Read the extract given below and answer the questions that follow:
“That only leaves October, November and December,” said the Queen. “And after that
we shall have to begin all over again.”
“No, we shan’t,” said the King, “because I think twelve daughters are enough for any
man and after the birth of dear little December I shall be reluctantly compelled to cut
off your head.”
He cried bitterly when he said this, for he was extremely fond of the Queen.
(i) Why did the king change the names of his daughters so many times?
(ii) In what way was Princess September different from her sisters? What reason does the author give for this difference in their temperaments?
(iii) Which unusual birthday tradition did the King of Siam observe? Mention some of the gifts that he gave.
(iv) Why did Princess September put the Nightingale in a cage? What reasons did she give to the bird for putting it in a cage and then keeping it there?
(v) How did the bird behave upon being locked in a cage? What is the message of the story?
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(i)
- First the king had two daughters and he called them Night and Day.
- Then he had two more so he changed their names and called them Spring, Autumn, Winter and Summer. OR after the four seasons.
- Had three more so he changed their names again and called them by the seven days of the week.
- When he had more daughters he called them by the months of the year.
(ii)
- September was sweet/ charming /and good-natured
- while the sisters were bitter/ malicious/ spiteful.
- Their natures had become bitter because their names were changed so many times
(iii)
- Instead of receiving gifts he gave them.
- He gave away all his wedding presents/ all the loyal addresses the mayors of the cities presented him/ all his crowns /he gave each of his daughters a green parrot in a golden cage.
(iv)
- September’s sisters had told her to do so.
- She told the bird that some of her mother’s cats were prowling about / the bird would be safer in the cage/ it was a beautiful golden cage made by the best workmen/ it will have three meals a day served by her maids of honour./ The bird will have nothing to worry about.
(v) The bird did not like being locked up in the cage / It kept shouting, “Let me out, Let me out.” / It stopped singing / The bird wanted to see the trees, the lake and the rice growing in the fields / Refused to eat anything / The true secret of happiness is freedom/ or friendship demands sacrifice/ or any relevant answer.