THE HAPPY PRINCE -OSCAR WILDE

Q. Why does the Happy Prince send a ruby for the seamstress? What does the swallow do in the seamstress’ house?

Ans. The prince wanted the swallow to pick out the ruby from his sword-hilt and take it to the poor seamstress because he saw that the poor woman’s son was seriously sick. He was crying on his bed. The boy was asking for oranges. But the woman could not afford. Therefore, the Happy Prince sent a ruby for her. The swallow put the ruby on a table and fanned the boy’s forehead with its wings.

Q. For whom does the Prince send the sapphires and why?

Ans. The prince sends one sapphire for a playwright and the other to a poor match girl.

The Happy Prince saw a young playwright leaning over a desk covered with papers. His hair was brown ,crisp and his lips were red. He was trying to finish a play for the theatre. Cold, abscence of  firewood and hunger had made him faint. So, he could not finish the play.

The Happy Prince also noticed a poor match girl weeping after she accidentally threw her matches into a drain. She was afraid that her parents would beat her.

The Happy Prince helped both the playwright and the poor girl by sending them the sapphires.

Q. What does the swallow see when it flies over the city? 

Ans. When the swallow flies over the city, it sees the rich enjoying in their houses while the beggers begging at their gates. The swallow even sees two little-wretched boys lying in each other’s arms to keep themselves warm. In this way, the swallow sees the stark contrast between prosperity and poverty.

Q. Why did the swallow not leave the prince and go to Egypt?

Ans. The Happy Prince had become totally blind. The swallow was impressed with his charity and kindness. He had sacrificed everything for the good cause of helping the poor and downtrodden in their needs.

The unusual traits of the Happy Prince had a deep impact on the heart of swallow. The swallow loved the prince now much that he could not leave him in that state. He decided not to go to Egypt. He remained there till his last breath.

Q.Why is the statue of the Prince described as looking like a beggar and being no longer useful? 

Ans. The statue of the prince had lost all that had made it great and resplendent. It had lost all it gold, sapphires and the ruby. It looked worn out like a beggar.

Q.What proclamation (order)does the mayor make about the death of the birds?

Ans. The proclamation made by the Mayor was that no birds should be allowed to die in the city

Q.What impression do you gather of his personality form this?

Ans. From the Mayor’s remarks, we gather that he was an irrational and censorious person. Instead of thinking about the disappearance of the prince assets . Instead of thinking, what has made the statue so shabby and how has the bird died, he makes proclamations without any rationale. He just looks at the external appearance of things instead of thinking about the essence of things.

Q. What were the two precious things the angel brought to God? In what way were they precious?

The two most precious things mentioned in the story are the leaden heart of the happy prince and the dead swallow. The happy prince had sacrificed these to serve the suffering humanity. The swallow fulfilled the wishes of the happy prince. He sacrificed his self-interest in going to Egypt. He carried gold and jewels to the suffering people. He remained with the prince in the bad weather also. He died at the prince’s feet. So, the angel was right when it took the leaden heart of the prince and the dead swallow to Heaven.

Q. What happened to the prince ’s heart? What feelings does the end of the story arouse in you? 

Ans. The prince’s heart broke into two halves when the bird fell dead at its feet. When the leaden heart was put into the furnace, it does not melt. So, it was thrown away. Therefore, the dead bird and the leaden heart met even after death. The end the story arouses in us deep sympathy for the two. The angels considered the leaden heart the most precious thing in the city. They took it to heaven.

Q.What is the conclusion of ‘The Happy Prince?

The story concludes that mortal life is meant to decay and death and good deeds make one immortal. Goodness is everlasting and ever- rewarding. The Happy Prince He gave his eyes, gold and jewellery to the needy. His heart was divided into two halves when the swallow died at his feet. The Happy Prince’s statue was not useful anymore. It was dull and useless. The heart of the statue did not melt in a furnace as goodness could never be destroyed. 

At the end both the happy prince and the swallow were rewarded for their good deeds by God. They found a permanent place in heaven. The swallow will sing forever in the garden of paradise and the happy prince will live in the city of gold. Thus the story teaches us to live a meaningful life by helping those who are in need.

Q. The story presents a shocking contrast between external appearance and the essence of things. How?

Yes the story presents a shocking contrast between external appearance and the essence of things This is a strange world. Nothing succeeds like success here. So long we are powerful and strong we are respected and obeyed. In this dazzling world of wealth and riches, human feelings have no relevance. The statue of the Happy Prince was installed at the highest column in the most important square of the city. It was gilded all over with fine gold. His eyes had two bright sapphires and a large red ruby glowed on his sword hilt. He was a symbol of power, beauty and grandeur. The moment he lost his gold, sapphires and the grand ruby, he became very ordinary, ugly and useless. He was to be pulled down and melted in a furnace. The Mayor and the Town Counsellors were cruel and selfish.

Q. What is the moral lesson of “The Happy Prince”?

Ans. The moral lesson of “The Happy Prince” is that the worst aspects of modern society can be overcome by righteousness .Righteousness always plays an important role in bringing prosperity. The case might be of a person, a family, a country or a nation. Of course, wealth and power can provide luxury and comfort. But mental satisfaction and spiritual peace cannot be brought. Every spiritual and religious leader recommend that people take the right path and avoid the way of vice. It is possible to take care of the old, weak and downtrodden sections of society when you are virtuous. When we go the right way, the nation rises to great heights. Righteousness blesses a man with great satisfaction and happiness. In the story, the Happy Prince reached the highest level with his fellow swallows through righteousness.

CHAPTER-PACKING JEROME K. JEROME

Question 8: Why did Jerome have to reopen the packed bag?

Answer: After packing the bag Jerome realized that he packed his tobacco pouch inside, so he had to reopen it once again.

Question 9: What did George and Harris offer to pack and why?

Answer: George and Harris offered to pack the bag which would contain edible items. They also wanted to show off their packing skills.

Question 10: Do you find this story funny? What are the humorous elements in it?

Answer: This is a really funny story but at the same time it can be related to many people’s real life. To start with the language itself is humorous while depicting as mundane an activity as packing. Discovery of toothbrush inside a boot is funny. George stepping on butter is funny incident. The list can go on and on, like Harris sitting on butter, packing of jam over tomato, packing of heavier thing over lighter things. The disturbance by the dog brings its own amount of fun in the story. Even in the end their argument about exact wakeup time is also full of humour

THE MIDNIGHT VISITOR

Q1. How does Ausable manage to make Max believe that there is a balcony attached to his room? Look back at his detailed description of it. What makes it a convincing story?
Ans. When Ausable says that he had complained to the hotel management earlier as well about someone entering the room from the balcony that was below his room, Max started thinking that had he known there was a balcony, it would have been much easier for him to get to Ausable’s room. Ausable then tells Max that he wanted extra protection for the papers that were supposed to come in that day and that he had informed the police who were knocking on the door, checking on him. This made Max very nervous and he thought that he would wait for the police to go on the balcony. Without realizing, he jumped out of the window and did not realize that there was no balcony. So the way Ausable thinks calmly and quickly makes the story a lot more convincing.



Q2. How is Ausable different from other secret agents?
Ans. Ausable is different from other secret agents because he was very fat, lived in a room on the top floor of a gloomy French hotel and could only speak French passibly although he had been living in Paris for over 20 years. His voice still had an American touch to it . He used to receive messages via telephone instead of dark eyed beauties getting him his messages. So he was very different from the way other secret agents are.



Q3. Who is Fowler and what is his first authentic thrill of the day?
Ans. Fowler is a young writer who comes to meet Ausable. He is bored sitting with Ausable in a music hall as he had thought that the country’s secret agent would be thrilling and exciting but nothing of that sort happened. After some time when they were coming back to Ausable’s room, Fowler saw a man holding a gun standing in the room. So that is when he feels that the life of a secret agent can be exciting.



Q4. How has Max got in?
Ans. Max had got in with a masterkey or passkey.



Q5. How does Ausable say he got in?
Ans. Ausable says that he thought that Max had got in through the balcony. He said that it was a nuisance as it was not even his own balcony and that it was the second time somebody had got in using that same balcony.

Question 1.
Why had Fowler wanted to meet Ausable?
Answer:
Fowler was a writer and he had wanted to meet Ausable, a renowned secret agent. Fowler wanted to know how Ausable tackled dangerous situations. He was disappointed when he saw Ausable, as he didn’t look like what Fowler thought a secret agent should look like.

Question 2.
Describe Fowler’s reaction after entering Ausable’s hotel room. [CBSE 2014]
Answer:
Initially Ausable got a shock to see Max in his room. But he remained calm. Max also had a pistol with him, so Ausable didn’t try anything fishy. He just kept his cool and fooled Max by using his brain to invent stories.

Why did Max’s face turn black with anger? What did he want Ausable to do? [CBSE 2012]
Answer:
Max’s face turned black with anger because he felt that his plan of extracting the important document from Ausable was in danger of failing due to the knocking on the door, which Ausable identified as the police. He wanted Ausable to send the police away.

Question 5.
Why did Ausable frame the story of the balcony? [CBSE 2012]
Answer:
Ausable framed the story of the balcony to counter the use of the pistol by the rival secret agent Max to threaten him. The rival would have been able to get the important report about the new missiles if Ausable had not concocted this story.

Question 6.
How does Ausable manage to make Max believe that there is a balcony attached to his room?
Answer:
Ausable creates a detailed description of how his office was part of a bigger apartment and how the next door room had a direct connection with the balcony. His statement that somebody else had also broken into his office through that balcony made it a convincing story.

Question 7.
Who actually had knocked at the door of Ausable’s room? Why did he come there? [CBSE 2010]
Answer:
The waiter in the hotel where Ausable stayed knocked at the door of Ausable’s room. He had brought the drinks which Ausable had ordered when he arrived in the hotel with Fowler.



Why did Max’s face turn black with anger? What did he want Ausable to do? [CBSE 2012]
Answer:
Max’s face turned black with anger because he felt that his plan of extracting the important document from Ausable was in danger of failing due to the knocking on the door, which Ausable identified as the police. He wanted Ausable to send the police away.

Question 5.
Why did Ausable frame the story of the balcony? [CBSE 2012]
Answer:
Ausable framed the story of the balcony to counter the use of the pistol by the rival secret agent Max to threaten him. The rival would have been able to get the important report about the new missiles if Ausable had not concocted this story.

Question 6.
How does Ausable manage to make Max believe that there is a balcony attached to his room?
Answer:
Ausable creates a detailed description of how his office was part of a bigger apartment and how the next door room had a direct connection with the balcony. His statement that somebody else had also broken into his office through that balcony made it a convincing story.

Question 7.
Who actually had knocked at the door of Ausable’s room? Why did he come there? [CBSE 2010]
Answer:
The waiter in the hotel where Ausable stayed knocked at the door of Ausable’s room. He had brought the drinks which Ausable had ordered when he arrived in the hotel with Fowler.


A calm mind can help you tackle direst stress. Explain.
Answer:
Certainly, a calm mind can help us to tackle direst stress. If Ausable had panicked and done something fishy, then Max probably would have killed him. But Ausable kept his cool. Apart from this story, there can he some real life examples also. We are always told to focus when we are appearing for exams or not to panic in a difficult situation because such things hamper our thinking ability. We are not able to take proper decisions at this time. If we keep our mind cool and focus, then only can ,we find ways to get out of crunch situations.

THE THIEF'S STORY

Question 1: What are Hari Singh’s reactions to the prospect of receiving an education? Do they change over time? What makes him return to Anil?

Answer: Hari Singh’s reactions to the prospect of receiving an education change over time. When he started living with Anil he wanted to be literate so that he could become a more cunning cheat. Later on there is a change in his heart. He wants to earn respect in life. Probably he is influenced by the calm in Anil’s life. Although, both of them depend on irregular sources of income, but Anil seems to be more satisfied. Hari Singh develops a desire to be part of the civilized society.

Question 2: Why does not Anil hand the thief over to the police? Do you think most people would have done so? In what ways is Anil different from such employers?

Answer: The wetness of notes must have given the idea of Hari Singh’s act to Anil. But Anil is pleased with the fact that Hari returned whatever he had stolen. This must have given him a hope for Hari Singh’s desire to change. That is why he did not hand over Hari to police. People like Anil are hard to find. Most people would have reacted in predictable ways by thrashing Hari Singh and calling police. Anil is different because he wants his servant to become literate. He wants his servant to lead a respectable life in future.

Question 3: Do you think people like Anil and Hari Singh are found only in fiction, or are there such people in real life?

Answer: Both Anil and Hari Singh are rare in society. Especially the changed Hari Singh after he decides to go back to Anil is difficult to find.

Question 4: Do you think it a significant detail in the story that Anil is a struggling writer? Does this explain his behaviour in any way?

Answer: Hari Singh’s observation about Anil getting irregular income and Anil’s statement about his sale of a book to a publisher indicates that he is a struggling writer. He lives life according to the flow of money he gets at a given time. When he gets the money he enjoys eating out with his friends. When he is having less money then he even doesn’t accept paying salary to Hari Singh.

Question 5: Have you met anyone like Hari Singh? Can you think and imagine the circumstances that can turn a fifteen-year-old boy into a thief?

Answer: I have met several people who help needy people and help them specially in becoming literate. Fifteenth year is a very dangerous phase of life as it is teenage. A deep scar on mind or a deep sense of greed can make criminal out of ordinary boys and girls. There is a chance of Hari Singh getting a sound rebuke from his parents for asking some costly thing. Or there is equal chance of Hari Singh spoiling his consumption pattern beyond his means.

Question 6: Where is the story set? Which language or languages are spoken in these places? Do you think the characters in the story spoke to each other in English?

Answer: The story is set in Uttar Pradesh somewhere near Lucknow. The town is having an important railway station as express trains have stoppage over there. The presence of sweet shop indicates towards presence of a decent market. The description of hotels near railway station indicates that it is an important centre where people come from far off places for business related activities.

IN THE KINGDOM OF FOOLS

Question and Answers
1. What are the two strange things the guru and his disciple find in the Kingdom of Fools?

A. When the guru and his disciple reach the kingdom of fools, they find the following two strange things-

a) All the people sleep during the day and work during the night time. They have trained the cattle and all the other animals also to do the same as they fear punishment at the hands of the king.

b) Everything in the kingdom of fools-  a bag of rice or a bunch of bananas  costs one duddu. The guru is astonished and his disciple is excited to realise that food is so cheap in the kingdom.



2. Why does the disciple decide to stay in the Kingdom of Fools? Is it a good idea?

A. The disciple loves food. He gets excited to see such cheap food available in the kingdom of fools. As he wants to relish more and more food, he stays back in the kingdom of fools. His decision was not a good one as he got into trouble. Although he was innocent, the king's men took him for execution as they needed a fat person who could be killed easily by the stake.



3. Name all the people who are tried in the king’s court, and give the reasons for their trial.
A. The names of the people who were tried in the king's court are as follows-

a) The rich merchant who was the owner of the house was tried because the wall that collapsed onto the thief belonged to him. Later, on he was again tried and held guilty on behalf of his dead father who had ordered the goldsmith to deliver the ornaments in a haste due to which the goldsmith could not deliver the dancing girl’s ornaments in time.

b) The bricklayer who had built the weak wall was also tried for constructing the wall that collapsed and killed the thief.

c) The dancing girl was tried for distracting the bricklayer. As she walked in the lane again and again, the jingling sound of her anklets distracted the bricklayer because of which he constructed a weak wall.

d) The goldsmith was tried because it was due to him that the dancing girl had to walk up and down the lane again and again.

e) The rich merchant’s dead father was tried because  he had ordered the goldsmith to deliver his ornaments first as there was a wedding with his family. Due to his order the goldsmith was unable to make the dancing girl’s ornaments in time.



4. Who is the real culprit according to the king? Why does he escape punishment?
A.  According to the king, the real culprit was the merchant’s dead father. As he  was dead, he could not be punished and in place of him, his son who had inherited all his property would be punished. 
The merchant escapes the punishment as the minister feels that he is too thin to be killed by the stake.


5. What are the Guru’s words of wisdom? When does the disciple remember them?
A. The Guru had told his disciple that the place was a kingdom of fools and they was unsafe for them. He had asked his disciple to leave the place at once. The disciple is reminded of his Guru’s words of wisdom when he lands into trouble. When the king's men take him for execution, he prays to his Guru and asks him to save his life.


6. How does the guru manage to save his disciple’s life?
A.  The guru is a wise and intelligent man. He traps the foolish king in his talks. He says that as he is the Guru, he is senior to his disciple and so, he should be killed first. The king gets confused to see the Guru’s eagerness to die.  He asks him the reason for it. On being promise that he would be killed first, the Guru says that as the stake is a new one, it has not killed any criminal. He adds that the person who would be killed by the state first would be reborn as the king of the kingdom. The second person who would be killed by the stake would be reborn as the Minister of the kingdom.  The king considers the Guru to be genuine and so, tells his minister that they should not lose their kingdom in the next birth. In this way, the king decides to save his kingdom and get himself and his minister killed by the stake in place of the guru and his disciple. Hence, the Guru saves his disciple’s life.