Deep Water Extract Questions | English Class 12

Extract Questions

Passage with linked answers

Extract

Extract 1

Reading Set

Extract 1

Passage

It seemed a long way down. Those nine feet were more like ninety, and before I touched bottom my lungs were ready to burst. But when my feet hit bottom I summoned all my strength and made what I thought was a great spring upwards.

The depth of the pool felt to the narrator like __________ feet instead of nine.

ninety

The narrator's __________ were ready to burst before he even touched the bottom.

lungs

ByteNotes

Extract Questions

Passage with linked answers

Extract

Extract 2

Reading Set

Extract 2

Passage

I flailed at the surface of the water, swallowed and choked. I tried to bring my legs up, but they hung as dead weights, paralysed and rigid. A great force was pulling me under.

When he reached the surface, the narrator __________ at the water but only swallowed and choked.

flailed

The narrator felt that his legs were hanging like __________, unable to move.

dead weights

Why were the narrator's legs feeling like dead weights?

The narrator's legs felt incredibly heavy and completely immovable because he was paralyzed by stark, overwhelming terror. The intense psychological shock of the sudden drowning experience caused his physical body to freeze and stop responding to his desperate mental commands.

What 'great force' was pulling the narrator under the water?

The 'great force' pulling him under was the natural gravitational pull combined with the sheer mass of the water above him. His severe exhaustion and inability to swim actively made it physically impossible for him to resist sinking back down.

How does the author describe his desperate struggle at the water's surface?

The author vividly describes his struggle by stating that he flailed his arms wildly in a panic. Instead of catching his breath, he only ended up swallowing more dirty water and choking miserably as he helplessly began to sink again.

ByteNotes

Extract Questions

Passage with linked answers

Extract

Extract 3

Reading Set

Extract 3

Passage

The instructor put a belt around me. A rope attached to the belt went through a pulley that ran on an overhead cable. He held on to the end of the rope, and we went back and forth...

To keep the narrator safe, the instructor put a __________ around him attached to a rope.

belt

The rope went through a __________ that ran smoothly on an overhead cable.

pulley

Why did the instructor use a belt and pulley system?

The instructor used this clever mechanical system to physically prevent the narrator from sinking. This crucial safety measure allowed Douglas to practice his swimming movements in the water without the paralyzing psychological fear of drowning constantly overwhelming his mind.

How did this practice method help the narrator initially?

By repeatedly moving back and forth across the pool with the secure rope, the narrator slowly began to regain his lost confidence. The method effectively helped him shed the intense, blinding panic that usually gripped him whenever he entered water.

What does this step-by-step approach reveal about the instructor?

This patient approach reveals that the instructor was highly experienced and deeply empathetic. He completely understood that building a swimmer out of a traumatized person required addressing profound psychological fears just as much as teaching the correct physical swimming techniques.

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Extract Questions

Passage with linked answers

Extract

Extract 4

Reading Set

Extract 4

Passage

I crossed to oblivion, and the curtain of life fell. The next I remember I was lying on my stomach beside the pool, vomiting. The chap that threw me in was saying, 'But I was only fooling.'

The phrase "crossed to __________" means the narrator lost all his consciousness.

oblivion

When the narrator finally woke up, he was lying beside the pool and __________.

vomiting

What does "the curtain of life fell" mean in this context?

The metaphorical phrase indicates that the narrator had completely given up his struggle to survive. He passed out, slipping into a peaceful, dark unconsciousness where he genuinely believed that his life had finally ended and death had silently arrived.

Contrast the condition of the narrator with the attitude of the older boy.

The narrator was in a critical, agonizing state, vomiting helplessly after a traumatic near-death experience. In sharp contrast, the older boy remained incredibly insensitive and casual, brushing off his highly dangerous act of bullying as merely a harmless practical joke.

What immediate physical impact did this ordeal have on the narrator?

The immediate physical impact was severely draining. Following his rescue, the narrator was left incredibly weak, trembling uncontrollably, and vomiting beside the pool. He could not eat that night, feeling physically sick and emotionally haunted by the terrifying drowning ordeal.

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Chapter sections

Chapter deep-water: Deep Water | Extract Questions

Extract 1

The depth of the pool felt to the narrator like __________ feet instead of nine.

The narrator's __________ were ready to burst before he even touched the bottom.

Why did the nine feet seem like ninety to the narrator?

What did the narrator do when his feet finally touched the bottom?

What does the phrase 'lungs were ready to burst' signify about his condition?

Extract 2

When he reached the surface, the narrator __________ at the water but only swallowed and choked.

The narrator felt that his legs were hanging like __________, unable to move.

Why were the narrator's legs feeling like dead weights?

What 'great force' was pulling the narrator under the water?

How does the author describe his desperate struggle at the water's surface?

Extract 3

To keep the narrator safe, the instructor put a __________ around him attached to a rope.

The rope went through a __________ that ran smoothly on an overhead cable.

Why did the instructor use a belt and pulley system?

How did this practice method help the narrator initially?

What does this step-by-step approach reveal about the instructor?

Extract 4

The phrase "crossed to __________" means the narrator lost all his consciousness.

When the narrator finally woke up, he was lying beside the pool and __________.

What does "the curtain of life fell" mean in this context?

Contrast the condition of the narrator with the attitude of the older boy.

What immediate physical impact did this ordeal have on the narrator?