Thinking about the Text

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

“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? (Find the places in the text.) When and why did the sounds stop?

The doctor heard the sound of rats scurrying in his room, which he initially thought was a regular occurrence. He heard the sounds twice before it stopped when he noticed the snake slithering down from the roof.

What two “important” and “earth-shaking” decisions did the doctor take while he was looking into the mirror?

The doctor made two "earth-shaking" decisions: first, he would shave every day and keep a thin mustache to look handsome. Second, he would marry a woman with plenty of money and good looks.

“I looked into the mirror and smiled,” says the doctor. A little later he says, “I forgot my danger and smiled feebly at myself.” What is the doctor’s opinion about himself when: (i) he first smiles, and (ii) he smiles again? In what way do his thoughts change in between, and why?

When the doctor first smiles, he is full of vanity and admires his appearance. Later, when he smiles again, he is weak and scared, realizing the danger of the snake coiled around his arm. His thoughts shift from self-admiration to fear of the snake.

II. This story about a frightening incident is narrated in a humorous way. What makes it humorous? (Think of the contrasts it presents between dreams and reality. Some of them are listed below.)

(i) The kind of person the doctor is (money, possessions) (ii) The kind of person he wants to be (appearance, ambition)

The doctor is a poor, struggling homeopath who lives in a rented room full of rats. However, he wants to be a rich and handsome man, with lofty dreams of improving his appearance and marrying a wealthy woman. The contrast between his reality and dreams creates humor.

(i) The person he wants to marry (ii) The person he actually marries

The doctor wants to marry a rich, fat woman who cannot run fast so that he can control her. Ironically, he ends up marrying a thin, quiet woman, contrasting his absurd expectations with the reality of his marriage.

(i) His thoughts when he looks into the mirror (ii) His thoughts when the snake is coiled around his arm

When the doctor looks into the mirror, he is full of self-admiration and dreams of improving his appearance. However, when the snake coils around his arm, his thoughts shift to survival, and he forgets about his vanity, focusing on staying still to avoid danger.

Thinking about Language

I. Here are some sentences from the text. Say which of them tell you, that the author: (a) was afraid of the snake, (b) was proud of his appearance, (c) had a sense of humour, (d) was no longer afraid of the snake.

1. I was turned to stone. (a)

2. I was no mere image cut in granite. (b)

3. The arm was beginning to be drained of strength. (a)

4. I tried in my imagination to write in bright letters outside my little heart the words, ‘O God’. (a)

5. I didn’t tremble. I didn’t cry out. (d)

6. I looked into the mirror and smiled. It was an attractive smile. (b)

7. I was suddenly a man of flesh and blood. (d)

8. I was after all a bachelor, and a doctor too on top of it! (b)

9. The fellow had such a sense of cleanliness...! The rascal could have taken it and used it after washing it with soap and water. (c)

10. Was it trying to make an important decision about growing a moustache or using eye shadow and mascara or wearing a vermilion spot on its forehead. (c)

II. Expressions used to show fear

Can you find the expressions in the story that tell you that the author was frightened? Read the story and complete the following sentences.

1. I was turned to stone.

2. I sat there holding my breath.

3. In the light of the lamp I sat there like a stone image in the flesh.

III. In the sentences given below some words and expressions are italicised. They are variously mean that one

1. I knew a man was following me, I was scared out of my wits. (very frightened)

2. I got a fright when I realised how close I was to the cliff edge. (frightened by something that happens suddenly)

3. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he saw the bull coming towards him. (too scared to move)

4. You really gave me a fright when you crept up behind me like that. (frightened by something that happens suddenly)

5. Wait until I tell his story — it will make your hair stand on end. (makes another feel frightened)

6. Paralysed with fear, the boy faced his abductors. (too scared to move)

7. The boy hid behind the door, not moving a muscle. (too scared to move)

IV. Reported questions

Report these questions using if/whether or why/when/where/how/which/what. Remember the italicised verbs change into the past tense.

1. Meena asked her friend, “Do you think your teacher will come today?”
Meena asked her friend if she thought their teacher would come that day.

2. David asked his colleague, “Where will you go this summer?”
David asked his colleague where he would go that summer.

3. He asked the little boy, “Why are you studying English?”
He asked the little boy why he was studying English.

4. She asked me, “When are we going to leave?”
She asked me when we were going to leave.

5. Pran asked me, “Have you finished reading the newspaper?”
Pran asked me if I had finished reading the newspaper.

6. Seema asked her, “How long have you lived here?”
Seema asked her how long she had lived there.

7. Sheila asked the children, “Are you ready to do the work?”
Sheila asked the children if they were ready to do the work.