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Compare the two stories… (Class 10 English 2026, Q10a)

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EnglishCBSE Class 10 · Board exam 2026, set 2/4/1 · 6 marks · Long answer

CBSE Class 10 English 2026: question 10(a)

Set in the CBSE Class 10 board exam of 2026, paper 2/4/1, section C, question 10(a), for 6 marks. Try it first; the hints and our step-by-step solution are below.

Q10(a) · 6 marks · Long answerTwo Stories about Flying

Compare the two stories, ‘Letter to God’ and ‘The Black Aeroplane’ from ‘Stories About Flying’. Examine how both these stories illustrate that help can come in unexpected forms. Answer in about 100-120 words.

Source: official question paper from cbse.gov.in (PDF). See it in the full 2026 board paper, set 2/4/1.

Hints

Open one hint at a time and try again before the next.

Hint 1

Name who really helped in each story.

Hint 2

Ask whether the protagonist knew the helper's true identity.

Hint 3

Join the two stories through the theme of unexpected help.

Step-by-step solution

Each step shows the marks it earns, as an examiner would award them. Checked by an independent re-solve from the question paper.

  1. In 'A Letter to God', Lencho, ruined by hail, writes to God for 100 pesos. The postmaster and his employees collect money and send it. Lencho believes God sent it and never learns the real source of help.

    3 marks

  2. In 'The Black Aeroplane', the pilot is lost in a storm with little fuel. A mysterious black plane guides him safely to the runway. Later he learns that no such plane appeared on the radar, so the rescuer stays unexplained.

    2 marks

  3. Both stories show help coming at a moment of extreme crisis through unexpected and hidden helpers. In each, the rescuer's identity stays unknown or mysterious, and the protagonist is saved by unforeseen intervention.

    1 mark

Answer: Both stories show unexpected, almost miraculous help from unseen or unidentified helpers during a crisis.

Where the marks are

  • Letter to God points with evidence (up to 3 marks for content, shared with the next point)
  • Black Aeroplane points with evidence
  • Synthesis: unexpected, hidden helpers in crisis
  • Expression and accuracy (2 + 1 marks overall)

Revise the chapter

Practise this chapterBoard-style questions from Two Stories about Flying, one at a time, marked against the answer key and marking points.Back to the full paper2026 board paper, set 2/4/1: every question, by section.

The question is transcribed from the official paper; figures are described in words. The solution, hints and chapter tag are ours. Spotted an error? Write tosupport@questionbuddy.in.