THE SNAKE AND THE MIRROR

THE SNAKE AND THE MIRROR

by

Vaikom Muhammad Basheer

1. ‘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? When and why did the sound stop?

Ans. It was the sound of the falling of a snake. The doctor thought it the sound made by the rats. He heard that sound thrice. The sounds stopped after sometime because the snake had fallen to the ground.

2. What two ‘important' and 'earth-shaking' decisions did the doctor take while he was looking into the mirror?

Ans. The doctor took two ‘important’ and ‘earth shaking’ decisions while he was looking into the mirror. First he decided that he would shave daily and grow a thin moustache. He also decided that he would keep an attractive smile on his face. The second decision was that he would marry a woman doctor who was rich and fat.

3. '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 (1) he first smiles, and (ii) he smiles again? In what way do his thoughts change in between, and why?

Ans. (i) The doctor sits in front of the mirror. He thinks himself to be handsome. He thinks he has an attractive smile.

(ii) The doctor has no medicine in his room. So he smiles thinking himself a foolish and stupid doctor.

His thought changed altogether in between when he finds himself close to death. Now he thinks of nothing but God.

4. Describe the doctor's house.

Ans. The doctor lived in a small rented room. It was an outer room of a house. It was not electrified. It had two windows. The room had a gabled roof. It was supported on a beam over the walls. Above this beam, rats kept moving all the time.

5. The doctor heard a noise. Who was making the noise and why did it stop suddenly?

Ans. It was the noise of rats. They were moving to and fro on the beam that supported the gable. The noise stopped suddenly when the narrator opened the door. Perhaps the rats got frightened and stopped moving.

6. What happened to the doctor while he was sitting in his chair?

Ans. The doctor heard a dull noise when he was sitting on a chair. It was the noise of something falling from above. He turned to see what it was. A fat snake was wriggling over the back of his chair. It landed on the doctor's shoulder. Then it coiled itself round the de doctor's left arm above the elbow.

8. Did the doctor find the incident of the snake humorous or frightening or both? Give reasons.

Ans. It was a frightening incident. The snake landed on the doctor's shoulder. It coiled itself round his left arm. The doctor was turned to stone. The snake's head was hardly three or four inches from his face. Its hood was spread out. Nothing could be more frightening.

9. Is there a similarity between the doctor and the snake? If so, what is it?

Ans. There is one point of similarity between the doctor and the snake. Both of them love beauty. Both of them enjoy looking at themselves in the mirror. The doctor looks into the mirror and thinks he is handsome. The behaviour of the snake is almost similar. It seems to like its image as it happens to look into the mirror.

10. The snake has been compared to three objects. What are these? How are the objects similar to the snake?

Ans. First of all the snake has been compared to a rubber tube. It is an apt comparison as a snake looks like a rubber tube. And like a rubber tube, it makes a dull noise when it falls. Secondly, the snake has been compared to a leaden rod. This comparison shows how tightly a snake can grip when it coils itself around an object. Thirdly, the snake has been compared to a rod of molten fire. It shows what burning pain a snake can give when it coils around some living object. Thus all these comparisons are very apt.

11. What kind of woman did the doctor want to marry, and why ?

Ans. The doctor wanted to marry a woman doctor who had plenty of money. He also wanted that she should have a good medical practice. But he wanted his wife to be a fat woman. The doctor thought that he could sometimes make a silly mistake. Then he could save himself by running away from his fat wife.

12. The doctor says, “But my mind was very active." Give some examples to show that his mind was really active.

Ans. The snake had coiled itself around the doctor's arm. Fear had turned him to stone. Yet he could see, feel and think clearly. He was aware of each and every movement of the snake. He also knew that he should take some medicine in case the snake bit him. He also knew that he had no medicine with him at that time. He could see that the door was open and there was complete darkness outside. All this shows that the doctor's mind was really active.

LONG ANSWER QUESTION

Q. Write a summary of the lesson ‘The Snake and the Mirror’

Ans. ‘The Snake and the Mirror’ by Vaikom Muhammad Basheer is an interesting story.  It is about a doctor's encounter with a snake.  The doctor lived in a small tented room full of rats.  One night, he was reading a book.  A kerosene lamp was burning on the table. There was also a large mirror on the table.  Suddenly something fell on the back of the chair. He turned to see what it was. He froze with fear when he saw that it was a big snake. The snake then coiled itself around the doctor's left arm. The doctor prayed to God.  Then the snake looked into the mirror on the table.  Luckily, the snake liked its own image in the mirror. It wanted to have a closer look at its image. So it uncoiled itself from the arm and came on the table.  The doctor at once got and ran out of the room.  He spent the night at the house of one of his friends.  The next morning he came back to his room.  He was shocked to find that during the night some thief had taken away everything from his room.