English

Chapter 7: After Twenty Years Textbook Solutions

NIOS Class 12 English Chapter 7 Question Answer

INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.1

1. What is the setting of the story?

Ans: A deserted nighttime street of New York City in cold, windy, wet weather.

2. What does ‘beat’ mean in the story?

a) tired and ready to drop

b) the territory that a police officer is assigned to patrol

c) sound or express especially by drumbeat

d) strike directly against forcefully and repeatedly

Ans: b) the territory that a police officer is assigned to patrol

3. What is the policeman doing?

Ans: The policeman is on his regular patrol duty. He moves up the deserted street, trying doors as he goes, twirling his club and looking around cautiously as he checks everything is secure on his beat.

4. Why were the streets depopulated?

Ans: Because of the chilly wind and sudden bursts of rain.

5. What does club mean in the story?

a) stout stick that is larger at one end

b) a group of people who share an interest

c) a team of professional players who play and travel together

d) golf equipment used by a golfer to hit a golf ball

Ans: a) stout stick that is larger at one end

6. The words that best describe the policeman are ____

a) impressive b) fierce c) confident d) scary

e) aggressive f) braggart g) cautious

Quote lines from the story to justify your answer.

Ans:

a) impressive – “The policeman on the beat moved up the avenue impressively. The impressiveness was habitual and not for show.”
c) confident – “The police officer walked with a slight swagger.”
g) cautious – “he tried doors as he went… turning now and then to cast his watchful eye down the road.”

INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.2

1. What can be inferred about the personality of the man in the doorway based on his description of his appearance and actions?

a) He is humble and modest

b) He is wealthy and confident

c) He is shy and reserved

d) He is careless and unkempt

Ans: b) He is wealthy and Confident.

2. How did the man describe his friend, Jimmy Wells?

a) As his worst enemy

b) As a cunning and clever person

c) As his best chum and the finest chap in the world

d) as a quiet and shy person

Ans: c) As his best chum and the finest chap in the world.

3. Why did the man travel to the West to make his fortune?

Ans: Because he believed the West offered a better prospect for achieving success and wealth.

4. Where did Jimmy Wells and the man in the doorway grow up?

Ans: Jimmy Wells and his friend grew up in New York City.

5. Who made a promise twenty years ago? What was the promise?

Ans: The stranger in the doorway, Bob and his friend Jimmy Wells, made a promise to each other twenty years ago. They agreed to meet at a restaurant called ‘Big Joe Brady’s restaurant at 10 pm exactly twenty years later, regardless of their circumstances.

6. Why did the friends part?

Ans: The friends parted when they decided to go their different ways to make their fortunes. The man in the doorway went West to make his fortune. Jimmy, on the other hand, decided to stay on in New York.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.3

1. How did the man make his fortune?

Ans: The man had gone to the West to make his fortune. He has lived by his wits and has done well.

2. Why is the man confident that Jimmy will keep his promise?

Ans: Because Jimmy was always the truest, staunchest old chap.

3. What does the man think of his friend Jimmy Wells?

Ans: The man thinks Jimmy was the most loyal of friends and will turn up for the meeting. At the same time, he feels Jimmy remains a bladder and has stayed on in his own familiar atmosphere.

4. What does the man show to indicate he has done well out west?

Ans: A handsome watch set with small diamonds.

5. How long did the man plan to wait for his friend? Why do you think the police officer asked him the question?

Ans: For another half an hour.

6. What does the man imply about life in New York compared to life in the West?

Ans: New York makes people dull, while the West sharpens them.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.4

1. How does the weather change as the story progresses?

Ans: It turns into a fine, cold drizzle with a steady wind.

2. What was the change that Bob noticed in ‘his friend, Jimmy’?

Ans: Bob noticed that Jimmy had become two or three inches taller.

3. How did Bob recognise that the tall man he was talking to was not Jimmy?

Ans: As the two men crossed a well-lit drug store, they turned to have a good look at each other. Bob at once noticed that the man who had claimed to be Jimmy Wells had a pug nose, while Jimmy had a Roman nose.

4. What was the real identity of the tall man in the overcoat? Why had he gone there?

Ans: The tall man in the overcoat was plainclothes. Jimmy Wells had sent him to arrest Bob, a notorious wanted criminal known as Silky Bob.

5. Why did Bob’s hands begin to tremble as he almost finished reading the note?

Ans: Bob’s hands began to tremble as he almost finished reading the note, as the events had taken an unexpected turn. He was expecting a happy meeting and not an arrest.

6. What would you have done in Jimmy Wells’ place?

Ans: Individual answer.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.5

Read each sentence below and identify whether it is a simple, complex, or compound sentence.

1. The policeman completed his rounds and confidently checked the locks of every door.

Ans: Compound sentence

2. She walked to the store and bought some groceries.

Ans: Compound sentence

3. After the rain stopped, the children went outside to play.

Ans: Complex sentence

4. Although it was late, he decided to finish his homework.

Ans: Complex sentence

5. Maria loves to read, but she doesn’t have much time.

Ans: Compound sentence

6. The cat slept peacefully on the windowsill.

Ans: Simple sentence

7. Whenever it rains, the streets get flooded.

Ans: Complex sentence

8. Sarah baked cookies, and her brother decorated them.

Ans: Compound sentence

9. Because he forgot his umbrella, Peter got soaked in the rain.

Ans: Complex sentence

10. Sam enjoys playing basketball, so he practices every day.

Ans:

11. The dog barked loudly when the doorbell rang.

Ans: Compound sentence

INTEXT QUESTIONS 7.6

Guess a word that could replace both the underlined phrases of a set of sentences:

1. a) You have been at the computer all morning; you deserve a stop for a brief period.

b) Thieves steal into a locked house and steal everything.

Ans: break

2. a) The proposal or plan to increase college fees was unanimously rejected.

b) The slow movement of the bullock cart lulled him to sleep.

Ans: motion

3. a) She was a leading person in the movement against child labour.

b) Without looking at the accounts, we cannot say whether the company is running at a loss.

Ans: figure

4. a) The audience burst into uncontrolled, excited applause.

b) Lions that have been living in natural conditions usually do not thrive in zoos.

Ans: wild

LET’S DO

A. Complete the crossword using the hints given.

Across	Down
5. fate or what happens in the future 7. an exaggerated sense of self-importance 10. something (eg. a proposal) offered for consideration or acceptance	1. a wide, straight road, especially one with trees on either side. 2. firm; not shaking 3. rain in very small drops or very lightly 4. restoring or boosting confidence, certainty, or security 6. a person who looks on (as at a sports event) 8. indicative of good sense or reason 9. regularly or repeatedly doing or practising something or acting in some manner

Ans:

A. Across

5. destiny

7. egotism

10. proposition

Down

1. avenue

2. steady

3. drizzle

4. reassuringly

6. spectators

8. sensible

9. habitual

B. Fill in the blanks with the words from the crossword.

1. We walked down the ______lined with trees.

Ans: avenue

2. He drank his __________________ cup of coffee after dinner.

Ans: habitual

3. Around twenty thousand ____________ came to watch the match of the century.

Ans: spectators

4. Mother spoke to me __________ and said things would turn out for the best.

Ans: reassuringly

5. She felt that it was her _______________ to be a famous singer someday.

Ans: destiny

6. Having achieved fame and success only fanned her __________.

Ans: egotism

7. I think the ______________ thing to do now would be to stop and ask for directions.

Ans: sensible

8. His progress at school has been slow but ______________.

Ans: steady

9. I love walking about when there is a light ____________.

Ans: drizzle

10. He sent us an attractive business ______________

Ans: proposition

TERMINAL QUESTIONS

1. Create character profiles for Bob and Jimmy. Describe their physical appearance, personality traits, motivations, and how they change over the course of the story.

Ans: Bob

Physical appearance: Bob is described as a well-dressed man, wearing a long overcoat, a stylish scarf, and a diamond scarf pin. He looks successful and confident. Later, we learn he has a scar on his brow, indicating a rough past.
Personality traits: Bob is ambitious, bold and determined. He went West to “make his fortune” and actually succeeded. He values loyalty, as seen from his promise to meet Jimmy after twenty years. But he is also a criminal, which shows the darker side of his character.
Motivations: His main motivation is success and wealth. He also values friendship and wants to prove he kept his word by returning for the meeting.
Change over the story: At firs,t Bob is proud and confident. But when he realises he has been arrested — and that Jimmy exposed him because of duty — he becomes quiet and helpless. His confident image collapses.

Jimmy (Patrolman Jimmy Wells)

Physical appearance: Jimmy is not described in much detail, but he is said to have a “square-jawed face” and appears simple and honest.
Personality traits: Jimmy is sincere, loyal and deeply committed to his duty as a police officer. He loves his friend Bob, but respects the law even more. He avoids facing Bob directly because he does not want to personally arrest his friend.
Motivations: Jimmy is motivated by morality, honesty, and responsibility.
Change over the story: Jimmy does not change much — he remains honest and dutiful. But his internal struggle becomes clear when he recognises Bob as a criminal and must choose between friendship and duty. He silently suffers but makes the ethical choice.

2. Write a note on the atmosphere of the story After Twenty Years. How does the writer create the atmosphere?

Ans: The atmosphere of the story is calm, mysterious and slightly tense. The story is set on a quiet, night in New York. The streets are nearly empty, and a light rain adds a lonely feeling. This creates suspense — the reader wonders whether Jimmy and Bob will really meet again and what will happen when they do. The writer builds atmosphere through:

Setting: a silent street at night
Weather: cold and slightly rainy
Tone: slow, reflective and suspenseful
Dialogue: simple but meaningful conversations
Twist ending, which heightens emotional tension
All these elements together create a mood of friendship, loyalty, suspense — and finally sadness.

3. In a short story, conflict provides crucial tension in any story and is used to drive the narrative forward. Conflict can be both external and internal. Comment on Jimmy’s internal conflict.

Ans: Jimmy’s internal conflict is between his duty as a police officer and his affection for his old friend Bob. When he realises that the man waiting for him is actually a wanted criminal, he faces a painful choice:

If he arrests Bob himself, he betrays a friend.
If he lets Bob go, he betrays the law.

He solves the conflict in a painful but moral way — he asks another officer to arrest Bob so he does not have to face him directly. This shows that Jimmy is deeply emotional but morally strong. His conflict shows that:

Even good people must make hard choices.
True honesty means sacrificing personal feelings.
Moral duty can be painful.

This internal struggle drives the emotional depth of the story.

4. Analyse the contents of the letter Bob shows to the police officer. Write the letter from Bob’s perspective, explaining his thoughts and feelings behind its creation.

Ans: The letter reveals that Jimmy recognised Bob but could not personally arrest him. Instead, he wrote the letter explaining: