WBBSE 10th Class English Solutions Chapter 5 Story Writing
WBBSE 10th Class English Solutions Chapter 5 Story Writing
West Bengal Board 10th Class English Solutions Chapter 5 Story Writing
WBBSE 10th Class English Solutions
WHAT IS A STORY?
A story is an account of imaginary or real people and events. It is told for entertainment and educational purpose.
HOW TO WRITE A STORY
- Read the points or outlines several times until you understand the plot of the story.
- Now give a title to the story in capital letters. You may not write articles, prepositions and conjuctions in capital letters.
- Then elaborate the outlines in sentences one by one.
- If the story is a fable, give a moral at the end of the story.
- If needed, add one or two points of your own to the story.
- Try to use simple sentences and if needed, direct speech.
WORKED-OUT EXAMPLES
1. KING MIDAS’ GOLDEN TOUCH
Once there was a rich king. His name was Midas. Though rich, he had an extreme greed for gold. He prayed to God for golden touch. It meant, whatever he touched would be turned into gold. God granted his prayer. The king was very happy. He enjoyed turning everything around him into gold just by touching it. Thus he amassed great wealth. In the fit of happiness he embraced his loving daughter. Then and there the daughter became a statue of gold. The king became disappointed. With a heavy heart, he started praying to God to take back the boon and give back life to his daughter. He was doubly happy when God took away the boon.
Moral : One should not be greedy.
2. A BEE AND A DOVE
Once a bee fell in a water tank. He was being swept far away by the current of the water. A dove lived in a tree near the tank. He noticed the bee’s pathetic condition. He dropped a large leaf into the water. The bee jumped upon it. Thus his life was saved. A few days later a hunter came there. He was targeting the dove. When he was about to kill the bird with an arrow, the bee stung him at his hand. The hunter missed his aim. The dove flew away. He thanked the bee for his timely help.
Moral : Do good, find good.
3. SIR ASHUTOSH AND AN ENGLISH CO-TRAVELLER
Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee was proud of being an Indian. One day he was travelling in a train. An Englishman was his copassenger there. The English hated the Indians very much. Sir Ashutosh’s co-passenger was no exception to it. He could not tolerate travelling with an Indian. But he could not avoid it. He, however, got an opportunity. Ashutosh fell asleep. The Englishman threw his slippers outside. After a while he also fell asleep. When Ashutosh woke up, he found his slippers missing. He realized everything. He took the Englishman’s coat and threw it outside. Waking up, the Englishman asked Sir Ashutosh where his coat was. Ashutosh smilingly replied that it had gone to find his slippers.
Moral: Tit for tat.
4. A VISIT TO THE LAND OF ROBOTS
The other day I was sleeping at night. And in my dream I went to the land of robots. It was a land of metals and electric wires, No tree was seen there. However, a robot welcomed me. I felt happy. I was feeling tired and hungry. So, I asked for food. In no time they served me food. The food looked attractive; but it was made of metals only. I could not take it. After a while I felt suffocated. I could not breathe. There being no tree, no oxygen was there in the air. I was desperately wanting it. In the meantime I woke up, sweating heavily. Though in dream, I realised the importance of trees in our life. Only technology is not enough for our survival.
Moral: No tree, no life.
5. A WITTY REVENGE
One day a man decided to go to a distant land. He had an iron safe full of valuables. He left it with his neighbour for safety. Returning home, he asked for it. The neighbour was dishonest. So, he replied that the safe had been eaten by rats. The man was spellbound. Suddenly, a plan occurred to him. He took the neighbour’s son to the river for a bath. Returning from bath, he declared that the neighbour’s son was lost. A kite had carried him off. The neighbour shouted that it was quite impossible. A kite could not carry off a man. The man then replied, if rats can eat an iron safe then a kite also could have done it. Then and there the neighbour returned him the safe and got back his son.
Moral: Tit for tat.
6. INVALUABLY RETRIBUTED
Once there lived a rich man in a city. He was blind and he lived alone. His neighbour was a very poor man. He could not manage even a square meal a day. So, the blind man gave the poor man some money to buy a rickshaw. By pulling it, his neighbour started earning his livelihood. After a few months, the rickshaw puller wanted to repay his debt. But the blind man refused to take it. After a few years the rickshaw puller died in an accident. Then the rich man learned that his neighbour had gifted him his eyes before death. The rich man got back his sight. He silently expressed his gratitude to the dead rickshaw puller.
Moral: A good deed is always reciprocated.
7. DEFINITION OF A REAL MAN
One day a disciple asked his guru who the real man was. The guru did not give him a direct answer. Instead he told his disciple a story. It was the story of a businessman. Once he was going to a distant land. On the way a band of miscreants attacked him. They took away all his money and left him wounded. The man was lying on the roadside. Passers-by crossing the place noticed him. But none of them cared for him. However, a poor farmer took pity on the wounded man. He nursed him, fed him, gave him money and arranged for his journey. After telling the gospel, the guru stopped. By that time, his disciple had well understood the true traits of a real man.
Moral: A helpful man is a real man.
8. A GREAT SACRIFICE
Once upon a time there was a king. One day his queen gave birth to a beautiful son. The queen died just after that. The king then engaged a young nurse to look after his baby. The king had many enemies. They planned to kill the king’s successor. The nurse came to know about it. She decided to save the prince’s life at any cost. So, she dressed her own child as the prince. She placed the child on the prince’s cot. And she herself fled from the palace taking the real prince in her arms. The plotters came and killed the nurse’s baby without knowing his real identity. When the king learnt this, he offered a reward for the nurse’s loyalty. The nurse refused to accept it. Instead, she killed herself.
Moral: Nothing can compensate a mother’s bereavement.
9. A BOY IN THE OAK WOOD
One day a little boy was roaming around an oak wood. Tired, he fell asleep under an oak tree. In his dream he saw something mysterious. Oak trees were shedding their barks and the barks started wrinkling over him. The boy protested. He said he would die because of that. The oak trees around him then gave him a proposal. They would save his life if the boy would promise to plant more trees. At that moment the boy woke up. He looked around and felt the significance of the dream he had dreamt. When he left the oak wood, he became a different person. Since then he started loving trees more and more.
Moral: Plant trees for saving mankind.
10. A DOG AND ITS MASTER
Once there was a hunter. His name was Colonel Palton. He had a dog. The dog was very faithful. One day Colonel Palton went to a forest for hunting. At night he put up a tent and went to bed. Suddenly he heard his dog barking. He woke up. He was very angry with his pet for disturbing his sleep. He tried to stop the dog from barking. But the pet continued it. Colonel Palton then fired at the dog and killed it. At that moment his eyes fell on a nearby tree. A snake was hanging there. The dog had been barking to warn him against that danger. Colonel Palton realised it. He then broke down in.tears for his loyal pet.
Moral: Haste makes waste.
11. A CUNNING FOX AND A GOAT
Once a fox lived in a forest. One day he felt thirsty and was moving to and fro in search of water. It grew dark and suddenly the fox fell into a well. He quenched his thirst but could not get out of the well. The night went by. Next morning, a goat happened to pass by that way. The cunning fox thought of a plan. He said to the goat, “Hey, why don’t you jump in and have a taste of this sweet water? It’s cool and refreshing.” The foolish goat was unable to see through the trick of the fox. He jumped into the well. The fox used the horns of the goat as a ladder and climbed out of the well. The poor goat cried and cried at his own foolishness.
Moral: Do not believe a rogue. / Look before you leap.
12. THE HARE AND THE TORTOISE
Once there lived a hare and a tortoise. The hare had the habit of mocking the slow pace of tortoise. The hare would say, “You lazy creature, how slowly you crawl!” The tortoise felt pinched one day and challenged him to a race. The race started and the tortoise set off slowly but steadily. The hare started late and covered the distance that the tortoise had covered with a few jumps and even moved ahead of him. When he could not see the tortoise who was lagging behind, he thought of having a little rest. With this thought he started enjoying a nap. Meanwhile the tortoise reached the spot. He saw the hare sleeping and went on to complete the race. After some time the hare woke up and was surprised to find the tortoise already beyond the victory post. The tortoise won the race. The hare’s pride brought about his downfall.
Moral: Slow and steady wins the race./Pride comes before a fall.
13. KING BRUCE AND THE SPIDER
Robert Bruce was the king of Scotland. He fought against the British six times but was defeated. He was lying in a cave in utter despair. He thought of giving up the idea of fighting the Englishmen. Suddenly he saw a spider on the wall of the cave. It was trying desperately to reach the top but was failing at it repeatedly. However, the spider did not give up hope. It went on trying and trying and ultimately on the seventh attempt succeeded in reaching its cobweb. Seeing this Robert Bruce was inspired and said to himself, “If the spider can do it, I too can.” The disheartened king pulled up his socks, attacked the enemy with all his might and defeated them. The light of hope that the spider gave him enabled him to win the war at last and bring glory for his country.
Moral: Failure is the pillar of success.
14. THE BEAR AND THE TWO FRIENDS
Two friends lived in a village. They claimed to be the best of friends. One day they set out on a long journey. They had to pass through a forest on their way. It was a dense and dark forest, inhabited by ferocious animals. After some time they saw a large bear coming towards them. They were frightened to see it. One of the friends at once climbed up a tree. He did not at all care for his friend’s safety and was happy to be free from the bear’s grasp. His friend was surprised at this selfish behaviour of his friend. He then thought of a plan and lay down pretending to be a dead man. The bear came up to him, sniffed him and licked his body but took him for dead and went its way. When the bear was out of sight, the selfish man came down from the tree and asked his friend, “What did the bear whisper in your ears?” The reply came, “Do not trust a false and selfish friend.”
Moral: Adversity is the acid test of true friendship./ A friend in need is a friend indeed.
15. THE GREEDY FOOLISH DOG
Once there lived a greedy dog in a town. One day he managed to get a piece of meat from somewhere. He decided to enjoy the meat all alone in some lonely place far from the town. On the way he was crossing a bridge over the river. The water of the river was crystal clear. He saw his own reflection in the water and said to himself, “Great! There is another dog in the river. He also has a piece of meat in his mouth.” The dog was greedy for that piece too. He started barking and was about to jump into the river. But as soon as he opened his mouth, the piece of meat fell into the river. The foolish, greedy dog felt sad and went away.
Moral: Be content with what you have./Grasp all, lose all.
16. THE ANT AND THE CRICKET
It was winter and terribly cold. There was a heavy snowfall all over the place. A cricket was very hungry. He had not saved any food in his happier times for such adverse days. So he went out in search of food. But he could not find even a morsel of food to satisfy his hunger. At last, he went to an ant’s house and knocked at his door. As the ant opened the door, the cricket said, “Hey friend, I am hungry and tired. Will you please give me some food?” The ant was moved with sympathy. He asked, “Didn’t you save anything in the spring?” The cricket replied, “Not at all. The weather was so good, I sang and played.” The ant became annoyed at hearing this. He said to the cricket, “Oh, you sang and played during the Spring. Now dance the winter away” Saying this, he shut the door behind him.
Moral: Those who live without work must learn to live without food.
17. AN HONEST WOODCUTTER
Once a poor woodcutter was cutting wood on the bank of a river. Accidentally he dropped his axe into the river. He was very upset and started crying as he was too poor to buy another axe. Just then a fairy appeared with a golden axe and said to him, “I found this axe in the river. Is this yours?” The woodcutter replied, “No, it’s not mine.” The fairy again appeared after a few minutes, this time with a silver axe. The woodcutter disowned that one too. Finally, the fairy brought out the iron axe. The woodcutter was overwhelmed with joy and said, “It’s mine. Oh, thank you very much.” The fairy was very pleased with the woodcutter’s honesty. She said, “I am pleased with your honesty. I’ll give you all three axes.” Saying this, she gave him those three axes and disappeared.
Moral: Honesty is the best policy.
18. A WOMAN AND HER MONGOOSE
A woman had a pet mongoose. It was very faithful. One day while going to the market, she said to the mongoose, “I will come in an hour. Please look after my baby.” The mongoose nodded his head in agreement. The woman left. After some time a big cobra entered the house. The mongoose killed it after a fierce fight. The woman came back and saw the mongoose lying at the entrance. She saw its blood-covered body and mouth. She thought that the mongoose had killed her baby. She killed the mongoose instantly with a club lying nearby. Then she entered the house and saw her baby quietly sleeping on the bed. She also saw the cobra lying dead on the floor. She cried out, “Alas! What have I done?” The woman could do nothing but shed tears of grief.
Moral: Do not act in haste.
19. A LION AND A RABBIT
Once there lived a lion in a forest. He was old and naturally could not run hither and thither in search of prey. So he hit upon a plan. He called all the animals and said, “I shall not kill anyone else if one of you come to me as my meal every day.” All the animals agreed to this proposal. A jackal and a goat were killed on the first two days. Then it was a rabbit’s turn. The clever rabbit deliberately turned up late. As he reached, the lion asked the reason of his being late. The rabbit said, “Sir, what can I do? A lion stopped me on the way. He was claiming to be the king of the forest and he wants to meet you.” The furious lion at once agreed to go. The clever rabbit took the lion to a well and showed him his reflection in the water of the well. The angry lion jumped into the well to kill his rival and was drowned. All the animals of the forest were very happy and showered lavish praises on the rabbit.
Moral: Intelligence always pays.
20. THE SUN AND THE WIND
One day there was a quarrel between the Sun and the Wind. Each boasted of his own power. In order to test their strength they chose a traveller who was walking along. It was decided that the winner would be the one who would be able to make the traveller take off his coat. The Wind was overconfident of success. He said, “I’ll blow so forcefully that the traveller’s coat will be torn off.” Contrary to his expectation, the traveller tightened his coat closer to his body. Now it was the Sun’s turn. The Sun shone brightly. The traveller started feeling very hot under the scorching sun. So he took off his coat and sat down under a tree. In this way, the Sun succeeded in making the traveller take off his coat and won the test.
Moral: Overconfidence is harmful.
21. THREE BRAVE CHILDREN
One day, three children were collecting green mangoes from a tree. It was near a railway track. They were in a playful mood. All of a sudden, one of the children noticed a crack on rail line. He became anxious. Just then he heard the sound of a train coming towards them from a distance. He could clearly sense the danger. He knew that to stop the train red flag is necessary. But the children had very little time to collect it. That child wore a red shirt that day. Quickly he tore the shirt into three pieces. Then all the three started to wave those red pieces as flag. The driver noticed that and stopped the train in a safe distance. With the instant wit, the accident could be avoided. After some time, the Indian Rail authority invited them in a programme and rewarded them for their courage and instant decision making capacity.
Moral: Presence of mind saves life.
22. A FARMER AND HIS FOUR SONS
Once there lived a farmer in a village. He had four sons. They were very quarrelsome and always fought among themselves. Naturally the farmer was worried about their future. The unhappy farmer gave them advice but in vain. He then hit upon a plan. One day he called all his sons. He gave them a bundle of sticks and said, “Break the bundle, each of you.” The sons failed to break the bundle. Then he said to them, “Now each of you take a stick from the bundle and try to break it.” They broke them easily. Then the farmer said to them, “Now I hope you understand what I mean. If you are united, nobody can take advantage of you.” After that the sons of the farmer changed themselves and never fought among themselves again.
Moral: Unity is strength. / United we stand, divided we fall.
23. TWO NEIGHBOURS
Once there lived two ladies in a town. In fact they were neighbours. One of them was very fat while the other was extremely thin. They always quarrelled and fought with each other. All the neighbours were fed up with their verbal duels. One day, an elderly person called both of them and said, “Why do you quarrel so much? Can’t you be like the wheels of a two-wheeler where one wheel complements the other?” At this, the thin lady said, “Yes, I think your suggestion is good. But how can a vehicle move smoothly when one tyre is of a tractor and the other of a bicycle?” Hearing such a witty reply, everybody present there started laughing.
Moral: Laughter is the best medicine./ Laugh and be merry.
24. A CLEVER FOX AND A FOOLISH CROW
One day a crow stole a piece of meat from a meat shop. Then she flew to a tree and settled on the branch of the tree to eat it. At that time a fox was passing under the tree. When he saw the crow with the piece of meat in her beak, he became greedy. He wanted to eat it desperately. He hit upon a plan and began to praise the crow to the skies. He said to her, “How nice you are! How bright is your colour and how beautiful you look! And how nicely you sing! You are undoubtedly the sweetest songbird that I have ever heard. Please sing a song for me.” At this, the foolish crow was very pleased. She lifted her head and began to sing. The meat dropped from her beak and the fox took it and ran away.
Moral: Do not believe in flattery. / Do not trust a flatterer.
25. A WOLF AND A DOG
Once a lean wolf came upon a healthy dog. The wolf said to the dog, “How are you so healthy?” The dog spoke highly of his good fortune. He said, “My master is a very good person. He always cares for me. He gives me enough food and rest. Only at night I watch over his house.” Then the wolf said, “My friend, you are so lucky. I risk my own life search of food in the forest. Most of the days I have to go without food.” The dog said, “Come and work with me.” The wolf agreed. On the way to the home of the dog’s master, the wolf noticed a mark on his neck. He asked, “My dear doggy, what caused this mark on your neck?” The dog replied, “During the day, my master keeps me chained up but at night he lets me roam free.” Then the wolf said, “Sorry friend, I’ll not go with you. I am hungry, but free.” Saying this, he trotted away into the forest.
Moral: Freedom is better than comfort.
26. THE WOLF AND THE SHEPHERD BOY
Once there lived a shepherd boy in a village. He had many sheep to look after. Every day he went to graze his sheep in a field nearby. He was bored with his work. So he decided to have some fun. One day he shouted, “Wolf! Help! Wolf!” The villagers came running immediately to rescue him from the wolf. The people were angry when they realised that they had been tricked and they left. The boy had a great laugh. One day a wolf really came and pounced upon his sheep. The boy, who really needed it, called out for help. But the villagers did not come because they thought that he was doing it again for fun. The wolf killed all his sheep.
Moral: Nobody believes a liar.
27. A CAP-SELLER AND MONKEYS
Once a cap-seller was going to the market to sell his caps. Having walked a long distance and feeling tired, he sat under a tree to rest. Soon he fell asleep. There were many monkeys on the tree. They were attracted by the colourful caps. They came down and climbed up the tree again wearing the caps. When the cap-seller woke up, he found his caps missing. He looked up and saw the monkeys having great fun on the tree wearing his caps. He tried desperately to recover them but in vain. In despair, he took his cap from his head and threw it on the ground. As monkeys are imitative animals, they imitated his action immediately. They threw their caps on the ground. The capseller collected them happily and went on his way to market.
Moral: Quick thinking saves the day.
28. IMPORTANCE OF EVERY ORGAN
One day the parts of the body held a meeting. There every organ blew its own trumpet. The Head said, “A man will survive as long as I work.” The Hands said, “We are indispensible for having food.” The Legs said, “A man cannot move without us.” The Eyes said that a man could not see without them, so they were important. According to the Ears, one could not hear without them. So they were equally important. They concluded that the Belly only enjoyed food whereas they all had to work hard. This could not be continued any longer. So they decided to stop working just to teach Belly a lesson. As a result the Belly also stopped working. It was no longer getting any food to eat. After two or three days all the limbs and organs noticed that they were getting weaker day by day. They understood that unless the Belly ate food, they would not survive. So they called off the strike. The body started functioning normally again.
Moral: Water is not valued till the well is dry.
29. CLEVER VS CLEVERER
There was a lion in a forest. He was very clever. When he became old, he was too weak to catch prey. So he thought of a plan. His plan was to kill animals without taking the trouble of hunting. So he pretended to be ill. All the animals came to visit the ailing king. The lion requested them to come one by one. He said he would meet only one visitor every day And every visitor should come alone to his cave, Whenever an animal entered his cave, the lion killed him and ate him up. After a few days a fox came to visit the king. But before entering the cave, the clever fox checked the footprints of other visitors carefully. Footprints towards the cave were prominent. However, no footprint coming outside could be seen. The for then clearly understood the ploy of the lion. He left the place immediately.
Moral: As is the evil, so is the remedy.
30. NEWTON AND HIS PET DOG
Newton had a pet dog called Diamond. One day the great scientist went out of his study for some urgent work leaving Diamond in the room. The dog was then fast asleep on the floor. No sooner had Newton gone than the dog awoke. It jumped on the table and overturned the lighted candle. On the table lay a heap of research papers. Those papers immediately caught fire. The papers were burnt to ashes. Soon after, Newton came back. He saw his years’ toil brought to naught. Newton did nothing but patted Diamond on the head with his usual kindness. He realised that the dog did not know what mischief it had done.
Moral: Kindness is a great virtue.
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