NCERT Solutions for Class 9th English Chapter 8 Believe in Yourself (poem by Robert Langley) — Listen and Respond

Book page 253 Updated on2026-09-08

Q1.

I. You will listen to a conversation between two friends. As you listen, answer the following questions in one to three exact words that you hear. (Transcript for teacher on page 275) 1. How did the boy feel before the play ?

Answer

so nervous (accept: nervous)

From the transcript (Appendix, Unit 8, printed page 275): Karan’s very first speech —

Boy: “I don’t know if I can do this, Ananya. Everyone’s expecting me to perform well in the play, but I’m just so nervous. What if I mess up? What if I forget my lines?”

The answer is in the first line of the recording — which is exactly why it is easy to miss. Listeners are still settling when a conversation begins. Read all three questions before the recording starts, so that you are already listening for a feeling word when the first speaker opens his mouth. Note also that his two follow-up questions — “What if I mess up? What if I forget my lines?” — are the content of the nervousness, not the answer to the question asked.

Stay inside the words heard. The instruction says “one to three exact words that you hear”, so write so nervous or nervous. Anxious, worried and under-confident are all reasonable descriptions and all wrong for this task.

Q2.

I. 2. According to the girl, where does confidence come from?

Answer

from taking action

From the transcript (printed page 276):

Girl: “But self-doubt is just part of the process! Everyone feels nervous before big moments. Remember, confidence comes from taking action, even when you don’t feel fully ready.”

Listen for the signposting word. Ananya begins the sentence with “Remember,” — a speaker uses that word to mark the one line she wants kept. In listening tasks, the examinable sentence is very often the one introduced by remember, the important thing is, note that, or a similar flag.

Why this line matters beyond the exercise. It reverses the order most people assume. We tend to think: first feel confident, then act. Ananya says: act, and the confidence follows. That is the listening passage’s version of “The first step is the hardest” — and it answers the objection Karan keeps raising, that he does not feel ready. Her point is that nobody does.

Q3.

I. 3. What was the girl finally sure about regarding the boy?

Answer

(that) he’ll shine — “I know you’ll shine!”

From the transcript (printed page 276), Ananya’s closing words:

Girl: “Exactly! You’ve got all the tools you need. Believe in yourself and own that stage. I know you’ll shine!”

The question’s wording tells you where to listen. “Finally sure” points to the end of the conversation, and “sure” points to a phrase of certainty. Ananya supplies both: she does not say I hope or I think — she says “I know”. The last speech of a dialogue is very often examined, because it carries the resolution.

Notice the shift in her language across the conversation. She begins with evidence (“you’ve been practising for weeks”), moves to principle (“confidence comes from taking action”), and ends with pure conviction (“I know you’ll shine!”). She gives him reasons first and belief last — which is the same order Irene Chua uses in her letter, and the opposite of empty cheering.

Q4.

II. You will once again listen to the conversation. As you listen, select the four true statements from 1–7 given below. 1. The boy feels confident but is worried about freezing on stage. 2. The girl encourages the boy to push through his doubts by trusting in his preparation. 3. The boy thinks that the audience will be supportive regardless of his performance. 4. The girl believes that self-doubt is a normal part of preparing for a big performance. 5. The boy feels that his preparation is not enough and doubts his abilities, even though he has practiced. 6. The girl suggests that the boy should avoid feeling nervous and perform perfectly. 7. The girl believes that pushing through nervousness will help the boy grow and build confidence.

Answer

The four true statements are 2, 4, 5 and 7.

No.	T/F	The line from the transcript that decides it
1	False	He is not confident at any point. He opens with “I don’t know if I can do this” and “I’m just so nervous”. The freezing worry is real — “what if I freeze on stage?” — but the word confident makes the statement false.
2	True	“you’ve been practising for weeks. You’ve already done so many rehearsals, and you’ve got this… Just take a deep breath, focus on your lines, and trust yourself. You’ve practised this more than anyone else!”
3	False	The opposite. He fears the audience: “Everyone will be watching me, and I don’t know if I can handle that pressure.” Nowhere does he expect them to be supportive.
4	True	“But self-doubt is just part of the process! Everyone feels nervous before big moments.”
5	True	“I keep doubting myself. I feel like I’m not good enough, even though I’ve put in the work.” The concession clause matches the statement’s “even though he has practiced” exactly.
6	False	She advises the opposite of avoiding nervousness: “Pressure is a part of it, but it’s also what helps you grow.” She never asks for perfection, and he ends by saying he will try “even if I feel a little nervous” — with her approval.
7	True	“Pressure is a part of it, but it’s also what helps you grow. The more you push yourself, the more confident you’ll become.”

How the three false statements are built — this is worth learning. Each takes a true idea from the recording and alters one element:

No. 1 keeps his real worry (freezing) and changes his state of mind (confident, not nervous).
No. 3 keeps the audience and reverses his attitude to it.
No. 6 keeps the girl as adviser and reverses her advice — avoid nervousness instead of push through it.

In a true/false listening set, the falsehood is usually a single reversed word, not a whole invented idea. Listen for the person’s attitude, not just for the topic — the topic will nearly always be genuine.

Read the poem against this conversation. Karan is the boy at the foot of the staircase; Ananya says in prose what Langley says in verse. “Believe in yourself and own that stage” is “You just need to believe in yourself”; “The more you push yourself, the more confident you’ll become” is “this isn’t what we are made for / This isn’t how we grow.” The listening task is not a separate exercise — it is the poem, dramatised.

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