Nelson Mandela A long Walk to Freedom | English | Class 10th

  

 Nelson Mandela : A long walk to Freedom

Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela

# Summary

This chapter is an extract from the autobiography of Nelson Mandela (born- 18 July 1918), the first Black President of South Africa. It begins with the description of their inaugural ceremony which took place on the 10th of May 1994 where the entire nation along with many international leaders embraced the victory of a new and fairly elected government. It involved speeches by the President and the two Deputy Presidents followed by an impressive air show of fighter jets and helicopters. Long ago, in the first decade of the twentieth century, white supremacy introduced the system of apartheid and made life a living hell for the dark-skinned population. It gave rise to one of the most inhumane societies in the world. Many people have struggled and sacrificed for basic human rights. The author expressed his desire to thank all those freedom fighters who couldn’t live to see this autumn day. He referred to the citizens as the greatest asset of the country. It is these people he gathered his courage from. Mandela believes that courageous is not the fearless man, but the man who has overcome fear. He also mentioned the two responsibilities every human has and how to fulfill his obligation towards society, his obligation towards his family was neglected. He became a man of people when he realized that the idea of freedom was an illusion for him and people like him. It was then he joined the African National Congress and fought for his rights till he became the first black President of the nation. According to him, the oppressor is as much a prisoner as the oppressed. As soon as the former robs the oppressed of their freedom he, himself gets robbed of his humanity. Thus, the oppressor too is not free.

# Important Extra Questions

Question 1.
The policy of apartheid created a deep and lasting wound in my country and my people. All of us will spend many years, if not generations, recovering from that profound hurt. But the decades of oppression and brutality had another, unintended effect and that was that it produced the Oliver Tambos, the Walter Sisulus, the Chief Luthulis, etc., men of such extraordinary courage, wisdom and generosity that their like may never be known again. (1×4=4)
(a) Whom does ‘my’ refer to in the passage ?
(b) Name two persons of extraordinary courage, wisdom and generosity mentioned in the passage ?
(c) Trace a word from the passage which means the same as ‘a period of ten years’.
(d) What created a lasting wound in Nelson’s country ?
Answer:
(a) ‘My’ refers to the narrator i.e., Nelson Mandela.
(b) Oliver Tambos and Lithulis are the two people of extraordinary courage, wisdom and generosity in the passage.
(c) The word ‘Decade’ means ‘a period of ten years’.
(d) The policy of apartheid.

Question 2.
(No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin or his background or his religion. People must learn to hate and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite. Even in the grimmest times in prison, When my comrades and 1 were pushed to our limits, 1 would see a glimmer of humanity in one of the guards, perhaps just for a second, but it was enough to reassure me and keep me going. Man’s goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished.) (1×4=4)
(a) Why is it easy to learn to love ?
(b) What was the opinion of Mandela about the man’s goodness ?
(c) Trace a word from the passage that means “severe”.
(d) What is a flame in the passage.
Answer:
(a) It is easy to learn to love because love comes more naturally to human heart than any other emotion.
(b) Mandela opinioned that Man’s goodness is a flame that can be hidden, but never extinguished.
(c) ‘Grimmest’ means ‘severe’.
(d) Man’s goodness

Question 3.
“We have at last, achieved our political emancipation”. We pledge ourselves to liberate all our people from the- continuing bondage of poverty, deprivation, suffering, gender and other discrimination. (1×4=4)
(a) Who is the speaker ?
(b) What pledge does he take ?
(c) Which word is the noun form of ’emancipate’ ?
(d) What has the speaker achieved ?
Answer:
(a) Nelson Mandela is the speaker.
(b) He takes a pledge to liberate all his people from exploitation, suffering and discrimination.
(c) The noun form of ’emancipate’ is ’emancipation’.
(d) Political emancipation.

Question 4.
Tenth May dawned bright and clear. For the past few days, I had been pleasantly besieged by dignitaries and world leaders who were coming to pay their respects before the inauguration. The inauguration would be the largest gathering ever of international leaders on South African soil. The ceremonies took place in the lovely sandstone amphitheatre formed by the Union Buildings in Pretoria. For decades this had been the seat of white supremacy, and now it was the site of a rainbow gathering of different colours and nations for the installation of South Africa’s first democratic, non-ihcial government. (1×4=4)
(a) What is the significance of tenth May ?
(b) What are the ceremonies referred to here ?
(c) Which word in the passage means the same as ‘placement of person in office with ceremony’ ?
(d) Where did the ceremonies take place ?
Answer:
(a) The tenth of May was the day for the installation of South Africa’s first democratic, non-racial government.
(b) The ceremonies’ refer to the inauguration ceremony of the first democratic, non-racial government in South Africa.
(c) ‘Installation’ means the ‘placement of a person in office with ceremony’.
(d) Sandstone amphitheatre

Question 5.
‘Perhaps it requires such depths of oppression to create such heights of character. My country is rich in the minerals and gems that lie beneath its soil, but I have always known that its greatest wealth is its people, finer and truer than the purest diamonds’. (1×4=4)
(a) Whose country is referred here ?
(b) What is a country’s greatest wealth ?
(c) Mention the figure of speech used in the above extract.
(d) Mention the valuable stone in the passage ?
Answer:
(a) Nelson Mandela’s country is referred here
(b) The country’s greatest wealth is its people.
(c) Simile.
(d) Gems

Question 1.

What did ‘being free’ men to Mandela as a boy and as a student ? [Board Term-1 2016-17 Set-B09VSNP] [NCERT]
Answer:
As a boy ‘being free, meant to Nelson Mandela to wander free in fields, to swim freely, to run through the village. As a student to stay out night, to read what he pleased and to go where he chose.

Question 2.
Why is 10th May, 1994 important for South Africa ? [Board Term I, DDE-2014, 2012; Set-EL2 – 043] [NCERT]
Answer:
10th May, 1994 is important for South Africa as the inaugural oath taking ceremony of Nelson Mandela and his colleagues took place on this day. Nelson Mandela became the first black President of South Africa after three centuries of white rule.

Question 3.
What are the twin obligations Nelson Mandela talks about in his speech ? [Board Term I, 2012; Set-EL2 – 070] [NCERT]
Answer:
According to Nelson Mandela every man has twin obligations—one is towards his family and the other is towards his people and his country.

Question 4.
What is the dream of Nelson Mandela for the future of South Africa ? [Board Term I, 2012; Set-EL2 – 018]
Answer:
Mandela dreamt that his country should be free from poverty and discrimination. No country man should be oppressed on the basis of colour and creed.

Question 5.
What pained Nelson Mandela on becoming the President of South Africa ? [Board Term I, 2012; Set-EL2 – 031]
Answer:
Mandela was pained by his inability to thank his comrades who were unable to see what their sacrifices had brought.

Question 6.
Why did Nelson Mandela said, “The oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity.” [Board Term I, 2012; Set-EL2 – 063] [NCERT]
Answer:
Nelson Mandela said so because the oppressed were robbed, when they suffered all that was against humanity and the oppressor had to kill the good human being within himself before doing anything cruel to the other person.

Question 7.
How does Nelson Mandela define the meaning of ‘courage’ and ‘the brave man’ ? [Board Term I, 2012; Set-EL2 – 022] [NCERT]
Answer:
According to Nelson Mandela, courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. In the same way, the brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.

Question 8.
What Mandela meant when he is simply the sum of all those African patriots who had gone before him? [NCERT]
Answer:
Nelson Mandela was a patriot. Like all other patriots, he felt the need of political independence and also underwent tortures by the whites of his own country. He included three persons in his list who were role model for him.

Long Answer Type Questions (100-120 words & 8 marks each)

Question 1.
How did the desire for the freedom of his people change Nelson Mandela’s life ?
Answer:
The desire for the freedom of his people totally animated Nelson Mandela’s life. He was transformed from a frightened young man to a bold one. The desire turned a law abiding attorney to a criminal. A family- loving husband was turned into a man without a home, changed a life-loving man into a monk. Mandela was no more virtuous as self sacrificing, but he could not even enjoy poor and limited freedom. He felt himself robbed when he came to know that his people were not free. He felt that the slavery of his people was slavery of his own.

Question 2.
How did Nelson Mandela describe the scene of the inauguration ?
Answer:
Nelson Mandela described the scene of inauguration jubilantly. It took place on the bright and clear day, the 10th of May in Sandstone amphitheatre. Many world leaders and great personalities were present there. He had gone there with his daughter Zenani. At first Mr. De Klerk was sworn in as second deputy president on the podium, then the Thabo Mbeki as first deputy president and after that Mandela was sworn in. This ceremony was held to declare Nelson Mandela as the first black president of South Africa: Finally the jets left off smoke of different colours of the new South African flag. The day was symbolised by the playing of two national anthems. Nelson Mandela was over-whelmed.

Value Based Question

Question 1.
What is the policy of Apartheid ? What was its impact on the blacks ?
Answer:
The racial discrimination by whites against blacks in South Africa was termed as the policy of Apartheid. The blacks were deprived of their rights. They had no freedom for education or entertainment of their choice. The blacks were tortured and so suffered badly at the hands of the whites. They faced oppression and brutality. It created a deep and lasting wound in his country and its people. It would take generations to recover from that profound wound.

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