Monday, December 14, 2020

DEAR MUM, Brian Patten (Exercise)

WORD MEANING

1.         appeared – was seen, looked

2.         crack – damaged

3.         vase – pot

4.         mysteriously – strangely, unusual

5.         overflowed – filled completely and flowing out of the container

6.         stain – mark, scratch

7.         disposal – throw away

8.         burrow – hole

9.         scared – afraid

10.       series – numbers in order

11.       muddy – clay

12.       haunted – place where ghost lives

A. Answer these questions.

1. Who do you think has done all the mischievous actions mentioned in the poem? Why?

The narrator himself has done all the mischievous actions mentioned in the poem because he is very naughty.

2. Who does the narrator blame for all the mischievous deeds? Why?

The boy blames the house itself as if it is haunted. He is blaming in order to save himself from the anger of his mum.

3. Was the narrator playing only indoors while his mother was away? Or did he go outdoor? Support your answer with evidence from the text.

The narrator was also playing outdoor. This we come to know by seeing the series of muddy footprints appeared on the new white carpet.

B. Think and answer.

What do you think the mother did when the narrator finally came back home? Describe.

Perhaps she was initially trying to find out how all these things happened and the boy tried to tell lies. Therefore mother must have scolded the boy for telling lies and creating such a mess in the house while they had gone out keeping the boy alone in the house.

C. Discuss in class.

Seldom do we like to accept responsibility for our misdeeds. Why is that so?

No, we often do not like to accept responsibilities for our misdeeds. Most often we put blame on others in order to escape from being scolded, judged and humiliated. We are afraid that if we accept we might be scolded, punished and put to shame. So we feel unsafe to accept that we did something wrong. Lack of confidence in others makes us hide the fact that we are wrong.

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