Class 11 English Lesson 1: Reference to the Context and Beyond the Context Literature Section

 

Reference to the Context ( p. 198)

a.      Where does ‘there’ refer to?

i.   ‘There’ refers to the Giant’s garden where the children used to play after their school.

ii.     What does ‘they’ refer to?

‘They’ refers to the children who used to come and play in the Giant's garden after school.

iii. Why are they saying so?

      They are saying so because they are not permitted to play in the Giant’s   

      garden. The Giant has chased them away from his garden.

b.     “I have many beautiful flowers,” he said; “but the children are the most beautiful flowers of all.”

       i.         The speaker is an old and weak giant who keeps on watching the children at their play sitting on his armchair.

       ii.            He is speaking to himself admiring his beautiful garden.

       iii.            ‘The children’ that the speaker is referring to are the small and innocent school children who used to play in the Giant’s garden.

   iv.             The speaker is saying that ‘the children are the most beautiful flowers of all’ because he has realized what happened when all children showed their presence in his garden. He believes that children are the gifts of the nature and their presence makes the entire garden look very beautiful and bloom with different kinds of leaves and flowers.

c.      When the little child smiled at the Giant, and said to him, "You let me play once in your garden, today you shall come with me to my garden, which is Paradise," shortly afterwards, the happy giant dies. What is the coincidence of this event? Describe it concerning this fairy tale.

When the little child reappears in the corner of the garden, the Giant is very weak and old at that time. The little child this time supports the Giant who has once permitted him to play in his garden. The Giant keeps on searching and waiting for the little child. He is just waiting for the enchanted little child. No sooner had the giant has heard the child’s words, he dies in the very afternoon.

B.    The story makes use of personification as one of the main figures of speech. Cite three examples of personification from the story. What is the significance of the seasons personified in the story?

The writer has used a figure of speech in the story. A figure of speech in literature is a form of expression that is used to convey the meaning by comparing one thing with another that has meaning to the reader. The three examples of personification are the snow, the frost and the North Wind. The significance of the seasons personified in the story is that seasons are related to nature which plays a vital role to change the Giant’s garden with a certain force against his misdeeds.

C.    This story can be read like a fairy tale, where the children, the seasons, the tree, the corner of the garden, the snow, the wind and the frost are all used as symbolism. Interpret those symbols.

     The story writer has used the approach of symbolism to teach a moral lesson to the readers. The children in the story symbolize innocence and love. Similarly, the seasons stand for hope, the tree is the symbol of the patience of little child as Christ whereas the corner of the garden stands for paradise. Moreover, the snow, the wind, and the frost signify grief, sorrow and discomfort respectively.   

D.    Which figure of speech is used for ‘winter, frost, snow, north wind, hail and little child’? Who is the little child compared to?

   There is a perfect use of personification in the story. The words such as winter, frost, snow, north wind, hail and little child have been personified. Among these words, winter, frost and snow have been personified as feminine gender with a unique force that completes their work against the Giant’s deeds. Moreover, the north wind, hail and little child have been personified as masculine gender with powers. Additionally, the little child is compared to Jesus Christ who has been presented with divine power that changes each and everything because the garden with beautiful leaves and flowers blooms due to his presence. However, the signs of two nails on the palms and feet reveal the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

Figure of Speech: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqge2DNtmc0

Reference beyond the text

a.      What is the main theme of this story?

The main theme of this story is sharing which is the greatest trait of human being required for survival. However, there are many themes in the story such as egotism, selfishness, love and compassion etc. Good deeds are always rewarded whereas evil deeds are always punished. In this story, we see the selfishness of the Giant against the children that has brought misfortune in his life. But, he has got the way to paradise due to his favor to the little boy that is a good work.

b.     Yes, God punish those who are cruel to children and very selfish. The children are regarded as the second form of God in society who are very innocent. The presence of the children is regarded as a sign of good omen. In the story, God punished the Giant because there is no flowering in his garden so he felt guilty for the bad deeds he had done to the children.

Source:(https://www.hari570.com.np/2020/12/the-selfish-giant-class-11-exercise question-answers.html

 

***

Click for Next Lesson: