CLASS 6-THE PRINCE AND THE SWALLOW

THE PRINCE AND THE SWALLOW

EX A1.

Q1.

A1. The statue of the happy prince stood on a tall column.The exterior was covered with thin leaves of fine gold, the eyes were two bright sapphires and there was a large red ruby on the handle of his sword. He looked very attractive.

Q2.

A2.The little swallow was alone in the city because the other swallows had flown to Egypt. He had not gone as he had fallen in love with a reed.

Q3.

A3. It seems that the swallow did not really love the reed because very soon he got tired of her. This can be concluded from the line. “ He felt lonely and began to tire his lady love” When the reed did not agree to go with him, he flew away to Egypt leaving her behind.

Q4.

A4. The statue was sad because ,from the height of the tall column, he could see the ugliness and the miseries prevailing in the city. He was crying because he could see the son of a poor seamstress,lying ill on a bed and asking for oranges which his mother could not afford to buy for him and instead was giving him river water.

Q5.

A5. The statue wanted the swallow to take the red ruby from his sword-hilt and give it to the seamstress to enable her to buy the oranges. He told the swallow that he could not do so himself as his feet were fastened to the pedestal.

Q6.

A6. The swallow did not agree at once to help the statue. He said that his friends had flown away to Egypt and he wanted to join them without wasting anymore time.Secondly,he said that he did not like boys because they were rude and always troubled him.But then the prince looked so terribly sad, the swallow felt sorry for him and agreed to stay for one night and help him

Q7.

A7.On the way to the poor boy's house,the swallow saw many things. He saw the cathedral tower with white marble angels on it. He passed the palace where he heard the sound of dancing and saw a beautiful girl on the balcony with her companion.He also saw ships lit by lanterns on the river.

EX A2.

1.

a)It was said by one of the Town Councillors.

b)He said these words because he wished to gain a reputation for having artistic tastes.

c)The Councillor then added that the statue was not as useful as the weathercock because he was a practical man.

2.

a)The swallow said this.

b)He thought the thing to be curious as there were no clouds in the sky yet a large drop of water had fallen on him.

c)The eyes of the Happy Prince were filled with tears, and tears were running down his golden cheeks.

3.

a)The statue of the Happy Prince cannot choose but weep.

b)Standing on a pedestal the statue of the Happy Prince can see the misery around him. He can see the ill son of a poor seamstress, who wants to have oranges, but his mother is too poor to buy them.

c)When he was alive he had never seen misery or been unhappy.He lived in the Palace of Sans-Souci where sorrow was not allowed to enter.During the daytime, he played with his companions and in the evening he led the dance in the Great Hall.

4.

a)The girl's companion said to her.

b)The listner was more worried whether her new dress would be ready for the State Ball or not.She was moaning to her companion about her petty grievances,ignoring the fact that he was talking about beauty and love.

c)The line reveals the cold-heartedness of the girl with no sympathy for the poor seamstress.Through this line the author portrays the indifferent attitude of people in general.