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Worksheet- Deep Water (2024-25)
Name: Date:
Grade: XII Subject: English

Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below.

1. Douglas imagined that on hitting the bottom , he would

a. Bob to the surface like a cork b. would come up to tab his water wings
c. would lie flat and float up d.shout for help
2. Yakima river was treacherous, because
a. it was deep b. it had whales
c. it was uneven d. it was unpredictable
3. After swimming across to the other shore of Warm Lake, Douglas shouted with joy and his
voice was returned as an echo by
a. Gilbert peak b. Everest peak
c. Alps d. Blue Mountain
4. Which of these incidents is similar to what the narrator of 'Deep Water' experienced with
swimming?
a. While on a hike with her brother, Rekha fell and scraped her knee. She considered this to
be a bad sign and decided never to go hiking again.
b. Ali ate at a restaurant that caused him to have food poisoning. He decided to lodge an
FIR against the restaurant and eventually tried to shut it down.
c. Sarah forgot to submit her homework and was scolded by the teacher for it. She never
attended that teacher's class again and eventually failed the subject.
d. Kavitha got stuck in an elevator at a mall and refused to ride an elevator for years after
the incident. Last week, she managed to get in an elevator with her friend's help for the first
time in five years.
5. Given below are four characteristics of autobiographical stories. Which of these aspects
CANNOT be applied to the text 'Deep Water'?
a. Events are centered on a lesson learned by the writer.
b. Events are focused more on facts than on emotions.
c. Events are written from a first-person perspective.
d. Events are arranged from childhood to adulthood.

6. The most appropriate justification for the title of the chapter ‘Deep Water’ is that
a. it's about the dangerous depth of the swimming pool.
b. It reveals the author’s lack of surety about overcoming his fear of swimming.
c. it underlines the author’s fear of water and how he overcomes it.
d. it includes the methods of the author’s coach to overcome the fear of deep water.

7. Choose the quote that DOES NOT resonate with the central idea of the chapter.

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 a. Option 1 b. Option 2 c. Option 3 d. Option 4
8. Samuel has a phobia of heights but is scared and can’t overcome it. Choose the option that
displays an advice.

A. Option 1 B. Option 2 C. Option 3 D. Option 4

9. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:

Thus, piece by piece, he built a swimmer. And when he had perfected each piece, he put them
together into an integrated whole. In April he said, "Now you can swim. Dive off and swim the
length of the pool, crawl stroke."
I did. The instructor was finished.
But I was not finished. I still wondered if I would be terror-stricken when I was alone in the pool. I
tried it. I swam the length up and down. Tiny vestiges of the old terror would return. But now I
could frown and say to that terror, "Trying to scare me, eh? Well, here's to you! Look!" And off I'd
go for another length of the pool.

i. . What led the narrator to believe that he was 'not finished'?

A. his childhood experience of swimming
B. his instructor's attitude towards his swimming
C. his insecurity over his ability to overcome fear
D. his motivation to overcome his newly-developed fear
ii. Which of these BEST describes the narrator's relationship with his fear?
A. hostile
B. evasive
C. indifferent
D. repressive
iii. Which of these BEST describes the contrast in the focus of the swimming instructor and the
narrator when it came to swimming?
A. While the former focused on the mechanics, the latter focused on the creativity involved.

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 B. While the former focused on the physical, the latter was more focused on the
psychological.
C. While the former focused on the practical, the latter was more focused on the theoretical
aspects.
D. While the former focused on casual learning, the latter focused on learning how to do it
competitively.
iv. The narrator mentions his conversations with fear in this story to emphasize the __________.
A. gaps in his skills as a swimmer
B. grip that fear of water still has on his life
C. improvement in his assurance as a swimmer
D. ease with which he forgot about his fear of swimming
v. The swimming instructor helped the narrator to regain his __________.
A. strength B. prosperity C. innocence D. confidence
10. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:

My breath was gone. I was frightened. Father laughed, but there was terror in my heart at the
overpowering force of the waves. My introduction to the Y.M.CA. swimming pool revived
unpleasant memories and stirred childish fears. But in a little while I gathered confidence. I
paddled with my new water wings, watching the other boys and trying to learn by aping them. I
did this two or three times on different days and was just beginning to feel at ease in the water
when the misadventure happened.

i. Choose the correct option with reference to the two statements given below.

Statement 1: The author’s father laughed to mock his son’s inability to swim.
Statement 2: The author wanted to swim just to prove to his father that he can swim.

A. Statement 1 is true but Statement 2 is false.

B. Statement 1 is false but Statement 2 is true.
C. Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 cannot be inferred.
D. Both Statement 1 and Statement 2 can be inferred.

ii. “My introduction to the Y.M.CA. swimming pool revived unpleasant memories and stirred
childish fears.” It can be inferred that this was a clear case of
A. suppression B. oppression C. depression D. repression

iii. The misadventure that took place right after the author felt comfortable was that
A. the author slipped and fell into the swimming pool.
B. a bully tossed him into the pool for the sake of fun.
C. his coach forgot to teach him how to handle deep water.
D. his father couldn’t help him from drowning into the water.
iv. Choose the option that describes the equipment used by the author while learning to swim.

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 A. Option 1 C. Option 3
B. Option 2 D. Option 4
11. Read the given extract and answer the questions that follow:

Then all effort ceased. I relaxed. Even my legs felt limp; and a blackness swept over my brain. It
wiped out fear; it wiped out terror. There was no more panic. It was quiet and peaceful. Nothing
to be afraid of. This is nice... to be drowsy... to go to sleep... no need to jump... too tired to jump...
it’s nice to be carried gently... to float along in space... tender arms around me... tender arms like
Mother’s... now I must go to sleep... I crossed to oblivion, and the curtain of life fell.

i. Choose the correct option with reference to the two statements given below.

Statement 1: The author tried his best to jump out of water.

Statement 2: After a while, the author was not anxious in water.

A. If Statement 1 is the cause, Statement 2 is the effect.

B. If Statement 1 is the effect, Statement 2 is the cause.
C. Both the statements are the effects of a common cause.
D. Both the statements are the effects of independent causes.

ii. The ‘curtain (of life) fell’ corresponds to an aspect of

A. Geometry. B. History. C. Sports. D. Drama.
iii. The purpose of using “…” in the above passage is to
A. show omission. B. indicate pauses. C. shorten a dialogue. D. replace an idea.
iv. Which option indicates that the poet lost consciousness?
A. ‘It was quiet and peaceful.’ B. ‘I crossed to oblivion.’
C. ‘Tender arms like Mother’s.’ D. ‘It wiped out fear.

Answer the following questions in 30 -40 words.

1. Father laughed, but there was terror in my heart at the overpowering force of the waves.
Why did the narrator and his father have such contrasting emotions here? Explain with
reference to the story ‘Deep Water’?
2. Douglas create sensory details to create a vivid image of the unfortunate experience in the
pool. What might be the impact on the reader if the narration were more informative than
sensory?
3. Seemingly very small everyday wins are actually the greatest learnings of life. Comment
on the statement with reference to the chaper ‘Deep Water’.
4. ‘Al we have to fear is fear itself.’ When did Douglas learn this lesson?
5. Ironicall Douglas’s mother thought that YMCA pool was safe for learning to swim. What
are your views?

Answer the following questions in about 120-150 words.

1. Courage is not the absence of fear but the triumph over it. Comment on the statement with
reference to the text ‘Deep Water’. State two ways in which the narrator strives to overcome
his fear.
2. Describe and elucidate both the physical and emotional impacts that the misadventure at
the YMCA pool had on the narrator.
3. Douglas ‘ mother writes to YMCA authorities holding the accountable for the mishap as
well as demanding that authorities employ a team of guards near the pool for supervision
of the children. As the mother, write a letter to the authorities with reference to the case of
your son.
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