English Made Easy with Royal Zenith

  Who was Stephen Hawking? •Stephen Hawking (1942-2018 ) was a world-renowned theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author who made significant contributions to our understanding of black holes, the origins of the universe, and the nature of time. Despite living with a debilitating motor neuron disease, he continued to work and communicate his ideas to the public until his death. Summary: "Getting in Touch with Aliens" is an essay written by a famous scientist Stephen Hawking. He discusses the possibility of communicating with extraterrestrial life in this essay. According to Hawking, there is possibility of the existence of other intelligent civilizations out there in this vastness of the universe. He then notes that while communication with aliens would be a significant scientific breakthrough, it also poses several potential risks, such as the possibility that aliens might be hostile or that their technology could be dangerous. Hawking suggests that we should be ca...

  About the Author : •Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910 ) was a Russian writer who is regarded as the greatest author of all times. •He is best known for his novels War and Peace(1869) , and Anna Karenina (1878) . About this Story: •Narrator: Third person narrator •Themes: wisdom, knowledge, awareness, kindness, forgiveness and acceptance •Moral: We should live in the present moment without regretting about the past and being anxious about tomorrow.  Characters : 1. The King: he wanted to know the answers to his three questions 2. An old hermit Summary: A king once thought that he would never fail if he knew three things. First, what the right time was to begin something. Second, which people he should take advice from. Third, how to decide what the most important thing to do was. He promised to give a reward of a large sum to the person who could answer his three questions. Many wise men came up with their answers, but the king was not satisfied. So, he left for the woods ...

  About the Authors : •Grimm Brothers (Ludwig Carl Grim and Whilhelm Carl Grimm) were German authors, cultural researchers, lexicographers, philologists and academics. •They collected and published German and European folklores during the 19th century. About this Story: •Theme: brother-sister love, sacrifice, endurance, power of words, truth •Moral: Be careful what you wish for. Don't wish anything randomly or thoughtlessly. Characters: 1. Seven brothers- They turn ravens(एक प्रकारको ठूलो काग) due to the curse of their father. 2. The Sister- She rids them of a curse which they were put under by their father. Summary : "The Seven Ravens" is a fairly tale written by the Grimm Brothers (Ludwig Carl Grim and Whilhelm Carl Grimm). It is about a young woman who saves her 7 brothers and rids them of a curse which they were put under by their father. A man had seven strong sons but he longed for a daughter. Eventually, a girl was born to his wife. He sent one of his so...

About the author : •Ruskin Bond(born 19 May, 1934) is an Indian author of British descent. •He has written novellas and over 500 short stories. About this story: •It is a story about love and affection that transcends all barriers of kinship. •Setting(time and place): the platform no 8 at Ambala Station at midnight •Narrator: Arun(a 12 year-old school boy) •Moral: Love transcends all the barriers. •Love: love, humanity, dignity, arrogance and vanity. Characters : 1. Arun - He is a 12-year-old school boy. He is the narrator of this story. 2. Satish- Arun's school fellow 3. Satish's mother- 4. A woman in white saree- She is a stranger and mysterious woman. She invited Arun to eat something together in the dining room at the . She behaved so politely and kindly to Arun. She treated him like a son. Summary "The Woman on Platform 8" is a short story written by an Indian writer Ruskin Bond. It is about a schoolboy's encounter with a kind stranger woman at...

About the author : •Guy de Maupassant (1850-1893 ) was a  popular French short-story writer, poet and novelist of the 19th century. •His stories are characterized by their economy of style and their efficient effortless conclusion. About this story: •Published in 1883 AD. •Setting: Normandy, France • Genre: social realism •Moral lesson: We must tell the truth to maintain a reputation of honesty and gain trust from others. Honesty is the best policy. Once we lose people's trust upon us, they will never trust us even if we tell the truth. Characters: 1.Maitre Hauchecorne- He is a farmer who picks up anything useful from the ground. He is accused(आरोप लगाइनु) of stealing a wallet(purse) by his enemy Maitre Malandain. 2.Maitre Malandain- He is a harness maker. He once quarrelled with Maitre Hauchecorne. They are enemies to each other. 3.The Mayor of Goderville. Summary : "The Piece of String" is a realist story written by a French writer Guy de Maupassant. It sh...

  Summary: This poem is a fine piece of Petrarchan sonnet by the famous poet John Keats. He wrote this poem in December 1816. It is inspired by the beauty of nature. Poets usually find beauty and poetry in spring and good weather. But Keats is different as he finds nature beautiful in all seasons including hot summer and cold winter. The poet symbolizes the grasshopper as hot summer and the cricket as a very cold winter. He says that even when the birds stop singing during the hot summers, the Earth still sings. The grasshopper sings tirelessly during this time flying from the hedge. The poet further says that during the cold winter also the Earth keeps expressing pleasure through cricket. A cricket sings through the stones. In the poem ‘On the Grasshopper and Cricket’, the poet John Keats celebrates the music of the Earth. He finds beauty in hot summer as well as in the cold winter. Here, in this poem, the grasshopper is a symbol of hot summer and cricket is a symbol of cold winte...

  About this Novella: ·          It is a novella published in 1937 A.D. It is based on writer’s real-life experience as a migrant worker. He worked as a migrant worker in the 1920s. ·              Setting (Time and Place): on farmland of Salinas Valley in California in the 1930s. It takes place during the Great Depression era (Economic Crisis in America from 1929-39/40) ·          Narration/Point of view: Third person omniscient narrator    Themes: dreams, loneliness, companionship/friendship, racism, powerlessness, fate, nature, etc. Characters: 1.       Lennie Small - He is a mentally handicapped, large, and very strong migrant worker. He depends on his friend Geeorge’s advice in situation he does not understand. He shares the dream of owning a farm with George 2.       George Milton - He is Lenn...