Question

In pairs, discuss the following aspects of the story, and then have a class discussion.

1. Tom was not really ill but he pretended to be ill
2. Usually, he made a lot of fuss to take Aunt Polly’s medicines, but this time he took the medicines quietly.
3. His aunt was worried because he was not his usual self: instead, he showed an unusual interest in the medicine.
4. Aunt Polly could read Tom’s thoughts.
5. Aunt Polly loved Tom Sawyer.

Answer 1

1. Group A: Tom might not be physically ill but because of his preoccupation with the absence of one of the classmates he was engrossed somewhere. It was a kind of psychological problem.
2. Group B: Because of his mental condition Tom was having an indifferent attitude towards everything so he took the medicine quietly for the first time.
3. Group A: Later on the child in Tom was awake, might be because of the bad taste of the pain killer. So he might have developed some naughty ideas to do with the medicine. This was a signal for the aunt that something was unusual about Tom.
4. Group B: Like most of the adults Aunt Polly was able to read Tom’s thought and could understand that something was amiss for Tom.
5. Group A: The way Aunt Polly takes care of Tom it can be assumed that she loved him.