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The Man Who Knew Too Much Extra Questions and Answers Class 9 English Literature
The Man Who Knew Too Much Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type
Answer the following questions briefly.
Question 1.
Why did his fellow trainees dislike Private Quelch?
Answer:
Private Quelch’s fellow trainees disliked him because each time one of them made a mistake he would publicly correct him. Whenever one of them shone in their work, he outshone them. He had a very patronising and condescending attitude towards them.
Question 2.
“We used to pride ourselves on aircraft recognition.” How was their pride shattered?
Answer:
The pride of the author and his fellow trainees was shattered when Private Quelch announced that the plane was a North American Harvard Trainer even without looking up at it, adding that it could be identified by the harsh sound of the engine which was caused by the high speed of the airscrews.
The Man Who Knew Too Much Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type
Question 1.
“At first, Private Quelch was a hero in the eyes of his fellow soldiers.” Support this observation with suitable examples from the story in about 80-100 words.
Answer:
It is true that at first the narrator and the others at the training camp were in awe of the amount of knowledge Quelch .had about everything under the sun and that is why they had nicknamed him “Professor”. Therefore, the narrator says that when he was able to answer all the questions the Sergeant asked him about rifles accurately, it “enhanced” his glory in the eyes of his colleagues. At another place the narrator mentions, “He had brains. He was sure to get a commission before long.” Again, commenting on his hard working nature he writes, “He worked hard. We had to give him credit for that”, and again, “He was not only miraculously tireless but infuriated us all with his heartiness.” And finally he writes, “At first we had certain respect for him but soon we lived in terror of his approach.”
Question 2.
Private Quelch knew “too much”. Give reasons to prove that he was unable to win the admiration of his superior officers or his colleagues.
Answer:
Though everyone agreed that Quelch knew too much, he soon lost all their respect because of his habit of correcting his colleagues publicly whenever they made a mistake. If anyone shone at his work, he made sure to outshine them. He was always trying to patronise them and show off his knowledge to them. After a while they just couldn’t take his condescending ways any longer and steered clear of him.
Question 3.
Attempt a character sketch of Private Quelch.
Answer:
Private Quelch was a dedicated, committed, and focused man. He had set his heart on becoming an army • officer and getting a stripe and he left no stone unturned to achieve his goal. He borrowed the traihing manual and read it thoroughly, even staying up late at night to prepare himself for the classes to be held the next day. He was very keen to acquaint himself with every aspect of army life and would badger his instructors with all sorts of questions till he got his answers. He worked very hard and during the long marches he never appeared tired or exhausted.
But with all his good qualities, he was not popular because of his habit of showing off and behaving in a condescending manner. If anyone made a mistake he was sure to correct them with no thought to the fact that he was offending their feelings. In fact, he did not even spare his teachers. The Sergeant and the Corporal were highly offended at his interruptions of their lessons and that is why he was sent to the cook house as a punishment by the Corporal. However, the punishment did not seem to have had any effect on his behaviour because he was heard lecturing the cooks on the correct method of peeling potatoes.
Question 4.
You are the “Professor”. Write a diary entry after your first day at the cookhouse, describing the events that led to this assignment, also express your thoughts and feelings about the events of the day in about 175 words.
Answer:
21 January 20xx
Today was my first day at the cook house! It wasn’t as bad as I had thought it would be! But I was appalled to see how little the cooks know about cooking. Today I had to lecture them on the correct way of peeling potatoes. They have been peeling them so thickly that a lot of the vitamins are getting lost! By the time I complete my term here I will have taught them a thing or two.
After all, I was chosen by Corporal Turnbull for this task. I think he was greatly impressed by my knowledge of grenades. He let me give the whole lecture by myself. Even the Sergeant had been impressed by my knowledge of rifles. I have no doubt they think I am the best trainee in the camp! I know that I march the best and my hut is the cleanest. I simply love reading the training manual. I know the others call me “Professor” behind my back because of all my knowledge. I feel so good. I am eagerly waiting for my stripe. Only then will I fulfil my dream of becoming an army officer. I wonder whether I will get the Best Trainee Award
The Man Who Knew Too Much Extra Questions and Answers Reference to Context
Read the extracts given below and answer the questions that follow.
Question 1.
“I first met Private Quelch at the training depot. A man is liable to acquire in his first week of Army life together with his uniform, rifle, and equipment—a nickname. ”
(a) What was the nickname given to Private Quelch? Why did he get his nickname?
Answer:
The nickname given to Private Quelch was Professor because of his habit of sermonising.
(b) Where did the narrator meet him?
Answer:
The narrator met him at an army training camp.
(c) What do you think does the word “liable” mean in this context?
Answer:
The word ‘liable’ means ‘likely’ in this context.
Question 2.
“When he hadfinished, he put questions to us and perhaps in the hope of revenge, he turned with his questions again and again to the Professor. ”
(a) Whom does “he” refer to and why was “he” looking for revenge?
Answer:
In the extracted line, “he” refers to the Sergeant. He was looking for revenge because the Professor had disturbed him during his lecture.
(b) What had “he” been lecturing the trainees on?
Answer:
The Sergeant had been lecturing the trainees on the mechanism of a rifle.
(c) Can you think of another word that has the same meaning as revenge?
Answer:
avenge, exact retribution, make retaliation for
Question 3.
“No Sergeant. It’s all a matter of intelligent reading. ”
(a) Who is the speaker?
Answer:
Private Quelch is the speaker.
(b) What had the sergeant wanted to know?
Answer:
The sergeant wanted to know whether he had been trained previously.
(c) What did the speaker mean by “intelligent reading”?
Answer:
By “intelligent reading” the speaker meant reading up the training manual the day before.
Question 4.
“That was our introduction to him. ”
(a) Who is the person being talked about?
Answer:
The person being talked about is Private Quelch.
(b) Where did they meet him for the first time?
Answer:
They met him for the first time at rifle training.
(c) What do you mean by “introduction” in this context?
Answer:
introduction means the action of introducing . In this extract, it talks about how the narrator and his batch mates got acquainted with private Quelch.
Question 5.
“In pursuit of his ambition, he worked hard. ”
(a) Who is being referred to as “he”? What was “his” ambition?
Answer:
Private Quelch is being referred to as “he”. His ambition was to become an army officer and to get a stripe before his peers did.
(b) Can you name some other word with the same meaning as ambition?
Answer:
aspiration, desire, goal
(c) How did “he” work hard?
Answer:
Private Quelch worked hard by reading up training manuals, questioning his instructors incessantly and drilling enthusiastically. He was also tireless on route marches and would march to the canteen like a guardsman when officers were in sight.
Question 6.
“At first we had a certain respect for him, but soon we lived in terror of his approach. ”
(a) Whom does the word “him” refer to?
Answer:
Here, “him” refers to Private Quelch.
(b) Why did the speaker respect him?
Answer:
The speaker respected him for his knowledge, intelligence and hard work.
(c) Why was the narrator terrified at his approach?
Answer:
The narrator as well as the other trainees, was terrified at his approach because Private Quelch lectured ‘ everyone on everything under the sun.
Question 7.
“He was not a man to be trifled with.,.He was our hero and we used to tell each other that he was so tough that you could hammer nails into him without his noticing it. ”
(a) Whom does “He” refer to?
Answer:
In this extract “He” refers to Corporal Turnbull.
(b) What does a man “not to be trifled with” mean?
Answer:
It means that he was not a man one could act frivolously with.
(c) Explain: One could hammer nails into him without his noticing it.
Answer:
This exaggerated claim meant that Corporal Turnbull was an immensely strong and sturdy man.
Question 8.
“The squad listened in cowed, horrified kind of silence ”
(a) What was the squad doing at this time?
Answer:
The squad was learning about a grenade from Corporal Turnbull at this time
(b) Why were they horrified?
Answer:
The lecture had been interrupted by the Professor and so the squad were scared of the reaction of the Corporal.
(c) Give the meaning of the word “cowed”?
Answer:
“Cowed” means quieted or subdued.
Question 9.
“Through the open door we could see the three cooks standing against the wall as if at bay. ”
(a) Give the meaning of the phrase “keeping at bay”?
Answer:
“Keeping at bay” means keeping a safe distance from someone or something.
(b) Why were the cooks standing against the wall?
Answer:
The cooks were standing against the wall because they were listening to Private Quelch’s lecture in their kitchen.
(c) Who were the cooks reacting against?
Answer:
The cooks were reacting against Private Quelch.
Question 10.
“Most of us could not help glancing at Private Quelch who stood rigidly to attention and stared straight in front of him with an expression of self-conscious innocence. ”
(a) Why did everyone glance at the Professor?
Answer:
Everyone glanced at the Professor to check his reaction as they were expecting Turnbull to give him some tough punishment.
(b) What did they expect would happen?
Answer:
They expected Private Quelch to be punished for trying to show off his knowledge to the Corporal.
(c) What does the Professor’s “self-conscious innocence” show?
Answer:
The Professor’s self-conscious innocence shows that he did not expect to be punished.