Class 12 English - RAJASTHAN
Prose: The Interview
The chapter 'The Interview' by Christopher Silvester, prescribed in the Class 12 English RBSE curriculum, explores the medium of the interview as a communication tool. Through excerpts from 'The Penguin Book of Interviews', the chapter presents contrasting views on interviews. Famous personalities like Rudyard Kipling and Lewis Carroll detested being interviewed, viewing it as an immoral intrusion into their privacy. Conversely, contemporary writers like Umberto Eco and Mukund Padmanabhan embrace interviews, discussing Eco's novel 'The Name of the Rose' and his unique academic writing style known as 'interstices'. It matters for board exams because it tests textual comprehension, critical analysis of literary perspectives, and analytical writing skills.
Start Learning FreeKey Concepts
Nature of Interviews
Interviews have become a commonplace feature of journalism, with every literate person having read one, yet opinions on their usefulness and impact vary wildly.
Kipling and Carroll's Rejection
Writers like Rudyard Kipling considered interviews cowardly and immoral, while Lewis Carroll avoided them due to a horror of being lionized.
Umberto Eco's Perspective
Eco, a professor and novelist, happily gives interviews and explains how he utilizes empty spaces in his schedule, called 'interstices', to do productive work.
The Name of the Rose
Umberto Eco's immensely successful novel, discussed in the interview, which is a detective story at its surface but delves into metaphysics, theology, and medieval history.
Important Formulas
Board Exam Info
In the Rajasthan (RBSE) Class 12 English board exam, prose chapters typically contribute to questions ranging from short-answer type questions (carrying 2 marks) to long-answer critical appreciation questions (carrying 4-5 marks). Reference to context (RTC) questions from prose are also common.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Rudyard Kipling refuse to be interviewed?
Kipling considered interviews to be immoral, cowardly, and an unwarranted intrusion into personal privacy that felt like an assault or crime.
What are 'interstices' according to Umberto Eco?
Interstices are empty spaces or intervals in our schedules, such as waiting for an elevator, which Eco used efficiently to write scholarly articles.
Why was 'The Name of the Rose' so unexpectedly successful?
Eco believed its success was a mystery, noting that publishers and editors often cannot predict what will appeal to the public; sometimes people simply want a difficult reading experience.
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