KSEEB Class 9 · English (1st language) · KTBS Revised 2024-25

Earthquake

Chapter summary, hard words and model exam answers for Karnataka Board Class 9 English.

Free online summary and notes (Karnataka Board Class 9 English). Read it here, no PDF download needed.

About the author

R.K. Narayan's essay "Earthquake" describes reactions in Malgudi to the devastating Bihar earthquake of 1934, felt across much of North India. Though Malgudi is fictional, Narayan blends real historical disaster with comic and tender local responses - fear, rumour, charity, and resilience.

Summary

Malgudi feels the ground shake; people rush outdoors, fearing buildings will fall.

Shopkeepers, priests, and talkers invent causes - divine anger, omens, scientific guesses.

Reports arrive of massive destruction elsewhere; local fear turns to sympathy for distant victims.

Town leaders organise relief funds; even stingy citizens contribute under social pressure.

Narayan notes petty arguments and superstitions alongside genuine concern - human mixture.

Aftershocks fade; life resumes, but awareness lingers that earth and fortune are unstable.

Hard words & meanings

tremor	a small earthquake vibration
aftershock	smaller shake after main earthquake
rumour	gossip that may be false
relief fund	money gathered to help disaster victims
superstition	fear based on magic or omen rather than reason
resilience	returning to normal life after shock
sympathy	concern for others' suffering
catastrophe	sudden terrible event affecting many
petty	concerned with unimportant things - Narayan's comic touch

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Model exam answers, grammar & audio

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