The Ailing Planet: The Green Movement's Role – Hornbill Class XI English Reading Skill Chapter 4
An insightful article by Nani Palkhivala highlighting the environmental crises facing the Earth and the emergence of the Green Movement as a global response. It discusses the shift from a mechanistic to an ecological view of the planet, the concept of sustainable development, and the urgent need for conservation of natural resources to secure the future. The chapter addresses issues like deforestation, overpopulation, environmental degradation, and the ethical responsibilities of humans to act as stewards of the Earth.
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Categories: Hornbill, Class XI, English, Reading Skill, Environment, Green Movement, Sustainable Development, Chapter 4
Tags: Nani Palkhivala, The Ailing Planet, Green Movement, Environment, Sustainable Development, Ecological View, Conservation, Deforestation, Overpopulation, Ethical Responsibility, Climate Change, Environmental Awareness, Hornbill Class 11, English, Chapter 4
The Ailing Planet & Childhood: Hornbill Class 11 Chapter 4 - Ultimate Study Guide, Notes, Questions, Quiz 2025
The Ailing Planet & Childhood
Chapter 4: Hornbill - Ultimate Study Guide | NCERT Class 11 English Notes, Questions, Themes & Quiz 2025
Full Chapter Summary & Detailed Notes - Hornbill Chapter 4
Overview & Key Concepts
Chapter Goal: Environmental awareness in prose; introspection on growing up in poem. Exam Focus: Inferences, vocabulary, discussions. 2025 Updates: Links to SDG goals, child psychology. Fun Fact: Green Movement began 1972 in NZ. Core Idea: Earth as living entity; childhood's loss. Real-World: Climate summits. Ties: Ethics in lit (e.g., Ch 3 resurrection). Expanded: Line-by-line prose, stanza-wise poem.
Prose Structure: Green Movement rise → Earth as organism → Sustainable dev → Biological systems depletion → Population impact → Industry role.
Poem Structure: Three stanzas questioning loss; final on hiding place.
Detailed Prose Summary: The Ailing Planet: the Green Movement’s Role
By Nani Palkhivala (Indian Express, 1994). Urgent call on Earth's declining health; Green Movement's global grip since 1972.
Movement's Impact: Shift to holistic/ecological view (Copernican revolution). Earth: Living organism with metabolic needs. Quote: "Patient in declining health."
Sustainable Development: 1987 WCED: Meet present needs without future compromise. Zoo mirror: Humans as "most dangerous animal" – awareness shift to partnership.
Biodiversity Crisis: 1.4M catalogued species; millions unnamed. Brandt Report: Scorched planet risk? Four systems (fisheries, forests, grasslands, croplands) foundational; overexploitation causes collapse. Quote: "Forests precede mankind; deserts follow."
India's Forest Loss: 3.7M acres/year; laws unenforced (Art 48A). UN study: Critical in 88 countries.
Population Bomb: From 1B (1800) to 5.7B; every 4 days +1M. Development as contraceptive; poverty cycle. India: 920M, priority control. Quote: "Control of population and perpetuation of poverty."
Era of Responsibility: Holistic view; industry role (Du Pont CEO). Thatcher: "Life tenancy with full repairing lease." Brown: Borrowed from children.
Detailed Poem Summary: Childhood
By Markus Natten. Reflective query on when/where innocence faded.
Stanza 1: End at 11? Realizing Heaven/Hell not in Geography.
Systems collapse. Quote: "Fisheries collapse, forests disappear." Inference: Unsustainable claims. Interlink: India forests loss. Depth: 3.7M acres/year.
Population Growth
Distorts future. Quote: "Strongest factors distorting human society." Inference: Poverty perpetuation. Interlink: Development contraceptive. Depth: India 920M.
Era of Responsibility
Holistic view. Quote: "Borrowed from our children." Inference: Industry ethics. Interlink: Thatcher/Brown. Depth: Transcending concern.
Loss of Innocence (Poem)
Realizations erode childhood. Quote: "Hidden in an infant’s face." Inference: Nostalgia for purity. Interlink: Hypocrisy/rationalism. Depth: Gradual process.
Advanced: Eco-ethics in lit. Pitfalls: Miss population links. Interlinks: Modern COP. Real: SDG 13. Graphs: Population table. Coherent: Global care → Personal reflection. Errors: Confuse themes. Tips: Link quotes; Group eco-debates.
Prose: Understanding the Text - NCERT Questions & Answers
Direct from PDF; detailed answers with line support.
1. Locate the lines in the text that support the title ‘The Ailing Planet’.
Answer:
"The earth’s vital signs reveal a patient in declining health." "A scorched planet of advancing deserts, impoverished landscapes and ailing environment." "Near catastrophic depletion."
2. What does the notice ‘The world’s most dangerous animal’ at a cage in the zoo at Lusaka, Zambia, signify?
Answer:
Humans: Mirror reflects viewer as destroyer. Signifies awareness of human impact, shift to partnership.
3. How are the earth’s principal biological systems being depleted?
4. Why does the author aver that the growth of world population is one of the strongest factors distorting the future of human society?
Answer:
Exponential rise (1B to 5.7B); strains resources, perpetuates poverty (rich richer, poor more children). Blocks development; choice: control or poverty. India example: 920M, hungry hutments.
Tip: Support with quotes (2 marks each).
Talking about the Text - Discussion Points
Group discussions from PDF; guided responses.
1. Laws are never respected nor enforced in India.
4. Which do you think are the most poetic lines? Why?
Answer:
"Where did my childhood go? / It went to some forgotten place, / That’s hidden in an infant’s face, / That’s all I know." Evocative imagery, emotional closure, universal resonance.
Tip: Personal for 4; justify imagery.
Exam Q&A: Short, Medium & Long Answers (CBSE 2025 Style)
Practice for 1-6 marks; with rubrics.
Short Answers (1-2 Marks: Recall/Facts)
1. What is sustainable development? (1 mark)
Answer: Development meeting present needs without compromising future generations' ability.
2. Why forests called "powerhouse of evolution"? (2 marks)
Answer: Tropical forests drive species evolution; destruction leads to extinctions (Myers).
Medium Answers (3-4 Marks: Explain/Infer)
3. Explain four principal biological systems' role. (3 marks)
Answer: Fisheries/forests/grasslands/croplands: Food/raw materials base. Depletion: Overuse impairs productivity, causes collapse/barrenness. Inference: Economic foundation at risk.
4. How does population growth distort society? (4 marks)
5. Discuss Green's Movement revolutionary shift. (5 marks)
Answer: Intro: 1972 NZ party; gripped imagination. Body: Mechanistic to holistic (Copernican); Earth as organism. Eval: Awareness (mirror), but challenges (depletion). Concl: Survival concern. (Quotes: "Growing worldwide consciousness.")
6. Compare environmental responsibility & childhood loss themes. (6 marks)
Answer: Intro: Future-oriented. Prose: Borrow from children (responsibility). Poem: Lost in growing up (innocence). Compare: Both lament irreplaceable (planet/childhood); call reflection. Devices: Quotes. Personal: Link to youth eco-role.
