The snake and the mirror
THE snake and the mirror
Answers to Text book questions
I. Write the answer in short . (30-40 words)
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? When and why did the sounds stop?
(ANS)The doctor heard a familiar sound caused by the movement of something on the beam as returned to his room after a meal. He thought it was the sound made by the rats that infested his room. He heard this sound three times, after short intervals and it stopped when the snake fell down with a thud on the floor, as if a rubber tube had fallen. When he turned, he saw a snake that wriggled over the back of the chair and landed on his shoulder.
2. Which two ‘important’ and ‘earth-shaking decisions did the doctor make as he looked at his image in the mirror?
(ANS)The doctor made two decisions after looking at himself in the mirror. The first was that he would shave daily and grow a thin moustache in order to look more handsome as he was still unmarried and was in the reputed medical profession. The second decision of 11 was that he would keep a smile on his face to look more handsome.
3. (I)What is the doctor’s opinion about himself when he first smiles and
(II) When he smiles again?
(ANS)When the doctor first smiled in front of the mirror, he was making himself look more attractive. His opinion about himself at that point of time was that he was a bachelor and a doctor too.
Later, when he smiled feebly at himself, a snake was coiled around him. He knew that the snake would strike him and that he had no medicines in his room. At that moment, his opinion about himself was that he was but a poor, foolish, and stupid doctor. His thoughts had changed because of the lurking danger.
II Write short paragraphs on each of these to get your answer.
1. (i) The kind of person the doctor is (money, possessions)
(ii) The kind of person he wants to be (appearance, ambition)
Ans) The story presents a contrast between dreams and reality. This contrast has been depicted in a humorous manner. The doctor had just started his practice. His earnings were therefore meagre. He lived in a small rented room, which was not electrified. He had only sixty rupees in his suitcase. Apart from a few shirts and dhotis, he had one solitary black coat. His house was full of rats. However, his dreams and ambitions were in contrast to this. He was a great admirer of beauty and he believed in making himself handsome. He laid great emphasis on the fact that he was unmarried and a doctor. He was too pleased with his appearance. He decided to shave daily and grow a thin moustache to look more handsome. The manner in which he decided that this decision is an ‘important’ one is quite funny. Later, he also made an ‘earth-shaking decision’ to
always keep smiling in order to look more handsome. This contrast between the kind
of person he was and the kind of person he wanted to be makes the story humorous.
2. (i) The person he wants to marry
(ii) The person he actually marries
ANS)He had thought about the kind of person he would want to marry. He wanted to marry a woman doctor who had plenty of money and a good medical practice because he did not have any of those. He wanted a fat wife so that whenever he would make a mistake his wife would not be able to catch him. However, the woman he married was a thin and slender person who could run like a sprinter. This contrast between the kind of wife he wanted and the kind of wife he ends up marrying adds to the humour of the story.
3. (i) His thoughts when he looks into the mirror
(ii) His thoughts when the snake is coiled around his arm
Ans) When he looked into the mirror, he was full of appreciation for his good looks. He was a great admirer of beauty and believed in making himself look handsome. He took a close look at his face and decided that he would shave daily and grow a thin moustache to look even more handsome. Then, he looked into the mirror and smiled. He decided to keep smiling as he considered his smile very attractive.
However, later when the snake was coiled around his arm, he turned into a stone. At this moment, he felt the presence of God near him. In his imagination, he tried to write ‘O God’ in bright letters. He felt pain in his left arm where the snake was coiled. He realized that if the snake struck him, then he did not even have any medicines in his room for the same. That was when he thought that he was a poor, foolish, and stupid doctor. In this way, his thoughts changed from calling himself an unmarried doctor who looked very handsome to calling himself a poor, foolish, and stupid doctor. This sequence of events
also provided humour to the story.
Answers to Text book questions
I. Write the answer in short . (30-40 words)
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? When and why did the sounds stop?
(ANS)The doctor heard a familiar sound caused by the movement of something on the beam as returned to his room after a meal. He thought it was the sound made by the rats that infested his room. He heard this sound three times, after short intervals and it stopped when the snake fell down with a thud on the floor, as if a rubber tube had fallen. When he turned, he saw a snake that wriggled over the back of the chair and landed on his shoulder.
2. Which two ‘important’ and ‘earth-shaking decisions did the doctor make as he looked at his image in the mirror?
(ANS)The doctor made two decisions after looking at himself in the mirror. The first was that he would shave daily and grow a thin moustache in order to look more handsome as he was still unmarried and was in the reputed medical profession. The second decision of 11 was that he would keep a smile on his face to look more handsome.
3. (I)What is the doctor’s opinion about himself when he first smiles and
(II) When he smiles again?
(ANS)When the doctor first smiled in front of the mirror, he was making himself look more attractive. His opinion about himself at that point of time was that he was a bachelor and a doctor too.
Later, when he smiled feebly at himself, a snake was coiled around him. He knew that the snake would strike him and that he had no medicines in his room. At that moment, his opinion about himself was that he was but a poor, foolish, and stupid doctor. His thoughts had changed because of the lurking danger.
II Write short paragraphs on each of these to get your answer.
1. (i) The kind of person the doctor is (money, possessions)
(ii) The kind of person he wants to be (appearance, ambition)
Ans) The story presents a contrast between dreams and reality. This contrast has been depicted in a humorous manner. The doctor had just started his practice. His earnings were therefore meagre. He lived in a small rented room, which was not electrified. He had only sixty rupees in his suitcase. Apart from a few shirts and dhotis, he had one solitary black coat. His house was full of rats. However, his dreams and ambitions were in contrast to this. He was a great admirer of beauty and he believed in making himself handsome. He laid great emphasis on the fact that he was unmarried and a doctor. He was too pleased with his appearance. He decided to shave daily and grow a thin moustache to look more handsome. The manner in which he decided that this decision is an ‘important’ one is quite funny. Later, he also made an ‘earth-shaking decision’ to
always keep smiling in order to look more handsome. This contrast between the kind
of person he was and the kind of person he wanted to be makes the story humorous.
2. (i) The person he wants to marry
(ii) The person he actually marries
ANS)He had thought about the kind of person he would want to marry. He wanted to marry a woman doctor who had plenty of money and a good medical practice because he did not have any of those. He wanted a fat wife so that whenever he would make a mistake his wife would not be able to catch him. However, the woman he married was a thin and slender person who could run like a sprinter. This contrast between the kind of wife he wanted and the kind of wife he ends up marrying adds to the humour of the story.
3. (i) His thoughts when he looks into the mirror
(ii) His thoughts when the snake is coiled around his arm
Ans) When he looked into the mirror, he was full of appreciation for his good looks. He was a great admirer of beauty and believed in making himself look handsome. He took a close look at his face and decided that he would shave daily and grow a thin moustache to look even more handsome. Then, he looked into the mirror and smiled. He decided to keep smiling as he considered his smile very attractive.
However, later when the snake was coiled around his arm, he turned into a stone. At this moment, he felt the presence of God near him. In his imagination, he tried to write ‘O God’ in bright letters. He felt pain in his left arm where the snake was coiled. He realized that if the snake struck him, then he did not even have any medicines in his room for the same. That was when he thought that he was a poor, foolish, and stupid doctor. In this way, his thoughts changed from calling himself an unmarried doctor who looked very handsome to calling himself a poor, foolish, and stupid doctor. This sequence of events
also provided humour to the story.
Comments
Post a Comment