English XII Ch  6 The World As I See It SQ & Notes FSc FA ICS ICom Karachi Sindh

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Q1. What is his belief concerning the immortality of the soul?

Answer: With respect to the concept of the immortality of the soul, the great scientist and mathematician of our time firmly believe in the existence of God. He says that the experience of mystery is the base of true art, true science and true religion. He further illuminates the idea that whatever progress science has made so far is just due to the curious nature of mankind to unleash the secret and mysteries of the world. For Einstein, the true religious attitude is the knowledge of something that is beyond our understanding. Although he owns Jewish beliefs and attitudes, he truly believes in the mystery of the eternity of life.

Q2. What does he appear to regard as the most precious element in human experience?

Answer: According to the viewpoint of Einstein, the most precious element in human experience is the curious and inquisitive nature of mankind. Human beings must be crowned for making extensive discoveries and explorations in order to know this world well. It is this basic emotion that motivates and assists man to know the facts about the unknown world to them. This thirst of knowledge has given vigor to humans to go and explore far off planets and moon too. He further says that without the existence of this basic emotion man is as good as dead and it is just equivalent to a snuffed-out candle.

Q3. What forces does he blame for the persistence of war?

Answer: The forces which are blamed by Einstein for the persistence of war depends on the sound sense of the nations not been systematically corrupted by commercial and political interest acting through the schools and the Press.

Q4. What is his attitude to war?

Answer: Albert Einstein is that person who opposes war at length. He considers war a mean, contemptible thing. He is always against the concept of war and condemns it to such an extent that he gives preference to the act of chopping his whole body into pieces rather than taking part in the war and being a witness of blood, destruction, tears, and fears of the masses all around.

Q5. What example does he give of service by the State to the individual?

Answer: Being a democratic personality, Einstein always supports democratic system in the society. He gives an excellent example of service by the State to the individual that let every man be respected as an individual and no man idolized. He further put emphasis on the system of United States of America that it is a system that is providing security and provisions to each and every citizen of its land. He is in the favor of such a government where extensive works have been done for providing complete security to the people along with the true sense of relief to the individuals in case of any emergency, misfortune or need.

Q6. On what grounds does Einstein put the individual before the State?

Answer: Einstein gives more weightage to the power of individuals as compared to the State. He believes it is the strength and vigor of the creative, genius minds of the individuals that alone has the ability to build noble nationals and thus inspirational nations. On the other hand, he is of the opinion that the herd as such remains dull both in thought feeling. No one can ever expect any great success and genuine creations from them.

Q7. What, in brief, is Einstein’s attitude to leadership?

Answer: Einstein is a staunch supporter of political freedom to each and every individual of the society. He is of the opinion that everyone should be free enough to select their leaders according to their own will and choice. He himself is a Democrat and thus democracy in every field of life including leadership. According to him, leadership should not be imposed on the masses because force only attracts people having low mentality and morality as well.

Q8. What are the insecure foundations referred to at the end of the last sentence of the fourth paragraph?

Answer: Mutual understanding and sympathy are the insecure foundations referred to at the end of the last sentence of the fourth paragraph by Einstein. He is of the opinion that a person who is largely independent of the opinions, habits, and judgments of his fellows and avoids the temptation to take his stand on such insecure foundations. This is because he believes that such a person might lose something on his way of hospitability and cheerfulness.

Q9. What is his attitude to properly, outward success and luxury?

Answer: Albert Einstein shows extreme hatred towards the materialistic commodities of modern life including property, outward success, and luxury. In his point of view, these all things have nothing to do with the inner satisfaction and real happiness of mankind. His ideals of living a comfortable, successful life depend on Truth, Goodness, and Beauty. These things are of worth and value in the eyes of the great mathematician. He always has a sense of disgrace to property, outward success, and luxury. Rather than he is of the opinion that plain living is a true source for the recreation of body and freshness of mind.

Q10. What leads Einstein to feel a strong sense of duty towards his fellow-men?

Answer: Einstein feels a strong sense of duty towards his fellow-men as he believes that his inner and outer life depends on the labor and hard work of other men that’s why he wants to serve them in the same equivalent way as they have served him. Furthermore, he mentions that we all depend on others for our survival or well-being and thus it is our duty and responsibility to give respect to one other.

Composition

Write an essay of between 350 and 400 words on one of the following subjects.

1. A Muslim’s reactions to Einstein’s statements of his personal beliefs.
2. ‘Plain living is good for everybody, mentally and physically’.
3. The personality of Einstein as revealed in The World as I see It.

1. A Muslim’s Reactions to Einstein’s Statements of his Personal Beliefs

Every one of us is free to hold opinions and beliefs about different people, events, happenings, religions, culture etc. Sometimes others react to our opinions and beliefs either pessimistically or optimistically.

The statements that were put forward by Einstein in his book “The world as I see it” regarding his personal beliefs are vital in generating reactions from both the Muslim and Western worlds.

Although Einstein belonged to a Jewish family and owe Jewish beliefs and attitudes but still his beliefs are more in accordance with the Islamic teachings and principles. Due to this, the Muslim community reacts positively towards Einstein’s statements of personal beliefs.

The first and the foremost personal belief of Einstein with respect to social justice and responsibility are in complete accordance to Islamic principle of equality, brotherhood (Masawa’at) and justice.

Next, he believed in the ever-green system of man dependency on another man for better social survival. According to him, no one can survive alone and every individual has to give something good or bad to any other individual.

He was against the concept of war as it is also forbidden in Islam. It showed his extreme contempt towards a war that’s why he said that he would prefer to be chopped off rather than being a part of any kind of war.

At one point in his book, he reflected his belief with respect to worldly success and materialistic approach of people towards that by saying “The ordinary objects of human endeavor – property, outward success, luxury – have always seemed to me contemptible.” Again this belief of Einstein is appreciated by Muslims as this concept is truly given by Islam so to lead a simple life without the lust for power, money or luxury.

Democracy was advocated by Einstein being a true democratic scientist of the twentieth century. He believed that every individual should have the right of freedom and that it must be given by the state and enjoyed by the citizens in all forms. It’s the same attitude that was promoted by the Prophet of Arabia (P.B.U.H) some 1, 400 years before.

In a nutshell, it must be concluded that even having strong Jewish beliefs at one time in his life, Einstein holds a firm belief in the teachings of Islam which are reflected in the statements given by Einstein in his book.

2. ‘Plain Living is Good for Everybody, Mentally and Physically’.

The lifestyle of a person not only depends on his financial status but sometimes rests on his religious beliefs and family background. Plain living doesn’t mean a living without comfort or ease. It simply means a life without mental stress and physical complaint.

The plainer a life is lead, the less we have to be answerable in front of Allah at the Day of Judgment for the misuse of nature’s blessings and worldly things.

Being a Muslim, the best example of a plain living is of Hazrat Mohammad (P.B.U.H). He led his life in a very simple way without any comfort or even sufficient necessities of life. Although he belongs to one of the influential families of Arab still He (P.B.U.H) had no big palace, no bed, not much food, and no luxuries of life. Still, he performed his duties and responsibilities not only well but beyond expectations of a layman.

If an individual is having a plain living, it means he is free from any lust or greed for worldly things. This means that he is safe from the germs of jealousy and avarice and this attitude of him would surely help in being safe from the punishment by Allah in the life hereafter, when a person has a materialistic approach to life then he has a desire to get money and grab all the luxuries of life by hook or crook. In order to satisfy this hunger, sometimes people get themselves involved in such activities that are illegal and a sort of crime like theft, robbery, bribery.

Coming towards the advantages of plain living for physical strength, it means that you have to spend less on the food you eat. According to the teachings of Islam and our Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H) the less you eat, the more you can enjoy good health. Definitely, if you are living a plain life then you are not an easy catch for various diseases of the present times to attack that is the outcome of excessive eating like obesity, stress, diabetes, cholesterol etc. If you are healthy, it means you are mentally sound and physically strong to cope up with all the hardships and stresses of life.

In a nutshell, it can be concluded that plain living is an asset of life. The one who understands and adopts it gets the benefits here and in the life hereafter as well.

3. The Personality of Einstein as Revealed in The World as I see it.

Albert Einstein, a great personality of the twentieth century stands out in the world of science and mathematics as a physicist, scientist, and mathematician. He wrote a book that was published in 1949 with the title of “The World as I see it.” It is a composition of articles, addresses, letters, interviews, and pronouncements. This book is a great asset in understanding the hidden personality traits of Albert Einstein. It throws extensive light on the opinions of the great physicist about the meaning of life, ethics, science, society, religion, and politics.

The first and the foremost trait that is the true reflection of Einstein is the value given by him to mankind. He believes that each and every individual is dependent on one another and is linked through an unseen thread of humanity.

He was of the opinion that freedom is the right of each and every individual of the society. He had a desire to see a nation where freedom, provisions, health, and education should be available for all without any discrimination.

Albert Einstein was a man who openly rejected and degraded the ideals of possessions, outward success and luxury. This represents his personality as of a man who always had a desire to live a plain, simple kind of life without any comforts, luxury or materialistic desires to run after.

He entitled himself as a ‘lone traveler’ meaning by that he loves solitude and never tied himself with the strong bonds of family, home, country, friends or community.

Einstein was a true supporter of social justice and social responsibility. He was totally against the concept or need of war. This shows him a ‘peace-lover’ individual. He considered war ‘a mean and contemptible thing.’

The seeds of democracy were there in the blood and soul of Albert Einstein. He was of the opinion that every individual of a community must be respected and honored equally without any kind of prejudice. This quality of him presented Einstein as a true advocate of equality of mankind.

Although he was a Jew owing Jewish religious beliefs but he still strongly believed in the concept of ‘eternity of life’.

That’s not all; his personality can truly be judged by focusing on just the use of three beautiful words uttered by Einstein i.e. Truth, Beauty, and Kindness. These words represented Einstein as a person of calm nerves, gentle nature, exquisite sense of beauty and optimism.

Summarize the following passage in not more than 75 words:

There is a public library in every town in Great Britain. There are branch libraries in most villages. Anyone may become a member and it costs nothing to borrow books. Three books may be borrowed at a time, but only two may be novels. If there are four persons in the family, they can, between them, take home twelve books. These books can be kept for a fortnight, so there is no difficulty in providing the family with all the reading that is needed. If, at the end of the fortnight, you have not finished reading a hook you may renew it for another fortnight. If the book you want is out, you may ask for it to be kept for you. and if you pay the cost of a postcard, the librarian will let you know when the book has been returned and is ready for you.

Most public libraries also have a reading room and a reference library. In the reading room, there are tables and desks at which you can sit and read the daily papers and all the other important periodicals (the weeklies, monthlies and quarterlies). In the reference library there are encyclopedias, dictionaries, atlases and numerous other books. These may not be taken away.

Answer:

Both towns and villages of Great Britain have public libraries. One can borrow three books at a time without any membership cost. A family of four persons can get twelve books for a fortnight. If any of the books is not finished till fortnight, it can be renewed. If the book is not available, you can ask someone there to keep it for you. Reading room and reference library are available at most public libraries.

Translate the following sentences into Urdu or Sindhi:

1. The college has extensive playing fields.
2. We were sorry to leave Lahore because we had many friends there.
3. When will you have lunch?
4. I think the children ought to have a sleep this afternoon.
5. I was having a cup of lea when he knocked on the door.
6. Have you had any letters by this morning’s post?
7. He had a pain in his back.
8. We have just had a great disappointment.
9. The librarian is going to have all these book-cases replaced.
10. The students had an essay to write.
11. I shall have to get up early tomorrow morning.
12. Did you have to take a taxi when you came here?
13. He has had to buy a new set of tyres for his car.
14. He would like to have a job in the same office as his brother.
15. I had no chance to meet him when he made his brief visit to our college.
16. Will you have time to pay us a visit next week?
17. What reasons have you for distrusting him?
18. He had a peculiar feeling that he was being watched.
19. These mountain people have great powers of endurance.
20. He was so ill that he scarcely had enough strength to walk across the room.