TEXTBOOK QUESTIONS SOLVED
BEFORE YOU READ
• Gerrard lives alone in a lonely cottage. An intruder, who is a criminal, enters his cottage. He intends to murder Gerrard and take on his identity. Does he succeed?
• The following words and phrases occur in the play. Do you know their meanings? Match them with the meanings given, to find
Ans. He doesn’t succeed. Gerrard understands his intention. He outsmarts him and saves himself in the end.
THINKING ABOUT THE TEXT
I. Answer these questions.
- “At last a sympathetic audience.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) Why does he say it?
(iii) Is he sarcastic or serious? - Why does the intruder choose Gerrard as the man whose identity he wants to take on?
- “I said it with bullets.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) What does it mean?
(iii) Is it the truth? What is the speaker’s reason for saying this? - What is Gerrard’s profession? Quote the parts of the play that support your answer.
- “You’ll soon stop being smart.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?
(iii) What according to the speaker will stop Gerrard from being smart?
6.“They can’t hang me twice.”
(i) Who says this?
(ii) Why does the speaker say it?
7.“A mystery I propose to explain.” What is the mystery the speaker proposes to explain?
8.“This is your big surprise.”
(i) Where has this been said in the play?
(ii) What is the surprise?
Ans. 1. (i) Gerrard says this.
(ii) He says this because the intruder becomes sympathetic towards him.
(iii) He is, no doubt, sarcastic.
2.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 go away suddenly and come back just the same.
3.(i) Gerrard says this.
(ii) It means that he is not an ordinary person. He is very dangerous.
(iii) No, he wants that the intruder should change his idea of killing him.
4. Gerrard is a dramatist. He says, “Sorry I can’t let you have the props in time for rehearsal…’
5. (i) The intruder says this.
(ii) He says it because Gerrard does not seem afraid of his gun even.
(iii) According to the speaker, the bullet will stop Gerrard from being smart.
6. (i) The intruder says this.
(ii) The speaker says it because he wants to murder Gerrard.And he has already murdered someone.So the police cannot hang him twice.
7. 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.
8. (i) 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.
(ii) The big surprise is that Gerrard will not be killed by him. He is right in saying this.
THINKING ABOUT LANGUAGE
I. Consult your dictionary and choose the correct word from the pairs given in brackets.
1. The (site, cite) of the accident was (ghastly/ghostly).
2. Our college (principle/principal) is very strict.
3. I studied (continuously/continually) for eight hours.
4. The fog had an adverse (affect/effect) on the traffic.
5. Cezanne, the famous French painter, was a brilliant (artist/artiste).
6. The book that you gave me yesterday is an extraordinary (collage/college) of science fiction and mystery.
7. Our school will (host/hoist) an exhibition on cruelty to animals and wildlife conservation.
8. Screw the lid tightly onto the top of the bottle and (shake/shape) well before using the contents.
Ans. 1. site, ghastly 2. principal 3. continuously 4. effect 5. artist
6. collage 7. host 8. shake
II. Irony is when we say one thing but mean another, usually the opposite of what we say. When someone makes a mistake and you say, “Oh! that was clever!” that is irony. You’re saying ‘clever’ to mean ‘not clever’.
Expressions we often use in an ironic fashion are: • Oh, wasn’t that clever! /Oh that was clever! • You have been a great help, I must say! • You’ve got yourself into a lovely mess, haven’t you? • Oh, very funny! /How funny!
We use a slightly different tone of voice when we use these words ironically.
Read the play carefully and find the words and expressions Gerrard uses in an ironic way. Then say what these expressions really mean. Two examples have been given below. Write down three more such expressions along with what they really mean.
DICTIONARY USE
A word can mean different things in different contexts. Look at these three sentences:
- The students are taught to respect different cultures.
- The school is organising a cultural show.
- His voice is cultured.
In the first sentence, ‘culture’ (noun) means way of life; in the second, ‘cultural’ (adjective) means connected with art, literature and music; and in the third, ‘cultured’ (verb) means sophisticated, well-mannered. Usually a dictionary helps you identify the right meaning by giving you signposts.
Look at the dictionary entry on ‘culture’ from Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 2005.
(Noun, verb, adjective, adverb, synonyms, etc. are signposts which help you locate the right meaning and usage, and give information about the part of speech that the word is.)
Look up the dictionary entries for the words sympathy, familiarity, comfort, care, and surprise. Use the information given in the dictionary and complete the table.
SPEAKING
1. Imagine you are Gerrard. Tell your friend what happened when the Intruder broke into your house.
[Clues: Describe (i) the Intruder—his appearance, the way he spoke, his plan, his movements, etc., (ii) how you outwitted him.]
Ans. Yesterday I was standing near the telephone and an intruder entered my cottage. He had a gun in his hands and made me a threat. He intended to kill me and shouted at me. The intruder forced me to tell everything about me. But I did not tell him the reality and misguided him. I told him that he would not gain anything after murdering me. I told him that I was to safeguard myself from the police. So I posted a man on the road. When we tried to come out of the cottage I locked him inside a cupboard and called the police. Eventually, the police arrested him.
2. Enact the play in the class. Pay special attention to words given in italics before a dialogue. These words will tell you whether the dialogue has to be said in a happy, sarcastic or ironic tone and how the characters move and what they do as they speak. Read these carefully before you enact the play.
Ans. Do yourself.
WRITING
I. Which of the words below describe Gerrard and which describe the Intruder?
smart humorous clever beautiful cool confident flashy witty nonchalant
Write a paragraph each about Gerrard and the Intruder to show what qualities they have. (You can use some of the words given above.)
Ans. Gerrard was smart, humorous, confident, witty and clever. He was cool. When the intruder broke into his cottage, he did not lose his patience and confidence. He cooked up a story, convinced the intruder, and got rid of him. He showed his intelligence and presence of mind. He was nonchalant also.
The intruder was smart, beautiful, flashy, clever, and confident. He collected much information about Gerrard and planned his visit meticulously. He wears flashy clothes. He has the ability to make someone afraid of him. Moreover, he is witty and answers Gerrard’s questions intelligently and sarcastically.
II. Convert the play into a story (150–200 words). Your story should be as exciting and as witty as the play. Provide a suitable title to it.
Ans. Gerrard is a dramatist who lives in a cottage. Very few people come to visit him. He rarely goes out. If he goes out, he comes back suddenly. Once an intruder enters his cottage who has a gun in his hands. Gerrard receives him with a warm welcome. The intruder asks many questions to him about his personal life. He answers his queries intelligently and thoughtfully. The intruder tells him that he wants to use his identity because he is being chased by police as he has murdered a cop. But Gerrard tells him that he will not be benefitted by killing him as he is also wanted. And he expects the police there tonight to arrest him. So he asks him to run with him in the car. But when they are about to cross the door, Gerrard pushes him into the cupboard and slams it. Then he calls the police and gets him arrested.
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