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Question
Think and write in your own words, in your notebook.
‘And the smile came by itself without any effort.’ Say why. When do people give fake smiles?
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Solution
Hari regretted what he had done. He went back to Anil in order to get an education. He realized that Anil knew that he had been robbed. He was relieved and happy that Anil had decided to ignore what had happened and to teach him to write a whole sentence. He gave him an appealing smile to ask forgiveness for what he had done. People give fake smiles when they are not happy with the situation they are in, or they realize that the other person is trying to cheat them, or they want to get something.
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RELATED QUESTIONS
What is he “a fairly successful hand” at?
How does the thief think Anil will react to the theft?
Read the following passage and do the activities:
A1. Choose the correct alternatives from the given options and rewrite the sentences :
(appealing, casually, flattery, well-oiled) (2)
(1) I followed ….........
(2) Anil talked about the ….........wrestlers.
(3) I gave him my most ….........smile.
(4) A little …......... helps in making friends.
I was still a thief when 1 met Anil. And though only 15, was an experienced and fairly successful hand.
Anil was watching a wrestling match when I approached him. He was about 25 — a tall, lean fellow — and he looked easy-going, kind and simple enough for my purpose. I hadn’t had much luck of late and thought I might be able to get into the young man’s confidence.
“You look a bit of a wrestler yourself,” I said. A little flattery helps in making friends.
“So do you,” he replied, which put me off for a moment because at that time I was rather thin.
“Well, I said modestly, “I do wrestle a bit.”
“What's your name ?”
“Hari Singh,” I lied. I took a new name every month. That kept me ahead of the police and my former employers.
After this introduction, Anil talked about the well-oiled wrestlers who were grunting, lifting and throwing each other about. I didn't have much to say. Anil walked away. I followed casually.
“Hello again,” he said.
I gave him my most appealing smile. “I want to work for you”. I said.
“But I can't pay you.”
I thought that over for a minute. Perhaps I had misjudged my man. I asked, “Can you feed me ?”
“Can you cook ?”
“I can cook,” I lied again.
“If you can cook, then may be I can feed you.”
He took me to his room over the Jumna Sweet Shop and told me I could sleep on the balcony. But the meal I cooked that night must have been terrible because Anil gave it to a stray dog and told me to be off. But I just hung around, smiling in my most appealing way, and he couldn’t help laughing.
A2. Complete the following web-chart: (2)
A3. Find the similar meaning words from the passage for the following : (2)
(1) endearing
(2) miscalculated
(3) humbly
(4) awful
A4.
(1) “I want to work for you,” I said. (1)
(Change it into indirect speech)
(2) I can’t pay you. (1)
(Rewrite making it affirmative)
A5. “We should learn from our own mistakes.” Explain. (2)
Complete the given sentence.
The moral of the story is ________.
Think and write in your own words, in your notebook.
What did Hari learn from Anil in the beginning?
Think and write in your own words, in your notebook.
Do you feel Anil’s way of handling a thief like Hari was effective? Justify your answer.
Think and write in your own words, in your notebook.
What tact had Anil used to change Hari’s dishonest ways?
Fiction writers prefer creating grey characters rather than black and white. Analyse this in detail, with reference to both the characters of The Thief’s Story.
Why did Hari Singh smile in his most appealing way towards the end of the story?
Imagine that Hari Singh from ‘The Thief’s Story’ by Ruskin Bond, writes a diary entry, exploring the theme of human values and relations that are essential in life and can transform a person in the context of his own experience. Write this diary entry as Hari Singh.
