My left foot by Christy By Christy Brown

Second Bach.
ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

Chapters 1 -7

A. Circle the synonym

1. wobbly bitter dull shaky
2. great excitement thrill calm adventure
3. a minor injury to the skin sweat defect scrape
4. look for conceal seek shove
5. disability capability handicap encouragement
6. not straight crooked awkward handicapped

B. Use the words you circled above to complete the following sentences.
1. Christy was convulsed with wild movement which made his body twisted and ....................... .
2. When Christy’s parents realised that their baby’s development wasn’t normal, they decided to ..................... medical
advice without further delay.
3. Mrs Brown knew that to be illiterate would be a more serious ....................... than to be crippled.
4. Christy’s first letter had two crooked, ....................... sides, and an uneven centre line – but it was the letter “A”!
5. Christy got a huge ....................... when his brothers pushed him at full speed in his go-cart.
6. Christy became so good at tumbling out of his go-cart that all he ever got was a bruising or a ........................ .

C. Fill in the correct form of the verbs in brackets.

1. If Paddy hadn’t tried to milk the “friendly” cow, she ............................................ (not kick) him with her hind legs
and sent him sprawling.
2. The boys .................................................... (not conceal) the apples and pears under the cushion in Christy’s go-cart
if the copper hadn’t approached them. 3. Christy .................................................... (not develop) his painting without
Katriona Delahunt’s interest.
4. If Toni’s companion .................................................... (not express) pity for Christy, Tony wouldn’t have given his
companion a violent shove.
5. Christy put kisses on his note to his mother only because Miss Delahunt ..................................... (ask) him to.

D. Circle the correct answer.

1. (Christy’s brothers / Christy’s mother / Katriona Delahunt) taught Christy how to read.
2. Christy exchanged his own toy soldiers for his brother Paddy’s (paints / chalk / slate).
3. Christy’s development was (hopeless / advanced / backward), but Mrs Brown didn’t accept the doctors’ opinion
that Christy was retarded.
4. Christy turned the tap on when Charlie and Sally were kissing in the empty bath because (he loved Sally / he
thought Charlie was a sissy / it was Hallowe’en).
5. When Christy was photographed with a paint-brush between his toes and an easel in front of him, (he knew he had
won the competition / it was in honour of Christmas / it was his first photograph).

Chapters 8 -14

E. Choose the correct word.

Christy sometimes found himself (1. struggling / huddling) on the floor of the (2. overjoyed / overcrowded)
exercise room. He often stopped and (3. stared / sprawled) ahead at the crawling children. Sometimes he looked out
of the window to (4. catch / scatter) a glimpse of the trees and the sky, and wondered why he was not at home, (5.
developing / writing) in his study. Whenever Christy stopped in this way, a member of the staff told him in a (6.
stern / hesitant) but not unkind voice to snap out (7. of / off) his day-dreaming, and concentrate on his exercises.
Christy admired the staff as they (8. urged / brought) the children to achieve. He felt a queer link with the children
whose minds were (9. conveyed / concealed) behind their twisted faces and (10. imprisoned / released) in their
crippled bodies. As his awareness grew, so did his determination to share his story.

F. Change the following sentences from direct speech to indirect speech.

1. “Will you promise never to use your left foot again?” Mrs Eirene Collis asked Christy
if .....................................................................................................
My left foot by Christy By Christy Brown
Second Bach.
2. “There is nothing you can’t conquer. And remember, I am with you all the way.” Dr Collis told
Christy ............................................................................... and he reminded him
that ...........................................................
3. “You have written one sentence here that stands out like a rose among a lot of weeds.” Dr Collis told
Christy ..................................................................................
4. “If you still want to write your story, you must begin the whole thing again!” Dr Collis told
Christy .................................................................................................
5. “I am delighted to meet you. I hope we’ll be partners from now on.” Mr Guthrie told Christy
that ...............................................................................................

G. Circle the most suitable word or phrase to connect the following clauses and sentences.
1. Christy saw his future as a black pit (although / when / until) he was told about the new treatment.
2. The house had been planned as an exercise space. (However / In this way / Therefore), it became Christy’s living-
room and study.
3. Christy was sure he was in the wrong place (before / although / when) he saw children wriggling like crabs on the
floor.
4. Christy had to learn about proper breathing (after / as soon as / before) he could develop his speech.
5. Mrs Brown’s eyes glistened with pride (if / and / but) Mr Brown felt overjoyed (when / although / since) Dr Collis
finished reading.

H. Choose the correct answer.

1. The family bricklayers took over building Christy’s house in the back garden because a. they had all
the funds they needed for the project.
b. Mrs Brown asked them to.
c. Mrs Brown had not laid a proper foundation.
d. they got permission from the authorities.
2. Bernie and Dorothy were two of Christy’s favourites
a. at the cerebral palsy clinic.
b. in his family.
c. in his neighbourhood.
d. in London.
3. Christy described .......... as a man “with a smiling moon-like face, small eyes and a pointed beard, like a giant
out of a fairy story”.
a. Dr Collis
b. his father
c. his brother
d. Burl Ives
4. Christy felt .......... when he was being examined by Mrs Eirene Collis in London.
a. crippled
b. on trial
c. overjoyed
d. hopeless
5. The newer Bull Alley Street clinic was .......... in comparison with the older Merrion Street clinic.
a. posh
b. crowded
c. small
d. queer

I) Choose the correct answer.

When Christy was sixteen, he busied himself with writing. Initially, weaving words (1. into / from) patterns as he had
done with his paints made his life less (2. dull / appealing). Later, at the cerebral palsy clinic, Christy realised that he
was not the only one whose mind had been (3. imprisoned / crippled) in a twisted body. Something within him (4.
urged / confused) him to communicate his struggle to others. His writing became his way to (5. convey / scatter) his
thoughts and feelings. (6. Because of / Despite) his promise not to use his left foot, Christy began dictating his
autobiography to his younger brother, Eamonn. (7. When / Although) this first manuscript had dragged on for almost
(8. four / two) hundred pages, Christy became aware (9. of / from) needing a writing advisor. He (10. pushed /
approached) Dr Collis, who came and (11. peered / took) over the manuscript. Dr Collis left Christy with a bundle of
books, some advice and a lot of (12. encouragement / pity). He urged Christy to go on with his struggle to (13.
My left foot by Christy By Christy Brown
Second Bach.
develop / cure) his writing. For two more years, as Christy worked on his second version with his brother Francis, he
kept (14. to / at) his resolution not to use his left foot. When he finally (15. released / concealed) himself from that
promise and took over the writing himself, Christy felt at peace and was able to experience the joy of creating.

GENERAL QUESTIONS

Answer the following questions:

1) What is cerebral palsy?

2) What kind of a man was Christy Brown?

(Adjectives: Crippled, strong, serious, sensitive, lucky, determined, playful, romantic, slow, gifted, talented, moody,
nervous ….)

3) How did they influence Christy Brown?

(Influences: Readings, friends and neighbours, relatives, father, brothers and sisters, Katriona Delahunt & Dr Collins)

4) Christy relationship with his mother.

How was Christy’s relationship with his mother?

Is she sympathetically or unsympathetically portrayed?

How important is his mother’s role to the narrative?

5) Other words for WRITING: can you explain the meaning of the following words? Calligraphy, handwriting,
print, script, autograph, chirography, cuneiform, hieroglyphics, longhand, scrawl, scribble, shorthand.