Every Success Story is Also a Story of Great Failures

Click here ➢SSC based  Reading Comprehensions Chapter 1B Every Success Story is Also a Story of Great Failures

SSC Based Reading Comprehensions Unit 1 Reading B

Chapter 1B Every Success Story is Also a Story of Great Failures 

I. Answer the following questions.

1. ‘To Lincoln, defeat was a detour and not a dead end.’ Justify this statement from the life of Lincoln.

Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States at age 52. Before he became President, he faced many setbacks. He failed in business, lost in legislative, senatorial and congressional races. He lost his sweetheart when he was 22. Thus, Lincoln had failed many times before he got the big success. He proved that defeat was a detour and not a dead end.

What did Socrates suggest as the secret to success? Do you agree or disagree with it? Give reasons for your answer.

Socrates suggested that burning desire is the only secret to one’s success. I agree with this statement. If we don’t have a desire, we can’t achieve anything. A burning desire is the starting point of all accomplishments. A weak desire can’t produce great results. The motivation to get the success comes from the burning desire to achieve a purpose.

3. Complete the following table about the failures and successes of the great personalities mentioned in the lesson you have just read. The first one is done for you.

S. NoPersonFailures/
Rejections
he faced		Final
 success
1Abraham
 Lincoln		Failed in business,
defeated in
legislative
elections, had
nervous
breakdown, lost
congressional
race and
senatorial race 		Elected
President
 of the United
 States of
 America
Lee de
 Forest
Invented
 the triodes
 tube
3Wright
 Brothers





4
Knocked
many
doors
before
he got
the first
order
5Walt
 Disney


6

Grew
up to be
a great
 scientist.
7

Established
cars
company
8
Fired by
Henry
Ford II
9


Gave
 some
 of the best music
to the world.




S. NoPersonFailures/
Rejections
he faced		Final
 success
1Abraham
 Lincoln		Failed in business,
defeated in
legislative
elections, had
nervous
breakdown, lost
congressional
race and
senatorial race 		Elected
President
 of the United
 States of
 America
Lee de
 Forest		Charged
by the
district
attorney		Invented
 the triodes
 tube
3Wright
 Brothers		A New York
Times
editorial
questioned
 the wisdom
of the
Wright
Brothers		Took
their
 famous
flight
at
Kitty Hawk




4Colonel
 Sanders		Knocked
many
doors
before
he got
the first
order		Became
famous as
a busi­nessman 
who
founded
the Ken­tucky Fried
Chicken
chain
restaurants
5Walt
 Disney
Newspaper
editors
rejected
him by
saying
that he
had
no talent.		Created
 some of the
 world’s
most well-known
fictional
characters
inclu­ding
Mickey Mouse.
He was well
known as an
animator.
6Thomas
 Edison		As a child,
he was
considered
 to be
a stupid,
lost his
factory
to fire.		Grew
up to be
a great
 scientist.
7Henry
 Ford		Forgot
to put
the reverse
 gear in
his first car,
broke
at the age
of 40.		Established
cars
company
8Lee
 lacocca		Fired by
Henry
Ford II		Well known
 for
engineer­ing
the
Ford Mustang
and
Ford Pinto
cars and
became
one of the most famous
business
people in the world.
9
Ludwig
van
 Beethoven		He
was told
that
 he had
 no talent
 for music.		Gave
 some
 of the best music
to the world.


Study skills

Read the following story.

An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer-contractor of his plans to leave the house-building business to live a more leisurely life with his wife and enjoy his extended family. He would miss the paycheck each week, but he wanted to retire. They could get by.

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favour. The carpenter agreed. But over time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated career.

When the carpenter finished his work, his employer came to inspect the house. Then he handed the front-door key to the carpenter and said, “This is your house… my gift to you.”
The carpenter was shocked!

What a shame! If he had only known that he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently.
So it is with us. We build our lives, a day at a time, often putting less than our best into the building. Then, with a shock, we realize we have to live in the house we have built. If we could do it over, we would do it much differently.

But, you cannot go back. You are the carpenter, and every day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Someone once said, “Life is a do-it-yourself project.” Your attitude, and the choices you make today, help build the “house” you will live in tomorrow. Therefore, build wisely!

I. Complete the table given below.

S. NoPoint to be observedObservation/Point of view
1The setting/location in which the story took place
2The main characters
3The main events
4The turning point in the story
5The irony in the story
6The message in the story
7Possible title

Answer:
S. NoPoint to be observedObservation/Point of view
1The setting/location in which the story took place(A building) Retirement of a carpenter
2The main charactersA contractor and a carpenter
3The main eventsa.The carpenter decided to retire.

b. He told his employer (contractor) about his decision.

c. The contractor requested the carpenter to build one more house as a personal favour.

d. The carpenter agreed and finished his work.

e. The contractor gave the very house to the carpenter as a gift
4The turning point in the storyThe contractor inspected the house, handed the front-door key to the carpenter and told him to take.
5The irony in the storyThe carpenter thought that the house was for the contractor. As he had already decided to retire, he didn’t do the work with good workmanship. But he was shocked to know that the house was for him.
6The message in the story“Build your life with good attitude."
7Possible titleWe Build Our Lives

II. Extended Writing

Rewrite the above story by giving another ending.

Answer:



Listening

Listen to the story about a farmer.

Just now you have listened to a story about a farmer. Here are some sentences that describe the events in the story. However, they are not in the order in which they occur in the story. Listen to the story and arrange them in the order in which they occur. Put 1 after the event that occurs first, 2 against the next and so on.

He threw himself into the Barcelona River and committed suicide.
The wise man said, “Because that is a diamond.”
He picked up the stone and put it in the living room.
He looked all through Europe and couldn’t find any.
They found that the farm was indeed covered with acres and acres of diamonds.
That night the farmer couldn’t sleep.
The person who had bought his farm was watering the camels at a stream.
He made arrangements to sell off his farm and went in search of diamonds.
He was unhappy and he was discontent.
A wise man told him about the glory of diamonds.
Answer:
A wise man told him about the glory of diamonds.
That night the farmer couldn’t sleep.
He was unhappy and he was discontent.
He made arrangements to sell off his farm and went in search of diamonds.
He looked all through Europe and couldn’t find any.
He threw himself into the Barcelona River and committed suicide.
The person who had bought his farm was watering the camels at a stream.
He picked up the stone and put it in the living room.
The wise man said, “Because that is a diamond.”
They found that the farm was indeed covered with acres and acres of diamonds.

Oral Activity

After listening to the story, work in pairs and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of travelling abroad. You may use the hints given in the box for your understanding.

Advantages
  • Earn money
  • Social status
  • More opportunities 
Disadvantages 
  • Cut off from your roots
  • Living away from parents
  • Brain drain/ Intellectual loss
Do it yourself

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