Book: First Flight: Lesson 2. Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela

Book: First Flight: Lesson 2. Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela             

A.  Very Short Answer-type Questions (In Single Sentences)

1.  Mandela became the first black President of a new nation.

2.  Zenani was the daughter of Nelson Mandela.

3. 100,000 South African men, women and children of all races sang and danced with joy.

4.   The inauguration ceremony took place on 10^th May, 1994.

5. Thabo Mbeki was sworn in as first deputy president.

6. The formation of a democratic government in South Africa has been called a common victory for justice, peace and human dignity.

7. Nelson Mandela takes the pledge to remove bondage of poverty, hunger and all kinds of discrimination.

8.   The smoke that trailed in the sky by Impala jets symbolised the new South African flag.

9. The old system in South Africa was based on hatred.

10.       The policy of apartheid created a deep and lasting wound in South Africa to its people.

11.       The people of South Africa are its greatest wealth.

12.        Obligation to his family, his people and the country are the twin obligations for Mandela.

13.        The twin obligations are filled only in civil and humane society.

14.        Hatred towards each other robs the humanity.

15.       Inauguration ceremony took place in Pretoria in South Africa.

16.       Mandela talks about the inauguration of the formation of new government in South Africa in this lesson

17.       Nelson Mandela feels hungry for the freedom of his countrymen.

Q1.Where did the ceremonies take place? Can you name any public buildings in India that are made of sandstone?

Ans. The ceremonies took place in the campus of the Union Building of Pretoria. The Parliament House in New Delhi, the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi, the Supreme Court of India in New Delhi and Madras High Court in Chennai are some examples of Indian public buildings that are made of sandstone.

Q2.Can you say how 10 May is an ‘autumn day’ in South Africa?

Ans: The tenth May is an ‘Autumn Day’ in South Africa. It is because there was a large gathering of the guests from across the world on that day there. They had come to attend the function of the installation of South Africa’s first democratic and non-racial government.

Q3. At the beginning of his speech, Mandela mentions “an extraordinary human disaster”. What does he mean by this? What is the “glorious … human achievement” he speaks of at the end?

Ans. The coloured people in South Africa had to suffer discrimination and other types of torture by the white rulers for about three centuries. That was ‘an extraordinary human disaster’. Mandela talks of ‘glorious human achievement’ because a black person became the president of the country where the whites did all types of cruelties for about three hundred years.

Q4. What does Mandela thank the international leaders for?

Ans. Nelson Mandela thanks the international leaders because they came to South Africa to attend the function of forming the first non racial and democratic government there.

Mandela felt privileged to be the host to the nations of the world because not too long ago, the South Africans were considered outlaws. He thus thanked all the international leaders for having come to witness his investiture as President since this event could be considered as a common victory for justice, peace and human dignity.

Q5. What ideals does he set out for the future of South Africa?

Answer 

Mandela set out the ideals of poverty alleviation, removal of suffering of people. He also set the ideal for a society where there would be no discrimination based on gender or racial origins.

Q6. What do the military generals do? How has their attitude changed, and why?

Answer 

The highest military generals of the South African defence force and police saluted Mandela and pledged their loyalty.
Their attitude towards blacks had taken great change. Instead of arresting a black they saluted him.

Q7. Why were two national anthems sung?

Ans. The two national anthems were sung when Nelson Mandela’s government was formed. It was done to create balance between two races, the white and the black. It showed the new government’s vision of equality also.

Q8. What does courage mean to Mandela?

Ans. Mandela thinks that courage is not the absence of fear in mind. It is the victory over it. Fear is present in every person. But the brave person is that who conquers fear.

Q9. Mandela talks of twin obligations. What are these?

Ans. According to Mandela, every person has twin obligations in life. One is towards his family, to wife and children. The other is towards his people and the country.

Q10.  In this lesson, Mandela talks of the oppressor. Is the oppressor free in any sense or is he also a slave of something?

Ans. Madela says that the oppressor is a slave of hatred. He is imprisoned behind the bars of prejudices and narrow-mindedness. He has made the other person slave.

Q11. What does Mandela mean when he says that he is “the sum of all those African patriots”, who had made struggle for freedom in South Africa before him?

Ans. By saying so, he pays a glowing tribute to the patriots of South Africa who had struggled for freedom so far. He succeeded in his great mission of getting freedom to South Africa. So he finds their blessings in himself.

Long Answer-type Qs (About 100 words)

Q1. What twin obligations does Mandela talk about in this lesson?

Ans. Nelson Mandela says that everyone has twin obligations. One obligation is towards one’s family, children and parents. Another obligation is towards his people and the country. People fulfil these obligations towards their families and the country in their own ways. But in South Africa, it was not possible to do so. The white-skinned people had put several restrictions on the black coloured people under the policy of apartheid. The person doing his duty for his people was punished and sent behind the bars. Mandela was also sent to prison for fulfilling his obligation towards his people. Thus he was not allowed to fulfil his twin obligations.

Q2. How did the meaning of the word ‘freedom’ change with the passage of time for Mandela?

Ans. Mandela said that freedom had different meanings for him according to the stages in his age. In the days of his boyhood, it was just running into his fields near his mother’s hut and to swim in the clear water of a stream. He was free to do the small things that a child could do. A he grew in age, that freedom turned into an illusion for him. He began to understand that his freedom was already snatched. As a student, he desired for freedom only just for himself. It was the freedom to stay out at night, read what he pleased and go where he chose. Later as a young man, he yearned for the real kind of freedom. It was the freedom to fulfil his twin obligations. But it was not there.

Q3. What does Mandela say about the policy of apartheid? How did it affect peoples of South Africa?

Ans. The white-skinned peoples of South Africa patched up their differences and erected (set up) a system of racial domination (जातीय शाशन) against the dark-skinned peoples of their own land. The policy of apartheid /əˈpɑː.taɪt/ created a deep and lasting wound in my country and my people. The people of South Africa would take a long time to recover from the deep would created by the policy of apatheid. But the continuous oppression and cruelty on the South Africans produced great men like the Oliver  Tambos, the Walter Sisulus, the Chief Luthulis, etc. They were the men of such extraordinary courage, wisdom and generosity (kindness) that their like may never be known again.