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EnglishClass 12Non-fiction

Non-fiction | Class 12 English Notes

By ConceptScroll Team · Published on 17 July 2026 · 4 min read

Non-fiction – this guide gives you a concise, exam-ready overview of Non-fiction from Class 12 English, written by ConceptScroll editors and reviewed against the latest NCERT textbook.

Freedom - George Bernard Shaw

George Bernard Shaw's essay 'Freedom' critically examines the concept of freedom, challenging common misconceptions and exploring the realities of human existence and social structures. Shaw begins by defining a perfectly free person as someone who can do what they like, when and where they like, or do nothing at all. However, he quickly dismantles this ideal by pointing out the natural necessities that enslave all humans: sleeping, eating, dressing, and moving from place to place. These biological and social necessities consume a significant portion of our lives, leaving limited time for true freedom. Shaw distinguishes between 'natural slavery' to nature and 'unnatural slavery' imposed by humans on each other. While natural slavery involves unavoidable bodily needs that are often pleasurable (such as eating and sleeping), unnatural slavery arises when humans dominate others through force, fraud, or social systems, shifting their own burdens onto others. This leads to exploitation, long working hours, and restricted freedoms. Shaw critiques governments that claim to protect freedom but actually enforce wage slavery, regulating exploitation rather than abolishing it. He discusses political mechanisms like voting, which often serve to maintain existing power structures rather than empower the common people. Shaw also highlights how education and propaganda perpetuate illusions of freedom, keeping both the enslaved and the master classes deluded. He cites historical events and revolutions to illustrate the ongoing struggle between classes and the failure of political systems to deliver genuine freedom. The essay concludes by urging readers to redefine freedom as leisure—time free from compulsory labor—and to strive for more leisure and fairer income distribution. Shaw warns that without changing politics and social structures, freedom remains an unattainable ideal for most people.

📊 Diagram: No diagrams are included in this essay section.

🧪 Activity: Stop and Think questions encourage reflection on links between natural jobs, labour, slavery, and government roles.

🔗 Connection: Leads to the next section on 'Understanding Freedom and Discipline' by J. Krishnamurti, which explores freedom from a philosophical perspective.

Frequently asked questions

Pick out examples of such rhetorical questions from the text and understand what the writer/speaker wishes to communicate through them.

Rhetorical questions are questions asked not to get an answer but to make a point or persuade. Examples from the text include: "On the road you have often passed villagers carrying heavy loads, have you not?" and "Don't you want to help them? No?" These questions imply statements about the reader's attitude towards the poor villagers, highlighting indifference or lack of concern. The writer wishes to communicate the need for empathy and awareness towards the plight of these villagers, urging the

Write the sound sequences for the following words sleep, thrift, snake, task smear, facts, sweet, boasts strain, street, strangle, strengths

The sound sequences are written using 'V' for vowels and 'C' for consonants as follows:

1. sleep: CCVVC (s - C, l - C, ee - VV, p - C) 2. thrift: CCVCCC (th - C, r - C, i - V, f - C, t - C) 3. snake: CCVCC (s - C, n - C, a - V, k - C, e - silent) 4. task: CVCC (t - C, a - V, s - C, k - C) 5. smear: CCCVC (s - C, m - C, ea - V, r - C) 6. facts: CCVCC (f - C, a - V, c - C, t - C, s - C) 7. sweet: CCVVC (s - C, w - C, ee - VV, t - C) 8. boasts: CCVCCC (b - C, oa - V, s - C, t - C, s - C) 9. strain

Pick out examples of such rhetorical questions from the text and understand what the writer/speaker wishes to communicate through them.

Rhetorical questions are questions asked not to get an answer but to make a point or persuade. Examples from the text include: "On the road you have often passed villagers carrying heavy loads, have you not?" and "Don't you want to help them? No?". These questions imply that the speaker expects the listener to feel empathy and concern for the villagers. The writer wishes to communicate the indifference or lack of attention people pay to the poor villagers and to provoke self-reflection and compa

Write the sound sequences for the following words sleep, thrift, snake, task smear, facts, sweet, boasts strain, street, strangle, strengths

The sound sequences are written using 'C' for consonants and 'V' for vowels:

1. sleep: CCVVC (s-l-ee-p) 2. thrift: CCVCC (th-r-i-f-t) 3. snake: CCVVC (s-n-a-k-e) 4. task: CVCC (t-a-s-k) 5. smear: CCVVC (s-m-ee-r) 6. facts: CCVCC (f-a-cts) 7. sweet: CCVVC (s-w-ee-t) 8. boasts: CCVCCC (b-oa-s-t-s) 9. strain: CCCVVC (s-t-r-ai-n) 10. street: CCCVVC (s-t-r-ee-t) 11. strangle: CCCVCCVC (s-t-r-a-ng-l-e) 12. strengths: CCCVCCCCC (s-t-r-e-ng-th-s)

Explanation:

  • Each consonant sound is marked as 'C'

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