The Rattrap Class 12 Question and Answer

The Rattrap Class 12 Question and Answer Chapter -4

 

UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT

Question -1. How does the peddler interpret the acts of kindness and hospitality shown by the crofter, the iron master and his daughter?

Answer -The peddler interprets the acts of kindness and hospitality shown by Crofter, the Iron Master, and his daughter differently. He deceives Crotor as he supports her in her loneliness and helps her pass the time. He wants to get some kronor from the iron master and is shocked at the contrasting style of behavior of father and daughter. He is impressed by Edla's kindness, care and intervention on his part.

Question 2. What are the instances in the story that show that the character of the ironmaster is different from that of his daughter in many ways?

Answer -Ironmaster is   spontaneous  while his daughter is calm, logical, kind and considerate. In an uncertain light he (the iron master) mistakes the stranger as his old regimental comrade. He invites her home and takes care of her food, clothes etc. When he sees him in broad daylight he calls the man dishonest, asks for an explanation and is ready to call the sheriff. His daughter is more attentive. She notices the stranger's fear and thinks he is either a thief or an escaped prisoner. Despite this, he is gentle, kind and friendly towards her. She treats him well even knowing the mistake in identification. while his daughter is calm, logical, kind and considerate. In an uncertain light he (the iron master) mistakes the stranger as his old regimental comrade. He invites her home and takes care of her food, clothes etc. When he sees him in broad daylight he calls the man dishonest, asks for an explanation and is ready to call the sheriff. His daughter is more attentive. She notices the stranger's fear and thinks he is either a thief or an escaped prisoner. Despite this, he is gentle, kind and friendly towards her. She treats him well even knowing the mistake in identification.

Question 3. The story has many instances of unexpected reactions from the characters to others’ behaviour. Pick out instances of these surprises.?

Answer - The peddler marvels at the warm welcome, eclectic dinner, cheerful company and close trust by the crofter. The Ironmaster addresses the peddler as Captain von Stahle. He is taken by surprise when the Ironmaster calls him "Nils Olof". The Ironmaster agrees to decline the invitation as a result of the embarrassment caused by his miserable clothes. Comparing the peddler's world to a mousetrap makes Ironmaster laugh and abandons the idea of ​​calling the sheriff.

The peddler looks at Edla with great amazement when she tells him that the suit is a Christmas present. She also invites them to spend the next Christmas with her. She does all this even after knowing the mistake about her identity. In exchange for hospitality, the crofter is robbed by his guest, the Rattrap Peddler.

Question - 4. What made the peddler finally change his ways?

Answer - Edla Willmanson was friendly with the tramp. She was nice and kind to him. When his father was about to take him out, he intervened on his behalf. He entertained the peddler even after knowing the truth about him. He offered her the suit as a Christmas present and invited her to spend the next Christmas with them. His love and understanding instilled the necessary goodness in the peddler and eventually he changed his course.

Question 5. How does the metaphor of the rattrap serve to highlight the human predicament?

Answer -Samsara attracts a person through various good things of life such as wealth and pleasure, shelter and food, warmth and clothing. They were like the trap of a rat trap. Once someone is seduced by the bait, the world is closed to him. The peddler was tempted by the crofter's thirty kronor. With this he hides himself. He walks through the wood. He is afraid to go to the manor house. He gets peace only after returning the fodder

Question 6. The peddler comes out as a person with a subtle sense of humour. How7 does this serve in lightening the seriousness of the theme of the story and also endear him to us?

Answer- Pedlar has a subtle sense of humour, which comes to the fore after learning the truth about him during a conversation with Ironmaster and his daughter. He is neither afraid of chilling in rags nor of being sent to jail. He makes Ironmaster laugh with his metaphor of the mousetrap. His letter to Edla with a Christmas present is a good example of his ability to make others laugh at him. Thus, he dilutes the gravity of the theme of the story and also makes himself dear to us.

Talking about text

Discuss the following in groups of four. Each group can consider a topic and present your group's ideas to the whole class.

Question  -1. The reader's sympathy has been with Pedler since the beginning of the story. Why is it like this? Is sympathy justified?

Answer: The peddler wins our sympathy for his way of life and how the world treats him. It is an accepted fact that the downtrodden always runs with sympathy, so the peddler runs with a rat-net. He begs a wire-like material for his mousetrap. With his business not particularly profitable, he resorts to begging and petty theft to keep body and soul together.

His life is gloomy and dull. He walks a lost path in his own meditation. The world has never been too kind to him and he feels happy calling it a rat. Whenever he seeks shelter for the night, he gets sour faces. He is an unwanted, unwanted and undesirable person. Blacksmiths look at him only casually and indifferently. The master blacksmith gives an arrogant consent without respecting him with a word.

The old and lonely crofter finds him an amusing company. Ironmaster mistakenly mistook him for an old regimental comrade. Only Adla Wilmanson treats her with a kind, friendly attitude. His good behavior awakens the goodness of the vagabond. He redeems himself by returning the stolen money and wins our praise. Thus, we see that sympathy is not only well earned, but also justified.

Question 2. The story also focuses on human loneliness and the need to bond with others.

Answer: There are at least three characters in the story who suffer from loneliness and express a need to bond with others. They also represent the three levels of human society. The Rattrap Peddler, Old Crofter and Ironmaster all suffer from loneliness. The peddler is called a vagabond, a vagabond and a stranger at various points in the story. He gets tired and moves from one place to another. He is lost in his own thoughts. He seeks shelter for the night and people look at him with sour faces. Even the blacksmiths look at him proudly and agree. The old crofter suffers from loneliness as he has neither a wife nor a child. So, he rejoices when he gets the peddler to talk in his solitude.

Ironmaster is also alone in his manor house. His wife Elizabeth has passed away and their sons are abroad. There is no one at home except her eldest daughter and herself. His request to Captain von Stahle to accompany him reflects his need for human relations. He frankly admits that he had no company for Christmas. The stranger turns down the request not because he is averse to having relationships with others, but because he fears to be caught with stolen money.

 

Question -3. Have you ever heard of an incident where a good deed or act of kindness changed a person's view of the world?

Answer: Yes, I know how the mercy of a bishop turned a hard-hearted criminal into a man again with a belief in God and human values. The story is presented in the form of a famous play 'The Bishop's Candlesticks'.

Bishop provides food and shelter at midnight to a fugitive criminal who threatens him with a knife. Long years of imprisonment and harsh treatment in prison has turned man into an animal and he is now devoid of all human emotion. The culprit runs away with the bishop's silver candle, but is caught by the police.

To save the offender from further punishment and torture, Bishop tells the police officer that the accomplice is his friend and that he himself gave him the candle. Such an act of the bishop melts the hardened heart of the offender. He cries and cries. He promises to be a man again.

Question 4. The story is both entertaining and philosophical .

Answer: The story entertains us by providing a glimpse into human nature and how people react to different situations. After stealing thirty kronor, the peddler's actions are quite amusing. The blacksmith's response to the vagabond's request for shelter shows how careless and indifferent humans can be.

The U-turn in Ironmaster's attitude towards strangers shows how selfish and ignorant humans can be. Mistaking the vagabond for his old regimental comrade, whom he thinks has escaped unexpectedly, he asks the stranger to go home with him and spend Christmas with them. When the stranger refuses to accompany him, the blacksmith sends his daughter. With her superior driving force, she follows him.

Seeing the stranger in broad daylight, the Ironmaster is enraged. But instead of realizing his mistake, he blames it on her. He talks about handing her over to the sheriff. The metaphor of the world being a rat saves the situation for the vagabond, but the Ironmaster wants him out. His daughter's comments are quite amusing and philosophical. She wants the strays to enjoy the day of peace. Secondly, she doesn't want to chase someone they've done 

Working with words 

Question 1- The man selling rattraps is referred to by many terms such as “peddler, stranger” etc. Pick out all such references to him. What does each of these labels indicate of the context or the attitude of the people around him.

  Answer- The stranger must have sounded unbelievable. In this context he was a stranger to the croutons.

2- The blacksmith challenged the intruder carelessly and indifferently.

3- He was an intruder because he had entered without permission.

4- The trap also did not say anything.

The peddler was a vagabond as he continued to move from place to place.

5- .... life can be visible to such a vagabond, who trembles on the side of the road .... He was a homeless as he was wandering homeless 

Question 2- You came across the words, plod, trudge, stagger in the story. These words indicate movement accompanied by weariness. Find five other such words with a similar meaning.

Answer: There are five other words with similar meanings: clomp, lumber, larch, reel, stumble.

NOTICING FORM 

Question 

1.He made them himself at odd moments.
2.He raised himself.
3.He had let himself be fooled by a bait and had been caught.
4. a day may come when you yourself may want to get a big piece of pork.
Notice the way in which these reflexive pronouns have been used (pronoun + self)
•In 1 and 4 the reflexive pronouns “himself’ and •‘yourself” are used to convey emphasis.
•In 2 and 3 the reflexive pronoun is used in place of personal pronoun to signal that it refers to the same subject in the sentence.
•Pick out other examples of the use of reflexive pronouns from the story and notice how
they are used.

Answer - 1-as soon as a person tempts himself to touch the bait (same obscene noun see anyone)

2- It was not unusual for the poor vegetable to come before the fire to warm itself.

(the same subject itself refers to vegetarian)

3- He did not come there to talk but only to warm himself.

(refer to the subject 'that sentence' itself)

  He thought that to go to the manor's house, he would have to go to the lion's den voluntarily like himself.

(refer to the subject 'that sentence' itself)

4- He had sent his daughter, apparently in the hope that she would have the power to explain better than himself. (self used for emphasis)

5- It would never have occurred to me that you yourself would bother me, miss (used to emphasize yourself).