Very Short Answer Type Questions
- How old was Kari when he was brought into the care of the narrator?
Ans. Kari was five months old when the narrator first met him.
- How much food did Kari consume daily?
Ans. Kari did not eat much, but he still consumed about forty pounds of twigs on a daily basis.
- Why did the narrator think that Kari was in trouble?
Ans. The narrator thought that Kari was in trouble because Kari was really young and his call for help was more like that of a baby crying for help than of a grown up elephant.
- Why did the narrator scold Kari?
Ans. The narrator observed that elephants willingly accept punishment if they have done something wrong. However, if they are unreasonably punished by us, they remember it and pay us back in our own coin.
5.What does the narrator say about the elephants and their attitude towards punishment?
Ans. The narrator observed that elephants willingly accept punishment if they have done something wrong. However, if they are unreasonably punished by us, they remember it and pay us back in our own coin.
Short Answer Type Questions
- What change did the narrator notice in Kari’s behaviour while they were trying to save the young boy?
Ans. The narrator observed that Kari is usually slow and ponderous. However, in an attempt to save the young boy’s life, Kari darted down like a hawk and came halfway into the water. Kari was quick to action to make all possible attempts to save the boy.
- Why did the narrator feel helpless in rescuing Kari?
Ans. The narrator thought that Kari was getting drowned in the stream of water. However, he felt helpless because Kari was much heavier and higher than him. Kari weighed about five hundred pounds and it seemed impossible for the narrator to carry him on his back.
- Why did the narrator think that there was a snake thieving bananas from the dining room?
Ans. The narrator, while sitting in the dining room, saw a long, black thing suddenly appear through the window and disappearing with all the bananas. The narrator thought that this long, black thing was probably a snake. The narrator was really scared as he had ever seen a snake eating bananas.
- In what way did Kari react to the scolding he received from the narrator?
Ans. Kari understood that everyone was angry with him, the narrator, his family and even the servants. His pride was greatly injured. Therefore, he never again stole anything from the dining room. At the same time, Kari gracefully allowed himself to be scolded for he knew that he was wrong.
Long Answer type Questions
- How did the narrator find out the truth about the mysterious banana-thief?
Ans. The narrator thought that a terrible snake was trying to sneak out the bananas from the dining room. As he walked out, the narrator saw Kari’s back disappearing towards the pavilion.
The narrator was really frightened and therefore wanted to rush towards Kari, but soon he realised that the long, black thing he had seen was actually Kari’s trunk. It is then that the narrator realised that the mysterious banana thief was Kari.
- Why is it so essential to train an elephant?
Ans. Elephants need to be trained and it is important to teach them certain signals and calls. For instance, the word ‘dhat’ when spoken in an elephant ears which signals him to sit down. Teaching this call to an elephant is important because it would become impossible to climb his back. Similarly, the master call that an elephant takes about five years to learn is an important cue.lt indicates the need to frighten all the other animals in the jungle in order to protect oneself.
- What happens when an elephant acts in response to the master call?
Ans. On hearing the master call, the elephant begin to pull down the trees in front of them with their trunks.
This frightens all the other animals. With the falling down of the trees, monkeys begin to run from branch to branch.
The stages too, begin to run in all directions. The tiger gets scared as well and begins to growl. The elephant keeps pulling down trees after trees till it has created a sort of a road out of it.
Value Based Question
The chapter discusses two very important virtues in Kari. What are they?
Ans. Kari is a young elephant, despite that he does his best in trying to save the life of a young boy. The narrator observes that Kari was usually slow and ponderous in his attitude.
However, that very instant he was moved to quick action, The second virtue seen in Kari was his willingness in acknowledging his mistakes. He allowed the narrator to scold and punish him for he knew that he was in the wrong.