CBSE Class 12 English NCERT Solutions Chapter 4 Non-Fiction – Free PDF & Q&A 2025-26

Chapter 4 – Kaleidoscope Non-Fiction - Why the Novel Matters

NCERT Solutions for Class 12 English Chapter

Introduction

D.H Lawrence is deemed as one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. He was born on 11th September 1885 in Eastwood, U.K., and died on 2nd March 1930. He has written many poems and novels in his lifetime. Amongst his most famous works are novels like “Lady Chatterley’s Lover” and “Sons and Lovers”. His work is marked by great passion and is related to issues of class division and different kinds of relationships in the world. Some of his writings have also stirred major controversy in the literary world because of their content not being in-line with normal societal rules.

The essay presented in this chapter, “Why the novel matters” was published posthumously as part of an essay collection titled “Phenix” in 1936. This essay, in a nutshell, tries to establish how novels are essential for men and women, and the author believes that the profession of a novelist is above all other professions.

This piece also touches upon the idea of life being so unpredictable that readers would finally realize that life, just by itself, is the reason for living. That is why the writer advises men and women to live life with a zest and to the fullest.

Kaleidoscope - Why the Novel Matters

The NCERT Class 12 English Chapter 4 why the novel matters begin with the writer wondering why people think of themselves as having a body and a soul. Why is the mind given more importance to other parts of our bodies, like our hands? He says that his hand is alive and gliding on paper as he writes so in that sense the “me” right now is my hand and not just the mind which gives me thoughts.

For these reasons, Mr Lawrence feels that the living man is more important than his thoughts, ideas, emotions, liver, kidney, etc. Scientists or philosophers do not understand this fact except for a novelist. The novelist is the only one who, through his novels, shows that life and the characters in it are nothing but a man alive. Hence, a novelist is superior to a scientist or a philosopher.

The writer talks about Parson and how they are more concerned with the soul, heaven, and the afterlife. But for a novelist, heaven is right there in his palms and the tip of his nose as they are all alive beings. A novelist does not believe or bother about life after death. Lawrence then draws a comparison between different kinds of men and what they choose to call living. Some seek God in their lives, some go after money, and for some wine and women are the centre of their living. The novel tries to differentiate between the men who are actually alive in the real sense of the word and men who are dead even though bodily they are alive.

The essay ends with Mr. Lawrence providing a sort of guidance to men to find out if they are truly living. This essay will help people develop an instinct for life. The writer does not try to advocate and teach right and wrong but is of the view that rights and wrongs are subject to the circumstances. A novel depicts this wavering and varying nature of life which touches alive men. Hence, novels matter a lot in a man’s life.

Exercise - Understanding the Text

This exercise has 4 questions, and all are long answer types. These questions would tickle higher-order thinking in students, and they can refer to the summary to solve these questions.

Exercise - Talking About the Text

There are 2 questions in this exercise where students are encouraged to discuss amongst themselves. By examining the novel, students would gain better insights into it as well as develop English speaking skills.

Exercise - Appreciation

This exercise has 2 questions, and both are related to the language and tone used by the author in the essay. Students need to find out particular catchphrases in the essay, which is used by the author to present his views intensely.

Exercise - Language Work

This exercise has three parts which are described below:

• Vocabulary - Here, students need to find out some non-English words and their meanings from the essay.

• Grammar: Some Verb Classes - This exercise explains what is an intransitive verb and copulas. Later, there is a task to identify intransitive verbs from given statements.

• Spelling and Pronunciation - Students need to find out words that have letters “ch” and “gh” with different ways of pronunciation in different words.

Key Features of NCERT Solutions for Class English Chapter 4

Students who want to get good scores or pursue English in their higher studies must avail of NCERT solutions Class 12 English kaleidoscope chapter 4 nonfiction prepared by the expert team of Vedantu. These solutions are beneficial in many ways; some of the important ones are:

• Students get solutions as a PDF that they can download and save on their devices. These PDFs can then be accessed at any time for a quick revision.

• The answers are given in a simple language which is based on the understanding level of class 12th students.

• The answers are accurate since many hours of effort have gone into formulating them after a lot of research.

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