Chapter 1: The Best Christmas Present in the World

English
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Chapter 1: The Best Christmas Present in the World

Class: VIII

Exercise number – 1

Question 1

What did the author find in a junk shop?

 

Answer 1

In the junk shop the author found a 19^th century roll-top desk which was made of oak. Its roll-top was broken into numerous pieces. The roll-top desk was in a very bad condition. One of its legs was roughly mended and there were scorch marks down one side. The author bought it to restore it.

 

Question 2

What did he find in a secret drawer? Who do you think had put it in there?

 

Answer 2

He found a small, black tin-box in the secret drawer. The box had a sheet of paper stuck to its top with a sellotape. It read, ‘Jim’s last letter, received January 25, 1915. To be buried with me when the time comes.’ It was probably put there by Jim’s wife ie. Mrs. Jim Macpherson since the envelope inside the box had her name and address written on it.

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Question 2

Why was the letter written−−what was the wonderful thing that had happened?

 

Answer 2

Jim wrote the letter to his wife to tell her about a wonderful thing that had happened on the Christmas day. There was a war going on between The British and The Germans, yet both the troops met in no man’s land on that day. It was a wonderful thing because the warring soldiers were making peace in the middle of a war.

 

Question 3

What jobs did Hans Wolf and Jim Macpherson have when they were not soldiers?

 

Answer 3

Before becoming soldiers, Hans Wolf who was from Dusseldorf played the cello in the orchestra and Jim Macpherson who was from Dorset was a school teacher.

 

Question 4

Had Hans Wolf even been to Dorset? Why did he say he knew it?

 

Answer 4

Hans Wolf had never been to Dorset himself. He had learned all about England from his school and by reading English books.

 

Question 5

Do you think Jim Macpherson came back from the war? How do you know this?

 

Answer 5

No, Jim Macpherson probably never came back from the war. The note stuck on the top of the tin box mentioned that the letter inside it was the "last letter" from Jim. This was the last time Connie heard from Jim. The British and the German soldiers played football in the no man’s land while celebrating Christmas. Hans told Jim that he hoped that the war could also be resolved by a match of football to which Jim replied that he wasn’t good at football, but he would be sure of winning if they played cricket. The Germans won the match. This maybe indicates that the Germans might also have won the actual battle between the two troops.

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Question 1

Why did the author go to Bridport?

 

Answer 1

The author had to go to Bridport because he wanted to give that letter back to Mrs. Macpherson who lived there.

 

Question 2

How old was Mrs. Macpherson now? Where was she?

 

Answer 2
Mrs. Macpherson was one hundred and one years old now. She was in a nursing home in Burlington House.

 

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Question 1

Who did Connie Macpherson think her visitor was?

 

Answer 1

Connie Macpherson thought that her visitor was none other than her husband, Jim Macpherson.

 

Question 2

Which sentence in the text shows that the visitor did not try to hide his identity?

 

Answer 2

The sentence, ‘I explained about the desk, about how I had found it, but I don’t think she was listening.’ shows that the visitor did not try to hide his identity.

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Question 1

For how long do you think Connie had kept Jim’s letter? Give reasons for your answer.

 

Answer 1

I think that Connie might have kept Jim’s letter for a very long time. She herself told the narrator that she read the letter quite often every day in order to feel that Jim was still near her.

 

Question 2

Why do you think the desk had been sold, and when?

 

Answer 2

The desk probably had been sold when the house in which Connie Macpherson resided had caught fire. She was taken to a nursing home. After that the neighbours might have sold all the burnt up things.

 

Question 3

Why do Jim and Hans think that games or sports are good ways of resolving conflicts? Do you agree?

 

Answer 3

Jim and Hanks believed that games or sports are good ways of resolving conflicts as there are no deaths involved in it. No children turn into orphans and no wives turn into widows. Due to these reasons and the fact that wars only lead to devastation, games or sports are a good way to resolve conflicts.

 

Question 4

Do you think the soldiers of the two armies are like each other, or different from each other? Find evidence form the story to support your answer.

 

Answer 4

The soldiers of the two armies were like each other. Both the troops celebrated Christmas with each other, shared each other’s food. All of them were smoking, laughing, talking, drinking and eating. They even talked about the books that they liked. They agreed about almost everything. They also played football for which both Hans and Jim cheered, clapped hands and stamped feet. They also exchanged carols at night. Furthermore, they had the same view that wars only brought death and destruction, and they hoped that each would be alive to see his family. All these instances indicate that the soldiers of the two armies were similar to each other.

 

Question 5

Mention the various ways in which the British and the German soldiers become friends and find things in common at Christmas.

 

Answer 5

The British and the German troops celebrated Christmas together. They enjoyed each other’s food. All of them were smoking, laughing, talking, drinking and eating. Hans Wolf and Jim Macpherson shared the cake prepared by Connie. They talked about Bathsheba, Gabriel Oak, Sergeant Troy and Dorset. They also talked about the books they liked. They agreed about everything. Both the troops played a game of football for which both Hans and Jim cheered, clapped hands and stamped feet. They also exchanged carols at night. In this manner, they celebrated Christmas together, and found a lot in common among them.

 

Question 6

What is Connie’s Christmas present? Why is it "the best Christmas present in the world"?

 

Answer 6

While in the nursing home, when the narrator visited Connie and gave her the box, she thought that it was her husband Jim who had come home for Christmas. This was her Christmas present and it was the best Christmas present in the world for her because Jim had written in his letter to her that he would be coming back home on Christmas. She had read that letter numerous times every day in order to feel that he was near her. She was extremely happy that he was finally there with her

 

Question 7

Do you think the title of this story is suitable for it? Can you think of any other title(s)?

 

Answer 7

Yes, I think that the title of the story "The best Christmas present in the world" suits it perfectly. The spirit of Christmas is the theme that prevails throughout the story. Firstly, it was on a Christmas day, in the middle of a raging war, that two warring troops made peace. The moment of peace that the soldiers shared with each other was the best Christmas present for them.

Also, it was on a Christmas day that the narrator visited Mrs. Macpherson to return her husband’s letter to her. The letter was very precious to her, but what was even more precious was her delusion that the narrator was none other than her husband Jim, who she believed had returned as promised on a Christmas day. This indeed was the best Christmas present in the world for her.

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Question 1
(i) Read the passage below and underline the verbs in the past tense. 

A man got on the train and sat down. The compartment was empty except for one lady. She took her gloves off. A few hours later the police arrested the man. They held him for 24 hours and then freed him.

 

(ii) Fill in the blanks using the correct form of the verbs in brackets.
My little sister is very naughty. When she __________ (come) back from school yesterday, she had _________ (tear) her dress. We ________ (ask) her how it had_________ (happen). She _______________ (say) she ____________ (have, quarrel) with a boy. She __________ __________ (have, beat) him in a race and he________ _______ (have, try) to push her. She _____________ ____________ (have, tell) the teacher and so he ______________ ______________ (have, chase) her, and she ____________ ____________ (have, fall) down and __________________________(have, tear) her dress.

 

(iii) Underline the verbs and arrange them in two columns, Past and Earlier past.
(a) My friends set out to see the caves in the next town, but I stayed at home, because I had seen them already.
(b) When they arrived at the station, their train had left. They came back home, but by that time I had gone out to see a movie!
(c) So they sat outside and ate the lunch I had packed for them.
(d) By the time I returned, they had fallen asleep!

Past	Earlier past

 

Answer 1
(i)   A man got on the train and sat down. The compartment was empty except for one lady. She took her gloves off. A few hours later the police arrested the man. They held him for 24 hours and then freed him.

(ii)  My little sister is very naughty. When she came (come) back from school yesterday, she had torn (tear) her dress. We asked (ask) her how it had happened (happen). She said (say) she had quarreled (have, quarrel) with a boy. She had beaten (have, beat) him in a race and he had tried (have, try) to push her. She had told (have, tell) the teacher and so he had chased (have, chase) her, and she had fallen (have, fall) down and had torn (have, tear) her dress.

(iii)

1. My friends set out to see the caves in the next town, but I stayed at home, because I had seen them already.
2. When they arrived at the station, their train had left. They came back home, but by that time I had gone out to see a movie!
3. So they sat outside and ate the lunch I had packed for them.
4. By the time I returned, they had fallen asleep!

Past	Earlier past
set out	had seen
Stayed	had left
Arrived	had gone
Came	had packed
Sat	had fallen
Ate
Returned

 

Question 2

Find these phrasal verbs in the story.
burn out; light up; look on; run out; keep out;
Write down the sentences in which they occur, consult a dictionary and write down the meaning that you think matches the meaning of the phrasal verb in the sentence.

 

Answers 2

(i) Burn out: House number 12 turned out to be nothing but a burned-out shell, the roof gaping, the windows boarded-up.

(ii) Light up: That was the moment her eyes lit up with recognition and her face became suffused with a sudden glow of happiness.

(iii) Look on: Hans Wolf and I looked on and cheered, clapping our hands and stamping our feet, to keep out the cold as much as anything.

(iv) Run out: The time came, and all too soon, when the game was finished, the schnapps and the rum and the sausage had long since run out, and we knew it was all over.

(v) Keep out: Hans Wolf and I looked on and cheered, clapping our hands and stamping our feet, to keep out the cold as much as anything.

 

Question 3
The table below contains a list of nouns and some adjectives. Use as many adjectives as you can to describe each noun. You might come up with some funny descriptions!

 

Noun	Adjective
Elephant	circular, striped, enormous, multicolored, round, cheerful, wild, blue, red, chubby, large, medium-sized, cold
Face
Building
Water

 

Answer 3

Noun	Adjective
Elephant	enormous, cheerful, wild, large, medium-sized
Face	round, red, cheerful, chubby
Building	circular, multi-coloured, enormous, blue, red, large, medium-sized
Water	blue, cold