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Question
Do you think the writer is trying to make fun of the main characters in the story i.e. Mrs. Packletide, Miss Mebbin and Loona Bimberton? Pick out instances from the story that point to this fact.
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Solution
This is a humorous story. Through the three female characters in the narrative, the author has attempted to parody society. Because her friend Loona Bimberton had acquired a tiger-skin and press photos, Mrs. Packletide's competitive and envious temperament drove her to engage in game killing. Without taking any chances, Mrs. Packletide even offered a thousand rupees for the game. She then proudly faced the cameras, claiming to have killed the beast, but in reality, the loud rifle sound had caused the tiger to die of heart failure.
Mrs. Packletide recruited Miss Mebbin, who was avaricious and had a protective attitude towards money, to go to the game with her. She also mocked Mrs. Packletide by stating, "You should get it cheaper if it's an old tiger." Mrs. Packletide had been blackmailed by Louisa Mebbin into purchasing a lovely cottage in exchange for keeping the fact that the wrong animal had been murdered a secret. The author ridicules Mebbin for naming her cottage "Les Fauves."
Loona Bimberton has been portrayed as a cunning individual with a vindictive streak. For weeks, she had avoided to look at the illustrated paper because it featured photographs of Mrs. Packletide with her hunted tiger, despite her boasts about the tiger-skin. As she composed the letter of gratitude for the tiger claw bracelet, her feelings appeared to be suppressed. The author has attempted to ridicule three ladies who each made an effort to get notoriety.
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RELATED QUESTIONS
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Rewrite the one in ordinary prose so that the meaning is retained.
Mothers carrying their babies home through the jungle after the day's work in the
fields hushed their singing lest they might curtail the restful sleep of the venerable
herd-robber.
………………………………………………………………………
Rewrite the one in ordinary prose so that the meaning is retained.
Louisa Mebbin adopted a protective elder-sister attitude towards money in
general, irrespective of nationality or denomination.
…………………………………………………………………………………………
Rewrite the one in ordinary prose so that the meaning is retained.
Evidently the wrong animal had been hit, and the beast of prey had succumbed to
heart-failure, caused by the sudden report of the rifle, accelerated by senile decay.
………………………………………………………………………………………
In groups of four, construct the dialogues and enact the following situations
from the story:
1. Mrs. Packletide and the headman of the village/other villagers discussing the
details of the tiger shooting
2. Miss Mebbin blackmailing Mrs Packletide into gifting her a cottage
3. Loona Bimberton and a lady-friend discussing Mrs Packletide's hunting success
The hunting of lionesses is discouraged because
The Maasai warriors chase a lion with rattle bells to
