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Discuss how the play “The… (Class 10 English 2026, Q11b)

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

CBSE Class 10 English 2026: question 11(b)

Set in the CBSE Class 10 board exam of 2026, paper 2/4/1, section C, question 11(b), for 6 marks. Try it first; the hints and our step-by-step solution are below.

Q11(b) · 6 marks · Long answerThe Book that Saved the Earth

Discuss how the play “The Book that Saved the Earth” depicts how misunderstanding of cultural differences and lack of awareness about other races cause confusion and conflict. 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

Recall which rhymes the Martians took as threats.

Hint 2

Ask what the Martians knew about humans and where they got it.

Hint 3

Say what decision their misunderstanding led to.

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. The Martians misread ordinary nursery rhymes as coded military messages. 'Mistress Mary' and 'Humpty Dumpty' are taken as threats, and simple Earth words as secret weapons.

    3 marks

  2. They cannot understand human humour and poetry, and they judge Earth from a single, childish book. Their ignorance of customs and expression, combined with overconfidence, leads to wrong conclusions.

    2 marks

  3. As a result, panic and suspicion arise and Mars plans to attack Earth because of a misunderstanding. This shows how lack of awareness about other cultures causes confusion and conflict.

    1 mark

Answer: Martians' misreading of nursery rhymes, from ignorance of human culture, causes fear and a false plan to attack Earth.

Where the marks are

  • Misinterpretation of rhymes with examples
  • Ignorance of humour, customs and limited information
  • Conflict resulting from the misunderstanding
  • Expression and accuracy (2 + 1 marks)

Revise the chapter

Practise this chapterBoard-style questions from The Book that Saved the Earth, 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.