Q1.
A descriptive paragraph describes a person, place, object or event to create a memorable experience for the reader. Write a descriptive paragraph describing a place that you visited recently. Follow the guidelines: 1. In the opening line, begin with something interesting to capture the reader's attention. Introduce the place you visited. 2. In the supporting lines, describe the place using adjectives and specific details that appealed to your five senses—sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. You may include alliterations, similes, and personifications to hold the reader's attention. 3. In the concluding lines, summarise the description to provide a final impression. Mention what was the most important thing about that place which others should also experience.
Answer
What the paragraph must contain:
| Part | What to do |
|---|---|
| Opening line | A hook — a sound, a smell or a surprising sentence — plus the name of the place. |
| Supporting lines | All five senses, with concrete adjectives; at least one simile or personification. |
| Concluding lines | The final impression, and the one thing others should not miss. |
Sample answer:
Dawn at the Ghat
You hear Varanasi long before you see it. We reached Assi Ghat at half past five, when the river was still the colour of steel and the far bank had not yet appeared out of the mist. Bells rang somewhere behind us, unhurried and uneven, and a boatman's oar knocked against the wooden side of his boat with a slow, hollow beat. The air smelt of wet stone, marigolds and the smoke of a hundred small fires. Under my bare feet the steps were cold and slightly slippery, worn smooth as glass by three thousand years of feet. Then the sun came up behind the far bank — not suddenly, but like a lamp being turned up — and the whole river turned from steel to copper in about two minutes. Someone pressed a clay cup of thick, sweet, cardamom tea into my hands, and it burned my fingers pleasantly in the cold. If you ever go to Varanasi, do not go in the afternoon. Go before dawn and simply sit on the steps, because the ghat is not a place you look at — it is a place that reaches you through every sense at once.
Dawn at the Ghat
You hear Varanasi long before you see it. We reached Assi Ghat at half past five, when the river was still the colour of steel and the far bank had not yet appeared out of the mist. Bells rang somewhere behind us, unhurried and uneven, and a boatman's oar knocked against the wooden side of his boat with a slow, hollow beat. The air smelt of wet stone, marigolds and the smoke of a hundred small fires. Under my bare feet the steps were cold and slightly slippery, worn smooth as glass by three thousand years of feet. Then the sun came up behind the far bank — not suddenly, but like a lamp being turned up — and the whole river turned from steel to copper in about two minutes. Someone pressed a clay cup of thick, sweet, cardamom tea into my hands, and it burned my fingers pleasantly in the cold. If you ever go to Varanasi, do not go in the afternoon. Go before dawn and simply sit on the steps, because the ghat is not a place you look at — it is a place that reaches you through every sense at once.
Tip: Notice the devices used above — a simile (“worn smooth as glass”), a personification (“like a lamp being turned up”), and one detail for each of the five senses. That is exactly what Helen Keller's essay does, and it is why her paragraphs stay in the memory.