IF I WRER YOU
If I Were You
I. Answer these questions.
1. “At last a sympathetic audience.”
(i) Who says this?
The speaker of the given line is Gerrard
(ii) Why does he say it?
He says it as he is asked by the intruder to speak about himself.
2. Why does the intruder choose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take on?
Gerrard looks much like the intruder. The intruder is a murderer. The police are after him. He hopes he can easily impersonate Gerrard and escape being caught.
3. “I said it with bullets.”
(i) Who says this?
Gerrard says this.
(ii) What does it mean?
When things had gone wrong, the intruder had used his gun to shoot someone in order to escape.
4. What is Gerrard’s profession? Quote the parts of the play that support your answer.
Gerrard is a playwright by profession. Several parts of the play that reflect this. Some of these are:
O “This is all very melodramatic, not very original, perhaps, but...”
O “At last a sympathetic audience!”
O “In most melodramas the villain is foolish enough to delay his killing long enough to be frustrated”.
O “I said you were luckier than most melodramatic villains.”
O “That’s a disguise outfit; false moustaches and what not”.
5. “You’ll soon stop being smart.”
(i) Who says this?
The intruder says the line.
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?
The speaker says it to frighten Gerrard.
(iii) What according to the speaker will stop Gerrard from being smart?
According to the intruder, Gerrard would stop being smart once he knew what was going to happen to him. The intruder’s plan was to kill Gerard and take over his identity. He felt that when Gerrard would know this, he would stop being smart and start getting scared.
6. “They can’t hang me twice.”
(i) Who says this?
The intruder says the line.
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?
The intruder had been telling Gerrard that he had murdered a man, and that he would not shy away from murdering him too. This is because the police could not hang him twice for two murders.
7. “A mystery I propose to explain.” What is the mystery the speaker proposes to explain?
Gerrard, the speaker, proposes to explain the mystery about his queer life in which he has an irregular routine, refuses to see tradesmen, goes away and comes back to the house hurriedly. The story was that Gerrard himself was a criminal like the intruder. He asked the intruder why else would he not meet any tradespeople and be a bit of a mystery man here today and gone tomorrow. He told the intruder that his game was up as things had suddenly gone wrong for him. He had committed a murder and got away. Unfortunately, one of his men had been arrested and certain things were found, which should have been burnt. He said that he was expecting some trouble that night and therefore, his bag was packed and he was ready to escape.
8. “This is your big surprise.”
(i) Where has this been said in the play?
This has been said twice in the play. On the first occasion, it is spoken by the intruder while revealing his plan to kill Gerrard. Secondly, it is spoken by Gerrard before him reveals his fictitious identity to the intruder.
(ii) What is the surprise?
The intruder's surprise is his plan to kill Gerrard and take on his identity to lead a secure and hassle-free life. Whereas, Gerrard's surprise is his fictitious identity, his way of preventing the intruder from killing him.
I. Answer these questions.
1. “At last a sympathetic audience.”
(i) Who says this?
The speaker of the given line is Gerrard
(ii) Why does he say it?
He says it as he is asked by the intruder to speak about himself.
2. Why does the intruder choose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take on?
Gerrard looks much like the intruder. The intruder is a murderer. The police are after him. He hopes he can easily impersonate Gerrard and escape being caught.
3. “I said it with bullets.”
(i) Who says this?
Gerrard says this.
(ii) What does it mean?
When things had gone wrong, the intruder had used his gun to shoot someone in order to escape.
4. What is Gerrard’s profession? Quote the parts of the play that support your answer.
Gerrard is a playwright by profession. Several parts of the play that reflect this. Some of these are:
O “This is all very melodramatic, not very original, perhaps, but...”
O “At last a sympathetic audience!”
O “In most melodramas the villain is foolish enough to delay his killing long enough to be frustrated”.
O “I said you were luckier than most melodramatic villains.”
O “That’s a disguise outfit; false moustaches and what not”.
5. “You’ll soon stop being smart.”
(i) Who says this?
The intruder says the line.
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?
The speaker says it to frighten Gerrard.
(iii) What according to the speaker will stop Gerrard from being smart?
According to the intruder, Gerrard would stop being smart once he knew what was going to happen to him. The intruder’s plan was to kill Gerard and take over his identity. He felt that when Gerrard would know this, he would stop being smart and start getting scared.
6. “They can’t hang me twice.”
(i) Who says this?
The intruder says the line.
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?
The intruder had been telling Gerrard that he had murdered a man, and that he would not shy away from murdering him too. This is because the police could not hang him twice for two murders.
7. “A mystery I propose to explain.” What is the mystery the speaker proposes to explain?
Gerrard, the speaker, proposes to explain the mystery about his queer life in which he has an irregular routine, refuses to see tradesmen, goes away and comes back to the house hurriedly. The story was that Gerrard himself was a criminal like the intruder. He asked the intruder why else would he not meet any tradespeople and be a bit of a mystery man here today and gone tomorrow. He told the intruder that his game was up as things had suddenly gone wrong for him. He had committed a murder and got away. Unfortunately, one of his men had been arrested and certain things were found, which should have been burnt. He said that he was expecting some trouble that night and therefore, his bag was packed and he was ready to escape.
8. “This is your big surprise.”
(i) Where has this been said in the play?
This has been said twice in the play. On the first occasion, it is spoken by the intruder while revealing his plan to kill Gerrard. Secondly, it is spoken by Gerrard before him reveals his fictitious identity to the intruder.
(ii) What is the surprise?
The intruder's surprise is his plan to kill Gerrard and take on his identity to lead a secure and hassle-free life. Whereas, Gerrard's surprise is his fictitious identity, his way of preventing the intruder from killing him.
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