I. Discuss in pairs and answer each question below in a short
paragraph
Question
1.
“ The sound was a familiar one.” What sound did the doctor hear? What did he
think it was? How many times did he hear it? (Find the places in the text.)
When and why did the sounds stop?
Answer:
The doctor heard the sound of rats. The sound was a familiar one. He heard this
sound four times. The phrases are ‘Again I heard that sound from above’, ‘Again
came that noise from above’, ‘Suddenly there came a dull thud as if a rubber
tube has fallen’. The sounds stopped after the appearance of the snake.
Question
2.
What two “important” and “earthshaking” decisions did the doctor take while he
was looking into the mirror?
Answer:
The doctor took the following two ‘important’ and ‘earth shaking’ decisions:
(a)
He would shave daily and grow a thin moustache to look more handsome.
(b) He would always keep that attractive smile on his face.
Question 3.
“I looked into the mirror and smiled,” says the doctor. A little later he says,
“I forgot my danger and smiled feebly at myself.” What is the doctor’s opinion
about himself when (i) he first smiles, and (ii) he smiles again? In what way
do his thoughts change in between, and why?
Answer:
The doctor thought that he had a good smile when he first smiled. But when he
smiled a little later, he laughed at his destiny. His life was in danger. His
thoughts got changed because of the snake. He was quite near to death.
II. This story about a
frightening incident is narrated in a humorous way. What makes it humorous?
(Think of the contrasts it presents between dreams and reality. Some of them
are listed below).
Write short paragraphs
on each of these to get your answer.
Question 1.
1.
The kind of person the
doctor is (money, possessions)
2.
The kind of person he
wants to be (appearance, ambition)
Answer:
1.
The doctor is a poor
man. He does not have much money. His house has no electricity. It is a small
rented room which has many rats. He has about sixty rupees in his suitcase.
Along with some shirts and dhotis, he also possesses one solitary black coat.
2.
He wants to be a
handsome person. So he decides to shave daily and grow a thin moustache. He
also wishes to accumulate wealth.
Question 2.
1.
The person he wants to
marry
2.
The person he actually
marries
Answer:
1.
He intends to marry a
woman doctor who has plenty of money and a good medical practice. He wishes to
have a fat wife so that she cannot run after him and catch him when he would
make a mistake.
2.
The person he actually
marries is a thin reedy person with the gift of a sprinter.
Question 3.
1.
His thoughts when he
looks into the mirror
2.
His thoughts when the
snake is coiled around his arm
Answer:
1.
He thinks that he
should look smart. So he decides to shave daily and retain his smile. He is
happy and contented when he looks into the mirror.
2.
When the snake coiled
around his left arm above the elbow, he kept sitting there holding his breath.
He became motionless. He was afraid of the snake.
Thinking about
language
(Page 61)
Question 1.
Here are some sentences from the text. Say which of them tell you, that the
author:
(a) was afraid of the snake, (b) was proud of his appearance, (c) had a sense
of humour, (d) was no longer afraid of the snake.
1.
I was turned to stone.
2.
I was no mere image
cut in granite.
3.
The arm was beginning
to be drained of strength.
4.
I tried in my
imagination to write in bright letters outside my little heart the words, ‘O
God’.
5.
I didn’t tremble. I
didn’t cry out.
6.
I looked into the
mirror and smiled. It was an attractive smile.
7.
I was suddenly a man
of flesh and blood.
8.
I was after all a
bachelor, and a doctor too on top of it!
9.
The fellow had such a
sense of cleanliness …! The rascal could have taken it and used it after
washing it with soap and water.
10.
Was it trying to make
an important decision about growing a moustache or using eye shadow and mascara
or wearing a vermilion spot on its forehead?
Answers:
·
The sentences (1),
(3), (4), (5) tell that the author (a) was afraid of the snake.
·
The sentences (6) and
(8) tell that he
(b) was proud of his appearance.
·
The sentences (9) and
(10) tell that
(c) he had a sense of humour.
·
The sentences (2) and
(7) tell that (d) he was no longer afraid of the snake.
Question 2.
Expressions used to show fear
Can you find the
expressions in the story that tell you that the author was frightened? Read the
story and complete the following sentences.
1.
I was turned ……………….
2.
I sat there holding
……………….
3.
In the light of the
lamp I sat there like ……………….
Answers:
1.
I was turned to stone.
2.
I sat there holding my
breath.
3.
In the light of the
lamp I sat there like a stone image in the flesh.
Question 3.
In the sentences given below some words and expressions are italicised. They
variously mean that one
·
is very frightened.
·
is too scared to move.
·
is frightened by
something that happens suddenly.
·
makes another feel
frightened.
Match the meanings
with the words/ expressions in italics, and write the appropriate meaning next
to the sentence. The first one has been done for you.
1.
I knew a man was
following me, I was scared out of my wits,
2.
I got a fright when I
realised how close I was to the cliff edge.
3.
He nearly jumped out
of his skin when he saw the bull coming towards him.
4.
You really gave me a
fright when you crept up behind me like that.
5.
Wait until I tell his
story—it will make your hair stand on end.
6.
Paralysed with fear,
the boy faced his abductors.
7.
The boy hid behind the
door, not moving a muscle.
Answers:
1.
I knew a man was
following me, I was scared out of my wits, (very frightened)
2.
I got a fright when I
realized how close I was to the cliff edge, (too scared to move).
3.
He nearly jumped out
of his skin when he saw the bull coming towards him. (frightened by something
that happens suddenly)
4.
You really gave me a
fright when you crept up behind me like that, (made someone feel frightened)
5.
Wait until I tell his
story—it will make your hair stand on end. (very frightened)
6.
Paralysed with fear,
the boy faced his abductors, (too scared to move)
7.
The boy hid behind the
door, not moving a muscle, (too scared to move)
Question 4.
Report these questions, using if/whether or why/when/where/how/which/what.
Remember the italicised verbs change into the past tense.
1.
Meena asked her
friend, “Do you think your teacher will come today?”
2.
David asked his
colleague, “Where will you go this summer?”
3.
He asked the little
boy, “Why are you studying English?”
4.
She asked me, “When
are we going to leave?”
5.
Pran asked me, “Have
you finished reading the newspaper?”
6.
Seema asked her, “How
long have you lived here?”
7.
Sheila asked the children
“Are you ready to do the work?”
Answers:
1.
Meena asked her friend
if he (she) thought his (her) teacher would come that day.
2.
David asked his
colleague where he would go that summer.
3.
He asked the little
boy why he was studying English.
4.
She asked me when they
were going to leave.
5.
Pran asked me if I had
finished reading the newspaper.
6.
Seema asked her how
long she had lived there.
7.
Sheila asked the
children if they were ready to do the work
(About 30-40 words each)
8. Question 1:
What was the doctor thinking while he was seated before the mirror ?
Answer:
The doctor thought of various medicine he had and if any medicine was good
enough to save him if the snake did bite him. He also realized that God had
punished him for being so proud and arrogant.
9.
Question 2:
Why did the doctor run from his house ?
10. Why did the doctor run away to his friend’s house?
Answer:
From writer’s arm the snake slithered into his lap, crept onto the table
and then moved towards the mirror. The writer revived, got up from the chair
and leapt into the yard and ran to his friend’s house to save his life.
11. Question 3:
How did the doctor show the presence of mind when he encountered the snake ?
Answer:
The doctor showed great presence of mind on seeing the snake: He neither jumped
nor cried out.
He sat on the chair holding his breath. His body was still but his mind
remained very active.
12. Question 4:
How did the snake change the writer’s opinion about himself ?
Answer:
The writer was proud of being a doctor. Coming face-to-face with the snake made
him humble. He
thought he was only a poor and stupid doctor who should not be proud of his
profession.
13. Question 5:
While looking into the mirror, what important and earth-shaking decisions
did the doctor make ?
14. What were the two important decisions taken by
the doctor while looking into the mirror?
Answer:
The important decision m^de by the doctor was that he would shave daily and
grow a thin moustache, to look more handsome.
The earth-shaking decision made by the doctor was that he would always keep
that attractive smile on his face.
15. Question 6:
What did the doctor do on seeing the snake ?
Answer:
The doctor saw the snake’s reflection in the mirror. He, then, went to have a
closer look. He got up from the chair and ran away from the house.
16. Question 7:
What type of woman did the doctor in the story “The Snake and the Mirror”,
want to get married to and why?
Answer:
The doctor, who had plenty of money and good medical practice, wanted to get
married to a woman who was fat. The reason he gave was that if he, the doctor
husband ever made any mistake, and tried to run away, she would not be able to
catch him and stop him from escaping.
17. Question 8:
Why did the author of “The Snake and the Mirror” fantasize a fat woman as
his wife ?
Answer:
The author of “The Snake and the Mirror’ fantasizes a fat woman as his wife
since she would never be able to catch the doctor on his mistakes. She would
not be able to run after him and he would be saved of all kinds of punishments.
Thus, the author fantasizes a fat woman as his wife.
18. Question 9:
Why did the snake leave the doctor’s arm?
Answer:
The snake left the doctor’s arm because it saw its reflection in the mirror and
was fascinated by it and so wanted to enjoy its own reflection by having a
closer look. Like his parents even he respects all religions.
19. Question 10:
What made the doctor utter “Death lurked four inches away” ?
20. Answer:
The doctor was under the grip of the snake, and sat motionless as a statue,
his body was inactive but mind was completely active. He knew very well that
the snake would bite him at the slightest movement. This is what made his utter
these words.
21. Long Answer Type Questions (4 marks each)
(About
80-100 words each)
22. Question 1:
“Birds of the same feathers flock together” goes the saying. Does the
encounter between the snake and the doctor in the story “The Snake and the
Mirror” support the saying? Why or why not?
23. Answer:
Yes, the story supports the saying which means that the people of similar
habits and tastes find each other. The doctor enjoyed self-appreciation and
could not resist the temptation of looking at his reflection in the mirror. He
also takes a number of decisions, so as to improve his looks. The snake that
coiled itself on the doctor’s arm, kept staring at its reflection in the mirror
for a long time, enjoying its beauty and appreciating its form. The snake was
so much engrossed in its beauty that it forgot as to why it had come to the
author’s house.
24. Question 2:
Without mirror, the story will lose its charm and reality. Justify
25. Answer:
The story would lose its charm and reality without the mirror because it
fascinates both the characters i.e., doctor and the snake. The doctor makes two
important decisions – saving daily and growing thin moustaches to make himself
more handsome and keeping a smile on the face all the time while looking at
himself in the mirror. The snake also feels attracted to look at his face in
the mirror and leaves the doctor’s arm. It sits on the table in front of mirror
and the doctor finds an opportunity to move away to save himself. Thus, the story
does revolve around the mirror and therefore its important.
26. Question 3:
What are the similarities between the doctor and the snake
Answer:
The doctor and the snake had striking similarities. Both were victims of
self-adoration. This is clearly visible in two decisions of the doctor- to
shave daily and a grow moustache and also to wear an attractive smile on his
face to look handsome. While the snake enjoyed looking at his reflection at
closer quarters. It did not move the doctor’s arm and later crept into the
table and moved towards the mirror. ,
27. Question 4:
Justify the title of the story ‘The Snake and the Mirror’.
Answer:
The story revolves round the narrator, the snake, and the mirror. The narrator
hears some familiar sounds – a dull thud and a snake lands on his shoulder. The
doctor is terrified and sits there like a stone. He suddenly feels the presence
of the Creator of the world and death 4-inches away. He forgets danger and
smiles feebly. The snake looks into the mirror, moves towards the mirror and
wants to enjoy a close reflection in the mirror. Thus the title is justified as
the story revolves around the snake and the mirror.
28. Question 5:
Describe in detail the doctor’s feelings when he saw the snake coiled
around his arm?
Answer:
The doctor was so engrossed in his day dreaming that he did not realize
that a snake had wriggled
over the back of the chair and landed on his shoulders and could round his left
arm with its hood spread out. The doctor sat there without moving an inch, he
was afraid lest the snake might strike.
He thought of various medicines he had and if any one of them was good enough
to save him if the * snake struck him. He realized the presence of God and felt
that it was a punishment for being proud and arrogant.
29. Value Based Question (4 marks)
30. Question 1:
God has a lot of ways of controlling Our lines. Discuss this in the light
of the story ‘The Snake and the Mirror’. .
Answer:
Our life is definitely in the hands of God. He is fire supreme power in control
of our lives. At times we forget this like the young doctor. He was under the
false belief that he was the one who would decide what was going to happen in
his life. He was standing in front of the mirror with a lot of pride thinking
about his future. The snake was a symbol of God’s control over him. It made him
realize that he was close to death and not to life. He was not the master of
his life
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