English Class-XII

Question Bank – English - XII 149

2. A mature understanding is reflected in the relationship between Hana and Dr. Sadao. Elucidate in the
context of the story.

Value Based Questions:

1. There are moments in life when we have to make hard choices between our roles as private individuals and
as citizens with a sense of national loyalty. In the lesson ‘The Enemy’, Dr. Sadao, made a choice of saving
the American prisoner of war. If you are faced with a similar dilemna, what would you decide to do. Write
an article in about 100 words explaining your choice and establishing the fact that saving a human life is
always the most important duty of every individual.

Answer:
l Man faces such difficult choices in life.
l Man is endowed with the ability to reason.
l Professional ethics and sense of duty towards humanity will help resolve this conflict.
2. While hatred against a member of the enemy race is justifiable, specially during war time, what makes

a human being rise above narrow prejudices. Write an article in about 100 words about the values an
individual must inculcate in order to rise above narrow bias and prejudices.

150 Question Bank – English - XII

Should Wizard Hit Mommy?

John Updike

Points to Remember:

• The story session and the magical moments shared by Jack and his daughter, Joanne
• Each tale a slight variation of the basic tale
• Roger Skunk, the new hero
• Jack, a master story-teller
• Narrates Roger’s humiliation from his own experience
• Roger consults the owl
• Jack remembers to help his wife, who is on the family way, with painting
• The twist in Roger Skunk’s story
• Jo disapproves of the story ending
• Jack remains adamant on his part – knew what was right
• Jack’s ugly middle position
• Gender roles getting redefined
• The moral issue the story raises – should parents impose their views on their children?

Short Answer Type Questions (3 Marks each)

Solved Example:
Q. : What did Jo look forward to in the evenings and for Saturday naps?

Ans.: In the evenings and for Saturday naps, Jack would tell his four-year-old daughter, Joanne, a self-
created story. This custom had begun when she was two and now nearly two years old had passed.

1. Why was the ritual of story-telling specially fatiguing on Saturdays?
2. What were the basic points of each tale told by Jack?
3. What was the reason for Roger Skunk’s sadness?
4. How did the wizard solve as well as create problems for Roger?
5. How did Roger Skunk’s mother react to his newly acquired smell?
6. Did Jo appreciate Roger’s mother’s reaction to the wizard? What did she do?
7. What two opposite forces acted on Jack while he was telling Jo a story about the little skunk?
8. What kind of an ending does Jo want to the story?

Higher Order Thinking Skills Questions (HOTS):
1. Do you see autobiographical elements in the Jack’s story?
2. Do you think Jack is an ideal father? What are his shortcomings, if any?

Question Bank – English - XII 151

Long Answer Type Questions (6 Marks each)

Solved Example:
Q.: What aroused the anger of Roger Skunk’s mother? Does her anger and the action that followed seem justified?

Ans.: Roger Skunk’s mother was angry because he had lost his natural, God-given smell. He no longer
emitted the foul smell he was born with. On the contrary, he had an unusually sweet smell of
roses. She wanted her young one to smell the way a young skunk should. The natural smell was a
protection to keep predators at bay. The newly acquired smell of roses granted by a magic spell of
the wizard could attract predators and endanger the skunk’s life. She was outraged at the wizard and
wanted him to smell like the way a skunk should. Her anger is justified because by a simple act he
had put the life of her young one in danger. No mother can act calmly and rationally when there is
some danger to the life of her young one. She took him back to the wizard, hit him over the head
and ordered him to undo the magic spell and restore the original foul smell to her skunk.

1. What was the story-telling ritual that Jack followed with his daughter? How did he ensure the
active participation of the listener as the story progressed?

2. What problem did Roger Skunk have? How was it solved?
3. What happened when Roger Skunk returned home after meeting the wizard? What is your

opinion of the mother?
4. What is your stance regarding the two endings of the story?
5. Adults should not impose their perspectives on their children. Do you agree?

Higher Order Thinking Skills Questions (HOTS)
1. The title has a question mark. How far do you find it a convincing and appropriate title?
2. The story, ‘Should Wizard Hit Mommy?’ touches upon certain underlying assumptions about gender roles.

Elucidate.

Value Based Questions:

1. ‘Should Wizard Hit Mommy’ raises a moral question- Should parents always decide what is best for
children and should children always obey their parents unquestioningly? Write an article in about 100
words expressing your views as to how an amicable and compatible relationship between parents and
children is necessary for the overall balanced development of an individual. Give your suggestions as to how
best this can be achieved.

Answer: Parents and children have different perspectives
• Child views things at a superficial and sensory level
• Parents vision is realistic, reflective, philosphical and even psychological.
• As child attains maturity his perspective and vision of life changes.
• Parents should deal with children in a mature way without losing patience.
• A cordial and friendly relationship should exist between parent and child.
• Instead of using authority, parents should try and make the child understand their point of view by

appealing to their sense of reasoning.

152 Question Bank – English - XII

• Above all there should be mutual respect for each other’s views.
2. The author John Updike through his story conveys a message that we should honour, value and accept all

creatures, high or low, gleefully the way Roger Skunk was eventually accepted by the woodland creatures
despite its foul smell. Write an article in about 100 words as to how important it is for every individual
in society to accept every other individual for their inherent values and wipe away all other differences
between class, creed, religion, caste, language etc.

Question Bank – English - XII 153

On The Face of It

Points To Remember:

About the story:

• The story brings out the pain and isolation that the physically handicapped go through.
• The callousness and insensitivity of the society adversely affects their personality.
• They often become withdrawn and isolated like the fourteen year old Derry.
• Sensitivity and understanding can help them to face life with courage and fortitude.

In a nutshell

• It is the story of a rare understanding between an old man and a young boy, both of whom have their own
disabilities.

• The old man, Mr. Lamb, had lost a leg in a bomb explosion during war and the young boy, Derry, got burnt
on one side when a bottle of acid had fallen on him.

• The young boy jumped over the garden wall, and coming face to face with the old man, started talking to
him

• Both of them share the pain of their disabilities with each other.
• Mr. Lamb advises the boy not to think about his face but think about the fact that he has the rest of his

body strong and intact.
• Mr. Lamb tells him not to let people’s attitudes hurt him as there is nothing wrong with him and to face

the harsh realities of his life with courage and fortitude.
• When Derry is not convinced, Mr. Lamb tells him that the real beauty of a person is inside and not outside.
• Derry was further told by Mr. Lamb that the world around was beautiful and that he should appreciate it

and find, a number of things to keep himself busy as well as admire and enjoy nature’s bounty.
• Derry is inspired by Mr. Lamb’s words and expresses his desire to have a big house and a big garden,

promises to visit him again.
• Derry mentions his meeting with Mr. Lamb to his mother, who cautions him against visiting Mr. Lamb,

but Derry is determined to visit his new friend again.
• In the meanwhile, Mr. Lamb climbs a ladder to get apples but falls down, when Derry comes running to

meet him again.
• He tries to move Mr. Lamb to get him back, but is not able to move him.
• Derry realizes that he has lost the only friend he had in the world who had inspired him to face life with

courage.
• Derry finds he has the strength to face life.

154 Question Bank – English - XII

Short Answer Type Questions (3 Marks each)

Solved Example:
Q. Why does Mr Lamb keep his windows without curtains and his gates open?

Ans. He keeps his windows without curtains as he doesn’t like shutting things out and he keeps his
gates open because he likes company. Hence he wants people to enter his garden.

1. Why is Derry surprised when he climbs over the garden wall into the garden and suddenly finds an old man
talking to him? Why does he feel indignant?

2. How did Mr Lamb react when he saw Derry entering his garden after climbing over the garden wall?
3. Who is Mr Lamb and what sort of house does he live in?
4. What is the disability that the old man suffers from? How does he cope with it in his daily life?
5. How are Derry and Mr Lamb different in their attitudes to their respective disabilities?
6. What do you infer from Derry’s statement that acid “has eaten” him up?
7. How did Derry’s face get scarred? How did the scar on his face scar his life?
8. Mention instances from the play that show that most people are insensitive in their behaviour towards

those who have physical disability?

Long Answer Type Questions (6 Marks each)

Solved Example
Q. How do Mr Lamb and Derry differ in their thought, traits and attitude in life?

Ans:
• Mr Lamb has a positive attitude, whereas Derry has a negative attitude.
• Mr Lamb is open –minded, whereas Derry is withdrawn and alienated from the world.
• Mr Lamb has come to terms with his physical deformity, whereas Derry keeps thinking about it.
• Mr Lamb does not let the comments of people get to him, whereas Derry is deeply affected by them

and gets hurt by them.
1. Will Derry get back to his old seclusion or will Mr. Lamb’s brief association change the life he will lead in

future?
2. ‘You look at me …. And then you see my face, and then you say that is bad,’ says Derry to the old man.

What makes him say so? Elucidate.
3. ‘It ate my face up. It ate me up’, says Derry to Mr Lamb. What is this a reference to and how does the play

bear out the latter part of the statement.
4. Despite all that the old man says, he is still a lonely old man. How is this brought out in the course of the

play? How does Mr Lamb overcome his loneliness?
5. Despite their disabilities, both Mr Lamb and Derry look at life differently. Elucidate with examples from

the chapter.

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Higher Order Thinking Skills Questions (HOTS)

1. Self condemnation can often be reflected as hostility towards the outside world. How?
2. The play is an apt depiction of the loneliness and the sense of alienation experienced by people on account

of disability. Elaborate.
3. The actual pain or inconvenience caused by a physical impairment is often much less than the sense of

alienation felt by the person with disabilities. What is the kind of behavior that the person expects from
others?
4. What philosophy is brought out in the chapter ‘On the Face of it’?

Value Based Questions:

1. ‘On the Face of it’ deals with the theme that appearances are deceptive and most often we go on dealing
with our impressions and prejudices about others without caring to know actually. Write an article in
about 100 words as to how important it is to have an open mind while interacting with people and how
preconceived notions should be removed to build more cordial and amicable relationships in society.

2. ‘Scars do not change a person and disabilities should be accepted in life and society.’ Instead of fussing
over Derek’s scars or Mr. Lamb’s eccentricity and artificial legs, people around them, need to realize that
with understanding the two can do well in life. Write an article in 100 words as to how love and sympathy
towards the disabled can change their life completely.

Answer:
• People fail to realize the uniqueness of every human being.
• Every little creature is the creation of God.
• The duty of every individual is to respect each other.
• On the face of it, there is so much diversity, so many differences and divide between the people but

underneath there is oneness, a sameness that all of them are created by God.
• All the people need to live and grow together with love and mutual acceptance.

156 Question Bank – English - XII

Evans Tries an O – Level

Colin Dexter

Points to Remember:

• The request for an O-Level for the prisoner, James Roderick Evans
• Evans’ profile
• The preparations and precautions for the examination
• Reverend McLeery arrives to conduct the examination
• Scrutiny of McLeery’s suitcase
• The Governor’s anxieties
• The examination finally starts
• Interruptions - The phone calls
• McLeery escorted to the prison gates on conclusion of the examination
• Stephens discovers a man sprawled in blood on Evans’ chair
• Prison officers swing into action
• The lapses
• The lost chase and Mcleery
• The Governor reads through the German paper
• Evans tracked at the Golden Lion
• The plan unfolds
• Evans has the last laugh

Short Answer Type Questions (3 Marks each)

Solved Example:
Q. What request did the Secretary of Examinations receive from the Governor of Oxford Prison?

Ans. The request was to create an examination centre in the prison for one inmate, named, James
Roderick Evans. He had started night classes in O-Level German in September and was keen to
get some sort of academic qualification. The Secretary agreed to give him a chance and promised to
send him all the forms.

1. Who were the two visitors that Evans had at 8.30 a.m. on the day of the examination?
2. How does Evans persuade Jackson to keep the hat on that he had been ordered to take off?

Question Bank – English - XII 157

3. What object found in McLeery’s suitcase puzzled Mr. Jackson? How did Mc Leery react to Mr.
Jackson’s query?

4. How did the Governor react to the two phone calls he received in quick succession?
5. What did Stephens notice on coming back to the cell of Evans? What conclusions did he draw?
6. What was the surprising news the Governor gets after calling Radcliffe? How did he react?
7. What was the truth about McLeery?
8. How did the Governor find the Golden Lion where Evans had checked in following his escape

from the prison?

Higher Order Thinking Skills Questions (HOTS)

1. Who do you think had the last laugh, the Governor or Evans?
2. Evans was an intelligent convict. Elucidate.

Long Answer Type Questions (6 Marks each)

Solved Example:
A. Draw a pen picture of James Roderick Evans.

Ans.: “Evans the Break” as he was known among the prison officers was a jail bird. He was a congenital
kleptomaniac, but was not violent by nature. He was quite a pleasant sort of a person, amusing
and good at imitations. When he is introduced to the reader, he is unshaven with long wavy
hair. He wore a filthy looking red and white bobble hat and had tucked a grubby string vest into
equally grubby trousers. He appears to be quite cheerful with the prison officers. Evans is smart
and resourceful. He makes a request to Mr. Jackson to allow him to put on his bobble hat. But he
complains to the invigilator that Stephens’ presence disturbs his concentration. He makes a polite
request to cover himself with a blanket as it is chilly. He uses it to put on the clerical collar and
black front. He employs the brief absence of the prison officers to disguise himself as McLeery, the
parson, and spill blood on him to look injured. He acts the part of the injured parson well. He
offers to help the police and wins their confidence by acting groggy and in need of an ambulance.
Evans enjoys the faith, support and active cooperation of his accomplices. They plan carefully,
working out the minute details to carry out his escape plan skilfully.

1. What measures were taken by the prison authorities to ensure that the exam was conducted in a
fair manner without compromising on the security of the prison?

2. Evans turned the tables on his captors by devising a foolproof plan. Comment.
3. The Governor and Stephens received three phone calls during the exam that were a hoax. What

were the instructions given to them?
4. The Governor though responsible, does appear to be gullible. Which are the incidents in the

lesson when he could have shown more alertness?
5. Comment on the aptness of the title, ‘Evans Tries An O-Level’.
6. Should criminals in prison be given an opportunity for learning and education? Give reasons in
support of your answer.
7. Comment on the ending of the lesson, ‘Evans Tries An O-Level’.

158 Question Bank – English - XII

Memories Of Childhood
Zitkala-Sa and Bama

Points to Remember:

1) The Cutting of My Long Hair
Zitkala – Sa’s First Day At School
• Cold, Snowfall
• Student wore stiff shoes and tight fitting clothes
• Small girls wore sleeved aprons and had shingled hair
• Meals eaten by procedure
A Warning From A Friend
• Heard of cutting their long heavy hair (from Judewin)
• Zitkala was shocked
• In her community shingled hair was worn by cowards/mourners
A Struggle In Vain
• Zitkala – Sa crept upstairs
• Three bedded large curtained room
• Crawled under a bed
• But she was searched out and hair shingled
• Felt helpless and miserable.

2) We too are Human Beings
Bama’s Usual Routine While Returning Fom School
• Took 30 minutes instead of 10 minutes
• Watched farmers threshing, her community people at work, cattle treading on grain, etc.
One Day Bama Sees An Unusual Sight
• A senior man of her community holding by string a packet of vadai.
• He bowed and presented it to the landlord
• Narrated this to her brother
• A painful revelation from him
• Their community was discriminated.
The Solution
• Brother urged Bama to study – make progress and overcome discrimination
• Studied in a frenzied way, did well and became popular among friends

Question Bank – English - XII 159

Short Answer Questions (3 Marks each)
1) What customs did Zitkala – Sa find strange in her new school?

Hints: Eating by formula, Dressing up.
2) Why was Zitkala – Sa shocked to know that her hair would be shingled?
3) Why did Bama spend more time to reach home from school?
4) Why does Zitkala – Sa say “My spirit tore itself in struggling for its freedom?”
5) What was the thought that infuriated Bama?
6) Why did the landlord’s men ask Annan where he lived?
7) Describe ‘eating by formula’ in the episode ‘The Cutting of my Long Hair’.
8) How did Bama react on learning about untouchability?

Long Answer Type Questions (6 Marks each)

Solved Example:
1) ‘Both Zitkala – Sa and Bama demonstrate amazing fortitude in dealing with issues concerning marginalized

communities’. Elaborate with reference to ‘Memories of Childhood’.

Value Points

• Both autobiographical extracts – two distant cultures – lives of two women from marginalised
communities.

• Zitkala – Sa an American Indian woman, expresses indignities suffered by the Native Americans in
school.

• Put up a brave rebellion – felt strongly against the injustice meted out to them.
• Bama noticed an elderly man – holding a packet of vadais by its string – not touching it – brother

explained how they were discriminated against.
• Her mind rebelled – voiced the discrimination they faced – got educated – became popular with

friends.
1) “For now I was only one of many little animals driven by a herder”, When did Zitkala – Sa say this and

why?
2) When Bama understood and realized that being born into a particular caste could bring with it

untouchability, how did she react and what did she resolve to do?
3) The resistance of Zitkala – Sa to the cutting of her hair and Bama’s determination to study are sparks, which

can ignite a change. Discuss.

160 Question Bank – English - XII

Value Based Questions

1. Class distinction and inequalities suffered by the oppressed class have no barriers of time and space. Right
from the inception of humans on earth there have been inequalities and dissimil arities. Wiping out of
inequalities shall usher in the kingdom of heaven on this earth. Write an article in 100 words as to how
as future leaders of tomorrow you can help in eliminating these distinctions and make this world a better
place to live in.

2. In the lesson, ‘Memories of Childhood’, Bama, after witnessing the indignity suffered by the elderly man
at the hands of his employer, just because he belonged to a lower class is extremely upset and says ‘‘But, we
too are human beings’. Write an article in 100 words as how people can fight against these oppressions and
establish themselves with dignity in society.

Answer:
* It is foolish to revolt openly, because they would be crushed in this unequal battle, only education can

wipe out these inequalities.
* Ingenious method of outdoing the upper class by winning laurels in the examinations and earn their

admiration.

Novel

The Invisible Man
About the author

Born on September 21, 1866, Herbert George Wells has been called the Father of Science Fiction. His best-
known stories are The Time Machine, The Invisible Man, and The War of the Worlds, but he wrote over 100
books, among them nearly 50 novels.
Herbert George Wells was an important English writer in his own day and is remembered today as an innovative
writer in the new genre of science fiction. He won a scholarship to study science at university. With a first-
class degree in biology, he briefly became a teacher. His career in the classroom was ended by a sharp kick in
the kidneys from an unhappy pupil, which left him too unwell to continue teaching. He then lived on a small
income from journalism and short stories, until his literary career took off with his first science fiction novel,
The Time Machine, in 1895.Wells wrote with tremendous energy throughout his life, producing many science
fiction stories, short stories, sociological and political books, autobiographical novels and histories. He became
very successful as a writer, perhaps because his work was both popular and intellectual, and he lived in some
style. He married twice and had a reputation as a womaniser. He moved in socialist circles and used fiction to
explore his political ideas.
Contemporary political and social issues underlie the plots of Wells’ stories. The War of the Worlds (1898)
and The Time Machine (1895) were attacks on the self-satisfaction of society rather than genuine attempts to
predict the future. The Invisible Man (1897) marked a move towards more realistic subject matter. Although the
idea of the invisible man is obviously a fantasy, the reader meets him through the eyes of the ordinary villagers
rather than the aliens of his earlier books. Wells often reaches pessimistic conclusions in his work, as in this
story, but he said that he was neither a pessimist nor an optimist, more of an observer.As he grew older, Wells
wrote more and more social comments rather than science fiction. He drew on his own experiences as a young
man growing up in poverty. ‘Who needs invented stories/ as he wrote himself in 1933, ‘when day by day we can
watch Mr Hitler in Germany?’
A classic film On The Invisible Man was made in 1933 in the United States starring Claude Rains in the title
role.

162 Question Bank – English - XII

About The Book

The Invisible Man is a science fiction novel by H. G. Wells published in 1897. This story was written by H.G.
Wells, sometimes called the ‘father’ of science fiction.
Originally serialised in Pearson’s Weekly in 1897, it was published as a novel the same year. The lie on action
takes place in rural Sussex, England, in the 1890s. The people there are country folk whose concern be on
focusing on their land and the weather. The Invisible Man of the title is Griffin, a scientist who has devoted
himself to research into optics and invents a way to change a body’s refractive index to that of air so that it
absorbs and reflects no light and thus becomes invisible. He successfully carries out this procedure on himself,
but fails in his attempt to reverse the procedure.
A mysterious stranger, Griffin, arrives at the local inn of the English village of Iping, West Sussex, during a
snowstorm. The stranger wears a long-sleeved, thick coat and gloves, his face hidden entirely by bandages except
for a fake pink nose, and a wide-brimmed hat. He is excessively reclusive, irascible, and unfriendly. He demands
to be left alone and spends most of his time in his rooms working with a set of chemicals and laboratory
apparatus, only venturing out at night. While staying at the inn, hundreds of strange glass bottles arrive that
Griffin calls his luggage. Many local townsmen believe this to be very strange. He becomes the talk of the village
(one of the novel’s most charming aspects is its portrayal of small-town life in southern England, which the
author knew from first-hand experience).
Meanwhile, a mysterious burglary occurs in the village. Griffin has run out of money and is trying to find a
way to pay for his boarding and lodging. When his landlady demands he pay his bill or quit the premises, he
reveals part of his invisibility to her in a fit of pique. An attempt to apprehend the stranger is frustrating when
he undresses to take advantage of his invisibility, fights off his would-be captors, and flees to the downs.
There Griffin coerces a tramp, Thomas Marvel, into becoming his assistant. With Marvel, he returns to the
village to recover three notebooks that contain records of his experiments. When Marvel attempts to betray the
Invisible Man to police, Griffin chases him to the seaside town of Port Burdock, threatening to kill him. Marvel
escapes to a local inn and is saved by the people at the inn, but Griffin escapes. Marvel later goes to the police
and tells them of this “invisible man,” then requests to be locked up in a high security jail.
Griffin’s furious attempt to avenge his betrayal leads to his being shot. He takes shelter in a nearby house that
turns out to belong to Dr. Kemp, a former acquaintance from medical school. To Kemp, he reveals his true
identity: the Invisible Man is Griffin, a former medical student who left medicine to devote himself to optics.
Griffin recounts how he invented medicine capable of rendering bodies invisible and, on impulse, performed
the procedure on himself.
Griffin tells Kemp of the story of how he became invisible. He explains how he tried the invisibility on a cat,
then himself. Griffin burns down the boarding house he is staying in along with all his equipment he used to
turn invisible to cover his tracks, but soon realises he is ill- equipped to survive in the open. He attempts to steal
food and clothes from a large department store, and eventually steals some clothing from a theatrical supply
shop and heads to Iping to attempt to reverse the invisibility. But now he imagines that he can make Kemp
his secret confederate, describing his plan to begin a “Reign of Terror” by using his invisibility to terrorise the
nation.
Kemp has already denounced Griffin to the local authorities and is waiting for help to arrive as he listens to this
wild proposal. When the authorities arrive at Kemp’s house, Griffin fights his way out and the next day leaves
a note announcing that Kemp himself will be the first man to be killed in the “Reign of Terror”. Kemp, a cool-
headed character, tries to organize a plan to use himself as bait to trap the Invisible Man, but a note he sends is
stolen from his servant by Griffin.

Question Bank – English - XII 163

Griffin shoots and injures a local policeman who comes to Kemp’s aid, then breaks into Kemp’s house. Kemp
bolts for the town, where the local citizenry comes to his aid. Griffin is seized, assaulted, and killed by a mob.
The Invisible Man’s naked, battered body gradually becomes visible as he dies. A local policeman shouts to cover
his face with a sheet, then the book concludes.
In the final chapter, it is revealed that Marvel has secretly kept Griffin’s notes.
The Invisible Man is a tale of suspense that focuses on an insane medical student, Griffin, who has discovered
how to make people invisible. Because he is mad and invisible, Griffin poses a special threat to the community.
He can steal from people and assault them as if he were a ghost. As the police close in on him, he becomes
more desperate and more dangerous. A tale of gripping suspense, the novel also offers ample comedy. The
townspeople are eccentrics who, in their own peculiar ways, are as strange as Griffin. The humour provided by
their odd behaviour makes for a wellbalanced novel—not too frightening, not too silly, but always entertaining.
A dark comedy, The Invisible Man has attained the stature of a modern myth in part because it addresses
fundamental problems of Western civilization. What price should people pay for knowledge? How much
knowledge is too much? In The Invisible Man, Wells works out the theme that nothing is gained without a
corresponding loss. Griffin, the medical student, discovers how to make himself invisible, but as a result loses
his sanity. The novel is a cautionary tale, warning that a person’s intellectual achievement must still contend
with more primitive drives.
The Invisible Man is also a social comedy, inviting laughter as the rural population of Sussex responds to the
“strange man” all “wrapped up from head to foot.” Instead of inspiring fear with his pranks as he had hoped,
Griffin angers the villagers. Surrounded by colorful, stock English characters, all of whom have their own plans
for him, Griffin loses everything: clothing, money, his notes, and his life. At the novel’s end, a tramp, with
ambitions for wealth and power that parody Griffin’s own, hoards the scientist’s notes and dreams “the undying
wonderful dream
Point Of View
The point of view is third person dramatic for the first half of the book. Then it is a blend of third person and
first person while Griffin tells his own story. Chapters 25 through the Epilogue return to third person.
Themes - Theme Analysis
Corruption of Morals in the Absence of Social Restriction
The narrator uses the Invisible Man to experiment with the depth to which a person can sink when there
are no social restrictions to suppress his behavior. When Griffin first kills his father, excuse, comes up with a
saying that the man was a “sentimental fool.” When he takes the potion himself, he endures such pain that
He “understands” why the cat howled so much in the process of becoming invisible. Nevertheless he has no
compassion for the cat, for his father or for any of the people he takes advantage of in the course of trying to
survive invisibility. On the contrary, he descends from committing atrocities because they are necessary to his
survival to committing them simply because he enjoys doing so.
This theme of corruption in the absence of social law has become a motif that is explored in other literary works.
H. G. Wells created his story with very little psychological elaboration or character development. Other writers,
however, have taken the idea much farther; we are thus blessed with novels such as Lord of the Flies, and Heart
of Darkness, along with short stories by Poe and Melville.

164 Question Bank – English - XII

Science without Humanity
Although Wells does not have his characters elaborate on this idea, the concept is represented in the character of
Kemp as well as in Griffin himself. Kemp wants to stop Griffin more out of fear for himself than out of concern
for the community, but he is nonetheless fascinated by the accomplishment of this misguided college student.
The problem with the entire experiment is that Griffin pursued the idea of invisibility without regard to whether
or not there would be any real benefit to society because of it.
Character Analysis
Griffin
Griffin is the model of science without humanity. He begins his road to decline in college when he becomes so
obsessed with his experiments that he hides his work lest anyone else should receive credit. When he runs out of
money, he robs his own father who eventually commits suicide, a crime that makes the rest of his crimes pale in
comparison. He goes from scientist to fanatic when he begins to focus all of his attention merely on the concept
of invisibility and neglects to think about the consequences of such a condition. He may not have had any
intention initially of trying the potion on himself, but the interference of his landlord and prying neighbor lady
motivate him to cover his work and remove himself from further confrontation. The evil that he could commit
does not occur to him until after he has swallowed the potion and seen the reaction of the landlord and others.
The irony is, that his invisibility is good only for approaching unseen and for getting away. Any gains from his
crimes are useless to him. He cannot enjoy any of the normal comforts of life-such as food, clothes, and money.
He cannot eat without hiding the action, as the food in his system will render him visible. Clothes, when he
is able to wear them, must be used to cover him from head to foot in order to conceal his real “concealment”-
hardly a comfortable state in the heat of the summer. He can steal money, but cannot spend it on his own
accord. Thus the condition that would make him invulnerable also renders him helpless.
Inspite of his predicament, Griffin at no time expresses any remorse for his behaviour or for the crimes, which
he merely describes as “necessary.” His only regret is frustration over not having thought about the drawbacks
of invisibility. For nearly a year, he works on trying to perfect an antidote; when time runs out for that activity,
he first tries to leave the country, and then, that plan failing, tries to find an accomplice for himself so he can
enjoy his invisibility and have all the comforts of life as well. He goes from obsession to fanaticism to insanity.
Marvel
Mr. Marvel is the local tramp. He is harmless, eccentric, fat, but not nearly as stupid as Griffin thinks he is. He is
smart enough to know when a good thing has happened to him; the stories he tells to the press bring him much
attention and sympathy. In the end, he gets to keep all the money Griffin stole, and he contrives on his own to
keep the books of Griffin’s experiments. He becomes the owner of an inn as well as the village bard, as it is to
him that people come when they want to know the stories of the Invisible Man. Inspite of his earlier torment,
he is the only one who actually benefits from Griffin’s presence.
Kemp
Kemp is referred to as “the doctor,” but his degree seems to be an academic one rather than a medical one. He
continues his own study in hope of being admitted to “the Royal Fellows.” His own experiments and fascination
with science enable him to listen sensibly to Griffin, but inspite of being rather contemptuous of his fellow
citizens, his common sense and decency prevent him from being a part of Griffin’s schemes. Kemp is also the
only “cool headed” person in the town once the final attack begins. He runs to escape Griffin, but as soon as
Griffin catches him, he has the presence of mind to turn the capture around. He is also the first to realize that
even though Griffin is invisible, he is injured, and, ultimately, dead.

Question Bank – English - XII 165

Chapter - 1

The Strange Man’s Arrival

Glossary
Portmanteau - case for carrying objects while travelling
Haggler - negotiator
Éclat - specialty
Staccato - with break
Serviette - table napkin
Brevity - terseness
Scythe - reaping tool with a long sharp curved blade

THE
INVISIBLE

MAN

166 Question Bank – English - XII

Chap 1. She takes Believes he’s
coat & leaves had acccident or

Surgery

Stranger comes Man’s face He asks for
to Iping covered with luggage from

Bandages Station

Stays at Mrs Hall She says not
Coach & brings food till next day &
Horses Inn and Mustard.
offers help

Not a Haggler. Keeps wet coat Snubbed, but
Mrs. Hall & hat on continues to
listen at doors.
happy to serve.

Summary
The book starts with a stranger arriving in a snowstorm at the Bramblehurst railway station, carrying a little

black portmanteau in a thickly gloved hand. The author adds suspense to the narrative by stating that he
was bundled from head to foot with only the tip of his nose showing. He arrived at the Coach and Horses,
an inn in Iping and demanded a room and a fire. Mrs.Hall, the owner of the inn is only too pleased as
it is an unheard-of piece of luck to have a guest during wintertime and that too someone who was not a
“haggler”. She goes out of her way to prove herself worthy of her good fortune, but he is taciturn with her.
He does not encourage her to get into a dialogue. He hides his face with bandage. Mrs. Hall sympathizes
with him as an accident or operation victim. He is cold in his responses to her and snubs her. During his
stay, he remains quite still till early hours-perhaps dozing. Later he could be heard adding coal once or twice
to the fire and pacing about in the room, talking to himself.
Solved Example:
1. What did the strange man look like when he staggered into the ‘Coach and Horses’?
Ans. The Strange man’s arrival as a staggering stranger at the Coach and Horses lends an air of mystery to the
story. His looks are bizarre and mannerisms dark. The weather, the interors of the deserted inn and the
apprehension he creates by his looks, arouses interest in the story. He is tottly covered, wearing spectacles
with sidelights, which basically look like goggles. At least one person say he looks like he’s wearing a
diving helmet. The strange man was carrying a little black portmanteau in his thickly gloved hand.He was
wrapped up from head to foot, and the brim of his soft felt hat hid every inch of his face but his shiny tip
of the nose;the snow had piled itself against his shoulders and chest and added a crest to the burden he
carried.

Question Bank – English - XII 167

Unsolved Questions
1. Why did the Bramblehurst station emerge in the talk between the stranger and Mrs. Hall?
2. Why did the visitor have a muffled voice?
3. What did Mrs. Hall think might have happened to the stranger’s face?

168 Question Bank – English - XII

Chapter - 2

Mr. Teddy Henfrey’s First Impressions

Glossary
Ruddy - reddish
Excruciating - extremely painful
Unassuming - not wanting to draw attention
Humbugging - dishonest behavior that is intended to trick people
Swindled - to procure money through cheating
Snappishly - irritably
Scrutinised - to examine something very carefully

Mrs. Hall She tries to Henfrey
looking for excuse continue deliberately slow,
conversation
to enter but snubbed told to leave

Teddy Henfrey Experimental Furious, tries to
asked to look investigator, need incite Hall by

at clock for silence spreading
and darkness rumours

Stranger allows Stranger Hall enters room.
but reiterates expains Told to mind
himself own business
need for
Privacy

Summary
As Mrs. Hall was mustering up some courage to enter the stranger’s room,to ask him if he would take some

tea, Teddy Henfrey, a clock repairman comes to the inn. She asks him to repair the clock in the stranger’s
room. She is appalled when she enters the room and finds the stranger seated in an armchair with a vast
and incredible mouth that swallowed the whole of the lower portion of the face. Recovering from the
shock she sought permission from the stranger to allow Teddy to enter his room. Teddy deliberately takes
as long as he can with the clock, taking it apart and reassembling it for no reason. The stranger finally gets
him to hurry up and leave. Offended, Teddy talks himself into believing that the stranger is someone of a

Question Bank – English - XII 169

suspicious nature, perhaps even wanted by the police and is wrapped up to conceal his identity. Teddy then
runs to meet Mr. Hall at Gleeson’s corner.He warns Mr. Hall of the stranger at the inn.When Mr. Hall tries
to confront his wife about housing the stranger, she asks him to mind his own business.
Solved Example:
1. Who was Mrs. Hall? What image do you form of her?
Ans. Mrs. Hall, is shown as a domineering wife who nags her husband about drinking. Mr. Hall isn’t so quick
(he has a “heavy intelligence”) and Mrs. Hall takes out her frustrations on Millie, the serving girl. In other
words, they are a stereotypical country couple. Mrs. Hall is the one who is primarily in charge. Mrs. Hall is
friendly with the villagers and elicits their help whenever required. She is also a good manager who arranges
for the pick up of the strangers’ luggage. An opportunist by nature, she is happy enough to leave Griffin
alone so long as her money is coming in on time. She is accommodating by nature and disregards the gruff
remarks and rudeness of Griffin. Her husband is more suspicious but does not interfere until Griffin’s
behaviour starts to become obvious. Mrs. Hall, the landlady of the Coaches and Horses inn, is revealed
as rather devious in a harmless sort of way. She really wants to know what the man’s disfigurement is; she
assumes he has been in a horrible accident, and the motherly side of her wants to know how to express
sympathy. She is a very good innkeeper under the circumstances. While she is not above using Teddy to pry
for information, she does not contribute to the spread of rumors. In fact, we are told later that she defends
him as long as he is faithful about paying his bills.
Unsolved Questions:
1. Why did the stranger like to be alone and undisturbed?
2. Why did Mr. Henfrey rush to Gleeson’s corner?
3. Why did Mr. Hall appear to be a man of sluggish apprehension?

170 Question Bank – English - XII

Chapter - 3

The Thousand and One Bottles

Glossary
Dilettante - in a manner as if one is an expert
Indecipherable - impossible to make out
Fatuities - foolish things
Cauterised - to close a cut by using a hot instrument in order to prevent infection or to stop blood
Chiffonnier - a high chest of drawers oftenhaving a mirror on top
Exasperation - vexation
Concussion - the act of violently shaking or jarring
Athwart - across
Crepitation - to make a crackling sound

Fearenside brings Luggage unpacked Mrs. Hall
luggage innumerable comments on straw
bottles of all scattered- he tells
Stranger wants it shapes and size
hurried up her to add the
PPL outside cost to this bill
Carter’s dog gossip
bites & He smashes bottles
Hall goes in to in rage. She listens
Str. Clothes torn help and is
shoved out outside the
Str. Runs in to door
change
Fearenside and
Henfrey gossip
- Piebald eory

Summary
Finally the stranger’s luggage arrives at the Coach and Horses inn. Numerous crates fill the deliveryman’s

cart to its capacity. Some of them containing bottles packaged in straw. Fearenside, the cart man, owns a

Question Bank – English - XII 171

dog that starts to growl when the stranger comes down the steps to help with the boxes. The dog jumps for
the stranger’s hand, but misses and sinks his teeth in a pant leg. The dog tears open the trouser leg, where
upon the stranger goes quickly back into his room to re-shape himself as he is hollow.
Concerned about the possibility of injury, Mr.George Hall goes to the stranger’s room to offer help. There
he has a glimpse of a most singular thing-what seems a handless arm, waving towards him. He is then
shoved by an unseen force back through the door. The stranger soon reappears at the door; his trouser
changed, and gives orders for the rest of his luggage. The stranger unpacks the crates of bottles, which he
arranges across the windowsill and all the available table and shelf space in the inn’s parlour-a space that he
has ‘chosen’ to suit his needs.
Mrs. Hall enters later to tend to his needs and catches a quick glimpse of him without his glasses. His eyes
seem hollow; he quickly puts his glasses on. She starts to complain about the straw on the floor, but he tells
her to put it on the bill and to knock before entering. She asks him to lock his door if he doesn’t want to be
bothered. He then works behind the locked door all afternoon. At one point, Mrs. Hall hears him raving
about not being able to “go on.” She hears a sound like a bottle being broken. Later she takes him tea and
a note of the broken glass and a stain on the floor. He again tells her to “put it on the bill.”
In the meantime, Fearenside gossips about the stranger at the beer shop saying that the man must be a
“piebald”, or a part white and part black creature.

Solved Example:
1. Why was the stranger so aggressive and explosive?
Ans. The stranger was extremely low on patience and desired solitude and secrecy. He disliked intrusion of any

kind so much so that he felt exasperated each time someone entered his room. He told Mrs. Hall that
his investigations were extremely urgent and that the slightest disturbance –even the jar of a door was
something he did not appreciate. He made gruff remarks and was often rude to Mrs. Hall.
Unsolved Questions:
1. What did Fearenside conclude about the stranger?
2. What did Mr. Hall notice when he entered the stranger’s room?
3. What did Mrs. Hall observe when she took the dinner to the stranger’s room?

172 Question Bank – English - XII

Chapter - 4

Mr. Cuss Interviews The Stranger

Glossary
Skirmishes - conflicts
Ostentatiously - with an intention to show off/impress
Spasmodic - irregular
Gesticulations - dramatic gestures
Bludgeoning - striking using a short and heavy club
Imprecation - curse
Ammonite - the coiled, chambered fossil shell of an ammonoid

Mrs. Hall Stranger irritated
complains about
Uses excuse of A scientië c formula
th mess community gets burned in the
ë re place and to
Invisible man Nurse
tells her to bill save it, stranger
him extra. is He’s curious and exposes his empty
shuts her up jealous of all his
sleeve
bottles.

In April he e villages Cuss shocked,
starts to run doctor, Cuss questions why
out of money. sleeve is empty
visits him

Stranger feared and Imitated by Stranger tweaks
called Bogeyman people of Iping Cuss’s nose.
behind his back Cuss scared,
as he rarely
ventures out except and also runs to Bunting
gossiped about who mocks
in the night. his fear.

Summary
The stranger works diligently in his room until the end of April with only occasional conflicts with Mrs.

Hall. Whenever she objects to anything he does, he quietens her with the lure of additional payment. He
rarely goes out during the day, but goes out nearly every night, muffled up regardless of the weather.
The people of the town are extremely inquisitive about him and speculate about his identity. Mrs. Hall
defends him, repeating his own words that he is an “experimental investigator.” The view of the town is that

Question Bank – English - XII 173

he is a criminal trying to escape justice. Mr. Gould, the probationary assistant imagines that the man must
be an “anarchist” who is preparing explosives.
Some people believe that he is a piebald and could make a lot of money if he chose to show himself at the
fairs. He is generally disliked by everyone as he is too secretive.The young men begin to mock his bearing;
a song called “Bogey Man” becomes popular and children follow at a distance calling out “Bogey Man.”
The tale of the bandaged stranger arouses the curiosity of Mr. Cuss, the general practitioner.He decides to
go and interview him on the pretext of collecting donations for the nurse fund. During the interview the
stranger accidentally removes his hand from his pocket. Cuss is able to see down the empty sleeve to the
elbow. Cuss questions him about “moving an empty sleeve.” The stranger laughs, then extends the empty
sleeve toward Cuss’s face and pinches his nose. Cuss leaves in terror and tells his story to Bunting, the vicar.
Anser the following questions:
Solved Example:
1. What did Mrs. Hall tell the villagers about the stranger?
Ans. Being a tightly knit community of lping town, the villagers were accustomed to being privy to the
happenings in the neighborhood. Thus, Mrs. Hall’s reactions at Griffin’s strange behaviour raise their
apprehension as well as curiosity. No one in lping really likes the stranger and everyone has a theory about
why he’s so weird. He looks strange and doesn’t go to church on Sundays and goes for walks at night. They
conclude that there’s something wrong with this guy. Some people think he’s a criminal or an anarchist or
a lunatic or simply a freak who could make a fortune charging people at county fairs to check him out.
Whatever his deal is, everyone seems to agree that the stranger is too irritable for a village. One villager
who does want to talk to him is the town doctor, Cuss. On Whit Sunday, Cuss goes to talk to the stranger
-partly because he’s curious, partly because he’s jealous of all his bottles.
Unsolved Questions:
1. Why did the stranger become the talk of the town?
2. Analyse the stranger’s behaviour when Mr. Cuss goes to see him.
3. Why does Mr. Bunting call the story of the stranger ‘a most remarkable story’?

174 Question Bank – English - XII

Chapter - 5

The Burglary And The Vicarage

Glossary
Imprecation - a spoken curse
Kindred - closely similar
Coal - scuttle - metal container used to carry coal
Scullery - a small room adjoining to the kitchen to perform kitchen chores
Quaintly - in a strange but not unpleasant manner
Guttering - melting

at night there is a See the kitchen door
burglary at the Vicar’s. open and close but there
is no one. Wonder what
(the Buntings)
happened.
Mrs. Bunting wakes up to
the sound of bare, feet eir money disappears and
walking through at one point they hear a sneeze
her house. in the hallway but are unable to

locate or see the intruder

She wakes her husband When they hear the telltale
up and the two watch and clink of money, Rev. Bunting
rushes into the study with a
listen as a candle is lit
and papers are rustled raised poker, but the room
appears to be empty.
in the study

Summary
In this chapter, a burglary takes place at the vicarage. It occurred in the early hours of Whit Monday. Mrs.

Bunting, the vicar’s wife, wakes up at the sound of bare feet walking through her house. She wakes her
husband and the two watch and listen as a candle is lit and papers are rustled in the study. When they hear
the telltale clink of money, Rev. Bunting rushes into the study with a raised poker, but the room appears to
be empty. Their money disappears and at one point they hear a violent sneeze in the hallway but are unable
to see the intruder.

Question Bank – English - XII 175

Solved Example:
1. “She did not wake up her husband at first, but sat up in bed listening,” Who is ‘she’in the lines and what

is the experience mentioned?
Ans. Mrs. Bunting, the vicar’s wife, wakes up to the sound of bare feet walking through her house. She wakes her

husband and the two watch and listen as a candle is lit and papers are rustled in the study. When they hear
the telltale clink of money, Rev. Bunting rushes into the study with a raised poker, but the room appears
to be empty. Their money disappears and at one point they hear a sneeze in the hallway but are unable to
locate or see the intruder.
Due to the necessity of running about naked, Griffin has caught a cold, which he is unable to completely
hide. His sneezes begin to give him away even through people don’t yet understand what they are hearing.
In robbing the Buntings, Giffin also sets himself up for accusations and criminal charges.
Unsolved Questions:
2. What sound made Mr. Bunting galvanize into action?
3. What makes Mr. Bunting draw the conclusion that the burglar was a village resident?
4. Who do you think the burglar was and why did he steal money from the vicarage?

176 Question Bank – English - XII

Chapter - 6

The Invisible Man

Glossary
1. Sarsaparilla - a sweet drink
2. Gaping - staring
3. Ascertained - ensured
4. Restoratives - relaxants
5. Apprentice - a trainee in a profession
6. Viciously - violently
7. Tremendous - very loud
8. Terminated - ended

Summary
At the Coach and Horses Inn, Mr and Mrs Hall go down to the cellar. Mr Hall goes back upstairs to get

Question Bank – English - XII 177

some sarsaparilla and notices that the stranger’s room is unlocked and the stranger isn’t in his room. He
informs his wife who comes to check in on the situation in the stranger’s room.
A most funny sight awaits her as the blankets and pillows starts flying around the room and the furniture
starts banging around. Mr and Mrs Hall are pushed out of the room by the chair. Mrs Hall immediately
assumes that the stranger has put ghosts in her furniture. She laments that her mother’s furniture has been
possessed by spirits.
The blacksmith is called in and informed that the furniture is acting in an extraordinary manner. He
announced that it was definitely witchcraft at work and soon the others too join in the discussion.
At that moment, the stranger came down the stairs and entered the parlour. He banged the door on their
faces and when Mr Hall went to seek an explanation he spoke rudely and turned him out.

Solved Example
1. What did Mr. and Mrs. Hall experience when they entered the room of the stranger?
Ans. Mr. Hall knocked the door of the stranger’s room but got no response. He opened the door and entered.

It was as he expected. The bed and the room were empty. The guest’s garments and bandages lay strewn
on the bedroom chair and along the rail of the bed. His big slough hat was cocked over the bedpost. Mr.
Hall called his wife. When they both came up, they heard someone sneezing on the staircase. She found
the pillow and clothes very cold in the guest’s room as if the guest was up for many hours. The bed-clothes
gathered together and jumped over the bottom rail. The stranger’s hat hopped off the bed-post, whirled a
circle in the air and whacked Mrs. Hall in her face. The bedroom’s chair, flinging in the strangers’s coat and
trousers aside, turned itself up with its four legs charging at her. She screamed and the couple were pushed
out of the room by the chair. The door smashed violently and was locked. And then suddenly everything
was still. Any person, who believes in ghosts and spirits, may believe this act to be on spirits haunting
the room. The panic is building for Giffin, while characterization is enhanced for the people in the town.
Wadgers delays “breaking” into the room, using the excuse of propriety when the real and very human
reason is apprehension.
2. Who came to help Mr. and Mrs. Hall and what did they debate about?
Ans. Mr. Sandy Wadgers, the blacksmith came to help Mr and Mrs. Hall. He called to clear the mystery about
the strange behaviour of the furniture. They took him to the room, but he seemed to be in no hurry. He
preferred to talk in the passsage about this and that. On the way Mr. Huxter’s apprentice came out and he
was called over to join the discussion. Soon Mr. Huxter too followed in the course of a few minutes.
Everyone debated and discussed vociferously over the course of action about the strange behaviour of Mrs.
Hall’s furniture.
Unsolved Questions
1. What did Mr. and Mrs. Hall do when they found the stranger’s room empty?
2. What happened when Mrs. Hall realized that the stranger had gone for a long time?

178 Question Bank – English - XII

Chapter - 7

The Unveiling Of The Stranger

Glossary
1. Vicarage - the house of the church priest
2. Resplendent - shining brightly
3. Penetrated - to pass through
4. Pungent - strong odour
5. Remittance - money sent to someone
6. Metamorphosed - transformed
7. Incoherent - not clear
8. Tumult - commotion
9. Expostulation - protest
10. Decapitated - temporarily immobile
11. Incontinently - without control
12. Gesticulating - signalling wildly

Question Bank – English - XII 179

Stranger reveals Pushed a woman
invisibility in down the road and

fury kicked a dog

Everyone Stranger escapes
screams in fear, kicking, bashing

runs out and thrashing

People outside gossip, Struggle to Hall kicked in ribs, All realise too late
Mrs. Hall falls capture, Jaffers Wadgers runs to what he is up to
kicked on Shin door
Jaffers and Wadgers Stranger pretends to
come with warrant surrender and cry as
he removes all clothes

Summary
The Halls hear about the burglary at the vicarage and suspect the stranger’s involvement. The stranger

remains in his room and Mrs Hall does not take any food up to him. Finally, the stranger comes out of his
room and asks why his breakfast hasn’t been served to him. Mrs Hall argues that he hasn’t paid his bill. The
stranger offers to pay immediately and everyone’s suspicion about his role in the burglary becomes stronger.
Finally the stranger becomes so fed up that he reveals himself to everyone present at the inn. The people
become terrified and run away. They had been prepared for scars and ugliness, but couldn’t make out the
stranger’s weird empty form. Eventually, Constable Jaffers comes to arrest the stranger. But when he goes
along with some others inside the inn, they notice the headless figure eating bread and cheese.
The stranger explains that he is invisible and agrees to surrender. But suddenly, he starts to take off his
clothesand this makes him totally invisible. He starts hitting everyone in the crowd and they start to panic.
Constable Jaffers falls to the ground in the ensuing melee and no one knows if he’s dead or unconscious.
Solved Example
1. Describe the episode of the unveiling and escape of the stranger at the Hall’s Inn.
Ans. Mrs. Hall and the stranger started arguing for money because he had not paid his bill recently. But he
explained that he found some more money recently which made Mrs. Hall suspicious about his involement
in the burglary at the vicars. In anger, Mrs. Hall wanted to know what he had been doing to her chair
upstairs, and how he entered the empty room again. This made the stranger so frustrated that he revealed
his form to the people at the inn. He removed the cloth wrapped over his face, and stepped forward to
hand over his pink nose to Mrs. Hall. Then he wrapped over his face, and stepped forward to hand over his
pink nose to Mrs. Hall. Then he removed his spectacles, his hat, whiskers and bandages. Everyone fled the
inn in horror and panic. He thus looks like a person with a missing head. At the sound of screams a crowd
of people run toward the inn. “ Eye-witnesses” suddenly babble hysterical stories of the man attacking the
servant girl, and brandishing a knife. Bobby Jaffers, the village constable, appears with a warrant.

180 Question Bank – English - XII

The stranger slaps Jaffers with his glove, but then says he will surrender. He will not accept handcuffs,
however. As the constable, Halls and others watch, the man removes the rest of his clothes, becoming
invisible before them. He tells them that he is invisible. Jaffers wants to take him in for questioning on
suspicion of robbing the Bunting home. A scuffle ensues, and the stranger, now known as the “Invisible
Man,” escapes.

Unsolved Questions
1. Describe the escape of the stranger from the Coach and Horses inn.
2. Why did the people in Mrs. Hall’s establishment flee the place in horror?
3. What did Mrs. Hall demand from the stranger? What was his reply?

Question Bank – English - XII 181

Chapter - 8

In Transit

Glossary
1. Naturalist - botanist
2. Savagely - viciously
3. Beheld - saw
4. Indisputable - without any doubt
5. Cultivated - educated
6. Spasmodic - sudden, continuous
7. Phenomenon - occurrence
8. Tranquillity - calmness

Gibbons the Naturalist is dozing
lazily on the downs

He hears someone coughing
and sneezing; cursing in the
vocabulary of an educated man

He sees no one,
is scared and runs away

He says that the voice went towards
Aderdeen, this assures the people of
Iping that the invisible Man is gone.

Summary
It’s a short chapter with very little incident of significance. Gibbons, the amateur naturalist was lying

outdoors in the spacious fields. He was nearly dozing when he heard the sound of a man coughing,
sneezing and swearing viciously to himself. When he looked around he saw nothing yet the voice of an
educated man swearing was clearly heard by him. The sound gradually faded away, going in the direction
of Adderdean. It finally ended with a loud sneeze and Gibbons who had heard nothing of the morning’s
occurrence at Iping was disturbed by this unusual phenomenon and went hastily towards the village.

182 Question Bank – English - XII

Solved Example
1. What did Gibbons experience while taking a nap in the open fields of the village?
Ans. Gibbons an amateur naturalist was lying in the open field of the village without anyone else in the vicinity.

He was taking a light nap and almost dozing. Suddenly, he heared the sound of a man coughing, sneezing
and swearing savagely. The sound grew to a climax, then diminished and died away in the direction of
Adderdean. It finally lifted to a high and unexpected sneeze and ended. The whole phenomenon was so
alarming that Gibbons hurried down towards the village, having lost his peace and tranquility. Frightened
to death, he ran home.
Unsolved Questions
1. What did Gibbons hear while he was dozing?
2. What did the voice continue to do?

Question Bank – English - XII 183

Chapter - 9

Mr. Thomas Marvel

Glossary
1. Copious - huge
2. Visage - face
3. Accentuated - increased, emphasised
4. Interlocutor - a person talking on behalf of somebody
5. Irradiated - enlightened
6. Tremulous - shaking
7. Ricocheted - rebounded
8. Timorously - timidly
9. Assimilated - absorbed
10. Flabbergasted - shocked

Summary
Mr Marvel, a homeless tramp was sitting with his feet in a ditch by the roadside near Adderdean. He is

staring at a pair of boots given to him as charity. As he contemplates trying them on, he hears a voice
behind him but he can’t see who is talking. He wonders if he is drunk or gone crazy when the voice reveals

184 Question Bank – English - XII

that he is an invisible man. To prove himself he starts throwing stones at Marvel and shows that he is real.
Marvel is finally convinced that there’s actually somebody there. The Invisible Man explains that he needs

Marvel’s help. He asks him to help him get clothes and shelter and in other things. He knows Marvel is also
an outcast and he promises to help Marvel for helping him.
He declares that an invisible man is a man of power and warns Marvel not to betray him.
Solved Example
1. Narrate the episode of Mr. Thomas Marvel’ first meeting with the invisible man.
Ans. Marvel was sitting with his feet in the ditch by the roadside. Marvel appears eccentric, unassuming and
somewhat of a loner, who could be a bait to Griffin. He has no family, and apparently little money as he
is first found contemplating whether or not he wants to keep a set of cast-off boots. He is fat, red faced,
slow moving and doesn’t seem terribly bright, but that is merely the effect of Giffin having the advantage
over him. As soon as he realizes his predicament, he begins to look for any possible means of escape. As
for Griffin, he is “making use” of Marvel in the same way that he did the Halls.He was trying on a pair of
boots given to him as charity. He put the four shoes in a group and looked at them. It occured to him that
both pair were exceedingly ugly when he heard a voice behind him. Mr. Thomas Marvel replied with no
sign of surprise that they are charity boots. Then he realized that he was drunk, it might have been the echo.
To prove that he was real and just invisible, the voice started throwing rocks at Marvel. When Marvel was
convinced that there might be someone there, he was able to make out some bread and cheese in front of
him. The invisible man explained to him that he needed Marvel’s help. He knew that Marvel is an outcast,
plus he promises to reward the homeless man for helping him as an invisble man is a man of power. Then
he sneezes violently.
2. Discuss the entry of a new stranger in the village after the invisible man’s escape from that place.
Ans. Mr. Thomas Marvel is a jolly old tramp with no home or job, he wanders from place to place, usually
asking people for food or money. The author has unwillingly recruited him to assist the invisible man as his
first visible partner. He carries around the Invisible Man’s books for him. He wears a shabby high war hat,
and we first meet him at a charity. There is an air of abandon and eccentricity about him. He was bearded,
plump and had short limbs. He wore a furry silk hat, twine and shoelaces are a substitute for bottons at
critical points of his costune. He drinks a lot and when he heard the visible man for the first time, he
thought it was his dizziness due to drink that he sounded like this. He is a practical man as he acceded to
the request of the invisble man after knowing that an invisible man is a man of power and can help him a
lot.
Unsolved Questions
1. What was Marvel contemplating?
2. What did the voice ask Marvel to do?

Question Bank – English - XII 185

Chapter - 10

Mr. Marvel’s Visit To Iping

Glossary
1. Scepticism - feeling of doubt
2. Tentative - cautious
3. Qualms - doubts
4. Alacrity - readiness
5. Apprising - informing
6. Furtive - secretive
7. Belied - betrayed
8. Larceny - theft
9. Whirling - moving around in a circle

Summary
At first the villagers of Iping panicked after seeing the invisible man. But gradually the excitement died

down and they got back to the merrymaking planned for the day. Everyone participated merrily in the
festival.

186 Question Bank – English - XII

Then they noticed the arrival of another stranger. This was Mr Marvel who acted suspiciously and headed
towards the Coach and Horses Inn in a furtive manner. He appeared to be talking to himself and acted
in a strange manner. Mr Huxter noticed him waiting outside the window of the inn and when he headed
towards the yard he started to chase him.

But while he is chasing the stranger, something trips him and he falls to the ground unconscious.

Solved Example
1. Narrate the episode of Mr. Thomas Marvel’s firt meeting with the visible man.
Ans. Iping was agog with decorations, and everyboady was in gala dresses. Whit-Monday had been looked

forward for a month or more. By the afternoon even those who believed in invisible man were beginning
to join in the little amusements. Haysman’s meadow was gay with a tent in which Mr. Bunting and other
ladies were preparing tea, while, outside, the Sunday-school children ran races and played games. Members
of the country club, who had attended church in the morning, were splendid in the badge of pink and
green.
Unsolved Questions
1. What did the stranger do when he reached Coach and Horses?
2. What happened to Huxter when he ran after the thief?
3. Why did Marvel’s visit to lping make Huxter suspicious of him?
Ans. Griffin has used Marvel to attempt to get his belongings out of the Coach & Horses. Marvel’s resistance
manages to get attention, but not the attention he wants. Huxter thinks that Marvel has committed the
robbery.
Iping has nearly recovered from its earlier holiday atmosphere. As only a few people had actually made
contact with the Invisible Man, the general population is soon able to reason him away as some trick of an
overactive, holiday imagination.
Around 4:00, Mr. Marvel enters town and observed by Huxter to behave rather strangely. He makes his
way down the street almost reluctantly. He stops at the foot of the steps to the Coach & Horses and seems
to undergo a great struggle before finally entering. A few minutes later, he re-emerges, apparently having
had a drink, and walks as if he is trying to act nonchalant. soon he disappears into the yard and re-emerges
with a bundle wrapped in a tablecloth. Huxter thinks some robbery has taken place and tries to follow
Marvel when he is tripped in a mysterious fashion and sent sprawling.

Question Bank – English - XII 187

Chapter - 11

In The Coach And Horses

Glossary:
1. Fastidiously - Difficult to please; quick to find fault
2. Sporadically - At an occasional or irregular frequency
3. Conjuror - One who performs parlor tricks, sleight of hand; a magician
4. Pry - To look where one is not welcome; to be nosy
5. Concussion - A violent collision or shock
6. Vicar - In the church of England, the priest of a parish, receiving a salary or stipend, but not tithes

Cuss and Bunting look through I.M.’s
diaries, can’t decipher anything

When Marvel comes into parlour, I.M.
enters with him. en Marvel goes into
taproom.

I.M. catches them by the necks, presses
their chins to the table

He threatens to kill them if they try
anything

Says he came for his clothes and books
and is angry that they are here and also
cannot ë nd his clothes

Summary:
The chapter provides an insight to the reader about the happenings at the inn, when Mr.Marvel appeared. It also
helps to understand Chapter-10 in a more distinct manner .
Cuss and Bunting are back and they are going through the Invisible Man’s papers, including his diaries. None
of them can understand the content and in fact they are not even sure that they’re written in English.

188 Question Bank – English - XII

Marvel allows the Invisible Man to enter the room, where Cuss and Bunting are.The latter are unable to see the
Invisible Man. But they definitely ask Marvel to leave. Once he does, Cuss and Bunting latch the door from
inside, which means that they will not be interrupted by anyone. It also means that the Invisible Man gets a
clear, hassle-free opportunity to beat the living daylights out of them.
By the end of the chapter, the Invisible Man has quite lost his temper and wishes to know where his stuff is,
including his clothes. He threatens to kill the two men.
Solved Examples
1. Mr Cuss and Mr. Bunting were preparing to make a thorough examination of the three books (diaries)

gathered from Mrs. Hall’s house but their operation was nipped in the bud. How?
Ans. While Mr. Cuss and Mr.Bunting were engaged in discussing about bizarre happenings that had gone on

in Iping lately, and about the activities of the Invisible man in particular,the parlour door flung open with
the entry of the intruder. Having let the intruder in the Vicar and the doctor proceeded to inspect the
books and decipher its notes when they felt a strong hand grab the back of their neck and threaten in a
menacing voice that should they fail to comply with his orders he would not have the slightest hesitation
in killing them with the poker. Saying this he let his accomplice gather their clothes and his three diaries
and flee off. Griffin is seen on the verge of insanity. He is probably terrified on two counts. One would be
lest someone tamper with his notes or other belongings related to his experiments. The other would be lest
should actually be able to decipher his records.
2. Who was ‘the man in misfortune’? Do you think he had brought it upon himself to be shunned and outcast
by normal people?
Ans. The Invisible man, Griffin was the man in misfortune who had come to the village of Iping lately and was
hounded off from all corners and had to take refuge in the downs. Having experimented with his own
self he was suffering from the side-effects of invisibility. It was not possible for him to venture out of doors
during daytime and could move freely only under cover of darkness or where there was no one around.
Suffering from all kinds of hardships, he found some kind of solution when he got Mr. Marvel to agree
to become his accomplice and get him his daily requirements and more to the downs where he had started
living.
Unsolved Questions
1. What were the doctor and the Vicar busy doing when the door of “The Coach and Horses” opened and a
fellow intruded?
2. How did the Invisible man manage to make Mr Marvel his assistant and with what what motives?

Question Bank – English - XII 189

Chapter - 12

The Invisible Man Loses His Temper

Glossary
1. Grimaces - A smirk; a made-up face
2. Obdurate - Stubbornly persistent, generally in wrong doing
3. Crestfallen - Sad; depressed
4. Gesticulating - To make gestures or motions as in speaking; to use postures
5. Tumult - Confused, agitated noise as made by a crowd
6. Bawled - To shout or utter in a loud and intense manner
7. Prostrate - Lying flat, facedown
8. Smiting - To hit (archaic); to strike down or kill with godly force
9. Cataclysmic - Causing great destruction or upheaval; catastrophic

Henfrey and Hall hear ey listen at door, Mrs. Hall furious at their
strange sounds from knock and ask if eavesdropping but they
Parlour, where Cuss and everything is ok explain about the strange
Bunting are looking sounds and she also listens
through I.M.’s things People in Taproom
rush out and see Hall and 2 labourers
Outside Huxter is Huxter fall and run after Marvel
heard shouting, “Stop become uncon-
thief ” and a tumult is scious think I.M. suddenly
heard in the parlour visible
People from stalls
Hall is bumped in- set up on village Mrs. Hall stays near
to and he falls on green also run to the cashbox; sees
the labourer, while catch but are beat-
other one is tripped Cuss run out saying
en up someone has his
trousers and the
Vicar’s clothes

190 Question Bank – English - XII

Question Bank – English - XII 191

Summary
At the outset, the focus shifts from the room to the rest of the bar from where Teddy Henfrey and Mr.Hall hear
some weird going-on in the room where the Invisible Man is staying.
They are interrupted in their investigations by Mrs.Hall who is under the false impression that Mr. Hall and
Henfrey are spying on Cuss and Bunting for fun. Just then, Hunter hollers out about a thief and goes running
off after the man in the shabby high hat.The narrator takes the reader back to the inn where people are seen
coming out of the inn to see what Hunter is yelling about, Marvel is mistaken as the Invisible Man. He is chased
by many people, all of whom trip, just as Hunter did. At this point, Cuss comes out of the stranger’s room,
revealing that the Invisible Man stole his as well as Bunting’s clothes.
Once again, the Invisible Man is witnessed in one of his very ferocious moods, beating up people, as a
consequence of which everyone, including Marvel runs away.
Solved Example:
1. Throw light on the temperament of the Invisible man by alluding to his actions and reactions towards the

Vicar and the doctor in the parlour.
Ans The Invisible man when driven to the edge by penury and other hardships decides to help himself.He did

so with a vengeance and unleashed a reign of terror in and around the parlour in Iping while his friend
and accomplice Mr Marvel made escape with some clothes and his precious diaries. Marvel had taken
advantage of the situation and rather than carrying Griffin’s material for him, had run away with it. The
intervention of Huxter and the other individuals enabled Marvel to get away with the precious book. The
Invisible Man then, broke the window panes of the “Coach And Horses”and smote and hurt one and all
who came in his way, knocking off the villagers from their senses. He exploited his invisibility to the fullest
and thoroughly enjoyed having an upper hand over all others for once. He perhaps intended to use the
Vicar’s clothes to cover his retreat but’went completely over the edge’. He threw benches, chair and boards
and eventually caught up with Marvel.
Unsolved Questions
1. How has the author created a scene of utter confusion and mayhem in Iping resulting in closure of all
normal activities in the village?
2. Explain how H.G.Wells has succeeded in creating a hilarious situation by mixing up the conversation of
Mr Bunting, Mr Cuss within the parlour and Mr. Henfrey, Mr. Hall without.
3. How did the Invisible man’s wrath impact Mr. Hall, the two labourers and the proprietor of the coconut
shy

192 Question Bank – English - XII

Chapter - 13

Mr. Marvel Discusses His Resignation

Glossary
1. Timorously - Fearful, afraid, timid
2. Ligature - The act of tying or binding something
3. Rubicund - Possessing a red complexion
4. Spasmodic - Intermittent or fitful; consisting of spasms
5. Eloquent - Fluently persuasive and articulate
6. Yokels - An unsophisticated person
7. Gloaming - Sullenness, melancholy

Summary
The Invisible Man threatens Marvel, as the latter apparently tried to run away(though he claims he didn’t).That
would have, by no means, been acceptable since Marvel is carrying all the important research notes and other
stuff belonging to the Invisible Man.
The Invisible Man is not at all happy when he realizes that he would soon be in news. It never occurred to him
while he was beating heck out of people.

Question Bank – English - XII 193

Solved Example
1. Mr. Marvel found himself in a very tight corner indeed and felt himself living on the edge. Elaborate.

Ans. Mr. Marvel, propelled by the unrelenting shoulder grip and vocal threats of the invisible man, arrives in
Bramblehurst. As The Invisible Man wandered from Iping to Bramble Hurst and then to Port Stowe, he
dragged Mr. Marvel along as his beast of burden. The latter was completely out of breath all the time and
was suffering great hardships due to being pressed on ahead on the roads, and across fields (as if he were
doing the marathon). Mr. Marvel begged to the Invisible Man to let him go which was forcibly rejected
by him. Mr. Marvel felt miserable that he wanted to die rather than have the invisible man tagging along
with him. Giffin’s crude behaviour toward Marvel is highlighted. Marvel tries reasoning, whining, and even
suggesting that he may in the long run be a failure and thus “mess up” Griffin’s plans. Nothing works. For
the moment, Griffin needs Marvel.

Unsolved Questions
1. ‘The presence of the Invisible Man in Iping posed a complex situation for the simple folks and shattered

their peace of mind.’’ Discuss.
2. The Invisible Man had planted himself beside Mr. Marvel like a parasite sticks to its host. Do you agree?

3. After creating mayhem in Iping which village did the Invisible Man direct Mr. Marvel to move on to?

194 Question Bank – English - XII

Chapter - 14

At Port Stowe

Glossary
1. Opulence - Wealth, abundance, profusion
2. Interlocutor - A person who takes part in dialogue or conversation
3. Amplifying - To render larger, more extended
4. Bandying - To and receive reciprocally; to exchange
5. Obliquely - Sideways
6. Recriminations - A counter or mutual accusation
7. Akimbo - With a crook or bend
8. Dexterously - Skillfully; with precision; carefully
9. Collated - To examine diverse documents to discover similarities and differences

Question Bank – English - XII 195

Summary
The next day, in Port Stowe, Marvel nervously waits on a bench, and ends up chatting with an elderly

mariner(sailor).
The sailor hears some coins jingling in his pocket though in reality, Marvel is a penniless tramp. The old

man shares information pertinent to the Invisible Man, which he had gathered from the newspaper. The
story of the Invisible Man seems to be quite believable as the newspaper reports provide all names and
details. He also holds the views that the Invisible Man would be quite successful as a thief as he would never
be seen or caught by anyone.
Marvel tells the sailor that he too knows the Invisible Man and looks around stealthily to ensure his
absence. The Invisible Man’s presence is soon felt by Marvel when he thinks he has been hurt by him.
Marvel promptly covers his tracks and admits that the Invisible Man’s story is nothing more than a hoax.
He quickly gets out of there or probably gets pulled by the Invisible Man.
The sailor seems quite irked with Marvel for letting him go on about this Invisible Man. Later, the mariner
hears stories about robberies and how money was seen floating away. It is then that he realizes what had
gone down on the bench in Port Stowe, and how close he had been to the Invisible Man.
Solved Examples
1. How did the newspapers distort the news of what actually happened in the “Coaches And Horses’’ Inn?
Ans. It was only natural for Mr. Cuss and Mr. Bunting to change the story and report to the papers because
they had very grossly been manhandled by Griffin. They tried to save their faces by reporting that it was
the village constable who had tried to nab Griffin and in the bargain had sustained serious injuries when he
found that shedding off his clothes The Invisible Man had managed to escape.

196 Question Bank – English - XII

2. What do you think made Mr. Marvel change his mind about revealing his knowledge of the invisible Man
to the old Mariner near Port Stowe Inn?

Ans. Taking cue from the old Mariner’s lines that Griffin had tremendous advantage over normal people, Mr.
Marvel seemed to resolve to spill the beans. He had merely begun speaking about it declaring that he
happened to know just a thing or two about that Invisible Man when his expression completely changed
marvelously and he yelped in pain. Thereafter he quickly changed the topic and made a curt denial of
any such knowledge. Obviously he had yielded to someone’s arm twisting. He tells the mariner that it
is a toothache, then goes on to say that the Invisible Man is a hoax. Marvel begins to move off, walking
sideways with violent forward jerks. Later the mariner hears another fantastic story-that of money floating
along a wall in butterfly fashion. The story is true, however. All about the neighborhood, money has been
making off by the handful and depositing itself in the pockets of Mr. Marvel.

Unsolved Questions
1. How uncomfortable was Mr. Marvel carrying out the orders of Griffin all the time?
2. What happened when Mr. Marvel was sitting on the bench outside the Inn near Port Stowe that morning?

Question Bank – English - XII 197

Chapter - 15

The Man Who Was Running

Glossary
1. Albeit - Despite it’s being; although
2. Flaxen - A pale yellow brown; the colour of dried flax stocks
3. Confound - To confuse; to mix up
4. Occulted - To dissimulate, conceal or cover
5. Fugitive - A person who is fleeing or escaping from something
6. Abject - Degraded; servile; despicable; groveling

Summary
The Man Who was Running

The chapter introduces Dr Kemp who is seen in his study, overlooking the town of Burdock. His study
is replete with science stuff. While he looks out of his study window, he sees a man with a shabby high
hat running down into the town. This man is assumed to be yet another foolish man who is running out
of fear of the Invisible Man. Kemp, obviously is too scientifically inclined to believe in the concept of
the existence of the likes of the Invisible Man. But the man running outside looks excessively terrified.
Everyone around freaks out, and for reason valid enough- the Invisible Man is chasing the ‘running man’.

Solved Example
1. How did Griffin misuse the powers of his being invisible?
Ans. Griffin who was invisible discovered that he was able to enjoy tremendous advantage over one and all. He

198 Question Bank – English - XII

pleased himself by hitting, punching and kicking people around him indiscriminately. He robbed people
off their money, carrying fistfuls of coins and depositing them in Marvel’s coat pockets. He had forcibly
caught hold of Mr. Marvel much to the misfortune and harassment of the latter. Apart from having
terrorized the entire townsfolk, he had gravely wronged Mr. Marvel by not letting him go when he had
begged to be set free from his bondage.
Unsloved Questions
1. What kind of reactions did Mr. Marvel’s appearance invite from the people who were in his close proximity?
2. Who was Dr. Kemp and what was he working upon?
3. Describe the man who was running, plodding, heavily towards Dr. Kemp’s house that evening?