CHAPTER-2 : The Thief’s Story

ASSIGNMENT

Extract Based Questions

Read the following extracts carefully and answer the questions that follow.

Question 1.
“You look a bit of a wrestler yourself”. I said A little flattery helps in making friends.
(a) Who was the speaker? Who was he trying to flatter?
(b) Why did the speaker want to be friends with the listener?
(c) Find the antonym of ‘criticism’ in the extract.
(d) What is the opposite of ‘friends’?

Question 2.
Well, it’s time I did some real work, I told myself; I’m out of practice. [CBSE 2013]
(a) What ‘real work’ is the speaker talking about?
(b) Why does the speaker say ‘I’m out of practice’?
(c) Give a synonym of ‘practice’.
(d) What part of speech is the word ‘real’ in the extract?

Question 3.
When the train had gone, I found myself standing alone on the deserted platform. I had no idea where to spend the
night. I had no friends. [CBSE 2014]
(a) Why was the speaker standing alone on the platform?
(b) Why did he not have any friends?
(c) Which word in the extract is an antonym of the word ‘crowded’?
(d) What does ‘deserted’ mean?
Question 4.
He knew. But neither his lips nor his eyes showed anything.
(a) Who is ‘he’ in the extract? What did he know?
(b) Why did he not show anything?
(c) Which word in the extract means the same as ‘reveal’.
(d) What is the antonym of ‘showed’?
Answer 1
(a) Hari Singh was the speaker and he was trying to flatter Anil.
(b) The speaker wanted to be friends with the listener because he wanted to rob him after gaining his trust.
(c) The antonym is ‘flattery’.
(d) ‘Enemies’ is its opposite.
Answer 2
(a) The ‘real work’ in the extract refers to stealing.
(b) The speaker says so because he is a thief and he has not robbed anyone recently.
(c) Here, habit is a synonym of‘practice’.
(d) It is an adjective
Answer 3
(a) The speaker was standing alone on the platform because a train had just left.
(b) The speaker did not have any friends because he thought that friends were more trouble than help.
(c) The word is ‘deserted’.
(d) It means empty.
Answer 4
(a) ‘He’ refers to Anil in the extract. He knew about the theft of his money.
(b) Anil did not show anything because he was understanding and Hari’s return gave him the hope of a change in
him.
(c) ‘Showed’ means the same as ‘reveal’.
(d) ‘Hide’ is its antonym.

Short Answer Type Questions [2 Marks each]

Question 1. Why did Hari Singh approach Anil? Answer: Hari Singh was a thief who had not much luck in his work
recently. So he approached Anil with the intention of robbing him, as he seemed to be an easy-going and simple man.
According to Hari, winning Anil’s confidence was an easy task.

Question 2.
Anil walked away. I followed casually’. Why do you think the narrator followed Anil?
Answer:
The narrator’s purpose of robbing Anil had not yet been served. He followed Anil to gain his trust and look for an
opportunity that may help him give shape to his plans.
Question 3.
Was Hari Singh successful in robbing Anil? Was Anil the only one who was robbed or did Hari also rob himself of
something?
Answer:
Yes, Hari Singh was successful in robbing Anil. But Anil was not the only one who was robbed at that time. Hari had
robbed himself as well. He had lost the chance of receiving education and being literate. He had robbed Anil
monetarily but he had robbed himself of the chance for a better and brighter future, which was much more valuable.

Long Answer Type Questions

Question 1.
Money can’t make a man as much as education can. Elucidate the statement. [CBSE 2013]
Answer:
The statement stands true in almost all the aspects of life. Money may buy us all the luxuries and fulfil our needs but
it cannot buy us knowledge, civilised thinking, skills and abilities to achieve our dreams. Education lays the platform
for all to act upon our goals according to our abilities. Education enables us to keep up with the fast moving world. It
opens the door to opportunities we do not know even exist. Money, on the other hand, can assist us to a certain level.
It can buy us a plan but education gives us the knowledge of its execution. Just as in the story ‘A Thief s Story’, Hari
Singh prioritised the chance of being literate over a few hundred rupees, we must understand that education can
help us to achieve whatever we desire.
Question 2.
Hari Singh didn’t board the express and returned to Anil. Why did he return? On what values does this incidence put
light on?
Answer:
Hari Singh was a thief and he had stolen Anil’s money. After the theft, he realised that he had robbed not only Anil
but also himself of the chance of being literate and having a bright future. His conscience pricked him to think what
all he could have got had he not done this. It was difficult for him to rob Anil but it was tougher for him not to back.
He realised that he could not make tea, buy daily supplies and learn how to read and write then. His inner self did not
agree to bypass this and forced him to return.
Hari’s return to Anil shows that despite indulging in criminal acts, he still had a practical and positive attitude towards
life. It is the awakening of Hari’s conscience and Anil’s love and care that reformed Hari’s character. It teaches us that
love alone can change a person. Anil’s understanding nature and care changed Hari’s thinking to mend his ways for
good.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS

1.What was the name of the thief boy?

(A) Anil (B) Ajit Singh (C) Hari Singh (D) Chander

Ans. (C) Hari Singh

2. How old was the thief boy?

(A) 10 years (B) 15 years (C) 16 years (D) 14 years

Ans. (B) 15 years

3. How old was Anil?

(A) 20 years (B) 21 years (C) 22 years (D) 25 years

Ans. (D) 25 years

4. Who is the narrator of the story ‘The Thief’s Story’?

(A) Hari Singh (B) Anil (C) Ruskin Bond (D) none of these

Ans. (A) Hari Singh.

5. What did Anil do for a living?

(A) wrote articles for magazines (B) wrestling (C) acting (D) business
Ans. (A) wrote articles for magazines

6. What was Anil doing when the thief boy met him?
(A) writing an article (B) watching a match (C) playing cricket road (D) going on the

Ans. (B) watching a match

7. Anil lived in a room in a shop named :

(D) Shah Sweet

(A) Jumna Sweet Shop (B) Ganesh Sweet Shop (C) Ganga Sweet Shop Shop
Ans. (A) Jumna Sweet Shop

8. What did the boy ask Anil?

(A) to give him some money (B) to employ him (C) to give him a lift (D) to tell him the way

Ans. (B) to employ him

9. What did Anil do to the food cooked by the boy the first day?

(A) ate it with enjoy (B) put it in the cupboard (C) threw it to a stray dog (D) asked the boy
to eat it all

Ans. (C) threw it to a stray dog

10. What did Had Singh want from Anil?

(D) work
(A) help (B) shelter (C) money

Ans. (D) work

11. What was the boy’s real profession?

(D) working honestly

(A) a household servant (B) theft (C) cheating

Ans. (B) theft

12. What did Anil do with the money when he received a cheque?

(A) deposited it in his account (B) bought household things (C) went out to celebrate (D) paid salary to the boy
Ans. (C) went out to celebrate
13. Which of the following traits describes Anil?

(A) easy-going (B) careful (C) greedy (D) extravagant

Ans. (A) easy-going

14. The thief boy was grateful to Anil for :

(A) giving him a job (B) giving him money (C) watching wrestling match with him (D) talking with him

Ans. (A) giving him a job

15. What promise did Anil make to the thief boy?

(A) giving him a good job B) giving him good clothes (C) teaching him reading and writing (D) playing with him

Ans. (C) teaching him reading and writing