Footprints Without Feet

                                                    Footprints Without Feet 

1.What experiments did Griffin carry out? What was the final result of these experiments?

ANS:     Griffin was a brilliant scientist. He conducted many experiments and discovered a drug which if swallowed could make a person invisible. Griffin misused his invention for his personal gains and selfish ends. He became invisible and got involved in lawlessness.

2. Mr Griffin entered the shop of the theatrical company. What did he do there?

ANS:     He wore bandages around his forehead. Then he put on dark glasses, false nose, big bushy side whiskers and a large hat. He escaped from there after attacking the shopkeeper from behind and robbing him of all the money.

3. What happened to the people who tried to help the constable in catching the invisible man?

ANS:     The people who tried to help the constable in catching the invisible man found themselves hit by blows that seemed to come from nowhere.

4. Why did Griffin slip into a big London store? What did he do inside the shop?

ANS:     Griffin was wandering on the streets of London in mid-winter. The air outside was chilling cold and he needed clothes to save himself from this unbearable weather. Griffin decided to enter a London store. Griffin broke open the boxes and wrappers and dressed himself in warm clothes. He ate cold meat and had coffee in the restaurant followed by sweets and wine from the grocery store.

5. What did the scientist do when he became furious? Why were the people in the bar horrified?

ANS:     He threw off his bandages, whiskers, spectacles, and even nose in a minute and became headless. The people in the bar were horrified to see “a headless man”.

6. Why did Griffin want to escape from crowded London?

ANS:     Griffin wanted to escape from crowded London because it was becoming difficult for him to hide himself there.

7. Why did Griffin set the landlord’s house on fire?

ANS:     He set his landlord’s house on fire as the landlord wanted to throw him out because of his bad behaviour.

8. Horace was a thief who planned his work carefully. He was in a way a sucesssful thief. Should we call him a successful thief and appreciate his work? Why/Why not?

ANS:     Horace Danby was a good, honest citizen of about 50 years. He planned his work carefully. He was a meticulous planner. He used to observe and supervise the house to be burgled. He never acted in haste. He studied the map and other minute details of the house at Shotover Grange. He had the details of electric wiring, dogs and servants of the house. He knew when it was the right time to strike. He did his work so well that there was no cause of his arrest. No doubt he was a successful thief but his act of theft can not be appreciated. Stealing is a vice which can not be appreciated. To fulfil our needs we should not resort to theft.

9. Do you think Horace Danby was unfairly punished or that he deserved what he got? Do you agree that honesty in wrong acts is not desirable?

ANS:     The story, ‘A Question of Trust’ is a story of distrust. The lady in the red is the real culprit. She was a very clever lady and was successful in befooling Horace. She made him believe that she was the mistress of the house and told him a story with conviction. Horace had taken off his gloves, because he thought that the wife of the owner was with him. That was the biggest mistake of his life. Horace Danby left his fingerprints and was arrested. He was not punished unfairly. He was not innocent as he entered the house with the intention to rob the house. Honesty in wrong acts can not be justified. It is not desirable at all.

10. What are the subtle ways in which the lady manages to deceive Horace Danby into thinking she is the lady of the house? Why doesn’t Horace suspect that something is wrong? What are the negative values reflected in her character?

ANS:     The lady is very smart and clever. She succeeds in befooling Horace Danby that she is the owner of the house. She is a well dressed, well planned and organised thief who drafted her trick so meticulously that a brilliant thief like Horace could not suspect her. The way she enters and talks to Horace Danby, he is unable to doubt her integrity. Even the dog did not bark on seeing her. The lady in red had some negative traits in her personality. She was not honest. She was a thief and befooled another thief. She lacked honesty, integrity and honour.

11. “Horace Danby was good and respectable – but not completely honest.” Why do you think this description is apt for Horace? Why can’t he be categorised as a typical thief? Should we call him a good human being?

ANS:     The statement is an apt statement for Danby. He was a respectable person, but he was a thief who in order to fulfil his desire used to rob once in a year. He had adopted a dishonest way to fulfil his desire. So he cannot be called an honest person. Horace Danby is not a typical thief because he steals mainly to buy rare and expensive books. He planned his theft in such a manner that he could not be arrested so far. Being an introvert, he did not blurt about his theft to anybody. No, we can’t call him a good human being. He was a victim of the trick played on him. He is not completely honest. He entered the house with bad intention. He was a thief and a thief can not be called a good human being.

12. “Horace Danby was a meticulous planner but still he faltered.” Where did he go wrong and why? Negative values never pay in long run: Do you agree?

ANS:     Though Horace Danby was a brilliant thief, he was caught in the end. He faltered because he readily handed over jewellery to the so-called owner of the house. Horace Danby was befooled by the lady in red. She pretended to be the owner of the house and made him open the safe without gloves. Horace left his fingerprints. He failed in his plan and was caught for a crime that he did not commit. Negative values never pay in the long run. Every criminal has his punishment. Sooner or later one is caught and punished. Horace Danby was no doubt a meticulous planner but he was on a wrong path. His intention had never been good. He planned to rob others and was ultimately paid for it.

13. The lady in red dress was a more professional thief than Horace Danby. Do you agree? Elaborate.

ANS:     The lady in red not only outsmarted Horace Danby rather she went one step forward to ensure that all the evidence went against Horace to establish him as the real culprit and the lady walked out freely and untraceably. The lady combined her female arrogance and confidence to prepare a perfect recipe to befool Horace as he could not suspect that she was not the real lady of house. The lady tricked Horace Danby to utilise his years of experience in theft for her own benefit and Horace on the basis of his fingerprints was put behind the bars.

14. “Discoveries of science can be used for welfare as well as for destruction.” How is this applicable to Griffin’s scientific discovery? How did Griffin bring a bad name to his invention? What values did he lack in his character?

ANS:     A true scientist works for the good of humanity. He wants to make man’s life easier, more comfortable and enjoyable. He does not misuse his discoveries for personal gains or selfish ends. But Griffin, though a brilliant scientist, misuses his discovery. By his experiments, he has been able to make his body transparent and invisible. He uses this discovery to puzzle other people, enters stores and shops unseen, robs people of their money or things and escapes. He sets fire to the house of his landlord who tried to eject him. He steals food, sweets and wine. Griffin brought a bad name to science by misusing his invention. He lacked the values of sensitivity and social behaviour. He was a selfish man with a criminal bent of mind.

15. Griffin was a brilliant scientist but not a true one. What made him a bad scientist? What does it show about his character? How is the value of ‘welfare for all’ important in the life of a scientist?

ANS:     Griffin was a brilliant scientist but not a true one. He discovered how human body could be made transparent. It was an amazing discovery that could be used the welfare of society. But Griffin misused it. He used it to puzzle others. He disturbed the peace of others. He robbed the innocent people. He took revenge upon his landlady. It shows he was not a man of good character. He lacked the value of kindness, cooperation and humility. He was an eccentric dishonest and lawless scientist who brought bad name to science. He did not understand the value of welfare for all. If he had used his invention for good cause, he would have become immortal and remembered forever.

16. One must be a law abiding citizen of the country. Griffin lacked this value in his character. How did it make him an undesirable person? How did lawlessness overshadowed his greatness as a scientist?

ANS:     One must be a law abiding person. Those who don’t follow rules become a nuisance for society. Griffin was no doubt a brilliant scientist but his lawlessness overshadowed his brilliance. He misused his discovery and disturbed the peace of society. He robbed a storehouse, hit the landlady and the shopkeeper, had a fight with the constable. All these lawless activities of Griffin made him an undesirable person in society. He used his invention for self-interest and for taking revenge upon the people around him.

17. What makes glass or water transparent (what is the scientific explanation for this)? Do you think it would be scientifically possible for a man to become invisible, or transparent? (Keep in mind that writers of science fiction have often turned out to be prophetic in their imagination.)

ANS:     The phenomenon of ‘Transparency of Glass and Water’ involves the science of Light. Water and glass do not refract the entire light incident on their surface but refract some of it. This makes glass and water transparent and not opaque. Man has done many wonderful inventions which could not be thought of earlier. Though it doesn’t seem to be possible nowadays science is capable of doing miracles. It may be possible in coming centuries. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< End >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Share this

Empowerment Rules the World