MCQ Questions for Class 10 English Chapter 8 - The Mirror Class

Read the following and write the most appropriate option from the ones given to you.

1. I am silver and exact. I have no preconceptions:
 Whatever I see I swallow immediately
 Just as it is, unmisted by love or dislike.
 I am not cruel, only truthful.
 [C.B.S.E., 2011 (T-1)]

(i) The use of ‘I’ is there because the poem is presented in the form of a :

(a) Soliloquy

(b) Dialogue

(c) Monologue

(d) Autobiography

(ii) How is ‘I’ different from the other human beings?

(a) Mirror is made of metal
(b) It can be stuck on the wall
(c) It is not prejudiced and has no preconceived notions
(d) It has a wide frame

(iii) What makes the mirror cruel?

(a) Because it cannot speak

(b) It cannot praise

(c) It does not hide ugliness

(d) cannot be carried everywhere

(iv) Human beings are ‘misted’ by love or dislike. What does this expression reflect about their nature?

(a) They are cruel

(b) They are emotional

(c) They are hypocrites

(d) They are truth-loving

Answer :

(i) (c)

(ii) (c)

(iii) (c)

(iv) (c)

2. The eye of a little god, four-cornered.
 Most of the time I meditate on the opposite wall.
 It is pink, with speckles. I have looked at it so long
 I think it is a part of my heart. But it flickers.
 Faces and darkness separate us over and over.
 [C.B.S.E., 2011 (T-1)]

(i) What do the four corners of the mirror symbolise?

(a) four corners

(b) four walls

(c) four rooms

(d) four directions of the entire universe

(ii) Why is the mirror compared to a god?

(a) It is beautiful

(b) It looks awesome

(c) It has heavenly colour

(d) It is unbiased and has strong influence over women

(iii) The gazing of the mirror on the opposite wall is termed as ‘meditate.’ Why?

(a) It has no choice

(b) It loves that wall

(c) It gazes steadily

(d) There is a lot of intensity in that look

(iv) ‘Pink speckles’ has double meaning. What does it symbolise?

(a) Pink colours

(b) Patches of discoloration

(c) Disappearance of youthful flush and glow

(d) Embarrassment

Answer :

(i) (d)

(ii) (d)

(iii) (c)

(iv) (b)

3. Now I am a lake. A woman bends over me,
 Searching my reaches for what she really is.
 Then she turns to those liars, the candles or the moon
 I see her back, and reflect it faithfully.
 She rewards me with tears and an agitation of hands.

(i) Who is ‘I’ in the above stanza?

(a) woman

(b) lake

(c) mirror

(d) the poetess

(ii) Why does the woman bend over the lake? What is she searching for?

(a) her ring

(b) her make-up

(c) her lost beauty and youth

(d) her future

(iii) The candles and moon are called ‘liars.’ Why?

(a) They get extinguished quickly

(b) They are dim and dull

(c) They hide the reality

(d) They bring darkness

(iv) What is the poetic device used here?

(a) Simile

(b) Personification

(c) Metaphor

(d) Allegory

(v) What does the mirror reflect ‘faithfully’?

(a) her clothes
(b) her wrinkles
(c) her jewellery
(d) her youth

(vi) How is the mirror rewarded for ‘truthful reflection’?

(a) It is hugged

(b) It is cleaned and put decoratively

(c) It results in cries and agitation

(d) It is thrown down and broken

Answes : 

(i) (b)

(ii) (c)

(iii) (c)

(iv) (b)

(v) (b)

(vi) (c)

4. I am important to her. She comes and goes. Each morning it is her face that replaces the darkness.
 In me she has drowned a young girl, and in me an old woman Rises toward her day after day like a terrible fish.

(i) Why is the mirror indispensable for the woman?

(a) It has been her constant companion

(b) It has truthfully reflected the changes

(c) It flatters her

(d) It degrades her

 (ii) Explain ‘drowned’.

(a) drowning in the lake

(b) forgetfulness

(c) loss of balance

(d) permanent loss of youth

(iii) Why does the woman compare herself to a ‘terrible fish’?

(a) Because of the beautiful skin

(b) Because of quick movements

(c) Because she is fond of the lake

(d) Because like a fish she is trapped in the sea of time

Answes :

(i) (a)

(ii) (d)

(iii) (d)