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Answer any one of the… (Class 10 English SQP 2026-27, Q10A)

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EnglishCBSE Class 10 · Sample paper, session 2026-27 · 6 marks · Long answer

CBSE Class 10 English sample paper 2026-27: question 10(A)

From the official CBSE sample question paper for 2026-27, 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 answerMadam Rides the Bus

Answer any one of the following two questions, in about 100-120 words.

Valli in ‘Madam Rides the Bus’ and the young seagull in ‘His First Flight’ are protagonists of the story who undergo personal transformation. Compare and contrast how the catalysts in these stories drive the change.

Source: official sample paper from cbseacademic.nic.in (PDF). See it in the full Sample paper 2026-27.

Hints

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

Hint 1

Ask what pushed each character to act: need from outside, or wish from inside?

Hint 2

Compare the two: forced against chosen.

Hint 3

Finish with what both share: fear overcome and potential discovered.

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. Introduce the similarity: Valli and the young seagull both change from fear or restriction to self-realisation.

    1 mark

  2. Contrast: the seagull's catalyst is external and involuntary. Hunger and isolation, with his family refusing to feed him, force him to dive, revealing his flying ability and overriding his fear.

    2 marks

  3. Valli's catalyst is internal: curiosity and a longing for experience and independence. She has long watched the bus and yearns to ride it, which makes her break the limits of her domestic life and win dignity.

    1 mark

  4. Conclude that both catalysts free suppressed potential and are strong enough to overcome fear, whether biological need or the desire for independence. Expression and accuracy.

    2 marks

Answer: Seagull: hunger forces change. Valli: curiosity and yearning drive it. Both free hidden potential by overcoming fear.

Where the marks are

  • Identifies both characters' transformation (1 mark)
  • Seagull's external catalyst, hunger (1 mark)
  • Valli's internal catalyst, curiosity and desire for independence (1 mark)
  • Comparison and conclusion (1 mark)
  • Expression (2 marks)

Revise the chapter

Practise this chapterBoard-style questions from Madam Rides the Bus, one at a time, marked against the answer key and marking points.Back to the full paperSample paper 2026-27: 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.