LONG QUESTIONS

1 The mirror plays a vital role in the story. Justify.

Ans. The mirror in the story attracts both the characters i.e., the doctor and the snake. There
were two important decisions made by the doctor i.e., - shaving daily and growing thin
moustaches to make himself more handsome and keeping a smile on the face all the time while
looking at himself in the mirror.
The snake also feels fascinated to look at its face in the mirror and uncoils from the doctor's arm.
It sits on the table in front of the mirror and the doctor finds an opportunity to move away to save
himself.
2. Did the doctor find this incident with the snake humorous or frightening or both? Give
reasons.
Ans. The doctor found the incident both frightening as well as humorous. It was very frightening
because the snake's head was only three or four inches away from his face. He held his breath
and sat like a piece of stone as he was much terrified. He remembered God.
The incident was humorous also. The doctor had been admiring his own looks in the mirror just
a few minutes before and now the snake was following the same course. The doctor got tempted
by the comb that lay beside the mirror. This made him look at his reflection in the mirror more
closely. Now the snake too, got a chance to lookat its reflection in the mirror .It immediately
uncoiled the arm of the doctor and moved towards it to have a closer look of itself in the mirror.

3. How will you justify the tittle of the story "The Snake and the Mirror'?
The central characters of the story are the narrator, the snake and the mirror. Firstly the mirror
attracts the doctor to look in it. He starts admiring his looks. He thinks of keeping a moustache,
clean shaved face and an attractive smile. He feels very proud of himself. In the similar manner
the snake also gets attracted to look in the mirror. So finally it is the mirror that saves the narrator
from the threat of the snake’s attack and loss of his life. It uncoils itselffrom the narrator’s arm
and moves towards the mirror. This gives the narrator a chance to run out of the room and avoid
the snake.
Thus the title is justified.

4. How was the narrator finally able to escape from the snake?
Ans. The incident of snake coiling around the doctor’s arm happened so quickly that he didn’t
even think of giving any reactions. He didn’t jump, tremble and even cry in that posture. When
the death seemed to lurk four inches away, the snake turned its head. It looked into the mirror
and saw its reflection. Soon it seemed it started admiring its own beauty. Next, the snake
unwound itself from the doctor’s arm and slowly slithered into his lap. From there it moved on
the table and towards the mirror. While the snake was enjoying its reflection at closer quarters,
the doctor got up from the chair. Then he went out quietly through the door into the veranda.
From there he leapt into the yard and ran out of the house.
In this way the narrator was finally able to escape from the snake.