ARTIFICIAL
(C.D.S.1994)
The artificial ways of inducing sleep are legion and are only alike in their ineffectuality. In Living, there is an impossible character, a victim of insomnia, who finds that a volume of Wordsworth’s poems is the only sure soporific, but that was Borrows’ Malice. The famous old plan of counting sheep jumping over a stile has never served a turn. I have herded imaginary sheep until they insisted on turning themselves into white bears or blue pigs, and I defy any reasonable man to fall asleep while mustering a herd of stupid swine.
1. The author points out that
(a) sleep can easily be induced.
 (b) the artificial means of inducing sleep are not good.
 (c) artificial ways of inducing sleep are ineffective.
(d) artificial ways of inducing sleep are expensive.
 2. According to the author the character in Laving
 (a) resorts to external aids to get some sleep
(b) is an admirer of Wordsworth
 (c) spends sleepless nights reading Wordsworth
(d) is an avid reader of poetry
 3. The author uses “impossible” for the character of Lauinger in the sense of
(a) funny                    (b) unrealistic
(c) queer                     (d) imaginary
 4. Borrows’ malice is most probably directed at
 (a) sleeplessness
(b) the artificial ways of inducing sleep
(c) Wordsworth’s poetry
(d) poetry in general
 5. In order to cure his insomnia, the writer
 (a) does a lot of reading
(b) vainly tries to concentrate on imaginary situations
(c) keeps a flock of sheep
(d) counts sheep jumping over a stile
ANSWERS:-
1. (c)
2. (d)
3. (b)
4. (c)
5. (b)
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