The Browning Version, Explanation, Line by Line, Meaning of Difficult Words, English CBSE Class 11 NCERT Hornbill Chapter 6

 The Browning Version, Explanation, Line by Line, Meaning of Difficult Words, English CBSE Class 11 NCERT Hornbill Chapter 6

THE BROWNING VERSION

(Explanation and Meaning of difficult words)

Author – Terence Rattigan

Remove	Division or grade in school exam.
Slackers	Those who get less marks
Muck	Boring, Dirty
Kept in	Made to overstay in  school as punishment
Got carried away	To do or say something without control
Cut	To end, To discontinue
Sadist	One who likes to trouble others
Shrivelled up	Dried, Not having any feelings

 

Word	Meaning
Excerpt	Part, Extract, Section
Masters	Teachers

This play is a part taken from the ‘The Browning Version’ which is a translation of Greek play ‘Agamemnon’. The scene is of a school. Frank and Crocker-Harris are two teachers of the school. Taplow is a student who is 16 yrs. He had come to the school to do some extra work assigned by Crocker-Harris. But this teacher had not yet come to the school. Another teacher Frank notices that Taplow is waiting.

 

Frank asks Taplow if he knows Taplow. He denies it. Taplow tells him his name. Frank says that he does not know Taplow. Frank asks Taplow if he is a student of science stream.

 

 

 

Word	Meaning
Remove	Division or grade in school exam.

Taplow explains that he is still in lower fifth standard. He can take the specialized stream next year if he gets good grade in the exam. Frank asks him what grade he had got. Taplow replies that his teacher Crocker-Harris has not informed the grade. The teacher has not declared result while other teachers have announced. Frank asks why result has not been announced.

 

 

Taplow replies that it the habit of Crocker-Harris. Frank explains that it is rule that only the headmaster can announce the result. And it should be announced on the last day of the session. Taplow replies only Crocker-Harris follows this rule. All other teachers have announced the result.

 

 

 

Word	Meaning
Admit	Accept
Criterion	Standard, Basis

Frank says he does not follow this rule. He accepts that this is not a strict rule. So Taplow needs to wait till tomorrow to know his result. Franks asks if Taplow gets good marks, which stream he will select. Taplow replies that he would certainly select science.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Slackers	Students getting less marks, Lazy students
Protestingly	With objections

With sorrow, Frank says that he gets student who get less marks. Taplow says with some objection that he is very much interested in science. Franks says that he is not interested in teaching science.

 

 

 

Word	Meaning
A good deal more	Much better
Muck	Boring, Dirty,
Aeschylus	A writer of Greece
Agamemnon	He was a king in Greece

Taplow says that science would certainly be better that this boring book. Taplow says that name of the book is The Agamemnon written by Aeschylus.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Considered view	Thoughtful opinion
Strung together	Combined together

Frank asks if it was a well thought opinion of Taplow about the book. Taplow clarifies that the play is not so bad – a wife murders her husband. The method of teaching is bad. Lot of Greek words are combined together. If we understand these words incorrectly, we are asked to write fifty times.

 

 

 

Word	Meaning
Bitter	Acerbic, Unhappy
Kept in	Made to overstay in school as punishment

Franks say that Taplow is sounding a bit unhappy. Taplow agrees. Franks asks if Taplow has been given punishment to stay after school hours. Taplow clarifies that he is in the school to do some extra studies. Frank is surprised because it was the last day of the school.

 

 

Taplow agrees that he would have liked to play golf in this time. Because Crocker-Harris is going out of station tomorrow, he too must be busy today. But I had missed one class last week because I was sick. So I am here to learn that lesson. Weather is really good today.

 

Frank considers it a bad luck for Taplow to do extra work. Frank thinks that Taplow is doing extra study, so he should be certain of getting good grades tomorrow.

 

 

Taplow is not sure about it. He says that such rules apply to ordinary teachers. They will give good grades to a student for doing extra work. But this rule does not apply to Mr. Crocker-Harris. Yesterday I had directly asked him what grade he would me. Do you know what his answer was?

 

 

 

Word	Meaning
Imitating	Copying
Throaty voice	A rough voice, A heavy voice
Breaks off quickly	Suddenly stops
Gone too far	To do something that is not allowed, Exceed limits

Frank asks what did the other teacher say? Taplove tries to copy the heavy voice of Mr. Crocker-Harris. Mr. Harris had informed Taplow that he had given Taplow as many marks as he deserved. He has not given more marks. He has not less marks either. Taplow thinks that Mr Harris has given him less marks. Taplow thinks that teacher is not a good human being. He suddenly stops speaking. He then says that probably he is not allowed to speak such things.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Much too far	Large extent
Got carried away	To do or say without control
Evidently	Clearly

Franks says that Taplow has exceeded his limits by a large extent. Taplow request to pardon him and says that he could not control himself. Franks asks Taplow to repeat what Mr. Harris had told him.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Severe	Harsh

Taplow again repeats what Mr. Harris had told him. Frank harshly says that Mr. Harris normally does not utter such words. He advises Taplow to read Aeschylus and to remain silent. Taplow is surprised.

 

 

 

Word	Meaning
Cut	To end, To discontinue

Frank asks what time Mr. Harris was to come there. Taplow replies that he was to come at six-thirty. Frank says that Harris is already late by 10 minutes. He suggests Taplow to stop waiting for Mr. Harris and to go. He says Taplow may be able to play golf before the ground is closed.

 

 

Taplow is shocked to listen to the advice of Frank. He says that he cannot even think of avoiding Mr. Crocker-Harris. He has never done it before. Anything may happen if he does now. Perhaps he will come to my house.

Taplow is really afraid of Mr. Harris.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Admit	Accept
Envy	To be jealous
In the form	In the class
Scared to death	Highly scared

Frank accepts that he is jealous of the impact Mr. Harris has on students of his class. You all are perhaps highly scared of him. Does he beat you all students.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Sadist	One who likes to trouble others

Taplow denies that Mr. Harris ever beats his students. He does not give trouble or pain to others. Frank is surprised. He says that Taplow had talked that some other teachers trouble students.

 

 

 

Taplow says that some other teachers are certainly sadists. I do not want to name them. You also know their names. Most teachers think that students do not understand anything. But you are different. You are relatively young. You are a teacher of science so you know what sadism is.

Frank does not speak for a while. Then he says that our school is certainly changing.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Frightening	Fearful
Shrivelled up	Dried, Not having any feelings

Taplow again confirms that in his opinion Mr. Crock is not a sadist. If he were a sadist, we would not be so afraid of him. We will know that he has some feelings. But he does not have any feelings. He does want that people should like him. Every other teacher wants being liked by people.

 

 

Frank says that it applied for each student also. Meaning that every student also wants beings liked. Taplow agrees. He says it is funny that he still likes Mr. Harris. He thinks that Mr. Harris also knows about it. This further reduces feelings of Mr. Harris. He becomes more dry.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Exaggerating	Boasting, Represent disproportionately

Franks says that he is sure that Taplow is making it look larger. Taplow denies it. One day Mr. Harris cracked a joke in the class. Nobody understood it. But I knew that we were supposed to laugh. I was feeling sorry about him. So I laughed. I wanted to be polite to him. Suppose I tell the same joke will you laugh? Frank starts laughing.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Gentle	Polite, Slow
Confess	Accept
Advance	Progress

Taplow tries to copy the style of Mr. Crocker in a slow and heavy voice. You laughed at my joke. I am happy at the progress of your knowledge of Latin language. The class did not understand the joke but you quickly understood the joke. You should now explain to the class so that they can also become happy.

 

 

Word	Meaning
General run	General trend
Cape	A short coat, Ponchoo
Screen	Notice board, Screen of a TV

The door towards right opens. Millie Crocker-Harris enters. She is a thin woman. She is smartly dressed. More smartly than wives of school teachers would generally be dressed. She is wearing a poncho and carrying a basket. She closes the door and stands near the notice board. She is watching Frank and Taplow. After few seconds they notice her.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Come along	An expression to motivate
Infinitely relieved	Greatly happy

Franks slowly moves near the desk and tries to motivate Taplow to tell the joke. He suddenly stops speaking after noticing Millie. Frank turns back and appears to be very happy to see Millie.

 

 

Frank and Millie exchange greetings. Millie comes to side table and puts her basket on it. Taplow comes near Frank and asks if Millie could hear him.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Comfortingly	Confidently, Not worrying about anything

Frank shakes his head confidently. Millie has removed her poncho. She hangs it on the stand. Frank says that she had heard their discussion. Because she had been standing there for some time. Taplow is now worried. If she tells their discussion to Mr. Crocker, he may lose his grade. Franks comes near the fireplace and says that Taplow is thinking wrong.

 

 

Millie shifts his basket from side table to the main table. Millie asks Taplow if he was waiting for her husband. Talpow agrees. Millie says that her husband is at the shop of Bursar and he will come after sometime. If I were in your place I would have gone home. Taplow has a doubt that his teacher would come late. He says that Mr. Crocker had asked him to come.

 

 

Millie advises Taplow to go away from there for about 15 minutes and then come back. She removes something from the basket. Taplow asks what will happen if Mr. Crocker comes there before Taplow returns.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Take the blame	Become responsible
Chemist	Person at medicine shop
Get it made	Purchase

Millie smiles and says that she will be held responsible. She takes out a prescription from her basket. She requests  Taplow to do a work for Mr. Crocker. She asked him to go to a medical shop and buy medicines. Taplow agrees and goes out from the door of right side.

****

 

 

CHILDHOOD

(Explanation)

Poet- Markus Natten

Word	Meaning
Ceased	Stopped
Poetic Devices
Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven	Alliteration
Was it the time I realised that Hell and Heaven	Alliteration
Was that the day!	Alliteration

The poet asks himself when I lost my childhood. Did I lose it when my age was more than 11 years. Or did I lose my childhood when I understood that hell and heaven existed. Meaning when I became mature. But I could not find Hell and Heaven in the books of geography. Therefore I understood that Hell and Heaven did not exist. Did I lose my childhood on that day?

Poet has realised that he has lost his childhood. During the hustle and bustle of life he is not able to recollect when he lost his childhood. He makes certain guess but he is not sure.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Preached	Supported, Advocated
Poetic Devices
They talked of love and preached of love	Repetition

The poet asks himself when I lost my childhood. Did I lose when I understood that adults are not as truthful as they appear to be? They talk about love, affection and advise others to love each other. But they themselves do not act with love. Did I lose my childhood on that day?

The poet continues to make guess about loss of childhood. During his life he had understood that adults always do not speak truth. They may advocate something but may do otherwise. This realization is very painful to him.

 

 

Poetic Devices
Was it when I found my mind was really mine,	Alliteration
Was it when I found my mind was really mine,	Repetition
To use whichever way I choose,	Alliteration
But my own, and mine alone	Alliteration

The poet asks himself when I lost my childhood. Did I lose my childhood when I realised that I could think on my own. I had the freedom to use my mind as per my wish. Thus thoughts of mind were different from that of others. These were my own thoughts. Did I lose my childhood on that day?

Poet is denoting generation of his own thoughts as a sign of maturity. He is wondering if having one’s own thoughts is equal to leaving one’s childhood. Is having a different thought process a sign of maturity. He is not able to find answer to his own question.

 

 

Word	Meaning
Infant	Very small child

The poet asks himself where I lost my childhood. He thinks it is lost at some place that he has forgotten. He thinks that his childhood is lost in the innocent face of an infant. This is all he can remember.

Poet wants to say that he has lost his childhood and it is not possible to find it again. He had the childhood till he was a small child and was innocent. As he grew and became more conscious and matured, he has lost his carefree days of childhood. He wants to regain his childhood days but he cannot.

 

 

****