“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? (Find the places in the text.) When and why did the sounds stop?
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Answer: The doctor heard some noise from above when he opened the door. He thought that the sound was of rats. He heard it four times, including the sound he heard when he opened the door:
“Again I heard that sound from above.”
“Again came that noise from above.”
“Suddenly there came a dull thud as if a rubber tube had fallen to the ground…”
The sounds stopped when the snake appeared in front of the doctor.
Question 2. What two “important” and “earth-shaking” decisions did the doctor take while he was looking into the mirror?
Answer: The two important and earth-shaking decisions that the doctor took while he was looking into the mirror are the following:
i. He would shave daily and grow a thin moustache to look more handsome.
ii. He would always keep that attractive smile on his face.
Question 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: (i) he first smiles, and (ii) he smiles again? In what way do his thoughts change in between, and why?
Answer: (i) When the doctor smiled first, he was thinking that his smile was very attractive.
(ii) When he smiled again, he was thinking that he was a poor and stupid doctor.
His thoughts changed from being a handsome doctor to being a stupid doctor between the two situations. His thoughts changed because his life was now in danger.
II. This story about a frightening incident is narrated in a humorous way. What makes it humorous? (Think of the contrasts it presents between dreams and reality. Some of them are listed below.)