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*He was a Colombian Novelist, short story Writer, Sreenwriter and Journalist.His first work was "A SHIPWRECKED SAILOR"

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Story Narration | A Shipwrecked Sailor | Class VIII | Unit 2| English Reader | Kerala Syllabus

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1)PREDICAMENT
MEANING:A DIFFICULT OR UNPLEASANT SITUATION

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MEANING:LARGE WOODEN CONTAINER FOR WOODS.

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MEANING:A WIDE OR PROFOUNDED DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PEOPLE, A GULF

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Abyss - Meaning | Pronunciation || Word Wor(l)d - Audio Video Dictionary

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ACTIVITIES

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You can Download A Shipwrecked Sailor Questions and Answers, Summary, Activity, Notes, Kerala Syllabus 8th Standard English Solutions Unit 2 Chapter 1 helps you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Kerala State Syllabus 8th Standard Hindi Solutions Unit 2 Chapter 1 A Shipwrecked Sailor (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)

A Shipwrecked Sailor Text book Questions and Answers

A Shipwrecked Sailor Text book Activities And Answers

Let's revisit

Fill in the following mind map of the story 'A Shipwrecked Sailor'.

Answer:
Characters: Julio Amador Caraballo, Castillo, Luis Rengifo, and Ramon Herrera.
Events :
1 .Velasco and his shipmates were travelling from Mobile to Colombia.
2. He lost his shipmates in the shipwreck.
3. He managed to get on to raft.
4. He floated on the raft for many days alone in the sea, without food and water.

You have identified the major events of the story, haven't you? Here's a graphic story for you. Study the pictures carefully and write the appropriate events from the story in the space provided. Try to add possible dialogues too. Now you can narrate the story from the point of view of Velasco. Some events are given to help you.

Answer:

Which event in the story do you j think is the most tragic? Why?
Answer:
Event: Caraballo had vanished with Castillo hanging on to his neck.
Reason : They were less than three meters away from Velasco's raft. He could hold out an oar for them to grab. At that moment a gigantic wave lifted the raft.

Let's enrich our vocabulary

Look at the opening sentence of the story, 'My first impression was that I was utterly alone in the middle of the ocean.' Here the narrator describes his experience of a shipwreck in first person. How would the sentence change if he expressed the salhe in third person?
' ................ first impression was that ............... was utterly alone in the middle of the ocean.' The possessive form of nouns are made by adding '-s" to the nouns, e.g. Sajina's book, Rahul's bat, etc. But in the case of pronouns, the words take new forms. The possessive of 'I' is 'my'. Find the possessive forms of the pronouns we, you, he, she, they, and it. Use each pronoun and its possessive in sentences of your own.
Answer:
Velasco's first impression was that he was utterly alone in the middle of the ocean.
I - my
We - our
You - your
He - his
She - her
They - their
It - its
I love my India.
We sold our old car.
You should help vour neighbors.
He resigned his job.
She lives with her grandparents.
They don't want to leave their house.
It is very funny to see it trying to catch
its own tail.

Look at some of the words used in the story.

It can be seen that the suffixes '-ly', '-ed' and '-ing' are used after the root word. You can also see that some elements are added before the root word.
'un-', 'dis-', 'in-', and 're-', respecti-vely are added before the root word. These are examples of prefixes in English.
Fill in the following table with prefixed words identified from the story or with such words from a dictionary.

Answer:
un - unload, un recognise, unhappy, undress, uncountable, unfortunate
dis - disappear, dishonest, disgrace, distaste, dislocated, disagree
in - indefinite, injustice, invisible, inactive, inappropriate, insufficient
re - reassuring, reappear, relearn, revalue, reconsider, rewind

Activity 3.

Fill in the blanks in the following passage picking up the right words given in the box.

I can't ........... (a) ............ what it would be like to be alone. My...........(b) ............. of it is really frightening. I am saying this based on the .......... (c) ........... I got from my reading. I also .........(d) ............ that floating on the .............. (e) ........... of the sea on a boat alone is a more frightening experience than being trapped in a forest.
Answer:
a. Contemplate
b. Impression
c. Evidence
d. Recognise
e. surface

Let's write

The narrator was given a heroic welcome by the people of his locality. Imagine that he narrates his exper¬ience in a public meeting. Write the possible speech the narrator might have delivered.
Dear ladies and gentlemen, I am very happy to be in front of you ...........................
Answer:
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen, lam very happy to be in front of you. I have never thought that I would be alive and be among my dear ones. It was a terrible experience at sea. The shipwreck, the loss of my friends, the terrible loneliness, the hunger and thirst and then the miraculous escape are all quite incredible and unimaginable. I don't know how I could tolerate and manage all those adverse situations. Even now, when I think of it, I feel the terror enveloping all over my body. But it's all over.

This difficult experience has taught me a lesson that we should not yield to any hardships in life. Tolerance, perseverance, and confidence can lead us to victory. Anyway, I'm very much grateful to my beloved ones for giving me such a wonderful reception in my home town. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all of you. Let me conclude with these words face the challenges boldly, ultimate success will be yours. Thank You. Have a nice day.

The story, 'The Shipwrecked Sailor' is narrated from the point of view of a man involved in a shipwreck. If you were Valesco's friend, how would you narrate the story You may begin like this.
Velasco and his four friends were sailing through the Caribbean Sea. Suddenly ...................
Answer:
Velasco and his four friends were sailing through the Caribbean Sea. Suddenly, the ship plunged into an abyss and disappeared. He thought that he was utterly alone in the sea. Soon, he began to hear shouts nearby. He recognized the voice of his friend Caraballo. Soon he saw that his other shipmates were also thrown into the sea. They were shouting to one another to stay afloat. Two life rafts appeared unexpectedly on the crest of the wave. Velasco swam for about three minutes and struggled to grab it.

Finally, he jumped aboard. Castillo, Caraballo and Luis Rengifo were trying to stay above the water and reach the raft. He grabbed the oars and tried to get close to the men. At that time he saw the fourth of his mates, Ramon Herrera, who was waving at him while he held on to a crate. Velasco began to paddle furiously. It was very heavy in that lurching sea, and he had to row against the wind. When he looked around he saw that Herrera had disappeared, Rengifo was swimming confidently towards the raft. Meanwhile, a gigantic wave lifted the raft. After that he found that Caraballo had vanished with Castillo. Rengifo was still swimming calmly towards the raft.

In an instant, Velasco was five meters away from Rengifo and had lost sight of him. Velasco tried to row, but it was in vain. He made a last try to save Rengifo. Unfortunately, he was not successful and Rengifo sank forever, less that two meters from the oar. Velasco was alone at sea without food and water. He sat on the side of the raft waiting to be rescued. Uncertain as to what to do he decided to make an inventory of his belongings. Since he had nothing else to do, he read the cards over and over to distract himself until he was rescued.

Read the following sentences in the 'Sentences' column. Change them into news headlines and write them in the 'News headlines' column.

Answer:

Sentences

News headlines

The sailor Velasco was given a heroic welcome in a public meeting at his hometown.

A Heroic Welcome given to Velasco

The Colombian Navy continues their search to recover the bodies of the four sailors drowned in the Caribbean Sea.

Sailors Drowned, Search Continues. /Ship Capsizes; Search continues on for Sailors.

Four Colombian Sailors drowned
Colombia: 28 Nov : 1955 Caldas, a Colombian ship was wrecked in Caribbean sea and four sailors were downed. The ship was traveling from Mobile, Alabama to Colombia. Among the sailors, Velasco was rescued while four of his shipmates, Castillo, Caraballo, Luis Rengifo and Remon Herrera drowned. The Caribbean navy started searching for the dead bodies. It is told that many rescue workers will join the team the next day.

Imagine that you are asked to prepare breaking news of the shipwreck and the death of the sailors for a TV channel. Write the possible breaking news headlines and present them orally in front of the class.
Answer:
Colombian shipwrecked in Caribbean sea.

Let's speak

Prepare ten questions for inter¬viewing the narrator (Velasco), who quite unbelievably escaped from the shipwreck. You may attempt this as a pair activity in which one of you can be the interviewer and the other the narrator.
Answer:

When did you first sense the danger?

Were you prepared to face such a disaster?

What gave you the strength to remain afloat?

What were your feelings when you saw your shipmates drowning?

Why were your shipmates unable to survive?

How did it feel to be alone at sla?

What precautions do you think ships should take to face such disasters?

Did you feel like giving up at any point of time?

Has this incident left any lasting impression on you?

What are your future plans?

Activity 2.

Suppose you are one of the speak¬ers at a function in which the narrator (Velasco) is being congratulated. Deliver a speech congratulating him for his brave deed.
Answer:
Ladies and gentlemen,
We have gathered here to honor Mr. Velasco, the only survivor of the Colombian shipwreck. As we all know, his survival is quite miraculous and heroic. We really appreciate his bravery and presence of mind. His patience and perseverance should be honored. He is a real hero by all means. He would be a role model for the coming generation. It's my privilege to congratulate Mr. Velasco on behalf of all of us. Let his bravery be an inspiration to us. With this note let me conclude my words.
Thank you. Have a nice day.

Let's discover how grammar works

Look at the sentences taken from the story.
a) A rough wave pushed the rafts.
b) It was very heavy in that lurching sea.
c) A gigantic wave lifted the raft.
d) His serenity was stronger than the sea. The words underlined in these sentences describe the nouns. These words belong to the word class called adjectives. Adjectives have three degrees of comparison.
1. In the sentence, 'His serenity was strong.' the word 'strong' is in the positive degree
2. In the sentence, 'His serenity was stro¬nger than the sea.' the word 'stronger' is in the comparative degree.
3. In the sentence, 'His serenity was the strongest.' the word 'strongest' is in the superlative degree.
Now, look at the following chart and complete the sentences below using the suitable degrees of the adjective 'tali'.

1. 'A' is .....................
2. 'C' is .....................
3. But 'B' is .............
Do all adjectives follow the same pattern in forming their comparative and superlative forms?
Write your findings below citing three examples for. each case.
Answer:
1. A is not as tall as C.
2. C is taller than A.
3. But B is the tallest.
Certain adjectives form comparative and superlative forms with 'more' and 'most'.
E.g Beauty: more beautiful, most beautiful. Certain other adjectives take different forms for comparative and superlative degrees.
E.g good: better, best.

Fill in the following passage with 'a', 'an', or 'the'.
I made .............. last try so that Rengifo could reach .............. oar, but ................ raised hand, which ................ few minutes earlier had been trying to keep ............. headphones from sinking, sank forever.
Answer:
1. a
2. the
3. the
4. a
5. the

Now, complete the word pyramid given below picking up appropriate determ¬iners and adjectives from the box and placing them in the correct position,

Construct word pyramids using the words: 'sea', 'sailor' and 'traveler'.
Answer:
Wound:
Wound
a wound
a deep wound
a deep half-moon shaped wound Sea

Sailor:
Sailor
a sailor
a shipwrecked sailor
a young shipwrecked sailor

Traveler:
Traveler
a traveler
a lonely traveler
a tired lonely traveler

Read the short summary of 'The Shipwrecked Sailor'. There are some errors in it which are underlined. Edit the errors.
In 1955, a Colombian ship was on its way back home, where the ship was caught in a storm. Eight men was flung off the ship, going overboard into the Caribbean Sea. Just one - Luis Alejandro Velasco - survive. For ten days, he clung to a life raft. Suffering from hunger and lack of water, he completely gave up hope when he was washed ashore in Colombia. The author Gabriel Garcia Marquez, when was working as a journalist is granted a series of exclusive interviews by Velasco. He writes these up and published them under Velasco's name.
...................................
..................................
Answer:
a) when
b) were
d) survived
d) who
e) was
f) wrote

Let's play with language

Here is a poem with a lot of adjectives.
Read the poem and list the adjectives.
Two Funny, Little Red Apples
Two funny, little red apples
Fell from a tree one day.
Both small apples rolled and rolled Till they got far away.
They rolled into a big, green yard,
Right past three white dogs.
They rolled right past a cold, blue lake, And over four brown logs.
They didn't stop. They kept on going, Fast as a speeding train.
Until they felt some small, wet drops Fall from the dark sky as rain.
They rolled into a pretty, new house, Where a kind lady made them dry.
Then she put the two clean, red apples Into her fruit salad!
Now, you may write a poem like the one above on any of the fruits you like. Don't forget to change the adjectives.
...........................
...........................
Answer:
Adjectives: funny, little, red, small, big, green, white, cold, blue, four brown, speeding, small, wet, dark, pretty, new, kind, dry, two, clean.

Two Little Yellow Mangoes:
Two little mangoes hanging on a tree
Two yellow mangoes looking at me
I shook the small tree as hard as I could
Down came the yummy mangoes
Yum Yum so good
I cut the tasty mangoes and put it in my
mouth
Tasty syrupy juicy mangoes
I loved it a lot

A Shipwrecked Sailor Additional Questions & Answers

Questions 1-4. Read the excerpt given below from the story ' The Ship-wrecked sailor' and answer the questions that follow.

My first impression was that I was utterly alone in the middle of the ocean. The ship plunged into an abyss and disappeared. I had no idea what was happening. I took one of the bobbing crates and stupidly began to contemplate the sea. It was a perfectly clear day. Except for the choppy waves produced by the wind and the cargo scattered across the surface, there was no evidence of a shipwreck. Soon I began to hear shouts nearby. Through the sharp whistling of the wind, I recognized the voice of Julio Amador Caraballo, the tall, well-built officer who was yelling at someone, Fatso, hold there.' It was as if in that instant I had awakened from a deep moment's sleep.

It dawned on me that I wasn't alone in the sea. There, only a few meters away, my mates were shouting to one another and trying to stay afloat. Quickly I began to think. I couldn't swim in just any direction. I knew we were about fifty miles from Cartagena, but I was not yet frightened. For a moment I thought I could hold on to the crate indefinitely until help arrived. It was reas¬suring to know that all around me other sailors were in the same predicament. That was when I saw the raft.
1. What happened to the narrator?
2. What was Caraballo yelling?
3. Pick out a word from the passage which means 'moving up and down in a short quick movement'.
4. Why was the narrator reassured?
Answer:
1. The narrator was in the middle of the ocean after a shipwreck. The ship plunged into an abyss and disappeared.
2. Fatso, hold there.
3. bobbing
4. Other sailors were also having the same predicament as the narrator. It was reas¬suring to him to prevent the raft from moving, trying to anchor it in place.

Question 5.
Edit the following passage.
I tried (a) two-row, but... it was as hopeless (b) has the first time. I made (c) an last try so that Rengifo could reach the oar, but the raised hand, which a few minutes earlier had been trying to keep the headphones (d) for sinking, sank forever, less than two meters from the oar.
Answer:
a. to
b. as
c. a
d. from

Question 6.
Edit the passage correcting the errors.
There is (a) two life rafts about seven meters apart. They appear (b) unexpectedly of (c) the crest of a wave, near where my mates are (d) calling out.
Answer:
a. were
b. appeared
c. on
d. were

A letter is a written message from one person to another.

Tips to remember

Identify the person who writes the letter.

Identify the person to whom the letter is written.

Identify the form of letter ( formal or informal)

Style of Salutation

Body

Closing

Question 7.
Velasco has a miraculous escape after surviving in the open sea for ten days. After reaching home, he writes a letter to his friend sharing his experiences. Draft the likely letter.
Answer:
Velasco
Columbia
USA
15/8/17
Dear Mike,
How are you? Hope you are doing good. I am very happy to write to you. I never thought that I would be alive and be among my dear ones. I and four of my friends were sailing through the Caribbean Sea. Suddenly the ship plunged into an abyss and disappeared. I thought that I was utterly alone in the sea. Soon I began to hear shouts nearby. I recognized the voice of my friend Caraballo. Soon I saw that my other shipmates were also thrown into the sea. I saw two life rafts unexpect¬edly on the crest of the wave. I swam for about three minutes and struggled to grab it. Finally, I managed to jump aboard. Castillo, Caraballo and Luis Rengifo were trying to stay above the water and reach the raft.

I grabbed the oars and tried to stay close to my friends. At that time I saw my fourth mate Ramon Herrera | who was waving at me. I began to paddle furiously. It was very heavy in the lurching sea, and I had to row against the wind. I looked around and sav\#that Herrera had disappeared. Rengifo was swimming confidently towards the raft. After that, I found out that Caraballo had vanished with Castillo. I saw Rengifo swimming towards the raft. I was five meters away from Rengifo. I tried to row, but it was in vain. I made a last try to save Rengifo. Unfortunately, I was not successful and Rengifo sank forever. I was alone at sea without food and water until I was rescued. Thank God I was saved. Convey my regards to all at home. Waiting for your reply.
With Love,
Your Friend Velasco

A notice is a written information of an event or a programme.

Tips to remember

Identify the programme/ event or the type of notice to be prepared.

Prepare an invitation to invite the people.

Use appropriate format and layout of notice.

Mention the date, time and venue of the programme.

Use clear and brief language.

Specify the person/ authority who issues the notice.

Question 8.
The English Club of ypur school has decided to stage a play based on the lesson ' A Ship Wrecked Sailor'. Prepare a notice to inform the staff and students about the programme.
Answer:
THE SHIPWRECKED SAILOR
A Play Presented By English Club
of GHSS, KOLLAM

DearFriends,

20/02/2018

The English Club of GHSS Kollam has decided to stage a one-act play based on the story ' The Shipwrecked Sailor' by Gabriel Garcia Marquez as a part of the Annual day celebration in our school. The members of the English Club have prepared | the script and directed the play. Sri. M.t Vasudevan Nair, renowned screenplay writer, and film director has consented to inaugurate the staging of the play.

All are welcome

Secretary
English Club
GHSS KOLLAM

Programme Details
Date: 25/02/2018
Time : 4: 00 pm
Venue: School auditorium
Welcome speech: Secretary, English Club
Presidential Address: Headmaster
Inauguration: Sri M.T Vasudevan Nair
Felicitation: School Leader
Vote of Thanks: Joint Secretary, English Club

Question 9.
After the eventful escape, Velasco meets one of his friends. Prepare the likely conversation between them.
Answer:
Friend: Ey, Velasco. How are you?
Velasco: Hello, Francis I am fine.
Friend: I heard about your great escape
Velasco: It was a terrible experience. I never thought that I would escape alive.
Friend: Thank God. I am so happy to see you alive.
Velasco: Yes, Even now when I think of it, I feel the terror enveloping all over my body. But It's all over.
Friend: It is your tolerance and perseverance that helped you.
Velasco: I lost four of my friends in the shipwreck. I feel so sad that I couldn't save any one of them.
Friend: That's so sad. It's not your fault. You tried to save them. But unfortunately, things didn't come outright.
Velasco: Yes, This difficult experience has taught me a lesson that we should not yield to any hardships in life.
Friend: Yes. Your bravery is an inspiration to the upcoming generation.

Question 10.
Write a profile of famous writer 'Gabriel Garcia Marquez'. Hints are given below.
Birth: 1928
Nationality: Columbia
Famous as: Novelist, Short story writer, and Journalist.
Major works: One Hundred Years of Solitude Love in the Time of Cholera
Awards: Nobel Prize for literature (1982), Neustadt International Prize for literature (1972)
Death: April 2014
Answer:
Gabriel Garcia Marquez:
Gabriel Garcia Marquez was born in 1928 in Columbia. He was famous as a novel¬ist, short story writer, screenwriter, and journalist. One Hundred Years of Soli¬tude and Love in the Time of Cholera are his notable works. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature (1982) and Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 1972. He passed away on April 2014.

A Shipwrecked Sailor Summary in English

[This story is about a twenty-year-old young man called Luis Alejandro Velasco. He was washed overboard and put into the Caribbean Sea, because of a shipwreck. In a raft he spent ten days without food and water. This story says how Velasco reached in such a sad situation.]

In the beginning, I felt that I was all alone in the midst of the sea. Our ship was completely destroyed in the storm. Catching on a crate I somehow managed to swim. It was a bright sunny day. I could see only the scattered cargo and huge waves around me. The sea was so calm that there was no evidence of the disaster remaining. Suddenly I could hear some sounds around me. I could recognize the voice of Julio Amador Caraballo who was a well-built man. 'Stand there Fatso'. He was shouting. I suddenly woke up as though from a short sleep.

I recognized that I was not alone in the sea. My shipmates were trying hard to escape from the sea. We were fifty miles away from Cartagena. But I was not scared. I hoped that I would spend my time till I get a shelter. I was sure that my friends were also in the same state. At that time I came across a raft. There were two rafts. The rafts were seven meters away from me. The rafts were near my friends. Suddenly one of the rafts disappeared. I swam towards the searching my friends. There were two, Castillo and Caraballo. Caraballo was wearing a life jacket and was carrying Castillo on his neck.

They were seen ten metre away from me. On another side of the sea Luis Rengifo was swimming with his headphone. He had removed his shirt so as to swim easily. He did not have a life jacket. If I had not seen him also I could recognize his voice. I somehow managed to make myself near them, Castillo and Caraballo were nearing the raft. I could see Herrara too who was waving his hand. I could not decide to which direction I should move. I aimed at Herrera who was two meters away from my raft. The storm was flowing heavily. So I could not succeed in reaching Herrera. Herrera disappeared. Rengifo was swimming confidently. He would succeed I thought because he was a brave man.

On the other side Caraballo and Castillo were seen three meters away. I put the oar towards them. Suddenly a big wave came and the raft was drifted. After that when I searched for them I could not see them Caraballo and Castillo were not seen. Rengifo was still swimming towards me. He was very tired. I could hear his voice saying 'Fatso row fatso'. There was a heavy storm. I shouted and said that I could not row towards him. I did not know whether he heard it or not. I could see him on the surface. He was waving his hand. Slowly he disappeared. I rowed my raft helplessly. Unfortunately two meters away he was drowned. I could not save him. I was shocked and could not move. Like a dog's howling the wind was flowing. I hoped that the other raft would have saved my friends. It would surely get it, I hoped. Suddenly I was aware of the hot sun.

My head and whole body were burning due to heat. I looked at my watch. It was at 11.30 the shipwreck happened. Within ten minutes everything went wrong. Now I could see the calm sea around me as if nothing had happened. Within two or three hours someone would come and save me; I wished. At three o'clock I felt very thirsty. There was no water or food with me. I poured water on my head so that it became cool. I sat on my raft. Suddenly I felt a severe pain on my knee. There was a big wound. I poured salt water on it, it became dry. I started searching for my belongings. I found the solitude very distressing. By seeing my belongings I escaped from my solitude. Thinking so I found my watch, my gold ring, the keys of my locker in the ship and the cars which I bought from mobile. I spent my time by repeatedly watching my cards. Someone 'would come and save me' I hoped.

A Shipwrecked Sailor Summary in Malayalam

A Shipwrecked Sailor Glossary

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Kerala Syllabus 8th Standard English Solutions Unit 2 Chapter 1 A Shipwrecked Sailor

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You can Download A Shipwrecked Sailor Questions and Answers, Summary, Activity, Notes, Kerala Syllabus 8th Standard English Solutions Unit 2 Chapter 1 helps you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations. Let's revisit Fill in the following mind map of the story 'A Shipwrecked Sailor'.

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1)Velasco
2)Herrera
3)Diago
4)Caraballo