The Bond of Love
II. Answer the following questions.
Question 1.
“I got him for her by accident.”
1. Who says this?
2. Who do ‘him’ and ‘her’ refer to?
3. What is the incident referred to here?
Answer:
1. The author says this.
2. ‘Him’ refers to the baby bear and ‘her’ refers to the author’s wife.
3. The incident refers to the catching of the baby bear.
Question 2.
“He stood on his head in delight.”
1. Who does ‘he’ refer to?
2. Why was he delighted?
Answer:
1. ‘He’ refers to the baby bear.
2. ‘He’ was delighted to see the author’s wife after a long time.
Question 3.
“We all missed him greatly: but in a sense we were relieved.”
1. Who does ‘we all’ stand for?
2. Who did they miss?
3. Why did they nevertheless feel relieved?
Answer:
1. The author, his wife and son.
2. They missed the baby bear.
3. They felt relieved because it was getting difficult to keep the baby bear at
home.
III. Answer the following questions in 30 to 40 words each.
Question 1.
On two occasions Bruno ate/drank something that should not be eaten/ drunk. What
happened to him on these occasions?
Answer:
Bruno ate Barium Carbonate which was put to kill the rats and mice. Paralysis set in
to the extent that he could not stand on his feet. Once he drank one gallon of old
engine oil. But it had no ill effects whatever.
Question 2.
Was Bruno a loving and playful pet? Why, then, did he have to be sent away?
Answer:
Yes, Bruno was a loving and playful pet. But he was mischievous also. The bear
became very attached to the narrator’s two Alsatian dogs and the children of the
tenants. Bruno had grown many times the size he was when he came. Now her
name was changed to Baba. Now he was getting too big to be kept at home. So
he was sent to a zoo.
Question 3.
How was the problem of what to do with Bruno finally solved?
Answer:
Bruno was not feeling happy after getting separated from the narrator’s family. He
was getting weak every day. The narrator’s wife went to Mysore to meet Bruno.
Bruno. After seeing his pitiful condition she decided to get Bruno back home. The
narrator and his wife made special arrangement for Bruno and created all facility for
him. At last Bruno was got back home in a small cage.
The snake trying
I.
Question 1.
What is the snake trying to escape from?
Answer:
The snake is trying to escape from the pursuing stick. Human beings try their level
best to kill the snake. They take it for granted that the snake is poisonous and
harmful.
Question 2.
Is it a harmful snake? What is its colour?
Answer:
No, it is not harmful. It is a green snake.
Question 3.
The poet finds the snake beautiful. Find the words he uses to convey its beauty.
Answer:
The poet uses the following words: beautiful and graceful, glides, small and green.
Question 4.
What does the poet wish for the snake?
Answer:
The poet wishes that the snake should be allowed to go. It should not be killed by
the man.
Question 5.
Where was the snake before anyone saw it and chased it away? Where does the
snake disappear?
Answer:
The snake was away from its secure area. It was basking in the sun along the
sand. Finally, it disappears in the reeds.
If I were you
I. Answer these questions.
Question 1.
“At last a sympathetic audience.”
1. Who says this?
2. Why does he say it?
3. is he sarcastic or serious?
Answer:
1. Gerrard says this.
2. He says this because the intruder becomes sympathetic towards him.
3. He is, no doubt, sarcastic.
Question 2.
Why does the intruder choose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take
on?
Answer:
The intruder chose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take on because
he is a kind of a mystery man. He phones his orders and sometimes goes away
suddenly and come back just the same.
Question 3.
“I said it with bullets.”
1. Who says this?
2. What does it mean?
3. Is it the truth? What is the speaker’s reason for saying this?
Answers:.
1. Gerrard says this.
2. It means that he is not an ordinary person. He is very dangerous.
3. NO, he wants that the intruder should change his idea of killing him.
Question 4.
What is Gerrard’s profession? Quote the parts of the play that support your answer.
Answer:
Gerrard is a dramatist. He says, “Sorry I can’t let you have the props in time for
rehearsal…
Question 5.
“You’ll soon stop being smart.”
1. Who says this?
2. Why does the speaker say it?
3. What according to the speaker will stop Gerrard from being smart?
Answers:
1. The intruder says this.
2. He says it because Gerrard does not seem afraid of his gun even.
3. According to the speaker, the bullet will stop Gerrard from being smart.
Question 6.
“They can’t hang me twice.”
1. Who says this?
2. Why does the speaker say it?
Answer:
1. The intruder says this.
2. The speaker says it because he wants to murder Gerrard. And he has already
murdered someone. So the police cannot hang him twice.
Question 7.
“A mystery I propose to explain.” What is the mystery the speaker proposes to
explain?
Answer:.
The speaker wants that the intruder should explain what mystery is associated with
him. The mystery is about Gerrard’s placing his orders on telephone. And he goes
out suddenly and returns in the same way.
Question 8.
“This is your big surprise.”
1. Where has this been said in the play?
2. What is the surprise?
Answer:
1. Gerrard speaks this line. He tells the intruder that if he is not hanged for his
murder, he will certainly be hanged being Vincent Charles Gerrard. At this time
he utters these words.
2. The big surprise is that Gerrard will not be killed by him. He is right in saying
this.
Moments
The last leaf
Question 1.
What is Johnsy’s illness? What can cure her, the medicine or the willingness to live?
Answer:
Johnsy, a young artist, was ill. She was suffering from pneumonia. But later on she
suffered from a misconception that she would die as soon as the last leaf on the
creeper would fall down. The medicine had no effect on her. Her willingness to live
could cure her.
Question 2.
Do you think the feeling of depression Johnsy has is common among teenagers?
Answer:
Life has two aspects i.e. positive and negative. It depends upon us how we take it.
Nowadays it is very common that teenagers are getting depressed because of cut-
throat competition. On the other hand, a majority of teenagers who take life positively
and faces difficulties boldly never lose hope and proceed further.
Question 3.
Behrman has a dream. What is it? Does it come true?
Answer:
Behrman had a dream to paint a masterpiece in his life. He kept waiting for the
opportunity to give it a practical shape. Yes, he could materialize his dream when he
painted the last leaf of the ivy creeper.
Question 4.
What is Behrman’s masterpiece? What makes Sue say so?
Answer:
Behrman was a 60-year old artist who had a dream to paint a masterpiece. His
painting of an ivy leaf was his masterpiece which saved the life of Johnsy. It was
such a painting that it was not easy to make out whether the leaf was real or it
was just a painting. When Behrman died painting this life-saving painting, Sue called
it a masterpiece.
A house is not a home
Question 1.
What does the author notice one Sunday afternoon? What is his mother’s reaction?
What does she do?
Answer:
The author, while doing his homework noticed the smoke pouring in through the
seams of the ceiling. The room was filled with the smoke very quickly. The author
and his mother ran outside to save their life. His mother ran out of the house with a
small metal box full of important documents. She became so crazy that she rushed
back to the house just after dropping the box.
Question 2.
Why does he break down in tears after the fire?
Answer:
The author’s house was completely burned down. Five hours later when the fire was
finally put out, he realised at once that his cat was nowhere. He had to face the
loss of old school, his house and cat. In such a state, he cried and broke down in
tears.
Question 3.
Why is the author deeply embarrassed the next day in school? Which words show
his fear and insecurity?
Answer:
The author was full of remorse as he was left with nothing. He didn’t have proper
dress and study material. He had no backpack. He had the feeling of insecurity. All
things appeared strange to him. He was shocked deeply and seemed frustrated. The
words uttered by him “Was I destined to be an outcast and a geek all my life? I
didn’t want to grow up, change or have to handle life, if it was to going to be this
way. I just wanted to curl up and die” reveal his fear and insecurity.
Question 4.
The cat and the author are very fond of each other. How has this been shown in
the story? Where was the cat after the fire? Who brings it back and how?
Answer:
The author loved his cat very much. He never considered her far from him. She kept
sitting beside him when he did his homework and other household work. When the
author found his cat back, his happiness was beyond the limits. He grabbed her
quickly and felt relieved. This proved that they were very fond of each other.
The cat ran over a mile away when the house was on fire. A stranger lady brought
it back as there was a phone number written on the collar of the cat.
Question 5.
What actions of the schoolmates change the author’s understanding of life and people,
and comfort him emotionally? How does his loneliness vanish and how does he start
participating in life?
Answer:
His schoolmates bought up school supplies, notebooks, all kinds of different clothes for
the author in order to help him. It was a matter of surprise and too difficult to
believe for him. He got emotional satisfaction. People who had never spoken,
introduced themselves one by one. All things seemed new and created his interest in
life. Now, he had all the things whatever he used to have. He started enjoying his
life as usual.
Question 6.
What is the meaning of “My cat was back and so was I”? Had the author gone
anywhere? Why does he say that he is also back?
Answer:
Here the author wants to point out that life without affection is useless. He was
depressed after a great loss in all fields. His old school and teachers were always in
his mind. The fire had reduced his house to ashes. His cat was also not with him.
In such circumstances he considered himself dead and had no interest in life.
In the end as soon as the conditions took the turn he felt relieved. Now he had all
the things with him. The author had not gone anywhere. It was his state of mind.
He recovered from this gloomy state and started enjoying life when he got his cat
back.
The beggar
Question 1.
Has Lushkoff become a beggar by circumstance or by choice?
Answer:
Lushkoff was a middle-aged man and belonged to the Russian choir. He was not a
bom beggar. He was sacked from the choir because of his drinking habits. He
became a beggar by choice as he did not like to work hard at that stage.
Question 2.
What reasons does he give to Sergei for his telling lies?
Answer:
Lushkoff told the truth and accepted that he was a liar. Formerly he used to be a
singer. He told lies to seek the favour of others. If he had spoken the truth none
would have helped him. So, he decided to tell lies.
Question 3.
Is Lushkoff a willing worker? Why, then, does he agree to chop wood for Sergei?
Answer:
No, he was not a willing worker. He was too weak to work. He had lost his
strength and stamina due to his habit of drinking and secondly he was a middle aged
man. He agreed to chop wood because of pride and shame and he had been
trapped by his own words. So he had no other way but to accept Sergei’s offer.
Question 4.
Sergei says, “I am happy that my words have taken effect.” Why does he say so?
Is he right in saying so?
Answer:
Sergei looked satisfied with the performance of the beggar and felt happy. When
Lushkoff’s job of packing and hauling of the furniture was over, he praised him while
handing him a rouble. But he was not right in saying so because Lushkoff had not
developed the habit of working hard. He was still an idle fellow.
Question 5.
Lushkoff is earning thirty five roubles a month. How is he obliged to Sergei for this?
Answer:
Sergei played very important role in improving the condition of the beggar. It was
because of Sergei that Lushkoff could earn thirty five roubles a month. He offered him
the job to chop wood at his home. Later on he sent him to one of his friends to do
the job of copying. Lushkoff was highly obliged to Sergei because now he was a
notary because of him.
Question 6.
During their conversation Lushkoff reveals that Sergei’s cook, Olga, is responsible for
the positive change in him. How has Olga saved Lushkoff?
Answer:
Olga was a social and sympathetic lady. She loved humanity. She realised the
condition of Lushkoff and tried her best to improve the same. She did the work of
his part as she wanted to change him. She kept criticizing him in order to improve
him. He realised her feelings towards him and a change took place in his heart. So,
Olga was responsible for the positive change in him.
