Ch. 2 The Nationalist Movement In Indo-China Questions and Answers

-

[N.C.E.R.T. Solutions]

[Write in Brief]

Q. Write a note on:

 a) What was meant by the 'civilising mission' of the colonisers

A. a) ・'Civilising mission' was an idea which claimed that the colonisers like the French, were bringing modern civilisation to colonies like Vietnam.

・The colonisers took for granted that Europe had developed the most advanced civilisation.

・Thus it became the duty of the Europeans to introduce modern ideas to the colony even if it meant destroying local cultures, religions and traditions because these were seen as outdated and prevented modern development.
b) Huynh Phu So

b) ・Huynh Phu So was the founder of the Hoa Hao movement.

・He performed miracles and helped the poor. His criticism against useless expenditure also had a wide appeal. He was also against the sale of child brides, gambling and the use of opium and alcohol.

・The French tried to suppress his movement and declared him mad, called him a 'Mad Bonze' and put him in a mental asylum. 

・The doctor who had to prove him mad became his follower and finally in 1941, even the French doctors declared him sane.

・The French authorities exiled him to Laos and sent many of his followers to concentration camps.

Q. Explain the following:

 a) Only one-third of the students in Vietnam would pass in the school leaving examination.

A. a)・The Vietnamese school students who learnt French and acquired French culture were awarded French citizenship.

・However, only the Vietnamese elite, comprising a small fraction of the population could enrol in schools and only a few among those ultimately passed the school leaving examination.

・This was largely because of a deliberate policy of failing students, particularly in the final year, so that they could not qualify for better-paid jobs.

・Usually as many as two-thirds of the students failed. In 1925, in a population of 17 million, there were less than 400 who passed the examination.
b) The French began building canals and draining lands in the Mekong delta.

b)・The French began building canals and draining lands in the Mekong delta to increase cultivation.

・The vast system of irrigation works- canals and earthworks, built mainly with forced labour, increased rice production and allowed the export of rice to the international market.

・The area under rice cultivation went up from 2,74,000 hectares in 1873 to 1.1 million hectares in 1903 and to 2.2 million in 1930.

・Vietnam exported two-thirds of its rice production and by 1931 had become the third largest exporter of rice in the world.
c) The government mad the Saigon Native Girls School take back the students it had expelled.

 c)・In 1926, a major protest erupted in the Saigon Native Girls School.

 ・A Vietnamese girl sitting in one of the front seats was asked to move to the back of the class and allow a local French student to occupy the front bench. She refused.

 ・The principal, also a colon, expelled her. When angry students protested, they too were expelled, leading to a further spread of protests.

 ・Seeing the situation getting out of control, the government forced the school to take the students back. 

 ・The principal reluctantly agreed but threatened the students.
d) Rats were the most common in the modern, newly built areas of Hanoi.

 d)・The French part of Hanoi was built as a beautiful and clean city with wide avenues and a well laid out sewer system, while the 'native quarter' was not provided with any modern facilities.

 ・The refuse from the old city drained straight out into the river or, during heavy rains or floods overflowed into the streets.

 ・Thus what was installed to create a hygienic environment in the French city became the cause of the plague.

 ・The large sewers in the modern part of the city, a symbol of modernity, were an ideal and protected breeding ground for rats.

 ・The sewers also served as a great transport system, allowing rats to move around the city without any problem. And thus, rats began to enter the French homes through these pipes.
Q. Describe the ideas behind the Tonkin Free School. To what extent was it a typical example of colonial ideas in Vietnam?

 A. ・The Tonkin Free School was started in 1907 to provide a Western-style education. This education included classes in science, hygiene, and French (these classes were held in the evening and had to be paid for separately).

・The school's approach to what it meant to be 'modern' is a good example of the thinking prevalent at that time.

 ・It was not enough to learn science and Western ideas: to be modern, it was necessary to look modern. The school encouraged the adoption of Western styles such as having a short haircut.

 ・For the Vietnamese, this meant a major break with their own identity since they traditionally kept long hair.

 ・To underline the importance of a total change there was even a 'hair-cutting chant':
"Comb in the left hand
 Scissors in the right...
...Drop stupid practices
 Dump childish things..."


Q. What was Phan Chu Trinh's objective for Vietnam? How were his ideas different from those of Phan Boi Chau?

 A.・Phan Chu Trinh, a nationalist, was intensely hostile to the monarchy and opposed to the idea of resisting the French with the help of the court.

 ・His desire was to establish a democratic republic. Profoundly influenced by the democratic ideals of the West, he did not want a wholesale rejection of Western civilisation.

 ・Phan Chu accepted the French revolutionary ideal of liberty but charged the French for not abiding by it.

 ・He demanded that the French set up legal and educational institutions, and develop agriculture and industries.

 ・On the contrary, Phan Boi Chau was a Confucian nationalist who became a major figure in the anti-colonial resistance from the time he formed the Revolutionary Society (Duy Tan Hoi) in 1903, with Prince Cuong De as the head.

 ・Phan Boi's most influential book, The History of the Loss of Vietnam, was written under the strong influence and advice of the Chinese reformer Liang Qichao.

 ・This book focused on two connected themes: the loss of sovereignty and the severing of ties with China- ties that bound the elites of the two countries together within a shared culture.

 ・As opposed to Phan Chu Trinh, Phan Boi Chau wanted to "use the monarchy" to drive out the French.

Popular posts from this blog

Class 9 History Ch.1 The French Revolution Extra Questions

-
Q. Who were the active citizens? A. Active citizens were the men who were above 25 years of age and paid taxes equal to at 3 days of a labourer's wage. These citizens had the right to vote. Q. Who were the passive citizens? A.  Passive citizens were the men and all women who were not entitled to vote. Q.  What were the taxes paid by the 3rd estate members of French society. A.  The taxes paid by the 3rd estate members were- i) Tithes - It was a tax levied by the church comprising of one-tenth of the agricultural produce. ii) Taille - It was a tax to be paid directly to the state. iii) Gobelle - It was an indirect tax on essential commodities like salt and tobacco consumption. Q. What was the Estates General? A.  The Estates General was a political body to which the 3 estates sent their representatives. This was the body which had the power to pass or reject the proposals for new taxes made by the monarch. Q. What was the import...
Read more

P.6 Oh, I Wish I'd Looked After Me Teeth (Pam Ayres)

-
Q. RTC "I wish I'd been that much more willin' When I had more tooth there than fillin' To pass up gobstoppers. From respect to me choppers, And to buy something else with me shillin'." a) ' I wish I'd been that much more willin' ' What does this line tell us about the poetess. a)  This line tells that the poetess now regrets not taking appropriate care of her teeth. b) What the poetess should not have bought with the shillings to avoid cavities? b) The poetess should not have bought candies, gobstoppers and other sweet food which she relished but was harmful to her teeth. c) What is the tone of the poetess in the poem? c)  The tone of the poetess is that of regret and repentance. Q. Imagine you are the poet. The day you visit the dentist for the first time, you write a letter to your best friend. Express the dilemma of guilt that you experience. A. 21-B, Baker's Street London 23 July 1989 Dear Robert         ...
Read more

P 6: Snake (by D.H. Lawrence)

-
Q. The poet has a dual attitude towards the snake. Why does he experience conflicting emotions on seeing the snake? A. When the poet first sees the snake, he thinks of the snake as a magnificent, quasi-harmless creature. He gives it as much respect as he gives to any other human. But soon the 'voice of education', i.e. the man-centric education challenges the poet to kill the snake lest he lacks the courage to do so. Q. Why did the snake flicker its tongue? And what does the poet compare it to? A. The snake uses its tongue as a sense organ. It flickers its tongue to check whether its surroundings are safe or not. The poet compares this flickering to lightning. The lightning on a dark night is easily comparable to the snake's tongue and its realm of the underworld. Q. RTC "And immediately I regretted it  I thought how paltry, how vulgar, what mean act! I despised myself and the voices of my accursed human education  And I thought of the albatross...
Read more