Packing

I. Discuss in pairs and answer each question below in a short paragraph (30 − 40 words).

1. How many characters are there in the narrative? Name them. (Don’t forget the dog!).

Ans: There are four characters in the narrative. They are Jerome (the narrator), George, Harris and Montmorency (the dog).

2. Why did the narrator (Jerome) volunteer to do the packing?

Ans: The narrator volunteered to do packing because he thought he was the best packer. He felt proud of his packing and wanted to show it.

3. How did George and Harris react to this? Did Jerome like their reaction?

Ans: George and Harris readily accepted Jerome’s suggestion. George smoked a pipe and “spread himself over the easy-chair”, while Harris put his legs on the table and lit a cigar.
No, Jerome was  irritated by their reaction.

4. What was Jerome’s real intention when he offered to pack?

Ans: When Jerome offered to pack, his real intention was to supervise the work. He wanted to show his ability through the supervision.

5. What did Harris say after the bag  was shut and strapped? Why do you think he waited  till then to ask?

Ans: After the bag  was shut and strapped, Harris mentioned that Jerome had not packed the boots.
He had waited  till then to ask because he wanted to make Jerome realise his mistake and ridicule his packing skills.

6. What “horrible idea” occurred to Jerome a little later?

Ans: The “horrible idea” that occurred to Jerome a little later was whether he had packed his toothbrush or not. Whenever he  travelled  he could never remember if he had packed his toothbrush or not. This thought haunted him and made his life a misery.

7. Where did Jerome finally find the toothbrush?

Ans: Jerome finally found the  tooth brush inside a boot when he was putting the things back one by one after turning them out of the bag.

8. Why did Jerome have to reopen the packed bag?

Ans: Jerome had to reopen the packed bag twice owing to his forgetfulness. Once he had to reopen the bag as he had forgotten to pack the boots. The next time, he unpacked when he  realised  he had packed his toothbrush in.

9. What did George and Harris offer to pack and why?

Ans: George and Harris offered to pack the hampers because It was getting late and they thought that Jerome had taken too much of time. They also wanted to show their skill to Jerome.

II. What does Jerome say was Montmorency’s ambition in life? What do you think of Montmorency and why?

Ans: Jerome says Montmorency’s ambition in life was to get in the way and he sworn at. Montmorency was a mischievous little dog who loved creating troubles for others. I think that Montmorency was a perfect nuisance because whenever he found people busy with their work, he might feel bored and wanted to get involved. He meant no trouble intentionally. But when people shouted at him or threw things at his head, he got discouraged and then went away to sit silently, which the narrator calls as the fulfillment of his conceit.

III.Discuss in groups and answer the following questions in two or three paragraphs (100 −150 words)

1. Of the three, Jerome, George and Harris, who do you think is the best or worst packer? Support your answer with details from the text.

Ans: Of the three, Jerome is the best packer He knew how to arrange things in order. Both Harris and George messed everything. Harris packed the strawberry jam on top of a tomato and squashed it. George stepped on the butter. They  were getting constantly irritated by Montmorency.  Till the time Jerome packed, although he took his time, the job. They even kept things behind them and then kept searching for it. They made everything such a mess.

2. How did Montmorency ‘contribute’ to the packing?

Ans: The packing escapade was already a messy job and Montmorency’s contribution made it even more tiresome. He did his level best to be a “perfect nuisance”.
He came and sat down on things, just when  they  were wanted to be packed. He put his leg into the jam and worried the teaspoons. He also pretended that the lemons were rats. So  he got into the hamper and killed three of them before Harris could land him with the frying-pan.

3. Do you find this story funny? What are the humorous elements in it?
(Pick out at least three, think about what happens, as well as how it is described.)

Ans: Yes, this story is definitely funny. Not only is the way in which the three friends pack for their trip quite humourous, but the way the author narrates all the incidents is also entertaining.
The first humorous element is that he offered to pack, George and Harris leaves the whole matter to him. Consequently, he has to do packing though his real intention was to boss the job.
The second humorous element is that George placed the butter on the chair and Harris sat on it and it stuck at his back. When they searched it for packing it was missing. They walk and walk round the room. At last, George saw it at Harris’s back.
The third humorous element is that Montmorency squirms in where he is not wanted. He wants somebody stumble over him and curse him steadily for an hour. He pretends that lemons were rats.

The table below has some proverbs telling you what to do and what not to do. Fill in the blanks and add a few more such proverbs to the table.

	Positive		Negative
(i)	Save for a rainy day.	(i)	Don’t cry over spilt milk.
(ii)	Make hay while the sun shines.	(ii)	Don’t put the cart before the horse.
(iii)	____ before you leap.	(iii)	____ a mountain out of a mole hill.
(iv)	____ and let live.	(iv)	____ all your eggs in one basket.

Ans: (iii) Look before you leap.
Don’t  make  a mountain out of a mole hill.
(iv)  Live  and  let Live.
Don’t  put   all your eggs in one basket.
(v) Mind your own business.
Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.
(vi)  Be  first  at the feast and last at the fight.
Don’t  count   the days, make the days count!

The Lake Isle of Innisfree

I. 1. What kind of place is Innisfree? Think about:
(i) the three things the poet wants to do when he goes back there (stanza I);

Ans: (a) The poet wants to build a small cabin of clay and wattles.

(b) He wants to plant nine rows of beans.

(c) He wants to keep honey bees hive.

(ii) what he hears and sees there and its effect on him (stanza II);

Ans: (a) He hears the cricket’s song.

(b) He holds linnets flying in the sky.

(c) He sees glimmering midnight and glowing rooms.

(iii) what he hears in his “heart’s core” even when he is far away from

(stanza III).

Ans: When the poet is far away from Innisfree he hears the sound of the lake water washing the shore in his “heart’s core”.

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2.  By  now you may have concluded that Innisfree is a simple, natural place, full of beauty and peace. How does the poet contrast it with where he now stands

(Read stanza III).

Ans: The poet contrasts the clay and wattle made cabin, bee loud glade, morning with dews and crickets songs, midnight with glimmer, noon with purple glow, evenings with linnet’s songs lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore etc.

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3. Do you think Innisfree is only a place, or a state of mind? Does the poet actually miss the place of his boyhood days?

Ans: Although Innisfree is the poet’s boyhood haunt, it also represents his state of mind. The poet wishes to escape to Innisfree as it is more peaceful than where he is now−the city. Innisfree is representative of what the poet considers an ideal place to live, which is devoid of the restless humdrum of his life.
Yes, the poet actually misses the place of his boyhood days. Even when he is away from Innisfree , he recalls the sound of the lake water washing the shore.

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II. 1. Look at the words the poet uses to describe what he sees and hears at Innisfree
(i) Bee-loud glade
(ii) Evenings full of the linnet’s wings
(iii) Lake water lapping with low sounds
What pictures do these words create in your mind?

Ans: (i) These words bring to our minds the image of buzzing bees.

(ii) These words bring up the image of linnets flying across an evening sky.

(iii) These words evoke not only the image but also the soft sound of a lake’s water washing the shore.

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2. Look at these words:
…peace comes dropping slow
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings
What do these words mean to you? What do you think “comes dropping slow…from the veils of the morning”? What does “to where the cricket sings” mean?

Ans: The given lines indicate that peace of mind can be slowly acquired from the natural surroundings.

It is peace that “comes dropping slow…from the veils of the morning”.

The phrase “to where the cricket sings” indicates a peaceful place where one can hear the

vibrant sounds of nature− sounds such as the songs of the crickets at the time of dawn.

A Legend of the Northland

 1. Which country or countries do you think “the Northland” refers to?

Ans: “The Northland”  refer  to any extremely cold country in the Earth’s north polar region, such as Greenland, the northern regions of Russia, Canada, Norway etc.

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2. What did Saint Peter ask the old lady for? What was the lady’s reaction?

Ans: Saint Peter asked the old lady for one of her baked cakes to satisfy his hunger. The lady tried to bake a small cake for the saint.

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3. How did he punish her?

Ans: He punished the lady by changing her into a woodpecker that built nests and gathered scanty food by boring in the hard, dry wood all day long.

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4. How does the woodpecker get her food?

Ans: The woodpecker gets her food by boring holes into trees.

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5. Do you think that the old lady would have been so ungenerous if she had known who Saint Peter really was? What would she have done then?

Ans: No, the old lady would not have been so ungenerous if she had known who Saint Peter really was. Instead, she would have tried to please him with her cakes for the fulfilment of her greedy desires.

6. Is this a true story? Which part of this poem do you feel is the most important?

Ans: No, it is not a true story; it is a legend.
I feel that the point in the story where the old lady is changed into a woodpecker is the most important. This is because the punishment meted out to the lady teaches us the value of generosity and charity.

7. What is a legend? Why is  this poem called a legend?

Ans: A ‘legend’ is a popular story from the past which is believed by many but one cannot prove whether it is true or not. It usually contains a message or a moral and is  narrated to children.
The poet himself says that he  doesn’t believe this tale to be true. This poem is  called a ‘legend’ because it preaches generosity towards fellow beings.

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8. Write the story of ‘A Legend of the Northland’ in about ten sentences.

Ans: Once Saint Peter stopped by an old lady’s cottage because he was feeling hungry and weak after the day’s fasting. The lady was baking cakes on the hearth. Since he was weak with fasting, he asked her for a cake from her store of cakes.
The selfish lady tried to bake small cakes but each time they seemed too big for her to give away. Finally, she baked one that was as thin as a wafer. Unable to part with it too, she put it on a shelf and did not give any cake to the Saint.
Saint Peter was very angry with her behaviour and said she was too selfish to live as a human and have food, shelter and a fire to keep her warm. He punished her by changing her into a woodpecker that would have to build a nest to live in, bore for food in the trunks of trees. Her clothes were  burned and she was left with her scarlet cap on her head as she flew out through the chimney.
Even today she still lives in the woods and is seen by all the country school  boys.

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RAIN ON THE ROOF

 1. What do the following phrases mean to you? Discuss in class.
(i) humid shadows       (ii) starry spheres          (iii) what a bliss
(iv) a thousand dreamy fancies into busy being start
(v) a thousand recollections weave their air-threads into woof

Ans: 1. (i) “Humid shadows” refer to the dark clouds that produce rain.

(ii) “Starry spheres” refer to the night sky abounding in stars.

(iii) “What a bliss” refers to the happiness of the poet. When it rains poet gets into his cottage and enjoy the patter of rain upon the roof.

(iv)  This refers to the various imaginary thoughts and fantasies that are aroused in the poet’s mind.

(v) This phrase means that numerous memories intermingle to form a beautiful picture that the poet  recollects.

2. What does the poet like to do when it rains?

Ans: When it rains, the poet feels delighted to lie with his head pressed against the pillow of his cottage chamber bed and listen to the patter of the soft rain.

3. What is the single major memory that comes to the poet? Who are the “darling dreamers” here refer to?

Ans: The single major memory that comes to the poet is that of his mother and her fond look.
The “darling dreamers” are the poet and his siblings in their childhood  when  they were lovingly put to sleep by their mother

.4. Is the poet now a child? Is his mother still alive?

Ans: No, the poet is not a child now  .He is a grown up man. He remembers her when he is inside his cosy cottage and enjoy the pattern of rain on the roof. She might be alive but staying away from him.

II. 1. When you were a young child, did your mother tuck you in, as the poet’s did?

Ans: Yes, my mother used to tuck me in when I was a young child, just like the poet’s mother did. (Self-experience question)

2. Do you like rain? What do you do when it rains steadily or heavily as described in the poem?

Ans: Yes, I like the rain. When it rains steadily I get into my house and enjoy the weather with family. We enjoy tea. It is wonderful experience (self-experience question)

3. Does everybody have a cosy bed to lie in when it rains? Look around you and describe how different kinds of people or animals spend time, seek shelter etc. during rain.

Ans: No, everybody is not fortunate enough to have a cosy bed to lie in when it rains. Not everybody gets to enjoy the comfort of cosy homes during rain. I have seen animals seeking shelter under trees and under the tin roofs of the small roadside tea stalls. The people passing by shoo away these animals and try to shrink themselves under the limited space of these shops. The poor animals are left shivering and drenching on the roads. The shopkeepers of such stalls are delighted as the people waiting for the rain to subside often end up buying tea and snacks.