood cannot flow normally and easily from one chamber to another, and if the pacemaker is defective, the contractions of the chambers will become un-coordinated.

Until the twentieth century, few doctors dared to touch the heart. In 1953 all this changed. After twenty years of work, Dr John Gibbon in the USA had developed a machine that could take over temporarily from the heart and lungs. Blood could be routed through the machine, bypassing the heart so that surgeons could work inside it and see what they were doing. The era of open heart surgery had begun.

In the operating theatre, it gives surgeons the chance to repair or replace a defective heart. Many parties have had plastic valves inserted in their hearts when their own was faulty. Many people are being kept alive with tiny battery operated pacemakers; none of these repairs could have been made without the heart-lung machine. But valuable as it is to the surgeons, the heart-lung machine has certain limitations. It can be used only for a few hours at a time because its pumping gradually damages the bloods cells.

QUESTIONS

  1. On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it using headings and sub-headings. Use recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Supply an appropriate title to it.
  2. Write a summary of the above passage in 80-100 words.

Answer:

  1. Title How the Heart Works

Notes

  1. Functions of Heart
    1. vital for living
      • never stop wrkg
    2. supplies oxygen rich blood to diff parts of body
  2. Structure of Heart
    1. divided into 4 chambers connected by vlvs
    2. blood purified in lungs
    3. arteries carry pure blood to diff parts of body
  3. Causes of Heart Disease
    1. weak heart muscles
    2. defective vlvs
    3. defective natural pacemaker
  4. History of Open Heart Surgery
    1. 1953: Dr Gibbon invents Heart lung m/c
      • blood could pass through m/c bypassing heart and lungs
    2. enabled open heart srgy
    3. m/c limitations
      • used only for few hrs at a time because it damages blood cells

Key to Abbreviations

 

Abbreviations Words
Wrkg working
Diff Different
Vlvs Valves
Dr Doctor
m/c Machine
srgy Surgery
Hrs Hours
  • Summary

The heart is a vital organ of the body which never stops working. It supplies oxygen rich blood to all parts of the body. It is divided into four chambers inter-connected by valves. Blood is purified in the lungs and arteries carry it to different parts of the body.

Heart disease has various causes such as weak heart muscles, defective valves or a defective natural pacemaker. The era of open-heart surgery began in 1953 when Dr Gibbon developed the heart-lung machine. Replacement of valves and other areas of a damaged heart is now possible.

Sample – 2

The Maasai tribe live on the wide plains in southern and northern Kenya and northern Tanzania. They are among the best known local populations due to their residence near the many game parks of the African Great Lakes, as well as their distinctive customs and dress. The Maasai were famous fighters. They used to raid the neighbouring tribes and carry away their cattle. All the other tribes were afraid of them because of their skills in war.

The Maasai are handsome people, tall and slim with light brown skins, straight noses and long hair. They do not belong completely to the Negro race. They belong mostly to the same race as the people of ancient Egypt. The ancient Egyptians probably looked like the Maasais of today.

The Maasais live in a very beautiful part of Africa. It consists of miles of rolling grassland, on which you can find thorny bushes and here and there a rocky hill. The people move from one place to another according to the seasons, looking for the grasses and other plants on which their cattle can graze. They have no permanent home. When they want to settle in a place for some time, they build a kind of camp called a ‘Manyatta’, where a few families live for a few weeks or months. Then they move on again, taking their few belongings with them, and burning the old *Manyatta’ to the ground.

To make a hut, they take a number of long thin wooden poles and plant them in a circle. Then each pole is bent into a shape of a ‘U’ and its other end is also planted in the earth. Now the framework for the hut is ready.

Next, the space between the poles is filled with leaves, and small branches of tree and mud. Then the outside of earth hut is covered or plastered with cow-dung, which quickly becomes hard in the sun. An opening is left for the door but there are no windows. The hut is about 5 feet high, so that grown-up men cannot stand up straight inside his hut.

There is no furniture, except perhaps a small wooden stool for the head of the family.

The huts are arranged in a big circle. Around the outside of the circle the Maasais build a thorn fence, about 7 feet high, with several openings so that the people can go in and out with their cattle. After dark, all the openings are closed. Then all the people and cattle in the ‘Manyatta’ are safe from wild animals.

Nowadays there are no wars between the tribes. So a Maasai warrior has very little to do now. But they sometimes go hunting. The Maasais like to kill lions with spears, and a lion- hunt is a great test of courage. The warrior who first kills a lion is given great honour, and he wears the lion’s mane round his neck to show that he is a lion-killer.

The Maasais are fairly well-to-do and intelligent and live comfortable lives. However, most of them are happy to live as their ancestors lived hundreds of years ago. The Tanzanian and Kenyan governments have instituted programmes to encourage the Maasai to abandon their traditional semi-nomadic lifestyle, but the people have continued their age-old customs. Many Maasai tribes throughout Tanzania and Kenya welcome visits to their village to experience their culture, traditions, and lifestyle.

QUESTIONS

  1. On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it using headings and sub-headings. Use recognisable abbreviations wherever necessary. Supply an appropriate title to it.
  2. Write a summary of the above passage in 80-100 words.

Answer:

  1. Title The Maasai Tribe – Life and History Notes
    1. Maasai Tribe- Famous Fighters
      1. live in Kenya & northern Tanzania
      2. carried away cattle of nbrg tribes
    2. Maasais Handsome People
      1. tall & slim with light brown skins
      2. straight noses & long hair
      3. don’t blg to Negro groups
      4. blg to people of ancient Egypt
    3. Maasais are Nomadic Cattle Herders
      1. move from place to place looking for grass for cattle
      2. build ‘Manyatta’ – a camp
      3. use wan poles to build huts
        • plant U shaped wdn poles in circle on earth
        • fill frmwk with leaves, branches & mud
        • plaster outside with cow-dung
        • opening kept for door – no windows
      4. no furniture-won stool for family head
      5. put thorn fence around Manyatta’
        • keeps them safe from wild animals
    4. Nowadays- No War Between Tribes
      1. Maasai warriors go hunting for lions
        • Lion hunt- test of courage
      2. lion killer wears lion’s mane as sign
      3. Maasais live comfortable life
      4. invite people to experience their lives

Key to Abbreviations

 

Abbreviations Words
& And
Nbrg Neighbouring
blg Belong
wdn Wooden
frmwk Framework

 

 

  • Summary

The Maasai tribe live in Kenya and northern Tanzania. They were famous fighters and attacked other tribes for cattle. They were handsome people and belong mostly to the same race as that of ancient Egypt, and not to the Negro race.

They move from place to place looking for grass for their cattle. When they settle in a place they build a camp called “Manyatta’ with dome shaped wood-frame huts in a big circle. They put a thorn fence around the ‘Manyatta’ to save themselves from wild animals. Lion hunting is a test of courage for them. They are intelligent and live comfortable lives.

 

CBSE 12TH CLASS GRAMMAR ( ALL TOPICS )

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