Past board exam questions
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
Explain with examples, why the poet uses allusions in the poem ‘Amanda’.
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
Show answer
(Content 2 – any two points with textual evidence; Expression 1)
The allusions show Amanda’s yearning for freedom and space. To escape her parents’ constant nagging, she drifts into a dream world – she imagines herself as a mermaid drifting freely in a languid emerald sea, and as Rapunzel locked up in a solitary tower, where life is tranquil. They contrast the restrictions of home with her blissful world of dreams.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
How are the daydreams that Amanda has different from her reality ?
(Amanda)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
Show answer
(Content 2 – any two points; Expression 1)
In reality, Amanda is under constant instructions and restrictions – ‘Don’t bite your nails’, ‘Don’t hunch your shoulders’, ‘Sit up straight’, ‘Did you finish your homework?’ – which leave her irritated, misunderstood and lonely. In her daydreams she escapes to freedom: she imagines herself a mermaid drifting in a languid emerald sea, an orphan roaming the streets, or Rapunzel living alone and peacefully in a tower.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 5 marks
Read the following extract and answer the questions :
Did you finish your homework, Amanda?
Did you tidy your room, Amanda?
I thought I told you to clean your shoes,
Amanda!
(I am an orphan, roaming the street.
I pattern soft dust with my hushed, bare feet.)
(Amanda!)
(i) How does the poet bring about the contrast between what the speaker wants and what Amanda desires ? (2)
(ii) Fill in the blank with one word. (1)
Amanda daydreams of being an orphan to ___________ constant nagging and control.
(iii) What kind of picture is painted by the poet through the line ‘I pattern soft dust with my hushed, bare feet’ ? (1)
(iv) What tone is conveyed through the repetition of Amanda’s name in the given extract ? (1)
(A) loving
(B) nagging
(C) appreciating
(D) escaping
Show answer
(i) (Any one) The speaker’s words are given without brackets whereas Amanda’s thoughts are within parentheses; the speaker is strict, authoritative and critical of Amanda’s actions whereas Amanda is quiet and lost in her own thoughts; the mother wants Amanda to be a disciplined child whereas Amanda just wants to play and live carefree like a little child.
(ii) escape (also accepted: avoid / ignore)
(iii) (Any one) A picture of escape from rules and nagging; of her desire for freedom – she imagines herself free from all the nagging of her parent, wandering peacefully on her own.
(iv) (B) nagging
CBSE 2026 board paper · 5 marks
Read the following extract and answer the questions :
Did you finish your homework, Amanda?
Did you tidy your room, Amanda?
I thought I told you to clean your shoes, Amanda!
(I am an orphan, roaming the street.
I pattern soft dust with my hushed, bare feet.
The silence is golden, the freedom is sweet.)
(Amanda!)
(i) Complete the sentence appropriately : (1)
Amanda wants to be an orphan because ___________.
(ii) What does the image of Amanda “roaming barefoot in the dusty street” signify ? (2)
(iii) Amanda’s tone while imagining herself as an orphan is : (1)
(A) excited
(B) fearful
(C) angry
(D) peaceful
(iv) What does the speaker do on the dust ? (1)
Show answer
(i) she is tired of being continuously nagged by her mother and wants to be free.
(ii) (Any two) It signifies her longing for freedom – freedom from rules and discipline, with no one to nag and correct her – and her wish to enjoy her childhood carefree.
(iii) (A) excited
(iv) She makes patterns on the soft dust with her hushed, bare feet.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
A parent should try to be a companion to a child for a better relationship. Explain with reference to Amanda’s mother.
(Amanda)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
Show answer
(Content 2 – at least two value points; Expression 1)
Children need guidance, support and understanding from their parents to grow emotionally and psychologically. Amanda’s mother, the speaker, is overly critical and controlling – she constantly nags her about her posture, nails, room, shoes and homework. This over-critical behaviour makes Amanda withdraw into daydreams and become emotionally cut off and aloof. Had her mother been a companion, their relationship would have been better.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 6 marks
Analyse how Amanda in the poem ‘Amanda’ and the dragon in the poem ‘The Tale of Custard the Dragon’ yearn for acceptance and a life free from criticism.
(Answer in about 100-120 words.)
Show answer
(Content 3 – at least one point from each aspect, with textual evidence; Expression 2; Accuracy 1)
Amanda is constantly nagged – ‘Don’t bite your nails’, ‘Sit up straight’, ‘Did you finish your homework?’ – and escapes into fantasies of being a mermaid in a languid emerald sea, an orphan roaming the streets, or Rapunzel alone in a tower, finding there the peace denied to her in reality. She longs to run away from the nagging and finds silence ‘golden’ and freedom ‘sweet’.
Custard, the ‘cowardly dragon’, is mocked and teased by Belinda, Ink, Blink and Mustard for crying for ‘a nice safe cage’. Even after he bravely kills the pirate, the others soon boast that they are the brave ones, and …
CBSE 2024 board paper · 3 marks
In the poem ‘Amanda’, why does the poet use the famous fairy tale character, Rapunzel ? Explain.
(Amanda)
(Answer in 40 – 50 words.)
Show answer
(Content 2 – any two relevant points; Organisation 1)
Rapunzel was isolated in a tower. Amanda, tired of her mother’s constant nagging and instructions, imagines herself as Rapunzel because she wants to escape to a tower where she would be alone. She feels life there would be peaceful and tranquil, free from any interference – she would never let down her hair for anyone to climb up.
CBSE 2024 board paper · 3 marks
In one instance, Amanda considers herself to be an orphan. What connotation does it entail ?
(Amanda)
(Answer in 40 – 50 words.)
Show answer
(Content 2 – any two relevant points; Organisation 1)
To Amanda, an orphan is someone who is unmonitored and unsupervised. Tired of her mother’s constant nagging and instructions, she imagines herself to be an orphan roaming the street, drawing patterns in the dust with her bare feet. As an orphan she would have the peace and freedom she longs for – silence that is golden and freedom that is sweet.
